Jail, parking: Public comment diverse
at Monday S.P. City Council meeting
March 20, 2015
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
One speaker questioned a councilman’s ethics while another urged more police enforcement for illegally parked cars and that pet owners fix their animals, diverse comments made at the City Council meeting.
During public comment at the March 16 meeting, Lynn McReynolds said Vice Mayor Martin Hernandez possibly had a conflict of interest by taking part in the council’s recent action in rescinding a resolution adopted by the past council opposing the proposed addition of a 64-bed medical unit at Todd Road Jail.
McReynolds noted that Hernandez — who with two other council members voted at the March 2 meeting to rescind the resolution opposing the expansion — is chief of staff for Supervisor Kathy Long.
Although “It was stated to me that the council did not take a position to support or oppose” but rather was neutral about the latest bid to obtain an expansion grant, McReynolds said, “My perception is that by removing all opposition there is no opposition … ”
Now, she added, the vote signaled a “green light” to the county.
And, since Hernandez is Long’s aide, McReynolds said, “There may be a conflict of interest,” in his voting on the issue.
The Ventura County’s Sheriff’s project would cost about $61 million to build; the county would provide about 10 percent of funding for the expansion, which would be reserved for inmates with ongoing medical needs or mental illnesses. The project would add a 48,229 square foot building to the 64-acre campus, located 2.8 miles west of Santa Paula. The site has a total of 154 acres, 90 of which are leased out and planted to chili peppers.
Todd Road Jail was approved in 1992 with a build-out capacity of 2,307 beds; the first phase of the facility, completed in 1995, has been averaging 823 beds with 580 male and 243 female inmates.
Traffic signage, ignored parking laws and an abundance of unlicensed pets were subjects Dr. Bruce Lahey told the council he is concerned about.
An Acacia Road resident since 2002, Lahey noted traffic signage and street marking to the rear of the DMV office on West Harvard Boulevard needs changes to tighten safety.
Told that a SPPD representative would get in touch with him Lahey said he is also concerned with the animals on his block, “About 20 to 30 small dogs,” that are not licensed.
He also wondered why enforcement is lax on days that the work of street sweeper requires parking bans, a situation he noted rarely results in a ticket to the offender.
Although “We’re always told we don’t have enough officers or personnel to take that on,” Lahey said the parking ticket carries a hefty fine and indicated the no-parking mandates should be enforced.
