HomeMy WebLinkAbout05061974May 6, 1974
The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this date at 7:30 p.m. in a
regailrr meeting with Mayor Comstock presiding.
Present:
Beahrs, Berwald, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson,
Rosenbaum, Sher, Norton (arrived 7:42 p.m.),
Clay (arrived 9:18 p.m.)
Absent: None
A<.inutes of Aril 15, 1974
Vice Mr.yor Pearson requested that the following paragraph
be inserted on page 389 between Councilman Berwa?d's comments
and responses from bit:. Knox: "Vice Mayor Pearson agreed with Mr.
Berwald about the need for a driveway off Watson Court. Her reason
::as that it wan dangerous to have cars making two left turns —one
into the parking lot if the f1rat driveway were missed, and one
going out of the parking lot toward the intersection. Traffic was
very heavy at this point, ,and the driveway was too close to the intersection.
Furthermore, this driveway would be unnecessary if Watson Court had
a driveway. Vice Mayor Pearson asked Staff if they would review
the situation, and the answer was affirmative".
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Berwald, that the minutes
of the April 15 meeting be approved as revised.
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Minutes of A4 ourned Heetin of April 15, 1974
Councilman Sher requested that the word "needing", second line,
403, be corrected to "meeting". He further asked that the word
be inserted after "that", the first word on page 404.
page
"was"
Councilman Henderson requested that the first sentence after the
motion on page 394 be corrected to read: "Councilman Henderson stated
it would be better if the bidding procedure were raised as a separate
subject in committee rather than being discussed in relation to this
one case". Secondly, Councilman Henderson requested that the third
line in the second paragraph, page 400 be corrected to read "be any
interior barrier, because they cause too great an inconvenience."
Councilmen Berwald requested that the word "and" be deleted at the
end of the 8th line fro the bottom of the third paragraph, page
394, and the words "then the" be inserted.
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Henderson, that the minutes
of the Adjourned Meeting of April. 15, 1974, and regular meeting of April
22, 1974, be approved as revised.
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The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Resolution Welcoming Delegation from Oaxaca
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Berwald, that this agenda
item be tabled until later in the evening when the delegation from
Oaxaca would be present.
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Reco ition of the City of Palo Alto
net on of Barriers
or s ca Hand cape
Helen Jones presented a gift to Mayor Comstock and the Council for
their work in the elimination of architectural barriers in the City
of Palo Alto. She noted that the gift was from the city's Task Force
and from the Santa Clara County Chapter of the California Association
of the Physically Handicapped. The gift was a sculpture of a person in
a wher.lchair buldozing barriers.
Mayor Comstock accepted the gift on behalf of the Council and the
Staff and expressed his thanks and appreciation.
Resolution of Aoorecistion to
tstandina Public Service
?MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved,
seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
RESOLUTION NO, 4937 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CII°X OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APFR CIATION TO LAWRENCE A. KLEIN
FOR OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE AS A MEMBER OF THE PLANNING COM-
MISSION'
Mr. Klein expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to serve in
preserving and enhancing the community.
The resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Mayor Comstock presented to Mr. Klein a copy of the Resolution and
a statement of appreciation.
Retirement of Walter Arline
MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved,
seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
RESOLUTION NO. 4938 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO WALTER ARLINE
UPON HIS RETIREMENT"
Mr. Pawlosk{ notes! that Mr. Arline began working to the Department
of Public Works nineteen years ago, beginning his work in the Parks
Division, subsequently transferring to the Streets Division, Mr. Paw-
losk.i quid this retirement meant happy days for Mr. Arline who was
looking forward to hunting and fishing, but that the department was
sorry to see him leave.
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4 2 1
Mr. Arline expressed how ouch he had enjoyed working for the City of
Palo Alto.
The Resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Mayor Comstock presented a plaque to Mr. Arline and thanked him for
his service to the city.
Retirement of Elmer S. Fabro
MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the follawiug resolution and moved,
seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
RESOLUTION NO. 4939 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO EXPRESSING APPRECIAIION TO ELMER FABRO
U„,ON HIS RETIREMENT"
Mr. Pawloski said that he finds it difficult to believe that Mr.
Fabro is really sixty-five and is retiring. Mr. Fabro has worked
for the City for twenty-six years and has the distinction of having
maintained the landscaping at three different City Halls. Mr. Pawloski
pointed out that in the four years that Mr. Fabro has worked at out
present city building, he has had no days of sick leave.
Mr. Fabro thanked the city for bir{rg him, the first of his race
to be employed by the city; and he expressed his enjoyment in working
for Palo Aitt
The Resolutio, adopted on a unanimous vote.
Mayor Cor;stock presented a plaque to Mr. Fabro and thanked him for
his service to the city,
Policy and Procedures Committee Recommends
seeesemenersamesees
Io Louncli uonceras n �'ara�seds.c program
aaarnw �ar rn+ n.wser+lw
Vice Mayor Pearson stated that since the summer of 1972, Council
had expressed an interest in a paramedic unit in Palo Alto. Three
reports had come to the Council since then, plus the recent final
report on what kind of a program the city may have. She noted there
are still some questions with regard to staffing, that is whether
the present complement of firemen should be used, or whether additional
men and women should be hired. There is also the question of how
much more it would cost if more people were hired, wed one of the
questions was whether or not financial support could: be expected
from other jurisdictions. Vice Mayor Pearson said enothei consideration
was whether there was a guarantee of training from Stanford Ueepital
in lieu of the expense of training at the West Valley College. The exact
area t,o be served needed to be known, and a tea minute response area
had been suggested. One of the questions was where the paramedic
unit should be loceted. If it were located at the University Avenue
Station, the ten minute response would tend to serve mostly San Mateo
County, Vice Mayor Pearson reported that the Stanford Hospital emergency
room receives about eight calls per day, half of the calls being
from Palo Alto. From the calls received approximately one every
other day is coucerued with a heart attack or some other major problem.
With prompt medical care, some of these lives would be ;paved. The
number of calls would expand greatly with a paramedic system. Vice
Mayor Pearson noted that the minutes of the Policy and Procedures
5/6/74
422
Committee were quite extensive, and the committee came up with a
motion that was in three parts. She said the Staff needed to know
that Council is interested in a paramedic program, and they should be
directed to get together a proposal that would come back to the Policy
and Procedures Committee, and also go to the Finance and Public Works
Committee. She felt this proposal should be in two parts, one addressing
itself to whether or not more people should be hired, and the other
being the feasibility of using some of the ninety-three firemen presently
employed.mber,
MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved that Council uphold the recommendation
of the Policy and Procedures Committee concerning a paramedic program:
a) that Council adopt as policy its interest in establishing a
paramedic program in Palo Alto subject to working out questions
of staffing and coats;
b) that Council direct staff to prepare a proposal for the
paramedic program including proposals for staffing, for area
to be seared, for participation of other jurisdictions in the
costs of the program, and addressing itself to other questions
raised at the Policy & Procedures Committee Meeting;
c) that the staff report mentioned in b) above be presented to
the Policy and Procedures Committee for consideration of the
components of the proposal and presented to the Finance and
Public Works Committee for consideration of the financial
aspects of the program.
Councilman Henderson referred to page 7 of the staff report regarding
the Santa Clara County system and said he did not see anything in
the minutes of the Policy and Procedures Committee meeting to indicate
discussion of this situation. He quoted from the report, "Work is
now under way to develop a county -wide coordinated effort which will
bring all jurisdictions that are interested in eme_gency medical
care systems under one united front. The funds to implement this
unit were received through a regional medical programs grant". Councilman
Henderson wondered just how Palo Alto might fit into this, and whether
Palo Alto might be moving ahead too fast, and was the County system some-
thing that Palo Alto might be part of in the future.
Vice Mayor Pearson responded that one of the committee's concerns
had been whether the city would dovetail into that program, and she
felt staff would be addressing itself to this question under b) in
the motion. It was her feeling that what Councilman Henderson asked
would be a.nuwered in the staff report.
Councilman Henderson stated that he supported the recommendations
of the Policy and Procedures Committee provided that it is clear
that the more detailed proposal made by the Staff be first approved
by the Policy and Procedures Committee before the Finance and Public
Works Committee became involved in the financial aspects of it. Councilman
Henderson commented that if Palo Alto's program is to serve any other
jurisdictions, then staff should explore to the fullest extent funding
assistance from these jurisdictions, especially San Mateo County.
As to the staffing and the related financial aspects, Councilman
Henderson said he was not ready to accept Councilman Sher's conclusion
that the six paramedics must be additional people. He added that
this may prove to be the case but he would have to be sold on that.
5/6/74
4 2 3
See p. 459
5/6/74
4 2 4
Councilman Henderson pointed out that the current time schedule for
firemen included 48% idle time, 16% training time, and 13X maintenance
time. That makes 77s of a fireman's time that might be susceptible
to other duties; so with that kind of a figure, the possibilities
of using present firemen should be looked into. He said he would
like staff to consider'a paramedic program that would centralize
the operation at Station No. 1 because it has the largest staffing,
with two paramedics on duty at all times, Councilman Henderson said
there would be a need for at least nine fire personnel, perhaps more,
to be trained as paramedics. It was his feeling that they should
receive additional pay for these additional responsibilities. If
these ideas were not possible, then he wanted reasons why they were
not possible. He gathered from the minutes of the Policy and Procedures
Committee minutes that the direction to staff concerning paramedic
staffing proposals would include only proposals involving additional
staffing. In order to be sure that proposals are received concerning
the use of present firemen, Councilman Henderson moved the following:
AMENDMENT: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Pearson, that
part b) of the motion be amended to add the following after the words
"including proposals for staffing", "one of which will cover only
use of present Fire Department personnel."
Councilman Seahra said he could not support the amendment motion
because he felt any consideration of Councilman Henderson's questions
should be deferred until the staff report was available. He also
wondered where Council would be if there were much enthusiasm for
the staff report, but there was no provision for implementation in
the budget. He referred to Councilman Henderson's remarks about
not wanting to have the proposal come to the Finance and Public Works
Committee until the Policy and Procedures Committee had come to some
firm conclusions. Councilman Beahrs felt this was an activity which,
if Council chose to implement, should not be deferred any time at
all.
Councilman Henderson responded that it seemed to make sense to have
the Policy and Procedures Committee and the Council determine which
proposal would be endorsed as policy, and then the Finance and Public
Works Committee could dig into the figures. He felt that receiving
two proposals to weigh one against the other would be acceptable,
but he could not see spending a lot of time on a number of different
proposals, some of which would be turned down.
Councilman Sher stated that he did not oppose the suggestion that
staff consider as one alternative using present firemen; however,
he felt that with the amendment, the structure of part b) would have
to be changed because he understood that part contemplated staff
coming up with one proposal for the co mittee to consider. He said
that perhaps the wording should be that Council direct staff to prepare
alternative proposals for the paramedic program. Councilman Sher
was willing to support consideration of using present firemen as
long as that: is simply one of several options, and one of the options
being separate staffing with new people.
Councilman Norton commented that some time ago this subject was given
birth by Vice Mayor Pearson who felt that with ninety-three firemen
wbo might have extra time, perhaps this kind of program would be
a very positive kind of activity. At that point in time, Councilman
Norton recalled that he paid there could be a problem of men willing
to fight fires who were oleo able to diagnose and treat heart attacks,
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or vice versa. He pointed out that predictably the union would not
want to participate in paramedic activities. Councilman Norton said
he would be reluctant to add six or any other significant number
of new people to handle the program. He commented he was willing
to explore Vice Mayor Pearson's ideas, but that he was cynical regarding
the mixture of activities.
Mr. Walker stated that it was staff's intent to come back with proposals
for hiring additional staff, for using present firemen, and possibly
something in between.
The amendment motion passed on the following vote:
AYES: Berwald, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Norton, Sher,
Rosenbaum
NOES: Beahrs
Councilman Berwald thanked the Policy and Procedures Committee for
all the hard work they had put in on this matter and said it was
apparent that they had done a thorough job. 'He said he was particularly
impressed with Vice ALayor Pearson's suggestions regarding adjoining
jurisdictions, and that the City Manager had assured him that staff would
work very closely with Stanford and others. Councilman Berwald wanted to
be sure that sharing be explored with San Mateo County, Santa Clara
County, with the jurisdictions of the El Camino Hospital District,
and the Sequoia Hospital District, so that as Palo Alto progresses,
perhaps theta jurisdictions can be pulled along in corresponding
programs.
AMENDMENT: Councilman Berwald moved, seconded by Comstock, that the
main motion be amended to add d) that adjoining jurisdictions including
San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, El Camino Hospital District,
and Sequoia Hospital District, be kept informed of the progress of
Palo Alto's studies and be invited to be a part of the discussions.
Vice Mayor Pearson said she felt this had been included in the committee's
recommendations, but that this motion made it very clear and she
would support it.
The amendment passed on a unanimous vote.
Mayor Comstock noted that the main motion now before Council was
the Committee reccmmendation with Councilman Henderaon's added stipulation
for item b), and Councilman Berwald's additional Section d).
The mended action passed on a unanimous vote.
MOTION: }ay+.r Comstock moved, seconded by Perwaid, that Item No.
1 on the agenda, tha Resolution welcoming the delegation from Oaxaca,
be removed from the table.
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Rasoluticrn Welco n
c+n Tom aa:ssca
Councilman Berwald noted that Ralph Hendrikson, President of Neighbors
Abroad, in his letter to the Mayor was referring to the Mayor Comstock
5/6/74
4 2 5
and Mrs. Comstock when he said, "Thank you again for your wonderful
cooperation with us in this activity". He added that the two hundred
members of Neighbors Abroad had done a tremendous job in bringing
to Palo Alto our good neighbors from Oaxaca. Councilman Berwald
introduced Mr. Hendrikson to the Council, and also Don Cooper, the
iu--coming President of Neighbors Abroad.
Mr. Hendrikson said the members felt very fortunate to have the group
from Oaxaca in Palo Alto on Sunday, when they were celebrating El
Cinco de Mayo. Mr. Cooper added that being pare of' th.ie organization
was a very personally gratifying experience. Mr. Fendrikson introduced
Hz . and Mrs. Carlos Hamilton, President of Neighbors Abroad in Oaxaca,
and the other members of the delegation.
Councilman Berwald particularly wanted to thank staff for their wonderful
hospitality at the Cultural Center on Sunday and at Foothill Park
on Monday afternoon. He said this was eypical of Mr. Sipel's staff,
in that they were always willing to be very helpful.
MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following resolution and moved,
seconded by Pearson, ita adoption:
RESOLUTION NO. 4936 entitled "RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO WELCOMING AND HONORING MEMBERS OF
CIUDADES HERMANAS, OA ACA, GAX. , MEXICO"
Mayor Comstock read the Resolution.
The Resolution was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Mayor Comstock presented a copy of the Resolution to each member
of the delegation and seat warm greetings from Palo Alto to all of
the citizens of Oaxaca.
Status �te ort of San Mateo
'Trams 1
Councilman Berwald noted that San Mateo County has been hard at work
wth regard to transportation planning. He said it was timely to
have the tubers of the San Mateo Transportation Planning Team report
to Council on the progress of their efforts. Councilman Berwald said
the main purpose was informational, and he did not assume much time
would be spent on discussion at this meeting. He introduced Mr.
Stan Kawaguchi of Parsons, Brinckerhof€, Quade & Douglas.
Hr. Kawaguchi reported that there are three studies being conducted -
Rail Rapid Transit Study, Local Bus Transit Study, and Peninsula
Rail Upgrading Study. He said the first question to be looked at
was whether or not them was a transportation problem. Mr. Kawaguchi
gave the figures for population growth between now and 1990 which
indicated much growth. Also, the age group in the county is changing,
with fever children and more working age people. So the problem
was to be abi a to move the people from where they live to there they
work. At present, automobile usage for commuting is out of balance
:he reported. He said that some of the possible solutions Would be
to build more freeways, or start a county -wide bus system, upgrade
the SP commute service, or extend rail rapid transit. Mr. Kawaguchi
noted the answer may Ile in a combination of the possible solutions.
5/6/74
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He said that a number of studies were being done to gather information,
and that ultimately the decisions rested with the people.
Hr. Kawaguchi noted that the route of the Rail Rapid Transit Study
was still the same as it was a year ago when a report was made; it
still basically follows the SP corridor from Daly City down to Menlo
Park, with a yard located in the city of Bur1i. agame. He reported
where the stations would be and also gave the time schedules and
the terminus location. A line extending from Daly City to Redwood
City would cost $164,000,000, essumtng a ten-year construction tzheduie,
accounting for inflation, etc. It was assumed that in 1985 thirty
to thirty-eight million passengers a year would use the system. Mr.
Kawaguchi said that when all of the studies are completed enough
information should be available so that the County can decide what
their next step would be. He noted that the short-term strategy
would probably be a local bus system. Whatever decisions are going
to be made will have to be made shortly because such system.a take
a very long tie to build. The county's first action would have
to be to form a transit district. Another step the county would
have to get into once they decided on a system would be inter -agency
agreements. These would involve San Francisco, Santa Clara County,
Bay Area Rapid Transit,. and MTC. In addition, the question of the
Southern Pacific Transportation Company has to be considered.
Mr. Lou Salaber, Tudor Engineering, said there vas a definite growing
need for public transportation. now. He noted that some cities in
San :dateo County had developed their cum bus systems which was fine,
but they were oriented to local service and did not consider the
county --wide needs or long haul commutes:. He reported that the major -
result coming out of last year's study was the beginning of putting
together some transit legislation which will probably be on the November
ballot for voter approval, From the study, actual proposals have
been prepared concerning routes, shedules, fares, and all of the
system --wide equipment that would be needed such as storage yards,
buses, etc. Three different types of services are being recommended.
One of them is a fixed route system, which would be a major trunk
line servicee extending from Page Mill Road in Palo Alto all the way
up E1 Camino to the Bart Daly City Statio . This trunk line would
be served by a variety of local routes. In addition to those two
types of service, there would be express services, one running along
the coast from Pacifica up to the Bart Station, one going from Menlo
Park SP Station to 1-280, stopping along several interchanges, to
the Bart Station and an express route starting at Menlo Park and
going to Redwood City then on to Bayshore to the Airport, and then
to the Bart Station. A small pilot program has been proposed which
would be a Dial -A -Ride service in the area of Burlingame and San
Mateo. The last recommendation is a fixed amount of money that the
district would appropriate each year for the coordination of special
services within the county.
Mr. Salaber noted that in the study, they assumed the incorporation
of Greyhound Service into the fixed route service on El Camino.
The basic trunk route would extend from Stanford Industrial Park,
down El Casino and all the way up to the Bart Station, with buses
running at ten-minute headways most of the day. Another route would
be from Stanford Campus and Stanford Hospital over to the SP station
in Palo Alto and then into the East Palo Alto area. There also was
a recommendation that there be free transfers between the Santa Clara
system and the San Mateo system.
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427
Mr. Eric Mohr, an independent consultant to the Metropolitan Tranaportation
Comeission reported on the Peninsula Rail Upgrading Study. His concern
was the use of an existing resource, and the area of concern extended
from San Francisco to San Jose. The question is what can be done
to preserve this existing transportation resource, and how can this
be compared with the construction of new facilities. The MTC passed
a resolution to conduct a study to investigate the political and
legal implications of integrating the existing Southern Pacific commuter
service for the city and county of San Francisco, Srn Mateo County
and Santa Clara County into the Bay Area Regional Transportation
aystem,and that the study include the feasibility of upgrading levels of
service through public asaistance and make reco endations as to
the level of service which would be most effective as an alternate
to a BART type transit system. The study began in January of this
year aud has been moving ahead rapidly toward to mid -year completion
date. Mr. Mohr stated that they can stay with present technology
or they can change it, and they have also been studying the organizational
setup which can stay the same or it can also change. If the present
setup is kept, then only minor upgrading is possible. If the organization
is changed, then there is a possibility of a moderate level of epgrad{ng.
On the other hand, if both organization and technology are changed,
then there is an opportunity for najor upgrading. Mr. Mohr presented
charts which showed what the effects would be of minor, moderate,
and major upgrading.
Mr. Mohr reported that an upgraded system, could do more than just
move a lot of commuters north in the morning and south at the end
of the day. There is the possibility of reverse commuting, more
mid -day riding, and more weekend use. He stated that San Francisco
would remain the dominant station for a long time to come. This
was a problem he felt, and he presented some of the suggestions made
in the study for handling it. He said the airport access problem
was a difficult one that was being dealt with in the study. He stated
that the the aim of the study was to put information into the hands
of decision makers so that they could make the best decisions possible
for the future,
Councilman Berwald thanked Mr. Kawaguchi, Mt. Salaber and Mr. Mohr
for presenting their information on the San Mateo County Transportation
Planning.
M.r. George Zimmerman, Senior planner, reported that in the San Mateo
County Transit Development project's first --draft final report, since
Redwood City appeared to be the most favorable interim terminal,
it appeared it would also be most feasible to have complete abandonment
of all SP commuter service on the peninsula and substitute bus service
would be provided between Redwood City and San Jose. Staff had responded
that this would not be at all acceptable, and obviously the combination
of bis service between San Jose and Redwood City and rail rapid transit
between Redwood City and San Francisco would not provide comparable
service to that which Palo Alto residents presently receive on the
SP.
Councilman Rosenbaua added his thanks for the presentation of the
information. He asked Mr. Maihr what he saw coming at the end of
his study. Did he feel that the MTC or any other organization would
be able to come to a conclusion or would they be likely to suggest
that there be a larger study.
5/6/74-_
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•
Mr. Mohr responded that they would be able to present to the MTC
come fairly clear findings an whether there le any feasibility at
all in upgrading present rail service. If they found that an alternative
were feasible, and if MTC concurs, then before implementation, other
steps are necessary. It would not be possible to go directly from
this study to physical implementation because much more specific
information would be needed. The cost information would have to
be much more precise.
Councilman Rosenbaum asked Mr. Mohr if he had any idea that he might
come up with the conclusion that it would cost more to upgrade the
SP than it would to simply run the BART system down.
Mr. Mohr replied that it was extremely unlikely that it would cost
as much to upgrade the SP system as it would'to extend BART. He
pointed out that he did not feel the two could readily be compared.
Councilman Beahrs referred to a pamphlet that was placed on the seats
of all SP commuters today and said he was intrigued with the differentials
in costs. The annual cost for commuting from Redwood City to downtown
San Franciso via 280 is $2,115 per year. By driving Bayshore, the
costs are $1,783 If a commuter went by way of 280 to the ;ART station,
the cost for driving an automobile is $1,547 per year, five days
a week. By Greyhound, the cost is $648, by Southern Pacific the
cost is $609. Councilman Beahrs felt that Southern Pacific provided
an excellent service and saved commuters a lot of money.
Vice Mayor- Pearson asked how the results of the study would be presented
to the people of San Mateo County. She wanted to know if it weutd
be a package or if there would be a choice.
Mr. Kawaguchi responded that they are just putting pieces of the
puzzle forward to the county, and it would be up to the county to
put the pieces all together. This is why he referred to the fact
that they would have to come up with a transportation plan that would
be a balanced system. The county will have to look at the various
systems and then make a judgment, and ultimately it wilt have to
go before the people for their decision.
Vice Mayor Pearson asked if there would be a vote on whether the
people wanted a transit district, or buses. In other words, would
all of these things be given to the people to vote on.
Mr. Kawaguchi replied that the first step was the formation of a
transit district. This district under the present legislation is not
limited to strictly buses. It is an all encompassing district. If the
people approve of this in November, then the district is formed in the
county. Presumably they then would take all of these studies and try
to develop a transporation system for the county. Initially, however,
San Mateo County is looking at the local bus system.
Mr. Joseph Carleton, 2350 Ross Road, stated that Some people in Palo
Alto are concerned that there is an alternative to an upgraded SP,
and they would prefer not be tied into an extremely expensive BART
system when an upgraded SP might provide the same service and much
faster. The Chairman of WIC, Mr, Becket, has stated that SP upgrading
is not the answer, and Mr. Carleton spoke in opposition to that idea.
He pointed out that it took about ten years to get a line twenty-
five tiles long for BART, and hand labor one hundred years ago was
able to build a railroad about 150,000 miles across mountains, and
now it takes ten years to run a twenty-five mile line on flat ground
using automatic equipment. He asked Council to give honest consideration
to SP upgrading.
516/74
4 2 9
Councilman Norton left at 9:07 p.m.
Councilman Clay arrived at 9:18 p.m.
MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Berwald, that Item
No. 11 on the agenda human Relations Commission recommendation re
Creations Workshop and Coffee House be moved up on the agenda for
purposes of referral to the Finance and Public Works Committee.
The motion to consider item 11 out of order passed on a unanimous
vote.
lumen Relations Cox ission • Recommends
re ( eatione Workaiop and C=offee Dose
..I. m�0�lydil.�� I ..
MOTION; Vice Mayor Pearson roved, seconded by Berwald, that the action
regarding the Creations Workshop and Coffee House be referred to
the Finance and Public Works Committee.
Councilman Henderson asked if he were correct that rather than a
policy being established by Council, the Finance and Public Works
Committee was being asked to determine whether or not they approve
the proposal and then include it in the budget.
Mayor Comstock responded that the staff's letter and information
dated May 2 indicated that there was enough material available so
that the matter could be referred to the Finance and Public Works
Department.
Councilman Norton returned at 9:20 p.m.
Councilman Sher asked if the budget supplement for this item was
prepared prior to the budget submittal to the Finance and Public
Works Committee and the staff decided not to send it forward.
Mr. Sipel replied that this program was proposed by the Recreation
Department to his office, and it was proposed in the foray as shown
as are other budget supplements. He said he did not choose to forward
it to the Council because he did not think it had as high a priority
as the other items he forwarded.
See p. 459
5/6/74
4 3 0
Councilman Sher asked if the Finance and Public Works Committee wou'.d
have a full blown discussion of the merits of the proposal, and whether
it is better to have a separate building rented for this purpose.
He asked if he understood correctly that there was no policy direction
from the Council on this matter.
Mayor Comstock responded there was no Council direction at this point,
and that the Finance and Public Works Committee would discuss all
aspects of the matter.
Councilman Bea.hrs asked if this would be in lieu of The Collective.
Mayor Comstock replied that this was an entirely different program
and should not be considered in that light at all.
Councilman Beahrs recalled witnessing the efforts of the staff to
provide such a facility in the Community Center, and the place fell
into disrepair. Mayor Comstock noted that that particular program
was still going on.
The referral motion passed ona unanimous vote.
MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Comstock, that Item
No. 18 on the agenda Condominium Conversion Study and Recommendations
be moved up on the agenda for purposes of referral.
The motion to consider item 18 out of order passed on a unanimous
vote.
Condominium Conversion Stud and. Recommendations
3.:'a
REFERRAL MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Henderson,
that the Condominium Conversion Study and Recommendations be referred
to the Policy and Procedures Committee.
The referral motion passed on a unanimous vote.
MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson introduced the following ordinance and
craved, seconded by Henderson, its approval for first reading:
OP'DIciANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING
ORDINANCE t:0. 2751 TO EXTEND THE SUSPENSION OF THE CONVERSION
OF AFARTKEWE BUILDINGS TO CONDOMINIUMS IMPOSED THEREBY FOR A
PERIOD OF THREE MONTHS UPON THE SAME TERMS AND CONDITIONS
The ordinance was approved for firs reading, on the following vote:
AYES: Comstock, Henderson, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: 3eahra, Eervald, Clay, Norton
NATION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Comstock, that Item
19 on the Agenda Housing Land Bank be moved up on the Agenda for
purposes of referral.
The motion to consider item 19 out of order passed on a unanimous vote.
Housing Land Sank: (C t:290:4)
MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Comstock, that the
Housing Land Sank report be referred to the Finance and Public Works
Committee and to the Planning Commission.
Councilman Clay stated that before the Housing Land Bank report went
to the Finance and Public Works Committee, there ought to be some
discussion at Council or at Policy and Procedures Committee level.
He did not like to see separation of the Housing Land Hank matter
and the Condominium Conversion situation because of the common element
that they hold.
Me. Sipel commented that the reasons staff - suggested the Housing Land
Bank report go to the Finance and Public Works Committee is there
is one item that relates to Land Banking already in the Committee,
which is the Greer Park acquisition subject. Also, the Committee
5/6/74
431
does have before it the Capital Improvements Program generally, and
staff wanted to get this to the Committee so they could make a decision,
hopeful?.y before the first of the year, on that proposed appropriation.
Obviously, it does have a relationship to condominium conversion
and any other subje:t that has to do with low/moderate income housing.
Mayor Comstock noted that members of the Policy and Procedures Committee
would be informed of the progress of the land banking review by the
Finance and Public Works Committee.
Mr. Knox commented that on the Housing Land dank report, staff noted
that copies had gone to the Planning Commission, the dousing Corporation,
and the Midpeninsula Citizens Canmuittee for Fair Housing. Although
copies are not indicated on the staff report for condominium conversion
study, staff also sent that report out to the same groups. The condominium
conversion study was also sent out to business oriented groups such
as the Chamber of Commerce and the Real Estate Board. Mr. Knox felt
the thrust of the condominium conversion study was that something
like 18Z of the people who were living in converted condominiums
were previously tenants there, and the bulk of the people living i, apart-
ments converted to condominieerg are Palo Alto residents who are in
effect being moved right out of town by the conversions. The condominium
conversion study deals with the dislocation of Palo Alto residents,
and not so c:uch with low/moderate income housing. On the other hand,
the housing land bank program deals more specifically with low/ moderate
income housing. He pointed out that the Housing Corporation was
being involved in the discussion on both reports.
Councilman Clay stated that his concern was that if the report went
to the Finance and Public Works Committee with the alternative that
the funds may be used for the purchase of land for the expansion
of Greer Park, then that would be a diversion from the prime purpose
of the establishment of land bank funds.
Vice Mayor Pearson commented that this study was going to the Planning
Commission, and she supposed it could go to one more committee, the
Policy and Procedures Committee. She noted that one other item on
the agenda had been referred to the Finance and Public Works Coe ittee
at this meeting, and she did not really see the difference between
that one, the Creations Workshop and Coffee House, and this one.
Councilman Clay noted that when the matter came back to Council from
the Finance and Public Works Committee, be would be expressing the
same reservations about it, because in effect the Finance and Public
Works Committee would have changed the purpose of the fund without
having had prior discussion, assuming that the committee decides
the funds ought to be used for the purchase of land for Greer Park.
Councilman Henderson said that one of the reasons that discussion
was delayed an the Greer Park referral was that the committee was
waiting for this housing laud bank referral, and the two would be
discussed simultaneous's/ since they were very much interrelated.
Councilman Clay felt these were separate and distinct matters, the
purchase of land for Greer Park and the housing land bank item.
Councilman Henderson responded that it was not necessarily for purchase
of land for Greer Park, but that it was for purchase of land period,
am* of which may be for Greer Park, but that was unknown at this
t ieae .
5/6/74
432
Councilman Clay stated that if the money were spent for anything
other than low/ moderate income housing or for land banking for that
purpose, in effect it is being said that the policy established for
this fund has been changed.
Mr. Sipel said the Housing Land Bank Report identifies the number
of parcels within the community that could be used for land banking
purposes, to be purchased by the use of land banking funds. The
Greer Park Report identifies several methods of funding the purchase
of that land, one of which is use of housing land bank funds. Nowhere
in either report, does staff recommend that land banking funds be
utilized exclusively to purchase Greer Park. Mr. Sipel added his
own view of the situatio,1 wee that it was entirely open, with the
decision being to purchase all the land that is known as Greer Park,
or to purchase part of it, to use housing land bank funds, or to
use other funds for that matter.
Councilman Clay took exception to the idea of the city getting into
the real estate business by buying all of the vacant land, and when
these funds are used for buying land for which there is no express
purpose, then that is the direction the city is headed. lie stated
there was an express reason for the establishment of housing land
bank funds, and now that is being expanded. He did not feel this
should be done without having some discussion: or. it, with the determination
made that Council would either do it or not do it.
Councilman Rosenbaum stated that he supported Councilmen Clay's view,
and he would represent that point in the Finance Committee. He agreed
that if the city wanted to buy parts of Greer Park for park expansion
another fund should be set up for that, and that housing land bank
money ought to be used for housing.
Councilman Berwald said he would vote against this referral. He
agreed with Mr. Clay with a slightly different point of view. It
was his opinion that if the city wanted to buy land for Greer Park,
then there should be a clear cut proposal coming to the Council to
purchase property for Greer Park, whether it be a large or small
parcel. He felt this should be discussed at Council level, deciding
how touch property would be wanted within rough limits, and then perhaps
refer it to the Finance and Public Works Committee. if the Council
wants to have land banking for low/moderate income housing, then
a feu sites should be picked, and then a decision should be made
as to how much money should be spent for low/moderate income housing.
Councilman Berwald felt this was something of an omnibus referral,
and he did not quite know what the Finance Committee is expected
to do with it without some more firm direction from the Council.
Councilman Beahrs stated his agreement of the statements 'made by
Councilmen Rosenbaum and Clay. It was his recollection that a fund
of $500,000 was to be maintained for specific enterprises.
Council an Sher asked if the only reason for referring thin to the
Finance and Public Works Committee was so that it could be considered
with the Greer Peek matter.
Mr. Sipel responded that it has to do with the proposed appropration
in the Capital Improvements Program for land banking. He added that
ins the past few years the land banking program had been discussed
at the coss itteee level about this time of the year and Council members
5/6/74
4 3 3
have somewhat lamented the fact that there was no program. Therefore,
the Council directed staff to prepare one, so more information would
be available prior to an appropriation in the budget.
See p. 459
See p. 459
Councilman Sher asked then if the point of the referral is to back
up the $63,000 item in the Capital Improvements Program, and had
really nothing to do with the Greer Park acquisition. He noted that
a lot of talk had been heard about holding up the Greer Park discussion
waiting for this land bank matter, and he felt that needed to be
cleared up because he did not feel there was a consensus for using
housing land bank funds to buy park property.
Mayor Comstock responded that there had been no suggestion of thst.
Councilman Sher asked then why the Greer Park discussion was held
up waiting for this referral of the land bank report.
Mr. Sipel responded that the housing land bank is one possible source
of funds that the staff outlined along with other sources.
Councilman Sher stated he felt the report ought to go to the committee
on the $63,000 item, but the spay it was presented eonight he had
the impression that a vote for the referral was a vote to consider
the use of these funds for Greer Park acquisition and he did not
favor that. He explained he would not want his vote for referral
to be taken that way.
Mayor Comstock explained that the motion was to simply refer the
report to the Finance and Public Works Committee and the Planning
Commission,
The referral motion passed on the following vote:
AYES: Beahrs, f?erwald, Comstock, Henderson, Pearson,
Norton, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: Clay
POTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Comstock, that item
20 on the agenda Request of Mayor Comstock that. Council direct staff
to initiate disposition, of property at 851 University Avenue - be
Moved up on the agenda for consideration of continuance.
Mayor Comstock noted that early in June there would be a general
meeting on the entire subject of the drug program, the budget for
:t, and the direction the program ought to take in the coming year.
Os added that at the June meeting there would be an evaluation report
aiyd a budget request and many discussions on this subject. At that
point the matter of what the policy would be for the coming year
wcieid be decided, and also the extent of the program. The City Manager
and some of the Counciiien had suggested that kind of policy resolution
would quickly decide the extent of the Drug Prevention Program and the
facilities that are required.
Councilman Sher said he would vote against the motion to bring it
up on the agenda because he did not see any urgency in bringing it
up to continue it.
5/6/74
4 3 4
The motion to consider this matter out of order passed on the following
vote:
AYES: Berwald, Clay, C'_mstock, Norton, Pearson,
Henderson, Rosenbaum
NOES: Beahrs, Sher
Re oast of Ma or Comstock re
ra, �rty at nivers t .venue
7'71111117is1�1 .��1�861���A6 -----
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Berwald, that the matter
of the disposition of the property at 851 University Avenue be continued
until. Council has reviewed the entire drug program and its funding
and the extent of the facilities that are required for the coming
fiscal year.
Councilman Sher stated that in effect this motion gives Council the
opportunity to have a second shot dt amending the contract with the
Drug F3oar,, PACUAB said they would not ask in their budget request
for funds for the residential treatment aspect of the program, and
it seemed to him wrong to let that property it there empty. He said
he had been willing to support Mayor Comstock's motion mentioned in his
memo to Council --that staff be directed to dispose of the property.
Mayor Comstock said he realized there was an exposure for bi ing1nv;
that matter back before the Council indirectly in this regard. It
was only after some conversation with the City Manager and Councilman
Rosenbaum that the suggestion was made that Council would be making
these kinds of determinations within the next thirty to sixty days,
and that would rapidly settle the matter. For that reason, Mayor
Comstock decided to change his motion tonight to request a continuance
of the matter.
Councilman Beahrs stated he supported Councilman Sher's comments,
and he was sorry he was not present at the last meeting this was dis-
cussed because the matter would have been settled quickly if he had
been.
Councilman Norton said he assumed the motion for continuance would
pass. He noted that Mr. Sipel had made reports to the press that
he has the keys and he would keep them in his pocket, and he wanted
some assurance that the keys to the house would stay in Mr: Sipel's
pocket.
Mr. Sipel responded that he had the keys right there and until Council
tells him to put the key in the lock, he would not do anything further.
Councilman Berwald said he applauded Mayor Comstock for moving to continue
this matter, but not as loudly, nor did he applaud his other colleagues
who have :spoken of their apparent willingness to dispose of the property.
Since this is only being continued and is still subject to discussion,
he_wanted to comment that he had written a letter on March 15 asking
that a complete study be made to determine what the status of the
drug problem was in Palo Alto before any decisions were made. Therefore
he felt the decision to continue was a good one, and he would support
its He wanted to add that when this matter corms back to Council,
it would come back in just this form so Council will have before
it sn action to dispose of the property prior to having heard the
results of the staff's studies. He hoped that members of Council
5/6/74
4 3 5
would recognize there are two issues involved - one is the need for
a residential treatment center, located in one residence out of 17,000
dwelling units in the city, for the purpose of helping people who
are down and out. In his opinion a drug program could not be successful
without some kind of long range residential care. The other issue
is how well this particular house has been run under the present
contract, which is very much a separate issue. He noted that he
was not convinced either way, but he wanted to see the evidence. If there
is a need to take a person and put him into a residential treatment
center and provide a drug -free disciplined environment for that person,
then he would be willing to_vote to maintain such a center.
Vice Mayor Pearson noted there would be a committee, of the whole
meeting which would devote itself to the discussion of the drug program,
and the fate of the entire drug program would be before Council,
including The Collective and Unity House.
The continuance motion passed on the following vote:
AYES: Berwald, Comstock, Pearson, Henderson,
Eosenbaum
NOES: Beahrs, Clay, Norton, Sher
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that Item 21
on the Agenda be moved up for purposes of referral to staff (Request
of Mayor Comstock for Council support for staff assignment to prepare
resolutions supporting State Propositions 1, 2, 5, 6 and 9).
The motion to consider item 21 out of order passed on the following
vote:
AYES: Berwald, Comstock, Clay, Henderson,
Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: • Beahrs
Request of Manor Comstock for Sunoort
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Henderson, that staff
be directed to prepare resolutions supporting State Propositions
1, 2, 5, 6 and 9 and return them to Council far individual consideration.
Councilman Beahrs felt that in this matter perhaps political interests
were bang carried beyond what is reasonable. He noted that he could
support some of the propositions but that it was a matter of personal
privilege to not have to show his hand on everything that went on
in the state.
Councilman Bervald stated that be considered Propositions 1, 2, 3,
4, 5, 6, and 7 fairly noncontroversial, but that he felt Proposition
9 was very controversial. With regard to Proposition 9, he said
he personally would not ask staff to prepare a resolution to support
it, but would ask for a reaulution to opposes it. He could not understand
why these particular propositions were chosen and not some other
ones.
5/6074
436
Mayor Comstock responded that he chose these particular ones because
they seemed to him to be of unusual public concern. Also he happened
to note that one organization in the community which is part of a
state-wide organization had endorsed.them, and it was an organization
for which he had a great deal of respect. He said he did not intend
to exclude others if there were some that other Council members wished
to have Council take a position on.
i
1
Councilman Berwald commented that he had taken the position in the
past that Council should not, except for some measures that particularly
affect the city, take positions on state and federal issues. He
said he would stick with that position. He noted that although the
League of Women Voters and perhaps Common Cause was lobbying for
Proposition 9, many other organizations were actively lobbying against
it including most of the political candidates on both sides of the
`ence.
Hr. Frank Manfredi, 219 Addison Street, spoke against politicians
and lobbying.
The motion directing staff to prepare separate resolutions for each
proposition passed on the following vote:
AYES: Henderson, Comstock, Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: Beahrs, Berwald, Clay
ABSTAIN: Norton
Plannin Commission Recommends re
^mere t e o . un crpa ode
MOTION: Councilman Henderson moved, seconded by Pearson, that the
Council support the Planning Commission's recommendation by amending
Title (Zoning Ordinance) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code by creating
a "-T" district suffix to allow non-residential uses in residential
zones, with restrictions.
Councilman Berwald asked how 18.82.040 with respect to floor area
would work with regard to are industrial park setting.
Mr. Knox replied that the "T" oietrict cultic is intended to apply
in residential zones of s:ti--family nature, and would allow 50%
non-residential use on a property. If the property were already
developed with a frame dwelling unit for exaiapie, commercial could
be added to the property to the extent of 50% of the total.
Councilman .Berwald felt that the annual use and occupancy permit
was a rather harsh requirement in that it could be that the property
remained unoccupied for a period of 180 days, then the person would
be in noncompliance with the zoning ordinance.
Mr. Knox responded that there would be a noncompliance. The purpose
of this is to insure that residentially zoned property would not
be converted to a commercial district as a subterfuge.
Councils Berwald said it did not seem fair than: if the residential
part of the property were vacant through no fault of the owner, then
he would be punished for that.
5/6/74
4 3 ;
Mr. Booth commented that there was considerable concern that persons
might take advantage of the generous relaxation of normal requirements
by putting in this mixed -use, and then when it became vacant let
it stay that way or worse yet, use it as a storehouse or something
that would not technically be a conversion to commercial use but
would serve a somewhat similar purpose. Because of that special
benefit out of the "-T" district, he felt it would be legally defensible.
The building official is entitled to meet the special problems of
a landlord who for one reason or another is unable, as opposed to
unwilling, to find a satisfactory tenant within that 'period.
Councilman Berwald asked if the language could be changed to say
that if one-half or more of the dwelling units remained unoccupied
for residential purposes for a period exceeding ninety days and if
the property is converted to commercial use or to eon -residential
use, and unless the owner has made good faith efforts to occupy that
dwelling, etc. He said he never heard of a person justifying a position
in law on the basis that some people might take advantage of the situation.
Councilman Norton agreed and said the ordinance was written in a
way that he had never seen before. It is one thing to say that vacating
the residential portion shall be unlawful, and letting the normal
enforcement procedures take over; but to say that by vacating for
any reason then the other half ceases to by lawful is quite unusual
and reflects a level of staffing as suggested in Mr. Knox's memo,
that he was not willing to support. He said the problem stated on
page 2 of Planning Commission minutes, last paragraph had not been
addressed. He pointed cut :hat there were many ways that complaints
come to the staff and the attorney's office, including suspicions
of building inspectors. Councilman Norton said he did not see anything
wrong with sticking with the present level of staffing and enforcement,
even with this ordinance. He added that the annual renewal of the
certificate of use and occupancy was ridiculous, and would cause a
lot of trouble for the staff, and certainly an inconvenience to the
owner. The subparagraph b) dealing with controls was written in
a way that he had never seen, also. The building inspector its here
permitted to attach conditions which if violated will autcmatica iy
revoke the effectiveness of the permit without a hearing. Councilman
Norton felt too much authority was being delegated to the building
inspector. Furthermore, he was not clear on the purpose or the effect
of 050, subparagraph c). He summed up that these were his complaints
end if the iteae mentioned remained as they were, then he would vote
against the ordinance.
2ir. Booth responded that subparagraph h) of 060 is taken basically
from the L -M zone, of which there are three in the city. It carries
forward the types of measures enabled to be imposed as a condition
of using those properties for industrial purposes. Subparagaph a)
is in line with the type of permit which is not required for all
nonconforming uses to the city, and it is intended as a low-priced
and low intensity of enforcement type of approach to ride herd on
the residential character of these buildings particularly, but also
on the other aspects. With regard to 050 c) on non -complying buildings,
that language is in order to prevent evasions by means of conversion
to full commercial uses and avoidance of the traditional commercial
lot size, etc. It helps to preserve the residential aspect of these
mixed -uses. Finally, on the discontinuance of a residential use,
he believed it would be very difficult for the municipal court, to
handle a failure to rent an apartment in a traditional manner, while
it would be a misdemeanor to violate the zoning ordinance and the same
5/6/74
4 3 8
could be regularly prosecuted with good support from the municipal
court. Nevertheless, the real remedy is to find a tenant and rent
the apartment to him. It was felt this measure would perhaps tend
to encourage that, or on the other hand discourage .:hose who might
otherwise leave that section vacant or bootleg in product storage,
or some other such thing.
Mr. Knox stated that the section regarding controls utilizes language
currently in the zoning ordinance, most particularly in the L -M district
where the building official may require evidence of adequate controls.
Councilman Norton had referred to Mr. Knox's remarks in the minutes
about the enforcement system, and he pointed out those were in relation
to the enforcement system in general and not in relation to this
specific suffix. In that portion of the minutes, Mrs. Brenner was
discussing tha general concept of enforcement on i complaint basis,
and he had simply commented there would be a staffing impact from
that. He did not want Council to think that staff was stating that
some other method of enforcement other than certificate of use and
occupancy would result in s major staff growth, since that is not
the case.
Councilman Norton said the mere fact that these sections in similar
versions exist elsewhere in other ordinances did not make them any
more meaningful. He stated his main concern was with c) of 040,
which gays that if the residential portion is vacant for ninety days,
the ton -residential portion shall be terminated forthwith. He felt
the foul motivation to keep property occupied, in this case rented
tct a person for residential purposes, was sufficient motivation for
the owner to keep it occupied. If he would he cheating and keeping
storage stuff in the space, then the normal rules come into play
where he is in violation of the ;ordinance.
Mayor Comstock asked Mr. &ooth to respond to Councilman Norton's
suggestion of some language along the lines of "non-residential use
of the residential portion is unlawful".
Mr. Booth replied this would achieve a slightly different objective,
but that it was ceetainiy an acceptable approach; and he would have
no objection to working up some wording eo that effect between this
meeting and the second reading of the ordinance.
AMENDMENT: Councilman Norton moved, seconded by Comstock, that the or-
dinance be amended to rewcite subparagraph c) of 040 to indicate
that the use of the residential portion for non-residential uses
is not permitted.
Councilman Sher wanted to know if under this proposed amendment it
would be possible to take an existing structure for example, and
use 502 of it for commercial purposes and never put any of it into
residential use, or does it contemplate that in order to qualify
at the outset at least, it would have to be renovated in such a way
that you could call 502 of it residential unit.
Mr. Knox responded that it appeared to be possible for someone to
take a house or en apartment building which is all residential, convert
502 of it to commercial use and have 502 residential. Under the
section as reworded, the 502 residential could be discontinued unless
vacant. However if c) on non -complying buildings is not changed,
then the building would become non -complying upon termination of
one component of the mixed -use.
5/6/74
4 3 9
Mr. Booth commented that he understood Councilman Sher's question
was whether someone could put in a commercial part and just leave
the other half unremodeled and vacant, and the answer would be yes.
He suggested that the commercial not be permitted to be remodeled
for occupancy until the residential part is occupied, at least initially.
Councilman Sher said he agreed that once a building has been acttally
eenverted to rental units, then the economic incentive is there to
rent them, but there was the problem of someone taking an existiv g
house, converting it for commercial and then leaving the least desirable
space empty, designating it as the rental part of the property but
with no intention of ever using it that way. With fr. Booth's suggested
language, the city could be sure before a building qualified, it
was made into real, rental units. If that were done, theta Councilman
Sher would support Councilman Norton's approach.
Councilman Norton accepted Councilman Sher's addition to his amendment.
Mayor Comstock stated the corrected motion as follows:
AMENDMENT RESTATED: Councilman Norton moved, seconded by Comstock,
that subparagraph c) of 040 be rewritten to indicate that the use
of the re€idential portion for non-residential uses is not permitted,
and secondly, some necessary language would be developed to deal
with the development of residential usage for the other portion of
the property prior to development for a split --use facility.
Councilman Norton noted that under this approach there would have
to be a point where it was established with the city that a building
was occupied at some time 50% commercial arul 501 residential; thereafter,
if it were vacant on either side, it would not ratter.
See p. 459
Councilman Henderson reported that he still had some concern because
the c) on page 4 about termination of any component of the mixed -
use, but to be vacant is not termination; therefore the situation
of vacancy was not being covered. He felt there should be some guarantee
that 502 of the property was actually being used as a residential
property.
Councilman Beahra stated that when he recalled the original discussion
of the transitional type zone, he personally had in mind something
peripheral to Fire Zone I, or well establiahed commercial districts.
And this was an effort to do justice to those people who were suffering
due to the Fire Zone I efforts. It seemed to him chat the way this
was written, it was in no sense restricted to a peripheral situation.
Mrs. Cordon replied that the areas where this would be applied would
have to be so zoned. This would be used as a transitional kind of
thing, and ahe anticipated a very limited use.
Mr. Knox explained the purpose was to permit the orderly development
of certain non-residential uses in conjunction with residential uses
in areas that uervice transitions between commercial and residential
areas. Further, the development of such a mixed --use district should
foster the retention and maintenance of existin3 residential structures
and enhance the character of the neighborhood. This was designed
with reference to Fire Zone I, but also the same kind of thing would
be eventually e_pplicsble in the California Avenue area, for example.
5/6/74
4 4 0
The amendmentpassed on the following vote:
AYES: Beahrs, Berwald, Clay; Comstock, Norton,
Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: Henderson, Pearson
AMENDMENT: Councilman Norton moved, seconded by Berwald, that the
ordinance be admeded to delete the provision at the end of 060 that
would require the annual renewal of the certificate of use and occupancy.
Councilman Henderson did not see that this would bring about additional
staffing, and the annual use permit would allow a scheduled inspection
and make it much more orderly. He felt this eras the city's only protection
to see that the provision for commercial use :s not violated. Councilman
Henderson said there would not be too great an inconvenience for
anyone, and the cost would be minimal.
The amendment failed on the following vote:
AYES: Beahrs, Berwald, Clay, Norton
NOES: Comstock, Pearson, Henderson, Sher,
Rosenbaum
Councilman Sher spoke in favor of the ordinance. A lot of hard work
had been done, and there had been great enthusiasm involved for the
concept of the "-t" zone 9.n the Policy and Procedures Committee and
at the Council level, and also in the Planning Commission. He said
he hoped all the members could join in and support the ordinance
which really is an effort to do something sensible with regard to
very Specific pieces of property in the transition zone between commercial
and residential. Councilman Sher stated that the Chamber of Commerce
had pushed very hard in eliminating obstacles to rehabilitation and
renovation of property in and near the commercial areas, and this
ordinance was certainly a step in that direction. It was his hope
that there would be a unanimous vote. The ordinance would create
a new zone category and make it possible to look at property an a
parcel by parcel basis to see if it would be helped by the application
of this "-T" suffix.
Councilman Norton responded that if this ware an ordinance to permit
residential uses in a commercial zone then he would bn quite happy
to support it. The sequence by 'which this came up, namely by down -
zoning the commercial to residential and then adding commercial to
that zone as a limited use, simply meant that he could not support
it.
The ordinance, as amended, was approved for first reading on the
following vote:
AYES: Beahrs, Berwald, Comstock, Henderson,
Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: Clay, Norton
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, approval of the
recommendation of the Planning Commission regarding application of
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Colin Peters for a Miscellaneous Division of
at 1050 East Meadow Circle, subject to condit
Planning Department staff report of April 19,
no signficant environmental impact will resul
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Plannin Commission Recommends re
o cat on o '.a uatx es
Land (2 lot
ions record
1974; and
t from this
s) located
ed in the
finds that
action.
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that Council
uphold the recommendation of the Planning Commission to approve the
application of Mape Industries for a Miscellaneous Division of Land
(3 lots) located at the corner of East i+ayahore Road and Watson Court,
subject to conditions listed in the Planning Department staff report
of February 22, 1974; and finds that no significant environmental impact
will result from this action.
The motion passed on a unanimouu vote.
Planning Comxcis8ion Recommends re
c _ono mow. oa Bon an <acsmond
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that Council
uphold the recommendation of the Planning Commission to approve the
application of i,.i , Woodson and Hatnrw;nd for Site and Design approval
of signs at 2450 Embarcadero Way, Zone District L -M -T); and finds
that no significant environmental impact will result from this action.
Vice Mayor Pearson predicted that this Was one building that would
look good.
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Ordinance Atendin Code to Chan e
tin n� $� 8 sys ore a
MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following ordinance and moved,
seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
ORDINANCE NO. 2785 entitled ORDINANCE OP THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING SECTION 18, 08.040 OF THE
PALO ALTO MUNICIPAL CODE TO CHANGE THE ZONING OF CERTAIN
PROPERTY KNOWN AS 2300 EAST ZAYSHORE ROAD FROM L -H -D TO
P -C, SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS (1st reading April 15, 1974)
The ordinance was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Ordinance Amending Title 18 to Alta
MOTION: Councils Henderson introduced the foii.owing ordinance
and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption: -
ORDINANCE NO. 2786 entitled ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING TITLE 18 OF THE PALO ALTO
MUNICIPAL CODE TO ALLOW DWELLING UNITS IN COMMERCIAL AND
INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS (1st reading April 22, 1974)
The ordinance was adopted on the following vote:
AYES: Beahrs, Berwald, Comstock, Henderson,
Pearson, Rosenbaum, Sher
NOES: Clay
Ordinance re reement to Relocate
mismia awry Sewer s t
MOTION: Councilman Henderson introduced the following ordinance
and moved, seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
ORDINANCE NO. 2787 entitled ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO APPROVING AN AGRrEMENT TO RELOCATE
A SANITARY SEWER EASEMENT OF THE EAST PALO ALTO SANITARY
DISTRICT (1st reading April 22, 1974)
The ordinance was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Downtown Beautifieet{on: Award of Bids
MOTION: Chairman Henderson moved, seconded by Norton, that Council
award the bond sale to San Francisco Securities, Inc., by adopting
the following reaolutiona:
RESOLUTION NO. 4940 entitled "A RESOLUTION DETERMINING
UNPAID ASSESSMENTS AND PROVIDING FOR ISSUANCE OF BONDS -
DOWNTOWN BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT NO. 71-80"
RESOLUTION NO. 4941 entitled "A RESOLUTION AWARDING SALE OF
BONDS - DOWNTOWN BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT NO. 71-80"
The resolutions were adopted on a unanimous vote.
Miscellaneous Streets Reconstruction:
pot on s
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Henderson, that the Council
find that this project is exempt from the requirements of the California
Environmental Quality Act of 1970.
The motion was adopted on a unanimous vote.
MOTION: Mayor Comstock introduced the following ordinance and moved,
seconded by Pearson, its adoption:
ORDINANCE NO. 2788 entitled "ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR
1973-74 TO CONSOLIDATE THE EXISTING APPROPRIATIONS FOR
FIVE STREET IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS INTO ONE PROJECT"
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the ordinance was adopted on a unanimous vote.
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearcon, that the Mayor
be authorized to execute a contract with McGuire & Hester for the
amount of $172,421.64.
Councilman Henderson commended the staff for combining the five projects
in this manner and producing the resulting -savings to Palo Alto taxpayers.
The motion was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Crescent Park et al
an a ewer acee:t1ts (C 18:294 :4)
MOTION: Mayor Comstock moved, seconded by Pearson, that the Mayor
be authorized to execute a contract with Dalton Construction Company
for the amount of $40,427.60, and that Council reject the alternative
having to do with the work at the Yacht Harbor.
The motion was adopted on a unanimous vote.
Amendment to
` :xt
.1151› . -
MOTION: MOTION: Vice Mayor Pearson moved, seconded by Norton, that staff
find out the status of the recent Amendment to the Williamson Act
and report back to Council.
The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
.3ci ourtimerlt
The meeting adjourned at 11:15 p.m.
AITfEST:
516/74
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APPROVE:
2�)
Mayor