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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/23/2007 - Study SessionCITY OF NEWPORT BEACH City Council Minutes Study Session January 23, 2007 — 4:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Council Member Henn, Council Member Curry, Mayor Pro Tem. Selich, Mayor Rosansky, Council Member Webb, Council Member Daigle, Council Member Gardner 1. CLARIFICATION OF ITEMS ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. Council Member Webb had concerns about Item #10, Newport Ridge Park, and will bring them up later when the item is discussed. Council Member Curry asked to have item #10 continued at the request of the homeowners. 2. RESIDENTIAL PARKING ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH THE OCEAN BOULEVARD AND PENINSULA POINT BEACH AREAS AND POLICE RESPONSES TO INCIDENTS FOR THESE AREAS. [100 -2007] Mayor Rosansky presented the procedure for this item by saying the staff report will take 30 minutes and residents discussion should not exceed 1 % hours. He notified the audience that no vote will be taken and Council will give staff direction of how they want to proceed after listening to the public testimony. City Manager Bludau provided the staff report by presenting a PowerPoint. He stated that the staff report will be given by several City employees and will cover the problem, locations, parking control alternatives, what the General Plan and LCP say, police enforcement, administrative and cost issues and alternatives. He spoke about the residents wanting resident only permit(decal parking which could be implemented between 10:00 pm and 6:00 am. He went over the noticing process and spoke about parking control alternatives used citywide. City Attorney Clauson spoke about the planning and public access issues. She reviewed the preferential parking authorization allowed under the State Vehicle Code. The General Plan recognizes the lack of parking along the coast. The Coastal Commission looks at access and views to the beach. She feels that most of the issues aren't lack of parking but nuisance and safety concerns. In order to have the parking plan approved by the Coastal Commission the City should provide survey data of why parking permits are needed and show that there isn't impact for public access during the hours requested by residents. In response to Council Member Daigle 's question, City Attorney Clauson talked about the differences in the areas and how the public is allowed to have access to the Volume 58 — Page 15 City of Newport.Beach Study Session Minutes January 23, 2007 view of the beach when it is closed. The Circulation Element of the General Plan would have to be supported for the Coastal Commission to approve the parking plan. The Coastal Commission will look to see if the City has looked at all other alternatives and studies showing impact and whether We been mitigated. The Coastal Commission might have issues in Corona del Mar because the parking plan will limit access for people to view the coast at night. She stated that the more studies and information that can be shown to support the program the better chance of the Coastal Commission approving it. The Coastal Commission could ask the City to mitigate the access by enhancements such as improvements to street ends or bathroom facilities prior to approving the parking plan. The parking issue could also bring attention to the 10:00 pm closure of the beach. Senior Planner Alford reviewed what the Coastal Commission decided in the City of Carmel and Coronado for parking permits. He stated that in the past the Coastal Commission has considered preferential parking if it didn't restrict public access or the impact was minimal. Capt. Mein stated that there are current enforcement policies in both areas and there is a staffing need to implement the preferential parking program. In the past the Police Department implemented use of helicopters to identify presence on the beach and the use of fire rings and received complaints about the noise from the helicopter. He said that in both areas the majority of contacts with late beachgoers are initiated by officers. In response to Council Member Henn s question about quality of life and criminal activity, Captain Klein said that the quality of life is when the law is not being broken but affects the lives of people involved. Captain Mein stated that it is the officer's discretion about whether to warn or ticket anyone found on the beach after it has been closed and it depends on the potential for additional crime. Council Member Curry asked about the enforcement of vehicle vandalism, graffiti and gangs. He wanted to know if it is recurrent issue and what has been learned from this activity in that neighborhood. Captain Klein responded by saying that the activity has been common in the areas for over 26 years. He said the best thing is to have the issues reported because the more cooperation the Police Department gets from residents, the more they can respond. He also stated that the police can't address every single crime and requires active participation by the community. Mayor Pro Tem Selich said that he received a complaint about people on Corona del Mar beach after it was closed so he went down there himself on several Fridays from 11:00 pm - 11:30 pm and observed numerous fires in the fire pits. Captain Klein responded by saying the fire pits shouldn't be used after 10:00 pm, however they may not always be able to get someone down there at 10:00 pm because it depends on police activity. Captain Klein reviewed staffing needs for the Police Department and stated that there is a need for an enforcement component. He feels that it is not reasonable to use police officers and recommended enforcement be done by parking patrol. The parking patrol person will get out of their car and walk each street two to three times per night. Captain Klein recommended that the City hire two Parking Control Volume 58 - Page 16 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes January 28, 2007 Officers to cover the areas for a year. Another major component of the preferential parking plan would be signage to make sure people are aware of it and additional lighting may be needed in some areas. Captain Mein reported that the permit program may deter people from coming to the beaches, so it could reduce the number of problems. Fiscal Operations Manager Thompson reviewed the potential costs of the parking permit program and stated that the parking plan is not revenue producing since the start up costs are high. City Attorney Clauson said that the coastal policies indicate that any excess fees would be used to mitigate costs. Fiscal Operations Manager Thompson discussed the administrative details and some of the issues that may come up. Permits would have to be issued to a vehicle and not to a household and proof of address and vehicle ownership would have to be produced. She showed examples from other cities to show the problems that may occur. She reviewed other issues, such as short term visitor permits for overnight guests, maintenance vehicles, late night events, long term visitor permits, in -home care providers, rental vehicles, and student vehicles. Fiscal Operations Manager Thompson stated that other cities have required inspection of garages to make sure residents are using their garages for parking. Council Member Henn stated that if the Coastal Commission is involved there has to be a safety case demonstrated, so it should be done in advance or along with the application. Dennis Baker said that he feels that the parking issue is an enforcement issue and seems like an indirect fix to a crime problem. He would like to see people support more police officers and enforcement be taken as the first step. Charles Umsworth spoke against the preferential parking plan if it requires Coastal Commission approval. He feels that the Coastal Commission may determine that the beach can't close at 10 pm and require alternative access by extension of the bike path and construction of restrooms at the Wedge. He said that enforcement by adding police officers without going through Coastal Commission is the best way to maintain the quality of life for residents. Marvin Neven said he thinks that signs on Ocean Blvd. will be counterproductive because they obstruct views. John Hamilton spoke in favor of permit parking and noted that the problem is safety, crime and security. He said many residents need the permit parking because their property is being damaged and the fear of gang crime. He presented a petition signed by 200 residents asking for the permit parking. Lee Payne says that the problems in Peninsula Point are different from those in Corona del Mar. He feels to add an additional layer of parking restrictions on top of street sweeping would be way too much. Louise Fundenberg, Central Newport Beach Community Association, stated that they did not receive any notices about the meeting and asked that when further Volume 58 - Page 17 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes January 28, 2007 consideration is given that they be notified. Jill Schreiber said that she started the petition one year ago because of increased crimes in the neighborhood. She cited examples of activity in her neighborhood and said We a public safety issue that has increased over the last several years and she supports the restricted parking. She says they have fear of calling police for fear of retaliation. Ms. Schreiber stated that she would prefer the beaches stay open later. Kent Moore echoed John Hamilton's sentiments and said that trash, broken bottles and cans are evidence of overnight camping and he is concerned about crime and safety and supports the decal program. Cindy Peck said she thinks that the crime on her street has been drive -by types of crimes and feels that permit parking would not address that situation. Dr. Ebner Drews stated that people who come to Peninsula Point don't come there for the views but to commit criminal acts. Roberta Schmitt said she has had problems in her neighborhood. She thinks the Peninsula needs more enforcement and patrolling. Philip Mark stated that he has tried calling the police and it's not working so he feels that the residents need to try something else. Eric Welton said he signed the petition in favor of the parking program and challenged Captain Klein on the number of patrols. He supports parking restrictions as a means to augment the enforcement. Del Brandon said he feels that the residents need more enforcement and patrols and is opposed to the parking permit program. Cathy Hamilton stated that she and her neighbors have had graffiti on their fences and property and was told by police that they were gang symbols and should be removed immediately so there wouldn't be any gang retaliation. Roger McKinnon reported his experience with the Police Department and when he has called to report noise disturbances and fires, he has been told there is not enough staff to handle the complaints. He said he signed the petition and supports the parking proposal, but he think We really a police patrol issue. Bambi Wilcheck said she feels the administrative costs for two Parking Control Officers seem very high. She proposed a visible and intense police program to stop the problems. Leslie Cazarian stated the she has never had a problem and think that the residents should be contacting the police and not restricting parking. Linda Mankard said she is in favor of permit program and also feels there's a need to beef up the security. She feels that it is a safety issue and the parking program will deter people and the traffic in the area. Barbara Peters stated that she doesnt want the beach open until midnight. She Volume 58 - Page 18 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes January 23, 2007 stated that the calls to the police are treated as noise complaints which don't receive the same response. Deanna Reposa said she is in favor of enforcement and not sure how the parking plan ties into this. Ken Drellishak distributed photos taken in the spring and summer that show the problems they are having in the area. He spoke in support of the restricted parking program. John Bonner stated the police have been present at board meetings and said that they don't have enough officers to support the areas. He said that a lot of the problems are from the fishermen who fish on the jetty and requested that the area be fenced after hours. W.R.. Gilding, Central Newport Community Association, said there are many legal nonconforming units in the area and many units without onsite parking. He said the problem is the fisherman, travelers to Catalina and employees from local restaurants that park on the residential streets. Dick Barker presented pictures of graffiti and other nuisances. He stated that the reason this parking permit idea came forward is because the police enforcement is ineffective. Council Member Curry said it is appalling as to what is going on in the community and enforcement needs to be stepped up in both of the neighborhoods to address the issues. Council Member Daigle spoke in support of the parking program. She stated that if there is an agreement to move forward to Coastal Commission, that the City needs to move forward with reports, particularly in Corona del Mar. Council Member Gardner said that permit parking won't solve the problems if residents are talking about gangs and guns. She stated that the City needs enforcement, resources and refocusing in the areas. Council Member Henn ratified Council Member Curry s idea of police enforcement. He also believes that the City needs to move ahead right away to analyze the parking permit idea. He stated that the City must identify the mandate from the citizens and briefly describe what the program would look like and hear from a cross section of the residents before taking it to the Coastal Commission. Mayor Pro Tem Selich suggested that a postcard vote be used to try to ascertain the support for the program. The City would need to develop some kind of proforma program for people to look at before casting their vote. He feels the City needs to get statistical data and will have to move ahead on both the decal parking and police enforcement. Council Member Webb stated that only a couple of people indicated that they want permit parking. He has had calls from residents not wanting it and only wanting increased enforcement. He said that in Corona del Mar he can't tie parking problems with what is going on and that it is a serious enforcement problem. He Volume 58 - Page 19 City of Newport Beach Study Session Minutes January 23, 2007 said the City should not move forward with the parking permit program on the Peninsula but wants to address the enforcement issues. Police presence might need to include a walking police officer patrol at all times. Police Chief McDonell noted that there are a tremendous number of visitors to the area, especially Corona del Mar beach. He notified the residents that police calls for service are all posted on the website which includes who responded and the disposition of the call. He stated that they prioritize calls so there will be delays in some calls but response times are excellent. He encouraged residents to cooperate and make the calls and if they are not satisfied, notify the Watch Commander or his office to get answers. He stated that a permit parking program will not deter people who are there to commit a crime. Mayor Rosansky stated that he hasn't seen a clear consensus in both areas but the City needs to take a harder look at enforcement issues. He suggested that residents call the police because it's the only way they will know there is a problem. He stated that City staff will look at the problem more and come back with a program. PUBLIC COMMENTS - None ADJOURNMENT - 6:19 pm The agenda for the Adjourned Regular Meeting was posted on January 17, 2007, at 3:00 p.m. on the City Hall Bulletin Board located outside of the City of Newport Beach Administration Building. Recording Secretary V )qr bxft i° /• /VU./zCxCW City Clerk Volume 58 - Page 20