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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/21/2005 Meeting Minutes July 21, 2005 Town of Los Altos Hills City Council Regular Meeting Thursday, July 21, 2005 6:00 P.M. Town Hall Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road 1. CALL TO ORDER,ROLL CALL,AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Kerr called the City Council Regular Meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Town Hall. Present: Mayor Breene Kerr, Mayor Pro Tem Dean Warshawsky, Councilmember Craig A. T. Jones, Councilmember Jean Mordo and Councilmember Mike O'Malley Absent: None Staff: City Manager Maureen Cassingham, City Attorney Steve Mattas, Planning • Director Carl Cahill, Administrative Services Director Sarah Joiner, Director of Public Works/City Engineer Henry Louie and City Clerk Karen Jost MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by O'Malley, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to limit the length of time for public comments to three minutes. 2. APPOINTMENTS AND PRESENTATIONS 2.1 Appointment to the Environmental Initiatives Committee Council had before them for their consideration an application from John Harpootlian for appointment to the Environmental Initiatives Committee. Mayor Kerr acknowledged that Harpootlian had attended the last EIC meeting and he believed he. would be an asset to the Committee. Council concurred, noting that they had worked with him on other committees and he was a valued volunteer. MOTION SECONDED AND APPROVED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to appoint John Harpootlian to the Environmental Initiatives Committee for a term of four years. • 1 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 3. PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT • Planning Director Carl Cahill reported that the Planning Commission had met on Julyl4th and reviewed Lands of Goese, Wildcrest Drive, an application for a new residence. The project had been referred to the Planning Commission because of the hilltop site. The Commission approved the project by a 3-1-1 vote with Commissioner Collins absent. Cahill explained there was debate over the request of the applicant to install a vineyard in the required conservation easement. The approval has been appealed by Councilmember Mordo and was tentatively scheduled for a Public Hearing. Cahill noted that he was hopeful that a resolution could be reached with the property owner. Cahill reported that in response to the email regarding outdoor lights at the Wadhwani residence that had been forwarded to the City Council by Sandy Humphries, he had contacted the property owner and scheduled a meeting. He was hopeful that the complaint could be addressed quickly. 4. CONSENT CALENDAR MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Mordo, seconded by O'Malley and passed unanimously to approve the Consent Calendar with Councilmember Jones abstaining on item 4.1, specifically: 4.1 Approval of Minutes: Regular City Council Meeting July 7, 2005 • 4.2 Review of Disbursements: 06/28/2005-07/13/2005 $299,991.10 4.3 Approval of Proposed Revision to Standing Committee's Resolution No.9-05 Reso# 66-05 4.4 Approval of Proposed Resolution of the City Council of the Town of Los Altos Hills Creating the Position of Associated Youth Commissioner and Establishing the Duties of Same Reso# 67-05 4.5 Resolution Approving the Purchase of Furniture for the New Town Hall Reso # 68-05 4.6 Approval of proposed letter Inviting First Lady Maria Shriver to Town Hall to Promote Her `Be Smart, Be Prepared, Be Responsible" Emergency Preparedness Program to the Residents 5. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 5.1 Town Goals 5.1.1 Implementation of Strategic Conservation Goals Mayor Kerr reported that the Environmental Initiatives Committee had meet and was • making positive progress on a proposed conservation ordinance. He requested discussion of the proposed ordinance be scheduled for a September Council meeting for review and 2 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 comments and then it would be dire cted to the Planning Commission for the appropriate Public Hearings and back to Council for their final approval. Kerr clarified that the EPA • "Energy Star Program" was the bases for the draft ordinance. PG&E was assisting the Committee to determine if this would be suitable for the implementation of energy saving measures for large residential homes. 5.1.2 Bringing Public Education Back to the Hills Kerr deferred discussion of this item to the agenda items scheduled for consideration later in the meeting that were applicable to Bringing Public Education Back to the Hills. 5.2 New Town Hall Budget Reconciliation Mayor Kerr explained that any items relating to TBI Management had been redacted from the budget reconciliation that was before Council for their consideration. Costs relating to TBI Mangement would be considered separately as agenda item 5.2.1. Tony Vierra, Project Manager, TBI Construction, provided an overview of the budget reconciliation spreadsheet with Council. It had been divided into two main categories: 1) Project Budget Status and 2) Other Project Related Costs. Vierra noted that item 2 was comprised of costs not included in the $4.2 million budget. He reviewed the amendments to the original budget and noted that some costs were still in negotiation with contractors and $7,000 had been allotted for pending expenses. Mayor Kerr explained that there would be separate consideration at a later date of the Broadcast System project but that an allowance had been included in the budget as a "place holder." Councilmember O'Malley offered that the Council and the New Town Hall Committee had reviewed the budget and costs in great detail on numerous occasions. Mayor Kerr congratulated former Mayor O'Malley's fundraising efforts for the New Town Hall, noting that $47,000 had been donated to date and included in the budget. He suggested that the funds could be directed to additional landscaping and landscape lighting identified as pending under item H "Landscaping & Irrigation" in the spreadsheet. MOTION SECONDED AND APPROVED: Moved by O'Malley, seconded by Warshawsky and approved by the following roll call vote to adopt the Resolution No. 69- 05 "Approving New Town Hall Budget Reconciliation" and Resolution No. 70-05 "Approving Contractor Change Orders for the New Town Hall." AYES: Mayor Kerr,Mayor Pro Tem Warshawsky, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Mordo and Councilmember O'Malley NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None • 3 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 5.2.1 Consideration of Contractor Chane Orders Considered and approved under agenda item 5.2. 5.2.1 Consideration of Modifications to Construction Management Service Agreement Mayor Kerr recused himself from discussion of this item and stepped down from the dais due to the potential conflict of interest created by employment by TBI of a family member for a summer position. Mayor Pro Tem Warshawsky provided an overview of the review process that had been employed in the engagement of TBI Construction and Construction Management Inc. for construction management services for the New Town Hall project. Council had before them for their consideration an amendment to the agreement for additional services. The report included a spreadsheet that identified all of the additional work performed. Councilmember O'Malley noted that during the construction, unexpected needs that had not been included in the initial contract had surfaced and were addressed quickly by the firm. He congratulated TBI on their efforts. The total cost for the services was negotiated and the final charge was $37,070. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by O'Malley, seconded by Jones and passed by a 4-0-1 voice vote with Mayor Kerr abstaining, to approve Resolution No. 71- 05 "Approving New Town , Hall Construction Management Services Agreement Amendment#1: Additional Services."Underground Project Status Report Mayor Pro Tem Warshawsky reported that the project was on schedule. The next action was adoption of a resolution designating the Undergrounding District. Warshawsky expected this to be presented to Council for their consideration at the August 4, 2005 meeting. 5.4 Proposed Ordinance Change for Regular City Council Meetings City Manager Maureen Cassingham introduced this item to Council. At the direction of the City Council, staff had prepared a proposed ordinance that would revise the Municipal Code section that pertained to City Council meetings. The revision called for a change of meeting days from the first and third Thursdays to the first and third Mondays of each month. The purpose of the change was to better accommodate the schedules of the current City Council. Councilmember Mordo suggested that the proposed Monday meeting date often conflicted with Monday holidays and the subsequent rescheduling might be problematic for the public. Councilmember Jones offered that he preferred either Monday or Thursday for meetings, either would facilitate his business travel schedule. Mayor Kerr noted the importance of his participation at the VTA meetings next year as a voting Board • Member. Council concurred that this was critical to Town projects. 4 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 Following a brief discussion, Mayor Kerr offered to work with the City Manager to identify the VTA meeting schedule and to review the option of changing the meeting to • the second and fourth Thursdays. The item would be returned to Council at their next meeting for their consideration. 5.5 Proposed Annexation Policy Planning Director Carl Cahill introduced this item to Council. He advised Council that the policy before them was consistent with the City Council's direction and was a comprehensive tool for evaluating proposed annexations. The policy would provide the maximum latitude in terms of discussion of future residential annexations The Planning Commission had reviewed and recommended approval of the proposed Annexation Policy at their June 23, 2005 meeting. Cahill noted that he had reviewed the comments and requests for revisions from Ms. Green and staff was recommending approval of the policy as presented without modification. Council discussion ensued. They concurred that the policy would be a"starting point" for annexation considerations. OPENED PUBLIC COMMENT Marjorie Green, West Loyola, (unincorporated-Los Altos Hills sphere of influence) addressed Council. She explained that her neighborhood had been striving to annex to the Town for approximately five (5) years. She expressed her concern that the proposed policy was too restrictive for the developed properties. Green provided Council with a revised list of proposed additions to the annexation policy from the W. Loyola neighborhood. She reviewed the items with Council and requested a redrafting of the policy. CLOSED PUBLIC COMMENT Planning Director Carl Cahill explained that the Town would use the policy when notified of new development projects in the County to assist in ensuring that Town's codes were applied. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by O'Malley and passed unanimously to adopt Resolution No. 72-05 adopting a policy applicable to all residential annexation applications. 5.6 Proposed Ex Parte Contacts Policy Planning Director Carl Cahill introduced this item. He explained that in a small town setting, such as Los Altos Hills, it was easy for Commissioners and Councilmembers to have an ex parte communication about a particular project by meetings at the project site, social gathering, phone calls and emails out side of the quasi-judicial process. He noted that reliance on information received this way could be unfair because the opposing parties are not there to rebut the information. The proposed policy would provide a • guideline for publicly disclosing any ex parte communications that did occur. 5 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 City Attorney Steve Mattas explained that the purpose of the policy was to provide due • process. The policy would not affect the Council in their legislative capacity and would only apply to quasi-judicial administrative hearings. Mattas reviewed the disclosure requirements with Council. Council considered the proposed policy. Following discussion, they agreed that they supported the policy with the deletion of sentence Bl. "Members of Legislative Bodies should avoid Contacts." MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Mordo and passed unanimously to approve Resolution No. 73-05 adopting a policy governing ex parte contacts. The policy was amended to delete the sentence " Members of Legislative Bodies should avoid Contacts" 5.7 Consideration and Direction Regarding Consultant Agreements for Site Feasibility Studies Regarding property at 27575 Purissima Road Item was not considered. 5.8 Consideration of and Direction Regarding Request from Bullis Purissima Elementary School Foundation for Financial Assistance Related to Potential Acquisition and Construction of Charter School Mayor Kerr reordered the agenda to accommodate the audience in attendance for item 5.8 Chris Vargas, Co-Chair, Bullis Purissima Elementary Foundation, introduced himself and explained that he was before Council to present a partnership proposal between the Bullis Charter School, the Bullis-Purissima Elementary School Foundation and the Town of Los Altos Hills titled the"Hills Education Legacy Project-H.E.L.P." Vargas proceeded with a PowerPoint presentation which included a brief summary of his previous presentation at the July 21, 2005 meeting. He noted that the current proposal before Council for their consideration had several revisions. Vargas identified the key components of the proposal: 1) Bullis —Purissima Elementary School Foundation would commit to donate $1 million to Los Altos Hills for the purchase of land and would commit an investment of $4 million to develop the site and operate the school; 2) the Town of Los Altos Hills was asked to provide financial support for land that would be used for public education, parks and recreation space, and a community center; and 3) Bullis Charter School would commit to deliver a high quality and innovative public school. Vargas noted that the new request did not specify a specific site or a specific amount but requested a commitment to provide funding for purchase of land that the Town would own and would be an asset to the community. Vargas explained there was precedent for a municipality investing in public education. He sited investments of over $5 million made by the City of Los Altos that included a land swap deal for Covington School and a gymnasium for Blach School. Vargas outlined the additional facts and benefits of the proposal and concluded that he was before Council to request consideration of support in concept to the Partnership proposal. He noted that if needed, the BCS representatives requested staff support to 6 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 i assist in the evaluation of potential school sites. Vargas explained that if the request were approved, the BCS would return to Council at a future date, once a suitable site had been found for further review. OPENED PUBLIC COMMENT Jitze Couperus, Page Mill Road, offered his perception that Councilmembers were stewards of the Town and as such, public education was within their purview. He supported the proposal by the BCS. Kathleen Lytle, Laura Court, endorsed Council spending funds for the education of today's children and future children. She was very impressed with the educational program offered by Bullis Charter School. Vera Elson, Miranda Court, supported the BCS proposal. She currently had a child enrolled at the Charter School and was very happy with their innovative curriculum and sense of community. Elson urged the Council to be supportive of returning public education to Los Altos Hills. She had been discouraged by the actions of Los Altos School District and believed returning a neighborhood school to Town would have a positive effect on property values. Judy Depuy, Miranda Road, explained that she did not have an elementary school age child but was very supportive of the BCS proposal because of it's potential to provide a community spirit noting the numerous activities like Girl and Boy Scouts and friendships that are centered around schools. Resident, Magdalena, enrolled his child in the Bullis Charter School because of its sense of community. He supported the BCS proposal and offered that the Town exemplified innovation and noted that innovation required investment and support. He encouraged the Council to commit to bringing public education back to Los Altos Hills. Marlin Miller, Taaffe Road, Co-Chair-Bullis Puissima Elementary Foundation, spoke to several recent newspaper articles. He disagreed with the assessment that Council's business was only Town business and that the school would serve very few Los Altos Hills students. He suggested that the Council was elected to best serve the residents. Miller questioned what the response would be in Los Altos if their schools were hypothetically served by PAUSD and were all closed. He doubted that they would take no action. He encouraged the Council to support the partnership proposal. Eric Clow, Central Drive, thanked the City Council for their efforts to return public education to Los Altos Hills. He supported the BCS proposal. Jim Waschura, La Cresta Drive, questioned how locating the Bullis Charter School would impact his children who were enrolled in the Palo Alto Unified School District. He did not want to lose any of his choices for education for his family. • Dede Huffinan, Catherine Court, voiced her opinion that the statements made by the Bullis Charter School that there was no public education in Los Altos Hills were not true. 7 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 She offered that the southern part of Town was served by Loyola School and the north by the Palo Alto Unified School District. Both provided an excellent education. Huffinan suggested that the Charter School was not a school for all of Los Altos Hills and that it would be wrong for Council to finance any of the school. She suggested that this action would be very divisive. Peter Evans, La Loma Court, offered that it was a true statement that there was not a public school operating within the Town and that the majority of the respondents to the Godbe Telephone survey on Education favored returning public education to the Town. He supported the proposal offered by the BCS and believed that it was a positive financial opportunity for the Town Sandy Carse, Taaffe Road, supported using Town funds for a community resource that would serve all residents and possible additional soccer fields. She opposed the BCS proposal and suggested that the Council should not make a decision without getting input from all residents. Carse believed that BCS supporters were in the minority of the community. Ruby Anderson, La Paloma, requested clarification on the difference between a private school and the Charter School. Mayor Kerr explained that a private school could charge tuition and deny admission to a student and public schools are free and open to all students. • Councilmember Jones commented that charter schools were creatures of State law and were chartered by a public agency and ultimately were District schools. The Bullis Charter School is considered within the Los Altos School District and has a shared governance between the Santa Clara County Office of Education and the Charter's Board of Directors. David Struthers, Resident, suggested that the prior public speaker exemplified the misinformation that residents had about charter schools and suggested that it was very important for Council to consider an educational campaign or their decisions could be very divisive. Sharon Smith, Miranda, commented that her children would attend the Bullis Charter School next year. She encouraged the Council to make the very difficult decision to move forward with the funding for the school. Smith acknowledged that it could be divisive but added that the situation had been going on for years and it was time to bring a community based/neighborhood school back to Los Altos Hills. Fred Gallagher, Resident, supported the BCS proposal for a school site in Los Altos Hills. He offered that it was a good financial investment for the Town, good for the kids and good for the community. • 8 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 John Radford, La Paloma, provided an overview of the Godbe survey. He offered that it was a scientific survey that had been inclusive of all areas within the Town's boundaries. The surveys findings had supported the return of public education to the Town. He noted that the Town had been diligent in assessing the wishes of the residents and encouraged them to move forward quickly. .q Y Francis La Poll, former City of Los Altos Councilmember, commented that he had just purchased a home in Los Altos Hills. He explained that he had campaigned on a platform of purchasing assets for the schools and encouraged the Council not to evaluate the proposal by the number of children affected but too look at the broader picture and the community benefits and benefits to neighboring communities. He supported the BCS partnership proposal. Bob Kamanger, Snell Lane, supported the Bullis Charter School proposal. He suggested that it would build community. Kamanager offered that children should come first and the Town was fortunate to have generous donors that were so supportive of the Charter school. CLOSED PUBLIC COMMENT Chris Vargas summarized his presentation for Council noting .that that the partnership would build a school that would educate 310 children each year for many years;the Town is not the first municipality to spend money on education; and, the proposal was not tied to redistricting and would not impact the Los Altos School District and the Palo Alto . Unified School District. Vargas concluded that the Council had an opportunity to make history and that BCS was committed to making this work and requested that Council take action and move forward towards returning public education to Town. Council discussion ensued. Council expressed the fact that the Bullis Charter School provided another educational choice to the community. They concurred that the proposal was a good opportunity to leverage Town funds and acquire an asset for the entire Town that could be used for educational purposes, recreation and community services. It was noted that returning public education to Town could be potentially beneficial to property values and this was a compelling financial factor in their decision. Council offered that the General Plan defined their role and gave them a mandate to move forward with this educational issue. Council determined that it was important to start the process of informing and educating the residents to resolve their concerns and reviewed their options including a letter to residents identifying the benefits and reasons for supporting the proposal. It was suggested that a Town wide meeting be scheduled for September. Following discussion, Council took the following actions: MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Mordo and passed by the following roll call vote to authorize the Ad-Hoc Site Subcommittee of • Chris Vargas, Karla Jurvetson and Councilmember O'Malley to have the budgetary authority of a not to exceed amount of$12,000 for the purposes of identifying potential 9 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 sites for a permanent site for the Charter School. The scope of the Site Subcommittee's search was expanded to include the investigation of any potential site and the • consideration of general development issues for the sites. The subcommittee was authorized to use staff as a resource as needed. AYES: Mayor Kerr,Mayor Pro Tem Warshawsky, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Mordo and Councilmember O'Malley NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None Council discussed the option of drafting the letter to residents. Councilmember Mordo expressed his concern that a letter would not be sufficient in explaining the very complex issues. He suggested a more detailed communication be considered, such as a professional designed pamphlet. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to authorize the Ad-Hoc Council Subcommittee of Mayor Kerr and Councilmember O'Malley to draft a letter for town wide mailing explaining the City Council's actions to date and the potential steps in locating a permanent site for the Bullis Charter School in Town. It was determined that the letter would be disseminated to Council for their review electronically but if they wished to amend the letter it would be agendized for a • consideration at a Council meeting. The letter would be provided to other outside groups for review. Councilmember Jones suggested that the Standing Public Education Committee be directed to investigate the issues and develop the materials. Council concurred that it would be beneficial for the PEC to develop a presentation that could be given in conjunction with any additional presentations from the BCS at the September Town meeting. The PEC presentation could reflect the issues from the Town's perspective. Council deferred consideration of packaging the presentation as a pamphlet to a later date. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to request the Public Education Committee to assemble materials that would communicate the facts surrounding the initiative of the Town to locate and support the Bullis Charter School's permanent site in Town. Councilmember Mordo suggested that it would be appropriate to have the Finance and Investment Committee review and advise the Council on the financing alternatives and ways to partner with the BCS to purchase the land. He offered several review options including: was the purchase affordable without financing; if not, what were the financing options including "swapping" land and borrowing funds and what would the impacts be in the future. • 10 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Mordo, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to request the Standing Finance and Investment Committee to • advise the City Council on the relative attractiveness of financing alternatives to fund the purchase of land for placement of the Charter School,recreation and community services for an amount up to $2.5 million. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Warshawsky seconded by Jones and passed unanimously to support in concept the Partnership proposal with BCS and the Bullis Foundation for a public school, parks and recreation space and a community center for Los Altos Hills. Council recessed at 9:15 p.m. Council reconvened at 9:30 p.m. 5.9 Report on Options for Disposition of Town-Owned Property at Story Hill and Page Mill Road—APN 182-52-009 Council referred item 5.9 to the Finance and Investment Committee for review. Council determined that further discussions of the item should be conducted in Closed Session at their next scheduled meeting. 6. NEW BUSINESS 6.1 Proposed Risk Management Policy Resolution City Manager Maureen Cassingham introduced this item to Council. Before Council was a Risk Managements Policy resolution that would assist the Town in meeting ABAG Plan's Risk Management Best Practices by committing the Town's elected and appointed officials to implement effective risk management procedures. Cassingham explained that all thirty-two (32) member cities had been encouraged to have their City Council's adopt the resolution to better manage risk. She noted that this would set the benchmark. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Warshawsky, seconded by O'Malley and passed unanimously to approve Resolution No. 74-05 "Establishing a Risk Management Policy for Town Operations." 6.2 Status Report on La Cresta Parking Barriers Director of Public Works/City Engineer Henry Louie introduced this item. In the past months, Town staff had been working with resident John O'Rourke and County Sheriff Deputies regarding the disturbances and illegal parking issues on the pathway along La Cresta Drive. Louie reviewed the proposed preventative plans/solutions that would address the situation and their respective costs. OPENED PUBLIC COMMENT • John O'Rourke, La Cresta Drive, thanked the Town staff for bringing this problem forward to Council. He explained that the problem was persistent and required continual 11 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 clean-up of the pathway ( photos of the litter were attached to Louie's report). The Sheriff had been responsive to their calls, unfortunately, it was always after the is disturbances. O'Rouke noted that the neighbors supported of option 1) logs with chain and anchoring system and option 2) bollards with chain. Both alternatives would provide access to pedestrians and equestrians but would deter parking on the pathway. John Harpootlian, Anacapa, concurred with O'Rourke and described his personal experiences with people "partying" in the parking area and vandalizing his home with water ballons. He supported any option that would prevent the disturbances. Council discussion ensued. They supported a proactive solution to the problem. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Jones, seconded by Mordo and passed unanimously to approve the installation of logs with chain and anchoring system along La Cresta Drive at an estimated cost of $15,000 and with 15% contingency, $17,500. 7. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES, SUB-COMMITTEES, AND COUNCILMEMBERS ON OUTSIDE AGENCIES 7.1 Consideration of Draft Letter to Residents—Open Space Committee Council had before them a draft letter that had been submitted by the Open Space Committee for their consideration. The letter was to be sent in conjunction with the • Committee's conservation easement pamphlet to large parcel owners. Its purpose was to inform them of potential changes in the tax laws that might affect conservation easements. City Attorney Steve Mattas suggested that he craft a disclosure statement to be added to the letter and forward it to the City Clerk. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To approve the mailing of the Open Space Committee's letter as amended. COUNCIL REPORTS Councilmember O'Malley reported that he had met with Councilmember Curtis Cole, City of Los Altos. He reported that the internal review of the draft sewer agreement was expected in August and the sewer study was also expected in the same time period. Councilmember Mordo reported that a partnership forum of library constituent organizations and supporters were scheduled to meet in November to discuss the Whipple endowment. Councilmember Mordo reported that the Emergency Preparedness Committee had met and discussed activating an emergency radio station,preferably an AM station. • 12 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 Councilmember Mordo reported that the Ad-Hoc Council Planning Committee had met and have agreed to meet once a week. He noted this was a very intense schedule to • address the issues of fencing and highly visible lots quickly. Councilmember Mordo reported that he had met with Director Public Works Director/City Engineer Henry Louie and Planning Director Carl Cahill to discuss the development of a map detailing all of the existing cell towers, proposed cell towers and potential sites. He suggested that cell providers be invited to view the map when completed. Councilmember Mordo requested that a Council initiated item be agendized for the next Council meeting to discuss an email proposal he had received from Sandy Humphries regarding a contract for the rental or sale of plants and maintenance of same for Town Hall. Mayor Kerr requested a report from the Environmental Initiatives Committee be placed on agenda for the first meeting in September. 8. STAFF REPORTS 8.1 City Manager 8.2 City Attorney 8.3 City Clerk • 8.3.1 Report on Council Correspondence 9. COUNCIL-INITIATED ITEMS 9.1 City Council/VTA Meeting Schedule Conflict on August 4, 2005-Mayor Kerr Mayor Kerr explained that he was committed to attend the August 4, 2005 VTA meeting and this presented a conflict with the regularly scheduled August 4, 2005 Council meeting. Councilmember O'Malley acknowledged that he would be unavailable for the August 4, 2005 meeting. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED Moved by O'Malley, seconded by Warshawsky and passed unanimously to cancel the August 4, 2005 Regular City Council meeting and to schedule a Special City Council Meeting on August 3, 2005. 10. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR Opened Presentations from the Floor Les Earnest, Dianne Drive, explained that he had forwarded an email to Council requesting Council action to resolve existing inconsistencies in the Municipal Code in the definition of public and private roads. Earnest believed that it should be addressed before the finalization of the master path map. He noted that the Pathways Committee had voted unanimously to support his request. 13 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 Mayor Kerr responded that Council would review his request. Steve Hubbell, Canario Way, suggested that in light of the recent treatment of Los Altos Hills by Los Altos and the Los Altos School District it would be appropriate to investigate the renaming of the Town. He had no suggestions for a name but noted that it should reflect the "wonderful Town we live in." Hubbell added that he would support redistricting as a less expensive and more permanent solution to bringing public education back to Los Altos Hills. He requested Council consideration for funds for financial and procedural consultants to assist the Public Education Committee investigate the process of redistricting. Lorie Askew, Robleda Drive, President-LAHHA, explained that she was before Council to provide an update on the activities and revitalization of the Los Altos Hills Horseman's Association. She spoke of the successful three day horsemanship camp that the group had recently sponsored and displayed pictures of the event. She thanked Council for their recent financial support and noted that the public ring was an important community asset. Victoria Indaco, resident, remarked that she had participated in the horsemanship class and encouraged Council to keep the public riding ring. She described her experiences at the camp including how much she had learned and how much fun the camp had been. She had met many new friends. Birgitta Indaco, La Paloma, commented that she and her family enjoy the Town paths, baseball fields and now the Town ring. She noted that the ring was free to the community, centrally located with excellent parking and close to numerous paths. The recent horsemanship camp had been a positive experience for kids and their families. Kathy Evans, La Loma Drive, reported that she had attended the League of California Cities seminar on ballot initiatives. She provided a brief summary of the information she had gleaned and offered to provide Council with copies of the course materials. The City Clerk was directed to assist Evans in forwarding the material to Council. Joan Schlenz, Paseo del Roble, acknowledged that she had addressed Council before in opposition to the Charter School. She believed the residents were being well served by the Palo Alto Unified School District and the Los Altos School District. Ms. Schlenz strongly opposed the use of any Town funds to assist the Charter School. Jim Abraham, resident, concurred with the previous speaker and suggested that residents that were served by the Palo Alto Unified School District were universally happy with the education provided and that redistricting of the Town would be very divisive. Councilmember Jones, Council Liaison to the Public Education Committee, clarified that the Committee had made several recommendations to the Council and none explicitly supported a redistricting proposal. Katie Roper, new resident, commented-that included as a key factor in choosing her residence was an evaluation of the schools. Her neighbors' children attend Loyola and 14 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005 were happy with the school. Her children attend Covington, and she is very pleased with the education. Rober supported efforts for the building of"community"but believed that spending Town resources for the Charter School would be divisive. Lee Garvick, Miranda Court, thanked Council for the opportunity to speak on the Charter School proposal. She suggested that locating the Charter School in Town was a positive solution to returning public education to the Hills and provided an opportunity to locate a unique and exciting school in Los Altos Hills. Her children attend Bullis Charter School. Closed Presentations from the Floor 11. PUBLIC HEARING 12. CLOSED SESSION CLOSED SESSION: Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8: Conference with Real Property Negotiator- Property:—27575 Purissima Road APN 175-43-11 Agency Negotiators: Mike O'Malley and Steve Mattas Under Negotiation: Price and terms for acquisition of property Council did not convene the Closed Session. 13. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Council adjourned the meeting by consensus at 10:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, KCyer The minutes of the July 21, 2005 Regular City Council Meeting were approved as presented at the August 3, 2005 Special City Council Meeting. 15 City Council Meeting Minutes July 21,2005