Laguna Beach — 2025-07-08

1.\nYEARS OF SERVICE RECOGNITION\nRecommendation: Receive and file the report.

10. \nAWARD OF CONTRACT FOR GEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS & WAVE\nRUN-UP STUDIES FOR ENCLOSED LIFEGUARD TOWERS\nRecommendations:\n(1) Award a contract with Engeo in the amount of $198,000 for Geological\nanalysis and Wave Runup Studies for the enclosed lifeguard towers project\nacross all City beaches;\n(2) Authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement with Engeo;\n(3) Authorize the City Manager to approve project-related expenses and\nconstruction change orders for unforeseen circumstances in an amount not to\nexceed $20,000; and\n(4) Determine that the project is exempt from the California Environmental\nQuality Act pursuant to Section 15262 (Feasibility and Planning Studies) and\nSection 15306 (Information Collection) of the State CEQA Guidelines.

11. \nCITYWIDE CLASSIFICATION UPDATE\nAND COMPENSATION STUDY\nRecommendation: Receive and file this report providing a status update on the\nCity’s Classification and Compensation study.

12. \nREVISIONS TO UNDERGROUND UTILITY ASSESSMENT DISTRICT\nFORMATION POLICY\nRecommendations:\n(1) Adopt the attached and revised “Underground Utility Assessment District\nFormation Policy” with the following policy changes:\na.\nRemove the requirement of an initial deposit of $500 from each\nproperty owner signing the petition to initiate an assessments\ndistrict.\nb.\nReduce the petition threshold of required signatures and initial\ndeposits from at least 60% of the participating property owners\ndown to at least 50%.\nc.\nEstablish a policy regarding contributions in excess of the required\ngeneral benefit contribution.;\n(2) Acknowledge preliminarily identified potential underground utility\nassessment district boundaries to substantially complete residential\nneighborhoods with remaining overhead utilities;\n(3) Direct staff to coordinate with property owners, and determine if support\nexists to form assessment districts at the preliminarily identified potential\nutility undergrounding boundaries;\n(4) Direct staff to return with a plan to obtain the necessary easements on all\nprivate streets to complete undergrounding citywide;\n(5) Authorize the Ad Hoc Subcommittee for Wildfire Mitigation and Fire\nSafety members (Councilmembers Kempf and Whalen) to meet with staff and\nSCE and SDG&E to expedite the timeline for undergrounding;\n(6) Authorize the City Manager to provide discretionary approval for\napplicants of the City’s Assessment Deferment Program who do not meet the\nage requirements of the program; and\n(7) Direct staff to work with a consultant to develop more accurate project\ncost estimates for preliminarily identified utility undergrounding boundaries

13. \nCITY CLERK COMPENSATION\nRecommendations:\n(1) Provide direction to staff on the base salary for the elected City Clerk for\nFiscal Year 25/26;\n(2) Provide direction to staff on whether to maintain a salary range for City\nClerk, or instead set a single base salary; and\n(3) Provide direction to staff as to whether to maintain existing Resolution No.\n24.065, “A Resolution Establishing the Compensation for the Elected City\nClerk,” or amend such Resolution No. 24.065, by adopting the attached\nproposed Resolution, which would, in lieu of considering an annual\nperformance-based salary or Exceptional Performance Pay (EPP) increase,\nestablish a pre-election salary review policy.

14. \nFURTHER STUDY FOR FESTIVAL OF ARTS SOUND POLICY FOR\nPROPERTY AT AND AROUND THE IRVINE BOWL AND\nPROCEDURAL NEXT STEPS, AND\nFINDING ACTIONS CATEGORICALLY EXEMPT PURSUANT TO STATE CEQA\nGUIDELINES SECTION 15304\nRecommendations:\n(1) Suspend the Festival of Arts sound policy for three days on November 7, 8\nand 9, 2025 to allow the City’s sound consultant, Rincon Consultants, Inc.,\nthe opportunity to measure and analyze sound from a real-life concert to\nbetter inform whether any changes to such sound policy are necessary;\n(2) Authorize the additional scope of work proposed by the City’s sound\nconsultant, Rincon Consultants, Inc., to measure and analyze sound during a\nreal-life concert on November 7, 8 and 9, 2025 in an amount not to exceed\n$7,592; and\n(3) Find the recommended actions are exempt from the California\nEnvironmental Quality Act under State CEQA Guidelines Section 15304,\nbased on the findings in this staff report.

2.\nF.\nINTRODUCTION OF NEW SUPERINTENDENT OF LBUSD, DR. JASON\nGLASS\nH. CONSENT CALENDAR.\nAll matters listed under Consent Calendar are considered by the City Manager to be\nroutine and will be enacted by one roll call vote. There will be no discussion of these\nitems unless a Councilmember, the City staff, or a member of the public requests\nremoval of an item (please identify the item by its number) from the Consent Calendar\nfor separate discussion, and that person shall be identified and noted in the minutes for\nthe item. Once any additions or removals are made, the City Council will vote to\napprove all items remaining on the Consent Calendar. Any item that was removed will\nbe considered following the action on the Consent Calendar; each speaker shall have\nup to three minutes, and may be shortened or extended, or a cumulative limit on the\ntime for all public speakers may be imposed, at the discretion of the presiding officer\n(the Mayor).

3.\nMINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS\nRecommendation: It is recommended by the City Clerk that the City Council\napprove the minutes of the Regular Meeting of the City Council of June 10,\n2025.\nMinutes

4. \nAPPROVAL OF GENERAL WARRANTS\nDISTRIBUTIONS\nWarrant #31: $4,039,929.53 06/20/2025\nWarrant #32: $ 10,092.45 06/23/2025\n$4,050,021.98\nPayroll #25: $1,847,593.40 06/13/2025\nAND\nPAYROLL\nTotal: $5,897,615.38\nRecommendation: Approve the general warrants and payroll disbursements.

5. \nCLAIMS AGAINST THE CITY\nRecommendation: Reject Claim #25-18 filed by Steven Ellman.

6. \nMONTHLY INVESTMENT REPORT (MAY 2025)\nRecommendation: Receive and file the May 2025 monthly investment report,\nwith submissions from the City Treasurer, Laura Parisi, and the City’s surplus\nfunds investment manager, Meeder Investments.

7. \nA RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAGUNA\nBEACH TO CONFIRM WEED ABATEMENT ASSESSMENT ROLL\nRecommendation: Adopt the Resolution titled, “A RESOLUTION OF THE\nCITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA,\nCONFIRMING ASSESSMENTS FOR WEED ABATEMENT,” which will direct\nthe Fire Chief to file a copy of the 2025 report with the County Auditor on or\nbefore August 10, 2025.

8. \nAPPROVAL OF A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN\nTHE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH AND MOULTON NIGUEL WATER\nDISTRICT\nRecommendations:\n(1) Approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City of\nLaguna Beach and Moulton Niguel Water District (MNWD) to explore\ncollaboration on the OASIS Water Resource Center Project;\n(2) Authorize the City Manager to execute the MOU; and\n(3) Determine that this action is not a project under Section 15378 of the\nCalifornia Environmental Quality Act Guidelines, and is exempt under\nSection 15061(b)(3), as there is no possibility it may have a significant effect\non the environment.

9. \nRESOLUTION ACCEPTING THE FIRE DEPARTMENT’S REPORT ON\nCOMPLIANCE WITH STATE INSPECTION MANDATES\nRecommendation: Adopt the Resolution titled, “A RESOLUTION OF THE\nCITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA,\nACKNOWLEDGING RECEIPT OF A REPORT FROM THE LAGUNA\nBEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT DEMONSTRATING COMPLIANCE WITH\nHEALTH AND SAFETY CODE SECTION 13146.4 AND FINDING THE\nSAME EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY\nACT,” accepting the Fire Department’s report on compliance with state\ninspection mandates.