The Board of Directors of Brooktrails Township Community Services District met in regular session on January 11, 2005 at 7:10 p.m. in Brooktrails Community Center.
A. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
B. ROLL CALL
Roll call showed the following Directors present: Ziady, Horrick, Skezas, Pohlson and Orth. Also present were General Manager Chapman and District Counsel Neary.
REPORT ON CLOSED SESSION.
District Counsel Neary reported that the Board met in closed session regarding an item of anticipated litigation and authorized himself and a Special Counsel to handle a personnel issue.
C. ADDITIONS/ADJUSTMENTS TO THE AGENDA
None.
D. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS
1. December 14, 2004 - Director Horrick moved to approve the minutes. President Orth requested that "LAFCO" under Item D, page 3512, be changed to the acronym "LTF," meaning Local Agency Solid Waste Task Force. Director Horrick amended his motion to include this change. Director Skezas seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
E. SPECIAL PRESENTATION
None.
F. PUBLIC HEARING
None.
G. PUBLIC COMMENTS
Robert Terry took the podium representing Neighborhood Emergency Services Team (NEST). He requested that the Board support its petition to Rick Paige requesting more County support, and they would like to make a presentation at a general community meeting in March. Mr. Terry asked to be put on the next agenda, to allow time for a publicity campaign to be conducted for a March meeting, possibly the annual planning meeting of March 12.
Fire Chief Schoeppner took the podium and said he would see Mr. Paige at a Fire Chiefs meeting January 12 and would talk to him again. He said that part of the issue was that NEST will not accept MESA training, and therefore the liability would fall back on the fire department.
On a different subject matter, Richard Estabrook said he would like to see an agenda item about how the County assesses merged lots. He said they take the full value of the added lot and just add it on. He believed that we should find a way to negotiate that in some way, in order to encourage more lot mergers.
H. CONSENT CALENDAR
2. Review of Accounts Payable Report and authorization to issue checks; Retroactive approval of check run of 12/29/04. Director Horrick moved to approve the accounts payable report; Director Skezas seconded and the motion carried unanimously. Director Horrick moved to retroactively approve the second December check run of December 29; Director Skezas seconded and the motion carried unanimously.
I. ACTION AGENDA
3. Report on membership status of committees. General Manager Chapman stated this is an annual procedure. Three motions were requested, the first being to reappoint Donna Weston to the Architectural Review Commission. Director Skezas moved to reappoint Donna Weston to a four-year term on the Architectural Review Commission; Director Pohlson seconded. The motion carried unanimously.
The second issue was the current inactive status of the Green Committee and the suggestion that it be suspended. Director Skezas moved to suspend the operations of the Green Committee and Director Horrick seconded. The motion carried unanimously.
The third issue was a suggestion to eliminate term limits for committees (but not for the Architectural Review Commission). Director Pohlson so moved; Director Skezas seconded. The motion carried unanimously.
Director Skezas then referred to a letter received from Tom Walker, resigning from the Specific Plan Advisory Committee, which referred to a "prevailing attitude [on the committee] that may not be in the best interests of the District." Brief discussion followed about requesting more specificity from Mr. Walker. General Manager Chapman said he would try to contact Mr. Walker about this matter.
4. Review of meeting schedule for 2005 and schedule annual planning session. General Manager Chapman noted that the date of Saturday, March 12, 2005 had been reserved at the Community Center for the planning session. All of the directors agreed this date would be satisfactory. It was also noted that April 12, 2005 was scheduled for the annual budget meeting, and that two dates were possible for the September Community Forum. Director Skezas said he would check his Community Center reservation calendar for those availability dates.
5. Consideration of proposed 2005 fire abatement program. Fire Chief Schoeppner lauded that the new fire prevention officer, Jon Noyer, was in the field actively pursuing the fire abatement program, and issuing some citations. He then commented about his new proposal which would incorporate fines for those who chose not to abate their lots. He further stated only a small percentage of people would end up in the proposed fine procedure. He mentioned that there would need to be an appeals procedure established for this process. President Orth referred to the former lien process (Tottem Plan), where a contractor did the work in the case of noncompliance, and a lien was imposed to recoup that cost for the District. That system was abandoned due to legal difficulties. He stated the fire tax and new employee had changed this situation, and he did not oppose a fine structure, given there is 90% compliance already. He said there would need to be an appeals process for the fine system, and noncompliance would be addressed on a case-by-case basis. He stated he was in favor of the proposed system.
Director Horrick said he was hesitant to be for or against it as he felt he did not know the recent history, and how much enforcement power was really needed. He asked if the reason was for enforcement or to cover administrative costs. Chief Schoeppner said the absolute purpose was enforcement and they weren't looking to recover costs, although if they did happen to recover costs they would be applied to the administrative and fire prevention staff costs. Director Ziady stated her perception from numerous meetings that the community wants fire abatement and wants the program to have teeth. She said because of extraneous factors, like money concerns or abatement contractors being tied up at certain times of year, there needed to be an appeals process. She was in favor of the proposed program.
Director Pohlson referred to the State defensible space guidelines and their fining system of $100 to $500 for a first violation; $250 to $500 for a second violation. The State program has an appeals process which can drop the fine down to a $50 administration fee. She stated that all the District has to do is enforce that State law. In a related matter, President Orth asked Mark Tolbert of CDF, who was in the audience, how many tickets CDF hands out each year under that code section. Chief Tolbert said he felt the number was probably very few for the 4291 [CDF defensible space regulations] violations and he himself has written none.
Regarding a discussion of insurance being dropped on homeowners who lacked compliance with defensible space standards (30 feet to 100 feet), Chief Schoeppner advised that if an insurance company did tell a homeowner to comply with this new rule, the Fire Department would clarify / certify that they have complied, and write a letter to the insurance carrier accordingly. They will explain that 100 feet is not required because, in many cases, it isn't that far to the property line. He said the department now can take photographs of the property and send them to the owner to specifically show them what needs correcting. Director Skezas indicated he favored the proposal so far and suggested that the department continue to flesh out the program and return to the Board again.
Claudia Reed of the Willits News asked how the fines would be collected. Chief Schoeppner said the legalities need to be worked out with District Counsel, but he anticipated a collection service would be hired to collect them.
Public comment was requested. Bob Whitney said he liked the fine program and felt 99% compliance was possible. He suggested a priority system of: (1) developed lots all being abated every year; (2) adjacent lots to developed lots, which threaten the structures; (3) grass lots away from developed lots. He asked the Board to consider training several volunteers to work with Captain Jon Noyer, under his direction, to review vacant lots themselves, and then only those lots failing the screening would need to be revisited by Capt. Noyer.
President Orth said he would like to see recognition each year of current fire conditions - dry years vs. wet years - and we should proceed accordingly.
Director Pohlson voiced that the developed lots need to be done every year and the wooded lots are probably all right with three-year cycles.
Bob Turner asked if the proposed program would also apply to Spring Creek. President Orth said that abatement in Spring Creek would be voluntary at this time. Director Pohlson reminded the Board that the Fire District encompasses all three communities, Brooktrails, Spring Creek, and Sylvandale. Fire Chief Schoeppner reiterated that conclusion. In a related matter he stated that he does not believe the Fire Safe Council should be involved with the hazard abatement program. He said he personally has been to several Fire Safe Council meetings in Spring Creek and that there is a much different, more receptive attitude now there and in Sylvandale than previously. He said such things as road signs and addressing improvements are Fire Safe Council business, and that fire abatement is a fire department issue.
Wallace Stahle was concerned about the effect of the $10 a day fine on people who live out of the area. He said these lots don't typically cause fires, although they assist in the spread and intensity of fire. He suggested tempering the fine structure a bit, and the Directors agreed nothing has been finalized yet. Mr. Stahle then disagreed with Chief Schoeppner's statement that the Fire Safe Council had no business in fire abatement. He said what they do is an extension of what the Fire Department does (i.e., education), and that he sensed a disrespect towards them, and said that Fire Department support for the Council would go a long way. President Orth commented that the abatement process is a legal process, and that the District Fire Department would keep the Fire Safe Council from getting into that "sticky wicket." He further concluded that community support and education was absolutely appropriate for the Fire Safe Council and for all of us, at every level, to do. Director Ziady acknowledged the Fire Safe Council was getting a grant for fire abatement along roadsides and had motivated Spring Creek to donate their own money toward such efforts. Fire Chief Schoeppner responded that the fire department respected the efforts that the local Fire Safe Council was doing on behalf of this community. He said he supports the Fire Safe Council's efforts and wants them to continue, and to work with the Fire Department.
6. Consideration of Fire Safe Council Grant Application. General Manager Chapman indicated that in a meeting held on January 10, 2005, some real improvements had been made in the District's understanding of the Fire Safe Council grant application. He then distinguished between the CFIP grant and the Fire Safe Council grant. CFIP was targeting the greenbelt; the Fire Safe Counsel grant was emphasizing the peripheral areas around the boundaries of Brooktrails Township CSD, including Spring Creek and Sylvandale. He stated that fire can come from any direction and so he favored clearing in all areas.
Fire Chief Schoeppner encouraged the Fire Safe Council to proceed with the grant application as long as it does not affect the fire department budget with any kind of matching fund requirement. He said he supports their efforts in helping develop a plan for the area. He said this brought him to the evacuation plan component. He had been advised by Sheriiff Captain Kevin Broin, that Sheriff Lt. Allman had been instructed to start and evacuation plan as of December 1, 2004. He said this will be a multiagency project and it is in process. Lt. Allman contacted him about a free course on developing these kinds of evacuation programs in May, 2005. Capt. Noyer and Lt. Allman will be attending this in San Luis Obispo.
Director Pohlson referred to the Fire Safe Council grant application and was sure that the fire department budget would include monies for the comprehensive fire prevention program, including the comprehensive evacuation plan. She said she does not see the Fire Safe Council's programs as part of another agency, but as part of us, and "we are it." She said we are a fire district that engages everyone. Director Ziady said that Brooktrails does have limited resources and that this grant does allow for a comprehensive education program.
President Orth asked about modifications to the grant made at the previous day's meeting. Mr. Whitney responded that they did not really affect the main components. He said the basic elements are educational, and that they would hire a community fire planning specialist. He reiterated it would be the Mendocino Fire Safe Council that actually submits the application, not the local one. He said the Mendocino Fire Safe Council does not want to plan any local activity. He reiterated there would be no cash match from Brooktrails. He said that General Manager Chapman had recognized there would be an in-kind match, such as staff hours spent in meetings. He said they will know by March 2005 if they are funded. He said the language "including the greenbelt" has been purposely left in there.
The discussion once again turned to insurance. Mr. Whitney commented that Lloyd Johnson, CDF Unit Chief, said that Public Resources Sec. 4291 was changed to increase the defensible space around occupied residences or structures; the premise being that as of January 1, 2005, if you're not in compliance with 4291 they can drop your insurance. He said they will hire a forester to advise people who then independently contract with a licensed timber operator to do a commercial firewood operation, under the new rules which do not require a timber harvest plan. President Orth asked about restocking requirements under these new rules. A technical discussion followed. Mr. Whitney said yes, you have to leave a certain basal area and you can't harvest in the WLPZs, water protection zones, steep slopes over 35 to 40%, and known landslides. He said that all the exempt timber operations have to be under the supervision of a licensed professional forester and done by a licensed timber operator. He said they don't mean exempt from regulations, but exempt from a THP. He said you still have to comply with environmental laws and regulations. He said there are three ways to comply with all of this: (1) the abatement process for smaller parcels according to 4291; (2) for large lot areas, fuel hazard abatement with commercial fuel wood production for firewood-which would be the tan oak program, and (3) the LaMalfa bill gave the opportunity to cut conifers for commercial sale as long as they're less than a certain dbh, he said 20 or 22. Wallace Stahle interjected and said as of October 2004 it was 30". Mr. Whitney said you can only take the smaller trees, you can't take the 30" trees if that's all you have, and it has to be for fuel hazard reduction purposes and the primary goal can't be commercial, but the outcome can be to sell some trees to offset the cost.
Director Skezas said he was confused as to who would run the program. He asked who the unnamed non-profit organization providing a match of $32,000 on page 3 was. Mr. Whitney said their non-profit partners are the two road associations of Sylvandale and Spring Creek cited on page 6 who will commit to put up half the cost, in kind, of the roadside vegetation management on their private road system. Director Skezas said those two numbers still did not add up to the match and this was a concern of his. He further asked what assurances we had that the grant money received would be spent as our Board was being told. Mr. Whitney remarked that the Mendocino County Fire Safe Council would have to account for the money. Mark Tolbert of CDF commented that this organization was a year old and Julie Rogers was the Executive Director. He said he would personally vouch for Ms. Rogers as to her credibility. General Manager Chapman commented that Ms. Rogers literally led the charge on saving the Ukiah fire tankers that would have been otherwise sent to Santa Rosa.
Mark Tolbert said he supported the grant application. He pointed out a three-pronged effort: (1) education, which he felt is one of the most valuable aspects CDF has in their fire prevention program in terms of 4291 with their limited budget and staff time; (2) community fire plan to protect both the greenbelt area and adjacent private properties by establishment of shaded fuel breaks, which he stated fit with the goals stated in the final CFIP report.
Wallace Stahle stated his perception that for years that it's not if we get a fire, but when. He said it seems to him we are working toward fire minimization as opposed to prevention. Mr. Stahle asked if it were a correct perception that even with a thinned forest and optimal conditions, a fire could still go through and not be stopped, and that if we're not doing it in order to prevent fires, we're doing it to prevent a total catastrophic fire. Chief Tolbert said he had made the "when, not if" comment himself. He said that it was fire suppression as opposed to fire prevention that had led to the fire danger. He said that the prevention efforts would reduce the intensity of a fire coming through, to allow people to get out and help the firefighters in their job.
A break was taken at 8:43 p.m. The meeting resumed at 8:49 p.m.
7. Report of Water Processed vs. Water Sold. General Manager Chapman reviewed his report. He said this year's report used an average count of water customers as this varies from month to month due to rentals. He said our production side was an average of 240 gallons per single family residence (SFR); the correlating consumption was 177 gallons per SFR. He said that the recent find of the leak by the "Birch spring" should affect next year's figures downward, as we currently believe it to be responsible for a 30,000 gal./day water loss. He pointed to the trend of greater efficiency in our system. Director Skezas moved to accept the report; Director Pohlson seconded. Bob Turner asked how much money the water sales represent; General Manager Chapman said that answer would be available at the annual audit, and that this report quantified statistics, as opposed to dollars. He said he hoped to have the audit within a month. The motion to accept the report carried unanimously.
8. Report on Phase 1 of water well project. General Manager Chapman briefly described the history of the wells project and its conceptualization as a three-phase project, with the first three test wells being bored at three different elevations, and a CEQA process done for the entire project. He concluded that the well program is just not panning out. For example, he recapped the small production of the first well (located at the water plant) at 5 - 7 gpm. The second well, at Lupine Place, yielded 1 gpm., and the third well, located at Bear Drive, yielded only 3 - 5 gpm, and this was not nearly enough to warrant the $50,000 - $75,000 expense to take the water to full production. He said total investment so far was about $82,000. He reminded the directors that developable wells would need to be in the 30 - 40 gpm. range, enough to supply 150 to 200 homes each. He said that until the District reaches its current limit of 1,516 connections, all of the costs for wells were going to be absorbed by the base fees of current residents. He said it was his opinion that it was time to turn to other projects, and to focus first on the rubber spillway project, and then the dredging project.
President Orth said he felt we need to drop the wells program, and need to meet with our water attorney and reapply for a water rights appropriation for raising Lake Emily 15 feet in conjunction with the rubber spillway and outside storage. He said they should be tracked separately but worked on concurrently. He said applying for less water has already been discussed and we need to meet with the water attorney to flesh out the strategy for that and create a list of tasks to be done for all projects.
Director Horrick suggested that the budget allow for drilling one or two more wells, given that a dry hole seems to average about $10,000. Director Pohlson suggested calling in a water witch, one of whom she has been in contact with, and that this costs around $200. She did not see a big push to end the wells exploration. Her priorities were for the rubber spillway, off-site storage, and maybe some Spring Creek opportunities. She said she knew people in Spring Creek who have artesian wells. President Orth said we need to put the word out that we would be interested in purchasing a well from a willing seller if it is over-productive and artesian.
Director Skezas said we should not forget about the wells, but budget for one per year. President Orth said it appeared the Board was directing staff to do one well a year, using approaches other than the geologist's approach, and the directors concurred. Director Ziady pointed out the time factor involved in the other major projects. President Orth said he felt the water rights application was the highest priority, as well as off-site storage. Director Skezas said he felt the spillway should be pursued, and then the water rights relating to those other issues. The directors concurred this would be a long process.
Bob Whitney suggested sending a letter to Sylvandale, Spring Creek and the large parcel owners asking if they wanted to sell water. He also suggested that conservation of produced water might produce more benefit than any of the other options. General Manager Chapman discussed the use of a sound-testing device to locate leaks and the fact that District crew will soon take training on this procedure.
Rich Estabrook described finding leaks by use of a pressure gauge. Referring to the wells project, he said he was concerned about the three dry holes. He explained the difference between a normal sandstone aquifer and a fractured sandstone aquifer in terms of water storage. He said the fractured aquifers don't hold much water in each fracture; for well success you have to drill to connected fractures. The three dry holes said to him that the individual fractures were not connected. He said the odds were very poor at this point, given the picture of the geology we now have. He said we absolutely need the rubber spillway to get storage before April 1st and he would much rather spend well exploration money on leak detection. He said fixing the 30,000 gallon per day leak was worth thousands, at practically no cost. He felt the statistical odds of finding leaks were better than the odds of finding viable wells.
The General Manager concluded that he had enough direction to go forward.
9. Consideration of Draft Parking Ordinance. Director Pohlson introduced the parking issue and the draft parking ordinance prepared with the Specific Plan Advisory Committee. As to the District's ability to make such laws, she referred to the Structural Fire Prevention Guide of Statutes and Regulations for the Health & Safety Code, specifically the definition of "Local Jurisdiction":
Note: For clarity, actual cites follow the quotations below.
Any county, city/county agency or department, or any locally authorized district that issues or approves building permits, use permits, tentative maps or tentative parcel maps, or has authority to regulate development and construction activity. [This cite is from Calif. Code of Regulations, Sec. 1271.00.]
Director Pohlson said Brooktrails, as a fire district, does have the ability either implement ordinances or regulations for these purposes. Hence these laws are state fire code laws, health and safety laws.
Emergency Access - Intent. Roads and street networks, whether public or private, unless exempted under Sec. 1270.02 [which, she said, does not apply to us], shall provide for safe access for emergency wildland fire equipment and civilian evacuation concurrently, and shall provide unobstructed traffic circulation during a wildfire emergency consistent with Sec. 1273.00 through 1273.11. [Calif. Code of Regulations, Sec. 1273.00]
Director Pohlson then turned to road width and said the regulations say all roads shall be constructed to provide a minimum of two 9' traffic lanes, and stated we should keep this in mind as we continue developing, . . . providing twoway [sic] traffic flow, unless other standards are provided in this article, or additional requirements are mandated by a local jurisdictions or local subdivision requirements. [Calif. Code of Regulations, Sec. 1273.01 - Road Width]
Director Pohlson said we have state laws, fire code laws, health and safety laws, and we continue to choose not to acknowledge them. She then referred to the Board of Directors' obligation in their oath of office to uphold California law. She stated that emergency vehicles must have access to ensure the safety of our residents. She said the first page of the ordinance referred to the California Fire Code Article 9, which also covers fire apparatus access. She said the committee came up with the priority of the evacuation routes. She wanted the ordinance to prioritize how we get funds from the DOT to implement a fog line program on these evacuation routes.
Director Horrick referred to Director Pohlson's statement about the Board having an obligation under its oath to uphold laws, and asked if she had run that by District Counsel Neary. He said if this Board was legally negligent, he would like to know that, and that is what she had said. President Orth said the application of law needs to be current, reasonable, economically feasible, and also within the powers of the jurisdiction. He said he has some feeling for the need for accurate clearances for fire engines during fire season, and maintaining that during evacuation routes. He also referred to the difficulty of getting his truck through streets in the City of Willits, and said that, applying Director Pohlson's statements, there would be an awful lot of cities in violation. He said, however, that if you started towing all those cars away, there would be recalls, and that's the reality.
Director Pohlson said our situation is wildland fire, and Willits' situation is different as they have more ways to exit the area. She said we needed to ask for the funds to have the evacuation route streets put on a regular maintenance with DOT and fog line development basis for the long term, and the budget time is approaching for the DOT.
Director Ziady said she believed Director Pohlson was asking for more than that. She said we are developing an evacuation plan route and will hopefully spend money to make that area a shaded fuel break. She said she thought we could designate certain collector roads and there was nothing wrong with designating those routes and requesting fog lines, which then would allow the local sheriff / CHP to enforce fog lines and to enforce parking on the major evacuation routes. She said the Sheriff's Department will buy in a little more if they help develop the evacuation plan. As for issuing citations, she said the General Manager was busy enough already and so was the fire department. She said she was not interested in telling people they can't park anywhere, when they have no other parking options yet.
Director Skezas clarified that the District would become the enforcer instead of the Sheriff's Department. President Orth said two CHP officers had indicated to him that tagging cars in Brooktrails for parking violations was the furthest thing on their priority list and would be extremely difficult politically. He said his biggest issue was that there has never been an incident here where a piece of fire apparatus was obstructed. He continued he was in support of fog lines on those roads that are specific feeders for evacuation purposes, but he saw twenty times the parking density and road with problems in Willits compared to the problems here. He said he was in favor of getting a subcommittee together with MCOG or the County - whoever would have ultimate responsibility over fog lines. President Orth said that when he sees a regulation requiring a tow zone, the kind of yard you would have to develop to put that vehicle in and guard it, is a liability issue. He said he felt the rough draft of the ordinance should be sent first to District Counsel for his comments on legal and police power issues. He said he's always been bothered by the fact that we do not have standard roads in Brooktrails because the Board of Supervisors allowed different, lesser standards for Brooktrails, and that has and will create enforcement problems when related to the fire code standards. Director Ziady supported President Orth's suggestion to get the District Counsel's opinion.
Director Pohlson said some of these roads were designated in the Specific Plan as collector roads and she would like to pursue including this subject matter in this year's DOT budget a priority for such roads. President Orth said there was another problem with fog lines. They are generally painted once a year. That issue would have to be addressed to DOT.
District Counsel Neary said he had had an extensive discussion several months ago with Director Pohlson about this matter. He said they should at least identify the code sections involved because of Director Pohlson's statement about a law requiring this. He said he does not believe there is a California Fire Code. He said there is a Uniform Fire Code adopted by the District. He said the District's exercise of fire district powers is under the Health & Safety Code. Counsel Neary said it looks like what is being referred to in the ordinance is the California Code of Fire Safe Regulations, which have specific applications. He said these are not laws, but are regulations for parks and forestry adopted under the Department of Forestry's authority. He said there are some regulations applicable to enforcement by CDF of the fire safe regulations adopted in 1988 or '89. He said Public Resources Code 4291 came from that, the gradient of driveways, including cul-de-sacs and pullouts, and all of those related to new construction after that date, and that they were adopted long after the subdivision was approved. He said he had pointed out when they talked that Brooktrails is not designated as a high fire hazard zone, and he had showed her the map. President Orth said the two of them needed to meet and confer on this matter.
President Orth said he believed since the parking discussion had begun he was seeing better parking practices in the community. Bob Terry suggested educating the public about the benefits of parking on the side streets only. President Orth said he anticipated the District would develop and make recommendations to the public, as opposed to ticketing.
An audience member referred to subdivisions in San Rafael where the fire department made a point of sending the engine out into the community several times a year to drive up and down the streets and stop and talk to the public to demonstrate it, and that this helped a lot. He suggested, depending on the width of the new fire engine, this might be helpful for the District in terms of public relations.
J. ADDITIONS TO FUTURE AGENDAS
None.
K. SPECIAL REPORTS
General Manager Chapman reviewed his report. He highlighted the site visit by Dave Smith of the California Department of Parks & Recreation regarding the grant application for bridges for Thimbleberry Trail. Mr. Smith indicated that we were among the best he had seen so far on his tour, and that we are a high priority. Funding recipients will be announced later in the year.
L. PUBLIC COMMENTS
Bob Turner asked about getting help from Supervisor Hal Wagenet for funding for trails, etc. President Orth described the Board's intention to work with Supervisor Wagenet and local entities for this and other purposes.
M. ADJOURNMENT
Director Pohlson moved to adjourn and President Orth declared the meeting of
January 11, 2005 closed at 10:05 p.m.
CHARLES A. ORTH
President
MICHAEL V. CHAPMAN
Secretary to the Board of Directors
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