Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003/03/19 - Minutes - Special (utility) March 19, 2003 CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Special Meetin~l A. CALLTO ORDER A special meeting of the Rancho Cucamonga City Council was held on Wednesday, March 19, 2003 in the Council Chambers of the Civic Center located at 10500 Civic Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California. The meeting was called to order at 3:11 p.m. by Mayor William J. Alexander. Present were Councilmembers: Rex Gutierrez (arrived at 3:12 p.m.), Robert J. Howdyshell, Donald J. Kurth, M.D., Diane Williams and Mayor William J. Alexander. Aisc present were: Jack Lam, City Manager; Pamela Easter, Deputy City Manager; James Markman, City Attorney; Linda D. Daniels, Redevelopment Agency Director; Joe O'Neil, City Engineer; Mike TenEyck, Management Analyst Ill; Robed Lemon, Assistant Engineer; Diane Whyte, Sr. Admin Secretary; Michelle Dawson, Management Analyst III; Kimberly Thomas, Management Analyst II; and Debra J. Adams, City Clerk. B. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC B1. George Guayante, City Manager - City of Corona, wanted to welcome the City Council aboard and stated this is a lucrative business. He indicated they star[ed this in April 2001 and felt it would generate $1,000,000 per year in revenue for his City. He stated Edison might oppose this and they will work hard to dissuade the Council from going forward with the project. He added there is legislation out there that could possibly make this less lucrative. He advised the Council to be ready for political assaults, but reiterated this does make sense for the Council to do this. He stated the Council would hear people say they don't know what they are getting into. He felt the Council should surround themselves with experts in this field that can tell them what they need to know to get the job done. He hoped the Council would enter into a contract for the purchase of energy. He urged the Council to continue their fight. B2. Steve Rentoria, resident of Rancho Cucamonga and an employee of Southern California Edison felt the City does a good job and that there is a lot to admire how the City is run. He felt there was an inadequacy in the numbers for this project. He felt the Council should require the consultant to have an interest if this is approved. He felt there was a lot of uncertainty with this and felt the City was gambling its financial stability if they do this. He asked what expertise the City has in the electric business. He felt that Edison already has the expertise in this field. He asked the Council to have a workshop when the public can attend so that more discussions can take place and information can be provided. He asked that the Mayor, Council and staff continue their discussions on this. He added that if it is too good to be true, then it probably is. C. ITEM(S) OF BUSINESS C1. RANCHO CUCAMONGA MUNICIPAL UTILITY STRATEGY UPDATE Joe O'Neil, City Engineer, stated they have looked at many possibilities to create electrical power. He felt this was a great opportunity for the City. He stated this relates to the Victoria Arbors project and that the City wants to provide energy to this project. He continued with his power point presentation, which is on City Council Minutes March 19, 2003 Page 2 file in the City Clerk's office. He stated staff does feel they have a viable project and that there will be advantages to the community. Mayor Alexander opened the meeting for public input. Addressing the City Council were: Gary Green, Southern California Edison, stated he does feel there is a lot of cooperation between the City of Rancho Cucamonga and Edison. He gave a power point presentation, which is on file in the City Clerk's office. In conclusion, Edison feels this is not the best use of RDA funds. Councilmember Gutierrez asked what would happen if the City tries this, but comes back in two weeks and wants back in with Edison. Gary Green stated they would have to have a new discussion at this point. Mayor Alexander stated he did not understand why Edison wants this so bad if it is such a loser of a deal. Carol Evans, Vice President of California Taxpayers Association, referred to a letter faxed to the City Council yesterday. She stated they oppose what is being proposed with the RDA funds. She felt the timing was worse because of the possible State actions for the future. She did not feel this penciled out for the City. Councilmember Gutierrez asked if other municipalities are in violation of state law that are doing this. Ms. Evans stated no and that because Rancho Cucamonga is using RDA funds, that is where the problem is. Jim Markman, City Attorney, stated both Edison and the California Taxpayer's Association completely missed the mark. He stated no one has called him, Jack Lam or Linda Daniels to find out about what is proposed as far as Agency participation in this project. He stated the Agency is not looking to invest money and get a rate of return for itself. He stated the Agency is not going to pay for operational costs as was indicated in the Cai Tax letter to the Council. He added the Agency has already expended millions of dollars both in acquiring the property, entering into the DDA and is investing money into other infrastructure of the project area by contributing to the assessment districts that are building all of the infrastructure for this. He stated the Agency looks at this as just a small part of that infrastructure investment. He stated the Agency and the City will control the delivery of energy. He stated under Health and Safety Code 33445 authorizes an Agency to pay for the cost of infrastructure for this project. He added this is the extent of the Agency's participation in this. He stated this is valid under the law and felt Edison is off the mark. He did not feel this is illegal and did not agree with how this has been characterized. Mayor Alexander asked if the California Taxpayers Association receives funding from Edison. Ms. Evans stated they have many members, which Edison is one of them. She stated they support their mission. Lisa Newman, employee of Edison and resident of Rancho Cucamonga, talked about the plans for the shopping center. She continued to talk about the vacancies in the Terra Vista Shopping Center and the vacancy created by Costco moving. She asked how the Council will keep current business from going out of business with the mall coming in. She stated she is upset that the Council is wanting to have its own power source for the mall project. She felt this is a risk that involves the whole City. She stated Edison would not have to build a substation as the City will have to do. She stated she would like to see more information on the City's website or mailed to the residents so that questions can be answered. She asked that the Council meetings be held City Council Minutes March 19, 2003 Page 3 at 7:00 p.m. so more residents can attend. She felt it was deliberate that this meeting was early in the day. Richard Pietrash wondered if this is such a great idea why aren't more people trying to do this. He referred to page 5 of Edison's handout and felt the risk factor should be looked at. Councilmember Gutierrez asked if there were other cities doing this. Joe O'Neil, City Engineer, stated City of Industry is also doing this. Eric Oates, resident of Rancho Cucamonga and employee of Edison stated he is not in favor of a municipal utility. He stated he did not feel other service people would do the same quality work as a public utility would do. He stated he did not feel a contract company would provide the same service as Edison. He stated he was afraid Victoria Arbors might not be successful. Mayor Alexander inquired about Edison's use of contract crews. Mr. Oates stated they do use contract crews. Dobbin Lo, Highview Drive, stated the City Attorney has addressed the legal issues he had. He stated he does think the staff could operate the utility. He felt this is a lucrative business and referred to Edison's presentation on page 14 and the negative scenario it presented. He felt the City should move forward with this. Mike Sefcus of Rancho Cucamonga was glad about the open forum to talk about this issue. He stated he is an employee of Edison and hoped that their opinions would be considered. He stated he would hold the Council accountable if property taxes go up because he did vote for most of them. He stated he would feel more comfortable going to the CPUC because he felt they would be more objective on the success of this, rather than going to the Council who would be approving this and wanting it to be successful. He asked the Council to take their time and consider what the citizens have to say. Gary Gagnon, resident of Rancho Cucamonga and employee of Edison, stated he does not believe that government belongs in commercial enterprise. He felt Corona was stilL on their honeymoon so they do not realize what the long-term consequences are. He stated this is a complex issue and puts the business at risk. He mentioned the legislation being considered and the effect it could have on the City. He asked the Council to take a hard look at this because he really didn't think this was the kind of business the City should be getting into. Leslie Grimes stated she had delivered a letter to the Council earlier, which stated they would like more information. She stated a 3:00 p.m. meeting does not allow people who work to be there. She agreed that the City should not be in the business sector and felt they should continue running the City. She felt it was an unnecessary risk and did not think the City should get into this at this time. She felt Edison should continue doing this because of their experience. Robert Michaels stated he prepared a report (study) for Edison and was also hired by Edison to critique the report that was prepared by the City. He felt there were a lot more questions that need to be answered. He felt the Council should consider both sides of this. David Jones, resident of Rancho Cucamonga and employee of Edison, stated he does not feel it is justifiable for the City to go forward with this. He did not feel the City has provided the information to the residents. He told about his own personal experience going into business and related it to the City going into this business. He hoped that the Council does this only if it is in the best interest of all of the residents and not just special interest groups. He stated if this is a good plan he will support it. City Council Minutes March 19, 2003 Page 4 Roland Diaz, resident of Rancho Cucamonga and an Edison employee, stated he echoed all the comments that have been made. He asked the Council to be cautious in getting into this business. He stated he would like to know what cities have failed that went into this business. There being no further input, public comments were closed. Councilmember Kurth stated he appreciates everyone comments and that the decision the Council makes will be for the good of everyone. He felt the City should do everything to make sure the citizens are aware of these meetings. Councilmember Williams commented on the high caliber of the Edison employees that spoke. She was not sure how to get the word out about the meetings besides what is already being done. Councilmember Gutierrez stated he wished the City had more guarantees on the revenues to be generated to the City. He stated he realized the City residents may not have had the opportunity to know about the meeting and all of the information. He talked about all of the comments that were brought up. He added that the City Manager is a very conservative manager. He stated he is concerned about the use of RDA funds and wonders what the return of the investment will be for the City. He hoped if this turns out to be a fiasco, the City could bail out of this. Councilmember Howdyshell stated he is concerned about the unknown budget situation of the State and that this puts the City in a precarious position of looking for different methods of creating revenue sources. He stated because of the unknown budget situation of the state, the issue at hand for him is weighing the risk of proceeding into this venture and if the benefits of taking that risk can provide additional revenues for services for the residents. Mayor Alexander stated Assemblyman Dutton, former Counoilmember Dutton, told him he felt this was a prudent thing for the City to do. He felt this was one way for the City to get out and "earn" the revenues they need. He stated again if this is such a "loser project", why would Edison want to get into it. MOTION: Moved by Alexander, seconded by Williams to approve staff's recommendation. Councilmember Williams stated she did not want anyone or any business to think those individuals in the Victoria Arbors area would be getting a break on their electricity if this goes through. Motion carried unanimously 5-0. D. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Moved by Kurth, seconded by Howdyshell to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 5:17 p.m. City Clerk Approved: April 16, 2003