Council Study Session

MINUTES CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION CITY OF MONTEREY Thursday, December 15, 2011 Joint Meeting with Boards and Commission Chairs 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. LIBRARY COMMUNITY ROOM, 625 PACIFIC STREET MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA Councilmembers Present: Councilmembers Downey, Selfridge, Sollecito, Della Sala Absent: Councilmember Haferman City Staff City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Director of Information Present: Resources/City Clerk, Assistant Director Plans and Public Works, Chief of Planning, Engineering, and Environmental Compliance, Finance Director, Fire Chief, Human Resources Director, Community Services Director, Senior Assistant City Clerk, Deputy Police Chief CALL TO ORDER Mayor Della Sala called the meeting to order at 4:03 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mayor Della Sala opened public comments on items not on the agenda and seeing no requests to speak closed public comments. STUDY SESSION 1. Informal Discussion with Board, Commission & Committee Representatives ( - 701-01) Action: Reports received a. Architectural Review Committee Chair McKenzie provided the Council with a summary of the applications heard by the Architectural Review Committee (ARC) during 2011, noting the committee heard 163 applications in total and worked hard on a rewrite of the sign ordinance. Councilmember Downey thanked the ARC for its work on the sign ordinance and stated she looks forward to hearing it at Council. Mayor Della Sala asked if there was one thing Chair McKenzie would recommend to streamline the review process and Chair McKenzie stated he would think about that and provide feedback later. b. Colton Hall Museum / Cultural Arts Commission Chair Rodriguez stated she was happy to report that the strategic plan is finally completed and the Council will see it soon. Chair Rodriguez noted that attendance was up and that the Art in the Adobes exhibit was a great success along with many other cultural events hosted in 2011. Chair Rodriguez asked the Council and the public visiting City buildings to take a moment to look at the wonderful art that is on display in those offices. Councilmember Downey thanked Commission for the bench dedicated in memory of Jim Conway and for the music programs. Councilmember Selfridge thanked staff for all the work done by the staff and the commission all  City Council Minutes Thursday, December 15, 2011 year and with Art in the Adobes. Mayor Della Sala asked what can be attributed to the increase in attendance. Chair Rodriguez stated that better signage and coinciding open hours with the times when most groups could visit the museum were two key factors in increased attendance. c. Historic Preservation Commission Chair Petty stated that the Historic Preservation Commission over the course of 2011 has had an interesting year fulfilling its vision. Chair Petty stated the Commission completed historic reports for 5 historic adobes and recommended 3 historic homes for historic overlay designation. In addition, he noted that the Commission completed a historic context and reconnaissance statement for Old Town and Downtown and recommended the initiation of one for New Monterey. Councilmember Sollecito spoke in support of several State bills that he hopes will allow local partnerships to support and resource local historic landmarks, like the State owned adobes within the City of Monterey and Councilmember Downey concurred with his sentiments. d. Library Board of Trustees Chair Roberson opened by thanking his board members and noted that they are a very dynamic group. He stressed that most of his comments are centered on volunteerism and fundraising, stressing that this is desperately needed as libraries continue to experience reductions to funding and other resources. Chair Roberson provided a summary of library statistics indicating how staff, aided by thousands of hours of volunteer time, have provided record services. He provided details of the strategic plan and the types of fundraising that the Library is using. Mayor Della Sala asked when the Strategic Plan will be finished by the Board and Library Director Bui-Burton indicated that will happen in February 2012. e. Neighborhood Improvement Program Committee NIP Spokesperson Heuer stated the Committee funded 40 different projects and 10 cut off projects. Spokesperson Heuer commended Tom Reeves for his work as the NIP Coordinator, stating that this is a difficult job for the largest committee that does not have a seated chair. Spokesperson Heuer noted that some projects are just being completed that date back to 2006, but that things are starting to move along. He stated that a group of residents in the Glenwood area are currently trying to establish a recognized neighborhood association. Councilmember Sollecito stated that one of the side benefits of committees like this is that it keeps residents involved in their city. Mayor Della Sala and Councilmember Downey asked what prevents a downtown neighborhood and how does one get one started. Spokesperson Heuer indicated that it is a movement from residents to establish a neighborhood association and it may be possible that there are not enough long term residents in downtown interested in creating and maintaining a neighborhood association. f. Parks and Recreation Commission Chair Menendez-Herbst began by providing the Council with the department's newly created mission statement. She followed that by providing the Council with many examples of how the Commission and the Recreation and Community Services Department have fulfilled or exceeded that mission in 2011. She provided statistics on the activities, programs, marketing, new endeavors, and expansion of some City programs. Chair Menendez-Herb said the 4th of July lawn party was a success and that in 2012 the Commission will work with a local sponsor group to bring back the 4th of July parade. Councilmember Downey thanked them for working on the 4th of July parade and asked the Commission to possibly agendize a discussion of Occupy Monterey. 2  City Council Minutes Thursday, December 15, 2011 g. Planning Commission Vice Chair Garden stated that over the course of 2011 Planning Commission members, besides their normal Commission work, have been serving on subcommittees to help shape the future vision for our commercial districts. He said the Council will see in 2012 the fruits of this work. Vice Chair Garden thanked Principal Planner Cole and other Planning staff for providing the Commission with the necessary information so that the Commission could make the best possible recommendations and decisions. Vice Chair Garden said that for the past year almost all of the commissioners have conducted meetings paperlessly, stressing that the online information is excellent. He described how the Commission uses portable devices to access the agenda and agenda reports. Vice Chair Garden challenged Council and other boards, committees, and commission to do likewise. Vice Chair Garden noted that the Commission currently has a vacancy and asked the Council to encourage qualified applicants to apply for this position. Councilmember Downey stated she appreciates the level of detail that the Commission goes into and what they do for our citizens. Mayor Della Sala thanked the Commission for looking at the future and what Monterey could become. ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Downey, Councilmember Selfridge and Mayor Della Sala thanked board, committee, and commission members and City staff for all that they do. Mayor Della Sala stated the City is blessed with the people who live here and the people who manage and lead this city what they have done on our behalf. Mayor Della Sala adjourned the meeting at 5:00 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Approved, Catherine A. Raynor Chuck Della Sala Senior Assistant City Clerk Mayor 3