Sonoma
County DATE: March 6, 1998 (Meeting March 12th) TO: Open Space Authority Board Members FROM: David Wm. Hansen, General Manager DWH SUBJECT: Proposed District Work Plan for 1998 - F.Y.I. Discussion: District staff has been working with the Advisory Committee on a 1998 District Work Plan which will be adopted by our Board of Directors as an Action Plan. That document is attached as approved by the Advisory Committee on February 19, 1998. The Plan has several key issues which may require formal Authority review and approval. This is before you now as an informational item. Key projects include: A. District Acquisition Plan Update The agreement between the District and the Open Space Authority stipulates that an Acquisition Plan be prepared prior to acquisition of rights in land or easements by the District. The Open Space Authority must ensure that the District's Acquisition Plan is consistent with the adopted Expenditure Plan and with applicable general plans. The District Acquisition Plan was adopted by the Board of Directors in December 1992. Policy # 13 in the Acquisition Plan states:
Minor policy revisions were made to the plan and adopted by the Board in November 1994. District staff anticipates an update in accordance with the above policy. commencing in 1998. In general, this update would consist of reviewing the existing Acquisition Plan policies and associated map and revising such as deemed appropriate or necessary. The following steps are expected to occur as part of the Plan update.
A project timeframe and task responsibilities for this process will be developed. This will also define the roles of staff, committee members, consultants, etc. It will further incorporate the issue of preservation of lands in Category One including, the Authority's discussions to set aside funding for Category One/Community Separator Lands. The Open Space Committee recommended that the District contract for a public survey as part of the Acquisition Plan update. The subcommittee expressed that this survey should be conducted prior to the Countywide public workshops. Staff anticipates that inclusion of a survey within the scope of work for the Acquisition Plan Update will require, at a minimum, a) a request for proposal and solicitation of bids from qualified consultants, and b) approval of the survey scope and expenditure by the District Board of Directors. The District currently has $10,000 available in its FY 1997/98 budget which could be applied toward the cost of the survey. B. Contract Planning Staff Listed below are District work tasks with which Planning and Stewardship staff currently need assistance. I intend to hire a contract employee at the Open Space Technician Class. This contract employee will need to have a workng knowledge of computer applications, planning principles, mapping techniques, research, analysis, report writing and documentation. It is my goal that the requested position will assist Planning and Stewardship staff with acquisition projects and conservation easement stewardship for the next nine (9) month period. This position is needed due to the District's current work load and to keep pace with new acquisitions. Following my discussion with the Authority at the March 12th meeting and input from the 'Firm' conducting the Authority's Organizational Assessment, I anticipate that on March 24th the District Board of Directors will review a contract employee extra help request. The nine month period will allow District staff sufficient time to recruit, hire and train a permanent employee for this position if it is warranted in the Authorit)/s completed Organizational assessment. Work tasks will include the following: Perform technical duties on acquisition and planning projects:
Assist District Stewardship Monitoring Program:
Assist District GIS System Project Development:
PROPOSED DISTRICT WORK PLAN, 1998 A. Routine or Ongoing Tasks (Year Round)
B. One Time or Not-So-Annual Tasks
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