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David Browne asked the Council to pass the proposed ordinance allowing residential beekeeping. He referred to the staff report for his full recommendation. He shared some of his personal experiences with catching local swarms, one of which was to assist the Police Department and all of which he believed originated from feral hives. He said that the honeybee population needs the community's help to diversify its genetics and to sustain its future. He reminded the public of the modern world's continued dependence on bees, considering that several major farm crops are 90% pollinated by honeybees. He noted that the city of San Francisco, with higher density and population equal to 11 times that of Pleasanton, goes so far as to allow residential beekeeping even in apartment settings with success. He encouraged the Council to consider the value that residential beekeeping would bring to Pleasanton in allowing it to market a green city approach. Bill Clark also asked the Council to support the proposed ordinance, in part in hopes that his hometown of Dublin will follow Pleasanton's lead and do the same. He noted that one benefit of having local beekeepers such as himself and Mr. Browne is that they commonly help to respond to swarms and reported one such event last year where a hive had established itself within an in ground water meter. Mayor Thorne closed the public hearing. Councilmember Narum thanked Mr. Weinstein for an excellent research effort. She said she was pleased to see such a strong example of the city listening to needs and desires of its citizens. Mr. Weinstein acknowledged the multidisciplinary effort which included work by the Police Department, City Attorney and, largely, Associate Planner Amos. Vice-Mayor Brown admitted to being initially hesitant to support the proposal, largely out of concern for the 2% of the population with severe bee allergies. Through speaking with others and the education she received from staff she found that she was not as concerned as originally anticipated. She requested support for instituting a minimum lot size. Councilmember Pentin declined the request. He referred to the city of San Francisco as an example of how beekeeping can be a safe operation even in very densely populated residential areas. MOTION: It was m/s by Pentin/Narum to introduce and waive first reading of Ordinance No. 2113 amending Title 18 (Zoning) of the Pleasanton Municipal Code to establish a permit process and performance standards for beekeeping. Motion passed by the following vote: AYES: Councilmembers Brown, Narum, Olson, Pentin, Mayor Thorne NOES: None ABSENT: None Mayor Thorne noted several Boy Scouts in attendance. Ms. Pierce introduced the young men as Tenderfoot Scouts Matthew, Jaylen and Amir and Second Class Scouts Andrew, Giovanni and Aaron. 10. Consider the formation and composition of a Civic Center/Library Facilities Master Plan Task Force Mr. Fialho presented the staff report, stating that the City Council Work Plan includes the preparation of a preliminary planning study to evaluate options for developing a new library and civic center on either the existing library site or other locations including the Bernal property. Staff is recommending that the Council being the process through a broad based community approach involving an ad hoc committee of representation from various organizations within the city. While staff anticipates that the majority of the Master Plan will be developed over time through the committee process, it foresees that the activities and scope will include several things at minimum: 1) an assessment of space needs and community expectations regarding the location and scope of civic center facilities to be evaluated; 2) City Council Minutes Page 10 of 12 February 17, 2015