MINUTES OF THE JOINT MEETING OF THE TRINIDAD CITY COUNCIL, PLANNING
COMMISSION, AND SHORT-TERM RENTAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2023 (LIVE/HYBRID
I. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Kelly called the live-hybrid meeting to order at 6:00pm. Council members in attendance: Kelly, Ladwig, West, Tuttle, and Breckenridge.
Planning Commissioners in attendance; Richard Johnson, Aaron Hakenen, Tom Hopkins, Tristan Cole, and Christopher Slay.
STR Committee members in attendance; Dick Bruce, Diane Stockness.
STR Committee members via video-conference; Joe Moran, Jan Nash-Hunt. Jacques Beaupre, Absent.
City Staff in attendance: City Manager Eli Naffah, City Clerk Gabriel Adams, Deputy Clerk Anton Souza, Project Manager Jennifer Hakenen, and City Planner Trever Parker.
Approximately (3) public participants were present by video-conference at the beginning of the meeting.
Il. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
III. CLOSED SESSION - City Council only
1. Conference with Legal Counsel - Existing Litigation (Calif. Gov. Code Section 54956.9(d)(1)) (1 Case: City of Trinidad vs.
Tsurai Ancestral Society, et. al, Humb. Co. Sup. Court Case No. 180684
2. Employee Performance Evaluation - Water Plant Operator IV. RECONVENE TO OPEN SESSION - no reportable action taken during closed session.
V. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
Motion (West/Ladwig) to approve the agenda as submitted. Passed unanimously.
VI. ITEMS FROM THE FLOOR - None
(Three (3) minute limit per Speaker unless Council approves request for extended time.) VII. CONSENT AGENDA - None
VIII.DISCUSSION/ACTION AGENDA ITEMS
1. Discussion/Presentation of the Annual Report from the STR Advisory Committee.
STR Committee Chair Dick Bruce explained thatTrinidad licenses and regulates STRs. In 2016 the City approved an ordinance which attempted to address citizen concerns over the proliferation of unregulated STRs while fulfilling State mandates to provide visitor services and accommodations in the Coastal Zone. The Coastal Commission recently approved the City's revised and updated STR Ordinance which further addressed citizen concerns.
Stated annual report to the Council dated January 25, 2022 under "Final Comments item #4" the Committee end of the tourist season) to review any complaints or just act as a sounding board for the community. 01-24-2023 CCPCSTR Page 1
the Council and any number of special committee meetings could be scheduled on an "as needed" basis as determined by either the Council or Staff. We request direction from the Council moving forward."
In the months following the annual meeting the Committee did not receive any direction from the Council and (due in part to the fact that the revised STR Ordinance had not been formally submitted to the Coastal Commission) entered an extended period of inactivity. In May the Council appointed Jacques Beaupre to fill the vacant "City/General Public Representative" position on the Committee which had been open for 2 years. The revised STR Ordinance finally went to the Coastal Commission in September 2022 and at its meeting on December 16, 2022 the Coastal Commission approved the revised ordinance.
The following information is a report of the activities of the STR Committee during 2022.
The Committee held 3 meetings in 2022. (The results of the January 4, 2022 meeting were discussed in the 2021 annual report.)
October 26, 2022- A staff report was presented that reported:
1. The revised STR ordinance had been submitted to the Coastal Commission in September and should be on their agenda in December.
2. The 2022 license renewal process went well and for 2023 it is expected that the renewal process will be handled electronically unless a paper packet is requested.
3. Staff is no longer using the cost tracking timesheets developed by the Committee (which were approved by the Council and implemented by staff during the 2021 license renewals). Instead, staff is tracking costs to the program as a whole rather than for each individual STR.
4. A lottery for the 2 available STR licenses was held on October 23rd and the applicants had turned in their paperwork and were awaiting a review by the City Planner.
5. The City has not received any formal complaints in 2022 related to the STR program.
6. TOT year to date is down but numbers are still preliminary. TOT rate is 8% this year versus 12% in 2021.
Following the staff report one of the agendized discussion items was posted as a:
"Public Forum-How STRs affected Trinidad residents during the 2022 season" Unfortunately, no one from the public either attended the meeting or submitted written public comment on this item. As noted in the staff report, no formal complaints regarding STRs had been received year to date in 2022.
Committee members generally agreed that the lack of complaints seemed to indicate that the ordinance appeared to be working better than in years past, and this might also be an indication that property managers were being more responsive to public concerns.
Other items discussed at the meeting were the fairness of the lottery system for filling available STR licenses and the possibility of a survey of city residents to gather information on their thoughts about the operation of the STR program.
1. Regarding the lottery system, no formal vote was taken, but it was generally agreed that the current lottery system should be left in place and perhaps addressed prior to the next review/revision of the ordinance.
2. After looking at a few sample formats and questions, all Committee members agreed that a survey of Trinidad residents about the STR program should be done and addresses for survey participants would be generated using the water billing system to ensure we are reaching as many City residents as possible. It was agreed to carry this item forward to the next Committee meeting to be held in December, when more information could be presented by both staff and Committee members.
December 6, 2022- The Committee reviewed the staff report documenting that:
1. The Coastal Commission will meet on December 16t and the City's STR ordinance update is on their agenda.
2. 2023 STR license renewal applications went out via email on November 14th.
3. TOT for July-September 2023 was $60,371 vs $55,748 in 2022.
A discussion was held regarding the recent voter approved TOT increase to 12%, which according to staff will go into effect on April 1st. One of the STR industry Committee members expressed concerns over the difficulty of collecting the 4% increase (from 8% to 12%) on prepaid reservations. The reservation platforms being used by the industry apparently are unable to charge more than one rate until the TOT change is actually 01-24-2023 CCPCSTR Page 2
implemented on April 1st. City staff should plan to work with STR owners/managers to help in the transition and the City Attorney may need to advise on this as well.
Staff provided a presentation describing their revised 2023 Cost Tracking system which staff feels will streamline cost tracking and provide a broader understanding of the costs associated with the STR program in general. We defer to staff to explain the new process.
The Committee returned to the discussion of a survey of city residents regarding the operation of the STR program. Design ideas that were generally agreed upon include:
1. A cover letter that includes: a little background on the history of the STR program in Trinidad, the ordinance's definition of an STR, and information related to the financial impact of the STR program on the City's budget as well as benefits to city merchants.
2. A statement clarifying that respondents should base their answers on their current (2022/23) not past experience with STRs in Trinidad.
3. Keep the number of questions to a minimum. The survey, including cover letter should be no more than 2 pages.
4. The questions should be worded in a neutral fashion and not lead respondents to answer in either a positive or negative way.
5. Have a final section that allows respondents to elaborate on their answers or bring up additional questions or concerns.
Staff currently has samples of several surveys from other cities, suggestions from Committee members as well as staft generated options. Both staff and the Committee agreed that the survey could be a discussion item at tonight's joint meeting and that, if agreed upon, the Council should move forward and authorize staff to initiate a survey.
Final Comments-
Operation of the STR program seems to have improved since the Committee was formed in 2019. There have been no formal complaints filed with the City in the last 2 years. The Committee is receiving virtually no input from the public regarding STRs and the "Public Forum" at our October 26, 2022 meeting received neither written nor in person comments or suggestions. The Committee recommends a confidential survey of city residents to try to generate data on which to further evaluate the program.
Staff has indicated that it feels the administrative part of the program has matured. The annual renewal process has been streamlined and according to STR representatives seems to be working well.
The revised STR ordinance has been certified by the Coastal Commission. The City should allow the revised ordinance time to see how it operates and (if approved by the Council) conduct a survey of city residents to generate feedback on the STR program.
The Committee again requests direction from the Council moving forward.
2. Discussion/Presentation - Open Public Forum to Solicit Input from the Community on Issues or Successes Related to the Implementation of the Short-Term Rental Ordinance Regulations.
West: Great report. Survey sounds like a good idea.
tockness: Thanked managers and everyone for working together and creating a great model for other loc ties and the County to reference in their process to develop regulations. Commissioner Johnson agree Ladled: Thanked the advisory commies and recommended they continue to meet wice per year. Tuttle Kelly: We're overdue for a city-wide survey that covers broader topics with STR questions included. Agree that the Lottery system needs further review.
Bruce: Survey should be stand-alone for STR's.
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3. Discussion/Decision regarding Committee Recommendations and Direction Moving Forward.
Stockness: Maintain enforcement effort to keep everything in compliance.
Johnson: When is the next Ordinance review? City Manager Naffah explained that the first ordinance approval was conditioned with a one-time review after two years, but it wasn't expected to be every two years thereafter.
The Council may choose to have it reviewed periodically as needed.
Stockness: Reminded the Planning Commission needs to appoint her replacement to the STR Committee since she's retiring from service.
Nash-Hunt: The STR Committee is a great sounding board for complaints and a group to help resolve them.
Ladwig: Recommend holding STR Committee meetings twice per year.
Public comment included:
Sherry Provolt - Trinidad STR Owner
Reconsider the lottery system, and provide new STR operators an orientation process.
No formal motion made.
4. Discussion/Decision regarding February Council Meeting Schedule.
Motion (Ladwig/West) to cancel the February 14 meeting and reschedule it to February 28. Passed unanimously.
5. Discussion/Presentation of Planning Commission Project and Priorities for 2023 City Planner Trever Parker explained that in strategizing to meet grant obligations and other City priorities, she put together a task list with the various projects planning staff is working on along with some information on progress to date and next steps as applicable. The SB2 and LEAP grants have the tightest timeline and are therefore considered by staff at this point to be the highest priorities. These grants include tasks that, for the most part, the City would have to complete anyway. So, it would be best to complete them using grant funding to the extent possible. Legally mandated tasks (e.g. processing development applications) and other near-term grants are in the Tier 1 priorities.
Some of the delay on completing tasks that the Planning Commission has worked on over the last couple of years, such as the ADU ordinance, has been getting comments back from Coastal Commission staff in a timely manner. They have had a lot of staff turnover and have been short staffed at the local office. Hopefully that situation has changed. We have arranged a regular meeting to be held between Coastal Commission and City staff on a monthly basis during the LCP update that should hopefully help keep things moving.
First Tier Priorities include:
SB2 Tasks
- Parking Study
- ADU Ordinance
- Residential Design Standards
LEAP Grant Tasks
Zoning Ordinance Update
Reasonable Accommodation
Housing Outreach
Water Conservation
Hazards Planning
REAP Grant
Development Applications
Other Grants
Miscellaneous Planning
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Second Tier Priorities:
General Plan Update
OWTS Program Implementation
LCP Update
New Design Guidelines
Council/Commission comments included:
Cole: The Planning Commission is not that exciting, but increased participation is important - especially for community design.
Kelly: Tier 1 priority should be to complete the General Plan. Looking for ways to inspire participation. West agreed. I'd like to see the Community Design element on the March or April agenda.
Ladwig: Can we send the (6) elements currently proposed on to the Coastal Commission for review? Will April be a good month to pass the Community Design element to the Council? Public comments included:
Patti Fleschner - Trinidad Area Resident
Will the city ever be able to operate independently from the Coastal Commission? Support a workshop to have an in-depth discussion of the current General Plan update.
City Planner Trever Parker explained that because Trinidad is entirely in the Coastal Zone, it will always neec approval. Once the plans are certified, it can issue their own permits for any project outside the area of deferred certification - specifically the harbor area.
Stockness: Vegetation beautification was a future agenda item frequently on the Planning Commission agenda. It is necessary. East Street tree should be removed. The cherry trees are nice, but they need maintenance. Trinidad should be made more beautiful with vegetation maintenance. Possibly a grant, or a committee to help oversee this. Maybe Anton on his lunch hour could participate © Discussion item only. No decisions were made.
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
- Regular General Plan Updates.
Mid-Year Budget review
Underground Utilities
- Water Plant Operation update
ADJOURNMENT: 7:30pm.
Submitted by: Approved by:
Gabriel Adams
Trinidad City Clerk Mayor
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