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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Visalia City Council Meeting Summary: April 15, 2024

City Council — Monday, April 15, 2024

BodyVisalia, California

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, April 15, 2024

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 2:01:52

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:01

Let's call the order of the work session of the My Soya City Council.

0:04

We're gonna begin with public comments.

0:06

Citizens are now invited to comments on issues within the jurisdiction of the Vicea City Council and items listed on the closed session.

0:12

The council asks that you keep your comments concise and positive.

0:16

Creative criticism presented with appropriate courtesy is welcome.

0:19

Each speaker will be allowed three minutes and a timer will notify you when your time is expired.

0:23

Please begin your comments by stating and spelling your name and providing your city of residence.

0:31

All right, that's a staff member, so we have no public comment coming right there.

0:35

All right.

0:36

Let's move on to work session and action items.

0:38

Number one, new employee introductions, code enforcement.

1:02

Good afternoon, Council.

1:03

Tracy Robertshaw, neighborhood preservation.

1:06

And I have the pleasure of introducing our two new positions.

1:10

Martha Zavala, who we actually took from the city of Porterville.

1:14

She's our new commercial enforcement officer.

1:18

About a year and a half ago, you authorized a new position for us, and Martha has filled that position.

1:22

She's already jumped in head first, made some waves this last week, set up her proactive review for conditional use permit, so she's getting a schedule situated for that.

1:34

She's the mother of four.

1:35

She has three girls and one baby boy.

1:38

In her free time, she likes to spend it with her family.

1:40

She'd go to the beach and by succulents.

1:42

She's already filled our office up with uh dozens of plants.

1:46

And someday she would like to own her own nursery.

1:48

So, Martha.

1:50

Hello, everyone.

1:56

Thank you.

1:57

Thank you for welcoming to me.

1:59

And then we have Julian Salmon.

2:01

He is our new waterway inspector.

2:04

He replaced Marquette de Lyon.

2:06

Um he recently retired from law enforcement.

2:10

Uh he was in law enforcement for 26 years, decided to take on code enforcement.

2:15

Um, so he's responsible for about 45, 46 miles of waterways.

2:20

Uh he and his wife Christie have five grown children and one new beautiful granddaughter and is looking forward to more grandchildren, he said.

2:27

Uh he loves animals and said he would bring them all home if his wife would allow it, and he spends his free time working in his yard, and he works on bonsai, perfecting his bonsai skills.

2:38

Wow.

2:41

I like to hire those wordy people.

2:44

Nice.

2:45

If you guys could come around so we could uh welcome you.

2:58

Welcome, congratulations.

2:59

Thank you.

2:59

Nice to meet you.

3:00

Welcome.

3:00

Well nice congratulations.

3:02

Thank you, sir.

3:03

Thank you.

3:05

Thanks awesome.

3:09

I'm not sure every scene from right up next.

3:16

We got public works.

3:18

Good afternoon, Council.

3:19

Nick Barch, Public Works Director.

3:21

Uh, we've got a crew for you today.

3:23

Um, if you guys all want to come up, our public works staff.

3:29

We're gonna do this a little out of order.

3:31

Um, but we'll uh we'll work our way through.

3:35

So, first I'd like to introduce a familiar face, uh, Danny Galindo.

3:39

Danny started with the city in 2002 as an hourly employee and became full-time in uh 2003.

3:45

He spent the last 21 plus years as a key member of our solid waste division, uh, most recently as a solid waste supervisor.

3:53

Uh just recently he was promoted to the public works manager over the streets maintenance, traffic safety, and fleet maintenance divisions.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Fiscal Sustainability███████████████████████████████31%

Public Health███████████████████19%

Personnel Matters█████████████13%

Engineering And Infrastructure████████8%

Procedural███████7%

Public Safety█████5%

Parks and Recreation█████5%

Affordable Housing████4%

Public Engagement██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Visalia City Council Meeting Summary: April 15, 2024

The Visalia City Council met on April 15, 2024, for a work session beginning at 4:00 PM and a regular session at 7:00 PM. The meeting covered new employee introductions, a mosquito and vector control district update, mid-year budget projections, the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), and a public hearing to adopt the 2024 Annual Action Plan. Council Member Steve Nelsen was absent. Key decisions included approval of the consent calendar, mid-year budget adjustments including a policy change to increase the emergency reserve to 30% of operating expenditures, and adoption of the 2024 Annual Action Plan.

Consent Calendar

Approved in a single motion (4-0) the following routine items:
- Authorization to read ordinances by title only.
- Landfill Disposal Agreement with Tulare County for solid waste disposal at $28 per ton, with a CPI increase of up to 3% per year.
- Five playground design and installation service contracts at Pinkham Park ($298,810), John Combs Park, Woodland Park ($478,680), Rotary Park ($259,630), and Jefferson Park ($236,415), all awarded to R.E. Schultz Construction.
- Appropriation of $8,115,376 from the State of California Homekey Round 3 grant for conversion of the Majestic Motel into a 42-unit permanent affordable rental housing complex.
- Acceptance of the 2023 General Plan Annual Progress Report for submission to the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research.
- Award of a $190,000 contract to Sebastian for fire alarm system installation and replacement at the Convention Center.
- Professional Services Agreement with Visalia Convention and Visitors Bureau for 2024 tourism marketing services for $361,049.

Public Comments & Testimony

Taylor (Visalia resident): Spoke on behalf of Palestinians in Gaza, urging the council to take a stance against the conflict, comparing it to apartheid and colonialism. Expressed disappointment that local politicians have not acted.
Mary Bryant (President, Real Mooney Grove Park Project): Expressed concern about a mobile home park adjacent to Mooney Grove Park, citing numerous code violations, harassment of park workers, and substandard conditions. Called for city action to address violations.
William Huff (Visalia homeowner): Discussed homelessness, arguing that only a tiny fraction of homeless individuals can be served by taxpayers and that law enforcement alone is insufficient. Proposed an alternative infrastructure to meet their needs at lower cost and offered to share ideas via technosmith.com.
Raquel Marmolejo (Visalia): Spoke about poor conditions at Riverway Sports Park, including homeless encampments, unsafe restrooms, and trash. Noted that the park serves about 1,500 people on Saturdays and that a soccer tournament was upcoming, but she was embarrassed to host visitors in such conditions.
Luna Olsada (Visalia, CVP soccer player): Described safety and hygiene issues at Riverway Park, stating homeless individuals yell, curse, and trash bathrooms. Her coach prohibits players from using restrooms alone. She requested fencing or security at the park.

Discussion Items

New Employee Introductions: The council welcomed new staff in Code Enforcement, Public Works, and Administration, including Martha Zavala (commercial enforcement officer), Julian Salmon (waterway inspector), and Maria Ruiz Ibarra (senior administrative assistant).
Resolution of Commendation for National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week (April 14–20, 2024): The council adopted a resolution honoring public safety dispatchers. Police Chief noted dispatchers handle more than 300,000 calls annually; one operator answered nearly 19,000 calls in four months.
Delta Mosquito and Vector Control District Update: Lori Berger, council-appointed trustee and entomologist, presented on district operations. Key facts: 16 mosquito species in the district, 7,000 mosquito samples tested in 2023, 11 human West Nile virus cases in the district (including one in Visalia), and over 80,000 treatments performed. The district offers free mosquito fish (Gambusia) for biological control. Challenges include shrinking pesticide tools, regulatory hurdles, and climate change. The district recently earned a "District of Distinction" award from the California Association of Special Districts.
Review of 2023/24 Mid-Year Projections and General Fund Surplus Policy Amendment: Finance Director Renee Nagel presented the mid-year budget review. Revenues were projected at $100.7 million (up $7.4 million from budget but only $530,000 above last year). Sales tax growth was near zero (0.8% through March), described as a "realignment" after 28% growth over three years driven by federal stimulus. Property taxes continued to grow. Expenditures were projected at $76.6 million, below budget due to vacancies. The projected surplus was $15.1 million. Staff recommended a one-time policy change: transfer $12 million to the Civic Center Public Safety Reserve Fund and increase the General Fund Emergency Reserve target from 25% to 30% of operating expenditures (currently at 19.2 million, projected to reach 29% with the surplus). Five capital projects totaling $1.1 million were also recommended. A five-year forecast showed the city remaining solvent under three scenarios (continued growth, slight revenue realignment, slight recession).
Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Review: Nagel presented the fifth and final CIP session, covering six funds with $3.6 million proposed for FY 2024/25 and $7.5 million for FY 2025/26. Projects included ballistic vest replacements, police record purge, monument sign updates, Riverway soccer field fencing, and convention center telescopic seating and table replacements (956 tables at $352,000). No action was required; the CIP will be folded into the two-year budget for June adoption.
Adopt 2024 Annual Action Plan (Public Hearing): Housing Specialist Margie Perez presented the plan for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME funds. Estimated resources: $1.3 million in CDBG (including program income) and $1.065 million in HOME. The HOME funds will support Rancho Colegio, an 80-unit multifamily complex for households at or below 50% of area median income, including 11 HOME-assisted units and 20 farm worker housing units with a 55-year affordability covenant. A 2019 CDBG-CARES Act Amendment IV was also presented to close out CARES Act funding. The 30-day public comment period ended April 15. No public comments were received. Council noted that CDBG and HOME are federal formula grants, not state funds, so reductions are unlikely.

Key Outcomes

Consent Calendar approved (4-0; Nelsen absent).
Resolution for National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week adopted (4-0).
Mid-Year Budget and Surplus Policy Change approved (4-0):
- Received the 2023/24 mid-year projection.
- Amended the General Fund surplus policy to transfer $12 million to the Civic Center Public Safety Reserve Fund.
- Directed remaining surplus to the General Fund Emergency Reserve up to 30% of operating expenditures; any additional surplus to the Civic Center fund.
- Appropriated $1,576,100 for capital projects (including $1.1 million from General Fund, $500,000 for convention center elevator, and $13,000 for fleet welders).
Capital Improvement Program reviewed – no action taken; will be incorporated into the two-year budget in June.
2024 Annual Action Plan and 2019 CDBG-CV Amendment IV adopted (4-0):
- Authorized the City Manager to enter into contracts and submit to HUD.

Meeting Transcript

Let's call the order of the work session of the My Soya City Council. We're gonna begin with public comments. Citizens are now invited to comments on issues within the jurisdiction of the Vicea City Council and items listed on the closed session. The council asks that you keep your comments concise and positive. Creative criticism presented with appropriate courtesy is welcome. Each speaker will be allowed three minutes and a timer will notify you when your time is expired. Please begin your comments by stating and spelling your name and providing your city of residence. All right, that's a staff member, so we have no public comment coming right there. All right. Let's move on to work session and action items. Number one, new employee introductions, code enforcement. Good afternoon, Council. Tracy Robertshaw, neighborhood preservation. And I have the pleasure of introducing our two new positions. Martha Zavala, who we actually took from the city of Porterville. She's our new commercial enforcement officer. About a year and a half ago, you authorized a new position for us, and Martha has filled that position. She's already jumped in head first, made some waves this last week, set up her proactive review for conditional use permit, so she's getting a schedule situated for that. She's the mother of four. She has three girls and one baby boy. In her free time, she likes to spend it with her family. She'd go to the beach and by succulents. She's already filled our office up with uh dozens of plants. And someday she would like to own her own nursery. So, Martha. Hello, everyone. Thank you. Thank you for welcoming to me. And then we have Julian Salmon. He is our new waterway inspector. He replaced Marquette de Lyon. Um he recently retired from law enforcement. Uh he was in law enforcement for 26 years, decided to take on code enforcement. Um, so he's responsible for about 45, 46 miles of waterways. Uh he and his wife Christie have five grown children and one new beautiful granddaughter and is looking forward to more grandchildren, he said. Uh he loves animals and said he would bring them all home if his wife would allow it, and he spends his free time working in his yard, and he works on bonsai, perfecting his bonsai skills. Wow. I like to hire those wordy people. Nice. If you guys could come around so we could uh welcome you. Welcome, congratulations. Thank you. Nice to meet you. Welcome. Well nice congratulations. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Thanks awesome. I'm not sure every scene from right up next. We got public works.

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