Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/01/2001 (2) Minutes of a Special Meeting February 1, 2001 Town of Los Altos Hills City Council Special Meeting Thursday, February 1, 2001, 5:00 P.M. Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL Mayor Finn called the Special Meeting of the City Council to order at 5:00 p.m. at Town Hall. Present: Mayor Finn and Councilmembers Casey, Cheng, Fenwick and O'Malley Staff: City Clerk Pat Dowd Press: Liz Cloutman, Los Altos Town Crier Community Chairman Roy Woolsey and members Roger Burnell, Karen Relations Comm: Emerzian, Bill Kerns, Barbara Lamparter, Dorothy Price and Patty Woolsey 2. COMMUNITY RELATIONS COMMITTEE A. 2000 Accomplishments Roy Woolsey reported on the following accomplishments achieved in 2000: four Town Newsletters, greeter at City Council Meetings, the Town Picnic held in May with an attendance of approximately 600 residents, the newcomer project (welcome letters sent to new residents and packets of Town information mailed upon request), participation in Town Pathways Days and Caroling Event(served refreshments to participants) and review of committee charges. B. Goals and Objectives for 2001 1. Review and discussion of Community Relations Committee char es and duties Roy Woolsey, Chairman, referred to the current charges .of the committee and asked Council if they had any suggested additions, changes or comments. Council agreed that February 1, 2001 Special City Council Meeting 1 the committee already had a full list of charges and congratulated the members for their successful completion of these tasks. 2. Discussion of plans for Spring Picnic; approval of Picnic Budget Council discussed the budget proposal from the committee for the Town Picnic. They agreed that the entertainment of the children was very important and there should be more ice cream, more people to make balloons and more clowns. They also concurred with the committee's recommendation for a show rather than a band. Mayor Finn also agreed to a Mayor's Dunking Booth. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Casey, seconded by Finn and passed unanimously to approve a budget of $9,550 for the annual Town Picnic scheduled for June 3`d 3. Proposal for September newcomer welcoming event Roger Burnell noted that in the past such newcomer events had been held at the Heritage House and at Town Hall. Although the newcomers received a separate invitation to the Town Picnic this event was specifically for newcomers and because it was smaller it was easier for them to get to know each other. The proposal was that the newcomers to Town during the past twelve months would be sent invitations and a general invitation to all residents would be included in the Town newsletter. The proposed date was sometime in September. Casey believed the invitation list should include new residents of more than one year but not include all residents. She further recommended May rather than September so that the newcomers could get to know each other before the Town picnic in June. Fenwick offered his home as a location for the party if its size was limited to newcomers from the past two years, Councilmembers, Planning Commissioners, volunteers and staff. O'Malley suggested following up the invitation with a phone call from a Councilmember to encourage attendance. Dan Alexander, 27200 Elena, believed that the event would not be as meaningful if it was held somewhere other than Town Hall. He believed residents would be interested in seeing where their Town Hall was located. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Fenwick, seconded by Cheng and passed unanimously to schedule a newcomers event ( including newcomers from the past two years, Councilmembers, Planning Commissioners, volunteers and staff) for Sunday, May 6th from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Councilmember Fenwick's home. Council also approved the proposed budget for this event which was approximately$535.00. 4. Proposal for neighborhood parties Duffy Price explained the committee's proposal for the promotion of block parties in Town as part of`The Friendly Neighbor Year'. She referred Council to the guide February 1, 2001 Special City Council Meeting 2 prepared by the committee for holding a block parry. It was hoped that this guide could be included in the Town Newsletter, the welcome packets, the local newspaper and at Town Hall. It was also the committee's suggestion that this be tied in with the neighborhood coordinator program as that already defined about thirty five neighborhoods in Town. Casey believed the proposed guideline was much too detailed and could be abbreviated. She noted that block parties were not that complicated to have and several had already be held in Town. She also suggested including an incentive to those holding block parties such as having Councilmembers present at the party. Casey further suggested that the Town provide the nametags for such events. Finn supported coordinating with the Safety Committee and the neighborhood coordinator program. Roger Burnell cautioned that when the neighborhood coordinator program was put in place several years ago it was stated that this would be used strictly for emergency situations and it was possible that some of the coordinators may not welcome the invitation to host social events. It was agreed that there was support for this program but more work was needed on the guide before it was distributed. 5. Proposal for Town Web Site improvements Bill Kerns referred to the proposed list of items to be included on the Town's webpage. This extensive list included in part the Town's Code, staff reports, master pathway map, city map, photos of Council, Planning Commission and staff, historical photos and reference materials and past newsletters. Council concurred with all the committee's recommendations for updating the webpage. In addition it was agreed the page should be redesigned. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: Council directed that Bill Kerns work with staff and the Town's computer consultant, Aleuron Systems, on the feasibility of including all recommended materials on the Town's webpage and on redesigning the webpage. It was further agreed that the consultant would be asked to provide a report with his recommendations and costs at the next Council Meeting. C. Discussion of specific items brought up by committee and Council Members or introduced in the Goals and Objectives 1. Email Casey suggested that all residents be encouraged to send the Town their email so they could be included in any email alerts from the Town. Casey believed this would be a very effective way to quickly reach everyone in Town on important issues. February 1, 2001 Special City Council Meeting 3 PASSED BY CONSENSUS: Council agreed to direct the editor of the newsletter to include an article in the March newsletter asking anyone interested to send their email to Town Hall to be included in Town-wide email alerts. Council thanked the members of the Community Relations Committee for their many contributions to the Town and their many successes in bringing the community together. 3. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR 4. ADJOURNMENT There being no further new or old business to discuss, the City Council Meeting was adjourned at 5:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Patricia Dowd City Clerk • The minutes of the February 1, 2001 Special City Council Meeting were approved at the February 15, 2001 Regular City Council Meeting. February 1, 2001 Special City Council Meeting 4