From: Larry Emerson
To: Clerk
Subject: For Today’s Budget Meeting…Fwd: LOS ANGELES TIMES: South Pasadena"s police cars will soon all be Teslas Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2023 10:38:23 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside your organization. Exercise caution when opening attachments or clicking links, especially from unknown senders.
Hello Ms Chapel,
Please share this article with the City Council and Police Staff in charge of Police Vehicles.
Shifting to Electric will save 60-70% fuel costs, save 30% on maintenance, and reduce downtime for maintenance with proper planning.
Larry Emerson
NC Resident
See article in email below
Sent from my iPad
Begin forwarded message:
From: Larry Emerson
Date: May 9, 2023 at 1:43:13 AM PDT
To: Larry Emerson
Subject: LOS ANGELES TIMES: South Pasadena's police cars will soon all be Teslas
South Pasadena's police cars will soon all be Teslas
The city is leasing 20 Teslas through Enterprise for at least five years for police patrol duties, administration and detective work.
Read in Los Angeles Times:
https://apple.news/AwLwCp_dRSXOSAjMBELbAQA
Shared from Apple News
Sent from my iPad
Item 4.1 - Larry Emerson
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CALIFORNIA
South Pasadena’s police cars will soon all be Teslas
South Pasadena’s Police Department will use Tesla Model Y and Model 3 vehicles. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press) BY COLLEEN SHALBY | STAFF WRITER
MAY 8, 2023 7:42 PM PT
South Pasadena’s police car fleet is expected to go fully electric by the start of next year.
The city is leasing 20 Teslas through Enterprise for at least five years for police patrol duties, administration and detective work. Some vehicles are already in use, Deputy City Manager Domenica Megerdichian said, while others used for patrol must still be properly outfitted.
Nearly $2 million in city funds was allotted to the leasing agreement, which includes 10 Tesla Model Y vehicles and 10 Tesla Model 3 vehicles, according to City Council agenda reports. The city also received $500,000 in funding from a committee that works to reduce vehicle pollution in the South Coast region.
More than 30 charging ports, including some for public use, will be installed at South Pasadena City Hall parking lots in partnership with Southern California Edison. “We have been investigating this transition for five to six years and determined that these electric vehicles will be the best operationally for us,” South Pasadena Police Chief Brian Solinsky said in a statement. “They are the safest and fastest vehicles and will save the city money in lower maintenance and fueling costs.”
Councilmember Michael Cacciotti, who championed the transition to electric vehicles, said that South Pasadena had “a long history of supporting clean air vehicles and transition to clean air equipment,” citing the city’s conversion to electric lawn equipment in 2016 for city grounds and parks maintenance.
Cacciotti, who bought the first-generation Prius about 20 years ago, said that South Pasadena is the first city in the country to fully convert a police car fleet to electric vehicles. “We’re setting the gold standard for the United States, and probably the world,” he said.
Megerdichian said that South Pasadena, which covers 3.4 square miles and houses one of the Gold Line Metro stops, is “environmentally conscious” and has long taken steps to be more bike- and pedestrian-friendly. The city expects to save more than $300,000 per vehicle over the next 10 years in fuel and maintenance costs.
The City Council approved the move in September, and expects the electric vehicle transition to be fully in place by next February.
Megerdichian says most of the city’s police vehicles are ready to be replaced and will be turned in or will go to auction.
Copyright © 2023, Los Angeles Times | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | CA Notice of Collection | Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information Colleen Shalby
Colleen Shalby is a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. She has covered education, the pandemic, the vaccine rollout and breaking news throughout California. She was part of the team that was a 2020 Pulitzer Prize finalist for coverage of a dive-boat fire off the Santa Barbara coast. Shalby grew up in Southern California and graduated from George Washington University. She previously worked for PBS NewsHour and joined The Times in 2015.
From: Ted Godshalk
To: Public Comment
Subject: National City Public Pool budget suggestions
Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2023 12:57:41 PM
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Public Comment for Budget Meeting of May 23, 2023 from Mr. Ted Godshalk Please stop calling it the Wellness Center. This connotes therapy, or a zen meditation lounge, or a public gym. I don’t think this is any of those things. You can name the pool after someone later, unless of course you sell the naming rights. It is also likely to not be a “revenue generator,” instead it would be nice if the overall annual costs were covered and the public was served with a low-cost, city-sponsored, recreational amenity. The National City Public Pool Facility project has 6 parts listed on the slide.
They are:
Staff New suggestions
Building $7,000,000 $ 7,000,000
Restrooms $1,000,000 $ 300,000 for park side access but built attached to pool building.
Splash Pad $1,000,000 $ 0
Sitework $2,700,000 $ 1,000,000
Contingency $1,300,000 $ 700,000 (10% of basic building cost) Soft Costs $1,700,000 $ 700,000
Added total $14,700,000 $ 9,700,000
I recognize thatches slide has been modified after the public noted the problems on it. The staff slide lists funding in a sloppy manner. The numbers are all over the slide, not totaled correctly or clearly labeled. It would be appropriate for the Council members and the public to see the total possible funds subtracted from the estimated costs in a clean accounting manner.
The Funding Numbers are:
ARPA $ 6,500,000
State grant $ 1,000,000
Sweetwater Grant $ 1,500,000
Section 108 Loan $ 3,000,000
I will not add these together because there are issues involved with some of the numbers. It is incorrectly added up on the slide when the first three amounts are called out as $ 8,500,000. It should be $ 9,000,000. The Housing Department Section 8 loan should be listed as a funding source and amount.
Also, it is not confirmed that the Sweetwater Union High School District is a partner, grantor, funder, or donor in this project. Deduct the $1,500,000 amount. Any money from the School District should be earmarked for on-going maintenance of the Public Pool. Lastly, I do not think it is proper to take money from an account that serves the poorest in our community with Item 4.1 - Ted Godshalk
their housing needs. A loan from this account can set the Section 8 program back in an unnecessary manner for years and encumber a future budget year. Deduct the $ 3,000,000. The total funds at this time are now seen below.
Costs $ 9,750,000
Funds $ 7,500,000 ARPA, State Grant (confirm source- prop 68? Look for solar power and green building grants.)
Subtracted total $ 2,250,000 This is needed to meet the estimate above.
Rationale for the new estimated costs:
To further dig into the costs of the 6 parts in the project, the first question that comes to mind is why is a bathroom line item called out for in the Wellness building. 7 million dollars should cover the bathrooms needed at a facility deemed as a replacement for an aging building. The $1 million is an outrageous estimate. Park side bathrooms could be added to the pool building for a much less amount if they were attached to the building but accessible only from outside the “ticketed “ area. Add $300,000 seen above.
Next, The Splash Pad is not a necessary amenity for the pool we promote as a venue for Swimming Competitions and Public free swim. Splash Pads around the State have been turned off in recent years to conserve water during the drought. While some Splash Pads recycle water, the use of the water in those cases were deemed more hazardous to user’s health. The Splash Pad line should be deleted from this budget item.
Next, The Site Work estimate is way too extravagant. The Sitework is not called out in detail enough for the City Councilors to judge whether the work is necessary. If Sitework is needed to prepare for the building, then that cost is included in the line for the “Building.” The 7 million number looks very questionable at this point. Any work done in the surrounding area of Las Palmas Park for the building to be built should be limited to a much lower amount.
Lower the Sitework line to $1,000,000.
Lastly, the line item called “Soft Costs,” is too undefined to support at $1,700,000. The architects already working on this project for Mr. Yano’s concept drawings and estimates should not be able to write their own ticket. Mr. Yano told you that this item covers "design, inspection, testing, and permitting.” Inspection and permitting are in-house tasks. Soft costs are generally defined as covering design fees, land costs, advertising, equipment, insurance, and accounting expenses (in-house in this case) , and construction management. You need to set a firm target on this line item and allow for the contingency to meet only proper outside expenses incurred. Reduce Soft Costs to $700,000.
I think a new Public Pool Facility can be delivered for a much lower amount than first estimated by the staff and the architects on retainer. You can be careful with this expenditure.
Along with the earlier money spent on the deferred pool repairs and widening, the project will be a nice addition to our community.
Ted Godshalk