BUT GO AHEAD AND START ON TIME FOR THE SAKE OF BEING ON TIME. [1) CALL TO ORDER] [00:00:08] CALLING THIS MEETING TO ORDER. GOOD EVENING. THIS STUDY SESSION IS BEING HELD PURSUANT TO SECTION THREE OF EXECUTIVE ORDER N-2920 ISSUED BY GOVERNOR NEWSOME ON MARCH 20TH, 2020 AND ALL MEMBERS ARE JOINING THIS MEETING REMOTELY VIA ZOOM WEBINAR. WE WILL NOW CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER. IF YOU ARE ABLE, PLEASE STAND FOR FLAG SALUTE. SOLUTES PLEDGE. ON ITEM FOUR PUBLIC COMMENTS. THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING IS [INAUDIBLE] OR PERSONS. I'M SORRY, DID SOMEBODY [INAUDIBLE]? THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING IS RESERVED FOR PERSONS DESIRING TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL AND INCLUDING THE COUNCIL, ACTING AS THE GOVERNING BOARD FOR THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY ON ANY MATTER, NOT ON THIS AGENDA AND OVER WHICH THE COUNCIL AND SUCCESSOR AGENCY HAS JURISDICTION. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE HAND FEATURE TO REQUEST TO SPEAK. IF YOU ARE USING YOUR TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR TELEPHONE KEY PAD. YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS, ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED. ANYONE WHO HAS NOT PROVIDED THEIR COMMENT BY THE CLOSE OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT PORTION MEETING OF THIS MEETING, CAN EMAIL THEIR COMMENTS TO THE CITY CLERK AT CITYCLERK@CITYOFWASCO.ORG AND THEIR COMMENTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE FINAL RECORD. THE CITY COUNCIL IS VERY INTERESTED IN YOUR COMMENTS. HOWEVER, DUE TO BROWN ACT REQUIREMENTS, NO ACTION MAY BE TAKEN AT THIS MEETING. SHOULD YOUR COMMENT REQUIRE FURTHER CONSIDERATION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OR SUCCESS OR ITS SUCCESSOR AGENCY. THE ITEM WILL BE AGENDIZED FOR REPORT AND DISCUSSED AT A FUTURE COUNCIL MEETING. AT THIS TIME DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC? CLERK? MAYOR, AT THIS TIME, I SEE NO PUBLIC COMMENTS. OK, VERY WELL, LET'S [INAUDIBLE]. ALL RIGHT, MOVING ON TO ITEM FIVE. [5) Discussion regarding the potential changes on the Kern County Sheriff's Contact. (Ortiz Hernandez)] DISCUSSION REGARDING THE POTENTIAL CHANGES ON THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S CONTRACT. WE HAVE MR. ORTIZ. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR. MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. WANTED TO DO A WHOLE STAY STUDY SESSION TO KIND OF GO OVER THE LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES CONTRACT THE CITY OF WASCO HAS CURRENTLY HAS WITH KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, AS WELL AS UPCOMING CHANGES THAT THE KERN COUNTY WILL BE IMPLEMENTING INTO THE CONTRACT. WE'RE IN OUR FINAL YEAR OF THE CURRENT CONTRACT THAT WAS INITIALLY EXECUTED IN 2016 AND WOULD BE LOOKING AT LIKELY RENEWING A CONTRACT FOR THE NEXT IMMEDIATE FUTURE. BUT THERE ARE SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES THAT THE COUNTY IS GOING TO BE PURSUING WITH THIS CONTRACT THAT MAY DESIRE THE COUNCIL TO LOOK AT A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT OPTIONS FOR THE LONG FORESEEABLE FUTURE. WE'RE GONNA KINDA BREAK DOWN THE CURRENT CONTRACT OR GO GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THE CHANGES THAT ARE BEING PROPOSED BY THE COUNTY AND THEN MS. SOLBOLEWSKI WILL KIND OF DELVE INTO SOME RESEARCH THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING FOR THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS IN RESPONSE OR MORE SO AS A FOLLOW UP TO THE 2018 POLICE SERVICES STUDY THAT THE CITY HAD COMMISSIONED. WE DID SOME FOLLOW UP IN LOOKING AT EXAMPLES AND SCENARIOS THAT OTHER CITIES HAVE USED IN DEVELOPING AND LAUNCHING THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT IF THE COUNCIL SO CHOOSE SO. TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF RECAPPING, THIS INFORMATION WAS PRESENTED BACK IN THE BUDGET WORKSHOP FROM LAST YEAR, THE CONTRACT THAT WE INITIALLY WERE LOOKING AT AND STARTED OFF WITH FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENTAILED AN AMOUNT OF ROUGHLY THREE [00:05:06] MILLION NINE HUNDRED EIGHTY FOUR THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS. THAT ENCOMPASSED 18 DEPUTIES BROKEN DOWN AS BETWEEN ONE SERGEANT, TWO SENIOR DEPUTIES, 15 DEPUTIES AND TWO SUPPORT TECHNICIANS. CURRENTLY BECAUSE OF COVID AND THE FACT THAT THE SUBSTATION HAS LIMITED HOURS OR LIMITED ACCESS TO RESIDENTS THEY'RE CURRENTLY OPERATING WITH ONE SUPPORT TECHNICIAN IN LIEU OF TWO. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I HAD INITIALLY OKAYED BACK IN THE SUMMER MONTHS. GIVEN THE CLOSURE OF THE SUBSTATION TO PUBLIC ACCESS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC SITUATION THAT OCCURRED. THE CHART ON THE RIGHT GIVES YOU THE BREAKDOWN OF HOW THAT CONTRACT IS BROKEN OUT AND HOW IT'S CALCULATED BASED OFF OF SALARY, OVERTIME, SHIFT DIFFERENTIAL, EQUIPMENT, LIABILITY INSURANCE, DISPATCH SUPPLIES, THINGS OF THAT ADMINISTRATIVE NATURE. AND JUST AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRACT WAS INITIALLY ENTERED INTO IN TWENTY SIXTEEN, WHILE I SHOULD SAY THE CURRENT LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRACT, THE SERVICES AND THE CONTRACT WE HAD WITH KERN COUNTY DATE BACK FAR LONGER THAN THAT SINCE 2016. AND THE CURRENT CONTRACT, THAT CONTRACT HAS INCREASED ROUGHLY TWENTY FOUR POINT SEVENTY FIVE PERCENT. THE INITIAL CONTRACT COST IN 2016 WAS THREE POINT, JUST SHY OF THREE POINT TWO MILLION DOLLARS. SINCE THEN, BETWEEN THE INCREASES IN SALARY, TYPICALLY THROUGH THE INCREASES AND DEPUTIES MOVING UP AND STEP SALARY RANGES, WE'VE ALSO ADDED TWO ADDITIONAL DEPUTIES SINCE 2016. PART OF THAT ENCOMPASSES THE SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER THAT THE CITY INITIALLY HAD RECEIVED THE GRANT FOR THAT GRANT PROVIDED FUNDING FOR UP TO FOUR YEARS, TECHNICALLY PROVIDED FOR THREE YEARS, WITH THE FOURTH YEAR REQUIRED TO BE ABSORBED BY THE CITY. THE STEP INCREASES, AS I MENTIONED, RESULTED IN PART OF THE INCREASES THAT WE'VE SEEN BETWEEN 2016 AND NOW. IN TERMS OF BREAKDOWN OF SALARY STEPS CURRENTLY FOR THE TWENTY TWENTY ONE FISCAL YEAR WHERE THE CONTRACT STIPULATES SEVEN DEPUTIES, AT D STEP, TWO SENIOR DEPUTIES AT D STEP, THAT'S IN COMPARISON TO 2016 WHEN THE DEPUTIES WERE AT C STEP. AND IT APPEARS THAT THERE'S ABOUT A FIVE PERCENT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EACH STEP WITHIN THE KERN COUNTY'S SHERIFF'S SALARY SCHEDULE. YOU KNOW, THE ONE THING THAT I THINK WE'VE MENTIONED MANY TIMES IS THAT THE THE CURRENT CONTRACT IS A VERY BASIC OR A BASIC LEVEL OF SERVICE, SO THAT ANYTHING EXTRA FOR STICKING SUCH A SATURATION PATROL OR SPECIAL EVENTS ANYTHING ABOVE THE CONTRACT IS COST THAT THE CITY INCURS. AND IN RECENT YEARS, WE'VE COVERED THROUGH MEASURE X AND IN THE PAST OR OTHER SOURCES TO THE GENERAL FUND. BUT THIS COVERS EVERYTHING FOR SPECIAL EVENTS SUCH AS CHRISTMAS PARADE, LAW SCHOOL FESTIVAL, TRUNK OR TREAT. ANY EVENT THAT WE WOULD REQUIRE EITHER ADDITIONAL DEPUTIES TO BE PRESENT OR THE EXTENSION OF DEPUTIES TO WORK OVERTIME FOR. WE'VE ALSO PAID FOR SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR THINGS SUCH AS DUI TRAINING, TRAFFIC INVESTIGATIONS, NARCOTICS, GANG INVESTIGATIONS, THOSE HAVE GONE JUST TO ENSURE THE DEPUTIES WE HAVE IN THE WASCO SUBSTATIONS ARE TRAINED TO BE ABLE TO EITHER ENFORCE THOSE INFRACTIONS OR TO HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WOULD SUPPORT AND SUBSTANTIATE THEIR INVESTIGATIONS AND ULTIMATELY, HOPEFULLY THE CONVICTIONS OF ANY SUSPECTS THEY ARREST, PARTICULARLY FOR NARCOTICS AND GANGS THAT REQUIRE A CERTAIN LEVEL OF SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE AND TRAINING. SATURATION PATROLS, ALTHOUGH WE HAVEN'T HAD MANY IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, PRIOR TO COVID-19, WE WERE FUNDING ADDITIONAL PATROLS AND SATURATION PATROLS. PERIODICALLY, WE WERE AVERAGING ROUGHLY, I BELIEVE, ONE EVERY EVERY QUARTER OR TWO QUARTERS WHEN [INAUDIBLE] WERE IN FULL SWING. WE'VE ALSO THE CITY HAS PURCHASED EQUIPMENT FOR THE SUBSTATION DEPUTIES SUPPORT THAT ENCOMPASS BODY CAMS, THE VEHICLE DASH CAMERAS THAT THEY HAVE, SOME OF THOSE DATE BACK TO 2012 THAT ARE CURRENTLY STILL IN INVENTORY AND USED BY THE DEPUTIES. ALL THOSE ADDITIONAL ITEMS ARE BILLED TO THE CITY ON A QUARTERLY BASIS, THE WAY THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE BILLS OR INVOICES THE CITY IS THEY TAKE THAT CALCULATED AMOUNT OF THREE POINT EIGHT MILLION OR THREE POINT NINE MILLION DIVIDED OVER FOUR QUARTERS, BILL US ON A QUARTERLY BASIS. AND ANYTHING OF THOSE SPECIAL EVENTS GETS BILLED UNDERNEATH THAT ON TOP OF THE QUARTERLY AMOUNT. THERE'S ALSO ADDITIONAL GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS THAT IS NOT TIED TO THE COST [00:10:04] WE PAY THE KERN COUNTY. SO ANY OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS OR SUPPORT STAFF THAT THEY HAVE AT THE SHERIFF'S HEADQUARTERS, SOME OF THE COMMAND STAFF THAT, YOU KNOW, DOESN'T HAVE DIRECT SUPERVISION OVER THE WASCO SUBSTATION, BUT IS STILL OVERSEEING IT AND PROVIDES FOR THAT ADMINISTRATION AND LEADERSHIP. THOSE ARE COSTS THAT ARE NOT FACTORED INTO WHAT WE ULTIMATELY PAY. WE PAY JUST FOR THE 18 DEPUTIES AND SUPPORT STAFF AND A FRACTION OR A COMPONENT OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE COST OF THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE COUNTYWIDE INCURS. AND THAT COST IS THEN BROKEN UP ON A ON A PER DEPUTY BASIS AND ASSESSED AS A FRACTION UNDER OUR CONTRACT. WE ALSO HAVE EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH THE MAINTENANCE THE CITY OWNS THE SUBSTATION HERE, HERE IN WASCO IT'S A CITY OWNED FACILITY, AND THERE ARE OTHER SERVICES THAT WE PAY FOR, INCLUDING THE INTERNET FOR THAT FACILITY, AS WELL AS MAINTENANCE, JANITORIAL SERVICES AND JUST THE UPKEEP OF THE BUILDING AND INFRASTRUCTURE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. WE ALSO HAVE MANY DECADES AGO, THE CITY HAD ITS OWN CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT AND WHILE. I DON'T KNOW THE REASONS WHY WE WENT AWAY FROM HAVING OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENTS. WE DO STILL INCUR UNFUNDED LIABILITY AND RETIREMENT COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT POLICE DEPARTMENT, FOR MY UNDERSTANDING, WAS WELL OVER 30 YEARS AGO OR 20, DEFINITELY 30 YEARS AGO SINCE THAT WAS WE HAD. SO HERE WE ARE SOME TWENTY FIVE, THIRTY YEARS. AND WE'RE STILL PAYING FOR THOSE RETIREMENT COSTS ASSOCIATED BACK THEN WITH THAT POLICE DEPARTMENT OFFICERS THAT WERE EMPLOYED. HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF THE INVOICE THAT WE RECEIVED QUARTERLY, TO THE LEFT IS THE ENTIRE INVOICE. AND I ZOOMED IN ON THE CENTRAL PORTION TO KIND OF GIVE YOU ILLUSTRATION OF HOW WE ARE INVOICED, SHOWING YOU THE QUARTERLY AMOUNT THAT'S INVOICED IN THE SPECIAL EVENTS THAT ARE LISTED. WHEN THE CITY RECEIVES THE INVOICES. WE DO GET THE I WOULD SAY PROBABLY THE BACKUP DOCUMENTATION FOR EACH EVENT THAT INCLUDES THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENTS ITEMIZED LIST OF THE DEPUTIES THAT ARE PARTICIPATING IN THAT EVENT, THE NUMBER OF HOURS THEY THEY WERE PRESENT, AS WELL AS ANY DOCUMENTATION AND SPECIFICALLY ALSO ANY APPROVALS THAT I PROVIDE AND GAVE TO THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE FOR APPROVING OF THOSE SPECIAL EVENTS OR AND OR TRAININGS. HERE'S A BREAKDOWN OF THE OVERALL COST OF LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES FOR A CITY OF WASCO, THE TOP PORTION IS THE ACTUAL CONTRACTED COST WITH THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE. THE BOTTOM PORTION IS THOSE ADDITIONAL COSTS THAT I MENTIONED, SUCH AS OF FACILITY MAINTENANCE, THE UNFUNDED LIABILITY AND RETIREMENT COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE WITH THE PREVIOUS LAW ENFORCEMENT. ALL OF THOSE COSTS ARE INCORPORATED INTO, I GUESS, OUR COST CENTER THAT SUPPORTS OR IS PART OF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES FOR THE CITY SPECIFICALLY. AND SO TO KIND OF ZOOM IN A LITTLE BIT MORE SPECIFICALLY FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS, YOU SEE HOW THAT HAS KIND OF TRANSLATED BOTH IN TERMS OF THE ACTUAL CONTRACTED COST AND THE ADDITIONAL COST THAT WE SEE ON THE BOTTOM PORTION. AS I MENTIONED, PART OF THE THE ASSOCIATED COSTS, NON THAT ARE NOT RELATED TO THE CONTRACT WITH THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS OUR RETIREMENT COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE SAFETY PLAN. THAT THE CITY HAD MANY YEARS AGO, THE OVERALL VALUE OF THOSE BENEFITS ARE LITTLE OVER EIGHT HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS. THE UNFUNDED LIABILITY IS OVER HALF OF THAT AT FOUR HUNDRED FIFTY EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS. BACK IN TWENTY SEVENTEEN. WE ARE NOW AT ROUGHLY FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY FOUR OR FOUR HUNDRED TWENTY FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS. AND YOU CAN SEE THROUGH THIS AMORTIZATION SCHEDULE BASED ON THE CURRENT SCHEDULE, WE'RE AT, WE'RE GOING TO KEEP PAYING ON THOSE RETIREMENT BENEFITS, CLEAR OUT TO TWENTY THIRTY THREE AT ROUGHLY FORTY NINE THOUSAND DOLLARS EACH YEAR. FROM HERE TILL THEN. YOU DO HAVE AN OPTION OR FOR TEN AND FIVE YEAR AMORTIZATION SCHEDULE. AND YOU CAN SEE WHAT THAT WHAT THAT AMOUNTS TO ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE. TO PUT IN PERSPECTIVE, LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICE WASCO'S POPULATION IS ABOUT TWENTY THOUSAND, JUST SHY OF TWENTY NINE THOUSAND RESIDENTS. BACK THEN WHEN WE PRESENTED THIS FOR THE BUDGET WORKSHOP, THE STATE PRISON POPULATION WAS ROUGHLY ABOUT FORTY EIGHT HUNDRED INMATES. THAT MEANT TOTAL NET POPULATION SERVED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT IN WASCO OF TWENTY FOUR THOUSAND RESIDENTS. TOTAL EXPENSES, BOTH CONTRACTED AS WELL AS OTHER ASSOCIATED COSTS FOR THE [00:15:04] CITY, WAS A FOUR POINT THREE MILLION PER CAPITA COST OF ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY TWO DOLLARS AND FORTY SIX CENTS. LAST YEAR WE TALKED ABOUT FUTURE FISCAL CONSIDERATIONS THAT WERE GOING TO IMPACT THE COST OF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES CONTRACT AND LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES COSTS IN GENERAL WOULD BE THE INCREASED COST OF FUTURE CONTRACTS WITH THE CURRENT ROSTER OF 18 DEPUTIES. WE HAVE ALSO DISCUSSED IN THE PAST AND HAVE BUDGETED OR PLANNED FOR THE COST TO MAINTAIN THE BODY WORN CAMERAS. THE WASCO SUBSTATION WAS THE FIRST SUBSTATION IN KERN COUNTY TO TO HAVE BODY WORN CAMERAS. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT RIGHT NOW THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS IN THE PROCESS OF LOOKING AT DEPLOYING ADDITIONAL BODY WORN CAMERAS ACROSS THE DEPARTMENT, IF NOT SPECIFICALLY WITHIN SPECIFIC SUBSTATIONS, SUCH AS A METRO SUBSTATION THAT SERVES THE BAKERSFIELD AREA. THEY'RE LOOKING AT A DIFFERENT MANUFACTURER AND THAT'S GOING TO TRANSLATE TO ADDITIONAL COST TO THE CITY IF THAT MOVES FORWARD AND IF WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT BODY WORN CAMERAS ON OUR DEPUTIES IN WASCO. ORIGINALLY, THE BODY WORN CAMERAS WERE PROVIDED TO THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES THROUGH A GRANT THE CITY RECEIVED IN 2012. THAT WAS THE INITIAL BATCH OF IN DASH CAMERAS IN THEIR VEHICLES SUBSEQUENTLY GOING WITH THE SAME VENDOR. WE FUNDED THROUGH PART THROUGH GRANTS AND IN PART THROUGH CITY FUNDS. WE FUNDED THE DEPLOYMENT OF BODY WORN CAMERAS AND THE SAME VENDOR THAT PROVIDED THE IN DASH CAMERAS. MUCH OF THAT HARDWARE, PARTICULARLY THE SERVERS THAT ARE ENTAILED WITH DOWNLOADING THE VIDEO DATE BACK TO 2012. SO YOU'RE COMING UP ON A DECADE WORTH OF SERVICE. AND THEY'VE HAD ISSUES WITH HARD DRIVES GOING DOWN. THE INFRASTRUCTURE IS AS IT'S JUST AGING. AND THAT'S WHAT LED TO CONSIDERATION OF UPGRADING AND EVEN CHANGING MANUFACTURERS TO AN UPGRADED BODY WORN CAMERA SYSTEM. THE CITY IS ALSO PROVIDING IN THE PAST POLICE BICYCLES, THOSE BICYCLES, I'M NOT QUITE SURE HOW OLD ARE THEY ARE SOME DATE BACK SEVERAL YEARS SOME WERE A LITTLE NEWER. WE REGULARLY TRY TO MAINTAIN THEM AND HAVE THEM SERVICED EVERY YEAR TO MAKE SURE THEY'RE CAPABLE OF BEING UTILIZED. THAT DID REQUIRE DEPUTIES THAT WERE TRAINED IN BIKE PATROL AND ALSO JUST WITH THE AGE AND WEAR AND TEAR. SOME OF THOSE BICYCLES MAY NEED COMPONENTS TO BE REPLACED AND OR JUST THE ENTIRE BICYCLE TO BE UPGRADED IF THE COST IS TOO COST PROHIBITIVE. SOME ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS ARE JUST THE ADDITIONAL DEPUTIES. LAST YEAR, THE CITY COUNCIL AUTHORIZED FUNDING AN ADDITIONAL DEPUTY AND INCREASING THE ROSTER TO NINETEEN BECAUSE OF COVID-19, AS WELL AS THE STRUGGLES WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, INCLUDING MANY OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN DEPUTIES. THAT'S BEEN SOMETHING THAT HASN'T BEEN ABLE TO BE IMPLEMENTED. AND SO WE'RE STILL WITH EIGHTEEN DEPUTIES IN LIEU OF THE NINETEEN AT THE CITY COUNCIL HAD INITIALLY DESIRED DURING THE BUDGET PROCESS. HERE'S A BREAKDOWN IN TERMS OF THE COSTS. SHERIFF'S OFFICE CONTRACTED COSTS BROKEN UP, AS I MENTIONED, BY SALARY, VEHICLE MAINTENANCE, DISPATCH, ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS, THINGS OF THAT SORT. YOU CAN CLEARLY SEE THAT EIGHTY ONE PERCENT OF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT COSTS IS ASSOCIATED WITH SALARY AND BENEFITS. AND SO FOR THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, WE INITIALLY STARTED WITH A CONTRACTED COST OF THREE POINT NINE MILLION. THIS WAS A FIVE PERCENT INCREASE OVER THE PREVIOUS YEAR, BUT IT WAS ORIGINALLY PROJECTED BY THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE TO BE AN INCREASE OF EIGHT POINT SIX TWO PERCENT INCREASE OR FOUR POINT ONE MILLION. THE BIG DRIVER FOR THAT WAS AN INCREASE OF THREE HUNDRED TWENTY SEVEN THOUSAND. IT WAS A DUE TO THE KERN COUNTY BOARD SUPERVISORS PROVIDING INCREASES AS PART OF THEIR LABOR NEGOTIATIONS. AND THOSE INCREASES RESULTED IN THE DRAMATIC INCREASE OF EIGHT POINT SIX TWO PERCENT. WE HAD A PROVISION IN THE CURRENT CONTRACT THAT CAPPED ANY INCREASES AT FIVE PERCENT. AND SO THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE HONORED THAT LIMITATION. BUT THEY ALSO PROVIDED NOTICE THAT TO THE SUBSEQUENT YEAR THAT THAT LIMITATION WASN'T GOING TO GOING TO APPLY. THERE WAS PART OF THE PROVISION ENTAILED THAT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE NEEDED TO PROVIDE 12 MONTHS NOTICE OF ANY INCREASE ABOVE FIVE PERCENT. SO, YOU KNOW, THEM BEING PROACTIVE, THEY WENT AHEAD AND NOTIFY US THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE AN INCREASE GREATER THAN FIVE PERCENT, EVEN THOUGH WE WERE GOING TO BE ENTERING A NEW CONTRACT. SO JUST GAVE US THAT NOTICE LAST YEAR AS WELL. [00:20:04] AS I MENTIONED, THE INCREASE WAS DRIVEN BY WAGES AND RETIREMENT COST. THE CONTRACT DOES NOT REFLECT AT THE TIME WE WERE APPLYING FOR TWO ADDITIONAL DEPUTIES TO THE COPS GRANT PROGRAM. WE SUBSEQUENTLY WERE NOT AWARDED THAT GRANT. THERE'S GOING TO BE SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES GOING INTO THE NEXT CONTRACT, AND IF YOU RECALL, BACK IN THE SUMMER, I PROVIDED THE COUNCIL AN UPDATE IN TERMS OF THE CONTRACT CHANGES THAT WE WERE GOING TO BE SEEING WITH THE KERN COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT AND THE CHANGES THAT THE COUNTY WAS MOVING FORWARD AND LOOKING AT A HUNDRED PERCENT COST RECOVERY MODEL. THEY'RE GOING TO BE ESSENTIALLY DOING AND LOOKING TO DO THE SAME THING WITH OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRACT. THE KEY DIFFERENCE IS THAT WASCO IS THE ONLY CITY REMAINING IN KERN COUNTY THAT'S STILL CONTRACTS WITH THE LAW, WITH SHERIFF'S OFFICE FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES. ONE OF THE KEY CHANGES AND THERE ARE SEVERAL THAT I'M GOING TO GO THROUGH, ONE OF THEM IS UNDER THE CONTRACT, IS THAT IF THERE'S A DEPUTY THAT'S GOING TO BE OUT FOR AN EXTENDED LEAVE, GREATER THAN 10 DAYS, ESSENTIALLY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE WILL REPLACE THAT DEPUTY AND BACKFILL THAT ROLE. UNDER THE CONTRACT MOVING FORWARD, THEY'VE INDICATED THAT THAT WILL NOT OCCUR, THAT IF THERE'S A DEPUTY OUT ON A WORK RELATED INJURY, THAT THEY WILL NOT BACKFILL THAT POSITION. NOW, OBVIOUSLY, IF IT'S GOING TO BE AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME, THEN THERE'LL BE SOME DISCUSSION AND NAVIGATING IF THERE IS NOT AN ABILITY TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL DEPUTY TO COVER THAT, BUT THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE AT THE CITY'S COSTS IN ADDITION TO THAT. SO. IN ADDITION, PART OF THE COST ONE HUNDRED PERCENT COST RECOVERY MODEL WASCO WILL BE BILLED AT THE ACTUAL COST FOR EACH DEPUTY IN AND THE STEPS THAT ARE CURRENTLY AND YOU KNOW, THERE WAS SOME I'LL PROBABLY SAY SOME REARRANGEMENT AND SOME FINESSING OF THE [INAUDIBLE] CONTRACT IN ORDER TO REACH THAT MAXIMUM LIMIT OF FIVE PERCENT INCREASE FROM THE ORIGINAL EIGHT POINT SIX TWO PERCENT. AND SO MOVING FORWARD, YOU KNOW, WE'RE JUST NOT GOING TO HAVE THAT LUXURY. WE'RE GOING TO ABSORB THE FULL COSTS, THE FULL BURDEN OF SALARY AND BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT DEPUTY. AND WHEREAS BEFORE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S, YOU KNOW, WHAT WAS A BENEFIT FOR THE WASCO UNDER THE WASCO CONTRACT WAS ANY EXTRA SERVICES, INCLUDING THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE SWAT TEAM, THE BOMB SQUAD AND PARTICULARLY THE HOMICIDE INVESTIGATORS. THOSE WEREN'T AT ANY ADDITIONAL COST TO THE CITY. UNDER THE NEW CONTRACT AS PERCEIVED THAT THOSE EXTRA SERVICES WILL BE BILLED TO THE CITY. NOW, I'VE HEARD FROM OTHER CITIES THAT HAVE AT TIMES HAD TO CALL IN THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE FOR THE SWAT TEAM, AND MOST OF THEM HAVE INDICATED THAT THEY HAVEN'T BEEN CHARGED FOR THE SWAT TEAM. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S GOING TO CHANGE UNDER THE CEO'S DIRECTION, BUT WE HAVE THE REALITY IS, MANY OF YOU KNOW, WE'VE EXPERIENCED A CERTAIN NUMBER OF HOMICIDES IN THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS THAT HAVE RESULTED IN THE DEPLOYMENTS OF THE HOMICIDE INVESTIGATORS TO WASCO. LAST YEAR, WE HAD SIX HOMICIDES AND ONE OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING. AND I'LL GET INTO SOME OF THE THOSE FINANCIAL IMPACTS AND A LITTLE BIT. BIG. A BIG CHANGE ALSO WILL BE IN HOW THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE CALCULATES OVER TIME. BEFORE THEY'VE TRIED TO FORECAST AND INCORPORATED INTO THEIR SHERIFF'S CONTRACT AND AN OVERTIME COST CALCULATION AT NINE PERCENT. WHETHER OR NOT THE CITY BENEFITED FROM THE SERVICES OF THAT NINE PERCENT OF OVERTIME OR GREATER, IN SOME CASES IT WAS GREATER, DEPENDING ON THE DEPUTY. WE WERE JUST CHARGING THE FLAT NINE PERCENT. THEY'RE LOOKING TO INCREASE THAT TO 15 PERCENT. AND I'VE INCLUDED THE REFERENCE POINTS FROM THE EXISTING CONTRACT IN THIS SLIDE AS WELL. IN TERMS OF FINANCIAL IMPACT, JUST A VERY ROUGH ESTIMATE OF WHAT WE MAY BE LOOKING AT IN TERMS OF INCREASES TO WAGES AND COSTS, I'M ESTIMATING THE MINIMUM ESTIMATED INCREASE FOR THE CONTRACT COST WOULD BE ABOUT FIVE POINT NINE PERCENT. I WOULD PROBABLY SAY THAT THAT'S A STARTING POINT OF WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT, AND THAT'S JUST BASED OFF OF ASSUMING BASE SALARY AND BENEFITS WITH THE STEP INCREASE THAT DEPUTIES MAY BE AFFORDED, AS WELL AS THE OVERTIME COST CALCULATION AT 15 PERCENT VERSUS NINE. BODY WORN CAMERAS, THEY'RE CURRENTLY TALKING WITH AXON AND LOOKING TO DEPLOY THEIR SYSTEM. IT'S A WHILE IT'S A SIMILAR IT'S A IT'S A BODY CAMERA, BODY WORN CAMERA SYSTEM. [00:25:05] THE TECHNOLOGY AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE SERVICES THAT SUPPORT THAT SYSTEM ARE DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT FROM WHAT WASCO SUBSTATION DEPUTIES CURRENTLY USE, WHICH IS A WATCH GUARD SYSTEM. AND THAT ALSO AXON IS JUST IS A SIGNIFICANTLY PRICIER SERVICE BECAUSE IT'S BOTH FACTORS IN TECHNOLOGY WITH THE CAMERAS, AS WELL AS A SERVICE THAT ALLOWS THEM TO MANAGE THEIR EVIDENCE AND DOCUMENTATION FOR THE VIDEOS THAT CAN BE UPLOADED TO AXON'S CLOUD BASED SYSTEM. SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS, AS I MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, HOMICIDES IN PARTICULAR AND OTHER DETECTIVES THAT ARE MIGHT BE NEEDED FOR INVESTIGATIONS IN WASCO FROM TIME TO TIME. I'VE ASKED FOR INFORMATION ON JUST LOOKING AT THE LAST YEAR'S HOMICIDES, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO PROJECT WHAT WE MAY BE LOOKING AT PER INVESTIGATION AND OVERALL SO THAT WE AT LEAST CAN HAVE SOME BUDGETARY NUMBERS TO FACTOR IN WHEN WE WHEN WE SET THE BUDGET FOR THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR. I'VE BEEN TOLD AT A MINIMUM, WHEN A HOMICIDE OCCURS, THERE'S A MINIMUM TWO DETECTIVES AND ONE SERGEANT THAT RESPONDS TO EVERY HOMICIDE AND CONDUCT THE INVESTIGATION. IN TERMS OF NUMBER OF HOURS, I CAN'T TELL YOU FOR SURE. I'M WAITING ON THAT INFORMATION TO PROVIDE YOU, AS I MENTIONED, IN SIX HOMICIDES AND TWENTY TWENTY ONE AND ONE OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING SOME OF THOSE. AS YOU KNOW, THOSE CASES STILL REMAIN UNSOLVED. AND SO IT'S HARD TO DETERMINE WHAT LEVEL OF TIME THAT THOSE DETECTIVES ARE REQUIRED FOR THOSE INVESTIGATIONS. I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO MS. SOBOLEWSKI, SHE'S KIND OF GOING TO GO OVER A BIG CHUNK OF THE RESEARCH WE'VE BEEN DOING IN TERMS OF WHAT OTHER CITIES, HOW THEY'RE HOW THEY ESTABLISH WHAT THEIR FRAMEWORK FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES IS, PARTICULARLY ALSO THE CITY OF MENIFEE. AND WHAT THEY'VE DONE HAS THEY ARE THE MOST RECENT CITY IN CALIFORNIA TO TO ESTABLISH THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. SO. GOOD EVENING, CAN YOU HEAR ME OK? WE CAN. YES. GREAT GOOD EVENING MAYOR GARCIA AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL, LIKE DANIEL SAID, I AM GOING TO GO OVER A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF WHAT IT TOOK ON CITY HERE IN CALIFORNIA TO START UP THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. NEXT SLIDE. THE EXAMPLE HERE IS THE CITY OF MENIFEE, CALIFORNIA, WITH A POPULATION OF JUST OVER NINETY FOUR THOUSAND INDIVIDUALS THAT LIVE THERE IN THE CITY. THEY HAD A CONTRACT WITH THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY SHERIFF'S FOR FORTY NINE OFFICERS AT A FIFTEEN POINT SIX MILLION DOLLAR A YEAR CONTRACT. AND IN NOVEMBER, TWO THOUSAND EIGHTEEN, THE CITY COUNCIL THERE FOR THE CITY OF MENIFEE DECIDED AND THEY APPROVED FOR THE CITY TO START THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. AND THEY RECENTLY STARTED ON JULY 1ST OF TWENTY TWENTY. NEXT SLIDE. THE FIRST THING I HAD A CONVERSATION WITH THE DEPUTY CITY MANAGER THERE OF THE CITY OF MENIFEE, AND THE FIRST THING THAT REALLY EVERY CITY SHOULD DO IS A FEASIBILITY STUDY. AND THEY CHOSE TO HIRE A INDIVIDUAL WHO IS A RETIRED POLICE CHIEF TO DO THEIR STUDY. AND IT WAS IMPLEMENTED THE PLAN WAS COULD BE IMPLEMENTED. EXCUSE ME, BUT THEY DID ENCOUNTER SOME UNFORESEEABLE EXPENSES. FOR EXAMPLE, THE BUILDING FOR THE HEADQUARTERS OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WAS BUDGETED TO SPEND ONE POINT FIVE MILLION DOLLARS, BUT THEY ENDED UP SPENDING THREE MILLION DOLLARS FOR THE HEADQUARTERS. AND THAT WAS BECAUSE THEY HAD TO DO SOME RETRO SEISMIC RETROFITTING TO THE BUILDING THAT THEY JUST DIDN'T KNOW THAT THEY WERE GOING TO HAVE TO DO THAT. ADDITIONALLY, THEY HAD TO HIRE FOUR ADDITIONAL POSITIONS IN THE CITY TO TAKE ON THE ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN OF CREATING THAT POLICE DEPARTMENT, WHICH INCLUDED TWO HR SPECIALISTS AND TWO MANAGEMENT SPECIALISTS AS WELL AS AND I'LL GET INTO THIS LATER. THEY HAD TO HIRE AN ADDITIONAL IT INDIVIDUAL FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. NEXT SLIDE. THEIR CURRENT CONTRACT WITH THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY. THEY HAD TO CONTINUE TO PAY THAT CONTRACT IN ADDITION TO SPENDING THE INITIAL SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS TO BEGIN HIRING AND PURCHASING EQUIPMENT. SO THAT WAS A SIMULTANEOUS EXPENSE. THEY HAD TO HIRE THE POLICE CHIEF, THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SAFETY. THEY HIRED AN EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT, IT SPECIALIST, AND THOSE WERE THE FIRST. INDIVIDUALS TO START OFF IMPLEMENTING THIS PROGRAM. SOME CONTRACTED SERVICES THAT THEY KNEW THAT THEY COULD NOT GET OFF THE GROUND ON JULY THE 1ST WAS OBVIOUSLY A BOMB SQUAD AND A SWAT, AND THEY HAVE A THREE [00:30:03] CITY AGREEMENT WITH MURRIETA, HEMET AND MENIFEE FOR THOSE SERVICES. AND JUST TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE, THE DEPUTY CITY MANAGER THERE TOLD ME THAT THEY SPENT 8 THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR JUST ONE SWAT CALL-OUT JUST TO KIND OF GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THAT EXPENSE. IN ADDITION TO THAT CONVERSATION THAT I HAD WITH THE DEPUTY CITY MANAGER, I RECENTLY ATTENDED THE MUNICIPAL MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CONFERENCE, AND ONE OF THEIR KEYNOTE SPEAKERS WAS THE CITY MANAGER FOR THE CITY OF MENIFEE. AND HE CITED THAT THE THREE PRIMARY REASONS WHY THEY CHOSE TO BREAK AWAY FROM RIVERSIDE COUNTY WAS LOCAL CONTROL. THEY WANTED TO BE ABLE TO CONTROL WHERE THE PATROLS WERE GOING TO TAKE PLACE, IF THEY NEEDED AN ADDITIONAL SATURATION IN A CERTAIN AREA OF TOWN, THEY WANTED TO HAVE CONTROL OVER THAT. THE SECOND REASON WAS THE FISCAL POSITION THEY WERE EXPERIENCING CONTINUED CONTRACT INCREASES FOR THEIR CONTRACT WITH RIVERSIDE COUNTY. AND LASTLY, THEY WERE LOOKING FOR A SPECIFIC SERVICE MODEL. THEY WERE LOOKING FOR THE RIGHT TYPE OF POLICE OFFICER TO BE IN THEIR CITY. AND SO THOSE WERE THE THREE PRIMARY REASONS. SO ONCE HE REALIZED THEY WERE APPROVED TO START THEIR POLICE DEPARTMENT, HE KNEW THAT THEY NEEDED TO FORMULATE AN IMPLEMENTATION TEAM. SO LIKE I SAID EARLIER, THEY HAD TO HIRE ADDITIONAL HR, THE IT AND EVEN FINANCE STAFF TO TAKE ON THAT ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN TO CREATE THIS NEW POLICE DEPARTMENT. SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT THEY EXPERIENCED WAS THE LAST COMPARABLE CITY IN SIZE TO CREATE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WITH TWENTY FIVE YEARS AGO. AND THAT WAS THE CITY OF CITRUS HEIGHTS. SO THEY BASICALLY WERE GOING AT THIS FROM SCRATCH. I MEAN, THE COST TWENTY FIVE YEARS AGO IS NOT THE SAME COST IN 2019 AND 2020. SO THEY REALLY ARE THE BENCHMARK CITY. YOU COULD SAY. ANOTHER CHALLENGE WAS THE PUBLIC EMPLOYEE'S RETIREMENT SYSTEM PERS AS YOU HEARD DANIEL SAY EARLIER, WE ARE STILL PAYING THOSE COSTS FROM A POLICE DEPARTMENT. THAT WAS. WOW, MORE THAN 30, PROBABLY 40 YEARS AGO. SO THE PERS RETIREMENT SYSTEM, SO THEY HAD TO FIND A WAY TO ATTRACT THE RIGHT TYPE OF POLICE OFFICER TO THEIR CITY. SO WHAT DID THAT MEAN? THAT MEANS THAT THEY HAD TO RECRUIT EXISTING POLICE OFFICERS FROM OTHER CITIES WHO WERE PROBABLY IN WHAT WE CALLED THE CLASSIC PERS SYSTEM, WHICH IS THE MORE LUCRATIVE OF THE RETIREMENT PACKAGES HERE FOR PUBLIC SAFETY. SO HOW DID THEY DO THAT? THEY HAD TO OFFSET THAT WITH OFFERING THEM SOME TYPE OF BONUS. SO THEIR INITIAL BONUS WAS FOR FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR EACH POLICE OFFICER. AND NOT ONLY THAT, BUT THEY ALSO PAY THEM A RETENTION BONUS ANNUALLY, ANYWHERE BETWEEN TWO AND FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS TO MAKE UP THAT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOING FROM CLASSIC PERS TO WHAT WE CALL THE PERS PEPRA. ALSO A CHALLENGE WAS THE CLETS THE CALIFORNIA LAW ENFORCEMENT TELECOMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM, SO THAT BOARD MEETS TWICE A YEAR TO APPROVE AN APPLICATION FOR ACCESS. IF THEIR TIME AND TIMING WAS JUST PERFECT, ACCORDING TO THE CITY MANAGER, IN ORDER TO GET THEIR APPLICATION IN AND THE BOARD TO APPROVE THEIR APPLICATION FOR ACCESS INTO THE CLET SYSTEM IF THEY WERE OFF. THEY PROBABLY WOULD HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO START ON JULY THE 1ST. BUT HE SAID TIME WAS ON HIS SIDE IN THAT IN THAT CASE. THE OTHER CHALLENGE WAS THEY HAD TO GIVE RIVERSIDE COUNTY A ONE YEAR ADVANCE NOTICE THAT THEY WERE GOING TO TERMINATE THEIR CONTRACT. SO THEY HAD TO ENSURE THAT THEY HAD EVERYTHING IN PLACE IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT THE RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF MENIFEE, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME SORT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ON JULY THE 1ST IF THEY GAVE THAT NOTICE. ANOTHER THING WAS THAT THEIR COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT THAT THEY PURCHASED WAS BUILT IN CHINA, SO THEY HAD TO ENSURE THAT LEAD TIME WAS THERE IN ORDER TO GET THAT EQUIPMENT. AND ANOTHER CHALLENGE WAS DISPATCH, SO THEY SAID THE FIRST YEAR THAT THEY WERE NOT GOING TO CREATE THEIR OWN DISPATCH AND THAT THEY ENTERED INTO A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY OF MURRIETA SO THAT THEY USE THEM FOR THEIR DISPATCH SERVICES. NEXT PLEASE. ANOTHER CHALLENGE WAS THE FLEET ACQUISITION. HE DIDN'T KNOW THIS AT THE TIME, BUT FORD WAS ONE YEAR BEHIND ON THEIR FULFILLING THEIR ORDERS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY VEHICLES. [00:35:03] SO THEY HAD TO CHOOSE AN ALTERNATIVE, AND THAT WAS CHEVY. AND SO EVEN AFTER THEY PURCHASED THE CHEVY VEHICLES, THEY HAD TO BE RETROFITTED. SO THAT'S EXTRA TIME THAT THEY NEEDED TO ENSURE THAT THOSE VEHICLES WERE EQUIPPED WITH WHAT THEY NEEDED TO. NEXT, THEY ALSO HIRED A MARKETING FIRM TO CREATE VIDEOS AND BILLBOARDS AND JUST TO CREATE THAT EXCITEMENT BECAUSE THEY WERE REALLY LOOKING FOR THE FIRST THE FINEST INDIVIDUALS TO COME TO THEIR CITY. THERE ARE SOME VIDEOS THERE. MEET THE CHIEF. AND THERE'S ANOTHER ONE THAT I WOULD CALL LIKE A HYPE VIDEO JUST TO CREATE THAT EXCITEMENT WITHIN THEIR CITY. HERE YOU SEE A SNAPSHOT OF THEIR TWENTY TWENTY, TWENTY TWENTY ONE BUDGET. SO FOURTEEN POINT NINE, CLOSE TO FIFTEEN MILLION DOLLARS IS WHAT THE CITY OF MENIFEE IS WHAT THEIR BUDGET IS. THEY ALSO HAVE A SIMILAR TO WHAT OUR MEASURE X IS. THEY HAVE A MEASURE DOUBLE D. THAT BRINGS IN ROUGHLY 10 MILLION DOLLAR. THIS YEAR. THEY DID SAY OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE OF COVID, IT IS LESS THAN WHAT IT NORMALLY BRINGS IN. AND SO THAT MEASURE HELPS TO OFFSET THE COST OF THEIR GENERAL FUND TO FUND THE FOURTEEN POINT NINE DOLLARS MILLION POLICE FORCE THAT THEY HAVE. AND AS YOU CAN SEE THERE, WHAT THEY'RE AUTHORIZED AND THE RANGE IN STEP AND SALARY FOR THOSE POSITIONS. HERE YOU'LL SEE A GRAPH OR A PRESENTATION HERE OF NEARBY CITIES WITH AN ESTABLISHED POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THEIR ANNUAL COST, SOMETHING I DO WANT TO NOTE THERE WHERE IT TALKS ABOUT THE SWORN OFFICERS, THAT IS WHAT THEY'RE AUTHORIZED. THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT THAT IS WHAT THAT ALL POSITIONS ARE FILLED. THAT'S JUST WHAT THEY'RE AUTHORIZED GOES INTO. ALSO, HOW MANY NON SWORN INDIVIDUALS, THE RATIO ONE POLICE OFFICER, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE POLICE OFFICER FOR EVERY NINE HUNDRED THIRTY SIX RESIDENTS IN THE CITY OF ARVIN, THEIR BUDGET IS TWO POINT EIGHT DOLLARS MILLION. AND THAT IS THE SALARY RANGE FOR THE POLICE CHIEF. AND I ALSO HAVE A COLUMN THERE THAT TELLS YOU B AS THE DATA IS CURRENT AS OF THAT FISCAL YEAR. SO FISCAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE CITY. DO WE HAVE THE REVENUE TO ESTABLISH AND SUSTAIN A POLICE DEPARTMENT? THINGS LIKE WHERE WOULD THE POLICE HEADQUARTERS BE LOCATED? DO WE BUILD THE BRAND NEW HEADQUARTERS OR DO WE REMODEL AND RELOCATE SOMEWHERE ELSE? WHAT ARE THE STAFFING LEVELS? WHAT ABOUT THE DISPATCH? DO WE INCUR THAT COST OR DO CONTRACT WITH SOMEONE ELSE? DEFINITELY INCREASING THE EXISTING CITY STAFF LEVELS, ESPECIALLY THE FIRST THING THAT COMES TO MIND WOULD BE HR CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT WE ONLY HAVE ONE INDIVIDUAL IN OUR HR DEPARTMENT IN THE CITY OF WASCO. SO OTHER AREAS TO CONSIDER THIS CONTRACTED SERVICES, AS DANIEL MENTIONED, KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS GOING TO START BILLING US FOR THE HOMICIDE DETECTIVES AND SWAT. AND SO THOSE ARE ADDITIONAL ITEMS THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO CONSIDER AND. YOU KNOW TRY TO PROGRAM WHAT THOSE COSTS WOULD BE. THE OFFICE OF THE COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES OR THE COPS, THEY'VE ESTABLISHED A GUIDE. THERE'S A LINK THERE THAT KIND OF GOES IT'S LIKE A SIXTY FIVE PAGE LITTLE MANUAL THAT TALKS ABOUT SOME OTHER THINGS TO CONSIDER AS WELL WHEN ESTABLISHING A POLICE DEPARTMENT. NEXT. SO THE FEASIBILITY STUDY, LIKE I SAID EARLIER, THAT MENIFEE'S, THE CITY OF MENIFEE'S FIRST STOP, THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO DO HERE. IT WOULD PROVIDE AN IN-DEPTH LOOK OF THE CITY OF WASCO, OUR RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE. AND IF IT WAS ESTABLISHED, COULD WE MAINTAIN NOT ONLY CAN WE MAINTAIN IT, BUT COULD WE RETAIN AN ADEQUATELY TRAINED FORCE HERE? THE CITY OF WASCO, THE ESTIMATED COST FOR A FEASIBILITY STUDIES ANYWHERE BETWEEN 40 TO 60 THOUSAND DOLLARS, AND IT'S ESTIMATED TO TAKE FIVE TO SIX MONTHS TO COMPLETE THAT STUDY. SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? I THINK UNDERSTANDING THE GENERAL FUND AND OTHER REVENUE SOURCES AND ALSO TAKING IN MIND THAT THE FIRE COSTS ARE PROJECTED TO INCREASE. ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY FIVE PERCENT OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS. AND THAT IS DEFINITELY A CRITICAL SERVICE THAT THE CITY CANNOT DO WITHOUT. OTHER ADDITIONAL SERVICES THAT WE NEED TO CONSIDER. LIKE DANIEL MENTIONED IN HIS EARLIER PRESENTATIONS, THE SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER, IF [00:40:04] WE DID ESTABLISH A POLICE DEPARTMENT HERE WITHIN THE CITY OF WASCO, HOW WOULD THAT PLAY A FACTOR AS WELL AS THE SHERIFF'S ACTIVITY LEAGUE? AND THIS I'LL LEAVE YOU HERE WITH A QUOTE HERE FROM STUART GARY, THE CITY GATE CONSULTANT, "POST FLOYD ERA, CITIES NEED TO BE ADEQUATELY TRAINED POLICE. THEY NEED QUALITY CONTROL, OVERSIGHT AND INTERNAL AFFAIRS. AND ALL THAT COMES WITH THE PRICE." VERY WELL, VERY WELL, IS THAT EVERYTHING, DANIEL, FOR THE REPORT? JUST TO KIND OF RECAP SOME POINTS, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY AS AS MARIANA KIND OF ALLUDED, BASED OFF THE CITY OF MENIFEE BEING THE MOST RECENT CITY TO BREAK AWAY FROM A CONTRACTED SERVICE WITH THE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND START THEIR OWN PD, CLEARLY ESTABLISHING OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENTS, IF THAT'S THE DIRECTION THE COUNCIL WISHES TO GO, CAN'T OCCUR OVERNIGHT. IT'S GOING TO TAKE AT LEAST TWO YEARS, IF NOT MORE. LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRACT WITH THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS LIKELY GOING TO BE NECESSARY FOR THE NEAR FUTURE. AND I'M TALKING FOR THE NEXT YEAR OR TWO, IF NOT THREE OR FOUR. UNTIL ONE. THE CITY DECIDES WHAT PATH IT WANTS TO GO IN AND PUT THINGS IN MOTION. A COUPLE OF THINGS TO CONSIDER IF WE DO WANT TO ESTABLISH OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENTS THE CITY NEEDS TO PROBABLY UNDERTAKE A DETAILED ASSESSMENT. AND THERE'S A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT OPTIONS, SCENARIOS THAT STAFF CAN BRING BACK FOR COUNCIL TO EVALUATE AND DECIDE THE APPROPRIATE PATH. BUT THAT NEEDS TO LOOK AT AN UNDERSTANDING THAT THAT NECESSARILY WOULD BE THE THE BLUEPRINT THAT WE WOULD LOOK AT FOR ESTABLISHING AND IMPLEMENTING A POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT WOULD LOOK AT EVERYTHING FROM THE FACILITIES NEEDED, DISPATCHING, STAFFING, TRAINING, EQUIPMENT, YOU KNOW, TO PUT IN PERSPECTIVE OR AT LEAST TO TOUCH ON WHAT THE LAST STUDY THE CITY DID IN TWENTY EIGHTEEN, THAT REALLY WAS JUST MORE OF A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS COMPARING THE SERVICE LEVEL WITH THE CITY, CONTRACTING WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IN COMPARISON TO WHAT OTHER CITIES PAY. IT GAVE YOU MORE OF A GENERAL SNAPSHOT TO COMPARE WHAT WE PAY AND THE LEVEL OF SERVICE IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF DEPUTIES AND FULL TIME STAFF, BUT DIDN'T BREAK DOWN AND DETAIL WHAT THE COST OF ACTUALLY ESTABLISHING OUR OWN PD WOULD BE. I JUST PROVIDED A GENERAL NUMBER TO CONSIDER SO. WITH THAT IF THERE ARE ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THAT MYSELF OR MS. SOBOLEWSKI CAN ANSWER. THANK YOU, DANIEL. WE APPRECIATE YOU AND ALL THAT INFORMATION FROM BOTH YOU AND THE ASSISTANT MANAGER. LET THE RECORD SHOW MEMBER PALLARES DID JOIN THE MEETING AT 5:09 P.M. . BEFORE WE MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENTS. LET ME ADD THIS QUICK DISCLAIMER. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE HAND BUTTON ON THE RIGHT TO REQUEST TO SPEAK. IF YOU ARE USING A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR TELEPHONE KEYPAD. YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE MAKING YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED. AT THIS TIME. DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC, MADAM CLERK? YES, WE HAVE. I SEE TWO COMMENTS. VERY WELL. TOTAL OF THREE. GIVE ME A MOMENT, PLEASE. OK. ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO AHEAD AND CALL ON OUR FIRST COMMENT. I HAVE AL GARCIA. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? MR. AND MS. GARCIA ARE YOU WITH US? I BELIEVE THEY'RE MUTED. I NEED YOUR PHONE AND STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD WHEN YOU. HELLO? YES. THIS IS LAURIE GARCIA. WHAT IS YOUR COMMENT OR QUESTION? SO MY QUESTION, I THINK, WAS FOR CITY MANAGER ORTIZ AND ASSISTANT MS. SOBOLEWSKI, WHAT WAS THE REASON THAT WE DIDN'T LOOK INTO NEARBY POLICE DEPARTMENTS LIKE THE CITY OF ARVIN OR THE CITY OF [INAUDIBLE] TO CONDUCT A STUDY? [INAUDIBLE] AS WELL. YEAH, HER QUESTION WAS WHY DIDN'T WE LOOK AT THE CITY OF ARVIN OR THE NEARBY CITIES FOR CONDUCTING THE STUDY? WE LOOKED TO THE CITY OF MENIFEE ONLY BECAUSE THEY WERE THE MOST RECENT CITY IN HISTORY IN RECENT HISTORY IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THAT ACTUALLY WENT OUT AND [00:45:04] CREATED THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. SO THAT PROVIDED A MOST RECENT EXAMPLE OF UP TO DATE COST OF WHAT THEY WENT THROUGH AND WHAT IT COST THEM TO START THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT, EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE A LARGEST CITY. THE FRAMEWORK AND THE THINGS THEY HAD TO FACTOR AND CONSIDER WAS WHAT WE WOULD LIKELY WOULD HAVE TO UNDERTAKE AND BE MINDFUL OF MOVING FORWARD. I'M NOT SURE WHEN ARVIN OR OTHER CITIES CREATED THEIR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENTS, BUT MENIFEE WAS STARTED, OR AT LEAST THE IMPLEMENTATION WAS STARTED IN NOVEMBER OF TWENTY EIGHTEEN AND MAY HAVE JUST GONE LIVE JULY ONE OF TWENTY TWENTY. THAT'S WHY THEY WERE THE MOST RECENT ONE AND PROVIDED A BETTER EXAMPLE OF THE COST ASSOCIATED WITH STARTING ONE. VERY WELL, LAURIE [INAUDIBLE]. YES, THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU SO MUCH. MADAM CLERK, OUR NEXT COMMENTER. OUR NEXT COMMENTER IS TINA. YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND SPEAK. AM I AM I ON THERE? YES. OK, OUR QUESTION, MY SISTER IN LAW IS HERE WITH ME, VICKI NEWMAN. OUR QUESTION IS, SHOULDN'T THE CITIZENS OF WASCO HAVE A SAY IN ANYTHING LIKE THIS, LIKE A VOTE BEFORE YOU AS A AS A COUNCIL MEMBER MAKE THAT DECISION, YES OR NO FOR A POLICE DEPARTMENT? LET ME JUST STATE FOR THE RECORD, NO VOTE WILL BE HAD ON THIS ITEM TODAY, AND WE IS THIS JUST A STUDY SESSION, AN INFORMATIONAL ITEM. THAT'S NOT THAT'S NOT THE QUESTION. [INAUDIBLE] WHY DO THEY DO THAT, BECAUSE WE'RE DONE TALKING. WE'RE STILL ON, OK, SO OUR QUESTION, SO, OUR QUESTION WAS JUST NOT THAT WE'RE ASKING NOT TO GET A, NOT TO GET AN ANSWER. WE'RE JUST ASKING, DON'T YOU THINK, WHAT'S YOUR OPINION ON THAT? DON'T YOU THINK THAT THE CITIZENS SHOULD HAVE A SAY SO ALONG WITH THE CITY COUNCIL? THAT'S ALL OUR QUESTION WAS. WE DON'T WANT YOU TO ANSWER YES OR NO LIKE TONIGHT. IF WE'RE JUST SAYING WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THAT? I'M SORRY IF I MISUNDERSTOOD. NO, THAT'S OK. WE APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS. THANK YOU. WE WILL GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO THE NEXT COMMENTS OR A QUESTION THAT THERE'S NO MORE QUESTIONS. MADAM CLERK? OK, THE NEXT COMMENTER IS JOE. YES. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS JOE MARTINEZ, HONORABLE MAYOR. CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND ADDITIONAL STAFF. A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND YOU LOOK AT. CORONER COST, MOST LIKELY GOING TO GET BILLED FOR THE CORONER COSTS ARE GOING TO GET BILLED FOR JAIL TIME WITH THE PANDEMIC. IT'S OBVIOUSLY TAKING LONGER TO GET PEOPLE WHO ARE ARRESTED AND IN CUSTODY BEFORE A JUDGE, MOST LIKELY PROBABLY EVEN INCUR COSTS FOR PROBATION DEPARTMENT. I APPRECIATE THE MORE THOROUGH RESEARCH THAT WAS DONE BY CITY MANAGER AND THE STAFF IN REGARDS TO LOOKING AT OTHER THINGS. THERE'S SOME REAL ISSUES, I'M NOT UNDERSTANDING WHY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT COSTS AND PAST PENSION COSTS ARE COMBINED TOGETHER, WHY THAT CAN'T BE SEPARATED OUT, MAKE IT EASIER TO UNDERSTAND THE CONTRACT. BUT I WOULD NOT SAY THAT THE SHERIFF'S CONTRACT IS GOING TO BE CHEAPER THIS YEAR THAN IT HAS BEEN IN PAST YEARS. I WOULD EXPECT THAT THE SHERIFF'S CONTRACT TO COST YOU OVER SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS THIS NEXT YEAR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, JOE. MADAM CLERK DO WE HAVE ANY OF THE PUBLIC COMMENTS? THAT'S ALL PUBLIC COMMENTS FOR NOW. THANK YOU VERY WELL, I'M SORRY, MAYOR, WE HAVE ONE MORE. SURE THING. [INAUDIBLE] YOU YOU'RE LIVE, UNMUTE YOURSELF. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. I JUST WANT A CLARIFICATION ON MRS. NEWMAN'S QUESTION. AND IF I'M CORRECT, I BELIEVE SHE WAS JUST ASKING THAT WHEN THIS DOES COME TO A VOTE, SHOULD YOU NOT TAKE CONSIDERATION OF THE RESIDENTS OF WASCO TO ALSO PARTICIPATE AND WHETHER WE WANT A POLICE DEPARTMENT OR NOT, NOT JUST WITHIN THE COUNCIL MEMBER VOTE, BUT ALSO LIKE PUT IT INTO WHAT WHAT IS THE RESIDENT OF [00:50:05] WASCO WANT FOR WASCO AS WELL? AND IF I'M WRONG, I'M NOT REALLY SURE, BUT I THINK THAT THAT'S WHAT I UNDERSTOOD. AND I DON'T THINK IT WAS ANSWERED. SURE THING. WELL, I MEAN, THESE PUBLIC THESE MEETINGS ARE PUBLIC AND EVERYONE IS ALWAYS WELCOME TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK. I DON'T AS I MENTIONED, WE'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE ANY VOTES TONIGHT IS WAS WE DID CONSUME A LOT OF INFORMATION THAT I AM GOING TO ENCOURAGE THE COUNCIL TO CONSUME AND TAKE IN OVER THE COMING WEEKS. AND ONCE WE'VE ENTERED INTO THE CONTRACT AND MOVE FORWARD WITH THE DECISION AND WE'LL, OF COURSE, NOTIFY EVERYONE AND GET EVERYONE'S OPINION INVOLVED. IF YOU'RE ASKING IF WE IF YOU WANTED TO PUT IT, PUT IT TO A VOTE, THAT WOULD BE UP TO THE PEOPLE, I IMAGINE. BUT THOSE ARE THAT WOULD BE MY RESPONSE TO THAT. AND I REALLY CAN'T RESPOND TO ANYTHING ELSE FURTHER THAN THAT, I BELIEVE. WELL, JUST TO CONSIDER THE RESIDENTS OF WASCO INTO THAT DECISION MAKING. ABSOLUTELY [INAUDIBLE] AND MR. NEWMAN, ARE WE DO OUR WORK VERY WITH IN CONSIDERATION OF EVERYONE'S OPINION AND INPUT, AND WE INVITE YOU TO PROVIDE INPUT NOT ONLY TO THE MEETINGS AND THROUGH THIS VENUE, BUT THROUGH THE ROUNDTABLES WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN AND THE PUBLIC MEETINGS WE'VE BEEN HAVING MONTHLY. CERTAINLY, CERTAINLY WE'RE ALWAYS OPEN AND TAKE THE CONSIDERATIONS OF THE COMMUNITY VERY SERIOUSLY. AND I AND THE OTHER MEMBERS WILL BE SPEAKING IN A SECOND, BUT I'M SURE THEY WOULD CONCUR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER COMMENT ON THE PHONE OR BY ZOOM? YES, WE DO. WE HAVE ONE MORE PHONE CALL IN NUMBER 661-747-7379. ARE YOU WITH US CALLER? THEY HAVEN'T UNMUTED THEMSELVES. OH, NO. MAYBE FIGURE THAT OUT. CALLER, WOULD YOU LIKE TO UNMUTE YOURSELF AND STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOUR COMMENT? OK, THEY MIGHT BE HAVING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES, PERHAPS, AS FAR AS ANYONE CAN, THEY CAN STILL SUBMIT COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK TO THE CITY CLERK BY EMAILING THE CLERK EMAIL, WHICH IS CITYCLERK@CITYOFWASCO.ORG. AND ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE RECORD AS NORMAL. GIVE ME ONE MORE OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE THAT CALLER A CHANCE TO UNMUTE THEMSELVES. CALLER ARE YOU WITH US? ALL RIGHT, WELL, MADAM CLERK, ARE THERE ANY OTHER COMMENTS ON ZOOM ON THE PHONE? THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS AT THIS TIME. VERY WELL. AT THIS TIME. EXCUSE ME. [INAUDIBLE] THE PUBLIC COMMENTS, ANY COMMENTS FROM MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA? THANK YOU, MAYOR. A LOT OF INFORMATION TO DIGEST, THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME WE DISCUSS OF POSSIBLY OPENING OUR OWN OR BUILDING OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. WE KNOW THERE IS A LARGE COST ASSOCIATED WITH IT. [INAUDIBLE] DONE IN TWENTY EIGHTEEN, BUT AS DANIEL MENTIONED, IT DIDN'T FOCUS SPECIFICALLY ON THE IDEA AS TO HOW MUCH IT WOULD COST US TO IMPLEMENT A NEW POLICE DEPARTMENT IN OUR CITY. AND I THINK THAT WE NEED TO DO THAT. WE NEED TO SPEND SOME MONEY THAT WILL PAINT A CLEAR PICTURE NOT JUST TO US, BUT TO THE RESIDENTS OF WASCO, AS WELL AS TO WHAT THE REAL COST WOULD BE. THIS IS GREAT INFORMATION THAT WE WERE PROVIDED TODAY, BUT OF COURSE, IT PERTAINS TO ANOTHER CITY AND GIVES US AN IDEA. BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US GET THIS INFORMATION. THE DESIRE FROM THE COMMUNITY AND SEVERAL OF US IS THAT WE SHOULD HAVE OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT SO THAT WE HAVE LOCAL CONTROL. I KNOW THERE'S A LARGE COST ASSOCIATED WITH IT AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE NOT [00:55:05] GOING TO BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT, AS DANIEL SAID, NOT THIS YEAR AND MAYBE FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS. BUT WE CERTAINLY NEED TO HAVE MORE CONCRETE INFORMATION THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO MAKE THAT DECISION WITH NO DOUBT INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY. SO THAT'S WHERE I WOULD BE MOVING TOWARDS HAVING THIS STUDY DONE THAT WOULD GIVE US VERY SPECIFIC DETAILS AS TO HOW MUCH IT WOULD COST TO IMPLEMENT A POLICE DEPARTMENT IN OUR CITY. THAT'S ALL FOR ME, MAYOR. THANK YOU. VERY WELL, THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. COMMENTS FROM MEMBER CORTEZ. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. SO GOING BACK TO TINA AND VICKI'S QUESTION OF HAVING THE VOTERS OR RESIDENTS OF WASCO HAVE TO SAY SO, I THINK I THINK WHAT WE NEED TO KIND OF STEP BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT IS THAT I THINK THERE'S ENOUGH OF A CONCERN WITH OUR CURRENT POLICE SERVICES THAT THE COMMUNITY IS LOOKING FOR OPTIONS. AND OUR FIRST STEP TO EVEN BEGIN TO BRING ANYTHING TO THE COMMUNITY IS THE FEASIBILITY STUDY. WITHOUT THAT, WE HAVE NOTHING TO BASE OUR DECISION ON. WE NEED THAT DATA TO BE ABLE TO DISSEMINATE TO THE PUBLIC SO THAT WE AND THEM CAN MAKE A DECISION. AND THE WAY I ENVISION THIS IS I DON'T THINK WE'LL BE ABLE TO AFFORD OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT WITHOUT CONTRIBUTIONS FROM OUR RESIDENTS IN THE FORM OF A PROPERTY TAX OR SOME OTHER TAX. SO I THINK IT'S GOING TO GO TO A VOTE FOR THEM PERIOD. I ENVISION AS A VOTE IN MAYBE IN THE MID ELECTION PROCESS OR, YOU KNOW, THE NEXT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION WHERE THEY'RE VOTING ON WHETHER THEY WANT TO PAY ADDITIONAL TAXES FOR THEIR OWN POLICE FORCE AND IN ESSENCE, VOTING FOR THE PD AT A COST. AND SO THAT'S HOW I ENVISION THAT HAPPENING. BUT WITHOUT THE FEASIBILITY STUDY, WHICH I THINK WE NEED TO DO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO EVEN BEGIN TO MAKE AN EDUCATED DECISION ON THE ISSUE. SO I THINK THAT'S OUR FIRST STEP. SO HOPEFULLY TINA AND VICKI I HOPE THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION. THERE WILL BE A POINT WHERE THAT COMES, BUT RIGHT NOW WE NEED TO GET THE DATA FIRST. AND. I KNOW SOMETHING ELSE, I WROTE DOWN THESE MESSY NOTES, BUT [INAUDIBLE] JOE MARTINEZ, I SAID, JOE, I ECHO YOUR SENTIMENTS. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DO A DETAILED STUDY SO THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT WE TRY TO COVER EVERY POSSIBLE COST INVOLVED IN IMPLEMENTING OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. AND GOING BACK TO LAURIE'S COMMENTS AS WELL, I THINK TAKING THE BLUEPRINT THAT CITY OF MENIFEE DID WILL HELP ADDRESS SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT OTHER POLICE DEPARTMENTS WHO WERE ESTABLISHED DECADES AGO DIDN'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH AS THE NEW POLICE DEPARTMENTS ARE BEING FORMED. SO THAT'S MY POSITION AT THIS POINT. I THINK WE NEED TO GET THE INFORMATION FOR US TO MAKE AN EDUCATED DECISION. THANK YOU, MEMBER CORTEZ, WE HAVE MEMBER MARTINEZ NEXT. YEAH, I AGREE WITH THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS. I THINK THAT WE NEED TO DO THIS FEASIBILITY STUDY AND DETERMINE IF IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN FINANCIALLY AFFORD QUALITY SERVICE ASIDE, WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT. MY CONCERNS ARE WITH, AS WE GROW THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT ALREADY STRUGGLE TO FILL THE POSITION THAT WE AUTHORIZED. THE COUNCIL AUTHORIZED, I BELIEVE IT WAS A YEAR AGO. AND GIVEN THEIR RETENTION PROBLEMS THAT THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THEY JUST LOST TWO DEPUTIES TO MCFARLAND, WHICH IS VERY CONCERNING TO ME OF WHY, YOU KNOW, TWO DEPUTY SHERIFFS WOULD GO TO A CITY THAT DOESN'T HAVE A POLICE CHIEF AND IS STRUGGLING FINANCIALLY, WHICH TELLS ME THAT THERE'S SOME ISSUES THERE WITHIN THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT [INAUDIBLE] PD, VERY WELL KNOWN THAT THEY'VE HIRED ABOUT A HALF DOZEN DEPUTIES IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. THE [INAUDIBLE] SUBSTATION SERGEANT, MY UNDERSTANDING JUST LEFT A FEW WEEKS AGO TO TAKE ANOTHER JOB WITH ANOTHER AGENCY. SO AS WE GROW AND WE NEED MORE DEPUTIES, I JUST AM VERY CONCERNED THAT THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT WILL BE ABLE TO MEET OUR STAFFING REQUIREMENTS. AND SO I THINK THAT CONDUCTING THIS FEASIBILITY STUDY IS IMPORTANT. SO WE DON'T GET INTO A POSITION THAT WE NEED MORE COPS, WHICH WE PROBABLY DO NOW, TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, AND WE JUST SIMPLY CAN'T STAFF THEM. I DO HAVE ONE CONCERN ABOUT THE PROPOSED CONTRACT WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT. AND DANIEL, YOU MENTIONED THAT ON THE EXTENDED LEAVE OF ABSENCE IS PARTICULARLY PERTAINING TO FORTY EIGHT FIFTY LEAVE, THAT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE WOULD NOW BE BILLING US FOR THOSE COSTS. MY BIGGER CONCERN WOULD BE THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT IS NOTORIOUS FOR KEEPING DEPUTIES ON ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE DURING MINOR, SOMETIMES MINOR INVESTIGATIONS WHERE THEY'RE OFF WORK FOR SIX, EIGHT, NINE MONTHS AT A TIME BEFORE THEY BRING THEM BACK TO WORK. AND I HAVE CONCERNS THAT WE'D BE BILLED THOSE COSTS BECAUSE OF THEIR OWN [01:00:01] INTERNAL AFFAIRS BACKLOG, THAT SOMEBODY IS GETTING PAID TO SIT AT HOME WHEN THERE'S REALLY NO INVESTIGATION BEING CONDUCTED. SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE IF YOU'VE GOTTEN THAT FAR, BUT THAT IS A CONCERN THAT I HAVE ABOUT THE PROPOSED CHANGES. OTHER THAN THAT, NOTHING ELSE. MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU, MEMBER MARTINEZ VERY, VERY GOOD, VERY GOOD COMMENTS AND VIEWPOINTS. MEMBER PALLARES. DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? YES, THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THE NEW CONTRACT WITH THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS THAT LIKE A FIVE YEAR TERM OR TWO YEAR BIANNUALLY YEAR BY YEAR? THE LAST CONTRACT WE HAD WAS IT WAS EXECUTED IN TWENTY SIXTEEN AND HAD A FIVE YEAR TERM. THE INFORMATION THAT I SHARED WAS JUST THE GENERAL INFORMATION THAT HAS BEEN PROVIDED TO ME THUS FAR. I HAVE NOT SEEN A DRAFT OF THE CONTRACT LANGUAGE OR ANY OTHER PARTICULARS OF WHAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE. BUT THOSE WERE I WAS ADVISED THAT THOSE WOULD BE SOME OF THE MAJOR CHANGES THAT WOULD BE INCLUDED IN COMPARISON TO THE LAST CONTRACT WE HAD. ALSO, IN REGARDS TO THE MEASURE X FUND, IS IT IS IT POSSIBLE TO PUT A SUBCOMPONENT AS FAR AS PUTTING ASIDE SOME MONIES FOR START UP COSTS WHILE WE'RE WAITING ON THIS FEASIBILITY STUDY TO START GETTING OUR NEST EGG FOR START UP FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT? YEAH, IF THE COUNCIL WANTED TO START SETTING MONEY ASIDE FROM THE MEASURE X AND DEFINE AN AMOUNT OR PERCENTAGE, YOU KNOW, WE COULD ESTABLISH A SUB FUND OR SUB ACCOUNT WHERE THAT MONEY GOES INTO A SIMILAR MANNER AS A RESERVE OR SAVINGS ACCOUNTS. SO CHOOSE SO YOU CAN DO THAT AS PART OF THE MID-YEAR BUDGET PROCESS, IF YOU'D LIKE. THAT'S COMING UP NEXT MONTH. OR FACTOR THAT INTO THE SUBSEQUENT FISCAL YEAR, IF I RECALL CORRECTLY, ROUGHLY ABOUT THREE MILLION DOLLARS IS COLLECTED FROM MEASURE X, YOU DID NOT BUDGET THE ENTIRETY OF IT TO BE SPENT. AND SO YOU DO HAVE QUITE A BIT AVAILABLE IF YOU SO CHOOSE. BUT BEAR IN MIND SOME OF THE OTHER PROJECTS THAT THE COUNCIL HAS EXPRESSED THE DESIRE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH, SUCH AS STREET LIGHTING AND OTHER INITIATIVES THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY THAT HAVE YET BEEN EXPENDED. THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAVE, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MEMBER PALLARES. AND JUST TO JUST TO SUMMARIZE THIS SESSION WITH MY COMMENTS, I AGREE. INFORMATION IS WHAT WE NEED. IT'S WHAT WE CAN MAKE. AND IT WAS THE ONLY WAY WE CAN MAKE ANY DECISION. AND I THINK MEMBER CORTEZ PERFECTLY SUMMARIZED IT FOR ME. AND THAT'S REALLY THE POINT. WHAT WE'RE GETTING AT IS THAT WE WERE REALLY NOT I DON'T SEE ANY WAY TO AT THE END OF THIS PATH WITHOUT RAISING REVENUES OR FINDING REVENUES ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. SO I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT THE RESIDENTS WILL HAVE MANY OPPORTUNITIES TO WEIGH IN ON THIS DECISION GOING FORWARD. BUT AS ANY ISSUE, I'M AFRAID OF THE DAUNTING OR THE SIZE OF OF THIS MATTER AND IS UP IN THIS. I AGREE THAT THE RESIDENTS HAVE A DESIRE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH AND IN TACKLING THE RISING COSTS THAT THE CONTRACT THE SHERIFF'S IS PRESENTING US. THIS ISSUE IS A SERIOUS ISSUE. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY FOR THE COST OF [INAUDIBLE] SERVICES, THEN WHY NOT LOOK AT THE INFORMATION AND MOVE FORWARD AND SEE IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN DO SO. SO, MR. MANAGER, WE I HOPE THAT YOU HAVE YOUR DIRECTION FOR THE FOR THE SHORT TERM. IF I MAY, JUST TO CONFIRM, SOUNDS LIKE THE COUNCIL'S DESIRES TO EXPLORE A FEASIBILITY STUDY IN GREATER DETAIL. SOBOLEWSKI AND I WILL WORK ON KIND OF PROVIDING SOME OPTIONS FOR THE COUNCIL TO CONSIDER, INCLUDING THE POSSIBILITY OF A CONSULTANT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT. SO WE'LL PROBABLY BRING THAT BACK AT A FUTURE COUNCIL MEETING FOR COUNCIL TO CONSIDER A COUPLE OF ITEMS AT THE COUNCIL. I WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU GUYS ARE AWARE OF, AS WELL AS FOR THE PUBLIC GOING FORWARD, AND THAT THIS IS A THIS IS GOING TO BE PROBABLY A MULTI-YEAR ENDEAVOR FROM START TO FINISH FROM THE MOMENT WE EVEN START A FEASIBILITY STUDY TO THE MOMENT OF THE COUNCIL. SO CHOOSES AT A FUTURE POINT TO ESTABLISH ITS OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT. AND WHEN IT COMES ONLINE, IT'LL BE A MULTI-YEAR PROCESS. AND SO CERTAINLY WE'VE EXPERIENCED A RASH OF CRIME AND HERE IN RECENT YEARS. AND SO UNFORTUNATELY, IT'S A IT'S A I HATE TO SAY IT'S A SIGN OF THE TIMES, BUT THE [01:05:07] REALITY IS THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM IN CALIFORNIA DOESN'T DO US ANY FAVORS. AND SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COUNCIL IS FULLY AWARE AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT SIMPLY HAVING OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT ISN'T GOING TO CHANGE THE CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR THAT WE'VE EXPERIENCED HERE IN WASCO, AS EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT SOME OF THE SUSPECTS THAT HAVE BEEN ARRESTED IN THE MOST MORE SERIOUS CRIMES WERE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAD BEEN OR WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SERVING MULTI-YEAR PRISON SENTENCES, ONLY TO BE LEFT OUT AND BACK IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND SO THAT IS THE ISSUE AND THE PROBLEM THAT EVEN OUR OWN POLICE DEPARTMENT OR THE KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS GOING TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH FROM NOW AND IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, IS JUST THE STATUS OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM ACROSS THE STATE AS A WHOLE. ALSO WANTED TO JUST ILLUSTRATE, JUST WITH EVERYTHING THAT HAS GONE ON IN LAW ENFORCEMENT, YOU KNOW, THE MENIFEE, I THINK, CAME ON RIGHT AT THE PERFECT TIME BEFORE THE THE PERFECT STORM OF THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT HAS BEEN ENDEAVORING THIS LAST 12 MONTHS. BUT, YOU KNOW, REALLY LOOKING AT SOME OTHER EXAMPLES AND IN OTHER RESEARCH, THERE ARE CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT HAVE SEEN THE 50 TO 70 PERCENT DROP IN APPLICANTS FOR THEIR POLICE OFFICER POSITIONS. AND SO WE MAY VERY LIKELY BE IN THAT SAME POSITION, AS EVIDENCED BY THE FACT JUST HOW CITIES IN KERN COUNTY HAVE STRUGGLED TO RETAIN LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND EVEN BEYOND KERN COUNTY ACROSS THE STATE. BUT AT THE POLICE CHIEF LEVEL, YOU KNOW, PUT IN PERSPECTIVE, AS MR. MARTINEZ ALLUDED TO MCFARLAND CURRENTLY IS LOOKING TO FILL THE POLICE CHIEF POSITION. I KNOW THAT ARVIN IS ALSO SEARCHING FOR A POLICE CHIEF. RIDGECREST IS GOING TO BE GOING OUT HERE SHORTLY TO HIRE FOR POLICE CHIEFS. SO YOU HAVE THREE THREE IN KERN COUNTY THAT ARE ACTIVELY RECRUITING FOR POLICE CHIEF. AND I THINK IT'S JUST A SIGN OF WHAT THE ENVIRONMENT IS LIKE TO BE A POLICE OFFICER. AND IN RECENT TIMES WITH WHAT ALL HAS GONE ON, THE REALITY IS THAT MOST PEOPLE JUST NO LONGER HAVE THE SAME DESIRE AND AMBITION TO BECOME A POLICE OFFICER AS IT ONCE WAS DECADES AGO. AND SO THAT'S GOING TO RESULT IN MORE LIKELY A HIGHER COST, NOT ONLY TO RETAIN AND ATTRACT, BUT TO KEEP POLICE OFFICERS INTO THE FUTURE, NOT ONLY ON THE BASE SALARY LEVEL, BUT THAT'S GOING TO TRANSLATE TO BENEFITS AND RETIREMENT PENSION COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. SO, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE FIGURES THAT WE'VE ALLUDED TO WHEN THAT COMES TO FRUITION AS A FEASIBILITY WILL SHOW, I THINK, ARE GOING TO BE MUCH MORE DRAMATIC THAN WHAT WE WOULD SEE WE WOULD FORESEE NOW. THANK YOU AND SO ALL THAT TO SAY THAT WE ARE ASKING THE RESIDENTS TO MEET US IN THE MIDDLE AND CONTINUE TO BE ENGAGED THROUGH THE COMMUNITY EFFORT TO GET ORGANIZED IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY REALM. COUNCIL MEMBER CORTEZ'S ROUNDTABLE AND, OF COURSE, THE COMMUNITY MEETINGS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SO IT'S GOING TO TAKE A FULL CIRCLE APPROACH, A WRAPAROUND TO TACKLE THESE ISSUES. AND AS YOU MENTIONED, IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN OVERNIGHT EVEN IF WE DO MOVE FORWARD. SO THERE ARE MANY CHALLENGES WE'LL HAVE TO MEET TOGETHER. SO THANK YOU AGAIN, EVERYBODY, FOR THEIR DILIGENCE, ESPECIALLY OUR STAFF, FOR ALL THE HARD WORK AND THE DETAIL THAT THEY PUT INTO THESE PRESENTATIONS. WE WILL GO AHEAD AND ROLL RIGHT INTO OUR NEXT MEETING HERE PRETTY SOON. THAT'S EVERY ITEM ON THE STUDY SESSION. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND ADJOURN THE STUDY SESSION AND GO RIGHT INTO THE REGULAR MEETING. CAN WE DO THAT? I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND CALL THIS TO ORDER. [1) CALL TO ORDER] GOOD EVENING. THIS MEETING IS BEING HELD PURSUANT TO SECTION THREE OF EXECUTIVE ORDER N TWENTY NINE TWENTY ISSUED BY GOVERNOR NEWSOME ON MARCH 17TH TWENTY TWENTY. AND ALL MEMBERS ARE JOINING THIS MEETING REMOTELY BY A ZOOM WEBINAR. WE WILL NOW CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER, MADAM CLERK. OK, BEFORE WE DO THE ROLL CALL BY MADAM CLERK, WE WILL DO A FLAG SALUTE. IF YOU'RE ABLE, LET'S DO A FLAG SALUTE TO BEGIN THIS MEETING. PLEASE STAND, SALUTE, PLEDGE. ALL RIGHTY, THEN. SURELY WE HAVE SOMEONE ON THE LINE WHO CAN PROVIDE AN INVOCATION FOR US IN THIS MEETING THIS EVENING. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE A VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE ON ZOOM OR ON THE CALL? LET'S SEE IF SOMEONE RAISES THEIR HAND. I DON'T THINK WE HAVE A VOLUNTEER. [01:10:03] IS THERE ANYONE ON THE MEETING THIS EVENING WHO CAN PROVIDE AN INVOCATION FOR US? IF NOT, WE CAN OBSERVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE. ALL RIGHT, WE WILL OBSERVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE. MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? YES. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. WE BEGIN THIS EVENING WITH A SPECIAL PROCLAMATION. [5) a. Proclamation for Black History Month presented to African American Network of Kern County's Buffalo Soldiers.] JOINING US REMOTELY EXCUSE ME, WE HAVE A SPECIAL PROCLAMATION FOR A FEW OF OUR FRIENDS AND GUESTS AND RESIDENTS WHO ARE JOINING US REMOTELY. AS THE CITY MAYOR, IT IS MY HONOR TO MAKE THIS PRESENTATION TODAY AS WE PROCLAIM THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, 2021 AS BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN THE CITY OF WASCO. BLACK HISTORY MONTH IS AN ANNUAL MONTH OF OBSERVANCE IN THE UNITED STATES, HONORING THE MANY GREAT ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY, BOTH PAST AND PRESENT, AND THEIR CENTRAL ROLE IN THE CREATION OF OUR GREAT NATION. ON BEHALF OF THIS COUNCIL, I COMMEND OUR FRIENDS AT THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN NETWORK OF KERN COUNTY IN THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS PROGRAM, OUR FRIENDS AT THE WASCO UNION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT AFRICAN-AMERICAN OUTREACH PROGRAM MS. GOODWILL AT TERESA BURKE SCHOOL--. THE PRINCIPAL-- TO APOSTOLIC FAITH TEMPLE CHURCH, WHO WILL BE CELEBRATING 50 YEARS THIS YEAR IN OUR COMMUNITY. BISHOP CRENSHAW. TO TRUE LIFE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH, PASTOR COCKRELL AND ASSOCIATE HARRISON WITH US THERE IN THE PICTURE, TODAY. AND TO MACEDONIA CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST WITH PASTOR GRIDIRON AND HIS FAMILY, WHO WILL BE CELEBRATING 15 YEARS IN THE CITY OF WASCO IN A FEW DAYS FROM NOW. WE APPRECIATE THEM. WE THANK THEM ALL FOR ALL THAT THEY DO TO UPLIFT OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH EDUCATION, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND MENTORSHIP. I BRING THEM TOGETHER UNDER THIS PROCLAMATION BY THE CITY OF WASCO, WHEREAS DURING THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, WE ACKNOWLEDGE, HONOR AND RECOGNIZE THE CONTRIBUTIONS AND ACHIEVEMENTS MADE BY THE AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND ALL THE PEOPLE OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN DESCENT. WHEREAS THIS OCCASION OFFERS ALL AMERICANS A GREATER UNDERSTANDING AND SENSE OF RESPECT FOR THE SACRIFICES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF AFRICAN-AMERICANS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES HISTORY AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO PAY TRIBUTE TO A DIVERSE GROUNDBREAKING AND UNIQUE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY. WHEREAS THE LEADERS OF THE CITY OF WASCO BELIEVE IN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL AND RECOGNIZE THE VALUE ADDED TO OUR COMMUNITY BY OUR DIVERSITY. NOW, THEREFORE, I, ALEJANDRO GARCIA, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF WASCO ON BEHALF OF THE CITIZENS OF WASCO, DO HEREBY PROCLAIM THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY 2021 AS BLACK HISTORY MONTH, PRESENTED ON THE SECOND DAY OF FEBRUARY 2021 IN THE CITY OF WASCO. THANK YOU ALL AND I APPRECIATE EVERYONE FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS AND EVERYONE FOR BEING ON THE CALL TODAY. I LOOK FORWARD TO BRINGING EVERYONE TOGETHER. THE CONVERSATIONS I HAD WITH EVERYONE THAT WAS A RECIPIENT OF THIS MONTH'S PROCLAMATION WAS THOROUGHLY EXCITING AND PRODUCTIVE. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO THE WORK THAT'S GOING TO BE BORN IN THE UPCOMING MONTHS. [6) PUBLIC COMMENTS] SO, THANK YOU. ROLLING RIGHT INTO ITEM SIX PUBLIC COMMENTS, THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING IS RESERVED FOR PERSONS DESIRING TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL AND INCLUDING THE COUNCIL ACTING AS THE GOVERNING BOARD FOR THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY ON ANY MATTER, NOT ON THIS AGENDA AND OVER WHICH THE COUNCIL AND SUCCESSOR AGENCY HAS JURISDICTION. AUDIENCE MEMBERS ARE LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT, A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISED HAND FEATURE TO SPEAK. IF YOU'RE USING A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR TELEPHONE KEYPAD. YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED. ANYONE WHO HAS NOT PROVIDED THEIR COMMENTS BY THE CLOSE OF THIS PUBLIC COMMENT [01:15:01] SECTION MAY STILL SUBMIT THEM TO THE CITY CLERK AT CITY CLERK AT CITY OF WASCO DOT ORG. THOSE COMMENTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE FINAL RECORD. THE CITY COUNCIL IS VERY INTERESTED IN YOUR COMMENTS, AS ALWAYS. HOWEVER, DUE TO THE BROWN ACT REQUIREMENTS, NO ACTION MAY BE TAKEN AT THIS TIME. SHOULD YOUR COMMENTS REQUIRE FURTHER CONSIDERATION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OR ITS SUCCESSOR AGENCY, THE ITEM WILL BE AGENDIZED FOR A REPORT AND DISCUSSED AT A FUTURE COUNCIL MEETING . AT THIS TIME, MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ZOOM OR BY PHONE? AT THIS TIME, MAYOR, WE HAVE COMMENTS FROM CARMEN ZUNIGA. CARMEN, ARE YOU WITH US? CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. GREAT. GOOD EVENING, MY NAME IS CARMEN ZUNIGA AND I RESIDE AT TWENTY SEVEN SIXTY FLOWER ST. I WANT TO START BY SAYING THAT I APPLAUD ALL THE EFFORTS AND HARD WORK THAT YOU AND YOUR PREDECESSORS HAVE MADE IN IMPROVING THE CITY OF WASCO. I'M ALSO GLAD TO SEE PLANNING FOR A NEW PARK AS I APPLAUD THE NEW GROWTH, I WORRY ABOUT WHAT BECOMES OF OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS. IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD JUST DOWN THE STREET FROM THE PROPOSED NEW PARK. WE HAVE A WALKING TRAIL THAT IS NOT WALKABLE BECAUSE TREES HAVE BROKEN THROUGH THE ASPHALT MATERIAL AND HAVE CREATED HAZARDS. THE TREES ARE HUGE AND MANY ARE DISEASED, DEAD, OR SIMPLY AREN'T TRIMMED OR REMOVED UNTIL THEY FALL OVER BY THEMSELVES. PEDESTRIANS HAVE TO DODGE LOW HANGING TREE LIMBS AND THE HOUSES THAT ARE ON THE SIDE OF THE WALL GET TO DEAL WITH ALL THE FALLEN BRANCHES AND LEAVES FROM THOSE TREES. MY GRANDCHILDREN HAVE TRIPPED, FALLEN WHILE WALKING IN THIS AREA. THANK GOODNESS THEY WERE ONLY MINOR INJURIES THAT I WAS ABLE TO PATCH UP MYSELF. BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY THAT IT IS A HAZARD FOR SCHOOLCHILDREN AND RESIDENTS WHO WALK THIS TRAIL. IMPORTANTLY, THE SCHOOLS HAVE A BUS PICK UP AND DROP OFF AT THIS LOCATION. IN MY OPINION, THE TREES ON THIS TRAIL ARE TOO BIG TO BE DONE WITH JUST REGULAR PRUNING SHEARS FROM THE GROUND, WHICH IS HOW I'VE SEEN IT DONE BY THE CITY OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS OR SO. I HAVE ATTACHED PICTURES IN THE EMAIL THAT I SENT SO THAT YOU CAN SEE WHAT I'M SPEAKING OF. AS I SAID, I'M ALL FOR EXPANSION AND GROWTH, BUT ASK THAT THE CITY MAKE SURE THAT THE EXISTING NEIGHBORHOODS ARE TAKEN CARE OF PROPERLY. AS A HOMEOWNER, I LIKE TO SEE MY NEIGHBORHOOD BE SAFE AND MAINTAINED. AND I GUESS I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHY IT IS THAT THIS PARTICULAR WALKING TRAIL HAS BEEN NEGLECTED. IS IT DUE TO LACK OF PLANNING FUNDS OR WORKFORCE? THANK YOU FOR HEARING ME OUT, I'D APPRECIATE ANY HELP IN GETTING TO THE MATTER OF IMPROVING THIS TRAIL AND LOOK FORWARD TO ANY ANSWERS OR COMMENTS YOU MAY HAVE FOR ME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MRS. ZUNIGA, WE WILL TAKE YOUR COMMENTS AND STAFF WILL DEFINITELY TAKE THOSE INTO CONSIDERATION. I WILL BE ALSO REACHING OUT TO YOU IF YOU CAN PROVIDE YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION TO THE CLERK IN THAT EMAIL, IT WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED. THANK YOU. I WILL. APPRECIATE IT. MADAM CLERK, ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ZOOM OR BY PHONE ON ANY ITEMS NOT ON THIS AGENDA? WE DO HAVE ANOTHER PUBLIC COMMENT. TINA. TINA, ARE YOU WITH US. YES, AND IT'S VICKI, AND I HERE TONIGHT, SO CAN SHE HAVE TWO MINUTES AND I HAVE TWO MINUTES? YOU' GOT IT. OK, SO SHE'S GOING TO GO FIRST. GOOD EVENING, GUYS. AND I HAD AN INCIDENT HAPPEN ON SATURDAY NIGHT, AND THERE WAS A BAND ON GRIFFITH AVENUE BETWEEN 9TH AND 10TH AVENUE OR 10TH STREET. AND I CALLED THREE TIMES 6:55, 10:11, 10:38. 6:57, OUR OFFICERS WERE UNABLE TO LOCATE THE MUSIC, 10:12, NO STATUS, NO REPLY, NOTHING. 10:38, THEY ISSUED A WARNING. THAT WAS FOUR HOURS THAT THEY WERE PLAYING THE MUSIC, THEY HAD PORTA POTTIES IN THE ALLEY, CARS WERE BLOCKING ALLEY, AND THERE WERE NUMEROUS CARS BLOCKING PEOPLE ON GRIFFITH AVENUE FOR THEIR ENTRANCES TO THEIR HOUSES AND. I DON'T KNOW, AND ALSO WHEN I CALLED, I ASKED FOR A SUPERVISOR, BECAUSE I FIRST [01:20:25] ASKED FOR A THE DEPUTY IN CHARGE THAT NIGHT, THE NIGHT SERGEANT. SHE SAID YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE SUPERVISOR FIRST. I SAID, PLEASE GIVE ME THE SUPERVISOR THEN. THAT WAS AT TEN THIRTY EIGHT. I SAT ON THE PHONE FOR TWENTY TWO MINUTES ON HOLD. NOT ONCE DID THEY RESPOND TO THAT CALL. AND THEN I CALLED BACK AND THEN I SAID, FORGET IT. SO I CALLED SUNDAY AND THEY FILED A PERSONAL COMPLAINT WITH BOTH THE DISPATCHER AND THE SUPERVISOR ON CALL THAT NIGHT. AND I SPOKE TO ANOTHER SUPERVISOR SUNDAY MORNING. BUT THIS IS THE THINGS WE GO THROUGH. AND ON YOUR CITY ORDINANCE, 8, 32, 10, 20 AND 30, IT STATES THAT ONE HUNDRED FEET IS THE NOISE LEVEL. I WAS ONE THOUSAND FIFTY SIX FEET FROM GRIFFITH AND HEARD IT. SO MY QUESTION IS, WHY ARE WE NOT GETTING THE PATROLS AND THE CITATIONS FOR LOUD MUSIC AND LOUD NOISE? I HAVE A WHOLE PAGE THAT I'M GOING TO TYPE UP. I'M GOING TO GIVE IT TO YOU BY EMAIL OR WHATEVER SO YOU GUYS CAN HAVE THE INFORMATION THAT I WENT THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY NIGHT. TWO DIFFERENT INCIDENTS, AND I KNOW MY TWO MINUTES ARE UP PROBABLY SO I CAN'T GIVE YOU THE INFORMATION ON THE OTHER ONE, BUT I WILL TYPE IT UP. BUT THIS IS THE SCENARIO THAT I GO THROUGH CONSTANTLY AND NO CITATIONS WERE EVER ISSUED. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MRS. NEWMAN, I SURE APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS. MAKE SURE THE STAFF RECEIVES THEM. TINA, DO YOU HAVE COMMENTS AS WELL? YES. SO GOOD EVENING. SATURDAY NIGHT MUST HAVE BEEN PARTY NIGHT. THE CORNER OF SUNSET--NO, I LIED--SYCAMORE AND POPLAR. I CALLED AT NINE FIFTY. FORTY SEVEN MINUTES LATER IS WHEN THE SHERIFF SHOWED UP, HE WALKED UP TO THE GATE, STAYED TWO SECONDS, TURNED AROUND AND GOT IN HIS CAR AND DROVE OFF. THE MUSIC CONTINUED ALONG WITH YELLING AND HOLLERING AND THINGS LIKE THAT, I CALLED BACK AGAIN, ACTUALLY MY DAUGHTER CALLED BACK THE SECOND TIME I CALLED THE THIRD TIME THEY FINALLY SHUT THE MUSIC OFF AT ELEVEN FIFTY EIGHT. THAT IS, I DON'T EVEN KNOW THE DISTANCE FROM MY HOUSE, BUT I'M JUST TELLING YOU, THIS IS THE STUFF THAT WE GO THROUGH EVERY WEEKEND AROUND IN OUR AREA. WE'RE TRYING TO GET OTHER PEOPLE TO CALL, YOU KNOW. SO, IT'S NOT JUST MICKEY AND I COMPLAINING ALL THE TIME, I FEEL LIKE WE'RE THE BAD WORD. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? BECAUSE WE DON'T LIKE THE MUSIC. SO HOPEFULLY I KNOW THE SHERIFFS AREN'T ON TONIGHT TO HEAR OUR COMPLAINTS, BUT HOPEFULLY THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBER WILL PASS THIS ON TO THEM FOR US. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, TINA, FOR YOUR COMMENTS. I WILL SAY WE WILL WE DO ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONTINUE TO CALL IN YOUR TIPS AND COMPLAINTS. WE NEVER DISCOURAGE YOU TO DO THAT. WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONTINUE TO ALWAYS DO THAT, AS WE DO [INAUDIBLE] APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS AS WELL. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ZOOM OR BY PHONE? WE DO HAVE A PUBLIC COMMENT FROM C. HARRISON? MR. HARRISON, YOU'RE ON LINE. YES, THIS CARLOS HARRISON. HOW ARE WE DOING? VERY WELL. I GUESS I'M KIND OF ON THE SAME LINE WITH EVERYBODY ELSE IS KIND OF ABOUT THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT BECAUSE WE HAD AN INCIDENT LAST NIGHT AT A FRIEND'S HOUSE THAT THERE WAS SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY WAS INSIDE THEIR HOUSE. THEY CALLED THE SHERIFF TWO TIMES AND IT TOOK THEM AN HOUR, OVER AN HOUR TO GET THERE. BUT I GUESS THE REAL COMPLAINT IS THAT WE'RE HAVING TO CALL THE SHERIFF ALL THESE TIMES AND WE'RE NOT GETTING IN RESPONSE. I UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, COVID AND EVERYTHING. BUT I'M ALONG WITH TINA AND VICKI. WHAT IS THE CITY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS? BECAUSE FOR SOMEONE TO BE LUCKILY THE PERSON WAS IN THEIR HOUSE AND THEY WERE ASLEEP, BUT SOME KIND OF WAY THEY GOT INSIDE THEIR HOUSE. THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED. THEY DIDN'T SHOW UP. THEY WERE CALLED AGAIN AND IT STILL TOOK THEM AN HOUR TO GET THERE. LUCKILY. AGAIN, THE PERSON ASLEEP. IT WASN'T YOU KNOW, THEY WEREN'T AFTER ANYTHING, THEY WERE VIOLENT. BUT THE SIMPLE FACT THAT THIS PERSON WAS IN THEIR HOUSE AND NOBODY SHOWED UP, AN OLDER COUPLE, A LOT OLDER COUPLE, NOBODY SHOWED UP. [01:25:04] THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT DID NOT SHOW UP TO DO YOU KNOW WHATEVER THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO. IF THEY WOULD HAVE SHOT THEM, IF THEY WOULD HAVE HIT THEM WITH A STICK, IF THAT PERSON WOULD HAVE ATTACKED THEM. WE REALLY NEED TO REALLY LOOK INTO OUR SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND SOMETHING ABOUT THEIR RESPONSE TIME TO THESE KIND OF THINGS. THANK YOU, MR. HARRISON, FOR YOUR COMMENTS. IT'S A RECURRING COMMENT, THAT'S FOR SURE. THANK YOU. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS AT THIS TIME? NO OTHER COMMENT AT THIS TIME, MAYOR. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S PUBLIC COMMENTS. AND WITH THAT, WE WILL GO AHEAD AND TAKE A RECESS QUICK FIVE MINUTE RECESS SO THAT WE CAN REGATHER AND THEN WE'LL COME BACK TO THIS AGENDA IN FIVE MINUTES. IT IS 6:27 AT THIS TIME, WE WILL RESUME AT JUST ABOUT SIX THIRTY TWO, IF THAT IS GOOD MATH. THE CLERK WILL LET ME KNOW WHEN HE'S JOINED US. WE ARE MOVING ON TO NO SUCCESSOR AGENCY BUSINESS ITEM SEVEN, ITEM EIGHT, [8) a. Receive and File department payments totaling $552.24] WASCO PUBLIC FINANCE AUTHORITY BUSINESS. WE HAVE A RECEIVE AND FILE DEPARTMENT PAYMENTS TOTALING FIVE HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO DOLLARS AND TWENTY FOUR CENTS. MR. ORTIZ, DO WE HAVE A PRESENTATION ON THIS. NO, THIS IS THE PAYMENTS, IF THERE'S ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS WE CAN ANSWER, OTHERWISE IT'S JUST--. VERY WELL. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER ON THIS ITEM. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE HAND FEATURE TO REQUEST TO SPEAK. IF YOU ARE USING A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR KEYPAD, YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED AT THIS TIME. DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM EIGHT A? LET THE RECORD SHOW MEMBER CORTEZ HA REJOINED US. MADAM CLERK? MAYOR GARCIA, AT THIS TIME THERE ARE NO PUBLIC COMMENTS. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. ANY COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBERS? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA? NO COMMENTS, MAYOR, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MEMBER CORTEZ? NO COMMENTS, THANK YOU, MAYOR. MEMBER MARTINEZ. NO COMMENTS. HOW ABOUT MEMBER PALLARES? NO COMMENTS, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND NOW I'D LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION. MOVE TO APPROVE. THIS IS REYNA. THANK YOU, MEMBER REYNA. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND. IT'S BEEN MOVED BY MEMBER REYNA, AND SECONDED BY MEMBER MARTINEZ. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE [INAUDIBLE]. AND FILE ITEM EIGHT A, MOTION IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. MOVING ON TO CITY COUNCIL BUSINESS ITEM NINE CONSENT CALENDAR, THE CONSENT [9) CONSENT CALENDAR] CALENDAR CONSISTS OF ITEMS THAT, IN STAFF'S OPINION, ARE ROUTINE AND NON-CONTROVERSIAL. THESE ITEMS ARE APPROVED IN ONE MOTION UNLESS THE COUNCIL MEMBER OR A MEMBER OF THE AUDIENCE WISHES REMOVAL OF A PARTICULAR ITEM. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE A PARTICULAR ITEM USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE YOUR HAND FEATURE. IF YOU ARE USING A PHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR KEYPAD. YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK. THIS EVENING WE HAVE CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS NINE A APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR A1 JANUARY 5TH. 2021 REGULAR MEETING. A2 JANUARY 19, 2021 REGULAR MEETING. 9A, OH, EXCUSE ME, THAT WAS ITEM 9A ONE AND TWO, ITEM NINE B RECEIVE AND FILE DEPARTMENT PAYMENTS TOTALING THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY THREE THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHT DOLLARS AND 30 CENTS. ITEM NINE C ADOPT A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO PURCHASE TWENTY NINE BELOW GRADE SAMPLE STATIONS FROM USA BLUEBOOK IN THE AMOUNT OF NINETEEN THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND NINETEEN DOLLARS AND THIRTY ONE CENTS ITEM NAMED REJECTION OF ALL BIDS RECEIVED FOR WASTE WATER TO MUNICIPAL LAND LEASE PUBLISHED ON NOVEMBER 1ST. [01:30:01] TWENTY TWENTY ITEM NINE E ADOPTED RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING CITY MANAGER TO NEGOTIATE AND ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH I AM SHEEP CO. TO PERMIT GRAZING ON THE CITY'S MUNICIPAL AG LAND. ITEM NINE F ADOPT AND WAIVE THE SECOND READING OF AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF WASCO AMENDMENT AMENDING TITLE EIGHT TITLED HEALTH AND SAFETY OF THE CITY OF WASCO CODE CHAPTER EIGHT POINT ONE TITLED SOLID WASTE. ITEM NINE G ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE APPLICATION FOR GRANT FUNDS FOR THE CALIFORNIA CLIMATE INVESTMENTS URBAN GREENING PROGRAM. ALL THIS EXCUSE ME, AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK MEMBERS IF THEY HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST ON ANY PARTICULAR ITEM ON THIS CONSENT CALENDAR. MAYOR PRO-TEM REYNA, ANY CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS? NO CONFLICT, MAYOR, THANK YOU. MEMBER CORTEZ? NO CONFLICT, THANK YOU MR. MAYOR. MEMBER MARTINEZ? NO CONFLICT. MEMBER PALLARES? NO CONFLICT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MEMBERS, ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE WHO WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT OR REMOVE A PARTICULAR ITEM FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR? MADAM CLERK, ARE THERE ANY CONSIDERATION FROM THE AUDIENCE? MAYOR GARCIA, THERE ARE NONE. THANK YOU ANY MEMBERS THAT WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE A PARTICULAR ITEM FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR. MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. NO, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. HOW ABOUT MEMBER CORTEZ? NO, THANK YOU. MEMBER MARTINEZ? AND MEMBER PALLARES, ANY ITEMS TO REMOVE? NO, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NO SEPARATE CONSIDERATIONS. I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION MOTION TO APPROVE; THIS IS MEMBER CORTEZ. MEMBER CORTEZ MOVES; I'LL SECOND. MADAM CLERK, VOICE VOTE. APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR. MOTION, IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. MOVING ON TO ITEM 10, PUBLIC HEARINGS, ITEM 10A ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPROVING AN [10) a. Adopt a resolution approving an application for funding and Authorize the City Manager to execute a grant agreement and any amendments thereto from the 2020 Community Development Block Grant Program - Coronavirus Response Round 2 & 3 (CDBG-CV2&3) NOFA dated December 18, 2020. (Cobb)] APPLICATION FOR FUNDING AND AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A GRANT AGREEMENT AND ANY AMENDMENTS THERETO FROM THE 20 20 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT GRANT PROGRAM. CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE, ROUND TWO AND THREE (CDBG-CV2&3) NOFA DATED DECEMBER 18TH, 2020 MRS. COBB. GOOD EVENING, MR. MAYOR, MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL, I KNOW THAT'S A MOUTHFUL. THE CITY IS PROPOSING TO APPLY FOR CDBG-CV2&3 TWO AND THREE FUNDS TO PROVIDE A SUBSISTENCE PAYMENT PROGRAM TO OUR INCOME, ELIGIBLE RESIDENTS WHO ARE IN NEED OF RENT AND MORTGAGE ASSISTANCE AND OR UTILITY ASSISTANCE DUE TO THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN WITH THE CORONAVIRUS. THE RESOLUTION FOR THIS IS ATTACHED IN YOUR STAFF REPORT. THIS IS A PUBLIC HEARING, SO WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING. CITIZENS ARE ENCOURAGED TO ASK QUESTIONS AND OR COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED ACTIVITIES THAT THE APPLICATION IS PROPOSING. THERE'S ALSO ATTACHED IN YOUR STAFF REPORT, THE SUBSISTENCE PAYMENT PROGRAM POLICIES AND PROCEDURES GUIDE. THIS PROGRAM WILL BE OPERATED, ADVERTISED AND MANAGED BY THE CITY'S CDBG CONSULTANT SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES. AND I DO HAVE SUSAN LONG WITH SELF-HELP ON THE LINE TONIGHT, IF YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS FOR HER AS WELL. SO WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. BUT FROM HERE, WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING, ACCEPT PUBLIC COMMENTS, AND THEN MOVE TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION. THANK YOU, MRS. COBB, FOR THAT REPORT. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, OR MAKE A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM. PLEASE USE THE RAISED HAND FEATURE TO SPEAK. IF YOU'RE USING A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR TELEPHONE KEYPAD. YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU'RE CALLING FROM. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK AGAIN, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED. AT THIS TIME. DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS, MADAM CLERK? MAYOR GARCIA, WE DO HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT FROM GERALD GRIDIRON. GREAT. MR. GRIDIRON, PASTOR GRIDIRON, OR IS IT GERALD. HI, THIS IS ACTUALLY GERALD. [01:35:01] ALL RIGHT. I GUESS I HAVE TWO MINUTES. FIRST, SO I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU, MAYOR, FOR THE MEETING TODAY. I THOUGHT IT WAS GRACIOUS OF YOU AND IT SPEAKS VOLUMES OF WHO YOU ARE AND YOUR VISION PERTAINING TO THE CITY OF WASCO. SO, YEAH, I JUST WANT TO COMMEND YOU ON THAT. IN ADDITION TO THAT, PERTAINING TO, I GUESS, THIS LINE ITEM WITH THE MEETING, TWO QUESTIONS, WHERE CAN THIS APPLICATION BE FOUND? AND IS IT ONLY LIMITED TO, I GUESS, HOUSEHOLDS OR I GUESS MORE SO IS IT ALSO EXTENDED TO CHURCHES OR OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAS BUILDINGS THAT THEY HAVEN'T [INAUDIBLE]? THANK YOU. VERY GOOD QUESTION. AND MRS. COBB, COULD YOU ANSWER THOSE POINTS OR--. I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND DEFER TO SUSAN. I'LL LET YOU ANSWER ON THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. OK. HELLO, COUNCIL MEMBERS. SUSAN LONG, PROGRAM DIRECTOR WITH SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES. THE APPLICATION, ONCE FUNDS ARE ACTUALLY AVAILABLE TO THE RESIDENTS, WILL BE AVAILABLE ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE AS WELL AS OUR WEBSITE. I'M SURE WE WILL TRY TO PROVIDE PAPER APPLICATIONS AS WELL AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY. IT IS ONLY FOR HOUSEHOLDS TO PAY RENT, MORTGAGE AND OR UTILITIES. SO THIS ASSISTANCE IS NOT FOR NONPROFITS OR FOR PROFIT BUSINESSES, ONLY FOR HOUSEHOLDS. VERY WELL, THANK YOU. VERY GOOD QUESTION. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM GERALD OR ANY OTHER COMMENTS? GENERAL, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? YES, IT DID ANSWER MY QUESTION. SO I GUESS FOR MEMBERS OF MY CHURCH, I CAN DEFINITELY FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THEM IF THEY ARE IN THIS PREDICAMENT, PERTAINS TO IT. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND THAT WAS A VERY GOOD QUESTION. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS ON THIS ITEM? THERE ARE NO FURTHER COMMENTS AT THIS TIME. VERY WELL. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. ANY COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBERS, MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA? NO COMMENTS, MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. HOW ABOUT MEMBER CORTEZ? NONE AT THIS TIME? THANK YOU. VERY WELL. MEMBER MARTINEZ. THANK YOU. MEMBER PALLARES? NO COMMENTS, THANK YOU. VERY WELL, I HAVE NO COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS. AND SPEAKING WITH STAFF I WOULD TRUST [INAUDIBLE] WELL, I GUESS, I WOULD ASK THE CITY MANAGER AND DID THE STAFF GET THE CHANCE TO WORK WITH SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES AND ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HAD PREVIOUSLY. WE DID WE WERE ABLE TO CLARIFY SOME INFORMATION, PARTICULARLY FOR THE COUNCIL MEMBERS AND PUBLIC'S INFORMATION. WAS A QUESTION WITH REGARDS TO SOME PROGRAM INCOME FROM SOME PRIOR CDBG PROJECTS THE CITY HAD ENDEAVORED THAT WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF ALLOCATING TO SOME OTHER PROJECTS. AND SO THE SPECIFIC QUESTION WAS WHETHER OR NOT WE CAN CONTINUE TO ALLOCATE THOSE TO OTHER PROJECTS THAT WE HAD IN THE WORKS. OTHERWISE, THE APPLICATION, THE PROGRAM REQUIRED US TO SPEND DOWN THOSE PROGRAM INCOMES BEFORE WE WOULD BE ELIGIBLE TO SPEND DOWN THE FUNDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO THIS PROGRAM. SO WE HAVE OTHER REQUIREMENTS AND NEEDS OF THOSE OTHER FUNDS THAT WE'VE ALLOCATED FOR PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS AND OTHER SERVICES WE'RE LOOKING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH. AND SO THAT WAS A KEY QUESTION WE NEEDED TO HAVE ADDRESSED. VERY WELL, AND THAT WAS REALLY MY ONLY CONCERN IS BEING ABLE TO [INAUDIBLE] THOSE PLANS AND EFFORTS, BUT OTHERWISE I THINK THIS PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE VERY USEFUL AND HOPEFULLY VERY SUCCESSFUL WITH OUR RESIDENTS. I WILL GO AHEAD AND ENTERTAIN A MOTION AT THIS TIME. THIS IS REYNA, MOVE TO APPROVE. THANK YOU, IT'S BEEN MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND. I'LL GO AHEAD-- I'LL SECOND THIS. MEMBER CORTEZ. CORTEZ WILL GO AHEAD AND SECOND THAT MOTION. MOVED BY MEMBER REYNA. MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU CALL A VOICE VOTE. YES. OK, CORTEZ TO APPROVE ITEM 10A. MOTION IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. [01:40:01] MOVING ON TO ITEM 11, DIFFERENT BUSINESS, WE HAVE NONE. ITEM 12, NEW BUSINESS, ITEM 12A ADOPT A RESOLUTION TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER [12) a. Adopt a Resolution to Authorize the City Manager to enter into a sub-recipient agreement with Self Help Enterprises for activities and programs funded under the Community Development Block Grant Program (Cobb)] TO ENTER INTO A SUB RECIPIENT AGREEMENT WITH SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES FOR ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMS FUNDED UNDER THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM. MRS. COBB. GOOD EVENING AGAIN, MR. MAYOR, AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL, AS DISCUSSED IN THE PREVIOUS AGENDA ITEM AND PUBLIC HEARING THE CITY IS PROPOSING TO APPLY FOR A CV2 & 3 CDBG PROGRAM FUNDS. AND THE CITY IS SEEKING TO ENTER INTO A SUB RECIPIENT AGREEMENT WITH SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES TO OFFER THAT SUBSISTENCE PAYMENT PROGRAM. WE PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED SELF-HELP AGAIN WILL MANAGE THE PROGRAM. ADVERTISING APPLICATIONS, MONITORING AND REPORTING AND STAFF IS RECOMMENDING THAT YOU ADOPT THE RESOLUTION TONIGHT AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO THIS SUB RECIPIENT AGREEMENT WITH SELF-HELP ENTERPRISES. VERY WELL, THANK YOU, MRS. COBB. AUDIENCE AGAIN, PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER ON THIS ITEM. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A VERBAL COMMENT USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE HAND FEATURE ON YOUR RESUME APPLICATION. IF YOU ON A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR KEYPAD, YOU WILL BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE MUTED. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC AT THIS TIME? MAYOR GARCIA, WE DO HAVE ONE COMMENT FROM JOE MARTINEZ. VERY WELL. MR MARTINEZ. JOE MARTINEZ, THANK YOU, HONORABLE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS. THE ONLY QUESTION I WOULD HAVE IS WITH THE APPLICATIONS THAT YOU'RE TAKING, WILL YOU GET A FULL ACCOUNTING OF ALL THOSE WHO APPLIED AS FAR AS IF THERE WAS ANYBODY WHO WAS REJECTED OR ANYBODY WHOSE APPLICATION WAS NOT THOROUGH? MY ONLY CONCERN IS WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEBODY ON THE OUTSIDE MANAGING YOUR WHOLE SYSTEM, YOU MAY HAVE THINGS LOST IN THE PROCESS. SO JUST FOR THE ACCOUNTABILITY PURPOSES, ROUGHLY, COULD THEY GIVE YOU HOW MANY APPLICATIONS WERE GIVEN OR HOW MANY APPLICATIONS WERE COMPLETED, AS WELL AS HOW MANY APPLICATIONS WERE APPROVED? SO THAT WOULD BE THE ONLY QUESTION I WOULD ASK YOUR CITY MANAGER TO MANAGE INDEPENDENTLY. THANK YOU. VERY WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT FEEDBACK, MR. MARTINEZ. I'M SURE STAFF WILL TAKE THAT INTO SERIOUS CONSIDERATION. MADAM CLERK, ARE THERE ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME? THERE ARE NO MORE COMMENTS AT THIS TIME, MAYOR GARCIA. THANK YOU. ANY COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBERS? MEMBER REYNA? NO COMMENTS, MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MEMBER CORTEZ. NO COMMENTS. ANY FROM MEMBER MARTINEZ? NO. MEMBER PALLARES? NO COMMENTS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I'D LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION AT THIS TIME. SO MOVED, MR. MAYOR; THIS IS MEMBER CORTEZ. THANK YOU. IT'S BEEN MOTIONED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND THANK YOU, IT'S BEEN MOVED BY MEMBER EXCUSE ME, CORTEZ AND SECONDED BY MEMBER MARTINEZ. MADAM CLERK, VOICE VOTE. MARTINEZ TO APPROVE ITEM MOTION IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. MOVING ON TO ITEM 12B UNDER NEW BUSINESS. REPORT AND DISCUSSION FROM THE KERN COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT. WHO DO WE HAVE ON THIS EVENING? MAYOR, I DON'T BELIEVE THEY'RE ON. ALL RIGHT. I DON'T SEE THEM ON. THAT IS UNFORTUNATE. ALL RIGHT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND TRY TO CIRCLE BACK TO ITEM 12B THEN, IF WE'RE ALLOWED TO. MADAM, PLEASE ADVISE [INAUDIBLE]. MOVING ON TO ITEM 12 C ADOPT A RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING THE VETERANS BANNER PROGRAM. [12) c. Adopt a Resolution establishing the Veteran Salute Banner Program. (Ortiz Hernandez)] MR. ORTIZ. I WILL DEFER TO MS. SABOLEWSKI, LET ME JUST GET TO THE APPROPRIATE. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR GARCIA AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. WE'RE READY FOR YOU, MS. SABOLEWSKI. OK, SO WHAT WE HAVE BEFORE YOU IS A RECOMMENDATION TO ESTABLISH A VETERANS [INAUDIBLE] BANNER PROGRAM. THE CITY OF WASCO HAS MANY RESIDENTS WHO HAVE GONE ON TO SERVE IN THE ARMED [01:45:04] FORCES AS WELL AS IN CONFLICTS ACROSS THE GLOBE. WHILE MANY AMERICANS WERE DRAFTED, WE'VE BEEN AN ALL VOLUNTEER FORCE SINCE NINETEEN SEVENTY THREE AND THE CITY OF WASCO DOES HAVE A RICH TRADITION OF RESIDENTS WHO'VE GONE ON TO SERVE. LIKE I SAID BEFORE, THIS BANNER PROGRAM WOULD PAY TRIBUTE TO THOSE VETERANS AND ACTIVE DUTY SERVICE MEMBERS BY DISPLAYING A BANNER DOWN 7TH STREET SIMILAR TO THE BANNERS AND THE SIZE THAT WE HAVE CURRENTLY ON DISPLAY. VETERANS WOULD BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTATION. THEY MUST BE HONORABLY DISCHARGED OR ACTIVE DUTY IN GOOD STANDING AND WOULD BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE SUCH DOCUMENTATION. THE PROGRAM SUGGESTS THAT THE BANNERS BE DISPLAYED BEGINNING ON INDEPENDENCE DAY, THROUGH VETERANS DAY SO JULY THROUGH MID-NOVEMBER TO HONOR ALL THOSE RESIDENTS IN THE CITY OF WASCO WHO HAVE SERVED THEIR COUNTRY AND OUR COMMUNITY. ADDITIONALLY, IN THE PROGRAM, IF THE BANNER IS IN GOOD FORM, NOT WEATHERED THE FAMILY HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO DISPLAY IT A SECOND YEAR. THE PROGRAM WOULD BE OPEN TO CITY OF WASCO RESIDENTS WITH GIVEN PRIORITY TO THEM. AND THEN IF YOU WOULD ENTERTAIN OR WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE FAMILY MEMBERS THAT ARE RESIDENTS, BUT THE VETERAN MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE A VETERAN, THAT WOULD BE YOUR DECISION TO MAKE. THE PROGRAM OR THE BANNER WOULD BE AT SOLE COST TO THE VETERAN AND CURRENT PRICING FOR THE DOUBLE-SIDED COLOR POLE POCKET BANNER THAT THE CITY MANAGER HAS DISPLAYED IS APPROXIMATELY 80 DOLLARS. AND AGAIN, LIKE I SAID, THE INDIVIDUAL WILL HAVE TO COMPLETE AN APPLICATION AND SUBMIT THE REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION IN HOPES THAT IF THIS PROGRAM IS SUCCESSFUL, MAYBE WE COULD CONSIDER OTHER STREETS WITHIN WASCO, SUCH AS PALM AVENUE, EVEN [INAUDIBLE] DRIVE, FILBURN. AND I BELIEVE THAT THIS BANNER WILL WILL ADD TO THE AURA OF THE CITY AND HOW PRIDEFUL WE ARE OF OUR RESIDENTS. VERY NICE AND A VERY EXCITING PROGRAM. LET'S GO AHEAD AND GET THROUGH THIS PART. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION IS LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES PER SPEAKER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT VERBALLY USING ZOOM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE HAND FEATURE TO REQUEST TO SPEAK. IF YOU'RE USING A TELEPHONE, PLEASE DIAL STAR NINE ON YOUR TELEPHONE KEYPAD. YOU WILL THEN BE CALLED UPON BY THE NUMBER YOU ARE CALLING FROM. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR COMMENTS. ONCE YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED, YOU WILL BE NEEDED AT THIS TIME. DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS MADAM CLERK? MAYOR GARCIA, WE DO HAVE A PUBLIC COMMENT FROM JOE MARTINEZ. MR. MARTINEZ. GOOD EVENING, JOE MARTINEZ, THANK YOU HONORABLE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS. I THINK IT'S AN AWESOME PROGRAM THAT'S BEEN DONE IN OTHER CITIES. I'M NOT A VETERAN. MY MOTHER WAS A VETERAN, BUT I THINK IT'S A GREAT WAY TO RECOGNIZE THOSE WHO'VE WILLINGLY GONE AND HONORABLY SERVED THEIR COUNTRY AND EVEN THOSE WHO MAY NOT HAVE COME BACK. WE SHOULD ALSO OPEN THAT UP TO THEM IF THEY WERE GIVEN AN HONORABLE DISCHARGE OR THE PROPER PAPERWORK TO HAVE BEEN GIVEN CREDIT FOR HONORABLE DISCHARGE, SO EVEN THOSE WHO MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO COME HOME WE SHOULD ALSO OPEN IT UP TO THEM IF THEY WERE HONORABLY SERVED. THANK YOU, MR. MARTINEZ. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS, MADAM CLERK? THERE ARE NO OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME, MAYOR. I AGREE WITH THE PUBLIC COMMENT FROM MR. MARTINEZ, IT'S AN EXCELLENT PROGRAM AND HE COULDN'T HAVE SAID IT BETTER. AND I WOULD BE OPEN TO TO THAT AS WELL. WHAT ABOUT COMMENTS FROM MAYOR PRO-TEM REYNA? THANK YOU, MAYOR. YOU KNOW, IT'S ALREADY BEEN SAID, THIS IS A GREAT PROGRAM. I THINK IT'S WONDERFUL THAT WE'RE ABLE TO [INAUDIBLE] AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR WASCO HOMETOWN HEROES TO BE HONORED. SO I'M ALL FOR IT. THANK YOU. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. MEMBER CORTEZ? I ALWAYS SAY, I MAY NOT COME UP WITH THE BEST IDEAS, BUT I RECOGNIZE ONE WHEN I SEE ONE, THIS IS JUST AN AMAZING, AMAZING IDEA. AND I WANT TO GIVE CREDIT TO MARIANA SABOLEWSKI FOR THE IDEA. [01:50:01] IT'S FANTASTIC. I LOOK FORWARD TO IT. I DEFINITELY WANT TO GET THAT ON IN THE PUBLIC. BUT THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT FORWARD TO THE CITY FOR APPROVAL. IT'S A GREAT PROJECT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MEMBER CORTEZ. COMMENTS FROM MEMBER MARTINEZ. I AGREE WITH THE COMMENTS SO FAR THAT THIS IS A GREAT IDEA. THE ONLY THING THAT I WOULD SAY, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANY WAY THAT IT WOULD BE FEASIBLE, BUT IF THERE WAS A WAY THAT WE COULD ESTABLISH A FUND FOR PERHAPS VETERANS THAT COULDN'T AFFORD TO PAY FOR IT, I KNOW THAT I WOULD BE MORE THAN WILLING TO SPONSOR A BANNER IF THERE WAS A VETERAN AND IT COULDN'T AFFORD IT. I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT THE CITY COULD DO TO PUT A MECHANISM IN PLACE FOR THAT. OR MAYBE WE COULD HAVE ONE OF OUR LOCAL NONPROFITS HANDLE THAT. BUT IT'S A GREAT IDEA AND I'D LIKE TO SEE IT IMPLEMENTED. THANK YOU, MS. MARTINEZ. MEMBER PALLARES. NO ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND WITH THAT, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION. THIS IS REYNA, MOVE TO APPROVE. THANK YOU, MEMBER REYNA, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU. MOVED BY REYNA, AND SECONDED BY MEMBER PALLARES. MADAM CLERK, CALL A VOICE VOTE. SHE'S ON MUTE. I'M SORRY. PALLARES TO APPROVE ITEM 12C. MOTION IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED. EXCELLENT. ALL RIGHT, BEFORE WE MOVE ON FROM NEW BUSINESS. MR. ORTIZ, WE DIDN'T HAVE ANYONE JOIN US FOR ITEM 12B AFTER ALL? I DO NOT SEE ANYONE PRESENT. OK, THAT'S FINE. MOVING ON TO ITEM 13, REPORTS FROM COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES. [13) a. Kern Economic Development Corporation (Cortez)] ITEM 13 A CURRENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION. MEMBER CORTEZ, DO YOU HAVE A REPORT FOR US THIS EVENING. I DO, THANK YOU, JUST GOING TO GO BACK TO MY NOTES, I HAD TO PULL OVER BEFORE THE MEETING AND HAD SOME SPOTTY RECEPTION, ACTUALLY THE THING WAS ON THEIR END BECAUSE IT KEPT GOING OUT. BUT FROM WHAT I HEARD, THERE'S OBVIOUSLY THE PANDEMIC AFFECTED FOURTH QUARTER BUSINESSES CONTINUE TO AFFECT THEM. AND SO ONE OF THE COMMENTS THEY HAD MADE IS THAT UNEMPLOYMENT HAD REACHED 18 PERCENT AND OAKLAND COUNTY BACK IN MARCH, APRIL, 18 PERCENT UNEMPLOYMENT THAT WAS PRETTY HIGH. AND THEN TOWARDS DECEMBER, IT WAS DOWN TO ABOUT 12 PERCENT. SO I THINK THE WORKFORCE IS GETTING BACK TO WORK. AND THEY ALSO NOTED THAT A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF HOURLY WORKERS OF FOURTEEN DOLLARS OR LESS PER HOUR WERE THE MOST AFFECTED BY THE PANDEMIC. SO USUALLY SERVICE ORIENTED EMPLOYEE EMPLOYEES WERE THE ONES THAT WERE MOST AFFECTED BY THE JOB LOSS, PANDEMIC CLOSURES, WHATEVER THAT MAY BE. SO THAT WAS THAT. A LITTLE BIT OF GOOD NEWS IS THE HARD ROCK CASINO WAS APPROVED BY THE US BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. SO THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S GOT MORE TRACTION AND HEADED TOWARDS GETTING OPEN. SO A LITTLE BIT OF GOOD NEWS AND ALL THE GLOOM, BUT BUSINESSES ARE DOING THEIR BEST TO TRY TO ACCLIMATE TO THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT RIGHT NOW. A LOT OF BUSINESSES THAT ARE OFFERING WORK FROM HOME TELECOMMUTING ARE PROSPERING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THERE'S MORE OPPORTUNITIES THAN THAT IN THOSE BUSINESS AREA SECTORS. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. [13) b. Kern Council of Government (Garcia)] THANK YOU MEMBER CORTEZ, ITEM 13B CURRENT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, AND THAT ONE IS FROM MYSELF, WE HAD A VERY BRIEF FIRST MEETING OF THE YEAR A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO. WE HAD A REPORT FROM OUR SECTION DIRECTOR OR SENIOR DISTRICT DIRECTOR FROM CALTRANS ON FUNDING FOR HIGHWAY FORTY SIX. THAT'S GOING TO BE FOR THAT STRETCH WIDENING. THAT'S ACTUALLY ON THE OTHER END OF THE COUNTY LINE. UNFORTUNATELY NOT ON OUR END. THAT'S ALL THE DATES FOR CURRENT COUNCIL GOVERNMENTS. I MEAN THE ACCOUNT THE BODY DID ACTUALLY APPOINT ME TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR [INAUDIBLE] AS WELL, AND I'LL BE SERVING IN A REPRESENTATIVE CAPACITY FOR [INAUDIBLE] AS WELL. OTHER THAN THAT, NO UPDATES FROM CURRENT COG. ITEM 14. REPORTS FROM THE SHERIFF. DO WE HAVE THE SERGEANT ON THE LINE? SERGEANT WAS UNABLE TO BE HERE. HE HAD A A FAMILY EVENT TO ATTEND. THANK YOU, THE SHERIFF AND SERGEANT EXCUSE ME, THE SERGEANT USUALLY IS ON WITH [01:55:02] A VERY GOOD REPORT. WE'RE SORRY TO MISS HIM THIS EVENING. [15) REPORTS FROM CITY MANAGER] ITEM 15 REPORTS FROM THE CITY MANAGER, MR. ORTIZ. SO A COUPLE ITEMS JUST REPORT ON. THE MEASURE X COMMITTEE MET LAST WEEK. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, MR. MARTINEZ WAS BEING ELECTED TO THE CITY COUNCIL THAT CREATED A VACANCY ON THE BOARD. WE HAVE BEEN RECRUITING FOR THAT POSITION. LAST WEEK, [INAUDIBLE] CHAIRMAN DOBBS ALSO RESIGNED. HE HAS RELOCATED OUTSIDE OF THE CITY LIMITS AND HAD TO RESIGN HIS SEAT. SO WE HAVE TWO VACANCIES ON THE MEASURE X BOARD. WE HAVE AN ADVERTISEMENT GOING OUT IN THE WASCO TRIBUNE THIS WEEK. SO AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING, THE COUNCIL WOULD LIKELY HAVE TO DECIDE HOW TO PROCEED WITH EITHER INTERVIEWING THE APPLICANTS OR EXTENDING THAT RECRUITMENT PROCESS. MEASURE X COMMITTEE HAS A MEETING ON A QUARTERLY BASIS, SO THERE'S NO URGENCY IN RUSHING TO THAT IF THE COUNCIL SO CHOOSES. WE DID HAVE A QUORUM TO BE ABLE TO PROCEED WITH THE MEASURE S COMMITTEE AND WE DO HAVE TWO APPLICANTS THAT HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED THUS FAR FOR IT FOR THE MEASURE X COMMITTEE. SO YOU'LL HAVE TO WEIGH THAT AT THE NEXT MEETING ON UPDATE ON THE FORMER WASCO LABOR CAMP, THE FINAL TENANT HAS BEEN HAS MOVED OUT OF THE LABOR CAMP. AND SO THAT HAS TRIGGERED THE ESCROW PROCESS TO TRANSFER THE PROPERTY FROM THE WASCO HOUSING AUTHORITY TO THE CITY OF WASCO THAT PROBABLY WOULD BE WRAPPED UP IN THE NEXT 30 DAYS, AT WHICH POINT WE WOULD HAVE A FULL AND COMPLETE AND CONTROL AND UNFORTUNATE LIABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE LABOR CAMP. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING ON THE PROCESS OF REMOVING THE DOORS IN THE FINAL UNIT TO MAKE SURE IT DOESN'T ENABLE TRANSIENTS OR OTHERS TO BARRICADE THEMSELVES INSIDE THE BUILDING. THAT HAS BEEN AN ISSUE IN THE PAST. WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON A COUPLE ITEMS WITH [INAUDIBLE] OFFICE ON TRYING TO OBTAIN SOME FUNDING TO POTENTIALLY DEMOLISH THE SITE. THERE APPEARS TO BE SOME POSITIVE TRACTION THAT HOPEFULLY WE'LL UPDATE YOU IN THE NEXT MEETING ON. BUT THAT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS. STAFF CONTINUES TO WORK ON A HIGH SPEED RAIL PROJECTS. THERE'S VARIOUS ASPECTS, INCLUDING BOTH REQUESTS FOR DETOURS, REESTABLISHING A DIFFERENT DETOUR THAN WHAT'S CURRENTLY IN PLACE, AS WELL AS SOME OTHER ACTIVITY. WE'RE IN A PROCESS OF ALSO REVIEWING AND COMMENTING BACK AND FORTH ON VARIOUS AGREEMENTS THAT THE HIGH-SPEED RAIL AUTHORITY HAS PRESENTED, INCLUDING THE GRADE SEPARATION AGREEMENT AND THE OPERATION OF [INAUDIBLE] AGREEMENTS. I THINK WE HAD PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED IN PRIOR MEETINGS THAT ESPECIALLY WHEN DIANA GOMEZ WAS STILL THE REGIONAL DIRECTOR FOR THE CENTRAL VALLEY ABOUT THE CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERING ALL AGREEMENTS COMPREHENSIVELY AND ONE AFTER ANOTHER VERSUS SEPARATING THEM TO MAKE SUR WE UNDERSTAND WHAT ARE THOSE HOW ONE INFLUENCES ANOTHER AND HOW ONE IS RELATED AND MAKING SURE, AGAIN, WE DON'T FIND OURSELVES IN A POSITION WHERE WE AGREE TO SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T BENEFIT THE COMMUNITY OR CREATES AN ADVERSE EFFECT. SO WE'RE STILL WORKING ON THAT. OTHER THAN THAT, THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR NOW. VERY WELL, THANK YOU, MR. MANAGER, REPORTS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER REYNA. [16) REPORTS FROM CITY COUNCIL] THANK YOU, MAYOR. I HAVE A QUESTION FOR DANIEL. DANIEL, WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT REPRESENTATIVE, SOMEONE FROM THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, WAS PRESENT AT OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING? I WANT TO SAY IT WAS THE LAST TIME YOU GUYS TALK ABOUT FIREWORKS. THAT'S RIGHT. IT'S REALLY, REALLY SAD TO FIND OUT THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT EVEN COMING TO OUR MEETINGS WHEN THEY'RE PROPOSING TO CHARGE US HUNDRED NINETY FOUR PERCENT MORE FOR THEIR SERVICES. THEY'RE NOT WILLING TO ANSWER QUESTIONS. THEY AREN'T PRESENT HERE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS. YOU KNOW, WE ASKED THEM ABOUT THIS CONTINUOUS USE OF ILLEGAL FIREWORKS. I ASKED THEM THAT THEY PUT AN ANSWER IN WRITING. THEY NEVER DID. JOHN CAN SPEAK FOR HIMSELF, BUT HE HAS ASKED ALSO AND NO ANSWER. SO MAYBE WE CAN HAVE THEM HERE FOR THE NEXT MEETING. BUT I KNOW THAT YOU CAN INVITE THEM AND THEY CAN CHOOSE NOT TO SHOW UP. AND THAT'S APPARENTLY WHAT THEY'RE DOING. IN ALL FAIRNESS, I GUESS I WOULD SAY, AT LEAST IN THIS CASE, WE DID HAVE TO AMEND THE AGENDA BECAUSE WE HAD LEFT OFF THE REPORT. BUT EVEN STILL WE DID GET NOTICE OUT TO THEM AND JUST SO THAT YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU OR MR. PALLARES, I TOO DO NOT GET REGULAR REPORTS FROM THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AS WELL AS I USED TO IN THE PAST. SO THAT IS ACROSS THE BOARD. LET ME MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO MR. REYNA AND THE REST OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS. I WOULD SUGGEST YOU CONTACT THE COUNTY SUPERVISOR AND MAKE THEM AWARE OF YOUR CONCERNS AND FRUSTRATIONS AND SEE IF THAT CHANGES ANYTHING WITH THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND THEIR PRESENCE. THANK YOU, I SHALL DO THAT, AND I RECOMMEND THAT EVERYBODY ELSE DOES THAT AS WELL. [02:00:02] A LOT OF SERIOUS CONCERNS WITH THE SHERIFF'S UNRESPONSIVENESS, BUT I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT AT THIS TIME. YOU KNOW, I'LL BE. SPEAKING TO THE SHERIFF MYSELF, THAT DEFINITELY WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE TENDING TO THE CALLS. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN'T HAVE HAPPENING WHEN SOMEBODY IS INSIDE OF A HOME AND THEY DON'T RESPOND. THAT'S JUST VERY VERY BAD. HOWEVER, I WANT TO THANK ALL THE STAFF FOR SUCH A DETAILED REPORT. THEY ALWAYS HELP ME TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS. I TRULY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. THAT'S IT FOR ME, MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. MEMBER CORTEZ. I JUST WANTED TO TOUCH ON SOME OF THE CONCERNS ON WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT. I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF. AGAIN, JUST REMIND EVERYBODY THAT WE HAVE COMMUNICATED WITH SHERIFF DON YOUNGBLOOD OR I HAVE AND WE HAVE SENT A STRONG MESSAGE TO THEM REGARDING OUR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE LEVEL OF SERVICE THAT WE ARE RECEIVING HERE. AND HE'S PUT IT VERY BLUNTLY AT THE END OF THE DAY THAT, YOU KNOW. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE OUT THERE AS AGGRESSIVELY AS THEY WOULD BE DUE TO THE PANDEMIC. AND IT'S FRUSTRATING TO SEE THAT BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THE CITY OF SHOPPERS STILL MAINTAINING THEIR LEVEL OF SERVICE TO THEIR CITIZENS, THEIR RESIDENTS. AT THE END OF THE DAY, I JUST I JUST DON'T THINK THAT SHERIFF DON YOUNGBLOOD CARES. SO I JUST WANT TO LET THE RESIDENTS KNOW THAT WE ARE WORKING. WE'VE GOT TO WORK WITH THEM. WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THEM TO TRY TO FIND SOLUTIONS. BUT IT'S WORK IN PROGRESS. SO THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU, MEMBER CORTEZ, I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS. MEMBER MARTINEZ? YEAH, JUST TO ECHO EVERYBODY ELSE'S CONCERNS WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT. YOU KNOW, I WANT TO MAKE CLEAR, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE BAD DEPUTIES THAT ARE ASSIGNED OUT HERE. I THINK THAT THE ISSUES WITHIN THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT ARE COMING FROM WELL ABOVE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ASSIGNED HERE, BECAUSE THESE PROBLEMS ARE GOING ON COUNTY WIDE WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT JUST NOT RESPONDING TO CALLS FOR SERVICE. AND THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT JUST DIDN'T START DURING THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC. IF YOU LOOK AT THE POLICE SERVICES STUDY THAT WAS DONE IN 2018, THE NUMBER OF ON SITE ACTIVITY THAT THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT WAS CONDUCTING HAD SEEN A SUBSTANTIAL REDUCTION FROM 2009 TO 2018 OR 2017. EXCUSE ME. SO THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT HAS BEEN BREWING IN THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT FOR A DECADE OR SO. BUT I WANT TO CLARIFY ONE THING IN THE COMMUNITY MEETING COMMUNITY ROUNDTABLE THAT WE HAD LAST WEEK, THERE WAS A DISCUSSION REGARDING ONE OF THE ITEMS IN THAT POLICE SERVICE SERVICES STUDY WHERE THERE WAS A FINDING THAT RECOMMENDED THAT WE SHOULD GET A DETAILED ITEMIZED BILL FROM THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT INSTEAD OF JUST A BASIC PRO-RATED AVERAGE FO COSTS. AND DURING THE ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION, A COMMUNITY MEMBER HAD MENTIONED THAT AND HE WAS BASICALLY SAID THAT HE DIDN'T THINK IT WAS RIGHT AND I AGREED WITH HIM. BUT IN HIS COMMENTS, HE ALSO MADE SOME COMMENTS THAT WERE NEGATIVE TOWARD CITY STAFF, BASICALLY SAYING THAT WE NEEDED NEW CITY STAFF. AND I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY, WHEN I SAID I AGREED WITH THOSE COMMENTS, I WAS NOT AGREEING WITH HIS COMMENTS ABOUT OUR CITY STAFF. I DO THINK THAT WE HAVE SOME VERY GOOD CITY EMPLOYEES, OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS OUR CITY MANAGER ALL THE WAY THROUGH. I'VE BEEN THOROUGHLY IMPRESSED SINCE BEING ELECTED WITH OUR CITY STAFF. AND SO WHEN I AGREED WITH THAT, I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY. I WAS NOT AGREEING WITH THE NEGATIVE COMMENTS TOWARDS OUR CITY STAFF. OTHER THEN THAT I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU, MEMBER MARTINEZ. MEMBER PALLARES. NOTHING TONIGHT, THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S ATTENTION AND ENGAGEMENT TONIGHT, IT'S ALWAYS, ALWAYS A FUN VIRTUAL PLATFORM TO BE WORKING ON. SOONER OR LATER, WE'LL BE BACK IN PERSON. JUST WANT TO TOUCH IT BACK ON THE REPORT THAT THE CITY MANAGER GAVE ABOUT THE MEASURE X. I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO GET THOSE APPLICATIONS IN FOR CONSIDERATION TO ADD TO THAT APPOINTMENT. THERE MAY BE ONE OR TWO SEATS OPENING UP EITHER IN THE NEAR FUTURE, IN THE NEAR FUTURE, IN THE LONG TERM. BUT WE ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO LEAN IN, ESPECIALLY EVERY ALL THE CANDIDATES WHO HAVE BEEN WHO HAVE SUBMITTED THEIR NAMES FOR BOARDS IN THE PAST OR TO THE COUNCIL IN THE PAST. SO I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO GET INVOLVED IN THAT IN THAT CAPACITY, ESPECIALLY SINCE MEASURE X IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT BOARD. AND THE LABOR CAMP TRANSFER, OF COURSE, IS IS SOMETHING THAT'S ON THE RADAR OF NOT ONLY MYSELF, BUT THE CITY STAFF, WHERE WE'VE BEEN WORKING REALLY HARD TO ENGAGE [INAUDIBLE] STAFF, LOOKING, TURNING OVER EVERY STONE POSSIBLE. WE'RE HOPING THAT THERE MAY BE SOME FUNDING IN [INAUDIBLE] STATE FUNDING FOR IT TO GET THAT HOPEFULLY ABATED. BUT AS ALL THINGS GOVERNMENT IS SLOW AND WE CONTINUE TO PRESS HARD WITH THEIR OFFICE [02:05:02] TO GET THINGS MOVING QUICKLY, AND THAT IS ALL [INAUDIBLE] IS POSSIBLE. THE LEAGUE OF CITIES HELD THEIR VIRTUAL CONFERENCE ACADEMY AT THE END OF LAST MONTH. AT THE END OF LAST MONTH, IT WAS IT WAS A TWO WEEK, FOUR DAY SERIES OF TRAININGS THAT WE ALL WERE PARTICIPATING IN. CITY STAFF WERE THERE. AND I APPRECIATE EVERYONE LEANING INTO THESE RESOURCES AVAILABLE. I LOOK FORWARD TO EVERYONE BEING A PART OF THEM IN THE FUTURE, INCLUDING OUR PLANNING, OUR PLANNING COMMISSION AND MOVING ON DOWN THE ROAD. THE CAMERA REBATE PROGRAM STAFF CONTINUES TO WORK ON I KNOW RESIDENTS HAVE ALREADY BEEN ASKING, I JUST ASK EVERYONE TO BE PATIENT AS THOSE DETAILS ARE WORKED OUT. WE'LL BE ROLLING OUT THE APPLICATION IN THE COMING WEEKS. THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE FOR LEANING IN ON THE COMMUNITY. I HAD A LOT OF RICH AND PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS WITH SOME RESIDENTS. I'M TAKING FEEDBACK, AUGMENTING AND RETOOLING SOME OF MY APPROACHES TO THE COMMUNITY ORGANIZING THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING. WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ADJACENTLY IN THESE TWO LANES AND AS MEMBERS HAVE PUT TOGETHER, GATHERED A DIVERSE GROUP OF NOT ONLY STAKEHOLDERS, COMMUNITY LEADERS, EDUCATORS, BUT WE ALSO HAVE RESIDENTS AND FAITH LEADERS AND OTHER GROUPS ON THE GROUND AND AT THIS TIME WHERE WE FIND THAT WE NEED TO CONVERGE THOSE EFFORTS UNDER ONE UMBRELLA OR A SORT OF TASK FORCE THAT THAT'S ALREADY BEEN DISCUSSED BY THE RESIDENTS. AND LIKE ALL THINGS, WE TAKE THAT FEEDBACK. I PERSONALLY CAN SPEAK FOR MYSELF AND TAKE THAT FEEDBACK AND RETOOL IT. WITH THAT BEING SAID, OUR MONTHLY NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING WILL BE WAS ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR NEXT WEEK, BUT I'M GOING TO BE PUSHING THAT BACK TO THE 24TH AND THEN WE'LL BE AT 5: 30. THE LOCATION IS TBA TO BE ANNOUNCED, BUT THAT'S JUST AFTER SOME FEEDBACK RECEIVED FROM THE COMMUNITY JUST TO SHOW THAT WE ARE ALWAYS OPEN TO FEEDBACK AND JUST CHANGING AS NEEDED AND MAKING SURE THAT OUR APPROACH IS A TRUE COMMUNITY APPROACH TO SOLVING OUR ISSUES AND MAKING IT THE BEST VEHICLE TO DISSEMINATE AND ONLY PROGRAMS THAT CITY. BUT THE GOOD THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING OUT ON OUT IN THE COMMUNITY AND OUR STREETS, LIKE THE GOOD WORK AND FOOD DISTRIBUTIONS AT MACEDONIAN CHURCH, THE GOOD WORK AND OUTREACH AT TRUE LIGHT BAPTIST IS DOING. AND THEN, OF COURSE, THE EXCELLENT WORK THAT OUR EDUCATORS ARE DOING IN OUR LOCAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND SO BRINGING ALL THOSE EFFORTS AND MARRYING THEM TOGETHER AND BRINGING THEM OUT OF THE SILOS AND UNDER ONE UMBRELLA, WHERE WE'RE WORKING TOGETHER NOT ONLY TO PROMOTE THE GOOD THINGS AND EFFORTS GOING ON IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO TACKLE [17) CLOSED SESSION] [18) CLOSED SESSION ACTION] [02:10:26] THE COMMUNITY SAFETY ISSUES THAT ARE GOING ON AND WE ARE FACING IN THESE TIMES. SO I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO CONTINUE TO BE A PART OF THE ROUNDTABLES, TO BE A PART OF THE COMMUNITY MEETINGS IS REALLY IS A COMMUNITY EFFORT. I'M TRYING TO GET EVERYONE EXCITED. WE'VE CREATED SOME REALLY GOOD MOMENTUM. THERE'S NO AGENDA. THERE'S NO THERE'S NO AGENDA OR EFFORT OTHER THAN THE GOOD OF THE COMMUNITY, NO DENOMINATIONS, THE GOOD OF THE COMMUNITY, BRINGING GOOD DO GOODERS TOGETHER FOR ONE CAUSE. SO I'M EXCITED. WE HAVE SOME REALLY GREAT SOME FRIENDS AND ALLIES FROM COMMUNITIES SURROUNDING US WHO ARE GOING TO BE BRINGING IN AND ADVISING US ON SOME OF SOME REALLY GREAT ACTIVITIES AND IDEAS THAT WE'RE GOING TO GET TO THE POINT OF THIS TASK FORCE. SO I ENCOURAGE YOU TO REACH OUT TO MEMBER MARTINEZ, MYSELF AND MEMBER CORTEZ FOR WAYS TO GET INVOLVED IN THAT IN THAT EFFORT. SO THANKS AGAIN. WE WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING FOR A CLOSED SESSION NOW AND RESUME THE MEETING AFTER CLOSED SESSION. SO THANKS AGAIN, EVERYONE. I THINK THAT REALLY IS EVERYTHING WE'LL GO AHEAD AND ADJOURN NOW FOR CLOSED SESSION. 5 MINUTES MAYOR? WE'LL BEGIN IN FIVE MINUTES OVER IN CLOSED SESSION. YOU SHOULD ALL BE COMING BACK, I BELIEVE, AND JUST REPORT OUT. OK, LET ME REPORT WHAT HAPPENED. I THINK EVERYBODY WELL, JOHN'S NOT THERE. JOHN'S THERE. OK, ON THE MINUTES MARIA GILBERT MADE THE MOTION TILO SECONDED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES ALL APPROVED EXCEPT JOHN. JOHN ABSTAINED BECAUSE HE DIDN'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE MINUTES. THEY DIDN'T SHOW UP ON HIS SCREEN. BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO PUT THAT. JUST SAY HE ABSTAINED. OK. OK, ON F, NOTHING TO REPORT THERE. AND AFTER THAT SESSION THAT TILO LEFT THE MEETING. DID HE LEAVE FOR A CONFLICT OR WAS HE GOING TO WORK? IT'S WHAT? CONFLICT. CONFLICT. OK, YEAH, TILO DECLARED A CONFLICT ON A, B, C AND D ON THE AGENDA AND LEFT THE MEETING AFTER WE TALKED ABOUT F, E AND F. OK, I KNOW IT'S GETTING KIND OF COMPLICATED AND THEN NO OTHER ACTION TO REPORT. OK. GOT IT, GOT IT. VERY, VERY GOOD, AWESOME. END OF CLOSED SESSION ITEMS WE'LL MOVE TO ADJOURN. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING. HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. YOU, TOO. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.