Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Min 2001-01-08 1-5-01 / 1-8-01 Seal Beach, California January 5, 2001 The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in regular adjourned session at 8:15 a.m. with Mayor Campbell calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag. I ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Campbell Councilmembers Boyd, Doane, Larson Absent: Councilmember Yost Councilman Yost joined the Council in Closed Session at 8:18 a.m. Also present: Ms. Yeo, City Clerk CLOSED SESSION Mayor Campbell announced that the Council would meet in Closed Session pursuant to Government Code Section 54957 for the purpose of City Manager interviews. The Council adjourned to Closed Session at 8:16 a.m., broke for lunch at 12:00 noon, and reconvened in Closed Session at approximately 1:00 p.m. The Council reconvened the meeting at 3:46 p.m., announced that the Council had met in Closed Session for the purpose shown on the agenda, no action was taken. I ADJOURNMENT It was the order of the Chair, with consent of the Council, to adjourn the meeting until Monday, January 8th, at 6:00 p.m. to meet in Closed Session. By unanimous consent, the meeting was adjourned at 3:47 p.m. clerk Approved: ~~a41~ Q~",,)h( vi U City Clerk / Attest: I Seal Beach, California January 8, 2001 The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in regular adjourned session at 6:02 p.m. with Mayor Campbell calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag. 1-8-01 ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Campbell Councilmembers Boyd, Doane, Yost Absent: Councilmember Larson I Councilman Larson joined the Council in Closed Session. Also present: Mr. McIntyre, Interim City Manager Mr. Barrow, City Attorney Ms. Yeo, City Clerk CLOSED SESSION By unanimous consent, the Council adjourned to Closed Session at 6:04 p.m. to discuss the items identified on the agenda, pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8, a conference with the City's real property negotiator relating to 201 - 8th street, pursuant to Government Code Section 54957, an item of public employee employment, to confer with legal counsel pursuant to Government Code Sections 54956.9(a), (b), and (c) relating to the Stinson case, Shell Chemical Company, et al. and Phillips Petroleum Company versus County of Los Angeles, Jeong versus City of Seal Beach, Seal Beach Associates versus Seal Beach Redevelopment Agency, and two cases of a potential of initiating litigation. The Council reconvened at 7:07 p.m. with the City Attorney reporting the Council had discussed the items identified on the agenda, gave direction to staff, no other reportable action was taken. I ADJOURNMENT It was the order of the Chair, to adjourn the meeting at 7:08 consent of the Council, Attest: Approved: I Seal Beach, California January 8, 2001 The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in regular session at 7:08 p.m. with Mayor Campbell calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Campbell Councilmembers Boyd, Doane, Larson, Yost 1-8-01 Absent: None Also present: Mr. McIntyre, Interim City Manager Mr. Barrow, City Attorney Mr. Whittenberg, Director of Development Services Mr. Badum, Director of Public Works/City Engineer Chief Sellers, Police Department Chief Cushman, Lifeguard Department Ms. Beard, Director of Recreation, Parks, Community Services Ms. Arends-King, Director of Administrative Services Mr. Dorsey, Assistant to the City Manager Ms. Yeo, City Clerk I APPROVAL OF AGENDA Mayor Campbell requested Item "I" be removed from the Consent Calendar for separate consideration. Boyd moved, second by Larson, to approve the order of the agenda as revised. AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried ANNOUNCEMENTS Mayor Campbell announced the dedication of the Save Our Pool bronze plaque and ribbon cutting on Saturday at 8:00 a.m. at the McGaugh Pool. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mayor Campbell declared Public Comments to be open. Seal Beach Princess Lauren Lenhart invited the Council and public to the Miss Seal Beach and Miss Seal Beach Teen Pageant to be held at the Margaret Webb Performing Arts Center, Los Alamitos High School, on January 14th at 4:00 p.m. Mr. Dave Bartlett, representing Hellman Properties, stated he was present at the request of Councilman Doane to provide an update relating to the Hellman lowland property acquisition. Mr. Bartlett reported they have been in active discussions with the wildlife Conservation Board which is a sister agency to the State Wildlife, Fish and Game, that Board represented by Mr. Jim Saro, the Executive Director of the San Gabriel River Conservancy, at present they are looking at an appraisal method and appraiser selection to move forward with that as a first step. He explained that the Trust for Public Land was going to be involved with the project however due to the fact that Mr. Jerry Tone is a member of that Board and past-Chairman there was a perceived conflict of interest therefore the Trust will not be involved in the Hellman acquisition, however, Mr. Tone has accomplished involvement of the Board with the acquisition of both Bixby and Bryant, an ultimate four hundred fifty acre restoration of the Los Cerritos wetlands complex. Mr. Bartlett offered that it is believed that discussions will be advanced and anticipated to be concluded within a six month period, also, contact has been received from the Orange County Harbors, Beaches and Parks Commission, one meeting has been held with them thus far, they may look at this project as a potential partnership as well. Mr. Ron Bennett, Seal Beach, requested an item be agendized for the February 12th meeting for a presentation by the Tree Advisory Board and request for full standing status as a Council committee. Mr. Jerry Dominguez, Edison Company, stated he was present to provide an update relating to the I I 1-8-01 I current energy crisis as it affects Southern California Edison and Orange County. He mentioned the State of the State address by Governor Davis this evening in which he addressed a number of issues with regard to the energy crisis, there have been a number of articles recently in the Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register relating to this issue, there seems to be an understanding that the rate increases that the residents of San Diego County have been subjected to, as opposed to Edison covering for their customers in Southern California, are directly attributable to the operators generating facilities. Mr. Dominguez reminded that three years ago their company was required, as part of the restructuring of the energy industry, to sell their twelve fossil fuel power plants that were operated in Southern California, those plants, like those that belong to Pacific Gas and Electric, were purchased by large businesses out of the State of California on the east coast, the operators who control these plants are not controlled by the California Public Utilities Commission, the Governor, nor the legislature, they are free enterprise and as such they are allowed to charge any price the market will bear and sell to whomever they want, Edison is capped as to what it can charge its customers for energy, the energy price per kilowatt hour to Edison customers is approximately seven cents yet Edison is paying the power producers between twenty-five to forty- five cents per kilowatt hour, that can not be done for very long. He noted that the rate relief that the Public Utilities Commission rendered just a few days ago for the next ninety days represents a nine percent increase for residential customers, seven percent for small business, twelve percent for commercial, and fifteen percent for industrial customers, for the ninety day period that comes to about $65 million however the expenditure for Edison to purchase power for their customers is between $25 to $30 million per day, therefore the rate relief pays for two days of energy, that will not resolve the situation. Mr. Dominguez reported there has been no rate increase to Edison customers since 1993, he has been the manager for this City since 1990 so he knows that to be fact, the rate restructuring took place in 1996 which locked Edison into this situation and the sale of the power plants. He noted that the Governor indicated in his speech that if necessary he will seize the generating stations, like those on Studebaker, in Huntington Beach, and others throughout the State, in order to ensure public safety and to see that energy is not sold out of State for some control over destiny here, that these plants will continue to operate and provide electric service to the customers of California, which is now not guaranteed. Mr. Dominguez noted that he had given information to the Council as to where this situation stands, also advised that there was a District Court decision today in Los Angeles where the opinion of the judge was that the utility companies are entitled to recoup a reasonable return for expenditures already made on behalf of their customers, this decision will no doubt be appealed, likely result in a trial which will determine what the reasonable rate of return will be, and recalled that their request to the PUC had been for a thirty percent increase to which they received between seven and fifteen percent, that is less than half of what was sought. He mentioned having given the Council a list of web sites for the Public Utilities Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Edison, etc., those will provide up to date information of the status of this situation and what is happening in the market place. Mr. Dominguez pointed out that Edison is doing a number of things to reduce their I I 1-8-01 . . costs, there are four stages, they are ~n the second stage at this time, they are in the process of reducing contract, full time, and part time employees by one thousand eight hundred fifty, there are about thirteen thousand employees in the company, there is no hiring being done, other internal things are being done to economize. He mentioned having discussed this issue with the Interim Manager and Mayor Campbell. Question was raised as to why the cap was not imposed on San Diego Gas and Electric, to which Mr. Dominguez responded that they did have a cap however their long term stranded costs did not approach the kind of investments that Edison and PG & E had for construction of power plants, substations, transmission facilities, etc. The Manager mentioned that they have been raising rates for several months. To that Mr. Dominguez explained that when San Diego Gas and Electric stranded debt was paid last year they then became a competitor in the market place and were buying power from the power exchange at market price, then passed it on to the customer, a situation where the price was deregulated, Edison has not been able to do that, as part of the restructuring Edison has been locked in by the deregulation plan to charge their customers a maximum of seven cents per kilowatt hour regardless of the market price. To question of Council, Mr. Dominguez said his understanding is that the PUC increase will be effective immediately quite likely with the next billing cycle. As another cost saving measure Mr. Dominguez stated that Edison will only be reading meters every other month, customers will receive an estimated bill one month, the following month the meter will be a read, this policy excepting a new resident or business, another effort to cut down on the number of employees. Question was raised as to what would be recommended that the City can do. Mr. Dominguez said it has been suggested to their customers that they let the Governor and the legislators know that they do not want to see the kind of increases that have hit San Diego County where bills increased between two hundred to four hundred percent, the approved seven percent increase is not very much and it should be kept in mind that there has been no increase since 1993, that can not be said for the cost of qasoline, milk, bread or other commodities, the problem is that there are only a few people in control of the production of energy and they are taking advantage of the situation, yet are entitled to a reasonable rate of return, when Edison operated its facilities a few years back they were controlled by the Public utilities Commission as to the amount of profit that could be realized, there was a profit but nothing compared to what these operators are now making, if one looks at the stocks of the operators of these facilities it will be seen that their stocks are about $65 to $85 per share, Edison was down to six and a quarter last week, about eleven now, that tells the story. Question was raised as to whether there is still the danger of controlled blackouts. Mr. Dominguez responded that Edison is about two to three weeks away from running out of money to buy power, however a recent poll showed that fifty-five percent of the public do not believe there is a problem, power is being brought in from out of State, Secretary Richardson is allowing that, power is running out internally, if there is not some kind of relief from the debt that has been incurred in the past eight to ten months, that is a possibility, yet the Governor said he will not allow that to happen, said that if necessary the State of California is prepared to take possession of these facilities and operate them on an emergency basis, literally take the facilities away from the owners and proceed with a condemnation process and whatever litigation necessary to I I I 1-8-01 I reach a reasonable price to acquire the facilities, said he will not allow California to be controlled by companies from out of State, energy is being generated but is being sold out of State at prices even higher than what Edison is paying. It was mentioned that one report said that the poll referenced was of four hundred fifty people out of twenty-two million, also, people do not realize that most of the employees have their retirements tied up in Edison Company stock, those employees may be looking at not having a job and no retirement as well. Mr. Dominguez said another issue that has been discussed is bankruptcy, that is not a good option, in that case it is a judge who determines what happens and all that the creditors care about is getting their return, they have no care for the business or the customers. It was mentioned that this type of situation is a reaping of the fruits of term limits, every two years there is a legislative turnover where there are people who know naught about government, those with experience would know better than to give the people a system where a company the like of Edison would be forced to sell their plants and then the taxpayers are forced to condemn them to get them back, it makes no sense. Mr. Dominguez agreed, stated he has worked for Edison for twenty-nine years, has seen hard times and good, but if the question were posed some six months ago if this company would face bankruptcy he would have said that to be impossible, would never happen, and now look at the situation. Mr. Ed Simmons, Seal Beach, said he wished to speak about the beach, mainly sand, stated there could be a major problem, if there is it could have been stopped. He mentioned having talked about beach erosion some two years ago, suggested that the pier be marked to check how the beach is moving, where the sand is going, the sand is building under the pier dramatically, when the north swells come off the south jetty they come straight into the pier.and will blow the pier apart, the pier was raised two feet, the sand has risen six feet. He mentioned that there is a Lifeguard Department on duty three hundred sixty-five days a year and he is certain that City staff does not work with them as to how the beach moves or the sand is working. Mr. Simmons claimed that the sand at the south end of the beach has moved one hundred to a hundred fifty feet back towards Seal Way and the houses, there is a total eddy working there, if there is a north swell of anything over six feet and enough swell where there are six to ten waves pushing, after the third wave breaks the six waves are going to push the water straight into south Seal Beach. He mentioned being on the pier last Sunday, there were two foot swells, the waves broke at the high tide for that day and the water went completely to the crest of the berm, at the north, the San Gabriel jetty, the sand is out one hundred to one hundred fifty feet, in another hundred feet the sand will go around the jetty, there will be no more jetty, on both sides of the San Gabriel River there is now so much sand it is unbelievable, the beach is probably a hundred to a hundred fifty feet wider than when he came to Seal Beach in 1958 where he also lifeguarded, again stating there is a major problem. Mr. Simmons said there is nothing wrong with planting trees and making the town beautiful, but the infrastructure in the City, the sewers, Main Street sidewalks that need attention, again, there is more sand but it is moving, if there is a large storm there will be a major problem, staff should confer with the Lifeguards, there are high tides at the end of this month and it is reported there will also be a swell. Ms. Rea Wilson, Corsair Way, spoke to the rain storm in the month of October, the result of which was water damage to her vehicle, I I 1-8-01 when taken to the dealer to have the interior dried out they advised that all carpets needed to be replaced the cost of which was about $1,500, not being able to do that she retained an independent who dried her car for $100 however the interior still has a musty odor. Ms. Wilson claimed that the City has insurance, her claim was not felt to be unreasonable, and requested reimbursement for her expense. At request of Council, the City Attorney explained that typically the staff makes recommendations as to the disposition of claims, the Council can either accept or reject the recommendation, in this case the recommendation is to deny, the Council could continue the item for more information or reject the recommendation. Councilman Yost requested that Item "D", claims against the City, be removed from the Consent Calendar for separate consideration. I Mayor Campbell noted a celebration held on Saturday evening at the Marina Center where awards were presented by Mr. Frank Boychuck to persons who had assisted with the acquisition process for the Seal Beach Trailer Park. On behalf of the Park, Mayor Campbell presented the awards to those who were not present at the celebration 'For Going the Extra Mile' to Jackie Guidry, Joanne Yeo, Lee Whittenberg, Dan Dorsey, Don McIntyre, Quinn Barrow, and John Larson. Mayor Campbell stated that it was a wonderful celebration. Mr. Mike Berry, Trailer Park, expressed appreciation to all who attended, stated they could not have accomplished the acquisition without everyone who helped, the Trailer Park looks forward to being back as part of the community. There being no further comments, Mayor Campbell declared Public Comments to be closed. I AGENDA AMENDED Yost moved, second by Boyd, to amend the approval of the agenda by removing Item "D" for separate consideration. AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried APPOINTMENT - AD HOC PARKING MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE Councilman Boyd held over the District One appointment to the Ad Hoc Parking Management Committee until the next meeting. Mayor Campbell appointed Mr. Chet Corbin as the District Four appointee to the Committee. Doane moved, second by Yost, to approve the appointment as stated. AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried APPOINTMENT - ORANGE COUNTY VECTOR CONTROL BOARD Campbell moved, second by Boyd, to reappoint Seal Beach resident Mr. Frank Laszlo to the Orange County Vector Control District Board for the term of four years, expiring December, 2004. AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried I CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEMS "B" thru "L" Yost moved, second by Boyd, to approve the recommended action for items on the Consent Calendar as presented, except for Items "D" and "I", removed for separate consideration. I G. I 1-8-01 B. Approved the waiver of reading in full of all ordinances and resolutions and that consent to the waiver of reading shall be deemed to be given by all Councilmembers after reading of the title unless specific request is made at that time for the reading of such ordinance or resolution. C. Approved the minutes of the regular adjourned and regular meetings of December 11th, 2000. E. Approved regular demands numbered 29835, 30457, 30459 through 30735 in the amount of $2,276,947.95, payroll demands numbered 10225 through 10518, 27703 through 27704 in the amount of $321,518.07, the payroll liability account numbered 9000451 through 9000475 in the amount of $159,980.71, and authorized warrants to be drawn on the Treasury for same. F. Adopted the seven year Capital Improvement program, fiscal years 2000/2001 through 2006/2007, as required by the Orange County Transportation Authority for funding under the Measure M program. Approved Cooperative Agreement No. 12-376 between the City of Seal Beach and the State of California for terms and conditions of the design of the Seal Beach Boulevard Bridge Widening over the 405 Freeway. H. Adopted Resolution Number 4868 entitled "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEAL BEACH APPROVING THE DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE (DBE) PROGRAM AND OVERALL ANNUAL GOAL OF FIVE PERCENT (5%) FOR FEDERAL FISCAL YEAR 2001, FOR ADOPTION AND SUBMISSION TO THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (CAL TRANS)." By unanimous consent, full reading of Resolution Number 4868 was waived. J. Adopted Resolution Number 4870 entitled "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEAL BEACH AUTHORIZING A BUDGET AMENDMENT FOR THE 2000/2001 FISCAL YEAR" to cover lease payments of $11,196 for the Beach Rake Cleaner. By unanimous consent, full reading of Resolution Number 4870 was waived. .1 K. Authorized the Seal Beach Police Department to retain Bates Automotive, Upland, California, to refurbish two Police Department black and white patrol cars at a cost not to exceed $27,650.00. L. Adopted Resolution Number 4871 entitled "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEAL BEACH IN SUPPORT OF SR 57 EXTENSION PROJECT." By unanimous consent, full reading of Resolution Number 4871 was waived. 1-8-01 AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR ITEM "D" - CLAIMS With regard to the speaker, Ms. Rea Wilson, and her submittal of auto damages due to the October rains, Councilman Yost inquired if staff could find some way to reimburse her $100 without admittance of any liability to her claim, and so moved. Councilman Doane seconded the motion. I AYES: NOES: Boyd, Doane, Larson, Yost Campbell Motion carried Councilman Larson said he would presume that the claims procedure in Seal Beach is the same as in most public entities where, when a claim is submitted it is routinely denied and referred to the liability attorney and adjuster and is most often paid, denial does not mean that is the end of the process. For information purposes, the City Attorney noted that this is the type of issue that is being given discussion based upon the presentation by OCCRMA, from which some recommendations may be forthcoming. Boyd moved, second by Doane, to deny the claims of Sean and Shana O'Shea and 21st Century Insurance on behalf of Joanne Davis for the storm incident on October 27th, and that said claims be referred to the liability attorney and adjuster. AYES: NOES: Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost None Motion carried I ITEM "I" - BOLSA CHICA CHANNEL - PHASE 1 IMPROVEMENTS - ORANGE COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT Mayor Campbell stated her intent to vote against this item inasmuch as the residents of her area do not support these improvements, the project basically removes the rock channel to be replaced by a concrete box channel and displaces the many wildlife in that area. Councilman Doane noted that the channels in Leisure World are concrete slanted yet there are egrets and ducks, however any plant growth is removed. Councilman Boyd noted that this is a request for support to improve the Bolsa Chic a Channel, he is not necessarily in support or against, said he would be more apt to inquire as to what improvements are proposed to improve water quality, are they doing bio-filters with the construction of this basically new flood control channel, otherwise the debris that comes down the channel will end up on the beach, before approval he would prefer to get additional information from the Director of Public Works that they are instituting such improvements. Councilman Yost agreed, the idea of flood control channels is not to make them impervious to water and carry debris as quickly as possible to the storm drain system but to reclaim as much of that water as possible, there is also a trend to go back to dirt bottomed flood control channels as opposed to concrete lined. The Public Works Director explained that the Bolsa Chica project is basically a storm drain improvement, this project actually the result of problems that occurred in 1995 with extreme flooding in Garden Grove more so than in Seal Beach yet the eastern portion of College Park East also had some substantial flooding, this project is designed to alleviate that. He recalled that the environmental document was brought to Council about a year and a half ago which Council did I 1-8-01 I ~pprove, the project does take away the earth bottom but it ~s nece~sary to do that with this type of design for a trapezo~dal.channe~, both sides of this channel are heavily develoP7d w~th re~~dences and businesses, there is no other way to ~mprove th~s channel. With regard to the treatment and water quality issues, with the volume of water in this channel it would be unrealistic to believe any kind of treatment process could be done in this section of the ~hannel, however the County is looking at a number of ~mpr~veme~ts to the channels, for Seal Beach they are looking at d~vers~ons at the pump stations, installation of facilities upstream in the Rossmoor channel, they are working on both flood control and water quality projects, floods in Orange County cost millions of dollars, this is something that is felt to be very important to Garden Grove as well as Seal Beach. He noted the second phase of this project will be coming to Council in the next few months, an additional crossing under the 405 Freeway, they will be realigning part of the Garden Grove channel which parallels the 405 and joins the Bolsa Chica channel, they will tunnel under the 405 and 22 with a new connection further downstream on the other side of the 405, this channel will provide one hundred year flood protection. with regard to the wildlife, the results are yet to be seen, there are many concrete channels in the County were wildlife continue to be seen. The Director again stated this is primarily a flood protection project which he strongly supports and in cooperation with Garden Grove to move forward. Councilman Boyd said given the discussions of catch basins, bio-filters, etc. that may be a possibility of instituting in Seal Beach, do any such improvements coincide with this project, it is also quite likely that the storm drains and surface runoff from Garden Grove flow into the Bolsa Chica channel, what is being done in that regard before Seal Beach adopts a resolution in support of this project, he would like to see something that meets the objectives of this community for water quality as well. Councilman Yost inquired as to what facilities Garden Grove has to decrease their runoff, catch basins, or whatever. The Director mentioned that the County is doing studies in several areas, as it is certain they are doing in Seal Beach, but he is not aware of specifics relating to Garden Grove, however the County is looking at all of their facilities in relation to water quality, a new water quality permit will soon be forthcoming for the region, there will be changes and new requirements, the permit for San Diego County has been announced and includes substantive changes, which is expected will come to Orange County as well, and offered to go to the County to obtain information as to what types of things they are presently working on for Seal Beach and adjacent communities. Councilman Doane noted that the discussion is two different issues, recalled the flooding incident in Leisure World in 1995 and said he would support anything that would be an improvement to the flood control facilities, he agreed also with the comments with regard to water quality, he would favor the proposed resolution in support of the flood control improvements now, then in the future all channels will require some form of facilities to deal with the pollution and debris issues. Councilman Larson agreed, mentioning that he would not want other cities to be without flood protection because Seal Beach did not support the County improvements, a number of drainage and flood control requirements are being made of the Bixby project, he would be inclined to support this effort of the County. To the question as to where the Bolsa Chica channel empties, the Public Works Director explained that it flows south along the I I ---- 1-8-01 border of the weapons station to the area of the Aquatic Center. Councilman Doane moved to adopt Resolution Number 4869 entitled "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEAL BEACH SUPPORTING AND APPROVING THE ORANGE COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT PROJECT TO IMPROVE THE BOLSA CHICA CHANNEL." By unanimous consent, full reading of Resolution Number 4869 was waived. I Mayor Campbell noted that Lampson Avenue crosses the Bolsa Chica channel, in 1995 there was flooding north of Lampson, south of Lampson there was no flooding, at that point the channel is wider and the homes set back somewhat further. The Director offered that this project goes from the 405 to what is called the Belgrade channel which is considerably north, the second phase of this project is to alleviate the pinch-point under the 405, it will tunnel under the 405 as a secondary undercrossing and join the Bolsa Chic a channel further south near the old Bolsa Chic a Road. The Development Services Director mentioned that about a year and a half ago the Council and Environmental Quality Control Board reviewed the negative declaration prepared by the County for this project and indicated support of the project at that point while recognizing that there would be the loss of the habitat area, the major issue in support at that time however was to create a channel capable of containing a one hundred year flow which the existing channel can not. Councilman Yost said although he is sympathetic to flood control, the way flood control has been handled in the southland is what is responsible for the water quality to a large degree at this time, his feeling is that the issue of the way flood control is done needs to be given further thought rather than finding ways to take it as rapidly as possible to the beaches, find ways to return it to the ground water system, to him it makes no sense to build concrete lined channels that run through the City yet there is an entire line of wells across the Boeing property where tap water is being pumped back into the ground to prevent salt intrusion. I Vote to adopt Resolution Number 4869: AYES: NOES: Boyd, Doane, Larson Campbell, Yost Motion carried The Interim Manager suggested that the County be requested to send a representative to address the Council as to what is being done to address flood control as well as water quality. CITY ATTORNEY REPORT There was no report presented. CITY MANAGER REPORT There was no report presented. I COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilman Doane said in view of the comments made by Mr. Bennett he would support agendizing their request for a future meeting to consider a different status for the tree committee, at present the group is made up of volunteers however they are becoming a force in the City, his feeling is that this group needs to be controlled by the City, if recognized as a standing committee the Council would then make the appointments, if they are asking to do as many I I I 1-8-01 things as they are then they should become a part of the city government. Councilman Yost expressed appreciation to Interim City Manager McIntyre for his professional assistance during this period of the City Manager search. Councilman Yost advised that he will be on vacation from January 20th through the 27th. He offered congratulations to the Seal Beach Trailer park, a special place for special people not just an area of low to moderate income housing, and even though things may not be smooth all of the time it will be easier being part-owners controlling the destiny of the Park, something the Park residents have never had. Councilman Boyd added his praises of the work and efforts of Mr. McIntyre during this period of time in Seal Beach, a person that is a credit to his profession. with regard to Interim Manager McIntyre, Councilman Larson agreed, in fact said he had hoped to convince him to remain on a permanent basis. To the comments made by a member of the audience with regard to the sand and beach problems, Councilman Larson said he would like more information as to that situation and what can be done with regard to the problems mentioned if they do exist. The Director of Public Works responded that a good program is currently in place, staff is aware of where the sand is going, they do surveys every season, before winter and after, the Engineering Department has profiles of where the sand is going, the problem, it takes considerable money to move the sand back to where it is desired to be, last fall about $30,000 was spent to just move sand, that is a minimal amount, it is felt that next year staff will be looking at doing another rail sand import project, according to the Moffat & Nichol reports between six to eight thousand cubic yards of sand is being lost each year, that equates to the likelihood of doing a sand project every couple years, agreed that the east beach is getting a little thin, a lot of the sand has migrated to the west side, it is retrieved as a supplement, yet it is necessary to bring new sand into the system. with regard to the sand in the San Gabriel River, periodically that sand needs to be retrieved as well, that is a more complex problem because of the navigational water issues, the Coast Guard, dredging, that more of an intensive project environmentally, the surf riders would want to be part of that consideration also because it is a good surfing area, that somewhat due to the sand movement. He acknowledged that all of the answers are not known, yet the basics of where the sand migrates is known, typically, because of the jetties, the westerly waves reflect off of the jetty entrance at Anaheim Bay, the southerly waves in the summer tend to go the same direction, so there is a net movement of sand from east to west towards the San Gabriel River, as said, that sand is periodicaliy retrieved and new sand needs to be brought in. with regard to the opposing comments that the groin needs to be improved to prevent this movement, others say it is the cause, the Public Works Director stated that the groin was constructed in the late 1950's to help hold the sand, if one looks at an aerial photo it can be projected that the curve of the westerly portion of the beach would go back into the area of the homes if the groin were not there, noted the extension of the groin has been discussed several times, the groin holds a finite amount of sand, it slows the sand migration but does not prevent it, some finds its way around to the other side, that is evidenced by the larger grain east beach replenishment sand found on the west beach, the groin is a valuable tool for keeping sand in place. He mentioned that as the speaker stated sand does build up against the groin as well as under the pier which is not good because incoming waves can then 1-8-01 damage the bottom of the pier, that makes it important to be diligent about clearing that sand out, they have been working on that with the Lifeguard Department, however it seems as if as soon as the sand is moved out it goes right back in. Question was raised as to consideration of artificial reefs, to that the Director responded that there has been a lot of discussion about those type of devices, unfortunately however permanent devices such as those tend to cause an adverse effect at some other point, just like a groin tends to hold sand on the other side it seems to erode faster, whenever there is a manmade hard structure it seems to create other problems downstream, also, a reef may take some of the energy out of the waves but it also takes away some of the surf, an important issue to many residents, it can also affect water quality because of changing the circulation of the water, the groin too does hold some of the undesirable water that flows from the San Gabriel River and the Long Beach Marina, the westerly winds push it towards the pier, it hits the groin and then just circulates around. The Director said the ideal situation would be to take away all of the hard improvements so that there would be sand coming down the rivers, since this area has been developed with flood control channels there is no sand coming down the rivers and has prevented the natural migration of sand down the coast, now there is replenishment of sand to replace what mother nature once did, replenishment is the best solution over hard improvements. Councilman Boyd noted that the City is aware of the natural movement of sand and short of bringing in new sand every year the hard structures that exist do a good job of holding the replenishment, the sand has not gone away it merely moves around on the beach, the Council and staff just need to do a better job of putting it back, this is an on-going sand management program, it is realized that the beach is an economic interest for the City so there needs to be funding made available to keep it in good shape. Councilman Doane asked if it would be less expensive to move the existing sand rather than bring in more. Councilman Boyd said both are needed, it can be seen from the shape of the beach there needs to be a continuous moving of sand from west to east, it is likely that a full time dozer could be used year-round to do beach maintenance, probably with at least three days a week devoted to sand management, and as an example pointed out that the concrete palm rings on the west side can not be seen because of the blow sand. The Interim Manager mentioned that given the little that is known about sand and unfortunately even less known about contamination, that is an issue that the County is now undertaking, a very complicated issue. Councilman Boyd said the sand replenishment every other year is a good idea however the management of sand is much less costly. The Director agreed that as long as the City can replace whatever sand is lost offshore the beach can stay balanced however the sand needs to be moved around, this becomes fairly expensive, this is an issue that needs to be looked at closely during budget considerations, he would agree that the City needs to do more, as the speaker indicated, however at such time as it is financially feasible. Mayor Campbell extended congratulations to Councilman Larson upon being appointed to the State League of Cities Administrative Services Policy Committee by the League President. Mayor Campbell also commended Mr. McIntyre for his services to the community as the Interim City Manager since last August, a wonderful job, an excellent Manager. I I I I I I 1-8-01 / 1-16-01 ADJOURNMENT It was the order of the Chair, with consent of the Council, to adjourn the meeting until Monday, January 22nd at 6:00 p.m. to meet in Closed Session. By unanimous consent, the meeting was adjourned at 8:20 p.m. and ex-off'cio clerk of Seal Beach Approved: ~Wto~~ t~ Mayor' 9~?!ll1 ~. Attest: Seal Beach, California January 16, 2001 The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in special session at 4:00 p.m. with Mayor Campbell calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag and read the notice of special meeting as follows: NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING "patricia campbell, 4433 Ironwood Avenue, Seal Beach Shawn Boyd, 229 - 7th Street, Seal Beach William Doane, 1401 Skokie Road, 83-A, Seal Beach John Larson, 13741 Annandale Drive, 18-G Paul Yost, 485 Schooner Way, Seal Beach. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a special meeting of the Seal Beach City Council is hereby called for Tuesday, January 16th, 2001 at 4:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, 211 - 8th Street, Seal Beach, California, for the purpose of considering: * a personnel matter relating to Public Employee Employment pursuant to Government Code Section 54957, City Manager. DATED THIS 14th day of January, 2001. patricia Campbell, Mayor City of Seal Beach by Joanne Yeo, City Clerk City of Seal Beach"