MEMO TO: Members of the City Council
FROM: Mayor John Marchione
SUBJECT:
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Development of Redmond Cultural Resources Management Plan (CRMP)
I. RECOMMENDED ACTION
recommendation
Review and discuss preliminary amendments to portions of the Redmond Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Code regarding the protection, preservation, and management of cultural resources within the City’s jurisdiction. Councilmembers will discuss items they identified during staff’s briefing on September 9, 2019, to the Planning and Public Works Committee of the Whole, and during the CRMP staff report on October 1, 2019.
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II. DEPARTMENT CONTACTS
Erika Vandenbrande, Director 425-556-2457
Carol Helland, Deputy Director 425-556-2107
Sarah Pyle, Manager, Land Use and Strategic Initiatives 425-556-2426
Kimberly Dietz, Senior Planner 425-556-2415
Department of Planning and Community Development
Tom Hardy, Senior Planner, Environmental and Utility Services 425-556-2762
Public Works Department
III. DESCRIPTION/BACKGROUND
At the Study Session, staff will present the Cultural Resources Management Plan (CRMP) and the recommended amendments to policies, regulations, and operating procedures for public and private development projects and other ground-disturbing activities.
The CRMP is a citywide plan addressing cultural - archaeological and historical - resources. It is under development as a stipulation of the 2014 Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Regarding Treatment of Adverse Effects to the Bear Creek Site (45KI839) and its addenda. Addendum 1 to the MOA requires the City to use the services of a qualified archaeological consultant to prepare Redmond’s first CRMP. Staff and the project consultant began developing this plan May 17, 2016, following the City Council’s approval of the consultant’s contract.
The CRMP ensures compliance with federal, state, and local laws and regulations that govern the protection and management of cultural resources. It is comprised of the following:
• Amendments to the City’s Comprehensive Plan;
• Amendments to the Zoning Code;
• Ethnographic context; and
• Protocols and procedures regarding ground-disturbing activities for both public and private development.
At the Study Session, staff will review with Council key aspects of the CRMP’s development process including:
• Responses to stipulations of the Bear Creek MOA including the project scope and chronology for developing the CRMP;
• Consultation with Bear Creek signatories and affected Indian tribes;
• Cross-departmental involvement including:
o Recommended operational processes and business practices for the CRMP’s implementation;
o Current cultural resources management model employed through standard procedures; and
o Feedback from the project’s stakeholder focus group.
Specialized trainings and process improvements continue to take place as a result of the City’s engagement and consultation with agencies, affected Indian tribes, professional archaeologists, community stakeholders. These enhancements to standard operations have included:
• Establishing a centralized portal for identifying requested development activities and tracking the outcome of consultation with agencies and affected Indian tribes;
• Incorporating cultural resources management tasks into capital project “phase gates” and checklists; and
• Developing clear and concise operational workflows for staff’s regular implementation of federal and state laws and the Redmond Zoning Code regarding archaeological resources.
• Developing “self -help” tools and resources for early project planning.
IV. PREVIOUS DISCUSSIONS HELD
The City Council previously discussed this item during the following:
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Committee of the Whole (Planning and Public Works Committee) |
November 10, 2015 |
Briefing |
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Planning and Public Works Committee |
May 10, 2016 |
Briefing |
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City Council |
May 17, 2016 |
Contract Approval |
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Planning and Public Works Committee |
October 11, 2016 |
Briefing |
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Planning and Public Works Committee |
June 13, 2017 |
Briefing |
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City Council |
September 5, 2017 |
Study Session |
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Planning and Public Works Committee |
September 10, 2019 |
Briefing |
V. IMPACT
A. Service/Delivery:
The CRMP has been developed in collaboration and agreement by the parties to the Bear Creek MOA. Establishing the CRMP through the City Council’s action on recommended amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Code, and operating procedures demonstrates the City’s completion of the respective stipulations of the MOA within a timely manner.
B. Fiscal Note:
The investigation, protection, and management of cultural resources involve costs such as in contracting with professional archaeologists, coordinating the protection of inadvertently discovered resources during project development, and in curating discovered and excavated artifacts. The CRMP has incorporated procedures that encourage and guide project proponents through proactive consideration of cultural resources thereby supporting increased predictability and potentially reducing costs associated with the protection of cultural resources.
Whereby the CRMP ensures implementation of policies, regulations, and procedures in conformance with state and federal laws, the plan also incorporates protocols into existing City services and operations. In this manner, staff and customers’ involvement is coordinated and standardized to minimize impacts on project schedules, budgets or internal operational costs.
VI. ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Not applicable - study session will be for discussion purposes only.
VII. TIME CONSTRAINTS
Development of the CRMP had been originally stipulated for completion within three years of execution of Amendment 1 to the MOA (eff. Sept. 29, 2014). Subsequently, the signatories to the MOA agreed to an extension, allowing for completion by September 29, 2018. With the Mayor and signatories’ approval, staff has continued work toward the CRMP’s completion and is recommending City Council’s action on December 3, 2019.
VIII. LIST OF ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Bear Creek Memorandum of Agreement and Addenda
Attachment B: Summary of Feedback from Project Stakeholders
Attachment C: Cultural Resources Management Plan Components and Organization
Attachment D: City Council’s Issues Matrix
Attachment E: DRAFT Planning Commission Report and Exhibits
Attachment E (Exhibit I): Technical Committee Report and Exhibits