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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/25/2005 - Study SessionCITY OF NEWPORT BEACH City Council,Minutes Study Session October 25, 2005 — 3:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Council Member Selicb, Mayor Pro Tem Webb, Mayor Heffernan, Council Member Ridgeway, Council Member Daigle, Council Member Nichols Excused: Council Member Rosansky CURRENT BUSINESS 1. CLARIFICATION OF ITEMS ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. Referring to Item No. 4, Amendment to the Orange County Transportation Authority Agreement, Mayor Pro Tem Webb received clarification from Public Works Director Badum on the options available for modifying the plans. Council Member Rosansky joined the meeting at 3:05 p.m. Referring to Item No. 6, Amendment to Agreement for Preparation of CEQA Documents for a Project on West Coast Highway and Dover Drive, Council Member Nichols received information from Assistant City Manager Wood on how mitigated negative declarations are determined. Additionally, Council Member Nichols requested that an update on the Corona del Mar State Beach Improvements Project, Item No. 7, be provided at the regular meeting. And, lastly, he asked for additional information on Item Nos. 9 and 14. Mayor Heffernan received clarification from Assistant City Manager Wood on what the traffic study would be based on for the project addressed in Item No. 6. He agreed with Council Member Nichols that a report should be given at the regular meeting on Item No. 7, received confirmation from Public Works Director Badum that the Big Canyon Reservoir project, Item No. 8, was completed within the projected budget, and received clarification on the money spent for the CDBG Program Administration, Item No. 9. Lastly, he requested that a report be given at the regular meeting on Item No. 10, Analysis of Police Operations on July 4, 2005, and announced that he would be pulling Item, No. 14, City Council Sponsorship of the OC Marathon, from the Consent Calendar. 2. JUNIOR LIFEGUARD PROGRAM [100- 2005]. Fire Chief Riley provided background information and gave a brief history on the City's junior lifeguard program. He detailed the registration numbers over the past several years, and listed the reasons why the program is so popular and successful. Additionally, he outlined how the program currently works and how enrollment is handled, and noted that the program can currently handle approximately 1200 participants. He listed several options for how the program might be changed to .;1. accommodate, additional participants in the future and the goals that should be considered. Volume 57 - Page 447 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes October 25, 2005 Lifeguard Captain Reenie Boyer listed the nine essential program components that contribute to the quality and safety of the junior lifeguard program. She reported that many options to modify the existing program were looked at and that four were determined to be the best. These were included in a survey that ranked the options against the essential program components. The two 4 -week program option ranked the highest and is the one being recommended by staff. She outlined the benefits of the recommended program and the modifications that would be made to maintain the class content. Captain Boyer also outlined some minor changes to the registration process that are being recommended and provided additional information based on questions she has already received on the proposed program. She estimated that over 20,000 young adults have been educated about ocean safety through the City's junior lifeguard program. Council Member Ridgeway requested that a permanent facility for the program be studied further and agendized for a future study session. Louise Fundenberg suggested that the junior lifeguard program curriculum include education on bicycle safety, noting that it is the mode of transportation used by many of the participants to attend class. City Manager Bludau stated that staff will return to the City Council with a recommendation on the program. 3. GENERAL PLAN UPDATE - REVIEW DRAFT GOALS AND POLICIES FOR THE NATURAL RESOURCES ELEMENT [681100- 20051. Assistant City Manager Wood referred to the supplemental report that was prepared by staff and explained that it is color coded, with the changes made by the General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) in blue and by the Planning Commission in purple. Additionally, she noted that both the natural resources element and the recreation element are required elements of the general plan. The Council Members suggested several changes and made clarifications to the introductory paragraph and the context wording of the natural resources element. Woodie Tescher, EIP Associates, referred to the goals and the policies of the water supply section. There was a general consensus by the Council Members to eliminate Goal NR3 and move the two policies contained in it to the water quality section. At the request of Council Member Ridgeway, Assistant City Manager Kiff provided a brief report on tiered water rates and the Council Members addressed the issue. The general consensus was to add it to the general plan, as recommended by GPAC. Council Member Selich stated that his comments at the current meeting would be mainly limited to those that differ from the recommendations of GPAC, noting the limited time that was available to review the two elements and his general concurrence with the GPAC recommendations. Council Member Daigle agreed and felt that the City Council should be closely aligned with GPAC. Mr. Tescher referred to the water quality goals and policies, and specifically addressed Policy NR5.2. It was the general consensus of the Council Members to support the recommendation of the Planning Commission. TMr. Tescher referred to the air quality goals and policies, and specifically addressed Policy NR8.4 regarding the use of blowers in the city. It was the general consensus of the Council Members to support the recommendation of Council Member Selich to Volume 57 - Page 448 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes. October 25, 2005 l change the wording from "eliminate..." to "consider eliminating... ". -% Mr. Tescher referred to the biological resources goals and policies, and addressed Policy NR10.1. It was the general consensus of the Council Members to support the decision of GPAC on the policy. Mr. Tescher referred to the open space resources goals and policies, as well as the archaeological and paleontological resources, and mineral resources goals and policies. He noted that there were no significant deviations between GPAC and the Planning Commission on these sections. Mayor Heffernan suggested that the mineral resources section include references to both oil and gas. In response to concerns raised by Mayor Pro Tem. Webb, Assistant City Manager Wood confirmed that the City Charter does not prohibit the consolidation of the oil wells in the Banning Ranch area and that staff will make sure that the general plan is consistent with the Charter. Council Member Ridgeway stated that the issue of water injection wells also needs to be addressed in the mineral resources section. Mr. Tescher referred to the visual resources goals and policies, and specifically noted Policy NR23.1 and the difference in the recommendations from GPAC and the Planning Commission. \ Mayor Pro Tom Webb referred to the roadway list contained in Policy NR21.3 and suggested that the State Route 73 roadway segment be extended beyond University —' Drive. Mr. Tescher referred to the energy conservation goal and policies, and stated that there were no significant differences in the recommendations made by GPAC and the Planning Commission. Larry Porter. addressed the water supply context and provided a handout with his recommended changes and comments. Assistant City Manager Wood confirmed that the percentages regarding the groundwater basin would be corrected in the general plan. Nancy Gardner, GPAC Co- Chair, asked for a clarification of what the City Council has recommended and stated that seemingly minor word changes recommended by GPAC involved extensive discussion at their meetings. Ms. Gardner specifically addressed Policy NR21.3 and the reason behind the recommendation made by GPAC. There was a general consensus by the Council Members to support the recommendation of GPAC. Laura Curran provided several specific suggestions to the natural resources element. 4. GENERAL PLAN UPDATE - REVIEW DRAFT GOALS AND POLICIES FOR THE RECREATION ELEMENT [681100- 20051. Assistant City Manager Wood introduced the discussion by stating that the update to the general plan includes a relocation of several of the policies that were in the recreation element to other elements. Volume 57 - Page 449 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes. October 25, 2005 Mr. Tescher referred to the park and recreation facilities goals and policies, and specifically addressed Policy R1.3. Council Member Ridgeway suggested that credit be given to developers creating on -site public improvements. Mayor Pro Tem Webb referred to the context of Citywide issues and needs, and the park and recreation facilities section. He suggested that the need for additional active public parks be recognized in the document. A general discussion followed regarding public parks in private areas. Mayor Pro Tern Webb cited several places in the document where the need. for active public sports parks isn't adequately addressed. Council Member Nichols agreed that each area needs its own facilities and noted that there is also a deficit of active sports parks in the Corona del Mar. area. Assistant City Manager Wood referred the Council Members to Policy R1.10 and asked if the list was complete and if there should be a priority order. Council Member Nichols suggested that the passive parks listed be changed to active parks. The remainder of the discussion on the recreation element was continued to City Council Study Session of November 8, 2005. PUBLIC COMMENTS Laura Curran stated that there is a runoff problem at a property on Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar. She asked for a clarification on when such issues can be addressed by enforcement. -! ADJOURNMENT - at 6:15 p.m. :F _.i The agenda for the Study Session was posted on October 19, 2005, at 1:45 p.nL on the City Hall Bulletin Board located outside of the City of Newport Beach Administration Building. %/� City Clerk Recording Secretary y Ma or Volume 57 - Page 450