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HomeMy Public PortalAbout1999-01-21 Town of Truckee TOWN COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MINUTES January 21, 1999, 6:00 P.M. Truckee Donner Public Utility District Board Room 11570 Donner Pass Road, Truckee, CA CALL TO ORDER - Mayor Susman called the regular Council meeting to order at 6:03 p.m. ROLL CALL PRESENT: Councilmembers: Drake, Florian, McCormack, Schneider, and Mayor Susman ALSO PRESENT: Stephen L. Wright, Town Manager, J. Dennis Crabb, Town Attorney; and Vicki Soderquist, Deputy Town Clerk PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was led by Juanita Schneider. PUBLIC COMMENTS 4.1 Bruce Cornell, Board President, Tahoe Donner Association, expressed his concern regarding the abuse of the Tahoe Donner recycling bins and the damage to the environment. The carrier had indicated that they wanted to remove the bins due to the dumping of trash. He did not want to see them removed but the amount of trash was disturbing. He requested that new committee work with the Association regarding those issues and that all correspondence be directed to him. Mr. Wright agreed that it was a problem and that it would be one of the first items dealt with by the citizen's committee. 4.2 Juanita Schneider, Donner Lake, stated that she had reported at-large dogs at the West End of Donner Lake but it did not appear that Animal Control was cruising that area. Snow removal was good, as always, but the independent haulers were putting snow in the roads. Ms. Schneider also stated that she liked the lights at the roundabout. Mr. Wright stated that the Director of Public Works would follow-up on the private haulers. Mayor Susman informed Ms. Schneider that animal control issues had been scheduled for the second Council meeting in February. 4.3 (Public Comment heard prior to Item 7.2) Mountain Jack, Jack Ingram, stated he represented High Sierra Winter Parks and expressed their interest in utilizing the Mclver Meadow for snow play activities. He had tried to file a complaint regarding the parking in no parking zones and sledding in no sledding areas but the Police Department would not take the complaint. He had discussed a lease with the Recreation and Park District to operate a sledding area and would have a proposal prepared for the next Council meeting. PRESENTATIONS 5.1 Proclamation Honoring Don Estabrook for his service as Planning Commissioner. Mayor Susman presented the proclamation to Mr. Estabrook. 5.2 Proclamation Presentation to News Media. Mayor Susman presented the proclamation to Ms. Mays. Councilmember Schneider acknowledged the many contributions Ms. Mays had made to the community and stated she would be missed. 5.3 Introduction of New Staff. Dan Wilkins, Town Engineer, introduced Michael Vaughn the Town's new Associate Engineer. 5.4 Introduction of Nevada County Sheriff. Mayor Susman introduced Nevada County Sheriff Keith Royal. SheriffRoyal stated he looked forward to working with the Council and Town in the future. CONSENT CALENDAR (One motion approves all of the following actions.) Motion by Councilmember Drake, Seconded by Councilmember Florian, approved unanimously, with Councilmember Schneider abstaining on Item 6.4. Mr. Wright stated that the tolling agreement would be extended to Februa~3, 24, 1999. 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Minutes of December 17, 1998 Special Meeting. Recommendation: Council approve. Minutes of December 17, 1998 Regular Meeting. Recommendation: Council approve. Minutes of January 11, 1999 Special Meeting. Recommendation: Council approve. December Treasurer's Report. Recommendation: Council approve. Ratification of Appointments to the Truckee Ad Hoc Citizens Waste Management Committee. Recommendation: Council adopt Resolution 99-01 establishing the Committee to assist in the implementation of the Town's solid waste plan. Councilmember McCormack stated that the committee was a requirement in the Town's Recycling Element. The requirement for recycling was 50% by 2000 which was going to be very difficult to meet. Notice of Completion - Western Undercrossing Project. Recommendation: Council authorize the Town Engineer to file a Notice of Completion for the 1998 Western Undercrossing Project with the Nevada County Recorder and authorize a budget amendment increase of $44,095.77 and allocate $71,218.17 from the General Fund to cover all remaining outstanding costs which were incurred for purposes of constructing the project. Extension of Tolling Agreement with the Truckee Redevelopment Agency. Recommendation: Council approve extension of tolling agreement to March 4, 1999 and authorize the Mayor to sign extended agreement. COUNCIL IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES 7.1 Intermoda! Depot Lease Analysis. Recommendation: Council authorize the Town Manager to offer Truckee Travel first right of refusal on current leased space; and issue a Request for Proposal for leasing available space in the east end of the Depot. Jill Olsen, Administrative Services Director, stated that the depot was the property of Nevada County with the Town assuming maintenance and related expenses. The tenant turnover and deferred maintenance costs inherited had resulted in a net loss and use of General Funds to keep the depot in operation. Staff had been informed that there was no risk of losing the State grant funds, i.e. there were no specific requirements for tenant leases as the Town currently exceeded any requirements of the grant. She then reviewed the current market price for commercial space and the staffrecommendation. The RFP would be very broad to allow bidders to propose what was in their best interest, including compatibility with the location and rate, with $2.50 being the preferred rate. Council had been given a schedule of existing rates from the Downtown area, but the information did not include other terms between the tenants and owners. A letter had been received from Greyhound requesting designation of the space adjacent to the lobby area as "Greyhound agent only" but staff was concerned that it could diminish the marketability of the remaining areas. Anyone interested in being the Greyhound agent could present such a bid and work out the details with Greyhound after the bid award. The lease for Greyhound service was with the agent and not Greyhound. Greyhound did not pay rent and had not for several years. Ms. OIsen then reviewed the philosophy of charging the market rate. It was estimated that $40,000-$45,000 in General Funds would have to be spent during the current year to address safety issues. Ms. Olsen then read a letter Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 2 submitted by Paul Branson, Greyhound representative (a copy on file) outlining their perspective on providing service to the Town. They had two objectives; i.e. to see a tenant approved quickly and establish a long-term policy to more quickly replace a Greyhound agent in the future. Councilmember Schneider stated that the Council was not equipped with the cap rates, gross rent multipliers, vacancy factors, etc. to determine true rents. She was not comfortable in determining a fixed rant, but would be comfortable in determining a broadly defined gray area, i.e. a range. Mr. Wright replied that was one of the masons staffwas recommending an RFP which would provide a range and let the market tell the Town what it was willing to bear as far as rates and term. Councilmember Schneider questioned if the Town would accept proposals that did not include Greyhound service. Ms. Olsen replied that staff would review all proposals. Councilmember Schneider stated that if Greyhound wanted the space they might have to consider leasing it themselves. Councilmember Schneider stated as a citizen she voted in favor of the Town Charter primarily due to not having to be held to prevailing wages, as well as other benefits. She did not want to be in a position where the Town was competing with other commercial landlords Downtown. The Town needed to be sensitive as a landlord and she cautioned the Council in using the depot as a soume of income. Councilmember Drake stated he also supported the Charter mainly due to the prevailing wage. When the area was leased to the Chamber at $1.50 a square foot it was for on-going maintenance and not deferred maintenance. He did not feel it was philosophically fair to pass on the deferred costs to a new tenant. The Council agreed to take the depot and he still felt that was a good decision but when the Town took the building they knew them were problems. The deferred maintenance should be a Town expense. Mr. Wright stated that the issue of competition Downtown was a valid issue. The other issue was whether tenants in the depot would be in competition with tenants across street and, if not charging market rent, the Town would be subsidizing them which allowed them to be more competitive than those businesses across the street. Councilmember Florian questioned how the tickets were being handled at the present time and if package service was available. Ms. Olsen replied that they were being sold on the bus and she was unsure as to whether package service was currently available. Councilmember Florian stated he would like to see the ridership numbers with and without an agent to see if them was an impact. Ms. Olsen stated it was her understanding, based on conversations with the past agent (ATM) and the Chamber, that the ridership was approximately 60 per day, but the activities were more related to scheduling rather than actual revenue activities. Former agents due to space constraints had not actively pursued freight. Councilmember McCormack did not feel the Town should charge a given figure in order to recover the deferred maintenance, but charging the market rate could help to cover those costs. When the area was rented to the Chamber/Visitor Center; Council felt they were bearing some of the cost, as part of the Visitor's Center was also a Town function. He questioned if the travel agent was interested in serving Greyhound. Ms. Olsan stated that they would be asked but she was not sure if they were interested. Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 3 Councilmember Schneider stated another issue was the philosophy of the intermodal depot itself. She felt it was appropriate to continue the depot as a central place for travelers to obtain information on Truckee, as well as arrive and depart. She also felt it was sensible to advocate for Greyhound or any other transportation agency. Mayor Susman stated that in light of the Chamber's numbers and qualifications made by staff regarding the existing tenant accepting a market rate of $2.25, he felt that set the tone and was a good indication of what a viable business would pay. He liked the idea of honoring the long-term tenant and then open up the remaining area to an RFP to see what the market could bear. An RFP did not preclude or exclude a Greyhound agent. Historical correspondence showed that Greyhound wanted to be in the space but did not want to make a commitment for it. Councilmember McCormack agreed with Mayor Susman. He preferred not to tie the RFP to Greyhound, but for all of the space other than the area occupied by the travel agent. Rich Griese, Truckee, stated that it seemed to him that Greyhound wanted to remain at the depot and that the Town could get them to sign the lease if the area was designated for Greyhound. He had offered to continue the Greyhound service, at the existing level, until the Town decided what they wanted to do. If commercial space was available he was willing to bid for it, as well as act as the Greyhound agent. Councilmember McCormack stated that Mr. Griese's comments were counter to Greyhound's policy regarding leasing of space. Mr. Griese added that the goal stated by the Town was to get the market rate and not necessarily to keep Greyhound there. They were under the assumption that one of the goals historically was to keep Greyhound at the depot. Mayor Susman agreed that it was counter to all information presented to the Council by Greyhound. There had been several agents for Greyhound over the last several years that had folded and it was his perspective that it was due to the lack of commitment and support by Greyhound. Greyhound wanted a company that could exist without them. It was his understanding that Greyhound would continue to operate in the depot for drop offand pick up no matter where they sold the tickets. Mr. Wright stated that in order to avoid speculation, staff was recommending an RFP which would allow the Council to make that policy decision. Mr. Griese stated that Greyhound indicated that if the Town closed or moved Greyhound that they were not sure they would continue the Truckee depot stop. Ms. Olsen stated that staff would negotiate with the travel agency first. She recommended that Council allow 30-45 days to receive responses to the RFP. Motion by Councilmember McCormack to authorize staff to negotiate with Truckee Travel for renewal of their lease in the $2.00-$2.75 range and, dependent upon their response, issue an RFP for all of the space in that same market rate range, Seconded by Councilmember Schneider, approved unanimously. Council recessed at 7:07 p.m. and reconvened at 7:13 p.m. 7.2 Transfer of Cable Television Franchise Ownership. Recommendation: Council provide direction as desired. Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 4 Mr. Wright stated that staff and the Town Attorney had been working with the existing cable company regarding the request to transfer ownership to USA Media Group. The existing franchise allowed the transfer and the cable consultant had found that the information presented to date was adequate. The resolution had been modified to include a reservation of rights clause. An outstanding issue before Council was related to a potential under-payment of the franchise fees which would require additional analysis and would be determined through an audit. Weststar had agreed to provide a financial mechanism for those funds if the audit concluded that the franchise fees were underpaid. Mr. Crabb stated the consultant's estimate of underpayment was $15,000 and the Town had arranged for a $25,000 bank escrow account by Weststar for 120 days which would allow time for the audit to be completed. The audit would be conducted by the Town's consultant under the terms of the Baltimore Decision and covered by the $1,000 included in the resolution. He then reviewed the changes made to Exhibit A of the resolution. The resolution would not go into effect until the security arrangements were completed. Councilmember McCormack stated the term "good will" was no longer included in Paragraph 6 of the Exhibit. Mr. Crabb replied that the Cable Act dealt with goodwill negotiations. Mr. Wright stated that franchise negotiations were also underway. A three-day negotiating session had been set to try and conclude negotiations by the middle of February. The franchise ordinance was generic and it was anticipated, if the negotiations went well, that the first reading would be on February 4th and the second reading would be on February 18th. The franchise was non-exclusive which would accommodate anyone. Alan Harry, representing Weststar, commended the Town Manager and Town Attorney for their efforts. He was positive they could get the franchise agreement back to the Council by the next meeting. Weststar had agreed to the audit and did not believe there had been an underpayment, but with any transfer or renewal of franchise there was always an audit of that type. He would be representing both Weststar and USA 1 until the deal was finalized within the next 30-45 days. Councilmember Schneider stated that it would be difficult for her to make all three days of negotiations and questioned if the Council wanted to appoint an alternate. Mr. Wright stated he and cable consultant would be at all sessions and the Council role was oversight. Councilmember Drake stated he would also be attending all the sessions. Councilmember McCormack stated he did not feel it would be worthwhile for others to sit in because they did not have the background. Councilmember Drake stated it was a very complex issue and the Council had made a correct decision in hiring a consultant. He also commended the new owners for working with the Town. He and Councilmember Schneider had contacted citizens they knew that might be interested in the technical information and had held an informal meeting. Motion by Councilmember Drake to adopt Resolution 99-02, as amended, conditioned upon the Town Manager's and Town Attorney's approval of the security arrangements, Seconded by Counciimember McCormack, approved unanimously. 7.3 SR 267/SR 89 Relinquishment to Town by Caltrans. Recommendation: Council provide direction as desired. Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 5 Dan Wilkins, Town Engineer, stated Caltrans approached the Town to take over long-term maintenance of SR 267/SR 89 after the by-pass project was completed. It was Caltran's position to require that the agreement be in place before building the by-pass. Funding would be required to bring the roadway up to the Town standards and those funds would be included in the funding request for the by-pass. Caltrans was interested in coming to terms with the technical criteria for Town acceptance. The Town could take the roadway and money or require that Caltrans fix the deficiencies before taking over the roadway. Conversations were positive regarding negotiations. Mayor Susman noted that the consultant suggested it could take $4 million to bring the roadway up to standards and that the Town had a road policy regarding acceptance that required it to be revenue neutral. He would like to see the Town in a position of using that to start doing something regarding the ramp issues on the by-pass. He felt Caltrans was using the agreement in exchange for the actions taken by the Town regarding the ramps. Councilmember McCormack shared the Mayor's concerns regarding Caltrans, but he did not feel the Town should tie the ramps to the relinquishment agreement. If the Town did not sign the relinquishment agreement Caltrans would not ask for the by-pass funding. If the Town and Caltrans could agree on technical terms regarding the deficiencies and, Caltrans stated they would take care of it, he felt they would really do it. It was a big step forward. He expressed his concern regarding the issue of timing. Mr. Wilkins replied that staff had been informed that in order for Caltrans to get the money for the by-pass, it had to be allocated by the CTC. Therefore, they had to get their funding application to the CTC one-month in advance. Caltrans did not expect to request funding until the Mamh CTC meeting. If the Town was able to sign the relinquishment agreement by February 22nd it would not impact their timeline. Councilmember McCormack did not feel the Town could let anything delay the by-pass. Councilmember Schneider stated that the one issue the Town dealt with since incorporation was roads and she was pleased regarding the work done with Caltrans, but she felt what they were doing was tantamount to extortion and that was unacceptable. The Town knew that there would be no increased revenue in taking in the roadways, it would be a cost to the Town and may be a cost worth bearing, but the holding of the Town hostage was absurd. She appreciated the amount of staffwork. Councilmember Drake felt the by-pass project was coming to the end and agreed with Councilmember McCormack. There had been a lot of pressure put on Caltrans and Ed Sylvester was the new CTC Chair, Mayor Susman had contacted the new Director of Caltrans at the League meeting, and Mr. Wright met with Assemblyman Aanestad and Senator Leslie which he felt was very positive. It was a long and frustrating process but he felt the message from Heidi Sykes, the Project Manager, was encouraging and that it was coming together. A lot of the credit was due to the efforts of Dan Wfik~ns. Councilmember Florian agreed with Councilmember Drake's comments. The position the Town was in six months ago and the position they were in at the present time was a light year of difference. Mayor Susman stated that he wished he could share their optimism. When looking at the correspondence to the Town, Caltrans had not committed their dialogues in writing. Caltrans originally had a drop-dead date of 1/19/99 or they could not go to CTC for funding and now they could go in March. Correspondence received from Caltrans dated 1/11/99, stated construction would be starting in June and yet they had not gone to the CTC for fimding. He also credited any forward movement to Dan Wilkins. He requested that someone from Town staffor Council attend the March CTC meeting. He felt Caltrans was just paying the Town back, he also felt there was a direct link Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 6 to the ramps and the potential jeopardy of the by-pass. He also felt Caltrans was putting the burden on the Town. Juanita Schneider, Donner Lake, agreed with Mayor Susman that it was always best to get it in writing. 7.4 Draft Development Code Review Process. Recommendation: Council set two special workshops to review the Planning Commission's recommendations on the draft Development Code. Tony Lashbrook, Director of Community Development, stated that the Planning Commission had completed their review of the draft Development Code. The public hearing draft would be prepared based upon Council direction. Stuff recommended that the Council hold two workshops with the focus being on the review of the Planning Commission changes. It was anticipated that the Town would publish a public hearing draft and hold formal public hearings before the Planning Commission and then the Council in late spring at the earliest. It was the consensus of the Council to hold special meetings on March 8th and 9th at 6:00 p.m. STAFF REPORTS 8.1 Authorization to Purchase Used Snow Blower. Recommendation: Council authorize the Public Works Director to purchase a Model MP-3D Rotary Snow Blower in the amount of $82,336.13. Tom Covey, Director of Public Works, reviewed the budget, timeline, and the present and projected levels of service. Councilmember McCormack stated that staff had budgeted $300,000 for one unit and that the Council was far from committed in spending that amount on one piece of equipment. He commended stuff on their innovation in purchasing two pieces of equipment for under that amount which resulted in twice the level of service. He felt it was the right tool for the right job. Motion by Councilmember McCormack to authorize the Public Works Director to purchase a Model MP-3D Rotary Snow Blower in the amount of $82,336.13, Seconded by Councilmember Drake, approved unanimously. 8.2 Resolution to the Governor of California Expressing Concern with Status of TROA EIR and the Negotiation Process. Recommendation: Council adopt Resolution 99-03 and direct the Mayor to transmit to the Governor and other appropriate State representatives. Tony Lashbrook, Director of Community Development, gave a summary of the Truckee River Basin Water Group (TRWBG) concems regarding the draft EIR and TROA, as well as a brief history of the operating agreement. The TRWBG felt the underpinnings of EIR/EIS were flawed and that the EIR/EIS analysis was inadequate, as well as concern regarding the impacts on the current and future operation of the Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency Sewer plan. Therefore, staffwas requesting that Council adopt the resolution requesting that the Governor of California not sign the TROA until all concerns had been addressed. Mayor Susman stuted the entire Truckee-Tahoe basin area owed Mr. Lashbmok and Kathleen Eagan a great deal of respect for their work on the TROA as it was an extremely technical issue. Everyone Town of Truekee January21,1999 Regular Page 7 was affected throughout the region as the TROA replaced a 100-year water pact, and was a forever agreement. Once signed there was no structure for review or revision. Councilmember McCormack also thanked Kathleen Eagan and Dan Wilkins. Mr. Lashbrook noted that the Regional Council of Rural Counties had unanimously recommended approval of the resolution and TRBWG had also requested assistance from their environmental attorney, which they agreed to. Nevada County had also supported the resolution. Councilmember Schneider questioned if CEQA action was a potential on the EIR. Mr. Lashbmok replied that the draft EIR had been published, the comment period expired, comments had been submitted, and from that point nothing had happened. The next step should have been responses to comments and then the release of a final EIR. That document would then be used as a decision making tool by the State to understand the implications of the TROA prior to signature. Staff did not know what the program was for responses, whether they were going to do additional technical work, how they would deal with the model questions, etc. Motion by Councilmember Drake to adopt Resolution 99-03 and direct the Mayor to transmit to the Governor and other appropriate State representatives, Seconded by Councilmember McCormack, passed unanimously. 8.3 Highway 267 By-Pass Status Report (Oral Report). Recommendation: Council provide direction. Dan Wilkins, Town Engineer, stated that a meeting was held with Sacramento FHWA and at that meeting it was agreed that the Town would look at the westbound on-ramp design and Caltrans would look at the eastbound off-ramp design. Town staff, in conjunction with the consultant, designed a westbound on-ramp design that was workable. Heidi Sykes, Project Manager, indicated that if the Town developed an acceptable westbound design that met Caltrans and FHWA requirements, Caltrans would be willing to construct the off-ramp in a similar fashion as to what the Town had originally proposed. It appeared that the Town was close to having approval of a technical design that would maintain the eastbound off-ramp and westbound on-ramp. Staff submitted the on-ramp design to Caltrans two days ago and expected Caltrans to provide the Town with the revised off-ramp design within the next week. COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS: 9.1 Appointment of Craig F. Threshie to Planning Commission (Councilmember Schneider). Councihnember Schneider announced that Mr. Threshie had been sworn in on 01/12/99 to the Planning Commission. 9.2 Glenshire Speeding. Councilmember Florian stated that as a measure to curtail speeding, the Glenshire Board had developed a community program which included bumper stickers encouraging drivers to slow down. The Public Works Department was currently researching the program for possible implementation within the Town. Councilmember Schneider reminded the public that there was a speed limit reduction to 25 MPH between the roundabout and Gateway. 9.3 TEA Grant Funds. Councilmember Drake announced that Nevada County received $4 million that had not been previously anticipated. That would result in Truckee receiving an additional $459,203 which could be used for local paving (to be spent by 2001), 9.4 FPPC Ruling. Mr. Crabb requested that the Council notify him prior to any meeting in which they felt they might have a potential conflict of interest. The FPPC had issued a stricter ruling on disclosure. Town of Trackee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 8 10. 11. 9.5 League of California Cities Meeting. Mr. Wright stated that at the annual League meeting the Mayor had met with the new Director of Caltrans and staff and Council also met with Assemblyman Aanestad and Senator Leslie. Because of that contact, Assemblyman Aanestad's office had called him and advised him of the Southwest Gas item on the CPUC agenda. Staffwas then able to gear up and make additional contacts with the CPUC and Senator Leslie's office. Staff had since been notified that the CPUC took action to deny the request by Southwest Gas for a rehearing. CLOSED SESSION to discuss litigation against Nevada County pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9 and a matter of litigation - Southwest Gas vs the Town of Truckee pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9. Council met in Closed Session at 8:46 p.m. and reconvened at 9:02 p.m. No reportable actions were taken. ADJOURNMENT. Mayor Susman adjourned the meeting at 9:02 p.m. by: Respectfully submitted, STEPHEN L. WRIGHT, Town Manager Vi~ki C. Soderquist, CMC,IJ~ty Town Clerk Town of Truckee January 21, 1999 Regular Page 9