HomeMy Public PortalAbout20070627 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Meeting 07-13
REGULAR and SPECIAL MEETING
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
June 27,2007
MINUTES
SPECIAL MEETING
I. ROLL CALL
President K. Nitz called the special meeting to order at 5:03 p.m.
Members Present: Ken Nitz, Jed Cyr,Nonette Hanko, Curt Riffle, Pete Siemens,
L. Hassett, and Mary Davey
Members Absent: none
Staff Present: Craig Britton, Sue Schectman, Mike Williams, Sandy Sommer,
Duncan Simmons
11. CLOSED SESSION
The Closed Session commenced at 5:03 p.m. and concluded at 5:25 p.m.
K. Nitz stated that there were no reportable actions from the Closed Session regarding
Items I and 2.
WORKSHOP
111. FOREST MANAGEMENT WORKSHOP
President Nitz called the Workshop to order at 5:30 p.m.
Additional Staff Present: Gordon Baillie, John Maciel, Matt Freeman,
Rudy Jurgensen, Stan Hooper, Annetta Speigel, Pamela Naito
There was a presentation to the Board given by Dr. Jerry Franklin, Professor of
Ecosystem Analysis, College of Forest Resources from the University of Washington on
the characteristics and management of redwood and mixed-conifer forests in the western
United States.
Meeting 07-13 Page 2
The Board and staff discussed and commented on the draft Forest Management Policy.
K. Nitz adjourned the workshop at 7:30 p.m., and stated there would be a short recess
before the Regular Meeting commenced.
REGULAR MEETING
IV. K. Nitz called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:42 p.m.
Additional Staff Present- C. Roessler
V. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Three members from Scout Group 14 of Palo Alto, CA led the annual Pledge of
Allegiance. The Board of Directors thanked them.
VI. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS There were none.
VII. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Motion: J. Cyr moved to adopt the Agenda. P. Siemens seconded the motion. The
motion passed 5 to 0.
VIII. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR
C. Riffle pulled the Revised Claims and asked questions about claim number 7507, which
staff explained.
C. Riffle corrected page 2 of the Minutes, adding the word "not" to the third paragraph
from the bottom of page 2 of the Minutes of May 23, 2007.
K. Nitz asked about Revised Claim numbers 7026 and 7041, which staff explained.
N. Hanko asked that Agenda Item 6 be pulled for full Board discussion.
M. Davey stated that she would be recusing herself from Revised Claims numbered 6997,
6998, and 7109-R, due to a disqualifying financial investment in AT&T. N. Hanko stated
that she would voluntarily recuse herself from voting on claim numbers 6997, 6998,
7109-R and 7124-R.
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar, including the
amended Board Minutes of May 23, 2007, Agenda Item 4, Authorizing
payment of additional legal fees to the law firm of Shute, Mihaly &
Weinberger in the matter of citizens for Responsible Open Space v.
LAFCo and Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District in an amount not
Meeting 07-13 Page 3
to exceed $50,000; Agenda Item 5, Amendment to Position Classification
and Compensation Plan for inclusion of Website Content Coordinator;
Approve a new Website Content Coordinator Position Classification and
assign it a monthly salary range of$4,591 - $5,879; Approve the
Amendment to the Position Classification and Compensation Plan to
include the Website Content Coordinator; Agenda Item 7, Adopting the
replacement Resolution No. 07-16 correcting the percentage amount of the
Employer Paid Member Contribution (EPMC) for the Board Appointee
Group; Agenda Item 8, Appointment of Gordon Baillie as Interim District
Clerk; Agenda Item 9, Approval of Disclosure Agreement with the Santa
Clara County Investment Pool, Adoption of Resolution No. 07-17,
authorizing the General Manager to execute the proposed Disclosure and
Agreement for Voluntary Deposits for the County of Santa Clara
Investment Pool; and Revised Claims 07-10. C. Riffle seconded the
motion. The motion passed 7 to 0 on the Minutes and Agenda Items 4, 5,
7, 8, 9 by a vote of 7 to 0. The Revised Claims 07-10 passed 5 to 0 on
Revised Claim numbers 6997, 6998, and 7109-R with two recusals,
Revised Claim number 7124-R passed 6 to 0 with one recusal, the
remaining Revised Claims were passed 7 to 0.
IX. NEW STAFF INTRODUCTIONS
A. M. Williams introduced Mark Capestany, the District's new Property
Management Specialist. He gave some background information. M. Capestany
said he was happy to be working for the District and has enjoyed following the
District's growth through the years. The Board welcomed him.
B. M. Freeman introduced Casey Cleve who is the Planning Department's new GIS
Coordinator and he gave some background information about her. C. Cleve said
she is happy to be working at the District.
X. BOARD BUSINESS
A. Agenda Item No. 1 —Approval of a Mitigated Negative Declaration and
Mitigation Monitoring Program in Accordance with the California Environmental
Quality Act(CEQA) and Adopt the CEQA Findings• and Authorizationfor Staff
to Conduct a Controlled Training Bum at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve;
Authorize the General Manager to Execute a Permit to Enter in a Form
Satisfactory to the General Counsel, for the Purpose of Allowing the City of Palo
Alto Fire Department to Conduct a Controlled Bum, Jointly with the District, for
Training Purposes on the Monte Bella Open Space Preserve—(Report R-07-69).
G. Baillie presented the staff report and reviewedthe recommendations to conduct
a controlled training bum at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve. He introduced
Roger Bloom, Executive Chief, with the City of Palo Alto Fire Department. G.
Baillie also acknowledged C. Roessler's help in preparing the staff report.
Meeting 07-13 Page 4
G. Baillie showed a map of the proposed site where the burn would occur. He
said that this event would be a joint burn with other agencies and that July 12,
2007 is the first possible date.
L. Hassett asked if staff had received any e-mails or comments about this project.
G. Baillie said they had and handed out the additional e-mails to the Board
members. He added that the Audubon Society said they were happy with the
proposal
L. Hassett stated that he thought there were opportunities to use fire in the
resource management of the land, but asked why the District had not moved
beyond holding training burns. He asked if staff considered going into forested
areas; however, he said he thought this would be very remote.
M. Freeman said that the policy is a broad statement. There is language there to
enable staff to bring up the subject of using controlled burns in ways other than
training, and he added that the statement in the policy should also be considered
an educational statement.
N. Hanko thanked G. Baillie for sending out information about the burn to the
birding community through e-mails. She asked if they were satisfied with the
proposed date. G. Baillie said they were satisfied. She said that she had heard
from several people who are completely behind this project.
J. Cyr proposed not restricting the viewing of the burn to a couple of areas. He
suggested putting in a statement where specific areas would be discussed in the
documentation.
C. Riffle referenced the recent fires at the Stanford Dish and at Lake Tahoe and
said that he had received several calls from concerned constituents. He asked if
the Public Relations team were prepared in case something would go wrong.
I G. Baillie said that staff understands this concern. He added that more than 250
letters were sent out and there was a press release about the proposed training
j burn. Mr. Bloom said there are tight measures that the participants will follow
C and that there are multiple safety factors built in.
R. Jurgensen explained that when there is a burn, there is a press release. He said
I
the newspapers agree to run an article beforehand and that the media is
cooperative with providing information to the public.
L. Hassett asked for clarification, asking if Palo Alto was the lead agency for this
project. G. Baillie said they were, but that it is a joint effort.
P. Siemens asked if staff would be doing a burn if the primary purpose was not
ecological. G. Baillie answered that this burn is a training opportunity for District
i
I
Meeting 07-13 Page 5
and Palo Alto staff, plus there are ecological results. P. Siemens said that he
would like to see the ecological reasons, and R. Jurgensen said that the press
release emphasizes the ecological reasons.
N. Hanko requested if the burn did not occur on July 12 that they not choose July
19 as the next alternative date.
J. Maciel explained to the Board that there are two styles of bums; (1) a
vegetation bum, and (2) a training bum. He said that there is different criteria for
each style. He added that staff will be working with CALFire to do a vegetation
bum later in the season.
P. Siemens stated that this will be a District project even if another agency is
taking the lead as the burn is occurring on District land.
K. Nitz asked about the location of the closest residence. G. Baillie showed a
map with the location and said that staff have been in touch with the owners, who
are personally known to staff. He said that District Rangers will be speaking with
them in person.
K. Nitz asked if the Harding grass had been mowed. S. Hooper said it had not yet
been mowed. C. Roessler added that Harding grass is controlled, not mowed and
she explained how it is mitigated and gave an example of their success at Rancho
de Guadalupe.
K. Nitz asked if the Coyote brush will be killed as well. G. Baillie said that staff
will observe how the Coyote brush will burn, but he thinks it will not bum very
well as it holds moisture. C. Roessler said that the seeds fly in the fall season and
they should not be concerned with this in July.
Mr. Bloom thanked G. Baillie, District staff, and the Board for their
consideration.
Motion: P. Siemens moved approval of a Mitigated Negative Declaration
and Mitigation Monitoring Program in accordance with the
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and adopt the
CEQA findings; and authorization for staff to conduct a controlled
training bum at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve; Authorize the
General Manager to execute a Permit to Enter in a form
satisfactory to the General Counsel, for the purpose of allowing the
City of Palo Alto Fire Department to conduct a controlled bum,
jointly with the District, for training purposes on the Monte Bello
Open Space Preserve. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion
passed 7 to 0.
Meeting 07-13 Page 6
B. Agenda Item No. 2—District Program for Eradication of Slender False Brome in
the Thornewood Open Space Preserve Area; Review and Comment on the
Proposed Program for Eradication of Slender False Brome; For Those
Components of the Eradication Program Requiring Environmental Review Under
the California Environmental Quality Act, Direct the General Manager to
Undertake Such Review and Return to the Board for Approval of the
Environmental Document and, if Approved, Subsequent Hiring of a Contractor to
Treat Slender False Brome on Private Property as Needed for Successful
Eradication; For those Components of the Program Which do Not Require CEQA,
Review and Direct Staff to Proceed to Develop Public Outreach Informational
Materials, Right of Entry Permits and to Continue Public Education Efforts with
Affected Neighbors; Direct the General Manager to Undertake Retaining a Brome
Outreach Coordinator and Return to the Board for Approval of a Consultant
Agreement with the Proposed Coordinator—(Report R-07-45).
C. Roessler reviewed the slender false brome problem. She said it has been found
at the Thomewood Open Space Preserve and other preserves and in the Town of
Woodside area. She said that it will spread, and that in Oregon it is spreading
quickly. She reviewed past programs; how the consultant is doing; and how the
consultant has helped develop the public outreach program. She introduced Susan
Danielson, Marketing Specialist, with Go Native, and said that Ms. Danielson
would review the program.
Ms. Danielson gave a PowerPoint slide presentation about the Public Outreach
Program ("POP"). She reviewed who would be engaged in the program, and how
they gathered feedback from groups, adding that the initial response was
analyzed, and they looked at how other agencies have dealt with this issue. She
said that the District needed a dedicated coordinator on this project, and she gave
two examples of successful agencies that had dedicated coordinators.
Ms. Danielson said there should be a"Partnership Team." The core team would
involve many District staff, community liaisons, and partnerships with relevant
organizations, such as the Native Plant Society. She said the team would work on
building relationships by initiating community dialog, act upon shared goals and
values, provide access to community resources and work to understand the
priorities of the community.
Ms. Daniels suggested implementing a"brand" approach that allows lasting
involvement and lasting relationships. She showed a sample of a self-mailing
brochure that could be mailed out. The brochure shows and describes the benefits
of eliminating slender false brome from properties. She also suggested that the
District's newsletter be used to highlight slender false brome. Another idea was
to develop a portable display that could be taken along for outreach purposes
and/or left at the Daniels Nature Center. She also said that the District could add
a link to their website adding an "e-mail a friend" option with information about
slender false brome.
Meeting 07-13 Page 7
N. Hanko said that this was a positive presentation and that she supported the
brochure idea. She said that they should be prepared for private property owners
who will not want people walking on their property, adding that property owners
are very cautious. She said she supports helping people identify the plant and
destroy the plants themselves.
L. Hassett said the brochure is a positive piece. He suggested some design
alternatives. He said there are some very strong homeowner associations and said
that utilizing e-mail might be quite successful in the outreach efforts.
C. Riffle asked about the map showing the locations of slender false brome. He
said he thought it was focused on Thomewood and asked if other areas will be
looked at as well. C. Roessler said they hope to eliminate all slender false brome
from District land, adding that some has been found in other District preserves.
P. Siemens said that the private homeowners will be able to identify a person in a
uniform on their property, but he said that the neighbors would need to know that
the District's Ombudsperson could be contacted. He also asked if they could give
the neighbors a can of herbicide with instructions. C. Roessler said they could not
give the neighbors a can of herbicide, but they can educate them. P. Siemens
asked if they could tell the neighbors where to.buy herbicide and C. Roessler said
that they could not do this either.
P. Siemens said he liked the brochure and asked if R. Jurgensen had reviewed it.
R. Jurgensen said he had and that he would like to make a few changes to it.
P. Siemens suggested simplifying the wording and trying to get it to get people's
attention.
N. Hanko asked if they would be able to keep track of who responds and who
does not respond. Ms. Daniels said that would be the purpose of the proposed
database.
J. Cyr said that this is a complex situation and said he appreciated the very
thorough presentation; however, he said he was concerned about the cost of the
project. He asked if the proposed Coordinator would be a part-time or full-time
employee, and if the District's current Ombudsperson would be willing to work
on this project. He said he liked the regional plan and that the model has
significant positive potential. He asked how what staff learns would be
transferred to other agencies. He directed a question to R. Jurgensen on page 23
of the report, and Ms. Daniels replied saying that this will be a collaborative
communication effort; it will be an exchange of information rather than brevity
required from the Brown Act.
Riffle asked if the Outreach Coordinator position was in the budget.
Meeting 07-13 Page 8
C. Roessler said that it is not initially. They can extend the consultant contract
into a second phase, but there are no plans to do so. They propose a two-year
contract at 20 hours per week. Ms. Daniels added that, with the first outreach
efforts they received a 60% response, and with the second outreach they received
30% response.
L. Hassett said that he thought the Ombudsperson should be made aware of the
program, but should not be part of the team. He said that they should not extend
her job description. He asked S. Schectman if there was a problem for the District
to use public funds on private lands. S. Schectman answered that generally there
was not so long as the funds are used to benefit the District. She said that there
may be some legal issues to be resolved, and the District will draft Permits to
Enter for private property owners and will be sensitive to any confidentiality
concerns.
K. Nitz stated that it has taken four years to get to this point. He said he had a
problem with staff s report claim of"prompt and vigorous" language. He asked
how many names they had on their list. C. Roessler said they had 400 names.
K. Nitz asked how many had been visited. C. Roessler replied that 30 had been
visited. K. Nitz said he would like to see a map showing the names. C. Roessler
said that, in the past two months, staff have visited four citizen committees, and
have set up appointments on weekday and weekends through September. She
said the Public Outreach Program gives a guideline on how to work with the
community and she reviewed the General Manager's recommendations with
descriptions.
J. Cyr said that the CEQA requires their efforts to be legal and said he saw two
approaches, including spraying via helicopter without permission, and the other is
to get permission to spray.
L. Hassett noted that the problem was completely in his Ward and said that he
would be available to attend community meetings.
Motion: M. Davey moved District Program for Eradication of Slender False
Brome in the Thornewood Open space Preserve Area; Review and
comment on the proposed Program for Eradication of Slender
False Brome; For those components of the eradication program
requiring environmental review under the California
Environmental Quality Act; Direct the General Manager to
undertake such review and return to the Board for approval of the
environmental document and, if approved, subsequent hiring of a
contractor to treat slender false brome on private property as
needed for successful eradication; For those components of the
Program which do not require CEQA, review and direct Staff to
proceed to develop public outreach informational materials, Right
of Entry Permits and to continue public education efforts with
Meeting 07-13 Page 9
affected neighbors; Direct the General Manager to undertake
retaining a Brome Outreach Coordinator and return to the Board
for approval of a Consultant Agreement with the proposed
coordinator. P. Siemens seconded the motion.
Discussion: C. Britton said that they need to build relationships and that they
may need to get on properties several times over the course of
many years. He said he supported the Coordinator job, adding that
C. Roessler has enough work to do. He said he agreed that the
Ombudsperson needs to be alerted about this program.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
C. Agenda Item No. 3--Adopt the District's New Personnel Policy and Procedures
Manual—(Report R-07-73).
Sally Rice, former Assistant General Manager, returned to review the staff report
and answer any questions by the Board. She reviewed the goals and challenges in
updating the new policy and she gave a PowerPoint slide presentation.
She said that this project started five years ago. There was Committee review,
staff review, Management Team review, Policy Review Committee review and a
separate represented employee review. She said the members of the Policy
Review Committee gave great questions and added language where appropriate;
they were very conscientious on safety issues and the overall experience was
positive. The Committee reviewed each part of the policy in their departmental
meetings and brought back further questions and comments when they met as a
Committee. She said that S. Schectman had reviewed changes as well as a
representative from Liebert Cassidy. She acknowledged the staff on the
Committee.
J. Cyr asked, since the process was successful, would it be continued for future
projects and would it documented. S. Rice said that she hoped it would continue,
and that she would be happy to work with Annetta Spiegel.
C. Riffle congratulated S. Rice and said the document was very usable. He asked
if it will be updated every 5 years, adding that his company does updates
annually. S. Rice replied that the policy will need review and updates as laws
change. She added that this is a broad policy and she recommends eliminating
"Amended Dates" from the cover sheet. She also recommended that the Board
not include the last Appendix, as this list changes often, and that the Human
Resources staff will keep the list updated.
Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve the General Manager's
recommendation to adopt the District's new Personnel Policy and
Procedures Manual. N. Hanko seconded the motion.
Meeting 07-13 Page 10
Discussion: S. Rice reviewed the substantive changes in the Policy. K. Nitz
thanked her for the ease of reading the document.
P. Siemens said the policy was well done. He asked if the policy
should include Board members buy-in for medical insurance. S.
Schectman referred to the statute that discusses this and stated that
this does not need to be in the Personnel Policy.
P. Siemens asked if the night-shift differential gets paid when staff
is on vacation. J. Maciel said staff does not get paid the
differential when on vacation. P. Siemens asked further questions
about paying overtime, and whether a Board policy was needed to
address it. S. Rice said they do not need this in the policy as it is
under the discretion of the supervisors, who know they need to be
careful with overtime. C. Britton followed up with a detailed
explanation of how overtime works in the field.
J. Cyr asked if prior iterations of the policy will be in the files and
S. Rice said they are. J. Cyr asked what the term "below standard"
on page 9 meant in evaluations. C. Britton explained the term. J.
Cyr noted that this section was less specific and asked if this was
intentional. S. Rice said it was intentional so as to be flexible and
for particular circumstances. J. Cyr asked about pages 19 and 20,
Insurance, and asked why the vision policy was different. S. Rice
said it was because it was a small dollar amount.
L. Hassett said the new policy was well produced.
K. Nitz asked about Section 4.4 on page 8, "Probation Status" and
S. Rice stated that everyone who is on probation is an"at will"
employee.
K. Nitz suggested a formatting change to paragraph C on page 9.
He asked about the pay after a promotion (page 10) and asked if it
is paid during probation. S. Rice said staff is paid during the
probation period.
K. Nitz asked if there was a conflict of interest with District
housing for employees and if they had a financial interest. S.
Schectman said that District housing is a benefit, adding that they
should not participate in developing their contracts in their District
employment capacity from which they would derive a benefit.
K. Nitz asked if there were restrictions on staff volunteering and S.
Rice said that employees can volunteer (there were not
Meeting 07-13 Page 11
restrictions), although there may be Fair Labor Standards Act
issues.
K. Nitz asked what the definition of"official misconduct" is as
noted on page 17, "Severance Pay." S. Schectman said that it is a
standard industry term.
K. Nitz asked if they should define "banks", as in "Holiday Bank"
(page 26). S. Rice said that employees understand the term. K.
Nitz then referred to an inconsistency in terms and asked that the
document be consistent(page 28 #1 "hours", #2 "days", #3
"hours"). He said that the phrase "Holiday Bank" should be in
quotes on page 26, section 5.b.
K. Nitz suggested adding the word, "minimum" under Sick Leave
Usage on page 30.
Amended Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve the General
Manager's Recommendation and Adopt the District's New
Personnel Policy and Procedures Manual, incorporating the
minor changes. N. Hanko seconded the amended motion.
Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0.
D. Agenda Item No. 6—Approve Cancellation of the July 11, 2007 Regular
Meeting of the Board of Directors—(Report R-07-70).
N. Hanko removed this item from the Consent Calendar. She said she disagreed
with canceling the meeting because the public expects meetings on the second and
fourth Wednesday of each month. She said it is difficult for staff and the Board to
review all of the material when meetings are cancelled and agenda items are
added to the following meeting.
C. Britton said that staff does not cancel meetings because they want to and that
there were no agenda items currently scheduled for July I I- S. Schectman
reviewed the rules regarding canceling Board meetings.
Motion: P. Siemens moved to not approve the cancellation of the July 11,
2007 Regular meeting of the Board of Directors. J. Cyr seconded
the motion.
Discussion: N. Hanko said that the Forestry Policy item should be on the July
11, 2007 meeting.
Meeting 07-13 Page 12
L. Hassett commented on N. Hanko's reasons and said that the
thickness of the packet for this meeting took quite a bit of time to
review. He said he appreciated her comments.
Vote: The motion passed 6 to 1. C. Riffle voted against the motion.
XI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS
N. Hanko said her compensable meetings included the June 26 Ad Hoc Committee
meeting and tonight's Board meeting (6/27). N. Hanko asked who on staff is in charge of
the trail dedication. R. Jurgensen said that P. McKowan was working with G. Baillie, but
that there was no date currently for the event. N. Hanko said that someone needed to take
charge of this dedication (C. Britton and N. Hanko discussed the procedure.). N. Hanko
asked if the article in the San Jose Mercury about the fire station was in the clippings. C.
Britton said that the article didn't make it into this week's clippings. N. Hanko asked G.
Baillie if the District was notified about the article, and he said that they were not
notified, and she received a call from Jay Thorwaldson about the issue. C. Britton asked
if the station was open, and G. Baillie said that it had never been opened, but it would be
staffed on red-flag fire days.
J. Cyr said his compensable meetings were the June 26 Ad Hoc Committee meeting and
tonight's Board meeting (6/27). He said he attended the June 8 Special Parks Districts
Forum and gave some of his highlights from attending, including the amount of birds in
Ohio, the deer study update and the variety of restoration projects being done. He said he
attended the June 13 Bay Area Open Space Council meeting; the June 14 Bay Area Ridge
Trail Council meeting in San Francisco; and the June 16 event at Pulgas Ridge Open
Space Preserve for the trail opening of the Dusky Footed Rat Trail, and that staff did an
excellent job with this event. He said that, at the June 26 Board Appointee Evaluation Ad
Hoc Committee meeting, the committee reviewed six RFP proposals for the General
Manager recruitment and he gave a brief update, including the selection of five RFP
applicants to interview. He stated that staff is attempting to schedule all of the interviews
for one day. He said that the committee was developing questions for the recruiters.
M. Davey said her only compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting (6/27). She
said that she attended the Bay Area Open Space Council meeting and noted that they
served all organically produced food. She also attended the Pulgas Ridge trail opening
and said that staff did a marvelous job.
P. Siemens said his compensable meetings included the June 26 Ad Hoc Committee
meeting and tonight's Board meeting(6/27). He said he also attended the Pulgas Ridge
trail opening event. He said he went to the Bay Area Open Space Council meeting and
suggested that these meeting should contain individual sessions/workshops. He said he
went to the quarterly Special District meeting and that he attended the LAFCo meeting,
adding that they were recommending nothing in this area.
Meeting 07-13 Page 13
L. Hassett said his compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting(6/27). He said he
attended the trail dedication at Pulgas Ridge Open Space District. He also attended the
Bay Area Open Space Council meeting.
C. Riffle said that his only compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting (6/27). He
went to Ohio for the Special Park Districts Forum. He also went on an Acterra tour.
K. Nitz said his compensable meeting was tonight's Board meeting(6/27). He said he
went to the Special Park District Forum and liked their resource management projects.
He also said he forwarded information to the other Board members and asked them to
review the materials. He said he attended the trail opening event at Pulgas Ridge. He
said he liked C. Roessler's report and asked about the Native Plant Society item.
C. Britton said there would be a hearing on AB697 on July 11. He pointed out that in the
FYI's there was a letter about a$500,000 grant being awarded to the District. He said he
met with Clyde Morris about the Salt Pond Restoration, and they are planning a follow-
up meeting. He went with P. Siemens to the Santa Clara County Special District meeting
and said they may do another VIP tour in Santa Clara County. Regarding Mt. Umunhum,
he and R. Jurgensen had a meeting with a consultant group about it and said they had
some good ideas. He gave a debriefing of the Bay Area Open Space Council meeting
held on June 13. He said there was another meeting of the Green Vision Group and in
the fall there will be County meetings again. The group is identifying PCA's, "Preserve
Conservation Areas". He said he attended the trail opening at Pulgas Ridge Open Space
Preserve.
S. Schectman gave a Coastal appeal update and stated that CALAFCO had agreed to file
an amicus brief in support of LAFCo and the District. She said she would be working
with Ralph Heim on an Amicus Brief.
R. Jurgensen announced that the Volunteer Recognition event will take place on
September 15 at Los Trancos Open Space Preserve, and he asked the Board who might
be able to attend.
X11. ADJOURNMENT
At 11:10 p.m., the Regular meeting was adjourned.
Lisa Zadek
Recording Secretary