Cerritos City Council Meeting Minutes
MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE
CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS
HELD SEPTEMBER 11, 2008
CALL TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Cerritos City Hall, 18125 Bloomfield Avenue, Cerritos, California.
INVOCATION
Mayor Edwards offered the invocation.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Councilman Cho led the assembly in the salute to the flag.
ROLL CALL
The following Members of the City Council were in attendance:
Councilwoman Carol Chen
Councilman Joseph Cho, Ph.D.
Councilwoman Laura Lee
Mayor Pro Tem Bruce W. Barrows
Mayor Jim Edwards
PRESENTATIONS
Proclamations were presented to the following: Verue and Dale Lindley on the occasion of their 60th wedding anniversary on September 4, 2008; Cerritos Girls Softball Association Cerritos Xtreme 10-and-under team for placing second in the San Dieguito Tournament and taking fifth in the 2008 Western Nationals Tournament Qualifier; and Cerritos Girls Softball Association Cerritos All Stars 14-and-under team for earning runner-up at the Temecula Shoot Out Tournament, placing finalist at ASA District B, placing second in La Mirada District Tournament, and participating in the ASA State Tournament in Rancho Bernardo.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
On behalf of the City, the Mayor acknowledged the United States Flag presented to the City of Cerritos in remembrance of those who perished on September 11, 2001 by ABC Unified School District Board of Education Member Captain Armin Reyes, who is currently deployed in Iraq, and noted the Flag was included in the 9/11 Ceremony held this evening at Heritage Park.
With regard to the potential boundary change being contemplated along the Los Angeles/Orange County boundary at Coyote Creek Channel, Mayor Edwards read a letter he wrote to affected residents expressing his adamant opposition to any such change and extreme disappointment that the City of Cerritos was not invited as a participant in discussions held thus far, and indicating that he would do everything in his power to see that the boundaries are not changed.
PUBLIC COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Steve Stallings, Cerritos resident, in referencing arterial block wall replacement, questioned staff findings with regard to standard wall materials; opined that decorative pilasters would be costly and covered with landscaping within a few years; asserted that required union labor would inflate block wall construction costs; called for additional analysis prior to proceeding with consideration of the matter; and inquired when the public would come into the debate regarding this matter.
Sherri Lint, Cerritos resident, introduced Kim Weist who requested the use of the Cerritos Sports Complex on December 6 and 7 to hold a softball tournament as a fundraiser for care packages in support of the troops in Iraq.
Linda Gysen, Cerritos resident, indicated that the cost of arterial block wall replacement is higher than it should be and urged the City to ensure that residents who may speak a language other than English understand the proposal.
Paul Gysen, Cerritos resident, reiterated that efforts be made to ensure that non-English speaking residents understand the proposal and inquired if block walls that had been replaced or repaired by the property owner would be taken into consideration. He asserted that although residents own the walls, the City should fund their replacement as a beautification project, adding the proposal is wrong, costly and will upset residents.
City Manager Gallucci indicated that arterial block wall replacement is at the preliminary, conceptual stage and that all affected residents would be notified and have an opportunity to participate in the process, including accommodation for non/limited English speakers. He commented on the erosion of the walls, particularly on Norwalk Boulevard, that they are owned by the residents, and that alternative solutions to address the problem would be presented to the Council after meetings with residents.
Jay Gray, Cerritos resident, asserted that the City is selectively burdening certain property owners with regard to arterial block wall replacement and forcing these property owners to subsidize the aesthetics of the City with a costly replacement proposal, including decorative pilasters that will be covered with ivy. He added that less costly repair options are being ignored, the City will benefit from building permit fees, the project could be subject to Proposition 218 requirements, and if the entire City benefits from the block wall replacement, then the entire City should share in its cost. Mr. Gray opined that the City is offering financial assistance to developers with other projects and asked the Council to reconsider how the program is being put together.
Carmelo Del Rosario, Cerritos resident, commented on the changes effected by the Cerritos Towne Center construction, which have resulted in increased traffic and noise for residents along Shoemaker Avenue, and he suggested raising the Shoemaker block wall in this area by 18 inches to address traffic noise and enhance security for residents.
Ram Kakkar, Cerritos resident, referenced the Shoemaker Avenue arterial block wall, noting that since the related 1984 Environmental Impact Report, the traffic on Shoemaker has increased drastically as a result of the construction of the Towne Center. He stated that the City prevents residents from extending the block walls and the City should replace or extend the Shoemaker wall to improve safety and privacy for residents. He submitted a letter dated September 11, 2008 in support of his position and asked that the matter be placed on the next City Council agenda.
Manita Gandhi, Cerritos resident, expressed concerns with regard to noise, litter and security associated with the height of the Shoemaker Avenue arterial block wall. She asked that the wall be extended in height to address these concerns.
Katherine Chu, Cerritos resident, expressed that if the adaptive swim program is limited to Cerritos residents only, then the entire swim program should be limited to only Cerritos residents as a means of offering more flexible programming for children with special needs.
Federico Quinto, Jr., Cerritos resident, referenced the Shoemaker Avenue arterial block wall and opined that requested resident meetings with individual Councilmembers is allowed under the Brown Act.
Sadna Malani, Cerritos resident, invited the City Council and community to the Child Safety and Protection Festival at the Cerritos Library on September 27 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
John Watts, Cerritos resident, stated the handball courts at Liberty Park are not being maintained properly and park staff has shown no interest in resolving the problem. He suggested that Sheriff's deputies assist schools with traffic congestion before and after school and asked that the curb corners near schools be painted red to enhance traffic/pedestrian safety.
Roland Culhno, Cerritos resident, opposed any effort to annex the Cerritos area east of the Coyote Creek Channel to Orange County and the City of La Palma.
Steve Likens, Cerritos resident, indicated that his residence is east of the Coyote Creek Channel and expressed his preference to remain in the City of Cerritos.
David Pesch, Cerritos resident, stated that his residence is east of the Coyote Creek Channel and expressed his desire to remain a part of the City of Cerritos and Los Angeles County.
Rosalina Munoz, Cerritos resident, noted she lives east of the Coyote Creek Channel and spoke against annexation of Cerritos to Orange County, noting that she moved to Cerritos for a variety of reasons including schools, library and public safety.
Luanna Cancino, Cerritos resident, submitted protest petitions with regard to efforts to annex Cerritos to Orange County.
Jaideep Vaswani, Cerritos resident, commented on the quality of life of Cerritos residents, spoke against any boundary change that would result in the Cerritos area east of the Coyote Creek Channel being annexed to Orange County, and urged the City Council to commit resources to fight this proposal.
Benny Wasserman, Cerritos resident, addressed the benefits of being a Cerritos resident and objected to any boundary change effort.
Sandra Hojo, Cerritos resident, spoke against annexation of Cerritos area to Orange County.
CONSENSUS: The City Council directed a report back at the next City Council meeting on the legal issues associated with the protest procedure related to annexation of the Cerritos area east of the Coyote Creek Channel to Orange County.
In response to Council inquiry regarding painting the corner curbs red in the vicinity of schools, the City Manager indicated the matter would be addressed as soon as possible.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Approval of Register of Demands
MOTION: It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to approve the Register of Demands dated September 11, 2008, Checks 102330 through 102635, in the total amount of $13,309,445.61. The motion carried unanimously.
A brief discussion was held regarding fingerprint specialist costs as well as expenditures related to the City's electric utility, and the City Manager indicated that a memorandum with regard to the status of the City's electric utility would be forwarded to the City Council.
Approval of Minutes
MOTION: It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to approve the Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 28, 2008. The motion carried unanimously.
Miscellaneous
Consideration and award of Bid No. 1074-09, printing of the 2009 Cerritos Community Calendar.
MOTION: It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to award Bid No. 1074-09 for the printing of the 2009 Cerritos Community Calendar to Lithocraft Co. in the amount of $31,148.94. The motion carried unanimously.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
Consideration to waive reading of and introduce AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS AMENDING CHAPTER 22.29 OF THE CERRITOS MUNICIPAL CODE TO ADD MARTIAL ARTS ACADEMIES AS A CONDITIONALLY PERMITTED USE IN THE INDUSTRIAL/COMMERCIAL (MC) ZONE.
Development Code Amendment 2008-3*
*One Negative Declaration was prepared for Conditional Use Permit 2008-2 and Development Code Amendment 2008-3.
A development proposal by Richard M. Wilner on behalf of BMW Martial Arts, LLC, for the approval of a conditional use permit to allow a martial arts academy use at the property located at 19112 Pioneer Boulevard, Cerritos, California, 90703. The property is located within the MC, Industrial Commercial Zone (APN 7054-001-005 and APN 7054-001-006).
Negative Declaration*
Conditional Use Permit 2008-2
*One Negative Declaration was prepared for Conditional Use Permit 2008-2 and Development Code Amendment 2008-3.
It was noted that the foregoing public hearing items would be considered concurrently.
Title was read to the foregoing public hearing items, the public hearings opened, and staff was called upon for reports.
Associate Planner Vega reviewed the staff report dated September 11, 2008 related to Development Code Amendment 2008-3 and Current Planning Manager Hamilton presented the September 11, 2008 staff report for Conditional Use Permit 2008-2 and related negative declaration.
During ensuing discussion clarification was provided with regard to the intent of the regulation regarding demonstrations that are large in scope and not for family-related/student demonstrations; Condition 54 regarding "Lot Tie" with adjacent parcel to the north; and Condition 55 regarding reciprocal ingress, egress and parking covenant.
Interested parties were invited to present testimony.
Richard Wilner, applicant, commented on a document recordation error with regard to Conditions 54 and 55, noting that the error would be corrected tomorrow.
No one else wishing to speak, the public hearing was closed.
Development Code Amendment 2008-3
MOTION: It was moved by Councilwoman Lee and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows that the City Council:
A. Certify and approve the Negative Declaration for Development Code Amendment 2008-3, which was completed in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); and
B. Direct staff to file a Notice of Determination in accordance with Section 3.5 of the Environmental Impact Report Guidelines of the City of Cerritos.
The motion carried unanimously.
MOTION: It was moved by Councilwoman Lee and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows to waive reading of and introduce Ordinance No. 943 entitled AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS AMENDING CHAPTER 22.29 OF THE CERRITOS MUNICIPAL CODE TO ADD MARTIAL ARTS ACADEMIES AS A CONDITIONALLY PERMITTED USE IN THE INDUSTRIAL/COMMERCIAL (MC) ZONE. The motion carried by the following vote:
AYES: Chen, Cho, Lee, Barrows, Edwards
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None
Conditional Use Permit 2008-2
MOTION: It was moved by Councilwoman Lee and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows to approve Conditional Use Permit 2008-2, making the findings set forth in Cerritos Planning Commission Resolution No. PC 2008-26, as recommended in the staff report dated September 11, 2008. The motion carried unanimously.
RECESS AND RECONVENE
A recess was called at 9:00 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 9:10 p.m. with all Councilmembers in attendance.
PENDING LEGAL MATTERS
Consideration of proposed amendments to City Charter regarding City Council term limitations.
City Attorney Steres reviewed the staff report dated September 11, 2008 related to proposed amendments to the City Charter regarding City Council term limitations, as directed by the City Council at its May 8, 2008 meeting and continued from its August 14 meeting.
Alon Barlevy, Cerritos resident, suggested placing four to five options on the ballot, and if no one option receives fifty percent of the vote plus one, then place the top two options on the November ballot. He also suggested an option to retain the current two-term limit and extend the time a Councilmember has to stay off the Council, ideally six years.
Angel Soto, Cerritos resident, suggested placing the options of retaining the current term limit and removing the two-year clause relating to seeking re-election.
Randy Economy, Cerritos resident, observed that the term limitation was the result of an initiative effort and any change to term limits should follow that model.
In response to Council inquiry, it was noted that little public input regarding this matter was received, with the exception of a few e-mails that were forwarded to the City Council. A brief discussion was held regarding the relative lack of input from the public during the time that this item was initially discussed by the Council to the present.
MOTION: Following discussion, it was moved by Councilman Cho and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to receive and file the staff report dated September 11, 2008 entitled Consideration of proposed amendments to City Charter regarding City Council term limitations. The motion carried unanimously.
Consideration to waive reading of and adopt A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 2008-28 REVISING PARKING RESTRICTIONS ON ARTESIA BOULEVARD.
Assistant City Engineer Vancheswaran provided an overview of the proposed resolution and the proposed modified Gahr High School student drop-off/pick-up scenario on the south side of Artesia Boulevard west of Alora Avenue.
Discussion ensued regarding ongoing efforts to address the traffic circulation challenges at Gahr High School and the rotating Sheriff's patrols at schools throughout the City. It was pointed out that, if approved by the City Council, this proposed modification would be implemented and evaluated, with any additional modifications presented at the next Council meeting.
MOTION: It was moved by Councilwoman Chen and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows to waive reading of and adopt Resolution No. 2008-29 entitled A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CERRITOS AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 2008-28 REVISING PARKING RESTRICTIONS ON ARTESIA BOULEVARD. The motion carried unanimously.
NEW AND OLD BUSINESS
Consideration of a request of the Cerritos Regional Chamber of Commerce regarding its January 28, 2009 City Council Candidate Forum.
Catherine Gaughen, Cerritos Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, spoke in favor of the request.
MOTION: It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to authorize the Cerritos Regional Chamber of Commerce to use the Council Chambers on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. for the purpose of holding a forum for Cerritos City Council candidates in the upcoming March 3, 2009 General Municipal Election, with the City absorbing the costs associated with cable casting the event. The motion carried unanimously.
Review and consideration of a request by MV Transportation, Inc., for a proposed increase in the hourly rates for the Cerritos On Wheels (COW) and Dial-A-Ride services, and of possible modification to the COW and Dial-A-Ride services.
Associate Planner Vega presented an overview of the staff report dated September 11, 2008, and staff responded to Council inquiries to clarify the proposed modifications.
Brian Tom, Cerritos resident, spoke in support of the proposed modifications to the COW and Dial-A-Ride services.
CONSENSUS: Staff was directed to look into the expense difference of the ride sharing aspects of the Dial-A-Ride program as well as unscheduled ridership and report back to the City Council in the event there is a worthwhile savings associated with ride sharing.
MOTION: It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Barrows and seconded by Councilwoman Lee to authorize the City Manager to negotiate with MV Transportation to amend the existing professional service agreement, subject to review and approval of the City Council, to include modified hourly rates for the Cerritos On Wheels (COW) and Dial-A-Ride services, a retroactive payment to MV transportation for additional costs incurred from January 2008 through August 2008, and the following service changes:
a. A new summer schedule for the COW;
b. An increase in the number holidays in which the COW will not operate from six (6) days to eight (8) days;
c. The elimination of Sunday service for the COW;
d. The elimination of the last run (last hour on the schedule) of the COW;
e. An increase in fare for the Dial-A-Ride program from $1.00 per trip to $2.00 for Tier 2 trips and $3.00 for Tier 3 trips, while the fare for Tier 1 shall remain at $1.00 per trip; and
f. The utilization of a taxi service for Tier 2 and Tier 3 trips for the Dial-A-Ride program as a subcontract to the MV Transportation professional service agreement;
as recommended in the staff report dated September 11, 2008. The motion carried unanimously.
CONSENSUS: The City Manager was directed to address the matter of possible interest of other cities in the formation of a transit authority, which would maintain current service levels, with the City Manager's Steering Committee through possible coordination of the Gateway Cities Council of Governments and the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, and report back to the City Council as appropriate.
PUBLIC WORKS ACTIVITIES
Consideration and award of contract for the construction of Studebaker Road landscaping enhancements and freeway sign, Project No. 44010, Bid No. 1078-09.
MOTION: It was moved by Councilwoman Lee and seconded by Councilman Cho that the City Council:
1. Authorize staff to submit Project No. 14088 to the State of California for partial funding from Prop 1B grant funds;
2. Authorize staff to transfer sufficient funds from Project No. 14088 to Project No. 44010 to complete I-605 Freeway landscape and irrigation improvements; and
3. Award a contract for the construction of Studebaker Road landscaping enhancements and freeway sign, Project No. 44010, Bid No. 1078-09, to America West Landscape, Inc. in the amount of $156,828.64, and reject all other bids;
as recommended in the staff report dated September 11, 2008. The motion carried unanimously.
REPORT ON PENDING LEGISLATION
The City Manager reported that the State budget remains at impasse.
It was suggested that the agenda title for Report on Pending Legislation be expanded to allow for Council action on pending legislation.
CITY COUNCIL COMMUNICATIONS/COMMITTEE REPORTS/REPORT ON MEETINGS
At the request of Mayor Pro Tem Barrows, Public Works Director Arbogast provided a status report on remedying the leak in the aquarium in the Library and the City Manager reported on the status of the modified public speaker's podium to accommodate speakers with special needs and a timing light. Mayor Pro Tem Barrows also suggested a joint study session with the City of Artesia City Council.
CLOSED SESSION
The City Council convened in Closed Session at 10:48 p.m.
Personnel matters pursuant to CALIFORNIA Government Code Section 54957.6: CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS
Agency Negotiators: Vince Brar, Denise Manoogian, Patricia Leyva and Charles Goldstein
Employee Organization: AFSCME, Local 619
The meeting reconvened at 11:50 p.m. with all Councilmembers in attendance and staff was directed to proceed with the meet and confer process as appropriate.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 11:50 p.m. in memory of those who perished on September 11, 2001, Cerritos resident Dave Owen, and Mayor Edwards' mother-in-law Geraldine (Gerry) A. Borger.
Mrs. Dorothy Owen thanked the Council for adjourning in her husband's memory.
/s/ Josephine Triggs
Josephine Triggs, City Clerk
ATTEST:
/s/ Jim Edwards
Jim Edwards, Mayor
Approved: September 25, 2008
