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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Housing Commission 05/13/2015PALM DESERT HOUSING AUTHORITY INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM TO: RACHELLE KLASSEN, CITY CLERK FROM: PATTY LEON, RECORDING SECRETAR DATE: MAY 14, 2015 SUBJECT: HOUSING COMMISSION MINUTES Attached is the following Housing Commission Meeting Minutes approved at the regular Housing Commission meeting held May 13th, 2015 as follows: (x) Meeting Minutes for April 8th, 2015 Please submit to the Housing Authority Board. Thank you. P ue4& By HOUSG AUTH ON 5-2.Z-k5- VERIFIED BY: k 1r1 VVI Original on file with City Clerk's Office G:\HOUSING\Patty Leon'Housing Commission\Miscellaneous\Memos\Memos to City Clerk HC\HAC - Minutes doc CITY OF PALM DESERT REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES APRIL 8, 2015 I. CALL TO ORDER Mike Lewis, Housing Commission Chair, convened the meeting at 3:30 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Absent: Mike Lewis — Chair Jane Turner — Vice Chair Gregory Ballard Heather Horning Robert Nevares Wade Tucker Joy Whitehurst Others Present: Sabby Jonathan, City Council Member Liaison Janet Moore, Director of Housing Jessica Gonzales, Management Analyst Patty Leon, Recording Secretary Teresa Vakili, RPM Company Heather Buck, Project Coordinator III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS IV. AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS V. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MINUTES of the Regular Housing Commission meeting of March 11, 2015: Commissioner Joy Whitehurst asked that Susan Marie Weber be recognized as the Mayor and not Councilmember on the minutes. Motion was made by Commissioner Wade Tucker to approve the minutes of the March 11, 2015 meeting with the requested change. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Robert Nevares and carried by 7-0 vote 1 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 (AYES: Ballard, Horning, Nevares, Tucker, Turner, Whitehurst, and Lewis; NOES: none). VI. NEW BUSINESS A. Parking Easement Agreement — Carlos Ortega Villas ("COV") Heather Buck summarized the staff report stating the primary portion of the staff report is related to the Parking Easement Agreement between the City of Palm Desert and the Palm Desert Country Club a condition of approval for the Carlos Ortega Villas project. Change Order No. 9 includes costs for the off -site parking lot and miscellaneous items listed on page 3 of the report. Janet Moore stated that the reason the Parking Easement Agreement is coming to the Housing Commission for recommendation is because there is a change order to the contract with Optimus that is let by the Housing Authority. The source of funds will come from outstanding bonds from the former redevelopment agency set aside for parking improvements, drainage, undergrounding utilities, and infrastructure improvements at certain areas in Palm Desert which happens to be where the COV project is being built. Councilmember Liaison Sabby Jonathan inquired how the Palm Desert Country Club Board felt about the roundabout. Heather Buck responded that it will take time to get used to. Commissioner Mike Lewis asked what is going to be in the middle of the roundabout; Mrs. Buck replied landscaping. Motion was made by Chair Mike Lewis to forward a recommendation to the Palm Desert Housing Authority to approve the Parking Easement Agreement with Palm City Association and Change Order No 9 to Contract No. HA29410B with Optimus Construction Inc. in the amount of $187,588.66 for construction of the Carlos Ortega Villas. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Wade Turner and carried by 7-0 vote (AYES: Ballard, Horning, Nevares, Tucker, Turner, Whitehurst, and Lewis; NOES: none). At this time, Heather Buck referenced the slide show of Carlos Ortega Villas construction progress. 2 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 B. Citywide Tree Pruning Program Janet Moore mentioned that the Citywide Tree Pruning Program includes trees within the Housing Authority properties as well. She clarified that this report is for the broad leaf trees only. Based on an assessment conducted by the City's landscape inspector, a plan was established to prune 33% of the trees over a 3 year cycle and to also identify any other trees besides the 30% that's on the tree list for that year. In addition, the inspector also identified requested removals such as overgrown trees and/or impeding a solar system, etc. Motion was made by Commissioner Jane Turner to forward a recommendation to the Palm Desert Housing Authority waive minor bid irregularity and award Contract No. C34130 for the 2015 Citywide Tree Pruning Program to Liberty Landscaping, Inc., in the amount of $195,639.38 (Housing Authority $50,100.82). Motion was seconded by Commissioner Wade Tucker and carried by 7-0 vote (AYES: Ballard, Horning, Nevares, Tucker, Turner, Whitehurst, and Lewis; NOES: none). C. City Wide Palm Tree Pruning Program Janet Moore stated that this report is for the pruning of Palm Trees done every year. She explained that the palm trees at our communities at times require that they be pruned twice, before they flower and after they flower. Staff anticipates coordinating the tree cycle schedule appropriately with Liberty Landscape, given that they are our current maintenance company and are very familiar with the properties. In regards to prevailing wage, Mrs. Moore stated that prices have gone up significantly; there may be some exceptions for affordable housing projects; however that has not been determined at this time. The Council opted for a voluntary program to avoid hard and fast rules from the Department of Industrial Relations. Commissioner Mike Lewis asked about the lower bidder withdrawing their bid. Mrs. Moore replied that the lowest bidder withdrew his bid because it was not a prevailing wage project. Commissioner Wade Tucker inquired on the company that sprays the trees at the properties. Teresa Vakili responded that different companies spray the trees depending on the type of tree. 3 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 Motion was made by Commissioner Joy Whitehurst to forward a recommendation to the Palm Desert Housing Authority accept low bidder's to withdraw and award Contract No. C34270 for the 2015 Citywide Palm Tree Pruning Program to Second Lowest Bidder, Liberty Landscaping, Inc., in the amount of $104,397.44 (Housing Authority $10,612.80). Motion was seconded by Commissioner Gregory Ballard and carried by 7-0 vote (AYES: Ballard, Horning, Nevares, Tucker, Turner, Whitehurst, and Lewis; NOES: none). VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS VIII. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. COMMISSION REPORTS Janet Moore reported on the aerial photos of Carlos Ortega Villa's construction progress, it was noted that the project is on track. Commissioner Greg Ballard asked about the budget for COV. Heather Buck reported that the change orders are currently under 2% of the contract and the project is nearing 50% complete. Commissioner Mike Lewis inquired on the building located at the corner of Washington and Avenue of the States formerly known as Casey's Restaurant. Janet Moore stated that a Request for Proposals "RFP" was put out for interested parties to bid on the property. The RFP's were to include ideas and/or the intended purpose for that location. Staff is still reviewing those proposals to determine the best option. She noted that both parties that responded to the RFP intended to tear -down the building. Commissioner Greg Ballard asked if Senate Bill No. 341 will affect housing. Mrs. Moore stated that Legislature enacted SB 341 which is a restriction on the use of funding for Housing that has been generated after the elimination of redevelopment agencies. COV will not be affected by this bill since bond funds had already been established for this particular project before the redevelopment agency was eliminated. However, it might affect the senior communities given that the State will restrict funds to assist additional senior housing units. The new law intends to target household families in the extremely low, very low and low income levels and expend very little if any of the funds for households earning over 60 percent of the area median income. 4 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 B. SUMMARY OF CITY COUNCIL, SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY, AND HOUSING AUTHORITY AGENDA ITEMS A memo summarizing the approved action items from the City Council meetings in March were provided to the Commission for review. Commissioner Mike Lewis referenced Change Order No. 8 on the approved action items and asked Ms. Heather Buck to remind him what the amount consist of. Heather Buck stated that Change Order No. 8 was primarily electrical additions and material changes such as the light fixtures. C. MONTHLY OCCUPANCY STATUS REPORT The Commission reviewed the Monthly Occupancy Status Report for February. Commissioner Mike Lewis asked about the fire unit at Las Serenas. Teresa Vakili stated that that unit is complete and occupied. D. REPORT #1 — MONTHLY OCCUPANCY AND AVERAGE RENT STATEMENT The Commission reviewed the Monthly Occupancy and Average Rent Statement for February. E. REPORT #2 — MONTHLY NET OPERATING INCOME STATEMENTS The Commission reviewed the Monthly Net Operating Income Statements for February. Councilmember Liaison Sabby Jonathan asked about year to date totals on the report. Janet Moore stated that the year to date totals are usually provided at the end of the fiscal year, however, the report can be modified to show year to date totals on the monthly report as well. Upon questioned, Mrs. Moore clarified that the County of Riverside Housing Authority does not set rental rates for our communities. The County establishes rental rates for their programs only and in some cases we compare them to our establishment of rents, given that our communities accept Section 8 certificates. 5 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 Councilmember Jonathan asked about "Other Income" on the report and the "Replacement Expense" at Las Serenas. Teresa Vakili stated that "Other" income category includes Section 8 certificates, employee units, etc. With regard to the replacement expenses at Las Serenas, Ms. Vakili stated that there were two units that were down for quite some time that required complete renovations to include new cabinets, new drywall, bathtubs, etc. In addition to the fire unit costs which will be reimbursed by the insurance company. Those renovations have been completed. F. HOUSING AUTHORITY PROPERTIES UPDATE An update on the Housing Authority Properties was provided to the Commission for review. Commissioner Joy Whitehurst asked about the mold remediation at Desert Pointe. Teresa Vakili stated that the studios at Desert Pointe were not built with ventilation/ceiling fans. This particular unit required a new ceiling in the bathroom and remediation of the mold which also required clearance' testing. The unit is complete and includes ventilation in the bathroom. Commissioner Wade Tucker asked on the number of properties that have swimming pools. Mrs. Vakili stated that all properties have pools with the exception of Sagecrest Senior, Palm Village, and La Rocca Villas. At this time, Janet Moore reported that Governor Brown issued water restrictions. Restrictions will be placed on City parks, medians, and aquatic features. Staff is looking at ways to reduce water consumption at the properties as well and have asked Liberty Landscape to adjust irrigation on plant material. G. AUTHORITY HOME IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM UPDATE An update on the Home Improvement Program (HIP) was provided to the Commission for review. Janet Moore summarized the report. She explained the grant process and how these grants are recorded against the properties. At this time, Janet Moore referenced a flyer that was mailed to several Commissioners to remind them to complete the Ethics Training. 6 Housing Commission Minutes APRIL 8, 2015 IX. NEXT MEETING DATE — May 13, 2015 X. ADJOURNMENT With Commission concurrence the meeting was adjourned at 4:34 p.m. 00 Patty Leon, ecording Secretary 7