Belmont Shore Residents Association
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
February 12, 2015
The meeting was called to order by President Terence Endersen at 6:00 pm. The other members of the Executive Board present were: Vice President Max Alavi, Aileen Colon, Julie Dean, Dick Gaylord, Secretary Jeff Miller, David "Coach" Newell, and Treasurer Robert O'Connor, and Sara Schumacher. Thirty-three additional BSRA members and visitors were present.
The agenda for this meeting was approved, with the addition of these two items of Old Business: 12.1 Super Mex alcohol license application, and 12.2 BSRA Member Survey status.
The minutes of the January 8 meeting were approved.
Bay Shore Librarian Debi Vilander announced expanded hours of operation: beginning February 22, the Bay Shore Library will be open Sundays from noon until 4 pm through the summer. There will be an opening celebration that day at 1 pm, with several activities for all ages.
LBPD East Division Commander Paul LeBaron provided details of the recent multiple incidents of property damage in which BBs were fired from a moving automobile, resulting in at least 193 broken windows from North Long Beach to Belmont Shore and Naples. No arrests have been made. The magnitude of the damage results in this being classified as a felony. The Commander spoke about these additional items: Numerous auto burglaries are still resulting from attacks on unlocked vehicles. LBPD is still aggressively pursuing outreach with homeless and transients in conjunction with other city departments. A Community Forum with the LBPD is scheduled for February 19 at 7 pm at Lowell Elementary School.
Elizabeth Lambe, Executive Director of the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust, was introduced as the evening's guest speaker. She introduced Eric Zahn of Tidal Influence, who presented a history of the wetlands around Belmont Shore, illustrated with numerous "then and now" photographs of the area. He described the current condition of the wetlands and plans for restoration of the remaining open space. One important aspect he explained is the plan to create a "mitigation bank" to preserve part of the area. Ms. Lambe then explained the city's ongoing process to update the area's zoning, known as SEADIP, and the concerns that have been expressed about increasing the allowed building height in the area, which is now limited to 35 feet, which allows 3 story buildings - proposals would raise that to 5 or 7 stories. Some of the concerns about such an increase are increased traffic impact, loss of views, and effects on the wetlands habitat. She urged citizens to stay informed about the SEADIP process and to study the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) when it becomes available.
Matt Peterson, owner of Legends and BSBA Secretary, noted the success of the recent Chocolate Festival and said the next BSBA event will be the Roar in the Shore preceding the Long Beach Grand Prix in April. He led a discussion about the Stroll and Savor events, scheduled for ten days may through September. Shore resident Brett Wheeler suggested more security and clean-up are needed, because the crowds have become so large.
Eric Forsberg, the resident representative on the Parking Commission, reported these items from the November meeting: Mike Conway, Long Beach Business and Property Development Director, presented the draft of the RFP for the Belmont Shore Parking Study. The Employee Bus Pass program has 500 participants. Additional Big Belly trash receptacles are planned for Second Street. New signs in the Citibank parking lot no longer prohibit public parking.
Secretary Miller reported three items of correspondence sent in January: A letter was sent to Mike Conway as a follow up to his Parking Study presentation with comments and suggestions for additions to the RFP. BSRA has asked Conway for a revised version of the draft RFP and an update on the status of the Parking Study. As approved unanimously by the BSRA Board in January, a letter was sent to Vincent Cravens, ABC District Administrator, protesting the alcohol license application by Super Mex for a type 47 license (beer, wine, and liquor). Reminder letters were sent to BSRA members who did not renew their membership (due October 1), resulting in six additional renewals. Miller also announced the invoices for $115 expected in March and April for the annual renewal of the BSRA web site hosting service and the domain name registration.
Treasurer O'Connor reported the bank account balance is now $3,762.
President Endersen announced the BSRA Member Survey Committee is preparing a summary of the survey results, which will presented within a month. He also noted the letter of protest sent to ABC regarding the Super Mex alcohol license. He noted that Councilwoman Suzie Price supported the Super Mex Type 47 license application and the City Council voted to approve the application. Executive Board member Newell spoke about his unhappiness with the BSRA vote to protest the license and said he would not have voted to protest if he had had more information. Executive Board member Gaylord also expressed his displeasure with the vote and stated his support for Councilwoman Price.
President Endersen read a statement from Councilwoman Price advising BSRA of a request by Pho Nomenon restaurant for removal of two of the operating conditions on their ABC license: the prohibition of alcohol advertising and the prohibition of "happy hour" type of promotions. She indicated she would not approve those changes, saying "These two conditions are included in almost every Belmont Shore ABC license and/or CUP. We think they are reasonable conditions and important to maintain in the Shore." A motion to support Councilwoman Price in maintaining these license conditions was approved unanimously.
In Public Participation, Jim Corbett spoke about new signage in the beach parking lots. Susan Miller noted the re-opening of the beach and park area in the space of the former Belmont Pool. Dennis Dooley noted the problem of dog waste on the Second Street sidewalks.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 pm.
Submitted by:
Jeff Miller, Secretary
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
February 12, 2015
The meeting was called to order by President Terence Endersen at 6:00 pm. The other members of the Executive Board present were: Vice President Max Alavi, Aileen Colon, Julie Dean, Dick Gaylord, Secretary Jeff Miller, David "Coach" Newell, and Treasurer Robert O'Connor, and Sara Schumacher. Thirty-three additional BSRA members and visitors were present.
The agenda for this meeting was approved, with the addition of these two items of Old Business: 12.1 Super Mex alcohol license application, and 12.2 BSRA Member Survey status.
The minutes of the January 8 meeting were approved.
Bay Shore Librarian Debi Vilander announced expanded hours of operation: beginning February 22, the Bay Shore Library will be open Sundays from noon until 4 pm through the summer. There will be an opening celebration that day at 1 pm, with several activities for all ages.
LBPD East Division Commander Paul LeBaron provided details of the recent multiple incidents of property damage in which BBs were fired from a moving automobile, resulting in at least 193 broken windows from North Long Beach to Belmont Shore and Naples. No arrests have been made. The magnitude of the damage results in this being classified as a felony. The Commander spoke about these additional items: Numerous auto burglaries are still resulting from attacks on unlocked vehicles. LBPD is still aggressively pursuing outreach with homeless and transients in conjunction with other city departments. A Community Forum with the LBPD is scheduled for February 19 at 7 pm at Lowell Elementary School.
Elizabeth Lambe, Executive Director of the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust, was introduced as the evening's guest speaker. She introduced Eric Zahn of Tidal Influence, who presented a history of the wetlands around Belmont Shore, illustrated with numerous "then and now" photographs of the area. He described the current condition of the wetlands and plans for restoration of the remaining open space. One important aspect he explained is the plan to create a "mitigation bank" to preserve part of the area. Ms. Lambe then explained the city's ongoing process to update the area's zoning, known as SEADIP, and the concerns that have been expressed about increasing the allowed building height in the area, which is now limited to 35 feet, which allows 3 story buildings - proposals would raise that to 5 or 7 stories. Some of the concerns about such an increase are increased traffic impact, loss of views, and effects on the wetlands habitat. She urged citizens to stay informed about the SEADIP process and to study the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) when it becomes available.
Matt Peterson, owner of Legends and BSBA Secretary, noted the success of the recent Chocolate Festival and said the next BSBA event will be the Roar in the Shore preceding the Long Beach Grand Prix in April. He led a discussion about the Stroll and Savor events, scheduled for ten days may through September. Shore resident Brett Wheeler suggested more security and clean-up are needed, because the crowds have become so large.
Eric Forsberg, the resident representative on the Parking Commission, reported these items from the November meeting: Mike Conway, Long Beach Business and Property Development Director, presented the draft of the RFP for the Belmont Shore Parking Study. The Employee Bus Pass program has 500 participants. Additional Big Belly trash receptacles are planned for Second Street. New signs in the Citibank parking lot no longer prohibit public parking.
Secretary Miller reported three items of correspondence sent in January: A letter was sent to Mike Conway as a follow up to his Parking Study presentation with comments and suggestions for additions to the RFP. BSRA has asked Conway for a revised version of the draft RFP and an update on the status of the Parking Study. As approved unanimously by the BSRA Board in January, a letter was sent to Vincent Cravens, ABC District Administrator, protesting the alcohol license application by Super Mex for a type 47 license (beer, wine, and liquor). Reminder letters were sent to BSRA members who did not renew their membership (due October 1), resulting in six additional renewals. Miller also announced the invoices for $115 expected in March and April for the annual renewal of the BSRA web site hosting service and the domain name registration.
Treasurer O'Connor reported the bank account balance is now $3,762.
President Endersen announced the BSRA Member Survey Committee is preparing a summary of the survey results, which will presented within a month. He also noted the letter of protest sent to ABC regarding the Super Mex alcohol license. He noted that Councilwoman Suzie Price supported the Super Mex Type 47 license application and the City Council voted to approve the application. Executive Board member Newell spoke about his unhappiness with the BSRA vote to protest the license and said he would not have voted to protest if he had had more information. Executive Board member Gaylord also expressed his displeasure with the vote and stated his support for Councilwoman Price.
President Endersen read a statement from Councilwoman Price advising BSRA of a request by Pho Nomenon restaurant for removal of two of the operating conditions on their ABC license: the prohibition of alcohol advertising and the prohibition of "happy hour" type of promotions. She indicated she would not approve those changes, saying "These two conditions are included in almost every Belmont Shore ABC license and/or CUP. We think they are reasonable conditions and important to maintain in the Shore." A motion to support Councilwoman Price in maintaining these license conditions was approved unanimously.
In Public Participation, Jim Corbett spoke about new signage in the beach parking lots. Susan Miller noted the re-opening of the beach and park area in the space of the former Belmont Pool. Dennis Dooley noted the problem of dog waste on the Second Street sidewalks.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 pm.
Submitted by:
Jeff Miller, Secretary