If this will pick up the sound. Oh.
okay, we are ready to come back. It is now 14:00. And so I call this meeting back to order. And it is an interesting day because as you Notice,
if you look on our agenda, when we get to action item 4, We will be talking about an adoption of policy regarding interruptions of
telecommunications during public meetings. So I look forward to that agenda item.
but we are now back. We were in the middle of public comment, So I'll go ahead and finish out this agenda item d.
public comment on items not on the agenda. Marilyn [inaudible].
to speak in that direction. Thank you, staff, For getting the thing working again.
appreciate all of your efforts. Good afternoon. I'm marilyn langlois, a frequent user of our parks, A founding member of the richmond bicycle pedestrian advisory committee,
former chair of the richmond planning commission, And a member of friends of wildcat canyon park.
since I last spoke to you in may. Two things have happened to reinforce my view that Wildcat canyon regional park is an utterly
inappropriate location for the intensively engineered special feature downhill flow trail That is being proposed.
last month, I attended a wedding in a mountain town that is home to a big ski resort.
in the summer it is crisscrossed with these types of trails and I saw them being enjoyed By lots of young mountain bikers.
the area is already well developed for active recreation with ample infrastructure Including restrooms,
support services and easy emergency vehicle access for the inevitable crashes and Injuries.
it is not a protected nature preserve. That is the type of setting where such trails Belong,
not in a park that is designated as a protected natural area in the park district's own Land use plan.
on sunday, I attended the east richmond heights arts and music festival and spoke with Dozens of passers by at the friends of wildcat canyon
park booths
including some who currently ride their bikes on existing park trails, Told me this was not a good location for such a trail.
they were all furthermore disturbed to learn that one wealthy couple offered $1 million to Pay for this trail if it is located in
their preferred site in wildcat canyon. If you insist on pushing this ill-advised project Through at this site,
you will lose a lot of credibility and trust from your constituents.
you may say, oh, but many young bikers really want it.
well, suppose there was a group of youth with tickets to attend a student performance at The san francisco opera house and one of the chaperons,
an ice cream addict, offered to give each child a big chocolate ice cream cone on the way Into their seats to enjoy during the opera.
of course, the kids will want to have the ice cream, But responsible adults will explain they'll have to eat it outside the theater before or
after the show. Please be responsible.
michael ray wisely. My name is michael ray wisely.
I live on the edge of wildcat canyon in an area known as east richmond heights.
I've been there for 26 years, and I'm very familiar with the canyon
change. I think the number one job should be fire mitigation. But I walked down the trails near my house and there is nothing but dead oak trees and Firewood that is going to
race up the canyon and not only kill animals in the park, But kill people and burn them out of their homes.
and yet east bay regional park has spent 300,000 plus for an eir for a mountain bike Trail.
first of all, I'm going to say some things that are controversial, But they're not controversial because they are actually demographics. Mountain bikers are
not a marginalized minority group. The demographics on mountain bikers are as follows.
92% white. 75% male. 25% female. Average
income. Middle to upper income. Average age. White men in their 40s.
that's who we're talking about here. And they like to go downhill fast.
whenever you hear that this is a flow trail, You gotta understand all you have to do is watch a video of mountain bikers.
and the entire point is to go downhill fast. That's it.
so here's what we're talking. One side of this argument wants to protect and restore a Natural area and keep it wild.
the other side wants to go downhill fast. One side wants to model conservation of public Lands for the next generation.
the other side wants to teach children how to go downhill fast.
one side wants east bay regional park district do everything they can for fire mitigation,
for animals to keep them and people from dying or getting burned out of their homes.
the other side wants to spend resources on building a 1.4 mile track and a fence that Blocks it off,
so they can go downhill fast. That's the that's the entire equation.
I know it's controversial. I know that people like to have the recreation.
this is not a recreation place. This is a place to keep a natural area close to our Cities.
so what's really for the kids? Whatever they bike. Lobby says it's for the kids. What's really for the kids is protecting this land for their Kids and their kids and their kids.
stop this waste of money and go back to what you should be doing, Which is maintenance and fire mitigation.
I really appreciate all you do.
so we're going to begin to go to the zoom room and ask people to speak who have their Hands raised.
joel shrock. Hello? Can you hear me? Yes, we can hear you.
you have three minutes. Thanks so much. Hello, Ladies and gentlemen of the board. I'm joel shrock from the facility for bambi. Our group of [inaudible] mountain bikers has 16,000 members,
and over 5 in 1 seat belt in profit. I'm here to request your continued support for the Wildcat flow trail.
understand the environmental impact reviews and process. That's really the next step. But I'm chiming in here to continue to advocate for the trail And how it will benefit our community,
especially the local kids. Mountain bike teams that originally championed the project by Circulating their petition.
the wildcat flow trail would be so great for our kids in the greater berkeley area. Our Son is 11 and just now of age so that he can join the wildcat team.
he and I typically ride and volunteer, at briones
the trip to briones it takes an hour to get there from berkeley. So we're looking at 50 miles round trip and An hour and a half of driving just to ride our bikes on a bike trail.
and as you're likely aware, the trails at briones
the flow trail with beginner friendly design and local proximity will be a boon for the Kids in our community,
with many of them being able to ride to the trail themselves before the parents are able To get home and drive them to a suitable trail.
as you're aware, families are busy and adding additional hour and a half for driving and 50 miles round trip isn't ideal.
having a trail like this locally will really help get our kids out into nature, Being physically active and on a more consistent basis,
which is so important for their physical and mental health. The park district team has done a great. Park district trail team has done a great job Selecting low impact site for the trail that's away from wetlands,
native plants, sensitive species, and also away from park entrances as to avoid congestion At any one particular entrance.
the placement is also central to the park, where the lowest amount of foot traffic is Likely to travel.
the trail proposal is well thought out, well placed and would be such a tremendous asset For our community.
I'm asking, would you please give your full support for this important project. Thank you.
emmy, you have three minutes. Emmy. Okay
good afternoon. My name is emmy. I'm ten years old and I live in east richmond heights.
I love riding mountain bikes and just any bikes in general. I love biking because nature is so beautiful and it's just really fun.
but I have to drive very far to ride on fun and nice trails. That's why I think the wildcat flow trail should happen, Because driving far is hard because my parents work.
so having a nice trail in practically my backyard, I think it would be great.
the trails that we do ride are fire roads and they're pretty boring for a biker. I love riding trails because they are fun, and just having one right there five minutes Away would mean I could practice my skills and just have fun without having to drive far.
thank you for listening and thank you for providing us with the other great trails. Thank You,
emmy. Jane kelly. You have three minutes.
jane kelly. Can you hear me?
there's a lot of
I live in berkeley, and I'm a long term volunteer for the district. I'm a member of a coalition opposing the wildcat bike trail project is currently planned In wildcat canyon park.
I want to be clear about who I am, because I don't think this project should be framed as Bikers versus everyone else.
I'm a former cyclist who has regularly ridden trails throughout the entire bay area.
do I support biking? Yes I do. Most enthusiastically.
this is not a statement against mountain biking. It's about where this specific 1.4 mile engineered flow trail with jumps, Rollers and berms is to be sited.
wildcat canyon has been treated by this district as a natural area since 1985, Meant to preserve its natural features for wildlife habitat and scenic value.
I understand the district's position that bicycling is a permitted use under that Designation,
but permitted is not the same as appropriate at this scale and in this location.
the park district's own biological assessment identifies potential impacts to bumblebees California red legged frog,
alameda whipsnake and nesting birds within the project footprint.
our nation's parks and open spaces are already suffering from serious erosion of the very Thing that makes them irreplaceable,
their natural majesty. I don't believe the impact to this canyon's plants and animals that Call the canyon home have been given the weight they deserve in this process.
I'd like you to consider what is happening to public lands across this country every day.
environmental protections are being systematically stripped in the name of access.
landscapes that have lived undisturbed for centuries are being carved up for the sake of a Better user experience.
our wild lands have been leased, habitats erased, And one eir study at a time.
public lands are losing the ecosystem that makes them special. And just like your assessments for the flow trail.
every single one of those decisions was defended as reasonable and modest.
the pattern of undermining our public lands does not begin with a bulldozer.
it begins with a plan document, a study, and a room full of people like this one insisting This plan will be okay.
well, I'm here to say that your plan is not okay. I'm also troubled by this project's funding. A private donor offered a seven figure pledge Tied to this specific project as early as 2021.
you claim that the large donation did not drive site selection, But the appearance problem remains,
and it matters. This park belongs to the people of the east bay as a whole, Not to any single donor and not to one set of
users among many. However well organized or well funded, I will close with this.
this flow trail needs to be in a more appropriate location, One that is well suited to exactly this kind of amusement style
course. A location where this flow trail will do the least harm and the most good for all Humans,
plants and wildlife. Thank you. Thank you. Leslie goldstein, You
have three minutes. Good afternoon. My name is leslie goldstein, And I have two separate comments regarding the wildcat canyon bike facility proposal.
because it was echoing
and I am keeping tallies on one recent two-hour window on the wildcat creek trail.
we spoke with 52 people, hikers, joggers and families in the park on a normal day.
48 of those 52 had never heard of this project.
90% of the people we spoke with, once they learned what is proposed told us they were Against it.
they said they value this park as it is. I want to tell you what that looked like because A number doesn't carry it.
some people were stricken. I could see it in their faces and in how they stood.
the same thing I felt when I first learned about this project.
one woman got very quiet. Then she managed one sentence, She said.
that just makes me so sad. And she was clearly upset.
there are. The people this. These are the people this park belongs to. They are in it. They use it every week and they are learning about a 1.4 mile mountain Bike facility in their canyon from a stranger on a trail.
four years into a process, months before a decision, We will be back in the park and knocking on doors each week,
continuing to inform the neighbors who live beside this canyon and use it regularly.
second and separately, a point about the environmental checklist.
section 3.11 is the land use and planning analysis section of the environmental checklist.
it concludes the project's land use impact is, Quote, less than significant, unquote.
it reaches that conclusion by analyzing the city of richmond general plan and the city of Richmond zoning designation.
it never cites the 1985 wildcat canyon regional park land use plan.
not once. The district's own governing plan for this specific park does not appear in the District's own land use
analysis of this specific project. That plan says this area will be free from intensive Recreation activities
and devoid of any development except trails for hiking, Equestrian and service use.
a reviewer reading section 3.11 would not know that document exists.
I asked that the eir's land use analysis cite the plan that actually governs this park and Analyze the conflict.
thank you very much for your time and your service. It's very much appreciated.
liz chang, you have three minutes. Hello? Can you hear me?
yes we can. Hi. My name is liz chang. I'm not white, Not a man.
[laughter] I believe that that actually the demographic of mountain baker is changing.
I live in east richmond heights for the past 12 years with my husband. We raised our three kids, 7, 9 and 13 here. Two girls, By the way.
we all mountain bike. I believe it is one of the greatest sports. It challenge ourselves physically and mentally.
I strongly support building the trail. Well, As a parent, I couldn't be happier to see my kids ride directly from our house to wildcat
canyon for a quick, challenging, and fun ride every day.
we ride in wildcat canyon often, but sharing the trails with hikers is not ideal for Obvious safety reasons.
I want everyone to be able to ride, hike and enjoy the park safely.
living here, I do deeply care and appreciate the surrounding nature.
I would not support this project if I know it would cause serious harm to wildlife.
I trust that east bay regional park district have completed a detailed biological Assignment,
and it showed that the impact on wildlife would be less than significant.
we're really talking about a single 1.4 mile flow trail in a 2007 acres of land.
I imagine if this is going to relocate in a different area, The resident there would argue the same thing.
it's just not the right location. Let's be reasonable and allow differences and allow Everyone to have fun and enjoy the park together in different ways.
thank you so much for your time. Thank you.
noah dowdell. Can you hear me? I can hear you.
hi. Three minutes
I live in east richmond heights, and I think the wildcat flow trail should be built.
I split my time between my dad's house here and my mom's house in san luis obispo, Where I ride with the san luis obispo composite nagdca team.
when I'm in slo, it's easy to practice and keep up with my team, But here we have to drive very far to find fun trails that are
good for learning skills, and having a flow trail would be great because flow trails are Not hard or fast,
but help with skills like turns and balance that is hard to work on a fire road with Hikers.
I think this trail would be great for mountain bikers and it would not make the place Worse for others.
thank you to the board for keeping wildcat safe and enjoyable for everyone.
thank you. Thomas kelly. Thank you.
good afternoon, board members. My name is tom kelly. I'm a resident of berkeley. I wish to express my concern about the proposed flow trail That is being considered for wildcat canyon park.
I oppose it for a variety of reasons. However, Today I would like to address just one.
the district's liability for any injuries or deaths that may occur to flow trail Participants or other park users.
my wife, jane and I have been district volunteers for almost 25 years.
when we began improving the habitat at point isabel in hoffman march.
hoffman marsh. Park supervisor kevin takei explained that we and all volunteers had to Sign a waiver of liability for
working on district lands. And we did so not just for ourselves, But we made sure that every volunteer,
including the parents of children under 18, also did so.
our revegetation project was pretty benign. We removed weeds and planted natives.
in all those years, we never experienced anything more than a few strained muscles.
that result is very unlikely to be the outcome of the proposed flow trail.
bikes moving at very high speeds. Users with varying skills.
the need for the district and not the users, Nor their organizations to maintain the safety of the trail on a regular basis.
a wildcat canyon flow trail opens up the district to significant liability.
you can look to the mount hood skibowl trail closure and lawsuit to see that simply Signing a liability release form does not protect the
property owner from legal responsibility for injuries, And liability waivers for children are even more closely considered by the courts
in lawsuits. Liability waivers are often found to be unenforceable, And the insurance costs for such risky activities
are increasing significantly. The point is that the district will expose itself to Liability issues if it builds the wildcat canyon
flow trail and someone is injured, a cost that would affect all park users, Not just a few hundred cyclists and their supporters.
the flow trail supporters will not pay the liability awards.
all park users will. For this reason, and for all the other credible reasons that have Been described by others for not building a flow trail in
wildcat canyon. I ask that you not approve this proposal.
let's keep wildcat canyon wild. Thank you. Thank you.
owen fowler, you have three minutes. Owen. Hello.
all right I'm 16 years old. I go to el cerrito high school and ride for the el cerrito high school Mountain bike team.
we practice in wildcat and tilden roughly 2 to 3 times a week during the season where we Bike up from el cerrito directly to the trails.
here I want to talk about the factuality of a lecture about the proposed flow trail that Was given at a california native plant society meeting I went to.
that was given by john taylor, a professor at cal and a major advocate against the flow Trail.
for one, he said that havey canyon would be negatively impacted by the flow trail because Riders would go up the havey canyon trail to repeat laps of the flow trail,
but that is very unlikely, since going up, havey requires going over twice as far and Includes a lot more climbing.
also, havey canyon is very rocky, which makes for difficult climbing that isn't appealing To mountain bikers trying to go back to the top of the trail.
to listen to the rest of it
but that isn't true because there is a bathroom just two miles away in alvarado park, Which would take most riders less than 15 minutes to get to.
furthermore, he said that people would hold bike races there, Even though the park district said that there wouldn't be any races there,
and there isn't nearly enough space for a race venue there anyway. Before I finish, I want to clarify that the flow trail is not a bike park.
it is meant to teach balance and bike controlling skills, Not jumping and going as fast as you can.
thank you for your time and thank you for helping make the parks great for everyone. Thank You.
emma young
you have three minutes. Good afternoon. I'm emily young. I'm 12 years old, and I'm going into seventh grade at korematsu in el cerrito.
and I am part of the wildcat composite mountain biking team.
I really enjoy mountain biking to get a chance to make new friends, Exercise, and be in nature all at once without being on screens.
being with the wildcats has been a really positive addition to my life.
I ride with the wildcats at least two days a week, Wednesday and sunday, every wednesday and thursday.
the team rides in tilden the same few trails or so of single track.
they take a short time to ride and they also become boring after riding them over and Over.
building the wildcat flow trail would be great for more options to ride on a daily basis, And would be funnier and safer than sharing a trail with other hikers.
thank you for listening and thank you for all the time you take making our park such great Places to ride.
thank you. Taylor mollen
and I'm an incoming freshman at berkeley high school. Also a girl. For the past four years, I've been a member of the wildcat composite mountain Bike team,
and I plan to continue riding on the berkeley high mountain bike team throughout high School.
to me, mountain biking is much more than going as fast as I can down a hill.
it is a way to connect with nature, stay active, Challenge myself, and build lasting friendships with other riders.
when I look back on the past four years, some of my favorite memories have been on my bike From long climbs up colin to riding down south park singletrack with my teammates.
as someone who rides nearly every day, I know firsthand that the current single track Options in tilden regional park are very limited.
there are only about two miles of single track, And those trails are often too muddy to ride,
even when conditions are good. They only take a few minutes to complete, And after doing them a million times,
they get quite boring. The wildcat flow trail would give riders of all ages and skill Levels a fun place to ride without having to drive long distances to
places like santa cruz. It would provide local youth cycling teams, Families, and recreational riders with a trail they can enjoy close to home and get a full
use of tilden park. I hope you will support the wildcat flow trail project.
it would create more opportunities for young riders like me to stay active, Spend time outdoors and continue building a strong mountain biking community here in the
east bay. Thank you for listening, for making the park such a wonderful place to ride.
thank you. Thank you taylor
all right. Thank you, everyone for providing. Who provided public comment. We are now going to move on to agenda item e our general Manager's comments.
yeah. So the slide show is part of this so. Here we go. So
starting out I just wanted to welcome we have two new assistant general managers here Today.
jonah nicholas spector and chris wycoff.
jonah is our new cfo coming in right as we're developing our budget to bring to your Board.
and he's jumped right in and he's doing a great job. And then chris wycoff leading our facilities infrastructure team came from being our Division lead for mast.
and right also right into sort of the work around developing our capital prioritization.
and so I'm just really excited. I really appreciate both.
next slide. I just wanted to remember and honor jerry kent who passed away recently.
will be working with your board and his family to consider ways to honor.
the 4th of july is one of the busiest days in our parks, And I just want to appreciate our whole team.
director sanwong joined myself, chief [inaudible] and agm goorjian to go out and visit Some of our parks.
one team that I really want to call out is our sewer maintenance team, Our sanitation team.
the that day was really busy and both at shadow cliffs and del valle.
our system reached their capacity. Our team came out on, Got called from their family fun times,
and came to the park and were able to fix everything so that we didn't have.
and what would be a really bad overflow of our system. So appreciation to that team. So we are
celebrated for [laughter] appreciation to director españa who joined our team in the Parade.
the parade in the world or something in alameda. Yes. Yeah. We were pollinators. That was the theme this year.
so yeah, thank you. So awesome. And also celebrated with the bean bag toss and burlap sack Race at ardenwood.
I think director waespi was there. So appreciate you for supporting.
I just wanted to give a shout out to jose gonzalez and the office of equity.
jose does a lot of work internal facing with the district, But he's also really connected with the state and the region and the country as a leader
in this area. And so this was just work he's doing in connection with scripps institution Of oceanography with graduate students and just being a champion for
inclusive conservation. This is at crown beach.
so one thing that we get every single year is vessels that wash up on our shoreline.
and unfortunately, there's no one else there to fix it for us.
so that's something that our team jumps into action to help dispose of those vessels Safely.
so thank you to our operations team, public safety, Risk management helps work on that.
we also have busy day at
also just want to mention at port chicago there's a commemoration on the 18th and two of Our team members were honored.
kevin damstra who's one of our managers and our interpretation recreation unit, Who's been a champion for this work for many,
many years. And then of course, yulie have more on the next slide here.
it's also been honored through her work with the nonprofit there.
and really appreciate yulie for her championing of this work as well.
and directors coffey and mercurio and also echols I think were all there.
so thank you for supporting that. We also had some really cool interpretive events.
this was with a uc berkeley professor on creating music with the sounds of nature with Students.
I, I just wanted to highlight this. Our we've been working with as sort of a new strategic Planning effort on communications overall.
but even before finishing that, our team is really engaged more around social media.
I don't know if maybe you're seeing it, but we're looking at the metrics with our social Media and our engagement has increased 128%
on instagram because of some of that work. And you can see our followers have increased as Well and just want to highlight,
of course, stories about wildlife are one of the top areas of engagement.
this was a story about some killdeer that nested in the swimming area at cull canyon and Caused us to have to
start opening the, the swimming area later. There's some new signage at tidewater about Our project there.
we've been having community resource fairs. This is just a picture of one. Thank you to director mercurio. Is that one. Director españa.
and I think director waespi as well. We're at one last weekend. Thank you very much for that. Those have been really cool events with other community Organizations.
we've had a couple really great site visits with civicorp and some of our legislative Local legislators.
this, this one, I think director waespi and director sanwong joined us a really great Opportunity to highlight this partnership.
and then lastly, I just wanted to appreciate our public safety team. This was the little fire that was next to shadow cliffs.
fortunately, it did not impact the park, but our helicopter did over 100 water drops on This fire.
and thankfully it was contained before it impacted the park or the rest of the community.
and that's all I have. Yeah. And I just want to thank you so much.
I want to echo a appreciation for our public safety teams at the little fire specifically,
I live one evacuation zone away from where this fire spread.
and if that next evacuation zone area had been called, That's very densely populated area as well as a downtown district.
and I didn't imagine that I would be one evacuation zone away.
and, you know, if we had had more wind or if there'd been more fires in the area and not As much mutual aid,
it could have been a different story, but it wasn't. So really, Thank you. Over a thousand acres, I believe, is attributed to the little fire. And so just
really thank you to our public safety for providing mutual aid and, And being there and also to staff for seeing that we need to close shadow cliffs so that
everyone could be in a safe place during the fire.
so real quick. Sure. I just want to also say thank you because I understand we were also involved at the Fire that started at walking miller
and that's so close. It was eucalyptus trees and so close to our fabulous redwood and all Our favorite parks on the ridgeline.
and my understanding is we were involved in that as well. Yeah. And I there's been actually, I think, more than a dozen fires in our, In the district over the last month or so.
thankfully, our team has been and with all of our mutual aid partners has responded very Quickly.
I know there's been fires, martinez, vargas,
and we're very thankful to the public safety team, Our operations team, and of course, our partners,
announcements. And I do have one announcement to make. Our next board meeting will be at a Different location.
it will be at camp arroyo near livermore, near the lake del valle dam.
and I believe that that agenda will be posted at the end of this week. And I look forward to having our next board meeting in a different location.
I know back in june, we were at big break, and one of our goals for this year, 2026, was to try to have a board meeting at another location.
so this will be our experiment with this option. Okay. So now we'll move on to the consent calendar item g.
and I know we have a couple of things here on the consent calendar. So the first one I Want to mention is that consent calendar item g.13 is going to be completely
full. We will not be reviewing consent calendar item g.13.
the authorization to enter into a contract with l3harris. So that will be removed completely from the consent calendar.
for consent calendar item g.7. I will be recusing myself, So we will have that pulled from the consent calendar vote,
and that will be reviewed as a separate vote. And vice president coffey will lead that agenda item g.7.
that's all that I have. Do any other board members have any items that you wish to pull From the consent calendar?
certainly, we can still ask questions and provide comments on any of the items that will Be included in the consent calendar, but if there aren't any items to be pulled,
we'll then move on with questions and comments and public comments on the consent.
okay, that sounds about right. Okay, so now we'll move on to.
so this is going to be consent calendar items g 1 through 6, 8 through 12 and 14 through 20.
we are now looking for questions and comments from the board. Then we will have public comment from the public and come back to the board
we. Do any board members have any questions to ask on any of the consent calendar items That I just made?
all right. I will ask one question. So for item 14, The ventek item for
the automated machines at del valle. My question, Which I know the answer to. But this is a good time to ask. The question is about presenting this item and having it Something that we can be informed on.
my question is, when will we see that presentation? And I know the answer, but this is a good time to answer that question.
yeah. So we're planning on presenting on it at the next meeting.
so on the 18th and it will be part of the general manager's comments because we're already Too late in the game to add another board letter,
but lisa goorjian will be available to present. And then I think a number of our operations staff will be there as well.
what's great about that is camp arroyo is located on the del valle
and so I think this is an appropriate venue for us to have the presentation and to see What's going to happen.
so thank you. Yes
the question is I don't know, mike. Maybe. Chris, But two.
and by the way, this is a real advancement. I've been advocating for improvements in Getting rid of the the chemical pollutants out there.
and we still need to address bear creek staging area camp toilets.
that's been on the list for years, but in this regard is for two vault.
I understand their kits. They're not pre-assembled that $238,000.
I just that that struck me as a lot of money to vault toilets.
yes. I'd be happy to answer the question. My name is
so in terms of the vault restrooms, it's actually going to be five water closets total for The vault restrooms.
so it's essentially a 1 to 1 swap for the existing chemical toilets.
five chemical toilets out there right now. So we just went 1 to 1 in terms of the total
so it's not just two units? That is correct. There's one, Two, three.
there's going to be five individual vaults under restrooms.
say two restrooms because it's going to be one unit, Another
that feels better. Okay. Any other questions?
thank you. Thank you. Any other questions from the board on the consent calendar?
all right. Before I move into public comment, We did receive public comment prior to the board meeting within the deadline from
yesterday that I do want to mention. We received three comments in regards to the agenda Item g.14 about the ventek at del
valle. And I want to just share real quick. We did receive a public comment on behalf of Bike east bay and the advocacy director,
robert prince, who supports this item, and that this is really important to enable safe Bike access to del valle park.
we also received another comment from steven dunbar who did provide comment in his Personal capacity.
however, yes, he is a member of the livermore city council and he also supports the Electronic kiosk.
that's better for bicyclists who do like to ride in and out of del valle park.
and then the final comment is from todd nelson, Who echoed a similar message about how the electronic kiosks are a good solution for those
who like to ride their bicycles in and out of del valle park. So with that, I'd like to open up public comment and see if we have any other members of The public who wish to provide public comment on these consent calendar agenda items.
again, it's 1 through 6, [laughter] 8 through 12 and 15 through 20.
bruce baird, item g.3. Members of
the board.
to complete funding for the plant
district staff hustling to facilitate
around. To the harbor. Another key element for extending the bay trail.
shoreline park also has a property covered by this agreement.
that is, partial parcels of land between
so I hope that the district staff engaging the chairman and also get their agreement Access that additional land
harbor and of course, the city of richmond,
through there. So that's another negotiation for district staff to complete the 2021
the last three and a half year extension. Is prepared to support the district staff and Anybody to be helpful to access to
land. Extending the trail
thank you
okay, so then we'll bring it back to the board for comments. I'll start because I know this is such an important day.
you know, for, for the members of our community who live in eastern alameda county. I know that the, that problem solving and trying to come up with a solution for the del Valle kiosk has been a top priority for those who live in the eastern alameda county
portion of our park district. And I'm really thrilled to see that we are, You know, moving forward with some planning to address the situation.
and I really appreciate our general manager max korten, As well as our agm lisa goorjian,
as well as our police chief filice, for helping to also coordinate our july 4th ride along To del valle,
as well as shadow cliffs to see that volume of activity, And we know what we're really planning for are on those peak days where we do have
situations where I guess we reach capacity of our, You know, sewer systems [laughter] because it is in such demand to spend a day like the
4th of july holiday, you know, in the water or near the water and at lake del valle Specifically,
I think it did. You know, we had to cut off access at one point because there was, We had reached capacity in terms of park users.
I know that I had requested, just for the record, On september 16th, 2025, for us to add the del valle kiosk to a future agenda item.
and when that didn't happen, we weren't really able to address the situation for the 2026 Summer season.
I'm really hopeful that our action today will put us on track for memorial day 2027.
I know that's an ambitious goal and there's no promise in that goal, But I think looking at this today in august might help give us a chance to reach that
goal, and certainly we will make sure to communicate as we work towards that goal.
that's my comment on the consent calendar. I think director coffey you had some comments?
enormous amount of material and background in history on the san pablo peninsula.
and I would echo bruce's hope that staff is exploring the rest of the peninsula, Both in terms of bay trail and
in terms of eventually a thousand acre regional park out there.
and I know we're all stretched and we're just getting through with the point of melody Segment
but I think it's important for our vision to keep in mind that there are these other Players the railroad,
the city and chevron that we can engage. Thank you, Bruce.
yes, I can echo that too. On the item three, Having gone out there and having seen the opportunity to expand and take back such an
industrial area. We were talking about how we can really start planning for the future.
quite frankly, I think that's an area where there's a lot of industry and eucalyptus Trees.
I think that would be a great place for a flow trail. By the way my other comment [laughter] is I do think that I want to say, Just say thank you for item 16.
sometimes those things go in consent. I pull them before, But we're applying for grants again.
I think our staff does such a great job of doing that. Asking for another million. It's a small jump towards, I think, $20 million.
I was trying to find it in my notes is the ultimate goal out there. But having just done and maybe I'll mention it under my report out I just went through the [inaudible] training out there and opportunity to see how critical that
is for that endangered species. And I just want to say thank you. We throw them on consent, but I know staff gets enough kudos.
we just do such a great job at raising money. So thank you. Okay. If there aren't any other comments, I'll be looking for a motion to approve the consent
calendar. So moved. Okay. Director mercurio's made a motion.
a second? Second. Okay. All in favor, please say aye.
aye. Any opposed? Any abstentions? It's unanimous.
6-0. And so then I am now recusing myself. And we now have agenda item g.11.
and I will pass
director sanwong, can you just for the record, Explain why you're recusing yourself?
conflict of interest. Yeah. For what in particular?
yeah. The mention of some of the vendors on agenda item g.7, Specifically microsoft.
thank you. On
item 7. Authorization to amend the contract with shi inc by $475,000.
is there any questions or comments? I'll make a comment.
I mean, I, I was confused by some of these, but I think jonah staff did a great job of Explaining to me what all of these were more about building capacity to allow us to do
more. And I already approved, we just approved the other ones.
was it 8, 9, 10, 11? So I just think staff's done a good job of trying to help understand How we can do a better job and increase our ability to
get purchases, share purchases. So I just want to thank jonah specifically for helping me Out explaining this offline before the meeting.
no other questions. Any public comment on item 7?
no public comment. Okay. There's no public comment or other questions or comments by the Board.
we need a motion to approve the resolution as presented on page 41 of our packet.
so move it's been seconded. All those in favor say aye.
aye. Any opposed? Abstentions. Do we need to do a roll call vote for this?
no, there's no one on the line. Okay. Right. Someone asked olivia back.
then we'll be moving to item I action items. So we are on action items.
okay, wonderful. Thank you. Alright, so now we will have for this action item for
thank you. Good afternoon,
and I could not be more excited to be here today to present this item, The appointment of our next general manager and the approval of this contract.
if you have any questions, I would be happy to answer them at this time. Okay, so now is the time for questions and clarifications from members of the board. Do You have any questions or clarifications on this agenda item?
members of the board. Seeing. Yes. I just want to acknowledge the tremendous amount of Work
by jessica and the legal. Okay, so now we will then open up public comment.
do we have any members of the public who wish to make comment on this item? Scott
sanwong. Directors. Soon to be general manager korten.
we are excited, supportive and thankful to see the appointment of max korten as general Manager of the east bay regional park district on today's agenda.
we appreciate the search process the board and district undertook and fully support the Selection of max korten as a general manager since joining the district,
his performance, demeanor and ability to bring staff, Directors and stakeholders together and work through issues has been impressive.
his past experiences and progression from trail crews up through general manager
he understands parts and has shown that he can do well with and for the district.
he understands how to manage the dual mandate of recreation and conservation.
we look forward to a district led into the next 100 years with soon to be general manager Max
korten. Thank you.
do you have any other public comment? No other public comment. Okay, So going back to the board and before we bring it back to the board today, we are asked to
take final action on the appointment of max korten as general manager of east bay regional Park district.
in compliance with the brown act, we are providing this oral report. Mr. Korten base salary will be $388,731.24 per year.
additionally, he will receive a transportation allowance of $4,200 per year, Or $161.50 per pay period,
in lieu of being provided a district vehicle. Mr. Korten will be covered by the district's calpers plan as a new member under pepra, And he will remain eligible for the miscellaneous 2.0% at
62 retirement formula. He'll make the same employee retirement contributions required of Other new members.
new member pardon me. Of other new member management employees and will receive the same Medical,
dental, basic life insurance, accidental death and disability insurance, And long-term disability insurance benefits provided to all management and confidential
employees of the district. So now we have the opportunity, If any board members would like to make comments.
and then also we are going to be looking for a motion of approval. Yes. Go ahead. Director
and frankly scott had an excellent summary of all the great things we have to
appreciate about max and to look forward to. Max is a very positive individual his forward Thinking
he's interested in moving the district forward and into more success.
he has a proven record in the, in the area of parks and open space and trails.
and I just want to in summary, sort of say this seems to me to be a very natural Progression.
I mean, this is you know, it's just kind of like you've been leading toward this job, I think.
and, you know, you had a chance to you, we had a chance to get to know you for over a year Before this and to
make us comfortable in turning the responsibility of an awesome job.
and I don't mean that awesome in terms of like, Really great, I mean, awesome. And like, it's how do you do it. You know, it's, It's an incredible responsibility, but I'm completely confident that we're going to see a
lot of success here because of the work and the leadership that you will, You will be implementing here.
let's say congratulations, max. I think this is a great honor for you, A great honor for the district. I think it's a perfect match. It's been about five years,
and I look forward to great things in the park district. So congratulations. I'd just like to say congratulations.
so great that your family could be here today to celebrate this moment.
and what I as far as really look forward is to, Is your ability to build relationships internally within
the park and then externally definitely have enjoyed how you've taken the ability at our Different
conferences to really sit down and meet people, Listen to the issues and really start to work
on how can we move forward. We might not always agree or have the same perspective of what A park should be,
but if we can continue to bring people forward we can come up with something that's good.
so look forward just as far as to seeing the successful in this position and then also
just as far as with the new team that's being built. And I look forward to all of your success too.
because we know that good things will continue to come.
so. I don't know why you want a job with seven bosses and
01,100 employees, but thank god you do. [laughter].
we love this part. And we're so lucky to have you and that team that you're building.
and I think above, even with all that, the energy and your optimism and your willingness To listen and deal with all of us,
I've seen changes in a short period of time. Little things that are to me very big things Like bringing the word environment back into all of our staff reports,
our policy decision, really being a voice for nature, And I know how touched you are to the environment and that you bring that to us.
and I'm looking forward to moving ahead with you. Congratulations. I'm just going to add to the list.
[laughter] the thing that I really, really appreciated during your tenure has been your Approach to working
with labor. We have seen in a matter of actually it was a matter of weeks vast improvement In our relationship
with our labor union. And it's continued. There's always going to be conflict, But your approach of being progressive and open
on labor issues is very well and has led to great improvement.
thank you. Yes. Well, then I'll just thank you.
I really appreciate how you stepped up as our acting general manager.
really helped resolve some of the conflicts. You know, Today we just approved the purchase of ten ventek machines for del valle to help address
the del valle kiosk issue, which is something that I brought up my first year here on the Board back in 2023.
and it took until this year, 2026 for us to even, You know, make a decision in regards to it.
so I think that that's incredible. You know, I also know that last fall, as we were looking at the 2026 budget,
you know, another big issue two years in a row, Staging was removed from our capital projects list,
the staging area, pleasanton ridge. And you really helped step in and make sure that that Wasn't removed a second year in a row from the budget.
and I really appreciate how you've been able to step in and resolve some of these issues.
and we still have a lot of work to do. I know we're going to be anticipating the 2027 Budget,
and I look forward to that. And with that, I'll make the motion to approve this contract [laughter].
so we can move forward. And I also share before I look for a second that we will take a Break after this vote.
and we do have some treats to celebrate. So I made the motion. Do we have a second? Second. I think I'm going to offer this to you as a vice president.
our vice president coffey seconded. All in favor, Please say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Any abstentions? That's unanimous.
thank you everyone. Congratulations. [applause].
until 15:15. We get some pictures, so we make sure that max and his family gets a picture Together.
and then with the board. And then can we get a picture. Ready? Can you see that? Yeah, it wasn't quite
I call us back to order now 15:17. And what I'd like to do before we move on to the next Item is if max has a few words,
if you'd like to share. Oh, gosh. I'd just say thank you.
this is a real dream job, and I appreciate your trust and advice and guidance.
and I just appreciate this team. It's I couldn't imagine a more supportive, Friendly, welcoming,
fun, creative, talented group of people and just makes work every day joyful.
and yeah, appreciation to the folks who came before us at the district who you know, Developed this amazing
organization and so appreciative of that and to the community that we serve.
so thank you. All right.
thank you. Okay. So we are now, after all the festivities. Moving on to action item I.2. Our authorization to award and execute a construction Contract in the amount of $1,418,000
with westrock engineering. Good afternoon,
members of the board. President sanwong. My name is clay simmons. I'm the design unit manager, and I'm here today to introduce shun yu, Who has been a civil engineer with the district for close to 15
years and a registered professional engineer for over 20.
she'll be discussing a requested board action pertaining to the mckay avenue utilities Project at crown beach in alameda,
which, as you may know, is the most attended park in the district.
not only is shun acting as the project manager for this project, She also is acting as the engineer of record,
meaning the design work for this project was done in-house.
so we're very proud of the work that shun has done, And I'll now turn the time over to her.
I'm here to present on the runaway mckay avenue project.
I have been working on this project since 2019, So I'm thrilled to be presenting to you today the action to award a construction contract.
we recommended to award and execute a construction contract in the amount of $1,418,000 With westrock
engineering and authorize a construction contingency in the amount of $212,700 for Renovate mckay
avenue.
the project site is in crab crove at crown beach in alameda.
protocol
park residence. Glory of the seas building. Public restrooms.
undeveloped park expansion area. Neighbors on mckay avenue include the following.
apartment building. Shopping center. Alameda point collaborative developments.
I would like to make a small correction to this. Is that a few years ago it should be about a decade ago.
parcels along mckay avenue from the federal government.
the utility of this parcels
federal government campus. The sanitary sewer system
consists largely of brick manholes and clay pipe.
pipes clog frequency, and the system has a large amount of stormwater infiltration.
sewers from apc and properties drains to a lift station at the east end of mckay avenue.
from where to pump it into municipal sanitary sewer system.
the station is owned and operated by apc. Domestic
water system of apc and
east bay regional park district properties are served by a single water service, Fire hydrant on mckay avenue and a fire
hydrant with the east bay regional park district and apc parcels and the fire service to The apc building are all connected to a
single fire service. District and apc were working together with the east bay east
the water main has been extended to mckay avenue, And we are currently awaiting the installation of a new of the new water meters.
the right hand side of the slide illustrates the water main extension planned along with The current
on this slide you can see the schematic diagram of the project.
the project scope includes the following. Remove and abandon existing sewer manholes and Piping.
and install new sewer manholes and piping. Installing new sewer station and force main and Connect to the city of
alameda sewer system on central avenue. Renovate visitor center crawl space sewerage Piping and connected to
the new lift station. Coordinate installation of
this new facility will support the park expansion area and planned development.
this also includes
have the same total of four water closets. I want to make a note that this project does Not include
street repair other than patching utility trenches.
future project is needed to repair and improve mckay avenue.
the project was advertised for it on may 2nd 21st of this year.
bids were openned on june 25th. We received this seven responsive bids, Ranging from $1.4 million
to $2.5 million. The lowest bid was submitted by westrock in the amount of
$1,418,000. The engineer's estimate is [inaudible] roughly in the middle of the
seven three. Profit was approximately 30% below the engineer's estimate.
the project budget is included in your packet and is also shown here on this slide.
this is the project account has sufficient funds to cover the construction contract.
following the action today. The district expects to execute the construction contract with Westrock engineering later this month.
we anticipate beginning construction in september, With the project expected to be completed in spring
2027. In fact, here is our recommendation. Authorization to award and execute a
construction contract in the amount of $1,418,000 with westrock engineering and authorize Construction
contingency in the amount of $212,700 for renovate mckay avenue at robert
w crown memorial state beach. Concludes my presentation.
thank you. Okay. So now give your questions and then we'll do public comment.
systems. Will. When we kind of build out our separate system, Is apc going to be building out
a separate system or are they going to continue to use like older existing facilities?
for the water, they will have a new water system, But I'm not sure about whether they will continue to use their existing
pump station or whatnot. So see, haven't received any notification that they are going to Renovate their pump station at this
point
two separate lift systems? Correct. One is us and one is for apc and currently the system And
all the all our sewerage ways. Will go to their pump station first.
okay. And then our pump. Pump station will help us to from our ways
to city of alameda sewer system. After this project, We will have our own pump station.
so with the separation of those two systems, Will there still be the be potential, like for sewage to kind of overflow or come out
through apc's system or will kind of that sewage issue be like fixed in general?
it should be fixed. And then like the street. So who owns the actual street? Because that street like is like in so the mckay avenue is A
state land. State land? So basically we have contract with state land.
we are
and so when that patching is done, once you replace the system, I mean we've all seen some of the patching downtown [laughter]
in oakland as it's been. What type of patching will actually kind of take place.
and even though we're not kind of there will still need to be repairs to the street in the Future.
will it be an improvement to.
yeah, there's a few reasons for that. And one of the reasons is to prevent scope creep.
yeah. And this is not just like a simple pavement project or pavement overlay project.
actually, in order to fix all the problem of the existing street and here there's a need To reconfiguration of the
street. A couple of problems. One is that the semicircle planter obstruct
proper water drainage. Okay. And then another one is that the, The sidewalk condition.
near the apc pump stations is in a very poor condition.
and another reason is that when you compare our new master plan with the current Configuration of mckay
island, there's a significant difference. Okay, So I believe we should have time to sit down and,
you know, to see what we want to do with this, Whether we want to rip it all out and doing what we show on the master plan or whatnot.
so I think we need more time in order to not delay this project.
we decided to just patch it at this time. Okay. Thank you for explaining because you had the on one of your slides, You mentioned that.
and thank you
information. Hey,
that's. Yeah. And then I just want to say, yeah, It's great to see the new bathrooms.
I know that's something that is there's been a lot of kind of vandalism and stuff to work
so excited to see the new bathroom. So thank you for thank you for answering the different Questions and providing more context.
any other board member questions before we go to public comment? Go ahead. Yeah. So in your the water system plan you had mentioned.
well, this is for fire hydrants and domestic water. Is there any provision for and I think director deschambault brought up on our site visit Any
things like that? Not at this point. Okay. Thank you.
and then can you can you tell me what's an engineer's estimate?
because, boy, that's wild. [laughter] an estimate?
or throwing a dart? And I don't mean that critically.
it's so wildly divergent or variance from what we're doing.
and so who's the engineer? Is it our engineers or are we hire engineer?
I believe my estimate is accurate because it's right in between.
after seven weeks we received it. The data that we use and
like last year's data and, and the data from our consultants and as a reference and also Like the
those value mean books, that kind of thing that will help us to come up with estimates.
so basically I would consider pretty accurate because it's right in the middle between $1.4 million to
$2.5 million and some. Some firm may be desperate to get a job.
thank you very much. I'm glad to see we do it in house.
go ahead. I want to build on that because you knew I was probably going to ask that Question because I asked on the site tour.
but can you build on that a little bit more? I think that the map you have, It looks like it's about a 300 foot distance.
so I don't think it's a matter of going with purple pipe if it's only over a few hundred Feet.
but is it still a problem that we can't get a connector? Like why can't we get the recycled gray water, I think at the site tour, someone was going to look into that,
that maybe there's just no source. Is that why we can't do it? Correct.
the reason that we're not pursuing purple pipe is because there is not a distribution System there.
any statement is not going to take it all the way down to mckay for quite some time.
and so we're facing the choice of installing purple pipe that would sit there and not be Used for quite some time,
and not knowing necessarily what those needs would be when the distribution line comes to That site.
so in that regard, we haven't we've pursued that based on the inquiry that we've had at This at the site tour and the distribution from east bay mud and the
availability of the water to fill those pipes is not there. So we're not pursuing. And it wouldn't make sense to, You know, put pipe that's empty if we don't even know it.
right. Not only if it's not there, but there's no promise that it'll ever be there. Correct. Yeah. Okay. I can say from my own personal experience as a landscape architect, I've had projects that installed purple pipe in 15 years ago,
and they're still no. I guess it's been 20 years. I've been here for 20 years, but [laughter] we have not.
it still hasn't been utilized so. I appreciate you raising it and looking.
I think the more we ask for that, it's just such a shame to treat water to drinking water Standards and then flush these new toilets and irrigate the land with.
anyway,
I do have a question. Is there any energy savings with this new system?
because it looks like I was reading it's gravity fed. Are we actually going to save some money out there?
and also thank you for the bathrooms because I know some of my ada disabled constituents Have complained about the bathrooms out
there with latches, latches. So thank you for that. And anything on energy savings? This project has nothing to do with electricity and.
and there's no energy saving. Okay. Yeah. I wasn't sure.
thank you for your work on this. Great. Any other questions from members of the board?
we will come back to board comments. If you have any additional questions, That's fine in a moment. But let's go ahead and open up for public comments. If we have
any members of the public who wish to make public comment, It looks like we don't open and close public comment.
bring it back to the board for any final comments or questions that might have just popped Up.
otherwise, I am looking for a motion of approval and the page number for that motion is 120 in our packets.
yes. Motion for approval. All right. Director españa has made the motion for approval. Do We have a second?
second. Second by director waespi. All in favor, Please say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Any abstentions? It's unanimous.
6-0. Thank you everyone. Okay, so we'll now move on to our next agenda item.
the measure ww that's what agenda item I.3 our measure ww project report 2008 to 2025
mic]. Good afternoon. My name is katy hornbeck, Grants manager in the
finance and management services division within the capital finance unit.
so today I'll be presenting on the measure ww progress report 2008-2025.
so here's a quick timeline of how we've come to this point.
so last fall, feedback was received from the board, From board of directors and the park advisory committee.
there was a need for a more user friendly report on measure ww progress.
so between then and the spring, the capital finance unit worked with
land acquisition, stewardship of government affairs to draft this report.
a draft was presented to the finance committee for feedback in may.
and then this. There were some updates, and then a report went to the finance committee in June.
later that same month, a report was updated to the full pack.
and here we are today, presenting to the board of directors for this to be accepted, In part to be compliant with senate bill 165,
special tax bond and accountability act, which basically is saying that the cfo will Present a board or,
excuse me, will present an annual report on how the money funding was allocated and spent.
brief background on the measure ww. As you know, 72% of the voters in alameda and contra costa county approved this in november of 2008.
it was for $500 million. This got divvied out 25% to the local grant program, And then 75% for district capital projects.
that 75% then was further divided to specifically acquisition and development.
and this was based on population in the west, South and diablo metropolitan planning areas.
this is a summary as of the beginning of january.
so for appropriated that means what has actually been put into a project budget allocated Is just what has been set
aside for that investment area, but maybe has not been appropriated for an acquisition or For a development project yet.
these pie charts indicate the breakout across the metro areas.
and this is all in the report as well, which I believe everyone got a hard copy of. And it's also available on park district website.
this is funding by ward. The, there are a few projects or investment areas that cover Multiple wards,
which is why we have those last two bars there on the table to show that.
and then for the local ww grant program, this is administered through my department, The grants department of the 125 that was available,
this was allocated out to 46 agencies. There were 240 approved projects.
and as of july or excuse me, june 1st, 230 had been completed.
so we're very, very close to having spent and completed all the projects within the local Ww.
these next couple of slides are just listing out all of the agencies the number of Approved projects,
how many have been completed, approved funding and disbursed. The purple highlighted ones are the agencies that have either still have a few projects to Complete.
or maybe they've been completed, but we're still not working through the close out to Issue them their final reimbursement and get them off book so.
a few highlights here. So in addition to the $214 million that's been appropriated, An additional $348.6 million has been leveraged through grants and
other funding sources. Commitments have been completed in four of the 67 investment areas.
over 230 projects have been completed. Work in remaining areas is ongoing and dependent on Future land acquisition opportunities,
and new projects will be added to the future report as they come online, And staff continues to review transfers between the investment areas or from acquisition
to development, and those come to the board and will be incorporated into the report as it Gets updated.
and as I mentioned earlier, this will be updated annually and posted on the district's Website.
this is the link here that the public can go to.
this is a screenshot from that, from that website. Okay. So the staff recommend that the board of directors accept the measure ww project Report covering 2008 to 2025.
yes. Great. So now we bring it to the board for questions and then we'll have public Comment after.
so do any board members have any questions on this agenda item? The measure ww progress report.
I don't see any questions. So what we'll do is we'll open up public comment and see if we Have members of the public who wish to make public comment. Amelia marshall.
good afternoon. My name is amelia marshall representing the regional parks association.
let me take this opportunity to thank the district and max for all that's being done to Honor the legacy of our beloved rpa president,
jerry kent. And let me remind everyone that jerry was a strong believer in the wisdom of Adhering to the master plan of
2013, and in using measure ww money for the purposes the voters intended.
we congratulate max on our wonderful new general manager on being selected, And we're glad the board took our advice and
hired him. He takes the reins at a time of heightened fiscal awareness in the aftermath of The spending practices of his
predecessor. We welcome today's report on the progress of many goals that have been Achieved with measure ww funds.
however, the public also deserves to know what voter approved funds were spent for Unintended purposes.
considering recent history, we call for a forensic audit of spending that was authorized By the former general manager,
sometimes without the board being made aware of where the money was coming from and where It was going.
for example, we have the sibley, huckleberry line item under a microscope.
there were $2 million of measure ww money that was specifically intended for the purchase Of open space adjacent to
sibley. That money appears to have been paid to consultants who designed an elaborate plan To rebuild the tilden eec a plan too
expensive to come to fruition and for the foreseeable future.
the district has the know how to reexamine where ww money went.
it was. Wasn't diverted for purposes other than what the voters intended.
is there a plan to pay it back? How and when? Thank you. Okay, so we'll bring it back to the board for any other comments.
otherwise we'll be looking for a motion to approve the resolution that you'll find on page 138.
I just want to say it was a very thorough report. It was easy to read. And I, I like this as far as how some of the charts charts were very Simple.
so you could easily kind of look at all of the different locations and see, You know, how all of the funds
used, how much was still left. So it kind of, You know, really let me go through easily and then see like,
oh, I want to see that here. And then I can go see, I found it a lot more intuitive.
and there was like the data part, also that visual part depending how you look at Information.
so I think that visual part helped me hone in on where I wanted to be
thank you. And I think we saw a lot of this in the budget process last
year. And so I'm really glad to start the conversation and have it now separated out.
but I do also feel the public comments that there may be some forensic accounting between Now,
it's already august and the budget so that we aren't making I don't think it's necessarily A question or comment,
but that we aren't making policy decisions and moving but money at the time we were trying To get a budget approved.
ideally, all seven of us would agree to it. So I think on slide 11, There is a mention that at some point there'd be a discussion about the
moving of money. And I think in the past we called it table f, Which showed all the dates where money had moved and the quantity and things.
and I would still like to see that maybe this is something for a future agenda item, Maybe not for you.
I'm looking to max, but I love this report. It's very clear and it has been all along the Whole idea of this going and all those 200 and something
projects done and going to local governments was brilliant. If that was jerry kent and others to design that memo to work that way and got it passed, So what?
72%. But then now the struggle we have, I think we do have the authority to move money Around.
I don't think that's been disputed. I know the rpa or simply might be like, Well, we didn't like where you moved it,
but I still don't have a good understanding of where we moved it. Even if we have that authority, even if we've clarified that our oversight committee is The pac,
some type of accounting between now and the budget time period to take this wonderful Report,
which stands alone and I don't have. I can approve it, I can accept it, but I'm just kind of thinking out of the box and forward.
how does that then go into our budget process and not show up in the budget in october or November,
when I have all the same. Same questions that are we going to move money?
are we going to? Anyway, I think an update of that table f would help with the forensic Accounting and help us before we dive into the budget.
yeah. Thank you. I can share this. You know, This report was read.
was meant to respond to a request we heard from your board when we were talking about
which was, how can we look back at all of the promises or the ideas that were put out
there with the original measure and, and look at how we've delivered on those those ideas That are different areas of
focus and. And so thank you to your board our huge lift from staff of researching and Looking at all those
projects and describing what's been accomplished.
and all of the, the transfers or the allocation of measure ww dollars have been approved By
your board in open session. And I think we've documented them in the past and we can bring That again,
we're not proposing any reallocation of measure ww in our budget.
that was, I think, clear from our conversations in our study sessions that like, You know,
there a, this budget, we're not looking at one time reallocations and we're going to look At our take this year to work on the capital
program overall. And we're going to bring a presentation to your board.
john and I have
and that would give you the first look at it. But it's pretty simple budget. And there's nothing there's nothing too crazy about it.
so we're happy to like talk through additional information that's needed, But there's, we're not proposing any kind of reallocation.
that's good to hear. I don't want to slow us down like last year.
but I do think that if we I mean, if we need to do that, We need to do that.
I mean, there were some cases where we, we did it was appropriate to spend those monies.
so keep us apprized. And it again, doesn't reflect on this, But I would like to see sort of that back history,
that attachment f so we can answer questions.
rpa is not the only one who's asked me where did that money go? And I know that answer is in that chart, or if that chart is more detailed and we can kind Of put that to rest.
and sometimes we may need to approve money for if we got the land for free and acquisition To open it.
that all made sense to me. Anyway, thank you for the I'm digressing.
sorry. Your report's great. Everything's good. Summary. Very detailed. And thank you. I just want to build upon that.
I know that we had a pretty chaotic budget process for the 2026 budget last year in 2025.
and I know I personally worked really hard on our workshop series to really try to connect That to our planning for the 2027 budget.
and I believe that those efforts of that workshop series is what brings us here today.
and also in anticipation of our board meeting in two weeks, August 18th, seeing the budget early for 2027.
these are all efforts to really try to build a an entire year building up to the budget.
I like to use the term scaffolding, really trying to scaffold all the work we do in that Workshop series and have that built towards the budget and also bring the budget forward
earlier. And you know, we're trying something different this year and I hope it works, But I think we might feel that it's a little bit more transparent and
straightforward than the process we experienced last year for this year's budget.
director mercurio.
but I'm taking this on vacation with me when I leave tomorrow. Thank you. Dive into it a little bit more on a flight to the east coast.
but one of the things that, that I think needs to be kind of reiterated it's in the text Here and this
is, this is in your shop. That an additional $348 million of
these funds has been leveraged through grants and other funding sources.
and so the object here of this program is to get funding for acquisition and projects.
and we've done that. And we haven't, I mean, That that money would have all been gone by now if we hadn't done that.
so let's keep it all in perspective that we're using these funds and they have tremendous Multiplying power.
when you folks are able to develop those relationships and get others to give us funding It enables us to
implement a lot more projects and
happy reading. Yeah. Any other comments? We are looking for a motion for the resolution on Page 138 to approve this report.
a second? Second
all in favor, please say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Any abstentions? It's unanimous. 6-0. Thank you.
thank you. All right. We are moving right along. And, you know, I alluded to this one earlier action item I.4.
our adoption of a policy regarding interruptions in telecommunications during public Meeting.
action item.
she's there. Yes here. Hi. Good afternoon president sanwong and directors.
the item before you this afternoon is adoption of the policy regarding interruptions and Telecommunications during public meetings.
this policy is required under senate bill 707, Which amended the brown act government code,
section 54953.4. That section requires the district as an eligible legislative body to Provide remote public access to meetings and
to adopt a public. To adopt a policy establishing procedures for responding to Interruptions in telephonic or internet service that prevent the public from attending,
observing or participating remotely. The proposed policy establishes a clear process.
if service. If a service interruption is identified, The presiding officer will recess the meeting for up to one hour while staff make good
faith efforts to restore service. If service is restored, The meeting reconvenes with at least five minutes giving for the public to reconnect if
the interruption exceeded two minutes. If service cannot be restored after good faith Efforts,
the board may extend the recess, adjourn the meeting or adopt a specific finding by roll Call vote to continue the meeting.
the policy also assigns clear responsibilities to the presiding officer, The clerk of the board and the is staff,
and requires documentation of any interruption in the official minutes.
this item is presented as an action item, not on consent. Given its significance due to the district's brown act compliance obligations.
it's before you today because the sb 707 requirement to have this policy in place took Effect july 1st.
staff recommends the board adopt the resolution approving the east bay regional park District policy regarding interruptions of telecommunication services during public
meetings, effective august 4th, 2026. Thank you.
okay, so we now have an opportunity to ask questions on this item, And then we'll open up for public comment.
are there any questions? Go ahead. I have a question of staff. Would this have solved or would this have been appropriate for today?
did we learn anything today that we need to add here or is this look good?
I think we followed. [laughter]. Thank you. Yes. No further questions. It worked. And it worked.
we all stayed calm and thank you. You're welcome. [laughter] if I may add, it took a group. And I appreciate all the support from everyone.
thank you. [laughter]. Any other questions from board members? We will open up for public comment. Let's go ahead and open up for public comment.
no public comment. So we will close public comment. Bring it back to the board for any Final comments.
and also we're looking for a motion to approve the resolution on page 202 in our packet.
any abstentions? That passes 6-0. So we are now on to presentations.
and as we're getting prepared for our presentation from the grants department. Real quick, we do have an agenda item later on agenda item m board meetings or board Reports on meetings attended.
and for board members, you're welcome to table that report to our next board meeting.
I know some of us are trying to get to national night out this evening, So I'll leave it up to each individual board member to decide on that item.
okay, great. Thank you. Go ahead. Great. Katy hornbeck, Grants manager in finance management services within the finance
unit. I will keep this snappy. This is a mid-year grants update.
so typically I come at the beginning of the year and I provide a year-end review as well As requesting your approval of the current grant
schedule. It was recommended when I did that in january was recommended coming back in the Middle of the year to do a quick update on how we've been doing so far.
so this won't be the full you know, song and dance that you normally see.
but we'll cover some key highlights from the year. So I'll provide an overview and Highlights a check in on our fema.
fema disaster response funding priorities, and then department focus for the back half of The year.
so as a reminder, the park district, we receive a mix of funding, Whether that's federal,
state, local, private most of what we receive are local or state funding, Probably like 70% to 80% depending on the year.
comes from a variety of sources. And we get grant funding for pretty much anything.
capital improvement projects is what typically receives the most grant funding, But it can be something as small as a $5,000 stewardship study,
up to a $175 million acquisition that we can get grant funding for.
any time I talk about grants, I try to work in the reminders.
these are just good things to, to have in our that we keep in the back of our mind as We're talking about grants.
so I'm often asked, how do we get these grants? How do we have such a successful grant program?
and it's always rooted in our relationships. And that's both, You know, at my level with my counterparts at different agencies.
but it's also the work that you're doing that our general manager's office is doing Government legislative affairs, and we're building a reputation that we have the capacity
and the capability to complete our projects and to spend the money. And it's just as risky for us to get a grant.
it's risky for these agencies to award them. They want the money to be spent, And they want to give it to an agency that can complete the project.
and we do that by spending the money in completing our projects. And we also demonstrate strong relationships by putting in our own funding.
and a lot of times ww tends to be that seed money that's covering initial planning and Design and will come in at the end to backfill some funding gaps or to be the match that
might be required for a grant. Other things to consider for a successful grant program is The readiness of our projects.
grants don't drive project priorities. It's the other way around. The board is setting our cip plan. What what are the projects that we want to accomplish In the next 3 to 5 years?
and then I go find the grants to, to complete those projects.
I don't want to get a grant for a project that's nobody's priority. And then it derails everyone's work plan. We also want to be putting forward competitive Projects.
so grant opportunities, they'll have their own set of criteria.
but along with that, we internally need to think, Okay, what, what is on the cip plan?
what is ready to be done in the next 2 to 3 years, Because most grants need to be spent in that amount of time.
how far along are we in design and permitting? What level of engagement have we had with the community? Do we have land tenure?
all of those questions are part of the conversation when I'm considering what's on our List.
what is competitive? Do we really want to put it forward? Even though it's a great project, but maybe it's not quite there yet.
and then finally, a reminder that grants are risky. We get paid for the projects we complete, not the ones we're awarded.
it's super fun to send an email that we got, You know, $5 million grant for such and such project.
but until we actually do the project, it doesn't really matter. So we get paid for these are mostly reimbursement based, So we really have to get the, get the project moving to get that funding.
and then grants aren't always available to cover the full cost of projects.
it's a hodgepodge of sources. And to rely just on grants to fully cover project is not Usually realistic.
and then finally, everybody needs money. Grant programs are just becoming increasingly Competitive and oversubscribed.
the one these are just a few recent examples that we've applied to. This last one, the lw. Land and water conservation fund.
last year we applied, we put two applications in. One for the restoration and public access project out at deer valley.
and then the public access project at south of bailey at thurgood marshall.
they received almost 130 applications. They awarded 18 projects.
one of ours luckily was selected. We requested $6 million. They gave us one. So it's just incredibly competitive.
so when we're thinking about ready projects, What's furthest along, what's going to get the most number of points.
that's, this is all part of the equation. So currently this is probably a little bit Different now because it changes on a week to week basis.
but generally we're managing the grants department between 100 and 110 grants averaging Between $150 and $168 million.
on top of that, we have 48 public assistance grants that are through the caloes/fema Program,
and those are for permanent repair projects that happened that were caused by the storms In 2017 and 2023.
and we are anticipating receiving approximately $22 million from fema, Caloes once all of those,
you know, work would get done. To date, we have submitted 25 applications.
we received nine grant awards and received 35 payments.
so as I mentioned before, these are all reimbursement based. So we have one account tech Who does all of our invoicing and works really hard to make sure that we're invoicing on a
consistent basis so we can recoup the funding that we spent.
an update on fema storm damage. So we have ten projects left to complete under 2017.
deco and mast have been working really hard to get as many of these done as possible.
several of them are slated to get done under tcp this year. And we are, we're really just, we're hustling to get these done because we have a huge List under 2023.
and we want to be chipping away at that because we're not certain that fema will continue Giving us time extensions,
at least under 2017. So we're trying to make a significant a push there.
under 2023. Only two projects have been obligated. That means that they have approved the scope of work and have issued a dollar amount Associated with that.
one of them are the docks at lake chabot and then the del valle marina. The rest of the projects are still under review. It says 13.
it's a little deceiving because the way fema works is they consolidate all the sites under A project worksheet or a project.
so there are actually about 100 sites that need a permanent repair, Some minor, some large scale,
but they all, you know, roll up under these 13 pws.
and then finally, future response prep. So I've been working with deco and mast and park Operations and stewardship to start mapping out what is the process
for when a disaster is declared, who does what, When, what documentation do we need?
we really want to be more diligent and proactive about collecting what is required by Fema.
so we have fewer issues and delays later. And we don't really have anything formal.
it's just sort of all, you know, historical knowledge. And we're trying to get that documented right now.
funding priorities. So this is. This is for prop 4, But also really anything that is announced.
this is not a comprehensive list by any means. It's not ordered in any priority. This list is capturing the projects, One that are on the cip plan that have a funding need,
but are also the, the furthest along in terms of ready for construction.
so these will likely go to bid go out for construction probably next year, If not in 2028.
and that's a really great window of time. In terms of me looking for grant opportunities And then in my red box here,
so we're, we're actively looking to replace reallocations of ww acquisition funds.
so just because a project might be fully funded, Because there was that ww acquisition or excuse me,
the ww appropriation or even general fund or any of the other measures.
all continue to go look for grants until the project is like breaking ground.
so. And then any money that. If we happen to have a, You know, an overflow of funds, those will all get returned back to their original pots.
continued department focus in 2026. So I work with staff across the district on the cip List and making sure that I'm aware of
project timing, what the funding priorities are, Any funding gaps as they get updated cost estimates or scope changes at all with the
projects, and then submit grant applications. In collaboration with project managers. As you're aware, There's the new erp system that we're transitioning to,
to workday, which has overtaken hr and ms. And we spent a lot of time trying to get that Ready to go for 2027.
and then as I mentioned before, fema storm damage doing the work to get those projects Completed or getting prepped.
and then finally regional parks foundation coordination. So up until this year, the grants department didn't really.
we would we would be in conversation with regional parks foundation, But weren't really tracking or managing any of the funding that was flowing from them to
us. We really want to see them as an external funding partner.
and that means that when they are donating money or passing through money, The grants department is going to make sure that it's going to where it needs to go and is
getting spent in the way it's supposed to be spent. And that's all I have.
happy to answer any questions. All right. Do we have any questions from members of the Board on this item?
thank you for that really thorough and summarized overview. This is really helpful to have a mid-year update just to be thinking about our grants.
other questions. Go ahead. Director waespi. Thanks, Katy. Great report. I was wondering you mentioned that the fema projects and the [inaudible] Which I got excited I
forgot all about but [laughter]. Anybody know the status of that? Because I have lots of constituents. Yeah, I believe it's still in like preliminary early Design and permitting.
so because it's docks in the water, I think it triggers a lot of additional permitting.
but I can check in with deco. On where exactly. I know they've been assigned to project manager so
thank you very much. Yeah, I think I was just going to mention chris, That.
there's one thing that we're planning to do is for his team scoring updates about projects To the executive committee and that way,
like some of these projects that aren't like our, You know, our real big projects are coming to your board in different committees because
they need a recommendation, but sometimes they're already approved. And it's like, I think you might be interested in hearing some of these updates.
and so we've been trying to look for venues to provide that information and transparency.
excellent. Thank you. Yes
for the 13 kind of. Kind of group application projects that are still out there, Kind of what's
led to like on their side to being slow or delays.
and they typically get held up with their environmental review.
I think it's environmental and historic preservation office, Ehp.
typically, it's like 9 to 18 months where it might sit there and there's once it goes There,
there's not a whole lot we can do so, or there's not much that's sitting on us.
so once we've done the site visit, we've handed them, We've approved scope, we've, you know,
we've gone over cost estimate, all of those things.
it moves pretty quickly until it hits ehp and then it sits for quite a long time.
once they, once ehp approves it, it's pretty, It actually moves pretty quickly after that. So I think the lake chabot and del valle marina those got approved when I was out on Leave,
but I think we had put a lot of pressure on caloes and fema to get those obligated as Quickly as possible because of the scale of the project.
and we didn't want that. Because once they do get approved, We technically have 18 months to get it done.
we, it's not always the case. We always ask for time extensions, But with something of that size, we wanted to get that moving.
thank you. Other. We're. We're constantly dealing with fema delays.
have we been awarded any other federal funds? Federal grants that have been awarded but the federal government is simply not allocating It or sending it to us?
there are a lot of agencies where that's what happen. No, we well, we've received three fema grants at the beginning of last year through their Pre-disaster mitigation program.
and then through their hazard mitigation grant program. So it's for fuels work.
but yeah, those were obligated at the beginning of last year and we are getting Reimbursed.
one of them, it's almost completely done. And then we received bpa grants over the last Couple of years that have been reimbursed as well.
I think the slowdown has been specific to public assistance projects or like declared Disaster response work.
is sort of my understanding other programs. There hasn't been quite the holdup.
lisa on our part.
if there aren't, what we'll do is we'll open up public comment. So if we have any members Of the public. No public comment. Okay. So we'll close public comment. Bring it back to
the board for any final comments. This is not an action item. So we're not looking for a Motion. So once we get through the comments the agenda item will be completed.
go ahead
you know, the red box there that you pointed to. You know, I was looking for that and I forgot that it was in this presentation, Not the prior one,
but it's related. And I'll say it again, staff have been actively working to replace Reallocations of ww acquisition funds with grant sources.
and I never heard that description quite as detailed as you just gave it.
so that's very, that's seems like the right thing to do. And we, I think we all appreciate that. Thank you.
any other comments? Okay. What's the largest grant history of the district?
the largest grant. Well, at least in the 5 or 6 years I've been here, It's been the $36,000,000 for point molate
I would say. That was just b. That's true. So but I'll just go back six years.
that's all. That's great. What was the smallest? Oh, Like probably $2,000 or something.
okay. Yeah. I was going to say because I, I got a $10,000 grant when I worked here. I thought it was like I won the lottery. [laughter]. You're making so much money.
I didn't know if you could apply for. Yeah.
what's the what? The oddest. Where'd you oh, gosh. I don't know. Some of this, the stewardship ones are, They're not odd.
they're just, they're just so different. It's like, You know, $10,000 for the pig management plan. It's like, I never thought I'd get money
for that. [laughter]. Yeah. Thank you. So if there are any other comments?
go ahead and do this agenda item complete. Thanks so much for the update. Thank you. So we will now move on to any announcements.
agenda item k any announcements from closed session. No. No announcements. Okay. Now we move on to item l proposed future agenda item.
none. Okay. Item m this is the one that's optional for today.
you're welcome to also take the list for the next board meeting. But board reports on meetings attended. Is there anyone that would like to do this today?
speak up now. Yeah. I'm sorry. I'm going to dare.
go ahead. Because. All right I just want to make sure that a full disclosure.
so in addition to taking advantage of our july recess, Going to an island to scuba dive.
I went straight there down to baja mexico, to the city of ensenada, Who was celebrating an annual lease turn day,
and the federal government was there. The u.s. Fish and wildlife. The state was there a Number of nonprofits.
they're equivalent to our golden gate alliance, San diego alliance. And why would I do that? Well, some of you may not know, But for disclosure, I've been volunteering down there for eight years.
I do language immersion, and the work I do down there is in spanish. So I do speak spanish. And despite the federal government cutting the endangered species Act,
mexico is a very active and at the table. And our san diego partners and everybody are Down there.
they're forming a steering committee specifically to honor the endangered least tern and Other shorebirds.
it's been a passion of mine. I've held those little furry babies in my hand and tagged Them with bands,
and I speak with children in spanish and with snowy plovers ridgeway.
I just wanted to disclose that. And I want to let you know that I was not representing the Board in any way,
but I do get a lot of information that collides with our work, And they're particularly interested down there.
they only have 3 to 33 terns remaining. Dennis and I went out to hayward and we saw over 300 of the 33 they have
remaining, 12 they believe are dead. They're trying. So there's a great opportunity or our interest could collide.
they've asked me and I'll pass it on to max or whoever. When that steering committee information happens about sharing best interests between the Two countries.
and there's this very formal, almost emergency steering committee being held since we're So successful both at hayward and in alameda,
and neither of them are my board. I wanted to make sure that luana and dennis weren't Thinking I was treading on your area,
so I just want to let you know that's what they did. There's some information on your desk And maybe we can.
maybe we can help them or not us personally. But I'll just want to let you know that.
so sorry if I slowed us down. I also want to get to national night out. So no further reports. On a nice day
yeah. Oh. To mexico? Yeah. To find the 12 missing or make sure they all get together and Form some more.
yeah. Thanks. Dock clark is on it. Thank you.
7/4 the alameda 4th of july parade. 7/27 monthly, One on one meeting with max.
7/25 7/29 resource fair prep with jessica. And august 1st,
the resource fair in san lorenzo. And then also there is a resource fair coming up this Weekend where
east bay regional park will have two tables. So definitely if you're within the east Oakland region,
you just want to come and meet us. Please come up to allen temple and there will be over 80 organizations there,
but I'll also be there in person if you have questions about board for the park in General.
well thank you. I don't see any other board comments. So then we'll move on to public comments for those who have not had an opportunity to Speak previously.
no public comments. So we are now adjourned at 16:19. Everyone two weeks.