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MIDPENINSULA REGIONAL OPEN SPACE DISTRICT
Meeting 01-25
SPECIAL AND REGULAR MEETING
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
November 28, 2001
MINUTES I
SPECIAL MEETING
L ROLL CALL
President Pete Siemens called the meeting to order at 5:40 p.m.
Members Present: Jed Cyr, Nonette Hanko, Larry Hassett, Deane Little(arrived at
6:10 p.m.), Ken Nitz, and Pete Siemens.
Members Absent: Mary Davey
Staff Present: Craig Britton, Duncan Simmons, John Escobar, Susan Schectman,
Sally Thielfoldt, Tom Fischer, Mike Williams, Del Woods,
Stephanie Jensen, Cathy Woodbury, and John Maciel.
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H. CLOSED SESSION
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P. Siemens stated that the Board would adjourn to Closed Session to discuss Closed
Session Agenda Items 1, 2 and 3.
The Board recessed to Closed Session at 5:40 p.m. and the Closed Session commenced at
5:40 p.m. The Board concluded the Closed Session at 7:19 p.m.
REGULAR MEETING
I. ROLL CALL
President Pete Siemens called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. and noted that
no reportable actions had taken place in Closed Session.
Members Present: Jed Cyr, Nonette Hanko, Larry Hassett, Deane Little, Ken Nitz,
and Pete Siemens.
Members Absent: Mary Davey.
Additional Staff Present: Lisa Zadek Sandy
y Sommer, and John Kowaleski.
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330 Distel Circle # Los Altos, CA 94022-1404 , Phone:650-691-1200
Fax:650-691-0485 . E-mail: mrosd@openspace.org # Web site:www.opetispace.org � "«.' C�,�E�
Board of Oirettors:Pete siemens,Mary C. Davey,Jed Cyr,Deane Little, Nonette Hanko,Larry Hassett,Kenneth C. Nitz -General Manager:L.Craig Britton
Meeting 0 1-25 Page 2
H. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS—There were none.
M. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the agenda. K. Nitz seconded and the
motion passed 6 to 0.
IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT CALENDAR
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the Consent Calendar, including the
Revised Claims 01-22. L. Hassett seconded the motion. The motion
passed 6 to 0.
V. BOARD BUSINESS
A. Agenda Item No. I —Consideration of Adoption of Revised Guidelines for
Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act by the Midpeninsula
Regional Open Space District—(Report R-0 1-13 0).
S. Schectman and Cathy Woodbury provided a PowerPoint presentation
of the Board report.
S. Schectman stated that the CEQA(the California Environmental Quality Act)
Guidelines are the primary state law that requires disclosure to the public
regarding environmental impacts and defines ways to mitigate them to
insignificance and disclose those facts to the public. The state CEQA Guidelines
were adopted by the State Resources Agency; the District's adopted CEQA
Guidelines in 1977 and these are now out-of-date.
S. Schectman reviewed each section of the proposed CEQA Guidelines. She
pointed out a change in Section 2, which clarifies that the District's guidelines
will follow the state's guidelines which will assist staff, and allow the District to
be in conformance with the state guidelines. Staff has now added procedures that
tailor the state guidelines to the District's day-to-day functions.
Section 3: S. Schectman stated that this section designates the General Manager
as the authority to perform CEQA functions, or the General Manager's designee,
which would most likely be the Planning Manager for planning projects, and the
Senior Acquisition Planner for acquisition projects.
K. Nitz asked if that was a formal designation. S. Schectman replied that the
Board would be formally delegating authority to the General Manager to perform
these functions, and then the General Manager would formally designate the
Planning Manager or Senior Acquisition Planner to do these functions for their
respective department's projects.
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Section 4: S. Schectman stated that this section was new, and would provide
authority to the General Manager and not a designee to approve a Negative
Declaration for projects the Board has authorized the General Manager to
approve; this is a small class of projects and staff does not expect this to happen
very often.
N. Hanko asked for clarification that, for instance, in the case of Bear Creek
Redwoods Open Space Preserve, the Board would still have approved the
Negative Declaration for that project because it was a bigger project; but that now
the Board will give authority to the General Manager to approve negative
declarations for small projects he is authorized to approve. S. Schectman
affirmed that this was correct.
P. Siemens stated that the General Manager's authority falls within a dollar value.
S. Schectman said that his authority falls into two general categories: (1) the
General Manager can approve projects under$10,000; or(2)minor and temporary
permits to enter District land or amendments to permits previously approved by
the Board.
Section 5: S. Schectman said that this section's purpose is to list the typical kinds
of day-to-day projects which may be categorically exempt from CEQA. This
section is designed to be helpful to staff and others reading it. I Cyr asked for
clarification that this section lists projects"such as, but not limited to..." S.
Schectman agreed.
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K. Nitz asked about subsection"vi" on page 4 regarding historical structures. S.
Schectman stated that before CEQA exemptions are approved, staff will evaluate
and determine if the structure qualifies, because the state requires review, and
staff will see how the Guidelines relate to the subject structure. K. Nitz said that
staff must determine that the structure is not controversial. S. Schectman said that
was correct.
K. Nitz asked about subsection"ix" on page 4 regarding minor lot-line
adjustments. He asked if the District has to define that. S. Schectman stated that
this section was quoted directly from the state Guidelines. Lot-line adjustments
cannot create additional parcels. (S. Schectman read from the state Guidelines.)
K. Nitz asked about subsection"x" on page 4 regarding acquisitions less than
$10,000. S. Schectman said that was correct. C. Britton clarified that typically,
the General Manager would only do this for very minor transactions and that there
is a separate policy on land acquisitions and that in the case of an urgent closing
date, the General Manager could spend up to a possible $25,000.
P. Siemens stated that he had concerns about exceptions, for example, parking
lots. He stated he could not imagine any sort of parking lot without a categorical
exemption (subsection"xi"). S. Schectman said that this section was also taken
directly from the state guidelines (she read from the state guidelines); she gave an
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example of a small staging area which might include a parking area to hold from
15 to 20 cars and that the Board has approved these types of projects in the past.
These projects typically do not have significant environmental impact because
they are small; the District draws the line very conservatively as compared to the
state guidelines.
N. Hanko asked a procedural question regarding purchasing land. There is,
eventually, a use and management plan which comes to the Board for approval;
during that process, staff would have determined which areas need work and
which areas might have trails, and if the Board approves the plan, then the
General Manager will only be approving minor discrepancies in a plan that has
already been approved. S. Schectman clarified that only the Board would be able
to approve changes to the plan and that this was not a delegated power, so any
changes to a use and management plan would come back to the Board. N. Hanko
asked C. Britton when he thought these exemptions might happen. C. Britton said
that he thought that staff-approved categorical exemptions happen rarely, only
several times a year; a negative declaration may only happen once a year. He said
that he would only be approving extensions or minor changes to permits already
issued, or within his spending authority. N. Hanko stated that, because of the use
and management plan process, the District is not risking very much by giving the
General Manager authority to approve these minor projects. S. Schectman
clarified that these categorical exemptions are not just for staffs use, but also for
the Board as well.
Section 6: S. Schectman stated that in the event the General Manager determines
that a negative declaration is needed, the Board would get both prior notice and
subsequent notice and at either point any Board member could request that the
Board be the decision-maker in lieu of the General Manager.
K. Nitz read from the bottom of page 4 regarding the public review period. He
asked how there could be public review if only the Board has it; would it not be
distributed for public review. S. Schectman stated that staff must follow the exact
same public distribution and comment procedures; including posting of notices of
intention to adopt. The public review period is typically 20 days. Within 10 days
of receiving the notice, any Board member could request that the project come
before the full Board; and, thereafter, if the General Manager approves or
disapproves, there is another opportunity for any Board member to bring it back
to the full Board for review. Also, the Board would receive notice any time staff
did adopt a categorical exemption, so as the process goes forward, the Board will
be able to see how comfortable it feels with the process.
Section 7: S. Schectman said that this section gives the Board flexibility to
determine whether and when it wants to have a public hearing on a CEQA
document. CEQA does not require public hearings, although it requires public
comment.
Meeting 01-25 Page 5
K. Nitz asked if there was a need to have two meetings, one to first approve
the project, and a second formal adoption. S. Schectman said one meeting would
be adequate to combine the approval of the environmental document with
approval or disapproval of the project. C. Britton stated that this process was not
like a use and management amendment and did not require two meetings. S.
Schectman said that this section is simply procedural.
D. Little asked what would happen if a citizen or citizen's group wants to protest
a negative declaration and what rights or procedures they may have to do that. S.
Schectman replied that staff would file a Notice of Determination (a form
described by the state) with the County Clerk, who would post it for 30 days, and
the remedy is that the public then has a 30 day period in which to sue. Litigation
is the primary vehicle for resolving CEQA lawsuits. K. Nitz asked if the public
could comment and how the Board would see those comments. S. Schectman
replied that the public could comment in writing as well as come to a Board
meeting and that any written comments would be given to the Board for review.
Section 8: S. Schectman stated that this section is typical and allows the District
to recover costs of preparing documents for others, including staff time, cost of
copying documents, etc.
I Cyr noted a correction to page 4 of the staff report, under the General
Manager's Authority to Adopt a Negative Declaration, the second paragraph, first
line should eliminate the word "be" before"common."
Chuck Jeffrey, of San Jose, asked if he, as a citizen, would be able to file a Notice
of Determination within the 20 day review period. S. Schectman clarified that
staff would file the Notice of Determination, and that, as an example, he would
get a copy of the Negative Declaration and would be able to file written
comments during the public review comment period. Mr. Jeffrey asked for
further clarification to page 4 of the document. S. Schectman replied that the
state is very clear about the public comment review period and that there is a very
detailed procedure for the public to follow.
Motion: J. Cyr moved that the Board adopt the revised guidelines for
implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA)by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. K.
Nitz seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0.
B. Agenda Item No. 2- Authorize Staff to Negotiate a Contract for Authorship and
Possibly Photographic Services for the District's Book with Mr. David Weintraub
in an Amount Not to Exceed $3 2,000—(Report R-0 I-I 3a.
S. Jensen presented the staff report identifying two differences from the previous
staff report, namely: (1)the addition of photographs; and (2)that the contract does
not include all of the elements of the book process from beginning to end.
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C. Britton stated that he had reached two Board members of the Legislative,
Finance, and Public Affairs Committee to notify them of the possible change in
authors, and was told they both preferred the proposed author,Mr. Weintraub.
K. Nitz asked if the District had a copy of Mr. Weintraub's latest book. S. Jensen
replied that staff did have copies of three of the author's books, but that they were
sent back at the time they were going to work with another author.
S. Jensen stated that Mr. Weintraub has written for Wilderness Press, East Bay
trails and a North Bay trails guide. P. Siemens wanted to clarify that the District's
book would be more than just a guidebook. S. Jensen replied that the District's
book would include a look at the District's history, the District programs(such as
volunteer, educational, and interpretive) provided to the public, profiles of staff,
and information about the preserves.
C. Britton added that due to the loss of time, there will be more staff involvement
to get this project completed by the District's 30t' anniversary in November 2002,
if possible. There is a savings monetarily; however, there will be an increase of
staff time.
D. Little asked if this author worked with East Bay publisher. S. Jensen replied
that Mr. Weintraub does work with Wilderness Press and that she is talking with
the publisher exploring the best package available to publish the book; but that
losing two months on this project has created a challenge for her and staff.
D. Little stated that he has enjoyed Mr. Weintraub's writing as it gives the reader
a nice feel for the trail experience; he likes the composition of the photographs,
but felt that the print quality was not as good as the first authors book. S. Jensen
stated that she was working towards getting the best print quality possible.
K. Nitz asked if the photographs are extra or included. S. Jensen said that price
includes cover photograph an rights for u to 25 pictures. She added that
c odes a co e p otog p d g p
r r m photographs a e a great compliment to text.p
K. Nitz asked if the former author would give information about the trails,
including the difficulty and length. S. Jensen said that Mr. Weintraub would do
the same, although he might need help from staff on the flora and fauna found in
District preserves.
Chuck Jeffrey of San Jose asked about the size of the book. S. Jensen replied that
the book would be approximately 300 pages and would be smaller than 8-1/2" x
11," and sell for approximately $20.
Motion: K. Nitz moved that the Board authorize staff to negotiate a contract
for authorship and possibly photographic services for the District's
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book with Mr. David Weintraub in an amount not to exceed
$32,000. J. Cyr seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 to 0.
C. Agenda Item No. 3-Determine that the Recommended Action is Exempt from
California Environmental Quality Act(CEQA)Under Section 15304 of the
Guidelines as Set out in This Report,Determine that the Specific Actions
Proposed In this Report are Immediately Necessary to Prevent or Mitigate
Erosion and Siltation, and to, Therefore, Waive Formal Bidding for this
Contract(s)Due to this Emergency, Authorize the General Manager to Execute
Contract(s)with Such Contractors As May Be Necessa[y, in an Amount Not to
Exceed $25,000 to Perform Necessary Work to Prevent Erosion and Siltation at
Bear Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve—(Report R-0 I-134).
T. Fischer reviewed the staff report, gave a PowerPoint presentation and
showed a map to orient the Board to the location/area of the encroachment.
T. Fischer explained that the encroachment was near the Aldercroft Creek area of
Bear Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve and was done by a neighbor of the
preserve. The Creek forms the border between the preserve and the neighboring
property. The neighbor's property has some trails on it and the owner of that
property was improving his trail and decided extended it onto the preserve.
Where he crossed the drainage near Aldercroft Creek and put in a culvert, filled
over the culvert and then continued on to Aldercroft Creek proper with the intent
to connect to the preserve's trail system.
I Kowaleski added that he had looked at the area about a year ago and noted then
that the area was heavily overgrown. There was a remnant of an old skid road
from historical logging, but there was not a defined trail.
N. Hanko asked if there were any posts indicating where the preserve boundary
was. T. Fischer said that he had spoken with the owner who said he knew he was
on the preserve land.
T. Fischer stated that a headwall was built with dry cement bags (not mixed).
The dirt is very loose, and field staff has put tarps over the loose dirt to help keep
erosion from going down the hill.
K. Nitz asked if the owner purposefully covered the trees. T. Fischer said that the
dirt was pushed over the sides and that if the rain continues to fall, this site would
turn catastrophic in relation to the side of the hill and the dirt causing blockage of
the drainage.
I Cyr asked about the number of yards of displaced dirt involved. I Kowaleski
estimated about 50 yards. He added that part of the complication of this project is
that the site is remote, there is limited road access, and using heavy trucks would
not work in the current wet weather.
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T. Fischer said that he is working with the Department of Fish and Game to get
approval to correct this problem and make sure staff does it the fight way, and has
met with the Regional Water Quality Control Board to get advice. He has talked
and met with the owner, who has said he will reimburse the District for the
damages and has written a letter stating the same.
Chuck Jeffrey of San Jose asked if the owner has any right of way over the
preserve. T. Fischer replied that he did not believe the owner did, but was double-
checking to verify. He also stated that the owner stated that he had thought about
asking for permission to do this work but he did not and that he admitted that he
had done something wrong.
K. Nitz asked S. Schectman if the District will follow-up on this issue if the
owner does not reimburse the District for the work. S. Schectman replied that if
the owner fails to reimburse the District, the District is prepared to pursue legal
remedies, if necessary.
Motion: N. Hanko moved that the Board determine that the recommended
actions are categorically exempt from the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under Section 15304 as set
out in the staff report; determine that the specific actions proposed
in the staff report are immediately necessary to prevent or mitigate
erosion and siltation, and to, therefore, waive formal bidding for
this contract(s) due to this emergency; authorize the General
Manager to execute a contract(s) with such contractors as may be
necessary, in an amount not to exceed $25,000 to perform
necessary work to prevent erosion and siltation at Bear Creek
Redwoods Open Space Preserve. D. Little seconded the motion.
The motion passed 6 to 0.
VI. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS
K. Nitz said that he was planning on attending Joe Simitian's December 4 th party.
L. Hassett had an excellent hike on Thanksgiving Day at Los Trancos—an absolutely
fabulous hike with his family.
C. Little: (1) had visited Boulder, Colorado and visited their open space parks and said
that they have a practice there to charge a user-fee for non-resident visitors; and (2)gave
an update on the grand jury charge of public corruption regarding the mayor of Mountain
View, CA.
C. Britton: (1) said the Alma Fire Station was in the news again regarding an owner's
complaint about the helicopter landing site which could mean that the fire station might
move after all; (2)the District's bill, AB953 (Simitian) regarding increasing the spending
authority of General Manager's from $10,000 to $25,000 got hung up in committee
because of a language interpretation problem which now has been cleared up; (3) a new
Meeting 01-25 Page 9
Park Bond Act (Proposition 40)on the March 2002 ballot for $2.6 billion; there will be a
request for endorsement by resolution coming before the Board; he will also participate
on the campaign on his own time; (4)there is an initiative that has been posted to the
Attorney General for review of a$3.4 billion water bill which would supply some park
and open space land funds, possibly for the November ballot; (5) he spoke with Lloyd
Wagstaff regarding the Open Space Authority's ballot funding measure, the deadline has
passed and there will be a public announcement of the results in mid-December; (6)he
had lunch with Malcolm Smith, who is currently doing consulting work for the City of
Redwood City; (7) he and Cathy Woodbury went on a tour of the San Mateo Coast given
by POST for the purpose of giving the new Executive Director, Sam Schuchat of the
Coastal Conservancy a feeling for the area; (8) he will be on a land stewardship
committee for POST; and (9) starting this Friday, is the beginning of a series of
supervisory and manager training's which include about 18 supervisors/managers; this
training is a result of the Workplace Enhancement Plan.
C. Woodbury said that during the last storm the"Smith" barn collapsed, which was
falling apart previously (Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve). Staff immediately called
a consultant and told her the situation. The barn is not registered as an historical building
either locally, state-wide, or nationally, and she said what the protocol was which
included taking photographs of the barn and suggested salvaging any interesting
hardware or parts. Also, any good timbers will be recycled.
S. Thielfoldt stated that she had just returned from a trip to Sydney, Australia and had an
opportunity to visit the Blue Mountains, but was disappointed to see so much of the area
developed in what was otherwise beautiful open space.
J. Maciel had gone to the Santa Rosa academy to meet with the three ranger candidates to
check on how they were doing. It was a good opportunity to check in with them.
S. Jensen: (1)that K. Webb was sending out her first authored press release on the
Red Barn at La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve; (2) that C. Oosterman is working on
needs and opportunities at the Nature Center enabling using the grant from POST; and (3)
gave an update that three cities (Saratoga, Monte Sereno, and San Jose) have now passed
resolutions regarding their support of cleaning up Mt. Umunhum.
VH. ADJOURNMENT
At 9:13 p.m., the meeting was adjourned.
Lisa Zadek
Recording Secretary