HomeMy Public PortalAbout2000-02-03 Town of Truckee
TOWN COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
February 3, 2000, 6:00 P.M.
Truckee Donner Public Utility District Board Room
11570 Donner Pass Road, Truckee, CA
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CALL TO ORDER - Mayor Schneider called the regular Council meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
ROLL CALL
PRESENT: Councilmembers: Drake, Florian, McCormack, Susman, and Mayor Schneider
ALSO PRESENT:
Tony Lashbrook, Director of Community Development; and Vicki C.
Soderquist, Town Clerk
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was led by Ron Kato.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
4.1 Ron Kato, representing the Civil Air Patrol, stated the Cadet program for boys and girls
from 6th grade up to 21 years had been recently restarted and they currently had 25 cadets in the
program. The program was established by Congress in the early '40s and attached to the US Air Force
in 1948. The mandate from Congress was to teach aerospace education to youth, emergency services,
and to establish a cadet program for the youth. They were the Tahoe Truckee Composite Squadron,
located at the Truckee Airport with one based aircraft. Cadets received preference into the Air Force
Academy and civilian and flight scholarships ;vere also available.
Councilmember Susman questioned the schedule of classes. Mr. Kato replied that they met at the
Airport two Mondays a month and one Saturday. The cost to the Cadet was $36 the first year and $20
thereafter. It was a three-year program and young people could start the program at any time.
Councilmember McCormack stated he would be representing the Council at the Monday evening
promotion of Cadets.
PRESENTATIONS
5.1 Introduction of New Employees.
newest Deputy, Kyle Wylie.
Captain Gary Jacobson introduced the Department's
5.2 Presentation on the North Lake Tahoe Regional Transportation Authority/Sales Tax.
The presentation was given by Ron Mclntyre, North Tahoe Resort Association and Jennifer Merchant,
Executive Director, Truckee-North Tahoe Transportation Management Association. Mr. McIntyre
stated the Governor signed the legislation approximately one year ago which created a bi-furcated
Placer County taxing authority to allow for a comprehensive transportation system for the visitor and
tourism industry in North Lake Tahoe. There needed to be a revenue stream that was consistent and
not controlled by anyone other than the transportation authority itself. The legislation allowed Placer
County to appoint a five member board prior to the election, authorized a sales tax up to 1/2 cent with
a 20 year duration, mandated a 2/3~d's vote, specifically set aside an expenditure plan that would be
part of the election that would be adopted by the interim board of directors, and the board of directors
would be elected at the sales tax election. They were currently working on the expenditure plan.
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Ms. Merchant stated that the TMA Board of Directors agreed in taking a leadership role in gathering
community input on the issue. From the input received the consultant would put together a packet of
components. The next step would be a draft expenditure plan for the estimated $1.1 million. Once
the draft plan was completed they would solicit additional public input. Eventually they ~vould be
requesting the Town's support for the final expenditure plan.
Councilmember McCormack questioned when the tax measure would be on the ballot. Ms. Merchant
replied that it would be a special election in September.
CONSENT CALENDAR (One motion approves all of the following actions.)
Motion by Councilmember Drake to approve the Consent Calendar, Seconded by
Councilmember Susman, passed unanimously with Item 6.6 pulled.
6.1 Minutes of January 20, 2000 Regular Meeting. Recommendation: Council approve.
6.2 Minutes of January 28, 2000 Special Meeting. Recommendation: Council approve.
6.3 December Treasurer's Report. Recommendation: Council approve.
6.4 Authorization to Destroy Records. Recommendation: Council adopt Resolution 2000-07
authorizing the destruction of records.
6.5 Amended Stipulations of Settlement Agreement with Southwest Gas. Recommendation:
Council approve the amendments to the Stipulation of Settlement Agreement and authorize
the Mayor to sign.
6.6 Authorization to Solicit Bids for a Replacement Sand Truck. Recommendation: Council
authorize the Public Works Director to solicit bids for a cab and chassis for a sand truck.
Pulled from the Consent Calendar.
Councilmember McCormack stated that the sand truck was not in the current budget. It was the
Council's normal position to review all requests for equipment carefully during the budget review
which resulted in less review when agendized. The Council had not reviewed the item, but felt it was
appropriate to take action as staff was only seeking an early bid due to a long lead-time and the
Council was not committing money until the next budget year. Mr. Covey stated the sand track would
be a replacement and not an additional piece of equipment. The truck was in the 5-year CIP and
Equipment Replacement Plan. Staff would return to Council for the award o£bid. In order to have
the truck for the next season they had to go to bid early. Councilmember McCormack stated his
reason for pulling the item was due to the change in process.
Motion by Councilmember McCormack to authorize the Public Works Director to solicit bids
for a cab and chassis for a sand truck, Seconded by Councilmember Florian, passed
unanimously.
6.7
Litigation Status Report - Town of Truckee vs. Weststar Cable Arbitration and Walter
Harvey vs. the Town of Truckee. Recommendation: Council receive and file.
COUNCIL IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES - None
STAFF REPORTS
8.1 Proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration for Truckee-Tahoe Airport Master Plan.
Recommendation: Council authorize the Mayor to sign the comment letter on the proposed Mitigated
Negative Declaration.
To~vn of Truckee
February 3, 2000 Regular
Page 2
Duane Hall, Town Planner, informed the Council that the proposed comments were not on the Airport
Master Plan itself, but focused on CEQA issues associated with the Negative Declaration. Staff did
not believe that it provided sufficient information for the Town and the public to adequately review
and provide comments on the Master Plan. Mr. Hall gave a slide presentation (copy on file) which
included a brief background of the Airport Master Plan update; the Airport planning process; the
impact of Airport Master Plan on local planning and development; environmental review; Master Plan
projects - airside; Master Plan - landside; recommended comments - general; recommended comments
- forecasts; recommended comments - CLUP consistency; recommended comments - baseline
conditions; recommended comments - private land uses; and recommended comments - noise. The
Airport District would be holding a public meeting on February 24th to consider adoption of the
Mitigated Negative Declaration and Airport Master Plan. In the case of the Airport master plan, it did
not have to be consistent with the Town's General Plan; it was the General Plan that had to be
consistent with the Comprehensive Land Use Plan in the Airport Master Plan. It was a much different
planning process. Mr. Hall stated that letters had been received from Thomas Archer in support of the
staff recommendation. A meeting ~vas scheduled on Monday to meet ~vith the Airport District to
review the Town's comments.
Councilmember Susman stated he did not see that the issue was any different than any other land use
issue. The Town had to identify the issues and it was not asking too much to ask the Airport District
to address the concerns expressed by the To~vn on behalf of the community. He supported the staff
recommendation.
Councilmember McCormack stated he supported the staff recommendation. The staff report
addressed the 20 homes within the 65 dBA but there were additional properties where the use would
be affected. Mr. Hall stated that was possible and tied into the General Plan consistency issues, i.e.
it could affect undeveloped properties and the Town's housing goals. Councilmember McCormack
felt it was absurd to use future forecasts as a baseline.
Mayor Schneider noted that most of the Airport was not located in the Town and questioned how
much authority the Town had. Mr. Hall replied that the Town's authority was similar to the project
in Placer County in which the Town was commenting as an interested agency, however, the Town had
no legal authority over the Airport Master Plan and Comprehensive Land Use Plan except as a
commenting agency. Ultimately, what occurred on the Airport would have impacts upon the Town
that the Town needed to look at. Councilmember McCormack stated if the Town could not get
satisfaction the only recourse was litigation. Mayor Schneider read letter (copy on file) from the
Mountain Area Preservation Foundation (MAPF) in support of the staff recommendation.
Jim Duffy, Prosser Heights, stated that over the last 2-3 years they were harassed weekly by jet
aircraft. The jets were noisy and an intrusion. He felt that was also true for Prosser Heights, Prosser
Lakeview, and portions of Downtown. His complaint was only with the jets as there was no problem
with the private aircraft. Many of his neighbors were unaware of the meeting and were unable to
attend. The noise was irritating and he had called the Airport to work it out. They took his complaints,
but told him they could not do anything about it as the FAA controlled the flight path. If the Airport
could not do anything and the Town could not do anything, he felt they needed to fight the growth.
Keep the baseline where it was at the present time, i.e. 3-5 jets during the weekend and not have 50-
100 jets a week and bigger jets more often, they needed to control the growth. He encouraged the
Council to follow the staff recommendation. He wanted to see the Airport District come out of the
closet and invite pubic participation. If it had been more publicized he felt there would have been a
big crowd at the Council meeting. He also wanted to see the Airport District cooperate, get public
comment, and try to do something beside just selling a lot of jet fuel.
Town of Truckee
February 3, 2000 Regular
Page 3
Kathleen Eagan, Prosser Heights, agreed with Mr. Duffy's comments. The characteristic of the
Airport had changed in the last 3 years due to jet aircraft. When talking about increased usage it
referred to jet aircraft in terms of noise. It was important for the Airport to be out in front of the issue
as there would be a time with the proposed Master Plan where public opinion and Airport would hit
a collision course. It was important to get the issues out in front of people now. The 65 dBA was an
issue of harm to people. The noise in their area was not harmful but it was an aggravating sound, the
quality of sound was also an issue. The notion of an additional runway to accommodate larger/more
jets was chilling regarding the effects on the community long-term. The Town and Airport District
needed to think long and hard about whether they wanted to introduce that kind of a beginning in the
community.
Steve Frisch, Downtown, stated he did not suffer the same noise levels as in Prosser Heights but he
was concerned regarding the accommodation of larger aircraft. The community needed to think long
and hard about the impacts of much larger aircraft. He did not think that the Airport was ever thought
of as a major commuter aircraft. The large aircraft segment was something that the community should
at least plan for. At certain times he was very aware of the aircraft noise.
Peter Soderquist, General Manager, Truckee-Tahoe Airport, stated he was speaking on behalf
of the Board and was not there to address any of the findings of the initial study or comments by staff
but there had been several inaccurate comments which he wanted to clarify. The statement made by
staff "minor improvements to the runway to accommodate larger aircraft" was not the intent of the
District; there was no plan or desire to attract larger or bigger aircraft. Part of the Master Plan effort
was to redesign certain design perimeters to be in compliance with Federal guidelines for the planes
that were already there. The Airport was built 40 years ago and as the Airport grew and developed
there were larger airplanes. Mr. Soderquist then defined the perimeters for larger aircraft and building
restrictions. They were not doing anything to beef up runways to bring in larger airplanes. The Master
Plan called for a parallel runway but there were no plans to build it. It was included so they could
protect that area from building; it was their intent to protect the view shed. To build a runway there
had to be a need for capacity and a third runway was not needed at the Airport. There was a plan for
a 2,000-ft turf runway which would parallel the runway utilized by the gliders. They were
appreciative of the staffreview and the District believed they had met the requirements of CEQA. The
District would be meeting with the Town on Monday to review the Town's issues. Information from
that meeting would be brought to the Board of Directors at the public hearing and at that time they
would decide whether to adopt the Master Plan or pursue additional study of the concerns expressed.
Mayor Schneider questioned how the larger aircraft were using the existing runways if they did not
comply. Mr. Soderquist replied that neither the aircraft or Airport were illegal. The Airport had a legal
requirement to let them in. He then reviewed the runway protection zones and noted that the Airport
had grown beyond the original protection zones. The revision would allow the Airport to meet the
required FAA design criteria.
Councilmember Florian questioned the frequency of jets on weekends. Mr. Soderquist replied that
it depended on activities and noted there were periods without jets. It was very difficult to estimate.
Councilmember Florian questioned if the Airport was anticipating more activity when the west side
of Martis Valley built out. Mr. Soderquist stated that as the economy improved and as the Town grew,
people moving in would bring airplanes.
Councilmember McCormack stated he was certain that the Airport staff and Board were aware of the
community concerns regarding noise. One of the problems he saw with the special districts was that
a lot of things were done in the closet, there was not good communication with the public. The draft
was completed over one year ago; the Negative Declaration was filed only two months ago. He
Town of Truckee
February 3, 2000 Regular
Page 4
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questioned what communication the District had with the public to get them involved. Mr. Soderquist
replied that the Airport Master Plan process was very public. They had representatives of the
community on a citizens advisory committee which included representatives from the FAA, an FBO,
and the Chamber of Commerce. They also called noise complainers in an effort to get representatives
from all areas, as well as representation from the various neighborhoods. Councilmember
McCormack questioned if public comment would be taken at the meeting on the 24~. Mr. Soderquist
stated that the meeting would be advertised in the paper and notices were posted in both counties.
Councilmember Drake questioned if corporate jet traffic was common in conjunction with meetings
held at the resorts. Mr. Soderquist stated that he was uncertain, but the use of time-shares for airplanes
was becoming more common.
Mayor Schneider complimented staff for their thorough report, and she had a high level of confidence
in the recommendations.
Councilmember Drake stated that knowing the process for CEQA, the staff comments were
appropriate. It was the same as land use, i.e. more people were coming, and in the case of airports,
it was built before 95% of the people were there, but the attitude was to get rid of it. The reality was
that more jet planes were going to come. If the economy stayed sound there were going to be more
people with more money, it was sad. Everything was appropriate so he could not vote no.
Mayor Schneider stated that the conference business was flying into Reno/Tahoe but they were seeing
more business groups of 5-12 from the Silicon Valley and Los Angeles area wanting to fly into
Truckee.
Councilmember Drake noted that TNT/TMA was trying to cut down on traffic in the resort triangle
and were questioning the use of water taxis, more airplanes, and air service for Truckee/South Shore,
anything to get people out of cars. The area was nice and people wanted to visit.
Councilmember McCormack stated that he agreed that staff had done an outstanding job on the report
and he supported the recommendations. He was disappointed in what he perceived as the apparent
total inadequacy of the CEQA approach the Airport District had taken.
Motion by Councilmember Susman to authorize the Mayor to sign the comment letter on the
proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration, Seconded by Councilmember McCormack, passed
unanimously.
COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS:
9.1 HOME Grant. Mr. Lashbrook announced that notice had been received that the Town had
made the short list for the $1 million Federal HOME program grant for an 80-unit affordable housing
project in Truckee.
9.2 CA Public Utilities Commission Action on Southwest Gas. Councilmember Florian
announced that the CPUC had voted 3-2 to approve Commissioner Duque's alternate decision on
Southwest Gas. The alternate decision contained the original terms submitted by the Town and
Southwest Gas but also included a provision for reporting at the end of each construction season.
9.3 Channel 6 - Tahoe Truckee Community Television - Music Telethon. Mayor Schneider
announced that Channel 6 had held a music telethon to benefit the music program for the High School.
They raised $7,000 in eight hours of programrmng which she felt spoke to the need of the community
for another vehicle for getting information out. Captain Jacobson was also considering the initiation
of a law enforcement program on TTC TV.
Town of Truckee
February 3, 2000 Regular
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10.
11.
CLOSED SESSION to discuss litigation against Nevada County pursuant to Government Code
Section 54956.9; County of Nevada vs the Town of Truckee and the Truckee Redevelopment Agency
pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9; Southwest Gas vs the Town of Truckee pursuant to
Government Code Section 54956.9; Peoria Sunnyside LLC vs the Town of Truckee pursuant to
Government Code Section 54956.9; and conference with real property negotiators pursuant to
Government Code Section 54956.8 - property: 10181 and 10185 Truckee~Tahoe Airport Road,
Truckee, California, negotiating parties: Town Manager Stephen L. Wright representing Town
(prospective purchaser) and Bank of the West (property owner), under negotiation: terms of purchase
(price and payment terms). Closed Session was not held.
ADJOURNMENT. Mayor Schneider adjourned the meeting at 7:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
by: ~
Vicki C~-Soderqui~'t, CMCT~ Town Clerk
Town of Truckee
February 3, 2000 Regular
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