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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-11-04 City Council Summary MinutesCITY COUNCIL SUMMARY MINUTES Page 1 of 9 Regular Meeting November 4, 2024 The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this date in the Council Chambers and by virtual teleconference at 5:30 P.M. Present In Person: Burt, Kou, Lauing, Lythcott-Haims, Stone, Tanaka, Veenker Councilmember Lythcott-Haims Arrived at 5:33 P.M Councilmember Tanaka Arrived at 5:34 P.M. Present Remotely: Absent: Call to Order Mayor Stone called the meeting to order. Mahealani Ah Yun, City Clerk, called roll noting five present. Special Orders of the Day 1. Appointment of Candidate for the Parks and Recreation Commission City Clerk Ah Yun reported on the results of the voting for the Parks and Recreation Commission appointment. Yu Deng received the majority of votes and was appointed to the unexpired term ending on March 31, 2026. Parks and Recreation Commission First Round of Voting for One (1) vacancy on the Parks and Recreation Commission with term ending March 31, 2026 Vadim Axelrod: Christopher Alan Brosnan: Kou Yu Deng: Burt, Lythcott-Haims, Tanaka, Stone, Veenker James Fox: Marc Schoenen: Lauing Rebecca Shomair: Candidate Yu Deng receiving 5 votes is appointed to an unexpired term expiring March 31, 2026. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 2 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 2. Proclamation Recognizing November 3rd - 9th, 2024 as Childhood Cancer Awareness Week NO ACTION Councilmember Kou read the proclamation recognizing November 3rd - 9th, 2024 as Childhood Cancer Awareness Week. Mayor Stone announced as there was no one available to accept the proclamation the Clerk’s office would forward it to the proper party. Closed Session 3. CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS City Designated Representatives: City Manager and his Designees Pursuant to Merit System Rules and Regulations (Ed Shikada, Kiely Nose, Lauren Lai, Sandra Blanch, Nick Raisch, Molly Stump, and Jennifer Fine) Employee Organization: Service Employees International Union, (SEIU) Local 521, Utilities Management and Professional Association of Palo Alto (UMPAPA), Palo Alto Peace Officers’ Association (PAPOA), Palo Alto Police Management Association (PMA), International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) local 1319, Palo Alto Fire Chiefs’ Association (FCA); Authority: Government Code Section 54957.6 (a) 4. CONFERENCE WITH CITY ATTORNEY-POTENTIAL LITIGATION Subject: Potential litigation regarding pending development applications that are inconsistent with the City's zoning code and/or Comprehensive Plan land use designations, which the applicants have asserted the City cannot disapprove under Government Code 65589.5(d)(5) Authority: Potential Exposure to Litigation Under Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(2) Number of potential cases: 10, as Defendant. MOTION: Councilmember Lythcott-Haims moved, seconded by Vice Mayor Lauing to go into Closed Session. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 Council went into Closed Session at 5:37 P.M. Council returned from Closed Session at 8:47 P.M. Mayor Stone announced no reportable action. Agenda Changes, Additions and Deletions Ed Shikada, City Manager, reported no changes to the remaining agenda. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 3 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 Public Comment Mayor Stone provided rules for public commenters. 1. Noel S. read a eulogy of an Israeli soldier who was killed in action in Lebanon. He asked for an arms embargo on Israel. He hoped Council would become more vocal. 2. Henry E. urged Council to make an exception to the gag rule they placed on themselves and call for a ceasefire in the Middle East. 3. Avram F. joined Henry E. in his request. He recommended reading the books The Holocaust Industry by Norman Finkelstein, 10 Myths About Israel and Towers of Ivory and Steel. Councilmember Questions, Comments and Announcements Councilmember Lythcott-Haims acknowledged and thanked her colleagues who were seeking to be reelected here or to serve a higher office. Councilmember Veenker echoed Councilmember Lythcott-Haims’ thanks to all that had their hat in the ring. She urged a peaceful transition of power after the election. Consent Calendar Public Comment: 1. Avram F. (Item 6) urged Council to remove Item 6 from the consent calendar and move it to another date as an agendized action item. Councilmember Tanaka had not issue with Item 10 but voted no because it did not disclose if there were other bids. He opined if it was an extension of a contract, it should disclose the performance of the vendor. Councilmember Tanaka requested to Pull Agenda Item Number 6. Councilmember Tanaka registered a no vote on Agenda Item Number 10. MOTION: Councilmember Kou moved, seconded by Vice Mayor Lauing to approve Agenda Item Numbers 5-11. MOTION PASSED ITEMS 5-9, 11: 7-0 MOTION PASSED ITEM 10: 6-1, Tanaka no 5. Approval of Minutes from October 21, 2024 Meeting SUMMARY MINUTES Page 4 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 6. Adoption of an Ordinance Renewing the Police Department's Military Equipment Use Policy Under AB 481; CEQA status – not a project. 7. Approval of General Service Contract Number C25191700A with Northwest Woodland Services, Inc. in the Amount Not-to-Exceed $1,209,780 for the Open Space Trails and Amenities Capital Improvement Program Project (OS-00001) for a Period of Five Years. CEQA status – Categorically exempt. 8. Approval of Contract Amendment Number 1 to Contract Number C24189849 with Ecology Action of Santa Cruz in the amount of $485,243 for the City of Palo Alto Safe Routes to School Bicycle and Pedestrian Life Skills Education Programs for Three Years (January 2025 - November 2027) for a new not-to-exceed of $625,211; CEQA status 15322 – categorically exempt (educational program). 9. Approval of Professional Services Contract Number C25191557 with The Advantage Group in an Amount Not to Exceed $231,000 to Provide Third Party Administration Services for the Palo Alto Retirees Health Benefit Reimbursement Program for a period of Five Years; CEQA Status - Not a Project. 10. Approval of Contract Amendment No. 3 to Contract Number C24187444 with Stephen Ciari Plumbing and Heating, Inc., in the Amount of $167,720 for Backflow Prevention Devices Testing, Repair, and Certification Services; CEQA Status – Categorically Exempt Under Sections 15301 and 15302 11. Approval of Amendment 1 to Contract Number C24187853 with All City Management Services, Inc. to Increase Compensation by $228,768 for Additional Crossing Guard Services and Add a Contingency of $414,933 for a New Not-to-Exceed Amount of $4,564,566; and Approve a Budget Amendment in the General Fund; CEQA status - Not a Project. City Manager Comments City Manager Shikada clarified on Item Number 10 that it was a short-term extension as they wrap up staff to provide the service on a go forward basis. He reminded that City Council has an established procedure for asking questions in advance of the Consent Calendar and they did not receive those questions. He provided a slide presentation discussing red flag warning critical fire conditions, voting and ballot drop off locations, the Veterans’ Day event on November 11, the upcoming storm preparedness workshop on November 13 and notable tentative upcoming Council items. Councilmember Burt queried if there would be discussion about the California Avenue Streetscape regarding permanent parklets. City Manager Shikada responded there were no scheduled action items related to Cal Ave on the docket but he would check in with staff to get the latest update. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 5 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 Councilmember Lythcott-Haims asked City Manager Shikada to announce what they were doing on the Retail Committee with a study session. City Manager Shikada agreed and added they should tee that up for the Retail Committee members to be able to share that under Councilmember Comments. He stated there would be an extended Retail Committee meeting scheduled for November 20 in order to have a study session on the topic of filling retail vacancies. The focus would be on Downtown, the University Avenue area. They were putting together a program to invite stakeholders to participate in providing perspectives as the Council considers options to expediently fill retail vacancies. They would be addressing a formula retail increasing the number of outlets a retailer can have in order to go specifically to California Avenue as well as increases in the thresholds related to conditional use permits. Action Items 12. Policy and Services Committee Recommendation to Adopt a Policy to Reimburse Council Members Up to $2,000/year from the City Council Contingent Account for Technology Resources and Other Actual and Necessary Expenses Incurred in the Performance of Official Duties Item Removed Off Agenda AA1. Approval of Amendment No. 2 to Contract Number C23184827 with Nomad Transit, LLC (Via) in the Amount of $1,200,000 for a total not to exceed $3,801,500 to Continue the City of Palo Alto On-Demand Transit Service through June 2025; Approve a Cost Sharing Agreement with Stanford Research Park to Partially Fund the Service up to $600,000; and Adopt an Ordinance Amending the FY 2025 Municipal Fee Schedule to Increase Fares; CEQA status – not a project. Councilmember Veenker recused from Stanford related portions of Agenda Item Number AA1. City Manager Ed Shikada recused from Stanford related portions of Agenda Item Number AA1. Philip Kamhi, Chief Transportation Official, announced he intended to discuss the contract amendment for the continued operation of Palo Alto Link for the remainder of the fiscal year, through June 2025. This agenda item would follow the direction of the Finance Committee that was approved by the City Council during the budget adoption at the June 17 meeting to make modifications to the Palo Alto Link Service to reduce cost to the City through minor service reductions, school geofencing restrictions, fare adjustments and an expanded cost sharing agreement with the Stanford Research Park. He noted that the contract amendment would be necessary to implement the adjustments as directed but also that approval of the contract amendment would be required in order to allow continuation of the Palo Alto Link Service. Public Comment: SUMMARY MINUTES Page 6 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 1. Alex V-R. indicated it would be a tremendous hassle to his family to lose Palo Alto Link as it was a tremendous service to people with special needs, disabilities and the elderly. He encouraged Council to continue to breathe life into the PAL system. 2. BJ Frank remarked that he utilized Palo Alto Link often as he was not able to drive himself to and from the hospital to receive cancer treatment. He urged Council to continue to fund the program. Molly Stump, City Attorney, noted the reason Stanford was going first was because the FPBC regulations require recused items to be dealt with first, fully and completed before the remainder of the item. Councilmember Burt commented that having Stanford Research Park be interested and willing to participate would be a positive element to the program. Mayor Stone agreed and thought Stanford Research Park was the most common destination for people using Palo Alto Link. Councilmember Kou reference a statement in the October 21 report about the service operation exceptions and thought it needed to include that it does not operate up in the hills and asked if there was opportunity to add Palo Alto Hills. As it was a pilot program, she thought they should have taken a deeper dive in making sure there would be funding they could put into it if it was popular. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi answered the service could be expanded to any area Council desired noting that the service would become less efficient significantly expanding wait times. He noted the one request they received for expanding to that area was for a school trip which was a specific use case they were directed to not include. He also noted VTA agreed to allow them to apply for funding again which they would look to do but the funding would start next year. Councilmember Tanaka remarked funding the service did not make economic sense as the City was losing money on it. He would support them getting money from other sources. He mentioned Tesla trying to do a robotaxi service and the need for a place to test the self-driving service. He opined they could potentially provide a lot of the service that Link provides at no cost to the City. He thought this could be a way to expand the service to areas that were not currently served as well as increase the service hours. He indicated it was a way to allow for a partner to come in and help make the program financially sound in order to continue the service more than just the next six months. Councilmember Burt reflected an extensive discussion on this at the Finance Committee and then it came to the Council as part of the budget with a challenge of how the program would be sustainable and compete with the other dollars needed for other important programs as the BTA grant was running out. It was clear that members of the community loved it and were divided between those who needed it as a lifeline service, those that just enjoyed having the SUMMARY MINUTES Page 7 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 transportation and those that enjoyed the steep discount on what was basically a publicly- provided Uber/Lyft service. He recalled it cost the City $30 a ride on average and they recovered $3. He discussed that the program was becoming more manageable. He questioned the sustainability of piloting with one company. He preferred to focus on making the program sustainable and was excited about the prospect of additional grant funding from VTA. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi explained at the time they were reviewing the one-year service, the cost was a little over $30 per trip. It had gone down to $24. The amount paid by the City was around $8 per trip. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims began by clarifying her vote to pull the item was an effort to strengthen Link. She supported continuing and expanding the service for the community and decreasing wait times. She expressed concerns about raising the fees after reading the staff proposal. She felt interested in partnering with Tesla for the service. She queried if there was anything in the Nomad contract that would preclude them from working with an additional company. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi replied that there was nothing to preclude them from working with an additional company. He noted that Nomad offered to meet with Tesla and provided the contract to them for review. Nomad has worked with other autonomous robotaxi providers. City Manager Shikada added they had gotten feedback from Tesla that they do not believe they are ready for them to proceed so they are continuing with Nomad. He stated the door is open and they may be meeting with other companies. Councilmember Veenker talked about the importance of the grants to fund the program. She wanted to know if the TFCA grant could be reapplied for annually. She supported partnering with another organization for the service and hoped for ways to expand the hours and service area. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi responded they can apply for TFCA but there is no guarantee they will get it. He noted this funding would typically be available for expansion of service. Vice Mayor Lauing agreed with Councilmember Burt’s comments. Mayor Stone wanted to know if the motion to eliminate the discount fees would include teens accessing teen or mental health services. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi did not think that would include teen services but he would have to talk with CSD to confirm. He clarified that had separate funding and they could set up a similar arrangement to what the SRP has. He noted the fare adjustment was not staff’s recommendation but came out of the Finance Committee’s goal to make the service more financially sustainable. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 8 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 Councilmember Tanaka opined that Tesla’s main hesitancy was a misunderstanding about the licensing and they would prefer to go under the Link license. He asked if they could add amendments for service level flexibility, allowing the license to be shared and flexibility on coordinating the apps. He provided reasons he felt they should not restrict trips to school. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi explained the Palo Alto Link vehicles are leased by the vendor. City Manager Shikada explained the amendment did not require Nomad to participate under specific conditions. He did not suggest including any provisions like that at that time. He assured that based on the initial conversation it was clear that Nomad would provide the flexibility necessary to accommodate other services and further exploration. City Attorney Stump confirmed that the staff has the flexibility they need to work with a vendor to make changes if other service becomes a viable option. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims felt restricting trips to schools was micromanaging family life and circumstance. She was in favor of fewer regulations about who could use the service and thought it was odd to exclude school children. Mayor Stone clarified the amendment was not excluding kids but limiting free rides. Chief Transportation Official Kamhi explained within the Finance Committee direction and Council budget approval, there was a recommendation to exclude schools during bell times. This was included in the action and they had committed to including excluding the schools during bell times once the initial grant funding ran out. Councilmember Burt discussed the risk of undermining the Safe Routes to School program with this service. MOTION: Councilmember Burt moved, seconded by Mayor Stone to approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute the attached Cost Sharing Agreement to Receive Funding from Stanford University to Fund Palo Alto Link Services to Stanford Research Park up to $600,000 annually (Attachment B). MOTION PASSED: 6-0-1, Veenker recused AMENDMENT: Councilmember Tanaka moved, seconded by Councilmember Lythcott-Haims to not restrict trips to and from schools. AMENDMENT FAILED: 2-5, Lauing, Kou, Veenker, Burt, Stone no MOTION: Vice Mayor Lauing moved, seconded by Councilmember Kou to approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to: SUMMARY MINUTES Page 9 of 9 City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 11/04/2024 1. Execute Contract Amendment No. 2 with Nomad Transit, LLC (Via), to provide Palo Alto Link Services, extending the contract term to June 30, 2025, with additional funding of $1.2 million for a revised not to exceed total of $3,801,550 (Attachment A); and 2. Adoption of an Ordinance to Amend the Fiscal Year 2025 Municipal Fee Schedule (Attachment C) by eliminating discounted fares, increasing fares for Palo Alto Link for single rides for all user types to $0-4, increasing monthly passes to $130, and increasing weekly passes to $40; and 3. Direct staff to evaluate alternative funding to subsidize discounted fee rides for teens riding Palo Alto Link accessing teen centers or mental health services; and 4. Direct staff to explore other interested for-profit or nonprofit providers that could be added to address the cost concerns and interest in service expansion. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 10:17 P.M.