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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-03-25MINUTES REGULAR PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 1999 CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBER * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Spiegel convened the meeting at 4:01 p.m. H. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE - Sarah Benoit III. INVOCATION - Member Jim Ferguson Chairman Spiegel suspended the agenda at this point in order to introduce members of the Palm Desert High School participants in Student Government Day. Chairman Spiegel stated in conjunction with Palm Desert High School, the Student Government Day — was held in the City of Palm Desert which involved the high school students following Councilmembers and staff the entire day. Each Councilmember and staff had a counterpart from Palm Desert High School and was asked to introduce him/her. Chairman Spiegel's counterpart was Sarah Benoit, Member Benson's counterpart was Alexis Turner, Vice Chairman Crites' counterpart was Bridget Beard, Member Kelly's counterpart was Evita Sanchez, Member Ferguson's counterpart was Nicole Wallace, Mr. Diaz's counterpart was Sameer Frenzley, Mr. Ortega's counterpart was Ruth Ramirez, Mrs. Gilligan's counterpart was Cheyenne Hall, Mr. Gibson's counterpart was Lindsay Fincher, Lt. Colleen Walker's counterpart was Aracely Fierros, Bob Green's counterpart was Eric Reyes, and Mr. Erwin's counterpart was Keely McElhaney. Chairman Spiegel thanked the students for their interest. IV. ROLL CALL Present: Member Jean M. Benson Vice Chairman Buford A. Crites Member Jim Ferguson Member Richard S. Kelly Chairman Robert A. Spiegel MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Also Present: Ramon A. Diaz, City Manager David J. Erwin, City Attorney Sheila R. Gilligan, Director of Community Affairs/City Clerk Richard Folkers, ACM/Director of Public Works John M. Wohlmuth, ACM/Director of Administrative Services Carlos L. Ortega, RDA Executive Director Ben Godfrey, Acting Director of Building & Safety Paul S. Gibson, Director of Finance Steve Smith, Planning Manager David Yrigoyen, Redevelopment Manager Rachelle D. Klassen, Deputy City Clerk V. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None. VI. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Regular Meeting of the Redevelopment Agency of March 11, 1999, and the Adjourned Joint Meeting of the City Council/Redevelopment Agency of March 12, 1999. Rec: Approve as presented. B. CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE AGENCY TREASURY - Warrant Nos. 43RDA, 44RDA, 43DR, 44DR, and 44PDHA. Rec: Approve as presented. C. REOUEST FOR APPROVAL of Grant of Easement to Southern California Edison for Utilities Located at Highway 74 and El Paseo. Rec: By Minute Motion, approve Grant of Easement to Southern California Edison for utilities located at Highway 74 and El Paseo in connection with the construction of parking lot improvements at the subject location and authorize the Chairman to execute same. Vice Chairman Crites stated the Minutes indicated a "4-0-1 vote with Vice Chairman Crites ABSENT". He stated the Minutes should read "4-0-0 with Vice Chairman Crites ABSENT." Mrs. Gilligan stated the Minutes had been changed accordingly. Upon motion by Member Ferguson, seconded by Member Benson, and unanimous vote of the Agency Board, the Consent Calendar was approved as presented. 2 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * VII. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER None. VIII. RESOLUTIONS A. RESOLUTION NO. 368 - A RESOLUTION OF THE PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 330 TO INCREASE THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 TO ELEVEN MEMBERS. Mr. Ortega stated this item was requested by the Committee members. Member Kelly stated the reason for the increase was to cover each residential development in Project Area No. 4. Vice Chairman Crites stated he would like to see the quorum changed to read "one-half or more of the appointed members". He stated without changing the quorum, there was a potential of having less than a majority present, while still having a quorum. Member Kelly stated Committee members discussed the issue of a quorum. He stated they felt that the people who attended the meetings were those who were interested in moving things along. If residents of the communities were interested in representation, they would attend. Member Ferguson stated he felt strongly about increasing the number of members of a body which cannot get five members to attend, yet still having the potential of three people making the decision for 11. He stated if there was enough interest to raise it to 11 members, there should be enough to get a quorum; if not, he still did not agree that the number of Committee members should be increased. Vice Chairman Crites moved to waive further reading and adopt Resolution No. 368,. as amended, to reflect the quorum as one-half or more of the members appointed. Motion was seconded by Member Ferguson and carried by unanimous vote. Ix. NEW BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF LANDSCAPE PROJECTS — PALM DESERT COUNTRY CLUB AND PALM DESERT RESORTER (JOINT CONSIDERATION WITH PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL). Mr. Ortega stated there was an attempt that the City perform all the landscaping work in the subject area. He stated the contracts needed to be transferred from the Redevelopment Agency to the City of Palm Desert. 3 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Member/Councilman Kelly stated this had been approved by the Project Area No. 4 Committee with a quorum present. Member/Councilman Ferguson stated this item belonged with Item C under New Business on the City Council agenda. He added all the contracts were with Ray Lopez and Associates, but he did not see anything on the City Council agenda with regard to the project going out for bid. Mr. Yrigoyen stated the projects were previously approved by the Redevelopment Agency. He added staff attempted to obtain bids from other designers but encountered difficulty in obtaining bids. He further added that Ray Lopez resides in the area and he was able to get to those areas quicker than anyone else. The Project Area No. 4 Committee members were happy with Ray Lopez because he did live in the area. Member/Councilman Ferguson inquired whether an Agency, as opposed to a Charter City, had to follow the bidding requirements. Mr. Ortega responded that other landscape architects were notified, but no other bids were received. He added this was a professional service, and there was no requirement to bid out for professional services. Member/Councilmember Benson stated that a letter was received by Council from James Cashman. In his letter he questioned spending $250,000.00 by the Agency Board for the reconstruction of a wall along Hovley Lane. She added that the subject request did not add up to that amount of money. Chairman/Mayor Spiegel stated the letter should not have been in the agenda packet, as it had nothing to do with that. Member/Councilman Ferguson stated that Item C on the City Council agenda would be a more appropriate place for Mr. Cashman's letter. Vice Chairman/Mayor Pro-Tempore Crites inquired about once the landscaping was done, who would be responsible for the on -going maintenance. Mr. Yrigoyen stated an agreement was entered into with the Palm Desert Resorter. That agreement stated the Resorter would be responsible for landscape maintenance. He added staff was in the process of requesting an increase in the assessment to cover landscaping at the Palm Desert Country Club. He stated that would cover the Hovley Lane portion and the Fred Waring portion, as well. Mr. Yrigoyen stated the assessment would be increased another $8.00 per year. Chairman/Mayor Spiegel inquired what would happen if the assessment increase was voted down. Mr. Yrigoyen stated if it was voted down, the recommendation to the Agency Board and City Council would be that landscaping would not be accomplished in that area. Chairman/Mayor Spiegel clarified that no landscaping would be done until the Association approved the assessment increase. Mr. Ortega stated there would be no request presented to Council for authorization to bid unless and until it was known whether there would be an assessment increase. 4 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Member/Councilman Kelly moved to, by Minute Motion: 1) assign to the City, and City Council accepts the following consultant contracts: a) Ray Lopez and Associates in the amount of $19,900 for landscaping services along Oasis Club Drive and the north side of Hovley Lane (Contract No. R15170); b) Ray Lopez and Associates in the amount of $14,100 for landscaping services along the south side of Hovley Lane between Kansas Street and Idaho Street (Contract No. R15180); c) Watson Christianson in the amount of $17,650 to accomplish engineering for the improvements of the Hovley Lane wall (Contract No. R15360); and 2) that the City appropriate such funds as necessary to accomplish the above design improvements. Motion was seconded by Member/Councilmember Benson and carried by unanimous vote. X. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF EXPENDITURES FOR LONG-TERM REMEDIES FOR WIND DAMAGE TO MOUNTAIN VIEW COURSE OF THE DESERT WILLOW GOLF RESORT (Continued from the meetings of January 28, February 11, February 25, and March 11, 1999) . Member Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion, continue to the meeting of April 8, 1999. Motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Crites and carried by unanimous vote. — Member Kelly asked whether there was any progress on the project to date. Mr. Rudy Acosta, Development Manager, stated that other landscape construction contractors were contacted to obtain numbers for a variety of different applications. He added staff was looking for an economical, yet effective option of irrigating the pads. He further added that previous recommendations presented to the Agency Board had been high. Mr. Acosta stated that three companies had assured him that by March 29, 1999, he would have estimates to present to the Desert Willow Committee and the Agency Board. B. REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF MINIMUM IMPROVEMENT CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE - MADISON REALTY PARTNERSHIP (Continued from the meeting of March 11, 1999). Mr. Ortega stated the issue of landscaping had not been resolved and what options the Agency Board had to obtain compliance. He stated the item involved approximately $150,000, and Council indicated the amount would be split between the City and the developer. He added that a deposit had been made, and there were no other items outstanding at this time. Vice Chairman Crites inquired what was being done about the missing landscaping. He added that half of the San Pablo side of the parking structure was bare. He further stated recommendations for the rear (Shadow Mountain) had been made. Those recommendations were to place trees along the parking structure wall, which were not in place to date. He further added the provisions for the roof had not been accomplished. He asked what compliance method there was in place to ensure those items were corrected. Mr. Yrigoyen 5 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * stated the compliance methods were outlined in the Development Agreement where the City had the right to enforce the type and standards of landscaping that needed to be placed in the area. Vice Chairman Crites stated the Minutes read that staff was to return to the Agency Board with recommendations as to how the Agency Board could ensure compliance with the landscaping issue. He inquired what those assurances were. Member Benson stated the deposit of $75,000.00 was for the roof only, and the developer was supposed to do more landscaping on the roof. Member Kelly stated the City had an upscale development which had been a benefit to the City. He added that he did not understand why the Agency Board could not live up to the agreement to release the funds and still be able to take care of any landscaping problems. He further added he did not see any problems outside the perimeter area. He stated his biggest concern was that the Agency Board was hassling good people who had worked hard for the community. He further stated the developers had been cooperative in everything that he had worked with them on, and he did not understand where a problem would arise. He stated he felt they were two separate issues. Chairman Spiegel concurred with Member Kelly. He stated that in the 15 years he had been here, this was the biggest asset to the City of Palm Desert. He further stated that the developers worked with the City and obtained retailers that did not exist before, which was more than admirable. He added what was happening at the Gardens on El Paseo was all positive. Chairman Spiegel felt that the developers would work with staff if a team was put together. He stated he did not think the City should hold them hostage any longer. Vice Chairman Crites stated his reading of the Minutes did not suggest that Member Kelly's comments were disagreed with by anyone. He added no one had negative feelings about what they had done, but the comments in the Minutes were there was a request of staff to ensure the alternatives were there and available for consideration. He stated the report he received did not show the alternatives, but that was not Madison Marquette's fault. Chairman Spiegel stated he understood there was $75,000 set aside that was being held, and the remainder was to be given to Madison Marquette as the City's commitment. He suggested $75,000 was inadequate to accomplish the things that were to be accomplished, but the developer had bent over backwards to be accommodating to the City of Palm Desert since the inception of the Gardens on El Paseo. He added that if more money was needed, it would be there. In the meantime, since staff did not provide the Agency Board with the information requested, the developer should not be held hostage. Member Ferguson stated his issue was not that Madison Marquette was not a good citizen to the City of Palm Desert, but he wanted to clarify that if someone was a good retailer, did not mean the Agency Board would look the other way on the ordinances. He stated his concerns were that the City was paying for the structure, it was built to City standards and would be 6 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * a model for other developers, there was a shade ordinance that required 50 % shade, and the developer came in and asked to be relieved of that obligation. He added that the Agency Board agreed they would post half, and the City would post half. He further added if they delivered the $75,000 (their half), and the minimum improvements required for the Certificate of Compliance were that they provide a parking structure, they had done that. He further stated he understood every concern expressed by Vice Chairman Crites and Member Benson, but legally, they had met their obligations under the Certificate of Compliance. Member Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion, approve the Minimum Improvement Certificate of Compliance for the parking facilities at the Gardens on El Paseo and forward said Certificate to the developer. Motion as seconded by Member Kelly. Member Benson stated a letter should be sent stating that except for $75,000, the remainder would be given to them, and the Agency Board expected them to finish the improvements around the exterior that were in the DDA. Chairman Spiegel directed staff to continue to work with Madison Marquette to get the issues resolved. Member Ferguson asked that an informational report be presented at the next meeting regarding the progress. Motion carried by unanimous vote. XI. OLD BUSINESS None XII. REPORTS, REMARKS, AND AGENCY BOARD ITEMS REQUIRING ACTION A. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Mr. Ortega noted the items listed for Closed Session consideration at this meeting. 7 MINUTES PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B. AGENCY COUNSEL Request for Closed Session: Conference with Real Property Negotiator pursuant to Section 54956.8: 1) Property: 77-777 Country Club Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92211 (APN 632-070-042-4) Negotiating Parties: Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/Teresa L. LaRocca/Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency Property Owner: Associated Estates Realty Corporation Under Negotiation: 2_ Price . Terms of Payment 2) Property: Southwest corner Highway 111 and El Paseo, Palm Desert, CA (APN 640-080-011-6) Negotiating Parties: Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/Dave Yrigoyen Property Owner: Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency Under Negotiation: Price x Terms of Payment 3) Property: Land located in Section 4 - Desert Willow Negotiating Parties: Agency: Carlos L. Ortega/Dave Yrigoyen Property Owner: Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency Under Negotiation: Price . Terms of Payment Conference with Legal Counsel regarding existing litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(a): a) City of Orange, et al. v. Alabama Treasury Advisory Program, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. BC106461. C. CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS OF THE AGENCY None. XIII. AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS None. XIV. PUBLIC HEARINGS None. 8 MINUTES °ALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MARCH 25, 1999 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * XV. ADJOURNMENT Upon a motion by Member Ferguson, second by Vice Chairman Crites, and unanimous vote of the Agency Board, Chairman Spiegel adjourned the meeting to Closed Session at 6:06 p.m. He reconvened the meeting at 7:00 p.m. Upon a motion by Vice Chairman Crites, second by Member Benson, and unanimous vote of the Redevelopment Agency Board, Chairman Spiegel adjourned the meeting to Closed Session at 8:50 p.m. He reconvened the meeting at 9:20 p.m. and immediately adjourned with no action announced from Closed Session. ATTEST: 4 SHEILA R. GILL-IGAN, SEC PALM DESERT REDEVEL /TO _ ROBERT A. SPIEGEL, C1 AI MHN/ ARY TO THE ENT AGENCY 9