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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 11a - Appointments to Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association and Legal Affairs Subcommittee DATE: May 19, 2020 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager/Development Services Director SUBJECT: APPOINTMENTS TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE DOWNTOWN ARCADIA IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION (“DAIA”) AND LEGAL AFFAIRS SUBCOMMITTEE Recommendation: Approve and Provide Direction SUMMARY Appointments to the Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association (“DAIA”) and Legal Affairs Subcommittee (“Committee”) are required to be made by the Arcadia City Council. Under DAIA policies, each owner of a property is entitled to representation on the Board of Directors. As the owner of multiple properties within the DAIA area, the City is entitled to multiple representatives. It is recommended that the City Council formally appoint Tim Schwehr and Peter Amundson to the Board of Directors of the DAIA. The Legal Affairs Subcommittee was established by vote on May 17, 2016 to establish a standing committee. At the time of its creation, only two members of the City Council, Council Member Beck and Council Member Verlato, met the criteria to serve on the Committee; however, Council Member Cheng is a practicing attorney and qualifies to participate. At its Special Meeting on June 14, 2017, (see Attachment) the Committee agreed that it would be helpful for the full City Council to review and discuss how the Committee is functioning in accordance with the City Council’s earlier direction. To date, the review of the Committee’s goals has not been reviewed by the City Council. Given that the City Council is reviewing City Council appointments, now is a good time for this to occur. The City Council may formally appoint new members to the Committee, reappoint current members, or elect to disband the Committee. Appointments to the DAIA and Legal Affairs Subcommittee May 19, 2020 Page 2 of 4 BACKGROUND The Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association A group of Downtown Arcadia business and property owners began meeting in 2010 to explore the possibility of forming a property based business improvement district (“PBID”), also known as a Community Benefit District. The process culminated in a final vote in favor of establishing the District on August 6, 2013, and the City Council’s approval of Resolution No. 6988 formally authorizing the Community Benefit District. Following the approval of the District, the City and consultant New City America worked with staff at the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office to make sure that the assessments for the District were included on the tax rolls. The assessments have been in place for a number of years and are now estimated at $117,755 annually. Funding from the assessments has been used for a number of activities and actions, including special annual events such as the Downtown Patriotic Festival, Holiday Market, Halloween “Haunting”, and many others. Bike racks were developed and installed in the downtown, street cleaning efforts, zoning and land use modifications, and a great deal of business outreach and marketing is some of the work the DAIA has pursued. As an owner of property within the District, the City has always had representation on the Board. In October, 2014, the City Council appointed Council Member Sho Tay to the Board of the DAIA as well as Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager/Development Services Director. In addition, the City Council appointed Peter Amundson to the Board in recognition of his commitment to the Downtown over the years. At that point, Mr. Amundson was not on the City Council. More recently, Tim Schwehr, Economic Development Analyst, and Peter Amundson (as a sitting Council Member) were appointed to the DAIA. Council Member April Verlato has been a member of the Board since the inception of the group as a Downtown business owner, not as a representative of the City Council. Legal Affairs Subcommittee The Legal Affairs Subcommittee was established on May 17, 2016, by the City Council. The original mission of the Committee was to monitor the City’s legal affairs, including litigation costs and bills, and report back to the City Council. On June 17, 2017, the Committee met in open session to further define the Committee’s goals, and agreed that discussion and resolution of specific litigation and oversight of litigation rests with the full City Council. The Committee agreed that written summary of the Committee’s meetings would be prepared and given to the full City Council. Finally, the Committee agreed that it would be helpful for the full City Council to review and discuss how the Committee is functioning in accordance with the City Council’s direction. Appointments to the DAIA and Legal Affairs Subcommittee May 19, 2020 Page 3 of 4 DISCUSSION The Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association The policy of the DAIA is to allow a property owner representation on the Board based on how many parcels the property owner has. For example, since the City owns five parcels in the Downtown, the City could technically have five individuals serve on the Board. Alternately, the City could have a single person represent all five properties. As noted, the City has been comfortable in the past with two to three representatives on the Board, and this remains the recommendation. Tim Schwehr is willing to continue serving on the Board as a representative of the City. In Mr. Schwehr’s role as economic development staff person, he is uniquely qualified to continue to serve on the Board and provide the DAIA with his expertise and perspective on economic development issues, zoning, land use, and the like. In addition, Peter Amundson, although no longer a Council Member, has expressed interest in continuing to serve on the Board as a representative of the City. Mr. Amundson has been committed to effectuating change in Downtown Arcadia for many years and has, in fact, been appointed by the City Council to this role in the past. It is recommended that the City Council appoint both Tim Schwehr and Peter Amundson to the DAIA Board of Directors. If the City Council wishes to appoint additional members, it is recommended that those names be provided to the staff at this time. Legal Affairs Subcommittee Since its inception, the Committee has met nine (9) times reviewing the City’s legal fees, budget, and litigation log of pending and active cases. The number of meetings by year is listed below: Calendar Year Number of Meetings 2017 2 2018 4 2019 2 2020 1 The Committee is currently comprised of Council Member Beck and Council Member Verlato. There have been no new appointments to the Committee since it was created. At the time of its creation, Council Member Beck and Council Member Verlato were the only two members of the City Council who are attorneys. Newly elected Council Member Cheng is also an attorney and the City Council may want to consider his Appointments to the DAIA and Legal Affairs Subcommittee May 19, 2020 Page 4 of 4 background, experience, and expertise in determining the composition of the Committee. FISCAL IMPACT There is no direct fiscal impact associated with appointments to the Board. As a property owner, the City is assessed based on the lot size, linear frontage, and building square footage. Improvements within the AIA area will benefit the City in the form of increased property taxes, and ancillary benefits from additional activity in the Downtown. The current assessment for the City’s parcels is $5,872.18 annually. The Legal Affairs Subcommittee costs are minimal but include the use of staff time to prepare public notices, agendas, and minutes, along with the cost for the City Attorney. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The proposed actions do not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), based on Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines, as it can be seen with certainty that they will have no impact on the environment. Thus, these matters are exempt under CEQA. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council: 1. Determine that this project is exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”); and 2. Appoint Tim Schwehr and Peter Amundson to the Board of Directors of the Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association (“DAIA”); and 3. Provide direction on the appointments of Council Members to the Legal Affairs Subcommittee Attachment: Legal Affairs Subcommittee Special Meeting Memo – June 14, 2017