City Council Preview - August 7

Here is a preview of the upcoming City Council meeting –

DEDICATED RIGHT TURN AT TRABUCO/BAKE (Item 9)

After years of trying we were finally able to get a right hand turn lane at Trabuco and Bake. Thanks to Mayor Pro Tem Basile for her support for this obviously needed change which nonetheless was resisted for more than a decade. Even as we tried to move forward we were met with resistance from staff, but persistence pays off and the project is finally completed.

The project took a few weeks and cost under $200,000. It should make the traffic flow at the busy intersection much better, and given the enormous increase in traffic with the new homes at Baker Ranch and Meritage, improvements were sorely needed.

I continually ask the question “Who’s city is this?” Does it belong to the staff, most of whom don’t live here? Does it belong to the developers and special interests, most of whom don’t live here? No! It belongs to the people and the job of the Council is to represent the people, not the staff and the special interests, and to do what is in the best interests of the people.

The dedicated right hand turn lane was a long time coming. Now that it’s here, there are more places where this can be implemented and we can learn from what we’ve done. Going forward the new Traffic and Parking Commission should be looking at this.

AMEND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (Item 10)

Staff recommends adding another $4 million to the Capital Improvement Program (CIP). The money will go towards some questionable projects -

• Traffic light synchronization – something that is needed but surely overhyped by staff in terms of what it actually achieves. ($145,000)
• Traffic Mitigation Review – Here’s a project that has never been truly validated, but staff assure us it is vital. ($50,000). Given what the reports have said, and what any person who drives around the city knows to be true, it’s a wonder we still look at this. As with traffic light synchronization, it’s a tool pushed by staff but reality has a terrible way of proving the projects less than consequential.
• Whispering Hills - The city has already spent a fortune trying to decide what to do with Whispering Hills, an area abandoned by the people who originally owned it. After multiple workshops no conclusion has been reached as to how to use the space? An indoor soccer arena? A dog park? A “community education garden”? A passive park? Sell it to the commercial space that surrounds it and use the money for other parks? Why on Earth are we spending another $50,000 to find out we have competing interests and no clear idea what to do with the area? There is enough on our collective plates now.
• Millwood Bulb-out – The recently renovated Saddleback Ranch Road apparently need more changes. ($45,000). Reminds me of the Park the city built and then had to rebuild for disabled access. If we did projects right the first time, follow-up wouldn’t be necessary. Remember that the entire Saddleback Ranch Rd fiasco had to be completely rethought in the first place, although Council members Voigts, Robinson, and Hamilton initially were opposed to doing this. Once citizen Leah Basile (now Mayor Pro Tem) launched a recall, they changed their minds overnight, but that’s a different story.
• Slope Management – Apparently we’re doing a poor job managing the slopes bordering MV, Whispering Hills, and the Sports Park. I’m surprised these are the only slopes mentioned because I see lots of bad slope management elsewhere (e.g., along Ridge Rte., along Jeronimo). Just a few months ago I got the City to do some work on the slopes on Muirlands (and it looks great, thank you). The city wants to spend $60,000 on “design and engineering costs” which seems ridiculous when anyone can see the problems and the solutions are already out there. Then they want to spend an additional $210,000 for the actual work, which makes one wonder if they already know how much they are going to spend, what are they spending the design costs for? Whoever came up with the $210,000 costs has some designs in mind. Do we really have to spend $60,000 more? Is that any way to run a City? It also reminds me of the fiasco last year when we spent a lot of money for a consultant report about landscaping on the Sports Park and then ignored the recommendations, causing a $500,000 loss to the city.
• Sports Park Fencing – Apparently people are walking through planters in 4 areas, a problem I identified a year ago when I inspected the landscape around the Sports Park. At the time I recommended cactuses which would use less water and make walks less desirable. Apparently the staff decided to build fences instead, at a cost of $85,000. Hmmm. Should we save money, use less water, and go to native species or spend $85,000 for fences?

Of course not all the funds are being spent poorly. Some of the appropriate uses include –

• Neighborhood Park project advance - $300,000
• Slurry Seal upgrade - $2,650,000
• ADA ramps - $7,579
• Santiago Canyon Rd Improvements - $150,000

Tomorrow we’ll look at Permit Parking, Ballot Measure Arguments, City Manager agreement, and an animal services update

WATCH IT LIVE

Don't forget, you can watch the Council meeting live and also participate. Click here to learn more. According to staff we are the only city to offer this service to their residents.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Jim Gardner is on the City Council for Lake Forest where he serves as Mayor. You can check him out on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook. . His comments are not meant to reflect official City Policy.

Dr. Gardner has office hours every Tuesday from 4 pm to 6 pm at the City Hall. In addition, he holds a town hall meeting every quarter. The next meeting will be Oct 18 at 7 pm at the Lake 1 Clubhouse (Ridge Route).