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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-10-1997 City Council Minutes ~INUTES SAI~TO~A CITY COUNCIL TIME:Tuesday, June 10, 1997 - 7:00 p.m. PLACE: Senior Day Care Center, 19655 Allendale Avenue TYPE: Adjourned Regular Meeting 1. Roll Call The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m. Councilmembers Bogosian, Jacobs, Shaw, and Vice Mayor Wolfe were present. Mayor Moran was absent. Staff members present: Interim City Manager Perlin, Recreation Director Pisani, Deputy City Clerk Cory. 2. Report of City Clerk on Posting of Agenda PUrsuant to Government Code 54954.2, the agenda for this meeting was properly posted on June 6. The notice of adjournment from the June 4 Council meeting was properly posted on June 5. 3. Oral Communications from the Public on Non-Agendized Items - None. 4. Youth Commission Interviews The City Council interviewed all applicants. '5. Discussion of Appointments to Commission After discussion there was consensus to appoint Sheeva Ghassemi, Brian Luskey, Sarah Adolphson, Sydney Cohn, Sam Kendall, Allison Chang, Alexander Scordelis, ' and Candice Goodman to the commission. The Council expressed appreciation to Tammy Ku, Elissa Wirt, and Kathi Zee for participating in the interviews. Recreation Director Pisani then reported on the status of the non- profit foundation which was being organized to provide funds for the Warher Hutton House. She noted that the foundation will probably require a significant amount of her time in order to get a good start. The City Council encouraged her to proceed with the organization of the foundation. Interim City Manager Perlin stated that the Council would officially appoint the foundation board members by resolution. He will check with the City Attorney to determine whether the Foundation would be subject to the Brown Act. ADDED TO AGENDA: Mr. Perlin then brought up an item to be added to the agenda in connection with an apparent problem with notification of two zones of the Landscaping and Lighting District. He recommended that the Council place a resolution on the agenda as an urgency item so action could be taken. JACOBS/BOGOSIAN MOVED TO PLACE THE LANDSCAPING AND LIGHTING DISTRICT RESOLUTION ON THE AGENDA AS AN URGENCY ITEM. Passed 4-0. Mr. Perlin stated that a survey had been conducted which indicated that the mailing to zones 3 and 6 for the LLA-1 district may not have been conducted properly. No ballots .had been received from those zones. He proposed rectifying the situation by conducting separate proceedings for the two zones. The proceedings would be initiated by passing the resolution. JACOBS/SHAW MOVED TO ADOPTRESOLUTION 97-11.3B SETTING A PUBLICMEETING FOR JULY 2 AND A PUBLIC HEARING FOR AUGUST 6 FOR LLA-1 ZONES 3 AND 6. Passed 4-0. Since the appointed hour for discussion of Item 6 had not arrived, Vice Mayor Wolfe proceeded to Item 8. S. Self-Evaluation of Previous Meeting City Council Minutes 2 June 10, 1997 Councilmembers discussed the meeting of June 4. Councilmember Jacobs noted that the issue of creek setbacks had arisen and brought up the question of whether the Planning Commission should change the rules governing such setbacks. Interim City Manager Perlin explained that there is a certain amount of variation in creek setbacks, depending on the history of the neighborhood, the easement required by the Water District, and other factors. Councilmember Bogosian recalled that when the R-OS zone was established the creek setback was set at one hundred feet. He asked for a staff report from the Planning Director on the issue. There was consensus to request a short staff report at a public meeting within a month or two. Mr. Perlin offered to include a map to show how much territory is the responsibility of the Water District along each creek. Since the hour of 8:30 p.m. had arrived, Vice Mayor Wolfe proceeded to Item 6. 6. Miller Avenue Traffic Issues Interim City Manager Perlin reviewed the history of this issue, which had gone on for a couple of years. He stated that the residents' concerns are now more clear. They involve both speeding and traffic volumes. When the Public Safety Commission reviewed this last May, Mr. Perlin had recommended a working group be formed to study the issues. That suggestion was rejected by the Commission. He noted that the City Council had authorized a traffic calming study at Baylor, as a result of which recommendations will be available in late July or early August. Mr. Perlin then projected various overhead transparencies. The first showed a summary of traffic volume counts before Highway 85 was completed and in the spring of 1995, several months after it was completed. He noted that traffic on Miller north of Cox increased 41%, while traffic on Miller south of Prospect increased only 5%. Traffic on Cox west of Saratoga Avenue decreased 4%, while traffic on Prospect decreased. He had no explanation for this anomaly and felt the 41% statistic was questionable. Elmer Szanto explained studies on traffic volume, speed and circulation performed by the Miller Avenue Traffic Committee. Carol Seiler stated her belief that traffic mitigation measures should be used, such as signs prohibiting left turns during certain hours, indentations in the roads, or speed bumps. She favored taking action rather than doing any moresstudies. Councilmember Jacobs pointed out that prohibiting left turns brings complaints from residents who cannot get to their own streets. Speed bumps or humps areunacceptable to public safety professionals because of damage to their vehicles. Mr. Szanto suggested speed bumps that would be narrow enough to allow emergency vehicles to pass over them. Concerning Brookglen, he stated that the residents of that street were allowed to divert traffic onto Miller, so now Miller should be allowed to share some of its traffic. Gene Craig spoke as a resident of Titus. He stated that construction work at McAuliffe School had created many problems with noise and increased traffic. Speeding has been a long-time problem on Titus. He felt that Titus had more problems than Miller. He did not favor speed bumps because they tend to increase speed. Betty Jo Stewart stated that McAuliffe is a magnet school and brings traffic from out of town. She believed it may become a year-round school, so the traffic would be continuous. Vice Mayor Wolfe commented that the City has no say about the design City Council Minutes 3 June 10, 1997 Of schools. Ms. Stewart mentioned that roundabouts had been tried, but did not work. Further discussion ensued concerning the merits of various types of traffic and speed control which had been tried in Saratoga and other locations, statistics showing the number of accidents on Miller, and the role of Miller Avenue as an arterial street. A number of residents felt that Miller Avenue was dangerous, with either too many vehicles or too-great speeds. Visibility was also an issue for some residents who lived in the serpentine areas or near blind corners. Captain Robert Wilson of the Sheriff's Department stated that Highway 85 has concentrated traffic in the area, and traffic finds the easiest way to get through. He believed that if traffic were restricted on Miller, it would go through other neighborhoods. Councilmember Shaw stated that the problem would have to be solved by studying possible solutions and applying them to the entire area bounded by Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road, Saratoga Avenue, Prospect and Cox. Councilmember Jacobs pointed out that there was not complete agreement that a problem in fact exists, since the previous City Manager, the Public Safety Commission, and the Public Works Director had expressed doubts about the issue. Mr. Perlin projected an overhead transparency of a speed survey indicating various statistics, including that the 85th percentile of speed was 32 miles per hour or less on Miller. Mr. Szanto and George Bunyard took issue with the statistical sampling method. Captain Wilson stated that a recently-obtained radar trailer computer which retains speed data will provide more reliable statistics. Mr. Szanto explained the photo-radar system in Campbell, which provides speed control as well as revenue for the city. He felt it might be possible to join with another city to establish a comparable program. Councilmember Wolfe pointed out that the voters of Saratoga had voted down the Utility User Tax, indicating that greater revenue was not an issue for them. Frank Lemmon of the Public Safety Commission explained that the radar trailer would not be conspicuous, so speeders would not slow down upon seeing it. His concern was response time of emergency vehicles, since a difference of a minute or two can be life-threatening in a medical emergency. Mark Stein felt the number of lives threatened in accidents might be greater than those in medical emergencies. Councilmember Bogosian felt we should look at the response times in other cities which had traffic calming devices. Kenneth Biester spoke as a member of the Public Safety Commission. He noted that residents from different neighborhoods speak to the Commission at almost every meeting asking for speed bumps and stop signs. In most cases, including that of Miller Avenue, he believes they are not warranted. Mr. Perlin then stated he felt the solution lay in the traffic calming study on Baylor. He suggested that the Council wait until it can be determined if the traffic calming strategies work there. The consultant in the Baylor study intends to slow speed and retain residential values without pushing traffic problems onto other neighborhoods. If this is successful on Baylor, some of it can be applied to Miller, which closely resembles Bayler. City Council Minutes 4 June 10, 1997 Mr. Perlin believed the Council could get the Baylor report in July or early August. In the meantime, he could obtain a proposal for a Miller study from the same consultant. Traffic calming can incorporate aesthetic enhancements, which improve property values, as well as engineering devices. It may be possible to obtain the proposal and the results of the Baylor Study as soon as the August 12 adjourned meeting. The City, of course, would need to pay for-the additional study. There was consensus for Mr. Perlin to obtain a proposal from the Baylor consultant to perform a traffic calming study on Miller. Vice Mayor Wolfe thanked the large number of residents for attending and participating in the meeting. 7. Discussion of Council Review of Planning COmm~SSiOn Approve1 of a second story addition to a home at 12181 Mellowood Dr. (DR97- 008) Interim City Manager Perlin reviewed the staff report, noting that the only decision to be made tonight is whether to bring the project up for public hearing. Councilmember Jacobs felt it is an unwritten policy that only items of community-wide importance should be brought up. In matters of local interest, the neighbors should file the appeal. He felt the Council would do a disservice to the community and set a bad precedent by giving someone, in effect, a free appeal. Councilmember Shaw, however, felt the issue was a broad one. Basic values were involved, such as neighborhood integrity and the character of the neighborhood. Although a Planning Commission decision should not be called up capriciously, this was important because when one two- story addition is approved in a neighborhood, more tend to appear. Councilmember Bogosian said that the review could be a starting point for a consistent policy with what we want to do with our neighborhoods. Mr. Perlin pointed out that if the project is called up, the Council will be limited to discussing the issue at hand, not the broad issues. Moreover, the Council would not have to call up the project in order to deal with the .issue of two-story additions. If the Council does have a concern about the design of this particular application, they should call it up, Vice Mayor Wolfe brought up the situation of the applicants, who had already gone through an extensive hearing in the planning process. He expressed concern both for the integrity of the process and the feelings of the applicants. He feared they were being deprived of their rights, contrary to the due process clause of the Bill of Rights. Councilmember Jacobs stated that regardless of his opinion of the design of the project, he feared calling it up could create a public perception of political patronage given in return for political support. The perception of fairness is necessary to maintain faith in the system. He felt it was important that all citizens be treated equally. He also noted that the required noticing would be at public expense in this time when the staff is attempting to recover all costs. Betty Jo Stewart stated the residents say they will not appeal because the appeal fee is too high for individuals. Marvin Becker said that there were two homeowners in the area who wanted to put on a second story but did not because the difficulties were too great. After a discussion of the meaning of political patronage, Councilmember Jacobs stated that whether the Commission was right or wrong on this application, they have integrity, as does everyone else involved. It is simply the perception of fairness that concerns him. Mr. Metzler then spoke as the applicant, stating that he did not wish to be a test case on the second-story issue. He felt his neighbors C~ty Council a~nutos 5 ~une lO~ 1997 were not concerned about his particular house, but about prohibiting second-story additions in the neighborhood. He pointed out that the Council could ban two-story additions without calling up his application. Mrs. Metzler then stated they should be allowed to build their addition. Mr. Metzler stated that they had redesigned the house three times, and he was prepared to continue. Councilmember Shaw stated he wished to look at the house with respect to neighborhood compatibility. SHAW/BOGOSIANMOVED TO CALL UP THE PROJECT FOR COUNCILREVIEW. (Clerk's note: (Passed upon motion and second, since only two proponents are required.) Mr. Perlin stated the appeal would appear as a public hearing on the July 2 Council agenda. 9. Agency Assignment Reports Councilmember Shaw asked about the television cabling of the Senior Day Care Center. Interim City Manager Perlin replied that they were encountering some problems which he would explain further to the Council. Councilmember Bogosian reported that the State has some grant money available to the Water District. He also reported that the Library Expansion Committee was reviewing proposals from architects. Mr. Perlin then stated there would be no Potpourri memorandum this week, and that City Manager recruitment was proceeding apace. 10. Other 11. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 11:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Interim City Manager