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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/4/2019 1 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Town of Los Altos Hills City Council Special Meeting Minutes Wednesday, December 04, 2019 Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, California CALL TO ORDER (7:00 P.M.) Mayor Spreen called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. A. Roll Call Present: Councilmember Corrigan, Councilmember Tankha, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu, Mayor Spreen Absent: None Staff: City Manager Carl Cahill, City Attorney Steve Mattas, Planning Director Zach Dahl, Principal Planner Steve Padovan, City Clerk Deborah Padovan B. Pledge of Allegiance 1. AGENDA REVIEW There were no changes to the agenda. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT (Public Comment is Limited to Items which are the Subject of the Special Meeting) There were no public comments. 3. PUBLIC HEARINGS Ex Parte Communications: Councilmember Corrigan stated that regarding the fire codes, she recently spoke with Bob Daily, and Silicon Valley Clean Energy CEO Girish Balachandran regarding the energy reach codes; Councilmember Tyson spoke to two faculty members at University of California Berkeley regarding energy utilization and efficiency; Vice Mayor Wu attended a Clean Energy Workshop hosted by Palo Alto; Councilmember Tankha said she spoke with Steve Schmidt; Mayor Spreen said he hasn't spoken to anyone outside of the fire commission meetings. A. Introduction of an Ordinance of the Town of Los Altos Hills Repealing Chapter 5 (Wireless Telecommunications Facilities) of Title 7 (Public Works) of the Los 2 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Altos Hills Municipal Code, Amending Section 10-1.202 (definition of Antenna) and Adding Article 13 (Wireless Telecommunications Facilities) to Chapter 1 (Zoning) of Title 10 (Zoning and Site Development) of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code Establishing Regulations for Wireless Telecommunications Facilities; File #MCA18-0001 (Staff: Z. Dahl/S. Padovan) Motion to Waive Reading and Introduce the Ordinance Mayor Spreen provided a context of the discussion in order to focus the discussion and use the Council’s time efficiently. Principal Planner Steve Padovan presented the staff report. Council asked questions of staff and received responses. Russell Benson, Town Consultant, Radio Frequency Engineer, responded to questions from the Council. Mayor Spreen opened the Public Hearing. Steve Schmidt, Los Altos Hills, spoke against adding additional infrastructure to the Town's existing utility poles. Bob Sandor, Los Altos Hills, believed that one of the core values of the Town was to encourage new technologies and communications methods. He spoke in support of 5G technologies. Chris Wright, Los Altos Hills, spoke about the telephone poles and the safety factor of adding more weight to the poles. Melissa Smith, Los Altos, spoke about planetary magnetic pollution. Jitze Couperus, Los Altos Hills, said that the poles are being regulated. Not one resident said they were in favor of additional poles. Scott Overstreet, Los Altos Hills, said "get rid of power poles." Carol Meyer, Los Altos Hills, said that she supported the Planning Commission's recommendations of 1500 feet from schools, 200 feet from houses, and 50 feet from the property line, and there needs to be some limits on the number of poles. Barbara Wright, Los Altos Hills, said that the Council now has the power to protect its residents and to pass the ordinance that is currently before the Council. Ramon Jimenez, Los Altos Hills, spoke about his neighbors not receiving notice and questioned the placement of the proposed nodes. 3 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 June Wong, Los Altos Hills, quoted an article from the central valley about a school where children who were near cell phone towers contracted cancer. Tracie Kiachian, Los Altos Hills, say she was nervous about letting people put poles in for things that are not necessary. Scott Vanderlip, Los Altos Hills, said one could buy a device that has to be a clear line of site of a 5G tower. Verizon wants to provide home Broadnet service to compete with Comcast. Liz Frazier, Los Altos Hills, said they do not want these cell sites in close proximity to residences. She then accused Vice Mayor Wu of having a conflict of interest. Vice Mayor Wu stated that she did discuss the issue with the City Attorney prior to the beginning of the meeting. City Attorney Steve Mattas stated that Vice Mayor Wu does not have a conflict; there is an entity that she is forming that has not generated any revenue and there is no client base. He stated that she was able to participate in the Council discussion. Angela Kung, External Affairs Area Manager with AT&T stated that AT&T wants to work with staff and wants to make sure that they are not prohibited from being here. Mark Graves, Program Manager, AT&T, said that the facilities currently in Town are low power, which means low propagation. The proposed 1500 feet setback is problematic and expressed that 600 or 700 feet would be more realistic. Council members asked questions of AT&T and received their responses. Jillian Draeger, Los Altos Hills, strongly urged the Council to adopt the regulations as recommended by the Planning Commission. Mayor Spreen closed the Public Hearing. Council discussion ensued. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Councilmember Tyson moved to waive reading and introduce the ordinance as recommended by the Planning Commission as follows: Repeal Chapter 5 of Title 7 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code; Amend Article 2 "Definitions," Section 10-1.202 of Title 10, Chapter 1 of the Los Altos hills Municipal Code to update the definition of "Antenna"; and Add Article 13 entitled "Wireless Telecommunications Facilities" to Chapter 1, Title 10 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code establishing regulations for wireless telecommunications facilities in the Town of Los Altos Hills with the following 4 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 modification: the setback from schools shall be 1,100 feet. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Corrigan. Motion Carried 4 to 1: AYES: Councilmember Corrigan, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu, Mayor Spreen NOES: Councilmember Tankha ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Councilmember Corrigan moved to direct staff to complete an analysis in conjunction with cellular and digital service providers; analyze the number of poles in town and the efficacy of using existing poles given the new ordinance; and complete a service feasibly coverage study to determine whether setbacks distance significantly effect or prohibit the provision of such services. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Tyson. Motion Carried 4 to 1: AYES: Councilmember Corrigan, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu, Mayor Spreen NOES: Councilmember Tankha ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None B. Consider Adopting Local Modifications and Amendments to the California Energy Code to Encourage Electrification of New Structures; File #MCA19-0005 (Staff: Z. Dahl/S. Padovan) Principal Planner Steve Padovan presented the staff report. Council asked questions of staff and received responses. John Supp, Silicon Valley Clean Energy, provided information about the heat pump/water heater initiative on the retrofit market. Mayor Spreen opened the Public Hearing. 5 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Scott Bryan, Los Altos Hills, said that cutting off gas is not ideal. He further stated, "the government shouldn't tell me what I can and can't do." Bill Evans, Los Altos Hills, was not in support of banning gas. He said that this is not the right way to becoming "woke." Bob Sandor, Los Altos Hills, said that he finds it ironic that we talk about undergrounding utilities and the one thing that is currently underground is natural gas. Jitze Couperus, Los Altos Hills, said he lives is an "all electric home and it sucks." Paul Boultbee, Los Altos Hills, does not think the costs are feasible. Wayne Kelly, Los Altos Hills, said he built his house in the 70s and it is all on natural gas and asked to the Council to not ban gas. Scott Overstreet, Los Altos Hills, asked the Council to please not ban gas. Tom McReynolds, Los Altos Hills, said to look at the efficiency of natural gas in the home versus PG&E's generators. Dan DiCanio, Los Altos Hills, said he has been in his house since 1968 and he took out the electric range and put in a gas range and the total PG&E bill decreased by 15% over the course of a year. Carol Meyer, Los Altos Hills, asked the Council to consider incentives, not mandates. Encourage people to put on solar and utilize different technologies. Jeannette Foley, Los Altos Hills, requested personal choice, not government regulation. She spoke about her concerns about the cost of electricity. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Councilmember Corrigan moved to continue the meeting past 10:00 p.m. The motion was seconded by Vice Mayor Wu. Motion Carried 5 to 0: AYES: Councilmember Corrigan, Councilmember Tankha, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu, Mayor Spreen NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None 6 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Anand Ranganethan, Los Altos Hills, said we need gas in our kitchens. We live in a diverse community different people have different ways of cooking and if he couldn't cook on a flame, his kids would go hungry on a regular basis. Steve Schmidt, Los Altos Hills, spoke in favor of the energy reach codes, specifically Option 3, banning all new gas infrastructure for new development. Allan Epstein, Los Altos Hills, was in support of Option 1, requiring pre-wiring for heat-pump space heating systems, heat-pump water heating, appliances, battery back-up systems and Level 2 car charging. Adela DiCanio, Los Altos Hills, said she has never had trouble with gas; the trouble is with electricity. Kjell Karlsson, Los Altos Hills, said that Option 1 prepares more for the future and enhances the value of the building. Mayor Spreen closed the Public Hearing. Council discussion ensued. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Councilmember Tyson moved to direct staff to return to the Council with an ordinance adopting the recommendations of Option 2, require heat-pump space heating, heat-pump water heating, but allow for clothes dryers, cooking appliances and fireplaces to be gas fueled; in addition, require pre-wiring for all appliances, battery back-up systems and Level 2 car charging. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Corrigan. Motion Carried 4 to 1: AYES: Councilmember Corrigan, Councilmember Tankha, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu NOES: Mayor Spreen ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None Councilmember Tankha requested that staff provide resources for homeowners, including a list of vendors that install and repair heat pumps. She also requested that staff talk to homeowners who have completed the homebuilding the process to provide feedback. C. Introduction of an Ordinance amending Chapters 1.2 (Residential Code) and 1.8 (Fire Code) of Title 8 (Building Regulations) of the Los Altos Hills Municipal 7 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Code and Adopting by Reference Amendments to the 2019 California Building Standards Code Including Local Modifications; File #MCA19-0005 (Staff: Z. Dahl/S. Padovan) Motion to Waive Reading and Introduce the Ordinance Principal Planner Steve Padovan presented the staff report. Council asked questions of staff and received responses. Mayor Spreen opened the Public Hearing. Jitze Couperus, Los Altos Hills, said if his house was built to WUI standards, his insurance would have been lower. Allan Epstein, Los Altos Hills, stated that he did not believe the Town was in a high fire area. John Justice, Santa Clara County Deputy Chief of the Fire Prevention Division, provided information on fire hazards. Mayor Spreen closed the Public Hearing. Council discussion ensued. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Vice Mayor Wu moved to waive reading and introduce an ordinance amending Chapters 1.2 (Residential Code) and 1.8 (Fire Code) of Title 8 (Building Regulations) of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code and Adopting by Reference Amendments to the 2019 California Building Standards Code Including Local Modifications. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Tyson. Motion Carried 4 to 1: AYES: Councilmember Tankha, Councilmember Tyson, Vice Mayor Wu, Mayor Spreen NOES: Councilmember Corrigan ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None 4. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 11:02 p.m. 8 City Council Special Meeting Minutes December 4, 2019 Respectfully submitted, Deborah Padovan Deborah Padovan City Clerk The minutes of the December 4, 2019 special City Council meeting were approved as presented at the January 16, 2020 regular City Council meeting.