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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1980-03-03 City Council Summary MinutesCITY COUNC!L MINUTE3 City Council Regular Meeting March 3, 1980 ITEM Oral Communications Consent Calendar - Action Items drY OF M1.0 t1LTO PAGE 481 Gas Rate Increase 4 8 1 Rinconada Pool Renovation - Award of Rid and Authorization of Contract 4 8 1 Amendment to Zoning Ordinance raking Minor Changes To Exceptions To Non -Conforming Use Sections 4 R 1 Ordinance Approving Improvements For Bol Park Bike Path 4 8 1 Ordinance Regarding Publication of Contributions and Contributors To Campaigns In City Elections And Regarding Anonymous Contributions 4 8 2 Public Hearing: Request For Certificate Of Public Convenience and Necessity --Peninsula Cab Leasing Co., Inc. 4 8 2 Federally Funded Housing Improvement Program 4 8 5 Excavatioe of ITT Property Or Other Alternatives of Obtaining Landfill Cover Material 4 8 6 Request of -Councilmember Brenner Re letter Frog Association of Bay Area Goverment (A ) On Subject of Air Quality *quest of Counci 1ber (yerly Re Surplus School Sites Report To Be Considered flerch 10, 1980 Adjaurnaierst 496 496 491 480 Regular Meeting March 3, 1980 The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met in the Councilchamber at 250 Hamilton at 7:40 p.m., Mayor Henderson presiding. PRESENT: Brenner, Eyerly, Fazzino, Fletcher, Henderson, Levy, Renzel, Sher, Witherspoon ABSENT: None ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None 1 CONSENT CALENDAR Councilmembers Eyerly, Fazzino and Witherspoon asked that their votes be recorded as "no" -ors the matter concerning the publishing of names of contributors and amount of contributions. The following items remained on the consent calendar: GAS RATE INCREASE (CMR:159:0) Staff recommends Council approve the resolution confirming the action taken by the City Manager adjusting pas rates in accordance with Resol ut . onr 5756. RESOLUTION ►773 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING SCHEDULE r1- I DoE TO THE EFFECT OF A WHOLESALE GAS PRICE INCREASE UPON PALO ALTO GAS RATES." RINCONADA POOL RENOVATION —AWARD OF BID AM) AUTHORIZATION OF CONTRACT (CMR :163:0 } S zaff recommend,. that Council award the bids and authorize the Mayor to execute construction contracts with Coastal Coating Company, Inc., in the amount of V19,944, for ;.he coping and decking repair, and with V. N. Vukasin in the amount of S14,940 for the backwash outfall line. COASTAL COATING CO. , IiNC. -0Gt at*nvan&iie'ErkinVNeO rig Y.N. VIIi;AS1M--Backwash fhatfall Line Al NOM NT TO ZONING OROINAACE IN M MiI OR CHANGES ___- r -_ .. USE .. e'er---"- !_ 1U CXCI;rl IORS I0 Irr°,,irt (04 € RH N6 USESEC IO (C . l66:01 ORDINANCE 3187 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE - CCINCIL or THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING CERTAIN SECTIONS TO ZONING ORDINANCE MAKING MINOR CUES ''YA':t ar3 ffYEC .. Tn ttn-Arevarnatalael._:rtb tip a rnmc ..:--.rr•+•.v.e: - (First reading February 19, 19 0) ORDINANCE APPROV'.NG A IMPROVEMENTS Ri K� . ORDINANCE 3188 entitled "ORDINANCE OF TIDE COIL ! 1. CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING G AND ADOPTING A PLAN FOR THE CONSTRUCT 30 8 OF NEW BRIDGE . DECKING AND INSTALLING 0f TVO BENCHES ALONG EXISTING BIKE PATH IN Iii. PARK." (First reading February 79s 1980) ORDINANCE REGARDING PUBLICATION S XRITIrwANDMIMMITIIMEI ORDINANCE 3189 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING SECTION 2.40.040 AND ADDING SECTION 2.40.050 TO THE PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE REGARDING THE PUBLICATION OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND CONTRIBUTORS TO CANDIDATES IN CITY ELECTIONS AND REGARDING THE LIMITATION ON ANONYMOUS CONTRIBUTIONS IN SAID ELECTION.K (First reading February 19, 1980) MOTION: Councilmember Fazzino_moved, seconded by Fletcher, that Council approve the consent calendar. The motion passed on a unanimous voice vote, Councilmembers Eyerly, Fazzino and Witherspoon voting "no" on the matter concerning contributions and contributors to candidates in city elections. PUBLIC HEARING: REQUEST FOR CERTIFICATE bF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NEC sin L a..�,� . CMR:152:0) Mayor Henderson said it was the time and place scheduled for the public hearing to consider issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity for Peninsula Cab Leasing Ccmpany, Incorporated. The notice of the public hearing, he said, had been advertised in the Peninsula Times Tribune on February 22, 1980. The criteria for the issuance of this certificate are set forth in the Palo Alto Municipal Code, Section 4.42.050, and they stipulate that the applicant shall have the burden of proving to Council 1) that there is a public demand for additional service; 2) that the existing service is inadequate; 3) that the applicant has sufficient financial responsibility and experience to conduct properly such a business; and 4) that traffic conditions or hazards will not be appreciably increased or parking problems made worse. Mayor Henderson said that Council had before it the application and the supporting data submitted by the Peninsula Cab Leasing Company, and that it was the time for the applicant to crake a statements if he so desired. The City Clerk would accept cards from others present who wished to speak ea the matter. Larry Sleizer, Attorney, 460 Californ a Avenue, said he represented Vince Maggiore, president of Peninsula Cab Company. He said he had submitted letters written by people who thought_ there was not enough cab service available in Palo Alto;.the letters frog( hucitu?cses.and citizens ----wa.%�i,�.� out that .a; ....1 a2... ... ... S�.r � 2 .I_�e ea F1»2»_.,. 1J �o ntad _ f_la eaistiff sea iz %'_s_ na ouate.--We.=S1e zer sa1d the February 28 staff report also stated that response times of the company currently providing service in Pans Alto were not adequate. He said that Peninsula Cab parked its cabs in Mountain View, and so would not aggravate the parking or traffic problem: So far as financial _respoosibility, the taxicab .business- was difficult, -Mr. Sleizer, said, "...and not particularly profitable.' But in the matter of experience Peninsula Cab Leasing Company was ahead, for Mr. Maggiore had operated his business successfully in other cities since having been discontinued in Palo Alto, a year and a half ago. Mr. Maggiore's business "...is clear on loans and notes, and at this time Mr. Maggiore is asking for a minimum of five cabs." The company had 13 cabs in operation. He wanted the opportunity to compete, N...and there would be little harm .to the City if hedoesn't make it.K A check with loan officers at Union Bank showed that they would be more favorable to helping Mr. Maggiore with fib if he had business from Palo Alto. Mr. Maggiore had obtained Worm's ComPensation for his drt vers , and had also rebuilt engines on five of the cabs. Mr. Sleizer said, Peninsula Cab offered patrons lower fees, discounts to senior citizens. Mayor Henderson noted that Mr. Maggiore's financial statement showed assets of $11,000, half of which were in accounts receivable; liabilities were $91,000. How much of the liabilities, loans and the like, were due within a year's time? Pr. Sleizer said the money was owed the former owner, Mr. Demeter, and the bank. All of thew were current, with bank notes renewable in three month periods. A discussion ensued on the financial statement between Mr. Sleizer and Mayor Henderson. Mr. Sleizer said Mr. Maggiore had hired a new bookkeeper, and "...frankly it's a marginal operation." Councilmember Levy ascertained that there were 13 cabs in all to serve Palo Alto and nearby communities. GordonPeters, president, InterTrans; noted that "Yellow Cab" as a nay did not belong to Mr. Maggiore, and now belonged to InterTrans. Mr. Peters noted that for about five months Mr. Maggiore continued to seek patrons in Palo Alto after his certificate had been revoked --the City had finally had to issue an injunction to prevent Mr. Maggiore from monitoring InterTrans' calls for service. Mr. Peters said InterTrans had invested about $75,000 and had not yet begun to make a significant profit. Mr. Peters said he d4d not know, in view of Mr. Maggiore's financial statement, how he covered current monthly salaries. He noted that all system failed from time to time. but in processing 85,000 calls for service in a ten-month period InterTrans had had only ten complaints, sever coming in a three-week period when three of its vehicles were not operating, owing to difficulties in obtaining parts for Ford Motor Cony taxicabs. Mr. Peters spoke of response times, averaging about twelve minutes. He was proud of that record. He noted that companies operating for Project Mobility, and he was one such, had to carry $500,000 insurance. He recalled that both Barron Park and Palo Alto Cab companies in the past had reported that the inability of Palo Alto to support two cab companies had resulted in deterioration of both fleets of cabs. He - soug t that weld happen again. Most cities, from Santa Barbara to Yuba City, so rted only one cab company. Vice Mayor Sher recalled that Mr. Peters had said that if another certificate for the cab business were granted in Palo Alto he would drop out of the business. Mr. inters said that was correct. At the present time, with good equipment and working very hard his firm was losing about $2000 a month, rnsineil a y�fetc r a see to road that Mr. Peters would of ;tt ,t it vv •..•. aa.....�v... - F>ii i.*a•v.y. .2.T*ry'a aA. 7aR1CN *e.a af.b JaI !- . 6%YC'f J -7iVN i�- not __�2 �. tat a lsaaaot timewi Y sent nutter r - cabs serve _ - View. _ with �.� ���r... �iww.a.a.. of -�L.i�i'Er.a ��i ��a sc Mountain �i � r• M". Peters reviewed InterTrans position with Worm's Compensation -- that was still pending but would soon be settled Alex fro, 591 Weeks Stet, said he had worked for Mt. Petters and Mr. Maggiore --he had had to wait for his pay ck fram Gtr, Peters. He said represeated the other drivers who worked for Mr Maggiore; he thought it would be good if the two companies could work together. That way customers would be better served also. He outline situations where that wild be the case. Thelma Wolffers, 904 Madero Court, said she would like to have a choice of companies as she went from her home in Palo Alto to Muntain View to mss. She said she paid $1 more to ode with InterTrans, though the distance was tha 4 3 3/3fS0 Charles Olson, 110 Crothers Hall, said he was a molecular biologist and also the Libertarian candidate for the State Assembly in the 21st District, He read from Section 4.42.020 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code, commentir;g that he thought government control of who could enter a field should give way to a free market without governmental restriction, of entry. He gave ways in which the free market would control itself, and competition would not be restricted or eliminated. He said that the taxicab business was one which a poor person could enter. He did not want government monopoly. Mayor Henderson said he thought that of the four criteria Mr. Maggiore's company net only the fourth of not making traffic conditions worse. The other circumstances prior to withdrawal of the certificate from Peninsula Cab were still the same, and the financial picture was poor. Though he favored free enterprise there was still the need to provide basic service for handicapped and elderly. He thought that when one company was making a good profit in Palo Alto was the time to entertain thoughts of adding another company. MOTION: Mayor Henderson moved, seconded by Fazzino, that the application of Peninsula Cab Leasing Campanye Inc., for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity be denied. Mayor Henderson said he wculd free later to have staff report on InterTrans' situation in 60 days. Vice Mayor Sher said that for the City to permit only one cab company to operate led to governmentally sanctioned monopoly. He thought there was demand for additional service, that is, for a 'reasonable' response time. He thought the criterion of financial responsibility was questionable but Mr. Maggiore had continued to operate for one year in spite of that. He observed there was no risk to the City if Mr. Maggiore found he could not keep going. Mr. Peters had operated jointly in other communities where there were other cab companies. Vice Mayor Sher would oppose the motion to deny. Councilmember Fazzino said that the staff report indicated there was only enough business in Palo Alto for one cab company. Council's responsibility was to see that the City had adequate cab service. He thought both conies eight go under if two companies were operating here. He thought InterTrans service was adequate, and the complaint level was low. He said he liked the Project Mobility i nvol veaeent and the shuttle service to Industrial Park. He would support the motion. Councilor Fletcher said she would oppose the motion. She said InterTrans had far more than ten complaints lodged against it, no-show, more than an hour late, not answering the phone* and so on. She thought that Mr. Peters had chosen not to operate in Mountain View because he could not handle additional business. From_ a financial standpoint there was no risk to the City to have two meanies. Councilmember Levy recounted his personal experience with 'Yellow Cab' as listed in the phone book, Mr= Maggiore's company, and having been referred to InterTrans, and the subsequent ride to City Hall. He did not - think ri J !!A`i TS.Yf,e should l e fiilivolvod with 9�►�i�m:Ws fr str9f7"_�'ons_. .►d aa...../7�. ftt•b.YCY with Wm:Ws J tt.if+7 i.t y.rtYtis, yet the cab question had come before Council repeatedly. He did not think interTrans should be exerted from: competition. He did not agree that Mr. Maggiore's finances should determine whether or not he was permitted to do business in Palo Alto. He would oppose the motion to deny. Counci mea er Brenner questioned the "adequacy" of trad.portati on that began and ended at the borders of a still community. There were "plenty of complaints" against both cub companies; she did not want Palo Alto to be an island of transportation -she would oppose the motion. 484 3/3/80 Councilmember Eyerly recalled that when Mr. Demeter owned the cab company waits up to two hours for a cab were not unusual, along with no-shows. He thought there were troubles then with equipment, and now InterTrans had new equipment. He did not want to open up the matter of a certificate again and -he wanted to give InterTrans perhaps another year to bring up its service level. Corrected See Pg. 514 3/24/80 Counci1mer ber Renzel said she liked the idea of having competitive cab service and not having artificial boundaries set on territories. With InterTrans' cutback of service in Mountain View perhaps it would give better service in Palo Alto. If eot she would support issuance of a second certificate of necessity. Counci lamer Witherspoon reminded Councilmembers that one-third of total cab service usage was by Project Mobility, and so one strong cab company was needed. MOTION PASSED: The motion to deny the application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity by Peninsula Cab leasing Company, Inc., passed on the following vote: AYES: Eyerly, Fazzi no a Henderson, Renzel, Witherspoon NOES: Brenner, Fletcher, Levy, Sher MOTION: Mayor Henderson Roved, seconded by Brenner, that Council direct staff to report to Council within sixty days on whether or not InterTrans was meeting the requirements of the certificate of public convenience and necessity. Vice Mayor Sher asked if, should the report be negative, the certificate would be lifted; if so, there would not be any service in the City. He would oppose the motion. He did not want to discourage other applicants gust because there was one cab company ---he thought a commitment had been made to receive new applicants. He interpreted the action thus far to be setting a policy to let only one cab company operate in the City, and he opposed that. He would abstain. Council r Levy said he did not want tc give more work to staff on this issue. There had not been enough complaints to date to warrant it. Mayor Henderson said his motion intended that staff report on complaints made by cab users, and whether or not InterTrans was meeting minim requi rents . MOTION PASSED: The mai on passed on the fol l tai ng vote: AYES - 8r'e finer , E erIy . F1Ptcher : HigondasrsOrt, Reniel Withompoon S: - Fazzinou Levy ABSTAIN: She; Mayor Henderson noted that staff recommendations were that Council approve lave` aging llIP fads to continue the program through fiscal year 1 -81 end to select aA particular proposal and authorize staff to negotiate a final agreement, 1n that way making it possible to make more rehabilitation loans to low- and moderate -income housing. City Manager William Zaner said that rsny of the three suggested agreements would maintain the program. Crocker Bank offered services were somewhat at superior to other loan institutions, 1 1 A. 8 5 Councilmember Pitherspoon asked about the efolatile and rising interest rate. Jim Krokee, manager of the Housing Improvement Program, said that during the time of writing the report to Council interest rates had risen twice. Crocker Bank had indicated it would hold with 12.5 percent "...for some time, which is a month or so." The bank officers felt that over the 15 - year period of loans the bank would make that money in the end. Wells Fargo wanted 16 percent, fixed rate, though it could rise if there was delay in approval. Northern California wanted 17 percent. Crocker's 12.5 percent was based on 13.5 percent with a ten percent subsidy of a loss -reserve fund. Councilmember Witherspoon observed that the City then was paying the difference between interest charged and interest contracted for with borrowers of 3 percent, but that the loan money itself returned to the City, Vice Mayor Sher said he was impressed with the approach of staff in holding on to the program that had -been in danger of being completely terminated. He had liked the program because It helped to restore housing stock when owners could not otherwise do so. MOTION: Vice Mayor Sher moved, seconded by Brenner, that Council approve the leveraging of the Housing -Improvement Program fund for fiscal year 1980-81 with Crocker National Bank to to selected to carry out the proposal. Councilmember Eyerly said he had questioned leveraging for some time. He asked how much the City had put into the program thus far, and how the payback program was working out in returning funds to go out on more loans. Mr. Krokee said that the City had loaned about $1,200,000 total, to 128 applicants with a payback of about $60,000 annually, all of which except for about 115,000 went for salaries. About $60,000 over the next ten years would be built up. Councilmember Renzel .ascertained that funds paid back would not provide a fund for further loans, and this proposal was only for the duration of the COBB period. A subsequent grant could be directed back into tlse direct loan program. She said she would support the motion --the program Corrected had been valuable and she wanted the flexibility from funds returning to See Pg. 514 the City. She thought the proposal was a creative solution. 3/24/80 Councilmember Levy ascertained that the average loan ran about 10 years. He calculated how the loan schedule could run leading toward extending the programer, and observed that if inflation continued future investments would be worth less. He thought it was a good proposal. MOTION PASSED: The motion passed on a unanimous vote. "r-Av8T1 OF ITT PROPERTY__-_ OR MIER A,i.TRW'Velar OF 0MNI L WM' MATERIAL (06:164:0) . :.7 -lea o 'sown a.wITI I ,uivA {.Piet. 4 vImr, a I ww=R4 *1St; Lli1iLY 3[. eSL 1 a had received the staff report about excavation of the former ITT property. The subsequent stiff ofeQ February 28 was now before thy. Staff recoastended that the most appropriate alternative for obtaining cover to close the sanitary land fill was to excavate the ITT property, because other major alternatives, that is, construction of de watering ponds and dredging of the Palo Alto yacht harbor would cost about $I million more; page 5 gave the major al tternati ves . The issue wis to obtain cover for the sans t.ary l andfi l l so that, in accordance with the Comprehensive Plan, the landfill could be closed. Cdr & Clark had analyzed whether or not dredged spoils from harbor dredging could be used for that purpose. 486 3/3/80 Yacht Harbor dredging and landfill closure were separate projects, however. It was important for Council to decide on a method for closing the landfill. Mr. Zaner said he thought very little could be gained by re -analyzing data already presented to Council. Staff's recommendation to excavate the ITT property was workable; all alternatives carried some risk and excavation of the ITT property carried lowest potential cost and risk. Mr. Zaner said there was bound to be some discussion of the silting problem at the harbor --the yacht club had commissioned an independent study to determine a spoils area for dredged spoils. A copy of that study was included in a previous packets -it had been prepared by Mr. Garbe, and his. proposal .was techhitaity feasible but had several practical difficulties, because placement of dredged spoils on landfill, as Mr. Garbe proposed, would require extensive and expensive preparatory work The Regional Water Quality Control Board had said it would be necessary to seal the area to avoid any water getting into the landfill. Placement; of the spoils material on Yacht Harbor Point would require a new Environmental Impact Report along with permission to clamshell dredge from Bay Conservation Deeelopment Commission (..BCDC), the Water Quality Control Board and the Army Corps of Engineers. In addition existing materiel had to be moved before new ssroils could be deposited there. At best, Mr. Zaner said, that process could be used once, assuming the necessary permits to do so could be obtained, (The county's financial assistance, in that process, appears somewhat uncertain, he said.) Hr. Zaner said the issue before Council was closure of the sanitary landfill, and he emphasized how costly further delay would be. Engineering and construction costs were rising rapidly and further postponement added to the financial burden of the project. Staff urges Council to select one of the closure alternatives that evenings and to order its implenentation. Councilmember Witherspoon asked when the dump would be full. Mr. Zaner said current figures showed that the landfill was filling faster than initially anticipated; an evaluation of how contouring could be accommodated to the increased amount of refuse, and keep to the original target date of 1993, would be coming to Council. He emphasized that if changes in contour were not approved there would be no place to put garbage. Cauncilamer Levy ascertained with Ken Schreiber, Assistant Director of Planning and Community Environment, that Council policy had been set in 1978 to close the dump in 15 or 20 years. Excat ati on would end in about 1990 or so, then the dump would close in 1993-1998. He calculated some annual figures of keeping the dump open. Excavation would end before the landfill was closed. Cost for the excavation method would be higher because water would be circulated over a larger area in some kind of inlet system. Retailed engineering studies would show that system. About how cost would that add? Mr. Zaner said that Cooper & Clio .°' had added that cost et about S250.000. Councilmember Levy asked about how much truck importation _ of fill would be needed end where t. _ fill ,'1d, be obtained, as well as how reliable that supply might be. Mr. Schreiber said both dredging and excavation a1 ternat4ves required Importation of topsoil; dredging n would requirethat ablo t . -Ards would have to be imported, and with excavation all of the topsoil -would have to be trucked in; 453,000 yards of soil that would permit growing of plants would be needed. Covering would be required annually, so that the cover would be impermeable. There were risks of obtaining topsoil so far as s ly, trucking and hauling costs were concerned. About 10 truckloads a day for 10 years old be required. Councilmember Sher asked if Mr. Schreiber had heard from the county that it would not be paying further dredging costs. Mr. Schreiber said the county exressed "...strong doubts abort the feasibility of any funding.* The county mks enticipeting hiving to mike budget cuts in the light of have to be renegotiated for more berths than were there of authorizing. The county priority. Jarvis II if it passed. The lease would the Yacht Harbor, and it called for many at present or which the City had any intention would place yacht harbor dredging at a low Councilmember Menzel noted that If the ITT property were to be excavated about 85 to 100 acres would be used. She asked if it would be possible to excavate in such a ray as to create a lagoon thereby creating a marshy area. Larry White, Director of Parks, said that was feasible, but modification would be needed to achieve a configuration that would support a marsh. Robert S. Cooper, civil engineer with Cooper and Clark, said that his firm had been trying to convince the Water Quality Control Board that a pond could be placed on landfill but the board rejected that contention. He was quite sure that the proposed lagoon' would be categorized as a 'pond.' Councilmember Fletcher recalled that 37 acres was to be leased to ITT. She ascertained that the proposed excavation would be -around that 37 acres. Details cf the mettoal of excavation had yet to be worked out. She preferred that the entire area not be excavated all at one time. She asked if energy costs for dredging had been calculated with those figures. Mark Young, civil engineer, Cooper & Clark, said the cost of pumping the dredged slurry from the harbor to the dewatering pond was paid for in the cost of dredging; those coats were in appendix E-6 of the Cooper & Clark report --about 3c per kwh, at a 10 percent rate of inflation. Councilmember Fazzino asked if there were any way to predict percentage possibility of using the dragline system. He would like to know why dragline use would be necessary. Mr. Young said that people acquainted with tideland excavation seemed to think the scraper could handle the operation, and a dragline would be needed only in unexpected situations: perhaps 10 percent of the time. Councilmember Eyerly referred to the Cooper & Clark report of February 11 page 10, He asked for an estimate of the cost of importing topsoil versus excavating or dredging, in 1980 dollars, per cubic yard. He suggested to staff that Palo Alto's resources in both spoils and excavated topsoil might be used for resale. The Cooper & Clark report suggested a tic yard of topsoil cost $8. Robert Cooper replied that, if the City wished, the material could be dredged from the Yacht Harbor infinitely and sold. He thought quite a market t cuJ y a be generated. Councilmember Eyerly asked if ,Mr. Cooper thought ths excavated matsrial. from the ITT property old be salab' . m°. Cooper replied that there was considerable need for impermeable cover. _ 3 --year go Sseranyva a had paid $7 50 !-_�+i cubic yard r -� ,'.sail le a.vec� . rti year ago .rjr'•:.j •s � � i.sca �o ry y r o .ors i% v.w . �. 3 r.., '�o. ' T' ' ... material delivered. He thought that excavated to a two and one-half foot depth the ITT property old provide enough material to cover _100 acres of landfill; that would take care of Palo Alto, with none left over for sale. RECESS: Council messed from 9:40 to 9:56 p.m. Councilmember Witherspoon asked how the experiments in making topsoil out of dredgings nixed with cyst and'the like, had turned out. Er. White replied that in some soil rat xture 3 salt -flowering plants _had groan; quite a bit of leaching had to occur before : the salinity got low • 4 8 W/3/8t2 Corrected See Pg. 514 3/24/80 Corrected See Pg. 514 3/24/80 enough for plants to grow. Councilmember Witherspoon ;c!fed what revenues the county got for the yacht harbor --was it enough so that it might pay $48,000 annually for dredging? Mr. White said he thought revenues were less than $48,000 annually. Dredging costs had been based on having four dredgings a year. Councilmember Eyerly asked if there had been any estimate of cost for having an inlet to the marsh; hesaid there was concern about adequacy of tidal movement for flushing. He thought it would be devastating to excavate if a marsh were not created. It was important to get cover material, but there was also concern as to what was left behind where the material might be excavated from. Mr. White calculated costs at about one-half million dollars for tidal structures for 100 acres. Until the area was surveyed and the configuration of the marsh was determined it would not be known if a salt marsh could be created. To creat a salt marsh the level of the ground would have to be somewhat above the level of the Mayfield slough, and so the excavation would have to be held at two and one-half feet... -making deeper channels would mean the ground would be lower in some areas. A close study would have to be made of the marsh to know whether or not flushing adequate enough to forestall botulism could be achieved. Flushing action for a lagoon had been worked out mathematically, and flushing had worked with a physical model. Costs for that were not yet calculated. Councilmember Eyerly thought that $1 million difference in costs had not been s ►own . Ken Schreiber said that each of the alternatives "..,have a_significant degree of uncertainty." Costs could not be known until various steps in each method had been reached. Excavation during the rainy season, for example, would be considerably more expensive than excavation during the stammer. Risks were about equal for each alternative. Costs would be higher, about $1 million, for the dredging alternative. So far as the re -charge wells for the Santa Clara Water District-wete concerned the excavation method would not be harmful. Edward Freiberg, 726 Charleston Road, asked if the dump would in fact be filled to capacity in 1965. He did not want the City, with his taxes, to pay $1 million more to dredge the harbor just for the yacht club ors. He called it "...welfare for the well-to-do." David Allison, 271 Margarita Court. Los Altos, said he represented Yacht Club m ers and others interested in preserving the yacht harbor, and he out!ired the order of speakers =fry the yacht club._ Dr. Carl Ellerts p 'i40 Santa Cruz, Menlo Perk, said he was a meter of the Palo Alto Yacht Club. He said some people, elected officials, had for eight years made a concerted effort "...to destroy the harbor as it now exists." He did not know the political reasons for that, but he thought it was the thought that too much memey was sit for the benef i t -of too few people, _ H said 1 mill per tax dollar of county funds per year had been spent maintaining the harbor, with about $36,000 coming from berthing f . if more berths were permitted more money could be raised. Personal property taxes had also been paid. He noted the paradox of environmentalists permitting excavation+ when they had objected to destruction of marine fife from dredging. According to the Cooper & Clark report, he said* about 216,000 cubic yards of fitted cover soil sere to be excavated and the excavation was to be converted into a salt marsh. He doubted that a salt marsh could be created in fewer than 100 years. He cited figures in smart of his belief that $1 million would 489 3/3/80 not be saved by excavation, as opposed to dredging. He wondered what would happen to the docks if the harbor were permitted to silt up. He complained about the cost of studies such as the one by Cooper & Clark, which told Council nothing it had not known a year ago. Dan Peck, 680 Rhodes, said he represented citizens and the Palo Alto Yacht Club. The group had hired Carl W. Garbe, consulting engineer, to provide information on technical matters. He said that Dr. Ellertson had emphasized the adverse environmental impact of excavation. He questioned whether or not a marsh could be created —no other such existed in the Bay Area. He projected a transparency showing an alternative site for a dewatering pond noting that runoff would have various benefits and virtually no hazards. He listed the advantages of having movable and removable dredging equipment. About 15 acres on the dumpsite would be needed for this proposed dewatering pond, and described its structure and configuration, along with the method of processing spoils and decanted water. He thought the simplicity of the operation would cost much less than costs for dredging cited by Cooper & Clark; also, the plan he proposed could be easily put into action and would speed up recovery of topsoil for dump cover. His group recomended, he said, that Council approve the Cooper & Clark dredging plan, but change the site to that his group suggested, for the dewatering pond. John Welker, 19375 Greenwood Circle, Cupertino, stated that berthing fees provided somewhat over $39,000 per year. He thought berthing fees could be increased to pay for the dredging and thus sustain the harbor. He said boaters did not want a free ride. Katharine McCann, 738 Garland, asked that Council support staff recommendations. She thought $1 million in savings was worth working toward. She said she thought everybody wanted to preserve some of the baylands in their primitive condition. She thought that by permitting dredging an 'ecological disaster' was being perpetuated. R.J. Debss 3145 Flowers Lane, said the yacht harbor had been destroyed when San Francisquito Creek had been diverted, He thought the City needed every dime it could raise because the tax base had been severely affected by passage of Proposition 13, The school district needed help from the City. He thought the City should tax utilities, and increase the hotel/motel tax. Ke noted that the county had great expenses, one of which was welfare. He noted how few Palo Altans were concerned with the yacht harbor. For monetary reasons he favored adoption of the staff recommendation to excavate the ITT property. Joyce Leonard, 4107 Brlarwood Way, spoke on behalf of the American Association of University Women CAAUW). and she read a letter AAUW had senttoCounci10 a bers, which is on file at the City Clerk's office, giving reasons why the Ali favored the staff recommendation that the ITT property be excavated, thotigh AAIN deplored the 'inevitable' degradation of Palo Alto's environment. Robert Strena, 735 Ra ando, Los Altos, said he thought the yacht harbor --was a regional facility. He spoke of the 'bureaucratic barriers to dredging' cited by staff that evening, adding he thought that such barriers ' would s.. i ,i. a ... �..� W �i _ o r ' = r r method would,-extst-regardless Eli the method used to obtained dump cover. He maintained that the_twoel nts.of obtaining dun cover and dredging-the hater were not separate questions. He thought decisions should behandledby administrators who had been elected, rather than by staff who had been appointed. He held that the staff reccomendation was under -prepared. He emphaeized the regional _ nature of the yacht harbor. He thought the need for dredging and for sanitary landfill were yoked, Floc LaRiviere, 453 Tennessee Lane, said she represented the board of directors of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society. She praised the 'intelligent recommendation' of staff, and said that just the $1 Milian to be saved made choice of excavation desirable, to sey nothing of the complications inherent in the dredging proposal. She outlined the hazards of dredging. She welcomed the possibility of reestablishing salt marsh in the ITT area. She said the Audubon Society had a hydrological consultant, and could make his findings available to the City on water flow and the like, Corrected n- els aRcc 1"V. I Y 3/24/80 Councilor tuber Witherspoon expressed interest in why the Audubon Society was more interested in flora and fauna in the bay underwater mud than in perserving the ITT wildlife habitat. Ms. LaRiviere replied that the Audubon had been most interested in the burrowing owls on the ITT property, that lived behind the buildings on frontage road. The owls had left. Motor bikes had "pretty well destroyed" the ITT property. She no longer saw red -tail hawks on the ITT towers as she had formerly. She liked the idea of having "...a beautiful serpentined marsh area there." There had been one at Charleston slough. Mayor Henderson and Councilmember Witherspoon pointed out to Ms. LaRiviere that the proposal on dredging was that there be dredging once a year only, Jane Goldstein, 251 Tennyson Avenue, said she represented the Lague of Women Voters. She read from a letter the League had sent to Counci1members, which is on file at the City clerk's office, in which the League supported long-range planning for refuse disposal, and supported the Joint Powers Agency (JPA) to find solutions for that problem. She raised some questions about both the proposed excavation and the dredging, and asked that Council choose the option that is least costly and will permit maintenance of the ecological balance at the baylands. Barbara Silberling, 1421 Emerson Street, deplored both alternatives, and said she thought that which was least costly should be chosen. Walter Stromquist, 341 E. Thomas Drive, said he thought that how waste materials were disposed of was very important. He said he could not foresee any damage to the harbor from dredging. He thought it would be too bad if the City did not take into account _ the - fact that- the -yacht club ors paid quite a bit of honey to berth their boats. He thought that income would more than cancel the $1 million difference. He thought the county had an obligation to spend some money on the harbor. Alan Ferguson, 3491 Tins Drive, said he was a yacht club der. He referred to costs of pipes needed to make marshland at the ITT property that had not been mentioned. He held that dredging was cheaper. He challenged the validity of some cost figures, and said early closure of the dump o ld be very Lounciikemoer it Reim] said there had been - much discussion that evening on what should be done to meet the Regional Water Quality Control Board requirements for dump closure. Regardless of how cover material was obtained it would be expensive. Thatexpense would go to. Palo Alto residents in their utility bills. Staff studies led to the conclusion that ITT excavation would be cheaper than dredgingidewaterin9. Excavation afao less .aw�..ita�s...3 ..r.,Y =_.... �a_� .�_ t__ _ _.'s That w�+.. .e s �.ocia■ sashed. -eed gave else to fir tontingencie . That was desirable in view of the wish to close the dump earlier._ She weighed advantage and disadvantage of both options. NOTION: C.ounci lamer Renal moved, seconded by Levy, that Council adopt the staff recommendation and approve the concept of excavating porticos of the ITT property to obtain the impermeable cover material necessary to close the landfill, end direct staff to fileapplications for the necessary Bay Conservation Development Commission ('tcDC) and Corps of Engineers approvals and begin the process of hiring a consultant 4 9 1 3/3/110 to design the ITT excavation project. Vice Mayor Sher said the third plan Council had heard that night was the Garbe garden plan, yet he had heard staff say that Regional Water Quality Control Board would rot allow it. Why was that? Mr. Schreiber said questions dealing with the baylands did not permit simple answers. He had talked to the supervising engineer of the Water Quality Control Board and he had said the garden plan Mr. Garbe had put forth was technically feasible, but there was no precedent for the Regional Water Quality Control Board approving a pond on a landfill. Board approval would be necessary. As air. Garbe had said, about a three-foot impermeable seal would be needed beneath the pond level. The material would weigh so much it would cause cracking of the impermeable seal and also use of heavy equipment would cause the materials underneath to break apart the top material. Then water could seep in, and that would lead to leaching, which was not permissible in order to maintain water quality. Also, the engineer had thought the rock filter material for runoff from the pond would tend to clog and that would require either expensive repair or replacement. Robert Cooper said that within the past fifteen years his firm had tried to convince the Water Quality Control Board that ponds could be safely constructed on landfill, and all three times the Control Board had rejected the idea. Mr. Garbe had said that if a leak developed the silt would seal it was true only if a lame crack did not develop. Five days' retention time were needed for all sedimentary material in water to settle out; wth Garbe Garvey method water would flew continuously, and sedimentation would not settle out. Mr. Cooper cited other dredging problems, adding that he had only a brief time to review the Garbe report. Counci lmember Witherspoon asked if the $1 million difference in cost between dredging and excavation was from one cause, or an increase in all the factors, because it had seemed there was not that much difference between the two methods. Mr. Schreiber said the figures were "order -of -magnitude and not intended to be precise; there were risks of costs for either method becoming higher than estimated. Mr.. Cooper said the costs of percolation and the water inlet/outlet structures had not beer figured for the excavation method; that could be estixated at about $500,040 --that amount had been included for the dredging estimate, however. Costs had been calculated on how long the structures were to be in use, also, and the longer the use the higher the cost. Councilmember r r eripoon said that she naa colic r uded the Cooper A Clark report was the one she favored; she thought the Si million difference in cost -' . - -was sort of illusionary and could be a great deal more on either side of the'equation* as staff pointed out. She thought there were more unknowns in the proposed excavation plan. - She had been absorbed by the dragl ine vs. scraper disc3assion; fit 164, on page 4, pointed out thee -t% scraper wrailetnekt ha a swam lass= Aia-eTinge riaatatarin nrv.,;c hoeAima ofthenature of the flora underneath. Sir+e wondered how the scrapers they s could be used on the ITT excavation. She emphasized that costs of the floodgates had not been included, nor had the cost of importation of all the topsoil, at S9 per cubic yard, been included, and that would total about $4 million. Costs of the engineering feasibility study, at - about $70,000, and cost of soil conditioning also had not been. included. She grated that the funds were to come from the refuse funds. She would apt for the plan that was least environmentally damaging --she was appalled that 100 acres of upland marsh was proposed to be "destroyed." 4 2.2 3/3/80 Corrected See Pg. 514 3/24/80 The City had bought the property to be a park. All during excavation and hauling of topsoil the property would be a mess, even though a marsh would result. A discussion ensued with Mr. Cooper about water tables: the "pert" table occurred first, then a shallow aquifer beginning at a depth of about twenty-five feet --the water district was re -charging it. A deep aquifer occurred at a depth of about 150 feet. Councilmember Witherspoon said she doubted that the present EIR covered the matter of the proposed excavation. She said that one of the considerations that made her prefer the Cooper & Clark report was that the harbor would be kept. She did not support the present motion. Counci l rr Brenner asked about the soil cotes i ti on of the excavated soil compared to that of the dredged spoils. Mr. Cooper replied that both soils were adequately impermeable. Council r Brenner said she would support the motion. She thought there might be some flexibility in the Late of possible closure of the dump. Maey came up short on the $1 million difference, and Proposition 13 had made that a very significant amount, though dip fees and utilities would be raised. Councilmember Levy said he would like to hear Mr. Garte's response to Mr. Cooper on the acceptability of Mr. Gerbe's plan. Carl W. Care, consultant to the Palo Alto Yacht Club, said he thought the present cover on the landfill was impermeable --he said there was a pond on top of it at one place. He did not think the question of leachate from dredged spoils was realistic because the fine --grained materials carried by the dredged slurry were borne into the soil almost immediately and prevented further filtration. That had been demonstrated to the Army when it was placing dredged spoils on top of sandfill; it had clogged and prevented filtration within a few minutes. He did not think amajor crack would develop from to of�,,trucks being driven over the material. �His_fi . _. intended too j_4 4ter_.and.compact.th materials very quickly. His firm was involved in a project at Redwood Shores at present where they were using that method. Water that was decanted from the material was to be allowed to flow over a rock cascade, and that forestalled clogging; as with a waterfall the water was aerated on its way back to a slough. He said water ran out of the slurry in about two hours; the water that passed over the weir on its way back to the bay was clear and tested out with very ill amount of sedimentation. Vice Mayor Sher ascertained that Reid Shores was built atop bay mud -- he added that the Water Quality Control Board just would not approve the plan Hr. Garbe proposed for Palo Alto Larry White said he had eked with the Public Works Department at Redwood City and had learned that the dredging operation had experienced mercy breakdowns and that there had been sone weir failure -was there a reason? Nr. Garbe replied that the problem lacy with the dredge itself --it was an eight -inch dredge; there wos no problem with leachate or the effluent rater. Since the weir had been redesigned it had pumped satisfactorily for three months. Councilmember Levy said that in July of 1979 he had voted to have the excavation method explored to see if it old be less costly. He thought it was clear that it was less expensive. Staff had indicated that the method might be more reliable too. There might be alternative dredging methods that scald permit tie-e-year-drediring, and that al ernati ve was worth studying. He assessed the possibilities of the plans now before Council, saying he approved the excavation method now. If dredging were as cheap as excavation he would favor it since the harbor provided a service to the community. He wondered if those who wanted the harbor would be amenable to taxing themselves to make up the $1 million difference; if they would he would let them pay the difference and keep the harbor open. He suggested that it might be possible to take the present dredged spoils from Yacht Harbor Point and using them as cover material, and dredge the harbor one more time, That would buy the City three or four more years to explcre ways to retain the harbor and close the dump. But at present he was interested in excavation. Mr. White said that if there was to be excavation it should be at the low end of the ITT property that lay close to the Municipal Service Center; it was farthest from the Harbor. Otherwise the property would have to be dewatered as excavation occurred. Some access to tidal exchange would be needed. Vice Mayor Sher said he had had the concerns they were speaking of now at the time the Comprehensive Plan had been adopted. He did not particul favor the excavation method either, but he was concerned about three - times -a -year dredging, particularly since the county would not ass's any of the expense; he did not want to go against staff recommendation from a financial point of view, and he would support it. He would be open to another one or two harbor dredgings, probably of the clamshell variety, particularly if a market could be found for those spoils. Councilmember Fazzino said he would like to give the same scrutiny to the ITT excavation proposal as had been given to harbor dredging. He said he did not have real confidence in the figures that led to the $1 million difference. He thought also that the excavation method would give rise to other costs. He was worried that the yacht harbor might be closed, and he would not mind keeping it open as long as the dredged spoils served a purpose. He thought more analysis of the ITT excavation proposal was needed. AMENDMENT: Counciimember Eyerly roved, seconded by Fazzino, that Council request staff to report on 1 ) the economics of the various dredging methods for the yacht harbor; 2) the viability of selling dredged spoils; 3) relation of such a project to the excavation of the ITT property; and 4) the impact of a one-time immediate dredging by clamshell -type method. Councilme n^ F,er1y said he thought his amendment directly related to excavation of. the ITT property, dependent upon where dewatering ponds ;sight be placed. He did not want to close off the possibility of retaining the yacht harbor, or the assets that might be in the mud. Mayor Henderson said he had wanted to close the dump early, and also to retain the yacht he r, end keep each project separate from the other, He did not think development of topsoil from spoils was achievable. He did not want dredging three times a year. The Garvey _proposal had been analyzed and rejected by both consultants and staff. 'As a der of the Regional Water Control Board I have every reason to believe that a three-fopoa�ty.y. i er rious}/ylevel of s{oi}l] would be required as a base for .._ _ the drying area.'. Sailors had'_ told him that- the southern end - o8 the - bey v . 45.6. 1R=� had marginal sailing conditions, but even so he wishedtoretain the harbor, at least fora few more years. With those tights he had intended to move that Council direct staff to study and report on the possibility of one more dredging by the county, with disposal of spoils on Yacht Harbor Point for later use as dam+ cover, and a report of dredging and subsequent sale of the spoils. Councilmember Brenner said that in the interest of keeping closure of the dead and harbor dredging serrate she thought it would be good to separate the two motions. Corrected See Pg. 514 3/24/80 4a rected See F. 514 3/24/80 MOTION PASSED: The main motion, that Council adopt the staff recommendation that the concept of excavating portions of the ITT property to obtain the impermeab'ie cover material necessary to close the landfill, and direct staff to file applications for the necessary Bay Conservation Development Commission (BCDC) and Corps of Engineers approvals and begin the process of hiring a consultant to design the ITT excavation project, passed on the following vote: AYES: Brenner, Fletcher, Henderson, Levy, Remit Sher NOES: Eyerly, Fazzino, Witherspoon Vice Mayor Sher asked if Councilmember Eyerly's third point did not refer to the necessity for dewatering ponds. Councilmember Eyerly said that his third point suggested that if excavation could not take place without the necessity of dewatering ponds he wanted staff to let Council know where such ponds might be located. At the request of Councilmeeber Renzel, Mayor Henderson said that the motion would be divided into four parts, MOTION RESTATED: Councilmember Eyerly moved, seconded by Fazzino, staff to report on: 1. Economics of various dredging methods of yacht harbor; 2. Viability of selling dredging spoils; 3. Necessity and location of dewatering ponds; 4. Impact of one-time dredging by clam shell or similar type dredging. 1 Councilmember Brenner noted that the bay front trail ran through the ITT property and should be part of the design study related to excavation. Mr. White said that it was to be part of the consideration. If the trail went along the periphery it would not conflict with excavation. Funds for construction of the trail would by _ needed, Kr. Zaner said that Council seemed to think that a harbor dredging could be done quickly, whereas the process was lengthy. "It might be done next year at the very earliest -if then." FIRST PART OF NOTION PASSES: The first part of the motion, that staff report to Council on the economics of the various dredging methods for the yacht harbor, passed on a unanimous vote. SECOND PART OF MOTION PASSED: The second mart of the eotion, that staff ._�. . en the is+bility `� dredging spoils, ��ctr� to Council en v - t�v �eliing e{ra� passed in the following vote: AYES: Bremner, Eyerly, Fazzino, Fletcher, Henderson, Levy, Sher, Witherspoon NOES: Renzel THIRD PART Of NOTION PASSED: The third part of the motion, that staff report on necessity and lotion of dewatering ponds passed on the following vote: AYES: ' i3ren r, Eyerly, Fazzino„ Fletcher, Levy, Witherspoon NOES: Henderson, Renzel , Sher 495 3/3/80_ FOURTH PART OF MOTION PASSED: The report to Council on the impact of clamshell -type method, passed on a fourth part of the motion that staff a one-time immediate dredging by unanimous vote. Councilmember Levy praised the quality of staff work and independence of judgement. Councilmember Levy left the meeting at 12:00 midnight, and did not return. RE'* EST OF COUNCK .MEMBER BRENNER XITIMERSIErtr AI l o stritrf Councilmember Brenner referred to the letter from Susanne Wilson, president of ABAG. Staff's report on the letter and proposed resolution left the political decision up to Council. The ABAG packet included the memorandum of understanding among the area governments, Bay Area Pollution Control District, and Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) aimed at' drawing up an environmental management plan. Also enclosed was a regional newsletter, the Bay Area Monitor, with an interview of someone from the Pollution Control office. A speaker she had heard had said, "ABAG only moves forward when threatened." Did Palo Alto, then, want to put pressure on ABAG to do a better job? Would the state perhaps give better control over air quality? She noted the 'significant failings" of both ABAG and state. ABAG responded to local issues; the state responded to the wishes of Southern California --there were more voters down there. What was the best existing governmental institution to help Palo Alto attein the goal of longterm reduction of air pollution? ABAG was composed of a member of each Board of Supervisors and a councilmember from each city who was directly responsible to his/her city; ABAG was voluntary and funneled all federal funds that came to the bay area. Therein lay its power and its responsibility. She did not think that responsibility should be de -fused. MOTION: Councilmember Brenner intr sles:athe following -resolution - -_ _ and atioved, seconded by Fletcher, that Council adopt it with a third resolve "Be it further resolved that within the annual review of the enviroomental management plan this year ABAG should address concerns of the Bay. Area Quality Management District which relate to methods of cvhtrel ing environmental pollution and that transportation issues be given more serious consideration as well." RESQUJ lei 5774 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE C i' PALO Aa.TO OPPOSING ANY AGE TO THE AIR QUALITY PLANNING DESIGNATION 1H THE BAS! AKA." Mayor Henderson observed that elected officials had perhaps more tendency to back down from quality standards --state boards were concerned about setting and maintaining standards. He would support the motion, however. MOTION PASSED: The motion passed on a unanimous vote, Councilmember levy absent. RE ST OF COUNCILMEN E'YERLY 980 Councilmember Eyerly noted that in the report on Surplus School Sites, staff appeared to be leaning toward a. utility users' tax and the telephone 496 3/3/80 for new revenue. He thought Council needed more information on that idea. MOTION: Councilmemier Eyerly moved, seconded by Fazzino, that Council direct staff to report on the utility users' tax as it related to a possible tax on telephone usage, first from the standpoint of its impact on major users, and second, the percentage of estimated total revenue which it might generate. The motion passed on a unanimous vote, Councllmember Levy absent. ADJOURRMENT MOTION: Councilmember Renzel moved, seconded by Witherspoon, that Council adjourn. Council adjourned at 12:30 a.m. 1