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Home My WebLink About12/04/2007MINUTES 1 REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2007 - 7:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBER, 990 PALM STREET SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA ROLL CALL: Council Members Present: Council Members Paul Brown, Andrew Carter, Allen Settle, Vice Mayor Christine Mulholland and Mayor Dave Romero City Staff: Present: Ken Hampian, City Administrative Officer; Jonathan Lowell, City Attorney; Julie O'Connor, Deputy City Clerk; Shelly Stanwyck, Assistant City Administrative Officer; John Mandeville, Community Development Director; Deborah Linden, Police Chief; Jay Walter, Public Works Director; Barbara Lynch, City Engineer; Bill Proll, Police Lieutenant; Peter Brown, Housing Programs Manager; Kim Murry, Deputy Director Community Development ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- APPOINTMENTS Mayor Romero recognized Vice Mayor Mulholland for her service as Vice Mayor from December 2006 to December 2007. Al. VICE MAYOR APPOINTMENT FOR 2008. Deputy City Clerk O'Connor presented the staff report. ACTION: Moved by Romero /Mulholland to appoint Council Member Paul Brown as Vice Mayor to serve a one -year term commencing upon appointment; motion carried 5:0. PRESENTATIONS Mayor Romero presented certificates of appreciation to Joe and Madeleine Johnson, Susan and Jim Hofman, Fred Bond and Ray Shearer for their service related to the graffiti removal program. 1 City Council Meeting Tuesday, December 4, 2007 Page 2 INTRODUCTIONS Community Development Director Mandeville introduced new employees Sabrina Haggie, Code Enforcement Officer 1, and James David, Planning Technician. PRESENTATIONS Public Works Director Walter acknowledged Robert Horch, Parking Manager, for being the recipient of the 2007 California Public Parking Association's Parking Professional of the Year award. PUBLIC COMMENT David Garth, Chamber of Commerce, introduced Ermina Karim, the Chamber's new Government Affairs Director. Terry Mohan, San Luis Obispo, spoke regarding the Chinatown project scheduled to come before Council on December 18th. He expressed concern about the number of affordable housing units, the loss of parking spaces, and the congestion he expects it will cause to the downtown core. Sifu Kelvin Harrison, San Luis Obispo, expressed his continuing concerns regarding personal harassment. Brett Whitaker, San Luis Obispo, speaking on behalf of Whitaker Contractors, commended the City on the cooperative working relationship between City staff and the contractors during the Stenner Creek Bridge project (near Santa Rosa Street). CONSENT AGENDA Council Member Carter and Mulholland requested that Item C5 be pulled for further discussion. ACTION: Moved by Settle /Mulholland to approve the Consent Agenda, with the exception of C5, as indicated below. C1. MINUTES OF TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2007. ACTION: Moved by Settle /Mulholland to waive the oral reading and approve as presented; motion carried 5:0. C2. 2008 STANDARD SPECIFICATIONS AND ENGINEERING STANDARDS. I 1 City Council Meeting Tuesday, December 4, 2007 Page 3 ACTION: Moved by Settle /Mulholland to adopt Resolution No. 9944 (2007 Series) approving the 2008 City Standard Specifications and Engineering Standards rescinding the previous resolution; motion carried 5:0. C3. FINAL MAP FOR TRACT 2705, 2975 ROCKVIEW PLACE (TR 167 -05). ACTION: Moved by Settle /Mulholland to adopt Resolution No. 9945 (2007 Series ) approving the Final Map for Tract 2705 located at 2975 Rockview Place; motion carried 5:0. C4. CONTRACT FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENT MOBILE DATA COMPUTERS AND IN -CAR VIDEO ACTION: Moved by Settle /Mulholland to approve an agreement with CDCE, Inc. in the amount of $533,461.84 for the purchase of thirty Panasonic Mobile Data Computers and nineteen Panasonic In -Car Video Cameras and authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement; motion carried 5:0. Item C5 was pulled for discussion and acted on following action on the other Consent Agenda items. C5. TERRACE PROJECT. Council Member Carter indicated that since the now proposed project is comprised of primarily above moderate income housing, the City could potentially be making a change in how the Inclusionary Housing Fees are allocated. He questioned whether this action should be considered a policy question rather than a routine matter. Council Member Mulholland stated that her reason for pulling Item C5 was similar to Council Member Carter's. She had an additional concern about the loss of low - income apartments in San Luis Obispo, particularly in light of the number of apartment conversions to condominiums over the past few years. Community Development Director Mandeville addressed Council Member Carter's and Mulholland's concerns, following which Housing Programs Manager Brown reviewed the Affordable Housing Standards "Above Moderate Tables" which were modified per a request received from Council Member Carter. (Memo on file in the City Clerk's office.) City Council Meeting Page 4 Tuesday, December 4, 2007 Housing Programs Manager Brown also reviewed language the City Attorney recommended be added that would indemnify the City of San Luis Obispo should the Housing Authority be required to abide by the Labor Code if a later determination is made that the Moylan Terrace Humbert Street project is a "public work." Carol Hatley, speaking as an applicant for the Housing Authority, concurred with the recommendation. She discussed the design of the project, and pointed out that once site constraints and City requirements are known, some workforce housing units may be converted to moderate or lower income units. Public comment Terry Mohan, San Luis Obispo, stated his objection to the request of the Housing Authority to convert a $600,000 loan to a grant. Council comments and discussion ensued regarding the project and associated costs. ACTION: Moved by Settle /Brown to: 1. Determine that the Housing Authority's request to convert the $600,000 Affordable Housing Fund loan to a grant meets City Affordable Housing Fund award criteria set by previous Council action. 2. Determine that the $109,900 in Affordable Housing Funds previously allocated to the Housing Authority for the development of 225 North Chorro should be shifted to the Humbert Street Moylan Terrace project, bringing the City's total contribution to $709,900. 3. Authorize the CAO to execute an agreement with the Housing Authority to convert the $600,000 loan to a grant and to re- assign the $109,900 previously awarded to the N. Chorro property development to the Humbert Street development. 4. Determine that HASLO's request for the immediate abandonment of Fredericks Street is premature and should be considered separately after discussion and analysis by the Public Works Department, once project development approvals have been received. 5. The motion added the following language: In light of the possibility that the Housing Authority may be required to abide by the Labor Code (section 1720) prevailing wages provisions, as a condition of grants totaling $709,900, the Housing Authority shall indemnify the City of San Luis Obispo for any penalty or damages resulting from a later determination that the " Moylan Terrace" Humbert Street project is a "public work. "; motion carried 3:2 (Mulholland, Carter opposed). 1 City Council Meeting Tuesday, December 4, 2007 Page 5 BUSINESS ITEMS 1. GRAFFITI MANAGEMENT: CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE PLANS. Police Chief Linden, Public Works Director Walter, Police Lieutenant Proll, and City Engineer Lynch presented the agenda report and responded to questions. Public Comments Ermina Karim, Chamber of Commerce, noted that the Chamber has identified graffiti as something that they expect to be a top priority in 2008 and would like to partner with the City in seeking creative solutions and in an outreach to the business community. Brett Cross, San Luis Obispo, spoke regarding his concern about the timeframe in which graffiti is being removed by property /business owners downtown and encouraged staff to seek creativity in addressing graffiti issues. Gary Fowler, San Luis Obispo, made suggestions and said that paint used in covering up graffiti often causes a worse problem. He encouraged staff to contact the City of Los Angeles for information about the coating material they use for easier removal and about the van they use that enables them to blend colors when repainting surfaces. Chief Linden responded to some of Mr. Fowler's comment. She explained that staff intends to research the City's code to determine if modifications should be made to require consistency of paint color. Deborah Cash, Downtown Association, noted that, although the Board has not taken a formal position on this issue, they are interested in addressing this issue in the downtown. - -end of public comments - -- Council commented on the issues of graffiti in the City and provided additional input for staff to consider in developing a Graffiti Management Plan, including the alternative for additional staffing. RECOMMENDATION: Moved by Brown/Mulholland to: 1. Receive a staff presentation regarding enhanced efforts to combat graffiti in the community and provide added input for staff consideration in developing a more formal Graffiti Management Plan; and 2. Direct staff to return to Council during the Mid -Year Budget Review in February 2008 with an update regarding completion of the Graffiti Management Plan and recommendations for any added resources needed to implement the Plan, including an alternative for additional staffing; motion carried 5:0. City Council Meeting Page 6 Tuesday, December 4, 2007 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COUNCIL LIAISON REPORTS Mayor Romero reported on his attendance at a recent Board of Supervisors meeting regarding a vector control assessment district. Council Member Settle reported on the Local Agency Formation Commission's (LAFCO) activities and thanked staff for their efforts in putting together the leadership conference last week. COMMUNICATIONS Mayor Romero spoke regarding the Chinatown final approval process, indicating that, under normal circumstances, the development review process would allow the Architectural Review Commission (ARC) to take final action on the Chinatown project. He explained that, given the scope of the project, he would like the December 18'h Chinatown Environmental Impact Report (EIR) staff report to provide a path back to Council for final project action. Therefore, unless Council objects, the staff will set forth such a process in the staff report for formal Council concurrence (memo on file in the City Clerk's office). Council concurred. Council Member Carter reported on the Chamber of Commerce's annual board retreat and discussed his and Economic Development Manager Claire Clark's participation in a panel discussion which stemmed from numbers provided by Mr. Watkins, UCSB Economic Forecast. Council Member Carter expressed concern regarding the City's economic vision. CAO Hampian proposed bringing to Council during the first half of 2008 a report on the status of the City's Economic Development Program. Staff will also work with the Council in the coming year on the process of updating the General Plan in 2009 -11. Since there are cities that have economic elements in the General Plan, this may be something to look at as well. CAO Hampian added that Mike Manchak, Economic Vitality Commission (EVC), had contacted him asking to be placed on a future agenda to provide a status report on the EVC. Council concurred to place this item on the January 8, 2008, agenda. There being no further business to come before the City Council, Mayor Romero adjourned the meeting at 9:55 p.m. Ju O'Connor, Deputy City Clerk APPROVED BY COUNCIL: 1/8/08 t