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HomeMy WebLinkAbout021119748 C11Y COUNCIL MINUTES PP 0 (MO February 11, 1974 The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this date at 7:30 p.m. in a regular meeting with Mayor Comstock presiding. Present: Absent: Beahrs, Clay, Comstock Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher Berwald, Norton Regular Council Meeti.n6 of February 19 Cancelled MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that the regular City Council meeting of Tuesday, February 19, be cancelled. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Minutes of Jars°uar 28 Continued MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Henderson, that consideration of the minutes of January 28, 1974, be continued for one week. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Proposed Amendment to Agreement 12876 -- Sewage Transportation Treatment and Di posal, Los Altos Hills CMR:1 4:4, 171:4) MOTION: Mayor Comstock coved, seconded by Pearson, that Item 19 on the agenda, Proposed Amendment to Agreement #2876 --Sewage Transportation, Treatment and Disposal, Los Altos Hills, be considered out of order for the purpose of continuance. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that the Proposed Amendment to Agreement 12876 be continued. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. aplicatis;in of James C. Sater for Prezonin4 4102 El Camino Real MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Beahrs that Item 11 on the agenda, the Planning Commission recommendation to deny the application 1 3 9 2/11/74 of James C. Sater for prezoning of property known as 4102 El Camino Real to establish C-3 upon annexation, be considered out of order for the purpose of referral to the Planning Commission. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Mayor Comstock noted that Council had received a letter dated 2/1/74 from Hawley D. Smith, agent for Mr. Sater, requesting that the applica- tion be continued in order to change it to s F -C application considered and reviewed by the Planning Commission and Architectural Review Board. MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Beahrs, that the application of James C. Sater for prezoning of property at 4102 El Camino Real be referred to the Planning Commission. The motion passed an a.unanimous vote. Retirement of Gecr e Hood., Jr. (CMR:140:4) MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, eeconded by Pearson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4872 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO GEORGE HOOD, JR. UPON HIS RETIREMENT" City Manager George Sipel stated that he felt quite humble in intro- ducing this ::latter because of Mr. Hood's long service to the city, and that in fact Mr. Hood began his service to the city three years before he was born. He added that Mr. Hood was a unique person who liked to do a certain thing, and he intends to keep doing it by opening a nursery in Placerville, California, where he owns property. 1-te re- ported that Mx. Hood carne to the city thirty-eight and one-half years ago and for many years worked as the city's nurseryman, becoming a Park Division Supervisor in 1955. Palo Alto is a city of trees, and Mr. Hcod is really Mr. Palo Alto Trees. The resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. Mayor Comstock presented a copy of the Resolution to Mr. Hood. Mr. Hood then commented that he was born in Palo Alto, and in his opinion it is a great city by whatevermeans greatneas is measured and that part of that greatness is due to the people who came before, such as Dale Bixby and Pete Anderson, Winifred ,Kidd and John Linder -- one of the greatest Park Superintendents that any city ever had; and part of it is due to those people who are here today serving the city. Retirement of Isabella Mauzano (CMR:141:4) MOTION: Mayer Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4873 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO ISABELO MANZANO UPON H1S RETIREMENT" 1 4 0 2/11/74 Mr. Sipel stated that Mr. Manzar_o's contribution to the city has been very important. Mr. Manzaao has been a Parks Department Grounds Keeper for seventeen and.one-half years and has been involved in maintaining such facilities as the lawn bowling_.green, worsting at the Community Center, and has been involved in maintaining ",leanor Park, Cogswell Plaza, and .downtown parking_ lots... Mr...Sipel noted that Mr. Manzano t s plans upon retirement will include some gardening. The resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. Mr. Manzano accepted his award and stated that he could say he was glad to be retiring, but also that he was sorry because he knew he would miss many good friends. Youth Advisory Council - Sarvice Acknowledgements (CMR:165:4) MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolutions and moved, seconded by Pearson, their adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4874 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO FXPRESSI.NG APPRECIATION TO DAN SPITZER FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE". RESOLUTION NO. 4875 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO GLENNE MC ELHINNEY FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE" RESOLUTION P0. 4876 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO DANA BERGEN FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE" RESOLUTION NO. 4877 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO BROOK MILLIGAN FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE" RESOLUTION NO. 4878 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO JOM VIAN FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE" Councilman Henderson stated that he served with all five of these people for six months as liaison to the Youth Advisory Council and that they were terrific people to work with, and that he enjoyed watching them operate at the YAC meetings. Councilman Henderson wished them all success in their future projects. The resolutions were adopted on a unanimous vote. r'ublic Hearin Santa Clara Count v Iiousi A;•thoritv Cooperation Free eent with the Cit for Section 23 aged s ousip P back pro ram CMR:1 2:4) �Nr..i.nr .r ewer mow+' Mayor Comstock announced that this is the time and place any and all persons wishing to be heard as to whether a cooperation agreement with the Housing Authority of Santa Clara County should be entered into. 1 4 1 2/11/74 City Clerk Tanner.noted for the record that the Clerk has filed affidavits of publication and pasting af_natic.e of this hearing. Mr. Mike Grigoni, Assistant Planning Director, stated that Council mem- bers had the Planning Departments Report and proposed agreement and that he would be willing to answer any questions that Council may have. Mayor Comstock asked if anyone present wished to be heard on the matter. Janet Owens, 863 Moreno, spoke for Midpeninsula Citizens fer Fair Housing. She said that her organ cation has followed with great interest the development of the piggyback program for Palo Alto, and.that they are pleased that an agreement has been developed •whibh Will -finally enable a number of loweinco+ne Palo Alto residents to receive the housing assist- ance which they need. She added that as noted in the report, the piggyback program affords an excellent opportunity to scatter subsidized units throughout the city to provide a balance between aid to families and the elderly, and to provide that aid with a minimum of city subsidy. Mrs. Owens said that piggyback makes possible fuller ese of Housing Authority funds and permits the city to help local people directly. The agreement under consideration tonight finalizes the commitment made in the funding ordinance. She said that members of MCFH look forward to watching a successful program in operation. Mayor Comstock declared the hearing closed. Mayor Comstock stated that the Chair would entertain a motion to adopt the resolution before Council approving tha Cooperation Agreement with the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Clara and authorizing the Mayor to sign the same. MOTION: Councilman Henderson introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Comstock, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4879 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA" and. finds that this project will have no significant environ- mental impact. Councilman Clay spoke about the Housing Corporation's involvement in the agreement. He noted the report states that the Housing Corporation would be a partner, and he wanted to know how that might work. Mr. Grigoni replied that in discussions between Mr. Burns, Mr. Duckstad, President of the Housing Corporation, and himself, while developing the proposed agreement, discussed the potential for including the Housing('Cor- poration to assist the staff and city in evaluating this program peri- odically. They agreed at tat time that it was not necessary to write this into the agreement between' the, fty- and the Housing' Authority that in fact the contract between the city and the Housing Corporation in- cluded provisions for this kind of assistance. Councilman Clay stated that his other question had to do with the Right to Suspend or Terminate, Page 4, Number 6. If the city terminates, then it is responsible for providing financial assistance for all those leases that have been entered into attthat time. If the Housing Authority terminates, we do not have that same wording. He asked what would happen 142 2/11/74 if the funds of the Housing. Aathority were to be terminated a year from today. Mr. Grigoni said he assumed that the Housing Authority would be bound by its leases with the owners and that the federal government would be bound to continue sufficient funding to take care of those leases. Mr. John Burns, Executive Director, Santa Clara County Housing Authority, explained that the Authority could not put together a lease with an owner unless federal. funds. wYould be available for the length .of. that lease.. . Councilslan Clay questioned then whether suf.fieient funds would. be allocated to cover any ?.easesthat would be. entered into Councilman Beahrs noted that when this program was first advanced by Councilwoman Seman,_ahe observed that there were some 2,500 people in Palo Alto.who would qualify for this.type of assistance. He said his criticism is that this is a program.tha.t he feels should be funded by a broader --based governmental agency. He further. stated that he was concerned .about the element of tokenism and .that he felt Council was proclaiming to the community that it was daiag.a great.job and that he felt this was false advertising. He asked bow many people would be served by this program, how they would be qualified, and .how much the city would be paying out per person. He said that $15,000 per year was peanuts.and he didn't feel that would do any good. He continued that in a sense this was jest an exercise and may be justifiable on an experimental basis; but that if the Council were going to proclaim that they were good guys on the basis of this performance, he considered that a sad situation. Mr. Crigoni replied that estimates are that fifteen to twenty-five families or individual households could he served per year by this program. In terms of qualifying, he said there are specific federal guidelines under which the Housing Authority operates with regard to income. In the contract two qualitative admission criteria were added - that the program give preference to Palo Alto residents or to people who live within Palo Alto. He said that the amount of Palo Alto subsidy would be in the neighborhood of twenty to forty dollars per month per family. Councilman Sher asked about the second point on the staff report con- cerning the prohibition of leasing units in city -assisted projects and assumed this referred to things like the Lytton School Project. The second thing he wanted to mention was the low/moderate units which are built under Resolution 4725. Mr. Grigoni replied that Councilman Sher was correct in his assumption. He said a proviso was put in the contract that the Authority could not lease in projects that are already assisted in some way. What is being discussed is a city subsidy on top of a federal subsidy for a low-income program. He added that if the Authority were to lease all of its units under piggyback, in a federally assisted project for example, the city would be given triple subsidies and not get the most for the subsidy dollar in terms of units. He continued that with respect to Resolution 4725, it is expected that this proviso would also apply. Mr. Grigoni said there were no rental units be;.ng produced by private developers in this privately subsidized approach. In every case the city is getting sale units; so those units would not really be available for lease to the Housing Authority. 143 2/11/74 Councilman Sher said he was interested in knowing more about the magni- tude of the program. He questioned whether the program is in any way expandable and whether the.required,performance reports would.be adequate to give. Council information t.o i .dicire whether or. not -the a -system is working.._ He commented -it was obvious from communications that this program commands wide_support,.and to was interested.in knowing.whether under this contract the program was expandable. For instance, are there county monies under the federal program which could be matched by further city contributions or does this exhaust the amount of money that is there. Mr. Grigoni replied that there is still some flexibility in the county program. The extent to which Palo Alto could extend the city's involve- ment and therefore the amount of county funds that come to the city of Palo Alto is really up to the county and the county's Housing Authority Board of Commission. Mr. Burns advised that if the city of Palo Alto doubled its funding, for instance, that today the county would not be able to keep up with it, because their funds were fairly well committed. If the federal govern- ment would expand their operation of Section 23, then the county would be able to increase its activity wherever the board saw fit to do so. Councilman :her stated it was his hope that the periodic reports would be a way f;i keeping Council informed as to the possibility of additional units being made possible to answer any charges of tokenism, etc. He said he felt that the city needed to wake a decision about low/moderate income housing -nd the amount of money that the city is prepared to put into it, and the manner in which city dollars could most efficiently be used, Councilman Henderson replied to Councilman Sher that many on the Council started off pushing for a much larger program, but that they had t.o settle for a lower dollar input. He said he hoped there would be new funds and that the program could be expanded. Councilman Henderson said that he was having problems with page two of the contract, subsection (1), (c) with regard to scattered locations for the units and the avoidance of leasing units in areas where the city has planned low or moderate -income housing. It seemed to him that this would close out many of the city's units in downtown areas where there see page 213 are elderly people, such as the Lytton project. He said he did not see the need for the last part of that section and he would like to see it left out. Mr. Grigoni replied that the staff had been trying to fulfill Council Resolution 4725 with regard to scattering low/moderate income housing throughoue the city with this specific insert. He noted that items (a) through (f) on page 2 are all performance objectives but not specific coalitions to the contract. He said he would expect that to some degree they will be violated in certain instances when such violations are necessary. It is the staff's hope that the Housing Corporation and the city would evaluate the Authority on its overall achievement of these objectives. Councilman Henderson said he felt that the word "avoid" is just too s t rong . AMENDMENT: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Beahrs, that the agreement be amended under subsection (c) page 2 to read only "housing 1 1 4 4 2/11/74 Authority shall lease, as far as practicable, units which are in scattered locations throughout Palo Alto." Councilman Clay said that in his opinion subsection (c) would be impossi- ble to execute if taken by the letter and that it appeared to him that this statement as it is written is what the Council really wants to say. Mr. Grigoni said that staff felt that the line "as far as practicable" offered the flexibility that was needed to meet Councilman Henderson's comments. The amendment to the agreement passed on the following vote: AYES: Beahrs, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum NOES: Clay, Sher Couneilraan Beahrs asked what the total county budget was in this effort. Mr. Burns replied the: county -wide the sum is $1,495,000. Councilman Beahrs questioned how it could be known how much Palo Alto would get of those funds. He asked if the money were allocated by community or area, or just haw in fact it was done and who makes those decisions. Mr. Burns replied that no money is allocated to any particular city unless it is determined that there is a need to commit a certain number of units to that cause. He said he maces the decisions which are then approved by the board which is made up of five persons appointed by the Board of Super- visors. Councilman Clay asked if there were a formula for Housing Authority/City participation financially in each rental unit. Mr. Burns explained that each lease will be a negotiated lease, and the maximum amount of federal dollars would be expended on that lease and as little as possible of the city funds, so at this point no percentage or formula could be given. Councilman Clay questioned If there weren't federal guidelines that limit the amount that you can pay as a percentage of the total. Mr. Burns replied that the federal procedure allows an average rent that can be paid for a given size unit and that can be exceeded or lowered on one particular unit as long as averages are maintained. Councilman Clay asked then if they could pay a full rental price for a given unit if they so choose. Mr. Burns said that the county does pay one hundred percent of the rent, and twenty-five percent of the tenant's income goes to the county. He explained that the county pays she landlord one hundred percent of the rent, and the tenant's share helps keep them solvent based against the subsidies that the federal government provides. Mr. Grigoni explained that the Housing Authority acts as the tenant, in a sense; so it pays the landlord the full mount of the rant. It then funds that rent through 1) income from the tenant which is 25% of his income, 2) federal money, and 3) additional money from Palo Alto. Councilman Clay said that in that case, though, the total amount of rent is not being paid by the Housing Authority. By agreement with the land- lord, the total amount is being paid, but the tenant is in fact paying a percentage of the rent because he pays twenty-five percent of his income 1 4 5 2/11/74 to the Housing Authority. Councilman Clay said that his questions is: "Is there a percentage of the rent that the tenant must pay?" Mr. Burns replied negatively, since the amount the tenant pays always depends upon his income. Councilman Clay asked how the twenty-five units. Mr. Burns based on experience as to how number ce dollars. city knows that it will have twenty to said that this is not known exactly but is many units can be negotiated for a certain Councilman Clay asked if the city's money would be separated from the county's money, and when city money would begin to he used. Mr. Grigoni stated that as soon as the contract is executed, the city will make an advance to the Housing Authority of the $15,000 per year that the contract suggests. At that point the Housing Authority will begin to lease units, and on a quarterly basis thereafter, the Housing Authority will requisition the further amounts of that $15,000 to reim- - itself for the rent it pays out to the owners. Mr. Burns indicated that ac.countingwise the two pots of money would definitely be kept separate so that any time the city can know exactly how much of their money is spent on each lease and how ;such money there le. in the general account. Further, he said a separate bank account will probably be set up to handle these funds. He explained that at the present time the so-called Line I rents for a three -bedroom unit is $175; so that is theoretically as much as can be paid for three -bedroom units in Santa Clara County and that is why they are asking for more money in the Palo Alto area. If it takes another thirty dollars in Palo Alto to rent a three -bedroom unit, then that part would come from the city funds. The amount the tenant pays the county does, in effect, offset what is going into rental money but does not have a dice,:t rela- tionship to how much the city would be paying for that unit. Councilman Clay asked if all the units needed fell within the ;175 limits, would city money be used. Mr. Burns answered negatively. Mayor Comstock suggested that Cornell vote on the resolution as amended The resolution a.s amended was adopted on the following vote: AYES: Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Sher NOES: Reahrs, Rosenbaum Councilman Sher called attention to the letter from Mr. Burns concerning a rule change the Department of Housing and Urban Development is about to make which would shift the management, maintenance, etc, from the Housing Authority to the individual property owners, This would not be very attractive then because of inadequate compensation. He notied there is a deadline on filing comments on this rule change which is February 21, and he felt that if a comment were to be made it should be made at this meeting. MOTION: Councilman Sher moved, seconded by Henderson, that staff be directed to send a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Develop- ment requesting that the federal government rescind the rule changes 1 4 6 2;11/74 shown in Federal Register dated January 22, 1974, Volume 39, Number 15, titled Proposed Procedures for Housing Assistance, expressing objections to the rule as noted in Mr. Burns' letter, with copies of the city's comments to be sent to Senators Cranston and Tunney and Congressmen Gubser, Edwards. and McCloskey. Mr. Burns thanked Council for their action and time in this matter and suggested that they. further encourage the federal government to not only rescind the new rules but to properly fund the present program so that Palo Alto could partake of larger amounts of money. ?he natation passed on a unanimous vote. Overni htpPa �� Rey ula bons (am:176:4) ��yll1{11W Vice Mayor Pearson reviewed the Policy and Procedures Committee's dis- cussion on the overnight parking ordinance. The goal was to make it more convenient for citizens to obtain a permit and of course to get as many cars off the street as possible. She added that this is a program that is supported vigorously by citizens in Palo Alto, and downtown Palo Alto in an area where the hardship is visible because of the number of cars that t2uSt park on the street. She pointed out that some people now purchase trucks for personal use and as long as they don't have a sign on them indicating that they are business -type vehicles they will. be able to get a permit to park on the street. The fees were reviewed and it was determined that was already in the ordinance. The issuance and denial of permits was also reviewed, and it was agreed with the City Attorney's office that they will make them more definitive. An agreement was rude that there would be an exemption from a permit fee if there is not at least one off-street parking space for each resi- dential unit. She pointed out that the ordinance before Council embodies all these changes. She requested that one correction be made on page one of the ordinance near the bottom stating that permits shall be displayed on the rear windows Actually, the permit should be dis- played on the rear bumper. MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson introduced the following ordinance and moved, seconded by Comstock, its approval for first reading: ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING SECTION 10.44.'320 OF THE PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO OVERN1Ghl Pry1NG Councilman Clay 440;0 that he was not in on the discussions on this matter, pars -->,:aar IY eith regard to commercial vehicles. He said that the exemption ie , • e vehicles which do -not have painted signs, and that he Wa,1 Oot y . „At. about why that distinction is important. Vice -Mayor Pesreoo stated that tho City Attorney felt that a business vehicle #outid have a atgra on it, and those vehicles would have to be parked off the street, whores* a permit could be issued for vehicles being used for a persona/ reason, and these would obviously have no signs. Councilman Cbay said that the real issues to be looked at were safety, ease of street sweeping, and that kind of thing and that signs really have nothing to do with the subject. 147 2/11/74 Assistant City Manager Deverel said that one of the purposes of the ordinance is to limit the number of on -street overnight parking and to refuse to provide a permit for commercial vehicles is consistent with the objective. Neil O'Meara, Manager, Customer Services, pointed out that many vehicles which carry commercial license Oates are in fact just pickup trucks which residents use for their own purposes. The use of the vehicle rather than the type of registration is now the important iesue. Councilman Clay said that the exemption already was there for that reason and not for the sign that may or may not be on the vehicle. Mr. 0lleara pointed out that excluding all vehicles with commercial plates worked a hardship on citizens who had recreational vehicles, or campers, or pickup trucks that were used entirely for personal purposes. Councilman Clay asked if approval for overnight parking would not be determined on information given when requests are made. Mr. O'Meara said field investigations would be done where necessary and that there are not many of this type of vehicle. Vice Mayor Pearson reiterated that the rule of having no stgns on the vehicle indicated that it was being used for personal purposes. City Attorney Booth explained that the ordinance has always prohibited parking on the streets and granting of permits to commercial vehicles. With regard to overnight parking, sometimes citizens had to get commercial plates for personal -use vehicles; so the staff suggested this change in order to allow such persons to obtain overnight permits, whereas new they are not obtainable. Councilman Clay referred to the proposed budget which shows a need for a 1'ineo automobile, a file cabinet and he assumed additional personnel, perhaps three people. If the inspecton is going to take place between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m., he wondered why a police officer couldn't be used, even if another person had to be added to the department. These officers could then serve a dual function as opposed to having a few persons whose sole responsibility would be to cake this inspection. Vice Mayor Pearson said that staff felt the policemen were needed between 3:00 and 6:00 a.u. in those areas where there is a high crime activity, such as the downtown areas, industrial areas, and the commercial areas. The feeling was that it was far more expensive to have a policeman doing this work which was rather routine, when the policeman could be better used doing a job which could be dangerous in an area -where there was crime. Mr. Sipel said that an effort had been made to utilize the Police Depart- ment for this purpose, and it has not proved to be either an efficient or effective use of people. He said it cots about $15 to $17 thousand dol- lars per year to put a police officer out in the field, and it would only cost one half to two thirds that much to put another type of person in the field. He further pointed out that there are a limited number of policemen in the field from 3:00 to 6:00 a.m. and their deployment doesn't really carry them to every street in town, which he feels is necessary in order to get complete enforcement, and that it is beat to specialize. Councilman Clay stated that he felt since this work was not the intense kind that policemen usually do, if you added another moan to the police 1 4 8 2/11/74 force, yoe would get this work done along with the kind of protection that a police officer gives. He mentioned also that unmarked cars parked in front of homes at such odd hours doing these checks might arouse concern among citizens, Mayor Comstock explained that the cars would be marked with the usual city insignia. He said he felt Council was getting into something that really was not going to be voted an at this meeting, and that is how wi11_.thia program be staffed and funded. He added that there will be opportunities to review these aspects when it comes before Council in the budget. What was being done at the moment was to set the stage for some enforcement. Councilman Clay stated that he saw this as an integral part of the program. Mr. Sigel said he would like to make one other point with regard to the possibility of using Police Department people as opposed to what is -sug- gested and that is by adding one person to the Police Department you would not be able to be effective six or seven nights per week. Therefore, you would have to add more like three employees in order to get one full-time person in the field at all times for the policing of this particular program. Councilman Clay said that it was hi4 suspicion that the entire city could be checked in a couple of hours. The ordinance was approved for first reading on a unanimous vote. Applfcaticn of Arbor Develo gent Com an for Condominium Subdivision s 102--1 i3 reenzaeadow tarp MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded. by Beahrs, that Council uphold the recommendation of the Planning Commission for approval of the applica- tion of Arbor Development Company for a Final Condominium Subdivision Map (14 units), Tract No. 5504, located at 102-128 Greenmeadow Way; and finds that no significant environmental impact will result from this action. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Beah*s, Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Rosenbaum, Sher NO?S: Pearson Request of Community Housing, Inc. (Lytton Cardenss re f'i Lytton Ave. MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4880 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 2649 x0 EXTEND THE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE FOR THE P -C DISTRICT AT 656 LYTTON AVENUE" and find that no significant environmental impact will result from this action. Mr. Harvey Nixon, 430 Kipling Street, said`be understood this was insti- tuted in 1971 and started to 1972 and that he had not been able to get any 1 4 9 2/11/74 information about why the program had been held up. Money was sent from the federal government for this program, and it still doesn't seem to be getting off the ground. He asked if the federal government were holding things up. Mayor Comstock said that the delay in the project was generated by the action of the President's impoundment of housing funds and that the funds for the program were obtained only by the exertion of a lot of people in the community. He added that the orders were coming down to close up the funding in many programs and Palo Alto's money came in just in the nick of time. Mr. Nixon said it was his understanding that this project had been approved and did not come under the stoppage of federal funds. Mayor Comstock ex- plained that the problem wan that the project was approved but that the money was not released, and that was when things got really tight. Councilman Sher stated that the sponsors anticipate starting construction by September of this year, and the date in the Resolution is just designed to allow some leeway. The resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. A. ixfcation of Roberts Communities, Inc. for Final Condominium Subdivision,2122, Channin and Cow —••••••ws,eara, MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Rosenbaum, that the recommenda- tion of the Planning Commission be upheld for approval of the application of Roberts Communities, Inc., for a Final Condominium Subdivision Map (24 units) Tract No. 5488, located at the northerly corner of Channing Avenue and Cowper Street, subject to conditions recorded in the Planning Commistiion minutes of January 30, 1974, and finds that no significant environmental impact will result from this project. Councilman Henderson commented that he would vote against this recommenda- tion because they did not provide for the twenty percent low/moderate income housing mentioned in the resolution. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Beahrs, Clay, Comstock, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Henderson (#'lease see comments re this vote on page 151) lication of Allied Environmental Services for ' u ivision lay . --11o/-71S6 Bowco in treet POTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Beahrs, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4881 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING A TENTATIVE SUBDIVISION MAP FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 2101-2136 BOWDOIN STREET, BEING LOTS 13 THROUGH 17 AND .A 30 -FOOT STRIP, ALL IN BLOCI 3 OF COLLEGE TERRACE, AND GRANTING EXCEPTIONS AND VARIANCES FROM LOT WIDTH, DEPTH, 150 2/11/74 AREA, ACCESS WIDTH, SIDE YARD, AND REAR YARD REQUIRE- MENTS, SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS" The resolution was adopted on the following vote: AYES: Beahrs, Clay, Comstock, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Henderson MOTION: Councilman Beahrs moved, seconded by Comstock, that the final subdivision map be approved. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Beahrs, Clay, C'-ustock, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Henderson. Vice Mayor Pearson asked if she could be permitted to charge her vote on agenda item 8 regarding Roberts Communities Inc. City Attorney Booth explained that this could not be done because another notion since that one had been acted upon$ but her intent could be recorded in the minutes. Vice Mayor Pearson requested then that the minutes show that it had been her intention to vote "no". A t ication of Rossi and Grotewohl for Final Condominium u tv sion p, Bran yt an Poe Streets MOTION: Mayor. Comstock moved, seconded by Rosenbaum, that the recommenda- tion, of the Planning Coamision be upheld for approval of the application of Rossi and Grotewohl for a Final Condominium Subdivision Map (12 units), Tract No. 5508, located at the easterly corner of Bryant and Poe Streets, and finds that no signficant environmental impact will result from this project. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Beahrs, Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Pearson lication of McCandless Limited Com an%r far Site s ivn u rova, , E use Court MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Beahrs, that the recommendation of the Planning Commission be upheld for the approval of the application of McCandless Limited Company for Site and Design District approval at 1003 Elwell Court, Zone District, L -H -1-D, subject to conditions recorded in the Planning Commission minutes of Jrnuary 30, 1974; and find that no significant environmental impact will result from this development. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. 1 5 1 2/11/74 Re uest of Dividend Industries, Inc, for Extension to bevel° went Schedule re Pro ere at Alma and .an tonio Avenue MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Henderson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4882 entitled "RESOLUTION OF ThE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 2744 TO EXTEND THE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE FOR THE P --C DISTRICT AT 4295 ALMA STREET" and find that no significant environmental impact will result from this action. Councilman Rosenbaum stated that in reading the Planning Commission minutes, he found that there was some discussion about lighting, and the Planning Commission requested that incandescents be put there. He said he would like to ask staff how to set policy for new subdivisions with regard to mercury-vapor or incandescent. Mr. Sipel said that the answer is that the lighting is to be consistent with surrounding neighborhood, and if there is no surrounding neighbor- hood, then the staff would recommend mercury-vapor. Councilman Rosenbaum recalled that in an area where wiring was to be replaced, the residents of the area to be affected were to be allowed to vote. He felt that sometime Council should make a decision about what it wants to do with regard to lighting on these new little streets. Thl resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. Mr. Sipel stated that he did not want to let Councilman Rosenbaum's com- ments just drop and assured Council that staff will come back a<:d make a suggestion on this particular matter. Leash Law Enforcement MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following ordinance and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: ORDINANCE NO. 2770 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE BY AMENDING SECTION 1.08.010 TO INCLUDE INFRACTIONS AND SECTION 6.20.040 TO INCLUDE PARKS AND SCHOOLS: AND BY ADDING SECTIONS 6.16.110 AND 6.20.100 TO CLASSIFY VIOLA- TIONS OF CHAPTERS 6.16 AND 6.20 AS INFRACTIONS" (first reading 1/28/74) The ordinance was adopted on a unanimous vote. Bici;cle Route System MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the fallowing ordinance and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: ORDINANCE NO. 2771 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF 1 52 2/11/74 PALO ALTO AMENDING PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 10.64.185 TO PROVIDE FOR DISCRETIONARY BICYCLE USE OF BICYCLE LANES AND PATHS"(first reading 1/28/79) John Forester, 782 Allen Court commented on the proper signs to nut up or leave up along Embarcadero, Middlefield, and Alma. Mr. Forester stated that he felt these streets should not be recommended as bicycle routes, because a stranger in the town would -assume that he was being advised to ride upon them. He commented that people who know these streets well might ride on them during other than rush hours, but these streets should not be recemmended as -good bicycle routes. He recommended that the exist- ing signs simply be taken down rather than bother to change thee, pointing out that this would be economical action. The ordinance was adopted on the following vote: AYES: Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Beahrs Welcome of Caulfield Grammar School u ants to Pa_o Alto MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4883 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE C1TY OF PALO ALTO EXTENDING A WELCOME AND BEST WISHES TO THE CAULFIELD GRAMMAR SCHOOL BASKETBALL TEAM FROM CAULFIELD, VTC'rORIA, AUSTRALIA DURING THEIR TOUR OF CALI1ORNIA, U.S.A." The resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. Downtown Beautification(CM►R:166:4) MOTION: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Beahrs, approval of the bid alternate calling for the larger more mature trees on Lytton, Hamilton and the side streets. Mickey Haug, Director of Parks, showed pictures of both the smaller and larger trees of the birch variety. He also showed pictures of other varieties of trees, including the privet which grows quite rapidly, the tulip tree, the magnolia, and the liquid amber. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. MOTION: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Rosenbaum, approval of the curb tree island shown as Plan B on Exhibit I. Councilman Beahrs stated that Plan A appealed to him aesthetically and asked what the advantages were for Plan B. Hr. Deverel replied that the difficulties with Plan A are the problems that would be encountered during construction, such as maintaining a n th configuration of the pavement. He said that as you come from the crown of the street towards the curb island, it would be necessary to 1 5 3 2/11/74 contour the pavement which would create a noticeable bump for motorists and cyclists. In addition, he said at least one half of the islands would have some ponding, or puddles around the island just because of the difficulty in getting a smooth pavement. He then mentioned that offsetting causes problems in street sweeping, which will mean some more manual work, resulting in $25,000 increase in operating costs. Councilman Beahrs said he assumed the advantage would be that there is a separation between the trees and the real curb, and you do have drainage behind it. Mr. Deverel replied that you have direct drainage, and you also have a much easier construction task because basically you are placing the island on top of existing pavement. Councilman Sher stated that he wanted to clear up whether the $25,000 cost was a per -year cost. Mr. Deverel replied that it would cost $25,000 per year to maintain the added facilities under the beautification program. He explained that this was due to such things as street sweepers not being able to reach the corners in question, and manpower would have to be used. Also, the leaves would have to be removed along with the trash from the curbs and gutters. Added to this would be the maintenance of the plantings along all of the new facilities. Councilman Sher asked the difference in cost between Plan A and Plan 8. Mr. Deverel replied that the difference in the construction cost would be $8,500, but maintenance for Plan A would be $3,000 or $4,O0 less per year. Mayor Comstock stated that the $25,000 -per -year cost would be submitted by the Manager in his operating budget, and more time could be given to discussing how to achieve that objective at the time of the budget review. He pointed out that Council was not necessarily committing them- selves to the full amount at this time. He requested Mr. Deverel to elucidate a bit more about the crowning of the pavement and the contour of the cross-section of the street from curb to curb, pertaining to the difference between Plans a and 8. Mr. Deverel explained that in order to achieve drainage down the gutter and out into the street around the island and into the existing gutter, it will be necessary to remove pavement and recontour it in order to maintain a slope. Mayor Comstock asked if it would not be possible to solve this problem by constructing a small pipe system. Mr- Deverel replied that this is a costly method and that it would be very difficult to keep this kind of system from plugging up. Open gutters are obviously the best in terms of maintenance and free flow. Mayor Comstock said that he would like to know of some way to bridge the gap between the island and the sidewalk. fir. Deverel stated that Plan 8 was the original plan from the architect, but that if Council feels that Plan 8 is not aesthetically appealing,then Plan A could certainly be recommended, He said that staff felt that the differences between the two ideas wn re not great but that in their opinion Plan 8 was the most likely one. Mayor Comstock indicated that he felt the channel between the two curbs looked rather wide, and he wondered if that distance could be minimized. Mr. Deverel said that the channel is two feet wide, and the possibility of bringing the island edge closer to the curb could -be explored. He 1 5 4 2/11/74 added that staff felt the two -foot allowance would provide the clearest drainage and that it needed to he recognized that University Avenue is a very flat street which compounds the difficulty of maintaining a contour so the water will in fact flow. If the channel is too narrow the possi- bilities r` clogging will be increased. AMENDMENT: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that the motion to approve the curb tree island crown as Plan B on Exhibit I have the following addition: "with staff directed to work with.t4e crc itect to minimize the separation between the planter island and the sidewalk curb to the extent possible to have the least negative aesthetic impact." The amendment passed on a unanimous vote. The motion as amended passed on a unanimous vote. POTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved, seconded by Henderson, its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 4884 entitled "A RESOLUTION OF AWARD OF CONTRACT: DOWNTOWN BEAUTIFICATION AND LIGHTING PROJECT NO. 71-80" the resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote. MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following ordinance and coved, seconded by Henderson, its adoption: ORDINANCE NO._2772 entitled ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 1973-74 TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR THE DOWNTOWN BEAUTIFICATION AND LIGHTING PROJECT (PROJECT NO. 71-80) Vice Mayor Pearson asked if this total amount would be added to the city's share. Mr. Deverel affirmed that it was staff's intent that it would be added to the city's share. To do otherwise would require a complete set of assessment proceedings, notifying property owners, and passing resolutions. Vice Mayor Pearson questioned what the total mount was for the city's share for Downtown Beautification. Mr. Deverel replied that the final budget was recommended at $1,061,0O0 and a recommended final funding in that same amount showing a Capital Improvement Fund total of $224,239 to come from the Electric Utility Fund, with the balance to come from the assessment of the property owners. Councilman Henderson said he could not recall whether there was a certain limit within which it would be necessary to go back and have a hearing. He had hoped that the $19,000 exemptions from the church properties would be reapread over the assessment district. He wanted to know if that was too high a percentage and whether a complete new hearing would have to be held. Mr. Deverel pointed out that the original assessment spread provided for $617,000 maximum. Since $19,000 had been removed, that would leave a max mpm of $598,000. He added that only if the bids had been sufficiently low would it have been possible to not increase the city's share. If it is untended to increase the $598,000 assessment, it will be necessary to 155 2/11/74 go through the complete exercise. Councilman Henderson asked if this were so even though the $617,000 was the total amount shown for the assessment district originally. Mr. Deverel explained that the total is still the sum of the individual assessments which cannot be exceeded without the full set of procedures. He added that assessments cannot be increased on any properties over that amount which was originally established. Councilman Henderson commented that the architect's fees go up as he reccm-- mends higher construction; so there is now a $63,000 figure for the architect based upon recommendations for some increases in construction costs. Councilman Sher said he wanted to be clear about the magnitude of the city's contribution. He referred to Page Two of Exhibit IV indicating that the city's contribution would consist of $224,000 from the Capital Improve- ment Fund, $239,000 from the Electric Utility Fund, and whatever increased amount may be appropriated for additional maintenance. He asked if there would be any other costs to the city or were these three elements the total of the city's contributions. Mr. Deverel said that there is some city staff time that has not been, and will not be, charged to the project, roughly estimated to be in the order of $25 to $30 thousand dollars, and some additional staff true will be used during the course of construction, perhaps to the extent of $2,000 to $3,000 worth. The ordinance was adopted on a unanimous vote. Members of staff presented a lighting demonstration at this time. Mr. Deverel explained that it was being attempted to show the level of _light that would be seen on the street, but that it needed to be understood that it was difficult to project any one light inside and have it look the way it would outside. He said that Mr. Ed Mrizek of the Electrical En- gineering staff had arranged to demonstrate the level of light under the existing flan of .2 versus the recommended plan of .56, This lighting being shown was the mid -block lighting, and the intersection lighting would be considerably greater. He pointed out that any street lighting would be enhanced by any store lighting. Mr. Mrizek proceeded to demonstrate what the fixtures themselves would look like when lit. Mr. Ceverel pointed out that the panels in the fixtures blocked thirty to fifty percent of the light, the lighter panel blocking less light. Mayor Comstock clarJfied for Council that Mr. Deverel said the higher wattage light, 250 watts with the light grey panel, was his recommendation, which was designed to give the .56. He then wanted to knob what would be given with the dark grey panel. Mr. Mrizek said that information had not been received from the architect. Mr. Deverel stated that the basic recommendation was in ti}e context of a lighting level of about 1.5 which is presently on University Avenue, and staff feels that .5 to .6 really recommends ,a minimum. Vice Mayor Pearson noted that some examples of lighting had been given such as that found at Santa Cruz Avenue, Stanford Shopping Center, and Town and Country Village. She asked if it were correct that the lighting on Santa Cruz Avenue was considerably brighter than anything that was 1 56 2/11/74 being recommended. Mr. Deverel replied that the recommendation is for about a half of a foot-candle. Vice Mayor Pearson stated that she thinks the lighting situation on Santa Cruz Avenue is dreadful and represents a ghastly example of what can be done with lighting, and she wanted to be sure that Palo Alto's new lighting does not look like that. It was her feeling that all of the negative points of Menlo Park and El Camino showed up vividly, and none of the nice parts of it show up at all. She asked if the city's final lighting system would look like that at Stanford Shopping Center or would it be more like that of Town and Country Village. She also wished to have the situation clarified as to whether staff was talking about street lighting, overhead lighting, and past lighting to get these average foot --candles or were they referring to just one lamp. Mr. Mrizek replied that the intersection lighting would be quite high, about in the order of one and one-half foot --candies depending upon where you would be standing. The mid -block area would be much more like Town and Country Village with the unit that had just been demonstrated. Councilman Rosenbaum said he had the impression that this lighting was not really very good, He said that when the Planning Commission was deciding on this, they felt there would be lights from the stores to help out quite a bit. He questioned whether It was acceptable to put a very bright light with less of a glare protection at the ten --foot level. He further commented that the Planning Comnlission had some miscalculations which led them to believe that the lighting was going to be acceptable as they had designed it. He felt that if those calculations were wrong, then perhaps they needed to be corrected. Mr. Deverel said tha. Councilman Rosenbaumm's statement of what the Planning Commission did was fairly accurate. He commented that in the staff's opinion, the architect did nc:t do a very good job in assessing the situa- tion carefully before he made the recommendation. He added that. ;Then staff reviewed this matter with Council in September, the consultant's electrical engineer did not show up at the meeting, but that Mr. Fourcray made an attempt to do this with the limited knowledge he had available. Following that meeting, the consultant advised staff that his electrical engineer was saying that this lighting level was too low and should be higher, suggesting that the city make the decision to make the change. Staff requested that the consultant participate in the deliberations with Council, but he elected not to do so. He added that staff had deliberated at considerable length over the appropriate lighting level, and evaluated it as best they could. He explained that one of staff's concerns was the aspect of glare, primarily from the viewpoint of the motorist driving along University Avenue The staff is satisfied that the glare situation is acceptable and the recommended lighting level is necessary. Given the limitations of the height and the desire to limit the harsh appearance of the lamp, the recommendation represents the best possible solution. Staff's feeling is that this is an adequate level of lighting and good architectural trectment. Councilman Rosenbaum said he does not disagree with the conclusions regard- ing the level of light but he does have some reservations about the height. For instance, if the whole situation were being started over again with all the present information, would it be likely that a ten -foot pole would be desirable with -that bright a light. leir. Deverel explained that if a higher pole were utilized, then it would be necessary to have a higher intensity lamp, and the one being recommended 1 5 7 2/11/74 is the highest short of a 400 watt. Mr. Mrizek pointed out that staff started out with thirty-foot poles in the very beginning when sodium vapor was being discussed, and the problem involved was too *.such light was being lost because of the larger trees; so the pole height was brought down more to the pedestrian level. He felt that the pole height could be raised to twelve feet or fourteen feet at the maximum with some attendant loss of light. Mayor Comstock wanted to know if the lighting system were started out with 175 -watt bulbs and they were actually installed and found to be not bright enough, would it not then be possible to replace those bulbs with 250 watts. Mr. Deverel replied that this could be done but would require replacement of the ballast at a cost of about thirty dollars per light. He added that the panels are replaceable. Councilman Beahrs asked if there hadn't been any previous experience any- where with this type of installation. Mr. Deverel said he did not know if the architect in his deliberations had a specific situation which would be identical to this, but what he does rely upon Is his knowledge of how much light will be delivered from the various configuration of the hardware. Councilman Beahrs stated that surely there had been thoisands of similar installations of this sort in the country that could giarantee success. He said his concern was in the area of safety because of the possible hazards involved to traffic facing into too much glare_. Mr. Deverel replied that the architect in making his final recommendation stated that the glare would be acceptable, and Mr. Mrizek did a good dal of research and has satisfied himself that the glare is acceptable. Frank Manfredi, 2.19 Addison Avenue stated he didn't feel this type of lighting is adequate. }!e suggested that since the expenditure is so large that the lights should be put up in two or three blocks and then it would be obvious what the result would be. see page 213 Councilman Henderson wanted to know if there were less flexibility because of the use of mercury-vapor rather than incandescent lamps. Mr. Mrizek said that with incandescent the wattage could be decreased, if necessary, but with the mercury-vapor you are tied to the ballast. Councilman Henderson said this really troubles him, because it is geared for 500 yet anything could be put in in between, possibly the 5.5 at 250 watts, or if it were necessary to go up .or down, it could be done without a greater expenditure than in the cost of light bulbs. Mr. Mrizek said that comparing the 500 watt incandescent to the 250 watt mercury, you would not quite get the 5.6 with the 500 watts. He pointed out that mercury-vapor gives more than twice the amount of illumination per watt. Councilman Henderson recalled the original discussion on the lighting, saying that he saw some drawings of stores having globes and fixtures on the outside of each one. He warted to know if the lights on the stores were no longer under consideration, since such lights would have a considerable effect. Mr. peverel said that since .56 was considered to be the minimum, that had to be provided. He indicated that there may be some places where the property owner doee not wish to use outdoor lighting, and that the energy shortage will have an effect -- either as a result of regulation 1 5 8 2/11/74 or public pressure. He explained that since the recommendation was the minimum necessary, it was important that it be provided by the street lighting. Councilman Henderson said staff showed that in the Stanford Shopping Center there were areas where the window lights were on, so that it is hard to measure what effect that has on the readings shown. He questioned if the lighting check included the effects of the store lights. Mr. Mrizek, replied that in the Town and Country figures, a lot of lighting did come from the stores. Mr. Deverel pointed out that the important point to recognize from the readings is that in no place is there less than -5, and that in the Stanford Shopping Center for example, there is an average that is considerably above .5. Councilman Henderson stated that he is concerned with the lack of flexi- bility with regard to correcting a glare problem if that turns out to be the case. Mayor Comstock asked if there was a .5 reading below the fixture itself? Mr. calculations gave an average figure of reading from the lamp out. or .6 at mid -block, what was the Mrizek explained that the architect's .56, and that he did not give a Mayor Comstock pointed out that when walking around Town and Country at night, it is apparent that the amount ;of light varies quite a bit depending upon whether or not the store where you are standing has its outside lights turned on. He said that he does not think that the lighting levels proposed are going to be excessive. He further commented that he is satisfied that the recommendation is still at a reasonable low level, and that he assumed that some of the stores would continue to have their lights on, energy crisis or no. MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, duly seconded, approval of a revised lighting scheme for the mid -block area on University Avenue calling for lamps of 250 watts and a modifield plastic panel in the luminaire. Vice Mayor Pearson said she felt the performance of the architect had been minimal rind she was very disappointed. She stated that Mr. Rockrise had been asked many times for some demonstration lighting set up to see what was being bought, and this simply was not done. She said his performance was poor enough that if she had the opportunity to make a recommendation for or against him publicly, that it certainly would not be in his favor. She referred to Exhibit V and its facts regarding lighting levels on University Avenue between Waverley and Cowper Streets or Area 1, and those regarding lighting levels on Bryant Street between Forest Avenue and Homer Avenue. She commented that her opinion was that the bright street corner at Forest and Homer where incandescent lamps were used was much more pleasant than University Avenue where the mercury-vapor lamps were used. She asked what these same intersections would be like with the new lighting system and would there still be .5. Mr. Mrizek reported that the architect stated that at the intersection when they were using the 400 watt mercury-vapor they had 2 foct-candle average light, and now that has been decreased on the final scheme to 250 watt mercury-vapor. He estimated that the lighting at the inter- section woukd be between one and two foot-candles on the average. The architect's report also showed the side streets which are going to be 400 watt mercury-vapor and the average foot-candle would be 2.4. 1 5 9 2/11/74 Mr. Deverel mentioned that it the report to Council of January 24, it was stated that the plaza intersection would have average foot-candle of 2.2. and the other University Avenue intersections would be 1.1. Councilman Clay stated that he is concerned about the lighting levels and averages in particular. He wanted to know if it was difficult to get average calculations. Mr. Mrizek explained that each lighting fixture manufactured has a particular wad• of throwing out the light, and curves are provided for each fixture which depend on the mounting height, width of the street, spacing of the lamps, etc. Councilman Clay asked if being given a position relative to the lamp the light of that would be constant. He then said that the average is the difference you would get all the way across which means that you could get some very dark places and some bright ones so readings at points relative to the light would be very important. Mr. Mrizek stated that the uniformity factor was important, because it was desired that the ratio be kept down below the factor of three, and this was a concern expressed when we were at the .2 foot-candles at mid -block, and then we would hit an intersection with 2 foot-candles which would result in a tremendous difference in light. Councilman Clay asked if reading levels could be gotten at different pc.ir is if they were wanted. Mr. Mrizek replied affirmatively. Councilman Clay said that evidently the effect of the glare varied with the panel. Mr. Mrizek said that Councilman Clay was correct, that the panels would give a different glare factor, and they would block out a percentage of light. Councilman Clay asked if the glare effect and the blocking of the light were proportional to each other, or in other words was there less glare as more light is blocked. Mr. Mrizek agreed that this was so and stated that the panels were replaceable. Councilman Clay said it was his feeling that more readings be done before this particular item was approved and wanted to know if those readings would be reasonably easy to get. Mr. Deverel asked if Councilman Clay were suggesting that demonstrators be installed along University Avenue for readings, or did he want some information reported by the engineer's curves. Councilman Clay said he thought Mr. Manfredi's suggestion was a good one but did not know how it could be implemented, but at least more calculations from the curves would be desirable. Mr. Deverel said he wanted to be certain he understood that Councilman Clay was seeking some measure of the variance from the average. Councilman Beahrs stated that there will never be one hundred percent satisfaction with any inatailation that is made, but he wondered why a rheostat could not be used in order to vary lighting according to condi- tions so the lighting could be controlled the length of the entire street. Mr. Deverel explained that this suggestion would be possible with incan- descent fixtures hut with mercury-vapor at this point the lighting level is a fixed thing. Councilman Henderson asked if there was a reading on the 250 watt dark panel that would indicate where the level fell between .2 and .56. 160 2/11/74 Mr. Mrizek replied that it does fall between those two readings. Councilman Henderson asked if 250 watt bulbs were installed with the light panel and then a decision to come down to 175 watts were made, would this cost thirty dollars for the ballast and ten dollars for the globe? Mr. Mrizel replied that there were about eighty fixtures on University Avenue, and the change as he suggested it would cost about forty dollars per fixture. Councilman Henderson concluded that the cost for such a change would be $3,200. Crystal Gamage stated that members of Downtown Palo Alto had a chance, along with some of the staff members, to talk about a proposed construction schedule, and it was her understanding that each major intersection would be completed which would mean a block on either bide. She asked if it would be possible to get the first phase of the construction completed and then you would have the blocks between Ramona and High completely finished so that they could be evaluated. In this way, before all of University Avenue was completed, there would be an opportunity to experiment with panels, etc. on two ready-made blocks. Mr. Deverel explained that the plan was to proceed with the construction by shutting down a plaza intersection and the block alongside of it on University Avenue to accommodate the construction work. He said that much was involved and that some of the lighting work would be done near the end of the project. He was not sure that a complete lighting job could be dcu e in one section but that he could explore that possibility. Councilman Rosenbaum commented he had noticed that the parking lot at Palo Alto High School has lights which look very similar to this, and he was wondering if with the cooperation of the school district a demonstration could be had there.- Mr. Mrizek said he felt sure some readings could be done there and perhaps put some grey panels in to see exactly what they do. Mr. Knox said there was another place on Bayshore which would be a possibility for a demonstration also. Vice Mayor Pearson said she felt Mrs. Gamage had a good idea; and sh>> wanted to find out what this scheme would look like before purchasing the whole thing and then perhaps not liking it. She wondered if this matter could be continued and if so what the impact would be. Mr. Deverel replied that it would be considerably simpler to use the two mentioned facilities for demonstrations and it would be quite difficult to make an installation once and then another one later on. Vice Mayor Pearson said that she did not think the lights at Palo Alto High School are good looking and that she did not want downtown Palo Alto to look like that. It is her hope that the city would be getting some- thing better with the grey panels and so forth. She stated that what needs to be seen is just what it is going to look like in downtown Palo Alto and that it seemed to her that in these first two blocks, you could at least get the standards up and be ready to put the lights in, and that all that is being talked about now is what goes inside:. She stated she wanted to have some way to continue this to see if, in fact, a demonstration could be had on University Avenue that the Council can all go look at before a million dollars Is spent in lighting. Councilman Henderson questioned staff as to whether or not Mrs. Camage's suggestion was feasible. Mr. Deverel said that he didn't know when the standards and the luminaires would arrive. 1 b 1 2/11/74 SUBSTITUTE MOTION: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Pearson, that staff be directed to determine the feasibility of completing the first section of Downtown Beautification with the lighting suggested by the consultant following which the Council would determine the final lighting scheme. The substitute motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Beaters, Clay, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Comstock MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Beahrs, that the Mayor be authorized to execute Amendment No. 2 to the city's contract with Rockwise, Odermatt, Mountjoy, Amis Assdciates. Councilman Henderson asked what would happen if Council did not approve this amendment. Mr. Sipel stated that the amendment itself does not provide the consultant with any more money, since the contract specifies the fee a, a function of the construction costs. This amendment is basically a formality stating that the deliberations and the development work that they have done have taken more tin2e than expected partly because of them and partly because of staff. At Council's last meeting a bid level was called for and this formalizes that arrangement. He added that if Council elected not to execute this amendment that it would not have any real significant impact en the consultant. Vice -Mayor Pearson srated that several meetings had been held, and it was her feeling that if the architect were really interested in what he was doing and what Council wanted to tell him that he would have been here at the meetings. She said she would not vote for anything that would make him feel he had her approval. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Reahrs, Clay, Comstock, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Hend e r on , Pearson MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Rosenbaum, that the actions taken in connection with the Downtown Beautification and Lighting Project involve no adverse environmental impact. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Allocation (Firsr and Second 0111101111~ - Mayor Comstock noted the report of the City Manager recommends that the Council allocate funds from the first and second entitlement periods totaling $181,733, including accrued interest for the projects referred to in the report. Councilman Henderson stated that the first allocation of $415,500 came out to a ratio of about four to one Capital Improvements versus Operating Expenditures, and the recommendation before Council at this greeting for 1 b 2 2/11/74 the allocation of another $182,000 involves all Capital Improvement items. While favoring majority use of revenue sharing funds for one-time expenditures such as Capital Improvements rather than ongoing programs, he felt that some of these monies should be put into social programs. He stated that eventually there may be federal funds available for some of the things Palo Alto is doing, and he felt it would be good to have evidence that federal funds had already been used for these reasons. Re went on to say that when the $175,000 was left unallocated, the thought was that a portion cr all of these funds might be used for a child day-care program; however, the $85,000 that will be received from the County Revenue Sharing funds covers about all of the day-care programs eligible for this assistance. He said there is still another area that qualifies very well for revenue sharing and that is the Senior Citizens Program. Councilman Henderson said there is a growing program directed by the Senior Citizens Coordinator, so there would-be a number of proposals coming up next year involving transportation, physical facilities, and expanded services. Councilman Henderson proposed removing three item: from the staff recom- mendation and the order for removal would be as follows: 1) No. 3 in the staff report regarding Cultural Center Improvements, which benefits a limited number of citizens and is currently funded in our Capital Improvements Budget; 2) No. 5 itt the staff report regarding Sidewalk Replacements which is adequately funded by an ongoing Capital Improvements Program; and 3) No. 2 in the staff report regarding Mitchell Park Im- provements which are fine but would add to an already disproportionate mount of revenue sharing going to one specific area. He said the three items recommended for removal totaled $87,738 and he would propose to allocate that amount to Senior Citizens Progra:rs zi thot identifying specific programs or projects. MOTION: Councilman Henderson roved, seconded by Pearson, that the Council allocate the balance of federal revenue sharing funds In the first and second entitlement as follows: Ramps for the handicapped at City facilities, $24,000; Mitchell Park Library Expansion, $70,000; and Senior Citizens facilities, transportation, and services, $87,738. Councilman Rosenbatm questioned the procedure of taking money out of one place and putting it in another without having anything definite in mind. Councilman Henderson replied that something in the order of $30,000 would be assured just to operate the Senior Citizens Coordinator's office= It is known there are going to be additional Senior Citizens programs and possibly facilities, and he did not feel at this point that it was improper to allocate in this way. This is not budgeting or apprcpriating, but just a matter of telling the federal government that this is the city's present sense of allocation. He stated that the dollars could certainly be moved around by Council but that It was his desire to indicate the city's interest in the Senior Citizens program. Mr. Sipel said that as far as he was concerned, this suggested change was fine, and the important thing is that the Council do by motion action allocate the money in order to meet the federal government guide- lines. If the allocation is not done, then probably the city would lose the funds. He explained that this is a catch-up provision for the first and second entitlements. Councilman Clay said it seemed to his; that there were some federal guidelines for types of programs that should not be funded througl: 163 2/11/74 revenue sharing, and he wondered just what these guidelines were. City Attorney Booth explained that the federal guidelines consist of seven major categories which are public safety, environmental protection, public trans- portation, recreation, librariea, social services for the poor and aged, and financial administration. Mr. Sipel advised there are no specific_ guidelines for use of funds for capital purposes or operating, and the staff suggested it be fifty-fifty, shaded just a bit toward capital expenditures rather than ongoing expendi- tures. Councilman Clay asked how well defined the program would have to be by March 1. Mr. Sipel replied that the motion by Councilman Henderson would be sufficient specificity. Councilman Beahrs said he agreed with Councilman Rosenbaum's criticism in that he hesitated to appropriate monies to a conjectural program, and he also feels it is evident that the new federalism might well be dumped by the majority party before the year is out, and if that occurs then revenue sharing could be a thing c.f the past. He said his inclination was to use these funds which may not appear again for Capital Improvements. He commented that if the city began to build up programs on the basis of funds that nay not exist two years hence, then there would he difficulties, and he opposed the motion. Councilman Sher wanted to be sure that Council is not boxing Itself in in any way to any programs. He questioned whether Council really expected to spend the r".,=nds in this way when there really are no programs. He said he would have to rote against the motion. Councilman Rosenbaum stated he felt this was a symbolic gesture, and it was worthwhile to indicate going along with spending some money for the Senior Citizens, because he felt that would in fact be done. City Controller, Mitchell es1-._d if the Council had a program for using this amount; of money for senior citizens, because he pointed out, what Council 1s doing is informing the federal people what the city will have. He felt this was a quasi -commitment and auditors who would arrive would probably think the same thing. Mr. Brown explained that in the federal revenue sharing terminology, allocation does not include appropriation or spending. He said that this allocation would enable staff to file a Planned Use Report. Follow- ing the actual expenditure of the money, a report is filed indicating how the city actually spent the money; and as long as the expenditures fall in the seven or eight categories, they everything has been done appropriately. Councilman Henderson said the audit would be of the actual expenditures anal no one would come in to audit an allocation sheet. He noted that none of the things allocated will come out to the actual dollar. For instance, Mitchell Library would probably be something other than exactly $270,000. A.11 of this was subject co adjusting and there would be no problem miming the adjustments. Mr. ?Mitchell commented that it seemed a little strange to say that the money would be spent one way and then not do it. Councilman Clay said he believed that if the city allocated a certain amount of money for a given project, then it should be spent for that; 164 2/11/74 therefore he could not support this motion. Mr. Sipel said the precise reason that the five projects were suggested was to avoid the kind of discussion going cn. He added that if Council wanted to get into some kind of funding for seniors, the city already has two programs which total roughly $30,000. This includes the Senior Services Coordinator and the operation that goes on at the Downtown Library. The other is a seniors' program in the Recreation Department and those two, total almost $30,000 so if Council wanted to allocate for that purpose it could do that now in place of one of the projects. Councilman Clay said he did not see what difference it made since ' it appeared to be a matter of taking it from one pocket and putting it in another. Mr. Sipel agreed that was exactly what it was. SUBSTITUTE MOTION: Councilman Rosenbaum moved, seconded by Pearson to eliminate Item 3 in the Staff Report concerning Cultural. Center Improve- ments and replace that with the two existing Senior Citizens Programs. Vice Mayor Pearson asked if there were a possibility of doing something about sidewalks in the staff report since that is something which is ordinarily taken care of anyway, aAd she wondered if there isn't something there too for senior citizens. Mr. Sipel replied that those projects will be presented to Council in the budget and that presently staff was not ready to begin those dis- cussions. He said staff was anticipating utilizing part of the next allocation of Federal Revenue Sharing for those purposes. He added that if Council wanted to earmark some of the funds for those purposes it could do so in the same spirit as Councilman Henderson's motion. AMENDMENT: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Henderson, an amendment to the substitute motion replacing the amount for sidewalk replacement with a 3eniar•Citlzens Transportation Program; and replacing Mitchell Park improvements with a Senior Citizen Center in downtown Palo Alto. Councilman Beahrs said he rejected this generous feeling toward the elderly because the money itself is not assured and he recommended a conservative attitude. The amendment to the substitute motion failed on the following vote: AYES: Henderson, Pearson NOES: Beahrs, Clay, Comstock, Rosenbaum, Sher The substitute motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Clay, Corers toc k, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Beahrs State Guidelines California Environmental a rc* MOTION:_ Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, adoption of the State Guidelines for LmplementtatiOn of the Environmental Quality Act of 1970, as amended December 11, 1973, as a supplement to Palo Alto's 165 2/11/74 ordinance and procedures; and the attached revised EIA-2 form to reflect the new guidelines. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Wester Site: Maintenance of txisting Structures TcMR :4) MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that Council authorize staff to proceed with necessary improvements to structures on the Webster Property in order to meet Housing Code standards. Councilman Beahrs stated he was glad to see that the costs had been some- what reduced but he was astounded at the cost of doing what he considered some very minor repairs to the houses. Mr. Sipel said that much of the work is not that simple. He added that the work was very difficult to estimate because it was just piece -work in each individual house. It is hoped to get bids below those indicated in the staff report. Councilman Beahrs suggested that perhaps some of the occupants could take care of these problems themselves. Mr. Sipel explained that in one of the houses this plan worked out very well, but the present situation is that it is not known whether some of these houses will be standing a few years from now and it is difficult to start a Sweat Equity Program with such short tenure possibilities. Councilman Beahrs said he still felt that some of the items could be taken care of by the occupants and then give the tenant a break on his rent. Councilman Henderson pointed out that staff states deficiencies will continue to occur and additonal expenditures will be necessary. He asked what there was to work with in terms of making repairs. He also wanted to know a rough figure on what the rental Income on these houses might be. Mr. Sipel replied that there are sufficient funds on an annual basis to do the bringing up to life -safety cede standards this year and to probably take care of any minor repairs that would come in the next nine month or so. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher NOES: Beahrs Gount1° Bus Britt! Vice Mayor Pearson mentioned the subject of the letter dated 2/5/74 from Mayor Comstock, Councilman Henderson and herself urging support of a referral regarding the county bus system to the Finance and Public Works Committee. She said the proposal is for a 200 bus system and she would not like to see it expanded beyond that. She agreed, however, that Council should look into possibilities of finding some other source of money and support some form of rapid transportation in Santa Clara County. She said that when the letter was discussed all, the things that could be thought of were listed and one of the things that seemed to be precluded was that the City of Palo Alto couldn't add a couple of busses if it wanted to. Her hope is that the statement sent to the County can be modified. 166 2/11/74 Councilman Rosenbaum stated that the members involved had a good point because there is some misunderstanding. MOTION: Councilman Rosenbaum moved, seconded by Pearson, that Item I in his motion of 2/4/74 for a letter to the Board of Supervisors and the Transportation Commission be changed to read "that the County not make a commitment to establishing a bus system of such size and cost as to fore- close the possibility of developing a fixed guideway rapid transit system". The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Barron Park Annexation - Cit /Count Subdivision Standards Mayor Comstock referred to his letter to Council Members dated 2/7/74 with regard to Barron Park and the matter of continued subdivision activity during the time period when City Council will be considering annexation. In reviewing the draft letter to the Board of Supervisors with staff, one of the changes suggested by staff is in the second para- graph, first sentence, to say, "A year ago a procedure was established whereby applications for subdivisions in Barron Park are referred to Palo Alto for review before the County takes action. This has enabled the city to recormiend approval or disapproval or changes using Palo Alto's stands==rds as a guide. However, three of the five Barron Park lot divisions that have come to our attention have been approved by the County before the referral procedure was established. In only one case was the approved decision considered so undesirable that Palo Alto attempted and succeeded in having the owner apply for a revised lot revision which was then approved". Then staff recommended replacing the words "the highest standards of the two jurisdictions" with "the standards Palo Alto would apply if Barron Park were in the city where the county has discretion in approving lot divisions". MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, approval of the draft letter to the Board of Supervisors with the changes that have been dis- cussed. Councilman Henderson asked if something needed to be done about the last paragraph also where the Mayor speaks again of maintenance of the highest standards. Mayor Comstock replied affirmatively requesting that those words be deleted and the sentence end with the word "possible". see page 213 1 Councilman Sher said that he felt "n3' initiative for annexation should cone from ',arron Park so therefore he would vote against this motion. The motion passed on the following vote: AYES: Clay, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum NOES: Beahr ABSTAIN: Sher 1 6 7 2/11/74 Oral Communications Frank Manfredi, 219 Addison Avenue, complained about the fact that Urban Lane was a street which he used for many years, and it now appears that Urban Lane is a part of Holiday Inn. Mr. Sipel explained that Urban Lane had not been given to Holiday Inn but is a part of a fairly complicated lease which he would discuss with Mr. Manfredi at another time if he so desired. Mr. Manfredi said his second item was that he wished to suggest that the federal government be encouraged to nationalize such things as oil, medicine, farming, airplane industry, etc. - those things which are important to the people. Ad ournmen t The meeting adjourned at 11:10 p.m. ATTEST: t Ar F ROVE : Mayor 1 6 8 ' 2/11/74