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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Citizen's Sustainability Committee 01/27/2020CITY OF PALM DESERT CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE MINUTES MONDAY, JANUARY 27, 2020 — 3:00 P.M. ADMINISTRATIVE CONFERENCE ROOM 73-510 FRED WARING DRIVE, PALM DESERT, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Dean Gatons called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Absent: Member Dennis Guinaw Member Berlinda Blackburn Member James Henderson Member Vincent Heuring Member David O'Donnell Member Mel Robertson Member Evan Trubee Vice -Chair Gregory Gritters Chair Dean Gatons Also Present: Gina Nestande, Councilmember Jan Harnik, Councilmember Ryan Stendell, Director of Community Development Tom Garcia, Director of Public Works Heather Horning, Senior Management Analyst Amy Lawrence, Management Analyst Monica O'Reilly, Management Specialist II III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee meeting of October 7, 2019. Rec: Approve as presented. MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 Upon a motion by Member Robertson, seconded by Member Trubee, and a 8-0 vote of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee, the Consent Calendar was approved as presented (AYES: Gatons, Gritters, Guinaw, Henderson, Heuring, O'Donnell, Robertson, and Trubee; NOES: None; ABSENT: Blackburn). V. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER None VI. NEW BUSINESS A. PRESENTATION on California State University San Bernardino's (CSUSB) Resilient Plan 2018-2023 by Lynniece Warren with CSUSB. Management Analyst Amy Lawrence reported that Ms. Warren is running late due to traffic in San Bernardino. Chair Gatons continued with the remainder of the agenda. Ms. Lynniece Warren and the Committee introduced themselves. She reached out to Ms. Lawrence because CSUSB has a campus in San Bernardino and Palm Desert. She said they have a Resilient Plan, also known as their Sustainability Plan. Ms. Warren communicated if there is an opportunity to collaborate, please email her at resilient(cDcsusb.edu. She provided a PowerPoint presentation on their Resilient Plan, and offered to answer any questions. Vice -Chair Gritters left at 4:36 p.m. Member Henderson suggested Palm Desert collaborate with CSUSB on organics recycling, since they may have students already doing research. Ms. Warren said that the school has an Office of Student Research that could be useful. Chair Gatons thanked Ms. Warren. VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None Vill. OLD BUSINESS None IX. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Staff 2 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainabi ity Committee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 1. Review of the General Plan (Section 1 — Vision & Guiding Principles) Director of Community Development Ryan Stendell noted that staff provided the Committee with a copy of the City's General Plan. He shared how the General Plan came together and reviewed Section 1. He offered to answer any questions. Councilmember Jan Harnik asked what is being developed at Frank Sinatra Drive and Monterey Avenue. Mr. Stendell replied that the corner is in the City of Rancho Mirage, and a Tower Market is being developed. Member Dennis Guinaw asked if the new Tower Market in Rancho Mirage would have a charging station like the Tower Market in Palm Desert. Mr. Stendell said he did not know. He commented that Tower Markets are all built the same; therefore, he assumed it would have a charging station too. Chair Gatons inquired if there would ever be an 1-10/Portola Avenue interchange. Director of Public Works Tom Garcia responded that the City would be requesting bids this summer, with construction to begin in 2021. Member Evan Trubee mentioned that Cook Street is not bike -friendly. He asked if the idea is to give Cook Street a road diet and add bike lanes. Mr. Stendell communicated that staff looked at different designs for Cook Street. With potentially 6,000 university students, there should be a road diet on Cook Street. Vice -Chair Greg Gritters asked about the changes on El Paseo. Mr. Stendell believed that people liked the raised crosswalks. However, they felt the colors used in the crosswalks were a bit too much. Vice -Chair Gritters commented that the delineator posts on El Paseo are confusing. He asked if they are temporary. Mr. Stendell replied yes. Councilmember Jan Harnik interjected that the El Paseo project was a demonstration, and the delineator posts are temporary to show the location of the curbs. She noted that the City did not do a great job of communicating the changes to El Paseo. She explained that the City Council pushed the City staff to make the changes right away, which did not give the staff an opportunity to communicate with the public. Vice -Chair Gritters commented that the changes made on El Paseo help change the perspective that it is a pedestrian community, and people need to slow down. 3 GAPlanning\Monica ORedly\Sustainability Committee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 Chair Gatons commended the San Pablo Avenue improvements in making it pedestrian -friendly and walkable. Nonetheless, he is disappointed with the post office on Portola Avenue closing. He thought a hotel was going to be built, but he saw a "For Lease" sign. Mr. Stendell said that City staff is meeting with developers. He commented that the real estate industry has been salivating to see what they could do at that location, but redevelopment projects are longer term projects (5+ years). He shared that the Post Master is looking for a smaller space within the downtown core. Lastly, going back to El Paseo, he said the raised crosswalks are permanent. The delineators and painted crosswalks are temporary, and the demonstration project ends in April. Member James Henderson mentioned that the raised crosswalks were taped off. He asked if the crosswalks are being used. Mr. Garcia responded that the contractor installed the lights in the pavement, but the electricity to the lights is not complete. Vice -Chair Gritters recommended having bike parking on El Paseo. Mr. Stendell stated that at the next meeting, they would review the next two chapters of the General Plan. For the record, Councilmember Gina Nestande noted that Member Berlinda Blackburn is not in attendance because she is at the Pretreatment, Pollution Prevention & Stormwater Conference. 2. California Choice Aggregation (CCA) Study Session Update Mr. Stendell briefly explained a Community Choice Program and the California Choice Aggregation, and provided an update of the City Council study session. He noted that Palm Desert remains in a pre -launch status. Councilmember Harnik mentioned that there is a phone app called ISO Today, which provides information such as the source of energy by the hour. Member Guinaw asked if Desert Community Energy (DCE) is going to have a surcharge on green energy. Mr. Stendell replied yes, however, DCE has not defined the surcharge. He said DCE approved a rate structure, but the rate structure gave DCE's consultant an extreme amount of wiggle room. He mentioned that a question was asked if it is reasonably possible to compare DCE proposed rates with Southern California Edison (SCE) rates. He said there was a matrix DCE staff put together that shows an estimated normal household bill of $187 under the DCE base rate, and under the SCE base rate, DCE is trying to achieve rate parity with their basic rate. He felt it is not possible. He stated that DCE is trying to present that they provide a better option on a 100 percent carbon -free rate under their proposed rate structure of $207 a month. The SCE carbon -free rate would be $214 a month. 4 GAPlanning\Monica ORedly\Sustainabdity Comm ittee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 Member Henderson inquired if the City could receive any other credits or benefits for going green. Mr. Stendell said no. The only benefit would be to the environment. At this point, there was discussion regarding green energy, building codes for net zero energy, and home improvements to reduce energy costs. Member Chris O'Donnell encouraged the Committee to see a documentary called Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates available on Netflix. The documentary is about nuclear energy. In closing, Mr. Stendell stated that the City of Palm Desert is still in the Joint Powers Agreement (JPA). City staff has not been asked to take any action. He mentioned that the City of Palm Springs is launching, and does not have any idea what Palm Springs would experience in the future. Member Evan Trubee asked how long are the power contracts that DCE were buying versus the contracts SCE secured. Mr. Stendell responded that there is really no difference in terms to define what they are buying. Member Henderson asked how the City Council feels about DCE. Councilmember Nestande responded that she would like to vote to get out of the J PA. Councilmember Harnik mentioned that Councilmembers have to be careful what they share and feel due to the Brown Act. She commented that the Council had one vote about joining the CCA, and the motion did not pass by a 4-1 vote. On a different note, she said she would like to discuss and have research done on permit fees. Lowering the fees would be an incentive so more people could retrofit their homes for energy efficiency. 3. Earth Day 2020 Ms. Lawrence shared that the 50th anniversary of Earth Day is coming up in April. She listed the following events for Earth Day 2020: a proclamation by the Mayor, a ceremonial tree planting of a Eucalyptus or Acacia tree in observance of the Australian fires, a recycling information booth(s) at the Farmers Market, and placing information in the City's BrightSide Newsletter. Councilmember Nestande asked where staff is looking to plant the tree. Ms. Lawrence responded that she is currently working with Landscape Specialist Diane Hollinger to find a location to plant the tree and funding to buy the tree. 5 GAPlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Comm ittee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 Councilmember Nestande commented that maybe a local landscaping company could donate a tree. Member Gritters replied he could talk to Ms. Lawrence about helping with a tree. Councilmember Harnik mentioned that it is also The Living Desert's 50tn anniversary and they have an Australian area. She said that maybe it would be possible to plant the tree at The Living Desert. Ms. Lawrence stated that she would email the Committee about the Earth Day events. Councilmember Nestande commented that the City relies on the committee and commission members to spread the word on what is happening in the City of Palm Desert. She said that maybe members could share Ms. Lawrence's email with their email contacts. Councilmember Harnik mentioned that the City Council is going to have a study session regarding committees and commissions. They are looking at possibly revamping the program. She asked the Committee to share any ideas or thoughts they might have. Mr. Stendell also mentioned that the City Council is looking at aligning the appointment process with the annual budget cycle. With the presenter for CSUSB arriving at this point, the Committee went back to New Business on the agenda. B. Committee Members Chair Gatons commented that there are many places in Palm Desert to donate tables, chairs, etc. so items do not go to the landfills. He mentioned that he stopped at Habitat for Humanity Restore thrift shop near Costco, and did not realize they sell various building materials. With organics recycling, he asked if Burrtec is going to be able to recycle the bins. Senior Management Analyst Heather Horning remarked that Burrtec would replace the recycle bins. Unfortunately, it is going to be a long-term process. She believed that the bin colors would need to change by 2030. She is not sure if they would need to change the entire color of the bin or just the lid. Councilmember Harnik shared she read an article in the Wall Street Journal about Nestle cutting back on the use of plastic. She suggested CSUSB show the documentary about Bill Gates to the students for Sustainability Week. 6 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Suslainabi ity Committee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE JANUARY 27, 2020 X. ADJOURNMENT With Committee concurrence, Chair Gatons adjourned the meeting at 4:46 p.m. Monica O'Reilly, Recording Secretary 7 GAPlanning\Monica ORedly\Sustainability Committee\2020\Minutes\1-27-20 min docx