CITY OF SEBASTOPOL CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA ITEM REPORT FOR MEETING OF: August 6, 2024
=========================================================================================== To: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
From: City Manager Don Schwartz
Subject: Monthly Departmental Reports
=========================================================================================== Per your direction, we are including with the August 6 agenda packet the monthly reports on Department activities. We hope that these keep you and the public better informed about the work that we are doing.
We will typically have these in the second agenda packet each month, reflecting activity from the month before. In numerous cases the data that we provide is more readily aligned with monthly reporting. We are including these reports with the August 6 packet because we only have one meeting this month.
Also, the reports (mostly the date/numbers) only partially reflect the day to day work of most staff. Our understanding is that you are interested in hearing about the status of projects and initiatives, so have focused on those.
I hope that these meet your needs, and welcome your feedback.
July, 2024
City Administration Activity Report
Don Schwartz, City Manager and Mary Gourley, Assistant City Manager/City Clerk [email protected]; [email protected] Monthly Statistics
Received and Processed Ten (10) Public Records Act Requests (PRAs) Conducted 82.5 Hours of City Meetings
City Council/Agenda Review/Budget Committee/Fire Ad Hoc Committee/Miscellaneous Meetings with Members of the Council; Public Members; other Organizations
Processed Nineteen (19) City Council Agenda Reports/One Ordinance/Three Resolutions Attended 11 Trainings
Processed Three (3) City Council Candidates Paperwork (Pulled/Not Yet Filed) Received/Read/Responded to if Needed 3123 Emails
Received and Processed Two City Claims for Property Damage Noteworthy Information
1. We completed preparation of the Proposed FY 24-25 budget. We will bring the final budget to the Council for adoption on August 12. There are many follow up items for our Department, including creating and amending contracts and supporting new Ad Hoc Committees.
2. We completed preparation for Council consideration of options for sales tax measures.
3. With consultant assistance we completed the Community Survey with over 1,000 responses, two Town Hall meetings, and the poll regarding priorities and sales tax options.
4. With assistance from Deborah Muchmore, we completed recruitment and interviews for a City Attorney firm.
5. We prepared for and began accepting nominations for the City Council election in November.
6. We completed preparation for evaluating solid waste hauler proposals, which are due August 1 and will require considerable time for evaluation and selection.
7. Fire Ad Hoc Committee: We initiated discussions with Gold Ridge. We are evaluating options for expanding coverage. Duties and Tasks to return to City Council Meeting of September 3rd
8. We hired a part-time contractor to fill the Director of Planning/Community Development position. The recruitment for this position has been challenging. We are working with Deborah Muchmore to create a pool of qualified candidates. Because of the turn-over of the Department Head, the part-time contractor, and the workload, this Department will likely require considerable support from our office in the coming months.
9. We have reached out to the Barlow to initiate discussions on a potential Development Agreement for a hotel.
Planning staff have been reviewing and discussing their project application with them.
10. Development Agreement Extension with Hotel Sebastopol
11. We are engaging in the EIFD project, with focusing on identifying potential projects. We will likely assign lead responsibility on this work to another Department.
12. In collaboration with St. Vincent de Paul, we are negotiating an agreement with an expert to support the Gravenstein Commons project, and hope to have it in place soon.
13. We negotiated extensions of the current labor agreements with the Police Association and SEIU.
14. Attending meetings with the Non-profit collaborative
15. Received two Proposals in response to the Request for Proposals for Garbage Services July 2024
Administrative Services Department Activity Report
Ana Kwong – Administrative Services Director [email protected] Monthly Statistics
165 Customers for EyeOnWater App
14 Open new water service accounts
15 Closed water service accounts
269 Water & Sewer Billing Late Notices Sent
9 New Business License Issuance
0 Closed Business License
Noteworthy Information
1. Initiate the preparation phase for the upcoming fiscal year 2024-25 budget cycle. This includes creating new funds/accounts, uploading new budget into the system, reconciling the uploaded date with adopted budget document, updating direct allocation of staff time in the payroll system based on budget, printing and distributing the final budget books.
2. Implement the new water rates in the utility billing system. Get ready for the integration of new water rates into the utility billing system, which includes updating rate structures, ensure the new rates are accurately updated to reflect any changes in water consumption pricing, verify and testing that the system is correctly calculating bills for the next billing and confirming that the system is ready for a seamless transition.
3. Manage the result of the medical open enrollment period. Address any pending issues, confirm that all employee selections are correctly processed, and provide support for any inquiries or adjustments that may arise post-enrollment.
4. Prepare for a comprehensive fiscal year 2023-24 audit. This entails attending the annual Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) updates, organizing all financial records, ensuring compliance with accounting standards, and coordinating with department heads to gather necessary documentation. Additionally, establish a timeline for audit processes, review internal controls for financial reporting, and prepare to address any potential discrepancies or findings that the audit may reveal.
5. Initiate communication with the county auditor-controller's office to assess the fiscal impacts of the property tax reallocation following the fire department's consolidation efforts. This involves reaching out to the county contact and understanding the changes in property tax distribution, how it affects budget planning, and communicate any necessary adjustments to financial forecasts or reports.
July 2024
Building Department Activity Report
Steve Brown
[email protected]
Monthly Statistics
27 Building permits issued
1 Fire permit issued
24 Contractor’s business licenses issued
$32661.77 Building permit fees collected
$951.34 Fire fees collected
Noteworthy Information
1. Meetings continuing with Canopy Project. Schedule received showing grading work stating late August/Early September
2. Grading permit application has been submitted for Huntley Square.
3. Work is continuing on Elderberry Commons with completion scheduled for late this year.
4. Habitat for Humanity project on N Main has hit some funding snags and is on hold at this time.
July 2024
Engineering Department Activity Report
Mario Landeros, Interim City Engineer
[email protected]
Toni Bertolero, Engineering Consultant
[email protected]
Noteworthy Information:
1. The wetlands delineation for the Americorps Trail Project was recently completed and the permit process is now underway. The project is currently on track for construction to be completed in Fall 2025, dependent on weather conditions.
2. The Sunset Ave-Taft St pedestrian safety crossing improvements project and final inspection have been completed. A Notice of Completion will be scheduled for Council approval on or around September 3.
3. The Youth Annex ADA upgrade improvements is nearly complete and final inspection is scheduled for first week of August. A Notice of Completion will be scheduled for Council approval on or around September 3.
4. City Hall ADA project will be scheduled soon for construction by Public Works crew. The work will be conducted as time permits and will be coordinated with City Hall employees to minimize disruption of work.
5. Public sidewalk improvements for the development project Woodmark Apartments is in progress with completion anticipated by middle of August. An irrevocable offer of dedication for water line easement for fire lane has been submitted by the developer and a resolution for Council acceptance of the easement is scheduled for August 6. Woodmark will also be reimbursing the City, in accordance with their Conditions of Approval, for paving work and pedestrian crossing beacons fronting their property on Bodega Avenue near Robinson Road.
6. Staff investigated a grant opportunity for the Bodega Avenue Bicycle Connection Ragle Road to Atascadero Creek and has determined that the City will not be competitive for the particular grant (ATP Cycle 7) due to the grant award criteria being more focused on disadvantaged communities. Until staff can identify a viable grant, staff will not be moving forward with the concept design for this project.
July 2024
Fire Department Activity Report
Dave Bray – Interim Fire Chief / Division Chief
[email protected]
Monthly Statistics
7 Fire
98 Rescue & Emergency Medical Service Incident
1 Hazardous Condition (No Fire)
12 Service Call
13 Good Intent Call
7 False Alarm & False Call
138 Number of incidents
Noteworthy Information
1. Special Event planning, Incident Action Plan creation, and emergency standby at the 3rd of July Fireworks show. Approximately 5,000 people attended, with no incidents of significance.
2. Sebastopol FD specialty-team, Large Animal Rescue, dispatched two responses to assist with horses trapped.
3. In July, a type-3 engine (8361) was sent out of the county twice (to Toll Fire and Park Fire); It is still active on the Park Fire.
4. 8350 out of service in Sacramento for steering box replacement.
5. FD Fleet Safety Inspection completed, identifying numerous maintenance issues.
July 2024
Planning Department Activity Report
David Woltering, Interim Planning Director
[email protected],
Monthly Statistics
New Applications: 5
Issued Applications: 7
Noteworthy Information:
1. As part of the kick-off meeting requirements for the City’s Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Grant (Sebastopol Main Street Planning and Redesign Project), stakeholder meetings were held on July 1st and July 16th with local residents, downtown business owners, and members of the public who have worked on other project studies (CORE project and SDAT). The comments from the stakeholder meetings will be posted on the web page being created to be placed on the City’s website for this project. This information will help inform alternatives that will be developed by the consultant team to improve mobility options and safety in the downtown. The next step is for the consultant team to prepare the existing conditions report for the project.
2. At the July 16th City Council meeting, the Council approved the Hotel Sebastopol Development Agreement which includes a requirement for the Developer to provide an annual review of the agreement. The Development Agreement will extend the building permit and entitlements related to the previously approved 66-room Hotel Sebastopol project for three years from the effective date of the ordinance.
3. Staff has reviewed the recent application for the Barlow Hotel project and submitted a letter of incompleteness seeking additional information from the applicant for processing the application.
The applicant is preparing a proposal to address the California Environmental Quality (CEQA) requirements for the project. Staff is expecting a response to the incompleteness letter and the CEQA proposal by the end of July. Additionally, staff is scheduling a meeting with the applicant to review the Development Agreement that accompanies the application for the proposed project.
4. On July 9
th
, staff met with representatives of the 80-unit Canopy residential project to develop a process outline for moving the project from the approved Planning entitlement phase to Building Permit issuance and construction.
5. On July 10th, City staff and members of the Enhanced Financing Infrastructure District (EIFD) committee, which include the Mayor and Vice Mayor, met with Supervisor Lynda Hopkins and the selected consultant, Kosmont Companies, for the project kick-off meeting on July 10th to discuss initial data/information needs to move forward with the project.
6. Staff has reached out to the representatives of the approved 22-unit very low income Gravenstein Commons project to schedule a meeting to develop a process outline to move the project forward to the next phase – building permit issuance and construction.
June 2024
Police Department Activity Report
Ron Nelson – Chief of Police
[email protected]
Monthly Statistics
724 - Calls for Service (officers dispatched to a call) 957 - Officer Initiated Incidents
259 – 911 Emergency Calls
1,338 – Non-emergency or administrative calls. Average of 45 per day. 22 - Misdemeanor Arrests
4 - Felony Arrests
1 - Traffic Collision Report
74 - Police Reports
68 - Citations Issue
Noteworthy Information
1. The Rotary Club held their annual Fireworks event. All went well and there were no significant issues. Traffic was impacted as the event ended for about 1 hour.
2. There was a low-speed pursuit through town that ended with the driver crashing on Gravenstein Hwy in the county’s jurisdiction. The pursuit started due to the driver’s erratic driving and failing to pull over. After the vehicle crashed, we found that there was a 5-year-old child in the car. The Driver and the child had minor injuries but were transported to the hospital to be medically cleared. The driver was arrested for Child Endangerment and other charges.
3. We have received numerous complaints and concerns over the homeless encampments on the Joe Rodota Trail. The bulk of these concerns are due to fire safety. Officers have been making contact with the individuals on the trail and worked with them to remove hazards by providing debris removal service, and attempting to connect them with services.
4. We currently have two open ongoing recruitments for 2 Officers and one Dispatcher position.
This recruitment is ongoing until the positions are filled. 1 July, 2024
Public Works Department Monthly Activity Report
Assistant Superintendent, Erik Billing
[email protected]
Water
1. Replaced 3” water meter at Colonial Manor on Healdsburg Ave. and 1.5” water meter at Burnett Parking Lot.
2. Troubleshoot endpoints that are not communicating.
3. Replaced (1) and repaired (1) damaged fire hydrant.
4. Continuation of meter box inspections for lead service inventory required for State Water Board.
Storm Water
1. Completed repairs of failed storm drain on Bodega Ave at Dutton Ave.
2. Investigated concerns about a storm drain on Ragle Rd.
Sewer
1. Performed (3) manhole entries to remove roots that had intruded our system to prevent future flow obstructions.
2. Responded to an emergency sewer overflow back up at 105 Virginia Ave due to root intrusion.
3. Completed the annual exercising of valves on the force main.
Streets
1. Replaced (2) damaged street trees at 132 N Main St. due to vehicle accident.
2. Painted crosswalks and curbs around the schools during summer break for pedestrian safety.
3. Completed crosswalk improvements at Taft and Sunset Ave.
4. Pruned downtown street trees to improve pedestrian safety.
Parks
1. Installed new oak tree in Ives Park donated by the Rotary Club of Sebastopol Sunrise.
2. Removed fallen willow tree from Ives Park.
3. Performed irrigation checks and made necessary repairs at all parks.
Government Buildings
1. Construction management of ADA improvements project at the Youth Annex.
2. Coordinated with contractors to finish roof repairs and replace fence at Senior Center from tree damage.
3. Replaced HVAC controller at the Garzot building to enable the AC unit to operate properly.
4. Painted siding that was replaced to match the current exterior color at the Garzot building.
Parking Lots
1. Trimmed vegetation to improve visibility for vehicle and pedestrian safety.
Park Village
1. Coordinated with company to perform the annual gas leak survey needed to submit to the State.
Ives Pool
1. Replaced PH sensor on pool controller and calibrated equipment.