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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/15/2015 - Minutes - Regular MeetingMINUTES OF THE ,{T' "p, !L REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY OF DI BAR SEPTEMBER CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Tye called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. in the South Coast Air Center Auditorium,i• Copley Drive, Diamond QualityBar,ManagementA PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Low, Chairwoman of the Planning Commissior e..the Pledgeof Allegiance. INVOCATION: Monsignor James Loughnane, St. Denis Church provided the invocation. ROLL CALL: Council Members Herrera, Lin, Tanaka, Mayor Pro Tem Lyons and Mayor Tye. C/Tanaka was excused and left the meeting at 7:12 p.m. Staff Present: James DeStefano, City Manager; Ryan McLean, Deputy City Manager; Lois Llobak, Deputy City Attorney; Ken Desforges, IS Director; David Liu, Public Works Director; Dianna Honeywell, Finance Director; Greg Gubman, Community Development Director; Kimberly Young, Senior Civil Engineer; Anthony Jordan, Parks Maintenance Supervisor; Amy Haug, Human Resources Manager; Marsha Roa, Public Information Manager; Anthony Santos, Senior Management Analyst, and Tommye Cribbins, City Clerk. 1.1 M/Tye and Council Members presented Certificates of Recognition to Diamond Bar Girls Softball (DBGS) 12U Gold All-Star Team for an Outstanding Season. BUSINESS OF THE MONTH: 1.2 M/Tye and City Council Members presented a City Tile to Store Director Jeff Christensen on behalf of Albertsons, 1235 S. Diamond Bar Boulevard, as Business of the Month for September 2015. r ,,r 3 1 t _ � - • ti : � T.. � •7.7if71'citl`���IU_`�[•]��F'i CM/DeStefano introduced Captain Scroggins who introduced Deputy Chad Holland as Diamond Bar's newest Special Assignment Deputy. SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 2 CITY COUNCIL Ruth Low announced that the Diamond Bar Friends of the Library will host the Read Together Diamond Bar Program during October which will feature China Dolls, a novel by Lisa See. She encouraged everyone and especially those between the ages 13-18 to participate in the Friends of the Library Essay Contest "How a Book Changed My Life" which will end October 3rd. Theresa Lee, stated that last week she submitted to the Planning Department a 600 signature petition in opposition to a cell tower in the residential area of The Country Estates. Chia Teng, 22379 Kicking Horse Drive, spoke about removal of trees by the Millennium project. Tom Jordan, 3854 Castle Rock Road, spoke about paving/safety issues on Castle Rock Road and said he was concerned that nothing was being done to correct the issues. He is particularly concerned about kids who ride their bikes on the street because it is dangerous with pieces of steel sticking up out of the asphalt and holes in the pavement where the manhole covers are to be installed. Vinod Kashyap, 3839 Castle Rock Road, also spoke about paving/safety issues. After reporting his concerns to someone on Hawkwood Road who he believed to be an inspector who told him he had reported the concerns to the Director of Public Works nothing has happened to fix the situation. The asphalt is not curing properly on Castle Rock Road and the manholes were not raised before they were paved and these items present a hazard to kids riding their bikes and to drivers as well. He requested that the matter be placed on the agenda and that residents be provided a written status report at the next City Council meeting. Pui Ching Ho, Diamond Bar Library, stated that on September 23rd at 4:00 p.m. there will be a Personal Safety Workshop for parents of children between the ages of 4-10; On Saturday, September 26th at 2:00 p.m. there will be a West Coast Swing Dance Class; and, in October the library invites everyone to join together to read Lisa See's China Dolls during Read Together Diamond Bar and view the award winning documentary Of Civil Wrongs and Rights, the Fred Korematsu Story on Saturday, October 3rd at 2:00 p.m. followed by a discussion led by Mt. SAC Professor "Fred" Mahlke. Please check the library website at www.colapublic.org for additional programs and information. Michelle Yi, Board of Director, The Country Estates, read a letter written by the general manager addressed to the City of Diamond Bar referring to a letter written by a previous general manager dated March 4, 2005 in which he stated Millennium was entitled to access through The Country Estates gate. Ms. Yi said the statement regarding access was not correct. (No copies of the letter were submitted to the City). SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 3 CITY COUNCIL CM/DeStefano responded to speakers. There is an application pending in the City Planning office for a modification to an existing cell site that is located on a Water District property within The Country Estates. He understands that the application may involve the relocation of a device that is attached to a tank to a freestanding location adjacent. This is a matter that will have a Planning Commission Public Hearing coming forward and depending on the results of that Public Hearing, discussion, debate and decision, may ultimately come to the City Council as occurred earlier this year. He would ask that the City Council not respond to that matter as presented by the speaker in any way. His understanding is that the speaker attempted to submit the petition that was referenced to the Planning Commissioners and was persuaded not to do so because the appropriate time for such a petition would be during the Public Hearing process itself. Otherwise, it is not admissible with respect to the decision that the Planning Commission and City Council may, in the future, be asked to make on that matter. Another speaker spoke with respect to the Millennium project and concerns about the trees that are onsite. That project was approved almost 10 years ago and was the result of an exhaustive Environmental Impact Report that documented all of the trees on the site in order to determine whether or not they met the City's code requirements for either preservation, relocation or replacement. There has been grubbing activities and a variety of other measures on that property over the years. Without knowing more details about the speaker's concern it is difficult to respond since that project is nearing the time where it would receive a Final Map and eventual construction. He asked that the speaker connect with the City's Community Development Director in order to try to revisit that issue to get a better understanding of what has occurred and what permissions the City has granted, etc, with respect to the issue of the native trees. The last speaker also spoke regarding the Millennium project. There is an ongoing argument between The Country Estates Homeowners' Association Board and the developer, Millennium Partners over the appropriateness of several factors not the least of which is access for Millennium through the gates of The Country Estates to the Millennium property which, depending on one's opinion, may or may not be a part of The Country Estates. But that is an issue that as he understands has yet to be resolved between those two private parties. More than a year ago one or more of the same speakers in a forum similar to this asked that the City Attorney take a look at a variety of documents to try to determine whether or not the Millennium project had access through the gates. After looking at all of the recorded documents, CA/DeBerry's analysis and opinion concluded with a memorandum that CM/DeStefano transmitted to Ms. Lee, which indicated that based upon all of the documents that were provided to the City and that were recorded and utilized in the analysis, the project did have access through those gates. And any other discussion/argument regarding rights SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 4 CITY COUNCIL 5. R and privileges reverts back to a private party matter. That opinion was rendered and forward September/October of 2014 (last year) and so 12 months later the issue may still be in play. However, City staff did not receive the last speaker's communication which prevents staff from analyzing and responding. Two speakers spoke regarding Castle Rock Road. Staff is not familiar with the issues that were represented. Staff would like the opportunity to discuss this matter with Mr. Kashyup and Mr. Jordan and identify more specifically where those concerns as represented are located and staff will then resolve whatever issues might be and report that conclusion back to the City Council. C/Lin asked if during paving the City would typically have a City inspector onsite. PWD/Liu responded that the short answer is "absolutely." The speaker referred to a Saturday and even on a Saturday the City would have the inspector present to inspect the activities. PWD/Liu said his staff would follow up with Mr. Kashyap and Mr. Jordan as indicated by the City Manager and bring back an update to the City Council. 5.1 Planning Commission Meeting — September 22, 2015 — 7:00 p.m., Windmill Community Room, 21810 Copley Drive — Canceled. 5.2 Annual Diamond Bar Day at the Los Angeles County Fair — September 24, 2015 — Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona. 5.3 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting — September 24, 2015 — 7:00 p.m., Windmill Community Room, 21810 Copley Drive —Canceled. 5.4 City Council Meeting — October 6, 2015 — 6:30 p.m., SCAQMD/Government Center, 21865 Copley Drive. CONSENT CALENDAR: C/Herrera moved, C/Lin seconded, to approve the Consent Calendar with the exception of Item 6.8 removed by C/Lin. Motion carried by the following Roll Call vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Herrera, Lin, MPT/Lyons, M/Tye NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Tanaka 6.1 APPROVED CITY COUNCIL MINUTES — Regular Meeting of August 18, 2015 — as presented. 6.2 RECEIVED AND FILED TRAFFIC AND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION MINUTES - Regular Meeting of June 11, 2015. SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 5 CITY COUNCIL 6.3 RECEIVED AND j' T4,NNING COIT]ITIISSIOII MINUTES — Regular Meeting of July 28, I 6.4 RATIFIED CHECK REGISTER — Dated August 13, 2015 through September 9, 2015 totaling $2,134,115.63. 6.6 APPROPRIATED FUNDS FROM GENERAL FUND RESERVES AND AWARDED A CONTRACT TO NEXUS -IS TO EXPAND THE CITY'S SECURITY CAMERA SYSTEM IN AN AMOUNT NOT -TO -EXCEED $114,000. 6.7 ADOPTED RESOLUTION NO. 2015-35: APPROVING THE APPLICATION FOR $267,500 OF HABITAT CONSERVATION FUND GRANT FUNDS, WHICH IF AWARDED, REQUIRES A $267,500 [HATCH FROM THE CITY FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANYON LOOP TRAIL. 6.9 FISCAL YEAR- 2015-16 APPROPRIATION ADJUSTMENTS FOR CARRY FORWARD EXPENDITURES, SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS CARRYOVERS, CAPITAL PROJECT CARRYOVERS AND FISCAL YEAR 2014-15 FINAL ADJUSTMENTS. 6.10 AUTHORIZED THE CITY MANAGER TO APPROVE AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE EAST San Gabriel VALLEY REGIONAL OCCUPATIONAL PROGRAM AND TECHNICAL CENTER (ESGVROP/TC) FOR VIDEO PRODUCTION SERVICES. 6.8 AUTHORIZE PURCHASE OF FIVE (5) DECORATIVE TRAFFIC SIGNAL POLES FROM SOUTH COAST LIGHTING & DESIGN IN THE AMOUNT OF $58,378.22, FOR THE DIAMOND BAR BOULEVARD AND BREA CANYON ROAD INTERSECTION ENHANCEMENT PROJECT. C/Lin said his understanding was that the developer contributed $470,000 for the improvements of the roadways and signals for their development and that at the present time the first expenditure is this item. Since there is already a left -turn lane already built that includes traffic signals, are those improvements paid for by the City. PWD/Liu asked if C/Lin was referring to the existing signal on Diamond Bar Boulevard at Cherrydale Lane. That signal will be installed and paid for by Lennar. SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 6 CITY COUNCIL C/Lin asked why the City was spending only $58 thousand out of the $470,000 that was contributed to the project. M/Tye PWD/Liu explained that the $58,378.22 is solely for the purpose of buying the five decorative traffic signal poles. The manufacturer of these decorative poles require a lead time of 14-16 weeks so the idea is that the developer is scheduled to start the intersection improvements in a month and rather than waiting for delivery of the remaining five signals staff wants to be able to purchase those signals now with Council's approval so that by the end of this calendar year staff can follow up immediately after the developer finishes its activities to complete the intersection improvements at Brea Canyon Road and Diamond Bar Boulevard as part of the offsite improvements required by the City to be paid for by Lennar. C/Lin moved, MPT/Lyons seconded, to Approve Item 6.8 to authorize the purchase of five (5) decorative traffic signal poles from South Coast Lighting & Design in the amount of $58,378.22, for the Diamond Bar Boulevard and Brea Canyon Road intersection enhancement project. Motion carried by the following Roll Call vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Herrera, Lin, MPT/Lyons, And None Tanaka 7.1 ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2015-36: APPROVING THE REMOVAL OF THE CROSSWALK AT GRAND AVENUE AND THE STATE ROUTE (SR60) EASTBOUND ON RAMP. CM/DeStefano introduced SCE/Young who provided staffs report. The resolution before the City Council is to approve the removal of the crosswalk along Grand Avenue at the eastbound SR60 freeway onramp. This proposal is a requirement of the new Westbound Onramp Project that is being proposed adjacent to the vacant Honda parcel along Grand Avenue north of the freeway. Caltrans required that this be done so that all of the area within their right-of-way would be compliant with ADA Accessibility Requirements. The Westbound Onramp Project was advertised for bids on September 8. The scheduled bid opening is October 29, 2015 with construction anticipated to commence in mid to late December 2015. The existing crosswalk at the eastbound off ramp has a cross slope of eight (8) percent or greater which is not in compliance with the two (2) percent maximum required for ADA compliance. Additionally, there is an existing ADA compliant path of travel on the west side of Grand Avenue that will remain SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 7 CITY COUNCIL In place if this crosswalk is approved for removal. The eastside of Grand Avenue will be reconstructed in future phases of the overall SR57/60 Confluence Project to provide an ADA Accessible compliant pathway. Currently, the accessible (paved) pathway lies on the east side of Grand Avenue between Golden Springs and the other side of the freeway; however, that pathway leads to a non -accessible unimproved pathway, which is why staff feels it is appropriate to remove the crosswalk on the eastbound onramp. If the crosswalk is approved for removal the entire area (shown in red) will be deemed non -accessible and barricades will be constructed (shown in green), one at the intersection of Golden Springs and Grand Avenue a physical barricade at the corner where the existing eastbound lies to prohibit individuals from using the non -accessible path (shown in red). The existing sidewalk (shown in purple) between Golden Springs and the eastbound onramp will remain so that pedestrians can use the sidewalk to access the golf course and its parking lot. The area on the west side (shown in blue) will remain to provide an accessible path of travel. This item was considered by the Traffic and Transportation Commission on August 13, 2015 and the Commission concurred with staff to remove the crosswalk and recommended that the item be presented to the City Council for approval. Pursuant to the California Vehicle Code Section 21950.5, a public hearing is required to remove a crosswalk. Notices and postings shall be completed to give all users the opportunity to be heard. Notices were posted at the actual crosswalk location notifying users of its potential removal and consideration at tonight's Public Hearing. The Public Hearing notice was posted in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune and Inland Valley Daily Bulletin newspapers and notice was sent to Caltrans notifying them of the Public Hearing which was initiated by their comment and requirement that the crosswalk be removed. If Council approves the removal, work will be scheduled in accordance with construction of the westbound onramp and Public Comments will be received until 30 -days following tonight's Hearing and addressed accordingly. Prior to removal of the crosswalk because the overall construction schedule for the westbound onramp can be up to 18 months, staff will repost the location 30 days in advance to re -notify users of removal of the crosswalk. All costs associated with the removal will be borne by the City of Industry in conjunction with the westbound onramp because the westbound onramp project is being paid for in its entirety by the City of Industry as one of the mitigation measures attached to the Industry Business Center Development north of the freeway. Staff recommends removal of the crosswalk along Grand Avenue at the eastbound SR60 freeway onramp and requests that Council adopt the Resolution accordingly. SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 8 CITY COUNCIL C/Lin asked if staff conducted pedestrian counts before deciding to close the crosswalk. SCE/Young said she is not aware of any pedestrian traffic counts but it may have been done as part of City of Industry's Traffic Impact Report for the westbound onramp; however, staff is not privy to that information. M/Tye said he thought that anything having to do with an on and off ramp belonged to Caltrans and is this just a matter of posting it for public consumption because Diamond Bar is not removing it. SCE/Young said that Diamond Bar is not removing the crosswalk. City of Industry is removing the crosswalk as part of their project which will be handled by Caltrans; however, because this is within Diamond Bar's jurisdictional authority, the City of Diamond Bar is obliged to hold the public hearing and notify Caltrans as the Right -of -Way owner. M/Tye opened the Public Hearing Bob Velker asked what might happen if a car stalled on that side and someone had to cross the road. It seems to him it would be a nice solution to have a crosswalk on the freeway so that people on the west side could safely get to the other side and vise versa if they needed to. With no further testimony offered, M/Tye closed the Public Hearing. MPT/Lyons said that cars break down from time to time and if a car were to break down what would we expect to have happen. SCE/Young responded that the shoulder will be available for pedestrians to stand on while awaiting assistance. She believes that the speaker was requesting a new crosswalk to be constructed from the east side of Grand Avenue to the west side of Grand Avenue. All of that side of the freeway improvements are slated for future improvements and future phases of the SR57/60 Confluence Project so this is something that staff can propose to the designer to see if it would be warranted to install a crosswalk across Grand Avenue. Tonight this is strictly a matter of reviewing the removal of the crosswalk along the east side only at the eastbound onramp. C/Lin moved, C/Herrera seconded, to Adopt Resolution No. 2015-36: Approving the removal of the crosswalk at Grand Avenue and the State Route (SR60) eastbound on ramp. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Herrera, Lin, MPT/Lyons, M/Tye NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Tanaka SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 9 CITY COUNCIL •COUNCIL SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS MEETING REPORTS/COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS: C/Lin said he was very impressed with CM/DeStefano. He came to the City Council with somewhat of an understanding of the Millennium project issues but he is able to comprehend the entire issue and readily answer the questions very comprehensively. Last Wednesday he and M/Tye went to the California Contract Cities Association's Board meeting in Marina Del Ray which was a very interesting event. C/Herrera thanked her colleagues who joined her at the San Gabriel Council of Governments meeting a couple of weeks ago and took time out of their busy schedules to vote for her for Regional Council for SCAG. She was successful in her bid and she thanked her colleagues for their support. She congratulated the Diamond Bar Girls Softball All-Star Team. It is wonderful that the organization is still going strong. Her girls when they were younger played in that league and had a great time. It is a great organization that provides a good solid feeder system for when the kids get into high school. She congratulated the City's Public Information Department for receiving a nomination from the American Advertising Federation for their upcoming Inland Empire Media Awards in the category of Governmental Media Outlet. This is an outstanding honor and congratulations to PIM/Roa and her staff. She thanked the Sheriff's Department for their great observations and thanked the neighbors on a particular street who foiled an attempted house burglary. The neighbor submitted the license plate of a vehicle that appeared to be conducting suspicious activity within the neighborhood. As this shows, it is so important for everyone to be observant and report anything suspicious to the Sheriff's Department. She requested that at the next meeting Council be given a report on the park in the Lennar (Willow Heights) Development. Many people were under the impression that the park was to be completed before the houses were for sale and work is still being done on the park. On social media there is talk that Diamond Bar has been negligent in enforcing that requirement of the developer and she believes an update on the status is important and helpful information for the residents. MPT/Lyons encouraged residents to continue using the hiking trails. Last week she hiked the Grandview Trail and it was a bit warm so when walking hikers should carry water. When one gets on the trail one is literally in the middle of the hills where one can see trees and animals and occasionally a snake but buildings and structures are out of view. It is a great getaway and it takes little time to enjoy the trails. She congratulated staff on getting a very large grant from the Metropolitan Water District in excess of $500,000 which will allow the City to remove turf in the City's medians and replace it with drought tolerant plants and mulch. This will allow the City to change out over 270,000 square feet of turf which is very impressive. Along with Ruth Low and Pui Ching Ho she encouraged everyone to participate with Friends of the Diamond Bar Library in SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 PAGE 10 CITY COUNCIL Read Together Diamond Bar. In addition to the book mentioned for adults there is a book for middle school students and one for elementary school students. There is a lot of information available at the library and a lot of fun activities coming up at the library. She knows there are many Alex Morgan fans and she wants everyone to know that the City continues to work with Alex Morgan to put together a fun event that will celebrate Diamond Bar's favored daughter. While these details are being worked out one can view the video "Becoming Alex Morgan" which she saw on Sunday. It is a very good and inspirational video and suitable for the entire family and can be viewed on the Disney Channel. On Thursday evening a CHP Officer was shot during a traffic stop in West Covina. It was a very senseless shooting. Fortunately, the officer will recover. Law enforcement can be a very dangerous job and in Diamond Bar residents value their law enforcement and when we see them we should take a moment to thank them in person. M/Tye congratulated Deputy Chad Holland and welcomed him to the Diamond Bar team, a terrific team. Diamond Bar is very, very proud of their Sheriffs. This Council considers them its police department. Thanks very, very much. ADJOURNMENT: With no further business to conduct, M/Tye adjourned the City Council Meeting at 7:52 p.m. T MMYE CRIBBINS, CITY CLERK The foregoing minutes are hereby approved this 6th day of September , 2015. alel STEVE TYE, MAY R