August 20, 2005 Meeting
Preparation
An e-mail was
sent to each member who has provided a contact e-mail address.
Susan Chu and
Kathy Vacio phoned
each other member who has provided a contact phone number plus a few
e-mailees known not to read their e-mail often.
Acknowledgments
Attendees
7 residents attended the meeting
Meeting
Agenda
Items:
- new park
- loss of
south east corner and pedestrian entrance
- rename
status
- ice rink
project going forward
- anything
else attendees wish to discuss
The meeting began about 11:25 am in Hastings
Branch
Library's meeting room.
- loss of
south east corner and pedestrian entrance
- Households
within 300 ft of the park received a letter at the end of July saying
that the park master plan needed to be changed. Edison had
discovered the eastern rank of power lines are too close to the ground
to allow public access beneath them. This means that the
south-east corner of the planned park would have to be fenced off and
the planned pedestrian entrance could not exist. The fenced off
area would not be landscaped - it would just remain weedy dirt.
- At a
park commission hearing on August 2nd, city staff said they had changed
their mind and decided not to change the master plan because it is
possible that sometime in the future Edison will raise the lines and
then the currently approved plan could be completed. They were
hopeful that in the meantime an entrance further south could be created
as part of the ice rink project.
- Todd
Holmes, the landscape architect, said he'd look into possibilities for
screening landscaping of the "safety zone" weed patch.
- Councilman
Haderlein has since informed us that city staff is working on a plan
for a wavering path that would go from the south end of the park to the
west of the wires that are too low and eventually go east to a
pedestrian entrance on Avocado. They are hoping to get the plan
made, approvals complete, and the construction done before the park
opens. (This seems very optimistic.)
- A
rough estimate of distances indicates that the wires continue to be too
low until somewhere south of Del Vina and therefore the entrance will
be somewhere south of Del Vina.
- north
east corner safety zone not to be fenced
- also
learned that the area in the north east corner of the park where the
two high tension towers are will not be fenced off. The existing
ivy covered fence along Orange Grove to the east of the park entrance
is to remain, but within the park the area around the towers will be
barren ground but not fenced. It would be expensive and might
impeed Edison's access. The towers are to have "climbing
arrestors" on them (probably means something like barbed wire).
- rename
status
- The
request to rename the park Viña Vieja has not yet gone beyond he
city manager. Councilman Haderlein said in July that he had heard
it would be on the Parks and Recreation Commission's meeting agenda in
September. If so, that should be on Tuesday September 6 at 4 pm
at the Senior Center.
- ice rink
project going forward
- On
August 8 the City Council approved hiring the architect, the
environmental report and mitigation measures, and general terms of the
management agreement. It was approved 7 - 1. The only
disagreement was regarding the management agreement.
- Nothing
about the existence of, or terms for, an access agreement with PCC was
included in the agenda materials, discussed at the meeting, or in any
other known public forum. This is a real source of concern.
Councilman Haderlein has said he understood from a private session in
June that an agreement has been reached. But since that agreement
is essential to the ice rink plan, why hasn't it been made public?
- Councilman
Haderlein says a landscape buffer along Avocado is in the plan, but it
was not it was not discussed by the city council and the agenda item
said only it could
be
added to the plan.
- expect a
meeting or workshop with the architect for community input to the
design as early as September
- In
mid-July at the request of Manual Vargas, City Engineer Dan Rix came to
our neighborhood at noon to discuss street lights and undergrounding of
utilities. Manuel and Laura Ellersieck met with him.
- Laura Ellersieck gave Mr. Rix a list of trees that need to be
trimmed for existing street lights to be effective.
He said he'd pass it along to correct person. No effect seen yet
but if they've been added to the city-wide list something may happen in
4 to 6 months.
- Was good to have him see some of the neighborhood - apparent
he'd never been in the area.
- Information
received on street lights and undergrounding was pretty much as
discussed at last meeting
- can
add lights to existing poles if immediate neighbors agree
- can
increase wattage of existing lights if immediate neighbors agree
- undergrounding
is extremely expensive, only major streets being done now and for next
40 years
- there
are some streets in the city that have had no street lights and have no
utlity poles to add lights to which have been getting lighting
systems. The electricity for the new lighting systems is
undergrounded, but the utilities on those streets are not being
undergrounded. Estado between Santa Paula and Avocado Ln is on
the list to get such a system and it is now expected to happen next
year. The residents along that portion of Estado will get to
choose what kind of lights they want.
- Mr Rix
said he was willing to come to an evening meeting in the neighborhood
since many residents work during the day. If it is after dark he
will also be able to see the effectiveness or lack thereof of the
street lights. This meeting has yet to be scheduled. If you
are interested in attending, send an e-mail including what days/times
would work for you and we'll be sure to inform you when the meeting is
scheduled.
- anything
else attendees wish to discuss
- Hastings
Village revenue, Allstate building, possible signal for Electronic and
Sierra Madre Villa, Toyota dealership, corner of Sierra Madre Villa and
Foothill, traffic, recent house sales, housing speculators, when houses
were built and how
Next meeting is September 10, same
time, same place.
Adjourned about 12:15 pm?