SALUTE TO THE FLAG

The salute to the flag was led by Mayor Vorreiter.

David Lamar announced a special meeting of the Mountain View Citizens for Safe Drinking Water for discussion of damaging effects of fluoridation. The meeting will be held on Saturday at Noon, and more information and the location may be obtained by calling (650) 968-1424 or at www.nofluoride.com.

Gary Wesley, Mountain View, announced the discussion regarding fluoridation in Sunnyvale, in connection with Item No. 7 on tonight’s agenda.

Mayor Vorreiter stated that there was an unfortunate incident that happened in the downtown this weekend and that the City Manager would give an update on the situation.

City Manager LaSala stated that on Saturday night there was a disturbance on Murphy Avenue involving a large number of people. Vandalism and damage occurred to retail establishments and arrests were made for disorderly conduct and an injury took place. Currently, an assessment of the damage is being conducted, and a meeting was held with the downtown business community regarding why the incident occurred. Discussions took place on opportunities for lessons learned and how communication with downtown establishments and outside law enforcement agencies can be improved. A standard criminal investigation is underway, and the Department of Public Safety acted responsibly in the interests of protecting public safety and property. Additional law enforcement presence will be added in the downtown area this weekend and Wednesday evening.

Deborah Gale of Junior Achievement of Santa Clara County stated that the organization offers career and economic awareness education to young people. Programs are taught by volunteers who utilize lesson materials from a kit prepared by her organization. She stated that their programs are working, as they are helping kids to stay in school. More volunteers are needed. Interested individuals may call 988-8915 or visit www.jascc.org for more information.

Councilmember Miller requested the removal of Items 1.F. and 1.G. from the Consent Calendar. Vice Mayor Walker moved, and Councilmember Miller seconded, approval of the Consent Calendar, with the exception of Items 1.F. and 1.G. The motion carried unanimously.

Management Analyst Parkhurst presented the staff report.

Councilmember Miller commended staff on the salary adjustments.

Mayor Vorreiter opened and closed the public hearing at 7:50 p.m.

Councilmember Miller moved, and Vice Mayor Walker seconded, adoption of the resolution. The motion carried unanimously.

Mayor Vorreiter opened and closed the public hearing at 7:51 p.m.

Councilmember Miller moved, and Vice Mayor Walker seconded, adoption of the resolution. The motion carried unanimously.

Parks and Recreation Director Walker presented the staff report and responded to Council questions.

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 8:09 p.m.

Gary Wesley, Mountain View, stated that this issue came up in Mountain View, and that he looked into Palo Alto’s program, which had a 19-year-old person monitoring it, and that he saw drug use.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 8:10 p.m.

Councilmember Roberts moved, and Councilmember Valerio seconded, adoption of alternative 1 in the staff report, to approve the conceptual plan for development of a skatepark at Fair Oaks Park at an estimated cost of $570,092, direct staff to pursue detailed construction plans at an estimated cost of $50,000 (included in the $570,092) for purposes of securing construction bids, and direct staff to return to Council for approval of any award of bid with identified construction costs.

Councilmember Fowler made a substitute motion to adopt alternative 5 in the staff report, to support Fair Oaks Park as the best location for possible development of a skatepark in accordance with the conceptual site plan, and direct the City Manager to include his recommendation regarding whether or not to fund this project in his

Recommended Budget Resource Allocation Plan to Council for Fiscal Year 2001/2002 in the spring of 2001. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Risch and carried unanimously.

Associate Planner Spence presented the staff report and responded to Council questions. Principal Planner Bell also addressed Council questions.

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 8:20 p.m.

Thomas Whitford, applicant, stated that his project fit in well with the neighborhood, and that while parking was not ideal, it was workable.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 8:29 p.m.

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUNNYVALE AMENDING THE PRECISE ZONING PLAN, ZONING DISTRICTS MAP, TO REZONE CERTAIN PROPERTY LOCATED AT 350 BEEMER AVENUE FROM R-2 (LOW-MEDIUM DENSITY RESIDENTIAL) DISTRICT TO R-2/PD (MEDIUM DENSITY RESIDENTIAL/PLANNED DEVELOPMENT) DISTRICT

Vice Mayor Walker moved, and Councilmember Valerio seconded, to affirm the Negative Declaration and approve the Rezone, Special Development Permit and Tentative Map in accordance with conditions, with added conditions of approval to work with the neighbors regarding the blank wall on the right side elevation and the zero lot line wall, and to hold first reading of the ordinance. The motion carried unanimously.

Councilmember Fowler requested a Study Issue regarding privacy issues related to border areas between zoning districts where residential and non-residential abut one another, to include a review of the current regulations for lighting, security cameras and lines of sight in that context, since he is not convinced that we have the optimum regulations currently.

Assistant Planner Jones presented the staff report.

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 8:50 p.m.

Charles Wallin, Frances St., stated that the neighborhood has a distinct history with many prominent civic leaders owning property there in years past. He also stated that the issue of heritage designation has been discussed for many years and that the temporary barriers should be permanent structures. He further stated that the street lighting was inadequate, that utility undergrounding was a high-cost item and that street paving was appropriate to consider.

Chris Carpenter, Frances St., stated that he hosted the neighborhood meeting, that his priority is permanent street closures, and that improvements should be made in partnership with the City.

Dennis Moreno, Frances St., stated his priorities as (1) permanent street closures; (2) identification markers; (3) street paving (bricks); and (4) consideration of an assessment district.

Andy Maloney, Frances St., stated his support for options 1 and 2. He also stated that the goal was to produce a solution to the traffic off El Camino and identification markers in an aesthetic way, and that he wanted to explore cost sharing opportunities.

Brian Queen, Frances St., stated that he agreed with the first speaker, likes the street closure at El Camino and that he would like to know the assessment amount before he agreed to it.

Ron Harnack, Taaffe St., stated that the residents have not had enough time to consider an assessment district, that they are not advocating further traffic restrictions, and that he is not in favor of tree cutting.

Ron Ritucci, stated that he thought the City had located funding for the project, and that he was in opposition to tree damage. He also stated that the area was designated a heritage area due to the streetscape of beautiful trees.

Assana Fard stated that the residents were willing to have the items done on their priority list one at a time, and that she would be willing to pay for an assessment, depending upon the amount, time period, and what it included.

Barbara Nichols, Frances St., stated that her priorities were permanent street closures and more lighting on streets. She also stated that PG&E trims the trees every year, that she would like to see cost options, and would be willing to pay for an assessment depending upon cost.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 9:32 p.m.

Vice Mayor Walker moved, and Councilmember Risch seconded, to approve alternatives 1, 5 and 7.

Following discussion, Vice Mayor Walker amended his motion to include alternatives 1, 4, 5 and 7.

Councilmember Miller requested that alternative 7 be dropped from the motion. Vice Mayor Walker let the motion stand.

The motion to approve in concept all five identity features desired by the residents (alternative 1); direct staff to pursue grants for the desired projects and assume all maintenance responsibilities (alternative 4); direct staff to work with the neighborhood on self-funding such as assessment district or private contributions (alternative 5); and direct staff to include undergrounding of utilities for neighborhoods not likely to redevelop as part of the in-lieu fee for undergrounding study issue deferred to 2001 (alternative 7) carried unanimously.

Mayor Vorreiter presented the item and explained the request for funding.

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 9:48 p.m.

Joe Antuzzi, Sunnyvale Downtown Association, presented a written budget recap to Council, and stated that the event has been very successful. He stated that the purpose of the event was to bring people downtown, to get people used to the parking situation during construction, and to give the community a sense of togetherness. He also explained the programs which would be supported by different levels of funding, $15,000, $25,000, and $40,000.

Suzi Blackman, President/CEO, Chamber of Commerce, spoke in support of the event and the funding request, and explained that a sense of urgency prompted the merchants to seek out a way to bring people downtown and mitigate the effects of the construction projects during redevelopment.

Donna Dewey, downtown business owner, stated that the event has been good for her business, and she would like to see the event continue.

Nick Gera stated that this should be more of a community event, and that Pop Warner and Little League should be involved in the food booths.

Pat Castillo, Chair of Chamber of Commerce, stated that the idea for a concert series was proposed to the Board by a City employee, and that it was her understanding that the City wanted to partner in this program. She also stated that the City did provide some funding, outreach, and advertising when the Farmers’ Market first started.

Grace Wit, Corporate Community Affairs, AMD, stated that the event was successful and that her company supports partnerships. She also stated that AMD received a tremendous number of requests for assistance and that this would be something she would recommend to support in the future if there were a partnership formed with the City.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 10:43 p.m.

Vice Mayor Walker moved, and Councilmember Miller seconded, approval of $25,000 to the Chamber of Commerce in support of the Sunnyvale Downtown Association’s (SDA) efforts in the "Midweek Market and Music Madness" event.

Councilmember Fowler stated that since the $25,000 would cover the deficit and the next two events, he requested a friendly amendment to direct staff to work with the SDA and Chamber for a costing-out plan for the future, to be brought back to Council, in order that if the Council were to choose to continue to fund the program, they would have the program outlined and budgeted before they make a decision.

Vice Mayor Walker and Councilmember Miller accepted the friendly amendment.

Vice Mayor Walker clarified that his motion included having the funds drawn from the fiscal uncertainties account.

Councilmember Valerio requested a friendly amendment to provide the entire amount requested, $40,000.

Vice Mayor Walker did not accept the friendly amendment.

Councilmember Valerio made a substitute motion, seconded by Vice Mayor Walker, to approve the $40,000 funding request to the Chamber to be drawn from the fiscal uncertainties account, with Councilmember Fowler’s stipulation for future programming.

Councilmember Fowler stated that the additional $15,000 was not programmed yet and that his intent was to have it programmed first prior to a Council decision on the additional funds.

The substitute motion to approve the $40,000 funding request to the Chamber of Commerce in support of the Sunnyvale Downtown Association’s (SDA) efforts in the "Midweek Market and Music Madness" event, to be drawn from the fiscal uncertainties account, carried by the following roll call vote:

Mayor Vorreiter recessed the meeting at 10:54 p.m. and reconvened the meeting at 11:04 p.m.

Public Safety Director Bakin presented the staff report.

Mayor Vorreiter opened and closed the public hearing at 11:05 p.m.

Vice Mayor Walker moved, and Councilmember Valerio seconded, the appointment of Councilmember Risch and Councilmember Fowler to represent Sunnyvale on the Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority Board of Directors. The motion carried unanimously.

Councilmember Roberts moved, and Councilmember Fowler seconded, to authorize the City Manager to designate two Alternate Directors. The motion carried unanimously.

Councilmember Risch stated that information came to his attention recently regarding the wording of the ballot measure. He moved that this information came to his attention subsequent to the posting of the agenda, and since there is a need to take immediate action on this item due to the deadlines for the upcoming election, he would like to add this item to the agenda for action. Vice Mayor Walker seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Councilmember Risch explained that he recently had discussions with the members of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) and they indicated to him that there might be questions regarding the language on the ballot which indicated that the funding for this would be solely paid for by the users or the State or something other than the residents of Sunnyvale. SFPUC pointed out that already Sunnyvale is paying for fluoridation in the current system, and that the upgrades being considered were not necessarily specific to fluoridation but might be considered a general upgrade to the entire system. They also pointed to the City’s current agreement under the Bay Area Water Users Association (BAWUA) which says that a City is responsible for paying for the costs of the entire system. He continued that according to the SFPUC, there are questions about whether or not we put on the ballot that the rate payers would not pay for the fluoridation, whether that would be enforceable or be to our advantage. The City Attorney has drafted a revised ballot question which states: "Shall the City of Sunnyvale accept fluoridated water from its water suppliers?"

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 11:10 p.m.

Gary Wesley, Mountain View, stated that changing the ballot language is unfair to anyone who has submitted an argument, or if someone had already prepared an argument.

David Lamar, Mountain View, stated that the Council was acting at the last minute and there was no staff report. He stated that the City knew about this for a while and that there was not enough public notice.

Billie Barewald stated that it was unfair to make this decision tonight since the ballot arguments were due tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. She also stated that there is no hurry on this issue and that the SFPUC was forcing cities to make a decision.

Michael Flores, Sunnyvale, stated that he was concerned that there was no paperwork on this, and that the City was rushing to meet a deadline.

Lowell Carlstrom, Sunnyvale, stated that he could not understand why there is a rush for this, that it is a controversial issue, and that debate should have taken place before the measure was placed on the ballot.

City Manager LaSala stated that the City will have three public information meetings on the issue, and that he will provide information about these forums to the Council by the next Council meeting.

Bobbi Evenson stated that she was not informed on this matter far enough in advance.

Paul Schmitt, Sunnyvale, stated that he appreciated the change in the language since he saw the matter as a public health issue. He also stated that the public was not informed and he wanted to know what research had been done on the issue.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 11:47 p.m.

Councilmember Risch moved, and Vice Mayor Walker seconded, to adopt a resolution modifying the ballot question language for Measure "S" from "Shall the City of Sunnyvale accept fluoridated water from its water suppliers in compliance with State law requiring the fluoridation of public water systems, so long as the capital and associated costs of fluoridation are not passed on to the local ratepayers and/or taxpayers?" to "Shall the City of Sunnyvale accept fluoridated water from its water suppliers?"

Resolution No. 179-00: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUNNYVALE AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 176-00 REGARDING SUBMITTING TO THE VOTERS OF THE CITY A MEASURE CONCERNING FLUORIDATION OF THE WATER SUPPLY

The motion carried unanimously.

Councilmember Risch presented a draft of a written ballot argument in favor of Measure "S", which was reviewed by Council.

Mayor Vorreiter opened the public hearing at 12:05 a.m.

Gary Wesley, Mountain View, stated that the Council could designate members of the Council to author a ballot argument without taking a position on the measure.

David Lamar, Mountain View, spoke against the process, and suggested that the Council write an argument only in the case of no one else submitting arguments.

Bobbi Evenson, Sunnyvale, asked why it was just the two Councilmembers who were going to be designated.

Billie Barewald stated that she wanted to show a video last week on the harmful effects of fluoride and that she will leave it for others to view.

Michael Flores stated that if the Council writes an argument, there will be a priority on their comments. He also stated that there has not been enough research done on this.

Paul Schmitt, Sunnyvale, stated that the agenda item seemed ambiguous, and that it was not appropriate to write an argument unless the Council decided to take a "for" position.

Lowell Carlstrom, Sunnyvale, read from several articles citing the harmful effects of fluoridation.

Mayor Vorreiter closed the public hearing at 12:20 p.m.

Councilmember Miller moved, and Councilmember Roberts seconded, that the Council not take a position on the water fluoridation ballot measure.

Councilmember Risch requested a friendly amendment to designate Councilmember Risch and Vice Mayor Walker as authors of the argument in favor of the measure.

Councilmember Miller stated that this does not need to be part of her motion.

The motion that the Council not take a position on the water fluoridation ballot measure carried unanimously.

Councilmember Roberts moved, and Councilmember Miller seconded, to designate Councilmember Risch and Vice Mayor Walker to write the ballot argument in favor of Measure "S". The motion carried unanimously.

Michael Flores spoke against the nuisance vehicle ordinance. He stated that the adhesive used to stick notices to vehicle windshields was inappropriate since it was difficult to remove.

Vice Mayor Walker requested clarification on the City’s public forums on the water fluoridation issue.

City Manager LaSala stated that Dan Rich was handling the matter and that information will be available regarding the date, time, and place by the next Council meeting.

Councilmember Risch stated that a member of OHPIE called him, and they stated that they were nearly ready to begin construction, and they were wondering why the OHPIE agreement was not on tonight’s agenda.

City Manager LaSala stated that he would look into the matter and get back to Councilmember Risch.

Councilmember Miller stated that she had the same issue with Councilmember Fowler’s study issue on privacy issues, and that she had a conversation with Barry Boole on this regarding San Anselmo, and she forwarded that question to staff and was wondering what the response was.

City Manager LaSala stated that staff had responded, and that at Councilmember Miller’s request, he would forward the e-mail to her and Councilmember Fowler.

Councilmember Miller asked what the large payment on the list of bills was to Gordon Chong and Associates.

City Manager LaSala stated that this was for the design of the downtown parking garage.

There were no comments from staff.

Mayor Vorreiter declared the meeting adjourned at 12:39 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda Kelly
Senior Management Analyst/
Deputy City Clerk