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HomeMy WebLinkAbout101-2009 SCCCA Potential Work Plan Priorities.pdf SARATOGA CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: February 4, 2009 AGENDA ITEM: DEPARTMENT: City Manager’s Office CITY MANAGER: Dave Anderson PREPARED BY: Barbara Powell DIRECTOR: Assistant City Manager SUBJECT: Potential 2009 Work Plan Priorities for the Santa Clara County Cities Association RECOMMENDED ACTION: Accept report and recommend potential 2009 work plan priorities for the Santa Clara County Cities Association (SCCCA), and authorize staff to return these suggestions to the SCCCA Board of Directors. BACKGROUND: The SCCCA was developed in 1990 to provide local leaders with a connection to one another and provide municipalities in Santa Clara County with a unified voice when dealing with other levels of government and other agencies. Each of the fifteen cities in Santa Clara County has a councilmember appointed to serve on the Board of Directors—Councilmember Kathleen King is the City of Saratoga representative on the SCCCA Board of Directors. The Board meets monthly to support Santa Clara County cities and monitor state and federal legislation that will have an impact on municipalities in Santa Clara County. Each year, the SCCCA compiles a list of potential work plan priorities. In January 2008, the SCCCA developed the attached list of potential work plan priorities to pursue. In February 2008, the City of Saratoga identified the italicized items (#1, 8, 10 & 12) as its priorities to forward to the Board. Staff is requesting direction from the City Council on potential work plan priorities to forward to the SCCCA Board for consideration at its February meeting. FISCAL IMPACTS: N/A CONSEQUENCES OF NOT FOLLOWING THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS: The City of Saratoga will not provide input on suggested SCCCA work plan priorities for 2009. ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S): Page 1 of 4 N/A FOLLOW UP ACTION(S): Implement Council direction. ADVERTISING, NOTICING AND PUBLIC CONTACT: Nothing additional. ATTACHMENTS: Attachment “A” – 2008 Potential Policy Priorities. Page 2 of 4 Santa Clara County Cities Association Potential Work Plan Priorities for 2008 Community Development 1. Countywide Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) Housing Allocations vs. Allocations by City a. Review by SCCCA of benefits of pooling housing resources and working as an entire county to meet overall ABAG housing requirements, similar to the approach used by the County of San Mateo. 2. Review of State Law Governing ABAG Housing Allocations a. Study of benefits of drawbacks of potential amendments or repeal of the state law that governs housing allocations. 3. Streamlined Planning and Permitting Process a. Examination of feasibility of expedited planning and permitting process based on additional fees and tools for implementing this supplemental resource for residents and businesses facing development timelines. Emergency Preparedness 4. Countywide Coordination of SUASI Grants a. Explore possibility of working as a county to collectively leverage investments in disaster and terrorism preparedness when applying for Bay Area Super-Urban Area Security Initiative (SUASI), a Department of Homeland Security grant. 5. Emergency Communications Best Practices a. SCCCA to determine best practices for emergency communications, when it is vital to provide the public with accurate and consistent information. Employee Benefits 6. Prepayment of PERS and Realized Savings a. Evaluate benefits of prepaying Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) expenses, using the City of Gilroy as a case study. 7. Retirement: Medical Benefits and Retirement at 55 a. Study of benefit packages that prevent Santa Clara County cities from being competitive in attracting qualified employees due to benefits packages that may be unaffordable in the years ahead (particularly when many employees are offered the opportunity to retire at age 55, which may create a significant number of vacant positions in the years ahead). Environmental Sustainability 8. Countywide Green Building Standards a. Create green building standards for all new private construction that can be used in each of the 15 jurisdictions in Santa Clara County, making it easier for builders to adopt green building standards. 9. Countywide Solar Assessment Districts a. Explore opportunities to promote installation of solar panels through solar assessment districts and assess the success of solar assessment districts in the City of Berkeley. In November 2007, Berkeley adopted a program that would allow the City to pay for the upfront cost of solar panel installation on a home and be reimbursed by the homeowner with a 20-year assessment on their property. 10. Countywide Streamlined Solar Policy and Solar Permitting Process Page 3 of 4 Page 4 of 4 a. Establish countywide policy on installation of solar panels on residential and commercial property to make it easier and less expensive to install photovoltaic panels. 11. Green Power Challenge a. Coordinate a contest between Santa Clara County cities and residents to reduce energy use. 12. Water Conservation Best Practices a. Identify most effective ways to conserve water. 13. Encouraging Use of Reclaimed Water a. Promote the use of reclaimed or recycled water. Public Records Requests 14. Email Policy & Public Records Requests a. Review email policies of other cities, particularly in relation to public records requests. 15. Public Records Requests a. Review how other cities handle public records requests. Public Safety 16. Gang Intervention, Suppression, and Prevention a. Develop regional solutions to gang problems that are an increasing problem throughout Santa Clara County. 17. Speed Limit Policy a. Review the State of California’s method for determining street speed limits and identify opportunities to work with state legislators to improve this policy. Purchasing Practices 18. Vendor Clearing House/ Purchasing Pool a. Review purchasing methods, such as a vendor clearing house or purchasing pool, which would allow smaller cities to work with larger municipalities to receive better more competitive rates for goods and services.