|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
PAC meeting Oct. 1 2008 6:30 PM Santa Ana Hts. Fire station PAC members in attendance: Barbara Venezia, Tim Stoaks, Richard Moriarty, Rick Dayton, Gary Hall, Jayne Jones, Gary Golson, Ted Bosley, Mary Slouka Non excused absence: Ted Nichols Special note: Dave Kiff is on vacation and could not attend. Approval of minutes from August 2008. PAC member Richard Moriarty made a motion to approve minutes. Gary Hall seconds the motion. Minutes are approved. 1 / BV Welcome comments and introductions: Christopher G. Kubasek, P. E. Engineering Supervisor O C Public Works/Construction Division, Brian Contino Newport Beach Code Enforcement Chairman Remarks: I've been involved with PAC since 1995 and your chairman for almost 4 years now. During my time here I've made many friends and fought many battles to get our projects approved and built. Supervisor Moorlach and his Chief of Staff Mario Mainero's leadership and organization helped move PAC projects forward. They've managed to save the majority of our projects. We now see Kline Dr. taking shape, the Orchard St. Park completed, the Irvine Ave widening and Bristol St. Sidewalk all moving along nicely under the guidance of George Britton and Keri Bullock. But the City of Newport Beach projects have faltered, been grossly over budget and slow to take shape. The Mesa Birch park which should have taken 2 months to complete is now 9 months and counting. I see planting beginning today, but for the last nine months we've only see movement on this project every other month around PAC time, when reports on projects are due and they know Mario and George will be watching. The activity lasts for a few days until they are below the countys radar once again. This pattern of inefficiency and miss management comes as no surprise. The equestrian arena is a prime example. A simple structure of normal horse railing that should have been one of the simplest projects to complete and was near execution by the County when annexation took place in 2003, still continues in a bureaucratic nightmare that the city has enveloped it in. Countless consultants, plans, study after study, no one today could even tell us what the City, and the County before them, has spent in dollars and man hours in just the past 10 years. My guess is the numbers would be staggering. At one time we had a community center project and 11 million dollars approved by the County. The city refused to listen to the recommendations of PAC, residents, and YMCA against Leslie Daiglels plan for an Olympic size pool proposing swim meets of 2000 spectators to the site. The project cost over 28 million, the county pulled funding and the community center that would have served the entire area was lost. We saw the fire station go from a 4.5 million dollar project to in excess of 11 million in just a few years. And now we face undergrounding which started out at $2,773,497.60 now at an approved cost of $7 million and does not include the Mesa Trail extension as it had since its inception. The city told me last week that they plan to present the county with a bill for what they've spent so far,2 million dollars. They've spent almost as much as the original cost estimate and we don't even have final construction plans. In addition we have now slipped off the priority list for undergrounding from Southern Ca Edison, yet the city project manager told me they still plan to start construction in January. How could that be, when apparently we've dropped off the radar for Southern Ca. Edison? Maybe southern Ca Edison is as fed up with the inefficiency at the city as I am. The issue of private hook up funds hasn't even been settled with the community. Once told it was included in the RDA now we find it is not. Money and time is running out. In a conversation with Supervisor Moorlach last week he reiterated again that there will be no more funding once the balance of the $5 million is gone. But it is my belief that the city management does not believe that money and time is wearing thin. Call it denial or stupidity, no one is facing reality. And the reality is unless PAC is taken out of the middle of this situation there is no hope for this projects survival. The county holds the purse strings and needs to put a project manager immediately in the mix and all parties need to be accountable directly to the Supervisors office. It is for that reason that I am stepping down as your PAC chairman. In my tenure I created the PAC website so the public would be better informed and would hope that George and Keri continue to use that as an informational source for residents. By far my proudest moment was seeing the West Side annexation completed. That was a long hard battle. My job has been to lead this group in advising the County on RDA projects. My advice now, PAC has done its job and all it can do. It has been my pleasure to serve this community and I've made life long friends on this board. It has been an honor and a privilege to work with John Moorlach and especially Mario Mainero. George Britton and group has done a great job and it's ironic that the project that first got me involved in PAC, the Mesa Birch Undergrounding and trail extension, is the project that made me realize its time to step aside. This will be my last PAC meeting as your chairman and a PAC member. Public Comments: (3 minutes or less) no comments Mario Mainero then took the floor and stated how much he respects Barbara and the maturity of the PAC as a committee. He reflected on his experience working with Barbara along with other PAC members and praised their willingness to sit down with him and go over what projects could and couldn't be done. Mario reminded us that he was then able to move forward with those projects and was successful in getting the necessary votes from the County Board of Supervisors. Mario went on to state the complete annexation of Santa Ana Heights to Newport Beach was what most residents wanted. Now that annexation is complete he sees declining attendance of the PAC meetings. He stated that at this point the county now only writes the checks for the remaining projects and the county no longer has any other jurisdiction over the projects. He reminded us that there will be a park completed and that the Orchard St. improvements are under budget. Mario suggests that our community needs to work with the city of Newport Beach to see completion of the remaining projects. He sees PACs role now is to advocate for the neighborhood and he feels there is still a role that PAC can play on getting the projects finished. To the best of his knowledge the under-grounding project will begin in January 2009 and PAC should make sure mailers get answered that are sent to the homeowners. He confirmed that the county will not be paying for the hookups as we all know. Mario reported that the reality is the Mesa Dr. trail will not go in because City Council is not in favor of it and a few residents by the trail are still opposed to it. Mario went on to congratulate Barbara for being such a strong community leader and thanked all PAC members as well for our efforts in the community. Mario asked Barbara not to resign and mentioned the county has not accepted her resignation yet. Being there is no need for her to step down but to look at this point in time as another phase of the role of PAC. Mario went on to thank The Project Advisory Committee for their cooperation in working with him these past few years and that it has been a very pleasant and rewarding experience for him. Barbara thanked Mario for his comments and stated that George Britton will do a fine job on behalf of the projects. Barbara reflected on her 15 years working on the undergrounding project that she now believes will not be completed due to rising costs. Discussion was made that people are worn out from trying to get projects done. At one point the city agreed to pay for the hooks ups in order for the project to be completed then told that could not legally be done. Barbara mentioned that in 94 the private hookups costs where what stopped the under-grounding happen then. Tim noted that private hookups were paid for on Birch St. in the past and that if they aren't paid for now it won't go through. The history of the hook ups it won't go through. George Britton mentioned that the county can not spend public money on private hookups. From the beginning the private costs for hookups was a key issue. Mario again thanked Barbara and the PAC for their efforts then excused himself from the remainder of the meeting. Motion to approve minutes by Richard Moriarty and second by Gary Hall 4/ Staff and Committee Reports George Britton reports on: - Kline Dr The County has retained the firm of Stantec Consulting, Inc. of Irvine to proceed with preparation of a Project Report. The Project Report is a combination engineering and planning document intended to analyze a number of key project-related issues including drainage, road geometry, impacts to existing improvements, schedule, and cost. In addition, the planning process includes discussions with the Edison Company to determine where the existing utility poles will be relocated and what additional right of way (if any) is required, in order to make room for the proposed improvements to Kline Drive. The goal is to start construction in the spring or summer of 2009. 5/ Irvine Ave Widening Bristol St Sidewalk Report Christopher G. Kubasek, P. E. The Irvine Avenue Widening project proposed to widen Irvine Avenue from Bristol Street to south of Mesa Drives from four lanes to six lanes. The project consists of constructing retaining walls, new curb and gutter, sidewalk, storm drains, roadway paving and new traffic signals at Irvine/Mesa and Irvine Orchard. The project will be constructed in two phases. Phase 1 consists of constructing the retaining walls, street and storm drain improvements. Phase 2 consist of constructing the street median and completing the roadway paving. The traffic control for Phase 1 is in place and work is progressing well. The retaining wall along the golf course is completed and the retaining wall at the corner of Irvine and Orchard Drive is near completion. The contractor is working of constructing the retaining walls along the apartment complex at the corner of Irvine Avenue and Mesa Drive. This is a cooperative project between the City of Newport and will allow a bigger flow of traffic to move in the area. It was asked who is paying for the under-grounding of the improvements on this project. Chris stated that it is a relocation of Edison equipment and Edison is taking care of that. The poles will be moved over, not under-grounded. The construction area along Irvine will be removed once the project is complete. A question was raised as to who will be in charge of landscaping the meridian once the project is complete and he will provide that information to us. It is anticipated the project will be completed in late spring 2009. Typically landscaping is the last thing completed. The Irvine Ranch Market wall will be moved and the Back Bay Center owners are working on a remedy for the location of the wall. He reminds is there will be some really rigorous times when construction will slow traffic down considerably and he asks us to be patient during this time. The Bristol Street Sidewalk project constructs sidewalk and street improvements on South Bristol Street along the golf course. The project is on standby due to the utility delay, a previously unidentified power service to street lights on the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor needs to be relocated. The county is working with the contractor to relocate the power line that feeds the lights. It is anticipated that the project will be completed by late fall 2008. Christopher G. Kubasek, P. E. Engineering Supervisor Contracts Inspection Section O C Public Works/Construction Division (714) 567-7832 Office (714) 567-7813 Fax 6/ Brian Contino Code Enforcement October is our wet season and he would like to remind everyone if you are doing construction make sure you have sandbags and fences. He also reminded everyone to keep trails clean. Richard asked what is being done about weed abatement in the Delhi area. Brian agreed to research the proper channels on who to contact and get back to him on this. Asked about the changes he mentioned last meeting to the keeping of animals in the REQ and he said nothing is being changed regarding those requirements. 7/ Development Committee � Rick Dayton Regarding the granny unit at 20431 Cypress St. SANTA ANA HEIGHTS PROJECT ADVISORY COMMITTEE Date: 09/22/08 Javier Garcia, AICP Senior Planner, City of Newport Beach 3300 Newport Blvd. P.O. Box 1768 Newport Beach, CA92658-8915 (949) 644-3206 fax: (949) 644-3229 RE: CNB UP2008-053 (PA2008-168 (20431 Cypress Street, new granny unit) PRR Response #2 Dear Mr. Garcia: Thank you for sending the floor plans for the proposed new residence with granny unit. After conversation with the Planning Department, PAC understands that the proposed granny unit will conform to the requirements for granny units in Zoning Code Chapter 20.85. The Development Committee has reservations about the approval of this granny unit. The consensus on the committee is that this is a thinly veiled attempt to put in an apartment unit disguised as a granny unit. What granny is going to climb 22 risers on a regular basis? Given the history of the Leason properties in the SAH area, there is a heightened sensitivity to the bootlegging of multiple living units in single family residences. The Planning Department has successfully discouraged the abuse of the granny unit concept to put in illegal rental units in other parts of the city, specifically Newport Heights. PAC would like to see the Planning Department use the same diligence to prevent illegal rental units in the SAH area. Sincerely, Richard A. Dayton PAC Development Committee Chairman (949) 645-1717 fax: (949) 645-4243 PAC Development Committee members Barbara Venezia, PAC Chairman Dave Kiff, City of Newport Beach Assistant City Manager David Lepo, Planning Director A second project was reviewed at county Orchard 2022 St. SANTA ANA HEIGHTS PROJECT ADVISORY COMMITTEE Date: 09/15/08 Javier Garcia, AICP Senior Planner, City of Newport Beach 3300 Newport Blvd. P.O. Box 1768 Newport Beach, CA92658-8915 (949) 644-3206 fax: (949) 644-3229 RE: CNB UP2008-055 (PA2008-170 (20431 Cypress Street, new granny unit) Dear Mr. Garcia: The PAC Development Committee has reviewed the submitted PRR materials for 2022 Orchard Drive to demolish the existing building and construct a new 3,832 SF two-story office building over a ground level open parking structure. The site, which apparently is only 7,663 SF after street dedication, is far below the BP District standard of 19,800 SF minimum. It is a Specific Plan goal and PAC's preference to encourage lot consolidation and larger commercial projects in the BP District. However, in this specific case, lot consolidation would only be possible with the lot immediately to the east of the project site, 2052 Orchard Drive. Consolidation with this lot would still not meet the minimum 19,800 SF requirement. PAC recommends waiver of the minimum lot size requirement due this special circumstance. It appears that the proposed project meets the front setback requirement of 10 feet. However, the building height at the front setback line is indicated as 37 feet. This height far exceeds the height limit requirement of 15 feet sloping up to 18 feet in the first 20 feet measured from the front setback line. PAC does not recommend waiver of the Specific Plan height requirement. In conclusion, other than the waiver of the minimum site area requirement, PAC recommends that the project be required to meet all applicable conditions of the BP District for this site. Thank you for the opportunity to review this project. Sincerely, Richard A. Dayton PAC Development Committee Chairman (949) 645-1717 fax: (949) 645-4243 cc. PAC Development Committee members Barbara Venezia, PAC Chairperson Dave Kiff, City of Newport Beach Assistant City Manager David Lepo, Planning Director Regarding the Bristol slope meeting with JWA: The PAC Development Committee had a very good meeting on Tuesday, 9/30, with John Leyerle and Glenn Owens with JWA regarding the slope stabilization and landscaping for the Bristol Street slope. JWA has decided to de-couple the project from the mandated turn-lane/maintenance building relocation project, so they can proceed with the slope project on its own. They shared with us the recommendations they had received in the 2001 consultant's report. They have asked PAC to give a consensus recommendation so they can proceed with a new design phase for the slope. John Leyerle mentioned that the cost of design and engineering is already in the current fiscal year budget, but that the project needed to be presented to the Board of Supervisors in time for the construction budget to be part of next fiscal year's budget, which begins in June, 2009. The PAC committee will have a follow-up meeting with JWA in approximately 3 weeks, and will give recommendations. The airport's goals in this project are: 1. Airport security 2. Life cycle costs 3. Slope stabilization 4. Aesthetics PAC recognizes the importance of all these goals, but will emphasize aesthetics, as this is what affects the neighborhood the most. Anyone on PAC or in the community that would like to give input on the slope project to the committee should contact Rick Dayton: 949.645.1717. 8/ Equestrian Committee- Jayne Jones George Britton talked to Keeton Kreitzer earlier in the week and it was reported that Keeton had not received any significant responses to the negative declaration report. There are just a few days before time is up if anyone would still like to respond. The report will then be turned into staff and all comments will be reviewed. Once that is completed it will be up for approval of City Council, then go on to a review and approval by the Coastal Commission. Tim Stoaks suggested that PAC get an accounting of how much money has been spend on the project so far. On closing Barbara stated that she even though she is resigning from PAC she won't be abandoning us and she again assured members and guests that she will work with us to make this a smooth transition. She will work with George Britton regarding project information and with PAC Secretary Jayne Jones on the minutes. The next PAC meeting will be Feb. 4th, 2009. Vice Chair Tim Stoaks will conduct the meeting. Mary Slouka mentioned her thoughts are that if PAC disbanded the projects won't get done. It was also mentioned PAC is only required to meet 4 times a year, if members feel less meetings are needed. Richard Moriarty spoke for all PAC members stating that it has been a pleasure working with Barbara and thanked her for all of her accomplishments as the Chair of PAC. Richard Moriarty made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Gary Hall. The meeting was adjourned at 7:41 P.M. |
|
||