AN ORDINANCE relating to Seattle Parks and Recreation; authorizing the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation to enter into an agreement with the Woodland Park Zoological Society for operation and management of the Woodland Park Zoo.
Report of the Public Assets and Native Communities Committee? Agenda Item 23 Council Bill 120164 An ordinance relating to Seattle Parks and Recreation authorizing the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation to enter into an agreement with the Woodland Park Zoological Society for Operation and Management of the Woodland Park Zoo. The committee recommends a bill passed as amended. Thank you so much. Customer worries. This is your ordinance. I want to hand it over to you to provide the committee for report. If you're council president, as the clerk says, this is legislation relating to the Woodland Park Zoo contract. So this is legislation that would renew the operations and management agreement between the city of Seattle and the Woodland Park Zoo. I will highlight I won't go through all the highlights. I shared some of that this morning. So this is the current 20 year contract, which the current 20 year contract remains active until February 22 of this year. Both parties and the zoo and the city have negotiated agreement to renew and update policies related to the public benefits , zoo operations, services and care of the animals. As I shared this morning, I want to thank my colleagues on the committee, and those of you who came, who were not part of the committee are Councilmember Strauss and submitted the 15 amendments by November 30th. And we got them all done and I think it's a better deal. And so with that, the committee recommends or I recommend that the Seattle City Council Pass Council Bill 12064 as amended. Council President thank you so much for your words of support. Are there any additional comments on Council Bill 120164 Agenda Item 23 as we're asking, please. Thank you very much. I also want to thank Councilmember Juarez as chair of the committee for the work that you've done on the various amendments. I think those 15 on just one piece of legislation and especially extend a thank you to unite here locally local eight for bringing the opportunity to include labor peace provision into this agreement and to our attention. And thank you Councilmember Juarez and to members of the zoo for working with us and for the committee's vote to include the Labor Harmony Amendment and to this agreement in front of us. Excited about that and thank you. For your work. Much conspiracy to consume a verbal. You so much want to also appreciate the leadership of my colleagues who represent the neighbors to the zoo. Councilmember Strauss and Councilmember Peterson and of course Council member Suarez for steering the committee through this really important complex oversight work on the agreement. Really many thanks to the passionate advocates who care so deeply about the zoo and the animals in its care. This was difficult because so many people care about the zoo and because the state of research and standards of care and community sentiment all can change so rapidly. In a 28 year agreement committing significant city resources, it was appropriate. I feel that we took the time to carefully consider what was proposed here from stakeholders and debate changes. I'm particularly glad and thankful that we supported requiring council oversight and approval of the long range plan, which will identify the capital and animal habitat changes that this zoo will pursue for years to come. By requiring approval of the long range plan we are building in a touchpoint where the public will have an opportunity to raise concerns and the Council will have an opportunity to exercise reasonable oversight of significant planned changes to the zoo that may impact its operations, animals or financial health. Over the course of the agreement, I know this was a challenging process, but with coordination required between council and central staff and enforced by Councilmember Juarez, I think the the outcome was was was a very good outcome. And I hope the public agrees and I hope that the zoo agrees. I really appreciate their collaboration on the effort. And I also want to just give a shout out to Brian Goodnight on council central staff who helped us sort through and make sense of a long but important document as well as the staffing of Christina because he was in my office as well. Thank you. Thank you so much, Councilmember. For. Any additional comments. Councilman Juarez, any closing remarks. Now, my husband was trying to vote, but other than. That, no. Well, Don, you'd have to run against it if we wanted to. Yeah, I did. He's still in West Seattle, right? Yeah. All right, well, hearing no additional comments will occur. He's got the role on the passage of Council Bill 120164. Agenda item 23. Lewis. Yes. Morales. Yes. Mosquera. I. Peterson. I. Strauss. Yes. Herbold. Let's thank you, Councilmember Suarez by Council President Gonzalez. I aid in favor not oppose. The bill passes and the chair will sign. It will affect my signature legislation on my behalf. Please read item 24 into the record.