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HomeMy Public PortalAbout19970827 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) Regional Open S°- --ce ---------- ------- MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DI5TRI47F Meeting 97.2xl, REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF DIRECTORS August 27, 1997 MINUTES I. ROLL CALL President Mary Davey called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Members Present: Mary Davey, Betsy Crowder, Jed Cyr, David Smernoff, Pete Sieinen , (arrived at 7:32 p.m.), and Nonette Hanko. Members,Absent: Ken Nitz. Personnel Present: Craig Britton, Malcolm Smith, John Escobar, Mary de Beauvieres, Jodi Isaacs, Del Woods, Randy Anderson, Mike Williams, Dave Sanguinetti, and Julie McCullough. 111. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Len Vasquez, 21290 Blue Hills Lane, Saratoga, described events that had taken place at Fremont Older Open Space Preserve, and said he thought drug trafficking was occurring there. J. Escobar said he would contact the Sheriffs office and talk to Mr. Vasquez. C. Britton said staff will.provide a follow-up written informational report at the next meeting. III. SPECIAL ORDER OF DAY J. McCullough introduced Matt Freeman, Planning Technician, who will be primarily responsible for the District's sign program. IV. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: N. Hanko moved that the Board adopt the agenda. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. V. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR N. Hanko removed agenda item 8, Authorization to Solicit Bids for Printing and MkLing-jQt, Appro ;—hally Im.000 S=ial 25th AnniveraaU Newsletters, U46 ok.Z4,Utu sat! Celebrate 25 Years of Open Space Preservation 330 Distel Circle # Los Altos, CA 94022-1404 e Phone:650-69J-1200 , 1972-1997- FAX:650-691-0485 - E-mail:mrosd@openspace.org * Web site:www.openspace.org Hoard of Directors:Pete Siemens,Mary C.Davey,Jed Cyr,David T.Smernoff,Nonette Hanko,Betsy Crowder,Kenneth C.Nitz - General Manager:L.Craig Britton Meeting 97-24 Page 2 Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar, including a reply to a written communication from Mr. Paul Del Fante, 1459 Hampton Drive, Sunnyvale, CA 94087; agenda item 9, Permit to Enter Former Southern Pacific Railroad Right-of-Way at Ravenswood Oren S12ace Preserve. East Palo Alto and Authorization for the General Manner to Execute the Permit to Enter Allowing Rhone-Poulenc. Inc. Access for the Purpose o Testing for Toxic Soil Contamination; agenda item 10, Cancellation o September 10 Meeting; and Revised Claims 97-16. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. VI. BOARD BUSINESS A. Agenda Item No. I - Consideration of a Proposed Realignment of Trail B8 and Reaffirm the Amendment to the Use and Management Plan to Allow Realignment and Construction of Trail B8 at El Corte de Madera Creek Oven S2ace Preserve Following the Original Alignment Flagged by Staff and Adopted by the Board o Directors at the July 9 .1997 Meeting - (RgMrt R-97-132), M. de Beauvieres provided the history of the trail use plan and outlined the terms of a grant related to trail construction. She said the reasons for bringing trails B8 and B10 to the Board separately had to do with two things: 1. Goal of the Task Force to create a perimeter trail which would enable multiple use of the inside perimeter of the Preserve, which this trail does. 2. During discussion of study area and trail use plan, this trail did not appear to be controversial. She showed the area in question and the three alternatives on an overhead. B. Crowder commented on the last two paragraphs on page 2 of the staff report which described trail use standards and methods of trail construction. She said she had great regard for the staff who laid out and constructed the trails. She talked about her history of hiking the trails and said she thought the trails constructed in recent years are well done and of the highest quality. She favored reaffirming the July 9 action. David Smernoff asked if it would affect the grant if alternate 2 were chosen. M. de Beauvieres said the five-year grant term started July 1 and they need to complete the trails that were outlined in the application. M. Davey said she had walked the planned trail and felt it would be an asset to the system. She had seen the alternate alignment and thanked participants. Barry Stevens, 3265 Fair Oaks, Redwood City, representing 300 members of ROW, said there is no question that staff has outlined a beautiful trail. He said the issue is the impact of the proposed alignment on the two trails it intersects. ROMP requests that the District build no trail at this time, convene a task force to study and evaluate all trails in Study Area 2 and put any new trails into the whole plan for that study area, and specifically try for new solutions to the problems with the trails. He said he thought there were ways to solve concerns or get them to conform to the District's standards. He thought it would be appropriate for staff and the Board to work with Meeting 97-24 Page 3 the cycling community to find mutually acceptable and creative compromises. He said he hoped he was asked to serve on that task force. Louis Mendelowitz, 2153 Oberlin St., Palo Alto, said his only objection is that the proposed trail crosses two trails in such a way that could result in a lot of conflict. He said he saw no reason why they cannot keep the same road between points A and B. Fred Stanke, 22873 Longdown Road, Cupertino, thanked the District for the trails and said he used them a lot. He said trails are a matter of opinion and people have widely ranging ideas. He urged them to not build a trail that would impact the use of other trails that are so popular among bikers and to put together the task force to come up with a wide range of trails to meet everyone's needs. Ross Finlayson, Mountain View, said he was mystified to see messages from hikers who felt trails would be closed to hikers. He said ROMP has proposed multi-use trails from the beginning. He said one of the things they want to do in saving the two trails is to have alternative ways of getting to the interior of the park so hikers and equestrians can use the fire roads without having to worry about conflicts with cyclists. He said he had the highest regard for staff and agreed they have built good new trails. He said he was offended by the little regard staff has for the existing trails system. He expressed confidence that staff could build trails that would overcome the concerns about switchbacks. P. Ciesla, Box 3189, Stanford, thanked the Board for allowing this meeting and the on-site meeting. She thanked staff for their help and read from a prepared statement. She said she thought recommendation 2 was excellent and they should not be limited from taking another look at existing trail plan. She quoted from the Trail Plan and said they would like to host a workshop. She said she didn't care if her proposal was modified a little. She said she was speaking for some non-ROMP members. Tom Williams, 400 Davey Glen Road, #4403, Belmont, said he supported Barry's position. He said doing nothing would make more sense than P. Ciesla's realignment. He said he liked the trail staff has proposed but it will create conflict. He defined what he thought the conflicts might be. M. Davey said she did not think there were blind intersections. B. Crowder agreed. J. Escobar said while he did not anticipate conflicts, there would be fine tuning of junctions as they are built. Mary Bernstein, Palo Alto, said she hikes ECDM and said the proposed trail was a pleasant one for hikers. Ernest Breakfield, P. O. Box 390001, Mountain View, thanked the Board for the opportunity to work with them and encouraged a close look at the whole area to get • Meeting 97-24 Page 4 input from people who have become more aware recently. He urged them to not do anything that risks existing trails. Scott Schlachter, 92 Los Gatos-Saratoga Road, Los Gatos, encouraged the Board to choose alternate 2. Pat Gallagher, 863 Elmira Dr., Sunnyvale, thanked the Board and asked them to the make preservation their higher goal. He urged them to reaffirm the approved trail. Bob Indig, 832 Seminole Way, Redwood City, said ECDM is unique and its diversity is an asset. He was concerned that the location of a multi-use trail would cause conflicts and urged further study of trail B8. He expressed support for a trail plan that allowed a variety of preserve users to enjoy the preserve while on a variety of types of trails. He said he supported the alternative that would minimize potential conflict. Cheri Hariri, 101 Club Drive, San Carlos, said she hoped they wouldn't close the harder trails before she mastered them. She said she had seen trails closed to mountain bikers at other parks and hoped the rumors of trail closures at ECDM were not true. Brandon Tomlinson, 1035 Chula Vista, Burlingame, supported no changes to "Nose Break" and "Devil's Staircase" trails. Brian Simon, 3100 Avalon, Palo Alto, said the preserve is unique and very wooded. The District seems to be adding more and more trails, some of which seem redundant. He asked that they consider reusing trails instead of "chopping up" the preserve. Christine Parker, Los Gatos, said she had hiked in the preserve and hoped to bike there. She said she liked to hike there because the trails are challenging and urged them to wait and re-evaluate the area. She did not think the District should cut new trails that intersect others. Charles Jalgunas, 1925 Shoreview, San Mateo, thanked staff and the Board. He said he was drawn to ECDM specifically for its technically challenging single track trails and would hate to see something done that would jeopardize two of his favorite trails. He said there is already a parking lot near the sandstone formations and that would probably be what he would use if he were looking for an easy hike. Akkana Peck, 1994 Newcastle Drive, Los Altos, said she was confused as to what is trying to be accomplished. She hoped they would re-evaluate area 2 as a unit and not rush into anything She urged approval of recommendation 2. Greg Messerian, 1875 Messina Drive, San Jose, expressed preference for recommendation 2. Meeting 97-24 Theresa Sz, 640 Arbor Road, Menlo Park, said she did not see information on the Web on studies as to who is using which trails. She favored postponing doing anything until further study is done. Dave Anderson, 372 A Bush, Mountain View, an avid hiker and mountain biker, expressed strong support for alternative 2 which he thought would result in the best multi-use experience. Keith White, 116 Lu-Ray Drive, Los Gatos, said he was representing himself. He said he appreciated staff and the Board addressing the concerns that had been expressed. He believed something could be done to deal with the maintenance problem of the switchbacks. He said he thought the standard trail alignment was fc if they don't cross the two popular trails. He said the closing of the slide was not addressed. Sandra Wong, Menlo Park, agreed with recommendation 2. She said there will be no problem getting volunteers. Richard Turner, 312 Waverly St., #3, Menlo Park, made the following points. 1. There must be a reason the bicyclists are here. There must be a strong fear that the new trail would potentially be used as an excuse for closure of the steeper trails. 2. Include in alternate 1 a clause that says the existence of these trails or conflict at these intersections will not be used as an excuse to close the popular trails. 3. Put stop signs on the new trails. Harry Haeussler, 1094 Highland Circle, Los Altos, said he was confused. The only objection he had heard is that trails were intersecting. He said bicyclists needed to decide if the wanted a scenic trail or to save time getting from point A to point B. g g Y Po John Escobar cited numbers gathered through the Regional Open Space Plan showi ., that the District is probably the most bicycle-friendly land management organization, in the Bay Area. He said this group has expressed a willingness to help. The District has worked with the bicycling community on 14 events in 11 months and there are five projects scheduled for fall. He said they should not lose sight of thcr commitment and the good working relationship. B. Crowder said the Leaf Trail, built with significant volunteer help is very nice. C. Britton summarized staff's recommendation which was for the Board to re-affirm the Board's previous action. In regard to Alternate 2, he saw it only as delaying and still thought it would be necessary to connect the future parking lot with Sandstone Caves and other areas in the Preserve. In regard to the existing parking lot, it is owned by Caltrans, is full most of the time, and you have to cross Skyline Blvd. to get from there to the preserve. This lot is not seen as a long-term answer to the parking needs at ECDM. He said if they don't go ahead on B8 now, they will loTM season. Staff gave consideration to Alternate 2 and included it for discussion but does not recommend it. i Meeting 97-24 Page 6 Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board reaffirm the amendment to the Use and Management Plan for El Corte de Madera Creek Open Space Preserve to permit realignment and construction of Trail B8 following the original alignment flagged by staff, approved by the Use and Management committee, and adopted by the Board of Directors at their July 9, 1997 meeting. J. Cyr seconded the motion. Discussion: P. Siemens said they need to build a trail for less strenuous use and that is not now available at ECDM. He did not believe construction would imply decisions on existing trails. He did not agree about conflicts at intersections. Regarding tree configuration, staff can work with trees and not put them at risk. He would like to see the District consider designating certain trails to be maintained by another responsible group with District oversight. This needs to be looked at from a policy point of view. D. Smernoff said he was in favor of alternate 2. He thought delaying now does not hurt the District at all. Going forward would hurt the process and alienate a segment of the community. He thought it would help the District to wait. He said he needs more time to evaluate solutions and he thought everyone did. N. Hanko said speakers were persuasive on Alternate 2 but was also persuaded by P. Siemens and C. Britton. She said she did not think multi-use trails are working very well. The District receives many letters from hikers who feel alienated from the land and feel threatened by mountain bicyclists. There is no trail now where hikers can be comfortable while the one proposed by staff accomplishes that. She said she would like to see it hiking only, and is convinced it does not jeopardize mountain biker's use of other trails. She supported staff s two recommendations. She said she would support the additional wording to Alternative 2. C. Britton recommended a change in recommendation 2 to say that the President would appoint the ad hoc committee of the Board. Staff would contact those who might be interested in being on the task force and the Board committee would make the final decision. D. Smernoff said his vote against the motion would not imply that he did not support creation of the ad hoc committee but rather is in favor of waiting on that particular alignment until they can study the entire area as one piece. J. Cyr said staffs proposal is in the context of the entire trail plan which has been a 3-1/2 year process and has included a vast array of public input. After hearing arguments he still believed that this trail (B8), in conjunction with B10, will provide a different experience for that portion of the park and will allow for a wider range of people to access the upper end of the preserve. Meeting 97-24 Page 7 M. Davey thanked everyone for their participation. She said after walking the proposed trail it seemed this is the best alignment. The recommendations state that all remaining trails will remain open until study area 2 is revisited and a final determination is made. She said she would vote for the motion even though she had earlier thought it was best not to proceed. The motion passed 5 to 1 (Director Smernoff voted no),, Motion: P. Siemens moved that the President appoint an ad hoc committee to work with staff and a citizen task force in the formation of the trail use plan for Study Area 2; and that construction of B8 and B10 would not be used to prejudice consideration of other trail alignments. The motion passed 6 to 0. RECESS: 9:10-9:20 P.M. C. Britton announced that B. Crowder, D. Smernoff and J. Cyr volunteered to be on the ad hoc committee. B. Agenda Item No. 2 Review and Comment on the Six Month Summary of Use and Violations on Doe Access Compliance Assessment, Hamms Gulch Trail. Windy Hill_ QWn Space Preserve, Focusing on the Issue of Compliance with Regulations for Doi. Access - (Reyort R-97-124). R. Anderson reviewed the staff report and noted that staff was disappointed with the results. A third of the dogs were off-leash. These were not citations, just observations. C. Britton said staff will provide the statistics for actual violations in the year end activity report. NancyCarter, 237 Canyon Drive Portola Valle said she did not think it was clear Y what the Board wanted on waste control and that laws needed to make sense. She thought there should be an area for dogs off leash as long as they are under control and enforcement people need to use discretion. Harry Haeussler disagreed with the report on dogs off leash. He recommended changing the requirement to say dogs must be on leash or under control. He didn't think dog owners should be required to pick up waste. Discussion followed regarding how the waste was counted and how the regulation requiring owners to pick up waste was worded. I Diane Thompson, 1043 Almanor Ave., Menlo Park, said she had been ticketed for a dog off leash. She said she carries waste bags and thought consideration should be given to those who have well-behaved dogs who are under control. I I I I I Meeting 97-24 Page 8 N. Hanko said the Board had directed the Use and Management Committee to consider whether there could be an area in Windy Hill for off-leash dogs and asked how it had been resolved. R. Anderson said the study was done and the recommendation was that there was not an appropriate place in Windy Hill. There was no direction to look for another site but to wait and see how Pulgas works out. There had been a report a year after Pulgas was opened. He said he would provide Board with that report. In the eight months since the report was issued, they have been at Windy Hill considering the next step which was this additional on-leash trail. He said there had been few complaints as compared to quite a few letters of appreciation. R. Anderson and J. Escobar said they were not aware of complaints at Windy Hill. Dan Bernstein, Peninsula Access for Dogs (PADS), 8098 Cuesta Drive, Box 196, Mountain View, said the survey showed that 4 out of 5 people are following the on- leash rule. He suggested that compliance could be improved with an educational program consisting of three parts: 1. State clearly what the rules are. 2. Express the rationale for the rules. 3. Do not focus on examples of things that have gone wrong because of poor compliance with rules. He said PADS members are fair and reasonable people and will follow rules if they seem reasonable. He said he would put the proposal in writing. Anne Macaulay, 1809 Higdon Ave. #2, Mountain View, said keeping trails clean is just a question of clear signing. She agreed with Harry Haeussler that the majority of dogs off leash have been near their owner and were quickly called. C. Britton said staff would consider the comments made tonight and apply the ideas prior to coming back with a final report. Scott Schlachter spoke of his experience as a biker and said he had yet to have a negative encounter regarding dogs off leash. J. Cyr said he hoped the matter of the scent of a dog affecting where wildlife goes was addressed in staffs report. C. Britton said it is difficult to find empirical data, but Sam McGinnis' report addressed the issue. C. Agenda Item No. 3 - Proposed Addition of Urrere ProM y to Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra Azul Oren Space Preserve: Determination that the Recommended Actions =_Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act: Tentative Adoption of the Preliminary Use and Management Plan. Including Naming the Pro r&M as an Addition to Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra Azul Olen Space Preserve and. Indicate their Intention to Withhold the Propg y from Dedication as Public Q= Space - (Report R-97-M D. Woods described the property and said that in most cases, there were no recorded easements. M. Williams described the terms of the agreement. I Meeting 97-24 Page 9 Regarding a safety inspection of the site, C. Britton said if a parcel is improved staff look more closely for such things as wells and underground tanks. This is undeveloped property so no detailed inspection will be done until after acquisition. Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act as set out in the staff report; adopt Resolution 97-31 a Resolution of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Authorizing Acceptance of Purchase Agreement, Authorizing Officer to Execute Certificate of Acceptance of Grant to District, and Authorizing General Manager to Execute Any and All Other Documents Necessary or Appropriate to Closing of the Transaction (Sierra AzuI Open Space Preserve - Lands of Uffere, Et Al); tentatively adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan recommendations contained in the staff report, including naming the property as an addition to Mt. Umunhum Area of Sierra AzuI Open Space Preserve; and indicate their intention to withhold the property from dedication as public open space at this time. D. Smernoff seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. D. Agenda Item No. 4 - Acceptance of the Proposed Gift of Proper from Richard and Janet Lee and Armar Archbold: Determination that the Recommended Actions are Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act* Tentative Adoption of the Preliminary Use and Management Plan. Including Naming the Proj&M as an Addition to Long Ridge Qpen Space Preserve* and, Indicate their Intention to Dedicate the Property as Public Open Space - (Report R-97-130) D. Woods showed the location of the parcel on the map and noted that while it was open to the public, there were no designated trails M. Williams said the property was a gift to the District. Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board determine that the recommended actions are categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act as set out in the staff report; adopt Resolution 97-32 a Resolution of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Accepting Gift of Real Property and Authorizing Execution of Certificate of Acceptance With Respect Thereto (Long Ridge Open Space Preserve - Lands of Lee/Archbold); tentatively adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan recommendations contained in the staff report, including naming the property as an addition to Long Ridge Open Space Preserve; and indicate their intention to dedicate the property as public open space. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. E. Agenda Item No. 5 - Award of Contract for Landslide RMair Projects at Monte Bello, Long Ridge. and Purisima Open Space Preserves: Authorization for the Meeting 97-24 Page 10 General Manner to Enter Into a Contract for Performance of the Work with the Lowest Responsible Bidder for the Landslide Repair Projects on Stevens Canyon Trail in Monte Bello Oren Space Preserve. School Road in Long Ridge Ql&n Space Preserve. and Upper Purisima Creek Road in Purisima Open Space Preserve (Due to the Accelerated Schedule for this Prqject. Staff will Report on Bid Results of the Bid QMping on Tuesday. August 26 and Final Staff Recommendation at your August 27 Meeting) - (RQQrts R-97-128 and R-97-133) R. Anderson outlined staff's recommendations Motion: N. Hanko moved that the Board authorize the General Manager to enter into a contract with T.K.O. Construction in the amount of$23,100 for the Monte Bello Trail Restoration Project at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve; authorize the General Manager to enter into a contract with T.K.O. Construction in the amount of$18,000 for the School Road Improvements Project at Long Ridge Open Space Preserve; and authorize the General Manager to enter into a contract with T.K.O. Construction in the amount of$37,800 for the Upper Purisima. Road Repairs Project at Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. E. Agenda Item No. 6 - Award of Contract for Construction of the Windy Hill Q= Space Preserve Public Access Improvements: Allow Satterfield and Co.. Ltd. o South San Francisco to Withdraw Their Bid on the Grounds of a Mistake in the Bid, and Release Their Bid Bond of 10% of the Amount Bid: Accept the Base Bid o $217.478 and the Bid Alternate of $33,400 for a Total of $250.878 from Jens Hansen of San Carlos to Complete This Project: and Authorization for the General Manager to Enter Into a Contract for Performance of the Work - (Report R-97-131) M. de Beauvieres presented the staff report. She said the "road age" surface is hard like asphalt but not slick. She said other District lots have been constructed by a subcontractor of Jens Hansen. Motion: B. Crowder moved that the Board allow Satterfield and Co., Ltd. of South San Francisco to withdraw their bid on the Windy Hill Public Access Improvement Project on the grounds of a mistake in the bid, and release their bid bond of 10% of the amount bid; accept the base bid of $217,478.00 and the bid alternate of$33,400.00 for a total of $250,878.00 from Jens Hansen of San Carlos to complete this project. and authorize the General Manager to enter into a contract for performance of the work. P. Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. F. Agenda Item No. 7 - Award of Contract for Road Resurfacing Project at Rancho San Antonio Olen Space Preserve and Authorization for the General Manager to Enter into Contract with the Lowest Responsible Bidder - (Reports R-97-123 and R-97-134) Meeting 97-24 Page 11 J. McCullough presented the staff report. Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board authorize the General Manager to enter into a contract for the road resurfacing project at Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve with Re-New Sealers, Inc. as the lowest responsive bidder, in the amount of$46,740, which includes Add Alternate B, and Add alternate D. D. Smernoff seconded the motiov The motion passed 6 to 0. G. Agenda Item No. 8 - Authorization to Solicit Bids for Printing and Mailing o Approximately 300.000 Special 25th Anniversary Newsletters - (Report R-97-127) M. Smith answered N. Hanko's questions, stating that staff thought the concept of putting out a special mailing for the 25th anniversary should focus on that as a separate event. Discussion followed regarding whether the information on the 25th anniversary should be included in the visitors map. M. Smith said the Legislative, Finance and Public Affairs Committee would be able to see the wording of the brochure. D. Smernoff suggested including a pull-out, 8-1/2 x 11" map with the 25th anniversary information. A note could direct that a detailed map could be obtained from the District on request. P. Siemens and N. Hanko expressed misgivings about spending that much money on a newsletter, versus a visitors map. Harry Haeussler suggested a pullout in the newspaper. M. Smith said they had not found that effective. Motion: P. Siemens moved that the Board approve the General Manager's recommendation subject to approval by the Legislative, Finance and Public Affairs Committee. D. Smernoff seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. It was decided that a draft of the proposal with the enclosure would go to the Committee early next week. VII. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS B. Crowder showed leaf samples from the Leaf Trail. She reported as follows: 1. Committee for Green Foothills had its 35th anniversary gathering. 2. Santa Clara County Parks & Recreation Department will recognize Garnetta Annable on September 12. 3. She gave N. Hanko the San Mateo County guidelines for donations. 4. Robert Zatkin will be contacting the District regarding water quality at ECDM. 5. Dr. Goudy, who had an interest in dog access at Windy Hill Open Space Preserve, has died. N. Hanko had met with land conservation supporters on the coast. They are taking the initiative in forming a steering committee on the District's involvement in coastal preservation, and will want to meet Board members. Meeting 97-24 Page 12 D. Smernoff said there had been a meeting tonight of a mid-coast community council on a big development issue in Montara. He had passed out a flier about the work days at Arastradero. J. Cyr described his experiences at ECDM including Purisima and Skeggs Point where the parking lot was full. D. Smernoff said he had met the gentleman who complained about events at Rancho, and he had seen a cougar. He also said he had seen no problems at the Rhus Ridge parking lot his summer. M. Davey complimented staff for the land tour for San Mateo County officials and the Board tour of El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve. C. Britton reported as follows: 1. The Governor's veto message regarding SB 375 (San Mateo County sales tax) was included in the FYIs. He said that AB 1366 (state riding and hiking trail) had been signed and chaptered as law. 2. Administrative Services Manager - there are eight finalists. An assessment center is scheduled for October 10.* 3. He, M. Smith, and M. Davey met with San Mateo County LAFCO and Parks regarding preservation efforts for the San Mateo County Coast. 4. Art O'Neal training - work groups have come up with team agreements. One of the agreements is to treat everybody with respect. J. Escobar reported on what had occurred following a citizen allegedly sighting a mountain lion near the restroorn at Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve. M. Smith reported as follows: 1. This is the first newsletter that is on tree-free paper. Staff will try other types. 2. September 18 is the staff appreciation event. C. Britton informed J. Cyr that it was up to Board members how they responded to constituents' e-mail messages. N. Hanko reported on the Palo Alto Comprehensive Plan. She said she will continue to follow and will send a letter of support from the District. VIII. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 11:00 P.M. Roberta Wolfe Recording Secretary