[1) CALL TO ORDER]
[00:00:05]
GOOD EVENING, I WILL CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER.
MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU CALL THE ROLL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA? I'M HERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ? HERE.
IF YOU'RE ABLE, PLEASE STAND FOR A FLAG SALUTE AND WE MAY STAND FOR A SALUTE.
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
[5) APPROVAL OF AGENDA]
MOVING ON TO ITEM 5, APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.ARE THERE ANY CHANGES TO THE AGENDA? I WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER MARTINEZ, SECOND BY COUNCILMEMBER RAYA TO APPROVE THE AGENDA WITH THE CHANGES MENTIONED.
MOTION IS APPROVED WITH THREE AYES WITH MAYOR SALDAÑA.
AND COUNCIL MEMBER MEDINA ABSENT.
[7) PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA]
ITEM 7, PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA.THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING IS RESERVED FOR PERSONS DESIRING TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL, INCLUDING THE COUNCIL ACTING AS THE GOVERNING BOARD FOR THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY.
ON ANY MATTER NOT ON THIS AGENDA, COUNCIL AND SUCCESSOR AGENCY HAVE JURISDICTION.
SPEAKERS ARE LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES.
MAXIMUM OF 30 MINUTES WILL BE ALLOWED FOR ANY ONE SUBJECT.
PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE MAKING YOUR PRESENTATION.
THE BROWN ACT DOES NOT ALLOW AUCTION OR DISCUSSION ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA, SUBJECT TO NARROW EXCEPTIONS.
THIS WILL LIMIT A COUNCIL MEMBER'S RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS AND REQUESTS DURING THE COMMENT PERIOD.
ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS? PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME.
IF YOU CAN JUST THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBERS GOOD EVENING UM I LIVE AT 1932 JUNIPER LANE UM I AM ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF THE WASCO BIKE CLUB THE MISSION OF THE WASCO BIKE CLUB IS TO PROMOTE CYCLING ADVOCATE FOR SAFER STREETS AND OFFER CYCLING EDUCATION JUST LAST FRIDAY EVENING THANKS TO THE SUPPORT WE RECEIVED FROM THE WASCO POLICE DEPARTMENT POLICE ACTIVITY LEAGUE AND CODE ENFORCEMENT, WE SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED OUR VERY FIRST COMMUNITY FUN RIDE.
WE HAD ABOUT 47 RIDERS AND CODE ENFORCEMENT DISTRIBUTED FREE HELMETS, BIKE LIGHTS, AND ARM REFLECTORS.
AT AROUND 8 P.M., WE ALL RODE 4.5 MILES AROUND WASCO DURING SUNSET.
WE HAD TWO POLICE OFFICERS FOLLOWING US IN THEIR CARS, ENSURING THAT EVERY INTERSECTION WAS SECURED AND MAKING SURE NOBODY WAS LEFT BEHIND.
THE FEEDBACK WE RECEIVED FROM THE AUDIENCE WAS VERY HELPFUL.
RECEIVED OVERALL HAS BEEN VERY POSITIVE AND PEOPLE ARE ALREADY ASKING WHEN WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE NEXT COMMUNITY FUND RIDE.
WE WOULD LOVE TO HOST A COMMUNITY FUND RIDE
[00:05:01]
ON A MONTHLY BASIS.I WOULD BE HONORED TO CONTINUE A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, POLICE ACTIVITY LEAGUE.
LASTLY, I WANT TO ESPECIALLY THANK LIEUTENANT GUTIERREZ AND DIANA GARCIA FOR HELPING ME COORDINATE THE EVENT.
AND I WANT TO THANK COUNCILMEMBER REYNA AND MEDINA FOR ALSO ATTENDING THE EVENT.
AND HOPEFULLY WE CAN DO THIS AGAIN SOON.
ANA, THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT ONE, AND I'LL TELL A LITTLE STORY LATER ON BECAUSE THAT WAS THE MOTIVATION I NEEDED TO GET BACK ON MY BIKE.
AND WE WERE GLAD TO SEE YOU THERE. WE HAVE SOME GOOD PICTURES, SO WE'RE WORKING ON GETTING THOSE POSTED ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIAS, BUT WE HAVE A GOOD PICTURE OF YOU AND COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA.
SO YOU SAID SOCIAL MEDIA, YOU GUYS HAVE A FACEBOOK PAGE? YES, BOSCO BIKE CLUB.
BOSCO BIKE CLUB, THAT'S SIMPLE TO REMEMBER.
WELL, THAT'S AWESOME THAT YOU GUYS DID THAT.
YEAH, I KNOW IT WAS THIS FRIDAY. IT WAS DURING GRADUATION TOO AT HIGH SCHOOL, SO MAYBE THE TURNOUT WENT A LITTLE BIT BETTER, BUT IT'S ALWAYS, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE, YOU KNOW, BRINGING NEW, NEW ACTIVITIES FOR A COMMUNITY, MUCH NEEDED ACTIVITIES.
YEAH, SO, AND WE'RE OPEN WITH, I KNOW WE FOCUSED ON A FRIDAY EVENING, BUT WE'RE OPEN TO ANY OTHER DAYS. SO WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO SURVEY THE COMMUNITY TO SEE SEE WHICH DAY WORKS BEST FOR EVERYONE. BUT WE, WE HAVE A LOT OF EXCITING THINGS, YOU KNOW, IN MIND. AND HOPEFULLY, YOU KNOW, WITH THIS PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY, WE CAN CONTINUE TO DELIVER THESE THINGS FOR, FOR WASCO RESIDENTS.
THANK YOU, ANNA. REALLY APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU.
UM, NEARLY 50 PEOPLE, IT'S NOT A SMALL CROWD. IT WAS BIG. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, SEE NO OTHER COMMENTS. ARE THERE ANY EMAIL COMMENTS, MADAM CLERK? THERE ARE NO EMAIL COMMENTS FOR THIS ITEM OR ANY OTHER AGENDA ITEMS. VERY GOOD, THANK YOU. PUBLIC
[10.b. Wasco Police Department (Mora) ]
SAFETY REPORTS, THAT'S ITEM 10 ON THE AGENDA I DON'T SEE CHIEF APPLETON MR. CHIEF MORA, GOOD EVENING.GOOD AFTERNOON, HONORABLE MAYOR PRO TEM, MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. THIS IS A PUBLIC SAFETY REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF MAY, AND IT WAS A BUSY MONTH. THE TOTAL INCIDENTS WERE A LITTLE OVER 02,000, CALLS FOR SERVICE A LITTLE OVER 01,000.
BUT THIS IS THE FIRST MONTH IN THE CALENDAR YEAR WHERE I SEE THAT OUR PROACTIVITY, THE OFFICER-INITIATED ACTIVITY, IS ACTUALLY GREATER THAN THE CALL FOR SERVICE. SO IT TELLS ME THAT THE OFFICERS ARE OUT THERE DOING THEIR WORK. SO MOVING DOWN, TRAFFIC STOPS, WE DID 469. THEY PRETTY MUCH DOUBLED THE PREVIOUS MONTH AND ISSUED 178 CITATIONS TOTAL. 57 MOVING, 41 PARKING. I'M MOVING FURTHER DOWN. WE WORKED APPROXIMATELY 200 CASES. 97%, 97 OF THEM WERE RESULTED IN ARRESTS. OUR CITIZEN CONTACTS WERE UP TO 44, AND OUR PET CHECKS AND VEHICLE CHECKS ARE AT 62. WE TOOK 6 STOLEN VEHICLE REPORTS, RECOVERED 2 OF THEM. AND IN TRAFFIC, THERE WAS A TOTAL OF 8 TRAFFIC COLLISIONS, 2 OF THEM WHICH WERE DUI-RELATED.
ON A DIFFERENT NOTE, I THINK ANNA DID A BETTER JOB THAN I WOULD HAVE DONE FOR OUR PARTICIPATION IN THE BIKE CLUB. THAT WAS A A GOOD EVENT. THE OFFICERS ENJOYED IT. OUR MOBILE CLINIC, THE NEXT ONE'S JUNE 15TH.
ON THE PREVIOUS ONE, I THINK THEY HAD A TOTAL OF 10 PEOPLE THAT RECEIVED SERVICE.
AND STARTING MONDAY, WE'RE GOING TO LAUNCH OUR SUMMER NUTRITIONAL PROGRAM OVER AT THE PAL BUILDING. WE HAVE HAVE A CANDIDATE THAT'S VERY QUALIFIED, STRONG BACKGROUND IN NUTRITION, HEALTH, AND WELLNESS, AND WE'RE ALL EXCITED TO SEE THAT TAKE PLACE. AND THAT'S ALL I HAVE. I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
UH, FIRST OF ALL, GREAT JOB. I LIKE SEEING THE TRAFFIC CITATIONS GO UP AND THE CITIZEN CONTACTS GOING UP. I HAVE A QUESTION. WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CITIZEN CONTACT AND A PED CHECK? SO THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.
UM, CITIZEN CONTACT'S A PROGRAM WE STARTED WITH CHIEF AND IT IS- IT'S PROBABLY GOING TO MAKE MORE SENSE TO YOU, BUT IT IS LESS THAN A CONSENSUAL ENCOUNTER. THIS IS A 100%
[00:10:01]
PEACEFUL CONTACT, A GREETING, GOOD MORNING KIND OF THING.WHEREAS THE, THE PAT CHECK IS KIND OF CONSENSUAL, BUT IT CAN LEAD TO DETENTION OR SOMETHING ELSE.
SO IT'S A GREETING, NOTHING, NOTHING MUCH MORE THAN THAT.
THAT'S WHAT I LIKE TO HEAR, SIR. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
OF COURSE YOUR SUMMER NUTRITION PROGRAM, WHEN DOES, WHEN DOES IT START? THIS IS, IT'S GOING TO START MONDAY. OKAY, QUALIFIED CANDIDATE. AND I HEAR THAT THERE'S ROOM FOR, FOR KIDS TO, TO JOIN. WE'RE PUTTING IT TOGETHER AS WE SPEAK. OKAY, IT IS GOING TO KICK OFF.
AND I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE A KITCHEN THERE, SO YOU GUYS, IT'S GOING TO BE A NUTRITION CLASS. AND THEN DO THE KIDS GET TO COOK? YES, THEY GET TO LEARN ABOUT MAKING HEALTHIER CHOICES, PREPARING HEALTHY FOOD, AND THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE A CURRICULUM WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO LEARN HOW TO DO BREAKFAST, LUNCH, AND DINNER.
SO I'M GUESSING THAT PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE IN THE PAL. THE BOXING IS STILL GOING TO CONTINUE IN THE AFTERNOON? YES. OKAY. YES.
SO YOU'LL BE BUSY ALL DAY? OH YEAH, YEAH, THE BUILDING'S GONNA BE BUSY.
YES, GOOD, GOOD STUFF FOR PAL. I'M REALLY IMPRESSED.
THERE WAS A REMARKABLE ACTIVITY.
AND THAT IS NOT TO SAY THAT OUR OFFICERS WERE NOT DOING THAT.
PART OF THE FACT THAT WE DO HAVE ALL THIS, WE HAD ALL THESE ACCIDENTS, AND YOU COULD SAY MONTH AFTER MONTH, THANK YOU AND I APPRECIATE YOU TREMENDOUSLY.
[11) CONSENT CALENDAR]
BUSINESS, ITEM 11, CONSENT CALENDAR.THE CONSENT CALENDAR CONSISTS OF ITEMS THAT ARE ROUTINE AND NON-CONTROVERSIAL IN THE STAFF'S OPINION.
THESE ITEMS ARE APPROVED IN ONE MOTION UNLESS A COUNCIL MEMBER OR A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC REQUESTS THE REMOVAL OF A PARTICULAR ITEM.
THIS EVENING, WE HAVE ITEM 11A.
AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE MEMBERS IF THEY HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST WITH THE ITEM ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
AND I DON'T HAVE A CONFLICT EITHER.
IS THERE ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE WHO WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE AN ITEM? ARE THERE ANY COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE AN ITEM OR THE ITEM? IT'S ONLY ONE.
MEMBER MARTINEZ? THE CLERK HAS BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED.
WOULD YOU CALL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA? AYE.
MOTION BY COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER RAYA TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
MOTION IS APPROVED WITH THREE AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDANA AND COUNCIL MEMBER MEDINA ABSENT.
WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING UNDER 13.
[14.a. Council finds this action is not a “project” under Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines; Adopt a Resolution Authorizing the City Manager or Designee to Sign and Execute a Non-Hazardous Garbage Collection and Removal Services Agreement No. C5613396 with the State of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to provide refuse collection and disposal services. (Villa)]
COUNCIL FINDS THIS ACTION IS NOT A PROJECT UNDER SECTION 15378 OF THE CEQA GUIDELINES.ADOPT A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER OR DESIGNEE TO SIGN AND EXECUTE A NON-HAZARDOUS GARBAGE COLLECTION AND REMOVER SERVICES AGREEMENT NUMBER C5613996 WITH THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION, CDCR, TO PROVIDE REFUSE COLLECTION AND DISPOSAL SERVICES.
GOOD EVENING, OUR OWN MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL.
TONIGHT'S ITEM IS FOR YOUR REVIEWS THE CONTRACT RENEWAL WITH THE BOSCO STATE PRISON.
THIS CONTRACT IS FOR A SANITATION DEPARTMENT TO PROVIDE SOLID WASTE SERVICES.
SIX DAYS A WEEK, MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY, INCLUDING 40-YARD ROLL-OFF SERVICES.
THE CITY HAS PROVIDED SERVICES TO THE PRESIDENT FOR...
[00:15:02]
CONTINUE THE SERVICE THEREFORE STAFF RECOMMENDS APPROVAL OF CONTRACT AND IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER THANK YOU MR. VILLA ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME THE NON ANY COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBER MEMBERS MARTINEZ MEMBER MARTINEZ NEW COMMENT REMEMBER I AM NO COMMENTS OKAY I'LL JUST SAY THAT THIS IS A CONTRACT THAT WE HAD FOR SEVERAL YEARS.AN ISSUE WITH IT, BUT YOU FIXED IT.
IT'S FORWARD, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND, WOULD YOU? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA.
MOTION BY MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA, SECOND BY COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION.
MOTION IS APPROVED WITH THREE AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDANA AND COUNCIL MEMBER MEDINA ABSENT.
[14.b. Update on SNIP Program: Overall Count- Informational Only (Villa)]
MOVING ON TO UPDATE ON SNIP PROGRAM, OVERALL COUNT INFORMATION ONLY.GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL. SO I'LL DO THIS QUICK UPDATE HERE. SO QUICK UPDATE ON THE SNP, PROGRAM THAT WAS, HERE FOR 3 YEARS. THIS IS A 3-YEAR PROGRAM. THAT WAS FUNDED BY UC DAVIS WE'LL GIVE YOU QUICK STATS ON THIS THE GRANT STARTED, IN FEBRUARY OF '23 TO PROVIDE SPAY AND NEUTER SERVICES FOR THE CITY OF WASCO RESIDENTS SO PUBLIC OUTREACH THAT WAS, PROVIDED WAS THROUGH THE NEWSPAPER, CITY'S WEBSITE PAGE, AND, SOCIAL MEDIA WHEN, WHEN THAT CAME ON BOARD THE TOTAL AMOUNT FUNDED WAS $288,000. THERE WAS A TOTAL OF 37 SNP EVENTS, AND THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF ANIMALS FIXED WAS 1,665.
AND WE'LL DO A QUICK BREAKDOWN HERE. SO FOR YEAR 23, THERE WAS 127 MALE DOGS, 161 FEMALE DOGS, 63 CATS, AND 80, WELL, I'M SORRY, MALE CATS AND FEMALE CATS, 81.
FOR YEAR 24, THERE'S A TOTAL OF 442 PETS, 109 MALE DOGS, 134 FEMALE DOGS, 86 MALE CATS, AND 113 FEMALE CATS. NOW FOR YEAR 2025, A TOTAL OF 653 PETS, 130 MALE DOGS, 188, I BELIEVE, FEMALE DOGS. MALE CATS, 147. FEMALE CATS, 188.
AND FOR THIS YEAR, WHICH WE ONLY HAD IT FOR 3 MONTHS WHERE THE EVENT, THE FUNDING ENDED, THE PROGRAM ENDED, I SHOULD SAY, 138 PETS.
MALE CATS, 38. FEMALE CATS, 37. WITH THAT, IF ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS, I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER.
THIS IS SIGNIFICANT, VERY SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE IT HELPS REDUCE THE PET POPULATION IN WASCO.
AND THAT'S QUITE A NUMBER, QUITE A NUMBER.
SURPRISED I DID NOT KNOW IF I ASSUMED THAT IT WAS THREE DOGS, BUT THAT'S NOT THE CASE THE CATS IS ALSO VERY HIGH.
HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE ABLE TO FIND ANOTHER SOURCE OF FUNDING THAT 288 THOUSAND DOLLARS ARE SIMILAR CONTINUE TO SERVICE AND JUST KEEP LOOKING FOR ADDITIONAL GRANTS SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO SERVICE.
SO REALLY QUICK ON THAT, WE DO HAVE AN ADDITIONAL SOURCE.
SO THERE WAS A, SO CANDACE THAT RUNS THE SNP HAS A, THEY'RE DOING WHAT'S CALLED LOVE DOGS RESCUE.
[00:20:38]
DO THEY HAVE A LIMIT AS TO HOW MANY ANIMALS? WE USED TO PAY, I BELIEVE IT WAS AROUND $5,000.[14.c. Council finds this action is not a “project” under Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines; Review and Possible Minute Action on the Fiscal Year 2026-2027 General Fund Budget Proposal. (Hurlbert)]
ITEM C, COUNCIL FINDS THIS ACTION NOT A PROJECT UNDER SECTION 15378 OF THE CEQA GUIDELINES.REVIEW AND POSSIBLE METED ACTION ON THE FISCAL YEAR 2026-2027 GENERAL BUDGET PROPOSAL.
MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE A HIGH-LEVEL OVERVIEW OF THE PROPOSED FISCAL YEAR '26-'27 GENERAL FUND BUDGET AND TO HIGHLIGHT SEVERAL CHANGES THAT HAVE BEEN MADE SINCE THE DEPARTMENTAL BUDGET WORKSHOPS. AND I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH BUDGET LINE ITEM BY LINE ITEM. INSTEAD, I'M GOING TO FOCUS ON MAJOR REVENUE ASSUMPTIONS, EXPENDITURE TRENDS CHANGES IN BUDGET PRESENTATION AND THE OVERALL FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE GENERAL FUND. AND I KNOW THE DOCUMENT'S QUITE LENGTHY, SO I'M GOING TO GO SECTION BY SECTION, SEE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, AND THEN I'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT SECTION, IF YOU DON'T MIND. SO, HOPEFULLY YOU'VE BEEN PROVIDED WITH A NEW STAFF REPORT. IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE IN DETAIL. WE ARE GOING TO START OFF ON THE PAGE CALLED SALES TAX AND THIS IS THE REVENUE SECTION. AND STARTING WITH THE REVENUES, THE OVERALL GENERAL FUND REVENUES ARE PROJECTED AT 18 POINT OKAY, RIGHT THERE.
YEAH, THE OVERALL, REVENUES ARE PROJECTED AT $18.2 MILLION, WHICH YOU'LL SEE ON THE MORE EXTENSIVE CHART ON THE NEXT PAGE. AND THE REVENUE PROJECTIONS WERE DEVELOPED REALLY CONSERVATIVELY AND ARE BASED ON CURRENT ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND AVAILABLE INFORMATION. THE LARGEST REVENUE CATEGORIES STILL REMAIN SALES TAX, PROPERTY TAX-RELATED REVENUES, AND GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ALLOCATIONS. AND LOOKING SPECIFICALLY AT SALES TAX, SALES TAX AND MEASURE X, THEY ARE PROJECTED TO REMAIN RELATIVELY FLAT COMPARED TO THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.
AND WHILE THAT, THAT FORECAST IS REALLY CONSERVATIVE, CONSERVATIVE, THERE ARE POTENTIAL UPSIDES, UM, YOU KNOW, IF THE ECONOMY CHANGES AND MOVES FORWARD, BUT I, WE BUDGETED CONSERVATIVELY AND WE DIDN'T TAKE ANY OF THAT INTO CONSIDERATION AND WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO MONITOR THAT THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AND WE'LL PROVIDE UPDATES AS WE GO. SO RIGHT NOW, AS FAR AS THE REVENUES, WE'RE
[00:25:01]
PROJECTING THEM RELATIVELY FLAT FOR THE $18.2 MILLION. AND IN THAT LITTLE CHART RIGHT THERE, I JUST SORT OF SHOW YOU THE GENERAL SALES TAX AND MEASURE SALES TAX THAT'S PROVIDED BY HDL WITH A VERY MINIMAL CHANGE OF ABOUT $23,000 DOWNWARD. SO I'LL LEAVE THAT. THAT'S THE FIRST LITTLE SECTION. SO DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THE OVERALL SALES REVENUE? ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS? YEAH, I HAVE A QUESTION.I MEAN, I REALIZE THAT THESE ARE, YOU KNOW, PRETTY, PRETTY PRETTY FLAT. BUT WHY IS THE GENERAL SALES TAX GOING DOWN WHILE THE MEASURE X IS GOING UP? WELL, WE TAKE THAT DIRECTLY FROM THE HDL REPORTS THAT ARE PROVIDED TO US, AND WE HAD THAT MEETING MAYBE ABOUT A MONTH AGO. DO YOU KNOW? AND THE OTHER FACTOR THAT COMES IN THERE IS THE GENERAL SALES TAX COLLECTS MONEY THAT IS ACTUALLY SPENT HERE WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS. THE MEASURE X IS ALSO, IT'S A DISTRICT TAX, SO IT ALSO CAPTURES THERE'S A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF ONLINE ORDERS, OKAY, THAT WOULD NORMALLY GO TO THE COUNTY POOL, AND BUT, BUT THEY ARE CAPTURED DIRECTLY NOW WITH THE NEW ONLINE TAX SETUP.
OKAY, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MEMBER MARTINEZ. PLEASE PROCEED.
OH, GREAT. AND THEN WITH THE, UM, THE VLF SWAP PROPERTY TAXES, I JUST WANTED TO NOTE ONE SOMETHING IN THE ACTUAL FISCAL YEAR '25 BUDGET.
SO IN THE '25 BUDGET, NOT '26, UH, THEY WERE PROJECTING $3.4 MILLION, IN REVENUE, AND WE ACTUALLY RECEIVED TO DATE $4.3 MILLION. THAT'S AN INCREASE OF $829 MILLION.
IN FISCAL YEAR '25, BOOKS HAVE NOT BEEN FINALIZED AND AUDITED BY THE AUDITORS, BUT IN DOING THE FISCAL YEAR '26-'27 BUDGET, I KEPT THAT REVENUE NUMBER STILL AT $3.4 MILLION BECAUSE I DO NOT WANT TO ASSUME THAT THAT TREND OF AN $800,000 INCREASE IS GOING TO BE THE SAME AMOUNT FOR '26 AND '27 AFTER THE '25, FINANCIALS ARE AUDITED AND AFTER '26 IS DONE, WE'LL HAVE A BETTER PICTURE AND WE CAN ALWAYS MOVE THAT NUMBER UP.
BUT WE WANTED TO TAKE A CONSERVATIVE APPROACH, SO WE DIDN'T DO THAT.
BUT I JUST WANTED TO NOTE THAT THE BUDGET FOR '25 IS IS POSITIVE ON THAT LINE ITEM. ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT ONE? ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS? NO, NO, PLEASE PROCEED, MISS BLAKEMAN.
UH, GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ALLOCATION, THAT HAS A DIRECT CORRELATION, WITH OUR SALARIES AND OPERATING COSTS AMONG THE CITY DIVISIONS. AND AS YOU KNOW, WITH THE SALARY NEGOTIATIONS WITH EXPECTED CLOSED-DOOR SESSIONS, YOU KNOW, THAT IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE.
SO AS SALARIES INCREASE, SO DO THE G&A ALLOCATIONS. AND SO THAT IS EXPECTED TO BE AN INCREASE OF $758,000.
ANY COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBERS? NO. I WILL SAY THIS, IN FACT, THIS IS THE LARGEST INCREASE FOR THE PROPOSED BUDGET. IS THAT CORRECT? THIS PORTION IS WHAT INCREASES THE BUDGET THE MOST? YES. OKAY, THAT'S CORRECT. AND I'LL MAKE COMMENTS AT THE END. THANK YOU.
AS FAR AS INTEREST INCOME IS, I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT SOME.
PREVIOUSLY WAS ABOUT 400 AND ACTUALLY TO DATE BEFORE THE AUDIT IS 2.4 MILLION DOLLARS AND SO THAT IS AN INCREASE OF THE STATE THAT FOR 26 IN INTEREST INCOME WAS PROJECTION GOING FORWARD INTO AND BASICALLY I'LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LIQUIDITY NEEDS AND VEHICLES THAT WE HAVE THE YEAR IF THE ECONOMY TAKES A DOWNTURN, WE DON'T KNOW THAT'S THE BALL, DO INTEREST RATES GO DOWN AT THAT TIME OR DO THEY GO UP? WHAT IS THE RESULT OF DOWNTURN IN THE ECONOMY WHEN IT COMES
[00:30:02]
TO SAVINGS, INTEREST PAYMENTS? WELL, TYPICALLY, THE INTEREST RATES MAY SEE SOME INVERSE TREND.CITIES ARE THE STATE INVESTMENT RULES.
WE DEFINITELY, THAT'S ONE OF THE REASONS TAX ADVISORS AND THEY CAN HELP US WITH.
I'LL SAY THIS, BONDS ARE USUALLY A MEDIUM BY WHICH GOVERNMENTS BORROW MONEY, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES.
AND IF THE ECONOMY TURNS DOWN IN THE UNITED STATES, NORTH AMERICA, THEN IT'S POSSIBLE THAT THEY RELY ON OUR TO ACTUALLY REPAY THAT BOND WITH INTEREST.
AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I THINK WE NEED TO BE VERY CAUTIOUS OF.
I THINK THAT WE HAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL OUR STAFF HAS BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL AND THE COUNCIL UH REGARDING OUR INVESTMENTS I BELIEVE IF I RECALL CORRECTLY AND AND I'M NOT SURE WHETHER THIS FIGURE IS CORRECT WE'RE EARNING AROUND FOUR PERCENT UNTIL RECENTLY WHICH IS JUST BELOW FOUR NOW THE REASON I DIDN'T KNOW HAD DECREASED BUT FOUR PERCENT WHICH IS A VERY HEALTHY SAFE UM BUT I THINK AGAIN CAUTION IN THE PAST ABOUT THESE THINGS, AND I'M GLAD TO HEAR YOU TALKING ABOUT IT, THAT WE NEED TO BE VERY AWARE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITHIN OUR ECONOMY AND NOT WAITING FOR IT TO ACTUALLY TAKE A DOWNTURN, BUT LOOK AT ALL THE INDICATORS TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR MONEY IS SAFE, THAT WE AREN'T LOSING THE PEOPLE'S MONEY BECAUSE WE WERE NOT QUICK TO ACT WHEN WE NEEDED TO ACT.
YOU'RE FROM THE THE CAUTION WE'RE HEARING HAPPENING WITH PEOPLE'S MONEY BECAUSE THIS COULD TAKE A TURN AND WE PART OF THAT DOWNTURN.
THIS IS JUST INCOME OFF OF INTEREST, NOT INVESTMENTS.
WORKING THROUGH GETTING THOSE EARNINGS EVEN BOOKED, THEY HAVEN'T BEEN,
[00:35:01]
SO I CAN'T ANSWER.THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WILL HOPEFULLY BE MUCH.
MEDIUMS. WE DID THAT MULTIPLE TIMES THROUGH THE YEAR AND THAT'S POSSIBLE WHAT PROJECTED BASED ON WHAT WE HAD ORIGINALLY INVESTED IN.
AND WHEN IT COMES TO GRANT REVENUES, REVENUE IN ORDER TO DECLINE APPROXIMATELY 486 ISSUE.
SEE THAT LINE? WELL, THANK YOU.
TURNING OVER TO OPERATING COSTS.
OPERATING COSTS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE ABOUT $2.3 MILLION.
NOW, THE PRIMARY DRIVER TO THAT WILL BE PERSONNEL COSTS, APPROXIMATELY $1.8 MILLION.
NOW, THE STAFF HAVE BUDGETED VERY CONSERVATIVELY ON ASSUMING A ONE-STEP INCREASE FOR ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES.
WE ALSO BUDGETED VACANT POSITIONS FOR A FULL 12 MONTHS IN PLACE.
AGAIN, THIS IS BUDGET INSTEAD OF THIS FISCAL YEAR TAKING POSITIONS.
INSTEAD OF BUDGETING AT 12 MONTHS, CAN WE BUDGET THEM AT 6 MONTHS? SINCE WE'RE GOING TO BE REVIEWING THE BUDGET ANYWAY, THIS BUDGET REVIEWS...
IT'S ONLY POSSIBLE THAT WE COULD DO THAT.
THAT WOULD BE TO BE CLEAR IF WE ONLY DID SIX MONTHS.
LOOKING FOR A PICTURE OF WHERE, BECAUSE AGAIN, THIS TURN IN THE ECONOMY.
SIX MONTHS WILL GIVE US THIS CHANGE TO SIX MONTHS IF IT AGREES THAT THERE IS A BENEFIT TO IT.
[00:40:07]
ONLY LESS THAN 10.HOW MUCH ADDITIONAL STAFF WORK DOES IT CREATE TO CONTINUALLY GIVE US THAT? A SURPRISING AMOUNT BECAUSE THE WHEN.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT 10 POSITIONS, RIGHT? 10 POSITIONS TIMES FOUR...
THE REASON WHY I'M MAKING THIS REQUEST IS IF YOU CAN ASSURE ME THAT KEEPING IT AT 12 IS STILL GOING TO WORK OUT IN A WAY THAT WE WILL NOT HAVE AN ISSUE FOR IT.
I'M JUST MAKE SURE THAT NOT ONLY US HERE TOGETHER, BUT...
SO THERE ARE A COUPLE THINGS, AND I ABSOLUTELY UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERN AND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING THERE.
ANOTHER WAY TO ADDRESS THAT WOULD BE TO...
WE'LL GET TO THE SPREADSHEET PART OF THIS PRESENTATION SOON.
IT WOULD BE TO ADD A THIRD COLUMN TO THAT SPREADSHEET.
IT SHOWS LIKELY OR MORE LIKELY TAKING THE FLAX REVENUES PRE-WAR.
TAKE THAT ONE TIME 800,000 CATEGORY.
YOU COULD DO THAT IN EACH CATEGORY WHERE WE'RE ON EACH SIDE.
THEM SOMEWHERE BACK TO THE MIDDLE.
CONTRARY TO OUR PRACTICE, WE'RE DOWN.
NOW THE OTHER THING TO KEEP IN MIND IS OPERATION IN ANY CUTS.
AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, NOT TO BE FLIP ABOUT THAT, BUT THAT IS THE SAFETY NET THAT WE HAVE BUILT AND PROTECTS US FROM CATASTROPHE.
AGAIN, WE DON'T BASED ON WHAT IS CURRENTLY GOING ON, I NEED TO BE COST ADDITIONAL WORK, BUT I DO WANT TO MAKE SURE A PICTURE THAT IS AS WELL AS CITY.
[00:45:05]
MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS PERFECT OR EVERYTHING IS WRONG.THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE ELIMINATED FROM THE PROJECTION, EVEN ARE PARTIALLY ACTUALLY HAPPEN.
RIGHT NOW, THE WAY, THE NUMBERS ON THE SOMEWHERE AROUND.
EVERYTHING WE'VE PREDICTED FLAT WOULD HAVE TO STAY FLAT OR DROP AND EVERYTHING WE PREDICTED AS FAR AS EXPENSE FULLY EXPENDED WITH NO LASER.
CAN YOU REMEMBER THE LAST TIME WE ASKED FOR APPROPRIATION OTHER THAN MID-YEAR? ACTUALLY TOOK MONEY OUT.
THAT DOESN'T MEAN TO SAY THAT THAT $80,000, WE JUST DON'T TAKE THE PRACTICE OF MOVING MONEY FROM ONE.
TAKE ALL OF THE THINGS HAPPENING EXACTLY WRONG INTO...
MS. BLAKEMORE, PLEASE CONTINUE.
THE NEXT SECTION I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS THE TECHNOLOGY EXPENDITURE RECLASSIFICATION.
I WILL RECAP IT, I WILL NOT READ IT WORD FOR WORD, BUT THIS SECTION IS, PROBABLY THE MOST SIGNIFICANT BUDGET PRESENTATION CHANGE.
AND COUNCIL MAY NOTICE THIS SECTION WAS ADDED TO THE REVISED STAFF REPORT THAT WAS DISTRIBUTED ON SATURDAY. THE PURPOSE IS TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL CONTEXT REGARDING HOW TECHNOLOGY EXPENDITURES ARE CLASSIFIED AND PRESENTED WITHIN THE BUDGET.
HISTORICALLY, THE CITY BUDGETED MANY TECHNOLOGY PURCHASES AS CAPITAL OUTLAY DURING BUDGET DEVELOPMENT, MANAGEMENT REVIEWED THESE CLASSIFICATIONS AND DETERMINED THAT MANY TECHNOLOGY PURCHASES ARE MORE APPROPRIATELY TREATED AS OPERATING EXPENDITURES UNDER GOVERNMENTAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS AND THE CITY'S CAPITALIZATION POLICY.
FOR EXAMPLES, COMPUTERS, MONITORS, SOFTWARE SUBSCRIPTIONS LIKE MICROSOFT 365, CYBERSECURITY SERVICES, ANNUAL SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS GENERALLY DO NOT CREATE A CAPITAL ASSET OWNED BY THE CITY. AND AS A RESULT, APPROXIMATELY $487,000 OF TECHNOLOGY-RELATED EXPENDITURES ARE NOW REFLECTED IN OPERATING COSTS RATHER THAN CAPITAL OUTLAY. AND THIS AMOUNT, AND OF THE $487,000, $304,000 IS RELATED TO POLICE SOFTWARE THAT WAS DISCUSSED DURING THE STRATEGIC MEETING.
AND IMPORTANTLY, THIS DOES NOT INCREASE SPENDING. LET ME MAKE THAT CLEAR. IT DOES NOT INCREASE IT. IT'S SIMPLY A WAY, A CHANGE IN HOW THE BUDGET IS PRESENTED.
BECAUSE COUNCIL EXPRESSED INTEREST IN UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT OF THE CHANGE, I PROVIDED TWO DIFFERENT BUDGET PRESENTATIONS, WHICH IS A BIG LONG DETAILED PAGE. SO WE WILL GET TO THAT, BUT I JUST WANT TO SEE WHAT KIND
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OF QUESTIONS YOU HAVE.OKAY, JUST TO UNDERSTAND, MS. BLAKEMORE, THIS IS JUST RECLASSIFYING AN AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WAS BEING CLASSIFIED AS SOMETHING DIFFERENT. NOW IT'S BEING CLASSIFIED AS TECHNOLOGY, RIGHT, WHICH IS NOT AN ASSET? IS THAT, IS THAT WHAT I HEARD YOU SAY? SO CORRECT.
SO WHEN WE HAVE A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE, HISTORICALLY WHEN THE BUDGET HAS BEEN PRESENTED TO COUNCIL TO SAY ARE WE IN A BALANCED BUDGET, YOU TAKE THE OPERATING REVENUES MINUS OPERATING EXPENSES.
IN PREVIOUS BUDGETS, WHAT THEY, WHAT WAS HAPPENING IS THEY WOULD EXTRACT OUT AND SORT OF PULL OUT THE CAPITAL AND SAY THESE ARE CAPITAL PURCHASES, LET'S NOT COUNT THOSE. I MEAN, WE'RE STILL GOING TO SPEND THE MONEY, BUT WE'RE NOT GOING TO COUNT THAT IN ARE WE IN A, YOU KNOW, A BUDGET DEFICIT.
DEFICIT OR NOT. SO THEY WERE PULLED OUT. AND WHAT I'M SAYING IS WE ACTUALLY PULLED THEM BACK IN BECAUSE A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE IS ANYTHING OVER $5,000 AND LASTS OVER A YEAR.
LAPTOPS ARE UNDER $5,000, THEY DON'T LAST A YEAR. OBVIOUSLY IF WE BUY LIKE A NEW SERVER, THAT'S A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE.
WE'RE GOING TO CAPITALIZE IT AND BASICALLY DEPRECIATE IT OVER ITS USEFUL LIFE. AND WE'LL SORT OF SAY THAT'S A ONE-TIME EXPENSE, WE DON'T WANT TO COUNT IT AS LIKE, YOU KNOW, A MAJOR OPERATING EXPENSE THIS YEAR. IT'S, IT'S MORE OF A BIG EXPENSE. SO MOST OF THE TIMES WHEN YOU HAVE SOFTWARE, SOFTWARE IS ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, WHETHER YOU PAY IT EVERY YEAR OR YOU PAY IT UPFRONT, IT'S EXPENSED ANNUALLY. SO WHEN IT COMES TO ALL OF THE SOFTWARE THAT WE HAVE, WHETHER IT'S POLICE RELATED OR ACCORDING TO OUR, OUR SYSTEM OF RECORD, WHICH IS TYLER MUNIZ, ALL THOSE SOFTWARES ARE ARE SPENT EVERY YEAR, AND IT'S CONSIDERED AN OPERATING EXPENSE, NOT A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE. AND WE, AND I'M JUST SAYING THAT IT NEEDS TO BE TREATED LIKE SUCH AND SORT OF REPRESENTED IN THE BUDGET AS SUCH, BECAUSE IT'S UNDER $5,000 AND IT'S JUST AN OPERATING EXPENSE.
AND THE WAY IT WAS PRESENTED IN THE PAST, WAS A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE.
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. THAT PROVIDES CLARITY. THANK YOU.
OKAY, GREAT. SO NOW WE HAVE THE OVERALL GENERAL FUND. NOW YOU'LL NOTICE TWO COLUMNS.
WHEN I, WHEN I PRESENT, WHEN THIS WAS SENT OUT ON SATURDAY, IT ONLY HAD ONE, BUT I THINK THIS IS GOOD JUST SO THAT YOU CAN LOOK AT IT.
COLUMN A, DOWN WHERE IT SAYS EXPENDITURES, INCLUDES SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE EXPENDITURES WITHIN OPERATING COSTS. SO BASICALLY THAT $19 MILLION 2 OR 624,960 INCLUDES, ALL OF THE TECHNOLOGY-RELATED EXPENDITURES, SOFTWARE, HARDWARE, OF $487,000. NOW, JUST FOR COMPARATIVE PURPOSES, COLUMN B SEPARATES THOSE EXPENDITURES SO COUNCIL CAN EVALUATE THE CITY'S OPERATING POSITION BOTH WITH AND WITHOUT TECHNOLOGY COSTS. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT EVEN THOUGH SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE COSTS ARE SHOWN SEPARATELY IN COLUMN B, FOR BUDGET AND, UM, AND JUST PURPOSES, THEY REMAIN OPERATING EXPENDITURES UNDER THE CITY'S CAPITALIZATION POLICY AND UNDER GOVERNMENTAL ACCOUNTING GUIDANCE. SO AS YOU CAN SEE IN COLUMN B, WE HAVE THE $19,138,080 AS OPERATING COSTS, AND THEN WE, I SEPARATED OUT JUST THE HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE.
ULTIMATELY, THE TOTAL EXPENDITURES REMAIN THE SAME.
I'M JUST SORT OF BREAKING IT OUT SO YOU CAN SEE. SO BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, IN PRIOR BUDGETS, THAT $486,000 WOULD HAVE BEEN BROUGHT DOWN A LINE ITEM AND NOT, NOT ACCOUNTED FOR IN WHETHER YOU'RE OPERATING IN A BUDGET DEFICIT OR SURPLUS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU THAT AND SO IF YOU, IN COLUMN B IF YOU WERE TO HISTORICALLY LOOK AT THE BUDGET, WE WOULD BE AT A BUDGET DEFICIT OF $931,000 FOR FISCAL YEAR '26-'27. BUT CONSIDERING THAT IT IS TRULY AN OPERATING COST, IT JUST HAS NEVER BEEN PRESENTED LIKE THAT. IT'S REALLY AT 1.4 ON A DEFICIT.
ALL RIGHT, THESE WILL BE RECURRING EXPENSES AS FAR AS SOFTWARE COSTS ARE CONCERNED.
THIS IS JUST THE SAME CLARITY THAT YOU JUST PROVIDED ON THIS PARTICULAR ITEM. ANY QUESTIONS? WE HAVE $60 MILLION BUDGET IN CIP PROJECTS THIS YEAR, SO THAT'S GREAT.
THAT'S THE NEXT TOPIC. OKAY, SORRY, THAT'S OKAY.
I'M, YOUR PLAN? OH, OKAY. NO, HERB, YOU GO.
ANY QUESTIONS? NO QUESTION. OKAY, SO CIP, THE NEXT ITEM IS CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS. THE BUDGET REFLECTS APPROXIMATELY $60 MILLION IN POTENTIAL CIP EXPENDITURES.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS, THAT THIS DOES NOT MEAN THE CITY EXPECTS TO SPEND $60 MILLION NEXT FISCAL YEAR. OKAY, SO THE
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CIP REPRESENTS ALL CURRENTLY IDENTIFIED PROJECTS AND PLANNING PRIORITIES. SO WHEN WE WENT THROUGH THE CIP IN THE, THE BUDGET MEETING AND, AND THE STRATEGIC MEETING, IT'S EVERYTHING ON THE WISHFUL LIST, RIGHT, THAT WE HAVE. AND HISTORICALLY, NOT EVERY PROJECT MOVES FORWARD WITHIN THE SAME FISCAL YEAR.MANY PROJECTS DEPEND ON GRANT FUNDING, STAFFING CAPACITY, DESIGN TIMELINES, PERMITTING REQUIREMENTS, AND THEN OF COURSE COUNCIL'S PRIORITIES SO MORE THAN $35 MILLION OF THE APPROXIMATE $60 MILLION IS EXPECTED TO BE FUNDED THROUGH GRANTS, AND REIMBURSEMENTS AND THAT $10 MILLION DEFICIT SHOWN HERE ASSUMES EVERYTHING ON THE LIST EVERYTHING ON THE LIST IS COMPLETED THIS YEAR, WHICH IS NOT REALISTIC, RIGHT? UM, EVERY YEAR WE PLAN, RIGHT? AND WE HAVE THIS CIP PROJECT LIST THAT IS ALWAYS VERY LONG. AND AS YOU JUST ALLUDED TO, NOT EVERYTHING MOVES FORWARD.
YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE PRIORITIES AND WE MAY GET FUNDING FOR SOME OF THIS, AND SO THOSE PERHAPS BECOME PRIORITIES. I HAVE A QUESTION.
I KNOW VERY WELL, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN HERE FOR SEVERAL YEARS, AND I KNOW THAT WE NEVER ARE MOVING FORWARD WITH THAT LONG LIST OF CIP PROJECTS.
BUT IS IT POSSIBLE TO IDENTIFY, AT LEAST FOR THIS UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR, WHICH PROJECTS WE PLAN TO MOVE FORWARD. WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO DO THAT? YES, IT IS POSSIBLE. IT TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF TIME AND IT TAKES 3 BUSY PEOPLE TO GET THEIR SCHEDULES FREE AT THE SAME TIME, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I PLAN ON DOING ANYWAY. AND CERTAINLY IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HAVING QUARTERLY UPDATES, WE WOULD HAVE THAT PROJECTION FOR YOU BY THE ,FIRST UPDATE.
THANK YOU, BECAUSE THAT WILL REALLY, AGAIN, I'M LOOKING TO PAINT A PICTURE, A REALISTIC PICTURE OF WHERE WE REALLY ARE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WE TAKE THIS, WHAT WAS IT, $10 MILLION DEFICIT ON THE CIP PROJECT? RIGHT.
YEAH. NO. I THINK YOU ALLUDED TO THAT FACT.
BUT THEN WHAT IS THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PAGE, THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN? WHAT ARE WE ACTUALLY GOING TO BE DOING? AND SO I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE ALREADY THINKING ABOUT DOING THAT, BECAUSE THEN WE CAN HAVE, NOT JUST US, BUT THE PUBLIC IN GENERAL, YOU KNOW, WE SERVE THE COMMUNITY, CAN TELL THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE PEOPLE OUT HERE ARE NUTS, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE PROJECTING A $10 MILLION DEFICIT ON CIP PROJECTS, WHICH IS NOT THE CASE. AND IN FACT, THE TOTAL BUDGET, I WANT TO SAY THIS, THE TOTAL BUDGET IT'S DONE IN A LOT OF ASSUMPTIONS, RIGHT? AND I'M TALKING ABOUT CERTAIN ASSUMPTIONS MYSELF.
OKAY, WHAT REALITY IS. WE ALWAYS HAVE EXPECTATIONS AS TO WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE AT A CERTAIN TIME OF THE YEAR.
BUT WE DON'T KNOW. WE DON'T KNOW. AND MY CONCERN IS JUST THAT I'M VERY AWARE AND I THINK I MADE A GOOD JOB OF MAKING EVERYBODY AWARE HERE OF THE SITUATION, THE GLOBAL SITUATION AND HOW IT MIGHT AFFECT US, BUT ALSO THE FACT THAT WE NEED TO TAKE STEPS TO PROTECT OURSELVES. YES, ULTIMATELY. AND SO I'M HAPPY TO HEAR THAT YOU WILL BE DOING AN ACTUAL LIST OF CIP PROJECTS THAT WE PLAN TO MOVE FORWARD WITHIN THE NEXT, THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR.
YEAH, I THINK, WELL, JUST TO EXPAND, WE TALKED ABOUT THAT TODAY, THIS MORNING. I SAID, WHAT CAN WE, CAN WE, HAS THE BUDGET EVER BEEN DONE WHERE THEY'VE BEEN LIKE, HEY, WE KNOW THIS IS ON OUR WISHFUL LIST, BUT THIS IS WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO BUDGET. BECAUSE WE TALKED ABOUT IT TODAY, AND ON THE STRATEGIC MEETING, I DON'T REMEMBER IF YOU SAW THE REALLY BIG EXCEL FILE WITH ALL THE SMALL NUMBERS WHERE YOU NEEDED THE GLASSES THAT SHOWED EVERY PROJECT AND LISTED OUT ALL THE FUNDING SOURCES FOR FISCAL YEAR '27, AND THEN WHAT THE COSTS WERE FOR '28, '29, AND '30 AND SO SCOTT HAS THAT LIST, AND THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IT WOULD BE NICE, AND, YOU KNOW, I'M GOING OFF A HISTORICAL TREND THAT IT'S ALWAYS BEEN REALLY BUDGETED FOR THE FULL EXTENT EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN IN, YOU KNOW, REALITY, THAT IF WE CAN MAYBE POTENTIALLY TAKE THINGS OFF AND THAT WE COULD MAYBE DO IN Q1 OR, RIGHT. WELL, I THINK SO. MR. VILLA, I'M SURE HAS REALIZED BY NOW HE IS ONE OF THE THREE. AND THERE ACTUALLY MAY BE FOUR, THE CITY ENGINEER. ENGINEER WOULD BE ONE AND OUR DEPUTY PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR. SO, AND I THINK JUST BY WAY OF EXAMPLE HERE, REMEMBER THAT WE HAVE THESE WELL PROJECTS
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GOING. $35 MILLION WORTH OF WELL PROGRAM AND THE FILTRATION PROGRAM OVER A PERIOD OF YEARS, 100% GRANT FUNDED.SO THOSE NUMBERS OF THAT MAGNITUDE ARE SHOWING UP ON THESE REPORTS AND SUMMARIES, BUT THEY ZERO OUT WITH THE GRANT REIMBURSEMENT.
WE STILL HAVE TO HAVE SOME MONEY SO WE CAN PAY THE BILL AND WAIT TO GET REIMBURSED, BUT THOSE DO ZERO OUT AND THEY DON'T AFFECT THE GENERAL FUND AT ALL.
AND YOU JUST USED A KEYWORD, THAT THEY'RE ALL REIMBURSABLE, RIGHT? AND SO WE WILL GET OUR MONEY BACK. I DON'T BELIEVE IN TELEPATHY, BUT MAYBE WE'RE CONNECTED DURING YOUR MEETING AND MYSELF.
THANK YOU, MS. BLACKMORE CONTINUE, PLEASE.
YEAH, THAT'S FINE. SECTION D, WHICH IS THE FUND BALANCE. I KNOW IT LOOKS DAUNTING TO SEE THAT THE PROJECTED FUND BALANCE IS ONLY APPROXIMATELY $14 MILLION. JUST HOLD UP.
AT FIRST GLANCE, THAT'S REALLY LOW. HOWEVER, THE PROJECTION IS BASED LARGELY ON BUDGETED NUMBERS RATHER THAN ACTUALS. SO FISCAL YEAR '25 ACTUALS ARE NOT DONE. WE'RE WORKING ON THEM. WE'RE CLEANING UP A LOT OF STUFF. WE'RE GETTING THEM READY FOR THE AUDIT TO HAVE HAPPEN.
AND THEN AT THE SAME TIME, WE'RE WORKING ON '26. WE'RE WORKING ON TWO FISCAL YEARS AT THE SAME TIME. NOW REMEMBER, BUDGET FOR '25, BUDGET FOR '26, WHAT DID THEY DO? THEY BUDGETED FOR CIP PROJECTS THAT WHAT? GOT DELAYED, RIGHT? AND SO WHEN ROLLING FORWARD THE FUND BALANCE, I WAS ROLLING FORWARD THE FACT THAT PREVIOUS BUDGETS HAD CIP BUDGETED. IT'S NOT THERE. SO ONCE WE CLOSE BOOKS, ONCE WE FINALIZE FISCAL YEAR '25, WE'LL HAVE AN UPDATED FUND BALANCE. WE CAN ADD BACK THAT ADDITIONAL $1.9 MILLION OF INTEREST INCOME. WE CAN ADD THAT EXTRA $800,000 OF THE REVENUE SOURCE THAT WILL GET ADDED BACK TO THE FUND BALANCE.
BUT WE REALLY GOT TO CLOSE FISCAL YEAR '25. SO IT LOOKS RELATIVELY LOW. IT'S BECAUSE IT'S BASING ON 2 YEARS OF, OF FINANCIAL BUDGETS, YOU KNOW, SPENDING THAT CIP, WHICH OBVIOUSLY, DIDN'T, NOT ALL OF IT HAPPENED. AND SO THAT ROLLED FORWARD DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? THANK YOU, MS. BLAKEMORE. I, UM, YEAH, THAT'S JUST GOING TO BE MY NEXT ASK. YOU ALREADY ALLUDED TO IT. YOU'RE ALREADY WORKING ON IT, RIGHT? WE NEED TO HAVE THOSE NUMBERS. YES, TO, THEY CAN PAINT US A PICTURE OF WHERE WE REALLY ARE FOR THE PREVIOUS BUDGETED YEAR.
AS SOON AS I GET THIS FINALIZED, IT IS 100%. ALL OF, ALL THAT WE'RE DOING IN FINANCE RIGHT NOW IS WORKING ON CLEANING THINGS UP, GETTING THEM ALL, EVERYTHING TICKED AND TIED AND READY AND READY FOR THE AUDIT. SO THAT IS OUR MAJOR PRIORITY.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IT'S GOOD TO HEAR. REALLY GOOD TO HEAR.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE MEMBERS? AND THEN SECTION E, I JUST LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT JUST TO CONSIDER THE MOST JUST, JUST TO RECAP, YOU KNOW, THE PROJECTED UNDERSOURCES THAT YOU SEE DUE TO LIKE THE FACT I ROLLED FORWARD THE BUDGET FOR 2 YEARS, AND THAT YOU COULD POTENTIALLY SEE IF YOU TAKE IN SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE COSTS, WHICH ARE TRUE OPERATING EXPENSES, THE POTENTIAL CONSERVATIVE BUDGET DEFICITS, $1.4 MILLION THIS YEAR. IF YOU TAKE OUT SOFTWARE LIKE PREVIOUS BUDGETS DID, IT WOULD BE $931,000 A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF THIS DEFICIT IS DRIVEN BY THE SALARIES AND BENEFITS, WHICH ARE BUDGETED CONSERVATIVELY, AND ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, REFLECTS THE CITY'S, ONGOING COMMITMENT TO RETAIN AND RECRUIT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT OUR PROJECTED ENDING FUND BALANCE IS BASED LARGELY ON, LIKE I SAID, THE BUDGETED NUMBERS. AND ONCE WE HAVE, EVERY TIME, ONCE WE HAVE 25 FINALIZED, WE'LL BRING THAT TO COUNCIL AND SHOW YOU WHAT THE REVISED FUND BALANCE IS. AND THEN ONCE WE HAVE 26 DONE TOO, WE'LL, WE'LL DO THE SAME. AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES THROUGHOUT THE FISCAL YEAR AND TO PROVIDE YOU GUYS UPDATES AS FREQUENTLY AS POSSIBLE, GIVEN WHEN THE INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE.
THANK YOU, MS. BLAKEMORE. I THINK SCOTT HAS ALREADY COMMITTED TO DOING THIS QUARTERLY, AND THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO SEE. I DO WANT TO BE CLEAR THAT I DON'T PROJECT OR EXPECT US TO DIP INTO OUR RESERVES.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE OPERATING WITHIN OUR MEANS.
OF COURSE, THE RESERVES ARE THERE IN CASE OF A RAINY DAY, BUT IF WE CAN AVOID IT, THEN WE SHOULD AVOID IT AT ALL COSTS WHILE MAINTAINING THE SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE TO OUR RESIDENTS. BUT I THINK THIS IS, IT'S BETTER THAN WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE.
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AND I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT WILL, WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED BY STAFF AND FOR THE COUNCIL TO CONSIDER AND WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO DISCUSS IT AT ONE MORE MEETING, AT LEAST ON THE 16TH, IS THAT THIS, THIS BUDGET WILL BE ADOPTED SHOWING THAT DEFICIT. BUT WE EXPECT THIS INFORMATION THAT'S COMING IN, WE EXPECT THE ACTUALITY OF WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE ECONOMY AND THE REVENUES AND WHATNOT TO, TO ADJUST AND TO CORRECT THAT NUMBER AND BY THE TIME WE GET 1 QUARTER, 2 QUARTERS INTO THE YEAR, WE MAY FIND OURSELVES ADJUSTING THAT DEFICIT COMPLETELY AWAY.AND THAT'S THE OPTIMISTIC WAY TO LOOK AT IT, AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, MY APPROACH IS CAUTIOUS AND CONSERVATIVE YET HOPEFUL.
AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT CAN GO OUR WAY AND IMPROVE THIS POSITION SIGNIFICANTLY.
YEAH, IT IS MY HOPE THAT THINGS WILL GO OUR WAY TOO. OKAY, THESE THINGS I SPEAK OF IS BECAUSE I'VE BEEN INFORMING MYSELF ABOUT THEM, YOU KNOW, THE CURRENT STATE OF THE ECONOMY, NOT JUST IN THE UNITED STATES BUT THROUGHOUT THE WORLD AND WHAT OTHER COUNTRIES ARE EXPERIENCING. I SPOKE ABOUT IT BEFORE, LIKE IN ASIA, THE COUNTRIES ARE HAVING DIRE ECONOMIC WOES. BUT MY EXPECTATION IS WHAT YOU JUST SAID, THAT WE WILL NOT, THAT WE WILL TAKE THE STEPS NECESSARY TO KEEP US WHOLE, RIGHT? THAT WE WILL NOT, THAT WE WILL BE RESPONSIBLE. LET ME TALK IN POSITIVE TERMS, THAT WE WILL BE RESPONSIBLE TO OUR CONSTITUENTS AND DO OUR BEST TO MAINTAIN A FISCAL BUDGET THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE LIVING WITHIN WHAT WE'RE TAKING IN AND AVOIDING DIPPING INTO OUR RESERVES. THAT'S THE GOAL, AND I'VE BEEN EXPRESSING THIS THROUGHOUT.
BUT I SEE A LOT OF POSITIVE THINGS. MS. BLAKE, YOU'RE ADDING A LOT OF CLARITY AND POSITIVE REFERENCES THAT, YOU KNOW, THE WAY PERHAPS WERE NOT THERE BEFORE. AND I APPRECIATE THAT. MEMBER MARTINEZ, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING.
YEAH, YEAH, GOOD JOB ON PRESENTING THIS. THIS MAKES A LOT OF SENSE NOW GOING THROUGH IT.
I APPRECIATE IT. LIKE I SAID, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WITH SALARIES AND EVERYTHING INCREASING, I THINK WHEN WE DID THE STRATEGIC MEETING, I MEAN, A LOT OF OUR BUDGETS WERE VERY MINIMALLY INCREASED, IF ALL.
AND, AND WE ALWAYS TAKE THE CONSERVATIVE APPROACH IN THE ACTUAL DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS EXPENSE. EXPENSES AND MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S NOT A LOT OF FLUFF THERE. SO THAT'S ANOTHER THING TO NOTE. ONE OF THE THINGS I ALSO WANTED TO JUST NOTE ON HERE, SINCE THE BUDGET WORKSHOP, OR NOT THE STRATEGIC ONE, WE WENT AHEAD AND IN THIS BUDGET WE WENT AHEAD AND CATEGORIZED THE SERVER UPDATE, THE SERVER, THE NEW SERVER, TO ACTUALLY BE A CIP PROJECT AND TO MOVE THAT OUT OF OPERATING EXPENSES. SO WE WENT AHEAD AND PUT THAT AS A CIP PROJECT FOR $250,000 AS THE ESTIMATED SERVER COST. THAT REDUCED THE PROFESSIONAL, THAT IN TURN ON THE IT BUDGET REDUCED THE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES LINE ITEM BY $119,000. THEY STILL NEED THEIR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES PROVIDER FOR LITTLE THINGS, SO DIDN'T REDUCE IT ALL THE WAY DOWN. BUT WE WENT AHEAD AND PUT THAT AS A CIP PROJECT.
THAT'S A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE, A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE. SO YOU'RE SAYING OUR STAFF WILL BE TAKING A LARGE PORTION OF WHAT WE WOULD CONTRACT OUT? NO, WE NEED A NEW SERVER COMPLETELY.
NO, NO, BUT THE SERVER NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT INTO LINE, INSTALLED, WHATEVER YOU SAY.
AND YOU MENTIONED $119,000 SAVINGS.
OH, OKAY. SO INITIALLY ON IT'S BUDGET, THEY HAD A LINE ITEM FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IT WAS AROUND $115,000. $150,000.
IT PRESENTED IT AS, I NEED ALL THESE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TO HELP WORK ON THE SERVER.
AND THEN IT WAS DECIDED THAT THE NUM, THAT NUMBER WAS RELATIVELY LOW, AND THAT WHEN THEY WENT, WENT BACK OUT TO SEE HOW MUCH A SERVER WOULD COST, IT'S ABOUT $250,000 NOW.
AND, AND I THINK THE QUESTION YOU MAY BE ASKING, THIS IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF WHAT WENT THE OTHER WAY, THAT $480,000 MOVING IT FROM CIP TO OPERATIONS OR VICE VERSA.
HERE WE'VE DECIDED THAT THIS $250,000 IS NOW IN THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. NOW THAT ACTUALLY REDUCES THE BURDEN ON THE OPERATING BUDGET. GOT IT. BY $119,000. YEAH. OKAY, GOT IT. AND THAT EXHIBITS EVEN
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MORE CLEARLY WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE TWO 50 GETS SPREAD OUT AND ENTERPRISES PAY A PORTION NOT IN THIS OPERATING BUDGET.THEY'RE IN THEIR OWN ENTERPRISE BUDGET.
GREAT. AND THE ONLY OTHER THING IS, I, WHAT WAS, BASICALLY ON THE BUDGET THEMSELVES, IF YOU WERE TO TICK AND TIE THE NUMBERS FROM SATURDAY'S REPORT TO TODAY'S REPORT, I DID HAVE TO MODIFY THE POLICE SOFTWARE.
IT WAS JUST A TRANSPOSITION ERROR ON MY PART, AND SO I UPDATED IT, AND I PROPERLY HAVE YOUR $304,000 SOFTWARE COST IN THE PD BUDGET.
BUT INITIALLY ON THAT SATURDAY REPORT YOU GOT, IT WASN'T THERE. IT WAS $54,000 SHORT. I WENT AHEAD AND ADDED IT. THAT, SOFTWARE COST WAS PRESENTED AT THE STRATEGIC MEETING. SO I JUST WANTED TO, JUST IN CASE YOU ARE UP LATE AT NIGHT TAKING AND TYING REPORTS OUT, I WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM.
THAT'S FOR THE, OH NO, WE HAVE JUST LIKE ONE MORE ITEM, I BELIEVE.
SORRY, I DON'T MEAN TO CUT YOU SHORT. I MEAN, I WAS JUST GONNA SAY, THAT'S WHAT, THAT'S WHY THERE ARE ERASERS ON PENCILS, BECAUSE WE DO MAKE MISTAKES.
PERFECT. AND THE OTHER THING IS, IS A COUPLE COUNCIL MEETINGS AGO YOU GUYS ASKED ABOUT, YOU CONTINUED AND APPROVED THE CONTINUATION OF THE $60,000 WATER SUBSIDY.
AND AFTER DISCUSSION, YOU WANTED MORE INFORMATION REGARDING PARTICIPATION AND HISTORICAL RESULTS. AND ACTUALLY, I'M GOING, THE TEAM, FINANCE TEAM, WILL BE CONDUCTING AN INTERNAL REVIEW OF THE PROGRAM, AND WE'LL REPORT BACK TO COUNCIL WITH OUR FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ONCE THE REVIEW IS COMPLETE. WE HAVE OVER-PARTICIPATION, AND SO WE'RE GOING TO DO A COMPLETE INTERNAL AUDIT ON THAT, AND THEN I'LL REPORT BACK TO YOU LATER IN A COUPLE MONTHS.
SO JUST A QUICK QUESTION, SO IF WE HAVE OVER-PARTICIPATION, DOES THAT MEAN THAT WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE THAN ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THERE? IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? YES. DOES THAT MEAN WE'RE SPENDING MORE THAN WE BUDGETED? IT MEANS THAT CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, YES, WE OVERSPENT VERSUS THE BUDGET.
WHAT IT MEANS GOING FORWARD IS WITH THIS AUDIT IN PLACE, THAT WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN. WE'LL TIE IT DOWN. WE'LL COME UP WITH A MECHANISM FOR CLOSING IT OUT WHEN WE HIT THAT $60,000.
AND, BUT WHAT WE SUSPECT HAS HAPPENED IS THAT FOLKS THAT LEGITIMATELY GOT ONTO THE PROGRAM HAVE MOVED ON, OR THEIR CHILDREN NOW ARE LIVING IN THAT HOME, AND THEY MAY NOT PERSONALLY QUALIFY.
AND SO THEY NEED, EVERYBODY NEEDS TO REAPPLY. AND SO THERE WILL BE, I'M SURE, SOME GRUMBLING ABOUT THAT FROM THE PUBLIC WHEN WE ASK THEM TO REQUALIFY FOR THE PROGRAM, BUT THAT'S OUR ONLY CHOICE.
YEAH, I THAT IT CAN CONTINUE TO BE OVERSUBSCRIBED.
I SEE THAT AS JUST PRACTICING GOOD BUSINESS. IF YOU QUALIFIED AND NEED THE SERVICE, A 1-YEAR OR 2-YEAR QUALIFICATION WOULD NOT BE OUT OF THE QUESTION.
THE OTHER IMPORTANT FACTOR, NOT TO MUDDY THE WATERS HERE, BUT I'M SURE YOU'RE AWARE WE'VE BEEN ADJUSTING THE WATER RATES TO EMPHASIZE MORE ON USAGE THAN ON THE BASE RATE. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT WHAT'S THE APPROPRIATE PLACE TO APPLY THAT DISCOUNT. IS IT A COMPLETE PAYMENT OF THE WATER BILL, OR IS IT JUST COVERING THE VOLUME PART, OR JUST THE BASE PART, OR SOME OTHER CAP ON THAT? JUST TO STRETCH THE BENEFIT AS FAR AS WE CAN.
SINCE WE'RE TARGETING PEOPLE THAT ARE ON A BUDGET, THAT WAS THE ORIGINAL ORIGINAL IDEA, RIGHT? AND WITH LIMITED INCOMES, OKAY, WHATEVER WE DECIDE TO DO NEEDS TO GIVE THEM THE MOST BENEFIT.
WHICHEVER WAY YOU DECIDE TO DO IT, IT'S GOT TO BE THE BIGGEST BENEFIT TO THEM.
ANYWAY, YEAH, NO, I WAS JUST GOING TO LOOK, LIKE, THE FIRST THING WHEN YOU GUYS ASKED IS I LOOKED FOR ANY KIND OF POLICIES WRITTEN, WHAT WAS OUR, OUR REVIEW PRACTICE TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THE RESIDENTS WERE STILL LIVING IN THAT HOUSEHOLD, STILL NEEDING THE SUBSIDY, AND, YOU KNOW, I REALLY COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING. AND SO WE REALLY DO NEED TO HAVE A, DO THEY RENEW EVERY YEAR? DO THEY RENEW EVERY 2 YEARS? WHAT'S THE QUALIFICATIONS? WHERE DID THE AGE 60 COME FROM WHEN RETIREMENT AGE IS 62? JUST SORT OF LOOKING AT ALL THAT, HOW MANY OF THE RESIDENTS ARE OF AGE 62? SHOULD THE NEW RULE BE 62 OR SHOULD IT SAY 60? I'M NOT QUITE SURE. I DO KNOW THAT ANOTHER CITY DOES DO WATER SUBSIDIES TOO. SO MY GOAL WILL BE TO REACH OUT TO THEIR FINANCE DIRECTOR AND SEE HOW
[01:15:01]
THEY APPROACH IT. AND THEN ALSO WE HAVE A REPORT THAT SHOWS THE WATER USAGE AND, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME OUTLIERS, MEANING HIGHER BENEFITS. SO I'M NOT SURE IF THEY LIVE ON A FARM, LIKE I'M NOT SURE WHAT THEIR HOUSEHOLD SITUATION IS.. BUT WE'LL WANT TO COME UP WITH BEST PRACTICES AND LIKE A POLICY ON HOW OFTEN TO REVIEW AND DO THAT AND MAKE SURE WE JUST MAKE SURE WE DO THAT. BECAUSE I THINK IT WAS SORT OF SET AND DONE AND JUST CONTINUED. AND SO WE NEED TO SET UP BEST PRACTICES WITHIN THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT.AND YEAH, AND I THINK THAT LOST MY THOUGHT THERE, BUT I THINK THE IDEA IS TO, WITH THE COUNCIL'S DIRECTION TO CONTINUE THE PROGRAM, WE WILL HAVE SUFFICIENT BUDGET TO GET STARTED AND WE'LL BRING IT BACK.
WE'D HAVE TIME TO BRING IT BACK TO YOU WITH ANY ADJUSTMENTS THAT WE RECOMMEND. OKAY, ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM THE MEMBERS? NO. WELL, THEN THAT, WITH THAT, THEN I WILL CLOSE UP THE PROPOSED BUDGET AND THEN KEEP MOVING FORWARD ON, ON DOING THE FULL BUDGET AND FULL BUDGET PDF, ALL THAT GOOD STUFF.
WELCOME. SO WITH, WITH THAT, I MEAN, I DON'T THINK WE NEED A MINUTE ACTION HERE, BY ANY MEANS, BUT I THINK IT'S A DEAL ON THE ADOPTION, RIGHT? WHAT WHAT STAFF IS, IS LOOKING FOR IS JUST DIRECTION FROM COUNCIL TO CONTINUE WITH PREPARING FOR THE ADOPTION ON THE 16TH.
IF THERE ARE ANY MATERIAL DIFFERENCES OR ADJUSTMENTS DISCOVERED BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, OF COURSE WE'LL HAVE TIME TO DISCUSS THOSE BEFORE THE ADOPTION ACTUALLY TAKES PLACE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU'RE WELCOME. THANK YOU.
BACK TO THE AGENDA. ALL RIGHT, ITEM 15. MAKE SURE I HAVE THE RIGHT PLACE. YES, ITEM 15, REPORTS FROM COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES. CURRENT ECONOMIC
[15.b. Kern Council of Governments (Reyna) ]
DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, MR. MEDINA IS NOT HERE. CURRENT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, NO, NOTHING TO REPORT[15.c. Wasco Task Force (Saldaña and Raya)]
AT THIS TIME. OKAY. AND, WASCO TASK FORCE, MR. RAYA. YES, I JUST TALKED TO MAYOR EDDIE SALDANA BEFORE I CAME INTO THE MEETING, AND HE'S LOOKING TO START A CLEANUP ON JUNE 20TH. AND WE'RE GOING TO BE MEETING AT TERESA BURKE, AND WE'RE GOING TO CLEAN FROM BROADWAY ALL THE WAY TO 43 DOWN. AND HE SAID HE'LL PROVIDE A FLYER WITH MORE INFORMATION TO MARIA.WHAT IS THE DATE, MR. RAYA? JUNE 20TH.
6/20TH AND WHERE ARE WE MEETING? WE'RE MEETING IN FRONT OF TERESA BURKE.
[16) REPORTS FROM THE CITY MANAGER]
RIGHT, THANK YOU. REPORTS FROM CITY MANAGER.YES, HONORABLE MAYOR PRO TEM AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL, RELATIVELY SHORT LIST TODAY.
THE, THE HIGH SCHOOL HAD THEIR FARM, NEW SCHOOL FARM GROUNDBREAKING THIS MORNING.
IT WAS EXTREMELY SHORT NOTICE, WHICH I APOLOGIZE TO ALL OF US. WE DIDN'T REALLY KNOW IT WAS COMING UNTIL IT HAPPENED, BUT IT WAS WELL ATTENDED. THE FFA STUDENTS, WHO ARE ALWAYS SPOT ON, RAN THE PRESENTATION, AND IT WAS, IT WAS VERY GOOD. SO HAPPY WE WENT. COMMUNITY BREAKFAST WILL BE TOMORROW, JUNE 3RD, AT 7:00 AM. THE LOCATION THIS WEEK IS, OR THIS MONTH, IS AT FREE WILL BAPTIST. WE'RE HAVING A QUICK ROAD UPDATES FROM LEWIS.
DO YOU HAVE THAT SLIDE ON THERE, CITY CLERK? SO QUICK UPDATE ON SOME OF THE ROAD PROJECTS. SO THE TWO ROAD PROJECTS THAT ARE ACROSS THE STREET, 46TH AND POPLAR. SO WE'RE STILL ON TRACK WITH THAT. THAT'S
[01:20:01]
MID-JUNE IS THE POST THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE COMING IN. THEY SET ANCHOR BOLTS IN TODAY ON 46TH, UPWARD CROSSING.YOU'LL SEE SOME SIGNS THAT THOSE POSTS HAVE BEEN REMOVED.
YOU SEE SOME ELECTRONIC SIGNS YOU CANNOT HEAR MUCH. TURN THAT UP. OH, FOR THE BATTERY, HUH? ALL RIGHT, LET'S TRY THIS ONE. ALL RIGHT, THE ANCHOR BOLTS WERE SET IN TODAY, AND, THE NEW SIGNAGE, ALERTING TRAFFIC THAT THE PEDESTRIAN CROSSINGS WILL BE, WILL BE SET UP TOMORROW MORNING. SO THE ONE WE HAVE OUT THERE IS MORE TEMPORARY.
THAT WAS OUR SYSTEM THAT WE'RE USING. SO IT'S ON TRACK. THOSE TWO PROJECTS ARE ON TRACK. THE PLAN IS STILL TO RECEIVE THEM, THE POST, ON JUNE 15TH, AROUND THERE, AND COMPLETE THE PROJECT END OF JUNE.
I LOVE THAT. I JUST WANT TO REITERATE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US DO SOME KIND OF AN INAUGURATION, RIBBON CUTTING, WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT. THOSE TWO CROSSINGS.
OKAY, AND THEN THE NEXT ONE WILL BE, BECKETT'S, THE BECKETT'S ROAD THAT'S ONE OF THE ONES YOU WERE ASKING FOR BEFORE AS WELL, AN UPDATE. SO DESIGN IS COMPLETE, ADVERTISEMENT IS GOING OUT THIS SATURDAY, SO IT'S GOING TO BE ADVERTISED FOR BID, AND CONSTRUCTION SHOULD START IN LATE JULY. THE NEXT ONE WILL BE THE REAP 2.0 ALLEY PROJECT.
THE SAME THING HERE, THE, UH, CONSTRUCTION, THE DESIGN WAS COMPLETED. IT'S GOING TO GO OUT TO BID THIS SATURDAY AND HOPEFULLY CONSTRUCTION STARTING, IN JULY FILBURN. SO FILBURN, WE HAVE A FEW PROJECTS THERE. FILBURN AND CENTRAL AVENUE FILBURN YEAH, SO BOTH OF THESE ARE THE SHOULDER IMPROVEMENTS ON FILBURN, AND THOSE ARE 100% COMPLETE ON DESIGN. WE'RE AWAITING AUTHORIZATION FOR CALTRANS. ONCE WE RECEIVE FUNDING, WE'LL BE ADVERTISING IN JULY, AND CONSTRUCTION IS APPROXIMATELY TO BEGIN SEPTEMBER FOR THESE TWO PROJECTS. WELL, THOSE TWO, THERE'S ANOTHER ONE WHICH IS THE FILBURN ROAD REHABILITATION, WHICH IS AGAIN SAME THING, 100% DESIGN COMPLETE, ADVERTISEMENT IN JULY. AND CONSTRUCTION TO BEGIN IN SEPTEMBER. ANY QUESTIONS ON THOSE? NO. OKAY, I'M LOVING THIS CHART. AND THEN WE HAVE ANOTHER ONE ON CENTRAL, THE ATP BIKE LANE PROJECT THAT DESIGN IS ABOUT 95% COMPLETE.
WE ARE PENDING SOME REVISIONS ON SOME OF THE LANDSCAPING.
ONCE THAT'S COMPLETE, WE WILL PUT THAT OUT TO BID AND EXPECT THE CONSTRUCTION IN AUGUST.
MAY I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT LANDSCAPING? ON CENTRAL BETWEEN FILBURN AND, I DON'T REMEMBER WHICH STREET, WE HAVE SOME PARKWAYS THERE. RIGHT.
AND THE GRASS IS OVERGROWN, AND I'M NOT USED TO SEEING IT THAT WAY.
IS THAT ON- YOU SAID ON CENTRAL? YES. OKAY. YOU KNOW, NORMALLY THE CREWS ARE OUT THERE WORKING AND PRUNING, WHATEVER THEY NEED TO DO, AND I NOTICED THAT THE GRASSES WERE OVERGROWN. SO JUST A NOTE.
PLEASE CONTINUE. WELL, I'LL DOUBLE-CHECK THAT FOR YOU.
THE LAST ONE IS THE G STREET LIGHTING. THAT'S ONGOING. WE HAVE OUR CITY CREWS NOW PATCHING BACK PANELS THAT WERE REMOVED OR CUT OUT FOR THE INSTALLATION OF THE CONDUIT. ON THAT END, ONCE THAT'S PUT BACK IN PLACE, THEN OUR CREWS WILL COME BACK.
THEY'LL SET IN THE LIGHT POSTS. ONCE THE LIGHT POSTS ARE ALL SET IN, THEN LOOP ELECTRIC WILL COME BACK OUT AND RUN ALL THE CABLE IN THROUGH THEM. WHAT WE DON'T WANT TO DO IS RUN CABLE NOW WHEN THEY'RE EXPOSED, POTENTIALLY HAVE SOMEONE STEAL THE CABLE, UNFORTUNATELY. SO WE'LL WAIT UNTIL THE POLES ARE ACTUALLY INSTALLED AND THEN RUN THE CABLING THROUGH.
SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS WHEN YOU HAVE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT THAT, RIGHT? YEAH. SOMEBODY STEALING YOUR CABLE. THEY DID AT THE SOLAR PANEL FARM. 3 TIMES. 3 TIMES. ALL RIGHT.
THAT'S IT FOR ME. BUT NOW THAT YOU MENTIONED SOLAR FARM, WE DID INSTALL LIGHTING TODAY, UM, AND A CAMERA, OR THE CAMERA IS GETTING INSTALLED TOMORROW MORNING. BUT, JUST A QUICK UPDATE, WE'RE BEING,
[01:25:01]
SEE IF WE CAN CATCH ANYBODY IN THE ACT, OR AT LEAST MINIMIZE THAT NOW THAT THERE'S BE PLENTY OF LIGHTING.I BELIEVE I HAD RAISED THIS UP BEFORE, UM LIGHTING, POSSIBLE LIGHTING, AND EVEN A LOUD ALARM IF SOMEBODY WERE TO BE IN THE VICINITY. IT'S MOSTLY AN UNINHABITED AREA OVER THERE, CORRECT? LIKE MR. VILLA SAID, THE LIGHTING WAS INSTALLED TODAY.
OH YEAH, RIGHT, SORRY, THE LIGHTING WAS INSTALLED TODAY. I'M SORRY, I, AND THE CAMERA IS LISTENING TOMORROW MORNING.
CAMERAS TOMORROW MORNING IF IT HASN'T, IF IT WORKS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. VERY GOOD. ANYTHING ELSE? NO, THAT'S IT FOR ME.
THAT WAS PART OF MY REPORT. I'M GOING TO CONTINUE ON HERE.
CELEBRATION OF EDUCATION WAS HELD ON 5/21 OVER AT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT AND VERY WELL ATTENDED. I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT I WAS WALKING INTO, BUT THIS IS A PEP RALLY BASICALLY FOR THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS.
MR. RAYA WAS THERE AND WITNESSED THAT, AND IT WAS A FUN TIME, WAS HAD BY MOST, I WOULD SAY, IF NOT ALL. SO THAT WAS A GOOD EVENT. MEMORIAL DAY EVENT, TWO OF THOSE HAPPENED. ONE WAS THE NATIONAL CEMETERY, WHICH MR. RAYA AND I BOTH ATTENDED. NOT AS BIG A CROWD, I DON'T THINK, AS MAYBE IN YEARS PAST, BUT YOU'RE RIGHT, ENTHUSIASTIC NONETHELESS.
THERE'S ALSO THE WASCO MEMORIAL DAY EVENT HERE AT THE WASCO CEMETERY, WHICH I WAS NOT ABLE TO ATTEND, BUT I UNDERSTAND MAYBE, MR. REYNA, DID YOU COME HERE? YEAH, I DID.
YEAH, TO ATTEND. ALSO HAPPENING RECENTLY WAS THE FATHER-DAUGHTER DANCE, WHICH BY ALL ACCOUNTS WAS A BIG SUCCESS AT THE 7TH STREET PLAZA. I THINK AT LEAST ONE OF OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS ATTENDED THAT.
I WAS THERE. A VERY PROUD DAD.
YES. COMING UP NOW, THE INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION WILL BE ON THE 4TH AT BARKER PARK. STARTS AT 6:00, PERHAPS EVEN SOONER, WITH VARIOUS VENDORS IN THE PARK.
WITH THE COINCIDENCE OF IT HAPPENING ACTUALLY ON THE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WILL BE PROVIDING SOME ADDITIONAL PATROLS THERE, BUT WE WON'T HAVE A CITY BOOTH PER SE LIKE WE HAVE IN THE PAST, JUST GIVEN OUR EMPLOYEES THE DAY WITH THEIR FAMILIES. AND THEN THE NEWS DROPPED TODAY, OR PERHAPS LATE YESTERDAY, ABOUT THE UPCOMING LEAGUE OF CITIES ANNUAL CONFERENCE. THIS YEAR IT'S GOING TO BE HELD IN ANAHEIM, SEPTEMBER 23RD THROUGH 25TH. THAT'S A WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.
AGAIN, REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN. IF YOU HAVE A DISCUSSION WITH YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS ABOUT WHETHER YOU'RE INTERESTED IN ATTENDING, WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO BOOK THE REGISTRATIONS AND ROOMS ALL TOGETHER THIS WEEK IF POSSIBLE, SO WE DON'T END UP MISSING OUT ON THE DISCOUNTED ROOMS AND HAVING PEOPLE SPREAD OUT IN, IN DIFFERENT LODGING. GREAT, GREAT IDEA. SO THINK ABOUT THAT AND I DON'T KNOW IF THE CLERK, YOU PROBABLY HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED THE NOTICE DIRECTLY FROM CAL CITIES, BUT IF NOT, THE CLERK CAN SEND CERTAINLY FORWARD THE FLYER THAT WE RECEIVED.
HE NOTIFIED US. HE'S ON TOP OF IT.
YES, DEPEND ON THAT. AND THAT WRAPS UP MY REPORT.
[17) REPORTS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL]
QUESTIONS FOR MR. HERBERT? ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT. REPORTS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL. MEMBER MARTINEZ.SO AS SCOTT SAID, I DID ATTEND THE DADDY-DAUGHTER DANCE. YOU KNOW, I WAS THE FIRST ONE WORKING AT IT, AND 10 YEARS AGO, AND I HAD NO CLUE I WOULD BE TAKING MY OWN DAUGHTER, 48 YEARS OLD, TO DADDY-DAUGHTER BUT IT WAS A GREAT USE OF THE PLAZA. THEY SOLD OVER 200 TICKETS FOR THE EVENT. IT WAS VERY WELL ATTENDED. AND IT ACTUALLY, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS HOT THAT DAY, BECAUSE THE WAY THE BUILDINGS ARE, YOU HAD A LOT OF SHADE, SO IT WASN'T MISERABLE AS LONG AS YOU WEREN'T OFF ON THE EAST END, YOU KNOW, WHERE THERE WASN'T SHADE.
BUT, BUT IT WAS A REALLY GREAT EVENT. I KNOW THAT WE'VE RECOGNIZED THE ORANGE HEART FOUNDATION MULTIPLE TIMES, BUT I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE THEM ONE LAST TIME. THIS MAY BE THE LAST BIG EVENT THAT THEY PUT ON. THEY'VE TURNED THE DADDY-DAUGHTER DANCE OVER TO THE SCHOOLS, THE ROSE FESTIVAL'S BEEN TURNED OVER TO THE ROSE FESTIVAL COMMITTEE, AND THE FIREWORKS HAVE BEEN TURNED OVER TO PARKS AND REC. SO THIS IS KIND OF PROBABLY THEIR LAST BIG HURRAH, AND I'D LIKE TO GIVE THEM ONE FINAL RECOGNITION IF THAT'S OKAY WITH THE REST OF THE COUNCIL.
I ALSO ATTENDED ICSC. I REALIZE SOMETIMES I'M IN OVER MY HEAD WHEN I LISTEN TO SCOTT AND CARRIE TALK TO PEOPLE PEOPLE. THEY ARE VERY DILIGENT AND VERY WELL PREPARED
[01:30:02]
FOR THESE THINGS, AND I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE THERE WERE THINGS THAT I DON'T NECESSARILY THINK OF IN MY DAY-TO-DAY LIFE THAT YOU GUYS ARE AWARE OF AND DISCUSS WITH THESE PEOPLE. AND IT WAS A VERY GOOD EVENT. HOPEFULLY WE MADE SOME PROGRESS AND THINGS WILL, WILL CONTINUE TO GROW.THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO REPORT, SIR. THANK YOU, MR. MARTINEZ.
YES, I WOULDN'T ATTEND THE WASCO BIKE CLUB FUN RIDE, BUT YOU KNOW, WE, THE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION CHANGED TO THAT DAY. IT'S THE FIRST TIME THE WASCO GRADUATION IS HELD DURING THE DAY, YOU KNOW. YOU GUYS KNOW BECAUSE OF THE RAIN IT WAS MOVED, BUT I HEARD THE WASCO BIKE CLUB WAS VERY, VERY SUCCESSFUL. AND AS, AS ANNA OROZCO CAME IN, THE, THE FOUNDER, SHE COULD, SHE WANTS TO CONTINUE TO PURSUE IT.
AND, AND YOU KNOW, THAT'S, THAT'S A GOOD THING FOR FOR ALL OUR YOUTH AND FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO JOIN. SO I'M VERY, I'M PLANNING TO ATTEND THE NEXT ONE WHEN IT HAPPENS. YEAH, ANYTHING ELSE, MR. RAYA? NO, THANK YOU. WELL, I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT I DID ATTEND THE BIKE RIDE. YOU PERHAPS HEARD ME SAY THAT THAT MIGHT BE THE IMPETUS I NEEDED TO GET ME BACK ON MY BIKE, WHICH I HAVEN'T BEEN RIDING FOR OVER 2 YEARS AS OF MAY 15TH OF THIS YEAR. AND I DID ATTEND.
THAT WAS ON FRIDAY. I RODE FROM MY HOME TO PARKER PARK AND THEN WE DID A 4.5-MILE RIDE, WHICH WAS FUN. WE HAD A POLICE ESCORT. HOW COULD YOU NOT HAVE FUN WITH ALL THE LIGHTS GOING ON, YOU KNOW? AND THEN YOU DON'T HAVE TO STOP AT STOP SIGNS. IT WAS GREAT. A LOT OF KIDS, SHE MENTIONED 47 PARTICIPANTS.
YEAH, I HAD ESTIMATED 50. I COUNTED THE PEOPLE THAT ATTENDED THE TRAINING SESSION, AND I COUNTED OVER 40 PEOPLE THERE, SO I ESTIMATED AROUND 50.
BUT IT DIDN'T STOP THERE. I WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU THAT I RODE 7 MILES ON FRIDAY, THEN I THOUGHT, WELL, MAYBE I CAN KEEP GOING.
SO ON SATURDAY I RODE 10 MILES, SUNDAY I RODE 11 MILES, AND YESTERDAY I RODE 12 MILES. SO I DON'T WANT TO SAY THAT I'M BACK ON MY BIKE PERMANENTLY, BUT MAYBE I AM. THANKS. YEAH, THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. I ALSO ATTENDED, AS MR. HERLBERT ALLUDED TO, MEMORIAL DAY AT THE NATIONAL CEMETERY. NOT AS HEAVILY ATTENDED AS PREVIOUS YEARS, BUT STILL A WONDERFUL EVENT.
WE GOT TO SEE SEVERAL PEOPLE THAT WE KNOW. IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE THEM. AND I ALSO ATTENDED THE MEMORIAL DAY EVENT HERE AT THE WASCO CEMETERY.
THAT WAS WELL ATTENDED AS WELL, AND WE HAD QUITE A NICE EVENT.
I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT REALLY CARE ABOUT HONORING OUR, YOU KNOW, THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE GIVEN THEIR LIVES IN DEFENSE OF OUR COUNTRY. AND SO I'M REALLY HAPPY TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT MYSELF AND TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS EVENT.
SO I THANK THEM ALL. I BELIEVE THAT'S IT FROM ME. WE HAVE CLOSED SESSION? WE DO. ALL RIGHT, SO I'M GOING TO CALL A 7-MINUTE RECESS AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO, DO THE PUBLIC COMMENT PORTION.
OH YES, OF COURSE. I'M, I'M TRYING TO CUT CORNERS HERE,
[18) CLOSED SESSION]
BUT I KNOW YOU WON'T LET ME.OKAY, SO ITEM 18, CLOSED SESSION. THIS EVENING WE HAVE ITEMS 18A THROUGH 18G.
ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS REGARDING CLOSED SESSION ITEMS AT THIS TIME? SEEING NO ONE, WE WILL NOW ENTER INTO, WELL, IN ABOUT 7 MINUTES WE'LL ENTER CLOSED SESSION AND RETURN TO REPORT OUT. THAT'S ODDLY SPECIFIC. YEAH. OKAY, NOW IT IS.
PERFECT MADAM CLERK, I CAN CLOSE THE MEETING NOW. OKAY, THANK YOU. IT IS 8:24 AND THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.