416 N Franklin Street
Fort Bragg, CA 95437
Phone: (707) 961-2823
Fax: (707) 961-2802
City of Fort Bragg
Meeting Minutes
Special City Council
THE FORT BRAGG CITY COUNCIL MEETS CONCURRENTLY
AS THE FORT BRAGG MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
NO. 1 AND THE FORT BRAGG REDEVELOPMENT
SUCCESSOR AGENCY
Wednesday, March 1, 2023 1:30 PM Noyo Harbor Inn, 500 Casa Del Noyo City Council Goal Setting Retreat
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Norvell called the meeting to order at 1:30 PM.
ROLL CALL
Councilmember Peters joined the meeting at 3:00 PM.
Mayor Bernie Norvell, Vice Mayor Jason Godeke, Councilmember Tess Albin-Smith, Councilmember Lindy Peters and Councilmember Marcia Rafanan
Present: 5 -
1. PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS SPECIAL AGENDA ITEM
Public Comments were received from Dr. Richard Miller, Marcy Snyder and Donna Dawson.
2. CONDUCT OF BUSINESS
2A. 23-059 Fort Bragg City Council Goal Setting Retreat Agenda The City of Fort Bragg retained Heather Paulsen Consulting (HPC) to provide facilitation services for a Goal Setting Retreat with the Fort Bragg City Council and City Manager. The three primary objectives of the retreat were: to identify 4-6 strategic goal areas shared the City Council members; to identify and prioritize implementation ideas for each strategic goal area; and to provide direction to the City Manager for the development of operational plans and the budgeting process.
The agenda for the day was developed by HPC in partnership with the City Manager with additional support and input from the City Clerk. Prior to the retreat, an electronic survey was distributed to Council members polling them on a number of areas including their top three priority areas, assessment of the City Manager and their working relationship, the capacity and functioning of the city staff, their ability to work together and further education that would help them in their roles. This information helped shape the agenda for the Retreat.
The half-day retreat was held Wednesday, March 1, 2023, from 1:30p.m. to 5:30p.m. at the Noyo Harbor Inn in Fort Bragg and was open to the public. Several community members attended and were invited to share public comments at the beginning of the meeting.
The session opened with a review of the objectives and agenda for the session, and an overview by the City Manager on Council-Manager form of government and the roles inherent in that system.
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Special City Council Meeting Minutes March 1, 2023
Council members were then guided through a brainstorming process to envision the city in 2040 after the City Council had achieved great success in its work. These ideas were captured on flipchart paper and then categorized into four general themes: Jobs/Industry, Housing, Infrastructure, and Quality of Life. (These are the same four themes that emerged from the Council’s 2019 Retreat, and the Council affirmed their ongoing relevance.) The Council members agreed that there is a shared underpinning for all of the priority areas: ensuring we have healthy ecosystems and enhancing local self-sufficiency.
The City Manager then shared a detailed review of the work accomplished by the City since 2019 in each of the focus areas. Significant progress has been made, and this review inspired Council members to generate goals for the next 3-5 years in each focus area.
By the end of the Retreat, the Council had developed and prioritized approximately 12 -14 goals for the City Manager to use as a framework for operational plans and budget development. These goals for each of the priority areas - Jobs/Industry, Housing, Infrastructure and Quality of Life - are summarized below along with the number of dot-votes given to each item to prioritize the importance of each item.
JOBS/INDUSTRY
Marine research center - partner w Noyo Center for top-notch marine science facility, 2 Continue partnership between City and Harbor, 2
Partner with schools and college on vocational training, 2 Broadband, 2
Aquaculture, 1
Hemp - ag and industry support, 1
Explore timber related jobs, products, etc.
Survey business owners and entrepreneurs about how City can support them
QUALITY OF LIFE
Beautification of downtown buildings and streets, 5
Build civic pride + transparency for public engagement, 4 Community-involved police force (CRU + code enforcement), 3 Mill site advocacy, permitting, 1
Transportation - public, inexpensive, EVs, 1
Local food production (home & community gardens; education; local farmers markets), 1 Develop more parks, green space in town (partner with schools, City, nonprofits) Develop Cultural Center on Mill Site
Partnering for healthcare, other Quality of Life issues, Recruitment Safe streets, walkable, bikeable
HOUSING
Continue supporting Workforce Housing thru CLT, 6
Fully staff the Community Development Dept, 6
Enforcement of vacation rentals - partner with County for outside City limits, 1 Explore incentives to housing development (Glass Beach, etc.), 1 Mill Site strategy, 1
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Support developers via easier process, make it easier
Support for retrofitting existing homes (insulation, water efficiency, roofing) Continue working toward 200 units
INFRASTRUCTURE
Water storage, reservoirs, 4
Diversify water sources (desal, reclamation), 3
Fix the streets, 3
Broadband installation and delivery, 2
Site and map EV charging stations in City, 1
Alternative energy dev. - solar, 1
Bike land improvements, 1
Water transmission system upgrade
Pre-treatment for storm water (especially creeks are daylighted) Sprinklers for downtown buildings
City Hall East improvements
Ideas that did not fit neatly into the Council’s goal setting conversation were captured in a “Parking Lot.” These ideas were:
City Organizational Development:
· City personnel: focus on recruitment, retention, development & education · Hire Communications role for public info
· City fiscal responsibility and transparency for public engagement At the close of the day, HPC solicited feedback about the process and asked the Council members to share one word to describe their experience of this Retreat. They were as follows:
- Eye-opening
- Team
- Organizing
- Community
- Positive
- Caring
ADJOURNMENT
Mayor Norvell adjourned the meeting at 5:26 PM.
________________________________
BERNIE NORVELL, MAYOR
_______________________________
June Lemos, MMC, City Clerk
IMAGED (___________)
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