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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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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.
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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
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