December 5 - December 9, 2022

Week 49
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Pre-Construction meeting with PG&E for the BESS project

Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) CIP
Staff had a pre-construction meeting with PG&E this week to kick-off the battery energy storage system project at Town Hall. The team opened the transformer lid near the street (see photo) and verified the trenching plans. Digging for the conduits is scheduled to begin on Monday next week.

Council Reorganization

Everyone is welcome to attend the City Council’s reorganization and swearing in meeting Thursday, December 15 at approximately 7:30 pm to hear from our outgoing Mayor as well as for our incoming councilmembers for the second term (Mayor Tyson and Councilmember Tankha). The council will also elect and swearing in the new Mayor and Vice Mayor. Refreshments will be provided

Staff supporting Dru Anderson receiving her award

Santa Clara County Emergency Managers Association Luncheon
This week staff attended the SCC EMA annual luncheon to support resident Dru Anderson as she won the 2022 Emergency Manger of the Year award for her outstanding volunteer work in her neighborhood of Saddle Mountain Court. Dru has been instrumental in setting up Los Altos Hill’s first Fire Wise community.

Standing Resolution and Code of Conduct

The staff has created a webpage to help explain the proposed changes to the standing committee resolution and code of conduct. The webpage compiles all the information presented at the October 20th Council meeting, including documents and an FAQ page. Please review here. Please feel free to provide feedback on proposed changes. Please email your thoughts, comments, or ideas to standingresolution@losaltoshills.ca.gov.

Past Brown Act Meetings:

December 4: Barn Lighting 2:00-5:00 pm

December 5: Finance & Investment Committee - Cancelled
December 5: Los Altos/Los Altos Hills Senior Commission 4:30 pm
December 6: Emergency Preparedness and Response Committee 6:00 pm
December 6: Youth Commission 7:00 pm

Upcoming Brown Act Meetings and Events:

December 10: Series: Native Plant Garden Workshop 10:00-Noon
December 12: Finance and Investment Committee 4:00-6:00 pm
December 12: Public Art Committee 5:00-7:00 pm
December 12: Planning Commission Special Meeting 6:00 pm
December 13: Environmental Design and Protection Committee 5:45 pm
December 14: Open Space Committee - Cancelled
December 14: Technology Committee 5:00 pm
December 15: Crime Prevention & Home Fire Safety 11:00 - Noon
December 15: City Council Reorganization Meeting 5:30 pm

League of California Cities New Law and Elections Conference

League of California Cities
New Law and Elections Conference

Our City Clerk attended the conference for three days in Monterey, CA.

Non-Brown Act Meetings

Broadband Ad Hoc Committee Meeting December 7 at 1:30pm
The Ad Hoc Committee met to discuss a variety of topics. The conversation included grants and community engagement, the use of ARPA funds, possible changes to the Town’s Wireless Telecom Facility Ordinance, the status of the broadband Survey, and the Comcast cost sharing program in Town. The Committee also established a standing monthly meeting moving forward.

Sheriff’s Contract Ad Hoc Committee December 5 at 11am
The Ad Hoc Committee meet to introduce and handoff discussions from Captain Urena to Captain Velenzuela regarding topics related to the new Sheriff’s contract. The contract comes due at the end of the FY 23/24.

Westwind Community Barn Contract December 12 at 11 am and December 16 at 1:30 pm
Members of the FIC, Victoria Dye Equestrian, Westwind Riding Institute and staff setup two meetings for next week to discuss revisions to the concessionaire’s agreement with VDE. The contract comes due in Q12023.

Little League Contract
Staff has assembled a group of stakeholders to start reviewing the contract between the Little League and the Town as the contract comes up for renewal in mid-2023

Regional Updates

Board of Supervisor's Meeting

On December 12th the Board will consider the attached staff report item #23 on the agenda and determine whether to direct the Planning Commission to hold a modification or revocation hearing for Lehigh cement plant use permit under County Zoning Ordinance Section 5.20.210.

You can find information on how to participate in this meeting using this link: http://sccgov.iqm2.com/citizens/default.aspx.

Written correspondence may be submitted to boardoperations@cob.sccgov.org with a reference to Item #23.

Planning and Building

Planning Permits*
Applied: 11
Approved: 0

Building Permits*
Applied: 12
Issued: 12

Inspections*
Building: 48

Code Enforcement Cases*
Open: 1
Closed: 1
*December 2-8 2022

Other Updates
We have contract with two (2) qualified vendors, QuitCarbon and Zero, to conduct Electrification Home Assessments to help residents plan their electrification process.

Don’t miss out on filling the sign-up form for Home Electrification Assessments, we still have a few spots left. Please sign up here.

Public Works

CIP Projects

2022 Sanitary Sewer Repair and Replacement Project
Staff has identified and evaluated 40 sanitary sewer segments with structural defects for consideration in the 2022 CIP. Of the 40 segments, staff has narrowed down the list to 17 segments. The tentative schedule for the 2022 CIP is to request the Council’s permission to advertise the project in December, advertise the project in January, open bids in February, award in March, and begin construction in April.

Town Hall Renovation
The carpet tiles were delivered on Monday, 12/5/22, and the contractor returned to the Town Hall to install the carpets on Tuesday, 12/6/22. The contractor completed installing the carpets and wall bases on Thursday, 12/8/22. The furniture in the manager’ offices was re-installed on the same day. The furniture company mobilized to the Town Hall on Friday, 12/9/22, to install new cubicle offices.Staff will be moved back into Town Hall and out of the Chambers before the December 15^th Council meeting. A special thanks to Daniel Liang and Sarina Revillar for keeping us on track!

Pathways

Briones Way Pathway
Town sent notices to homeowners for construction of the Briones Way pathway. The project is scheduled to begin in late Winter, with completion in early Spring as weather allows.

Edgerton Pathway
Town staff is revising construction plans for the Edgerton Pathway.

Summerhill Pathway
Town has entered into agreement with surveying contractor for additional topography. Additional survey work to be done in late December, 2022 through early January, 2023.

Transportation

SB-1 Compliance
Town submitted Expenditure Report for the Local Streets and Roads Program to the state.

Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Town participated in a working group meeting with MTC, VTA, CTC, and other transportation agencies.

Permits Issued:

Encroachment Permits: 2
Sewer Permits Issued: 1

Maintenance:

After hours or weekend callouts: 1
Fallen trees/major limbs down: 1

PW Maintenance Crew

ROW brushing and tree trimming along W Fremont Rd.
Limb down and removal on Magdalena Rd. near Dawson Dr.
Clean up from Barn Lighting event at Westwind Community Barn
Install water bars and regrade road at Westwind Community Barn
Turf mowed at Purissima Park
Assist town staff in moving furniture and boxes
Respond to accident on El Monte Rd. near Foothill College with traffic control and absorbent
Fleet vehicles repaired

Brush and tree trimming

Westwind Community Barn Pathway Water Bars Installed

El Monte near Foothill College with traffic control and absorbent

Finance, Human Resources, IT Services

Accounts Payable/Budget/Payroll/Receivables

Received $33,832 in cash receipts and/or electronic funds transfer (EFT).

Human Resources Open Recruitment
Open Recruitment:
Maintenance Seasonal Help in Public Works - Recruitment open until filled.
Chief Building Official - Recruitment open until filled.

Other Items:
Plan JPA Board Meeting
On December 8th staff attended the all-day PLAN JPA Strategic Planning session and board of directors meeting.

Information Technology
Install of VMware software to increase reliability of LAH’s infrastructure by adding redundancy. This also allows Eaton & Associates to manage more than one host service, schedule/cluster/distribute resources. Additionally, Eaton will be able to move virtual machines for maintenance with no downtime. The primary functions of VMware licensing are high availability, load balancing, and redundancy. The Technology Committee very supportive.

Barn Lighting Highlight Video

Community Services

Barn Lighting
Westwind Community Barn was lit on Sunday, December 4th to celebrate the season. There were cookies, hot cider, wine tasting, seasonal games, craft tables, Santa, pony rides and a petting zoo. Enjoy the highlight video to the right as the Barn is now light for the holiday season.

Native Plant Garden and Heritage House Orchard

Upcoming Events:

Native Plant Garden and Heritage House Orchard
Saturday, December 10 from 10:0-Noon
To help increase resident awareness of the Town’s Native Gardens, EDPC members are holding a series of events. These are designed to be a celebration of the Native Gardens and foster enjoyment by spending time in them. Each event will include a discussion of the plant species found in the Native Garden, docent-led plant identification walks, and a variety of environmental education activities for all ages. Free, RSVP encouraged Grace at gracedelaclave@gmail.com.

Caroling in the Hills

Tuesday, December 20 from 7:30-9 pm at Town Hall
Join with your neighbors in bringing fun holiday cheer to the neighborhoods. Drinks and treats will be provided to warm our voices up before heading out on pathways. Carolers should wear warm clothes and bring a flashlight. In case of inclement weather caroling will be held at Town Hall only. For more information, please contact Scott Vanderlip at 650 793-0475 or email at scott@inet-sciences.com.

Senior Scam Stoppers at Town Hall
Wednesday, January 11 11:00-Noon
The Contractors State will be teaming up with our own Santa Clara County Sheriff to deliver pertinent information to keep our residents safe and scam-free! For more information about Senior Scam Stoppers visit https://www.cslb.ca.gov/consumers/senior_scam_stoppers/. RSVP requested, losaltoshills.ca.gov/scamprevention

Tech for Seniors
Saturday January 14 from 9-Noon:
The Los Altos Hills Youth Commission will hold their intergenerational event. Sign up today here: losaltoshills.ca.gov/techtutoring.

TEDxLosAltosHills

The Town of Los Altos Hills is hosting our very first TEDx event on January 28, 2023. Speakers will be announced this month. This week tickets are sold out. For more information visit tedxlosaltoshills.com.

Community Events & Activities.
Sign up for the Parks and Recreation mailing list here.

Sheriff's Weekly Report

Visit the link to view the Sheriff's weekly report for November 28-December 4, 2022.
The Sheriff’s weekly report is always for the week prior to the City Manager’s report

Los Altos Hills Bicycle Safety: Bicycle safety is extremely important for riders of all ages. As a reminder, when riding your bike:

Always wear a helmet and other proper safety equipment
Get acquainted with traffic laws; bicyclists must follow the same rules as motorists
Ride single file and on the proper side of the road (same direction as vehicle traffic)
In case of emergency, carry some form of identification
Remain alert, keep your head up and look around; watch for opening car doors, animals, and other hazards
Use hand signals when turning and use extra care at intersections
Whenever possible, ride during the day; if you must ride at night, wear reflective clothing and use flashing lights.