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Mayor Foust opened the public hearing for the revised plans. Since she had no cards she suggested a break. Council took a break at 8:30 p.m. and resumed at 8:40 p.m. Public Comment Don Hogue said he does not agree with the developers' diagram about the amount of greenery and that there is no place for kids to play, except in the street. He believes that buildings should be as far away from the creek as possible and he asked Council to stick with the 25 foot setback. Richard Izmiriam, representing the Friends of the Cordilleras Creek, said they remain opposed to this project and that the changes to the 'creek setback and found the hydro- modification of the revised plans trivial. He opined the revisions do not meet the direction of the Council given at an earlier meeting. He referred to a letter the Council received from a hydrologist who had thoroughly studied the creek and advised Redwood City on the creek and its management. Nita Spangler, who has lived near the creek for 50 years, spoke about her concerns during storms such as trees being taken out, deer living in the creek, and the need for cleaning out the creek periodically. She said she thought Mr. McGowan had some good ideas about creek management. She believes that the County, Redwood City, and San Carlos should get a citizens committee, that Council can support, and that they can work towards year around access and maintenance on a reasonable and acceptable schedule. Ms. Spangler explained the reason for the roundabouts in the Wesley Park. She said there should not be a lot of concrete and there is a need to pay attention to the history of Redwood City. Julie Abraham said that she and her husband live on Finger Avenue and she appreciates the opportunity to address Council. She expressed her concern about the limited and restricted amount of space. She said she cannot understand why there is a discussion about a roundabout and an ornamental gate in this space. She spoke about how she already finds it extremely difficult to maneuver out of her driveway without hitting things and finds the notion of an ornamental gate would reduce the traffic to single file and significantly reduce visibility. She questioned why none of these issues were raised during the last public meeting on August 3rd. She read from a letter and she urged Council to deny the appeal. Dan Ponty said he sent a letter to Council last night and he spoke about the poor stewardship of the creek and he mentioned various reasons why that may have been from those who may not have known any better and built too close, to those who were indifferent. He spoke about the bulk and mass of the project, the reduction of less than one percent, how crowded he believes it would be, and he questioned its compatibility with the character of the area. He said the conditions of approval changed without explanation and that Council should not grant an exception in this particular case. He also questioned the information on the trees and said that the plan would only be saving one tree. Levy Brinkerhoff opined this is a misuse of the planned development permit process, with a lot of houses being crammed into a very small space. He opined that the proposal of JOINT CITY COUNCIL/REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY BOARD MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 26, 2009 PAGE 7