City Council Preview for Nov 18 - Part 2

Last time we looked at the Council agenda and the Village Pond Park. Today we’re looking at other items up for discussion tomorrow night.

PORTOLA PARKWAY GAP (Item 11)

According to estimates, if the 1.1 mile Portola Pkwy gap were filled, it would accommodate 20,000 daily traffic trips, about 11,000 of which would divert from the 241. There is no current estimate for the costs of the project, but the City report suggests that $100,000,000 may be a reasonable estimation. The City report indicates that there are no current sources of funds for this project and that it is “not considered a high priority” by the agencies involved.

The City report claims that there would be adverse impacts on Bake/Portola and LF Drive/Portola but less traffic on Alton Pkwy and Irvine Blvd.

Reading between the lines it looks as if the report is saying that plans for the Portola gap should be put on hold.

Personally I believe the Portola gap could be an important step in relieving the traffic problem that is going to be created when 2300+ new homes start sending their vehicles up and down Alton Pkwy. Perhaps the City should start looking for more sources of funds, and looking at the traffic projections laid out in the recent report.

If you want to comment on the Portola gap issue, please go to Facebook and select the Lake Forest Town Square. Be sure to log on to the one from California, not Illinois.

CITY COUNCIL TRAVEL EXPENSES (Item 13)

The Council is proposing to amend the current policy to include the following –

• · Allows overnight lodging if “the Official needs to stop for sleep or rest to properly and safely perform their duties.”
• · Replaces “cash travel advances” with a credit card.
• · Increases tips for ground transportation for 15% to 20%.
• · Limits gratuities for meals to 20%.
• · Ties the maximum per diem to federal rates.

COUNCIL LEADERSHIP (Item 14)

In July 2012 the Council decided that (a) no new Council member could become Mayor and (b) no Mayor could repeat consecutively. The council now wants to reconsider those policies.

It can be argued that sometimes a new Council member has lots of experience in City government (e.g., Andrew Hamilton who sat on and then chaired the Planning Commission). Why should he/she be denied the opportunity if circumstances warrant.

Similarly, if a person does a great job as Mayor and they are in the middle of some projects that will benefit from the continuity of leadership, why should they have to step down?

CIVIC CENTER (Item 10)

It looks like the plans for the Civic Center will have to be modified because there is less usable land than the 9 acres originally indicated. The City is in discussions with IRWD about modifying the Developer Agreement.

We’ve been waiting many years for a Civic Center and a Senior Center and this new wrinkle should not slow us down in getting this project accomplished