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HomeMy Public PortalAbout20090527 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) I Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District t y I Meeting 09-17 SPECIAL AND REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT MAY 27,2009 MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING I. ROLL CALL President Nonette Hanko called the Special Meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. She called the Roll Call. Members Present: Pete Siemens, Jed Cyr, Nonette Hanko, Mary Davey, Cecily Harris and Curt Riffle. Members Absent: Larry Hassett Staff Present: Steve Abbors II. CLOSED SESSION At 6:30 p.m. the Closed Session commenced. The Closed Session concluded at 7:00 p.m. REGULAR MEETING III. President Hanko called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:04 p.m., and asked for the Roll Call. Members Present: Pete Siemens, Jed C Nonette Hanko Ma Dave Cecil Harris and Yr, Mary Y> Y Curt Riffle. Members Absent: Larry Hassett Additional Staff Present: Sue Schectman, Duncan Simmons, D. Sanguinetti, A. Ruiz, N. Perez,A. Speidel, R. Jurgensen, M. Newburn, A. Duong, M. Williams, A. Jatczak, D. Topley, T. Hugg, C. Koopman, M. Manning. President Hanko stated that there were no reportable items from the Closed Session. Meeting 09-17 Page 2 IV. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS S. Abbors said that there was an information item in the late FYI's about Mindego Ranch. Staff is working with POST to correct what happened. He said he spoke with Audrey Rust and explained the process he intended to do. Anne Trela from POST said that POST is fully prepared to work with the District. She said they would like to install the sign during the dry period and they are working on getting the permits. President Hanko said that ordinarily this type of project would go through the LFPAC committee first, prior to coming to the full Board. S. Abbors said a LFPAC meeting would be scheduled soon; however, it would still be advisable to send a conditional letter to the County. President Hanko said that was fine, and she thanked Ms. Trela for speaking to the Board. V. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: Director Cyr moved adoption of the Agenda. Director Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. VI ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR Director Cyr suggested corrections to the April 22, 2009 Board Minutes including page 3, Section B, Agenda Item 5, third paragraph: delete the word"to"before"grassland management"; page 4, Section D, Agenda Item 7, second paragraph: insert"Work"; page 7, second paragraph: delete"the strategy". Director Harris clarified her meaning on page 6 of the April 22, 2009 Minutes and asked that the phrase"whether or not the District would go to the County Parks to discuss trails"be deleted. President Hanko pulled Agenda Item 5 from the Consent Calendar. Motion: Director Cyr moved adoption of the Consent Calendar to approve the corrected April 22, 2009 Board Minutes; Agenda Item 4—Resolution No. 09-14 Approval of Communications Site Lease Agreement and Exercise of Option with Nextel of California, Inc. at Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve; Agenda Item 6 —Resolution No. 09-15 Commemorating the Bay Trail Project's 20'h Anniversary; Agenda Item 7—Resolution No. 09-16 Determination that the Recommended Actions are Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act and Proposed Addition of Santa Clara County Tax-Defaulted"Hacienda Park" Parcels to the Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra AzuI Open Space Preserve (Santa Clara County Assessor's Parcel Numbers 562-24-055, 562-25-049, 562- 25-058, 562-25-060) Located Approximately One Mile Southwest of Almaden Reservoir in Unincorporated Santa Clara County; and Revised Claims 09-10. Director Riffle seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. VII. BOARD BUSINESS Meeting 09-17 Page 3 A. Agenda Item 5—Authorization to Extend Agreements to Provide Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Services—(Report R-09-62) D. Topley reviewed the staff report to extend agreements with four vendors to provide maintenance and repair services for the District's fleet vehicles. He said that all four vendors gave the District priority service and quality service. The geographic location of these vendors is critical to maintain the fleet in a timely manner. The Board thanked him for the information. Motion: Director Davey moved that the Board authorize the General Manager to extend the agreements with the following vendors to provide maintenance and repair services for the District's fleet vehicles: (1) Roy's Repair Service of La Honda; (2) CMK Automotive of Mountain View; (3) Sunnyvale Ford; and(4) Redwood General. Director Harris seconded the motion. The motion passed with a vote of 6 to 0. B. Agenda Item 8a—Consideration of Protest of Award of Contract for Construction Services for the Second Phase of the Administrative Office Basic Improvements Remodel Project—(Report R-09-67A) T. Hugg presented a PowerPoint presentation. She gave background information about the bid process. She said the Guerra Construction Group's proposal did not contain unit cost amounts for any of the five alternatives required by the bid package. She showed a blank bid form that demonstrated what information was to be provided. She showed a comparison of two bids side-by-side. Without the required unit costs, staff would be unable to determine the cost of a change order for additional work. Director Riffle asked whether or not someone who had turned in a bid proposal and said they made a mistake could ask to correct information already submitted. T. Hugg said that bid proposals may not be changed after submission, and S. Schectman agreed with that statement. Motion: Director Riffle moved that the Board accept the General Manager's recommendation to reject the Bid Protest of Guerra Construction Group. Director Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed by a vote of 6 to 0. C. Agenda Item 8b—Determination that the Recommended Actions are Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act and Determination Whether to Award of Contract for Construction Services for the Second Phase of the Administrative Office Basic Improvements Remodel Project—(Report R-09-67B) T. Hugg presented the staff report and reviewed the project to date. She reviewed why three of the proposals did not meet the District's bid proposal requirements. She said that staff recommends the Board determine the three specified bids as non-responsive and to award the contract to B BROS Construction, Inc. Meeting 09-17 Page 4 Director Riffle asked about page 2, under Summary, for clarification of the budget year. T. Hugg said that the report stated the incorrect fiscal year and that the current fiscal year budget for 2009-2010 was correct. Director Siemens asked if the fire suppression system was CO2. Mr. Hecht, of Tannerhecht Architects, said it was not CO2,but an inorganic system. Director Siemens asked if it is toxic to people, and Mr. Hecht said it was not. Director Siemens asked if the alternates were all going to be done, and T. Hugg said that only Alternate#5 is definite. The remaining alternates are possible cost savings alternatives and she gave examples. Director Siemens said that he wanted to be sure that cost savings do not cause future inconvenience and unhappiness with the District employees. Motion: Director Cyr moved to determine that the recommended action is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as set out in the report; Determine that the bids submitted by Nexgen Builders, Guerra Construction Group and Eric F. Anderson Inc. are non-responsive to the specifications set out in the District's Bid Package; Authorize the General Manager to enter into contract with B. BROS Construction, Inc. of San Leandro, CA for the base bid amount of$222,700 for the second phase of the Administrative Office Basic Improvements remodel project at 330 Distel Circle in Los Altos, CA; Authorize a total not-to-exceed contingency amount of$46,410,broken down as follows: (a) $2,700 - a not-to-exceed additive bid amount to allow for Alternate No. 2, Kitchen Floor Finish; (b) $6,100 - a not-to-exceed additive bid amount to allow for Alternate No. 3, Kitchen Counter Material; (c) $1,100 - a not-to-exceed additive bid amount to allow for Alternate No. 4, Add Water Filter; (d) $2,700- a not-to-exceed additive bid amount to allow for Alternate No. 5, New Accessible Ramp (recently required by the City of Los Altos); and (e) $3 3,810 - a 15% contingency on the total amount of$225,400 which includes the base bid amount of$222,700 and the Alternate No. 5 amount of$2,700 to cover unforeseen conditions encountered during demolition and construction. Director Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. D. Agenda Item 9—Approval of an Amendment to the Contract with Tannerhect, Inc. to Provide Construction Administration Services for the Second Phase of the Administrative Office Basic Improvements Remodel Project and a Determination that the Recommended Actions are Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (Roort R-09-69) T. Hugg reviewed the project and summarized the completed work. She said the amendment would fund the construction administration services for the remaining tasks to be completed. Director Riffle asked if it did cost the District incremental dollars to move money from one allocation to another to complete projects. T. Hugg said it did cost more because they had to tap in to future funds to complete the current project. Director Riffle asked if this was the only option, and S. Abbors said it was. He said that, overall, staff has done a remarkable job in controlling costs, and he said he was very satisfied with staff's work, especially T. Hugg's. Meeting 09-17 Page 5 President Hanko thanked David Hecht for his presence to answer questions. Motion: Director Davey moved to amend the contract with Tannerhecht, Inc. in the amount of$10,500 for a total contract amount not to exceed $133,200 to provide construction administration services for the second phase of the Administrative Office Basic Improvements remodel project. Director Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. E. Agenda Item 10—Consider Adoption of a Mitigated Negative Declaration, Technical Addendum, and Mitigation Monitoring Program in Accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act and Authorize Execution of a Contract with Go Native Inc in an Amount Not to Exceed $78 000 for Herbicide Application and Invasive Species j Control at Mindego Ranch- (Report R-09-20) S. Abhors introduced the staff report and said that this program will work and be a model for future projects. C. Koopmann said that there were 150 acres to be treated for an infestation of purple star thistle and smooth thistle. He explained why it is important to remove the thistle. He said there would be an integrated management program,using herbicides, hand digging, mowing and finally, grazing. He described the types of herbicides that would be used, and the levels of toxicity of each. He reviewed the types of wildlife that may be impacted. He discussed his meeting with the Cuesta La Honda group, and he said that staff addressed the group's concerns. He reviewed the bid process and said that staff was recommending a contract with Go Native, Inc. I Director Cyr said that the report was very thorough. He asked if the environmental documents would be changed to reflect the larger buffer zone. S. Schectman said that the buffer zone was increased as a discretionary additional measure to improve the project, even though this measure was not required under CEQA to mitigate a significant environment. She stated the mitigated negative declaration does not need to be changed, since it includes all the mitigation measures required by CEQA. S. Abbors added that the discretionary addition is a commitment that the District will keep with the Cuesta La Honda neighbors. Director Cyr asked about the modification of the start time from April to May and if that would be a problem. K. Lenington said that was no longer an issue. He added that the Cuesta group no longer had an issue with the start time after speaking with District staff. President Hanko asked about the"half-life" and what it means, and if the herbicide would still be effective afterward. S. Abbors replied that"half-life"defines the time period when half of the material will be dissipated through natural processes, and it depends on a number of variables, such as exposure to the sun. President Hanko asked if staff could tell if the herbicide would still be effective after its half-life and whether or not reapplication would be needed. C. Koopmann said they could tell after two or three days. He gave further information about the effectiveness of the herbicides against the thistles. Meeting 09-17 Page 6 Director Riffle said it was impressive that no one from the Cuesta group was present and asked about the types of concerns they had presented staff. C. Koopmann, K. Lenington, and S. Abbors reviewed the information exchanged with the group. Director Riffle asked if the Cuesta group was monitoring the water quality. S. Abbors, said they were required to by law. Director Riffle asked if the Cuesta group could observe the work being done. S. Abbors said that they would be notified each time the District applies the herbicides. Director Cyr said that extending an invitation to key people in the Cuesta group to observe the first few times the herbicide is being applied would go a long way. S. Abbors said that the individual who oversees Cuesta's water supply could be invited. Motion: Director Siemens moved adoption of the proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration and Mitigation Monitoring Program, including the Technical Addendum, in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act(CEQA) and make the CEQA findings as set out in Resolution No. 09-17; and authorize the General Manager to enter into an Agreement with Go Native Inc. for a total contract amount not to exceed $78,000 over a 3-year period to implement the invasive species control program and herbicide application at the Mindego Ranch portion of Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve. Director Davey seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. F. Agenda Item 11 —Approval of an Amendment to the Contract with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc. in the Amount of$15,000, for a Total Contract Amount Not to Exceed $79,080, to Refine Results of the Schilling Lake Inundation Study a Thornewood Open Space Preserve and a Determination that the Recommended Actions are Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act—(Report R-09-57) S. Abbors, said that this report was a follow-up on the work done at Schilling Lake. M. Manning presented the staff report. She said that the preliminary study on potential downstream impacts and the results show a flood risk at the first downstream obstacle. She showed PowerPoint slides of the lake and area surrounding it and discussed the history of the property. A flood study, or inundation study, was done by the consultant, and M. Manning showed the area of the study area. She said the results show a potential for an inundation at Old La Honda Road, a partial inundation at Portola Road, out of bank flow, and potential damage to one barn at,Portola Ranch,but no homes were indicated to be at risk. The main concern is at Old La Honda Road because it is the first place a flood would hit. She said the culvert is six feet in diameter and 150' long and maintained by the Town of Woodside. K. Lenington said that the model shows the pipe is not large enough to handle a large amount of water. She showed a graph showing possible depth of inundation,but said that it was probably an exaggeration. S. Abbors asked for clarification and M. Manning replied with an answer that satisfied him. She said that the consultants indicated that the District should stay with the model they are using. Meeting 09-17 Page 7 M. Manningsaid that staff is requesting the amendment to perform a thorough � g p geotechnical study researching the impact and wants to re-run the model again to refine the possible impact. The original budget only allowed for a minimal geotechnical investigation of three borings. The thorough geomorphic study will indicate what materials the dam is constructed of. The consultant will submerge pyrometers, or groundwater level monitors, so that staff can monitor to determine if groundwater levels change. Director Cyr thanked M. Manning for the tour of the area. He said it is obvious that there is quite a drop from the road to the channel. Director Riffle asked if this case gave a worse case scenario. M. Manning said the study was run as a sunny-day failure analysis, and she listed the information that was not considered in this analysis. She said that the model exaggerates flow in the down stream direction, so staff would like to get more information. K. Lenington added that the reason staff got into this project was that they identified a potential risk down stream, so staff needs to gather more information to find out what the risk of damage would be. S. Abbors said that part of this work is to manage the expectations of the public. He said he asked staff to control costs as best they can. Director Riffle asked if the study would tell them if the dam is good enough to hold. M. Manning said she would look into incorporating that into the scope of work. Director Riffle asked if there are other situations in other ponds with dams that may need studies. M. Manning said Sausal Pond, Horseshoe Lake, Alpine Lake, and Cherry Springs Pond came to mind. S. Abbors said that one of the elements of the study is finding out the capacity. He said their goal is to use the most cost-effective means to find out what is possible,but it is not a straightforward project. Director Siemens said he had similar concerns about what questions the study will answer. He asked if there will be data to show the cost estimates. M. Manning said management options and associated costs were developed last year in a Technical Memorandum and resented to the Board in September of last year and she could share P � Y the information again with the Board. President Hanko asked if there could be an alternative study to see what would happen if the lake were to fill-in, similar to Mirror Lake at Yosemite. She asked if the trees could be retained if the lake were turned into a meadow. M. Manning said that was an alternative, the no-action alternative is an option, and that option was outlined in the Technical Memorandum. K. Lenington said they could accelerate that process by filling in the lake. Director Harris said she was not familiar with alternatives. She asked why Y the want to maintain this lake and asked for more information about the alternatives. She asked about the environmental outcomes. M. Manning said that she met with the California Department of Fish and Game and US Fish and Wildlife Service at the project site. K. Lenington said there are no listed species in the area. Director Harris asked why the dam was made. M. Manning said it was originally created to support lumber mill operations. M. Manning said that the US Fish and Wildlife Service said there was a Meeting 09-17 Page 8 concern that bullfrogs would use the area as a link to areas in La Honda Creek watershed where there are large populations of red-legged frogs. Public Comment: Allen Douglas, Los Altos, said he was familiar with the area. He spoke about the Rogue Valley Pond and said there is an old pond that is behind it and it is now filled in. He said there is a precedent for fillip in pond. p g a Motion: Director Siemens moved to determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act(CEQA) as set out in the report and amend the contract with Wetlands and Water Resources, Inc., in the amount of$15,000 for a total contract amount not to exceed $79,080 to refine the results of the Schilling Lake inundation study at Thornewood Open Space Preserve. Director Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 5 to 0. Director Harris abstained from voting. G. Agenda Item 12—Determination that the Recommended Actions are Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act and Authorization of Revised Location of the Commemorative Plaque Recognizing the Crash of the Airliner"Resolution"on October 29 1953 at the Vista Point at El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve—(Report R-09- 6 D. Sanguinetti presented the staff report and showed the area where the location of the plaque would be placed. He described why the area of the Fir and Vista Point Trails is a perfect location for the plaque. President Hanko said she thought this was a great idea. She asked if the brushing at the Vista Point would improve the view. D. Sanguinetti said it would. He said that they would need to be careful working around the trees. Director Harris said it sounds like a very good solution. She said she was surprised about adding picnic tables. She asked about the maintenance needs. D. Sanguinetti responded and told her where other picnic tables are located in the Preserves. Director Riffle asked if the plaque had been installed. D. Sanguinetti said that it had not been installed yet. Director Riffle asked if the gentleman from Half Moon Bay had been notified of the location change. S. Abbors said that the gentleman said he trusted where the District would install the plaque. D. Sanguinetti spoke about the planned installation event that is being worked on. Motion: President Hanko moved to determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as set out j in the report and approve moving the location of the commemorative plaque recognizing the crash of the Airliner"Resolution" from the Methuselah Trail head to the intersection of the Fir and Vista Point Trails. Director Davey seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. VIII. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS Meeting 09-17 Page 9 COMMITTEE REPORTS—There were none. STAFF REPORTS R. Jurgensen gave legislative updates, including information that all of the propositions failed in the past election. The governor triggered the suspension of Prop I A which would allow the State to take up to $2 million from the District. He described what would happen if the money were taken. There is a letter signed by a collection of agencies opposing the governor. He said that he will attend "budget day"the next Wednesday in Sacramento. He and S. Abhors met with Assembly member Fong(Mt. View) and talked about Prop IA. R. Jurgensen said that Senators Boxer and Feinstein put in appropriation requests for Mt. Umunhurn for a total of$4 million. He said that Representative Honda asked Senator Feinstein for her support for this project. He said any funds would not go directly to the District,but to the Office of Economic Adjustment, part of the Department of Defense. The$4 million would be part of the budget for the Department of Defense. He went on to describe the steps it would take to move through the budget process. Director Siemens said it is critical that the District gets something. Once funds are allocated, it may set a precedent to receive future funding for the project. He said that the edited video turned out very well Director Harris asked what the District really expects to receive. R. Jurgensen said it is unrealistic to expect more than $I million. Director Harris asked how the Resolution will get to the Bay Trails group for their event. R. Jurgensen said that they would mail it to them. Director Harris mentioned an event on June 6 and R. Jurgensen said he would follow up. D. Sanguinetti said Santa Clara County Fire Department would do a training bum at Rancho de Guadalupe on June 4, 2009, and there is another bum, blacklining, on May 29, 2009 with staff. S. Schectman commented on Prop I A and what led to the proposition. She said the District is a non-enterprise agency, and it is not certain what percentage of money might be taken from the District. She said it will be interesting to see the legal issues that may ensue as occurred when the State previously took property taxes from local agencies. DIRECTOR REPORTS Director Davey said her compensable meeting was tonight and the others were on the pink sheet. She said the Artemis Ginzton bench dedication was a wonderful event. Staff gave a tour of La Honda and she thanked staff for everything in the Master Plan. She said that David Weintraub will write a history book about the park and recreation issues that occurred in 1972. She said he would be interviewing the Board. She said that Audrey Rust was given the Thurston Environmental Award by Senator Boxer, and she suggested a Resolution from the District to Ms. Rust in recognition. She attended a very riveting lecture. Director Cyr turned in his meeting compensation sheet. He hiked trails at Purisima Creek and said it was a gorgeous day. He said he would be hiking at El Corte de Madera and may try to hike new trails there. He would take a docent-led bike ride with Patty Ciesla the next weekend. Meeting 09-17 Page 10 Director Riffle stated his compensable meetings were May 13, 14, 19 and tonight's meeting (5/27). He hiked at Thornewood with his dog on-leash and saw others with their dogs on-leash. He went on a horse ride with the president of ETRAC and rode through the Phleger Estate. He was invited by POST to join the Moore foundation and he hiked up a trail to where the picture of Audrey Rust was taken. He asked the Board to reserve September 20 for an event by Committee for Green Foothills honoring Director Davey. Director Harris said her compensable meetings were May 5, 13, 14, 19, and tonight's meeting (5/27). She hiked at Pulgas Ridge and spoke with a District Ranger there. She said she is almost ready to become a Trail Patrol volunteer. Director Siemens said his compensable meetings were May 5, 13, 14, 19 and tonight's meeting (5/27). President Hanko said she turned in her compensable meeting sheet to the Clerk. She will be leaving for a ten-day vacation to Hawaii and would be back on June 8. Director Davey praised the legacy of Brian O'Neal and said that there will be a ceremony this upcoming Friday. IX. ADJOURNMENT At 9:35pm, President Hanko adjourned the Special and Regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. Lisa Zadek, Recording Secretary