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Home My WebLink About1998-0915 Study Session PACKET CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION Tuesday, September 15, 1998, 6:00 p.m. Council Chambers 1. Discussion of Draft Public Information Communication and Marketing Plan. 2. Update on the Progress of the Comprehensive Water Master Plan. Ha&ox- 7 Council Meeting Pkt. BARBARA CHRISTENSEN CITY RECORDER Council Communication Administrative Services Department September 15, 1998 Submitted by: Dick Wanderschei Approved by: Mike Freeman M Title: / ' Draft Public Information, Communication & Marketing Plan Synopsis: The first version of this plan was presented to the Council at a study session on July 22, 1998. Based on that discussion and a subsequent meeting with the Ad Hoc Citizen Communication Committee on September 9, a number of changes and additions have been made to the draft plan. Recommendation: Staff recommends that Council move to approve the draft plan. Background Information: The Council has consistently made efforts to improve opportunities for citizen involvement and participation, and increased two-way communication between the city and its citizens. This plan is another significant positive step in moving toward this goal. oF'ASH � CITY OF ASHLAND -; Department of Administrative Services — — MEMORANDUM OREGON.° DATE: 5eptember 11, 199b TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Mike Freem$� Barbara Chriotevefi and Dick Wanderscheid® 51-113JECT: DRAFT PUBLIC INFORMATION, COMMUNICATION & MARKETING PLAN BACKGROUND In 1995, one of the City Council goals was "To improve communication to and from the City of Ashland and its citizens" 5uboequently, the Mayor appointed an Ad Hoc Citizens Communication Committee to help develop a plan to achieve this goal. This committee began meeting in late 1995 and its plan was submitted to and adopted by the City Council in late 1996. The Mayor and Council recognize the value of citizen involvement and good two-way communication with the community. To help achieve this goal, the City Administrator created the Administrative 5ervices Department with public information, communication and marketing responsibilities, and also created a Marketing & Communication Manager position. CHANGES FROM THE ORIGINAL DRAFT Two new sections have been added to this draft of the plan: One deals with implementation of the remainder of the Ad Hoc Communication Committee's Plan and the other adds some additional roles and duties for the Mayor and City Council. This revised plan was reviewed by the Ad Hoc Citizens' Communication Committee on 5eptember 9. As a result of that meeting, additions and changes were made to this draft. These changes include a new introductory section, more emphasis on two-way communication, and a greater recognition of the benefit, value and expertise that citizen involvement brings to the decision making process. PUBLICATION OF THE CITY'5 NEW5LETTER The original draft proposed to change both the timing and authorship of the city's newsletter, with it becoming a monthly newsletter produced by City Administration. Presently, it io a quarterly newspaper, The Ashland City Source, that is produced by the City Recorder's Office. City staff and City Recorder Christensen have had extensive discussions about this proposed change. As you are aware, the initial newsletter idea grew out of the Ad Hoc Committee's plan which included the provision to "Create a city newsletter for residents. Include information about upcoming actions, planning matters, city committees, and a calendar of city meetings and events." Appendix 2 of the plan envisioned this to be a monthly publication. The Ashland City Source has been very oucceooful. It has been well received and has elevated our public communication efforts from basically nothing to a successful quarterly publication. However, for uo to raise these efforts to the next level, we feel it needs to be published on a monthly basis. this will allow it to be a more forward looking document that will alert citizens to upcoming issues and provide a way that citizens are informed of issues much earlier than currently io possible utilizing a quarterly publication. This allows for more effective citizen involvement much earlier and therefore, creates more opportunities to utilize citizen expertise in guiding decisions. From a staffing and work load point of view, it io not possible for a monthly publication to be done by the City Recorder's office. Aloo, relieving the City Recorder of the task of producing the Ashland City Source will free up some valuable time which will enable the office to pursue other important tasks which are currently not being pursued because of the time commitment required to produce the quarterly newsletter. The City Recorder and staff agree this io an appropriate time to make this change. THE ROLE OF MARKETING IN CITY OPERATIONS At the Council Study 5eooion where the initial plan was presented, there was a lot of discussion about the appropriateneoo of the city being involved in marketing. From otaff'o peropective, it io quite clear that in certain city activitieo, marketing io obviously not appropriate. However, other oerviceo clearly need marketing and actually without adequate marketing would be quite unoucceooful. One good example of thin io the city'o conservation programo. Over the last 16 yearn, we have directed over $6,000,000 of BPA money to help make the buoineooeo and reoidenceo of Ashland much more energy efficient. Thio effort required individual actions by every buoineoo and houoehold that participated. The city had to take oignificant marketing and advertioing activitieo to motivate actiono by all these different entitieo. It can certainly be otated that if the city had not actively marketed these programo, they would not have been nearly ao oucceooful ao they were. Another example io the city'o home compooting program. Significant marketing efforto by the. Recycling Took Force, the Conservation Commiooion and city otaff have reoulted in getting over 1,000 Ashland houoeholdo to divert oignificant amounto of oolid waste from the landfill to backyard compoot projects. If the city had merely produced an educational brochure about the benefito of backyard compooting, very few houoeholdo would have gotten involved. Many publically owned electric utilitieo in the Northwest already have active marketing otaffo and programo. Ao deregulation of the electric utility unfoldo, the utilitieo that do not have marketing . programs will need to develop them to deal with this changing marketplace. The city's Electric Utility's Strategic Plan, ao presented to the Council and Budget Committee last year, had a number of marketing related activities included ao being necessary for their continued success. Finally, depending on which and if any telecommunication services are offered by the city as part of the Aohland Fiber Network, significant marketing efforts will be needed also. As stated earlier, some areas are not,appropriate for marketing or "spins" and staff clearly recognizes this distinction. However, we feel it io the staffs responsibility to make and enforce this important distinction. 5UMMAKY Staff recommends the Council move to approve this draft plan because: • It recognizes the value of citizen involvement and effective two-way communications with citizens and will help to foster this. • It builds upon the Ad Hoc Citizens' Communication Plan and the efforts that have been instituted in implementing that plan. • Helpo to achieve the Council's desire to provide effective two-way communication with citizens and will provide for more opportunities for citizen communications with the city. • Will provide a policy framework for developing a detailed implementation plan. • Will provide a mechanism for the Council to evaluate the city's efforts in this area. • Will help to guide prioritization and budget decisions for the Council and Budget Committee. DRAFT PUBLIC INFORMATION COMMUNICATION & MARKETING PLAN INTRODUCTION The Council recognizes the value of citizen involvement and the wealth of good information and resources that the citizens of Ashland possess. It is important to increase the city's understanding of citizen concerns, ideas and values so we can utilize this increased understanding to help make better decisions. It is important the city identify, create and budget for adequate resources for citizens and citizen groups to enable them to effectively become involved in the city's decision making process. PURP05E The purpose of this draft plan i5 to support City Council and all city departments in effectively creating a two-way communication flow with residents, businesses and public agencies to facilitate increased understanding of citizens' desires and concerns and provide information about city programs, projects, services, policies and issues. Existing communication methods will be maintained, monitored and improved upon, and new methods will be developed and implemented. MAJOR GOALS I. Ensure the Mayor and City Council are an active and integral part of the overall city communication strategy. A. Ensure the Mayor and Council are actively involved in the evaluation of the effectiveness and benefits of implementation of this plan. B. Focus on making public meetings as accessible and comfortable as possible for citizen participation and input. C. Where appropriate, commit to attend or host either regular or specially convened meetings of established volunteer or civic groups to discuss city issues and receive input from citizens. P. Create, whenever appropriate, informal opportunities for citizens to express ideas, values and concerns regarding city related issues. E. 'In designing future public participation processes for city projects, become more mindful of effective ways to engage meaningful public involvement. This will require more concentration and focus on the actual design of the process initially. This also means setting the.parameters of the projects that the public can expect to be able to impact by its involvement. F. Adhere to a strong policy of consideration for new candidates to replace committee and commission members who have served two complete terms. G. Create, at least annually, an opportunity for citizens to comment on the City Communication Plan and efforts in this area. II To evaluate the feasibility of implementing the remainder of the Ad Hoc Citizen's Communication Plan. A. 5ponror an annual celebration /open house for the public, boards, commissions and committee members to meet and interact with City Councilors and staff and also to learn about the many ways to volunteer time in the city. B. Implement a phone line at City Hall to provide residents with taped information updated weekly on city meetings and meeting changer. C. Explore and critique part city issues with respect to citizen input to determine what worked and what did not. Notable areas for coordination should at leant include the water and telecom public forums, the hillside and LID process, neighborhood planning processes and charrettes. D. Create opportunities for citizen input on the questions asked in the city's annual community attitude surveys. E. Assess other municipalities and governments for innovative ways to provide information, receive input and communicate with citizens. III. To work with the City Council to develop an overall Communication Strategic Plan for the City. The plan will explore opportunities to improve existing internal and external communications. Specific examples of ideas to implement this goal may include. A. External communication activities - by department: 1. General (all dea arty a. Provide training to city staff on the value of citizen involvement and how incorporating citizen valuer, knowledge and expertise will result in better decision making by the city. Thin training will also provide resources which can help involve citizens in decisions and ensure the input is used to guide these decisions. b. Provide support for all city departments to help them with development of media, publications, advertising, marketing, public education and informational.materialr. G. Facilitate internal training needy of management for media relations, public information and public participation skills. d. Develop a common look or "template" for city documents and publications.. 3. Public Works a. Help Public Works develop a water duality report for the city's water utility which will comply with the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act, and more importantly, will educate citizens of the care and effort taken by the city to provide citizens with very high duality water. b. Help with the public participation and two way communication process for both the waste water treatment plant upgrade and the comprehensive water study. G. Help to continue to footer the positive relationship between the city and the Ashland Watershed Partnership on environmental and Public Works related activities. d. Help to promote a watershed education project. 4. Electric/Telecom Utilities a. Help develop an Electric Utility 5trategic Marketing Plan to help position the city's electric utility to not only Survive but thrive in a deregulated utility market. b. Help develop a Telecom Utility 5trategic Marketing Plan to assist in marketing new telecommunication services to Aohland'o citizens and businesses. G. Help the city's electric and telecom utilities bundle and brand its products into an effective overall marketing approach. 4. Public 5afety a. Help the city's Police Department publicize, promote and succe55fully implement its citizen's academy. b. Help to produce informational materials and/or videos for the Police Department on an overview of the Ashland Police Department used for recruiting and public information, on the DARE program and about public 5afety for 50U foreign students. C. Help to produce informational material and/or a video for the city's Fire Department on an overview of the Fire Department, including fire and ambulance operations and emergency management training and code enforcement. 5. Finance a. Help to develop a citizen friendly Short booklet that briefly explains the city budget process, where funding comes from, how money i5 spent by the city government, and how citizens can get involved in making budget decisions. b. Help to develop informational material on the local improvement district (LID) process, how it works, how they are formed and paid for, etc. C. Help to develop informational materials on system development charges (5DCs), how they are set, paid for and how they are limited by state law, etc. 6. Community Development a. Help to decide and implement the best way to publicize, involve the community and create a two-way communication process in the Planning Commission/Department's revision to the riparian Sections of the city's land use ordinances. b. Help to develop informational materials and/or videos on the building process, planning process, code enforcement and street Standards. B. Internal Communication 1. Meet with employees on a regular basis to promote internal communications, both to and from employees, about city iooues and activities. 2. Enhance the city's internal newsletter by improving its look, content, Schedule and employee participation. 3. Provide a centralized point of contact and coordination internally for the many activities conducted by the city. This will allow a better overall practice of our efforts and make Sure conflicting information iS not being provided by different city departments. 4. Provide training to City staff in the area of conducting and facilitating effective public meetings, the value of effective citizen participation, and ways to encourage and embrace it. IV. Provide timely information to the public and enhance opportunities for public input on city. activities. 5ome Specific ideas in this area may include: A. Implement a high quality monthly city newsletter that will be delivered to all Ashland citizens and businesses. D. Work with 50U, the.AShland Chamber of Commerce, the Ashland League of Women voters and other appropriate entities to sponsor public forums on city iooues that warrant a high level of public awareness and input. C. Improve the look and functionality of the city's web pages. D. Implement CIVIC call or similar Software to track and follow citizen input and complaints about city services and activities. • E. Conduct annual citizen attitude surveys and focus groups to help gauge the effectiveness of city services and offerings and measure attitudes about city government. F. Enhance and coordinate the city's utility bill inserts to improve information flow to citizens and also to provide a longer term planning process for information that is included. G. Continue to strengthen and enhance our relationship with RVTV and utilize its state of the art facilities to create opportunities and projects to deliver information to Ashland citizens. V. To enhance and improve community and media relations. Some specific areas that might be addressed are: A. Designate a liaison to be the city's main contact point with 50U, the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, the Ashland School District, the Oregon 5hakespeare Festival, and the U.S. Forest Service to coordinate items of mutual interest and of interest to the public. B. Work to establish a civic journalism partnership with 50U, and possibly the League of Women Voters and local media, to provide real world opportunities forjournalism students and also gain a valuable method of explaining complex city related issues to citizens. C. Arrange a media tour with all Rogue Valley media to introduce city staff to media staff, improve the working relationship and establish contact points for future media related items. Council Communication Public Works Department September 15, 1998 Submitted by: Paula Brown o Approved by: Mike Freeman n Title: Update on the Progress of the Comprehensive Water Master Plan Synopsis: Carollo Engineers has been hired to assist the City in developing the Comprehensive Water Master Plan. This Plan is intended to be an evaluation of the City's water needs, current supply, future supply opportunities, development trends and effects, conservation efforts and successes, and to ultimately map out a plan to provide for our future requirements. This is the next in a series of presentations to Council regarding the progress of this Master Plan. Recommendation: This item is for information only. It is recommended that the Council hear the staff and consultant report and redirect as necessary. Background Information: At the prior City Council Study Session on August 18, 1998, Council hear the preliminary discussion regarding the progress and process of the Comprehensive Water Master Plan. There were several questions and comments regarding the process and some of the assumptions being made by staff and the consultants. This is an opportunity to discuss those issues and provide additional direction to the team. Specific issues to be discussed include: 0I Water Advisory Group's Involvement ❑ Water Supply Condition (Comparisons of the Carollo Study to Prior Studies) ❑ Planning Estimates (Reservoir Capability, Critical Low Flow Needs, Population Projections) ❑ Probable Yield (Beck Study) and"Firm" Yield Approaches ❑ Typical Water Uses and Comparison to Other Communities with Similar Climate, Population and Conservation Programs ❑ Conservation Expectations and Curtailment Needs ❑ Initial Criteria Developed to Compare Alternatives ❑ Initial Alternatives Identified ❑ Work Plan ❑ Next Steps - Water Forum and Time Frames Council Communication Public Works Department September 15, 1998 Submitted by: Paula Brown 0 Approved by: Mike Freeman VAIF Title: Update on the Progress of the Comprehensive Water Master Plan Synopsis: , Carollo Engineers has been hired to assist the City in developing the Comprehensive Water Master Plan. This Plan is intended to be an evaluation of the City's water needs, current supply, future supply opportunities, development trends and effects, conservation efforts and successes, and to ultimately map out a plan to provide for our future requirements. This is the next in a series of presentations to Council regarding the progress of this Master Plan. Recommendation: This item is for information only. It is recommended that the Council hear the staff and consultant report and redirect as necessary. Background Information: At the prior City Council Study Session on August 18, 1998, Council hear the preliminary discussion regarding the progress and process of the Comprehensive Water Master Plan. There were several questions and comments regarding the process and some of the assumptions being made by staff and the consultants. This is an opportunity to discuss those issues and provide additional direction to the team. Specific issues to be discussed include: ❑ Water Advisory_Group's Involvement ❑ Water Supply Condition (Comparisons of the Carollo Study to Prior Studies) ❑ Planning Estimates (Reservoir Capability, Critical Low Flow Needs, Population Projections) ❑ Probable Yield (Beck Study) and "Firm" Yield Approaches ❑ Typical Water Uses and Comparison to Other Communities with Similar Climate; . Population and Conservation Programs ❑ Conservation Expectations and Curtailment Needs ❑ Initial Criteria Developed to Compare Alternatives ❑ Initial Alternatives Identified ❑ Work Plan ❑ Next Steps - Water Forum and Time Frames ! S w"t•`i�x�,.,&.,s.s'�a?ux�."zc.,�v.?h"+�.F .v.��..¢.. .. A ca,�a�xxm tnxt,t..,°.tiCmaai�^ss�,"m��4��-aa: l Arh 4 1�� ? YX4 �+bPTj K 6� A a",a^„K,,,,, • 5tudy progress Evaluation Criteria and Weighting Water Supply Alternatives 500 ■ Commercial d 400 I] Multi-family c __ ■ Governmental 300 - ■ Residential ` ■ Industrial 200 { ® CommerciallResidential ¢' ty er s 0 M nicipal 100 ��"®` � �� ® Irrigation 0 1996. 1997 Water Year(Oct-Sep) 12 160 -- - 140 rn 120 Average Usage = 148 gpcd E 100 0 a� m 80 60 40 _ ......... .... .. .-...... .................... ................._.............. s....... 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Month Water Demand Comparison to Other Utilities (gpcd) Avg Demand • Ashland 148 • EBMUD 215 s Other East Bay 145-190 • Mid-Peninsula 115-150 Santa Cruz 130 Data interpolated 11 Water Demand Comparison to Other Utilities (OFCA Residential Residential & Only Commercial • Ashlarid 100 118 • EDMUD 155 179 • Other East Bay 120-150 140* • Mid-Peninsula 65-125' 110-140 • 5anta Cruz 105-110 117-120* Data interpolated El Target Goal 150 148 - Y,0 (SRC Report) a. V o ■ Actual a. 140 1.0 z a� v ° r� �� 130 ,s �gig, s 0.5 d r r e effi-� W. . r Per Capita System-Wide Demand (GPCD) Demand Reduction(MGD) 10 Baseline Demand = 148 gpcd Q ,t I ,.,.yam tY v5� ' A y iA •c°a' r b * . •i'\; • Conservation Target Summer demand reduction ±20% • Curtailmernt beyond conservation Voluntary oummer curtailment at 10% Additional mandatory oummer curtailment at 15% Total curtailment in Severe drought 10 + 15 = 25% 9 2500 O 2020 Demand 2000 ® 2050 Demand a c 1O . 1630 MG Supply(Back) E °1 1500 o `o - _ 1410 MG Supply(Carollo) CL G 14T CL 1000 ,S w N ;*a auks yZfi� 'i ; H d4 afrq.ea d Q' ?. ^.'*} $a 500 a 'w"04, No Conservation/ Conservation Conservation+ Conservation+ No Curtailment 10%Curtailment 25%Curtailment • Critical Low Flow Has } Repeated "A asn n .sa-sa • Projected Growth Rate 1.4% ' _5. Comoiotent with 6 1Q p l Comprehensive Plan rim Growth Rate DEMOGRAPHICS • Future Uncertaintl S Densifcationstry -Fjyr/ DROUGHT SEVERITY 6 BEEMBEEMMEMMMMMMMEEMENIMMMMEMMMM lo N 0 900 M Resenulr; �Capauly ..... .0 600 - I. ....._... ,._...— .:_..:........�... .... ... ... J2` `', 0 300 ' Co � 0 I" Q -300 I - ... _..,- --- .... , .....- ---------- — ' / IV' a 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 I� Water Year (Oct - Sep) noc�bmm:laula.lal;ll.uuarinnl:u Cw�:u% Oib Cmuibutim Mfi Supply MroCmbi.wricd grumlbxW picipiwmndw lbm(kmbm lY]S IO SePr®bm 19X2 � n N C 900 Ca�ry paary I .O 600 E 300 ' �O cC > 0 i n, a-300 0. 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 7 U) Gra iAamc IAM Water Year (Oct - Sep) nn Cmwibutim.IU0/IM O IMIM10x100 Cwuilmmr Oam Cmu,i.Us UX Supply bued®bumiicl faum0ow aeC picipimumi apm Ocwba 1973 w Scym�ba 1983 c 1 �: J • Conservation - Other Utilities Implement 13Mf 5 to achieve 10-15% demand reduction one time Voluntary conservation during drought - target 10% summer demand reduction Results vary; target goal not always achieved • Curtailment - Other Utilities 15-55% summer demand reduction is typical program objective Results indicate curtailment programs are successful =240 — co E 220 -'200 Ca 180 N 160 140 Avg Wafer Use 1140 gpcd m120 N 100 Q 80 Oct-Dec Jan-Mar Apr-Jun Jul -Sep D�ht C dfim:S� aowwwa:1.40% 141 gpcd cam :0% 4.6%Reduction 8 c 240 . — ------ --— E 220 _— 200 >3 180 E 160 0 140 120 Avg Water Use±135 _ N 100 . Q 80 ., _.. Oct-Dec Jan-Mar Apr-Jun Jul -Sep Dro.sm C dW..k<. G. R=:1.4(W. 133 gpcd' Cmtt d.:20% CWS,.m:10% 10.0%Reduction =240 —...._ tts E 22 200 _... 180 N 160 f 140 _ rn 120 N Avg Water Use +120 gped N1001 Q 80 – Oct-Dec Jan-Mar Apr-Jun Jul - Sep D,.&CmAUm:Se C.Ih RAW:1.4M 121 gpcd C.d.:20K C, id .25% 18.2%Reduction 7 a 900 Reservoir C 1 1 Capacity ;- O 60Q 300 . 0 Q I - - a-300 �- 0. 2044 2045 2046 2047 2046 2049 2050 7 U G,owW Nap:1.40x Water Year (Oct- Sep) TMC b0.:IN 1100/100/100/100/100/10 Camenvim:lox Ovuilmmt:Iov. Ou C�w. Sgpfr lathmBi„mn1amm0or mdPmPpfim dap ft.ombR 19'2S,usapp 1982 N C m900 -?ti._' Reservoir ; L ; Capacity O 600 XJ N 300 0 > r / Q .._. ... .._ V -. -- ..... ....... _... CL 300 ---- C 2044 - 2045 2046 2047 2049 2049 2050 Water Year (Oct- Sep) C Cb O.2m:lW/IOp110011001I00/1001 10 ' O�10. WnCamiEudao:0x Si@pl70p -ld-ri >o®bland PpiNp dapry al 1924 b Sap,1927 blb BS Oa 1928 b So 1972 4 Environmental/ Ecological Impact Cost • Short Term Capita Construction �•'0?M • Long Terrri Habitat • Unrt ($/AF)°�r-„ ,Cultural/Historic Resources 61 Implementation Reliability/Risk • Rutonomy • Water Quality Priority.Ranking `. Public Ben efit Matrix •,Long Term/Supply/Right° • Interagency,Cpoperation • Errergency!Respon5e • Permitting , • Operational Flexibility = pr e `�3 • Environmental/Ecological 0.40 • Cost 0.25 • RiSk/Reliability 0.20 • Implementation/Operation 0.15 1.00 ��I J �' 4 . • Ground Water • r/ / / Ilipelime • / Firelime • / 5nowpack .vim g�.'."'__." >;. - Deficit I / g @ Confirm / Evaluatecl 9 Finalize I'larming/Evaluation Criteria