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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Safty Cmsn - 06/10/09 , CITY OF PALM DESERT ��-`1�-� � REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING ' PRELIMINARY MINUTES . Wednesday, June 10, 2009 — 3:30 p.m. Administrative Conference Room I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Nethery called the meeting to order at 3:30 p .m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Absent: Commissioner James Butzbach Vice Chairman James Larsh Commissioner Gloria Kirkwood Commissioner Rick Lebel Chairman Martin Nethery Also Present: Councilman Jim Ferguson Mayor Pro Tem Cindy Finerty � � Sheila R. Gilligan, ACM/Community Services � � Lt. Andrew Shouse, Palm Desert Police Department � I Chief Dorian Cooley, Riverside County Fire Depart e t I , Chief Jorge Rodriguez, Riverside County Fire Depa ( � Frankie Riddle, Director of Special Programs � I p Steve Aryan, Assistant to the City Manager � � (! � � Pat Scully, Senior Management Analyst z s �, I���� Ryan Stendell, Senior Management Analyst � C �j '� , ;� � Mary P. LaCross, Recordin g Secreta ry ' � 4 � , �� ' III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS � � �� �^ � — 4 ` i �" , ., None Q �- � � ,�� �� � ,. > � ;�� H � E" L j S _ ,} IV. PRESENTATIONS � c c � � � � � . � OC � � .� z, r , None � L ,, A, � = U �` G .� r � ►� G i.:, �„:, .. . � 4' C r �" . .�� PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 V. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Minutes of the Public Safety Commission Meetings of May 13, 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. B. Palm Desert Fire Services Monthly Report for April 2009 Removed for separate consideration under Section VI, Consent Items Held Over. Please see that portion of the Minutes for Commission discussion and action. C. Palm Desert Special Enforcement Teams Monthly Statistics for May 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. D. Traffic Team Report for May 2009 -- Includes Traffic Collision Statistics for April 2009 and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Statistics for May 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. E. Business District Team Report— May 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. F. Canine Report— May 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. G. Coachella Valley Violent Crime Gang Task Force Report for May 2009 Rec: By Minute Motion, receive and file. Commissioner Lebef asked that Item B be removed for separate consideration under Section VI, Consent Items Held Over. Upon motion by Commissioner Kirkwood, second by Commissioner Lebel, the remainder of the Consent Calendar was approved as presented by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. 2 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 VI. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER B. Palm Desert Fire Services Monthty Report for April 2009 Mrs. Gilligan introduced Chief Dorian Cooley, Palm Desert's new Fire Chief. Chief Cooley noted that he had taken over for Chief Dennis Dawson who recently retired. He gave a brief history of his career and said he was very happy to be in Palm Desert. He said Chief Jorge Rodriguez would be transferring shortly to the Menefee Battalion to serve as Chief for that newly incorporated city, and Chief Brooker would be taking over as Fire Marshal. He added that he would be working to fill the operational position vacated by Chief Brooker. Chief Rodriguez said while he was looking forward to his new position, he was sad to be leaving Palm Desert. Commissioner Lebel questioned the significant event of April 2ptn listed on page 6 of the report, which indicated only two total staff hours, although there were several units that responded to this structure fire. Chief Cooley said he was not familiar with this particular incident but would do some research and report back to the Commission at its next meeting. He said he believed it was two hours total for each person times the number of staff involved. Commissioner Lebel said the Commission would prefer to have the total number of man hours shown for each incident, and Chief Cooley said he would make sure that is changed for future reports. Commissioner Lebel moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the report. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. 3 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 VII. NEW BUSINESS A. Consideration of Vehicle Impound Cost Recovery (VICR) Fee Program Chairman Nethery noted the report in the packets and said this appeared to be a common fee in most cities. Lt. Shouse agreed and said it was very common throughout Riverside County and the State and was becoming more and more routine. Mayor Pro Tem Finerty noted that the chart in the report indicated that the San Jacinto Police Department also charged a DUI recovery fee of $500. She felt the City of Palm Desert should also implement such a fee. She asked whether the Police Department impounded the vehicles for drivers found to be under the influence of narcotics. Lt. Shouse responded that typically when someone is arrested and put in jail, their vehicle is impounded; however, that decision is usually left up to the arresting officer, and vehicles are sometimes released to family members. With regard to the VICR fee, he anticipated there would be approximately 400 vehicles impounded this year that would be eligible for this fee. He added that he would look into the justification for the DUI recovery fee charged by San Jacinto. Commissioner Butzbach said it was his understanding that the Vehicle Code, and perhaps the Government Code as well, allows jurisdictions to recover up to $500 for the investigation of the DUI if it involves a traffic accident. Commissioner Lebel added that State law also provided for recovery of service fees; i.e., if the Fire Department is called out. Mayor Pro Tem Finerty asked whether the Commission would be in favor of a DUI recovery fee similar to San Jacinto. Chairman Nethery responded that he would first want to know what that fee in San Jacinto was actually for. He said if there was a statute authorizing a fee for extra expenses in terms of DUI recovery, that was certainly something we would want to adopt. 4 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 Councilman Ferguson said if the purpose of the fee was to hit them in their wallets, we become the judge, jury, and trier of facts, and DUI lawyers would have a field day. He added that if there was an additional fee to be charged, it would need to be done according to statute. Commissioner Kirkwood said she felt a $500 fee might be a little excessive. Mayor Pro Tem Finerty said perhaps that portion would need to come back to the Public Safety Commission for further consideration, and this was not something that needed to be determined today. Mrs. Gitligan reminded everyone that the Public Safety Commission typically did not meet during the months of July and August, and the Commission might want to consider making a recommendation to the City Council with regard to the VICR at this meeting rather than waiting until September. Commissioner Lebel stated that the $117.30 per hour rate noted in the staff report was for costs incurred by the Police Department but did not include administrative fees for the City of Palm Desert to process documents, and he suggested that an administrative fee be added to the $117. Lt. Shouse stated that the only administrative fee that would be incurred by the City would be for depositing the checks that the Police Department would provide to the City on a regular basis (probably monthly). Any other administrative costs would be handled by the Police Department as part of the contract and hourly rate. Upon question by Chairman Nethery relative to financial records that would need to be kept by the City, Mrs. Gilligan responded that a report would be submitted with the check by the Police Department to the City's Finance Department and would include the case numbers and any other pertinent information. Administrative expenses would be very minimal to process those checks. Chairman Nethery said his recommendation would be to get a fair estimate of that administrative cost and add it to the VICR fee, and even though it would probably not amount to a tot, it was something that should be paid with the VICR fee. 5 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 Lt. Shouse stated that the amount could be adjusted at a later date if the Council decides to implement the fee — perhaps look at it in a year's time to see how much actual administrative time is spent by the City in processing the checks. Mrs. Gilligan said the Commission could recommend that the City Council adopt an ordinance implementing the VICR, with a resolution setting forth the fees. Chairman Nethery said he would recommend a fee of $117 plus at least $7.50 or more for administrative costs based on a fair estimate by staff between now and when the City Council acts on this matter. Commissioner Butzbach said he supported the concept but felt, as far as the administrative fee, that it should be based on the hourly rate (as of July 1, 2009) of each person involved. Commissioner Kirkwood agreed that an administrative fee should be added. Mayor Pro Tem Finerty said she felt the $117 fee was a real low number as opposed to what other cities are charging. Commissioner Kirkwood moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend to the City Council that the City of Palm Desert adopt a Vehicle Impound Cost Recovery (VICR) Fee consistent with statutes. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Lebel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. Commissioner Kirkwood moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend that the City Council: 1) Adopt a minimum VICR Fee of $117.30; 2) consider whether this fee should include additional City administrative costs; 3) consider whether to increase those administrative costs based on FY 2009/10 actual costs. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Lebel and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. 6 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 B. Discussion of Public Safety Commission Summer Meeting Schedule Chairman Nethery noted that the Commission is usually dark in July and August, and no meetings are held unless an urgent matter arises that needs Commission action. Staff will notify the Commission if that happens, and a meeting will be scheduled. Commissioner Lebel moved to, by Minute Motion, keep the same summer meeting schedule, with the Commission to be dark in July and August unless something of an urgent nature arises that needs Commission action. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. VIII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None IX. OLD BUSINESS None X. REPORT ON CITY COUNCIL ACTION (S) A. Mayor Pro Tem Finerty noted that a grant had been submitted for a Narcotics Task Force Officer and a Gang Task Force Officer, and the City should know by the end of July whether or not it has been approved. XI. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Citizens on Patrol Program 1. Monthly Report for May 2009 Ms. Riddle noted the report in the packets and offered to answer any questions. Mrs. Gilligan stated that Ms. Riddle had just finished wrapping up the new franchise agreement with Burrtec Waste & Recycling Services. New services would be offered to residents, including curbside Household Hazardous Waste pickup for residences. She noted this new agreement was approved by the City Council at its last meeting, and there was no rate increase this year. 7 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 B. Legislative Update None C. Police and Fire Departments None D. Staff None E. Public Safety Commissioners 1. Upon question by Commissioner Butzbach, Lt. Shouse noted that the Police Department was continually doing its OTS (Office of Transportation and Safety) saturation patrols two to three weekends out of the month. He stated that traffic tonight and tomorrow night would be congested around Palm Desert High School due to the Middle School promotion ceremonies on June 10t" and the High School graduation on June 11tn 2. Commissioner Butzbach thanked Lt. Shouse for the DVDs of the "Every 15 Minutes" program given to the Commissioners at the last meeting. He noted that he would be loaning his copy to several other law enforcement agencies. Lt. Shouse stated that at the Cove Commission dinner next week, Kevin Cole, School Resource Officer at Palm Desert High School, would be honored for his work this year on the "Every 15 Minutes" program. 3. Commissioner Lebel provided a brief update on the activities of the Public Safety Subcommittee, including: • Submission of an application for grant funding in the amount of$6,800 to support CERT training • Palm Desert High School modifications to the gymnasium will include power configuration to provide for an emergency generator and a cooling center. • Burrtec will be assisting in development of a plan to provide for debris management during an emergency such as an earthquake. 8 PRELIMINARY MINUTES REGULAR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING JUNE 10, 2009 • Public Safety Subcommittee will be bringing a recommendation to the Public Safety Commission in the next few months that the City explore not only seismic analysis of City-owned buildings but the potential for seismic analysis of all buildings, fixtures, and assets located in the City of Palm Desert. • The City is in the process of reviewing its emergency food and water supply cache and has eliminated outdated items. Perhaps the City could establish a calendar for review of these supplies prior to their expiration date so they can be donated to outside organizations. XII. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Butzbach moved to adjourn the meeting at 4:15 p.m. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 4-0 vote, with Vice Chairman Larsh ABSENT. ' �� Mary P. L ross, Recording Secretary 9