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HomeMy Public PortalAbout19980422 - Minutes - Board of Directors (BOD) " Regional Open , • ace MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT Meeting 98-09 REGULAR MEETINGS BOARD OF DIRECTORS April22, 1998 MINUTES I. ROLL CALL President Betsy Crowder called the meeting to order at 7:32 P.M. Members Present: Betsy Crowder, David Smernoff(7:34 P.M.), Pete Siemens (7:40 P.M.), Jed Cyr, Nonette Hanko, and Ken Nitz. Members Absent: Mary Davey Staff Present: Craig Britton, Del Woods, Malcolm Smith, Deirdre Dolan, Mike Williams, Randy Anderson, and Peggy Coats. II. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None. III. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the agenda. K. Nitz seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 to 0. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR B. Crowder asked Board Members to review the amended reply to Mr. Bernstein. Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar, including approval of the minutes of the March 18, 1998 Special Meeting and the March 25, 1998 Regular and Special Meetings; reply to written communication from Dan Bernstein, Peninsula Access for Dogs, 1165 Eureka Avenue, Los Altos; agenda item 5, Authorization for Director Siemens to Attend the California Special_Districts Association Government Affairs Day One-Day Conference in Sacramento at a Cost of$95.00; agenda item 7, Authorizafion to Purchase a Fjt Toilet Unit for Mont�ll, o Own S_ an ce Preserves Determination that the Recommended Actions are Categorical y Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act,; and Authorization for Staff to Replace a Pit 330 Distel Circle • Los Altos,CA 94022-1404 Phone: 650-691-1200 FAX: 650-691-0485 • E-mail:mrosd@openspace.org • Web site:www.openspace.org Board 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 98-09 Page 2 Toilet Unit for the Monte Bello Parking Area, Substituting it for a Pit Toilet Unit for the Monte Bello BackpackCamp; agenda item 8, Cancellation of May 13, 1998 Regular Meeting and Scheduling of May 6, 1998 Special Meeting; and Revised Claims 98-08. K. Nitz seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 to 0. V. BOARD BUSINESS A. Agenda Item No. la. - Proposed Addition of Weaver Property to La Honda Creek Qpcn Space Preserve; Determination that the Recommender Actions are Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act; Tentative Adoption of the Preliminary Use and Management Plan, Including Naming the Property as an Addition to La Honda Creek Oren Space Preserve; and Indicate their Intention to Withhold the ProWjU from Dedication as Public Open Spa= (R=rt R-98-50). D. Woods presented the staff report and showed slides of the property. Regarding the mud slide on the Caltrans property, he said there was no more risk of that sliding onto District land than in other places. He said they will be checking with Caltrans regarding the future of that property. He said it was hard to tell whether it was an old road bed, but he did not think so. N. Hanko said the picture made it look worse than it really was D. Woods said the area is closed because staff have not decided what to do with it yet. He said there is no place to park on the road, as the frontage is all fairly steep. D. Woods said they could find no fences that needed to be taken down. D. Woods he didn't know if there were any steelhead in Weeks Creek, but there had been no indication in the past. It appeared that it was an undisturbed watershed, although there may be some obstructions down stream. He said some dirt and debris did flow into the creek from the Caltrans property. M. Williams outlined the proposed terms and conditions. C. Britton said all of the easements and rights of way described were legal easements. M. Williams said the District would not be required to make repairs on the easements, but would have to grant access for maintenance. Motion* N. Hanko 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 98-18 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 (La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve - Lands of Weaver); tentatively adopt the Preliminary Use and Management f Meeting 98-09 Page 3 Plan recommendations contained in the staff report, including naming the property as an addition to La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve; and indicate their intention to withhold the property from dedication as public open space at this time. P. Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. B. Agenda Item No. lb - Proposed Acnuisition and Addition of Aitken Prcm m to Russian Ridgee Open Space Preserve; Determination that the Recommended Actions are Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act; Tentative Adoption of the Preliminary Use and Management Plan Recommendations, Including ming the PropoMy as an Addition to Russian Ridge Q= Space Preserve; and Indicate their Intention to Dedicate the PropeM as Public Open Space - (E=rt R-98- D. Woods pointed out the property on a map. He said M. Williams would talk about the deed restrictions on the six acres that will be held in private ownership for residential purposes. There is a house on the six acre parcel. He showed slides of the property. He said there was a path on the forested section of the property which will be useable by the public. D. Woods said that the people who are buying the property know that the District plans to use the main drive as a trail. This drive comes from Skyline and becomes the southern boundary of the six acre parcel. He talked about the possibility of a trail going around the property, stating that it would be looked at when the trail plan for the whole preserve is reviewed. He said staff would have to look at the need and the degree of scarring. D. Woods said that cutting a future driveway entry through as access to the six acre parcel from another direction in order to avoid conflicts on the trail would have more impact on the landscape than anything else. C. Britton there are at least three other houses that also use the existing driveway. D. Wood said the D. Aitken is currently maintaining the access road. D. Aitken said he thought it would be appropriate for the District to participate in the maintenance though this is not a written condition. C. Britton said the steep section of the road that goes up by Skyline is maintained by the county as part of the agreement for the repeater site. The District has a policy on road maintenance agreements and will work with the neighbors on the basis of use. He said staff will give a copy of the District policy to the neighbors and discuss it with them. D. Woods said there is no immediate proposal for fencing around the property, but that staff would need to think about that in context with uses on adjacent property. K. Nitz said he was worried about wildlife traveling back and forth. C. Britton said staff Meeting 98-09 Page 4 usually don't take old fences out but the fences don't keep wildlife out. D. Woods said that would be part of an overall plan for the preserve. In reference to page 9 of the agreement regarding District Trail Planning and Construction, D. Woods said there was talk about where the property line would be placed. The District wanted the property line off the top of the knoll so trail users could go to the top. He said staff would do this in a responsible way with proper signing. D. Smernoff asked about the possibility of taking a trail from where gate 6 is toward the hill to avoid people using the access road as a trail. D. Woods said one reason the ridge trail was routed on the other side was to stay away from communication towers. He said when staff look at the trails in the future they might be looking for alternatives for re-routing and may have to separate uses. M. Williams outlined the terms and conditions and showed the re-configuration of the parcels. He described the development restriction which is a condition of the transaction. He said staff does not anticipate problems with the county in regard to the reconfiguration. C. Britton stated that the zoning is RM and the county would issue a certificate of compliance when the property is configured. He said this had been done before and staff doesn't anticipate any problems. M. Williams said the can rebuild the existing house and have auxiliary buildings. D. g g Y m'Y Aitken said the house had been designed b Frank Lloyd Wright's son in law and the � g Y Y current owners have no intention of doing anything to it. M. Williams pointed out that in the development restriction the District has total design review and approval. Don Aitken described his purchase of the 200 acres in partnership with three friends. He said the plan had always been to ultimately convert the land to open space, and that they had bought it for protection. He said they held it in common for the first ten years, then had to divide it into four fifty-acre parcels. He said he was co-founder of Committee for Green Foothills and was the second president following Wally Stegner; George Norton was the third. He said for awhile he and his wife were very discouraged that they had lost hold of the 200 acres, which contain a mile of Skyline frontage. Then the District moved in and first bought Mt. Melville and prevented a plan for a development of four parcels, and then acquired the Smith property and worked out an arrangement to acquire about half of the Norton property. He gave credit to the Kennedys who bought the house. He said the restrictions that have been written in are remarkable restrictions and the Kennedys were exactly the right kind of people. He said he and his wife feel incredibly blessed that that kind of people were going up there. Board members thanked Mr. Aitken and assured him the District would take good care of the property. Meeting 98-09 Page 5 Motion* N. Hanko 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 98-19 a Resolution of the Board of Directors of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Authorizing Acceptance of Purchase Agreement, Authorizing Officer to Execute Certificates of Acceptance of Grant to District and Grant and Covenant of Restrictions, and Authorizing General Manager to Execute Any and All Other Documents Necessary or Appropriate to Closing of the Transaction (Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve - Lands of Aitken, Et Al.); tentatively adopt the Preliminary Use and Management Plan recommendations contained in this report, including naming the property as an addition to Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve; and indicated their intention to dedicate the property as public open space. D. Smernoff seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. C. Agenda Item No. 2 -A�nroval of Lease Holdover Agreement and Authorization for the General Manager to Execute the Lease Holdover Agreement with Heritage Communications Inc. (ICI), Black Mountain, Monte Bello and Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserves - ($eport R-98-52). M. Williams said he was present at this meeting to answer questions. He stated that some sub-lessors have left and some are looking at alternative sites. He said staff is talking to other potential tenants and also looking at the option of restoring the site. One way or another, antennas and poles will be removed. Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board authorize the General Manager to execute the Lease Holdover Agreement with Heritage (TCl) for the communication facility on Black Mountain, Monte Bello and Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserves. P. Siemens seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. D. Agenda Item No. 3 - Authorization to Solicit Bids for Construction of the Schilling Lake Spillway RepAir Project, Thornewood Onen Space Preserve - (E=rt R-98-53). R. Anderson pointed out the site map showing where the pond, dam and H described what could be done regarding the spillway were located. a desc t s a g g P Y landslide. He explained why the dam should not be opened up. He said in order to eliminate the dam staff would have to create the original configuration of the stream which would be a bigger project than this one. Michael Marshall, Los Altos don't understand why staff could not take out the dam. R. Anderson explained that the could but it would be very expensive. P Y rY C. Britton said staff would look into the cost of taking out the dam if the Board wanted them to but he did not recommend it. Meeting 98-09 Page 6 N. Hanko said that when the District acquired the property it was an addition to Thornewood. They considered filling in the lake but the Board felt it was too valuable a resource. She said it has turned out to be a place people seek. Motion* K. Nitz moved that the Board authorize staff to solicit bids for construction of the Schilling Lake Spillway Repair Project. D. Smernoff seconded the motion. Discussion* R. Anderson said there was professional liability insurance but no guarantee; they want the repair to be permanent. YD= The motion passed 6 to 0. E. Azenda, Item No. 4 - Authorization for the General Manager to Execute the Permit to Enter and Agreement Allowing Rhone-Poulenc, Inc. Access for the Purpose of Wetland Restoration, Restoring Tidal Action to the Northern Salt Pond,Ravenswood Q= Space Preserve- (E=rt R-9L54), R. Anderson presented the staff report including background information. He said Menlo Park had received the report. N. Hanko said East Palo Alto and the sanitary district should receive it as well. Mark Dewitt, Geomatrix, said the key element that R. Anderson presented was that simply breaching the levy arbitrarily will not necessarily provide for ideal re- establishment of natural wetlands conditions. He mentioned other consultants who worked on the project. He described how the breaches would be done to direct the tidal action into the original natural sloughs and inhibit tidal action into the barrow ditches that are parallel to the levy. He described the process of approval of permits that would be required to make the other two openings at this time. R. Anderson will ask Phillips Williams to send a report and letter explaining how the project will work. M. Dewitt said it took a relatively short time for the wetlands to the south to come back and provide habitat. R. Anderson explained how staff recognized "adequate compensation" which was referred to on page 2 of the report in the last sentence before the CEQA information. C. Britton said the only way they can value the benefit of the project is in terms of money. He said the District was facing restoring this as wet land so there is a tremendous benefit to the District in terms of cash outlay. Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board determine that the proposed actions are categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) based on the findings contained in the staff report; and authorize the General Manager to execute the Permit to Enter allowing Rhone- Poulenc, Inc. access to the Ravenswood Open Space Preserve for the Meeting 98-09 Page 7 purpose of restoring tidal action to the salt pond area. N. Hanko seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. F. Agenda Item No. 6 - Review of Prices and Policy Regarding ALenda, Minut es, and Packet Subscriptions; Authorization Increasing Current Agenda Subscription Rates to Reflect the Increases in Cost of Production, While Remaining Substantially Below Actual Cost; and Development of the District's On-line Resources to Provide Access to Agenda Materials Free of Charge via the Internet and E-mail - alMort R-98-5.5)L. C. Britton explained that there is an attorney general's opinion on charges that can be made. He said the District has never tried to recapture costs; and if people pick up material at the office there is no charge. N. Hanko suggested adding a third recommendation that would make it clear that packet materials would be free if picked up at the office. B. Crowder suggested adding, " . . and for personal pickup at the office" to the end of recommendation 2. C Britton suggested since it is District policy not to charge people who come to the office to pick up material, staff add this to the list of things to consider at a workshop on procedural changes. Staff will continue to operate that way in the meantime. Motion* P. Siemens moved that the Board authorize increasing current agenda subscription rates to reflect the increased cost of production, while remaining substantially below actual cost; and develop the District's on- line resources to provide access to agenda materials free of charge via the Internet, email, and personal pickup at the District office. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0. VI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS N. Hanko reported that the Coastal Ad Hoc Committee held their first meeting on April 16 on the Coast. 35-40 people attended. The second meeting is scheduled for May 6 with a workshop scheduled for May 20. D. Smernoff wished everyone happy Earth Day and said he had attended a sunrise service. He announced Bay Area Action trail work days at Arastradeo, on April 25 and 26. J. Cyr said the Use and Management Committee met Saturday at Fremont Older parking lot and the Board might want to do a whole workshop on that. C. Britton and R. Anderson will talk with him about it. He said he and D. Smernoff had the privilege of a private tour of the Fremont Older home. K. Nitz said he took a docent hike on Edgewood Preserve and the wildflowers were spectacular. B. Crowder said she and C. Britton had attended a farewell party for Pat Sanchez, San Mateo County Parks and Recreation Director. She said she, M. Davey, N. Hanko, and C. Britton went to the Foothills Ranger Office for the presentation on the coast side. She, Nifeting 98-09 Page 8 J. Cyr and M. Davey went to a docents meeting where the new docents were introduced. She said she had gone to the dog meeting the previous night. She passed along to J. Cyr an announcement of the Second Annual Indicators for a Sustainable San Mateo County on Thursday, May 7 from 5-7 P.M. C. Britton reported as follows: 1. Larry Coons told him the Taxpayers Association did file an appeal on the lawsuit with the Federal Supreme Court. 2. The Sunnyvale State of the City message is scheduled for April 29. 3. He noted the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council walk at the Presidio on May 2. 4. The next docent planning meeting is July 14, 7-9 P.M. K. Nitz and N. Hanko said they would go. 5. R. Anderson made a presentation for the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors regarding the Regional Open Space Study. 6. The Warner Group gave an update on the operations program review to the ad hoc committee last night. 7. He referred to the FYIs, stating that he had invited Erik Vinck, Field Director of America Farmlands Trust, to come to the May 20 meeting regarding the coast. The Monthly Field Activity Report was also in the FYIs. 8. He announced a going away party tomorrow for Tom Karnofel. ' M. Smith talked about the information in the FYIs regarding inquiries to the District. He said there was some press coverage prior to the first meeting on the Coast. VII. ADJOURNMENT At 9:37 P.M. the meeting was adjourned. Roberta Wolfe Recording Secretary