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1979-01-15 City Council Summary Minutes
January 15, 1979 Regular Meeting ITEM PAGE Minutes of December 11, 1979 4 3 1 Oral Communications 4 3 1 Kirke Comstock 595 Tennyson Avenue Robert Moss, 4010 Orm+e Janes Bechtold, 4181 "verdosa Visual Arts Jury Applicants 4 3 2 Consent Calendar = Referral Preliminary C1P - Referral to Finance and Public Works Committee 4 3 2 Consent Calendar - Action Bol Park Expansion ---Phase i1 --Approval of Final Plans and Award of 4 3 2 Construction Contract Weed Abatement Program 4 3 2 Tree Removal --1978-79 4 s 3 3370 West 8ayshore Frontage Road --Rezoning From L -M to P -C: Carl 4 3 3 Holvick and Company 821-827 Hamilton Avenue --Miscellaneous Division of Land: Application 4 3 3 of George A. Booth 111 Resolutions of Appreciation for Human Relations Commissioners Mary 4 3 3 Cottrell and Cole Richmond, Jr. Public Hearing: ABAG/MTC Santa Clara Valley Corridor Evaluation: 4 3 4 Draft Summary Report Recess to Executive Session 4 4 3 Applications for Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity 4 4 3 Public Hearing: Mid -Peninsula Cab Company, Inc.. Public Hearing: InterTrans Corporation South Maybell Avenue and Donald Drive: Tentative Subdivision Map 4 5 1 Application of Frank Vogl 520 Maybell Avenue: Change of District from R-2 to RM-2 4 5 1 Application of Grant and Bridges Grant Application --California Energy Commission 4 5 3 Visual Arts Jury Applications 4 5 3 Oral Communications 4 5 4 Adjournment 4 5 4 4 3 Q 1/15/79 January 15,, 1979 Regular Meeting The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this day at 7:30 p.rn. in the downstairs lunchroom on Level A. A power failure led to meeting on Level A, with emergency lighting. At the time of the resumption of power, at 8:10 p.m., Council reconvened ir.- the Council Chambers, Vice Mayor Henderson presided. PRESENT: Brenner, Clay, Eyerly, Fazzino, Fletcher, Henderson, Sher, Witherspoon ABSENT: Carey MINUTES OF OECEMBEf i S? 179 Councilmember Brenner referred to page 374, 2nd paragraph, and asked that the 4th sentence*read'instead: "Neither Esther Clark Park nor Eleanor Park had -been scrutinized from the standpoint of population need." She asked that the following be inserted after that sentence: "She would not wish to sell any part of Greer Park." Vice Mayor Henderson' asked that on page 361, 4th paragraph, 4th line read instead: - "' ...yet rewarding in that the Committee learned many particulars about the -budget and'the City's operation." °He asked that a sentence, to be:the Sth'sentence in the paragraph, be inserted to read: "He thanked the -other Committee members, Fred Eyerly, Gary Fazzino and Ellen Fletcher for their dedication and contributions." MOTION: Counciirr ber•Witherspoon raved, seconded by •Fazzino, that the minutes of December 11., 1979, be approved as corrected. The ration passed on a unanimous voice vote, Mayor Carey absent. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Kirke Comstock, 595 Tennyson Avenue, spoke of a class offered at Stanforrd: Unitersi ty cal led . SWOPSI (Stanford Werkshap of Political Science Issues) 1'92. Me -it troduced class gibers, wholvere attending Council that evening to see local goverment in action. Vice Mayor Henderson amplified that Kirke Comstock was Mayor of the City for three years and had sat on the City Council for a number of years. 2. Robert Moss, 4010 Orme, said tat the Palo Alto School Board had met recently regarding budget cuts; Superintendent Walker. had said, and the board had; tautly agreed,. Mr. Maass said, that the board should sell some of its capital assets, perhaps placing 5 sites on the market t . tyrorder to sell two of them.- Mr. MOSS said that the Council woui d` be asked what the :City would went to do with the 5 sites. Mr. Moss suggested that Council ,agedize the problem of what it should do when offered the school sites. 3. James 8echted, : 4181 Verdosa, said he owned the property in back of the Barron Square project: One of the buildings of that project was only 161 feet from his lot line, instead of the 24 feet shown on the original.plan okayed by Council. Mr. Bechtold said he had talked with the general contractor on the site, The contractor had said that his plan shed the foundation to be 16 feet from the lot 11re. Mr. Bachtold.said he did not understand such a large discrepancy between the plan approved ty Council and the plan as executed by 431 1/15/79 the general contractor. The plan did show that the foundation was 16 feet from the lot line, and the plan had been signed by the Planning Department. Mr. Bechtold said he understood that this sort of thing had happened before. Actual construction had not yet started. Vice Mayor Henderson said that the Director of Planning was present and he would be getting in touch with Mr. Bechtold. VISUAL ARTS JURY APPLICANTS Vice Mayor Henderson said appointments for the Visual Arts Jury were to be made on January 29. Council had received a list of candidates just that evening; members of the present jury and 7 other applicants were listed. Council would decide on whether to hold interviews before adjournment that evening. Vice Mayor Henderson announced that there would be a brief executive session on a personnel matter sometime during the evening. CONSENT CALENDAR Corrected see page 482. 1 Vice Mayor Henderson removed item 5, con;erninq Planning Commission denial of the application of Grant and Bridges for change of district at 520 ,Maybel l from the Consent Calendar. PRELIMINARY CIP - REFERRAL TO TTEE Vice Mayor Henderson noted that a Capital Improvements Program (CIP) hearing was to be held on the preliminary CIP on January 29; he thought the preliminary CIP should be referred to the Finance and Public Works Committee. MOTION: Councilmember Fletcher moved, seconded by Fazzino. that the preliminary CIP be referred to the Finance and Public Works. Committee. The motion passed on a unanimous voice vote, Mayor Carey absent. The following items remained on the Consent Calendar: Action Items SOL PARK EXPANSION —PHASE II APii °. i nrAt T (CMR:115:9) Staff recommends that Council authorize the Mayor to execute a construction contract with Valley Crest Landscape, Incorporated, in the amount of $89,400, for Sol Park Expansion --Phase II. AGREEMENT--BOL PARK EXPANSION —PHASE II Valley Crest Landscape, Incorporated WEED ABATEMENT PROGRAM (CMR:100:9) Staff recommends that Council determine there will be no adverse environ- mental impact from this action, end adopt the attached resolution declaring weeds to be a nuisance and setting a Public Hearing for February 12. RESOLUTION 5628 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE. CECIL OF THE -CITY OF PALO ALTO DECLARING WEEDS TO SE A P4U SANCE AND SETTING A HEARING." 432 1/15/79 TREE REMOVAL --1978-1979 (CMR:114:9) Staff recommends that Council award the tree removal contract in the amount of $6,683, to the ',.P.McClenandn Company. - AGREEMENT --TREE REMOVAL SERVICES S.P.McClenahan Company 3310 WEST BAYSHORE FRONTAGE ROAD --REZONING FROM The Planning Commission unanimously recommends approval=of the application of Carl Holvick & Company for a rezoning of property. located at 3370 W. 8ayshore Frontage Road from L -M to P -C for construction of a mini -warehouse. ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING SECTION 18.08,040 OF THE PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE (THE ZONING MAP) TO CHANGE THE CLASSIFICATION OF PROPERTY K10W4 AS 3370 WEST BAYSHORE ROAD FROM L -M TO P -C (1st Reading) 821-827 HAMILTON AVENUE-- InaratinrriTrraMMLAND APPLICATOR OF GEORGE X=T7111 ?ire Planning Commission unanimously recommends approval of the appeal of George A. Booth III from the decision of the Director of Planning to deny a miscellaneous division of land for property located at 821-827 Hamilton Avenue. RESOLUTION 5629 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE NUmGtL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING MISCEIIA.NEOUS DIVISION OF LAND AT 821-827 HAMiiL1CH AVENUE AND GRANTING EXCEPTIONS WITH CONDITIONS." MOTION: Coonciimeir,her Fletcher we ed, seconded by Fazzino, that Council approve the Consent Calendar. The motion passed on a unanimous voice vote, Mayor Carey absent. RESOLUTIONS OF APPRECIATION rot RELATTNgs commIG?iERs CMR:101:9) Vice Mayor Henderson read detailed reports on the contributions made by Mary Cottrell and Cole Richmond, Jr., retiring members of the Human Relations Commission. Those January 15, 1979 reports list the contributions made by the foregoing retirees, and are on file at the City Clerk's office: MOTION: Councilmember FazzIn3 introduced the following resolution and, seconded by Witherspoon. moved that Council approve i't. The action passed on a unanimous voice vote, MayorCarey absent. Vice Mayor Henderson presented the retirees with copies of the following resolutions: RESOLUTION 5630 entitled "RESOLUTIOI OF THE COUNCIL OFTHE CITY Of PALO ALTO CU$MENDING . MARY COTTRELL FOR OUTSTANDING AND CONSCIENTIOUS SERVICE AS A MEMBER OF THE HOMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION." 433 1/_15/79 MOTION: Councilmember Fazzino, seconded by Sher, introduced the following resolution, and moved that Council approve it. The motion passed on a unanimous vote, Mayor Carey absent. RESOLUTION 5631 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO COMMENDING COLE RICHMOND, JR., FOR OUT- STANDING AND CONSCIENTIOUS SERVICE AS A MEMBER OF THE HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION." Mr. Richmond and Ms. Cottrell each expressed appreciation. PUBLIC HEARING: LARA VALLEY titan/01v bun-. rmtrrlztmrrewrmr Vice Mayor Henderson announced that Rod Diridon, president of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors was present that evening to outline the plan. Rod Diridon said that Betsy Bechtel, executive director for Supervisor Geraldine Steinberg, was present to answer questions for Ms. Steinberg, North County supervisor. Mr. Diridon said that the county emerged as a transportation agency in 1972. He reviewed some of the history that brought it into being, namely, the establishment of a quarter of a cent sales tax that went to the state, thus creating a transportation agency. A Board of Transportation had been created in mid -1973. Pe acknowledged the work of Jack Beckett, Bill Royer, Sig Sanchez, Don Dillon, and Geraldine Steinberg in connection with Phase I of the corridor study, published in 1974. The rapid transit system was to serve about 140 miles. Only a few corridors were found to be suitable for such a project. To find which corridor would be most ir;portart, DeLeuw, Cather, consultant;, were hired to find kinds of appropriate systems, using buses and the mode defined by the federal government as light -rail systems. In February, 1975, a summery was published and a transportation tax was passed for funding the system, but it was learned that, to qualify for funding, all of the proposed corridors had to be evaluated, and so the Joint Corridor Study was begun. That study cost about $1 million and took about two and one-half years. It was conducted by Metropolitan Transit Commission {MTC), the control commission for funding, and Association of Bay Area Governments (PUG). ABAG is a land use planning agency, and is controlled by local ' cities. The Joint Policy Committee (JPC) was made up of members of ABAG, city council members, and County supervisors. Four members of K C controlled the study, and were a guidance committee. Mr. Diridon said he sat on the committee also, but without a vote, and he gave direct county input. Two local designees were Jim Self, of MTC, and Jim Jackson, of -Cupertino, representing Santa Clara County cities on the ABAG board. That JPC would ultimately select alternatives for Santa Clara County, to be adopted by MTC/ABAG. JPC and MIS: made the selection of the master plan -into which county needs had to fit. Consensus was needed. Mr. Diridon stressed the word, consensus. The project was now on its final cycle. The county's fifteen cities, the county itself, had to agree on some land of plan. Without agreement the 80 percent federal funding would not be forthcoming for the light rai1. The state was to fund the highway portion of the corridor, Charles Forrester, Planning Director for ABAG, would present the land use alternatives that had been selected. Charles Forrester, Planning Director for ABAG, outlined the tentative approval process for the plan. The Board of Supervisors had heard the presentation, each or the 15 cities was also to hear it. Councils of. those cities were being asked to make a formal response, by way of resolution or equivalent, identifying those changes in the plan each city thought most appropriate. He asked that cities send in their cents to the Joint Policy Cora i ttee by the mf ddl a of February. TAR County Transportation Commission would be meetinn at the end of February and it would be best for them to have the cities' comments Oy then. The 434 1/15/79 Board of Supervisors met the first week in March to act on the Joint Policy.Committee's recommendations. Forthcoming suggestions could get into the regional transportaticn planning process, and ABAG's comprehensive plan process in a timely manner. His portion of.land use work with ABAG had tried to identify issues and possible resolutions; one -major concern had been the imbalance between jobs located in the north, with housing located in the south part of the county. They considered any impediments to the continuing economic viability of the county; one question was what would happen if current trends continued, another question was what advantages would evolve from "a reduced commute," i:e., more housing where jobs were located. With current trends continuing all available land in the county would be used by the year 1990, and only about 570,000 housing units could be developed. Job growth would consequently be limited because of a shortage in housing and too much time would be needed to commute in resultant traffic congestion. A commitment might be -obtained from adjacent counties for land for additional housing; land new primarily in South County could be -opened for housing development. The cheapest and Most effective means of -reducing traffic congestion that would result for the foregoing plans aaas to build to -higher densities within existing service areas; he acknowledged that politically it was difficult to do that.. If present developed urban areas were used for higher density housing about 30,000 acres could be left undeveloped or for -further housing: Water and Sewer capacities.were not a problems; where and when they would be built depended on development patterns -- money for anticipated increases was available. Mr. Forrester said that the county could save from $40 million to $60 million in sewer pipe alone if it were to build within present service areas. Three facts of life were that North County cities were largely built up. There were possibilities for modest changes; San Jose would become the lamest city in the region in the nett 7-10 years, consequently it would play a larger rule as a regional center. Land use responsibilities lay with local government, not ABAG. They should complement one another and transportation development- He outlined some land use recommendations: Encourage new job formation and commercial development in downtown San Jose; (he projected slides showing the subject area); Encourage manufacturing jobs, depending on highway and rail, to locate in northern San Jose and Milpitas; job creation in southern San Jose that could be served by existing highway and proposed transit; encourage higher density housing in north and central county cities --modest density raises from 10 units per acre to perhaps 16 Units per acre, that is, density increased to about that scale; and, finally, support of industrial and residential policies of Gilroy, Morgan Hill, and the county and south county areas, with continued maintenance of Coyote Hill area as an agricultural preserve. After 1990 portions of that area might be an option for expansion. He turned the discussion to Norco Steinman, Transportation Planner: Norm Ste.lman, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, said that the amount of money to be available for the development of -transportation from now to 1990 was one important constraint in working out plans; the transportation recommendation "...almost directly supports the case -by - case method of the land use recommendation." Whatever project was selected should have a system -wide or county -wide impact for- the relatively few dollars available. The most immmpertant factor was that consensus was needed to get most of the project funded. There was intense competition for funding among regions within the state. On the highway portion, recommendations were arranged in order of priority with same of the, projects to be funded from inner state, somefrtmr the primary system, and some from federFal urban aid. The first priority was for -the preservation of rights-of-wav for the West Valley Transportation corridor project, to be built for both highway and transit purposes. With revenues available it was estimated that about 20 percent of land not currently owned would be acquired by 1990. The second recommendation -provided -for preferential 435 1/15/79 1 ',//5/7, treatment of buses and carpools on the county's freeways and expressways so that they could get on the freeway faster. He spoke of a plan to widen the freeway through the Alum Rack inter -change; he detailed proposed improvements in traffic lanes on Highway 101. He spoke of a project to widen Interstate 280, from 6 to 8 lanes, from Route 17 to Magdalena Road, making all of 280 8 lanes. Access in downtown San Jose would be improved, along with that for south county. He said it was planned to convert Route 237 to a full freeway and to widen Route 17 to Route 101 from Fremont. Operational improvements to Route 85 in Cupertino were planned, with further analysis needed before actual work. Safety and operational improvements were planned for Route 152 and Pacheco Pass highway. The cost of the entire set of recommendations would reach $135e$145 million. To achieve that by 1990 an increase of 2t in the 9as tax would have to be enacted. The three components of the transit recommendation were 1) expand the bus fleet to 750 buses by 1990, thus tripling the size of the current fleet and making express fleets to key locations possible, and affording regional connections; 2) a reaffirmation of existing county policy and MTC policy to upgrade Southern Pacific service with acquisition of some new equipment; 3) development of a light -rail line between San Jose and the Edenvale area of south San Jose. Five sets of conditions applied to San Jose, to make —Funding as feasible as possible. Mr. Steiman turned the microphone over to jack Ybar,a who would comment on citizen participation. Mr. Marra said the plan would be presented to a number of City Councils that week. He gave the schedule for the balance of the month. Mr. Diridon said a maximum effort had been made to bring the public into the process. He emphasized that the plan had compromise solutions, yet they balanced all the other requirements of the many cities in the county. Mr. Diridon addressed the question of what was meant by "increased density." He said they meant 10 percent increase on land left available to develop, city by city, with more substantial increases in places such as downtown San Jose, where some high-rise, condominium, and apartment complexes were contemplated, up to 10- and 12 -storeys. Land use was in the control of the city. He gave some projections of possible densities on a transparency shown on the wall screen, saying that in the corridor near Edenvale, and along the Southern Pacific right-of-way such increased densities were possible. Cities would approve such developments insofar as they were consistent with their land use plans. He said the city feedback on the plan now before this council would come before the Santa Clara County Transportation Commission on February 28. The Board of Supervisors would review the matter March 5, a night meeting to be televised on Channel 54, for which a Tele-phone-in process would be in effect. Joint Policy Committee (JPC) would consider the plan March 17, in the afternoon, in the Board chambers. He noted that Ellen Fletcher represented Palo Alto in this matter. Vice Mayor Henderson turned the matter over to Council fpr questions. Counci lmember Fazzino asked if the 10 percent increase factor had been used to develop the numbers used in the report. Mr. Diridon said he did not think so —projections in various areas had been made according to what was requ i red to handle the housing needed by industry. Santa Clara was "...in a condition of runaway expansion right now, in terms of our industry. We added 43,500 jobs last year...within Santa Clara County boundaries...within the last three years we've added over 100,000 jobs --20 percent of our total job base." Mr. Diridon said 436 1/15/79 4/ .3 only 30,000 housing units had been added in 3 years. It was a moral responsibility to add more housing, and to accommodate it within the incorporated areas, and not to expand to the hills; the county had made the same decision Palo Alto had, not to expand into the hills. Councilmember Fazzino said that of course consensus would have to include industry; what steps were being taken for outreach to industry and business? He asked also what the trend was in locating new business and industry, apart from encouraging them to locate ire north San Jose and the Milpitas area. Mr. Diridon replied that ABAG/MTC was working with the Santa Clara County Manufacturing Group quite closely. Peter Giles, president of that group, was present that evening. Mr. Giles would be presenting comments to the Chambers of Coerce. Those groups had been supportive, in view of the need to bring employees. i ntn- work, and return them to their homes. Mr. Diridon said that he perceived a gradual southerly movement of business. Chuck Forrester said employment growth was taking Place in north San Jose and also Cdenvale, though Interest tzi.estabiisbing there was not so great as it would be to locate in Palo Alto,which was thought to be a very desirable address, as well as location.; to a lesser degree Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara were as well. If local governments gave a clear decision+, that is, policv, toward industry', then industry could wake plans 5 and 10 years in advance. Counci lmember Fazzino asked about planning light` rai 1 for such a small corridor as that leading to Edenvale. Norm Steim n, Metropolitan Transit Commission, said a study had been made and several conclusions drawn, leading Mft to recommend permitted increases in density so that use of light rail:would be involved. Another conclusion had been that downtown San Jose would- be developed as a major activity center, perhaps not to the extent -of San Francisco, but still centralized so that it cou'rd be served by transit, Effective transfer between Southern Pacific and light rail'had been recommended for the distance from San Jose north to San Francisco. Cowntown San Jose was projected to have about 35,0 jobs; the entire county was projected to have about 120,000 jobs. Councilmember Fazzino said he could not imagine the ensuing traffic impact if the proposed plan was fully impleverted;when would full implementation be feasible, as opposed to a tradeoff transit program? He said he . assume) highway expansion wOulthe.deoendent upon -the transit program's success. Mr. Steiman' said' the- hionwvay program assumed there would be an increase in transit rides, with about 25 percent of people riding transit in a peak period. The biggest constraint -on tte highway program was the revenue required for implementation= ---1 2t gas tax would have to be enacted either statewide or by local option. Mr. Diridon emphasized that- higl ray.m nef could' not' be used for mass transportation. Nor could mass transit aney be used for highways, t refore a mass transit program could not be -traded -off for ht hways, or vice versa, though it could be done with a federal highway. The transit plan could be funded at the present time, out of currently —identified resources. "We wade the local reserves set aside in the' bank to match -on -the 80-20 match, with the 80 coming from the Federal Mass TransitAdministration Section 3 money." Counci l er Faizina said that he had ben: concerned about the impact of traffic when highways were expanded to -8 lanes. ' He had assumed that 437 1/15/79 y 37 VA5/79 the transit recommendation would offset the increased highway traffic. He wondered how it could be known when expansion did not lead to "...a miserable traffic situation 10-15 years down the road." Mr. Diridon replied that he did think "...we're going to have a miserable traffic situation, and that's the only way to put it...in 1975 we had about 4 million trips a day in all of our transportation network --99 percent were cars on roads --most of those were commute hours on roads." He thought there would be 7 million trips per day by 1990, a 75 percent increase with the information from the state that there was no more highway money. About 30 percent of those trips could be on tress transportation. "We hope to do a little bit of everything we can do to minimize the negative effect of the additional trip requi rernenta. " Councilmember Witherspoon said she assumed the 80 percent from the federal cost -sharing would be for capital expenses.- How would ongoing costs be handled for the 750 buses and the upgrading of the Southern Pacific service? Mr. Diridon replied that the operating costs were also "in budget." He hoped "...we are nearing 30 percent of the operating costs. , . ." The remaining 50 percent would be covered by the one-half cent sales tax and local tax and IBA money coming from the state, and the other 50 percent coming from the Section 5 money of the urban Mass Transit Administration, Per -person sharing costs were much more attractive on the rail system than for buses. Councilmember Sher noted that Mr. Diridon had deleted Dial -a -Ride from his brief history of the transit system, which had been a difficult time for all. Councilmember Sher noted that Paio Alto had a position regarding jobs in its locality, but perhaps that position was not the same as the towns of Santa Clara and Sunnyvale --with all towns giving their positions on jobs, for example, to the JPC, what would happen to the desi ed consensus? ,"fir. Diridon replied that the Transportation Commission was hitting its stride, ".,.and there appears to be willingness to work through that natural mechanism for creating consensus. We're very hopeful that the sequencing that has been established, which sees all of the cities taking their stands before that Transportation Commission meting, will allow us to develop a consensus at the Commission and the' board level before going to JPC.' He said that JPC and the federal government and MTC had to be persuaded that consensus did obtain, for tem to accept the ABAG/MTC transportation proposal. Councilmember Sher noted the report's references to creating new jobs in downtown San Jose and the like --were there any recommendations on trying to limit jobs, in view of the jobs/housing imbalance, throughout the county? Mr. D1 r 1 ck n said that a recommendation to discourage creation of jobs had not been made because the question, politicallyy -posed more problems than it solved; also, local councils had only limited effect on jobs, assuming any land was available for additional industry. Mr. Forrester added that the north corridorcities, except for Palo Alto, were almost a I 1 built out. Sunnyvale only had several hundred acres left; Santa Clara is down to 500 acres, and }hose had all -been optioned. Santa Clara was cooperating in not building industry to as high 4 density as it once might have. Though there csu1 d be talk about stopping growth of industry, most of the communities competed among themselves "very vigorously" to raise their tax bases; there was a -fixed tax rate state , 438 1/15/79 and money was needed to provide greater servicea--that dynamic had been very powerful in the last 30-40 years. An attempt could be made to meter the rampant growth, however, so it could take place in a more manageable way. Logic would mean there would be tax -base shifts and tax -sharing, which the legislature would have to address. The Transporta- tion Commission was now tal ki ng'about what it knew' would occur, and use of limited housing lone land that was left. Counci lrrember Sher pointed out that obliquely. a' recommendation about yobs was being made when they recommended jobs shoed` be 'in south county. He asked if a two-thirds vote would be required if a 2f gas tax raise were submitted to voters locally, rather than at a state level. He thought perhaps a two-thirds majority would be required, and he thought it optimistic to assume it would pass, though he -thought a two-thirds vote might be attained in the state legislature. Mr. Diridon said that a two-thirds vote by the legislature was rumored to be in the mill, ttiat wool d leave it -up to -local governments to impose the 2t tax. That had been done before ---that is,' leaving it to Boards of Supervisors of counties. Mr. Diridon said "...that would be a mishmash throughout the state." Counci lmember Sher said there had been, a_ lot of resistance in north county to light rail. He said he thought that -if light rail were built inequities in the bus service would he ironed out. For that reason Palo Alto's support might be conditional upon some reallocation of buses; Palo Alto had had to give up its bus service when a transportation agency had been adopted for the county. Would Palo Alto get more buses? Mr. Diridon said the system could not be built all at once, and they were trying to be ";...reasonably equitable." If thesystem could be started ".,..then we can 'grow' it.' They were now trying to establish the starter element. It was hoped that during the start --up process the SP railroad would beccir.:a more viable; they were now in the process of negotiating with SP to make that cover :bout in 1979. About 300 buses in are express fleet would serve the north corridor, principally, providing a shuttle service back and forth between bedroom communities, and consequently Palo Alto could get much more than was its expectable share. Counci 1 ember Eyerly said he was interested in how the MTC budget was working toward providing buses; how many buses -did -Palo -Alto have presently and could it expect to have as the system grew. Mr. Diridon said the county now had about 230 reliable buses, on the road; there would be 370 buses at the end of the year. About 30-40 percent of the buses would be devoted to express service; there would be some expansion of conventional service. MTC'expected gasoline prices, and tai, to rise, and so they wanted to be ready' withbus service. Mr. Stoic an said most of the buses beyond the 516 progrem would be put into express operation, about 240 in number. That would improve access tc the Southern Pacific and to and fro the Fremont BART station. He es phas i zed that express bus service woAd be increased throughout Santa Clara County serving about' 18-20 residential areas connecting to 8.10 employment centers; mainly in the northern part of- the' county. Shuttle service to various companies in emp1c' ent complexes would-be provided, _ ma aki ng the service competitive with private autoMobi Yes.. Freeway and expressway attainable speeds would det.er+eti ' tom` tine spent in transit. He would imagine thattravel conditions in 1990,: therms would be about the same as ter are at present, meaning that such a circumstance would cut the travel time it would take if there were' no' publ f c transit, in halfti 439 1/15/79 V/617 Councilmember Brenner said she thought some of the success of the prograT depended on having Southern Pacific foremass transit. SP wag a difficult means of travel, especially on weekends. She thought the way to cut down on highway traffic was to build fewer highways. Was there going to be some miracle for SP so that it could actually become the spine of the system? If not, what would happen to the system? Corrected see page 482Mr. Oiridon said that they had been told by SP that SP would be in business for at least ten more years. A budget, tentatively identified by the PENTAC study, had about $57 million for upgrading -SP between San Jose and San Francisco and making it 1it:e_aregular cc mute' service. He said it would be comparable to the GO (Government of Ontario) train, which had fine equipment and schedules. "We're intending to force feed SP so that they're going to have to take passengers, and we've stabilized the ridership during the last few months'aed we hope -that that stabiliza- tion will show an increase next month and that's a beginning and then from then on it's going to get better." Councilriember Brenner said that though SP would be around for ten more years most of the system would not be built for ten years. She foresaw that the whole system might be in place and then the center of it might collapse. Mr. Giridon said that if SP were carrying more the center would not collapse. If the ridership beoan to increase, PUC and ICC would see that SP was carrying people. "I absolutely believe it." Counc i lnember Fletcher announced that Mr. Bi ridan had been appointed to replace Jack Beckett on MTC. She thought Palo Alto would be very well represented on MTC. She asked how many units per acre were permitted in Palo Alto, and how did that permitted density compare with the density goals in the report. George Zimmerman, Transportation Department, said he would have to inquire further; he would guess the density was about 6-8 dwelling units per acre. That varied by area. Counci lrr ber Fletcher asked if Palo Alto's approval of the report implied a rise in permitted densities. Mr. Forrester said that staff had thought that after cities submit their approved items, it would be well for each city to identify a target toward a tolerable density, then update their general plans through their usual process. Presented as "a reduced commute" alternative density had been shown to be a successful way of dealing with traffic congestion. If Palo Alto's present density was about 10 units per acre: with "a reduced cotepoint of view, the proposed density would be about.l5 units per acre. He agreed with Counci !member Fletcher that ",..it would be a very sticky point," to achieve that commitment. He said that by 1990, under that plan, Palo Alto would have density of -8.8 per acre, rather than B. Counci tmember Fletcher said that the 2 percent gas tax was tied to the gallon and not the dollar; she thought it might be better to tie the gas tax to the dollar, in order to keep up with inflation, Mr. Steiman said the existing policy of MTC was to support an increase of the tax by about 2t; MTC also tried to support legislation favoring indexing the gas tax to the cost of gasoline but the legislature had not yet considered that. 440 1/15/79 Councilmember Fletcher said the League of California -Cities had adopted that as its policy, and WAS lobbying for'it at the -legislature and it might come about. She asked about the recommendation to maintain Route 85 corridor as a first priority: was that by popular demand, or based on projected statistics? Mr. Steiman said it was thought that if the corridor was not preserved then the right-of-way would be lost, and the option to develop it into a transportation facility would be lost. If development -Seemed imminent they wanted aid from federal aid urban. funds for the'acquisttion of those properties. About 20-25 percent of the land not'yet acquired should be acquired by 1990: Councilmember Fletcher asked if there was a plan in mind so -that when express buses got on the 'freeways and expressi ' they, would move faster than cars. She knew that there was a- reco ndailonafor a Weaving lane and also access -to -freeway lanes. The rush hour now lasted several hours. Mr. Steiman said that the matter had been discussed with CalTrans; the possibility of access ramps giving preferential treatment for buses and carpools to metered freeways was being worked on. He thought metered freeways would help solve the problem, for portions of the highway would be metered at .30-35 miles per hour. The safety factors of buses and carpools weaving onto a new, high -occupancy vehicle'lane, then weaving back to exit the freeway was a grave concern. Councilmember Clay asked if proposed high density housing would justify the light rail system, or if the light rail system would justify the housing. Mr. Diridon said that perhaps express bus lines would come first; there was more ridership than could be carried onlbuses; itwould be a growing process with some light rail anticipated about 1983, thet, with light rail catalyzing natural density, more housing to be.botlf.in what had become a prime locations- He thought transportation would 0e —the catalyst for the housing Councilmember Clay asked about the degree of willingness among cities to look at and work toward righting some of the ,jobsfhousing tmbalarzce. Mr. Diridon said he perceived a-grrwing:awareness' of the -crisis problem now before all communities, ties, Santa Clara County* manuittturfng group and the Santa Clara County Industry, Housing, Medicine task force were deeply involved in the moral concern about:'expandi o' industry without concomitantly expanding housing. 'Santa Ciafa, b ch'aoas a principal culprit, was becoming willing -to zone malbvaroastyrobsolete uses, such as old schoOlyards, for condominium lsoutiag:=RRI t_10 schools would have been closed therein -two years. It_oar kn -that Los Altos Hills and Monte Sereno would:not be cooperative; Ven`tf they doubled their housing stock though, it told be a drep.,1n-thelbucket:against the actual need. The problem would be solved in corridor cities, like San Jose. Mr. Forrester said he enders.tood that Sunnyvale had directed its staff to look at floor- area ratios, to prevent industrial- replexes fry expanding on the i r present s i tes , so as not to increase the density of workers. Some members of Nounta i n Y i ew' s council wereconsi deri ng the use of some industrial land for residential use, + +ugh the inverse problem was recognized. Meetings with Santa Clara and San Jose would be held to see how densities al ong. the' transi t-corri dor could be increased. 441 1/15/79 I 1/15/79 1 Vice Mayor Henderson said two major problems with express bus service were how to facilitate movement or and off the highway and how to get potential users from the bus line terminals to their jobs. Had cost of parking facilities and shuttle services been included? Mr. Steiman said costs for park -and -ride terminals had been developed in working with the county transit staff; figures had not been developed at the employment end of the express bus line. It had been thought that perhaps buses themselves could move to major employers or an arrangement could be made with major employers to provide the shuttle service.It was thought that about 65 percent of riders would drive to the express bus terminal, for park -and -ride. Counci lmember Brenner asked if it had been taken into account. that housing possibilities had been almost doubled in industrial/commercial zones. Housing now was allowed in every zone it Palo Alto. Mr. Forrester replied that they had considered that housing density would be permitted at the high end of the scale for whatever was available. They had also considered adding housing to commercial, and converting industrial land to residential; those figures had been used to test the alternative. Though the numbers worked in theory, the application was left to councils and staffs to work out. Those figures had been assumed in about 1975. Counci lmember Brenner said she was concerned that ABAG/AMT` had steered clear of saying that jobs could not be added unless housing was provided. 'r. Forrester said that if concern about addino industrial without adding housing was voiced, that could become a policyY-it was not a dead issue. Perhaps CouncilrneTber Brenner would want to add that concern, he said. Counci lmember Brenner said that the figures were now out of date ir; relation to Palo Alto. Mr. Forrester replied that the rcconrrtendations before Council were Wereosely.vague, so that they could be tailored to f"t_ cities' singular circa stances. It would have been thought eresumptueus to make specific recommendations, he said. Frank Koch, 2065 Junewood Avenue, and Vice President, Syntex Corporation, referred to the 1975 cooperative study conducted by Palo Alto and Menlo Corrected Park. He said he had recommended the study; it was called "the SAMTRANS see page 482. study." That study had shown that the greatest potential for improving transportation lay with the bus system. Since then the federal implementa- tion of cote buses had been "extremely effective"; expansion of other routes, however, including the "southern loop" that would serve Stanford Industrial Park still had not materialized, and the 4,000-5000 people such a service would serve had no public transportation available, The Saa,Trans study, he continued, had looked at "...some of the rail options, which had been included in the corridor study," and they had not appeared cost-effective, and also they lacked the expandability of a bus system. There had been 3 major problems with the Southern Pacific system: 1) the skip -stop system, that could perhaps be corrected with more trains; 2} cost of a monthly ticket, for example, from Sunnyvale to Palo Alto, was over $200; 3) transportation was needed to and from the station. 3r. Koch said he thought the Transit District had a reserve fund of about $21 million at present. The rational fiscal concept, he thought, was to put that money into an expanded bus system -because of inflation any tax -generated funds should be employed immediately. He thought that highway improvements, such as express lanes, could be worked out. 442 1/15/79 Vii5/7 Councilmember Fletcher asked if Mr. Koch knew about the express route from San Jose to a loop around industrial Park; it had begun that hourly run or. January 2, 1979. She would ask the Transit District to send him that information. Mary McLean, 415 Cambridge Avenue, of the League of Women Voters, said that the League supported MTC/ABAG's inquiries from a regional, rather than a city -by -city, point of view, on the development and expansion of a multi -modal public -mass transit system. She stressed the League's concern on air quality and imbalance in jobs/housing, She urged Council support. Joseph Carleton, 2350 Ross, said that he was dismayed at the recommenda- tion for additional highways, such as increasing Route 237 to freeway status, and the like, He thought "trarisportation,M not an enlarged highway system, was needed. He cited the new Dumbarton -Bridge as a case in point. Highways increased air pollution and forecasted increased cost of gasoline made highway expansion unrealistic. Highways created, rather than solved, problems. Integration of housing with jobs was needed, and not having to commute was the ideal solution --he hoped for more of that kind of thinking. Vice Mayor Henderson said that he thought it would-be the correct time to make specific recommendations by way of motion; if discussions were to be lengthy he suggested moving the matter to the end of the agenda so that other matters on which people were waiting to speak could be dealt with, Couricilme ber Sher pointed out that the staff report had said staff would prepare a recommended policy following the public hearing; Council could discuss further when it had that report. George Zimmerman, Senior Planner, Planning Department, said he thought staff could work with the material aired that evening -to help in develop- ment of recommendations_ Staff could return to Council with them in about two weeks. Counci1mefnb►er Fletcher said she had some specific recommendations regarding Corrected use of bicycles: 1) in developing highway access for buses there should see page be no less access for bicycles than was available before the planned 482. bus access; 2) make uniform throughout the county permission of bicycles on freeways, as were permitted in Palo Alto, and for which there was a good safety record; 3) include recommendations for permission to carry bicycles on public transportation, perhaps bicycle racks attached to the back of buses as well as provision for bikes on rai`! lines. Riders who were assured of their door-to-door-tr°ainspartatfon"would thus be attracted to public transit. Vice Mayor Henderson thanked the MIC/ABAG staff. Mr. Di r• i don emphasized the need for consensus and coaru tse; he agreed that increased number -of highways was root- desirable, but the proposed transit plan had to work for ail. He praised the cooperation of the Palo Alto staff. - RECESS TO EXECUTIVE SESSION Council recessed to executive session from 10:30 to 10:50 p.m. APPL I CAT I ONS FOR CERTIFICATE OF £ ny Inc. (CMR:113:9) 3:9) Vice Mayor Henderson said that the City was in receipt of two applications for certificates of public convenience and necessity to operate taxicab 443 1/15/79 V 513 15/71 1 1 1 businesses in the City of Palo Alto:, one from Mid -Peninsula Cab Company, Incorporated, and the other from InterTrans Corporation. He said that each application would receive a separate public hearing. City Council action on those applications would occur after both public hearings had been completed. The City Council may issue certificates to one, both, or neither, of the applicants. According to Section 4.42.050 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code, which establishes the necessary requirements for the issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity, the applicant had the burden of proving 1) that there is a public demand for additional services; 2) inadequacy of the existing service; 3) that the applicant has sufficient financial responsibility and experience to properly conduct such a business; and 4) that traffic conditions or hazards will not be appreciably increased or parking problems made worse. Vice Mayor Henderson said that the City Council was in receipt of a City staff report and information submitted by the applicants in suoport of their applications. The order of each public hearing was to be as follows: 1) City staff presentation; 2) presentation by applicant; and 3) public comments. He said that the City Councilm ers and staff could, at any time, ask questions of the applicants or of any other persons making statements in the public hearings. A motion granting a certificate of public convneinece and necessity would require a majority vote of the Councilmernbers present. Vice Mayor Henderson declared the public hearing open on the application of the Mid -Peninsula Cab Company, Incorporated. Councilrnember Fazzino asked what factors concerning the financial status of the Mid -Peninsula Cab Company had been considered. Mark Harris, City Treasurer, said he had looked at the company's balance sheet for two matters, retained earnings, or a tax position. In II case of Mid -Peninsula the tax position had been negative. The relative age of the assets was also a factor. Mid -Peninsula's equipment had been 80 -ago -percent depreciated, indicating that the stock was old. The long term picture "...is very questionable.' Councilmember Clay remarked that apropos of longeterm viability, Mid - peninsula Cab Company had been in business for 20 years, which, in his ooinion spoke to the matter of viability. He ascertained that Mid - Peninsula Cab Company had said that if two certificates were granted it would not run taxi service in Palo Alto. Oliver V. Nordby, 81 Fair Oaks Lane, Atherton, owner of Mid -Peninsula Cab Company, said he had -not given his personal financial statement. He gave a brief overview of his htstory as owner of the company since 1950, in Redwood City. He and his partner separated at the end of 9 years, with him retaining the company, and his ex -partner -buying another in. SoLth San Francisco. Mr. Nordby spoke of purchasing the present location for the cab company at 450 Howland Avenue. He noted that investments in the property had appreciated through the years. He said he bought the stock of Bel Mateo Enterprises for $300,000' i n September, 1972. He noted a purchase of land in 1974 costing $36,000 so that natural gas depot could be established, and on which the 55 cabs were run. Natur4i gas, he said, was obtainable in the United States, it burned smog -free, and it was inexpensive, He submitted photographs of the natural gas installation, and the tacks installed in the cabs, to power the cabs. He said he owed 444 1/15/79 $70,000 on the land on which the natural gas depot was located. The land was now worth about $250,000, he thought; 'He had purchased 15 propane -powered cars from the City. of Fairfield, in.1975. He had installed an 1100 -gallon propane tank at the fuel depot. He said he bought older cars because the trunks were large enough to contain the fuel equipment needed. He said the cars bought from Fairfield had been well maintained and looked like new. He submitted photographs, showing the cabs, and the propane tank. He had bought a home in Atherton -in 1971 ' and the value of that home had increased. He drew a salhry for operating the two companies, which was $42,200 annually; he did all the bookkeeping and purchasing and personnel management for both the Bel ° Mateo and Mid - Peninsula Cab companies, and he had rnechanios fore both companies, one in San Mateo and two in Redwood City. He described some of the cab equipment, which was all paid for; a total of 90 drivers worked for the companies. He described some advantages of the routings his facilities rude possible and he said he would meet all city requirements and also cooperate with staff to make any changes. He recounted an experience he had had on television when he had been interviewed about his company's rice of natural gas as fuel for cars. Vice Mayor Henderson read some financial statements from Mr. tiordby's cab operation, noting, among other- thugs, that there was a heavy debt position amounting to about 21 times the common stock equity. He asked how Mr, ivordby could purchase, operate and expand equipment needed for qualifying for the certificate: Mr. Nordby replied that ..I've never had a problerrr and never missed a payment." He said he did not like paying taxes, One company showed a small loss each year. He had a line of credit. Courc;lmember Witherspoon ascertained that ter. Nordby would be doing dispatching and maintenance from the Redwood,City office, for which Mr. Nordby would be installing a large antenna. She said that some senior citizens found older and larger cabs easier to -get in and out of. Counci 1. nember Eyerly asked what provision was made for luggage when the trunk was taker: for natural gas tanks. Mr, Nordby said that times when there was too much luggage did not happen often: When there was quite a bit of luggage it was a problem. . Caunc i l rnrembe r Eyerly noted that Mr. Nordby did not carry Workmen's Compensation but -that he would be wining ' to do -that if he obtained the certificate, How did Mr. Nordby operate those companies without Wsr; n's Compensation?_ Mr. Mordby said -his company had had coverage; "When dividends time came around they didn't want to give it to me and so we've'been negotiating with two insurance companies. They put money aside, a little heavy, 1 thought, in the reserve balance, SO that they don't have to pay the dividend, ,5o that was the problerir we had." Counci lmember Eyerly asked if the promi se _to operate 15 cabs in Palo Alto meant Mr. Nordby, to comply with the necessity to operate 8 cabs, would operate a total of 15 cabs for 3 24 -hour period. Mr. Nordby said his cab service began at 4 a.m. with two -cabs, and the number increased throughout the day as needed. _ Councilmember Fletcher asked what Mr. Nordby planned to do when the cabs he now awned which accommodated propane aright wear out. 445 1/15/79 y. off Mr. Nordby replied that his cabs had about 200,000 miles left, to take care of 2 or 3 years, and then they could be replaced with cars which could accommodate propane. Each car carried 3 tanks, each with about 10 gallons. Cars ran clean and required less maintenance when they burned propane. The cost of the compreseor,4ahich had been $7100 five years ago, now sold for $15,500. That made the use of propane expensive at the outset. Jerry Dunn, attorney for Vince Maggiore, owner of Peninsula Cab Leasing Company, said he would prefer to speak when the other applicant for the certificate of necessity had spoken, so that hie. could compare Mr. Maggiore's service with the two applicants. Vice Mayor Henderson acceded to Mr. 0unn's request. .He declared the public hearing en the Mid -Peninsula Cabtompany closed. Vice Mayor Henderson declared the public hearing'or the application of InterTrans Corporation open. Councilmnber Sher asked if wi111ngrtiess to- take* der. Pa10 Alto's Project Mobility program.had been discussed with the applicants. Ted Nogu ;hi , Director of- Trensporta t i Vii s - sal d toff_ ba i- tr led- te- avoi d discussion at present of the'Project Mobility contract.' The applicants were aware that the contract was held by Mr. MJaggtore- fore an additional 30 days, as of Monday, January 8. Councilimber Sher asked if the Project Mobility contract was thought to be irrelevant to the granting of a certificate. Don Maynor, Assistant City Attorney, said he thought the applicants had both indicated willingness to take over the Project P sbi e i ty contract. No serious negotiations beyond that had been entered into. Councilniemper Fazzino asked Mr. Harris, the City Treasurer, what factors he had considered in determining the economic viability of InterTrans. Mr. Harris replied that InterTrans was not a large company --it was a small business with a strong looking balance sheet. The present fleet of cabs were newer than those of Mid-Pensula Cab, though neither of the two companies presented a clear picture of how additional facilities to expand enough to serve Palo Alto could be financially provided for. Council ber Fazzino noted that rates than `.hose cited by Mid -Peninsula Cab. when new equipment had to be purchased Valerie Lehrklnd, Permit Investigator, that the rates would remain low. Both cited rates would remain the saw. cited by InterTrans were lower Would they continue to be lower or leased? said that InterTrans indicated companies had stated that their Gordon Peters, 155 Montgomery Street, San.Francisco, said he lived in Piedmont. He was president of The Manag nt Institute and president of InterTrans. He said he had been in business for himself since 1974. Prior to that he had been senior vice president in a $250 million corporation. He said he was proud of the record The Management Institute had in attendance at its classes since its inception. In searching for a business to buy he decided on the taxi cab ' i ndustry - because none of the institute clients were in such a business. His company now provided special transportation services -for the county of Monterey. In- duly of 1977 two cab companies had been -acquired, which, at -that time, were 4 4 f 1/15/79 Corrected see page 482. showing a loss of $3000. Under his company's'ownershlp the loss had been eliminated and after the' ttrst full year of'operation the company showed a profit of $10,000. after having made a substantial investment in new equipment. The staff had health and welfare program, paid vacation, incentive plans, driver audit plan. He felt that InterTrans row had a taxi service program that could be exported. Vice Mayor Henderson, read some figures from the tax statement InterTrans had submitted; the figures did now show -adequate financing to purchase additional equipment to expand to Palo Alto,*though the record showed that borrowing was possible. He asked if lnterTrans was, a subsidiary of the Management Institute. Mr. Peters replied that InterTrans was a -wholly -owned subsidiary and therefore had access to the resources-ofManagement Institute. Councilm er Fyerly asked now many officers InterTrans had. Mr. Peters replied that Mr. Charles Brewster was the general manager; he himself was the president, and there was.one-other-officer. He and his wife were sole owners. At present a company named Falcon dispatched the cabs; InterTrans planned to own their own site near Barron Cab, near which they would park. They would have a full time mechanic. They would not interchange people with Barron Cab. A manager -would come to Palo Alto from Monterey because he knew the plan' of operation. Councilmember Fletcher noted that Jniet-Eri rL" rate -structure was about the sane for limousine use as for taxi use. She had fought it would be more, Mr. Peters said that so-called "limos' were to be old Cutlass 'salons' which would operate, actually, at less cost. Councilmember Fletcher asked what the maximum response time would be. Mr. Peters said he was not happy to -use averages. Hemwanted to attain an average response tike of 50-20 minutes. He cited —the bell -shaped curve and standard deviations, saying that he would like 66 2/3 percent of all his calls to be covered within 20 minutes, "...and up to the third standard deviation, which covers me 99' percent of the time." One percent of the time there could be an "odd -bill situation, that you can't handle --a special situation. . . ." Using average times, ore could have a good average, but not very good service. Jerry Dunn, attorney representing . tide- Peuinsola Cab Leasing Company, asked that Council coeslder-what it was buying, He did not want to impugn the two appl 1 cantsoahe -was sure they were educated and well- meaning. He thought that thigh Mr. ggiaro- y -have- made -some mistakes he had at the sane time- learned *a 'good deal. The- Rant' six months of Mr. Maggiore's time of holding the certificate'had been a breaking -in period. The next certificate -holder would also have to go through that period. He discounted the importance of-a'Mnanclar scat. nt,s fore those figures could be made tr ap! r as strong as needed. He thought perhaps the City should require an audited financial=statement. He did not know why Mr. Maggiore had withheld -permission to see -his -books.- 'Mr: Dunn said he was not representing Mr. Maggiore at that time of his refusal. He held that Mr. Maggiore could submit a fieanciaV statemett just as good as those Council had received that evening. Mr. Dunn said that staff had been witness to the matter of the *3000 sip, which former Project Mobility contract holder, Mr. Demeter,' had panksed'on-to Mr. Maggiore. Mr. Dunn said Mr. Maggiore had just that dany cede ad strip from 1975. Rather than $3000 in scrip, Mr. Dunn held that Mr. Maggiore had redeemed 447 1/15/79 4/97 /5171. 1 1 $13,000-$14,000 in scrip. Though Mr. Maggiore had bought 24 cabs from Mr. Demeter, only 18 were running. Six had broken down within 2 months, reducing the number of operating cabs to 12. Mr. Dunn cited that as a mitigating circumstance for Mr. Maggiore, offsetting Mr. Maggiore's lack of good public relations. '1r. Gunn said that Mr. Maggiore had operated from Falcon quarters as Mr. Peters planned to do. The Falcon quarters had been inadequate, and so.Mr. Maggiore had bought a location of his own. He urged that Council not'be prejudiced against Mr. Maggiore, and to approach the selection of a certificate holder with an open mind, for the benefit of City cab users. He stressed that no - guarantees had been made by the two applicants. They too would have to go through the growing pains Mr. Maggiore had had to go through. Both applicants had approached Mr. Maggiore with are offer to purchase his cabs, those cabs which Council had deemed "inadequate." Mr. Dunn suggested that as an alternative to changing certificate holders the City, instead, issue more than one certificate, perhaps a total of two or three, and let free enterprise determine the service that was offered, with the better or best operator to prevail. Mr. Dunn said that he had not heard of a City revoking a license, he urged re -consideration from Council of the responsibility of his client. J. R. Bertram, 1580 Alameda, Redwood City, driver for Peninsula Cab Company, said he had driven in Palo Alto for 541 years. Mr. Bertram spoke of a cab driver's point of view of a cab company operation. He said Mr. Nordby had not been willing to tell what rate of pay he would give drivers. Mr. Demeter had paid from 42 percent to junior drivers up to 47 percent for senior drivers. Mr. Bertram said he, himself, under Mr. Maggiore's :aeration, was making about 40 percent more. He did not "..,know how anybody makes it on 39 percent of the meter rate for a 10 - hour shift." He classified the personal status of drivers --young and single, older and married with families to support: Most could rot work ?or such a level of pay. Mr. Maggiore's rate of pay would lead to a better, mors stable, corps of drivers. Vice Mayor Henderson declared the public hearing on the application of InterTrans Corporation closed. Councilmember Fazzino said that though he had not been present at the discussion the week before'he would have voted against*revoca►tion of the Peninsula Cab certificate; He had been T ressed' with the level of service Mr. Maggiore had reached during the 60 days given to improve it. Since the majority of the Council appeared to opt for a new certificate holder, he would support the company recommended by staff, InterTrans. MOTION: Councilmember Fazzino moved, seconded by Fletcher, that Council approve the staff recommendation that InterTrans-be granted the certificate of necessity and public convenience to operate taxicab service in Palo Alto. Councilmember Eyerly asked staff what was meant by the "...minims of 8 cabs . " How many hours did that mean? Don Maynor, Assistant City Attorney, said he thought it meant the minimum number of cabs that could be operated at one time. Mr. Gordon Peters, InterTrans, said he based the calculation of a minimum of _8 cabs, on 108 -shift -hours, for the first 2 quarters' of operation. If the service grew when it was established the number of cabs for the third quarter would be 9 cabs with 117 -shift -hours. In the 4th quarter his company had calculated 126 shift -hours. We noted that the cash flow projection he had made would be much improved if the' market had been underestimated. 448 1/15/79 Naphtali Knox, Director of Planning and Community Environment, said he had meant by "a minimum of 8 cabs" that that number would be out on the street, operating during peak periods. He did net mean that 4 would be operating and 4 would "...be on the racks somewhere, waiting for service." Councilmember Clay said he thought InterTrans could offer "reasonably attractive service to Palo Alto." He could -not want' to vote against InterTrans, but he thought thatinterTrahs' reported financial stability could be thrown out;neither applicant had audited statements; InterTrans' statement was Mr. Peters' personal finantiiistatemento Perhaps a look by Council at Mr. Nordby's personal statement would give different conclusions from those reached by looking at his -company's financial statement. He thought Mr. Nordby's 20 years' service on -the peninsula had more weight than Mr. Peters' 2 years in business: He preferred issuing 2 certificates, rather than voting .against Mr. Nordby's company, or voting against InterTrans. Councilmember Clay thought that Council should vote on each applicant according to its opinion -on -the company's ability to serve Palo Alto, Vice Mayor Henderson said Council -was allowed to okay certificates for more than one company. The motion before Council rel ate+ . to InterTrans. If that motion passed, Counci lmesnbers so wi shing; cue l d rove to issue certificates to one or both of the other companies. If a motion on one company failed a motion on could be made to' certi fi ca to the other company. Therefore more than one company could be voted on. Councilmember Clay said that the staff recommendation before Council recommended issuing one certificate. Vice Mayor Henderson said that that phrase ' was - used by the mover of the motion, An amendment to the motion could be made. AMENDMENT: Councilmember Clay moved, seconded by Sher, that Council delete the phrase saying only one certificate-sheuid be issued. Councilmember Sher said he felt much the same as-Councilmember Clay. The January 10 memorandum of the City Attorney had considered the matter of possibly having competition among cab companies serving the City, and -suggesting that changes could be made in the' regulatory procedure to encourage that. At present there was no obstacle against having more than one cab company operating in the City. If Council adopted the staff recommendation there would be an obstacle. And that was in spite of the fact that one -potential operator had said.that'tf another certificate were issued he wou1 d not -want- to operate himsel f. ' Counci 1 member Sher said he thought it was best if the City did not -create a monopoly, unless it were shown that that was the onlyway to get cab service. The City could attach a condition that the response'time be'within certain time limits. Councilmember Sher said he was prepared to vote to grant the certificate if the amendment were to pass.- If it passed, then Councilmimber Clay or he would move to great- a certificate to Mid - Peninsula; then, after an -appropriate title, if Kr; Maggiore (Peninsula Leasing Co.) wanted to apply again, he; hiamelf, i ld- be willing to consider that re -application with -an open mind. Mr. Peters, responding to the statement thatthe financial seatements were not audited, introduced his accountant. Mr. Lloyd pressall, a certified public accountant", said that all of InterTran s' financial statements were audited. Councilmember Witherspoon said'she-was not in support of the amendment. She did not think that the community could support more than one taxi 449 1/15/19 service. She did not want to dilute the effectiveness of any of the companies by pitting then against one another. She thought that the staff recommendation could have been so worded that, If business warranted, more than one certificate could be issued in the future. She said that later on the Project Mobility contract -would come.before .Council. The number of certificate holders would come up again at that time. She thought a decision on number of certificates -should be decided that evening. The issuance of more than one certificate could be re -opened within a year if call for cab service had increased dramatically. Vice Mayor Henderson agreed with Councilmerater Witherspoon that the number of certificates issued in Palo Alto -should be limited to one if Palo Alto was to have a successful cab operation. There was no way to guarantee success. He thought from the financial statement of InterTrans that it gave most promise of financial responsibility. Re asked Councilmembers to vote against the amendment and then vote to -approve the staff rr?comrnendation. Councilmember Clay repeated that the personal financial statement of InterTrans was before Council, but not the personal financial statement of Mid -Peninsula Cab. Councilmetnber Brenner said she saw the amendment as having the effect of not limiting the City to one taxicab company. Yf Council did not vote for the amendment that evening Council might later have to cancel a certificate of convenience, in or der to open up the matter of issuance of more than one certificate. She would vote for the -proposed amendment. A disc+rssion ensued as to whether or not the staff recommendation, if passed, would limit the City to the issuance of only one certificate of necessity and public convenience. Council ember Eyerly said that AP interpreted the main motion as saying that one certificate would be issued that evening; that did not preclude Council from issuing another in the future. Therefore he would vote against the amendment and for the main motion. Councilmemher Sher asked if Vice Mayor Henderson Mould, that evening, entertain another motion to issue another certificate that evening. Vice Mayor Henderson said he would not entertain such a motion. Councilmomber Sher asked if even though Council had'held a full hearing that evening, were another certificate to be -issued another full hearing would have to be hel:i. Vice Mayor Henderson agreed. Councilm er Sher said he had interpreted it in that way; it was for that reason he had supported the amendment, so that the option to issue another certificate could be acted upon. If Council did not want to adopt the amendment it should not tie its hands by making the issuance of one certificate a condition in this first motion. Vice Mayor Henderson responded that a vote against the amendment was saying that Council only wanted to issue one certificatl- that evening. AMENDMENT FAILED: The amendment that the phrase limiting the issuance of a certificate of necessity and convenience be 1 iati ted to one be deleted, failed on the following vote: AYES: Brenner, Clay, Sher NOES: Eyerly, Fazaino, Fletcher, Henderson, Witherspoon ABSENT: Carey 450 1/15/79 MAIN MOTION PASSED: The main motion that Council approve the staff recommendation that InterTrans be granted a certificate of necessity and public convenience to operate taxicab service in Palo Alto, passed on the following vote: AYES: Brenner, Clay, Eyerly, Fazzino, Fletcher, Henderson, Witherspoon NOES: Sher ABSENT: Carey SOUTH MAYBEL AVE UE A°ID DONALD DRIVE TINMTVE-SUBUTVISION MAP ViTTEXTIMMU Planning Commission chairwoman Emily Renzel said that the Planning Commission, by a 4-2 vote, l absent, recommended approval of the applica- tion of Frank Vogl for a tentative subdivision map for property located at Maybell and Donald Drive. She would be willing to answer questions. Vice Mayor Henderson asked what the arguments had been against approval. Naphtali Knox said that the two votes against had been because they were not in sympathy with the conditions placed on the approval of the map; the lots involved were less than regulation size. MO 1ON: Councilmember Fazzino introduced the following resolution, and, seconded by Eyerly, moved its approval by Council: RESOLUTION 5632 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING THE SUBDIVISION OF LAND AT SOUTH MAYBELL AVENUE AND DONALD DRIVE AND GRANTING EXCEPTIONS WITH CONDITIONS." The mot?on passed on a unanimous vote, Mayor Carey absent. 520 MAYBELL AVENUE CHARGE` or bisurer FROM R-? T© RM-2 Planning Comm,ssion chairwomen Renzel explained that the zoning co mmission had said that the R-2 zoning had been in conformance with the prevailing zoning; it had been chosen by averaging the total zoning within the site, including the P -C, and so they did not want to change the zoning. Council r Fazzino said he had intended to uphold the Planning Commission decision but he had received a call from Mayor Carey that even•,Jo-saying 'he would like to make some comments on the matter, and he had asked that the matter be delayed for two weeks -so that he could participate. MOTION: Councilmember Fazzino moved, seconded concerning change of district of property from to January 29 at 8:30 p.m. Councilmember Sher .said that it would be more have been sent gi vi na Mayor Carey ° s comments. continuance. by Clay, that the matter R-2 to Rtl-2 be rontf need ap+propri ate for a note to He would vote against the Councilmember Eyerly said he would like to have the matter continued; Grant and Bridges, he said, had come in with material that would persuade 4 5 1 1/l5/79 1 i Councilmemm,,ers to vote in approval. Grant and Bridges wanted RM-1 zoning, owing to deed restrictions placed on the 3 parcels, which were to have a total of 8 units. If the matter was continued Council would have sufficient tine to hear the arguments in favor, Vice Mayor Henderson noted that a request for a different zoning should return to the Planning Commission. He did not think the present motion gave good enough reason for continuance. Councilmember Brenner said she thought Council had some responsibility toward people who had come to hear about a scheduled agenda matter. There was no staff recommendation or Planning Commission review on the application for the proposed dal zoning. Roy Abrams, City Attornev, said he had received a ctrl i from Mr. Bridges about the proposed new zoning which was of a more restrictive nature; pursuant to the new zoning ordinances Council would be authorized to consider the matter without referring it back to the Planning Commission; a problem was that there was not a covenant or restriction attached to the zoning, which "...would perhaps put us in the specter of contract zoning." If Bridges were prepared he could file his restriction, if he thought it aepropriate, but the Council could not impose that on the zoning itself. Mr. Abram summed up: 1) Council could consider the more restrictive zone in accordance with the application; 2) the suggestion for a restriction could not be imposed on the zone. Vice Mayor Henderson asked if Council mild be prevented from sending the matter back to the Planning Commission --that was the only way he would want to continue the matter. Mr. Abrams said Council could do that. Councilmember Fletcher agreed with Councilor Sher that the reason given for continuance was not justified. She thought the issue might get complicated. MOTION TO REFER: Counci lmz,mber Fletcher moved, seconded by Henderson, that the matter of the proposed new zoning in relation to 520 Aiaybell be referred to the Planning Commission. Councilmember Brenner asked if Mr. Bridges had asked formally for a different zoning. Councilmember Fazz:no said that a request to defer by a Councilmember who could not be present did not happen often; he thought Council could defer the matter. He said that he had attended a meeting until the wee hours the night before and the lateness of the hour made him: not want to continue the discussion further; he would make a motion to continue the meeting to January 29. Mr_ Abrams pointed out that the motion to refer, voiced as a substitute motion, took precedence over the move to continue. Councilmember Clay repeate0 Councilmember Brenner's question: had the applicant formally asked for a different zone? 452 1/15/79 Mr. Abrams said that in his conversation with Mfr. Bridges, Mr. Bridges had said he would request that. Councilmember Eyerly asked if fir. Bridger. could make an amended application if Council referred his application back to the Planning Commission. Mr. Abrams said he did not think Mr filing and going through the entire Abrams said he had told Mr. Bridges code, had authority to consider the . Bridges wanted to go through re- process again. For that reason Mr. that Council, under the new zoning more restrictive zone. Councilmember Eyerly said that he concluded that the matter could be referred back to the Planning Commission and Mr. Bridges could make an amended application. He did not think a motion to continue would pass, and so he thought Councilors should vote for Councila er^ Fletcher's motion. MOTION TO REFER PASSED: The motion to refer the matter of proposed new zoning in relation to the application for a change -of district of property located at 520 Maybell be referred to the Planning Commission, passed on the following vote. AYES: Clay, Eyerly, Fazzino, Fletcher, NOES: Brenner, Sher ABSENT: Carey GRANT APPLICATION —CALIFORNIA Hari er-soil, Witherspoon POTION: Councilmember Fazzino introduced the following resolution and seconded by Fletcher, moved its approval by Council: RESOLUTION 5633 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL UrfP17CITY OF PALO ALTO AUTHORIZING THE SUBMISSION OF A GRANT APPLICATION FOR FUNDS FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION." The motion passed on a unanimous vote, Mayor Carey absent. VISUAL ART JURY APPLICATIONS Vice Mayor Henderson asked how Councilmembers wonted to proceed on selection of ors for. the Visual Arts Jury. Two ors whose tens would expire January 31 had re -applied. There were also 7 other applicants. Councilmember Eyerly said that since the .members whose terms were expiring had served only one term he did not went to favor the interviewing process: he would vote for the two re -applicants. Councilmember Brenner said she favored the interview process; she did not like applicants to think the selection process Uts zutoutically closed off. Vice Mayor Henderson concluded thet since no Councilmember had moved to set up an interview process the appointments mead be agenda zed for January 29 and Council would vote at that time. 453 1/15/79 1.111.11.X., iniMaNar7 ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None AOJCURNMFNT MOT/ON: Council: tuber Clay moved, seconded by Faz The motion passed on a unanimous voice vote, Mayor Council adjourned at 12:40 a.m. AFFIRM: APPRO C z t., 'Clerk M