HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-02-18 City Council Summary MinutesCITY
COUNCIL
MINUTES
Regular Meeting
February 18, 1986
CITY
OF
PAt O
40TC_)
ITEM PAGE
Oral Communications 6 8 8 5
Approval of Minutes of January 13, 1986 6 8 8 6
Item 11, Senior. Coordinating Council Presentation 6 8 8 6
Re Needs Survey of Senior Citizens
Consent Calendar 6 8 8 6
Referral 6 8 8 6
Action 6 8 8 6
Item 12, Confirmation of the Appointment of 6 8 8 6
Georgene Takayama as Assistant City Clerk
Item 43, Summary Vacation of Public Utilities 6 8 8 6
Easement - 1125 Channing Avenue
Item 14, Resolution Adopting t)i,sclosure Categories 6 8 8 7
for Conflict of. Interest Code fur Designated
Positions
Item 45, Ordinances Re Adoption of the 1985
Editions of the Uniform Building Code, Housing
Code, Fire Code, Mechanical Code, and the 1984
National Electric Code
Agenda Changes, Additions and Deletions
Item 16, Finance and Public= Works Committee Recom-
mendation Re Staffing Request - Senior Accountant
Item 47, Policy and Procedures Committee Recom-
mendation Re Corporation Bylaws of the Elizabeth F.
bamble Garden Center
Item 18, Report from Council Legislative Committee
item i9, City of Palo Alto Water Resources Plan
Item #9-A, Request for City Manager to Report on
Impacts_ of the Storms
6 8 8 7
6 8 8 7
6 8 8 7
6 8 9 2
6 .8 9 4
6 8 9 6,
6 8 9 8
Adjournment: 9:1,5 p.m. 6 8 9 9
Final Adjournment: 9:2U p.m.
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2/18/86
Regular Meeting
February 18, 1986
The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this date in the
Council Chambers, 250 Hamilton Avenue, at 7:30 p.m.
PRESENT: Cobb, Fletcher, Klein, Levy (arrived at 7:45 p.m.),
Patitucci, Renzel, Sutorius, Woolley
ABSENT: Bechtel
Mayor Cobb announced the need for a Closed Session re Litigation
to discuss: 1) Citizens for Sensible Planning v. City of Palo Alto
and Stanford University pursuant to Government Code Section
54956.9(a); and 2) Potential' -Liability pursuant to Government Code
Section 54956.9(b)(1) to be held at some point during or after the
meeting.
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
1. Or. Harvey K. Roth, 3422 Kenneth Drive, referred to the
Midpeninsula Ambulatory Care Center for Alcohol and Drug
Addiction located on El Camino Real opposite the Stanford
Stadium, which consisted of a medical office building, the
Grecian. Spa building, and the adjacent used -car lot.
Financing was through private donations and grants through the
National Institute of Health and different state agencies. He
hoped Council would consider eminent domain or condemnation
and go through the Courts in order to determine a fair legal
price on the property. He hoped for the cooperation of an
Alano Club, the Veterans ,Admi-nistration through the Director
and Chief of Medical 3ervice and their research area, Stanford
University development and fund raising and research, the City
of Palo Alto Planniny Board, Human Relations Commission,
Community Relations, and Community Development area, the
Police Department, and the City Manager add City Attorney.
The Center was to be a voluntary, nonprofit corporation whose
board of directors might come from the Midpeninsula Alano Club
extended from the Alano Club alone to he an overall board, or
a new board of directors, new incorporation, arid, a new Alano
Club, The Center was initially attempted in 19-82, but the
timing was not right. Timing was now right because the Center
had to move by May 31.., and he wanted to see` the Center in
operation by June 1. He presented a schematic indicating the
properties and location, a letter from the foreman of Health
and Human Services of the federal government endorsing the
concept, and a means of approaching the concept financially
(on file in the City Clerk's office). He believed an
accountant, program manager, lawyer, project engineer , archi-
tect, real estate agent, and people as liaison with the Palo
Alto School District, Stanford, some of the physicians, and
the Midpeninsula Alano Club would be involved. The Center
would like to have the Mayor, Vice Mayor, or City Manager be
involved with , cite board as liaison with the City. The Center
designated a secretary,` a liaison to the Palo Alto Chamber of
Commerce to solicit funding through the different businesses,
spiritual advisers, and the political- consultant and planner,
The Center presently had people involved with different fund
raising ideas and a prospective staff. He requested City
coop eration because there were ec:ing problems, and the Human
Relations Commission might be a good link with the community.
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2/18/86
1
i
1
MINUTES OF JANUARY 13, 1986
The Minutes of January 13, 1986 were removed at the request of the
City Clerk.
ITEM #1_, SENIOR COORDINATING COUNCIL PRESENTATION RE NEEDS SURVEY
OF SENIOR CITIZENS (SOS 4-1)
Diana Steeples, Director of Planning and Development for Senior
Coordinating Council (SCC), brought Council up-to-date on the 1986
study of persons 60 and older in Palo Alto and Stanford, presently
being conducted by the SCC in cooperation with the Council on
Aging in Santa Clara County. The SCC conducted a study of persons
over 60 in the community in 1974, and the new study was being
undertaken because the senior population in Palo Alto grew from 14
percent in 1970 to 18 percent. in 1980, was still growing, and the
75 years and older group was expected to increase more rapidly
based on national projection. In addition, the SCC wanted to be
up-to-date on the circumstances of older people in the community:
their housing; health care; income; retirement; employment; use of
leisure time; and particularly, their knowledge or lack of know-
ledge of the community resources available and their perception of
the services and resources. The SCC was presently in the middle
of the study. More than 75 community volunteers of all adult ages
were recruited to knocked on doors, locate seniors, and conduct
hour-long interviews. Training was provided and funding was in
hand, thanks to the City of Palo Alto, Council on Aging, Peninsula
Community Foundation, and the Junior Leacue of Palo Alto. The
final report was expected by May 31 unless rains delayed inter-
views. The SCC expected to work closely with the City and all
other community agencies concerned about the older population
after the results and findings were in, so they could work to-
gether to see what changes occurred and how they, as a community,
should respond to the needs of their older residents. She pre-
sented a slide show of what had happened since 1974 in the commun-
ity as a lead-in to what might come of the new study.
Mayor Cobb thanked Ms. Steeples for an excellent presentation.
CONSENT CALENDAR
NOTION: vice Mayor Woolley moved, seconded by Klein, approval
of the Consent Calendar.
Referra 1
None
Action
ITEM #2 CONFIRMATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF GEORGENE TAKAYAMA AS
ASSISTANT CITY CLERK AIM 2
Staff recommends the appointment of Georgene Takayama as Assistant
City Clerk.
ITEM #3, SUMMARY VACATION OF PUBLIC UTILITIES EASEMENT 1125
CI1ANl ING AVENUE (UTI 2) (CM)i:166:6)
Staff tecommends the Council adopt the Resolution of the Council
of the City of Palo Alto Ordering the Vacation of the Public
Utility Easementat 1125 Channi ng Avenue.
RESOLUTION 114$S entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
mir rO ALTO ORDERING THE . SUI11ART ' VACAT I till OF A
PUBLIC SERVICE EASEMENT FOR UTILITIES AT 11ES CMANRING
AVENUE'
CONSENT CALENDAR CONTINUED
ITEM 04, RESOLUTION ADOPTING DISCLOSURE CATEGORIES FOR CONFLICT OF
INTEREST CODE FUR DESIGNATED POSITIONS (ELE-CIC lj
RESOLUTION 6490 entitled 'RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY aF PA10 ALTO REPEALING RESOLUTIONS N0. 5737 AND
5798 AND ADOPTING DISCLOSURE CATEGORIES FOR THE CONFLICT
OF INTEREST CODE FOR DESIGNATED POSITIONS AS REQUIRED BY
SECTION 2.09.020 OF THE PALO,ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE"
ITEMi 95 ORDINANCES RE ADOPTION OF THE 1985 EDITIONS OF THE
kiNl ORM B ILDING CODE HOUSING CODE FIRE CODE MECHANICAL CODE.,
A TD THE 19$1 N► -110 R Wn ea ng I /-;CAF 4)
ORDINANCE 3667 entitled 'ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE
CITY bF PALO ALTO ADOPTING THE 1985 EDIT [0N 8F THE
UNIFORM BUILDING CODE AND UNIFORM HOUSING CODE AND
AMENDING CHAPTER 16,04 OF THE PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE'
(lst Reading 2/3/86, PASSED 9-0)
ORDINANCE 3668 entitled 'ORDINANCE OF INE COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF PALO ALTO ADOPTING THE 1985 EDITION OF THE
UNIFORM PLUMBING CODE AND AMENDING CHAPTER 16.08 OF THE
PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE' (1st Reading 2/3/86, PASSED
9-0)
ORDINANCE 3669 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF PALO ALTO ADOPTING THE `1984 EDITION OF THE
NATIONAL ELECTRICAL CODE AND AMENDING CHAPTER 16.16 OF
THE PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE-" (i st Reading 2/3/86,
PASSED 9-0)
ORDINANCE 3670 entitled 'ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE
rITT—a—FATir ALTO ADOPTING THE 1985 EDITION OF THE
UNIFORM FIRE CODE AS AMENDED (MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER
15.04)' (lst Reading 2/3/86, PASSED 9-0)
MOTION PASSED enamimeesly, Bechtel absent.
AGENDA CHANGES, ADDITIONS AND DELETIONS
City Manager Bill Zaner said an update on the affects of the
storm would become Item 09-A.
ITEM 06 FINANCE AND PUBLIC WORKS (F&PW) COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
RE STA LNG E1 ST - SENIOR ACCOUNTANf1 rI o (CMR:16O:6)
Chairperson Sartori us for the Finance and Public Works (F&PW)
Committee said the Committee 'recommended an additional Senior',
Accountant position in the Finance Department. In addition to
reviewing the material presented by staff, the Committee discussed
the, _vacant Senior Accountant position and were concerned that the
need and wisdom for a second position might be questioned since
the first had not 'been filled for some time. He bei eved when
Council turned to staff for , additional comments, staff wool &_ be
able to provide an update on the recruiting effort with some posi-
tive commentary. It was the F&PW Committee's natural tendency to
view any request to add a staff position as a sensitive issue. On
the, outer nand, the City's accounting services were also a sensi-
tive i sue. The two sensitive issues competed with one another,
and the Committee concluded the accoenting process, compounded by
the conversion and do cumentat ion requirements associated with the
City's f1Mence, system, warranted the addition of the, position with
due attention paid to:•the ultimate staffing as the C1 ty completed
the transition .period.
6 8 8 7
2/18/86
MOTION: Coueci1■ember Sutorius for the Finance and Public Works
Committee moved Council adopt the Resolution afdiag the Senior
Accountant to the Management Compensation plan and the Budget
Amendment Ordinance adding one Senior Accountant to the list of
authorized positions.
RESOLUTION 6491 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
Tgr CITT OF PALO ALTO AMENDING THE COMPENSATION PLAN FOR
MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL AND COUNCIL -APPOINTED OFFICERS
ADOPTED BY RESOLUTION NO. 6416 TO ADD THE CLASSIFICATION
OF SENIOR ACCOUNTANT a
ORDINANCE 3671 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE
�TTr OF PALO ALTO AMENDING THE BUDGET FOR THE FISCAL
YEAR 1986-86 T8 AUTNORIZE THE POSITION OF SENIOR
ACCOUNTANT IN THE ACCOUNTING DIVISION'
Director of Finance Mark Harris said of the two vacant positions,
one position was filled and the one person would start on Monday,
February 24, 1986. The City also extended an offer to an addi-
tional person whose background was also very good, but hiring was
contingent on Council's action that evening. Both candidates were
Certified Public Accountants, the type of personnel needed to
bring the accounting staff to full -complement.
Councilmenber Levy was unclear about the City's need for another
accounting supervisor position. He heard a lot of detail but not
what would be done when the City had the new position. He wanted
to get a policy perspective on the .issee in order to make a policy
decision rather than simply a line decision.
City Manager Bill Zeiler said as staff indicated to the F&PW
Committee and to the Council eat budget time, the City had no
accountants on the staff. it was true under the previous system
with the Controller and was still true. The City needed to
strengthen the department so it had people who were trained
graduate accountants. As Mr. Harris reported, the City had one
position of accountant presently filled. As staff looked at the
organization; and volume of transactions, they believed proper
organization required a second accountant. He deferred to Mr.
Harris about how the organization should be divided and the
relative responsibilities of the too people, but emphasized they
were new skills the organization never had and desperately
needed,
Councilmember Levy was not interested. in how the department was
to be organized in terms of what each person would do. His per-
spective was Palo Alto was presently in its 80th year and survived
reasonably well over that period of time. They were _adding
another position and had added positions to ',;he City's accounting
function in recent years. He wanted to Know what would they
accomplish with those added trained accountants that they were not
able to accomplish presently and in the past.
Mr. Harris said the Finance Department, particularly , the
Accounting Division, was in charge of three areas. The financial
report included maintaining the general ledger and assuring all
accounting records were accurate and timely, an area in which the
City had been deficient in recent years, and particularity that
year. Several months ago when the City decided to issue -their
revenue bonds, issuance was in a subordinate 'canner because the
annual financial report could not be generated ire a timely scanner.
The City contracted with Delditte, Haskins & Sells` for $90,000 to
clear the problem in ordeTe to change the issue from subordinate to
par. The City's prior`' procedures were not properly documented
because staff was too lean and not properly trained/, nor was the
6 8 8 8
2/18/86
accounting system documented and up to speed. Reyardlog day-to-
day issues, the City maintained itself fairly well for the last
year but wanted to ensure staff was fully up to speed and ali
accounting was done properly. The third area was the development
of the Financial Data Base, on which Ron Garratt, ae the
Accounting Manager, spent most of his time to assure the system
met the City's needs and continued to do so for the next ten or
fifteen years. Without the professional expertise and capability,
the City would struggle. The City might have made it for 80
years, but those in financial positions for the last year or two
they had a lot of sleepless nights because of inherited defi-
ciencies. Their role was to make sure it did not happen again.
Councilmember Levy asked staff to elaborate on the term "Financial
Data Base."
Mr. Harris said the Financial Data Base would be the basic infor-
mation provided to the Accounting Division and all departments
within the City to give staff the most timely, accurate data in a
form staff could understand to make financial decisions. Whether
it was to know at any given time what percent was spent of the
money in the budyet; how the City was doing on revenue projections
versus what was accounted for; or'whether the accounts receivable
were too high. The Financial Data Base would provide the ability
for staff to know in a timely, accurate manner where the City
stood financially. It was an automated system because all the
information could be put in a form readily accessible to people.
Councilmember Levy said it sounded like a duplication of Item one,
which was the City's basic financial reporting.
Mr. Harris said the financial reporting he talked about related to
the legal reporting entities on •.the outside needed to see _from the
City. This was in the form of an audited financial report. The
Financial Data Base had to be larger than that because the report
really spoke to the financial community or accountants. The Data
Base provided basic information to departments and division heade
to enable them to do tneir jobs better and ultimately save the
City a considerable amount of money.
Councilmember Levy asked how many people the City had provide
financial information, accounting, etc., in fiscal year 1983-84
while it was under the old organization, and how many it would
have after the two senior accountants were hired.
Manager of Accounting Ron Garratt said historically the City
always looked to one individual in the Accounting Division to pro-
vide the data. That person left the City and took with her all
the knowledge needed to run the current Financial Data Base.
Under the new setup, the City would have one of the Senior
Accountants primarily responsible for financial reporting on an
annual basis.
Councilmember Levy wanted a con+pari sce of how many people the City
had dealing with financial matters when it was under the
Controller, and and how 'wetly would deal with financial matters
after the reoreani zat ion was completed.
Mr. Garret said the City had 11 people two years ago and would
have 12 under the new configuration.
Councilmember Levy clarified there was just one additional person.
He asked if the number included various people who dealt with
financial matters presently in Utilities: and other departments
throughout the City.
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2/18/86
Mr. Harris said no, there was no change in the other -departments.
Councilmember Levy clarified the pet change was the addition of
only one person to the accounting function, which was the person
Council was being requested to approve that__evening.
Mr. Zaner said yes.
Councilmember Levy asked about the effect on the Accounting
Department in terms of person power if the City did not have a
Utility operation.
Mr. Garratt said the Finance staff's primary support to Utilities
presently was to produce the financial reports, balance sheets,
and income statements that went into the annual Financial State-
ment. Staff intended to do it on a quarterly basis and would
continue to provide that level of service. Without Utilities,
staff would have six other' primary funds upon which to report.
Councilor tuber Levy asked about the effect on staffing.
Mr. Garratt said it was difficult to put a person -hour designation
on it. Support to Utilities obviously had some effect, but the -
management level of staffing requested would sti l 1 be required.
Eliminating that support might allow staff to reduce some of the
clerical, technical staff.
Councilmember Sutorius said the Utilities support described by Mr.
Garratt was partially support for the City -owned and operated
utilities .imposed on the City. Additionally, the payroll function
was performed by the Accounting Division, so there was a multi-
plier of staff associated with all the employees within the
Utilities organization. Any of the numbers mentioned from a force
standpoint should be understood in the context of the present
organization i.ec, one head count was temporary, and one regular
management person was half-time. The longer -range proposed organ-
ization implemented with the addition} of the position continued to
include a half-time position and two positions that would be
treated as temporary positions. As 'ful l, mechanization, docu-
mentation, and cross -training were completed, the number of
temporaries could be reduced. The net compared to a year ago, or
1983, or 1982 was not a significant difference. If colleagues
were concerned about another viewpoint as to the level, output,
nature of the proulems encountered, and the :manner in which the
additional position offered conservation of total City expense and
work effort, the City Auditor might have an observation to offer.
City Auditor Mike Northrup supported Mr. Harris' recommendation
for an additional senior accountant position. He agreed with
Councilmember Sutorius and Mr. Harris that the management level
accountant position was critical for the Finance Department. He
could not say the staffing was optimal in Finance as he had not
looked at it, but the degreed accountant position was crucial for
the function of the Accounting Department right now. Financial
analysis had not been done and could not be done without a degree
accountant. Tne organization chart Mr. Harris proposed was a
standard separation of duties within the Accounting Department
which provided for optimal control.
Councilmember Levy asked how the staffing of the Finance Depart-
ment would be affected if the City did not have a Utilities
Department.
Mr. Zaner said it might wean one or more:; position being elimi-
nated in' the Finance Department. -What Utilities did on the
finance side was its own budgeting work which was coordinated
through the Finance Department of the CityO The Fi nance Depart-
ment handled payroll and all billings. All purchase requests were
made through the Purchasing Division of the finance Department.
6 8,9 0
2/18/86
Councilmember Levy clarified the effect of having Utilities was
incidental in teems of staffing since it would prooably mean one
person out of thirteen.
Mr. Zaner said it was hard to break out, but would be in the range
of one plus person.
Councilmember, Levy clarified there were 13 people in the proposed
organization • chart.
Mr. Garratt said yes. One of the temporary positions proposed in
fiscal year 1986-87 was related to implementation and conversion
of the Financial Data Base, moving from the old system to the new.
The City needed to run both systems in parallel for some period of
time, which required backup of clerical support activity.
Councilmember Levy asked whether the two temporary clerk positions
were full or part-time positions.
Mr. Garratt said the two temporary clerk positions were full-
time.
Councilmember Levy said there would be a total of 13.
Mr. Garratt said 13, and one would be dropped after the 1986-87
fiscal year.
Councilmember Patitucci respected the line of questioning Council -
member Levy was pursuing; however, it was the same line of ques-
tioning pursued at the Committee. If it appeared Council was
getting into that kind of discussion, he suggested the item be
referred back to the Committee, and the other Councilmembers
interested in the level of detail attend the meeting to pursue the
questioning. There was a lot of discussion on the subject at the
Committee meeting.
Mayor Cobb said the questioning was wholly within Council's pro-
cedures and proper action. It was the correct answer in a proce-
dural sense, but Councilmembers were free to ask any questions
they wanted,during that period. He believed the best thing for
Council to do, rather than to get into a discussion of procedures,
Was to see if therewere other questions. When Council was ready
to take act i oo, if people were still not satisfied at the level of
detail, referral was the proper step to take.
Councilmember Patitucci believed Councilmember Levy's questions
were good and to the point. They were the. kind of questions
raised in the FUN Committee, and he was not sure if they were 100
percent answered to the satisfaction of the members of the
Committee. However, speaking as someone who had been close to
that kind of issue, he supported the position. He asked how long
it took for the City to close its books at the end of a fiscal
year and produce a financial report.
Mr. Harris said that year the City produced a financial report on
January 15. Under current circumstances with the current staff,
it took four to five months.
Councilmember Patitucci asked what percentage or. the City's sys-
tems was automated.
Mr. Harris hesitated to respond becadse there were a lot of num-
bers automated, but the preparation of the report Itself and those
statements were not.
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Councilmember Patitucci said basically the City's financial system
was not in good repair. Tha question of how to get there and the
amount of staffing necessary was difficult, if not impossible, to
answer. His conclusion, having experienced similar kinds of
problems, was that staff did not really know. -and Ccun cil probably
did not --know. It was a situation where Council had to watch
closely and manage as it went along. They were shooting for auto-
mating the system in the next two or three years. He hoped the
City could get down to a 30 -day close and a 60 -day period of pro-
ducing financial reports, which would be an appropriate time to
take a hard look at the staffing to manage the system. During the
interim periou there was a surge. He believed it was acceptable
and not out of the range of experiences he personally had with the
conversion of systems. Therefore, he supported the staffing
request, but believed it was something F&PW Committee and Council
needed to watch closely, especially in the annual budgeting pro-
cess, both in terms of the progress of the improvement, staffing
and consulting time required to get there.
Councilmember Levy concurred reluctantly with Councilmember
Patitucci. He was concerned with what he believed was a greater
increase in staff than seemed to be the case; going from 11 to 13
with the promise of going bark to 12 t . one year did not seem
out of line. He was concerned with the condition of the City's
accounting system and the fact that the City turned to Deloitte,
Haskins & Sells and spent a substantial amount of money in closing
the books, more than the cost of one extra person by quite a bit.
He was uncomfortable with what he saw in the handling of the City
books. He believed personnel was needed and would support the
request but agreed it was an area Council needed to watch closely
and not let expenses get out of hand.
NOTION PASSED unanimously, Bechtel absent.
MOTIOwi Vice Mayor Woolley moved, seconded by levy, to direct
staff to report to the Finance and Public Works Committee
regarding F iraacz Department staffing prior to the fiscal year
1967--1S budget hearing*.
Vice Mayor Woolley said Council's discussion clarified ehy the
motion was a good idea. She was also reluctant to vote for the
increased staffing but decided Council needed to track it closely.
During the budget hearing Council would be aware of staffing, but
ehe wanted more focus on staffing and a report to return to
Council prior to the budget hearings to give time for the depth
Council wanted. Not only was the Finance Department new, it was
in a state of transition in terms of computerization, and some of
the positions might need to shift. Not only might some positions
be eliminated, as Council usually heard when asked to appropriate
money for computers to save staffing, but Finance would probably
need more experienced, trained staff and fewer clerical -type
personnel.
NOTION PASSED unanimously, Bechtel absent.
ITEM #7 POLICY AND PROCEDURES (P&P) COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION RE
CORPORATION BYLAWS OF THE, ELIZABETH F. GAMBLE GARDEN CENTER
(PWX 6-2-9).(CMR:15226)
Vice Mayor Woolley, Chairperson of: the Policy and Procedures (P&P)
Committee, said the P&P Commiftee held two meetings on the issue
and scrutinized the bylaws thoroughly. The P&P Committee wanted
to insure the decision -making process of the Corporation was as
public as possible. To that .end, the Committee made several minor
changes in the wording, but most of the discussion centered around
whether membership should be limited to the board of directors or
be opened to all the people who paid due.. Sieff reported at the
second reeling t,iial ehtee other nonprofit organizations tunded by
the City, for example, Pei° Alto Community Child Cars, the Housing
Corporation, ai ►d the Senior Coordinating Council, had members
limited to the board of directors. The representatives from the
Gamble Garden Center convinced the Committee it was too burdensome
to have all duespaying people considered as members with voting
privileges. It was the unanimous recommendation of the P&P
Committee that Council accept the bylaws as modified with one
small exception.
MOTION; Councilmember Woolley for the Policy and Procedures
Committee moved approval of the modified bylaws of the Elizabeth
1'. Garble Center, adding, to Section 39, 'Any bylaws aaendpents
must be approved by the City Manager' and deleting the first
swatence on page 4 of the bylaws, Section 13, which says, "Such
notice need uut specify the purpose of the meeting."
Councilmember Sutorius concurred with the recommendation of the
P&P Committee and supported the motion. On page 4, Section 14, it
seemed from review of the minutes and discussion of the extensive
activities of the Garden Center processes, the Center would be
anxious to adopt the bylaws at an early time, potentially well in
advance of the time the Garden Center lease was actually effected
and any occupancy of 1431 Waverley Street could occur.
AMENDMENT; Councilmember Sutorius moved, seconded by Pletcher,
to add the following words topage4, Section 14, of the Bylaws of
the Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden Center to mead as follows:
'Commencing with the occupancy under lease, meetings of the Board
lac
Councilmember Renzel wondered whether the amendment was already
covered by the phrase "or other public facility within the City of
Palo Alto, which has been deoignated in the notice.
Councilmember Sutorius raid prior to the actual effecting of a
lease, and while the planning effort was'. underway, the board could
conduct their meetings at the the offices of the architect. The
amended language would accommodatre that practice until the Center
actually had a lease.
Councilmember Levy agreed with Councilmember Renzel that the
amendment was not needed asked where the architect's office was
located,
Councilmember Sutorius said Rominger & Associates were located on
El Camino in Los Altos.
AMENDMENT PASSED by a vote of 7-1, Renzel voting 'no," Bechtel
abs ent.
Councilmember Patitucci asked whether the bylaws would return to
the City Council for approval if they were chanced.
City Attorney Diane Lee said no, the City Manager had approval
authority of any changes, but they would not return to the City
Council-
Councilmember Patitucci clarified Council approved the first draft
and the City Manager could change the bylaws from that point on.
Ms. Lee said yes.
MOTIOW AS AMENDED PASSED unanimously, Cechtel absent.
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2/18/85
As corrected
3/24/86
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Councilmember Patitucci whether the bylaws would return to the
City Council for approval if they were changed.
City Attorney Uiane Lee said no, the City Manager had approval
authority of any changes, but they would not return to the City
Council.
Councilmember Patitucci clarified Council approved the first draft
and the City Manager could change the bylaws from that point on.
Ms. Lee said yes.
MOTION AS AMENDED PASSER unanimously, Bechtel absent.
ITEM #8, REPORT FROM COUNCIL LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE (LEG 4-2)
MOTION: Councilmember Fletcher roved, seconded by Klein, to
adopt the Council Legislative Committee recommendation to cow -
tribute $17,056 to the American Power Association campaign to pre-
serve the cost -based federal power pricing policy.
MOTION PASSED unanimously, Bechtel absent.
MOTION: Coencilmember Fletcher moved, seconded by Sutorius, to
adopt Council Legislative Committee recommendation to oppose the
administration's proposal to sell the federal power marketing
agencies if such action world substantially increase the cost of
power to Palo Alto and its customers.
MOTION PASSED enanimoasiy, Bechtel absent.
MOTION: Councilmember Fletcher mewed, seconded by- Klein, to
adopt the Council Legislative Committee recommendation to oppose
AB 2920 (Margolin) - beverage containers - as amended and passed
by the Assembly om January 30, 1986.
Councilmember Fletcher ;gli the particular legislation would pro-
vide a redemption value of the' beverage containers of one 'cent
instead of five cents, and the customers would have to return the
containers to recycling centers rather than the stores. The bi l l
would set up a convoluted,` State -run bureacracy funded by the
money collected. It looked as if it was desigeed to fail.
Councilmember Renzel was not prepared to oppose something which
was' hammered out as a result -of long years of attempting to get
some sort of a beveraye bottle bill passed in the state. It was
difficult, in the initiative process, for the citizenry to over-
come the lobbies of the beverage industries. They needed to start
someplace! While it might not necessarily be the. people who paid
the penny deposit who got the penny deposit back', but if the bi l l
resulted in fewer bottles and cans on the beaches, highways, and
parks, it was worth doing.
•
Councilmember Sutorius agreed with Councilmember Renzeles con-
cerns and believed he shared her conclusion. He did not know what
CaLPIRG stood for but knew Californians Against Waste (CAW) was a
citizen -based organization which helped to hammer out the compro-
mise. He did not see enough information for him' to arrive at the
conclusiton recommended by the Legislative Committee, and unless
convinced to the contrary, he would join Councilmember Renzel and
not oppose AO 2020.
Councilmember Levy appreciated the comments by Councllmemoers
Renzel--and Sutorius because he or-yinally agreed with them. The
measure, in and of itself, was not strong enough and would not
accomplish much. ; He hoped, after a tear Or two, ite inef fec-
tiveness would be- seen and a bill with enough incentive and' con-
ven1 eace to get people to recycle easily would be proposed!, He
predicted five years would elapse before any change was made aid
another five or ten years before_ there was a satisfactory bill.
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He supported the Leyi sl at i ve Committee's recommendation and
believed as part of the motion, Council should communicate its
decision to its legislators. He hoped Council would clarify its
position of favoring recycling but oppose AB 2020 because it
believed the incentives offered and lack of convenience would make
the bill ineffective. He hoped the motion would include the
concepts he suggested.
Councilmember Klein said the purpose of the Council Legislative
Committee action was to lobby the City's legislators, and staff
followed up automatically with a letter for the Mayor to send.
Only when Council wanted the letters to be sent to a broader can-
vass than normal was it appropriate to add an amendment. He was
surprised to hear environmentalists like Councilmembers Renzel and
Sutorius supporting AU 2020. He believed the well-intentioned
people of Californians Against Waste were tired and agreed to a
compromise so they could: say. they 'accomplished something. In
-reality, he believed the bill would accomplish nothing and might
be a "trojan horse" piece of legislation. As set up, much of 'the
citizenry would ' become convinced recycling was a bad idea because
it was so ridden with bureacracy, so a more meaningful proposal
would not be attempted. As an experiment, he believed it was
doomed for failure. He_ preferred to sit back and wait until some-
thing meaningful was proposed. The compromise was worse than
having nothing at all, and he urged his colleagues to support the
Legislative Committee recommendation and vote "no" on AB 2020.
Councilmember Fletcher did not believe .it was impossible to pass
an effective bottle bill. It worked well in eight or ten -other
states and with approximately a 90 percent recovery. One cent was
ludicrous and did not pay for the cost. of the gasoline to the
recycling center. If AB 2020 passed in California, it was bound
tc undermine the credibility of the existing bottle of l is in other
states, would give impetus in trying to overturn them, and would
most likely keep anal other states from adopting effective bottle
bills. If AB 2020 passed in California, it would completely
undermine a five -cent container deposit bill discussed at the
national level. The bill also preempted local jurisdictions from
acting, such as the three councilmembers in Los Angeles working on
some legislation for Los Angeles. They were not being permitted
to have an effective bottle bill because some people arrived at an
agreement in Sacramento.
Mayor Cobb associated with the comments of Councilmember Klein,
especially on the basis he believed the bill was doomed to
failure.
NOTION 413$10 by a vote of 6-2, Renzel, Setori es voting "not°
techt i absent,
MOTION: Csar.ctlmember Fletcher moved, seconded by Klein, to
adopt the Council Legislative Committee recommendation to enders•
ev .'erts to goal `;`y a five -cent deposit initiative for the November
ballot*
Councilmember Pat i tucci understood if Council opposed the bill, it
automatically sent a letter to legislators and to the sponsor. He
asked what happened if Council favored an alternative.
Mayor Cobb said Council made its endorsement available to . the
people behind the campaign,
Councilmember Pet i t ucci believed people who had not read the
current version of the 'Bottle di 1 1" could misinterpret Council's
action of being against it. He Lilted the idea of following the
previous _ action with an endorsement for a five -cent deposit to
make the bill more meaningful. 14e hoped Council's action would go
to the same people, who interpreted Council as supporting a
"bottle Bill" with some teeth
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2/18/86
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1
1
MOTION PASSED unanimously, BBechtei absent.
MOTION: Coa.citmember Fletcher moved, seconded by Klein, to
adopt the Council Legislative Committee recommendation to adopt a
resolution urginW the California Legislature to enact legialatien
requiring seat belts in school buses.
Councilmember Levy asked whether the City obtained input from the
Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD).
City Manager Bil 1 Zanier said not to his knowl edge.
Councilmember Levy asked if the PAUSD took any position.
Mr.. Zaner was unaware of any.
SUBSTITUTE MOTION TO REFER: Councilmember Levy moved, seconded
by Sutorius, to refer matter back to the Council Legislative
Committee with direction to get Palo Alto Unified School District
Board input.
Councilmember Sutorius said intuitively and emoti .nally no one
could feel any stronger about having the proper safety methods as
it .affected school buses, but he believed Councilmember Levy's
motion was proper. He was interested that the action was stimu-
lated by a single piece of, correspondence from a city council -
member in one city in California.
SUBSTITUTE NOTION TO ,REFER PASSED enaaimously, Bechtel absent.
ITEM #9, CITY OF PALO ALTO WATER RESOURCES PLAN (CMR:165:6)
(UTI 7)
Councilmember Renzel referred to page 20, under (5)(a), and asked
wnat staff understood the meaning of the City's constructive
involvement in the San Francisco Bay Area Waster User's
Association to be.
Director of Utilities Richard Young said within the framework of
Bay Area Water User's, the allocations were set up under the con-
tract. The amount was part of the contract documents. The group
worked on an annual basis and redid the allocation every -three
years. The City must remain involved with _the group to protect
its future it terms of the. difference between present use and the
ultimate allocation to the ?1 contractees from,Hetch- Hetchy.
Councilmember Renzel clarified it did not mean the City would nec-
essarily create a policy which said it would always support addi-
tional water projects :if it protected the City's share. - She
believed the earlier report had some 'ndication the City would
support other -water projects Dy policy in the document, and she
did not find anything in the report to reflect that.
Mr. Young said the only project mentioned was the Fourth Barrel,
which provided for the final-: capacity out of the Hetch-Hetchy
system to the Bay Area. Other than that, there were no projects
of which he was aware.
Councilmember Levy asked how safe the City's system was in the
event of an earthquake.
Mr. Young said staff recently requested approval from Council to
contract. for -not only corrosion studies but seismic studies of the
City's above -ground tanks. These would be done in the current
fiscal year. It was hoped any corrective actions would be planned
and underway shortly thereafter. Presently, there were some seis-
mic studies for underground dams a►nd storage .reservoirs, but these
above-yround were not studed in recent times.
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2/18/86
Councilmember Levy asked about the system outside Palo Alto, as it
went across the Hayward Fault or as it went up the San Andreas
Fault to Crystal Springs Reservoir.
Mr. Young had no knowledye of any particular studies made by
Hetch-Hetchy but presumed the State Division cf Dams would require
them to examine their reservoirs and any facilities under their
control.
Vice Mayor Woolley referred to page 38, the end of Item (3),
Standby Wells, the last sentence, "Recommendations whether to
abandon certain wells will be addressed in a future staff report
to Council." She asked about a probable date for the report.
Mr. Young said the report was tied to many items with which the
utilities department was involved. The condition of the wells,
their capacities, ability to deliver, and the amount of mainte-
nance were studied; some were still being studied. He did not
have a particular date but hoped to have definitive answers for
Council in terms of which wells should be kept or abandoned in
1986.
Mayor Cobb said Palo Alto was tied into the Hetch-Hetchy situa-
tion, a system which would clearly find its limit at some point in
the future if the area continued to develop. He asked whether the
City had any fall -back plan if a situation occurred where Hetch-
Hetchy could no longer supply all its needs.
Mr. Young said the present plan was to expand the Hetch-Hetchy
facilities as far as they would go, as provided for in the origi-
nal concepts of the Raker Act. If Hetch-Hetchy approached its
limits, the City would be forced to observe conservation and
further develop ground water supplies as necessary, There were
some additional facilities in the area being built to which the
City did not presently have access. Other contracting agencies
were workiny with those particular reservoirs and pipelines.
Councilmember Sutorius believed the report and plan were excel-
lent. He shared the concerns raised by the questions posed. At
budget time Council would be dealing with what he anticipated
would be a significant increase in a Water Main Replacement
Program for the City's water system. Council would probably cut,
at least in half, the City's 200 -year cycle of replacement of
water mains. To cut it to 100 years only made a dent in a crucial
infrastructure subject area. It seemed to him in future years,
Council would have to look at funding further reductions in the
cycle. He supposed the true cycle has about a 40 -year 11 fe rather
than a 100 -year cycle.
Corms lmember Sutori as moved, seconded by Levy, .to
adept the staff recommendation to approve the City of Palo Alto
Water Utility Plan.
Councilmember Levy found the plan to be perfectly acceptable.
Steff's estimates of the future use of water were probably pessi -
mistic. He did not believe that much water would be used. The
City seemed to be well covered as long as the Hetch-Hetchy system
operated satisfactorily. He urged _staff to take a proprietary
interest in the Hetch-Hetchy almost as though it were Palo Alto's,
rather than San Francisco's. He was particularly concerned about
what woulde happen in an earthquake. He: urged staff to ensure
every step was taken, to protect. tine portion of the Hetch-Hetchy
system . which ran across the Hayward Fault and aroung the San
-Andreas Fault. The City needed to have a clear fallback position
if access to the Hetch-Hetchy was temporarily denied.
6 8 9 7-
2/18/86
Counc i l member Menzel concurred with Counc i lmenrber Levy and hoped
the projections were wrong with respect to water usage. She
appreciated the strong emphasis on conservation and good mainte-
nance of the infrastructure system. The report was excellent in
that regard.
MOTION PASSED u anieously, Bechtel absent.
Mayor Cobb noted it was Steve Hayashi's last City Council meeting.
He thanked Steve for a job well done for the City and wished him
well in the future.
ITEM #9 -At REQUEST FOR CITY MANAGER TO REPORT ON IMPACTS OF THE
STORMS
City Manager Bill Zaner said the Emergency Operations Center (EOC)
operated twice in the past few days. The EOC was not opened
unless there was some need for coordination between departments or
special services required in the City. The EOC was opened on
Friday, February 14, 1986, from about 4:00 p.ni. to 6:30 p.m. for
the purpose of coordinating field activities. At that time, the
volunteer Amateur Radio Corps was activated to run a creek watch.
They manned the various creeks at the bridges on Louis and Greer
K oads and occasionally some were in Barron Park. They relieved
the police officers who were then free to go about their duties
and provided the City with direct communications from the loca-
tions, The EOC was shut down about 6:30 p.m. once it was deter
mined no real problem from a high tide was anticipated to cause
flooding. On February 17, 1986, the storm became violent in the
late evening, and the EOC was again opened at 4:00 p.m. to about
10:30 p.m. The Amateur Radio Operators again provided communica-
tions from the creeks, many of which ran very high. Matadero
Creek was, at one time, up to the bottom of the bridge at Greer
Road about one and one-half to two feet from the top of the levee,
but did not go over High tide on February 17 occurred a little
after 10:00 p.m. There was a small problem at Matadero Creek and
some problem at San Francisquito Creek, but neither overflowed.
There was some spot flooding in the City and full crews from the
Public Works Department were on duty with an emergency crew and
standby.. crew. The City experienced _some power outages on
February 14 and lost two feeder likes; and over the weekend, the
City lost 17 services, all of which were restored. The City could
expect cadre outages as the wind increased. Over the weekend the
City had'»a total of nine Apeople working each of which averaged
about 12 hours, There were approximately 70 calls from citizens
with regard to trees most of which were for broken limbs. On
February 17, 1986, Public Works al one ' recei ved about 165 calls,
and on Friday, February 14, about 50 calls, all of which were
answered at the EOC station. The Telephone Tree Alert Program in
Barron Park was activated. City crews delivered sand bags to the
area and also opened the Municipal. Service Center (MSC) so persons
who wanted to get sand bags were able to do so. The City had
about 2,000 sand bays on hand. Tnat evening, the City watched for
high tide which was expected about 10:30 p.m. When it rained
heavily in the hills, Louis and Greer Roads pose quickly. The
creeks then began to drain. The few power outages that evening
were not serious. A Public .Works crew was on duty at that time
and the rest of the crews were in reserve. A few weeks ago,
Council authorized an _infiltration study at the Sewage Plant
because staff reported a lot of storm water was being pumped -and
infiltrating into the pipes in the sanitary sewer during storms.
0n an average day, the el -ant treated about 28 million gallons.
That afternoon when the Utility people briefed him, the City was
pumping at the rate of 55 million gallons per day. All of the
excess was storm water which ran through the ground into the pipes
being carried down to the sewage plant. The excess storm water.
Wa.s not damaging to the operation and had the beneficial effect of
diluting the sewage, but hydraulically pumped twice as much water
and it was very expensive. The Infiltration Study should help.
6 8 9 8
2/18/86
If the figure could be brought down so thu City was not pumping
all the rain water, a lot of money would be saved during storm
situations._ The treatment plant was working properly and there
were no power failures. Emergency power was ready should the
power fail at the plant.
Councilmember Patitucci asked how an improved warning system in
Barron Park brought before the Council by the neighborhood would
help.
Mr. Laner said the automatic system, which was the subject of dis-
cussion a few weeks ago, might serve to give some people advanced
notice the creek was actually rising. It was not a surprise when
Barron Creek filled. The Amateur Radio Operators assigned to the
creek, knew early on what kind of volume there was. He could not
say whether there would be any time advantage gained by use of an
automated system.
Mayor Cobb spoke to one of the Amateur Radio Operators on February
17, who was there for a long time quietly doing his job. It was
nice to see citizens come forward to help without any recognition
for what they did. He also received a call from Barron Park resi-
dents who were ecstatic the City got the material to them and the
process started early.
ADJOURNMENT
Council adjourned to a Closed Session re Litigation at 9:15 p.m.
FINAL ADJOURNMENT
Final adjournment at 9:20 p.m.
ATTEST:
APPROVED:
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2/18/86