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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-24-1983 City Council Minutes SUMMARY MINUTES SARATOGA CITY COUNCIL TIME: Thursday, March 24, 1983 - 7:30 p.m. PLACE: SeriorWing, Conmunity Center, 19655 Allendale Avenue TYPE: Special Meeting Councilmembers Clevenger, Fanelli, Mallory, Foyles and Mayor Callon were present at 7:40 p.m. A. Council Briefinq 1. Report and General Cc~luLents on Soil Conditions and Slide Hazards in western Saratoga by William A. COtton, Geologist and Consultant to the City Council questioned Mr. COtton on his written and his oral reports, particularly on the cun~leteness of the studies done in landslide areas and the effect of long-range weather forecasts and climate changes on his conclusions, the per- centage of the studied area which w-as "old landslide" area, possible engineering solutions in developed areas, and areas of Saratoga which required micro- zoning to depict slides accurately. 2. Reports from City Officials on Various Aspects of Storm Damage and Recent City ACtivities a. Dan Trinidad, Maintenance Director, on damage sustained to public facilities, cleanup and repair plans. Council questioned Mr. Trinidad on peraklnency of emergency werk being done, the condition of specific areas, and whether land masses on Bohlman Road bad mDved from private or public property. b. Steve Peterson, Finance Director, on overall costs incurred and impacts on financial condition (written and oral). Council questioned staff as to the scope of the FAU Reimbursable program. c. R. Shook/R. Harison, Community DeveloFment, on further potential effects to public facilities and known effects upon private property (oral) d. Rob RObinson, Planrdng Director, On City's efforts to help private property owners in obtaining Federal Disaster Financial Assistancel (oral). Council inquired as to whether printed information was available, end Planning Director stated it was available in a San Matee office. - e. Paul Smith, City Attorney, an overview of City's legal obligations and responsibilities (oral) City Attorney noted that City may not use public funds to benefit private property. The City may become involved, he said, if the principles of inverse condemnation or mandatory duty apply. He stated further that the City is responsible for .its own property but is not a guarantor for its approvals or denials. f. Resolution declaring the existence of a great public calamity and authorizing the immediate expenditure o~. p~o_~ic money to safeguard life, health-and property City Manager then explained the necessity for resolution to permit ~nergency . ~ expenditure of monies for repair of storm damage. Councilmeraber Moyles sug- gested placing an expiration date of August 1 on the resolution, and COuncilmember Fanelli suggested the resolution be made to expire August 1 or whenever the federal disaster declaration ended, whichever vas later. There was consensus todo so. ~GER/MALIDRY MDVED TO ADOPT RESOLUTION 2049. Passed 5-0. COuncilmember Fanelli then received Mr. Trinidad' s assurance that the con- tractors doing the emergency ~Drk were reputable, and the Council recessed from 9:15 to 9:30 p.m. Ed Wtnn, Michaels~Drive, stated that he felt a nearby creek ~Was the cause of a slide in his area; he requested City help in finding out the source of the water and whether a flood control assessnent district could he formed for the area. Ray Zinn, Via Regina, expressed concern about keeping Via Regina open. He ex- plained the flooding and slide problems in his area and stated that the hEineowners needed help in maintaining the area until it is stabilized and restoring it to its previous condition. Councilmember Moyles, noting that the City Attorney had stated that the City was responsible for its own property and debris, raised the question whether the damage to Via Regina which is adjacent to the Pierce Road slide is a City responsibility. -- City Manager, noting that Via Regina is not a public reed, warned Council about the possibility of being liable for a gift of public funds for private benefit and the difficulty of denying assistance to any private road if public monies were used to benefit one private road. He advised the Council to provide for the public safety akove all. Mayor Callon requested that the City Manager, City Attorney and staff make the decision on assistance to Via Regina and infonm Mr. Zinn within a day. Coun~ Fanelli pointed out that there may he a dif- fereace hetween ,,safe access" ara "open access," the latter being access suf- ficient to allow homeowners to do their own repair work. Richard Martin, Pike Read, asked for help with problems on Pike Road, either road repairs or assistance in setting up an assessr0ent district. City Manager pointed out that assessment districts are set up for public improvements only; he noted that the City would be increasing its exposure greatly by taking over a private road. Mayor Callon stated she had felt it might be possible to encourage Saratoga' s Congressional representatives to obtain federal funds for repairs, and City Manager reported the staff had been in touch with Representative Zschau's office. John Herman, Michaels Drive, irquired as to certain clauses in the City' s e~ner- gency repair permits. City Attorney replied that City allows issuance of permits without the normal review in e~ergency situations, but that the City must be held harmless so that it is not liable for lack of that review. Mr. Herman then stated that regular discharges of water into the creek were occurring from water tanks, undercutting the hDmes on Michaels Drive. He also inquired as to why property owners were allowed to build in the area, since he said that Mr. Cotton' s preliminary report showed that Michaels Drive was an old landslide. Mr. Koepernik, 21810 Via Regina, reported that his hc~ was in danger, but he was not able to have repair work done because it was not accessible to trucks. George Sicular, a hydraulic engineer, listed various successful projects with which he had been involved; he Stated that current standards were much stricter than those of several years ago. Charles Laughlin, 21075 Michaels Drive, stated objections to the drainage syst~n on his hill, which he said merely transferred the water from one property to another. He felt that the water problems in his area were not all caused by the rain, but by the drainage system. Mayor Callon requested that the City Manager respond within a day or so on the ownership of the property and the drainage system. City Attorney stated that City does not have right to go onto private property without an easement, but City possesses maps showing drainage system. Councilmember' Fanelli suggested that the City investigate to see if the system is beimg followed according to plan. Councilnember Moyles irquj red as to the possibility of using the doctrine of "public nuisance" to abate sc~e problems; City Attorney replied a legal determ/r~tion of public nuisance would have to be made based on the facts as to where the water originated. Willem Kohler, 21842 Via Regina, expressed dissatisfaction with the City's apparent reluctance. to. perform repairs on priva~e .roads. He. asserted. that' the . .- . City was responsible for safe access to private roads and for all repair costs the he~maeoners had incurred. C. Council Discussion on Issues and Alternatives 1. Outline of issues and available options by City Manager · 2. Council Discussion Following the discussion of, options and alternatives, City Manager reviewed the 3-3/24/83 current activities of federal, State and local goverrments regarding available assistance on slide damage. He pointed out the recent State legislation allowing cities to establish geological hazard abatement districts and that this pre- sented the best possibility for local government to assist private property owners. City Manager described two basic approaches, one being a broad general manage- ment program involving a large district enoompassing the entire area and the second being snaller individual districts related only to the abatement of specific probl~ns. The City Council directed the City Manager to continue exploring the feasi- bility of such districts in Saratoga and to report hack. The Council was adjourned at 10:25 p.m. Respectfully sulxmittad, Grace E. Cory Deputy City Clerk