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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/29/2011 - Special Meeting!PTA WTI City Council Minutes City Council Special Meeting November 29, 2011 -- 7:00 p.m. I. ROLL CALL Present: Council Member Hill; Council Member Rosansky, Mayor Pro Tem Gardner, Mayor Henn, Council Member Selich, Council Member Curry, Council Member Daigle II. PUBLIC COMMENTS REGARDING CLOSED SESSION - None III. CLOSED SESSION - 6:00 p.m. A. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL - EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code § 54956.9(a)): One Matter: 1. Banning Ranch Conservancy o City of Newport Beach, et al 4th District Court of Appeals Case No. G045622 B. CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS (Government Code § 54957.6): Agency Designated Representatives: Dave Kiff, City Manager; Dana Smith, Assistant City Manager; Terri Cassidy, Human Resources Director; and Richard Kreisler, Special Counsel and Negotiator Emplovee Organization: All Labor Associations: Association of Newport Beach Ocean Lifeguards (ANBOL); Lifeguard Management Association (LMA); Fire Beach Fire Management Association (NBFMA); Newport Beach Firefighters' Association (NBFA); Police Management Association (PMA); Police Employees' Association (PEA); and Fire Management Association (FMA); City Employees Association (NBCEA); Newport Beach Professional & Technical Employees Association (NBPTEA); Newport Beach Employees League (LABEL); Newport Beach Part -Time Unit (UPEC, Local 777) IV. RECESS V. RECONVENE AT 7:00 P.M. FOR SPECIAL MEETING VI. ROLL CALL Present: Council Member Hill; Council Member Rosansky; Mayor Pro Tern Gardner; Mayor Henn; Council Member Selich; Council Member Curry; Council Member Daigle VII. CLOSED SESSION REPORT - City Attorney Harp announced that there was no Closed Session Report VIII. NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC IX. PUBLIC COMMENTS Jim Mosher noted the regulations pertaining to special meetings, and thanked staff for making the agenda and reports available to the public last Friday. He believed that Council should meet Volume 60 - Page 307 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 twice in December as indicated in the City's Charter. Ryan Sage referenced a matter discussed at the last meeting relative to 4647 MacArthur Boulevard and requested an update regarding possible actions. City Manager Kiff responded that he has no feedback on the matter at this time. X. CURRENT BUSINESS 1. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN. (100 -20111 Receive and file this report and provide feedback. Assistant to the City Manager Houston provided a PowerPoint presentation detailing the Information Technology (IT) Five -Year Strategic Plan and addressed the response to Council initiative and vision to be "Faster, Smaller and Smarter" as an organization. He introduced Roy Hernandez from Thirdwave Consulting Group. Consultant Hernandez presented details of the IT Strategic Plan (ITSP) which addresses project goals, objectives, business and service delivery requirements, findings, and needs assessments. He discussed the workshops attended by staff, and applicable findings and opportunities; and management, operational and technology issues, including outdated systems, disconnected systems and shadow systems. He reported that significant investments will be required to remedy the IT challenges. He presented details of the implementation plan, including objectives and recommendations, and in- house, outsourcing or hybrid models. He recommended that the initiatives be spread over a 5- year period and that they be phased. He further addressed potential benefits to the City with implementation of the plan, returns on investments, and conclusions. Assistant to the City Manager Houston presented an update on changes already being made at the department level to meet some of the recommendations, including centralized and coordinated IT operations, research of best practices from private and public sector organizations, staffing models with experts in core areas with outsourcing used for demand spikes, developing common IT infrastructure standards, and replacing old legacy systems. He addressed virtualization of servers and desktops, consolidating data centers, creating a project priority list, and the ability to conduct research and development. City Manager Kiff addressed progress already made and prioritizing the investments with other City needs. Ensuing discussion pertained to additional space resulting from data consolidation, having to wait until year four for maximum benefits, availability of tablet computers for management and police officers, initial investment amount to be included in the budget, the possibility of sharing applications with other cities to save money, and breakdown of costs between hardware and software. Council Member Selich stated his expectation included a greater use of outsourcing in order to take advantage of economies of scale, keep costs down, and keep current with technology. Consultant Hernandez noted that the findings in the report stipulate that technology be leveraged to the fullest and takes into account opportunities for outsourcing as well as other models. He added there are a number of options for consideration. He clarified that one of the recommendations is to eliminate shadow systems and adopt an enterprise Volume 60 - Page 308 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 architecture. He addressed unique requirements for each city and cautioned against outsourcing everything. Council Member Hill commended staff for tapping into the resources offered by the Citizens Technology Task Force. He believed that the City should move in the recommended direction, stated one of the priorities should be the transportability of systems and that he would like to see a five -year master plan for the funds as the City moves forward with the IT strategy. He discussed the proposed cost savings and increased efficiencies, and suggested breaking it down further. Council Member Curry indicated that he was pleased with the work and results of the Citizens Technology Task Force, and believed that this was a good starting point. He noted the importance of feedback from experts in the community, as well as obtaining significant economies by working in tandem with other jurisdictions, outsourcing services, leveraging the resources of community expertise, and staying flexible enough to be able to keep pace with technology. He stressed the need to commit as a Council to moving forward. In response to an inquiry from Mayor Pro Tem Gardner, Assistant to the City Manager Houston reported the systems being recommended are standard and will integrate with the City's current systems. Mayor Pro Tem Gardner commended Consultant Hernandez and the Citizens Technology, Task Force for their sensitivity to personnel, and agreed with Council Member Curry's comments with reference to moving forward and the need to find the money to proceed. In response to Council Member Daigle's inquiry, Consultant Hernandez addressed the computing environment envisioned in five years. He reported that e- Government is the best protection against changing technology. He predicted that in five years, everything will be mobile and web - enabled, and everyone will have a tablet or phone. He added that business will be conducted through interactive transactional applications through the internet, directly tied into the City's Financial systems. Mayor Henn acknowledged the hard work involved in developing the strategic plan, especially the analysis of processes which should follow with hardware and software solutions. He indicated support for the City challenging itself to generate new solutions and new ways of doing business. He agreed that the City has under- invested and under - managed its IT functions and with outsourcing. He believed that outsourcing on a broader scale would be a tenable solution. Mayor Henn indicated that there would have to be project -level financial justification for each major project and the benefits would need to be considered at a more detailed level. He encouraged the City to continue to be open to outsourcing and virtual solutions, and emphasized the need for a change management plan. Consultant Hernandez indicated a recommendation was made for a change management plan in the Findings and Recommendations document, but normally a change management plan is not produced in a strategic plan. City Manager Kiff noted that staff is looking at the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system as an opportunity to change multiple processes and agreed with the need for justification. Volume 60 - Page 309 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 Mayor Henn acknowledged that the City has never had an integrated strategic view of how to manage IT and how to do that right, and emphasized that that the City needs an IT strategic leader for execution and management. He indicated that he would like to see the filling of that role before any funding recommendations are made. In response to Council Member Selich's questions, Consultant Hernandez reported that applications will not be hosted locally but through an outside server or other source, and discussed desktop computer sales trends. 2. WAIVE COUNCIL POLICY A -2, BOARD AND COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS; DECLARE A VACANCY OF THE POSITION HELD BY PLANNING COMMISSIONER CHARLES UNSWORTH; AND APPOINT A NEW PLANNING COMMISSIONER TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO FILL THE UNEXPIRED BALANCE OF PLANNING COMMISSIONER CHARLES UNSWORTH'S UNEXPIRED TERM, WHICH ENDS JUNE 30,2012.[24/100-20111 Mayor Henn referenced a previous report that resulted in the appointment of a Planning Commissioner in February 2012. He expressed his concern with the timing due to needing to have someone in place as soon as possible to assist with the review of the Banning Ranch Environmental Impact Report (EIR) that is knowledgeable and experienced. He indicated that this is what drove him to suggest an accelerated timeframe. He acknowledged that the appointment could not occur until the December 13 Council meeting and emphasized that this would be an interim appointment, through June 30, 2012. Mayor Henn added that this would allow more time for public input, scrutiny, and consideration; more time for the submission of applications; and complies with State law. He noted that this recommendation only eliminates one of the steps in Council Policy A -2 (Board and Commission Appointments) of forming a Council subcommittee. Motion by Council Member Hill, seconded by Council Member Selich to a) waive Council Policy A -2, Board and Commission Appointments; b) declare the Planning Commission position held by Planning Commissioner Charles Unsworth vacant; c) set the deadline for submission of applications for the Planning Commission position to Wednesday, December 7, 2011; and d) continue nomination and appointment of a new Planning Commissioner to the December 13, 2011 Council meeting to fill the unexpired balance of Planning Commissioner Charles Unsworth's term, which expires on June 30, 2012. Council Member Selich agreed that appointing a Planning Commissioner as soon as possible is important. Further, this would provide the Banning Ranch project, as well as any other applicants, with a full Planning Commission to deliberate the issues. Mayor Pro Tem Gardner inquired regarding the process and Mayor Henn indicated his expectation is for Council Members to nominate candidates to be voted upon and go through the voting process. Jim Mosher agreed with Mayor Pro Tem Gardner and indicated that he does not see the urgency and referenced technical issues with the Banning Ranch EIR. He discussed noticing requirements pursuant to State law and believed that there is confusion relative to the manner in which the vacancy and application deadline have been announced. He suggested Council following the procedures in Council Policy A -2. Laura Curran noted that the Planning Commission can still function with a quorum with Volume 60 - Page 310 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 six members if the normal process is followed. She believed that any qualified candidate would be familiar with the Banning Ranch EIR. She presented a brief history of Council Policy A -2, as well as key provisions. She believed that waiving Council Policy A -2 violates the spirit of the provisions and there would be no guarantee regarding the process. Council Member Rosansky believed that waiving Council Policy A -2 would be unfair to the public, noting it is especially important to follow in this case because it is a critical appointment. He added that the process and appointment should be beyond reproach and did not see the need to expedite the process. Council Member Daigle believed that the policy was poorly packaged and that the media coverage reflected poorly on Council. She stressed the need to follow policies and believed that there is no justification to expedite the appointment. Council Member Curry addressed the practical impacts of waiving the policy and believed that candidates have a better chance of being appointed through the expedited process than by going through Council Policy A -2. Mayor Pro Tern Gardner stated that Council should change the policy and indicated that she agreed with Council Member Rosansky. The motion carried by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Council Member Hill, Mayor Henn, Council Member Selich, Council Member Curry Noes: Council Member Rosansky, Mayor Pro Tern Gardner, Council Member Daigle 3. NEWPORT BEACH CIVIC CENTER AND PARK PROJECT - PROPOSED PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE OVER SAN MIGUEL DRIVE (C- 4527). [381100 -20111 Public Works Director Badum discussed the background and referenced direction by Council to not include the bridge, and wait and see how the project and contingencies moved along. He noted that now would be the most economical time to add the bridge if desired. He utilized a PowerPoint presentation that included renderings of different views of the bridge, the cost, and funding options. He detailed the amounts in both contingencies, change orders within the City's Owner Contingency, original contract and amendments, and pending amendments. He reported that the remaining project has gone well and staff is fairly confident there will be no big issues on the horizon. Council Member Selich presented a brief historical perspective. He expressed his reasons for supporting the inclusion of the bridge, including the importance of having another place to provide an opportunity for people to get out and walls. He believed that the pedestrian bridge appropriately connects the two parts of the park into one; crossing the intersection is very disruptive to walking or jogging; and the bridge will improve traffic efficiencies. He stated that the Civic Center will become one of the great legacies of the City. He addressed financial savings achieved and requested Council's support. Council Member Rosansky addressed the functionality of the bridge and believed that it is not a critical expense. He addressed costs involved in maintaining the bridge and other existing view opportunities. Motion by Council Member Rosansky, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Gardner to not authorize the construction of the pedestrian bridge over San Miguel Drive. Substitute motion by Council Member Selich seconded by Council Member Hill to a) authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute Amendment #3 to the Construction Volume 60 - Page 311 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 Manager at Risk Contract with C.W. Driver of Irvine, California, amending the Guaranteed- Maximum -P- rice- (GMP -) -to- add -the construction of the-pedestrian-bridge-over San Miguel Drive to the scope of work for Civic Center and Park Project at a not -to- exceed price of $2,000,000 subject to approval as to form by the City Attorney; and b) authorize the transfer of $1,000,000 from the Construction Manager at Risk contract's construction contingency to the project's work scope and authorize a change order from the City's owner contingency in the amount of $1,000.000. Council Member Curry expressed concerns about the costs, referenced the voters' approval of Measure B, and believed that it is Council's job to do the will of the voters. He reported that San Miguel Drive is one of the most impacted intersections in the City and believed that the pedestrian bridge is an integral element in how the park will function. Council Member Hill indicated that he supports constructing the bridge, noting there are functional, aesthetic and financial reasons to support the bridge. He felt the most important functional reason is that the intersection is not a safe place for pedestrians to be today and opined the bridge would provide a popular view point. He also addressed financial reasons, noting it can be done without augmenting the budget and at the most economical dollars the City will be able to spend. Denys Oberman inquired about the total spent on the project thus far relative to the percentage of completion. She believed that if there is extra money, there may be a better use for the funds. She asked that Council defer consideration of spending the money until the project is at least 80% complete. George Schroeder spoke in favor of the bridge and urged Council to support the project. Jim Mosher thanked staff for making the contract amendment and renderings available. He spoke in opposition to the bridge and questioned C. W. Driver's contribution toward the cost of constructing the bridge. He addressed Measure B and asked whether Police and Fire Department administrative offices will be included in the project. In response to Council Member Daigle's inquiry, Public Works Director Badum confirmed that upon the execution of the agreement, there will be an attachment itemizing the $2 million. He explained why it was not included in the staff report, but noted that it was in the original contract package previously approved by Council. In response to Mayor Henn's inquiries, Public Works Director Badum explained why the contingency is not at -risk in the remainder of the project. He explained the current process, noting that most of the major requests for information /submittals have been submitted to the architect for clarification and /or approval of products. He reported that there have been extensive conversations about every component within the project. He indicated no problems were found upon excavation and stated the team is confident that all major areas have been addressed. Regarding the timeline, he affirmed that the project is on time and that the project should be complete by the end of 2012. He addressed the cost impacts of possible delays. William Hahn, C. W. Driver, reported that the evaluation included possible delays. He estimated that if the project experienced a two month delay, financial impacts may be about $200,000. Regarding waiting to build the bridge, he reported that they are at a point in the project where it can be included and the project would still meet the completion date. However, if Council decided to go forward with the bridge at a later Volume 60 - Page 312 City of Newport Beach City Council Special Meeting Minutes November 29, 2011 date, the entire north park would need to be re- graded and re -done at an additional cost. Council Member Rosansky addressed the construction management costs related to constructing the bridge. He noted that the contingency is for unforeseen events and that the issue is not the contingency, but rather whether the City is getting $2 million of value by building the bridge. He inquired about safety data relative to the intersection, opined the whole thing is circumstantial and reported that many architectural visions were value engineered out. He suggested spending the money on sculptures for the sculpture garden rather than a bridge, and stated that eliminating the crosswalk would make the intersection safer. He recommended determining whether or not a bridge will get used. Mayor Henn indicated that there may be other parts of the project where the City did not get its value and that it is not fair to single out this one aspect of the designfor criticism at the last minute. He stated that the traffic improvements on San Miguel Drive work well and indicated that he has changed his mind regarding the bridge and will support it on the basis that it completes the design that was originally envisioned and provides for a safer intersection with better traffic flow. The substitute motion carried by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Council Member Hill, Mayor Henn, Council Member Selich, Council Member Curry Noes: Council Member Rosansky, Mayor Pro Tem Gardner, Council Member Daigle Xl. ADJOURNMENT - 9:66 p.m. The agenda for the Regular Meeting was posted on November 26, 2011, at 2:40 p.m on the City Hall Bulletin Board located outside of the City of Newport Beach Administration Building. AA� City Clerk &6- ;' -� Recording S cretary Mayor Volume 60 - Page 313