With just a couple of council meetings left until Election Day, Cypress’ current serving council members gathered for the regularly scheduled meeting on Oct. 8 to discuss development at Katella and Enterprise, pension liabilities, the Lincoln Avenue Specific Plan and more.
Two first responder-related presentations were given to start the meeting, first to members of a local Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) station, in honor of Fire Prevention Week, and also to announce an Open House that will take place this Saturday, Oct. 13, at Station 17 at Cerritos and Moody, where the public will get a chance to go behind the scenes of a fire station, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
Next Cypress Police Commander Jim Olson, joined by Community Outreach Officer Julie Marquez, announced Red Ribbon Week and gave a bit of its history.
To kick off oral communications, a woman wanted to make mention of the late Cypress PD Officer Matt Ward, who was tragically killed in an off-duty auto incident one year ago to the day. To raise funds for Ward’s wife and young children, the restaurants on the boardwalk at Katella and Valley View donated some of their proceeds from the day this year. The woman speaking on this said that she had stopped by the restaurants throughout the day, and “business was hopping.”
Councilman Paulo Morales later said that they had purchased dinner for the entire City Council from those restaurants prior to the meeting that evening.
Cypress School District Superintendent Anne Silavs and Assistant Superintendent Tim McLellan both approached the dais to speak on Measure M, which will be on the ballot next month. If Measure M passes, funds will be used to upgrade district facilities.
Silavs said Measure M is “not a bond; not a tax.” It would use existing resources for a facility need, at “no cost to taxpayers.”
McLellan said the district facilities desperately need to be modernized and invited anyone interested to “see firsthand” the current structure, at 9470 Moody St.
What will happen to Cypress’ “last viable retail stretch?”
Getting into public hearings, considerable time was spent on the discussion of what will be developed at Katella and Enterprise.
Previously, it had been promised that the vacant spaces there would be put towards a “dinner house,” a fine-dining restaurant only open in the evening. The Council had been presented at the time with specific pictures and a plan, but that plan never came to fruition.
A new group has now taken over the property, and is presenting a plan to replace three of the available buildings with assisted living, and to use the other two available spaces for retail.
No members of the council were thrilled with the new idea, as they had not been involved with coming up with this new plan and had been excited about the dinner house idea.
Councilman Rob Johnson brought up the concern that retail provides tax revenue to the city, but assisted living provides minimal returns at best.
Councilwoman Mariellen Yarc said it feels like a “bait-and-switch” that they were promised the dinner house and it did not come to fruition. She asked the presenter, an applicant from the new development group, what was to keep his group from relinquishing the two retail spaces for more assisted living.
Similarly, Mayor Pro Tem Stacy Berry said the area in question is “our last viable retail stretch” in the city, and wanted to capitalize on its potential rather than turning it into assisted living.
The presenter, Andy Loose, said that all five sites were initially marketed for retail to no avail. A consultant had even come in to help, with the same result. At that point, the group changed its focus to assisted living.
Ultimately, the council voted to take more time and look into other options.
Pension liability woes
An item concerning the city’s pension liabilities was pulled from the consent calendar for discussion by Yarc.
The recommendation was to “approve an agreement with the Orange County Employees Retirement System (OCERS) for the ongoing funding of accrued pension liabilities; and appropriate a $740,000 transfer from the Recreation and Park District’s General Fund to the Employee Benefits Internal Service Fund to provide for the FY 2018-19 OCERS payment.”
Yarc expressed concern over the cost of this move. It’s no secret that the city’s pension liability outlook is dour, and Yarc asked what would happen if the city couldn’t afford these payments.
City Attorney Anthony Taylor answered that they would either need to go to court or meet with the county to set up a payment plan, which would include interest going forward.
In the end, all council members except Yarc approved the plan.
Cave dwellings along Lincoln Ave.
The only new business item on the agenda was to adopt the strategic plan update and six-month objectives. One positive aspect that City Manager Peter Grant spoke on as part of his report was the Ad Hoc Committee addressing coyote concerns that was to meet for the first time the next day.
However, other than that, the council members had many questions and concerns about costs and components of the strategic plan.
Yarc, who admitted she is a “lame duck, but is saddened” by the over-development of homes in Cypress, said that part of the Lincoln Avenue Specific Plan is to buy out some “dear businesses” in the area and develop more. She feels that this would somewhat change the face of the city, and said she’s against the idea of building more of what she calls “cave dwelling[s]…itty bitty houses with staircases that lead almost all the way out to the street.”
Other housekeeping discussed was the Community Cleanup Day on Oct. 20, when residents can drop off waste items, with proof of Cypress residency, in the Civic Center parking lot.
Also, looking ahead to next month, the City Council Meeting scheduled for the week of Veterans Day will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 13, instead of Monday.
The next meeting will take place Monday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m.