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MINUTES
CITY OF BELLFLOWER
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BELLFLOWER CITY COUNCIL
THURSDAY, JANUARY 16, 2024, 9:00 A.M.
THE MAYNE EVENTS CENTER
16400 BELLFLOWER BLVD., BELLFLOWER, CA 90706
1 CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Dunton called the Special Meeting to order at 9:03 a.m. 2 ROLL CALL
The following Members of the City Council responded present to roll call:
Mayor Ray Dunton
Mayor Pro Tem Sonny R. Santa Ines
Council Member Dan Koops
Council Member Wendi Morse
Council Member Victor A. Sanchez
Staff Participants:
Ryan Smoot, City Manager
Karl H. Berger, City Attorney
Mayra Ochiqui, City Clerk
Len Gorecki, Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Works Travis Sais, Deputy City Manager
Tae G. Rhee, Director or Finance/Treasurer
Jim DellaLonga, Director of Economic Development
Elizabeth Oba, Director of Planning and Building Services P.J. Mellana, Director of Parks and Recreation
Brian McNerney, Interim Director of Public Safety
Anna Garan, Finance Manager
Wangsu Lee, Management Analyst I
Dakota Wallace, Management Assistant
3 PUBLIC COMMENTS
For the record, public comments were provided during discussion of Item 4-A.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING
Item No. 4-A
A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives. This is a City Council workshop to prioritize the City's legislative and project agenda. It is anticipated that the workshop will not result in the City Council taking any particular action.
Instead, City Council Members and key staff members will be reviewing the City Council's existing plans; updating them; and providing direction to the City Manager. Topics may include, without limitation, infrastructure improvements; revenue enhancement; land use challenges; sustainability efforts; redevelopment; community engagement and outreach; and municipal property needs assessment. Any direction provided by the City Council will appear on future meeting agendas.
City Manager Smoot 1) introduced the item; and 2) introduced Consultant Richard Bernard, Partner & Senior Vice President of Fairbanks, Maslin, Maullin & Associates ("FM3").
For the record, Consultant Bernard 1) provided a PowerPoint presentation giving an overview of the 2024 Citizen Satisfaction Survey conducted by FM3; and 2) along with City Manager Smoot, Consultant Ryder Todd Smith, Director of Parks and Recreation Meliana, Director of Economic Development DellaLonga, and Deputy City Manager Sais, responded to Council Members' questions.
In response to the presentation provided by Consultant Bernard, 1) Mayor Dunton suggested a future survey ask residents if they have ever called the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department for assistance, and if so, to provide a rating on their experience; and 2) Council Member Morse recommended the City mail a financial/budget report to all residents to demonstrate how City funds are allocated with the goal of increasing transparency and public knowledge.
For the record, public comments were provided by Sophia Partida, resident, who 1) inquired whether resident satisfaction survey results were more satisfactory when the City mailed the E -Citizen Newsletter to each household; and 2) expressed the opinion that more communication from the City to residents is needed.
Recess: For the record and without objection, Mayor Dunton recessed the meeting at 10:38 a.m. for a brief break.
Reconvene: For the record, Mayor Dunton reconvened the meeting at 10:49 a.m., with all Council Members present.
City Manager Smoot introduced Consultant Ryder Todd Smith, President of Tripepi Smith & Associates ("Tripepi").
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued Consultant Smith 1) provided a PowerPoint presentation giving an overview of the strategic planning process; 2) responded to Council Members' questions, along with City Manager Smoot, City Attorney Berger, Director of Parks and Recreation Mellana, Director of Economic Development DellaLonga, Interim Director of Public Safety McNerney, Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Works Gorecki, and Consultant Bernard; and 3) noted that the goal of the study session was to set goals to get objectives done, which will then be brought back as a summary of goals and objectives to be considered by the City Council and adopted at a future date.
At the request of Council Member Sanchez, City Manager Smoot confirmed that staff will synthesize the resident survey data to the goals and objectives to give them context when the summary is brought back to the City Council.
For the record, the discussion followed "Goal #1 - 4" as listed on the PowerPoint presentation provided by Consultant Smith.
Goal #1: Enhance Public Safety
Mayor Dunton stated that the location of the new public safety building warranted discussion as a final location would need to be identified and suggested that it be centrally located.
City Manager Smoot noted that discussion of the new location for the public safety building would also be included in a separate, scheduled study session related to public safety assessment and operations.
Following discussion, Consultant Smith requested and received a consensus from the City Council that there is a desire to pursue a new public safety building within the next five years and it is a priority to support Bellflower residents.
Council Member Sanchez suggested the new facility be built in a way that will accommodate having Sheriff Deputies stationed onsite, expressing the opinion that this may strengthen the partnership between the City and the Sheriffs Department and be attractive to a "Homeless Host Team." Council Member Morse reiterated the importance of forming partnerships with local organizations in the community to strengthen communication and public safety efforts.
Mayor Dunton expressed a desire for the City to build a reputation of being strict on public safety issues, similar to the City of Downey and City of Seal Beach, stating that it can be achieved through communication and consistent enforcement.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued Council Member Sanchez suggested the City appeal to the community to be a proactive partner of public safety in their own communities, such as the Neighborhood Watch Program.
Council Member Morse suggested the City also grow partnerships with other agencies who provide resources in the community, such as Little House, Kingdom Causes, and the Homeless Shelter.
Council Member Sanchez expressed the opinion that the City should take advantage of Measure A and Measure H funding to achieve the goals listed under "Goal #1" to address homelessness in the City.
Mayor Dunton suggested that homelessness near the freeway embankments and offramps, riverbed, and railroad tracks also be addressed, regardless of whether those areas are within the City limits.
Following lengthy discussion, it was the consensus of the City Council to add the following additional objectives to Goal #1: Enhance Public Safety:
o Determine the location, design, programming and execution of a new public safety building.
o Finalize and implement public safety assessment
recommendations, and devise a prioritization of funding and recommendations to implement this plan.
o Build a reputation through communication and action that Bellflower is tougher on crime than peer cities.
o Develop a list of community resources for addressing addiction and related challenges and better engage with partnership agencies to offer a spectrum of solutions for crime elements.
o Set a direction to tap into Measure A funds to support programming that addresses homelessness challenges in the City.
o Aggressively work to address homeless population areas in the City, including spaces outside City jurisdiction to reduce the homeless population within the City.
o Solidify emergency preparedness training among staff, ensure a degree of self-reliance after a disaster and communicate the plan to the public.
Goal #2: Increase Public Outreach, Education and Connection Mayor Dunton reiterated the importance of creating appropriate outlets for communication that reach multi -generations, further suggesting that the City consider hiring a team or company dedicated to public affairs.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued City Manager Smoot explained that the goal is to bring a unified and consistent voice to the City's communication channels and platforms, noting that this has recently been implemented among staff with that specific goal in mind.
At the request of Council Member Koops, City Manager Smoot and Director of Economic Development DellaLonga explained how Bellflower Connect (the City's citywide Wi-Fi that is soon to be available) would play an important role in the City's communication with the community, as the advertisement component will be owned and managed by the City.
Council Member Sanchez suggested improving the collaboration and the relationship with the local school districts.
Following discussion, it was the consensus of the City Council to add the following additional objectives to Goal #2: Increase Public Outreach, Education and Connection:
o Develop a strategy to leverage video, digital and paper communications to balance reaching across the community. o Bring a unified, consistent and strategically chosen voice and visual presence to communications across City channels and platforms. o Conduct communications assessments on platforms and processes. o Improve collaboration and relationship with the school districts.
Recess: For the record and without objection, Mayor Dunton recessed the meeting at 11:59 a.m. for a brief break.
Reconvene: For the record, Mayor Dunton reconvened the meeting at 12:11 p.m., with all Council Members present.
Goal #3: Continue Investing in a Hiqh-Performing and Efficient Team at City HaII
Mayor Pro Tem Santa Ines suggested they 1) consider modernization of technology systems to support residents and connect them to City services, such as online permitting, graffiti clean-up requests, and bulky item pickup requests; and 2) build organizational capacity through staff hiring and strategic contracts for certain services.
Mayor Dunton explained that through the Gateway Cities Council of Governments ("COG"), the City will have fiber installed at City Hall and potentially locations in the Downtown area to improve connectivity, expressing that this may assist with connecting residents to services.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued City Manager Smoot confirmed that there is a work capacity that has been reached with current staffing levels, noting that this is an issue seen across all departments and perhaps the focus should shift to the quality of the work, not the quantity of the work.
Council Member Sanchez 1) recommended modernizing City polices that are ineffective or inefficient, expressing the opinion that the focus should be on policy and procedure, followed by the implementation of new technology; and 2) requested that the modernization of the financial management system be included in future considerations.
Council Member Koops expressed the opinion that the City's labor unions should be included in future conversations regarding staff capacity and services.
Following lengthy discussion, it was the consensus of the City Council to add the following additional objectives to Goal #3: Continue Investing in a High - Performing and Efficient Team at City Hall:
o Modernize systems to support resident feedback, online permitting, graffiti and bulky item removal requests, execution on fiber optic to City Hall, financial management and payroll system, and finalize the online permitting process.
o Invest in training and career development for employees. o Conduct a full classification and compensation study. o Build organizational capacity through staff hiring and strategic contracting for services that yield productivity enhancements. o Modernize City policies that are ineffective or inefficient as currently written.
c Implement procedures for fielding and following up on resident requests in a timely manner.
Goal #4: Improve Quality of Life & Visual Appeal in the City Council Member Morse expressed concern with negative enforcement, suggesting that positive recognition should be implemented to encourage compliance with private property maintenance standards.
Council Member Sanchez emphasized the importance of raising the standards of private property maintenance requirements, including commercial, multi -family and single-family residential properties, further recommending strategies be developed to encourage property maintenance and compliance.
At the request of Council Member Koops, Interim Director of Public Safety McNerney confirmed that the City is in the process of updating the Hazard Mitigation Plan, which includes staff training, noting that the plan will be brought forward to the City Council for future consideration.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued For the record, it was the consensus of the City Council to include emergency preparedness training amongst staff and the creation of a communication plan regarding disaster preparedness to the community in the additional objectives to Goal #1: Enhance Public Safety.
Mayor Pro Tem Santa Ines requested and received clarification from Director of Parks and Recreation Mellana of what was meant by "expand cultural events in non-traditional locations," which was intended to mean activating park spaces outside of the downtown space and three main parks by utilizing the BRIM Program, such as Riverview Park, the dog park, Palm Park, and Constitution Park.
Council Member Koops noted the importance of the recent discussion at a City Council meeting relative to the future vision and use of the downtown spaces, such as Town Center Plaza.
Following lengthy discussion, it was the consensus of the City Council to add the following additional objectives to Goal #4: Improve Quality of Life & Visual Appeal in the City:
o Develop quality focused maintenance and upkeep plans for infrastructure, including parks, buildings, fountains, etc. o Activate public spaces to connect residents.
o Allocate resources for traffic safety improvement studies. o Explore ways to attract young families as residents.
o Explore strategies to address developed and undeveloped vacant properties.
o Expand cultural events in non-traditional locations to activate public space.
Solidify vision and plan for the future of Downtown (more residential units, parking, complimentary business types).
Additional Goal #5: Strengthen Economic Development
Mayor Pro Tem Santa Ines suggested 1) exploring the idea of reviewing the General Plan with a focus on certain corridors; and 2) revisiting the current cannabis policies.
In response to Mayor Pro Tern Santa Ines, City Manager Smoot 1) stated the City can explore creating an economic development plan that aligns areas in Bellflower with a focused theme, industry, and related land use strategy; 2) explained the current cannabis policy is being reviewed internally and will be brought to the City Council for consideration at a later date; and 3) noted that an update of the General Plan is an extensive process, but can be done if that is the direction of the City Council.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
Item No. 4-A
4 STUDY SESSION: CITY COUNCIL STRATEGIC PLANNING — Continued A Consideration and possible action to conduct a Strategic Planning Session regarding City Council goals and objectives — Continued At the request of City Manager Smoot, Director of Planning and Building Services Oba confirmed the last update of the General Plan was conducted in 1994.
Council Member Koops suggested they consider policies surrounding how the City invests in local businesses.
Council Member Sanchez expressed the opinion that the City should continue to strengthen economic development within the City, bring in new businesses, and explore the next ballot measures, such as a vacant property tax or the 1/4 cent tax that is newly available.
Following lengthy discussion, it was the consensus of the City Council to create a new Goal #5: Strengthen Economic Development with the following objectives pulled from the "Additional Objectives for Consideration" category and Council discussion:
o Continue strategic and creative property acquisitions. o Address challenges stemming from absentee property owners and vacant properties.
o Execute on City -controlled property to make impacts in the community and finalize planning for recently acquired properties in the Downtown.
o Analyze allocation of resources.
o Explore an economic development plan that aligns areas in Bellflower with focused economic development themes, industries and related land use strategy.
o Review General Plan, recent plan evolution and options for a full revision with a focus on corridors.
o Revisit cannabis policy, licensing and industry activity in Bellflower. o Evaluate alternative revenue sources and land use measures.
Consultant Smith noted that the next step would be to make this list more clear and bring it back to the City Council as a summary for further consideration and adoption at a later time.
Bellflower City Council Special Meeting Minutes
January 16, 2025
5 ADJOURNMENT
Item No. 5
Without objection, Mayor Dunton adjourned the meeting at 1:48 p.m.
Ray nton, Mayor
City of Bellflower
ATTEST:
ayr • Oc iqui, ity C erk
Apprioved: February 10, 0'5