A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of San Ramon was held on May 25, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chamber at City Hall, 2222 Camino Ramon, Mayor Wilson presiding.

PRESENT: Councilmembers Hudson, Livingstone, Perkins, Rowley and Mayor Wilson.

ABSENT: None

STAFF PRESENT: Interim City Manager Byron Athan, Public Works Director Joye Fukuda, Planning Director Phil Wong, Parks and Community Services Director Jeff Eorio, Division Manager – Parks and Community Services John Skeel, Administrative Analyst Sandra Barlow, Transportation Specialist Steven Spedowfski, District Engineer Maria Robinson, Senior Engineer Phil Agostini, District Engineer Maria Robinson, Finance Director Greg Rogers, Senior Planner Charlie Mullen, Crime Prevention Specialist Erica Reed and City Clerk Judy Macfarlane

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Blue Star Moms, Peggy Conklin, Nancy Ecker and Patty Martin led Council, staff and those in the audience in the pledge of allegiance.

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Mayor Wilson said on behalf of his family he would to express his sincere appreciation for all of the kind gestures of condolences by staff, residents and the San Ramon community in the passing of his mother.

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Mayor Wilson presented a proclamation to Sharon Keeton, Montevideo Elementary School Principal, in recognition of the school’s 2004 California Distinguished School Award.

Mayor Wilson presented a proclamation to Jane Ware and Renae Matsumoto, Coyote Creek Elementary School representatives, in recognition of the school’s 2004 California Distinguished School Award.

A proclamation was presented to Beth McClelland by Mayor Wilson recognizing her as the San Ramon Valley Unified School District 2004 Teacher of the Year.

Proclamations were presented to Peggy Conklin, Nancy Ecker and Patty Martin by Mayor Wilson recognizing them as the founders of the Blue Star Moms.

Mayor Wilson presented proclamations to Spc Curtis Ong and Spc Chadd Visintainer in recognition of their service in Iraq. Tokens of appreciation were given to them from Supervisor Greenberg, a representative from Congressman Pombo’s office, the Marine Corp. League, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Vietnam Veterans of Diablo Valley.

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Mayor Wilson said there would be a five-minute break.

All Councilmembers and the Mayor were present when the meeting reconvened.

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The Senior Planner spoke about the application process for the ARB and said at the close of recruitment four applications had been received, three from current members and one from the alternate member. He said the Planning Director was recommending the City Council accept the following recommendations for the three regular seats, Steve Goins, Christian Deshaies, and George Thomas and Joe McHale for the alternate position.

Cm. Hudson’s motion to approve the Planning Director’s recommendations for appointment to the ARB with the three permanent seats to serve until 2006 and the alternate position to serve until 2005 was seconded by Cm. Livingstone and passed 5-0.

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The Crime Prevention Specialist said that the month of May was National Bicycle Safety Month and the City of San Ramon and the San Ramon Police Department will be continuing their campaign "Wear It Because We Care" through the month of June.

Dee Tuohy, secretary of the San Ramon Historic Foundation, invited everyone to attend the first annual movie night at the Farm. She said on Saturday, June 5 the old classic movie Casa Blanca would be shown.

Pat Boom said Casa Blanca Casablanca was set in the 1940s and encouraged everyone to attend and wear a costume of that era.

Seti Ghotbzadeh, co-chair of the San Ramon Library Foundation, invited everyone to the Senior Class Act Exhibit at the San Ramon Library. She said she was also doing a survey for the San Ramon Library Advisory Committee to determine what the patrons of the library are interested in and how it can be provided.

Laura Olson, Acting Executive Director of the Tri-Valley Convention and Visitors’ Bureau (CVB), spoke about on-going CVB funding. She thanked the Council for its support the past year and gave a year-to-date summary of where the CVB stood financially.

Ellen Rosenbluth spoke about the sewage spill at the Larwin Pump station and expressed concern for the safety of the neighborhood and the lack of a timely response. She said she would like to know in the future who should be called and what is the proper treatment.

Ellen Pyle said previously she had approached the Council regarding the congestion, the traffic and the late night visitors in the Royal Vista parking lot. She said she would like to revisit the issue because the same problems were still occurring of people entering the golf course parking lot after business hours.

Mayor Wilson told Ms. Pyle the City Manager and Police Chief would get in touch with her regarding the issue.

Crista Freihofner, South San Ramon Neighborhood Association, spoke about the overflow spill at the Larwin Pumping station. She because this was the second spill in less than three years leads you to believe the pump station has inherent problems and is not well equipped to handle any future extra flow.

Sandy Barclay spoke about the pump station overflow waste going into the creek and expressed concern for the health and safety of the neighborhood. She asked that there not be any new building permits or sewer hook-ups in the Dougherty Valley.

Charles Batz, Central San General Manager, introduced staff and the Board member for the San Ramon area.

The Public Works Director said that staff had scheduled a meeting for this Friday of the parties involved including Central San, the Fire District and the response team of the City.

Cm. Hudson asked if EPA, Water Quality or and the Contra Costa Mosquito Abatement had been asked to attend this meeting because the sewage was still in the creek and there was a potential health hazard.

Cm. Perkins said the off-hour response procedure needs to be disseminated.

Jay Bhalla said he did not feel the intellectual capital of the City has been tapped to the extent it can be tapped because of timing constraints and other issues. In response to the budget approval on the agenda he said sales tax is an issue that needed to be looked at, the short term and the long term.

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The City Clerk read an amendment Cm. Perkins had made to the May 11, 2004 meeting.

Cm. Perkins’ motion to accept the minutes as amended was seconded by Cm. Livingstone and passed 4-0-1 (Mayor Wilson abstained – he was not present at the May 11 meeting).

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The Mayor said a request had been received to pull item 8.2, granting the Mosquito and Vector Control District to issue administrative citations.

The City Manager recommended item 8.4, ordinance establishing administrative citation procedures be heard under new business.

Harvey Riggs said in regard to item 8.2, he had concerns that the maintenance on the creeks had not been done and recommended the City make sure that this occurs.

Cm. Hudson’s motion to approve the following Consent Calendar was seconded by Cm. Livingstone and passed 5-0.

Resolution No. 2004-73 Authorizing the Mayor to execute Amendment No. 2 to the Agreement with Azari Engineering, Inc. for Engineering Services for FY 2003/04 Pavement Management Project (CIP 5318) in an amount not to exceed $35,000.

Resolution No. 2004-75 Granting authority to the Contra Costa County Mosquito and Vector Control District to issue Administration Citations within the City of San Ramon.

Resolution No. 2004-77 Authorizing the Mayor to execute an agreement with Frazier Tile for the installation of ceramic tile at the City of San Ramon Aquatic Park in an amount of $75,630 and authorizing a 10% contingency for a total project amount not to exceed $83,260.

Ordinance – Approving Text Amendment TA-03, amending the Home Occupation Permit (HOP) Review and Approval Provisions of the Zoning Ordinance.

Resolution No. 2004-78 Establishing an Argument and Rebuttal Period for the November 2, 2004 Election Ballot Measures.

Resolution No. 2004-80 Designating and appointing Standby Officers for the Members of the City Council and City Manager in the event of an emergency and repealing Resolution NO. 2001-163.

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The Administrative Operations Manager said this ordinance would establish the administrative citations process. He said the public hearing was held at the last meeting and the ordinance was before the Council for adoption.

Cm. Hudson’s motion to adopt the ordinance to establish administration citation procedures and waive the reading was seconded by Cm. Perkins and passed 5-0.

Ordinance – Amending the Municipal Code and establish Administrative Citation Procedures for Violations of the City’s Municipal Code.

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The Parks Department Division Manager introduced Marianne Gagen and Nancy Petsuch of the San Ramon Valley Coalition for Youth Safety and Development and said they would be giving a presentation on the upcoming Developmental Assets Community Summit to be held June 17 at the San Ramon Community Center.

Ms. Gagen said the Coalition as started five years ago and is a collaborative coalition of the City of San Ramon, the Town of Danville, the County Supervisor’s office, the School District and PTA. She said there has been tremendous success in implementing 30 projects. She said the focus was changed two years ago to the 40 Developmental Asset mode, skills, values and relationships that nurture young people and help them thrive and become responsible and productive adults. She invited all of elected officials of the San Ramon Valley, all of the directors of the agencies and leaders of the community to attend.

Ms. Petsuch, School Board Member, thanked the Council for its support and encouraged them to attend the summit.

Mayor Wilson read a proclamation recognizing the San Ramon Valley Coalition for Youth Safety and Development Community Summit on 40 Developmental Assets.

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The Administrative Analyst gave the history of the L&L District and said the public hearing and adoption of the resolution confirming the district diagram and assessments were necessary steps to levy the assessment of San Ramon properties for the FY 2004-05 budget.

Mayor Wilson opened the public hearing.

Paul Mitchell said he supported the resolution with reservations which have to do with the accounting of and justification for reserves for fund balances that have accumulated.

The public hearing was closed.

Cm. Perkins’ motion to adopt the resolution confirming the district diagram and assessments was seconded by Cm. Hudson and passed 5-0.

Resolution No. 2004-69 – Confirming the District Diagram and Assessments and Levying the Assessments for FY 2004/05.

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The Transportation Specialist introduced a proposal to remove the stop signs on Alcosta at the Ensenada intersection. He gave the history of the stop signs and said the proposal had been approved by the Transportation Advisory Committee.

Christa Freihofner read a letter from Roz Rogoff that spoke about the need for stop signs at the Alcosta/Estero intersection. The letter recommended a study be done to determine the need for stop signs at Ensenada and Estero on Alcosta. Ms Freihofner said she had been trying to get a stop sign installed at Estero and Alcosta for a long time.

Sandy Barclay said a survey of the residents indicated there was a strong desire for a stop sign at Ensenada and Estero.

Farrokh Khodadadi said the residents concerns in the area of the Larwin Pump station sewage spill were shared by all the residents of San Ramon. He said in regard to the stop sign, it was annoying and it seems like there are already plenty of stop signs throughout the City not just on Alcosta. He questioned whether the residents were qualified to determine where stop signs should be placed or should that decision be left up to staff with expertise in the area.

The Senior Engineer said he was the author of the stop sign warrants and described the process used for determining the need for a stop sign. In response to Cm. Perkins’ question of whether or not stop signs slow traffic, he said speed was slower in the area of a stop sign but in the mid blocks between the stop signs, the speed actually increased.

Cm. Perkins asked if the traffic courts throw out some traffic citations associated with non warranted stop signs.

The Senior Engineer said if a jurisdiction approves a stop sign and it meets all of the state standards that is a valid traffic control device.

Mayor Wilson asked how a policeman would determine if a stop sign is unwarranted.

Cm. Perkins asked if a citizen received a citation at a stop sign and they requested information from the jurisdiction as to whether this particular stop sign was warranted and they took the information to the traffic courts, could they present that information as mitigation for their infraction.

The City Attorney said warrants are not a lega6l legal distinction. The warrants tell the staff that it meets certain criteria. He went on to explain that the warrant was merely a mechanism that allows the staff to operate without bringing every stop sign request to the City Council.

Cm. Perkins asked if there were problems with leaving a stop sign at the Ensenada/ Alcosta location.

The Transportation Specialist said one of the problems would be that compliance tends to drop when people realize that it is an unwarranted stop sign and many people will roll through the stop instead of stopping completely. A potential of installing unwarranted stop signs is that it is an issue of neighborhood equity.

The Senior Engineer said if the sign were removed the vegetation would be trimmed to have a proper stopping sight distance at the intersection and supplemental additional warning signs would be installed notifying the motorists about the change in traffic control.

Cm. Rowley said she was concerned because there were still issues with the Larwin Pump station and that was why the sign was put in initially. She cited the difference in speed limits along Alcosta and said maybe the speed limit should be lowered in general in that area. She said the visibility was difficult in turning left from Ensenada and suggested looking into installing a stop sign on Alcosta going south and not having one going north.

The Senior Engineer said in his experience a one way stop adds to driver confusion and they have been removed because they cause more problems than they solve.

In response to the question of different speed limits on Alcosta he said basically there were different speed controls and speed limits on different streets because of the conditions.

The Public Works Director said staff had recommended to the Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) that the stop sign be removed and the TAC voted 4-1 for the removal of the sign. She said an appeal was received by the City regarding the decision of staff and the TAC.

Cm. Livingstone said he felt it was clear that the stop sign needs to be removed and leaving it there would be a poor precedence. He said this location is not close to making the warrants.

Cm. Perkins said this stop sign does not constitute a safety hazard should the sight line issue be cleared up. He said the warrants were established to guide the City and if the guidance is ignored there should be very concrete reasons why it is ignored. He said it was established as a mitigation for installation of the sewage treatment pumping station and that process is essentially over.

Cm. Hudson said when you have a neighborhood that so overwhelming tells you they need a stop sign, the first thing you should do is try to understand why they believe it is a safety issue. He said he would support leaving in the stop sign.

Cm. Rowley said the stop sign was put in as part of traffic mitigation for the Larwin pump station and there were still concerns surrounding the pump station. She recommended leaving the sign in.

Mayor Wilson said it is very difficult to take down a stop sign after residents have become accustomed to it. He said he would support leaving the stop sign there.

Cm. Hudson’s motion to uphold the appeal and leave the all-way stop sign as traffic control at the Alcosta/Ensenada intersection and to trim current landscaping at both Ensenada and Estero on Alcosta was seconded by Cm. Rowley and passed 3-2 (Cms. Livingstone and Perkins dissenting).

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The District Engineer recommended the Board hold the public hearing and consider adoption of a resolution confirming and levying the assessment for FY 2004/05. She reviewed the activities of the GHAD for the following year.

No one spoke during the public hearing.

Cm. Hudson’s motion to adopt the GHAD resolution was seconded by Cm. Rowley and passed 5-0.

Resolution No. 2004-72 – Confirming and levying the assessment for Fiscal Year 2004/05.

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The Finance Director said the City Council reviewed the 2004/05 proposed budget for the operating and capital budget combined at three work sessions. He said the proposed resolution covers two additional things outside of the basic budget, the annual adoption of the appropriation limit, as required by state law, which sets an appropriation cap for certain expenditures that local governments make and a transfer of reserves proposal, that funds retiree health care, approved leaves, liability and unfunded equipment replacement and reserve. He continued to say an additional piece of the budget was authorization for carry over appropriations of unspent capital budget appropriations.

Melody Lundgren said one of the items in the capital improvement program budget is a traffic signal at Alcosta and Overlook. She said currently there is a cross walk there and flashers imbedded in the street. She expressed concern that the cross walk was not a deterrent for speeders and pedestrians were not safe when crossing the street at that location. She asked in regard to the City Center project did the City intend to develop both the seven acre and eleven acre parcels, what happened to the public-private partnership and did the City intend to let Sunset Development buy back one or both of the parcels.

Mayor Wilson said all of the options were being reviewed and as soon as a final conclusion is reached the general public would be told.

Harvey Riggs said the budget indicated that $50,000 was being committed to work on drainage. He said not only will the dollars not take care of all the work, all of the work to be taken care was not in the budget. He suggested contacting citizens and asking for loans so that the work can be done.

Cm. Perkins’ motion to adopt the resolution approving the budget was seconded Cm. Rowley and passed 5-0.

Resolution No. 2004-76 – Adopting the 2004/05 Operating and Capital Budget, establishing an Appropriations Limit and authorizing Reserve Transfers and Carryover Project Appropriations.

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The City Manager said as the Council is aware there are two San Ramon measures on the November 2 ballot. He said ballot arguments are required for each of the measures and he was wondering if the Council had any idea as to who they wanted to have their signature on the affirmative ballot argument.

Mayor Wilson suggested that the Finance Committee would be the members that would support and sign the arguments in favor of the initiative.

Mayor Wilson recommended the Councilmembers who voted in favor of the measure, changing the elections to even numbered years, write the affirmative arguments.

Cm. Hudson suggested the Council look at the Chamber or a Marriott representative as signers of the affirmative argument for the TOT measure.

Mayor Wilson said those issues would be determined after discussion.

Cm. Hudson recommended the Council read the draft final report of the Dougherty Valley Transit Study. He said the issue is that Danville and San Ramon have 18% of the population and receive 12% of the transit service.

Mayor Wilson said the Council and staff were aware of that issue and were also very concerned and stated the appropriate action would be taken to protect the residents of San Ramon in Dougherty so that there is a certain amount of parody between funds given and funds received.

Cm. Rowley thanked City staff, friends and the community for their support.

Cm. Perkins said a special event was held on Sunday afternoon, the Mayor’s Challenge – the City of San Ramon vs. the Town of Danville. He said the Mayor led the staff to victory by a margin of more than 200 points.

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There being no further business to come before the City, at 10:25 p.m. the meeting was adjourned.

H. Abram Wilson, Mayor
Judy Macfarlane, City Clerk

Approved: June 8, 2004