Los Altos Hills Regular City Council Meeting Recap Page 1 Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Town of Los Altos Hills
City Council Regular Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, California
Present: Mayor Kavita Tankha, Vice Mayor Rajiv Bhateja, Council Member Stanley Mok, Council Member Linda Swan, Council Member George Tyson
Absent: None
Staff: City Manager Peter Pirnejad, City Attorney Steve Mattas, City Clerk Arika Birdsong-Miller, Deputy City Manager Cody Einfalt, Finance Director Thomas Leung, Community Development Director Jay Bradford, and Public Works Director WooJae Kim
CALL TO ORDER (1:00 P.M.)
Mayor Tankha called the meeting to order at 1:00 P.M.
1. ROLL CALL
Mayor Kavita Tankha, Vice Mayor Rajiv Bhateja, Council Member Stanley Mok, Council Member Linda Swan, and Council Member Tyson were present.
2. AGENDA REVIEW
The City Council Agenda was accepted as presented.
3. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR
1. Nick Pliam, a resident of Los Altos Hills, requested the installation of speed bumps on Elena Road to encourage drivers to slow down.
2. Naboku Cleary, a resident of Los Altos Hills, expressed a desire to preserve the history of the property conservation easement. She noted that a neighbor has violated the historic preservation agreement by constructing a cabana.
3. John O’Connell, a resident of Los Altos Hills, stated that the Council allowed staff and the City Attorney to initiate an agreement without first discussing the matter with the public.
He asserted that this should never have been allowed to occur, as it constitutes a Brown Act violation.
4. Michael Grady, a resident of Los Altos Hills, urged Council to include the current Housing Element Amendment into the Workplan.
4. PRESENTATIONS AND APPOINTMENTS
A. Appointment to the Technology Committee- Vice Mayor Bhateja made a motion to appoint Sam Woods to the Technology Committee. Council Member Swan seconded the motion. Approved, Vote 5-0
Approved February 20, 2025
Los Altos Hills Regular City Council Meeting Recap Page 2 Wednesday, January 29, 2025
B. Appointment to the Environmental Design and Protection Committee – Mayor Tankha made a motion to appoint Ivy Mei to the Environmental Design and Protection Committee.
Council Member Swan seconded the motion. Approved, Vote 5-0
5. CONSENT CALENDAR
Public Comment
1. Allan Epstein, a resident of Los Altos Hills, requested that the City Council take action to address and improve the permitting system.
Vice Mayor Bhateja made a motion to approve the Consent Calendar deferring Item 5A to the February 20, 2025 City Council Regular Meeting. Council Member Swan seconded the motion.
APPROVED, Vote 5-0
A. Approval of City Council Regular Meeting Minutes of December 19, 2024 DEFERRED TO FEBRUARY 20, 2025
B. Approval of City Council Special Meeting Minutes of January 7, 2025 APPROVED, Vote 5-0 C. Resolution Approving the Plans and Specifications for the 2025 Sanitary Sewer Repair and Replacement Project and Authorizing Staff to Advertise the Project for Bid APPROVED, Vote 5-0
D. Resolution Accepting the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Repair and Replacement Project APPROVED, Vote 5-0
E. Resolution Accepting Open Space Easement at 14096 Seven Acres Lane; Lands of SA 96 LLC APPROVED, Vote 5-0
F. Resolution Granting an Extension of the Expiration Dates for Building Permits for Various Residential Properties as listed in the Staff Report APPROVED, Vote 5-0 G. Amendment to the Resolution on Standing Committees: Termination of the Park and Recreation Committee and the Community Relations Committee, and the Creation of the Merged "Parks, Recreation, and Community Events Committee" APPROVED, Vote 5-0 H. Approval of City Council Special Meeting Minutes of January 11, 2025 APPROVED, Vote 5-0 I. Approval of City Council Special Meeting Minutes of January 15, 2025 APPROVED, Vote 5-0
6. ONGOING BUSINESS
A. Appointments to the Parks, Recreation, and Community Events Committee Vice Mayor Bhateja made a motion to appoint Jasmeen Pombra, Boxia Schmidt, Mukta Sharangpani, Yibin Tang, Kejun (Ben) Xu, Jennifer Kan Bardsley, Weiwen Li, April Anair, Lew Jamison, and Lana Einschlag to the Parks, Recreation, and Los Altos Hills Regular City Council Meeting Recap Page 3 Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Community Events Committee. Council Member Swan seconded the motion.
APPROVED, Vote 5-0
B. Resolution Approving amendment #1 to the Upper Ravensbury Avenue Sanitary Sewer Reimbursement Agreement between the Town of Los Altos Hills and Dave Jensen Public Comments:
1. Brian McCauley, representing the applicant and brother of Don McCauley, explained that the reimbursement amount is capped by state law and expressed concern that the fees being imposed on his brother are excessive. Mr. McCauley requested that the reimbursement amount be set in accordance with the terms of the original agreement.
2. Allan Epstein, a resident of Los Altos Hills, voiced his concerns regarding the time limits for discussion, specifically expressing disagreement with the restriction to the applicant's Attorney.
3. Don McCauley, the applicant and a resident of Los Altos Hills, requested that the City Council set the reimbursement amount at $17,770, rather than applying the CCI increase.
Council Swan made a motion to Approve Amendment #1 to the Upper Ravensbury Avenue Sanitary Sewer Reimbursement Agreement between the Town of Los Altos Hills and Dave Jensen in the amount of $17,770. Council Member Mok seconded the motion.
APPROVED, Vote 5-0
C. Introduction of Ordinance (First Reading) Amendment Title 2, Chapter 6 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code Adding Conflict of Interest Designations Council Member Tyson made a motion to Waive Reading and Introduce the Ordinance Title 2, Chapter 6 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code Adding Conflict of Interest Designation. Council Member Swan seconded the motion. APPROVED, Vote 5-0
7. NEW BUSINESS
A. City Council Appointment to Standing Committees
Town Standing Committees 2025
Appointments
Public Art (2nd Mon/month - 5:00 PM) Mok
Community Relations (4th Tues/month - 7:00 PM) Merging to Parks, Recreation, and Community Events
N/A
Emergency Preparedness and Response (1st Tuesday/month 6:00 pm Bhateja Environmental Design & Protection (2nd Tues/month - 5:45 PM) Tankha Environmental Initiatives (2nd Thur/month - 6:30 PM) Tyson Finance/Investment (1st Mon/month - 4:00 PM) Tankha/Bhateja History (3rd Tues/month - 3:30 PM) Swan
LA/LAH Jt. Comm. Vol. Service Awards (As Needed) Mok
LA/LAH Senior Commission (1st Mon/month - 3:30 PM) Tyson LA/LAH Library Commission Swan
Open Space (2nd Wednesday/month - 9:30 AM) Mok
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Parks & Recreation (3rd Mon/month - 5:30 PM) Merging to Parks, Recreation, and Community Events
4th Monday at 6pm
Mok
Pathways (4th Mon/month - 7:00 PM) Swan
Technology Committee (Time/Date TBD) Bhateja
LAH Emergency Council (Ordinance 550 states: (3) The Mayor, or as an alternate, the Vice Mayor Tankha/Bhateja Outside Agencies 2025
Appointments
Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) (3rd Thur/month every other month) Mok North County Library Authority (no fixed schedule 4X/year) Mok Joint Powers Authority Board (Library) Mok
Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) Board (Group 2) (1st Thur/month 5:30 PM) Tyson VTA Policy Advisory Group (2nd Thur/month 4:00 PM) (Alternate is okay) Tyson/Swan SCVWD Water Commission (4th Wed/month every quarter 12:00 PM) Bhateja Santa Clara County Cities Assn. Board (2nd Thur/month 7:00 PM, no meeting in July) Tankha Los Altos Hills County Fire District (3rd Tues/month 7:00 PM) Tankha/Tyson CHAC JPA (4thWed/month 4:30 PM-no meeting July & Dec) Tyson Silicon Valley Clean Energy Authority (2nd Wed/month 6:00 PM) Tyson/Swan Council Member Swan made a motion to Approve the City Council Appointments to Standing Committees. Vice Mayor Bhateja seconded the motion. Approved, Vote 5-0 B. Resolution Granting Request for Extension of the Expiration date for Building Permit at 27800 Via Feliz and Applies Time Limitation Penalties.
Public Comment:
1. Allan Epstein, a resident of Los Altos Hills, explained that prolonged development projects create significant inconvenience for neighboring residents, which is why time limits were established.
Council Member Swan made a motion to Approve the Resolution as presented, Granting a Request for an Extension of the Expiration Permit at 27800 Via Feliz and Applies Time Limitation Penalties. Council Member Mok seconded the motion. Approved, Vote 5-0.
8. STUDY SESSION
A. Council Priority Setting
Peter Pirnejad, City Manager, explained that in order to achieve the priorities of the Council in an orderly and effective manner the Town goes through a comprehensive goal-setting process followed by a budgeting exercise. For many years the Council has undertook a goalsetting process in January with feedback coming from the Council, Committees, and staff. This is a comprehensive and collaborative process that involves multiple stakeholders and ultimately the formation of a draft work-plan that reflects the priorities of the Council for the Town. Last year the Town adopted a two-year work plan (January 2024 – December 2025), and this year in January the Council will be working through a similar process to update the two-year workplan.
Projects That Are Proposed To Add To Workplan (within capacity) Los Altos Hills Regular City Council Meeting Recap Page 5 Wednesday, January 29, 2025
• City Wide Survey – (Replacing the Community Development survey) – Staff will conduct a series of short Town-wide surveys that will cover a variety of topics of Town Hall operations. This project was initially suggested by the Council and adapted to make the scope wider reaching.
• Town Website Redesign – Every two-year the Town is eligible for a free redesign of the Town’s website through the website hosting company CivicPlus. Now that Town Hall has the capacity, staff is suggesting redesigning the website for the first time in 6 years. • Expired Permit Management – Many permits within the Community Development Department need to go through a process of administering extensions. Staff is recommending this item be added to the workplan.
• Code Enforcement Program Evaluation – There has been a noticeable increase in the number of code enforcement violations taking place in the Town which has caused a backlog in processing the events. Staff is recommending adding this item to the workplan. • Truck Replacement – This item initially was on the workplan but has been postponed midyear 2024 due to other priorities needing staff attention. Recently two of the Town’s vehicles need immediate replacement. Staff is recommending reprioritizing this project to a higher level.
• Fire Hazard Severity Zones Update – The State Fire Marshal is mandated to classify lands within State Responsibility Areas into Fire Hazard Severity Zones (FHSZ), which are categorized as Moderate, High, or Very High fire risk areas. There is a state mandated update for all cities driven by the need to reassess fire risk using modern data and methodologies to improve community safety and wildfire preparedness. Staff is recommending adding this item to the workplan.
The items above represent the projects that staff feel are important enough to be considered by the City Council and can be accommodated by staff. However, there were several other projects that have come up that staff could not accommodate without reprioritization or additional staffing/consulting. Council can discuss these projects, and if any are pressing to be completed, additional resources or reprioritization will be needed to get them on the 2024-25 workplan.
Projects That Will Need Council Direction To Add (not within capacity or budget, and will require additional resource or reprioritization)
• SVCE 2025 Priorities - Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE) has set priorities for 2025 focusing on building decarbonization and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in local communities. These goals align with state climate action mandates and are being implemented in partnership with municipalities and environmental committees. • Westwind Barn Master Plan – There are several large maintenance items that need attention in the upcoming years at the Barn, both inside the barn and outside in the arenas.
To get a better understanding of priorities at this location, staff recommends conducting a masterplan of the Barn.
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B. Recommendation and Motion to Approve the Amended 2024-25 Work Plan Public Comments:
1. Amita Sachdeva, a resident of Los Altos Hills and EPRC Chair, expressed her disappointment with the proposed Workplan deprioritize Emergency Mass Notification System. Ms. Sachdeva asked for Council to reconsider the Emergence Mass Notification System.
2. Duffy Price, a resident of Los Altos Hills and History Committee Member, requested to increase the Our Town Newsletter from two editions per year to four. With this request Mrs. Price offered to incorporate the Town’s Quarterly Newsletter into the Our Town Newsletter.
3. Carol Gottlieb, a resident of Los Altos Hills and Chair of History Committee, asked the Council to consider repairing the gates at Viscaino and Conception, as they are in poor condition. Once the gates are restored, Mrs. Gottlieb requested that a plaque be installed.
4. John O’Connell, a resident of Los Altos Hills, expressed his satisfaction that the Housing Element Amendment is included in the Work Plan. He suggested that the Housing Element be assigned to the Planning Commission. Mr. O’Connell suggested that the Council leverage the expertise of Town residents to help complete certain projects, as many are highly capable of assisting.
5. Allan Epstein, a resident of Los Altos Hills, supports the comments made by previous speakers and emphasizes that the Town has the capacity to complete important projects if resources are managed effectively. He highlights the need for better collaboration with the fire district, given its substantial funding and staffing, particularly regarding emergency communication and preparedness. He also suggests improving transparency in tracking complete and pending projects. Additionally, Mr. Epstein advocates for addressing the Town’s sewer system issues, criticizing the lack of attention to the matter despite residents paying unfair markups. He offers his expertise to assist in negotiations and urges the Town to prioritize cost-saving opportunities for residents.
6. Kjell Karlsson, a resident of Los Altos Hills, emphasizes the significant budget disparity between the fire district and the Town, highlighting that the fire district receives a larger share of property taxes. Mr. Karlsson also raises concerns about county constraints on the fire district, suggesting that the Town should push for more local control rather than being governed by county rules. He argues that recent events in Los Angeles will likely make fire insurance more difficult to obtain, creating financial risks for residents. Given this urgency, he urges Town officials to prioritize discussions with county supervisors about gaining more control over the fire district to better serve local needs Vice Mayor Bhateja made a motion to Approve the Amended 2024-25 Work Plan adding the following items:
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1. Increasing the number of Our Town Newsletter to four (4) issues per year
2. Hosting a Joint City Council and Fire District Meeting
3. Ad Hoc/Subcommittee for the Housing Element with Vice Mayor Bhateja and Council Member Mok as the City Council liaison.
4. Ad Hoc/Subcommittee for the Emergency Preparedness and Response Committee with Mayor Tankha as the City Council liaison.
5. Ad Hoc/Subcommittee for the Sewer Project with Mayor Tankha as the City Council liaison.
Council Member Swan seconded the motion. APPROVED, Vote 5-0.
9. ADJOURN
The meeting was adjourned at 4:55 P.M.
Respectfully submitted,
Arika Birdsong-Miller
City Clerk