Signal Hill City Council makes seven appointments to various commissions

Cory Bilicko
Managing Editor
Though it was time to fill six empty seats on the city’s three commissions, the Signal Hill City Council made seven appointments total on June 2, since a commissioner resigned last month before completing his term.

In addition to appointing two commissioners each to the Planning, Civil Service, and Parks and Recreation commissions, the Council made another appointment to complete the term vacated by former Civil Service commissioner Bill Yochum, who had resigned prior to the interviews scheduled for May 11. Under City Attorney David Aleshire’s advisement, the Council postponed the Civil Service Commission interviews until June 2, then conducted them just prior to the regularly scheduled city council meeting that night.
The City had received two applications prior to Yochum’s resignation, and thereafter, during an extended recruitment period, received three more.
Those interviewed for the Civil Service Commission during Tuesday’s session were: Ronald Griggs, who has served on that commission for four years, including as its chair; David Hopper, a 14-year Signal Hill resident and CFO of a small company; Charles Miller, a retired prison officer, Navy veteran and union leader who has lived in the city since last November and is pursuing a master’s in social work; Wayne Moore, a retired human-resources employee who worked for Los Angeles Unified School District and has served as president of the Signal Hill Friends of the Library; and Victor Parker, a 12-year resident who was seeking a third term on the commission.
Allotting about 10 minutes to each applicant, the five councilmembers asked them questions related to why they want to serve on the commission, what experience they have with hiring and firing personnel, their previous involvement with the city and, hypothetically, how receptive they would be to the council’s not utilizing their recommendations. The councilmembers also afforded each applicant the opportunity to ask their own questions of the council.
Soon after the regularly scheduled city council meeting began the following hour, the councilmembers nominated candidates and then voted to fill all seven commision seats. First addressing the Civil Service Commission’s two full-term positions, which will expire May 31, 2019, the Council selected Griggs and Parker. Hopper was then appointed to finish the term from which Yochum had resigned.
Jane Fallon and Rose Richárd were reappointed to the Planning Commission, and Caroline Kiss-Lee and Nancy Lauer received appointments to the Parks and Recreation Commission. All four of those terms will also expire May 31, 2019.
Oil-code ordinance
The Council waived further reading and adopted Ordinance No. 2015-05-1475, approving Ordinance Amendment 15-01, amending Title 16 entitled “Oil Code” and Chapter 20.52 entitled “Site Plan and Design Review” to establish regulations to allow development on top of and in close proximity to abandoned wells and to revise methane assessment and mitigation procedures and site-restoration standards.
Strategic Plan
Bill Kelly, president and CEO of Kelly Associates Management Group, followed up on his April 21, 2015 presentation of the draft 2015-2019 Strategic Plan. He outlined the Plan’s goals, which include: ensuring long-term fiscal stability; ensuring that public safety is a high priority; promoting a strong, local economic base; maintaining the public infrastructure; ensuring an enhanced quality of life for residents; and promoting a transparent, open government.
Kelly also reviewed a number of revisions and clarifications made to the draft since April 21 as a result of the Council’s discussion of the Strategic Plan. He also outlined new objectives in the Strategic Plan.
“Now, those specific, new objectives are also identified in your staff report, which requires specific Council action,” Kelly told the councilmembers. “Some of the changes I mentioned were strictly clarifications for rewriting, but you have seven specific new objectives the Council will need to vote on, and we’re suggesting one at a time.”
Those objectives include: a feasibility study for homeowners’ rehabilitation; forming a new audit committee; addressing measures to increase voter turnout; the Legacy Reserve Fund for economic-development purposes; a feasibility study for a senior-citizen center; working on communications with schools and universities; and considering having a directly elected mayor in lieu of the current rotation of councilmembers to serve in that position.
The Council voted to not include the audit committee or directly elected mayor into the Strategic Plan but approved all other objectives.
Contract services agreement
Staff recommended that the City enter into a contract services agreement with landscape architect Jon David Cicchetti to provide construction document development, opinion of probable costs and construction administration for a new view park with an electronic message sign on the corner of Cherry Avenue and Burnett Street, in the amount of $67,000, in a form approved by the City Attorney.
Community Services Director Pilar Alcivar-McCoy provided the Council with a summary of the history of the project and indicated that funds for it are indeed available.
“There is sufficient funding available in the Fiscal Year ’15-’16 View Park Capital Improvement Project account to cover this cost,” Alcivar-McCoy said. “I think you’ll see by the timetable in the report we anticipate being out to bid on the project in October in order to award the contract in early December. Construction would then be set to begin sometime in December, and staff would work closely with the architect to ensure the project’s schedule is followed and the project is completed by summer of 2016.”
Councilmember Michael Noll commended Ciccheti for his work but expressed concerns over the time frame and its deadline.
“My concern is— Jon does a great job, he comes out with a good product— but the time frame is terrible,” Noll said, explaining that previous similar projects had not been completed on time. “So, what assurance do you have on this?”
Alcivar-McCoy explained that City staff has been introduced to a new associate in Cicchetti’s office with whom she herself has had communications and that she has been very responsive.
“It’s a help to Jon, so he won’t be doing it on his own,” Alcivar-McCoy said.
Noll then questioned whether the City bids out projects of this type.
“We have been using Jon for the last few years,” Alcivar-McCoy said.
Noll expressed desire to “expand our horizon” on finding architects for the work but said he may end up retracting his comments because “Jon may knock us dead on this project.”
Councilmember Tina Hansen also commended Cichetti’s work, adding that the Council has always chosen him because he “understands the city.” However, she said that “healthy competition is a good thing.”
Hansen asked that staff continue to review the project and have it “come back” to Council.
Councilmember Edward Wilson expressed concern about how rainy weather in the winter might impact the project.
Staff clarified that the contract was for preparing bid documents only and that the advertisement for bid could be scheduled for after the rainy season.
After further discussion, the Council voted to award the design contract to Cichetti.
Historic-preservation easement and lien release
The Council adopted a resolution to approve entering into a historic-preservation easement and release of a municipal lien for the property at 2477 Gaviota Ave.
The current owners are in escrow to sell the property, and the new buyer plans to rehabilitate the building, which is dilapidated. The property owners requested that the City release a lien recorded against the title of the property in the amount of $28,854.77, which includes $28,029.87 for abatement costs and $824.90 for an overdue water bill. For the real-estate transaction to be completed, the lien has to be paid or released.
The Signal Hill Historical Society is one of the two property owners selling the property. According to Charlie Honeycutt, deputy city manager, payment of the overdue water bill was a requirement of the lien release, and the Historical Society has paid the overdue water bill.
Watershed Management Program
The Council voted to enter into two agreements with local water-management agencies to administer and share costs for implementing watershed management for two different watersheds: the Los Cerritos Channel and the Lower Los Angeles River.
For each watershed, the City will enter into a watershed management program (WMP) and a coordinated integrated monitoring program (CIMP).
A WMP is a comprehensive evaluation of the water quality of a watershed area that identifies priority pollutants specific to the watershed and steps needed to achieve water-quality goals.
The Council voted to authorize the city manager to an agreement with the Gateway Water Management Authority to share the costs for the CIMP administration and implementation with other agencies within the watersheds.
Character award
Signal Hill Police Department Officer Deangelo Gossett presented David Galvan, a student at Jessie Nelson Academy, with the second School Resource Officer Student of Character Award.

The qualifications for the award, according to Gossett, were that the student must embody the “Six Pillars of Character” as set forth by the Josephson Institute: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. The student also had to be in good standing in terms of grades, attendance, teacher and administration support, behavior, participation in extracurricular activities and interest in continuing their education.
Galvan received more nominations from the teachers at Jessie Nelson Academy than any other student, Gossett said, adding that teachers described him as kind, respectful, very responsible and a pleasure to have in class. Galvan received a proclamation from the Signal Hill City Council and a $100 gift card from Target Corporation.
The runners-up for the award were Layla Espinosa, Bunheng Kaing and Ada Saing.
The next Signal Hill City Council meeting will be Tuesday, June 16 at 7pm in the Council Chamber.