City Council Meeting Page 1 of 9 February 12, 2024
7 City of Lafayette
City Council Minutes
Lafayette Library and Learning Center – Don Tatzin Community Hall February 12, 2024 3491 Mount Diablo Boulevard, Lafayette, California 7:00 p.m.
As a courtesy, and technology permitting, members of the public may participate virtually. However, the City cannot guarantee that the public’s access to teleconferencing technology will be uninterrupted, and technical difficulties may occur from time to time. Unless required by the Brown Act, City Council/Board meetings will continue despite technical difficulties for participants using the teleconferencing (Zoom) option. To participate virtually in the City of Lafayette’s public meetings and provide public comment, please follow these steps:
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1. CALL TO ORDER Vice Mayor Kwok called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. ROLL CALL
Present: City Council: Vice Mayor Kwok; Councilmembers Candell, and McCormick
Absent: Mayor Dawson and Councilmember Anduri
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Present: Youth Commission: Addy Stevens, Co-Chair; Miela Hsu, Co-Chair; and Audrey Parkin, Treasurer
Present: Transportation and Circulation Commission: Bart Carr, Chair; Carl Di Giorgio, Vice Chair; Commissioners Gregory Brown and Stella Wotherspoon Staff Present: Niroop Srivatsa, City Manager; Tracy Robinson, Administrative Services Director; Patrick Golier, Transportation Program Manager; Justin Bodily, Recreation Coordinator; Kira Tannlund, Asst. Recreation Coordinator; Mala Subramanian, City Attorney; Joanne Robbins, City Clerk
3. Disclosure and/or Take Action on Remote Participation due to Just Cause or Emergency Circumstances Pursuant to AB 2449 (Gov. Code section 54953(f).)
4. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to adopt the agenda. Roll Call Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
5. PUBLIC COMMENTS – (For Closed Session items only) – None.
6. CLOSED SESSION – None.
7. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – Councilmember McCormick led in the Pledge of Allegiance.
8. LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT STATEMENT
a. Mayor Dawson
Land Acknowledgement Statement
Vice Mayor Kwok read the Land Acknowledgement Statement: We acknowledge that Lafayette is part of the unceded, ancestral homeland of the Bay Miwok people. The Bay Miwok and neighboring Ohlone people have lived in and moved through this place for thousands of years. They stewarded and shaped this land for hundreds of generations. We express our appreciation and gratitude for this profound legacy, which enhances and contributes to our lives to this day. We will strive to honor this land and strengthen our ties with the Indigenous communities that continue to live and work in our East Bay region as our neighbors and community members. We acknowledge and honor them and their ancestors, elders, and next seven generations.
9. PUBLIC COMMENTS – (For Items Not on the Agenda)
JEAN FOLLMER congratulated Councilmember McCormick on his appointment to the City Council, stated some residents are not getting Nixle notices during incidents, and asked the Council and staff to look into this.
LISA DISBROW spoke about numerous false reports of activities on the El Curtola Bridge, stated those on the bridge have acted peacefully in every circumstance, but described some “bad actors” that have painted graffiti, blocked access with their vehicles, and launched a flag.
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KENNY BRANCH spoke about freedom of assembly.
CAROLE CHUCKOVICH described the January 31st article, over-reaching efforts by the City and said it is the right of Americans to have free speech. The State has jurisdiction over the overpass and not the City Council and CHP has jurisdiction over safety, and questioned any concerns.
10. CITY MANAGER’S UPDATE
City Manager Niroop Srivatsa gave the following bi-weekly update on activities on department activities:
• Today, the City received the City’s third review letter from HCD. Staff is studying the 6-page letter to determine the extent of revisions needed in the Housing Element. She has sent an email to HCD requesting an in-person meeting. HCD’s letter has been posted to the City’s website on PlanLafayette.org and Lovelafayette.org.
• Regarding the Reservoir Tower’s proposed reduction of 40 feet, a committee of highly qualified residents have studied EBMUD’s plans and reports to find a way to retain the existing scale and design of the tower and they have submitted its their findings to EBMUD. Their conclusion is that the tower can be safely and cost-effectively retrofitted by the addition of a modest amount of mild steel reinforcement in the upper half of the tower. This scheme would allow the tower to remain its current height, and she will provide updates as to EBMUD’s reply. • Regarding the El Curtola Bridge, staff has reached out to Caltrans to confirm their jurisdiction over the bridge, as well as CHP. She, the Mayor, and Police Chief will be meeting with Caltrans the first week of March and she will provide an update. • Regarding Engineering, City staff will hold a Zoom meeting on Tuesday, February 13th at 7p.m. to present the 2024 Surface Seal and Paving Project. This is an opportunity for the public to learn about the streets impacted, and to provide feedback to City staff. More details can be found on the City’s website under the Engineering Department.
• Greg Travis, Maintenance Supervisor, has retired after 19 years of service, and she wished him well. Jesus Hernandez has been promoted from within as the new Parks Maintenance Supervisor Mr. Hernandez has been with the City since 2008 and is a Lafayette resident.
Councilmember Candell asked if the Housing Element will be brought back to the Council at the next meeting. City Manager Srivatsa said they have not yet determined the extent of revisions, and staff would like to spend this week documenting revisions and meeting with HCD.
Councilmember McCormick referred to the seismic studies on the Reservoir Tower. He confirmed the documents are public and the City Manager agreed to create a link to previous and current reports on the City’s website.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
LISA DISBROW questioned why the Council is pursuing the El Curtola issue because of the First Amendment.
City Attorney Mala Subramanian briefly responded regarding the protocols for public comments.
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11. PRESENTATIONS
A. Kristin B. Connelly, County Clerk Recorder Registrar Update on the March Primary
Recommendation: Receive and file.
Council Clerk Recorder/Registrar Kristin Connelly thanked the Council for the opportunity to provide an update on the March Primary. She spoke about the Primary’s complexities and her outreach plans, the County Clerk Recorder Registrar’s office operations and what they offer, awards of distinction and excellence in terms of voting, a County snapshot, no party preference voter information, election information, secure drop box locations, and in-person voting available at Walnut Creek City Hall on Friday, March 1, 2, and 4th in addition to 555 Escobar, the County Elections office.
Ms. Connelly then described testing of equipment, ways to be supportive on how to vote in a cross over way, how people can re-register on a provisional basis, encourage high school students to be poll workers, outreach, and work to have more Californians vote, increasing youth engagement, and said she was available to answer questions.
Vice Mayor Kwok and Councilmembers thanked Ms. Connelly for her update, recognized the outreach to youth, and confirmed that if someone has moved out of state they can call the Elections office at 925- 335-7800.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
JEAN FOLLMER said she was one person of the 12 able to tour the Elections Office on Friday, appreciates the transparency, and she has learned a lot.
BART CARR said he has a daughter living abroad and she is registered here and would like to vote. Ms.
Connelly said the active military or student, regardless of where they are deployed as well as County residents living abroad, have a special set of rules. They can participate with a remote access system and/or call the 925-335-7800 number. She suggested he provide her mailing address so she can be included into the voting system.
B. Youth Commission
Update on Goals and Accomplishments
Recommendation: Receive and file.
Justin Bodily, Recreation Coordinator and Staff Liaison for the Youth Commission, introduced the item.
Addy Stevens, Co-Chair, introduced Miela Hsu, Co-Chair and Audrey Parkin, Treasurer, who gave a presentation and overview of the Commission’s events, goals, and accomplishments for the 2023 year.
Vice Mayor Kwok and Councilmembers recognized Youth Commissioners, thanked them for their presentation, confirmed upcoming events and current membership and school grade ranges of Commissioners, and Vice Mayor Kwok and Councilmember McCormick were acknowledged as the Commission’s liaisons.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
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LAUREN HERPICH congratulated the Youth Commission as a family that has participated in the Haunted House each year, stating she loved the Haunted Trail and asked to continue it for future years.
C. Transportation and Circulation Commission
Update on Goals and Accomplishments
Recommendation: Receive and file.
Bart Carr, Chair, introduced Vice Chair Carl Di Giorgio and Commissioners Gregory Brown and Stella Wotherspoon. He called out Commissioner Lynn Hiden who is a founding member of the Transportation Commission in the 1970’s and has been providing service for over 50 years on the Commission. The Commission is supported by Patrick Golier, Transportation Program Manager.
Chair Barr then presented the Commission’s accomplishments from 2023 and an overview of their Work Plan proposed for 2024.
Vice Chair Carl Di Giorgio welcomed Councilmember McCormick to the Council, recognized former Councilmember Gerringer for her service, looks forward to working with Vice Mayor Kwok and Councilmember Candell as Liaisons, as well as Patrick Golier and Matt Luttropp for their daily support and work on projects. They have wrestled with people wanting more transparency and said they are working towards this by developing a list of potential funding opportunities.
Vice Mayor Kwok and Councilmembers voiced appreciation of the Commission for their heavy workload, benefits of the City’s projects, cited the traffic calming process as being made more efficient, recognized the progress made over the year, and thanked them for their volunteer service.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
DAWN EAMES congratulated Councilmember McCormick and asked to be sure outreach is done for businesses not members of the Chamber of Commerce especially in regards to the Mt. Diablo Boulevard Corridor Plan.
Chair Carr noted the project has not been presented to the Commission to date, but the plan is to improve multi-model transit throughout the length of Mt. Diablo Boulevard, making it easy for people to walk, bike, and maintain traffic flow.
CHERYL MACDONALD congratulated Councilmember McCormick, asked to include the Mt. Diablo Corridor Plan in City publications and on-line media, thanked Chair Carr for mentioning Lynn Hiden’s service, spoke of her previous involvement with the Downtown Parking Planning Study, and asked to be notified if this will be returning.
12. CONSENT CALENDAR
Vice Mayor Kwok asked if there were any public comments or items Councilmembers or the public wish to remove from the Consent Calendar. There was a request to remove Item 12.A.2 and Item 12.B by a member of the public.
A. Minutes
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1. January 22, 2024
Recommendation: Approve.
C. Lafayette City Council Assignments for 2024
Recommendation: Adopt the Lafayette City Council Assignments for 2024.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to adopt Consent Calendar Items 12A.1 and 12EC. Vote: 3-0- 2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
13. OLD BUSINESS – None.
14. STAFF REPORTS – None.
15. PUBLIC HEARINGS – None.
16. ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT
A. Minutes
2. January 29, 2024
Recommendation: Approve.
JEAN FOLLMER said she was present during the interview and appointment process for the City Council candidate interviews. Three applicants got the top votes of the Council but she noted the pivot of the Council to decide to appoint that evening instead of moving to a second interview. She therefore asked that the Council codify a process for appointment, given its importance.
LAUREN HERPICH said she was also present and shared her concern that the minutes are the only official reflection of the most recent appointment process. The audio was deemed too poor in quality, asked for transparency, and asked that a process be codified.
CHERYL MACDONALD echoed comments of previous speakers, questioned why the meeting was not properly recorded but available on Zoom so people could watch from home.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to adopt Consent Calendar Item A.1.2. Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes:
Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
B. Mt. Diablo Court Signal and Intersection Improvement Project, Final Acceptance of Construction Project No. 014-9723
Recommendation: 1. Allocate approximately $121,220 from the Capital Improvement Fund 014 balance to cover the project deficit. 2. Accept the Mt. Diablo Blvd. at Mt. Diablo Court Intersection Improvements Project (014-9723) as complete and authorize staff to file a Notice of Completion.
Vice Mayor Kwok noted there were some email communications with questions on the budget expenditures.
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City Manager Srivatsa explained that questions were posed by a member of the public related to the Mt.
Diablo Signal Project, particularly the use of funds from the Tree In-Lieu fees. The question was whether the City was using monies PG&E had provided as part of the Community Pipeline Safety Initiative from 5 years ago, and the response is “no.” These in lieu fee monies were budgeted as part of the original project, along with developer contribution and are from the City’s Tree In-Lieu Fund. When an applicant or property owner cannot provide mitigation trees on site, the City allows them to contribute to a Tree In-Lieu Fund. The Lafayette Municipal Code and the Tree Protection Ordinance state these funds can be used for planting of vegetation in the public right-of-way and also for tree education.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
DAWN EAMES said she does not understand where the $475,000 called the Tree In-Lieu Funds were.
She understood it went into a lawsuit and it could not be touched, and then it is said it is a different type of fund that developers can contribute towards. She asked if is legally able to be used other than for enhancement of the East End or specific to the project. She also said her understanding is that the $475,000 tree in-lieu funds could be used in the assessment district.
City Manager Srivatsa explained the fund is the City’s Tree In-Lieu fund. It does not have anything to do with the mitigation funds PG&E gave the City a few years ago. The fund has been used by the City Engineering Department and Public Works for landscaping within the public right-of-way as part of the CIP, and this is what happened here. The PG&E funds are in a restricted account, and she confirmed with the City Attorney that it has only been used for litigation associated with the PG&E lawsuit, but not for City purposes to plant trees or landscaping.
CHERYL MACDONALD asked if the in-lieu fee funds are supposed to be used for all three districts in the core, and asked how it is distributed.
City Manager Srivatsa replied the Tree Protection Ordinance was updated around 2014 and the in-lieu fund was created. It is not restricted to the downtown, but it is a Citywide fund that can be used anywhere for landscaping and educational purposes.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to adopt Consent Calendar Item B. Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
17. COUNCIL/COMMISSION REPORTS
A. Councilmembers report on activities and consideration of matters a Councilmember wishes to initiate for placement on a future agenda.
Councilmember McCormick said he is excited to serve on the Council and reported on his attendance to the Business Person of the Year event sponsored by the Chamber. He said Mayor Dawson gave the State of the City address, they celebrated Holly of Holly’s Homegrown as Business Person of the Year and look forward to Citizen of the Year as the City’s next joint event.
Vice Mayor Kwok noted that he and Councilmember Candell were also in attendance along with staff, and he thanked the Chamber for organizing the event.
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Councilmember Candell said the City of Newport Beach wanted to get a statewide audit of sober living facilities, and staff provided information in one day. She recognized staff for providing this so fast. She also referred to Nixle messages and asked if this could be brought back.
City Manager Srivatsa stated she is working with Police representatives to formalize the Nixle policy and will bring it to the Council in a month.
Councilmember Candell referred to the Housing Element and asked for a timeline and discussion on how the Council can help the effort in getting it approved. She asked if codifying a process for Council appointment could be included in the Work Plan.
City Attorney Mala Subramanian stated the City has an adopted Resolution that exists with a process for filling vacancies, and she can forward it to the Council, and noted it was included in the January 8, 2024, City Council meeting packet and on the website.
18. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
A. E-mail from Gayle Israel, Chief of Staff for Supervisor Candace Andersen, requesting a proclamation in honor of Red Cross Month, March 2024.
Recommendation: Approve the proclamation in honor of Red Cross Month, March 2024.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period.
SARAH LIND brought attention to Tom Tiffany’s exposure today of the Red Cross for enabling illegal immigration across the southern border. Fentanyl has come through the border in massive quantities.
She cited hundreds of thousands of fentanyl deaths and asked the Council reconsider declaring March Red Cross Month given they are aiding and abetting illegal immigration.
Councilmember McCormick said personally he is involved deeply with the Red Cross, and he cited their good work.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (McCormick/Candell) to approve the proclamation in honor of Red Cross Month, March 2024. Roll Call Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
B. E-mail from Mariella Sanding, CCC MEDS Coalition Coordinator, Bay Area Community Resources, Inc. (BACR) requesting a proclamation recognizing March 2024 as Prescription Drug Abuse Awareness Month.
Recommendation: Approve the proclamation recognizing March 2024 as Prescription Drug Abuse Awareness Month.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (McCormick/Candell) to approve the proclamation recognizing March 2024 as Prescription Drug Abuse Awareness Month. Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes:
None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
C. Requests from Jay Lifson, Rotary Club of Lafayette, for upcoming events in 2024 City Council Meeting Page 9 of 9 February 12, 2024
1) Requesting permission to use Lafayette Plaza for the Annual Candy Scramble to include closure of Plaza Way and a portion of Golden Gate Way with No Parking area on Saturday, March 30 from 9:30am to 10:45am. Street Closures and No Parking areas described in Resolution 2024-08 Exhibit A.
2) Requesting a change to the” Keep on Truckin” event scheduled for Saturday, April 27th for Street Closures and No Parking areas described in Resolution 2024-08 Exhibit B.
Recommendation: Approve requests and Adopt Resolution 2024-08.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to approve both requests, and adopt Resolution 2024-08.
Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
D. Letter from Tim Ewell, Chief Assistant County Administrator, requesting a letter of support from the City of Lafayette for Federal grant funding for Contra Costa County’s Head Start and Early Head Start program that provides countywide Head Start services throughout Contra Costa County.
Recommendation: Authorize the Mayor to sign and send the letter of support.
Vice Mayor Kwok opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Candell/McCormick) to authorize the Mayor to sign and send the letter of support from the City of Lafayette for Federal grant funding for Contra Costa County’s Head Start and Early Head Start program that provides countywide Head Start services throughout Contra Costa County.
Vote: 3-0-2 (Ayes: Kwok, Candell, and McCormick; Noes: None; Absent: Anduri and Dawson).
19. ADJOURNMENT – 8:52 p.m.
APPROVED:
__________________________________
Gina M. Dawson, Mayor
ATTEST:
_________________________
Joanne Robbins, City Clerk