City Council
SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA
Thursday, January 26, 2023, 6:00 p.m.
Ludwick Community Center, 864 Santa Rosa Street, San Luis Obispo
JOINT SPECIAL MEETING OF THE
CITY COUNCIL
AND
CITIZENS' REVENUE ENHANCEMENT OVERSIGHT COMMISSION
The Community Forum is part of a crucial community-based goal-setting process that happens every two years to establish the top priorities that will make San Luis Obispo an even better place to live, work and play. Feedback will be used to formulate the 2023-25 Financial Plan, which will be adopted in June 2023. Get more information about the City's Goal Setting and Financial Planning Process.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:
Public Comment prior to the meeting (must be received 3 hours in advance of the meeting):
Mail - Delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. Address letters to the City Clerk's Office at 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, California, 93401.
Email - Submit Public Comments via email to [email protected]. In the body of your email, please include the date of the meeting and the item number (if applicable). Emails will not be read aloud during the meeting.
Voicemail - Call (805) 781-7164 and leave a voicemail. Please state and spell your name, the agenda item number you are calling about, and leave your comment. Verbal comments must be limited to 3 minutes. Voicemails will not be played during the meeting. *All correspondence will be archived and distributed to City Council and members of the REOC, however, submissions received after the deadline will not be processed until the following day.
Public Comment during the meeting:
This meeting will be held in-person at the Ludwick Community Center. To provide public comment during the meeting, attendees are encouraged to be present at the meeting location; however, there will be virtual feedback opportunities for viewers watching the live stream on the City's YouTube Channel: http://youtube.slo.city.
Pages
1. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Erica A. Stewart will call the Joint Special Meeting of the San Luis Obispo City Council and Citizens' Revenue Enhancement Oversight Commission to order.
2. COMMUNITY FORUM 3
*Times are estimated
6:00 PM Welcome / Opening
Mayor Erica A. Stewart and Derek Johnson, City Manager
6:15 PM 2023-25 Financial Plan Process
Emily Jackson, Finance Director
6:25 PM Welcome & Instructions
Sommer Kehrli, Facilitator
6:35 PM Community Input
Hosted by various City Staff
8:00 PM Public Comment
Teresa Purrington, City Clerk
8:45 PM Closing Remarks & Next Steps
Mayor Erica A. Stewart
3. ADJOURNMENT
The next Regular Meeting of the City Council will be held on February 7, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.
Item 2
Department: Administration
Cost Center: 2002
For Agenda of: 1/26/2023
Placement: Study Session
Estimated Time: 3 Hours
FROM: Derek Johnson, City Manager
Prepared By: Emily Jackson, Finance Director
SUBJECT: 2023-25 FINANCIAL PLAN PROCESS: COMMUNITY FORUM
DISCUSSION
Background
A cornerstone of the community engagement process in developing the City’s two-year financial plan is the Community Forum (“Forum”) where the community can engage in person and give voice to the desired programs and initiatives for the City Council to consider as part of the Major City Goal workplans.
The forum is intended to solicit feedback from residents, community groups, stakeholders and interested individuals on tasks and projects to support the priorities identified through the Community Priorities Survey. Attendees can review planned 2023-25 projects and initiatives currently identified in existing plans and policies as well as contribute other ideas for each priority. The Forum is also intended to meet the requirements regarding the City's local sales tax, by providing an opportunity for the Revenue Enhancement Oversight Commission (REOC) to review and discuss the use of the revenue generated by the Local Revenue Measure1. The Forum is one of several opportunities for the community to provide input on their top priorities as illustrated on the following chart:
1 Code 2.14.040(D), Annual Citizen Oversight Meeting: The REOC shall hold an annual community services and investment measure community forum for the purpose of taking input from residents and community members on preferences for the use of the revenues generated by the community services and investment tax.
Item 2
The Forum follows the completion of the Community Priorities Survey and several input sessions before the Council. The results of the survey were presented at the January 12, 2023 City Council special meeting as part of 2023- 25 Budget Foundation: Economic Outlook, Budget Policies, and Capital Improvement Plan Review. The results of the community priorities survey can be found on the City’s website. In total, there were 1,300 responses to the community survey, equating to 65 hours of public comment.
The Forum will be streamed live on the City of San Luis Obispo’s You Tube channel and on Channel 20.
Format
The Forum will be facilitated by Sommer Kehrli from the Centre for Organization Effectiveness (“Centre”) and streamed online. Sommer facilitated the 2021 Community Forum and received very positive feedback from the community.
Item 2
The agenda for the Forum is as follows:
1. Welcome/Opening by the Mayor and City Manager
2. 2023-25 Financial Plan Process and Economic Overview Presentation by the Finance Director
3. Instructions and Overview of the process led by the Facilitator
4. Priority Input Stations based on the results of the Community Priorities Survey
5. Public Comment
6. Closing and Next Steps by the Mayor
Breakout Areas:
Based on the Community Priorities Survey results, staff identified nine topic areas to further explore and will create stations that will provide information and opportunities for feedback on the following topics:
1. Homelessness
2. Housing
3. Infrastructure / Multi Model Transportation
4. Open Space / Climate Action
5. Economic Development / Downtown Vitality
6. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
7. Local Revenue Measure
8. Emergency Preparedness and Response
9. Other Ideas
Community members will be able to engage in conversation with the City Council, REOC Commissioners and Staff with expertise in each of the selected topics at each input station to answer questions, talk about work the City is currently doing, and solicit feedback about potential other items that could be considered for the workplan. There will also be the opportunity for community members to provide feedback on other priority areas at the Other Ideas station. Information from the Forum will be used by Council at the Council Goal-Setting Workshop to help set the City’s Major City Goals for the 2023-25 Financial plan.
Community members who are not able to attend the Forum may send feedback on priorities in advance by emailing [email protected]. There will also be virtual feedback opportunities during the Forum for viewers watching the live stream on the City’s You Tube channel.
Public Comment Component
The workshop will be followed by an optional public comment session where community members will have an opportunity to further address the City Council and the REOC.
Item 2
Local Revenue Measure Annual Citizen Oversight Meeting
The Community Forum will also serve as the City’s Annual Citizens’ Oversight Meeting for the Local Revenue Measure (LRM). This allows for the integration of the LRM into the City’s budget and goal-setting process. The estimated revenue and proposed use of the funding generated by LRM shall be an integral part of the City’s budget and goal-setting process, and an opportunity for meaningful participation by community members in determining priority uses of these funds.
With the passage of the Measure G-20 sales tax in the November 3, 2020 election, the LRM was extended at a new, 1.5 percent rate. The following are the City Council approved spending priorities for the LRM based on the ballot language:
Protection of Financial Stability
Creek and Flood Protection
Safe and Clean Public Spaces
Youth / Senior Services & Recreation Facilities
Open Space / Natural Areas Preservation and Maintenance Community Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Address Homelessness
Economic Development and Business Retention
Street Maintenance and Transportation
Other Services and Projects
While the ballot language provided examples of the types of uses that could be funded - based on community input received before placing the measure on the ballot – the LRM is a general-purpose tax providing Council with flexibility to respond to new circumstances and community challenges.
Goal Setting Workshop
The input provided by the community during the Forum will be summarized and made available to the City Council in preparation of the Goal Setting Workshop on February 11, 2023.
Public Engagement
In order to reach as many community members as possible, the City utilized a broad range of public engagement and outreach efforts leading up to the Community Forum.
To reach as many residents as possible, the City utilizes several outreach methods including:
1. Utility invoice inserts
2. City website (Open City Hall)
3. City news & e-notification
Item 2
4. Press releases
5. Social media
6. Outreach to over 100 community groups
CONCURRENCES
This item is an interactive Council / REOC workshop to gain community feedback for the goal setting process. It has been an integral part of the budget process and involves the entire City organization.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) does not apply to the recommended action in this report, because the action does not constitute a “Project” under CEQA Guidelines Sec. 15378.
FISCAL IMPACT
Budgeted: Yes Budget Year: 2022-23
Funding Identified: Yes
Fiscal Analysis:
Funding
Sources
Total Budget
Available
Current
Funding
Request
Remaining
Balance
Annual
Ongoing
Cost
General Fund $27,000 $23,000 $4,000 $
State
Federal
Fees
Other:
Total $27,000 $23,000 $4,000 $
Funding for the third-party facilitator was budgeted in the Finance Department and is consistent with previously facilitated Forums.