1 CITY OF MILL VALLEY
REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING
ACTION MINUTES
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL
26 CORTE MADERA AVENUE, MILL VALLEY
June 21, 2022
6:30 P.M.
Mayor John McCauley – Present
Vice Mayor Jim Wickham – Present
Councilmember Urban Carmel – Present
Councilmember Sashi McEntee – Present (via teleconference) Councilmember Stephen Burke – Present
City Staff Present: City Manager Piombo; City Attorney Khalsa; Finance Director Erickson; Senior Management Analyst Walsh; and City Clerk Rogers.
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor McCauley called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M.
ACTION OUT OF CLOSED SESSION
None.
APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA ORDER
Agenda_220621
Amended Agenda_220621
Second Amended Agenda_220621
It was MOVED by Vice Mayor Wickham and SECONDED by Councilmember Carmel to approve the agenda order. The Motion was carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote.
PRESENTATIONS
None.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Mayor McCauley asked if any Councilmember or member of the public wished to pull Items #1-3 from the Consent Calendar. There were no requests.
It was MOVED by Vice Mayor Wickham and SECONDED by Councilmember Carmel to adopt the Consent Calendar, Items #1-3. The Motion was carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote. 2 1. Consideration of the March 21, 2022 and June 6, 2022 Regular City Council Meeting Action Minutes.
Recommended Action: Approve the action minutes.
Item 1_Approval of Action Minutes_220621
2. Consideration of Continuing to Make Findings Authorizing the Use of Remote Teleconferencing Option for the Public Meetings of Mill Valley’s Legislative Bodies as Required by Assembly Bill 361.
Recommended Action: Make findings to have the option to hold remote meetings as allowed by Assembly Bill 361.
Item 2_Continuing to Make AB 361 Findings_220621
3. Second Reading and Adoption of an Ordinance Adding Chapter 8.80 to the Mill Valley Municipal Code Regarding Establishment of a Military Equipment Use Policy for the Mill Valley Police Department.
Recommended Action: Adopt the Ordinance.
Item 3_Second Reading of Military Equipment Use Ordinance_220621
COUNCIL/STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS AND COUNCIL LIAISON REPORTS None.
CITY MANAGER'S REPORT
City Manager Piombo gave a report/update on the following topics:
• The Police Department and Fire Department conducted evacuation drills at Old Mill Elementary School and the Mill Valley Reservoir on Edgewood Avenue on June 14th, with another drill scheduled for June 25th.
• There was a residential fire in Scott Valley on June 3rd. The Police Department and Fire Department held a meeting on June 17th to debrief the Scott Valley neighborhood, and they are working to resolve radio and cell phone coverage issues in the area. • Another successful Comedy in the Plaza was held on June 16th, and the Juneteenth Festival was held on June 18th.
• Senior Planner Lisa Newman, and MVPD Senior Administrative Assistant Dorothy Hancock will retire next month. City Manager Piombo and the City Council expressed appreciation for their commitment and service to the City of Mill Valley.
At Mayor McCauley’s request City Manager Piombo spoke regarding the City’s preparedness in the event of a mass evacuation and the plan to ensure roads stay open in an emergency, including weekly team meetings and pre-staged equipment for evacuation routing.
PUBLIC OPEN TIME
Mayor McCauley opened Public Open Time.
3 Speakers: Tammy Edmonson, Sacha Bunge, Eileen Fisher, Naima Dean, Tammy Herndon, Ed Rusky.
Communications (via eComment): None.
Mayor McCauley closed Public Open Time.
NEW BUSINESS
4. Administration of the Oath of Office to Newly Appointed Councilmembers Stephen Burke, Max Perrey, and Jim Wickham, and Comments from new Councilmembers.
Item 4_No Written Material_220621
City Clerk Rogers administered the Oath of Office to Councilmember Burke, Councilmember Perrey, and Vice Mayor Wickham. The Councilmembers signed their Oath of Office and photographs were taken.
Former Mayor McCauley announced he was no longer a member of the Mill Valley City Council and handed the gavel off to Vice Mayor Wickham.
MAYORAL TRANSITION
5. Election of City Council Officers (Mayor and Vice Mayor) and Comments from the New Mayor and Vice Mayor.
Recommended Action: Elect a new Mayor and Vice Mayor.
Item 5_No Written Material_220621
Vice Mayor Wickham requested nominations for the office of Mayor of Mill Valley.
It was MOVED by Councilmember Carmel and SECONDED by Councilmember McEntee to nominate Vice Mayor Wickham for Mayor. The Motion was carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote.
Mayor Wickham requested nominations for the office of Vice Mayor of Mill Valley.
It was MOVED by Mayor Wickham and SECONDED by Councilmember Burke to nominate Councilmember Carmel for Vice Mayor. The Motion was carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote.
Councilmember Perrey made comments thanking those who had encouraged him to get involved in the community and expressed his enthusiasm to work with the Council on the business of the town.
Councilmember Burke expressed his pleasure at working with the City staff and City Council in his first term and his hope to work with them on Mill Valley’s housing, traffic, and infrastructure. He thanked City Manager Piombo for his service to the town. 4 Vice Mayor Carmel said he was looking forward to working with Mayor Wickham and the rest of the City Council.
Mayor Wickham praised Former Mayor McCauley for his work on the Council and spoke of his hopes for the City Council in the coming year, such as engaging the community in a meaningful way and having a healthy and energized discussion about Mill Valley’s future. He recognized Mill Valley as an age-friendly city and hoped to conduct a special meeting at the Redwoods soon. He challenged the Council to work with the Climate Action Plan Task Force staff and the public to designate Climate Awareness Month. He proposed a Mill Valley employee recognition program.
Mayor Wickham opened public comment.
Speakers: Naima Dean
Communications (via eComment): Nancy Carlston
Mayor Wickham closed public comment.
6. City Manager and Council Congratulations and Comments to Former Mayor McCauley on the Completion of His Term as Mayor and his Years on the City Council.
Item 6_No Written Material_220621
City Manager Piombo spoke regarding Former Mayor McCauley’s high standards that reflected his deep commitment to service, professionalism, and fiscal prudence, his steady guidance through the COVID pandemic, and being the driving force behind the City’s efforts to support and stabilize local businesses. He thanked Former Mayor McCauley for his guidance and partnership.
Councilmember McEntee said Former Mayor McCauley shifted the tone of the City Council to one that is much more concise and professional, and he brought care and consideration to his positions on the City Council and Planning Commission. She said he put Mill Valley first and was always a leader, but he allowed the other Councilmembers to have a voice. She said Former Mayor McCauley’s leadership in wildfire evacuation and Mill Valley’s first evacuation drill was groundbreaking, as was bringing a long-term financial plan to the City and guiding the Council and staff through that process. Councilmember McEntee thanked Former Mayor McCauley for his partnership and wished him the best.
Councilmember Burke noted that Former Mayor McCauley had served 16 years on the City Council and Planning Commission while having a busy professional career and family, was always prepared and responsive, and is a great example to members of the community who may wish to also serve. He added that the long-range financial plan and the effort that went into it led to a framework that allowed Mill Valley to be prepared for the pandemic and for any future recessions. Councilmember Burke said Former Mayor McCauley has demonstrated great empathy and a warm heart that he personally has benefited from. 5 Vice Mayor Carmel said he has worked with Former Mayor McCauley for many years on planning, affordable housing, the commercial sector, the long-range financial plan, and a utility rate structure, and he shows respect for his fellow Councilmembers and challenges their thinking to make them think a lot harder. Councilmember Carmel said he would miss having Former Mayor McCauley’s experiences to draw from, but Mill Valley is a stronger city for everything he has done and the example he sets.
Mayor Wickham said Former Mayor McCauley persuaded him to run for City Council and said Mill Valley’s City Council is a very cohesive group because of his leadership. He said he would miss Former Mayor McCauley but would carry on with the strategic plan and the Soft Story Ordinance that he started, and he looked forward to Former Mayor McCauley’s future involvement with the City. He thanked Former Mayor McCauley for the help and guidance he had given.
City Manager Piombo announced the gifts to Former Mayor McCauley from the Building and Planning Department, Police Department, Public Works Department, City Clerk and City Manager, and the State and County.
Joan Lubamersky, District Representative for Assemblymember Mark Levine, conveyed Assemblymember Levine’s best wishes to Former Mayor McCauley in his absence and said Assemblymember Levine considers Former Mayor McCauley to be an excellent public servant and civic leader. Representative Lubamersky presented a framed resolution that outlined many of Former Mayor McCauley’s accomplishments for Mill Valley, along with Assemblymember Levine’s thanks.
7. Comments for Former Mayor McCauley from Invited Speakers and Other Members of the Public.
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Former Mayor Clifford Waldeck thanked Former Mayor McCauley for his eight years of exemplary service on the City Council and two terms as mayor of Mill Valley. He listed some of Former Mayor McCauley’s accomplishments, such as reduced traffic congestion at E.
Blithedale Avenue and Highway 101, improvements to the sewage treatment plant, creating a partnership with Google for disaster planning, and tackling affordable housing. Former Mayor Waldeck said Former Mayor McCauley always made himself available to everyone and is a great guy.
Former Mayor Ken Wachtel noted that he convinced Former Mayor McCauley to run for City Council, and their families have been friends for over 30 years. He said Former Mayor McCauley has been a leader and the key behind so many improvements in Mill Valley, such as pension obligations that are less ponderous and more prudent, improved roads, improved sewage issues, a prudent City budget, the Long-Range Financial Planning Committee, chairing the Community Vitality Committee for the General Plan, and organizing an emergency evacuation plan. Former Mayor Wachtel said the City of Mill Valley would be poorer without Former Mayor McCauley on the Council.
6 Matthew Franklin of MidPen Housing Corp said he met Former Mayor McCauley when he was on the Housing Advisory Committee and was impressed with his preparation and eagerness to dig into the subject of affordable housing financing and land use legislation. He said he enjoyed working with Former Mayor McCauley and they challenged each other. He said Former Mayor McCauley showed great courage in encouraging the development of One Hamilton Drive, because he was confident it was a feasible site for a meaningful affordable housing development.
Former Mill Valley Councilmember and Mayor, and Member of the Marin County Board of Supervisors, Stephanie Moulton-Peters presented a resolution from the Marin County Board of Supervisors of Former Mayor McCauley’s accomplishments and said he jumped in with both feet when he joined both the Planning Commission and later the City Council. She noted that Former Mayor McCauley led and participated in the Miller Avenue Design Advisory Committee, the Community Vitality Committee, the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce, and the Long-Range Financial Plan, among many other bodies. Supervisor Moulton-Peters added that Former Mayor McCauley is well-known as an assertive and focused leader with exceptional attention to detail who knows how to get things done.
Cindy McCauley said she has been married to Former Mayor McCauley for 38 years and he had never been involved in politics or local government, yet it became a major part of the past 14 years, beginning with trying to get the City to pave some of Mill Valley’s roads and complaining to then-Councilmember Wachtel who suggested Former Mayor McCauley apply for the City Council. Cindy McCauley said she and their children are very proud of his commitment and drive to make the City and community a better place, and he has truly led by example.
Mayor Wickham opened public comment.
Speakers: Paula Reynolds, Joan Murray, Unidentified Female Communications (via eComment): Maureen Parton, Nancy Carlston.
8. Receive Remarks from Former Mayor McCauley.
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Former Mayor McCauley spoke on four topics:
• Local politics: Former Mayor McCauley spoke of the best citizens of Mill Valley, using as examples Former Mayor Wachtel who rebuilt the Mt. Tam gravity car, Jerry Cahill who led a community effort for a path through the golf course for kids going to school, and Hugh Kuhn who founded the Adopt an SLP program, and said meeting such people was a reward for his service. He suggested it is time to retire the term “small town character” in Mill Valley because the state has eliminated local control of its build environment, and when there is a controversial topic before the City Council the knives come out, and that is great and important because democracy should be messy, and city politics are the purest form of democracy, and it has been his pleasure to be part of this “mess.” He urged everyone to support the Marin Independent Journal, because without a daily local circulation paper their sources of information are restricted. 7 • Self-evaluation: Former Mayor McCauley reviewed some of his many accomplishments on the City Council, such as OPEB post-employment health care for Mill Valley employees; prioritizing neighborhood road repair and quality; advocating the protection and expansion of diversity of housing stock through the proposed Soft Story Repair Ordinance; expanding low-income housing through the One Hamilton Drive project; and a fire evacuation plan created through work with Google on a highly detailed simulation of how long would it take to completely evacuate everyone and a real drill last summer when they cleared all of East Blithedale Avenue in only nine minutes; consequently and the police now have a much more detailed plan and new signage is in place, and they still work with Google on ongoing efforts. • A To-Do list for the City Council: Streamline the process for homeowners in the flood zones to elevate their homes; a public/private partnership to address people sharing long, older sewer laterals and fixing them; make progress on East Blithedale traffic with the addition of the wider north side on-ramp and work with Caltrans to increase the east/west traffic, which will help the E. Blithedale flow out; the Soft Story Repair Ordinance that is in the works; clean up the City’s logo and make it more modern; and create a process to fine utilities and other vendors who block the hillside roads without warnings or inaccurate warnings.
• Giving Thanks: Former Mayor McCauley spoke of his great pleasure to serve with the Councilmembers for the past nine years, and the Planning Commissioners for the six years before that, as well as the many people who served on Mill Valley’s boards, commissions, and task forces over the years. He also thanked the DEI Task Force, City staff and department heads. He thanked City Manager Piombo, Director of Finance & Administrative Services Erickson, his wife Cindy McCauley, and City Clerk Rogers.
COUNCIL REQUESTS AND IDEAS FOR DISCUSSION
None.
ADJOURNMENT – The Council ADJOURNED at 8:24 p.m. to the next Regular City Council meeting which will be held on Thursday, July 7, 2022. ___________________________
Urban Carmel, Mayor
ATTEST:
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Risa De Ferrari, City Clerk