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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes June 25 DraftLos Altos Hills Pathway Committee DRAFTI Minutes of Meeting of Monday, June 25, 2012 1. ADMINISTRATIVE Chairman Eileen Gibbons called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM Members present: Courtenay Corrigan, Nick Dunckel, Ann Duwe, Eileen Gibbons, David Jessen, Joseph Kleitman, Bob Stutz, Tim Warner, Sue Welch, Denise Williams Members absent: Breene Kerr Members of the public present: Mary Jane Ferrari, 27820 Saddle Court Dru Anderson, Saddle Mountain Road Rick McCauley, 27501 Elena Road The agenda was approved as amended. The minutes from the June 4, 2012 meeting were approved with minor amendments. 2. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE FLOOR None 3. PROPERTY REVIEWS. The following properties was reviewed for pathway recommendations: A. 25860 Altamont Road (Lands of Ferrari). The reason for pathway review is construction of a new residence. The owner, Mary Jane Ferrari, was present. The property is a flag lot on the south side of Altamont Road adjacent to the Seton property. The only frontage on Altamont is the driveway entrance and no off-road paths through this parcel are shown on the Master Path Plan. At the time their parcel was subdivided, the owners donated to the Town 3/4 acre of land between Moody Road and Old Snakey Road. Joe Kleitman moved that the Town acknowledge and thank the owners of 25860 Altamont Road for their gift to the Town at the time of subdivision. No pathway easement or in -lieu fee is required at this time. David Jessen seconded. The vote was unanimously in favor. B. 26420 Eshner Court (Lands of DTNH LLC). The reason for pathway review is construction of a new residence, a pool, and a second unit. The owner was not present. The property is on the southwest side of Altamont Road with frontage on both Altamont and Eshner Court, which is a cul-de-sac serving three residences. Although a IIB roadside path exists along the full length of the Altamont border of the property, no pathway easement is shown on the site development plans. A roadside path exists on Eshner Court on the side opposite this property and an off-road path runs from the bulb end of Eshner court to the end of Silent Hills Lane (between 26410 Eshner Court and 26300 Silent Hills Lane). Ann Duwe moved that if no pathway easement exists under the roadside path along Altamont Road on 26420 Eshner Court, the Town must request this easement. In addition, the owners must restore this roadside path to IIB standards after construction is completed. Nick Dunckel seconded. The vote was unanimously in favor. The motion was amended to read: If the pathway easement along Altamont Road on 26420 Eshner Court already exists, then the Town should request a pathway in -lieu fee from the owners. Nick Dunckel seconded. The vote was 9 in favor, one opposed. 4. NEW BUSINESS A. Complaint from Residents about New Pathway Along Saddle Mountain Road. Residents of Saddle Mountain Road reported to Town staff and the PWC that a new roadside pathway DraftPWC_Min12-0625 (2) 7/17/12 constructed along Saddle Mountain Road on 27800 Saddle Mountain Court is unsafe. This path was excavated below the grade of the road and now has a sharp 8 to 12 inch drop-off from the curb, which is a hazard for cars, bikes, equestrians, and pedestrians. In addition, a large metal and concrete PG&E high-voltage vault with sharp metal edges has been excavated so it now sits 12-24 inches above grade in the middle of the path. PWC made a site visit on June 23, 2012. Dru Anderson, who lives on Saddle Mountain Road and is a member of the Traffic Safety Committee, spoke at the meeting and provided photos and described the hazards of this new pathway. She also noted that the path does not connect to roadside paths on the adjacent properties. The Town apparently has already signed off on this path (i.e., approved it), so that any required changes will have to be made by the Town. Saddle Mountain Road is a wide cul-de-sac with little traffic.- an raffic;an off-road path exits the road near the end of the cul-de-sac. After considerable discussion, the unanimous consensus of the PWC was that 1) the pathway as constructed is unsafe and must be modified; 2) the Town should retain the easement for this roadside path, even though it does not connect to paths on adjacent properties at this time; 3) construction of the path to IIB standards is not a high priority at this time because the path lacks connectivity; a native path would be sufficient and upgrading to IIB standards could be done at a later date. The major objective for now is to make the path safe. Dropping the high-voltage vault to the grade of the new path would not be sufficient (i.e., it does not address the curb drop-off) and would likely be very costly. Courtney Corrigan moved that the Town backfill the excavated section to bring the surface of the pathway flush to the curb and create a native path along the roadside (i.e., put it back the way it was). In addition, the backfilled area should be reseeded with grasses to stabilize the hillside and the landscaping and other obstacles in the pathway easement near the owners driveway should be removed. Ann Duwe seconded. The vote was unanimously in favor. B. Rules and Reguulations. 1. Pathway In -Lieu Fees. Chairman Gibbons provided excerpts from LAH Municipal Code and the Pathways Element of the LAH General Plan related to in -lieu fees to try to clarify when it is appropriate for the Town to collect an in -lieu fee. This information did not fully answer outstanding questions such as how many years must pass after a previous owner has paid a fee before a new fee can be collected. It was recommended that the secretary find relevant minutes of past PWC meetings to further clarify the issue. 2. Point of Order on Discussions. Chairman Gibbons clarified a point of order raised at the last meeting regarding discussion of pathways on properties that are not listed on the PWC agenda and whose owners have not been notified about the meeting. She noted that such discussions are necessary when discussing the system of pathways in the Town and are permissible and not out of order as long as no actions are taken on the properties not on the agenda. It was suggested that the Town attorney be consulted to confirm this and Joe Kleitman volunteered to put together a list of questions. C. Bicycle and Pedestrian Grant Funding.. Chair Eileen Gibbons reviewed information about potential grant opportunities and noted that a condition of approval for most is that the Circulation Element of the Town's General Plan must be in compliance by January 2013. That element is currently being updated. Chairman Gibbons will contact Councilmember Larsen, who is leading the update of the Element, to inform him of this requirement. DraftPWC_Min12-0625 (2) 7/17/12 2 D. Bike to School Subcommittee. The subcommittee met this month and Tim Warner presented a PowerPoint presentation summarizing ideas for increasing bike -to -school activities in Town. These included leveraging the LAH pathway infrastructure and planning a series of shovel -ready projects suitable for grant applications. A preliminary set of bike -to -school "through -routes" were presented that would provide connectivity to schools and be given priority for CIP projects and grants. The subcommittee also proposed 1) exploring a Bike Loaner program with "bike and ride" access points conveniently located for biking to schools; 2) researching the school-age population in the town; 3) surveying residents about the projects; 4) identifying timelines and specifics for grants; 5) considering collaborations with the LAH Youth Commission and the City of Los Altos. Chairman Eileen Gibbons moved that the PWC present these ideas to the City Council for feedback. Tim Warner seconded. The vote was unanimously in favor. E. Pathway Easement at 26901 Beatrice Lane. The owner of this parcel has asked the Town to move the "Path" post so that walkers will be guided up her shared driveway from Robleda instead of along the existing path on the edge of the property. The PWC visited the site on June 23 and spoke with the owner, who said she donated the easement in 2008. The existing path appears to be in a 5 -foot easement along the northern edge of the property; the other 5 feet of easement is on adjacent property at 13781 Robleda Road. Chairman Gibbons will check the status of the easements and the PWC will review this again at the July meeting. F. Parking on Pathways Near 11170 Magdalena Road. A neighbor has complained to the Town that the owner of this parcel hosts large gatherings about twice a month during which cars are parked on pathways in the area. Town staff has asked the PWC to comment on whether "No Parking on Pathway' signs are needed here. The general consensus was that signs are not needed at this time. Instead, the host of the large gatherings should be asked to make other arrangements for guest parking and the Town should make an increased effort to enforce the existing No Parking on Pathway regulation (i.e., have the sheriff step up enforcement activities). G. Request Process for PWC Review of Project Plans. During the past year, a number of pathway projects have been executed in manner that differed significantly from the PWC's vision and that were not consistent with the general rural character of the Town. Examples include the initial Fremont bike path plans, installation of crosswalks with flashing lights, removal of mature trees for the steps at Chaparral and Moody, start of construction of a retaining wall at Elena and Natoma, and construction of a dangerous path on Saddle Mountain Road. These projects have aroused animosity towards pathways among residents and created significant additional work for both the PWC and Town staff. The committee discussed at length how to improve communication between the PWC and Town staff to avoid future problems. Chairman Eileen Gibbons will write a letter to City Manager, Carl Cahill, informing him of the problems and asking for help to assure that future projects are consistent with the Towns rural character that is highly valued by residents. H. Nicholson Path Walk. Chairman Gibbons proposed an item in the September Town newsletter publicizing a guided group walk of this new pathway. Because no one is available to guide the walk and the completion date is uncertain, she will instead write an item for the newsletter describing the new path and encouraging residents to visit it on their own. I. PWC Election of Officers. Although Chairman Gibbons has served two terms, the unanimous consensus of the PWC was that she be asked to continue as chair for another term. This is DraftPWC_Min12-0625 (2) 7/17/12 3 consistent with terms served by chairs of other Town committees. Sue Welch will continue as secretary. 5. OLD BUSINESS A. Pathway Extension at Natoma and Elena. At the June 04, 2012 meeting, Rick McCauley, 27501 Elena Road, proposed an alternative plan for improving the safety of the roadside pathway at the corner of Elena and Natoma. Specifically, he recommended continuing the pathway straight along the top of the bank close to the Poor Clare's brick wall (where a rough native path already exists) and then dropping it down as a native path to the stop sign at the corner. This is a safer location to cross where pedestrians and equestrians have better sight distance for cars coming up Elena. The PWC visited the site on June 2 and discussed it at the June 4 meeting. The consensus of the PWC was that the McCauley proposal is preferable to the roadside retaining wall and appears feasible. Chairman Eileen Gibbons contacted staff about the status of the pathway easements and was informed that Poor Clare's has not granted a pathway easement for this section of Natoma Road. Because the PWC strongly prefers this alternate route above the bank rather than the retaining wall along the road, Chairman Gibbons will write a letter to Poor Clare's requesting this additional easement. Eileen Gibbons moved that Town staff put construction of this CIP on hold until the committee has an opportunity to try to get the easement, the project will be revisited when more information about the easement options is available. Joe Kleitman seconded. The vote was unanimously in favor. B. CIP Project Priorities. Chairman Eileen Gibbons provided a spreadsheet with potential CIP projects to consider for the Five -Year Plan requested by Council. PWC members were asked to review them and be prepared to sort out priorities at the next meeting. C. Pathway Project Status Reports. Chairman Eileen Gibbons reported on the status of projects: Moody and Chaparral. The access stairs for equestrians at Chaparral and Moody are under construction. Robleda Road. The Town is waiting for approval from the California Regional Water Quality Control Board about the proposed work along the banks of Robleda Creek on Robleda Road. Fremont Bike Path. CalTrans has requested that standard ADA accessible ramps be provided at all road crossings along the Fremont Bike Path. The Town may ask for an exception, but one is unlikely to be granted. Stanford Path on Arastradero. The Town is waiting for final approvals from County Parks Department and CalTrans. 6. REPORTS FROM OTHER MEETINGS A. City Council. Jim Abraham, Jitze Couperus, and Susan Mandel were elected to the Planning Commission. B. Ad Hoc Fence Committee. The committee presented a summary of their work to date to the City Council on June 21, 2102. Feedback from Council was positive and they directed the committee to continue their work. 7. GENERAL DISCUSSION None DraftPWC_Min12-0625 (2) 7/17/12 4 8. Adjournment. The meeting was adjourned at 9:40 PM 9. NEXT SCHEDULED MEETINGS Next Pathway Walk: Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 8:30 AM at Town Hall Next Regular Meeting: Monday, July 23, 2012 at 7:00 PM at Town Hall Respectfully submitted, Sue Welch July 29, 2012 DraftPWC_Min12-0625 (2) 7/17/12