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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPA4 Cmte - 03/16/09TO: FROM: DATE: SUBJECT: on PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEMORANDUM RACHELLE KLASSEN, CITY CLERK iA MARIA HUNT, SECRETARY TO ACM REDEVELOPMENT APRIL 23, 2009 SUBMISSION OF MINUTES FOR THE CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 Attached is a copy of the approved Minutes from the March 16, 2009 meeting of the Project Area No. 4 Committee. Please let me know if you have any questions or need additional information. mh Attachment (as noted) V Ltd r}', �i)-0 ON (y , VERIFIED BY V Original on file with City Clerks Office PALM DESERT REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO.4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 1. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Fred Benford called a regular meeting to order on Monday, March 16, 2009, at 3:05 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Members Present: Charles Ash Fred Benford Jane Daugherty Robert Duncan Roberta Grubb Kelly Litecky Javier Lopez Douglas Luhring Susan McMillen Also Present: Martin Alvarez, Redevelopment Manager Lauri Aylaian, Director of Planning Heather Beck, Project Coordinator Russ Campbell, Planning Commissioner Mark Diercks, P.E., Transportation Engineer Dave Erwin, City Attorney Phyllis Harkins, Palm Desert Country Club Association Maria Hunt, Recording Secretary Justin McCarthy, ACM Redevelopment Aria Scott, Senior Financial Analyst Lt. Andrew Shouse, Palm Desert Police Department Dave Simmons, Palm Desert Country Club Robert Spiegel, Councilmember Dave Yrigoyen, Director of Redevelopment/Housing CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Chairman Benford distributed pictures that he had taken on March 16 of the SCE markings on the street. He stated that six months ago, SCE and Verizon came out, tagged the area, then came out a couple of days later, worked on it, and completed it. The pictures show the graffiti and one where homeowners had removed the graffiti. He stated that Ms. Scott had reported at the last meeting that the utilities were to remove the markings when the project was completed. Chairman Benford stated that in his opinion they are offenders and should be held accountable. It has been there for six months, they have done absolutely nothing to clean it up. He pointed out that the markings shown in the picture (bottom right) have been there several years. Chairman Benford stated that Edison and Verizon should be held accountable, just as taggers are held accountable. Member Ash stated that he objected to the term "graffiti". He stated that it is not graffiti because his definition of graffiti is something that somebody goes out and sprays on the wall. This was done by the utility companies to mark the location of their utilities. Chairman Benford requested that "graffiti" be referred to as "markings" in the minutes. Ms. Aylaian suggested that this matter be referred to staff, and that it be placed on the agenda for the next meeting. Staff can contact Edison, look into this further, and report back at the next meeting. It was suggested that an SCE representative attend the next meeting. Member Daugherty reported that she had received a letter from Edison regarding energy use. Since the City's name is on it, she thought it would be a good idea to have an SCE representative at the next meeting to discuss the letter. Ms. Phyllis Harkins, PDCC HOA Manager, reported that the Board President of PDCC HOA, wanted to convey to Mr. Alvarez that they did not have one single complaint about the deconstruction of the Country Village Apartments project. The project was recently begun, and it is amazing how quickly it has been done. The contractor has done a great job. There has been no noise or dust. Chairman Benford asked Mr. Simmons to provide the Committee with an update on the Palm Desert Country Club. Mr. Simmons stated that the golf course is in better shape; the summer grass is starting to come back; the greens are in good shape; and play has been up. They will be ready to start marking the streets for the golf cart travel path as soon as the stencil is received from the City. The on -course directional signs have been ordered and should be delivered this week. His understanding is that the City will install the actual cart crossing signs on the street. They have had some on -course problems with kids at night near the Joe Mann Park. G:\rda\Beth Longman\CommitteesTA #4\Minutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 2 CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 They have removed a lot of old growth, namely leaves, oleanders, olive trees, and bamboo, in an attempt to eliminate the places where they can hide and party. IV. CONSENT CALENDAR APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO.4 MEETING OF JANUARY 29, 2009. With Committee concurrence, the Minutes of the meeting of January 29, 2009 were unanimously approved. V. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None VI. NEW BUSINESS None VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None VIII. OLD BUSINESS None IX. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS A. REPORT ON THE BROWN ACT Dave Erwin, City Attorney, provided a refresher on the Ralph M. Brown Act. It is the open meeting law in California. The Brown Act requires that all public agencies conduct all of their business in the open with some very limited exceptions. This Committee is subject to the Brown Act, meaning that your agendas are posted 72 hours ahead of time. The Committee is required to conduct their meetings in the open. If you are going to make a decision on the items that you discuss in the meeting, you are required to hear from the public first before you make that decision. In addition, if there are items to be added to the agenda, it requires a 4/5ths vote of this body to place the item on the agenda for this body to consider. Before you can discuss the item, 4/5ths of you must agree that it goes on the agenda. It is probably unlikely that this Committee would be involved in any closed sessions. Closed sessions generally are held only for limited purposes, such as litigation, threatened litigation by someone outside G.\rda\Beth Longman\Committees\PA #4\Minutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 3 CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 the city, anticipated litigation by the City against somebody else, personnel matters, and matters dealing with public safety. Typically, the Council is the only one involved in closed session items. Basically, the Council is the decision -making body. The Brown Act has been amended, and basically the amendments deal with what is a meeting. It used to be that if three members of the Council got together and decided something outside of the meeting or were talking about it and driving a concurrence that was a violation of the Brown Act subject to criminal penalties. It has been amended to make it stricter. There does not have to be a concurrence of the Council. In fact, if three members of the Council were to talk but not arrive at a concurrence about something that is within their jurisdiction, that is a violation of the Brown Act. His recommendation to the Council is going to be that they not talk to each other about items before them, except in a Council meeting. He believes that the interpretation of the District Attorney or the Attorney General will be as strict. He does not want the Council or this body involved in anything that would be in violation of the Brown Act because it is a criminal penalty. would caution you in discussing any matters before this body with any of the other Committee members. Certainly one or two may talk about it, but don't go any further than that. I would also caution you about the use of computers. Many people hit "Reply to All" when they receive an email. You need to know who you're sending it to because you may have violated the Brown Act by conveying something to a majority of your body, particularly if you get into blogging and different things like that where opinions or thoughts are being conveyed. It is an area that is going to be looked at even more closely with the current amendments to the Brown Act. I don't anticipate any violations here, but I want you to know if there is a concern, please give me a call if you have something that may create a problem. The best thing to do is find out if it will create a problem. Mayor Spiegel asked Mr. Erwin to speak on the article that was in the paper. Mr. Erwin stated that the Council would be receiving a memorandum from him regarding that matter. The newspaper and I disagree with what is required to be reported out from a closed session. Their position is that the City Manager's contract was a determination of salary that needed to be placed on an agenda and voted on in a public meeting. There is another provision in the Brown Act where the City Council can employ and appoint a city official, and all that needs to be done is report as an action out of closed session and a vote. It was reported out on January 22, and it was approved by unanimous vote. His recommendation to the Council is that this G:\rda\Beth Longman\CommitteesTA #4Mnutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 4 CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 argument doesn't need to be carried any further. He will request to be put on the agenda and let the Council vote on it. Mayor Spiegel stated that the Council had unanimously agreed to hire John Wohlmuth as the City Manager. He was given the job of offering it to him at the salary that the Council agreed upon. It was strictly between Mr. Wohlmuth and himself. I offered it to him and he agreed to it. The City Clerk drew up the contract and Mr. Wohlmuth was required to report out that he had accepted. At this point, Mr. Wohlmuth was in the hospital. It was reported out that he had accepted, he signed it, and the Mayor signed it. We did not try to hide anything. His contract is a public document. Anybody can go in and ask the City Clerk how much we make, and she is required to provide the information. The Desert Sun reporter did that and reported how much he was making and that he had been hired. B. UPDATE ON PALM DESERT COUNTRY CLUB UTILITY UNDERGROUNDING Arla Scott reported that plans are complete for Phases 1 and 2. Verizon and Time Warner picked them up. It will take approximately sixty days for them to do their part. Phase 3 should be to Verizon and Time Warner within three weeks. Phase 4 is fifty percent complete. Member Ash asked about the estimated date when they would have a figure so that they can provide to the residents. Ms. Scott stated that they do not have a time frame. C. UPDATE ON COUNTRY VILLAGE DECONSTRUCTION PROJECT Martin Alvarez, Redevelopment Manager, introduced himself and Heather Beck, Project Coordinator, who is directly responsible for the deconstruction of the Country Village Apartments. Ms. Beck stated she would be reporting on the processes of deconstruction, as well as the progress to date. A power point presentation was presented to the Committee which included numerous pictures of the work in progress. Also, there were photos of the existing apartments taken in 2008 before any work had begun. The Agency also owns the adjacent vacant lot where the land debris is being cleared. The first phase of the work was the contractor localization. The next step was the removal of asbestos before demolition could begin. While the asbestos contractor was removing the asbestos on half of the site, the contractor followed behind removing the items from the units. They were able to salvage a lot of the materials, far exceeding our expectations. The Fire Department conducted firefighting training for one week, which included 200 firefighters and paramedics. G \rda\Beth Longman\CommitteesTA #4\Minutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 5 CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO. 4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 Once the asbestos was removed, the contractor began the deconstruction of the units, which included removing lumber, salvaging concrete, etc. The lumber was to be trucked to Mexico for use in future buildings. All of the rebar and metals were removed from the concrete and asphalt on the project. The crushed concrete and asphalt will be used for road base on a future project. Scrap metal and trusses were also recycled. The contractor was able to reduce their recycling costs. The cost for recycling was about $10- $20 per ton versus $40-$50 per ton for actual waste they had to throw away. The green waste that was cleared from the vacant lot to the south of the Country Village Apartments was to be sent to be chipped and composted. We were able to use many of the refrigerators, some of the AC units, and a large water heater on other Agency properties. Our goal was to divert 75% of debris from the landfill. The contractor's estimate at the beginning of the project was 80%. As of March 10, 81 % of the construction debris has been diverted. The projected completion date is March 26. Member Ash asked what the total acreage was for the project, to which Mr. Alvarez replied that there were a total of 4.6 acres. It is projected that the project will consist of 71 senior affordable housing units. A half acre is dedicated to the future fire station. Member Grubb asked if the City of Palm Desert was one of the first to recycle all these materials. Mr. Alvarez replied that he believed it was one of the first projects of this size in the Valley. Member Grubb stated that according to what she has read, the City is one of the leaders in the country for recycling and green energy. Mr. Alvarez stated that staff hoped to use this particular process to get potential credit for a future LEED certification on a new residential property. This could be a component toward that process. Mayor Spiegel asked Mr. Alvarez to explain LEED. Ms. Beck explained that LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It is part of the U.S. Green Building Council, a nationwide voluntary program to rate the sustainability of a building. Chairman Benford complimented Mr. Alvarez and Ms Beck on an excellent presentation. D. UPDATE ON COUNTRY VILLAGE SENIOR HOUSING PROJECT Mr. Alvarez presented a site plan and elevations of what potentially could go on this site. The project is located at the corner of Washington and Avenue of the States, where Casey's Restaurant is located. The plan is for the restaurant to remain and receive facade G:\rda\Beth Longman\CommitteesTA #4\Minutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 6 CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR PROJECT AREA NO.4 MINUTES March 16, 2009 improvements, site improvements, new landscaping, parking lot improvements, drainage, and ADA improvements. A half acre, adjacent to the west, will be used for a future fire station. The remainder of the site, which is approximately three acres, will accommodate the proposed 71 senior affordable housing units. The mix will consist of both single -story and two-story. The majority of the units would be single -story to blend in with other residential uses adjacent to the property. Circulation would be improved to accommodate all three of these land uses and also to improve circulation to the Palm Desert Country Club area. Chairman Benford asked if there was a projected completion date on the project. Mr. Alvarez stated that there is no projected completion date. We are going through the architectural selection for a consultant to assist with the design development stage. We have gone through the concept design, which includes the site planning and concept elevations. Our next step is to hire an architect, work through the actual design, and go through the entitlement process, which includes the Architectural Review Commission, Planning Commission, and City Council. The public will be included in this process. Staff will meet with the homeowners' associations and the other members of the community. X. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON/MEMBERS Chairman Benford announced that there had been a fire at Coachella Valley Rescue Mission. He thanked the Council members for the City's donation of $25,000 to the Mission. Member Ash mentioned that the work on the California Villas is almost complete and they really look good. B. AGENCY BOARD LIAISONS C. PLANNING COMMISSION LIAISON D. STAFF XI. ADJOURNMENT The next meeting is scheduled for April 20, 2009, at 3:00 p.m. There being no further business, the meeting/was adjourned at 3:410' p.m. Maria Hunt, Recording Secretary Wrda\Beth Longman\Committees\PA #4\Minutes\2009 Minutes\Minutes 031609.doc 7