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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10241955City Hall, Palo Alto, California October 24, 1955 The Council of "the City of Palo Alto met in regular session on this date.at--7.30.P.M. with Mayor -Porter preffiiding.` Roll call as follows. s Present." Bishop, Byxbee, Corcoran, Cresap, Cuasminge, Davie, Drysdale, Giffin, Marshall, Mitchell, Porter, -Rodgers,:Ruppenthal, Simpson. Abe -Intl Navis The.aetnutee of October 10, 1955, were approved. Letters from Chamber of Commerce (Bay Lands) The';Couneil acknowledged receipt of a letter from the Chamberol.Comerce transmitting a statement of policy adopted by -their -Board of°Directors, recommending that the:California State Park*Commission acquire the bay lands opposite Palo Alto as a State.Pa.k`in the 5 -year Master"Plan for Beaches and Parka, and another,letter from'the Chamber of Commerce transmuting a state- ment of ;policy which "recommended that the City of Palo Alto make a detailed-s.urvey-to'determine the best uses of the bay lands east of the Bayshore iighway between the:present city -owned lands and the county line. Letter"from li.'ti. Roberts (Street Trees) A letter .was received from H. V. Roberts, 2326 Columbia Street, requesting information for the College Terrace group rela- tive to the City's policy regarding street trees. The Mayor advised that the question of policy regarding maintenance and removal of street trees is now being given further consideration by Committee No. 1. Mr. Roberts'` letter was referred bathe staff for reply. Request of Ellin Jacobs for Refund of Inspection Fees A letter was received from Ellis L. Jacobs, architect, requesting reimbursement of special masonry inspection fees and masonry testa in :the sum of .$145.50 which were required in error by the Building Inspector in connection with the construction of store buildings" at 542-552, University Avenue. A. report was submitted by the City Attorney on his in- vestigation of the'aeatter, advising that it has long been es- tablished that the,granting,•of,building permits and inspection of. construction in connection with enforcement of the building regula- tions is a governmental function, and that a municipality is not liable for the carelessness of its officers or employees in the enforcement of such regulations. He therefore recommended that the claim be denied. During"the discussion which followed, the -City Attorney stated further that.there:1s no statute governing the reimbursement of claims in -such cases as -this; that there is no liability on the part ot the City for the errors of -its employees in the performance of a governmental function; sand the City can not legally pay.the: , clam as it ;would ;be - li misuse of public funds. request. Mr.. Jacobs addressed the Council in support of his It was moved by-Cresap, seconded by Cummings, that the matter be referred to Committee No. 3 to find out if there is any possible remedy in this situation. The motion was carried by the rol�sn+ing�v9 j��pi3 ; ca,�ll s 30fi Ayes: Byxbee, !Corcoran,- Cresap, Cummings, Davis, Giffin, Porter, Aodgere Ruppenthal. Noes: Bishop , Drysdale, Marshall, Mitchell, Simpson. Letter from -Peninsula Builders Exchange A letter was received from the Peninsula Builders Exchange concerning the increasing useof plywood for interior wall. finishes and the hazard which existswhen the remainder of the frame construction is not fire protected by fire-resistant materials, and. recommended that buildings which utilize plywood interior -wall finishes, be required to have such wall finish applied over either sheetrock or plaster. This was referred to Committee No. 1 to consider in connection with the Building Code. LibraryPrerogram A. communication 'WWI ,received from the Palo Alto Branch, American Association of ilnivereity Women, urging the Council to carry out the recommendations of the Citizens' Library Committee. A petition was received, with approximately 1400 signatures, requesting the Council to consider the construction of a complete general library located in and serving the area between San Antonio Road and Colorado Avenue. The letter and petition were referred to Committee No. 2 which has the Library program under study. Letter from Senior Recreation Club The- Counci-I- received and filed a letter from the Senior Recreation' Club expressing; appreciation for the use of the South Palo Alto Library=rooms>and for the opportunities given to the. members to enjoy and participate in the activities of the Club under the,auepiees of the Palo. Alto..Recreation Department. (Councilman Nevis came at this time, 7:40 P.M., and was present for the rest of the meeting.) Mountain View-Palo'Alto Boundary - Bay Annexation A report was made by the City, Manager on recent negotia- tions with the:,City of Mountain View in which the boundary lines. for annexations extending. into the Bay were agreed upon. It was moved by Mitchell, seconded by Davis, and carried that the City Manager and City Attorney start proceedings to annex to the City ot Palo Alto, under the uninhabited Territory Act, the area between`, the Palo Alto Yacht Harbor and the Alameda County Linefrom. the San Mateo County Line to. the proposed Mountain View boundary'line Hearings by Joint Inter.1a Committee on Transportation Problems: The City. -Manager reported. that he had received a communica- tion regarding hearings to be held by the Joint Interim Commitee on Transportation Problems throughout: the State for'the purpose of obtaining information- -from local 'governments pertaining to street and highway .needs„ urging,citiee:to. present their views concerning changes, additions and deletions. relating, to the State Highway system and ' regarding gas tax ;:expenditures The City Manager advised that he wl.ehed to bring this'to'the attention of the Council to find out 'whether the CounciIis interested in having representa- tion at -any hearing echeduled'for>this area. } 307 On motion of. Bishop and Mitchell, the City Manager was in -1 atructed to communicate: with the Joint Interim Committeeon Transportation ;Problems 'and.,inform the committee of any appropriate matters .asfar `as the City :is concerned, and prepare information for such hearings as the city may participate in. Rodgers voted No on the .motion. Electric The City Manager reviewed negotiations with the Pacific ass & Electric Company.ifor a new electric contract, and presented a proposed seven-year_ contract with the recommendation that the Council authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to sign the contract for the City, He advised that this contract is acceptable to the Pacific Gas & alectric'Coiepany only if all ten cities in the Northern ,California Municipal Electric Association approve it. On motion of Mitchell and Cummings, the Mayor and City Clerk were authorized to sign the contract in behalf of the City. Golf Course Maditieation of Table of Or anization The City Manager called attention to the table of organizal tion for the. regular..positions at the Palo Alto Golf Course as ;established in the 1955.56 budget, advising that as more experience has been gained, it hasbeen found that one too many groundskeepers was requested:,and one too few gardeners. He requested that the table of organization be modified to include 5 groundskeepers and :four gardeners, rather than`6 groundskeepers and 3 gardeners as at present. On motion of Marshall and Drysdale, these changes in 'classification were approved:, Transfer to Hospital Construction Fund The City Manager :transmitted a request from the Controller for a transfer of 450,000.00 from the Hospital Improvement Fund to. the Hospital Construction Fund to finance the architect's bills until the Hospital .bonds, are sold, the money to be returned to the Hospital. Improvement Fund upon the sale of the bonds. On. mot#.on ot" Simpson and Marshall, this transfer of funds. was authorized by unanimous. vote on roll call. Amendment to Improvement- Procedure Code (Repeal of Bond Plan E) A report was, received from Committee No. 3 recommending that the useofE;Bonds be discontinued after the three parking pro- jects.now under consid•ration%(52-13, 52-14 and 55-5) are completed. The committee recommended, ' by this action, that an ordinance repeal- ing Part 6:of Article IV of .the Palo Alto Improvement Procedure Code regarding'Bond Plan E be adopted, with the provision that the ordinance shall; not apply to the three parking projects. A",proposed ordinance amending the Palo Alto Improvement Procedure Code relating to Supplemental Remedies, repeating Part 6, Article,, IV, was introduced, and a motion was made by Mitchell, seconded by Rodgers, that the ordinance be accepted for first reading. It was explained that Committee No. 3 met with bond experts on this question and agreed to recommend the elimination of E. bonds in the future, with the thought that this action would improve the City's credit rating and result in a better interest .rate on the hospital bomb After discussion, the motion to accept the ordinance for ;first reading was carried. 308 Hospital Bonds A report was received from, Committee No. 3 recommending that prompt stops be taken tofsell $2,:000,000 of the Hospital Bonds at an early date, and that the money be invested in short term government securities until it is needed. On motion of Mitchell and Drysdale, the recommendation was adopted and the City Manager and City Attorney were instructed to proceed at one* to take the neeeeeary°steps leading to the sale of these:' bonds, asking for bids, eh callable bonds as well as on term bonds. Amendment to Administrative Code (Committee :Meetin s A report', was received from -Committee No. 3 referring to the Council a proposed ordinance aending Section 111 of the Administrative Code relative to Committee Meetings, with the state - sent that a motion: in the committee to recommend the adoption of the ordinance received -:`a divided vote 3-3. The proposed ordinance provides that all meetings of standing committees and of the Council as a committee of the whole shall be open and public, provided that the public' may excluded from meetings at which personnel problems and, contract negotiations are to be discussed. A motion was made by Mitchell, seconded by Rodgers, that the proposed ordinance amending Section 111 of the Administrative Code be accepted for first reading. Councilman Simpson read a statement in which he opposed open, committee meetings. Discussion followed, in which Councilman Ruppenthal stated that he could see no harm in open committee meetings, Councilman Mavis said he was not in favor of open meet- ings as proposed and thought the present procedure should be continued, and Councilwoman Corcoran favored open meetings and also asked that council members have an opportunity to get together on occasion for discussion of long range policies. The motion to accept the proposed ordinance for first reading was carried by the following vote on roll call: Ayes: Bishop, Bisbee, Corcoran, Cresap, Cummings, Davis, Giffin, Marshall, Rodgers, Ruppenthal. Noea: Drysdale, Mitchell, Nevis, Porter, Simpson. (The Council took a recess at this time, 8:50 P.M., and reconvened at 9:05 P.M.) It was moved by Simpson, seconded and carried that Committee No. 3 be asked `to -make a study and recommendation on amendments to the Administrative Code to eliminate the present standing committees of the Council (Committees No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3) and to provide that the Council, in addition to its regular meetings on the second and fourth Mondays of each month, meet on call in regular sessions on the first and third Mondays of the month. Protest -of Mrs. Duff to Electric `Rate Increase A report was received from Committee No. 3 advising' that it has considered the protest of Mrs. C. S. Duff to the increase in electric rates applied to ele_ctricity:`used from July 22nd to August 23rd,;1955,.and finds that the Controller's'action in billing on the new rate complies with Council direction. The committee recommended that the matter be dropped. On motion of Mitchell and Drysdale, the committee's report was accepted. Cancellation Agreement., San Francisco Water Department A report was submitted by Committee No. 3 recommending that the Mayor and City Clerk be authorized to sign a cancellation agreement with the San Francisco Water Department, cancelling the contract entered into. on. December 13, 1937 for payment by the City of a pro rata share of a water line, with the understanding that meter readings for water'deliveriee from the "Palo Alto Pipe Line" shall continue to be combined, into one reading for the purpose of applying any applicable schedule of rates. It was moved by Mitchell, seconded and carried that the Mayor and City Clerk be authorized to sign this agreement in behalf of the City. ;SupplementalAgreement; Palo Alto Gardens Sewer Maintenance District Committee No. 3 recommended approval and execution of an agreement to persit,s:ewer connections in the area designated as "Area B" on map attached to agreement with the. Palo Alto Gardens Sewer Maintenance District, at $100.00 per connection and $1.25 per month service charge, the; agreement to stipulate that such sewer connections shall befor residential use only and that reimburse - went shall come from San Mateo County. On motion of Rodgers and Cummings, the Mayor and City Clerk were authorized to sign a supplemental agreement with the Palo Alto Gardens Sewer Maintenance District to carry out the recommendations of Committee No. 3. Transfer to Golf Course Account A report wae received from Committee No. 3 recommending the transfer of $160140.00 from the Special Projects Fund to Account 178F to cover additional costs relating to the construction of the golf course. On motion of Mitchell, duly seconded, this transfer of funds was =authorized by unanimous vote on roll call. Change :of District, 711" ,El Camino Real A report_was-received from the Planning Commission advising that it held a..,public hearing on the application of Philip Lansdale for change of district at 711 El Camino Real from C -3:S to M-1, and recommends that :;the `.application be approved and that an ordinance providing .for. the change of district be adopted. A proposed ordinance rezoning the property at 711 El Caminl) Real from C -3.S to M-1;;was; accepted for first reading. Amendment toZoning Ordinance (A -R District) A report was submitted by the Planning Commission re- comsaending theta; new zone- district be added to the Zoning Ordinance tobe known as the; Administrative -Research (A -R.) District, whose purpose would be to. provide for a limited number of administrative and research uses on- relatively large sites within the City: of Palo Alto. A proposed ordinance amending the Zoning Ordinance by the addition ot- Article` ;.9A Administrative -Research District ;Regulations, was accepted:for first reading and referred to Committee No. _'1 Amendment .to; Zoning Ordinance ((Sec, 9.03b)- . A report.: was received from the Planning Commission re- commending'that ,Section 9.03° (b) of the Zoning Ordinance be amended to allow hotels`'and- motelsmito be, located in the R-4 district with a use-- permit:. when such property is'contiguous to property in a C-2 district, as:well as when it°is.contiguous to property in the C-3, M-1 or J-2'districts as permitted at present. A motion was' made' by:Ruppenthal that a proposed ordinance'. amending Section 9.03 (b,).of the Zoning Ordinance as recommended be referred to Committee No..1 without first reading. There was no second to this motion. It was then moved by Byxbee, seconded and carried, that the proposed ordinance be;aceepted`for first reading and referred' to Committee No. 1. R- -P - District= -Uses The`Planning C,omuission ;reported that it has considered the request of 'the': Council 'regarding the establishment of an R -3-P District with nse• permits "required.:.•.The Commission recommended that no.change be made in the'R-3-P :District regulations, advising that it, feels that uses allowed in the.R=-3-P District would not be detrimental to adjacentproperties, if the area is suitable for R -3-P . zoning in the first instance. On motion of Marshall and Rodgers, the report was accepted. Lot Division A report was: received froaa the Planning Commission re- commending that~ -the ,denial ' of, a lot division map of portion of Lot 1, Block 6, --Subdivision '2No 5 . of , the': Seale. Tract, into four lots, be upheld. At the requeetHof the'applicant, this matter was withdrawn and referred back to,the,,Pienning,.Comssission. Abandonment of 4.asesaent . •Tract 1597, Meadowpark Unit No. 3 ResolutionNo. 2666 c.f Intention to abandon portion of public utilities -easement lying within the boundaries of Lots 22 and 23, Block 1, Tract No 1597-, Meadoepark Unit No. 3, was introduced, and on"'®otion of Rodgers, duly seconded, was adopted by unanimous - votes on . roll call The. resolution provides for a hearing to beheld on•the-'latter on November 14, 1955. Project ;-&.,Street.Lightin&Reconstruction, District 111 Resolution:No..2667 of Preliminary Determination, Street Lighting Reconstruction,-Dietrict•'XII Project 54-8, was introduced, and on-motion7of Simpson and. Bishop, was adopted by unanimous vote on roll call. ,This resolution -provides for hearing to be held on November 1t, 1955. Amendment to Fire Zone Map. Ordinance -No,: 1649, amending the Fire Zone Map to include the establishment of fire zones in Embarcadero-Wildwood Annexation area, was given second reading, and on motion of Marshall and Simpson, was adopted by unanimous vote on roll call. 311 Setback Lines, Tract No . 1811& Greendell Ordinance No. 1650, amending Ordinance No. 1321, es- tablishing setback- lines within Tract No. 1611, areendell Sub- ' division, was given econd reading, and on motion of Marshall and Siapeon, was adopted by unanimous, v,oteon roll call. Amendment to Zoning Ordinance (Sec. 19.02) Ordinance No. 1651, amending Section 19.02 of the Zoning Ordinance, was given second reading, and on motion of Marshall and Simpson, was adoptedby unanimous vote on roll call. Amendment to Zoning Ordinance (Sec. 21A.02) Ordinance No. 1652, amending Section 21A.02 of the -Zoning Ordinance, was given second reading, and on motion of Marshall and Simpson, was adopted, by unanimous vote on roll call. Uniform Plumbing Code A proposed ordinance adopting the Uniform Plumbing Code was accepted for first reading and referred to Committee No. 1. Hearings on Building and Plumbing Codes On motion of Mitchell and Rodgers, public hearings on the Uniform Building Code and on the Uniform Plumbing Code were set for December 12, 1955, and the Mayor was authorized to appoint a iipecial committee to review the codes in conjunction with Committee No. 1. Weed Abatement Resolution No. 2668, declaring weeds to be a nuisance, and setting hearing on the proposed abatement of weeds for November 14, 1955, was introduced and passed by unanimous vote on roll call. Clain for Damages (Lavini A report was received from the City Attorney on the claim filed by :Paul;, N. McCloskey, Jr. in, behalf of Michael O'Hara: Lavin, in the sum of *3,000.00 for damages suffered as a result of an alleged false arrest on July 28, 1955. The City Attorney advised that it has long been established that a municipality cannot be held in damages for the torts of its officers acting in a govern- mental capacity,:, and he therefore recommended that the claim be denied. • On motion of Simpson and Byxbee, the City Attorney's recommendation was accepted and the claim denied. There being no further business to come before the Council ,at this time, the meeting was declared adjourned at 9:30 P.M.