Paso Robles City Council Meeting Highlights from 12/18/2018 

Highlights from the City Council meeting on Tuesday, December 18, 2018 are as follows:


Contract for design of Improvements to Intersection of Union and Golden Hill Roads – authorized the City Manager to enter into an agreement with Wallace Group to prepare the preliminary design and exhibits for a community outreach workshop, with a not-to-exceed fee of $172,645, which includes a 10% contingency fee.

Contract Award for Upper Playground at Barney Swartz Park–awarded the contract for design services for upper playground replacement at Barney Schwartz Park to SSA Landscape Architects for $65,910 and authorized the City Manager to execute the contract, in a form approved by the City Attorney.

Development Impact Fee Report–received and filed the Annual Development Impact Fee Report for the Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2018.

Construction Contract with CalPortland Construction for 13th Street from Riverside to Spring Street Improvements–authorized the City Manager to enter into a contract with CalPortland Construction in the amount of $979,972.25, plus a 10% contingency, for a total not-to-exceed cost of $1,077,970. The improvements include paving and pedestrian upgrades at the intersections of 13^th Street at Pine Street and Park Street.

Contract for Airport Propeller Drive Extension Preliminary Design–authorized the City Manager to approve contracts with Terra Verde and Tartaglia Engineering to perform the preliminary design and environmental review for the extension of Propeller Drive.

Amendments to the Conflict of Interest Code–approved amendments to the Conflict of Interest Code to reflect changes in position titles and levels of participation in making governmental decisions, and correctly classify the disclosure categories associated with the filing of Statements of Economic Interest.

By-District Council Election System–Second Public Hearing– received public comment on the criteria for drafting city council district boundaries for the transition from at-large city council elections to by-district elections. The City is required to transition into to a by-district system because of a legal challenge that our current system violates the California Voting Rights Act of 2002. The primary criteria is census population data.  All districts must have an equal population, as determined by indivisible census tracts.  However, the boundaries of council districts can be drawn based on logical divisions within the City (e.g. major roads, rivers, creeks, neighborhood boundaries, school attendance areas, etc.) 

There are other questions for which the city needs public input: Should downtown be in one district or split into multiple districts? Similarly, do neighborhoods want to be in one district or two? What other communities of interest or amenities should be grouped together (e.g. parks, schools, service groups, etc.)?  This was the second of four public hearings in the process, which is required by State law. The City also hosted a community meeting on December 5^th. To date the common themes included: maintaining our at-large mayor and creating four council districts, including downtown in at least two districts, and working to maintain East/West connectivity.

The Council has directed staff to continue with extensive community outreach and provide examples and information regarding how residents can get involved through the website, social media, traditional media and any other logical outreach opportunity.  For more information, click here.

2018 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan Adoption–adopted the 2018 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. The plan addresses both bicycle and pedestrian needs, with a focus on providing route continuity (connecting missing links) in the networks for commuters, school age children, and for recreational purposes.

City Initiated Oak Tree Removal Permit on Dry Creek Rd.–approved the removal of the 11-inch Valley Oak tree, based on the proximity of the tree in relation to Dry Creek Road causing a hazardous situation as indicated in the Arborist Report, and required two 1.5-inch diameter Valley Oak replacement trees to be planted within a public area.

Oak Tree Removal Permit at 903 Evert Ct.–approved the removal of the 42-inch Valley Oak, based on the Certified Arborist concluding that the tree has significant rot and decay in the root and the trunk, which has resulted in a hazardous situation, as indicated in the Arborist Report. The permit requires one 1.5-inch diameter Valley Oak be replanted on site at the direction of the Arborist.

Oak Tree Removal Permit at 2034 Vista Oaks Wy.–approved the removal of the two Blue Oak trees, based on the Arborist report concluding that both trees have health issues and pose a severe risk of failure. The permit require seven 2-inch diameter replacement trees be planted on site at the direction of the Arborist.

Final Map for Recordation and Annexation to Community Facilities District No. 2005-01 for Public Services for 727 and 729 Trigo Lane–approved Final Parcel Map and subdivision of property located at 727 and 729 Trigo Lane.

Job Reclassifications–approved modifications to the Job Classification System and Master Pay Schedule, reclassifying certain job positions, and appropriate $17,500 from Airport Enterprise reserves.

Police Recruit Over Hiring: Crime Analyst Position–approved an amendment to the Technician II series of job descriptions to include Crime Analyst, authorized the Police Department to hire five additional police officer recruits, converted one part-time Staff Assistant III position to Technician II– Crime Analyst, and appropriated $40,000 from General Fund Reserves for FY 2018-19. The Council also directed staff to return on a periodic basis with updates on Police staffing levels options for addressing shortages and costs.

This represents just a subset of the total actions by the Council.  The full agenda can be found at https://www.prcity.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12182018-136 The minutes will be available as part of the packet for the City Council’s next regular meeting, on Thursday, January 3, 2019. 

Have a great rest of the week!