REDWOOD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

November 5, 2001

REDWOOD CITY CITY COUNCIL

MAYOR  IRA RUSKIN
VICE MAYOR  RICHARD S. CLAIRE

 
COUNCILMEMBER JIM HARTNETT
COUNCILMEMBER DIANE HOWARD
COUNCILMEMBER JEFF IRA
COUNCILMEMBER COLLEEN M. JORDAN
COUNCILMEMBER BARBARA PIERCE



REGULAR MEETING
CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
7:00 P.M.
NOVEMBER 5, 2001



1. CALL TO ORDER - 7:02 p.m.

2. ROLL CALL

Council Members Present: Hartnett, Howard, Ira, Pierce, Vice Mayor Claire, Mayor Ruskin

Council Members Absent: Council Member Jordan

Staff Present: City Clerk Howe, City Manager Everett, City Attorney Yamamoto, Public Works Services Director/Assistant City Manager Ingram, Community Development Services Manager Passanisi, Interim Community Development Services Director Liedstrand, Planning and Redevelopment Manager Church, Community Development Services Manager Patterson, Traffic Engineer Haygood, Economic Development Coordinator Webb, Library Director Chen, Fire Chief Montez, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director Centeno, Volunteer Balsamo

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE - Barbara Pierce, Council Member

4. INVOCATIONS - Pastor Dennis Logie, Sequoia Christian Church

5. SPECIAL ORDERS OF THE DAY - None

6. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS

Bob Slusser invited the community to the "Tis the Season" event to be held on Saturday, December 1. The event includes a fireworks display and other surprises.

Dave Stuart, Redwood City/San Mateo Chamber of Commerce, announced the fourth Good Morning Redwood City to be held on Thursday, November 29 from 7:45-9:00 a.m. Council Member Pierce, San Mateo County Supervisor Jerry Hill, Dick Hawkins of Deltagen and Mark Simon of the Chronicle will be present. For reservations, call 364-1722.

Ralph J. Criscione spoke as a resident in the area of the Valota Road/Roosevelt stop sign that has just recently replaced the traffic signal. He expressed thanks for the change.

7. CONSENT CALENDAR

Items on the Consent Calendar are considered to be routine by the City Council and are enacted by one motion and one vote. There is no separate discussion of these items unless a Council Member or Citizen so requests, in which event the item will be removed from the consent calendar and considered in its normal sequence on the agenda.

M/S Hartnett/Ira to waive reading of the Consent Calendar except the ordinances by title, adopt the resolutions and the ordinances, and approve other items. The motion passed by a unanimous roll call vote, with Council Member Jordan absent and Mayor Ruskin abstaining on Item 7.1A (October 22, 2001 minutes only).

7.1   Section - Motions

A. Motion to approve the Minutes of the meeting of October 8, 2001, meeting of October 22, 2001 and special meeting of October 27, 2001;

MINUTE ORDER 01-155

B. Roosevelt Avenue Reconstruction Phase II (from Valota Road to Hudson Street):

  1. Motion to approve the removal of the existing traffic signal at the intersection of Roosevelt Avenue and Valota Road, and the installation of four-way stop signs:
  2. Introduce an amendment to Ordinance No. 2206, Section 5 extending, "…the date by which the undergrounding of all overhead utilities, including existing service drops, and the removal of all wooden utility poles, overhead wires and associated structures from all streets, roads, alleys or ways shall occur within said District…" from August 1, 2002 to December 31, 2003.

    ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 2206 DESIGNATING SAID DISTRICT AS UNDERGROUND UTILITY DISTRICT NO. 2000-1; DESCRIBING THE BOUNDARIES OF SAID DISTRICT; ESTABLISHING WHAT UTILITY FACILITIES WILL BE MAINTAINED ABOVE GROUND; AND ESTABLISHING THE TIME BY WHICH POLES AND OVERHEAD WIRES SHALL BE REMOVED AND UNDERGROUND SERVICE PROVIDED

    3. MINUTE ORDER 01-156

    C. Motion to accept the improvements for the Redwood Shores Parkway Widening Project - Phase II (from Twin Dolphin Drive to Shoreline Drive), and authorize the release of bonds;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-157

    D. Motion to accept the bid and authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement for the Broadway and Second Avenue 5kV Street Light Circuit Conversion to S. G. Barber, Inc. of Belmont, CA, in the amount of $16,895.00 and reject all other bids (S. G. Barber);

    MINUTE ORDER 01-158

    F. Motion to approve execution of a contract with Sequoia Union High School District to provide a School Resource Officer for four days a week at Sequoia High School. The School District agrees to compensate the City of Redwood City $33,714.58 for these services;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-159

    G. Motion to approve execution of agreement with the Redwood City School District to continue providing a School Resource Officer for two days a week at both Kennedy and McKinley Middle Schools. The School District agrees to compensate the City of Redwood City $20,000.00 for these services;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-160

    H. Motion to approve agreement for Environmental Professional Services with Wagstaff and Associates (Wagstaff and Associates) cost to be reimbursed by developer. Glenborough - Pauls, LLC at Bair Island Road (Marina Shores Village);

    MINUTE ORDER 01-161

    7.2   Section - Resolutions

    A. RESOLUTION 14401 APPROVING JOB SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE POSITION OF SENIOR LIBRARY ASSISTANT;

    B. Executive Management Summary of Benefits;

    1. RESOLUTION 14402 DELINEATING AND REAFFIRMING CITY COUNCIL ELIGIBILITY AND PARTICIPATION IN HEALTH AND WELFARE BENEFITS PROGRAM OF THE CITY OF REDWOOD CITY;

    2. RESOLUTION 14403 ADOPTING CITY OF REDWOOD CITY EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT SUMMARY OF BENEFITS EFFECTIVE MAY 1, 2000;

    7.3   Section - Claims and Warrants

    A. Reject the claims of: Mary Mitchell claim no. 1935, Dorothy Domingo claim no. 1939, Louis & Nancy Geenen claim no. 1940, Whitley Property Management claim no. 1941, Image Auto claim no. 1942, Connie Meadows claim no. 1943, Tim Heinkel claim no. 1944 and Vicky Boyd claim no. 1945 as submitted;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-162

    B. Approve warrants dated through November 5, 2001 and usual and necessary payments through November 19, 2001;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-163

    7.4   Section - Ordinancs (Second Readings) - None

    7.1   Section - Motions

    E. M/S Howard/Ira to approve an agreement with Charles M. Salter Associates, Inc. to design the audio/ visual upgrades in the City Hall Council Chamber, in an amount not to exceed $17,460.00;

    MINUTE ORDER 01-164

    Council Member Howard requested this item be removed from Consent for discussion. She queried about the scope of work and whether it will include removal or rerouting of floor cords. City Manager Everett responded affirmatively. The motion passed by a unanimous roll call vote by those present.

8. MATTERS OF COUNCIL INTEREST -

  1. Council Member Pierce stated that the City's childcare coordinator, Kristen Anderson along with the Palo Alto childcare coordinator, organized a childcare forum where Assemblymember Joe Simitian was present and heard from the nonprofit and for profit childcare providers. Issues and concerns regarding facilities, housing for their employees and hiring of employees were shared.
  2. Mayor Ruskin announced that November 19 would be the date of the Council reorganization. The three appointed Council Members, Hartnett, Howard and Ira will take oaths of office and the Mayor and Vice Mayor selection will occur.

9. STAFF REPORTS -

  1. Downtown Area Plan;

    Mayor Ruskin congratulated the Downtown Task Force for completing their work in a timely fashion. He stated the Plan is extremely thoughtful, detailed, cogent and gives a basis for a vision plan, working plan for the entire Downtown Area that includes Woodside Road on the south, Whipple on the north, Veterans on the east to El Camino Real on the west. Mayor Ruskin cited several reasons for the Downtown Area Plan that included the General Plan Update. He explained the selection process for the Downtown Task Force and that the Plan will be reviewed by the Planning Commission, and may or may not be modified prior to returning to Council for final approval.

    Interim Community Development Director Liedstrand gave introductory remarks and outlined the process.

    Downtown Area Task Force Chairperson Bruce Codding introduced the Task Force members Nancy Radcliffe, Gabriella Judd, Walter Moore, Jane Taylor, Inez Jackson, Kevin Armstrong, Mary Tsang and Bob Bryant present in the audience. Chairperson Codding thanked the Council for the opportunity to learn; the excellent consultant retained by the City (EDAW) who worked cooperatively with staff and a number of community groups, boards and commissions along with neighborhood associations.

    Chairperson Codding proceeded to read along with the PowerPoint Presentation and stated that the purpose of the presentation was to provide an overview of the Task Force's Downtown Area Plan. (Copies of the slides on file in Clerk's Office and on City's webpage.)

    Public Comment:

    John Anagnostou congratulated the Task Force and stated that the compilation of information and direction provides more than a starting point for the City. He read into the record a portion of an article from the Business Times. It stated in part, "Davis okays Oakland's fast track development". The article stated that instead of having to come up with a full environmental impact report (EIR) for each new project, some residential and mixed use proposals will be able to use a City master EIR for the downtown area and add information on their development. Mr. Anagnostou commented that Redwood City's next step would be to embrace the Plan and have a plan of action.

    Dennis Logie stated that he was impressed with the vision presented but that his concern is regarding the downtown churches. He stated that considering the increased number of people planned to reside in the Downtown, he questioned whether the Task Force considered the future role of the seven churches currently in the Downtown.

    Chairperson Codding stated churches had not been specifically considered in the Plan.

    Leo Solari asked about the safety considerations of crossing railroad tracks at El Camino Real from Whipple and Brewster.

    Mayor Ruskin stated that Council voted against an underpass at Whipple because the funding was not sufficient to do it correctly. He further stated that the Transportation Authority is still considering the issue and that all the underpasses will be discussed again along with the renewal of Measure A, which was the funding mechanism for the transportation improvements over the years.

    Mignon Belorgie stated that a major negative quality of life issue is noise and asked whether the Plan addresses noise from machinery and designation of car free areas.

    Chairperson Codding stated that the Plan is visionary and that the noise pollution issue was not even on the agenda. Car free areas were not a desired consideration; however, narrowing of streets and temporary closure of streets for various activities is a consideration.

    Council comments included that it is a bold and stunning plan that was so thoughtfully comprised that it is difficult to immediately react to. The Task Force was tremendously diverse being drawn from the entire community. The five goals are appropriate for the Plan and the accompanying policy recommendations represent tremendous wisdom. The mixed-use strategy element is key in the Plan. This is an opportunity to focus on the elements the community feels are important. The question of whether there are particular housing sites that should be considered first was posed. The concern for needed implementation policies was expressed so that opportunities are not missed. The image of the kind of downtown being sought was evoked in a very concrete fashion by following the policies and goals that had been laid out specifically. The cultural layer creates a high quality of life for a city.

    M/S Hartnett/Howard to accept the document from the Downtown Area Plan Task Force; refer it to the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission to involve the public and other Boards/Commissions/Committees in their review of the plan. The Planning Commission will then make a recommendation to the City Council for consideration at various public meetings. The motion passed by a unanimous voice vote by those present with Council Member Jordan absent.

10. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS - None

11. PUBLIC HEARING - None

12. BOARDS, COMMISSION AND COMMITTEE REPORTS - None

13. CLOSED SESSION - None

14. ADJOURNMENT - 8:40 p.m.

M/S Howard/Hartnett to adjourn until the meeting of November 19, 2001 in memory of San Jose Police Officer Jeffrey Fontana who passed away in the line of duty on October 28, 2001 and in memory of Ivan Tompkins, former Redwood City resident and City employee who passed away on October 28, 2001.


Respectfully submitted,

Patricia S. Howe, CMC

City Clerk

Copyright © 2001. The City of Redwood City. All rights reserved.