Barbara Giasone is all smiles as she awaits the special commendation to her by the City Council.

City Council, March 2, 2010

Saying goodbye “with mixed emotions,” Mayor Don Bankhead opened Tuesday’s city council meeting with a formal commendation of longtime Register reporter Barbara Giasone. Giasone is retiring after covering the city of Fullerton for numerous years.

The council quickly moved on to the more contentious issue surrounding a proposed Class I bicycle path that the Orange County Transportation Authority has asked to have removed from the Circulation Element of the General Plan update. Doing so would allow train service to be expanded between Fullerton and Anaheim. The proposed bike path would run along a railroad right-of-way adjacent to the tracks at the Fullerton station and curves south to the city limits.

City planning manager Al Zelinka recommended on behalf of the city staff that the request be granted, though there was considerable discussion as to whether or not the city actually owns the land, has the rights to the property or if the bike path designation was ever officially approved or developed by the city.

Resident Jane Rands spoke during public comments of OCTA’s lack of consideration of a Memorandum of Understanding developed in a previous meeting of the Bicycle Users Subcommittee, and resident Tony Bushala stated via email that the path does not really exist and therefore should not be subject to any city council action.

OCTA did not speak on its own behalf.

Council member Sharon Quirk made a motion to continue the discussion to the next meeting, when some of the maps and routes issues can be more clearly identified. Council member Shawn Nelson seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

Additional agenda items included an update on the General Plan Housing Element, presentations regarding Arbor Day, Majesty Christian Fellowship and the 2-1-1 Hot Line awareness.

FInally, council continued discussion of the city clerk’s recommendation that the required public notices typically published in general circulation newspapers be posted in public places rather than in print. Citing the general demise of the newspaper industry, Nelson urged the city to make the decision and not look back. “Print news is a goner.”

A motion passed, 4-1, to continue the item to the next meeting, with Nelson dissenting.

Photo and report by Davis Barber/FullertonStories.com