CITY OF SANTA MONICA

TASK FORCE ON THE ENVIRONMENT

The meeting was convened at 7:10 p.m. Task Force members in attendance: Tim Carmichael, Bill Selby, Susan Mearns, Sandy Grant, Matt Petersen, Bobby Rees and Mark Gold. Santa Monica City staff in attendance: Craig Perkins, Walter Warriner and Dean Kubani. Others: Recreation and Parks Commissioner Lori Nafshun, Planning Commissioner Arlene Hopkins, Council member Kevin McKeown, Paul Rosenstein, and Laurel Roennau.

Minutes

The minutes from the meeting of August 20, 2001 were unanimously approved.

Review of Community Forest Management Plan Implementation

This item was agendized at the request of the Neighborhood Council. The Council had expressed concern that the City wasn’t following the policies of the Community Forest Management Plan (CFMP) when removing mature street trees as part of City development projects such as the downtown transit mall.

The City’s Community Forester, Walter Warriner, discussed the issues related to street tree removals for the downtown transit mall. He indicated that the CFMP allows for removal and replacement of mature street trees when necessary for unifying a streetscape project. He indicated that the City evaluated the option of relocating 39 mature ficus trees from Santa Monica Boulevard. Relocation would have cost $400,000 and would set back completion of the project by 4 to 6 months. City Council, City staff, and affected merchants in the area all expressed the desire that the project not be lengthened. The decision was made not to relocate the ficus trees but instead to plant 2 trees for each tree that was removed. The mature cassia trees that were removed from the site have been boxed and will be replanted to a new median being constructed on Neilson Way.

Walter also described the process for public input into street tree selection, discussed procedures for tree pruning and City oversight of tree maintenance contractors, and discussed issues related to fruit-producing trees in the public right-of-way (they are discouraged because they are messy, can present a liability problem, and can attract birds and pests). He indicated that the City’s urban forest is generally healthy and has grown significantly in size in recent years due to aggressive new planting. However he noted that the forest is aging and many trees will need to be replaced in coming years. A key issue in the coming years will be identifying sufficient funds for tree replacement.

Transportation / Traffic Indicator Follow Up Discussion

This agenda item was a follow up from the previous meeting intended to identify traffic and transportation and mobility issues in Santa Monica and possible indicators to measure existing conditions and effectiveness of policy responses. Following a general discussion of issues, Task Force members suggested the following indicators be proposed for inclusion in the update of the Sustainable City Program:

· Percent of population able to walk or bike to work, school and shopping

· Percent of streets with adequate pedestrian and bicycle facilities

· Ratio of fuel-efficient to fuel-inefficient vehicles, renewably-fueled to non-renewably-fueled vehicles, and low-emission to high-emission vehicles

· Average commute time of community residents for work trips

· Ratio of annual expenditure to build, maintain and support road infrastructure vs. transit and non/low pollution forms of transportation (e.g. walk, bike)

· Average daily traffic count for non-residential street segments

· Percent of greenhouse gas emissions generated from mobile sources

· Average portion of household expenditures devoted to transportation, including direct expenditures on vehicles and fares and indirect expenditures, such as residential parking and taxes spent on transportation facilities

Other suggestions included measuring the annual modal split for Santa Monica (# of passengers traveling by car, bus, bicycle, on foot, etc), and a measure of the level of service of key city intersections – either the total number of significantly impacted intersections or the total time that intersections are significantly impacted, with targets set for reductions in these numbers. Laurel Roennau strongly recommended inclusion of a traffic congestion / level of service indicator as well as a measure of the ratio of tourists to local residents travelling in the city.

Review of Input from Task Force Liaisons on Airport Park Development

Sandy Grant led the discussion. Sandy presented recommendations from former Recreation and Parks Commissioner Heather Trim and Planning Commissioner Arlene Hopkins that address design elements of the proposed Airport Park that could be enhanced to adequately comply with the City’s Green Building Guidelines and attain a LEED silver certification for the project. Heather and Arlene both feel that it is important for the Task Force to weigh in on this prior to initiation of the EIR process for this project, so that the project reflects established City policy. The alternatives addressed in the EIR would then address sustainable designs from the beginning rather than trying to incorporate these design principles at a later date. Following discussion, the Task Force agreed to forward the recommendations proposed by Heather and Arlene to the City Manager and director of Community and Cultural Services Department and ask them or other City staff to attend the October 15 Task Force meeting to discuss the recommendations. Sandy Grant agreed to write and send the letter forwarding these recommendations.

Discussion of Proposed Preface for Santa Monica Open Space Element

Planning Commissioner Arlene Hopkins led the discussion. The Planning Commission recommended that the Task Force review for approval a proposed preface for the Open Space Element. Arlene indicated that the intent of the preface was to include a vision of the world as a biological system in the Open Space Element. Following discussion the Task Force recommended that rather than a preface the piece be called “Forward: Santa Monica, A Sustainable Community”. The Task Force endorsed the text but felt it needed to be shortened for clarity. Arlene indicated she would meet with the author of the preface, Jennifer Wolch from USC, and work with her on the changes.

Report on Sustainable City Program Update Process

Dean Kubani provided the update. He indicated that the first meeting of the Sustainable City Working Group, the stakeholder group involved in the update process, had been scheduled for September 11. That meeting was postponed due to the attacks on New York and Washington and was rescheduled for October 8. This item will be agendized for discussion at the October 15 Task Force meeting.

Santa Monica College Proposal: “Project Engagement”

Bill Selby presented information on a proposed program of SMC’s Center for Environmental and Urban Studies called “Project Engagement”. The program will focus on different issue areas each semester including energy and air quality, housing and poverty, and environmental justice. The program will involve a guest speaker series, a community forum, and an associated community exposition for each topic area. This idea has not been endorsed by the SMC administration yet but Bill will provide updates on progress at future Task Force meetings.

Metropolitan Water District Update

MWD Board member Judy Abdo was not present so discussion on this item was deferred until the October 15 meeting.

Public Input

Matt Petersen proposed an idea to include an ‘Environmental and Community Center’ as part of the proposed Civic Center redevelopment. Due to current very high rents for office space, many non-profit organizations are being forced to move out of Santa Monica. Matt envisions that an Environmental and Community Center could provide affordable office space for non-profit organizations working to promote sustainability. Kevin McKeown noted that an early draft of the Civic Center plan called for such a place but that the current vision puts a priority on open space and housing. He recommended that this idea be written up and transmitted to the Council liaisons to the Civic Center Working group as soon as possible. He noted that a preliminary design for the Civic Center is scheduled for completion in the next week and that public meetings will be held to review it on October 14 and 16. Matt agreed to prepare a letter and forward it to the Council liaisons prior to the public meetings.

Laurel Roennau recommended that the Task Force discuss the Civic Center redevelopment proposal at their October 15^th meeting in order to provide input at the October 16^th Civic Center Working Group meeting. The Task Force agreed to agendize a discussion about the civic center at the October meeting.

Dean Kubani invited everyone to attend a launch party for the Santa Monica and Ballona Watershed Green Map on Sunday, October 14^th from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at Patagonia, 2936 Main Street in Santa Monica. The party is free and open to the public. RSVP to (310) 399-4944.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:30pm