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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 01281986 - 1.44 s-04 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra FROM: PHIL BATCHELOR Co^�t� County Administrator DATE: January 14, 1986 County SUBJECT: REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE CONTROL OF CRUISING IN THE UNINCORPORATED PORTIONS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. Accept report from the County Administrator on cruising in the unincorporated portions of Contra Costa County. 2. Request the Sheriff-Coroner to continue to work with representatives of various cruis- ing organizations, as appropriate, to develop guidelines and procedures to control cruising activities so that threats to life, health, and public safety are minimized and, further, request the Sheriff to report back to the Board if further actions are needed for the proper control of this activity. 3. Direct County-Counsel to prepare revisions to the County's open container ordinance to insure better control over the drinking of alcoholic beverages that may be related to cruising situations. 4. Encourage chambers of commerce, community groups, and cruising organizations to develop alternatives to cruising, such as automobile shows. REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION/BACKGROUND: Your Board previously directed the County Administrator's Office and the Sheriff-Coroner to explore the issue of cruising in the unincorporated portions of Contra Costa County and to report back to your Board as to what further actions might be appropriate to minimize any potential threats to life, health, and public safety which might result from this activity. This concern was prompted, in part, by the cruising last year in the El Sobrante area of the County. That cruising effectively blocked San Pablo Dam Road for a period of time and resulted in considerable use of alcohol, its unauthorized sale, some vandalism, creation of trash, and considerable public nuisance. In this particular instance, the blockage of San Pablo Dam Road created a significant threat to life and health since that road is the primary access to the area for public safety and emergency services. Representatives of the County Administrator's Office and the Sheriff's Office have met and considered this problem, reviewing instances of cruising in the past, and discussed a variety of options to insure better control in the future. In addition, representatives of the two Offices had a meeting with the Highway Patrol and the R-9 Committee in E1 Sobrante. The County Administrator's Office and the Sheriff also met with representatives of a major cruising organization. There appears to be some citizen support for a further ban on cruising, but this is not overwhelming. There is a greater degree of consensus that the unauthorized drinking and sale of alcohol associated with some of these events needs to be 'IcCONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: x YES SIGNATURE: X RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRAT RECOMMENDATIO F BOARD COMMITTEE X APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURE(S) ACTION OF BOARD ON APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER VOTE OF SUPERVISORS UNANIMOUS (ABSENT ) I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE AYES: NOES: AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN ABSENT: ABSTAIN: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. CC: Sheriff-Coroner ATTESTED Bruce L. Weissenberger, Star 8 Phil Batchelor, Cr rk o1 the oard of 111 Aspen Dr. , #9, Pacheco, CA 94553 -Supervisors and County Administrator R-9 Committee County Counsel M382/7-83 BY DEPUTY Contrgl of Cruising Page 2 better controlled and that alternatives ought to be developed in which owners of antique and modified vehicles can display them to the public and to each other. Danville, for example, had such a car show last year which was very successful. It should also be recognized that the Highway Patrol has primary traffic responsibility in the unincorporated area of the County, with assistance from other agencies such as the Sheriff's Department. A County ordinance banning cruising, analogous to that adopted by some cities, would put this primary responsibility on the Sheriff's Department which has neither the vehicles nor the staffing to adequately respond. In addition, it is the view of the Sheriff that cruising can be controlled and some of its bad effects negated by: (1) an amendment to the County's open container ordinance making fuller use of the authority granted the County by Penal Code Section 647e to regulate the possession of open containers in public (the current ordinance is limited to parking lots and sidewalks adjacent to premises licensed for the off-sale of liquor), and (2) the continued maintenance of a relationship, as appropriate, with various cruising organizations so that, to the extent to which cruising does occur, it can be carefully pre-planned to minimize any potential delete- rious effect on life, health, and public safety. The actions recommended above, in the view of both the Sheriff and County Administrator's Office, are appropriate responses to the current situation. Careful monitoring of future cruising activities in the unincorporated portions of the County will continue to be main- tained, and if further actions are warranted to maintain proper control, recommendations will be submitted to your Board for consideration.