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Home My Public Portal About20110727 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Meeting 11-20 REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT July 27,2011 AMENDED MINUTES REGULAR MEETING I. ROLL CALL Vice President Riffle called the Regular Meeting of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Board of Directors to order at 7:38 p.m. Members Present: Curt Riffle, Cecily Harris, Yoriko Kishimoto, Jed Cyr and Pete Siemens (arrived at 7:08 p.m.) Members Absent: Hanko and Hassett Staff Present: Acting General Manager Kate Drayson, General Counsel Sue Schectman, Planning Manager Ana Ruiz, Operations Manager David Sanguinetti, Public Affairs Manager Rudy Jurgensen, Real Property Manager Mike Williams,and District Clerk Michelle Radcliffe. 11. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS There were none. 111. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Siemens, and unanimously passed,the Board adopted the agenda. (Vote: 5-0-0; Absent: Hanko and44m+kHassett Meeting 11-20 Page 2 IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR Motion: Upon motion by Director Harris, seconded by Director Siemens, and unanimously passed,the Board approved adoption of the Consent Calendar to approve the Minutes of June 10,2011,and June 22,2011 as amended,and Revised Claims 11-20. (Vote: 5-0-0; Absent: Hanko and Hassett) V. BOARD BUSINESS Agenda Item #1 —Proposed Purchase of the Bureau of Land Management(BLM) Property as an addition to the Mount Umunhum Area of the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, located west of Mount Loma Prieta(Santa Clara County Assessor's Parcel Number 562-12-004) and Determine that the Recommended Actions are Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act(R-I 1-72) Real Property Manager Mike Williams provided an overview of the Bureau of Land Management Property and explained the terms and agreement. Brief discussion ensued. Motion: Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Siemens, and unanimously passed,the Board approved the purchase of the BLM property as an addition to the Mount Umunhum area of Sierra AzuI Open Space Preserve and determined that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from CEQA. (Vote: 5-0-0; Absent: Hanko and Hassett) Agenda Item #2 - Adoption of a Comprehensive Use and Management Plan Amendment for Ravenswood Open Space Preserve, Approval of a Partnership Agreement Amendment to Allow the City of East Palo Alto to Begin Site Remediation and Initial Public Access Work at Cooley Landing, and Concurrence with the City Certification of the Mitigated Negative Declaration (R-I 1-62) Vice President Riffle recused himself from considering this agenda item due to a potential conflict of interest related to his employment. The Board voted to have Director Kishimoto as President Pro Tempore for this agenda item. Open Space Planner 11 Tina Hugg provided a brief overview of the joint project with the City of East Palo Alto. She explained that the project received its Mitigated Negative Declaration certification earlier this year and that the City of East Palo Alto received a number of grants for the site clean-up. Next, Ms. Hugg introduced City of East Palo Alto Cooley Landing Project Manager Shannon Alford and Planning Manager Brent Butler to the Board. She then provided an overview of the Use and Management Plan Amendments and outlined the responsibilities of both the City and the District in regards to the project. Director Harris stated that she has voiced concerns on the proposal to allow kayaking/canoeing at the Cooley Landing launch site and stated that the site conditions are not ideal to conduct such activities. Ms. Hugg clarified that the language in the Use and Management Plan states that the District will work with the City to study the effects and implications of allowing kayaking/canoeing and that there is no commitment from the District to allow it. Director Harris stated that she was not comfortable voting for the Use and Management Plan amendments based on the proposed language. Meeting 11-20 Page 3 General Counsel Sue Schectman stated that the District can add language to the Plan that states it would include researching the suitability of the identified launch site for kayaking/canoeing. Director Harris agreed with that language change. Brief discussion ensued. Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Siemens,the Board voted to adopt the Comprehensive Use and Management Plan for Ravenswood Open Space Preserve, approve a Partnership Agreement Amendment to allow the City of East Palo Alto to begin site remediation and initial public access work at Cooley Landing, and concurrently with the City's certify the Mitigated Negative Declaration. Director Harris abstained from voting because of the concerns she voiced earlier and asked that the motion be amended to include the language change suggested by General Counsel Schectman. Motion: Upon motion by Director Harris, seconded by Director Cyr, and unanimously passed, the Board amended the motion to include language to Plan to include researching the suitability of the identified launch site for kayaking/canoeing. (Vote: 4-0-0. Absent: Hanko and Hassett. Recused: Riffle) Motion: Upon motion by Director Cyr, seconded by Director Siemens, and unanimously passed, the Board adopted the Comprehensive Use and Management Plan for Ravenswood Open Space Preserve, approve a Partnership Agreement Amendment to allow the City of East Palo Alto to begin site remediation and initial public access work at Cooley Landing, concurrently with the City's certify the Mitigated Negative Declaration, and amend the Comprehensive Use and Management Plan to include language change suggested. (Vote: 4-0- 0; Absent: Hanko and Hassett; Recused: Riffle) VII. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS COMMITTEE REPORTS Director Riffle reported that the Legislative, Funding and Public Affairs Committee took a tour of the Windmill Pasture area of Rancho San Antonio and viewed three potential locations for the Mary Davey memorial bench. STAFF REPORTS Operations Manager David Sanguinetti reported on the tour of the Skyline area with the East Bay Regional Park District(EBRPD) and the District Board of Directors and stated that the tour was very well organized and deepened the relationship between the two organizations. He further stated that the EBRPD offered to help the District with their fundraising efforts and that staff will come to the District land to learn about how the District's trails are created. Lastly, Mr. Sanguinetti reported on the road maintenance on Prospect Road and stated that staff is working with Ms. Linda Houston. Planning Manager Ana Ruiz stated that the Board should have received the Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Folger House Remodel and Water Improvements and stated that the item will be going to the Board in August for consideration. She also reported that the GIS Coordinator Casey Cleve and GIS staff has been working on the ward boundaries Meeting 11-20 Page 4 adjustment based on the 2010 Census and that the proposed ward changes will be going to the Board on August 24 1h. Lastly, Ms. Ruiz reported that on July I 91h, at the request of the Bay Area Ridge Trail (BART), staff took BART and two representatives from the Coastal Conservancy on a tour of Mount Umunhum. The BART Board expressed interest in partnering with the District on trail projects in the Mount Umunhum area. Public Affairs Manager Rudy Jurgensen reported that Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 612 into law and that the District will be able to restructure its debt beginning in January 2012. He also reported that the department has been busy with"Summer Nature Days", an event with the Audubon Society. Lastly, he stated that advertisements for the District's Ombudsperson position have been posted on the District's website as well as a number of local newspapers and that the last day the District will accept applications is August 22 nd Real Property Manager Mike Williams reported that he attended the Cowl Coastal Trail Ribbon Cutting event on July 2 I't. General Counsel Sue Schectman reported that the District has resolved the issue associated with Pond DR06 contract and stated that the terms of the resolution were discussed with the General Manager, the Planning Department and the Project Manager. Ms. Schectman informed the Board that the terms have been forwarded to them and asked that any concerns and questions be shared with her. Administrative Services Manager Kate Drayson stated there was nothing to report from the Administrative Services Department but as the Acting General Manager, she wanted to thank staff, especially Training and Safety Coordinator Jeff Griffith-Jones, Management Analyst Gordon Baillie, and Operations Manager David Sanguinetti for organizing the tour with the EBRPD. She also reported that the two tours held last week are an example of how the District is moving more towards partnership opportunities. DIRECTOR REPORTS The Directors submitted their compensable forms to the District Clerk. Each Director thanked staff for their efforts on the tour with EBPRD and the Bay Area Ridge Trail. Directors Riffle and Cyr reported that they attended the retirement celebration of Audrey Rust and that the resolution and picture were beautiful. V111. ADJOURNMENT Vice President Riffle adjourned the Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District at 8:25 p.m. Michelle Radcliffe, CMC District Clerk