Laguna Hills Watch Dog
Laguna Hills City Council Meeting - March 12, 2013


SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS - What's On Your Mind? Meet with your Mayor, Barbara Kogerman, and Share your Questions/Concerns over a no-host coffee, bagel or breakfast at Latte Da Bagelry and Grill on the northeast corner of Alicia Pkwy. and Paseo de Valencia at 25461 Alicia Pkwy. Across PDV from the Laguna Hills Community Center. Meet the Mayor Every Saturday 9 am to 11 am in February and March. Each Saturday, through the end of March, "Meet the Mayor" will continue to be at Latte Da Bagelry and Grill from 9 to 11 am for good conversation and good food. Come on out and Meet the Mayor, it's a great way to Build Community!!
** Community Builder Meg Gorham assisted the Mayor 2 Saturdays ago while the Mayor threw the first pitch on Opening Day at Laguna Hills Little League.  Last Saturday, Council Member Dore Gilbert joined Mayor Kogerman for Meet the Mayor.


** YOU CAN LISTEN TO YOUR MAYOR, Barbara Kogerman. ON FM RADIO- KSBR (88.50). She is being interviewed the day before and the day after each City Council Meeting by Dawn Kamber of Saddleback Community College's FM radio station. The interviews will be played in 30-second spots, every hour and half-hour from 6 am through 9 am on the day of and two days after the council meetings. Their regular programming throughout this time is easy-listening jazz.


It's Time to Sign Up for Spring Classes and Activities through the Laguna Hills Community Services Dept. - click on http://www.ci.laguna-hills.ca.us/depts/commsvcs/classes.asp for more information and to register online.


LEARN HOW YOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS RATE THEIR FAVORITE MAJOR PLANS FOR THE CITY and fit them into the City Budget at 3 workshops.  April 16, April 30, and May 7, 2013 are the dates for the three city council budget study sessions for the 2013-15 Biennial Budget and Six-year Capital Improvement Plan. The rating of proposed Favorite Major Plans by Council Members is slated for the 1st session. The 2nd Session focuses on the Six-Year Capital Improvement Plans and 3rd Study Session focuses on the proposed operating budget. Although these are City Council Study Sessions All 3 Sessions are Open To The Public and begin at 6:00 pm.


THE 1ST LAGUNA HILLS GENERAL PLAN HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE WORKSHOP was held on Thursday, February 7, at Laguna Hills City Hall, 6:00-8:00 p.m., 24035 El Toro Road, Laguna Hills - The City of Laguna Hills is updating the Housing Element portion of its General Plan, which will establish the City’s housing goals and policies covering the period between 2014 and 2021. Residents and other stakeholders interested in housing-related matters affecting the city are invited to attend the public workshops hosted by the City of Laguna Hills Community Development Department. The 2nd and last workshop will be held on May 9, 2013. For more information, contact Julie Molloy, Senior Planner at 949-707-2671 or email jmolloy@ci.laguna-hills.ca.us


** Citizen Alerts/HEADLINES for future City Council Meetings will be listed on this blog site within 4 days prior to a meeting - Consider attending a meeting that interests you.


Laguna Hills City Council Meeting - FEATURES DIRECTORY

** Presentations and Proclamations
Item 1.1 - LHHS Student Liaison Report from Amanda Jafee - alternate Kerstyn Gonzales -  WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW AT LHHS - SPORTS - AWARDS and
SCHOLORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES - FUNDRAISING - MUSIC - DRAMA 
Item 1.2 - Certificates of Recognition for significant accomplishments made by athletes at Laguna Hills High School were presented to the Laguna Hills High School Championship Girls Tennis Team
Item 1.3 - Laguna Hills 3/5 Marine Support Committee Update from Mike Bland - Thank you letter from a 3/5 Marine to the City and Supporters, and thank yous to Girl Scouts and + sponsors for Marines to run in this years Memorial Day Race.
** Minutes - Abbreviated Minutes from the Feb. 19, 2013 City Council Study Session/Workshop posted at: http://www.ci.laguna-hills.ca.us/
** Public Comments
LHHS Chinese Language Teacher spoke re. need for continued support for the new Chinese Language and Culture program through participation in LHHS International Week - March 20-22 at LHHS and on Wednesday March 20 go to Win-Wednesday at Mandarin Terrace – in Laguna Hills' Oakbrook Village, anytime all day to support this program.
Sherri Berringer from the Nellie Gail ad hoc Committee on Traffic Calming and Trail Crossing Safety gave an update/report.
** Consent Calendar - Warrant Register - $214,829.37
** Items of Interest from the Warrant Register - City's Payment for City Views
** Items Pulled from the Warrant Register - Council Member Dore Gilbert pulled the payment for the Spring Edition of City Views to discuss the cost for the City of $105,000 a year or $26,250 per issue for this publication.
** Items of interest in the Consent Calendar
Item 4.3 - Progress Payment for La Paz Rd. widening at I-5
Item 4.4 - Lease Agreement with Dentist Koorosh Hosn, DDS for Ste 230 at City Hall
** Items pulled from the Consent Calendar for discussion
** Planning Agency/City Council Public Hearings - Item 5.4.1 - Request to subdivide the Cabot Town Center Property into 4 parcels was continued again to next city council meeting
** City Council Public Hearings - None
** Administrative Reports -
Item 7.2.1 - City Council's Series of Favorite Major Plans and Budget Study Sessions beginning on April 16, 2013, the 1st of three budget study sessions for the 2013-15 Biennial Budget and Six-year Capital Improvement Plan is the rating of proposed Favorite Major Plans by council members. 2nd Session on April 30, 2013, focuses on the Six-Year Capital Improvement Plan and 3rd Study Session on May 7, 2013, focuses on the Proposed
Operating Budget. All Sessions are Open to the Public.
Item 7.3.1 - Laguna Hills Municipal Code change to move the start time for Closed Session Meetings to 6:00 pm, prior to city council meetings, instead of after city council meetings - Some disagreement among council members on this issue.
** City Clerk - Item 7.4.1 - City council select a date for interviews to fill Parks and Rec. Commission Vacancy or review all applications and appoint a person to fill the vacancy - See who was appointed.
** Matters Agendized and Presented by Council Members and Mayor- None
** City Council Member Comments - About staff being quick to respond and about starting day for LH Little League.
** Closed Session - None
** City Council Members Report Card - How did they score?
** Information, Comments, Questions, Concerns from LH Watch Dog Readers from the previous blog post - ABOUT: More Attention to Need for Government Transparency-from the Mayor, 3 Minute Limit for Council Member Comments , Hitching Rail and Watering Tank at La Paz and Moulton Shopping Center
PLUS ***WIN-WIN-WEDNESDAY'S SCHEDULE OF RESTAURANTS
***You can place comments in the "COMMENTS" section at the bottom of this blog report and see comments there from others and you can send comments to BlandMJ@aol.com Your name will not be used in the comments section unless you give permission
** HOW TO SUPPORT OUR 3/5 ADOPTED MARINES and UPDATES FROM - TEAM DARK HORSE - ** A Very Special Thank You from 3/5 Marine Corporal Travis this time
** NEWS STORIES and BLOGS ABOUT LAGUNA HILLS - find more in the OC Register
online under "City-by-City News" - "Laguna Hills" and in the OC Watchdog
**CRIME IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD - See where to look for Crime Reports for your Neighborhood
** WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR of the ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
on this blog just below this report.

Laguna Hills City Council Meeting - March 12, 2013
All Council Members were present
=========================================
See information for Win-Win-Wednesdays under INFORMATION, COMMENTS, QUESTIONS and CONCERNS from Watch Dog Readers, Contact Laguna Hills City Council Members at - ccouncil@ci.laguna-hills.ca.us

PRESENTATIONS and PROCLAMATIONS

Item 1.1 - LHHS Student Liaison Report from Amanda Jafee - alternate Kerstyn Gonzales
WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW AT LHHS - Amanda said next week on Wed. Thurs. and Friday is our annual International Week- during lunch we have different tables from different countries throughout the world with food, plus dancing and a fashion show to accent cultural awareness. Thursday, 3/14 is Spring Assembly with a recap of what's been happening at our school.

SPORTS - There's the Girls' Varsity Request game vs. Newport Harbor at 5:30 and a Track and Field Meet both on the 14th. Also Boys' Varsity Volleyball OC Championship on Friday March 15. On Friday the 22nd is the Powder Puff Football game at 7 pm, where the Junior girls face the Seniors and the entire thing is run by students from LHHS. It's a lot of fun!! This week we have CAHSEE Physical fitness testing going on which is the CA.High School Exit Exam and all Freshmen and Sophomores are taking it.

AWARDS and SCHOLORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES - National Merit Finalist at our school Tristan Lennertz. He recently advanced beyond Semi-Finalist standing based on this PSAT score to Finalist standing by demonstrating through distinguished performance, high potential for future academic accomplishment. PTSA is offering many different College Scholarship Opportunities so check into this and another scholarship opportunity is art GOOGLE. If you are an artistic student or just great at doodling…”think big and redesign the Google homepage logo”. The winning entrant receives $5,000 and his/her school receives $50,000 to be used for technology. The deadline is fast approaching, (Friday, March 22nd), but definitely worthwhile! Click Here for more information.

FUNDRAISING - Win-Win-Wednesday March 13 is at California Pizza Kitchen (LH Mall) - all day at the Laguna Hills Mall and profits go to our school. Also this month our Effortless Fundraising Partner of the Month is VONS grocery store, so if you shop at VONS they will give a percent of your Grocery money to Go to www.escrip.com, click on 1-sign up and enter your Vons card number, OR, follow the instruction to Renew. You can select up to three groups to support: LHHS ID: 164757480 - LHHS PTSA ID: 500004080. Athletic Boosters' Casino Night is May 4 at the Laguna Hills Community Center and it is the biggest fundraiser of the year to support all the athletics.
Food Truck Thursdays at LHHS - It’s Food Truck Thursday! Gourmet food trucks are here every Thursday in the LHHS parking lot! Bring your appetite and all your friends for food and fun! Follow Curbside Bites for all the latest in bookings for the food trucks coming to LHHS! This supports all activities at LHHS and most specifically the Music Program

MUSIC - The LHHS Choral Program is having a Spring Festival Concert on Friday, March 15th at 8:00pm in the LHHS Theater. Tickets are $5 at the door. The choirs will be performing their pieces for their festival season for family and friends. There will also be featured soloists sprinkled throughout the concert.
Rock N Roll Concert, March 24th from 4:00pm to 7:00pm. at Leisure World (Laguna Woods) Dance or sit and listen to the great old rock n roll with band "Close Enough". They performed last year and they were really good! Light snacks, adult beverages and soda will be served. Not only will you have a blast, but also supporting our wonderful LHHS music program. Tickets on sale now till March17th for only $8, after that date tickets will be $10. Buy tickets by paypal and print out flyer (you will need it to get in Leisure World’s gate) by going to our website at www.lhhsmusic.com. Let's rock!

DRAMA - The Spring Musical is Les Miserables. Don’t miss this amazing performance by our LHHS thespians of les Miserables April 25th through 27th and May 2nd through 4th at 7:00 pm at the LHHS Theater. (May 4th’s performance is at 5:00pm to not conflict with Athletic Booster’s Casino Night). Stay tune for ticket sales information. GO-HAWKS!


Item 1.2 - Certificates of Recognition for significant accomplishments made by athletes at Laguna Hills High School were presented by Mayor Kogerman to the Laguna Hills High School Championship Girls Tennis Team - The Laguna Hills High School Girls Tennis Team recently won the CIF Division 3 Championship. This was the team's 2nd Championship. Amanda Jaffee explained that this team went from 24th place to 1st place, with a lot of odds to overcome, this season. Principal Boulton assisted with the awards and noted that this was a team of All-Stars with a cumulative GPA of 4.3, the highest of any athletic team on campus and noted how proud the school was of them in class and on the court.

A Certificate of Recognition was prepared for each of the following team players and
coaches and presented to those who were present at the City Council Meeting:
Players - Mikey Barthelmass, Ariana Bennett, Amanda Jaffe, Tiffany Lam, Julia Traylor, Melody Lam, Carina Angeli, Kelsey Garcia, Ansley Fogarty, Alex Valenstein, Chloe Fahimian, Ashley Campfield, Sarah Welbaum, Chloe Verzosa, Erin Choi.
Coaches - Cary Crouch and Agnes Sugino


Item 1.3 Laguna Hills 3/5 Marine Support Committee Update from Mike Bland - who read a very special letter from 3/5 Marine Corporal Travis Haggerty - Mike began by thanking Girl Scout Troop # 2605, 9 sixth graders from Valencia Elem. School, who donated 42 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies with a very nice Thank You Card, for the 3/5 Marines adopted by the City of Laguna Hills. Mike added that Lt. Col. Chris Griffin (Commanding Officer of the 3/5) will be running in the Memorial Day Race this year with his wife. They are running the 5K because his wife wants him to run with her. Looks like we will have a 3/5 Wounded Warrior to start the race and added that an advantage of being the Mayor of Laguna Hills has resulted in the Mayor getting to ride in the Humvee this year if she chooses to do that. He showed the council and the audience a page from the Orange County Register Newspaper with a large and colorful photo of the Memorial Day race from last year and a story by Karen Robbins, who is on the Board of Directors for Team Dark Horse, the support committee for the 3/5 Marines. Karen's son was in the Marine Corps and Karen feels very lucky that he came back. Karen has written a number of articles about the 3/5 Marines for various publications, and this was in the paper on Friday Morning.
http://www.ocregister.com/news/dark-498871-horse-marines.html
Robbins:Supporting Team Dark Horse
by Karen Robbins, March 8, 2013  The Orange County Register

Then on Wed. Night an e-mail came from a 3/5 Marine, Travis Haggerty, who ran in the Laguna Hills Memorial Day Race last year carrying a large American Flag containing the names of all the 25 3/5 Marines who were Killed in Action in Afghanistan. Mike then read the e-mail from Corporal Haggerty, who is in his early 20s:

"Mr. Bland, Hello, my name is Corporal Travis Haggerty, 1st Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines. I am currently deployed on the 15th MEU and was also on the last deployment with 3/5 to Sangin, Afghanistan. I had the honor of participating in the Laguna Hills Half Marathon last year and ran with the American flag that had the names of our fallen warriors on it. The run was a great way for everyone involved to support the Marines that have fallen and the sacrifice that they and their families have made for this country. I will be the first one to tell you that the overwhelming support that your organization gives to this battalion and its families is remarkable. We could not have received a better city to stand by our sides.

Honestly there is one major point that I would like to make in this email, which is to keep up the outstanding support. Having our nation stand by us during the hard times and the quiet times is a powerful motivation for us to continue doing what we do. The families of the fallen Marines, especially of this past deployment to Sangin, will always be comforted by gracious people like the volunteers of Team Dark Horse. The best medicine for a family going through these hard times is to know that their nation will never forget the sacrifice that their children have made. I know that Team Dark Horse will not let them down, and hold the standards high.

I can tell you from personal experience that this holiday is one of the hardest for our nation’s military families and service members. The memory of the loss of loved ones will always be a difficult issue to handle but that will never keep us from supporting all of our nation’s military, past and present. We will continue to keep their memory alive, just as they fought to keep our families and nation safe and free. We all remember their sacrifice in different ways, but this memorial run is something where thousands can come together for the same cause, strangers become families, bonds are formed, and the true meaning of Memorial Day is revealed. And that is honoring their sacrifice.

I will close with this, all of the team’s hard work and support does not go unnoticed and the sacrifices that Team Dark Horse makes for us will always be remembered and appreciated. People like you are what make us push forward during the hard times and keep our spirits high. I look forward to running the race again this year and meeting more members of Team Dark Horse. Again all your efforts will not be forgotten.
Semper Fidelis,
Corporal Travis Haggerty"

Mike thanked the council and staff again for re-naming the Laguna Hills Memorial Day Race to "City of Laguna Hills Memorial Day Half Marathon, 5K & 10K Honoring the United States Marine Corps Dark Horse Battalion" last year, because it means so much more to all of us. He added that Team Dark Horse has collected about $1000 in donations so far to pay for Marines to run in the race this year. Team Kelly, the wife and friends of Lt. Kelly, who was killed in Afghanistan, will be running again this year and there will be a full static display again this year, just like last year.

Mayor Kogerman thanked Mike and the support committee and said they remember Corporal Travis Haggerty running last year carrying that heavy flag and saying just because they're in Heaven doesn't mean they get out of PT. (physical training), and added how glad she was that he'd be back again this year. Mike added that when Travis was interviewed by FOX News last year he said every battalion should have a town like this one.


PUBLIC COMMENTS - Mayor Kogerman clarified that speakers are asked to complete a pink speaker form to be given to City Clerk Peggy Johns. Providing your name and address is a courtesy but is not required unless you would like to be notified about your issue.

Rachael, Chinese Teacher at LHHS said this is the 1st year that the Saddleback Unified School District has a Chinese Language and Culture program. It was featured in the Saddleback Valley News for the Chinese New Year's celebration. She said they need friends in the community to support the growth of the program. She introduced her student Jennifer Fullerton to explain what we all need to do to make this program grow.

Jennifer Fullerton, Sophomore at LHHS said she has been learning Chinese for 6 months. She noted the hard work they have had to do for fund raising and all the support the school has given them. She requested assistance from the community and Invited everyone to the school's International Week and Win-Win-Wednesdays to add continued support to help this program continue to be great. She ended by speaking Chinese then interpreting for all that she had said please participate in LHHS International Week - March 20-22 at LHHS and come on Wednesday March 20 to Win-Win-Wednesday at Mandarin Terrace – in Laguna Hills' Oakbrook Village, anytime all day so that a part of the proceeds from your meal will be donated to this program. **Don't forget to download your flyer to present to Mandarin Terrace at http://www.winwinwednesdays.com/ to be sure that a percent of the proceeds from your meal will go to this great program. 


Sherri Berringer from the Nellie Gail ad hoc committee, said their committee is composed of all volunteers for a focus on Traffic Calming and Trail Crossing Safety. She said she wanted to clear up some rumors from the OC Register. They are not all equestrians, there 3 equestrians, 1 jogger and 1 hiker plus 2 grandmothers, 1 business man 1 realtor and 1 semi-retired. Their focus now is Gallup Park where they want a 3 way stop sign because so much goes on there all the time, Easter Egg Hunts, Car Shows, Concerts in the Park, Christmas Parties with snow and many other events. She said they've had 4 field trips and 10 meetings and were told they could get a stop sign if someone died in that intersection or if they had 5 accidents in 2 years (she noted they'd had 2 accidents) or if it's on a blind curve with really heavy usage. She said this park is heavily used and the busiest park in the area. A concern was that they had advertised in their Pony Express (news magazine) for anyone that wanted to help us with this safety issue to show up and walk and ride, so we do have a precedent for a 3 way stop at out hidden trail park and mainly what we have going on there is tennis and swim clubs have a summer camp. Our busiest park is Gallup Park where most of the traffic is going 35 mph in a 25 mph zone so they'd like to fix this before someone is killed there.

Council Member Carruth asked if the committee had contacted some of the people who live near that park because they might be helpful. Ms. Berringer stated they had not been directly contacted, only through e-mail blasts and news in the Pony Express.


MINUTES - The City Council Approves the Minutes of the previous City Council Meeting for publication on the city web site. The minutes from tonight's meeting will not be approved for publication until the next city council meeting so there is always a significant delay for the public related to timely documentation of information but you can now watch and listen to the City Council Meetings on the City's web site at www.ci.laguna-hills.ca.us

Minutes from the Feb. 19, 2013 City Council Study Session/Workshop are now posted on the City web site at: http://www.ci.laguna-hills.ca.us/

Items of Interest from the 2-19-13 Study Session/Workshop included: After the Council completed its discussion of the mission, vision, values, and core services, that were adopted 2 years ago the City Manager and Assistant City Manager presented a model that they and the staff had developed to convey the organization's focus. The model is a tiered structure with the following components:
• Guiding Themes for Success
• The Foundation of What We Do (Core Services, Mission, Values)
• The Extras That Make a Difference (Civic Design, Human Investment, Capital
Investment)
• How We Succeed (Governance and Leadership, Organizational Culture/Structure)
• Results and Rewards (Outcomes of the Building Blocks)

Changes from the former model adopted 2 years ago included: As a result of Council's discussion of the staff model, the Council suggested that staff add a reference to "better, safer schools" as an outcome. Additionally, the Council noted that its own vision and values should include two concepts in the "Building Blocks for Success" model: "prepared for the future" and "preserve our heritage." There was also a comment by Council Members that the term "sustainability" in reference to the environment may be important to add to vision or values. The Council's suggestions were incorporated along with the mission into the Building Block model.


CONSENT CALENDAR - Warrant Register = $214,829.37
Items of interest from the Warrant Register - City's Payment for City Views

ITEMS of INTEREST from the CONSENT CALENDAR
Item 4.3 - Progress Payment for La Paz Rd. widening at I-5 = $8,354.18
Item 4.4 - Lease Agreement with Dentist Koorosh Hosn, DDS for 24031 El Toro Rd. Ste 230 at City Hall for another 5 years. Staff Report states the lease will generate $208,946 over the next 5 years/$41,788 per year.
Items of interest pulled from the Consent Calendar for discussion - None

Items of interest pulled from the Warrant Register (which is part of the Consent Calendar) for discussion -  Council Member Dore Gilbert pulled Faubel Public Affairs, Professional Services, Combined Issue, City Views/Community Services Spring 2013 Activity Guide $6,675.00. The balance of the Consent Calendar with the Warrant Register was passed 5-0. Council Member Gilbert said we are spending about $100,000 over 2 years. He asked City Manager Channing for the correct dollar amount.

(**Editor's Note - From the June 28, 2011 - Laguna Hills City Council Meeting ** Items in the Consent Calendar - Item 4.8 City Views Publication Consulting Services Agreement with Faubel Public Affairs - Annual Cost for the production, development and design of the Quarterly Publication of City Views 9x12 inch, 28 page, full color, glossy City Magazine without the cost of postage to 14,000 residences in the City is $105,000 or $26,250 per issue. City asked to continue another 2 year contract for the same in 2011 and that was approved, so that contract with Fauble ends approx. at end of June 2013.)

City Manager Channing answered $100,000 per year. Council Member Gilbert continued that this is an informative magazine that goes out to our residents but that's a huge amount of money that we have to come up with so he wondered if the staff could prepare a report that would show us what we could gain from possibly having advertising in City Views like San Clemente does and that money could then be spent on other things that may be more valuable that we don't have right now.

City Manager Channing said he had already looked at this matter and looked at ads to defray the cost and the contract with Faubel, so if everyone agrees we will incorporate these concerns about advertising in the report we are already preparing. Remainder of the Consent Calendar Item 4.2 - the Warrant Register was then approved.

VOTE - Consent Calendar all items passed 5-0


CITY COUNCIL/PLANNING AGENCY PUBLIC HEARING - Item 5.4.1 - A request to subdivide the Cabot Town Center Property into 4 parcels at 25214-25272 Cabot Rd. in the Freeway Commercial Zone District. Staff recommended continuing this item from the Feb. 26 council meeting to allow additional time to consult with the applicant. Staff recommends continuing this item again to the March 26 council meeting for the same reason stated previously. This was continued again.
PUBLIC COMMENTS -

CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARINGS - None

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

Item 7.2.1 - Preparation for the April 16, City Council Budget Strategy Session.
(**Editor's Note - The dates for these study sessions were changed after the 3-12-13 City Council Meeting. The dates listed here are accurate at the time of publishing this blog and were updated for us by the Mayor)

Assistant City Manager Don White presented this item. - On April 16, 2013, the City Council will be holding the first of three budget study sessions in advance of the public hearing for the 2013-15 Biennial Budget and Six-year Capital Improvement Plan. The first Study Session is devoted to City Council goal setting through the rating of proposed Major Plans. This is also the opportunity for individual Council Members to submit proposed Major Plans for consideration by their colleagues. The tentative agenda of the April 16, 2013, Study Session is as follows:
A. Review of the “Building Blocks of Success”
B. Review of the City Council’s Financial Policies
C. Financial Update
D. Rating of Major Plans (City Council goal setting) proposed by individual Council
Members, Management staff, and Commissions

The second Study Session on April 30, 2013, focuses on the Six-Year CIP (Capital Improvement Plans) and the third Study Session on May 7, 2013, focuses on the proposed operating budget. The final budget document will be presented to the City Council at the June 25, 2013, City Council meeting under a noticed public hearing.
According to the City's financial policy, the City Manager shall present a proposed budget to the City Council on a biennial basis to be adopted no later than June 30th preceding the commencement of the two-year budget cycle. It will serve as the policy document for implementing City Council goals and objectives.

The first Budget Study Session in April has been used as a time for the City Council to set its goals and objectives through rating Major Plans proposed by individual Council Members, Management staff, and Commissions. A project or program qualifies as a Major Plan if any of the following statements are true:
• It requires a new, one-time cost of over $25,000.
• It involves a new, on-going cost of over $10,000 annually.
• It involves a new allocation, or reallocation of staffing resources.
After each proposed Major Plan is presented, each Council Member is asked to assign a rating of “0”, “1”, or “2”. A zero rating means that the individual Council Member has no interest in the City pursuing that Major Plan. A “1” rating means that the Council Member has a moderate interest in seeing the City pursue the Major Plan and a “2” rating indicates a strong interest. All individual ratings are then combined and divided by five. The lowest possible average rating is zero and the highest is “2”. Those Major Plans receiving an average rating of 1.6 or higher, or those receiving a rating of “2” by three Council Members, will move forward in the budget process. All such Major Plans will be assigned to the appropriate department for preliminary budgeting purposes. However, there is a possibility that some Major Plans may not make the City Manager’s proposed budget that will be considered by the City Council at the May 7, 2013, Operating Budget Study Session if to do so would run afoul of the City’s financial policies. The City Manager will inform the City Council of any such action at which time the City Council will have the opportunity to reconsider the deleted Major Plan’s funding priority in light of the entire budget. The rating results of proposed Major Plans are included in the Appendix section of the City’s budget.

Mayor Kogerman stressed that these 3 sessions April 16, April 30, and May 7, all beginning at 6:00 pm, are all Public Meetings.


Item 7.3.1 - Presented by City Attorney Greg Simonian, 1st reading of an ordinance of the Laguna Hills Municipal Code establishing dates, times and location of city council regular meetings to move the start time for CLOSED SESSION Meetings to 6 pm, prior to city council meetings, instead of after city council meetings. City Attorney Simonian noted that a 2nd reading would include adoption of the ordinance and the ordinance would become effective by law on the 31st day thereafter. Ordinance to be read by title only tonight.

Council Member Bressette asked what the motive was for changing the timing of the closed sessions from the end of the meeting to the beginning.

City Attorney Simonian responded that council members expressed a desire to move this item to the beginning rather than having it remain at the end of a city council session.

Council Member Bressette asked if in the last 21 years, in your opinion as the City Attorney, has having closed sessions at the end of the meeting been detrimental to how the sometimes complex legal discussions we have work. Have people gotten too tired? Have they not been able to follow the conversation?

City Attorney Simonian responded he didn't believe they had been detrimental.

Bressette asked Mr. Simonian if he thought it was a good idea, if we're in the middle of a complex legal discussion which is probably the only reason we have a lengthy closed session outside of the City Manager's review and goals and dealing with labor issues. Bressette continued - Do you think it's a good idea to interrupt complex legal discussions in the middle of a conversation? Simonian responded that's the prerogative of the City Council. They can be completed that evening as part of the general business session, More significant Closed Sessions can be agendized as a special meeting of the city council at a different time, also an option to agendize closed session as part of the general business session as well. Bressette continued, What happens if the conversation runs beyond an hour?  Simonian basically repeated the options he had previously presented in response to Bressette's last question.

Mayor Pro-Tem Blount made a motion to read the ordinance and approve it on it's first meeting. Mayor Kogerman read the complete title of the Ordinance into the record.

Council Member Carruth noted that she also opposed the ordinance but would vote for it because it was supported by the council majority.
Council Member Bressette said changing this serves no purpose other than to accommodate personal motives. It clouds the transparency of the City Council that is trying so hard to give the residents of Laguna Hills. It has no foundation in logic or good government. There is no reason to believe it will improve our meetings. It has the potential to interrupt the continuity of conversation especially those of sometimes complex legal matters that we get into.
Council Member Gilbert stated he believed that by starting closed sessions at 6:00 we'll be able to come out into our open session at 7 and announce to the public that we have taken action on any item as opposed to finishing the meeting at 11:00 at night when no one's around to find out if the City has taken any action. From a transparency point of view he said he thought it was nice that the community will know we've taken action. He added that we might be able to save the City some money because if there are attorney's here that are waiting throughout the evening for us to go into closed session and they are representing individuals that have legal issues with the city their clock starts when the meeting starts at 7:00 so if we get this out of the was at 6:00 we may save hundreds to thousands of dollars and every dollar counts. He noted that he is probably the oldest member on the council and admitted that he gets tired later at night so would much rather deal with complex legal issues earlier than 10 or 11:00 at night, if there's a long meeting. He added that he thinks he can make better decisions earlier in the evening.

Mayor Kogerman thanked Council Member Gilbert for the "gentle lie" that he was the oldest member on the council.

Vote - 4 in favor, 1 opposed. Council Member Bressette was the 1 opposed.


City Clerk

Item 7.4.1 - Unscheduled Parks and Rec. Commission Vacancy
Recommendation that the city council select a date for interviews to fill the unscheduled Parks and Rec. Commission Vacancy or review all current and new applications and appoint an individual to fill the vacancy through Jan. 31, 2015. ** There are 14 applications from 12 people who have been interviewed plus 2 new applicants. This item was presented by Laguna Hills' City Clerk Peggy Johns who announced that applicant James Vaughn had withdrawn his name so 13 applicants were left.

Council Member Carruth recommended Chris Mackey as having demonstrated a real commitment to the city organizing and serving in so many places and promoting an supporting a lot of our recreation programs and community events. This was seconded by Council Member Bressette. Mayor Kogerman added that we were most impressed by her and she was next on their list in rank order and because Parks and Rec. has 2 important meetings coming up it is best served by appointing a commissioner now.
Vote was 5 - 0 to appoint Chris Mackey. Congratulations to Chris Mackey!

MATTERS AGENDIZED AND PRESENTED BY CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND MAYOR - None

CITY COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS

Mayor Kogerman thanked the staff for being so responsive. She said she types an e-mail at 10 at night and 1st thing in the morning is its answered. One was from Ken Rosenfield, Director of Public Services responding to a citizen who had reported graffiti on a wall. A response was received from Mr. Rosenfield  in the morning of the next day and the graffiti was gone by the end of that day. She added she had the same experience with David Reynolds, Director of Community Services re. a perhaps inappropriate posting in the Community Calendar and he immediately checked it out made a determination and took care of the problem. The Mayor also commended Karen Robbins, who is a marvelous writer for her articles in the Saddleback News about our 3/5 committee.

Council Member Carruth said on Little League Opening Day the Mayor did a fine job of throwing the 1st pitch. She said it was a good crowd and Ken Shrimp who organized the event had a very nice parade with the OC Fire Authority including a station 22 fire truck, also a new relationship between LH Little League and the cub scout pack 800.

Mayor Kogerman confessed that she practiced with her husband to learn not to throw a ball like a girl. That remark got a big laugh from Mayor Pro-Tem Blount.

CLOSED SESSION - None listed

The Next regular City Council Meeting is Tuesday, March 26, 2013 - 7 pm, at City Hall

Contact Laguna Hills City Council Members at  ccouncil@ci.laguna-hills.ca.us 
** In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in City Council meetings, you should contact the office of the City Clerk at (949) 707‑2635. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to assure accessibility to this meeting.
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CITY COUNCIL and CITY MANAGER REPORT CARD - Categories - (T) Transparency for Citizens, (A) Accountability to Citizens, (CI) Championing Citizen Related Issue, (AG) Achieving Citizen Related Goal Grades - (P) Pass, (A) for Authoring a Citizen Friendly Item, (F) Fail, (A+) Extra Credit. City Manager will be scored related to online and agendized Staff Reports and Requests:

Blount 
P - for voting for consideration of advertising in City Views to offset the cost.
P - for voting for changing the Closed Session meetings from after the council meeting to 6:00 pm before the council meetings to better inform citizens of any actions taken. This system has worked well in Aliso Viejo for many years.
P - for voting to appoint a person to the Parks and Rec Commission now rather than wait a month.

Bressette 
P - for voting for consideration of advertising in City Views to offset the cost.
F - for voting against changing the Closed Session meetings from after the council meeting to 6:00 pm before the council meetings to better inform citizens of any actions taken. This system has worked well in Aliso Viejo for many years.
P - for voting to appoint a person to the Parks and Rec Commission now rather than wait a month.

Carruth
P - for voting for consideration of advertising in City Views to offset the cost.
P - for voting for changing the Closed Session meetings from after the council meeting to 6:00 pm before the council meetings to better inform citizens of any actions taken. This system has worked well in Aliso Viejo for many years.
P - for voting to appoint a person to the Parks and Rec Commission now rather than wait a month.

Gilbert
A+ for introducing and getting passed the concept of considering advertising in City Views to offset the cost to the City/taxpayers.
P - for voting for consideration of advertising in City Views to offset the cost.
P - for voting for changing the Closed Session meetings from after the council meeting to 6:00 pm before the council meetings to better inform citizens of and actions taken. This system  has worked well in Aliso Viejo for many years.
P - for voting to appoint a person to the Parks and Rec Commission now rather than wait a month.

Kogerman
P - for voting for consideration of advertising in City Views to offset the cost.
P - for voting for changing the Closed Session meetings from after the council meeting to 6:00 pm before the council meetings to better inform citizens of and actions taken. This system has worked well in Aliso Viejo for many years.
P - for voting to appoint a person to the Parks and Rec Commission now rather than wait a month.

City Manager - Nothing this time.


** INFORMATION, COMMENTS QUESTIONS and CONCERNS from Watch Dog Readers since the last council meeting

ABOUT: More Attention to Need for Government Transparency

In the last two years, local governments in California have made strides in the realm of government transparency, particularly in their efforts to make public employee compensation records available. Here in Orange County, almost all of the cities now post these figures online.

Yet despite these advances, government transparency remains an issue that deserves our attention. While compensation records are now being disclosed, often time they are difficult to find, and once found often require an advanced knowledge of government finance to understand.

Moreover, what compensation records are made available vary greatly from agency to agency. This lack of a standard for content and format and forces us to ask, what compensation is it appropriate to report? For example, if a city buys a city manager a car, how is the value of that benefit calculated? If their gasoline or cell phone use is paid in one account that includes the city’s entire gasoline expenditures or cell phone costs, how should we calculate the value of that benefit? In addition to what a public employee earns in terms of salary, the “perks” received as a part of the job can significantly drive up overall compensation. The public deserves to know how their tax dollars are being spent.
This week is International Sunshine Week—a national initiative dedicated to educating the public about the importance of open government. As such, I wish to reaffirm my commitment to expanding the public’s access to public information and a more transparent and open government. I encourage you to do the same.Sincerely,
Barbara Kogerman,
Mayor, City of Laguna Hills
Author, Orange County City Managers Compensation Report


ABOUT: 3 Minute Limit for Council Member Comments

Anonymous said...
The 3 minute time limit for council members is a great idea. Anyone who has endured a council meeting where any kind of a sign program was discussed or even just one sign will testify to that!

Anonymous said...
I'm all for the 3 minute limit. It's not how much councilmembers talk that's important it's how much they listen and think before they speak.

Anonymous said...
Transparency is definitely important but the idea is to limit excessive speech not transparency? Did anyone find the Mayor's sign?

Anonymous said...
Have you noticed the convenient contradiction in Bresette's logic about "transparency" vs. the "3-minute limit experiment"? He argues that any such rule limits transparency, but insists that if the Council decides to try this, it should not let the public know what it is doing. Uh . . . What?

Anonymous said...
Here's one way to think about the question of a time limit for comments, ask yourself when do you ever remember anyone asking you to keep on talking because the more you said the more interested they became in what you were saying?


ABOUT: Hitching Rail and Watering Tank at La Paz and Moulton Shopping Center

Anonymous said...
I don't think there should be hitching rail or watering tank at the shops in the redeveloped commercial center at La Paz and Moulton for several reasons:
1. It's dangerous to leave horse unattended for any amount of time while tied to a rail to go shopping or for any other reason, related to people, children and pets also in the area. Who would be responsible for the liability issue here?
2. Who would ensure the safety of the water in an unattended watering tank?
3. What do the Laguna Hills equestrians think about this and why would this be passed unless they had considered it and asked for it?

Anonymous said...
Who's gonna cleanup the horse poop around the hitching post and the water tank?
Anonymous said...
If people won't stop for horses crossing the streets in Nellie Gail why would this area be safer?

Anonymous said...
This center won't be a destination for equestrians because the traffic is to heavy on Moulton and La Paz. I might use a drive through window on a restaurant here if they had one for horses, but not a hitching post or water tank. The hitching post and water tank will be nice decorations for the center.

Anonymous said...
This is not the Old West, La Paz and Moulton are busy streets and a shopping center is not the place to tie up a horse and leave it alone. It's not such a great idea to place a water trough where it could be contaminated either. I would not use these for my horse.


** WIN WIN Wednesdays!! is an on-going series of restaurant fundraisers, a project of the Laguna Hills High School PTSA. Eat at these great local restaurants on Wednesdays and in return, they donate a percentage of the proceeds to the LHHS PTSA. It’s good for us AND it’s good for the local restaurant community. This allows the Laguna Hills High School PTSA to fund many worthwhile programs such as "EVERY 15 MINUTES" (a vividly realistic drunk driving prevention presentation), the Award Winning "I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE" program and the SAFE and SOBER all night "GRAD NIGHT" that keeps our kids not only safe but in Laguna Hills and on campus continuing a 23 year tradition that makes us HAWK Proud! *** Recently the PTSA was able to donate $16,000 for a State of the Art Language lab for the LHHS Language Immersion Program whose Spanish Immersion Component has recently won an INTERNATIONAL AWARD for the BEST SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAM IN THE WORLD and whose teacher, Mrs. Tonya Iribarne, won a NATIONAL TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD
** For Weekly Flyers and Schedules go to our web site at http://www.winwinwednesdays.com/ and please be sure to "LIKE US" on Facebook!

** Bring the WWW!! flyer to these participating restaurants on these dates and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the LHHS PTSA and you can now get durable and attractive business card size Win-Win-Wednesday Fan and Supporter Cards that contain all the info. for W-W-Wed on one side including how to subscribe to W-W-Wednesday to get your flyers, dates and Restaurant Information sent to you weekly on Wednesdays and the other side of the card will serve as a universal flyer, if you forget to bring a flyer. You can sign up for an e-blast at WinWinWednesdays@gmail.com  to have the weekly schedule and flyers for Win-Win-Wednesdays e-mailed to you.

March 20 - Lulu's French Creperie (LH) - all day and Mandarin Terrace – Oakbrook Village (LH), all day
March 27 - Chick fil-A (LH) - all day
April 3 - Spring Break TBD - all day
April 10 - Mangia Bene Cuchina (LN) Laguna Niguel - all day
April 17 - Deemer's American Grill (LN) - all day
April 24 - Fuddrucker's (LF) - all day

**Don't forget to see our "WWW Everyday Partners - Alpha Cleaners, Golden Baked Hams and ToGO's on our web site. Bring the flyers for these everyday partners and Support the businesses that support us!


** HOW TO SUPPORT THE 3rd BATTALION, 5th MARINE DIVISION adopted by the City of Laguna Hills

BE SURE TO SEE ALL THE GREAT THINGS YOUR DONATIONS HAVE MADE POSSIBLE at the Team Dark Horse web site- http://teamdarkhorse.org/

*** Recent and Very Special Message from 3/5 Marine Corporal Travis Haggerty thanking the City and all the Supporters of the 3/5 Marines. This is just the 1st paragraph.
"Hello, my name is Corporal Travis Haggerty, 1st Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines. I am currently deployed on the 15th MEU and was also on the last deployment with 3/5 to Sangin, Afghanistan. I had the honor of participating in the Laguna Hills Half Marathon last year and ran with the American flag that had the names of our fallen warriors on it. The run was a great way for everyone involved to support the Marines that have fallen and the sacrifice that they and their families have made for this country. I will be the first one to tell you that the overwhelming support that your organization gives to this battalion and its families is remarkable. We could not have received a better city to stand by our sides."

On the web site YOU CAN SPONSOR A MARINE IN THE LAGUNA HILLS 2013 MEMORIAL DAY RACE by clicking on the donate button on the Home Page or by sending a check to the address on the Home Page. The full race Fees are $58 if funds are received before 3/15/13, $63 if funds are received before 6/7/13 and $68 if funds are received before 5/7/13. A donation in any amount will be gratefully appreciated and all donations are tax deductible.

You can also join the City's Adopted 3/5 Marines by running with them in the 1/2 Marathon Race through Laguna Hills and 4 other cities or you can participate in the 10K walk and Run, the 5K Walk and Run or the 1/2 mile Kids Run.

You can see the Laguna Hills 3/5 Adopted Marines Face book page by clicking on this link - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Laguna-Hills-Team-Darkhorse/132765660119128?ref=ts&fref=ts

Donation checks can be made to "Laguna Hills Team Dark Horse" and mailed to - Team Dark Horse, 27251 Lost Colt Dr., Laguna Hills, CA. 92653 or anyone can now donate via PayPal on the web site at http://teamdarkhorse.org/  The Non-profit Corporation 501 (C) (3) status has been approved so all donations are tax deductible. E-mail Mike Bland at 35bland@gmail.com  with questions, suggestions, etc. Laguna Hills City Clerk Peggy Johns is the City Liaison to the 3/5 Support Committee.


** NEWS STORIES AND BLOGS ABOUT LAGUNA HILLS:  Please Click on the links below to see the stories.

Robbins:Supporting Team Dark Horse
by Karen Robbins, March 8, 2013 The Orange County Register
http://www.ocregister.com/news/dark-498871-horse-marines.html
Latest Update on the Orange County Animal Shelter in the OC Register Newspaper - The 54 percent overall death rate was pretty much the same as 2011http://www.ocregister.com/news/cats-496442-percent-animal.html
Distinguished Budget Award’ more about good looks than financial health January 17, 2013 - OC Watchdog by Keegan Kyle,http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2013/01/17/distinguished-budget-award-more-about-good-looks-than-financial-health/165287/
Resident's Resolutions for Laguna Hills, Lake Forest at http://www.ocregister.com/news/city-382833-lake-forest.html
Laguna Hills Needs an Identity of its Own at http://www.ocregister.com/news/laguna-382827-hills-town.html
Ka-chinghe sound of a city manager being fired - just click on http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/10/19/ka-ching-the-sound-of-a-city-manager-being-fired/163292/
Grand Jury gets last laugh on "Shadowy" pension costs - Orange County Register OC Watchdog - Oct. 8, 2012http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/10/08/grand-jury-gets-last-laugh-on-shadowy-pension-costs/162930/
City officials abused power, grand jury says July 6th, 2012, 1:22 am · posted by Teri Sforza, Register staff writerhttp://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/07/06/city-officials-abused-power-grand-jury-says/158361/
City among worst for alcohol fueled crashes
Fullerton and Laguna Hills had the worst rates of crashes that involved underage drinkers
Read more at: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/cities-348774-crashes-among.html
New Reports with 2011 Statistics for the 70 year old Orange County Animal Shelter that Laguna Hills still uses for it's citizenshttp://www.ocregister.com/articles/fewer-338291-killed-shelter.html?pic=1
Total euthanasia rate of 53%. http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/02/16/three-out-of-four-cats-still-dont-leave-shelter-alive/148403/Teri Sforza OC Watchdog Kill Rate for Cats at the OC Animal Shelter in 2011 was 74% and only 17% adopted. Euthanasia Rate Stuck at Nearly 50% at O.C. Animal Carehttp://ranchosantamargarita.patch.com/articles/shelter-euthanizes-fewer-animals-in-2011 County Shelter finally admits killing animal for space.
Fred Smoller,The Brandman University Professor of Public Administration, "who offended the power elite" when his Master's Degree students won awards assisting Council Member Kogerman to research the total compensation of City Managers in Orange County has just resigned from his post. Why did this happen? - Click onhttp://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2011/10/12/professor-who-offended-power-elite-resigns-post/109833/
LAGUNA HILLS CITY WORKERS: 12 PERCENT UNDERPAID? http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2011/09/01/laguna-hills-city-workers-12-percent-underpaid/95765/
Which city council makes the most money? http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2011/07/11/which-city-council-makes-the-most-money/88311/#comment-169311
LA Times: Laguna Hills City Manager Salary http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-oc-salaries-20110621,0,1126677.story
June 9, 2011 ORANGE COUNTY GRAND JURY REPORT - Compensation Study of Orange County Citieshttp://www.ocgrandjury.org/pdfs/comp-study-oc-cities/Compensation-Study-of-Orange-County-Cities.pdf
City manager says compensation is fair http://www.ocregister.com/news/city-303264-channing-compensation.html
After attacks, city-manager-compensation sleuths win state award March 21st, 2011, posted by Teri Sforza, Register staff writerhttp://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2011/03/21/after-attacks-city-manager-compensation-sleuths-win-state-award/78545/#comment-139633Click on http://www.publicceo.com/ for more of this story.
No more $60,000 SUVs for city manager? http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2011/02/09/no-more-60000-suvs-for-city-manager/75030/
OCREGISTER: Laguna Hills councilwoman says no to health benefits http://www.ocregister.com/news/city-282972-benefits-council.html
O.C. cities lavished health benefits on council members http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2010/12/06/oc-cities-lavished-health-benefits-on-council-members/69544/
Who has the best-paid city council in California? (updated) http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2010/12/02/who-has-the-best-paid-city-council-incalifornia/69418/ In Laguna Hills the Taxpayers pay the entire cost of heath care premiums for the elected part time city council members and their families. In addition, the City Manager's contract states "To the extent that payment of all or any portion of the dependent rate of premium, is not approved by the city council for all city employees, Channing shall be entitled to a salary increase or cash payment sufficient to cover the amount of premium or rate for dependent coverage not provided by the City plus applicable income taxes on that amount."
OCREGISTER: Chris Norby: Local officials susceptible to 'Bell syndrome http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/elected-276253-city-syndrome.html "Bell syndrome thrives where elected boards vote in lockstep, where groupthink is elevated, and skeptics are ostracized, and where top staff are seen as irreplaceable experts – with rubber-stamped salaries to prove it. Bell syndrome thrives when self-congratulation trumps self-examination."


** CRIME IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD - For a roundup of Laguna Hills police calls check Sheriff's Blotter information - County of Orange at: http://ws.ocsd.org/Blotter/ then choose a city/area and either a 7 day view or a 30 day view. The Sheriff's Open Calls,Cities and Areas - Media Page allows members of the media and residents of the community to see all open calls for all cities and areas. The Sheriff's Blotter enables residents to know what activity is occurring in their communities. A regular review of the calls in your area and the year-to-date crime statistics, at the bottom of each page in the OCSD Patrol Areas section, will provide you an accurate view of law enforcement activity in your community. It will also show you Official Radio Codes. You can contact the Sheriff's Dispatch by phone at 949-425-1800.
** You can also check the Saddleback Valley News every Friday for some of the police calls.


** WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR of the Orange County Register Newspaper - E-mail toletters@ocregister.com Please provide your name, city and telephone number (telephone numbers will not be published). Letters of about 200 words or videos of 30-seconds each will be given preference. Letters will be edited for length, grammar and clarity.