M 2024-01-22 CC 1
Regular Meeting – 6:30 p.m.
6:30 PM REGULAR MEETING
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Infanti called the meeting to order at 6:31 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chamber, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang, California.
ROLL CALL
Present: Mayor Mark Infanti, Mayor pro tem David Brown, Councilmembers Robert Clarke, Claudia Orona, Elizabeth Orona
Staff: City Manager Randy Murphy, City Attorney Chelsea O’Sullivan, City Clerk Annamarie Porter, Planning Manager Rafael Castillo, Administrative Services Director Wendy Berry
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Boy Scout Jake Figueroa led in the Pledge of Allegiance.
PROCLAMATIONS, COMMENDATIONS AND CEREMONIAL ITEMS
Mayor Infanti read and presented Proclamations in recognition of:
a. Human Trafficking Awareness Proclamation
Anne McArty, Executive Director, North County Rape, Crisis and Child Protection Center Nicholas Sanchez, President, Social Media Campaign, Allen Hancock College b. Scouts BSA Week Proclamation
LPC Council President Doug Scout
Carlos Cortez, Council Scout Executive & CEO
c. Black History Month Proclamation
d. California Nature Art Museum Proclamation
Stacy Otte-Demangate, Executive Director
e. King of Denmark Proclamation
PRESENTATIONS
a. Tourism Marketing 2023 update presentation
John Sorgenfrei, TJA, and Jamie, Islett Agency, via Zoom presented an update of Marketing Services and priorities going forward.
1. PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS – NON-AGENDA AND CONSENT ITEMS Al Cortese
Lansing Duncan
MINUTES
SOLVANG CITY COUNCIL
Monday, January 22, 2024
DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8 M 2024-01-22 CC 2
Elizabeth Breen
There were no other public comments.
2. CITY MANAGER REPORT AND ADVANCE CALENDAR
Planning Manager Castillo reported on the creation of a Planning and Building Portal for the new City website which includes information about major projects for improved resident access to information and transparency.
City Manager Murphy presented new City Attorney Chelsea O’Sullivan; spoke about reformatting the agenda to address legislation changes.
City Attorney O’Sullivan explained SB 1439 and encouraged City Council to report meetings attended that are subject to AB 1234.
City Manager Murphy presented examples of things that should be disclosed under AB 1234; announced coordination of a training session for City Council; reported the hiring of a new Marketing Coordinator; noted that staff will be releasing an RFP for a Park Host for Hans Christian Andersen Park; spoke about the City subscribing to a new service that identifies Air BNB type of businesses in the City that are not submitting an appropriate amount of TOT; mentioned that a report will be given, regarding the topic, at the next City Council meeting and addressed an upcoming City Council GoalSetting Session on March 9, 2024, at the Craft House.
3. COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS
Mayor pro tem Brown reported attending the REACH Conference in Santa Barbara and will attend an upcoming Awards Ceremony at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Councilmember Claudia Orona reported attending the REACH Conference in Santa Barbara and will attend the upcoming Point-in-time count in the City and encouraged residents to volunteer.
Councilmember Elizabeth Orona reported attending the Holiday Mixer for the Chamber of Commerce and the monthly update for the SERF Program for offering alternatives to the homeless populations in the County’s waterways.
In response to Mayor Infanti’s question, City Attorney O’Sullivan listed items that would be appropriate to disclose under AB 1234.
Mayor Infanti listed meetings he attended including the Holiday Mixer for the Chamber, SBCAG, ABCD, SBCAG North Regional meeting, Calnet presentation and the Chamber Board swearing in ceremony.
Mayor pro tem Brown thanked the Marketing Team and those who worked on Julefest and listed unintended consequences of the event’s success including the need to work on restrooms, increased maintenance requirements and traffic.
Councilmember Claudia Orona reported the Solvang Visitor Center provided a report including FAQs and encouraged the practice.
City Manager Murphy reported that staff is evaluating and making changes for improvements to next year’s holiday season.
DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8 M 2024-01-22 CC 3
4. CONSENT ITEMS
a. Approve Order of Agenda as Presented
b. Approve City Council Minutes: December 11, 2023
c. Receive and file Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Report d. Approve December 2023 accounts payable
e. Receive and file November & December 2023 Monthly Investment Report f. Adopt by second reading by title only Ordinance No. 23-0371 repealing section 11-12-8 (special events) of Title 11 (zoning regulations) of the Solvang Municipal Code and amending Title 8, Public Ways and Property adopting Chapter 9, Special Events, to establish processing and permitting of special events on public property and make a finding that the ordinance is exempt from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements per Section 15061 of the CEQA guidelines g. Receive and file Santa Barbara County Fire report
h. Approve Amendment 1 to the Agreement with Saberdome Corporation dba Lanspeed for Connected Managed IT Services for an additional amount not to exceed $62,000 for a total contract amount not to exceed $185,336, and to extend the term to December 31, 2024, and authorize the Mayor to execute on behalf of the City
Motion by Councilmember Claudia Orona, to approve, seconded by Mayor pro tem Brown and carried 5-0.
5. PUBLIC HEARINGS - None
6. DISCUSSION ITEMS
a. Discussion and possible action to provide staff direction on further negotiation of joint powers agreement for Santa Ynez Valley Basin Eastern Management Area Groundwater Sustainability Agency
City Attorney Fleishman reviewed the Santa Ynez Valley Basin Eastern Management Area Groundwater Sustainability Agency (EMA GSA), negotiations for a Joint Powers Authority agreement; listed issues that still need to be resolved including membership, voting and distribution of costs and noted the need for City Council direction, and explained the Santa Ynez Water Group is a loose amalgamation of agricultural interests of water for private use.
Mayor Infanti claimed that members must be part of a water agency, must represent the people they are voting for and reported the subject organization (Santa Ynez Water Group) has no financial backing, no liability proofing, is not a legally established organization and is not representative of the EMA.
Discussion followed regarding whether other management areas have agricultural representation.
Mayor Infanti invited public comments.
Dennis Beebe
There were no other public comments.
Councilmember Elizabeth Orona spoke about the importance of Solvang’s membership in the agency; noted the JPA is late; expressed concerns about growing costs.
City Attorney Fleishman summarized direction that the Solvang City Council is not in favor of adding a DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8 M 2024-01-22 CC 4
fifth member to the board but to have the four agencies as members of the Board of Directors, that the vote allocation be one member, one vote and that the cost sharing be on that basis (25%). He added that he will return with a report to Council at an upcoming meeting. b. Discussion and possible action to approve the Annual Comprehensive Financial report for fiscal year 22-23 as presented by Auditor Mitesh Desai, CPA, Badawi & Associates Administrative Services Director Berry presented details of the staff report and deferred to Auditor Mitesh Desai for the results of the audit.
Discussion followed regarding Community Development expenses.
Auditor Mitesh Desai, CPA, Badawi & Associates, via Zoom, narrated a PowerPoint.
Brief discussion followed regarding recovery from the previous year’s fraud loss.
There were no public comments on this item.
Mayor pro tem Brown asked about the possibility of adding a listing of what has been accomplished in the City in future reports.
City Manager Murphy reported he intends to share a listing of City successes and accomplishments, as part of the budget process going forward, for increased transparency and to make the budget userfriendly.
Motion by Mayor Infanti, to approve the Annual Comprehensive Financial report for fiscal year 22-23 as presented seconded by Councilmember Elizabeth Orona and carried 5-0. c. Discussion and possible action to appoint members to the Measure U Citizens Oversight Committee
Administrative Services Director Berry presented details of the staff report.
In response to Councilmember Clarke’s inquiry, Administrative Services Director Berry reported that membership does not need to be by district.
Discussion followed regarding each Councilmember appointing one Committee Member and whether this is a Brown Act body.
Frank Smithson
There were no other public comments on this item.
Councilmember Clarke appointed Jamie Baker.
Councilmember Elizabeth Orona appointed Geoff Yarema.
Councilmember Claudia Orona appointed Frank Smithson.
Mayor pro tem Brown appointed Henry Haugse.
Mayor Infanti appointed Adelia Kehoe.
Motion by Mayor pro tem Brown, to approve the five appointees to the Measure U Citizens Oversight Committee, seconded by Councilmember Claudia Orona and carried 5-0.
DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8 M 2024-01-22 CC 5
d. Discussion and possible direction to Staff regarding Utility Director salary update Administrative Services Director Berry presented details of the staff report.
Discussion followed regarding the salary range, the need for a classification and compensation study, other options to consider, offering housing allowances, the need for more data to make a good decision, considering salary ranges for other cities and comparable job descriptions, reducing the scope of the job and determining the total impact of raising the salary on an annual basis, the possibility of splitting the position into two positions and the need to review all salaries.
There were no public comments.
Motion by Councilmember Clarke, to authorize the City Manager to increase the salary range for the Utility Director to the top step at $150,000 to $175,000 and direct staff to issue a RFP for a compensation and classification study to ensure equitability with surrounding communities, seconded by Mayor Infanti and carried 4-1, with Councilmember Elizabeth Orona, opposed.
Motion by Councilmember Clarke to hold the meeting beyond 9:30 p.m., seconded by Councilmember Claudia Orona and carried 3-2 with Councilmembers Clarke and Elizabeth Orona, opposed.
Motion by Councilmember Elizabeth Orona to continue Items No. 6e., 6h. to the next regular City Council meeting, seconded by Mayor Infanti and carried 4-1 with Councilmember Claudia Orona, opposed.
e. Discussion and direction to staff regarding City priorities on State Route 246, Mission Drive This item was continued to the next regular meeting of the City Council.
Motion by Mayor Infanti to consider Item No. 6i. at this juncture, seconded by Councilmember Clarke and carried 5-0.
i. Discussion and Possible Action to Direct Staff to Investigate Los Olivos CSD Request to Connect to Solvang’s WWTP for Treatment of Their Wastewater City Manager Murphy presented details of the staff report.
Discussion followed regarding the impact area.
Guy Savage, Los Olivos CSD, explained the proposal; discussed funding and potential impacts; addressed standards and special problem areas.
Discussion followed regarding the need for a technical assessment and the City’s capacity.
Dennis Beebe
There were no other public comments on this item.
Motion by Councilmember Elizabeth Orona to direct staff to investigate Los Olivos CSD request to connect to Solvang’s WWTP for Treatment of their Wastewater, seconded by Mayor pro tem Brown and carried 5-0
DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8 M 2024-01-22 CC 6
f. Discussion and Possible Action to Provide Direction to Staff to Refocus WWTP Design Efforts Regarding the Production of Reclaimed Water
City Manager Murphy presented details of the staff report.
Discussion followed regarding regulations related to the use of reclaimed water, returning to the original plans and potential savings.
There were no public comments.
Motion by Mayor pro tem Brown make the use of reclaimed water at the WWTP optional, seconded by Councilmember Clarke and carried 5-0.
g. Discussion and possible action to approve revised Grant Funding policy Administrative Services Director Berry presented details of the staff report and highlighted revisions to the Grant Funding policy.
Discussion followed regarding considering other changes to the policy in the future, the possibility of capping the amount of the grants, evaluating grant applications, There were no public comments.
Motion by Councilmember Elizabeth Orona to approve the revised Grant Funding policy, seconded by Mayor pro tem Brown and carried 5-0.
h. Discussion and possible action to provide direction to Staff regarding Pickleball Courts in Hans Christian Andersen Park
This item was continued to the next regular meeting of the City Council.
7. GC SECTION 53232.3(d) and GC SECTION 84308 REPORT OUT AND COUNCIL CLOSING COMMENTS - None
8. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 10:21 p.m.
Respectfully submitted:
Annamarie Porter, City Clerk
DocuSign Envelope ID: 103708D1-6030-4B17-B987-197B05DB52B8