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Geotechnical consultant will do selective reviews
Decision unanimous
By Nathan R. Huff
The town council agreed unanimously on Dec. 4, to move forward with hiring a geotechnical consultant to review troublesome planning applications.
Town staff will prepare a request for qualifications (RFQ) that will be sent to prospective geotechnical consultants. The town will likely establish a contract for geotechnical services similar to the contracts in place for traffic and environmental studies.
The consultant will not evaluate every project, only those the community development department or planning commission determine need a second opinion. As with the town's traffic and environmental studies, the applicant would be required to pay all costs associated with the review.
A recent spate of difficult applications had put in question the town's geotechnical review process. Most notably, a project on College Avenue that was slated for approval was been sent back through the planning process after a second geotechnical report showed the site was not as stable as first thought.
Council members lauded the proposal, saying it was overdue. "It's too bad it really took College Avenue to bring this to everyone's sight," Councilman Randy Attaway said.
Newly elected Councilwoman Sandy Decker said the consultant would provide an invaluable tool for the planning commission. "If there are 'X' number of people coming forward in public testimony while we're looking at it at the planning commission level," Decker said, "then this could be something we, at that level, could ask to be further investigated."
Current town policy allows for the commission to ask for an independent geotechnical report--in addition to the one prepared by the applicant's consultant--but it is rarely done. When the planning commission asked for such a review with the College Avenue application, it had to rush out to find a consultant.
According to Community Development Director Paul Curtis, the contract will allow the town to respond more quickly to commission requests for further geotechnical review. Since the applicant provides the engineer, the town saves money in training and benefits.
The subject came up at the Nov. 1 mayor's meeting, according to the staff report. However, meeting regular and frequent staff critic, Ray Davis, claimed credit for the council's action.
"You three know," Davis said to the council members who were present for the College Avenue application, "this never would have come up if it hadn't been for me."
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
