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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-05-10MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, MAY 10, 2018 CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBER 73510 FRED WARING DRIVE, PALM DESERT, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER - 3:00 P.M. Mayor Jonathan convened the meeting at 3:01 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Councilmember Jan C. Harnik Councilmember Kathleen Kelly Councilmember Gina Nestande Mayor Pro Tem Susan Marie Weber Mayor Sabby Jonathan Also Present: Lauri Aylaian, City Manager Robert W. Hargreaves, City Attorney Rachelle D. Klassen, City Clerk Lori Carney, Director of Administrative Services Russell Grance, Director of Building & Safety Ryan Stendell, Director of Community Development Martin Alvarez, Director of Economic Development Janet M. Moore, Director of Finance/City Treasurer Tim Jonasson, Interim Director of Public Works Stephen Y. Aryan, Risk Manager Mark Brooks, Battalion Chief, Palm Desert Fire/Riverside Co. Fire Dept./Cal Fire Lt. Matt Martello, Asst. Chief, Palm Desert Police/Riverside Co. Sheriff's Dept. Grace L. Rocha, Deputy City Clerk III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - A (CLOSED SESSION ITEMS) None IV. ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION Request for Closed Session: MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 A. Conference with Legal Counsel regarding significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(2): Number of potential cases: 2 With City Council concurrence, Mayor Jonathan adjourned the meeting to Closed Session of the City Council at 3:02 p.m. He reconvened the meeting at 4:04 p.m. V. RECONVENE REGULAR MEETING - 4:00 P.M. A. REPORT ON ACTION FROM CLOSED SESSION. None VI. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - Councilmember Kathleen Kelly VII. INVOCATION - Councilmember Jan C. Harnik VIII. AWARDS AND PRESENTATIONS A. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION DECLARING MAY 6 -12, 2018, AS "PUBLIC SERVICE RECOGNITION WEEK" IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT. On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Jonathan presented the proclamation to Director of Administrative Services Lori Carney representing the entire City of Palm Desert staff. He added that the City Council shares a deep appreciation for staff because they are the most capable, efficient, and good at their job, but extremely passionate and dedicated to the people of the City of Palm Desert. Ms. Carney stated that on behalf of staff, they are proud and it's personally gratifying to serve the public every day. B. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION DECLARING MAY 2018 AS "BUILDING SAFETY MONTH" IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT. On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Jonathan presented the proclamation to Supervising Plans Examiner Jason Finley representing the Building and Safety Department. Mr. Finley thanked the City Council for their support as they celebrate Building and Safety Month. He invited everyone to visit the Department to learn about all they do, stating their doors are always open, and they are available to answer any questions. 2 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 B1. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATION DECLARING MAY 10, 2018, AS "PALM DESERT CORPORATION YARD EMPLOYEES DAY." On behalf of the City Council, Mayor Jonathan presented the proclamation to Street Maintenance Supervisor David Reyes, representing Public Works Employees. Mayor Jonathan noted the Corporation Yard employees annually host a Cinco de Mayo event in their facility for the City Council and City staff. The food is prepared by the employees and he is already looking forward to 2019. Mr. Reyes thanked the City Council for the recognition. Councilmember Harnik noted that anyone that has been over to the Corporate Yard is always impressed, because the facility is so immaculate, organized, and well maintained. C. PRESENTATION OF UPDATE ON THE LIVING DESERT'S RENOVATION PROJECT BY PRESIDENT/CEO ALLEN MONROE. Ms. Jan Hawkins, Director of Development for The Living Desert (TLD), stated that in 1970 when they first opened, all they had was two small buildings. She displayed a photograph of the original two buildings with the Eisenhower Mountain behind it. In the beginning they had about 5,000 guests annually, and this year it's more than 400,000, and in 2020 they expect to have 500,000 visitors. She talked about the educational component that serves over 100,000 children that come to TLD through school field trips. Large groups come from the Coachella Valley, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara. Their education programs serve all twenty (20) K-12th grade schools in Palm Desert, adding their local programs reach conservation programs globally in their interest of saving animals. They recently developed an App where you can see what the offerings are at TLD, to see what the events are and where, and it also identifies whose interested in TLD that is not located in Palm Desert. For 364 days a year they are open and affordable. They were voted one of the Top 10 Zoos in American on USA - Today's Reader's Choice Travel Award. It is one of the Top 10 Attractions in the United States according to Trip Advisor; going to TLD is the No. 1 thing to do in Palm Desert; they won the Best Fund-raising Event, won the Best Kid Friendly Attraction, and TLD is the Best Wedding Venue in Palm Desert. She went into detail about the economic impacts that TLD has for the City of Palm Desert. Currently, they have a new "Pride of the Desert" Capital Campaign where they have secured $10 million of the $30 million required for their expansion. They are completing their new entrance plaza, which is on budget and on time. She provided a 3-minute slide show, illustrating the three phases of the project. The new phases will include 3 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 lions, rhinos, and hyenas; a Special Event Center that will sit 250 people; and updated facilities. She asked that the City of Palm Desert support this initiative with a grant/sponsorship of $1 million payable over five years, stating the continued investment in TLD will have a lasting impact. They are grateful for the City's $1.5 million commitment over the past years. Mayor Jonathan stated the City Council recognizes the value of TLD and what a jewel it is for the City. He recognized outgoing president of TLD Mr. Larry Spicer, and incoming president, Mr. Bill Apple. IX. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - B MR. RYAN LANDMAN, Kandinsky Way, Palm Desert, noted he had been before the City Council two weeks prior, and he was again asking when the City of Palm Desert was planning on opting out of Senate Bill 54 (SB54) the "Sanctuary State" bill. Since then he spoke with the Mayor who informed him they have no plans on bringing it up on the agenda. He felt this was an important issue, adding other cities have opted out, including Santa Clarita and Costa Mesa. He said the vote is symbolic in that it tells citizens of Palm Desert that the City supports law and order and law enforcement agencies doing their jobs. He asked that the City Council take a position against SB54 and add it to the next City Council agenda for a vote and public comment. MR. OLVER, Brookhaven Lane, Palm Desert, approached the City Council to show support for Mr. Landman's request that the City Council put SB54 on the agenda. He noted that he himself was an immigrant, but he came here with his parents at the age of twelve. At that time, people needed a sponsor, and the person coming needed to have a job. His father had both of those requirements, so he has an objection to the State allowing illegals to remain, because that's what we have become as a sanctuary state. He has been a Palm Desert resident for 18 years and he didn't want to see his tax dollars going to support this type of illegal condition that exists in the State at this time. However, as a City, it can opt out. MR. JACK CALHOUN, Van Gogh Drive, Palm Desert, addressed the City Council to voice his opposition to SB54, because the things he loves about Palm Desert are at risk. He goes about riding his bike, running errands, and doesn't worry about locking his door, and loves that his wife at home is safe when he's not home. He said residents share the same privileges given to them by law and order, stating they all pay taxes, contribute, and take responsibility because they are proud residents. His fear is that lawlessness will ensue and this great City will begin to erode. He said people needed to protect their core principals and core beliefs in safety and responsibility. He requested that the City Council follow other California cities and opt out of the sanctuary State law SB54. 4 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 MR. ANDREW KOTYUK stated he was a councilman from the City of San Jacinto to speak about SB54. He's been leading the charge across Riverside County on this issue and this is something where a lot of city councils hear different reasoning and results about their opinions on this issue. He provided to the City Council a list of Palm Desert residents who have signed a petition against SB54. The significance is not that the City wants to opt out like the City of Los Alamitos, which created a lawsuit, but it should oppose the decriminalization that's inside SB54. He believed citizens are under attack, whether it be AB109, Proposition 47 or 57, claiming SB54 decriminalizes illegal aliens, creating sanctuaries, and lowers felonies to misdemeanors so they aren't deported, making it harder for law enforcement. He added that SB174 came out, which is the same act of allowing illegal aliens to hold elected office in California, asking where does this stop. Additionally, he requested the City of Palm Desert file the Amicus Curiae Brief ("Friend of the Court"), which strongholds the Department of Justice (DOJ) against the State of California on this issue. He understood cities have minimal resources, so the City shouldn't spend any legal fees on this issue, but there is an organization called FAIR (Federation for American Immigration Reform) that provides funding for cities to help pay for the cost. He offered to provide a staff report and items to take a stand in protecting residents, stating several hundred Palm Desert people are interested in this issue and are happy to voice their concern. He has told them to hold off to see if the Council will place it on the agenda to support their wishes. MR. NATHAN MILLER, Corona, California, requested that the City Council take a position to oppose SB54. He's organized a group called "No Sanctuary," which can be found on Facebook. They have organized throughout Riverside County, the Inland Empire, and San Bernardino County. He claimed every city in San Bernardino County has indeed taken a position to oppose SB54, including Yucaipa and City of Upland. Other cities will follow to take a stand in opposition. He said SB54 was unconstitutional and illegal, stating it does not allow law enforcement to coordinate with ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) to deport convicted criminals. He wasn't talking about law enforcement asking people for their legal status, and the illegal immigration argument is separate from what he was talking about here. He's talking about people that are here illegally and committing crimes having the opportunity to stay here and appreciate the freedoms and laws that its legal citizens enjoy. He said these criminals prey on all people, stating this was a public safety issue and not an illegal immigration issue. He said the legislation and Governor Jerry Brown have reduced several felonies to misdemeanors and then they play games with definitions where they were previously violent crimes. Additionally, what a lot of people don't know is that Jerry Brown, after the fact, reduced majority sentencing for many from 365 to 364 days for the purpose of releasing them back to the street, because 365 days would require them to be sent to ICE. He said the public is on the City Council's side on this issue, and there are 5 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 several options he would like to discuss with the Council if he was afforded the opportunity. MS. JUNE ENGLOM, Angels Camp Road, Palm Desert, thanked the City Council for their vote on the Sands Project two weeks ago. She told those in the audience she guaranteed this City Council will listen to what they had to say, in that the Council is very open and you can schedule an appointment with them, adding they were very approachable. She hopes that in the future, procedures will be amended so that projects will go more smoothly. It was unfortunate the local media used inflammatory headlines, writing that residents were trying to prohibit a three-story construction and turned it into us versus low-income housing, which was not true. She invited the journalist to visit her complex to see why the wall was requested, but there has been no response. She learned that in future projects, the meandering sidewalk will not be included, which she hopes the City Council and Planning Commission will reconsider this change, because one of the things that distinguishes the Coachella Valley from other parts of the United States are the meandering sidewalks. X. MAYOR AND COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS & REMARKS TO THE COMMUNITY A. Councilmember Jan C. Harnik Committee Reports and General Comments. 1. Senate Bill 1 - The Road Repair and Accountability Act - reported the first monies generated by the gas tax was $2.6 billion in California, and when correlating the population of Riverside County, it should have received somewhere between $150- and $160 million. Instead it received $35 million that went to Moreno Valley and zero to the Coachella Valley. This item will go before the California Transportation Commission on May 15, 2018, for acceptance. However, she hopes there will be a revision of the staff report and recommendation. She said the Coachella Valley was being grossly underfunded. 2. 2018 Academic WorldQuest National Competition - announced that Palm Desert High School students participated in the competition in Washington, D.C. and won second place. B. Councilmember Kathleen Kelly Committee Reports and General Comments. 1. Coachella Valley Animal Campus - attended the quarterly meeting. She explained this is where the Riverside County Department of Animal Services collaborates with the various nonprofits such as Animal Samaritans, Loving All Animals, and others trying to address the needs of pets and pet owners. One interesting statistic shared is that in the last ten months, 450 cats and dogs have been picked up 6 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 in Palm Desert, and on average only 1 5 % of them get back to their owners. She asked pet owners to get their pet microchipped, because you don't want to have regrets on this front. The good news is, largely through the work of the Animal Shelter, this collaborative group has received grant money to help address feral cat populations. In the Coachella Valley at large, they are making huge progress with those grant funds to track, neuter, and release so as to diminish these populations. 2. Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Annual Conference - reported that these regional meetings are so important because you learn about pots of monies, such as the one Councilmember Harnik mentioned previously, including knowing what other cities are doing with those funds and how to position itself to get a piece of the pie. Cities also learn about best practices and how other cities are coping with shared challenges. Therefore, under the Request for Action item, she will bring up an item for consideration. C. Councilmember Gina Nestande Committee Reports and General Comments. None D. Mayor Pro Tem Susan Marie Weber Meeting Summaries Report for the Period of April 9-15, 2018. With City Council concurrence, the Meeting Summaries Report was received and filed. 1 Palm Desert Hiah School ToD Ten Students Dinner - reported she and Councilmember Kelly and the Mayor attended this event. She said if anyone is ever concerned about where we were going in this world, all you have to do is be around these students, because you will be very uplifted. She said the future is good and it's here in the City of Palm Desert, because the City has really smart students. 2. McCallum Theatre Proiects - she met with Mitch Gershenfeld, President and CEO of the McCallum Theatre and Kajsa Thuresson-Frary, Director of Education of the McCallum Theatre Institute to hear about their upcoming projects. They have an education component where they teach students in the classroom then they bring them to the theater to see the particular program they were studying about. Additionally, they do an Open Call, which is phenomenal. They start off with a large amount of people and then that number is narrowed down for tryouts, and then some are selected to go on stage, and some become famous from this opportunity. 7 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 3. John J Benoit Behavioral Health Arts Festival - this event was held at the Riverside County Fairgrounds in Indio. The reason she mentions this event is because Togo's Sandwiches from Palm Desert supplied all the sandwiches and condiments for the participants. It was one of Palm Desert's restaurants participating in this County Arts Festival. She added this event has grown in that last year there were 230 contestants and this year there were 430, stating that was a lot of artwork displayed. 4. The Livina Desert Reserve - met with Jan Hawkins and learned first hand what is happening there with their projects. She recently went out there with her niece's daughter to feed the giraffes. She thanked Ms. Hawkins for her presentation earlier this evening, stating TLD was an asset and she was glad it was in Palm Desert. E. Mavor Sabbv Jonathan Committee Reports and General Comments. 1. Student of the Month Breakfast - reported this event is one of the fun things the Mayor gets to attend to recognize outstanding students from Palm Desert High School. As Mayor he also attended the Top Ten Students Dinner, but this year they had the top thirteen (13) because some had the same GPA (Grade Point Average). He said we shouldn't lose sight of how fortunate we are with the quality of education we have in Palm Desert, all the way from preschool through a doctorate degree. He keeps getting reports that people specifically move to the City of Palm Desert so that they can attend Palm Desert schools. 2. Concerts in the Park Series - announced that the second concert of the month is this evening with the Petty Breakers. The free concerts are held every Thursday night through May 31, at 7:30 p.m. in the Palm Desert Civic Center Park. He encouraged everyone to arrive early to take advantage of buying from the food trucks. 3. Coffee with the Mavor - this month it was held at the McCallum Theatre. One of the topics was accessibility to Councilmembers, transparency, etc., stating it was a great opportunity to have a discussion in an informal setting. This is held the second Thursday of every month, and the next one will be held at the Palm Desert Aquatic Center. 4. The United States Armv Field Bands & Soldiers' Chorus - announced they will be performing at the McCallum Theatre. This event is free to the public and it's a program from the Federal Government, but it requires sponsorship, and the City of Palm Desert is sponsoring it in 8 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 conjunction with Veteran's Day. Because it's a City -sponsored event, Palm Desert residents get priority as it does sell out. F. City Council Requests for Action. 1. Green Weave Tracks for Bicyclist - Councilmember Kelly stated that at the SCAG Conference they watched videos of cities receiving awards for projects that particularly assist bicycle travel. It became quite clear that a gorgeous shade of green has become universally recognized as the state-of-the-art way to mark bicycle lanes and particularly weave tracks where the suggested path for bicycles might take them across vehicle traffic. She said this was a positive step and eye-catching for vehicles, and it affirms to bicyclists that the City is trying to meet their needs. After having just completed the budget study sessions, she would like staff to explore whether any budget work might embrace movement in this direction. She noted some of the best examples in the Coachella Valley happen to be in the City of La Quinta, and conveniently, Palm Desert has in the interim capacity a staff member that probably knows something about it. Also, this was a great opportunity to accomplish some resident engagement, stating all Councilmembers have heard from bicyclists who have suggestions and input. Therefore, if the City is able to move in this direction, she would invite staff to a simple advisory group of bicyclists, stating she could suggest a couple of names. Mayor Jonathan said he liked the idea very much, but Council has already committed to not overburdening staff after setting the priorities for this coming year. He asked the City Manager if it would be a major undertaking for this coming year. Ms. Aylaian recommended sending this item to the Parks and Recreation Commission and have them see whether they would recommend it somewhere in the City and where, using them as the advisory body. Forming another task force and starting up a new project is more than what staff is ready to take on at this point. Councilmember Kelly added she was sure the Commission would invite input from bicyclists and/or form an ad hoc committee as its project. Mayor Jonathan pointed out he attends the Parks and Recreation Commission meetings as Council's liaison, so if Councilmember Kelly wished to clarify further with him what specifically she wanted to accomplish or if she wanted to make a presentation to the Commission. 9 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Councilmember Kelly noted staff was also in attendance at the SCAG Conference, so she was sure they had a clear idea of what she was requesting. 2. Jacaueline Cochran Regional Airport Joint Powers Authority - Councilmember Harnik said it has come to the attention of the Joint Powers Authority that since the inception, their authority and responsibly has changed considerably. The cities and entities involved pay $1,500 to be involved with the Jacqueline Cochran Airport JPA, and she happens to believe it holds the future of so much of the Coachella Valley as it evolves. The Authority is now looking at the documentation behind the JPA, because all authority has been taken from the cities. Therefore, they are more of an event committee and receive and file as things are presented. She requested the City take a look at this to see if that's what it really wants, and perhaps she can get some direction for when she attends the next meeting and what approach should she take along with the other members of that authority. The fee is typically paid in the month of August, but the next meeting is in June. Ms. Aylaian responded there wasn't much that could be done between now and then, but she will take a look at it. Councilmember Harnik said she will offer at the time of the meeting that they will at least be discussing and entertaining how to go forward on the JPA. Mayor Jonathan offered that if the discussion results in something that requires Palm Desert City Council action, it can be placed on the agenda for consideration. G. City Council Consideration of Travel Requests/Reports. None XI. STAFF REPORTS AND REMARKS A. City Manager 1. City Manager's Meeting Summaries Report for the Period of April 16-27, 2018. With City Council concurrence, the Meeting Summaries Report was received and filed. 10 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 2. Mav 16. 2018. "Bike to Work Dav" - she hopes everyone will take advantage of the opportunity to ride their bicycle to work. For staff members that do so, there will be breakfast burritos awaiting when they reach City Hall. Responding to question, she confirmed that last year there was an employee that rode his bike from Yucaipa. 3. 29 Palms Marine Reaiment - announced that Saturday, May 12, from 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., on the Victory Field, they will be holding an event called "We Salute You Celebration." There will be bands, face painting, food trucks, barbecues, and beer gardens. 4. Mav 6-12. Municipal Clerk's Week - this is a nationwide recognition of everything that municipal clerks do for their cities. In Palm Desert, if you are looking for running for office or looking for meeting minutes, your entry way for information at City Hall is at the City Clerk's Office. She said the City has an excellent staff led by City Clerk Rachelle Klassen and Deputy City Clerk Grace Rocha. The rest of the staff in the City Clerk's Office includes Records Technician Gloria Sanchez, Administrative Secretary Jane Stanley, Office Assistant Ann Avery, and Clerical Assistant Rae Munoz. B. City Attorney None C. City Clerk Ms. Klassen thanked the City Council for their recognition of the City Clerks Department and staff. D. Public Safety 1. Fire Department Chief Brooks reported there has been uptick of remote area rescues on the hiking trails on both ends of the Valley. He reminded everyone that if they were going to go out and enjoy the trails to make sure you are hydrated, check the weather reports, don't hike alone, and take a cell phone. 2. Police Department None 11 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 XII. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Regular City Council Meeting of April 26, 2018. Rec: Approve as presented. B. CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE CITY TREASURY - Warrants Dated 4/13/2018 and 4/20/2018. Rec: Approve as presented. C. APPLICATION FOR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE by Alkobar Quick Stop & Deli, 42005 Cook Street, Suite 110, Palm Desert. Rec: Receive and file. D. RESOLUTION NO. 2018 - 21 - A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California, Setting Forth Its Findings and Authorizing the Destruction of Paper Records that Have Been Digitally Imaged from the Department of Community Development/Planning, to Rely on the Electronic Record as the Official Record - Files From 1978 - 2009 (Exhibit "A"). Rec: Waive further reading and adopt. E. REQUEST FOR RATIFICATION of Purchase Order No. P113500 Issued to BMW Motorcycle of Riverside for Police Motorcycle Maintenance. Rec: By Minute Motion, ratify increasing Purchase Order No. P113500 to BMW Motorcycle of Riverside to $63,000 — funds are available in the FY 2017-2018 Police Services Budget. F. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of a Second One -Year Extension to Contract with M & M Sweeping, Inc., for Commercial and Residential Street Sweeping Services in the Amount of $140,809.56 (Contract No. C34242). Rec: By Minute Motion, approve/authorize: 1) A second, one-year extension of subject contract with M & M Sweeping, Inc., Thousand Palms, California, for Commercial and Residential Street Sweeping in the amount of $140,809.56; 2) Mayor to execute said contract extension —funds are available in the General Fund Account No. 1104310-4332000 - Street Repair and Maintenance. 12 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 G. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of a First Extension to Contract with Desert Limnologists, Inc. (d.b.a. Southwest Aquatics), for Lagoon and Water Features Maintenance Services in the Amount of $34,999.92 (Contract No. C36001). Removed for separate consideration under Section XII, Consent Items Held Over. Please see that portion of the Minutes for Council discussion and action. H. REQUEST FOR ACCEPTANCE OF WORK for Contract No. C36470 — Charger Turf Removal and Landscaping Project (Project No. 960-17) (Candyl Golf Group, Inc., La Quinta, CA). Rec: By Minute Motion, accept the work as complete and authorize City Clerk to file a Notice of Completion for the subject project. I. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of Palm Desert's 2018 Independence Day Celebration. Rec: By Minute Motion: 1) Preapprove and authorize expenditures in an amount not to exceed $60,000 from the FY 2018-2019 Budget for production of the 2018 Independence Day Celebration event; 2) authorize City Manager to execute contract with Pyro Spectaculars, Inc., in the amount of $40,000 for the fireworks display (Contract No. C37020A); 3) authorize City Manager to execute ancillary vendor contracts associated with production of the event in an amount not to exceed $20,000 — funding for this event will be included as part of the FY 2018-2019 Budget and available in City -Produced Events Account No. 1104416-4306101. J. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of a Sponsorship Agreement in the Amount of $35,000 with Desert Biennial for the 2019 Desert X Exhibition (Contract No. C37030). Rec: By Minute Motion: 1) Approve a Sponsorship Agreement in the amount of $35,000 with Desert Biennial for the 2019 Desert X Exhibition to be held February 9 - April 21, with: a) Funds in the amount of $20,000 being requested as part of the FY 2018-2019 Marketing Department Budget; b) funds in the amount of $15,000 being requested as part of the FY 2018-2019 Public Art Budget Fund No. 436; 2) authorize staff to finalize negotiations of the Sponsorship Agreement with Desert Biennial and authorize Mayor to execute same, subject to satisfaction of the City Attorney; 3) waive all permit and inspection fees associated with the Desert X Exhibition. 13 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 K. RESOLUTION NO. 2018 - 22 - A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California, Supporting Proposition 69, the June 2018 Constitutional Amendment to Prevent New Transportation Funds Generated by Senate Bill 1 from Being Diverted for Non -Transportation Purposes. Rec: Waive further reading and adopt. L. RESOLUTION NO. 2018 - 23 - A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California, Opposing a Proposed 2018 Ballot Measure Sponsored by the California Business Roundtable and American Beverage Association that Limits Local Control. Rec: Waive further reading and adopt. M. CONSIDERATION of a Letter of Support for SB 1043 (Newman) - Department of Veterans Affairs: Veterans' Services. Rec: By Minute Motion, approve a letter of support for SB 1043 (Newman). Councilmember Harnik requested Item G be removed for separate consideration under Section XIII - Consent Items Held Over. Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion, approve the remainder of the Consent Calendar. Motion was seconded by Nestande. Councilmember Harnik stated her comments were directed at Item K, relating to supporting Proposition 69, but having to do with funds generated by Senate Bill 1. It seems so out of whack that the City has to support a proposition that states money that is raised for transportation funds should only be used for transportation, which is necessitated because of what has happened in the past. Mayor Jonathan called for the vote and it carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). XIII. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER G. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL of a First Extension to Contract with Desert Limnologists, Inc. (d.b.a. Southwest Aquatics), for Lagoon and Water Features Maintenance Services in the Amount of $34,999.92 (Contract No. C36001). Councilmember Harnik said she had no issue with this item, but a community member brought up the fact that there are two fountains on El Paseo that during the desperate time of conserving water, they were not used. She wondered if it was time to start them up again. 14 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Landscape Supervisor Randy Chavez replied that Item G is strictly for the maintenance of the lagoon and water feature at Entrada del Paseo, which is under the Art In Public Places. Management Analyst Deborah Glickman offered that one of the fountains has already been turned on, but there is an issue with the pump on the west, so they are working on finding a pump replacement to turn it back on. Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Approve a first extension to subject contract with Desert Limnologists, Inc. (d.b.a. Southwest Aquatics), Palm Desert, California, for Lagoon and Water Features Maintenance Services in the amount of $34,999.92; 2) include extra repair work and services in an amount not to exceed $10,000; 3) authorize the City Manager to execute subject contract extension and all related documents, including any Change Orders and the related three, one-year extensions when and if deemed appropriate by staff — funds are available in General Fund Account Nos. 1104610-4332001 - R/M Landscape Services and 1104614-4332501 - R/M Other. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). XIV. RESOLUTIONS A. RESOLUTION NO. 2018 - 24 - A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AUTHORIZING PARTICIPATION IN THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE MORTGAGE CREDIT CERTIFICATE (MCC) PROGRAM. Senior Management Analyst Jessica Gonzales stated this request will authorize the participation in the Riverside County Mortgage Credit Certificate Program. The City's participation in the MCC Program will allow eligible home buyers to purchase a home by reducing the amount of their Federal Income Tax Liability and allowing a larger amount to be eligible to be qualified by a lender. Councilmember Kelly moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 2018 - 24. Motion was seconded by Nestande and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). XV. ORDINANCES A. For Introduction: None B. For Adoption: None 15 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 XVI. NEW BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSED ROUNDABOUT DESIGN CONCEPT FOR THE INTERSECTION OF SAN PABLO AVENUE AND SAN GORGONIO WAY AND SAN PABLO AVENUE AND THE COLLEGE OF THE DESERT'S EAST ENTRANCE AS PART OF THE SAN PABLO CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT (PROJECT NO. 691-16). Senior Engineer Joel Montalvo stated this was a continuation of a study session Council had on the San Pablo Corridor Improvement Project. Councilmember Nestande offered she was thoroughly satisfied with the data provided at the study session, that roundabouts are safer than the traditional crosswalks, in terms of pedestrians. One of the concerns with the roundabouts was that pedestrian and bicyclist incidents might occur, but according to the data, roundabouts reduce those types of incidents. Mr. Montalvo said the data shows roundabouts tend to slow traffic down, which allows the driver to see pedestrians and bicyclist, so a roundabout generally reduces accidents. Councilmember Kelly was pleased with the specific perspective designs Council was shown for the proposed locations, because they afforded safe spots half way across the street, giving pedestrians an advantage over the status quo. Therefore, she was content to support staffs recommendation. Councilmember Harnik commented that on San Pablo, and certainly on San Gregonio, the City will be doing a road diet and thereby extending the sidewalks. She said she liked roundabouts, the idea of having one at the College; the one at Palm Desert Country Club seems to work well because it keeps traffic moving. She said she noticed Council received a diagram of an intersection with very wide streets, and it's shown next to a roundabout with very narrow streets, which is not really a fair comparison. She understands one slows down when approaching a roundabout so you can navigate it safely, but you really slow down when coming to a stop sign. The discussion in the study session did not persuade her or convinced her that the City would be better off with a roundabout, because it keeps vehicles moving and at a four-way stop vehicles and bicycles "shall" stop, which she believed was safer. As part of the project, streets are being narrowed, which in turn creates a more narrow intersection; thereby creating an even safer way of getting across. She questions what problem is being solved that the City wants to create a roundabout where it currently has a four-way stop. The fact that the roundabout will have a safe place to stop in the middle of the street does not convince her it's safer to make a turn or walk across. She saw the stats, but they could have easily been construed to go the other 16 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 way. She liked roundabouts in other areas, but not at San Gregonio and San Pablo. Therefore, she will not support staffs recommendation. Councilmember Kelly asked if there were any instances where roundabouts were constructed, and thereafter, a stop sign was added in any direction of traffic. She's just wondering if that option would be feasible to even think about after construction, if experience shows Council it would be a good idea. Mr. Montalvo replied he did not know of a roundabout where a stop sign was included as part of a design. Further responding, he wasn't a traffic engineer, but he was a civil engineer, and he himself would not install a stop sign within or by a roundabout. Roundabouts by nature facilitate movement, and the more modern roundabouts are now designed to facilitate movement of both vehicles and bicycles. Mr. Jonasson offered that on larger roundabouts, the treatment has been activated pedestrian type crossings, like the one discussed in the study session where you would be able to illuminate the crosswalk to protect pedestrians. In response to Councilmember Harnik's point of the wide crosswalk next to a narrow roundabout configuration, it is because the wide crosswalk maintains the left -turn pocket from the four-way stop, if the City was to leave it, which is the reason for such comparison. Further responding, he explained that in order to avoid having a significant drop in the level of service, at least at the intersection, the City would have to create the same turning movements you get with a roundabout, which is that you can make a left turn by going three-quarters around the roundabout. In order to do that with a four-way stop, you have to have a left -turn pocket, otherwise traffic will start backing up down stream. Councilmember Harnik said part of the goal in this area is to encourage vehicles to use other streets. Mr. Jonasson replied the City will achieve that by restricting the flow, because people will have to wait for the left turn if you were to narrow it to just one lane to enter. Mayor Jonathan asked what would be the primary objective for creating a roundabout. Mr. Montalvo replied that as part of the design team, he's looking at the modern roundabout for facilitating movement for vehicles and pedestrians all at the same time, while maintaining positive traffic flow. Mayor Jonathan asked if it was fair to conclude that one of the results of the roundabout is that according to the experts there is increased safety for 17 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 pedestrian and bicyclists at crossings. He recalled hearing the potential conflict went down to 12 from 34, according to the numbers discussed at the study session. Additionally, if the City is creating skinnier roads, a roundabout is a preferable and effective way of moving traffic and providing pedestrian safety. Mr. Montalvo agreed, however, if the City installs a four-way stop, and it's also trying to put parking in the middle, those two will conflict with each other. It conflicts with the left -turn movement, but also with parking when folks are trying to back out into that safe space. Further responding, if the decision is to go with a four-way stop, the project will lose parking spaces in the general area and will need to go with wider intersection, thereby, redesigning the project. Currently, the intersection width is about 90 feet and a roundabout will bring it down to 20 feet with an island in the middle. Councilmember Harnik stated that from her experience with being on the Riverside County Transportation Commission, Coachella Valley Association of Governments, and the City Council, generally when you install a roundabout where there is a right-hand turn and you don't have to stop, the impetus for those traffic flows is an air quality issue. Often they are installed to avoid vehicles sitting there idling. She believed the City was trying to have fewer cars on that street, but here there are several options, because you can either keep the street wide to accommodate a lot of vehicles, narrow the street to have fewer vehicles with a four-way stop, or narrow the streets to create a roundabout so vehicles keep moving. She is not a stranger to roundabouts, and she understands they are very effective in the right places. She reminded everyone that the City was trying to create a walkable community, so a four-way stop at San Gregonio is the best option. Councilmember Nestande said a design firm was hired to see how to make this Envision San Pablo become a reality. Therefore, the experts have studied it, and at the study session they were very convincing that a roundabout hit all the right buttons in terms of making Envision San Pablo a reality. In terms of creating walkable space, on a day when it's 100+ degrees, she didn't think people will want to walk two or three miles and/or is the intent just for the neighbors that live close by. Councilmember Harnik replied the staff report states, "de-emphasize single low -occupancy vehicles and optimize modes of travel." Therefore, the City is trying to get these single low -occupancy vehicles off the street. On hot days people may not want to walk, but eight months out of the year they probably do. The staff report also states, "improve access to Palm Desert in its attraction to enhance the ease of lifestyle, creating a mix -use core integrating shopping, dining, lodging, and housing." She noticed the engineers who were making the presentation at the study session loves roundabouts, so they did their best to present a case for them, but they 18 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 didn't say what the upside would be for a four-way stop sign. She reiterated she couldn't justify a roundabout at San Gregonio and San Pablo when the City is trying to make it safe for people to walk. Councilmember Kelly confessed she was an unrepentant skeptic about roundabouts, and staff tries to steer her away from the Morongo one for fear it will imprint in her brain. She's very thankful for the study session, and she didn't think the City would have done it if Councilmember Harnik hadn't put the spotlight on this issue, so she appreciated that she did. However, she is content with the information presented at the study session, stating she is one of those persons who walks three miles on a hot day and she can now picture it being a safety enhancement over the present. Mayor Jonathan said Councilmember Harnik's concerns resonated with him and they are cogent and valid, but he wasn't sure there was a solution that checked off all the boxes in this matter. He was persuaded that not having a roundabout would result in a design modification that would lessen the project. He likes where the City is going with the San Pablo project with wider sidewalks, room for a Class 1 bicycle path, the center median, and parking, which is all very appealing; he would hate to diminish the design. Even in sharing the concerns that have been raised, he would be in favor of the roundabouts on both intersections. He recently happened to be in Portland, which is a very pedestrian friendly city, and they have those pedestrian activated crosswalks. Here in the summer people walk early in the mornings when it's still dark, so if that type of feature can be incorporated at the two intersections, it would be smart. Councilmember Nestande moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize staff to proceed with the proposed roundabout design concept for the intersections of San Pablo and San Gorgonio Way and for San Pablo and College of the Desert's east entrance as part of the San Pablo Corridor Improvements Project. Motion was seconded by Weber and carried by a 4-1 vote (AYES: Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: Harnik). B. CONSIDERATION OF THE APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS TO THE PALM DESERT MUNICIPAL CODE, CHAPTER 5.10, AND ADOPTION OF A RESOLUTION SETTING FORTH A POLICY FOR SHORT-TERM RENTAL HARDSHIP EXTENSIONS. Mr. Stendell stated the proposed Resolution is to set up policy for guiding staff as the City phases out short-term rentals (STRs) in the R1 and R2 Districts by December 31, 2019. This policy has been set up in large part by the City Attorney's office in consultation with City staff. In summary, staff attempted to create a valuation occurring at December 31, 2019, where an owner would have to submit to the City total liabilities incurred on the property and compared to total revenues on the property. The intent is to help STR operators be in the black by December 31, 2019, and the policy 19 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 will allow some leniency for potential claims to be extended. The City Manager would have the discretion to extend the STR permit, providing a property owner extra time to get closer to the black. The goal is to not leave anybody in a tough financial state and for the City to have discretion with the extension of permits if extra time is needed to help with operations. Based on the proposed policy, staff doesn't anticipate receiving many applications. Recommendation No. 3 is asking for City Council direction for setting up a fee, if any. Staff has received correspondence from STR operators that if the City was truly giving operators an opportunity for a hardship extension that it's a very onerous and complex project that any large fee could be prohibitive in their estimation. Therefore, staff is looking for some guidance on whether the City Council desires staff to structure a fee recovering all cost, some cost, or no cost. He said staff could research and come back with an appropriate policy. MS. LESLIE MILLER, Goldflower Street, Palm Desert, commented that the City Council knew her position as far as the ban on STR. However, given that it is proposed, she wants to share the economic impact it will have on her personally. She has a corporation, which is nationally run and manages her two properties. Right now she has no option to sell because her obligation runs through Coachella Fest of next year in April. The corporation will purchase her property at a loss of $500,000, which is very substantial. Her only option is to put both properties on the market at the time that the lease runs out. It would mean her properties would go on the market with a whole bunch of other properties at the same time. She appreciates the City hiring an economic expert as she has worked with experts, specifically MAI's (Member Appraisal Institute) dealing with the income approach to valuation. She would like to be included, if possible, with a round table discussion with that economist. This is in context with her representation of the federal government following the failures of the savings and loans institutions in the United States, so she did have experience on this. She said the income approach would be eliminated from the economist's valuation of the economic impact, unless it is made as part of the analysis. Someone like her would be left out at a substantial cost. While she appreciated what the City was doing, she appreciated Tracy Jackson's letter, proposing grandfathering in because she has six properties and it was part of her financial plan. The only way that proposal, even if it's considered and approved, would cover her if the grandfather applied to run with the property. In other words, it's part of the property and not part of the owner, and she didn't see that being addressed. She would have been willing to sell her property now before the repeal takes effect, but she couldn't because she's bound by her own contract with the property manager. She goes back to her position that STR can work with good regulation and enforcement. She reiterated she wants to be included when the economist makes the report, because she's concerned about the impact to the City and homeowners. 20 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 MS. AMANDA HOFFMANN, Manager of Operations of Vacation Palm Springs, noted she was born and raised in the Coachella Valley and her recently retired husband, who was a Sheriff Deputy, was previously stationed in Palm Desert. She thanked staff for their hard work in revising the proposal to provide homeowners impacted by the ban the opportunity for a hardship extension. Vacation Palm Springs is one of the few companies with an actual physical presence in Palm Desert that employs Palm Desert residents, including small businesses and vendors. As a professional manager they have a vested interest in partnering with the City to comply with its local rules and regulations. They look forward to working with the City to ensure Palm Desert remains a destination for visitors and a desirable community for longtime residents and families. She offered three minor suggestions that would improve the revised proposal on the following: 1) Substantial fees for the Drocessina of the application. The proposal states that the City could pass on fees related to the hiring of outside accountants to review applications, which may be expensive. She respectfully requested that the cost not be passed on to the homeowners who may have to hire their own professional accountants to complete or review the application; 2) Relatina to Exhibit A - Subsection 1, which states that an extension application filed pass December 31, 2019, will not be granted. She asked that homeowners be allowed to operate passed the sunset date, if the City is still reviewing the application, which is consistent with the City's previous policy when it placed a moratorium on STR permits while it considered the Ordinance last year; 3) Relatina to Exhibit A - Subsection 3, which states the Director of Community Development may request additional information and the owner must provide that information within 30 days. The request for additional information may prevent the homeowners from being decided prior to the December deadline. Here again, if such request is made Tess than 30 days from the deadline, allow the homeowner to operate pass the deadline. Lastly, she commended Director of Community Development Ryan Stendell, Principal Planner Eric Ceja, and Associate Planner Kevin Swartz, because she knew it has not been easy on Council and staff to address this very sensitive issue in a timely and inclusive manner, and she appreciated the work and efforts made. Mr. Hargreaves offered that the idea of the policy is to be flexible in its implementation, and as Mr. Stendell succinctly stated, staff will try to make sure people come out in the black. He said the City recognizes there could be a lot of distinct circumstances and staff wants the ability to engage on those type of applications. Staff wants to be able to do what it can to make sure no one suffers a hardship by the situation. Flexibility would also apply to the process, stating staff plans to open up the applications in June, giving homeowners 18 months for consideration. Staff is making an internal commitment in the policy to address applications and complete the process within four months. However, people should not be waiting to the last minute to submit their application and delaying the process. The City wants to 21 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 encourage people to get their applications in early so they can be considered, and hopefully if they submit it by the end of this year, they will have a whole year before they are required to cease operation if they are not granted an extension. The intention is to be flexible, recognizing staff doesn't know what individual circumstances it will encounter. Staff may come back to the City Council to tinker with it going forward to make sure it treats everyone fairly in the process. Mr. Stendell said he believed Mr. Hargreaves addressed Ms. Hoffmann's suggestions 2 and 3, adding staff would be concerned about applications coming in late and then having to extend the process because they made a late filing. In response suggestion 1 regarding substantial fees, staff is asking for City Council direction. Staff understands there are costs associated with this process and Council can direct staff to recover all, recover some, or recover none. Mayor Jonathan said he believed the objective of this policy is to look at the owner's investment, which includes the purchase price of the home, capital improvements, and investment expenses. Then take the owners investment and compare it with the revenue, including the fair market value of the home. If the investment exceeds the revenues and fair market value, then there is a potential Toss. The idea is to give the owner an opportunity to recoup that loss by continuing STR operation. A couple of things he didn't see defined that may come back to be potential problems, for example, in the staff report on page 2 of 3, Under Policy by Resolution, Item 1A - Relating to the purchase price of the home, he didn't see non -purchase acquisition being addressed, and sometimes people inherit a home. The other is Item 1 B - Capital Improvements to the property, he said he lived in that world and it's all about definitions, so different people would define capital improvements differently. Lastly, Item 1C - Expenses of the STR Operations, most people would know what were talking about here, but again what if someone claims a trip to Las Vegas to attend a STR Trade Show, is it an expense of operating a STR. He didn't see those definitions and applicants will have different interpretations. He also didn't see period of time being addressed, which he believed would be useful. Similarly, when looking at Section 2 - Revenues Generated by the STR, there is no time period. If the City determines the applicant qualifies for a waiver, how long is the extension and has staff considered a time limit, because if there is a big deficit, he questioned if it would be appropriate to extend for the next 20 years. Mr. Hargreaves replied that everything Mayor Jonathan mentioned has been part of the discussion and some of the concerns are addressed in the Ordinance or Resolution, such as the time frame, non -purchase acquisitions, etc. With regard to expenses, staff hasn't focused on that, but one of the ideas was to use the schedules from the IRS return. 22 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mayor Jonathan responded that on that point, there are two bodies of law that can apply. One of which is the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) Code of 1986 as amended, which is a possibility, but there is also the Generally Accepted Accounting Principals (GAAP), but they differ. Again, his point is that it's not defined, which creates private territory for debate and disagreement. He said the proposed Ordinance fails to provide definitions, so staff may want to refer to future guidelines and engage one or both of these accountings to develop definitions so that applicants know how to put together the calculation described in the report. Mr. Hargreaves said the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) consultants have been engaged in this policy, and they assisted with the definitions that are included. There again, staff engage with them, because those kinds of issues are unfamiliar to staff. He said hopefully staff will have more defined answers as they move forward. Mr. Stendell pointed out that Recommendation No. 2 of the proposed Resolution has an Exhibit A attached that indicates the City is leaning on the IRS Schedule C, and it lists the definitions of accepted criteria. Those definitions came about from the meetings and input from the CPA's on how to best compile this information. It may need further tweaking, but staff is leaning on the IRS for the majority of the data, and there is no reference to GAAP. Mayor Jonathan reiterated that when you get into this type of situation where it calls for a calculation, if you don't define every term in the basic formula, there is going to be debate and disagreement and there won't be clear answers, because it will come down to interpretation and opinion. His suggestion is that the Ordinance refer to the guidelines that shall be developed to the extent deemed necessary. It will provide a leeway to expand on what's in the Ordinance. Additionally, add language that states ". . . and any other forms deemed necessary by City staff or their representatives." He's trying to create doors that give the accountants and staff the ability deemed helpful to further define some of these terms. Mr. Hargreaves said the next task is to come up with an application or spreadsheet to assist the applicants. He added there is language in the Ordinance that tends to open up for the applicant to provide relevant information, including staff having the ability to ask for more information, stating the process is going to be flexible. In response to how long an extension will be given, he said there wasn't one, because he wants the City to maintain flexibility. He recalled for the City Council that the City started the STR permit in 2012, and since then property values on detached homes have increased by about 50%, and that increase compared to the value of the homes will resolve the majority of the issues, and most of the other homes won't qualify. He believes the applications that will be reviewed are 23 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 those who purchased in the not to distant past or people that have invested a lot of money into the property, specifically for STR and haven't had the opportunity to have a return on their investment. He also didn't anticipate that it will be a precise process that will be determined by tax returns, because there is a lot of grey area. The expectation is that the City will try to be fair to the owners. Mayor Jonathan said he appreciates the intent, but when it comes to numbers and calculations, people will want and need more specifics. He questioned how the fair market value will be determined. Mr. Hargreaves said the City has consultants assisting and they will come up with ranges, because he didn't anticipate asking for appraisals, stating the City will go with what is reasonable under the circumstances. Mayor Jonathan asked how will the City address a situation where an owner is under contract for five years because of Coachella Fest, and it's not a hardship under the formula, but they have a legal contract that they can't break. Mr. Hargreaves agrees this policy doesn't address that type of situation, and staff will have to see what those contracts look like and deal with them. Mayor Jonathan questioned whether the City will have flexibility to grant an extension on the basis of an existing contract if the proposed Ordinance doesn't provide for it. Mr. Hargreaves replied the Ordinance needs to be implemented in a way that doesn't result in an unconstitutional taking of property, because the constitution has another provision that doesn't allow the City to impair contracts. He said the City will have to go through that analysis based on a specific set of facts, and if staff has to come back to the City Council for further guidance that's what they intend to do. He wants to get some applications in to see what it's dealing with and if more direction is needed, they will do so. Councilmember Kelly noted there is language at the bottom of page 3 and 4 in Exhibit A that speaks to non -purchase acquisitions. She added there was great merit in trying to anticipate and create definitions in advance. To be short, the City is drafting definitions in such a way that they don't speak to specific cases, leaving the City subject to claims of favoritism one way or the other. Ordinarily, she's sympathetic to what Mayor Jonathan was saying, but in this case, there is a countervailing interest, which is that the City wants to get this process out there as soon as possible so it can see what comes in and what adaptations may be necessary. She leans toward moving this forward, because she's confident that staff has explained that it will apply the 24 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Ordinance with liberality, which means that it won't be refining definitions in a way that gives rise to those claims of favoritism or lack thereof. Councilmember Nestande concurred. She pointed out that staff asked how much to charge for the process and she's leaning toward not recouping all the cost and implementing a minimal fee. Mayor Pro Tem Weber inquired about the application itself questioning how extensive it would be, because the people that will be applying for an extension did not want STR to go away. Also, she didn't want a fee imposed, stating the burden should be on the City of Palm Desert. It's important to have an application that is simplified, and she heard the City Attorney say the City wants to be reasonable and fair, however, staff may ask for additional information. She said it was very costly to be filling out all these forms and answering all the questions, so she didn't want to add another burden by having them pay a fee. Secondly, if the application is well defined, the City can be consistent on how it will handle approvals. She encouraged staff to make the application as simplistic and consistent as possible, stating the variances being at the end of the application so they stick out, which may make the process go faster. She realizes it will be a challenge, but the Ordinance will provide guidelines for the process, because there have been several incidences that have popped up now that need to be addressed. She reiterated she supported a zero fee for applicants and suggested a simplified application. Mayor Jonathan said he understood the overarching need to move quickly, but he's troubled by the lack of specificity. The ideal ordinance would have an actual form attached with every line item, walking the applicant through a formula with an explanation for each, and well defined, etc. The way the Ordinance is drafted now, if the City receives five applications, there will be five different formats, resulting in five different interpretations, which will make it difficult on the accountants. However, if the City needs to move forward and cross its fingers, then as it runs into questions and issues, hopefully Council can address them without having to modify the Ordinance. He's concerned about the cost the City will incur and hopefully there won't be a large volume of applications, because between City Attorney and accountant's time at $360/hr, a single application may be a little under $10,000 in cost. If the City receives five applications, it could cost the City $50,000, which is not cheap. On the other hand, the applicant has to spend similar amounts of money if they are going to present a substantive application. Mr. Hargreaves asked the City Council to establish a fee that dissuades an informal and poorly prepared application. Responding to question, he confirmed an application can be rejected, but the City still has to go through the process. The other possibility is that when there is a valid application 25 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 that is granted an extension, the City can give an applicant an extra one or two months to recoup the fees. Mr. Stendell stated that with STR you're dealing with substantial volume of income, so you don't want to make the fee to low that someone just slaps down $500 to go through the process. However, staff is the one that deems an application complete; otherwise, it will just get thrown out. If the City Council determines it wants a fee, he suggested something more substantial like a couple thousand dollars. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said Council was discussing a fee on an application it has not seen, so she couldn't support imposing a fee if she didn't know all that it entailed. When people see the actual application, then they will determine whether or not it's worth their time to go through the process. Regardless of what the City decides to charge, applicants will be having to pay a fortune to gather and organize the information. She would be interested to know how many frivolous applications will be submitted. Mr. Hargreaves offered that staff was just seeking policy guidance in terms of coming up with a fee, in that the fee itself was not up for consideration this evening. Staff will endeavor to come back to the City Council with a resolution and a draft application. Councilmember Nestande said she was advocating for a no fee. Councilmember Kelly stated she would like the fee to be less than what would be necessary for full recovery cost. Her gut reaction was that a couple thousand dollars seemed too high, because the requirements are extensive. She didn't believe there would be a great temptation to just throw in a schlock application to see what happens, so she felt Council could consider going with a lower fee. Mayor Jonathan suggested an initial fee to submit the application, which would be non-refundable at $500. If the application is deemed processable, it will cost an additional $1,000 to move the process forward. The reason he thought those costs were reasonable is because STR are a business. He heard from many individuals that own multiple properties, so he felt the City was not just dealing with businesses, but relatively successful businesses. Based on the fees he suggested, and with the potential cost to the City of $6,000 to $15,000, applicants would only be paying 25% of that $15,000 range. He understands staff was just looking for feedback and not an actual decision on the fee. Responding to question, Mr. Hargreaves clarified that the City Council was considering two items this evening. One was an Ordinance that sets up the process, and the second item was a Resolution authorizing a policy for a 26 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 STR Hardship Extension. At this time, Council was not considering the fee, because that would be a separate resolution that would come back to the City Council at another meeting. Councilmember Kelly moved to: 1) Waive further reading and Pass Ordinance No. 1338 to second reading, amending Palm Desert Municipal Code Section 5.10.070 and adding Section 5.10.075 related to Short -Term Rental (STR) Hardship Extensions; 2) waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 2018 - 25, authorizing a policy for STR Hardship Extensions. Motion was seconded by Nestande and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). Mayor Jonathan called for a short recess at 6:16 p.m. He reconvened the meeting at 6:26 p.m. C. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE AREA NO. 6 TO HORIZON PROFESSIONAL LANDSCAPE IN THE AMOUNT OF $86,400 AND AUTHORIZE RELATED REPAIR WORK AND SERVICES FOR AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $25,000 (CONTRACT NO. C36580, PROJECT NO. 906-19). Landscape Supervisor Randy Chavez noted the staff report and offered to answer questions. Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award subject contract for Landscape Maintenance Area No. 6 to Horizon Professional Landscape, Coachella, California, in the amount of $86,400; 2) authorize City Manager to approve extra repair work and services for an amount not to exceed $25,000; 3) authorize City Manager to execute said contract —funds are available in Account No. 4414195-4332000 - R/M Desert Willow. Motion was seconded by Weber and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). D. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE AREA NO. 9 TO MARIPOSA LANDSCAPES, INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $211,680 AND AUTHORIZE RELATED REPAIR WORK AND SERVICES FOR AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 20% OF THE CONTRACT (CONTRACT NO. C36590, PROJECT NO. 909-19). Landscape Supervisor Randy Chavez noted the staff report and offered to answer questions. Councilmember Harnik pointed out the staff report explains how in 2012, staff consulted with the City Attorney to revise the bidding process from a low -bid selection to a service -based selection. She's happy the City made 27 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 the change, because in the past staff had to make revisions, request change orders, and now staff selects whom they genuinely believe will do the best job. Mr. Chavez replied that the next three contracts are service -based; however, the City does have contracts that are not as demanding, which is still a Public Works low -bid contract. Staff is assessing that year by year to see how well the contractors are performing. Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award subject contract for Landscape Maintenance Area No. 9 to Mariposa Landscapes, Inc., Irwindale, California, in the amount of $211,680; 2) authorize City Manager to approve extra repair work and services for an amount not to exceed 20% of the contract (or $42,336); 3) authorize City Manager to execute said contract — funds are available in General Fund Account No. 1104614-4337001 - R/M Medians. Motion was seconded by Weber and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). E. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE AREA NO. 17 TO EXCEL LANDSCAPE, INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $291,000 AND AUTHORIZE RELATED REPAIR WORK AND SERVICES FOR AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 20% OF THE CONTRACT (CONTRACT NO. C36600, PROJECT NO. 917-19). Landscape Supervisor Randy Chavez stated this was another service -based contract. Mayor Jonathan noticed Kirkpatrick Landscaping Services had virtually the same score as Excel Landscape, Inc., which was basically two points less, but at a savings of more than $50,000. He asked about the compelling reasons for selecting the higher proposal. Mr. Chavez explained that the City increased the frequencies on the duties for this contract significantly by 100% based on the different events held at the Civic Center Park, and Kirkpatrick submitted a bid at what the City was currently paying, which was alarming to staff, because the cost of minimum wage and dump fees have increased. He added that some of the contractors look at what the City is currently paying and they decrease their bid by a certain percentage, which is what it appeared to be with this contract. Further, Kirkpatrick services other separate contracts within the City, and they have required extensive supervision by the inspectors. Since this contract is for the Civic Center, which is a high frequency and high demand contract, staff didn't feel they had the capabilities to perform the duties as described. Mayor Jonathan questioned why then did they score so high. 28 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mr. Chavez said a lot of the contractors received high scores because they have a local office, and the ones that scored lower was due to not submitting the required forms. Mayor Jonathan said he was hearing staff say they were not comparing apples to apples, which was disturbing, because one would think it was vetted through the process. He hopes that when someone is bidding $291,000 and someone else is bidding $238,000, if it's not for the same level of services, one gets thrown out or gets a very low score, but that's not what he's seeing here in the staff report. Mr. Chavez offered that staff consulted with the City Attorney on some of the proposals that came in. For instance, with Kirkpatrick, the amount of labor they suggested was far lower than what is actually needed. He said the scoring was done by an objective panel consisting of an engineer, a planner, and a landscaper, so it wasn't looked at through the lense of strictly landscape. They looked at things they liked other than what the landscape requirements entailed. He was the only person on the panel that specifically looked at their landscape proposal. Therefore, when the scores were tabulated, Kirkpatrick aggregate scores were high, however, what they submitted was not enough to fulfill the specifications of the contract. Mayor Jonathan said he would not belabor the point, but as someone who reads the staff reports and tries to gain knowledge from it, he's looking at a proposal that's $50,000 lower and was rated through the process by virtually the same as the one costing the City $50,000 more. The explanations provided by staff, he's sure are accurate, but they are inconsistent with the report. He would be challenged to accept staffs recommendation, because there is an opportunity for the City to save $50,000, which is a lot of money that can be used in another way, stating he felt there was a disconnect here. Councilmember Harnik added it sounded like Mr. Chavez was reviewing the proposals through the landscape lense where Kirkpatrick rated lower, and the other scores brought them up. With the minimum wage rising constantly, the City could wind up in trouble if it doesn't take that into consideration. However, she understood the Mayor's point, and she suggested that in the future perhaps staff can present this in another way where Council can look at it and understand why staff made a certain decision. Councilmember Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award subject contract for Landscape Maintenance Area No. 17 to Excel Landscape, Inc., Corona, California, in the amount of $291,000; 2) authorize extra repair work and services in an amount not to exceed 20% of the contract (or $58,200); 3) authorize Mayor to execute said contract — funds are available in General Fund Account Nos. 1104610-4332001 - R/M Civic Center Park, 1104610-4337100 - Tri-Cities Sports Facility; and 1104611-4332001 - R/M Parks. Motion was seconded by Harnik. 29 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mayor Jonathan noted he would be casting his vote based on his reading of the staff report. Mayor Jonathan called for the vote and the motion carried by a 4-1 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, and Weber; NOES: Jonathan). F. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION TO AWARD CONTRACT FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TO FAMILY YMCA OF THE DESERT FOR MANAGEMENT AND STAFFING OF THE PALM DESERT AQUATIC CENTER FOR $165,000 PLUS REIMBURSEMENT OF ALL COSTS (CONTRACT NO. C36620). Mayor Jonathan said the staff report indicates the current contract ends June 30, 2018, questioning what would happen if the City Council didn't approve the contract, given it was the month of May. Mr. Terfehr replied staff could ask for an extension of the existing contract. Mayor Jonathan said that when contracts are brought up for renewals or extension before the City Council, the more lead time the better, because on occasion it may surprise staff and vote "Nay." To that point, there have been times when the City has been in a real pickle, and in that event, Council feels like it has to accept it, because the alternative is not pretty. Therefore, whatever can be done to get these contract renewals and extension sooner rather than later would be appreciated. Mayor Pro Tem Weber noted the staff report indicates the City gives the YMCA $165,000 for management and staffing, and on another page it states it is scheduling an administrative reimbursable, and it also has salaries, benefits, taxes, insurance, audit, etc., adding up to almost $160,000. She asked if the $165,000 plus the $160,000 an estimated amount for all costs. Mr. Terfehr replied that the budget for the Aquatic Center is $1.5 million, and the City pays all the salaries for the lifeguards, management and maintenance of the facility, chemicals, etc. He said it's reimbursable for the management, which includes the overhead for human resources, payroll, and various management functions they perform that are not included in the salaries of the employees. Further responding, he said there are certain things the City pays directly, which is the chemical acquisition and maintenance of the equipment, but everything else is through the YMCA, as far as the management of the facility. Mayor Pro Tem Weber stated that in other words, the City reimburses up to $1.5 million. Mr. Terfehr answered yes, adding the YMCA has to work within the City's budget. 30 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award subject contract for Professional Services to Family YMCA of the Desert, Palm Desert, California, for management and staffing of the Palm Desert Aquatic Center; 2) authorize the Mayor to execute said agreement — if actions are approved, funds are available in the following Account Nos: 2424549-4802101 - Aquatic Contracted Labor, 2424549-4309000 - Professional -Other, 2424549-4309300 - Professional -Other - Administrative Expenses, 2424549-4801100 - COGS - Food & Merchandise. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). Mayor Jonathan expressed his appreciation to the YMCA for doing an admiral job in managing the Aquatic Center, stating cost recovery has been faster and greater. Additionally, in terms of safety, special events, family events, the Aquatic has become such an important resource, which was a credit to the very professional management at the YMCA. G. REQUEST FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING, LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE, AND UTILITY DESIGN SERVICES FOR THE PRESIDENT'S PLAZA EAST AND WEST PARKING LOT IMPROVEMENTS TO DUDEK OF LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $606,120 (CONTRACT NO. C37040, PROJECT NO. 758-14). Senior Engineer Joel Montalvo stated this item was for the design of the President's Plaza East and West Parking Lot Improvements. Mayor Pro Tem Weber called attention to page 2 of 4 of the staff report where it states, "The optional tasks will only be performed if individual building owners provide temporary construction easements," stating she thought the owners owned their individual property. Mr. Montalvo replied they did, and the City has easement up to the curb of the parking lot, and beyond the parking lot going into the buildings, there are a lot of entrances that are non -Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant, so to be able to go in there and work, the City needs their permission. Further responding, he explained the City has an easement over the parking lot for maintenance purposes and to make upgrades, not requiring the owner's permission to do the work. Mr. Hargreaves added the City will coordinate with the owners, however, the City has a Parking Access Easement and under that easement, the City is allowed to go in and do what it needs to do. Mayor Jonathan said the staff report indicates that the noncompliant accessible pathways to the parking lot and to the individual building are 31 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 outside of the City's rights, but it also indicates that with the owners permission, the City will undertake those improvements and pay for them. Mr. Montalvo agreed that with the owners permission, the City will access the areas outside of the City's easement. Mayor Jonathan questioned why the City wouldn't just call the ADA police to have the property owners take care of their own deficiency if they are non- ADA compliant. Mr. Montalvo said it is the reason why staff included the work as an optional task and for the City to determine if it wants to undertake fixing these ADA issues. He said the City is going to fix a parking lot that has sidewalks that are non-ADA compliant and once they are brought up to compliance, staff will stop the project there. With this optional task, the City will be able to go inside the building, but it falls on the individual building owners to get the permits. Mayor Jonathan stated that regardless, the City will take care of ensuring ADA compliant access from the parking lots to the sidewalks, and this issue is taking it from that point to the building. Mr. Montalvo agreed. Mayor Jonathan noted Dudek of La Quinta came in significantly higher than the other two proposals at $150,000 more, questioning why they were selected. Mr. Montalvo explained they were the only ones that truly understood what was being requested and they are also able to provide the level of service he needed for this particular project. In particular, the design of Southern California Edison's infrastructure that was requested in the specifications. They were to provide a consultant that could design Edison's infrastructure in-house without having to go to Edison, which is an expensive undertaking and why their proposal was higher. The work was purposely separated as an optional task from the regular task and when staff compared the regular tasks the other two and the lower one didn't understand what was requested. Mayor Jonathan said it was surprising, because the other two MSA Consulting and The Altum Group are good firms. Going back to the ADA issue, Mr. Hargreaves said it was his understanding that private property owners don't necessarily have to upgrade to the current ADA standards unless they engage in property improvements themselves, so they may not be under an obligation at this point to make this improvement. 32 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mayor Jonathan commented that if the City doesn't do the improvements, the upgrades may never get done unless there are substantial modifications to the building. Councilmember Harnik moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) Award subject contract for professional engineering, landscape architecture, and utility design services for the President's Plaza East and West Parking Lot Improvements to Dudek of La Quinta, California, in an amount not to exceed $606,120; 2) authorize Mayor to execute the contract — funds are available in Account No. 4514692-4400100. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). Responding to question about the timeline for construction, Mr. Montalvo said staff has an 8-month design timeline, but it depended upon the Edison infrastructure. He anticipates construction in two phases in two summers, stating it's a very intricate utility project. H. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION FOR CITY MANAGER TO SUBMIT A REQUEST FOR FUNDING TO THE DESERT HEALTHCARE DISTRICT, AND ANY OTHER AVAILABLE GRANT SOURCE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A HOMELESSNESS OUTREACH PROGRAM IN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018-2019. Councilmember Kelly inquired about the source for the information provided on page 2 of 3 under Program Goals. Mr. Stendell replied it lifted the information from the Point and Time count with some minor tweaks. He said staff has been working collaboratively with the Palm Springs team. Councilmember Kelly said these program goals are exclusively focused on people who are suffering from a mental health or substance issue, and when looking at proposed scope of service Nos. 14 and 16, they go beyond, and she is personally thankful that they do. The proposed scope of services prioritizes those with mental health or substance issues who are engaging law enforcement. With time permitting, paragraph 14 encourages assistance support to children and families in crisis, and No. 16 encourages facilitation of referrals and linkage to community resources to the general homeless population. Therefore, she wondered if that needed to be acknowledged in the program goals, because it's in the scope of services. Mr. Stendell offered that a fifth bullet point could be added to the overall program goal, which can be easily accomplished. Councilmember Kelly said Council had the Mayor to thank for bringing this issue forward, and she is extremely excited to see it and grateful he's on top 33 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 of this issue because of his work with Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) and identifying a way in which Palm Desert can fully benefit from the new CV contract with Path of Life. Mayor Jonathan added that the proposed scope of services No. 8 says it all, which is to provide alternatives to incarceration and arrest through referral and linkage to other community -based services and resources. It is now known to be the effective way to reducing, and perhaps one day, eliminating homelessness. The fact that this can be done for basically half price, thank you Desert Health Care District, and the fact that this team coordinates with the Sheriffs Department and Path of Life. He's hopes to see a 50% decrease in those Point in Time reports. Mayor Jonathan moved to, by Minute Motion, authorize the City Manager to submit a request for funding to the Desert Healthcare District (DHD), and any other available grant funding, for the purposes of funding a Homelessness Outreach Program in the City for FY 2018-2019. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). XVII. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. CONSIDERATION OF A REQUEST TO REZONE THREE PARCELS FROM OPEN SPACE (OS) TO MIXED RESIDENTIAL (R-2) AND APPROVE A PRECISE PLAN AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF 69 CONDOMINIUM UNITS ON APPROXIMATELY 30 ACRES LOCATED ON THE FORMER PALM DESERT COUNTRY CLUB EXECUTIVE COURSE, Case Nos. PP/CUP/EA/CZ 16-280, (Christopher McFadden/McFadden Architects, Applicant) (Continued from the meetings of March 22 and April 26, 2018. Principal Planner Eric Ceja recalled for the City Council this item has been before the Council two previous meetings. In summary, there was new ownership in 2011, when options were presented to establish a landscape and lightening district that failed in 2013, and the course subsequently closed that same year. Staff has been meeting with the community and property owner to find solutions for the Executive Golf Course, but in 2016, an application was submitted for a Change of Zone Application. There have been several public hearings on this item, including the one this evening. The proposed project is to be developed under three separate sites, totaling about 69 condominiums. Because the condominiums are standardized floor plans, there are two separate architectural elevations for it, and as part of that plan, there is new passive and active recreational space, including new landscape throughout the project area. The request is a Change of Zone (CZ) from Open Space to Mixed Residential Zoning District, the Applicant is proposing a 2.3 density, which is half the density of the single family homes at Palm Desert Country Club (PDCC) and the architecture of the 34 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 single -story nature and massing of the units are generally compatible with the rest of the community. He said the Applicant was able to preserve 49% of open space for this site. The project includes new community amenities, walking trails, gazebos, garden spaces, exercise equipment, and some private amenities for the new community such as the pool areas. At previous meetings, the City Council requested staff explore four separate issues on the project which were to: 1) Provide examples of the community amenities, which were provided in the Council's packet; 2) update language in the revised Resolution to enforce the quality and minimum standard of the amenities; 3) look into the details on how to address specific properties that have encroached their improvements beyond the property line and into the golf course site. In working with the applicant and understanding the concern that it may trigger a property tax or some kind of assessment, staff is proposing a Use and Access Easement to be granted to those owners when the Tentative Tract Maps come back to the City Council, as a condition of the map; 4) the HOA for the Country Club and the owner of the golf course have entered into a separate agreement to amend many of their conditions to preserve the full 18-hole on the Championship Course; 5) review the Covenant, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) and the Operation and Maintenance Agreement that was established in 2005. He pointed out that Council received a letter from the Applicant's attorney, including one from the City, stating that the CC&Rs do not seem to impact the proposed project. The Operation and Maintenance Agreement does have some ambiguity on whether it applies to the full Championship Course as well as the Executive Course, because there is language that states, "as long as it operates as a golf course." Staff recommended the City Council approve the proposed Ordinance for the Change of Zone, as well as the Resolution that emphasizes the new community amenities, and the condition for the Use and Access Agreement, and direct staff to work with the Applicant to amend the Operation and Maintenance Agreement and clarify the language to ensure it applies to the 18-hole course. Councilmember Kelly said if staffs recommendation is accepted and it directs staff to work with the Applicant to amend the Operation and Maintenance Agreement, would the revised Agreement come back to the City Council for final approval. Mr. Ceja answered yes. Councilmember Kelly appreciated the samples that were supplied of promised recreation equipment and included in Condition No. 9 the language to ensure they represent the minimum. She asked if Council and the public should understand that these amenities would be covered by a typical performance bond or some other means of assuring that it actually happens. 35 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mr. Ceja replied he wasn't sure, in terms of a performance bond, but it's shown as part of the plan in the conditions. In fact, the condition was modified in that the new HOA for the new condominiums assures the amenities are maintained in place and accessible to the general public. Mr. Hargreaves said he believed there was a provision for CC&Rs, which would outline the required maintenance for these kinds of facilities, and then the City has a section that it inserts into the CC&Rs, providing the City the ability to enforce them. Councilmember Kelly said she was talking about ensuring the initial construction of the amenities. Mr. Ceja explained that typically staff will see a grading plan and landscape plan that will show these amenities, and staff will work with the Applicant as part of a condition, that they would install the amenities as part of their landscape plan. Mr. Hargreaves pointed out the Applicant would not get their Certificate of Occupancy until those conditions are fulfilled. Responding to question about the revised Resolution, he said there was a date error on the first page, which was corrected. Additionally, staff revised a condition to emphasize the quality of the open -space amenities and added Condition No. 11 related to the Use and Access Agreement. Mayor Jonathan invited public comments on this matter. MS. LISA THEODORATUS, Utah Circle, stated that on behalf of herself and other homeowners in Tract 2283, she is putting both the City and PD Holdings on notice that they intend to enforce their rights to stop the Change of Zone Ordinance from Open Space to R2, utilizing document 24645 recorded March 12, 1963, as a declaration of restrictions on the areas of the golf course open space within Tract 2283, notably defined as Area C. She knew everyone involved already had a copy of the document, stating she is also reserving the right for an Environmental Review Process under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), including a review of the restrictions put in place by County of Riverside Variance Case 409 and Variance Case 656, both of which require the open space of the golf course to offset smaller size lots in the community to remain unchanged. She said Mr. Ceja mentioned the two attorney letters, but not the letter from the open -space attorney, which she hoped Council had an opportunity to review. Unfortunately, because the City of Palm Desert failed to enforce its own Operation and Maintenance Agreement (O&MA) from the previous 2005 infill of open space, the City Attorney concluded this document remains enforceable today, and by definition, it includes all 27-holes of the golf 36 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 course, stating it would be very easy to prove in a court or otherwise. She asked that the City deny the developers request for entitlement and enforce the terms of the O&MA. Back in 2004, this community was a war zone between those that wanted green grass and those that wanted to stop the then development, a deceptive group, that got their money for the entitlements and then went bankrupt, which is the very reason the O&MA was written as it was to protect the homeowners of PDCC. She helped a bit with that agreement and added some thoughts to the clauses. This community has needlessly endured years of poor maintenance, and for those who are on the 9-hole course, it has endured dead grass, dying trees, and mountains of fire ants. According to City records the original developer was told by the Planning Department in 2007 that the community still had 427 billable lots in the 27-hole golf course open space. This was in response to an inquiry of closing the then refurbished and reopened 9-hole course, and rebuilding 142 single-family residences. This was going on at the very time the houses were being built and they were coming back for more entitlements. This was obviously seen as an opportunity by the new owners of the golf course, given they promptly closed the 9-hole course after purchasing the property, and with the lack of maintenance enforcement, is why PDCC residents are here today. She learned the O&MA required a bank account, and the City was to make certain money went into an account every year; supposedly $1 million per year, and questioned if that ever happened. She also had a question about Area C, stating there was a new covenant between Builders on the Green and Palm Desert Country Club that prohibits any use of land adjoining Builders on the Green to the existing tree line. She said a retention area could not be put there because of this agreement, and the existing trees are protected under this document as well. In fact, there is an existing tree in the middle of Unit C18. MS. BARBARA POWERS, Kentucky Avenue, Palm Desert, noted she delivered the Open Space Committee's attorney letter to the City Attorney. She said if anything would happen to the maintenance agreement where it was adjusted in any way, it would be wrong and/or collusion. She said the City Council had letters from the two other attorneys as well, stating that prior to delivering the Open Space Committee attorney letter to City Hall, the City Attorney had already emailed it to staff and Council. Should the City deny the zone change, their community is working on a bonding issue for an executive course park. She said Council has already been given the request to study that option for an open space, which would be similar to a 218 lighting district. She currently has 100 signed documents from homeowners, which is more than 50%. She said Moe Sihota invited everyone to go look at the golf course from the 18-hole to see how beautiful it was, at which time she took about 20 photographs. She felt she knew four Councilmembers pretty well, stating she has stood up at meetings, and Councilmembers have said they would vote with the residents and this evening Council had a chance to prove it's listening to their concerns. She requested that Council 37 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 vote for no changes. She displayed photographs of the golf course that illustrated lack of maintenance in various areas, which is what they believe will continue to happen. MS. LEE CAROSELLI BARNES, Tennessee, Palm Desert, stated she has lived at PDCC for 18 years. The last time she approached the City Council was in 2004 having a similar conversation, and the City stepped in because the owner of the golf course was holding a knife to their throats, telling them they either let him develop part of the golf course or they would have to live with a decayed, rat invested, and health hazard course. The City looked at the good of the all and put in place a maintenance agreement as a condition for that developer to build. However, the City never enforced it. She just heard a previous speaker ask about the money that was supposed to be collected, but she was cut off. She asked if any money was collected. She said she is a suffering byproduct of the situation, and she doesn't live on the small course that's decaying and dry, a health hazard and rat infested, and property values have dropped because of it. She recently looked into refinancing her home and learned that homes in California have gone up 9% in the last six months, yet PDCC homes have gone down 2%, which was a $33,000 loss for a home of $300,000. With 180 homes surrounding that small course, it's a loss of $6 million, which she believes was due to the lack of enforcement of the maintenance agreement. She went on to say these discussions should not be about rewarding the people that have caused this, by now granting them a zone change that will further depreciate the property. She listened to the Council talk about spending thousands of dollars to upgrade streets in Palm Desert, but with what is being proposed, it is taking that away from her and the other homeowners. MS. KAY ADAMSON, Kentucky Avenue, Palm Desert, said she hopes the City Council doesn't misunderstand her comments as any kind of approval for this project. However, should Council vote against the residents interest, she asked that it lock into the Change of Zone a limit on density and building heights, because there's no guarantees the current owners will not sell this property after they obtain the zone change. To prevent that from happening, she asked Council to consider caveats against the density and height, stating that was the least the City could do to protect the citizens from ending up in a more disparaging situation. She reiterated she was against the zone change. MS. SERENA ILLK, Kentucky Avenue, Palm Desert, stated there is plenty of documentation provided to the City Council that proves the City promised the residents of PDCC there would never be additional construction on these 27 fairways. Now the City has determined that it's not legally bound to honor that promise. Perhaps the City Council should consider it has an ethical and moral obligation to uphold the City's promises. Many people depended on the City's promises and purchased a home at PDCC. She said Council can 38 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 understand why the residents feel totally betrayed by their city officials if the zone change allows for construction. Staff has repeatedly stated the City can't force a property owner to conduct a business if they don't want to, but the zoning of this property of open space was long in effect before the property was purchased. The property owners should have no reason to expect the City to change the zoning just because they created a negative situation. She included calculations in her letter that was given to the City Clerk which indicates property owners had to close the executive course in order to show a loss. No one from staff or Council has been able to explain to her the benefits to the City for approval of this project. The increase to the tax base would be minimal and likely would not cover the cost of increased fire, police, and 9-1-1 services. If the City had properly enforced the Operations & Maintenance Agreement (O&MA), the property would not be in a degraded state and the urgency to do something would be eliminated. The best course of action for the City is to maintain the current zoning and simply enforce the code. MR. JACK FORNEY, Kentucky Avenue, Palm Desert, approached the City Council to say the O&MA is a big part of this discussion. It should be remembered that the main reason for this proposed development, Palm Desert PD Holdings, purchased the 27-hole PDCC property zoned open space from Wilshire Bank as an investment. If the investment does not achieve the desired return because of faulty due diligence, it must be considered a bad investment, which many have experienced. Accept the loss and move on, they can dispose of the property through a tax release donation or change the business. Appealing to the City Council for a change of zone and development plan on a portion of the property, is like transferring an unsubstantiated loss to more than 180 property owners fronting the Executive Course, and it should not be a solution or a bonafide option. During the closing of the PDCC course, owners abutting the Executive Course, have for the past five years suffered dust, dirt, visual blight, and loss property value of more than 10% as reported by the Riverside County Assessor's Office. He added that he was no attorney, but as a tax paying and full-time resident of the City, it was not this Council's responsibility for guaranteeing and ensuring every business in the City to be profitable. Approving the change of zone and development plan would be rewarding PD Holdings, giving them an opportunity to make millions after they closed and destroyed the Executive Course causing a significant loss to the neighbors. He said this was neither good government or good community relations, and it establishes a dangerous precedence. He requested that the City Council deny the Change of Zone and require PD Holdings to return the property to it's original grass -covered golf course as required by the existing O&MA. MR. DOUG BISHOP, California Drive, Palm Desert, complimented the City Council for having a good website. He was curious about the actual job of a City Councilmember so he researched it on the City's website and it states, 39 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 "Councilmembers are charged with representing the public." This evening the City Council received new information that it would have to absorb and understand. He didn't believe Council was ready to take a vote on the proposed zone change, questioning what was the hurry given the City has been dealing with this for four years. Therefore, if Council was really concerned about doing it right, it should vote no or postpone their decision to the fall. He reminded Council that the word "community" must have a different name in Canada than it does in the United States. He said Mr. Sihota and his partners have done nothing to help their small community. He asked Councilmember to follow the job they were elected to do. The other concern was the proposed walkway and roadway between their lots and the condominiums, which he refers to the proposed alleyways. He was recently in Scottsdale, Arizona, and they have tons of alleys behind all the residences where there was debris blowing into the backyards and/or swimming pools. An alleyway is a homeowner's nightmare and who's going to take care of it, because it won't be the homeowners, the HOA, or the City. He asked the City Council to allow the 180 property owners to vote, and if he loses the vote, he will accept the results. MS. KATHLEEN BISHOP, California Drive, Palm Desert, offered that she has been a homeowner at PDCC since 1987. She was born in the desert and later left the area and then came back to teach. With regard to the project, the proposed condo's will gain a view, and the current residents will lose their views. Those residents on the Executive Course will be pinned in with a six-foot wall, which after the leveling of the course, will amount to a 10- foot wall in their back yards. She's concerned property values will decrease, and they will have to deal with noise from traffic and the exhaust fumes from machinery and vehicles. She is against the zone change and in favor of the development of the Executive Course. She supports the present petition to look further into keeping the Executive Course as open space. MS. SUZANNE TRACY, Utah Circle, Palm Desert, stated she has lived in Palm Desert since 1968 and moved into her PDCC home in 1970. She has spent her entire working career in Palm Desert and when she was looking for a place to retire, she realized she had purchased in the perfect place. She expressed her opposition for the development on the former PDCC Executive Course. She hopes the City Council will consider the wishes of the residents who elected them over the plans of the developer and consider saving this open space for the use of the residents. MR. ANDY SINAIKO, California Drive, Palm Desert, shared he and his wife purchased a home at PDCC exactly one year ago. They are not on the Executive Course as their backyard faces out onto the 6`h fairway of the 18-hole course. A big part of the reason why they bought their house was for the beautiful and peaceful view they have onto the golf course. He had 40 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 no knowledge about what was going on with the Executive Course nor did he have the history that others do, stating he's glad they are able to speak about it. He said this all seemed like the beginning of a slippery slope toward doing the same thing that is being planned for the Executive Course to the 18-hole course down the road, which didn't thrill him. He said many who abut the 18-hole course stand in solidarity with the unfortunate people above the Executive Course and agree with their opposition to this action. MS. JOAN ANN RADU-SINAIKO, California Drive, Palm Desert, expressed her opposition to the proposed change of zone and/or all that's on the table to be voted on. She said the City Council represented the residents who voted them into office, and it should vote for their community and in favor of their green space. She understands this has been an issue on the books for four or five years, and what is being proposed was not a good idea. She encouraged the City Council to listen to the residents of PDCC, adding that her back door opens up to the 18-hole course. She agrees it's a slippery slope that if Council changes the zone, how much later will it lead to something else. MR. DENNIS NORLAND, Oklahoma Avenue, Palm Desert, said he decided to purchase a home at PDCC because he fell in love with the golf course, stating he was able to play 9-holes at one time. He and his family had a good time with the golf course where he was able to make good friends, but eventually they lost the course to a development. That development came through with the irrigation and the beautiful blue piping for reclaimed water to keep things going. However, with the homes they built, residents had to sacrifice the driving range and tennis courts. Consequently, when things got changed they needed a buyer, which is why we have the present owner. In the first year, they said they were going to do all these things, but then he heard about the disgruntled residents with the new management. He was told the reason they were going to close down the Executive Course was due to the lack of funds and not making enough money. MR. ROB BRENNEN, Oklahoma Avenue, Palm Desert, recalled that prior to Mayor Jonathan being elected he was over at the PDCC clubhouse saying he was an accountant, he was one of them, and he would get behind the residents and stick with them, adding he hoped it was true. He said what this developer did to the Executive Course was a crying shame. The developer suddenly went over to the City to plead with them to build two-story town homes in a single-family residential area with open space, and putting it right in the middle of the neighborhood. They didn't propose building similar homes like the previous developer when they were promised it would be the last time. He asked Council to check whom they are doing business with and why they left British Columbia, questioning if that's who the City wanted to go to bed with, because they will have to if the zone is changed. It's already been stated they won't clean up the alleys and streets, and everyone 41 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 knows nothing goes smoothly in development. He asked the City Council to do their due diligence. MS. WENDY BEST, Virginia Avenue, Palm Desert, stated she purchased her home in 2002 and paid a premium for being on the golf course. She recalled going through this before in 2004 when a developer was trying to build a couple of properties two doors down from her home. She believed the agreement that was made is part of the current agreement where the City agreed and conditions were put in place to protect the residents. Now, again there is an investor making investments, but taking away values from everyone else so they can make a profit. She didn't even know why it's even being considered, especially when there is an agreement in place from before, stating this developer is supposed to be spending more than $1 million, which is not taking place. Instead, they shut down the Executive Course so they can make a profit. She reiterated she didn't even know why such a project was even being considered. MS. AMANDA SHENEFIELD, Oklahoma Avenue, Palm Desert, said she purchased her home in 2005, which backs up to the desolate area. There has been no communication in the three years she has lived there or any attempt by the developer to get their opinion about the project. She has attended countless meetings and wanted Council to know the younger generation is opposed as well. MR. STEVE VANKELLY (Sp.?), California Drive, Palm Desert, reminded the City Council that the dictionary describes democracy, which is a Greek word, as a government controlled by the people through an elected body of officials, which is who they are representing. Today, someone knocked on his door and was telling him she was running for City Council and told him she would work for him, which he was sure other Councilmembers were saying the same thing. He said this was the best opportunity for Councilmembers to represent the community. MR. RON PERLINI (Sp.?), Oklahoma Avenue, Palm Desert, commented that if any Councilmember resided at PDCC, there wouldn't be a meeting here this evening. Secondly, he questioned how the City can keep on building 4-, 5-, or 600 units in Palm Desert when there is no water. Every bill he receives indicates he is inefficient that he's afraid to drink three glasses of water a day. There are 80 million gallons of water being consumed in every day. With the current water shortage, the City should wait another five or six years before building. He reiterated that if any of the Councilmembers lived on their course, it would be a no vote immediately. MR. FRED KENT (Sp.?), California Drive, Palm Desert, shared he has been involved with this issue, mainly through Barbara Powers, since the beginning five or six years ago. All along he heard Council say they would listen and 42 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 do what the majority of the homeowners will want. From the beginning, it's been his opinion that the homeowners have constantly expressed they were not in favor. An alternative was proposed by the Open Space Committee whereby those that live on the short course would vote on whether they would be willing to pay for that kind of an opinion. It's one thing to have an opinion and another having to pay for it. The bond option that has been talked about gives an opportunity for everyone to discern which of these two alternatives do the people want. He's sure not everyone wants a bond and not everyone wants the golf course to be developed. He asked that Council vote no on this issue, but allow the community to go through this proposed alternative bond issue to vote for their preference, stating then there won't be any question once the outcome is known. He appealed to the City Council to give the residents the opportunity, stating Ms. Powers turned some petitions in this evening of more than 100 people of the 188 that live on the Executive Course to see about the bond issue. MR. MOE SIHOTA, PD Holdings, LLC/Owner, stated he understood intimately the situation the City Council finds itself as he has served on councils' in the past. He knew about the tensions that occurs when there are people from the community that come forward in opposition. However, he also understood the obligation that then accrues to a developer when he or she comes before a city council and those obligations are not to be immune to the considerations and opinions expressed previously and again here this evening. Further, he has to come up with a resolution that is thoughtful, sensitive, and reasonable, which is what they set out to do. He couldn't say that anything in life occurs with perfection, because it doesn't, and he's the first to admit it hasn't occurred here as well. He would like for Council to take into consideration the steps they have taken to address the matters mentioned by the previous speakers, which are as follows: 1) The project as it stands today, consists of 50% of open space being preserved under the current proposal. Someone who is immune to the opinions of the opposition would not take steps to try to accommodate that level of open space. It's important to note that throughout the process they have tried their best to accommodate concerns of viewscapes by adjusting elevations and the sculpting of the land so as to maintain the mountain views that people have wanted. They have also spent a fair amount of time discussing different approaches to protect their privacy; 2) they proposed 2.3 units per acre. Again, measured against the quantity of density that is allowed, someone that is immune to the concerns of the residents wouldn't come forward with a proposal of 2.3 units per acres; 3) the project consists of 69 units spread over 30 acres of land. He said people have to face facts about what's happening in the golf industry, and the City may have other situations like this come forward, understanding Council has to deal with each on a case -by -case basis. However, this proposal puts the City in a good position to ask others to come forward with 50% open space with limited amount of density; 4) they have doubled the setbacks, which helped with the privacy 43 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 issues. Again, a reflection of the fact that they have taken into account some of the things that have been expressed to them; 5) the vote of the Architectural Review Commission was 6-0. His team had to go through that process, and as stated before, those meetings were far more electric than what has been seen here this evening. Contrary to what was said earlier, those meetings were held during the season in February, March, and May; 6) the vote by the Planning Commission was 4-1 in favor of forwarding the proposal to the City Council, which was after significant and thoughtful consideration; 7) they worked with the Citizens Committee on sculpting the design of the property, and the HOA has now withdrawn their opposition to this project, mainly because he has entered into an agreement with them to protect the entire 18-hole golf course. They have done that because they know that if you extract out the cancer, financially that is of the Executive Course, you can run a viable business on the Championship Course. Now with regard to the legal argument made this evening, no matter which agreement you look at, there are always several interpretations. The City Attorney correctly notes in this situation there are two different interpretations that are justifiable under the Operations & Maintenance Agreement (O&MA), including their lawyer and the HOA lawyer, with the exception of the Open Space Committee lawyer. In efforts to remove any ambiguity around the agreements, they have taken steps to provide a clear and concise agreement registered and concluded with the HOA. This agreement clarifies all of the ambiguities and accomplishes two other things. It requires PD Holdings to retain the Championship Course, resulting with the HOA withdrawing their objection to this process. As the City Attorney prudently pointed out, the City and U.S. Counselors should recognize the settlement agreement and follow it. To accept an opinion to the contrary, mainly the view of the Open -Space Committee Counsel, would be tantamount to issuing a death to the Championship Course, because they would be required to maintain the Executive Course at a loss. The staff report states it is beyond the authority of the City to require them to operate at a loss, stating one simply couldn't pretend there wasn't some kind of economic peril that exist here, because there is. If the literal and strict interpretations of the O&MA are accepted and taken to its full conclusion, everyone will find themselves right back to where they were in 2011 with the closure of the Championship course, resulting in fallen property values, which everyone is trying to mitigate. It's sufficing to say there is nothing in the agreement that requires them to maintain the course as a must item. In fact, the agreement states very explicitly in its recitals that the agreement exists so long as the owners operate the course. It's apparent Council and the City thought there would be an occasion like this one where someone would come forward and say they are no longer in a position to operate the course. They are now saying they are in a position to operate the Championship but not the Executive Course, and he just thought common sense should prevail in that regard. Lastly, he said they had to deal with an environment of innuendo and falsehoods where people have challenged their nationality as Canadians and 44 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 have opposed everything they've proposed. It included an effort to have a landscape and lighting district, but the environment was so contaminated that it made it impossible to pursue a vote. They chose to exhaust all other opportunities to preserve the Executive Course, and in that regard they looked into a trust, foundations, alternative business models like soccer golf and frisbee golf, including a training center. None of those options bore any fruit, and only after those attempts did they come forward with their proposal. They brought forth a proposal after they had financially stabilized the Championship Course and restored property values on that 18-hole course, and creating a sense of community, which is probably his biggest sense of pride. If you go down to the clubhouse on a Friday or Saturday night, you can see for yourself, it's all about community and a place for congregation for those that live there. He said they shifted to reclaimed water by changing the landscaping by taking out areas of turf and moved to a system of native landscapes, which then transitions into desert landscaping, and then transitions into lush. Some of the pictures displayed today were part of the native landscaping. He knew Council was well aware of the requirements and the environmental benefits that accrue when you are not required to water the native spaces that have been set aside, stating he felt they have met all of their obligations. In conclusion, at the end of the day, peace is found if the City Council makes an informed and studied decision, regardless of which side you're on. He thanked the City Council for coming out to the site, because it demonstrates they took the time to study the matter. He will be very much at peace on whatever determination the City Council makes. Finally, he thanked staff and the City for being gracious in accommodating, particularly the City Manager who first met with them in 2011, stating she took a little sabbatical and came back, not realizing this project would still be on her desk. He thanked her for nudging them along, her professionalism, and her thoughtfulness. He also thanked Mr. Stendell for his courtesy, candor, and his fair-mindedness as they tried to sculpt something that strikes a balance that is both modern, reasonable, and is attentive as logically possible to the arguments that have been made to the contrary. Councilmember Kelly asked about the CEQA concerns raised by Ms. Theodoratus. Mr. Ceja replied that part of Council's consideration is a CEQA document. There is a Mitigated Negative Declaration as part of this project that has been analyzed for the environmental impacts of the proposed development. It is a mitigated negative declaration to address two or three issues. One being dust control and how dust is handled, which is typical of projects here in the desert. The other is to make sure the trees and grading don't happen when migratory birds are here during the season. Lastly, to enforce travel monitoring during grading activities. Further responding, he confirmed CEQA concerns were adequately addressed. 45 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Councilmember Kelly said Ms. Theodoratus also raised the concern that the City was lacks in enforcing the Operation & Maintenance Agreement (O&MA), which she believes was first introduced in 2005. Ms. Aylaian confirmed the agreement was entered in 2005, and for the first three years it was actively enforced. Staff had annual meetings where it would take personnel from different departments (Building & Safety, Public Works, and Redevelopment) go out and perform their annual evaluations. She said Code Enforcement was out regularly conducting inspections. The City required they demonstrate the investment and staffing was at the appropriate level. When the course started struggling financially is when things started falling apart, including filing for bankruptcy. There was a period from 2008 to 2010 when they were trying to declare bankruptcy, and during that period of time the City was advised they could not enforce the O&MA. Then again in 2010, when the bankruptcy was dismissed in 2010, from that point forward, she would say the City did not enforce it as rigorously as they should have. Councilmember Kelly asked about the money that was to be set aside in a Capital Reserve Account and whether that was enforced before the recession hit. Ms. Aylaian explained there were two issues going on, one is that the owners came to the City prior to going into bankruptcy to say they did not have the money to set aside. About that same time, they were reluctant or unwilling to share their financial books with the City as was required. Shortly thereafter, the City was advised that because of the bankruptcy filing, it could not enforce the requirement. She said the owners were not denying the fact that they were not complying, they were saying they couldn't because they were losing money and they couldn't set aside funds. Councilmember Kelly stated Council has been presented with what seems like a stark choice between the developing for some kind of bond supported assessment system that would care for the space versus the proposed development. She asked if it was possible for those two possibilities be further explored concurrently. Ms. Aylaian replied that projects are entitled on a regular basis without ever coming to fruition or constructed. There is no way that a government can force a developer to build their project once it's entitled, adding that many fall apart for all kinds of reasons. Typically, the developer is not able to get the financing. Therefore, approving the entitlements does not necessitate that the project actually has to be built, and if the residents would be able to continue working to acquire the property themselves from the developer and then encumber their properties and/or somehow pay for the ongoing 46 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 maintenance, it is not precluded by virtue of the approval of the entitlements, adding they are not mutually exclusive. Councilmember Nestande stated there has been talk about a district being voted on that failed in 2013 and whether that option could be resurrected. Mr. Stendell recalled the idea was floated around in 2013 as a stop gap. One of the challenges identified is this was a property where you have a unique situation where the golf course is an independent party. There are no financial contributions from the adjacent parcels like most golf courses to survive on and operate. The landscape and lighting district was proposed along with a public easement that would go over the first 15- to 20-feet of the property to guarantee some green belt. Unfortunately, it never got to the point where a ballot was taken. In his opinion, there was a lack of trust on both sides, and it wasn't apparent to all parties that certain actions were not going to materialize. He recalled approving the formation process in September, and by the time April came around, staff took an item back to the City Council to abandon the process, because it wasn't going well. Further responding, he said it was for both courses. Mr. Stendell replied it could, but it's a big risk and requires involvement of the City. It requires a significant investment in funds on the City's behalf, and he didn't see it as a very solvent idea at this point. Further responding, he said the vote would require a simple majority, and in this case, staff recommended a higher majority of 55%. Councilmember Nestande commented that if it's successful, it could alleviate the financial burden on the developer as well. MR. SIHOTA offered that what they were proposing would be spread over a large chunk of land to raise significant amounts of money to be able to deal with the cost associated with maintaining the maintenance of the property. The current proposal is to have 188 homeowners whose properties front the Executive Course and have them participate. The cost of maintaining that chunk of land and green space, depending on the standard you apply, will be somewhere between $300,000 and $500,000 a year. When you divide that amount by 188 homes, the cost is about $250 a month, in terms of residents contribution. When they were going through the L&LD proposal, they were looking at applying broadly throughout the whole neighborhood a modest number. However, the level of resistence was such that it was obvious that people were reluctant to contribute, but it was in an environment when property values at the Championship Course had diminished significantly, because the course was not operating and people had just come off of that experience. Against that backdrop, there was an enormous amount of resistance. He said there were two factors here, one was the 47 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 improbability of it succeeding on a broad -brush basis, and secondly, the cost if it was to be applied to only 188 homeowners. Responding to question about what the maintenance cost included, he said water, all the regular seed, fertilizer, and cost of re -seeding, which will occur at different times of the year, and elements of labor. If a bond was originated through the City, it would be required to pay the prevailing wage rate, which then raises the labor component of it. He said the numbers add up fairly quickly with regards to that property. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said the City Manager mentioned the City wasn't enforcing rigorously the maintenance agreement, but that was true for the entire City, because of all the water issues that were going on at that time. Ms. Aylaian agreed, stating that in 2010 when the drought hit and regulations were imposed by the State and the water districts. Therefore, the City stopped enforcing the watering and turf requirements for all residents and properties across the City. Mayor Pro Tem Weber asked if the Precise Plan travels with this project, because somebody made a comment that what if the developer sells the project. She questioned if the new developer would be required to follow this exact guideline of the change of zone. Mr. Ceja pointed out that Council was taking two actions. One is the Change of Zone from Open Space to Residential Zoning District. The Precise Plan and Conditional Use Permit are specific for this project, stating that without it there is no development. Therefore, if Council changes the zone and a new developer was to come in, they would have to go through a similar process, same type of application, and same kind of community outreach. Mayor Pro Tem Weber stated that when people purchased homes in that vicinity, did their Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) advise them they didn't own the golf course and that it was private property. Mr. Hargreaves responded that if the owner looked at their title report and examined the CC&Rs, which some do and some don't, it would be hard to generalize what people knew, but if they did their due diligence, they would understand the property was under separate ownership and there may or may not have been CC&Rs, stating that issue has been unresolved. Councilmember Nestande offered that with every real estate transaction, at least for residential, the buyer has to be given a title report and it highlights all these things and it should have been on there that they don't own the golf course. 48 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mr. Hargreaves said he wasn't sure what was required on real estate disclosures, but if you look at your title report, one would understand you didn't own the golf course, because it clearly defines what you own. He added there were no CC&Rs ever recorded against units on Parcel A and B; however, the other portions, the C Unit, there were CC&Rs originally filed that may or may not have expired in 1992, depending on the interpretation. Mayor Pro Tem Weber stated that based on comments made, some people believe the golf course was part of their purchase, but her experience has been that when you are on a golf course you pay a fee every month, which would have been indicative that you are participating. Mayor Jonathan asked about the concern expressed about this project having two-story condos, because everything he's seen states 69 one-story condominium units. Mr. Ceja confirmed they are all single story. Mayor Jonathan asked if there was a mechanism that can condition a Change of Zone on the Precise Plan. Mr. Hargreaves said no, because you can't condition a Change of Zone. Staff has suggested that Council provide direction to come back with a more appropriate zoning that would limit the property consistent with the Precise Plan and not have an R1 and R2, which opens the property a little bit. He said staff can come back with a tailored zone like Open -Space Residential that would be used in this case. Then if something like this came along again in another development, it would severely restrict the potential uses. It is true that a subsequent developer, within certain time frames, has the option of using the precise plan or he can come back with another proposal and required to go through the same process. There would be a little bit of concern that if someone came back and the zoning was already residential it would be harder to be as stringent. Mayor Jonathan stated that if staff's recommendation is approved, there is a concern that if the project doesn't get built and is sold, another owner/developer can say they have the rights per Code or Zoning Ordinance under R2, and they are allowed to put up 149 units instead of 69. He asked what mechanism was available to prevent it from happening. Mr. Hargreaves explained any developer would have to go through the same process. The way to get assurance is to change the zone out from under the current zoning in a way that suits the City's Tong -term vision. Councilmember Kelly offered that if Council was to accept staff's recommendation on the project this evening, which would include changing 49 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 the zoning to R2, Council at the same time can direct development of this new Open -Space Residential category with further direction that once that new zone goes through the process, the topic would come back to Council so it could replace the R2 Zone with this new zone. Mr. Hargreaves concurred, stating the City Council can change it and the owner would not have to agree. Mayor Jonathan said it sounded counterintuitive, because if Council said this new zone would have 75% open space, can the City Council impose that new standard on a previously approved project. Mr. Hargreaves stated that as long as that precise plan is out there and it has been approved, that precise plan has an expiration date; it is essentially grandfathered. The intention in this case is that whatever zone Council comes up with, it needs to be consistent with this project, but Council can down zone it to something else. As long as this entitlement is out there and it's valid, they would be grandfathered in under the previous zoning. Further responding, he said the City could take an aggressive posture, and it has happened where cities change the underlying zoning that was standing in an entitlement. What you end up with is a lot of litigation about whether or not they have a vested right. He wouldn't suggest that route, stating whatever the City decides, the understanding is that a new developer would be grandfathered into the existing entitlements, but underlay it with a zone consistent with the entitlements. Councilmember Kelly said she had a question for the Applicant's architect. She said there was a productive visit with the Forney's where quite a few of their concerns were resolved. According to the correspondence Council received, there are two remaining concerns, one of which is the placement of the HVAC units. The architects have explained they are visually enclosed on the roof so they are not visible. Mr. Forney is still campaigning for placement on the ground so they at least lose this potential impediment to views. She asked what would be lost if the HVAC was moved to the ground. MR. CHRISTOPHER MCFADDEN, McFadden Architects, Applicant, explained the ground -mounted air conditioning has a couple of disadvantages in that you bring the noise into the environment of the homes. They are usually on the side of the homes, so obviously they would have to be enclosed visually. Normally, the City requires they install screens/three walls around them, and landscaping. He said it can be done, but they screened the mechanical equipment in coordination with the massing of the units. He said this was not the tallest element in the unit, but it's centrally located above the entry doors so that the ridges are typically higher than the mechanical equipment. Additionally, they have tied the enclosure aesthetically to the massing, stating there has to be some terracing for the 50 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 roof structures for the units to transition. He displayed a rendering of what he had just described. He confirmed the massing at the entrance has texture and it connects to the enclosure of the HVAC unit. Mayor Jonathan called a short recess at 8:37 p.m. He reconvened the meeting at 8:46 p.m. Councilmember Nestande said she hoped common ground can be reached between the homeowners and the developer, adding good input was provided from this evening's proceedings. Councilmember Kelly offered that one of the purposes of zoning is to establish appropriate expectations, so if you buy something zoned commercial, you expect businesses to be next door. If you buy something next to open space, you expect open space. Therefore, it's appropriate for Council to try to find ways to meet the expectation's resident's had when buying their homes within the context of the world today, because the truth is the recession happened and it had a huge impact, particularly in the golf industry. If it was within Council's jurisdiction, she would require more people to play golf, because that would be good for Palm Desert. The two alternatives that could be useful in meeting the expectations of the residents are the resident's option of espousing or stepping up and paying the cost for maintenance of these sites. The second option is the Applicant's proposal, which she considers a very viable option with the goal of meeting residents expectations to the extent possible, because it has attractive attributes. She realizes it's not the resident's desire, but she asked that it not get in the way of being blind to the positive attributes. Preserving 50% of the acreage as open space where the new HOA for the new condominiums would provide the maintenance is an important and positive attribute, including the recreational facilities and the walking paths, which is clearly superior to the dirt that's there now. The new development will enable more people to walk, and the recreational amenities are far more positive than anything the City would ever be able to fund for a new park. She urged everyone who is affected by this potential decision to be sure to take account of those amenities. Now, how does the Council move forward so that both of those possibilities get a full opportunity to come to potential fruition. What she would say about the first is that residents in some way accept responsibility. There is a maintenance agreement and staff is urging Council to put them to work in talking to PD Holdings about revising it and clarifying that it won't apply to the Executive Course, which would be a concession if the City enters into that clarification. She suggested that if the City makes concession it ought to get some concessions back, and she would suggest the following two: 1) an addition to the maintenance standards that speaks to desert scape, because when this maintenance agreement was entered into, desert scape wasn't really thought about. The pictures that Ms. Powers and others have brought forward are from the desert scape of the 51 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Championship Course and they do show weeds or dead grass that's not consistent for the highest standards for desert scape; 2) Cooperation from PD Holdings with the Open Space Committee to share factual information about maintenance cost whether it's water, electricity, labor, so that the Committee can see and compute for themselves exactly what it would cost per household to pursue this option. She personally believed it will surprise the residents, because it had to be more than $25 per household, which was previously being considered. She said the residents are entitled to know so that the Committee can make its own estimation, setting the stage for full exploration of that option. As to the development option, she really appreciates the Q&A between the Mayor and the City Attorney, because it exposed a major issue the City needs to think about, which is making sure that this plan doesn't disappear and gets replaced by a plan that has a higher density. If her colleagues are inclined to approve the recommendation of staff, she would suggest wording for direction to staff leading to the development of a new Open -Space Residential Zoning category with the intention that it would be processed expeditiously as possible so that this particular property could be the first to utilize that zoning category. Councilmember Nestande said she liked the idea of obtaining the exact cost of the maintenance and for the developer and homeowners to get into a dialogue about it, adding she basically agreed with everything Councilmember Kelly stated. Mayor Pro Tem Weber asked for clarification regarding directing staff to come up with a new zoning called Open -Space Residential and could Council take action on it this evening. Councilmember Kelly replied she understood Council couldn't do it this evening, because it has to go through the Planning Commission. What Council would be doing potentially is approving the Change of Zone to R2, but instructing staff to develop this new category expeditiously so that it can be changed from R2 to the new category before anything else happens. Further responding, she said it would be a directive that accompanies any action Council takes this evening. Councilmember Harnik noted that Councilmember Kelly stated the recession impacted the golf industry, but actually the industry was waning way before the recession, and it was only exasperated by it, adding that more and more golf courses are being closed. She said the proposed plans are far superior to what she saw when she went out to PDCC the other day, because it's in terrible shape. The City is not going to maintain it, and she recalled in 2012 when it was purchased just out of bankruptcy that it was a blighted mess. The City was hoping things would turn out well, but as many have stated, due diligence was not done and/or the developer didn't understand all the issues and failed to make a great business decision, which is what she 52 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 heard. Now again the nine -hole course is a mess. She appreciates Councilmember Kelly's comments on zoning, because it's something everyone depends on. However, zoning is an influx and it can change, because it's not set in stone. It's one of those things where economics can cause zoning to change. What was very evident here is that there is a real element of distrust, because she has seen this community go through this before and they feel they don't have anything they can count on when it comes to the golf course, which is a big problem in that you can't build on that foundation. She was in agreement the cost of the maintenance should be revealed to the residents so they can determine if they want to maintain the course in order for it to remain open space, or once they analyze the numbers will recognize it's impossible. She understands there are emotions running high because were talking about people's home, however, one doesn't own a view. Mayor Jonathan offered that as he listened to all the homeowners of the PDCC and their concerns, he was hoping and looking to hear concerns about substantive issues and/or constructive suggestions about how to resolve those issues, but instead he heard varying levels of anger, innuendoes about the Applicant, and threats to the Council, which gave him very little to work with. He did discern an expectation or hope that the 9-hole golf course would become viable again, but that's not going to happen. It's unrealistic in today's environment to expect golf courses to remain forever. They are shutting down in Palm Desert, in fact, this is the second one. They are shutting down in the Coachella Valley, in the State, and in the Country, which is the trend. The Coachella Valley has 123 golf courses in a community of 500,000, which is outrageous and unsustainable. To hold on to an expectation or dream that somehow they will be converted back to a beautiful viable golf course, in his opinion, was unrealistic. Therefore, after listening to comments, he's left with looking for alternatives. One of them is to deny this application, which he believed would be disastrous. By not allowing the project to move forward and forcing, if it's even possible, the owner to maintain the 9-hole course will potentially result in the loss of the Championship Course or bankruptcy, which he didn't necessarily see that as good for the homeowners. The potential with this proposal is that it takes 30 acres and creates 15 acres of open space, adds numerous amenities that currently don't exist, and builds only 69 homes on 30 acres. He's not sure there is an agreement out there on this point, but to him, it's the best alternative for this situation. He said this issue has been around for a long time and the homeowners haven't come together to assess themselves a membership fee to create a sustainable stream of revenue to continue to maintain the open space. He questions whether they have come together to control their own fate and find a way to buy this property, but over the years they didn't do it. Council is now basically looking at two alternatives, and the one that is more favorable to the homeowners, much less the greater community, is the proposed project. Because there is currently a 53 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 blighted area there, this is an opportunity to eliminate it without using City resources to do so. In his mind, the proposed project is far preferable than any other idea or alternative that he heard today. He said some of the suggestions that have been made by Councilmember Kelly and others are viable, because he didn't want to see a bait and switch either. He would hate to see something that looks beautiful on paper and have a series of events where the current owner/developer is gone. Then a new one comes in and the property is already zoned R2 and they want to build 140 homes or whatever, etc., stating the City needs to protect the residents from it happening. Lastly, he complimented staff, Eric Ceja, Ryan Stendell, and the City Manager for doing an amazing job of navigating through a very long and difficult process. Councilmember Kelly said she wanted the residents present this evening to know she heard substantive concerns. They expressed concerns about loss of view, and in her estimation, that's a very substantive concern. Staff keeps telling her views have no legal protection, but she doesn't care, it's what everybody values. So when residents raise that concern, she's listening and she walked all three sites to try to assess for herself what the impact on views would be. Because of the change in elevation, she was really surprised that the impacts seemed to be less than what she was expecting. For those who are on the north side of the streets, these roof tops shouldn't be much higher than the rooftops that are directly across, because of the change in elevation. And for those on the south side of the street, the views are to the side and not so much straight across. Frankly, she was heartened by the expectation that if this project was built, there would be Tess loss of view than appeared. Additionally, she did pursue the concern about the HVAC units to see if there could be an improvement. She also heard concerns about noise from vehicles, which she thought was substantive, but she can share experiences that hopefully can provide some comfort. She happens to live on a dead-end street with about 25 houses passed her home, so the amount of traffic passing her house will be about the same that will pass the homeowners on any of the proposed sites that will have 18, 19, and 32 houses. Ever since she started interacting with the residents, she paid attention to what that quantity of traffic is, and it's very minor, adding she had to work to notice it. It's completely understandable that potential change of this degree would cause fears and concerns, but she wants to assure the residents that their concerns have been heard and thought about. Mayor Jonathan clarified that when he stated he didn't hear substantive concerns, he was talking about specifically this evening; he didn't hear comments about views, HVAC, or noise. His hope and wish is that if the proposal is approved and the site is built out, it looks as pretty as the renderings. He also hopes that someday he'll run into a homeowner and he or she says it's not bad because they still have their views, walkways, and nice amenities, etc. He believed all Councilmembers walked all three 54 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 parcels and he paid attention to the elevations as well. He complimented the Applicant in that regard, because there was great attention and concern paid to the elevation and placement in order to minimize the view impacts. He's hopeful, but cautiously optimistic. Councilmember Kelly suggested making one small amendment to the proposed Resolution to Condition No. 15 (page 7) for the first sentence therein to read: "The developers and theirlandscape architect, agree to meet with individual homeowners regarding final tree placement and type within the site area;" If Council was amenable to the amendment, she will state a motion. Councilmember Nestande answered yes. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said she wasn't comfortable on voting on things she couldn't see in writing, and this was a resolution that has been carefully crafted, although she was in agreement with the new category. Councilmember Kelly clarified that Council was not approving these specific attributes, it's a general guidance to staff to give them a sense of direction Council was seeking. When this specific category is developed, it will come back in the form of a separate resolution/ordinance. Ms. Aylaian added that Councilmember Kelly was not suggesting making a change to the proposed Resolution. The Resolution before the City Council would be approved with the amendment regarding the trees. Councilmember Kelly is actually proposing an additional item to direct staff to prepare a new zone category to be brought back to the City Council. Councilmember Kelly also wished to add a second direction which speaks to paragraph four in Mr. Ceja's staff report that pertains to the O&MA. She said staff is encouraging the City Council to authorize them to negotiate with PD Holdings for modification of the Maintenance Agreement. As mentioned previously, this would entail a concession on the City's part for which she would expect concessions in return. Councilmember Kelly moved to: 1) Waive further reading and: a) Adopt Resolution No. 2018 - 16, approving Precise Plan, Conditional Use Permit, and Environmental Assessment (PP/CUP/EA) 16-280, subject to conditions, and as amended on Condition No. 15 (page 7) for the first sentence therein to read: "The developers and theirlandscape architect, agree to meet with individual homeowners regarding final tree placement and type within the site area;" b) pass to second reading Ordinance No. 1337, approving Change of Zone 16-280 to rezone approximately 30 acres from Open Space (OS) to Mixed Residential (R-2), as shown in Exhibit "A;" 2) by Minute Motion, direct staff to: a) Expeditiously develop new Open Space/Residential zoning category consistent with the subject Precise Plan, including attributes for density of less than three (3) units/acre and generally applying R-2 standards (height), preservation of open space in the vicinity of at least 45%, amenities or benefits of some sort provided for the community at -large, and, 55 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 given nature of prospective infill or redevelopment -type projects for which this would apply, high levels of community outreach preceding processing of such projects; b) following proceedings for the new Open Space/Residential zoning category, return to City Council with application thereof for the subject case; c) negotiate with PD Holdings for modification of existing Operations & Maintenance Agreement and return to City Council for approval, clarifying that it applies to the Championship Course and including: I) golf course maintenance standards for desert-scape (relatively clear of weeds, grass, and dead plant material); ii) PD Holdings cooperating with the area's Open Space Committee by sharing actual maintenance costs for former Executive Course in order for residents to make an informed decision should they wish to pursue any related alternatives in this regard. Motion was seconded by Jonathan. Councilmember Harnik noted this item has had significant issues that have gone on since 2012. She recalled community members had the opportunity to assess themselves and someone said it was $25 a month, but everyone knows it will be much higher, so that idea didn't work out. She was wondering how Councilmember Kelly's suggestion would be applied. Councilmember Kelly clarified that Council couldn't make residents pursue that option, but it can do it's part to ensure they get solid information so they can make a choice of strategy. If all the active people who have been working on this for several years drop that option, then they have made their choice. Councilmember Harnik stated she just wanted residents to know they have that option, because she watched it happen where they were guaranteed something and it didn't happen, then there was animosity, etc., and it was never a good negotiation. She wants to make sure there is honesty and truth, so that if they choose to take over some sort of district where they will participate in the maintenance of the site, they have the opportunity. Councilmember Nestande agreed, which is why she was asking if 100% of the homeowners needed to be in agreement, and she was told it was a simple majority. Therefore, if a simple majority wished to assess themselves, it could be an option. Councilmember Kelly added the City Manager has stated that residents could pursue that option concurrently after the entitlements on the table this evening are acted upon. Mr. Hargreaves offered it could be pursued by the residents, but not necessarily any incentive for the developer to allow it to happen. Once the entitlements are in place, they are in place. With respect to whether an assessment required a simple majority or not, he would need to look at it, but you would need at least 50% at the minimum. If residents were seeking an HOA it would require 100%. If property owners agreed to assess themselves 56 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 a certain amount, they would have to get an easement from the property owner to accommodate it, and then the City would be responsible for implementing that assessment. It was a process, and where there is a will there is a way. If Council approves the entitlements then that train starts leaving the station and it would be hard to pull that back to allow an assessment district process to unfold. If Council wanted a full exploration of an assessment district, the City can put the entitlement process on hold until that option has been exhausted. Mayor Pro Tem Weber questioned what would be the difference between what is being proposed tonight for forming an assessment district versus what came before three years ago to form a district when they all voted no. Mr. Hargreaves believed the difference would be that today there is a motivated group, and the assessment would probably be ten times higher than was previously considered, because the spread of the assessment would be on fewer homes. Mr. Stendell added that staff sent out informal surveys to the community and attended numerous community meetings, and the response was nowhere near the threshold needed. Councilmember Kelly responding to comments about the trust, impact, history, and discourse, she has received communication about who is a bad guy and who is a good guy, but as a City, it can't make decision on those types of things. Council has to impose appropriate conditions so that no matter what someone's character might be, it has the basis to secure the result that has been approved. The goal for this evening is all geared toward making sure the right conditions and details are in place. Mayor Jonathan added that it's been his experience that people who go through this type of process, and don't always get what they wanted, claim they weren't listened to. He wanted to take a moment to clarify a distinction between having a vote go your way versus someone not listening. In looking at this process that has gone on for years, if Council counted the hours it has spent on listening, it would be in the thousands when considering staff and Councilmembers attending community meetings, talking to individual homeowners, attending numerous Architectural Review Commission meetings, attending multiple Planning Commission meetings, and now multiple City Council meetings. Therefore, the conclusion that can be drawn is that maybe the right or wrong decision was made, but it's not supportable to say people weren't listened to. Mayor Jonathan called for the vote and the motion carried by a 4-1 vote (AYES: Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: Harnik). 57 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 XVIII. OLD BUSINESS None XIX. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF ADJUSTED RATES IN EXHIBITS 3A, 3B, 3C, AND 3D FOR BURRTEC WASTE AND RECYCLING SERVICES UNDER CONTRACT NO. C27410 AND REQUESTING COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE TO COLLECT THE ASSOCIATED COSTS FOR INDIVIDUALLY BILLED RESIDENCES ON THE TAX ASSESSOR'S PROPERTY TAX ROLL FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018-2019. Senior Management Analyst Heather Horning stated the City contracts with Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services for the collection and handling of solid waste, green waste, and recycling in the community. Burrtec's fees are established through a Franchise Agreement, which allows them to adjust annually based on the Producer Price Index (PPI) for furnished goods and increases in Tipping Fees. This year the rates are proposed to adjust due to increases in both of these factors, which are included in the staff report on the rate charts. As an example, the residential rates would increase by 4.256%, which for a regular 96-gallon container serviced once a week would amount to an increase of $.052 a month. The City Council approved the implementation of billing these services for residential customers and individually billed residences through the County of Riverside Property Tax Roll. In order to continue this process, the City is required to hold an annual public hearing to allow impacted residential property owners to comment. Councilmember Kelly was curious to know why the percentage adjustments are different for residential and commercial. Ms. Horning explained the difference was going to be in the tipping fees, because different tipping fees apply. Residential had a higher increase due to green waste tipping fee, which would only apply to residential customers. Mayor Jonathan pointed out the current rate in total is $25.75, and the proposed rate would be $26.85, so it was about a $1.10 per month increase. Also, he recalled that when staff did a more comprehensive review at the time of the contract, the rate that Palm Desert paid was on the low side compared to other Coachella Valley cities. Ms. Horning confirmed Palm Desert was still on the lower side for the Coachella Valley. Mayor Jonathan declared the public hearing open and invited public testimony FAVORING or OPPOSING this matter. With no public testimony offered, he declared the public hearing closed. 58 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Councilmember Kelly moved to: 1) Waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 2018 - 26, approving the adjusted rates in Exhibits 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D for Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services (Burrtec) under Contract No. C27410; and requesting County of Riverside to collect the associated costs for individually billed residences on the Tax Assessor's Property Tax Roll for FY 2018-2019; 2) by Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor and/or City Manager to execute any documents necessary to effectuate the actions taken herewith. Motion was seconded by Nestande and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). B. CONSIDERATION OF A PROPOSED PLAN FOR BOND ISSUANCE BY THE CALIFORNIA STATEWIDE COMMUNITIES DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY FOR THE SANDS APARTMENT PROJECT LOCATED AT 74351 HOVLEY LANE EAST (Lee Newell, New Cities Investment Partners, LLC, Applicant). Principal Planner Eric Ceja noted this was a public hearing item for the Sands Apartment Project, which was approved at the last City Council meeting. Part of the financing for the developer is to pursue State Bonds issued by the California Communities Development Authority. In order for them to issue those bonds in accordance with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), there needs to be a public hearing with the local agency, and by doing so this evening, it completes that requirement and the Applicant can pursue the bond financing with the State. Mayor Jonathan declared the public hearing open and invited public testimony FAVORING or OPPOSING this matter. With no public testimony offered, he declared the public hearing closed. Councilmember Harnik moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 2018 - 27, recommending that the California Statewide Communities Department Authority issue bonds for financing of the 388-unit Sands Apartment project. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 5-0 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, Weber, and Jonathan; NOES: None). C. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF OUTSIDE AGENCY FUNDING COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2018-2019 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) AND USE OF FUNDING, FIVE-YEAR CONSOLIDATED PLAN (FY 2018-2019 THROUGH FY 2022-2023) AND ANNUAL ACTION PLAN FOR FY 2018-2019. Senior Management Analyst Jessica Gonzales stated the City as a recipient and administrator of the CDBG funds has prepared the City's Consolidated Plan and Annual Action Plan to meet the Programs requirement as set forth by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). A notice of public hearing and 30-day public input period on the approval of the plans for Fiscal Year 2018-2019 was published in the local newspaper and no 59 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 comments were received. A change was made to the proposed Five -Year Consolidated Plan to acknowledge the City's participation and efforts with the regional initiative lead by the Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG), which has been provided to the City Council earlier today and it's in their City Council packet. She said HUD has just announced the City's Fiscal Year 2018-2019 allocation in the amount of $354,119. The proposed recommendation by the Outside Agency Funding Committee for Fiscal Year 2018-2019, if approved, their amounts would be increased proportionately for each proposed subrecipient based on the increased amount, which is estimated to be about $30,000. Western Economic Services was contracted to assist in the preparation of the Plans. Ms. Megan Grace will be presenting an overview of the plans. Upon completion of the presentation, staff recommends opening the public hearing to hear testimony. MS. MEGAN GRACE, Representative with Western Economic Services, stated they developed the 2018-2022 Consolidated Plan, which includes the first year action plan for Fiscal Year 2018. You have to do four things in order to get funds from HUD, which are as follows: 1) Consolidated Plan; 2) Annual Action Plan; 3) Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER), which is an evaluation of the performance with the HUD funds; 4) Analysis of Impediments of Fair Housing Choice, which the City completed this past year. With the development of this plan, they looked at complete economic and demographic data, survey data, and public input to establish the goals and strategies. As mentioned by Ms. Gonzales, the amount of $322,000 was increased to $354,000. These funds have been allocated to support the following five-year goals: 1) The first is to support efforts of homelessness, which continues to be a region -wide issue the City continues to address; 2) enhance public facilities that support low- to moderate -income households; 3) provide supportfor public service programs that serve special needs population within the City; 4) increase the availability of affordable housing; 5) increase fair -housing activities. This is in response to the City's Analysis of Impediment of Fair Housing Choice that was completed this past year. As part of the 2018 Action Plan, there are six Public Service Projects, two of which serve public needs and one for housing activities. Each of these allocations will be bumped up a little bit based on the new allocations that is over 9%. Ms. Gonzales noted that at the request of one Councilmember, staff provided the application on Council on Aging Southern California, which is one of the recipients under Public Service Projects for Council's review and consideration. Mayor Jonathan declared the public hearing open and invited public testimony FAVORING or OPPOSING this matter. MS. LAURA NACHISON, Grant Writer for Desert AIDS Project (DAP), stated 60 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 that on behalf of DAP they commended the Outside Agency Funding Committee and City Council for developing the needs assessment and implementing the CDBG Program. As a healthcare and human services agency providing speciality, HIV/AIDS healthcare and support services, they appreciate the recognition that persons with HIV or AIDS suffer from a disability that challenges them to maintain food and housing security. She extended her gratitude for support provided by the City of Palm Desert through the CDBG Program to make their facility more efficient. It's been a great pleasure to work with Director of Special Programs Frankie Riddle, who recently retired, and looking forward to working with Ms. Ortega. Receiving CDBG funds for Capital Improvements allows DAP to prioritize its funding for direct client services. Their services and programs reduce the risk of infection and transmission by ensuring that clients receive the necessary health, dental, and mental care and support they need to adhere to treatment, etc. The intent of their project is to replace all antiquated and energy sapping florescent and standard light fixtures. This will be done in three phases with environmentally recommended LED lighting, adding their request for funding is for the first phase. She noted the City of Palm Springs is on board with this project as well. Mayor Jonathan said DAP is an amazing and outstanding organization that makes a difference in a lot of people's lives everyday. MS. NACHISON commented it was a pleasure to serve the agency. She hoped the City Council was aware they will have a big campus expansion project and hoped Councilmembers will come out for some of the events. They will be expanding their health clinics into the Riverside County Health Building and creating a patient center for everyone low income. Councilmember Kelly asked Ms. Nachison if she has considered applying for the City's Committee/Commission, since she enjoyed this evening's meeting and also happened to live in Palm Desert. MS. NACHISON replied she has considered it and already has an application at home, adding she will give it some thought. With no further testimony offered, Mayor Jonathan declared the public hearing closed. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said she asked for the documentation for the Council on Aging Southern California to be brought to the City Council. During the review Ms. Riddle recommended not funding them and she provided her reasons in an excellent way, and she agreed totally. She is concerned about this not being a measurable activity, and she learned this organization will make unannounced visits to assisted care facilities and respond to those complaints. However, when looking at their paperwork to see exactly what 61 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 they did, and she didn't think it fell under the CDBG guidelines. She said Ms. Riddle was concerned they wouldn't be able to comply with the paperwork or prove they fell under the guidelines. At that particular meeting, she asked to consider it for the next time allowing time to review if it qualified as a CDBG program. Instead, everyone talked about it and decided to move it on to the City Council, which is why she asked that the document be provided to Council. After someone reports a complaint, she wonders what happens next, because she didn't think it pertain to the City to do anything about it, and it's not measurable. Secondly, if that's the case and it's something the City Council wants to do, then she would say there are a lot of local organizations that are qualified to do this work. She was not in favor of voting for this particular agency and asked that the funds be allocated to other CDBG recipients. Mayor Jonathan said he serves on that committee, and he has a completely different recollection. Ms. Riddle's responses to the questions Mayor Pro Tem Weber brought up were discussed, and he was satisfied that this organization has a proven track record, they go out to independent care facilities and ensure seniors are treated properly and getting the care they deserve. They have done it for a number of years and they employ local people to do the work. It's an invaluable service to the community and there is no other organization that does this type of work, and the committee as a whole voted to approve it. He added they are required to fill out progress and performance reports, and if they fail to perform, there is an opportunity to withhold further funding. Mayor Pro Tem Weber pointed out that the minutes state as follows, "Ms. Riddle stated the only thing she would be concerned with is that the organization may not be able to do the monitoring." She agrees there was discussion on this and it's written in the minutes, and the item was moved forward for the City Council to take a look at it, and it was at Mayor Jonathan's insistence and his personal experience. Mayor Jonathan replied it was not at his insistence, because there was a committee and everyone gave input and then there was a vote taken. Therefore, it wasn't at his insistence, although he did share he has a mother in a managed care facility. In response to the accountability, Ms. Riddle after making that comment pulled out a form where the organization reports in great detail the results of every single visit. His recollection is that she backed off that concern. He didn't see the problem and it was a great opportunity to do a service to the seniors of Palm Desert. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said perhaps he could help her understand what exactly is their service. Mayor Jonathan replied they primarily either respond to complaints from 62 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 senior citizens or relatives of senior citizens. In addition to responding, they go out and initiate site visits to manage care facilities and senior care facilities, talk to the seniors and look at the living conditions to ensure they are being treated in a helpful and respectful manner. Also, there is not another organization that is tasked with doing that work, and this organization has done it for years and they are a proven entity. Additionally, they are proposing to employ people that are in Palm Desert to provide that service. Councilmember Kelly said she reviewed the application and the responses to the category that asks for a detailed description of the project. It satisfies her, because it describes the unscheduled visits as essential to monitoring resident conditions. It indicates it's recorded in an intake form, so there is something to verify the work. It also describes the process to investigate and resolve complaints that are made on behalf of residents, so there does appear to be some follow through. She's grateful Mayor Pro Tem Weber asked Council to look at it this evening, and she's satisfied that it's an appropriate program. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said she understands this organization has been doing the work, but it doesn't mean it's right. She questioned how the organization resolves a complaint, because when she read the application she understood the organization picks the places, they drop in, ask people questions. The facility doesn't know these people are going to come, and she's still not clear on what they actually do. So she would like to know with whom and how they will resolve a complaint. Additionally, what legal authority do they have to resolve an issue, and she didn't think it fell under CDBG, stating it was probably more appropriate under mental health or Riverside County Mental Health. Councilmember Harnik questioned why the Riverside County Office on Aging was not being funded. Mayor Jonathan recalled the committee looked at other sources and funding available to them like Regional Access Program (RAP), etc. Councilmember Kelly pointed out these are the folks who have been administering the Ombudsmen Programing in Riverside County, so apparently, even though we have Riverside County Office on Aging, it is this entity who has been charged with performing the ombudsmen services, perhaps because of their experience or expertise. Councilmember Harnik commented that the Riverside County Office on Aging did a lot for the community locally, stating it made more sense for them to receive the funds. She asked Mayor Pro Tem Weber why she felt the Council on Aging Southern California was not qualified to receive a CDBG. 63 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 Mayor Pro Tem Weber replied that was part of her question, because in reading their application it states, "More than 84% of the complaints and concerns are resolved to the resident satisfaction." She just felt it was very vague and so potentially serious. She said there can be elder abuse that can be going on and it has to be reported, so if there is a suspected elderly abuse complaint, she believed it was out of the guidelines of CDBG Program, because she doesn't see a resolution to what they do and can otherwise be handled through senior services or police. Councilmember Kelly explained that many times complaints are short of abuse and don't warrant public safety officers taking the time. A classic example, a patient may say their personal wheelchair is missing and the staff keeps bringing a stock wheelchair that's uncomfortable. Staff is unlikely to respond unless someone other than the patient presses the issue, stating those types of things come up all the time for residents in these facilities who don't have a friend or family member regularly checking in on them. Based on the basis of her experience as a pastor who visits facilities often, this is really a substantial service in support of quality of life management. Mayor Jonathan added that under Summary of Objectives, providing decent housing is listed as an objective, so providing a suitable living environment clearly fits into those goals. In terms of what they do, there is a sample report in the packet. It's very comprehensive and it gives insight into the process they follow. There is follow-up and they actually evaluate the outcome, etc., and there are various options, including contacting other authorities. If there are incidents like the one Councilmember Kelly described, police don't go into these facilities to check up on seniors. Responding to question, MS. GRACE said that particular project would come under the goal of providing support for public service programs to the special needs population, adding it was a public service effort. Mayor Pro Tem Weber disagreed, stating it was not supporting the facility, it was more like sneaking in and spying on them. Ms. Gonzales added that the populations at these centers are for the special needs category that would be met by having the case management completed by the ombudsman person. They currently visit all the centers within the City, and they are going to increase those to make it more of a monthly visit. By adding the added visit, it enhances the case management to the population in those centers. If for instance, they conduct an unannounced visit, they would be looking and visiting all the individuals within that community and at that center to see what the needs are there. Councilmember Kelly interjected, stating there are many reasons for the monitoring because people have concerns about not being helped out of bed 64 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 and being left in bed for prolonged periods of time. People have concerns about slow response and needing help going to the bathroom, etc. She can truly tell everyone there is a vast difference in the care received if staff knows somebody is watching, which is just human nature. Further, she believed it was a valuable service to befriend those who are friendless. The sad reality of our culture is that many people finish their lives friendless. Ms. Gonzales went on to say that if an ombudsman sees an individual/patient with bed sores, they will look at the Togs, because these facilities are required to meet certain requirements based on State licensing. If they have not complied, it would be reported back to the licensing department to follow-up. Mayor Pro Tem Weber said she understood, but legally how can the City authorize an organization to go into a facility unannounced, questioning if it's allowed and does it qualify them for CDBG grants. She knows they have been doing it and no one has sued them. Councilmember Harnik pointed out that the organization is being authorized by another licensing entity. Responding to question, Ms. Grace confirmed this organization qualified and it fell under the CDBG funding. Councilmember Harnik stated that since there were more funds available, she wonders if they could be allocated to the Office of Aging. MS. GRACE explained that if the City decided to fund another agency, she will have to check with the HUD representative to see if that constituted a substantial amendment, and if it does, the City will have to redo the 30-day review period. Mayor Pro Tem Weber added it was explained to the Committee that it could take the excess funds and distribute them proportionally to the ones selected, but they could not add another organization. Ms. Gonzales added that by approving the Annual Action Plan, it includes the subrecipient and the awards of the subrecipients. Councilmember Nestande moved to, by Minute Motion, approve/authorize: a) Outside Agency Funding Committee recommendations for FY 2018-2019 CDBG award of Subrecipients, Programs and/or Projects, and funding amounts as proposed; b) use of the FY 2018-2019 CDBG funding allocation awarded to the City of Palm Desert by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the proposed funding of Subrecipient's Programs and/or Projects, as recommended by the Committee; c) City's FY 2018-2019 CDBG Annual Action Plan; d) City's CDBG Five -Year Consolidated Plan; 65 MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 10, 2018 e) Staff to submit the City's CDBG Consolidated Plan and Annual Plan to HUD; fl Mayor and/or the City Manager to execute any documents necessary to effectuate the actions taken herewith. Motion was seconded by Kelly and carried by a 4-1 vote (AYES: Harnik, Kelly, Nestande, and Jonathan; NOES: Weber). XX. ADJOURNMENT With City Council concurrence, Mayor Jonathan adjourned the meeting at 10:16 p.m. ATTEST: RA EL D. KLASSEN, CITY CLERK CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA SABB ONATHAN, MAYOR 66