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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-03-13MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2008 CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBER 73510 FRED WARING DRIVE, PALM DESERT, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER - 3:00 P.M. Mayor Benson convened the meeting at 3:00 p.m. 11. ROLL CALL Present: Councilman Jim Ferguson Councilmember Cindy Finerty Councilman Richard S. Kelly Mayor Pro Tem Robert A. Spiegel Mayor Jean M. Benson Also Present: Carlos L. Ortega, City Manager/RDA Executive Director David J. Erwin, City Attorney Sheila R. Gilligan, ACM for Community Services Homer Croy, ACM for Development Services Justin McCarthy, ACM for Redevelopment Stephen Y. Aryan, Assistant to the City Manager Rachelle D. Klassen, City Clerk Bo Chen, City Engineer Russell Grance, Director of Building & Safety Lauri Aylaian, Director of Community Development Patrick Conlon, Director of the Office of Energy Management Paul S. Gibson, Director of Finance/City Treasurer Janet M. Moore, Director of Housing Doug Van Gelder, Director of Information Systems Mark Greenwood, Director of Public Works David Yrigoyen, Director of Redevelopment & Housing Frankie Riddle, Director of Special Programs Dennis Dawson, Division Chief, Palm Desert Fire/Riverside Co. Fire/Cal Fire Steve Brooker, Battalion Chief, Palm Desert Fire/Riverside Co. Fire/Cal Fire Dan Wilham, Chief, Palm Desert Police/Riverside Co. Sheriffs Dept. Frank Taylor, Asst. Chief, Palm Desert Police/Riverside Co. Sheriffs Dept. Grace L. Mendoza, Deputy City Clerk MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - A (CLOSED SESSION ITEMS) Residents of the Casablanca Development in Palm Desert appealed to the City Council with their concems and frustration over the negative impacts they are suffering from the project being built adjacent to their neighborhood, Villa Portofino. They were exasperated with the lack of attention being given this project to ensure compliance with all required conditions. In addition to some prior related issues, once the stand of oleander shrubs bordering their homes was recently removed, they've been subjected to even greater amounts of blow sand/PM10, which was unhealthy, especially for those with respiratory system difficulties, and aesthetically unpleasant. Further, the area that has yet to be developed at Villa Portofino was at a greater elevation than theirs, meaning privacy for the Casablanca residents would be compromised. The impacts were costing them financially, physically, and emotionally. The following came forward wanting to know what the City intended to do about this situation: MR. ALLAN McCAFFREY, Armanac Court, Palm Desert. MS. GAIL CHRISTIANSEN, Calle Bisque, Palm Desert. MR. JAMES LARABY, Aventine Court, Palm Desert. MR. ROBERT WIMMER, Colada Court, Palm Desert. MR. HOWARD BUTZER, Colada Court, Palm Desert. MR. PAUL MELTZNER, Armanac Court, Palm Desert. MR. JERRY WIENER, Colada Court, Palm Desert. Councilman Ferguson responded that obviously, the City was adverse to the property owner, the reason it was a matter on the Closed Session agenda that couldn't be discussed here. However, he said that dust (fugitive particulate matter) was regulated by the Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), which had inspectors who monitored for fugitive dust; every project was required to have a sign including a telephone number to call 24 hours/day. If the sign was not present, he advised that Supervisor Roy Wilson was current Chairman of the SCAQMD, and the project owner could be subject to fines of $5,000/day if dust matter was going across the property line into the Casablanca development. He urged the residents to obtain the phone number from City staff; they could go home tonight and call to have an inspector come out and monitor the dust. MS. CHRISTIANSEN noted she had called SCAQMD, and an inspector came to their property; however, the inspector said she could not issue a violation unless 2 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 she personally witnessed the blowing sand. That inspector works three days/week and lives in Orange County. Councilman Ferguson replied that he would ask Mr. Croy to get in touch with Supervisor Wilson to request stepped -up enforcement through SCAQMD. He noted that while the City was not allowed to issue citations for dust issues, SCAQMD was. He reiterated that residents' contacting SCAQMD was their quickest avenue for relief in the short-term, and City Council would be looking at the Tong -term. Mayor Benson agreed that this matter was a legal one that would be discussed in the Closed Session about to be called, which was the reason City officials could not comment on it at this time. Councilman Kelly thanked the residents for coming forward to state their concerns, which was extremely valuable information for the item to be discussed. IV. ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION Reauest for Closed Session: Conference with Real Property Negotiator pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8: 1) Property: Parcels A & B of the North Half of the Northeast Quarter Section 8, Township 5 South, Range 6 East (Villa Portofino) Negotiating Parties: Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/City of Palm Desert Property Owner: Royce International Under Negotiation: x Price x Terms of Payment Conference with Legal Counsel regarding existing litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(a): a) Silver Spur Reserve v. City of Palm Desert, et al., Riverside County Superior Court, Case No. CIV 80790; DCA No. E023514 Conference with Legal Counsel regarding significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(b): Number of potential cases: 2 With City Council concurrence, Mayor Benson adjourned the meeting to Closed Session at 3:16 p.m. She reconvened the meeting at 4:03 p.m. 3 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 V. RECONVENE REGULAR MEETING - 4:00 P.M. A. REPORT ON ACTION FROM CLOSED SESSION. None Councilman Ferguson noted for members of the audience from the Casablanca Development who addressed City Council at 3:00 p.m. about Villa Portofino, that the matter was discussed in Closed Session. He said because it was an adverse position, the City Council was limited as to what it could comment on; however, the City Attorney had been asked to meet with those residents outside the Council Chamber to brief them about the situation. He invited those residents to meet the City Attorney outside at this time. VI. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - Mayor Jean M. Benson VII. INVOCATION - Mayor Pro Tem Robert A. Spiegel VIII. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - B MR. ROB BALLEW, Family YMCA of the Desert, announced the YMCA's Annual Easter Egg Hunt that was coming up on Saturday, March 22, at 9:00 a.m. in Civic Center Park. He said 1,100 participants were anticipated, and after the Egg Hunt, they would be hosting a Healthy Kids Day until 1:00 p.m., where kids and families could learn about healthy lifestyles through interactive sports and activities. He presented fliers and five golden eggs to the City Council. LT. FRANK TAYLOR, Palm Desert Assistant Chief of Police, formally introduced the City's new Chief of Police and Captain of the Palm Desert Station, Dan Wilham. CAPT. WILHAM noted while he'd had the opportunity to personally speak with several of the City Councilmembers, he was pleased to be before them all today. He said he was happy to be back in the City, previously working as the Investigations Lieutenant for several years before transferring to the Homicide Division. His base of experience in law enforcement was pretty broad, having served for some 23 years, and he related that he shared many of the same ideals and objectives as former Chief Steve Thetford. He looked forward to serving the City of Palm Desert and working with the City Council for a long period of time. Parks & Recreation Services Manager Janis Steele and Parks Facilities Manager Jay Niemczak presented the City Council with the 2007 California Park & Recreation Society Award of Excellence - Facility Design & Park Planning - 4 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Community Park Populations 20,000-50,000 for Freedom Park. She said the award was received on February 29 at the CPRS Conference, noting that it was a longtime project involving nearly all City departments and staff, members of nearly every City Committee and Commission, and the City Council. She thanked everyone for their assistance and support. Mayor Benson congratulated Ms. Steele for her contributions that saw the project through to completion; the City was very proud of staffs accomplishments. She said Freedom Park was another wonderful addition to the City's recreational areas for all constituents to enjoy. IX. AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS A. PRESENTATION TO RECOGNIZE RICK DARIUS FOR HIS SERVICE TO THE CITY OF PALM DESERT AND ITS MARKETING COMMITTEE. On behalf of the entire City Council, Mayor Benson presented an engraved crystal clock to Mr. Darius in appreciation for his tenure on the City's Marketing Committee. She commented that the Committee meets monthly to provide advice on various programs to present the City through printed materials and events. She noted that while the City was sorry to see him leave the Marketing Committee, he would continue to benefit Palm Desert through his position at the McCallum Theatre. B. PRESENTATION TO RECOGNIZE CITY OF PALM DESERT/ PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY EMPLOYEES FOR EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE — FEBRUARY 2008. On behalf of the entire City Council, Mayor Benson and Mr. Ortega honored the following employees for their exemplary service by presenting them with a printed certificate and $100 gift certificate: Barbara Blythe, Mary Gates, David Hermann, Rochelle Hogele, Gloria Martinez, Jennifer McNeil, Grace Mendoza, Miriam Miller, Frankie Riddle, Deborah Schwartz, Patricia Scully, Debbie Thompson, and Lori Wimbish. C. APPOINTMENT TO THE MARKETING COMMITTEE. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, appoint Melissa Allensworth from the McCallum Theatre to the Marketing Committee to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Richard Darius (term 12/31 /11). Motion was seconded by Finerty and carried by a 5-0 vote. 5 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 D. PRESENTATION BY DOUG WALKER, THE CITY'S APPOINTED REPRESENTATIVE TO THE COACHELLA VALLEY MOSQUITO & VECTOR CONTROL DISTRICT. Mr. Walker commented that he appreciated the opportunity and it had been a pleasure to serve in this capacity for just over one year, noting that last year he'd provided a brief update to then -Mayor Kelly and Mr. Ortega. He shared some of his background and familiarity with the Coachella Valley and surrounding areas, including being a Palm Desert resident since 1971 and member of the faculty and administrative staff at College of the Desert for 34 years. His Master's Degree in Entomology was received from the University of California, Davis, recently recognized for its top Entomology Department. From his perspective, the District is in excellent shape and doing a very effective job based on its objectives for controlling nuisance pests and disease -transmitting organisms in a proactive fashion. He provided a Power Point presentation, highlighting that the District currently employed over 50 administrative staff and technicians. He noted that Trustee Ben Laflin had just resigned from the Board after 54 years of service, and the Administration Building had just been dedicated in his honor. He went on to relate that the District: — Has three primary sources of revenue: property taxes, pass -through revenues, and the Special Assessment for Mosquito, Fire Ant, and Disease Control passed by voters a few years ago. — Primary programs carried out by the District included: • Surveillance for mosquitoes, Red Imported Fire Ants (RIFA), gnats, and flies. District formed in 1928 to combat eye gnats, which traveled in large clouds, causing schools to be closed for days at a time. It is unlikely the tourist industry and other development would have occurred in the Coachella Valley if these vectors hadn't been successfully controlled. • Vector Control - control of disease -carrying organisms, such as mosquitoes. • Biological Control - measures such as mosquito fish, desert tadpole shrimp, and nematodes. • Disease Surveillance Research - facilities on -site and partnerships with UC-Riverside and UC-Davis in order to readily respond to the next disease that arrives in the Coachella Valley. • Public Education and Information Programs. He felt the RIFA Program was of particular interest to Palm Desert. While the District has been questioned for having a significant financial reserve, work to control RIFA required significant expenditures. New, more effective materials to control RIFA have become available this year, and the District did go over budget to acquire those materials now that neither the State nor County participate in this activity. Therefore, the District has been able to launch a full-scale effort with significant success, especially since 6 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Palm Desert is the area most greatly affected. With regard to West Nile Virus, one death in the Valley last year was attributed to this disease, but it was uncertain where that individual picked up the virus in the Palm Springs area; generally, that program had been quite successful. He invited City Councilmembers to visit the District facilities in Indio, as he felt they would be impressed with the operations there, and he also offered to go along. Mr. Walker went on to say he'd been serving on the District's Finance Committee for several months and reported the finances were in very good shape. The audit completed in October revealed there were no deficiencies in internal control, and he provided assurance that he and other Board Members were very conscientious about the financial activities. He noted that even though he'd only been serving a little more than a year, he was now one of the senior Board Members, and everyone wanted to become more familiar with the operation to ensure it was being done correctly. As a result, in January the Board hired the accounting firm of Moreland & Associates in a consulting capacity to review the District's budget procedures, financial accounting systems, and to advise both the Board and staff on these matters, with a report anticipated to be presented in April. He said the recent negative articles about ongoing investigations at the District were unfortunate in relation to the staffs accomplishments. To his knowledge, the investigations have revealed no wrongdoing or any illegal activities. He added that the incident at Tuesday night's meeting was also unfortunate in terms of a personal attack, but the Brown Act prevented the Board from addressing the matter that night, so a special meeting has been scheduled for next week to discuss the current questions. Summarizing, he said the 80-year-old District was doing an excellent job for the entire community. It was one of the top in the State and the nation, with an outstanding and dedicated staff, and he truly appreciated the job done by the previous Board Trustees and their foresight in terms of bio-control, research, surveillance efforts, and their goal of being proactive vs. reactive. He was proud to represent the City of Palm Desert and its citizens. Councilman Ferguson thanked Mr. Walker for his service as Palm Desert's representative to the Board, adding that while the newspaper articles have brought a lot of attention to what has otherwise been a stellar Board, the relative absence of fire ants, mosquitoes, gnats, and flies he believed is a testament to that. He felt the Board was doing a good job, and if financial success was a criticism, then the City of Palm Desert was also guilty. Councilman Kelly agreed and thanked Mr. Walker for one of the best presentations the City's received from one of its representatives since he was on the Council. Councilmembers all concurred. 7 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 X. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Regular City Council Meeting of February 28, 2008. Rec: Approve as presented. B. CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE CITY TREASURY - Warrant Nos. 173, 195, and 196. Rec: Approve as presented. C. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE by Jensen's Complete Shopping, Inc., for Z Pizza, 73-607 Highway 111, Palm Desert. Rec: Receive and file. D. CITY COMMITTEE AND COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES. 1. Library Promotion Committee Meeting of November 28, 2007. 2. Marketing Committee Meeting of January 15, 2008. 3. Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting of January 23, 2008. Rec: Receive and file. E. REQUEST FOR DECLARATION of Surplus Property and Disposal Authorization (Miscellaneous Computer and Related Accessory Equipment). Rec: By Minute Motion, declare items listed on the accompanying staff report's Exhibit "A" as surplus property and authorize disposal as appropriate. F. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION to Issue a Notice Inviting Bids for the Repair and Resurfacing of Mesa View Drive (Contract No. C27370). Rec: By Minute Motion, authorize staff to issue a Notice Inviting Bids for the subject project. G. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT to Candyl Golf Group, Inc., for Sand Replacement at the Civic Center Park Volleyball Courts (Contract No. C27380). Rec: By Minute Motion, award the subject contract to Candyl Golf Group, Inc., La Quinta, California, in the amount of $34,930 for replacement of used and contaminated sand at the Civic Center Park Volleyball Courts, and authorize the Mayor to execute same — funds are available in Account No. 430-4618-454-4001. 8 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 H. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT with Brett Fiore of Signature Sculpture Restoration and Maintenance for Maintenance of the City of Palm Desert's Public Art Collection and the El Paseo Exhibition (Contract No. C27390). Removed for separate consideration under Section XI, Consent Items Held Over. Please see that portion of the Minutes for Council discussion and action. I. REQUEST FOR SUPPORT of the Cold Weather Shelter Located On McLane in North Palm Springs. Rec: By Minute Motion, approve the City of Palm Desert's support of the Cold Weather Shelter in the amount of $6,200 and authorize payment from Account No. 110-4132-411-3090. J. REQUEST FOR RATIFICATION of the City Manager's Approval of the Purchase of Three Stryker Power Assist Gurney Systems. Rec: By Minute Motion: 1) Ratify the City Manager's approval for purchase of three Stryker Power Assist Gurney systems; 2) appropriate $37,367.72 from Unobligated Fund 230 for said purchase. K. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Out -of -State Travel for Director of Information Systems to Attend the Two-day Observer Analyzer Basic Network Analysis Class in Phoenix, Arizona. Rec: By Minute Motion, approve the subject request for the Director of Information Systems April 14-15, 2008 — funds are available in Account No. 110-4190-415-3120. Councilman Ferguson requested item H be removed for separate action under Section XI, Consent Items Held Over. Upon motion by Spiegel, second by Kelly, and 5-0 vote of the City Council, the remainder of the Consent Calendar was approved as presented. 9 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 XI. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER H. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT with Brett Fiore of Signature Sculpture Restoration and Maintenance for Maintenance of the City of Palm Desert's Public Art Collection and the El Paseo Exhibition (Contract No. C27390). Councilman Ferguson stated it seemed $50,000 to monitor the sculptures on the median on El Paseo was awfully high unless they were abused and the vendor did such a good job of maintaining or repairing them. However, he's never seen them in a state of disrepair. Public Arts Manager Richard Twedt replied the contract included 18 pieces from the El Paseo median and 48 pieces from the City's permanent collection, for a total of 65 pieces. The 18 pieces on El Paseo were serviced once a month, and the 48 pieces from the permanent collection were serviced twice a year, and it could require a half or full day of waxing, cleaning, or repair work depending on the type of piece. The cleaning service for the permanent collection can be quite expensive because they require special types of decalcification from water exposure. Further responding, he confirmed the pieces on El Paseo were on loan to the City, and each artist representative provided a form with instructions on how to take care of the piece to preserve the patina or paint finish. Mayor Benson recalled when the City didn't have the service and a lot of the pieces at the park were getting really beat. Councilman Ferguson said he appreciated the explanation, because he could now see the amount of manhours needed to take care of 65 pieces, which wasn't evident based on the agenda description. Councilman Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award the subject contract to Brett Fiore of Signature Sculpture Restoration and Maintenance, Palm Desert, California, for one (1) year in the amount of $47,940; 2) authorize the Mayor to execute said contract — funds are available in Account No. 240-4650-454-3372. Motion was seconded by Spiegel and carried by a 5-0 vote. 10 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 XII. RESOLUTIONS A. RESOLUTION NO. 08-15 - A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, ENDORSING THE COACHELLA VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS' (CVAG) HOMELESS COMMITTEE'S STRATEGIC PLAN TO END HOMELESSNESS. MS. AURORA WILSON, representative of CVAG, stated the plan was self-explanatory, but she was available to answer questions. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 08-15. Motion was seconded by Ferguson. Councilman Ferguson asked if there was a cost associated with this plan for CVAG's member cities. MS. WILSON replied not at this time. She was confident the City's legal counsel reviewed the Resolution and found nothing that would bind or commit the City financially. However, there was wording in the last two "Whereas" paragraphs that asked each jurisdiction to recognize and acknowledge that in order to successfully carry out the plan long-term, revenue streams were needed, which may include financial contribution from the member jurisdictions. She went on to say CVAG may later return to ask for a financial contribution, but it was not stated in the subject Resolution, and Council's approval of it would not financially commit the City. Councilman Ferguson said he wasn't opposed to contributing but just wanted to know if there was an amount. Mayor Benson noted there was a financial committee reviewing it. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 5-0 vote. XIII. ORDINANCES For Introduction: None For Adoption: None 11 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 XIV. NEW BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF $120,000 IN FACADE ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM CONSIDERATION FUNDS TO DESERT EL PASEO, L.P., AND HARKHAM FAMILY ENTERPRISES, L.P., FOR "COLONNADE EL PASEO RETAIL AND RESTAURANT" LOCATED AT 73-399 EL PASEO (Desert El Paseo, L.P., and Harkham Family Enterprises, L.P., Applicants). Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel asked what was the amount of sales tax this development would create for the City. Project Administrator Bryce White replied he didn't have that information but could return to Council with that amount. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel said it would be good to know since the building had already been torn down. Mr. White agreed the enhancement was moving forward. He said the projected cost for the new building was $3.3 million, of which the City's participation was less than 5%. Further responding, he said funds were set aside from the current year's General Fund budget. Mr. McCarthy explained the General Fund monies were off -sets from redevelopment. Councilman Kelly stated the enhancement wasn't exactly what the Council had imagined. On the other hand, when a developer was willing to spend/invest $3 million to clean up an old building in the City, it was a real opportunity, and he would move approval on that basis. Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion, approve $120,000 in Facade Enhancement Program Consideration funds to Desert El Paseo and Harkham Family Enterprises for "Colonnade El Paseo Retail and Restaurant" located at 73-399 El Paseo — funds are available in Account No. 400-4800-454-3875. Motion was seconded by Finerty. Responding to Councilman Ferguson, Mr. White confirmed this was the project that had been recently approved on a 3-2 vote of the City Council. Councilman Ferguson stated the Applicant was approved a height exception, which wasn't granted unless the City received something back, and in that project, the Applicant was assessed a $70,000 parking contribution. If the Applicant was going to request money from the City, why wasn't it all included in one package so that Council could evaluate all the dollars flowing in with the special exemptions granted by the City. It seemed disingenuous for the Applicant to ask for another $120,000 from the City when they've 12 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 already committed to building the new building and received approval on a 3-2 vote. Mr. White replied the two requests were not directly related, but this project could be denied if that was Council's wish. He noted the two individuals who voted against the project were part of the Retail Committee meeting, and they voted in favor. Councilman Ferguson said that was irrelevant and asked again why the whole thing wasn't presented in one package. Mr. White replied the City didn't have a provision for doing that. Councilman Ferguson stated the Facade Enhancement Program was originally intended for tenants of buildings that had owners who weren't willing to make significant investments in their building. The program was intended to spruce up older structures predominantly along Highway 111. He knew some projects were done on El Paseo where full scale redevelopment wasn't occurring, such as this one. It seemed like the City was headed towards a direct subsidy of developers that were doing new projects as opposed to helping small businesses that simply want to make their facade look better. Mr. White replied that in relationship to this particular project, there were four projects immediately across the street the City participated in over the past five years, and without that level of improvement taking place, this project would probably not be. He believed those improvements influenced others. Further responding he said the Facade Enhancement Program had always been a subsidy. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel said Palm Springs would love to have this development downtown. Councilman Ferguson stated he wished the developer would have presented all of his requests at one time, because it could have changed the voting results. He felt it was disingenuous to request an additional $120,000 and thought it was well beyond the scope of the Facade Enhancement Program that Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel started almost ten years ago. Mr. McCarthy acknowledged Council's concern and stated staff will be mindful to make sure all these issues are addressed simultaneously when projects are brought forward. He noted there were four other comparable projects where the Facade Enhancement Program was used to facilitate enhanced architectural design, i.e., El Paseo Plaza and Enterprise Rental Car, and it was not the first time this had been done. 13 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Councilman Ferguson stated that was fair enough, but when the Applicant was assessed $70,000 for parking, he felt it was harsh given that the developer was doing something good for the City. Little did he know the Applicant would be requesting an additional $120,000. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 4-1 vote, with Ferguson voting NO. B. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE CONSTRUCTION AND INSTALLATION OF SIGNS FOR THE CITY OF PALM DESERT "WAYFINDING PROGRAM." Mr. Ortega noted the staff report and offered that staff was available to answer questions. Councilman Kelly stated it was a tremendous effort on staffs part to put together this great program and commended them for bringing it forth. Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve the "Wayfinding" sign design; 2) appropriate $100,000 from the General Fund for the "Wayfinding Program;" 3) appropriate a 10% contingency of $10,000 for the Program; 4) authorize staff to solicit bids for fabrication of the "Wayfinding" signs. Motion was seconded by Finerty. Councilmember Finerty stated she had no clue what a "Wayfinding Program" was and was pleasantly surprised. She said it was attractive, and it was a job well done. Responding to questions about the colors and size of the signs, Mr. Greenwood replied the colors were blue and green, and the size was approximately four to six feet wide. He wasn't sure if the sign format followed the current requirements for the City's Sign Ordinance, but it did follow the design guidelines for traffic as directional traffic signs. He said the current signs were in poor format and many had a series of placards added on top of each other, giving it a haphazard look. The proposed signs will be comprehensive and on one panel with a professional appearance. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel said he had viewed the signs and believed they will help the City, in particular at the Visitor Center. Councilman Ferguson agreed. However, he didn't think blue and green were necessarily amicable colors to the aesthetics in the community. Mr. Greenwood explained the color choices were determined by a committee comprised of staff members from various departments, and they tried to come up with something unique. 14 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Councilman Ferguson agreed the colors were unique and recognized the City needed to make an improvement in this area. Mayor Benson agreed staff needed to be commended for this program. She requested priority be given to the Visitor Center, Chamber of Commerce, and the Civic Center because visitors looked for these locations first. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 5-0 vote. C. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE CALIFORNIA EMPLOYER'S RETIREE BENEFIT TRUST PROGRAM AGREEMENT AND ELECTION, AND AUTHORIZATION FOR TRANSFER OF FUNDS TO THE CALIFORNIA EMPLOYER'S RETIREE BENEFIT TRUST FOR THE CITY OF PALM DESERT (CONTRACT NO. C27400). Responding to question, Mr. Ortega confirmed the subject agreement was signed off by the employees. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Appropriate $6,481,631 plus the first year Annual Required Contribution of $759,139 from Fund 576 - Retiree Health Fund; 2) authorize staff to sign all necessary agreements to implement funding the City's Retiree Health Program with CalPERS Trust; 3) authorize staff to transfer the funds to CaIPERS Trust. Motion was seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 5-0 vote. D. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT WITH CALTRANS FOR THE MONTEREY AVENUE/INTERSTATE 10 (1-10) INTERCHANGE RAMP MODIFICATION (CONTRACT NO. C22310C, PROJECT NO. 669-02). Councilman Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve the subject Cooperative Agreement between the City of Palm Desert and Caltrans that outlines the roles and responsibilities of both agencies for the Project Approval/Environmental Documentation, Design, and Right -of -Way Acquisition Phases of the Monterey Avenue/I- 10 Interchange Ramp Modification Project; 2) authorize the Mayor to execute the Agreement. Motion was seconded by Kelly. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated the entire project will cost about $8,890,000., and the City's portion was about $2,896,000. He asked if there was any way the City could obtain more than $5,993,00 it would receive from taxes and Measure A. Councilman Kelly noted the City would also receive $500,000 from the developer. Responding to question, Engineering Manager John Garcia replied the City would receive a 50% reimbursement from Measure A funds, because at the 15 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 time they were awarded, the reimbursement percentage was 50%. In addition, the City was successful in getting a grant from Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) to help pay for its local share of the project. Councilman Kelly said it would be an extreme improvement to that interchange to keep the westbound traffic to 1-10 from backing up. He thought it was well worth doing this considering what cities paid for infrastructure nowadays, and it wouldn't have to do it alone. Councilmember Finerty said if she's learned anything from Councilman Kelly, it was not to wait like it did with the Portola Bridge. She said it seemed like a great opportunity to do this now. Councilman Kelly said the City built the Cook Street interchange, and it was completed in about three years. For the past ten years, five other interchanges had been under review in an effort to construct, and they were still a couple of years down the road. He said interchanges could only provide good for the environment because other interchanges in the Coachella Valley had cars lined up for a mile on each side. He went on to say there were issues with administration at Caltrans, and it's become the most frustrating thing in the world to try to get through the environmental and Caltrans approvals. Councilman Ferguson said it was a credit to Councilman Kelly's long-standing service on transportation that the Monterrey, Washington, and Cook Street interchanges were redone. Cities like Palm Springs and Cathedral City were still waiting. He said today Council was voting on a small participation in a remodification of an already existing improvement, and if one compared the cost of this project to the Portola Bridge, which was four or five times as much, this was a bargain. Councilman Kelly said if the public only knew what went on in trying to get an interchange through the process, they would think it can't be done. He said the public had to understand what the State of Califomia and environmental laws passed in the Legislature were doing to the ability for the City to provide infrastructure. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 5-0 vote. 16 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 E. CONSIDERATION OF AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, PROVIDING FOR THE IDENTIFICATION, DESIGNATION, PROTECTION, AND ENHANCEMENT OF THE CITY'S CULTURAL RESOURCES. Following is a verbatim transcript of the discussion and action of this item for staffs reference. Key JMB Jean M. Benson, Mayor KP Karen Prinzmetal, Palm Desert Resident RAS Robert A. Spiegel, Mayor Pro Tem JF Jim Ferguson, Councilman RSK Richard S. Kelly, Councilman KH Kim Housken, Chair of Historic Preservation Committee RG Russell Grance, Director of Building & Safety CF Cindy Finerty, Councilmember RDK Rachelle D. Klassen, City Clerk JMB The next is "Consideration of an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert," Oh excuse me...request for...oh no, I'm sorry. "Consideration wherein the City Council, the City of Palm Desert providing for the Identification, Designation, Protection, and Enhancement of the City's Cultural Resources." I do have a couple of cards that want to speak to this. The first one is Karen Prinzmetal. KP Hi, my name is Karen Prinzmetal, and I live at...916 Sandpiper in Palm Desert, and we've been residents at Palm Desert for ten years at the Sandpiper. So historic preservation has been very, very important to me. I see our City as being one of the most forward -thinking in all areas. And I feel that when we...got a committee together through the City to work on historic preservation, that that was another aspect of very forward -thinking city government. I am very concerned that there's a possibility that the City —that the Committee will not have the power any more. That it is being discussed that one person would have the power to make decisions, and I feel that as with the City Council, where you have many voices speaking, and thinking, and discussing issues, the idea of having a committee talking about historic preservation to make our City worthwhile with our...heritage, that many voices speak much better than one voice. And having one person make a decision, everybody has a point of view, and I feel very uncomfortable having a person designated. That person may feel that Tuscan Architecture is the most fabulous way to go, but there's no other voices to bring Mid -Century Modern, to bring Spanish, to bring all other kinds of architecture into that. So I would like to ask that we keep the Committee. I think the Committee is, is formed and contains many very bright people in different areas of architecture in the City as opposed to one person that may only have one point of view. Thank you. 17 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 RAS Why? Let me ask you...I'm sorry let me ask you a question? KP Um hum. RAS Are you suggesting that we don't need a resource preservation officer? KP Right. I think with the Committee —having a Committee of multiple voices, being able to discuss issues that come before them, that's what a committee does. We don't have one Mayor making decisions for a City, we have many voices, and I, I feel that that's proactive. I feel it's much more democratic, and so that would be my hope. RAS Thank you. JF Madam Mayor, would it be appropriate if we got a brief staff report on this? Because as I read it, I'm not seeing the same thing that's... JMB I thought we'd have it after we hear the public. JF Well how do they know, and maybe they've all read it, but you know...whenever you'd like it, but at some point, I would like staff to stand up and explain what changes are being made, what's happening to the Committee, and specifically what the recommendations are...so that everybody here knows, who may not have read the staff report. RSK Well even after reading this, I need a staff report. There's a lot of things I don't understand. JF It's a little confusing, wasn't it? RSK Yeah, well...I mean we're wrestling with two pieces of paper and trying to —I'll tell you I'm lost. JMB I just figured if we heard what their concern was... JF Okay, either way. JMB ...we could address it all at once, we would know. We just have one other speaker. Thank you for your comment. KP Thank you. JMB We just have one other speaker, which is Kim Hut—Housken. Kim not here? RAS Yes she is. 18 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 KH Actually, Kim Housken, 73237. I'm the Chair of the Committee, so I don't know if you'd wait —would you prefer to wait and hear my comments after the staff report or should I go ahead and speak now? RSK Pull it up (referring to microphone). JMB It's up to you. Do you want the staff report then? Alright, they want the staff report. So who's gonna' do that? You are? RG What I can do is expand a little bit further on the staff report discussion and what you have already in your packet. And I can only briefly...interject my knowledge from November forward, November of last year forward. I was tasked to bring it to Council, an ordinance to address the City's cultural resources. I had the latest draft from the Committee, and I sat down with staff to go over the Ordinance to develop the final document. I was given direction by Administration what the staff —or what the Ordinance should look —entail. The latest document that you have before you has been approved and reviewed by staff and the City Attorney as a recommended form... JF Okay let's, let's hold up right there. Which is the latest document? I got two. RG It would be the addendum that you have. There is one in the upper right hand corner that has HPC, that is their recommended document. The other one should say City recommended or Attorney approved. JF Let me ask the Clerk. Is it the one with the stamp on it that we add it? RDK Correct. JF Okay, so the thinner of the two... RG The thinner of the two is the one that staff had modified from the final or the draft document that the Committee came up with, the latest one. JMB We only have one. CF All I have is one. RSK I have two. CF I guess it's after the staff report. RSK If I had only one, that would have been helpful. JF Okay, let me ask a second question, then, just to kind of...in the second one, there's no reference to personnel being made. In the first one, there is a reference to a 19 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 $115,000 full-time employee and to a $42,000 part-time employee. Does that mean these have been eliminated in the new draft? RG They wouldn't necessarily be needed or required. JF Okay then I'm on the right page. RSK What was the answer? I didn't hear the answer. RG They wouldn't necessarily be needed or required on the staff's... RSK Would not be needed or required? RG Yes. RSK In the second one we just got? RG On the second Ordinance, yeah. JF You may want to pull the microphone a little bit closer `cuz I think we're gonna' have problems hearing you. So no employees on the second one? RG Correct. JF Okay. RG Further, staff delivered the modified Ordinance that they —that we modified that, that the Committee gave us and brought it forward at their January 29th meeting. At that meeting, I introduced the Ordinance that was reviewed and approved by the City Attorney and staff. The Committee voted to reject it 7-0, and...directed me to take it back to staff for revisions. Staff and I met, we felt that the Ordinance was complete, met all the statutory requirements, it could meet all the needs of the City as it addressed the cultural resources. JF Question? RG Yes, sir. JF And I'm sorry to cut you off but I, I...the first speaker really triggered me. In 2 point —or 29.30.010 says, "There is hereby created a Cultural Resources Preservation Committee consisting of seven members." RG Correct. JF Is there anything in here that leaves decision -making up to one person? 20 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 RG No, sir. JF Okay. RG We took it back....and then we had the next meeting, which was a "Special Meeting" on February 15'. At that meeting, I re -introduced the Ordinance that staff recommended, and again, was approved by the City Attorney. Planning was present at that meeting to answer any questions of the Committee, but after a lengthy discussion, the Committee continued to...have a difference of opinion on what was —what comprised the Ordinance and the direction we should go. It was recommended by the City Attorney at that time to pre —...to take the minutes of the meeting and both Ordinance, and move forward to Council, and have Council give us direction. At the end of that meeting, it was advised by Mr. Homer Croy that we have a sub -committee meeting of, of three of the committee members. We had that meeting to try to reconcile differences between the two documents. After a long discussion, there was still philosophical differences. What we ended up doing is, again, you have two documents before you, and I think at this point, we're at an impasse with the Committee as to what really the City should move forward with. So that's why we're here tonight to get some better direction from you. JMB Any questions of... RAS Maybe we ought to hear from Kim now... CF Yeah. RAS ...to tell us what's wrong with this piece of paper I got in front of me. KH Good afternoon, Mayor Benson, City Councilmembers. Again, I'm Kim Housken, 73237 Somera. I am the current Chair of the Historic Preservation Committee, and I would like to, obviously we're here to talk about the Ordinance, but going hand in hand with the Ordinance, I, I do want to recognize the efforts put forth by the Committee in the process of serving properties throughout the City. We were successful in collaborating with the Art in Public Places (AIPP) program to produce, I'm sure you're familiar with the art and architecture book, which we think has been very well received. A very beautiful book that highlights many of the cultural resources here in the City that even long-time residents weren't aware we had. We've had an extremely popular open house at the Hopalong Cassidy house, and this past year, we hosted a bus tour for City staff and a few members of the community, which again, I think was well received. Throughout this we, we did begin the process of developing a new Cultural Resources Ordinance. And in doing so, we hired a consultant, LSA, and we used the Cultural Resources element of the General Plan as our guide. The draft version that's before you is a working document that dates back to 2006. At the time that we were at in this process, we had received, I believe it was, approximately 28 comments from the City Attorney on a memo from 10-08-06; and at the point that you're looking at, all of those 21 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 comments, I believe, were incorporated in the document. The document was then sent out, and we've been somewhat waiting for it ever since. Again, I want to stress the version that's before you was never finalized by LSA, the consultant, nor was it ever voted on by this Committee. Be that as it may, here we are. Some highlights of, of the version that we are putting forth, include the fact that property owner consent is required for Landmark Designation. I know there's been a lot of discussion about protecting property owner rights, and this is included in the version that we are submitting before you. Also with respect to landmarks being designated, once a landmark, you have the property owner's consent, it's been studied, it's been designated, it is merely a recommendation of our Committee. In it —everything we do comes to the City Council. So we are not trying to separate ourselves, remove ourselves. Everything we do is based on a recommendation coming to you. So ultimately, you'll be the ones determining if something is a suitable landmark for the City of Palm Desert. Another area of our Ordinance, and I'II try to give just a little history, I'm not sure how much experience you all have with Historic Preservation. Once, once something is declared a landmark, it's listed in the register. If the property owner chooses to make changes to their home, they come in, and they apply for something that is called Certificate of Appropriateness. Now what we incorporated in the LSA version of the Ordinance was a two-tier approach, and the reason we did that, we did one an Administrative Certificate of Appropriateness. So if someone comes in, and let's say they want to re -roof their house, and they are using similar materials, or if they want to replace a window, these things can be done administratively. We wanted to make it easy for owners of —you know, of historic landmark, make it easy for them to do these things to their home. And in our version of the Ordinance, you'll find, I believe, a list 14 different items that can be done strictly administratively. It's not until someone, and, and also additionally, Historic Preservation really just deals with the outs —out -exterior of the building. You know, anyone can do whatever they want inside their house. However, if someone decides, they come in, and they want to add a second story on their historic building, if they want to wipe out a wing on the building, something like that would be elevated to the Committee, and they would take a closer look at it. Again, the decision that we would make regarding that, if it was appropriate or not, can always be appealed to Council as well. (Paused to take a drink of water.) Another thing that I would sort of respectfully debate with staff, is that I don't believe our version of the Ordinance does require the hiring of a Historic Preservation Officer in a full-time position. I think the way we have crafted the Ordinance, it allows for, again, an Administrator to handle most of these things. We're aware, well aware of the fact that our, our, the formation of our Committee has been somewhat of a burden on the Planning, or I'm sorry, the Building & Safety staff, and they've always been very kind, very gracious, accommodating us, doing our agendas and so on. In the past, we have made recommendations, perhaps a Planning position could be split `cuz often times this is under Planning. We've thrown out ideas that, you know, this could be done on consultant as -needed basis. We've even recently said "Gee, maybe we could team up with Indian Wells, Rancho Mirage, our Cove Communities. Maybe they could share, you know, some type of position like this. So while we're aware that we have added a burden to the staff, I don't feel that 22 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 hiring a full-time position and a part-time Administrative position is necessary. Concerns that I have with the staffs version of the Ordinance are really namely two areas. The first area deals with the powers and duties that are assigned this administrative person, which basically gives authority to this one figure. What I'm hearing is that we wouldn't need an additional staff person with the staffs version of the Ordinance, but I would question that. I feel if this is the direction you do want to go, if you choose to go with the staffs version, I would really recommend that you do hire a qualified person. Because at this point in their version, that it is...the discretionary...I'm sorry. Let me just read from this, I'm just...lf you do choose to move in the direction of the staff Ordinance, in which power authority and discretion lies strictly with one person, an Administrator, well that's when I would recommend hiring a professional who has qualifications. And I would recommend those qualifications should be spelled out in the definition section of the Ordinance so that we know who's making these decisions. And if that's the direction you choose to go, that's fine. And they would have most of the decision -making authority and things like the Certificate of Appropriateness now, is all handled by one Administrator. And again, this is in the staff version. Everything that is referred to the Committee is merely discretionary. So it does seem that a lot of power is being shifted onto one person. Another area of concern is regarding the surveying of property requiring owner consent. I have to say this is a catch 22. How can you survey a property —or how can you contact the owner to get their permission if you haven't surveyed the property or even looked at it. And I'm, I've mentioned this before to staff, and I've been told maybe it's semantics, but when we're discussing surveys here, there's —they're done on two levels typically. One could be considered a windshield survey or a reconnaissance survey where you can drive a neighborhood, you know where a home is, you know the address, you know the style it's built, is it still there? This is the type of surveying we're talking about, and in the staffs version of the Ordinance, suddenly property owner consent is required. I would also have to say that that really is not consistent with the General Plan. In the General Plan, we are, we are directed to expeditiously conduct a Citywide cultural resources survey to inventory all cultural resources within the City's jurisdiction. Again, we're...it seems like if we're gonna' be changing the General Plan policy, then I guess you need to notify us, because really this is what we've been working off is the General Plan. Lastly, a concern I have in the staff version of the Ordinance would be that the Committee is required to meet only once per year. If we, if we choose to pursue this Certified Local Government program "CLG," they have a minimum of four meetings a year, and we think that's very reasonable at the minimum. At this point, we had been meeting monthly up until the time that Ali left, and we've had some staffing changes, and you know, the position, you know was open for a while. Up until the time Ali left, we were meeting monthly. And would have to say that things like the art and architecture book and that, that, you know, the survey, or the tour and the survey we've done, these things wouldn't be accomplished if we were not allowed to survey places, and if we were only meeting once a year, these wouldn't be accomplished. Lastly, I would have to say I have concerns about the minutes of the February 15'h meeting that are included in your packet. Apparently, there were recording issues and portions are inaudible. Just 23 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 so you know, these minutes have not been accepted by the Committee, and there are many highly unusual editorial comments. I think what has been done, does not serve this process well, and I would request that if this is truly to be a verbatim transcript, that any comments in parenthesis or brackets be removed. We certainly welcome your direction; we are willing to work with you no matter which way you choose to go. We do feel like we've accomplished many things, and that this Ordinance is just one small facet of who we are. There's other Committee members here as well. If you have any questions of any of us, we would welcome your questions. We look forward to dialogue with you, and perhaps this, this whole Ordinance, we could have an Ordinance study session, and we could go over these things. Thank you. RAS I have a question, Kim. My son happens to live in the suburb of St. Louis, and he lives in a house that's about 110 years old, and it's been designated as a historical preservation house. And consequently, he can't do anything to the outside. He didn't plan on doing anything to the outside, but he can't do anything on the outside. Do we have any year limit on what we're talking about here? Does it have to be 50 years old, 20 years old, or 5 years old? KH Well I'd have to tell you that, that often times, 50 years is used as a milestone, but I think it's recognized that with the Mid -Century Modern Architecture that we have here in the City, but again, 50 is merely a milestone. We actually, we, the Committee, actually consider the Visitor Center, the first LEED building here in the desert, to be very significant, and it is merely, you know, a few years old. So that is about... RAS So you're not putting an age on it? KH Well there is, there is actually an age in there regarding lat—review later on. But anyone, the way we would like to see it, anyone could come and nominate and say "I think I live in a historic house," and we'll take a look at it, and they can make a recommendation. We'II agree or disagree and send it up to you all, and you'll either approve it or deny it. RAS And if it is determined to be historical house, they then get a reduction on their property taxes? Is that correct? KH That, that's not necessarily. That is something that they would have to enter into with the City, and that would be something the property owner would choose to do. And by doing so, they're agreeing to take, you know, they use a portion of their property tax to maintain, to restore, to rehabilitate. That's a contract between the City and the property owner. And I'd have to say that I've received several calls from people regarding the Mills Act, and I've been telling them, you know, this is something, you know, we have been working on an Ordinance, and the Mills Act is sort of coming along with it. I don't have an answer for you yet, but you know (unclear). 24 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 RAS It's interesting, because the areas you're talking about, the majority of the real estate taxes don't go to the City, in fact, almost nothing. It goes to the County, and it goes primarily to the schools, but the City could make that decision? KH You know, I am not an expert on the Mills Act. I, I just know that —and I know it's certainly a benefit to certain property owners that are recent purchasers of property, because obviously, your taxes would be higher. RAS Thank you. JMB Any other questions of Kim? Thank you. KH Thank you. JMB Okay, I don't have any other cards. Is there anybody else that wanted to speak on this? Okay, seeing none, Jim? JF Well let me start off with my comments. I think I spent as much time, if not more than anybody on this issue. It goes back to a study session when I was last Mayor, which was several years ago, before we had LSA, before we had a recommendation. But before I get into my comments, I do want to thank the members of the Historical Preservation Committee or Commission. Because we have been through two building directors, our Ordinance was 20 years old, and it did refer to a building director, when I personally believed most of those decision, aesthetic and otherwise, architectural in particular, should go through the Planning Department process with the Architectural Review Committee, and there was always that tension there. And of course, we now have a new Planning Director as well as a new Building & Safety Director, neither of which were here when this whole debate got started and before we got LSA involved. I do have a number of comments, but I guess my overall feeling is I, I think we're cascading down a slippery slope that none of the five of us, and I don't want to speak for you, fully understand. As I went through the...I think is the most recent Ordinance, I only made it through page ten, and I had 28 changes that I would recommend that probably go farther than the current Committee is comfortable with. I, I evaluated this Committee, which I guess sort of sprung into new life several years ago, by simply comparing it with our other Committees/Commissions. Let me just start with the comment that power and authority and discretion being vested in one person. You know, respectfully, the power and authority and discretion is vested in five people, and we're all sitting right here, and that's the way it is with every Committee and Commission that we have. We do have two commissions, the Architectural Review Commission and the Planning Commission, that can make decisions, and if none of us decides to appeal it, it becomes a final decision, but it is subject to our review, our discretion, and our power. Most of my comments, in going through this, were neither the Administrator, nor the Committee, nor anybody else underneath this Council, I believe, has any authority other than to make recommendations to this Council. That includes our City Manager. He does have some discretion, but 25 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 that is discretion that we voted to give him some time ago. In taking a look at the things that are being requested, I guess the one that strikes nearest and dearest to my heart is consent of the property owner. You know, my philosophy, or our government, is that you're free to do with your property with all the incidents of property ownership. We do have a Zoning Ordinance, we have minimum requirements for setbacks, we do have some architectural review guidelines, but by and large, it's your property, it's your house, you can do what you want. Having done all that and to come to a body and ask for a Certificate of Appropriateness, when you otherwise meet our Zoning Ordinances and conditions and architectural review guidelines, seems extremely foreign to me. Even more foreign to me is that you can do it without your consent. That we can come along and say, "Hum, I like that house, you're now on a list." This list now requires you to come through a new layer of bureaucracy in the City Hall to get a Certificate of Appropriateness, that then goes to an Administrator, that then may or may not come to the City Council, depending on how this is worded, just to do what you are free to do right now with a simple over-the-counter permit. It seems to me to be a very unnecessary layer of bureaucracy. I recognized that there are some historic elements to the City of Palm Desert, but I also recognize we're 35 years old. It's younger than every member of this Council. In fact, Jean was on the first City Council that was here. I think there are the occasions where we think things are historical, but I think that those should probably be brought to our attention, you know, much like the Hopalong House. The Council evaluated it. We actually took a look at buying it and ultimately decided not to. You know, that was within our prerogative as Councilmembers. I personally do not believe that a Historic Preservation Committee, other than one constituted to make recommendations to us, to look at things before there is, you know, a list, before there is any designation. The suggestions come to us that we might want to think about this, and then we make the decision whether or not to do it, is appropriate. If we have a person at City Hall that triages those, and again, if they decide that they don't want to recommend it to us and the Historic Preservation Committee does, then they can still come to us. But I don't want to stigmatize anybody's property by going onto a list for a Certificate of Appropriateness that may cloud their title, or diminish the value of their property, or certainly be against their wishes, is something I ever want to see the City of Palm Desert doing. And I say that with all due respect to the Committee, because I do think they serve a pun —function. I'm not inviting you to respond to my comments, ma'am, I'm simply making them as you did yours. I think that the Historic Preservation Committee serves at the pleasure of the Council. They do not dictate what consultant we use, what house that report gets written, those come to us from the staff. You very correctly issued your list of differences with that report. I have my own differences, and we're gonna' make a decision about what to do later on this afternoon. But the Committee is just that, it serves at the pleasure of the Council. I do not believe the Committee should make its own rules. I think the City has rules for all of its committees/commissions, and I think those rules ought to be followed uniformly across the board. I guess in summary, you know, having started way back when on this Commission and probably being the only staff member, if you will, that has been through every reiteration and had a study session with this 26 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Commission, my tugging all along has been, it ought to be like any other committee/commission. Nothing ought to happen with a person's property without this Council's approval. In a sense, unlike listing a person's property on a survey as historic, being to a lesser degree, no different than eminent domain, if there isn't property owner consent. It's the City imposing its will against the will of a property owner to make a designation that may affect the value of that person's property, and it shouldn't be done forcefully, and it should only be suggested by the Council upon the recommendation of the Committee as vetted through our staff. I don't like the current version that we have, and I'm probably —the last point I'm gonna' make, because I don't want to draw on too long, is I would like our residents to take a look at this. The Committee's wrestled with it, staff has, we just now got two versions that I don't think either of us fully understand, but I'd like our residents to know how we're proposing to treat their homes and their property and give them a chance to weigh in. And regardless of how our discussion turns out today, at a minimum, I'd like to see us take a little bit more time and proceed cautiously, on something, I think, is at least new for me and perhaps some of my colleagues. Thank you. KH I really would like to clarify... JMB Dick did... KH Could I just clarify one thing, 'cuz I, I think there are... I'm sorry, maybe I didn't explain it well, but again, everything comes through you, and it is not until something is registered as a landmark that it needs a Certificate of Appropriateness. JF Okay, again, I didn't invite a rebuttal. You had your chance. KH Okay. I'm sorry, it's not a rebuttal, but to be a landmark, you need the property owner consent... JF We, we could go on all day with our differences of opinion, ma'am. RSK Well I agree 100% with Councilman Ferguson that...it's a slippery slope, and we can't go to quick, and...we need to understand that, and I also agree with the comment...when you just put somebody's property on a list, right there you've done something to the property, and I agree with, you know, property rights....everybody has property rights as long as they don't negatively affect other citizens. Saying that, I still —I love history, and I've...I've been around long enough. I like old things too. I kept Mary Helen for 63 years. (Laughter) So...l, I think there we...there is a real place for...conservation of our cultural resources. You know, you think of Desert Magazine and that building..., at one time, I thought it was a great idea to at least put a temporary City Hall in there while we did other ones, and we'd always have use of that building. It would have been a wonderful building for the City to have bought at one time. So we all...we all would like to have...cultural resources preserved, but at the same time, we don't want someone coming in and telling us what to do with our property also. So we have to, we have to hit the happy medium 27 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 and remember that when you put one on the list, immediately that affects the value of that piece of property. So we need to go a little bit slower. I agree with that. CF I agree that we need to go slower, and it seems to me it's the process. I think that, you know, we all realize that we need to preserve...that which is historic for our City. But I think the question that the Committee and staff and the Council is struggling with, without affecting property owner rights, is how do we go about doing that, so that we don't negatively impact anyone along the way. And I'm not clear, through all these pieces of paper, that we have clear cut direction on how we can proceed. If we see something that is appropriate...we have this Committee, should they then go and look at it and make a recommendation to us? At what point, in the slippery slope that you talked to, at what point do we start with a property and say "Gee, maybe this is something that we do need to look at," without the property going on a list that could potentially negatively impact the value. And so if we were to go slower, my suggestion might be for the Council's consideration is that we have a couple of liaisons from the Council to work with the Committee and staff, and to work through this so that we come up with at least a process. Maybe we disagree at the end of the day, but at least we've tried to come up with something that everyone is comfortable with that could preserve some historical properties within the City without infringing on individual property owner's rights. JMB Bob? RAS Thanks. I agree with a lot of everything we've said tonight. I agree that we're not gonna' make a decision tonight. I agree that we ought to have a Committee of concerned Council, two members, and members of the Historical Preservation Committee, and a couple of Realtors that live in our City to see how it would affect them —to get their feeling on what we're doing and then come back to us. So with that, I would move that we continue this item for at least a month. JMB Other...been sitting here to think of the other one I had was a study session where we have pros and cons of both of these so that we understand what they are. 1 think as staff and Kim said, they've gone through this over and over, and they seem to be on an impasse. So, if, if we understood what the difference between the City one was and all the aspects other than the fact of hiring somebody, which may or may not be necessary. And the wording where Kim said the City one "is once a year," it doesn't say once a year. It says, "a minimum of once a year." So I think we need to know —really the differences of —there's ten differences, let's see what they are and what we think on the differences. JF Well, I guess I would agree with Councilmember Finerty. Having sat through a study session three years ago on the same issue and having followed it over those three years, it seems to me that a lot of umbrage was taken by members of the Committee by the fact that there was a staff report that didn't comport with their idea of what they wanted to do and differed, to some degree, with what our consultant said it wanted to do. My thought at that time, was well, you serve at the pleasure 28 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 of the City, and if our staff wants to make a recommendation, they are free to do it, and obviously, the Committee has made their points of view. You know, if there is an issue of process, maybe two members of the liaison of that Committee could help iron that out. But establishing that one threshold that it's the Council that makes the direction that staff implements and that the Committee follows, I think, clears up a lot of stuff for us. We hire consultants, we don't always follow their directions; we don't always like them, frankly. Committees are generators of many ideas, some of which are great ideas that we didn't think of and some of which we don't think so much of, but that's the way our committee/commission process works. Have another study session is fine. Frankly, I think if we get two Councilmembers that are willing to put in the time and the effort with the Committee, we can come up with something. I certainly, like I said, have 28 suggestions on the first ten pages. RAS Can you get some residents (unclear) JF And get a broader spectrum of people. JMB Which ones... JF Pardon me? JMB On which...you have 28 on theirs or on Dave's? JF On ours. JMB On the City one? JF On the City one, which I think goes farther than even the Parks and Rec people would like in terms of limiting the authority of that Committee. RAS It's not the Parks and Rec. JF Not Parks and Rec, I'm sorry. Historic Preservation. RAS Well I make the motion that we continue this for a minimum of one month and have two Councilmembers assigned to a group of people, including our City Attorney, to meet with the Committee and come up with a new agenda. JF Can I recommend Councilman Kelly and Councilmember Finerty? RSK I was just about to recommend Councilman Ferguson and Councilmember Finerty. (Laughter) JF Well, the Committee may find that opinion a little too one-sided so... 29 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 RSK I think you have all the significant points lined up there...much better than I do. So I'm volunteering you and Councilmember Finerty. JF Okay. RSK Alright, he's willing to. JMB Okay, so we have a motion to continue it for a month... JF Can we continue it until the Committee is ready to come back with a recommendation? RSK You can continue to a date uncertain. RAS Yeah. JF And do we have the freedom to invite Realtors and members of the community as well? RSK Yes. CF Yes, so we know the total impact. JF The broad spectrum of opinion. CF Yes. I would second, then, Councilman Spiegel's motion. JMB Okay, please vote. RDK Motion carries unanimous vote. For purpose of clarification, the motion was: Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, continue this matter indefinitely, with Councilmembers Ferguson and Finerty appointed to a subcommittee of the City Attorney, staff, Committee Members, and members of the community as deemed appropriate to work through the issues and return to City Council thereafter. Motion was seconded by Finerty and carried by a 5-0 vote. F. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION FOR STAFF TO NEGOTIATE A NEW FRANCHISE AGREEMENT FOR MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE SERVICES WITH BURRTEC WASTE AND RECYCLING (CONTRACT NO. C27410). Mr. Ortega stated the current agreement with Burrtec will expire at the beginning of 2009, and staff was requesting permission to begin negotiations for a new contract. He offered that staff was available to answer questions. 30 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated he and Councilman Kelly met with the City's Assistant City Manager, and the staff report and recommendation were the result of that meeting. Councilmember Finerty agreed Burrtec provided excellent service and was very responsive to problems. She found no reason to change vendors at this point. Councilmember Finerty moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize staff to negotiate a new Franchise Agreement with Burrtec Waste and Recycling for Municipal Solid Waste Services and submit negotiated contract to the City Council for approval. Motion was seconded by Spiegel. Councilman Ferguson noted he previously represented Waste Management, which was the predecessor to Burrtec. He said he hadn't represented Waste Management for more than five years but had abstained from voting. He saw no legal reason to continue to abstain and announced he would start voting on items relating to Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 5-0 vote. NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS LISTED ON AN AGENDA ADDENDUM POSTED AT LEAST 72 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING. G. INFORMATIONAL REPORT REGARDING ADDITIONAL BIKE LANES ON VARIOUS STREETS THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF PALM DESERT. Mr. Ortega noted this was an informational item, and staff was not requesting any type of authorization. Councilmember Finerty moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the informational report regarding additional bike lanes on various streets throughout the City Palm Desert. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by 5-0 vote. XV. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF MID -YEAR BUDGET ADJUSTMENT TO THE LEGAL SERVICES FUND, ACCOUNT NO. 110-4121-411-3015 (Continued from the meetings of February 14 and February 28, 2008). Mr. Erwin requested this item be continued to the next regular meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, continue this matter to the meeting of March 27, 2008. Motion was seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 5-0 vote. 31 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 B. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION TO PURCHASE OFFICE FURNISHINGS FOR THE HENDERSON COMMUNITY BUILDING (CONTRACT NO. C27270) (Continued from the meeting of February 14, 2008). Mr. Ortega noted the staff report. He said at the last meeting, two Councilmembers were appointed to work with staff on a recommendation. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated the Chamber of Commerce, who will be sharing the Henderson Community Building, was concerned the tables were too heavy to move, and the facility couldn't be used to its optimum. Project Coordinator Missy Grisa stated the intention of the room design was to be a multi -use facility. She explained the larger conference room could be expanded even more by pulling the partition, and on the other side of the same conference room was a pocket door that moved back against the wall to expand the area out into the backside patio. However, the furniture selected by the subcommittee had changed the use. Responding to question, she said a solid top table will have clips underneath to hold the tables together, and the tables could be pulled apart to expand, but they would not be movable outside of that conference room. Ms. Gilligan stated her division was responsible for the Portola Community Center and the utilization of the rooms. When the Henderson Building was approved, staff believed it was with the intention the City could use the multi -use room for lectures and accommodate between 50-75 people. A couple of days ago, staff came up with a policy on the use of these room once the Henderson Building opened. She and Director of Special Programs Frankie Riddle calculated a reduced number from 50-75 people to a maximum of 23 in the multi -use room. She reviewed the furnishings selected by the subcommittee, which she thought were incredibly beautiful, but as far as the use of the large conference room, they've determined the new selection limited the use for lecture series because the capacity was reduced to 23 people. She met with Ms. Grisa this morning to see if there was any way of putting the furniture on wheels because the tables were heavy, and even if they were moved, they could only be moved against the wall. The selected tables couldn't be folded up or moved elsewhere. She acknowledged it was at Council's discretion which way to go, but staff had been telling people the multi -purpose room was available for a lecture series. It was not her intention to jump in at the last minute, but it was a concern for room usage in the future. Responding to question, Ms. Grisa explained the tables could be rearranged and pushed together to form a t-shape allowing for 35 seats by using both conference rooms, but that the tables were heavy and difficult to move. 32 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Councilmember Finerty said the original set of furniture presented was collapsible and stackable, but the subcommittee did not feel that type of furniture was appropriate for this building. The building is nice and modern, and the subcommittee chose fabrics that were striking to compliment its style. The problem now was whether or not to accommodate a large group and lessen the aesthetics, and it was a choice the Council now needed to make. She didn't know what types of groups we're looking to use the Henderson Building versus who went to the Portola Community Center, but for the amount of money spent on the Henderson Community Building, she felt the furniture needed to represent it well. Ms. Grisa agreed with Councilmember Finerty's comments. However, she's received comments from people wanting to use the space more in an audience setting. Councilmember Finerty stated the need for audience seating was new information to her. She recalled discussing moving the one large table apart and thought it was a compromise to allow for more people to use the area in a more diverse way. She didn't realize the City was looking to having lectures in this room; otherwise, what was the point of having tables in the first place. Councilman Ferguson stated Council appointed a subcommittee because it wasn't satisfied with what was previously presented. The subcommittee met with Ms. Grisa and concerns raised today were raised then. He said the Assistant City Manager for Community Services should have brought concerns to the subcommittee instead of to Council at the last minute. He recalled when he first got involved with the City there were modular tables in the North Wing Conference Room and in the Administrative Conference Room. When those tables were moved, they tore the carpet and provided uneven surfaces; they wobbled and knocked over drinks. Over the years, the City's moved toward fixed tables in all of its rooms. He said every time the City addressed conference room needs, a nice finished look and fixed tables were chosen because it made more sense. He said people were free to use the Palm Desert Civic Center Council Chamber for lectures, but it was the first he's ever heard about the Portola Community Center, which he believed couldn't be used for lectures. He reminded everyone the Henderson Building was a community building used by the Historical Society, Mountains Conservancy, Friends of the Desert Mountains, the Cancer Foundation, and for people that needed to have a meeting, usually board meetings. He wasn't concerned how many people it took to move a table, but the question now was whether the tables would be portable or not. The original proposal recommended portable tables, and Council assigned a subcommittee to come up with an alternative that would be better. He felt the current recommendation was sensible based on what's been done at City Hall in the past. 33 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Councilman Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve the purchase of furnishings from Total Plan Business Interiors, Rancho Mirage, California, and Commercial Design Systems, Tualatin, Oregon, for the Henderson Community Building in the amount of $99,200; 2) appropriate $99,200 from the City's Unobligated Funds to Account No. 400-4367-433-4001 for this purpose. Motion was seconded by Finerty and carried by a 4-1 vote, with Spiegel voting NO. XVI. OLD BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION TO SUSPEND ENFORCEMENT ACTION AND CONTINUE HEARING OF APPEAL OF A NOTICE TO ABATE RECREATIONAL VEHICLE STORAGE AT PALM DESERT MOBILE ESTATES, LOCATED AT THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF PORTOLA AVENUE AND THE WHITEWATER STORM CHANNEL, FOR SIXTY (60) DAYS Case No. 07-369 (Mark Bessire/Palm Desert Mobile Estates, Appellant). Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion, extend for sixty (60) days the continuance of action on the Palm Desert Mobile Estates Notice to Abate in order to allow completion of a three-way landscaping and maintenance agreement between the Appellant, City of Palm Desert, and Coachella Valley Water District. Motion was seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 5-0 vote. B. REQUEST FOR ACCEPTANCE OF WORK AND APPROVAL OF AN AMENDMENT TO THE AGREEMENT WITH THE COACHELLA VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS (CVAG) FOR THE WHITEWATER BRIDGE AT PORTOLA AVENUE (PROJECT NO. 647-04). Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Accept the work as complete and authorize the City Clerk to file a Notice of Completion for Construction of the Whitewater Bridge at Portola Avenue — Contract No. C22870B (Granite Construction Company, Indio, CA); 2) approve Amendment No. 2 to Contract No. C22870A - Reimbursement Agreement with CVAG for Construction of the Whitewater Bridge at Portola Avenue - to increase funding by $1,200,000 for a total authorized reimbursement of $7,450,000, and authorize the Mayor to execute the Amendment. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote. C. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF AMENDMENT NO. 2 TO CONTRACT NO. C23760 — REIMBURSEMENT AGREEMENT WITH THE COACHELLA VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS (CVAG) FOR THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF COOK STREET WIDENING BETWEEN FRED WARING DRIVE AND FRANK SINATRA DRIVE (PROJECT NO. 601-05). Councilmember Finerty moved to, by Minute Motion, approve Amendment No. 2 to the subject Reimbursement Agreement with CVAG, increasing the matching contribution 34 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 by $2,250,000, for total CVAG funding of $5,000,000, and authorize the Mayor to execute same. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel asked if there would be a public hearing before anything got done, because many that lived in that area that where not in favor. Mr. Ortega replied an environmental assessment would be conducted and it would raise all issues involved. Councilmember Finerty stated the City would have Environmental Impact Reports that perhaps were already in process. Engineering Manager John Garcia agreed. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion carried by a 5-0 vote. D. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE COMMUNITY/AQUATIC CENTER COMPONENTS AND TENTATIVE TIME LINE. Mr. Ortega noted the staff report, which contained input from Parks & Recreation Commission. He said staff was seeking directive to finalize design, search for appropriate site, and return to Council with the total project. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve the Community/Aquatic Center components as presented in the accompanying staff report; 2) approve the tentative time line as presented; 3) authorize staff to develop a Request For Qualifications (RFQ) for Design/Build process for this facility (Contract No. C27420). Councilman Kelly said he thought everyone did a fantastic job considering all the problems and disagreements. He said staff, Parks & Recreation Commission, and those that went on the tour put together a good proposal. He supported Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel's motion to move ahead. Motion was seconded by Kelly. Councilman Ferguson stated that for a variety of reasons he would not vote in favor of this item. He said a lot of studies had been done on this project, a consultant was hired for the pool portion last summer, and the results were presented to Council. At that time, Councilman Kelly held up a memo given to him by the City Manager dated 1996 to start on the pool project, and twelve years later, Council was still reviewing it. He said the City was offered a valuable piece of land at the College of the Desert (COD), it had commitments from the YMCA that required an expansion of at least 10,000 square feet to their current facility, it was in the middle of discussions with the Coachella Valley Park & Recreation District on whether the City will continue 35 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 its contract with them, and there was somewhat of a consensus that this project be done on the east side of San Pablo, but it was not definitive. The question still remained on what to do with the offer of land from COD on the west side of San Pablo. He said the most current proposal had a $20 million figure on the project, but with the work of the YMCA, Park and Recreation Center, plus the standing legal obligations on the YMCA, and offers from COD, he couldn't imagine spending $20 million for facilities that already existed in the City. He asked why there wasn't a better way to get it done than what was currently being proposed by staff. Councilmember Finerty stated she went on the bus tour and viewed the fitness centers. The one in the City of Coronado was particularly nice and right on the ocean, but even that one didn't have an indoor pool as was recommended in this proposal. An indoor pool would make sense in Minneapolis but not in the desert where warm weather was enjoyed year round. Coronado also had an Olympic size pool with an area at a higher temperature to accommodate those that required the warmer water. She attended the City Council retreat where it was decided a fitness center was a good thing, and it became one of the City's goals. While she was enthusiastic about a fitness center, she was still reverberating from the shock of the $20 million price tag and remembered another goal, Fiscal Responsibility and Accountability. She was also concerned the signal to designers and architects about what the City might be willing to pay because often times bids were under budget. More importantly, the cost to maintain such a facility was yet to be considered. She said there were other worthwhile needs in the City, like a Narcotic Task Force Officer as discussed at the Public Safety meeting. It is one of the Sheriffs Department goals for 2008. She questioned where the $20 million to construct and to maintain the facility would come from, and she wasn't convinced it was the best use of taxpayers' dollars, even if the funds were found. She understood the reason for having the project on fast track and knew the enthusiasm that came out of it, but with the current economy, the process needed to be slowed down; she could not support it today. Mayor Benson stated there was nothing worse than finding out about the $20 million price tag from the Desert Sun, and it was a shock to her as well. From various discussions and tours made, she thought there were other options of combining the YMCA and the Park & Recreation Center and adding an outdoor pool, and perhaps some indoor fitness rooms to those facilities with City land. The City had two great facilities that could be combined, but to hire a consultant wasn't what she envisioned when she said it was her priority to have such a facility. If Council wanted to design/build, then see what price was given was not the way she wished to proceed. She said the City needed an entire facility with more indoor equipment than what already existed at the Park and Recreation Center and the YMCA. She said the YMCA in the City of Encinitas had the best facility of those visited on the 36 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 tour, and Palm Desert still had a ways to go in planning what the City wanted before it committed to this type of money. Mayor Benson called for the vote, and the motion to approve FAILED on a 2-3 vote, with Ferguson, Finerty, and Benson voting NO. Mr. Ortega asked if Council wished to provide a different direction for staff or if it wished to drop the project at this point. Mayor Benson suggested a study session to decide what Council wanted and then decide how to proceed. Councilmembers Ferguson and Finerty agreed. Councilman Ferguson stated at least two Councilmembers articulated a desire to combine the recreational functions between the YMCA and the Park and Recreation Center, and both had good existing buildings. Councilman Kelly pointed out the proposal included combining both facilities and didn't eliminate anything he had heard raised this evening, and the indoor pool was the therapeutic pool. He still felt all the work invested by staff and the Commission was worth pursuing. Mayor Benson said the motion failed and Council was now considering a Study Session on where, what, and how, with the City Manager to set it up. She thanked those who participated in the study and that valuable information had been obtained that could certainly still be used. XVII. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF A SECOND AMENDMENT TO DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT 02-01, STONE EAGLE DEVELOPMENT, ALLOWING A 25-FOOT 2-INCH MAXIMUM ROOF HEIGHT FOR A TWO-STORY DETACHED GARAGE/CASITA UNIT ON 19 LOTS WITHIN STONE EAGLE GOLF COURSE Case Nos. DA 02-01 Amendment #2 and MISC 08-15 (Stone Eagle Development, LLC, Applicant). Councilman Ferguson stated he made an inquiry to the City Attorney to check and see if he was able to participate in this proceeding given his potential proximity to a former client. Mr. Erwin acknowledged the request and stated he reviewed the factual circumstances of the prior representation and distance to the subject property and found nothing that would disqualify Councilman Ferguson from voting. 37 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Ms. Aylaian noted the detailed staff report for the post amendment to the Development Agreement, with this being the second amendment. The original development was proposed and approved Hillside Planned Residential (HPR), which meant the development standards were approved for this particular development. This development had a limitation on height of 20 feet from the finished pad elevations. The limitation also stated that in no case would the building exceed two living stories above the pad elevation of the building site. The developer anticipated obtaining 20 feet overall height by lowering a portion of the building below the finished pad elevation by two feet. When the developer submitted for approval on one of the homes, it did not include a depressed or lower section underneath the garage, and the overall height increased to 25'2". At that point, staff asked the developer to stop construction in order to investigate what potential options could be resolved in this predicament. Four different options were investigated and explored, and she explained the various options in detail on the overhead. She explained the obstacles encountered with each option, which included drainage problems and higher height elevations. The final solution staff considered was to allow the developer to build the homes on the pads as they were constructed and consider modifying the development agreement to allow the extra height above what was originally approved. Staff was concerned about the visual impact it might have on surrounding properties, because the development was on the hillside. The developer erected story poles in the worst -case scenario so that staff could see what views would be changed from the tallest of the homes. She displayed several photos from various angles, which illustrated none or very nominal impact to the mountain views. Staff felt the best solution was to keep the high quality architecture rather than making a "boxy" building and allow the developer the additional five feet as long as the materials blended in with the surrounding mountain side. Staff notified residents within 4,000 feet, which was 1,300 legal notices, and only received two letters in response. At the Planning Commission there were two property owners who spoke on the issue, one was opposed to the project in general but did not object strongly to the proposed amendment, and the other property owner spoke in favor. The architecture was reviewed and recommended for approval by the Architectural Review Commission. The Planning Commission reviewed it and voted 3-2 for approval. The dissenting votes were concerned about views from the Sommerset neighborhood and that it wasn't until after the fact the Applicant was looking at building heights. Councilmember Finerty asked that the Southridge plan be displayed so that she could explain her question. She suggested lowering the garage height, still leaving the second story room and roof heights the same to help mitigate the visibility from Highway 74 and from Sommerset. 38 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Ms. Aylaian responded lowering the height of the garage was one consideration explored, and it was determined that today's vehicles were taller than they used to be a number of years ago. The height for clearance to get into the garage plus the additional height above for the garage door to re -track determined the minimum height that was acceptable for vehicles. Further responding to the questions about height, she said the general garage height was 9'6", with height above it for the ceiling structure of the garage and floor structure of the room above, which was also 9'6". Councilman Ferguson noted the agenda was published in the newspaper and some community comments received resonated with him, which he would like clarified. If Council voted for an amendment to a development agreement, if the Council was then setting a precedent on height in the City of Palm Desert. Mr. Erwin stated the development agreement process was an individual process that basically established no particular precedent for the City's height or anything. A development agreement was a specific limitation or permission on one particular property based upon the facts there, and it was not a precedent. Mayor Benson declared the public hearing open and invited anyone IN FAVOR OF or IN OPPOSITION TO this request to testify at this time. MR. TED LENNON, President of Stone Eagle Development, Silver Spur Trail in Palm Desert, stated he wished to point out that height was almost never an issue, because the building was approved at 24 feet and had gone through Council. He said the units were sold as is and half a dozen had already been sold with some already under construction. He said the clubhouse was approved at 40 feet, and he was willing to reduce the clubhouse height limit to 32 feet as a concession in order to get the subject 19 units approved. He said it was pretty special that all five members of the City Council took the time to visit a site and look at an issue such as this one and was thankful, regardless of the what voting results were. Councilmember Finerty said she realized the peak of the roof was only a small part of that particular building. She acknowledged Mr. Lennon's concession to bring the clubhouse down to 32 feet and appreciated the offer. Councilman Ferguson asked what the developer's anticipated height was for the clubhouse. MR. LENNON responded he was investigating an option of a second story and that realistically, they could do 36 feet. His Reserve Clubhouse was about 35-36 feet, and it was only one story. Further responding, he said they 39 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 plan to go through the whole process for the final approval on that option. His point was that he was willing to negotiate the height to as low as 32 feet. Councilman Ferguson stated he wouldn't know what the City would be getting as a result, nor did he think it needed anything, given that the project was already approved at a certain height. He said it was good to lower heights if there was a reason, but it was Council's general philosophy that in a gated community with its own architectural guidelines and standards, and if it didn't impair others' property, to a certain degree their views, that deference was given to the developer. He'd hate for the developer to make a concession of 32 feet for the clubhouse when it probably could look worse. MR. LENNON retracted his offer. MR. ANTOINE BABAI, Palm Desert, stated Stone Eagle must meet all conditions of approval, which were set by the Planning Commission. He said Stone Eagle had not met the conditions, which included granting easement to adjacent property owners. He asked how the Planning Commission could now grant approval for Stone Eagle's latest request. He said he had copies of previous approvals for Stone Eagle by the Planning Commission. Ms. Aylaian responded the developer was asking the City to change the development agreement under the rules in which it operated, and staff was recommending approval under those rules, as explained by the City Attorney, that were developed for this particular project. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated Mr. Babai was referring to the easement to adjacent land owners. Councilman Ferguson asked Mr. Babai if he was currently in litigation with Stone Eagle on the very issue. MR. BABAI responded he was. Councilman Ferguson asked Mr. Babai why he thought it was appropriate for the City to weigh in on litigation it was not a party to. MR. BABAI replied he wanted to hear what was going on and what was happening with conditions set forth by the Planning Commission on this development, because property owners adjacent to Stone Eagle could not develop or do anything with their property. Councilman Ferguson asked what Mr. Babai's issue had to do with the height of the proposed building. MR. BABAI responded he had nothing against the height. 40 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 With no further testimony offered, Mayor Benson declared the public hearing closed. Councilman Kelly stated he went out to visit the site and thought the developer did a great job of blending the facilities and driveways into the hillside, and if the roof tops were to be flattened, it would probably look terrible. He went on to say the primary goal of the first Hillside Ordinance 25 years ago was to blend houses into the hillside. In this project, the developer should be commended, because even the driveways blended in with the hillside. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated since some of the houses were already built, all Councilmembers visited the development. He noted the homes were very attractive, but not inexpensive. He was confident Mr. Babai would work things out with the developer or the Courts will, but today the City Council was looking strictly at the structure and the blending of the building into the hillside. Councilman Ferguson stated everyone talked about views as if they were a vested right, and they weren't. There wasn't such a thing as implied easement of view, but Council tried to maintain a balance in the interest of neighbors to make sure no one offensively harmed an adjoining or a distant neighbor. Council amended the City's Hillside Ordinance because the City realized with the Hagadone house that impairment of view could be significant, and it can be well beyond 300 or 1,000 feet. The City's ordinances were meant to reflect an appropriate balance, and when the City did a development agreement, it was usually after many factors were taken into consideration as was the case with Stone Eagle. The person most impacted was the owner of the Whitman (sp?) property, which was immediately adjacent, and that owner expressed he liked the roof the way it was, because it increased the value of his property and made the view much more aesthetic. He thanked the developer for providing the story poles on his own accord and stated he couldn't find the roof element because the story poles were painted the same color as what the tile would be once developed. He thought it was a wonderful development and wouldn't want to take away from it, which was why he expressed his reluctance with the developer about lowering the height on the clubhouse. He hoped Mr. Babai will work out his civil matter, but his issue was not before Council's consideration this evening. Mayor Benson said if anyone was to blame for the view on the hillside, it would be the County, because some of the buildings they've allowed were worse than what this light adjustment would create. She said there were several homes up there that hit you in the face that the City had nothing to do with. 41 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 Councilmember Finerty said everyone knew how she felt about hillside development and that she struggled with a tough decision. However, one of the deciding factors was that another building at a higher elevation, with a height of 20 feet, was more evident compared to the story poles that represented the proposed roof line. The other factor was that it represented only 23% of the building, and of that 23%, it was a lesser percentage because the peak went up to 24 feet. Lastly, the multi -shade earth -tone tile that blended into the mountainside helped to persuade her decision to support this project. However, she was still doubtful a development agreement was not precedent -setting as indicated by the City Attorney, because the original Gardens was approved at 44 feet, and just recently, the Village at the Gardens was approved at a height of 42 feet. Although it is said development agreements were not precedent -setting, projects were presented to Council in the form of a precedence, and that's what made her nervous. Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel moved to waive further reading and: 1) Pass Ordinance No. 1152 to second reading, approving a Second Amendment to Development Agreement 02-01, Stone Eagle Development; 2) Adopt Resolution No. 08-16, approving Case No. MISC 08-15, subject to attached conditions. Motion was seconded by Ferguson and carried by a 5-0 vote. XVIII. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. CITY MANAGER None B. CITY ATTORNEY None C. CITY CLERK None D. PUBLIC SAFETY o Fire Department None o Police Department Please see introduction of Captain Dan Wilham under Item VIII - Oral Communications - B earlier in the meeting. 42 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 E. MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL o City Council Requests for Action: None o City Council Committee Reports: 1. Gas for Electric Lawn Mower Exchange — Councilmember Finerty reported that in its further effort to reduce airborne pollutants, CVAG (Coachella Valley Association of Governments) was promoting the exchange of operable gas lawn mowers for new, cordless electric lawn mowers for $100. She said the Exchange Event was scheduled for April 5, and participants needed to pre -register. 2. Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) — Councilmember Finerty went on to report that Tom Kirk recently made a presentation on nuisance water, as he was working with CVWD General Manager Steve Robbins to develop a joint partnership with the City of La Quinta whereby each agency would put up $50,000 for a program to remove as much turf-scape as possible and replace it with drought - tolerant landscaping. She said they planned to hire landscape architects to help design appropriate installations. Upon inquiry about applying this in other cities, she was advised that once the program is fine-tuned in approximately 60 days, it would be made available to other jurisdictions. Currently, program developers were anticipating a maximum rebate of $1,000 to encourage residents to participate in changing out their turf areas for desert-scape. Additionally, she said CVWD was also exploring the possibility of administering a tiered water rate to promote savings and water conservation. o City Council Comments: 1. Vallevwide Lyceum on Energy Conservation and Efficiency — Councilman Ferguson announced that on April 25, 2008, the University of California, Riverside, in conjunction with the Building Industry Association (BIA), Coachella Valley Economic Partnership (CVEP), and Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) would be hosting a Valleywide Lyceum on Energy Conservation and Efficiency. He said Palm Desert's efforts and its proposed legislation would be prominently featured at the seminar, with both the President of the Public Utilities Commission and Chair of the California Air Resources Board to be in attendance. He wanted to let his colleagues know about the event and encourage them to attend. 43 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 13, 2008 2. BIGHORN Rideshare Award - Councilman Kelly noted Councilmembers had received a faxed announcement about Bighorn being recognized for its Rideshare Program tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. He said if interested in attending, they should let their secretary know in order to RSVP. 3. Lexus Southern California Team Plav — Councilman Kelly remarked that he was watching television earlier this week and came upon the subject program, where the play had taken place at Desert Willow Golf Resort last summer. He was unsure if Palm Desert paid for the associated advertising but noted that people in the community had commented to him that they'd seen the program, which included four, one -minute segments featuring Palm Desert activities and restaurants, El Paseo, etc. He said the announcers were very complimentary to the City, and it was a very worthwhile promotional effort. 4. Little League Baseball Ooenina Dav - March 15 — Mayor Pro Tem Spiegel stated that the Little League Baseball Season would be opening Saturday on the Civic Center Park baseball fields, and Don Sutton would be throwing out the first pitch. He said the Marine Corps Band would be there, 700 kids were expected to be participating, and there would also be an aerial fly -over, all promising to be quite exciting. XIX. ADJOURNMENT Upon a motion by Spiegel, second by Ferguson, and 5-0 vote of the City Council, Mayor Benson adjourned the meeting at 6:35 p.m: ATTEST: RACHI=LLE D. KLASSEN, CITY CLER CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA BENSON MAYOR 44