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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - March 18, 2019 - CCCITY OF AZUSA MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL, THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO THE FORMER REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY, THE PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY REGULAR MEETING MONDAY, MARCH 18, 2019 – 6:30 P.M. The City Council of the City of Azusa met in regular session at the above date and time in the Azusa Auditorium located at 213 E. Foothill Boulevard, Azusa, CA 91702. Mayor Rocha called the meeting to order at 6:31 P.M. ROLL CALL: Roll call was taken by City Clerk Cornejo. Councilmember Carrillo arrived at 6:42 p.m., after roll call. PRESENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE ALSO PRESENT Elected Officials: City Clerk Cornejo. Staff Members: City Manager Gonzalez, City Attorney Martinez, Chief of Police Hunt, Director of Human Resources & Risk Management Bragg, Neighborhood Services Coordinator Quiroz, and Chief Deputy City Clerk Garcia. PUBLIC COMMENT None given. CLOSED SESSION The City Council recessed to closed session at 6:33 P.M. to discuss the following: 1. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – WORKERS COMPENSATION CLAIM Pursuant to California Government Code, Section 54956.95. Case Name(s): Paul Dennis v. City of Azusa; WC Claim No. AXUA-2422 & CJP039360AZ Richard Hayden v. City of Azusa; WC Claim No. AZUA-2404, CJP040370AZ & CJPO38674AZ REGULAR SESSION Mayor Rocha called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. ROLL CALL: Roll call was taken by City Clerk Cornejo. PRESENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE ALSO PRESENT Elected Officials: City Clerk Cornejo. Staff Members: City Manager Gonzalez, City Attorney Martinez, Chief of Police Hunt, Director of Public Works/City Engineer Bobadilla, Director of Recreation and Family Services Carpenter, Director of Human Resources & Risk Management Bragg, Director of Economic & Community Development Marquez, Director of Utilities Robledo, Senior Planner Munoz, Economic Development Specialist Campos, Neighborhood Services Coordinator Quiroz, and Chief Deputy City Clerk Garcia. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Mr. Jim Taite. The invocation was given by Elder John Velasquez, Encouragement Community Church. CLOSED SESSION REPORT The City Council reconvened at 7:30 P.M.; City Attorney Martinez announced the following regarding Closed Session: Item No. 1: All Councilmembers were present; City Council heard a presentation from Staff and legal counsel regarding both claims, City Council provided direction, no reportable action. CEREMONIAL The Azusa Chamber of Commerce presented checks from the proceeds of the Casino Night Fundraiser to Azusa American Little League, Azusa National Little League, Azusa Jr. All American Football Raiders, Azusa Little League Softball, and the City of Azusa Department of Recreation and Family Services. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Noe Zacarias expressed concerns regarding a vicious dog that attacked him and his dogs while they were walking; and requested that the homeowner do better to secure their fence. Mr. Jim Taite expressed his opposition of the proposed California Grand Village Azusa Greens Project, discussed the City of Azusa General Plan, and provided a newspaper article to the Council. Ms. Susana Taite expressed her appreciation of My Third Place; discussed the importance of open space; and encouraged the Council to keep the City’s open spaces. Mr. Greg Benton, Canyon City Church Pastor, announced the official launch of the church on March 31 at Valleydale Recreation Center; and discussed the importance of service to the City. Ms. Celeste Hutchason expressed concerns regarding street vendors in the road; and inquired about the City’s street vending regulations. Ms. Jacquelyn Swenson expressed concerns regarding notification about development at the colorama site and traffic on Sierra Madre Avenue; and inquired about the City’s plans to address an increase in traffic due to new developments in the area. City Manager Gonzalez responded to public comments stating that Mr. Zacarias is able to contact the Police Department or the Department of Animal Control regarding vicious dogs; Director of Economic and Community Development Marquez has approached Ms. Hutchason to provide information regarding street vending regulations and the Code Enforcement Division is available to patrol the area; and stated that the development at the colorama site went through the required process, website updates regarding development are available, Staff will continue to provide quarterly development updates to the Council, and Staff will continue to do their best to get information out. In response to questions posed by the Council regarding street vendors, City Attorney Martinez stated that the City requires a standard business license for vendors; the recently adopted Urgency Ordinance does not include regulations but does include standards that regulate where someone may vend; and if vendors are not in the correct area, the Code Enforcement Division is authorized to make enforcements. City Manager Gonzales stated that Staff will provide a status report 6 months after the Urgency Ordinance was adopted; the Police Department can provide enforcement on weekends; and Staff can look into the possibility of flex schedules for Code Enforcement Officers. City Attorney Martinez further stated that the Urgency Ordinance includes standards for Health Department Permits as well as requirements for vending locations during City events; the City is limited to administrative citations; and the Health Department has the ability to confiscate vending carts, the City does not. City Manager Gonzalez stated that Staff will look into flex schedules for Code Enforcement Officers and how the City is doing with enforcement and provide a six month status report in June or July. REPORTS, UPDATES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM STAFF/COUNCIL Request to designate voting delegate and alternate to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) General Assembly scheduled for May 1-3, 2019 in Palm Desert (Oral Report) Moved by Councilmember Alvarez, seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Gonzales and carried by unanimous vote of the Council designate Councilmember Macias as the voting delegate, and Councilmember Carrillo as the alternate to the SCAG General Assembly. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE Mayor Pro-Tem Gonzales thanked the Chamber of Commerce for the check presenting ceremony; thanked the Azusa American Little League, the Azusa Girls Softball League, Azusa Raiders, Azusa Recreation Department, and Councilmember Macias for their support; stated that he attended the Azusa American Little League opening day and congratulated them for their upcoming season and thanked them for dedicating their season to his brother Louie, who recently passed away. Councilmember Alvarez stated that he also attended the Azusa American Little League opening day and expressed concerns regarding locating fields for the league to practice; and requested that Staff look into solutions to allow the league to practice at City parks. Councilmember Macias requested that Staff reach out to the School District to find out if the Little League can continue to use the Lee School baseball field for practices; inquired about Alcoholic Beverage Control application for licenses and how to determine if the application is for a new license or transfer license and also inquired about the City’s options regarding the license applications. PAGE TWO – 3/18/2019 City Attorney Martinez responded to the inquiries stating that the City has the ability, as a zoning body, to approve any and all licenses; with respect to requested licenses in an over-concentrated areas, the City has to make an additional finding regarding public convenience and necessity; the City already has that process in place; and if a previous license did not exist at a location, the CUP process will take effect. Councilmember Macias requested that more attention be placed on the alcohol license applications to allow for proper vetting by the Council, Police Department, and Staff. City Manager Gonzalez provided a brief summary of how alcohol license requests are handled stating that the Planning Department and Planning Commission has a process for Conditional Use Permits; there are different types of licenses such as beer and wine or full; in addition, there are off-site and on-site licenses such as retail and restaurants. Staff will provide a report on the process and the number of licenses in the City. Councilmember Macias requested an informational report on the process; requested that Staff begin looking at beautifying the City’s medians; and commented on the condition of the sidewalks, missing tiles, and missing electrical covers in the downtown area. Councilmember Carrillo, on behalf of the Azusa Softball Little League, thanked everyone that was able to participate in the fundraiser that made the donations to the City’s youth programs possible; expressed his apologies to the Azusa American Little League for not being able to attend the opening day ceremony; announced the opening day ceremony for Azusa Softball Little League on March 23, 2019; stated that there are currently 12 teams in the Azusa Softball Little League; expressed concerns regarding the lack of field space for the softball leagues as there can be up to four teams practicing on one field at Memorial and Zacatecas parks; expressed dismay for the fees that are charged to leagues for the use of school fields that were previously utilized by multiple teams; he stated that the civic auditorium is utilized by the School District for board meetings at no charge to the District other than costs associated with audio/visual broadcasting; and challenged his colleagues on the School Board to develop policies that provide additional opportunities for the youth to have practice spaces. Mayor Rocha announced that he was not able to attend the Azusa American Little League opening day due to a previously scheduled Community Safety Workshop; provided information about the Community Safety Workshop; stated that a clean-up event was held on Azusa Avenue on March 9; announced the following events: March 23 – beautification of flower beds, March 30 – Canyon Clean-up, April 2 – Seal Beach Clean-Up; and asked that everyone keep the service men and women in their daily prayers. SCHEDULED ITEMS SELECTION OF MAYOR PRO-TEM Moved by Councilmember Macias, seconded by Councilmember Carrillo and carried by unanimous vote of the Council to select Councilmember Edward J. Alvarez as Mayor Pro-Tem for a one-year term, expiring March, 2020. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE EXTEND ASSIGNMENT OF OUTSIDE AGENCIES BOARD, COMMITTEES AND APPROVE THE EXISTING SUB-COMMITTEE & AD-HOC COMMITTEE APOINTMENTS Discussion ensued regarding the assignments to outside agencies. Moved by Councilmember Carrillo, seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Alvarez and carried by unanimous vote of the Council to appoint Councilmember Gonzales to the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments for a one year period from April 2019 to March 2020. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE Further discussion ensued regarding appointments to boards and commissions and assignments coinciding with election or appointment terms, Staff will look at current Ordinances and bring them back to Council for further direction; the structure of the Golden Days Committee and representation by a member of the Council on the Committee, Staff will provide a formal report on the Committee for Council review at a later time. Moved by Councilmember Gonzales, seconded by Councilmember Carrillo and carried by unanimous vote of the Council to extend the existing assignments of outside Board and Committees, including the change of Councilmember Gonzales as representative to the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, for a one year period from April 2019 to March 2020; and addressing the concerns posed by the Councilmembers. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE PAGE THREE – 3/18/2019 CONSOLIDATION OF THE CITY’S 457(B) PLAN RECORD-KEEPING PLATFORMS FROM FOUR DIFFERENT PROVIDERS TO A SINGLE RECORD-KEEPING PLATFORM WITH MASSMUTUAL Director of Human Resources & Risk Management Bragg presented the Staff Report stating than an audit of the City’s 457(B) Plans was conducted, and Staff is recommending that the City Council approve the consolidation of the current four 457(b) deferred compensation plan record-keepers to a single record-keeping platform with MassMutual. Ms. JoAnn Parrino, SFG Retirement Plan Consulting, LLC, provided an overview of the audit, Request for Proposals results; and fees and interest rates. It was determined that plan participants would benefit by consolidating the four record- keepers to a single record-keeper, MassMutual, effective July 1, 2019. In response to questions posed by the Council, Ms. Parrino stated that the funds are an open architecture menu; current investments were audited as well as recommended investments for the past 10 years; a quantitative and qualitative analysis was completed which determined the final menu; investments are monitored every quarter to ensure that funds act as they should; upon consolidation, 50 funds would be available; the conversion process is detailed, there is no reallocation, assets will automatically be matched to the new menu; information will be provided to participants; the Personnel Board did not review process, but the bargaining groups were part of the process; there will be no impact to current loans. Moved by Councilmember Gonzales, seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Alvarez and carried by unanimous vote of the Council to approve the consolidation of the current four 457(b) deferred compensation plan record-keepers to a single record- keeping platform with MassMutual effective July 1, 2019; and authorize the City Manager, as the City’s Plan Administrator, to execute the necessary agreements in a form acceptable to the City Attorney. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE CONSENT CALENDAR: Moved by Councilmember Macias, seconded by Councilmember Carrillo and carried by the following vote of the Council, to approve Consent Calendar Items E-1 to E-11, with the exception of Item E-8, which was handled under the Special Call portion of the agenda. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE 1. The minutes of the Special Meetings of January 28, 2019, February 25, 2019, and March 1, 2019 were approved as written. 2. Resolution No. 2019-C08 was adopted and entitled: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AZUSA ALLOWING CERTAIN CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AND SPECIFYING THE FUNDS OUT OF WHICH THE SAME ARE TO BE PAID. 3. The Human Resources Action Items, in accordance with the City of Azusa Civil Service Rules Section 5.75 and applicable Memorandum of Understanding(s), were approved as follows: Merit Increase and/or Regular Appointment: Z. Romero, V. Villagomez Jr., G. Conrad Promotion: T. Vuong Separation: J. A. Toledo. 4. Staff was authorized to solicit a Request for Proposals to perform industrial/commercial facility inspections in accordance with the MS4 Permit. 5. The project completion for the art monument adjacent to the Azusa Intermodal Transit Center located at the southeast corner of Azusa Avenue and the Transit Center Buss Way was accepted; and Staff was authorized to file a Notice of Completion for the art monument. 6. Routmatch Software, Inc. was determined to be a sole source vendor based on their specific software module, middleware, services and expertise; a contract with Routematch Software, Inc. to purchase dispatch software and all relevant equipment for the operation for the Transit Division was approved; the City Manager was authorized to execute the contract on behalf of the City; and the appropriation of $7,920 of Prop A Funds as local match required by the FTA grant and costs which exceed the initial estimate was authorized. 7. The City Treasurer’s Statement of Cash and Investment Balances for the month of January 2019 was received, reviewed, and filed. 8. Special Call. 9. A Professional Services Agreement was awarded to Computer Service Company for traffic signal maintenance services; and the City Manager was authorized to execute the agreement on behalf of the City. 10. The City Treasurer’s Report of Receipts, Disbursements and Fund Balances for the month of October 2018 was received, reviewed, and filed. PAGE FOUR– 3/18/2019 11. A Short Form Construction Contract was awarded to lowest bidder Eco Energy Solutions, Inc., in a total not-to- exceed amount of $143,259, plus an allowance of $14,000 for potential change orders, for relocating electric service equipment along the Foothill Transit Way as per plan specifications ED2018-BusCharger for Project LD2019-1 located in the middle of the Foothill Transit Bus Way between Azusa Avenue and Alameda Avenue; the City Manager was authorized to execute the contract on behalf of the City; and a general fund appropriation in the amount of $39,493 to fund relocating electric service equipment for Project LD2019-1 was authorized. Special Call CONTRACT AGREEMENTS EXECUTED BY CITY MANAGER FOR AUGUST THROUGH OCTOBER 2018 In response to questions posed by the Council, City Manager Gonzalez stated that West Coast Shopping Carts is to provide shopping cart retrieval services in the City; Staff will obtain a report regarding the number of carts retrieved, problem areas, and days worked. Moved by Councilmember Macias, seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Alvarez and carried by unanimous vote of the Council to receive and file the list of agreements executed by the City Manager for the months of August through October 2018. AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: GONZALES, CARRILLO, MACIAS, ALVAREZ, ROCHA NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned by consensus of the City Council. TIME OF ADJOURNMENT: 9:15 P.M. __________________________________________ CITY CLERK NEXT RESOLUTION NO. 2019-09 (City) NEXT ORDINANCE NO. 2019-01 NEXT RESOLUTION NO. 2019-R06 (Former Redevelopment Agency) NEXT MEETINGS: April 1, 2019 and April 15, 2019. PAGE FIVE – 3/18/2019