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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/01/1995Minutes of a Regular Meeting November 1, 1995 Town of Los Altos Hills City Council Meeting Wednesday, November 1, 1995, 6:00 P.M. Council Chambers 26379 Fremont Road CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL, AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Siegel called the Regular Meeting of the City Council to order at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Town Hall. Present: Mayor Siegel and Councilmembers Casey, Dauber, Hubbard and Johnson Absent: None Staff: City Manager/City Engineer Jeff Peterson, City Attorney Sandy Sloan, Planning Director Curtis Williams, Public Works Manager Ed Taylor, Assistant Planner Suzanne Davis and City Clerk Pat Dowd Press: Clyde Noel, Los Altos Town Crier 2. APPOINTMENTS AND PRESENTATIONS 2.1 Presentation by Los Altos Councilmember Ted Laliotis on Transportation Issues: Measure A and Supreme Court Ruling This presentation was not made. 2.2 Update on Cable TV Franchise: David Smart -- Sun Country Cable Mr. David Smart, Sun Country Cable, presented a status report on several issues relating to cable tv. On the subject of late charges, he stated that their procedure was standard in the cable industry. He referred to a recent letter from a resident requesting quarterly billing and stated that while this was not normal business practice, they would make an exception in his case. Council did not agree with the company's policy of not allowing thirty days to pay the cable bill. Mr. Smart stated that he would review this policy in light of Council's objections. On the subject of the Stanford Channel, Mr. Smart stated that the Cable Coop was not actually November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting marketing this channel. The Mayor noted that residents would be most interested in getting this channel. Concerning CSPAN 2 and why this channel was not carried, Mr. Smart stated that there had been no requests. On the subject of Channel 7, Mr. Smart gave background on this issue including the options of must carry stations or retransmission consent. This station was owned and operated by ABC and they had taken a hard line with the affiliates on channel 7. Sun Country simply could not afford to carry channel 7 because of the stipulations imposed by ABC. Mr. Smart commented on the rates charged and the regulations imposed by the FCC. He commented that there were actually very few complaints from residents in the Town. On a final note Mr. Smart commented that the surveys on areas currently not being served with cable were ongoing 3. CLOSED SESSION: CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL: ANTICIPATED LITIGATION: GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54956.9(b) -- One Case Facts and Circumstances: Letters from attorney for Eric Micko regarding processing the application for Lands of Micko as a lot line adjustment instead of a subdivision. The City Council adjourned to a Closed Session on anticipated litigation at 6:55 p.m. and reconvened at 7:10 p.m. Council returned to open session to report, if necessary, any action taken. 4. PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT Planning Commissioner Finn reported that the following applications were discussed at the October 25, 1995 Planning Commission Meeting: Lands of Nicholson/Lin/Bieber, 12950 Robleda Road/12800 West Sunset Drive: recommended approval for a lot line adjustment; Lands of Basiji, 27880 Fawn Creek Court: approved request for a site development permit for a major addition/remodel; Lands of Chawla, 24289 Hillview Road: approved request for a site development permit for a new residence, pool and cabana; and Lands of Teng, 25420 Crescent Lane: continued request for a site development permit for a major addition/ cabana. 5. CONSENT CALENDAR MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Casey and passed unanimously to approve the Consent Calendar, specifically: 5.1 Approved Minutes: October 4,1995 November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting 5.2 Approved Warrants: $33,196.21 (10/5/95) $271,175.70 (10/16/95) 5.3 Approved Grant of Easement for Pathway, Lands of Bunting, 12109 Foothill Lane -- Reso #82-95 5.4 Approved grant of pathway easement and vacation of existing pathway easement, Lands of Lim, 11633 Rebecca Lane -- Reso #83-95 and #84-95 5.5 Volunteer Awards Luncheon - December 1,1995 -- Approved request for payment of costs for staff to attend ($20 per person) 5.6 Accepted subdivision improvements related to Lands of McCulloch, Tract #8200 -- Reso #85-95 6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 7. NEW BUSINESS 7.1 Request from Mr. Hal Edmondson for exception to real estate sign regulations. Mr. Edmondson, applicant, explained his request for relief from the sign ordinance. He lives on a small deadend street and has his home for sale. He was requesting an exception so that this sale would have more visibility by placing signs between Manuella and their home. Council discussed the purpose of the ordinance and this request for an exception. Dauber commented that most of the homes in Town were not on main streets and she did not feel that additional for sale signs helped in the sale of homes. MOTION SECONDED AND FAILED: Moved by Casey, seconded by Johnson and failed by the following roll call vote to grant the request from Mr. Edmondson for exception to the real estate sign regulations. AYES: Councilmembers Casey and Johnson NOES: Mayor Siegel and Councilmembers Dauber and Hubbard 7.2 Approval of Policy Statement on definition of work for computation of Overtime/Compensatory Time MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Casey, seconded by Johnson and passed unanimously to adopt the following definition of "work" for the Town's November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting Personnel Rules and Regulations Manual: "Work" shall be defined, for the purpose of determining overtime, as those hours for which an employee is compensated by the Town of Los Altos Hills for regular work, holidays, sick leave, vacation and compensatory time off duty. These hours shall be counted toward the accumulation of the work week as defined in this manual. 8. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES. SUB -COMMITTEES, AND COUNCILMEMBERS ON OUTSIDE AGENCIES 9. STAFF REPORTS 9.1 City Manager 9.2 City Attorney 9.3 City Clerk 9.3.1 Report on Council Correspondence dated 10/25/95 Council referred to the complaint about construction noise on weekends and noted that the Sheriff's Department should be notified if there was a violation. The ordinance should be checked and the resident contacted who wrote the letter. Referring to the suggestion for a toddlers' play area at the Little League Fields, they agreed it was a good idea. 10. COUNCIL -INITIATED ITEMS 11. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR 12. PUBLIC HEARINGS 12.1 Review of amendment to Condition #11 of approved site development permit for major addition/ remodel concerning the pathway easement, Lands of McNees, 24990 La Loma Drive Mr. McNees, applicant, addressed the Council on the issue of condition #11 requiring the granting of a 10' wide pathway easement along the north side of the creek in the vicinity of the rear property line, to the satisfaction of the Planning Director. He did not agree with this condition for several reasons including the issue of privacy, the fact that it did not connect to other pathways and environmental issues. Mr. McNees'first choice would be for no path but if it was necessary then place it along the old San Antonio Road. November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting Council discussed the placement of this path and commented that it was a confusing issue. The option of Mr. McNees having a new survey done was discussed but Mr. McNees did not agree with incurring this cost. Hubbard suggested the applicant work with the City Engineer to resolve this issue. Hubbard concurred with minimizing the impact on Mr. McNees property but still believed a path was needed. Casey did not support condition #11. She did not believe there was any nexus between Mr. McNees remodel and the requirement of this path. She did not see where it connected to anything and other paths were available. MOTION FAILED DUE TO LACK OF A SECOND: Moved by Casey to delete condition #I1. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Dauber, seconded by Hubbard and passed by the following roll call vote to amend condition #11 to require a 20' wide pathway easement from the existing survey with the understanding that no improvements are to be made at this time and, if at the time any future improvements are made and the exact location of the path is established, then the applicant, Mr. McNees, the City Engineer and the Planning Director may revise the actual path dedication. AYES: Mayor Siegel and Councilmembers Dauber and Hubbard NOES: Councilmember Casey ABSTAIN: Councilmember Johnson 12.2 Request for approval of lot merger and conditional exceptions for Lots 1 through 14, Lands of Micko, Kingsley Avenue and Altadena Drive The City Attorney explained why this application was again before Council. She referred to the Micko's attorney, Mr. Robert Logan, and his letter dated 10/30/95. In that letter he states that the Mickos' application involves a voluntary lot merger and does not involve a division of land. Therefore, it is not a subdivision within the meaning of the Map Act. According to California Supreme Court decisions, the decision before the Council would be whether or not the resulting parcel of the lot merger would conform with reasonable zoning and building regulations. Mr. Logan further states that the Mickos are consolidating fourteen legally created parcels into one single lot that would comply with Town zoning and building regulations. To facilitiate the project, Mr. Logan requested that the Council hear this application as presented (as a subdivision) rather than start the process all over again as a lot merger. The City Attorney concurred with Mr. Logan's letter and recommended that the Council approve the request for the lot merger for Lands of Micko. November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting June Rynne, 26120 Rancho Manuella, referred to a letter from Eric Kleage who stated his opposition to this project and requested a continuance to allow him the opportunity to refute the attorney's recommendation for approval of this project. Jack Corman, 26157 Altadena Drive, spoke as a representative of the Fink family who owned several of the lots in the area under discussion and he supported this project. In their opinion merging these non -conforming lots was the best option. MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Dauber, seconded by Hubbard and passed unanimously to approve the lot merger for Lands of Micko in concept but to continue the public hearing to the November 15, 1995 City Council Meeting to allow Mr. Kleage the opportunity to comment. 12.3 Review of Condition #15 of the approved Site Development Permit for a major addition/ remodel stating that the proposed driveway shall be redesigned with a single access to Fremont Road, Lands of Weiler, 26089 West Fremont Road Mr. Weiler, applicant, did not agree with the condition imposed by the Planning Commission requiring a single access driveway to his home. He did not think it was safe to back out of his driveway and thought a circular driveway was a much safer option. The City Engineer referred to engineering practices which did not support circular driveways on major and busy streets such as Fremont. Mayor Siegel referred to the staff's comments and suggested if Council supported this position then the Town policy should be changed to reflect that no circular driveways would be allowed on any arterial streets in Town. Casey supported the circular driveway; she did not believe this was a safety issue. Dauber noted that there was a path along Fremont to the school and this should be considered. MOTION SECONDED AND FAILED: Moved by Dauber, seconded by Hubbard and failed by the following roll call vote to uphold the Planning Commissions' condition for a single access driveway on Lands of Weiler. AYES: Mayor Pro Tem Hubbard and Councilmember Dauber NOES: Mayor Siegel and Councilmembers Casey and Johnson MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: Moved by Siegel, seconded by Casey and passed by the following roll call vote to delete condition #15 requiring a single access driveway on Lands of Weiler. 4 November 1, 1995 �r City Council Meeting AYES: Mayor Siegel and Councilmembers Casey and Johnson NOES: Mayor Pro Tem Hubbard and Councilmember Dauber 12.4 Request for approval of a negative declaration and tentative map for a proposed four lot subdivision of 9.45 acres, Lands of LeFevre, south side of Altamont Road and east of Julietta Lane Mr. LeFevre, applicant, commented that he had worked with the staff and the neighbors on this project and he hoped for a favorable review by the Council. He further noted that he had withdrawn the request to shift the conservation easement. Mr. Gary Cleary, 26410 Altamont Road, addressed three areas of concern regarding this project. First, regarding the fence in the conservation easement he asked that this be removed. Secondly, he asked that the bulb of Elizabeth Court be moved a little to the west so that the headlights of cars do not glare in their windows. Third, Mr. Cleary requested a 50' setback on both sides of the property fence. Mr. Cleary also had a suggestion for relocating the pathway along Lands of McGowan. He thought this was an easy climb and then flat. Les Earnest, Chairman of the Pathways Committee, noted that he had not walked this proposed route. Nobuko Cleary, 26410 Altamont Road, commented that the fence issue in the conservation easement needed to be resolved as well as moving the bulb of Elizabeth Court for privacy reasons. Bill Kull, applicant's engineer, referred to the environmental impact report which had been done for this project and its review of the issues. He also commented that this project had been downsized since its original concept. A traffic study had been done and Elizabeth Court met all the site requirements. He did comment however that the growth needed to be cut back. Mr. Kull stated that moving the bulb of Elizabeth Court to the west would not address the Clearys' concerns about the headlights. However, he referred to condition #31 which in part stated that the landscape plan for the subdivision shall include plantings to mitigate the visual impact of the road from the Cleary property. On the fence issue in the conservation easement, Mr. Kull commented that this was an allowed use and a 6' fence would not impact the Cleary's view since their home was 10' lower. Mr. Chi-Foon Chan, 27150 Julietta Lane, expressed his concerns about the impact of this project on his lot regarding the issues of privacy and his view. He also commented on the left turn at Elizabeth Court and the safety factor. He stated that he did not use this to access the rear of his property because of the limited view line. November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting Mrs. Chi-Foon Chan, 27150 Julietta Lane, reiterated her husband's concerns about privacy. She referred to the childrens' play area and access to it. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To change the name of the street from Elizabeth to Eshner Court. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To add the following sentence to condition #17: The applicant will do vegetative clearing along Altamont Road to provide adequate site distance to the satisfaction of the City Engineer. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To delete the following sentence from mitigation measure #9: The easement shall be extended to the dripline of the trees. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To amend condition #28 to include: .... a report from a certified arborist must be submitted which gives the tree a chance of survival if the mitigation measures are followed.... PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To amend condition #32 to read: Any fencing within the conservation easement on lot 4 abutting Lands of Cleary shall not interfere with the circulation of wild animals. PASSED BY CONSENSUS: To tentatively approve the request for approval of a negative declaration and tentative map for a proposed four lot subdivision of 9.45 acres, Lands of LeFevre, south side of Altamont Road and east of Julietta Lane subject to the recommended conditions of approval with the stipulation that conditions #5 (pathways) and #29 (setbacks) be continued to further discussion at a continued public hearing on Wednesday, November 15, 1995 at 5:00 p.m. 13. ADJOURNMENT There being no further new or old business to discuss, the City Council Meeting was adjourned at 11:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Patricia Dowd City Clerk The minutes of the November 1, 1995 Regular City Council Meeting were approved at the November 15, 1995 Regular City Council Meeting. November 1, 1995 City Council Meeting