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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 1998-03-18 Mayor Eugene R. Mullin Council: James L. Datzman Joseph A. Fernekes -'-Karyl Matsumoto John R. Penna SPECIAL MEETING CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO MARCH 18, 1998 MINUTES City Council Municipal Services Building Community Room March 18, 1998 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, pursuant to Section 54956 of the Government Code of the State of California, that the City Council of the City of South San Francisco will hold a Special Meeting on Wednesday, the 18th day of March 1998, at 6:00 p.m. in the Municipal Services Building, Community Room, 33 Arroyo Drive, South San Francisco, California. Purpose of the meeting is a study session to discuss: I. Willow Gardens neighborhood revitalization. 2. Downtown Charrette. City Clerk City of South San Francisco Dated: March 12, 1998 CALL TO ORDER: ROLL CALL: AGENDA (Cassette No. 1) 1. Willow Gardens neighborhood revitalization. ACIION TAKEN 6:10 p.m. Mayor Mullin presiding. Council Present: Council Absent: Datzman, Fernekes, Matsumoto, Penna and Mullin. None. City Manager Wilson stated this is the first time a study session has been televised that deals with two items of high interest to the community - Willow Gardens and the analysis of the urban design charrette. CDBG Coordinator Fragoso related: Willow Gar- dens is a planned unit development constructed in 1964 with 212 apartments; twelve of the property 3/18/98 Page 1 AGENDA ACTION TAKEN Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 2 owners live in S.S.F.; she proceeded to present a slide show on the existing conditions in the neigh- borhood; Willow Gardens has been plagued by numerous things, including one that burned recently, but fortunately the fire did not spread to adjacent properties; a year ago she came to the Council with Mid-Peninsula who made a presentation of their preliminary conceptual plans for the revitalization of the neighborhood, and the Council indicated support for staff to work with Mid-Peninsula to develop specific plans to be brought back to Council for review at a later date for we do consider Willow Gardens to be a neighborhood at risk from vandal- ism, deferred maintenance, absentee landlords and so on; problems stem from the site plan; staff and Mid-Peninsula discussed with Council the key factors needed to turn this neighborhood around, one is to purchase, rehabilitate and manage approximate- ly 30% of the buildings that would allow them to establish site control; they would redesign the public improvements and have on-site professional manage- ment; there will be a low interest loan program and they will allow property owners to copy the homes Mid-Peninsula will acquire; they will be creating pedestrian friendly walkways and do other structural things that are not existing today that will improve the problems with crime and other undesirable activ- ities; financing would come from Redevelopment Agency Housing Fund $3,500,000, Redevelopment Public Purpose Tax Exempt Bonds $3,500,000, County HOME Funds $1,000,000; Private Activity Bonds $4,000,000, Tax Credits $2,000,000 which equals $14,000,000; all City Departments have been involved; the streets are cluttered with cars; there is better impact if they can acquire two or three struc- tures in a row; they discussed demolishing several units rather than adding to the project, which was not a possibility and looked at redesigning the floor plans which Mid-Peninsula will present; the neighborhood did not have sidewalks or landscaping other than in the courtyards and the green areas, the green areas do have landscaping but it is a bit of a no mans land along the greens, and they felt it was critical to bring in structural improvements; they looked at the possibility of opening up Sandra Court to Willow Avenue and discussed this with Public Works and the City Engineer; that was determined to not be feasible and they looked at the parking island where there are several at either end of Susie Way and looked for a deemphasis of the auto; the project budget for the alternatives will be presented; AGENDA ACTION TAKEN 1..._. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 3 she spoke of the means to pay for the improvements and will come back to Council to discuss a bond issue; they have acquired $600,000 from the County Partnership Funds, and this is eligible for tax credits because of the number of bedrooms that will be affordable for low and moderate uses; etc. Ms. Fran Wagstaff stated the City and inter-depart- ment staff has been working with Mid-Peninsula for over a year and have identified a number of things that have contributed to the design. She stated they looked at alternatives and tried to choose one that keeps the City investments to a minimum, but after looking at the alternatives and realizing the rents through over crowding and the quality of the ten- ants, they feel it is vital to have the City's backing and investment. She feels that with the City and Code Enforcement's backing they will try to provide other existing owners to participate in the revitaliza- tion which they did in Campbell. She explained: if the owners do not participate, then there is a down side; the first critical compo- nent is the scattered site acquisition which they intend spending a year buying units that come up and the property management. Mayor Mullin questioned that scattered clusters will occur for sale on the market, rather than the likeli- hood of more than one property coming on the market. Ms. Wagstaff agreed, and stated they would prefer having a few in a row, but they will see what comes on the market. They want to be able to acquire buildings through out the community to spread their influence around. She continued: one of the plans is to put private entrances which would require two entrances on the street on Susie Way, which means they must acquire six buildings on Susie Way and if they do not come on the market then acquire them through the Rede- velopment Agency's authority to acquire through eminent domain; the no mans land area is primed for illegal activity and is a problem; the garages on the street have been identified as a problem with the storing of a lot of things or using it to repair cars, and it could be a fire hazard; they can convert that to a living room and address over crowding by making more room for the families living there; they AGENDA ACTION TAKEN 1. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 4 would narrow the streets to make it more safe for the pedestrians, they only need to eliminate one parking space and the demolition of one unit on Susie Way; parking would be replaced, now it is 1.5 spaces for each unit. CDBG Coordinator Fragoso stated they are talking about reinvesting in the community to create a sense of place. There has been one meeting with the property owners and shared some of the preliminary ideas. She spoke of the funding commitments al- ready received and an amendment to the El Camino Project to increase our fund leveraging opportun- ities; they are bringing together an award design team with similar success to turn the neighborhood around. The project schedule anticipates staff comes to Council and Redevelopment to get information to spend the housing fund monies and authorize mov- ing ahead with Mid-Peninsula and draft a plan. Then they will come back with an RFP that will take approximately one year, plus the acquisition of consecutive units. She explained reasons for using the Redevelopment Agency's authority for eminent domain, etc. Discussion followed: is there participation from the homeowners; yes through a low interest loan pro- gram and they will be given the design package which is an additional savings; Ms. Masterson stated it is critical for Mid-Peninsula to acquire 30% of the units in order for this to move forward; how Mid- Peninsula came up with the 30%; how can Mid- Peninsula decrease autos when they are increasing the number of bedrooms with the conversion of the garages; garage parking will be replaced one for one; the street parking is perpendicular; they are talking about narrowing the width of the street and adding that to every unit; Mayor Mullin stated this has been initiated by the Council and staff because this is an area with a problem and they are exploring very expensive solutions, for the easiest thing is to do nothing; Council is going through the process to identify solutions for that end of the City and, there will be ample time for the audience to address the Council, however, this is the first study session; there is a 30 year option for low and moderate income housing; one of the serious problems is the lack of screening and the eviction of tenants destroy- ing the units; Mid-Peninsula has strict rules and screening and it is possible some of the current families may need to be relocated somewhere else AGENDA ACTION TAKEN _ 1. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 5 temporarily or permanently, but either way there is State and Federal funding in assistance to help fami- lies and funds have been provided in the budget; there are obligations tied to the funding source requiring the housing to be affordable; there is a fifteen year commitment on set aside funds for control of housing costs; Ms. Betsy Yost showed slides of the elimination of the garages and concep- tual drawings of the additional rooms; the kitchen, dining room and kitchen will be on the ground floor in place of the garage; Vice Mayor Datzman spoke of the problems with garbage cans eight years ago, so how does the new plan take care of that; that has not been worked out yet, but they are looking at different options; could make room in the front yard for an enclosure and the garbage would be taken out to the street; Mid-Peninsula will take care of that problem; $14,000,000 is the total cost for all 17 structures, the rehabs, street and infrastructures; that is approximately $200,000 per unit; but for all costs it is $800,000 per unit; why are three bedroom units needed there, for Councilman Penna feels the re- modeling is exorbitant and adds more people to the area; there are already large families living in the structures and the over crowding and over use of the units leads to the deterioration we are witnessing; Mid-Peninsula's experience in Campbell found there was a tendency for the neighborhood to move up and if they invested their money they feel this is a neighborhood that is going to be invested in and after they saw the improvements they then tried to implement our plans and came up with landscap- ing consistent with Mid-Peninsula and found their property was more valuable; owners with problem tenants sometimes sought advice from Mid-Peninsula and they were helped; the rents run between $800.00-$900.00 a month; the tenant would have to sign a lease and if they do not comply with the lease they are evicted; Councilman Penna had a problem with spending $800,000 per unit when they sell for $325,000, so Mid-Peninsula can turn around and rent them from under $900.00 and you are encour- aging those tenants back; Mayor Mullin stated Councilman Penna has given staff his thoughts and concerns and would appreciate a response at the April meeting; Councilman Penna stated on two sides of Willow Gardens are homes in the $500,000 and other homes are $300,000 and this is a good middle class neighborhood and perhaps we should take another look, for in his opinion, affordable housing works when mixed in with others, but AGENDA ACTION TAKEN I qO 1. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 6 looking at saying we are going to make it all afford- able housing may not be the direction we are going in; he suggested considering some sort of tax credit or give something back to the existing property owners and ask, if they are willing to take City funds and improve their property; single family owners are the best in our society and we may want to think to condo space so the people can buy their own space; Vice Mayor Datzman realizes from his eight year observance that there are responsible tenants and property owners, but we had problems with vandalism, absent landowners and a lack of project management and we tried to draw people to work together to do something to change the area; eight years ago everything came down to the en- forcement; every property owner and tenant was notified; most of the problems do not involve people living there; Mayor Mullin stated he would like to see a very detailed financial analysis, a breakdown of the funding mechanism, the commit- ment of the City and how the repayment takes place; Assistant City Attorney Wellman stated Council must allow the public to speak; Mayor Mullin invit- ed anyone wishing to speak to step to the podium and limit their comments to two minutes. Mr. Frank de Cesare, 389 Heather Way, stated he does not have any intention of selling his property, that is my livelihood, he has no compensation only his social security. He stated the Council has no right to take it away, he has kept high standards and the Council is welcome to inspect his property and his tenants are nice people. He has had the building over 23 years and if he sees a tenant getting out of hand he gets rid of him. He is three blocks away from his property and he cannot see how this com- pany is going to do better and he hopes you have people to sell their property and he will work with them. He thought Councilman Penna made the best remarks and he cannot see how you can come up with an $800,000 price for a four-plex and expect to rent it from $700.00-$900.00 a month. He stated as far as turning the two bedrooms into three, you are going to offer more congestion by adding the living quarters and larger families and make the neighbor- hood worse than it is now. He stated there is a lady in the audience who was offered $400,000 and asked him if it was fair to sell when Mid-Peninsula only offered $385,000. AGENDA Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 7 ACTION TAKEN Mr. James Hudan stated he had acquired a four unit property after driving around the area seeing the improvements and the neighborhood was going up, but when he arrived it was not good. He began renovating the complex, and he believes the rent is more than $900.00. He thinks if you can swing it up with low interest loans, it will motivate all the property owners. He believes the renovation is going to produce humongous bedrooms. He ques- tioned how can you get the access from the front, for that will be quite a walk and he does not agree with the plan. Councilman Penna asked, if the City was to give low interest loans to you would you be willing to sign on to a home owner agreement. Mr. Hudan stated yes, and if the other home owners see that, maybe they will follow suit and that is the point, and another is to convert them to condos as Councilman Penna recommended, for if people live in a nice place they will take care of it. Mr. George Ruger, 324 Susie Way, stated he has owned the unit since the 1980s and went through the garbage problems, and he thinks if there was a watch dog in the area, say like a homeowner assoc. for someone is there all day. If a tenant does not take care of their garbage, he changes them more. He stated he cannot spend $200,000 on his building, but with a low interest loan - that would help. Mr. Don Jacob, 396 Susie Way, stated he has owned the property sine 1986, so he can see the situation is not getting worse, but better because before there was no street cleaning and now there are street cleaning signs. He does not see the young buys on the street and the property owners are pay- ing $6,000 for maintenance. He has the impression it needs more improvements, but it is not at the point of no return. He thinks this country is for people that come here and make a living like small owners of buildings. His building is the last on the street and there is no street light and he thinks crime and darkness go hand and hand. So, he thinks there should at least be street lighting on the middle of the island because there is a small dark alley and people can hid there with knives or bottles. Councilman Penna asked if Mr. Jacob would be willing to join a homeowners association. AGENDA ACTION TAKEN .-.L. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 8 Mr. Jacob stated he would do it if more people participated. Ms. Lisa Chou, 362 Susie Way, stated they were putting their property on the market and have an offer of $400,000 which did not go through and now they have received a letter from Mid-Peninsula. She has another partner who wanted $5,000 more, so after that she received a letter and an agent called and the buyer was scared by the future if it affected the rent. Last week she received a lot of calls from agents, but before she discloses the property she needs to know the potential. So far she has two buyers, she thinks the improvements around the area are much better and the agents say the location is good and she can get a better price than Mid-Penin- sula is offering. She is now a widow, has a partner, the location is not bad, her apartment is good and all the tenants are very cooperative and clean. Buyers are afraid that the value will go down in the future. Mayor Mullin stated Ms. Chou saw the plans, this is just a study session and the Council cannot tell her what to do with her property. This item is sched- uled for an April meeting, and most likely Council will make a decision for this is a process that has been going on for well over a year and the owners have been notified. Council will not make a deci- sion tonight, but will take in information and come back and answer the questions raised at the second meeting in April. Mr. Lee stated he owns 974 Brusco Way and does not know if other properties are affected or only on Susie Way for he has not received any letters from the Redevelopment Agency. CDBG Coordinator Fragoso stated there are sign-up sheets in the back of the room if someone wants to get notices. Mr. James Hutal stated, since he purchased two units and renovated them several people have in- quired about renting the property. He stated right now his lowest rent is $975.000 and in the back $1,200.00. He stated he gutted the apartments and is getting more money for vast improvements. He feels that if the City will help the property owners they would participate. Mr. Praphkphar stated if the City is going to make a AGENDA ACTION TAKEN ._.[. Willow Gardens - Continued. 3/18/98 Page 9 low income neighborhood, then certainly it is going to bring the area down. He does not see the rational in spending $800,000 per unit with rent of $700.00 a month. He stated the property owners are not there 24 hours a day, so you cannot catch the ten- ants throwing garbage in the street. Mayor Mullin stated he has visited Mid-Peninsula sites and found them to be extremely well main- tained, and in conjunction with the McLellan pro- ject, regardless of this project, it will go forward with Mid-Peninsula. He strongly suggests this will be an asset to the area and would have a positive affect on the Willow Gardens neighborhood. Discussion followed: what is going to happen to the property owners renting for $1,200.00 that do not want to sell their property; that is the purpose of the study session; the property owners have great concern over the City using eminent domain; emi- nent domain is a course of last result, but is what the constitution guarantees; Mr. Lewis Argessa stated he is a realtor representing five homeowners, two of which just closed escrow. Some do not want to sell their property because that is their invest- ments, they are all from Minnesota who came here, looked around and loved this area and bought the property. He stated there is no way he is going to sell property for $385,000 plus his closing costs, so what will happen to him. Mayor Mullin asked the City Manager to give a short course on eminent domain, but if that occurs it is way out in the future. City Manager Wilson stated the City is obligated to have a fair market appraisal, negotiate on that amount should the property manager want an absor- bitant amount; sometimes people buy at peaks and the property drops, but normally property increases and people get the fair market value of the property. Discussion followed: Vice Mayor Datzman wants to make sure all affected parties are noticed; Mr. de Cesare asked what was going to happen to owners not willing to sell and Mid-Peninsula answered, they had realtors that will sell to them; he questioned if that was the truth; City Manager Wilson stated they have not negotiated with any property owners, so we have to wait until there is a sense of reality for we are not in the market nor has there been an alloca- AGENDA ACTION TAKEN .... 1,. Willow Gardens - Continued. r, ECESS: RECALL TO ORDER: 2. Downtown Charrette. 3/18/98 Page 10 tion of funds; so, Mr. de Cesare's answer was in- correct. Mayor Mullin declared a recess at 8:07 p.m. Mayor Mullin recalled the meeting to order at 8:20 p.m., all Council was present. Mayor Mullin stated Council has a policy for study sessions to not exceed two hours, we will have individuals that will not come to the original pre- sentation the Council will have of the urban design. We will continue this to April 1st, at which point we will entertain questions from Council and the audi- ence. He stated, this way we will present the over- view of the Charrette. Director of Economic & Community Development Van Duyn stated the April 1st meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. and the findings of the design Charrette are in a booklet with copies in the back of the room. He stated design professionals came up with con- cepts illustrated in the context of the City's past downtown development and redevelopment CDBG currently underway. This brought together archi- tects, staff, the Chamber, businesses and citizens to provide urban design problems facing the down- town. He described the charrette solutions to prob- lems: city entrance at Grand Ave. and Airport Blvd., relocation and redesign of the Caltrain Sta- tion; appearance of Grand Ave. from Airport Blvd. to Linden Ave., and the Grand/Linden Aves. corri- dor. There has been a desire in the community to make the Caltrain Station more visibile and use as a facility. The charrette was divided into teams with six groups with the architects, local residents, local officials, landscape architects with 75 people participating. The AIA team leaders met a week before the actual charrette to receive information. The focus was the integration of the newly landscaped Boulevard and how Airport could serve the City as the front door. Team two was the relocation of the Caltrain Station for an inter-modem to primarily support shuttle services. He went on in detail on what the teams studied. There was discussion of roofing over a portion of Grand Avenue between Grand and Maple. People that participated walked the streets along the corridor to Grand and made some very early obser- vations about the corridor. AGENDA ACTION TAKEN :2. Downtown Charrette - Continued. ADJOURNMENT: The downtown lacks a strong focal element, the traffic circulation is poor, and the suggestion is to redesign the Caltrain Station as the primary entrance and use Airport for Caltrain activities. The other suggestions: to provide shuttle service for the em- ployees in the East of 101 area to get back and forth from Caltrain activities and have a link to the BART Station; enhance Grand Avenue using a gateway and arches with outdoor cafes and related changes, having pedestrian friendly streetscapes; put in a wider sidewalk on the north side of the street with complimentary street furniture; redirecting through traffic and parking access into the downtown area via Miller and Baden Avenues; the use of CDBG funds for facades on Grand Avenue, as well as painting exteriors of buildings; work at the Metropolitan and Grand Hotels, Mexico Tipico with redevelopment funds; the general plan update ad- dresses citywide issues and will also focus on the future of the downtown; dates for public review of the general plan; the next step is to move from the conceptual stage to a serious evaluation and priori- tization of the ideas, etc. Mayor Mullin asked staff to summarize tonight's presentation in writing for April 1st for those people not in attendance tonight. M/S Fernekes/Matsumoto - To adjourn the meeting. Carried by unanimous voice vote. Time of adjournment was 8:54 p.m. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, APPROVED. Barbara A. Battaya, City Clerk City of South San Francisco City of South San Francisco The entries of this Council meeting show the action taken by the City Council to dispose of an item. Oral communica- tions, arguments and comments are recorded on tape. The tape and documents related to the items are on file in the ffice of the City Clerk and are available for inspection, review and copying. 3/18/98 Page 11