HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 327-10TO: HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE
DATE: JULY 26, 2010 CMR: 327:10
SUBJECT: Policy & Services Committee Recommendation to Approve the Council
Priorities Workplan for 2010
RECOMMENDATION
The Policy & Services Committee recommends that the City Council adopt the 2010 Council
priorities workplan. The Committee also recommends that the Council consider establishing
these priorities as two-year priorities to be revisited at the Council retreat in early 2012.
DISCUSSION
At/the Council retreat on January 29, 2010, the City Council identified five top priorities for
2012. The Council then officially adopted these priorities on March 22, 2010. The five
priorities are:
1) City Finances
2) Land Use and Transportation
3) Environmental Sustainability
4) Emergency Preparedness
5) Community Collaboration for Youth Health and Well-Being
In response to direction from the Council, staff has worked closely with the Policy & Services
Committee in the development and vetting of the 2010 Council priorities workplan. This is a
new approach to the development of the priorities workplan, initiated as part of a broader effort
to engage the Policy & Services Committee in the prioritization of Council and staff workloads.
Over the course of six meetings~ the Committee received presentations from various staff
members and provided input on both the content of the workplan as well as the current and
future process for developing the workplan. This effort and the work of the Committee has
resulted in revisions to the "See-It" site, which provides a visual representation of the Council
priorities workplan. The "See-It" site was a new tool implemented last year as part of an effort
to increase the transparency and visibility of the priorities workplan. The updated site can be
viewed at: http://www.cit)\ofpaloalto.org/depts/cou/see_it.asp. As part of the presentation at the
meeting, staff can walk through the site with the Council as necessary. Attachment A presents a
matrix of the final recommended priorities, strategies and actions that have been incorporated
into the "See-It" site.
CMR: 327:10 Page 1 of3
Although the Committee has done a significant amount of work to date on the development of
this workplan, there are several issues that necessitate follow up work, including one that is an
explicit recommendation in this report.
1) Reconsideration of Annual Priorities: Hist<;lrically, the City Council has adopted new
priorities at the start of each calendar year. As part of this year's new process of engaging
with the Policy & Services Committee on development of the priorities workplan, staff
acknowledged the inherent challenges associated with developing annual workplans related
to the priorities and ultimately making progress on these workplans in a single year.
Additionally, the ability to work through the development of the workplan with Policy &
Services proved valuable. If this process is to continue in the future, however, appropriate
time needs to be budgeted to allow this to occur.
A more effective approach would be for the Council to adopt priorities every two years and
for staff to then develop a workplan and reporting structure based on this timeline. This
would have numerous benefits. One would be the ability for the Council to use the Council
retreat in the non-priority setting years as a more strategic session focused on the Council's
vision moving forward. The two-year timeline would also provide staff with more time to
make progress on the workplan and to report on the efforts in a more effective manner.
Additionally, the establishment of biannual priorities does not preclude the Council from
reviewing and adjusting these priorities at any point during the two-year period dependent on
circumstances and current events.
The Policy & Services Committee discussed this option and staff is bringing it forward for
full Council discussion.
2) Development of Departmental WorkplanslReporting Structure: As part of the discussion
with Policy & Services on the workplan, staff and the Committee identified the need to find
more effective mechanisms for establishing priorities and reporting to the Council on staff
workloads. Some progress has been made towards this end but there is still work to be done.
The City Manager needs to work with Department Heads to develop more robust workplans
and reporting mechanisms. The intent is to have a review and report on this effort with
Policy & Services later this year. Part of this review will include further work on the matrix
that has been developed as a mechanism for representing the staffing and resources necessary
to implement theworkplan.
3) Policy & Services Workplan: Over the past year, the Committee has been discussing its role
and the development of workplans for the Committee more specifically. As part of the
discussion regarding the Council priorities workplan, the members identified a role for the
Committee moving forward. There was an interest in having the Committee identify· up to
ten issue areas from the Council priorities workplan that staff could bring back to Committee
for more in-depth review and analysis. Following the establishment of the Council priorities
workplan, the Committee could review the workplan and select the issue areas for focus by
the Committee over the coming year. This would be in addition to other items that are
referred to the Committee for discussion. It would also be a mechanism to promote
CMR: 327:10 Page 2 of3
transparency around the Council priorities workplan and to engage the Council more
effectively in the policy discussions regarding the priorities and associated workplan.
Following Council adoption of this workplan, staff will return to the Policy & Services
Committee so the Committee can select issue areas for focus over the coming year.
RESOURCE IMPACT
There are no direct resource impacts associated with this report. However, there are both
staffing and resource impacts associated with the Council priorities workplan. As identified in
this report, staff are developing tools to assist the Council, the public and other staff members in
understanding workload and resource implications associated with the Council priorities
workplan.
POLICY IMPLICATIONS
The recommended action establishes the Council priorities workplan for the upcoming year and
would, if accepted, change the Council priorities to biannual priorities instead of annual
priorities.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The report does not qualify as a project under the California Environmental Quality Act. Any
future projects identified as part of the Council priorities workplan would undergo the required
environmental review based on the project submitted at that time.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A:
Attachment B:
PREPARED BY:
Matrix of 20 10 Council Priorities, Strategies, and Actions
Excerpts from June 1, June 22 and July 13 Policy & Services Committee
Minutes (the July 13 minutes were not available at the time of packet
distribution and will be distributed if they are available before Monday's
meeting)
Kelly McAdoo Morariu
Assistant to the City Manager
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
CMR: 327:10 Page 3 of3
Priority
City Finances
---- -... _--------
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
1) Economic Development
1a) Innovative Strategies
1b) Business Vitality
1c) Connection to existing studies
1d) Proactive approach to attracting business
1e) Business/Retail Retention
H) Business Friendly Regulations and Process
19) Engage Business Community
1h) Neighborhood Retail
1i) Business Registry
-----------------... _-----------
1j) Busir1ess Needs: Child Care
- -
Page 1 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Develop new economic development
strategic plan utilizing stakeholder
input; implement transition of
Economic Development function from
Planning to City Manager's Office
Set up regular business visitation
! program; explore additional strategies
as Part of development of new plan
Incorporate connections to existing
studies as part of development of new
ED plan
Develop as part of new ED plan -
develop key contacts and appropriate
strategies
Develop as part of new ED plan -
develop key contacts and appropriate
strategies
Implement Management Structural
Changes to Development Center
operations/structure by 12/2010
Set up regular business visitation
program; explore additional strategies
as part of development of new plan
Zoning Changes-Revise codes to
require or provide incentives for retail
and grocery
Research options as part of
development of new ED plan
Survey employer needs and
incorporate strategies in new ED plan
Priority
~,
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
lk) Business Needs -Emergency Preparedness
11) Business Needs -Broadband Needs/Google
Fiber RFI
2) Transparency, Accountability &
Oversight
2a) Thoughtful consideration of resources/
tools available
2b) Impactful performance audits
2c) Performance measurement/management
2d) Service Efforts & Accomplishments Report
(See-It)
3) Revenue Generation
3a) Full cost recovery policy
3b) Comparison with surrounding communities
Page 2 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Establish private sector work groups as
part of new Citizen Corps Council with
PA Chamber of Commerce and
Downtown Business Assoc ,
,
!
Await response from Google to City's
proposal and develop next steps as
appropriate
Ensure that expenditures are
appropriate and necessary
Explore mechanisms for further
enhancing performance measurement
and reporting of City services.
Work to identify more proactive
departmental responses and activities
based on SEA report results
Implement full cost recovery for
personal benefit arts, recreation and
leasure programs. Expand cost
recovery policy to cover admission to
exhibits, theatre productions and
interoretive exhibits.
Benchmark a sampling of core
recreation, science and art programs
with nearby communities and private
agencies for program fees to
I participants.
Priority Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26,2010
Action
3c) New revenue sources (Bond Measure, BLT,
Parcel Tax)
4) Restructuring City Services
4a) Review Public/Private Options
4b) Regionalization Options
4c) Internal Organizational Options
4e) Contracting Work Out Options
4f) Encourage Volunteer Efforts
5) Unfunded Infrastructure Liabilities
5a) Infrastructure Blue Ribbon Commission
Page 3 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Library GO bonds issued in June 2010
($55.3 million) and proceeds received.
Explore options tor further
public/private partnership that would
provide for City cost savings; Include a
new option in the 2011 Adopted
Budget for funding a portion of
I Children's ~healer i
Review City services that lend I
themselves to potential regionalization :
with other agencies
Continue to evaluate the provision of
City services to enhance efficiency and
effectiveness. Identify and rep.ort on
progress made.
Continue to evaluate areas where City
services may lend themselves to
contracting out. Implement new
service contracts per Council adoption
of the FY2011 budget.
Continue to promote the systematic
use of volunteers for program delivery.
Track the numbers of volunteers and
hours in the SEA annual report.
Develop and support IBRC to study the
City's unfunded infrastructure liability
and identify possible funding options.
,eJ
Priority Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26,2010
Action
5b) Cost-sharing
6) Sustainable Path/Prudent Use of
Resources
Ga) Reduce Projected Benefit Increases
Gb) Rainy Day Fund (See IT)
Gc) Long Range Financial Forecast (See IT)
Land Use and Transportation
1) Comprehensive Plan
la) Vision Statements
lb) Growth Projections
lc) Housing Element
ld) Area Plans -East Meadow/Cal Ave
le) Rail Corridor Study
2) Zoning
2a) Role of business
2b) Community Needs
2c) Process revisions
2d) Mechanism to implement Comp Plan
2e) Follow ups to 2005 ZOU update
2f) EI Camino Guidelines
3) Planning/Building Processes
3a) Addressing community concerns
3b) Development Center restructure/
operational changes
----
Page 4 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
~xplore means OT exploring COS!
sharing for management of open space
areas with Santa Clara County Parks,
Midpeninnsula Regional Open Space
District and U. S. Fish & Wildlife
Service.
Work through labor negotiations
process to achieve long term benefit
savings
Maintain a healthy rainy day fund
(Budget Stabilization Reserve)
Continue annual updates to City's Long
Range Financial Forecast
Policies and Goals -revise
Update
Update
Complete plans
Begin work on study
Zone changes
Zone changes
ZOU followup: Apply zoning to parcels/
rezone to implement Comp Plan
Zone, design standards changes
Improve SEA ratings for 2010
Implement Management Structural
~hanges by 12/10
Priority
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
3c) Gaps, overlaps and conflicts between
Boards and Commissions, especially PTC and
ARB
3d) Process & Project Review Evaluation to
improve process efficiency, transparency,
effectiveness and improved project outcomes
4) Major Projects
4a) Stanford University Medical Center
4b) High Speed Rail/Caltrain (See IT)
5) Bicycle/Pedestrian Access/ Friendly
Sa) Overview of possibilities
sb) Bike and Pedestrian Plan Update
sc) Bicycle Transportation Plan (See IT)
Sd) Bike Share Program (See IT)
6) Transportation
6a) Oregon Expressway Improvements Project
(See IT)
6b) Employee Commute Program (See IT)
Page 5 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
On going improvement in
communication with Boards and
Commissions that: 1) clearly articulates
roles; 2) creates consistency and
predictability in review; and 3) ensures
adherence to City/State rules
Implement project review consistency
and adherence to rules pursuant to
good planning practices.
Entitlements & EIR
Continued interaction with HSR staff
and Peninsula Rail on Draft EIR and
Alternatives Analysis. EIR is anticipated
in early 2011
Bike bridges, safe routes
Expand the "safe Routes to Schools"
program to include safe routes to parks
and ooen soace areas.
Implement 10 of the high priority
projects identified in the PA Bicycle
Transportation Plan by 2013.
Create a pilot public bicycle sharing
station by June 2010.
Monitor all project activities in the
project review, development,
alternatives recommendation, design
and construction of the improvements.
Reduce the percentage of employees
who get to work by driving solo from
73% in 2009 to 65% by 2013.
Priority Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Action
. Gc) Caltrain Shuttle (See IT)
Gd) Electric Vehicle Charging Station (See IT)
Ge) Page Mili/280 improvements
Environmental Sustainability
1) Green Building
1a) Green House Gas Emissions Reductions
(See IT)
1b) Residential Green Buildings (See IT)
1c) Non-residential Green Buildings (See IT)
1d) Water Efficiency (See IT)
1e) Energy Efficiency (See IT)
If) Construction and Demolition Debris
Diversion (See IT)
19) Alternative Energy Solutions (See IT)
1h) Green Bldg Ordinance review vs. State
Green Bldg Code (new)
2) Water Conservation and Quality
2a) Community Water Savings (See IT)
2b) Recycled Water Use (See IT)
2c) Stormwater Runoff Reduction (See IT)
Page 6 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Work with regional transit agencies to
support Caltrain and achieve a 10%
annual growth in Caltrain ridership at
the two stations in Palo Alto.
No scorecard/information only I
I
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
No scorecard/information only
Review and update Green Bldg.
regulations and implement
IReduce community water use by bb/
acre-feet per year (AFY) by 2030 (4.7%
reduction), as measured against the
base year of 2004.
Utilize GOO million gallons of recycled
water from the PA RWQCP by 2011.
I Keauce srormwarer runOTT IO local
creeks by issuing financial rebates to
PA residents and businesses for 50,000
sq ft of permeable pavement by July
2010.
Priority
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
2d) Mercury Reduction (See IT)
2e) Ultraviolet Light Water Disinfection Unit
(See IT)
2f) Reusable Bag Ordinance (See IT)
2g} Polystyrene Ban (See IT)
2h) Water Efficiency Ordinance (new)
2i) Aggressive Water Efficiency Programs and
Goals (New)
2j) Expansion of Recycled Water Distribution
System (new)
2k) Basement Construction Policies/
Ordinances (new)
4) Green Purchasing
4a) Incorporate Green Criteria into City
Purchases {See IT)
4b) Local/Regional Food Production and
Consumption (See IT)
5) Parks and Open Space
Sa) Pesticide Free Parks (See IT)
Sb) Open Space Trails (See IT)
Sc) Arastradero Creek Restoration (See IT)
Page 7 of 13
I ,
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Reduce the mercury air emissions from
the PA RWQCP's incinerator to 13.6
grams per day by the end of 2012.
Complete construction of an Ultraviolet
Light Water Disinfection Unit at the
RWQCP by January 1, 2011.
[laKe mitial steps To restrict tne
distribution of certain single-use plastic
bags and to take additional steps in the
future.
Ellminate tne-distriOution of expanded
polystyrene food containers by April
201l.
Assist Utilities
Expand the use of non-potable water
for irrigation of parks and open space
areas.
Review and revise zoning and other
ordinaces
Implement the three year Green
Purchasing Plan bv January 2010.
Have seven pesticide free parks by
2012.
No scorecard/information only
Recreate an 1100 foot natural seasonal
stream within the Pearson-Arastradero
Preserve by January 2010.
Priority
-----
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
5d) Baylands Conservation Plan (See IT)
6) Zero Waste
6a) Zero waste to landfills (See IT)
6b) Composting (See IT)
6c) Residential Zero Waste Participation (See
IT)
6d) Business Zero Waste Participation (See IT)
7) Climate Protection
7a) Carbon Intensity of Electricity (See IT)
7b) C02 emissions generated by City
Operations (See IT)
7c) C02 emissions generated by the community
(See IT)
7d) Healthy Urban Forest (See IT)
8) Green Tech Development ------_L.....!... ----------
Page 8 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Complete a Baylands Conservation Plan
to guide staff on best mgmt practices in
the areas of vegetation, wildlife, and
[public access.
Goal of 73% diversion of waste from
landfills by 2011 and zero waste by
2021.
Evaluate alternatives for the mgmt of
I the City's yard trimmings and other
organics and implement the selected
alternative by the time the City's
composting facility closes in 201l.
Increase the number of PA residents
participating in mini can refuse service
to 20% by January 2010.
Increase the number of PA commercial
customers participating in a recycling
collection program to 100% by 201l.
Reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions factor of the City's electricity
supply to no more than 150 Ibs of CO2
per MWH by 2015.
Reduce City operations generated
emissions by 5% of 2005 levels by 2009
and 15% of 2005 levels by 2020.
Reduce community generated
emissions by 5% of 2005 levels by 2012
and 15% of 2005 levels by 2020.
No scorecard/information only
Priority
Emergency Preparedness
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Strategy Action
8a) Low Carbon Cities Initiative (new)
9) Energy
9a) PaloAltoGreen Participation (See IT)
9b) Use of Photovoltaics and other
technologies (See IT)
9c) Community Natural Gas Savings (See IT)
9d) Purchases of renewable energy (See IT)
ge) Community Electricity Savings (See IT)
9f) Regional Water Quality Control Plant Energy
Use (See IT)
9g) Local, clean cogeneration at customer sites
(new)
9h) Aggressive Energy Efficiency Programs and
Goals (new)
10) Community Environmental Action
Partnership (See IT)
1) Organizational Aspects
1a) Internal City structure
Page 9 of 13
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Achieve 25% of its customers
participating in the PaloAltoGreem
program.
II-und reoates tor the installatIOn ot at
least 6,500 kilowatts (kW) of solar
electric or photovoltaic (PV)
installations between 2007 and 2017 to
meet state law.
Reduce community natural gas use Oy
1.4 million therms (or 3.5% of use) by
2020, as measured against the base
year of 2007.
Meet at least 33% ot electric needS oy
2015 with qualifying renewable
resources built after 2002 in addition
to voluntary renewable energy
programs.
Reduce community electricity use by
43,000 megawatt-hours by 2020.
Reduce PA RWQCP energy use by 30%
of 2005 levels by the end of 2012.
No data
Restructure internal City emergency
preparedness functions to enhance
operational efficiencies
Priority Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Action
Ib) Community/Neighborhoods
Ic) Regional (interoperability)
Id) Business
Ie) Funding availability/opportunities
2) Disaster Preparedness/ Mitigation
2a) Encourage Community Involvement! Self-
reliance
2b) Fire -Wildland Fire Plan Implementation
2c) Fire -Funding for Station 8 Staffing
Page 10 of 13
.. -
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council; specific task: develop
the "Community Emergency Plan"
annex to the City's Emergency
Innor::oHnnc Pbn
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council: include "Community
Disaster Network"; collaborate with
Moffett Field's Silicon Valley Disaster
IronTor OTI"
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council :
Explore grants / community funding
I
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council; CCC has recently
requested the formation of a Training
and Exercise Design Team (TEDT) and
the deployment of Community "Ready"
preparedness classes
Implement recommendations related
to reducing road-side fuels and
firebreak vegetation and launch the
Foothills Fire Plan-recommended
"Midpeninsula Foothills Emergency
Forum (MFEF)" as part of the Citizen
rnrn~ rnllndl
The MFEF/CCC, in conjunction with
staff, will investigate funding sources
and will coordinate outreach to .
residents and businesses in the
Foothills, should fundraising or fees be
nn.t.ru:. t::>hln
Priority
c
Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26,2010
Action
,
2d) Flood -SF Creek JPA Project
2e) Earthquake -SUMC Project
2f) Earthquake -Public Safety Building (new)
2g) Earthquake -Mobile Command Vehicle
2h) Earthquake -Emergency Water Supply (See
IT)
2i) Emergency Block Preparedness Coordinator
Program (See IT)
3) Disaster Response
3a) RecQvery Plan Annex of Emer Ops Plan
3b) Update of Emer Ops Plan and related
documents
Page 11 of 13
I I
I
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Receive periodic updates from JPA on
project status; provide interim policy
guidance as to project impacts to
Baylands, Palo Alto Municipal Golf
Course, and Baylands Athletic Center.
Final project approval by Council is
expected in 2011.
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council; specific task: improve
coordination among SUMC EOC,
1-r ~()r R, rih .. ~()r
No data
MCV to be delivered in summer 2010;
working with Stanford and other
neighbors to find a location to house
Itho 1\J1r\/
Increase the City's emergency water
supply through the completion of the
I Droiect bv 2013.
Provide emergency training for SSO
Block Preparedness Coordinators
(BPCs) and Neighborhood
Preparedness Coordinators (NPCs) by
Itho on..! nf .,n1 n
Staff should review new State of
California EOP and model City Recovery
Annpx off the State version
Annual review
Priority Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26,2010
Action
3c) CERT training conducted by community
volunteers
3d) Coordination of communications systems
and contingency plans for extensive power
outage
3e) Community Alert Notification System (See
IT)
Community Collaborative for Youth Well Being
1) Project Safety Net
la) Trackwatch
lb) Developmental Assets
lc) Youth Forum
ld) Community Awareness
2) Collaboration with PAUSD
2a) Middle School Athletics
2b) Science/Performing Arts/Arts Outreach
2c) Summer School Camps
3) Collaboration with Youth
3a) Palo Alto Youth Council
3b) Youth Forum
3c) Youth Arts Council
3d) Mitchell Park Youth and Teen Center
4) Collaboration with Youth Serving
Agencies and Support Groups
Page 12 of 13
~ I
Deliverable (Scorecard)
Identify goals and submit to the Citizen
Corps Council: include "Community I
Disaster Network" (collaborate with I
Moffett Field's Silicon Valley Disaster
Center, etc. --Specific Goal: evaluate
feasibilty of using volunteers and NGOs
(Red Cross) to take on bulk of teaching
and administration of CERT
Identify communications needs
between 1) government entities and 2)
community entities -viz., the Block
Preparedness Coordinator Program
No scorecard/information only
Priority
~~-
Strategy
Attachment A: 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
July 26, 2010
Action
4a) Friends of the Children's Theater
4b) Palo Alto Recreation Foundation
4c) Friends of the Junior Museum and Zoo
4d) Palo Alto Art Foundation
4e) Youth Community Services (YCS)
4f) Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS)
5) Collaboration with Local Businesses
Sa) Media Partnership
5b) Business Support of Youth
Page 13 0113
Deliverable (Scorecard) I
Attachment B
POLICY AND SERVICES COMMITTEE
Special Meeting
June 1, 2010
Council Member Shepherd called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. in the
Council Conference Room, 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, California.
Present: Yeh (Chair) arrived at 7: 15 p.m., Holman left at 9:06 p.m.,
Price, Shepherd
Absent: none
1. Oral Communications
None.
2. Discussion of 2010 Council Priorities Workplan
Assistant to the City Manager, Kelly Morariu spoke regarding the matrix for the
Council Priorities Workplan. She said Staff would like to focus on the strategies
of a few actions to determine what they mean and what success would look
like. Then Staff would like to look at the top one or two subcategories and
focus on those. Staff was concerned this was focused on the Council Priorities
with little attention paid to the department work plans. She suggested they
focus on Land Use and Transportation, then Collaboration for Youth Well Being.
Community Services Recreation Manager, Rob DeGeus spoke regarding how a
large amount of the work his department does is for Youth Well Being. He said
this was a good time to determine if they were as focused as they should be on
these issues. Strategy Number One, Project Safety Net, was a task force that
was a cross section of community members from a variety of fields focusing on
the best practices around suicide prevention and to understand where we are
succeeding. The City's responsibility has been to get the right people connected
to the project and to provide other specific services.
1 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Greg Hermann, from the City Manager's Office, said that Track Watch was
meant to include the volunteer program and the paid security program. The
contract with the paid service was to reinforce the area in the specific location
where the service was needed. The community has fully funded the program
through June 2010. An additional $30,000 was included in the Police
Department Budget to continue the program on a scaled back basis through the
year. He said the on-going goal was not to just have one person at one place as
a last ditch effort to prevent suicide. Developmental Assets included a subset of
projects that were staffed by community members that recognized the
importance of a community supportive of Youth. He said the School District had
taken on much of the work as well. A project safety net report would be
presented to Council in the near future. The group was being trained and
\ forming a speakers bureau to speak to the developmental assets model.
Mr. DeGeus said the program was moving in a very encouraging direction.
Youth Outreach and Youth Forum has been very successful. He said Staff would
like to see that turn into an annual event. He spoke to the stigma of mental
health issues. A suicide prevention policy could be considered by the Council,
he had asked Vic Ojakian to draft one as a means of elevating the discussion.
Ms. Morariu said that there were some clear action items in respect to the
priorities. It would make sense for the Committee to offer their comments.
Council Member Price asked about Project Cornerstone and if it was being
duplicated through Palo Alto's Speakers Bureau.
Mr. DeGeus said they were looking to implement the effort, and their Executive
Director was on the committee.
Mr. Hermann said the Director of Project Cornerstone would make a
presentation at their next meeting to the subcommittee.
Council Member Price asked for some clarification on the school board's model.
Mr. DeGeus agreed there were some models that exist. The City model would
be a bit different. The duplication of effort is something Staff was careful to
avoid. Staff's goal was to coordinate efforts. He said that everyone involved
had a different set of experiences and expertise that could be leveraged. Cross
functional teams were a critical component.
2 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Council Member Price said she liked best practices when they were applicable.
She said Staff should focus on figuring out what those are. She added that it
was important to involve youth in the discussions.
Mr. DeGeus agreed.
Council Member Price said the tragedies had been happening for several years
and the work being done was great.
Mr. DeGeus said years of budget reductions had taken their toll. He said he
was concerned about their capacity to deal with these types of issues.
Council Member Shepherd asked if he felt it was appropriate for the City to take
the lead on this issue.
Mr. DeGeus said he would love it if the schools took the lead, but they struggled
With budgets as well. The City was in a position to be able to influence the right
people and that has been a great strength.
Council Member Shepherd asked if the efforts were being complimented at the
School District.
Mr. DeGeus said he felt it had been. He said the level of trust and strength in
the partnership between the City and the School district had grown.
Council Member Shepherd said the cooperation reaches a certain point and then
falls apart. She said she'd like to see the interconnection between the City
programs added. She asked Staff for ideas on how to get Council involved.
Mr. DeGeus said they were fairly engaged.
Council Member Shepherd said she had worked with a speakers list of local
people that could help provide speakers for the parent networks at the two high
schools. She said those groups were great assets when they work ..
Mr. DeGeus said those organizations had been very supportive.
Council Member Holman said she wondered about the resources and the
expertise on City Staff. She said they should consider a level of medical care
offered by Stanford being dedicated to these programs.
3 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Mr. DeGeus agreed but added the model had been effective so far because
many experts had been brought in.
Council Member Holman asked for a clearer picture of the relationships. The
City was the lead and implementer in many programs and it was a lot to carry.
Mr. DeGeus agreed and said that conversation is part of the process. Much of it
did fallon the School District which was a challenge for them when academics
was their focus.
Council Member Holman asked if they had enough professional support.
Mr. DeGeus said he felt like they were getting good support through the
community.
Council Member Price said that when she was on the School Board they fought
to keep these types of issues a priority. She said that the funding mechanism
there had a large chunk directed toward infrastructure. She asked if there was
a way to have a percentage allocated to Community Services for these types of
issues in an effort to begin to build a way to sustain research support.
City Manager James Keene said that the Stanford Proposal suggestion of a $30
million pool had not been accepted by Stanford. He said he shared a lot of
Council Member Holman's questions. He said the Developmental Assets piece
alone was a huge undertaking for a community. To have it embedded in the
community for some time would be a worthy goal. It would require actions of
people across the community.
Council Member Holman said the City should be fostering, but more practically
the hands on piece should fallon supportive non-profits.
Mr. DeGeus said they were trying to connect those non-profits together to form
a more coordinated effort. Every caring adult in Palo Alto could be an asset
builder.
Chair Yeh said that it was in the context of priorities and moving toward some
form of sustainable model. He was curious if HSRAP funding or something else
for a community resource was needed.
Mr. DeGeus said they were just beginning to design that.
4 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Mr. Hermann said they were working with Project Cornerstone to work on a
County level.
Council Member Price said that the issues with the matrix of workers the City
Representatives need to do a better job of translating that into resources and
money.
Mr. DeGeus said that many experts in many different fields were working on
developing strategies and recommendations.
Council Member Price said something more sustainable such as an endowment
that could grow over time would be useful.
Council Member Shepherd said youth had been subtracted from the culture.
She said schools can make decisions that remove control of inputs of Social and
Mental Well being. She said that only 1 in 5 youths with these types of issues
were being diagnosed. She said the neutrality of the City was important in the
process as a coordinator.
Chair Yeh reminded the Committee that Staff was trying to determine a few top
priorities to forward back to the full Council as a recommendation.
Council Member Shepherd a'sked if they should rank the five priorities.
Ms. Morariu said that perhaps one strategy could be to develop an on going
sustainable support mechanism.
Ray Bacchetti, 850 Webster Street, #700 spoke regarding youth development.
He was interested in how to coordinate all of the Palo Alto resources. He said
the role of the City was not to lead but to manage and coordinate the
resources, and to build and sustain networks to allow the City to harvest all of
the resources. There needed to be the Staffing to accomplish that. There
needed to be a mechanism for cultivating, sustaining, and acknowledging
volunteers.
Council Member Price asked Mr. Bacchetti if there were planning grants within
the broad world of the foundations to examine the types of things he was
referring to.
Mr. Bacchetti said much was known about building and sustaining networks and
managing public resources. Whether a foundation would be interested in
making an investment on how the City could manage its ongoing role. Making
5 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Grants to Cities had become a specialized interest. He thought foundations
would be careful about becoming too involved with trying to fill these gaps in
the public sector .
. Council Member Price asked if he would be willing to help Staff identify those
resources if it was determined to be a good direction.
Mr. Bacchetti said he would be happy to help though he didn't have any current
contacts in the industry.
Council Member Price said the Community Foundation was something she would
consider, but she wasn't sure if there were others.
Mr. Bacchetti said there were ways to research foundation priorities to find a
match. He said he would be happy to help with that process.
Council Member Holman asked Mr. Bacchetti about any organization that could
take on the lead role.
Mr. Bacchetti said Avenidas was a good model example. He wasn't sure if there
. were a comparable one for youth well being. He suggested gathering existing
organizations to see what their solutions might be.
Mr. Keene said that it was important to identify what they were not able to
accomplish due to work loads or expertise.
Council Member Holman said it would be dangerous to have the best of
intentions, spend a lot of time on the issue and find out at the end that we
didn't have a way to get there.
Council Member Shepherd said she wanted to look at how the senior
organizations were structured. She reiterated that Avenidas was a good model
as they came out of the City with the goal of organizing senior services.
Chair Yeh said that this could go to the full Council. There was a strategic
aspect in terms of the longevity and sustainability and an implementation
aspect for accomplishing goals while figuring out the long term strategy.
Council Member Price mentioned that funding had to be considered as well.
6 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Council Member Holman said there were many levels the City could be involved
in. Youth Well Being had many meanings, including good soccer fields and the
Children's Theatre. There are many ways for the City to participate.
Mr. DeGeus agreed. He said the City had influences that involved these
strategies such as with the Theatre, fields, teen center, networking, etc.
Mr. Hermann said the recognition that much was being done was called out. He
said that there were some models such as the Second Wind Fund, which would
be interesting to observe. He said they were based in Colorado and had a
sustainable, community-driven model.
Council Member Shepherd said she agreed with all of this but reductions are still
being considered. She asked about Track Watch and the end date of the
funding for it.
Mr. Hermann saidthe security personnel were meant to be a visual deterrent to
stop the contagion at that intersection; it was never meant to be a permanent
solution. He said it was important to make the transition away from that level
of effort to these other components being discussed. Staff was working with
the Track Watch volunteers so they can self organize if they wish to cover the
program as the City scales down their commitment.
Mr. DeGeus said that regarding collaboration with the schools the City runs the
Middle School Athletic Program with one dedicated full time Staff Member. He
said there were abol!t 1,400 children that pay to participate. The Science and
Performing Arts Outreach have the Art Center and Children's Theatre which all
run curriculums in the schools at a fee for the schools.
Council Member Shepherd asked about the Junior Museum.
Mr. DeGeus said they had Science Outreach programs.
Council Member Shepherd asked if it was mainly for the elementary schools.
Mr. DeGeus confirmed that it was. He added that the School District ran a
summer school and the City acted as a fiscal agent for and provides recreation
programs for it. He said the Collaborations for Youth Directly provided various
opportunities including a Youth Form, Youth Arts Council, and the Mitchell Park
Youth and Teen Center. He said the collaborations with youth serving agencies
utilized a tremendous amount of community support. He said there was a lot of
fund raising and volunteer work.
7 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Mr. Hermann discussed the media partnership as a strategy for Safety net. He
said that more work was continuing while Staff continued to reengage with local
media.
Chair Yeh said that Staff was looking for one to two items to prioritize.
Ms. Morariu suggested they could rank the top two actions.
Mr. Keene said it was a forced choice. Some things would be intertwined
Council Member Shepherd wanted to add Resource Officers to the list as they
were the ones that were helping the kids find their way. She asked to add
Crossing Guards. The LAC priority was to make sure the Libraries were covered
during the afterschool hours. She said there was a real interest in youth and
the services they needed. She said that PACCC, onsite child care, was driven
by the City and should be listed.
Mr. DeGeus said they report to the City School Liaison Committee about the
different things they do, but there were a lot more than what Staff listed.
Mr. Hermann said there was a wealth of programs that are running and will
continue to run but would not be listed.
Council Member Shepherd said when programs such as Resource Officers,
Crossing Guards and PACCCwere not being discussed by Staff much was
missing from the discussion as money was required for these programs.
Chair Yeh said that the Finance Committee was making funding decisions as
they were able to. The Policy & Services Committee sh,ould be focused more on
Staff time and workloads. Crossing Guards did have more to do with funding.
Good criteria for Policy and Services conversations might be to focus on Staff
time, and prioritization.
Council Member Shepherd asked if they were prioritizing in terms of what was
being funded.
Chair Yeh said yes, but in terms of Staff time rather than funding. The Policy
and Services Committee can't step on the Finance Committee's process.
Council Member Shepherd said her interest was in making sure the City and the
Schools were working together to make sure the goals were aligned.
8 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Chair Yeh said he was interested in what the Committee thought of his
suggestion.
Council Member Price said if they were to set priorities, they were not that
familiar with the actual tasks that needed to be done. She asked how the role
could be meaningful.
Chair Yeh said that the Finance Committee made a recommendation about
Crossing Guards. He asked if it would be helpful to the Council if the Policy and
Services Committee were to make another one.
Mr. Keene said the basic issue would be if they should continue to fund a
program or not. Finance will make that decision. He said it might be helpful to
segregate these issues. There would be no conversation taking place about
developmental assets at the Finance Committee. The conversation clearly
would have to do with Staff time, and would clearly have funding implications.
Council Member Shepherd said she keeps wondering about it being a goal. The
purpose of that should be to identify everything they were doing for youth and
to collaborate with the schools.
Mr. Keene said that the Finance Committee was using a parking lot for items
when they couldn't ,reach a consensus. Those items would eventually gp to the
full Council. He added that with the Crossing Guards, perhaps they want to
include various components of the program when it comes time to report on the
discussion. He said there were items in discussion that needed a change of
direction to accomplish. He thought the focus could be the new resources and
the items that are automatically done but may be getting in the way of the new
items.
Mr. OeGeus added that there was a unique opportunity to shift cultures. With
the asset piece we have the entire community engaged, they should take
advantage of that.
Council Member Price asked if there was a way to find an answer to the issue of
being more systematic and coordinating resources. She said there were
disconnects between the Council Priorities and the Budget Priorities. She asked
for guidance to make the process feel like it was forming into a workplan. She
said that later in the year they could return to the Committee with a systematic
approach to better coordinate resources internally and externally. She added
9 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
that there was probably no available Staff to do this. She said they were not
fully documenting the full resources the City was dedicating to the issue. She
asked how they decided which efforts would be productive or not.
Mr. OeGeus said the many programs were working well and they were doing a
lot. He said the gap was how they deploy effective other resources around
town.
Council Member Price confirmed that he meant a program that community
members could access to coordinate with each other.
Mr. OeGeus said yes. He said they needed to figure out what to pass on to the
community.
Council Member Price asked if there were actions related to coordinating
resources.
Mr. Keene said that they should remember this was a process that would take
place over many years. He suggested that rather than annual, let's have two
year projects based on the new Council ideas each two years. He said it was
important to make a statement to the community about things that were a
priority, and things the City was already doing. He added that marginal value
each year would be to manage it in smaller chunks. He said it didn't have to be
a perfect plan immediately.
Ms. Morariu added that the value added initiative would be helpful to prioritize
as they were new items.
Mr. Keene said to remember that all the questions couldn't be answered
immediately. He said that Staff would be able to connect with the Committee
to report on the questions or conflicts that come up while they were working on
it.
Council Member Holman suggested as a first priority they could review how to
answer some of the questions and solve some of the issues by exploring the
Avenidas or Second Wind models. She said the City could not sustain all of the
suggestions any way, so why not use these other models to accomplish more
with less City resources.
Council Member Shepherd said there was a lot that was City related such as
Park and Recreation. She asked if Council Member Holman was referring to
only the Project Safety Net component.
10 P &S Committee 611/2010
Council Member Holman said primarily that's what she was referring to, but she
wasn't refusing to add any other program.
Council Member Price said it was important to know what was being sustained.
Council Member Holman suggested they not try to evaluate or prioritize
immediately but rather review other models first.
Council Member Shepherd suggested they broaden and identify how the City
was supporting youth. She wanted to understand how they could have a
rigorous conversation with the schools about how youth were supported in Palo
Alto. She said this included the Crossing Guards, Resource Officer, the library
hours, the Teen Center, and Track Watch.
Council Member Holman agreed.
Mr. DeGeus said that Project Safety Net was important and the question was
how to sustain it. He said it would be good direction for Staff to make it
priority.
Mr. Keene said it started to turn into an implementation directive, so they
wanted to be able to understand that. He said there seemed to be a concern
about the City's ability to deliver this. He said how it fits in was a smaller
concern.
Chair Yeh said it was important to recognize that there was a process. He said
some community members were excited, but they felt it should have been
started before. Now that it was starting, they could take Staff's feedback for a
strategic long term priority for Community Collaborative and develop a
comprehensive list and timeline.
Council Member Price said the City School Liaison Committee had on-going
reports that described all of these reports and the committee work. She added
that Palo Alto was not unique with this problem and they needed to explore
what other cities were doing to manage these issues.
Mr. DeGeus said Staff had reached out to many cities, universities, and other
experts from around the country, particularly in relation to suicide prevention.
Mr. Hermann added that one of the major learning's was that each community
builds upon the previous work.
11 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Council Member Price said Staff was suggesting that they had not found another
community that had really done this well.
Mr. DeGeus said the NY Times recently came to Palo Alto for a week as part of
a tour around the country. Their feedback was that Palo Alto had done much
more than any of the other communities they had visited.
Council Member Shepherd said that one of Staff's questions was about what
success looked like. She said that she understood the importance of asserting
families in Palo Alto. She said if they could start gathering all of the information
about the way of life here and the services offered, they could put it into a
manageable form so they could help families with a book or something that
details all these services.
Mr. DeGeus said that was something that could be done.
Council Member Shepherd reiterated that it would be good to see the basic
services in a comprehensive format. She clarified that she didn't mean a
schedule of lessons, but rather a description of how to find the lessons. She
asked if the information was available on-line and if it was possible to get it in a
printed brochure format.
Mr. DeGeus said it was on-line, available through kiosks and that a brochure
would be possible.
Chair Yeh said if they make it a priority as a Council it would be possible.
Council Member Shepherd said that might be a good link.
MOTION: Council Member Shepherd moved, seconded by Council Member
Price that the Policy and Services Committee recommends the development of a
long-term, sustainable model for Project Safety Net to be further defined by
Staff, and that Staff produce an inventory of youth focused services offered by,
in, or through the City of Palo Alto in a user-friendly, deliverable format.
MOTION PASSED: 4-0
Council Member Price asked if there was a possibility of having longer term
priorities.
Mr. Keene said Staff would look into it.
12 P&S Committee 611/2010
Chair Yeh suggested they discuss Land Use and Transportation.
Ms. Morariu said Staff would be happy to discuss any that the Committee felt
they were unclear about.
Mr. Keene said that the six strategies all made sense to him. He said rather
than discussing whether or not these strategies should be there, they should
discuss how to accomplish them. He said the actions were easier to deal with
as some of them were already set for the Planning and Transportation items.
He said that resources should be discussed, for example they should explore
whether there was enough Staff to manage the High Speed Rail issue. They
could discuss if they were on 'target with the priorities and what actions needed
to be taken if they were not.
Director of Planning and Transportation Curtis Williams said he wasn't sure what
level of detail the Committee wanted to review. But there were a few things
that were important even though they may not be state required; 1) High
Speed Rail, 2) Comprehensive Plan, 3) Stanford, 4) Bike Plan, 5) Development
Center, and 6) Organizational Structure.
Mr. Keene added that there were many other projects, but if the City were to
make progress on any of the items mentioned by Mr. Curtis, it would be a
successful year.
Council Member Shepherd agreed. She asked where Staff would place the Rail
Corridor Study in the Comprehensive Plan.
Mr. Williams said it bridges the High Speed Rail in the Comprehensive Plan.
Council Member Shepherd said there was skepticism about how effective it
would be and added that she was looking forward to seeing the community
work together.
Mr. Williams said it would take perhaps a year and a half to complete. A solid
policy framework could be established in about six months that defines the
parameters.
Council Member Shepherd said she learned, while visiting Sacramento recently,
that they would have to build High Speed Rail into the work plan.
13 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Council Member Holman suggested that the strategies under Land Use &
Transportation were overlooking the process to improve permit efficiency.
Another category should be consistency and predictability .. Adherence to City
and State rules should also be factored in. Under Transportation Actions they
should consider adding Pagemill and Hwy 280 to get the funding they needed to
correct the issues there.
Council Member Shepherd reiterated that High Speed Rail was not going away,
and they would have to find a way to fund the issues that came along with it.
Mr. Keene said that CalTrain wasn't specifically listed, perhaps it should be
"High Speed RaiI/CaITrain". He suggested the Corridor Study should be under
the Comprehensive Plan rather than High Speed Rail. High Speed Rail was
reactive, whereas the Corridor Study was more proactive.
Council Member Shepherd said the electrification of CalTrain needed to be
added.
Council Member Price added that Alma was part of it as well.
Mr. Williams said all of those would be in there by default anyway.
Council Member Shepherd said that it seemed like the only priority that could
go away would be Stanford.
Mr. Williams agreed.
Council. Member Price clarified that they meant Stanford could come to a
conclusion, not that it could be deferred.
Chair Yeh asked if the Bike Plan was a calendar year 2010 deliverable.
Mr. Williams said it would go into 2011.
Chair Yeh asked about the Development Center Restructure.
Mr. Williams said the effort would be completed this year but pieces may move
into next year.
Chair Yeh said, of the items Mr. Williams mentioned, Stanford and the
Development Center were 2010, the others were 2011.
14 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Council Member Price said that was correct in terms of focus. She clarified that
the Corridor Plan should be part of the Comprehensive Plan. She thought that
the Corridor and Stanford would be the big items.
Mr. Williams said that Stanford was paying the cost of most of the work for that
project, so resources were not as much of a problem. High Speed Rail was a
different issue, and resources were a problem. The Comprehensive Plan was
fine for this year, resource wise. Funding for the bike plan was also in place.
Council Member Price asked if the Bike Plan process required consultant
support.
Mr. Williams said the Bike Plan did use consultants with one RFP being worked
on now. That part of the project was budgeted through a grant. It would total
an estimated $50,000.
Council Member Price confirmed that it was contracted out due to Staff
resources.
Mr. Williams said that was correct, though a lot of work was being done by
Staff.
Council Member Shepherd said it would be nice for Staff to have the expertise
on that project.
Council Member Price agreed but added that with the Bike Plan there would
obviously not be someone in house that could do it. She asked how many
people were in Planning.
Mr. Williams said there were 44 employees total. Half were in Building, and
about 20 were in Planning.
Council Member Shepherd asked if Planning was in a lull.
Mr. Williams said it was a little slower, but some Staff had been cut.
Shepherd said the process and project review should be easy for residents to
improve their homes. She said that gaps in the commissions were an issue.
She asked if Staff had time to fix any of that this year.
Mr. Keene said they had to find time to fix it this year.
15 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Mr. Williams said there were Staff and Ordinance issues.
Council Member Shepherd asked for clarification regarding the Staff issues.
Mr. Williams said communication between departments, regulations, and other
issues including regulations.
Council Member Shepherd asked if there was a problem between that and
Public Works.
Mr. Keene said there were regulation issues, system issues, organizational
structural issues, control oversight, need for more performance metrics, but he
added that these were all issues that could be fixed. He said that public
announcements regarding the importance of this and the urgency of some
progress should be considered.
Council Member Price said that in anticipation of a recovering economy they
should get ready for increased delivery.
Council Member Shepherd said that every month that a family is out of their
home due to delays with the process was unfair and expensive for the family.
She asked if there could be a guarantee of time.
Mr. Keene said processes that are clear and written down need to be set, and
performance measures set. He said there always had to be a variable because
the contractor could drop the ball and then tell the homeowner it's the city's
fault. He added that there were some processes that drive the project that
need to be fixed. It needed to be a permit center, not five departments that
work separately.
Council Member Price asked if applicants were given a tentative schedule for
when their projects would be reviewed by the various review bodies.
Mr. Williams said applicants were not handed a piece of paper, but were
typically told what the schedule should be.
Council Member Price said there would be assumptions, but her vision was that
the entire team meets with the applicant and creates a schedule.
Mr. Williams said they host that meeting, but not every department attends, or
. Staff hadn't reviewed the plans yet and give an unrealistic timeline that is later
adjusted.
16 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
Mr. Keene said improvements could be made. Staff had to be accountable for
implementation and documentation. He said the public had been ~very vocal
about these issues. He thought assigning project management responsibility to
one Staff Member would be efficient.
Chair Yeh said there were five priorities on the table; he wanted to know how
the Committee wanted to proceed. He said they could focus on the two that
were for 2010 and then continue through 2011.
Council Member Price said that just managing these items would be a success
due to their complex nature.
Council Member Shepherd asked if the permit fees were comparable to
surrounding cities. She asked if raising the fees to earn more money and hire
more Staff would solve the problem.
Mr. Williams said that money and Staff were not the issue.
Council Member Price felt that Palo Alto's permit fees were comparable to other
cities.
Mr. Williams agreed. He said it ranges a bit depending on the type of permit.
He said personnel would help to some extent, but it wasn't the fundamental
problem. He felt they could double the Staff and still have problems.
Council Member Price said that aligning the High Speed Rail with the
Comprehensive Plan was an understanding taken from the meeting. She felt
both issues were largely mandatory. The five identified here made the most
sense with limited options.
MOTION: Council Member Price moved, seconded by Council Member
Shepherd that the Policy and Services Committee recommends to the City
Council approval of the 2010 Council Priorities Work Plan.
Council Member Shepherd asked about the Rail Corridor verbiage. She said it's
not always about High Speed Rail.
MOTION PASSED 4-0.
3. Discussion for Future Meeting Schedules and Agendas
17 P&S Committee 6/1/2010
POLICY AND SERVICES COMMITTEE
Special Meeting
June 22, 2010
Council Member Price called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. in the Council
Conference Room, 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, California.
Present: Yeh (Chair) arrived at 7: 15, Holman, Price, Shepherd
Absent: none
1. Oral Communications
None.
2. Discussion of 2010 Council Priorities Workplan -Emergency Preparedness
Annette Glanckopf, 2747 Bryant Street, spoke regarding emergency
preparedness being a Council priority. The Palo Alto Neighborhoods emergency
preparedness committee has prepared objectives that were clear, obtainable
and measurable to enhance the City's resiliency.
AI Dorsky, 3846 Corina Way, spoke regarding the accomplishments and goals of
Palo Alto Neighborhoods (PAN); in 2009 they served as a catalyst for the Citizen
Corp Council which developed the relationship between PANDA and PAN. He
stated the 2010 goals required funding for a variety of items in order to
maximize the effectiveness of the program.
Lydia Kou, 708 Matadero Avenue, asked the Committee to adopt September
and October as Emergency Preparedness months. She requested the City's
assistance in setting up tent cities to prepare the residents regarding the scope
of disasters.
Sheri Furman, 3094 Greer Road, stated PAN was an umbrella organization
made up of the leaders of the various Palo Alto neighborhoods and was
donation funded. The organization sponsored the Emergency Preparedness
program and expressed the cost was extensive. She suggested not reducing
1 P&S Committee 6/22/2010
funding in the budget for Emergency Preparedness and requested that PANDA
and PAN organizations funding be incorporated in the Emergency Preparedness
Work Plan.
Reserve Police Officer Ken Dueker gave a brief presentation on the philosophy
and origins of the Citizen Corps Council. He stated the Citizen Corps Council was
the umbrella group for emergency preparedness. Their function was to engage
with community resources that were available to the assist in an emergency.
The Citizens Corps Council was a way to capture threats that were not part of
the traditional emergency systems. It was how the City was reaching out to the
neighborhood groups, Stanford University, the Hospital and the private sector.
He stated the priority of the Citizens Corps Council was to ensure that
residential community was prepared for a disaster of any nature. He noted the
Foothills Management Plan was to be under the umbrella for the Citizens Corps
Council.
Police Chief, Dennis Burns stated the new Mobile Command Vehicle was
purchased through a combination of City funds and both State and Federal
grants totaling $700,000. He clarified the vehicle was contracted to specifics
designed to communicate on multiple radio frequencies and could support a
number of various issues in an emergency or disaster situation.
City Manager James Keene stated the Mobile Command Vehicle was not a full
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) although it had the capacity to manage a
large scale emergency.
Mr. Dueker stated with the possible loss of police and/or fire infrastructure the
Mobile Command Vehicle would allow the City to carryon some of the lost
functions while being able to maintain a first response capability.
Mr. Keene stated the information received had sufficient detail and clarity for an
accurate and thorough response. It was important to maintain a continuous
renewal of the community based involvement.
Council Member Holman stated although the City relied on modern methods of
communication there was a need for an audible, community-wide alarm.
Mr. Dueker stated that until the early 1970's the City had a civil defense air raid
type alarm notification system. He noted due to the geography of the City, it
would be difficult to cover some of the denser areas. The current notification
systems were KZSU 90.1, the emergency alert system and the CANS system.
2 P&S Committee 6/22/2010
Council Member Holman stated she was in favor of instituting the air raid siren
system without a great deal of studying. She suggested researching the
coverage area and the cost. She stated how important it was to maintain a
secondary source of power in the event of a full power outage. She asked how
the Fire Department participated in the emergency preparedness program.
Mr. Dueker stated historic evidence had shown that the PANDAjCERT Program
had evolved out of the Fire Department while the PAN Block Preparedness
Program evolved from the Neighborhood Watch Program. He clarified the Fire
Department was involved with different organizations. He recommended having
the programs unified under one command in an effort to minimize duplication
and maximize efficiency.
Council Member Holman recommended that it would be helpful to have an
Organizational Chart to help the public and Council understand how things
flowed. She suggested that Staff include all the different entities available to
the community in time of emergency. She qu'estioned the possibility of available
grants for emergency services.
Ms. Glanckopf stated the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) had
supplied a $1,000 grant in 2009 and a second grant had been sought for 2010.
She explained the Citizens Corps Council had a grant committee that could
research the availability of grant funding sources.
Council Member Holman asked if Staff could have the print shop print some of
the materials to save money.
Mr. Keene stated Staff would explore the idea.
Council Member Shepherd stated she had attended one of the PAN emergency
preparedness training sessions and was impressed with the level of community
participation. She asked which portion of the Stanford Campus the City was
responsible for in an emergency situation.
Mr. Dueker stated the Police Department was responsible for 911 dispatches for
the entire campus and the Fire Department administered safety watch over the
campus, Stanford lands and the Stanford properties in San, Mateo County.
Council Member Shepherd asked whether the Stanford neighborhoods were
being trained in a similar manner as Palo Alto neighborhoods for emergency
response.
3 P&S Committee 6/22/2010
Mr. Dueker stated the Fire Department had extended the PANDAjCERT Program
training through the campus. There were other neighborhoods within the
residential areas that had been invited to participate.
Council Member Shepherd asked for confirmation that PAN requested the City
supply $20,QOO. She stated the $100,000 emergency preparation funds'that
had initially oeen cut from the budget had been reinstated.
Mr. Dueker stated the funding that was reinstated in the budget was for a Staff
position. .~
Council Member Shepherd asked how the City was assisting the Citizens Corps
Committee in achieving their funding goal.
Mr. Keene stated the request for funds had not been brought forth prior to this
meeting and therefore Staff had not had an opportunity to discuss funding
options with Council.
Council Member Shepherd recommended requesting funding assistance from
Stanford since they were included in the emergency preparedness. She asked
what type of emergency situations the audible alarm system would respond to.
Mr. Dueker stated the Stanford Campus installed one in response to the Virginia
Tech shooting. The City could utilize the system for chemical or hazardous
material incidents.
Council Member Shepherd stated she would be interested in exploring the
visibility and cost options.
Council Member Price stated the School District was required to have an
emergency plan and asked whether the Citizens Corps Council had been linked
to or with the School District.
Mr. Dueker stated yes, there was a youth and school sector. He stated there
was a tactical survey being completed that would evaluate the schools' ability to
respond in a critical incident.
Council Member Price asked whether the Chamber of Commerce was a
partiCipant.
Mr. Dueker stated yes.
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Council Member Price asked to what degree Staff was working on locating
funding opportunities in grant form or. community based assistance.
Ms. Morariu stated the City subscribed to a grant locator database and each
department had Staff that searched for grant opportunities. She noted that the
City's Federal advocacy firm notifies Staff of available grant opportunities and
the information is then filtered to the appropriate department.
Council Member Price stated historically taking a regional approach to grant
funding had been successful and supplied more opportunity. She asked
whether the emergency siren had been explored prior to the current discussion.
Mr. Dueker stated the Fire Department had evaluated an emergency siren
system a few years ago and it was determined to not be cost effective. He
stated a small study could be conducted by looking at neighboring communities.
Council Member Price stated the request by PAN to suggest an emergency
preparedness month was valid and she asked what process needed to be taken
to accomplish that.
Ms. Morariu stated Staff was planning for an Emergency Preparedness Study
Session in September. She suggested preparing a Resolution declaring
September and October as Disaster Preparedness Months.
Chair Yeh stated in the past the City had a self-registration program for
individuals who were in need of special assistance in the event of an
emergency. He asked whether the system could be re-implemented and asked
how it was maintained. .
Mr. Dueker stated the Fire Department had initiated a database, although they
had difficulty maintaining the updates. He stated the Red Cross and a variety of
medical foundations maintained a list. He noted the residents were typically
more comfortable having their neighbors manage their information rather than
the government. He stated a neighbors-helping-neighbors model was more
effective.
Ms. Glanckopf stated PAN had an effective approach; although, more visibility
would benefit the program greatly.
Mr. Dorsky stated this type of program worked best at the neighbor level,
people know and want to help their neighbors.
Chair Yeh asked what the balance was in the Council Contingency Fund.
5 P&S Committee 6/2212010
Ms. Morariu stated the balance was extinguished to support the HSR Staffing.
Chair Yeh asked if the funding request from PAN was one-time or on-going.
Ms. Glanckopf stated PAN had compiled a matrix for current and expected
costs. She clarified the $20,000 request was for the current year although there
were costs associated with the program on an on-going basis.
Chair Yeh suggested a Challenge Grant type of funding where the funds
supported the kicking off of a Friends group. He stated there was a Resource
Officer position discussed in the budget that supported the Neighborhood Watch
program. He asked whether the proposed budget cuts to the Resource Officer
had been confirmed.
Mr. Dueker stated the Neighborhood Watch program supported by the Resource
Officer position had been folded into the PAN organization.
Chair Yeh agreed to a one-time funding given the loss of support by the City
due to the budget cuts.
Council Member Shepherd stated emergency preparedness was a City function
and should be funded by the City.
Council Member Holman noted there was an absence of important information
on the City website. She asked whether there were Staff members willing to
volunteer to update the missing information.
Ms. Glanckopf stated there was a website committee made up of community
members and Staff. She noted their availability to volunteer to update the
information on the website.
Mr. Keene stated Staff would update the website during the new few months.
Council Member Holman stated she would appreciate seeing the Block
Preparedness Coordinator manual and the Hazard Vulnerability Analysis on the
website.
Chair Yeh stated the task for the Citizens Corps Committee was to determine
what could be achieved through the end of 2010 and what the process would be
for the next few years.
6 P&S Committee 6/2212010
Council Member Price asked which items on the workplan were mandatory and
what the timeline was for accomplishment.
Mr. Dueker stated the Foothills Emergency Plan was mandatory; although, the
legal prerequisite had been met by Council adopting the plan. There was
currently no funding available for the execution of the plan which was why the
City Manager's office obtained an outside consultant to assist in locating Fire
Grant Funding and Mitigation Funding.
Council Member Shepherd asked whether the homeowner was responsible for
cutting the vegetation for wild fire safety if there were inspections.
Mr. Dueker stated yes, the homeowner was responsible for clearing vegetation
and the Fire Marshal's Office and Cal Fire completed inspections.
Ms. Morariu stated every spring there were community presentations and onsite
home visits. She stated the workplan incorporated this area due to the acreage
of publicly owned space and the Page Mill Road evacuation route.
Council Member Holman asked whether the organizational chart requested
would include outside entities.
Mr. Dueker stated there was an organization chart for City Staff although the
remainder was more of a networking map showing the relationship with San
Mateo County, Stanford University and the remaining outside entities.
Chair Yeh asked whether the envisioned community emergency plan would be
accomplished in the year 2010 or 2011.
Mr. Dueker stated the community emergency plan was a work group within the
Citizen Corps Council and they had no timeline at present for completion of the
plan.
Council Member Price stated she was unaware what the resources required
were nor how they related to the current Staff work load.
Ms. Morariu suggested identifying the top three to five priorities in the workplan
which would be the areas Staff time would be focused on first and as time and
resources allowed the other projects could be phased in.
Council Member Price stated under Disaster Preparedness in the workplan items
2a: Encourage Community Involvement/Self Reliance and 2e: Earthquake,
SUMC Project, were of a priority for her. She stated based on the limited
7 P&S Committee 6/22/2010
information she was unsure of the required Staff time it would take to complete
both tasks at a sufficient level.
Mr. Dueker stated a function of the Citizens Corps Council was to inform the
City Manager's office what would be required to accomplish each task.
Council Member Price asked if funding opportunities developed, where the
information would be submitted to.
Mr. Dueker stated Dr. Ray Bacchetti was the Chair of the funding working group
for the Citizens Corps Council.
Council Member Shepherd requested expanding the participation to include the
Medical Clinic and the Veterans Hospital.
Mr. Dueker stated both entities were represented through the Sand Hill Corridor
group.
Council Member Holman stated a number of communities fund their
neighborhood associations and she hoped to take the initial step toward
supporting their function in this troubled economic time.
Chair Yeh wanted, to ensure the Federal representatives were aware of the
Emergency Power Supply need since it involved a federal agency they could
assist in moving the process forward.
3. Recommendation to Council on Proposed Changes to the City Council
Procedures and Protocols.
Assistant to the City Manager, Kelly Morariu gave a brief overview of the
changes being requested to the Procedures and Protocols.
City Clerk Donna Grider stated that moving the Council packet delivery date
forward had implications for Colleagues Memo's and public correspondences.
She noted the public and news papers had mentioned their appreciation of
receiving the information earlier. The reasoning behind altering the speaker
cards was to create an easier process for the public and, to have a unified card
for Council and Boards and Commission meetings.
Council Member Holman recalled requesting comparative information from
surrounding cities and their packet delivery timeframe. She stated reviewing
comparative information would be beneficial. In reviewing the previous
8 P&S Committee 6/22/2010