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CC 05-24-04 CITY OF CUPERJINO APPROVED MINUTES CUPERTINO CITY COUNCIL Regular Adjourned Meeting Monday, May 24, 2004 ROLL CALL City Council members present: Mayor Sandra James, Vice-Mayor Patrick Kwok, and Council members Richard Lowenthal, Dolly Sandoval, and Kris Wang. Council members absent: None. Staff present: City Manager David Knapp, Administrative Services Director Carol Atwood, City Attorney Charles Kilian, Community Development Director Steve Piasecki, Parks and Recreation Director Therese Smith, Finance Manager Carol Augustine, and Deputy City Clerk Grace Schmidt. At 3:34 p.m., Mayor James called the meeting to order in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 10300 Torre Avenue, Cupertino, California. STUDY SESSION I. Study session on the 2004-2005 budget. City Manager David Knapp highlighted the budget status and the prognosis for next year. He summarized the status of financial impacts on the city, including sales tax, hotel tax, utility users tax, vehicle license fees, interest earnings, and State raids on City funds. He noted the expenses that are up, explained that vacant positions that won't be filled, and discussed program cuts. He said that the City would need to find new revenue sources or curtail service levels. Administrative Services Director Carol Atwood showed a PowerPoint presentation that provided an overview of the budget and highlighted budget projections from 2003-04 and 2004-05, General Fund trends, changes in programs, and the projected Reserve Fund. Public Works Director Ralph Qualls reviewed the State's budget proposal and how it would impact the city. Atwood reviewed the departmental budgets and the proposal to implement a 911 Access Fee. Parks and Recreation Director Therese Smith, Community Development Director Steve Piasecki, and Public Works Director Ralph Qualls reviewed their specific departmental budgets. May 24,2004 Cupertino City Council Page 2 Qualls reviewed the staff report on weekly single-stream recycling and the Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) budget. Council directed staff to bring the weekly recycling item back on June 7. Council also directed staff to bring back the CIP items regarding the U-turn at Prospect and Saratoga/Sunnyvale Rd. to see if it could be done less expensively; to put Elm Court on the unfunded list and possibly make it a Special Assessment District; to try to obtain grant money, including money from the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), for the Mary Avenue Crosswalk; to investigate ways to obtain grants, and defer projects if necessary; to try to obtain grant money for the Lawrence Expressway- Mitty crossing as a possible Safe Routes to School and the possibility of joining with other entities including VT A; and to bring back a priority list of CIP projects. RECESS The City Council was in recess from 5:55 p.m. to 6:33 p.m. At 6:33 p.m. the Mayor called for public comments. Mavis Smith, Senior Citizens Commissioner, said that the Case Manager position at the Senior Center was very important. She said she had some ideas to help fund this position very inexpensively. She also supported the Block Leader program as a crime prevention program in the community. Knapp and City Attorney Charles ](jlian reviewed the memo on potential partial pre- payment of Kilian's housing loan. Council directed staff to bring this item back to Council on June 7. Kwok said he was concerned about dipping into the Economic Uncertainty Reserve Fund and he would like to examine service levels and efficiencies. He said he would like to fund the Case Manager position in order to receive $20,000 matching grant monies from the County. He supported the festivals as cultural events, but wanted to waive the City facility "in kind costs" only and not the out-of-pocket costs. He said he would like to consider cutting the $30,000 for translation costs, and he said the CIP budget was acceptable. Kwok said he preferred not to defer maintenance costs because the city ends up paying more money later. He also wanted to look into cutting costs in the City Attorney's office and Teen Center support staff. Sandoval said she was concerned with using one-time dollars for on-going expenses and would like to be able to leverage grant money through other organizations. She said she was not optimistic about the State paying back money it had taken, and the City may have to pick up the costs. She said she would like to consider fees, such as the 911 Access Fee, Blackberry Farm Golf Course fee, and a fee differential for non-residents, especially for parking at the Senior Center. She supported the festivals as an important service that is provided to the community, and suggested restricting funding on actual payments, but continuing in- lieu costs. She asked staff to research the minutes regarding having May 24, 2004 Cupertino City Council Page 3 different public forums for the budget. She suggested taking out advertising space in the Courier to advertise the budget hearings and change in programs. Wang said that there is a need to generate more revenue rather than just looking at cutting expenditures. She said she supported the community festivals and agreed with Sandoval and Kwok on cutting actual costs but continuing to help with in-lieu facility costs. She said that the Parks and Recreation Department needed to be more self-supporting by generating more revenue. She said she would like to fill the Case Manager position and to have staff analyze that position versus all the current vacancies to see which would most benefit the community. She also asked staff to review the costs of running the Teen Center. Lowenthal suggested reducing the Teen Center costs by having only one staff person instead of two. He said he would like to examine the 5 C's and Block Leader programs in detail, and to compare them with other valuable programs that are currently being cut. He said that for 2005 he would like to reduce the City's funding of the fireworks by half, and give the community a chance to raise additional funds. He said he wanted to look examine costs associated with the Community Access Channel, the Government Channel, and the city's web site to be sure they are providing what the community desires. He suggested that the Scene be emailed to residents as a cost-cutting measure, rather than delivered by the postal service. He wondered what Cupertino gets for the money spent on emergency preparedness. He supported the sale of City property and was in favor of increasing fees for non-residents at City facilities. He said he was opposed to the 911 Access Fee since it is a way to tax people without their knowing about it. He supported the festivals because they are a bargain for the City and are good for the community. He suggested not charging the festival coordinators for opportunity costs, but instead give them options and allow them to use volunteers to cut Sheriff costs. He said that cutting the DARE program, the School Resource Officers, and the Case Manager position would hurt the community the most. James suggested using qualified volunteers to fill the Case Manager position. She said she doesn't support the 911 Access Fee because the City is sending the wrong message to the community. She said that the DARE program, School Resource Officers, and the Case Manager position are very important. She said that in general she was opposed to using one-time money to fund on-going personnel costs, but to use that money to fund current positions is fine. She agreed with Kwok regarding the festivals and wondered how the City could justify cutting law enforcement and case management to fund the festivals. She agreed that the City should support the festivals in good times, but now the organizers would have to pay for their own operating costs and for sheriff expenses. She said that she would like to see the translation services continue for Chinese press translation. She agreed that the Teen Center could cut costs by using only one full-time staff person and utilize other staff for emergencies. She said she would like to see what the services are provided by the Community Outreach programs. She agreed that emailing the Scene would be good to cut postage costs, and she supported selling the City property. May 24, 2004 Cupertino City Council Page 4 ORAL COMMUNICATIONS - None This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons wishing to address the council on any matter not on the agenda. Speakers are limited to three (3) minutes. In most cases, State law will prohibit the council from making any decisions with respect to a matter not listed on the agenda. ADJOURNMENT At 7:30 p.m. the meeting was adjourned to Tuesday, June 1 at 3:00 p.m. for Teen Commission interviews, Sports Center Conference Room, 21111 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino, CA 95014. ~ 'rJJ- Grace Schmidt, Deputy City Clerk For more information: Staff reports, backup materials, and items distributed at the meeting are available for review at the City Clerk's Office, 777-3223, and also on the Internet at www.cupertino.org. Click on Agendas & Minutes/ City Council/ Packets. Most Council meetings are shown live on Cable Charmel 26, and are available at your convenience from our web site. Visit www.cupertino.org and click on Watch Meetings. Videotapes are available at the Cupertino Library, or may be purchased from the Cupertino City Channel, 777-2364.