HomeMy Public PortalAbout19800910 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Y -.ing 80-19
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MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT
375 DISTEL CIRCLE,SUITE D-1,LOS ALTOS,CALIFORNIA 94022
(415) 965-4717
Regular Meeting
Board of Directors
M I N U T E S
September 10 , 1980
I. ROLL CALL
The meeting was called to order by President Barbara Green at 7 :31 P.M.
Members Present: Katherine Duffy, Daniel Wendin, Barbara Green,
Edward Shelley, Nonette Hanko, and Richard Bishop.
Member Absent: Harry Turner.
Personnel Present: Herbert Grench, Craig Britton, Steven Sessions,
Charlotte MacDonald, Del Woods, Jean Fiddes, and Stanley Norton.
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
A. August 27—, 1980
Motion: N. Hanko moved the adoption of the minutes of August 27 , 1980.
B. Green seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
III. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
J. Fiddes indicated there were no written communications.
IV. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
H. Grench requested the addition of Special Orders of the Day and
an item, Change in Picchetti Lease Parameters, under Old Business with
Action Requested.
B. Green stated the revised agenda was adopted by consensus.
V. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
There were no oral communications.
VI. SPECIAL ORDERS OF THE DAY
Ellie Huggins from the Peninsula Open Space Trust (P.O.S.T) showed
DeWitt Jones ' slideshow featuring P.O.S.T. ' s Windy Hill area.
VII. OLD BUSINESS WITH ACTION REQUESTED
A. Location of Parking Lot at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve
S. Sessions reviewed report R-80-50, dated September 4 , 1980 , re-
garding an alternate location, Area L, for the Monte Bello Open
Space Preserve parking lot. He noted that staff was recommending
that the District proceed with Area G as the location of the
parking lot until a determination was made by the Palo Alto City
Council, and if the Council did not approve Area G, then staff
should return to the Board for approval to locate the parking
lot in Area L. He stated that Area L was on the Monte Bello
side of Page Mill Road,and the entire parking lot, as laid out
at this time, was in San Mateo County, but an expansion of the
proposed 30 car parking area would cross over into Palo Alto and
Santa Clara County jurisdictions. He added that, although Area L' s
visual impacts from Monte Bello Ridge were not favorable, its
location on the Monte Bello side of Page Mill Road and its potential
for good surveillance made it an acceptable location.
Herbert A.Grench,General Manager Board of Directors:Katherine Duffy,Barbara Green,Nonette G.Hanko,Richard S.Bishop,Edward G.Shelley,Harry A.Turner,Daniel G.Wendin
Meeting 80-19 ge Two
E. Shelley asked if plans for a parking lot at location L would
have to be submitted to the Palo Alto Planning Commission.
S. Sessions responded that plans did not have to be submitted to
the Commission .
N. Hanko stated she had previously suggested that the District
follow the course recommended by the Palo Alto Planning Commission
and locate the parking lot in the riding ring area of the Los
Trancos Open Space Preserve. She questioned why a new parking
lot location, which had not been considered previously, was being
discussed.
D. Wendin responded that he still wanted to have the parking lot
located in Area G, but he felt the political realities with the
City of Palo Alto would not allow the District to locate the
parking lot in Area G. He said the parking lot should be on the
Monte Bello side of Page Mill Road,and therefore, he favored
Area L over the riding ring area. He stated his intent to move
later in the discussion that if the Palo Alto City Council did not
approve location G for the parking lot, the Board favored location L,
subject to official adoption by the Board, and he noted it was
not the intent of the Board to have the Monte Bello parking lot
located in the riding ring area.
N. Hanko stated the District should pursue the parking lot plan
recommended by the Palo Alto Planning Commission and noted that
the Planning Commission' s two major objections to Area G, visual
intrusion on a natural scenic area and scarring of an undisturbed
area, were not resolved by -the new proposed location. She said
that,if the District proceeded with the new location for the
parking lot, Palo Alto would conclude that the District was trying
to circumvent the City' s site and design controls. She requested
that staff be directed to prepare a schematic plan for a parking
lot in the riding ring area and submit the plan to the Palo Alto
City Council for consideration and indicate that Area L was sug-
gested as an alternate parking lot location.
D. Wendin stated he would continue to support the Monte Bello
development plan only if the parking lot was located on the
Monte Bello side of Page Mill Road.
Motion: D. Wendin moved that the District withdraw its application
as currently before the City of Palo Alto and direct staff
to prepare an application which has a trail network designed
around lot L and submit as much of the application as
necessary to the City for approval. E. Shelley seconded
the motion.
Discussion: D. Wendin stated his reasons for making the
motion noting that, since the Palo Alto representative on
the Board, N. Hanko, and Mary Gordon did not support location
G, the lot would never be approved by the City of Palo
Alto, and because of limited staff time, the District should
proceed with the development plan. E. Shelley agreed with
D. Wendin' s assessment of the political reality of the
situation, and K. Duffy stated she could not support locating
a parking lot in the riding ring area or on the McNiel pro-
perty, and therefore favored the alternative location L.
The motion passed by the following vote:
AYES: K. Duffy, D. Wendin, B. Green, E. Shelley, and R. Bishop.
NOES: N. Hanko.
Meeting 80-19 Page Three
B. Change in Picche -i Lease Parameters
S. Sessions MUM Unaz Lne or Picchetti Ranch use pro-
posals which were adopted by the Board on August 27 , 1980 needed to
be changed to indicate that the minimum leasehold area to be consi-
dered would be 5- acres, rather than 40± acres, and that the 60± acres
for possible vineyard land or compatible agricultural use should
be increased to 100± acres. He noted this was a technical correc-
tion in terms of acreage.
Motion: N. Hanko moved that the Board concur with the change to
be made in the parameters for the Picchetti Ranch proposals.
E. Shelley seconded the motion. The motion passed unani-
mously.
S. Sessions reported the District had received good press coverage
on the lease of the Picchetti Ranch area and said staff had received
approximately eight calls from individuals interested in leasing
the area.
VIII . NEW BUSINESS WITH ACTION REQUESTED
A. Renewal of Contract with Coordinator of Volunteer Programs
S. Sessions reviewed memorandum M-80-65, dated September 4 , 1980,
regarding the renewal of an employment agreement with the District' s
Coordinator of Volunteer Programs, Kathy Blackburn. He noted the
only substantive changes from last year' s contract were a change
in the Coordinator ' s title and a flat monthly compensation schedule
of $733. 00 for services rendered.
Motion: E. Shelley moved that the Board authorize the General
Manager to enter into the contract agreement with the
Coordinator of Volunteer Programs for the 1980-1981
fiscal year. K. Duffy seconded the motion.
Discussion: R. Bishop said he was very pleased with the
way K. Blackburn had completed her job during her first
year with the District. H. Grench stated that K. Blackburn
had been unable to attend the evening' s meeting, but would
be reporting to the Board in the near future on the various
volunteer activities during the past fiscal year.
The motion passed unanimously.
B. Date for Program Evaluation Workshop
H. Grench reviewed memorandum M-80-64 , dated August 29 , 1980, and
requested that the Board officially set the date and time for
the Program Evaluation Workshop.
Motion: B. Green moved that the Board schedule the Program
Evaluation Workshop for Saturday, September 20, 1980 from
9: 00 A.M. to 12 :00 P.M. at the District office. D. Wendin
seconded the motion.
Discussion: N. Hanko noted that if there were items intro-
duced at the workshop which needed further discussion, they
could be placed on the agenda of a regular Board meeting.
The motion passed unanimously.
IX. NEW BUSINESS WITH NO ACTION REQUESTED
A. Signing Along Skyline Boulevard
S. sessions reviewed report R-80-49, dated August 28 , 1980, regarding
the types and proliferation of traffic signs along Skyline Boulevard.
He noted that Cal Trans was the agency responsible for signing
along Highway 35, that District staff had been working with Cal Trans
and the Counties of Santa Clara and San Mateo to reduce the number
of signs, to replace some "No Parking" signs with time-restricted
parking signs, and to replace larger "No Parking" signs with
smaller signs, and that Cal Trans had reported that it might take
Meeting 80-19 Page Four
several years to have a sign more aesthetically suited for a scenic
corridor approved by the State. He added that residents along
Skyline Boulevard had successfully lobbied to have the "No Parking"
signs installed and that he did not know if the State had ever
considered the placement of "No Parking" signs on a scenic
corridor highway.
N. Hanko suggested that it might be helpful to refer to the plans
adopted by Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties for the scenic corridor
when discussing the sign issue.
D. Wendin stated he did not feel that it was completely infeasible
for the matter to be addressed quickly at the State level by making
appropriate contacts.
H. Grench suggested the involvement of the District's Legislative
Consultant in Sacramento.
Robert Mark, 725 Cowper, Palo Alto, stated Cal Trans had been
lobbied from only one side to install the "No Parking" signs,
that he felt it would be efficient to work through the District' s
legislative advocate, and that he felt the Sierra Club would
probably support the District in this endeavor.
Motion: D. Wendin moved that staff be directed to make appropriate
contact in Sacramento to determine if the State will at-
tempt to solve the problem of replacement of existing
"No Parking" signs with signs appropriate to a scenic
corridor.
R. Bishop requested that D. Wendin include in his motion that
staff also be directed to work toward a very substantial
reduction of the total number of signs along Skyline
Boulevard and the substitution, if space allowed, of "Limited
Parking" signs for "No Parking" signs.
D. Wendin stated he would not include R. Bishop' s request
in his motion. The motion was not seconded.
Motion: R. Bishop moved that the Board direct staff to work through
appropriate avenues in Sacramento to attempt to obtain a
reduction in the total number of signs along Skyline Boulevard,
to replace "No Parking" signs, where appropriate, with
"Limited Parking" signs stating the hours when people could
park, and to get a better looking sign. N. Hanko seconded
the motion.
Discussion: R. Mark stated he was encouraged by R. Bishop' s
motion and that he felt the District should be involved in
the issue of signing along a scenic corridor. Discussion
centered on the priorities involved in R. Bishop's motion
and to the portions of the scenic corridor involved.
R. Bishop stated the priority for action was : 1) to reduce
the number of signs; 2) to install time-limitation parking
signs where appropriate; and 3) to work toward a sign more
fitting for a scenic corridor. He stated that the area
of concern for the reduction of signs and the new sign design
was the Skylonda to Saratoga Gap portion of the scenic
corridor and that the area of concern for the replacement
of "No Parking" signs with "Limited Parking" signs was
portions of the scenic corridor adjacent to District property.
The motion passed unanimously.
Meeting 80-19 Page Five
R. Bishop stated staff members should use their own discretion on
timing of appropriate action, and D. Wendin requested that staff
report on the matter' s progress in approximately two months.
X. INFORMATIONAI REPORTS
N. Hanko reported on possible gift of land from Cal Trans that
could provide for a bike path between Dumbarton Bridge and Marsh
Road. C. Britton stated he would be meeting with Cal Trans of-
ficials to discuss the gift and related District responsibilities.
S. Sessions stated work was progressing on the construction for
the Rancho San Antonio County Park.
S. Sessions noted staff had not yet received authorization from
Santa Clara County to place a directional sign on Prospect Road
to direct people to the Fremont Older Open Space Preserve.
K. Duffy noted directional signs were needed after the entrance
to the golf course and near the last green, and the Board agreed
by consensus with K. Duffy' s statement that staff should place
two signs in appropriate places to direct members of the public
to the Preserve.
E. Shelley stated he had taken the bus tour, organized by the
Committee for Green Foothills, as a review of the proposed Santa
Clara County General Plan and asked if District representatives
had been asked to comment on the open space element of the plan .
H. Grench responded that he had information on the plan and asked
if any Board members were interested in reviewing the plan. E. Shelley
and N. Hanko volunteered to review the plan, and B. Green appointed
them as an ad hoc committee with the concurrence of the Board.
S. Sessions, in response to a request made by N. Hanko at the
August 27 , 1980 Board meeting during the discussion of the Picchetti
Ranch parameters, reported that a section of barbed wire fence had
been installed at the start of the trail leading from the pull-off
parking area on Stevens Canyon Road just prior to the August 27
meeting to prevent off-road vehicles from entering the property.
He added the fencing was a temporary solution until a hiking stile
was installed.
XI. CLAIMS
Motion: N. Hanko moved the approval of the Revised Claims , C-80-16 ,
dated September 10, 1980. B. Green seconded the motion.
The motion passed unanimously.
XII. EXECUTIVE SESSION
The Board recessed to Executive Session at 9 :00 P.M.
XIII. ADJOURNMENT
The Board reconvened to adjourn at 11:35 P.M.
Jean H. Fiddes
District Clerk
t
1
CORRECTIONS TO MINUTES OFF
I
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
A. September 10, 1980
D. wendin requested that the word "application" in his motion
he ide
a was
ed t 0 "Plan"
since t i
at the bottom of Page Two be Chang P i
to create a trail network plan around parking lot L and submit as
much of the plan as required to the City of Palo Alto.
B. Gree
n st
ated
d thF,, revised minutes of September 10, 1980 were
approved by consensus.
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