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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - CC - 2000.12.18BURLINGAME, CALIFORNIA December 18,2000 1. REGULAR MEETING CALLED TO ORDER A regular meeting of the Burlingame City Council was held on the above date in the City Hall Council Chambers. The meeting was called to order at7:00 p.m. by Mayor Joe Galligan. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG Led by Ross Bruce. 3. ROLL CALL COUNCIL PRESENT: COI.]NCIL ABSENT: COFFEY, GALLIGAN, JANNEY, O'MAHONY, SPINELLI NONE 4. CEREMONIAI, MATTER Fire Chief Bill Reilly presented Mayor Galligan with the League of California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence and the National Council for Public/Private Partnerships 2000 Award that was awarded to the Advanced Life Support Joint Powers Authority. 5. MINUTES Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve the minutes of the Special Council Meeting held on November 29,2000; seconded by Councilwoman Janney, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting held on December 4,2000; seconded by Councilman Coffey, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. 5a. CONSIDER ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION OF INTENTION TO ESTABLISH SAN MATEO COUNTY TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT TO ESTABLISH THE BASIS FOR AND TO LEVY THE ASSESSMENTS FOR THE DISTRICT FOR THE YEAR 2OO1 TO ESTABLISH A DISTRICT ADVISORY BOARD. AND TO SET DATES FOR PUBLIC HEARINGS ON THE DISTRICT AND THE PROPOSED ASSESSMENTS. CA Anderson noted the San Mateo Hotel Council Incorporated and the San Mateo County Convention and Visitors Bureau made this proposal. In the past, it has been difficult for the Convention Bureau to find adequate and sustained funding from local agencies and businesses. The proposal of the Business Improvement District would encompass 70-80% of the county including the unincorporated area of San Mateo. Burlingame would act as the lead agency and assess the businesses each year. If adopted, the Resolution of Intention would begin the process of formal noticing, which would lead to Burlingame City Council 263 December 18, 2000 5. PUBLIC HEARINGS public hearings beini held on January 2 andJanuary 17,2}Ol,when an ordinance would be adopted to form the district. In the meantime, the cities and county would decide whether to allow Burlingame to establish this district within their jurisdiction. Mayor Galligan opened the public hearing. Ann LeClair, President and CEO of the San Mateo County Convention and Visitors Bureau, thanked the Council for their support in the establishment of the Business Improvement District. There were no further comments and the hearing was closed. Council Comments.' Councilwoman Janney stated the Bureau has put forth tremendous effort in this project, as well as retired City Manager Dennis Argyres; feels this is the best solution for bringing permanent funding to the Convention Bureau. The BID puts the Bureau and it's operations in the hands of the Convention Bureau in the County and out of the political arena. Vice Mayor Spinelli noted he was very proud at how everyone worked so hard to make this happen and feels everyone involved will benefit from the BID. Councilwoman O'Mahony was pleased the Convention Bureau will be freed of political gratifications and congratulated Councilwoman Janney, Ann LeClair and Gina Graf for their hard work. Mayor Galligan stated it appeared that in the past the Convention Bureau has had to spend the majority of their time trying to get cities to give them money so they could stay in business versus doing what they were designed to do. Councilwoman Janney made a motion to approve the Resolution of Intention 121-00 to establish the San Mateo County Tourism Business Improvement District to establish the basis for and to levy the Assessments for the District for the Year 2001, and to establish a District Advisory Board, and to set dates for public hearings on the District and the proposed Assessments; seconded by Councilwoman O'Mahony, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. 6b. APPEAL OF PLANNING COMMISSIN DETERMINATION ON THE USE OF AN EXISTING BASEMENT AREA AT 340-348 LORTON A SUBAREA B BURLINGAME AVENUE COMMERCIAL AREA This appeal has been withdrawn. 6c. APPEAL OF PLANNING COMMISSION'S APPROVAL OF A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR A DRY CLEANING PROCESSING PLANT AT 1360 BROADW ZONED C-l CP Monroe noted the applicant is requesting a conditional use permit in order to locate a full-service dry cleaning processing plant at 1360 Broadway. The site was previously occupied by a grocery store but is currently vacant. No major alterations to the building are proposed but the applicant will be required to make upgrades to make it compliant with public safety, environmental and disabled access requirements. Mayor Galligan opened the public hearing. Michael Segal, agent for the applicant, Mr. Kismohandaka, was available for questions from the Council. Councilman Coffey asked Mr. Segal if the applicant would object to making the improvements that were outlined in their letter dated November 14,2000, apart of the Conditions of Approval. Mr. Segal said the applicant would not object to this request; applicant wants to take part in the upgrading the appearance of the Broadway area. Councilwoman O'Mahony asked Mr. Segal if he was aware that the Business Improvement District on Broadwai tras been working with property owners to improve facades of buildings and asked if his client has been asked to participate. Mr. Segal stated they were aware of the desire to upgrade the appearance, but that they have not been approached; he does not represent the owner ofthe December 18, 2000 264 Burlingame City Council property but represents the perspective operator of the dry cleaning plant and would not know if the owners were approached by the BID to make improvements. Vic Eldemir, co-owner of Your Cleaners, 1321 Broadway, stated he was opposing the proposed dry cleaning plant at 1360 tsroadway. Mr. Eldemir, as well as the two other dry cleaning stores who also appealed this project, feels there are plenty of dry cleaners in the Broadway area; feels adding another dry cleaning plant will aggravate the current parking situation. Currently there are four family-owned dry cleaners in the area. He noted dry cleaners tend to have high volume traffrc, on average of approximately 100 "in and out" customers each day. He stated the Japanese grocery store that previously occupied this space was more of a specialty store, not a regular grocery store; the fact that parking won't be adversely affected is an improper assumption. Michael Lai, owner of Broadway Cleaners, 1234 Broadway, stated he has tried to provide the best services to his customers; believes a big plant on Broadway will ruin the chances for the smaller, family-owned operations to succeed. Ron Drabkin, 1224 Capuchino, agrees there are enough dry cleaners in the area, concerned about environmental safety and use of chemicals; also noted the extremely poor condition of the building at this time. Mr. Segal retumed t6 address the Council; stated it seemed like most of the concern was about competition; believed there was nothing that would preclude this particular use. He explained this was not a large corporate entity but rather an individual who will be operating amartinizing cleaning facility and using their expertise and state of the art equipment. Parking issues have been addressed; primary impact for traffic is morning and evening, which would mitigate high demand for parking during the prime business hours. Noted this building is located very closely to a City parking lot on Capuchino. Does not feel another dry cleaning plant in the area would impact the operators already in existence. There were no further comments and the hearing was closed. Council Comments.' Councilwoman O'Mahony stated she feels the Council needs to take a close look at Broadway and the fact that it is a street to serve the residents in the neighborhood. Would like to see this go back to the Planning Commission so they could provide Council with their findings and considerations of a proper balance between service and retail on Broadway. CP Monroe noted the Planning Commission based their approval of this project on the change in use, strictly on the basis of the code for this site; this would be a reduction in impact regarding parking. To conduct a study on retail mix could take from six months to one year. Councilwoman O'Mahony stated she could not support this project. Vice Mayor Spinelli noted there are l5 dry cleaners within the City of Burlingame, five of which are located on or near Broadway. Does not feel it is healthy for the area to be overloaded with one type of business; does not support this use. Councilwoman Janney was concerned about changing rules in the middle of a project, that this project was approved by the Planning Commission because it fell within the code. Agreed that there is not a need for another dry cleaner in Burlingarfib. CA Anderson noted that a dry cieaning plant is not a permitted use in the C-1 district, but on Broadway it is a conditional use which gives the Planning Commission and Council authority to look at its overall impact on the community. Vice Mayor Spinelli made a motion to overturn the Planning Commission's approval of a Conditional Use Permit for a dry cleaning processing plant at 1360 Broadway; seconded by Councilwoman O'Mahony, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. Burlingame City Council 265 December 18,2000 Council found that it was crucial to sustain the commercial and retain mix in the Broadway commercial area and to closely examine possible parking conflicts during busy hours on Broadway, which is both shopping and a computer avenue. Mayor Galligan noted that the upkeep on the building at 1360 Broadway has been terrible. The owners have been requested many times by the Broadway BID to do something about the fagade and even offered to pay to help clean up the building. 6d. o RDINANCE REGARDING RECYCLING OF CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION DEBRIS Mayor Galligan opened the public hearing. There were no comments and the hearing was closed. Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve the adoption of the Ordinance regarding Recycling of Construction and Demolition Debris; seconded by Councilwoman Janney, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. 6e. AMEND ORIIINANCE ON UTILITY DEPOSIT REOUIREMENTS Mayor Galligan opened the public hearing. There were no comments and the hearing was closed. Councilwoman Coffey made a motion to approve the adoption of the Ordinance to amend the Utility Deposit requirements; seconded by Councilwoman Janney, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0 7. PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments. 8. STAFF RE,PdRTS AND COMMUNICATIONS a. REVISED DESIGN FOR BROADWAY STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS DPW Bagdon noted Council requested a revised streetscape master plan for Broadway between Laguna and El Camino Real that would reduce parking loss. The^first design being presented "n.o-pu.res the direction given by Council at the November 7th council Meeting. The plan minimizes parking loss, widens the traffic lines and reduces the sidewalk widths. Option B, endorsedby 42 Broadway merchants, rninimizes parking loss but retains the width of the sidewalk and current travel lane width. Staff also developed a third option, Option C, which widens the travel lanes and maintains the sidewalk widths, but has a larger parking loss. DPW Bagdon noted that no one option addresses all of the features perfectly; would like Council to reaffirm staff s recommendation on the scope of the next phase of eventual construction. Bill Harris, a consultant from Smith Group JJR, noted at the last presentation Council gave the following direction: to delete the bulb outs on the side streets, reduce the sides of the intersection bulb outs, increase the width of the travel lanes to 1l' at the expense of the width of the sidewalks, and to retain the 28" parking angle. Noted on the plans the buib outs were deleted at the alleys but a tree was added in order to enhance the alleys themselves. The side streets would maintain the parking and the bulb out at the intersection is smaller in size. The intersection bulb outs begin at the right-of-way line and does not wrap around the side streets. As a result, there are fewer intersection trees than there December 18,2000 266 Burlingame City Council were in the previous presentation. The cross section would still have the bike racks, planter pots, and the trees would be in the bump outs along the street. Instead of having the large planters on the street corners, there are no.n four concrete seat walls with some plants behind them. The modular new racks have been relocated to the sidewalk instead of in the planting area. Option B is very similar to Option A, however, the sidewalk width remains at 9'. Option C was explored in an attempt to see if the flattening of the parking angle could still be done and what the impact of parking is. This would retain the sidewalks and provide an 1 1' travel lane. The geometry of the parking angle has a dramatic impact on the number of parking stalls possible and would have a net loss of approximately 14 spots. Council comments; Councilwoman O'Mahony noted that one of the objectives initially given that this beautification project be pedestrian friendly; Plan A does not make the sidewalks pedestrian friendly by reducing the width to 8'. Mr. Harris expressed the large cut outs in the sidewalks for the Magnolia trees is a 3' square which left 6' of sidewalk. The master plan put the trees further out into the street in the bump outs to increase the width of the sidewalk. The amount of usable sidewalk increases with the removal of the Magnolia trees. Mayor Galligan felt it was important to prioritize what is most important for the project. Mayor Galligan opened the public hearing. Ross Bruce, President of the Broadway Improvement District, noted the merchants supported Option B; does not want to see the sidewalk width reduced. George Preston, 1170 Broadway, appreciated Councils attention to the project and reiterated support for Option B. There were no further comments and the hearing was closed. Council comments: The safety issue regarding the narrow travel lane is a concern for Vice Mayor Spinelli. Councilman Coffey agreed; the sidewalks will be going from 6' to either 8' or 9' and even though there isn't a solid mass of trees on Broadway, the path is basically 6'; understands the merchants would rather have wider sidewalks, but need to consider the minimum reduction of parking spaces and the width of the travel lane. Mayor Galligan and Councilwoman Janney agreed the travel lane width increase should be a priority over the width of the sidewalk. DPW Bagdon noted in terms of completion of the project, incentives to complete the project as well as disincentives such as liquidated damages were taken into account. It is a matter of how long it takes to complete the plans, educated the BID on the plans, go out to bid and award the contractor. He stressed unknowns come up that can delay the process. Felt the schedule presented to Council is relatively realistic; large risk that the project may not be completed by Thanksgiving, 2001. Completing the design process earlier so the project can begin earlier is not realistic. Mr. Harris noted that not only the trees have to be removed to widen the parking lane, but also the light fixtures, parking meter poles, bicycle racks, and planter pots. DPW Bagdon stressed they will do everything they can to get the construction that impacts the businesses completed first. Councilwoman O'Mahony noted she could not support Option A; merchants have expressed their desire for Option B with wider sidewalks. Vice Mayor Spinelli felt if it was possible to restrict the size of trucks traveling on Broadway, it may not be necessary to reduce the width of the sidewalks. CA Anderson explained that a sign would need to be placed every three to four parking spaces warning drivers of the restriction. Burlingame City Council ,l 267 December 18, 2000 Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve Option B; motion died due to lack of second. Councilwoman Janney made a motion to approve Option A; seconded by Vice Mayor Spinelli, approved by voice vote, 4-1, with Councilwoman O'Mahony voting no. b. CIVI SERVICE COMMISSIONER APPOINTMENT Vice Mayor Spinelli noted that he and Mayor Galligan interviewed two qualified applicants, Bill Garcia and Rolando Pasquali, for the vacant position on the Civil Service Commission. After much discussion, they brought forth Rolando Pasquali as the new Civil Service Commissioner. Councilwoman Janney made a motion to approve the appointment of Rolando Pasquali; seconded by Councilwoman O'Mahony, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. c. CONSIDER INTRODUCTION OF. ORDINANCE REDUCING MEMBERSHIP OF TRAFFIC, SAFETY , AND PARKING COMMISSI ON CA Anderson noted at the last meeting, Council discussed the possibility of reducing the membership of the TSP Commission from seven to five; staff had expressed some concern about getting a quorum when there are seven members and that five members would be more efficient. Mayor Galligan requested the City Clerk read the title of the proposed Ordinance. Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to waive further reading of the proposed Ordinance; seconded by Councilwoman Janney, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. Councilwoman Janney made a motion to approve the introduction of Ordinance reducing the membership of the Traffic, Safety and Parking Commission from seven to five members; seconded by Vice Mayor Spinelli, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. d. APPROVE EXECUTION OF CERTIFICATE OF ACCEPTANCE BY CITY MANAGER OF GRANT DEED TO 1369 N. CAROLAN AVENUE. BURLINGAME, CA CA Anderson noted this is the property that is located to the north of the current corporation yard that is currently occupied by a warehouse and office building. In June, Council authorized the filing of an eminent domain proceeding in order to acquire the property, however, negotiations have continued with the owners of the property and they have accepted the appraised value of the property of $ 1 .4 million and are prep&red to execute a deed to the City so Public Works can proceed with the expansion plans for the corporation yard. Councilwoman Janney made a motion to approve the Execution of Certificate of Acceptance by City Manager of Grant Deed to 1369 N. Carolan Avenue; seconded by Councilwoman O'Mahony, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. 9. CONSENT CALENDAR a. RESOLUTION ENDORSING THE INTERIM WATER SHORTAGE PLAN DPW Bagdon recommended Council adopt Resolution 125-00endorsing the Interim Water Shortage Plan. tr- December 18,2000 268 Burlingame City Council b. RESOLUTION APPROVING AGREEMENT NO. 1 FOR PROF'ESSIONAL ENGINEERING SERVICES, STORM DRAIN IMPROVEMENTS, CALIFORNIA/GROVE AREA, PHASE 2 DPW Bagdon recommended that Council approve Resolution 124-00 authorizing an agreement amendment in the amount of $16,997.00 with Wilsey Ham Engineers for engineering services for the California/Grove Storm Drain Improvements Project, Phase 2. c. UPDATE EMPLOYER'S FOR EMPLOYEE PERS HEALTH BENEFIT Retired City Manager Dennis Argyres recommended Council adopt Resolution 123-00 updating the maximum employer contribution to PERS Health Benefits in accordance with approved employee agreements. d. AUTHORIZE CITY MANAGER TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE AGREEMENT WITH ATHENS ADMINISTRATORS TO BE THE THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY'S SELF-INSURED WORIGRS COMPENSATION PROGRAM CA Anderson recommended Council adopt Resolution 122-00 authoring the City Manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with Athens Administrators to be the Third Party Administrators for the City's Workers Compensation Program. e. RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING TRANSFER OF F.UNDS FOR HOMELESS SHELTER CONTRIBUTION ACM/ASD Rahn Becker recommended Council approve Resolution 127-00 Authorizing Transfer of Funds for Homeless Shelter Contribution. f. WARRANTS AND PAYROLL: NOVEMBER,2000 Finance Director recommended approval of Warrants 73305-73724 (excluding library check numbers 73677-73724), duly audited, in the amount of $1,594,955.20, Payroll checks 132149-132984 in the amount of $1,351,187 .78, and EFT's in the amount of $321,526.33 for the month of November, 2000. Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve items 9(a), 9(c) through 9(f1 of the consent calendar; seconded by Councilman Coffey, approved unanimously by voice vote, 5-0. Councilwoman O'Mahony made a motion to approve item 9(b), seconded by Councilwoman Janney, approved by voice vote, 4-0-1, with Vice Mayor Spinelli abstained from voting on this item due to living in the California Drive Grove Avenue area. 10. COUNCIL COMMITTEE REPORTS Councilwoman O'Mahony attended the BID discussion on the Broadway Streetscape, Hotel Security luncheon, and the OLA Mother's Club fashion show and Christmas lunch. Councilwoman Coffey attended the C.A.L.L. Primrose luncheon, County Council of Cities, City Hall tree lighting ceremony, Chamber of Commerce meeting, Carpenter's Union Moose Feed in San Francisco, and various Burlingame City Council 269 December 18, 2000 Christmas open houses. Vice Mayor Spinelli attended the Airport Roundtable meeting and the City Hall tree lighting ceremony. Councilwoman Janney attended the Moose Feed luncheon in San Francisco, C.A.L.L. Primrose luncheon, Hotel Security luncheon, Chamber of Commerce Board Meeting, SAMCEDA luncheon, City Hall tree lighting ceremony, SamTrans Board meeting and luncheon. Mayor Galligan attended a number of Christmas open houses, North County County of Cities meeting, school liaison meeting, attended the City Hall tree lighting ceremony. 11. OLD BUSINESS There was no old business. 12. NEW BUSINESS There was no new business 13. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS a. Commission Minutes: Planning, December l1 b. Monthly Reports: Treasurer, November 2000; Police, October 2000 c. Letter from Kathleen Wentworth,1429 Cortez, regarding stop signs at Adeline and Cortez d. Letter from Prasanna Jena, 1977 Garden Drive, regarding rent situation in Burlingame e. Leffer from Marika Metcalfe, 401 Occidental, regarding IHN program g. Letter from Jim Nantell, City Manager, notiffing City Council of his assumption of City Manager duties Council met in closed session at8,25 p.m. and returned to open session at 8:54 p.m. 14. CLOSED SESSION a.Threatened litigation - Government Code $ 54956.9(b)(1), (3)(C)): Claim of Bill Sianis for damage to sprinkler system CA Anderson stated that in the closed session, Council discussed a pending claim regarding damage to the sprinkler system and gave direction to the City Attorney and City Manager regarding that claim. Mayor Galligan adjourned the meeting at 8:55 p.m. after a moment of silence in memory Ann V Bruce and Dixie O'Brien. Cr,,*VWL@a) Ann T. Musso City Clerk December 18, 2000 270 Burlingame Cify Council 15. ADJOURNMENT