m20210209.pdf 1 February 9, 2021
CITY OF SANTA MONICA
CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
FEBRUARY 9, 2021
A regular meeting of the Santa Monica City Council was called to order by Mayor Himmelrich at 5:30 p.m.,
on Tuesday, February 9, 2021, via teleconference pursuant to the Governor’s Executive Order N-29-20 at
https://primetime.bluejeans.com/a2m/live-event/utfbqgju
Roll Call: Present: Mayor Sue Himmelrich
Mayor Pro Tem Kristin McCowan
Councilmember Phil Brock
Councilmember Gleam Davis
Councilmember Oscar de la Torre
Councilmember Kevin McKeown
Councilmember Christine Parra
Also Present: Interim City Manager Lane Dilg
Interim City Attorney George Cardona
City Clerk Denise Anderson-Warren
CONVENE On order of the Mayor, the City Council convened at 5:30 p.m., with all
members present.
CLOSED SESSIONS
Councilmember de la Torre
excused at 5:39 p.m.
Councilmember de la Torre
returned at 6:31 p.m.
Members of the public Matt Neco and David Whatley commented on
closed sessions.
On order of the Mayor, the City Council recessed at 5:38 p.m., to consider
closed sessions and returned at 6:30 p.m., with Councilmember de la Torre
absent, to report the following:
1.A. Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation –
Litigation has been Initiated Formally Pursuant to Gov. Code Section
54956.9 (d) (1): Shekouh Deljou et al. v. City of Santa Monica, Los
Angeles Superior Court, Case No. 19STCV44621.
The Interim City Attorney advised the plaintiff alleges that in March 2019,
as a 74-year old bus passenger, she suffered a mild traumatic brain injury, a
torn rotator cuff in her right shoulder, and a torn meniscus in her right knee
after falling when the Big Blue Bus she had just boarded accelerated before
plaintiff could take a seat. The City does not admit the allegations, but to
avoid the expense and burden of further litigation, the City Attorney’s
Office recommended settlement in the amount of $195,000.
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Motion by Councilmember McKeown, seconded by Councilmember Davis,
to approve Settlement Agreement No. 11136 (CCS), in the amount of
$195,000.
AYES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, McKeown, Davis, Parra,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
1.B. Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation –
Litigation has been initiated formally pursuant to Government Code
Section 54956.9(d)(1): Fire Insurance Exchange v. City of Santa
Monica, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. 20STCV25393.
The Interim City Attorney advised this matter was heard with no reportable
action taken.
1.C. Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation –
Litigation has been Initiated Formally Pursuant to Gov. Code Section
54956.9 (d) (1): EJA Associates, L.P., a California limited partnership
v. City of Santa Monica, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court, Case Nos.
20SMCV01103, 20SMCV01550.
The Interim City Attorney advised this matter was heard with no reportable
action taken.
AGENDA
MANAGEMENT
The Mayor Pro Tem asked if Council would be in favor of hearing Items
13.C. and 13.D. together, because the majority of correspondence received
addressed the combined items.
Mayor Himmelrich recused herself to avoid the appearance of a conflict of
interest. Because, she is employed as Special Counsel by Western Center
on Law & Poverty, a California non-profit legal services provider and
support center. Although her sole role at Western Center is as a litigator,
Western Center also employs advocates who register as lobbyists, and
Western Center sponsors, endorses, and opposes bills in the California
legislature. Though she is a litigator and does not lobby for Western Center,
her practice has been to refrain from taking positions on any legislation that
differs from Western Center’s position. The two bills that are the subject of
agenda items 13.C. and 13.D., SB 9 and SB 10, are bills on which Western
Center has not yet taken a position. These are, however, bills that Western
Center will likely consider during the legislative session and may take a
position as they involve housing. Western Center did take a position on
two bills that were the predecessors to the current bills in the prior
legislative session, SB 902 and 1120, opposing those bills absent
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Mayor Himmelrich was
excused at 6:33 p.m.
amendment. As a result of these facts, she decided to err on the side of
caution, and recuse herself from agenda items 13.C. and 13.D.
Motion by Councilmember Davis, seconded by Councilmember McKeown,
to hear Items 13.C and 13.D. together. The motion failed by the following
vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Davis, McKeown, Mayor Pro Tem McCowan
NOES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, Parra
ABSENT: Mayor Himmelrich
After the motion failed, the Interim City Attorney announced that Items
13.C and 13.D would be heard as separate items.
CONSENT CALENDAR:
Mayor Himmelrich returned
at 6:50 p.m.
All items were considered and approved in one motion unless removed by a
Councilmember for discussion.
Motion by Councilmember McKeown, seconded by de la Torre, to approve
the Consent Calendar, reading resolutions by title only and waiving further
reading thereof. The motion was approved by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, Davis, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
The City Clerk announced that there was a member of the public on hold to
provide comment on the Consent Calendar.
Motion by Councilmember McKeown, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem
McCowan, to reopen the public hearing. The motion was approved by the
following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, McKeown, Davis, Parra,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Member of the public Denise Barton commented on various Consent
Calendar items.
At the request of Councilmember Brock, Item 3.C. was removed from the
Consent Calendar.
Motion by Councilmember de la Torre, seconded by Councilmember
Brock, to approve the Consent Calendar, except Item 3.C., reading
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resolutions by title only and waiving further reading thereof. The motion
was approved by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, Davis, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
INJURY PREVENTION
SERVICES
3.A. Award Request for Proposal and enter into Agreement No.
11137 (CCS) with Humanscale Corporation for Workplace Injury
Prevention Services, was approved.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award RFP# 262 to Humanscale Corporation for workplace injury
prevention services for the Finance Department; and,
2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute Agreement No.
11137 (CCS) with Humanscale Corporation, in an amount not to
exceed $480,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding
contingent on Council budget approval.
RECYCLING PROGRAM 3.B. Adoption of Resolution No. 11316 (CCS) entitled “A
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCILOF THE CITY OF SANTA
MONICA TO AUTHORIZETHE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTEALL
APPLICATIONS, AGREEMENTS AND DOCUMENTS FOR
FUNDSPURSUANT TO THEBEVERAGE CONTAINER RECYCLING
CITY/COUNTYPAYMENT PROGRAM OF THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF RESOURCES RECYCLING AND
RECOVERY”, was approved.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached resolution
authorizing the City Manager to submit and execute applications,
agreements, and annual reports for the purpose of securing Beverage
Container Recycling City/County Payment Program funds offered by the
State of California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery
(CalRecycle) for a five-year period to implement new or enhance existing
programs to clean-up the waste stream that includes beverage containers.
MINUTES 3.D. Minutes for the City Council - Special Meeting - April 14, 2020,
were approved.
MINUTES 3.E. Minutes for the City Council - Regular Meeting - April 14,
2020, were approved.
MINUTES 3.F. Minutes for the City Council - Special Meeting - January 26,
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2021, were approved.
MINUTES 3.G. Minutes for the City Council - Regular and Special Joint
Meeting - January 26, 2021, were approved.
DELIVERY ZONE PILOT 3.C. Authorization to Negotiate and Execute Joint License
Agreement No. 11138 (CCS) with Automotus for Zero-Emissions
Delivery Zone Pilot, was presented.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the City Manager to
negotiate and execute a joint license agreement with Automotus
Corporation and the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator for curb management
services for the Zero-Emissions Delivery Zone Pilot, led by the Office of
Sustainability & the Environment and the Mobility Division.
Councilmember Brock pulled this item to ask questions of staff about the
cameras and to make sure that the data is not being sold. Other questions
asked and answered of staff included: how exactly is this going to work;
how are the curb and zones going to work; how many parking spaces is this
going to take out; is this pilot program, and if it is determined that it does
not work, will it come back to Council for a determination; and, does the
city verify that they are in compliance and that they are deleting the data.
Motion by Councilmember Brock, seconded by Councilmember de la
Torre, to approve the recommendation. The motion was approved by the
following vote.
AYES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, McKeown, Davis, Parra,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
STUDY SESSION: 4.A. Third Street Promenade Stabilization and Economic Vitality
Plan, was presented.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council review and comment on the Third
Street Promenade Stabilization & Economic Vitality Plan research and
outreach efforts thus far to provide policy views on the emerging vision and
timeline for re-imagining the Third Street Promenade.
Members of the public Robert Resnick, Denise Barton, Juan Matute, Bill
Tucker, Elana Christopoulous, Ericka Leslie, Laura Wilson, and, Lori
Sasson spoke on the recommended action.
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Questions asked and answered of staff and Downtown Santa Monica
(DTSM) included: what was done 30 years ago to spark the vision for the
Third Street Promenade; has there been a consensus from the business
owners on what things should look like in the future; is the Promenade as a
pedestrian street still viable, and should a small portion of that street
become private; what role does the city need to take to encourage
reinvestment; what is the makeup of the Downtown Santa Monica Board,
and do property owners have a seat on the board; who currently is
managing in the downtown area; does DTSM do any additional parking
structure or alley way cleaning; are all of the streets in the downtown area
public streets; what is the parameter of responsibilities for DTSM; what
was the approximate assessment amount received by DTSM for 2019, and
does that amount fluctuate from year to year; where can the city help
DTSM to make sure that things are cleaner, safer, or is everything fine; if
you have 35 different property owners trying to get the highest rent, for
their individual property, what is the overarching vision engine that moves
us towards a mix of uses that is synergistic and creates something of the
whole that is greater than the individual parts, is that the role of DTSM;
does DTSM have any say in who the building owners lease to; how do we
get the property owner to take on a unique tenant over profit; to become
more social, do we have to become more socialist to make a sacrifice for
the greater good; what was the leasing strategy back when the Third Street
Promenade originally formed; in trying to understand what we’re trying to
figure out, are we looking for what the anchor tenant is going to be in 2040;
how are we going to get community feedback, and what are the plans for
resident engagement; are policy changes being considered as well as zoning
and permit changes; curious where DTSM currently stands with the
property owners and their contribution to this plan; what might be
recommended as far as permitting; what is being done to reach down to a
much younger age group, who will be the consumers of the future; are we
doing anything to go into the schools to get their ideas; is there anyway to
create a more cooperative environment for all to participate and be heard;
and, does the city own property on the Promenade.
Considerable discussion ensued on topics including, but not limited to:
willingness to be open and think outside the box, allowing new ideas,
including looking at different zoning and uses; need to figure out how to
pull together the Promenade owners to work together; privatizing Third
Street is not a good idea, it should remain a public street; bring back music
and movement in any way would be great; smaller boutique stores of
variety; different themes throughout the promenade to encourage
interaction and experiences for visitors; being flexible to continue growing
and evolving; the youth is critical, and ensuring safety for the youth and
families; it needs to be more diverse; focus on resident input; make sure
there’s something for everyone, regardless of cost; have cultural and variety
spaces, maybe a Plaza; allow things to happen organically in the public
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space; comedy, farmers market, a makers market to encourage vendors to
bring and sale things that they make; bring in technology, maybe add
colorful lights to create different settings; maybe have a balcony setting
throughout with dining; add housing, schools, grocery stores; add more
green space to the Promenade; residents have to be part of this process, and
not just those on DTSM; artistic and creative uses could be useful for the
downtown as well as the alleys; extend the area to 5th and Lincoln; needs to
have an open space, with more seating, and more inviting; needs to make
sure everyone feels safe when visiting; hotels need to be involved in the
decision making as partners; needs to reclaim our city’s sense of place;
downtown needs to reflect the beach town of Santa Monica; look at more
authentic public places; creating more entertainment space means it will
bring in more people; building a more locally, authentic Promenade,
including helping those smaller businesses get started through banking,
loans, and capital to help create better economics; the more people who
come to the Promenade, the safer it will be; make it an open air, shopping,
artistic, entertainment space; create more engagement for visitors in order
to create an interactive experience; and, to be positive about this process.
COUNCILMEMBER
DISCUSSION ITEMS:
DISABILITIES
COMMISSION
13.A. Recommendation to accept Kelly Siegel's resignation from the
Disabilities Commission and authorize the City Clerk to publish the
vacancy, was presented.
There were no public speaks for this item.
Motion by Councilmember McKeown, seconded by Councilmember Brock,
to accept the resignation with regret. The motion was approved by the
following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, Davis, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
COUNCIL MEETING
TIMES
13.B. Request of Councilmember Brock for staff to return with
proposed changes to the Council rules that: (a) set a separate regular
meeting schedule for study sessions distinct from the regular meeting
schedule for council meetings, for example, set the regular meeting
time for study sessions at 2:30 pm on the day of regular evening
council meetings; and (b) set a separate regular morning meeting
schedule for closed sessions rather than as now having closed session
immediately precede the open session of regular council meetings, was
presented.
Members of the public Matt Neco, John Katz Jeremy Arnold, and, Jonah
Breslaw spoke on the recommended action.
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Considerable discussion ensued on topics including, but not limited to:
having meetings during the day, limits public participation, as well as it
would limit who could serve on the Council; this is more about managing
the agenda, and making meetings more efficient; maybe move larger, more
important items to a separate meeting in order to allow members of the
public to participate without having to wait too long.
After considerable discussion, Councilmember Brock withdrew his item.
SB 9
Mayor Himmelrich was
excused at 10:54 p.m.
13.C. Request of Councilmembers Brock, Parra, and de la Torre that
Council authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of opposition to SB 9 to be
sent to Senator Atkins and direct staff to reinforce opposition to this
bill through lobbying efforts in Sacramento, was presented.
Mayor Himmelrich recused herself from this item, for reasons she stated
earlier in the meeting.
Members of the public Carl Hansen, and Kathy Knight spoke on the
recommended action.
Considerable discussion ensued on this topics including, but not limited to:
opposition to this bill is based on that there is no affordable housing in this
bill; how many units could be allowed on a parcel; and, concern about
making decisions on single bills, could weaken our ability to effectively
lobby in the future.
Motion by Councilmember Brock, seconded by Councilmember Parra, to
approve the recommendation.
Councilmember McKeown, proposed a friendly amendment to add the
language “oppose this bill, as written.” The motion was considered
friendly by the maker and the seconder.
The motion, as amended was approved by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan
NOES: Councilmember Davis
ABSENT: Mayor Himmelrich
SB 10 13.D. Request of Councilmembers Brock, Parra, and de la Torre that
Council authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of opposition to SB 10 to
be sent to Senator Wiener and direct staff to reinforce opposition to
this bill through lobbying efforts in Sacramento, was presented.
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There were no public speakers for this item.
Questions asked and answered include, is it true that the city doesn’t have
to do anything, and that city has the option to opt-out to enact this, and does
CEQA go away, if this passes.
Motion by Councilmember Brock, seconded by Councilmember de la Torre,
to approve the recommendation.
Councilmember McKeown, proposed a friendly amendment to go on record
to say opposed this bill, as written. The motion was considered friendly by
the maker and the seconder.
Motion by Councilmember Davis, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem McCowan,
to propose a substitute motion to authorize a letter that supports SB10, with
the following specific amendments: 1) includes exemptions for residential
parcels in the zoned R2, or more densely, if they have been occupied anytime
within the previous 5 years; 2) that it exempts designated vulnerable
communities; 3) that it has exemptions for parcels that include landmark
resources; 4) that includes exemptions for open space through initiative or
are held by conservancies or land trust; and, 5) that it explicitly does not
supersede local initiatives to protect or promote affordable housing, such as
Rent Control, or provisions that require reasonable inclusion of deed
restricted affordable units in market rate projects.
Councilmember McKeown proposed amended language to the substitute
motion #5 to say, it would override only those initiatives not adopted by
voters prior to January 1, 2021. The amendment was considered friendly by
the maker and the seconder.
The substitute motion failed by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmember Davis, Mayor Pro Tem McCowan
NOES: Councilmembers Parra, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre
ABSENT: Mayor Himmelrich
The main motion, as amended was approved by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, McKeown, Parra,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan
NOES: Councilmember Davis
ABSENT: Mayor Himmelrich
CITY MANAGER
RECRUITMENT
13.E. Request of Mayor Himmelrich, Councilmember Davis, and
Councilmember de la Torre that Council direct staff to retain Lamont
Ewell of Ralph Andersen & Associates to provide executive search
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Mayor Himmelrich returned
at 12:12 a.m.
services for the position of City Manager for the City of Santa Monica,
was presented.
Members of the public Laura Wilson, and Denise Barton spoke on the
recommended action.
Motion by Mayor Himmelrich, seconded by Councilmember de la Torre, to
approve the recommendation. The motion was approved by the following
vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, Davis, McKeown, Brock, de la Torre,
Mayor Pro Tem McCowan, Mayor Himmelrich
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
PUBLIC INPUT: Member of the public Jonathan Foster commented on various local issues.
ADJOURNMENT On order of the Mayor, the City Council meeting adjourned at 12:32 a.m.
ATTEST: APPROVED:
Denise Anderson-Warren Sue Himmelrich
City Clerk Mayor
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