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Home My Public Portal About20100922 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) y 1 " ( Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Meeting 10-23 REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT SEPTEMBER 22,2010 AMENDED MINUTES I. ROLL CALL President Mary Davey called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Members Present: Jed Cyr, Nonette Hanko, Larry Hassett, Curt Riffle, Pete Siemens, and Mary Davey Members Absent: Cecily Harris Staff Present: General Manager Steve Abbors, General Counsel Sue Schectman, Operations Manager David Sanguinetti, Public Affairs Manager Rudy Jurgensen, Planning Manager Ana Ruiz, Real Property Manager Mike Williams, Web Content Coordinator Vicky Gou, Open Space Planner II Tina Hugg, Open Space Planner I Gretchen Laustsen, and District Clerk Michelle Radcliffe. II. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS There were none. III. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: Upon motion by Director Riffle, seconded by Director Siemens, and unanimously passed, the Board approved adoption of the agenda. (Vote: 6-0-0; Absent: Harris) I i i i Meeting 10-23 Page 2 ' IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR Motion: Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Riffle, and unanimously passed, the Board approved adoption of the Consent Calendar to approve the Board Minutes dated August 30,2010;Approval of FY 2010-11 Annual Claims List; and Revised Claims 10-19. (Vote: 6-0-0; Absent: Harris) V. BOARD BUSINESS A. Agenda Item 4—Approval of Video for the District Website(R-10-104) Web Content Coordinator Vicky Gou provided an overview of the District's website and explained how the District is using social media to expand the District's presence. She reported on how different social media tools like Twitter,YouTube, and Flickr disseminate District information to a large mass of people almost instantaneously and how they can assist in getting youth involved. Lastly, Ms. Gou showed a video, which will be posted on the District website, of a dog and its teenaged owner enjoying District preserves. She described how the video would be used as a"call to action" for youth to create their own videos sharing their open space experiences. Ms. Gou explained that staff will contact local high schools and media centers to kick off the call to action. After a brief discussion, the Board thanked Ms. Gou and Public Affairs for their work on the District website and for the video that was presented. Motion: Upon motion by Director Hanko, seconded by Director Cyr, and unanimously passed, the Board approved posting the video on the District Website. (Vote: 6-0-0; Absent: Harris) B. Agenda Item 5 - Consider General Manager's Request to Forego a 5%Meritorious Pay Award for Meritorious Service in Fiscal Year 2009-2010 (R-10-110) General Manager Steve Abbors reported that he will forego his 5%meritorious pay because of the District's budget. Director Hanko thanked Mr. Abbors for forgoing his meritorious pay and stated that he was worth more than what the Board is able to pay. The Board shared the same sentiments as Director Hanko. Motion: Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Hassett, and unanimously passed, the Board approved the General Manager's request to forego a 5%meritorious pay award for Fiscal Year 2009-2010. (Vote: 6-0-0; Absent: Harris) I i Meeting 10-23 Page 3 C. Agenda Item 6—Authorization to Apply for both a Habitat Conservation Fund Program Grant and Recreational Trails Program Grant for the El Corte de Madera Creek Parking/Staging Area and Trails Project(R-10-106) Open Space Planner I Gretchen Laustsen provided an overview of the El Corte de Madera Creek Open Space Preserve and stated that because it is the most popular preserve in the District,there is a need for parking/staging area on the preserve. She provided a summary of the new parking area and explained that the implementation of the parking lot will be completed in four phases. Ms. Laustsen summarized the grant from the Recreation Trails Program stating that the District is requesting$218,000 in funds and that this grant will help with Phase 1 of the project. In addition, she provided a summary of the grant from the Habitat Conservation Fund, stating that the District is requesting$318,000 in funds which will assist with Phases 1 and 2 of the project. She explained that the District purposely asked for half the amount of the total cost of the project as a strategic move;noting that the District would more likely be awarded the grant if they asked for half the amount of the project. Brief discussion was held on the status of the project and Director Riffle suggested that a"Donate Now"option be placed on the District website for users to help fund the project. Motion: Upon motion by Director Siemens, seconded by Director Hanko, and unanimously passed, the Board authorized the General Manager to apply for both a Habitat Conservation Fund Program Grant and Recreational Trails Program Grant for the El Corte de Madera Creek Parking/Staging Area and Trails Project(Vote: 6-0-0; Absent: Harris) IIII VI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS COMMITTEE REPORTS Director Hanko reported that the Real Property Committee met on September 14`n to discuss the purchase of the Slaght property and stated that the Committee's recommendation will be brought forward to the Board for consideration at a future meeting. Director Hanko reported that the Legislative, Funding, and Public Affairs Committee met on September 20`n to hear an update on the Resource Management Grant Program and to clarify the Site Naming, Gift, and Special Recognition Policy regarding memorial benches. She stated that the Committee's recommendations will be brought forward to the Board for consideration at a future meeting. Director Cyr reported that the Sierra Azul Ad Hoc Committee met on September 20t'to receive a briefing on Mount Umunhum public meeting scheduled for September 30`n c Meeting 10-23 Page 4 STAFF REPORTS Public Affairs Manager Rudy Jurgensen reported that the memorial plaque for the memorial bench at St. Joseph's Hill will be installed on September 23`d and that Santa Clara County Fire will help with the installation. Mr. Jurgensen announced that he is working with Pescadero High School teacher Randy Vail on a volunteer project for his class. Lastly, Mr. Jurgensen provided an update on federal funding on the Mount Umunhum project and stated that the San Jose Mercury News will be writing an editorial piece on the project. Planning Manager Ana Ruiz provided an update on the grants submitted for the Cooley Landing project and stated that the grant applications will be made available for inspection at the City of East Palo Alto City Council meeting on September 23`d. Real Property Manager Mike Williams reminded members of the Real Property Committee that there is a meeting on October 5th to view the Bergman property located at Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve. Operations Manager David Sanguinetti reported that the he and Ms. Ruiz met with constituents at Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve regarding the tree shade at the preserve. He also reported that the there was a suicide on District land at Bear Creek Redwoods. General Counsel Sue Schectman announced that the she will be sending an e-mail memorandum to the Board regarding the September 30a'Public Hearing. District Clerk Michelle Radcliffe asked the Board for their availability for scheduling the Strategic Plan Kick-Off workshop on October 22na General Manager Steve Abbors provided updates on projects that Real Property, Planning, Operations, Public Affairs and Administrative Services are currently working on. DIRECTOR REPORTS The Directors submitted their compensable meeting forms to the District Clerk. Director Riffle reported that he led a five hour hike for Alctera that included the Nature Center and Horseshoe Lake and commented that some of the hikers were glad to see that the Nature Center and Horseshoe Lake were relatively close by. Next he reported that he met a Board member from the Bay Area Ridge Council and that the Board member acknowledged the good work the District has been involved in. Director Cyr reported that he was a volunteer on the Ridge Trail Cruise on September I Ith and that he attended the opening of the bid-trail from Sunnyvale to Mountain View at Moffett Field on September 20`h. In addition, Director Cyr suggested that the District look into using Groupon as a way to get the District's name out to the public. i Meeting 10-23 Page 5 Director Hassett shared news about the Winslow's home burning down and stated he and his wife visited the old redwoods on their way to Seattle and announced that less than 2%of old growth redwoods currently exist. President Davey shared comments regarding the District's trails that she received from Jean Russmore. VIL ADJOURNMENT President Davey adjourned the Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District at 7:42 p.m. Michelle Radcliffe, CMC District Clerk