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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSafety Commission mins 1992/03/12-13 MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE CHUlA VISTA SAFETY COMMISSION . Thursday, March 12, 1992 7:02 p.m. Council Chambers Public Services Building CAll TO ORDER 1. Roll Call: Present: Chair Braden, Commissioners Thomas, Koester, Chidester, Matacia, and Pitts (arrived at 7:12) Excused Absence: Commissioner Padilla Also Present: Harold Rosenberg, Traffic Engineer; Frank Rivera, Associate Traffic Engineer; Sgt. Tom Schaefer, Police Department; Shirley Buxton, Recording Secretary 2. Pledge of Allegiance/Silent Prayer 3. ODening Statement Read by Chair Braden. 4. ADDroval of Minutes MSC (KoesterlThomas) to approve the Safety Commission Minutes of February 13. 1992 as presented. Approved 5-0-2 with Commissioners Padilla and Pitts absent. . MEETING AGENDA 5. Roberts Rules of Order The Commissioners found the section of Municipal Code that was provided cumbersome and asked staff to provide a simpler guide. Frank Rivera said he found a Roberts Rules of Order pamphlet. but it was not available when he went to retrieve it. There are funds available and he will try to locate the pamphlet and distribute it to Commissioners. 6. REPORT on Safety Concerns in the allev between Church Avenue and Del Mar Avenue south of E Street Frank Rivera received a request to look at traffic concerns in the alley between Church and Del Mar A venues south of E Street such as an unsafe wall in the alley and a possibility of posting the alley a "no parking" area. Staff's recommendation is: 1) Make the alley "one way" to the north and post the necessary signs in accordance with Ordinance 10.44.010; 2) Post the alley "No Parking in Alley" as per Ordinance 10.52.160; and 3) Refer the land-use issues and the unsafe wall to the Building and Housing Department for corrective action. Mr. Rivera reported that the Building and Housing Department has already begun action with the property owner regarding the unsafe wall. The Commission viewed slides of the alley. . Linda Navarro, 9 Second Avenue, Chula Vista, CA, owner of the law Office building at 264 E Street which fronts the alley, was opposed to staff's first recommendation to make this a one way alley. In her opinion, the primary use of the alley is by residents who front on the alley or have parking spaces Safety Commission Minutes March 12, 1992 Page 2 in the alley. It is not a thoroughfare for vehicular traffic. Ms. Navarro said when the unsafe wall is corrected and an illegal car repair business is eliminated, the vehicular traffic should be reduced. It would be very inconvenient for residents who park in the alley to have to enter from only one direction. Ms. Navarro said if this alley were made one way, more traffic would be created because vehicles would have to go around the block to enter and exit. Co-Chair Thomas said he didn't see a need to make the alley one way, but to leave it as it is. He felt it would be more prudent to correct the current problems of the unsafe wall and illegal parking. Commissioner Matacia asked what could be done about the car repair business operating at 210 Del Mar Avenue. Frank Rivera reported that this has been referred to Code Enforcement in the Building and Housing Department. MSC (Thomas/Chidester) to approve staff's recommendation to post the alley "No Parking in Alley" as per Ordinance 10.52.160; and refer the land-use issues and the unsafe wall to the Building and Housing Department for corrective action. Approved 6-0-' with Commissioner Padilla absent. 7. REPORT on Traffic Concerns at Charter Point Subdivision Commissioners viewed slides of the intersection of Otay lakes Road and Apache Drive. Vehicles enter Apache Drive from Telegraph Canyon Road and exit on Otay lakes Road, making left hand turns to go to Southwestern College. The problem occurs when traffic speeds on Apache Drive and two vehicles line up side by side to make dual left turns onto Otay lakes Road. Mr. Rivera reported there is major construction going on at the intersection of Otay lakes Road and Telegraph Canyon Road. Traffic Engineering is working with the Police Department and the Construction Inspectors to help alleviate problems in the area. Vicki Madrid, 1538 C Apache Drive, Chula Vista, CA 91910, president of the Charter Point Homeowners Association stated there is a serious traffic problem for 1 5 or 20 minutes each morning as students take a short cut through Apache Drive, making illegal left turns to Otay lakes Road and sometimes blocking Otay lakes Road. Apache Drive is curved which creates a visibility problem for children trying to cross the street to get to their bus stop. Ms. Madrid disagreed with the staff report that stated the construction on Otay lakes Road and Telegraph Canyon Road created the problem. The increase in enrollment at Southwestern College, she felt, is the main cause of the problem. She said the completed construction of Otay lakes Road will greatly resolve the problem. Ms. Madrid spoke with the contractor of the problem and was told it will take 1 1/2 to 2 years to complete the entire project. The community would like to see a sign installed at the entrance to Apache Drive from Telegraph Canyon Road saying "No left hand turns between 7:30 - 9:30 a.m." The homeowners believe this would help reduce the problem. Hal Rosenberg said the problem is the construction activity which will be performed in two stages. The first stage has just been begun and an all-way stop has been placed at Telegraph Canyon and Otay lakes Roads. The stop sign is forcing east-west traffic to stop at all times and yield to traffic turning left to Southwestern College, which causes traffic to back up. The delay in traffic is causing motorists to look for short cuts, one being Apache Drive. The second stage of the construction project will require the closure of the Otay lakes Road-Telegraph Canyon Road intersection which will occur in June of the this year and continue for approximately three months. Traffic will need to be detoured Safety Commission Minutes March 13, 1992 Page 3 . to Apache Drive, Rutgers Avenue, or a combination of both streets. Mr. Rosenberg hopes the traffic from Southwestern College will utilize alternate routes such as East H Street. He would like to work with the Homeowners Association and present ideas to make the best of the situation. The Commissioners viewed a video tape by Ms. Madrid on the traffic problems. Commissioner Matacia asked about the possibility of using a flag control person at the intersection now. He has witnessed this intersection and its severity. Mr. Rosenberg said staff is working out the details to provide flag control. He would like to work with the Homeowners Association to develop a plan of relief for the neighborhood and said a plan would be developed within a week or two. Chair Braden asked Ms. Madrid if staff would be dealing with only her or with more of the homeowners. Ms. Madrid said that there is a Board of Directors and a special meeting could be arranged to discuss these problems. MSC IBradenlThomas) to instruct staff to meet with the Charter Point Homeowners Association Board of Directors at the earliest possible convenience to discuss traffic issues and report back to the Commission of its progress. Approved 6-0-1 with Commissioner Padilla absent. . Mr. Rosenberg said it is staff's intent to proceed in getting a flag control person as soon as possible for the intersection. It could be a person from the contractor, enforcement, or under contract. Staff will then look at the situation and see if this measure has helped the traffic on Apache. If necessary, staff will look at prohibiting left hand turns to Apache from Telegraph Canyon Road. 8. Oral Communications None. OTHER BUSINESS STAFF REPORTS: 9. 1991-92 CIP Status ReDort Distributed for Commissioners information. 10. Chula Vista Police DeDartment Traffic Summarv for October - December 1991 Distributed for Commissioners information. 11 . Automobile Association of American -- 1992 Pedestrian Protection Prooram Distributed for Commissioners information. 12. Hazardous Material Information . Co-Chair Thomas asked about the job description of the Safety Commission which referred to hazardous waste, which the Commission has never been involved in. He asked Mr. Rivera if he had any additional information regarding this. Safety Commission Minutes March 12, 1992 Page 4 Frank Rivera said that the BICIC handbook states that the Safety Commission will be the source of hazardous materials information for the City Council. Mr. Rivera distributed the material received from the County of San Diego and asked Commissioners to keep this information. Any questions should be referred to the County Hazardous Materials (HAZMA T) section. 13. Recent Council Actions Distributed for Commissioners information. Shirley Buxton reported to the Commission that the Shell Oil bids were received and the contract approval should be going to Council on March 24, 1992. 14. Commissioner Comments a. Commissioner Koester asked Commissioner Chidester if he wrote the letters to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) and the National Safety Council (NSC) as noted in the February minutes. Commissioner Chidester said he wrote a letter to AARP, but had not heard from them yet. He called the NSC which has a safe driving award system, however, they charge $8 per driver per year. Information on the NSC driving program is being sent to Commissioner Chidester. b. Co-Chair Thomas asked staff to check into the intersection of Bonita Road and 1-805. Vehicles are not yielding to the traffic which has the right of way to turn left onto the freeway. Frank Rivera said he will make this an agenda item at the next meeting. He will contact the Highway Patrol to monitor the area. c. The Commissioners set up a workshop meeting for Thursday, March 19, 1992 at 7:00 p.m. to begin reviewing the Municipal Code per Council Referral 2257. The Commission will look at the possibility of revising the Municipal Code to change the function of the Safety Commission. ADJOURNMENT MSC (Koester/Thomasl to adjourn at 8:40 p.m. Approved 6-0-1 with Commissioner Padilla absent. Respectfully Submitted, SB:SAFETYI031292.MIN 031982