HomeMy WebLinkAboutC30370A&B - MOU's DSUSD & PSUSD CITY OF PALM DESERT
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
STAFF REPORT
REQUEST: APPROVAL OF A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN
THE CITIES OF PALM DESERT, INDIAN WELLS, LA QUINTA,
COACHELLA, INDIO, CATHEDRAL CITY, DESERT HOT SPRINGS,
PALM SPRINGS, AND RANCHO MIRAGE; AND THE DESERT SANDS
AND PALM SPRINGS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICTS; RIVERSIDE
COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE COACHELLA
VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS.
SUBMITTED BY: Tony Bagato
Principai Planner
DATE: November 18, 2010
CONTENTS: Memorandum of Understanding, Desert Sands USD
Memorandum of Understanding, Palm Springs USD
Recommendation
By Minute Motion, authorize the Mayor to execute a Memorandum of
Understanding between the Cities of Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta,
Indio, Coachella, Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs, Palm Springs, and
Rancho Mirage; the Desert Sands and Palm Springs Unified School Districts;
Riverside County Department of Public Health and the Coachella Valley
Association of Governments. (contract Nos. C30370A and C30370B)
Executive Summary
The Schools by Design Project was formed approximately two years ago in response to
concerns about insufficient communication and collaboration between representatives of
cities, schools, school districts, and interested community members in the Coachella Valley on
issues of student safety on the streets and in the neighborhoods near and around the region's
schools. The City of Palm Desert has been an active participant in the Schools by Design
Project.
The Schools by Design partners developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between
cities, school districts, and regional planning agencies to guide the implementation of regularly
scheduled meetings and the ongoing dialogue needed for maintaining safe routes to school,
and encouraging walking and other self-propelled means of transportation to and from school
in the Coachella Valley. No financial commitment is required for the MOU.
Staff Report
Schools By Design Project MOU
Page2of3
November 18, 2010
Backqround
Although the City of Palm Desert and the Desert Sands Unified School District have the Two-
by-Two Committee, not all cities have good communication with the school districts in their
city. The Schools by Design Project was formed approximately two years ago in response to
concerns about insufficient communication and collaboration between representatives of
cities, schools, school districts, and interested community members in the Coachella Valley on
issues of student safety on the streets and in the neighborhoods near and around the region's
schools. In contrast to standard planning models that require schools simply to be located
within the street grid and placed on a per-capita basis, the Project sought to establish a
broader set of community partnerships to address the locations of schools proactively, and
specifically in relation to the provision of "Safe Routes to School".
Providing safer routes to school while encouraging exercise and social skills was the focus of
a two-year research project recently completed in the Coachella Valley. Schools by Design
was a collaborative project that brought together local school district and government officials,
county health specialists, parents, teachers, planners and engineers to develop a model that
could be used by communities for establishing safer routes to school.
The Schools by Design project's personnel gathered data on traffic around Coachella Valley
schools; surveyed thousands of the region's students and parents about their attitudes on
walking or biking to school and related issues; and successfully built relationships among
representatives of local schools, school districts, cities, and public health agencies to identify
how cities and school districts might work together to improve safety and promote greater
"walkability" in the Coachella Valley, especially for children going to and from school.
Working together, Schools by Design personnel and community partners produced new data
about student pedestrian safety in the Coachella Valley that indicates public support for, and
institutional capacity to create, safer routes to school. This information was used to solicit $1 .8
million in funded grant proposals to cover the costs of local infrastructural and other changes
currently needed to ensure safe routes to school for the region's children.
Memorandum of Understandinq
The Schools by Design partners developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between
cities, school districts, and regional planning agencies to guide the implementation of regularly
scheduled meetings and the ongoing dialogue needed for maintaining safe routes to school,
encouraging walking and other self-propelled means of transportation to and from school in
the Coachella Valley. The items discussed will generally address the issues of creating safe
routes to school with discussion topics that include, but are not limited to, planning and
development for present school site locations, offsite infrastructure inclusive of streets,
G:\PlanninglTony Bagato\Word Files\Formats\CVAG Council\City SBD TPS MOU Staff Repor12010.doc
Staff Report
Schools By Design Project MOU
Page 3 of 3
November 18, 2010
sidewalks, and roads, water, power, and other utility issues, local resident concerns regarding
school sites, grant applications and partnerships to fund projects related to the creation of safe
routes to school, and future school site selection issues.
Over the past year, CVAG staff has met with all three Coachella Valley school districts to
secure their participation in the MOU with CVAG member jurisdictions within their district. The
Memorandum of Understanding approval dates are as follows:
• Coachella Valley School District: Approved September 24, 2009
• Desert Sands Unified School District: Approved November 17, 2009
• Palm Springs Unified School District: Approved March 9, 2010
Now that the school districts have taken action, the MOU is being sent out to each of CVAG
member cities for consideration and action. Regularly scheduled quarterly meetings will be
established and incorporated into CVAG's Technical Planning Subcommittee (TPS) which
consists of Planning Directors from each city. Incorporating the Schools by Design meetings
into an existing CVAG committee will help mitigate additional costs to both cities and CVAG
as well as maintain the number of ineetings city planners currently attend. The TPS reports
directly to CVAG's Technical Advisory Committee where city managers will be informed on
any decisions from the TPS.
Fiscal Analvsis
There is no financial commitment or obligation as part of the MOU for the Schools By Design
project.
Submitted by: Department Head:
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Principal Planner Director of Community Development
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Original on File with City C �rk's Oi'ticc
Contract No. C30370A
MEMORANDUM OFUNDERSTANDING
Parties to the Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU")
This Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") is entered into between the City of
Coachella, City of Indio, City of Indian Wells, City of La Quinta; City of Palm Desert; City
of Rancho Mirage; the Desert Sands Unified School District; Riverside County
Department of Public Health the Coachella Valley Association of Governments. This
MOU is for the development of partnerships and the establishment of scheduled forms of
communication between school districts, local utilities and transit agencies, cities, and
regional planning entities.
Purpose of the MOU
WHEREAS, in 2006 the National Center for Safe Routes to School (NCSRS) estimates
that in 1969, 42% of adolescent children walked or biked to school, however in 2001
only 16% of children walked or biked; and
WHEREAS, in 2005 the American Medical Association (AMA) found that approximately
16% of American children between the ages of six and nineteen were obese, and that
related diseases like diabetes and arthritis are on the rise in the United States; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that the establishment of safe routes to school is beneficial
to school districts in curbing childhood disease and promoting social interaction among
students through walking, biking, and exercise, and assists cities in the establishment of
safe and healthy communities; and
WHEREAS, traffic, site planning, and community issues represent key constraints to the
creation of safe routes to school that can be successfully addressed via an open
dialogue on these issues; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that a partnership between school districts and cities can
assist in the location of new schools by addressing community concerns, planning for
infrastructure issues, and addressing site specific issues such as utilities and street
access that can make for a school that is properly designed while decreasing building
costs; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized by the City of Cathedral City; City of Desert Hot Springs;
City of Palm Springs, City of Rancho Mirage; the Palm Springs Unified School District;
and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments that bureaucratic isolation and
lack of communication is detrimental to the creation of safe routes to school and the
important benefits that walking has for students; and
WHEREAS, these agencies desire to establish a long-term process which allows each
individual agency to discuss on a frequent and ongoing basis the issues associated with
school site location issues, creating safe routes to schools for existing campuses, and
working partnerships for external funding; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that opportunities to compete for external funding to solve
the problems related to safe routes to school can be achieved by partnerships between
school districts, cities, and regional planning agencies; and
Contract No. C30370A
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS RESOLVED that the parties to this MOU agree to form
standing collaborative meetings to address the issues of creating safe routes to school
and further agree to adhere to the following guidelines in the formation, management
and operations of the collaborative meeting group.
Collaborative Discussion Group for Safe Routes to School
I. Quarterly Meetings: There shall be initiated among the parties to this Agreement
a standing series of ineetings that shall be arranged to occur on an as-needed
basis, but no less than once a quarter. These meetings shall exclude federal,
state, and school district holidays. Time and duration of these meetings will be
set by the participants to this Agreement. Meetings will be appropriately noticed.
II. Core Participants: The scheduled meetings shall include the parties to this
Agreement and other interested agencies including (but not be limited to) school
district superintendents or their representatives; municipal mayors or their
representatives, city managers or their representatives, regional utilities and
transit agencies, and the representative of the regional planning agency.
III. Discussion Format. The agreed scheduled meetings shall generally address the
issues of creating safe routes to school with discussion topics that include (but
are not limited to) planning and development for present school site locations,
offsite infrastructure inclusive of streets, sidewalks, and roads, water, power, and
other utility issues, local resident concerns regarding school sites, grant
applications and partnerships to fund projects related to the creation of safe
routes to school, and future school site selection issues.
IV. Grant Partnerships. The parties to this agreement will, to the extent possible,
participate in partnerships to enhance and attract e�ernal grant funding from
federal, state, local, and private sources for the purpose of school planning and
the creation of safe routes to school for students.
Data Sharing and Acknowledgement
I. It is acknowledged that any data and information shared in meetings that are
considered confidential by law shall remain confidential among the parties to this
Agreement.
II. Any successful grant applications or outcomes from the meetings and
partnerships formed under this Agreement will be generally acknowledged to all
parties to this Agreement.
Duration and Termination
This MOU is to remain in effect for 5 (five) years following it's execution by the parties to
this MOU. This MOU may be terminated at any time by any of the parties to the
Agreement with a 30 (thirty) day notice to the remaining parties. Should one party elect
to terminate participation under this Agreement, the remaining parties may continue the
meetings and collaboration contemplated in this Agreement. This Agreement will
automatically terminate should a simple majority of parties to the Agreement terminate
participation with appropriate notice as defined above.
Contract No. C30370A
Liability and Insurance
Each party to this MOU hereby assumes any and all risks for personal injury and
property damage attributable to the negligent acts or omissions of that party and the
officers, employees, and agents thereof. Each Agreement member warrants that is has
adequate Worker's Compensation Insurance and liability insurance for its own
employees. Agreement members agree to indemnify and hold each other harmless from
any obligations, costs, claims, judgments, attorney fees, and/or attachments in any way
connected with the services provides under this agreement.
Independent Contractor
In the performance of all services and obligations under this Agreement, all parties shall
act as independent agents. Parties shall not be considered as an employee or agent of
another participant organization in this MOU.
Force Majeure
No parties to this Agreement shall be liable or deemed to be in default for any delay or
failure in performance under this Agreement or interruption of services resulting, directly
or indirectly, from acts of God, civil or military authority, acts of the public enemy, strikes,
labor disputes, or any similar cause beyond the reasonable control of participants to this
Agreement.
Governing Law
The validity and interpretation of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the
State of California.
Execution
IN WITNESS THEREOF, City of Coachella, City of Indio, City of Indian Wells, City of La
Quinta, City of Palm Desert, Desert Sands Unified School District, Riverside County
Department of Public Health and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments have
executed this Agreement on the date first herein written.
For the City of Coachella:
David Garcia, City Manager
For the City of Indio:
Dan Martinez, City Manager
Contract No. C30370A
For the City of Indian Wells:
Greg Johnson, City Manager
For the City of La Quinta:
Tom Genovese, City Manager
For the City of Palm Desert
John Wohlmuth, City Manager
For the City of Rancho Mirage
Patrick Pratt, City Manager ,
For the Desert Sand Unified School District:
Dr. Sharon McGehee., Superintendent
For the Riverside County Department of Public Health:
Susan D. Harrington, M.S., R.D., Director
For the Coachella Valley Association of Governments:
Tom Kirk, Executive Director
Contract No. C30370B
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
Parties to the Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU")
This Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") is entered into between the City of
Cathedral City; City of Desert Hot Springs; City of Palm Springs, City of Rancho Mirage;
the Palm Springs Unified School District; Riverside County Department of Public Health
and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments. This MOU is for the development
of partnerships and the establishment of scheduled forms of communication between
school districts, local utilities and transit agencies, cities, and regional planning entities.
Purpose of the MOU
WHEREAS, in 2006 the National Center for Safe Routes to School (NCSRS) estimates
that in 1969, 42% of adolescent children walked or biked to school, however in 2001
only 16% of children walked or biked; and
WHEREAS, in 2005 the American Medical Association (AMA) found that approximately
16% of American children between the ages of six and nineteen were obese, and that
related diseases like diabetes and arthritis are on the rise in the United States; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that the establishment of safe routes to school is beneficial
to school districts in curbing childhood disease and promoting social interaction among
students through walking, biking, and exercise, and assists cities in the establishment of
safe and healthy communities; and
WHEREAS, traffic, site planning, and community issues represent key constraints to the
creation of safe routes to school that can be successfully addressed via an open
dialogue on these issues; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that a partnership between school districts and cities can
assist in the location of new schools by addressing community concerns, planning for
infrastructure issues, and addressing site specific issues such as utilities and street
access that can make for a school that is properly designed while decreasing building
costs; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized by the City of Cathedral City; City of Desert Hot Springs;
City of Palm Springs, City of Rancho Mirage; the Palm Springs Unified School District;
and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments that bureaucratic isolation and
lack of communication is detrimental to the creation of safe routes to school and the
important benefits that walking has for students; and
WHEREAS, these agencies desire to establish a long-term process which allows each
individual agency to discuss on a frequent and ongoing basis the issues associated with
school site location issues, creating safe routes to schools for existing campuses, and
working partnerships for external funding; and
WHEREAS, it is recognized that opportunities to compete for external funding to solve
the problems related to safe routes to school can be achieved by partnerships between
school districts, cities, and regional planning agencies; and
Contract No. C30370B
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS RESOLVED that the parties to this MOU agree to form
standing collaborative meetings to address the issues of creating safe routes to school
and further agree to adhere to the following guidelines in the formation, management
and operations of the collaborative meeting group.
Collaborative Discussion Group for Safe Routes to School
I. Quarterly Meetings: There shall be initiated among the parties to this Agreement
a standing series of ineetings that shall be arranged to occur on an as-needed
basis, but no less than once a quarter. These meetings shall exclude federal,
state, and school district holidays. Time and duration of these meetings will be
set by the participants to this Agreement. Meetings will be appropriately noticed.
II. Core Participants: The scheduled meetings shall include the parties to this
Agreement and other interested agencies including (but not be limited to) school
district superintendents or their representatives; municipal mayors or their
representatives, city managers or their representatives, regional utilities and
transit agencies, and the representative of the regional planning agency.
III. Discussion Format. The agreed scheduled meetings shall generally address the
issues of creating safe routes to school with discussion topics that include (but
are not limited to) planning and development for present school site locations,
offsite infrastructure inclusive of streets, sidewalks, and roads, water, power, and
other utility issues, local resident concerns regarding school sites, grant
applications and partnerships to fund projects related to the creation of safe
routes to school, and future school site selection issues.
IV. Grant Partnerships. The parties to this agreement will, to the extent possible,
participate in partnerships to enhance and attract external grant funding from
' federal, state, local, and private sources for the purpose of school planning and
the creation of safe routes to school for students.
Data Sharing and Acknowledgement
I. It is acknowledged that any data and information shared in meetings that are
considered confidential by law shall remain confidential among the parties to this
Agreement.
II. Any successful grant applications or outcomes from the meetings and
partnerships formed under this Agreement will be generally acknowledged to all
parties to this Agreement.
Duration and Termination
This MOU is to remain in effect for 5 (five) years following it's execution by the parties to
this MOU. This MOU may be terminated at any time by any of the parties to the
Agreement with a 30 (thirty) day notice to the remaining parties. Should one party elect
to terminate participation under this Agreement, the remaining parties may continue the
meetings and collaboration contemplated in this Agreement. This Agreement will
automatically terminate should a simple majority of parties to the Agreement terminate
participation with appropriate notice as defined above.
Contract No. C30370B
Liability and Insurance
Each party to this MOU hereby assumes any and all risks for personal injury and
property damage attributable to the negligent acts or omissions of that party and the
officers, employees, and agents thereof. Each Agreement member warrants that is has
adequate Worker's Compensation Insurance and liability insurance for its own
employees. Agreement members agree to indemnify and hold each other harmless from
any obligations, costs, claims, judgments, attorney fees, and/or attachments in any way
connected with the services provides under this agreement.
Independent Contractor
In the performance of all services and obligations under this Agreement, all parties shall
act as independent agents. Parties shall not be considered as an employee or agent of
another participant organization in this MOU.
Force Majeure
No parties to this Agreement shall be liable or deemed to be in default for any delay or
failure in performance under this Agreement or interruption of services resulting, directly
or indirectly, from acts of God, civil or military authority, acts of the public enemy, strikes,
labor disputes, or any similar cause beyond the reasonable control of participants to this
Agreement.
Governing Law
The validity and interpretation of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the
State of California.
Execution
IN WITNESS THEREOF, City of Cathedral City, City of Desert Hot Springs, City of
Rancho Mirage, Palm Springs Unified School District, Riverside County Department of
Public Health and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments have executed this
Agreement on the date first herein written.
For the City of Cathedral City:
Don Bradley, City Manager
For the City of Desert Hot Springs:
Rick Daniels, City Manager
Contract No. C30370B
For the City of Palm Springs
David Ready, City Manager
For the City of Rancho Mirage
Patrick Pratt, City Manager
For the Palm Springs Unified School District:
Lorri S. McCune Ed. D., Superintendent
For the Riverside County Department of Public Health:
Susan D. Harrington, M.S., R.D., Director
For the Coachella Valley Association of Governments:
Tom Kirk, Executive Director