March 17, 2010 > City of Union City City of Union City March 9, 2010 Council opened with "The Star Spangled Banner" played by Carol Klein, Fremont Symphony's principal trumpeter. Proclamations and Presentations Conductor David Sloss presented and played a DVD of Fremont Symphony Orchestra's children concerts. There are three elements - Young Artists' Competition, Young Composer's Competition and a 45-second conducting lesson. Sloss requested Council's help to promote the Symphony and encourage local schools to attend their concerts and participate in their competitions. Consent Calendar Approved formation of the mitigation monitoring committee (MMC) for the East-West Connector (EWC) Project (Route 84, Option 2). On June 25, 2009, ACTA (Alameda County Transportation Authority) Board adopted a resolution approving EWC Project and adopting the MMP (Mitigation Monitoring Plan). Accepted and appropriated Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Capital Replacement Program funds in the amount of $2,481,720 to purchase six new compressed natural gas (CNG) transit vehicles from DaimlerChrysler Commercial Buses North America/Orion Bus Industries. Delivery expected in early May 2010. Accepted and appropriated American Recovery and Reinvestment Act 2009 funds in the amount of $374,183 towards purchase of two of the six CNG, low-floor transit vehicles. ARRA funds will be applied to the purchase first and any remaining FTA funds can be used for future acquisition of replacement CNG vehicles. Public Hearings Authorized the city to join the CaliforniaFIRST program; authorized the California Statewide Communities Development Authority ("California Communities") to accept applications from property owners, conduct contractual assessment proceedings, and levy contractual assessments within Union City; and authorized related actions. The program is designed to facilitate financing of renewable energy, energy efficiency and water efficiency improvements by property owners in participating cities and counties. If a property owner meets the criteria, the improvements to their property will be paid for by the bonds issued by California Communities. The city will pay a participation fee of $12,500 but if other Alameda County cities participate, the fees could fall to $9,250. If a State Energy Program (SEP 1) grant of $16.5M is awarded to Sacramento County, on behalf of participating cities, no startup fees are payable. City Manager Reports Approved the reprogramming of $250,000 of import mitigation funds received from the Alameda County Waste Management Authority from the Tri-CED Educational Facility Project to the Tri-CED T.R.E.E. Trailer Project, subject to approval by the Alameda County Waste Management Authority. On September 13, 2005, Council approved a resolution appropriating $250,000 to Tri-CED for the construction of an educational facility to be located at the Tri-CED facility. Due to an inability to raise full funding for construction, the intended facility was never built and the project terminated. Tri-CED has proposed to build a 40-55 ft. custom trailer as a new, mobile educational facility called the Tri-CED Recycling Environmental Education (T.R.E.E.) Trailer. Vote 4-0 (Valle recused). Items Referred by Council A discussion was conducted regarding a resolution for an end to death sentences in Alameda County. Nancy O'Malley, District Attorney of Alameda County, made her case for the death penalty, while Natasha Minsker, member of the ACLU of Northern California and the Alameda County Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, spoke against it. The resolution died, since it was not seconded. Oral Communications Doug Abbott discussed issues with the open time at the Sports Center. Doug Junior also expressed his displeasure with the hours, citing a long line and lengthy wait as his problem. Mayor Mark Green-Yes Vice Mayor Richard Valle -Yes Carol Dutra-Vernaci-Yes Manny Fernandez-Yes Jim Navarro-Yes