Item 2 - Draft GPAC Minutes 10-15-20
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
GENERAL PLAN UPDATE
ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORT
MEETING DATE: 12/17/2020
ITEM: 2
DRAFT
MINUTES OF THE GENERAL PLAN UPDATE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
OCTOBER 15, 2020
The General Plan Update Advisory Committee of the Town of Los Gatos conducted a Regular
Meeting on October 15, 2020, at 7:00 p.m., via teleconference.
This meeting was conducted utilizing teleconferencing and electronic means consistent with
State of California Executive Order N-29-20 dated March 17, 2020, regarding the COVID-19
pandemic and was conducted via Zoom. All committee members and staff participated from
remote locations and all voting was conducted via roll call vote. In accordance with Executi ve
Order N-29-20, the public could only view the meeting online and not in the Council Chamber.
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 7:00 P.M.
ROLL CALL
Present: Chair Melanie Hanssen, Vice Chair Kathryn Janoff, Mayor Marcia Jensen, Vice Mayor
Barbara Spector, Committee Member Susan Moore Brown, Committee Member Kendra Burch,
Committee Member Todd Jarvis, Committee Member Steven Piasecki, Committee Member
Ryan Rosenberg, Committee Member Lee Quintana, and Committee Member Carol Elias Zolla.
Absent: None.
Staff present: Jennifer Armer, Joel Paulson, Laurel Prevetti, Matt Morley, Sally Zarnowitz, and
Lynne Lampros.
VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS
None.
CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION)
1. Approval of Minutes – September 3, 2020
2. Approval of Minutes – September 17, 2020
MOTION: Motion by Committee Member Piasecki to approve Consent Items.
Seconded by Committee Member Rosenberg.
VOTE: Motion passed 10-0-1 with Committee Member Quintana abstaining.
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DISCUSSION ITEMS
3. Review and Discussion of the Revised Draft of the Environment and Sustainability
Element.
Jennifer Armer, Senior Planner, presented the staff report.
Open and Closed Public Comment.
Committee discussed the matter and provided the following comments and direction:
- Shorten the definition of noise sensitive uses to focus on those that are sensitive to
noise.
- Policy ENV-1.4 is vague, maybe be more specific about which are key corridors, or
create a map.
- Figure 7-2: North40 should not be shown as Unique Farmland.
- Policy ENV-4.3 is unclear. Should have an Implementation Program to create an
open space management plan.
- What is the difference between habitat and ecosystem? Add definitions of these
two terms.
- Policy ENV-5.1 could be expanded to private property as well, though also covered in
Policy ENV-5.3.
- Consider adding a policy to remove invasive plants, like eucalyptus and invasive
grasses, as referenced in Policy ENV-5.3, but only if not causing conflict with
protected trees.
- Policy ENV-7.1: Anything you build will have some impact, so leave in the word
“significantly.”
- Goal ENV-7 has 11 policies, may have opportunities to consolidate, like 7.1 and 7.10.
- Policy ENV-8.2: Should be to decrease vehicle miles traveled, not increase.
- Policies ENV-8.9 through 8.12 could be consolidated.
- Policy ENV-9.2 is confusing.
- Policy ENV-9.14: Confirm that 10 percent is attainable.
- Policy ENV-9.15: Remove year in reference to Sustainability Plan.
- Should the policies under Goal ENV-9 include LEED?
- Section 7.6: Consider condensing by putting anything that is not about conservation
under the utilities section.
- Section 7.7: Good suggestions from Commissioner Hudes, and recommendations
from Historic Preservation Committee (HPC).
- Add a policy or implementation program to establish local historic criteria.
- Cultural and Historic Resources introductory paragraphs should be shortened.
- Request further input from staff and the HPC on the use of pre-1941 to designate
structures as potentially historic and updating the historic survey.
- Combine/clarify policies under Section 7.8 and 7.9 as noted in written comments.
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- Figure 7-7: Noise Tables – simplify further.
- Need to clarify what “interior noise levels” means to clarify that you can make noise
inside your home, but shouldn’t be impacted by noises from nearby busy roads, for
example.
- Introduction discussion of indoor and outdoor noise should be clarified.
- Consider having two tables, one for interior noise (same for single vs. multi family
homes), and one for exterior noise.
- Page 7-38: Should use existing standards, and existing Noise Ordinance.
- Combine Goals ENV-18 and 19.
- Combine Policies ENV-18.2 and 19.2.
- Goal ENV-18 might be too weak with “consider.”
- Reduce number of Implementation Programs to increase likeliness of accomplishing
them.
- Compile all Implementation Programs by time horizon to see if they can be
accomplished.
The next GPAC meeting will be on Thursday, November 5, 2020.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 9:01 p.m.
This is to certify that the foregoing is a true
and correct copy of the minutes of the
October 15, 2020 meeting as approved by the
General Plan Update Advisory Committee.
Joel Paulson, Director of Community Development
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