Council: WWTP purchase, Limoneira
SPPD grant, goal-setting on agenda
April 03, 2015
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
A busy closed-door session will be followed by an even busier night of business for the City Council at the April 6 meeting.
Monday’s session will start at 5 p.m. in the City Hall Administration Room where the council will hear public comment if any before closing the door for private discussions. Subjects for closed session range from the lawsuit filed against the city by the Santa Paula Fire Department to the dispute between the city and Santa Paula Water LLC, owner of the city’s wastewater treatment plant. Labor negotiations as well as a performance review of City Manager Jaime Fontes is also agendized for the closed session.
When the meeting is continued at 6:30 p.m. in City Hall Council Chambers the session will be broadcast live on Time Warner Cable Channel 10 — and replayed per scheduled — and streamed live on the city’s website where it will be archived for viewing on demand.
A proclamation will be presented to Robert Grainer and a presentation on SESPEA (Students Encouraging Social Political and Environmental Action); SPPD Explorers will also be presented to the council.
After the Consent Calendar and other business the council will change hats to convene as the Santa Paula Utility Authority/City Council. The panel is expected to finalize the funding details to obtain a $72 million bond to purchase the wastewater treatment plant from Santa Paula Water LLC.
When the council resumes other business they will consider several other items of business, notably the Limoneira police grant — a report by Fontes “memorializes” the council’s past actions since the grant was first proposed — and accepted — in November 2013. The city must match the annual $250,000 Limoneira contribution for three years, for a combined total of $1.5 million.
Several council members asked that more information be given on the grant, specifically a spending plan and questioned why other personnel such as dispatchers would not benefit from the revenue.
The council will also hear a plan to re-inject new monetary life into a program that rewards employees and others with local gift certificates for helpful suggestions.
The last item of business will be an update on goal-setting/budget planning, a process previously done in-house that was discontinued about four years ago.
Fontes’ report notes that former Simi Valley City Manager Mike Sedell was selected by the council in February to conduct goal-setting. Sedell is volunteering his services; the report notes that a former Simi Valley assistant city manager will “review the fiscal status of the city” for a later report.
