The Auburn City Council held its biweekly Study Session Monday, June 9. The meeting was called to order at 5:30 pm, Councilmember Brown was excused from the meeting. Watch full meeting here.

Use of Force Presentation

First on the agenda was a presentation by the Auburn Police Department, given by Commander Steve Stocker, regarding the use of force in 2019. This presentation said that all areas of crime decreased by various percentages in 2019. There were 86,062 calls in 2019; out of these calls, there were 36 allegations and inquiries into the conduct of police officers. Twelve of these ended with a result of misconduct and five ended with no conclusion, meaning it is an ongoing investigation or the officer resigned before a result was found.

There were 19 police collisions last year, 14 of them were preventable. 13 of these collisions were handled with more proper training and one ended with a written reprimand.

There was a total of three excessive force allegations in 2019; none of them were sustained. These three excessive force allegations did not include the two fatal officer-involved shootings. There was a total of 214 use of force reports in 2019. Out of those 214 reports, 86 suspects were injured, and 31 police officers were injured. Outside of the two officer-involved fatalities, almost all injuries were minor.

The most used use of force tactic is Vascular Neck Restraint, which is where the officer applies pressure to the chest and neck. Deputy Mayor DaCorsi asked if the officers get repeat training on this tactic, the answer was yes. Officers must get certified every so often or they are not certified to use the tactic.

Councilmember Trout-Manuel recommended that the City look into an independent review board made up of citizens to investigate use of force allegations. (Watch here)

South King Housing and Homelessness Partners Presentation

Next on the agenda was a presentation Regarding SKHHP, or the South King Housing and Homelessness Partners. The Executive Manager for the City of Auburn and SKHHP gave an overview of the formation and work of last year, which included the resolution passed in November to pool funds from the member cities for the organization. They also gave a short action plan for 2020, which included the effects on Covid-19 on housing. (Watch Here)

Ordinance 6777 Presentation

After that was a discussion on Ordinance 6777, which extends the waiver of utility late fees through August 31st. Currently, there is a normal number of late accounts with the City of Auburn. (Watch Here)

Pierce County Transit Presentation

There was a presentation by Pierce Transit next. The presentation detailed the minor updates to their 2040 vision, which includes surveying non-motorized access areas like stations and park-and-rides, increasing service hours, and looking at new web tools. (Watch here)

Lea Hill Corridor Study Presentation

Next was the results and plan from the Lea Hill Corridor study. The plan details a 5 phase plan of construction. The most major improvements are the implementation of 3 roundabouts and the modifications to the 105th Place intersection. The roundabouts would be at the 104th Avenue and Lea Hill Road intersection, 112th Avenue and Lea Hill Road intersection, and the 116th Avenue and Lea Hill Road intersection. The improvements to the 105th Pl intersection will make it a one way in, one way out intersection, which will remove the traffic signal at that intersection. Other improvements include the addition of sidewalks, bike lanes, and the widening of the 8th Street Bridge sidewalks. (Watch Here)

Auburn ADA Compliance Presentation

After that was a presentation of the proposed American Disability Act updates for the City so that they would comply. It was said that the City would not be in 100% compliance because the city was constructed over 100 years ago. (Watch Here)

Ordinance 6768 Presentation

Then there was a discussion on proposed Ordinance 6768, which would allow the waiving of public Right of Way fees so that restaurants could open outdoor seating on sidewalks and public parking lots. This ordinance is proposed for a vote on Monday, the 14th. (Watch Here)

CARES Act Fund Distribution Presentation

Lastly was a presentation on the distribution of the CARES act funding for businesses in the City. There was $650,000 given to the City to distribute to local businesses. Approximately 300-500 businesses could qualify to receive this funding. The city is mostly looking for small city businesses to distribute funds to. Franchises are not allowed to receive this funding and the optimal business should have less than 5 employees. (Watch Here)

This presentation concluded the agenda, and Deputy Mayor Claude DiCorsi adjourned the meeting.

The next Auburn City Council Meeting is Monday, June 15 at 7PM. Council meetings are still being held electronically and telephonically. If you are unable to make the council meeting, you can watch live on Comcast Channel 21, or on Auburn’s YouTube channel watchauburn. If you miss the livestream, the meetings are recorded and hosted for future viewing.