Santa Rosa City Council Regular Meeting - August 20, 2024
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Santa Rosa City Council Regular Meeting - August 20, 2024
The Santa Rosa City Council met on August 20, 2024, in a regular meeting that began with a closed session at 2:00 PM, followed by a study session at 3:30 PM, and the regular session at 4:00 PM. The meeting included discussions on capital improvement prioritization, a new bikeshare pilot program, a homelessness prevention pilot, and a formal opposition to Sonoma County Measure J. Council members present: Mayor Natalie Rogers, Vice Mayor Mark Stapp, Council Members Eddie Alvarez, Victoria Fleming, Jeff Okrepkie, and Chris Rogers. Council Member Dianna MacDonald was absent. Action was taken to excuse absences for both Vice Mayor Stapp and Council Member MacDonald.
Consent Calendar
- 13.1 Resolution approving amendment to purchase order with TargetSolutions Learning, LLC for fire department training platform (total not to exceed $140,915.40).
- 13.2 Resolution extending blanket purchase order with Bo Dean Co., Inc. for asphalt supplies (additional $459,954, total $1,009,954).
- 13.3 Resolution establishing radar-enforceable speed limits of 25–40 mph on 38 street segments citywide, including High Injury Network streets.
- 13.4 Resolution appropriating $813,966 in grant funding from the US Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART program for the Sonoma-Marin Drought Resiliency Program.
- 13.5 Resolution authorizing a $1,000,000 grant application to MTC’s Priority Conservation Area Grant Program for master planning and design of the Southeast Greenway Project.
- 13.6 Resolution approving an administrative cost recovery lien of $8,570.47 against property at 1645 Humboldt Street for uncorrected city code violations.
- 13.7 Ordinance (second reading, subject to voter approval) amending the Transient Occupancy Tax to increase by 2% for hotels, motels, and other lodging establishments.
- 13.8 Ordinance (second reading, subject to voter approval) amending the General Business Tax was continued to the September 24, 2024 regular meeting due to lack of quorum.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Closed Session (Items 3.1, 3.2): Stephen DelPorto (Director of Santa Rosa Firefighters) urged council to review the entire contract proposal, citing recruitment challenges (30 applicants for 10 spots, whittled to low teens). Ken Martin (labor negotiator) asked for parity with police and comparability with East Bay/South Bay/peninsula departments.
- Study Session (Item 4.1): Eris Weaver (Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition) supported prioritizing climate, safety, and equity; urged removal of new roadways and widening from projects. Calum Weeks (resident) supported the bike/pedestrian overpass and safety investments. Chris Guenther (Bikeable Santa Rosa) emphasized aligning investments with council goals and creating a connected network for non-car transportation.
- Consent Items: Duane DeWitt spoke in support of Items 13.3 (speed limits) and 13.5 (Southeast Greenway), requesting review of the Roseland Creek Concept Plan. Elizabeth Evans requested inclusion of Summerfield Road between Hoen and Montgomery Drive in speed reduction efforts, suggesting additional traffic calming measures. A speaker opposed Items 13.7 and 13.8, requesting internal audits before new taxes.
- Non-Agenda Matters (Item 14): Calum Weeks (Generation Housing) urged council to support Proposition 5 (lowering voting threshold for affordable housing bonds to 55%). Duane DeWitt advocated for green space at the Roseland Village Plaza and support for local Roseland businesses.
- Item 15.1 (Homelessness Prevention): Sunny Noh (Legal Aid of Sonoma County) expressed support for the Keep People Housed pilot program and the inclusion of legal services.
- Item 18: No further public comments.
Discussion Items
- Study Session (Item 4.1): Dan Hennessey (Director of Transportation and Public Works) presented an update on the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), noting 39 projects totaling nearly $220 million to be bid this fiscal year. He proposed prioritization metrics tied to council goals: climate, safety, equity, and operational feasibility. Council members provided feedback emphasizing deliverability, maintaining existing infrastructure, completing funded promises (e.g., fire recovery projects), and creating a connected bike/pedestrian network.
- Staff Briefing (Item 8.1): Torina Wilson (Transportation Planner) and Dana Turrey (SCTA) presented the Redwood Bikeshare Pilot Program—a two-year, multi-jurisdiction e-bike pilot along the SMART corridor. Santa Rosa will have approximately 80 bikes at about 10 hubs (e.g., downtown, Matote Food Park, SRJC, Cottingtown Transit Center). The program uses a hub-to-hub model, offers various pricing (pay-as-you-go, monthly, annual) with an equity component. A $826,000 grant funds the launch, and the operator agreed to a 90/10 revenue split to help sustain the program after the pilot. Council members asked about flexibility in station locations, especially for underserved areas like Roseland.
- Report (Item 15.1 - Homelessness Prevention): Kelli Kuykendall (Housing and Community Services Manager) presented the Keep People Housed (KPH) - Sonoma pilot program. Local partners include the City of Santa Rosa ($500,000), Sonoma County ($500,000), and City of Petaluma ($300,000), totaling $1.3 million, matched by $2.6 million from All Home for a $3.9 million total. The Committee on the Shelterless (COTS) was selected as lead provider after an RFP process, with subcontracted local hubs and legal services from Sonoma County Legal Aid. The program targets households below 50% of area median income, providing financial assistance, stabilization services, and legal referrals. It is expected to serve 350–400 households over two years.
- Report (Item 15.2 - Opposition to Measure J): After a two-step process to add the item (approved 6-0), Scott Alonso (Government Affairs Officer) presented the recommendation to oppose Sonoma County Measure J, a November 2024 ballot initiative that would phase out and prohibit concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) in unincorporated areas. The presentation cited an estimated $259 million direct loss in agricultural products, 60 farms potentially impacted, and ripple effects on jobs and the city's general fund. Council members argued the measure is poorly constructed, originates from out-of-area proponents, contradicts greenhouse gas goals, and would harm local family farms and businesses.
- Public Hearing (Item 16.1): Katie Robinson (Stormwater and Creeks) presented the annual placement of Storm Water Enterprise charges on the Sonoma County property tax roll. The current fee is $41.34 per equivalent residential unit, unchanged from the June 2024 adoption. The hearing focused only on the collection method, not the fee amount. No public comments were received.
Key Outcomes
- Absences Approved: Vice Mayor Mark Stapp’s absences from August 21 through September 30, 2024, were approved (6-0). Council Member Dianna MacDonald’s absences through September 13, 2024, were approved (6-0) after a Brown Act process to add the item.
- Consent Items: Items 13.1 through 13.7 were approved unanimously (6-0). Item 13.8 continued to September 24, 2024.
- Storm Water Charges: Resolution RES-2024-140 adopting the Storm Water Enterprise Charge Report and approving placement on the county tax roll was approved (6-0).
- Homelessness Prevention Pilot: Resolution RES-2024-141 approving the funding agreement and grant agreement for KPH-Sonoma, and endorsing All Home’s Regional Action Plan 2024, was approved (6-0).
- Measure J Opposition: The council voted 6-0 to formally oppose Measure J on the November 5, 2024 ballot and directed staff to send an advocacy letter to proponents and opponents.
- Study Session Direction: Staff will refine CIP prioritization criteria based on council feedback (climate, safety, equity, deliverability, maintenance) and return with a draft fiscal year 2025-26 CIP in November or December 2024.
Meeting Transcript
I'd like to ask the interpreter currently on the Spanish channel to commence interpretation of the meeting. For those just joining the meeting, live interpretation in Spanish is available, and members of the public or staff wishing to listen in Spanish can join the Spanish channel by clicking on the interpretation icon in the Zoom toolbar. It looks like a globe. I will like to announce that item 13.8 is being continued to the September 24, 2024 regular council meeting, and I will be announcing that throughout the meeting. Moving on to item three, announcement of our close session. We have 3.1 with conference with legal council about existing litigation and 3.2 conference with labor negotiators. Madam Deputy City Clerk, can you please facilitate public comment on this item? We are now taking public comment on closed session items 3.1 and 3.2. If you are in the council chamber and would like to comment, please make your way to the podium. You'll have three minutes and a countdown down timer will alert at the end. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the record if you choose to do so. Let's start um here. Please go ahead. Thank you. Uh good afternoon, Mayor Council. Thank you again for the opportunity to speak. Stephen Del Porto, Director of Santa Rosa Firefighters. Um I'll keep it short and sweet today. Um we have what I would consider a very fair uh contract offer on the table right now. It falls closely in line with the other units that have already signed. Um, plus it also meets some of the specific needs our firefighters have right now. Um the only ask I have of the council today is is is please ask for the entire proposal. Um when this all goes whichever direction, it falls on the council, right? You're the elected leaders, you're the ones that the citizens are expecting to make these decisions. So please ask for the entire proposal. Uh don't let staff it was a concern of ours that staff's not wanting to show the entire proposal. We're teetering on impasse, and that brings arbitration with it. That's gonna fall on the council. That's that's not gonna fall on staff. That that issue is gonna come back to you guys. So that's all I'm asking is is take a good hard look at it and the entire in its entirety. Uh our recruitment problem is still alive and strong. We had 30 people apply for the 10 minimum spots we have open right now, and it's already whittled down to the low teen. So we're maybe at 13, and that's going to uh chiefs interview, so we could maybe expect to get six. So the recruitment thing that we keep pushing is true. It's a real thing. We're supposed to hire another 35 over the next few years, even more than that with retirements. We're not going to be able to do that without a fair wage. So I I can only urge this so much. Please take a look at it. If there's any questions, you all have my number. Please call any time with anything, and I'm happy to answer it. And I really look forward and hope to see uh a resolution of this this week. I know we all want it to be done with. It's not enjoyable for anybody to be in these positions, um, but it's my job, it's Ken's job to look out the best we can for our members. So I I look forward to that phone call, and I hope to hear something this week. Thank you. Please go ahead when you're ready. Good afternoon, council. My name's Ken Martin.
openpublica.com