[CALL TO ORDER]
[00:00:08]
- I'D LIKE TO CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER FOR FEBRUARY 11TH, 2025 MEETING OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.
CAN WE CALL... ROLL CALL, PLEASE.
- CERTAINLY. SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS? - HERE.
- NEXT, WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF ANY OF THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD WOULD LIKE TO, UH,
[MOMENT OF SILENCE AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE]
DEDICATE THIS- TODAY'S MOMENT OF SILENCE.[SILENCE] - SEEING NONE, WE'LL DO A GENERAL MOMENT OF SILENCE.
PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE MOMENT OF SILENCE.
- NOW JOIN ME IN THE PLEDGE OF- OF ALLEGIANCE.
- 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.
[CONSIDERATION OF LATE ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA; ADDITIONS AND DELETIONS TO CONSENT AND REGULAR AGENDAS ANNOUNCEMENT BY BOARD MEMBERS OF ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT TO REGULAR AGENDA]
- NEXT, I'D LIKE TO ASK THE COUNTY CAOS IF THERE'S ANY LATE ADDITIONS, DELETIONS TO THE REGULAR CONSENT AGENDA TODAY? - UH, YES, CHAIR HERNANDEZ, WE JUST HAVE ONE ITEM ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.STAFF IS REQUESTING THAT THE ITEM BE DELETED AT THIS TIME.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO BRING IT BACK AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING.
- MOVING ON TO CONSENT AGENDA, IS THERE ANY BOARD MEMBER WHO WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE AN ITEM
[ANNOUNCEMENT BY BOARD MEMBERS OF ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT TO REGULAR AGENDA]
FROM THE CONSENT TO THE REGULAR AGENDA?[PUBLIC COMMENT]
SEEING NONE, WE'LL MOVE TO PUBLIC COMMENT.SO THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO SPEAK, UH, SPEAK TO US REGARDING ITEMS THAT ARE NOT IN THE AGENDA.
ITEMS THAT ARE IN CONSENT, OR IF YOU'D LIKE TO SPEAK ON THE ITEM THAT IS ON THE REGULAR AGENDA, PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SPEAK FOR A SECOND TIME WHEN THE ITEM COMES FORWARD. SPEAKERS ARE GIVEN 2 MINUTES.
PLEASE LINE UP AND APPROACH THE PODIUM TO SPEAK AND PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME.
- GOOD MORNING. UM, FIRST, I'D LIKE TO WELCOME OUR NEW SUPERVISORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO ALL THE HARD WORK THAT YOU'LL GIVE TO YOUR CONSTITUENTS.
MY NAME IS SALLY CHRISTINE ROGERS, I AM THE ORGANIZER OF THE TRASH TALKERS, A COALITION OF ELECTED OFFICIALS, AGENCIES AND NONPROFITS WHO HAVE BEEN WORKING TOGETHER FOR 3 YEARS TO ELIMINATE THE BEHAVIOR OF LITTERING AND ILLEGAL DUMPING IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
THE TRASH TALKERS COALITION CREATED THE PITCH IN INITIATIVE, A MULTI-PRONGED APPROACH WHICH INCLUDES A UNIFYING MESSAGE OF OUR COUNTY SIGNS, WHICH YOU CAN SEE IN MANY LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY.
UM, THE QR CODE LINKS TO THE COUNTY-HOSTED WEBSITE.
WE HAVE MONTHLY CLEANUPS, UM, IN PARTICULAR WITH SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ'S OFFICE IN SOUTH COUNTY.
AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COUNTY, WE HAVE INSTALLED CAMERAS TO SEEK PROSECUTIONS ON ILLEGAL DUMPING.
WE'RE WORKING WITH BUSINESSES AND SCHOOLS.
WE ARE WORKING VERY HARD RIGHT NOW TO ORGANIZE THE SECOND ANNUAL PITCH IN ALL SANTA CRUZ COUNTY CLEANUP DAY ON MAY 10TH.
AND AS YOU KNOW, I AM ASKING FOR YOUR HELP BECAUSE IN WRITING, I REQUESTED THAT YOU PUT THIS INTO YOUR NEWSLETTERS AND HELP AMPLIFY THIS MESSAGE TO YOUR CONSTITUENTS.
YOU HAVE A BROAD REACH, AND THE MORE OF THE COMMUNITY, AND OUR RESIDENTS, AND VISITORS FRANKLY, TO HELP WITH THIS EFFORT, THE MORE SUCCESSFUL IT WILL BE.
AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, I'M INVITING EACH OF YOU TO ACTUALLY PARTICIPATE, TO ACTUALLY SHOW UP TO A CLEANUP OR ORGANIZE ONE WITH YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND LEAD BY EXAMPLE.
IT'S A GREAT PRESS OPPORTUNITY, IT'S A GREAT PHOTO OP AND IT WOULD SHOW OUR COMMUNITY THAT OUR SUPERVISORS ARE CRITICALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THIS ISSUE.
OUR GOAL IS TO MAKE SANTA CRUZ THE CLEANEST COUNTY IN THE STATE.
AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR HELP. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
- HI, MY NAME IS DAVID MCCUNE. I LIVE DOWNTOWN HERE IN JUSTIN'S, UH, DISTRICT.
AND I BELIEVE THAT MANU, UH, BROUGHT FORTH A I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WOULD CALL IT, UH, BROUGHT FORTH A SOME SUBSTANCE THAT WOULD ELIMINATE OR OUTLAW A GAS BLOWING LEAF BLOWERS. I FEEL REALLY STRONGLY ABOUT THIS.
AND I WANT TO EXPLAIN. I LIVE IN A CORDON OF THREE RATHER LARGE APARTMENT BUILDINGS. AND ON DIFFERENT DAYS OF THE WEEK, THESE MAINTENANCE CREWS COME THROUGH AND THEY BLOW THESE THINGS.
AND IT'S SO DISRUPTIVE, AIR POLLUTING, NOISE POLLUTING.
I MEAN, WE HAVE A, I LIVE IN ARBOR COVE.
IT'S A SENIOR CITIZEN COMPLEX.
[00:05:03]
I MEAN, IT'S DRIVING THESE PEOPLE MYSELF INCLUDED, ABSOLUTELY NUTS.THESE THINGS NEED TO GO. AND I JUST WANT TO SAY A PERSONAL NOTE.
I MEAN, SANTA CRUZ IS SUPPOSED TO BE FORWARD THINKING, AND YOU NEED TO GET AFTER THIS ONE, IN PARTICULAR.
IT'S SO OBNOXIOUS, UH, THESE THINGS.
I WANT TO TELL YOU A QUICK PERSONAL STORY.
WHEN I WAS 14, I TOOK TWO BUSES INTO DOWNTOWN SANTA CRUZ TO SWEEP THE FLOORS OF A LARGE DRUGSTORE, AND TWO YEARS LATER, I GOT A JOB SWEEPING THE ALAMEDA COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS FROM MIDNIGHT TO LATE IN THE MORNING.
MY POINT IS, WHAT'S WRONG WITH A BROOM? I MEAN, THESE GUYS ARE JUST BLOWING THIS STUFF UP IN THE AIR. YOU CAN SEE THE DUST PARTICLES, AND THE- AND THE NOISE IS JUST BEYOND REASONABLE.
YOU GOTTA DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS.
AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THESE THINGS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE PUT TO BED AS OF JANUARY 1ST OR DECEMBER 31ST WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT.
AND NOW, THEY'VE PROLONGED THIS FINAL DECISION ON THESE UNTIL, AS I UNDERSTAND IT, JUNE OR JULY.
- THANK YOU, SIR. PLEASE LEAVE YOUR FOLLOWING REMARKS.
- I'M SORRY? - THE TIME IS UP. TWO MINUTES.
- I HOPE YOU'LL DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS.
IT'S REALLY DRIVING OUR OLDER PEOPLE CRAZY.
- GOOD MORNING, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.
AS YOU MAY KNOW, MY NAME IS CASEY VAN DEN HEUVEL.
I'M THE REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE SHEET METAL WORKERS LOCAL 104.
AND I ALSO AM PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE MONTEREY SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION TRADES COUNCIL.
I'M EXTREMELY EXCITED TO FINALIZE THIS AGREEMENT, WHICH WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR OVER THE LAST YEAR.
THIS IS GOING TO GUARANTEE APPRENTICESHIP OPPORTUNITIES FROM JOINT LABOR MANAGEMENT TRUST.
THIS IS GOING TO GUARANTEE HEALTHCARE FOR THESE WORKERS.
THIS IS GOING TO GUARANTEE RETIREMENT BENEFITS.
AND WE ARE GOING TO INCREASE THE LOCAL HIRE HERE LOCALLY.
I'M VERY EXCITED, AND I WANT TO CONGRATULATE BOTH MONICA AND KIMBERLY. YOU TWO HAVE BEEN WORKING SO HARD TO GET INTO THESE SEATS AND I'M SO EXCITED TO SEE THE NEW FACES ON THIS BOARD AND WHERE THIS BOARD IS GOING TO GO IN THIS FUTURE.
THESE OPPORTUNITIES ARE GOING TO EXPAND MORE THAN JUST WHAT I'VE JUST PRESENTED TO YOU.
IN CURRENT CLIMATES RIGHT NOW WITH IMMIGRATION, DO YOU FEEL THAT SOMEONE WITHOUT IT WOULD FEEL SAFE TO COME FORWARD WITH A WAGE VIOLATION? NO. SO GIVING AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THESE WORKERS TO HAVE REPRESENTATION WHICH THEY'VE NEVER HAD BEFORE IS GOING TO IMPROVE THIS COMMUNITY TENFOLDS.
I THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BRING TO THIS COUNTY. THANK YOU.
SEEING THERE'S NONE HERE, IS THERE ANYBODY ONLINE? - YES, CHAIR, WE HAVE SPEAKERS ONLINE.
- HOLD ON. IF THERE'S PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO SPEAK, CAN YOU PLEASE LINE UP, UM, BEHIND THE PODIUM? - HI ALL, MY NAME IS DORA. I'M A SANTA CRUZ CITIZEN.
I JUST WANTED TO COMMENT ON THE HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT SWEEPS THAT OCCURRED RECENTLY IN SANTA CRUZ ON MONDAY, THE 27TH.
THE CITY, COUNTY AND CHP OFFICERS DISPLACED HOMELESS PEOPLE ON CORAL STREET, HIGHWAY ONE, THE LEVEE, AND THE PARK.
THEY DESTROYED THEIR SURVIVAL EQUIPMENT, INCLUDING ANY TENTS, TARPS, SLEEPING BAGS, WARM CLOTHES, FOOD, AND MEDICINE THEY COULD NOT MOVE IN TIME.
THESE SWEEPS HAPPENED IN THE MIDDLE OF A STRETCH OF NIGHTS THAT WERE SO COLD THAT THE EMERGENCY SHELTERS WERE OPEN AND FULL, AND JUST BEFORE A WEEK OF RAIN.
THEY ALSO HAPPENED TO JUST THREE DAYS BEFORE THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT, WHICH FOR ANYONE WHO DOESN'T KNOW IS A VISUAL CENSUS OF THE HOMELESS POPULATION IN SANTA CRUZ.
THESE SWEEPS WERE BRUTAL AND PUT SO MANY PEOPLE'S LIVES AT RISK, DESTROYING THEIR SURVIVAL EQUIPMENT DURING SOME OF THE COLDEST, HARSHEST, WETTEST NIGHTS OF OUR YEAR IN WHAT WAS CLEARLY AN ATTEMPT TO FORCE OUR HOMELESS POPULATION TO HIDE BEFORE THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT.
WE ALL KNOW THAT SWEEPING ENCAMPMENTS DOESN'T MAKE PEOPLE ANY LESS HOMELESS, IT JUST TRAUMATIZES THEM PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY AND SETS ANY PROGRESS THEY'VE HAD.
DISPLACING HOMELESS PEOPLE IS OBVIOUSLY INEFFECTIVE, A WASTE OF OUR TAXPAYER MONEY, AND SO CRUEL, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY HAVE NOWHERE ELSE TO GO.
I URGE YOU GUYS TO DO ANYTHING IN YOUR POWER TO TAKE RESOURCES MEANT FOR SWEEPS LIKE THIS AND PUT THEM TOWARDS LITERALLY ANY KIND OF SUPPORT FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE. THANK YOU.
[00:10:01]
OH, HI, MY NAME IS ATHENA.UM, I LEARNED ABOUT THE SWEEPS THAT HAPPENED ON MONDAY THE 27TH FROM AN ARTICLE THAT WAS POSTED IN THE LOOKOUT.
THEY SAID THAT THERE WERE SEVEN ARRESTS TAKEN THAT DAY.
THEY SAID THAT THERE WERE JUST THREE DAYS BEFORE THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT.
I AM A REALLY CONCERNED CITIZEN THAT IT SEEMS LIKE SANTA CRUZ CITY AS WELL AS SANTA CRUZ COUNTY MIGHT BE ON PURPOSEFULLY MESSING WITH THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT CENSUS.
THERE WAS BOTH SHERIFFS, CHP, AND POLICE THERE THAT DAY ON MONDAY, THE 27TH, ACTIVELY DISPLACING PEOPLE, PUTTING PEOPLE IN JAIL RIGHT BEFORE A TIME COUNT.
I AM REALLY, REALLY CONCERNED THAT THERE IS A PROCESS OF MAKING PEOPLE HIDE.
I THINK MAKING PEOPLE HIDE IS ONE OF THE MOST DEHUMANIZING THINGS THAT THIS COUNTY DOES TO OUR HOMELESS FOLK.
I HAVE FRIENDS THAT CAN'T CALL THE AMBULANCE BECAUSE THEY'RE AFRAID THAT THE AMBULANCE COMING TO WHERE THEY ARE RESIDING IS GOING TO OUT THEM AND THEY'RE GONNA BE BACK ONTO THE STREETS.
I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE TERRIFIED.
I HAVE FRIENDS WHO AREN'T SLEEPING.
SLEEP DEPRIVATION AND DISPLACEMENT ARE SOME OF THE MOST CRUEL TORTURES THAT YOU CAN PUT HUMANS THROUGH.
AND WE HAVE A PROCESS ACROSS THE ENTIRE COUNTY OF REGULARLY TORTURING OUR HOMELESS RESIDENTS.
THESE ARE COMMUNITY MEMBERS. THEY PICK UP TRASH.
THEY TALK TO KIDS. THEY TALK TO ADULTS.
THEY ARE PLAYING MUSIC IN THE COURTYARD.
THEY ARE SHARING THEIR INFORMATION.
THESE ARE ACTIVE MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY THAT OUR POLICE AND PARKS AND REC OFFICERS ARE ACTIVELY TORTURING.
THIS IS NOT OKAY, AND IT'S A WASTE OF MONEY.
SWEEPING PEOPLE DOES NOT MAKE PEOPLE GET INTO SERVICES.
THE SHELTERS ARE FULL. THE WINTER SHELTER IS FULL.
THERE'S NO REASON TO CONTINUE TORTURING PEOPLE AND SPENDING SO MUCH MONEY ON A HIGH POLICE FORCE THAT SHOWS UP IN MASS AND MAKES MASS ARRESTS.
SWEEPS ARE JUST PURELY TORTURE, AND INTERRUPTING THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT BY MAKING PEOPLE HIDE SHOULD BE ILLEGAL AND SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED.
- GOOD MORNING, BOARD. UM, I'M GREG BENGSON. UH, I'M HOMELESS.
I RESIDE IN DISTRICT 3 AS WELL AS DISTRICT 5.
I JUST MET MONICA THIS MORNING. THANK YOU.
I DO REALIZE THAT A CERTAIN LEVEL OF SOCIAL ENGINEERING DOES NEED TO PRESSURE MY HOMELESS COMMUNITY INTO SEEKING SERVICES TO THE GREATEST EXTENT THEY CAN.
BUT WHAT'S HAPPENING CURRENTLY IS ABSURD AND THE LEVEL OF JUST PSYCHOLOGICAL MAYHEM THAT IT'S CAUSING.
AND THE PHYSICAL, UH, AFTER-EFFECTS, IT'S- IT'S SAD.
AND I THINK WE, I THINK SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HAS A BETTER WAY.
WE CAN FIND A MODERATE MEDIUM PATH THAT- THAT DOES ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO SEEK SERVICES, BUT DOESN'T CRUSH THEM TO THE POINT WHERE THEY CAN'T EVEN MAKE A DECISION ABOUT THINGS.
I DO APPRECIATE THE WARMING SHELTER WHEN IT'S OPEN AND WHEN IT'S NOT FULL TO CAPACITY LIKE THE TWO NIGHTS AGO.
AND, UH, SO THEN YOU END UP IN A PARK TWO BLOCKS AWAY AND GET WOKEN UP AT 3 IN THE MORNING POLITELY BY SANTA CRUZ POLICE OFFICERS.
THEY'RE VERY, THEY'VE ALWAYS BEEN VERY POLITE TO ME WHEN THEY WAKE ME UP.
STILL, IT'S 3 IN THE MORNING AND IT'S FREEZING OUT.
AND I SAY, WHERE DO WE GO? THEY HAVE NO ANSWER.
SO WE JUST STAY THERE AND THEN WE GET ROUSTED AGAIN AT SEVEN IN THE MORNING, LESS POLITELY, BUT POLITELY.
BUT WHERE DO WE GO? I MEAN, THERE IS NO PLACE.
IF YOU PUT THAT IN YOUR THINKING CAPS AND I'LL CONTINUE BRINGING FRIENDS AND WE'LL BE AT CITY COUNCIL THIS AFTERNOON SPEAKING TOO. THANK YOU.
- GOOD MORNING, AND THANK YOU FOR THIS FORUM.
IN THE WAKE OF THE MOSS LANDING VISTRA BESS FACILITY FIRE, I'M HERE TO URGE YOU TO ENACT AN EMERGENCY MORATORIUM ON LITHIUM BATTERY USING BESS FACILITIES IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
WHILE COUNTY STAFF WORKS WITH NEW LEAF ENERGY AND INDEPENDENT INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO IDENTIFY WHERE WE WANT BESS FACILITIES DEVELOPED, AND SAFETY REGULATIONS THAT ACTUALLY PROTECT THE SAFETY AND HEALTH OF OUR COMMUNITY, OUR AGRICULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, WHICH IS VERY PRECIOUS, AND OUR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
I ALSO URGE YOU TO ESTABLISH AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE OF INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONAL INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO ADVISE THE COUNTY BOARD ON APPROPRIATE CITING AND REGULATIONS THAT COULD AND SHOULD BE MORE RESTRICTIVE THAN CURRENT REGULATIONS.
[00:15:01]
THE MOVEMENT THAT QUESTIONS THE WISDOM OF INVESTING LONG-TERM IN LITHIUM BATTERY USING BESS FACILITIES IS GROWING.ORANGE COUNTY JUST PASSED AN EMERGENCY MORATORIUM ON BESS FACILITY DEVELOPMENT, AND UNINCORPORATED COUNTY LAND PENDING A THOROUGH INVESTIGATION OF APPROPRIATE CITING AND REGULATIONS.
IN JANUARY OF 2023, NEW LEAF ENERGY PULLED ITS PLANS TO BUILD THE BESS FACILITY NEXT TO A CHURCH AND IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT TO SIX SCHOOLS IN A DENSE RESIDENTIAL AREA OF STATEN ISLAND.
IN NOVEMBER OF 2024, ANOTHER BESS DEVELOPER WITHDREW ITS PLANS FOR A GRID-SCALE FACILITY IN THE TOWN OF CATSKILL IN NEW YORK STATE.
NEW LEAF ENERGY'S PROPOSED SEAHAWK FACILITY IS WITHIN SEVERAL HUNDRED FEET OF DENSE, RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS SURROUNDED BY MULTIPLE NEARBY SCHOOLS, PINTO PARK, PRECIOUS AGRICULTURAL LAND, A PROTECTED RIPARIAN ZONE, TWO LAKES, ONE OF WHICH IS PART OF A CLEAN WATER RECLAMATION PROJECT THAT IRRIGATES PAJARO VALLEY FARMLAND, A PROPOSED NEW RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT, AND A PROPOSED NEW REGIONAL PARK.
AN ACTIVE FAULT LINE RUNS THROUGH THE PROPERTY THE FACILITY IS SITED ON.
IT IS SURROUNDED BY ACRES OF FUEL IN THE EVENT OF A WILDFIRE.
I AGREE THAT ENERGY STORAGE IS A CRITICALLY NEEDED RESOURCE TO ACHIEVE A DECARBONATED ELECTRIC GRID.
AND I AGREE WITH THE CONCEPT BEHIND IT, BUT IT MUST NOT BE DONE AT THE COST OF OUR SAFETY AND OUR PRECIOUS ENVIRONMENT AND AGRICULTURAL LAND.
I URGE YOU AGAIN TO PLEASE PUT AN EMERGENCY MORATORIUM IN PLACE TO GIVE US ALL TIME TO THINK THROUGH THIS PROCESS.
- GOOD MORNING, MERYL CRAIG HERE.
UM, I JUST WANTED TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR SPEAKING.
I- I CONCUR WITH THE, UM, GARBAGE THING. RECYCLE IS A BIG THING.
IF YOU LOOK, YOU CAN'T EVEN MAKE IT TO THE DOOR WITHOUT JUST SEEING A NON-RECYCLABLE SITUATION SO, I THINK IT MATTERS.
I AGREE WITH THE POWER TOOLS AND THE BLOWERS AND STUFF.
THAT'S WHY I LIKE TO SWEEP, AND IT DOES TAKE A LITTLE EXTRA TIME, BUT IT IS WORTH IT.
AND, UH, I JUST WANT TO- I AGREE WITH THE HOMELESS THING. I'VE BEEN THERE.
I'M HOMELESS, SO I UNDERSTAND HOW IT FEELS TO LOSE EVERYTHING IN UM, ONE QUICK DECISION BY AN OFFICER THAT MAYBE DIDN'T THINK IT THROUGH.
SO, UM, ALSO, I JUST WAS GOING TO REVIEW SOME OF THE THINGS HERE TODAY THAT YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO BE SPEAKING ON, UM, AND THANK YOU FOR AGAIN FOR YOUR COMMUNITY SERVICE, UM, BUT IT SAYS CONSENT AGENDA NUMBER 12, STAFF REQUEST ITEM TO BE DELETED. I WAS JUST HOPING YOU MAKE SURE THAT YOU, UM, IF THAT IS THE CASE, IF YOU CAN PLEASE JUST MAKE A COMMENT ON IT AND GIVE REASON OR WHATEVER IT IS. THANK YOU.
- GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS GREGORY AUDINO.
I LIVE IN DISTRICT 2. I'VE BEEN IN THIS COUNTY FOR 38 YEARS, UM, AND IN THIS DISTRICT FOR TWENTY- OVER TWENTY.
UM, I NEED TO VOICE MY CONCERN ABOUT THE BESS FACILITY GOING IN AT 90 MINTO ROAD, UH, THE PLANNING OF IT.
UM, NEW LEAF ENERGY IS TELLING YOU THAT THE BATTERY SYSTEM THEY INTEND TO USE IS SAFE.
THAT IT IS LITHIUM IRON PHOSPHATE, NOT LITHIUM ION.
THIS TYPE OF BATTERY CAN ALSO EXPERIENCE A THERMAL RUNAWAY INCIDENT.
IT WILL BURN AT A HIGHER TEMPERATURE, WHICH MEANS WHAT? THEY WILL TELL YOU MANY GOOD THINGS ABOUT THE NEXT GEN TECHNOLOGY.
THEY THEMSELVES HAVE SAID THAT THEIR BESS SHOULD BE IN AN INDUSTRIAL COMMERCIAL ZONED LOCATION.
MINTO ROAD IS NEITHER OF THESE.
ORANGE COUNTY JUST PASSED A MORATORIUM ON ANY BESS IN THEIR COUNTY.
THERE IS OTHER BATTERY TECH THAT IS- THAT DOES NOT BURN.
IT WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THREE TO FOUR YEARS.
WE'RE THAT CLOSE TO HAVING BETTER TECHNOLOGY.
THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THIS ELECTRONICS.
NEW LEAF WILL SELL YOU ON HOW SAFE IT IS AND WORK WITH YOU UNTIL THEY CAN'T.
THEN THEY WILL GO AROUND YOU DIRECTLY TO THE STATE WHERE THEY HAVE PERMISSION FOR THESE BESS FACILITIES.
THEN WHAT? ASSEMBLY BILL 303 GIVES CONTROL OF THE POWER BACK TO YOU TO DECIDE ON THESE FACILITIES.
WE ALL NEED TO CALL OUR STATE ASSEMBLY MEMBER IN SUPPORT- IN SUPPORT OF AB 303.
WE NEED TO HAVE CONTROL OF THIS HERE IN OUR COUNTY, NOT AT THE STATE LEVEL IN SACRAMENTO.
I AM NOT AN ELECTRONICS OR ELECTRICAL ENGINEER.
I HAVE SPOKEN TO A COUPLE OF THEM.
THEY ARE ALL SAYING THAT THESE LITHIUM ION BATTERIES ARE NASTY WHEN THEY BURN.
THEY ARE- PLEASE EDUCATE YOURSELVES. THANK YOU.
[00:20:02]
- GOOD MORNING, BOARD. HELLO, MY NAME IS CRYSTAL GONZALEZ, AND I'M THE SEMILLITAS DIRECTOR AT VENTURES.I WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE MYSELF TO THE NEW BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, AND TO THANK ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR ONGOING SUPPORT AND APPROVAL OF THE SEMILLITAS GRANT THROUGH CORE.
AS SOME OF YOU MAY KNOW, SEMILLITAS OPENS A COLLEGE SAVINGS ACCOUNT FOR EVERY NEWBORN IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
THIS EFFORT HAS CHANGED THE WAY WE WELCOME EACH BABY INTO OUR COUNTY, PLANTING THE SEEDS OF OPPORTUNITY FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
TO DATE, WE HAVE OPENED OVER 11,000 ACCOUNTS FOR BABIES ACROSS THE COUNTY WITH APPROXIMATELY 50% FROM SOUTH COUNTY AND 30% FROM SANTA CRUZ AND THE REMAINDER FROM THE REST OF THE JURISDICTIONS.
THROUGH OUR ANNUAL SURVEYS, WE HAVE SEEN A MEANINGFUL IMPACT ON FAMILIES' ASPIRATIONS AND EXPECTATIONS FOR THEIR CHILDREN'S FUTURES.
NOTABLY, ABOUT 36% OF SEMILLITAS FAMILIES NOW EXPECT THEIR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE LEC MASTER'S DEGREE, AN INCREASE COMPARED TO PREVIOUS YEARS.
SEMILLITAS IS A TRUE COLLABORATIVE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH STRONG PARTNERSHIPS WITH ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THE COUNTY, HEALTH SERVICE AGENCIES, HUMAN SERVICE DEPARTMENT, SANTA CRUZ COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION, FIRST FIVE, UNITED WAY, DIENTES, SALUD PARA LA GENTE, CENTRAL CALIFORNIA ALLIANCE FOR HEALTH AND MANY MORE.
SEMILLITAS IS A PLACE OF COMMUNITY, UNITY, RELATIONSHIPS, AND HOPE FOR WHAT WE CAN BUILD AND SUSTAIN TOGETHER.
A PROMISE FOR A MORE UNITED AND PROSPEROUS FUTURE FOR ALL.
THE SUCCESS OF SEMILLITAS DEPENDS ON A STRONG PARTNERSHIP AND OUR SHARED RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT THE FAMILIES WE SERVE.
FURTHERMORE, THERE IS A DEEP COMMITMENT OF OUR PARTNERS IN VENTURES TO MAINTAINING TRUST WITH OUR COMMUNITY, PARTICULARLY WHEN IT COMES TO SAFEGUARDING FAMILY DATA.
I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING MORE CLOSELY WITH ALL OF YOU AND WE'LL BE REACHING OUT SOON TO SHARE MORE ABOUT THE IMPACT OF OUR WORK. UM, AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND SUPPORT.
- GOOD MORNING, BOARD. MY NAME IS BECKY STEINBRUNER, I LIVE IN THE APTOS HILLS.
I WAS, UM, DISAPPOINTED, A BIT SURPRISED TO SEE THERE'S NOTHING ON THE AGENDA TODAY TO FORMALLY DISCUSS ANY OF THE PROPOSALS THAT SUPERVISOR KOENIG PUT FORTH TO YOU AT YOUR LAST MEETING REGARDING THE COUNTY-PROPOSED BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM, BESS, ORDINANCE THAT IS IN THE WORKS.
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THAT THIS ISSUE BE ON EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOUR AGENDAS SO THAT YOU CAN OPENLY DISCUSS IT AND THE PUBLIC CAN COME TO YOU.
I SPENT LAST WEEK RESEARCHING THIS PROPASAL THAT IS NOW IN PERMIT PROCESS FOR THE 19 MINTO ROAD BESS UNDER NEW LEAF SUBMITTED BY SWIFT CONSULTING.
I WAS AMAZED TO SEE THEY HAD THE WRONG FIRE DEPARTMENT LISTED ON THEIR APPLICATION.
MAYBE THAT'S WHY PAJARO VALLEY FIRE DISTRICT DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE HEARING, THE PUBLIC MEETING THAT NEW LEAF HELD BEFORE FILING THE APPLICATION LAST DECEMBER.
MAYBE THAT'S WHY THEY DIDN'T KNOW BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T LISTED AS THE PROPER FIRE DEPARTMENT.
THAT POSTCARD WENT OUT TO PROBABLY VERY FEW PEOPLE.
THAT POSTCARD DIDN'T HAVE A TIME ON IT WHEN THAT PUBLIC MEETING HAPPENED.
IT WAS IMPROPER NOTICING AND IT MUST BE STOPPED.
IT MUST BE DONE AGAIN AND PROPERLY NOTICED.
I WAS SURPRISED TO SEE THAT THERE'S SO LITTLE SPACING BETWEEN THE BATTERY STORAGE UNITS PROPOSED BY THIS DEVELOPER.
I WAS SURPRISED TO SEE THAT SHAPIRO KNOWLES, THE VERY DENSE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, WAS NOT LISTED AS A SENSITIVE RECEPTOR THAT IS VERY NEARBY.
THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE VERY NEARBY THAT WERE NOT LISTED AS SENSITIVE RECEPTORS.
PLEASE PUT THIS ON YOUR NEXT BOARD MEETING. THANK YOU.
SEEING THERE'S NONE HERE- NO OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT HERE ON THE CHAMBERS, ANYBODY ONLINE? - YES, CHAIR, WE HAVE SPEAKERS ONLINE.
JEAN AND MICHAEL, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- GOOD MORNING.THIS IS JEAN BRONKELBANK.
UM... I- THIS IS THE FIRST BOARD MEETING THAT I WAS NOT ABLE TO ACCESS ON MY OWN COMPUTER, THE INTERACTIVE ONLINE AGENDA, SO THAT I COULD STUDY EVERY SINGLE TOPIC, WHICH I HAVE DONE EVERY BOARD MEETING FOR YEARS.
I COULD NOT DO THIS BECAUSE YOU NOW HAVE A NEW INTERACTIVE ONLINE SYSTEM THAT MY MACINTOSH LAPTOP COMPUTER, WHICH ITS OPERATING SYSTEM CANNOT BE UPDATED,
[00:25:06]
I CAN NO LONGER ACCESS THE BOARD MEETINGS.I AM ABLE TO ACCESS ANY BOARD MEETING AGENDA ITEMS AND STAFF REPORTS UP UNTIL 2024.
I'M WONDERING HOW MANY OTHER PEOPLE IN THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ WHO HAVE OLDER COMPUTERS THAT ARE FUNCTIONING PERFECTLY WELL FOR EVERYTHING ELSE, BUT CAN NO LONGER ACCESS BOARD MEETING MATERIALS.
I USED TO SUBMIT COMMENTS TO YOU.
THIS NEW SYSTEM IS VERY USER UNFRIENDLY.
IT HAS- AND- AND YOU KNOW ME WELL ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT I AM CAPABLE ON A COMPUTER TO INTERACT WITH YOU AS A BOARD, BUT I CAN NO LONGER DO THAT.
I UNDERSTAND THAT THE SYSTEM WAS CHANGED RECENTLY.
I'M ASKING THE BOARD TO DO WHATEVER THEY CAN TO HAVE THAT PARTICULAR SYSTEM RETROFITTED SOMEHOW OR OTHER TO ALLOW EVERYONE TO BE ABLE TO USE IT.
OTHERWISE, YOU'VE MADE IT MORE DIFFICULT FOR THE PUBLIC TO INTERACT WITH YOU ONLINE.
- CALLING USER 1, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- OH. GOOD MORNING, BOARD. UM, AS YOU'RE- UH, MY NAME IS DIANE NICKEL.
AS YOU ARE AWARE, SCIENTISTS HAVE FOUND LEVELS OF TOXIC HEAVY METALS AT ELKHORN SLOUGH ARE 100 TO 1000 TIMES HIGHER THAN PRIOR TO THE MOSS LANDING FIRE.
MONTEREY COUNTY IS TESTING ITS SOILS WITH THE HELP OF THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND CALEPA.
I'M REQUESTING THE BOARD FOR OUR COUNTY, SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, SIMILARLY TO DO A DIRECTIVE OR RESOLUTION TO HAVE OUR COUNTY REACH OUT FURTHER AND PERSISTENTLY TO THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND CALEPA TO HELP OUR COUNTY WITH TESTING OUR SOILS IN THIS COUNTY THAT BEGINS ABOUT A MILE OR TWO FROM MOSS LANDING.
THERE IS NO GOOD REASON FOR SANTA CRUZ TO NOT DO WHAT MONTEREY COUNTY IS DOING IN AVAILING ITSELF OF TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE SERVICES THAT THIS STATE OFFERS WITHOUT CHARGE.
AS REPORTED IN THE LAST MEETING BY MONTEREY OFFICIALS, THE TOXIC PLUME BLEW NORTH AND NORTHEAST DURING PART OF THE, UH, FIRE.
THESE CHEMICALS ARE EXTREMELY TOXIC.
UM, AND EVEN AFTER THE FIRE STOPS, READING AN EPA FACT SHEET, LITHIUM ION BATTERIES CAN SPONTANEOUSLY IGNITE, EXPLODE AND EMIT TOXIC GASES AND PARTICULATES EVEN AFTER THE FIRE IS OUT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, I HOPE THAT YOU WILL, EVEN IF YOU, UH, JUST REACH OUT TO OUR COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO BE PERSISTENT WITH THE CALEPA DEPARTMENT OF TOXIC SUBSTANCES SO WE CAN USE THESE SERVICES.
- TIM, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
SO ANYWAYS, I GOT A LITANY OF THINGS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT.
SO, FIRST OF ALL, UH, THE EMERGENCY BATTERY MORATORIUM, TOTALLY AGREE WITH THE OTHER FOLKS THAT JUST TALKED ABOUT THAT.
SO THESE ENERGY COMPANIES AND EVERYBODY AND POLITICIANS, EVERYONE'S CONFUSED ABOUT THIS. NO ONE HAS THEIR ACT TOGETHER.
A GOOD EXAMPLE IS ALPINE MEADOWS A COUPLE OF DAYS BACK.
SO MY POWDER DAY WAS RUINED AGAIN BECAUSE OF THE ENERGY COMPANY, THE POLES CAME DOWN AND EVERYTHING.
NOW JUST THINK ABOUT THIS HERE.
I'VE BEEN SKIING FOR FIVE DECADES AND I GO AROUND TAHOE HERE AND I GO AROUND TOWN AND ALL OF OUR FORESTS AND I SEE ALL THESE OLD ROTTEN POWER POLES THAT ARE OLDER THAN ME.
SO THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THAT'S YOUR ENERGY COMPANIES.
THEY'RE A BUNCH OF CROOKS, OKAY, ALL OVER THE WHOLE STATE, AND THINK ABOUT TRUMP HERE RELEASING THE WATER AND EVERYTHING, AND THEN THE FARMERS AND ALL THAT SORT OF STUFF UP IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA.
WELL, WHEN IT GETS DRY, GUESS WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN UP IN TAHOE AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA? A BUNCH OF FIRES, ALL RIGHT? SO YES, THE EMERGENCY BATTERY MORATORIUM IS IMPERATIVE, OKAY? ALSO, A PRESIDENCY BUILT ON ATTACKING THE VULNERABLE,
[00:30:01]
THAT IS REMARKABLY WEAK.TODAY'S REPUBLICAN IS SO EAGER TO BE SWEET TALKED BY EVIL.
HITLER ATTACKED THE VULNERABLE.
EISENHOWER TURNS IN HIS GRAVE AS TODAY'S REPUBLICANS EMBRACE A LEGACY OF STALIN AND HITLER.
TWO PEAS OF THE SAME ROTTEN POD, ALL RIGHT? AMERICANS DESPISE DICTATORSHIP.
WE ARE AGAINST KING GEORGES OF THE WORLD.
AMERICAN LEADERS DO NOT DEMAND APOLOGIES AND LOVE CRITICISM.
TO BE AN EFFECTIVE LEADER, YOU ENCOURAGE CRITICISM, ALL RIGHT? SO THAT'S HOW I FEEL ABOUT TRUMP.
I'M REALLY CONCERNED HERE AND NO, I DON'T LIKE FOLKS MESSING WITH MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS, ALL RIGHT, AND DRAWING THE DOTS TO ALL THE COMBAT VETERANS GOING OUT TO WORLD WAR I.
ANYWAYS, YOU FOLKS HAVE A GREAT DAY.
- CALLING USER 2, YOUR MICROPHONE'S NOW AVAILABLE.
YES, WE NEED TO ENACT AN EMERGENCY MORATORIUM ON THESE LITHIUM BATTERY STORAGE FACILITIES. THIS IS A DEATH TECHNOLOGY FROM BEGINNING TO THE END FROM CHILDREN IN CONGO AND ELSEWHERE MINING FOR LITHIUM IN TOXIC CONDITIONS.
AND A WEBSITE WHERE YOU CAN SEE AND LEARN THE EXTENSIVE CONSEQUENCES OF THESE BATTERIES IS CALLED THE FOGHORNEXPRESS.COM AND THERE WAS A WHOLE ISSUE SOMEWHERE AROUND JANUARY 20TH OR THAT WEEK, A WHOLE EPISODE ON THESE LITHIUM BATTERIES.
IF SOMETHING IS HAZARDOUS IN ALL ITS ASPECTS AND THESE CHEMICALS THAT HAVE POISONED THE SALAD BOWL OF THE U.S. ARE NANOPARTICLES, YOU CAN'T REMOVE THEM.
YOU HAVE TO PREVENT IT IN THE FIRST PLACE. THAT'S THE ONLY WAY.
REGULATING IT SO THAT THEY CAN CONTINUE WITH THEIR POISONING AND UTTER DESTRUCTION IS NOT GOING TO PROTECT THE PUBLIC.
I WANT TO INVITE PEOPLE TO A MEETING TONIGHT AT LONDON NELSON CENTER, NEVER AGAIN, LOST LANDING, GET AN UPDATE FROM ONE OF THE ORGANIZERS, BRIAN ROEDER OF NEVERAGAINMOSSLANDING.ORG.
THAT'S SIX O'CLOCK LONDON NELSON CENTER TONIGHT.
AND THIS SHOULD BE TAKEN OUT OF THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT RIGHT NOW ABOUT THE MINTO ROAD PROPOSAL.
- WE HAVE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS ONLINE, CHAIR.
WITH THAT, WE'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
I'LL BEGIN TO MY LEFT WITH SUPERVISOR KOENIG.
ON ITEM 34, APPROVING THE REVISED PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENT.
I JUST WANT TO THANK STAFF FOR ALL THEIR HARD WORK ON THIS.
IT WAS A GOOD LONG YEAR'S WORTH OF WORK, UH, PARTICULARLY OUR DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES, MICHAEL BEATON, AND ASSISTANT CAO, ELISA BENSON, WHO I KNOW WORKED HARD ON THIS.
I JUST WANT TO THANK THE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE BUILDING TRADES, UH, AND MR. VAN DEN HEUVEL.
AND OF COURSE, YOUR WORK HAS JUST BEGUN.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO THE HIRING OF ALL THOSE APPRENTICES, UM, AS WELL AS BUILDING OUT THE LOCAL WORKFORCE. THANK YOU.
[ACTION ON THE CONSENT AGENDA (ITEMS 12-49)]
ON ITEM 38, THE REPORTS ON THE HEALING THE STREETS PROGRAM AND ON THE CRISIS GRANT PILOT PROGRAM.I WANT TO THANK HSA LEADERSHIP FOR ALL THEIR WORK STANDING UP THE 24/7 CRISIS RESPONSE.
REALLY GREAT TO FINALLY HAVE THAT SERVICE AVAILABLE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
ALSO, REALLY GREAT TO SEE THE SUCCESS OF THE HEALING THE STREETS PROGRAM, INCLUDING THE 46% DECREASE IN PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS.
JUST HOPING THAT THE STATE PROVIDES A CONSISTENT SOURCE OF FUNDING TO FULFILL THIS MANDATE AND THAT WE CAN SEE CONTINUATION OF OUR ABILITY TO REIMBURSE THROUGH MEDI-CAL GOING FORWARD.
BUT THANK YOU FOR CREATING A LOCAL FRAMEWORK TO PROVIDE THESE SERVICES.
AND THEN FINALLY, ON ITEM 42, APPROVING THE AGREEMENT FOR A A POLO GROUNDS SCOREBOARD.
I WANT TO THANK THE PARKS DEPARTMENT FOR THINKING CREATIVELY TO COME UP WITH THIS SOLUTION AND THE AGREEMENT
[00:35:01]
WITH MID-COUNTY PONY BASEBALL LEAGUE AND APTOS SPORTS FOUNDATION SO THIS GREAT ELECTRONIC SPORT BOARD CAN BE INSTALLED FOR OUR COMMUNITY. THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU.- THANK YOU. UM, GOOD MORNING.
I JUST WANT TO START AS A GENERAL COMMENT FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO TOOK THE TIME TO SPEAK TO US DURING PUBLIC COMMENT.
I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR SHARING AND LET YOU KNOW THAT WE ARE LISTENING.
UM, IT'S NOT A TIME FOR US TO ENGAGE BACK AND FORTH, BUT WE ARE HERE AND WE ARE LISTENING.
SO JUST THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
UM, AS FAR AS THE CONSENT AGENDA GOES, I WANT TO NUMBER TO BEGIN WITH NUMBER 27, LARRY PAGLER AS MY RTC ALTERNATIVE OR ALTERNATE.
YOU MAY REMEMBER THAT HE WAS A CANDIDATE FOR THE METRO BOARD DURING MY FIRST MEETING AS A SUPERVISOR.
AND ALTHOUGH WE WENT WITH A DIFFERENT NOMINEE, WE ALL RECOGNIZED HIS CONTRIBUTIONS AND HIS EXPERTISE.
SO I'M REALLY PROUD TO HAVE HIM COME ON AS MY RTC ALTERNATE SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE COMMUNITY AS IT RELATES TO TRANSPORTATION.
ON ITEM NUMBER 34, OUR PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS.
I ALSO WANT TO THANK OUR LABOR PARTNERS AND THOSE IN THE CAO'S OFFICE AND CDI FOR BRINGING THIS FORWARD.
YOU KNOW, PLAS ARE REALLY INTENDED TO SUPPORT A LOCAL WORKFORCE.
IT KEEPS OUR LOCAL DOLLARS HERE IN THIS LOCAL ECONOMY AND SUPPORTS THE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING OF OUR WORKFORCE.
AND SO, I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR THEIR EFFORT TO BRING THIS FORWARD AND I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING ABOUT THE PROGRESS OF HOW THESE PILOT PROJECTS GO.
ITEM NUMBER 36, OUR WATER RESOURCES REPORT.
I WANT TO THANK THE WATER RESOURCES DIVISION WITHIN THE HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY FOR THIS REALLY INFORMATIVE REPORT.
IT'S HELPFUL TO HAVE SUCH A DETAILED OVERVIEW OF ALL OF OUR VERY VALUABLE AND VULNERABLE WATER SOURCES LOCALLY.
AND AS WE CONTINUE TO THINK ABOUT OUR EFFORTS TO PROTECT OUR FRAGILE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT FROM CLIMATE CHANGE AND PREPARE FOR THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE IMPACT IT WILL HAVE ON THE HEALTH OF OUR ENVIRONMENT AND THE HEALTH OF OUR PUBLIC, THIS INFORMATION IS GOING TO BE REALLY HELPFUL.
SO THANK YOU FOR PREPARING THAT FOR US.
AND FINALLY, ON THE REPORT OF THE VARIOUS BEHAVIORAL HEALTH GRANTS, YOU KNOW, I KNOW FROM MY PERSONAL PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, HOW VALUABLE THESE DOLLARS ARE.
SO THEY'RE ABOVE AND BEYOND THE REGULAR COURSE OF FUNDING THAT COMES INTO OUR COMMUNITY FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH DOLLARS.
IT TAKES A LOT OF WORK TO SEEK THESE GRANTS AND TO MEET THE OUTCOMES, BUT AS IT RELATES TO, YOU KNOW, THE CRISIS PROGRAM OR SUICIDE PREVENTION TASK FORCE, HEALING THE STREETS, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS REALLY VALUABLE WORK BECAUSE OF THE HARD WORK OF OUR TEAM.
SO THANK YOU TO THE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH DIVISION AND HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY FOR ALL OF THIS REALLY GOOD WORK.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS.
UM, ITEM NUMBER 34, THIS HAS BEEN A LONG TIME COMING.
THIS IS THE PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE BUILDING TRADES AND THE COUNTY.
AND I JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYONE FOR ALL THEIR HARD WORK AND PATIENCE AS WE TRIED TO GET TO SOMETHING THAT IS MUTUALLY AGREEABLE, AND ALSO GIVES AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW HOW THESE PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS CAN WORK.
AND SO, I'M- I'M HOPEFUL THAT THIS IS GOING TO BE A REALLY FANTASTIC PROGRAM FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO HELP AS WE SEE AN AGING WORKFORCE THAT'S GOING TO BE RETIRING OUT AND GETTING MORE PEOPLE INTO THE TRADES, WHICH IS A VERY VIABLE CAREER PATH.
AND SO, I JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON THIS, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW THIS DEVELOPS OVER TIME.
AND I HOPE THAT SOME OF THE NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS WILL CONSIDER CONDUCTING SOMETHING THAT'S SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'RE DOING AS WELL.
ITEM NUMBER 38, I JUST WANT TO CONGRATULATE STAFF FOR STANDING UP THE HEALING THE STREETS PROGRAM AND FOR THE 24/7 CRISIS RESPONSE.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT BACK IN 2020, EVERYBODY WAS REALLY SAYING WE NEED MORE SOCIAL WORKERS ENGAGING WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE HAVING MENTAL HEALTH CRISES AND NOT LAW ENFORCEMENT.
IT JUST GOES TO SHOW, YOU KNOW, 3,492 DIRECT SERVICES PROVIDED TO 346 UNDUPLICATED PARTICIPANTS.
IT JUST REALLY GOES TO SHOW THAT THIS IS- THIS IS DOING A LOT FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO ARE STRUGGLING IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO SUPPORT THESE PROGRAMS AND SEEING HOW THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, PROVIDE HELP FOR PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THEN ITEM NUMBER 49, THIS IS DAVENPORT WATER TANK, AND I JUST WANT TO THANK CDI STAFF FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON THIS.
THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF A PROJECT THAT CAME IN BELOW THE ESTIMATED COST. AND SO I JUST WANT TO CONTINUE TO SEE US BRING THESE TYPES OF PROJECTS FORWARD. AND ALSO JUST, YOU KNOW, THIS IS CRITICAL WATER STORAGE FOR THE RESIDENTS OF DAVENPORT, 700,000 GALLONS, I BELIEVE, THAT WE USE AS BACKUP STORAGE FOR THE TOWN'S WATER SUPPLY. SO REALLY GRATEFUL THAT WE HAVE THIS GOING IN FOR THE RESIDENTS OF DAVENPORT.
OH, AND I WILL JUST SAY TO THE FOLKS WHO CAME AND SPOKE TO US
[00:40:02]
TODAY ABOUT THE HOMELESSNESS AND THE HOMELESS SWEEPS.UM, MY UNDERSTANDING, PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT THE COUNTY DOESN'T ENGAGE IN THOSE IN TERMS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT.
BUT WE DO UNDERSTAND THE WAY THE CITY HAS BEEN APPROACHING THIS.
I SIT ON A COMMITTEE WITH THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ, WHERE WE DISCUSS HOMELESSNESS ISSUES, AND I WILL BE BRINGING THAT FORWARD TO OUR DISCUSSION THAT WE WILL BE HAVING THIS WEDNESDAY.
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BRINGING THAT TO OUR ATTENTION, AND I'LL BRING YOUR CONCERNS TO THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ AS WELL.
- THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. UH, SUPERVISOR DE SERPA.
WE'VE BEEN VERY BUSY, MONICA AND I, ORIENTING WITH THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE COUNTY, AND I THANK ALL OF THE STAFF FOR THE WONDERFUL ORIENTATIONS THAT WE'VE HAD TO DATE.
I'M VERY IMPRESSED WITH THE LEVEL AND COMMITMENT OF THE STAFF HERE AT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
REGARDING THE CONSENT AGENDA, I'D LIKE TO CALL OUT NUMBER 25, THE APPOINTMENT OF JERRY SOUZA TO THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL COMMISSION. JERRY WAS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE DIGNITY MEDICAL FOUNDATION. HE RAN THE CATH LAB AT DIGNITY HEALTH.
HE'S AN RN, HE'S A PARAMEDIC, HE'S BEEN A PARAMEDIC LEADER, AND HE'S CURRENTLY STANDING UP THE CATH LAB, THE HEART CATHETERIZATION LAB AT WATSONVILLE HOSPITAL SO THAT THEY CAN START DOING PROCEDURES THERE.
I THINK HE'LL BE A WONDERFUL ADDITION, AND I THANK HIM FOR HIS INTEREST. NUMBER 26, JONATHAN SHAREBORN ZANATI, AN APPOINTMENT TO THE DISABILITY COMMISSION. JONATHAN IS A DEAR FRIEND OF MINE AND SOMEBODY I WORKED WITH IN A PROFESSIONAL WAY FOR MANY YEARS.
HE'S A QUADRIPLEGIC, USES A POWER CHAIR AND IS A PART- A WONDERFUL PERSON, JUST GRADUATED FROM UCSC AND WILL BE A WONDERFUL ADDITION TO THE DISABILITY COMMISSION.
SO THANK YOU, JONATHAN, FOR YOUR INTEREST.
NUMBER 34, I'M GOING TO ECHO WHAT MANY OF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE SAID.
THANK YOU TO THE BUILDING TRADES FOR THE PLA WORK THAT HAS HAPPENED THIS YEAR. MONICA AND I ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL MET WITH THE BUILDING TRADES MULTIPLE TIMES, SAT DOWN WITH THEM, MADE PRESENTATIONS TO THEM, AND I'M REALLY EXCITED TO SEE THE WORK THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO TOGETHER THROUGH THIS AGREEMENT.
ALSO WANT TO LET EVERYBODY HERE KNOW THAT I'VE WORKED FOR MANY YEARS TRYING TO BUILD A WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT WITHIN PAJARO VALLEY UNIFIED, SO WE HAVE A LOT OF KIDS READY TO START WORKING, UM, AS APPRENTICES.
SO WE'RE HOPING THAT YOU GUYS CAN PICK UP MANY OF THE STUDENTS THAT WE'VE TRAINED OVER THE YEARS.
NUMBER 42, ECHOING WHAT MANU HAD SAID ABOUT THE SCOREBOARD, THANK YOU FOR POINTING THAT OUT.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I'VE WORKED WITH JOHN MARANOVICH ON, THAT SCOREBOARD UP AT APTOS HIGH WAS DONATED TO THEM.
THEY'RE GETTING A NEW ONE AND THIS BEAUTIFUL, PERFECTLY WORKING SCOREBOARD WILL NOW BE AN ADDITION AT THE POLO FIELD SO THAT THE PONY LEAGUE CAN HAVE A BEAUTIFUL SCOREBOARD THERE, ALL FREE OF CHARGE. SO THANK YOU VERY, VERY MUCH TO OUR PARKS FOR MAKING THAT HAPPEN AND THANKS TO THE APTOS SPORTS FOUNDATION AND ALL OF THE ACTUAL, THE CONTRACTORS WHO ARE DONATING THEIR TIME, ELECTRICIANS, CARPENTERS, ET CETERA, TO MAKE THIS A REALITY AND I'M GLAD WE CAN GET THIS DONE BEFORE THE SEASON STARTS.
SO I THINK THAT'LL CONCLUDE MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU.
SO I'D LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, ONCE AGAIN, REITERATE THAT WE HAVE THIS BIG SANTA CRUZ COUNTY CLEAN UP DAY AND I WANT TO URGE ALL MY COLLEAGUES TO BE PART OF IT.
ORGANIZE ONE HAPPENING ON MAY 10TH.
WITH ITEM 34, THE PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENT, I'D LIKE TO THANK, OF COURSE, OUR COUNTY CAO STAFF THAT WORKED HARD AND DILIGENTLY ON THIS AND, OF COURSE, THE LABOR, OF COURSE, IS ONE OF THE THINGS I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE TO GET IN THIS FIELD THAT NORMALLY WOULDN'T GO TO UNIVERSITIES OR COLLEGES, BUT TO GET INTO THIS FIELD THAT PAYS JUST AS MUCH, IF NOT MORE, THAN IF THEY DID GO TO COLLEGE.
SO THANK YOU FOR THAT OPPORTUNITY.
AND ITEM 24, I WANT TO THANK CHARLIE DAVID WALKER FOR HIS APPOINTMENT FOR IN-HOME SUPPORT SERVICES AND THAT CONCLUDES MY COMMENTS.
WITH THAT, I'D LIKE TO BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
- WE GOT A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG. CAN WE TAKE ROLL CALL? - CERTAINLY.
[7. AS THE BOARD OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY REDEVELOPMENT SUCCESSOR AGENCY: Adopt resolution for issuance of Tax Allocation Refunding Bonds, 2025 Series A in an amount not to exceed $95,000,000]
[00:45:05]
NOW WE MOVE ON TO THE REGULAR AGENDA.ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM TO CONSIDER ADOPTING A RESOLUTION FOR THE ISSUANCE OF TAX ALLOCATING REFUNDING BONDS, 2025 SERIES A IN AN AMOUNT OF NOT TO EXCEED $95 MILLION.
I'LL TURN IT OVER TO KIM NAMBA, SENIOR DEPARTMENT ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST AND SUSAN HARRELL, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF HARRELL AND COMPANY ADVISORS FOR THE PRESENTATION.
[SILENCE] - GO AHEAD AND START. I'M SORRY.
- GOOD MORNING, CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. I'M SUSAN HARRELL, THE COUNTY'S FINANCIAL ADVISOR.
I'M HERE TO PRESENT SOME INFORMATION ON A REFINANCING OPPORTUNITY FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT SUCCESSOR AGENCY TAX ALLOCATION BONDS.
CURRENTLY, THE REDEVELOPMENT SUCCESSOR AGENCY HAS FIVE SERIES OF OUTSTANDING BONDS. THEY'RE SECURED BY THE FORMER TAX INCREMENT.
- SORRY. I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT LOUDER.
THE, UM, THE BONDS ARE SECURED BY THE FORMER TAX INCREMENT OF THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY, UM...
AND, UH, YOU CAN SEE ON THE SCREEN THE MATURITIES RANGE FROM 2030 TO 2036.
THE BONDS THAT ARE ELIGIBLE FOR REFINANCING AT THIS MOMENT ARE TWO SERIES OF BONDS ISSUED IN 2015, SERIES A AND B, AND A 2016 SERIES.
ONLY THE 2015 SERIES A AND THE 2016 BONDS HAVE SUFFICIENT SAVINGS TO MAKE REFINANCING ECONOMICAL AT THIS TIME.
THIS SLIDE SUMMARIZES THE EXISTING INTEREST RATES ON THE OUTSTANDING BONDS, THE ESTIMATED INTEREST RATES ON THE REFINANCING, HOW MUCH ANNUAL SAVINGS WE ANTICIPATE, AS WELL AS THE TOTAL ANNUAL SAVINGS.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THE AVERAGE REDUCTION IN DEBT SERVICE IS EXPECTED TO BE 7.5% OR A TOTAL OF ALMOST $8.8 MILLION.
BECAUSE THIS WILL REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF TAX INCREMENT, OR WHAT WE CALL RPTTF, REDEVELOPMENT PROPERTY TAX TRUST FUND, FUNDING REQUIRED TO PAY DEBT SERVICE ON THE REDEVELOPMENT SUCCESSOR AGENCY BONDS.
THOSE SAVINGS GET DISTRIBUTED AMONG THE DIFFERENT TAXING ENTITIES IN ACCORDANCE WITH A FORMULA.
THE COUNTY GETS 13.2%. COUNTY DISTRICTS WILL GET 3.56%.
IT'S LIKE THE LIBRARY DISTRICT, AND THEN THE SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES AND OTHER SPECIAL DISTRICTS WILL GET THE REMAINDER.
SO WE'RE ANTICIPATING THOSE WILL BENEFIT BY ABOUT $7.3 MILLION, THE COUNTY WILL BENEFIT BY ABOUT $1.5 MILLION.
THE PROCESS, POST-DISSOLUTION OF REDEVELOPMENT, REQUIRES THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO FIRST APPROVE THE REFINANCING, AND THEN IT WILL GO TO THE CONSOLIDATED OVERSIGHT BOARD TO APPROVE THE REFINANCING.
THEN IT IS PRESENTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE, AND THEY HAVE 60 DAYS TO REVIEW THE DOCUMENTATION AND PROVIDE THEIR AUTHORIZATION TO PROCEED.
SO WE DON'T ANTICIPATE THE BONDS WILL BE ISSUED UNTIL JUNE.
THE FUNDING WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR A SEPTEMBER 1, 2025 REDEMPTION OF THE OUTSTANDING BONDS.
SO THE RECOMMENDED ACTION IS TO APPROVE THE RESOLUTION, WHICH APPROVES A FORM OF AN INDENTURE OF TRUST FOR THE BONDS, TWO ESCROW AGREEMENTS, AN OFFICIAL NOTICE OF SALE, THE PRELIMINARY OFFICIAL STATEMENT, AND THE CONTINUING DISCLOSURE CERTIFICATE.
THE BONDS ARE EXPECTED TO BE SOLD AT COMPETITIVE SALE.
IT ALSO AUTHORIZES A NOT TO EXCEED $95 MILLION, WHICH IS THE AMOUNT WE EXPECT TO BE REQUIRED TO PAY OFF THE OLD BONDS.
AND THE SAVINGS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE COUNTY'S DEBT POLICY MUST BE GREATER THAN 4%. AND THAT CONCLUDES MY REPORT.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? - THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I'LL NOW TURN TO MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS.
IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, I'LL START TO MY RIGHT WITH SUPERVISOR DE SERPA.
- NO, THIS IS GREAT. I'LL BE SUPPORTING TODAY.
UM, ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO SAVE THE TAXPAYER AND THE STATE AND US MONEY IS SOMETHING THAT I'M IN FAVOR OF.
SO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING IT FORWARD.
[00:50:01]
- I HAVE NO QUESTIONS.I JUST APPRECIATE THE RECOMMENDATION. THANK YOU.
- YEAH, LIKEWISE. THANKS FOR YOUR WORK ON THIS, AND OBVIOUSLY, ANYTHING THAT SAVES THE COUNTY MONEY IS A GREAT IDEA IN MY BOOK.
- I'LL NOW TURN TO THE PUBLIC TO SEE IF THERE'S ANYONE WHO WISHES TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM.
ANYONE FROM THE PUBLIC? - THANK YOU. BECKY STEINBRUNER.
UM, I ALSO SUPPORT SAVING THE COUNTY MONEY.
BUT FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PUBLIC, CAN YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT THESE BONDS ARE FUNDING? WHAT IS THE REASON THAT OUR COUNTY HAS GONE INTO DEBT LIKE THIS? WHAT ARE THE PROJECTS THAT THEY ARE SUPPORTING? THANK YOU.
- ANYONE ONLINE? - I SEE NO SPEAKERS ONLINE, CHAIR.
- WITH THAT, I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
- I JUST WANTED TO SEE IF WE COULD GET A RESPONSE FROM STAFF FOR THE QUESTION THAT WAS JUST RAISED.
- SURE. THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY FUNDED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT AS WELL AS LOW AND MODERN INCOME HOUSING PROJECTS, THROUGHOUT THE LIVE OAK SOQUEL REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT AREA.
I WANT TO EXPRESS MY APPRECIATION FOR ALL THE WORK THAT'S GOING INTO THIS AND THE SAVINGS THAT'S GOING TO COME BACK TO THE COUNTY. AND SO WITH THAT, I'LL MOVE THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION.
WE HAVE A MOTION BY SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG.
CAN WE TAKE A ROLL CALL VOTE? - SUPERVISOR DE SERPA? - AYE.
- KOENIG? - AYE. - AND HERNANDEZ.
[8. Consider approving specifications and engineer's estimate for 2025 Pavement Management Project, set online bid opening for 2:15 p.m. on March 6, 2025, and direct Community Development and Infrastructure to return on or before June 24, 2025, for ratification of the contract award, and take related actions]
WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM.CONSIDERING APPROVING SPECIFICATIONS AND ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE FOR 2025 PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT SET ONLINE BID OPENING FOR 02:15 P.M. ON MARCH 6 OF 2025 AND DIRECT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE TO RETURN ON OR BEFORE JUNE 24, 2025 FOR RATIFICATION OF THE CONTRACT AWARD AND TAKE ALL RELATED ACTIONS.
I'LL TURN IT OVER TO CASEY CARLSON, SENIOR CIVIL ENGINEER AND STEVE WIESNER, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS FOR THE PRESENTATION.
- THANK YOU, CHAIR HERNANDEZ, AND GOOD MORNING, BOARD MEMBERS, UM, CAO PALACIOS, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC.
AGAIN, MY NAME IS STEVE WIESNER, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS IN THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INFRASTRUCTURE DEPARTMENT, AND, UM, TODAY WITH ME IS CASEY CARLSON.
CASEY'S OUR SENIOR CIVIL ENGINEER IN CHARGE OF OUR PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN PUBLIC WORKS.
AND IN CHAMBERS TODAY ALSO IS MATT MACHADO WHO'S OUR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND AS OUR CHAIR SAID, WE'RE HERE TODAY TO PRESENT ON THE 2025 PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT.
BEFORE I GET GOING, I'D LIKE TO WELCOME SUPERVISORS MARTINEZ AND DE SERPA.
I'VE HAD A CHANCE TO MEET BOTH OF YOU AND YOUR STAFF AND WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ON ALL THINGS TRANSPORTATION IN YOUR DISTRICTS.
LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS- THIS TERM.
SO TODAY, UM, WE'RE HERE TO AGAIN PRESENT ON THE 2025 PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT AND IT'LL CONSIST OF A BRIEF PROJECT FUNDING OVERVIEW.
WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE PROJECT LOCATIONS AND SOME OF THE ROADS THAT ARE IN THE PROGRAM AND THEN FINALLY WE'LL END WITH OUR RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
OKAY, UM, JUST TO COVER THE PROJECT FUNDING A LITTLE BIT, THIS PROJECT IN PARTICULAR IS LEVERAGING SEVERAL FUNDING SOURCES TO PROVIDE A ROBUST PAVING PROJECT FOR THE 2025 SEASON.
IT INTEGRATES MULTIPLE SOURCES OF SIMILAR WORK INTO A SINGLE PROJECT WHICH INCREASES BID COMPETITION AND LOWERS THE OVERALL COST OF THE WORK.
UM, THE PROJECT, THIS PROJECT, IN PARTICULAR, IS LARGELY FUNDED BY MEASURE D, UM, WHICH IS- WHICH IS THE FIRST FUNDING SOURCE PRIMARILY DEDICATED TO LOCAL ROAD PAVING.
WE'VE BEEN PUTTING OUT PROJECTS WITH MEASURE D SINCE IT PASSED.
OUR FIRST PROJECT CAME OUT IN 2018 AND WE'VE DELIVERED A PROJECT EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
I WILL NOTE THAT WE DON'T DO WORK IN EVERY DISTRICT EVERY YEAR.
SOMETIMES WE WORK WITH THE SUPERVISOR'S OFFICES.
WE OPT TO SAVE UP MONEY FOR A LARGER, MORE MEANINGFUL PROJECT OR SOMETIMES THE FUNDING GETS USED FOR OTHER PROJECTS AS WELL.
BUT LARGELY WE'RE TRYING TO KEEP THIS ON LOCAL ROAD RESURFACING.
SO WITHIN THIS PROJECT THERE IS AN RSTP GRANT WHICH IS A FEDERAL REGIONAL SURFACE TRANSPORTATION GRANT WHICH GETS EXCHANGED INTO STATE DOLLARS.
UM, AND- AND AGAIN WE'RE USING MEASURE D ON THAT AS OUR LOCAL MATCH.
AND THEN IN ADDITION, THIS PROJECT HAS A COUPLE OTHER ELEMENTS WHERE WE'RE PARTNERING BOTH WITH COUNTY PARKS AND THE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT TO INTEGRATE SOME OF THEIR PAVING WORK INTO THIS PROJECT AND WE TRY TO DO THAT ON A YEAR-TO-YEAR
[00:55:01]
BASIS.SOMETIMES IT'S WITH OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
FOR INSTANCE, LAST YEAR WE PARTNERED WITH THE CITY OF CAPITOLA, WHEN WE'RE DOING PAVING WORK ON THE BOUNDARIES OF THE COUNTY.
WE'LL TALK TO OUR NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS TO SEE IF THEY WANT TO GO IN ON WITH US AS WELL.
OKAY, SO WITH THAT WE'RE GOING TO GO INTO THE PROJECT LOCATIONS.
- ALL RIGHT. SO, UH... THANK YOU, STEVE.
UH, DISTRICT 1, WE'RE WORKING IN THE LIVE OAK AND SOQUEL AREA.
DISTRICT 2, WE'RE GOING TO BE IN SEACLIFF.
DISTRICT 3, WE'RE GOING TO BE ON SWANTON.
DISTRICT 4, ON THE VERY SOUTHERN PART OF THE COUNTY, UM, ROGGE LANE AND MURPHY'S CROSSING.
AND DISTRICT 5, FUNDS WERE USED FOR THE MOUNTAIN CHARLIE STORM REPAIR AND I'M GOING TO GO INTO EACH OF THOSE IN DETAIL HERE.
SO DISTRICT 1, YOU CAN SEE WE'RE DOING A LOT OF WORK IN LIVE OAK.
KIND OF, THE STORY BEHIND WHAT'S GOING ON HERE IS THE PORTIONS THAT STRETCH, AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE PHOTO THERE ON SOQUEL AVENUE TO FRONTAGE ROAD.
THE PURE WATER SOQUEL PROJECT CAME THROUGH AND DID A PIPELINE AND WERE REQUIRED TO RESURFACE HALF OF THE ROAD THAT WAS AFFECTED BY THEIR PROJECT.
UH, WE'RE GOING THROUGH THOSE SAME CORRIDORS AND PICKING UP THE SECOND HALF OF THE ROAD SO THAT WE CAN HAVE FULL ROAD PROJECTS THROUGH ALL THOSE MAIN TRANSPORT CORRIDORS.
WE'RE GOING TO UPDATE THE STRIPING, GREEN BIKE LANES, ENHANCED STRIPING FOR SAFETY.
SO WE'RE GOING TO END UP WITH A LOT OF GREAT, LARGE STRETCHES OF ROADWAY OUT OF THIS.
ALSO DOING SOME KIND OF MORE TRADITIONAL MEASURE D NEIGHBORHOOD WORK IN THE LIVE OAK AREA NEAR RODRIGUEZ AND PALMINI.
DISTRICT 2 IN WEST SEACLIFF, AGAIN LEVERAGING PARTNERSHIPS.
WE HAVE COUNTY SANITATION THIS WINTER IS WORKING ON SEVERAL TRENCHING FOR MAIN REPLACEMENTS IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD.
SO WHAT WE'RE DOING IS AS A REQUIREMENT OF THEIR PROJECT, THEY WOULD BE REQUIRED TO REPAVE CERTAIN OF THESE STREETS INSTEAD, ROADS IS TAKING THEIR FUNDS AND ADDING MEASURE D TO THAT AND GETTING A LARGE NEIGHBORHOOD RESURFACING PROJECT IN WEST SEACLIFF.
AND THIS IS THE THIRD SEACLIFF AREA PROJECT WE'VE DONE WITH MEASURE D AND IT WILL PRETTY MUCH, IT'S THE LAST MAJOR AREA OF SEACLIFF THAT WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN YET WITH THE PROGRAM.
SO THIS WILL PRETTY MUCH MAKE SEACLIFF WHOLE WHEN WE'RE DONE.
DISTRICT 3, VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS ONE.
STEVE SPOKE ABOUT SAVING FUNDS FOR FUTURE WORK AND DISTRICT 3 HAS BEEN PATIENTLY SAVING FUNDING FOR FIVE TO SIX YEARS TO ENACT THIS PROJECT, WHICH WILL GET, UM, THAT SECTION OF GREEN THERE IS FOUR AND A HALF MILES WHICH THE PORTION NORTH OF THAT WAS DONE IN, I BELIEVE 2010 OR 2011.
AND THAT WAS A FULL PAVING JOB THAT DID A PRETTY GOOD JOB ON THAT SECTION.
BUT THE REMAINDER OF THE ROAD HAS BEEN NEEDING WORK FOR SOME TIME AND WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH AND DO A MAJOR REPAVING ON ALL OF THAT. SO EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
UM, OTHER MAJOR GOALS HERE, DISTRICT 4 HAS BEEN WANTING US TO REPAVE MURPHY'S CROSSING FOR A LONG TIME, ROGGE LANE AS WELL.
AND WE WERE ABLE IN 2023 TO OBTAIN A GRANT, RSTP GRANT THROUGH THE STATE.
AND WE'RE GOING TO LEVERAGE THAT WITH MEASURE D FUNDING FOR THE LOCAL MATCH REQUIREMENT ON THAT GRANT AND WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO A FULL-DEPTH RECYCLE AND REPAVING FOR MURPHY'S CROSSING AND A FULL REPAVING FOR ROGGE LANE.
SO, IT'S GOING TO LEAVE THOSE MAJOR COMMUTE ROUTES IN GREAT SHAPE.
DISTRICT 5 AS MENTIONED BEFORE, WE HAD AN EMERGENCY ON MOUNTAIN CHARLIE THAT PRETTY MUCH A MAJOR SECTION OF ROADWAY JUST SLID DOWN THE HILL, THE WHOLE MOUNTAIN MOVED.
AND DISTRICT 5'S PRIORITY WAS TO GET THIS COMMUNITY MADE WHOLE AGAIN SO WE DID A TEMPORARY REPAIR.
UNFORTUNATELY, THERE WEREN'T ANY DISASTER FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR THIS PROJECT.
SO MEASURE D HAD TO BE USED TO MAKE THAT WORK.
WE'RE CONTINUING TO SEEK FUNDING, UH, TO REPLACE THAT.
IF WE'RE SUCCESSFUL, THEN THOSE MEASURE D FUNDS WOULD GO BACK INTO OTHER NEEDS FOR DISTRICT 5.
ANOTHER PARTNERSHIP WE HAVE HERE IS COUNTY PARKS.
THEY WANTED TO RESURFACE MORAN LAKE PARKING LOT.
WE HAD A SIMILAR PARTNERSHIP THAT WORKED WELL IN 2023.
WE DID THEIR PINTO LAKE PARKING LOT ADDITION TO THE GREEN VALLEY PATH THAT WE'RE DOING THERE.
AND SO THIS AGAIN, WE'RE ABLE TO DELIVER A LOWER UNIT COST FOR THEM IN TERMS OF SEAL AND STRIPING AND HAVING THAT WORK IN OUR PROJECT PUTS MORE WORK IN OUR BID, WHICH ALSO LOWERS OUR UNIT COSTS.
SO IT WORKS OUT WELL FOR EVERYBODY AND THE WORK IS OVERSEEN BY PEOPLE THAT ARE USED TO WATCHING SEAL AND STRIPING GO DOWN, SO WE KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR.
WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT BACK TO STEVE FOR RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
- ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, CASEY.
I DO WANT TO NOTE, UM, JUST FOR EVERYONE'S INFORMATION.
SO WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH EACH SUPERVISOR'S OFFICE ON OUR PAVING PROGRAM AND THE ROADS THAT GET INCLUDED.
THAT WORK USUALLY STARTS AROUND THE FALL FOR THE FOLLOWING
[01:00:02]
SEASON'S PROJECT.AND SO, WE'LL START WORKING WITH YOUR TEAM.
WE'LL LET YOU KNOW WHAT OUR IDEAS ARE, WHAT WE THINK IS UP AND WHAT WOULD BE GOOD, UM, BASED ON A HOST OF DIFFERENT FACTORS.
AND SO, USUALLY, WHEN A PROJECT LIKE THIS COMES TO YOUR BOARD, YOU'LL FULLY KNOW, LIKE, ALL THE REASONS WHY, AND, AND, UH, AND WHAT WE HAVE BEFORE YOU. OKAY.
SO WITH THAT, THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU ALL TODAY ARE TO APPROVE THE SPECIFICATIONS, ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE, AND AUTHORIZE A CALL FOR BIDS FOR THE 2025 PAYMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT.
SET THE BID OPENING FOR 2:15 ON MARCH 6, 2025, DIRECT THE CLERK OF BOARD TO ADVERTISE THE NOTICE FOR CONTRACTORS FOR A 10-DAY PERIOD BEGINNING FEBRUARY 15TH, 2025 FOR THE PROVISIONS OF THE PUBLIC CONTRACT CODE SECTION 2392, AUTHORIZE THE DEPUTY CAO, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE TO AWARD, AND SIGN THE CONTRACT WITH THE QUALIFIED LOW BIDDER, DIRECT COMMUNITY AND DEVELOPMENT INFRASTRUCTURE TO RETURN ON OR BEFORE JUNE 24TH, 2025 FOR RATIFICATION OF THE CONTRACT AWARD AND IMPROVE THE TRANSFER OF FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT OF 1.781 MILLION DOLLARS FROM THE MEASURE D ACCOUNT FOR THE 2025 PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT AND APPROVE A TRANSFER OF FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT OF 1.035 MILLION FROM THE MEASURE D ACCOUNT, EXCUSE ME, FROM THE INNER COUNTY ROUTES, RSTPX GRANT FUND ACCOUNT FOR THE 2025 PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT.
AND WITH THAT, WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE.
- SO WE'RE GOING TO GO OUT TO THE PUBLIC, SEE IF THE PUBLIC HAS ANY QUESTIONS.
- AGAIN, BECKY STEINBRUNER, RESIDENT OF RURAL APTOS.
AS A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC, I HAVE ALWAYS WONDERED HOW YOU DECIDE WHERE THESE- THESE PAVING AREAS ARE GOING TO BE.
I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE THE MEASURE D MONEY FOCUSED ON IMPROVING, MAINTAINING THE CRITICAL EVACUATION ROUTES IN OUR DISTRICTS.
IT'S GREAT FOR THE PEOPLE IN SEACLIFF.
WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER AREAS OF DISTRICT 2? I ALSO THINK IT IS NOT RIGHT THAT THE COUNTY IS HELPING SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT REPAIR THE DAMAGE THAT THEIR PURE WATER SOQUEL PROJECT HAS DONE ON THE SOQUEL AVENUE FRONTAGE ROAD. IT IS SIGNIFICANT.
AND THEY'VE DONE REPAVING THERE AND THEY'VE DONE REPAVING IN OTHER AREAS, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S RIGHT FOR THE COUNTY TO HAVE TO GO IN AND CLEAN IT UP.
AND I DON'T THINK THERE'S ROOM FOR A BIKE LANE THERE.
IT'S VERY NARROW. SO THOSE ARE MY CONCERNS.
I AM HAPPY TO SEE THAT THE COUNTY IS WORKING EFFICIENTLY WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT TO HELP PAVE THE PARKING LOTS AND SOME OF THE COUNTY PARKS.
I WOULD LIKE TO ADD THE APTOS VILLAGE PARKING LOT.
APTOS VILLAGE PARK PARKING LOT TO THAT, IT IS IN VERY SERIOUS DISREPAIR.
AND THAT'S A VERY POPULAR PARK.
IT'S THE HUB OF THE EVENTS THAT GO ON ON JULY 4TH AND OTHER EVENTS. SO IT REALLY NEEDS WORK.
AND I'D LIKE TO SEE THAT ON NEXT YEAR'S LIST IF WE CONTINUE THIS GREAT PARTNERSHIP WITH PARKS.
SO IF YOU COULD SOMEONE ANSWER MY QUESTION, HOW YOU DECIDE THESE- THESE PROJECT AREAS ARE, I WOULD VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU.
- IS THERE ANYONE ONLINE? - YES, CHAIR.
CALLING USER 2, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- MARILYN GARRETT AND AS I WAS LISTENING TO YOUR REPORT, I WAS ALSO STRUCK BY THE COMMENT ABOUT HOW THE COUNTY IS HAVING TO REPAIR THE DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE PURE WATER SOCAL PROJECT, AND I WAS THINKING THAT'S JUST PART OF THE DAMAGE, THE RAMIFICATIONS OF, I CALL IT POOP WATER.
AND I WAS AT A MEETING WHERE THEY TALKED ABOUT ALL THE CHEMICALS THAT ARE INJECTED, AND I THOUGHT, THIS IS SO DAMAGING EVERY WAY YOU LOOK AT IT.
WE NEED TO BE EVALUATING PROJECTS FOR ALL THE RAMIFICATIONS AND THE DAMAGE THEY CAUSE. AND IF THERE'S SO MUCH DAMAGE,
[01:05:04]
THEY SHOULDN'T BE TAKING PLACE.AND SO I AGREE WITH BECKY STEINBRUNER.
THIS JUST DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT AT ALL.
THE WHOLE PROJECT SEEMS DECEPTIVE AND HARMFUL TO THE PUBLIC.
- TIM, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- HI, ALSO I SECOND THOSE CONCERNS THAT BECKY HAD.
MY CONCERN HERE IS, OBVIOUSLY, FOR THE ROADS UP TOP ON SUMMIT.
AND I JUST LIKE TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE ARE MAINTAINED AND OUR FIRE ESCAPES ARE MAINTAINED.
AND ALSO, I JUST WANTED TO POINT OUT, WHEN I HEARD THE INDIVIDUALS TALKING ABOUT THE GAS BLOWERS AND ALL THAT SORT OF STUFF, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COUNTY UNDERSTANDS THAT FOR OUR AREAS UP TOP THAT ARE UNINCORPORATED WITH LARGE PLOTS OF LAND, THERE'S A LOT OF CLEARING.
AND I'M JUST WONDERING, I HOPE THAT'S NOT TARGETED TOWARDS US.
YOU KNOW, I CAN'T IMAGINE, FOR THE MOMENT RIGHT NOW, TRYING TO USE LIKE AN ELECTRIC CHAINSAW OR SOMETHING OR AN ELECTRIC BLOWER WHEN I HAVE ALL THIS LAND TO CLEAR.
AND ALSO, THERE'S THE ROAD BEHIND MY HOME THAT TAKES THE SCHOOL BUS. THERE'S KIDS ON THAT.
SO I DON'T THINK THE COUNTY OR ANYONE'S GONNA GO AFTER ME FOR CLEARING THAT AND CLEARING THE GUTTER AND MAKING SURE THAT'S SAFE FOR MY FAMILY, MY NEIGHBORS, AND THE SCHOOL SYSTEM THAT'S COMING AROUND THE CORNER WITH A BUS.
THE ONLY THING I'VE EVER HAD THE COUNTY FOLKS DO IS, YOU KNOW, THEY THANK ME WHEN I'M CLEARING THE ROAD WITH MY BLOWER.
SO I DO UNDERSTAND PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, IN THE COUNTY FARTHER DOWN IN URBAN RURAL SETTINGS WITH REGARDS TO GAS BLOWERS, BUT THOSE SORTS OF THINGS MAY NOT NECESSARILY APPLY FOR ALL OF US UP TOP.
SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE TOOLS AND RESOURCES, ESPECIALLY IF THE COUNTY'S NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO STEP UP AND PAVE OUR ROADS AND CLEAR OUR ROADS AND MAINTAIN THEM AND SO ON, FOR US TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN THEM OURSELVES.
ANYWAYS, SO THOSE ARE MY CONCERNS. YOU FOLKS HAVE A FINE DAY.
- WE HAVE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS, CHAIR.
- WITH THAT, I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS.
I'LL START TO MY LEFT WITH SUPERVISOR KOENIG.
THANK YOU, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WIESNER.
YOU KNOW, IT'S ALWAYS BOTH, I MEAN, IT'S ALWAYS GREAT TO LOOK AT THE ROADS THAT WE ARE GONNA GET TO RESURFACE THIS YEAR, AND OF COURSE, WE ALWAYS WANT TO DO MORE.
I THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE A STATE OF THE PAVEMENT ADDRESS LATER THIS YEAR, AND WE'LL DISCUSS THE FACT THAT WE SHOULD REALLY BE SPENDING THREE TIMES AS MUCH IF WE WANTED TO ACTUALLY BE MAINTAINING THE PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX IN OUR COUNTY THAT WE'D LIKE TO.
BUT THAT SAID, YOU KNOW, WE CAN TAKE THE MOMENT TO CELEBRATE.
SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WERE RAISED ABOUT SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT AND THEIR PROJECT, AND I THINK THAT WE DID POLITELY REQUEST THAT THEY RESURFACE THE ENTIRE ROAD AND THEY POLITELY DECLINED.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, NOT WANTING TO GET INTO SOME NASTY DISPUTE OVER THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS AND JUST SPENDING THE MEASURE D MONEY TO RESURFACE THE ROADS.
BUT I MEAN, AS THE PICTURE DEMONSTRATED, WE'RE NOT REDOING THE WHOLE ROAD.
SO THAT'S GOT TO MEAN THAT WE CAN DO CLOSE TO TWICE AS MUCH IF WE'RE ONLY DOING HALF OF THE ROAD.
SO, JUST TO CLARIFY WHAT'S GOING ON, THE UTILITY IS REQUIRED TO RESURFACE THE PORTION THAT THEY AFFECT, WHICH IS HALF OF THE ROAD.
SO WE'RE NOT REPAIRING THEIR DAMAGE.
WE'RE GETTING THE OTHER HALF OF A ROAD THAT OTHERWISE NEEDED RESURFACING BEFORE THEY TOUCHED IT.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE THE ROAD WHOLE FROM HALF OF A PROJECT.
- YEAH, AND I HAD TO GO AND CHECK THE PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX FROM EVEN WELL BEFORE THEY STARTED THESE PROJECTS.
AND IT WAS CLEAR THAT SOME SECTIONS, PARTICULARLY ALONG SOQUEL AVENUE THAT ARE NEAR THE INTERSECTIONS, REALLY NEEDED THIS WORK ALREADY.
AND OF COURSE, THEN THERE'S OTHER CONSTRUCTION WORK HAPPENING IN THE AREA LIKE THE CHANTICLEER WHALE BRIDGE THAT I'M SURE ALSO BEING IMPACTED BY CONSTRUCTION, WHICH IS NOT THE WATER DISTRICT'S GOAL.
IT'LL BE GREAT TO HAVE A [INAUDIBLE] ON THESE ROADS AND, YOU KNOW, STANDARD CONDITION FOR THAT- FOR THE WHOLE WIDTH OF THE ROAD GOING FORWARD, AND OF COURSE, DO STRIPING AND EVERYTHING.
TO, YOU KNOW, HOW, THE- THE PUBLIC'S QUESTION ON HOW WE DECIDE HOW THESE ROADS ARE CHOSEN, I MEAN, I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT GIVEN THE LIMITED BUDGET, WE OFTEN START WITH WHAT'S NEEDED THAT- FOR ANY GIVEN YEAR.
AND IN THIS CASE, THE OBVIOUSLY, THE PURE WATER SOQUEL PROJECT SORT OF CREATED THIS- THIS NEED THAT WAS AT THE TOP OF THE LIST.
AND THEN I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT THEN WE MOVE OUT GEOGRAPHICALLY FROM THERE, RIGHT? I MEAN, IS IT...
BECAUSE OF THE SORT OF COST OF PICKING UP,
[01:10:02]
RELOCATING ALL THE EQUIPMENT TO A DIFFERENT PART OF THE COUNTY, I MEAN, TYPICALLY THE WAY THESE CONVERSATIONS GO BETWEEN YOU GUYS AND MY OFFICE IS, OKAY, WELL, WHAT IS THE NEXT IMMEDIATE AREA TO WHERE WE HAVE TO BE WORKING THAT WE COULD ADDRESS IN A COST EFFECTIVE WAY? CAN YOU SPEAK A LITTLE BIT TO SORT OF THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH TRYING TO DO WORK IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE COUNTY AND THEN THE SAVINGS OF DOING WORK IN ONE PLACE OR GENERAL AREA? - SURE, YEAH, THAT'S A VERY GOOD POINT.I WILL SAY THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, JUST FROM THE OUTSET WHEN MEASURE D WAS PASSED IN THE BUCKET OF MEASURE D MONEY, THAT THE WAY IT COMES TO US FROM THE RTC, IT'S IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY AND RESURFACING BUCKET. THE MONIES ARE ALWAYS INTENDED FOR NEIGHBORHOODS AND THIS WAS AN AREA THAT WE WERE VERY SHY ON AND THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH FUNDING FOR A COUPLE OF DECADES, ACTUALLY, A BETTER PART OF A COUPLE OF DECADES.
AND SO, UM, OUR- WE DID PUT OUT A SURVEY TO OUR COMMUNITIES AFTER MEASURE D WAS PASSED AND, UM, AND NEIGHBORHOOD RESURFACING WAS A HIGH PRIORITY IN THAT SURVEY.
AND SO, OUR CONCEPT HAS BEEN TO PUT A PROJECT OUT IN EACH DISTRICT AS- AS FAST AS WE CAN, REALLY STARTING FROM THE MOST HEAVILY USED ROADS IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS AND THEN SORT OF WORKING OUR WAY OUT FROM THAT.
UM, A GREAT EXAMPLE IS DISTRICT 5.
YOU KNOW, WE STARTED WITH A PROJECT IN BOULDER CREEK, WE MOVED DOWN TO FELTON, WE MOVED TO BEN LOMOND AND THEN WITH THE VERY NEXT YEAR, WE WENT BACK UP TO BOULDER CREEK AND WE STARTED DOING ROADS THAT WERE MORE ON THE EXTREMITY.
AND SO, WE STARTED IN TOWN CORES.
DOWN IN DISTRICT 2, WE DID WORK DOWN IN LA SELVA AS WELL AS SEACLIFF.
WE'VE ALSO DONE SOME WORK DOWN IN THE CORRALITOS AREA, WHICH IS ALSO IN DISTRICT 2 AS WELL.
AND AGAIN, FOCUSING ON TOWN CORE AREAS AND THEN WORKING OUR WAY OUT FROM THAT.
AND AS SUPERVISOR KOENIG ALLUDED TO, IT DOESN'T MAKE A LOT OF SENSE TO DO A ROAD HERE AND THEN HAVE TO PICK UP EVERYTHING, REMOBILIZE AND DO A ROAD A MILE OR TWO AWAY AND ON AND ON.
WHEN WE DO CREATE A PROJECT, WE DO LOOK AT OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN AN AREA WHERE WE CAN GET STUFF THAT'S REALLY CLOSE TO EACH OTHER AND ADJACENT.
AND SO, THAT'S THE BASIC CONCEPT.
AGAIN, WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH EACH BOARD MEMBER TO IDENTIFY WHERE THOSE AREAS ARE AND IT'S INFORMED BY A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT FACTORS.
PAVEMENT CONDITION IS ONE OF THEM, OBVIOUSLY, BUT NEIGHBORHOOD ADVOCACY, AREAS THAT WE KNOW ARE HEAVILY TRAVELED THAT THE MOST PEOPLE USE REALLY, REALLY TRYING TO GET THE MOST BANG FOR OUR BUCK FOR OUR COMMUNITIES.
AND THEN I WILL ALSO NOTE, UM, THAT THE MAJORITY OF OUR ARTERIAL MAJOR COLLECTOR RESURFACING IS FUNDED THROUGH THE STATE AND FEDERAL GRANTS THAT WE GO FOR THROUGH THE RTC.
AND YOU KNOW, THESE ARE ROADS LIKE SOQUEL DRIVE, FREEDOM BOULEVARD, BEAR CREEK ROAD, SOQUEL SAN JOSE ROAD, SUMMIT ROADS, THESE ARE THE ROADS THAT CARRY THE VAST VOLUME OF OUR COMMUTE TRAFFIC AND THOSE ARE RESURFACED WITH OTHER FUNDS.
AND AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, WE TRY TO KEEP MEASURE D IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS.
- YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT. THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT UP. RIGHT.
THE, UM, CONSOLIDATED CALL FOR GRANTS THAT THE RTC PUTS OUT EVERY COUPLE OF YEARS, I BELIEVE WE'LL HAVE ONE THIS YEAR, RIGHT? AT THE END OF THE YEAR.
UM, AND IN THE PAST, WE'VE RESURFACED ALBIN JAMISON IN THE 5TH DISTRICT WITH SOME OF THOSE FUNDS.
I BELIEVE WE HAVE A PROJECT MOVING FORWARD FOR SOQUEL SAN JOSE ROAD, UM, THAT HAS USED THOSE FUNDS.
SO THAT'S DEFINITELY ANOTHER MAJOR, PROBABLY THE PRIMARY SOURCE OF FUNDS FOR, AS WAS MENTIONED, THE ESCAPE ROUTES OR EVACUATION ROUTES RATHER, AND SOME OF THOSE OTHER ARTERIALS.
- YEAH, AND JUST ONE OTHER POINT TO NOTE IS THAT WE DO HAVE TO HAVE A LOCAL MATCH FOR THOSE LARGER GRANTS AS WELL.
AND SO THAT'S BECOMING INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT FOR US TO FIND THE LOCAL MATCH.
HENCE WHY WE'RE USING SOME MEASURE D FUNDS TO MATCH FOR MURPHY'S AND ROGGE DOWN IN SOUTH COUNTY.
- GREAT, THANK YOU, LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WORK.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ.
WELL, THANK YOU TO PUBLIC WORKS FOR THE PRESENTATION, UM, AND FOR WORKING WITH THE BOARD OFFICES EACH YEAR TO HELP PRIORITIZE PROJECTS.
AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, AS A- AS A CANDIDATE, AND NOW AS A NEW SUPERVISOR, UM, LOCAL ROAD RESURFACING HAS BEEN A HUGE ISSUE.
THERE'S A LOT OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE.
AND SO I'M EAGER TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH YOU TO HELP ADDRESS THESE NEEDS.
UM, I ABSOLUTELY SUPPORT THE DECISION OF MY PREDECESSOR TO ALLOCATE OUR MEASURE D FUNDS TO DO THE TEMPORARY ROAD FIX ON MOUNT CHARLIE.
UM, I VISITED MOUNT CHARLIE ROAD SEVERAL TIMES, AND THAT WAS A REAL DISASTER FOR THOSE RESIDENTS.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS TO GET IN THERE AND PROVIDE THAT TEMPORARY ROAD.
I KNOW IT'S PROVIDING A LOT OF RELIEF.
I DO HOPE THAT FEMA WILL SOMEDAY REIMBURSE US FOR THOSE COSTS AND THAT THOSE DOLLARS WOULD THEN BE ABLE TO BE REALLOCATED TO ADDRESS OTHER 5TH DISTRICT NEEDS.
AND SO WE'LL KEEP OUR FINGERS CROSSED AND HOPE THAT MAY HAPPEN SOMEDAY DOWN THE LINE.
AND I ALSO WANT TO JUST REITERATE THAT IN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR, I ANTICIPATE THAT OUR ANNUAL MEASURE D ALLOCATION WILL
[01:15:03]
RESUME AND THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO SPREAD PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM MORE BROADLY ACROSS THE 5TH DISTRICT.UM, I DO THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, IT'S A CRITICAL WAY THAT WE ADDRESS ROAD MAINTENANCE, BUT IT'S NOT THE ONLY WAY.
WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO OTHER WAYS THAT WE ADDRESS ROAD IMPROVEMENTS ON AN ONGOING BASIS HERE IN THE COUNTY? - SURE. YEAH.
WELL, SO IN ADDITION TO OUR PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT, UH, PROJECT, OUR ANNUAL PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT, WE DO HAVE OUR ANNUAL MAINTENANCE ROAD MAINTENANCE PROGRAM, WHICH IS RUN BY AND LARGE BY OUR OPERATIONS TEAM.
UM, UP IN YOUR AREA, IT'S RUN OUT OF OUR FELTON YARD AND THE NORTH COUNTY CREW.
THEY CREATE A PLAN EVERY YEAR THAT INVOLVES REGULAR DITCHING, REGULAR CULVERT MAINTENANCE, REGULAR ROADWAY SURFACE REPAIRS.
THE MOWING PROGRAM IS UNDER THEM TOO.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, THESE ARE THE FOLKS THAT ARE OUT THERE DOING ALL OF OUR STORM PATROL DURING, UH, YOU KNOW, INCLEMENT WEATHER AND KEEPING EVERYTHING OPEN AS BEST AS POSSIBLE.
THIS YEAR, WE'LL BE PRESENTING THAT TO YOUR BOARD AS PART OF OUR BUDGET.
AND, UM, AND IT'S AN EXTENSIVE PROGRAM, THIS IS MUCH LARGER THAN WHAT THIS PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROJECT IS COMPRISED OF, UM, THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY AND THROUGHOUT THE 600 MILES THAT WE'RE RESPONSIBLE TO MAINTAIN.
I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE I KNOW JUST AS A RESIDENT OF THE VALLEY, I DO SEE YOUR TEAMS OUT THERE WORKING.
I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING AND THAT SORT OF PREVENTION WORK HELPS FURTHER DESTRUCTION OF ROADS WHEN WEATHER OCCURS. SO, UM, THANK YOU FOR THAT.
AND I CAN I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO PARTNER WITH YOU TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF NOT ONLY OUR FIFTH DISTRICT RESIDENTS, BUT ACROSS THE COUNTY. THANK YOU.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS.
HELLO. - OKAY. - I'LL BE BRIEF.
I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK ON THIS AND FOR, UM, JUST ENGAGING WITH US AND TRYING TO HELP, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE TRYING TO IDENTIFY WHICH ROADS WE WANT TO PRIORITIZE.
IT'S JUST REALLY GREAT THAT WE CAN CONNECT WITH YOU ALL AND USE IT AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO RELAY THAT INFORMATION TO THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE WITHIN OUR DISTRICTS AND REALLY MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALIGNED IN TERMS OF HOW WE'RE PRIORITIZING THE ROADS.
AND I KNOW THE FOLKS IN THE THIRD DISTRICT ARE GOING TO BE REALLY HAPPY ABOUT THE IMPROVEMENTS TO SWANTON ROAD BECAUSE IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME COMING.
AND, UM, AND SO REALLY JUST GRATEFUL FOR THAT.
AND THEN ALSO JUST WANT TO EXPRESS MY APPRECIATION AROUND, UM, YOUR WILLINGNESS TO ENGAGE WITH US AS IT RELATES TO SMALLER ISSUES LIKE POTHOLES AND TURNS THAT MAY BE A LITTLE DANGEROUS AND JUST APPRECIATE THE WILLINGNESS TO WORK WITH US TO TRY TO ADDRESS OTHER ISSUES AS WELL. AND JUST PAVING. AND FINALLY, I JUST KNOCKED ON WOOD THAT THIS NEXT ATMOSPHERIC RIVER DOESN'T TAKE OUT MORE ROADS BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT TO HIT US ON THURSDAY AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE A BIG STORM, SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN BE PREPARED FOR THAT AS WELL. SO THANK YOU.
- THANK- THANK YOU FOR THE REPORT.
UM, I THINK MY PREDECESSOR USED MY ALLOCATION FOR THIS YEAR TO AMEND HIS BUDGET FOR THE SEACLIFF AREA.
SO CONGRATULATIONS TO SEACLIFF. UM, I USED TO LIVE THERE.
THAT'S WHERE I RAISED MY CHILDREN AND, UM, I THINK THAT'S A WISE CHOICE. HOWEVER, UM, I LIVE IN A RURAL AREA.
MANY OF MY CONSTITUENTS LIVE IN A RURAL AREA.
IT IS THE NUMBER ONE PROBLEM THAT ALL OF US IN THE RURAL AREAS FACE ARE, UM, ROADS THAT FAIL EVERY YEAR BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT PROPERLY MAINTAINED.
SO TO THE EXTENT THAT AS SOMEBODY IN THE AUDIENCE SAID THAT WE CAN, UM, KEEP OUR ROADS THAT ARE EVACUATION ROADS IN GOOD REPAIR. I THINK OF EUREKA CANYON, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT IS IN HORRIBLE CONDITION AND NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED.
AND I KNOW MANU CAN'T REALLY TALK ABOUT THAT BECAUSE HIS PARENTS LIVE UP EUREKA CANYON ROAD, BUT, UM, I HAVE MANY CONSTITUENTS AND MANY FRIENDS THAT LIVE UP THERE AND WE NEED TO FIX IT AT SOME POINT.
SO I'M HOPEFUL THAT WE'LL DO THAT IN THE FUTURE.
MY OWN ROAD, TROUT GULCH ROAD, THE UPPER AREAS ARE IN HORRIBLE CONDITION AND I'VE DRIVEN IT WITH THE ROAD CREWS AND HAVE IDENTIFIED AREAS THAT WERE ACTUALLY STORM DAMAGE FROM YEARS PAST.
SO I KNOW THOSE ARE ON THE LIST NOW, BUT THEY HADN'T BEEN, AND SO I WAS CONCERNED THAT IT TOOK SORT OF ME BRINGING IT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE CREWS, SORT OF, YEARS AFTER SOME OF THOSE SLIDES AND WASHOUTS HAD OCCURRED.
SO, I ACTUALLY LOOK FORWARD TO SPENDING MORE TIME WITH THE ROAD CREWS AND GOING OUT AND TAKING A LOOK AROUND WITH MY OWN EYES WITH THEM SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT OUR RURAL AREAS ARE WELL REPRESENTED IN THE FUTURE.
CAN WE TALK ABOUT FOR A MINUTE SOME OF THE GRANTS THAT WE GET? BECAUSE I UNDERSTOOD THAT SOME ARE COMING THROUGH THE RTC THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN REDIRECTED TO THE METRO BUDGET AND, OF COURSE, THAT CONCERNS ME GIVEN THE POOR CONDITION OF OUR ROADS.
I WAS WONDERING IF EITHER ONE OF YOU COULD SPEAK TO THAT.
[01:20:03]
- SURE, I'D BE HAPPY TO.UM, SO THE GRANT OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE HAVE AT THE RTC IS TYPICALLY FOR FUNDING THAT COMES TO THEM BY FORMULA THROUGH THE STATE AND ALSO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
THEN THE RTC TAKES THAT MONEY IN TURN AND MAKES ALL OF THE LOCAL AGENCIES COMPETE FOR THE MONEY.
AND SO IT'S A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE PROCESS AS YOU COULD IMAGINE.
WE'RE COMPETING WITH ALL THE OTHER LOCAL JURISDICTIONS.
THAT'S THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ, CITY OF WATSONVILLE, CITY OF CAPITOLA, CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY, BUT ALSO METRO GETS TO GET IN THERE AND COMPETE WITH ROAD MONEY AS WELL.
AND THERE'S SEVERAL NONPROFITS THAT ARE ALLOWED TO COME IN AND COMPETE FOR THOSE FUNDS AS WELL.
AND SO, LIKE I SAID, IT'S A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE PROGRAM.
UM, THE- IT'S LIKE A BIANNUAL PROGRAM.
THEY- THEY TRY TO- WHAT THEY DO IS THEY KIND OF SAVE UP ALL THE MONIES THAT COME TO THEM BY FORMULA AND THEN ONCE EVERY TWO YEARS, SOMETIMES IT'S ONCE EVERY THREE YEARS, THEY COBBLE A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT FUNDING SOURCES TOGETHER INTO WHAT THEY CALL THE RTC CONSOLIDATED GRANT PROGRAM.
AND WE HAVE TO GO REALLY HARD AFTER THIS MONEY TO EVEN GET 50% OF IT.
AND I WILL SAY THAT, AS AN EXAMPLE, LET'S SAY THERE'S 20 MILLION DOLLARS AVAILABLE.
WE FEEL LIKE THE COUNTY, UM, SHOULD BE SUCCESSFUL IN WINNING AT LEAST 50% OF THOSE FUNDS.
WE HAVE AROUND 50% OF THE POPULATION IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS. WE HAVE THE WORST PCI OUT OF ANY OF THE LOCAL JURISDICTIONS, UM, AND WE HAVE THE MOST ROAD MILES AND LANE MILES AND THE MOST CHALLENGING TERRAIN TO MAINTAIN AS WELL.
AND SO WHEN WE GET 50% OR MORE, WE FEEL LIKE THAT'S FAIR.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE PAST COUPLE DECADES OF THESE COMPETITIONS, THERE'S BEEN PLENTY OF TIMES WHERE WE'VE GOTTEN LESS, AND I WILL SAY THE RTC GETS TO COMPETE FOR THAT MONEY TOO AS WELL.
SO IT'S A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE PROCESS.
WE WORK REALLY CLOSELY WITH OUR BOARD MEMBERS, BECAUSE YOU GUYS ALL SIT ON THAT- ON THAT COMMISSION AS WELL.
WE TRY TO DO THE VERY BEST WE CAN TO GEO-BALANCE OUR ASKS SO THAT WE'RE GETTING BENEFIT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE 600-MILE ROAD NETWORK.
UM, AND SO WE'LL LOOK FORWARD TO THAT.
I THINK THE NEXT ONE IS COMING THIS FALL.
I THINK THE CALL WILL COME OUT IN AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER SOMETIME.
USUALLY THE GRANTS ARE DUE IN OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, AND IN DECEMBER THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY ANNOUNCE THEIR AWARDS AND THEY TRY TO LINE IT UP WITH THE INFORMATION THAT THEY'RE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT TO THE STATE FOR THE STIP PROGRAM.
BUT THAT'S REALLY JUST A PART OF THE PACKAGE.
- THANK YOU, BECAUSE I DON'T THINK I KNEW THIS INFORMATION BEFORE. - YEAH.
- AND IN TERMS OF THE NONPROFITS THAT ARE COMPETING FOR THE MONEY, WHO- LIKE, WHO ARE THEY? WHAT ARE THE NONPROFITS? - LIKE BIKE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY FOR THEIR COMPLETE STREETS, SOMETIMES THE FRIENDS OF THE RAIL TRAIL, UM, YOU KNOW, LOCAL TRANSPORTATION ADVOCACY GROUPS.
- AND ARE- THE, WELL, THIS IS A LONGER CONVERSATION MAYBE THAT I CAN HAVE WITH YOU LATER, BUT ARE THE GRANTS AWARDED POINTS BASED ON... - THEY HAVE A SCORING... - POPULATION? BIKE LANES? - THEY HAVE A SCORING SYSTEM THAT HAS SEVERAL DIFFERENT CATEGORIES, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY WEIGHT THE SCORES ON.
YEAH, SO IT'S REALLY FAIRLY ORGANIZED, UM, THEY HAVE KIND OF A TRADITIONAL APPLICATION THAT THEY'VE HAD US DO, SO WE'D BE HAPPY TO SHARE WITH YOU PAST APPLICATIONS AND SORT OF WHAT THEIR PROGRAM IS.
AND THEN I MIGHT HAVE MENTIONED THIS ONCE BEFORE, BUT, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO, AGAIN, FORMALLY THANK TRUSTEE THERESA BOND FROM THE LOS GATOS SARATOGA SCHOOL DISTRICT.
SHE AND I WORKED TOGETHER TO GET SOME FEMA MONEY ACTUALLY RELEASED FROM THE US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
I WAS TRYING TO GET IT FOR THE PAJARO, UM, PAJARO KIDS AT PAJARO MIDDLE SCHOOL, AND I WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE THEY WERE ALREADY GIVING US MONEY FOR THE REPAIR OF THE MIDDLE SCHOOL.
HOWEVER, WE WERE SUCCESSFUL IN BRINGING 195,000 DOLLARS TO THE MOUNTAIN CHARLEY COMMUNITY, TO THE SCHOOL DISTRICT SO THEY COULD GIVE ALTERNATE TRANSPORTATION DURING THAT TIME, AND PROBABLY STILL USING THAT FOR THE KIDS THERE.
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH, THERESA, FOR INCLUDING ME IN THAT EFFORT.
- AND THANKS FOR THE REPORT TODAY.
- YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE QUESTIONS FROM, UM, SUPERVISOR DE SERPA KIND OF REMINDED ME OF THE LAST CONVERSATION HAVING TO DO WITH THE ROAD ASSESSMENTS, AND IT REMINDED ME THAT METRO WANTED TO BE PART OF THE RUBRIC OR THE CRITERIA FOR THE ROADS.
UM, I BELIEVE IF THAT'S THE CASE, WE SHOULD CONSIDER FIXING RURAL ROADS AS PART OF THE METRO'S KIND OF SOME OF THEIR THINGS THAT THEY WANT TO ACCOMPLISH AS WELL.
UM, SO I'LL BE HAPPY TO ENTERTAIN SOMETHING LIKE THAT LATER ON.
BUT FIRST, I WANT TO THANK, UM, THE HARD WORK OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE.
YOU KNOW, IT'S OFTEN A THANKLESS JOB, YOU GUYS ARE THE UNSUNG HEROES FOR MOST OF US, MY COLLEAGUES HERE.
RURAL ROADS, POTHOLES ARE THE BRUNT OF OUR CALLS THAT
[01:25:04]
WE GET IN EMAILS.SO I WANT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR ALL THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE.
ACTUALLY, I'VE DRIVEN, UM, EUREKA CANYON LAST WEEK, FOR SOME REASON, I WAS ON HIGHWAY 17, AND IT TOOK ME OFF TO EUREKA CANYON.
I NOTICED THE TWO WASHOUTS ARE BUILT BACK UP, AND THERE'S A LOT OF POTHOLE REPAIR.
IT IS STARTING TO COME BACK UP OUT.
BUT, UM, I'LL SECOND, YOU KNOW, I'LL BACK UP THE EUREKA CANYON TO BE REPAIRED AS WELL AT SOME POINT.
BUT I WANT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS BROUGHT HERE TODAY. FROM THE PARKS, UH, MOUNT CHARLIE, THE SEACLIFF REPAIRS, ALL THE BIKE AND PEDESTRIAN INFRASTRUCTURE, THE BIKE LANES ON SOCAL, LIVE OAK AREA, SWANTON.
BUT OF COURSE, THE NUMBER ONE THAT I'M REALLY HAPPY ABOUT IS THE MURPHY CROSSING AND ROGGE REPAIRS.
I DO HAVE ONE QUESTION, SINCE THERE'S A LOT THERE'S A PROXIMITY TO THE TWO LOCATIONS, IS THAT GOING TO GO AS ONE RFP OR TWO SEPARATE ONES? - WELL, THEY'RE BOTH IN THIS PROJECT, SO THEY'LL GET BID TOGETHER.
AND YOU KNOW, OUR ANTICIPATION WOULD BE IS THAT THEY'D BE DONE BY THE SAME CONTRACTOR IN JUST ABOUT THE SAME PERIOD OF TIME.
WELL, WITH THAT, I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
I'LL MOVE THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
- WE HAVE A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND A SECOND FROM DE SERPA. CAN WE TAKE A ROLL CALL VOTE? - ABSOLUTELY.
- MARTINEZ? - AYE - CUMMINGS? - AYE.
[9. Consider update and presentation on Strategic Plan Community Indicators, and take related actions]
THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS ITEM NUMBER NINE, CONSIDER THE UPDATE AND PRESENTATION OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN COMMUNITY INDICATORS AND TAKE ALL RELATED ACTIONS.I'LL TURN IT OVER TO OUR CAO'S TEAM, NICOLE COBURN, ASSISTANT CAO AND SVEN STAFFORD, PRINCIPAL ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST FOR THE PRESENTATION.
GOOD MORNING, CHAIR HERNANDEZ AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.
I'M NICOLE COBURN, ASSISTANT CAO AND I'M HERE WITH SVEN STAFFORD, A PRINCIPAL ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST IN OUR OFFICE AND TOGETHER WE'RE HERE TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON OUR COMMUNITY INDICATORS. THESE MEASURES ARE WHAT WE USE TO TRACK PROGRESS ON THE COUNTY'S STRATEGIC PLAN AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL.
THIS UPDATE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO RECEIVE TODAY REFLECTS FEEDBACK FROM THE COUNTY'S DATA AND EQUITY TEAM, AS WELL AS THE CIRCLE ON ANTI-RACISM, ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL JUSTICE.
AND WE'RE HERE TO GATHER BOARD INPUT BEFORE WE FINALIZE THESE UPDATES.
SO LET'S START WITH AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE'RE GOING TO COVER TODAY.
SO I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT WE'RE REALLY HERE TO LISTEN TO YOU AND GATHER YOUR THOUGHTS AND HEAR ANY FEEDBACK YOU MIGHT HAVE TO ENSURE THAT THE REVISED INDICATORS REFLECT THE COUNTY'S PRIORITIES AND, IN PARTICULAR, THE BOARD'S PRIORITIES.
SO LET'S BEGIN WITH WHY WE TRACK THESE INDICATORS IN THE FIRST PLACE. THE COUNTY'S MISSION IS TO BE OPEN, RESPONSIVE AND DATA DRIVEN.
COMMUNITY INDICATORS ARE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF ANY STRATEGIC PLAN.
THEY MEASURE OUR RESULTS, THEY HELP US ALIGN WITH OUR PARTNERS IN THE COMMUNITY, AND THEY HOLD US ACCOUNTABLE.
BY ALIGNING THESE INDICATORS WITH OUR BOARD-APPROVED INITIATIVES, WE ENSURE THAT EFFORTS ACROSS COUNTY DEPARTMENTS AND PARTNERS ARE WORKING TOGETHER EFFICIENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY.
NOW LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THESE INDICATORS WERE ORIGINALLY STRUCTURED IN THE 2018 TO 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN.
SO BACK THEN WHEN THE ORIGINAL INDICATORS WERE DEVELOPED IN 2019, WE HAD A TOTAL OF 25 MEASURES SPREAD ACROSS FIVE FOCUS AREAS.
WE ATTACHED A HANDOUT TO THE BOARD ITEM THAT LISTED ALL OF THE 25 MEASURES IN CASE YOU WANTED TO TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THEY WERE.
THEY WERE REALLY FAR REACHING WITHIN EACH OF THOSE AREAS.
THESE INDICATORS HAVE BEEN HELPFUL IN TRACKING OUR BIG PICTURE TRENDS AND, IN PARTICULAR, IN THE AREA OF HOMELESSNESS WHERE INDICATOR WAS TIED TO THE BOARD ADOPTED HOUSING FOR HEALTHY SANTA CRUZ FRAMEWORK.
WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO SEE THE INDICATOR REFLECT THE WORK AND THE RESULTS IN THAT AREA AND SEE SOME IMPROVEMENT.
HOWEVER, OVER TIME, WE'VE LEARNED THAT TRACKING TOO MANY OF THESE MEASURES CAN CREATE CHALLENGES.
SO WHY ARE WE MAKING THESE CHANGES AT THIS TIME TO THE COMMUNITY INDICATORS? LET'S DISCUSS THE MAIN REASONS AND I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO SVEN.
- THANKS, NICOLE. GOOD MORNING, BOARD.
SO OUR NEW INDICATORS ARE REVISING AND INCREASING OUR FOCUS.
WE KNOW THAT WHEN PEOPLE ARE PRESENTED WITH TOO MANY CHOICES, THEY BECOME OVERWHELMED AND THAT CAN LEAD TO A LACK
[01:30:03]
OF FOCUS AND A LACK OF ACTION.MOST OF OUR REPORTS WERE UNCONNECTED TO MEASURES THAT TRACKED IN OTHER COUNTY REPORTS.
AND SO THERE WAS OFTEN A LACK OF ALIGNMENT AND ONE THING THE BOARD HAD MENTIONED LAST TIME WE WERE HERE ON THE STRATEGIC PLAN WAS HOW ARE WE CONNECTING TO OTHER BOARD INITIATIVES AND PRIORITIES.
FINALLY, WE RECEIVED FEEDBACK THAT THE INDICATORS NEEDED TO REFLECT THE EXPERIENCES OF ALL COMMUNITIES IN THE COUNTY, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO ARE HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED.
THIS ALIGNS WITH OUR COUNTY EQUITY STATEMENT AND HELPS US THINK ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS FOR ALL OF US TO BELONG.
SO LET'S LOOK AT THE PROPOSED STREAMLINED INDICATORS AND HOW THEY ALIGN WITH COUNTY PRIORITIES.
WE'VE REDUCED THE NUMBER OF INDICATORS TO EIGHT, ONE PER FOCUS AREA, MAKING IT EASIER TO TRACK PROGRESS AND DRIVE ACTION.
EACH INDICATOR IS DIRECTLY TIED TO AN EXISTING COUNTY INITIATIVE, ENSURING ALIGNMENT WITH BOARD APPROVED PLANS.
AND INSTEAD OF TRACKING, FOR EXAMPLE, MULTIPLE HOUSING RELATED INDICATORS SEPARATELY, WE FOCUS ON, WE'RE FOCUSING ON ONE HERE, HOUSING UNITS ADDED, WHICH TRACKS OUR ALLOCATION FROM THE REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT IS KEY TO MEETING OUR- AND IT'S ALSO KEY TO MEETING OUR GOALS IN THE HOUSING FOR A HEALTHY SANTA CRUZ COUNTY PLAN, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF BUILDING LOW INCOME AND VERY LOW INCOME HOUSING.
I JUST NOTE THAT THIS INDICATOR IS ALSO EASIER TO GRASP IN TERMS OF ITS COMMUNICATION POWER RATHER THAN SOME OF OUR OTHER INDICATORS AROUND, YOU KNOW, SPENDING 30% OF YOUR INCOME ON HOUSING. IT'S JUST A LITTLE BIT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND THE CONNECTION BETWEEN HOUSING UNITS ADDED AND MEETING OUR HOUSING GOALS.
ANOTHER EXAMPLE ON THIS PAGE, AS YOU TAKE A LOOK AT THE OTHER INDICATORS ON HERE IS, INSTEAD OF TRACKING MULTIPLE ENVIRONMENTAL RELATED STATISTICS, WE'RE FOCUSING ON GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS, WHICH IS REALLY THE CORE METRIC PUT FORWARD IN THE CLIMATE ACTION AND ADAPTATION PLAN.
AND THEN IF WE'RE LOOKING AT OUR HEALTH INDICATOR, PREVIOUSLY, WHEN WE TRACKED MULTIPLE INDICATORS, IT OFTEN MADE IT DIFFICULT OR OBFUSCATED THE STORY BEHIND THE DATA. AND BY FOCUSING ON ONE HIGH IMPACT METRIC, WE CAN UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY AND THE NARRATIVES THAT ARE UNDERNEATH HERE.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT ADULTS WHO HAVE A ROUTINE CHECKUP, THIS IS AN IMPORTANT INDICATOR LINKED WITH OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PLAN.
ADULTS WHO HAVE A ROUTINE CHECKUP ARE MORE LIKELY TO MAINTAIN GOOD HEALTH, IN GENERAL.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE COUNTY WIDE TREND HERE, SANTA CRUZ COUNTY RESIDENTS HAVE BETTER ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE THAN OTHER CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS ON AVERAGE.
WHEN WE DISAGGREGATE THAT NUMBER BY REGION, WE CAN START TO SEE A MORE NUANCED STORY.
AND SO REGULAR CHECKUPS IN SOUTH COUNTY ARE LESS PREVALENT THAN IN OTHER REGIONS OF THE COUNTY.
WE KNOW, IN GENERAL, THAT ADULTS WITH INFLEXIBLE WORK HOURS GO TO THE DOCTOR LESS.
WE ALSO KNOW THAT FEWER ADULTS WILL ACCESS THESE KIND OF SAFETY NET PREVENTATIVE SERVICES IF THEY THINK THERE'S ANY RISK THAT THEY OR THEIR FAMILY MIGHT BE PUT AT RISK OF DEPORTATION.
SO THIS REALLY HELPS US FOCUS ON INTENTIONAL GOALS THAT WE MIGHT PUT IN PLACE TO NOT ONLY RAISE ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE FOR EVERYONE, BUT TO TRY TO HELP FOLKS IN SOUTH COUNTY INCREASE THAT ACCESS FASTER.
AND I'LL PASS IT BACK TO NICOLE TO WRAP UP.
- SO IN TERMS OF WHAT WE PLAN NEXT, SO THE NEXT STEP IS TO INTEGRATE THESE INDICATORS AS PART OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN REFRESH PROCESS, ENSURING THEY BECOME A CORE PART OF HOW WE MEASURE SUCCESS.
AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IS IN THIS FALL, WE ARE GOING TO BE USING THESE INDICATORS AS PART OF OUR COMMUNITY OUTREACH TO HELP US DEFINE WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE WITHIN EACH MEASURE.
THIS OUTREACH WILL ALSO ALLOW US TO CO-DEVELOP MEANINGFUL MEASURABLE TARGETS WITHIN EACH INDICATOR THAT ALIGN WITH THE BOARD APPROVED INITIATIVES AND COUNTY PRIORITIES.
THE FINAL SET OF INDICATORS AND TARGETS THAT WE'RE GOING TO TAKE ALL OF YOUR FEEDBACK AND ALL THE FEEDBACK FROM THIS ENGAGEMENT PROCESS WILL BE BROUGHT BACK TO THIS BOARD AND NEXT SPRING OF SPRING OF 2026, ENSURING THAT WE HAVE A CLEAR ROADMAP FOR TRACKING AND IMPROVING COMMUNITY OUTCOMES.
[01:35:02]
SO NOW WE'D REALLY LOVE TO HEAR YOUR FEEDBACK AND ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PROCESS.- I'M GONNA TAKE IT OUT TO THE PUBLIC.
I NOW TURN TO THE PUBLIC TO SEE IF THERE'S ANYONE THAT WISHES TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE APPROACH THE PODIUM.
I'M A VOLUNTEER WITH AN ORGANIZATION THAT HELPS LOW INCOME FAMILIES IN THE SERVICE INDUSTRIES. AND A LOT OF THEM, PERHAPS EVEN THE MAJORITY ARE UNDOCUMENTED.
SO I'M WONDERING IF THIS UPDATE HERE INCLUDES THE NEW CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE WHOLE NATION IS SUFFERING.
MAYBE THERE NEEDS TO BE AN UPDATE OF THE UPDATE FROM THAT FAMILY SECURITY REGARD.
I DON'T EXPECT AN ANSWER, BUT IT'S JUST SO OBVIOUS.
IT'S HANGING IN THE ROOM. THANK YOU.
- THANK YOU. ANYBODY ONLINE? - YES, CHAIR. WE HAVE SPEAKERS ONLINE.
TIM, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- OH, HI. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
SO YEAH, I JUST WONDERED, SIMILAR, I DON'T KNOW HOW ALL THIS PLAYS OUT TODAY, YOU KNOW, UH, I AM QUITE WORRIED ABOUT OUR GOVERNMENT.
THE LACK OF BIPARTISANSHIP IS- IS JUST, IT'S STAGGERING.
AND THE THING IS, IS THEY'RE JUMPING INTO ALL OF OUR PERSONAL DATA AND WHATNOT.
IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE THAT MR. TRUMP IS APPRECIATIVE OF THE ENVIRONMENT.
AND IT'S SO MUCH SO THAT- THAT IT'S JUST MIND BLOWING.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THE LACK OF INCLUSIVENESS, YOU KNOW, LITTLE THINGS LIKE THE MILITARY, LIKE TRYING TO DISAPPEAR THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT BLACK AMERICANS MADE DURING WORLD WAR II AND NATIVE AMERICANS AND PEOPLE FROM THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY, NAMELY ALAN TURING, FOR EXAMPLE.
WE WOULDN'T EVEN EXIST IF IT WASN'T FOR ALAN TURING AND NATIVE AMERICAN PEOPLE THAT ALLOWED THE SITUATION WHERE WE COULD TALK IN SECRET AND WE COULD HEAR THE JAPANESE AND WE COULD DEFEAT THE JAPANESE AT THE BATTLE OF MIDWAY.
SO ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS HERE, WE HAVE A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HERE THAT, UH, DOESN'T APPRECIATE OUR NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY, DOESN'T APPRECIATE INCLUSIVENESS WHATSOEVER, DOESN'T APPRECIATE BLACK PEOPLE. IT'S SO WEIRD.
AND THEY DON'T APPRECIATE THE ENVIRONMENT OF WHICH WE ALL ALL DEPEND ON.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY, NO ONE HERE WANTS A BOWL OF SALAD WITH COBALT AND NICKEL IN IT. SO I DON'T KNOW WHERE WE'RE GOING WITH A GREAT MANY OF THINGS.
AND I'M QUITE WORRIED. ANYWAYS, I LIKED YOUR PRESENTATION.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. TAKE IT EASY. BYE-BYE.
- CALLING USER 2, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
- AS I WAS LISTENING TO YOUR PRESENTATION, I WAS THINKING OF PEOPLE WHO ARE UNHOUSED, SOME OF WHOM TESTIFIED BEFORE YOUR BOARD TODAY.
SO WHEN YOU TALK OF HOUSING INDICATORS, WHAT IS THE REALITY IN THAT HOMELESS PEOPLE ARE BEING RILED UP AND WHAT LITTLE BELONGINGS THEY HAVE ARE BEING TAKEN FROM THEM.
IF SOMEBODY STEALS FROM A HOMEOWNER'S HOUSE, THEY GET IN TROUBLE BUT THE OFFICIALS CAN STEAL FROM THE HOMELESS AND GET AWAY WITH THAT INCLUSIVENESS.
HOW ARE PEOPLE UNHOUSED INCLUDED IN THE HOUSING? THEY'RE NOT. NOT INCLUDED IN THE WEALTH OF THE COUNTRY.
AND WE NOW HAVE A COUNTRY THAT'S RUN BY BILLIONAIRE PLUTOCRATS.
AND SO THERE'S GOING TO BE MORE AND MORE POVERTY.
ANYWAY, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE A LOT OF RHETORIC AND I'M THINKING OF FOOD, NOT BOMBS, THE MONEY SPENT, I'M READING FROM THIS, BY THE WORLD WEAPONS IN ONE WEEK IT'S ENOUGH TO FEED ALL THE PEOPLE ON EARTH FOR A YEAR.
WHEN MILLIONS OF PEOPLE GO HUNGRY, WE COULD SAY UNHOUSED
[01:40:03]
AS WELL, EACH DAY, HOW CAN WE SPEND ANOTHER DOLLAR ON WAR? MORE THAN 25,000 PEOPLE DIE BECAUSE OF HUNGER EVERY DAY.IF YOU FEEL THAT PEOPLE NEED MORE FOOD THAN BOMBS, WE INVITE YOU TO CALL US TODAY, FOOD.BOMBS.NET OR 1-800-884-1136 AND WHAT THEY DO.
- WE HAVE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS, CHAIR.
- I'LL NOW TURN TO- TURN TO MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO SEE IF ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS.
- I'M GOING TO START TO MY IMMEDIATE LEFT, SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ.
UM, THANK YOU TO THE STAFF FOR PROVIDING THIS UPDATE.
IT'S CLEAR THAT YOU'RE CONTINUING TO MAKE PROGRESS ON REFINING OUR APPROACH TO ADDRESSING BIG COUNTYWIDE GOALS.
AND SO I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THIS TO US.
UM, AFTER REVIEWING THE INDICATORS, I DID HAVE A COUPLE, SUGGESTIONS FOR THINGS THAT MIGHT BE MISSING.
THE FIRST IS, YOU KNOW, THROUGH MY ROLE LEADING LARGE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS AND PARTNERING WITH THE HEALTH COMMUNITY, IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A VERY VULNERABLE POPULATION THAT IS STRUGGLING WITH BOTH MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES, UNTREATED SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER, AND HOMELESSNESS.
AND IT'S KIND OF THIS TRIFECTA THAT'S VERY EXPENSIVE.
IT IMPACTS OUR JAIL SYSTEMS AND PUBLIC SAFETY.
IT IMPACTS OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS. OFTEN IT'S A MANDATE OF THE COUNTY TO PROVIDE THESE SAFETY NET SERVICES.
AND SO, UM, AS I THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THESE INDICATORS AND HEALTH AND WELLNESS, I'M NOT QUITE SEEING HOW WE'RE TARGETING THAT REALLY SORT OF VULNERABLE HIGH-RISK AND EXPENSIVE POPULATION.
AND IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL TO CONSIDER, UM, AMENDING THAT ONE TO...
OR SOMETHING IN HERE, ADDING AN INDICATOR REALLY TO TARGET THAT AREA BECAUSE WHILE I COMPLETELY SUPPORT THE ROUTINE CHECKUP INDICATOR, THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, THAT'S FOR FOLKS WHO ARE ABLE TO GET TO A ROUTINE CHECKUP, IT'S CERTAINLY NOT FOR THE FOLKS WHO ARE CYCLING THROUGH OUR SYSTEMS. UM...
I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT, UH, ONE OF THEM, YOU KNOW, UH, WE KNOW THAT SENIORS IS THE FASTEST GROWING POPULATION IN OUR COUNTY.
AND I RECOGNIZE THAT UNDER THE FOCUS AREA COUNTY DEMOGRAPHICS, YOU HAVE INDICATOR POPULATION BY AGE, BUT THAT ONE SEEMS LESS MEASURABLE OR, I MEAN, IT'S VERY MEASURABLE, BUT LIKE, WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO IMPACT WITH IT? I THINK THAT MAYBE IT'S MORE LIKE THE VULNERABILITY OF OUR SENIORS OR THE NEEDS OF OUR SENIORS ARE BEING MET.
UM, YOU KNOW, WITH A LOT OF THESE OTHERS, I CAN SEE HOW MEASURING HOUSING UNITS ADDED SHOWS THAT WE'RE DOING SOMETHING OR MEASURING FAMILIES LIVING UNDER THE POVERTY LEVEL SHOWS THAT WE'RE DOING SOMETHING, BUT MEASURING POPULATION BY AGE, I MEAN, PEOPLE ARE AGING. WE KNOW THAT'S HAPPENING.
SO WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO DO WITH THE AGING POPULATION? I THINK WHAT YOU INTEND IS TO PROVIDE MORE SUPPORTS FOR THEM.
SO, UM, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING TO CONSIDER.
UM, AND LASTLY, [SIGHS] KIND OF A QUESTION AROUND, UM, JUST OVERALL, THERE'S A LOT OF RESILIENCY WORK BEING DISCUSSED AS A COUNTY.
THERE'S A LOT OF WORK, YOU KNOW, RECOGNIZING THAT NATURAL DISASTERS ARE MORE FREQUENT AND IT'S MAKING OUR COMMUNITY MORE VULNERABLE.
I DON'T KNOW WHERE OR HOW IN THESE BUCKETS THAT'S REFLECTED IN THE FOCUS AREAS, BUT I'M WONDERING IF, YOU KNOW, AS YOU KIND OF LOOK TO REFINE THESE THINGS, IF YOU SORT OF CONSIDER THE IMPACTS OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE WELLNESS, THE HEALTH AND WELLNESS OF OUR RESIDENTS, I THINK THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO FACTOR IN.
SO, SO THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS AND DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY REFLECTIONS ON THE QUESTION THAT I POSED.
UM, WE HAVE SIMILAR THOUGHTS AND QUESTIONS ABOUT AREAS THAT MAY NOT CURRENTLY BE ALIVE OR VISIBLE IN OUR CURRENT STRATEGIC PLAN THAT THROUGH ENGAGING WITH YOU AND ENGAGING WITH THE COMMUNITY MAY EMERGE AS A PARTICULAR AREA OF FOCUS THAT WE NEED TO DRAW OUT AND HIGHLIGHT.
AND MAYBE THERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S CURRENTLY IN THE PLAN THAT IS LESS IMPORTANT TO KIND OF CALL OUT NOW.
SO WE'RE GOING TO BE MAKING THOSE REFINEMENTS STARTING HERE WITH YOU ALL.
THIS IS THE START OF THE PROCESS TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHERE WE'RE HEADED IN TERMS OF UPDATING THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
SO I THINK WE'LL HAVE DEFINITELY A BETTER IDEA AND MORE INFORMATION AFTER THIS FALL.
UM, THANK YOU FOR INCORPORATING THOSE SORT OF SUBPOPULATIONS
[01:45:01]
INTO YOUR THINKING AS YOU PROCEED, AND, UM, AND I JUST REALLY APPRECIATE THE EFFORTS TO USE, UM, REALLY JUST COMMUNITY HEALTH AND COMMUNITY WELLNESS AS A DRIVING FACTOR IN THE STRATEGIC PLANNING WORK.AND SO, THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO KEEP US UP TO DATE ON THIS ITEM.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR KOENIG.
- THANK YOU, CHAIR. UH, THANK YOU, STAFF. YEAH.
I APPRECIATE THE EFFORT TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF TOTAL INDICATORS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, AND ALSO REALLY MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE LINKED TO POLICIES THAT THE COUNTY CAN IMPLEMENT.
UM, YOU KNOW, IN THEORY, AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THESE INDICATORS, WE SHOULD BE INSPIRED WITH POLICIES AND PROGRAMS THAT WILL HELP DRIVE THEM IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
AND SO, TO THAT EXTENT, WE REALLY WANT THEM TO BE AS DIRECT AS POSSIBLE. I DEFINITELY SHARE SOME OF THE CONCERNS RAISED BY SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ AROUND SOME OF THEM.
UM, TO START WITH SOME THAT SHE MENTIONED, UM, ABSOLUTELY SOMETHING RELATED TO HOMELESSNESS AND MENTAL HEALTH.
UM, I MEAN, IN MANY WAYS THAT HAS BEEN A RELATIVE SUCCESS STORY IN RECENT YEARS, HOW WE'RE GOING TO MEASURE IF WE'RE CONTINUING TO BE ON TRACK WITH THAT, UM, WOULD IT JUST BE THE POPULATION EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AS MEASURED BY THE POINT-IN-TIME COUNT, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SHOULD, I MEAN, MAYBE WE SHOULD BE TRACKING SHELTER BEDS AND TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS, UM, AS OPPOSED OR IN ADDITION TO JUST OUR TRADITIONAL HOUSING UNITS, UM, AGAIN, BECAUSE IF WE'RE TRACKING SHELTER BEDS AND TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS, WE CAN ALL GET TOGETHER AND BE LIKE, OH, GEEZ, WE REALLY HAVEN'T MADE ANY PROGRESS ON THIS.
MAYBE WE SHOULD MAKE IT EASIER TO ADD TEMPORARY HOUSING, RIGHT? AND HERE'S SEVERAL POLICY OPTIONS TO DO THAT.
SO, ON, UM, ON POPULATION BY AGE, UM, YEAH, WE KNOW THE TRENDS SO HOW ARE WE GOING TO MEASURE OUR SUCCESS? AND WE PROBABLY DON'T HAVE, I MEAN, OTHER THAN CREATING MORE HOUSING TO CREATE, YOU KNOW, MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR FIRST TIME HOMEBUYERS OR FAMILIES WHO LIVE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE DON'T HAVE ALL THAT MUCH IMPACT ON THE OVERALL DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS.
UM, BUT ONE MEASURE THAT OCCURS TO ME FOR EIGHT WOULD BE THE PERCENTAGE OF SENIORS REPORTING LONELINESS OR SOCIAL ISOLATION.
UM, SOMETHING ABOUT THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR OUR SENIORS AND OF COURSE, THAT IS GOING TO HAVE A DIRECT LINKAGE TO THEIR HEALTH OUTCOMES AS WELL.
FOR DYNAMIC ECONOMY, FAMILIES LIVING BELOW 200% OF THE POVERTY LEVEL, BUT I CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THIS VISIBILITY INTO THE PEOPLE EXPERIENCING POVERTY IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AT THE SAME TIME, THIS IS SORT OF AN ENDEMIC CHALLENGE TO OUR TWO MAJOR INDUSTRIES THAT WE HAVE HERE: TOURISM AND AGRICULTURE.
NEITHER PROVIDE A LOT OF HIGH PAYING JOBS, THEY PROVIDE A LOT OF LOW PAYING JOBS, AND THEREFORE, UM, WE NEED A POPULATION TO DO THOSE JOBS AND NATURALLY THEY'RE NOT HAVING AN EASY TIME GETTING, UH, YOU KNOW, GROWING THEIR WAGES.
SO THIS IS ONE OF THOSE METRICS WHERE IT'S LIKE, OKAY, SO WHAT SHOULD WE DO ABOUT THIS? SHOULD WE BE LIKE TRYING TO INCREASE THE LOCAL MINIMUM WAGE? OR ARE WE PUTTING ALL THESE REQUIREMENTS ON BUSINESS? UM, OR SOMETHING ELSE.
I MEAN, MAYBE IF WE JUST MEASURED JOB GROWTH BY INCOME LEVEL WITHIN THE COUNTY, WE WOULD HAVE A BETTER SENSE OF, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE'RE MAKING POSITIVE GAINS AS WELL AND OTHER THINGS LIKE WHATEVER THAT IS, EDUCATION AND HEALTHCARE, UM, IN ADDITION TO UNDERSTANDING, UM, YOU KNOW, WHETHER, UM, YOU KNOW, THE TOURISM AND AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES ARE SORT OF JUST REMAINING FLAT OR NOT, OR GROWING.
AND THE LAST ONE IS THE STRONG START SCORE, THRIVING FAMILIES.
THIS IS ANOTHER ONE, IT'S A LITTLE BIT SQUISHY, I WAS LOOKING INTO WHAT THE STRONG START SCORE ENTAILS AND IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S A COLLECTION OF THINGS, HEALTHY BIRTH WEIGHT, ADEQUATE PRENATAL CARE, HIGHER PARENTAL EDUCATION LEVEL, STABLE HOUSING, ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE.
SO THOSE LAST TWO, STABLE HOUSING AND ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE, THOSE ARE SORT OF LIKE OTHER INDICATORS WE ALREADY HAVE IN TERMS OF OVERALL NUMBER OF HOUSING UNITS THAT WE'RE ADDING OR REGULAR CHECKUPS.
MY CONCERN IS JUST LIKE, IT'S BECAUSE IT'S AN AGGREGATE NUMBER THAT WE PROBABLY ALL DON'T KNOW HOW IT'S AGGREGATED OFF THE TOP OF OUR HEAD, IT MIGHT THEREFORE BE HARDER TO HAVE A DIRECT CORRELATION TO THE THINGS THE COUNTY'S DOING TO IMPROVE IT.
UM, MAYBE SOMETHING ALONG THE LINES OF CHILDCARE COST BURDEN.
UM, AGAIN, SO WE HAVE JUST A VERY CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF, IS CHILDCARE AFFORDABLE IN OUR COMMUNITY? IS THAT SUPPORTING PEOPLE IN RAISING HEALTHY CHILDREN? THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS AND A CLARIFICATION.
[01:50:03]
UH, ARE YOU LOOKING, I MEAN, ARE WE SORT OF, IS THIS A BRAINSTORMING SESSION? ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A MOTION ON WHAT THE- [CROSSTALK][INAUDIBLE] - WE'RE NOT PROOFING THEM TODAY, WE'RE JUST TAKING YOUR FEEDBACK AND THOUGHTS TO INCORPORATE AND THINK AS WE REFINE THESE AND WORK TOWARDS ENGAGEMENT LATER ON WITH THE COMMUNITY.- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS.
- THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION ON THIS ITEM.
UM, I'LL TRY TO JUST GET TO THE POINT WITH A NUMBER OF THE AREAS WHERE I HAVE A LITTLE- I HAVE SOME SUGGESTIONS.
UNDER COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH AND SAFETY, ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK MIGHT BE, AND I KNOW WE'RE TRYING TO CONSTRAIN THESE AND NOT ADD TOO MUCH, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, RECIDIVISM I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS MEASURABLE AND THAT PEOPLE REALLY WANT TO SEE REDUCED HERE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
SO ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING IN THE SYSTEM JUST ENDING UP IN A VICIOUS CYCLE WITHIN THE SYSTEM OR DO WE HAVE PROGRAMS IN PLACE THAT ARE ACTUALLY SUPPORTING THOSE PEOPLE SO THAT WHEN THEY'RE IN THE SYSTEM, THEY ACTUALLY COME OUT AND MOVE ON TO HAVE A BETTER, MORE SUSTAINABLE LIFE? I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT A LOT OF FOLKS WANT TO SEE AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S MEASURABLE.
SUSTAINABLE HOUSING, WITH THIS SECTION, I HAVE A LITTLE OF- I GUESS MY MAIN CONCERN IS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, HISTORICALLY, OR AT LEAST IN THE PAST, A COUPLE OF THE PAST HOUSING ELEMENT CYCLES WE HAVE NOT BEEN MEETING ARE VERY LOW AND LOW HOUSING LEVELS.
AND SO FOR ME, THE BIGGEST CONCERN IS THAT WE MEET OUR MARKET RATE AND WE COUNT THAT TOWARDS, YOU KNOW, INCREASING, UH, THE NUMBER OF UNITS ADDED AND THEN WE MOVE INTO OUR NEXT CYCLE AND WE MEET OUR MARKET RATE, BUT WE'RE NOT MEETING OUR VERY LOW AND LOW AND SO IT WILL SEEM LIKE, YES, WE ARE BUILDING MORE HOUSING, BUT THEN IT'S LIKE HOUSING FOR WHO? AND WE KNOW THAT THE HOUSING THAT WE NEED, TO SUPERVISOR KOENIG'S POINT, IS FOR A LOT OF FOLKS WHO ARE WORKING WITHIN THESE LOWER SECTOR INDUSTRIES IN TERMS OF THE INCOMES THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO GENERATE.
SO, LIKE, ARE WE BUILDING FARMWORKER HOUSING? ARE WE BUILDING HOUSING FOR THE PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THE TOURIST INDUSTRY? AND SO, I THINK IT'S REALLY CRITICAL THAT THAT'S KIND OF BROKEN APART AND SO MAYBE IF IT'S SUSTAINABLE HOUSING AND WE LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF UNITS THAT ARE BEING BUILT IN THOSE DIFFERENT INCOME CATEGORIES, RATHER THAN LUMPING THEM ALL TOGETHER, IT'LL GIVE US A BETTER SENSE OF IF WE'RE BUILDING THE HOUSING THAT'S REALLY GOING TO BE SUPPORTING OUR COUNTY WORKERS, OUR SMALL BUSINESSES, AND THE PEOPLE WHO WE KNOW STRUGGLE THE MOST TO FIND HOUSING IN THIS COMMUNITY.
I THINK TO SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ AND KOENIG'S POINT AROUND ENVIRONMENT, I'M JUST GOING TO JUMP, SORRY, A LITTLE BIT DOWN TO SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT.
UM, SOMETHING REALLY NEEDS TO BE ADDED IN THERE AROUND ENVIRONMENTAL RESILIENCY.
I THINK THE LAST WE'VE SEEN ARE THE IMPACTS FROM FIRES AND FLOODS AND COASTAL STORM ACTION, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE ACTUALLY MEASURING, HOW RESILIENT WE'RE GOING TO BE MOVING FORWARD UNDER CHANGING CLIMATE? AND I KNOW WE'RE WORKING ON OUR SEA LEVEL RISE ADAPTATION PLAN AND WE HAVE A NUMBER OF THINGS IN THE WORKS, SO I THINK THAT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO INCORPORATE THAT INTO THIS SO THAT WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT HOW WE'RE MAKING A MORE CLIMATE RESILIENT COMMUNITY, THAT WE CAN SEE IT REFLECTED IN THIS.
I THINK THAT IT WOULD BE NICE TO ADD SOMETHING IN THERE AROUND JUST BIKE LANES AND ALTERNATIVES TO CARS BECAUSE, AS WE'RE BUILDING OUT THE RAIL TRAIL, AS WE'RE, YOU KNOW, BUILDING MORE SAFETY LANES, IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN TRACK IN TERMS OF HOW WE'RE PROVIDING MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO GET OUT OF THEIR CARS AND ONTO OTHER FORMS OF ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY TRANSPORTATION.
AND SO SOMETHING AROUND THAT WOULD BE, I THINK, AN ADDED BENEFIT.
AND THEN AS IT RELATES TO DYNAMIC ECONOMY, I'M NOT- I'M NOT SURE HOW TO- TO EXPRESS THIS, BUT I THINK SOMETHING THAT WILL BE WORTHWHILE.
I MEAN, I THINK WE LOOK AT TOTAL EMPLOYMENT, BUT ALSO TRACKING BUSINESSES OVER TIME WHO'S COMING INTO OUR COMMUNITY AND LEAVING.
AS THINGS GET MORE EXPENSIVE, WE DO SEE THAT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, SMALL BUSINESSES ARE SHUTTING DOWN.
WHEN I LOOK AROUND THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ IN MY DISTRICT, THERE'S SO MANY VACANT STOREFRONTS.
AND SO IF WE'RE ABLE TO TRACK HOW WE'RE MAINTAINING SMALL BUSINESSES AND SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESSES, IT'S GOING TO BE REALLY CRITICAL TO ENSURING THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE A BUSINESS FRIENDLY COMMUNITY FOR SMALL BUSINESSES AND WE'RE NOT JUST LOSING THEM LEFT AND RIGHT.
SO THAT CONCLUDES MY COMMENTS FOR NOW, AND I'M HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP WITH YOU ALL OFFLINE, BUT JUST WANTED TO SHARE THOSE THOUGHTS WITH YOU ALL TODAY.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR DE SERPA.
UM, YOU KNOW, IN FUTURE STAFF REPORTS, IT WOULD BE GOOD TO KNOW, LIKE I THOUGHT POTENTIALLY WE WERE VOTING ON THIS TODAY.
I DIDN'T REALIZE THIS WAS A TIME FOR A LOT OF INPUT.
SO WITH THAT, THE THING IS THESE PLANS ARE TEDIOUS AND THE
[01:55:06]
STAFF IS SO, SO BUSY THAT I UNDERSTAND CONNECTING THESE GOALS TO WHAT PEOPLE ARE WORKING ON, RIGHT? SO THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY HAVE A PRODUCT AT THE END OF THE YEAR TO SHOW WHAT'S GUIDING THE WORK.AND IT'S A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK FOR NOT ONLY STAFF, BUT ALSO FOR PEOPLE IN OUR DEPARTMENTS.
SO UNDER COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH AND SAFETY, CERTAINLY WHAT SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ SAID REGARDING MENTAL HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ME.
WE HAVE PEOPLE, I THINK MORE THAN 70, ALMOST 75 PEOPLE DIED LAST YEAR ON THE STREETS.
UM, THE FENTANYL EPIDEMIC AND JUST EXPOSURE TO THE ELEMENTS FOR OUR HOMELESS OR UNHOUSED POPULATION THAT ARE GRAVELY DISABLED NEEDS TO BE A PRIORITY FOR OUR COUNTY.
WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO HELP THOSE PEOPLE AND WE'RE NOT DOING IT.
[SNEEZING] UM, UNDER ATTAINABLE HOUSING, I LOOK FORWARD TO A REPORT COMING IN FRONT OF THIS BOARD REGARDING ANY PROJECTS THAT ARE OUT THERE ANY PROPERTY THAT WE COULD CONVERT TO HOUSING, NOT ONLY IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO AS A COUNTY.
YOU KNOW, I WAS LOOKING- I HAD A REPORT BY THE DEVELOPERS WHO WERE GOING TO BE WORKING ON THE PAR THREE COURSE. I UNDERSTAND THAT'S NOW FALLEN THROUGH, BUT THERE HAD BEEN A BIG ELEMENT THERE FOR NOT ONLY SENIORS, BUT FOR FAMILIES THAT ARE LOW AND MODERATE INCOME.
AND, UM, WE NEED TO HELP THESE THINGS GET UNDERWAY MORE QUICKLY.
UNDER RELIABLE TRANSPORTATION, THIS WAS A CONSTITUENT REQUEST TO ASK ABOUT THE PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX IN RELATION TO WALKABILITY AND BIKE LANES, AND I SEE THAT IT SAYS NEIGHBORHOOD WALKABILITY SCORE, BUT NO OTHER INFORMATION THERE.
AND THIS WAS A RESIDENT WHO LIVES IN SEACLIFF, WHO'S A COMMUNITY LEADER. THERE'S NO WAY TO EASILY GET FROM SEACLIFF OVER TO APTOS VILLAGE, IT'S JUST NOT SAFE.
SO SHE WAS HOPING THAT SOMEHOW THAT COULD BE WOVEN INTO THIS PLAN, UM, COUNTYWIDE.
UM, SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENTS. SINCE WE DID HAVE THE BATTERY, THE BEST FACILITY HAVE THE FIRE.
UM, I, IT'S- TO ME, IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT REDUCING GREENHOUSE EMISSIONS, BUT IT'S MORE ABOUT ENERGY SAFETY AT THIS POINT.
LIKE HOW ARE WE GOING TO STORE ENERGY IN A WAY.
WE NEED GREEN ENERGY, WE CAN PRODUCE IT, BUT IT NEEDS TO BE STORED AND TRANSMITTED VERY, VERY SAFELY.
SO IF THAT CAN BE WOVEN IN, I'D APPRECIATE IT.
AND THEN UNDER DYNAMIC ECONOMY, UM, THANK YOU TO SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS, UM, THIS IS ONE OF MY, UM, REALLY SOMETHING THAT I'M VERY INTERESTED IN IS BRINGING MORE MONEY TO OUR GENERAL FUND TO THE EXTENT THAT WE COULD HAVE A VERY COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ABOUT HOW WE CAN SPUR OUR ECONOMY, HOLD ON TO BUSINESSES, IMPORTANT BUSINESSES, AND INCREASE THOSE BUSINESSES, NOT JUST IN THE RETAIL WAY, BUT INVESTMENTS IN COMPANIES THAT ARE TECH COMPANIES OR GREEN TECH COMPANIES OR ET CETERA, ET CETERA. I THINK I'D LIKE TO SEE A NICE PLAN ABOUT THAT WOVEN IN, WHICH I THINK ARE THINGS THAT YOU ALL ARE PROBABLY ALREADY WORKING ON, BUT.
- THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT.
- THANK YOU. I'LL KEEP MY COMMENTS BRIEF.
WELL, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU TO ALL THE CAO STAFF FOR ALL THE HARD AND DILIGENT WORK ON THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
UM, YOU KNOW, I- I REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT'S IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN, OUR VISION.
UM, I WANT TO REITERATE OUR VISION THAT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY IS A A HEALTHY, SAFE, AND MORE AFFORDABLE COMMUNITY THAT IS CULTURALLY DIVERSE AND ECONOMICALLY INCLUSIVE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY VIBRANT.
YOU KNOW, I FEEL THAT- I APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK, BUT I FEEL THE BRUNT OF IT IS HOW DO WE GET THERE, RIGHT? HOW DO, UH- THE STEPS THAT WE TAKE TO GET THERE, THE DIRECTION THAT WE TAKE TO GET THERE, YOU KNOW, THINGS, LIKE, THAT ARE SOLID, RIGHT? LIKE EVERY FUNDING DECISION REQUIRES A LENS OF EQUITY.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE TALK ABOUT AFFORDABLE COMMUNITIES, YET, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE THINGS LIKE DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE THE WAY THE CITY OF WATSON DOES.
UM, SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT I'M GOING TO BE LOOKING AT
[02:00:01]
LATER ON, LIKE THE STEPS TO ACTUALLY GET TO THESE GOALS THAT WE HAVE. UM, BUT, YEAH, THAT PRETTY MUCH CONCLUDES MY COMMENTS.IF ANYBODY ELSE DOESN'T HAVE ANY COMMENTS, I'LL TAKE IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO SEE IF WE CAN ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE PRESENTATION.
- I'LL MOVE TO ACCEPT THE PRESENTATION.
YOU NEED AN ACTION, CORRECT? - YEAH, JUST TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
- WE HAVE A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR DE SERPA AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG. CAN WE TAKE A ROLL CALL VOTE? - ABSOLUTELY.
- AYE. MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY.
[10. Consider notice of intent to establish a County Fire Department Advisory Group, and take related actions]
NEXT WE'LL MOVE TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, NUMBER 10.CONSIDER A NOTICE OF INTENT TO ESTABLISH A COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY GROUP AND TAKE ALL RELATED ACTIONS.
I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MICHAEL BEATON, DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT, AND CHIEF JED WILSON OF CAL FIRE FOR THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU.
- UH, THANK YOU, BOARD, CHAIR HERNANDEZ, MICHAEL BEATON, DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES AND COUNTY FIRE CONTRACT ADMINISTRATOR.
WITH ME TODAY IS THE CAL FIRE SAN MATEO SANTA CRUZ UNIT CHIEF, AND BY AGREEMENT, YOUR COUNTY FIRE CHIEF, CHIEF WILSON.
TODAY WE'LL BE GIVING A PRESENTATION ABOUT THE CREATION OF THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP.
AS A HISTORICAL CONTEXT, THE COUNTY FIRE PROTECTION FOR SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HAS PRIMARILY BEEN PROVIDED THROUGH A COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT WITH THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, CAL FIRE SINCE 1948.
THE AGREEMENT WAS ORIGINALLY SIGNED BY THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ IN 1945 FOR THE CREATION OF THE, I THINK, ONE OF THE LONGEST STANDING COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS WITH THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FOR FIRE PROTECTION. TO HELP ADVISE THE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT, THE COUNTY USED TO HAVE A BOARD APPOINTED COMMISSION, WHICH WAS DISSOLVED LAST CALENDAR YEAR AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF THOSE COMMISSION MEMBERS WITH THE RECOMMENDATION TO CREATE A DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP, WHAT IS BEING RECOMMENDED TODAY FOR YOUR BOARD.
WITH THAT, I'LL TOSS IT OVER TO CHIEF WILSON TO WALK US THROUGH SOME OF THE OPERATIONAL PROCEDURES RELATED TO THE GOVERNANCE OF THE DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP.
- GOOD MORNING, CHAIR AND BOARD. THANK YOU, MR. BEATON.
SO I'M GOING TO RUN THROUGH PARTIALLY PART OF THE PRESENTATION AND THEN TURN IT OVER TO MICHAEL.
AND LET'S SEE IF THAT'S WORKING.
OKAY, SO THE PURPOSE OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY GROUP IS TO PROVIDE INSIGHT TO THE GSD ON THE MATTERS RELATED TO COUNTY FIRE. WE HAVE A VERY DIVERSE COMMUNITY IN OUR COUNTY AND MAKING SURE THAT THOSE PEOPLE AND CONSTITUENTS IN CSA 48 ARE PROTECTED AND PROMOTED WILL BE THE PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY OF THIS GROUP.
THE TERM OF THIS GROUP WILL BE ONCE THE BOARD APPROVES WRITTEN NOTICE THAT IT'S BEEN ADOPTED, AND THEN AN ESTIMATED TERMINATION DATE OF DECEMBER 31, 2026. AND THE DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO EXTEND THAT TERM WITH NOTICE TO THE BOARD.
UH, THIS- THIS GROUP, EXCUSE ME, WOULD NOT OPERATE UNDER THE BROWN ACT, SO IT WOULD NOT BE UNDER THE RULES OF THE BROWN ACT.
IT WOULD OPERATE WITHOUT FORMAL BYLAWS, BUT THE DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES WOULD OVERSEE AND DETERMINE NECESSARY PROCEDURES AND CONDUCT, UH, THE CONDUCT OF THE BUSINESS OF THIS GROUP.
AND THERE ARE SOME COUNTY CODE SECTIONS NOTED THERE, BUT I WILL NOT READ THOSE OUT FOR YOU.
THE MEMBERSHIP OF THIS BOARD WOULD EITHER BE A RESIDENT FROM SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, OR SOMEBODY WHO WORKS WITHIN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY.
AT NO POINT IN TIME WOULD THERE BE LESS THAN FIVE APPOINTED INDIVIDUALS TO THIS GROUP.
UM, IT IS- THE INITIAL INVITATION FOR THIS GROUP WILL BE THOSE FORMER MEMBERS OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION.
AND THAT WILL ALLOW FOR THERE TO BE SOME CONTINUITY AND UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT COUNTY FIRE IS AND HOW IT WORKS WITH GSD.
AND THEN FROM THERE, IT WOULD MOVE FORWARD.
UM, IF YOU- IF SOMEONE WAS INTERESTED IN REQUESTING MEMBERSHIP, THEY WOULD DO SO THROUGH THE DIRECTOR OF GENERAL SERVICES IN EITHER AN ELECTRONIC OR WRITTEN FORMAT, AT WHICH THEY WOULD BE EVALUATED TO SEE IF THEY HAVE THE, UM, THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE TOPIC BEING DISCUSSED BY THE GROUP.
SO THE TERMS OF THE MEMBERSHIP, THEY'RE TO SERVE THE TERM OF THE GROUP.
HOWEVER, THE IDEA BEHIND THE GROUP IS THAT IT WILL BE ADJUSTED AS NEEDED.
SO SOME EXAMPLES I HAVE ARE IF THEIR TOPIC IS FINANCE AND
[02:05:02]
BUDGET, IT WOULD PROBABLY BE SOMEONE WHO HAS A BACKGROUND IN FINANCE AND BUDGET WITHIN THE COUNTY.SO WE CAN DO FORECASTING AND HAVE GOOD TRANSPARENCY THERE.
WE COMPLETED THE MASTER PLAN, WHICH WAS APPROVED BY THE BOARD LAST YEAR.
THE NEXT STEP IS THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
SO MOVING FORWARD WITH THE STRATEGIC PLAN, PEOPLE THAT HAVE A BACKGROUND IN THAT HAVE SEEN WHAT A STRATEGIC PLAN IS AND HOW IT IS IMPLEMENTED.
SO THAT MIGHT BE A RETIRED FIRE CHIEF THAT LIVES WITHIN THE COUNTY OR ONE OF YOUR DISTRICTS OR SOMEBODY WITH SOME HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE.
AND THEN THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR REORGANIZATION WITHIN COUNTY FIRE. SO IT WOULD ALSO BE BRINGING IN PEOPLE THAT HAVE PARTICIPATED IN A REORGANIZATION WITHIN THE COUNTY THAT MAYBE IS UNDER THE LAFCO RECOMMENDATION SO THAT GSD IS GETTING A GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE.
SUBCOMMITTEES. UH, THERE WILL BE THE ABILITY FOR SUBCOMMITTEES.
THIS WILL BE AT THE DIRECTOR OF GSD'S DETERMINATION IF A SUBCOMMITTEE IS NEEDED TO BE FORMED.
THEY WILL BE HELD AS NEEDED, VIRTUALLY OR IN LOCATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTY.
AS PREVIOUSLY STATED, WE HAVE A VERY DIVERSE COUNTY.
IT'S GEOGRAPHICALLY SMALL, BUT ALSO GEOGRAPHICALLY LARGE.
SO IF YOU'RE UP IN BOULDER CREEK AND YOU NEED TO GO TO A MEETING IN WATSONVILLE, AS SOME OF US KNOW, THAT IS A TREK.
SO VIRTUAL MEETINGS WILL BE AN OPTION SO THAT WE ARE AFFORDING THAT OPPORTUNITY FOR EVERYBODY WHO'S ON THE GROUP TO PARTICIPATE.
THERE WILL BE NO QUORUM REQUIREMENT AND THE DIRECTOR OF GSD WILL FACILITATE THOSE MEETINGS.
THE NOTICE OF THE MEETINGS WILL BE POSTED ON THE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT WEBPAGE 72 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING AND AN EMAIL TO ALL OF THOSE THAT ARE TO ATTEND WOULD BE SENT OUT WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY WOULD RESPOND WITHIN 48 HOURS IF THEY WERE GOING TO BE ATTENDING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A VIABLE MEETING AND NOT WASTING INDIVIDUALS' TIMES.
THE NOTICES OF MEETINGS, THE SECOND PART HERE IS INVITING THE PUBLIC.
THESE MEETINGS NECESSARILY WON'T ALWAYS BE PUBLIC-FACING MEETINGS, BUT THERE WILL BE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC TO HAVE INPUT.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BEING TRANSPARENT WITH THE DECISIONS BEING MADE WITHIN GSD AND COUNTY FIRE TO THE CONSTITUENTS OF CSA 48, AND THEY WILL BE POSTED, AGENDAS, MEETINGS WOULD ALL BE POSTED ON THE WEBSITE, SIMILAR TO WHAT WE DID PRIOR WITH THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO DIRECTOR BEATON.
SO KIND OF WHAT THE CHIEF IDENTIFIED IS WE DO PLAN ON POSTING THE AGENDAS ONTO THE COUNTY FIRE WEBPAGE.
WE'RE ALSO POTENTIALLY GOING TO EXPLORE THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ NEW AGENDA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM WHICH HAS A VERY GOOD PLATFORM FOR THE PUBLIC TO ACTUALLY SEE THE DIFFERENT AGENDA ITEMS AND TOPICS.
MINUTES WILL BE MAINTAINED AND AVAILABLE AND POSTED ON THE COUNTY FIRE WEBPAGE FOR ANY DISCUSSION POINTS THAT MAY ARISE FROM THOSE MEETINGS.
IT IS ANTICIPATED THAT WE'LL HAVE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY GROUP SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT DETAILING THE ROLES, THE OBJECTIVES, SOME OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS THAT WE'VE HAD, THE DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP ACCOMPLISH OVER THE PAST YEAR, THAT THIS REPORT WILL BE SUBMITTED TO THE GSD DIRECTOR ON ANNUAL BASIS, INCLUDING ATTENDANCE.
WE DO ANTICIPATE SENDING THE ATTENDANCE REPORTS TO THE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TO SHOW THE FREQUENCY AND MAYBE SOME OF THE OBJECTIVES THAT HAVE BEEN ACCOMPLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP.
UM, FOR THE DEPARTMENTAL ADVISORY GROUP, ALL RECORDS WILL BE MAINTAINED AS PUBLIC RECORDS AND AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC.
WE DO ANTICIPATE UTILIZING THE COUNTY FIRE WEBPAGE FOR A LOT OF THE REPOSITORY.
IF THERE ARE ANY PAPER COPIES THAT WILL BE MAINTAINED WITHIN GENERAL SERVICES AND AVAILABLE TO ANY AND ALL TO ACTUALLY SEE.
AND WE DO STRONGLY ENCOURAGE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN ANY TOPIC THAT WE DO HAVE.
WE ESPECIALLY, WITH A LOT OF THE ENDEAVORS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED IN THE COUNTY FIRE MASTER PLAN AND SOME OF THE OTHER INITIATIVES THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE EXPLORING, PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IS GONNA BE VERY IMPORTANT, UM, TO HELP GUIDE.
AS PART OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY CODE, UH, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY GROUP WOULD BE ELIGIBLE FOR STIPENDS TO COMPENSATE THEM FOR THEIR WORK AND HELPING OUT THE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS.
WITH THAT, THAT KIND OF COVERS THE OPERATING PROCEDURES.
RELATED TO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY GROUP, AND BOTH CHIEF WILSON AND I ARE AVAILABLE FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS THAT THE BOARD MAY HAVE.
- I'M GONNA TAKE IT OUT TO THE PUBLIC FIRST TO SEE IF ANYONE IN THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT.
[02:10:07]
- THANK YOU, BECKY STEINBRUNER.I LIVE IN CSA 48 AND I HAVE ATTENDED MANY OF THE FORMER FDAC MEETINGS. I HAVE A LOT OF CONCERNS ABOUT THIS AS A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC.
I DON'T SEE HOW IT CAN BE TRANSPARENT FOR A GROUP TO MEET AS NEEDED AND EXPECT ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO KNOW TO GO TO THE WEBSITE AND LOOK WHERE THE MEETING'S GONNA BE HELD, WHETHER OR NOT THE PUBLIC'S EVEN GONNA BE ALLOWED. AND IF WE ARE ALLOWED, IT SAYS WE WOULD ONLY BE ABLE TO SPEAK AT THE END OF THE MEETING. THIS ISN'T RIGHT.
I ALSO DON'T THINK THAT PEOPLE SHOULD BE ON IT WHO DO NOT LIVE IN CSA 48. THAT HAS BEEN A PROBLEM.
IT WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE FDAC. THERE WAS A MEMBER ON THERE THAT WAS NOT SERVED BY COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT AND IT WAS A PROBLEM.
THE COUNTY CHANGED THE RULES THEN.
AND I GUESS THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S RIGHT.
I THINK THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS VERY VAGUE. TO SEND AN ELECTRONIC LETTER OR WRITTEN TO MR. BEATON, BUT THERE'S NO INDICATION HOW TO DO THAT OR WHERE AN APPLICATION FORM WOULD BE, WHAT SORT OF DETAIL WOULD BE USED AS A CRITERIA TO GET ON THIS GROUP.
AND THAT IT'S NOT SUBJECT TO THE BROWN ACT REALLY CONCERNS ME A LOT.
THIS IS NOT, WITH NO FORMAL BY LAWS, THIS IS NOT A STEP TO TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
I THINK IT'S CLOSING THE PUBLIC OUT.
I DO APPRECIATE LAFCO'S ENDEAVOR BEHIND THIS TO TRY TO GET AN ELECTED BOARD OF DIRECTORS TO SERVE ON COUNTY FIRE INSTEAD OF YOU.
NOT THAT YOU ARE NOT GOOD LEADERS, BUT THAT'S THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND THIS.
AND I THINK THAT WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN IS PROPOSITION 172; MONEY NEEDS TO BE DIRECTED TO FUND COUNTY FIRE AND THERE NEEDS TO BE AN AFTER ACTION REPORT WITH THE VOLUNTEERS FROM THE CZU FIRE.
IT'S NEVER BEEN DONE AND IS SORELY NEEDED. THANK YOU.
I WAS JUST WONDERING, WOULD- IS THERE A PLATFORM OR A WAY THAT THE PUBLIC COULD SIGN UP FOR AND BE ON EMAIL LIST FOR WHEN THE MEETINGS ARE HELD AND MAYBE JUST THE MINUTES EVEN AFTER THE MEETINGS, THAT SORT OF THING, LIKE THEY DO WITH MANY CITY BOARD MEETINGS AND THIS MEETING AND SO FORTH.
- ANYONE ONLINE? - YES, CHAIR.
CALLING USER 2, YOUR MICROPHONE'S NOW AVAILABLE.
- I WOULD LIKE EVERY ONE OF BECKY STEINBRUNER'S CRITIQUES AND SUGGESTIONS INCORPORATED INTO A FUTURE PRESENTATION ON THIS TOPIC OF THE FIRE ADVISORY BOARD.
AND IT USED TO BE WHEN MARTY WARMHOUT WAS SUPERVISOR, SHE WOULD HAVE CRITICIZED AND CALLED FOR FUTURE MEETINGS OR INCORPORATE, ANYWAY, I'M THINKING EVERYTHING THAT BECKY SAID MADE SENSE AND MAKES WHAT YOU'RE PROPOSING, ANTI-DEMOCRATIC AND EXCLUSIONARY TO THE PUBLIC.
ANY... WHICH IS, THAT'S ADVISORY BY WHOM.
WE'VE HEARD ABOUT THE LITHIUM BATTERY FIRES, UM, AND THEY HAPPEN WITH E-BIKES, ELECTRIC VEHICLES, CELL TOWERS, SMART METERS, ANY ADVISORY GROUP NEEDS TO ADDRESSING AND CALLING FOR A HALT TO THESE FIRE PRONE DEVICES.
[02:15:04]
FEATHER RIVERWATERSHED ALLIANCE.ORG.ARTICLE HERE CALLED NEW WAVE OF WILD FOREST DESTRUCTION IN NAME OF THINNING AND FALSE CLIMATE SOLUTION, BIOMASS COMING TO YOUR AREA.
WE'RE TOLD AND HEAR OVER AND OVER AGAIN ABOUT THINNING AND CLEARING THE BRUSH... - THANK YOU.
- TIM, YOUR MICROPHONE'S NOW AVAILABLE.
- THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN. YEAH.
BECKY'S COMMENTS ARE INCREDIBLE.
SHE'S A WHOLE LOT SMARTER THAN I AM. THERE'S NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT ONE.
AND THE THING IS HERE, THIS WHOLE ISSUE OF FIRE, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT TOPIC FOR SANTA CRUZ COUNTY GOING INTO THIS SUMMER AND FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS WITH THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.
AND THIS GUY, REMEMBER, HE WAS OUT THERE HOLDING UP A RAKE DURING HIS LAST TERM, OKAY? SO WE DON'T WANNA BE SUBJECTED TO ANY OF THAT.
AND WE CERTAINLY DON'T WANT HOMELESSNESS TO BE AGGRAVATED.
WE ALL KNOW WHAT HAPPENED DOWN THERE IN LOS ANGELES.
SO THAT ALSO PUTS PRESSURE ON OUR COUNTY.
SO HEARING BECKY'S COMMENTS HERE, I AM QUITE CONCERNED ABOUT WHO IS GONNA BE BEHIND THE WHEEL HERE.
AND IT SHOULDN'T BE A SITUATION LIKE IN SOUTH TAHOE OR IN TAHOE BASIN WHERE WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT AREN'T FROM OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THEY'RE THE ONES CALLING THE SHOTS AND THEY'RE DESTROYING THE PLACE.
SO THESE COMMENTS HERE FROM BECKY ARE REAL. IT'S A BIG DEAL, AND I THINK WE ALL NEED TO GET IN FRONT OF THIS. WITH THE SUMMER COMING, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF TIME. AND YOU LOOK ON THE TOP HERE, PROBABLY A LARGER BUFFER OUGHT TO BE CLEARED OUT AND MAYBE MORE WINERIES PUT IN TO CREATE A BUFFER. SO THIS WAY, FIRE DOESN'T CROSS OVER THE TOP AND BURN DOWN THE WHOLE MOUNTAIN INTO SANTA CRUZ.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS TO TALK ABOUT. AND I AM 100% SUPPORTIVE OF BECKY'S COMMENTS ON THIS MATTER.
YOU TAKE IT EASY AND LET'S HOPE THAT IT DOESN'T TURN INTO A SITUATION WHERE, SAY, SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND I ARE BOTH SHARING A TENT ALONG THE SAN LEANDRO RIVER DOWN THERE AFTER A FIRE. THAT WOULD BE HIGHLY BOGUS, I'M SURE.
OKAY, YOU FOLKS HAVE A GREAT DAY.
- WE HAVE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS, CHAIR.
- WITH THAT, I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS.
I'LL BEGIN TO THE IMMEDIATE RIGHT OF ME WITH SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS.
- I WONDER IF WE CAN JUST START BY, SEE IF YOU CAN, UM, COMMENT ON SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT WERE RAISED BY THE PUBLIC.
- YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR.
TO RESPOND TO SOME OF THE COMMENTS THAT WERE JUST IDENTIFIED, UM...
- BY THE WAY, WE HAVE A MAP OF THE DISTRICT. BECAUSE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT I'M INTERESTED IN THE QUESTIONS THAT WERE RAISED BY THE PUBLIC WAS THE SORT OF THE REPRESENTATION OF THE AREA BY REGION SO THAT EVERY REGION IS REPRESENTED AND IS ABLE TO ADVOCATE FOR THAT REGION.
- YEAH. WE ACTUALLY DON'T HAVE A MAP WITH US RIGHT NOW THAT IDENTIFIES COUNTY FIRE, BUT WE CAN ABSOLUTELY SHARE THAT.
I KNOW IT'S AVAILABLE ON THE COUNTY FIRE WEBPAGE. I APOLOGIZE.
WE JUST DON'T HAVE IT RIGHT NOW UNLESS WE CAN GET IT SET UP RIGHT HERE. BUT TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WERE JUST IDENTIFIED, ABSOLUTELY, IF THERE IS SOMEBODY FROM THE PUBLIC THAT WOULD LIKE TO GET ON A MAILING LIST OR GET ADDED TO EVERY SINGLE MEETING THAT WE DO HAVE, I CAN ABSOLUTELY INCLUDE THEM INTO THAT DISTRIBUTION LIST COMPLETELY ACROSS THE BOARD.
THE QUESTION RELATED TO THE BROWN ACT.
SO THE BROWN ACT QUESTION HAS BEEN POPPED UP.
THE PREVIOUS FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION IDENTIFIED THAT THE BROWN ACT FOR WHAT THEY'RE DOING SINCE THEY WERE NOT A DECISION-MAKING BODY REALLY HINDERED THEIR ABILITY TO ACTUALLY HAVE OPEN DIALOGUE AND DISCUSSION AND TO HELP EDUCATE REGARDING DIFFERENT TOPICS RELATED TO COUNTY FIRE.
SO THE RECOMMENDATION THAT WE DO HAVE TODAY FOR YOUR BOARD IS THAT THIS BODY NOT BE A BROWN ACT-GOVERNED BODY, IN LARGE AND PART THAT THIS IS NOT A DECISION-MAKING BODY.
THIS IS REALLY A TRULY AN ADVISORY BODY THAT'S GONNA BE HELPING CHIEF WILSON AND I COME TO THIS BOARD HERE TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS.
SO FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF IT BEING AN ADVISORY CAPACITY AND NOT A DECISION-MAKING BODY IS THE REASON IT'S BEING RECOMMENDED FOR A NON-BROWN ACT COMPONENT.
SO I DO SEE A MAP THAT'S BEEN IDENTIFIED, AND I'LL TOSS IT OVER TO YOU.
- IF I COULD ADD ON THE BROWN ACT ISSUE, ANOTHER ADVANTAGE FOR ADVISORY COMMITTEES IS THEY CAN MEET VIRTUALLY, WHICH IS A BIG ADVANTAGE.
AND THE BROWN ACT COMMITTEE CANNOT MEET VIRTUALLY.
AND THESE ARE FOLKS WHO HAVE OFTEN HAVE OTHER COMMITMENTS
[02:20:01]
AND THEY CAN LOG ON TO ZOOM.SO IT'S EASIER TO MEET AS OPPOSED TO HAVE EVERYBODY COME TOGETHER AND YOU HAVE TROUBLE MEETING A QUORUM.
THERE HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTS AT THE LEGISLATURE TO EXEMPT COMMITTEES FROM THE BROWN ACT, BUT THEY HAVE NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL.
SO ANYWAY, THAT'S ANOTHER ONE OF THE OTHER BIG ADVANTAGES IS THE ABILITY TO MEET VIRTUALLY WHICH MANY OF OUR COMMISSIONS BY THE WAY, HAVE REQUESTED.
CAN WE MEET VIRTUALLY AS OPPOSED TO EVERYBODY TO GET IN THEIR CAR AND JUST DRIVE DOWN.
- I THINK THIS ONE HAS A BIGGER DISTANCE AS WELL, SARATOGA TO CORRALITOS.
- DID YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS ON THE MAP, SUPERVISOR? - YOU ASKED FOR THE MAP, SO I'M HAPPY- I STILL HAVE SOME OF THE COMMENTS, BUT YOU INTERJECTED.
- WELL, SOME OF THE COMMENTS THAT WERE RAISED BY THE PUBLIC WAS HAVING FOLKS THAT LIVE IN THE DISTRICT AND THAT CAN ADVOCATE FOR THEIR, WHETHER IT'S REGION OR FIRE DEPARTMENT AREA, AND HAVE A VOICE, RIGHT? I THINK THAT THAT'S ONE OF THE IMPORTANT THINGS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE AND WHAT WAS RAISED IN SOME OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT.
- JUST SPEAK TO BECKY'S QUESTION ABOUT MEETING NOTICES.
HISTORICALLY, WHAT WE'VE DONE IS WE HAVE AN EMAIL GROUP THAT WHEN WE WOULD DO THE FDAC MINUTES OR AGENDAS, THAT I WOULD ALSO INCLUDE THAT GROUP. SO ANYBODY THAT WANTED TO REQUEST TO BE ADDED TO THAT GROUP, SO THEY HAVE NOTIFICATION THAT THE MEETINGS OCCURRING SHOULD NOT BE ON ITS NORMAL DATE OR OUTSIDE THE NORMAL CADENCE.
SO WE WOULD CONTINUE DOING THAT PROCESS. AND THEN THE QUESTION WAS TALKED ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS.
WE WOULD PUT A FORMALIZED APPLICATION LINK ON THE WEBPAGE, SO THAT INDIVIDUALS CAN COMPLETE AN APPLICATION.
IT'S NOT, UM, UNUNIFORM AS- THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION.
- I DO HEAR THE CONCERNS THAT ARE BEING BROUGHT UP BY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC AND I WAS VERY CONCERNED WITH MOVING AWAY FROM THE COMMISSIONS AND MOVING TOWARDS ADVISORY BOARDS.
I DO THINK THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT YOU ALL HAVE SHOWN IS A LEVEL OF TRANSPARENCY. AND I THINK IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR US TO, WHEN THE GROUP IS SELECTED, THAT WHETHER IT'S A MEMO TO US, I DON'T THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO COME TO THE BOARD, BUT WE AT LEAST KNOW WHO IS ON THAT ADVISORY BODY.
AND SO IF PEOPLE ARE CURIOUS ABOUT WHO'S ACTUALLY SPEAKING TO YOU ALL, WE CAN HAVE CONFIDENCE TO SAY, THESE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO SERVE ON THAT BODY WHO ARE PROVIDING THEIR EXPERTISE AND ADVICE.
UM, I THINK THAT IN ADDITION TO THE- OF THE ATTENDANCE, UM, JUST HAVING, WHETHER IT'S AN ANNUAL REPORT THAT COMES DURING THE BUDGET OR IF IT'S BIANNUAL DURING THE BUDGET AND THE MID-YEAR BUDGET REVIEW, DO WE GET AN UPDATE ON WHAT THE GROUP'S DOING, HOW IT'S BEEN GOING, UM, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THERE IS SOME CONCERN FROM FOLKS AROUND THE REDUCTION OF TRANSPARENCY.
AND I THINK AS WE EMBARK ON THIS NEW WAY OF PROVIDING, YOU KNOW, ALLOWING FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO PROVIDE ADVICE TO OUR, UM, DEPARTMENT HEADS, IT'S JUST REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE'RE UNDERSTANDING HOW THIS PROCESS IS MOVING, AND THE LEVEL OF TRANSPARENCY SO THAT PEOPLE CAN FIND SOME COMFORT AROUND US MOVING IN THIS DIRECTION.
SO, UM, SO I'LL SUPPORT WHAT'S COMING BEFORE US TODAY, BUT I'M GOING TO BE WANTING TO GET SOME FEEDBACK ON HOW THIS IS GOING AND TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE STILL GOING TO HAVE- MAINTAIN WE'RE GONNA BE MAINTAINING TRANSPARENCY AROUND THESE TYPES OF MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR DE SERPA.
- THANK YOU. THANKS FOR THE REPORT.
I'M A LITTLE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE MEETING SCHEDULE, UH, WITH MEETING ON AN AT-NEEDED BASIS. I FEEL LIKE THERE SHOULD BE A REGULAR CADENCE.
UM, I THINK SOME OF THE PEOPLE HAVE MENTIONED THAT, BUT AT LEAST QUARTERLY.
I THINK- I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE DIFFERENT JURISDICTIONS THAT HELP TO, UM, HELP PUBLIC SAFETY IN A FIRE, ET CETERA, UM, I THINK THERE NEED TO BE REGULAR REPORTS THAT COME IN FRONT OF OF THIS ADVISORY GROUP FROM CAL FIRE, FROM, YOU KNOW, ALL THE DIFFERENT AGENCIES.
UM, AND ALSO, I DO BELIEVE THIS GROUP NEEDS TO HAVE A FINGER ON THE PULSE OF OUR COUNTY COMMUNICATION SYSTEM.
I UNDERSTAND WE'RE HOPING TO PUT A NEW COMMUNICATION SYSTEM.
I JUST FEEL LIKE THERE NEEDS TO BE REGULAR MEETINGS.
SO IF THAT COULD BE CHANGED, I WOULD FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE.
AND I LIKE THE IDEA OF IT BEING VIRTUALLY, I THINK ACTUALLY YOU'LL GET MORE PARTICIPATION AND A LOT OF COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AS WELL, PEOPLE WHO COULD SIGN INTO THE MEETINGS.
SO THANK YOU, THANKS FOR BRINGING IT FORWARD.
- THANK YOU, CHIEF AND DIRECTOR BEATON FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, I THINK I'D LIKE TO START OFF BY JUST EXPRESSING THANKS
[02:25:03]
TO THE FORMER MEMBERS OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION FOR THEIR SERVICES AND THEIR INSIGHTS. DID I HEAR YOU CORRECTLY THAT THEY RECOMMENDED THIS ACTION AND THIS CHANGE? OKAY. UM...AND I GUESS THEN I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE ABLE TO BENEFIT FROM THEIR EXPERTISE AS WE TRANSITION TO THIS NEW MODEL.
AND, YOU KNOW, EVEN BEFORE CZU FIRE, THERE WAS A LOT OF INTEREST IN THE OVERSIGHT OF FIRE SERVICE, WHO DELIVERS FIRE SERVICE THROUGHOUT OUR COUNTY AND PARTICULARLY THROUGHOUT THE FIFTH DISTRICT.
AND, UM, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU'RE EXPLORING OTHER CHANGES TO THAT STRUCTURE THROUGH LAFCO.
UM, HOW OFTEN DO YOU IMAGINE REPORTING TO THE BOARD ON YOUR EXPLORATION AROUND POTENTIALLY TRANSITIONING THE COUNTY FIRE TO AN INDEPENDENT DISTRICT? AND ALSO HOW COULD COMMUNITY MEMBERS HAVE INPUT INTO THAT PROCESS? - YES, I CAN PROBABLY ADDRESS THE INPUT QUESTION REAL QUICK.
SO A LOT OF THE MEETINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING RELATED TO THE POTENTIAL LAFCO STUDY OF LOOKING AND EXPLORING OF CONVERTING COUNTY FIRE INTO AN INDEPENDENT FIRE DISTRICT ARE BEING HELD THROUGH LAFCO.
SO LAFCO IS A PUBLIC BODY THAT DOES HAVE PUBLIC MEETINGS.
I DO AGREE. I KNOW THAT WE ARE WORKING DOWN THE PATH HERE TO DO A FEASIBILITY STUDY.
UH, WE WILL OBVIOUSLY WORK WITH THE CAO'S OFFICE TO BRING ITEMS TO THE BOARD AS FAR AS UPDATES AS THAT PROGRESS GOES ON AND AS A NEEDED BASIS.
- AND I GUESS, UM, WHAT I WOULD JUST HOPE IS THAT THERE'S PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITY FOR INPUT AND FOR DISCUSSION FOR RESIDENTS AND THE PUBLIC AS IT RELATES TO THOSE CHANGES.
AND THAT AGAIN, UM, WE'LL CONTINUE TO GET THOSE UPDATES.
UM, SO, YEAH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BRINGING US THIS PRESENTATION AND GOOD LUCK WITH THE NEW STRUCTURE IF THIS IS APPROVED TODAY.
- THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR KOENIG.
- THANK YOU, CHAIR. UM, YEAH, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THE, UH, THE PROPOSAL BEFORE US TODAY.
IT WAS, AS HAS BEEN MENTIONED, THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE FORMER FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE THEMSELVES, UM, AND THIS IS THEIR PROPOSAL ACTUALLY FOR HOW THEY COULD DO THEIR WORK BETTER. SO I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT THEY'LL ALL BE OFFERED MEMBERSHIP FIRST BECAUSE WE HAD ALL, AS SUPERVISORS, APPOINTED THOSE INDIVIDUALS BECAUSE OF THEIR PARTICULAR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE.
UM, REALLY JUST KIND OF A COUPLE OF LARGER QUESTIONS HERE.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY WHAT WE'RE HEARING FROM THE PUBLIC AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED IS I THINK NOT REALLY NECESSARILY SO MUCH TO THIS, UM, PARTICULAR SMALL CHANGE, BUT REALLY RELATED TO THE LARGER PICTURE OF FIRE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, JUST AS AN INCREASING RISK, THE- THE REFLECTION WE'VE SEEN ON INSURANCE RATES, IT'S JUST, I THINK IT'S AN ISSUE THAT'S ON EVERYONE'S MIND MORE AND MORE, AND OBVIOUSLY EVER SINCE THE CZU FIRES.
UM, SO FIRST OF ALL, TO THE- TO THE QUESTION OF CREATING AN INDEPENDENT SPECIAL DISTRICT, UM, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY, AS WAS MENTIONED, LAFCO'S KIND OF LEADING THAT INVESTIGATION.
LAFCO, OF COURSE, IS A, UM, PUBLIC AGENCY AS WELL.
GENERALLY SPEAKING, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, LIKE, A YEAR-LONG PROCESS, YEAR AND A HALF, TWO YEARS. WHAT- WHAT SHOULD- COULD THE PUBLIC KEEP IN MIND AS FAR AS HOW LONG THIS INVESTIGATION IS GOING ON TO INTO THIS POTENTIAL SHIFT AND HOW THEY CAN BE INVOLVED.
- SO CURRENTLY, THE LAFCO PROCESS TO- FOR THE FEASIBILITY STUDY LOOKS TO BE ABOUT 12 TO 18 MONTHS.
UM, AND THAT WOULD TELL US WHERE WE'RE GONNA GO. AT OUR LAST MEETING, IT WAS ABOUT A TWO TO THREE-YEAR TO POSSIBLY FOUR-YEAR FULL IMPLEMENTATION FROM START TO FINISH.
- GOT YOU, SO JUST A YEAR AND A HALF FOR THE FEASIBILITY STUDY, AND THEN IF WE DECIDED- IF LAFCO AND I, I ASSUME THERE'D BE PROBABLY SOME CONSIDERATION BY THIS BOARD AS WELL, DECIDE TO MOVE FORWARD, UM, THEN IT'D BE ANOTHER YEAR AND A HALF TO TWO AND A HALF YEARS TO ACTUALLY IMPLEMENT.
- YES, FOUR YEARS IS THE LONGEST. HOPEFULLY, IF IT WAS DECIDED, SHORTER, YES.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, THE OTHER CORE WORK THAT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION HAS DONE AND THAT, UM, THE ADVISORY GROUP WOULD DO, UH, IS ACTUALLY, UM, IN CONSULTATION ON THE CONTRACT THAT WE HAVE WITH CAL FIRE, WHICH IF I UNDERSTAND CORRECTLY, YOU SAID 1948, IT'S BEEN AROUND SINCE 1948.
THAT'S THE AMADOR CONTRACT. RIGHT, SO OBVIOUSLY KIND OF, UM, SHOWING ITS AGE, I THINK, AND I KNOW THERE'S DISCUSSIONS ON, UM, RENEGOTIATING THAT CONTRACT
[02:30:02]
SO IT WORKS BETTER FOR ALL PARTIES.ARE WE EXPECTING ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES THIS YEAR? UM...
THE CONTRACT IS, IS THAT A JULY TO JUNE CONTRACT SO IT MATCHES THE COUNTY'S FISCAL YEAR? - YES, CORRECT, THE CURRENT AGREEMENT EXPIRES ACTUALLY JUNE 30TH OF THIS YEAR.
WE'RE CURRENTLY IN DISCUSSIONS, I GUESS YOU WOULD SAY, OR NEGOTIATIONS ABOUT WHAT THE NEXT YEAR TERM MIGHT BE.
I KNOW THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CHANGES ON THE STATE LEVEL SO THERE'S SOME UNCERTAINTY, AT LEAST HOW IT'S GONNA RELATE TO THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ.
SO WE'RE CURRENTLY STILL IN NEGOTIATIONS BUT WE PLAN ON BRINGING AN ITEM TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS FOR CONSIDERATION OF A POTENTIAL EXTENSION, WHETHER IT BE A ONE-YEAR, TWO-YEAR, OR THREE-YEAR.
I THINK THE LAST TIME WE WERE CURRENTLY SPEAKING, IT'S ESSENTIALLY A TWO-YEAR AGREEMENT EXTENSION TO HELP WITH SOME OF THE UNCERTAINTY AT THE STATE LEVEL AS WELL AS TO HELP US REALLY UNDERSTAND THE LAFCO RECOMMENDATION OR STUDY THAT'S GONNA BE HAPPENING WITH THE INDEPENDENT SPECIAL FIRE DISTRICT.
- GOT YOU, SO NO MAJOR CHANGES THIS YEAR ANTICIPATED? - CORRECT.
- ALL RIGHT, THAT'S ALL MY QUESTIONS.
THANKS, I'M IN SUPPORT OF THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
- [INAUDIBLE] ...THERE'S NO MINIMUM ATTENDANCE. ONE PERSON COULD BE A MEETING UNDER THIS- THIS...
- SO, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WANTED TO, UM- THE ONLY CONCERN I GOT, AND I'LL BE SUPPORTIVE AS WELL, BUT THE ONLY CONCERN I HAVE IS IN MAKING SURE THAT A LOT OF THESE LARGER AREAS ARE REPRESENTED BY FOLKS THAT ACTUALLY LIVE THERE.
I'M TALKING ABOUT, LIKE, STATION AREA 23, LOMA PRIETA, LAS CUMBRES, BONNY DOON, UH, DAVENPORT, CORRALITOS, OF COURSE, UH, WHICH IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE LARGEST AREAS, UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE EQUAL REPRESENTATION SO THEY CAN ADVOCATE FOR THINGS IN THEIR- THE FIRE DISTRICT.
WITH THAT, UM, I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
- I MOVE THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
- WE GOT A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR MARTINEZ.
CAN WE TAKE A ROLL CALL VOTE? - CERTAINLY. SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. - AYE.
[CLOSED SESSION AGENDA]
WE'LL NOW BE MOVING INTO OUR CLOSED SESSION.THE BOARD WILL NOW RECESS FOR CLOSED SESSION AND RETURN AT...
COUNTY COUNSEL, WHAT TIME? - NOTHING REPORTABLE TODAY, SO THERE'LL BE NO RETURNING INTO OPEN SESSION.
[END]
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.