03-18-2014 - Regular Meeting - MinutesMINUTES
REGULAR MEETING OF THE
WEST COVINA CITY COUNCIL
March 18, 2014
Mayor Herfert called to order the regular meeting of the West Covina City Council at 7:07 p.m. in the
City Hall Council Chambers, 1444 W. Garvey Avenue, West Covina.
INVOCATION Pastor Samuel Martinez
Christian Faith Center
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Pro Tern Fredrick Sykes
ROLL CALL Mayor Herfert, Mayor Pro Tern Sykes,
Councilmembers Spence, Toma, Warshaw
REPORTING OUT FROM CLOSED SESSION
Deputy City Attorney Scott Nichols reported the following:
Prior to convening into closed session, all items on the City
Council and the Successor Agency agendas were announced for
inclusion in the closed session discussion with all members
present.
Items on the City Council/Successor Agency agendas:
Conference with Legal Counsel — Existing Litigation — City
of West Covina v. Hassen Imports Partnership, et al.; Los Angeles
Superior Court Case No. KC048157; In re Hassen Imports
Partnership, Debtor, United States Bankruptcy Court Case No.
2:11-bk-42068-ER; In re Hassen Imports Partnership, Debtor,
United States District Court Case No. 2:13-cv-07532-CAS —
Deputy City Attorney Nichols reported that the City
Council/Successor Agency Board met with Special Counsel Steve
Owens and discussed various strategies regarding the litigation
including potential settlements with no reportable action taken.
Item on the City Council agenda:
Conference with Legal Counsel — Existing Litigation —
West Covina Improvement Association v. City of West Covina, et
al., Superior Court Case No. BS135923; City of West Covina,
Appellants, v. West Covina Improvement Association, Appellees,
Court of Appeal Case No. B247712 — Nichols reported that this
item was not discussed. The City Council will reconvene the
special meeting closed session discussion after the regular meeting.
Any reportable action will be reported out after the meeting.
CHANGES TO THE AGENDA No changes.
PRESENTATIONS Mayor Herfert called forward Bob Cruz, Southern California Gas
Company Public Affairs Manager, and Raul Gordillo, Community
Outreach Manager, who provided information on the new
Advanced Gas meters being installed in the community.
Mayor Herfert called forward Ben Wong, Local Public Affairs
Manager for Southern California Edison to present the City with
the highest recognition of a Platinum Award — the Beacon
Spotlight Award — and introduced dignitaries present.
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
Jill Quezada Jill Quezada, West Covina resident, introduced herself as an
applicant for the Human Resources Commission.
City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
Armida Espinoza Armida Espinoza, West Covina resident, introduced herself as a
Human Resources Commission applicant and gave a brief
background of her activities in the community with her children.
Trudy Saltmarsh Trudy Saltmarsh, West Covina resident, gave a brief background
of her experience that would be relative to the human resources
commission and felt she could bring experience to the commission.
Joselyn Blakely Joselyn Blakely, West Covina resident, introduced herself and her
familiarity with advisory committees in local government and
recruitment procedures and expressed her desire to serve on the
commission.
Colleen Rozatti Colleen Rozatti, West Covina resident, introduced herself as the
City Treasurer and addressed money owed to the State due to
recent litigation and announced upcoming financial investments.
Mark Anderson Mark Anderson, West Covina resident, expressed concern that the
proposed rental housing ordinance is inefficient and impacting
fixed income residents and owners of rental properties and opposes
the program.
Ron Lauciello Ron Lauciello, West Covina resident, addressed the rental housing
ordinance opposing the ordinance and the proposed tax on owners
of rental properties.
Gary Gileno Gary Gileno, West Covina resident, spoke in opposition of the
rental housing ordinance pointing to the lack of need to assess fees.
Patty Fors Patty Fors, West Covina resident, representing Sunset Gardens
Apartments, opposes the possibility that complying owners will be
unjustly assessed.
Diana Silva Diana Silva, West Covina resident/apartment manager, opposed
the rental ordinance that will add another inspection to their units
that are already inspected and had numerous questions regarding
the implementation of the program.
Dave Stewart Dave Stewart, West Covina resident, expressed concern with the
proposed rental housing ordinance and offered some suggestions.
Steve Green Steve Green, West Covina resident, spoke in opposition to the
proposed rental housing ordinance and addressed it as unnecessary
and also addressed the financial burden to tenants.
Tim Johnson Tim Johnson, Executive Director of California Apartment
Association, made suggestions to the rental housing inspection
program to focus on those properties that are actually impacting
city resources and also suggested the city look at implementing a
good landlord program.
Councilmember Warshaw inquired about self -certification
and the costs and Mr. Johnson responded to his questions.
Bruce Leinbach Bruce Leinbach, West Covina resident, addressed an Olympian
from Iowa; opposed the rental ordinance and suggested Code
Enforcement cite violators.
Carolyn Arndt Carolyn Arndt, West Covina resident, announced a town hall
meeting on the General Plan which will be held in the Council
Chambers on Wednesday, March 19 at 7:00 PM.
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City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
Juan Reynoso Juan Reynoso, West Covina resident, stated he had asked for
public records over two years ago for graffiti service logs which he
was denied.
Elsie Messman Elsie Messman, West Covina resident, stated Attorney John
McClendon has not yet been paid after representing the West
Covina Improvement Association lawsuit that the City lost. In
addition, she submitted a public records request to the City
Manager for information on expenditures with more detail and
suggested that attorney disbursements be audited.
Johnny Chua/Joshua Surjono Johnny Chua/Joshua Surjono, representing the Filipino Chamber of
Commerce, extended an invitation to their Easter event on April 19
from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Gospel Life Church.
John Shewmaker John Shewmaker, West Covina resident, addressed the Assembly
bill proposed by Assemblymember Roger Hernandez; the rental
housing ordinance; and litigation costs.
Augie Galaviz Augie Galaviz, West Covina resident, District Commander of the
Veterans organization/American Legion, requested the City to
waive fees for the use of Palmview Park for their annual picnic
honoring veterans that have been deployed.
Herb Redholtz Herb Redholtz, West Covina resident, addressed the vandalized
Cory Lidle statue at Big League Dreams inquiring about security;
and expressed opposition to Assemblymember Roger Hernandez'
proposed Assembly bill.
George Ogden George Ogden, West Covina resident, thanked Councilmember
Warshaw for clarifying the source of funds for the Veterans
Memorial and submitted a check to the city for recently raised
donations.
Claudia Goytia Claudia Goytia, representative to Assemblyman Roger Hernandez,
on behalf of the Assemblyman, invited the community to coffee on
March 27 at the West Covina Library from 10:00 — 11:00 am to
discuss issues and hear the Assemblymember's perspective on
legislation.
K. Rajah K. Rajah, Glendora resident, spoke in opposition to the rental
housing ordinance citing the financial burden on owners and
limiting his ability to help his renters by not increasing their rents
in this economy.
Mark San Filipo Mark San Filipo, West Covina resident, offered suggestions on
improving the rental housing ordinance program.
Mayor Pro Tem Sykes requested to address Mr. Reynosa's request
for public records following the break.
Recess Mayor Herfert recessed the City Council meeting at 8:50 p.m.
Reconvene The City Council reconvened at 9:00 p.m. with all members
present.
The following item was moved forward to be considered after Oral
Communications.
Public Works
Item 6 Consideration of a Rental Housing Inspection and Regulatory
Program
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City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
Mayor Herfert moved Item #6 — Consideration of a Rental
Housing Inspection and Regulatory Program — to after Oral
Communications in order to address the numerous public
comments brought forth.
Motion Councilmember Spence stated he would like to make a motion to
reject the rental inspection fee and no longer have staff work on
this matter. Seconded by Herfert.
Councilmember Warshaw requested to hear the staff report
due to the comments made at the community workshop he attended
and did not want to "squash" the matter at this time.
Councilmember Toma concurred and asked to hear the
report.
City Manager Chung gave a brief history on how the
subject matter came to the City's attention.
Public Works Director Shannon Yauchzee presented the staff
report explaining how the issue was raised in 2012 by residents
due to a rise in crime in local neighborhoods. Former Mayor
Shelley Sanderson requested a report in September 2013 for a
program similar to the City of Covina to eliminate blight and
preserve the housing stock.
He briefly outlined elements of Covina's program that
include permit fees to recoup inspection costs and enforcement to
correct violations.
In November 2013, the City of West Covina conducted a
workshop and those attending expressed opposition for various
reasons such as opposition to new taxes, proposed fees being too
high, that only violators be targeted, adding staff to monitor the
program without additional taxes, opposing a per unit fee and, to
exclude owners of properties with homeowner's associations. He
also reported receiving emails or calls in opposition and one
neutral response.
Yauchzee briefly covered the status of the City's Code
Enforcement division that oversees 12,000-13,000 rental housing
units composed of single family residences, duplexes, and
apartments and the costs and use of fees collected with only one
code enforcement employee. He then gave options and points to
consider if staff is directed to proceed with the ordinance. He then
offered to answer questions.
Council discussion Councilmembers discussed their views on the matter with a variety
of ideas for looking into implementing a program or not
considering this matter any further at this time. Councilmember
Toma did not want to have any further work on the matter until the
budget was first reviewed to prevent any impact on the General
Fund; Mayor Pro Tern Sykes would like to bring the matter back
after review of the budget; and Councilmember Warshaw would
like to continue considering the ordinance and have the item
brought back some time in the future.
Discussion ensued regarding whether to table the item or
discontinue work on the matter
Restated Motion Motion by Spence and seconded by Herfert to reject the rental
inspection fee and no longer have staff work on this matter.
Motion carried by 3 — 2 (Sykes, Warshaw — No).
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS (continued)
Mayor Herfert returned to Oral Communication to discuss any
follow up or concerns. City Manager Chung responded to the
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City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
request by a speaker for information under the Public Records Act
for Graffiti records and requested to have staff review the previous
request and response.
CONSENT CALENDAR
1) Approval of Meeting Minutes (receive & file)
Minutes Special City Council Meeting Minutes of February 18, 2014
Regular City Council Meeting Minutes of February 18, 2014
2) City Clerk's Office
Destruction of Documents Destruction of Documents as Prescribed by Law
Recommendation is that the City Council adopt the following
resolution authorizing the destruction of specific records:
Resolution No. 2014-9 RESOLUTION NO. 2014-9 — A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY
COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST COVINA, CALIFORNIA,
AUTHORIZING THE DESTRUCTION OF CERTAIN
DOCUMENTS AS PRESCRIBED BY LAW
The following item was pulled from the Consent Calendar for
separate consideration.
City Manager's Office
3) Letter of Opposition to Assembly Bill 1980 (Hernandez) — Public
AB 1980 Public Safety Services Safety Services
Recommendation is that the City Council oppose Assemblyman
Roger Hernandez' Assembly Bill 1980, which seeks to eliminate
local government control, specifically over public safety services.
Public Works
4) Lot Line Adjustment No. 181
Lot Line Adjustment No. 181 1221 S. Montezuma Way
Recommendation is that the City Council adopt the following
resolution:
Resolution No. 2014-10 RESOLUTION NO. 2014-10 — A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY
COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST COVINA, CALIFORNIA,
APPROVING LOT LINE ADJUSTMENT NO. 181 AT 1221 S.
MONTEZUMA WAY AND DIRECTING THE RECORDATION
THEREOF (SOUTH HILLS COUNTRY CLUB AND
ELSHAZLY FATHALL)
CONSENT CALENDAR ACTION Motion by Warshaw and seconded by Toma to approve all items
listed on the Consent Calendar as presented except Item #3 —
Letter of Opposition to Assembly Bill 1980 (Hernandez) — Public
Safety Services.
Motion carried by 5 — 0.
Item 3 Letter of Opposition to Assembly Bill 1980 (Hernandez) — Public
Safety Services
Mayor Herfert introduced the item and addressed the fact that this
bill would take local control out of the hands of West Covina
residents and would leave the decisions in the hands of someone in
Sacramento or a regional policing agency.
Motion Motion by Herfert and seconded by Warshaw, who agrees that this
matter should be by ordinance giving the people of West Covina
the vote in this matter, to send a letter of opposition to Assembly
Bill 1980 (Hernandez) — Public Safety Services.
Motion carried by 5 — 0.
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City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
DEPARTMENTAL REGULAR MATTERS
City Clerk's Office
5) Appointment of Human Resources Commissioner
Human Resources Commission Mayor Herfert introduced the item and thanked the applicants for
coming and offering to serve on the commission. He then opened
the matter for Council discussion and/or comments.
City Manager Chung announced a fifth applicant, Russell
Gordon, was not able to attend but is still interested in serving on
the commission.
Councilmember Warshaw provided a brief background of
Russell Gordon's experience in law and human resources/workers'
compensation.
Mayor Herfert asked for nominations.
Motion by Councilmember Warshaw to nominate Russell Gordon,
seconded by Spence. Spence stated he supported all of the
candidates as well qualified.
Councilmembers engaged in brief discussion on the applicants'
qualifications and the difficulty of selecting from applicants that
are all qualified to serve.
Mayor Herfert restated motion by Warshaw and seconded by
Spence to nominate Russell Gordon. Deputy City Attorney
reiterated that the appointment will require three affirmative votes.
Motion failed 2-1. (lack of three affirmative votes)
Motion Motion by Toma and seconded by Sykes to nominate Jocelyn
Blakely to serve the remaining three-year term that expires on
March 31, 2016 of the Human Resources Commission.
Motion carried by 5 — 0.
Public Works
6) Consideration of a Rental Housing Inspection and Regulatory
Rental Housing Program Program
This item was discussed earlier after Oral Communications.
MAYOR/COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS
Mayor Pro Tem Fred Sykes
7) Code Amendment to Prohibit Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Mayor Pro Tern Sykes introduced the item expressing his views for
bringing this matter forward and requested Council's consensus to
address some of the dangers and problems of medical Marijuana
dispensaries.
Councilmember Spence agreed that the City should have
some kind of ordinance in place before a law is adopted to allow
the dispensaries. Councilmembers discussed options.
Motion Motion by Spence and seconded Sykes to approve Option #5, to
direct staff to prepare a code amendment to prohibit Medical
Marijuana Dispensaries and to include standards and restrictions in
the event the Federal government requires cities to allow Medical
Marijuana Dispensaries and the City has codes in place prior.
Motion carried 5-0.
Continuing Closed Session Mayor Herfert stated the City council would be reconvening closed
session discussion. Deputy City Attorney Nichols provided
direction for the City Council to recess the Regular Meeting to
reconvene the earlier Special Meeting to continue closed session
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City Council Minutes of March 18, 2014
discussion. Reporting out of closed session will follow the special
meeting and the regular meeting will adjourn at that time.
COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Warshaw announced he attended a Foothill
Transit meeting and reported on their energy saving programs and
the provision of funds to cities to upgrade bus stops.
ADJOURNMENT Mayor Herfert announced the meeting would be adjourned in
memory of Walt Martin, 40 year resident, who recently passed
away.
Submitted by:
i
Assistant City`C erk Susan Rush
The regular City Council meeting adjourned at 11:00 p.m.
following the Special Meeting closed session discussion.
Mayor S
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