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HomeMy Public PortalAbout19930414 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) ()p en Space MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT Meeting 93-08 REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS April 14, 1993 MINUTES I. ROLL CALL President Betsy Crowder called the meeting to order at 7:37 P.M. Members Present: Ginny Babbitt, Betsy Crowder, Wim de Wit, Nonette Hanko, Robert McKibbin, and Pete Siemens. Member Absent: Teena Henshaw. Personnel Present: Craig Britton, Jean Fiddes, Randy Anderson, John Escobar, Malcolm Smith, Stanley Norton, and Deborah Zucker. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Harry Hauessler, 1094 Highland Circle, Los Altos, asked that the physical arrangement of Board and staff during Board meetings be improved so that the audience is able to hear them better. He said that the District should comply with Americans with Disabilities Act requirements so that people with hearing impairments can hear what is being said in Board meetings. III. ADOPTION OF AGENDA B. Crowder stated that the agenda was adopted by Board consensus. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR The following request was made to remove items from the consent calendar: N. Hanko - Approval of Permit to Enter for the United States Geological Survey to Conduct a Seismology Study on Windy Hill Open Space Preserve and Approval of Revised Claims. Motion: R. McKibbin moved that the consent calendar, as revised, including Resolution 93-12, a Resolution of Appreciation Honoring Herbert A. Grench; Approval of the Minutes of March 24, 1993 Board meeting; Approval of License Agreement for Underground Leaching and Drain Field - Kennedy Limekiln Area of Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, and Letter of Support for Federal Funding for Bay Area Ridge Trail Council. G. Babbitt seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. V. BOARD BUSINESS A. Auction of Surplus Real Property at Teague Hill Oven Space Preserve ftpM -93-08) C. Britton stated that no sealed bids had been received, and there was no one was in the audience to bid on the property. He recommended that the Board close the item without a sale. Meeting 93-08 Page 2 P. Siemens suggested that inclusion of contingencies might foster sale of the property. Carol Whittelsey, 180 Fox Hollow Road, Woodside, said that raw land for sale for development in Woodside usually does not sell without a contingency or assurance to the buyer that the land is developable. C. Britton stated that staff would prepare an analysis of the failure of the auction with suggestions for further action in order to improve the salability of properties in the future. B. Approval of Permit to Enter for the United States Geological Survey to Conduct a Seismology Study on Windy Hill QIvn Space Preserve (Report R-93-51) N. Hanko asked if the District would receive a copy of the results of the seismology study. R. Anderson stated that staff would request the report. Motion: R. McKibbin moved that the Board authorize the assistant general manager to sign the permit to enter for the United States Geological Survey to conduct a seismology study on Windy Hill Open Space Preserve. P. Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. Since the Board was ahead of scheduled times listed on the agenda, B. Crowder stated that informational reports would be considered next. VI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS N. Hanko informed the Board that Wallace Stegner passed away. She requested that the Board send a letter of condolence to his Mrs. Stegner and look at the District's Gifts Policy to determine how the District could honor Mr. Stegner. N. Hanko said she met with a San Jose Mercury News editor who would like to meet with Board members to discuss communications between the Board and media representatives. G. Babbitt said she was serving on the advisory council for the Friends of Stevens Creek Trail whose work focused on connecting the Bay Trail through Stevens Creek County Park to the Skyline to Sea Trail. Cupertino resident Beez Jones said that she was on the Stevens Creek Park task force and suggested communication between the two groups. M. Ken stated that the Wall Street Journal published an article about Big Creek Lumber's current struggles with environmental groups. C. Britton stated that the District received a $1500 donation designated for land acquisition. Reporting on his trip to Sacramento earlier in the day, he said that no one in Sacramento was discussingcutting an less than $2.6 billion from local agencies. He said that the Santa Clara g g Y County Open Space Authority was going to sponsor a meeting in Sacramento for all interested agencies to discuss the Landscaping and Lighting Act and that the District would participate unless there was Board objection. No Board member objected. M. Smith said that the District would have a display at the Earth Day event at Stanford University on April 17. Meeting 93-08 Page 3 R. Anderson reported that he attended a San Mateo County Board of Supervisors meeting where they voted four to zero to set aside transfer of development density credits item. He said they could later discuss transfer of credits from rural to urban parcels. J. Escobar reported that there had been five solo injury accidents. He reported on recent rain and storm damage and that said that fallen oak wood debris would not be collected and would not present a higher fire danger for about a year when branches are dry and cured. Carleen Whittelsey commented that she thought vegetation in Bear Gulch presented a hazard and should be cleared. G. Babbitt stated that California Department of Forestry compared the District's practices of maintaining fire breaks with other agencies and rated the District as above the norm. VII. REVISED CLAIMS N. Hanko asked for a detailed description of claim 4045 to Herbert Grench. J. Fiddes stated that the claim was for reimbursement for air fares, meals, and ground transportation for H. Grench and C. Britton for their March 31 trip to Sacramento, expenses associated with March 20 trip to Washington D.C., and March 7 lunch meeting with Robert Overstreet. G. Babbitt questioned claim 4111 to The Steinberg Group, and C. Britton stated it was the final payment to the firm for services rendered in preparing the District's claim against the bonding company. Motion: N. Hanko moved that the Board approve Claims 93-06. R. McKibbin seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. The meeting was recessed for a break at 8:10 p.m. The meeting was reconvened at 8:30 p.m. VIII. BOARD BUSINESS. continued D. Workshop - Process for Filling; General Manager's Position (Report R-93-49) B. Crowder stated that, prior to beginning the workshop, she felt the Board needed to address the possibility raised at the previous meeting that a member of the Board might serve as general manager. She said she did not support a member of the Board serving as g g PPo g general manager and made the following motion. Motion: B. Crowder moved that it be the policy of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District that no member of the Board of Directors or any other person who has served on the board within the past two ears be eligible for appointment to the position of general manager of the Y g PPo Po g g District or to any other staff position or consultant to the District. N. Hanko seconded the motion. Discussion: R. McKibbin and G. Babbitt said that the motion was not appropriate since it had not been presented as a separate agenda item and because it established policy the Board and public should have additional time to consider. N. Hanko and P. Siemens said that they supported motion, noting it protected the District from conflict of interest on the part of a Board member. P. Siemens added that such a policy could be changed in the future if the Board so desired. The motion passed on the following vote: Meeting 93-08 Page 4 Ayes: B. Crowder, W. DeWit, N. Hanko, and P. Siemens. Noes: R. McKibbin and G. Babbitt. B. Crowder introduced Geoff Ball, who facilitated the workshop that included the Board, members of the staff, and members of the public in attendance. Participants discussed the process and the timing for filling the general manager's position, including when various decisions should be made. The participants agreed that the impact of the state budget would influence any final decisions on how and when to fill the position. Fifty characteristics to be sought in a general manager were identified. G. Ball recommended that the list be reviewed, added to, culled, and consolidated at the next workshop. The Board requested that staff issue a press release to generate more public input in the workshop that would be continued at the next regular meeting. The Board directed staff to prepare for a discussion of job functions of the general manager at the next meeting. IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10:50 P.M. Deborah Zucker Secretary