Kent City Council discusses impact of coronavirus

The regular Kent City Council meeting on Tuesday night turned into an update about the impact of the coronavirus on government.

For one thing, it will be the last council meeting at City Hall until the crisis ends. Future council Committee of the Whole and regular meetings will be done remotely by phone because of social distancing. The council, based on advice from City Attorney Pat Fitzpatrick, voted to temporarily allow Council President Toni Troutner to suspend rules in order to hold meetings by phone.

Police Chief Rafael Padilla during his public safety report shared that so far no officers or any city employees have COVID-19. But he said changes have been made as far as police response and he asked the public for their help.

“We are taking measures to limit in-person contact if not necessary for police,” Padilla said. “We are asking people to make their reports via phone or online.”

Padilla said restrictions on the type of reports that can be submitted online at kentwa.gov (search for police) have been removed. People can also call the non-emergency line at 253-852-2121 and an officer will take the report over the phone.

“Other in-progress crimes or emergencies absolutely call 911 and officers will respond,” he said. “But we want people to be aware of if they call 911 or the non-emergency line there will be additional questions. All of our dispatchers are doing a screening to determine if there are symptoms of a potential illness so that officers and firefighters and EMTs can take appropriate protective gear into the situation. …You may be asked to step outside by the officer when they respond because we want to use distance and open air to take our reports, so don’t be offended, please.”

Padilla emphasized the department is ready to respond.

“I want to make it very clear we remain very capable of handling all of our incoming calls,” Padilla said. “There is no reduction in service for emergency or in-progress calls. We will continue to do all we can to keep services going and keep everybody safe.”

Padilla looks forward to when things return to normal.

“Things are really difficult right now,” he said. “But we are confident we will pull through this like we have in other situations. Please follow the emergency order (by Gov. Jay Inslee) and health guidelines, be prepared but don’t be a part of the panic. We will be here for you.”

Mayor Dana Ralph followed Padilla with additional messages.

“We need to stick together and not be overcome by panic,” Ralph said. “This is an unprecedented situation, there’s no doubt about that. But we have plans in place. There is not a day that is going by that we are not collectively working here at the city to make sure our residents have everything that they need and that we are doing the right thing to help keep people safe and to get through this.”

City Chief Administrative Officer Derek Matheson spoke next and reported that as many city employees as possible are working from home.

“For those who are required to come into work, we continue to look for and implement opportunities to increase social distancing to keep everybody healthy,” Matheson said. “We encourage employees to monitor their temperatures and stay at home if they have a fever, cough or shortness of breath. We have protocols in place if an employee tests positive for COVID-19 or has symptoms that could indicate it, including protocols for cleaning work areas.”

Near the end of the meeting, the council voted 6-0 to approve a resolution discouraging landlords and the King County Sheriff’s Office from pursuing or enforcing evictions related to pay rent due to personal effects of the coronavirus. The council had put the measure on the agenda prior to a Tuesday afternoon decision by the Sheriff’s Office to not enforce court-ordered evictions in King County while the county is fighting the COVID-19 health crisis.

The council had a brief discussion about whether the resolution remained necessary, but decided to vote on it. Fitzpatrick told the council a resolution is a policy statement by the council and not a legal order.

“It is very important for our community that we need to make a statement letting our residents know that we are thinking about them, we care about them and we understand the situation they are in,” Councilmember Satwinder Kaur said.

Legal battle

The city of Kent continues to fight King County in court in an effort to temporarily stop the quarantine facility in the former motel from operating until proper permits are filed by the county and approved by the city.

A county court commissioner denied two earlier attempts by the city to stop the county from using the facility. The city has a hearing in front of a King County Superior Court judge on Friday, March 20, to temporarily halt the project without the proper permits.

“The best case scenario is if we could negotiate a cooperative agreement that allows it to move forward with measures in place that we believe protects the community’s health and safety,” City Chief Administrative Officer Derek Matheson told the City Council on Tuesday night.

Matheson said the county has installed a temporary construction fence around the facility.

“We are told construction of a permanent wrought iron fence with a gate will be starting on Thursday,” he said.