HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproval of Minutes of 6/4/2001 06/18/2001 •
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City of Petaluma, California
Draft Minutes of a'Special
3 Join City Council/Petaluma Community Development Commission
4 Meeting
5
6 Budget Workshop
7 Thursday, June 7, 2001
8 Council Chambers
9
10
11
12 The Petaluma City Council/Petaluma Community Development Commission met on this
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13 date at 7:00 P.M. in the Council Chambers.
14
15 ROLL CALL
16
17 PRESENT: Vice ChairNice Mayor Cader-Thompson; Commissioners/Council
18 Members Healy, Maguire (7:12 P.M.), Moynihan (7:13 P.M.), Torliatt;
19 Chair/Mayor Thompson
20
21 ABSENT: Commissioner/Council Member O'Brien
2
Clerk's •
Note: For the purpose of these minutes, the joint bodies of the City Council and
25 the Community Development Commission shall be referred to as the
26 Council and the members of the joint bodies shall be referred to as elected
27 by the publiciand/or appointed by the Council; that is, Mayor, Vice Mayor,
28 and Council Members.
29
30 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
31
32 At the request of Mayor Thompson, Daymon Doss'led the Pledge of Allegiance.
33
34 MOMENT OF SILENCE
35
36 At the request of Mayor Thompson, a moment of silence was observed.
37
38 PUBLIC COMMENT
39
40 Daymon Doss, Petaluma Health Care District, 1290 North McDowell Boulevard, thought
41 that statements made at Monday, June 4th's Council Meeting implied that Petaluma
42 Valley Hospital was in danger of closing. He cautioned Council that things they say
43 `take on the cloak of knowledge,"and ittwas important that they be certain that they
44 base their statement on complete and accurate knowledge. He explained that when
SePetaluma Valley Hospital was built, construction of a cross-town connector was
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1 considered imminent..He thought a cross-town connector was important, as many
2 emergency patients came to'the hospital not by ambulance, but by car. He also
3 announced that next week is National Men's Health Week. The Petaluma Health Care
4 District is sponsoring apresentation on Monday, June'11 , at the Petaluma Community
5 Center, 320 North McDowell Boulevard, at 7:00 P.M.
6
7 COUNCIL/COMMISSION COMMENT
8
9 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson:
10
11 • Responded to Mr. Doss's.comments. She understood that the Health Care District
12 was "pro Rainier."She thought it important that citizens call 911 in case of an
13 emergency, instead of driving to the hospital. She pointed outthat the Health Care
14 District owns property adjacent to the proposed Rainier site. If Rainier were built,
. 15 that property would increase in value dramatically. She noted that her constituents
16 are concerned about the shortage of doctors in Petaluma. It is,her responsibility to
17 share those concerns. She believed that Council and the Health Care.Districtshould
18 work together on the issues, through the General Plan process. She•added'that
19 Petaluma needs a full-service hospital.
20 • Stated that at the Wednesday, June 6 Budget Workshop, a Council.Member made a
21 racist remark about the General. Plan consultant. She was shocked by this, and
22 thought such behavior should not be tolerated.
23 • Attended a golf tournament hosted by Fishman Supply at the Rooster Run Golf
24 Club. She enjoyed participating in this positive community event, and added that.
25 Rooster Run is a great course.
26
27 Council 'Member Torliatt:
28
29 • Thought the Petaluma Health Care District should definitely be part of the General
30 Plan process. The health care crisis needs to be addressed.
31 -
32 Council Member Healy:
33
34 • Noted the current labor dispute between a'bargaining unit at Petaluma Valley
35 Hospital, and St. Joseph's Health Care. The City should take care not to'.become
36 involved in that issue. He encouraged both:sides to'work hard to resolve their
37 differences. He agreed that once that was accomplished, Council should'meet with
38 the Health Care District regarding the General Plan process.
39
40 Council Member Moynihan:
41
42 • Believed that insurance payments and co-payments must increase in order to •
43 assure adequate medical care. Suggested the Fannie Mae.mortgage program
44 currently available to the City's public safety employees could be extended.to
45 hospital personnel, as a way to make living in Petaluma more affordable. S
City of Petaluma,California
Draft!Minutes of a Special
Joint City Council/PCDC Meeting
•
Thursday, June 7,2001
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4110 Council Member Maguire: •
3 • Disagreed with Council Member Moynihan that health insurance rates must go up.
4 He believed the HMO corporations were `out of control."If that were not the case,
5 the health care crisis would not exist.
6
7 UNFINISHED BUSINESS
8
9 1. Budget Workshop
10 -
11 Community Development Department
12
13 Community Development Director Mike Moore'introduced the FY 2001-2002
14 Budget for the Community'Development.Department. He gave•a brief overview of
15 the department's structure, which combines the planning; building safety and
16 inspection, housing, development engineering and public works inspection
17 functions, and acknowledged staff for their work to make the department
18 productive and successful.
19
20 He described'the budget as essentially "status quo,"with no significant increases
21 in amounts for operation and maintenance. He explaihed that the department
continues to have a very busy project log of about 150 projects. They are
averaging about 650 inspections a month.
4
25 During the past year, renovations have been completed, making the department
26 a much more comfortable and user-friendly place for both staff and citizens. An
27 increased training budget has allowed more training for staff and commission
28 members. An erosion control seminar was offered to local contractors and
29 developers as well.
30
31_ The budget calls for freezing and not-funding three positions: two in the Planning
32 Division, and one in the Building Division. The workload has been managed, and
33 will continue to be managed, with the help of contract planners on a full cost
34 recovery basis.
35 •
36 The Central Petaluma Specific Plan and EIR, including updated development
37 regulations,,are progressing, and the department's goal`is for the Plan to be
38 adopted by the end of the year.
39
40 The department is working with a software company to provide web-based permit
41 tracking, and hopes to have it on-line by the end of the summer.
42
43 Council Member Maguire congratulated Mr. Moore on the permit-tracking project,
4 and asked him to let Council know when the program was in place.
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. • Joint City Council/PCDC Meeting .
. Thursday,June 7,2001
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1 Mr. Moore explained that four interns from the Tech Academy program through OD
2 Santa Rosa Junior College have been developing an enhanced and expanded
3 web presence for the Community Development Department. Thanks to their help,
4 the community will soon be able to access the City's zoning ordinance, as well as
5 a number of forms, on-line. The interns are being paid with,Americans With
6 Disabilities funds, as the interns are also working to assure that the City's web
7 presence is compliant with this Act.
8
9 The department is working with Trae Cooper, Geographic Information Systems
10 (GIS) Manager, towards an automated public noticing system that-will make the
11 noticing process much more efficient.
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12 •
13 Council Member Maguire asked Mr. Moore if the noticing system would.allow
14 adjustments to the area in which citizens are to be notified, if required.
15
16 Mr. Moore confirmed that it would. The program will generate a mailing list for
17 any area specified.
18
19 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson thanked Mr. Moore for his presentation, and added
20 that the Community Development Department was a pleasure to visit, as the staff
21 were always friendly and helpful. She would like to see the 300' noticing
22 requirement expanded.
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23
24 Mr. Moore replied that state law established the 300' requirement. Noticing can
25 be done on a larger scale as.needed. He.thought this could be discussed as part
26 of the development regulations update process.
27
28 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson suggested that the City work with order cities and
29 the county to arrange training seminars locally, as a cost savings measure.
30 .
31 Mr. Moore replied that the department does try to take advantage of free.and
32 low-cost opportunities in the area.
33
34 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson asked Mr. Moore if permit fees would,be increasing
35 with the new budget.
36
37 Mr. Moore replied that Finance Director Bill Thomas had initiated a fee study.
38 The department would be moving toward full cost recovery as much as possible.
39 With some small projects, a'flatfeemade more sense.
40
41 Council Member Torliatt noted that the Department Directors' budget
42 presentations have been very impressive,and reflective of their hard'work. She
43 congratulated them and their staff. She was encouraged by the progress being
44 made on improving communication among commissions, City Management and
45 staff.She was very excited about the prospect of building permits on line.
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Mr. Moore noted that the HP3000 is 20 years old and everything is being moved
off it as soon as possible.
3
4 Council Member Moynihan mentioned that the attitude of the Community
5 Development.Department staff is very friendly and upbeat. He asked if the permit
6 tracking software would allow timing of projects to be tracked.
7
8 Mr. Moore answered that it was essentially a building permit paperwork
9 management'system. It will make the process more efficient.
10 •
11 Council Member Moynihan asked if the Project Log could be rolled into the
12 tracking process.
13
14 Mr. Moore asked Council,Member Moynihan if he meant in terms of project
15 status, who has commented, what the next step would be, etc.
16
17 Council Member Moynihan replied that he meant tracking in terms of
18 performance-based measures, as a way to identify those staff members who are
19 working hardest..He also asked if the fact that the anticipated permits and
20 licenses fees were=;down by 38% in the budget was due to an anticipated
21 slowdown. •
40, Mr. Moore confirmed that it was based on an educated guess of the amount of
fees that would be collected during the year.
25
26 City Manager Stouder reminded Council that in last year's budget, the
27 Community Development Department revised their revenue projects based on
28 trends in the economy: This occurred two'weeks before'the budget was due to
29 be printed. He thought it was better to "know the bad news up front and act on it"
30 He reiterated thatthe:City must choose to'freeze positions, eliminate services, or
31 find major new sources of revenue. _
32
33 Council Member Moynihan stated that he appreciated the conservative
34 approach. He thanked Mr. Moore for his work.
35
36 Council Member Healy thanked Mr. Moore.for the clear budget presentation and
37 the work he and his staff have done during the past year. He:expressed concern
38 about the thoroughness of the noticing, process'regarding the Central Petaluma
39 Specific Plan.
40
41 Mr. Moore replied`that they had used what they thought was a complete and up-
42 to-date list of those to be noticed.
43
44 Council Member Healy asked if with the changing nature of the workload in the
department — fewer large projects —there was sufficient staff/time to process
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Thursday, June 7, 2001
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.1 permits in a timely manner. -
2
3 Mr,: Moore answered that this was an importanttoncern. When the development
4 code is clearer and the zoning ordinancexand forms are available-on-line, the
5 workload should lighten. Regarding'theCentral Petaluma Specific Plan, there
6 was a limited amount of work to be done to complete it, and lots of enthusiasm to
7 see it adopted.
8
9 Council Member.Maguire noted he had heard'"rumblings in the community"
10 about the permit process taking too long. He.cautioned'Mr. Moore to keep track •
11 of that.
•
12
13 Mr:, Moore agreed that it was important, and added that his department was
14 using as much technology as possible to become more efficient.
15 •
16 Mayor Thompson thanked Mr. Moore for his presentation. He noted that,
17 Community,Development is;a high-profile department, and he thinks they are
18 doing,a great job:
19
20 Mr. Moore mentioned that in regard to-the recent correspondence-from the Local
21 Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) asking if the City supported continued
22 use of County staffing, counsel and facilities:for the Sonoma LAFCO function, the
23 latest information he had heard was that for the coming year, at least, there
24 would be no change.
25
26 Council Member Torliatt concurred, adding that;thelast LAFCO meeting
27 concluded with a decision not to go•to outside+:counsel. She still thoughCit".was
28 important that Council discuss the issue. -
29
30 Mayor Thompson.agreed.
31 _
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32 Council Member Healy asked Mr. Moore how many appeals to LAFCO he had
33 seen.
34
35 Mr. Moore replied that two were pending, but none had actually gone to LAFCO.
36. He noted that the LAFCO processes havebeen.streamlined, and 'he thinks
37 LAFCO is pretty effective-at weeding through issues that-cities or special districts
38 mayhave.
39 •
40 Council MemberTorliatt`stated that at the LAFCO meeting, JanetCondron
41 (Santa Rosa) asked to take a closer look at user-based fees.
42
43 PUBLICCOMMENT
44
45 Daymon Doss,'Petaluma Health Care;District, 1290 North McDowell,Boulevard,
City of Petaluma;.California
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wanted to work closely with the Council to insure that the City and special
districts are fairly represented with LAFCO.
3
4 Budget Papers
5
6 Director of Public Facilities and Services Rick Skladzien presented the following
7 budget papers to Council:
8
9 A. Development and Implementation of Vehicle and Equipment Maintenance
10 Program
11 B. Enhanced Street Maintenance and Reconstruction Program
12 C. Reorganization and Feasibility of Contract Services for Traffic Signal and
13 Street Lighting Maintenance
14 D. Program and Schedule for Examination and Potential Advertisement and
15 Receipt of Competitive Bids for Solid Waste Collection and Ancillary Services
16 E. Feasibility of Restructuring the Sidewalk Maintenance Program to Place a
17 Higher Emphasis on Homeowners' Responsibility for the Maintenance and
18 Upkeep of Property Adjacent to their Property
19 F. Residential Home Financing for City Employees
20
21 Mr. Moore asked for confirmation that the notice to the solid waste collection
contractor would be that the City would continue with the contract.
Mr. Stouder replied that he was correct.
25
26 Mr. Moore asked if the contractor would be receptive to a renewed contract some
27 months in the future.
28
29 Mr. Stouder replied that a decision was needed by June 16, 2001.
30
31 _ Council Member Healy noted that in that case, the subject should be added to
32 the agenda for the June 11th meeting.
33
34 RECESS: 8:10 P.M.
35 RECONVENE: 8:22 P.M.
36
37 Mr. Skladzien began his presentation of the Vehicle and Equipment
38 Maintenance Program budget paper..The paper spoke to the importance of
39 establishing a°timely schedule for replacement of vehicles and equipment. The
40 program would provide funding for such replacement through annual line item
41 contributions by department, so that vehicles and equipment are replaced
42 according to planned needs, rather than each department competing for funds
43 during each budget cycle.
imo4
Two plans were presented (A and B). Under Plan A, each vehicle and piece of
City of Petaluma, California
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Thursday, June 7, 2001
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1 equipment is guaranteed funding and is replaced at the end of its cycle. With
2 Plan B, a modified schedule would be put into place, with new additions being
3 purchased for Fire, Police and Water Resources, and the vehicles those replace
4 being cycled down through other departments. The program would strive for
5 'optimal replacement timing" to avoid overall higher lifetime costs and the
6 consequent increase in downtime for a vehicle. Until the program is fully funded,
7 a Vehicle/Equipment Replacement Panel would be established to administer and
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8 oversee the program and prioritization of replacement vehicles.
9
10 The recommendation is to adopt a vehicle replacement program by ordinance,
11 with the initial implementation of Plan B when the City Manager and .Finance
12 Director indicate funding is available. Continue accruing funding annually (as
13 respective department line items) until.a sufficient amount is developed to
14 implement the original proposal, Plan A.
15
16 Mr. Stouder added that vehicles that had reached an age where maintenance
17 was no longer cost-effective would be disposed of.
18
19 Council Member Healy asked if transit and paratransit vehicles were included in
20 the program.
21
22 Mr. Skladzien replied that theywere not, as they came from an Ente rprise Fund.
23
24 Council Member Healy asked what other rolling equipment was not included.
25
26 Mr.;Skladzien explained that rented equipment was not included.
27
28 Council Member Moynihan asked if vehicles/equipment would be added to the
29 program as soon as they were purchased.
30
31 Mr. Skladzien confirmed this. _
32
33 Council Member Moynihan asked if this meant that eventually all vehicles would
34 be part of the program.
35
36 Mr. Skladzien answered `yes."
37
38 Council Member Torliatt asked for clarification about the Water Resources and
39 Conservation vehicles. She thought those were part of an Enterprise Fund, while
40 the other vehicles were part of the General Fund. She wondered how vehicles
41 from two separate funds could be cycled down to different departments.
42
43 Finance Director Bill Thomas explained that vehicles in an Enterprise Fund
44 department, when being cycled down, could end up in a General Fund
45 department.
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Thursday, June 7,2001
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Council Member Maguire was concerned about the ability to works towards a
3 City fleet of energy-efficient vehicles.
. 4
5 Mr. Skladzien explained that the program took.vehicle emissions into
6 consideration. As soon as vehicles do not pass smog tests, they will be
7 eliminated.
8
9 Council Member Maguire clarified that he was also concerned with fuel
10 efficiency. He believed gas would soon be $3.00 per gallon. He did not want to
11 see a car getting 17 mpg continue to be driven when a new car could offer 30
12 mpg. He asked if an avoided cost analysis was part of the program.
13
14 Mr. Skladzien replied that it was.
15
16 Council Member Maguire asked if alternative fuel vehicles could be rolled into the
17 program.
18
19 Mr. Skladzien agreed.
20
21 Council Member Moynihan asked if when vehicles are cycled down through
departments, they would remain part of the program.
—24 Mr. Skladzien agreed. He added that program would strive to improve the
25 average age of City vehicles.
26
27 Council Member Moynihan asked Mr. Skladzien if he had looked at the City of
28 Santa Rosa's program.
29
30 Mr. Skladzien replied that he had, as well as several others. The conclusion was
31 that Plan B was workable.
•
32
33 Council Member Moynihan asked if there was any creative way to finance vehicle
34 replacement "up front"
35
36 Mr. Stouder pointed out that the point of the program was that it could be
37 achieved incrementally. He noted that Mr. Skladzien's and Mr. Thomas's
38 expertise was very helpful.
39
40 Council Member Moynihan asked when funding would be initiated.
41
42 Mr. Thomas replied that more than $800,000 would be needed to start the
43 program. He assumed it would be `Woven into"the FY 2002-2003 budget, as he
believed that was the earliest funding could begin. There is no money in the FY
2001-2002 General Fund budget for vehicle replacement.
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Thursday,June 7, 2001
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1 N 2 City Manager Stouder noted that tonight's presentation was meant to encourage
3 Council to begin thinking of questions, solutions, and financial alternatives for the
4 program. •
5
6 Mr. Skladzien thanked Bill Allen, Assistant Traffic Engineer, for his help.
7
8 Enhanced Street Maintenance and Reconstruction Program
9
10 Mr. Skladzien explained that Petaluma has 171 miles of streets. Sixty-five
11 percent (65%) of those streets are in "fair to failed condition."The average
12 Pavement Condition Index (PCI) is 30, making the City's streets the worst in the
13 County. PCI is a system developed by the.Metropolitan Transportation
14 Commission (San Francisco Bay Area), which utilizes a scale of O to 100 as a
15 measure of condition or serviceability.
16
17 The City must define the average and/or minimum PCI it wishes to.maintain,
18 achieve a balance between spot maintenance, annual streetmaintehance
19 program.(e.g., slurry seal, micro surfacing, or overlay), and Capital Improvement
20 Program (full or partial street reconstruction), and determine how the.chosen
21 activities will be funded: The total cost of needed street repairs, including
22 overhead, is estimated at.$164.2 rriillion. This•figure does not'include sidewalk
23 and gutters, and does not take into account the City's aging underground water a
24 and sewer system.
25
26 Mr. Skladzien went on to say that the cost of street maintenance increases
27 geometrically overtime. Streets maintained in good to excellent condition involve
28 a total annual maintenance five to seven times less than if the pavement is
29 allowed to deteriorate to poor or very poor condition. When pavement fails
30 completely, total reconstruction is required, at•a minimum often times the cost of
31 preventative maintenance. _
32
33 Two budget scenarios were presented. The first involved committing enough
34 money toa bring the entire street system up to an average PCI of 75 within five
35 years. The second involved current, minimal levels of funding. Something
36 somewhere between the two extremes would.be potentially achievable.
37
38 If maintenance continues at the current trend of deferral, the cost of bringing the
39 streets to an acceptable standard will likely increase by 42% over the five-year
40 period. The goal is to find a way to;fund repairs at a sufficient magnitude to halt
41 or reverse the degradation of the system.
42 • •
43 The report recommends that.a Task Force be established to work with the
44 community to evaluate the street.system, as wellas available revenue streams.
45 This committee could advise and make funding recommendations to the
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Thursday, June 7,2001
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community and Council.
3 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson congratulated Mr. Skladzien on the excellent
4 report. She said it had really "opened her eyes"to the thought of a ballot
5 measure to fund street repair and maintenance.
6
7 Council Member Maguire asked if the City had considered a vehicle weight fee
8 system.
9
10 Mr. Skladzien replied that they had not, and mentioned the possibility of a wheel
11 tax.
12
13 Council Member Maguire thought those using the streets the most should
14 contribute the most. Some cities have a weight-related fee structure.
15
16 City Manager Stouder suggested the Council schedule a special meeting to
17 discuss the issue further.
18
19 Council Member Healy agreed that further discussion was needed. Buy-in and
20 participation by the public was imperative. He read from the staff report, Exhibit
21 A, "For each $1 not spent for preventative maintenance at the 75% life point,
2 $22.50 will need to be spent within two to three years to maintain a reasonable
street surface without major cracking, potholes, or depressions. If the $1 is not
4 spent, at least $36.00 will ultimately need to spent for reconstruction."He thought
25 money should be focused on repairing streets that have not yet failed.
26
27 Mr. Skladzien noted that the City is currently addressing emergency issues is a
28 reactive, not proactive manner.
29
30 Council Member Moynihan thought maintenance needed to be the Number One
31 priority.
32
33 Mr. Stouder stated that the City's revenue system has failed the streets.
34
35 Vice Mayor Cader-Thompson was also concerned with trip-and-fall liabilities •
36 associated with deteriorating sidewalks. She thought the current "band-aid"
37 approach was not acceptable.
38
39 ADJOURN
40
41 The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 P.M.
42 •
43
44 E. Clark Thompson, Mayor
City of Petaluma, California
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1
2 ATTEST:
N
3
4
5
6 Claire Cooper, Clerk Pro Tern
7
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e,
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4
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City of Petaluma,California a
Draft Minutes of a;Special
Joint City Council/PCDC Meeting
Thursday, June 7, 2001
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