Hank Panian, Fees, Development And More

FULL AGENDA...
The Costa Mesa City Council meets for their first, of many, meetings in September on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 for another very interesting gathering.  There's plenty on the agenda to draw a crowd.  Read the full agenda HERE.

HANK IS THE MAN!
Right off the top there will be the presentation of the Mayor's Award to Costa Mesa icon, Hank Panian - a man who has dedicated much of his adult life trying to make Costa Mesa better.  I'm really looking forward to this one.

CONSENT CALENDAR
There are a few interesting items on the Consent Calendar - those items that are considered "routine" and can be voted upon with one vote and no discussion.  That's not likely to happen this time.

SPENDING YOUR MONEY
Item #3 is Warrant #2541, HERE, which shows disbursements we've made for the past several weeks.  As always, I'll give you just a little taste of some of the money we laid out recently.  These are in order as they appear, so you can read along if you wish.

• Bingo West $4 - $15,306.78 - apparently for a Bingo Console (for where?  The Senior Center?)
• Clean Street - $57,799.98 - Street Sweeping Svcs, June. 15
• Jones & Mayer - $143,811.48 - Legal Svcs, various (two full pages listed!)
• Kabbara Engineering - $22,614.50 - Engineering Svcs.
• Keyser Marston Associates, Inc. - $7,125.00 - Consulting
• Liebert Cassidy Whitmore - $8,802.34 - Legal, Personnel Matter
• City of Huntington Beach - $22,540.00 - Helicopter, Jun.2015
• Civil Source - $17,658.00 - Temp. Staffing
• Moore Iacofano Goftsman Inc - $20,426.75 - Gen'l Plan Update and Env. Rprt
• FTOG Inc - $2,775.00 - Special Project Consulting, 7/20-7/31/15
• Government Staffing Services Inc - $7,665.00 - Temp Svcs.
• Interwest Consulting Group Inc - $12,045.00 - Sr. Bldg Inspct. Svcs Jun 15
• Samys Camera - $1,419.12 - GoPro Camera and gear
• Scientia Consulting Group Inc - $5,590.00 - On-site Tech Support 6/28-7/11
• Costa Mesa Conference & Visitor Bureau - $187,048.05 - BIA Receipts, Jun 15
• Safe Moves - $40,154.18 - Bicycle Education Svds Jun 15
• Liebert Cassidy Whitmore - $10,714.50 - Legal, General
• Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth - $13,548.00 - Legal, Various
• Easton & Easton LLP - $150,000 - Settlement Bailey v City
• Mary Goggin - $30,000 - Settlement M Goggins v City
• Government Staffing Services Inc - $11,712.50 - Temp Svcs
• White Nelson Diehl Evans LLP - $7,950.00 - Audit Svcs FY 2014/2015

So, once again legal costs and settlements cost us over $250,000 this time around.

COLLECTING PARKING TICKET BUCKS
Item #7, HERE, is a contract through the City of Sausalito, for parking ticket citation processing with Data Ticket, Inc.  Our contract has expired and, according to the staff report, this is the most cost effective way to perpetuate the agreement with Data Ticket.  Last year it cost us just over $60,000, but the revenue resulting from the citations was a net $700,495.

SEVENTEEN (17) NEW POLICE VEHICLES
Item #8, HERE, is VERY interesting.  It's the request by the Police Department for an increase in the FY 15/16 budget of $372,705 for a total this year of $654,985 for the following:

• Purchase of 8 vehicles replacing 10 that were leased
• Six front line patrol vehicles will be replaced by six purchased vehicles
• Two new pick-up trucks will be purchased for Park Ranger use
• One new vehicle has been purchased for the Chief of Police

VAPING RULES AND SMOKING LOUNGES
There are four (4) Public Hearings on the agenda Tuesday night.  #1, HERE, is the delayed hearing on amendments to Title 8 and Title 13 of the Municipal Code related to vaping in public facilities and regulation of smoking lounges.  If approved as recommended this will:

1 - Add a definition and create zoning regulations specifically pertaining to smoking lounges.
2 - Add a definition f or "smoking/vaping retailers" to preclude the establishment of lounge uses as part of a retail store.
3 - Prohibit vaping in specified public places by modifying the current prohibition of smoking in public facilities.
4 - Consider the existing two, legally-established smoking lounges as legal nonconforming uses, which may be subject to discontinuation or closure in the future under specific circumstances.
5 - Create standards to allow several zoning districts where new smoking lounges may be permitted by right or conditionally permitted.
6 - Create operational and development standards to address various potential issues.
7 - Planning Commission recommended changes to distinguish between tobacco and electronic cigarette/vaping products.

The council can either (1) continue the meeting to address additional changes to the draft ordinance.  If they do that it must be considered by September 15, 2015 because the current moratorium will expire November 5, 2015; OR (2) Direct staff to modify the ordinance and forward to City Council for consideration.  This would require the moratorium to be extended.

CODIFYING CAPITAL NEEDS ALLOCATIONS
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is the first reading of the Capital Asset Needs Ordinance, which codifies the policies established last March.  If approved this will allocate a minimum of five percent (5%) of the General Fund Budget to capital expenditures and plan a goal of an additional one and one-half percent (1.5%) dedicated to a Capital Facilities Account.  If this were in place for the current budget it would have resulted in just over $5.5 million and $1.6 million, respectively.

VACATION OF RIGHT-OF-WAY
Public Hearing #3, HERE, is the vacation of right-of-way at 970 West 16th Street, where a new development is planned.

RIGHT-OF-WAY, PART 2
Public Hearing #4, HERE, is a vacation of a flowage easement at the same address for the same project.

PARK FEES FOR APARTMENT DEVELOPMENT, PLUS...
Old Business #1, HERE, is the second reading of an update to the Park in-lieu fees and Impact Fees (Park Fees), which includes application of those fees to apartment projects for the first time.

MORE DEVELOPMENT!
New Business #1, HERE, may draw a crowd.  This is the General Plan Screening request for a proposed 28-unit residential project at 440 Fair Drive, near the corner of Fair and Harbor Blvd.  I suspect more than one or two of the College Park neighbors will show up to talk about this item.

ALLOCATING LEINART FEES
New Business #2, HERE, is the delayed discussion of how to allocate the nearly $25,000 in fees paid by Matt Leinart Flag Football for inaccurately portraying their organization last year.  Normally, such funds go into the General Fund, but there are those - Councilwoman Katrina Foley - who suggested they should be split and allocated to Costa Mesa and Estancia High Schools for athletic equipment.

VOTING DELEGATES
New Business #3, HERE, is the designation of the voting delegate and voting delegate alternate for the 2015 League of California Cities Annual Conference.  Presently Mayor Steve Mensinger is designated as the voting delegate and Councilwoman Sandra Genis is the alternate.

REFUND OF APPEAL FEES
New Business #4, HERE, is the request for refund of appeal fees for two items - ZA-15-01 involving the Solid Landings facility on West 19th Street and PA-14-41, involving the proposed Farmer's Market at the corner of Orange Avenue and Bay Street.  The appellants, Ann Parker and Carrie Renfro respectively, have requested the refund of the fees they paid for their successful appeals.  Parker's is $690.00 and Renfro paid $1,220.00.

A Full Schedule Awaits The City Council Tuesday

ONLY AUGUST MEETING NEXT TUESDAY
The Costa Mesa City Council will meet for it's only meeting of the month on Tuesday, August 4, 2015 beginning in Council Chambers at City Hall at 5:45 p.m.  You can read the full agenda, which includes a half dozen items on the Consent Calendar, four (4) Public Hearings, one (1) item of Old Business and four (4) New Business items, HERE.

CONSENT CALENDAR
As has been my practice, I'll take a quick peek at the Consent Calendar - those items that are presumed to be routine in nature and would be voted upon in one vote unless a member of the public, staff or council pulls it for separate discussion and vote.

THE WARRANT
Item #3, Warrant 2540, HERE, includes a few interesting items in the roster of checks used to disburse more than $4 million of your tax dollars.  I'll list a few that caught my interest:

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co - $428,620.02 - City Insurance Premium 15-16
Costa Mesa Conference & Visitor Bureau - $207,031.35 - BIA Receipts for May 2015
Wigmore Insurance Agency Inc - $120,923.00 - Excess Wrkrs Comp Ins Rnwl
CSAC Excess Insurance Authority - $4,612.00 - 15/16 Pollution Liability Ins.
Government Staffing Services Inc - $3,960.00 - Proj. Mgt. Temp Svc 6/15-6/28/15
Quickstart Intelligence - $12,726.50 - In House Training
Randstad Technologies LP - $12,707.50 - Temp IT Support Staff
AssetWorks Inc - $17,988.00 - Fleet Focus Software Upgrade
Clean Street - $58, 524.98 - Street Sweeping Svcs 5/15+Pressure Wash Sidewalk 6/15
G4S Secure Solutions Inc - $61,038.51 - Gail Svcs, 6/15
LINA - $20,041.47 - Premium, 7/15 + Admin Fee 6/15
Moore Iacofano Goltsman Inc - $69,506.15 - GP Update & Environmental Report
Bank of America - Account Analysis - $3,059.65 - Acct Analysis Fee Apr-Jun 15
Liebert Cassidy Whitmore - $2,437.50 - Legal various
Pacific Municipal Consultants - $5,400.00 - Consulting Svcs for Group Home
Quickstart Intelligence - $1,416.00 - In House Training
Scientia Consulting Group Inc - $6,880.00 - On-Site Technical Support
Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth - $6,208.00 - Legal, Various
Trauma Intervention Program - $14,061.00 - 2015-16 Annual TIP Service Fee

And, of course, there's much, much more.

DEFERRED COMP. PROGRAM MONITORING
Item #4, HERE, is the award of a contract for deferred compensation plan monitoring services. The awarding of the contract seems straightforward, but I'd like to know who among the city staff is a participant in the deferred compensation plan.

SWAPPING CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER FOR A PARK RANGER
Item #6, HERE, is an interesting item.  During the recent budget deliberations/approvals - just a month ago - there was a new Code Enforcement Officer position created for the Police Department.  THIS item is a plan to shift that position from a Code Enforcement Officer to an additional Park Ranger slot.  If you read the staff report you may get the impression that this whole issue didn't get a very thorough vetting before the budget process, particularly since there has been such a high-visibility effort to manage the homelessness issue in our city.  This is curious, at least.

PARK FEES FOR APARTMENTS
The first Public Hearing, HERE, is a proposed change in the park in-lieu impact fees to fold in apartments and to adjust other fees presently being collected.  The comprehensive staff report includes several charts and other visual displays to explain the methodology and comparisons to other cities.  I find it interesting that the Building Industry Association (BIA) has written to support this plan.

PAWN SHOP APPEAL
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is an appeal of the Planning Commission's recent decision modifying a Conditional Use Permit for a Jewelry Store with ancillary pawn services at 1872 Newport Boulevard.  This is a "de novo" hearing, which means we start from scratch on this one.  Could take awhile and it will be interesting to watch the appellants - they are pretty smooth operators, who described in great detail how they sweet-talked the previous owner into selling the business to them.

ST. JOHN THE DIVINE EPISCOPAL CHURCH FARMERS MARKET APPEAL
Public Hearing #3, HERE, should fill the house.  This is the appeal by nearby neighbors of the Planning Commission's recent Conditional Use Permit for a farmers market at an existing church - St. john the Divine Episcopal Church - smack dab in the middle of a residential neighborhood on the Eastside.  This is another de novo hearing, so the entire project will be heard anew.  Again, this one could take awhile.

CODIFYING CAPITAL BUDGET PERCENTAGE
Public Hearing #4, HERE, is an ordinance as a result of the Financial and Budget Policies adopted by the City Council in March, 2015 that requires an allocation of a minimum of five percent (5%) of the General Fund budget to capital expenditures and plan a goal of an additional one and one-half percent (1.5%) to a Capital Facilities account annually.  This is in response to the seven-year capital improvement program that totals over $230 million.

SECOND READING OF A GOOD PROJECT
The only Old Business item, #1, HERE, should take very little time.  This is the second reading on a project for 10 residential units at the site of the old Church of Christ Scientist on Mesa Verde Drive East.

ANOTHER SMALL LOT DEVELOPMENT
New Business #1, HERE, is a Master Plan Screening request for a 10-unit 2 and 3 story Small Lot Residential development at 527 and 531 Bernard Street.  The council will provide feedback so this project may move forward.

ALLOCATING MATT LEINART FLAG FOOTBALL FEES
New Business #2, HERE, is the Council Direction for Allocation of Field Use Fees for the Matt Leinart Flag Football repayment as a result of the incorrect fee payment due to misinformation provided to the city more than a year ago.  This one was requested by council member Katrina Foley, who wished to have these funds - around $25,000 - allocated to sports uses at the two high schools.  Normally, such fees would be deposited into the General Fund and used for normal municipal purposes.  This discussion is going to be fun, particularly since the news media has been full of news that the Matt Leinart Flag Football program similarly misled our friends in Irvine and will be required to pay the ENTIRE amount back, not a portion, as is the case with Costa Mesa.  I don't think anything can be done at this point - particularly when it appears that at least a couple of our council members are star-struck by the fact that Matt Leinart is a USC  football hero and Heisman Trophy winner.  As I said, it will be interesting.

APPEAL FEE REFUND REQUEST
New Business #3, HERE, is the request by resident Ann Parker for a refund of $690.00 fee charged for her appeal of the recent Solid Landings decision.  Based on her appeal the Planning Commission overturned the Zoning Administrator's approval, which was subsequently upheld by the City Council.

SELECTING VOTING DELEGATES
The final item on the agenda, New Business #4, HERE, is the designation of a "voting delegate" and a "voting delegate alternate" for the 2015 League of California Cities Annual Conference in San Jose this fall.  Currently Mayor Steve Mensinger, Councilwoman Sandra Genis and Councilman Gary Monahan are registered to attend the conference.  The City Council must designate the above positions.

NEXT MEETING ON SEPTEMBER 8TH
The council meeting scheduled for August 18, 2015 has been cancelled, but the first full week of September is going to be a whopper, with a council meeting AND a joint study session with the Planning Commission plus a Senior Commission meeting, too.

Another Special Study Session This Afterrnoon

SPECIAL STUDY SESSION AGAIN
The Costa Mesa City Council will meet at 4:30 p.m. today in council chambers for the latest Special Study Session.  These special meetings have become a habit this month - this is the third one - due to the need for more time to discuss the extraordinary budget demands of this council.

Today the agenda includes:

1 - Review of Fairview Park Master Plan Improvements

2 - Summary of Capital Improvement Program and  Discussion of Funding Opportunities and Priorities
 

WHERE'S THE MONEY COMING FROM?
That first item shouldn't take too long, but I'm not so sure about the second one.  You will recall that Jim Righeimer added several million dollars worth of capital improvement items from his 5-year wish list to the original budget - the one that was within a couple hundred thousand dollars of being balanced.  The second version of the Preliminary Budget, HERE, shows that we will be several millions in the hole if Righeimer and the rest of the male majority on the council persist in placing potholes before people.  The only place money can be found for the kinds of capital projects they say have been "ignored" by previous councils - which, of course, included some members of the current council - is in salaries and benefits.  This should be a very interesting meeting, since they plan to "prioritize" the budget this afternoon.

Special Study Session Wrap-up

GOOD INFORMATION

The Special Study Session yesterday - the second in a series of three that had been scheduled this month - provided some good information to the few of us who attended.  I hope more of you had a chance to view it live on CMTV or will view the streaming video when it's available or catch it on taped replay.

SR-55 GATEWAY PROJECT
We learned that the long-delayed improvements of the present terminus of the SR-55 Freeway at 19th Street - the "SR-55 Gateway Improvement Project" -  has found funding so the City needs to move forward in the upcoming fiscal year.  It will cost around $500,000 to make the improvements recommended.  You can read the staff report, which includes examples of proposed monuments and landscaping plans, HERE.


BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
Those improvements are a new monument welcoming those visitors stalled in traffic as they come out of the ditch to Costa Mesa as well as some very significant landscaping enhancements.  Most of the council members didn't like the staff's choice of a monument, so it's back to the old drawing board.  It was generally agreed that the language should probably say, "Welcome To Costa Mesa - City Of The Arts".  There was no definitive solution to what language, if any, might be placed on the back side of the monument for folks to view as they departed up the freeway.  As I listened to the discussion I thought, perhaps, a simple "Drive Safely" might work.  Regardless, we'll hear more about this project soon after the staff massages the monument style a little.

STREETS AND ALLEYS UPDATE
The second item on the agenda was an update of the Street and Alley Pavement Needs.  Public Works Director Ernesto Munoz presented a very thorough, professional report for the council.  He revisited the March, 2011 Pavement Management Overview, then updated the numbers based on the improvements made since that time.  You can read the staff report HERE.  The graphics included will be helpful.
THE "PCI"
The City uses a Pavement Condition Index (PCI) to determine the condition of our streets and roadways.  It's a scale that ranges from 0 to 100.  Since the first presentation of this PCI the condition of our streets have improved from 77.6 to 79.7.  Here's a little chart that will help you understand the PCI levels and shows the improvement.

ALLEYS
The city is also concerned about the condition of the alleys around town.  Using the PCI, the chart below shows the progress being made with them.

FUNDING IS AN ISSUE
From a funding standpoint, most street and alley improvements are made using state and federal funds.  In order for us to continue to improve the status of our roadways and alleys, to bring the roads to 85 on the PCI and eliminate every "Poor" alley,  beginning in the budget year 2013/2014 it will be necessary to supplement those funds with other funds - General Fund dollars - to the tune of $4.7 million for streets and $1.4 million for alleys - $6.1 million annually.  Where those funds come from is the BIG question facing this - and future - councils.

DRAINAGE PLANS
The council then heard the report on the City's Master Plan of Drainage.  You can read that staff report HERE.  Again, there are some major problems throughout the city when it rains.  The conclusion from the staff report tells us that it will cost at least $16.5 million to resolve every drainage problem and that solving the "hot spots" - those predictable and critical areas where flooding occurs - will cost $4.1 million to fix.  Typically, drainage fees for new development and redevelopment are used and coordinated with federally and locally funded street improvement projects.  A lack of grant funds available has caused there to be insufficient funds available to rapidly correct all the drainage problems in our city.
 
NEXT SPECIAL STUDY SESSION ON TUESDAY
The next Special Study Session will be held next Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at 4:30 in council chambers.  Expect the council to continue to address infrastructure issues in anticipation of the 2012/2013 budget process.

 BALANCING "WISHES" WITH "NEEDS"
A sidebar from the meeting Thursday.  Several of the council members made reference to the term "wish list" as the meeting progressed.  They take offense at the suggestion that some of the projects on their 5-year plan are, in fact, "wishes" not "needs".  Wendy Leece expressed the hope that the council will attempt to balance their wishes for infrastructure improvements with the needs of public safety - police and fire - and other services that the residents expect.  Based on their universal lack of response to her observations, I don't have a very good feeling about how this budget process is going.  The only place there is money to fund the "wishes" is in the bucket that holds the dollars for the "needs" - the pay and benefits of the employees of the city.

Study Session On Capital Projects Today

CAPITAL PROJECTS UNDER REVIEW
This afternoon, beginning at 4:30 in City Council Chambers, the Costa Mesa City Council will hold another pre-budget Special Study Session.  This one will cover more capital projects.

AGENDA
On the agenda are three items: (click on the title to read the staff reports and the attachments)

SR-55 Gateway Improvement Project - Monument Sign Option

City Street and Alley Pavement Needs Update
      
        Pavement Management Overview (3/8/11)

        Alley Priority List
 
City's Master Drainage Plan Update

I'll report back later on what progress or direction is given on these important issues.

Important Study Session Tomorrow

FINANCES ARE THE FOCUS
Tomorrow, Tuesday, January 31st, the Costa Mesa City Council will hold a VERY important study session in the council chambers beginning at 4:30 p.m. Public comments are much more limited in Study Sessions - a maximum of 15 minutes is provided for ALL speakers and no comments will be permitted following the discussion of the issues.

POLICIES AND FORECASTS
Finance and Information Technology Director Bobby Young will guide the discussion tomorrow. The issues to be discussed are 1) Review of Financial and Budget Policies and 2) 5-Year Financial Forecast and Capital Reinvestment Strategy. I expect the discussion to be lively because City finances have been the cornerstone of much of the unpleasantness created by this City Council over the past nearly a year.

RESERVES
The staff report for the Review of Financial and Budget Policies may be read HERE. This is very important because it presents a way to codify certain mandatory requirements, including a Minimum Fund Balance Reserve; a Minimum Cash Balance and an Emergency Fund Balance Reserve.

REVENUE MANAGEMENT
In addition, the discussion will also cover General Revenue Management, including how to maintain a diversified and stable revenue base; forecasting general revenue; how to manage one-time revenues and annual user fees and charges.

APPROPRIATIONS, CAPITAL BUDGETS AND DEBT
They will also cover the adoption of appropriation limits; budgetary control, Capital Budget policies including a minimum percent of the General Fund budget for capital expenditures. And there will be a discussion of Debt Issuance and - the elephant in the room - Unfunded Liability.

FORECASTS AND STRATEGIES
The second segment will cover the Five Year Financial Forecast and Capital Reinvestment Strategy, the staff report for which can be found HERE.

A WINDOW INTO THE CITY COUNCIL MINDS
This is also a VERY important issue and the staff will look to the City Council to provide suggestions about future priorities. The staff has provided a comprehensive look at the past decade to help the council focus on the future.

MIGHT AS WELL BE GREEK!
I am among those who have no small degree of difficulty understanding the complexity of municipal finance management, regardless how patient the finance staff has been with me over the years. However, these issues are so important - and the responses the council will give to this data are so important to measure their true intentions for our city - that I'm going to pop a few No-Doze, splash some water on my face and try to follow the discussion. And, I'll try to present this information to you later.

WILL BE TELEVISED AND STREAMED LIVE
However, since this meeting will be held in Council Chambers, CMTV will televise it live on Channel 24 (Time Warner Cable) and Channel 99 (ATT U-Verse) and will also be streamed live on the city web site.