4C Public Hearing 2014 0721 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Excerpts from the Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes May 15, 2014 Page 6 of 9 In addition to needing the gate installed off Washington Avenue, she said they also need to increase the height of the perimeter wall because it’s low enough that young people hop or climb it to enter the property. Bonnie Agnello, Caliente Drive, said she and her son have owned their property in Floresta Gardens for nine years. She said they need a gate to cut down on the trespassing, which results in unauthorized use of trash and recycle bins and dumpsters, causing them to overflow, create unsightly messes to deal with and incur extra costs to have the extra trash hauled away. She said trespassers wouldn’t walk through a security gate with their garbage bags. She said the pool is Floresta Gardens’ main amenity, and a security gate would also minimize its unauthorized use by nonresidents. Although it’s locked and requires a key for entry, residents are uncomfortable confronting people who want to get in. In terms of drive-throughs and walk-throughs, she said they occur every day. The walk-throughs are generally young people, wandering aimlessly through. Drivers, obviously taking shortcuts, speed through to the back gate, endangering the children who are out playing and riding their bicycles. Tom dePominville, Caliente Circle, said he’s been an owner-resident for 14 years. Summarizing some of the safety issues that others have discussed, he mentioned mailboxes, vehicles, storage units and homes vandalized and burglarized. His own car was broken into a couple of months ago, with several items stolen. He said the woman whose second-floor unit was burglarized is now afraid to be in her own home, and she keeps all of her doors and windows closed and locked and all the time. He said no one should have to live like that. He said all the residents are doing is asking the City to allow them to put in a gate to increase safety and security for them and their families. Viola Walters, Caliente Circle, said she hopes the Commission is taking the residents who are speaking seriously, because their situation is serious. Currently VP of the HOA Board, she said she’s lived in Floresta Gardens for 20 years, and in the last five years, the crime rate has increased and more police calls are being made. She’s personally called the police when her own car was stolen, when she’s seen neighbors’ cars being broken into, when cars are abandoned, and when nonresidents stop to park on the street or on the landscaping and smoke dope. She said safety is the prime consideration. She also said she initially opposed the gate because she didn’t think there was enough space for it, but a walk-through when R&S came to a Board meeting convinced her otherwise. She said that City concerns about a gate causing emergency access delays don’t even warrant consideration because it would take about five seconds for the gate to open, and emergency vehicles have automatic access. She said that if the proposal is denied, she personally would file an appeal by herself if she has to. Vicente Morales, Caliente Drive, said he’s lived there for three years. He said that he’s confronted speeding drivers, asking them to please go away. He also said that a couple of months ago, he confronted an unfamiliar man walking up the stairs to a unit across the street occupied by an elderly woman about 10:00 p.m. The man told him he was a newspaper guy. Mr. Morales asked to see his identification. He also said people from other complexes use Floresta Gardens and K-Mart as parking lots. Mr. Morales said his biggest concern is the threat to the lives of the residents, and that’s what he would like the Planning Commissioners to think about. Motion to close public hearing Hernandez/Collier: 5 Aye, 0 No (2 Absent) In response to Commissioner Hernandez, Planner Penaranda said he has no statistics indicating how often police patrol the Floresta Gardens area. Ms. Williams said she has no specific statistics either, but the police don’t do regular patrols. They don’t come unless they’re called. Ms. Williams said she bought a radar gun to monitor speeds, and spoke to an officer who came out after several storage unit break-ins. She was told the police wouldn’t come in to ticket anyone because it’s private property. Commissioner Hernandez asked about procedures governing police coverage of private streets or whether Caliente Drive could be converted to a public street. Planner Penaranda said the City wouldn’t be likely t o make Caliente Drive public because it wasn’t constructed to City standards. The PD was approved under that