1 City Council Special Meeting Agenda
January 18, 2024
LAH Agenda
September 28.docx j
NOTICE TO PUBLIC
Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on the open session portion of this agenda will be made available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s office located at 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, California during normal business hours. These materials will also be made available on the City website at www.losaltoshills.ca.gov subject to Staff’s ability to post the documents before the meeting.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE
LOS ALTOS HILLS CITY COUNCIL WILL BE HELD ON
THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2024, AT 5:00 P.M.
Meetings of the City Council are held in-person. As a courtesy, and in compliance with applicable state law, staff and members of the public may participate in the meeting in person at Town Hall or virtually via Zoom Video Conference. Members of the City Council may participate remotely from time to time in accordance with the provisions of Government Code section 54953.
To attend the meeting in person:
City Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, CA 94022 To provide Public Comment in person:
Members of the public wishing to speak are requested to complete a speaker card and submit it to the City Clerk at the meeting.
To participate in the meeting via Zoom Video Conference, please follow the instructions below:
Public comment will also be accepted via email at [email protected] prior to the start of the meeting. Written comments will be posted on the website and distributed to the Council.
If you choose to email your comments, please indicate in the subject line “FOR PUBLIC COMMENT” and indicate the item number.
If you wish to submit a public comment during the meeting, please use the following information.
Before speaking, please identify yourself by name and where you reside. The City Council meeting will be live-streamed on the Town’s website and via zoom at the following location:
https://bit.ly/January18SpecialMeeting
Town of Los Altos Hills
City Council Special Meeting Agenda
Thursday, January 18, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.
Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road
Los Altos Hills, California
2 City Council Special Meeting Agenda
January 18, 2024
Webinar ID: 842 1505 1935
Passcode: 94022
Public testimony will be taken at the direction of the mayor and members of the public may only comment during times allotted for public comments. This meeting will be broadcast via livestream service at http://www.losaltoshills.ca.gov.
CALL TO ORDER (5:00 PM)
1. Roll Call
2. PUBLIC COMMENT (Public Comment is Limited to Items which are the Subject of the Special Meeting)
3. NEW BUSINESS
A. Consideration of Appointment of Allan Epstein to the Los Altos Hills Finance and Investment Committee
4. ADJOURNMENT
ASSISTANCE FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in the meeting, please contact the City Clerk at 650-941-7222. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting.
Copies of all agenda reports and supporting data are available for inspection at Town Hall, 26379 Fremont Road 72 hours in advance of the meeting.
A complete agenda can be found on the Town’s webpage: http://www.losaltoshills.ca.gov. A complete packet of information is available for inspection during the meeting at the table to the back of the Council Chambers and online. Council may take action on any agendized matter in any manner deemed appropriate by Council.
1 Arika Miller
From: Arika Miller
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2024 11:50 AM
To: Jim Waschura; City Council
Subject: RE: Supplement to Jan 18 Special Meeting 5:00 PM Received, this will be added as a supplement to Special City Council Meeting at 5pm.
From: Jim Waschura
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2024 11:33 AM
To: City Council <[email protected]>
Subject: Supplement to Jan 18 Special Meeting 5:00 PM
[Please add this supplement to the meeting agenda for this evening's 5:00 PM Special Meeting for the agenda item related to the appointment of Allan Epstein to the Finance Committee.] Dear Council members,
Please consider reappointing Allan Epstein to the Finance committee. Town residents have benefited greatly from his attention to financial details and his insistence that our financial management systems operate correctly, effectively, and efficiently. I believe there can be good synergy between the City Manager's strategic focus and the Finance committee and Allan's tactical focus, and I hope we can reset these relationships and foster this cooperation to continue benefiting town residents.
Thank you for your consideration.
Jim Waschura
Resident of Los Altos Hills
Agenda Item 3A
Supplemental #1
Received 1/17/2024
1 Arika Miller
From: Arika Miller
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2024 11:54 AM
To: Peter Pirnejad; Marj Green
Subject: RE: Appointment of Allan Epstein to the FIC
Received, this will be added as a supplement to Special City Council Meeting at 5pm.
From: Peter Pirnejad <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2024 9:50 AM
To: Marj Green <
Cc: Arika Miller <[email protected]>
Subject: RE: Appointment of Allan Epstein to the FIC
Will do
Adding our City Clerk to the email
Peter Pirnejad
City Manager
Town of Los Altos Hills
26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, CA 94022
P: 650-947-2514 | F: 650-941-3160
E: [email protected]
Sign up for my Weekly Report
From: Marj Green <
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2024 9:03 AM
To: Peter Pirnejad <[email protected]>
Subject: Fwd: Appointment of Allan Epstein to the FIC
Hi Peter,
Please post this on the 1/18 Special Meeting agenda.
Thank you,
Marj
Sent by my iPad
Begin forwarded message:
On Jan 18, 2024, at 7:57 AM, wrote:
Dear Councilmembers,
As head of the W Loyola Neighborhood group of over 300 families for the past 25 years, Agenda Item 3A
Supplemental #2
Received 1/18/2024
2 our neighborhood. He has always provided excellent advice and used his vast knowledge to help.
I support the appointment of Allan Epstein to the Los Altos Hills Finance and Investment Committee.
Marj
Tom & Marj Green
Los Altos Hills, CA 94024
mobile:
B&W Photography
Instagram
Facebook t
I have worked closely with Alan Epstein on numerous occasions on items of interest to
January 17, 2024
Dear Council Members:
On behalf of many of the Los Altos Hills Volunteer Commitees, we appreciate your considera�on of reappoin�ng Chair Allan Epstein to the LAH Volunteer Finance Commitee.
The mayor’s ini�al resigna�on request has caused an extremely nega�ve impact on all LAH Volunteer Commitees – because Chair Epstein has provided excellent chair and leadership for the past 15 years on the Finance Commitee during a period of increased accoun�ng turnover.
Whatever the asser�ons were to cause the ini�al ac�ons, it is good that Chair Epstein will be permited to address them in a public forum.
For the past 15 years, Chair Epstein has faithfully served on the Finance Commitee as Chair, Vice Chair, or Co-Chair. In his role, he has contributed his excep�onal knowledge, skills and abili�es during a period when there has been an enormous personnel turnover in the accoun�ng responsibili�es. Example of Services and Savings Generated:
• Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports (ACFR) – accurate and completed on �me.
• Saving and funding opera�onal structure of Westwind Barn • Saving and reconciling over-charging for permits – problem iden�fied but to be finalized.
• Working with new accoun�ng personnel – not familiar with LAH methods.
The mayor’s ini�al ac�on resulted in a nega�ve impact on Volunteer Commitee recruitment.
• Vacancies already exist on all commitees.
• Inexperienced members have made it difficult to carry out and sustain a high-level performance.
• The Code of Conduct fiasco this past year was another nega�ve impact promoted by two council representa�ves. Fortunately, withdrawn from considera�on.
Agenda Item 3A
Supplemental #3
Received 1/18/2024
• Town Volunteer Commitees --disappointed by the overt ac�ons of the council.
• The current Commitee Chairs have expressed significant dismay and considered resigning.
In follow-up, it is recommended that the mayor and city manager meet with Volunteer Commitee Chairs to provide input on the circumstances of the resigna�on request. Further, discuss performance dimensions that led to the ac�ons taken and Include efforts to reduce conflict resolu�on issues and enhance interpersonal effec�veness.
Finally, appreciate and strongly support the reappointment of Allan Epstein as Chair of the Volunteer Finance Commitee.
Sincerely,
Duffy Price, Chair
Los Altos Hills History Commitee
2 <[email protected]>, Linda Swan
<[email protected]>
Subject: Appointment of Allan Epstein to the FIC
Dear Councilmembers of Los Altos Hills,
I am writing to heartily support the appointment of Allan Epstein to the Los Altos Hills Finance and Investment Committee.
Ever since we met when we were both involved parents in the Loyola Elementary School community over 30+ years ago, I have found Allan to be a man of integrity, honesty, and kindness. He is, as well and to his credit, a crackerjack font of knowledge and analysis regarding all things financial and investments in our town.
In short, Allan is exactly the kind of LAH citizen that I would like to see populating all of our town’s volunteer committees.
Sincerely,
Bridget Morgan
48 year resident of 10711 Eloise Circle, LAH
Former member of LAH Pathways Committee
Former member of LAH History Committee
M E M O R A N D U M
To: Town Council – Town of Los Altos Hills
From: Roddy Sloss
Subject: Allan Epstein
Date: January 18, 2024
_______________________________________________________________________________ This is to recommend Allan Epstein to you as a person and as a member of the Town’s Finance and Investment Committee (“FIC”). I have worked with Allan for 16 years as a colleague and friend as part of my role as an officer and member of the FIC. I believe Allan is well known to each of you as regular attendee of and contributor to Council meetings. In addition, Allan has served as a volunteer leader of several Ad Hoc Committees at the request of Council. The list of his related accomplishments is voluminous. I will be happy to provide a list if requested.
Allan’s has many fine attributes. But his most outstanding quality is his temperament. I have never experienced him raising his voice, personally insulting anyone, or refusing to help when asked and/or needed. His skill set with respect to Town activities is self-taught and wider than anyone associated with the Town I have met.
I recommend you invite Allan to continue service to the Town as Chairman of the Town’s Finance and Investment Committee as long as he is willing to serve in that role.
Thank you.
/s/ Roddy Sl oss
Agenda Item 3A
Supplemental #5
Received 1/18/2024
Item 3A
Supplement 7