CITY OF PACIFICA
CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
Council Chambers
2212 Beach Blvd
Pacifica, CA 94044
Mayor Sue Vaterlaus
Mayor pro Tem Sue Beckmeyer
Councilmember Mary Bier
Councilmember Tygarjas Bigstyck
Councilmember Christine Boles
City Council Study Session 1 March 09, 2024
SPECIAL MEETING – STUDY SESSION
March 09, 2024 (SATURDAY)
9:00 AM
www.cityofpacifica.org
Mayor Sue Vaterlaus called the meeting to order on March 9, 2024 at 9:10 AM 9:00 AM - OPEN SESSION
Call to Order
Mayor Sue Vaterlaus called the meeting to order on March 9, 2024 at 9:10 AM.
Attendee Name Title Status Arrived
Sue Vaterlaus Mayor Present
Sue Beckmeyer Mayor pro Tem Present
Mary Bier Councilmember Present
Tygarjas Bigstyck Councilmember Present
Christine Boles Councilmember Present
City Clerk Coffey took a verbal roll call.
Staff Present: Kevin Woodhouse, City Manager; Michelle Kenyon, City Attorney; Yulia Carter, Asst. City Manager; Maria Sarasua, Police Chief; Ron Myers, Fire Chief; Lisa Petersen, PW Director; Christian Murdock, Planning Director; Scott Leslie, Acting PB&R Director; Roland Yip; PW Dep. Director (Field Services/Engineering); Elizabeth Brooks, Management Analyst; Sarah Coffey, City Clerk.
Reading of Land Acknowledgment
Mayor Vaterlaus read the Land Acknowledgment.
Salute to the Flag led by Councilmember Boles
DISCUSSION OUTLINE - CITY OF PACIFICA PRIORITY SETTING
1. City Council Strategic Plan Update and Priority Setting through 2025 PROPOSED ACTION: Undertake a facilitated strategic planning workshop to review the City Council Study Session 2 March 09, 2024
adopted Strategic Plan and to provide direction on key priorities through 2025.
RESULT: NO VOTE REQUIRED
A. Welcome
City Manager Woodhouse provided introductory information and introduced members of the Executive Team present and the meeting facilitator, Greg Larson.
B. Overview
C. Accomplishments
Greg Larson presented an overview of the agenda for the meeting, identifying Ground Rules for the strategic planning study session and identified the top recent accomplishments that City Councilmembers identified in individual interviews in preparation for the study session. Four or five mentioned the following: Housing Element submitted to the State, great leadership hires, Council decision to invest in its staff, and Local Coastal Plan is progressing. Council majority also recognized strong finance and budget work including the incorporation of Measure Y revenues to the sustainability of the city and staff work to increase public engagment. The following were identified by at least two Councilmembers: Civic Center remodel, annual street paving work to increase PCI, economic development outreach, and Beach Boulevard / sea wall project progress.
Councilmember Bier mentioned the CORA “Speak Up” Program starting in the community to address domestic violence.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer added the improvement in drainage in one of the communities accommodated within the City’s means through creative work.
Councilmember Bigstyck added the amount of Planning Department’s work on the Housing Element and Local Coastal Land Use Plan.
Councilmember Boles mentioned with Measure Y revenue beginning to look at staff salaries which were very low compared to other cities in the region, recoginizing the staff work that is critical to the city’s operations.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer acknowledged the core part of work by City Committees and Commissions, giving examples of work by the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan Task Force and Beautification Advisory Committee.
Greg Larson asked for input from Councilmembers about, “What are the factors that let Pacifica accomplish so much?”
Mayor Vaterlaus mentioned public involvement, everyone cares.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer mentioned experience working as a community with not enough resources.
Councilmember Boles mentioned having a dedicated staff, giving and example of Public Works staff workload as compared to other cities.
Councilmember Bier mentioned the flexibilty of the City Manager.
City Council Study Session 3 March 09, 2024
Councilmember Bigstyck mentioned love and respect, cultivating a culture of love and respect for one another.
City Attorney Kenyon mentioned that Pacifica is unique in its teamwork among department heads led by Kevin Woodhouse as City Manager, and the feeling on being on a team with the Council, adding that the teamwork as a group dynamic is amazing.
City Manager Woodhouse mentioned clear and thoughtful direction and work from the City Council and grace from the City Council given the amount of work undertaken by the organization.
Greg Larson observed that the top recent accomplishments mentioned all are directly linked to the Strategic Plan and clarity of direction from Council allows those accomplishments as well as working together with staff and the community. He commented on the strength of the city’s communications. He then led an exercise in identifying communications styles.
Greg Larson began presenting the review of the Adopted Strategic Plan, including Mission, Vision, Values, Goals, Strategies and Implementation Action Plans. He stated that the Council did not identify any changes to the currently adopted Mission, Vision or Values as it is six months after adopted and it is a strategic plan to guide the city for 10 years or so, so there is typically not changes at this point in time.
After some discussion on the wording in the Vision, Council consensus did not direct any changes to the current Vision statement.
City Manager Woodhouse presented information and a report from the AchieveIt Software Platform for work plans based on the strategic priorities, a project management tool for inputting information and tracking achieving milestones related to the work plans that constitute the strategic plan and ongoing non-discretionary priorities.
Mayor Vaterlaus commented on the “Off-Track” status. City Manager Woodhouse explained that “Off-Track” status meant the it is behind schedule.
Councilmember Boles asked for clarification of the “At Risk” status.
Mgmt. Analyst Elizabeth Brooks explained that “Off-Track” is something that is within the department’s control to address and “At Risk” is something that an outside entity or force is affecting the accomplishment, outside of the control of the department or city staff. She explained that these are terms that are used by the system that we cannot change the terminology.
Greg Larson explained that “Not Started” is that it is not scheduled to start yet, it is not a problem. He observed that 90 percent of items are achieved, on track or due to start; 10 percent are “Off-Track” or “At Risk” that the manager needs to focus on with the department heads, which is not insurmountable, and overall this is a pretty good report.
D. Communications Exercise
E. Public Comment (no earlier than 10:30am)
Mayor Vaterlaus opened Public Comment for items on today’s agenda.
City Council Study Session 4 March 09, 2024
Greg Wright, Pacifica, expressed thanks for Council and staff of being an example of what female leadership can be, thanks for building a culture of collaboration and his thoughts on work by various departments updating policies and work building on Pacifica as a family-friendly environment and cooperative, collaborative culture, and increasing city staff pay.
Leo Leon, Pacifica, stated that it is important to focus on what we do and what are we becoming. He stated that short-term rentals have become a big issue in Pedro Point and shared his thoughts and suggestions on the issue. He stated that he will be sending the Mayor, Council and staff a document about coastal erosion. Finally, he mentioned streets.
Ramon McLeod, Pacifica, stated that he was present to talk about the short-term rental issue and expressed his opinions on the current requirements and his recommended restrictions on STR properties.
Lisa Funkhouser, Pacifica, stated that she agrees with Greg Wright about pickleball and the city needs to plan for dedicated pickleball courts, sharing her thoughts on the increased demand and benefits of pickleball.
Bryan Reinero, Pacifica, shared information and his thoughts on the impacts of short-term rentals and unhosted short-term rentals on rental prices, housing stock, workforce and as it relates the state’s requirement for new homes as part of the Housing Element.
Remi Tan, Pacifica, urged prioritizing the Housing Element and rezoning, sharing his thoughts on the risk and impacts of Builder’s Remedy projects. He mentioned concerns about traffic on Highway 1 and prioritizing work with CalTrans, SamTrans and federal agencies in transportation to improve transit.
Caitlyn Quinn, Pacifica, stated she was addressing Strategic Plan item #3 - Prioritize Housing and Development of Affordable Housing, particularly point B - Updating the Short-Term Rental Ordinance, sharing her concerns on the impact of short-term rentals / AirBnbs on her neighborhood and recommending prioritizing the short-term rental ordinance update.
Gary Chinca, Pacifica, shared his thoughts on the problem with short-term rentals, their impact on hotels, restaurants, neighborhoods and the need for an ordinance with additional restrictions.
Kate Chinca, Pacifica, stated that we need the City Council to help take care of the short-term rental issue and shared her thoughts, suggesting hiring a consultant to assist with addressing the issue.
Clif Lawrence, Pacifica, stated that he wants us to remember who we are, when we know who we are it will be easier to answer the other questions. He stated that Pacifica is 48 percent open space and need to keep in mind when trying to make decisions about any particular project, as this is our identity. He spoke in favor of exploring moving Pacifica to a blue zone, a healthy environment.
Greg Hirsch, Pacifica, described negative impacts of short-term rentals in his neighborhood and supported changing the zoning or regulations around short-term rentals so they don’t continue to proliferate.
City Council Study Session 5 March 09, 2024
Lyla Reinero, Pacifica, stated that she is concerned about personal safety issues related to short-term rentals in the neighborhood, short-term rentals owned and operated by corporations and felt that something needs to be done about short-term rentals.
Pat Gonzales, Pacifica, shared examples of his concerns about the impact of short-term rentals in his neighborhood and supported implementing a freeze or moratorium on short-term rentals.
Dan Underhill, Pacifica, stated that he rents out two rooms on a short-term basis in the home where he lives and stated that the laws should make it impossible for out-of-town corporations to buy houses for use as short-term rentals, but should allow for hosted short-term rentals.
Kimberly Finale, Pacifica, suggested that the City address single-use plastics by discontinuing City-purchased water in single-use plastic and promote the reduction of single-use plastic, remind community members to bring refillable water bottles and providing water at public and private events at watering stations for refilling. She suggested soliciting donations of containers / re-usable water bottles.
Rebecca Smith-Coggins, Pacifica, supported mirroring the rules for short-term rentals after the cities around us such as Half Moon Bay, requiring primary residence and limiting to 60 nights per year. She suggested not allowing any grandfathering in when the ordinance is updated; that the current short-term rentals should comply with an updated ordinance. She also stated support of designated pickleball courts.
Nancy Tierney, Pacifica, shared her thoughts on the strategy to pursue climate adaptation and mitigation, stating that she is on the Climate Action and Adaptation Task Force and the Council can look for a Plan update this summer. She shared her thoughts on updating the short-term rental ordinance and suggested looking at models from San Mateo County and Half Moon Bay.
She also stated her concerns about artificial turf use and suggested considering a ban on artificial turf on all property.
Cindy Abbott, Pacifica, shared her concerns about the impact of short-term rentals on neighborhoods, stating that the situation has gotten worse since she first spoke on the issue in June 2022, referring to the law passed by Half Moon Bay that was approved by the Coastal Commission. She asked to move this forward and suggested use of consultants to assist.
Irene Lee, Pacifica, suggested working to get a grant for a temporary temporary parking living structure to be partly managed by the Pacifica Resource Center, requiring registering to park and prohibit overnight parking on the street (oversized vehicles).
Bob O’Donnell, Pacifica, spoke regarding the short-term rental issues and impacts and the urgency to update the ordinance this year. He suggested modeling after short-term rental ordinances used in other cities. He asked the audience for a show of support for addressing short-term rental issues.
Gary Furlong, Pacifica, suggested adopting a strict standard for short-term rentals, particularly the unhosted short-term rentals, including strict limits on the number of nights a house can be operated as an unhosted short-term rental and enforcement of a requirement that they be registered with the city.
City Council Study Session 6 March 09, 2024
Pete Shoemaker, Pacifica, spoke regarding fiscal responsibity, the need for more high-density, revenue-generating mixed-use development and to push back on Builder’s Remedy and development of single-family homes on our hills. He suggested the need to raise the fees for these, and to put in the General Plan height limits and protections against negative impacts of development. He stated it is important to spend more money on the City Councilmembers and extend health care coverage for Councilmembers.
Suzanne Moore, Pacifica, stated her support of prioritizing affordable housing and shared her thoughts and suggestions on issues related to housing, affordability and homelessness.
Paul Totah, Pacifica, stated that he is representing Tree City Pacifica and recommended adopting a canopy goal that cares for and grows our urban forest, fine tune ordinances and policies to support this, include a canopy goal of at least 30 percent as part of the Climate Action Plan. He also suggested expanding the Public Works website to include arborist reports for trees scheduled for removal and a list of arborists available for Pacifica residents for removal or pruning a tree.
Maija Wigoda-Mikkila, Pacifica, stated that she is a certified arborist and commented on the tree removal pruning and removal fees and the fee to file an appeal in Pacifica indicating that she thought the current fees are cost-prohibitive. She urged to drastically reduce all tree-related fees.
Gail Benton-Shoemaker, Pacifica, spoke as a member of Tree City Pacifica, requesting a specifc change to the Tree Ordinance in the upcoming year to address a loophole that could serve as a work-around to planting replacement trees, referring to the language, “… a minimum of two replacement trees must be planted for every ‘otherwise healthy’ tree removed.” Marj Davis, Pacifica, stated that she agreed with the suggested made by Paul Totah and Gail Benton-Shoemaker and Maija Wigoda-Mikkila regarding tree permit fees. She suggested decreasing the tree permit fee and the appeal fee should not exceed the permit fee. She stated that educating arborist companies about the ordinance, permit requirements and consequences of not complying is an essential part of supporting the city’s canopy goal. She also supported comments made by other members of the audience regarding short-term rentals.
Samantha Hauser, Pacifica, stated that she was speaking as an individual recommending prioritizing economic development and the thoughtful planning that goes with it, ensuring Pacifica is seen as a destination, preserving Pacifica’s natural beauty through its open spaces, creating vibrant commercial areas and create housing only where it makes sense and complements the city’s unique character, resources and funding for Planning and Economic Development Departments, continue to prioritize objective design standards and increasing urban canopy.
Mark Hubbell, Pacifica, stated that to be successful Pacifica needs to be a tourism economy without the short-term rentals. He stated that he was concerned about pollution at the Linda Mar Beach and the idea of 150 diesel trucks a day on Highway 1 to fill the Quarry building a band brand for Pacifica.
Peter Garenani, Pacifica, shared his concerns about short-term rentals and their impact on housing. He shared information on cities in San Mateo County where short-term rentals are prohibited, unhosted prohibited, a primary residence requirement stipulated, prohibition on parties, limitation on unhosted nights, etc.
City Council Study Session 7 March 09, 2024
Patty Kephart, Pacifica, shared her concerns about short-term rentals and how it has changed the character of the neighborhood and community. She urged Council to think about an ordinance that would limit the number of days short-term rentals are in operation.
Ketty Seymour, Pacifica, shared how her Pedro Point neighborhood has changed as a result of short-term rentals impacting her sense of security and serenity. She asked Council to address the issue of short-term rentals impact on the community.
Brian O’Flynn, Pacifica, stated that he supported continuing the existing short-term rental permit limited program as it currently stands, which needs some policing of non-licensed units.
He stated that the relatively small number of allowed permits are aligned with Pacifica’s mission and vision to support diversity and inclusivity, a tourist economy and tax revenue.
Mayor Vaterlaus closed public comment.
Greg Larson announced a break for lunch.
Mayor Vatelaus reconvened the meeting at 12:40pm.
F. Review of Adopted Strategic Plan
Greg Larson continued the presentation with an overview of the AchieveIt report work plan and turned it over to City Manager Woodhouse to discuss Council questions related to the work plan items.
City Manager Woodhouse continued the presentation addressing Council questions related to individual items in the work plan report.
Councilmember Boles referred to Task 1.4.9 and development fees, suggesting to consider updating Planned Drainage Facility Fees and Capital Improvement Fee.
Greg Larson clarified that the purpose at this time was to receive clarification on updates from staff on the work plan rather than policy discussions for a work plan update.
City Manager Woodhouse stated that a first step in the process would be a survey of all fees and identifying the biggest fee impact to focus on limited resources to prioritize work in the next year. City Manager Woodhouse continued the presentation addressing Council questions on status of tasks in the work plan.
Councilmember Bigstyck referred to the public comments around short-term rentals, which would fall under Task 3.2 and asked for an opportunity for an update on Task 3.2 specifically and Council to discuss it.
Greg Larson replied that when they go through the Goals and Strategies, one of the strategies is to update the short-term rental ordinance and Council provided feedback which he will share and there can be more commentary then by Council then for the policy discussion, while this is the City Manager reporting on the prior direction and asking for a report on where are we now on short-term rentals is appropriate and could inform the later discussion on policy direction.
Councilmember Bigstyck asked for a current update.
City Council Study Session 8 March 09, 2024
City Manager Woodhouse provided an update on work related to short-term rentals (STRs).
Last year Council approved a cap on the number of STRs at 150, Council approved increased permit fees for STRs which helps cover administrative costs and a new code enforcement officer. The STR program touches four or five departments: city manager’s office, planning and building department, finance department, police department and city attorney’s office. There is a lot of ongoing work related to auditing and permitting, leading up to the mid-year base data report, ongoing enforcement and issuing of notices of violations and ongoing information and data gathering to prepare for the kick-off study session with City Council by the end of the fiscal year for potential revisions to the STR ordinance.
Councilmember Bigstyck asked about whether the process could be accelerated if we have more consultants in the process.
City Manager Woodhouse responded that it might be less efficient to hire a consultant as they work at the direction of staff and need to be managed by staff, and the city currently uses a consultant, HdL, that manages all the permits and financial system.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer suggested a 45 day period with a moratorium, which overlays with what we will be doing anyway. She stated that we talked about a cap in lieu of a moratorium eight months ago and the urgency around this issue has escalated and she is not comfortable with sticking with the workplan.
Councilmember Boles agreed.
Greg Larson explained that they were waiting for Coastal Commission concurrence with the cap. He reminded the Council that we were not providing future direction yet, but working through the work plan update summarizing where we are now.
City Manager Woodhouse continued presenting on the current status of work plan items.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer asked about Task 3.4.5 “Process TSPP CDP appeals at Coastal Commission” status indicating that it is “On Track”.
City Manager Woodhouse clarified there are two separate projects: (1) the LCP Amendment for the Oversized Vehicle Ordinance which we need to pursue at Coastal Commission’s direction and (2) appeals for the Temporary Safe Parking Program, which is separate from the OSV Ordinance appeal. He stated that the Coastal Commission sees them as linked, but the city disagrees and is working with Coastal Commission to follow their direction.
Councilmember Boles stated that she disagreed with it being listed as “On Track”.
City Manager Woodhouse stated that he appeals in that program are not in the city’s control, but in the Coastal Commission’s purview and will look into this with staff as listing this as “At Risk” because the city does not control it.
Councilmember Bigstyck asked about a sub-task listed as “At Risk” under Goal 4.
Councilmember Bier thought it would be helpful to see the sub-tasks details.
City Council Study Session 9 March 09, 2024
Councilmember Bigstyck agreed that seeing the sub-tasks would help to see what staff is working on and informs a different perspective.
City Manager Woodhouse stated that under 4.4.1 the sub-task that was achieved is the one to engage with Stanford public policy students to develop a framework for the Pacifica EV strategic plan. He stated that the sub-task that is “At Risk” is complete and adopt the EV strategic plan and develop the implementation action plan for EV charging, as we don’t have the staff resources to focus on that right now and it might inter-relate to work that the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan Task Force is doing.
City Manager Woodhouse continued the presentation of the questions received in advance regarding the work program update.
G. Priorities through 2025 (discuss by adopted Goals, below) Greg Larson continued the presentation to discuss the priorities for the upcoming year, recommending a two-year focus through 2025, as new items take time to budget it, resource it, staff it, plan it, get Council direction on it and implement it. If it can be done quickly, it probably doesn’t rise to the level as a strategic priority. He stated that most of the feedback so far has not been major changes or new items, but nuancing and elevating priorities of things that are already in the plan. He explained that any changing direction that Council would like on each strategy would inform staff’s work on developing the work program that comes back to Council in April. Mr. Larson presented information on Councilmembers’ feeback on top priorities, all directly linked to the current Strategic Plan. Tier 1 priorities: Getting the Local Coastal Land Use Plan updated and approved, getting the Housing Element certified by the state (including the tier 1 rezonings); Tier 2 priorities: Housing Element Implementation with tier 2 rezonings, ShortTerm Rental Ordinance update; Beach Boulevard Infrastructure Resiliency Project (BBIRP) completed - sea wall plan approved and Pier planning and grants. Tier 3 priorities: Beach Boulevard property direction, Tangible progress on an Affordable Housing project, Library grass roots support, Quarry Specific Plan initiated. One item came up from two Councilmembers that did not fit into the current strategic plan: direction from Council on possible changes to term limits.
Greg Larson continued the presentation focusing on the review of Goals.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer, referring to Goal 2C “Prioritize Implementation of the Economic Opportunities Study”, suggested marketing opportunities to integrate with big Bay Area and sports events and more specific ways to engage from an economic development perspective.
City Manager Woodhouse thought that this was a concept that is in the Economic Opportunities Study actions.
Greg Larson mentioned potential new suggestions under Goal 2A “Complete selected stormwater and flooding improvements citywide” by a Councilmember recognizing storm events hit different areas of the city differently and there needs to be a differential response and that the sewer fee impacts may be having a negative impact on breweries and restaurants. He asked if there was Council concurrence for staff to pursue them.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer agreed with both of those items, commenting about the gap between funding sources and the need.
City Council Study Session 10 March 09, 2024
City Manager Woodhouse asked for clarification on the comments if it was related to Wastewater fees, and stated that last year the Council adopted the 5-year Wastewater Fee structure that looks at sources and impacts of different types of businesses and to re-do that mid-stream is a significant work task.
Greg Larson clarified that he did not hear the request to re-do the fee structure, but to do this as outreach to breweries and restaurants under economic development.
Councilmember Boles suggested that we need a feedback loop to understand what causes some businesses to close.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer commented that there could be an additional level of support provided by the Economic Development Manager through relationship building with businesses.
Mayor Vaterlaus suggested exit interviews with businesses to understand why they went out of business, as it may not be related to high fees.
Greg Larson concluded that this was advisory to the City Manager to see if this feedback could be addressed by staff operations and not to add a new work item to the agenda. He added that three Councilmembers said that there is enough on the table and we should do what is already planned.
Greg Larson continued the presentation, noting that under the Goal 2B “Advance Beach Boulevard Resiliency and Esplanade Protection Projects” there was strong support from Council to seek funds for pier repairs. A Councilmember suggested additional items to improve communications on project status and start addressing Manor risks and needs.
Councilmember Boles elaborated on her ideas related to these suggestions.
City Manager Woodhouse explained that there are many tasks underway with respect to this goal, 300-400 Esplanade block projects, work with the Army Corps of Engineers regarding the general investigation of the coastline from Mori Point up underway, LCLUP certification, after which follows multiple different studies like the shoreline management plan and more specific work that includes areas such as Manor.
Greg Larson concluded that it is not a to-do now, but something to consider later to see where it falls in the priority list.
City Manager Woodhouse added that the LCLUP certification could be an impetus to grant opportunities for future visioning and planning regarding adaptation strategies and recommended looking at things holistically.
Greg Larson invited comments on Goal 2C “Pursue planning and financing for the Library projects.”
City Manager Woodhouse explained this is in the work plan currently under Strategy 2.3 and added that the Library Advisory Committee will be focused on a long-term plan.
Following brief comments by Councimembers and staff, Greg Larson concluded that the staff may just review the wording of the task to reflect the current reality.
City Council Study Session 11 March 09, 2024
Greg Larson stated that there were no comments related to Goal 2D “Develop a Facilities / Equipment Plan for Public Safety / Community Center.” He continued that there was a proposal from one Councilmember that a possible new Strategy would be 2E to “Develop a mid-City transportation improvement plan,” given the potential developmental changes coming to the area be it Quarry or otherwise. He thought this would be a substantive new work item and asked if there was Council support to put it on at this time or put it on a future list.
City Manager Woodhouse stated that developing a transportation plan for the city which relates primarily to infrastructure (highway, roadways) is a significant Engineering undertaking, but if this relates to the Quarry site then there is some transportation and transit related components that would be part of a Quarry Site Specific Plan that is already part of the work plan.
Councilmember Boles explained her concerns about the intersections of Reina del Mar and Fassler and the impact of new projects.
Councilmember Bier is not in favor of putting another plan on the work plan this year, but focus on the items already on the plan that we want to finish.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer asked what level of transportation planning is required of developers who are bringing significant projects forward.
Planning Director Murdock explained that ministerial or discretionary projects will be subject to the County Congestion Management Program and additional requirement that discretionary projects may be subject to in terms of transportation management. He stated that a comprehensive transportation plan would be a very heavy lift for the Planning Department and Public Works Department and hard to take on in the near term.
Public Works Director Petersen reminded the Council that they had discussed a transporation development plan when they talked about the Local Roadway Safety Plan in July 2023 and added that these are larger muli-million dollar transportation projects. The smaller Local Roadway Safety Plan took about a year and significant work from an engineer and consultants and explained the staffing impact of bringing on consultants.
Planning Director Murdock suggested potentially updating the Highway 1 Improvement Fee, which is already on the books, to generate funds associated with future projects without an entirely new work effort.
Mayor Vaterlaus sees this strategy as automatically coming on as “At Risk” because of the dependencies on CalTrans and SamTrans.
Greg Larson concluded that there was not support of Council to add a transportation improvement plan as a new strategy at this time.
Greg Larson announced five-minute break.
Mayor Vaterlaus resumed the meeting at 2:25pm.
Greg Larson continued the presentation of the Strategies / Goals. He stated that Goal 3A “Complete Housing Element Update” was stated as the top priority by all Councilmembers. He then introduced Goal 3B “Update Short-Term Rental Ordinance” which was identified as a tier 2 priority, behind the Housing Element and LCLUP, and the plan was to begin that work this year City Council Study Session 12 March 09, 2024
with staff ‘s plan to start that work in June. He asked Council to discuss what direction they want to provide to staff on the development of the work plan other than what is already planned.
Council and staff had lengthy discussion regarding Goal 3B “Update Short-Term Rental Ordinance.” Councilmembers disussed a possibility of considering separating policies for STRs in the coastal zone from other areas, a moratorium on new STR permits, possibility of reducing the cap on the STR permits, and considering inspections of STRs.
City Attorney Kenyon explained that there is legal analysis and staff stime from Planning and Assistant City Manager needed to determine if a moratorium is legally appropriate as it requires strict findings and analysis to support the findings. She added that work on analyzing a moratorium would delay discussion of updating the ordinance.
Planning Director Murdock and City Attorney Kenyon emphasized the importance of residents reporting written complaints regarding specific STR operations to the City, which would help substantiate evidence against operators of problematic STRs, as the City has the tools to suspend or revoke STR permits under existing regulations.
Assistant City Manager Carter discussed enforcement and compliance efforts on STRs that is underway, providing an update on the number of notices of violations sent. She reminded the Council that the combined tax components related to the STR program, including TOT, business license and STR permit fees , together are approximately $2 million and the STR permit fees partially fund code enforcement staffing to address STR issues.
Greg Larson summarized from the discussion related to potential changes to the work plan and priorities regarding Goal 3B, that staff would need to hear a majority of Council to support pursuing the following options: (1) moratorium, (2) enforcement unfolding, (3) inspection program, (4) policy direction from a study session for an updated ordinance, (5) consider a separate policy for the coastal zone, or (6) lowering the cap. He stated that the current plan entails enforcement unfolding and policy direction from a study session for an updated ordinance.
After further Council discussion, Greg Larson concluded that there was no clear direction from Council on a change the work plan regarding Goal 3B.
Greg Larson moved on to discussion of Goal 3C “Prioritize Housing Element Program Implementation” and explained Council feedback on possibly adding “tangible progress on an affordable housing project this year” and possible accelerated interim work, providing some examples.
Councilmember Boles provided additional detail on her requests for additional interim work, such as changes to the definition regarding height limits.
Planning Director Murdock explained how some of the suggestions fit into the current work plan and discussed the anticipated timelines. He stated that zoning amendments would not take effect in the coastal zone until certified by the Coastal Commission and LCP amendments are staff intensive and recommended waiting for a more comprehensive zoning update that is already programmed in to the Housing Element Update. He also explained for the tangible progress on affordable housing project, HCD will require the city to move forward with the RFP process for publicly owned sites including city-owned property. He explained that the City Council Study Session 13 March 09, 2024
Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance update could be tee’d up as a nearer term implementation activity within the next year and using our shared consultant support services from HEART.
Greg Larson moved on to Goal 4 “Pursue Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation”, stating that he got divergent feedback from Council on 4A “Update the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan.”
City Manager Woodhouse explained that the initial direction that the Climate Action and Adaptation Task Force will have a milestone coming back to Council to make sure it is headed in the right direction.
Management Analyst Brooks added that the Task Force has completed an analysis of the 2014 Climate Action Plan and the progress on measures in that and submitted a citywide FlashVote survey to inform next steps on measures and actions they propose to Council.
Greg Larson concluded that the overall sense from Council majority is not to add more to the work plan and let the Task Force reporting and alignment with the Council occur through the normal progress.
Greg Larson stated that for Goal 4B “Continue the Urban Forest / Tree Canopy Inventory and Projects” was a priority for Council last year and there was more recognition this year than the other Planning issues are a notch above this one for now. He added that there was a request to deal with dead trees, tree replacement, permitting for new trees and what can be done on a complaint and enforcement basis rather than on a Planning basis.
Councilmember Bier suggested changing the language to say that the Tree Canopy and Urban Forest Project is still very important to us and we care about our trees and urban forestry projects and increasing the tree canopy, and make sure the community understands this continues to be a goal for our city.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer commented on the speakers’ references to the loophole language in the ordinance to be brought back to Council for clarity to have them say what we meant them to say about two-to-one tree replacement and the “otherwise healthy” reference. She asked when we do the fee review.
City Manager Woodhouse explained that there is a task to bring the existing ordinance back to Council for modification after we had a year of experience with the ordinance and new fees, and this is due to start in the beginning of next fiscal year task 4.2.2 in the work program.
Greg Larson moved on to Goal 4C “Update Pacifica’s Local Coastal Plan” and mentioned it was mentioned as a top Council priority and there was not further directions or changes on this one.
Greg Larson began the discussion of Goal 5 “Broaden Public Communications and Collaboration”, starting with Goal 5A “Creatively and Appropriately Leverage Community Expertise and Voluntees to Advance City Priorities” with the intent to reduce staff workload and making sure that if individual research is done and staff relies on that it is not perceived as biased.
Councilmember Bier explained that citizen led research is important to her and she wants to learn about it, but was unsure about the process to use it on an official staff report for the city.
City Council Study Session 14 March 09, 2024
Councilmember Boles referred to citizen research on ordinances related to STRs, which can be helpful, recognizing that staff must also do their own analysis.
Councilmember Bigstyck added that community research could present a lead that staff could follow up on, recognizing that he may not be able to take an amazing amount of work a community member has done to turn directly over to staff, but may be able to encourage them to show it to his colleagues and could inform how Council directs staff or has that conversation with staff.
Mayor pro Tem Beckmeyer provided an example of how they had a lot of this information sharing with the Tree Ordinance and it was informative to her and Councilmembers can hear informationally from the community.
Greg Larson moved on to concluding on Goal 4B “Increase Communications, Education and Connections for Community Mental Health Resources” that Councilmembers recognizing relying on Councilmember Bier’s expertise on this issue, and there was interest by Council that this goal proceeds.
Councilmember Bier added that there was a Mayors’ Mental Health Inititative that came from Substance Abuse Mental Health Association (SAMSA) when she was mayor and would like to engage the current mayor in that process that is part of an initiative across the county.
Greg Larson moved on to the suggestion from one Councilmember of a potential new strategy of “Evaluate Past Efforts to Find Ways to Do More Overall (in terms of public engagement).” Mayor Vaterlaus and Councilmember Bier objected to the phrase “do more overall” because there is so much work going on already.
After some Council discussion, Greg Larson suggested that could be part of a goal setting retreat or teambuilding exercise. He observed that there is so much going one right now that is involving public engagement.
Greg Larson asked Council about other possible work program additions that were suggested:
(A) Conduct Council relations and team building workshop, (B) Consider possible term limit modifications, and (C) Council compensation set at State standard (mentioned by one Councilmember).
Councilmember Bigstyck shared his thoughts in support of considering possible term limit modifications, feeling that limiting to two terms inhibits having local officials maintaining longevity in relationships regionally and added a concern with the advent of districting together with term limits and the potential of candidate pools resulting in a candidate running unopposed.
Councilmember Bier agreed with Councilmember Bigstyck’s remarks.
Mayor Vaterlaus agreed, adding that continuity and relationship is building.
Greg Larson observed that this workload would involve the City Clerk and City Attorney. He concluded from Councilmember responses that there were three interested in pursuing this and two that were undecided.
Greg Larson opened the discussion of Council compensation.
City Council Study Session 15 March 09, 2024
City Attorney Kenyon explained that any change in compensation would take effect after a new term begins (e.g. December or January).
After Council discussion on this topic focusing on the diversity / equity aspect, Greg Larson concluded regarding Council compensation that there was not majority of support to pursue this at this time, but staff may research a potential child care subsidy and look at bringing the C/CAG presentation on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion forward.
Councilmember Bigstyck raised the idea of exploring a prohibition on pigeon feeding.
Greg Larson concluded following discussion of this proposal that there was not Council consensus to pursue this proposal at this time.
Councilmember Bigstyck mentioned that under the heading of health and safety, drugs, homelessness, blue zone, pickleball issues are on his radar, but not necessarily to put on the work plan now but consider these when there is more bandwidth. 1) Enhance organizational and fiscal stability.
2) Improve and steward City infrastructure, streets and facilities. 3) Prioritize protection and development of affordable housing. 4) Pursue climate change adaptation and mitigation.
5) Broaden public communications and collaboration.
H. Wrap-up and Next Steps
Greg Larson explained the Council will continue this iterative process when it comes back at one of the April meetings with the work plan. He solicited feedback from the Council on their single biggest take-away from the day. Councilmembers shared their thoughts.
ADJOURN
Mayor Vaterlaus adjourned the meeting at 4:48 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Sarah Coffey, City Clerk
APPROVED AS AMENDED: 5 - 0; 4/8/2024
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Sue Vaterlaus, Mayor