01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 1
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE TRINIDAD CITY COUNCIL TUESDAY, JANUARY 09, 2024 (LIVE/HYBRID)
I. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Kelly called the live-hybrid meeting to order at 6:00pm. Council members in attendance: Kelly, Tuttle, West, and Breckenridge. Ladwig was absent. City Staff in attendance: City Manager Eli Naffah, City Clerk Gabriel Adams, Administrative Assistant Anton Souza, Project Manager Jennifer Hakenen, Grant Administrator Angela Cather, and City Engineer Steve Allen. Staff in attendance by video-conference: Grant Coordinator Becky Price-Hall, City Planner Trever Parker. Approximately (4) participants were present by video-conference, and (3) a were present live at the beginning of the meeting.
II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
III. CLOSED SESSION
1. Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation (Calif. Gov. Code Section 54956.9(d)(1)) (1 Case: City of Trinidad vs.
Tsurai Ancestral Society, et. al, Humb. Co. Sup. Court Case No. 180684) IV. RECONVENE TO OPEN SESSION – No reportable action taken.
V. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
Motion (West/Kelly) to approve the agenda as amended, moving Discussion 3 to first on the list. Passed 4-0.
VI. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – 11-14-2023 cc
Motion (West/Tuttle) to approve the minutes as submitted. Passed 4-0.
VII. COUNCIL REPORTS/COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
West: Trails Committee meeting pushed to February 20 due to lack of quorum.
Kelly: Attended a greater Trinidad area trailer park meeting at the Town Hall last month. Meeting organizer would like to address the City Council regarding rent stabilization. CERT had a joint meeting between Trinidad and McKinleyville discussing HAM radio equipment. Swearing in the Trinidad Team on January 22.
Tuttle & Breckenridge: No report.
VIII.STAFF REPORTS – City Manager & Law Enforcement
City Manager Naffah highlighted accomplishments summarized in the staff report included in the meeting packet, including upcoming public holidays, film production permit, annual Fire Department stats, community survey status, etc.
HCSO Lt. McCall summarized annual calls for service stats.
IX. ITEMS FROM THE FLOOR
(Three (3) minute limit per Speaker unless Council approves request for extended time.) Anita Thompson – Trinidad
Read a poem written for Public Works staff, called out by name, thanking them for their service.
X. CONSENT AGENDA
1. Staff Activity Report – December 2023
2. Financial Statements – November 2023
3. Law Enforcement Report – November/December 2023.
Motion (West/Breckenridge) to approve the consent agenda as submitted. Passed 4-0.
X. DISCUSSION/ACTION AGENDA ITEMS
1. Introduction/First Reading of Ordinance 2024-01; Introduction/First Reading of Ordinance 2024-01; Updating the CA Coastal Commission certified version of the City of Trinidad Zoning Ordinance, Title 17 of the Trinidad Municipal Code for consistency with the codified version of the Zoning Ordinance and reaffirming and correcting previous amendments that were not submitted to the Coastal Commission for certification.
City Planner Trever Parker explained that the City first codified its ordinances in 1990 with an update and creation of an online code in 2012. The ordinance codification process refers to the systematic and organized method of compiling and consolidating local laws, regulations, and ordinances into a comprehensive and 01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 2
consistent legal code. The City is currently working on another update to the Trinidad Municipal Code.
The codification process changes the numbering of the regulations as well as some of the verbiage and formatting. The changes that were made to the zoning ordinance as part of the codification process were never certified by the Coastal Commission. Therefore, the Coastal Commission does not recognize the City’s numbering of its ordinances. And so, in the past, such as with the STR ordinance, the City included both numbering systems in the new ordinance/amendment to allow for certification by the Coastal Commission.
The City has recently been working on several housing related zoning ordinance amendments. These amendments add and update quite a few definitions and various sections of the zoning ordinance. The use of two numbering systems was becoming unwieldy. This is particularly true for the definitions, which are unnumbered in an appendix to the original ordinance, leaving no easy way to refer to individual definitions.
Therefore, it was decided that the City should go ahead and get the codified version of the zoning ordinance certified by the Coastal Commission to facilitate current and planned amendments.
This version of the ordinance uses track changes to show the modifications that were made to the certified ordinance(s) as part of the codification process. These changes include corrections and minor updates made as part of the codification ordinance, which generally do not change the meaning or application of the regulations.
Some of the modifications made in the codification process were reverted back to the original, certified version.
Those are not shown in track change in Ordinance 2024-01 but are shown in Ordinance 2024-02. Several corrections and clarifications have been made to the codified ordinance as part of the next item, and those changes have been incorporated into this version for certification by the Coastal Commission.
There was no public or Council comment.
Motion (Kelly West) to waive the full reading of Ordinance 2024-01 and approve by title. Passed 4-0.
2. Introduction/First Reading of Ordinance 2024-02; Correcting and reaffirming codification of the City of Trinidad Zoning Ordinance
Item considered in conjunction with Discussion item 1.
There was no public or Council comment.
Motion (Kelly West) to waive the full reading of Ordinance 2024-02 and approve by title. Passed 4-0.
3. Discussion/Decision to Award Construction Contract for the Trinidad Water Storage Tank and Pipeline Replacement Project
City Engineer Steve Allen explained that the Water Storage Tank and Pipeline Replacement Project bid package was released and publicly advertised on November 19, 2023. The bid period ended at 4 PM on December 20, 2023, at which time the City had received and then opened four bids. The bid results, including base and additive bid items, are shown in the table below.
GHD’s Opinion of Probable Construction Cost without a contingency was $3,162,450.
How the bids are evaluated and the project award determined is spelled out in the contract bid documents (Page B-10) just below the Additive Bid Schedule Items and above the Contractor’s signature line which reads:
Determination of low bid and award:
Awards will be made to the lowest, responsive, responsible, BIDDER. The low bidder shall be determined based on the sum of all Bid Schedules. Depending on the bids and the availability of funds, the City may award some or all the Additive Bid items, or the City may choose not to award any Additive Bid items. Additional bid Contractor Base Bid Additive Bid Total Difference
McCullough $ 3,763,600.37 $ 157,992.23 $ 3,921,592.60 $ 880,997.60 GR Sundberg $ 3,368,471.00 $ 62,720.00 $ 3,431,191.00 $ 390,596.00 Wahlund $ 2,942,040.00 $ 105,650.00 $ 3,047,690.00 $ 7,095.00 Mercer-Fraser Company $ 2,964,345.00 $ 76,250.00 $ 3,040,595.00 Low Bid 01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 3
items may be added to award as a change order during the project and the bid amounts shown here shall be the agreed upon contract amount for the work.
In California, a public agency is generally required to award the contract to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder or else to reject all bids. Mercer-Fraser’s bid documents were reviewed in more detail and determined to be complete, making their bid responsive. Mercer-Fraser’s Class A contractors license is active and valid making them a responsible bidder. Therefore staff recommends awarding the project to MercerFraser.
The project is scheduled to start construction January 29, 2024 and finish construction by November 30, 2024.
Council questions included:
Breckenridge: If the tank will be worked on during the summer, will there be an increased risk of running out of water with one out of commission, for drinking and fire suppression? Allen explained that one tank will provide enough storage but the plant will have to produce at a higher capacity to keep the tank full.
Kelly: How many hydrants will be replaced? Allen explained that hydrants will be replaced every 500’ where the work will be done.
West: Will this project affect the community? Allen explained that there will be minimal issues, but it will be felt most when work is being done on Westhaven Drive and Edwards Street. Down time during tank replacement will hopefully be minimal as well.
Tuttle: Redwood tank salvage? Allen explained that it will belong to the contractor.
No public comment.
Motion (West/Breckenridge) to authorize the City Manager to sign the Notice of Award to Mercer-Fraser for construction of the Water Storage Tank & Pipeline Replacement Project for both the base bid and additive bid items for a total budget of $3,040,595.00 as bid. Authorize staff and the City Manager to manage the construction project moving forward such as but not including issuing the Notice to Proceed, Work directives, and Contract Change Orders as needed to construct the project within the grant guidelines and approved grant budget. Passed 4-0.
4. 2024 Calendar Year Orientation, Meeting Schedule, Project Priorities and Updates City Clerk Adams explained that January is the beginning of a new calendar year and the mid-way point through the fiscal year. 2024 is shaping up to deliver several challenges that depending on the outcome will define the level of service the City is able to provide the community in years to come.
First, the City must address rising costs of doing business. High fuel and energy rates trickle down through every invoice received for materials, supplies, labor, and contracted services. As directed in the FY2024 Budget approval, Staff has begun several rate optimization tasks currently in the pipeline, including Water, Cemetery, and Building Permit fees. The water rate discussion will be an eye-opener, and is set to begin in March at the same time the conversation will begin to propose a continuation of the .75% Sales Tax Add-On rate.
Second, several steps are necessary each month to implement all the legal requirements involved to modify rates for service. Some are determined by State Law (Water Rates, Prop 218), Election Codes (Sales Tax), or local ordinances (Building Permits, Cemetery Plot fees). To help ensure the City stays on track, Staff is providing this road map to raise awareness of what’s to come and keep things moving in the right direction.
These are some of the baseline projects that will lay the groundwork for upcoming agendas through June 30.
There will be plenty of other assignments, requests, and issues that will surface along the way, but this should help set the rails and identify immediate priorities.
Meeting Schedule & Council Meeting Priority Discussion Topics January
• City Council will hold its first 2024 regular meeting on January 09. • Trails Committee will meet on January 16.
• Planning Commission will meet on January 17.
01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 4
• Council/Planning Commission/Short-Term Rental Advisory Committee will hold the Annual Joint Meeting on January 23.
FPPC Form 700: The FPPC has emailed all required filers representing the City (Council, Planning Commission, and select staff) alerting them of the April 01, Conflict of Interest Form 700 annual filing deadline. Staff has migrated all filers to the online portal, and highly encourages everyone to take a moment and renew your annual filing electronically. If you have had no changes to your previous filing schedules, the renewal process could take less than 1-minute once you’ve logged into the system.
Please reach out to staff if you have any questions and we’ll walk you through it.
February
• Election Year Calendar Kick-Off
• Water Rate Analysis Update
• Volunteer Fire Department Staffing, and long-range planning March
• Continued Water Rate Analysis discussion
• Fees for service and rate optimization (Cemetery, Building Permits) • Begin Fiscal Year Budget preparation
• Discussion (Part 1) regarding Sales Tax Extension, benefits/implications to the City in general, ballot measure language, termination date options, questions, staff homework, etc.
April
• Water Rate adjustment Prop 218 Protest Hearing
• Discuss/Consider Sales Tax Extension (Part II) Implications on 2025 budgeting, continued rate optimization processes, preliminary FY2025 Budget kick-off.
May
• Resolution deadline calling for General Election
• Resolution deadline calling for election on a proposal to extend the Sales Tax Increase • Final phase of FY2025 Budget preparation
• New Water Rates go into effect.
June
• Adopt FY 2025 Budget
• Prepare/Present/Announce the upcoming election season calendar: (2) Councilmember seats & Sales Tax Extension.
Mayor Kelly added that the community survey will allow for additional feedback from the public, and City Manager Naffah highlighted several accomplishments so far this FY.
There was no public comment.
Presentation item only. No decision was made.
5. Discussion/Decision regarding Mid-Year 2023-2024 Budget Update and Adjustments.
City Clerk Adams explained that public entities operate on the fiscal year cycle beginning July 01, and ending June 30. April and May signal the beginning of budget preparation season. July 01 is the deadline to adopt a budget spending plan. Periodically through the year it is fiscally responsible for governing boards to do a pulse check on revenues and expenses, and ensure the plan is on track. It makes sense to do this mid-year as it could identify unusual trends and allow time to course-correct as necessary.
The staff report from June 13, 2023 was a benchmark indicating the City’s thought process, using financial reports and forecasting to develop the spending plan for 2023-2024. Some of the highlights from that report included:
- Transitional period due to post-Covid economics may require dipping into reserves as costs to provide essential services become dynamic and uncertain.
01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 5
- A prediction of deficit spending was based on under-anticipated revenue projections for the most volatile sources, such as Occupancy and Sales Taxes.
- Anticipate a Fiscal Year-end 2023 spending deficit in the Water Fund of approximately $300k, and another $280k or more in 2024 if a local staffing solution isn’t found to help stabilize consultant costs. leaving the reserve fund balance at a red-line level of approximately $300k. - Coupled with stabilizing soft-costs, Staff was directed to embark on the Water Rate Analysis to further stabilize advanced reserve spending.
Fiscal Year End 2023 (June 30, 2023) Preliminary, Un-Audited Conclusions:
Staff delivers FY2023 year-end information with caution, due to the June 30, 2023 statements yet to be audited.
Revenues: The preliminary results of the year-end financial statements suggest the City planned for General Fund deficit spending of $24,858, but ended up with a surplus of approximately $98,726 (see attached FY2023 Budget Summary, Budget to Actual, showing the variances in each resource by inflows and outflows.
It appears that the surge in Sales Tax revenue from the prior fiscal year (Covid influenced) stabilized by landing within the City’s historic and anticipated level the following year. Occupancy Tax revenue exceeded budget expectations, and surge in development activity yielded higher than anticipated permit fee revenue.
Expenditures: City did not spend as anticipated from the General Fund. Underspending, in this case, does not mean that the community did not receive the services or programs they expect. First, the underspending appears to be directly related to a prior year, high-level of City Attorney fees being carried forward in anticipation of similar level of activity in 2023, which didn’t materialize. Second, the City budgeted for supplemental private security that didn’t launch until the final few months of the fiscal year, thus translating to what can be considered “savings”.
Water Fund: Due to a severely under-budgeted line item for Contracted Services (Water Fund 6.01, Expense code 75300) the financial statement looks completely tilted. The revenue projections landed within 7% range, but expenses show an almost 58% negative differential. Due to an unanticipated staffing challenge, the City was forced to continue utilizing the services of an certified, licensed independent contractor, Coleman Engineering for the entire fiscal year, resulting in reserve spending in excess of the $300k anticipated.
Fiscal Year 2024 Staff Organizational Structure, Talking Points, and Successes Staffing: A staff organizational chart is included in the packet. It depicts staff titles and structure, based on the positions full-time equivalent (FTE). Currently the City employs approximately 9.25 FTE employees (based on a combination of full-time and part-time employees. Six employees are actual full-time and benefited.
The two administrative staff members are settling into their second year of service. One of the two positions were reclassified this year to more accurately reflect the responsibilities assigned, which falls in line with the budget year goal of staff realignment with the City’s priorities to promote accountability, longevity, and advancement.
Public Works recently hired a fourth maintenance tech that is also a T-2 Operator-In-Training, along with the Public Works Director. The part-time Public Works Maintenance tech is in training to obtain a Water Distribution Certification (D2).
After nearly 17 years of service, the Grants Director will be down-shifting from full-time to part-time in January 2024. Additional responsibilities have been allocated to the new Grant Administrator hired in April 2023 to maintain reliability and continuity in the Grant Department during the transition.
The Water Plant is still searching for an in-house T3 Chief Plant Operator. Currently secured by contracted staff from Coleman Engineering, the Water Department’s primary objective remains to provide quality and reliable drinking water that meets or exceeds Safe Drinking Water Standards set by the State of California. To do so requires a technically trained, licensed Treatment Level 3 Operator at the helm.
Over the last year the City has been focused on developing an Operator-In-Training team that so far has relieved a significant share of the expense related to having a contracted T-3 Chief Operator, by assisting the Chief as his “boots on the ground”, while they progress through their training and licensing program. 01-09-2024 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 6
The objective is to relieve the Water Fund reserves of the high cost of contracted services before they are depleted, in conjunction with realigning the water rates to accurately reflect the cost of providing reliable and safe drinking water through in-house staffing, as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the Water Fund is currently under the microscope, operating into a third year of significant reserve spending.
Financial Statements are included in this packet, for all activity covering the period July 01-November 30. An easy scan of the primary funds (Revenue, Administration, Public Works, Fire, and Police) depict spending at or near 50% (midway through the year). With the exception of a few corrections staff will coordinate with the bookkeeper, overall the City is on track for another year in the black.
Concerns: The main funds currently under the microscope are the Water and Cemetery Special (or Restricted) Funds. Both are spending more than they’re taking in. The Water Fund, most impressively, followed by the Cemetery Fund which is due for a rate increase. A realignment of the Cemetery Fund rates will better position the fund to sustain itself into the future, but also minimize an alarming run-on Trinidad Cemetery space that allegedly has low rates partially to blame.
Conclusions: The General Funds are on track. Staffing is adequate, developing, and employees are becoming enriched with time served. Programs and services are expanding as planned. Public Works is developing cohesive teamwork. The Fire Department is serving the City, but also experiencing some growing pains. Public Safety has been enhanced, overall, with the supplemental private security company patrolling the City on a regular basis.
The Water Fund, however, continues to leak oil. Staff is working strategically to develop and recruit new operators, while ensuring safe drinking water is being provided to customers. The Public Works Department is doing a great job holding down the fort while the consultant operates plant controls. Staff is hoping that grassroots recruiting strategies will yield long-term, dedicated team members in the near-term.
The water rate study is underway and will be a challenging task before the Council in April. The results, however, will provide much needed stability to the Water Department before the end of the fiscal year that will help right the ship.
The cost of “keeping the lights on” continues to rise, and touch every aspect of public service. Although the City has been slow to react to the trends over the past 3-years, dedicated reserves have provided much needed stability during the transition that will allow a more articulate, calculated, justified realignment of fees to better position the City to sustain the desired programs and services into the future. This will continue to play out during the remainder of this fiscal year and into budget preparations for 2025, slated to being in April.
Public comment included:
Patti Fleschner – Trinidad Area Resident
Does the City benefit from the new cell towers surrounding Trinidad? There’s no service on Scenic Drive anymore. How will the Federal Trust status of the Harbor properties affect the City and is it planning for the impact? When will the City phase out of the expensive contract arrangement with Coleman Engineering? City Manager Naffah explained that there is a plan to minimize Coleman Engineering expenses, but not to phase them out of the Water Plant operations completely.
Presentation item only. No decision made.
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
- Town Hall improvements, Water Rate concerns, unsafe curb drop on upper Edwards.
ADJOURNMENT: 7:50pm.
Submitted by: Approved by:
_____________________________ _____________________________ Gabriel Adams Cheryl Kelly
Trinidad City Clerk Mayor