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HomeMy Public PortalAbout19780510 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Meeting 78-11 MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT Regular Meeting Board of Directors M I N U T E S 375 Distel Circle Suite D-1 May 10 , 1978 Los Altos, CA I. ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order by President Turner at 7:30 P .M. Members Present: Richard Bishop, Katherine Duffy, Barbara Green, Nonette Hanko, Edward Shelley, Harry Turner and Daniel Wendin. Personnel Present: Herbert Grench, Jon Olson, Craig Britton, Anne Crosley and Stanley Norton. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. minutes of April 26 , 1973 Motion: E. Shelley moved that approval of the minutes of April 26, 1978 be tabled until the next Board of Directors meeting. B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. III. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS A. Crosley said there were two written communications: one from the staff of the Historical Heritage Commission regarding Picchetti Winery, and another from Mort Levine, President of Suburban Newspaper Publications, Inc. regarding the Fremont Older ranch house. B. Turner stated the consensus that Jon Olson draft a letter to be signed by the President of the Board to the Historical Heri- tage Commission giving them permission to make a survey of the Picchetti Winery complex at no cost to MROSD. H. Turner noted the letter from P. Obluda with staff memos attached to it, and stated he felt no response was needed. The Board concurred. IV. ADOPTION OF AGENDA H. Turner said agenda item No. 9 , Claim for Damages, should have been listed as "New Businesss With Action Requested" . He stated the consensus that the agenda be adopted as corrected. Meeting 78-11 Page two V. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Mort Levine, President of Suburban Newspaper Publications, Inc. , announced the Fremont Older leasehold area and adobe had recently been approved for National Registry Status by the State Historic Resources Commission. He presented his letter of May 9, 1978 and requested that the District consider turning over the master leasehold to the El Camino Trust for Historic Preservation, with the understanding that adequate funding would be provided to the Trust and there would be basically no change in the lease itself. Motion: N. Hanko moved that the letter from Mr. Levine be re- ferred to staff for analysis and recommendation before being acted upon by the Board. R. Bishop seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Dorothy Jennings, 3611 Woodside Road, Woodside, asked if Mr. Levine's request was related to any condition of sale of his newspaper. Mr. Levine replied it did not. She also said she thought the equestrian stile at Saratoga Gap was beautiful and a good idea. VI. OLD BUSINESS WITH ACTION REQUESTED A. Goals Workshop Followup A. Crosley referred to her memorandum (M-78-75) on Goals Workshop Followup dated March 31, 1978, which was postponed from a prior meeting. H. Turner stated the consensus that: a) possible support of proposed legislation providing matching funds for volunteer services be referred to Legislative Committee; b) feasibility of using non-District caretakers on sites, and using trained volunteers to patrol sites be taken care of at the discretion of staff on a site-by-site basis; c) public perceptions of District and its sites (possible survey) be left to the staff to include in an Action Plan if it so chooses. Motion: E. Shelley moved that the subjects of Board members ' roles (making policy, delegating work, auditing District activities) and further Land Management Policy Refine- ments (including publicizing sites, determining levels of use) be slated as two policy items to be considered after June 6th as agenda items for a possible Board/Staff workshop. The motion was seconded by K. Duffy. The motion passed unanimously. Related to this motion, H. Turner requested that staff prepare a brief report of the status quo for current policies and pro- cedures prior to discussing Board members' roles, particularly regarding auditing District activities. Meeting 78-11 Page three The Board agreed with D. Wendin that staff should not begin prep- aration of this report until after June 6th. N. Hanko said she felt procedures for handling communications from the public should be addressed at the same Board/Staff workshop. B. Response to Letter from Anon Forrest Regarding Alternative Community H. Grench introduced his memorandum (M-78-92) dated May 2 , 1978 , regarding a revised Response to Letter from Anon Forrest Regarding Alternative Community. Motion: H. Turner moved that the draft response prepared by staff to the letter from Anon Forrest regarding an alternative community be approved and sent as the Board' s response. R. Bishop seconded the notion. H. Turner then amended his motion to state the response would be signed by the General Manager. R. Bishop agreed to the amendment. Discussion: Marc Schneider, 1759 Woodside Road, Redwood City, asked what enclosures would be sent with the letter. H. Grench replied the intention was to send the court documents that were attached to R. Bishop' s response to Purusha Obluda plus the Basic Policy brochure of the District. N. Hanko indicated she would abstain from voting since she was absent during discussion of the item at the last meeting. The motion passed on the following vote: Ayes - D. Wendin, K. Duffy, R. Bishop, B. Green, H. Turner and E. Shelley; Abstain - N. Hanko. C. Procedures Regarding Concession and Other Use Proposals E. Shelley referred to the May 3, 1973 memorandum (M-78-96) from the Committee on Land and Facility Use (K. Duffy, E. Shelley and N. Hanko) and read the Committee' s recommendations for Procedures Regarding Concession and Other Use Proposals. Robert Mark, 725 Cowper, Palo Alto, suggested that the following words be added to item No. 1, under "Policies" , attachment No. 1 of memorandum M-78-96: "and is consistent with the protection of natural and cultural resources. " He also suggested a fifth item be added: "A permit or contract shall constitute a project for the purpose of the California Environmental Quality Act. " Motion: N. Hanko moved to amend attachment No. 1 of memorandum 11-78-96, item NO. 1, to read: "A finding be made by the Board at the time a permit is approved that such use is in the public interest and is consistent with the protection of natural and cultural resources. " H. Turner seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. H. Turner stated the consensus of the Board that Mr. dark' s second suggestion be referred to the Committee on Land and Facility Use for futher study and recommendation. Meeting 78-11 Page four Motion: E. Shelley moved that the Board adopt the proposed Con- cessionary Use Policies to cover Policies on Concessions on District Lands recommended in attachment No. 1 of memorandum M-78-96, with adopted amendments, and with the following changes: Change the second "and" to "or" in the Policies preamble; add "and policies regarding improvements on District lands" after the word "Policy" in the Policies preamble; change "will contain provision for control of any unjust enrichment of the user. " to "will contain provisions limiting the user to reasonable profits. " in item No. 4 , under "Policies" . B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unani- mously. D. Wendin said that while he agreed with the committee concept, he felt it would be a mistake to make this a standing committee, as there would be a substantial workload. He suggested that the President be authorized to appoint an ad hoc committee as neces- sary to review proposals following the procedures outlined in this attachment. E. Shelley responded that the purpose of a standing committee was to streamline procedures, lessen time delay, and provide more direc- tion to staff. H. Turner stated the consensus that Step 2 (b) , Attachment No. 2, memorandum M-78-96, be amended to read: "referred to Board with specific action requested, which may include appointment of an ad hoc committee" . At R. Mark' s suggestion, E. Shelley recommended Step 1 of Attach- ment No. 2 be amended to add "including the possible need for an environmental impact study. " after the word "proposal" in the first sentence. H. Turner stated the consensus to adopt the pro- posed amendment. D. Wendin suggested the title of Attachment No. 2 be changed to: "PROCEDURE FOR REVIEWI14G PROPOSALS FOR USE OF MROSD LANDS AND FACILITIES NOT OTHERWISE APPROVED IN ADOPTED LAND AND USE MANAGE- MENT PLANS" . Motion: H. Turner moved that the recommendation to adopt Attach- ment No. 2 , made by the Committee on Land and Facility Use in memorandum M-78-96 be sent back to the Committee for the purpose of providing a preamble and considering title revision. B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Meeting 78-11 Page five Motion: D. Wendin moved that the President be authorized to appoint an ad hoc Use Review Committee, operating under the procedures outlined in attachment No. 3 of memorandum M-78-96, to review the pending proposals on Rancho San Antonio, Picchetti, and Fremont older Open Space Preserves. K. Duffy seconded the motion. Amendment: D. Wendin moved to amend his motion to replace the words "an ad hoc" with "a standing" . H. Turner seconded the motion. The amendment passed on the following vote: Ayes - H. Turner, N. Hanko, K. Duffy, R. Bishop, E. Shelley and B. Green; No D. Wendin. The amended motion passed unanimously. Motion: H Turner moved that the existing "Land and Facility Use Committee" be directed to combine present Board Policies on the use of District properties into a single standardized and integrated use policy. (This is recom- mendation No. 5 of 14-78-96) . R. Bishop seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. H. Turner declared a ten-minute recess at 9: 10 p.m. to consult with members of the Board before making appointments to serve on the new standing Use Review Committee. H. Turner reconvened the meeting at 9 :20 p.m. and stated that the workload for the new committee was imposing enough that it was dif- ficult to recruit Board members to serve on it. Motion: R. Bishop moved to reconsider the motion under which the standing Use Review Committee was created. E. Shelley seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Motion: D. Wendin moved to amend the motion being reconsidered by replacing the words "a standing Use Review Committee" with "three separate ad hoc Use Review Committees" . E. Shelley seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. The amended motion (moved by D. Wendin, seconded by K. Duffy) as restated provides that the President be author- ized to appoint three separate ad hoc Use Review Committees, operating under the procedures outlined in attachment No. 3 of memorandum M-78-96, to review the pending proposals on Rancho San Antonio, Picchetti, and Fremont Older Open Space Preserves. The amended motion passed unanimously. E. Shelley said this did not necessarily preclude the creation of a standing Use Review Committee in the future. D. Wendin made a procedural point that staff would initiate work on these issues by referring the proposals to the ad hoc committees for review. Motion: H. Turner moved approval of the following nominations to the three ad hoc Use Review Committees: Meeting 78-11 Page six Rancho San Antonio: E. Shelley, D. Wendin, B. Green Picchetti: H. Turner, R. Bishop, K. Duffy Fremont Older: K. Duffy, N. Hanko, D. Wendin VII. NEW BUSINESS WITH ACTION REQUESTED A. Progress Report on Use and Management of Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve J. Olson introduced his report (R-78-17) dated May 4 , 1978, regard- ing the Progress Report on Use and Management of Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve. R. Mark said he hoped the District would provide alternatives before posting "No Parking" signs. J. Olson replied the signs were intended to be placed on the inside of the site after the bridge crossing, with plans to redesign the turn-around area. B. Green commented that no action should be taken on recommenda- tion Cl until after June 6th. J. Olson amended recommendation El by adding the following sen- tence: "In addition, the District may enter into a caretaking agreement with the Duvenecks for caretaking of the camping area, total cost not to exceed $3 ,000.1' N. Hanko expressed concern that the area was difficult to find and she questioned whether or not adequate signs were posted. J. Olson replied the site had been deemphasized due to the narrow road, limited parking, and steep climb, but that a brochure was available giving clear directions to the site. H. Grench pointed out that the entrance to Windmill Pasture still belonged to the Duvenecks and the District had an agreement with them for access. In response to a question from D. Jennings, J. Olson said the $3 , 000 would be the limit of MROSDIs contract with the Duvenecks to provide management of group camping and also provide a pres- ence in the area. Motion: B. Green moved adoption of the recommendations contained in the Land Manager' s report (R-78-17) for the Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve, as amended. K. Duffy seconded the motion. B. Green amended her motion, with K. Duffy agreeing to change the wording in recommendation D2 from "adequate patrol" to "adequate emergency patrol" . The amended motion passed unani- mously. B. Progress Report on Use and Management of Foothills Open Space Preserve Notion: N. Hanko moved continuation of this agenda item to the next meeting. D. Wendin seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Meeting 78-11 Page seven C. Discussion of District Ordinance Regarding Dogs J. Olson referred to his May 4, 1978 memorandum (14-78-94) regard- ing a Discussion of District Ordinance Regarding Dogs and recom- mended that the Board appoint a committee to study the question of whether dogs should or should not be allowed on District lands, and report back to the full Board when the study is completed. In addition, he recommended that representation on the committee should reflect the full range of opinion on the issue. Motion: E. Shelley moved adoption of staff' s recommendation. R. Bishop seconded the motion. Discussion: Betsy Crowder, 133 Mapache, Portola Valley, stated there was nowhere one could take dogs, which are prohibited on beaches, in State parks, and in county parks. She said she recognized some of the problems dogs could create, but felt there were many well-mannered dogs and thought some provision could be made to allow them on the preserves. David Tyack, 926 Cottrell Way, Stanford, said he was in favor of a committee to review this complex issue. He pointed out that most of the lands were once ranches which probably had dogs on them. He said he felt it was not really a total change in the ecology to have a few dogs walking on the land. He added there were many al- ternative steps between totally unregulated permission for dogs and total prohibition ordinances and urged the committee to look at regulations in Oregon, Canada, England, and in National Forests where dogs are permitted. He said San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties were rather unusual in their prohibition rules. He also urged the committee to look at the practices as well as the ordi- nances in the East Bay, citing Tilden Park with its dog run and Sunol Park where dogs are permitted under voice and/or leash control. He suggested that Rancho San An- tonio was probably not a good place to permit dogs, but less heavily used, more remote areas with wide trails might be OK. He cited the road trail from Stevens Creek to Saratoga Gap as a possibility. Geri Albers, 725 Arbor, Menlo Park, said she appreciated the difficulty in finding places to walk dogs, but felt that with the increased usage of District properties, many other problems involving protection of the environ- ment were likely to come up, and she did not feel the issue regarding dogs should be a top priority issue. N. Hanko asked if the intent was to allow dog owners in the community to address the committee on this issue. J. Olson replied that would be an option of the committee. Ms. Hanko strongly urged that the committee hold night meetings open to the public and that those members of the public who have written to the District on this regard be notified of this current study. The motion passed unani- mously. Meeting 78-11 Page eight H. Turner stated the Board' s approval of the following nominations to the committee: B. Green, R. Bishop, K. Duffy. R. Bishop stated the understanding that the committee meetings would be held at night. D. Experimentation with Agenda order and Categories H. Turner introduced his memorandum (M-73-86) dated April 19, 1978 regarding Experimentation with Agenda Order and Categories. Motion: D. Wendin moved approval of H. Turner' s request to allow him to work with the General Manager in experimenting with other agenda orders and categories over the next two or three meetings. N. Hanko seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. E. Proposed Palo Alto Rezoning of District Lands N. Hank presented her report (M-78-100) dated May 8, 1973, regard- ing Proposed Palo Alto Rezoning of District Lands and asked for support of her recommendation in the form of a letter sent im- mediately to the Palo Alto Planning Commission from the President of the Board. Motion: R. Bishop moved that the draft letter prepared by N. Hanko to be signed by the President be sent to the Palo Alto Planning Commission to support the retention of the OS Open Space designation for Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District lands in Palo Alto, since the purposes of the OS District are compatible and better describe the intended public uses than the PF Public Facilities designation. B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. E. Shelley suggested that another letter was also in order asking why the District was not given more notice on matters impacting them. F. Claim for Damages (Greg Estes) S. Norton introduced his memorandum (M-78-99) dated May 5, 1978, regarding a Claim for Damages from Greg Estes. H. Turner expressed the Board' s need for an executive session to receive S. Norton' s report before discussing this matter in public session. Motion: R. Bishop moved continuation of this agenda item to the next meeting. B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. VIII. NEW BUSINESS WITH NO ACTION REQUESTED A. Budget Transfers H. Turner acknowledged the Board' s receipt of the Land Manager' s Meeting 78-11 Page nine report (M-78-97) dated May 4, 1978, regarding possible Budget Transfers. D. Wendin asked that the minutes reflect the Board' s understand- ing that there were no budget increases implied in the transfer of items among categories. J. Olson noted the transfers might represent possible utilization of contingency funds, but the staff would have to return to the Board for action on that. He added that there was no action requested from the Board at this time. IX. INFOP14ATIONAL REPORTS A. Report from H. Grench Regarding Propositions 8 and 13 H. Grench reported he had attended a meeting, sponsored by the Municipal Finance Officers Association and other organizations such as the California Parks and Recreation Society, for the pur- pose of discussing SB 1 and Proposition 8 , and Proposition 13. He said it was mainly a technical discussion on the way in which Proposition 8 would be implemented. He noted with SB 1 and Propo- sition 3 the District could expect a revenue increase of 70 over this past year even though assessed valuation may go up by 15% within the District. He said this 7% increase would not keep up with the cost of the land the District is buying. He said some of the meeting time was also spent going over the possible effects of Proposition 13, but that no conclusions were reached since the Proposition is so vague and difficult to understand. He said it was possible that the District would have to go out of business if Proposition 13 were passed. He noted that one guess as to what might happen if Proposition 13 passed would be that the legislators would pass decision-making problems on to the boards of supervisors. It was also suggested that the constitutionality of Proposition 13 could and probably would be challenged. B. Report on Sempervirens Anniversary Celebration C. Britton reported he had attended the 50th anniversary cele- bration of the Sempervirens Fund held at the Marriott Hotel on May 6th. He said the presentations were good and there were many representatives from other public agencies present. He suggested that Board members may want to attend these functions, perhaps on a rotating basis. C. Report on Letter from Fair Political Practices Commission S. Norton referred to the May 2, 1978, letter from the FPPC which included their proposed MROSD disclosure categories. He said that as a result of subsequent conversation with Mr. Dickerson, a revised draft would be sent to the District which would show that staff would be required to list real estate interest only Meeting 78-11 Page ten within the District' s land planning acquisition area (as opposed to throughout the State) . Mr. Norton said his position with the FPPC thus far has been that the District has no objection with what they are doing. D. CPRS Conference B. Green expressed her desire to attend this year' s CPRS Legis- lative Conference and asked for reimbursement from the Board for her expenses, excluding lodging. H. Turner stated the Board' s consensus to approve funds for reim- bursement of B. Green' s expenses in attending the CPRS Conference, excluding lodging. X. CLAIMS Motion: D. Wendin moved approval of the revised claims (C-73-9) dated May 10, 1978, as presented. E. Shelley seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously, with N. Hanko abstaining on item No. 880. XI. EXECUTIVE SESSION The Board recessed to Executive Session at 10 : 50 P.M. to discuss land negotiations. XII* ADJOURNMENT The Board reconvened to adjourn at 11: 55 P.M. Janice Diane Recording Secretary JD:nw