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MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT
Meeting 07-05
REGULAR MEETING
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
February 28, 2007
MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
I. ROLL CALL
President Ken Nitz called the regular meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
Members Present: Jed Cyr, Larry Hassett, Ken Nitz, Nonette Hanko, Curt
Riffle, Pete Siemens, and Mary Davey
Members Absent: None
Staff Present: C. Britton, S. Schectman, E. Cuzick, M. Newburn, D.
Simmons, G. Baillie, J. Maciel, C. Roessler, M. Freeman, M. Williams, K.
Lenington, R. Jurgensen, D. Sanguinetti
11. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS There were none.
111. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Agenda. L. Hassett
seconded the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR
J. Cyr had a question about Agenda Item 11 and the Consent Calendar. J. Cyr had
questions on the Revised Claims numbered 6431, 6432, 6442, 6448, and 6476. K.
Nitz had questions on the Revised Claims numbered 6444 and 6475. Staff gave
satisfactory explanations for Board questions on these claims.
J. Cyr had a typo-correction for Agenda Item 11 asking that the word "greater"be
corrected by eliminating the space between the "g"and the 'Y' in the word.
The Revised Claims and Agenda Item 11 were then incorporated back into the
Consent Calendar upon agreement by the Board.
Meeting 07-05 Page 2
N. Hanko said she would abstain from voting on Revised Claims numbers 6417,
6482 and 6482-R.
M. Davey said she would recuse herself from Revised Claims numbers 6417 and
6483-R due to her economic interest in AT&T.
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar,
including Agenda Item 10 Authorize the General Manager to
Execute the Administrative Buildinp, Lease with Kaidara, Inc. for
the Office Space at 330 Distel Circle, Los Altos, California that is
Not Currently Used by the District; Agenda Item 11 Authorize
Execution of an Amendment to Communications Site Lease with
C&C Equipment at Black Mountain, Rancho San Antonio Open
Space Preserve; Determine that the Recommended Action is Not a
Project Under the California Environmental Quality Act(CEQA)
As Set Out in this Report-, Authorize the General Manager to
Execute the Amendment to the Communications Site Lease with
C&C Equipment at Black Mountain, Rancho San Antonio Open
Space Preserve; and Revised Claims 07-04. C. Riffle seconded
the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0.
V. BOARD BUSINESS
C. Britton asked the Board to move Agenda Item 3 forward due to a guest in the
audience.
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board re-order the Agenda to begin the staff
reports with Agenda Item No. 3. P. Siemens seconded the motion.
The motion passed 7 to 0.
A. Agenda Item No. 3—Adopt a Resolution Authorizing the Grant of an
Easement and License to Santa Clara Valley Water District for
Construction of the Guadalupe Creek Fish Passage Modifications to U-
Frame Channel at Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve (Santa Clara County
Assessor's Parcel Number 575-04-007); Determine that the
Recommendation is Categorically Exempt from the California
Environmental Quality Act(CEQA) As Set Out in the Report—(Report R-
07-33)
K. Lenington presented the staff report using PowerPoint showing a map
of the U-Frame channel at Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve. He said that
the channel contains barriers to steelhead trout and he showed some
representative photographs. He said that low water flow is a problem for
the fish. He showed that the proposed project would allow the fish to
enter District land, showing the location of Hicks Road. The construction
of the project will open up the waterway for migratory fish; however, it
Meeting 07-05 Page 3
may stir up mercury sediment. K. Lenington said that the Santa Clara
Valley Water District (SCVWD)has agreed to certain easement
requirements as outlined in the staff report under the Terms and
Conditions section.
C. Riffle said he was in favor of this project. He asked if the steelhead
trout had been seen and K. Lenington said they had seen fish. C. Riffle
asked if once the fish are up Hicks Road if there will be other obstructions.
K. Lenington said that area had not been surveyed yet, but the area may be
used for spawning for part of the year. C. Riffle asked if the U-Channel
would be removed. K. Lenington said it would not be removed, but a
ladder would be cut into the lower part of the channel to create step-pools.
J. Cyr asked if the other owner, Guadalupe Waste, has a similar
agreement. K. Lenington said that SCVWD is getting a similar agreement
from Guadalupe Waste.
K. Nitz asked what type of monitoring will occur. K. Lenington said they
would monitor and determine that there have been no changes. If there is
an increase in the sediment, they will repair the problem. The SCVWD
will make sure their modifications are maintained.
K. Lenington introduced Katherine Oven, Assistant Operations Office,
from SCVWD. She said she oversees flood and wetland mitigation. She
thanked the Board for going forward on this project.
C. Riffle asked when the project would be completed. Ms. Oven said they
need to do a formal bid process, but estimated the start time to be in
August 2007. She added that all work needs to be out of the creek by
October 15, 2007.
N. Hanko asked Ms. Oven to let the SCVWD Board know that the
District's Board send their appreciation and thanks to them.
Motion: L. Hassett moved that the Board adopt a Resolution No. 07-
07 authorizing the Grant of an Easement and License to
Santa Clara Valley Water District for construction of the
Guadalupe Creek fish passage modifications to U-frame
channel at Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve (Santa Clara
County Assessor's Parcel Number 575-04-007); Determine
that the recommendation is categorically exempt from the
California environmental quality act (CEQA) as set out in
the report. M. Davey seconded the motion. The motion
passed 7 to 0.
Meeting 07-05 Page 4
B. Agenda Item No. 1 —Approve Providing an On-Line Store on the
District's Web Site; Authorize the General Manager to Execute a Contract
with T. R. Miller Co. Inc. in a Form Approved by the General Counsel, to
Provide the Vendor Services as Described in this Report—(Report R-07-
031)
R. Jurgensen reviewed the proposal of how the online store will work. He
said that they would not be doing this for a money making endeavor, but
for added recognition for the District. He introduced E. Cuzick to provide
the details of the proposal.
E. Cuzick described certain benefits of hosting an online store that
included brand recognition providing District visibility and a connection
with the public who feel they would be"contributing to a cause".
E. Cuzick said staff looked for low up-front cost and that it would cost
about $500 to customize the website. There would be no on-site
warehouse of merchandise, so there would be low cost for maintenance
over time. There would be flexibility of the product line and because there
is no inventory, it is easy to swap in and out products. She said that the
District would offer 20 embroidered items including t-shirts, sweatshirts,
hats, tote bags and blankets.
The recommended company, T. R. Miller also handles Lands End
merchandise. They offer good pricing and are easy to work with. They
set a base price and provide quarterly reports.
R. Jurgensen discussed looking at District logo options and possible
changes. He showed logos from other organizations that were bolder and
more inviting and suggested that the Board look at updating the District's
logo because it is important for a logo to be distinctive. C. Britton said
that the logo is more of a mast-head, and that it is a policy matter up to the
Board. M. Davey asked if he had any ideas and C. Britton said not at this
time.
P. Siemens said he had talked with C. Britton about the logo representing
three separate themes and he passed around a polo shirt as an example of a
logo representing three themes. He asked about shipping costs and how
much they would be. E. Cuzick replied that it depends on the carrier and
weight of the purchase. P. Siemens asked if they planned to include
selling polo shirts, because he thought they would outsell any other item.
R. Jurgensen said that polo shirts were not included currently, but could be
added.
Meeting 07-05 Page 5
L. Hassett asked if the District users would be sent to a third-party site and
asked why the District's book was not an option. E. Cuzick said it was an
option, but it would cost additional money to stock the book. S.
Schectman said that the District could not sell the book online due to a
FPPC ruling regarding mass mailings.
L. Hassett asked if a feedback page would be included and E. Cuzick said
she would need to ask and would let him know. J. Cyr asked if the Board
would get to see the feedback and R. Jurgensen said they could include
that in the contract. S. Schectman added that the contract had not been
written yet, so items can be added.
N. Hanko suggested adding a calendar to show the beauty of the District.
C. Riffle asked who would buy these items, adding that he was worried
there was a limited buyer community. E. Cuzick said that it is a new idea
and that the District would be the first of its type of agency to do this. C.
Riffle said that if there are any issues, the District will be responsible and
he said that the current logo is not strong. R. Jurgensen said that these
were all good points. The logo research can take a long time, but it is
okay to change the logo-ed items later. He said that set up costs are low,
staff time is minimal and that staff would work closely with the contractor
and aim to correct problems quickly, R. Jurgensen said that this is a
somewhat experimental project, but there are a lot of District users.
J. Cyr asked if they will include an opt-out option in the contract when it is
written and R. Jurgensen said it would include that language. J. Cyr asked
if the cost to change the logo were high or low. R. Jurgensen said the cost
was low.
M. Davey said the online store was a great idea and that they ought to do
it.
L. Hassett said that on the Nature Conservancy's site, they had a statement
that a portion of their sales goes to them. He noted that some sites with
more items for sale were the worst sites and suggested keeping the bare
minimum of items for sale.
N. Hanko asked if the proceeds were kept separately and if they were,
could the money be put toward the development of a calendar. C. Britton
said it was better to keep the income and expenses sides of the budget
separate.
P. Siemens asked that the contract be left open for the District to make up
its own t-shirts. E. Cuzick said they would not be limited.
Meeting 07-05 Page 6
K. Nitz asked S. Schectman if they needed a policy for this project and she
said they did not need a policy. K. Nitz said he was worried about
problem calls. E. Cuzick said they were planning on doing a beta-
purchasing to test the site. K. Nitz asked how good the quality of the
merchandise is and E. Cuzick said it was very sound quality.
J. Cyr said the online store was worth trying.
C. Britton said that E. Cuzick has done an excellent job. She looked at
vendors with high success rates. He said it is an opportunity to try.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve providing an on-
line store on the District's web site; Authorize the General
Manager to execute a contract with T. R. Miller Co. Inc. in
a form approved by the General Counsel, to provide the
vendor services as described in this report. L. Hassett
seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 1. C. Riffle
voted no on this motion.
C. Motion: J. Cyr moved that Agenda Items 7, 8 and 9 be moved
forward on the Agenda. N. Hanko seconded the motion.
The motion passed 7 to 0.
Agenda Item 7—Annual Progress Report on the Use of Radar on District
Lands for Calendar Year 2006—(Report R- 07-13)
G. Baillie started with a correction to page 2 of the report and then
reviewed the statistics outlined in the staff report.
C. Riffle stated that the number of hours had increased but the number of
reading had decreased and asked why. M. Newburn said that when staff is
out in the field, word is spread that they are there, so people obey the
rules.
J. Cyr asked in terms of warnings and citations, how many are given to
repeat offenders. G. Baillie said they did not have a sense of that at this
time, but they could add that information on future reports. D. Sanguinetti
said that staff is interested in that particular statistic too.
K. Nitz asked if any preserves showed an increase. G. Baillie said he
could generate a report for each preserve using their database.
C. Riffle asked what the goal was, asking if it was the number of
violations. C. Britton said their goal was to achieve compliance with the
District's rules and regulations by District users. D. Sanguinetti said they
Meeting 07-05 Page 7
have accomplished this by slowing down the cyclists and preventing
injury. J. Cyr added that the objection is safety and information.
L. Hassett noted that 28% is a substantial number saying that is a high
percentage of law breakers. C. Britton said that they are asking the bike
community to help by self-regulating themselves.
No Board action was required. They accepted the report and thanked
staff.
D. Agenda Item 8—Field Enforcement Activity for 2006 and Sixteen-Year
Field Activity Summary—(Report R-07-12)
G. Baillie highlighted top items emphasizing that marijuana is a serious
problem. C. Riffle thanked G. Baillie for the work and asked if he had any
sense of comparing accidents to the number of acres. G. Baillie said that
accidents have remained flat with the increase of trails and that the trend
for accidents is going down.
K. Nitz asked M. Freeman how many miles of trail there are and M.
Freeman replied that there are approximately 220 miles of trail.
There was general discussion about after-hours activity.
J. Cyr referred to Appendix B noting that dogs off-leash had jumped. G.
Baillie said that Windy Hill has been a problem since Stanford closed their
area that the dog users had previously used.
C. Britton made a general comment that this annual report will be limited
to a 10-year period in the future, eliminating Exhibit A since the items in
the Exhibit are reported to the Board on a monthly basis; plus this Exhibit
tends to focus on the negative.
No Board action was required. They accepted the report and thanked
staff.
E. Agenda Item 9 Annual Progress Report on Ranger Bicycle Patrol
Program for Calendar Year 2006—(Report R-07-14).
G. Baillie said that there had been a jump in the number of hours the
Rangers tallied for bicycle patrol, adding that it is a popular program with
the public and the staff.
C. Riffle asked if staff could use radar while riding the bikes. M.
Newburn replied that they could, but they needed to be stationary.
Meeting 07-05 Page 8
No Board action was required. They accepted the report and thanked
staff.
F. Agenda Item 2—Review Discuss and Comment on the Invasive Species
Policy—(Report R-07-32).
C. Roessler said that tonight she would be reviewing Chapter 6 of the
Board's Resource Management Policy, "invasive Species Management."
She went over the sections of this chapter that were being revised. She
said that they were going to review this section of the Policy since not all
of the Board members had a chance to comment on Chapter 6. C.
Roessler then gave a brief review of Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
J. Cyr suggested a word change on page 6.3, saying that the word
"prioritize" should be changed to "set priorities".
K. Nitz said that the definition of IPM was not clear(page 6-2) and C.
Roessler said she would work on it to make it clearer.
K. Nitz asked if there was a definition of"control" saying that it needs to
be defined. C. Roessler said she would look it up and can add a side-bar
about what the District does to"control".
K. Nitz asked why the second bullet was deleted (6.1) and C. Roessler said
it better defined the following bullet. C. Roessler then reviewed and
defined the bullets as asked.
C. Britton thanked C. Roessler for her work and presentation.
No Board action was required. They accepted the report and thanked
staff.
G. Agenda Item 4—Review and Approve Initial Succession Planning
Process for General Manager and Direct Ad Hoc Board Appointee
Evaluation Committee to Undertake Steps 1 and 2 of the Process—(Report
R-07-30).
J. Cyr reviewed the report and asked for questions.
j L. Hassett asked why the screening process was not administrative. N.
Hanko said that the Committee was not asking at this time to screen any
candidates, but only to review recruitment consultants.
I
C. Riffle asked about the last line, "desirable candidate criteria" noting
that it refers to the actual person, but N. Hanko said that they would be
I
Meeting 07-05 Page 9
directing the consultant to look for the qualities of the desirable candidate,
adding that the recruitment plan would come back to the full Board.
J. Cyr said that the Committee does not want to be exclusively involved,
but that the full Board would have a connection to the process. P. Siemens
said that once the recruiter is hired, the recruiter would interview each
Board member individually. N. Hanko added that the recruiter would also
interview staff. N. Hanko said that the Committee was only advisory.
C. Riffle asked if item 1, "General Manager Job Description and District
Information" is the current job description, or a job description going
forward for the future candidate. S. Schectman said that the current job
description would be given to the recruiter; however, the job description
could be changed for recruitment purposes if the Board directed.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve the initial
Succession Planning Process for General Manager and
Direct the Ad Hoc Board Appointee Evaluation Committee
to Undertake Steps I and 2 of the Process. L. Hassett
seconded the motion.
Discussion: J. Cyr thanked S. Schectman for helping the Committee
narrow the focus on what they should be doing.
N. Hanko said that this Committee is not the same as a city
council committee because each Board member has its own
constituency to be accountable to.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
H. Agenda Item 5—Approve Retaining Godbe Research to Perform a
District Public Opinion Survey Including Follow-up Focus Groups;
Authorize the General Manager to Retain Godbe Research to Conduct a
Public Opinion Survey and Follow-up Focus Groups and Execute a
Contract for Such Services in an Amount Not to Exceed $48.110, in a
Form Subject to Approval by General Counsel—(Report R-07-36).
R. Jurgensen reviewed the staff report recommending hiring Godbe
Research with four main goals in mind, including; (1) measure familiarity
of the District; (2) value placed on Resource Management; (3) Preserve
usage; and(4) gain opinions on future funding measures. He said that
they want to find out what people know about Resource Management and
how important it is to them.
R. Jurgensen said a new thing they will be doing is having focus groups
that will consist of 8 to 10 people. They will probe into people's values.
Meeting 07-05 Page 10
L. Hassett asked how the general public would be asked about different
user groups. C. Britton said that the questions will go to the Legislative,
Finance and Public Affairs Committee and he asked the Board to send
their questions to him so that they can be considered to be included. N.
Hanko asked if the Board could get their questions to the Committee by
March 13'', and C. Britton suggested they e-mail their questions directly to
R. Jurgensen before March 13 .
M. Davey asked how the focus group members would be chosen. R.
Jurgensen said they would be chosen from participants in the survey, and
that the specifics will be worked out with Godbe Research. He said they
want people with some level of knowledge of Resource Management.
M. Davey asked how many people would be surveyed. R. Jurgensen said
that approximately 600 people representing the seven District Wards and
that up to 8%will be Spanish speaking, and a certain percentage will be
from the San Mateo coast.
C. Riffle asked if the 600 people would be representative by the seven
District Wards and R. Jurgensen they would. C. Riffle asked if the three
focus groups would discuss the same topic or a variety of topics. R.
Jurgensen said it was up to the District to decide. C. Riffle asked if any
previous questions of past polls would be included and R. Jurgensen
replied that they could. C. Britton said there would be a number of
standard questions to use.
P. Siemens asked if there would be 80 people from each ward or if it was a
random selection. R. Jurgensen said it would be random, but that some
would be from the coast. The responders need to be representative of the
District as a whole. P. Siemens asked where the focus groups would meet.
R. Jurgensen said that they would meet at a third-party location; however,
the group(s) could be observed through a two-way mirror.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve retaining Godbe
Research to perform a District public opinion survey
including follow-up focus groups; Authorize the General
Manager to retain Godbe Research to conduct a public
opinion survey and follow-up focus groups and execute a
contract for such services in an amount not to exceed
$48,110, in a form subject to approval by General Counsel.
P. Siemens seconded the motion.
Discussion: K. Nitz said he was worried about"apple pie" questions.
He thought it was a long interview being between 8 and 12
minutes, and finally said that he was against polling.
Meeting 07-05 Page 11
C. Britton said they need to get statistics and that polling
gives fairly representative responses, and that this poll will
give general consensus on an overall look at how people
see the District. K. Nitz asked about the District's previous
poll and asked if anything happened from that. C. Britton
said that the previous poll was about the annexation and it
did help the District determine boundaries. R. Jurgensen
followed up by adding that they can ask very specific
questions. J. Cyr said that the District's demographics are
changing and that it is good to get an idea of what their
constituency is thinking, and he added that the poll has
value.
Vote: The motion passed 6 to 1. K. Nitz voted against the
motion.
I. Agenda Item 6—Approval of the Settlement Agreement and Mutual
General Release in the Matter of Fogarty v. Midpeninsula Regional Open
Space District and Related Cross-Complaint; Approval of Addition of the
Fogarty Property (San Mateo County Assessor's Parcel Number 080-260-
050) to Coal Creek Open Space Preserve; and Approval of Settlement of
Title Insurance Policy Claim with First American Title Company;
Determine that the Recommended Actions are Cateizorically Exempt from
the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) As Set Out in This
Report; Adopt the Resolution Approving and Ratifying the Settlement
Agreement and Mutual General Release; Authorizing the Purchase of the
Fogarty Property As an Addition to the Coal Creek Open Space Preserve
and Authorizing the General Manager to Execute a Settlement Agreement
with First American Title Company Resolving the Title Insurance Claim
Submitted in This Matter, In a Form Subject to Approval by the General
Counsel; Tentatively Adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan
Recommendations Contained in This Report, Including Naming the
Property as an Addition to Coal Creek Open Space Preserve, Indicate
Intention to Dedicate the Property as Public Open Space—(Report R-07-
37)_
Motion: M. Davey moved approval of the Settlement Agreement
and Mutual General Release in the matter of Fogarty v.
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District and related
Cross-Complaint; Approval of addition of the Fogarty
Property (San Mateo County Assessor's Parcel Number
080-260-050) to Coal Creek Open Space Preserve; and
approval of Settlement of Title Insurance Policy Claim with
First American Title Company; Determine that the
recommended actions are categorically exempt from the
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as set out in
Meeting 07-05 Page 12
this report; Adopt Resolution No. 07-08 approving and
ratifying the Settlement Agreement and Mutual General
Release; Authorizing the purchase of the Fogarty Property
as an addition to the Coal Creek Open Space Preserve and
authorizing the General Manager to execute a Settlement
Agreement with First American Title Company resolving
the Title Insurance Claim submitted in this matter, in a
form subject to approval by the General Counsel;
Tentatively adopt the Preliminary Use and Management
Plan recommendations contained in this report, including
naming the property as an addition to Coal Creek Open
Space Preserve; Indicate intention to dedicate the property
as public open space. J. Cyr seconded the motion.
Discussion: C. Riffle asked about Item 3 in the Settlement Agreement
and S. Schectman explained that after the lot line
adjustment, the property retained by Fogarty would be one
parcel.
L. Hassett said he understood the settlement, but noted it
was a hard fought issue with First American. S. Schectman
said that staff was satisfied with the settlement amount
from First American.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
X. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS
P. Siemens reported that his compensable meetings are February 20th and 26 th
Administration and Budget Committee meetings, the February 26'h and 27 th Sierra
Azul Ad Hoc Committee meetings and tonight's Board meeting.
L. Hassett reported that his compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting.
C. Riffle reported that his compensable meetings were the February 20'h and 27th
Administration and Budget Committee meetings, and tonight's meeting. He met
with the friends of Deer Hollow Farm. On March 5'h he would be attending the
Los Altos City Council meeting and on March 6'h he would attend the Mountain
View City Council meeting.
N. Hanko reported that her compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting.
J. Cyr reported that his compensable meetings included the February 26th Sierra
Azul Ad Hoc Committee meeting and tonight's Board meeting. He suggested
that the full Board revisit the logo discussion. C. Britton said he would add it to
the budget for discussion.
Meeting 07-05 Page 13
M. Davey reported that her compensable meetings included the February 201h and
27 th Administration and Budget Committee meetings and tonight's meeting. She
said the Hogle bench event is scheduled for May 18th and that parking may be an
issue for the event. She thanked K. Nitz on using GoogleEarth.
K. Nitz reported that his compensable meetings were the February 28t" Sierra
Azul Ad Hoc Committee meeting and tonight's Board meeting. He said he sent
an e-mail regarding Stanford putting wind speed towers at Windy Hill Open
Space Preserve for staff to review. C. Britton said that D. Sanguinetti was
working on it. K. Nitz said it would be nice to have the science used on District
lands reported on the District's website.
C. Britton pointed out several FYI's, including the piece about POST moving to
their new office in Palo Alto on High Street and the District's new bill AB 697
(Ira Ruskin). He said the Grazing Policy was also in the FYI's. He said there
should have been a map included with the East Palo Alto letter in the February
28t' FYI's.
J. Maciel said that signs were installed at the Los Trancos trail. He said that two
staff members were called to respond to a medical emergency at Highway 35 and
Page Mill Road and that they were the first responders and gave CPR.
M. Freeman asked the Board to give him their comments about the Grazing
Policy. He referred back to the previously discussed dump clean-up and said that
staff will clean up as much as possible before the guardrail is installed.
X1. ADJOURNMENT
At 10:55 p.m., the Regular meeting was adjourned.
Lisa Zadek
Recording Secretary