| Reposted by San Lorenzo Express |
MINUTES
SAN LORENZO VILLAGE HOMES ASSOCIATION
MEETING NO. 1133
October 19, 2006
The regular meeting of the San Lorenzo Village Homes Association Board of Directors was held Thursday, October 19, 2006.
1.1 CALL TO ORDER -- President Ledesma called the meeting to order at 7:34 p.m.
1.2 SALUTE TO THE FLAG -- President Ledesma led the Board and the audience in the pledge of allegiance.
1.3 ROLL CALL -- Directors Patrick Ledesma, Wulf Bieschke, Jim Sherman, Peggy Sheridan and Pat Pebelier were present.
2.O MINUTES FROM THE PREVIOUS MEETING -- Director Bieschke noted that item 2.0 from meeting 1131 stated that both "Director Bieschke and Director Pebelier seconded the motion; the minutes should be amended to read "Director Pebelier seconded the minutes".
Director Sherman moved to approve the notes taken at Work Session Number 1132 and the Board minutes as amended from the meeting Number 1131. Director Pebelier seconds the motion. The Work Session notes and the Board minutes are approved unanimously.
3.0 COMMENTS FROM PUBLIC AGENCIES
3.1 Alameda County Sheriff's Dept. -- Deputy Litsky gave statistics for the past month:
Statistics for Alameda County Sheriff's Office September 2006 (Streets where crime occurred were not provided by the deputy)
Change from
Crime Number last month Affected Streets
Stolen vehicles 20 (see attachment A)
Attempted Stolen Vehicles 1
Recovered Stolen Vehicles 8
Residential Burglary 3
Commercial Burglary 4
Auto Burglary 5
Grand Theft 6
Vandalism/graffiti 3
Robbery 4
Litsky noted that there has been a large increase in auto thefts in the area. The patrol division is making an attempt to more active with respect to this. He did note that the robberies over-all are down, however there still are a fair amount of armed robberies which is of concern and the sheriff's office is trying to deal with this in a variety of ways.
Litsky reported that the sheriffs department has been involved in a prostitution sting on Mission Blvd. He noted that his department had over 20 arrests within the last few weeks. They also recently recovered two groves of marijuana in unincorporated county. Over 2100 plants were confiscated in one location.
The Sheriff's Citizen's Academy is just starting and they had their first meeting last night. There is still room for more people and he invited residents to come join the class which will run Wednesday nights for the next several weeks. He also noted that his department participated in the Supervisors Clean up day for Ashland, Cherryland and San Lorenzo.
Litsky said he wrote a proposal to add four (4) additional vehicle abatement officers for the unincorporated area. He stated that the Board of Supervisors is in support of this, and it should be passed and in affect as of January 2007. Litsky noted that the new proposal would not be affected by county budget cuts but would fund itself through enforcement and ticketing. He noted that right now the county is 3 weeks or 300 cars behind with parking or abatement problems due to the limited staff (only two technicians for the entire Castro Valley, Ashland , Cherryland, San Lorenzo area).
3.2 CHP -- The CHP reported the following statistics for September 2006:
CHP Statistics for September 2006
Total for
Infraction San Lorenzo Unincorp. area
Collisions 19 154
Tickets 140 1,598
Parking Tickets 42 320
Storage/Impounds 8 96
Stolen Recoveries 0 13
Traffic Complaints 3 14
Parking Complaints* 0 3
DUI Arrests -- --
*Note that these have been redirected to the Sheriff's office.
Resident Kathie Ready stated that there is a tar trailer parked on Via Arriba that has been there for 3 months, she asked the CHP and/or Sheriffs to please address this issue. Resident Keith Barros thanked the CHP for the raider trailer that has been down at the end of Grant near Channel. He asked if the officer had any information about the accident that took place last Tuesday in front of San Lorenzo High. The officer had no current information. Barros stressed the need for more enforcement in and around school zone areas.
Director Jim Sherman stated that radar can be used in the school zone regardless of percentile of traffic etc. He asked the CHP and Sheriffs to help out with a problem that is occurring once again at Hesperian Elementary. He noted that in the back of the school you have people double or triple parking and it is unsafe for the children. This is primarily a problem on Wednesdays when school lets out at 1:20 pm. They need help in this back area every Wednesday and Sherman stated that the parents and staff would appreciate law enforcement on this day.
Resident Barros thanked the Cop Shop and what they have been doing about the signs that people are putting up on telephone poles. He stated that there is an ordinance in the county that calls for either a $500 fine or up to 180 days in jail.
A resident asked about the graffiti on the old Bockman Shopping Center property. The Administrator noted that staff has contacted the owner and County Zoning. Staff member Kevin Dowling from Supervisor Lai Bitker's office stated that he would contact Tona Henniger at County Zoning to get an update on where the county is with respect to fining the owner.
Director Bieschke stated that he has been making phone calls to the sheriff's department about a group of kids that have been seen hanging in and around the area of the old Bockman Shopping Center. The sheriff noted that the Student Resource Officers (SRO) can be contacted, however if these kids are arrested for loitering or even graffiti they do not hold them overnight, but rather release them to their parents and set a court date within 30 days. Any non-violent juvenile crime is treated this way.
3.3 Supervisor Alice Lai-Bitker -- Staff member Kevin Dowling reported about upcoming events. His office would be hosting a seminar on Monday 10/23/06 at 10 am at the Christ Lutheran Church on Hacienda Ave. in support of Senator Sheila Kuehl's proposed bill for universal health care -- a Medicare-For-All plan for Californians called "One Care Now". (See Attachment B)
There is also an event benefiting the Senior Services Friendly Visiting Program on Thursday 10/26/06 at the Englander Sports Pub in San Leandro. Dowling encouraged residents to attend the event fro 5:30 to 8:30 pm.
Dowling stated that the upcoming unincorporated meeting would have the "Inclusionary Zoning Policy" on its agenda as well as an item dealing with the "Nutritional Facts Disclosure/Listing For Fast Food and Chain Restaurants in the Unincorporated Area".
President Ledesma thanked Lai-Bitker's office for donating to the Senior Services fundraiser for the "Friendly Visiting Program".
The Administrator also thanked Lai-Bitker's office for donating for half of the cost of the paint that was used to paint fences at the end of Grant during Fleet Week.
Resident Keith Barros also thanked Lai Bitker's office for its help in working out the Lewelling "widening issue" in front of San Lorenzo High School.
3.4 Zoning Enforcement Report -- (See Attachment C).
3.5 Public Comment - Items Not on the Agenda
Kathie Ready, Representative to the County Planning Commission, stated that the county wants to re-write the garage conversion ordinance. Ready invited everyone to attend the Planning Commission meeting on November 6, 2006 where this item will be discussed. She was concerned with staff recommending that "condition A" of the current ordinance be taken out. This drastically affects the ordinance and the original intent of the neighborhood ordinance review committee. Ready stated that the Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) is spearheading this revision because it claimed that there have been a large number of garage conversion variances that have been approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA) which make this clause obsolete. Ready noted that she has investigated how many "variances" of this type had gone through the BZA and stated that she found none.
Ready said that garage conversions degrade the neighborhood and give residents no place to "store" their "stuff", thus creating other problems. She said that the majority of the changes in the wording of this ordinance are needed, but not the omission of this condition. She encouraged the Board to urge the Planning Commission to leave "Condition A" in the ordinance as it was originally written.
The Administrator asked if Ready would like the board to concur with leaving Condition A in the ordinance.
Director Sherman stated that he would like the Board to send a letter outlining their objections to this particular change. President Ledesma agreed that a letter would be effective in getting their point across. The rest of the board members had no objections.
Resident Keith Barros said that the people who were on the ordinance review committee and those who participated should be very upset about the MAC and what it is trying to do with the ordinance. He noted that for county staff to agree to the changes is a travesty.
Resident Paul Just stated that he is concerned about solicitors that come door to door. He spoke with the sheriff's department who stated that they do need to have some kind of permit. He asked the Association to post a small article in the next newsletter noting that solicitors must show a permit and warning residents about opening up their door to anyone who states they are "soliciting".
Deputy Litskey stated that door to door solicitors need a permit, and those walking down the street selling items need a business license.
4.0 FINANCIAL REPORT
4.1 Approval of September 2006 Expenditures and discussion of significant variances -- Director Sheridan makes a motion to approve the September 2006 expenditures, Director Pebelier seconds, the motion carries unanimously.
5.0 LIENS AND VIOLATIONS REPORTS
There have been no liens released since the last board meeting.
September 2006 Violation Report
Number Violation # of Letters 1/19 Inoperable Vehicles in driveway 6 2/22 Recreational veh/trailer in driveway 4 6 Lack of General Maintenance 5 10 Lawn Height 19 11 Dead Trees 0 12 Overgrown Vegetation 0 13 Holiday Lights 2 14 No signs 0 15 Building Exterior 3 16 Dirt Accumulation 1 17 Attractive Nuisances 3 18 Lean/miss fence 0 20/7 Unpaved parking 3 21 Working on vehicles 1 23 Dogs/Cats more than 2 0 24 Barking dogs 3 25 Prohibited animals 0 26 Excess noise 0 27 No Home Business 1 28/99 Other/ comments 18 99 Multiple violations 9 Total 78
6.0 HEARINGS AND VARIANCE ISSUES
6.1 Hearings
1. 15966 VIA DESCANSO -- Inop vehicles. Owner contacted the Association and given 15 days to remove or will be fined and referred to attorney.
2. 16155 VIA SEGUNDO -- No home business. Owner has agreed to remove panel truck from premises and will not have employees come to house in the morning.
3. 17001 VIA ANDETA -- MULTIPLE VIOLATIONS. Owner has agreed to remove all debris from driveway; Revisit in 30 days.
4. 15922 VIA PARO -- Multiple/Lack of Gen. Maint. Tenant agreed to clear all violations will revisit in 30 to 60 days.
5. 16171 PASEO DEL CAMPO -- Multiple/Lack of Gen. Maint. -- Owner has agreed to remove trailer and plant new grass within the next 90 days.
6. 16166 VIA MEDIA -- Trailer 36 hrs+. Refer to county and fine.
7. 670 VIA MIRABEL -- Dirt accumulation. Ask owner to submit fence plans and/or remove items within 30 days.
8. 16036 VIA DEL SOL -- Lawn height. Lawn now taken care of asking, owner to submit paint plans.
9. 15976 VIA ALAMITOS -- Lawn height. Gave owner extension will recheck front yard maintenance in 60 days.
10. 17064 VIA ALAMITOS -- Lawn height. Tenant has hired gardener and is now maintaining lawn.
11. 17158 VIA ALAMITOS -- MULTIPLE VIOLATIONS. Gave owner 5 days to remove vehicle and 1 month to clear lawn violations.
12. 17498 VIA ARRIBA -- Lawn height. Owner agreed to fix sprinklers and to hire a gardener or have tenants agree to maintain lawns.
13. 17490 VIA ARRIBA -- Lawn height. Owner stated they would get green within 60 days.
14. 795 BOCKMAN ROAD -- Lawn height. All violations cleared, closing.
15. 1270 VIA NUBE -- NO LANDSCAPING. Plans submitted, closing file.
16. 1276 VIA NUBE -- Lawn height. Owner to submit plans within 30 days.
17. 15906 VIA CORDOBA -- Lawn height. Lawn now better, however homeowner has paved more than 50%; will move forward with getting them into compliance and refer to county.
18. 72 VIA MORELLA -- Multiple/Lack of Gen. Maint. Attorney referral.
19. 1775 VIA CARRETA -- Inoperable/Unlicensed Vehicle in the front. Owner removing vehicle(motor home) from driveway, also asking to remove unregistered vehicle from driveway.
20. 1796 BOCKMAN ROAD -- Multiple/Lack of Gen. Maint. Gave owner 15-day extension.
21. 1824 VIA TOYON -- Multiple/Lack of Gen. Maint. Lawn and Property looks better, will monitor for next 60 days.
22. 1685 VIA RANCHO -- Inop. vehicles. Owner brought in vehicle registration, will keep
car clean and free from debris.
23. 1429 BOCKMAN ROAD -- Inoperable/Unlicensed Vehicle, Illegally Parked. Vehicle is gone, asking owner to keep property free of any debris/items in the front yard.
6.2 Variances
1) 15747 Paseo Del Campo -- Second Story. Approved.
2) 300 Via Coches -- Veggies in front yard. Asking owner to Never plant veggies in front yard again.
3) 1826 Bandoni -- Second Story.Approved.
4) 1777 Via Toyon -- shed. Approved.
5) 16116 Via Conejo -- Paint. Approved.
6) 1159 Bockman Rd. -- Paint. Approved.
7) 17133 Via Segundo -- Paint. Approved
8) 17151 Via Flores -- Paint. Approved.
9) 15801 Via Seco -- Fence 6 ft with lattice, 7 ft set back from street. Denied.
10) Via Lacqua -- Fence 6 ft on 7" of cement. Approved.
11) 16150 Via Arriba -- Paint. Approved.
12) 17641 Via Rincon -- Paint. Asking owner to paint awnings white and will revisit in 30-60 days.
Director Sheridan approved the Hearings and Variances as read. Director Pebelier seconds, the
Motion carries unanimously.
7.0 ADMINISTRATOR REPORT
7.1 Informational Items -- The Administrator announced that the annual Children's Halloween party would be on Monday, October 30, 2006 from 6 pm to 7:30 pm.
The Administrator noted that candidates would be certified at the next board meeting, there are two openings. She stated that she had papers with her if there are any interested candidates.
7.2 Update on Oro Loma Garbage Can Stickers -- The Administrator stated that Oro Loma has agreed with putting stickers on the trash can, the Association is just waiting for them to implement the proposal.
8.0 OTHER BUSINESS
8.1 Update of Civic Partners Meeting - President Ledesma
President Ledesma stated that Albertsons has been interested in moving across the street, however this was offered several months back and Albertsons still has not made a commitment. The Board invited Mike Herrero, from Civic Partners, to its last Work Session to talk about what the status of the development. Herrero had no new information about Albertsons. The Board has since asked Civic Partners to come back before the Community on Wednesday, November 1, 2006 to present a plan. All residents are invited. President Ledesma stated that Eileen Dalton at the Redevelopment agency is working with the Association by asking Civic Partners to show her agency a signed agreement with Albertsons for the new site, prior to Redevelopment moving on the project.
President Ledesma stated that if Albertsons does not agree to the move, the Developer had agreed to a "Plan B", which would leave Albertsons where it is and develop the Mervyns Square area with another anchor tenant.
The Board and other residents voice their frustration with what they are being "told" and what is actually "happening" with the Civic Partners Development.
8.2 Summary of October 4, 2006 work session - President Ledesma -- Refer to above comments from President Ledesma regarding Civic Partners. Mike Herrero was the guest at the work session and was questioned about the Mervyns Square area development.
8.3 Presentation of Village Square Apartments -- Tom Clements presented his proposed development to the residents. He said that he originally proposed 15 units at the site, however when the Board reviewed this at its last Work Session it had concerns about the height, the spacing and the density of the parking in the area. Thus he decreased the development from fifteen- two-bedroom units to twelve-two bedroom units and two-1 bedroom units. There would be 31 parking spaces instead of 24 and this would include the spaces used for his business which is run out of the old Heidi house. He stated that this newer plan provides more open space for the area and he would limit the height on the east side to 27 ft the south-west portion would be 31 feet. All the units would be for rent. He noted that he would have to get the area re-zoned as it is still zone R1.
Resident Kathie Ready noted that the area is currently not zoned for 20 units per acre. She questioned whether both the Village Realtor and his "Birth Right Organization " would be using the parking spaces. Clements noted that he would be "permitting" only two cars per unit for the two bedroom units and one car for the one bedroom units. He stated that at any one time he has maybe three (3) spaces taken for his businesses. There would be overflow parking on Lorenzo Avenue and Via Alamitos.
Resident Kathie Ready stated that this "overflow" parking is one of her greatest concerns. She noted that Via Alamitos already has problems with parking and given the amount of traffic in the area any parking "outside" of the development may prove problematic to pedestrians, visitors to the houses as well as the traffic in the area. She is also concerned about the height of the project and the density. The Association as well as the county only allows two story houses to be 25 feet maximum in height. The Bockman Shopping Center development was limited to 26 feet and had to fight to get that. If this development were allowed to be higher it would not only set a precedent, but how would it affect the surrounding houses on Via Alamitos?
Clements noted that the 27 foot high units would be nearest the residents and he is trying to get this down to 25 feet, however he stated that he does want the architectural design to be unique and beautiful and this requires more height.
Betty Moose from the San Lorenzo Heritage Society spoke against the project stating that Mrs. Heidi was also very concerned about the fate of her original house once it was sold to Clements. There is also a very high traffic count in that intersection. She stated that adding more people and traffic is a recipe for disaster. There are two schools in that area and many students that traverse that area before and after school hours. Moose noted that if we allow this we are building more homes, adding more people, but still do not have the resources or the businesses in the area to serve them.
Liz Thayer read a statement from Mary Ann McMillan, President of the San Lorenzo Historical Society who could not be present due to illness. The letter expressed great concern over the affect this development would have on the Heidi House itself and the surrounding area.
Betty Moose asked who would monitor the property. The units are at the back of the Heidi house and do not have good visibility from the street. Resident Kathie Ready agreed, stating that the Washington Apartments adjacent to this proposed development had problems of their own due to hidden areas and bad management. There were a lot of problems there prior to the new management coming in and renovating the apartments and hiring an in-house manager.
Director Sheridan said that she feels he is trying to cram too many units in that area. The traffic is a definite issue already, and adding more cars would be problematic. The height of the buildings in also an issue, she agreed with Ready, this would set a bad precedent. She also stated that there are not enough parking spaces, and to use Lorenzo Avenue or Via Alamitos as "overflow" parking is very poor planning.
Members from the Heritage Society questioned how the Heidi Historical house would be protected. She is concerned about this with Clement's proposed development on the site. Clements noted that he is committed to preservation of the Heidi House and that he would have an "on-site" manager living in one of the units.
Director Sherman said that the proposal is here for review, and no decision would be made tonight. He assured the group of residents that there was no discussion of "overflow" parking until this evening. No one has made up his or her mind and this is the first in a series of meetings concerning the Clements proposal.
Director Bieschke stated that Clements is trying to accommodate some of the original concerns the Board had when looking at this development and he appreciates that but he is concerned about the traffic in the area. He did an impromptu count of trucks at that intersection and it was over 350 on that day. Director Ledesma complimented the architectural design of the project however he questioned the density and the height of these units so close to San Lorenzo Village homes. The Association is here to preserve the Village and the residential feel, he was unsure that approving something this dense and high would do that.
Resident Keith Barros did not like the name "Village Square Apartments" and asked Clements if he still owned the Heidi house, because there has been graffiti on that fence for years. Clements stated that he could change the name and noted that he did own the property.
Barros asked if Clements has a record of good property management with his Association properties. If he does not then it should be brought into light. Clements stated that he has a very good record of management with his rentals in the Village.
President Ledesma questioned what would happen when and if Clements died or sold the property. He was concerned about the Heidi house and the upkeep for that area. It was noted that the Heidi house had not been designated as a "historical landmark" and the county needs to investigate why this was not done when they were identifying sites in the unincorporated areas. Staff member Dowling from Lai Bitker's office stated that he would investigate this and get back with the Board.
Clements asked what his next steps should be. President Ledesma stated that the Board would forward a letter to Clements outlining some of its concerns about the project and then invite him back to address these issues. Some of the concerns as outlined previously were:
8.4 Acceptance of Audit Report -- The Administrator reported that the audit was mailed out to all residents via the last newsletter and there were no comments from the public. She asked if there were any questions of the Board or the residents at this time regarding the audit. There were none.
Director Pebelier made a motion to accept the audit report, Director Sheridan, seconded, the motion carried unanimously.
9.0 PUBLIC COMMENT -- Director Bieschke announced that this coming Saturday the Boy Scouts would be hosting a blood drive from 9 am to 1 pm at the San Lorenzo Community Church at the end of Paseo Grande, he asked residents to come and give blood.
10.0 COMMITTEE REPORTS
10.1 Report on the Economic Development Meeting -- Director Ledesma reported that they met last week and a consultant presented a very rough draft of where they are heading with the economic development strategic plan. The consultant listened to some of the concerns that members had with respect to the plan and the consultant was made aware of some of the problems the area has that needed to be looked at when moving forward with the plan. Ledesma stated that the consultant would be back soon to address some of the questions and concerns the group had with the first draft. Some items were also left out of the draft plan including the light industrial in and around Grant Avenue, which were asked to be included in an updated plan.
10.2 Blue Ribbon Steering Committee -- Director Bieschke reported that the committee broke down into five different working groups and looked at the five different plans that had been presented to the committee from the different counties. Each sub-committee analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of the different presentations and how it would improve or deter the livability quotient in our area. Bieschke noted that one of his main concerns about livability in our area was that we need more economic growth to support the social issues that are needed for better "livability". In essence this would mean more public transportation and accessibility The group will be meeting next month to look at each of the "sub groups" recommendations in detail and then it will take a two month break to get community input.
Resident Kathie Ready stated that she still has a problem with this committee. She asked whether the public agencies involved in this committee are actually communicating. She also asked how many people on the committee actually live in the area because we need residents to be involved that know their own specific areas. Bieschke noted that Supervisor Miley does not want to change the autonomy of Ashland, Cherryland or San Lorenzo, but he does want the other Supervisors to know what the parameters are for each area so that this can help make them make decisions that are in line with each community.
11.0 COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS -- Director Bieschke asked staff to write a thank you note to the Navy for their volunteers during Fleet Week. The Board thanked all those who attended the meeting.
12.0 ADJOURNMENT -- President Ledesma adjourned the meeting at 10:39 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Pat Pebelier
Secretary-Treasurer
Recorded & Transcribed By: Kathleen Harrigan, Sr. Admin. Assistant
Reviewed By: Nancy Van Huffel, Administrator, Kathie Ready, Resident