Visalia City Council Meeting – September 3, 2024
Visalia City Council Meeting – September 3, 2024\n\nThe Visalia City Council met on September 3, 2024, starting with a work session at 4:00 PM and the regular session at 7:00 PM. The meeting included new employee introductions, an update on the Short-term Rental Ordinance, a report on the City's support of the Coffee Pot Fire, recognition of citizens for quick action, extensive public comments on animal services and other topics, a consent calendar, a public hearing on the 5-year Consolidated Plan (ConPlan) for HUD funds, and the withdrawal of the Elliott Annexation item.\n\n### Consent Calendar\n- Approved unanimously (5-0) the following items: authorization to read ordinances by title only; developer reimbursement agreement for Visalia Parkway Phase 1; additional appropriation of $1.7 million from the Civic Center Reserve Fund for Civic Center Phase 2; filing of Notice of Completion for ADA Pathway Improvements; conditional acceptance of a $385,999 FAA grant for a new airfield sweeper with additional $162,032 appropriation (total capital budget $430,688).\n\n### Public Comments & Testimony\n- Animal Services: Multiple speakers (Carmen Collie, Vicken Totten, Jennifer Maze, Maria Reveles, Kris Agarza, Stephanie Young, Kate Carlson, Colleen Sullivan, Brittany Bligh) requested that the Visalia Animal Services be placed on a future agenda to address high euthanasia rates, budget concerns, lack of transparency, and need for community partnerships. Kate Carlson stated the euthanasia rate is approximately 34%, more than double the state average. Colleen Sullivan noted a shelter employee said some dogs may be "forgotten."\n- Palestine/Israel Conflict: Speakers Raquel Arias, Fida Taha, Taylor Heine, Anna Madrigal Garcia, Julia Doyal urged the Council to pass a symbolic cease-fire resolution and criticized U.S. funding of the conflict. They drew parallels between local and global injustices.\n- Other Concerns: Raquel Arias criticized Council behavior and lack of support for public commenters. Miki Kenner raised questions about Council Member Nelson's role with Downtown Visalians Association and the method of selecting the Mayor. Maria Hernandez reported an incident where a minor was raped at a party where alcohol was provided by an adult. Efrain Becerra criticized spending on the Rawhide remodel and road conditions, urged voters to vote in Districts 1 and 2. Amanda Lovelady spoke about homelessness and lack of hope. Indigo expressed disappointment with Council's disregard for life.\n\n### Work Session Items\n- New Employee Introductions & Promotions: Welcomed Macey Schonbachler (Communications & Marketing Specialist), six new police officers (Jesus Loera, Jesus Luna, Benjamin Partlow, Alexis Perez, Christopher Rajskup, Rodrigo Rescalvo), Jason Glick (Parks & Recreation Director), and Chris Crawford (City Engineer).\n- Short-term Rental Ordinance Update: Senior Planner Josh Dan presented three recommendations: (1) amend ordinance to include compliance fee assessment ($100, $200, $500 penalties); (2) incorporate annual permit renewal; (3) solicit third-party software to identify non-compliant rentals (cost $5,000–$30,000 annually). Staff also presented options for a cap (1% of housing stock, about 261 rentals), a 1,000-foot buffer, and an outright ban, but did not recommend them. Council voted 4-1 (Mayor Poochigian opposed) to approve the three recommendations. Council declined to move forward on cap, buffer, or ban at this time.\n- Coffee Pot Fire Update: Assistant City Manager John Lollis reported the fire had grown to 12,000 acres, 17% contained, with 1,500 personnel, 41 crews, 30 water tenders, 53 engines, and 14 helicopters. The City provided five firefighters, an engine, and use of the Convention Center for incident management team. Two paramedics returned from the Park Fire.\n\n### Special Presentations\n- Recognized Maria Barrios, Cesar Barrios, and Brooke Bedrosian-Lopez for alerting neighbors to a house fire and helping evacuate occupants on August 8, 2024.\n- The recognition of the Government Finance Officers Association award to the Finance Department was pulled from the agenda.\n\n### Regular Items and Public Hearings\n- Public Hearing on 5-Year Consolidated Plan (ConPlan): Housing Specialist Margie Perez and consultant Monique Caston presented the process for developing the FY 2025/26 – FY 2029/30 ConPlan for CDBG and HOME funds. Estimated annual CDBG allocation: $1.2 million (total $6 million over 5 years). HOME funds: $500,000 per year ($2.5 million total). Survey results: 116 citizen surveys, 21 organizational surveys, 107 farm worker conference surveys, 34 Spanish surveys. Top needs identified: shortage of affordable housing, homeless prevention and housing, senior housing, employment services, mental health services, infrastructure. Public comment: Kathy Falconer questioned low survey participation and outreach. Council members expressed support for focusing on senior housing, youth programs, job training, homelessness prevention, substance abuse services, and others. No action taken; staff will return with draft plan.\n- Elliott Annexation: Staff requested withdrawal because the item had been re-noticed for September 16, 2024, following an appeal of the tentative subdivision map. Council voted 5-0 to withdraw.\n\n### Key Outcomes\n- Short-term Rental Ordinance Amendments Approved (4-1): Council directed staff to amend the ordinance to include compliance fee assessment (100/200/500), annual permit renewal, and to solicit third-party software to identify non-compliant rentals. Staff to return in 60–90 days.\n- Animal Services to Be Discussed: City Manager Leslie Caviglia arranged for interested citizens to provide contact information to Parks & Recreation Director Jason Glick and Assistant City Manager John Lollis for a future meeting.\n- ConPlan Process Ongoing: Council provided input; draft plan to be presented in fall 2024 with 30-day public comment period, adoption by April/May 2025.\n- Elliott Annexation Withdrawn: Item continued to September 16, 2024 meeting.\n\nNote: The next regular meeting is scheduled for September 16, 2024 at 7:00 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Comments. Citizens are now invited to comment on issues within the jurisdiction of the Visalia City Council and items listed on the closed session agenda. 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's expired. Please begin your comments by stating and spelling your name and providing your city of residence. Okay. Let's bring it back for uh work session and action items. Number one, new point introductions and promotions, administration services. Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council. Alison Mackey, your communications and brand manager. I am joined here this evening by Macy Schoenbachler, and I'm really excited to introduce you to Macy, although you all know her very well. Macy joined the City of Iselia in 2023 as the community outreach coordinator, but has recently been elevated to the role of communications and marketing specialist. In this new capacity, Macy is collaborating closely with the recreation parks and animal services division of the organization, enhancing the promotion of their services and resources within the community. Macy has distinguished herself during her tenure with the city through her leadership on several high impact grant projects, including those focused on active transportation and protected bike lanes. That's just a small piece of all that Macy does from being a part of the city's 2023 storm response to coordinating earned media to her graphic design skills and program development like this year's haunt the home. Macy's work continues to shine. Her expertise in photo and video production has significantly boosted the city's social media and marketing efforts. And as we continue to work on improvements, in just the last 30 days alone, I wanted to take this opportunity to share that we have an increase of 58.5% and link clicks, which is most important to us as we're hoping to drive folks to information, is up 335%. That is a quick glimpse at the dividends of Macy's hard work. She's responsible for the live and play guide. She now oversees that entirely, and her exceptional work has been recognized with several public relations Society of America Awards. Beyond her professional accomplishments and recent promotion, Macy channels her passion for sports into volunteer coaching volleyball at her alma mater Golden West and cherishes quality time spent with her wife, Hilary, and daughter Harper Gray. Macy is the epitome of cool, calm, and collected, and her love for her community and her passion for her work shines through in all that she does. It's a pleasure to introduce you to Macy this evening in her new role and title. So thank you, Council. Congratulations, Macy. Congratulations. Macy, you want to say a few words? Sure. Um, I would just like to thank uh Alison Mackey for being a wonderful manager and giving me this opportunity to continue to communicate and market our wonderful services to our community. If you could please walk around so we congratulate you. Congratulations. Right up. Next, we have police department. Right there's the go right down the middle over there. You'll step on Josh here. Good afternoon, Mayor, members of council. So it's my pleasure this afternoon to introduce six new Visalia Police officers. This is a really good uh group of individuals that we're proud to have on board in our uniform. I'll start uh immediately here to my left with um lateral police officer Jesus Lauera Jr. He was raised in Orange Cove and attended Orange Cove High School. Upon completion of high school, he continued his education at Fresno State University, and he holds a bachelor's degree in criminology. In 2019, he graduated from the Fresno City Police Academy. And following the academy, he was hired with the Clear Lake Police Department, where he was assigned as a patrol officer. In 2023, he moved to the Tileria County Sheriff's Office, where he worked as a deputy sheriff. And in July of this year, we stole him over to Visalia, and he is assigned to our patrol division. He enjoys gaming and watching movies and spending time with his family. Next up is another lateral police officer, Jesus Luna. He was raised in Viselia and attended Mount Whitney High School, where he graduated.
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