CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION

Meeting Minutes

May 14, 2001

PRESENT: Council Members Campos, Cortese, Dando, Diquisto, LeZotte, Reed, Shirakawa, Jr., Williams, Yeager; Gonzales.

ABSENT: Council Member Chavez (excused).

STAFF: City Manager Del D. Borgsdorf, City Attorney Rick Doyle, Chief Deputy City Manager Darrell Dearborn, Mayor’s Budget and Public Policy Director Joe Guerra, Budget Director Larry D. Lisenbee, Assistant Budget Director Jennifer Maguire, Mayoral Assistants Julie Shioshita and Meghan Horrigan, Assistant City Clerk Nancy Alford, and Legislative Secretary Doris Casey.

Documents filed: (1) Study Session Agenda. (2) Hard copies of slide presentation made by Staff. (3) See Study Session minutes of May 10, 2001, for the Proposed FY2001-2002 Operating Budget.

FY 2001-02 PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET

Mayor Gonzales opened the Study Session at 8:38 a.m. to continue Council’s review of the Proposed 2001-02 Operating Budget, with presentations organized around the City Service Areas (CSAs) developed to review the budget based on services provided rather than by department.

TRANSPORTATION CSA

Transportation Director Wayne Tanda, as Team Leader of the Transportation City Service Area (CSA), stated Core Services are Parking Services, Street Landscape and Pavement Maintenance, Traffic Operations and Maintenance, Transportation Planning and Strategic Support, and City Partners are the Departments of Transportation, Public Works, Police, Aviation, Planning, Building & Code Enforcement and the Redevelopment Agency. With PowerPoint overheads, he presented the vision of the CSA to provide a safe and efficient transportation system that contributes to the livability and economic health of the City. He stated Desired Outcomes consist of a multi-modal system, well maintained, safe and efficient operations, management of commute demands, efficient access to major activity centers and enhancing community livability. He outlined current commute modes in Santa Clara County, reviewed public concerns, and stated that reaching desired outcomes involves reviewing past and future improvement opportunities, exploring redeployment options,and identifying gaps not addressed by the above process. He presented Outcomes 1 through 4, measuring CSA Performance at current levels, at 1-yr target levels, and 5-year goal levels, and presented Planned Actions and Proposed Augmentations for each; addressing Viable Choices in Travel Mode under Outcome 1, Convenient Commute to Workplace under Outcome 2, Efficient Access to Major Activity Center under Outcome 3, and Transportation Assets/Services that Enhance Community Livability under Outcome 4.

Council Member Williams expressed concern that funding for median island landscaping in the capital budget may be inadequate and suggested Staff review for possible augmentation. Council Member Yeager suggested the Administration look for ways to fund spraying of oak and sycamore trees where needed. Council Member Dando suggested reviewing the possibility of augmented funding for signal lights to catch up the backlog faster.

Mayor Gonzales suggested Staff work with businesses where employee parking spaces are unused and could be utilized to meet parking demand, and suggested next year’s budget include a performance measure that reflects various modes of transit which people use to go to work. Regarding the debris removal program being brought in house and serviced through the alternative work program, he suggested a one-year review to determine if the program is meeting expectations. Stating he shares concerns expressed by Council Members Yeager and Dando about adequate staffing for traffic calming, he requested Staff review that issue. He suggested Staff provide the number of grants for which the City has applied, the number received, and the number of staff analysis and study conclusions utilized in transportation planning. He stated in order to successfully accomplish its transportation objectives, San José needs to be successful at a regional level and stated it is important to review how to have a greater impact regionally with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Valley Transportation Authority, to ensure San José interests and priorities are considered.

Mayor Gonzales recessed the Study Session at 9:48 a.m. for Council to participate in the Opening Day Observances of the Police Memorial Week. The Study Session reconvened at 10:38 a.m. with all Council Members present, except Council Member Chavez (excused).

Mayor Gonzales stated the issue of sweeping around parked cars and the difficulty in getting cars moved is an issue that needs to be explored.

Council Member Dando asked for a report on who has responsibility for public safety in the new open space which the City acquired beyond Calero in her district, whether park rangers or City police officers, and stated additional staff may be needed to ensure safety in this large and isolated 1,000-acre property.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND UTILITY SERVICES CSA

Jim Holgersson, Deputy City Manager for Neighborhoods, presented the Environmental and Utility Services CSA, which is responsible for managing potable, recycled and waste water and urban runoff, garbage collection and disposal, recyclables collection and processing, and protection of air, land and energy resources, and stated City partners are the Departments of Public Works, General Services, Planning, Building and Code Enforcement and the Redevelopment Agency. With the aid of slides, he detailed the CSA’s Planned Outcomes, the Proposed Budget By Fund, Investment Priorities, Solid Waste Highlights, and Planned Accomplishments for Next Fiscal Year with Existing Resources. Environmental Services Director Carl W. Mosher outlined the Recycle Plus Transition and highlights pertaining to Water Supply, Water Utility, Sanitary Sewer, Storm Water, Infrastructure Maintenance and Expansion, Energy Highlights, and Planned Accomplishments for Next Fiscal Year with Existing Resources.

Mayor Gonzales requested Staff provide a Manager’s Budget Addendum (MBA) on the kinds of efficiencies the Department of Environmental Services has achieved pertaining to the area of wholesale water rates as justification for the proposed 5.2% increase in municipal water rates, and suggested Staff explore new developments and facilities which are potential recycled water users.

In response to comments by several Council Members about the issue of street sweeping and the obstacle of parked cars impeding sweepers, Director Tanda stated the difficulty of increasing enforcement of parking regulations that require parked cars to be moved on street sweeping days is complicated by the fact that in many instances, residents have no place to move their cars, and greater enforcement will create dissatisfaction in those neighborhoods. Therefore, he stated the issue of weighing the benefit of cleaner streets at the expense of neighborhood inconvenience is a decision for Council to make and that is the reason no recommendation for wholesale parking compliance was brought forward by Staff.

Council Member Williams asked about the City’s policy regarding residents placing solar or other types of energy efficient equipment on their homes, citing a case where the City purportedly charged excessive fees, and suggested Staff review the issue and seek to encourage conservation efforts by residents. Council Member Reed requested, when reporting out the fee setting portion of the garbage contracts, that Staff review the feasibility of building into the multi-family recycling fees some type of a grant program to encourage retrofitting of older complexes in ways that encourage recycling participation. Council Member Campos expressed concern about the difficulty of encouraging recycling in multi-family dwellings and requested Staff keep Council offices apprised of the status of recycling in their districts and of any subsequent plan to educate and involve apartment managers to a greater degree.

The Study Session recessed at 11:58 a.m. and reconvened at 1:34 p.m. with all present, but Council Member Chavez (excused).

Responding to questions from Mayor Gonzales regarding funding for the Smart Energy Plan, City Manager Borgsdorf stated any specific resource requests which come forward from the energy team related to City initiatives regarding conservation and preparation of the Smart Energy RFQ process can be addressed through an MBA and the Mayor’s Budget Redirect recommendations.

Council Member Diquisto referenced overtime estimates for Environmental Services and requested a comparison of the inspections and activities anticipated to require overtime versus increasing staffing, and requested a breakdown of the types of expenses covered under the non-personal equipment category. Council Member LeZotte requested Staff provide the latest information on how computers should be discarded since they cannot go in the landfill. Responding to questions from Council Member Williams, Director Mosher stated Staff will provide a description of the types of food waste disposal that are included in the new pilot program, and will include various of his suggestions for ensuring and tracking missed residential pickups.

Ross Signorino addressed Council on the pros and cons of in-house billing for Recycle Plus!

PUBLIC SAFETY CSA

Police Chief William Lansdowne, the lead presenter, stated the Public Safety CSA encompasses City Service Areas focused on crime, fire, emergency medical, hazardous and disaster-related needs of San José’s community and the City’s internal partners in providing these services include the Departments of Fire, Emergency Services, Independent Police Auditor, and the Police Department. Following the overheads of the proposed 2001-02 budget, he stated that he and Fire Chief Manuel Alarcon, Dr. Frances E. Winslow of Emergency Services, and Independent Police Auditor Teresa Guerrero-Daley will be available to answer Council questions. Aided by overheads, Chief Lansdowne presented the CSA’s Mission Statement and explained the strategic goals and objectives which are stated in the Business Plan and developed as part of the Business Plan Outcomes. He outlined the present Trends, Issues and Opportunities, reviewed the 2001-02 adopted budget broken down by public safety departments, and presented the Proposed Base Budget for 2001-2002, with guiding principles and the prioritization tiers and technology used for proposal development. Outcomes 1 through 5—Ensuring that residents feel safe in San José, see public safety personnel as a positive part of the community, share responsibility for public safety, are prepared for disasters or emergencies and know to contact public safety personnel for response, education or prevention services, and feel satisfied with the public safety services received—were outlined by resources needed to address service demands, strategic support to maximize resources, improve efficiency of existing programs, improve the number of cases assigned and resolved, and review of the gaps in service yet to be addressed.

In response to Mayor Gonzales’ question, Fire Chief Manuel Alarcon stated Staff is researching possible funding from the State for thermal imaging units. Mayor Gonzales requested Staff explores methods of retaining for emergencies the skills and availability of paramedic personnel as they move up in the department and who currently do not retain paramedic status.

Council Member Williams asked about locations in the City, which handle hazardous materials and requested a list of such sites in District 2. Council Member Yeager commented on the potential for preventing home fires through enhanced public education, suggested considering augmentations to Staff to facilitate more public safety outreach programs in the community and to provide educational materials at fairs and other entertainment venues. Council Member Campos suggested focusing public outreach on the purpose and availability of Community Policing Centers. Council Member Diquisto suggested additional Fire Department Staffing in the form of couriers would relieve trained safety personnel, and staff for data management and fire protection engineers would increase overall public safety performance. He stated Fire and Police do a good job but could do more with greater resources.

Council Member Cortese asked the feasibility of expanding the current program, which is presented annually to only a few schools and on a request basis, for Staff to work with all schools to provide a public safety program, using teacher cooperation, and encouraging students to prepare disaster plans for their homes and families, and requested a report on estimated resources required to provide such comprehensive education services.

Council Member Dando expressed support for providing for a comprehensive public education fire prevention program and suggested including wildlife interface personnel. Regarding the challenge of hiring and retaining firefighters, addressing the issue of losing personnel to other areas, she suggesting developing a Fire Staffing Plan and suggested augmenting funds for heavy recruitment for Fire and Police Academies and strong recruitment of laterals, and suggested the Administration revisit the budget proposal for the Fire Department and bring back to Council suggestions to augment those areas of service. She stated support for finding a mechanism by which paramedics could be retained as support paramedics after promotions and after the 50-member pool is filled, to have those skills available for potential emergencies.

Responding to comments by Council Member Dando about the data being collected by the Independent Police Auditor and suggesting Council be apprised if additional funds or staffing are needed to maintain data collection, Teresa Guerrero-Daley suggested community outreach could be done across departments by having a community staff person assigned that responsibility, and by having tables or kiosks for City-wide outreach at fairs and similar venues.

Council Member Dando suggested Staff explore a voluntary program being run by the District Attorney and various San José Police Officers to provide education to parents and to work with schools about the dangers of internet pornography and crime, targeted to boys of a very fragile age, and suggested Staff bring back a recommendation and Council consider funding such a program this year as an augmentation to the department’s current high-tech and internet crime program.

Vice Mayor Shirakawa, Jr. stated support for expanding the community outreach programs to include all schools as quickly as possible as well as senior centers and community based organizations and encouraged Staff to look for innovative ways to provide a greater degree of outreach. Council Member Reed pointed out statistics that show the crime rate and fire death comparisons for San José for year 2000 are lower than the national average, meaning many residents of the City of San José have been spared by the efforts of the City’s public safety personnel. Council Member LeZotte agreed with focusing public outreach on Internet crime and fire prevention, especially regarding seniors.

Mayor Gonzales referenced page 201 pertaining to the issue of education and stated that while everyone agrees with the needs in the area of public safety, Council needs to remember the primary role of public safety officers and the need to invest limited resources carefully. He stated firefighters’ roles in preventing fires and saving lives often has little to do with fighting fires, and agreed with the need to direct more services to seniors as the population ages. Council Member Diquisto stressed the urgency of resolving the issue of losing paramedic skills through promotions, which he deemed as critical to San José’s overall safety resources.

Ross Signorino addressed Council on issues related to the City of San José budget.

STRATEGIC SUPPORT CSA - COUNCIL APPOINTEES

Addressing the Council Appointee portion of the Strategic Support Services, Mayor Gonzales asked for Council comments on the budgets of the City Attorney, City Clerk, City Auditor, City Manager and the Independent Police Auditor, and noted that budgets for these departments have already gone through the Finance and Technology Committee and are before Council for discussion.

Council Member Reed questioned the Independent Police Auditor Teresa Guerrero-Daley on the issue of inadequate resources for outreach and asked what budget augmentation would be required to facilitate outreach at community events and printing materials. Teresa Guerrero-Daley stated approximately $10,000 would fund printing costs and two outreach events per week. Council Member Yeager suggested advertising in minority newspapers.

CITY AUDITOR RECOMMENATIONS

City Auditor Gerald Silva presented recommendations from his budget report. Regarding his recommendation that the Administration prepare a fee structure to make hazardous materials permanent storage fees cost recovery, and due to the Administration’s reluctance because of detrimental impacts to fee payers, he had recommended targeting specific facilities which pose the largest potential hazard for the City, and this issue will be revisited when he reports to the Finance Committee on the Fire Prevention Bureau in the near future. Regarding the status of the Police Staffing Audit, he stated the proposed start date for the Computer Aided Dispatch system (CAD) is October of 2002 and once compatibility of the CAD system with existing software had been determined, the department will seek grant funding to purchase appropriate staffing and deployment software, consistent with his recommendations.

Mayor Gonzales adjourned the Study Session at 3:44 p. m.

NANCY ALFORD, ASSISTANT CITY CLERK