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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Sfty Cmsn - 05-14-2014 X -� � CITY OF PALM DESERT �1'�� PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION MEETING � � APPROVED MINUTES , , WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2014 - 3:30 p.m. Palm Desert City Hall 73-510 Fred Waring Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92260 Administrative Services Conference Room I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Luhring called the meeting to order at 3:32 p.m. 11. ROLL CALL Present: CiTY COUNCII,ACTION Commissioner James Butzbach APPROVED DEN?ED Commissioner Phyllis Harkins RECEIt�ED O�R._ -,_.,_�,,. Commissioner Gloria Kirkwaod -- a�'�V�Fc Commissioner Terry Kramer MEETING DA to`��-���" Chairman Doug Luhring AYFs:"� ''�'i-{K `' r � Vice Chairman Martin Nethery NnF�: p Commissioner Frank Taylor AI3SF.NT: AI3STAII�T: Ol1-P Also Present: Vi�.RIFIED BY: r l Y✓� Mayor Pro Tem Susan Marie WebePr���nal on File with City Clcr•k's Office John Wohlmuth, City Manager Stephen Y. Aryan, Risk Manager Mark Diercks, Transportation Engineer Lt. William Sullivan, Palm Desert Police Department Chief Bill Hunley, Riverside County Fire Department Sergeant Dave Adams, Palm Desert Police Department Jane Stanley, Outgoing Recording Secretary Donna Evans, Incoming Recording Secretary III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Stephen Aryan thanked Jane Stanley for her service to the commission and welcomed Donna Evans as the new Recording Secretary. IV. PRESENTATIONS None. Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 2 V. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Regular Public Safety Commission Meeting of April 9, 2014. Removed for separate consideration, then APPROVED as amended: Vice Chairman Nethery requested clarification of two paragraphs of the minutes. On page five, next to last paragraph, change the sentence to say: "Vice Chairman Nethery said it did not seem such a significant amount, given the scale of the budget, to warrant waiting to add the staffing to the engines." On page six, change the Motion from "including the ALS Engine 33 Conversion" to "to include the ALS Engine 33 Conversion." Vice Chairman Nethery moved to, by Minute Motion, approve the Minutes of the Public Safety Commission meeting of April 9, 2014 as amended. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Butzbach and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). B. PALM DESERT FIRE SERVICES Monthly Report for April 2014. Removed for separate consideration, then APPROVED. Commissioner Butzbach requested clarification regarding page 2, Response Activity, and page 3, Incidents by Battalion. Chief Hunley explained that the new response time is measured from the time the call is received, to the time the unit is on-scene, and includes all components of the call. With our integrated system that we use, it's the closest resource that goes to the call. This is the standard measure used by the National Fire Protection Association. The Incidents reported include resources from stations outside of Palm Desert that were the closest to the location of the call. Palm Desert units that respond to a call in another city would be recorded on that city's report. In response to question, Chief Hunley commented that the report has Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 3 been changed because the old report was very time-consuming to prepare. The new report requires less staff time, as opposed to pulling GIS information from every truck. The average en route to on- scene time is what they've always reported. We're being scrutinized on response times. What we've done is use the National Fire Protection Agency standards for responses within Palm Desert which would be an eight minute total response time. This is from the time the dispatcher picks up the phone to the time that the units are at the scene. These new times are included in the report and the five- minute en route times won't be shown. Chief Hunley stated that this will show the true time for a response. The former report showed only the drive time. Commissioner Butzbach moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the Palm Desert Fire Services monthly report for April 2014. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). VI. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER Items A & B — see action with the item, above. VII. NEW BUSINESS A. ADOPTION OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT'S LOCAL HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN (LHMP). Stephen Aryan reported that the LHMP needs to be updated every 5 years. It outlines the hazards to the community and the steps the City will take in the event of a disaster. The Commission previously reviewed this LHMP in 2012. Since then, County, State, and Federal agencies have approved it. The last step is for the City to formally adopt the LHMP. Mr. Aryan noted that if the City does not have a LHMP in place, disaster financial assistance would be jeopardized. Additionally, Mr. Aryan reviews the LHMP annually. Vice Chairman Nethery moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend that the Palm Desert City Council adopt the City's Local Hazard Mitigation Plan. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Harkins and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). B. APPROVAL OF A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) BETWEEN THE DESERT SANDS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT AND THE CITY OF PALM DESERT FOR THE FUNDING AND PLACEMENT OF ONE SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER (SRO) POSITION. Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 4 Mr. Aryan explained that there are two SRO positions in the Police budget. One is at Palm Desert High School and the other at Palm Desert Charter Middle School. The Middle School controls their own budget and is currently unable to participate in the cost-sharing for a SRO. In 2010, the school district informally agreed to share 25% of the cost for a SRO position at the high school. Each year the district's contribution increased by 5% until the cost-sharing reaches 50% each, commencing in the 2015-16 school year. The agreement was never formally approved. Chairman Luhring noted the importance of a SRO in the high schools in light of the recent news at La Quinta High School. Commissioner Kirkwood moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend that the Palm Desert City Council approve a Memorandum of Understanding between the Desert Sands Unified School District and the City of Palm Desert for the Funding and Placement of one School Resource Officer Position. Motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Nethery and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). C. APPROVAL OF A LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF PALM DESERT AND THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE FOR A FIVE YEAR TERM. On advice of counsel from the City Attorney, Commissioner Taylor abstained from discussion of this item. Mr. Aryan stated that the current agreement expires on June 30tn and was a 3-year agreement. There are no significant changes other than the term of the agreement. Commissioner Kramer noted section 1.3 and said it appears the agreement cannot be terminated until the 4ih year. John Wohlmuth clarified that the agreement requires one year's notice by either party to terminate. The current agreement was for three years, but a typical term is five years. If Palm Desert grows, the staffing level may need to change and can be addressed at budget time. Vice Chairman Nethery stated that Section 1.3 is ambiguous and perhaps the City Attorney should review the wording. Mr. Wohlmuth said that it is appropriate for the Commission to approve the agreement with clarification requested. Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 5 Vice Chairman Nethery moved to, by Minute Motion, recommend that the Palm Desert City Council approve an agreement between the City of Palm Desert and the County of Riverside, on behalf of its Sheriff's Department, to provide law enforcement services for a five year term commencing July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2019, subject to clarification of Section 1.3. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kramer and carried by a 6-0-1 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, and Luhring: NOES: None; ABSTAIN: Taylor). D. PALM DESERT FIRE SERVICES 2013 ANNUAL REPORT. Vice Chairman Nethery commented that the report is good and the Fire Department is doing a great job. The increases over the last two years are significant. He didn't realize that the average is one call per hour. Commissioner Kirkwood moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the Palm Desert Fire Services 2013 Annual Report. Motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Nethery and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). E. PALM DESERT POLICE DEPARTMENT 2013 ANNUAL REPORT. Chairman Luhring noted that the total of 42,000 calls averages 110 per day. Commissioner Taylor questioned the Injury Traffic Collisions statistic on page 25. Lt. Sullivan said yes, the number for 2012 is an error and should be 205 instead of 305. Discussion ensued regarding the broadened tasks of motor officers and the difficulty in capturing statistics for their extra duties. Commissioner Kramer said he is looking forward to seeing how beneficial it is to have motor officers as first responders. Upon question from Commissioner Butzbach, Lt. Sullivan discussed false alarm responses. Officers spend a significant amount of wasted time on false alarms. He is researching the best approach to properly address this issue. Commissioner Butzbach moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the Palm Desert Police Services 2013 Annual Report. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 6 VIII. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. ESTABLISHMENT OF SPEED ZONES CITYWIDE. Mark Diercks, Transportation Engineer, reminded the Commission that this issue was brought before them in February. Staff has since re-evaluated the segments and updated the report. There are 3 areas that were changed from the initial report: southbound 74 starting at EI Paseo will remain at 55 mph, Parkview will remain at 45 mph, and Verba Santa will remain at 25 mph. Commissioner Taylor commented that along Warner Trail from California to Fred Waring there are a lot of parked cars. With the speed increasing from 30 to 35 mph, people will be driving 45 mph. Also, the curve on Highway 74 from EI Paseo to Highway 111 is proposed to be increased from 35 to 45 mph. In his experience, drivers can more easily jump the curb into buildings with the increased speed limit. Mr. Diercks stated that he would like to put flashing lights on the warning signs. Vice Chairman Nethery moved to, by Minute Motion, concur with staff recommendation to City Council to establish speed zones on streets throughout the City. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kramer and carried by a 5-2 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, and Luhring: NOES: Harkins and Taylor). IX. OLD BUSINESS None. X. REPORT ON CITY COUNCIL ACTION(S) None. XI. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Citizens on Patrol Program Commissioner Harkins commented that the COP teams do a great job. Commissioner Harkins moved to, by Minute Motion, receive and file the Palm Desert Citizens on Patrol reports for March to April 2014. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Kirkwood and carried by a 7-0 vote (AYES: Butzbach, Harkins, Kirkwood, Kramer, Nethery, Taylor, and Luhring: NOES: None). Public Safety Commission May 14, 2014 Page 7 B. Legislative Update Mr. Aryan stated that he had no report at this time. C. Police and Fire Departments None. D. Staff Mr. Aryan noted that the City Council reviewed the Police and Fire Department budgets on April 22"d. They incorporated the Public Safety Commission's recommendations for the Fire Department budget and made no changes to the Police budget. The Fire Department budget was a little higher due to retirement contributions. However, the revenues from property taxes were up. The City Manager recommended putting $200k of that into a Fire Truck Replacement Fund. 1. Palm Desert Police Department Receives "Golden Bear" Award. Mr. Aryan reported that Forensic Technician Jillian Frisby and Officer Edward Chacon both received the CAL-ID Golden Bear Award, which is given for five or more positive criminal identifications from fingerprint evidence in a single year. With this award, Forensic Technician Frisby has obtained eight consecutive awards. Lt. Sullivan emphasized that the work done by Forensic Technician Frisby is exactly what was envisioned. Her costs are split between Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, and Indian Wells. E. Public Safety Commissioners None. XII. NEXT MEETING DATE — JUNE 18, 2014 Mr. Aryan added that the Commission is typically dark in July and August, unless there is an item of importance. XIII. ADJOURNMENT With Commission concurrence the meeting was adjourned at 4:38 p.m. Donna vans, Recording Secretary