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VRC MINS 19940721 110 f 411 APPROVED 8/4/94st\I 0‘ MINUTES VIEW RESTORATION COMMISSION CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES JULY 21, 1994 The meeting was called to order at 7: 08 p.m. by Chairman Clark at Hesse Community Park, 29301 Hawthorne Boulevard. PRESENT Commissioners Black, Eastwood, Goern, Green, Scala, Sweetnam, Weisz and Chairman Clark. ABSENT Commissioner Boudreau and Vice Chairman Cartwright (both excused) . Also present were Planning Administrator Carolynn Petru and Recording Secretary Patricia Gehris. The flag salute was led by Commissioner Weisz. Chairman Clark noted for the record that this is the first meeting in which this body is convened as a sanctioned and recognized "Commission" . He then requested that Staff order new business cards and badges for the Commissioners. Staff indicated that this activity has already been initiated. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Joint Subcommittee Minutes of June 9, 1994 Commissioner Green moved, seconded by Commissioner Sweetnam, to approve the Joint Subcommittee Minutes of June 9, 1994, as written. There being no objection, Chairman Clark so ordered, (3-0) . B. Minutes of June 16, 1994 Commissioner Goern requested Staff to change her absence to read as "excused" on Page 1, since she informed Planning Administrator Petru prior to the meeting that she would be absent. Chairman Clark approved this action. Chairman Clark requested Staff to rephrase the double negative on Page 2 in Paragraph 1 under definitions regarding "distant mountain views" and "bathrooms". Furthermore, Chairman Clark requested Staff to research the issue on bathrooms as a protected viewing area, particularly in light of the past litigation against the City mentioned by Councilman McTaggart at the Joint Workshop. 111 111 Commissioner Sweetnam moved, seconded by Commissioner Black, to approve the Minutes of June 16, 1994, as amended. There being no exception, Chairman Clark so ordered, (8-0) . C. Minutes of June 23, 1994 Chairman Clark stated there still exists an action item to be addressed on Page 4 in the second paragraph as far as language clarification. He requested that Planning Administrator Petru, Commissioner Sweetnam, and himself meet to address this issue. The Commission requested Staff to provide each of them with copies of the Fences, Walls, and Hedges Ordinance. Commissioner Weisz moved, seconded by Commissioner Eastwood, to approve the Minutes of June 23, 1994, as written. There being no objection, Chairman Clark so ordered. FOLLOW-UP DISCUSSION OF JOINT WORKSHOP WITH THE CITY COUNCIL Chairman Clark announced that the Minutes for the Joint Workshop will be approved by City Council. Chairman Clark stated that he felt the workshop was a useful and positive meeting. He commented that it was apparent the City Council members present at the meeting had spent time researching the View Ordinance. However, there are still potential issues regarding viewing areas, i.e. multiple versus single. Therefore, Chairman Clark requested that the City Attorney attend one of the Commission's future meetings to discuss this subject in more depth, since it may have legal ramifications. Chairman Clark also stated that City Council seemed quite interested in the concept of charging a fee for individuals who abuse the City's Code Enforcement services in terms of view maintenance, and in the Commission's suggestions on establishing a new fee structure for View Restoration Permits. Planning Administrator Petru agreed that the Joint Workshop was very productive. In addition, she requested that the Commission discuss the procedure for delivering a package of recommended changes to the View Restoration Ordinance and the Commission's Guidelines to the Council by September 1994. Commissioner Scala addressed the issue of outdoor privacy and requested a general consensus of the Commission on how this issue will be interpreted, so that the public would be advised as far as the Commission's intentions on outdoor privacy. V.R.C. Minutes July 21, 1994 Page 2 111 111 Chairman Clark stated that the Commission had already recommended a change to the Ordinance to include specific language regarding outdoor and indoor privacy. Chairman Clark questioned Staff about whether other cities had policies regarding the protection of privacy. Planning Administrator Petru answered that, certainly within the Los Angeles Basin, the issue of protecting outdoor privacy is becoming an increasingly sensitive issue, which many cities are now beginning to address. Chairman Clark stated that the burden of proof for unreasonable infringement on outdoor privacy should be on the foliage owners. Commissioner Green noted that the statute already recognizes outdoor privacy as a right protected by the Code. Commissioner Goern and Commissioner Weisz commented, however, that the View Restoration Commission still has discretion in considering each individual case. Chairman Clark added that the Commission will work towards a balanced solution when neighbors cannot reach a decision on their own. Chairman Clark suggested that Staff provide the Commission with copies of the Draft Minutes from the June 30, 1994 Joint Workshop with the City Council. He requested that Staff advise the Commission of any changes made by the Council. Planning Administrator Petru agreed and stated the Joint Workshop Draft Minutes will be delivered to the Commissioners. Furthermore, Staff will advise the Commission of any changes that the Council made to the minutes. REPORTS AND COMMUNICATIONS A. STAFF Planning Administrator Petru stated that due to recent changes in the Brown Act, the title of the agenda item "Reports and Communications" will be changed to "Items to be Placed on Future Agendas" . Therefore, if any Commissioner wishes to add an item onto the agenda, he or she needs to call Chairman Clark or Planning Administrator Petru before the agenda packet is sent out, so that the topic can be placed on the agenda and discussed at the upcoming meeting. V.R.C. Minutes July 21, 1994 Page 3 411 Commissioner Scala requested that Staff research the status of the three cases where the foliage owners had complied with the requirements of the View Restoration Permit. Chairman Clark stated these cases are pending action items for Staff. He requested Staff create a permanent category on future agendas for the status of Action Items. Commissioner Sweetnam questioned if the City Council once had a similar procedure. Planning Administrator Petru stated that due to the changes in the Brown Act, the Council eliminated the "Status of Directives" from their agenda, but that Staff could provide the Commission with a separate informational list. Commissioner Sweetnam agreed that an action item list, separate from the agenda, would be fine. Planning Administrator Petru stated that it could be included in the packets that are delivered. However, if the Commission wanted to discuss any of the items, they would have to be scheduled on a future agenda. B. COMMISSION Commissioner Weisz requested Staff to research the appropriate method of calculating the View Restoration Permit application fees. He requested Staff to determine the amount of hours that a staff consultant or contractor would need to write a report. In addition, he requested an estimate of the cost of the service, such as base fee or rate times a multiplier. Chairman Clark requested Staff approach the calculations from a budgetary standpoint. Chairman Clark asked about topics for the next agenda. Commissioner Weisz stated that certain topics from the Key Issues List, such as soils engineers and hedges, were not discussed before the workshop with the Council. Chairman Clark requested that Staff prepare a Remaining Key Issue List for the August 4, 1994 meeting. The Commission can then determine if a special meeting is necessary to complete the Commission's recommendations to the City Council on changes to the Code and Guidelines. The final package of language revisions should go to the City Council by September 1994. V.R.C. Minutes July 21, 1994 Page 4 411 411 Commissioner Black stated she will be unable to attend the September 15, 1994 meeting due to a religious holiday; therefore she requested an excused absence. Commissioner Green stated he will be out of town during the August 4, 1994 meeting; therefore he requested an excused absence. Commissioner Goern stated she will be out of town during the August 18, 1994 meeting; therefore she requested an excused absence. Commissioner Black moved to change the September 1, 1994 meeting to September 8, 1994, due to the Labor Day Holiday Weekend, seconded by Commissioner Green. The motion passed by acclamation, (8-0) . AUDIENCE COMMENTS (regarding non-agenda items) - None. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Sweetnam moved, seconded by Commissioner Green, to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed, (8-0) . The meeting was duly adjourned at 7:56 P.M. The next regular meeting of the View Restoration Commission is scheduled for August 4, 1994, at 7 : 00 p.m. (VIEW RESTORATION DISK#1-MINUTES.721) V.R.C. Minutes July 21, 1994 Page 5