The City Council met in a special work study session on February 1, 2011 to discuss various topics related to housing. They received a report from Community Development Director David Wallace which included an update on the City's advanced planning activities related to the General Plan, the Housing Element, the City Manager's Ad Hoc Working Group and the North Redwood Planning Study. Mr. Wallace also reported on a proposed process for development of a Bay Area-wide Sustainable Communities Strategy and discussed the City's response to the citizen's petition that was submitted on November 30, 2010. The Council heard approximately two hours of public testimony on the issues, and then had questions and comments of their own. As this was a work study session, no actions were taken. It was emphasized that this is an ongoing process and there will be many other opportunities for both the public and Council to weigh in.

The Council convened a regular meeting on February 8, 2011 and began the proceedings by honoring Mike Read as Novato Citizen of the Year. Next, the 50th Birthday Committee gave a report on its activities for the past year, and presented the Council with beautiful commemorative scrapbooks and other memorabilia to be displayed at the Novato History Museum.

After unanimously adopting the Consent Calendar the Council went on to provide direction to staff on the formation of the "Measure F Oversight/Citizens Finance Committee." After discussion, final approval of the item was continued to the February 22, 2011 meeting, with direction for staff to make revisions to the Committee's stated roles and responsibilities. Council then approved an amended license agreement with North Marin Water District for water tanks on Ammo Hill and Reservoir Hill, and adopted a resolution reaffirming the debt of the Redevelopment Agency to various City funds and authorizing that Promissory Notes be prepared so that the Agency may repay the debt.

Public Works Director Jason Nutt gave a report on the results of a pilot test which was conducted to seek public input on fixture selection for the streetlight conversion project. Based on the survey outcome, as well as extensive research performed by staff, he recommended converting to LED technology. Following about an hour of both public comment and Council questions, the Council indicated its preference for LED lighting, and provided direction to include "downlamping," which refers to the practice of installing a lower wattage fixture to reduce light intensity. Approval of the contract for this item came back to Council for a decision on February 22, 2011.

On February 15, 2011 the Council held another work study session, this time to receive the first of three updates from the City Manager on the feasibility study being conducted on the Civic Center location for City offices. The Council received the update and provided input on the space planning analysis, geotechnical analysis, structural systems and potential architectural layouts. FME Architecture and Design, which was hired to provide some initial ideas about building massing, made a presentation and showed four drawings of potential schemes. The public and Council viewed and discussed the drawings, and an opportunity for public input was provided.

The Council meeting on February 22, 2011 started with recognition of local businesses of the year. BioMarin was presented with a proclamation as Large Business of the Year, while ManPower received recognition as Small Business of the Year. Following those honors, Bernice Baeza gave an update of the Novato Theater project, stating that both a steering committee and volunteer committee have been formed and are meeting regularly. She said that local professional contractors have volunteered some services, and that there will be a public fundraiser at the end of April. Information on all of the activities, as well as how to donate to the Theater, is available on the Theater's Facebook page or on their website at novatotheater.net.

The Council then approved the Consent Calendar and spent the balance of the meeting providing direction to staff on the creation of the Measure F Oversight/Citizens Finance Committee. The report and accompanying resolution creating the Measure F Oversight/Citizens Finance Committee had been amended after the City Council's discussion at its February 8, 2011 meeting.

Council concluded the meeting by appointing Councilmember Eklund as its representative to the TAM (Transportation Authority of Marin) Marin Sustainable Community Strategy (SCS) Ad Hoc Committee.

Reports on the March Council meetings will be in the next edition of Our Town. 

On Tuesday, April 5, at 6:30 p.m., the Council will hold a work study session on Crime & Housing Management, in the Council Chambers at 901 Sherman Avenue.

  

The next regular City Council meeting is on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 901 Sherman Avenue.

The City Council appointed six people to the Measure F Oversight/Citizens Finance Committee at a special Council meeting on March 29, 2011. As the committee requires seven members, the City is recruiting for an additional member (see the City's website for information on how to apply). The newly appointed committee members are: David Bentley, Alan Berson, George Cohen, Caitrin Devine, Robert Jordan, and Cris MacKenzie. The new committee will begin its work in the late Spring. Measure F is the voter approved ballot measure that increases the City of Novato's sales tax by 0.5% for five years starting on April 1, 2011.

For the 16th year Novato will celebrate Earth Day by cleaning up litter, weeds and graffiti. The City's annual Clean and Green Day will be held on Saturday, April 9th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Individuals, families, organizations and businesses can participate by volunteering to clean up streets, parks, schools, trails, bike paths, creekbanks or open space. Recycling is encouraged. Materials such as safety vests, bags and gloves will be provided. Everyone is welcome! No prior experience necessary!

Participants can work on any area between Olompali and Pacheco Valle, Black Point to Indian Valley. Organizations and businesses that have adopted median islands can work on their islands pulling weeds and cleaning up litter.

Registration is encouraged so that there is not a duplication of effort. Meet your friends and neighbors at the Clean and Green Day sign-in table at the Gazebo at Scottsdale Pond. Some groups make it even more fun by organizing a picnic lunch after the morning's work. Students and scouts can earn volunteer hours by request at registration. Everyone benefits knowing that they have made the City more attractive and pleasant.

To register call 899-8244 or Ed Schulze at 897-8969 or Susan Stompe at 897-1610. The event is sponsored by the Novato Streetscape Maintenance Coalition and the City of Novato.

Current City Offices at 75 Rowland Way

The City currently leases 24,341 square feet at 75 Rowland Way for $707,000 a year for its City office (which will increase to $750,000 a year by lease expiration in September 2013).
Staff has determined that it is more financially prudent to own an office building rather than lease. The City has one-time financial resources from monies owed to the General Fund by the Redevelopment Agency that could be used either to purchase or build a permanent office building for City staff. On December 6, 2010, the City Council approved the allocation of funding to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of an office building in the parking lot adjacent to the Community House. The feasibility study will include space planning, geotechnical analysis, parking considerations, architectural layouts for office floor plans, structural engineering concerns, input from contractors on potential pricing and an analysis of the planning process for the downtown site. Through this process, the team, under the direction of an experienced Project Manager, will gather information and provide it to City Council.

Based on the information obtained during the initial feasibility phase, the Council will decide whether the next phase of feasibility study should be pursued or other options should be considered. 

The Council will next discuss City Offices on April 12, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.

Have you been thinking of volunteering for the City of Novato? Volunteers help enhance, expand, and deliver quality programs and services to City of Novato residents and visitors. By partnering with City staff, volunteers have a unique opportunity to learn about their City government, while helping to maintain and manage the City's programs and resources. Volunteer opportunities include working on disaster preparedness, special events, median island and park maintenance, graffiti clean-up, museum docent, senior center programs and activities, and much more. The City's new volunteer webpage describes the volunteer positions the City is currently recruiting to fill. Almost 900 people volunteer annually for the City.
"Take Time for Novato" and become an active member of your community by volunteering!

It is very exciting to report that the renovation effort for the Novato Theater on Grant Avenue has gained significant community support. A non-profit organization led by Bernice Baeza, co-founder of the Lark Theater in Larkspur, has been busy over the last few months with fundraising and organizing volunteers. This is great news for the downtown - a renovated theater will become the cultural and entertainment anchor for Downtown Novato and contribute to a vibrant downtown night life.

Fundraising efforts have been successful in getting initial commitments from key donors, however, there are significant challenges ahead before the theater can open its doors. The non-profit seeks community-minded Novatans to demonstrate their love of Novato by making a commitment for a significant investment to the project.

Get involved!!! The theater renovation will not happen without investment in the project by Novato community members. If you would like to learn more about the project, if you might be interested in making an investment or contribution, or if you want to volunteer, click here for the Novato Theater's website. We also encourage you to follow the latest project news on Facebook by searching for 'Novato Theater' and clicking the 'Like' button. This will provide you with periodic updates on the Theater's progress.

We would like to thank Bernice Baeza, Catherine Bragg, June Haugen, Susan Bell-Warner, and Cindy Goodman for their work on the Novato Theater Project Steering Committee. This dedicated team is working hard to make the Novato Theater dream come alive.

The Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM) is conducting a planning process that will influence transportation in Marin County--including highways, transit systems, rail, bicycle and pedestrian facilities--
for the next 25 years.

All Marin residents are invited to participate in an online survey to express their transportation needs and priorities. It takes less than five minutes to complete.

The survey is available until April 7, 2011 at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TAM_RTP_Survey.

In addition, there will be a meeting when TAM commissioners will hear additional public comments and vote on the recommendations previously made by members of the public.

The meeting will take place Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. at the Marin County Civic Center, 3501 Civic Center Drive, Room 330, San Rafael. More information is available at http://www.tam.ca.gov/.

Repainted City Buildings

A number of residents have asked about the recent painting of the Community House and the Hanen House. In a nutshell, they were painted for preservation purposes, as any building generally needs to painted every 10-15 years both for protection against the elements and for curb appeal.

Both buildings were last painted over 15 years ago and the paint was beginning to show signs of aging. Much of the paint was peeling and/or had faded to the point where some of the bare wood was exposed. Such exposure can lead to cracking of the wood and in turn this can lead to dry rot and other deleterious weather and age-related problems.

The project was approved by the Council and funded from the Capital Improvement Budget, to weatherize the Community House and other Historic City buildings.

At the time the contracts (painting and repairs for dry rot) were awarded in mid 2010 the current discussions regarding Downtown City Offices had not begun. If the Community House is to be preserved for the future, it is necessary to take care of the facility. The cost of maintaining the exterior of a building to avoid deterioration is less than the cost of replacing these exterior surfaces. It is also worth noting that no decisions for future of the City's Sherman Avenue buildings or the current Community House have been made.  (See previous item on City offices.)

The City's Let's Move, Novato! Get Active! Get Healthy! Initiative is gaining momentum. On January 27, 150 walkers, from children to seniors, joined the City Council to walk from the Novato Gymnastics and Teen Center down Grant Avenue to City Hall and back. The walkers, who carried signs and a banner, and wore bright green T-shirts identifying the group as Let's Move, generated much interest and questions from downtown shoppers. The event was attended by Eric Alborg, a representative from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, who provided some words of inspiration and thanked Novato for stepping up and joining 500 other cities in the Let's Move campaign around nation.

Obesity is a national epidemic in America and is widespread among children and youth in all socioeconomic and ethnic groups. Unchecked, the growing problem of childhood obesity will undermine the long-term health and economic vitality of every community in America. We want to be part of the solution and reverse this epidemic! The goal of the Let's Move national movement is to stop childhood obesity. Help Novato to become the healthiest city in the nation and join with us in taking the President's Active Lifestyle Challenge. Sign up at www.presidentschallenge.org.

As part of Novato's Let's Move, Novato! Get Active! Get Healthy! Initiative, City employees participated in the first Meet and Move walk at lunchtime on February 3. A small, but enthusiastic, group of employees and the public met at the City offices at 75 Rowland Way and walked a 35-minute route over the Novato Creek bridge to the marsh area behind the Novato Hospital and meandered through a residential neighborhood before heading back. There were various levels of speeds from slow- to fast-paced but all agreed it was a good start to the Let's Move, Novato! Get Active, Get Healthy! campaign which is sponsored by the City's Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department.

The Meet and Move group leaders plan on leading a walk for approximately 35 minutes every Thursday at 12:30 p.m. at different locations in Novato. Everyone is welcome to join in. For more information, please call the Novato Gymnastics Center at 899-8279.

We want to challenge everyone to get active, get healthy with us. For more information on the Let's Move, Novato! Get Active! Get Healthy! campaign, go to www.letsmovenovato.org.

The January edition of "Our Town" summarized the City's current efforts to clean up graffiti around town. Since then City staff has worked on various ways to get graffiti removed more quickly. Studies show that it is very important to clean up graffiti as soon as possible. While in the short-term it may be repainted, it has been proven that constant, prompt removal will eventually convince vandals not to repaint a site.

The City is developing a pilot project for graffiti clean-up volunteers. A meeting was held on March 2, 2011 with 33 volunteers who had previously expressed interest in cleaning graffiti. These volunteers will be sent out to clean up graffiti on houses and businesses and also scout areas around the City to locate and then clean up unreported graffiti. Once a property owner gives permission, the volunteers, will be able to clean off the graffiti at no charge to the home/business owner. If you are interested in volunteering for the graffiti cleanup program, please call 899-8900 or e-mail graffiti@novato.org

Staff has also contacted the Special Districts and utility companies that serve Novato to get current contact information so that City staff can inform them about graffiti on their property.

A review of the legalities around graffiti removal and property rights is also being completed to see if the City can shorten the time that a property owner is given to remove graffiti before legal action is taken. While there are always special circumstances that prevent a property owner from quickly removing graffiti, staff believes the current 20-day time period, allowed for removal and before any enforcement action can be taken, is too long and should be changed. This proposal to change the City's anti-graffiti ordinance will be on the Council agenda on April 12, 2011.

To report graffiti vandalism in progress, please call 911.

To report graffiti, please call the City's Graffiti Hotline at 897-4398 or e-mail  graffiti@novato.org

For more information or questions, please call 899-8900 or e-mail graffiti@novato.org

The State legislature continues to debate the proposed legislation to eliminate Redevelopment agencies. The League of California Cities (LCC) and the California Redevelopment Association (CRA) have continued to articulate their position that the legislation is in violation of Proposition 22 that was passed by the voters on a 2 to 1 basis in November 2010. Proposition 22 specifically prohibited the State from raiding redevelopment coffers to balance the State budget.

If the legislation to eliminate Redevelopment agencies is enacted the LCC and CRA indicated that the matter will be litigated.

Effective March 16, 2011 all traffic collisions reported to the Novato Police Department will be available online for those wishing to purchase a copy of the report. Access to these reports is limited to those involved in a collision, an attorney representing an involved party or an insurance company. To get a copy of a report, go to www.mycollisionreport.com.

The following article was written by Barbara Wold, an internationally known speaker and authority to the retail and consumer industries.

1. Shopping local creates jobs. Shops in your town create local employment and self-employment. These people in turn spend in the local economy.
2. Local independent shops invest more in your communities. Local businesses are proportionally more generous in their support of local charities, schools, and community events. So supporting local shops means a financial contribution to your community.

3. Local shops sell great products at affordable prices.

Some people get out of the habit of shopping locally and are then surprised by the range of products available.
4. Shopping locally saves you time and money. You travel less, saving on time and fuel.
5. Shopping locally retains your communities. People don't like losing shops and services in small towns but don't equate this with how they spend their money.
6. Shopping locally retains your distinctiveness. Independent shops create distinctive shopping experiences and stock different products. Local businesses respond more quickly to the needs of local customers, stocking products to meet changing population needs.
7. Shopping locally saves the environment. Local shops often stock a high percentage of locally sourced goods that do not require long-distance transportation, helping to reduce our global footprint.
8. Local shops are for everyone. Most people can get to their local shops easily. This is especially important for the elderly, young people and others who rely on public transportation.
9. Local shops value you more. Evidence from numerous surveys show people receive better customer care and service locally. These businesses survive by their reputation and repeat business, which means you get a higher standard of service.
10. Shopping local saves services. Private and public sector services cluster around shops. As shops disappear, so do hairdressers, banks, restaurants and other businesses.

Consumers can pledge to Think, Shop, Buy, Local and commit to patronizing businesses near where they live and work. Local stores employ your neighbors, pay taxes that support your schools and improve your roads, and contribute to local non-profit groups.

Together we can strengthen relationships that improve our quality of life. So next time before you make a purchase, Think, Shop, Buy, Local.