Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/18/1997 (2)Minutes of a Regular Meeting June 18, 1997 Town of Los Altos Hills City Council Regular Meeting Wednesday, June 18, 1997, 6:00 P.M. Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road 1. CALL TO ORDER, PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND ROLL CALL Mayor Hubbard called the Regular Meeting of the City to order at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Town Hall. Present: Mayor Hubbard and Councilmembers Casey, Dauber, Johnson and Siegel Absent: None Staff: City Manager/City Engineer Jeff Peterson, City Attorney Sandy Sloan, Planning Director Curtis Williams, Public Works Manager Jim Rasp, Finance Director Carol Ferrell and City Clerk Pat Dowd Press: Clyde Noel, Los Altos Town Crier LA REORGANIZATION OF THE COUNCIL MOTION SECONDED AND FAILED: Moved by Hubbard, seconded by Dauber and failed by the following roll call vote to appoint Bob Johnson as Mayor. AYES: Mayor Hubbard and Councilmember Dauber NOES: Mayor Pro Tem Casey and Councilmember Siegel ABSTAIN: Councilmember Johnson Hubbard and Dauber stated that they recommended Johnson rather than Casey for Mayor because they did not feel that Casey would appropriately represent the entire Council and its decisions on issues. Siegel stated that there was a standard rotation schedule and the Council should continue on that schedule for the good of the Town. Johnson appreciated that this was a Council decision but he did not feel comfortable accepting the position of Mayor unless it was a unanimous vote for him to do so. Casey stated that she was disappointed and saddened by some of the comments made by her fellow Councilmembers. She believed she worked hard for the Town and while she did support property rights, she also supported the goals of the Town and the Town's General Plan. In her opinion this unprecedented act of not following the standard rotation schedule for Mayor politicized the position of Mayor and made it a popularity contest. If the rotation schedule was not going to be followed, the residents should vote for the Mayor. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Johnson and passed by the following roll call vote to appoint Toni Casey as Mayor. AYES: Mayor Pro Tem Casey and Councilmembers Johnson and Siegel NOES: Mayor Hubbard and Councilmember Dauber MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Dauber, seconded by Casey and passed kw . unanimously to appoint Bob Johnson Mayor Pro Tem. �r June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting Council presented Sid Hubbard with a gift and thanked him for serving an excellent term as Mayor. Hubbard thanked his fellow Councilmembers and noted that he was proud of their hard work and accomplishments during the past year. Hubbard also thanked the dedicated staff and the wonderful team of volunteers who contributed so much to the Town. 2. APPOINTMENTS AND PRESENTATIONS 3. PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT The Planning Director reported that the following issues were discussed at the June 11, 1997 Planning Commission Meeting: Lands of Full House Fawn, 23219 Ravensbury: recommended approval of a request for renewal of a conditional use permit for the operation of an existing commercial stable; Lands of Lohr, 24044 Oak Knoll Circle: request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence - continued at request of applicant; Lands of Clevenger, 14400 Kingsley Avenue: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence and denied request to modify condition of approval of tentative map; and Lands of Vellequette, 25505 Bledsoe Court: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence. The Planning Commission also recommended approval of ordinance changes regarding development area, floor area, height, setback lines and outdoor lighting. 4. CONSENT CALENDAR Items Removed: 4.3b (Casey) and 4.4 (continued at request of applicant) MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Johnson, seconded by Dauber and passed unanimously to approve the balance of the Consent Calendar, specifically: �r 4.1 Approved Minutes: June 3, 1997 (Adjourned Regular Meeting) June 4, 1997 (Regular Meeting) 4.2 Approved Warrants: $105,352.73 (6/2/97) 4.3 Decided Not To Review the following Planning Commission Actions at its meeting on May 28, 1997: 4.3a Lands of Cames, 14090 Tracy Court: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a second story addition. 4.3c Lands of Duncan, 12254 Tepa Way: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a second story addition and garage. 4.3d Lands of Groff & Taylor, 28625 Matadero Creek Court: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence. 4.3e Lands of Bonds, 27320 & 27330 Elena Drive: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence, guest unit, cabana, pool, spa and a lot merger 4.5 Approved request for authorization to advertise the Town's Page Mill Road Retaining Wall Project, FY 96-97 for competitive bids -- Reso #32-97 4.6 Approved amendment No. 1 to agreement with Cotton, Shires and Associates for Geotechnical Services -- Reso #33-97 Jane 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 4.7 Westwind Barn, Phase 1I Roof Replacement Project -Approved recommendation for Award of Contract -- Reso #34-97 4.8 Awarded Certificates of Appreciation: Les and Ian Earnest for their contributions on a successful Pathways Walk Day 4.9 Accepted Proposed Goals and Objectives for FY 97-98 Items Removed: 4.3b Lands of Hu, 11240 Magdalena Road: approved request for a Site Development Permit for a new residence. Council decided to review this application at a public hearing on July 2, 1997. 4.4 Grant of Conservation Easement, Lands of Tan, 13910 Page Mill Road -- Reso # This item was continued at the request of the applicant. 5. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 5.1 Adoption of Ordinance reducing the number of Planning Commissioners to five (SECOND READING) Dauber referred to a chart she prepared which showed the attendance at Planning Commission meetings for the past year. She supported a seven member Planning Commission noting that absences became more critical when the commission was smaller. Siegel, Johnson and Hubbard supported natural attrition - reducing the commission to six this year and five next year. Casey referred to the memo she had prepared on this issue. In it she supported the lottery method of choosing five commissioners from the current seven members. However, she did list two alternatives: 1) Do not fill Commissioner Dorm's seat when it was completed on June 30, 1997 and ask for the resignation of Commissioner Jinkerson who was the most recent appointment. Or 2) Ask for the resignation of all seven members of the commission and reappoint five. Casey expressed concerns about a six member Planning Commission because of the greater opportunity of tie votes on applications. Shari Emling, 11853 Marietta, supported the natural attrition method. She thought the lottery approach unfair. Bill Hofing, 26045 Torello, supported the natural attrition method. Ralph Vetteriein, 26035 Todd Lane, complimented Council for revisiting this issue and discussing various alternatives. Shelley Doran, Planning Commissioner, spoke on behalf of the Commission. She reported that the consensus opinion of the Commission was to keep it to seven members. The Town was small but diverse and seven members with diverse views and varying experience levels were needed to review the applications brought before them. Personally, Doran supported the lottery system and thought to go to six members at this time was unfair. If Council decided on five members it should be done all at once. June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting Dot Schreiner, Planning Commissioner, commented on the conflict of interest issue. With the new regulations at almost each Planning Commission Meeting a commissioner was stepping down from consideration of an item. She suggested the alternative of reducing the commission to six now with one permanent rotating alternate. Carol Gottlieb, Planning Commission, supported a seven member commission but offered the option of extending Commissioner Doran's term for one year. That would mean that next June there would be three seats open and one appointment could be made to arrive at a five member commission. Jim Crowder, 11730 Magdalena, asked if everything was working well with a seven member Planning Commission, why change it to five members. Mary Stutz, Planning Commissioner, believed the fairest way was the natural attrition method. She thought six members would work as well as five or seven for that matter. She also offered to resign immediately with Commissioner Dorm's term not being filled so there would be five commissioners. Johnson concurred with Commissioner Gottlieb's recommendation. Hubbard, however, supported six commissioners now with five next year. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Johnson, seconded by Casey and passed by the following roll call vote to adopt Ordinance 386 amending Chapter 2 of Title 2 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code regarding the Planning Commission (reducing the Planning Commission to five members), said ordinance to be effective June 30, 1998. AYES: Mayor Casey and Councilmembers Johnson and Siegel NOES: Councilmember Hubbard ABSTAIN: Councilmember Dauber MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Johnson, seconded by Casey and passed unanimously to extend Planning Commissioner Shelley Dorm's term to June 30, 1998. 5.2 Adoption of Policy Regarding Secondary Dwellings and Accessory Structures MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Hubbard, seconded by Siegel and passed by the following roll call vote to adopt the following policy regading secondary dwellings and accessory structures: "1. The Site Development Authority may determine that an accessory structure which does not contain all of the elements of a `secondary dwelling', per the Zoning Code definition, could readily be modified or used for independent living purposes. In such a case, the Site Development Authority may, at its discretion, require a property restriction to be recorded against the property title, limiting the use of the structure so that it is not used as a `secondary dwelling'. The language of the restriction shall include provisions for Town inspection and enforcement of this provision. and 2. For the purposes of calculating the 1.0 acre minimum lot size to allow secondary dwellings, property adjacent to the parcel which was dedicated to the Town for roadway right-of-way shall be included, if the dedication was made as a condition of a site development approval for that parcel. Right-of-way dedicated through the subdivision process or purchased by the Town shall be excluded from the lot area calculation." AYES: Mayor Casey and Councilmembers Hubbard, Johnson and Siegel NOES: Councilmember Dauber 5.3 Discussion of the review of the Master Path Plan Process June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting Council addressed the issue of the process of reviewing the Master Path Plan and agreed after the initial hearing in May that more focus was needed. They agreed that it would be clearer if better visual aids were used including a large map in Chambers of the paths under discussion. Also two maps should be produced, one showing the current paths and one showing the proposed modifications. The suggestion was made to make color maps available but it was pointed out that they were rather expensive to print. Council did agree that they should review the paths and attempt to resolve the controversial ones before they were advertised for public input. The next Town Newsletter would include two maps and dates for the public hearings. 6. NEW BUSINESS 6.1 Abatement of Nuisance, 12234 Tepa Way: Lands of Roscoe PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To continue this item to the July 16, 1997 Council Meeting, 6.2 Presentation of Town Accomplishments for FY 96-97 The City Manager presented the following list of accomplishments for FY 96-97. He noted that it had been a very productive year and he thanked Council for their support and the staff for making the accomplishments possible. Accomplishments of FY96-97 • Installed networked computers for the remainder of the Staff. Connected the Heritage house computers into the server. • Purchased and installed a parcel data base system onto the computer server. Performed a major data entry effort using planning interns. Designed a user interface to make the system more user friendly. Staff is now using the system in the day to day operations of planning. • Prepared Housing Element for State review and received comments from Housing and Community Development Dept.; revised Draft has been completed and should be scheduled for Planning Commission public hearing this summer. • Adopted a revised "Site Development Policy"; also, adopted policies regarding: 1) grading guidelines, 2) wireless communications facilities, and 3) secondary dwellings; all policies have been incorporated into the recent reprinting of the Town's Design Guidelines. • Adopted Site Development Code revisions to streamline review process, allowing added staff discretion to approve smaller projects, and eliminating redundancies and unnecessary provisions. • Prepared other Zoning and Site Development Code revisions regarding nonconforming structures, pavement allowed in setbacks, and outdoor lighting, currently under review by the City Council or Planning Commission. • Processed an increase of approximately 33% in planning and building permit activity, with no increase in staff levels and little increase in contract staff costs. June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting • Reviewed and approved several conditional use permits for Pacific Bell Mobile • Started the process for establishment of a Master Calendar for annual major maintenance activities. t Jane 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 6 Services and Sprint Spectrum to substantially complete the wireless (cellular) phone network along Hwy. 280 through Town, in a manner consistent with protecting the open character and visual quality of residential areas. • Reviewed preliminary subdivision improvement plans and final map for the Quarry Hills subdivision (Lands of Vidovich). Construction is anticipated to begin later this summer. • Reduced garbage rates by over 10% though rates were proposed to increase. • Completed approximately $1.4 million dollars of capital improvement projects which included street and storm drain improvements, pathway construction, retaining wall construction, landslide repairs, building improvements and the computer system and finance system upgrades. • Negotiated and adopted a new lease with the Purissima Hills Water District. • Negotiated and adopted a new five year contract with the Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department. • Negotiated and adopted a new three year Animal Control Services contract with the City of Palo Alto with no cost increases for the next three years. • Finalized a policy on the acceptance of private streets as public streets. • �I Developed and adopted a policy on the use of the Town's bench mark system. • Updated and adopted approximately fifty percent of the Town's standard construction details. • Developed a revised draft Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual. It is anticipated that the document will be brought forward for Council review early in FY97/98. • Reviewed job descriptions for all positions at staff level and updated the requirements to conform to ADA requirements. These will be used in conjunction with the salary survey in FY 97/98. • Completed improvements to the Maintenance Bum including the creation of a locker room and the installation of a heater. • Researched, competitively bid, purchased and installed a new financial system. The system will be fully operational in early FY 97/98. • Established an Equipment Replacement Program for the Maintenance Department. • Purchased a new dump truck for the Maintenance Department. • Started the process for establishment of a Master Calendar for annual major maintenance activities. t Jane 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 6 • Connected the Heritage House to the generator for emergency power. Installed AmoCad on the Town's computer system for use on capital improvement plans, standard details, the parcel data base mapping system, etc. Created checklists for improvement plan checking of subdivisions and site development engineering plans. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: Council thanked the City Manager for his excellent report and requested that an article on these accomplishments be included in the next Town Newsletter. 7. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES, SUB -COMMITTEES. AND COUNCILMEMBERS ON OUTSIDE AGENCIES 7.1 Report from Communications Subcommittee Casey referred to the first recommendation from the communications subcommittee. This recommendation was that a policy be adopted whereby a Town -wide mailer would be used when an issue of "substantial change, as determined by the Council, that could affect the value of property" was to be considered by the Council. The committee also submitted a chart which listed various subject matters and the recommended notification process. The committee further recommended that this process be adopted for a six month trial period and then reviewed by the Council. Siegel did not agree with this recommendation. He believed it opened the doors wide to varying opinions about what affects property values and unnecessarily alarmed residents over relatively minor issues. He further believed that it was the role of the Commissioners and Councilmembers to address such Town issues and make decisions. Hubbard concurred with Siegel. He noted that there was already a legal notification process in place and the recommendation now before Council could slow down the process of getting Town issues resolved. He thought the recommended process was expensive and cumbersome. Dauber commented that she was not against trying this notification procedure once in awhile for specific issues but she did not agree with all the issues listed on the recommended chart. Johnson noted that he was a member of this subcommittee and supported the recommendation. He concurred that the chart was rather overwhelming but supported trying it for a six month period. If it did not work, then he recommended stopping the process. Shari Emling,11853 Marietta Lane, commented on property values and the strict enforcement of the zoning code in Town. She was concerned that the zoning was being negatively affected by the allowance of nonconforming structures. She believed government by initiative was ineffective and the Council should be trusted to do its work. However, she also believed that there were certain issues that should be discussed by the residents. Tom Lefevre, 14850 Manuella, commented that at a recent social function he had heard many comments about the need for better communication in the Town. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Dauber, seconded by Hubbard and passed unanimously to agree that for the next six months the Mayor and City Manager should identify issues of substantial ordinance changes for Town -wide mailings and bring to Council for approval. It was further agreed that all references to property values in such notices should be deleted. The second recommendation from the subcommittee was for a Town -wide survey. Johnson stated that he generally supported the recommendation for a Town -wide survey but needed more information about costs. Dauber stated that she was adamantly opposed to hiring a consultant for [ this project. Siegel did not want to spend money on this project without knowing what questions June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting were going to be asked. He noted that the last survey had been done eight years ago and not much had changed in the Town since then. Casey commented that the questions for the survey would not be written by the consultant but rather reviewed by the consultant. Casey also noted that there had been quite a bit of turnover in the Town since the last survey. She suggested that the subcommittee prepare a list of questions for Council's review. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: Council agreed not to pursue the recommendation for a Town -wide survey. 7.2 Safety Committee 7.2.1 Approval of request for use of Los Altos Emergency AM Radio Station Berin Fank, Chairman of the Safety Committee, referred to the emergency radio station in Los Altos and explained its many uses. He recommended that the Town ask Los Altos if we could also use this emergency radio station. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Johnson and passed unanimously to direct the City Manager to send a letter to the City Manager in Los Altos requesting that the Town be permitted to use Los Altos' emergency radio station. In addition it was agreed that only the City Manager would have the authorization to place messages on this radio station if permission to use it was received and an article on this issue would be included in the next Town Newsletter. 8. STAFF REPORTS 8.1 City Manager 8. 1.1 Los Altos Garbage Company The City Manager reported that a meeting was scheduled for Monday, June 20' with the Council Subcommittee on solid waste issues (Dauber and Hubbard) to address recent discussions with LAGCO. 8.2 City Attorney 8.3 City Clerk 8.3.1 Report on Council Correspondence 8.3.1a Letter from Mr. May concerning pathway at 10695 Magdalena Les Earnest, Chairman of the Pathways Committee, commented that he had looked at this path and did not think it was unsafe. However, he would discuss it with his committee at their next meeting. Casey noted that she walked this path frequently and would be glad to bring a recommendation back to Council. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To direct the City Manager to send a letter to Mr. May noting that his request for improvement of a pathway at 10695 Magdalena was being reviewed by the (� moo'' Council and the Pathways Committee and he would be notified when this matter was agendized. June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 8.3.16 Letter from Mr. and Mrs. Cabak, La Paloma, regarding false alarm charges Council agreed to agendize the letter from the Cabaks appealing their false alarm charges. 9. COUNCIL -INITIATED ITEMS 9.1 Transportation Authority (Councilmember Siegel) Siegel referred to a workshop on the Countywide Efficiency Plan. One issue raised was the needed funds for the County's expressway system. To arrive at the needed $450 million, everyone in the County would be charged - commercial and residential and each city would adopt an impact fee ordinance. 9.2 Fire District (Councilmember Siegel) Siegel reported that an agreement had been entered into with the City of Palo Alto for automatic aid and a new weather station was also planned. 9.3 Hidden Villa (Councilmember Dauber) Dauber commented on the recent letter from Hidden Villa in which they negatively responded to the Town's request for a pathway easement along their property. 9.4 Letter from Los Altos Councilmember Bob Gray regarding uses of Moffett Field Johnson addressed the letter from Councilmember Gray asking if the Town would be interested in putting a ballot on the November election stating opposition to the use of Moffett Field for general aviation and/or air cargo operations. Council noted that since the Town did not have an election scheduled for November of 1997 this special election would be quite expensive. It was agreed that rather than participate by scheduling an election, a letter of support would be sent to the appropriate officials. 10. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR Ralph Vetterlein, 26035 Todd Lane, commented that he was encouraged so many residents were in attendance and reminded everyone that there were several vacancies on the Town's committees. 11. PUBLIC HEARINGS 11.1 Adoption of proposed Town Budget for the fiscal year 1997-98, the appropriations limit for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1998 and the compensation plan for the Town -- Resolutions # Siegel raised the issue of reserves and noted that he did not see the emergency reserves shown in the budget before them. The Finance Director reported that they were included in the Fund Balance in the General Fund and would be specifically designated in the future. It was further noted that the Finance Committee was reviewing the reserves issue. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Hubbard, seconded by Johnson and passed 4 unanimously to adopt Resolution #35-36 adopting the Budget for Fiscal Year 1997-98 with the following two additions: on page 7 the increased rent from the Purissima Hills Water District June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting will be added and a one page summary on reserves will be included with the budget, and adopted ` Resolution #36-97 amending the salary schedule for Fiscal Year 1997-98. 11.2 Proposed Ordinance amending Zoning Ordinance provisions related to 1) Nonconforming Structures; and 2) Pavement in Setbacks; and proposed negative declaration (FIRST READING) The first ordinance changes Council had before them concerned nonconforming structures. These changes included: provided for time limitations on rebuilding (generally two years) to preserve nonconforming floor area and development area; clarified which development parameters (floor area, development area, height and setbacks) may be "grandfathered" and when; defined terms such as "legal nonconforming structures", "increase in nonconformity", and "change of use"; and allowed for Planning Director discretion to permit very minor (less than 150 square foot) setback encroachments under certain conditions. Dauber noted that this was a compromise ordinance resulting from the Council subcommittee that had worked on these planning issues. Siegel did not think the proposed ordinance was strong enough. It should be broadened to be stricter on what could be grandfathered in, etc. Hubbard, on the other hand, believed that a rejuvenated housing market was good. Someone would be much less inclined to remodel or make other changes to the property if in the process they were going to lose development area. Casey stated that she thought that a Town -wide mailing should be sent requesting input on this issue. Councilmembers did not concur noting that this was fairly procedural. Lalla Carsten, 13761 LaPaloma, commented that she had not realized this item was on the agenda and she agreed with Casey that a Town -wide mailing should be sent asking for comments/input on this issue. She believed this ordinance would affect a lot of residents. Tom Sherlock, 27260 Sherlock Road, commented that this issue had already been discussed and reviewed at length and perhaps it was not the appropriate approach at this time to ask for public input. He did recommend expanding the agenda so that the issues and potential actions would be clearer. Rosemary Bittman, 14350 Manuella, suggested that Town wide mailings on issues could include half page comments from each Councilmember. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Johnson and passed by the following roll call vote to introduce an ordinance amending zoning ordinance provisions related to nonconforming issues as recommended by the Planning Commission with the one change in section LC2 to add the word `adverse' before visual. AYES: Mayor Pro Tem Johnson and Councilmembers Dauber, Hubbard and Siegel NOES: None ABSTAIN: Mayor Casey The next ordinance change related to pavement in setbacks. The subcommittee had recommended that backup and turnaround areas be prohibited from setbacks, unless there were site constraints, such as trees, slopes or existing structures. The Planning Commission, however, believed that backup areas were part of the driveway and should be allowed in the setback. Dauber commented on the visual and noise impact of allowing such backup areas in the setback. June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 10 MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Hubbard, seconded by Casey and passed by 4 the following roll call vote to introduce an ordinance amending zoning ordinance provisions to i allow backup areas in the setback. AYES: Mayor Casey and Councilmembers Johnson and Hubbard NOES: Councilmembers Dauber and Siegel The final ordinance change would delete the code section allowing patios and decks to encroach five feet in setbacks. Dot Schreiner, Planning Commissioner, stated that the Town had too few tools to keep the Town's vision of openness and privacy. The Town's setback regulation was one of the most important tools particularly since the trend was to build as large a homeas possible on the lot and to use all possible loopholes to achieve this goal. She did not support deleting this code section. Carol Gottlieb, Planning Commissioner, concurred with Schreiner's comments. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Dauber and passed by the following roll call vote to introduce an ordinance amending the zoning ordinance by deleting the following section: "Portions of patios and decks may extend five feet beyond the setback line established in subsection © of this section 10-1.505if those portions are everywhere less than two feet above natural grade." AYES: Mayor Pro Tem Johnson and Councilmembers Dauber, Hubbard and Siegel NOES: Mayor Casey 12. ADJOURNMENT There being no further new or old business to discuss, the City Council adjourned at 10:40 p.m. Respectfully sLkbmitted, Patricia Dowd The minutes of the June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting were approved at the July 2, 1997 City Council Meeting. June 18, 1997 Regular City Council Meeting 11