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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/18/2012 Minutes - Regular MeetingMINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR DECEMBER 18, 2012 CLOSED SESSION: 6:00 p.m., Room CC -8 Public Comments on Closed Session Agenda — None Offered. ► Government Code Section 54956.9(a) - Pending Litigation City of Diamond Bar v Sheikhpour, et al. Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. KC064161 Closed Session adjourned at 6:20 p.m. with no reportable action taken. CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Jack Tanaka called the Regular City Council meeting to order at.6:30 p.m. in the South Coast Air Quality Management District Auditorium, 21865 Copley Drive, Diamond Bar, CA. CA/Jenkins reported that tonight's Closed Session was called to order at 6:00 p.m. with no public comments offered on the Closed Session item. The single item on the Closed Agenda was a matter of pending litigation — City of Diamond Bar v Sheikhpour, etal. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 6:20 pm. with reportable action taken. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Council Member Steve Tye led the Pledge of Allegiance. INVOCATION: Monsignor James Loughnane, St. Denis Church, gave the invocation. ROLL CALL: Council Members Ling -Ling Chang, Carol Herrera, Steve Tye, Mayor Pro Tem Ron Everett, and Mayor Jack Tanaka. Staff Present: James DeStefano, City Manager; David Doyle, Assistant City Manager; Michael Jenkins, City Attorney; Ken Desforges, IS Director; Dianna Honeywell, Finance Director; Bob Rose, Community Services Director; Greg Gubman, Community Development Director; Ryan McLean, Assistant to the City Manager; Cecilia Arellano, Public Information Coordinator, and Tommye Cribbins, City Clerk. APPROVAL OF AGENDA: As Presented. 1. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATES, PROCLAMATIONS: None. December 18, 2012 PAGE 2 CITY COUNCIL 2. CITY MANAGER REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: CMIDeStefano announced that Washington Park, a small neighborhood park located at the corner of Washington Street and Lincoln Avenue has been recognized by the Southern California Chapter of the American Public Works Association, as an award winner for the Year 2012. Congratulations to the City Council for its foresight to develop the park, to the City's Community Services Department and David Volz Design. The park includes a variety of state-of--the-art community inspired elements that meet all of the requirements of today's water quality standards. The City has been awarded a plaque which is proudly on display in the City's Community Services Department. 3. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Lori Ingoglia, 24224 High Knob, stated her neighborhood has recently experienced mail theft and wanted to inform residents about car burglaries, stolen vehicles and residential burglaries during the past several weeks. Milan Dragojlovich, 24406 Gable Court, spoke about crime in the City and how residents can better organize to be aware. He also asked how to get on the City Council agenda to request that an ordinance prohibiting door to door solicitation in an effort to reduce crime be enacted. ' Robert Velazquez, 24336 Seagreen Drive, asked the City Council for help in protecting residents from break-ins, burglaries, etc. He asked if there was a Neighborhood Watch program in the City and if not, would the City Council help in initiating such a program. 4. RESPONSE TO PUBLIC COMMENTS: CMIDeStefano asked Captain Halm and/or Lt. Katz from the DB/Walnut Sheriff's Station to respond to the speakers comments, talk about DB's crime rates overall as well as, the exceptional support and resources provided by the City Council and Sheriff's Department including numerous Neighborhood Watch groups that exist within the City. CMIDeStefano stated that he had spoken with Mr. Dragojiovich and read excerpts from an email that he wrote to Mr. Dragojlovich in response to the email he received. In the email CMIDeStefano stated that DB has a very active and outstanding group of dedicated Sheriff's serving the community. He indicated that the City Council is very sensitive to any crime in the City and allocates substantial resources toward public safety. The City Council has always strongly supported Neighborhood Watch and there are dozens of Neighborhood Watch groups within DB and that the City supports the formation of more Neighborhood Watch groups. Station deputies are very December 18, 2012 PAGE 3 CITY COUNCIL active in crime reduction and will conduct special operations to catch criminals, especially when alerted to a spike in any given neighborhood or any other unusual activity that may take place. The City has a very low overall crime rate and that this is one of the reasons that several national magazines have rated DB as one of the best places for families to raise children, conduct business, etc. However, with that being said, any resident who is the victim of a property crime or any other crime may beg to differ and that both he and the City Council understand completely. Neighbors should be commended for joining forces to address the concerns in the neighborhood as well as the concerns raised by the speakers this evening. CMIDeStefano went on to announce that a Neighborhood Watch meeting has been scheduled for this Thursday evening at the Deane Homes Swim Club. Retired Deputy St. Amant presenting all the tools and techniques residents can use to create Neighborhood Watch programs to help identify unusual activity or people in the neighborhood. He will cover how to organize and be more vigilant in watching out for each other. Neighborhood Watch is strongly supported in the City. Signs are put up on a regular basis as well as replaced when they fade out. Questions related to solicitation and distribution of flyers and other material is a much more sensitive issue and there is not a simple answer. If the Council wishes he can have CA/Jenkins respond to that matter. CMIDeStefano stated that the City's crime statistics are well known, they are published in the Daily Bulletin and San Gabriel Valley newspapers in general as a comparison to other cities with DB being one of the lowest in the San Gabriel Valley. The City supports The Windmill publication, a community publication that is distributed to every address be it business or residential. For example, the November -December issue of The Windmill contains crime statistics. These statistics are published on a regular basis in cooperation with The Windmill. As one of the speaker's indicated, there is information on the City's website that leads the reader to public safety resources for emergency preparedness, animal control, sheriff and fire, with additional links to take the reader directly to the Sheriff's Department website (LASD or DB/Walnut) which provide up-to-date statistics. Captain Halm stated that in addition to the excellent information provided by CMIDeStefano both he and Lt. Katz spoke to two of the speakers prior to tonight's City Council meeting and will schedule an appointment for them to visit the station as well as the Neighborhood Watch meeting scheduled for this Thursday. He and Lt. Katz will go through the program with them to show them what is in place with support of the Council and its resources. During the past nine years there have not been any cuts made to public safety and in fact, a position has been added. Even in these tough economic times, the City continues to add to its service. He and Lt. Katz are in constant contact with the DB team and staff. They hold weekly December 18, 2012 PAGE 4 CITY COUNCIL meetings with the crime analyst to find out where crimes are occurring in an attempt to put deputies where they are most needed. It may take a few days before a pattern is recognized since there are so few crimes in DB, but the department will eventually move its resources to the affected areas or bring additional resources to bare. He explained to the City Council and residents that last year the department had its biggest drop in crime in the region. In fact, the department and the City Council were honored by Sheriff Baca for the biggest five-year drop in crime. As CMIDeStefano has stated, one crime is too many. Crimes will happen. The Department is also dealing with the realignment under AB 109 where a lot of people are being let out that would normally remain incarcerated and the department is seeing that as a potential issue for crime waves which are perpetrated by individuals from outlying areas. The City has an excellent fingerprint program paid for by the City Council with which the department has had great success and the department continues to look for ways to lower the crime rate even more. 5. SCHEDULE OF FUTURE EVENTS: 5.1 Holiday Diamond Ride -- November 23 through January 1, 2013 for residents 18 and over. Free shuttle services to and from Diamond Bar Shopping Center. For more information or to schedule a ride call 1-800-578-6555. 5.2 Christmas Holiday — December 24 and 25, 2012 — City Offices will be closed in observance of the Christmas Holiday. City Offices will reopen Wednesday, December 26, 2012 at 7:30 a.m. 5.3 Holiday Tree Curbside Collection Program — December 26, 2012 through January 11, 2013. Trees free of decorations and flocking may be left at the curb. Any tree in excess of 6 feet in height must be cut in half. 5.4 Late Night Transit Pass Sale — Wednesday, December 26, 2012 until 7:00 p.m., Diamond Bar City Hall, 21810 Copley Drive. 5.5 New Year's Holiday — January 1, 2013 — City offices will be closed Tuesday, January 1, 2013 in observance of New Year's Day. City Offices will reopen on Wednesday, January 2, 2013 at 7:30 a.m. 5.6 City Council Meeting — January 15, 2013 --- 6:30 p.m., AQMDIGovernment Center Auditorium, 21865 Copley Drive. 5.7 Winter Snow Fest — January 19, 2013 — 10:00 a.m. -- 4:00 p.m. -- Pantera Park, 738 Pantera Drive. December 18, 2012 PAGE 5 CITY COUNCIL 6. CONSENT CALENDAR: C/Chang moved, MPT/Everett seconded, to approve the Consent Calendar as presented. Motion carried by the following Roll Call vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Chang, Herrera, Tye, MPTIEverett, M/Tanaka NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None 6.1 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES - Regular Meeting of December 4, 2012 — Approved as submitted. 6.2 RECEIVED AND FILED PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES: 6.3.1 Regular Meeting of October 23, 2012. 6.3.2 Regular Meeting of November 13, 2012. 6.3 RATIFIED CHECK REGISTER — Dated November 29, 2012 through December 12, 2012 totaling $1,019,792.94. 6.4 APPROVED TREASURER'S STATEMENT OF OCTOBER 2012 AND REVISED TREASURER'S STATEMENTS FOR THE MONTHS OF JUNE, JULY, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER 2012. 6.5 APPROVED ADJOURNING THE JANUARY 1, 2013 CITY COUNCIL MEETING TO JANUARY 15, 2013.. 6.6 AUTHORIZED, AWARDED AND APPROPRIATED DIAMOND BAR CENTER IMPROVEMENT PROJECT IN THE AMOUNT OF $383,000 FROM THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND RESERVES. 6.7 APPROVED AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO THE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT WITH THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES TO PROCURE TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM SOFTWARE; AND, AUTHORIZED THE REIMBURSEMENT REQUEST IN THE AMOUNT OF $37,495, FOR THE PROCUREMENT AND INSTALLATION OF THE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT CENTER VIDEO WALL MONITOR SYSTEM. 6.8 APPROPRIATED $14,775 FROM PROP C FUND BALANCE RESERVES AND APPROVED CONTRACT AMENDMENT WITH LOCAL AGENCY ENGINEER (LAE) ASSOCIATES, INC. IN THE AMOUNT OF $14,775 FOR PREPARATION OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY METRO'S 2013 "CALL FOR PROJECTS" FUNDING APPLICATION FOR AN ADAPTIVE TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM. December 18, 2012 PAGE 6 CITY COUNCIL 7 N. 6.9 APPROVED CONTRACT AMENDMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF $50,000 WITH RKA CONSULTING GROUP FOR PUBLIC WORKSIENGINEERING STAFF SUPPORT SERVICES. 6.10 AUTHORIZED PURCHASE OF TEN (10) CLOSED-CIRCUIT TELEVISION (CCTV) CAMERAS FROM COHU IN THE AMOUNT OF $74,062.50. 6.11 APPROVED NOTICE OF COMPLETION FOR -RESIDENTIAL AREA 1A AND ARTERIAL ZONE 6 ROAD MAINTENANCE PROJECT. 6.12 ADOPTED RESOLUTION NO. 2012-52: APPROVING THE APPLICATION FOR $257,098. IN GRANT FUNDS FROM THE RECREATIONAL TRAILS PROGRAM "MOVING AHEAD FOR PROGRESS IN THE 21sT CENTURY ACT (MAP 21) FUND" FOR THE PANTERA PARK TRAIL ACCESS. PUBLIC HEARING: None COUNCIL CONSIDERATION: 8.1 RATIFY CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT AND ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2012-53: CONFIRMING THE APPOINTMENT OF SPECIFIC REPRESENTATIVES TO THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS. M/Tanaka announced his recommendations for Council Committee appointments and asked for a motion and second to ratify the appointments. ORGANIZATION DELEGATE ALTERNATE California Contract Cities Association Foothill Transit Board Four -Corners Transportation Policy Group Greater L.A. County Vector Control District Joint Powers Insurance Authority L.A. County Sanitation District No. 21 L.A. County City Selection Committee League of CA Cities —L.A. County Division San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments Southern California Assn of Governments (SCAG) Tres Hermanos Conservation Authority Wildlife Corridor Conservation Authority (WCCA) Tye Chang Tanaka Herrera Herrera Everett Tye. Tanaka Everett Tye Tanaka Everett Tanaka Everett Chang Tanaka Everett Herrera Chang Everett Herrera Everett Tanaka Everett December 18, 2012 PAGE T CITY COUNCIL_ STANDING COMMITTEES City Council Goals/City Manager Evaluation Tanaka Everett Economic Development Chang Everett Industry East Development Advisory Committee Tye Herrera Legislative Chang Herrera LightinglLandscape Assess Dist subcommittee Everett Tanaka . Neighborhood Improvement Everett Tanaka Public Safety Committee Tanaka Everett Sphere of Influence/Annexation Herrera Chang LIAISON Chamber of Commerce Chang Everett Diamond Bar Community Foundation Tye Chang Library Herrera Tye PUSDlCity Everett Tanaka Senior Citizen Herrera Tanaka WVUSDICity Chang Everett At the request of MPT/Everett, CMIDeStefano explained that the City has Had a variety of standing committees that have met more frequently over the years than those that are listed as "Ad Hoc" Committees. The Ad Hoc Committees that are listed tend to meet less frequently and some have not met in several years. CMIDeStefano stated that CA/Jenkins has recommended that all of the Ad Hoc Committees become "Standing" Committees because while they may not have met frequently they remain on the list of important committees for the City Council to consider as the need may arise and therefore should be added to the Standing Committee roster. CA/Jenkins stated that if a committee simply exists indefinitely in time it is a "standing" committee and should be listed among the Standing Committees. If a committee is created for a temporary period of time and for a very specific purpose that would be an Ad Hoc Committee which is a committee that can be created at any time if and when an issue arises. It is his opinion that the City Council should decide either that the Ad Hoc Committee is a Standing Committee or should be dissolved entirely if there is no further need for the committee or, the City Council should create it with the understanding that it would be temporary and that it would be dissolved as soon as the purpose of the committee has been satisfied. MPT/Everett asked if action was required to delete the Ad Hoc Committees and meet as needed and continue standing committees from Economic Development down through Sphere of Influence/Annexation. CA/Jenkins asked for clarification that MPT/Everett was asking for deletion of the Ad Hoc Committee heading. December 18, 2012 PAGE 8 CITY COUNCIL MPT/Everett said that was his understanding of CA/Jenkins' comments. CA/Jenkins said that would be appropriate. M/Tanaka asked if there was additional action required. CA/Jenkins responded that deleting the heading would resolve the matter but only with the understanding that all of the Standing Committees are Brown Act bodies and meetings would have to be noticed for public meeting with agendas posted accordingly. MPT/Everett moved, M[Tanaka seconded, to remove the Ad Hoc Committee heading. ClHerrera offered a substitute motion to approve appointments as presented with two exceptions: For the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments appoint as delegate Herrera with alternate Everett and for the Joint Powers Insurance Authority appoint as delegate Tye with alternate Everett and adopt Resolution No. 20'12-53 stating those names. C/Chang seconded the substitute motion. She said she felt that with the uncertainty of the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments and given C/Herrera's experience on that board it seems imperative that she should continue being the delegate. COG is experiencing some turmoil and with the potential for separation between COG and ACE she feels it would be beneficial for ClHerrera to continue serving as the delegate. ClHerrera said that with respect to the Joint Powers Insurance Authority there are a couple of individuals that are dropping off of the Executive Board. Council Member Tye has been on that board for several years and has an excellent opportunity to be an officer and therefore feels it is advantageous for DB to have one of its Council Members as an officer on the Authority. MPT/Everett said that as the discussion goes regarding the COG, one key interest is to have as much visibility and communication as possible and he respects the experience of ClHerrera. His question is, is it practice or could it be that both the delegate and alternate attend meetings as available? Is there only one vote for the City so that the vote would go to the delegate? He agreed that COG is at a crossroads and needs support to provide benefit to the region and the City. ClHerrera said that as a past president of COG she can answer MPT/Everett's question that it is typically the delegate who votes on issues at the governing board meetings. Some cities often have their delegate and their alternate attend the meetings but only one votes and only the delegate can enter the closed session unless the delegate is not present. December 18, 2012 PAGE 9 CITY COUNCIL There have been times when she as the delegate has not attended the meeting and at that point the alternate attends, votes and goes into the closed session. M/Tanaka said that with some of the subcommittees there have not always been reports forthcoming for the rest of the Council and some of the appointments were made with that in mind. With the section in the agenda that calls for Council Subcommittee reports hopefully . that will address some of those issues. C/Chang said when she was first elected to the City Council she attended many meetings on her own without being appointed as the City's delegate and because of her participation in those meetings it has allowed her to get involved on the Executive Board of Contract Cities as well as, moving up within the League of California Cities to become the incoming president next year. She encouraged anyone to participate to gain information and participate on behalf of the City as long as they have the opportunity to do so with the exception of closed sessions. It has been enlightening for her and she encouraged MPT/Everett to attend as many meetings as possible if he has an interest in doing so. C/Herrera's substitute motion carried by the following Roll Call vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Chang, Herrera, Tye NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: MPT/Everett, M/Tanaka ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None 9. COUNCIL SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS AND MEETING ATTENDANCE REPORTSICOUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS: C/Herrera stated that as the delegate and member of the Executive Board for Foothill Transit she had attended its meeting last Friday and that in the past had spoken about Foothill Transit's plan to support and build a Park 'n Ride parking facility on the property currently owned and maintained by Caltrans. DB was looking for a cooperative agreement with Caltrans to transfer the property and with that, would include the transfer of responsibility for the storm drain. This would mean that once the property was transferred, Foothill Transit would ultimately own the facility and be responsible for the storm drain. Unfortunately the Board felt that they did not have the capacity to maintain and potentially repair the storm drain so the Foothill Transit Board decided that they would no longer pursue building the facility in DB at the Caltrans site. She wished everyone Happy Holidays in spite of the enormity of colds and flu this season and hoped everyone would stay safe and healthy. December 18, 2012 PAGE 10 CITY COUNCIL CITye said that last Friday it was a privilege to attend the Diwali Festival celebration at the Diamond Bar Center with the Indian Community. Diamond Bar is a contract city and he felt the City was very fortunate to have terrific contract services. He believes DB has the best police department with the LA County Sheriff's Department and terrific relationships with the City's trash haulers, both Waste Management and Valley Vista. CITye stated that it is a privilege to bring to the attention of the residents this evening that The Daily Joumal, the State's leading legal newspaper, has named Mike Jenkins and his wife Christi Hogin as among the top 25 municipal law attorneys in California for 2012. Mike has acted as DB's City Attorney for many, many years and recognition like this is not like his which is sales oriented where one year a person might be the best salesman, but is truly recognition of a career and outstanding effort in municipal law. Congratulations to Mike and Christy. He wished M/Tanaka a Happy Birthday and everyone a very, very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. C/Chang reminded everyone they can follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare. When she checked in at the Diamond Bar Community Foundation's Holiday party at East 180 she noticed that when she was there in May someone had commented that "the Mayor of DB is here having Dim Sum" which led her to believe that people are paying attention. When she is out and about she would like for people to say hello and check in with her. She attended the Contract Cities Executive Board meeting for discussion of the 2013 Legislative Orientation Tour scheduled from January 6-8 where she and CITye will represent the City. She attended the San Gabriel Valley Chamber Corporate Citizen of the Year luncheon honoring Puente Hills Hyundai as well as attended the San Gabriel Valley YMCA holiday party where former DB Mayor John Forbing served as Santa Claus. She also attended the League of California Cities and Independent Cities Association All League Reception and' a City Selection meeting a few weeks back. She too attended the Diwali Festival. She attended the Public Safety Appreciation luncheon and thanked the Sheriff's Department for a great job. Last year when the City asked for more support it was interesting because some other deputies came in to patrol the area. Some people were stopped and the City received complaints for excessive patrolling. In her opinion, she believes the Sheriffs Department has been doing a great job in monitoring DB neighborhoods and it is a great thing to be active with one's Neighborhood Watch. She commended all of the residents who spoke encouraging everyone to pay attention to what is going on in their neighborhoods which she believes is necessary to support the Sheriff's Department. She participated in the Holiday Home Decorating Contest with staff. There were a lot of homes with beautiful lights. As they drove through the City they found a lot of beautifully lighted homes that did not enter the contest. One in particular had a sign asking people to tune in to 98.5 FM so they could see that the lighting was coordinated with the music. Today she December 18, 2012 PAGE 11 CITY COUNCIL attended the Diamond Bar Senior Citizen's Club Holiday luncheon with M/Tanaka and MPT/Everett. The .Diamond Ranch High School Choir performed and they were phenomenal. She also congratulated CA/Jenkins on his acknowledgement and thanked him for his many years of service to DB. She took notice of Ann Curry's suggestion on Twitter for 26 Acts of Kindness to counter the violence and murders that occurred in Newtown and has pledged to complete her acts of kindness by the end of the year. She encouraged everyone to consider participating and wished everyone Happy Holidays. MPT/Everett acknowledged public comments during the December 4 City Council meeting during which DBHS students alerted the Council to a wonderful person, Danika Tibayan who had recently passed. He was privileged to join her friends at a memorial honoring her last Friday, December 7. Immediately following that he was privileged to attend one of the celebrations with the Sheriff's Station Holiday Celebration which he recognized as team building. There was great spirit, attitude, energy and communication. It is just a delight to, at a minimum once a year, sit face to face across the table and reinforce team building and honor the season and the people. He too was privileged to attend the Diwali Sunshine Senior's celebration that evening. It was a great celebration. It was a great seasonal celebration. The other thing they do is they focus on Sankara Eye Foundation which raises a significant amount of funds to open eye clinics across the country in India and have a real focus and a real service attitude and spirit. Next there was another item that took some attention at the last public comments and that was the "Clean Water -Clean Beaches" measure. He showed a publication from Supervisor Don Knabe highlighting this measure. He looked at his tax bill and he would encourage everybody to find that document that may have looked like throw away mail before January 15. Residents need to think about that and how it applies to them and if they choose to protest make sure to file an Easy Card to protest or attend the meeting that is listed for Tuesday, January 15, in the Board of Supervisor's Hearing Room. For more information there is a phone number and a website. C/Everett also attended the Rowland Heights Community Coordinating Council meeting. They had a wonderful informative speaker. The issue was "Free Ontario Movement" and the effort by the City of Ontario to regain ownership of the Ontario airport from the Los Angeles World Airport Authority. The City of Ontario doesn't own or manage the property. MPTIEverett stated that this is his favorite airport and is becoming a vacant place as time moves forward and he is concerned. Speaker, Alan Wapner, Ontario City Council Member is available and will speak to any organization about Ontario's efforts to take over ownership of the airport. He is informed, he has all of the facts and it appears to be a no-brainer except to LAX and they have their authority and they have their objectives and their plans and sadly, it appears that the City of Ontario Airport which is LAX Ontario Airport is kind of a stepchild and he encouraged folks to follow up on that. The folks December 18, 2012 PAGE 12 CITY COUNCIL at the Coordinating Council were alarmed and they could not believe what they were hearing. They really thought Ontario was on its own, they did not realize all of the problems that exist. So pay attention, get involved if you can and protect our airport and get cars off the road that are now driving to LAX instead of Ontario Airport. He thanked Monsignor Loughnane for his always appropriate and thoughtful invocation which provides a content and focus for the City Council meeting and for the community which he appreciates. It is extremely important. People like we've talked about —. Danika who is a student, the Sheriff's and all of those good people, fire and all of our first respondents — all are important and need protection and consideration. He thanked the folks who spoke today. There is no doubt in his mind since he has been on the City Council; Neighborhood Watch is one of the City's prize -performers and the most important because residents say so all of the time at Neighborhood Watch meetings. The key is to organize Neighborhood Watch and then follow through and then members can be the eyes and ears that help DB Sheriff's who are the pros and will follow up with professionalism. So that's the right answer he is convinced and he is sorry he will not be able to make that meeting but normally that is his path is to attend every Neighborhood Watch because of the importance and to make sure people in the audience and those watching and those who have Neighborhood Watches, keep them alive because it is a powerful tool in crime prevention, be it mail fraud, burglaries, etc. May everyone find joy beyond understanding and beyond what the nation has experienced in the last couple of days with the Joy of Christmas and have a peace that makes your joy and your family special. This is the time. He wished everyone a Merry Christmas. MlTanaka said that he had an opportunity to get to Danika Tibayan's celebration of life, a young DBHS senior whose life was taken too soon. Two Wednesday's ago he participated in a Worldwide Police Station Visitor's Week which was organized by Altus Global Alliance. Our team toured and observed the Walnut/DB Sheriffs Station. Each team member took a survey and discussed different areas such as community orientation, physical conditions, equal treatment of the public regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, minority status or sexual orientation. Another area they looked at was transparency and accountability and detention conditions and must report for our team our Walnut/DB station had flying colors with great seals of approval. He thanked everyone for maintaining the station as they do and for being responsive to the public as well. He attended the Walnut/DB Station's Holiday dinner which was well attended by both sworn and non -sworn staff members and their families. MPT/Everett and he attended the last portion of the Sunshine Senior's Diwali Celebration and Fundraiser for the Sankara Eye Foundation and helping their efforts to conduct eye exams, surgeries, to improve vision and prevent blindness in India. Next was the Public Safety luncheon to December 18, 2012 PAGE 13 CITY COUNCIL thank the Deputy Sheriffs, Firefighters, Humane Society, Ambulance drivers and Paramedics and fingerprint specialists who all help to fight crime in the City of DB and they are all working to keep our City safe. M/Tanaka also attended the DB Senior's Christmas Holiday dinner/dance and stated that it was a great time with good friends, good food and good music and lots of gifts during the drawings. Last Saturday there were 25 DBHS Leo's who helped with the Library children's gingerbread house construction and again like last year the building inspector had to red tag a few of the gingerbread houses that were leaning a little to the left or right and were deemed to be unsafe. The City staff holiday potluck luncheon was a great event with lots of good food including a roasted turkey. Again, it is our opportunity for the City Council to say thank you to the great City staff for their hard work all year long. Later that afternoon he had an opportunity to address two and one-half classes of third graders at Castle Rock Elementary School. He talked with the students about rights and responsibilities of residents from a third grader's perspective. There were lots of questions about the Gabriel ino-Tongva Indian Tribe who resided in the San Gabriel Valley. This afternoon was the DB Senior's Christmas luncheon attended by CIChang and MPT/Everett where there was lots of great food and gifts for all. The special treat was the choir from DRHS and they were all dressed in Charles Dickens period outfits. He congratulated Mike Jenkins and Christi Hogin for their recognition for some outstanding work. This evening he announced he would adjourn tonight's meeting in memory of the students and adults who died1n the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut as well as in memory of Kay Fukushima, Past International President of The International Association of Lions Club. He wished everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. ADJOURNMENT: With no further business to conduct, M/Tanaka adjourned the Regular City Council Meeting at 7:38 p.m., in memory of the students and adults who died in the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, and in memory of Kay Fukushima, Past International PresidOnt of The International Association of Lions Club. TOMMY CR.IBBINS,, Cl'TY CLERK The foregoing minutes are hereby approved this 15thday of January 2013. JACK TANAKA, MAYOR