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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004 - MINUTES - 10/27/2004CITY OF PALM SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES October 27, 2004 An Adjourned Meeting of the City Council of the City of Palm Springs, California, was called to order by Mayor Pro Tern Mills, at the Convention Center, 277 N. Avenida Caballeros, on Wednesday, October 27, 2004, at 5:00 p.m., at which time, the City Attorney announced items to be discussed in Closed Session. There was a public reception held from 6-7:00 p.m., and open session re -convened 7:00 p.m. CALL TO ORDER - SPRINGS CONFERENCE ROOM — 5:00 P.M. a) Roll Call (as all entities) Present: Councilmembers, Foat, McCulloch, Pougnet, and Mayor Pro Tern Mills Absent: Mayor Oden CLOSED SESSION a) Announcement of Closed Session Items, and Public Comments thereon (See Page 3 of agenda) b) Convene Closed Session (to be held at Convention Center) RE -CONVENE - CALL TO ORDER - SPRINGS CONFERENCE ROOM — 7:00 P.M. a) Roll Call (as all entities) Present: Absent: b) Flag Salute PRESENTATIONS: None Councilmembers, Foat, McCulloch, Pougnet, and Mayor Pro Tern Mills Mayor Oden REPORT OF POSTING OF AGENDA: Acting City Clerk reported the agenda was posted on Friday, October 22, 2004, in accordance with established policies and procedures. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY ON MATTERS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION (All Entities) - See items on Page 3 of agenda this date. City Attorney announced there were no reportable items. HOUSING AUTHORITY: INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY: FINANCING AUTHORITY: COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY: No Business City Council Minutes CITY COUNCIL MAYOR'S WELCOME Mayor Pro Tern Mills made welcoming statement. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None. COUNCIL WORKSHOP FORMAT 1. COMMUNITY INPUT CITY STRATEGIC PLANNING AND VISIONING PROCESS October 27, 2004 Mayor Pro Tem Mills introduced Duane Knapp, the strategic planning and visioning process facilitator. Jane Smith, city of residency was not disclosed, read her letter outlining her many concerns including: (letter submitted and on file) • Key staff members should reside in Palm Springs; • PM10 issues, the processes within the Planning Department; and • Continued development in Palm Springs. Carol Bertold, Palm Springs, read a letter submitted to senators opposing amendment 3874 concerning land acquisition for a homeless shelter near the City's entrance. (letter submitted and on file) Amanda Speed, representative from The Fair Housing Council of Riverside County, Inc., spoke of the need for affordable housing. Peter Fitzgerald, Palm Springs, resides near Ruth Hardy Park, spoke in support of the comments made by Amanda Speed, suggested post high school education facilities be located in Palm Springs, and commented he likes the Palm Springs flavor and supports un-gated and open neighborhoods. Bill Mathews, Palm Springs, spoke of the growth in Palm Springs, supports controlled managed growth and development, and suggested exploring alternatives relating to affordable housing, and the empty storefronts in north Palm Springs. Mindy Wooley, Palm Springs, resides in Sunrise Norte, commented on the lack of space for the children in her neighborhood for playing, commented on the vacant lot near her home, and asked if it was possible for the City to acquire the lot for a children's playground. Jon Hildner, Palm Springs, commented on the following and submitted a letter for the record: • Downtown should be plaza like rather than a strip, • Have commercial/retail/residential downtown, • Conduct a study not just in Palm Springs, but include surrounding communities on how money and where money is spent, • Create more public places, Page 2 City Council Minutes October 27, 2004 • Discouraged gated communities and cookie -cutter houses, and • Create a sense of 'place' for both residents and tourists. April Hildner, Palm Springs, spoke stating concurrence to the comments made by Jon Hildner. Duane Knapp, Facilitator, ask participants to think of three (3) cities they think Palm Springs should be like and submit the names of those cities at the end of the meeting. Pat Grimm, Palm Springs, suggested pro -active town hall meetings, and starting the dissemination of information relating to proposed development projects earlier in the process. Councilmember Foat stated she and Councilmember Mills have been working on a neighborhood council process and would encourage Ms. Grimm to become involved. Unknown man from audience stated all pending projects are posted in the Planning Department at City Hall and may be viewed by the public. Mr. Stuart, Palm Springs, stated buyers have a responsibility to look at the zoning code in the area in which they are buying their homes. Frank Gaydos, Palm Springs, commented on the high values on the quality of life, and the meaning of value is not the same for all people. He introduced the following persons: Mallika Albert, Dana Stewart, Greg Day, Scott Kennedy, and Frank Tyson. Mallika Albert, Palm Springs, stated she was inspired by the July 2004 Visioning Session and suggested Palm Springs e-Village, a community network. (letter submitted and on file) Dana Stewart, Palm Springs, stated much is at stake at the present time, i.e. the Section 14 referendum, Hillside initiative, and the Palm Hills referendum. She also suggested joint citizen and city staff processes. Greg Day, Palm Springs, spoke of creating a visioning process, stated he did not feel the current process is adequate. Scott Kennedy, a representative of Palm Springs Modern Committee, commented on the following: • Would support a planning staff member to interact with the citizens possessing more knowledge relating to CEQA requirements, historic structures, flexible state historic building codes, etc. would be a positive change; • Supports the Contempo Homes projects; ' Opposes the Palm Springs Village project; and • Feels Planned Development Districts are not compatible with the Palm Springs village image. Page 3 City Council Minutes October 27, 2004 Frank Tysen, Palm Springs, spoke of downtown revitalization and tourism. He ' stated tourists are not supportive of the current developments, suggested adding quality anchor stores and getting rid of the mall quality stores, make downtown fun and classy, and criticized the type of merchandise and the clientele at VillageFest. Mayor Pro Tern Mills stated Palm Springs will never be like Santa Barbara. He adding the term "Village" is used to describe a feeling (atmosphere) not necessarily the look. He commended Duane Knapp and his assignment to the audience for the assignment of supplying the name of three (3) cities they would like Palm Springs to be like. Additionally, Mayor Pro Tern Mills stated the planning process is not perfect; however, it has improved recently with the formation of neighborhood groups. He stated his concurrence with comments regarding providing information relating to pending planning projects to the public as early as possible. Councilmember Foat stated every time the Council makes a decision they must balance everything, and the Council is not proud of some things. She added they are working with Mr. Wessman and progress is slow. She stated some shops have been there a long time, and they have lost some businesses i.e. Saks and Leeds. Dana Stewart, Palm Springs, suggested focusing on redevelopment instead of new development. ' Ernie Vincent, Palm Springs, stated he moved to Palm Springs from Upland, and provided comments on the following: • The Hillside initiative has good intentions; however, you cannot take other people's property; and • There should be dialog between developer's and citizens. Carole Sukman, Palm Springs, favors growth when it is handled properly, stated Palm Springs will never be like the cities down Valley due to the fact there is so much Indian property in Palm Springs, suggested getting stores i.e. Crate & Barrel and The Gap for its residents and citing high end stores had been here and left Palm Springs due to lack of business. In closing, she stated she did not want Palm Springs to be like Orange County. Dennis Cunningham, Palm Springs, spoke supporting responsible growth, stating the City has a good Council, Planning Commission, and planning department with a good process. Due to the fact it is a good process he feels it should not be discarded and a new process put in its place. Instead of starting a new process the current process may be enhanced. He stated he concurred with Mayor Pro Tern Mills' comments regarding looking at Santa Barbara for ideas, and adding he is a former resident of Santa Barbara and Santa Barbara has had its own share of problems in the past. James Hayton, Palm Springs, commented on the Following: ' • Left Orange County, opposed the greed of developers and lack of vision; • Opposes cookie -cutter homes; and Page 4 City Council Minutes The Shadowrock development. October 27, 2004 Jon Caffery, Palm Springs, representing Palm Springs Economic Development Corporation, commented on the following: • The need for affordable housing; • The need for some high end developments, • The need for quality growth; • The need to adhere to the General Plan; and • Planning by referendum and initiative is wrong. In closing Mr. Caffery stated Palm Springs has a unique charm; therefore, this City does not need to be like other cities. Councilmember Foat stated the City has lost some of its business in the downtown to the surrounding cities due to incentives those cities have offered these businesses, and asked for his opinion on how the Council may be able to keep some of these businesses from moving. Mr. Caffery stated they are working on getting good stores to be located downtown, Main Street, and the Desert Fashion Plaza, working on the parking issue, downtown clean up, etc. to help bring more businesses to downtown. Monte Stettin, Palm Springs, spoke of including solar energy in the City's vision, and providing incentives. Jim Stuart, Palm Springs, provided the following comments: • Relating to chain businesses, Ruby's and Starbucks are chains and have not been bad for the City; • Would support a joint powers authority (JPA) for public safety (both police and fire) with the Cities of Cathedral City and Desert Hot Springs; and • Mello -Roos (assessment districts) is not good for home resales within the assessment districts. Steve Nichols, Palm Springs, commented on the following: Measure V (temporary increase in the utility users tax) needs to be passed by the voters; Does not feel there would be realized savings by forming a JPA for public safety; however, some savings may be realized if the dispatching function was combined with the neighboring jurisdictions; and A General Plan initiative is the worst thing for the City. Councilmember McCulloch stated combining dispatch functions has been addressed at CVAG, and the task force is exploring the possibilities. Nick Chicola, Palm Springs, provided the following comments: • The City needs a mission statement and without one visioning is not possible; • Downtown, redevelopment and the Desert Fashion Plaza needs to be addressed; and • The City can make incremental changes, i.e. types of developments and stop approving gated communities. Page 5 City Council Minutes 2. October 27, 2004 Councilmember Pougnet stated downtown is actually a larger area than the ' Desert Fashion Plaza, adding that he and Mayor Pro Tern Mills serves on the subcommittee and they are looking at all those issues. Councilmember Foat provided an explanation relating to Council subcommittees to the audience. Sheila Grattan, Palm Springs, stated her vision of downtown would include walkways meandering to and from the Convention Center, to downtown, Desert Fashion Plaza, the casino, and museum. This walkway could include shading and a misting system (to encourage usage during the summer months), native plants, lighting, and benches along the route. Wesley Cole, Palm Springs, provided the following comments: • It is difficult to have vision if the eyes are closed, and some people have provided only negative comments. He has talked to many people and comments he has received were positive; • There are many businesses downtown other than at the mall; • John Wessman has made many improvements at the mall; and • The downtown area is in need of being cleaned up. Nancy Stuart, Palm Springs, spoke of the following: • Visions require money; • Tax base will need to be increased; • Smart planning is needed. The need for commercial clusters, i.e. Wal- mart located at Ramon and Gene Autry. Due to the location it will draw shoppers outside of the City of Palm Springs. • Regarding earlier comments relating to chain businesses. She added she shops at SteinMart. The SteinMart in Palm Springs is stocked differently than the one located at the eastern part of the Coachella Valley. Chains will tailor the merchandise carried in their stores toward the clientele. Joy Meredith, Palm Springs, stated she noted there were eight (8) members of the General Plan Steering Committee present at tonight's meeting. Additionally, citizens need to become involved if they want to be informed, adding the Council cannot be expected to go door to door disseminating information. She added she checks the City's website weekly and goes to the Office of the City Clerk for information. Duane Knapp, facilitator, thanked all the participants. CONTINUED STRATEGIC PLANNING AND VISIONING PROCESS No discussion. NEXT STEPS IN STRATEGIC PLANNING AND VISIONING PROCESS Duane Knapp, facilitator, stated these ideas will be collected and funneled into I meaningful priorities and guidelines will be produced. Page 6 City Council Minutes October 27, 2004 ' The City Manager added ideas will continue to be accepted through November 10, 2004, and the next Strategic Planning and Visioning Session will most likely take place in January 2005. Councilmember Foat commented this document will serve as a guide and shall be a fluid document. Mayor Pro Tern Mills stated this information is important as the City will be starting the process to update the City's General Plan. Councilmember Pougnet stated concurrence to comments made by Councilmember Foat and Mayor Pro Tern Mills. He added, though some comments were negative, the City can learn from negative comments. Councilmember McCulloch thanked everyone for their participation. COUNCIL COMMENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS/INTERAGENCY REPORTS: None REPORTS & REQUESTS: CITY COUNCIL reports or requests: Councilmember Pougnet requested rent control statistics from speaker Amanda Speed. PUBLIC reports or requests: None STAFF reports or requests: None ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business, Mayor Pro Tern Mills declared the meeting adjourned at 9:54 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathie Hart, CMC Acting City Clerk Page 7