|
Be sure to check out the YouTube HERE of our Zoom on the History of Live Theater in Carmel with Stephen Moorer. Carmel has been honored with many influencers, artists, directors, producers, writers, performers, and stages about town. Hear about these notable people and the early locations and delivery of in-person enjoyment over the decades. For more on this great presentation and Stephen Moorer visit this link. Thanks Stephen.
City Council Meeting - February 2 nd 4:30 – Extraordinary Agenda Items C.Rerig extends a Welcome Brandon Swanson as new Community Planning & Building Director and a big thanks to Marnie Waffle for her service as acting Director in this past year.
Please see the PineCone Issue from Jan 29th – Page 3A for article on Brandon Swanson - HERE.
 Food Waste Reduction & Organics Recycling Regulations Rob Hilton of HF&H Consultants presenting. SB1383 ties to disposal of organic waste due to their significant emission of methane gas – a super pollutant. Regulations take effect in January 2022. By January of 2025 we must achieve 75% reduction of organics in our disposal and 20% recovery of disposed edible food. But we must act now. Specifically, in 2022 we must provide organics collection service to all residents and business, establish edible food recovery plan, conduct education and outreach, procurement and use organics, and address capacity planning.
By January of 2024 action will be taken against non-compliant entities. Combination of Monterey Waste Regional Management District and GreenWaste will help guide and apply support, monitoring and reinforcements of these regulations. Many aspects of these requirements are well underway due to their existing investments and efforts.
For more information go to https://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/organics and subscribe to email updates on this effort at www2.calrecycle.ca.gov/Listservs/subscribe/152
Council Discussion: Question on 20% Recovery of Food Waste – is this applicable to residential? No, it is not. This item is targeted at businesses in the food industries (grocery, restaurant, food manufacturing etc.). Council noted that some of our recent rate increases were tied to efforts required due to these regulations. Large events leftovers will be impacted by food recovery regulations but not until 2024
City Storm Drain Master Plan Report – presented by Bob Harary of Public Works. Objective of this report includes getting in front of “whack-a-mole” fixes, unknown resource, and budget impacts. This report provides a big picture plan for assessment, capacity limitations and prioritizing improvements. Our drainage points include Carmel Bay and River & Pescadero Canyon. Known backup points are mapped for planned maintenance. Resources are applied to addressing erosion, cracked sagging, and collapsed pipes, cleaning of debris, sediment and catch basins.
19 drainage projects are prioritized and scoped to accommodate 10-year estimated storm impacts (10-year storm is 3” rain in 24 hours. 5.2 inches of rain last week over several days). $9.9 million is needed to repair the system to handle 10-year storms, $4 million to fix the 2 key projects. Copy of the Storm Drain Master Plan is available HERE
Public Appearances – Non-Agenda Items
Staff & Council Announcements
1. C.Rerig – City Administrator
a. Extends thanks to city resources and more to support the needs of the village tied to last week's storm.
b. And bring closure on the Special Council Meeting held last month on picnicking proposal there was 3 open items: Insurance, County Regulations and ABC approval of this use. Mixed findings include carriers said they would not insure this open/flex use concept, the county did not believe this would be allowed under stay-at-home orders, and the ABC licensing organization said this use would be OK. However, with the Governor’s action lifting the stay-at-home order and expanded business operations, then shelved need for further action.
c. Outdoor dining permits have authorized service hours ending at 10PM for new customer seating and all customers must be off premise by 11PM.
d. The existing Outdoor seating ad hoc committee will meet next Monday Feb 8th, with public access & public notice provided. They are open to expanding this committee in the days to come.
2. B.Richards – Ad hoc Ambulance/Fire Committee is forming with Carrie Theis in days to come. He also requested clarification of distinction between an ad hoc vs a standing committee. Chip clarifies – Ad hoc has 2 members of council, with all other members as guests with no permanent additional members of that committee, they are time limited to address a specific topic. Ad hoc committees – do not have to adhere to Brown Act requirements.
3. J.Baron – Extends appreciation to City staff, Public Works, Police and CERT teams during last week storms. The Climate Committee's next meeting (Friday Feb 18th) will have presentation from Greenhouse Gases from MBAG and Central Coast Community Energy and possibly PG&E on power grid.
4. K.Ferlito – HWY 1 litter issue getting coverage on social media and publications. She recommends everyone use www.KeepMontereyCountyClean.org to report trash and illegal dumping.
5. C.Theis – Thankful that the stay-at-home order is lifted. However, Requests restaurants self-police their permit compliance to minimize applying Police resources to this item.
6. D.Potter – Offers extra thanks for amazing Library services in these COVID-19 times. And our city limit challenges are real here – constraining our official authorization to assist beyond our borders – knowing there are some Mutual Aid formalized collaborations in place. Incorrectly, many people in the area believe the High School, the Point, Highlands, Mission Ranch, Crossroads, and more are inside Carmel-by-the-Sea city limits.
Mid-Year Budget Status Report – C.Rerig and S.Friedrichsen Today’s presentation covers an update council on the first 6 months budget, with request to approve budget amendments and to provide direction on go/no-go on opening the Discretionary Grant program.
On the charts shown - note the improved T0T and Property revenue actuals. However, C.Rerig stresses continued spending caution, especially as there are significant unknown Pandemic impacts.
Summarized Council Discussions:
J.Baron – With improved overall budget performance, suggests opening up items to reconsider approving various expenditures that are time sensitive, requesting staff come back next month with recommendations. Example of potential expense items include required Greenhouse Gas report for Climate Action Plan mandated by State Law and Sunset Center windows.
C.Theis – Good news includes that TOT dollars are larger than anticipated. However, it takes $1,000,000 of cash to run this town and we must assure the money is there. She also recommends staff come back with suggested expense items to consider – especially items that are time sensitive. She also suggests that Beach Paid Parking (not business area) should be on the table as a new income source.
K.Ferlito – Supports considering the Greenhouse Gas report, Town clean-up and reminds attendees of the open items mentioned in the Storm Drain report heard earlier tonight. There are many items that can be candidates for possible available $’s.
D.Potter – Concerned the Pandemic unknowns’ demand continued caution on any possible new expense approvals. He observes in these COVID-19 times, that physical and fiscal variables are very interdependent for the first time. Timing is everything. He is missing further understanding of the time sensitive Greenhouse Gas study dependencies and requests a staff report is prepared on just this item for next Council March 2.
Decisions:
Budget Amendment – Approved with requested supplemental report on the discussed Greenhouse Gas item.
Opening the process for the Discretionary Grant Program – Approved by Council (all grants in prior fiscal year total $’s 20,000) – K.Ferlito reinforced there are many small organizations that have scarce funding sources and this program should continue.
Fire & Ambulance Services RFP – presented by P.Tomasi with G.Panholzer From 1990 – 2012, our town had a JPA agreement in place but in 2012 the Joint Powers Authority with Monterey was dissolved. At that time, we transitioned Ambulance Staff to being city employees and are cross trained as firefighters – a unique combination.
In June 2020 – Council gave approval for City Administrator to terminate existing Fire Services Contract with Monterey, honoring the 12-month notice requirement. The new RFP negotiation goals to include addressing pandemic/budget constraints, management options and expand proactive community outreach for preventative measures.
The initial RFP efforts have uncovered many challenges. LAFCO could block the RFP due to impact to Monterey firefighter employment. And when exploring State vs Municipal Fire Services RFP, the challenges included a. Workforce stability (as state personnel can transfer throughout the state) b. Financial Risk, and c. Implementation, specifically integrating Ambulance coverage with the State may not be possible & differences in work schedules do not mesh between State and Municipal teams.
Recommendations: Allow City Administrator to pursue a 12-month extension to the existing contract with Monterey, expiring June 30, 2022. During this extension period to renegotiate a longer-term agreement for our town. Plus have ad hoc committee collaborate on the requirements and content of the June 2022 contract.
J.Baron – Questions if ad hoc committee is beneficial for this RFP work, beyond open community input. Separately tied to the Climate Committee work, there are members who’d like to see enhancement of defensible space efforts.
C.Rerig – Stressed the benefits of ad hoc contributions to this renegotiation, while expanding their understanding of Fire/Ambulance Services.
K.Ferlito – Also reinforces fire corresponding prevention needs & safety concern discussions with citizens – as she heard when campaigning.
Reminder Note: in the June 2020 City Council Meeting - CRA raised the critical requirement to maintain the strong historical Ambulance response times - for the benefit of our visitors and residents.
Recommendation - Approved.
Future Requested Agenda Items by Council C.Theis – Revisit the DelMar Beach Parking Fees proposal and revisit the issues on Mail Delivery and Street Addresses.
K.Ferlito – Also reinforces the critical topic of Mail Delivery and Street Addresses.
B.Richards – Is it possible to eliminate the cost & use of City provided second phone for Council?
J.Baron – Requested staff prepare a scope & issues report on the Carmel Resort Inn on Carpenter Project.
END of City Council – at 7:30 PM Remember To Shop Carmel Our local small business owners are relying on our support.
Follow this link to search our Chamber Business Directory to find what you need: members.carmelchamber.org/list/,
And here is the Carmel Outdoor Dining and To Go link Take Out Guide & Specials.... Many locations offer free delivery too.
COVID-19 Updates, Testing, Vaccine Rollout and Purple Tier Everything COVID-19 continues to evolve in the days, weeks and months to come. Please continue to wear masks, wash hands and social distance. And always make sure to source information from your trusted medical or pharmaceutical professional and our County web sites.
Here are a few links you may find useful. www.mtyhd.org/covidtesting and www.mtyhd.org/covid. You can also visit this Monterey County page at www.mcvaccinate.com to register for vaccinations as they become available from the county.
Note: Large healthcare systems (Sutter Health, Kaiser Permanente and Dignity Health) have been allocated large vaccination quantities in the areas they serve, including Santa Cruz and the SF Bay Area counties. You may find access to vaccination appointments more readily available if you are able to travel. In parallel, Monterey County is pushing hard on California State leadership to dramatically improve Monterey County vaccination allocations and access.
Monterey County remains, for now, in the Purple Tier classification with regard to what our businesses are permitted under this designation. The color tier matrix is available to you HERE. We are all looking forward to updates supporting expanded access and services in the days to come.
And, we extend our Love and Thanks to all of our Members who have submitted their 2021 Membership Dues. We appreciate and value your continued support. You can also join or renew your membership on our website at www.carmelresidents.org, or reach out to [email protected] with any questions you may have. And.....in 9 days.....
Your questions and suggestions are always welcome. Stay safe and healthy.
Carmel Residents Association
PO Box 13, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921
|
News You Can Use - February 5th, 2021
