[00:00:07] - GOOD MORNING. [CALL TO ORDER] I'D LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE APRIL 14TH, 2026 MEETING OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. WILL THE CLERK PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? - CERTAINLY, CHAIR SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. - HERE. - KOENIG. - HERE. - DESERPA. - PRESENT. - AND MARTINEZ. - PRESENT. - FOR THOSE WHO FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE SPEAKING IN SPANISH LET US KNOW AND SOMEONE WILL TRANSLATE YOUR COMMENT INTO ENGLISH FOR THOSE WHO REQUIRE TRANSLATION FOR THE WHOLE MEETING, WE ASK THAT YOU MAKE ARRANGEMENTS IN ADVANCE WITH THE CLERK OF THE BOARD BY EITHER VISITING THEIR OFFICE IN PERSON, SENDING AN EMAIL TO COBSTAFF@SANTACRUZCOUNTYCA.GOV OR BY CALLING OUR OFFICE AT 831-454-2323. WE CERTAINLY WANNA HEAR FROM NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY. SO PLEASE, UH, REQUEST TRANSLATION IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS A BARRIER FOR YOU. UM, NEXT UP WE WILL HAVE OUR MOMENT OF SILENCE. [MOMENT OF SILENCE AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE] DO ANY OF MY COLLEAGUES WANT TO RECOGNIZE ANYONE? SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. - YES, I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE TWO INDIVIDUALS, UH, FOR TODAY'S MOMENT OF SILENCE. UH, THE FIRST IS REVEREND HERB SCHMIDT, WHO PASSED AWAY ON FEBRUARY 10TH, 2026. AFTER MORE THAN 60 YEARS OF COURAGEOUS MINISTRY DEDICATED TO JUSTICE AND PEACE FOR ALL PEOPLE, REVEREND SCHMIDT DEVOTED HIS LIFE TO SERVING THE MOST VULNERABLE AND ADVOCATING FOR LASTING CHANGE AT HOME AND ABROAD. HIS LEGACY OF COMPASSION AND UNWAVERING COMMITMENT TO SOCIAL JUSTICE HAS LEFT AN INDELIBLE MARK ON THE SANTA CRUZ COMMUNITY AND WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THE GENERATIONS OF LIVES HE INSPIRED. THE NEXT INDIVIDUAL IS ROD DIRIDON SR. WHO PASSED AWAY ON APRIL 3RD, 2026. ROD DIRIDON WAS A DEDICATED AND VISIONARY PUBLIC SERVANT WHO DEDICATED HIS LIFE TO MAKING THINGS BETTER FOR EVERYBODY. AFTER BEING ELECTED SUPERVISOR IN THE 1970S, HIS INCLUSIONARY POLITICS HELPED FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGE THE SANTA CLARA COUNTY BOARD BY MAKING IT MORE PROGRESSIVE, KNOWN AS THE FATHER OF MODERN TRANSIT, HE HAD AN UNFLAPPABLE AND COURAGEOUS PASSION FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION POLICY AND PLANNING IN OUR REGION AND ACROSS THE NATION. - ANY OTHER MOMENTS OF SILENCE? PLEASE JOIN ME IN A MOMENT OF SILENCE. [SILENCE] THANK YOU. PLEASE JOIN ME FOR THE PLEDGE 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] - WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER THREE, CONSIDERATION OF LATE ADDITION OR DELETIONS. UH, CEO COBURN, ARE THERE ANY CHANGES? - YES, WE DO HAVE SOME CHANGES. CHAIR, UM, ON THE REGULAR AGENDA NUMBER NINE, STAFF REQUESTS THAT THE ITEM BE DELETED FROM THE AGENDA. THESE ARE PACKET PAGES 175 THROUGH 177. ON THE CONSENT AGENDA, THERE ARE ADDITIONAL MATERIALS FOR ITEM 12. THIS IS PACKET PAGE 81, WHICH HAS BEEN REPLACED TO CORRECT ACTIONS RECORDED FOR ITEM NUMBER 10. - THANK YOU. AND JUST SO THE PUBLIC IS AWARE, WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO READ WHAT ITEM NUMBER NINE IS? - I CERTAINLY CAN. SO ITEM NUMBER NINE, UM, HERE, LET ME JUST PULL UP THE... ITEM NUMBER NINE IS TO CONSIDER DIRECTING COUNTY STAFF TO WORK WITH THE THIRD DISTRICT OFFICE LOCAL PARTNER AGENCIES AND INTEREST GROUPS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NORTH COAST TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT PROPOSAL AND FINANCING PLAN. - THANK YOU. SO IF YOU WERE HERE TO SPEAK ON THAT ITEM, UM, JUST TO, UH, AS A HEADS UP, THE ITEM HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM TODAY'S AGENDA. [ANNOUNCEMENT BY BOARD MEMBERS OF ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT TO REGULAR AGENDA] UH, I'LL NOW ASK MY COLLEAGUES IF THERE'S ANY ITEMS FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA THAT THEY'D LIKE TO HAVE REMOVED TO THEIR REGULAR AGENDA. SEEING NONE, WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER FIVE, [PUBLIC COMMENT] PUBLIC COMMENT. I'D NOW LIKE TO INVITE THE PUBLIC TO MAKE PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANY ITEM ON THE CONSENT OR CLOSED AGENDA OR ANY ITEM THAT'S SUBJECT MATTER WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF THE BOARD. IF YOU WISH TO SPEAK ON ONE OF THE AGENDA ITEMS ON THE REGULAR AGENDA, I'D LIKE TO ASK YOU SPEAK ON THAT ITEM WHEN THAT ITEM IS HEARD. AGAIN, IF SOMEBODY WOULD LIKE TO GIVE THEIR INPUT IN SPANISH PLEASE ASK FOR TRANSLATION AND WE CAN MAKE THAT AVAILABLE FOR YOU. AND IF YOU INTEND TO SPEAK TODAY DURING PUBLIC COMMENT, CAN YOU EITHER FORM A LINE OR RAISE YOUR HAND SO WE HAVE A SENSE OF HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE IN THE ROOM THAT HOPE TO SPEAK? VERY GOOD. AND IF YOU'RE ON THE PHONE, [00:05:01] WILL YOU PLEASE, UH, RAISE YOUR HAND BY DIALING STAR NINE. MADAM CLERK. HOW MANY DO WE HAVE? - CURRENTLY, THREE INDIVIDUALS HAVE RAISED THEIR HANDS. - GREAT. GIVEN THAT I'LL NOW SET THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR TWO MINUTES EACH. WELCOME. - THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR AND FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS JEFF GAFFNEY, YOUR COUNTY PARKS DIRECTOR. I'M HERE THIS MORNING TO CELEBRATE AN AWARD THAT WE DIDN'T REALLY RECEIVE REAL OR WE RECEIVED A LITTLE BIT OF IT BECAUSE REALLY THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE RECEIVED IT. BUT THEY ASKED US TO BE INCLUDED AND COLLABORATE AS THEY ALWAYS DO. WE WORKED TOGETHER WITH THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE AND COUNTY PARK FRIENDS TO DO AN ASSESSMENT OF OUR COUNTY PARKS IN SOUTH COUNTY SPECIFICALLY. UM, AND THIS WAS AN AWARD-WINNING ASSESSMENT PROCESS THAT WENT, TOOK PLACE. I'M GONNA LET THE OTHER SPEAKERS, GO AHEAD AND TALK ABOUT THAT BUT I'M HERE WITH MARIAH ROBERTS, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR COUNTY PARK FRIENDS, AND NICK CALUBAQUIB, WHO IS DEPUTY CITY MANAGER, PARKS DIRECTOR, AND THE VICE PRESIDENT FOR THE CALIFORNIA PARKS AND RECREATION SOCIETY, WHICH IS, YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. THIS IS SPECIAL FOR US. OUR LITTLE TINY COUNTY DOESN'T GET THIS KIND OF REPRESENTATION. I DON'T KNOW THAT IN MY CAREER WE'VE HAD ANYBODY IN THIS REGION THAT'S BEEN ANYWHERE INVOLVED IN PARKS AND REC SOCIETY LIKE THAT. SO IT'S VERY EXCITING. AND WITH NO FURTHER ADO, I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO MARIAH WHO'S GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT. - THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR SERVICE. MARIAH ROBERTS, UM, WITH COUNTY PARK FRIENDS, WE'RE YOUR NONPROFIT PARTNER TO OUR COUNTYWIDE PARKS DEPARTMENT SERVING EVERY RESIDENT, WHICH IS WHY WE PARTNER WITH ALL THE CITIES, WITH ALL OF YOU TO SERVE EVERY RESIDENT. IN THIS CASE, HOW DO WE LEVERAGE PUBLIC FUNDS IN TIMES OF, MUCH IN TIMES OF SCARCITY? HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD? WE DO DATA, WE DO IT WITH EXCELLENT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND INPUT, AND THAT'S WHAT THIS ASSESSMENT WAS. - GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR. UM, THANKS ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE. MY NAME IS YADIRA FLORES. I AM THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DIRECTOR WITH COUNTY PARK FRIENDS. UM, AND I'M HERE TO, UM, HIGHLIGHT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE YOUNG OUTDOOR LEADERS WITH COUNTY PARK FRIENDS. UM, THEY PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN SUPPORTING THE WATSONVILLE PARK ASSESSMENTS BY HELPING GATHERING MINDFUL COMMUNITY BASED DATA WITH CITY OF WATSONVILLE AND COUNTY PARKS. THIS TEAM WORK DIRECTLY WITH RESIDENTS, PARK USERS AND LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS TO COLLECT FEEDBACK ON PARK CONDITIONS ACCESSIBILITY, SAFETY AND DESIRE IMPROVEMENTS. UM, I ALSO WANNA HIGHLIGHT ALL THESE BILINGUAL YOUTH WERE REALLY HELPFUL DOING THAT AND UH, WE ARE REALLY PROUD. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING, TRICIA WILTSHIRE. I'M THE DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS WITH COUNTY PARK FRIENDS AND I'M JUST HERE TO HIGHLIGHT THE FACT THAT BASED ON THIS ASSESSMENT WE HAVE NOW FOCUSED ON THREE NEW CAPITAL CAMPAIGN PROJECTS. UM, SO IT'S REALLY NICE TO SEE THE DATA TRANSLATED INTO ACTION. THIS INCLUDES A COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE RICHARD NOVAK FOUNDATION TO BUILD A SKATE PARK AT PINTO LAKE COUNTY PARK, UM, TO SECURE FUNDING FOR SOUTH COUNTY'S FIRST NATURAL PLAY AREA AND OTHER COMMUNITY REQUESTED IMPROVEMENTS AT MESA VILLAGE PARK. AND FINALLY, WE ARE ALSO WORKING WITH COUNTY PARK ON THE MASTER PLAN FOR VALLE DEL PÁJARO. THANK YOU SO MUCH. - GOOD MORNING CHAIR MARTINEZ AND BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. AGAIN, MY NAME IS NICK CALUBAQUIB. I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF BEING THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE CALIFORNIA PARKS AND RECREATION SOCIETY'S STATE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AND IN MY DAY JOB, I'M ALSO THE DEPUTY CITY MANAGER AND PARKS DIRECTOR FOR THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE. UM, IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT CPRS IS IT'S THE STRONGEST PROFESSIONAL NETWORKING STRUCTURE AVAILABLE TO PARK AND RECREATION AND LEISURE PROFESSIONALS IN CALIFORNIA TODAY. UH, WITH OVER 4,000 MEMBERS STATEWIDE, CPRS ADVANCES THE PARKS AND RECREATION PROFESSION AND THE PROFESSIONALS WHO MAKE IT THRIVE. UM, THE CPRS ANNUAL AWARDS PROGRAM CELEBRATES OUTSTANDING EXAMPLES OF QUALITY PARK AND, UH, FACILITY DESIGN PROGRAMMING, ACCOMPLISHMENTS EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS, COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP, AND PROFESSIONAL SUCCESSES THAT TAKE PLACE DAILY IN OUR PROFESSION THROUGH FIVE DIFFERENT AWARD CATEGORIES. WE HIGHLIGHT THE PEOPLE, PLACES, SPACES, PROGRAMS, AND STORIES THAT MAKE COMMUNITIES JUST LIKE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY EXTRA SPECIAL. UM, AS ONE OF THE 12 INNOVATION AWARDEES, THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ AND THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE ARE RECEIVING THIS AWARD FOR OUR PARK ASSESSMENT PROJECT AS HAS BEEN, UM, MENTIONED. UM, THE AWARDS PROGRAM THIS YEAR WAS THE MOST COMPETITIVE EVER WITH, UM, 186 APPLICANTS AND ONLY 52 AWARDEES. UH, THIS, UH, UM, IN THIS YEAR'S AWARDS PROGRAM, UM, WE WERE PITTED AGAINST MANY LARGE AGENCIES ACROSS THE STATE INCLUDING SAN JOSE, SAN FRANCISCO, LA AND THE FACT THAT WE'RE RECEIVING THIS AWARD I THINK REALLY SPEAKS VOLUMES TO THE STRONG PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE HAVE HERE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, ESPECIALLY AMONGST OUR RECREATION AND PARK AGENCIES, UM, HERE IN THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ. I THINK WE'RE REALLY ABLE TO LEVERAGE THE RESOURCES THAT, THAT WE HAVE TO CREATE SO MUCH MORE LASTING IMPACT FOR OUR COMMUNITIES WHEN WE WORK TOGETHER AND WHEN ESPECIALLY SMALLER JURISDICTIONS LIKE, LIKE OURS WORK TOGETHER, IT REALLY KIND OF JUST SHINES THROUGH. SO IT'S REALLY MY PLEASURE TO SHARE THIS AWARD, UH, WITH YOUR PARKS DEPARTMENT AND REALLY THE ENTIRE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ. [00:10:02] UM, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF US ON WINNING THE 2025 CPRS INNOVATION AWARD OF EXCELLENCE. - YEAH. THANK YOU. - AND ALSO, UH, THANK YOU FOR THE PROCLAMATION, UH, CHAIRPERSON MARTINEZ AND THE REST OF THE BOARD. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THIS. THIS IS A PROCLAMATION HONORING COUNTY PARKS, WATSONVILLE CITY PARKS, AND THE, UH, COUNTY PARK FRIENDS FOR EVERYTHING YOU JUST HEARD ABOUT. WE CAN READ, UH, LOTS OF LOVELY THINGS. ALL I WILL SAY, UH, IS A DISTINGUISHED AWARD FOR THE WATSONVILLE PARKS ASSESSMENT MAKING PARKS BETTER THROUGH DATA-DRIVEN PRIORITIZATION TOOL, WHICH EXEMPLIFIES INNOVATION, FORWARD THINKING, PUBLIC SERVICE A DEEP COMMITMENT TO IMPROVING THE QUALITY, ACCESSIBILITY, AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF PARKS AND RECREATIONAL SPACES FOR ALL RESIDENTS. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH AND HAVE A GOOD DAY. - CONGRATULATIONS. - GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS CLAUDIA HERRERA-SANDOVAL. I'M THE ASSISTANT DIVISION DIRECTOR FOR THE COUNTY'S, UH, HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT, FAMILY AND CHILDREN'S SERVICES DIVISION. AND I'M HERE TO THANK YOU CHAIR MARTINEZ AND THE BOARD MEMBERS FOR PROCLAIMING APRIL AS CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AWARENESS MONTH. THANK YOU FOR THE PROCLAMATION. THIS PROCLAMATION HELPS EDUCATE THE COMMUNITY ABOUT CHILD MALTREATMENT AND OUR WORK TO PREVENT CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT. AS YOUR PROCLAMATION STATES CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION MONTH OCCURS EVERY APRIL TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF CHILD MALTREATMENT AND THE IMPORTANCE OF PREVENTION. WE KNOW CHILD ABUSE IS PREVENTABLE AND PROMOTING SERVICES THAT SUPPORT CHILDREN AND FAMILIES HELP US PREVENT THE MALTREATMENT. AGAIN, THANK YOU. I WANT TO ALSO INVITE YOU TO ATTEND OUR UPCOMING CHILDREN'S MEMORIAL FLAG RAISING CEREMONY HERE OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE STEPS ON FRIDAY, APRIL 24TH AT NOON AND CHAIR MARTINEZ. THANK YOU. YOU WILL BE LEADING THE CEREMONY AND WE'LL ALSO HEAR FROM COMMUNITY LEADERS ON PREVENTION EFFORTS HONORING CHILDREN WHO HAVE SUFFERED ABUSE AND NEGLECT. THANK YOU AGAIN. - WELL, GOOD MORNING. I'M LETITIA MILLER. I HOPE YOU ALL RECEIVED MY PACKET. I'M A TAXPAYER OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. UH, BEEN HERE, UH, FOR A LONG TIME. I'M A MEMBER OF, UH, SOQUEL. I'VE BEEN THERE SINCE 78 AS A BUSINESS OWNER AND AS A PROPERTY OWNER SINCE 1986. UH, I'M HERE TO ASK THAT THIS PROJECT THAT'S GOING ON AT ROBERTSON, THE LIGHT HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING. WE WERE NOT NOTIFIED. NONE OF US HEARD ABOUT IT. I DID NOT HEAR ABOUT IT UNTIL THURSDAY. I GOT A LETTER FROM BECKY OR AN EMAIL SAYING THANK YOU TO STEVE WHO'S A PROJECT MANAGER SAYING THANK YOU. SO I CALLED AND I SAID, "WHAT'S GOING ON?" WELL, THERE'S A MEETING TONIGHT. AND I SAID, WE DIDN'T GET NOTIFICATION. NO ONE. MY RENTERS DIDN'T GET IT, I DIDN'T GET IT. AND THERE'S SO MUCH THAT'S GOING ON AND TRYING TO GET A PACKET TO YOU. I'M NOT EVEN SURE IF YOU GOT IT YESTERDAY. IT WAS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. I HAD A PICTURE I WANTED SENT. THEY DIDN'T SEND ME THE RIGHT EMAIL. THEY SENT ME SOMETHING THAT I COULDN'T GET. I TRIED TO FAX IT TO YOU, GOT THERE LAST NIGHT, FAXED DIDN'T GO THROUGH. SO I DO HAVE A PICTURE. WE HAVE MAJOR CONCERNS AND THE PEOPLE THAT IT WILL AFFECT ARE NOT EVEN BEING INVOLVED IN THIS. THERE WAS A MEETING BY JOHN LEOPOLD A FEW YEARS BACK WHEN HE WAS HERE AT PUBLIC. I TOLD YOUR ASSISTANT WHO DID CALL ME BACK YESTERDAY ABOUT THREE O'CLOCK AND I APPRECIATE THAT. UM, AND TOLD HER, WHY DON'T YOU GO LOOK AT THE MINUTES OF THAT MEETING. THIS CONCERNS NOT ONLY MYSELF AS A PROPERTY OWNER, THE BUSINESS OWNERS, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, WHO YOU KNOW IS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS. WE HAVE MAJOR CONCERNS AND WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE IT BEFORE THIS GOES ON THE AGENDA. WE'D LIKE TO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING SO THE PEOPLE IT'S REALLY GOING TO AFFECT CAN HAVE THEIR INPUTS. I DO HAVE THE PICTURES IN CASE YOU DIDN'T GET THEM. CAN I GIVE 'EM TO THE CLERK OF THE BOARD? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. - GOOD MORNING, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. MY NAME IS MARIA CADENAS I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF VENTURES, A NONPROFIT BASED IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. AND I WANT TO EXPRESS OUR STRONG SUPPORT FOR THE CREATION OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY YOUTH COMMISSION. THE REPORT IS SANTA CRUZ, LIKE ME, CREATED IN PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN VENTURES AND THE COUNTY SHOWS US SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT. YOUNG PEOPLE ARE ALMOST COMPLETELY MISSING FROM OUR COUNTY DECISION MAKING. YOUTH AND YOUNG ADULTS MAKE UP A SIGNIFICANT SHARE OF OUR COMMUNITY, YET THEY HOLD LESS THAN 1% OF SEATS ON BOARDS AND [INAUDIBLE]. THAT'S NOT BECAUSE YOUNG PEOPLE DON'T CARE, IT'S BECAUSE THE SYSTEM HASN'T CREATED CLEAR ACCESSIBLE PATHS FOR THEM TO PARTICIPATE. THE YOUTH COMMISSION DIRECTLY ADDRESSES THIS GAP. IT CREATES A PERMANENT STRUCTURE FOR YOUTH VOICE AND ENSURES THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE REPRESENTED AND HEARD. THIS COMMISSION ISN'T SYMBOLIC. IT'S EXACTLY THE KIND OF INTENTIONAL ACTION THE REPORT CALLS FOR REMOVING BARRIERS, EXPANDING WHO GETS TO LEAD AND VALUING LIVED EXPERIENCE AS EXPERTISE. [00:15:02] YOUTH ARE ALREADY IMPACTED BY COUNTY DECISIONS ABOUT HOUSING, TRANSPORTATION, EDUCATION, HEALTH AND CLIMATE. THEY DESERVE A REAL SEAT AT THE TABLE. ESTABLISHING A YOUTH COMMISSION IS ALSO AN INVESTMENT IN OUR FUTURE. WHEN WE ENGAGE YOUNG PEOPLE EARLY, WE BUILD STRONG LEADERS, STRONG TRUST IN GOVERNMENT, AND A COUNTY THAT TRULY REFLECTS EVERYONE WHO CALLS IT HOME. I URGE YOU TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING THE WORK OF A SANTA CRUZ LIKE ME, INCLUDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE YOUTH COMMISSION. AND THANK YOU FOR TAKING THIS IMPORTANT STEP TOWARDS SANTA CRUZ THAT PROVIDES A VOICE FOR ALL. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING. UM, I'M SUZANNE WILLIS. I'M THE SENIOR ANALYST IN THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. NEXT TO ME IS MY COLLEAGUE ELIZABETH. - I'M ELIZABETH BIRD AND I'M THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF HOLISTIC DEFENSE AT THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. - SO AFTER MANY YEARS OF WORK, THE COUNTY'S MULTIPLE, MULTIPLE DISCIPLINARY TEAM, UM, HAS COME TOGETHER TO DEPLOY A SYSTEM THAT WILL ALLOW US TO SECURELY SHARE CLIENT DATA. UM, THIS IS IN REGARDS TO CONSENT ITEM NUMBER 35. THIS WILL ALLOW US TO SECURELY SHARE CLIENT DATA IN ORDER TO CREATE A MORE SEAMLESS SERVICES FOR THE CLIENTS THAT OUR COUNTY SERVES. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THIS WORK, IT'S BEEN A JOURNEY. BUT I'M SO PROUD TO HAVE BEEN PART OF THIS MDT. - AND, UM, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT ADVOCACY IS MOST EFFECTIVE WHEN IT'S WELL-INFORMED. FOR OUR OFFICE HAVING A COMPLETE PICTURE IS ESSENTIAL TO PROVIDING THE BEST POSSIBLE REPRESENTATION AND WE ARE INCREDIBLY GRATEFUL FOR YOUR SUPPORT IN THIS DATA SHARING INITIATIVE. BY HELPING US BRIDGE THE GAPS BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS, YOU ARE ALLOWING US TO EVOLVE TOWARD A MORE SEAMLESS WAY TO SERVE OUR CLIENTS AND THE COUNTY AS A WHOLE. UH, WE APPRECIATE YOUR VISION FOR A MORE INTEGRATED AND SUPPORTIVE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. UM, YOUR SUPPORT ALLOWS US TO BE PROACTIVE AND IT TURNS OUR DEPARTMENT INTO A UNIFIED FRONT FOR COMMUNITY SAFETY AND CLIENT SUCCESS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR VISION OF A MORE COLLABORATIVE AND EFFICIENT COUNTY GOVERNMENT. THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. - THANK YOU, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. MY NAME IS LISA ROBINSON. I'M, UM, THE, UH, BOARD PRESIDENT FOR THE SAN LORENZO VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY. ON BEHALF OF THE SAN LORENZO VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY BOARD MEMBERS AND SUPPORTERS, I'D LIKE TO THANK FIFTH DISTRICT SUPERVISOR AND CHAIR MONICA MARTINEZ AND HER OFFICE FOR PROCLAIMING TODAY, APRIL 14TH, 2026, SAN LORENZO VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY DAY IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY IN RECOGNITION OF 50 YEARS AS A NON-PROFIT, SERVING THE COMMUNITY BY SHARING ITS HISTORY AND PROMOTING CIVIC ENGAGEMENT. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING SUPERVISORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. MY NAME IS STEVE LANDAU. I'M PRESIDENT OF DARK SKY SANTA CRUZ. I'M HERE TO THANK YOU ALL AND SUPERVISOR DE SERPA IN PARTICULAR FOR PROCLAIMING THIS WEEK AS, UH, DARK SKY INTERNATIONAL WEEK. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. UH, I'M SURE THAT YOU ARE, UH, FAMILIAR AS EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM LIKELY IS WITH THE IMPACT OF LIGHT AT NIGHT. YOU SEE IT IN GLARE. YOU SEE IT STRAYING INTO HOMES AND BUSINESSES. UM, LIGHT AT NIGHT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO ALL OF US, BUT IT ALSO HAS THE POTENTIAL TO DISRUPT WILDLIFE, IMPACT HUMAN HEALTH AND WELLBEING. UH, WASTE MONEY AND ENERGY AND POTENTIALLY BLOCK OUR VIEW OF THE NIGHTTIME SKY. SO WE'RE FOCUSED ON JUST A FEW THINGS, UH, MAKING SURE THAT LIGHT AT NIGHT IS USEFUL THAT IT'S TARGETED, THAT IT'S LOW LEVEL, IT'S CONTROLLED, AND THAT IT'S WARM. THESE ARE VERY SIMPLE PRINCIPLES. I THANK YOU AGAIN FOR TAKING THE TIME TO RECOGNIZE THIS WEEK AND ITS IMPORTANCE AND LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU IN THE FUTURE. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING BOARD. MY NAME IS RAHSHAN WILLIAMS AND I AM THE PROGRAM COORDINATOR FOR THE COUNTY SAFE USE AND OVERDOSE PREVENTION PROGRAM. I WANT TO THANK THE STAFF AT THE VOLUNTEER CENTER AND VIB COORDINATOR, SUSAN RYDER FOR THEIR HELP LINKING COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO COUNTY PROGRAMS AND MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES. I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE BOARD FOR RECOGNIZING SOME OF THE OUTSTANDING VOLUNTEERS, INCLUDING A GROUP FROM SAFE USE AND OVERDOSE PREVENTION PROGRAM LATER THIS MORNING. VOLUNTEERISM CAN BE SUCH A REWARDING EXPERIENCE AND IS A GREAT WAY TO GET TO KNOW THE STRENGTH OF YOUR COMMUNITY AND ITS NEEDS. I HAVE THE PRIVILEGE TO WORK FOR OUR COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THE WORK CAN BE CHALLENGING AT TIMES, BUT THOSE CHALLENGES ARE WELL WORTH IT. I'M ABLE TO SEE THE BENEFITS OF MY EFFORTS AND RECEIVE FINANCIAL COMPENSATION. THE SAFE USE AND OVERDOSE PREVENTION PROGRAM SUOPP AND I ARE SO GRATEFUL TO THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO GIVE THEIR TIME AND EXPERTISE TO SUPPORT OUR PROGRAM STAFF AND PARTICIPANTS. [00:20:03] THE SUOPP HAS TWO TO THREE HOUR SHIFTS EACH WEEKDAY AND GENERALLY HAS VOLUNTEERS ON EACH OF THOSE SHIFTS. THEY'RE CONSISTENT AND RELIABLE AVAILABILITY. WE HAVE ONE CALL-IN, UH, WHO SUPPORTED A SHIFT A WEEK SINCE FEBRUARY, 2023, AND THESE, UM, VOLUNTEERS HELPED TO STABILIZE OUR PROGRAMMING. UH, THAT BEING SAID, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT, UH, TO MAKE ENDS MEET IN THIS COUNTY AND THIS SUPPORT THAT WE RECEIVE IS NOT, UH, INDEFINITE. UM, SO JUST WE'D LIKE TO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR RECOGNIZING THESE VOLUNTEERS, BUT ALSO CONSIDER THE ACTUAL, UH, NEEDS OF OUR PROGRAMMING, UH, WITHOUT VOLUNTEERS. THANK YOU. - ALL RIGHT. HI, I'M TIM DELANEY. HI, I LIVE UP ON TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN AND, UH, I SPOKEN BEFORE YOU FOLKS MANY TIMES BEFORE. MY CONCERN IS TODAY IS ABOUT DISABILITY ACCESS UP AND DOWN OUR COAST. AND I DON'T, I WOULD PREFER THAT, UH, ACCESS IS NOT ROLLED BACK SO I HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A BEEF WITH THE COMMUNITY. SO THE ANTI-AMERICAN GOVERNMENT OF CARMEL BY THE SEA OF CALIFORNIA WILL NOT ALLOW MY SPRINTER VAN, MY NEW SPRINTER VAN TO PARK ON SCENIC ROAD BETWEEN 8TH AND 13TH AVENUES. SO OUR HORRIBLY DISABLED GRANDMOTHER WHO ENDURED A ROUGH BRAIN SURGERY FOR PARKINSON'S, COULD WATCH HER GRANDCHILDREN SURFING. ALL THIS EVIL WHILE OUR NATION IS AT WAR, AND OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DARE TALK ABOUT CONSCRIPTION CONSCRIPTION OF YOUNG 18 TO 26-YEAR-OLD MEN, AS PETE KU KLUX KLAN HEGSETH VIOLATES PRESIDENT TRUMAN'S EXECUTIVE ORDER 9981, WHICH CLEARLY STATES TO ABOLISH RACIAL DISCRIMINATION WITHIN THE ARMED FORCES AND MANDATES THE INTEGRATION OF THE US MILITARY, A PROCESS THAT WAS TO BE IMPLEMENTED AS RAPIDLY AS POSSIBLE. SO, THE THING HERE, I HAVE A LOT OF WHEELS IN MY HEAD HERE, AND I AM OUT THERE WITH A WHEELCHAIR FOR THE GRANDMOTHER. IT'S A DEATH STRUGGLE, AND I'M TRYING TO MAKE AN ENJOYABLE DAY FOR HER AND MY FAMILY. AND IT'S HARD JUST TO GET US OUT OF THE HOME. SO, YOU KNOW, I JUST LOOK AT ALL THIS AND I THINK ABOUT THIS IN THE CONTEXT. NOW, THERE'S NO UPWARD MOBILITY FOR BLACK PEOPLE IN THE MILITARY BUT YOU CAN BE BULLET STOPPERS AND, UH, YOU KNOW, YOUNG CAUCASIANS OR CAUCASIAN LOOKING YOUNG MEN WILL BE CONFRONTED WITH, UH, YOUNG, UM, BROWN AND BLACK, YOU KNOW, BLACK YOUNG UH, YOU KNOW, CONSCRIPTED MEN HERE NOW GOING FORWARD. AND THAT'S GONNA CREATE A HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT. AND THEN, UH, WE HAVE THESE LITTLE ISSUES LIKE DISABILITY ACCESS IT'S QUESTIONABLE. SO, ANYWAYS, UH, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. - GOOD MORNING, CHAIR MARTINEZ AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. MY NAME'S PAM CONNOLLY, AND I'M THE INTERIM DIRECTOR OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH DIVISION OF THE HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY. AND ON BEHALF OF THE STAFF OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT, I'M HONORED TO BE HERE TO THANK YOU FOR THE PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING THAT LAST WEEK WAS NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK. THIS YEAR, THE THEME IS READY, SET, ACTION. AND IT REALLY IS A FITTING ONE. GOOD HEALTH DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN, RIGHT? IT'S BUILT OVER TIME THROUGH SERVICE, POLICY, EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY EFFORT. SO, MUCH OF THAT WORK IS INVISIBLE UNTIL IT ISN'T ANYMORE. OUR TEAM ARE READY. WHEN A DISEASE STARTS SPREADING AND SOMEONE IN OUR DIVISION PICKS UP THE PHONE AND MAKES A CALL BEFORE IT BECOMES AN OUTBREAK. OUR TEAM IS SET WHEN A MEDICALLY FRAGILE CHILD NEEDS EQUIPMENT OR A FIRST-TIME PARENT NEEDS A NURSE AT THEIR DOOR. WE ARE IN ACTION WHEN WE ADVANCE LOCAL POLICY THAT GETS ATTENTION AT THE STATE AND NATIONAL LEVEL. THIS IS THE INFRASTRUCTURE BENEATH THE SERVICE OF DAILY LIFE THAT MOST PEOPLE NEVER THINK ABOUT, BECAUSE WHEN IT'S WORKING, THEY HAVE TO THINK ABOUT IT. THAT INFRASTRUCTURE IS FACING REAL PRESSURE RIGHT NOW. FUNDING IS BEING CUT, TEAMS ARE BEING RESTRUCTURED, AND THE INSTITUTIONS THAT PUBLIC HEALTH DEPEND ON ARE BEING CHALLENGED. OUR STAFF ARE NAVIGATING THAT UNCERTAINTY WHILE CONTINUING TO SHOW UP AND SERVE THE COMMUNITY WITHOUT MISSING A BEAT. AND THAT'S WHAT I WANT THIS BOARD TO KNOW MOST RIGHT NOW. THE PEOPLE WHO DO THIS WORK ARE REMARKABLE. THEY ARE EPIDEMIOLOGISTS AND NURSES, HEALTH EDUCATORS, THOSE WHO PREPARE US TO FACE COMMUNITY EMERGENCIES. THEY'RE COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS AND ALL OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF WHO KEEP THE OPERATION RUNNING. THEY'RE MOTIVATED NOT BY RECOGNITION, BUT BY A GENUINE COMMITMENT TO THE HEALTH OF THE COMMUNITY. THEY ADAPT, THEY PROBLEM SOLVE, AND THEY SHOW UP EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR THE PEOPLE OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. SO, THIS BOARD'S RECOGNITION OF THAT WORK AND THE PEOPLE WHO SHOW UP TO DO IT MEAN A GREAT DEAL. THANK YOU [00:25:05] - ONE MORE POSTER [LAUGHS]. HELLO, MY NAME IS STEPHANIE BROWN LIU. I AM A LOCAL MOTHER. I AM A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT 3, AND PROUDLY I CAN SHARE THAT I SERVE FAMILIES FROM ACROSS ALL OF YOUR DISTRICTS. I AM USUALLY HERE IN APRIL, AS I HAVE SUPPORT AND LED APRIL'S CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION ACTIVITIES FOR OUR COUNTY AND ENCOURAGE YOU ALL TO STAND FOR THAT AGAIN. UM, TODAY, NOT ONLY AM I IN SUPPORT OF DARK SKIES COMMUNITY WHICH THANK YOU FOR YOUR ADVOCACY FOR THAT, BUT I'M HERE BECAUSE I SERVE AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF POSITIVE DISCIPLINE COMMUNITY RESOURCES. AS YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THESE POSTERS, IT IS NOT JUST BEAUTIFUL, BUT IT IS DEEPLY MEANINGFUL. CHILDREN DO BETTER WHEN THEY FEEL BETTER. WE ALL DO. YOU HAVE TO REACH THE HEAD... WE HAVE TO REACH THE HEART BEFORE YOU CAN REACH THE HEAD. SO MUCH OF OUR WORK IN THIS COUNTY ENDS UP BEING VERY BEHAVIOR-BASED, WHICH, AS THE ICEBERG DEMONSTRATES HERE, IF YOU JUST CHIP AWAY AT WHAT YOU SEE, YOU'RE NOT ACCESSING WHAT THAT UNMET NEED IS. AND THAT'S THE UNIQUENESS OF OUR BEAUTIFUL PROGRAM. I ASK FOR YOU TO PLEASE PULL ITEM 33 FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA. I CAN'T IMAGINE YOU'VE HAD TIME TO READ AN ENTIRE 211-PAGE PLAN BUT PLEASE REMAIN CURIOUS FOR WHY ONLY ONE PARENTING PROGRAM IS INCLUDED, AND CONSIDER UPLIFTING THAT WE HAVE THREE INCREDIBLE, UNIQUE PARENTING PROGRAMS, PPP, POSITIVE DISCIPLINE, AND MENTOR SUPPORTING FATHERHOOD INVOLVEMENT, AND THEY'RE ALL WORTHY OF INCLUSION IN THE COUNTY'S THREE-YEAR BEHAVIORAL ROADMAP. I APPRECIATE THAT THE COUNTY IS LOOKING FOR FEEDBACK TO IMPROVE AND STRENGTHEN, AND THERE IS A SURVEY THAT IS OPEN UNTIL THE 16TH. I HOPE THAT YOU CAN PLEASE CONSIDER PULLING THIS ITEM AND SEE HOW TO MEANINGFULLY INCLUDE US. THERE IS AN ATTACHMENT IN THE PLAN WHICH POINTS TO THE COUNTY'S COMPREHENSIVE PREVENTION PLAN, AND OUR PARTNERS FROM ACROSS AGENCIES, AND SCHOOLS, AND HEALTHCARE PARTNERS. THEY ALL REALLY STOOD UP FOR US AND WANTED TO INCLUDE US. SO, PLEASE THINK OF THAT AS YOU MAKE THIS DECISION. THANK YOU. - HI, MY NAME'S MICHELLE, AND I GREW UP IN DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, AND I RAISED MY KIDS IN THIS PROGRAM, AND THEY'RE GREAT CITIZENS OF THE WORLD. THEY'RE VERY RESPECTFUL. I COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT THIS PROGRAM. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. AS THE SEIU 521 OFFICIAL MEMBER BODY REPRESENTING CALIFORNIA OR SANTA CRUZ COUNTY WORKERS, WE ARE BRACING FOR UPCOMING BUDGETARY CONSTRICTIONS THAT MAY AFFECT OUR JOBS AND OUR ABILITY TO ADEQUATELY DELIVER PUBLIC SERVICES. WE HAVE HEARD THAT THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY MANAGEMENT PLANS TO DECLARE A FISCAL EMERGENCY, POTENTIALLY PAVING THE WAY FOR A PREMATURE REOPENING OF OUR MOU. THERE ARE RUMORS OF ATTEMPTS TO CALL BACK PENDING COLA AND EQUITY COMPENSATION INSTALLMENTS. WE BRING THESE ITEMS UP TO PREFACE A DECLARATION OF OUR POSITION ON THE RECENT DEPARTURE OF JENNIFER HERRERA AS ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY. UH, IF THE AGENCY DIRECTOR CITED A NEED TO DOWNSIZE EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT POSITIONS, A SUDDEN CHANGE LIKE THIS WOULD AT LEAST APPEAR MORE RATIONAL. HOWEVER, IT'S NOT WHAT CONNIE MORENO-PERAZA SAID IN HER MARCH 23RD EMAIL TO STAFF. IN THE CLOSURE OF HER EMAIL, SHE WROTE, COMMUNICATION WILL BE RELEASED SOON REGARDING THE INTERIM PLAN FOR THIS POSITION. THE INTERIM POSITION WILL COME FROM WITHIN. IN LIGHT OF THE ABOVE, WE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE CLEAR OUR OPPOSITION TO BACKFILLING THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HSA DIRECTOR'S POSITION. AGAIN, WE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE CLEAR OUR OPPOSITION TO BACKFILLING THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HSA ASSISTANT DIRECTOR'S POSITION. THE TOP SALARY ALONE FOR THIS POSITION IS APPROXIMATELY $247,000 A YEAR, NOT INCLUDING BENEFITS, WHICH, BY CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATES, PUTS TOTAL COMPENSATION WELL OVER 300,000 PER YEAR. THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR'S POSITION REMAINED UNSTAFFED FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME IN THE PAST YEARS. FILLING THIS VACANCY AT THIS TIME WOULD BE FINANCIALLY IRRESPONSIBLE AND EVEN RECKLESS. IN LIEU OF PRESERVING JOBS AND FAIR COMPENSATION FOR OUR COUNTY EMPLOYEES WHO SERVE AS THE SURFACE SAFETY NET IN OUR COMMUNITIES, WE ASK THAT YOU TAKE OUR POSITION INTO CONSIDERATION. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS YVETTE BROOKS, AND I'M THE CEO FOR UNITED WAY SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. THANK YOU FOR RECOGNIZING APRIL AS CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION MONTH AND FOR YOUR CONTINUED LEADERSHIP IN PRIORITIZING THE SAFETY AND WELL-BEING OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES. PREVENTION IS WHERE REAL CHANGE BEGINS. WHEN WE INVEST EARLY IN CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, WE REDUCE HARM BEFORE IT HAPPENS AND CREATE THE CONDITIONS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE TO THRIVE. [00:30:03] THAT IS WHY PARTNERSHIPS ACROSS SYSTEMS IS SO CRITICAL. I WANNA THANK THE COUNTY, INCLUDING THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT AND GLORIA CARROLL IN HER ROLE AS DIRECTOR OF FAMILY AND CHILDREN'S SERVICES FOR HER COLLABORATION ON OUR INAUGURAL CHILDREN'S SYMPOSIUM. TOGETHER, WE BROUGHT PARTNERS ACROSS SECTORS IN ONE SPACE TO FOCUS ON PREVENTION, COORDINATION, AND SOLUTIONS THAT PUT CHILDREN AND FAMILIES FIRST. IT WAS A POWERFUL EXAMPLE OF WHAT IS POSSIBLE WHEN WE WORK TOGETHER. THROUGH OUR UNITED FOR YOUTH INITIATIVE, WE ARE CONTINUING TO INVEST IN YOUTH VOICE, WELLBEING, AND ACCESS TO RESOURCES BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT PREVENTION WORKS. IF WE CONTINUE THE COLLECTIVE EFFORT, WE WILL SEE LASTING POSITIVE OUTCOMES. AND THANKS TO YOUR WORK, CHAIR, UM, WE'RE SEEING THE WORK HAPPEN COLLABORATIVELY. SO, THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP AND FOR ACKNOWLEDGING THIS MONTH'S IMPORTANT WORK. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, MY NAME IS ALMA RUIZ. I WORK FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES. I HAVE WORKED FOR THIS COUNTY SINCE 1990. UM, I'M CONCERNED, AS ONE OF MY, UH, BROTHERS WAS UP HERE EXPRESSING THE CONCERN TO OPEN OUR CONTRACT DO FURLOUGHS OR LAYOFFS. UM, I'VE DONE QUITE A FEW POTENTIAL STRIKES AND MANY, MANY YEARS OF NO COLA INCREASES. I THINK IT'S, UM, YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AND THIS COUNTY'S RESPONSIBILITY TO ADDRESS OUR CONCERNS AND UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE IN A CRISIS NOT JUST HERE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, BUT IN THE WORLD, AND LAYING OFF OR DOING FURLOUGHS WITH SOME OF OUR DEPARTMENTS IT'S TRULY IRRESPONSIBLE. WE SERVE THE CHILDREN IN THIS COUNTY. YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO YOUR CONSTITUENTS, AND DOING LAYOFFS AFFECTING OUR COLAS, WE'RE THE FRONTLINE. WE SERVE THESE PEOPLE. WE PROVIDE SERVICES FOR EVERYONE IN THIS COUNTY. AND I HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND THAT DOING SOMETHING TO AFFECT OUR JOBS IN THIS COUNTY WILL TRULY AFFECT YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND THE SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE. IT'S NOT JUST THE CHILDREN, IT'S OUR ELDERLY PEOPLE. WE ARE IN A POTENTIAL CRISIS RIGHT NOW. I PUT GAS YESTERDAY, ALMOST $6. YOU'VE RECALLED US TO COME BACK TO THE OFFICE TO WORK THREE DAYS A WEEK. WE FLOODED OUR HIGHWAYS AGAIN WITH TRAFFIC AND EVERYTHING. AND I THINK YOU REALLY NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN YOUR COUNTY AND HOW THIS AFFECTS US. YOU'RE AFFECTING YOUR FRONT LINE. WE'RE THE ONES THAT SERVE THIS COUNTY AND THE PEOPLE THAT WE SERVE IN HERE. THANK YOU. - GOOD MORNING, BOARD. MY NAME IS GABRIEL BORAZA, PROUD SCIU MEMBER, LOCAL 521, AND UH, ON THE LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE OF OUR COMMITTEE ON POLITICAL EDUCATION. UH, I WORKED FOR, UH, HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT SINCE 2013, AND I'M HERE TO ADDRESS TWO ISSUES TODAY. I'M HERE TO STAND WITH SCIU FAMILY AND URGE YOU TO THINK VERY CLEARLY ABOUT ANY ACTIONS YOU TAKE REGARDING LAYOFFS AND CUTS TO STAFF. UM, WE ARE ON THE STREETS WORKING WITH THE PEOPLE OF OUR COMMUNITY, AND BALANCING, YOU KNOW. I UNDERSTAND THAT FINANCIAL TIMES ARE VERY DIFFICULT, AND WHEN THERE'S NOT ENOUGH MONEY, THERE'S NOT ENOUGH MONEY. HOWEVER, BALANCING THE BUDGET ON THE BACKS OF THE PEOPLE WHO DELIVER SERVICES TO OUR COMMUNITY IS HARMFUL AND IRRESPONSIBLE, ESPECIALLY AS ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS CONTINUE TO GROW. NOW, I DON'T SEE ADMINISTRATORS AND MANAGEMENT PEOPLE OUT ON THE STREETS WORKING WITH OUR HOMELESS POPULATION WORKING WITH OUR ELDERS WHO ARE SUFFERING FROM ABUSE, AND WORKING WITH OUR CHILDREN. THE PEOPLE ON THE STREET, OUR WORKERS, ARE THE PEOPLE WHO DELIVER THE SERVICES THAT KEEP OUR COMMUNITY SAFE AND KEEP OUR PEOPLE, UH, LIVING DECENT LIVES. THE SECOND ISSUE THAT I WANT TO ADDRESS IS EQUITY BETWEEN NORTH COUNTY AND SOUTH COUNTY. AND THIS IS PRIMARILY TO OUR DISTRICT 4 AND DISTRICT 2 SUPERVISORS. YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN WORKING FOR THE COUNTY FOR ALMOST 13 YEARS AND I CAN PROBABLY COUNT ON ONE HAND THE AMOUNT OF TIMES THAT OUR BOARD HAS MET IN WATSONVILLE. WE REPRESENT ALMOST 50% OF THE POPULATION OF THE COUNTY. AND I DON'T SEE MANY PEOPLE FROM WATSONVILLE HERE BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO DRIVE ALL THE WAY IN TRAFFIC TO GET HERE TO PARTICIPATE IN GOVERNMENT. [00:35:03] I URGE YOU STRONGLY TO CONSIDER ALTERNATING MEETING TIMES. - THANK YOU. - AND PROVIDING EQUITY. - YES. - THIS IS GRANDPA. GOOD TO SEE EVERYBODY ON THE BOARD. UM, I'M NOT GIVING UP, AND I WANNA SPEAK INTO THAT SIGN USED TO BE IN THE CITY HALL. PLEASE, LET'S REVISIT. I'M BLOWN AWAY, NOT THE FIRST TIME, WITH SEIU. I'M ONLY GONNA SPEAK TO THREE THINGS. I'M NOT GONNA HAND IT OUT BECAUSE I WANTED TO BUILD ON CAESAR, AND IT DOESN'T WORK TODAY. BUT WE SURE CAN TAKE ON ONE BLOCK IN ONE NEIGHBORHOOD, AND IT CAN BE WATSONVILLE BECAUSE WE'VE GOT 2,000 VETS THERE IN WATSONVILLE. SO IT'S YOUR VISION BEHIND WHAT CABRILLO COULD DO. MY COACHING IS, SEND ONE OF YOUR STAFF PLEASE, MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY, BECAUSE I WAS THERE YESTERDAY TO THE GRAY BEARS. TALK ABOUT HOMELESS, I'LL BE THERE EVERY SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. BUT THOSE OF YOU WHO KNOW ME, YOU CAN'T DO IT IN THREE MINUTES. BUT YOUR STAFF COULD BUILD NOT ON GRAY BEARS, BUT, UM, WHAT IT WOULD BE TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER. I AM VANILLA, BUT I DO SAY VIVA MEXICO, AND I BUILD ON WHAT I'VE DONE FOR 50 YEARS. SO, PLEASE MAKE HISTORY. THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE, THAT POSSIBILITY. NOW, CHANNEL 8, IF YOU GO ON THEIR, UH, VIDEO OF THE HOMELESS, CHECK IT OUT. THAT'S WHAT WE GOTTA DO. WE NEED TO LISTEN TO THOSE LIKE A HOMELESS UNION. MUCH THANK YOU. GRATITUDE. AND I DO HAVE A NAME, I'M RICHARD LEWIS. I'M PROUD OF THE FACT THAT I NEVER, NEVER, NEVER WILL GIVE UP. I'M UP AT 5:00 THIS MORNING. TELL ME, YOU KNOW, SOMEBODY WHO'D BE 90 WOULD DO THAT. OKAY? SENIOR POWER, BUT THE YOUTH POWER IS BEYOND HIGH SCHOOL. THANK YOU TO THE CEO FOR BRINGING IT TO THE POSSIBILITY. - DO YOU UNDERSTAND ANYTHING I SAID? YOU WOULDN'T ONLY IF YOU KNOW DUTCH. I DO. I WANNA MAKE A POINT HERE. WHAT I JUST SAID WAS, GOOD MORNING, SUPERVISORS. MY NAME IS BECKY STEINBRUNER. I LIVE IN RURAL APTOS. I WANT TO LET YOU KNOW THAT IF YOU NEED TRANSLATION ASSISTANCE YOU CAN ASK FOR IT AT ANY TIME DURING THIS MEETING. SO, CHAIR MARTINEZ, I WANNA COMMEND YOU FOR NOW MAKING THE ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE BEGINNING IN ENGLISH, UH, OF THE MEETINGS. THAT TRANSLATION IS AVAILABLE FOR THOSE WHO NEED IT. BUT WHAT IF PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT? WHY DON'T WE MAKE THAT ANNOUNCEMENT IN SPANISH AS WELL, SO THAT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THEY HAVE THIS ABILITY TO ASK FOR TRANSLATION AT ANY TIME? MONTEREY COUNTY DOES THIS. THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE DOES THIS. WE NEED TO DO IT HERE, AND IT'S NOT HARD. I WANT TO, UM, MOVE NOW TO THE SITUATION WITH THE NEW LEAF ENERGY MOVING, UH, FILING PRELIMINARY APPLICATION WITH THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION. UH, THIS IS NOT A BAD THING. DON'T BE AFRAID OF IT, AND DO NOT LET NEW LEAF BULLY YOU INTO WATERING DOWN OUR ORDINANCE TO GET THEIR WAY. THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE TRYING TO DO. THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION IS A VERY STRICT AND RIGOROUS PROCESS. THEY WILL REQUIRE A FULL EIR, AND THEY WILL DO THE EIR AND CHARGE THE DEVELOPER FOR IT. I HAVE DOCUMENTS HERE TO GIVE TO YOU THAT ARE DOCKET EXAMPLES OF THAT. THE FIRST IS FROM THE CORBY BESS ENERGY SYSTEM, WHERE THE CEC HAS QUESTIONED THE STORMWATER PROJECT. AND I HAVE, UH, WANNA SUPPORT THE COUNTY'S, UH, FISH AND WILDLIFE ADVISORY COMMISSION FOR POINTING OUT THAT COLLEGE LAKE IS A VERY SENSITIVE SALMONID HEAD HABITAT. UH, ENERGY IS NOW POSITIVE DOWN COLLEGE LAKE. - MA'AM, YOUR TWO MINUTES ARE UP. - OBJECT NEEDS TO BE THOROUGHLY VETTED. DON'T BE AFRAID OF THIS STATEMENT. [00:40:01] - WELCOME. - GOOD MORNING, BOARD AND ADMINISTRATORS, CORELL READER FROM CORRALITOS. I'LL STEP OFF OF UH, BECKY'S, UH, TOPIC WITH THE 90 ROAD, 90 MINTO ROAD BESS PROJECT. I'M GONNA GO INTO TEACHER MODE. I TAUGHT FOR EIGHT YEARS. HOW MANY OF YOU, RAISE YOUR HAND, KNOW WHERE THESE BATTERIES THAT ARE GOING TO BE PLACED, THEORETICALLY, UM, ON THAT SITE, COME FROM, WHERE THEY'RE MANUFACTURED? ANYBODY KNOW THE COMPANY'S NAME OR WHERE THEY COME FROM? RAISE A HAND. NOTHING? OKAY. THE BATTERIES THAT WE CURRENTLY BELIEVE ARE GONNA GO AT MINTO ROAD COME FROM A COMPANY NAMED CATL, C-A-T-L. THEY'RE HEADQUARTERED IN CHINA. THE INTERESTING THING ABOUT THESE BATTERIES THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW IS THAT THEY ARE SOLD WITH A SERVICE AND MONITORING CONTRACT. THOSE BATTERIES EACH HAVE A BOARD INSIDE WHERE THEY ARE WIRELESSLY CONNECTED, IN THIS CASE, WE BELIEVE TO THE CHINESE SATELLITES. THIS GIVES THEIR HEADQUARTERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO MONITOR THOSE BATTERIES FOR EFFICIENCY AND POSSIBLY, UM, PROBLEMS. SO THAT'S A PRETTY LONG REACH, BUT OBVIOUSLY, THERE COULD BE A PROBLEM THERE. IN FACT, THESE LITHIUM BATTERIES, WHICH WE'VE TOLD YOU OVER AND OVER ARE FLAMMABLE AND EXPLOSIVE, HAVE BEEN BANNED FROM THE UNITED STATES. YES, THE ONES COMING HERE. THEY WERE BANNED BECAUSE, FIRST OF ALL, THE, UM, GOVERNMENT DECIDED THAT THEY WERE BEING MADE UNDER, UM, HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS. CHINA DIDN'T LIKE THAT, THEY WANNA ARGUE IT. THE BATTERIES WERE BANNED, AND TAKEN AWAY, AND DISCONNECTED AT CAMP LEJEUNE IN NORTH CAROLINA FOR ESPIONAGE PROBLEMS. AND I'LL FINISH HERE. MARCO RUBIO BANNED THEM FROM TEXAS FOR THE SAME REASON, BUT ALSO MAYBE BECAUSE HE'S INVESTED IN SOME CALIFORNIA BATTERY COMPANY. SO, JUST BE AWARE. WE'RE NOT JUST DEALING WITH BATTERIES THAT ARE FROM OUR OWN BACKYARD. WE'RE DEALING WITH CHINA. - SEEING NO FURTHER SPEAKERS IN THE ROOM. MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE FIRST CALLER? - YES, CHAIR. CAROL, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. - GOOD MORNING, BOARD. MY NAME IS CAROL BJORN, AND THANK YOU, BECKY AND CAROL. UM, WOW, THOSE WERE EYE-OPENING REVELATIONS. THANK YOU, CORREL, FOR THAT. I MEAN, IT'S SHOCKING TO ME, AND IT JUST GOES TO THE POINT OF WE REALLY NEED TO DO OUR DUE DILIGENCE FOR THIS PROCESS, AND WE CAN'T RUSH IT. I GUESS PART OF OUR FRUSTRATION THIS WHOLE TIME IS THE RUSH AND THE TIMELINE. AND TO ME, THIS JUST GOES TO SHOW WE REALLY NEED TO SLOW EVERYTHING DOWN AND MAKE SURE WE'RE VERY DILIGENT IN THE ORDINANCE AND ANY PROPOSED PROJECT. UM, BY NOW, I THINK WE'VE ALL HEARD THAT NEWLEAF HAS SUBMITTED A PRE-APPLICATION TO THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION UNDER THE PROVISION OF AB205. NOW, WHY DIDN'T NEWLEAF PURSUE THE STATE ROUTE INITIALLY? WHY DID NEWLEAF PURSUE THE LOCAL ROUTE FIRST? WELL, NEWLEAF IS IN BUSINESS TO MAKE MONEY FOR THEMSELVES AND THE SHAREHOLDERS. SO ITS DECISIONS ARE BASED ON COST BENEFIT. EVIDENTLY, UH, NEWLEAF MADE AN INITIAL ANALYSIS FROM A COST BENEFIT STANDPOINT, THEY WOULD GET MORE BANG FOR THEIR BUCK BY PURSUING THE LOCAL ROUTE. TO ME, THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE LOCAL PROCESS WAS MUCH MORE LENIENT AND LESS COSTLY THAN THE STATE ROUTE. AND NOW THEY ARE ONLY INQUIRING ABOUT THE STATE PROCESS BECAUSE CERTAIN CHANGES TO THE BESS ORDINANCE WERE UNACCEPTABLE, REALLY. WELL, THAT'S THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS. THESE PROPOSED CHANGES WERE OFFERED TO PROTECT THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF OUR COMMUNITY. SO NEWLEAF IS REALLY SHOWING US THEIR MOTIVES HERE. THEY'RE NOT CONCERNED WITH OUR PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY. THEY'RE CONCERNED WITH THE BOTTOM LINE. I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE BOARD HERE TO WORK EVEN MORE DILIGENTLY ON THE ORDINANCE TO MAKE SURE IT'S SO STRONG THAT IT ACTUALLY IS A STRONG ORDINANCE. AND WE HAVE SUBMITTED MULTIPLE IDEAS AND SUGGESTIONS. FIRST, TOP OF THE LIST, NON LITHIUM, BECAUSE IT'S NON-FLAMMABLE. IF YOU GO WITH VANADIUM, WHICH IS BEING PUT IN, IN EUROPE, IF YOU DO A LITTLE RESEARCH ON INVINITY, GO TO LINKEDIN. THEY POST ALL THE TIME ABOUT ALL THE BESS INSTALLATIONS THEY'RE PUTTING IN IN EUROPE, AND THEY'RE NON-FLAMMABLE. THEY'RE NOT EXPLOSIVE. PLEASE CHECK IT OUT. PLEASE LISTEN TO BECKY'S INTERVIEW OF DREW BOHAN ON SANTA CRUZ VOICE.COM. - THANK YOU. - OMAR, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. [00:45:04] OMAR, AS A REMINDER, IT'S STAR SIX TO MUTE OR UNMUTE IF YOU'RE ON A CALL-IN DEVICE. - CAN YOU, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? - YES, WE CAN. - OKAY. THANK YOU. MY NAME IS OMAR [INAUDIBLE]. UH, AND I WISH TO ADVOCATE TO VOICE AND CHOICE FOR FAMILIES TO HAVE POSITIVE DISCIPLINE ACCESSIBLE TO THEM. NOT JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE, THEY HEAR ABOUT IT FROM WORD OF MOUTH, BUT BECAUSE OUR PUBLIC SAFETY NET SERVICES ARE THINKING ABOUT HOW TO INCLUDE CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PROGRAMS, I AM PART OF MANY GROUPS AND AM A SOCIAL JUSTICE ADVOCATE. AND ONE THING THAT SETS POSITIVE DISCIPLINE APART IS THAT IT IS A MOVEMENT WITH ACTIONS. IT ISN'T JUST ABOUT NOT HITTING OR IGNORING OR BEING PERMISSIVE WITH YOUR KIDS. IT'S ABOUT BEING CONNECTED. IT'S ABOUT GIVING PARENTS THE CHANCE TO SEE THEIR LEADERSHIP SHINE AND BE KIND AND HAVE FIRM AND, AND, AND FIRM WITH THEIR YOUTH. OUR YOUTH HAVE SERIOUS MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS. AND HOWEVER SMALL YOU THINK A PARENTING PROGRAM DECISION IS, LET ME TELL YOU THIS IS IMPACT, THIS IMPACTS LIVES FOR GENERATIONS. AND ONE LAST THING I'D LIKE TO SAY. ALL FAMILIES ARE SACRED, ALL YOUTH ARE SACRED. THANK YOU. - SHERA, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. - THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU FOR PROVIDING THIS OPPORTUNITY. I'M, UM, CALLING IN TO TALK, UH, ALSO ABOUT POSITIVE DISCIPLINE. - THESE KIDS ARE FUCKING... CAN YOU HEAR ME? - NO. WHAT SHE SAY? - YES, WE CAN. - OKAY. THANK YOU. UM, MY NAME IS SHERA COLEMAN HAGAR. I'M A RESIDENT IN WATSONVILLE. I WAS BORN IN VEN LOMOND. UM, I'VE LIVED HERE AND CHOSEN SANTA CRUZ TO RAISE MY CHILDREN. UM, I HAVE A 19-YEAR-OLD, UM, AT CABRILLO COLLEGE. I'M A GRADUATE OF CABRILLO AND UCSC. UM, I HAVE A 16-YEAR-OLD AT MOUNT MADONNA SCHOOL AND WE CHOSE ALIANZA SCHOOL FOR THEM BECAUSE IT WAS A POSITIVE DISCIPLINE SCHOOL. UM, WE CHOSE MOUNT MADONNA FOR THEM BECAUSE OF THEIR, UM, VALUES CURRICULUM. UM, WE'RE INTEGRATED MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY, AND I'M HAPPY TO SAY SO ARE MY CHILDREN. I USED POSITIVE DISCIPLINE WITH THEM. I TOOK CLASSES WHEN I, MY FIRST BORN WAS LESS THAN A YEAR OLD. AND WHILE I WATCHED OTHER FAMILIES, UM, STRUGGLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH OF THEIR TEENAGERS THROUGH THE COVID PANDEMIC AND AFTERWARD, I DID NOT EXPERIENCE ANY OF THOSE THINGS. I ENJOYED A BEAUTIFUL RELATIONSHIP WITH MY CHILDREN, EVEN THROUGH TEENAGE HOOD. UM, AND, UM, I BELIEVE THAT POSITIVE, I'M ALSO NOW A POSITIVE DISCIPLINE, UM, PARENT EDUCATOR AND POSITIVE DISCIPLINE IN THE CLASSROOM EDUCATOR. UM, I BELIEVE THAT POSITIVE DISCIPLINE IS UM, THE ONLY TRAUMA INFORMED PROGRAM TO SUPPORT, UM, FAMILIES AND EDUCATORS. AND I LIFTED UP TO BE USED ALSO IN THIS COMMUNITY. AND TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE MENTAL HEALTH OF PARENTS IS AT RISK IF THEY DO NOT HAVE SUPPORT IN PARENTING THEIR CHILDREN IN THIS VERY COMPLICATED WORLD. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. - CALL IN USER ONE, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. - MARILYN GARRETT. WOW. A CORELLE READER DISCLOSED, SHOULD, UH, MOTIVATE YOU TO IMMEDIATELY CALL A HALT TO BAN THESE PROPOSED TOXIC LITHIUM BATTERY SITES THAT YOU HAVE PLANNED FOR WATSONVILLE AND NEAR APTOS HIGH. THESE SITES, THESE BATTERIES ARE ALMOST GUARANTEED TO EXPLODE AND CONTAMINATE WITH FOREVER CHEMICALS AND NANOPARTICLES FAR AND WIDE. THIS HAPPENED AT MOSS LANDING IN THE LARGEST LITHIUM BATTERY FIRE IN THE WORLD. NUMEROUS OTHER LOCATIONS HAVE HAD SIMILAR TOXIC RELEASES. ITEM AND ITS, UH, NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK. YOU CAN PREVENT A KNOWN PUBLIC HEALTH CATASTROPHE [00:50:07] BY BANNING THESE LITHIUM BATTERY SITES. ITEM 23 ON TODAY'S AGENDA REFERS TO THE STATUS REPORT ON THE COUNTY'S ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE INITIATIVE. THOUGH FALSELY PROMOTED AS INTELLIGENT A SITE, AI HAS POORLY PUBLICIZED DISASTROUS IMPLICATIONS, UM, USING ALL THE WATER, INCREASED ELECTRICITY AND ELECTRICAL COST, NOISE POLLUTION. SEE THE FILM MINING THE SACRED ABOUT THACKER PASS AND THE DEVASTATION. I URGE YOU TO ABANDON AI COUNTY PROJECTS. THEY REQUIRE AI DATA FARMS, DATA CENTERS, WHICH HAVE INCREASED... - THANK YOU. - CALL IN USER 454, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. - YEAH, GOOD MORNING. UH, MY NAME IS JAMES EWING WHITMAN. I WOULD BE THERE IN PERSON IF I COULD BE. SUPPOSE I'D LIKE TO MAKE THREE COMMENTS. ONE WOULD BE ON A NORMAL DAY, YOU LOOK UP IN THE SKY AND YOU SEE SOMETHING THAT IS NOT A CONTRAIL, IT'S A CHEM TRAIL. WE ARE BEING BOMBARDED BY PARTICULATES THAT ARE NOT MAKING ANYTHING ON EARTH HEALTHY. NOW, HOW THIS RELATES TO THE LITHIUM ION BATTERY PLANT, UM, THERE'S NOT A WAY TO PUT THESE FIRES OUT AND THEY'RE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. UH, THE PREVIOUS SPEAKERS THAT SPOKE ABOUT THEM BEING CONTROLLED BY, UH, A FOREIGN NATION, I SUPPOSE THOSE THOUGHT SHOULD REALLY BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY. I GUESS I'LL REMIND THIS BOARD THAT IN 1987, UCSC STOPPED A PROGRAM WHERE THEY WERE TAKING THE PARTICULATES OUT OF THE THEN DIESEL POWERED, UH, MOSS LANDING POWER PLANT AND PUMPING THEM INTO ALGAE BEDS WHERE THEY FOUND THAT 60% OF THE ALGAES THAT TURNED THOSE, UH, DANGEROUS PARTICULATES INTO A FUEL SOURCE WHERE 60% OF THE WEIGHT COULD BE USED AS KEROSENE, DIESEL, OR JET FUEL. WHY WAS THAT STOPPED IN 1987? GOTTA WONDER IF THERE ARE ALL KINDS OF SOLUTIONS AT A TIME THAT WAS 125 TO 400 TIMES MORE EFFICIENT PER VERTICAL ACRE. IF THEY'RE COMPARING A LAND SOURCE TO THE WATER, WHICH WE HAVE THE DEPTH, OBVIOUSLY THEY DIDN'T USE HEMP IN THAT SO WE HAVE ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS TO BE PUSHING FORWARD SOMETHING THAT IS SO DANGEROUS, UM, THAT WILL ONLY PROVIDE FOUR HOURS OF POWER FOR A POPULATION OF 270,000, THIS IS AN I, JUST RIDICULOUS. SO I'M GLAD OTHER MEMBERS HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS ISSUE. 'CAUSE IT IS A REALLY STRONG ISSUE BECAUSE THOSE AREAS HAVE VERY PRISTINE FARMLANDS HAVE ALREADY BEEN DAMAGED. SO I SUPPOSE I WOULD BE SPEAKING DIFFERENTLY IF I COULD BE IN THERE IN PERSON. - THANK YOU. - BUT, UM... - CHAIR, I SEE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS ONLINE. - THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. [ACTION ON THE CONSENT AGENDA (ITEMS 12-44)] I'LL NOW RETURN TO THE BOARD FOR COMMENTS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA STARTING WITH SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ. - FIRST, I'D LIKE TO CONGRATULATE OUR PARKS DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE PARKS AND ALL THEIR PARTNERS FOR THEIR DISTINGUISHED AWARD THAT THEY RECEIVED AND ALL THE GREAT WORK THAT THEY DO AS WELL. AND SECOND, I'LL VOLUNTEER TO DO THE TRANSLATION ANNOUNCEMENT. SO, WE'LL, JUSTIN, I JUST VOLUNTOLD HIM. AND THIRD, I HAVE TO SAY THAT, UM, WHEN I SEEN THE SCHEDULE CHANGE ON THE SOUTH COUNTY MEETINGS I WAS KIND OF DISAPPOINTED. WE DO HAVE THAT GREAT SOUTH COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER WHERE WE CAN HAVE, UH, OUR MEETINGS. SO IT'D BE GREAT IF WE CAN, YOU KNOW, HAVE SOME EQUITY AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S AN HOUR, HOUR AND 20 MINUTE DRIVE OVER HERE FOR FOLKS TO MAKE IT OUT HERE. BUT IF WE CAN HAVE, UM, A FEW MEETINGS, UM, AND THEN PLAN SOME FOR THE, FOR THE NEXT SCHEDULED, UM, SCHEDULE OF, UH, OUR BOARD MEETINGS TO BE IN SOUTH COUNTY, THAT WOULD BE GREAT. UM, I DO WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE, UM, ITEMS. UH, FIRST I WANT TO ADDRESS ITEM 33. I'D LIKE TO SEE IF OUR HEALTH DIRECTOR CAN RESPOND ON THE NEED FOR, UH, MORE PARENTING SERVICE, ESPECIALLY IN SPANISH AND MIXTECO LANGUAGES IN SOUTH COUNTY. [00:55:01] WE DID HAVE A CONVERSATION LAST WEEK ABOUT IT. UH, SO IF WE CAN JUST, YOU KNOW ELABORATE ON SOME OF THOSE THINGS. UM, BUT ALSO, I WANT TO JUST MENTION A FEW THINGS ON ITEMS NUMBER 14. UM, KUDOS TO CREATING THIS YOUTH COMMISSION. IT REALLY FALLS IN LINE WITH SOME OF THE STUFF THAT WE'RE DOING WITH OUR YOUNG SUPERVISORS ACADEMY. AND I WANT TO THANK, YOU KNOW, HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS ARE IMPORTANT AND SO I'M GLAD THAT ON ITEM 18, WE'RE DOING, YOU KNOW, THE MOST THAT WE CAN TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE HOSPITAL IN SOUTH COUNTY. AND ITEM NUMBER 27, I WANT TO THANK JOSEPH EATON FOR HIS APPOINTMENT TO THE INTEGRATED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS COMMISSION. UM, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO HAVE A, YOU KNOW, FILL OUR COMMISSIONS UM, ESPECIALLY SOME OF THE ONES THAT ARE MORE DIFFICULT TO FILL SO I'M GLAD THAT HE STEPPED IN, STEPPED UP FOR THAT POSITION. AND ITEM NUMBER 44, I WANNA THANK MY COLLEAGUE, UH, SUPERVISOR KIM DE SERPA FOR MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS, UH, AQUATICS, UH, CENTER FEASIBILITY. UH, SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE, UH, SKATE, SKATE PARK TOO. I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. INITIALLY, IT'S GONNA BE A MICRO MICRO PARK. NOW IT'S A FULL-SIZE SKATE PARK, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. UH, AND ALSO THANK YOU TO, UH, NOVAK, UH, INCORPORATED AS WELL. UH, ITEM 33. - GOOD MORNING. CONNIE MORENO-PERAZA DIRECTOR OF HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY, BUENO DIAZ. UH, WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO SAY ENGLISH AND SPANISH? THE RESPONSE, OR JUST IN ENGLISH? SORRY, ON NUMBER 33? - ENGLISH. - OKAY. SO FIRST OF ALL, NUMBER 33. ITEM NUMBER 33 IS NOT SPEAKING ON THE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES UH, INTEGRATED PLAN. IT'S, UH, TO GET, UM, AUTHORITY TO SIGN SOME CONTRACTS. SO ALL OF THEM RELATE TO THAT. BUT WE ARE VERY AWARE OF THE CONCERN OVER, UM, NOT INCLUDING THIS PARTICULAR, UM, OR LISTENING TO THE FEEDBACK OF INCLUDING THIS PROGRAM AS WE PLAN THE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES ACT INTEGRATED PLAN. UH, WE DO PLAN TO HAVE A MEETING WITH, UH, MS. STEPHANIE, AND ALSO WE MET WITH PAJARO VALLEY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT AS WELL. AND, UH, AFTER WE RECEIVE ALL THE PUBLIC COMMENT, WE WILL REVIEW IT AND WE WILL, UH, DEFINITELY GET BACK WITH AN UPDATE ON THAT. - THANK YOU - SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. - THANK YOU, CHAIR. FIRST, I JUST WANT, UM, CONGRATULATE COUNTY PARKS, COUNTY PARK FRIENDS, AND THE WATSONVILLE PARKS, UH, FOR ALL THEIR HARD WORK AND FOR RECEIVING THIS AWARD. IT'S GREAT ACHIEVEMENT. UM, JUST REALLY REFLECTIVE OF HOW HARD OUR PARK STAFF WORKS AND HOW MUCH THEY CARE ABOUT OUR PARKS. UM, SO THANK YOU ALL. UM, ITEM NUMBER 24. THIS IS ADOPTING A RESOLUTION OPPOSING THE US DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT'S PROPOSED REGULATIONS THAT WOULD PROHIBIT UNDOCUMENTED RESIDENTS FROM LIVING IN SECTION 8 HOUSING UNITS. I JUST WANNA THANK SUPERVISOR DE SERPA FOR JOINING ME IN PUTTING THIS LETTER ON. UM, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT, UM, FOR THE MOST VULNERABLE PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY, THAT THEY CAN STILL HAVE ACCESS TO HOUSING AND ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY'RE LIVING WITH SOMEONE, UM, WHO IS A, A US CITIZEN. UM, THERE'S NO REASON WHY WE SHOULD BE KICKING PEOPLE OUT IN THE STREET JUST BECAUSE, UM, THEY'RE, UH, UNDOCUMENTED. ITEM NUMBER 26, UM, THIS IS, UM, SUPPORT FOR SENATE BILL 1194 WHICH WOULD ESTABLISH THE IMMIGRATION LEGAL FELLOWSHIP IN STATUTE AND EXPAND LEGAL SERVICES CAPACITY FOR UNDERSERVED MIGRANT COMMUNITIES. I WANT TO THANK SUPERVISOR DE SERPA AGAIN FOR SIGNING ON UM, IN SUPPORT OF THIS BILL. UM, SIMILARLY, AS I JUST MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, UNDOCUMENTED FOLKS AND IMMIGRANTS IN OUR COMMUNITIES ARE SOME OF THE MOST VULNERABLE PEOPLE, AND THIS WOULD ACTUALLY PROVIDE FUNDING AT THE STATE LEVEL TO EXPAND LEGAL SERVICES FOR THESE INDIVIDUALS, ESPECIALLY DURING A TIME, UH, WHEN MANY OF THEM ARE BEING, UM, UM, WRONGFULLY TARGETED BY ICE. UM, ITEM NUMBER 33, I DID HAVE SIMILAR QUESTIONS UM, AS TO, UM, SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ. AND I'M NOT SURE IF MAYBE AT SOME POINT WE CAN HAVE A, A BOARD ITEM OR A PRESENTATION OF THE BOARD, BUT I WAS CONCERNED TO FIND OUT THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT GROUPS IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT OFFER FAMILY SERVICES, AND YET WE'RE ONLY CONTRACTING WITH ONE. AND WE MAY BE MISSING OUT ON AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPAND SERVICES ESPECIALLY IF THE OTHER SERVICES CAN PROVIDE TRANSLATION INTO MIXTECO. AND, AND, AND HELP, UH, SUPPORT SPANISH SPEAKING COMMUNITIES. SO IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO INCLUDE THOSE ORGANIZATIONS IN THE POOL, UM, OF POTENTIAL ORGANIZATIONS THAT, THAT CAN PROVIDE SERVICES AND, AND RECEIVE FUNDING, I THINK THAT WOULD BE REALLY IMPORTANT. AND SO, I'M NOT SURE HOW WE CAN ADDRESS THAT TODAY, BUT I THINK MOVING FORWARD, WE SHOULD DEFINITELY TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN INCORPORATE THESE OTHER, UM, ORGANIZATIONS THAT SERVE OUR COMMUNITY. UM, AND THEN LASTLY, I JUST WANNA THANK SCIU MEMBERS FOR COMING OUT TODAY, SHARING THEIR CONCERNS ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE POTENTIAL BUDGET, UH, ISSUES THAT WE'RE GONNA BE FACING. UM, I THINK IT'S, YOU KNOW, IN CONVERSATIONS WE'VE BEEN HAVING, I THINK THE NUMBER ONE THING WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS FIGURE OUT YOU KNOW, HOW TO NOT MAKE ANY CUTS, HOW TO NOT LAY PEOPLE OFF [01:00:04] REALLY LOOKING AT VACANT POSITIONS. AND I DO JUST WANNA SAY, LAST WEEK AS THE REPRESENTATIVE FOR CSAC FOR THE COUNTY, I WENT TO A RETREAT DOWN IN SAN DIEGO AND THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE BOARD UNANIMOUSLY AGREED THAT WHAT THE IMPACTS THAT WE'RE GONNA BE FACING IN THE COUNTY IS NOT A COUNTY PROBLEM, IT'S A STATE PROBLEM. ALL THE COUNTIES ARE FACING THESE, THIS ISSUE, AND IT'S NOT OUR JOB TO SOLVE THIS ON OUR OWN. AND SO CSAC IS PUSHING EXTREMELY HARD AGAINST THE STATE SAYING YOU HAVE TO FIGURE SOMETHING OUT. UM, WE KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN, UM, ACTUALLY MORE MONEY COMING INTO THE STATE THAT ANTICIPATED AND GIVEN THAT WE'RE IN A STATE OF EMERGENCY RIGHT NOW, RATHER THAN JUST PUTTING THAT ASIDE FOR FUTURE YEARS, WE NEED THE STATE TO ALLOCATE THAT MONEY TO COUNTIES TO HELP US UM, WITH THESE CUTS THAT WE'VE BEEN FACING. AND SO I JUST WANNA ENCOURAGE SCIU AS WELL TO JOIN US IN PUSHING AGAINST THE STATE AND SUPPORTING CSAC POSITION OF HAVING THE STATE STEP UP AND, AND PROVIDE US WITH SOME FUNDING TO BACKFILL THE CUTS. AND WITH THAT, I'LL, UH, END MY COMMENTS, THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR KOENIG. - THANK YOU CHAIR. UH, I'VE GOT A COUPLE QUESTIONS ON ITEM 39 WHICH IS THE 2026 EVACUATION ROUTE HAZARD MITIGATION PROJECT. AND I SEE OUR, UH, DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF RESPONSE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCE IN THE BACK. MAYBE YOU COULD ANSWER A COUPLE QUESTIONS OR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WIESNER, WHICHEVER YOU PREFER. UM, SO I MEAN, IT'S, THANK YOU FOR MOVING THIS PROJECT FORWARD. IT'S EXCITING TO SEE US, UH, GETTING CLOSE TO DOING THE WORK UP TO 50 MILES OF VEGETATION MANAGEMENT ALONG COUNTY ROADWAYS. THAT'S AWESOME. UM, MY QUESTION WAS, UH, OH, FIRST QUESTION, WE, I SEE THAT ABOUT 425,000 OF THE MILLION DOLLARS IS FOR DESIGN INSPECTION OVERHEAD AND CONTINGENCIES. IS THERE ANY CHANCE THAT ANY AMOUNT OF THAT DESIGN WORK IS GONNA BE REUSABLE WHEN WE HAVE TO GO BACK AND DO THIS PROJECT AGAIN IN THE FUTURE? - YEAH, WE'RE REALLY, UM, EXCITED ABOUT THIS GRANT OPPORTUNITY AS KIND OF THIS FIRST PILOT TO EXPANDING THE TYPE OF WORK THAT PUBLIC WORKS IS CAPABLE OF DOING AND THAT WE'RE ABLE TO BID OUT AND SO THAT WE CAN EXPLORE OTHER GRANT OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND THIS ELSEWHERE. AND ALSO POTENTIALLY EXPAND THE FOOTPRINT FROM LEARNINGS ON, UM, OTHER GRANTS THAT CAL FIRE HAS AWARDED ALONG IN THE SOQUEL, SAN JOSE CORRIDOR, UH, SPECIFICALLY. SO THAT'S A LARGER FOOTPRINT. THIS IS A SMALLER FOOTPRINT, BUT BOTH OF THOSE EXPERIENCES ARE GONNA INFORM GRANT OPPORTUNITIES FOR SURE. - WELL INFORM FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES MAYBE. BUT I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, WOULD THE DESIGN OVERHEAD BE LESS IN THE FUTURE BECAUSE WE'VE ALREADY DONE THIS PROJECT BEFORE? - YEAH, I MEAN, IT DEPENDS ON THE GRANTING AGENCY. SO SOME OF THIS IS RELATED TO THE, THE NEPA PROCESS BECAUSE THIS IS A FEDERAL GRANT, SOME OF THE WORK THAT MIGHT BE ABLE TO BE FUNDED BY A STATE GRANT MIGHT NOT HAVE THE SAME ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES. BUT IDEALLY, YES, UH, ECONOMIES OF SCALE AND HAVING DOING THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME WILL HAVE COST SAVINGS IN THE FUTURE. - OKAY. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THE FUN THING ABOUT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT IS YOU GET TO GO BACK AND DO IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN. UM, HOW DO WE ANTICIPATE PAYING FOR THIS KIND OF WORK IN THE NEXT ONE TO FIVE YEARS WHEN WE NEED TO GO BACK IN? - YEAH. SO THE SCOPE OF THIS WORK, UM, HAS A LONGER WINDOW OF USABILITY BECAUSE IT'S A LOT OF TREE WORK AND, AND THINNING UP VERSUS KIND OF BRUSH WORK THAT USUALLY HAS TO BE FOLLOWED UP EVERY THREE YEARS OR SO. UM, BUT CERTAINLY THIS IS A, THIS IS THE TYPE OF WORK THAT WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO EXPLORE PROP 4 GRANT FUNDING FOR CALTRAN, CAL FIRE GRANT FUNDING, AND POTENTIALLY MEASURE Q AS LOCAL MATCH. - OKAY. THANK YOU. UM, AND THEN ON ITEM FOUR, ACCEPTING THE UNANTICIPATED REVENUE FOR SOUTH COUNTY AQUATICS CENTER FEASIBILITY. UM, IT'S DEFINITELY A EXCITING PROJECT WITH A LOT OF PROMISE TO SERVE A LOT OF PEOPLE. UM, I WOULD ALSO INVITE DISTRICTS 2 AND 4 SUPERVISORS TO COME TO OUR EXISTING AQUATIC CENTER WHERE WE HAVE OVER $11 MILLION OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE AND MAYBE, UH, COULD SPUR SOME INTERESTING DISCUSSIONS AROUND HOW WE'RE GONNA, UH, PAY FOR THOSE OPERATING COSTS. THANK YOU - SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. - UM, THANK YOU. I, I GUESS I'LL START WITH ITEM 44. UH, I, I WANNA THANK THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE, UH, FOR COORDINATING AND COLLABORATING WITH THE COUNTY ON A BIG IDEA TO BRING A SOUTH COUNTY AQUATIC CENTER AND COMMUNITY CENTER, UH, TO THE PEOPLE OF WATSONVILLE. UH, MOST OF YOU KNOW THAT 50% OF OUR, OF THE CHILDREN IN THIS COUNTY LIVE IN, IN SOUTH COUNTY, AND THEY HAVE NO POOL. THEY HAVE, WELL, THERE IS ONE POOL, A LITTLE YMCA POOL, WHICH IS INDOOR AND TINY AND, UH, BEEN CLOSED FOR MOST OF LAST YEAR. UM, WE'VE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR, UH, FROM MANY PEOPLE, UM, IN, UH, AT THE BEACH AND IN, UH, WHO ARE, UH, COACHES FOR SWIMMING THAT THE, THAT THE KIDS IN THE SOUTH COUNTY, UM, HAVE A NEED TO LEARN TO SWIM. IT IS A BASIC SAFETY ISSUE. AND MY IDEA TO TRY TO BRING AN AQUATIC CENTER DOWN THERE THAT RIVAL SIMPKINS, UM, I THINK, UH, IT IS A BIG IDEA IN A TIME OF SCARCITY, [01:05:01] BUT THERE'S NO BETTER TIME TO START PLANNING FOR THAT THAN NOW. AND THERE IS, UH, GRANT MONEY OUT THERE AND A LOT OF COMMUNITY SUPPORT FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS. OOPS, MY CHAIR JUST WENT DOWN. UM, THE OTHER COOL THING ABOUT THIS IDEA IS TO ALSO BUILD OUT A COMMUNITY CENTER FOR ALL AGES, INCLUDING SENIOR CITIZENS, AND HAVE SENIOR SERVING AGENCIES ALSO BE PART OF, UH, THE PLAN THERE. SO I'M REALLY, REALLY EXCITED, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE AND THANK THEM AGAIN FOR THEIR $60,000 CONTRIBUTION. THANK YOU TO PARK STAFF, UM, FOR HELPING SORT OF REALIZE, UM, UH, THIS IDEA. THANK YOU TO SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ ALSO FOR HIS SUPPORT. UM, OKAY, THEN, AND I WON'T GO TOO FAR INTO IT. I JUST WANT TO THANK THE PROBATION DEPARTMENT FOR CONTINUING THE CAFE'S PROGRAM. THIS IS ITEM 31. UM, WE RECEIVE SOME UNANTICIPATED REVENUE, WHICH IS ALWAYS GOOD NEWS. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT'S A GOOD PROGRAM HELPING, UH, MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE INVOLVED WITH THE JUSTICE SYSTEM. UH, THANK YOU FOR ITEM 26. UH, THANK YOU TO SENATOR ANNA CABALLERO FOR CODIFYING, HOPING TO CODIFY INTO LAW A FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM TO BRING LEGAL, UM, HELP TO, UH, WATSONVILLE LAW CENTER AND OTHER LAW CENTERS WORKING ON IMMIGRATION ISSUES. AND I WAS HAPPY TO JOIN WITH, UM, SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE WATSONVILLE LAW CENTER AND FOR THIS IDEA. AND FINALLY, THANK YOU TO JUSTIN ALSO, UM, FOR ITEM 24, UH, TO PROVIDE OPPOSITION TO, UH, THE FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION, UM, TRYING TO REDUCE AND, UM, KICK PEOPLE OUT OF HOUSING. WHEN FAMILIES, UH, ARE IN HOUSING, IF THERE'S EVEN ONE PERSON IN THAT HOUSING SYSTEM THAT IS NOT DOCUMENTED, THE FAMILY WILL NEED TO CHOOSE TO EITHER REMOVE THAT PERSON FROM, UM, THE DWELLING OR MOVE OUT COMPLETELY. UH, AND THAT'S NOT RIGHT. IT'S NOT JUSTICE, AND IT'S NOT FAIR. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND I THINK THAT'S THE END OF MY COMMENTS. - THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. I WANT TO START OFF BY WELCOMING OUR SEIU 521 MEMBERS WHO JOINED US TODAY. UM, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. UH, AS YOU STATED, YOU ARE ESSENTIAL WORKERS AND CRITICAL TO OUR COUNTY'S ABILITY TO SERVE OUR RESIDENTS. UM, SO I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND, UM, LET YOU KNOW THAT WE ARE WORKING HARD TO TRY TO COME FORWARD WITH A BUDGET THAT PRESERVES POSITIONS. UM, AND WE HOPE THAT WE CAN COUNT ON YOUR PARTNERSHIP AS WE CONTINUE TO NAVIGATE THE DIFFICULT FINANCIAL PICTURE THAT'S AHEAD. UM, THAT SAID, YOU KNOW, I ALSO HOPE THAT WE, UM, THAT WE GET AN OPPORTUNITY TO RECOGNIZE YOU THROUGH THE VARIOUS PROCLAMATIONS THAT WERE CAME FORWARD TODAY. SO, UM, DO WANT TO RECOGNIZE NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, WHICH WAS LAST WEEK. THANK YOU TO ALL OUR PUBLIC HEALTH WORKERS, UM, WHO DO REALLY VALUABLE WORK. AND THEN, OF COURSE, NATIONAL CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AWARENESS MONTH FOR APRIL. SO, UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO HELPING KEEP OUR COMMUNITY SAFE AND HEALTHY. I ALSO WANT TO THANK MY COLLEAGUES, SUPERVISOR DE SERPA AND SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS, FOR BRINGING ITEMS NUMBER 24 AND 26 BEFORE US. UM, BOTH OF THESE ITEMS DEMONSTRATE OUR VALUES OF SUPPORTING OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY, AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT EVERY OPPORTUNITY THAT WE CAN, WE ARE ON THE RECORD IN, ON SUPPORTING MEASURES THAT ASSIST IMMIGRANTS IN HAVING ACCESS TO SAFE HOUSING AND SERVICES AND OPPOSING FEDERAL PROPOSALS THAT TARGET THEIR HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BRINGING THESE FORWARD. AS IT RELATES TO ITEM NUMBER 33, UM, I KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION ON THAT, BUT I DO WANT TO RECOGNIZE THE HARD WORK THAT OUR, UM, BEHAVIORAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT HAS DONE TO BRING FORWARD THESE CONTRACTS. UM, THESE CONTRACTS DO RATIFY UM, A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF GOOD WORK THAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SAFETY NET TODAY. UM, THESE ARE THE REALLY, THE BRICKS OF THE FOUNDATION OF OUR OVERALL SAFETY NET THAT ARE TRYING TO NAVIGATE A NUMBER OF COMPLEX FUNDING CHANGES AND REQUIREMENTS AS IT RELATES TO THE TRANSITION FROM MHSA TO BHSA. UM, AND SO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT FORWARD AND ALSO FOR FOLKS AND ORGANIZATIONS WHO WANT TO SEE CHANGES IN OUR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES, WHICH, UM, WHICH ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. UM, I HOPE THAT YOU CONTINUE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE BHSA, UM, FEEDBACK PROCESS, [01:10:01] BECAUSE AS A COMMUNITY, WE ARE SEEKING INPUT FROM, UM, FOLKS LIKE PARENT, PARENTING PROGRAM PROVIDERS AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, UM, TO ENSURE THAT THIS TRANSITION IS DONE WELL AND REPRESENTS ALL THE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY. AND THEN FINALLY, ON ITEM NUMBER 39, WHICH IS THE 2026 EVACUATION ROUTE HAZARD MITIGATION PROJECT. SINCE A NUMBER OF THESE PROJECTS ARE IN MY DISTRICT, I DO WANNA THANK CDI PUBLIC WORKS AND OR3 FOR THEIR WORK TO ADDRESS WILDFIRE FUELS IN RURAL AREAS. UM, THESE ARE REALLY IMPORTANT PROJECTS, AND EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS WHEN IT COMES TO THE VEGETATION MANAGEMENT AND HELPING TO KEEP OUR EVACUATION ROUTES SAFE. SO WITH THAT, I'LL RETURN TO THE BOARD FOR A MOTION. - I'LL MOVE CONSENT. - SECOND. - WE HAVE A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ. MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU CALL THE ROLL? - SUPERVISOR DE SERPA? - AYE. - KOENIG? - AYE. - HERNANDEZ? - AYE. - CUMMINGS? - AYE. - AND MARTINEZ? - AYE. MOTION PASSES 5 TO 0. WE WILL NOW MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER 7. [7. Consider approving in concept "Ordinance Amending Sections 9.28.020 and 9.28.030 of the Santa Cruz County Code Adding a Stop Intersection on 6th Avenue at Bonnie Street and Designating the Intersection of 6th Avenue and Bonnie Street as a Multi-way Stop Intersection”, and take related actions] CONSIDER APPROVING IN CONCEPT AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTIONS 9.28.020 AND 9.28.030 OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY CODE ADDING A STOP INTERSECTION ON 6TH AVENUE AT BONNIE STREET AND DESIGNATING THE INTERSECTION OF 6TH AVENUE AND BONNIE STREET AS A MULTI-WAY STOP INTERSECTION, AND TAKE RELATED ACTIONS. SO TODAY WE HAVE A REPORT FROM OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, MR. WEISNER. PLEASE, SIR. - THANK YOU. UH, AND GOOD MORNING, CHAIR MARTINEZ, AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND CEO COBURN. MY NAME IS STEVE WEISNER, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS. UM, ALSO IN CHAMBERS WITH ME TODAY IS JEFFREY DE LOS SANTOS. JEFF IS, UH, ONE OF OUR NEWEST MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WORKS MANAGEMENT TEAM. JEFF WAS RECENTLY PROMOTED TO SENIOR CIVIL ENGINEER IN CHARGE OF OUR TRAFFIC ENGINEERING SECTION WHICH IS ALL THINGS ROAD-RELATED SAFETY, PEDESTRIANS, BICYCLE, AND MOTORIST SAFETY. UM, AND, UM, UH, I'M HERE TODAY, UM, FOR YOUR BOARD TO CONSIDER, UH, APPROVING IN CONCEPT ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTIONS 9.28.020 AND 9.28.030 OF THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY CODE, ADDING A STOP INTERSECTION ON 6TH AVENUE AND BONNIE STREET, AND DESIGNATING THE INTERSECTION OF 6TH AVENUE AND BONNIE STREET AS A MULTI WAY STOP INTERSECTION AND TAKE RELATED ACTIONS. UM, I HAVE A BRIEF, UH, PRESENTATION, UM, TO GO OVER. LET'S SEE. NEXT SLIDE HERE. LET'S SEE, WHICH ONE DO I PUSH? IS IT THAT ONE? CAN YOU ADVANCE FOR ME? THANK YOU. OKAY, GREAT. UM, THIS IS WHAT THE INTERSECTION LOOKS LIKE TODAY. THIS IS A, A AN INTERSECTION, UM, NEAR THE HARBOR IN THE LIVE OAK AREA OF OUR COUNTY. UM, WE FINDING AN INCREASING, UM, THAT CUT-THROUGH TRAFFIC HAS BEEN USING IT TO GET DOWN TO THE BEACHES IN THAT AREA. UM, AND NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. OKAY. UM, AND SO THIS IS A... I'LL JUST BASICALLY OUTLINE OUR PROCESS, UM, FOR INSTALLING STOP SIGNS, UM, AT INTERSECTIONS IN THE COUNTY. UM, IN THIS CASE, WE GOT A REQUEST FROM SOME OF THE RESIDENTS THAT LIVE IN THAT AREA UM, THAT OWN HOMES IN THAT AREA, AND HAD CITED A LOT OF THE CUT-THROUGH TRAFFIC AND WAS CONCERNED ABOUT SAFETY. UM AND, AND THEY WERE ACTUALLY WILLING TO HELP SPONSOR UM SOME OF THE WORK FOR, FOR THIS PROJECT. UM, SO WHAT WE DO IS WE GO AHEAD AND, UM, DO A TRAFFIC ANALYSIS TO PERFORM AN ALL-WAY STOP WARRANT TO SEE IF IT ACTUALLY IS WARRANTED. UM, AND UM, IN THIS CASE, IT ACTUALLY DID MEET WARRANTS. UM, IT MET ONE OF THEM. WE HAVE 6 DIFFERENT TYPES OF WARRANTS, UM, THAT HAVING TO DO WITH VARIOUS THINGS FROM THE TRAFFIC VOLUMES AND SIGHT DISTANCE AND SO FORTH, AND IT DID MEET A SIGHT DISTANCE WARRANT. UM, AND SO WE WENT AHEAD AND PREPARED A PLAN. UM, LET'S SEE OOPS. AH, HOW DO I GO BACK? OKAY, HERE WE GO. EXCUSE ME. SO WE WENT AHEAD AND PREPARED A PLAN. UM, AND THIS IS WHAT AN ALL-WAY STOP WOULD LOOK LIKE AT THAT INTERSECTION. UM, PRETTY SIMPLE. UM, JUST INSTALLING STOP SIGNS, UM, ON THE 6TH AVENUE LEGS OF THE INTERSECTION. AND SO WHAT WE'RE HERE TODAY IS FOR YOUR BOARD TO CONSIDER APPROVING IN CONCEPT, UH, AND [INAUDIBLE] THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS, UM, TO AMEND SECTIONS 9.28.020 AND 9.28.030 OF THE COUNTY CODE ADDING A STOP INTERSECTION AT 6TH AVENUE AND BONNIE, AND DESIGNATING THE INTERSECTION OF 6TH AND BONNIE AS A MULTI-WAY INTERSECTION. UM, WE DO NEED TO COME BACK AND SCHEDULE THE ORDINANCE FOR A FINAL ADOPTION AT THE NEXT AVAILABLE BOARD DATE. IN THIS CASE, IT'S APRIL 28TH, UM, OF THIS YEAR. UM, AND DIRECT THE CLERK OF THE BOARD TO PUBLISH THE NOTICE OF PROPOSED ORDINANCE IN SUMMARY IN A NEWSPAPER OF GENERAL CIRCULATION FOR AT LEAST 5 DAYS PRIOR TO THE SCHEDULING, UM, THE READING UM, AND FINAL ADOPTION, NO LATER THAN APRIL 23RD, 2026. [01:15:04] AND THEN DIRECT FINALLY, DIRECT THE, UM, DIVISION OF PUBLIC WORKS TO INSTALL ALL NECESSARY SIGNING AND STRIPING UM, TO CREATE THE MULTI-WAY STOP INTERSECTION 31 DAYS AFTER THE FINAL ADOPTION. UH, SO WITH THAT, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOUR BOARD MAY HAVE. - THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? SUPERVISOR KOENIG? - THANK YOU, CHAIR. UH, WELL, THANK YOU, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WEISNER, FOR, UM, REALLY FOR MOVING SO QUICKLY ON THIS. I MEAN, I THINK THAT, UH, THE RESIDENTS REACHED OUT JUST IN THE FALL ABOUT, UH, THIS MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS. AND OF COURSE, THIS IS ALSO RELATED TO ITEM 40, WHICH I ASKED FOR 2, UH, ROAD BUMPS, UM, IN THIS VICINITY. UM, AND, UH, IT'S, IT'S BEEN AN ISSUE FOR A WHILE, BUT, UM, YOU GUYS REALLY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC OR DIVISION OF PUBLIC WORKS REALLY BROUGHT A LOT OF MOMENTUM TO GET THIS DONE, UH, WITH IN RELATIVE SHORT ORDER BY, BY OUR STANDARDS. UM, SO I APPRECIATE THAT. UM, AND WHILE IT CAN SEEM, UM, SORT OF MINIMAL, UH, MINIMAL IMPROVEMENT FROM, UH, FROM THIS ROOM OR FROM THE, FROM THE COUNTY BUILDING IN GENERAL, I MEAN REALLY THIS MAKES A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD ITSELF. UM, I MEAN SO MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE THAT I MEAN MY UNDERSTANDING IS SOMEONE ACTUALLY WROTE A $30,000 CHECK TO US TO PAY FOR THE STOP SIGNS AND THE 2 SPEED BUMPS. I MEAN FULLY PAY FOR THE SPEED BUMPS, TOO, TYPICALLY WE PAY FOR HALF OF THOSE WITH THE COUNTY FUND. UM, SO IT WAS THAT IMPORTANT TO SOMEBODY, UH, AND THAT BIG OF AN IMPROVEMENT TO THE SAFETY IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD THAT THEY WANTED TO DO THAT. UM, AND MY REALLY MY ONLY QUESTION IS UM, HOW DO WE MAKE THESE KINDS OF IMPROVEMENTS ACCESSIBLE TO MORE NEIGHBORHOODS? UM, WE HAVE A, AS YOU KNOW, A LONG LIST OF FOLKS WHO REQUEST SPEED BUMPS IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS, AND WE, WE CAN'T ALWAYS QUICKLY HONOR THOSE REQUESTS BECAUSE, UH, OUR, OUR MATCHING FUNDS FOR THOSE QUICKLY GET USED UP. UM, IN FACT, IN SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED THIS YEAR WE HAD, UH, WE DID HAVE A GENEROUS LOCAL DONOR COME IN AND HELP PAY FOR, UH, THE DIFFERENCE IN ONE OF THOSE SPEED BUMP PROJECTS ON RODRIGUEZ. UM, AND THEN, UH, WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE ON DOVER DRIVE THAT, UH, THEY'VE MET THE PETITION THRESHOLD, BUT ARE, ARE LOOKING TO ALSO CLOSE THE GAP THIS YEAR. UM, AND SO, IN THINKING ABOUT HOW WE BRING DOWN THE COSTS OF THESE KINDS OF PROJECTS, THE QUESTION IS, UM, WHEN, WHEN CAN WE LOOK AT MAYBE SOME CHEAPER OPTIONS, LIKE THE BOLT-DOWN RUBBER BUMPS OR SOMETHING THAT WE COULD INCORPORATE INTO OUR COUNTY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES THAT MAYBE, UH, IF WE BRING DOWN THE COST, THEN WE'LL HAVE OUR MONEY WILL GO FURTHER. - YEAH, THAT'S A VERY GOOD POINT, THANK YOU. AND THAT'S SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO, UH, RELATED TO ITEM 40, UM, ON OUR CONSENT AGENDA TODAY, WHICH IS A SORT OF A COMPANION ITEM TO THIS, UM, AS YOU MENTIONED. UM, THAT ROAD BUMPS, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD WENT THROUGH A PROCESS TO DECIDE WHETHER THEY WANTED ROAD BUMPS OR NOT ON 6TH AVENUE. AND, UH, I THINK THEY GOT SOMETHING LIKE 72% IN FAVOR OF THAT. UM, AND SO THAT'S A PUBLIC PROCESS. THAT'S A BOARD-APPROVED POLICY. UM, WE DO HAVE LIMITED FUNDING ON HOW MANY, UH, WE'RE ABLE TO INSTALL PER YEAR BASED ON OUR BUDGET. SO PUBLIC WORKS, WE, WE MATCH, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UM, SO IT IS A, THE NEIGHBORHOOD DOES HAVE TO HAVE SOME SKIN IN THE GAME, AND THEY DO HAVE TO PAY FOR HALF. IN THIS CASE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD, AND IN PARTICULAR THESE 2 RESIDENTS, CAME FORWARD, UM, AND OFFERED TO PAY FOR THE ENTIRE PROCESS THEMSELVES. AND SO THAT DID HELP US GET THESE INSTALLED WITHIN THIS FISCAL YEAR. OTHERWISE, WE HAVE A WAITING LIST OF ABOUT 2 YEARS RIGHT NOW. SO IF YOU COME IN FOR ROAD BUMPS, UM, WE'LL GO THROUGH THE PROCESS WITH YOU, UM, BUT, UM, OUR BUDGET, UM, DOESN'T ALLOW US TO INSTALL MORE THAN A FEW OF THESE PER YEAR. AND SO YOU'LL HAVE TO GET IN LINE FOR THE COUNTY BUDGET TO COME FORTH. SO YEAH, FOR SURE, PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS, UM, TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY COME FORWARD AND NEIGHBORHOODS ARE MOTIVATED TO, UM, TO INSTALL SAFETY ITEMS ON THEIR ROADWAYS, WE'RE DEFINITELY ALL EARS, AND THAT COULD HELP ADVANCE A PROJECT FOR SURE. AND THEN ALSO SPECIFICALLY, UH, RELATED TO YOUR SUGGESTION ABOUT HOW DO WE BRING THE COST DOWN? WE ARE LOOKING AT MORE COST-EFFECTIVE ROAD BUMPS. UM, SPECIFICALLY, THOSE RUBBER BOLT-DOWN VERSIONS THAT WE'LL SEE IN SOME OF THE OTHER JURISDICTIONS. WE HAVEN'T ADOPTED THOSE YET BUT WE DO ANTICIPATE BRINGING THAT TO YOUR BOARD AS A DESIGN CRITERIA CHANGE THIS FALL. UM, SO HOPEFULLY THAT'LL HELP GET MORE INSTALLED ON AN ANNUAL BASIS. - GREAT. THANK YOU. - ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. - JUST A QUICK ONE. WHAT IS THE BUDGET FOR, UM, SPEED BUMPS THAT THE COUNTY HAS? DO WE HAVE A LINE ITEM FOR THAT? AND I CAN TAKE THAT LATER, STEVE, I JUST [CROSSTALK] - WE DO, I DON'T HAVE THAT EXACT NUMBER, UM, WITH ME TODAY BUT IT REALLY ONLY ALLOWS US TO DO SOMEWHERE AROUND 3 OR 4 BUMPS A YEAR. UM, THEY'RE GETTING VERY EXPENSIVE. WHEN THIS PROGRAM FIRST STARTED, THEY WERE LIKE $4,000 A ROAD BUMP, AND NOW THEY'RE WELL OVER $10,000 APIECE. UM, AND THE COUNTY MATCHES HALF OF THAT, RIGHT? SO IT, WE CAN DO ABOUT 3 OR 4 A YEAR. WE'RE GETTING PROBABLY REQUESTS FOR 6 TO 8 A YEAR. [01:20:01] - THANK YOU. - SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ? - JUST REALLY QUICK, IF YOU CAN SEND US OVER WHAT THAT CRITERIA IS TO GET THOSE BUMPS AS WELL. EMAIL IT TO US OFFLINE. - SURE. - ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? SEEING NONE, I'LL NOW TAKE IT UP TO THE PUBLIC. ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? ANYONE ON THE PHONE? - I SEE NO ONE WITH THEIR HAND RAISED, CHAIR. - THANK YOU. I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR DISCUSSION AND A MOTION. - I'LL MOVE THE RECOMMENDED ACTION. - SECOND. - WE HAVE A MOTION FROM SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS AND A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG. AND, UM, SEEING NO FURTHER DISCUSSION MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? - SUPERVISOR DE SERPA? - AYE. - KOENIG? - AYE. - HERNANDEZ? - AYE. - CUMMINGS? - AYE. - AND MARTINEZ? - AYE. MOTION PASSES 5 TO 0. WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER 8, [8. Consider adopting resolution expressing the intention of the County of Santa Cruz to participate in City of Scotts Valley Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District, confirm the Board’s action is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, and take related actions] CONSIDER ADOPTING A RESOLUTION EXPRESSING THE INTENTION OF THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ TO PARTICIPATE IN THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY ENHANCED INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING DISTRICT, AND TAKE RELATED ACTIONS. AND TODAY'S PRESENTATION IS FROM CEO COBURN, UM, AS WELL AS PRINCIPAL ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST MR. DETLEFS. - SO THANK YOU, CHAIR, UM, AND GOOD MORNING. SO I'M NICOLE COBURN, THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE OFFICER. UM, OVER AT THE OTHER TABLE IS PETER DETLEFS FROM MY OFFICE, WHO WORKS ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MATTERS, AND HAS BEEN WORKING ON EIFD POLICY AND FORMATION. UH, WE ALSO HAVE MALI LAGOE, THE SCOTTS VALLEY CITY MANAGER ONLINE IN CASE THERE ARE QUESTIONS. I SEE A COUPLE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS FROM THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY HERE TODAY AS WELL, UM, AND I'M SURE THEY, YOU MIGHT BE HEARING FROM THEM LATER. UM, AS WELL AS JOSEPH DIEGUEZ FROM KOSMONT FINANCIAL SERVICES, WHO'S HERE IN PERSON TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE. SO TODAY'S ITEM CONCERNS A PROPOSAL FROM THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY ASKING THE COUNTY TO PARTNER WITH THE CITY AND THE SCOTTS VALLEY FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT IN FORMING AN ENHANCED INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING DISTRICT, OR WHAT IS CALLED AN EIFD. TODAY, WE'RE GOING TO WALK THROUGH WHAT AN EIFD IS, WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED IN THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY, THE FISCAL IMPACT FOR THE COUNTY, AND WHAT THE BOARD IS BEING ASKED TO DO TODAY. UM, SO NEXT SLIDE. SO BEFORE GETTING INTO THE SPECIFICS OF THIS PARTICULAR PROPOSAL I WANT TO GROUND YOU IN WHAT AN EIFD ACTUALLY IS. UM, IT'S OFTEN MISUNDERSTOOD. SO AN EIFD DOES NOT RAISE TAXES. PROPERTY OWNERS IN THE DISTRICT THAT WOULD BE FORMED WOULD SEE NO CHANGE IN THEIR TAX BILL. INSTEAD, AN EIFD CAPTURES THE GROWTH IN PROPERTY TAX REVENUES GENERATED BY NEW DEVELOPMENT. UH, AND THIS HAPPENS AS PROPERTY VALUES INCREASE OVER TIME. UM, DURING OVERTIME, THE INCREMENT ABOVE THE BASELINE IS SET TO ADJUST, UM, TO FUND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTS. SO THIS IS VERY SIMILAR TO REVENUES COLLECTED BY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCIES PRIOR TO WHEN THEY DISSOLVED IN 2011. SO, COLLECTED EIFD FUNDS CAN PAY FOR A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT PROJECTS. THIS INCLUDES INFRASTRUCTURE, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING. PARTICIPATION IN AN EIFD IS ENTIRELY VOLUNTARY. THE CITY THAT'S FORMING THE EIFD INVITES COUNTIES AND FIRE DISTRICTS TO JOIN, OFTENTIMES, AND NO AGENCY IS REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE. AS COMPARED TO THE FORMER REDEVELOPMENT AGENCIES, SCHOOLS ARE EXCLUDED BY STATE LAW AND ARE FULLY PROTECTED. EIFDS WERE CREATED BY SENATE BILL 628 IN 2014, AND ARE GOVERNED BY A SEPARATE PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY, OR PFA. AND THAT PFA HAS, UM, REPRESENTATIVES THAT COMPRISE THE GOVERNING BOARD FROM EACH OF THE PARTICIPATING PUBLIC AGENCIES. NEXT SLIDE. SO, UM, BACK ON FEBRUARY 10TH OF THIS YEAR, THE COUNTY, UH, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ADOPTED AN EIFD PARTICIPATION POLICY BECAUSE A NUMBER OF, ACTUALLY ALL OF THE CITIES IN OUR COUNTIES HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT FORMING EIFDS AND SOME HAVE APPROACHED THE COUNTY. THE POLICY SETS CLEAR GUARDRAILS FOR ANY EIFD THE COUNTY MIGHT JOIN. AND I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE KEY PROVISIONS ON HOW THE SCOTTS VALLEY PROPOSAL ALIGNS WITH THE POLICY. THE COUNTY WOULD CONTRIBUTE NO MORE THAN 25% OF ITS SHARE OF FUTURE PROPERTY TAX GROWTH, NONE OF TODAY'S EXISTING PROPERTY TAX REVENUES WOULD BE TOUCHED. AND, UM, I WANT TO ALSO NOTE AT THE SAME TIME, A LOT OF THE PROPERTIES BEING PROPOSED IN THE EIFD ARE THERE ARE NO TAXES CURRENTLY COLLECTED ON [01:25:02] BECAUSE THEY ARE CURRENTLY VACANT AND PUBLIC PROPERTY PARTICIPATION WOULD BE FOR NO MORE THAN 30 YEARS, ALL COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS WOULD BE REIMBURSED BY THE CITY OR THE EIFD, AND THE COUNTY IS GUARANTEED AT LEAST ONE SEAT ON THE GOVERNING PFA, THE PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY THAT I MENTIONED, ON THAT BOARD ALONG WITH ONE APPOINTMENT OF ONE PUBLIC MEMBER FROM OUR JURISDICTION. FINALLY, THE PROPOSAL DEMONSTRATES A POSITIVE NET FINANCIAL IMPACT TO THE COUNTY GENERAL FUND. THE SCOTTS VALLEY PROPOSAL MEETS ALL OF THE CRITERIA IN OUR POLICY, WITH ONE EXCEPTION, AND THAT'S RELATED TO THE TAX RATE AREA BOUNDARIES. UM, WHICH THE TAX RATE AREAS, THERE IS SOME THAT THE DISTRICT GOES THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF, THERE'S A DIVIDING LINE, BUT WE BELIEVE THERE ARE WAYS TO GET AROUND TRYING TO DEAL WITH THIS. UM, STAFF BELIEVES THE CITY, UH, ONE OF THOSE SOLUTIONS IS TO OUTSOURCE THE REQUIRED CALCULATIONS FOR THE ALLOCATION OF THE PROPERTY TAXES TO THE DISTRICT, AND THIS WOULD NOT IMPACT THE OPERATIONS OF THE AUDITOR-CONTROLLER-TAX COLLECTOR'S OFFICE. UH, WITH THAT, UM, GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, AND PETER'S GOING TO TAKE OVER. - GOOD MORNING, UH, BOARD, AND, UH, CHAIR. PETER DETLEFS, UH, PRINCIPAL ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST WITH THE CEO UM, THE PROPOSED DISTRICT BOUNDARY COVERS ABOUT 236 ACRES, OR ABOUT 8% OF THE TOTAL AREA OF THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY. THE EXISTING ASSESSED VALUE IN THE BOUNDARY IS APPROXIMATELY $145,000,000 WHICH REPRESENTS ONLY ABOUT 4% OF THE CITY'S TOTAL PROPERTY TAX TODAY OR VALUE TODAY. THE BOUNDARY WAS DELIBERATELY DRAWN NARROW TO FOCUS ON OPPORTUNITY SITES OR AREAS WHERE NEW DEVELOPMENT AND OR REDEVELOPMENT ARE LIKELY TO OCCUR AND GENERALLY ALIGN WITH THE CITY'S, UM, HOUSING ELEMENT. UM, THE ESTIMATED INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT CAPACITY WITHIN THE DISTRICT IS ABOUT $40 MILLION. SO WHAT WOULD THIS $40 MILLION BUILD? THE INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING PLAN, WHICH BE DEVELOPED DURING THE FORMATION PROCESS WOULD SPECIFY PROJECTS IN DETAIL BUT THE CITY HAS IDENTIFIED SIX CATEGORIES OF LIKELY INVESTMENTS THESE INCLUDE ROADS AND TRAFFIC FOR THINGS LIKE INTERCHANGES AT MOUNT HERMAN AND GRANITE CREEK WATER AND SEWER FACILITIES, AFFORDABLE HOUSING GAP FINANCING WHICH HELP WITH FINANCE THOSE PROJECTS, FIRE FACILITIES, COMMUNITY FACILITIES SUCH AS A SENIOR CENTER OR EMERGENCY, UM, SHELTER AND WILDFIRE PREVENTION. TO UNDERSTAND WHAT, UH, THE COUNTY'S STAKE IN THIS, HELPS TO UNDERSTAND HOW PROPERTY TAXES ARE CURRENTLY ALLOCATED FOR EVERY DOLLAR COLLECTED WITHIN THE EIFD AREA, SCHOOLS AND OTHER EXCLUDED ENTITIES RECEIVE ABOUT 59 CENTS. AND AS MENTIONED, THOSE ARE FULLY PROTECTED UNDER STATE LAW. THE FIRE DISTRICT RECEIVES ABOUT 14.60 CENTS. THE COUNTY GENERAL FUND ABOUT 14, THE CITY ABOUT SIX AND A HALF, AND THE SMALLER AMOUNTS GO TO THE WATER DISTRICT AND COUNTY LIBRARIES. UNDER THIS PROPOSAL ONLY THE GROWTH, UH, ABOVE THE CURRENT BASELINE, UM, PROPERTY TAX WITHIN THE DISTRICTS WOULD BE SHARED. SO THE COUNTY WOULD DIRECT, UH, 25% OF ITS SHARE OF THAT FUTURE GROWTH INTO THE EIFD. OUR EXISTING REVENUES, UM, AND THE REMAINING 75% OF NEW PROPERTY TAX INCREMENT REMAINS ENTIRELY INTACT FOR THE COUNTY. SO THIS SLIDE OUTLINES THE FISCAL IMPACT FOR EACH AGENCY BASED ON THE KOSMONT ANALYSIS. FOR THE COUNTY, THE PROJECTED NET GENERAL FUND BENEFIT, UH, IS 18.4 MILLION IN PRESENT VALUE OVER THE 30 YEAR PARTICIPATION PERIOD, GIVEN THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT SCENARIO OUTLINED BY KOSMONT. THE COUNTY WOULD CONTRIBUTE APPROXIMATELY $12 MILLION NOMINALLY TO THE EIFD OVER 30 YEARS, WHILE RETAINING APPROXIMATELY 35.9 MILLION IN NEW REVENUES. TO BE CLEAR, THESE ARE PROJECTIONS BASED ON A MODEL DEVELOPMENT SCENARIO OVER 20 YEARS, AND A SNAPSHOT OF THE COUNTY'S CURRENT BUDGET. ACTUAL RESULTS WILL DEPEND ON MARKET CONDITIONS AND HOW DEVELOPMENT PROCEEDS. IN ANY SCENARIO, THE COUNTY WOULD ONLY CONTRIBUTE 25% OF FUTURE INCREMENT NO MATTER HOW MUCH IS ACTUALLY COLLECTED. I'LL PASS IT BACK TO NICOLE. - SO, THANKS, PETER. I WANNA TAKE A MOMENT TO OUTLINE THE FORMATION TIMELINE THAT YOU SEE HERE. SO THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPTED ITS RESOLUTION OF INTENTION LAST DECEMBER, AND THE FIRE DISTRICT FOLLOWED IN JANUARY OF THIS YEAR. TODAY, UM, AS SHOWN HERE, THE BOARD IS BEING ASKED TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP WITH A RESOLUTION OF INTENTION. AFTER TODAY, THE PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY IS GOING TO BE, [01:30:02] IS SCHEDULED TO MEET IN MAY TO DIRECT DRAFTING OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING PLAN. UH, THE DRAFT IFP WOULD BE DISTRIBUTED FOR REVIEW, AND IT IS ANTICIPATED THAT A PUBLIC MEETING FOR THE PFA WILL BE HELD DURING THE MONTH OF JULY. IN AUGUST, THE CITY, THE COUNTY, AND THE FIRE DISTRICT WOULD EACH INDEPENDENTLY VOTE ON THE IFP APPROVAL. AND IF EVERYTHING PROCEEDS ON SCHEDULE, THE EIFD COULD BE FORMALLY ESTABLISHED THROUGH PUBLIC HEARINGS THIS FALL IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER. AGAIN, THE IFP VOTE IS A, IS THE BINDING FINANCIAL DECISION. TODAY IS JUST THE FIRST STEP FOR THE COUNTY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH EXPLORING THE FORMATION PROCESS. NEXT SLIDE. SO BEFORE YOU TODAY ARE FOUR ACTIONS. UM, THE BOARD IS BEING ASKED TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION OF INTENTION TO AFFIRM PARTICIPATION IN THE PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY TO APPOINT TWO MEMBERS. TO, THE PFA ONE WOULD BE SUPERVISOR MONICA MARTINEZ. THE OTHER WOULD BE MYSELF. UM, I AM A SCOTTS VALLEY RESIDENT, AND WE SEE THIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE COUNTY TO REALLY DIVE IN AND LEARN MORE ABOUT EIFD BECAUSE WE ARE LOOKING AT IT AS A TOOL IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREA. UM, THE LAST, UH, RECOMMENDED ACTION IS FOR THE BOARD TO FIND THE ACTION IS EXEMPT FROM CEQA. SO WITH THAT, WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS AND, UM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. - THANK YOU. I'LL NOW RETURN TO THE BOARD FOR QUESTIONS. SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ. - WELL, THIS IS A REALLY, UH, EXCITING OPPORTUNITY GIVEN THAT ALSO YOU GUYS HAVE THE TOWN SQUARE GOING ON IN THE WORKS. UH, AND I'M REALLY EXCITED BECAUSE WE'RE CONSIDERING IT IN, IN OUR DISTRICT AS WELL TOO. SO I WANTED TO FIND OUT THOUGH, WITH THE, UM, KIND OF DEFINED BOUNDARIES OF THE DISTRICT WHERE THE TAX RENEW IS GONNA BE SHARED. HOW IS THAT DEFINED, OR HOW IS THAT, UH, CREATED? I SEE THAT THERE'S CERTAIN PARCELS THAT WERE PART OF THE DISTRICT. IS IT EVEN CALLED A DISTRICT? I'M CALLING IT A DISTRICT, BUT HOW, HOW ARE THOSE, DO THEY JUST GET SELECTED BY THE CITY THEMSELVES? AND ALSO THE, THE FIRE DISTRICT IS ON THERE. UM, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS DEFINED BY THE COUNTY OR THE CITY THAT PUT THAT ON THERE? - NO, THE CITY ITSELF DEFINED THE BOUNDARIES FOR THE DISTRICT. AND SO IT'S, THE COLORS REALLY THERE IN, IN PINK AND YELLOW AND UH, AND BLUE AND SOME GREEN. - SO IT'S JUST WHATEVER THE CITY'S DETERMINED, THERE'S NO CRITERIA THAT HAS TO BE MET. - CORRECT. THEY WERE GENERALLY SEEKING, YOU KNOW, TO TARGET THE PROPERTIES IN THEIR HOUSING ELEMENT AND WHERE THEY EXPECTED THAT THEY COULD GENERATE THE MOST TAX INCREMENT IN ORDER TO SUPPORT THE DISTRICT. - YEAH. AND SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ, I'LL KNOW, AS YOU SEE HERE THAT DISTRICT IS NOT CONTIGUOUS. SO IT'S INDIVIDUAL PARCELS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED FOR DEVELOPMENT, INCLUDING THE TOWN CENTER AND AREAS WHERE THEY WISH TO DEVELOP HOUSING. - SO IT IS LIKE THE, THEIR CORRIDOR, THE ARTERIAL CORRIDORS THAT THEY HAVE. - THAT'S CORRECT. - OKAY, GOT IT. - FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. - COULD I INVITE THE CITY COUNCILMAN TO APPROACH THE DAIS? - GOOD MORNING. - GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE TODAY. - YEAH, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US. - UM, SO I KNOW YOU, UH, LIKELY HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS FOR A LONG TIME AND PLANNING FOR THIS. CAN YOU JUST GIVE US A SNAP, LIKE AN OVERARCHING SNAPSHOT OF HOW THIS WILL HELP, UM, BUILD INFRASTRUCTURE, ET CETERA? - YEAH. SO, SO WE WERE VERY SELECTIVE IN TRYING TO PICK PARCELS IN THE CITY THAT ARE REALLY CURRENTLY NOT GENERATING, UH, MUCH REVENUE AT ALL FOR THE COUNTY, UH, OR THE CITY. AND, UM, SO IF YOU, IF YOU SEE THAT MAP AND I, AND TO AND TO, UH, UH, FELIPE'S QUESTION, I THINK, UM, WE WERE VERY INTENTIONAL WITH LOOKING AT WHERE THIS WOULD BENEFIT THE COMMUNITY THE MOST. AND SO THE SELECTION OF THE PARCELS, UH, WAS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. IT'S ALSO A WAY FOR US TO GENERATE, UH, AND STIMULATE GROWTH. SO WHEN REDEVELOPMENT WENT AWAY, UM, A, A CITY LIKE OURS, WE ONLY GET BACK 6.5% OF OUR PROPERTY TAXES. WE'RE ALWAYS IN A STRUCTURAL DEFICIT. WE HAVE NO MONEY IN THE, WE HAVE A VERY SMALL GENERAL FUND. YOU'D BE SHOCKED AT HOW SMALL IT IS. SO THIS WAS A ONE WAY FOR US TO ACTUALLY STIMULATE GROWTH IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND WE'VE LOOKED AT A LOT OF OPTIONS. THIS IS REALLY WHAT THE STATE HAS GIVEN US TO MAKE UP FOR REDEVELOPMENT. SO THIS IS, THIS WAS A, UH, AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOMETHING ACTUALLY GET THINGS DONE IN OUR CITY. SO WE INVITED THE FIRE DISTRICT AS WELL. THEY'VE, THEY'VE HAD THREE FAILED BOND MEASURES, UM, FOR A, A NEW FIREHOUSE. CURRENTLY THE ONE THEY HAVE WAS BUILT, UM, LET'S JUST SAY IT'S NOT EARTHQUAKE SAFE. IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT A PLACE THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO RELY ON HAVING, UH, FIREFIGHTERS [01:35:01] GET TO AREAS OF OUR COUNTY THAT NEED IT. AND SO THEY JUMPED ON BOARD. AND SO THE CITY'S EXCITED ABOUT IT, AND WE HOPE THIS IS, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NOT GONNA LOSE ANY TAX DOLLARS 'CAUSE IT'S ONLY FUTURE VALUE. UM, SO WE REALLY SEE THIS, YOU'RE, YOU'RE NOT GIVING ANYTHING UP. AND I THINK YOU HEARD WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE ABILITY TO GENERATE 35 MILLION IN NEW DOLLARS FOR THE COUNTY OVER TIME AND THAT'S NOT INCLUDING THE SALES TAX REVENUE WE'RE GONNA GENERATE AS WELL, BECAUSE WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO GET OUR TOWN CENTER BELT. WE'RE HOPING THAT'S GONNA BE A SALES TAX GENERATOR, NOT JUST FOR US, BUT FOR YOU. SO I THINK IT'S A WIN-WIN. IS THAT HELPFUL? - VERY, THANK YOU. - YEAH, I'D JUST LIKE TO WEIGH IN JUST TO REMIND THE BOARD THAT THE SCOTTS VALLEY, UM, FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT IS LARGER THAN THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY, SO IT ALSO SERVES THE UNINCORPORATED AREA. SO THAT NEW STATION WOULD ALSO SERVE OUR RESIDENTS. - THANK YOU, PETER. - YEAH, AND I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY FIRST OF ALL, WHAT HE SAID UM, BUT ALSO TO YOU. UM, I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT HOW THIS IS FINANCED HERE IN THAT WE DON'T ASK ANY MORE MONEY FROM OUR COMMUNITY. AND ESPECIALLY A CITY LIKE SCOTTS VALLEY HAS A SIGNIFICANT SENIOR POPULATION THAT'S ON A FIXED INCOME UH, TO GO TO THEM, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH ANOTHER TAX MEASURE OR SOMETHING WHERE WE'RE GONNA ASK THEM TO PAY OUT OF POCKET, IT IS, IS A TOUGH TIME TO DO THAT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE COUNTY, NOT JUST IN OUR CITY. BUT THE ONE HUGE BENEFIT OF THIS IS THAT WE'RE NOT ASKING ANY OF OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO PUT OUT ANY MORE MONEY OUT OF THEIR POCKET. AND IT PROVIDES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY RAISE THE AREA MAKE IT BETTER, PROVIDE SOME GREAT INFRASTRUCTURE AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEM AS WELL. AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT SPEAKS TO US TOO AS WE LOOK AT OUR POPULATION, AS WE LOOK AT TOUGH FINANCIAL TIMES EVERYONE'S FACING RIGHT NOW. - AND, AND I'D LIKE TO ADD JUST ONE MORE NOTE THAT I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT. UM, SO BECAUSE OUR PROPERTY TAX THAT WE GET BACK IS ONLY 6.5% I MEAN, THAT'S AMONG THE LOWEST IN THE STATE, AND IT'S CERTAINLY THE LOWEST IN OUR REGION. UH, WITHOUT THE COUNTY'S PARTICIPATION, WE'VE BEEN TOLD BY THE ADVISORS, THIS ISN'T EVEN WORTH DOING BECAUSE ON OUR OWN, WE CAN'T GENERATE ENOUGH PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TO EVEN MAKE SETTING THIS UP WORTHWHILE. SO WE HAVE TO PARTNER WITH OTHER AGENCIES. AND SO, UH, THIS IS REALLY A WAY FOR US TO, TO GET TOGETHER AND DO SOMETHING POSITIVE FOR THE COMMUNITY. - THANK YOU. - ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? - SUPERVISOR KOENIG? - UH, YEAH, THANK YOU, CHAIR. UM, I JUST WANNA SAY MY RELATIONSHIP WITH SCOTTS VALLEY HAS CHANGED MARKEDLY JUST THIS YEAR SINCE THE OPENING OF THE NEW BIG KIDS PLAYGROUND AT SKY PARK. UM, MY KID IS NOT A BIG KID, SO IT DOES ELICIT QUITE A BIT OF ADRENALINE CHASING HER AROUND THAT THING, BUT WOW. IS IT AWESOME. UM, I MEAN, I'VE LIKENED THE SLIDES TO RAGING WATERS. THEY'RE SO, THEY'RE SO BIG. UM, AND OF COURSE, THE QUESTION THAT ALWAYS COMES BACK TO ME IS HOW DID THEY PAY FOR THAT? UH, IT SOUNDS LIKE IT WAS MOSTLY A PARTING GIFT FROM ANNA ESHOO - YES. CONGRESS WOMAN ESHOO, UH, HELPED US GET THAT DONE - UM, SO I MEAN, IT, IT'S, AND I GUESS MY POINT HERE IS THAT WHEN SCOTTS VALLEY WINS, WE ALL WIN. I MEAN, WE'RE SUCH A SMALL COUNTY GEOGRAPHICALLY, WE'RE, WE'RE SO INTERCONNECTED. AND, UH, IF YOU GUYS, IF, IF THIS IS WHAT IT TAKES TO REALLY, UH, BLOSSOM INTO THE CITY THAT YOU HAVE BEEN PLANNING NOW FOR YEARS, UM, I'M ALL FOR IT. UM, AND AS YOU SAID, I MEAN, WE WE'RE ALL STRUGGLING UNDER, UH, THESE PROPERTY TAX PERCENTAGES. I MEAN, IT'S A STORY I HAVE TO TELL EVERY DAY TO CONSTITUENTS ABOUT WHY THEY, WHY THEY DON'T HAVE NICER THINGS. UM, AND IF WE'RE ABLE TO, I MEAN, I THINK THAT THE, THESE EIFDS ENHANCED INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING DISTRICTS ARE A GREAT CREATIVE WAY TO DEAL WITH THAT. UM, AND I'M JUST WOULD BE... I'M HAPPY FOR THE COUNTY TO PARTICIPATE TO COLLABORATE WITH YOU GUYS, UH, THE CITY IN ORDER TO BRING THIS VISION TO FRUITION BECAUSE IT'S GONNA, IT'S GONNA REALLY BENEFIT EVERYONE. - THANK YOU. - GREAT. THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. UM, YOU KNOW, MY ONLY QUESTION IS FOR FOLKS WHO MAYBE AREN'T AS FAMILIAR WITH YOUR VISION FOR THE TOWN CENTER, UM, OR SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT MAY BE FINANCED THROUGH THIS PROJECT, UM, CAN YOU JUST SORT OF ILLUSTRATE WHAT YOU'RE IMAGINING, WHETHER IT'S THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND THE TOWN CENTER AND WHATNOT? - WELL, AND I, AND I JUST TO, TO DOUBLE DOWN ON THAT, LIKE, SO YOU ALL KNEW RANDY JOHNSON, WHO WAS THE MAYOR OF OUR CITY MANY TIMES, UH, IT WAS IN HIS CAMPAIGN MATERIAL THAT THEY WERE GONNA BUILD A TOWN CENTER LIKE 30 YEARS AGO, RIGHT? IT'S SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO DO. UM, IT'S INCREDIBLY COMPLICATED. THE AREA WE'RE DOING IT IS IN THAT FORMER AIRPORT AREA THAT USED TO BE OWNED BY THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ. THERE'S NO UNDERGROUND, THERE'S NO INFRASTRUCTURE, THERE'S NOTHING THERE. IT'S A HUGE DEVELOPMENT COST. SO TO GET THAT GOING IS, IS REALLY CHALLENGING. UH, WE HAVE, UH, 25% OF THAT DEVELOPMENT WILL BE AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT WE WANNA PUT IN. UH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE NEW HOUSING THERE. IT'S GONNA CREATE A, A NEW MARKET SQUARE [01:40:01] ACTUAL DOWNTOWN FOR THE CITY, UH, WHICH IT DOESN'T HAVE. SO FOR US TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH THE COUNTY TO GET THAT REDEVELOPED IS HUGE. UH, ALSO, UH, WE HAVE A VERY HIGH NUMBER OF HOUSING UNITS REQUIRED UNDER OUR, UH, RINA GOALS. YOU KNOW, THEY'VE GIVEN 1,220 UNITS TO SCOTTS VALLEY AS A JURISDICTION, WHICH, UH, REPRESENTS A 25% GROWTH. WE'RE ONLY A 4,600 UNIT TOTAL TOWN RIGHT NOW. AND SO, UH, BEING ABLE TO SPUR THE REDEVELOPMENT AND ALSO HANDLE THE IMPACTS ON OUR CITY, WE DON'T HAVE THE FUNDS TO DO THAT. SO HOW ARE WE GONNA HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE? I MEAN, TAKE, TAKE A DRIVE OVER, UH, GRANITE CREEK OVERPASS RIGHT NOW. IT WAS A HALF HOUR JUST TO GET DOWN THE HILL TODAY BECAUSE OF, UH, YOU KNOW, DECREPIT INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S FALLING APART AND THAT'S IN A SMALL TOWN. SO WE REALLY NEED HELP, UH, WITH THIS INFRASTRUCTURE, AND THEN YOU ADD TO THE ISSUES WITH OUR FIRE DISTRICT AS WELL. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. - WELL, AND I WOULD JUST ADD TOO, UH, WHEN YOU TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WE WANT TO DO AT TOWN CENTER, I MEAN, WE REALLY WANT TO PROVIDE A PLACE FOR COMMUNITY, RIGHT? AND THAT COMMUNITY STRETCHES BEYOND OUR BOUNDARIES AND OUR CITY IT FLOWS INTO YOUR DISTRICT AND IT FLOWS DOWN INTO SANTA CRUZ AND MANY OF THE OTHER AREAS WE'RE, WE'RE CREATING CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN THESE COMMUNITIES AND SOMEWHERE WHERE EVERYONE CAN COME EVERYONE'S WELCOME TO COME ENJOY AND ENJOY A SPACE THAT WE HAVE MADE FOR THAT TO HAPPEN AND FOR THOSE KINDS OF RELATIONSHIPS TO GET BUILT. AND THAT'S TRULY OUR HEART AND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO CREATE WITH THIS AS WELL. - AND YOUR CHILD WILL ENJOY THE SPLASH PAD THAT, UH, WE’RE ENVISIONING TO BE THERE. SO JUST WAIT THE THING YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO CHASE NEXT, RIGHT? - AND THERE'S GONNA BE ADULT HOURS ON THAT NEW PLAYGROUND STRUCTURE TOO, SUPERVISOR KOENIG. - I HEAR THERE'S ALREADY UNOFFICIAL ADULT HOURS. I MEAN, THAT'S JUST RUMOR AT THIS POINT. - YEAH. - THANK YOU. UM, WELL, I WANT TO, BEFORE I GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT I DO WANT TO JUST REALLY APPRECIATE THE LEADERSHIP FROM THE SCOTTS VALLEY CITY COUNCIL, AS WELL AS YOUR CITY MANAGER WHO'S, UM, REALLY WORKED HARD TO, UM, PUT THIS DESIGN TOGETHER TO ENGAGE THE COUNTY TO, UM, YOU KNOW, KIND OF ASK THE QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THE COUNTY CAN COLLABORATE WITH THE CITY OF SCOTTS VALLEY AND REALLY BE A MODEL FOR SIMILAR, UM, INFRASTRUCTURE DISTRICTS IN THE FUTURE. AND SO, UM, I REALLY WANNA JUST EXTEND MY GRATITUDE TO YOU AS WELL AS YOUR CITY MANAGER, MOLLY, UM, FOR YOUR EXCELLENT WORK. AND WITH THAT, SEEING NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, I'D LIKE TO GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT, SEE IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC. - I'LL JUST ADD A COUPLE COMMENTS, UH, JUST OF OUR GRATITUDE FOR THIS AND OUR GRATITUDE, UH, CHAIR MARTINEZ FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP IN BRINGING THIS FORWARD AND TO YOU CEO NICOLE COLBURN FOR WORKING WITH OUR CITY AND YOUR LEADERSHIP, MR. DETLEFS, AND OF COURSE OUR FRIEND, UH, JOE FROM COSBAN HERE. UM, BUT THIS IS AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY AND IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR SHOW, FOR US TO SHOW WHAT GOVERNMENT CAN DO TOGETHER WHEN WE COLLABORATE. UM, WE'RE EXCITED TO PARTNER WITH YOU ON THIS. WE'RE EXCITED FOR WHAT THE POSSIBILITIES ARE AND HOW WE CAN COME TOGETHER TO MAKE SOMETHING GREAT FOR BOTH OF OUR COMMUNITIES, UH, AND ON OUR COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE, I SUPPOSE. UM, AND, AND DO SOMETHING THAT RAISES THE TIDE FOR THE ENTIRE AREA, PROVIDES HOUSING, ALLOWS US TO PROVIDE THAT CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND SERVICES FOR ALL THOSE HOUSING, UH, UNITS THAT ARE GOING TO COME AS WELL AS THE BUSINESSES THAT WILL SUPPORT THEM. SO JUST AGAIN, JUST TO EXPRESS OUR GRATITUDE WITH PARTNERING WITH YOU. UM, LOVE THE RELATIONSHIP THAT WE HAVE AND LOOK FORWARD TO, TO MORE OF THESE KINDS OF THINGS. SO THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. - AND I, UH, I ALSO THINK, UM, I WANT TO THANK, UH, NICOLE FOR ALL HER WORK ON THIS. UH, SHE'S WORKED SO HARD WITH OUR CITY MANAGER, OUR CITY MANAGER'S DONE A GREAT JOB. BUT I DO THINK IT'S A MODEL, AND I KNOW THERE ARE OTHER AREAS I KNOW, UH, UH, NOT ONLY APTOS, I KNOW WATSONVILLE'S LOOKING AT THIS. THIS IS REALLY GONNA BE SOMETHING THAT WE CAN, UH, GET DONE AROUND OUR COUNTY AND IT IS THE ONE TOOL THE STATE'S GIVEN US SINCE REDEVELOPMENT HAS FALLEN APART. SO WE DO HAVE TO COLLABORATE. THAT'S GONNA BE THE FUTURE OF, OF HOW WE GET THINGS DONE. AND, UH, YOU KNOW, $0, UH, IS WHAT IT'S GONNA COST US RIGHT NOW. AND THIS FUTURE INVESTMENT IS, IS GONNA BENEFIT EVERYONE. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR THE CONSIDERATION. REALLY APPRECIATE IT. - THANK YOU. SEEING NO FURTHER COMMENT IN THE ROOM. UM, LET ME GO TO FURTHER COMMENT ONLINE. - CALL IN USER ONE, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW... - MARILYN GARRETT. THIS SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF MONEY AND VERY QUESTIONABLE. AND WHENEVER I SEE SOMETHING THAT STATES EXEMPT [01:45:06] FROM CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT REVIEW, IT RAISES A RED FLAG FOR ME BECAUSE OFTEN AS WITH CELL TOWERS AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY, THERE ARE VERY NEGATIVE DOCUMENTED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS. AT A TIME WHEN, UH, ABOUT $1 BILLION A DAY, IS GOING TO WAR AND CONSEQUENCE GAS PRICES UP TO $6 NOW. I DON'T SEE HOW YOU EXPECT THAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD ANY OF THESE PROJECTS. AND ALMOST ALL THE TIME WHEN AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS GIVEN THAT TITLE, IT'S ANYTHING BUT AFFORDABLE. I THINK THIS AT, AT, AT THIS TIME AND THE NEEDS OF PEOPLE IN THIS COMMUNITY, SOME OF WHICH WERE DISCUSSED ON THE CONSENT AGENDA ITEM, ARE VERY PROBLEMATIC. THIS SEEMS UNWISE TO ME AS A TAX PAYING MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY. YOU MAY BE EXCITED ABOUT IT, I'M VERY APPREHENSIVE. I WOULD VOTE NO IF I WERE ON THE BOARD, BUT I'M NOT. THAT'S MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU. - THANK YOU - TIM, YOUR MICROPHONE'S NOW AVAILABLE. - HELLO. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK. UM, SO I DIDN'T HEAR EVERYTHING, BUT, UH, JUST, UH, I, I'M GENERALLY SUPPORTIVE, SO, UH, JUST THINKING ABOUT THIS, WHATEVER THEY DO, UM, AGAIN, I, I HOPE THEY MAKE ACCOMMODATIONS FOR DISABLED PEOPLE JUST A LITTLE BIT. AND, UH, YOU KNOW, JUST REMEMBER THAT, UM, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE IN THE MILITARY NECESSARILY TO BE DISABLED. AND THERE'S OUR YOUNG PEOPLE GOING FORWARD WITH WHAT'S GOING ON WITH OUR COUNTRY RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS A REAL CONCERN BECAUSE MY KIDS ARE IN THEIR, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE IN THEIR TWENTIES AND, UH, THEY HAVE A LOT OF FRIENDS AND PEERS IN THAT AGE RANGE. SO IF THEY DO THINGS IN SUCH A WAY TO, TO MAY TO BE A LITTLE BIT ACCOMMODATING, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALL SORTS OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE. YOU CAN GET THEM OUT OF THEIR HOUSES AND DOWN THERE AND, AND THAT HAS AN ECONOMIC BENEFIT IN ITSELF, YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, UH, CARMEL IS KIND OF FORGETTING. YOU KNOW, WHEN I SHOW UP WITH THE GRANDMOTHER, THERE'S UH, A BUNCH OF OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WITH ME, AND THE WOMEN HAVE JOBS AND THEY HAVE MONEY, AND THEY LIKE TO SHOP. SO MAYBE THAT COMMUNITY COULD HAVE BEEN A LITTLE SMARTER AND INSTEAD OF HAVING AN ORDINANCE LADY HASSLE ME WITH A WHEELCHAIR WHILE I'M PULLING IT OUT OF A VEHICLE, SO IT'S UNBELIEVABLE. SO ANYWAY, SO WHATEVER THEY DO WITH, WITH SCOTTS VALLEY, UM, UH, HOPEFULLY WHAT THEY DO, IT'S AN INCLUSIVE SORT OF SITUATION AND THEY CREATE THOSE ACCOMMODATIONS AND I THINK THAT WOULD, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU CREATE THAT KIND OF VIBE AND MAYBE THERE COULD BE SOME POSITIVE ECONOMIC BENEFITS AND EVEN, EVEN ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS. OKAY? ANYWAYS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY NOW. - THANK YOU. - SHERRY, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOW AVAILABLE. - I'M A RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF FELTON AND I COMMUTE THROUGH SCOTTS VALLEY EVERY DAY AND GO, UH, USE UH, BOTH MOUNT HERMON ROAD AND SCOTTS VALLEY DRIVE. MY CONCERN IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THE IDEA OF THE EXEMPTION FROM ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, UH, SET BY THE STATE. I REALLY HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT WHAT KIND OF TRAFFIC THIS WILL BRING ON, ON BOTH, UH, MOUNT HERMON ROAD AND ALSO, UM, THE IDEA OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING. WHAT I SEE GOING UP RIGHT NOW ON SCOTTS VALLEY DRIVE IS, UH, DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED TO THE WAY THAT SCOTTS VALLEY IS A BEAUTIFUL TOWN WITH, UH, LOTS OF WIDE OPEN SPACES. SO, UH, I, I GUESS I HAVE A LOT OF CONCERNS [01:50:01] ABOUT THE IMPACT ON SCOTTS VALLEY AND THOSE CURRENT RESIDENTS THAT, UH, USE, UM, THE ROADS TO GET TO AND FROM HIGHWAY 17 AND INTO THE SANTA CRUZ, UH, MOUNTAIN AREA. SO I GUESS I HAVE A LOT MORE, UH, CONCERN ABOUT THE IMPACT ON A NEGATIVE SPIN TO THE ENVIRONMENT TO THE PEOPLE, THE TRAFFIC. UM, I'M SURE YOU'VE EXPLORED ALL THE DIFFERENT, UH, COMPONENTS OF PUTTING IN THIS KIND OF A DEVELOPMENT. BUT I GUESS, UM, YOU KNOW, AFTER WHAT I'VE SEEN GOING UP AS "AFFORDABLE HOUSING" AND THE PRICES THAT THE APARTMENTS USUALLY COST I REALLY HAVE CONCERN ABOUT THAT PIECE OF THE PUZZLE. THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. - I SEE NO FURTHER SPEAKERS ONLINE CHAIR. - THANK YOU. UM, I'LL NOW RETURN TO THE BOARD AND BEFORE I DO, I'D LIKE TO, UM, JUST ASK FOR STAFF TO CLARIFY, UM, THE ISSUE RELATED TO THE CEQA EXEMPTION. NOW THAT IS SPECIFICALLY FOR ESTABLISHING THE DISTRICT, NOT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT ITSELF. CAN YOU PLEASE ELABORATE ON THAT? - YEAH, THAT'S CORRECT. UM, THE DISTRICT ITSELF IS EXEMPT FROM CEQA, BUT ANY FUTURE PROJECT WOULD GO THROUGH ITS OWN CEQA PROCESS, UM, IN ORDER TO EVALUATE IMPACTS. - THANK YOU. UM, AND WITH THAT, I WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO MAKE A MOTION TO PASS THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS. - SECOND. - SECOND. OH. - WE HAVE A SECOND FROM SUPERVISOR KOENIG, UM, AND I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR DISCUSSION. SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. - YEAH. SO, UH, FIRST JUST WANNA THANK EVERYBODY FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON THIS. THIS IS, UM, DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA BE POSITIVE AND IT'S GONNA BENEFIT, YOU KNOW, THE FIRE DISTRICT, THE RESIDENTS OF SCOTTS VALLEY AND THE COUNTY. AND SO DEFINITELY REFLECTS A WIN-WIN FOR ALL OF US AND REALLY GONNA BE LOOKING FORWARD TO SEE HOW IT ALL PLAYS OUT. UM, I THINK TO MAYOR TIM'S POINT I WAS ON THE CITY COUNCIL WHEN WE WERE TRYING TO WORK OUT THE SALE OF SKYPARK, AND SO THAT FINALLY WENT THROUGH. AND SO I KNOW HOW LONG THESE, YOU KNOW, DEVELOPMENTS CAN TAKE. UM, BUT THIS IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT CAN HOPEFULLY HELP ADVANCE THIS AND BRING, YOU KNOW, UM, AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO THE COMMUNITY. I MEAN, 25% OF ALL THE HOUSING IS GONNA BE AFFORDABLE. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THE KINDS OF PROJECTS THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR AND WE'RE TRYING TO PUSH. SO, UM, JUST REALLY WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK AND THIS IS GONNA BE A BIG WIN FOR SCOTTS VALLEY. SO JUST THANK YOU. - SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ. - SO, YOU KNOW, I JUST WANNA SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THE NEED FOR EIFDS IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR COMMUNITIES, ESPECIALLY LIKE SCOTTS VALLEY, WATSONVILLE. UH, ESPECIALLY SINCE THE DISSOLUTION OF REDEVELOPMENT AREAS. UM, YOU KNOW, WHEN THAT HAPPENED, YOU KNOW, OUR CITY REALLY FOUGHT HARD WITH, UH, CSAC, NO, I MEAN, SORRY, UH, LEAGUE OF CITIES TO, UH, STOP THAT FROM HAPPENING. YOU KNOW, I MYSELF MADE NINE VISITS IN SEVEN MONTHS TO SACRAMENTO TO TESTIFY, UH, TO KEEP IT, AND TO ALSO RETURN THE CLAW BACK THAT THEY DID. AT THAT TIME WE HAD 4.4 MILLION THAT GOT CLAWED BACK. SO WE DEFINITELY, UH, MADE SURE TO GO OVER THERE AND FIGHT FOR OUR MONEY. BUT I THINK THAT THIS TOOL IS REALLY, YOU KNOW, UH, IMPORTANT AND IT WILL HELP CITIES SINCE THE LOSS OF REDEVELOPMENT. UM, YOU KNOW, WE NEED, THE REASON IT'S IMPORTANT IS 'CAUSE REDEVELOPMENT, YOU KNOW IT'S, UH, IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE, THAT CITIES ALWAYS USED FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING, FOR, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS UH, TO BRING IN, UH, NEW SALES TAX CAPABILITIES FOR CITIES. SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR, FOR, FOR US, ESPECIALLY NOW THAT WE DON'T HAVE THAT TOOL AND WE HAVE THIS NEW EIFD SO I'M REALLY GONNA KEEP AN EYE ON SCOTTS VALLEY AND LOOK TOWARDS YOUR WAY TO, YOU KNOW, KIND OF PAVE, PAVE THE, THE, THE PATH FOR US. UM, BUT I'M EXCITED TO SEE, YOU KNOW, THE DEVELOPMENT ON THIS PROJECT. UM, YOU KNOW, AS MENTIONED, THE CITY OF WATSONVILLE IS REALLY INTERESTED IN FORMING THIS IN A SIMILAR DISTRICT AS THEY RECENTLY ALSO FINISHED THE, UH... IT'S NOT A DOWNTOWN PLAN, BUT IT'S NOT A NEW DOWNTOWN PLAN, BUT IT'S A DOWNTOWN SPECIFIC PLAN TO KIND OF, UM, REMODERNIZE THE DOWNTOWN IN WATSONVILLE. AND IT ALSO IDENTIFIES NEARLY 4,000, UH, HOMES FOR THAT DISTRICT TO MEET THE RENA NUMBERS. SO KEEPING AN EYE ON IT. THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. FURTHER COMMENTS? SUPERVISOR DE SERPA. - UH, I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE ABOUT EIFDS, AND WE HAVE SOMEBODY RIGHT HERE FROM KOSMONT. I'M SORRY WE DIDN'T ACTUALLY GET TO HEAR FROM YOU TODAY, BUT MAYBE YOU'D LIKE TO COME BACK AND MAKE A PRESENTATION ABOUT HOW THESE TOOLS WORK TO HELP COMMUNITIES. UH, I'M VERY, UM, I, I'M VERY INTERESTED IN, UH, LAUNCHING ONE OF THESE IN THE APTOS AREA WHERE WE HAVE SIGNIFICANT REDEVELOPMENT ISSUES THAT, UM, THAT WE NEED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH. AND, UM, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. YEAH. - SUPERVISOR KOENIG [01:55:02] - I GOT ONE TECHNICAL QUESTION FOR YOU, UM, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, I'VE HEARD ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WITH, WITH EIFDS IS THAT SOMETIMES THEY DON'T PRODUCE AS MUCH REVENUE AS WAS HOPED, AND THAT THE STRATEGY IS TO GO BIG AND GO EARLY. UM, IT SEEMS LIKE MAYBE WE'RE, WE'VE GOT THE GO EARLY PART DOWN BUT, YOU KNOW, IS THIS BIG ENOUGH? UM, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH, UM, CUSHION, IF YOU WILL, IS BUILT INTO THESE PROJECTIONS? YOU KNOW, IS IT POSSIBLE THE DISTRICT, WHAT'S THE LIKELIHOOD THE DISTRICT ONLY PRODUCE ABOUT HALF AS MUCH REVENUE AS ANTICIPATED? AND IF THAT HAPPENS, WHERE COULD, WHICH INVESTMENTS COULD BE PRIORITIZED? - YEAH. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR. SO IF THERE WAS A CONCERN THAT KOSMONT HAD IT IS THAT IT'S NOT THIS IS AN OVER ENCUMBRANCE OR AN OVER EXPOSURE OF THE CITY GENERAL FUND, OR COUNTY GENERAL FUND, OR FIRE DISTRICT GENERAL FUND. IT'S CAN WE QUICKLY GENERATE ENOUGH MASS TO MAKE THE THING WORTH DOING? SO IF IT WERE JUST THE CITY AS COUNCIL MEMBER, TIM SAID WE'D SAY, WE ACTUALLY SAID NOT EVEN WORTH IT. BUT WITH FIRE AND COUNTY POTENTIALLY AT THE TABLE, WE'RE GETTING TO THAT CRITICAL MASS. WE MAKE PROJECTIONS NOT BASED ON TOTAL CAPACITY, NOT BASED ON TOTAL RENA, TOTAL HOUSING ELEMENT CAPACITY, BUT RATHER WHAT'S ACTUALLY IN THE PIPELINE. WHAT IS THE CITY SEEING FROM THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY IN TERMS OF PROPOSALS, SITE PLANS, ACTUAL PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS? BASING THE PROJECTIONS ON THOSE ACTUAL PROJECTS GIVES US A GREATER SENSE OF CONFIDENCE. WE'RE NOT BEING, WE DON'T THINK WE'RE BEING OVERLY AGGRESSIVE IN THE DEVELOPMENT ASSUMPTIONS 'CAUSE WE ACTUALLY THINK THERE ARE STILL MORE GROWTH TO BE HAD WITHIN THIS BOUNDARY THAT WE HAVE NOT RELIED ON WITHIN THESE PROJECTIONS. BUT I SHOULD ADD, VERY IMPORTANTLY, THESE ARE JUST PROJECTIONS. WE HAVE TO MAKE PROJECTIONS SO THAT WE HAVE A SENSE OF WHAT'S POTENTIALLY COMING AND WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO THE GENERAL FUNDS OF EACH AGENCY. BUT IN NO MEANS IS FORMING THIS DISTRICT AN AUTOMATIC COMMITMENT TO FUND $40 MILLION WORTH OF PROJECTS SO THAT IF THE PROJECTIONS DON'T COME TO FRUITION SOMEBODY'S ON THE HOOK. SO IT'S NOT LIKE IF THIS DOESN'T COME. CITY GENERAL FUND OR COUNTY GENERAL FUND. NO, NO. IT'S THAT WE PROBABLY HAVE TO REVISE THE PROJECTIONS, RE-SCOPE TO YOUR POINT, LIKELY REPRIORITIZE. I DON'T FEEL, UM, QUALIFIED, UH, TO STATE ON BEHALF OF THE CITY. WHAT ARE THE HIGHEST PRIORITY? I'LL JUST SHARE WHAT I'VE HEARD IN OUR MEETINGS ARE THE INTERCHANGES, GRANITE CREEK, MOUNT HERNON ROAD AS SORT OF THE KEY ISSUES THAT FOLKS KEEP BRINGING UP AND THE FACT THAT THEY HAVE THE BROADEST BENEFIT, NOT ONLY WITHIN THE CITY, BUT GOING WESTWARD INTO THE UNINCORPORATED JURISDICTION. THAT'S PROBABLY WHERE I COULD IMAGINE DOLLARS GETTING PRIORITIZED, BUT JUST A KIND OF THIRD PARTY OPINION. - WELL, WELL THAT'S GREAT. AND THAT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, GOOD TO HEAR THAT THE, THE COUNTY, CITY, UH, INTERCHANGE WILL, WILL BE PRIORITIZED THERE AND GOOD TO HAVE A REPRESENTATIVE ON THE, ON THE DISTRICT TO, TO LOOK AFTER THAT. UM, AT WHAT POINT CAN WE ACTUALLY, OR YOU KNOW, COULD THE DISTRICT IN THIS CASE GET THE MONEY, RIGHT? I MEAN, DO YOU WAIT TILL AFTER ENTITLEMENT? DO YOU WAIT TILL THEY'VE PULLED BUILDING PERMITS? I MEAN, WE'VE GOT PROJECTS IN THE CITY OF SANTA CRUZ, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT ARE ENTITLED BUT NOT, NOT MOVING FORWARD, UH, IMMEDIATELY. WHEN, WHEN IS CERTAINTY GREAT ENOUGH THAT YOU CAN GO, I MEAN, WHETHER YOU ISSUE A BOND. - THANK YOU AGAIN. UH, UH, IT'S A GOOD REMINDER TO HIT ON A POINT YOU MENTIONED UH, EXPECTATIONS ARE IMPORTANT WHERE WE'VE HEARD THE CRITICISMS OF THAT'S IT? UM, IS WHEN THERE'S BEEN EXPECTATION CREATED THAT YOU CAN FORM THIS DISTRICT AND AUTOMATICALLY ISSUE A $40 MILLION BOND OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. SO WE ENVISIONED, YEAH, 40 MILLIONS LIKE A PRESENT VALUE OVER A DISTRICT LIFETIME. BUT IT'S LIKELY WITHIN THE FIRST FIVE YEARS ONLY ABOUT $5.6 MILLION THAT WE THINK WE'RE GONNA SEE FOR ACTUAL PROJECTS. AND THEN OSTENSIBLY, AS THE VALUE GROWS OVER THAT THERE CAN BE AN ADDITIONAL WE THINK ABOUT 11 MILLION TAKEN DOWN IN THE FOLLOWING FIVE YEARS BY YEAR 10, ALL BASED ON ASSUMPTIONS. AND THEN BEYOND THAT, AS VALUES CONTINUE TO GROW, WE THINK THIS DISTRICT CAN DO, IF IT WANTS MULTIPLE ISSUANCES OF DEBT TO DO, YOU KNOW, GRAB BIGGER BITES OF PROJECTS ALONG THE WAY. SO THE FIRST FEW YEARS ARE PROBABLY GONNA BE QUIET. WE HAVE TO KIND OF MAKE THAT DISCLOSURE. IT'S A LITTLE BIT ANTICLIMACTIC, A LOT OF WORK TO GET THIS DONE. BUT YOUR FIRST FEW YEARS OF REVENUE ARE GONNA BE TENS OF THOUSANDS, MAYBE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. WE DON'T SEE ANYONE GETTING INTO THE MILLIONS UNTIL YEARS THREE, FOUR, AND REALLY DOING PROJECTS OF SCALE UNTIL LIKE FIVE YEARS DOWN THE ROAD. - OKAY, THANK YOU. UH, AND ACTUALLY I WILL JUST ALSO SAY NOT THAT THIS I THINK WORKS INTO THE DISTRICT, BUT, UH, DON'T FORGET THE METRO SITE TOO. WE'VE HAD A LOT OF... I'LL PUT PUTTING MY CHAIR METRO HAT ON HERE. WE'VE HAD A LOT OF SUCCESS, OF COURSE, WITH THE DOWNTOWN PROJECT UH, AND ALSO THE WATSONVILLE TRANSIT CENTER, WINNING STATE GRANTS, UH, FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECTS THERE SO IT'D GREAT TO DO SOMETHING IN SCOTTS VALLEY AS WELL. - YEAH. I JUST WANT TO ADD, UM, BASED ON THE BOARD'S INTEREST WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF FINALIZING AN AGREEMENT WITH KOSMONT TO START, UM, EVALUATING IT FOR THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS. SO WE'LL BE BACK TO YOU, UM, IN THE COMING MONTHS WITH MORE INFORMATION. [02:00:03] - THANK YOU. UM, SEEING NO FURTHER COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? - SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS. - AYE. - HERNANDEZ. - AYE. - KOENIG. - AYE. - DE SERPA. - AYE. - AND MARTINEZ. - AYE. MOTION PASSES 5 TO 0. - THANK YOU ALL. - THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO WE HAVE A SCHEDULED ITEM AT 11 O'CLOCK AND I KNOW THAT WE HAVE A NUMBER OF GUESTS OUT IN THE HALLWAY WHO'LL BE JOINING US. SO WHY DON'T I CALL FOR A FIVE MINUTE RECESS SO FOLKS CAN FILL THE ROOM AND THEN WE'LL CONTINUE OUR SCHEDULED ITEM. - RECORDING STOPPED. - WELCOME BACK. IT'S NOW MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE ITEM NUMBER 10, [10. Presentation recognizing members of the community who have participated in the Volunteer Initiative Program and the Sheriff's Volunteer Program] WHICH IS A PRESENTATION RECOGNIZING MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY WHO HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THE VOLUNTEER INITIATIVE PROGRAM AND THE SHERIFF'S VOLUNTEER PROGRAM. AND WITH THAT, I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO CEO COBURN TO INTRODUCE THIS ITEM. - SO THANK YOU CHAIR. SO, UM, THIS MORNING I JUST WANNA PROVIDE A LITTLE BACKGROUND SO THE VOLUNTEER INITIATIVE PROGRAM, UH, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW, IS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE VOLUNTEER CENTER OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY AND THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ. SO, UM, TOGETHER THIS PARTNERSHIP MATCHES INTEREST BETWEEN COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT. THE COUNTY IS EXTREMELY FORTUNATE TO HAVE SUCH A DEDICATED GROUP OF VOLUNTEERS SUPPORTING OUR EFFORTS. WE ARE HAPPY TO WELCOME TODAY THE PRESIDENT OF THE VOLUNTEER CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS, RODNEY SELLERS AND SHERIFF CHRIS CLARK, UH, BOTH OF WHOM WILL BE MAKING BRIEF REMARKS AND PRESENTING CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION. ALSO JOINING US TODAY FROM THE VOLUNTEER CENTER ARE SEAN PAT PETERSON, CHRISTINA THURSTON, AND SUSAN RYDER. I WILL NOW TURN IT OVER TO RODNEY STRONG. SORRY. YES, RODNEY SELLERS. - OKAY. - YEAH. - IT WAS CLOSE. - IT WAS CLOSE. YEAH. YEAH. - NO, THANK YOU EVERYONE. FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WANTED TO THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO THROUGHOUT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. IT IS SO VITAL TO OUR SUSTAINABILITY AS A COMMUNITY. THE THINGS THAT YOU DO TOUCH SO MANY PEOPLE AND YOU'RE VOLUNTEERING YOUR TIME, YOU'RE GIVING YOUR TIME TO EACH OF US. IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S DEEPLY APPRECIATED FROM ALL OF US AT THE VOLUNTEER CENTER AND THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY, AND, UH, WE APPRECIATE. WE APPRECIATE ALL YOUR EFFORTS. WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO DO MOVE FORWARD, TOUCHING THE LIVES OF SO MANY PEOPLE AND DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. AND FOR ME, IT'S ALL ABOUT EVERY DAY PUTTING THE WORK IN NOT NEEDING THE SPOTLIGHT ON YOU, BUT JUST GETTING THINGS DONE. AND THAT'S THE KEY. AND THAT'S THE KEY THAT MAKES YOU SUCCESSFUL IN WHAT YOU DO. YOU GET THINGS DONE EFFECTIVELY EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND FOR THAT WE ARE TRULY GRATEFUL AND WE TRULY APPRECIATE IT. SO THANK YOU. AND I'M GONNA CALL UP CHRISTINA AND HAVE HER SAY A FEW WORDS. - THANK YOU, RODNEY. MY NAME IS CHRISTINA THURSTON WITH THE VOLUNTEER CENTER. UM, THE OVER 1400 COUNTY VOLUNTEERS THIS YEAR GAVE ALMOST 60,000 HOURS OF SERVICE TO COUNTY AT THE BIG CHECK DOWN HERE. THAT WAS A $2.3 MILLION VALUE OF SERVICES PROVIDED TO THE COMMUNITY. SO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO'S HERE TODAY AND ALL THE TEAMS YOU WORK ON BRINGING COMMUNITY AND COUNTY GOVERNMENT TOGETHER. UH, I... AS WE RECOGNIZED THE RECIPIENTS THIS MORNING, I'LL READ THE NAME OF THE HONOREE COME ON DOWN AND I'LL INVITE A BOARD MEMBER TO COME DOWN AND, AND READ, UM, APPRECIATIONS FOR, FOR YOUR SERVICE. UM, SO THE FIRST HONOREE THAT WE'D LIKE TO INVITE UP ARE ZACH STEINKAMP AND JEFF USTICK FROM THE PACE TRAIL PROJECT AT QUAIL HOLLOW PARK, EMMA LEE, THEIR SUPERVISOR AT THE PARK IS ALSO INVITED TO COME ON DOWN AND CHAIR MARTINEZ WILL READ THE REMARKS. [APPLAUSE] - THANK YOU. - WELCOME. - THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. - WELL IT TRULY IS MY PRIVILEGE TO BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE THESE TWO EXCEPTIONAL VOLUNTEERS. UM, ZACH STEINKAMP AND JEFF USTICK HAVE DEMONSTRATED EXCEPTIONAL LEADERSHIP AND DEDICATION THROUGH THEIR EFFORTS ON THE PACE TRAIL PROJECT AT QUAIL HOLLOW RANCH COUNTY PARK. CONTRIBUTING OVER 100 HOURS EACH TO EXPANDING THE PARK'S TRAIL NETWORK AND IMPROVING PUBLIC ACCESS TO PREVIOUSLY UNREACHABLE AREAS. [02:05:03] THEY APPROACHED THE PHYSICALLY DEMANDING WORK OF TRAIL CONSTRUCTION WITH ENTHUSIASM AND A COMMITMENT TO LEARNING ABOUT THE PARK'S UNIQUE SANDHILL ECOSYSTEM. IN ADDITION TO THEIR HANDS-ON CONTRIBUTIONS, ZACH AND JEFF STEPPED INTO MENTORSHIP ROLES BY GUIDING AND ENCOURAGING OTHER VOLUNTEERS INCLUDING ONE OF MY STAFF MEMBERS ON THE HOTTEST WEEKEND LAST SUMMER, AND THEIR EFFORTS HELPING TO CREATE A WELCOMING, COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL PARTICIPANTS. THEIR RELIABILITY, POSITIVITY, AND COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY PLAYED A CRITICAL ROLE IN ADVANCING THE PROJECT. ZACH AND JEFF, YOUR WORK HAS LEFT A MEANINGFUL AND LASTING IMPACT ON THE PARK AND THE BROADER COMMUNITY, AND WE THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR EFFORTS. CONGRATULATIONS. - THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] AND WE CAN'T WAIT TO VISIT THOSE TRAILS. - NEXT UP WE HAVE SUPERVISOR KOENIG. - YEAH - SUPERVISOR KOENIG WITH THE RECOGNIZING VOLUNTEERS FROM THE ANIMAL SHELTER OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. FIRST UP IS NANCY NEWBIE AND AMBER ROLAND AND LESLIE HABAD. WELCOME TO JOIN AND THEN COME. YEAH, EVERYONE COME ON UP. [APPLAUSE] - SO NANCY NEWBIE IS AN INSTRUMENTAL VOLUNTEER WHO SERVICE SUPPORTS NEARLY EVERY ASPECT OF THE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER. AS A TIER TWO DOG, TLC VOLUNTEER AND MENTOR, SHE PROVIDES GUIDANCE ON DOG PLACEMENT AND HANDLING WHILE ALSO SUPPORTING AND TRAINING NEW VOLUNTEERS. SHE CO-TEACHES THE SHELTER PETS ON THE TOWN PROGRAM ORGANIZES OUTINGS, AND AS A FOUNDATION BOARD MEMBER PLAYS A KEY ROLE IN COORDINATING FUNDRAISING EVENTS. NANCY ALSO VOLUNTEERS AT HEALTHY PETS FOR ALL VACCINE CLINICS AND SERVES AS THE SHELTER'S SOCIAL MEDIA LEAD, REFLECTING HER EXTRAORDINARY COMMITMENT OF MORE THAN 2,680 HOURS OF SERVICE IN 2023. WHEN THE VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR POSITION BECAME VACANT, NANCY STEPPED IN TO HELP SUSTAIN PROGRAM OPERATIONS. FURTHER DEMONSTRATING HER LEADERSHIP AND DEEP COMMITMENT TO THE SHELTER'S MISSION. THROUGH HER WORK AS A FOUNDATION BOARD MEMBER AND HER EXTENSIVE HANDS-ON INVOLVEMENT, SHE HAS MADE A LASTING IMPACT ON BOTH STAFF AND FELLOW VOLUNTEERS. ANIMAL SERVICES STAFF ARE DEEPLY GRATEFUL FOR HER DEDICATION, LEADERSHIP, AND SERVICE. CONGRATULATIONS, NANCY. - THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - OH. - KAREN'S [INAUDIBLE]. - OH, SURE. KAREN, KAREN'S HERE. WONDERFUL. - THANK YOU KAREN. UM, KAREN AND THE ANIMAL ENRICHMENT TEAM PROVIDE VITAL SUPPORT TO THE WELLBEING OF ANIMALS AT THE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER. THROUGH CONSISTENT ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES THEY HELP REDUCE THE STRESS, FRUSTRATION, AND ANXIETY ASSOCIATED WITH KENNEL LIFE, IMPROVING DAILY CONDITIONS FOR THE ANIMALS IN THEIR CARE. THE TEAM DESIGNS AND DELIVERS A WIDE VARIETY OF ENRICHMENT TOOLS AND EXPERIENCES FOR CATS, DOGS AND RABBITS, BOTH IN KENNEL AND IN OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENTS. SUPPORTED BY THOUGHTFUL PLANNING, COORDINATION, AND A SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT OF VOLUNTEER TIME. BY TAILORING ENRICHMENT TO MEET THE NEEDS OF INDIVIDUAL ANIMALS THE TEAM ENSURES EACH HAS MEANINGFUL OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENGAGEMENT AND COMFORT, WHILE ALSO IDENTIFYING AND RESPONDING TO SPECIAL NEEDS. THEIR CARE AND CREATIVITY ARE EVIDENT IN EFFORTS SUCH AS PROVIDING BALLS WITH BELLS FOR A BLIND DOG SO HE CAN EXERCISE AND PLAY. THE ANIMAL ENRICHMENT TEAMS PROGRAM IS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF HUMANE AND COMPASSIONATE ANIMAL CARE. AND KAREN AND THE TEAM HAVE MADE A MEANINGFUL IMPACT ON THE HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE AT THE ANIMAL SHELTER. THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK AND CONGRATULATIONS. - THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - YEAH. [INAUDIBLE]. - UM, AND IF ANY OF YOU WANNA SAY, SAY ANY A FEW WORDS. AMBER, IF YOU WANTED TO, TO SAY A FEW WORDS. - I JUST WANNA SAY THAT IN CASE ANYBODY ELSE WAS EXHAUSTED BY THE LIST OF THINGS THAT NANCY NEWBIE DOES FOR THE ANIMAL SHELTER, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. SHE'S INCREDIBLE, HER HEART IS ABSOLUTELY BOTTOMLESS AND WE COULDN'T DO WHAT WE DO WITHOUT HER. KAREN IS ABSOLUTELY REMARKABLE AND VERY, UH, RESULT FOCUSED AND SHE HAS ALLOWED US TO REDUCE OUR, UH, EUTHANASIA RATE BECAUSE WE HAVE REDUCED THE STRESS THAT THE ANIMALS EXPERIENCE WHILE THEY'RE IN THE SHELTER ENVIRONMENT. SO KAREN'S LEADERSHIP OF THE ENRICHMENT TEAM REALLY MAKES A LITERALLY LIFESAVING DIFFERENCE UM, AND WE REALLY COULD NOT DO WHAT WE DO, UM, AT THE ANIMAL SHELTER. OUR VOLUNTEERS GAVE OVER 25,000 ANIMAL, UH, HOURS OF SERVICE TO THE ANIMAL SHELTER IN 2025. SO WE APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT THEY DO AS BOTH VOLUNTEERS AND LEADERS OF OUR VOLUNTEER, UH, COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] [02:10:05] - THANK YOU EVERYONE FROM THE ANIMAL SHELTER. OUR NEXT HONOREE IS GUS GREENWOOD FROM THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. HE'S NOT ABLE TO BE HERE TODAY, BUT SUPERVISOR HERNANDEZ PLEASE COME ON DOWN AND TELL US ABOUT HIM ANYWAY, OR WATCHING ON THE, THE VIDEO I THINK. - THANK YOU. IT'S A HONOR TO, UH, HONOR, UM, GUS GREENWOOD. GUS GREENWOOD HAS MADE AN OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION AS A COLLEGE INTERN WITH THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. OVER THE PAST SIX MONTHS, HE HAS SUPPORTED ESSENTIAL SERVICES INCLUDING RECORD CLEARANCE, FILE REDACTION AND VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION, WHILE ALSO ASSISTING WITH NEW PROJECTS ACROSS THE UNIT. FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, GUS BROUGHT A POSITIVE ATTITUDE AND APPROACHED EVERY TASK WITH CURIOSITY, DILIGENCE, AND A STRONG DESIRE TO LEARN. DESPITE SERVING IN A UNPAID ROLE, HE CONSISTENTLY DEMONSTRATED RELIABILITY, PROFESSIONALISM, AND STRONG WORK ETHIC THAT BOTH ENHANCED BOTH PRODUCTIVITY AND MORALE. HIS UPBEAT PERSONALITY AND WILLINGNESS TO HELP WHEREVER NEEDED CREATED A WELCOMING COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENT FOR STAFF. GUS EXEMPLIFIES INTEGRITY, INITIATIVE, TEAMWORK, AND EMPATHY IN ALL THAT HE DOES. HIS SERVICE HAS MADE A MEANINGFUL AND LASTING IMPACT ON THE TEAM. GUS EXEMPLIFIES THE QUALITIES WE HOPE TO SEE IN FUTURE PROFESSIONALS AND WE THANK HIM FOR HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. HE'S [INAUDIBLE]. [APPLAUSE] - UH, OUR NEXT TWO GROUPS OF HONOREES ARE FROM THE HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY. I'D LIKE TO INVITE SUPERVISOR TO DE SERPA DOWN TO READ THE REMARKS. AND OUR FIRST HONOREE I'D LIKE TO INVITE UP IS SOPHIE AHMED AND HER SUPERVISORS ISABELLE BALLESTEROS AND DANNY CONTRERAS. AND FOR THOSE OF YOU WONDERING YOUR, UM, THERE'S A LETTER BEHIND YOUR CERTIFICATE THAT HAS THE STATEMENTS THAT ARE THE SUPERVISORS ARE READING TODAY TOO. - HI DANNY. - I GOT HER MOM ON THE PHONE, SO. - OH, YOU DO? WHERE IS SHE? - OH, SHE WENT AND MADE THE INTERNET WENT OFF. - WE NEED TO RECONNECT HER. WE'RE NOT GONNA START UNTIL WE RECONNECT. IS SHE THERE? - UH, HOPEFULLY SHE ANSWERS. - AT LEAST [CROSSTALK] - OKAY. - YEAH, IT'S OKAY. - WELL, UM, SO THE NEXT... DO WE HAVE THE SECOND PERSON HERE TOO THAT WE'RE HONORING TODAY? NO. OKAY. WELL, WE'RE HONORING TWO PEOPLE TODAY, UM, WHO VOLUNTEER FOR HEALTH SERVICES AGENCY. UM, YOU'RE SOPHIA RIGHT? - YES. - SOPHIA VOLUNTEERS IN THE COUNTY'S MEDICATION ASSISTED TREATMENT CLINIC. AND THE SECOND PERSON, UH, NATALIE ALLISON, VOLUNTEERS AT THE SAFE USE AND OVERDOSE PREVENTION PROGRAM. [CROSSTALK] - SHE'S HERE. YEAH. - OH, SHE IS HERE. COME ON UP, NATALIE. - HI. COME STAND OVER HERE. - OKAY. - UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT I'D LIKE TO, TO POINT OUT IS THAT UH, IN OUR COUNTY, WE'VE LOST, I THINK OVER 600 PEOPLE SINCE 2015 TO OVERDOSE. IF YOU LOOK JUST HERE, THESE SEATS ARE ABOUT 60 PEOPLE. THAT'S 10 ROOM FULLS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES DUE TO OVERDOSE. YOU TWO ARE AMAZING BECAUSE THE WORK YOU DO HELPS PEOPLE TO HAVE BETTER LIVES AND TO PREVENT UNNECESSARY DEATHS. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. SOPHIA AHMED IS A FULL-TIME STUDENT AT UC SANTA CRUZ, WHO HAS DEDICATED THE PAST SIX MONTHS TO SUPPORTING THE COUNTY'S MEDICATION ASSISTED TREATMENT CLINIC WITH COMPASSION AND PROFESSIONALISM AS SHE WORKS TOWARD HER GOAL OF BECOMING A HEALTHCARE PROVIDER DURING THAT TIME, SHE HAS PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN, IN COMMUNITY OUTREACH ENGAGING UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF SERVICES AND EXPAND ACCESS TO CARE. WHILE ALSO SUPPORTING HARM REDUCTION EFFORTS BY ASSEMBLING KITS THAT PROVIDE ESSENTIAL RESOURCES FOR SAFETY AND WELLBEING. SHE HAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF GROUP PROGRAMMING AS WELL, ASSISTING IN FACILITATING SUPPORTIVE AND ENGAGING SESSIONS THAT FOSTER CONNECTION AND TRUST AMONG PARTICIPANTS. THROUGH HER WORK, SOPHIA HAS DEMONSTRATED KINDNESS, RELIABILITY, AND A DEEP COMMITMENT TO MAKING A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE. HER ABILITY TO BUILD MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS HAS STRENGTHENED BOTH THE PROGRAM AND THE COMMUNITY IT SERVES, AND HER DEDICATION AND INITIATIVE REFLECT THE VERY BEST OF VOLUNTEER SERVICE. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU HAVE GIVEN TO OUR COMMUNITY, SOPHIA, [02:15:03] AND CONGRATULATIONS. [APPLAUSE] - UM, AND, AND WE ALSO HAVE THE REST OF THE SUOPP TEAM HERE YOU GUYS CAN COME ON UP WITH NATALIE. UM, THE SURFACE I READ ABOUT THAT [CROSSTALK] - CAN... I'LL KEEP GOING. - [CROSSTALK] WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY, SAY ANYTHING? - OH, YEAH. DO YOU WANT US TALK? - [CROSSTALK] DANNY? - I'M, I'M GOOD. - UM, JUST THANK YOU SO MUCH, DANNY, FOR LIKE, TAKING ME ON AS AN INTERN. I'M SO GRATEFUL FOR THE EXPERIENCES I'VE HAD AND I'VE LEARNED SO MUCH. SO THANK YOU. YEAH. [APPLAUSE] - HI, NATALIE. - HI. - YOU HAVE YOUR WHOLE TEAM WITH YOU. IT'S GREAT. NATALIE ALLISON AND THE VOLUNTEERS OF THE SAFE USE AND OVERDOSE PREVENTION PROGRAM ARE ESSENTIAL TO THE SUCCESS IN DAILY OPERATIONS OF THIS CRITICAL PUBLIC HEALTH INITIATIVE. FOR MUCH OF 2025 NATALIE SUPPORTED THE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY EVENING SHIFTS DEDICATING SIX HOURS EACH WEEK WHILE BALANCING A NEW JOB AND SCHOOL COMMITMENT. WOW. TOGETHER, NATALIE AND HER FELLOW VOLUNTEERS TAKE ON A WIDE RANGE OF RESPONSIBILITIES, INCLUDING ENGAGING WITH PARTICIPANTS, PREPARING SUPPLIES, ENTERING DATA, AND MAINTAINING A SAFE AND ORGANIZED ENVIRONMENT THROUGHOUT EACH SHIFT. THEIR WORK REQUIRES STRONG TEAMWORK, CONSISTENCY, AND A HIGH LEVEL OF CARE TO ENSURE PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE THE SUPPORT THAT THEY NEED. BRINGING DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS AND EXPERIENCES FROM PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE TO STUDENT INVOLVEMENT THESE VOLUNTEERS SHARE A DEEP COMMITMENT TO SUPPORTING COMMUNITY MEMBERS THEY LEAD WITH EMPATHY WHILE CONTRIBUTING VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS THAT STRENGTHEN BOTH PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS AND HELP CREATE A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT FOR PARTICIPANTS AND STAFF EVEN IN CHALLENGING CIRCUMSTANCES. WITHOUT THEIR DEDICATION, THE PROGRAM WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO FUNCTION AS EFFECTIVELY OR PROVIDE THE SAME LEVEL OF CARE TO THE COMMUNITY. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE COMPASSION AND THE CARE YOU BRING TO THIS IMPORTANT WORK ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - I DID PREPARE A LITTLE SOMETHING TO SAY. [APPLAUSE] OKAY. GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. GOOD MORNING. - GOOD MORNING. - UM, MY NAME'S NATALIE. UM, I FEEL REALLY, REALLY GRATEFUL TO BE A MEMBER OF THE TEAM AT THE SUOPP ALONG WITH ALL THESE AMAZING PEOPLE NEXT TO ME. UM, IT STARTED AS KIND OF LIKE A SPUR OF THE MOMENT THING WHERE I APPLIED FOR AN INTERNSHIP, DANNY GAVE ME THAT CHANCE, AND IT'S BECOME A WEEKLY COMMITMENT IN MY LIFE FOR ALMOST TWO YEARS NOW. UM, BUT I LOOK AT THE SMALL ROLE AS LESS OF A COMMITMENT AND MORE OF A GIFT TO MY LIFE. IT'S GIVEN ME A DEEPER AND MORE MEANINGFUL CONNECTION TO THE COMMUNITY THAT I GREW UP IN. IT'S HELPED ME BECOME A BETTER LISTENER AND MORE CURIOUS ABOUT MY NEIGHBORS, TAUGHT ME BETTER PATIENCE AND THAT MAKING MEANINGFUL CHANGE IS A MARATHON AND NOT A SPRINT. IT'S EXPOSED ME TO THE REALITIES OF HOUSING INSTABILITY AND ITS RELATION TO HEALTH INEQUITIES, AND IT'S STRENGTHENED MY VIEW THAT HARM REDUCTION IS A CORNERSTONE OF A COMPREHENSIVE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM. SO THANKS AGAIN TO RASHAUN, OUR WHOLE TEAM AND THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND EVERYONE HERE, AND DANNY OF COURSE. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - OKAY. UM, OUR NEXT HONOREES WE'D LIKE TO INVITE UP ARE THE VOLUNTEERS FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD JUSTICE PROGRAM AT THE DISTRICT, DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, ALONG WITH THEIR SUPERVISOR DANITZA TORRES. AND I'D LIKE TO INVITE SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS DOWN TO READ THE REMARKS. THIS IS FOR THE, THE FIRST COHORT EVER FOR THIS PROGRAM THAT JOINED BACK IN 2020, SO... - ALL RIGHT. THE FIRST COHORT OF VOLUNTEERS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD JUSTICE PROGRAM, LAID THE FOUNDATION FOR RESTORATIVE JUSTICE WORK HERE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. THEY STEPPED INTO A NEW AND EVOLVING PROGRAM WITH OPENNESS, COURAGE, AND A DEEP COMMITMENT TO RESTORATIVE VALUES, EVEN AMID THE CHALLENGES OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. THROUGH CONSISTENT PARTICIPATION THEY ENGAGE IN MEANINGFUL DIALOGUE AND SUPPORTIVE PARTICIPANTS WITH EMPATHY AND CARE AND THEIR WILLINGNESS TO LEARN, REFLECT, AND GROW HELP CREATE A SPACE WHERE ACCOUNTABILITY AND HEALING CAN OCCUR. IN ADDITION TO THEIR WORK WITH PARTICIPANTS, THEY FOSTER A STRONG SENSE OF COMMUNITY BY SUPPORTING ONE ANOTHER AND HELPING TO WELCOME [02:20:02] AND GUIDE NEW VOLUNTEERS INTO THE PROGRAM. THEIR EFFORTS HAVE STRENGTHENED BOTH INDIVIDUAL CASES AND THE OVERALL INTEGRITY OF THE PROGRAM, MAKING IT POSSIBLE FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD JUSTICE PROGRAM TO GROW AND SERVE MORE INDIVIDUALS OVER TIME. SO JUST WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK AND DEDICATION TO THIS PROGRAM, AND CONGRATULATIONS ON THE AWARDS TODAY. [APPLAUSE] SORRY. THANK YOU. - [INAUDIBLE] - OKAY. [INAUDIBLE] WANNA SAY [INAUDIBLE]. - HI EVERYBODY. UM, BEING THE COORDINATOR FOR THIS PROGRAM SINCE 2020, AND WE'VE BEEN STARTING WITH JUST A SMALL GROUP OVER COVID WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WE WERE DOING AND IT'S BEEN A GREAT PROCESS I'M SO HAPPY TO BE PART OF THIS, AND SO GRATEFUL FROM ALL THE VOLUNTEERS THAT ARE BRINGING THIS PROGRAM ALIVE AND KEEPING THE PROCESS AND BEING MENTORS FOR NEW COHORT OF VOLUNTEERS, AND I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT. UM, MY BOSS, TARA GEORGE FROM THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, ALSO WANTED TO, SHE COULDN'T BE HERE SHE HAD TO GO TO SACRAMENTO TODAY. BUT SHE WANTED TO SHARE, UH, THAT SHE WAS SO HAPPY THAT ALL THE PASSION THAT YOU BRING TO THE CONFERENCES AND ALL THE SUPPORT THAT YOU'RE GIVING TO THE PARTICIPANTS, SHE'S SUPER GRATEFUL FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO. WE ALL ARE AND YEAH, CONGRATULATIONS. - THANK YOU. - THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - OKAY. OUR, UH, FINAL GROUP THAT WE'D LIKE TO INVITE TO BE HONORED IS THE FORENSIC VOLUNTEERS FROM THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. UM, JANELLE CORNELIO, NICOLE GIDDING AND SOPHIE LARNER, ALONG WITH SUPERVISOR MAY CHEUNG. AND WE'D ALSO LIKE TO INVITE, UM, ANYONE ELSE FROM THE, THE, THE VOLUNTEER TEAM OR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE THAT WOULD LIKE TO COME UP WITH THEM. AND, UM, OH, SORRY. JUSTIN, SUPERVISOR CUMMINGS, COME BACK PLEASE. THANK YOU. - HELLO AGAIN. UM, JANELLE CORNELIA, NICOLE GIDDING AND SOPHIE LARNER HAVE MADE AN EXCEPTIONAL, HAVE MADE EXCEPTIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE FORENSIC LAB AND PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE SECTION. JANELLE AND SOPHIE HAVE SUPPORTED THE LATENT PRINT SECTION BY ACTIVELY PROCESSING CASEWORK AND HELPING REDUCE BACKLOG WHILE ALSO ASSISTING WITH LABORATORY OPERATIONS SUCH AS EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE AND INVENTORY. NICOLE HAS CONTRIBUTED EXTENSIVELY TO THE PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE SECTION BY SUPPORTING DISCOVERY REQUEST, COURT CEILINGS AND COMMUNICATIONS. WHILE ALSO ASSISTING WITH THE DNA SECTIONS ACCREDITATION EFFORTS. TOGETHER THEY HAVE DEMONSTRATED A STRONG WORK ETHIC, ADAPTABILITY, AND A COMMITMENT TO LEARNING. THEIR EFFORTS HAVE STRENGTHENED DAILY OPERATIONS AND SUPPORTED THE LABORATORIES PROGRESS TOWARDS ACCREDITATION. THEY CONSISTENTLY GO ABOVE AND BEYOND SUPPORTING A WIDE RANGE OF RESPONSIBILITIES AS NEEDED. THEIR DEDICATION AND PROFESSIONALISM EXEMPLIFIES THE PROMISE OF A NEXT GENERATION OF FORENSIC SCIENTISTS. THANK YOU ALL AND CONGRATULATIONS. [APPLAUSE] - [INAUDIBLE] - YEAH. - HELLO EVERYONE. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. UM, I'M SOPHIE I'M ONE OF THE THREE INTERNS OVER AT THE FORENSICS OFFICE AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY HOW GRATEFUL I AM TO HAVE HAD THIS OPPORTUNITY TO VOLUNTEER HERE. THE ENVIRONMENT AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING SUPPORTIVE AND POSITIVE EXPERIENCES THAT I'VE HAD, AND IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THAT ENVIRONMENT THERE I WANNA GIVE A SPECIAL THANKS TO MAY, THE LATENT FRONT MENTOR FOR ME AND JANELLE WHO'S BEEN AN AMAZING TEACHER AND AMAZING SUPPORT THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE PROCESS. THIS INTERNSHIP HAS REALLY GUIDED ME IN PURSUING A CAREER IN CRIMINOLOGY, AND I WOULDN'T BE HERE WITHOUT THESE PEOPLE STANDING UP HERE TODAY, SO THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] - [INAUDIBLE] WOULD LIKE SAY ANYTHING. - [INAUDIBLE] - WELL, I... SO WE ASK A LOT OF OUR VOLUNTEERS, THEY VOLUNTEER ABOUT 16 HOURS A WEEK AND WE ASK FOR A YEAR COMMITMENT FROM THEM. UH, THEY RUN THROUGH OUR ACTUAL CRIMINALIST TRAINING PROGRAM SO THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO, UH, YOU KNOW, LEGITIMATELY DO THE WORK WE'RE ASKING THEM TO DO IN THE SECOND HALF OF THEIR INTERNSHIPS. AND IT HAS JUST BEEN AN ABSOLUTE PLEASURE TO WORK WITH THE THREE OF YOU. UM, YOU'VE ALSO, NICOLE, A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO YOU FOR KEEPING, UH, PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE AFLOAT WHEN WE HAD SOME SERIOUS, UH, STAFFING CHALLENGES AND IT HAS JUST REALLY, YOU HAVE REINVIGORATED MY HOPE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF SCIENTISTS [02:25:01] AND PROFESSIONALS. AND YOU ARE WORKING FOR A PUBLIC THAT WILL NEVER GET TO KNOW YOU UNLIKE SOME OF THESE OTHER POSITIONS. THESE FOLKS ARE ENTIRELY BEHIND THE SCENES. AND I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC SAFETY, TO PUBLIC SERVICE, TO EDUCATION, TO CURIOSITY, AND TO JUST GENERALLY BEING A TEAM MEMBER AND HELPING ALL OF US. IT HAS BEEN AN ABSOLUTE PLEASURE TO WORK WITH YOU, AND I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR FUTURE WITH US AND ALSO YOUR FUTURE JUST IN GENERAL. SO PLEASE, UH, JUST CONTINUE BEING SO AWESOME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU ALL OF YOU. [APPLAUSE] - WELL, THANK YOU TO ALL THE VOLUNTEERS WHO ARE HERE TODAY. UH, BEFORE EVERYONE LEAVES, WE'D LOVE TO HAVE, UM, EVERYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO BE IN A, IN A PHOTO, WE CAN JUST DO A, A GROUP PHOTO IN THE FRONT. LIKE I SAID, THERE'S OVER 1400 VOLUNTEERS AND 23 DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AT THE COUNTY, AND THE VOLUNTEERS HERE TODAY REPRESENT, YOU KNOW, OUR OUTSTANDING VOLUNTEERS FOR THE THE YEAR. UM, BUT, AND, BUT THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER VOLUNTEERS THAT CAME TO SUPPORT YOUR, YOUR COLLEAGUES, SO THANK YOU ALL. AND THANK YOU TO THE BOARD FOR, FOR RECOGNIZING THE HARD WORK. [INAUDIBLE]. [APPLAUSE] OKAY. SO YEAH, LET'S JUST DO A QUICK PHOTO EVERYONE. COME ON UP. IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE... ANY OF YOU WHO WOULD LIKE TO BE IN THE PHOTO, WE'D LOVE TO, TO HAVE EVERYONE WHO, WHO WOULD LIKE... UM, [INAUDIBLE] - YEAH. [INAUDIBLE] - YEAH. [INAUDIBLE] - YES. - HOLD THE CHECK. - SURE. - OH YEAH. MAYBE SUSAN COME AND HOLD THE CHECK WITH ME IN THE FRONT. [CROSSTALK] - YEAH, LET'S GET SOME OF THE BOARD IN THE PICTURE. [CROSSTALK] - YEAH. [CROSSTALK] - OH WOW. WE CAN SEE OURSELVES. [CROSSTALK] - YOU CAN'T SEE THE CAMERA, THE CAMERA [CROSSTALK] WE LOOKING AT. - I KNOW. [SILENCE] - AWESOME. - THERE'S MORE REFRESHMENTS. - THERE'S STILL REFRESHMENTS OVER THERE IN THE OFFICE OKAY? - THANK YOU. [CROSSTALK] - YES. YEAH. IT'S RIGHT. [CROSSTALK] - I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE. [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] [CROSSTALK] - INCLUDING SOME OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS. [CROSSTALK] - I WOULD JUST GIVE IT A SECOND. - YEAH. I GOT YOU. [02:30:53] - ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT WE WILL CONCLUDE ITEM NUMBER 10 AND MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER 11, WHICH IS A CLOSED SESSION. [11. SCHEDULE A CLOSED PERSONNEL AND LITIGATION SESSION TO BE HELD AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE BOARD'S CONSENT OR REGULAR AGENDA, OR AT ANY OTHER TIME DURING THE COURSE OF THE MEETING ANNOUNCED BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE BOARD A. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(1)) Mark Beckner, Deceased, through his Successor-in-Interest Brandon Beckner v. County of Santa Cruz; Wellpath, LLC; California Forensic Medical Group; Sarah Hewett; U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, Case No. 5:23cv-05032-BLF.   B. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(1)) Workbench and Sweet Developments LLC v. County of Santa Cruz, et al., Santa Cruz County Sup. Ct. Case No. 26CV01095. C. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(1)) Weseloh, et al. v. County of Santa Cruz, et al., Santa Cruz County Superior Court Case No. 18CV03315. Report of County Counsel - will be given at the conclusion of the closed session on any reportable action(s) taken in the closed session.  ] UM, COUNTY COUNCIL, DO WE HAVE ANYTHING REPORTABLE FROM CLOSED SESSION? - NO, THERE WILL BE NOTHING REPORTABLE TODAY. - OKAY. THEN WITH THAT, UM, OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE ON APRIL 28TH AT 9:00 A.M. HERE AT 701 OCEAN STREET GOVERNMENT CENTER AND WE ARE NOW ADJOURNED. - RECORDING STOPPED. [END] * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.