City Council Minutes 1 January 25, 2022
MISSION VIEJO MINUTES
City Council, Community Development Financing Authority, Successor Agency of the Community Development Agency,
Housing Authority, and Library Board of Trustees*
January 25, 2022
A Regular Meeting of the City Council, the Community Development Financing Authority, the Successor Agency of the Community Development Agency, the Housing Authority, and the Library Board of Trustees of the City of Mission Viejo, California, was called to order by Mayor Bucknum at 5:01 p.m., on January 25, 2022, at 200 Civic Center, Mission Viejo, California.
A complete copy of the agenda for the meeting containing all items as shown herein was posted by 5:00 p.m. on January 20, 2022, on the outdoor bulletin board at City Hall. A copy was also posted at the Montanoso Recreation and Fitness Center, 25800 Montanoso Drive and Norman P. Murray Community and Senior Center, 24932 Veterans Way.
*All Board and Agency memberships are reflected in the title "Council Member."
Present: Council Member Goodell (arrived at 5:30 pm)
Council Member Kelley
Council Member Raths (arrived at 5:30 pm)
Mayor Pro Tem Sachs (arrived at 5:30 pm)
Mayor Bucknum
Absent: None
Staff Present: Dennis Wilberg, City Manager
Keith Rattay, Assistant City Manager
William P. Curley III, City Attorney
Kimberly Schmitt, City Clerk
Renata Winter, Assistant City Clerk
RECESS AND RECONVENE
At the hour of 5:02 p.m., Mayor Bucknum recessed the meeting. The City Council reconvened at 6:00 p.m. with all five City Council Members present.
INVOCATION: Council Member Raths
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Mayor Pro Tem Sachs
PUBLIC HEARINGS
1. Presentation of the Six Proposed Voting District Maps Received by the City
Mayor Bucknum opened the Public Hearing at 6:05 p.m.
City Council Minutes 2 January 25, 2022 City Attorney Bill Curley outlined that tonight’s hearing is to introduce and assess the six proposed maps that were received within the specified time frame. Map A was prepared by CDR and five maps were prepared by members of the public. He outlined the timeline and procedure for the hearing.
Deborah Diep presented all six maps to the City Council.
City Attorney asked Deborah if she received any direction of addressing where incumbents live or if she knows where they live on Map A or in any analysis of the other maps. Deborah Diep stated for full disclosure that CDR did not know where the Council Members live when creating Map A
City Attorney Bill Curley clarified that under the Fair Maps Act is the State Law that came into effect recently and did not apply to the 2018 mapping process. The prior maps were done under the 2010 Census. The maps presented are from the 2020 Census with fresh information in the sense of following the Fair Map Act and the new census data. The old information is no longer applicable.
Mayor Bucknum opened the public comments portion of the Public Hearing. The following spoke:
Aaron Hand, M.V.: Expressed that all five council districts should be up for re-election based on the stipulated agreement the city agreed to. Felt that the Citizen Voting Age Population (CVAP) of Latino voters in districts 4 and 5 on Map A dilutes the Latino vote and he encourages the Council to look at that issue. Stated that Map E District 1 provides the strongest Latino vote and asked that the City Council look at this map. Lastly, he pointed out that the City refused to provide the public with communications with CDR and refused public records requests which would allow the public to see what the City told CDR to do.
Walt Lawson, M.V.: Asked the City Attorney if the resident lawsuit recently filed with the Attorney General on the 2018 two -year terms of Council Members Bucknum, Raths, and Sachs happens to be referred to the Superior Court of Orange County and the court decision is the removal from office, what will be the result of the district maps chosen by these Council Members and will it be valid. He commented on Map Z submitted from 2018 by CDR, and questioned Map A. Lastly, he discussed the map he turned in. He stated that his map has a
20.5% CVAP of Hispanic voters in District 1 and his percentage spread on Map C is 2.46%.
He agrees that Map E would be a very good map.
Edward Maurer, M.V.: Commented on Map A that the area bordering Lake Forest is splitting Latino voters and is in favor of Map E.
Aramis Vela, M.V.: Stated he is the author of Map E that he entitled the Latino Opportunity Plan. He outlined his map and stated that in District 1 this map has the highest Latino CVAP at 21.4%. He reported that this is significant because it will provide voting power for Hispanics in that district. Finally, he stated that the percentage spread between d istricts is a reasonable 4.6% well under the limit of 10%.
Cathy Schlicht, M.V.: Criticized the City Council and the City Attorney on the districting process. Questioned how only three districts will be up for re-election in 2022 as announced
City Council Minutes 3 January 25, 2022 by Mayor Ke lley at the September 14 City Council Meeting. She asked how that can be decided when the district map has yet to be finalized. Suggested the process of the tile system in which numbered tiles are drawn out of a bag and the first three numbers drawn will be the districts designated for a four-year term, the remaining two tiles will be the districts designated for a two -year term. She felt that by disclosing the census block numbers of the Council Member residence would have given the public confidence in t he process. Questioned the transparency of how decisions were being made.
Mary Michael, M.V.: Asked the City Council to consider Map D and if not Map D, then Map E.
Judy Fike, M.V.: States that she supports Map E because it fulfills the court order to protect the minority vote.
Tom Moore, M.V.: Discussed his district map he created in 2018 and questioned if the City Council should be making the final map decision. He stated that it is a conflict of interest for the City Council to choose the map.
Ilene Geiger, M.V.: She agrees that all five Council seats should be up for re-election.
Stated she is not in favor of Map A because it doesn’t resolve the issue of the violation of voting rights. She is in favor of Map E.
Jon Miller, M.V.: He feels Map E makes the most sense because all of the neighborhoods are contiguous on Los Alisos. Stated if we are trying to get minority representation Map E seems to be the best map. Lastly, he agrees that someone other than the City Council should decide on the final map.
The Council took no action and Mayor Bucknum closed the Public Hearing at 6:45.
Mayor Pro Tem Sachs asked the Demographer on Map E District 1if she could smooth the district lines.
Deborah Diep agreed to revise the map and stated that it would be Map E revision 1.
Mayor Bucknum asked the Demographer for an analysis of Map E and Map A in regards to the minority vote percentage differences.
Council Member Goodell asked the City Attorney to clarify that you can’t draw maps based on race.
City Attorney stated that the law is clear both State and Federal Voting Rights Act that we cannot discriminate based on race. Equally as a given we can not use government voting structures to minimize, exclude any minority group whether it be race, ethnicity and age. We look to the State’s direction of the Fair Map Act which laid out the primary criteria. With having said that we also carefully look at race allocation while at the same time not violate discrimination laws. We have two competing laws between the State and Federal and we try best to try to demographically cure and not polarize any racial category and work to the best efforts to maximize the majority minority while not specifically saying we are only doing mapping because we are here for the Hispanics. It’s a delicate balance and we have to factor
City Council Minutes 4 January 25, 2022 everything in. Race and ethnicity are not pointed out under the Fair Maps Act as well as where Council Members residency. The Supreme Court says if the primary characteristics are met it’s absolutely irrelevant where Officials live. We don’t focus on race in districting, but we recognize it hence the underlying maps we showed showing the racial and ethnic categories to make sure we don’t strangle them and keep them polarized.
Mayor Pro Tem Sachs asked if someone can let Mr. Moore know why his 2018 Map does not qualify.
2. General Plan Amendment GPA2021-38 - a City-Initiated Comprehensive Update to the Economic Development Element of the City of Mission Viejo General Plan Continued the Item and Public Hearing to the March 8, 2022 City Council Meeting.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
Cathy Palmer, M.V.: Stated that she was making a complaint against City Attorney Bill Curley in regard to an interaction she had during the Zoom meeting about The Gardens project proposal last night. She outlined the interaction between them.
Tom Moore, M.V.: Voiced his concerns on The Garden Plaza proposal and suggested that the Council institute a moratorium over the urban core area. Stated he is in favor of the acquisition of the Stein Mart property but understands why Value Rock’s proposal has caused adjacent and affected property owners both commercial and residential to become nervous.
Al Vaitkus, M.V.: Voiced concerns over the small planes flying over Mission Viejo and the impact of leaded fuel. Stated he was going to speak to environmental groups.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Motion made by Mayor Pro Tem Sachs, seconded by Council Member Kelley, to approve the Consent Calendar as outlined below.
On roll call, said motion carried by the following vote:
AYES: Bucknum, Goodell, Kelley, Raths, and Sachs
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
3. City Council Minutes
Approved the Minutes for the regular City Council Meeting of January 11, 2022, as presented.
4. Check Register Dated December 24, 2021 in the Amount of $711,826.74 Ratified the accompanying check register.
5. Check Register Dated January 7, 2022 in the Amount of $1,274,273.57
City Council Minutes 5 January 25, 2022 Ratify the accompanying check register.
6. City Treasurer’s Monthly Report for November 2021
Received and filed.
7. Mission Viejo Community Development Financing Authority (MVCDFA) Treasurer’s Monthly Report for November 2021
Received and filed.
8. Successor Agency of the Community Development Agency Treasurer’s Monthly Report for November 2021
Received and filed.
9. Mission Viejo Housing Authority (MVHA) Treasurer’s Monthly Report for November 2021
Received and filed.
10. Traffic Signal Conduit Repairs at the intersection of La Paz Road and Pacific Hills/Veterans Way
Approved Contract with Elecnor-Belco (A22-01) for the period between January 25, 2022 to June 30, 2022 in the amount of $76,840 for the repair of traffic signal conduits at the intersection of La Paz Road and Pacific Hills/Veterans Way.
11. Agreements for Disaster-Related Debris Management and Monitoring Services
(1) Authorized the City Manager to Execute an Agreement with Ashbritt, Inc. (A22 -02) for Debris Management Services; (2) authorized the City Manager to Execute an Agreement with DRC Pacific, Inc. (A22-03) for Debris Management Services; (3) authorized the City Manager to Execute an Agreement with Debris Tech, LLC (A22 -04) for Debris Monitoring Services; and (4) authorized the City Manager to Execute an Agreement with Tetra Tech, Inc. (A22-05) for Debris Monitoring Services.
ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR
NEW BUSINESS
12. Assignment of Ground Lease for Veterinary Emergency Clinic located at 28085 Hillcrest from South Orange County Veterinary Emergency Group, Inc. to Pathway Vet Alliance LLC.
Assistant City Manager presented the staff report.
City Council Minutes 6 January 25, 2022 Motion made by Council Member Kelley, seconded by Council Member Goodell, to adopt Transfer the assignment of the Ground Lease Agreement (A22-06) that is in good standing as agreed upon by both City and South Orange County Veterinary Emergency Group, Inc. (SOCVEG) to Pathway Vet Alliance, LLC, with amendments pursuant to the terms of the Ground Lease.
On roll call, said motion carried by the following vote:
AYES: Bucknum, Goodell, Kelley, Raths, and Sachs
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
MAYOR’S, COMMISSION, COMMITTEE REPORTS AND ACTIONS
13. Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) Report Received report from Council Member Goodell.
14. Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Report Received report from Mayor Bucknum.
15. Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) Report Mayor Bucknum had no report.
16. Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA) Report
Received report from Council Member Kelley.
17. Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) Report
Received report from Mayor Pro Tem Sachs.
COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS AND ACTIONS
18. Council Member Reports of Events and Activities Attended ~ AB1234
By consensus, the City Council Members acknowledged their event and activities calendars as presented in the report and agreed to provide any changes to the City Clerk for the public record.
Council Member Goodell
Council Member Goodell had no further comments.
Council Member Kelley
City Council Minutes 7 January 25, 2022 Council Member Kelley announced that the Red Cross has indicated there is a severe blood shortage and they are desperately seeking donors. The City held a blood drive on January 18 which was very successful there were 51 donors and they collected 53 units of blood which will help up to 159 people. Each unit of blood helps 3 people. She stated that she had planned to attend, but ha d COVID at that time. She is scheduled to donate blood on February 2 and she encourages residents to go to www.redcross.org to view upcoming blood drives. Lastly, she reported on the Toy Drive with our adopted Marin e Battalion on December 16, and showed photos taken at the event. She thanked the community for their donations.
Council Member Raths
Council Member Raths stated that he attended the Chamber of Commerce Day Breakers this morning at the Norman P. Murray Center. He commented that the Murray Center looks really beautiful. He then had lunch at the Oso Creek Golf Course. He announced that tomorrow morning the Rotary Club will be meeting at the golf course 7:10 a.m. if anyone wants to drop by and have breakfast. Lastly, he announced he went to the Mission Viejo Post Office for the last two weeks at 9:30 am he picks up the trash. He contacted Congresswoman Katie Porter to complain but has heard no response. He asked the City Manager in the next month or two to have Caltrans give a presentation on the I-5 Freeway.
Mayor Pro Tem Sachs
Mayor Pro Tem Sachs said at the last meeting one of Mayor Bucknum’s objectives was to be kind to each other. He stated that he was struck by both the public comments and the comments during the public hearing on the district maps. Expressed that we are very divided. He doesn’t appreciate the attacks on staff and the Council. Lastly, he said we were elected by the City at large and we are the city’s representatives and we will continue to perform our duties until our term is up or we are up for re-election.
Mayor Bucknum
Mayor Bucknum wanted to ensure the residents regarding a forum on the Sober Living Homes throughout the city. City Manager Dennis Wilberg gave an update and will provide a more detailed report at the next meeting. She stated that she received a lot of feedback on the scoping meeting held last night regarding the Garden Plaza and asked if staff has a ne xt step of a possible scoping meeting to address some of the things that were not fully addressed at that meeting. City Manager Wilberg stated they are working on either an additional scoping meeting or community outreach meeting. Mayor Bucknum stated to the residents that we are listening to you and are supportive of good projects. Lastly, she announced she will not be at the next meeting due to a family matter she needs to attend to.
At the hour of 7:49 p.m., with no further business to come before the City Council at this session, Mayor Kelley adjourned the meeting to Tuesday, February 8, 2022, at 5:00 p.m.
______________________________________
Kimberly Schmitt, City Clerk
Approved at the meeting of February 8, 2022