HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-09-14MINUTES
REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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I. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Crites convened the meeting at 4:03 p.m.
II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE - Mayor Buford A. Crites
III. INVOCATION - Councilman Robert A. Spiegel
IV. ROLL CALL
Present:
Mayor Pro-Tempore Jim Ferguson
Councilman Richard S. Kelly
Councilman Robert A. Spiegel
Mayor Buford A. Crites
Excused Absence:
Councilmember Jean M. Benson
Also Present:
Carlos L. Ortega, City Manager and RDA Executive Director
David J. Erwin, City Attorney
Sheila R. Gilligan, Assistant City Manager for Community Services/City Clerk
Richard J. Folkers, Assistant City Manager for Development Services
Victor Newton, Acting Deputy Building Official, Department of Building & Safety
Phil Drell, Director of Community Development
Paul S. Gibson, Director of Finance/City Treasurer
Rachelle D. Klassen, Deputy City Clerk
V. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - A
MR. CHRIS LACY, Branch Manager of the new A.G. Edwards office on the corner of Portola Avenue
and Highway 111, said his organization would like to put a monument sign in front of the building, and
it had already been approved by Architectural Review Commission. He showed what the sign would
look like, and he noted that what had been approved was to have time and temperature on the sign. He
said he had also requested a change to the City's ordinance to allow him to also display the Dow Jones
Industrial average because he felt the community would be interested in seeing this information
displayed. He noted that he had reached a standstill in getting that approved, and he asked that the
Council encourage that process along.
Mayor Crites stated that this matter would be referred to the City Manager.
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MS. CARMEN MERCEDES, 72-754 Pitahaya Avenue, Palm Desert, said she was speaking on behalf
of mothers, the elderly, the handicapped, and those accessibility challenged and requested that the City
Council amend its ordinances that prohibit drive-thru service at the existing restaurants on Highway
111
Mayor Crites stated that he had spoken with Ms. Mercedes by telephone and suggested that this be
added to the issues to be considered when the City looks at its General Plan.
Ms. Mercedes noted that she had petitions and, at the request of the Mayor, she submitted them to the
City Clerk to be included in the General Plan process.
MS. EDITH MORREY, 73-690 El Paseo, Palm Desert, expressed concern with the trash pickup for
her tenants. She said she was being charged for more square footage than she had in the building. She
said she was charged for 8,200 square feet, and the building was 7,000 square feet in total with one
tenant, and half of the second floor was empty. She said they were charging $240 per month for trash
pickup, and this had been going on since the assessment. She noted that her tenants refused to pay
because the charges were out of line. She said she had a letter from a gentleman who has a building
on Frontage Road, and he had 12 tenants and paid less than she did for one tenant. She said she had
presented this information to both of the City Managers and to Councilmember Benson, but nothing
had been done. She said she had donated 100 feet of her property, although she had adequate parking,
and now she no longer had adequate parking and had to pay $6,000 additional per year for lighting and
landscaping. She said she felt this was unfair.
Mayor Crites asked that Ms. Morrey submit the letter to the City Clerk and said staff would prepare
a report for the next City Council meeting.
Ms. Morrey noted that she had already submitted a copy of the letter to the City Manager.
NOTE: WITH COUNCIL CONCURRENCE, MAYOR CRITES SUSPENDED THE REMAINDER
OF THE AGENDA AT THIS POINT IN ORDER TO TAKE UP "AWARDS,
PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS". PLEASE SEE THAT PORTION OF THE
MINUTES FOR COUNCIL DISCUSSION AND ACTION.
VI. CONSENT CALENDAR
A. MINUTES of the Regular City Council Meeting of August 24, 2000.
Rec: Approve as presented.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson ABSTAINED from this item due to his absence from the meeting of
August 24, 2000.
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B. CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE CITY TREASURY - Warrant Nos. 20, 21, 22, 23,
24, and 24PD Office Complex.
Rec: Approve as presented.
C. CLAIM AGAINST THE CITY (#429) by Allstate Insurance/Roze in the Amount of $132.99.
Rec: By Minute Motion, reject the claim and direct the City Clerk to so notify the Claimant.
D. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE, by Aliya Food Service, Inc., for
Coco's, 73-397 Highway 111, Palm Desert.
Rec: Receive and file.
E. MINUTES of City Committee and Commission Meetings.
1. Art In Public Places Commission Meetings of February 16, March 15, April 19,
May 17, and June 21, 2000.
2. Civic Arts Committee Meetings of February 14, March 13, April 10, and May 8, 2000.
3. Citizens' Advisory Committee for Project Area No. 4 Meeting of June 19, 2000.
4. Housing Commission Meeting of July 12, 2000.
5. Sister Cities Subcommittee Meetings of April 10, May 1, and June 5, 2000.
6. Technology Committee Meetings of March 7, April 4, and May 2, 2000.
Rec: Receive and file.
F. RESOLUTION NO. 00-112 - A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert,
California, Setting Forth its Findings and Authorizing the Destruction of Files from the
Department of Building and Safety that Have Been Microfilmed (August 2000).
Rec: Waive further reading and adopt.
G. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Supplemental Agreement for the Use of FY 2000/01
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funds (Contract No. C16261).
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve the subject agreement with the County of Riverside and
authorize the Mayor to execute same.
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H. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Contract for Fabrication and Installation of Enclosed Parking .,.
at the Parkview Office Complex (Contract No. C 18070).
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve of the subject contract with George's Ornamental Iron,
North Palm Springs, California, in the amount of $45,600 and authorize the Mayor to
execute same.
I. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Agreement for Live Musical Entertainment for the Palm Desert
Committee/Commission Holiday Party (Contract No. C 181801.
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve the subject contract with CTC Music, Palm Desert,
California, in the amount of $650 for the Committee/Commission Holiday Party on
Saturday, December 9, 2000.
J. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Contract with Financial Institution for Loan Administration
(Contract No. C18190).
Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize appropriate staff to work with various financial
institutions to secure the best administration loan -processing package.
K. REOUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT for Project Inspection Services for the Monterey
Avenue Storm Drain Extension Project (Contract No. C18200, Project No. 503-00).
Rec: By Minute Motion: 1) Award the subject contract to Rich McCoy Company,
Palm Desert, California, in the amount of $11,340 for construction inspection services
for the Monterey Avenue Storm Drain Extension from Highway 111 to Westfield
Shoppingtown Palm Desert entrance; 2) authorize the Mayor to execute same.
L. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Program Supplement Agreement to Caltrans Master Agreement
STLPP 08-5414 -- Traffic Signal Interconnect on Fred Waring Drive (Contract No. C08080,
Project No. 557-99).
Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to execute the subject agreement, Program
Supplement Agreement No. 002-M to Administering Agency State Agreement
No. 08-5414 prepared by the State of California Department of Transportation
(Caltrans), for the preliminary engineering, construction, and construction engineering
for the above -referenced project.
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M. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Change Order No. 1 to Contract No. C15550 — Mother/Child
Sculpture.
Rec: By Minute Motion: 1) Approve Change Order No. 1 to the subject contract with Artist
Lisa Reinertson, Davis, California, in the amount of $18,100 for additional design
services and site preparation; 2) authorize a 10% contingency in the amount of $5,600
for site work for the subject project; 3) appropriate $23,700 from Art In Public Places
Fund No. 436-4650-454-4001 for same.
N. REOUEST FOR ACCEPTANCE OF WORK for Contract No. C 16050 -- Extension of Joni Drive
(Project No. 627-99) (Contreras Construction Company, Indio, CA).
Rec: By Minute Motion, accept the work as complete and authorize the City Clerk to file a
Notice of Completion for the subject project.
O. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Reimbursement Agreement -- Tentative Tract 29444 (Contract
No. C18210).
Rec: By Minute Motion, enter into the subject agreement with Kelly Hamilton of The
Ultimate Return, Inc., Palm Springs, California, and authorize the Mayor to execute
same.
P. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Final Tract Map 28590-1 (Southland Communities, Inc.,
Applicant).
Q.
Rec: Waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 00-113, approving the final subdivision
map of Tract No. 28590-1, approving the agreement relating thereto.
REOUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION to Release Subdivision Improvement Securities for Tract
Nos. 25296, 25296-1, 25296-3 -- Canyons at Bighorn Project (Bighorn Development, LLC,
Applicant).
Rec: By Minute Motion, accept the subdivision improvements as complete and authorize the
City Clerk to release the subject improvement securities.
R. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Grant of Easement to Southern California Edison at
77-800 California Drive.
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve of the subject easement and authorize the Mayor to execute
same.
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S. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Out -of -State Travel -- Human Resources Manager to Attend
Cambridge, Massachusetts, Training Course.
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve the subject request for Human Resources Manager
Gloria Darling to attend "Increasing HR Effectiveness: Human Resources Leadership
Strategies for Managing Organization Issues and Disputes," November 16-17, 2000.
T. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of the Refund of Fees for Business License No. 99-15920
(Madison Marquette Development, Applicant).
Rec: By Minute Motion, approve of the subject refund of business license fees in the amount
of $2,252 from FY 1999/00.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson noted that he would be abstaining from Item A because he was absent
from the City Council meeting of August 24, 2000.
Councilman Spiegel moved to approve the Consent Calendar as presented. Motion was seconded by
Kelly and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT (with Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson
ABSTAINING from Item A due to his absence from the City Council meeting of August 24, 2000).
VII. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER
None
VIII. RESOLUTIONS
A. RESOLUTION NO. 00-114 - A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, EXPRESSING SUPPORT OF PROPOSITION 35 WHICH
WILL APPEAR ON THE NOVEMBER 2000 STATEWIDE BALLOT.
Mr. Ortega noted the staff report in the packets and offered to answer any questions.
Councilman Kelly stated that while the City Council would not normally express support for a
particular measure, it felt this issue had a vital affect on the City's operation and the ability to get
things done.
Councilman Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 00-114. Motion was
seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
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NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED
72 HOURS PRIOR TO THIS MEETING.
B. RESOLUTION NO. 00-118 - A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 00-66 AND EXTENDING
THE EXPIRATION OF ITS CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE FROM SEPTEMBER 30,
2000, THROUGH MARCH 31, 2001.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 00-118. Motion
was seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
IX. ORDINANCES
For Introduction:
None
For Adoption:
A. ORDINANCE NO. 962 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTION 2.04.060 OF THE CODE OF THE
CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA (City Manager).
Councilman Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Ordinance No. 962. Motion was seconded
by Spiegel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
B. ORDINANCE NO. 963 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTIONS 8.85.030 AND 8.85.060 OF THE
CODE OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA (Skate Park Regulations).
Councilman Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Ordinance No. 963. Motion was seconded
by Spiegel and carried by a 3-1 vote, with Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson voting NO and Councilmember Benson
ABSENT.
C. ORDINANCE NO. 964 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTION 25.68.620 OF THE CODE OF THE
CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, RELATING TO POLITICAL SIGNS (City of Palm
Desert, Applicant).
Councilman Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Ordinance No. 964. Motion was seconded
by Spiegel and carried by a 3-1 vote, with Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson voting NO and Councilmember Benson
ABSENT.
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D. ORDINANCE NO. 965 - AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 107, THE PALM DESERT
ZONING MAP, BY CHANGING THE ZONE FROM PC-2 (DISTRICT COMMERCIAL) TO
SI (SERVICE INDUSTRIAL) FOR PARCELS 7, 8, 12, AND 13 OF PM 29068 AS AMENDED,
LOCATED AT 77-880 COUNTRY CLUB DRIVE Case No. C/Z 00-06 (Select Properties, LLC,
and Sixth Street Partners, LLC, Applicants).
Councilman Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Ordinance No. 965. Motion was seconded
by Spiegel and carried by a 3-1 vote, with Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson voting NO and Councilmember Benson
ABSENT.
X. NEW BUSINESS
A. CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL OF A NOTICE TO ABATE A PUBLIC NUISANCE
LOCATED AT 43-155 PORTOLA AVENUE, SPACE 32 (Jacob Black, Appellant).
Mr. Erwin stated the report in the packets from Deputy City Attorney Doug Phillips outlining the
history of this matter. He noted that representatives of the City' s Code Compliance Department
had some photographs to present to the City Council and said that Mr. Black was also in the
audience and wished to address the Council.
Housing Manager Terre LaRocca noted that this was somewhat different from a regular abatement
appeal because it was being handled by the City Attorney's office. She stated that the property
in question was owned by the Redevelopment Agency at Portola Palms Mobile Home Park, and
Mr. Black was a tenant of the park. She said the homeowners association requested that the City
attempt to work with Mr. Black in order to clean the property, as there are quite a few items and
debris along the side and back of the property. Staff asked the City Attorney's office to look into
this matter, and an action had been filed in court to abate the property in order to get the cleanup
done. She said that approximately two months ago, the homeowners association rented a
dumpster and attempted to clean the property. Because they were not allowed on the property,
and the property belongs to the Redevelopment Agency, they requested assistance from City staff.
Upon question by Councilman Spiegel, she noted that it was Mr. Black who would not allow the
homeowners association on his property to clean it up. Upon question by Mayor Pro-Tem
Ferguson, she stated that the Redevelopment Agency owns the property and leases it to Mr. Black;
she added that the mobilehome on that property belongs to Mr. Black.
MS. VI BROOKS said she was representing Desert Management, the company that represents the
homeowners association. She said Mr. Black had been on the property since approximately
July 17, 1995. She noted that she had pictures taken by members of the association and
management companies, and this had been an ongoing problem.
MR. JACOB BLACK stated that he was aware that he did have some debris on the property and
said he had been working on cleaning it up, although he had been laid off and did not have any
money. He said he was now working and would be able to afford to rent a dumpster in
approximately a week so that he could clean up the property. He asked that the Council grant him
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an additional ten days. He also noted that he had was supposed to appear in Court in Indio the
following day.
Mayor Crites asked whether the previous dumpster had been supplied by the City, and
Ms. LaRocca responded that it was supplied by the homeowners association. Mayor Crites asked
if the association would be willing to do that again, and she responded that they would agree to
provide another dumpster.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson asked whether residents now have free, on -demand trash pickup of
large and bulky items with the new waste contractor. Ms. LaRocca responded that staff could
work with Waste Management to supply a dumpster. Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that there
were programs for people with low and moderate incomes, and if money is an issue, he felt this
was something that could be taken care of. He said his concern was that it had been five years,
and he would like to hear from Mr. Black what will be discarded over the next ten days to restore
this property to a tenable condition.
Mr. BLACK stated that he would do whatever it takes to have a clear alley in the back. He said
he had already done quite a bit, and he felt a regular -sized dumpster could handle what he needed
to discard.
Councilman Spiegel asked whether Mr. Black, if the City could get a dumpster by this weekend,
could work with Ms. LaRocca and the person who runs the homeowners association and make
certain they are satisfied with what has been accomplished so that this matter could be continued
to the next City Council meeting.
Mr. BLACK responded that he would work as hard as he could to see that either the dumpster is
loaded full or the area is clean and the dumpster still has room in it.
Ms. LaRocca stated that there appeared to be an inoperative vehicle on the lot as well as a golf
cart. Mr. Black responded that both vehicles were in running order, although he still needed to
obtain a smog certificate on the one.
Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, continue this matter to the meeting of
September 28, 2000, with: 1) the City to provide a dumpster to Mr. Black's mobile home by this weekend
(09/16/00) so that he would be able to clean up the trash and large discarded items on his lot; 2) meeting to
be held next week with the head of the Homeowners' Association and Housing Manager LaRocca to ensure
progress to the satisfaction of all parties; 3) other items continued to the meeting of September 28, 2000;
4) City Attorney to continue the September 15, 2000, Court date for two weeks (09/29/00) and provide Court
with the list of the aforementioned conditions in this case. Motion was seconded by Kelly.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that this was not the first time Mr. Black had been asked to clean
up his property. He said as he read the staff report and looked at the pictures, the property was
a dump. He said there are minimum standards that the City of Palm Desert expects of its residents
in open neighborhoods, and it is even closer in gated communities, and he felt there were no
closer living quarters than a mobile home park. He said the City was legally entitled to recover
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its administrative costs against Mr. Black as well as attorney fees and forcibly go out and clean
up the property. He said he was fully in support of what Councilman Spiegel had moved;
however, he warned Mr. Black that if he comes back in ten days and has not made a good faith
effort to clean up the property in accordance with Mrs. LaRocca and the property manager, he
would urge that the City go after every fee it can collect, irrespective of Mr. Black's income. He
said he felt Mr. Black had been given ample opportunity to do what was asked of him by the City,
and he had yet to do it. He added that he hoped that this was not an issue ten days from now.
Mayor Crites called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson
ABSENT.
XI. CONTINUED BUSINESS
A. CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL TO A DECISION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW
COMMISSION, DENYING A REQUEST TO REMODEL THE EXISTING BUILDING
FASCIA AND INSTALL NEW SIGNAGE AT BOTH CIRCLE K STORES LOCATED AT
45-200 PORTOLA AVENUE AND 44-775 SAN PABLO AVENUE Case Nos. 99-76 / 99-78 SA
(Circle K c/o A & S Engineering, Appellant) (Continued from the meeting of August 24, 2000).
THE FOLLOWING IS A VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT OF THIS PORTION OF THE MINUTES:
Kev
BAC Mayor Buford A. Crites
CLO City Manager Carlos L. Ortega
PD Phil Drell, Director of Community Development
RAS Councilman Robert A. Spiegel
RSK Councilman Richard S. Kelly
JP John Patton, Tosco Corporation
JF Mayor Pro-Tem Jim Ferguson
GG Greg Griggs, Tosco Corporation
RDK Rachelle D. Klassen, Deputy City Clerk
BAC The next item on this afternoon's Agenda is a continued matter, an appeal to a decision of the
Architectural Review Commission regarding Circle K stores.
CLO Mr. Mayor, this is an item that you sent back to the Planning Commission, I believe, and it's back
to you.
BAC No, we did not.
PD Architectural Commission.
BAC We didn't send it back. We continued this...
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PD Correct.
RAS So that I would have an opportunity to meet with the Architectural Review Commission to
determine the reasons for their unanimously denying the project.
BAC And, Mr. Spiegel, do you have a report for the Council?
RAS I have a report, but I'm going to ask Mr. Phil Drell to give a report, and then I will give mine.
PD The Commission reiterated their view that, in their opinion, the most interesting architectural
feature of the existing building is the large shade wing, and in the proposal from Circle K, that
will be removed and will be replaced by this architectural band, a parapet wall. And they felt that
the proposed replacement to the shade wing was inferior in design and architectural quality and
interest to the shade wing, and therefore, they don't consider the proposed remodel to be a positive
improvement at all.
RAS Now I'll make my comments. This was unanimously denied and each person, each member of
the Architectural Commission spoke to the point, and I don't have all of their comments, but I got
a lot of them. What they did was not an improvement. They used the cheapest alternative
possible. Architectural solutions instead of sign solutions. They were only sign solutions. They
had a problem with a Circle K in La Quinta that not the City was questioning but the developer
was questioning, the developer was creating a strip center, and went back to Circle K three or four
times, and now they've got a decent looking store out there. If they're going to fix it, fix it right.
If you want to see what the Circle K will look like with what they want to do to it, take a look at
the one in Anza or the one on Cathedral Canyon in Cathedral City. Those were the comments.
They unanimously felt that it would be a disservice to the City to put the remodeled facility in the
way it was recommended.
BAC Mr. Kelly.
RSK Well, last time, I'm one of the ones that thought we ought to move it ahead, but I've looked
closely at them and I agree with Architectural Review Commission that that parapet, or whatever
you call it, that comes out there is a nice feature, and to take that off would make them look worse
than they look now. Since I took a look at it and everything, I'm happy to leave them the way
they are rather than taking that parapet off, or whatever you call that thing.
RAS Well, as I understand it, Mr. Drell got a call from the developer.
PD From representatives of Circle K, and I believe they're here, and they're here to comment, and...
JP My name is John Patton with Tosco. This is Greg Griggs with Tosco. Yeah, I'm really not
prepared to present anything different than the August meeting. I understand you went out there.
I did talk to Phil this morning, who stated that the Architectural Review Committee liked the
extended wing as an architectural feature. It's actually a structural feature, it's actually an element
of science rather than architecture, but you've seen it as an architectural feature, so that's fine.
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And that's the most appealing element to the City. Well, you guys are the decision makers. If.
that is the most appealing and you want it left, then going back, Mr. Kelly, and saying that you
would like that now, I don't have a problem with leaving it that way, either. The upgrades would
pretty much be nonexistent if that's the way we would leave them, we'd leave that extended wing
over there. We found out about this, Greg and I, on Tuesday, so we're really not prepared to do
anything different. We understand that the...first of all, no one presented a bill of materials, so
I'm not sure how they can say it's inferior quality. We don't engineer with inferior quality, but...I
understand that this design is the latest one you've seen, and this is the one that you reject and
would want that extended wing. I think there, I think there is one more question internally that
I could ask, but in all likelihood you've cast your votes, you've spoken. You'd like the architect
to go ahead with this.
BAC No...at the last meeting, the representatives who have worked with the City have been, from the
Architectural Commission's perspective, unwilling to do some of the very basic things that they
have requested. So it was denied unanimously and brought to this body, and representatives of
your company said we're done, you people are horrible and anti -democracy and everything else,
and you either accept what's here or "the store will stay trashy, attract trashy people, and attract
rats, and I'm leaving and won't come back." And...
JP I did read the Minutes. There were other quotes that I don't want to get into.
BAC Right, so I'm saying what we'd like to do is provide you, the company, with the opportunity to
work with the Architectural Commission to find something that upgrades your store, makes it a
better place, and yet satisfies the architectural and aesthetic concerns that the City has, and is that
of interest to your corporation?
JP Yes, it is. Victor, you know...I do apologize that the way it was presented, our position, it was
offensive to the City Council. I do apologize for that. This has been going on as an interim
process for eighteen months. Victor has also had to answer for spending architectural fees with
no capital upgrades to show for it, in addition to the things he said, the frustration he showed here
last month, that was out of line. It's also out of line to, you know, spend fees without any pay
back. At this point, he said (sound of cell phone or pager) I'm sorry, is that me? I apologize. He
said that, you know, basically I've gone back enough. I think that, Mayor Crites, he did, in fact,
address some of the concerns of the City Council, specifically screening the mechanical
equipment on the wall. We were going to lower both monument signs per your request. We were
going to upgrade the trash enclosure per your request. It's not like we didn't do anything. In the
end, it seems like we were trying to get to, okay you don't like the bright red, we'll subdue the
colors to desert colors. If you want S tile, we'll put up S tile. If you want it all the way around
the building, we'll do that. We'll screen the mechanical equipment. We went through iterations,
and none of those were acceptable. What's acceptable now is the extended architectural wing,
which is a structural wing, and that's okay. And I would be glad to sit down with your art
committee, and we will work something out, probably nothing will happen, I mean, if you like
the wing, they like the wing as an element, it's okay with us. Nothing may happen, but I can at
least give them time, to sit with them.
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BAC Mr. Ferguson
JF Yes, I was going to say, I don't think it's productive at all to go backwards over the last eighteen
months. Your consultant is hand picked by you, and in my memory, I can't remember the last
time we've had as much difficulty with a company of the character and quality of Tosco that
we've had in this particular instance. Typically, when we have paths cross like two jet fighters,
we offer the applicant a continuance, typically one or two Councilmembers at most will offer to
give feedback to the architecture and the applicant and to sort of entertain ongoing dialog so
that...we don't have anything against Circle K, they provide a tremendous service to a lot of
residents in both of those neighborhoods. I use the one at Portola all the time on my way home.
They're wonderful. The problem is they're old, they're decrepit, and, you know, your
consultant's description of them wasn't too far off the mark. Given that you're going to put some
capital investment in them, we do have design standards that we like to adhere to. They aren't
fungible, they don't fit in Phoenix as well as they do in Palm Desert, and we'd like to work with
you. And I don't think money is the driving criteria. I think it's a willingness to put forth a
superior product that represents your company well, that represents our city well, and that
provides a clean, friendly convenience store to our residents. And that's really all we're looking
for.
JP Okay.
BAC And I know the Architectural Commission would be very positive in terms of sitting down with
you or your representatives to sort of turn a page and see if we can't find something in a very
expeditious fashion that works for everyone.
JP
JF
That's fine. Capital is a driving cost, it isn't trying to get to our image. Low cost, especially in
the environment that we're in today, is a very large factor. But I still think that there's a middle
ground that we can get to.
What I meant by that comment was...we aren't asking you to spend a ton of money. I think the
comment was made about the cheapest alternative wasn't economically the cheapest, just the
cheapest looking in their view. They're a design committee, not an economic committee, and I
don't doubt that it's cost you money, but let's expedite the process, get you together with the
Council and Architectural Review, get you the feedback you want, and you guys can make the
corporate decision whether you want to move forward or not.
JP Perfect, sounds good. Greg, anything?
GG No, that's it.
BAC Thank you.
RAS Move to continue.
JF Second.
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BAC Moved to continue, with...
RAS How long would you...
BAC Well, I'm just saying...
RAS A month?
b Yr
BAC ...with this also going back to the Architectural Commission for the opportunity for the applicant
and the Commission.
RSK One quick comment.
BAC Yes, sir.
RSK Seems like if you leave the parapet on there, it would cost less.
RAS (Unclear) Would it make sense...
RSK And hopefully it stays on there.
RAS Normally the Council does not meet with the Architectural Review Commission for obvious
reasons. Would it make sense for, when Circle K is reviewed, that a Councilmember be present?
BAC Councilman Spiegel, if you would like to represent us on this matter...
RAS Depends on when it is because I'm going to be gone for a while.
BAC Or we'll ask someone else to sit in.
RAS Alright.
BAC But we join you in concern for creating a quality product and getting it done.
JF And I also talked to Councilmember Spiegel, and either of us would be happy to get a call from
you, to meet with you, to look at your blueprints, and to give you what we think is the feedback
you would likely get from this body on final review.
JP
Okay, so my next deliverable then would be to set up a meeting with the Architectural Review
Committee with a new design, if we can propose that, and invite you all to that meeting or to meet
with you after that meeting?
BAC And we may...it may be appropriate to meet with, as an example, the chair of the Committee to
try to, perhaps, cut down some of the time, perhaps a meeting with the chair of the Committee
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ahead of time just to get direct feedback to you from someone who sat on the other side of the
issue for the last many months might be appropriate.
PD In essence, sit down with staff and the chair of the Committee to provide some...
JF The bottom line is that you're willing to put forth the effort to make it look nice, we're willing to
put forth the effort to expedite it and make it as inexpensive as possible for you.
JP Okay. Well that sounds like a win -win.
BAC Okay. Thank you.
RAS Thank you.
JP So we'll have six weeks to do this?
BAC That's...
PD As long as you need.
BAC Let's see, this is the first meeting...so we'll put this on the second meeting in October?
RAS Second meeting in October.
BAC And if it's done sooner, we will move it up in the Agenda.
JP Okay.
RAS Or if it's not done, we'll move it back.
BAC Whatever.
JP Okay. Thank you.
BAC So, a motion to continue to the second meeting in October is made and seconded. Please vote.
CLO Mr. Mayor, I understand that also includes to send it back to Architectural Review.
BAC Yes.
JF Yes.
BAC Thank you for taking time from your schedules to be with us.
RDK Motion carries by unanimous vote.
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BAC Item B under Continued Business....
As a point of clarification, this matter was continued to the second meeting in October (10/26/00), with
the project referred back to the Architectural Review Commission for further refinement, Councilman Spiegel
and Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson to participate in the process prior to the case's next consideration at City
Council. The motion carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
B. CONSIDERATION OF SUBSTANDARD LANDSCAPING PROCEDURE (Continued from the
meeting of August 24, 2000).
Mr. Ortega noted the report in the packets from the Code Compliance Department as well as a
report from the City Attorney. He said this came about as a result of concerns expressed by the
City Council relative to the apparent ability to take care of yards that were unkempt and not taken
care of.
Mayor Crites stated that the City Council had just received this report, and he asked whether there
was any urgency in adopting this procedure at this time. Mr. Ortega responded that there was no
urgency.
Councilman Kelly moved to continue this matter to the meeting of September 28, 2000. Motion was
seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
C. REOUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF TENANT
IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE NORTH WING OF THE PALM DESERT CIVIC CENTER
(Continued from the meeting of August 24, 2000).
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that while the staff report listed all of the individual vendors by
their company names, it did not indicate what services they were providing for the amounts listed.
Senior Rehabilitation Construction Specialist Charlene Sumpter noted the following in response
to Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson's questions:
BKM would provide the workstations for the office partitions
marble and granite would be used for the two meeting counters
Doug Wall was the general contractor and would be building the offices
Precision Works would provide custom cabinetry and also the building of the reception
counter and some wall cabinetry in two offices
Air Link International would remove the pneumatic tubes
Councilman Spiegel stated that he had never seen any drawings of the proposal and asked whether
any had been done.
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Ms. Sumpter responded that there were drawings. She showed a presentation board to the Council
and explained the proposed improvements.
Councilman Spiegel asked whether it was necessary to approve this item at this meeting and said
he had not seen this proposal until this time.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson said he had seen the floor plan; however, having received the staff
report only this afternoon, he said he was uncomfortable approving the expenditure of $300,000
without seeing the scope of work for the individual items (i.e., the scope of work on the cabinets --
he said $82,000 for cabinets may be perfectly reasonable or astronomical, but he had no way,
based on this report and the diagram presented, to ascertain that).
Councilman Spiegel asked whether it would make sense to meet with the Council individually and
give the members a chance to look at the proposed plans.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson agreed and said this would allow the Council to see the bids and scope
of work prior to a decision being made.
Councilman Spiegel moved to continue this matter to the meeting of September 28, 2000, with
Councilmembers to meet with project leaders, as needed, to discuss the scope of work. Motion was seconded
by Ferguson and carried by 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
D. HEARING ON PROPOSED RESOLUTION OF NECESSITY RELATIVE TO STREET
IMPROVEMENTS ON HIGHWAY 111 FROM PLAZA WAY TO SAN MARCOS AVENUE
AND HIGHWAY 74 FROM EL PASEO TO HIGHWAY 111 (Joyce Cohn as Trustee of the Shell
Cohn Family Trust, Property Owner) (Continued from the meeting of August 24, 2000).
Mr. Erwin noted that this item had been resolved and could, therefore, be removed from the Agenda,
with no Council action necessary.
XII. OLD BUSINESS
A. CONSIDERATION OF GENERAL PLAN AND ZONING ORDINANCE UPDATE PROCESS,
SCOPE OF WORK, AND BUDGET.
Mr. Drell reviewed the staff report and offered to answer any questions.
Upon question by Councilman Spiegel, Mr. Drell responded that staff had gone out for Requests
for Qualifications to the three most prominent local planning consultants. The proposals were all
good ones, and they had been reviewed, with a decision made to negotiate and develop a scope
of work with Terra Nova Planning and Research, Inc., based on staff's experience with this firm,
both in the quality of work and reasonableness in cost of prior work done for the City and other
jurisdictions in the Valley. He added that while many pieces of the General Plan had been
amended over the last 20 years, the City had never done a comprehensive review. He noted that
to give the Council some scale of what things like this cost, the County is spending $20 million
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on a General Plan review. He stated that approximately ten years ago, the City contracted for a .�
far more limited area plan, and the cost was close to $500,000 for something that turned out to be
useless. Upon further question by Councilman Spiegel, Mr. Drell stated that the City was required
by State Planning Law to do this. He said the City had been informed by the Attorney General
that it is due for one. Councilman Spiegel asked whether the City would be getting something of
quality for $330,000, and Mr. Drell responded that staff's experience with this consultant was that
he had always produced a quality product.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that, as he read the report, the $330,000 was only for Phase I. He
asked how many phases there would be and the total amount.
Mr. Drell responded that Phase I was for the entire General Plan Amendment, the whole General
Plan Update, and the preliminary portion of the Zoning Ordinance Update, based on the fact that
the magnitude of the Zoning Ordinance Update would be generated by what comes out of the
General Plan, and this could not yet be forecast. Upon further question by Mayor Pro-Tem
Ferguson, Mr. Drell said he did not think it would cost much more than the $330,000.
MS. NICOLE CRISTE with Terra Nova Planning in Palm Springs, stated that until they had a
better idea of the scope of the Zoning Ordinance, they could not fix a price. She estimated it
would be $100,000 on the very high side, $50,000 in the middle range.
Councilman Spiegel asked if the consultant would be meeting with the City Council, citizens, etc.
to get input, and Ms. Criste responded that this would be done. She said there was a
comprehensive public participation program included in the scope of work. Councilman Spiegel
asked if the consultant was aware of the City's 2010 Plan, and she responded that they were aware
of this.
Councilman Kelly stated that he was involved, through RCTC, in what the County is doing, and
it is going a lot further than a General Plan. He said one of the things the County is attempting
to do is take care of all environmental clearances for all of its corridors before the projects actually
come up. With regard to the $500,000 spent previously, he said the City was doing much more
than a General Plan and was trying to take the entire North Sphere, completely change it, and set
up a plan to develop the entire area in a certain way. He said it had all "gone to pot" because
everyone wanted their zoning upgraded in order to get a big windfall. He said he had noted under
Environmental Resources Chapter that it has Historical Resources, and he said he wanted to make
sure there will be a historical preservation site element included. Ms. Criste responded that
cultural resources would be part of the plan.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve Scope of Services (Exhibit "A")
to prepare the Comprehensive General Plan, Zoning Ordinance Update and Environmental Impact Report;
2) authorize the Mayor to execute attached contract with Terra Nova Planning and Research, Inc., Palm
Springs, California (Contract No. C17610), for consulting services to perform tasks identified in Scope of
Services; 3) appropriate $330,000 from Unobligated Reserves for projected costs of update program. Motion
was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
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XIII. REPORTS AND REMARKS
A. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS:
1. Progress Report on Retail Center Vacancies
Ms. Ruth Ann Moore noted the report in the packets and offered to answer any
questions.
Councilman Spiegel stated that, with regard to the recent opening of House to Home,
he had asked Assistant City Manager Richard Folkers about getting a left -turn lane out
of the Costco/House to Home area since it was almost impossible on the weekends to
get out of that complex.
B. CITY MANAGER
Mr. Ortega introduced Mr. Vic Newton, Interim Deputy Building Inspector.
Mr. Newton stated that he felt the City had a great development staff in Palm Desert. He noted
that he had prepared a report for Mr. Folkers that indicated that Palm Desert, in the first six
months of 2000, did $111 million worth of building valuation. The succeeding two months
boosted that figure to $140 million, with August being a $21 million month. He said it was
expected that September would be approximately the same.
C. CITY ATTORNEY
Mr. Erwin requested a Closed Session at an appropriate time to consider items listed on the
Agenda.
1) Request for Closed Session:
Conference with Real Property Negotiator pursuant to Government Code
Section 54956.8:
1) Property: APN 627-164-012
Negotiating Parties:
Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/City of Palm Desert
Property Owner: Coachella Valley Water District
Under Negotiation: x Price x Terms of Payment
2) Property: APN 637-263-011 (77-125 Florida Avenue, Palm Desert, CA)
Negotiating Parties:
Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/City of Palm Desert
Property Owner: Robert V. Eschardies
Under Negotiation: x Price x Terms of Payment
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3) Property: Lease Property - Parkview Professional Office Buildings,
73-710-720 Fred Waring Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92260
Negotiating Parties:
Agency: City of Palm Desert/Paul S. Gibson, Finance Director
Property Owner: City of Palm Desert
Other Parties: National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Under Negotiation: x Price x Terms of Payment
Conference with Legal Counsel regarding existing litigation pursuant to Government
Code 54956.9(a):
a) Eddie Ahmad Babai v. City of Palm Desert, Riverside County Superior Court
Case No. INC 013297
b) City of Palm Desert v. Juan M. Armenta, et al., Riverside County Superior
Court Case No. INC 006499
Conference with Legal Counsel regarding significant exposure to litigation pursuant to
Government Code Section 54956.9(b):
Number of potential cases: 3
Public Employment pursuant to Government Code Section 54957:
Titles of Positions: City Attorney
City Clerk
City Manager
Redevelopment Agency Executive Director
2) Report and Action on Items from Closed Session Made at This Meeting.
None
D. CITY CLERK
None
E. MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
o City Council Requests for Action:
1. Consideration of Funding Request from the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program
for its Recognition Luncheon (Mayor Buford A. Crites).
Mayor Crites noted the letter dated August 21, 2000, requesting $1,000 for a
partnership.
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Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion, approve funding in the amount of $1,030 for
the subject luncheon. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson
ABSENT.
2. Request for Appointment of Two Councilmembers to the Desert Sands Unified
School District's "Two By Two" Committee (Mayor Buford A. Crites).
Councilman Spiegel stated that this was discussed at a previous City Council
meeting. He noted that the School Board had met and unanimously felt it was a
good idea to start having conversations with the City of Palm Desert relative to
opportunities available to schools in Palm Desert. He said two members of the
School Board would be appointed to this committee and had asked that the
Council also appoint to representatives. He noted that he would like to be one of
the two Council representatives. He added that these Councilmembers would meet
with the School Board every few months, depending on the need and what is
trying to be accomplished, and report to the Council on a regular basis.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson noted that he and Councilman Spiegel are
representatives on a Master Planning Renovation Committee for Palm Desert High
School. He said that, with activities this coming year with his family, he probably
would not be able to meet the time commitment, and he hoped the second member
to the "Two By Two" Committee could also fill his position on the Master
Planning Renovation Committee.
Mayor Crites stated that he would like to represent the City Council on these two
committees for one year.
Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion, appoint Councilman Spiegel and Mayor Crites to the
"Two By Two" Committee, with Mayor Crites to also fill Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson's seat on the previously
formed Master Planning Renovation Committee for Palm Desert High School. Motion was seconded by
Ferguson and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED
72 HOURS PRIOR TO THIS MEETING.
3. Consideration of Sponsorship of The World Zoo Organization's Annual Meeting
to be Held at The Living Desert, October 22-26, 2000 (Mayor Buford A. Crites).
Mayor Crites noted a letter in the packets from Karen Sausman, Executive
Director of The Living Desert.
Councilman Spiegel noted that The World Zoo Organization meets on an annual
basis in one location, and this year's meeting was being held at The Living Desert.
He said he felt The Living Desert was an asset to the City of Palm Desert and
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would personally like to see the City be a major participant and sponsor the final
dinner for the festivities. This would cost the City $5,000.
Councilman Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, approve co-sponsorship of The World Zoo
Organization's Annual Meeting Final Dinner in the amount of $5,000. Motion was seconded by Kelly and
carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
Mayor Crites noted that last year's meeting was held in Berlin, and the meeting the
year before last was held in South America.
4. Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that some time ago, he and Councilmembers
Spiegel and Benson voted in favor of covering parking spaces for employees. He
said he had hoped it could be done this summer, although he knew it was not
possible. He asked for a project status report at the next Council meeting as to the
project completion date and where the project stands at this time.
5. Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that at the Golf Course Committee meeting
earlier this week, members were informed that Desert Willow had a number of
items of surplus inventory that would be made available to staff members of the
City and their families at a reduced rate but above cost. He said he had spoken
with Gregg Lindquist and others about the 100+ employees at the City who may
not play golf and who may never have seen the features of the golf course. He
said he had raised the idea of having an employee picnic early in October, making
golf carts available to those who wish to go out and look at the various features,
with perhaps Councilmembers to provide tours and explain where hotels are going,
etc. He said he felt the employees were just as much a part of what is being done
at the City as anyone else. He suggested that the merchandise be made available
and that a cookout be held. He asked for Council direction.
Councilman Spiegel agreed that this was a great idea.
Mrs. Gilligan noted that in speaking with Gregg Lindquist, October 4, 2000, had
been selected as the date for the employee picnic, pending Council discussion and
action. Upon question by Councilman Kelly, she said appropriation of the funding
for this event could be placed on the Council Agenda for September 28. She
added that Gregg Lindquist had indicated it would be at Desert Willow cost to the
City.
With Council concurrence, the employee picnic was approved to be held October 4, 2000, with Council
to consider funding of the event at its meeting of September 28, 2000.
6. Mayor Crites noted that the Council had asked staff to look at the report on Water
Table Subsidence from the Coachella Valley Water District, and he asked for a
report from the City Manager at the City Council meeting of September 28.
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7. Mayor Crites noted that requests had been received from two residents for a bike
and/or walking lane on Portola Avenue at the Whitewater Channel. He asked that
staff review this as a future capital improvement project and to see if there are any
interim measures that could be implemented in the near future.
o City Council Committee Reports:
1. Councilman Kelly noted that the NCAA Tournament, "Prestige at Palm Desert"
Invitational Collegiate Golf Tournament was going to be held at Desert Willow
from December 6-8, 2000. He said it was being sponsored by the Universities of
Stanford and Davis, and there were many universities that would be represented,
including Vanderbilt, Yale, Rice, Pepperdine, Northwestern, University of
Washington, University of Pacific, University of Oregon, University of Colorado,
U.C. Santa Barbara, U.C. San Diego, U.C.L.A., U.C. Irvine, U.C. Davis, U.C.
Berkeley, and Stanford.
2. Councilman Kelly noted that AB402, Binding Arbitration, was passed by the
Legislature and was now on the Governor's desk for signature. He said the
League of California Cities voted unanimously that if signed, the League would
file suit based on a very explicit section of State Constitution that states very
clearly that the State Legislature cannot take that responsibility away from
municipalities.
3. Councilman Spiegel reported that at the Parks & Recreation Commission meeting,
it was noted that the Palm Desert Country Club Neighborhood Park was nearly
complete, with the opening date tentatively set for late October. In addition, the
Joint Neighborhood Park at Washington Charter School was now complete and
was available to residents after school, weekends, and summer and was used by
the school during the day as a playground.
4. Councilman Spiegel stated he wished to compliment Pat Scully and the Civic Arts
Committee members for the instructional aid that was developed for the School
District to use in the Civic Center Park with the various pieces of public art. He
said the guide was designed for elementary students, kindergarten through fifth
grade, so that they will be able to begin to understand the art and why it was done
and what is trying to be accomplished.
With Council concurrence, following consideration of the public hearings, Mayor Crites recessed the
meeting at 6:04 p.m. to Closed Session. He reconvened the meeting at 7:05 p.m.
XIV. COMPLETION OF ITEMS HELD OVER FROM 4:00 P.M. SESSION
None
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XV. AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS
A. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATIONS DECLARING THE MONTH OF OCTOBER 2000
AS FIRE PREVENTION AND "MINI MUSTER" MONTH IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT.
On behalf of the entire City Council, Mayor Crites presented the proclamations to B.J. and
Dan Callahan declaring the month of October 2000 as Fire Prevention and "Mini Muster" Month
in the City of Palm Desert.
Mr. Callahan stated that this was their eighth year in the Mini Muster program with the Cove
Communities third grade students. Schools represented included Washington Charter School,
James Carter Elementary School, Ford Elementary School, and Lincoln Elementary School. He
said at the end of this season, they would have instructed 3,500 third graders in fire prevention and
fire safety. He added that the Historical Society of Palm Desert was the coordinator of this
program, and the Desert Sands Unified School District was a big supporter.
B. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION TO THE COACHELLA VALLEY RECREATION
AND PARK DISTRICT IN RECOGNITION OF ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY.
On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Crites presented to representatives of the Coachella Valley
Recreation and Park District a proclamation in recognition of the District's 50th Anniversary.
Mr. Gordon Jenson, Board Member, stated that the bulk of the District's growth was attributed
to the City of Palm Desert, which had been extremely helpful in providing not only facilities but
assistance wherever needed.
Mr. Don Martin noted that the C.V. Recreation and Park District would be hosting the Senior
Olympics in February, 2001, and would be hosting the State's Senior Olympics in Palm Desert
in approximately two years. He stated that they were also in the process of acquiring over 600
acres to the south of the Civic Center for a desert regional park, and only approximately 40 acres
would be developed in grass, with the rest to remain desert. He said trails would be cut in the
desert, and there would be kiosks out in the middle of the trails to explain about the desert. He
said this land acquisition should take place in the next three to four months. In addition, he said
they were looking at another piece of property north of Palm Desert, although the location was
still not known, and this would be for a 300-acre regional park.
C. PRESENTATION TO CAPTAIN DAN MILLER.
On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Crites made a presentation to Captain Dan Miller. He
expressed the City's appreciation to Captain Dan Miller for all he had done for the citizens of
Palm Desert, and he wished him well in his future endeavors.
Captain Miller thanked the Council and said it had been a pleasure and honor to be the Police
Chief in Palm Desert for the last couple of years.
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D. PRESENTATION TO COLIN WILSON IN RECOGNITION OF HIS SERVICE TO THE CITY
OF PALM DESERT AND ITS PROMOTION COMMITTEE.
Mayor Crites presented a token of appreciation to Mr. Colin Wilson in recognition of his service
to the City of Palm Desert as a member of its Promotion Committee.
Mr. Wilson stated that he had enjoyed his five years as a member of the Promotion Committee
and hoped he had contributed to the goals and efforts of this committee. He congratulated the past
and present City Councilmembers for the mission they had followed, the vision they had and have,
their willingness to doing good things, and the continuity they have achieved with the changes of
personnel over the years. He said this had established the character of the City itself, as had the
contributions of the other City committees and commissions and City staff.
E. PRESENTATION TO ROLAND ALDEN IN RECOGNITION OF HIS SERVICE TO THE CITY
OF PALM DESERT AND ITS TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE.
Mr. Alden was not able to attend the meeting, and staff indicated his appreciation gift would be
mailed to him.
F. PRESENTATION OF AWARD OF FINANCIAL REPORTING ACHIEVEMENT TO THE
CITY OF PALM DESERT BY THE GOVERNMENT FINANCE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION.
Mayor Crites presented this award to Finance Director Paul Gibson.
Mr. Gibson stated that the City sends its financial statements each year to the Government Finance
Officers Association, a group that goes through the financials and tries to achieve an excellence
so that all financial statements are brought up to a high standard. He said the City of Palm
Desert's statements had met the criteria and exceeded the requirements set by this organization.
XVI. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL TO A NOTICE TO ABATE ISSUED JULY 5, 2000, ON
PROPERTY LOCATED AT 74-210 GOLETA AVENUE (APN 627-021-015) (James E. Gamble,
Appellant) (Continued from the meeting of August 24, 2000).
Upon question by Mayor Crites, Mr. Erwin stated that Mr. Gamble was not present at this time.
Mr. Pedro Rodriguez, Code Compliance Officer II stated that Mr. Gamble was asked to work
with City staff to get his property into compliance with City codes. He said a letter was mailed
to Mr. Gamble on August 30, 2000. As of just prior to this City Council meeting, Mr. Gamble's
back yard appeared to be in the same condition as it was previously, although the front yard had
been mowed and some of the vehicles had been removed. He said staff was requesting that the
Council uphold its determination of a public nuisance and allow staff to proceed with the
abatement of the property.
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Mr. Erwin asked whether the fence was still in the same condition, and Mr. Rodriguez responded
that it was. He said it was possible to see through the fence, and all the materials were still back
there as reported at the last Council meeting.
Upon question by Councilman Spiegel relative to whether Mr. Gamble was planning to attend the
7:00 p.m. portion of the meeting, Mr. Ponder responded that Mr. Gamble had not responded or
had any contract with staff since the last Council meeting.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that he had gone to Mr. Gamble's home today to look at the
situation. He said from the front, he could not see into the yard. He said he had knocked on the
door, and no one was home. He added that he agreed the area looked terrible.
Mrs. Gilligan noted that Mr. Gamble was mailed a copy of the Agenda and staff report as well.
Mayor Crites noted that the public hearing was still open, and he invited testimony relative to this item.
No testimony was offered, and he declared the public hearing closed.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Make a determination that a public nuisance
exists on the subject property; 2) make a finding that the abatement described in said "Notice to Abate" is
reasonable and necessary to comply with the law. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 4-0 vote,
with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
Following completion of the remaining public hearings during the 7:00 p.m. portion of the
meeting, the appellant addressed the City Council.
MR. JAMES GAMBLE, 74-210 Goleta Avenue, Palm Desert, apologized for not attending the
earlier portion of the meeting. He said the Agenda mailed to him showed that the matter would
not be heard until after 7:00 p.m. He said he thought this meeting was to have a status report as
to these abatements. With regard to the letters of abatement for four vehicles, he said two of the
four had been taken care of. He said one was a motorhome, and he still did not understand what
needed to be done with it because there were other motorhomes on his street which were parked
behind the homes on dirt lots, grass, etc. He said he was told by the Code Enforcement Officer
originally, along with a previous Code Enforcement Officer, that as long as he parked it behind
the eave of his home, it would be okay. He noted that on his way to this Council meeting, he had
noted on the corner of Portola and Fred Waring Drive, next to the Coachella Valley Water District
well pump, a motorhome which had been parked there for the six years he had lived in the City.
He said he did not know whether the Council was still requiring him to move his motorhome since
it was allowed other places in the City. He said there was a question earlier in the meeting about
his not contacting the Code Enforcement office, and he said he did not know he was supposed to
contact that department. He added that he could not deal with the Code Enforcement Office and
felt they were doing nothing but harassing him and causing problems. He said as far as he knew,
there was no need for Code Officers to be back on his property, especially in light of the fact that
at the last meeting, Council indicated that what was behind his fence was of no concern as long
as it could not be seen from public view. He noted that his fiancee's son came home from school
today and found Mr. Kilpatrick on the property looking behind the fence where the materials
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could not be seen from public view. He felt Mr. Kilpatrick had a personal vendetta against him,
and that is why he had not communicated with the Code Enforcement Office.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that he had gone to look at Mr. Gamble's house today. He said
he had never seen it before, had never seen the report on the abatement before he received his
Agenda, and did not know Mr. Gamble from Adam; however, he said he would like to offer his
observation, from resident of Palm Desert to another. He said he had driven to the front of the
house and looked at it and did not see any problems. He got out, walked up to the driveway, got
to the point where he felt he couldn't within reasonable grounds look any further without invading
the homeowner's privacy, and left. He said he went to a meeting, asked what the problem was
with the house on Goleta Street because he had not seen an issue with it, and he was told that it
was the back that was the problem. In the short time between that meeting and the Council
meeting, he said he had gone down Fred Waring Drive and looked at the back of the house. He
noted that he felt it looked awful. He said he was almost a Libertarian when it comes to private
property issues, and if he can't see it and the resident does not pose a threat to public health and
welfare, the resident can do whatever he or she wants in the back yard. He said the problem was
that all of the materials in the back yard had been pushed to the farthest end of the property line,
with a broken and deteriorated fence, so that 42,000 cars a day see the junk even though the
resident does not. He said all the City had asked him to do was to clean it up, and that was all that
needed to be done. He asked Mr. Gamble if there was a problem with doing so.
Mr. GAMBLE said he understood he had a lot of junk in the back yard, and he planned to take
care of it. He said the abatement letters he received were for four vehicles, not the junk in the
yard. He asked at the last Council meeting what was being talked about and was told that it was
the four vehicles that needed to be abated. He said he had no problem cleaning up his junk if that
is the issue. With regard to the fence, he said he had put up a new fence several years ago, and
someone came along within two weeks and hit the corner; he had not had a chance to fix the fence
since then.
Mayor Crites stated that there were a number of issues at the last meeting. Some of the issues
were about the vehicles, and the other issues were with the front yard, the back yard, and the view
from the back. He said the appellant was given to this meeting to correct these problems.
Mr. GAMBLE said he had hoped to have the fence fixed by this meeting; however, he did not
have enough money left after repairing, registering, and insuring one of the vehicles for which he
was cited. He noted that the fence would be the next thing to be repaired.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson asked if provisions could be made for Mr. Gamble to have a dumpster
placed in front of his home the following day, at no charge to him, could he within ten days haul
all of the trash out of the side and back yards and get the fence fixed. He said the issue of the
vehicles could then be taken care of. He said as far as he was concerned, if the vehicles are sealed
so that there are no health and welfare concerns with rats and cats, etc. being able to get into the
vehicles, and if they are stored in a manner that is not open to public view, he would not
personally have a problem with it. He added that the way the house was set up now, it was an
eyesore from Fred Waring Drive, and that was his concern. He said the City had just gone to a
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provision with its waste hauler that they will pick up that stuff for free, although it does not really
begin until February, 2001. He said there were home improvement monies, if money is an issue,
as well as low interest loans and other types of things that could be done if needed. He said the
City could help Mr. Gamble if he wants to clean up his yard; it is just that the Council had not
seen any indication of that willingness.
Mr. GAMBLE said he would do everything he could to get the area cleaned up.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson asked if Mr. Gamble would agree to come back to the Council in two
weeks to report on what he has been able to do in that time period, and Mr. Gamble agreed.
Councilman Kelly moved to reconsider the Council's previous action. Motion was seconded by Spiegel
and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Instruct Mr. Gamble to work with staff in
order to get a dumpster placed on his property within the next 48 hours, provided by the City; 2) instruct
Mr. Gamble to clean up the trash and debris, fix the fence, and take care of all items he has been cited for
within the next 14 days, with the exception of the vehicles; and 3) check the status of the clean-up at the
Council meeting of September 28, 2000, at the 4:00 p.m. session, with the case to be heard at approximately
5:30 p.m. to accommodate Mr. Gamble's work schedule.
Mr. GAMBLE asked where he could get a list of the cites so that he knew specifically which
things needed to be taken care of.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson said he would like for Mr. Gamble to meet with the City Manager and
in good faith address the problems on the property, and he said he would be happy to sit in on that
meeting.
Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
B. CONSIDERATION OF AN APPEAL TO A DECISION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION,
APPROVING A REQUEST BY MOBIL OIL CORPORATION FOR AN AMENDMENT TO
AN EXISTING PRECISE PLAN/CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR A MOBIL GAS
STATION, CONVENIENCE STORE, INCLUDING BEER AND WINE SALE FOR OFF -SITE
CONSUMPTION, AND DRIVE-THRU CAR WASH ON 1.58 ACRES AT THE NORTHEAST
CORNER OF COOK STREET AND GERALD FORD DRIVE, 36-650 COOK STREET Case
No. CUP 00-06 Amendins PP/CUP 96-10 (Mobil Oil Corporation and Urrutia Architects,
Applicants) (Continued from the meeting of August 24, 2000).
Planning Manager Steve Smith stated that staff had not received revised plans and would
recommend a continuance. He noted that the applicant concurred with this continuance.
Councilman Spiegel moved to continue this matter to the meeting of September 28, 2000. Motion was
seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
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C. CONSIDERATION OF THREE AMENDMENTS TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE AS THEY
EACH PERTAIN TO THE FOLLOWING CHAPTERS: 1) CHAPTER 25.16.030(J) RELATED
TO RENTAL AND LEASING OF SINGLE-FAMILY DWELLINGS FOR LESS THAN 30
DAYS; 2) CHAPTER 25.104.060 RELATED TO STEALTH INSTALLATION OF
TELECOMMUNICATION TOWERS AND ANTENNAS; 3) CHAPTER 25.16.090(A) AND
ADD (C) RELATED TO SETBACKS FOR GARAGES AND CARPORTS IN THE R-1
DISTRICT Case Nos. ZOA 00-5. ZOA 00-7. ZOA 00-8 (City of Palm Desert, Applicant).
Mr. Smith reviewed the staff report, noting that the first item before Council was an amendment
to create, as a conditional use, rental provisions for single-family residences for less than 30 days.
He said at this point in time, the Code was silent on that issue, and there was no way to regulate
or restrict it. The second Ordinance was regarding the stealth installation of telecommunication
towers and antennas. He said staff was trying to get away from 85-foot high towers and
encourage the use of palm tree stealth type installation where the facilities are put into a grove to
try and blend with the natural environment. The third Ordinance dealt with setbacks for garages
and carports in the R-1 district. He noted that letters had been sent to staff in the last several days
supporting this amendment, which would allow the setbacks for carport structures to be measured
from the curb instead of from the property line, which was typically a difference of twelve feet.
He said it would allow staff to continue to encourage the provision of shaded parking and take
care of some situations in older neighborhoods where garages had previously been converted. He
said the Planning Commission voted 2-1 at its meeting of August 15, 2000, to recommend all
three amendments to the Council. He noted that Commissioner Finerty voted no on the
amendment relative to the telecommunication towers and antennas, and her concern was that she
did not feel they belonged in the open space district. He offered to answer any questions.
Councilman Spiegel stated that he had seen one of the installations at the new park in Palm Desert
Country Club, adjacent to the dog park, and it looked like a palm tree.
Councilman Kelly noted that he had driven by one for approximately six months and did not
realize it was there until someone told him. He said he had just assumed it was another palm tree.
Mayor Crites declared the public hearing open and invited testimony in FAVOR of or OPPOSED to this
request. No testimony was offered, and he declared the public hearing closed.
Councilman Spiegel moved to waive further reading and pass to second reading: 1) Ordinance No. 966,
approving ZOA 00-5; 2) Ordinance No. 967, approving ZOA 00-7; 3) Ordinance No. 968, approving ZOA
00-8. Motion was seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
Upon question from a member of the audience, Mr. Drell responded that with regard to Ordinance
No. 966, this amendment will allow staff to regulate rental and leasing of single-family dwellings
for less than 30 days. He said in order to get approval, an application must be completed, with a
public hearing to be held before the Planning Commission and neighbors to be notified.
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D. CONSIDERATION OF A TENTATIVE TRACT MAP TO SUBDIVIDE APPROXIMATELY
106 ACRES INTO SEVEN LOTS (TT 29428) AND APPROVAL OF A PRECISE PLAN OF
DESIGN FOR THE HILTON CONFERENCE CENTER, INCLUDING 250 SUITES, A
64,250 SQUARE FOOT CONFERENCE CENTER, PARKING STRUCTURE, AND
ACCESSORY STRUCTURES, AND A HEIGHT EXCEPTION FOR THE CONFERENCE
CENTER BUILDING, ALL LOCATED ON LOT 2, TT 29528, A 16.86 ACRE SITE AT THE
NORTHEAST END OF DESERT WILLOW DRIVE, 39-000 DESERT WILLOW DRIVE
Case Nos. PP/CUP 00-09 and TT 29528 (Desert Willow Conference Center, LLC, and Mainiero,
Smith & Associates, Inc., Applicants).
Mayor Crites stated that, before testimony is received, he would like to know whether what is
being proposed at the City Council meeting is the same thing that was proposed at the Planning
Commission meeting.
Mr. Drell stated that what was proposed was the same thing that was approved at Planning
Commission. The only additional information was a view analysis of a suggested alternative by
members of the public of the arrangements of units on the site, with one-story units facing east and
those units that used to be two-story and facing east to be transferred to six three-story buildings
facing the northwest on the golf course. He said the view analysis showed that the three-story
buildings on the northwest side of the project were far enough away that they do not significantly
impact views. Upon question by Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson, Mr. Drell stated that this was an
alternative proposed at the Planning Commission by residents of the Montecito development, and
they felt this would be an acceptable compromise that would address their concerns.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson asked whether the applicant had commented on this alternative. Mr.
Drell responded that in the report was an analysis done by the applicant's general contractor
indicating what he believed would be additional costs to build the project this way as opposed to
the original plan.
Mayor Crites stated that he was very uncomfortable with where this project is in terms of parking
issues.
Mayor Crites declared the public hearing open and invited testimony in FAVOR of or OPPOSED to this
request.
MS. PAT MITCHELL, Chairman of the Committee to Save our Scenery for Montecito, stated that
she had just received a photo approximately ten minutes prior to this meeting, and she asked
whether this matter could be continued so that the other homeowners could see the photo as well.
Councilman Spiegel said he felt a continuance for that reason made sense.
e.,y'
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that, apart from the view aspects and how it affects Montecito,
he had huge issues on parking. He said this is a joint venture because it is City -owned land, he
had always felt the City should do things as a model for the private sector, and this was hardly
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what he would call a model at this point. He said he felt that, absent exigent circumstances, which
had not been explained to him, this matter merited a continuance.
Councilman Spiegel said he felt it would be good to get comments from the other homeowners
relative to these changes.
Ms. Mitchell noted that every change offered by the Montecito homeowners as an alternative had
resulted in the developer stating, "It's possible if the City pays." She said the golf clubhouse
looked considerably smaller in the photograph than it actually is, and she asked if it was possible
for the Councilmembers to come to the site and look at it perhaps from her house or from some
of the empty lots.
Mayor Crites stated that if the Council ultimately continues this matter, it can ask Ms. Mitchell
to offer her hospitality several different times in order not to violate the open meeting act by
having a majority of the Councilmembers present at the same time.
MR. GARY FOYE, 44 Lucerne Drive, stated that his home was along the 11th fairway and that
his biggest concern was that the City has a special duty, given that it owns the land, to try to be
a model and also take special care to make sure the process is fair. He said he felt the Planning
Commission had some problems with some of the data that was used in its conclusion. He said
when the Planning Commission voted, the residents had only about five minutes before the vote
to see the photograph, and he felt the photograph was flawed because the angle was done on a
diagonal as opposed to a straight -on view. He said that in basic geometry, the shortest distance
between two points will have the greatest effect in terms of height and in terms of the view. The
photograph that was provided to them was done on a diagonal and gave the perception that the
height is lower than it actually is. He suggested that a photo be taken straight -on that would give
the shortest distance and an accurate picture of what the true view impact will be on those homes.
He added that there were a few other points made at the Planning Commission which they felt
were really not taken into consideration. One was that the original environmental impact review
was done before a number of events and did not take into consideration the view impacts that the
project will have. In addition, from a timing standpoint, when the golf course was built, the pad
elevation for the proposed conference center site was raised approximately one story. When the
homeowners addressed the Planning Commission, he said they challenged the aspect of why this
was not taken into consideration in the environmental impact review and why couldn't that site
pad be lowered in order to have a positive impact in terms of the view analysis on the
homeowners. The reply from the developer was that it would cost too much money. He said they
gave a fairly impromptu, seat -of -the -pants estimate of x amount of dollars for each foot of soil that
would have to be removed. He said there was really not any independent analysis to validate what
the true economic costs of lowering that pad would be, and at every turn when the homeowners
association had suggested that this would be an option to reduce the impacts or to use one-story
casitas on the eastern side closest to the homeowners' lots, the reply from the developer was that
they would lose a number of units that would make the project economically not viable. He
suggested that if the developer is getting the land free, he has a good start on making the project
economically viable. He added that he felt it was important for the Council to understand what
the impacts will be from a view analysis and what that translates to economically. He said the
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homeowners most affected were those bordering the golf course. They will lose privacy and an
aesthetic value of view, and that translates into a loss of economic value. He noted that he had
personally paid a premium for his lot to have that view. He said he had recently relocated to Palm
Desert, and one of the reasons he chose Palm Desert was because he thought it was very
progressive and forward -thinking. He said he also believed that the City of Palm Desert had a fair
process. He added that he felt the City was in an awkward position in having ownership of the
land, and he urged the Council to be sure that fairness in the process is pursued.
Councilman Spiegel asked whether Mr. Foye was made aware when he purchased his property that
there was a hotel planned for the pad.
Mr. Foye stated that when he had called the City of Palm Desert prior to the completion of escrow
on his lot, he was told by the Planning Department that the highest structure that would be on
those sites would be similar to what they had envisioned of a two-story nature. He said there was
an indication that there would be a potential conference center built there, but every indication was
that the maximum height would be two stories. He added that when he spoke with representatives
of the City's Planning Department, the indication was that the conference center and the buildings
would be on the western -most portion of that tract, which would have the least impact in terms of
the view on the homeowners. He said he would have envisioned that there would be nothing
higher than the clubhouse, and with the photographs, it was not even possible to see the clubhouse.
He said another concern he had was that he had gone to considerable expense to try to build a
buffer on his property to provide some privacy from the golf course. He said he had already
incurred some broken windows, and he would like to see the tee moved to the left or have a sign
posted advising that golfers should aim left. He expressed concern with the privacy element and
asked what kind of lighting this would create for the homeowners and said he was equally
concerned about the parking and the noise.
MR. MIKE MITCHELL, 38 Lucerne Drive, Montecito Estates, adjacent to the 11th green of the
golf course, showed a photo to the Council and said it was from the edge of where the casitas are
looking down into Mr. Foye's back yard. He said he hoped, with the one-story in front and three-
story in back, that the three-story structures in back cannot be seen. He noted that there was only
about 300 feet distance in many places between the two structures. He said he had a compromise
which he had presented to the Planning Commission, although the developer felt it was terrible
and indicated he would drop the entire project if this compromise was adopted. The compromise
was, listening to the concerns relative to traffic and parking, perhaps this area is being overbuilt,
and maybe there should be single -story on the east side and two-story on the west side. He said
this would alleviate the parking situation to some extent and would allow the overflow to go to
the Marriott, and the City would continue to get the bed tax.
With no further testimony offered at this time, Mayor Crites stated that the public hearing would remain
open.
Councilman Spiegel suggested continuing this matter until after the dinner break in order to allow
the developer to comment. He said he would not be in favor of approving this project at this time
without questions being answered.
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Mrs. Gilligan noted that several people had called the City Clerk's Office and were told that the
matter would probably be considered at 7:00 p.m. She said the Council might receive more
testimony at that time.
With Council concurrence, this matter was continued to the 7:00 p.m. portion of the meeting.
Mayor Crites invited testimony from members of the audience not present at the 4:00 p.m. portion
of the meeting.
MR. ROBERT SONNENBLICK, a principal in the real estate development company of
Sonnenblick Del Rio, developers of the proposed Hilton Conference Center, said he wished to
address two issues brought up by Council, specifically dealing with parking issues and view
corridors from the Montecito residents. He asked whether Council wished for him to discuss these
two items at this time.
Councilman Spiegel noted that there had been no staff report and that it might be appropriate to
have a staff report at this point in time.
Mr. Drell stated that he would discuss the process gone through with regard to the parking
analysis, and Mr. Smith would talk about the view issue. He said the ordinance prescribes the
method to analyze parking for hotels based on a ratio of 1.1 spaces for the hotel rooms and the
accessory uses. The next step provided for in the ordinance was to analyze the relationship
between the amount of the accessory amenity uses and the hotel demand. He said in every hotel,
some of the hotel guests use the restaurants and conferences and only need to be parked once. He
said the concern was sharpened by the City's experience with the Marriott, which was parked
about 1.5 spaces per room. He said the problem of the underparking of the Marriott was brought
to the attention of the applicant, and the reason for the problem was that a high percentage of
people going to the Marriott for various activities are not guests of the hotel. These people have
to be parked in addition to all of the hotel guests. The developer was asked how the Hilton would
be different from the Marriott, and the response from Hilton was included in the staff report as to
how they operate differently. He said their description is that they do not book to conferences that
attract outside non -hotel guest attendees; they will require that all attendees be housed in the hotel.
As a result, they do not, as a general operating and marketing procedure, market to the associations
that generate a high percentage of non -hotel guests which have to, in essence, be parked twice. He
said there would probably be occasions when all of the conference space will be used, and there
will be a need for far more than the normal operating requirement. This is something that needs
to be addressed, and staff's suggestion was that, as a Desert Willow issue, there needs to be
provision for emergency overflow parking. He said the issue of where it would go was left to the
property owner, master developer, and the hotel owner. He said staff's feeling was that, for this
facility, 100 spaces was probably adequate but ideal would be a pool of 300 or more overflow
parking spaces that would be available for each of the uses when they have those special events.
Staff felt fairly confident, based on the description by Hilton, that for most cases the on -site
parking would be adequate.
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Mr. Steve Smith noted that the packets contained the earlier versions of the photo view analysis,
which showed the two-story concept on the existing pad. The Council also received photos of the
photo view with a five-foot reduction in the pad elevation. He said staff and the Planning
Commission had looked at the effect achieved with a five-foot reduction based on the view
analysis done and concluded that the benefit of lowering the pad elevation did not warrant the cost
to achieve it. Staff's recommendation at that point was the two-story concept on the existing pad,
with an increase in the landscaping along the east side. In response to comments from the
residents, staff recommended a method of obscuring views to the east so that people standing on
second floor balconies in the easterly units could not view the residences to the east. He said that
toward the end of the Planning Commission hearing, the residents suggested one-story along that
eastern side of the project. The Planning Commission did not consider that, but in the interim staff
had a revised visual impact analysis performed (which was just received today), and it showed a
significant difference with less view impact. He said as noted earlier in the meeting, the pad
height was increased considerably during the time of the golf course grading and sculpting. The
original Environmental Impact Report on the project showed that raised development pads would
be created. He said the conditional use permit for the golf course, including the detailed heights
on the pad and the golf course itself, was before Planning Commission in June of 1995, and no
resident at that point in time raised any issues with respect to visual, noise, or other impact. At
that time, Mr. Mike Grimm, president of the Montecito Homeowners Association, spoke at length
about his major concern, which was to get open wrought iron fencing for views into the golf
course, and he also supported the golf course construction. He noted that the resolution adopted
by Planning Commission included a finding that the proposal was consistent with the plan.,
evaluated in the 1994 EIR. Grading for the north golf course began in July of 1996, and it was
completed in February of 1997. He said at the time of the EIR in 1994, staff did not have a visual
analysis done because there was no specific project at that point in time. Four or five visual
analyses had now been done, which staff felt accurately depicted anticipated view impacts. Staff s
conclusion was that neither the full two-story project nor the one-story/three-story project rose to
the level of substantial impacts, and staff felt the 1994 EIR was adequate and that the Council
could proceed with whatever project it liked. He offered to answer any questions.
Mayor Crites stated that he would be voting to continue this item in order to grant residents their
request to look at the new one-story/three-story project. He noted that the 30-foot and 36-foot
portions of the conference center were not what he thought a two-story building would be and, in
fact, it was in keeping with a three-story building. He questioned the Art In Public Places, and Mr.
Smith responded that staff had urged the applicant to make contact with the Art In Public Places
Committee. Mayor Crites stated that he would like to see that contact not made and instead see
what is going to be done before the project is approved. He also said he felt it was important to
sit down and have a discussion of some kind of parking solution that works for all existing and
future tenants of this site rather than figuring it out one by one.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson said he would also vote for a continuance, both to allow the
homeowners a chance to look at the view depictions and to allow staff a chance to take a look at
master planning parking needs for the entire project. He said while he had not yet spoken with the
homeowners, he would accept Mrs. Mitchell's invitation to look at the conference center from her
back yard. He said that there would be a hotel there, one way or the other, and the law does not
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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recognize a view easement, although the City does want to be a good neighbor and preserve as
much as possible the aesthetic aspects of the residents' homes, including allowing open -style
wrought iron fencing for those who want to take in the shrubbery, greenery, and beauty of the golf
course. He said it was the very beauty of that golf course that would bring guests to the hotel,
which would generate the revenues, which in part paid for the golf course in the first place and
which would hopefully keep Palm Desert the type of place to which people wish to relocate. He
said he had spoken with Mr. Sonnenblick earlier this week and told him that one of the beauties
of owning your own land, even if you are offering it in exchange for development, is that you are
in no particular hurry to do things. He said the City had master planned this for twelve years, and
there was no reason to be getting view aspects an hour before a Council vote. He said he felt this
project could wait for two weeks, and the Council's hope was that the applicant and the neighbors
will come to a resolution. He encouraged the residents to work with Mr. Sonnenblick to come up
with a compromise on cost, design, etc. He added that he felt this should be a five -member
decision since it is the City's single biggest economic development project, and one of the
Councilmembers was absent from this meeting. He said he hoped when the five Councilmembers
are back together at a meeting, there has been some movement on both the neighbors' committee
side and also the developer's side towards accommodating the view problems and some movement
by City staff in doing some better planning on the parking situation at Desert Willow as a whole.
Councilman Kelly agreed that the parking situation needed to be solidified and said he would vote
to continue this matter.
Councilman Spiegel said he felt the developer should be given an opportunity to speak, although
he agreed that this matter should be continued at least until the first meeting in October, as he will
not be present at the meeting of September 28th. He agreed with Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson's
comments about there being a hotel; however, he said the Council wants to be sure it is the right
hotel for the residents, too.
MR. SONNENBLICK stated that discussions had been held with staff and put in writing that his
organization was most happy to comply with the Art In Public Places regulations. He said they
had already picked out the artist who would create the art for this project. He said the artist's
name was Eric Orr, and he was an internationally famous water sculptor who also had work on
display in some other Hilton projects around the United States. He assured Council that they were
not trying to skirt around the Art In Public Places issue.
Mayor Crites stated that he did not mean to imply that. He said he meant to imply that very often,
this process happens after the building architecture is pretty well solidified. He said in his opinion,
the Art In Public Places should be on board with the rest of the project.
Mr. SONNENBLICK offered to submit the plans for the art at this time, and Mayor Crites agreed.
Mr. Sonnenblick stated that within the next two weeks, he would provide to staff information on
Mr. Orr's work and the proposed piece for the project. With regard to the heights of the
conference center building, he said the walkway through the middle of the long conference center
would have a high ceiling; however, the entire building was a single -story building, and there were
no board rooms on the second or third floors.
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that it would be like the Council Chamber, and Mr. Sonnenblick
agreed that the Council Chamber was a perfect example of a high single -story building. He said
now that they had gone through Planning Commission so that everyone is happy with the general
design and things like materials and colors, they had already started discussions on financing.
Without having an approved project, they could not go further with that financing. He said he
understood Council's desire to slow down the project so that the parking issues can be taken care
of, and he said they could deal with that. However, he wanted everyone to understand that they
could not put their financing together until such time as there is a solid deal between the developer
and the City. He said he would not have a problem with a one -month delay to get everything
together on all sides; however, if things start to be delayed further in the future, he said it would
be difficult for them. He said they had made a suggestion to staff with regard to the parking issue
that he said he wished the Council to be aware of. He said right now the City was using a couple
of acres on the resort site for temporary parking due to the 200 spaces underparked at the
Clubhouse. Mr. Drell indicated that it was possible that the conference center hotel was
underparked by 100 spaces, although he did not agree. This totaled 300 spaces short at the two
facilities. He said besides being the developer of the conference center hotel, they were also the
potential developer of the resort site. He said he would agree in writing to not be able to move
forward on the 17-acre resort site until such time as this parking issue is taken care of to the
Council's full satisfaction, and in the meantime, allow them to go forward on the conference
center. He said he did not know why they couldn't take that temporary parking on the resort site
and use it until such time as the Council is satisfied with the master plan for the entire project. He
said they had discussed with staff the possibility of adding a deck onto the parking garage of the
resort, but staff was not comfortable with getting the garage too high because it would become
unsightly. He agreed with that comment; however, there were 500 acres here, and he felt the
easiest way to solve a parking problem was to do surface parking and put good landscaping around
it. If five acres of that 500 were taken and used for parking, this would solve the entire problem.
He noted that right now, on the site closest to Country Club, there was some parking done by
shuttle to get back and forth, possibly employee parking for the clubhouse. He said they did not
mind if their employees from both the conference center hotel and the resort hotel are forced to
park and take a shuttle to get to and from their jobs. He suggested that the five acres could be
taken along Portola Avenue for this surface parking.
Councilman Spiegel noted that the parking on Country Club was being used by the Marriott Hotel
on a temporary basis, although it was becoming permanent. He said he was not in favor of that
parking becoming permanent and felt the property was much too valuable to be used as a parking
lot. He agreed with Mr. Sonnenblick, particularly if they were not going to go ahead with the
resort hotel right away, that there is adequate parking to find out what the needs are. He
questioned the comment made by Hilton that they will not book to outside organizations and said
that times change, and down the road they might be doing so, and all of a sudden there are all
kinds of parking problems. With the additional land in that area right now, he said on a temporary
basis all the cars in the world could be parked for both hotels. He added that for him to vote in
favor of this project when it comes back in a month, he would like to see the developer and the
Montecito homeowners a lot closer than they are at this time on the view issues.
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that he had spoken with Mr. Sonnenblick by telephone, and he
had advised Mr. Sonnenblick that he was really struggling with the entire issue of parking, and he
disagreed with the characterization of the problem as an easy one. He said if twelve years and
$82 million had been spent designing a resort hotel pad, it wouldn't be done with a 30-second
shuttle ride for guests and employees of the hotel; it would be done on -site.
Mr. SONNENBLICK stated that it was his understanding that it was too late because the pad is
limited and surrounded by the golf course.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that this had not been worked out and needed more time to be
looked at. Secondly, Mr. Sonnenblick stating that he would forego building the resort hotel until
the Council is satisfied with the parking was like "fleas on a dog" to him. He said this was like
stating to the Council that he would not give the dog until the Council is happy with the fleas. He
said he felt the keystone of the entire project was the resort hotel. It has more rooms, is farther
away from homeowners, and will be a signature resort community with two world class golf
courses. He said it was nice that Hilton is doing a conference center, but to him it was incidental
to the larger project which the Council had yet to see. He added that it was difficult for him to
master plan a development that is supposed to generate transient occupancy tax based on
pedestrian traffic, golfers, and guests to the hotel and have the developer to right out of the chute
say they are not going to market it to certain segments (i.e., we don't want people who aren't
staying at our hotel staying here, we don't want people eating in our restaurants who aren't staying
here, etc.). He said he wanted to make sure that, even if Hilton does not plan on marketing to
those people, if it ever has to, it can do so, and the parking will be available to accommodate that.
He added that while he had not said anything about who will pay for the parking, what land will
be used, etc., he was sure that there had not been enough time spent focusing spent on it by all the
parties involved. He said that with as much time and money that has been put into this, he felt it
was possible to come up with a much better parking solution than what is before Council at this
time.
Mr. SONNENBLICK stated that they had been given a piece of land (approximately 17 acres) that
is surrounded by golf and the clubhouse essentially on four sides. He said he would love it if
Council came back and figured out a way to give them more land so they can do more surface
parking.
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that the limitation the developer was imposing on himself was
the compartmentalization of the conference center pad as being the sole focus of the efforts now.
He said this developer was likely going to be the developer of the resort pad as well, and the City
owns all of the land for the clubhouse and both the hotel pads plus the 21-acre pad adjacent to it.
The City had to overflow park the clubhouse and was now being told it will have to overflow park
the conference center site. In addition, there may be a need to overflow park the resort center site.
He said there was a need to instead of compartmentalizing the conference center, look at all three
uses plus the golf courses are going to intermingle and interact.
Mr. SONNENBLICK said he would be happy to cooperate in this effort.
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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Councilman Kelly stated that he had seen many places where shuttles are used to an advantage, ....r
not just because they were not master planned properly but because those locations where the
facilities are the property is much too valuable to waste on parking lots. He said it was a lot less
expensive to have land to park somewhere at another location, and the City happens to have other
land on that total complex. He said when the entire project is done, the Portola property is
extremely close to where the City has vacant property, and it is almost within walking distance.
Mayor Crites said when the Council discusses shuttles, he is reminded of the Ritz Carlton Hotel
and the fact that any time any event at that facility gets to within a half hour of when it should be
done, there is an absolute cattle rush to get out to the parking areas. He said the City needs to
make sure that what it does is convenient for people.
Mr. SONNENBLICK noted for the record that on the development side, they had absolutely no
problem with the proposal of Council, staff, and homeowners about switching the 250 suites from
an all two-story concept to one-story for those that face the Montecito homeowners, with the ones
on the northwest side, away from the Montecito homeowners, to be three-story; however, he said
he had provided the numbers from the general contractor that very clearly state that the cost of
doing this would be $2 million. He said this was not a construction issue, and it was not that he
wanted to block anyone's views. It was, unfortunately, a money issue.
Councilman Kelly noted that Disneyland had used up a lot of its parking with the addition of new
attractions at its park and was now having to shuttle people from approximately a mile away. °^"
Mayor Pro-Tem Ferguson stated that while shuttling was not in and of itself bad, it is how it is
done that is the issue. He said his point was that none of this had been addressed, and he felt it
was something that needed to really be thought through.
Councilman Spiegel stated that before Mr. Sonnenblick arrived at the meeting, the homeowners
of Montecito had spoken before the Council. He said they had been given photographs of the
possible height levels. This would be taken back to the homeowners association to be reviewed,
and he asked if it would be possible for Mr. Sonnenblick to have a representative at the
homeowners association meeting to hear the thoughts from the people involved.
Mr. SONNENBLICK responded that he would be happy to attend that meeting himself.
Upon question by Councilman Spiegel to the Montecito homeowners, Mrs. Pat Mitchell responded
that the next homeowners meeting would be held on September 30, 2000, at 9:00 a.m.
Councilman Spiegel moved to continue this matter to the meeting of October 26, 2000. Motion was
seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember Benson ABSENT.
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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E. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE SALE OF MOBILE HOME LOT NO. 26
(APN 622-351-026) LOCATED AT 43-155 PORTOLA AVENUE (PORTOLA PALMS MOBILE
HOME PARK) AT FAIR MARKET VALUE (JOINT CONSIDERATION WITH THE PALM
DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY).
Mayor/Chairman Crites declared the public hearing open and invited testimony in FAVOR of or
OPPOSED to this request. No testimony was offered, and he declared the public hearing closed.
Mayor Pro-Tem/Vice Chairman Ferguson moved to: 1) Waive further reading and adopt City Council
Resolution No. 00-116, authorizing the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency to sell at fair market value the
subject mobile home lot for $24,500; 2) waive further reading and adopt Redevelopment Agency Resolution
No. 403, making and finding that the sales price for the lots and mobile home is not less than its fair market
value in accordance with the highest and best use under the Redevelopment Plan for Project Area No. 1
Amended. Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember/Member Benson
ABSENT.
F. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE SALE OF 42-662 REBECCA ROAD AT FAIR
MARKET VALUE (JOINT CONSIDERATION WITH THE PALM DESERT
REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY).
Mayor/Chairman Crites declared the public hearing open and invited testimony in FAVOR of or
OPPOSED to this request. No testimony was offered, and he declared the public hearing closed.
Councilman/Member Spiegel moved to: 1) Waive further reading and adopt City Council Resolution
No. 00-117, authorizing the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency to sell the subject property at fair market
value; 2) waive further reading and adopt Redevelopment Agency Resolution No. 404, making a finding that
the sale price for the subject property is not less than its fair market value in accordance with the highest and
best use under the Redevelopment Plan for Project Area No. 1 Amended. Motion was seconded by Mayor
Pro-Tem/Vice Chairman Ferguson and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Councilmember/Member Benson
ABSENT.
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REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 14, 2000
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XVII. ADJOURNMENT
With Council concurrence, Mayor Crites adjourned the meeting to Closed Session at 8:08 p.m. He
reconvened the meeting at 8:57 p.m., with the following announcement made from Closed Session and, with
Council concurrence, immediately adjourned thereafter:
Annual salary for the City Manager was set, based upon a salary survey conducted prior to July 1, 2000,
at $140,000 pre -July 1, with the cost of living increase to apply July 1, 2000, retroactively to the date
Mr. Ortega assumed the position, May 11, 2000.
SHEILA R.:`11GAN CLERK
CITY OF PALM DESE ALIFORNIA
BUFOI A. CRITES, MAYOR
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