S.P. City Council: Monday agenda includes downtown displays, budget update

Community Services Director Brian Yanez will offer an update on the usage of area soccer fields, a subject that has brought complaints to the Council in recent months.Outdoor displays in the Central Business District have also been the focus of discussion, and the Council will be asked to consider staff’s recommendation to allow same on private property. “The intent there,” noted Bobkiewicz, “would be some sort of size requirement that would not block the door” of merchants that have alcove space.The Council will also continue their discussion of the Development Code, and in a separate matter be asked to adopt a resolution on several technical budget amendments and transfers of leftover funds. The amendments would apply to the budget that ended July 1, which Bobkiewicz said was met by a “hair... we’ll close the books and it will formally conclude the fiscal year for us.” The Council will also hear an update on the current year’s budget.Loosening the rules and requirements for the Redevelopment Agency Housing Preservation Program will also be an issue for the Council, which will be sitting as RDA Directors. “We’re having more difficulty giving money away” to homeowners who want to rehabilitate or improve their properties, although Bobkiewicz noted if the rules are “too loose, the agency’s chance of getting the money back is more difficult... I don’t know if the Council is prepared to grant the changes.”The next agenda item centers on a program request from a property owner who does not qualify for the program unless change is implemented. The final meeting item is naming a representative to the Santa Paula Housing Authority.