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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRA Minutes 2001-06-04SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL, MONDAY, JUNE 4, 2001 AT 7:30 PM Regular Meeting: San Rafael Redevelopment Agency Present: Albert J. Boro, Chairman Cyr N. Miller, Vice -Chair Paul M. Cohen, Member Barbara Heller, Member Gary O. Phillips, Member Absent: None Also Present: Rod Gould, Executive Director Gus Guinan, Assistant Agency Attorney Jeanne M. Leoncini, Agency Secretary ORAL COMMUNICATIONS OF AN URGENCY NATURE: 7:59 PM None. CONSENT CALENDAR: Member Miller moved and Member Heller seconded, to approve the following Consent Calendar items: ITEM Approval of Minutes of Regular Meeting of Monday, May 21, 2001 2. Call for Applications for Appointments to Fill Four, Four- year Terms on the Citizens Advisory Committee on Redevelopment Due to Expiration of Terms of Glenn S. Koorhan, Deborah Stapleton, Don Swartz and Anise Turina, with Terms to Expire End of June 2005 (AS) — File R-140 IVB RECOMMENDED ACTION Approved as submitted. Page 1 Approved staff recommendation: a) Called for applications for appointments to fill four, four-year terms on the Citizens Advisory Committee on Redevelopment to the end of June, 2005; b) Set date for receipt of applications for Tuesday, June 26, 2001 at 12:00 Noon in the City Clerk's Office, Room 209, City Hall; c) Set date for interviews of applicants at a Special Redevelopment Agency meeting to be held on Monday, July 16, 2001, commencing at 6:00 p.m. 3. Monthly Investment Report for Month Ending April, 2001 Accepted Monthly Investment Report (MS) — File R-123 for the month ending April, 2001, as presented. AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Heller, Miller, Phillips and Chairman Boro NOES: MEMBERS: None ABSENT: MEMBERS: None ABSTAINING: MEMBERS: Cohen (from item #1 only, due to absence from meeting.) SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 1 SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 2 AGENCY CONSIDERATION: 4. RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING CONTINUED NEGOTIATIONS WITH MONAHAN PARKER, INC., FOR REDEVELOPMENT OF THE "B" STREET PROJECT AREA (RA) — FILE R-406 Economic Development Director Nancy Mackle stated this is an ongoing project which has changed its shape and form in response to changes in the downtown market and area. The project will bring more housing, some at market rate and some at affordability rates, with ground floor retail. The developer is proposing to do this in phases with the Zappettini welding shop over to Marin Furniture, the A Street side, being the first phase and the B Street side being the second phase. A lot of issues remain to be worked out; assumptions on property values will be evaluated as acquisitions are made; analyses will be undertaken with regard to parking, density bonuses, etc.; however, overall Ms. Mackle stated it appeared to be a good project and staff was presenting it to the Agency to ensure this was something which would work for the Board and if so, the recommendation is to extend the time for the exclusive right to negotiate, in order to go through Environmental Review with traffic, parking, visual analysis, etc. and at that point be in a position to enter into a DDA. (Disposition and Development Agreement). Ms. Mackle stated the developer, Mr. Parker, was present and would answer questions Member Heller inquired as to the housing. Ms. Mackle stated a significant number of units had been added, bringing the total to approximately 80 units in the project, compared to half this number last time when we had more offices there. She stated this would be good for traffic, having less of an impact during the rush hour, and providing more housing. Member Heller inquired if the housing above St. Vincent's would be replaced or upgraded. Ms. Mackle stated upgrading would be done on the B Street properties, retaining the housing units on the second story, making them all affordable units, as presently there are no restrictions on these units. Chairman Boro expressed appreciation for the efforts and believed this to be a significant contribution. He inquired as to how it would come together with PG&E. Ms. Mackle stated the hotel and PG&E have amended their contracts, keeping the deal alive, and are awaiting the bankruptcy court's approval of the sale of the property. She had not been able to ascertain how long this would take; however, staff anticipated it would be months, not weeks; therefore, the project is on hold but the players are fully committed and extremely optimistic it will take place. PG&E has all their permits ready to be picked up to build their Andersen Drive site. Ms. Mackle stated she would guess the summer would be a quiet time and when it picks up again, we will assist St. Vincent's to relocate to that site. In the meantime, St. Vincent's has toured the site, inspecting the existing building, which might be possible to rehabilitate. They also have an architectural team evaluating the site. Ms. Mackle stated the developer is proposing phasing the project and this appeared to be a logical option to pursue. Chairman Boro inquired from Executive Director Gould if there was a way to initiate contact, either with PG&E or through perhaps Lee Rosenthal (Agency Attorney), to ascertain whether we could get a better idea as to what is transpiring with PG&E in general. Mr. Gould stated Ms. Mackle had contact with the new project manager assigned to the move, who had been quite candid regarding the company's position with respect to the project. He stated staff is waiting to see if PG&E will take out a building permit to begin the construction of the additional space on Andersen Drive, which is necessary to allow the relocation prior to the sale of the property. He noted that when that occurs it will be known that the relocation is happening and the only question becomes if the court will delay the sale of the property further. Mr. Gould reported that both he and Ms. Mackle were informed through different sources some weeks ago that it would be this month that PG&E would SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 2 SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 3 seek bids for the construction and next month would pull the building permit. He hoped this would play out which would be a very good sign for the project. Ms. Mackle added that PG&E is running its normal course of operations and the project manager and supervisor she had spoken with both intimated this is completely within the realm of the normal course of operations. It is not a big dollar value in their world and the connection between Andersen Drive and the sale of this property is that one is paying for the other; therefore, it should all tie together nicely and she is quite optimistic. Chairman Boro thanked Jonathan Parker, Developer, stating slow but good progress was being made and he believed the nature of the project was very positive. Member Heller moved and Member Phillips seconded, to adopt the Resolution. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-19 — RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING CONTINUED NEGOTIATIONS WITH MONAHAN PARKER INC. FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT OF THE "B" STREET PROJECT AREA (UNTIL JUNE 30, 2002) AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Heller, Miller, Phillips and Chairman Boro NOES: MEMBERS: None ABSENT: MEMBERS: None 5. APPROVAL OF A RETAIL STRATEGY FOR RAFAEL TOWN CENTER (RA) — FILE R-380 x (SRCC) 140 Katie Korzun, Senior Development Planner, recalled that under the terms of the DDA (Disposition and Development Agreement) with Rafael Town Center, the Agency has review and approval rights over the first round of tenants. She stated staff would like to set up a process whereby there would be a strategy denoting the types of tenants the developer requires and turn the approval over to a sub- committee, currently existing and consisting of Chairman Boro and Member Phillips. They would then evaluate the individual tenants to ascertain compliance with the retail strategy, which consists of four different kinds of retail components: • Home Furnishings; • Apparel, Accessories; • Specialty Items; and • Eating/Drinking Specialty Foods. Ms. Korzun stated that the Furnishings, Apparel and Specialty Items would be on Fourth Street, with the Eating/Drinking Specialty Foods on Court Street Plaza. The developer would come in with particular tenants in each of those categories and would propose them to the sub -committee, who in turn would determine whether or not they are consistent with the retail ideas listed in the Vision of Downtown San Rafael. If they were found to be consistent, they would be approved. She stated staff was requesting that the Board approve the process which is the two-tier sub -committee and action on the major retail strategy. Member Heller stated she enjoyed the tour and saw it as very informative being in a position to see the space and she thanked the Agency for setting it up. Ms. Korzun noted that Mr. Schaefer was present and would answer questions. Member Phillips concurred with Member Heller's comments and thanked Jim Schaefer for the tour and the preliminary thoughts shared this afternoon. SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 3 W. SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 4 Chairman Boro thanked Mr. Schaefer for the tour, and noted he had mentioned to Mr. Gould and Mr. Nordhoff, that he would endeavor to bring Mr. Ours down to visit the property at the appropriate time. Chairman Boro stated a lot had been done with it; the structure was tremendous, it was a wonderful site and on walking inside the courtyard it really tells a story. He thanked Mr. Schaefer and his partners for all their hard work and commitment. Member Cohen expressed thanks for the tour which he believed was helpful in deciding how the project moves forward. He understood the difficulties, noting it would be good to have 80,000 -square feet of retail, which could be used to pull in a critical mass, and he expressed the hope that efforts would continue, particularly in the large space. Member Cohen stated that sooner or later, somehow, the first one needed to be obtained which would then begin to draw others in, and any extent to which this project could be the place where this begins to happen, in addition to what it will add to the general atmosphere, would be advantageous. He hoped there would be a chance to seize these opportunities. Regarding the Plaza frontage and in terms of the restaurants, Member Cohen stated he would be interested in obtaining something which compliments what is already in place as opposed to restaurants which would compete with what is being offered in the downtown core. He recognized this was not totally controllable but offered these comments for the sub -committee and Mr. Schaefer to keep in mind. Member Phillips moved and Member Miller seconded, to approve the retail strategy for the retail portion of the Rafael Town Center project. AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Heller, Miller, Phillips and Chairman Boro NOES: MEMBERS: None ABSENT: MEMBERS: None DISCUSSION OF PRELIMINARY TWO-YEAR BUDGET FOR 2001/2003 (MS) — FILE R-103 x (SRCC) 8-5 Assistant City Manager Nordhoff stated that at the hearing on May 30, 2001, the Economic Development staff had put forward their goals and objectives for the next two year budget, and this was an opportunity to evaluate the financial picture. He stated staff had put together the budget for the housing component, the capital project component and the operating component of the Redevelopment Agency, including special event activities. Expenses in the first year are estimated at roughly $5.3 - million and in the second year, approximately $4.1 -million, the difference being some outflows related to some obligations to the School District. He stated that although there is not a lot of new capital project money to discuss there is still a significant amount of money from the 1999 bond issue, approximately $17 -million, which has been committed to a series of projects such as the Pickleweed Gymnasium expansion, the downtown parking structure, some drainage at Irwin Street, improvements at Medway Canal and some undergrounding along West Francisco. Mr. Nordhoff stated that the budget as put together for the Agency is balanced over the two-year period; the Economic Development Director presented a lot of the activities she plans to undertake. Should there be a new bond issue passed in the two-year budget period, staff would ask for direction on some of the appropriate uses of those funds. He stated there is no bond issue anticipated in the numbers; it would be brought back as an independent item. Member Miller thanked Assistant City Manager Nordhoff for this explanation, as there was confusion in that Economic Development indicated in their objectives that there would be bonding and the assumption in the report is that there is not, which clarifies the record. Chairman Boro addressed the activities section of the budget and particularly, the opportunity to do SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 4 SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 5 something with the film center. He hoped a year would not be lost as the project is one year behind and he would like to ensure something would be done this year. Economic Development Director Mackle stated staff is in discussion with Mr. Parker, Monahan Parker. Mark Fishkin is to hold the opening of Mr. Parker's movie here in the Fall and he is interested in having this as our fundraising movie. Assistant City Manager Nordhoff stated the additional increases recommended for the San Rafael Chamber of Commerce support were incorporated into the budget, together with the Special Events Assistant for a trial period of one year. Chairman Boro inquired if a request was received from the County Mediation Group. Ms. Mackle stated this is an annual budgeted item and a letter had been received; however, the funds will not be expended until the new fiscal year. Member Cohen requested that in some way the level of contributions and fundraising should be tracked, so that next year when it would be evaluated whether or not to retain the Special Events Assistant, there would be an indication of how much was raised. Mr. Nordhoff stated that as part of the administrative budget, a series of accounts had been structured to track all the special events, both contributions and donations, together with the cost of the programs; therefore, this will be available next spring for evaluation. Member Phillips moved and Member Cohen seconded, to accept the report as presented. AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Heller, Miller, Phillips and Chairman Boro NOES: MEMBERS: None ABSENT: MEMBERS: None AGENCY MEMBER REPORTS: 7. Downtown Events: -File R-181 x R-140 #8 Economic Development Director Mackle reported that the Farmers' Market continues on Thursday evenings and the Canal Mercado opened on Sunday at 9:00 a.m.; however, the start time may change to 10:00 a.m. The Youth in Arts Street Painting Festival will be held this weekend. Member Miller requested that staff ensure barricades are placed along the sidewalk on Saturday night to indicate there is no parking. There being no further business, the San Rafael Redevelopment Agency meeting was adjourned at 8:02 PM. JEANNE M. LEONCINI, Agency Secretary SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 06/04/2001 Page 5