HomeMy WebLinkAboutSupplemental - xXIIA Initiation of proceedings to form President's Plaza Parking and BID - Q&A memorandumCITY OF PALM DESERT
CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
To: Honorable Mayor and Councilmembers
From: Heather Horning, Assistant to the City Manager
Date: May 12, 2022
Subject: City Council Agenda (May 12, 2022)
Below you will find questions received from the Mayor and/or Councilmembers and answers provided
by City staff regarding tonight’s Council meeting agenda.
Action Calendar – Item A: Approve the initiation of proceedings to form the President’s Plaza
Property and Business and Improvement District, and to levy and collect assessments therein;
the Management District Plan and, preliminarily, the Engineer’s Report; and an assessment
ballot proceeding so that qualified property owners within the district may vote on the levying
of district assessments.
•Question: Can you please explain the budget calculations on page 18. For example, in
FY 2022/2023, Total Direct Costs ($346,900) + Total Indirect Costs ($14,728) do not total
the indicated amount of $398,935. Where does that total come from?
o Answer: The consultant submitted an outdated Table 5 with their final report. Staff will
be submitting a revised report with a corrected Table 5 at the meeting tomorrow.
Thank you for raising the question.
•Question: What exactly is the line item labeled "City Funded Capital Improvement
Project Reserve?"
o Answer: This line item represents the costs associated with short and long-term capital
improvements (slurry seal every five years, and asphalt grind and overlay every 20
years) that the City would cover should the district be renewed. It is not part of the
assessment proposed to the property owners.
•Question: Are the long-term costs of maintaining President’s Plaza (such as the ones
we are incurring now) included somewhere in this budget?
o Answer: Those long-term costs are displayed in Table 5 as the City Funded Capital
Improvement Project Reserve, but is not part of the assessment proposed to the
property owners.
Item XII. A
Question & Answer Page 2 of 3
Action Calendar – Item B: Approve the start of proceedings to levy and collect annual
assessments and grant preliminary approval of the 2022/23 Engineer’s Report for
Consolidated Palm Desert Landscaping & Lighting Maintenance District No. 1.
• Question: What are the arterial areas in this district, and is there a planned roll out?
o Answer: District 1 includes landscaping along several arterials including: Portola
Avenue, Fred Waring Drive, Frank Sinatra Drive, Cook Street, Monterey Avenue, and
Hovley Lane East. The Landscape Maintenance Area that maintains these segments
of landscaping is called LMA 7. A map of LMA 7 is included for reference. District 1 is
currently being maintained by the City and the levy for District 1 will go into effect June
30, 2022.
Action Calendar – Item D: Request for Feedback and Direction Regarding a Potential Ballot
Measure Related to City Council Districts.
• Question: Was there resident input at the subcommittee meetings? Where and when
were the meetings and where were the agendas posted? Where can the video of the
session be found? Will there be another opportunity for residents to provide input?
o Answer: On March 24, 2022, the City Council appointed Councilmember Kelly and
Councilmember Nestande to an ad hoc committee to work with staff related to a
potential ballot measure on districting. In accordance with State law, ad hoc
committees are not subject to the provisions of the Brown Act and no final decisions
were made during these discussions. All final decisions are made by the entire City
Council and the public is invited to provide their input during tonight’s regular City
Council meeting.
• Question: What is the definition of “bona fide” resident, given that transients can be
considered residents? What determination was made in the selection?
o Answer: “Bona fide” is not defined in the Elections Code, nor has the Secretary of
State’s Office assigned a definition to this term. However, Elections Code Section
9287(b) provides the following guidelines to the Elections Official in determining
whether an author qualifies as a “bona fide association of citizens”:
An Election Official should consider the following documents submitted by the
organization or association when determining the selection of arguments:
Its articles of incorporation, articles of association, partnership documents,
bylaws, or other similar documents.
Letterhead containing the name of the organization and its principal officers.
If the organization or association is a primarily formed committee established to
support or oppose the measure.
If an argument is submitted by more than one bona fide association, the
authors will be invited to witness a random drawing by the Elections Official to
determine which argument will be published.
Item XII. A
Question & Answer Page 3 of 3
Action Calendar – Item E: Request for direction on sponsorship of mural installation at the
McCallum Theatre.
• Question: Did the City commit to donate $200,000 per year to the McCallum for six
years?
o Answer: Yes, that is correct.
• Question: Which year are we in under the agreement? Was 2019 the first funding year,
making 2022 the fourth year under the agreement?
o Answer: 2019 was the first funding year and we are currently in year four under the
agreement.
Action Calendar – Item G: Consideration of fee waiver of facility use fees for the use of Civic
Center Park for the 2022 Ride of Silence event. ****Note: Staff has received notice from the
event organizer that they plan to move the 2022 Ride of Silence event location to Palm
Springs. Staff will be requesting the withdrawal of this item.****
• Question: Should the event be approved in the future; will the City assist the Ride of
Silence with coordinating with Desert Recreation District and Riverside County Sheriff’s
Office?
o Answer: Yes, City staff is always happy to connect event organizers with the
appropriate staff at organizations that they need to coordinate with for their event.
• Question: Given the size and publicity that will be generated through this event, how far
in advance would permits need to be filed?
o Answer: Ideally, applications for Park Use Permits for events similar to this would be
submitted to Desert Recreation District 30-60 calendar days in advance of the event to
allow for processing.
Item XII. A