County of Inyo

Board of Supervisors

Public Comment

The Chairperson announced the public comment period and there was no one wishing to address the Board.

County Dept. Reports

The Chairperson announced the County Department Report period. Mr. Tom Brooks, Water Director, updated the Board on the March 19, 2007 Standing Water Committee meeting. Mr. Brooks also informed the Board that he would be attending a Conference on Regional Integrated Management Plans. Mr. Ron Chegwidden, Public Works Director, updated the Board on the connection of the Laws back up well.

Introduction

The Chairperson welcomed the new Planning Director, Mr. James “Pat” Cecil to the County.

Planning/Little Lake Appeal Hearing Delayed for 60-days

Ms. Jan Larson, Senior Planner, provided additional information and further justification for the request to delay the continued public hearing of the Little Lake Ranch appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval of Conditional Use Permit No. 2005-03/Coso Operating Company. Moved by Supervisor Cervantes and seconded by Supervisor Cash to A) consider Little Lake Ranch, Inc.’s request for a 60-day delay of the continued public hearing scheduled for April 10, 2007, on their appeal of the Planning Commission’s December 14, 2006 decision to approve Conditional Use Permit No. 2005-03/Coso Operating Company, LLC; B) direct Staff to publish a notice of the continuation to 10:30 a.m., on June 12, 2007, in the Board of Supervisors Room, at the County Administrative Center, in Independence; and C) direct that any other documents to be presented for consideration on June 12, 2007, be filed with the Clerk of the Board on or before May 29, 2007. Motion carried unanimously.

Motor Pool/ Vehicle Purchase

Moved by Supervisor Cash and seconded by Supervisor Brown to A) declare Diamond Motors and Folsom Lake Ford as non-responsive bidders; B) award the bid to Eastern Sierra Motors as the low bidder for the purchase of the following vehicles: (a) five full size sedans (police package) in an amount not to exceed $$121,212.65, (b) one full size utility vehicle (police package) in an amount not to exceed $24,354.43, (c) one half-ton regular cab 4x4 pickup in an amount not to exceed $21,170.56, (d) three 4x4 utility vehicles in an amount not to exceed $57,582.57; C) award the bid to Rotolo Chevrolet of Fontana as the low bidder for the purchase of the following vehicles: (a) one half-ton regular cab 2-wheel drive pickup in an amount not to exceed $16,578.54, (b) one intermediate sedan in an amount not to exceed $16,059.19, (c) one three-quarter ton regular cab 2-wheel drive pickup in an amount not to exceed $20,517.00; and D) authorize Motor Pool to seek bids for one additional vehicle to complete the projected $340,000 vehicle replacement scheduled expenditure. Motion carried unanimously.

HHS-Mental Hlth Serv./IDEA Contract Amendment

Moved by Supervisor Cash and seconded by Supervisor Brown to approve Amendment One to the Contract between the County of Inyo and I.D.E.A. Consulting increasing the Contract amount by $16,000 to a total not to exceed $36,000 for the period of July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007; and authorize the Chairperson to sign. Motion carried unanimously.

Sheriff’s Dept./ID Video System Purchase

Moved by Supervisor Cash and seconded by Supervisor Brown to declare CrimePoint a sole-source provider of the QuickZoom ID Video System and components for INET and approve the purchase of Video System and components from CrimePoint in an amount not to exceed $10,999.22. Motion carried unanimously.

BofS/Letters Supporting Mule Museum

Supervisor Arcularius briefly reviewed the request for letters of support for the establishment of a Museum honoring the American Mule, which would be located at the Tri County Fairgrounds. Moved by Supervisor Arcularius and seconded by Supervisor Brown to approve the letters to our Federal Legislators supporting funding for the establishment of a Living Museum and Heritage Center in Bishop, California, to honor the American Mule and its contributions to our Country’s history; and authorize the Chairperson to sign. Motion carried unanimously.

P.W./Filming Road Closures

Moved by Supervisor Cervantes and seconded by Supervisor Arcularius to approve road closures to facilitate the Marvel Studio, Ironman filming as follows: A) Movie Road from April 2 through 5, and April 9, 2007 from 6:00 a.m., to 6:00 p.m., and B) Cerro Gordo Road from April 4 through 13, 2007, from 6:00 a.m., to 6:00 p.m. Motion carried unanimously.

BofS/Minute Approval

Moved by Supervisor Cash and seconded by Supervisor Cervantes to approve the minutes of the Board of Supervisors Meetings of A) March 6, 2007 and B) March 13, 2007. Motion carried unanimously.

Integ. Waste/

South County Waste Hauling Services

Mr. Chuck Hamilton, Deputy County Administrator, reviewed the information provided regarding south County solid waste operations. The Board and Mr. Hamilton discussed the cost of continuing to provide waste hauling services in southern Inyo. They also discussed alternatives available to the residents, including (a) self-hauling to the closest land-fill, (b) utilizing door-to-door service, (c) possibly offering a low-income reduced rate, and (d) the disposition of the trash generated by those visiting and camping on the federal lands in south County, i.e., National Park and BLM. The Board and Staff also discussed options available to Homewood Canyon residents as a result of no door-to-door service being provided. The Staff and the Board also discussed the specific door-to-door service charges for the various areas of the County. Supervisor Cervantes shared his concerns with the Board regarding the lack of service being provided to his constituents in the south County. Several Board Members expressed concern with continuing to provide free waste hauling in south County, while the remainder of the County is required to pay either a gate fee or for door-to-door service.

The Board (a) requested that the Fifth District Supervisor relay the information regarding the alternatives being proposed for waste hauling in south County to his constituents so they are prepared when the Board takes action, (b) directed Staff to contact BLM regarding the placement of trash bins to handle the waste generated on their lands and San Bernardino regarding a MOU for use of the Trona Landfill for the Homewood Canyon residents, and (c) schedule a subsequent discussion and possible action item regarding the South County Solid Waste Operations for the meeting of May 1, 2007.

Public Works/ Darwin CDBG Agreement Final Report

The Chairperson requested that the Clerk of the Board read into the record the following: t he “following actions regarding the CDBG Agreement No. 03-STBG-1826 Grant Final Report are required:

• instruct that anyone wishing to address this item during the public hearing is required to sign the sign-in roster which the Assistant Clerk has;

• announce that the hearing has been advertised in advance for 10 days, the notice contains the instructions for the submission of written comments in the event someone wishing to comment is unable to attend the hearing, the County through its agenda publication process provides assistance to those with disabilities or to people needing translation to participate; and the information has been available at the Clerk of the Board’s Office located in the County Administrative Center, in Independence;

• state the following with regard to the purpose of the public hearing:

“The County of Inyo is one of the communities in California that is eligible to compete for CDBG grant funds. The purpose of all CDBG money is to benefit primarily persons of low-moderate income. The State CDBG program provides funds for housing rehabilitation, housing construction, public works, economic development business loans or infrastructure, and planning/technical assistance grants. The County received a CDBG grant for the Darwin Water Distribution System Improvement Project CDBG Agreement No. 03-STBG-1826 and this public hearing is for the closeout of the grant and to solicit citizen input regarding the outcome and accomplishments of the project.

The Public Hearing is a required step in the process of closing out the County’s obligations associated with CDBG Grant funds, Agreement No. 03-STBG-1826. This procedure is to allow interested parties to comment on the grant performance and outcome of the project and is part of the citizen participation requirement associated with CDBG funds.

A copy of the Final Grantee Performance Reports for the Project is available for public review during the publishing period of the public notice at the Clerk of the Board’s Office at 224 N. Edwards, in Independence.

CDBG Agreement No. 03-STBG-1826 for $270,682 provided funding for the Darwin Water Distribution System Improvement Project. The activities performed under the amended agreement were as follows: $18,937 for General Administration; $233,725 for Public Works and $18,020 for Activity Delivery.”

The Chairperson opened the public hearing to review the Final Grantee Performance Report on the Darwin Water Distribution System Improvement Project and to solicit public input regarding the outcome and improvements installed on the project. The Public Works Director reviewed the Project in detail. There was no one from the public wishing to address this project. The Board Members acknowledged the work done on this project by the Public Works Department and the Citizens of Darwin, and thanked the Public Works Department Staff and the County Administrator for their dedication to ensuring that this project was successfully completed. Fifth District Supervisor, Richard Cervantes, informed the Board that he has been in contact with Kathy Goss of the Darwin Community Services District, who had expressed to him the CSD’s and the entire community’s pleasure and satisfaction with this project and the benefit this project will bring to their community’s ability to deliver and sustain potable water for the Community of Darwin. The Chairperson closed the public hearing at 10:12 a.m.

Moved by Supervisor Cervantes and seconded by Supervisor Arcularius to approve the Final Grantee Performance Report and the Closeout Certification Form; authorize the County Administrator to sign all required documents; and direct Public Works to transmit the Final Report to CDBG as the Final Product for CDBG Agreement No. 03-STBG-1826 and to take the appropriate steps to successfully closeout this grant. Motion carried unanimously.

At the conclusion of the motion Supervisor Arcularius requested that a workshop be scheduled with the Board and all of the various County Departments who participated in this project for a debriefing on the project to identify what has been learned through this process in order to develop a strategy for the County to pursue future CDBG grant opportunities.

Recess/

Reconvene

The Chairperson recessed the regular meeting at 10:15 a.m., to reconvene at 10:30 a.m., with all Board Members present.

Board Members and Staff Reports

The Board Members reported on their activities during the preceding week, including an IMAAA Board Meeting, an Eastern Sierra Council of Governments Meeting, a ESTA meeting, the LADWP/County of Inyo Standing Committee Meeting, a Mental Health Advisory Board Meeting, various constituent meetings, a Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control Board Meeting, a Unified Command Meeting, a Bishop City Council Meeting, a RAN Board Meeting, and an announcement concerning the upcoming Household Hazardous Waste event at the Bishop-Sunland Landfill.

Closed Session

The Chairperson recessed open session at 10:55 a.m., to convene in closed session, with all Board Members present to discuss Agenda Items No. 12. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – EXISTING LITIGATION [Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9 (a)] – Sierra Club v. City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power , Inyo County Superior Court Case No. SICVCV01-29768(1); No. 13. CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATOR (Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6) – Instructions to Negotiators re: wages, salaries and benefits – Employee Organization: Inyo County Employees Association (ICEA) – Negotiators – CAO Ron Juliff, Personnel Analyst Sue Dishion, Chief Probation Officer Jim Moffett and Deputy County Administrator Kevin Carunchio; and No. 14. CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATOR (Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6) – Instructions to Negotiators re: wages, salaries and benefits – Employee Organization: Elected Officials Assistant Association (EOAA) – Negotiators – CAO Ron Juliff, Personnel Analyst Sue Dishion, Chief Probation Officer Jim Moffett and Deputy County Administrator Kevin Carunchio.

Report on Closed Session

The Chairperson recessed closed session at 12:45 p.m., to reconvene in open session to receive a report on closed session. County Counsel reported there were no items discussed in closed session, which were required by law to be reported on in open session.

Adjournment

The Chairperson adjourned the regular meeting at 12:45 p.m., to 9:00 a.m., Tuesday, March 27, 2007, in the Board of Supervisors Room, at the County Administrative Center in Independence.