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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06 03-25-2021 DRAFT MINUTESCITY OF PALM DESERT REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL (CC), SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO THE PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY (SA), AND HOUSING AUTHORITY (HA) MEETING. (VIRTUAL MEETING) DRAFT MINUTES THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2021 2:00 p.m. Study Session – Housing Element Update 3:00 p.m. Closed Session 4:00 p.m. Regular Session _______________________________________________________________ CALL TO ORDER – 3:00 P.M. Mayor Kelly convened the meeting at 3:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Pro Tem/Vice Chair/Vice Chairman Jan C. Harnik Councilman/Director/Member Sabby Jonathan Councilmember/Director/Member Gina Nestande Councilmember/Director/Member Karina Quintanilla Mayor/Chair/Chairman Kathleen Kelly Also Present: Todd Hileman, City Manager/Executive Director Robert W. Hargreaves, City Attorney Andy Firestine, Assistant City Manager Grace L. Rocha, Acting City Clerk/Acting Secretary PUBLIC COMMENT FOR CLOSED SESSION ITEMS ONLY: None DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 2 ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION: A. Conference with Real Property Negotiator pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8: 1) (City Council) Property: 72567 Highway 111 (Former Palm Springs Art Museum) Agency Negotiator: Todd Hileman/Ryan Stendell Other Party Negotiator: Artists Council Property Owner: City of Palm Desert B. Conference with Legal Counsel regarding existing litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956(d)(1): 1) Vacation Rental Owners and Neighbors (VRON) of Palm Desert v. City of Palm Desert, Riverside County Superior Court. 2) Lorraine Salas and Karina Quintanilla v. City of Palm Desert, Riverside County Superior Court, Case No. PSC 1903800. C. Conference with Legal Counsel regarding significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d) (2). Potential cases: 2 NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED AT LEAST 72 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING. D. Conference with Labor Negotiator pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6: Negotiating Party: Todd Hileman/City of Palm Desert. With City Council concurrence, Mayor Kelly adjourned the meeting to Closed Session of the City Council 3:01 p.m. She reconvened the meeting at 4:00 p.m. RECONVENE THE CITY COUNCIL, SUCCESSOR AGENCY, AND HOUSING AUTHORITY MEETING – 4:00 P.M. a) Roll Call: Harnik, Jonathan, Nestande, Quintanilla, and Kelly b) Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag – Mayor Kathleen Kelly c) Inspiration/Invocation – Councilman Sabby Jonathan DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 3 REPORT ON ACTION FROM CLOSED SESSION Mr. Hargreaves reported that direction was given, but there were no reportable actions taken. AWARDS AND PRESENTATIONS 1. PRESENTATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL ON THE DESERT HEALTHCARE DISTRICT (DHCD) AND FOUNDATION BY DIRECTOR CARMINA ZAVALA AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER DR. CONRADO BARZAGA. Ms. Zavala stated she was a mental health professional and the newest member to the DHCD as a director since November 3, 2021. Dr. Barzaga introduced himself and welcomed City Manager Todd Hileman to the Valley. Mr. Barzaga explained the history of DHCD and how it evolved to include representation from Desert Hot Springs to the Salton Sea, and stated their mission is to achieve optimal health at all stages of life for all district residents. They do this by connecting Coachella Valley residents through health and wellness services and programs through philanthropy and resources, health facilities information, community education, and probably policy work. Currently, they are working to complete a Community Healthcare Needs Assessment and a Long-Term Health Improvement Plan for the next 20 years. He looks forward to meeting the City Manager soon to explain how they do it and to explore ways in which to work together. 2. PRESENTATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL ON THE HOMELESSNESS BY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TOM KIRK OF COACHELLA VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS, FOLLOWED BY THE CITY’S REPORT ON THE HOMELESSNESS BY SENIOR MANAGEMENT ANALYST CHRIS GERRY. Executive Director Tom Kirk from CVAG, Management Analyst Tom Cox with CV Housing First, Government Relations & Public Policy Advisor Greg Rodriguez from Supervisor Manuel Perez office, along with Sr. Management Analyst Chris Gerry from the City of Palm Desert, all joined together to provide a PowerPoint presentation to the City Council on the homelessness. As part of the presentation they explained how their program relates to various other programs, in particular, the shelter system in the Coachella Valley and where their headed next. He explained how and when the program was initiated and how it evolved to what it is today. One main goal is to provide shelter first and provide what he calls wrap around services that includes assisting with obtaining a job, identification, address drug/alcohol abuse, mental health issues, and may even work with individuals who have a criminal background. One major focus is assisting the chronically homeless, meaning the unsheltered homeless. Mr. Kirk credits the team for the successes, including Councilman Sabby Jonathan, who has been instrumental in the efforts to address homelessness. DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 4 3. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION TO RECOGNIZE THE 200TH ANNIVERSARY OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE THIS THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2021, IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT. On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Kelly presented the Proclamation to Father Theodore Pantels, the pastor of St. George Greek Orthodox Church and Nicholas Latkovic. Fr. Pantels and Mr. Latkovic graciously accepted the proclamation and truly appreciated the recognition of Greece’s 200 years of independence. Fr. Pantels said this honor from the Palm Desert City Council is an inspiration for all to safeguard the gift of freedom. He added that God created everyone with free will in order to express Love. Under the banner of freedom, he joins in the efforts of civic leaders, to love all people. NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED AT LEAST 72 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING. 3.1 PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION TO RECOGNIZE THE “UNITE PALM DESERT” CAMPAIGN AND DECLARE APRIL 4-10, 2021, AS “PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK” IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT. Mayor Kelly felt compelled to offer some comments in light of a recent incident that happened where individuals were mocking the owner of a local restaurant because of her Asian ethnicity. She said this was completely unacceptable, and behavior such as this does not represent the values of Palm Desert. Today she heard from scores of residents condemning hateful acts and expressing their complete solidarity with Asian American and Pacific Islander members of the community. Last year, the City adopted Unite Palm Desert as its mantra and as a guiding principal. In the last twelve months, the primary focus of this initiative has been holding up those most affected by the pandemic with critical support. She added that Unite Palm Desert was far more than economic support, as it encourages the whole community to embrace the principals of mutual respect expressed by the City of Palm Desert in Resolution No. 2018-09, in which the Council affirmed that Palm Desert will not tolerate prejudice, racism, bigotry, hatred, bullying, and violence within any groups within the community. Councilmembers Harnik, Nestande, Jonathan, and Quintanilla echoed similar sentiments, each offering their own perspective on the issue, but the mission was the same. The City Council then joined in presenting the Proclamation that implores them to recommit their efforts to achieving a fully healthy community, one in which people of all ethnicities, identities, and backgrounds consistently enjoy equal respect. DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 5 NON-AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENTS MR. JEREMY WITTIE, General Manager of the Coachella Valley & Vector Control, alerted the City Council and residents that mosquito season is from April to November. He explained where mosquitos thrived and provided tips for how to deter them from your home or business. He thanked City staff members: Office Specialist Luis Moctezuma for assisting his operation team last year in dealing with the mosquito problem at City Hall; former Public Information Officer David Hermann in getting their Virus Detection information out to the community; and Code Compliance Supervisor Pedro Rodriguez for communicating to them about neglected pools, and City public works. Lastly, two homeowner associations in Palm Desert helped his technicians in limiting mosquito’s sources, which was Monterra Community and Corsican Villas. MR. EDWIN RAMORAN stated he served currently as a Human Rights Commissioner with the City of Palm Springs. He is also co-founder and organizer of Bayanihan Palm Desert, which focuses on Filipino civic and community engagement. He requested a moment of silence for those who have been killed by racist violence and sending sincere condolences to their family. He thanked Mayor Kelly for her press release statement and he shared it with his community and desert members. He agreed with Councilmember Quintanilla’s comment that it is not enough to just say “all lives matter.” He said working towards empathy will help bring genuine care to a community under attack. He offered a quote and words of encouragement to the community, because words and images have power. CONSENT CALENDAR All matters listed on the Consent Calendar are considered to be routine and may be approved by one (1) Minute Motion. 4. MINUTES of the regular City Council, Successor Agency, and Housing Authority meetings of March 11, 2021. Rec: Approve as presented. 5. APPROVE CLAIMS AND DEMAND WARRANTS – City: 2/19/2021, 2/26/2021 (Qty. 3), 3/05/2021 (Qty. 2), and Successor Agency: 3/05/2021. Rec: Receive and file. 6. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE by Palm Desert Liquor, Inc., 40205 Washington Street, Suite 104, Palm Desert (CC). Rec: Receive and file. DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 6 7. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE by La Quinta Brewing Company, 74714 Technology Drive, Palm Desert (CC). Rec: Receive and file. 8. LETTER OF RESIGNATION – Phyllis Harkins, Public Safety Commission (CC). Rec: Receive and file with very sincere regret. 9. ORDINANCE NO. 1364 – An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California, amending Palm Desert Municipal Code Section 2.34.010, to restrict relatives of City Staff and City Council from serving on any City commission or committee if it could entail reviewing one another’s work (This is the second reading of the Ordinance) (CC). Rec: Waive further reading and adopt. Ordinance was approved by a 3-2 vote (AYES: Harnik, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: Jonathan and Nestande). 10. REQUEST FOR RATIFICATION of City Manager’s authorization to amend Contract No. C40530 with NV5 for on-call City surveying services and provide additional engineering services in an amount not to exceed $50,000 (CC). Rec: By Minute Motion: a) Ratify the City Manager’s authorization to Contract No. C40530 with NV5, Palm Desert California, for on-call City surveyor services and provide additional engineering services in an amount not to exceed $50,000; b) authorize the City Manager to approve amendments associated with Contract No. C4052 (MBI) and C40530 (NV5), and the two additional one-year extensions based on staff’s recommendations. Funds are available in the Public Works Department budget and will be charged to 11043004301000 the Prof- Architectural/engineering account. Councilman Jonathan registered his recusal on this item. Approved by a 4-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Nestande, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: None; ABSTAINED: Jonathan). DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 7 11. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT to PCI for Citywide Bike-Golf Cart Lane Improvements in the amount of $92,310 (Project No. 565-18) (Contract No. C36570B) (CC). Rec: By Minute Motion: a) award the subject contract to PCI, Azusa, California for Citywide Bike-Golf Cart Lane Improvements (Project No. 565-18) in the amount of $92,310; b) authorize the Director of Finance to set aside 10% contingency for the unforeseen conditions in the amount of $9,231; c) authorize the City Manager or designee to review and approve written request for the use of the contingency for unforeseen conditions up to the contingency amount; d) authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement. Funds are available in the Measure A Fund and budgeted in the Capital Improvement Project budgets for Citywide Striping and Lane Improvements. This item was pulled from the Consent Calendar at the request of Councilman Jonathan for further discussion and action. Upon motion by Jonathan, second by Harnik, and 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Jonathan, Nestande, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: None; ABSTAINED: NONE), said contract was approved. 12. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL to negotiate and prepare documentation necessary for the re-syndication, refinancing, and rehabilitation of the Hovley Gardens Project (HA). Rec: By Minute Motion, the Authority Board: a) Authorize staff and legal counsel to proceed to negotiate and prepare documentation for the re-syndication, refinancing and rehabilitation of the Hovley Gardens Project; b) authorize Palm Communities, on behalf of PD Hovley LP to apply the Project’s 2020 fiscal year positive net cash flow towards the Authority loan principal payment as agreed in the Conditional Agreement terms, as part of the proposed re-syndication and refinancing of the Project. Councilmembers Nestande and Jonathan said they were voting no on Item 9, and Councilman Jonathan registered his recusal on Item 10. Upon motion by Harnik, second by Quintanilla, and 5-0 vote of the City Council, the consent calendar was approved as presented (AYES: Harnik, Jonathan, Nestande, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: None), with the exception of Item 9, which received a 3-2 vote (AYES: Harnik, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: Jonathan and Nestande), and Item 10 receiving a 4-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Nestande, Quintanilla, and Kelly; NOES: None; ABSTAINED: Jonathan). DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 8 ACTION CALENDAR None INFORMATION ITEMS None PUBLIC HEARING None MAYOR/COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS AND REQUEST FOR ACTION Mayor Kelly explained there are essentially three types of assignments that all Councilmembers are engaged. The City has several committees and commissions that do tremendous work in bringing recommendations to Council. Each of those committees and commissions has a Councilmember liaison serving as a communication conduit of information, often being able to supply information about related work that might be of interest to the Committee. Secondly, as seen this evening, regional work is very important to the City, because many issues don’t pay attention to city boundaries likes homelessness. She said Councilmembers participate in a wide array of regional bodies that address homelessness, transportation, economic development, public safety, and conservation. Lastly, Council has the opportunity to voluntarily get involved with additional groups, such as the League of California Cities which both trains and advocates for local government, and Southern California Association of Governments, which is a metropolitan planning agency that has a huge impact on regional planning and distribution of funds. Councilmembers don’t provide a recap of everything they attend, but do offer highlights they expect will be of particular interest. Councilmember Karina Quintanilla Report: • Desert Sands Unified School District 2x2 Meeting – noted she had requested this meeting after hearing families were frustrated by the shift to hybrid learning. Therefore, she felt it was a great opportunity to show support to our teachers, administrators, and families alike. It was lovely to meet the leaders of the school board and school district, and learn all about all the changes they are making to keep students and staff safe. She said some of the changes in scheduling were due to a number of teachers and staff who presented medical exceptions, requiring district leadership to shift. Therefore, the District is finding creative solutions to how to cope and address all issues related to educating students under a pandemic. The District has invested greatly in safety, and has even increased the seating capacity to allow students to eat their meals with sufficient distancing. She was happy to hear DSUSD was looking ahead to the future when they found ways to expand wireless internet services to students, and this has allowed them to make an easier transition to distance learning. Their LTE network has DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 9 supported access to help families during the pandemic. Further, parents receive regular emails from the school district and teachers, but those are not always available to neighbors/aunts/uncles/grandparents that are part of the village it takes to raise each child. She said City staff will be sharing bulletins and updates on social media to remind families of changes. Therefore, families should keep an eye out for upcoming information on meal distribution, because it will be shifting from a Monday and Wednesday program, to a once a week pickup on Wednesday only, serving 7 days’ worth of meals. She added that she had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Jonathan and looked forward to future collaborations. • McCallum Theater Education Policy Committee – reported that the partnership with Riverside County promoted their online series to 23 school districts, serving approximately 430,000 students. In a typical year, before the pandemic, they would serve approximately 20,000 students through their field trip series, and now that it has shifted to an online series, they were able to serve about 40,000. It includes the local three district as well as Morongo Unified in the high desert. After piloting a virtual version of Aesthetic Education Program, they are how ready to extend virtual services to 25 partnership schools. So far they have served 189 classrooms and close to 6,000 students with workshops and performance activities. Councilman Sabby Jonathan Report: • Priority One Coachella Valley (P1CV) – noted he, Mayor Pro Tem Harnik, and City Manager serve on the Board of P1CV, which the City also supports financially. The primary mission is to promote the City of Palm Desert as the next stand-alone University campus to better serve all the residents of the Coachella Valley and beyond, especially to address the completely lack of access to higher education. On Monday, the Board met with Dr. Zeu and others to share the vision of P1CV and hopefully brought them in as supportive partners. He explained that a couple months back they decided to form an advisory committee, which had its first kick off meeting on Wednesday. He’s proud that the composition of that committee is broad and very diversified in all sorts of ways and truly represents the bearing interests that have a need for this campus. Therefore, the Coachella Valley is well represented in their effort to bring in Cal State University Palm Desert as soon as possible. Mayor Pro Tem Jan Harnik Report: • California Council of Governments (CalCoG) Conference – reports this conference primarily deals with transportation from all modalities from pedestrians to trains. She said Secretary Fox was involved and he was a real asset as part of the conversation. Discussions involved policy, culture, costs, funding, repairs, and new infrastructure to deal with the environment, air quality, etc. The recently approved bill will include a lot of money for infrastructure. DRAFT MINUTES MARCH 25, 2021 City Council, Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, and Housing Authority Meeting 10 Councilmember Gina Nestande Report: • Sports Arena Group – she’s been in conversations on a regular basis with the sports arena group, specifically Mr. John Bolton. Mr. Bolton is the senior consultant for the project, and he shared there are studies that have already been conducted and approved going back to 2006, which should help the streamlining of bringing this project to fruition. She is also of the understanding that they will be reaching out to Deputy Director of Community Development Eric Ceja this week. She is in support of the sports arena, even though people think it’s in Palm Desert, because the arena will be in the north sphere and near Cal State Campus. She will be signing a letter of support on behalf of herself, because she is aware she doesn’t have the support of the entire City Council. Mayor Kelly said she and Mayor Pro Tem Harnik along with the City Manager, have taken steps to assure City staff is now in close collaboration with County planning staff, in order to receive a full opportunity to assess the impacts and make sure they are addressed, which she knew was Councilmember Nestande’s wish as well. Councilmember Nestande concurred. CITY MANAGER COMMENTS None ADJOURNMENT With City Council, Successor Agency, and Housing Authority concurrence, Mayor Kelly adjourned the meeting at 5:43 p.m. ___________________________________ KATHLEEN KELLY MAYOR/CHAIR/CHAIRMAN ATTEST: ___________________________________ GRACE L. ROCHA, ACTING CITY CLERK AND ACTING SECRETARY Palm Desert City Council Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency Palm Desert Housing Authority