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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes_12-06-2023Page 1 of 7 CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH GENERAL PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES COMMUNITY ROOM – 100 CIVIC CENTER DRIVE DECEMBER 06, 2023 REGULAR MEETING – 5:00 P.M. I. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER – 5:01 p.m. II. WELCOME AND ROLL CALL Present: Co-Chair Jeremy Evans, Dennis Baker, Curtis Black, Matthew Brady, James Carlson, Kimberly Carter, Jeff Cefalia, Annie Clougherty, Susan DeSantis, David Guder, Lynn Hackman, Laird Hayes, Charles Klobe, Ruth Kobayashi, Scott Laidlaw, Katie Love, Anthony Maniscalchi, Thomas Meng, Jim Mosher, Maxwell Pearson, Robert Radar, Harrison Rolfes, Nancy Scarbrough, Amber Snider, Debbie Stevens, Graham Wahlberg, Christy Walker, Paul Watkins, and Lori Williams Staff: Deputy Community Development Director Jim Campbell and Planning Manager Jaime Murillo Absent: Nicholas Acevedo, Co-Chair Arlene Greer, and Principal Planner Ben Zdeba III. PUBLIC COMMENTS ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS None IV. CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Meeting Minutes of August 21, 2023 Motion made by Committee Member Meng and seconded by Committee Member Baker with Committee Member Mosher’s edits. The motion carried with all in favor except for an abstention by Committee Member Kobayashi. 2. Meeting Minutes of October 4, 2023 Motion made by Committee Member Scarbrough and seconded by Committee Member Watkins with Committee Member Mosher’s edits. The motion carried with all in favor except for an abstention by Committee Member Kobayashi. General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 2 of 7 3. Housing Element Implementation and General Plan Update Schedules Co-Chair Evans reminded the Committee that the items will go back to the General Plan Update Steering Committee (GPUSC), the role of the GPAC is to provide feedback on big picture items, and the items will return after the matter is reviewed by the GPUSC. City staff and Dudek provided an overview of the schedule for the Housing Element implementation program, as well as for the General Plan Update. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell recommended Committee members sign up for the Select Alert system for City updates and notices through the website. He anticipated General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) meetings on the first Wednesday of the month and GPUSC meetings on the second Wednesday of the month, with an exception to the January GPAC meeting on the 10th, and a flexible Subcommittee meeting schedule to review reports, studies, outreach results, and draft policies. He noted check-ins with the City Council and Planning Commission and GPUSC are planned with an opportunity for the subcommittees to schedule additional meetings when needed. In response to Chuck Fancher’s inquiry, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell indicated that Subcommittee meeting dates will be posted on the website and included in the Select Alert system notices. Co-Chair Evans stated that the open forum at the start of the meetings can be used for announcements. In response to Committee Member Klobe’s question, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell agreed that there has been no Noise Element Subcommittee meeting and indicated that due to pending upcoming projects, the City Council recently updated the Noise Element to eliminate inconsistencies with Housing Element policies and separated it from the GPAC work. While he relayed a potential opportunity to improve the Noise Element in the future, there is no significant item in the scope of work for Dudek related to the Noise Element. In response to Committee Member Mosher’s question, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell thought Outreach Subcommittee meetings may be needed going forward and suggested not viewing the schedule as limiting. Recommended Action: Receive and file. 4. Presentation of the Vision Statement and Resilience Existing Conditions and Background Analyses Using initial input from the GPAC’s Vision Statement Subcommittee and the larger GPAC and GPUSC, Dudek and City staff prepared an existing conditions and background analysis report for the Vision Statement and for the topic of resilience. These reports are not comprehensive policy documents, rather they are intended to explore the existing conditions of each element or topic in Newport Beach while weaving in best practices through recommendations from Dudek. While they are presented in final form, they are not intended to limit the discussion but to share information that will help move the discussion forward as we begin the initial outreach efforts. Nancy Gardner clarified that the intent is to provide direction for the subcommittees and encourage feedback, for example, missing information. General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 3 of 7 Committee Member Stevens noted that the Vision Statement prepared by the Subcommittee is missing. In response, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell offered to attach it. Nancy Gardner relayed that the Subcommittee could throw out what’s been provided by Dudek and that is background information, and the work is from the Committee. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell clarified that the intent is not to finalize the process at this time. Committee Member Stevens thought the process was further along and acknowledged the need for public input. Committee Member DeSantis thought the background information is excellent and will influence upcoming discussions on the vision, acknowledged the earlier efforts and how they will be informed by a broader insight, and suggested including policy and programming examples from Southern California coastal communities. Committee Member Wahlberg suggested the Subcommittee consider business development resilience, tourism, safety, and infrastructure, specifically, parking. Committee Member Klobe questioned on page 34, under Boating and Waterways, the statement “Is the Upper Bay unencumbered and free of sediment and debris?” Furthermore, as it relates to the inclusivity and social equity section, he asked for Dudek to prepare a pros and cons report for folks residing under the John Wayne Airport takeoff pattern who may feel they are a disadvantaged community. Committee Member Mosher suggested the Committee use the link he provided on page four of his written comments to access the Vision Statement document prepared by the Subcommittee and review it before the January GPAC meeting. Committee Member Laidlaw relayed that he recently joined the Vision Statement Subcommittee and will be sure to include business development and asked for the GPAC to include the generational character of Newport Beach in the focus. Committee Member DeSantis suggested the definition of sustainability be broadened with a long-term perspective and a greater focus on the fire safety issues in Newport Coast in the Urban Outdoors section. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell indicated that the Safety Element will be focusing on fire safety and hazards and suggested Dudek present on the matter, clarified that using the word resiliency as opposed to sustainability is intended for greater community acceptance, and expressed worry for policies that create burdens on businesses. Committee Member Hackman expressed concern for preparing a Vision Statement that does not reflect Newport Beach’s unique characteristics and used the Balboa Island Ferry as an example of unintended consequences of State mandates. General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 4 of 7 Committee Member Walker thought that policy implementation is the priority versus semantics and wordsmithing and suggested simplifying public communication efforts. Recommended Action: Review, discuss, and receive and file the reports. 5. Updates on Outreach and Engagement Since the previous GPAC and GPUSC meetings, Dudek and Kearns & West have worked alongside City staff to create and launch the online engagement platform through Social Pinpoint, to prepare a rolling calendar of events as opportunities for potential pop-up outreach arise, and to prepare the workshop-in-a-box materials. Kearns & West provided an update on the website, as well as an overview of the latest efforts on outreach. Grant Sles, Urban Planner with Dudek, and Taylor Funderburk of Kearns & West, utilized a presentation to review the kickoff outreach and engagement, phase one outreach plan, workshop-in-a-box PowerPoint overview, and December pop-up events. Nancy Gardner expressed concern for distributing public outreach materials without having been reviewed by staff, GPAC, or GPUSC. In response to Committee Member Walker’s question, Ms. Funderburk indicated that the goal of the public outreach and engagement is to make the public aware of the General Plan Update and answer high level questions. Committee Member Love stated that the GPAC is not aware of what is being presented in 10 days. In response to Co-Chair Evans’ question, Ms. Funderburk relayed that the packet will be reformatted to be simplified on a board for public viewing. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell offered to cancel the December events so the outreach materials can be reviewed by the Committee before public consumption. Committee Member Scarbrough thought that directing people to the website before it is reviewed by the Committee is “ahead of us” and should be talked about. Committee Member Carlson thought the Outreach Subcommittee needs to meet to experience what is happening, change, and adapt as needed, and return to the Committee for discussion. Committee Member Baker expressed concern for rolling out the website as it is now. Member of the public Chuck Fancher thought the consultant is moving at a pace they have determined and without the involvement or support of the subcommittees and GPAC and suggested that all parties work together. Committee Member Hackman concurred with comments made by the Committee members, questioned the Newport Together tagline meaning, and thought that public engagement during the holiday season is not appropriate timing and that the Subcommittee input needs to be incorporated and followed by a Committee review. General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 5 of 7 Committee Member Clougherty thought that the consultant should clarify and communicate the website goals and intent to create an interest list. Mr. Sles noted that websites for other cities were shared to model Social Pinpoint and the website has not been fully populated yet, so it is appearing empty. Committee Member Clougherty thought the Committee should have a chance to review the website. Ms. Funderburk stated that the website will evolve and is in phase one and relayed tools in Social Pinpoint and the process for collecting public interest. Committee Member Hackman supported consistency across all materials and messaging. Committee Member Baker inquired how interest and location will be populated on the website and relayed a problem logging in. Ms. Funderburk thanked Committee Member Baker for flagging the issue and agreed to fix the problem. Ms. Funderburk continued the presentation to review the phase one iteration of the website and future additions. Committee Member Baker expressed concern that a user could get turned off at the beginning of the website. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell suggested adding a pull-down menu for interest areas. Ms. Funderburk agreed to update the website by the end of the week. Committee Member Rader suggested taking out the interest areas for now and providing specific area options later. Committee Member Kobayashi relayed that Newport Together has been around since 2019, inquired why Newport Together is not being used instead of Social Pinpoint, and questioned why a user would need to create an account to gain information. In response to Co-Chair Evans’ question, Ms. Funderburk indicated that the website is a domain link, an alias that does not have Social Pinpoint is available, Newport Together was bought and is not available, and the Join Now feature is optional and can be removed. Committee Member Stevens thought the website provides general information and supported moving forward with pop-up events in December. Co-Chair Evans concurred. Committee Member Black supported December pop-up events and suggested Subcommittee check-ins. Kimberly Carter thought it is critical that at least one Committee member be present at every event, the schedule should include all Committee members, and the Outreach Committee should meet regularly. Committee Member Kobayashi suggested being equipped to be effective ambassadors. Committee Member Mosher announced a webinar tomorrow morning hosted by the Institute for Local Government discussing Social Pinpoint for public engagement and expressed confusion about the purpose and approach of the workshop-in-a-box for General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 6 of 7 collecting input on the vision statement and questioned the usefulness of collecting five words during public outreach. Committee Member Watkins suggested an Outreach Subcommittee member review the content for the pop-up events and Annie Clougherty agreed to do it. Co-Chair Evans suggested moving Item No. 5 to the start of the meeting so reports can be delivered up front. Committee Member Baker envisioned the pop-up event to include a pop-up tent, informational QR code, and a representative and suggested keeping the event simple and using what is learned to craft the next event. In response to Committee Member Walker’s question, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell indicated that Kearns & West and City staff will be present at the pop-up events and invited Committee members to attend. Committee Member Walker thought a general invitation to Committee members could lead to no one attending. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell thought the Committee members are the best ambassadors to get the word out to the community, extended an apology for jumping ahead by starting the December events, and relayed that the developed materials will be reviewed by the Committee before they are shared with the community, and flyers will be used to direct the community to the website. Committee Member Walker discussed neighbor-to-neighbor engagement opportunities and stressed the importance of having other neighbors in attendance versus City figureheads suggested the consultants identify a plan for involving Committee members. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell supported the efforts of the Committee and while he agreed that having Committee members who are equipped to talk to neighbors will get more mileage out of the outreach efforts, he does not want to obligate the members. He stated that City staff will inform the Committee of the events and support Committee members with the tool kit. Committee Member DeSantis suggested circulating the calendar and announced an event in Newport Coast on December 16. Planning Manager Jaime Murillo shared his participation in the process and expressed his commitment to attend the GPAC meetings as the newly appointed Acting Deputy Community Development Director and acknowledged that a few items moved forward too quickly, and subcommittee are critical. He recognized that check-ins are needed before releasing information to the public and clarified the intent for moving forward quickly to get people excited about the matter, share the work that has gone on so far behind the scenes, and provide access to the agenda and minutes. He liked having action items for subcommittee meetings and thanked Mr. Campbell for 24 years of service to Newport Beach. Deputy Community Development Director Campbell concurred. Committee Member Hackman suggested the language for the outreach events be reviewed by the Outreach Committee. Co-Chair Evans confirmed that Committee Member Clougherty will serve in that role. Recommended Action: Provide feedback on the website and the materials for the workshop-in-a-box. General Plan Advisory Committee Meeting December 06, 2023 Page 7 of 7 V. COMMITTEE ANNOUNCEMENTS OR MATTERS WHICH MEMBERS WOULD LIKE PLACED ON A FUTURE AGENDA FOR DISCUSSION, ACTION OR REPORT (NON-DISCUSSION ITEM) Deputy Community Development Director Campbell announced a GPUSC meeting on December 20 at 5 p.m. and GPAC meeting on January 10. Committee Member Mosher noted that no subcommittee exists for reviewing the resiliency report and the report conclusions belong in different categories. He questioned if it will be coming back, a subcommittee will be created, or if the report will be broken apart by category. In response, Deputy Community Development Director Campbell relayed that Dudek recommended not creating a separate element and incorporating policies in the various other elements. He thought discussing the resiliency report with the full Committee would be challenging because it is a dense document. Committee Member Mosher suggested sharing resilience report with other subcommittees with their separate background reports since it touches multiple topics. Committee Member Love suggested a crosswalk for items that need to be considered in multiple elements to improve communication between the subcommittees. VI. ADJOURNMENT With no further business, Co-Chair Evans adjourned the meeting at 6:52 p.m. until January 10th at 5:00 p.m. in the Community Room.