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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-09-02; Agricultural Conversion Mitigation Fee Committee Ad Hoc; MinutesApproved: 11-17-08 AGRICULTURAL CONVERSION MITIGATION FEE AD HOC CITIZENS’ ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES September 2, 2008 1635 Faraday Avenue Carlsbad, CA 92008 Room 173A ITEM 1: CALL TO ORDER Vice-Chairperson, Eric Larson called the meeting to order at 1:10 p.m., and welcomed Jackie Stone as a new Committee Member. Committee Members Present: Irv Rosten-Retired, Julie Baker-Planning Commission Representative, Richard Erhardt-Chairperson of the Beach Preservation Committee, Eric Larson-Chairperson/Executive Director of the San Diego County Farm Bureau, Ken Alfrey-Board Member of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation and Hope Wrisley-Community Leader, and Jackie Stone-League of Women Voters Staff Members Present: Scott Donnell, Senior Planner Kevin Pointer, Associate Planner ITEM 2: ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON Motion to elect Eric Larson as Chairperson of the Agricultural Conversion Committee (following the earlier resignation of Chairperson Julie Nygaard in accordance with her taking office as a member of the City Council) was made by Ms. Wrisley and seconded by Ms. Baker. Motion to elect Julie Baker as Vice-Chairperson was made by Irv Rosten and seconded by Eric Larson. By consensus, Eric Larson was elected Chairperson of the Committee and Julie Baker was elected Vice-Chairperson. ITEM 3: APPROVAL OF JUNE 6, 2007 MINUTES Referring to Page 10, Section 7, Line 12, Chairperson Larson, corrected the minutes by stating the word “All” should be replaced with the word “most” and should read as follows: “Most farms are on leased lands in Carlsbad.” Motion: Motion made by Ms. Wrisley and seconded by Ms. Baker to accept the Minutes of the meeting of June 6, 2007. By consensus, the minutes were approved as revised. ITEM 4: HISTORY OF COMMITTEE BACKGROUND AND OPERATING PROCEDURES Associate Planner Kevin Pointer made reference to the report in this meeting’s agenda packet and presented a brief slide show. Mr. Pointer briefly reviewed the earlier history of agricultural conversion mitigation. Following the state’s administration of the conversion and mitigation program, the City took over the administration of that program for Carlsbad. The present committee was established in 2004, by the City Council, as a mechanism to gain more knowledge and understanding of how to implement the program and disperse the funds that had already been collected by the state and by the City. In 2006, the City Council adopted a program establishing regulations and procedures that would carry the committee forward in soliciting grant proposals to recommend disbursement of those funds to projects that would in return mitigate the conversion of agricultural land to urban uses. Ms. Wrisley pointed out that the committee was originally established with a four (4) year life and asked if there is a provision for extending the life of the committee. Mr. Pointer replied there is a provision for extending the committee’s life. In 2005 the committee was created for a four (4) year term and that term lapses on August 2, 2009. If, by that time, the committee has not carried out its full mandate and the City Council otherwise chooses to re-establish the life term of the committee, they would have the opportunity of doing that before the “sunset” date of the committee. As part of the City Council’s mandate, the charge of the committee was to make recommendations to expend the money that has been collected from the agricultural mitigation conversion fees, in keeping with the criteria and regulations established by Section 21.202.060 of the Municipal Code, which establishes the Agricultural Conversion Mitigation Program. DISCUSSION: Chairperson Larson asked for questions or discussion. Hearing none, Mr. Larson stated that the committee had been using a facilitator up to this point and wondered if there were any comments or concerns regarding the resumption of using a facilitator. He added that he feels that a facilitator is no longer needed and he would like to save the expense of a facilitator. Ms. Wrisley said she would like the committee to reserve the right to have a facilitator, at a later date, if necessary. Chairperson Larson asked if the committee agreed with Ms. Wrisley to which all members agreed. Mr. Pointer stated that part of the City Council’s mandate, Committee procedures establish that the chairperson is to lead the meetings while a facilitator would lead the discussions. Facilitator participation is not absolutely necessary at all meetings but if at some time in the future when the committee might consider grant proposals, staff would certainly encourage use of a facilitator. ITEM 5: REPORT AND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION ON STATUS OF PROJECTS AWARDED WITH GRANT FUNDING Mr. Pointer reported that of the sixteen (16) grant proposals that were submitted to the City, thirteen (13) were approved for an approximate total of $6.5 million by the City Council in accordance with the Committee’s recommendations. To date, four (4) of those projects have been fully funded and have been or are in the process of being fully constructed. Five (5) of the thirteen (13) authorized grants have received partial funding and the remaining four (4) have not yet received any funds. Updates on the progress of those funded projects can be found in this meeting’s agenda packet and have been provided by individual project applicants. As of the time of the printing of the agenda packet however, a report from the Audubon Nature Center had not been received regarding the improvements to their Learning Center. However, a copy of a letter from the Audubon Nature Center, received on the date of the meeting, was distributed to each of the committee members and was made available at the meeting for public distribution. This letter indicated the status update of their Audubon Nature Center project. Staff believes that the implementation and awards are taking place very appropriately and encourages all of the award recipients who have not yet received the money, to move forward with the utmost success. DISCUSSION: Ms. Baker stated she understood there is a possibility that some of the recipients are now not sure they will be going forward with their projects and asked Mr. Pointer to explain. Mr. Pointer replied that a letter had been received from Catholic Charities stating that the original grant of $108,000 has been set aside for preliminary project development planning as well as for permit fees. Mr. Pointer then deferred to the applicant’s representative present in the audience to address additional questions regarding the intentions of the Catholic Charities applicant. Ms. Baker asked if there is or will be a time limit placed on the applicant’s project regarding completion. Mr. Pointer replied that he knows of no such time limit. Chairman Larson stated that he didn’t recall setting any time limits. Ms. Baker suggested there should be a discussion, on a future agenda, to determine if there should be time limits applied to the grant projects and if so, how long should the limits be. Sister RayMonda DuVall, representing Catholic Charities stated that the delay in implementation all has to do with operational funds. Catholic Charities believes that they would be able to build the project with the City funds and perhaps an augmentation of those funds. What are not available, however, are operational funds. Since submittal of the original project application, operational costs have already increased by $30,000. Catholic Charities would like to brainstorm or provide other suggestions for the committee to consider, but it would put aside the original proposal and modify that proposal to one that Catholic Charities can afford to operate given the various sources that have been committed towards funding the project. Catholic Charities believes that they are the best to construct a project and operate a project; however, they do not want to lead the City or agency into a hole. Ms. Wrisley asked if La Posada is in any danger of not being able to operate due to lack of funds. Sister RayMonda responded that Catholic Charities allocates $100,000 every year towards La Posada. The Board of Directors for Catholic Charities has committed to funding this amount to La Posada annually; however, they would like the Catholic Charities portion of funding for La Posada to not exceed this amount. Sister RayMonda responded that La Posada is not in danger of being unable to operate. Irv Rosten asked whether the resident population has increased or decreased since the last time the Committee met. Eddie Preciado indicated that the resident population at La Posada has increased. La Posada has seen the homeless population increase to approximately 25 persons because of their work with other cities in North County in the past eight months. Irv Rosten then asked if the majority of increase has been farmworkers. Eddie Preciado indicated that before he left for vacation that there were at least 13 farmworkers and at least 8 non-farmworkers. He speculated that are likely more farmworkers now. Ken Alfrey asked Sister RayMonda and Eddie Preciado if they are suggesting that the already approved $100,000 for the design, be placed back in the fund and further asked whether they felt the committee should consider another grant application from La Posada. Sister RayMonda clarified that she intended to convey neither. She explained what she wanted to say was that she believed the design was submitted for which the $100,000 was to approve the design and do the permitting was not an affordable plan in the best scenario for the City or for Catholic Charities. She then suggested that they come back to the committee with a different plan that is much more modest, that is probably much more attainable in terms of operations and that fund ought to be available so that the City has an opportunity to review something. Also, at that time, the committee could make a decision on it and if appropriate, to issue the permit. She also stated that she thinks Catholic Charities and the City need to “go back to the drawing board” and come back with something that will meet the needs, and meet the state requirements for that funding but also will be operational for the next twenty (20) years. Sister RayMonda also pointed out that the new plan would be much more adaptable to any changes in their services as time passes. For example, if in ten years, the need is no longer there for farmworker housing, then perhaps the project could be converted based on another need, such as family housing. She expressed how much Catholic Charities likes the current design but the reality of it is that they could afford to build it but they would not be able to operate it. In response to a question from Chairperson Larson about the original design, Sister RayMonda replied that the low rents paid by farmworkers and others would not come close to totaling enough to cover the expenses. Chairman Larson asked Sister RayMonda what time frame the committee could expect results if the committee is amenable to having an alternative project brought forward, to which she replied, “two months”. Chairperson Larson asked if there were any other questions for Sister RayMonda or any other projects or project proponents. Ms. Baker queried the e-mail received from Mr. Munoz of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation and asked if there was any more information on the request to leverage additional funds. Nikki Weaver, representing the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation as the Discovery Center Director, addressed the committee. She indicated that the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation is troubled with the difficulty to acquire additional acreage of approximately 5-7 acres surrounding their property. She indicated that there is difficulty coordinating among various agencies regarding regulations applicable to the land. Ms. Baker asked if there was a time frame regarding anticipated resolution of the issues. Ms. Weaver’s response was approximately 10 months. Ms. Weaver indicated that although not all of the issues have been resolved, they may begin to use some of the funding immediately. Chairperson Larson asked if there was anyone present from staff who could speak to the sand replenishment Project. Mr. Pointer pointed out that there was no one present from the Engineering Department to respond. Chairperson Larson pointed out that the budget for that project actually changed since the Committee made a recommendation for a “Carlsbad Only” project and now money from the agricultural conversion mitigation fund is being folded into a SANDAG project. He said he wants a re-confirmation, to the committee, that this makes sense and also a statement of the City’s rationale for moving in that direction. Mr. Pointer replied that it is his understanding that the City Council looked at re-evaluating and modifying the original recommendation of the committee. Council decided that with the region-wide beach sand replenishment program that is currently being conducted by SANDAG that the same benefits could be attained in terms of the amount of sand on the beach. But those benefits could be obtained through using a little less money generated from the City of Carlsbad that the City had originally earmarked and encumbered for the “Beach Only” project. Also, it is Mr. Pointer’s understanding that the SANDAG project is on track for a 2011 completion. ITEM 6: RECEIVE REPORT AND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION ON FUND BALANCE, FUND AUGMENTATION, LAND CONVERSIONS AND FUND PROJECTIONS Mr. Pointer stated as follows: This item discusses the amount of funding non-encumbered and available for funding of potential future grant solicitations or grant projects. The current amount of money within the actual fund is approximately $5.9 million. Of that money, however, City Council has encumbered about $5.2 million. Some of that money will be disbursed to the applicants of projects that have already received grant awards. In the meantime the City is retaining those funds which are accruing interest. Over the past year the City acquired approximately $280,000 in interest income so there is a continuing increase in the dollars in the fund. The City, overall, has collected the majority of the money that will contribute to the program. The coastal agricultural lands that are within the City (whether previously converted or not), are approximately 900 acres. About 77% of those lands have already been developed and converted to urban uses. They have, essentially, paid the mitigation fees or mitigated the conversion in some other way. To date, all of the developers have paid the mitigation fees. The remaining 23% of the lands are still available for conversion to urban uses. However, staff does not foresee that all of that land will eventually convert to urban uses. Those lands may be preserved for other uses, require a permanent preservation for habitat, or may remain undeveloped for other reasons. An example of this is urban planning regulations that would preclude a developer from fully developing 100% of their entire property. The maximum fee projection is $1.7 to $2.2 million dollars depending on how much of those lands can or will be converted to urban uses. Right now there are about $700,000 left in the grant account that is currently un-encumbered but has potential to be distributed for additional grant projects. Ms. Wrisley questioned whether the City has already received mitigation funding for the Robertson Ranch, Cantarini and Holly Springs projects Scott Donnell responded that the City has not and will not receive funds from these projects because they are not part of the program due to their location. Mr. Pointer clarified that projects such as the Encina Auto Plaza will be going forward to the Planning Commission in the near future and has the capability to contribute approximately $250,000 towards the fund. Mr. Pointer clarified that the purpose of conveying available un-encumbered balance in the fund (about $700,000) is to allow the committee to consider the potential and capacity for funding additional grant projects. Mr. Pointer continued through the presentation of a powerpoint slideshow depicting maps showing properties that are subject to the program, as well as a map showing projects that have been funded through the program. A member of the audience, Mat Huff, questioned whether these maps were/are available on the City’s website. Mr. Donnell and Mr. Pointer indicated that the information is available in the agenda packet which is posted to the City’s website. ITEM 7: RECEIVE REPORT AND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION ON AVAILABLE FUNDING AND POTENTIAL GRANT SOLICITATIONS Chairperson Larson asked for committee comments regarding the $700,000 on hand and also discussion regarding Catholic Charities’ request for additional time to bring in a revised project. Ms. Wrisley stated she would like to see their time extended to two (2) to twelve (12) months but for no longer than that. Chairman Larson reminded the committee that part of the committee’s charter is that they meet a minimum of twice a year and because this meeting is the first to be held in 2008, they will have to plan to meet again before year’s end, which will work out well with Catholic Charities proposed two (2) month extension. Ms. Baker suggested the committee wait for a time before they do any more grant funding. She said it might be useful to know whether the projects they’ve already funded have come to fruition and if they’ve been beneficial. She stated they could possibly learn something from and would be helpful in determining whether they’ve been on the right track or whether they should be going in a different direction. Ms. Wrisley made a statement in response to Ms. Baker indicating that with the Encina Auto Plaza, they could have additional funds, which may make it better to fund with a bigger sum of money than to disburse smaller amounts of money over time. Mr Alfrey agreed with Ms. Baker and Ms. Wrisley in that the committee has distributed almost 80% of the funds and the committee should give those projects time to develop and gather feedback on them before the committee recommends funding other projects. By consensus, the committee will meet again before the end of 2008 if there is an agreement that the committee will give Catholic Charities an opportunity revise their project and subsequently return to the committee. This will also give the committee a chance to evaluate the projects they have already funded. PUBLIC COMMENT: Chris Calkins representing the Carlsbad Flower Fields presented a cymbidium that the committee funded through award of grant funding. He urged the committee not to defer for too long, and encouraged the committee to consider soliciting additional grants. He mentioned that the Carlsbad Flower Fields has a project. He mentioned problems affecting agriculture such as the water crisis at the state and our county levels in particular. Mr. Calkins is aware of the significant benefits of remaining agriculture. He urged grant funding for a Carlsbad Flower Fields project that would make better use of potable and recycled water without treatment that would help them avoid salt build-up. Jackie Stone asked if Mr. Calkins had done experimenting with using any desalinated water. He indicated that the desalinated water would be blended in and wouldn’t be detrimental. Andy Mauro, representing Audubon Society watershed project, expressed the Society’s appreciation for the funding they received from this committee. He indicated that they are considering a project for which they would like to obtain funding assistance. This project is the Buena Vista Creek Watershed Management Plan. ITEM 8: POTENTIAL FUTURE MEETING DATES By consensus, the committee agreed to meet again on November 17, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. Chairperson Larson clarified that in deference to comments heard at the meeting, subsequent meetings are to contain an item to discuss additional grant solicitation. ITEM 10: ADJOURNMENT Chairman Larson adjourned the meeting at 1:45 p.m. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED: Carol A. Cruise, Minutes Clerk