The regular meeting of the San Lorenzo Village Homes Association Board of Directors was held Thursday, December 19, 2002.

1.1 CALL TO ORDER -- President Kathie Ready called the meeting to order at 7:37 pm.

1.2 SALUTE TO THE FLAG -- President Ready led the Board and the audience in the pledge of allegiance.

1.3 ROLL CALL -- Directors Kathie Ready, Jim Sherman, Pat Pebelier, Peggy Sheridan and Enrique Barboza were present.

1.4 PRESENTATIONS

Announcement of Holiday Decorating Contest Winners -- The Administrator announced the following winners for the 2002 Home Holiday Decorating Contest:

Most Colorful: 1st - 768 Paseo Grande, 2nd - 17380 Via Chiquita, 3rd - 17775 Via Rincon

Most Original: 1st - 17030 Via Anacapa, 2nd - 1286 Via Nube, 3rd - 16028 Via Vecinos

Testimonial to Betty Moose -- Betty Moose was not in attendance. The presentation was tabled until later.

The Administrator asked that item 7.3 be discussed at this time since the representative from AC Transit, Pat Piras had another commitment later. There were no objections from the Board.

7.3 Red zone -- Resident Liz Thayer introduced herself and stated that she had received a letter from the County Traffic Engineer, Bob Preston, that the AC Transit bus route was changing and would now have a red-zoned bus stop in front of her residence. In addition there would be a handicap ramp for accessibility for bus riders who had physical limitations. Thayer said that she objected to the location of this bus. She said this particular corner is very hazardous. When the middle school lets its students out it is very crowed and the curb is very narrow at this corner. She was concerned about her liability if a handicapped person fell or tripped in front of her house or on her property. Thayer stated that by painting the curb area red all along the side of her house, traffic would back up onto Hesperian from Bockman. Thayer stated that for these reasons she does not believe that the location in front of her house is a good location for a bus stop. She also stated that she was not informed far enough in advance that her residence was being considered as a bus stop.

Director Ready asked Thayer when she was informed about the bus stop being located in front of her house. Thayer stated that she got the notice the first part of December, but had not received any notification prior to this regarding meetings, etc related to the bus schedule or pending changes.

It was questioned as to what route the bus took prior to these new changes. Pat Piras, AC Transit representative stated that the bus used to go down Via Media to Bockman then travel to Channel and Grant. Now the service on Media would be discontinued and the buses would travel down Hesperian to Bockman and Channel, etc. Director Sheridan asked whether a traffic study is done prior to implementing any bus changes. She said that she also has some concerns with the bus stop in front of Thayer's house. There are many driveways for residences as well as businesses near this bus stop and she said she had concerns as to how this would affect the traffic and the back up that would occur onto Hesperian.

Piras stated that the changes in the AC Transit service are happening throughout the county. Updates were given at the Unincorporated Meetings. There were public hearing regarding the changes that occurred in June 2002 and notices were sent to all residents along the affected streets as well as published in the local newspapers. The AC Transit Board adopted these changes earlier this year and they will be implemented beginning this coming Sunday. She stated that AC Transit does study traffic as well as measures the street for handicapped accessibility. She said that Bob Preston made the recommendations to the Board for the specific changes which were reviewed by the Board and voted upon.

The Administrator asked CHP officer Rob Tuazon if they review the changes. Tuazon stated that his department reviews the changes but has no authority to say no to the changes.

Resident Frank Mitchell lives on Bockman and stated that his wife is handicapped. He said he also has concerns with this change in the bus stop. Mitchell stated that he has counted between 40 to 45 cars travelling down Bockman per mitnute between 8 am and 9 am on week days and an average of 15 cars per minute during other hours. He said that in rush hour the amount of traffic is even worse than in the morning.

He stated that he had requested information on the proposed changes from AC Transit but was never given any information.

The Administrator stated that if a bus stop is to be placed in front of a residence the homeowner should be informed way in advance. Director Ready noted that she had been to all the Unincorporated meetings and does not remember seeing a list of the proposed changes for the bus stops. If she would have seen the location of this new change on Bockman she would have objected. She stated that it makes more sense to have the bus stop further down Bockman near the schools.

Kevin Dowling, staff member to Supervisor Lai Bitker, stated that the idea of a bus route is to get more people riding the bus and out of their cars. The location of the new bus stop on Bockman is a good one due to the fact that it is a busy street and may promote more bus riding versus automobile. He stated that he would speak with AC Transit regarding getting all neighors who would be affected adequately informed. He also stated that he would look into this particular bus stop sight and review it with AC Transit.

Director Ready suggested that the Homes Association request that the Board of Supervisors, and AC Transit give notice to the Association Board on any future bus stop or route changes that were being considered.

2.O MINUTES FROM THE PREVIOUS MEETING

2.1 Approval of the minutes of Meeting No. 1072, Thursday, November 21, 2002 -- Director Sherman made a motion to approve the minutes, Director Pebelier seconds the motion and it carries unanimously.

3.0 COMMENTS FROM PUBLIC AGENCIES

3.1 Alameda County Sheriff's Dept. -- Deputy Lewis stated that they had no statistics for November at this time. He reported that they had recently arrested two big methamphetamine dealers in San Lorenzo, but had no other outstanding crime statistics to report. Director Ready asked what was being done about a drug dealer who hangs out in front of the Washington Apartments every morning. She stated that she sees this daily when she is traveling down Washington Ave. Lewis stated that his department has not seen this individual and they have been patrolling these apartments on an ongoing basis. He stated that he will make a point to patrol the area in the morning hours to catch this individual in any illegal activity. He noted that county zoning is in the process of towing many of the abandoned vehicles at these apartments and that the new owners have vacated many of the apartments and is started to get ready to upgrade the facility.

Lewis reported that his department is involved in collecting toys for the needy and will be buying full Christmas dinners for some of the homeless and needy residents in the area.

3.2 CHP -- Officer Rob Tuazon reported on the following statistics:

CHP Statistics for November 2002

Type of Infraction       San Lorenzo    Total Unincorp. County
Collisions                   14                  118
Tickets                     125                  485
Parking Tickets              15                   62
Storage/Impounds             19                  122
Stolen Recoveries             2                   11
Parking Complaints            7                   63
Total Warnings for CHP                          1442

3.3 Supervisor Lai-Bitker -- Staff member Kevin Dowling reported that he is has worked with residents on Buena Vista and Via Carmen on a raised crosswalk which is set to go in some time in the next month. He also stated that Supervisor Lai Bitker will be forming a fireworks committee made up of fire, police, CHP and other agencies. Last July there were 14 people arrested regarding illegal fireworks. He stated that this committee will be working on ways to get the community and parents informed via schools and local associations and agencies.

Dowling stated that Lai Bitker had met with the Housing Committee regarding the Washington Apartments in San Lorenzo. He said that there will be 9 section-8 apartments in the unit. He said that his office had been informed that the brother of one of the tenants was involved in illegal activity at the apartments and that the new owners were trying to take care of the situation.

3.5 Public Comment -- Resident Howard Beckman stated that he would like the Association to develop policies on how its staff members give advice to members regarding fences, noise etc. He stated that there should be policies in place on how to handle these types of situations and that staff should avoid giving out legal advice to the public. He would like the Association to focus and develop policies on giving advice to residents in the upcoming year.

4.0 FINANCIAL REPORT

4.1 Approval of November 2002 Expenditures (including payroll) -- Director Sherman makes a motion and Director Pebelier seconds the November expenditures (including payroll), the motion carries unanimously.

4.2 Discussion of Significant Variances -- The Administrator reported there have been no significant variances, however there is a leak in the water main to the Association Office. One quote to fix this problem is for $3,000. She will report more on the actual cost at the next Board meeting.

5.0 LIEN AND VIOLATION REPORT -- The Administrator reported that there have been no liens released since the last Board meeting.

November 2002 Violation Report

Number          Violation                        # of Letters
1/19       Inoperable Vehicles in driveway           9
2/22       Recreational veh/trailer in driveway      2
6          Lack of Gen Maintenance                   2
10         Lawn Height                               0
11         Dead Trees                                0
12         Overgrown Vegetation                      1
13         Holiday Lights                            0
15         Building Exterior                         3
16         Dirt Accumulation                         5
17         Attractive Nuisances                      2
18         Lean/miss fence                           1
20/7       Unpaved parking                           4
21         Working on vehicles                       2
23         Dogs/Cats more than                      2,0
24         Barking dogs                              0
25         Prohibited animals                        0
26         Excess noise                              0
27         No Home Business                          1
28/99      Other comments                            4
Total                                               36

6.1 Washington & Grant Ave Proposal -- The Administrator stated that the Board of Zoning Adjustments BZA) has continued this item until the issues that the Association Board had concerns with be addressed. Two of these issues are the traffic and the drive-through issue.

6.2 Retail Stores -- 790 Bockman Rd (continued from November)- The Administrator reported that at the last meeting the Board had concerns with the two houses on this sight being torn down. When she spoke with the owner of these buildings, Mr. Mitchell, he informed her that these buildings were not part of the proposed development and would not be torn down. The Administrator stated that she has told county staff that it had no objections to this development if these houses were not torn down. The item is set to go before the BZA again on January 22nd. It was questioned as to which plans that the Association had looked at-at its last Board meeting. The Administrator stated that the last set of plans were that of a single story retail unit which would be a Pacific Island Market.

Frank Mitchell spoke against this project stating that he objected to the increase in traffic for that area and the idea that the owner is making an auto body/repair shop tenant who has had is businesses there for years is being chased out for this new development. He also stated that he did not feel the Homes Association had the right to make any recommendations to the BZA regarding this development. The Association is not a public agency and thus does not need to be informed of this project.

Director Ready noted that the reason the county informs the Association of any developments in the area is because it is very vocal about what goes on in its community and asks to be informed prior to any developments being approved in San Lorenzo. The Administrator note that the Association is a quasi-public agency. Mitchell encouraged the Board to review this development one more time prior to making recommendations of approval to the BZA. He stated that this development would be placing a high-volume retail store in a area that up to this point has been low-volume retail.

Beckman noted that his recollection was that the Board had not voted to approve or reject this project at its last Board meeting. He stated that resident Mary Ann McMillan had brought up the fact that this project included two historical houses and then Director Ready had stated that the Board would not support this development if these houses were to be torn down as part of this project. There was no actual vote taken.

Director Ready reviewed the minutes and stated that the Board had not voted on the issue. The Administrator stated that she would bring more information back to the Board on the proposed market at the January Board meeting. She noted that the proposal included a 5 foot set back from the school where 10 feet is required. The school has subsequently stated it has no problem or objections with this set back and the Administrator told the planner that if the school had no objections then the Association had none.

7.0 ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT

7.1 Pinoy's Place -- The Administrator reported that the karoke bar was objected to by the Board and this was relayed to the county. The Board of Zoning Adjustments has continued this item until January 2003.

7.2 Arroyo Parking issues -- The Administrator reported that the Association Board and Supervisor Lai Bitker's office were going to form a committee to further discuss this problem with parking near Arroyo high school. Kevin Dowling had been dealing with the neighbors surrounding the high school and their concerns and had met with school staff to discuss the parking on Via Enrico and Lorenzo Ave. Traffic engineer had presented two solutions, one a residential parking permit and the other limited parking for the area.

Two (2) neighbors took out petitions for traffic calming measures for the area, however neither has returned these petitions. Preston has since suggested a one hour parking zone on Lorenzo and Via Enrico. However this limited parking would only be on one side of the street. The Administrator stated that Preston will have these signs installed some time at the beginning of the year. It will be a pilot program and will be reviewed to see if it helps to mitigate the problem of students parking on the street as well as the problems of noise and trash the students bring.

7.3 Red zone -- Item was heard after agenda item 1.4.

7.4 Other Informational Items -- The Administrator reported that she had recently attended the county budget meeting and noted that the stated must cut 37 billion from its budget. This is going to have a drastic affect for the entire state in the next several years to come. She said that the county will be hit very hard, especially the unincorporated budget which will have to fight with other agencies for support of its services. One major area which is slated to be cut is street services. The Administrator stated that she will continue to update the Board as she finds out more information. She noted that she has asked the county information as to what the cutbacks in funds will mean for services and how these cutbacks will affect San Lorenzo and unincorporated county.

8.0 OTHER BUSINESS

8.1 Street Sweeping - No parking signs -- The Administrator reported that she looked into the cost of street sweeping signs in Tuesdays street sweeping area and was told that the cost would be between 40 and 50 thousand dollars. She said that it is unclear where these funds will come from, especially in light of the state's budget crisis.

9.0 PUBLIC COMMENT -- Resident Keith Barros commends zoning for helping to control graffiti in San Lorenzo, however he stated that now there is a fad to tag telephone poles and trees. This is especially prevalent on Paseo Grande west of Hesperian. Kevin Dowling asked the Board whether it was going to write a letter about the proposal of having public trash cans along Hesperian Blvd and Lewelling. Oro Loma stated it would be 13 cents per month per resident to institute this per year. The Administrator noted that the are currently going to do this on East 14th Street in Ashland and in parts of Cherryland. She noted that Oro Lomo said that they would only institute these cans if the public was in favor of the idea. Director Sherman asked who was paying for Ashland and Cherryland's service.

Dowling stated that originally the Village residents would not be paying for services elsewhere. He stated that they need a letter in support of this idea in San Lorenzo so that when it comes time to implement these cans on Hesperian and Lewelling they can bill residents the additional costs. Director Ready asked why they didn't bill all the residents now who would agree to this service so that it would be cheaper to each household.

A resident asked how these cans would be serviced. He is concerned there will be over flow dumping from residential trash rather from pedestrian trash. The Administrator stated that the city of Berkeley has cans like these in its street which do get filled with excess residential trash and overflow.

Director Ready suggested that this item be tabled and discussed at the next Board meeting. There were no objections.

10.0 COMMITTEE REPORTS

10.1 Airport Committees -- Howard Beckman reported that he will be part of a new airport committee. This committee will take a look at the noise generated by the South Field in the Oakland Airport. The South Field is where the big commercial jets fly from and into. Currently there is a noise forum which reviews the north field which houses cargo and smaller jets. This new committee will have representatives from Alameda and San Leandro as well as his representation for San Lorenzo. This is another way residents can help make changes in the airport with respect to the noise nuisance generated by the planes.

10.2 Library Committee -- Director Sheridan reported that the committee elected a new chair and discussed fund raising opportunities and grant applications. There was also discussion about the library remaining in the San Lorenzo area. They will discuss this in more detail at their next meeting on January 9th.

11.0 COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS -- The Board of Directors wished the audience happy holidays.

12.0 ADJOURNMENT -- President Ready adjourned the meeting at 9:17 pm.

Respectfully Submitted,

Pat Pebelier
Secretary-Treasurer

Recorded & Transcribed By: Kathleen Harrigan, Sr. Admin. Assistant
Reviewed By: Nancy Van Huffel, Administrator, Kathie Ready, Board President