CITY OF ARCATA
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
COUNCIL CHAMBER OCTOBER 18, 2023
736 F Street, Arcata Wednesday, 6:00 PM
AGENDA
1 Special accommodations for the disabled who attend City meetings can be made in advance by contacting the City Clerk at 822-5953. Assistive listening devices are available.
Pursuant to Government Code section 54957.5, all writings or documents relating to any item on this agenda which have been provided to a majority of the City Council, including those received less than 72 hours prior to the City Council meeting, will be made available for public inspection in the agenda binder located on the counter in the lobby at Arcata City Hall, 736 F Street, during normal business hours, and on the City's website at www.cityofarcata.org.
PLEASE NOTE: Speakers wishing to distribute materials to the City Council at the meeting are requested to provide 10 copies to the City Clerk.
How to Observe and Participate in the Meeting:
Observe:
Members of the public can attend the meeting in person or observe the meeting on Zoom (see below), on Access Humboldt Channel 10, online by visiting www.cityofarcata.org and clicking on the See Live Meetings, Agendas, and Archives button on the home page, or on the City’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/CityofArcataCA Public Comment Participation in Person and on Zoom:
Members of the public may attend the meeting in person and give public comment. Or, they may access the meeting via Zoom to provide public comment.
1. Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device: Please use this URL:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84999398630
2. If you want to comment during the public comment portion of any item, click on raise your hand on the right-hand side of your screen. When it is time for public comment on the item on which you wish to speak, the Clerk will unmute you. You will have 3 minutes to comment (2 minutes for Early Oral Communications), subject to the Mayor’s discretion.
Or join by phone:
1. *67 1-669-900-6833
October 18, 2023 City Council Agenda
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2. Enter Meeting ID: 849 9939 8630
3. If you are accessing the meeting via telephone and want to comment during the public comment portion of any item, press star (*) 9 on your phone. This will raise your hand. When it is time for public comment on the item on which you wish to speak, the Clerk will unmute your phone. You will hear a prompt that will indicate your phone is unmuted. You will have 3 minutes to comment (2 minutes for Early Oral Communications), subject to the Mayor’s discretion.
I. LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
II. FLAG SALUTE
III. ROLL CALL
IV. CEREMONIAL MATTERS
V. REPORT BY COMMISSION/COMMITTEE
VI. EARLY ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
The City Council values your comments. This 15-minute time period allows people to address the Council on matters not on the agenda. Please know that, pursuant to the Brown Act, the Council cannot discuss or take action on items that are not listed on the posted agenda. At the end of all oral communications the Council may respond to statements. Supported requests that require Council action will be set for a future agenda or referred to staff. Speakers may be limited to two minutes. There will also be time for the public to comment specifically on each agenda item and again at the end of the meeting under item number XII (12).
VII. N/A
VIII. CONSENT CALENDAR
All matters on the Consent Calendar are considered to be routine by the City Council and are enacted in one motion. There is no separate discussion of any of these items.
If discussion is required, that item is removed from the Consent Calendar and considered separately. At the end of the reading of the Consent Calendar, Council members or members of the public can request that an item be removed for separate discussion.
A. Approve the Minutes of the City Council Meeting of October 4, 2023.
B. Bi-Weekly Report on Disbursements.
October 18, 2023 City Council Agenda
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C. Adopt Resolution No. 234-15 , A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Arcata Approving the Zero-Emission Bus Rollout Plan for the Arcata & Mad River Transit System (A&MRTS).
D. Adopt Resolution No. 234-12 Authorizing the Destruction of Certain City Records Maintained by the City Relating to the Departments of City Manager (City Manager, Contracts and Special Projects, Personnel, City Clerk), Environmental Services, Community Development and Finance as Permitted under Section 34090 of the California Government Code and the Secretary of State's Local Government Records Program.
E. Approve Proclamation in Recognition of Día de los Muertos, November 1 & 2, 2023.
IX. ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT CALENDAR
Items removed from the Consent Calendar will be heard under this section.
X. OLD BUSINESS
XI. NEW BUSINESS
A. Conduct a Public Hearing to Receive Input Regarding Unmet Transit Needs and Direct Staff to Forward All Comments to the Humboldt County Association of Governments.
Annually, the Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG) reviews unmet transit needs through a multi-jurisdictional public hearing process throughout Humboldt County. As part of this annual process, HCAOG encourages member entities to conduct separate public hearings to receive local comments. Comments can also be received by email, mail, and telephone prior to December 31, 2023. To be included in this year's report of findings, send comments regarding the Arcata & Mad River Transit System (A&MRTS) directly to:
City of Arcata
Attn: Vance Law, Arcata & Mad River Transit System
736 F Street
Arcata, CA 95521
(707) 825-2041
[email protected]
HCAOG will also receive comments directly on unmet transit needs until December 31, 2023, at:
HCAOG Office
Attn: Beth Burks
611 I Street, Suite B
Eureka, CA 95501
(707) 444-8208
[email protected]
October 18, 2023 City Council Agenda
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RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Council conduct a public hearing to receive input regarding unmet transit needs, and direct staff to forward all comments to the Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG).
B. Consider Opposing the Humboldt Cannabis Reform Initiative.
The Humboldt Cannabis Reform Initiative (the “Initiative”) is a voter initiative that has qualified for the June 2024 ballot. The initiative would amend the Humboldt County cannabis regulatory framework to be more restrictive to size, types of activities, and operations of cultivation in the County. While the goals identified in the Initiative have broad support, the restrictions the Initiative will impose will not promote the goals.
While the regulations would not affect cultivation within the City, it likely would have secondary negative impacts on manufacturing in the City as the additional constraints imposed on cultivators will affect the local supply chain. Staff recommends the Council oppose the initiative and communicate that opposition to the voters.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the Council consider opposing the Humboldt Cannabis Reform Initiative and authorize the Mayor to communicate the City’s opposition to the public.
C. Adopt Resolution No. 234-13 Amending Resolution No. 167-36, A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Arcata Establishing School Zone Speed Limits on City Streets and Roads.
The Safer School Zone Act, also known as Assembly Bill 321 (Nava), is a state law that went into effect in 2008. It allowed cities and counties to expand 25-mile-per-hour school zones and reduce speeds immediately around schools to 15 miles per hour. The bill allowed a city or county, based on an engineering and traffic survey finding that the prima facie speed limit of 25 miles per hour is more than is reasonable or safe, by ordinance or resolution, to determine and declare a prima facie speed limit of 20 or 15 miles per hour, whichever is justified as the appropriate speed limit by that survey. The City’s existing Resolution No. 167-36 is based on AB 321. More recently Assembly Bill 43, titled “Traffic Safety,” was voted upon and passed by the California Assembly on September 9, 2021, and approved by the Governor and filed with the Secretary of State on October 8, 2021. AB 43 provides local authorities greater flexibility in setting and reducing speed limits on the streets. One of the stipulations in the bill allows the City to reduce the posted prima facie speed limits in school zones to as low as 15 mph without requiring a traffic survey [revised CVC 22354(a) & 22358(a)]. This stipulation was reviewed by California Traffic Control Devices Committee (CTCDC) in 2022 and the committee approved the changes to the California Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (CA-MUTCD) to implement AB 43.
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Council Adopt Resolution No. 234-13 Amending October 18, 2023 City Council Agenda
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Resolution No. 167-36, A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Arcata Establishing School Zone Speed Limits on City Streets and Roads.
XII. ORAL AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
The City appreciates public input. This time is provided for people to address the Council or submit written communications on matters not on the agenda. Please know that, pursuant to the Brown Act, the Council cannot discuss or take action on items that are not listed on the posted agenda. At the end of all oral & written communications, the Council may respond to statements. Supported requests that require Council action will be set for a future agenda or referred to staff. Speakers addressing the Council may be limited to 3 minutes, with a maximum of 5 minutes, and a time limit on the length of oral communications may be imposed.
XIII. COUNCIL AND STAFF REPORTS
All reports shall be specifically limited to City business and shall not request or lead to action by the Council at this meeting.
XIV. DATES OF FUTURE MEETINGS
A. Confirm a Study Session with the Planning Commission on Tuesday, October 24, 2023, at 6:00 p.m., in the Council Chamber.
XV. CLOSED SESSION
XVI. CLOSED SESSION REPORTS
XVII. ADJOURNMENT
Other than items continued or tabled to a date certain, the Council may, by majority vote, continue all matters not completed by 10:30 p.m. to the following Thursday at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chamber. Should the Council vote to continue the meeting past 10:30 p.m., discussion on an item on the agenda that either requires or allows for public input may not begin without a unanimous vote of the City Council members present. (Closed Session items may begin later.) (Reference: Resolution No. 223-07)
DOCUMENTS RECEIVED AFTER PUBLICATION OF THE AGENDA
VIII-E. Dia de los Muertos 2023 Proclamation
XI-B. Correspondence from Rob Gale, Mark Thurmond, Erin Hamilton, Betsy Watson, Derek Calvano, Erin Hamilton, Greg King, Ken Miller, Mark Thurmond, Michael Bettencourt, Michael McLaren, Nick Kieselhorst, Rose Uhlenburg, Ross Gordon, Sequoyah Hudson, and Tanasa Daniel