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Regional Open Space
MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT
Meeting 06-10
REGULAR MEETINGS
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
March 22, 2006
MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
I. ROLL CALL
President Jed Cyr called the meeting to order at 7:32 p.m.
Members Present: Jed Cyr, Ken Nitz, Pete Siemens, Deane Little, Larry Hassett,
Mary Davey and Nonette Hanko
Members Absent: None
Staff Present: Sally Thielfoidt, Sue Schectman, Matt Freeman, John Maciel,
Brian Malone, Michael Newburn, Jennifer Naber, Greg Smutnak, Brendan Downing,
Rich Carlson, Rudy Jurgensen and Mike Williams
II. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
There were none.
ILI. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Motion: K. Nitz moved that the Board adopt the amended agenda. M. Davey
seconded and the motion passed 7 to 0.
IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR
K. Nitz removed Revised Claim number 4530 from the Consent Calendar. He asked for
an update of the Pulgas Ridge project and M. Freeman gave a summary of the project.
N. Hanko abstained from Revised Claim numbers 4504 and 4610.
Motion: K. Nitz moved that the Board adopt the remaining Consent Calendar
items, including Revised Claims 06-07, the February 8, 2006 Board
Minutes; and the Written Communication; and Approval of the Annual
Claims List, Including Debt Service Payments for Fiscal Year 2006-2007;
—I
and Approval of District General Counsel to Assume Full Time Position
and Adjust the Position's Annual Salary to $146,201.12 and Adoption of
Resolution Amending District General Counsel's Employment Agreement
to Reflect Full Time Annual Salary and Corresponding Full Time
Benefits; and Approval to Join in an Amicus Brief in Support of the Santa
Clara County Open Space Authority in the Matter of Silicon Valley
Taxpayers Associations, Inc v. Santa Clara County Open Space Authority;
and Cancellation of the April 12, 2006 Regular Board Meeting. M.
Davey seconded the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
V. BOARD BUSINESS
A. Agenda Item No. 1 —Appointment of Jennifer Naber and Greg Smutnak as
District Peace Officers; Adopt the Attached Resolution of the Board Appointing
Jennifer Naber as a Peace Officer; Adopt the Attached Resolution of the Board
Appointing Greg Smutnak as a Peace Officer—(Report R-06-43).
J. Maciel introduced the staff report. M. Newburn then introduced Jennifer
Naber, stating that she will be working at the Foothills Field Office. He gave
some background information about her. J. Maciel presented J. Naber with her
District Ranger badge, followed by picture taking. J. Naber stated that she was
excited about becoming a District ranger and she thanked the Board.
B. Downing introduced Greg Smutnak and gave some background information
about him. J. Maciel presented G. Smutnak with his District Ranger badge,
followed by picture taking. G. Smutnak said that he, too, was excited to be
working for the District as a Ranger. He added that he had worked for the District
previously as a Seasonal Open Space Technician.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board of Directors approve the General
Manager's recommendations to adopt Resolution No. 06-11 to
appoint Greg Smutnak as a Peace Officer; and adopt Resolution
No. 06-10 to appoint Jennifer Naber as a Peace Officer. K. Nitz
seconded the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
B. Agenda Item No. 2 —Adoption of the 2006-2007 Action Plan for the
Implementation of the Basic Policy of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space
District—(Report R-06-39).
S. Thielfoldt presented the staff report. She suggested the Board consider a
change to the wording regarding the polling project (page 4, Item #16 of the
Public Affairs portion of the Action Plan). She recommended that the item be
moved to Item #I under the "Other Projects" heading to reflect the heightened
importance of this project to Resource Management and the additional $50,000
reflected in the budget. K. Nitz asked that the RFP for the survey go before the
LFPAC Committee and R. Jurgensen said that it would.
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D. Little asked if there were other budget issues and changes regarding Resource
Management, and if so, why weren't they brought before the Board tonight. S.
Thielfoldt replied that staff is not ready for any additional budget changes at this
time. Management Team is discussing possible Resource Management budget
changes and a comprehensive plan will be brought before the Board at a later
date.
D. Little asked why the polling was being fast-tracked and not other resource
management projects. S. Thielfoldt recalled that C. Britton presented this item
before as a result of the Resource Management workshop. She understood that
the Board was in favor of the polling.
M. Davey stated that this is one simple item whereas Resource Management is a
lot more complex and takes a lot more time,
L. Hassett recalled that the Resource Management budget would come back at the
mid-year adjustment. The initial budget would not restrict what the Board might
or could do with an interim adjustment.
P. Siemens said if the District ends up altering priorities on how the it will spend
money, then it needs to know what the constituents think. Particularly if the
District ends up in the situation where it might be balancing "access"versus
resource management." He added that it is difficult to go forward with the
Resource Management planning without conducting the polling process.
D. Little responded by stating (as he said he did at the workshop) that he does not
care any more on what the public thinks about Resource Management than he
cares about what they think about acquisition. The District has a clear mission
statement that supports resource management. The bottom line is the Board needs
to do the right thing. And the right thing is not only buying the land, but paying
for the native biology. If the public comes back with the opinion that they don't
care about resource management and they care more about access, that just
suggests that the District has not educated the public sufficiently. He would like
to see the request for proposals for polling go before the LFPAC and the full
Board.
L. Hassett added that he had similar thoughts to D. Little's. If he thought that the
polling was going to hold up on some of the decisions on Resource Management
program, he would not have supported the polling project, He wanted to be sure
that this project did not hold up going forward with the Resource Management
plan. S. Thielfoldt stated that polling would not hold up other aspects of Resource
Management.
D. Little said he was worried that polling would be presented to the public as an
"either/or" situation. M. Davey said that polling was not an"either/or"
Meeting 06-10 Page 3
situation, but a "both" situation. She said that the District wants to do it in an
inclusive and rational way and the polling will give insight. K. Nitz said that he
finds polling disturbing and a waste of money. He does not want to see money
spent for polling when a more important project could use it.
N. Hanko ended the discussion by acknowledging that the Board was having a
good debate on the issue of polling, but this is a project that was already
approved. It is understandable that Board members get impatient, but staff has a
limited amount of time for projects.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board adopt the 2006-2007 Action Plan,
with the recommended changes, for the Implementation of the
Basic Policy of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District.
L. Hassett seconded the motion.
Discussion: J. Cyr asked if the added outreach included the Woodside area. R.
Jurgensen said that it did.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
C. Agenda Item No. 3a—Approve the Proposed Fiscal Year 2006-2007 Budget as
Presented in Agenda Item 3b (Report R-06-40), and Adopt the Administration and
Budget Committee Recommendations Contained in this Report - (Report R-06-
39).
K. Nitz reviewed the report from the Administration and Budget Committee
(ABC) and pointed out the 14.3% increase, not including COLA increases. He
pointed out the action items for future ABC meetings, including increasing public
access improvements from $500,000 to $700,000 over a five-year period.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve the proposed Fiscal Year
2006-2007 Budget as presented in Agenda Item 3 (Report R-06-
40), and adopt the Administration and Budget Committee
Recommendations contained in this Report. P. Siemens seconded
the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
D. Agenda Item No. 3b — Adoption of Budget for Fiscal Year 2006-2007; Adopting
the Resolution for the Budget for Fiscal Year 2006-2007 — (Report R-06-30).
S. Thielfoldt pointed out that the land purchase line item had a jump in the
projection due to land purchase commitments not purchased in the previous fiscal
year.
Motion: K. Nitz moved adoption of Resolution No. 06-12 for the Budget
for Fiscal Year 2006-2007. P. Siemens seconded the motion.
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Discussion: M. Davey pointed out that staff put together the Resource
Management figures in the itemized budget equal to $3.5 million
dollars.
L. Hassett thanked the ABC and staff adding that he appreciated
their hard work and the number of meetings they attended.
M. Davey acknowledged K. Nitz for his leadership as the
Chairman of the ABC and she added that staff did a wonderful job.
K. Nitz said that staff did a superb job, pointing out the superb job
done by M. Jespersen and other staff—he appreciated everyone's
efforts.
D. Little said he also wanted to express his thanks to staff and the
ABC members.
S. Thielfoldt appreciated the Board's acknowledgement to staff.
She added that literally the entire District staff worked on the
budget.
J. Cyr acknowledged that the budget process has gotten more
effective annually, and he, too, appreciated the work staff and the
Committee members did to prepare the Budget and Board Reports.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
E. Agenda Item No. 4—Authorization to Extend Contracts with Design Concepts
for Graphic Design Services, Patsons Press for Printing Services, and Post Haste
Direct Mail Services for Mailing Services for Fiscal Year 2006-2007, Authorize
the General Manager to Extend the Contract for Graphic Design Services with
Design Concepts for an Amount Not to Exceed $53,305; Authorize the General
Manner to Extend the Contract for Printing Services with Patsons Press for an
Amount Not to Exceed $122,090-, and Authorize the General Manner to Extend
the Contract for Mailing Services with Post Haste Direct Mail Services for an
Amount Not to Exceed $46,410 for Fiscal Year 2006-2007—(Report R-06-35).
R. Jurgensen reviewed the staff report and described the working relationships
with each company. He reviewed the higher costs, which include the Sierra Azul
Master Plan and mailing invitations for the District's 35 th Anniversary.
K. Nitz wanted to know the amount of each increase. R. Jurgensen replied that
for Graphic Design Services, the cost went up from the previous year of$42,000
to the $53,305, an increase of$11,305; the cost increase with Patsons Press is
$17,365 ($122,090 - $104,725 = $17,365); and the cost with Post Haste Direct
Meeting 06-10 Page 5
Mail Services is increased from $35,000 last year to an amount not to exceed
$46,410 this fiscal year, or a difference of$11,410.
S. Schectman added that there was an option to extend all three contracts.
D. Little said that the Claims showed a breakdown of amounts paid to Design
Concepts and he asked why the District consistently returns to this company. R.
Jurgensen replied that staff works very well with Design Concepts and that this
company does a fine job and has a consistently high level of customer service.
S. Thielfoldt added that there were not many replies to the RFP. D. Little said
that the proposals looked good.
Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board authorize the General Manager
to extend the contract for graphic design services with Design
Concepts for an amount not to exceed $53,305; authorize the
General Manager to extend the contract for printing services with
Patsons Press for an amount not to exceed $122,090; and authorize
the General Manager to extend the contract for mailing services
with Post Haste Direct Mail Services for an amount not to exceed
$46,4 10 for Fiscal Year 2006-2007. N. Hanko seconded the
motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
F. Agenda Item No. 5—Authorize the General Manager to Execute a Purchase
Contract with the State Department of General Services for Five Vehicles at a
Total Cost Not to Exceed $150,000—(Report R-06-37).
J. Maciel reviewed the staff report stating that the District would purchase five
vehicles through the State bid process.
L. Hassett asked what type of vehicle would be purchased for the District
Administration office. J. Maciel said that D. Topley had test driven the Ford
Escape (a hybrid) and was happy with it.
Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board authorize the General Manager
to execute a purchase contract with the State Department of
General Services for five vehicles at a total cost not to exceed
$150,000. L. Hassett seconded the motion.
Discussion: D. Little noted that he spends a lot of time on District land and has
never seen a District field staff"slacking off' in their truck. He
feels the field staff do a great job.
L. Hassett wanted to follow-up on D. Little's comment by adding
that he sees District vehicles several times a day, noting that often
times District vehicles are the first responders if there is a road
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problem or other situation. He did say that his comments were
Skyline specific.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
VI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS
J. Cyr commended staff on creating calendars for the Board to list meetings they
attended.
K. Nitz attended the Sierra Azul/Bear Creek Redwoods Master Plan Committee meetings
on March 9 and March 22, the Administration and Budget Committee meeting on March
14, the Good Neighbor Policy meeting on March 15, and the Legislative, Finance and
Public Affairs Committee meeting on March 21. He noted that Britton Heights neighbors
adjacent to Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve were mailed a notice of a meeting from
San Mateo County to discuss the 15 trees that were planned to be cut in the next three
years. He asked if staff went to the meeting. J. Maciel replied that staff did not attend
this meeting; however, C. Roessler was in contact with the group and that staff would
come before the Board if more trees were planned to be cut. He added that there were no
complaints made to C. Roessler. N. Hanko asked that the Board be advised of the result.
M. Davey attended the Administration and Budget Committee meeting on March 14.
She went to Ken Fisher's home presentation of monumental trees in Humboldt County
and that the presentation was an eye-opener about Redwood trees; she attended the Ethics
Training and said it was well done and that it was in a marvelous setting full of elected
officials.
P. Siemens attended the Sierra Azul/Bear Creek Redwoods Master Plan Committee
meetings on March 9 and March 22, and the Administration and Budget Committee
meeting on March 14. He attended the Ethics Training.
L. Hassett attended the Legislative, Finance and Public Affairs Committee meeting on
March 21, and the Ethics Training.
D. Little stated that he had attended no Committee meetings, but did attend the Ethics
Training; he went to the lone Madrone tree at La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve and
expressed thanks to D. Danielson.
N. Hanko attended the Good Neighbor Policy meeting on March 15, and the Legislative,
Finance and Public Affairs Committee meeting on March 21; she said no public showed
up for the March 21 meeting; she also attended the Ethics Training. She was sorry she
missed the K. Fisher event and asked if there was some way to get in touch with the
professor in Humboldt to put on another event.
J. Cyr attended the Sierra Azul/Bear Creek Redwoods Master Plan Committee meetings
on March 9 and March 22, and the Good Neighbor meeting on March 15; he also
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attended the Ethics Training and was pleased that all seven Board members were there
along with several staff members; he hiked St. Joseph's Hill and saw overflowing rivers,
including Lexington Reservoir; he attended the Ken Fisher event, and on March 20 he
attended the San Francisco Refuge meeting and introduced himself to Senator Feinstein
and others.
S. Thielfoldt told the Board that C. Britton would be back in the office on April 5.
S. Schectman thanked the Board for attending the Ethics Training and referred to the new
law passed, AB 1234, which requires reporting compensable meetings, and requires ethics
training, and requires updating certain policies—all of which the District is in the process
of doing to comply with the new law.
R. Jurgensen said that the District was mentioned in Hemisphere Magazine because the
author who wrote the District book "Tales and Trails" is also the author of the article in
the magazine.
J. Maciel said that C. Roessler was in Monterey attending the Sudden Oak Death
Committee meeting pointing out that she was asked to participate; he attended the Bay
Area Open Space Council meeting and handed out packets to the Board from that
meeting.
M. Newburn reported on a situation at Sierra Azul regarding an attempted suicide stating
that Jason Coll, a new Open Space Technician, saw something suspicious and called
Ranger Lausten to assist and together they were able to save the individual. He added
that J. Naber had also been present.
M. Williams said that the District received a Habitat Grant in the amount of$500,000 for
the Rapley Ranch property and that this grant covered half of the purchase price of the
property; the other half was covered by a gift from POST.
VII. ADJOURNMENT
At 8:40 p.m., the Regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Mid peninsula
Regional Open Space District was adjourned.
Lisa Zadek
Recording Secretary
Meeting 06-10 Page 8