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HomeMy Public PortalAbout20080423 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Meeting 08-11 SPECIAL AND REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS April 23, 2008 MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING- CLOSED SESSION I. ROLL CALL President P. Siemens called the Special Meeting to order at 6:08 p.m. Members Present: Pete Siemens, Jed Cyr, Curt Riffle, Mary Davey, Ken Nitz, Nonette Hanko and Larry Hassett Members Absent: None Staff Present: Steve Abhors II. CLOSED SESSION The closed session concluded at 7:30 and at 7:34 p.m. P. Siemens convened the regular meeting. P. Siemens stated that there were no reportable items from the Closed Session regarding Item 1. REGULAR MEETING 111. P. Siemens called the Regular Meeting to order at and asked for the Roll Call. Members Present: Pete Siemens, Jed Cyr, Mary Davey, Ken Nitz, Curt Riffle, Nonette Hanko and Larry Hassett Members Absent: None Staff Present: S. Abbors, S. Schectman, G. Sam, R. Jurgensen, M. Williams, S. Sommer, L. Infante, D. Sanguinetti IV. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS—There were none. Meeting 08-11 V. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Agenda. K. Nitz seconded the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0. V1. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR J. Cyr said he had some corrections to the March 12, 2008 Minutes, which included page 12,paragraph 7, deleting the words "a waste of time" and inserting"counterproductive", and inserting"an inordinate" after the word"Spending" in the last sentence of that paragraph; page 14, paragraph 3, deleting the word"with" and inserting"might"; page 15, paragraph 2, inserting"by thinking" after the words"discourage them"; N. Hanko said she had one correction to the March 12, 2008 Minutes on page 16 in the final paragraph, and she gave the correct spelling of Marion Softky. C. Riffle said he had some corrections for the March 26, 2008 minutes, which included page 5 and asked if"BohIman"was spelled correctly; page 7, paragraph 1, he said the last sentence should be rearranged to read, "He said he felt very strongly that he could not support using public funds for private open space."; and page 8,paragraph 3 under item C. Agenda Item No. 3a, and asked to insert "the budget guidelines" following the first sentence ending with"which he said is over." K. Nitz asked about Revised Claims number 8923 which staff answered to his satisfaction. Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar, including Written Communications; Approval of the March 12, 2008 Minutes as corrected, March 25, 2008 Minutes, and the March 26, 2008 Minutes as corrected; Agenda Item 3 Approve Allocation of the Remaining General Manager Retirement Event Funds in the Amount of$599.38 to Assist with the Transportation of School Children from Their School to a District Spaces and Species Field Trip When School Buses or Carpools are no Available; Disband the Retirement Event Ad Hoc Committee; Agenda Item 4 Authorize Change in District's Designation of Authorized Signatories for District Checking Accounts and for Access to the District's Safe Deposit Boxes by Adding New General Manager Steve Abbors and Deleting Former General Manager L. Craig Britton; Adopt Resolution No. 08-24 of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Authorizing the Following: (1)Establishing Signatories for the General, Payroll and Certificate of Deposit Accounts (Wells Fargo Bank— Formerly Mid-Peninsula Bank),(2) Establishing Financial Instrument Signatories of the District for the County of Santa Clara Account, (3) U e or Entering District Safe Deposit Updating the Authorized Signatories f Page 2 Meeting 08-11 Boxes (Wells Fargo Bank—Formerly Mid-Peninsula Bank); Agenda Item 5 Request to Execute a Consulting Contract with L. Craig Britton in an Amount Not to Exceed$35,000; and Revised Claims 08-08. L. Hassett seconded the motion. The motion passed 7 to 0 on the Written Communications, the March 12, 2008 Board Minutes, as corrected, the March 25, 2008 Board Minutes, the March 26, 2008 Board Minutes, as corrected, and Agenda Items 3, 4 and 5. The Revised Claims 08-08 passed 5 to 0 on Revised Claim numbers 8864 and 8936-R with recusals from M. Davey, who owns stock in AT&T that exceeds the permissible level for voting on these Claims and N. Hanko, who voluntarily recused herself; and the remaining Revised Claims passed 7 to 0. VIL BOARD BUSINESS A. Agenda Item No. 1 —Proposed Purchase of the Hicks Creek Partners, LLC Property as an Addition to the Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve(Santa Clara County Assessor's Parcel Numbers 575-08-001) Located at 18711 Reynolds Road, Los Gatos in Unincorporated Santa Clara County; Determine that the Recommended Actions are Categorically Exempt from the Califomia Environmental Quality Act(CEOA)As Set Out in this Report; Adopt the Resolution Authorizing Purchase of the Hicks Creek Partners, LLC Property; Adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan Recommendations Contained in this Report and Name the Property as an Addition to the Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, Indicate Intention to Dedicate the Property as Public Open Space After the Approval of the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve Master Plan - (Report R-08-64) S. Sommer gave a PowerPoint slide presentation and began with a map showing the orientation of the proposed property to be purchased. She said the property was adjacent to Rancho de Guadalupe. She said the Hicks Creek Ranch is an in- holding, and access to the property was via a graded gravel driveway on a deeded easement and that the access easement came off of Reynolds Road. There is an electric gate at the entrance. She said the roads are well-maintained,but are labor intensive to keep maintained. S. Sommer said that the water system is on Hicks Creek with pipes leading down to the property. She showed slides of the plants on the property including large oak diversity. She said that Hicks Creek flows into Cherry Creek resulting in nearly year—round flow and she said that steelhead trout might be present. S. Sommer showed slides of the structures on the property, including the residential buildings, some which are located very close to the creek. She said that Units C and D were in better condition that other structures. There is a strong need for an on-site caretaker because of vandalism in the area. Page 3 Meeting 08-11 L. Hassett asked about the septic system. S. Sommer said that neither structure had a leach field and would need to be upgraded. She added that Unit E needs interior repairs and a water system upgrade. P. Siemens asked if the water was taken from the creek and S. Sommer said it was taken from the surface water. P. Siemens asked if the water was year-round and S. Sommer said it was. She recommended installing a UV water treatment filtration system. P. Siemens asked about the costs and S. Abbors said that page 5 of the staff report showed the best-cost estimates of between$10,000 to $15,000. N. Hanko asked if the site was tested for mercury. M. Williams said that their geologist, M. Cox, looked at the properties and found there were no mines in this area. N. Hanko asked how a site gets tested for mercury. M. Williams explained the procedure. N. Hanko asked if the water was tested directly. S. Sommer said that downstream was tested and was found not to have high levels of mercury. N. Hanko asked if they would continue testing, especially while the structures are removed. S. Sommer said the plan is to only remove buildings above the surface. Staff is not proposing restoration as there should not be much ground disturbance. S. Abbors said that Hicks Creek forms a geological separation of the drainage and the side that the District is purchasing does not have mercury deposits. J. Cyr asked about the time extension to demolish the buildings. M. Williams said there would be a five-year extension. When the estimates for demolition are completed the information will be showed with the Board. N. Hanko asked if the Real Property Committee (RPQ would be asked to review plans for the property. K. Nitz asked if the RPC had seen this property. N. Hanko said the RPC had not seen the property and K. Nitz asked the reason why. M. Williams explained that the RPC does not see each proposed property for purchase. P I K. Nitz asked why the District is purchasing this property. S. Sommer pointed out II page 2 -paragraph 2, which summarized the importance of this purchase. K. Nitz said it is expensive. P. Siemens said that this purchase had been discussed in the Board's closed session meeting. M. Davey said that this property is an important part of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, and fills in a gap to make the preserve whole. M. Williams said that during his portion of the staff presentation, he would present more reasons why this property is important to purchase. S. Sommer showed the equestrian area and said it may be an area of possible encroachment. She showed the hay barn, tack room, grooming barn, paddocks and the round pens. She reviewed the possible uses for this area. She said the barns are well maintained, but added that the property line goes through the District property. She said the Operations Department could use this area and that the property could be used to establish a southern ranger office site. Page 4 Meeting 08-11 P. Siemens asked where the horses are stored. S. Sommer said the horses were kept in the paddocks and added that the current owner built the paddocks without doing a survey or acquiring required County permits. M. Williams provided some background about the building encroachment. He said the current owner purchased the property in 1999-2000 at which time the District had a competing offer. He said the property has experienced illegal hunting, trespassing and encroachment onto District land. The property included two legal parcels. He said the purchase of this property would eliminate the encroachments and trespass issues. He said the current owners contacted the District that they were interested in selling the property. The purchase price is $2.5 million and the appraised price is $2.6 million. M. Williams said the sellers had received a competing offer. A Williams said there is an upper building site, at the highest elevation of the property. He said he took the RPC to the North Property,just past this property. He said that the Operations Department is interested in this site for a south area field office. M. Williams said they were purchasing the property in an "as is" condition and will be withholding$25,000 for vehicle storage clean up. He said the current owner is very cooperative and has already begun the clean up. He said the current owner hired a hazardous material waste company to do the clean up. M. Williams said that the current property caretaker oversaw the clean up of the area and staff was impressed with his work, so staff has negotiated a month-to- month agreement with the caretaker to stay on the property. A Williams said that the caretaker would do minor repairs, look for any illegal activity, and not the Foothills field staff if any vandalism or illegal activity is noticed. M. Williams said that staff performed a road assessment. He said it will cost $20,000 to bring the roads to the District's standards and that these costs are associated with the purchase. A Williams said that any demolition of buildings would require Board approval and the proposals would come to the Board at that time. M. Williams said that the estimate cost to upgrade the building for staff housing would be in the range of $30,000 to $40,000. M. Williams said that the equestrian facilities were in excellent condition. He said he would invite the tenants of the Bear Creek Redwoods stables to look at the facilities and see if the structures could be used at the Bear Creek Stables. Page 5 Meeting 08-11 P. Siemens asked if the county required a wider road. M. Williams said the county did require a wider road and fire pullout areas. P. Siemens asked about more information regarding the equestrian facilities on the property and the Bear Creek Stables tenant's use of the structures. M. Williams said it would be expensive to move the structures to the Bear Creek Stables location, but once the property is purchased, the District would own the equestrian facilities. P. Siemens asked if the District could use the facilities to operate an equestrian operation. M. Williams said that staff would need to research that issue with the County. S. Schectman stated that the Board Members were all notified about this potential purchase during their publicly noticed closed session meeting in February. L. Hassett asked if this is a good area for another field office and asked if after some time they might find a better area. M. Williams said that they were looking at this property as an interim location. It has not been looked at as a long-term option. He added that staff from the Operations and Planning Departments need to look at this area further. D. Sanguinetti said that the Beatty property would be a better site for a permanent location because it is centrally located. He said that the Sierra Azul area is very large. He said that storage for equipment is lacking in this area so there would be a long-term need for storage at this property. L. Hassett asked if they would need to upgrade the access road for District use if the purchase is approved. M. Williams said that they would need to upgrade the road and that staff would talk with Santa Clara County about this issue. L. Hassett said there might be some asset value to the equestrian facilities and he saw two options, the first being offering or gifting the facilities to Bear Creek Stables, and the second option would be to sell the facilities at market value. S. Schectman said that the District can declare property surplus and then determine the best way to dispose of the facilities, but gifting the property would not be appropriate. K. Nitz said he was concerned that the steepness of the road may cause it to fail. He asked if it was an entrance road. M. Williams said the access road runs along the southern bank of Hicks Road. S. Sommer said that part of the road is on the property. She said there have been slope failures on the access road, there may have been sloughing, but not necessarily a slide. K. Nitz asked if the $20 million was in the budget for New Land Purchases. M. Williams explained how this purchase fell under the New Land Purchases line item and the other recent properties purchased between the previous fiscal year and the current fiscal year. Page 6 Meeting 08-11 C. Riffle said he knew the current owners and had ridden horses on the property. He said he was very much in favor of this property and said it is a defensive purchase. He agreed with M. Davey that this purchase a piece of the puzzle. He added that this property has a lot of potential. He said they might consider having stables at this property rather than at Bear Creek Redwoods. J. Cyr said he appreciated the Google topographical map. He said he echoed C. Riffle's comments. He said this property has tremendous potential for,, equestrians. He said that in-holdings are problematic in the long term. He supported the potential use of the site as a storage area for District equipment. M. Davey said that this purchase offered a wonderful opportunity to purchase an in-holding. Motion: M. Davey moved that the Board approve the proposed purchase of the Hicks Creek Partners, LLC property as an addition to the Mt. Umunhum area of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve(Santa Clara County Assessor's Parcel Numbers 575-08-001) located at 18711 Reynolds Road, Los Gatos in unincorporated Santa Clara County; Determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as set out in this report; Adopt Resolution No. 08-24 authorizing purchase of the Hicks Creek Partners, LLC property; Adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan recommendations contained in this report and name the property as an addition to the Mt. Umunhum area of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve; Indicate intention to dedicate the property as public open space after the approval of the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve Master Plan. C. Riffle seconded the motion. Discussion: N. Hanko said that she hoped all of the Board members would vote in favor of this purchase. C. Riffle asked if the property accessed Almaden Quicksilver Park. M. Williams answered that there is a designated equestrian crossing. P. Siemens said he agreed with J. Cyr that this area might be a better equestrian facility than Bear Creek Stables. M. Williams said that staff recognized that this facility is better quality than at Bear Creek Stables, but he pointed out that the Bear Creek Stables was grandfathered in by the County and allows 65 horses. The Hicks Road property only allows 24 horses. P. Siemens said that maybe the County might agree to a swap. S. Abbors asked if the Board wanted staff to pursue options for the equestrian facilities. Page 7 Meeting 08-11 He added that the purchase of this property allows a presence of the District in the area. K. Nitz said that Bear Creek Stables is inexpensive for people to afford storing their horses there. M. Davey asked that staff take the RPC to see the property. Vote: The motion passed 5 to 0 with 2 abstentions by K. Nitz and N. Hanko. B. Agenda Item No. 2—Request to Enter into a Professional Services Agreement with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc. to Develop Management Alternatives for Habitat Enhancement and Cattail Control at Alpine Pond (Pond Management Plan Phase 1); Determine that the Recommended Actions are Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act(CEQA); Authorize the General Manager to Enter into a Professional Services Agreement with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc. for a Total Contract Amount Not to Exceed $40,000 to Develop Management Alternatives for Habitat Enhancement and Cattail Control at Alpine Pond (Pond Management Plan Phase 1) - (Report R-08-62) S. Abbors introduced the staff report. D. Sanguinetti said that there has been a fifteen-year fight with the cattails at Alpine Pond. He said that staff was looking to create a study area to complement the Daniels Nature Center, and he added that this is an important project to complete. L. Infante presented the staff report that recommended contracting with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc to develop a long-term plan for the pond management at Alpine Pond. She said the cattails impede access to the shoreline of the pond. She said that this pond was in an important watershed and that is spring-fed. The cattails are very dense and need to be managed. K. Nitz asked if the other District ponds would be reviewed, specifically Sausal Pond. L. Infante said that all of the District ponds are in the plan, but that Alpine Pond had moved up on the list because of the cattail problem. A long-term plan for this pond makes sense now. K. Nitz asked what the scope of work was that the consultants would provide. He asked if it would be a year-to-year plan, or if they were going to do the actual work. L. Infante said that this was Phase I of the project which was developing planning alternatives and that no actual work would be done. C. Riffle said he liked the idea for Alpine Pond. He said it had educational value and he said he was anxious to see what the consultants came up with. L. Infante said that this consultant has developed unique ideas. C. Riffle asked if the consultant would develop an educational component and L. Infante said they Page 8 Meeting 08-11 would. She said there would be two components to the plan, one for education and the other for habitat. L. Hassett asked if the consultant would be looking at Horseshoe Lake at the same time. L. Infante said that Horseshoe Lake was not considered because the cattails are not an issue or problem at that lake. L. Hassett said that the cattails have been stagnant, but asked that since the consultants were in the area why couldn't they look at Horseshoe Lake too. C. Riffle agreed that it did make sense geographically. S. Abbors said he had experience with ponds and that there are a lot of ponds within the District. He said that staff can provide the Board with a sense of priorities for the District ponds. P. Siemens said that the consultants should look at more ponds at once. L. Hassett said that if the report is good they may be able to replicate the information for other ponds. L. Hassett asked when the pond would be drained. L. Infante said that they would need to determine the best time to drain the pond, if it is drained at all. J. Cyr said he appreciates seeing alternatives from the consultant. He said the educational value at Daniels Nature Center is a tremendous resource and that the pond is a significant component. L. Hassett asked if this consultant is currently working at Shilling Lake. L. Infante said this consultant is looking at the duckweed at Shilling Lake. D. Sanguinetti said that Shilling Lake is complicated. It is a slough-filled lake. He said it is a Planning Department project. The big question about Shilling Lake is whether to maintain it as a lake or let it turn into a meadow. He said that the consultants are coming up with options. K. Nitz said he was surprised that duckweed is a big problem now. D. Sanguinetti said that one issue is the duckweed and the other issue is siltation. Motion: L. Hassett moved that the Board approve entering into a Professional Services Agreement with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc. to develop management alternatives for habitat enhancement and cattail control at Alpine Pond(Pond Management Plan Phase 1); Determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); Authorize the General Manager to enter into a professional services agreement with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc. for a total contract amount not to exceed $40,000 to develop management alternatives for habitat enhancement and cattail control at Alpine Pond(Pond Management Plan Phase 1). J. Cyr seconded the motion. Page 9 Meeting 08-11 Discussion: L. Hassett said that the staff and Board will be looking at expensive pond issues and suggested that they look to volunteers for help with the work. Vote: The motion passed 7 to 0. VIII. INFORMATIONAL/COMPENSABLE MEETING REPORTS M. Davey said she turned in her compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. J. Cyr said he turned in his compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. He said he hiked at Pacheco Pass State Park and said it is an intriguing area and the wildflowers were spectacular. He said he saw an elk there. He said he hiked at Grant Ranch in Santa Clara County near Mt. Hamilton. He said he saw a show on PBS about the 100-year history of the forest service that showed democracy in action. L. Hassett turned in his compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. He said that while driving home after a Board meeting he saw a mountain lion cross the road and said it was a spectacular sight. N. Hanko said she turned in her compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. K. Nitz said he turned in his compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. He asked C. Roessler for a memo regarding the Russian Ridge bum. He said he hiked in Limoge, France. He said he hiked at Pulgas Ridge and noted that the wildflowers are gone. C. Riffle said he was sorry to hear that the District did not receive grants for Alma or Stevens Creek. He said that he was not surprised that Sudden Oak Death was found at Rancho San Antonio. He said he rode his horse up Alpine Road. He said he hiked on Hamms Gulch Road and said it was in good shape. He said he turned in his compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. P. Siemens said he turned in his compensable meeting report to the District Clerk. S. Abbors said he saw a migration of swifts at Nasona Lake. S. Schectman announced that the coastal litigation has finally concluded. She said that the Supreme Court ruled in the District's favor. She said the Santa Clara County Open Space Authority has a court date in San Francisco for May 6. She said the Riverside County case is in process. M. Williams said that the previous Thursday he attended the Farm Bureau meeting honoring Vince Fontana. He said it was a nice event. Page 10 Meeting 08-11 D. Sanguinetti pointed out a memo to resolve the Portola Heights issue. He said that he and S. Schectman met with the Santa Clara County Sheriff's staff and they are reviewing two options. He gave a report about the District rangers who were assaulted over the weekend. He said that the barge at Ravenswood Preserve burned that evening and he gave an update on it. He announced that the half-time Training Coordinator started and her name is Sonya Morrison. G. Sam added that Ms. Morrison has been a District volunteer for several years. L. Hassett thanked D. Sanguinetti for the Portola Heights issue and said he was glad it was finalized with a good resolution. R. Jurgensen said that donations can now be processed over the District's website on-line and that they had received three donations totaling$300.00. He said that 13 District books have sold. He said the display case in the District's lobby would display District merchandise. IX ADJOURNMENT The Special and Regular meetings of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District adjourned at 9:32 pm. Lisa Zadek Recording Secretary Page 11