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iHow this transcript is madeUnGovr transcribes the official recording with automated speech-to-text, separates speakers by voice, and matches voices to the seated roster. Names and attributions are AI estimates and may contain errors.Verify any quote yourself: click anywhere in the transcript and the official video jumps to that exact moment, so you can check any quote against the recording.0:03 – 0:0923 turns
Hello all. Today is June 3rd, 2026. Welcome to the Carpinteria City Council meeting. We adjourned for a closed session and so we will call the meeting to order and I will request a roll call please.
Roll call, called by City Clerk
Show transcript
and I will request a closed session report
Thank you Mayor Alarcon. We were in closed session for two separate items and I don't have any reportable action this evening,
And we will move on to introductions, proclamations and presentations. We will begin with a proclamation honoring June 19th 2026 Juneteenth Independence Day in recognition of June 19 1865 when enslaved Africans learned of their freedom in the southwestern states I will open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips Do we have anyone via zoom?
Mayor we have no raised hands.
I will close public comment and bring it back to the council for a motion
I move to adopt the proclamation honoring June 19, 2026, Juneteenth Independence Day. Second.
We have a first and second. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. Motion passes and we will begin with reading the proclamation with Councilmember Mayer.
Whereas on June 19, 1865 Union troops led by General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston Texas and issued general order number three which proclaimed that the people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a proclamation from the executive of the United States all slaves are free. Thereby marking the official enforcement of emancipation in Texas and establishing that former enslaved people were to be recognized as having equal rights under the law.
Whereas the legacy of slavery, segregation and discrimination has had lasting impacts on African-American and black communities and disparities continue to exist in many aspects of American society.
Whereas racism and white supremacy have tainted the foundation of America, beginning with the arrival of enslaved Africans in 1619. And the subsequent establishment of chattel slavery and the denial of the humanity of those enslaved by the authors of the Declaration of Independence who declared all men are created equal while holding men and women of African descent in bondage and
Whereas many members of the black community continue to experience barriers and inequities that affect health, economic opportunity and overall well-being.
And whereas we must confront the harsh reality of racism and anti-blackness in our communities intentionally work towards solutions Being a beacon of hope, shining light on how to address the ongoing crisis of loss of black lives in the United States and condemn all actions carried out in the spirit of racism and all activities that sustain systemic racism.
Whereas Juneteenth provides an opportunity to reflect on our nation's history, recognize the ongoing pursuit of equality and justice, and reaffirm our commitment to treating all people with dignity and respect. And
whereas a city council of the City of Carpinteria formally recognized Juneteenth on January 9th 2023 by adoption of resolution number 6184 directing that Juneteenth be observed as a city holiday on June 19th of every year
Now therefore the City Council of the City of Carpinteria hereby celebrates the Juneteenth holiday on June 19th, 2026. Encourages all residents to use this time to learn about the history and legacy of black Americans celebrate their contributions to our nation and communities and stand together against racism bigotry and hate. Juneteenth Santa Barbara will be holding a Love for the People celebration on June 19th, 2026 from 11am to 6pm at the Plaza del Mar Band Shell Park in Santa Barbara.
With that we'd like to present the certificate to Miss Diane Travis Teague
So Mayor, I just found out that Miss Diane is stuck in traffic. Perhaps we could just move this item maybe after Planning Commission actions to give her a little bit more time?
Absolutely! To share a few words okay great
thank you.
We will now
move on to the next item on our agenda which is the recognition of retiring Architectural Review Board member Richard E Johnson on his 18 years of service to the community And I'd like to open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips.
Mayor, we have no one on Zoom.
Okay, I will close public comment and I'd like to share a few words about Richard Johnson. He received his bachelor's degree in architecture from Kansas State University. Licensed architect since 1972 in the Santa Barbara County area and has served on our ARB board for a total of 18 years. He's applied his professional experience as an architect to make projects not only more attractive, but functional. And I'd like to just know a few notable projects he's worked on which includes the Lagunitas, Mission Terrace, Linden Square, Seahouse Condos, Dahlia Court Phase 2 and Casa de las Flores. And with that, I'd like to welcome Richard E. Johnson to the podium and share a few words if you'd
0:09 – 0:157 turns
I guess this is on, right? Well you mentioned Kansas State University. People ask me where I went to my college education and I say Manhattan because that's where Kansas State is in Manhattan, Kansas. It's actually well known as the Little Apple of the World. Anyway... What's so funny? New York's a big apple, of course. I don't really have a lot to say. It's been a great pleasure working with you people for my duration on the ARB, and we've had many interesting projects as you well mentioned having to do with scale and a lot of compatibility issues.
We've always tried to suggest to the applicant that they try to improve their project that they present to us in a civil way as opposed to a mean way as a dictatorial, and we try to make it a win-win for the city and the applicant. And I have received a lot of feedback to that goal in the end. Staff has been dedicated and awesome to guide our board to make us look not too bad and to look halfway intelligent in knowing what's going on so we really appreciate their input and their assistance.
In spite of all the outside forces that we have no control at this point until we react to them. So thank you for your trust and toleration of my humor and my tenure, and as my wife says now you can come home in time for Jeopardy after all. Thank you.
Well we'd love to present this tile to you and if you'd like to take a photo with us in the front?
Okay, here we go. We'll take a couple.
Quick comment I'd like to make for Richard. I remember when you came on the Architecture Review Board, I was part of that committee at that time as I recall we were both young and handsome but it's been a while so with that one congratulations for your hard work in putting in that much time appreciate it very much.
And Mayor we do have Miss Diane Travis Teague available now
Excellent. Ms. Teague, if you'd like to step up to the podium? We've read the proclamation and passed the motion and so if you'd like to just share a few words before we take a photo.
Thank you good evening everyone my apologies for my late arrival if you've been on the 101 lately you know where I've been On behalf of the Juneteenth Celebration Committee, I am deeply honored to accept this proclamation from the City of Carpinteria. We extend our sincere gratitude to the Mayor, City Council and the entire Carpinteria community for recognizing the significance of Juneteenth and for affirming the importance of our shared history. Juneteenth is more than a commemoration of freedom delayed. It is a reminder that freedom, justice and opportunity are ideals that require our continued commitment, courage and care. It calls us to reflect not only on what we have been but the kind of communities that we are all striving to be.
This year's Santa Barbara Juneteenth celebration, Love for the People reflects that aspiration. Love for the people means seeing one another's humanity, honoring our diverse stories and creating space where everyone feels valued welcome and connected. It reminds us that our greatest strength lies not in our differences but in our willingness to come together in understanding respect and shared purpose On June 19th, from 11 o'clock to 6 o'clock p.m., we invite you to join us at Plaza Del Mar and the Bandshell Park in Santa Barbara. We will gather not only to celebrate history, culture, music and community but to reaffirm our collective belief that freedom flourishes when communities care for one another. Thank you to the City of Carpinteria for standing with us in spirit.
Your support helps ensure that the story of Juneteenth continues to educate, inspire and unite generations to come. With our gratitude we accept this proclamation on behalf of all of those who have contributed to this important celebration and to all of us who will join in honoring the enduring promises of freedom. Thank you sincerely and a closing thought in the times when the world feels divided, Juneteenth reminds us that progress is possible community matters and love for people remains one of the most powerful forces that we all possess. Thank you sincerely
0:15 – 0:2010 turns
Thank you for those were excellent remarks and I appreciate just that last line that you shared. And we'll ask for you to take a photo with us in the front.
Thank
you.
The next item on our agenda is number five, but it's my understanding that we'll be postponing the introduction of Francisco Morales. Maintenance worker one just confirming? Yes okay. We will now
move on to item number six which is the Library Board of Trustees. And I will call to order and request for a roll call.
President Alarcon, all board members are present and accounted for and all legal noticing and procedural requirements of the meeting have been met.
Excellent thank you. Item number three on the Library Board of Trustees agenda is public comment
Agenda Discussionitems moved / continued / pulled, click to expand
so this is the time for
public comments on matters not otherwise on the agenda but within the subject matter of the Carpinteria Library Board of Trustees I do not have any oh yes I do have speaker slips And I will invite Danielle Manriquez Osborne. Welcome.
Good afternoon City Council, I think you know who I am. My name is Danielle Manrique-Sasborn and today I have my Library Commissioner hat on. I just wanted to speak in favor of our library as you know the budget is here again and I just want to put in my two cents for the library. It's been an honor to represent the library on the commission and be part of the commission.
I'm going to say that I have really admired Jody and now Eric as our library city librarian. They've done an incredible job if you look at his monthly events, I don't know if your If you read all the monthly events that he has, I mean it's quite an accomplishment. Not only does he include young children, he includes teens and the teens he's empowered. I just think that's incredible not everybody can empower teens right? I know it's hard but he has. I know they've come to speak in front of the council. I just was like blown away when I heard that And I'm just really in admiration of him.
And also, all cultures have been welcomed. In May we had a hula presentation. I mean, I don't think that happens everywhere. And also we have a youth, Hazel DeGray. I'm not sure how to pronounce her last name but it's D-U-G-R-E accent over the E and she's incredible too so I mean Carpinteria is doing something right here and I think the library is helping And they say, oh well there's not enough things for our children to do. Well Eric has provided them with a space, a safe space and not just teens but young kids and people even my age.
But I was saddened to hear that the library is in jeopardy as far as budget cuts and that made me sad because We can't operate on a shoestring budget. It's really hard, and I know you know that. I know you're aware of that. But that's what I'm here to say, and I know you've heard it before, that we would like to maintain the funds and even get more, but I know that's going to be a hard stretch for you.
But I just feel like I want to tell you and tell you that we'd be losing a lot if you start cutting programs for the library. And then that's my biggest message, and I remember Wade saying something to the effect that this—the library is a real gem in our community, and it is, and I want to keep it that way. But I just want to take my hat off to Eric for continuing to provide an incredible library.
And I hope that you're able to keep our programs intact, and thank you. I really admire all of you because it's a hard job that you do, and I'm aware of that. Thank you very much.
Thank you for your comments Ms. Osborne. Mr. Rogelio Delgado welcome
0:21 – 0:2810 turns
Thank you. First in Spanish, then in English. Something curious from the community, even me, why during the meeting do we separate to listen to the report of the library? Why not continue? How much does the city government support libraries? 100%? 50%? 20%? No sé, la separación no está muy claro. ¿En sí cuántos miembros tiene la biblioteca? ¿Nada más son residentes locales o de afuera?
Now, in English. Questions from the community. Why does the City Council separate the meeting To hear the library report, I wonder and some people wonder that's why I'm bringing it up today. What percentage does the government support the library? 100%, 50, 20%? What are the services that library offers in terms of, let's say, activities? 50% Hispanic, 50% non-Hispanic, 20%. How many members does the library have?
Does it get donations from the outside I do not have any other speaker slips for this item. Do we have anyone via zoom? I'm here, we
have no zoom comments.
Good evening, Council and staff. Fred Shaw, I'm part of the Library Advisory Board. I just wanted to make a few points or actually state a few facts about what our library does. We are small but mighty. Every day it's the busiest building in Carpinteria. Every day 240 people walk through the door looking for something to read, something to watch, or just to meditate on what they've read. Over 400 people every day access our website looking for information.
With a mighty staff of four people and volunteers, Eric manages to oversee 650 different programs that meet almost every purpose that people might want to attend or something like that in the city And to give you a comparable idea, like I said Eric does this with the staff of four and dedicated volunteers. The closest demographically the closest library to us is Santa Barbara's East Side Library. They do less they're closed one day.
They're closed one day more than we are, and they've got a staff of 12. So Eric does an amazing job. He's also really good at getting grants. He gets grants from all over the country. Maybe we should hire him as a grant writer too. Anyway, thank you.
Thank you for your comments And I'll look back to our clerk if there's any other hand raised Okay, so I will officially close public comment and I will ask staff just two questions that I have here one is This might be a question for the attorney if you can just share as to why we separate the Board of Trustees meetings from the
agenda or I'm happy to answer that, Mayor Alarcone, council members. So this is a state law requirement. There are technically two different bodies and so this is set forth in its chapter 2.38 of our municipal code and that is consistent with the education code sections 18,900 at SEC so that's the it's titled the Municipal Public Library Act and it requires that municipal public libraries be governed in certain ways and have their own board. And so how this operates in the city of Carpinteria Is that the City Council, and this is written into our code. The city council, the mayor gets to appoint the board members of the library board of trustees or the trustees and our municipal code specifies that those are the other council members so they're technically kind of two separate bodies
Thank you for that. And then there were a few questions pertaining to the budget, and we'll be going over the budget in more detail in item number 16. So unless there's anything staff would like to add specific to the library at this moment? Great. OK. Go to item number four, which is the approval of minutes of the regular meeting held May 11th, 2026. I will open up public comment for the meeting minutes. I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via Zoom?
Mayor, we have no raised hands.
Okay, I'll close public comment and bring it back to the Council for a vote.
I move to approve the minutes of the regular meeting held May 11, 2026. Second. We have a first and second.
All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. Motion passes. Next item is Item No. 5 which is the Carpinteria Community Library Monthly Report for June 2026. Welcome Eric.
0:28 – 0:4015 turns
Thank you very much Mayor, City Council members, community of Carpinteria. As always it's my pleasure to present my staff report and this is a special week or month because this is the first year anniversary as library director and it was a wonderful year, very intense But I'm really happy to have this hat and this responsibility. It is a real pleasure to work here for the community of Carpinteria. With no more discussion about this, I'm going to start with programs and collection updates in May 8th and 22nd. The team advisory board concluded its five-month cycle We hold 10 meetings between January and May, with participation of eight teenagers and average attendance of five participants per meeting.
Their ideas on energy actually have already changed the way we present things, programs. because they were able to truly and honestly tell us what are their aspirations, their desires and the way they want to be treated. We are taking in great consideration their opinions and we are going to continue giving them that opportunity to develop their own program for themselves Of course, with our collaboration. So it's not that we are doing programs for them, we are doing programs together for other teenagers and that was super good to see how they flourish and how they express themselves when they have some confidence from adults Because of our success with this team advisory board, we are going to call another cycle of meetings. We are going to accept more members So, I call all the teenagers in Carpinteria to join the Teen Advisory Board starting in August.
Please come to the library and talk to me or hold on any of the staff librarians to be part of the board of trustees... Sorry, to the Teen Advisory Board starting in August. Right now they are taking a break for the summer. In May 14, in partnership with H-Well, the library invited local physical therapist Shelby Donald to demonstrate how to use our blood pressure cuff and discuss the importance of regular monitoring.
It is important to note that digital blood pressure cuffs are available for checkout through the Library of Things collections. These materials were a donation, or part of the Rural Health Connect project at the grant that we received a couple of months ago. On May 16th, we have our Wild Things program featuring representatives from Save Our Seals who share information about Carpinteria Harbor Seal Colony and promote public awareness and appreciation for local wildlife and environmental stewardship.
On May 18, the library welcomed Angelita Eller who immersed attendees in the living tradition of hula dance. Through an interactive presentation, participants learned about the meaning, story and cultural significance of hula within Hawaiian culture. This was part of the Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Cultural Month. On May 29th we have our Movie Night Rental Family.
The next Movie Night is scheduled for June 26 at 6 p.m., and we are going to feature The Big Year. It's a comedy With Steve Martin, Black Jack, Owen Wilson. It's very fun and it's free. Please attend the movie. On May 31st the West Coast Largest Community Book Club finished with a special conversation with George Takei author of They Call Us Enemy This event was well attended with 24 participants who expressed positive feedback about both the presentation and the book itself. It was very important to listen directly from the author, George Takei, about his experience, his memory and the significance of justice, how We as a society, I mean we could make mistakes and we should to be always vigilant about these mistakes because we are human. We should to continually constantly participate in democracy Of course, we have our ongoing library programs every month.
I invite everyone to visit our website to see our events calendar and I would like to talk a little bit about our upcoming summer reading program That is going to start on June 15. So our activities Start in June 15, there are a list of events that it's gonna be for part of June and the whole month of July Also Please come to the library all the activities all the materials that we are going to Offer are free of charge and they all the materials are bilingual English and Spanish In regards of library outreach, the previous month we were serving Aliso Elementary School, the Carpinteria Middle School and the last month we were working with Canalino Elementary School. And we received at least a couple of classroom visits from the first grade dual immersion language classrooms.
These kids were informed about the summer reading program and also they receive library cards. In regards of staff updates, the City Librarian and Literacy Coordinator attended the California Library Literacy Services New Coordinator and Library Director Conference in San Diego. A couple of days where we were able to meet other library directors in California and other literacy coordinators, exchange ideas and compare our programs.
All these activities were free of cost for us. Everything was covered through the funding provided by the Library Service and Technology Act and the California Library Association. That's it from me, thank you so much.
Thank you. Any questions from Council?
For the Teen Advisory Board, it's great that there's going to be another cycle of that. How do you do outreach to teens to get them involved? Do you go through the school district or Coastal View?
Yes we have several channels. Last time we sent some flyers to the school district to be distributed Also, during for example the movie night when we see teenagers we directly talk with them and promote the program. And also right now we are asking the teenagers to spread the word and also always telling the parents to send us their kids if they would like to join.
That's great. And then you had mentioned the Library Literacy Services Conference that you went to, what were some of the...were there any good neat ideas or best practices that you saw there that you didn't know before?
Yes. Our current literacy program when I started the program I followed the model of the California State Library And they were talking about the same model and we start comparing our programs. I'm very pleased to say that when we compare two largest library systems, for example they have less pairs of tutor learners than us even though we are smaller For example, right now we have 21 pairs tutors and learners. And bigger libraries they don't even reach 10 pairs. They were at the end where they were asking us how we do it and what was the secret to be able to I mean have all this success?
Maybe the main reason of our success is that the learners were able to come to the library, they have the confidence to speak with me especially because they are people who are learning English and English is their second language. The same situation that I experienced myself So with my life experience, they were able to see themselves in me and reflect. And be confident that there is a person who understand them and will work and put all the energy to help them have them as the center of their program instead of having the library to be highlighted I want to highlight them because that's the purpose of our library to have the community in our heart
Great, thank you very much.
You're welcome.
Any other questions? Seeing no questions I will open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via Zoom?
We have no Zoom comment.
I will close public comment and bring it back to the council for a motion.
I'll move to receive and file the Carpinteria Community Library report. Second.
We have a first and second all those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. Motion passes. We will now
move on to item number six which is new business and discussion. Do we have any topics from Council members? And last item is the adjournment. Thank you Mr. Castro, thank you Eric for your report. We will now reconvene the regular meeting of the City Council and we will begin with the city manager's report
Thank you, Mayor, Council and community members. So as always I'll just remind people that I don't go over every single item in the City Manager's Report and encourage people to read that in its entirety and there's also some helpful links. Also noting one item that didn't make the City Manager's Report because it was the event Printing of this report somewhat overlapped, but we had a town hall here in council chambers last Thursday where we reviewed city's financial position and then We broke for questions and answers all the various Departments had tables outside. And so people could go up to those departments and ask questions. I know that Public works took quite a few service requests. So it was also in-person service requests that took place And so it went really well from my understanding was well received and I always am not the best at estimating numbers, but 30 to 40 some odd people.
I think here would be about right regarding recruitments. So we are Screening applications for our chief building inspector plans examiner position. We are still accepting applications for our facilities attendant position, and these are people that work at Vets Hall and help us with rentals. And we also have our pending interviews for a part-time recreation leader.
With that I will turn it over to our community development director Nick Bobroff to give some updates on development applications.
0:40 – 0:4910 turns
Thank you, Michael. Good evening Mayor Alarcon, Council Members. I've got just a couple updates for you this evening. I wanted to start out with an update on the proposed farm project located next door on Bluffs 1 at the Teatime property. Address there is 5885 Carpinteria Avenue As you may recall, we recently hired Environmental Science Associates otherwise known as ESA to help the city in preparing an environmental impact report or EIR for the residential project and we're just getting started on that process.
And so this Thursday June 11th will be publishing kind of the official kickoff of the EIR process which is called a notice of preparation or NOP, and this serves as a formal request for public input on the scope and content to be covered in that EIR. The NOP comment period will run for 30 days and it'll end on Friday July 10th. During that 30-day comment period, we'll be soliciting feedback from members of the public and from governmental agencies related to the proposed project's potential environmental issues, suggested mitigation measures as well as project alternatives that should be considered in the EIR.
During that 30 day comment period, we will also be holding a public scoping meeting That meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 30th at 5.30 p.m., here in the Council Chambers. We'll also be broadcasting that live on Zoom and the purpose of that meeting is to give the public a chance to ask clarifying questions about the project and or the review process as well as to provide verbal feedback to staff and the ESA consultant team on issues related to potential environmental effects that they would like us to take a look at.
So again, kind of the important dates here are June 11th to July 10th for the 30-day comment period The public scoping meeting in the council chambers here on Tuesday, June 30th at 530 p.m And as always we will have the notice of preparation and all related project materials on our city website It's super easy to find if you can get to the home page Just scroll all the way down to the bottom of the screen and click on the tile here labeled The Farm Project.
And by Thursday morning, if not sooner, we will have the Notice of Preparation up here available for folks to click on and read. And they can also sign up for our Interested Parties list through this page. Moving on, I also wanted to give just a brief update on the Chevron decommissioning project. So beginning next week, Chevron will begin to mobilize for the offshore portion of the decommissioning work So what that means is starting on or about June 15th, a barge will leave the Port of Long Beach and start its way up here. And probably midweek to later next week they'll start to set up that barge off of Tar Pits Park here to begin removal of some of the offshore segments of the pipelines They'll be working in nearshore waters, but not yet going all the way onto the Sandy Beach and then working their way out to the three-mile state waters limit offshore to remove those defunct pipelines.
So with that, the public may see increased vessel activity and perhaps some diver activity off of Tar Pits Park for the next few months. All work that occurs will implement required mitigation and monitoring measures to make sure that impacts to marine ecosystems and marine wildlife are minimized, and that includes to marine mammals. And then later, probably next year or excuse me later this year, the work in the near shore waters and up to the pipeline segments crossing the Sandy Beach is likely to take place.
And then finally, I just wanted to mention again with Richard Johnson's retirement from the Architecture Review Board. We do have a vacancy on the ARB So if you are a design professional or have more than a passing interest in architecture and design we're interested in hearing from you and would encourage you to apply to join our Architecture Review Board and that's it for my items unless you have any questions for me
In terms of the public scoping meeting for the farm project, I know I asked a similar question at the last meeting but could you give examples of maybe some of the types of feedback that would be most helpful for residents to bring when they come? Because I saw in the report that this meeting there's not going to be any project decisions or anything like that made. But just so people can know what types of comments would be helpful
Through the mayor, Vice Mayor Solorzano I'd be happy to. Yeah so for the purposes of this particular step in the process to your point we're not really looking for comments along the lines of whether someone likes the project or doesn't like the project what would be more valuable at this stage are the types of environmental concerns or impacts that folks are worried about or that they want us to take a look into as part of the environmental impact report.
If they have suggestions for project alternatives, scaled-down versions of a project, those are welcomed as well, as well as possible strategies for addressing or minimizing any potential environmental effects that may result from the project. And so really these can run kind of the spectrum specificity or generality, right? So it could be as simple as something like hey I'm concerned about traffic or I'm concerned about impacts to wildlife. Maybe we have some avid bird watchers who say hey I know that there's a sensitive bird that nests in these particular trees or what-have-you right so we will welcome all that feedback and we'll look into it and it all gets incorporated into the EIR.
Perfect thank you very much for clarifying that.
I feel like I've asked a version of this question also, but just for clarification because it does in the report it says that attendees will have the opportunity to ask clarifying questions about the project and or the process and raise issues. So my question is who will be answering those questions? Is this going to be a city staff speaking about the project or is the EIR The people that we awarded the contract to coming to speak to it, or will the proposed developer be here?
Councilmember mayor, we will have city staff that are assigned to this project present as well as one or two members from the ESA consulting team So between our technical experts on the consultant team and city staff. We should be able to answer any questions about the project and the process we may also have a representative from the project here but At this time, we're not planning on giving them a kind of an active speaking role in the presentation.
Thanks so much.
And then just to follow up on the scoping meeting I can imagine it'll be of great interest to a lot of members in the community how will we be advertising this meeting?
Mayor Alarcon, we are sending out mail notices to property owners and occupants within a certain radius of the property. We're also sending out an email blast to anybody who has signed up for our interested parties list for this particular project We are advertising the scoping period and the scoping meeting in the Coastal View News. We also have it up on the website It's also posted at the County Hall of Records And on the state CEQA portal And we'll be leveraging our relationship with Two Trumpets to help get the word out there on social media
Thank you, appreciate it Any other questions? No questions
0:49 – 0:5510 turns
And before I turn it over to Jeanette, I will also point to Nick reminded me we had a lot of requests for the slides that were shown at the town hall. So if you actually go to let's see if I can do this right City Hall City Council and then there is a community feedback section. You can go right there and right in that yellow button takes you to all the slides that we showed And if you would like the narrated version, I'm happy to see Lions Club here. Happy to do presentations to any clubs, any groups and in fact have a presentation on the 11th for Noontime Rotary to go over this presentation and so we just encourage anyone who's interested open to invites Deborah Doria who works at the front of our office does all of meeting requests for me and you just contact her and she'll get you set up.
So wanted to mention that And so before I turn it over, just real quick on our Fix-It Fair. I'm not going to go into too much. The team who handled this, our environmental sustainability team did a full impact report and they with your blessing would love to come and present that to city council at our next meeting. So I'll just touch on it in brief and won't steal their thunder but the event attracted 100 participants It was supported by 17 local volunteers and some staff members.
And repair specialists assisted residents with a wide variety of items including appliances, electronics, lamps, knife sharpening, clothing, bicycles, copying keys and lock repairing those sorts of things. And so of the 105 repair attempts you had to come in and 98 were successfully repaired. Three were diagnosed to maybe they didn't have the, if you didn't have for like a bike you had to have the part there and if you didn't have the part they let you know which one you needed and where to go.
And only four could not be repaired so really happy to report that and I will let them come and see you all at your next meeting expand upon that So with that, I'll turn it over to Jeanette Gann our Park Recreation and Community Services Director to talk on all things community oriented.
Thank you. Good evening, Mayor, Vice-Mayor and Council. The Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department remains as busy as ever and we're heading into an even busier season with summer starting next Monday at June 15th. I have a few updates for you all this evening. Agewell's June lecture series will feature presentation from Santa Barbara MTD on its new WAVE service On Thursday, June 18th at 1 p.m., in the Veterans Memorial Building meeting room, Age Well participants can learn how this on-demand microtransit service is changing the way people travel throughout the community and when it's expected to become available in Carpinteria.
Staff has also relaunched our Doggy Pots sponsorship program, which allows individuals, families and organizations to sponsor a pet waste bag dispenser station in our parks and along our trails. To date 18 of the city's 31 stations have been sponsored with five additional sponsorships pending. And anyone interested in sponsoring a station can contact us at recreation at carpentriaca.gov In coordination with Public Works, staff has submitted the development plan application for the final design of the permanent Monta Vista Dog Park. In the meantime, the temporary use permit for the existing dog park has been renewed for an additional year while the project moves through the development review process.
Our summer adult co-ed softball league is now underway. We have 13 teams registered, including one new team for this season. Four teams compete on Tuesdays and nine teams compete on Thursdays and all the games are at Viola Fields. The aquatics team, again with the assistance of Public Works installed the swim platforms at Carpinteria Beach on June 1st. The platforms will remain in place throughout the summer and are tentatively scheduled for removal on September 8th which is following the Labor Day weekend. Beachgoers and swimmers are reminded to swim only if they are strong and confident swimmers, to follow all lifeguard directions and to use the platforms responsibly.
And we are excited to announce the launch of Carp Beach Nights, a weekly community event held every Tuesday evening throughout summer. Check-in begins at 530 p.m. at Ash Avenue with the swim starting promptly at 6 p. m., and participants can choose to swim a distance of 500 yards, 1,000 yards or one mile and may also participate in a one or two mile beach run. All activities are conducted under the supervision of city lifeguards And the cost is $15 per participant.
And that concludes my report, I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.
Questions from Council?
Just a quick question in terms of the dog park, the Monta Vista Dog Park what would the next steps be in that whole process?
Yes through the Mayor, Vice-Mayor Solorzano the next step is taking the design to the Architecture Review Board ARB it is tentatively scheduled to go in front of ARB in July. I can follow up with the exact date for you all.
Thank you.
All right, no other questions?
Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. And I'll just note that the SWIM platforms shattered all social media records for engagement for the city. There were 540 likes and over 150 shares about our SWIM platforms. So congrats to that team and excitement around that. That concludes my report.
Great, thank you. With no other questions I will open up public comment and we have a few slips coming my way.
Patrick O'Connor welcome
0:55 – 1:0016 turns
Thank you, Mayor and Council and staff. I wanted to make a comment about the Farm Project and forgive my persistence. And I have missed a couple of meetings but I did bring up a couple of meetings ago with the idea about consolidating ARB and Planning Commission reviews because of the out-of-sequence nature of the EIR So I'd like to see where that stands also curious with the EIR starting in the NLP It's not clear what the baseline Configuration of this project is and if there's one established. How are we?
Affecting it. We haven't had a conceptual review. We haven't had anything published that I'm aware of so just a couple thoughts about farm
Thank you for your comments. I do not have any other speaker slips. Do we have anyone via zoom?
Mayor, we have no raised hands
I was going to ask that same question that Mr. O'Connor asked regarding what is the baseline project that we were looking at? Is it what we've seen, which is this conceptual
Concept of the farm project. Is that what the EIR is based on? Is this sort of max massed project That's on the website, that's what they're that's the baseline
through the mayor councilmember mayor, that's correct So the quote-unquote proposed project is what was turned in in the original project application sets the 191 units roughly split evenly between single family residences and townhomes The written project description as well as now the proposed full set of plans are on the city website. If you click on that same button on the homepage for the farm residences project, you can see the current proposed projects.
That project will be evaluated in the EIR. We will also evaluate, as we're required to under CEQA or the California Environmental Quality Act a no-project alternative which would be right kind of evaluating the existing conditions on the ground out there continuing into the future and then we will also evaluate several reduced alternatives that will fall somewhere in between those two bookends if you will.
Thank You
This question for staff to Nick on the report or the comment that we got from Patrick is The architecture review board and the Planning Commission aware of the new policy in public hearings. We are only allowed three Is that something that's been presented to them and maybe have the lead or the groups? Actually come together to figure out what the most effect effective and efficient way is for that to happen
Through the mayor councilmember Nomura, the the limit under state housing law is a maximum of five hearings and we have advised all of our decision-making bodies of these rules and We're working closely with the city attorney's office to you know kind of see what our options are in terms of sequencing of how we hold those hearings and What makes the most sense for? You know getting A I guess what makes the most sense for providing a logical sequencing given these constraints, right? Knowing that we have limits on how many hearings we have. We want to make sure we're using them in the best way possible.
Is there something that the staff is going to actually script out or is it going to be on a case-by-case?
I think it's on a case-by-case basis for each project and given the types of issues that we have or that we're looking at. So, right some projects if they appear to be more straightforward in terms of aesthetics or design maybe we don't want to spend a lot of time on those projects with the Architecture Review Board and we instead want to you know move on first to the Planning Commission. I think we have some Some discretion here, we don't want to deviate wildly from our standard review process. But we do need to take into account this limitation and use our five hearings wisely.
And then Patrick did bring up also another good point and that is at the ARB, Architecture Review Board is actually an advisory. They aren't decision-making people so seems like it may be something you want to combine as he said to make sure that we have that done in conjunction with Planning Commission.
Again we're evaluating this with our legal counsel to see if that's an option.
And just because of the five meetings came up I want to confirm that this public scoping meeting is not one of the five meetings?
Councilmember Mayer, that's correct. Anything to do with the CEQA process or the environmental review process does not count towards that five hearing limit
Thank you
1:00 – 1:0810 turns
No other questions from council thank you for your for the report we will now move on to planning commission actions
Thank you, Mayor. I think this is me as well. So last Monday June 1st our Planning Commission had three items on their agenda. The first item was a continued hearing of a proposed Verizon Wireless telecommunications facility that currently is proposed at 912 Linden Avenue. This is the building where Sushi Terry and Pacific Health Foods and a couple other tenants are located This item, the applicant requested a continuance for this item ahead of the meeting and asked that this item be pushed off until December 7th to give Verizon additional time to evaluate alternative locations where this facility might be able to be located.
And the Planning Commission agreed with that request and unanimously granted that continuance to allow Verizon that additional time. The second item on the agenda was the Surf Cottages condominium project proposed for 4716 7th Street. This project included a request for a development plan and a coastal development permit to remodel and add on a second story and new garage to an existing single family dwelling, and then to also construct two new two-story buildings or excuse me one building but two units, two new two-story units with attached garages on the same property, and effectively creating a three-unit condominium project.
So that project was approved unanimously by the Planning Commission with just a minor change to one of the project conditions of approval related to flood zone requirements basically saying that if something changes with the flood zone requirements that would affect the overall design of the project that the project we need to come back to the Planning Commission for further review And then the third item on the agenda was the proposed new Kohler residence at 333 Linden Avenue.
This was also a request for a development plan and coastal development permit along with a lot line adjustment. Questions from Council?
Okay, no questions. I will open up public comment for this item. I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via Zoom?
Mayor, we have no Zoom comment.
I will close public comment and
the next item on our agenda is public comment on matters not on the agenda and we will start with Annie Sly. Welcome.
Good evening. Thank you. None of you must be from New York as we're missing the Nick game, but Referring to the project that was approved on Linden at the last Planning Commission meeting that house was Came before the planning commission at a previous meeting and it was approved with the condition That the driveway was moved From Linden to the side street because they thought that having the driveway on this on Linden was a safety issue so if having a driveway for a residence On Linden as a safety issue, what about the driveway that's proposed for proposed city parking lot number four?
Because entry and exit for that proposed parking lot is also on Linden. And it is also closer to the railroad tracks so we have safety risk for a residence that didn't allow the project to be approved, and we're proposing City Parking Lot 4 with the same safety issue only it is much, much bigger. There'd be many, many more cars and it's near the railroad crossing so if this comes before you for a vote I, the Surfliner, I certainly hope that you take that into very serious consideration Thank you.
Thank you for your comments. Rogelio Delgado?
Thank you, Rogelio Delgado Carpinteria and residents. I have seven points. Number one, I see a city government, city council in need of the community The increase of sales tax 9% to 9.25%, if it comes to that. Number two, I see the need for the community to support the sales tax because that sales tax would come back to the people how? Sidewalks repairs Street repairs, landscaping services.
It's all in the benefit of the community. Now imagine if what will happen if it doesn't pass? That community would suffer. Number four, misconception. City government is solid, wealthy. No need for that because they get property tax, sales tax, grants, occupancy tax. That's a misconception because the city has high landscaping services not adjusted Number two, inflation. Number three, the sheriff's contract taking a huge part of the city's budget every year.
The city budget should be solid good for the benefit of the community. Point number six, I see the need for the community to show up for City Council meetings on a regular basis because if you show up Once per quarter, you don't have an actual image of the budget or the expenses. The YouTube City Council views, if you check them, they're low, very low. 50, 70 views? That's way too low.
The school board triples that amount, yes. 3% amount. 7. I see the need for the city and the community to work as a team, to move forward and support each other on the budget and on the proposed sales tax increase if it comes to that on the November ballot. It's for your own benefit. You will get that back on city services. Thank you.
Thank you for your comments. We do not have any other speaker slips? Do we? Yes, welcome.
1:08 – 1:1831 turns
Good evening Mayor Alec Cohn and fellow City Council members. My name is David Heyman, I'm here representing the Carpinteria Lions Club with my fellow Lions who have obviously really wanted to go in the NBA game as well. For more than 40 years the Lions Club has been hosting blood drives throughout Carpinteria and typically we gain about a hundred pints of blood which equates about 300 lives that we save And this year, I'm respectfully asking or requesting the city's donation and support for the Carpinteria Veteran Memorial Building to be used three times a year for a blood drive at no cost. And the reason why this is a phenomenal location is it's downtown, represents the city as well as it has key location for accessibility parking and also the community at large around it.
We're also partnering with other local organizations, my fellow Rotary is here as well and I'm working...I always work with other organizations to make sure that we expand as much as possible to let the community know about the blood drives that we run And so really what I'm asking of you is a very simple request, is kind of providing a space where our community can donate and also really create that partnership between us and you and the city to continue and expand our blood drive even further.
Thank you for your comments. Do we have any other speaker slips?
Mayor, we do not.
Do we have anyone via Zoom?
We have no raised hands.
I will close public comment and bring it back to the council
Yes, that last time that Dave presented I think is a pretty interesting one I would support possibly putting that on the future agenda Maybe as soon as possible just to see if in fact we could accommodate their request.
I'm happy to support that Looks like everyone else's
And I know they have a deadline time so sooner the better if that's possible at staff
We will now
move on to the next item on our agenda which is the consent calendar.
I move to receive and file the Warrant Register for the period of May 18, 2026 through May 29, 2026 pursuant to the Carpinteria Municipal Code Section 2.08.150F to receive and file the Monthly City Treasurer's Report on Compliance with Statement of Safekeeping and Investment of Public Funds for April 2026 To direct staff to review the City of Carpinteria's Conflict of Interest Code and prepare any necessary updates.
And, to authorize the Mayor to sign the cooperative agreement with the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments for Carpinteria Circulation Improvement Funds.
Second before I ask for a roll call vote. I'll just open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips Do we have anyone via zoom for this item?
I'm here We have no raised hands.
So I will close public comment Like I mentioned we have a first and a second so I'll request a roll call vote, please
Roll-call vote Passed 3–0 · 1 under review
Show transcript
Excellent
We will now move on to administrative matters, item number 13 which is letter of support for the encampment resolution funding round five application submitted by the County of Santa Barbara.
Mayor, I'll take this item. Make it very brief. So the County of Santa Barbara has requested a letter of support for its Encampment Resolution Fund Round 5 application. The funding would support ongoing efforts to address homeless encampments and transition unhoused individuals into interim Permanent housing and provide needed services Approval of the letter does not commit the city to any financial obligation or future operational obligations The request is consistent with the city's ongoing partnership with the county in support for homelessness programs And that concludes my presentation
Excellent. Thank you any questions from council? Okay, no questions. I will open up public comment on this item. I do not have any speaker slips Do we have anyone via zoom
and mayor? We have no zoom comment
Close public comment bring it back to the council for a motion
I'll move to authorize the mayor to sign the cooperative agreement with the Santa Barbara County Association of governments for Carpinteria circulation improvement funds
Second we have a first in a second all those in favor. Aye any opposed none motion passes We will now
move on to item number 14 Which is resolution number six four eight two approving the application for encampment resolution funding round five grant funds
Yes, Mayor. Thank you, Council and community members. So we have a similar request for perhaps requesting for funds on behalf of the city. Nick Bobroff will be here to answer any technical questions that you have. Dignity Moves is here to give a presentation but before that Assistant City Manager Ryan Kintz is joining us remotely and just has a couple of lead-in remarks before we begin that presentation so Ryan take it away
Great. Thank you so much, Michael and I'm going to be a little bit longer than Brian because this is a project specific to the city of Carpinteria. So good evening Mayor and council members it's great to see you all. The item before you tonight is a request to adopt resolution number 6482. This authorized the city to apply for encampment resolution funding round five grant funds similar County through the California Department of Housing and Community Development. So the encampment resolution funding program or ERF program, it provides competitive grant funding to assist local jurisdictions in addressing homelessness encampments through outreach.
Supportive services, interim housing, permanent housing placement and other related activities. So round five of the program includes approximately $93 million in funding available statewide. And applications are currently being accepted through June 30th so we're moving pretty fast here to get an application in. Over the past several years, City Council and city staff have had discussions with Dignity Moves and other regional partners regarding opportunities to expand homelessness response resources within the City of Carpinteria.
Most recently, Dignity Moves did inform the City of this funding opportunity and they expressed interest in partnering with the City should a future project opportunity be identified. And we have a few in mind but this is a preliminary application and more information will be brought later to the Council Once we get more information about getting awarded for this grant. So I do want to emphasize that the action before the council tonight is limited to authorizing just the submission of this grant similar to what the county's doing, although they were asking for a letter of support. So we'll be submitting this application with dignity moves and this proposed action does not approve a specific project.
Any project site, it does not authorize construction of any facility. It does not commit any city funds and it does not obligate the city to accept grant funding so I want to make that crystal clear this is simply authorization to apply for the grant. Rather staff is really looking for successfully obtaining this grant funding. And if we do, we'll return to the city council with a proposed implementation plan and all relevant information regarding the project scope site considerations, environmental review requirements, operational commitments, financial impacts to the city and any required city actions before any grant funds are accepted or expended. Way before they're expended!
So staff is available for questions tonight and we're lucky enough to have the representatives of Dignity Moves here with you all tonight in person Should the council have any questions regarding their organization or the funding opportunity. So that concludes our presentation and we recommend the adoption of this resolution to direct staff to return, and to apply for the grant, and to direct staff to return with a proposed grant acceptance and implementation plan should the funding be awarded. And that concludes our presentation
Thank you for your presentation. Any questions from Council?
Yeah, question maybe for Dignity Moves. So if we were ultimately successful in securing these funds what general types of activities or programming here in CARP would be impacted knowing that nothing is set in stone but what are some of them?
Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Council for allowing us to make this presentation. We would be looking at either interim or permanent supportive housing and the services. This NOFA actually provides funding for construction as well as two years of services. We have been working really hard with philanthropy. We have $2 million in philanthropy committed from local family foundations that is my hope would actually augment funding of construction and hopefully extension of services for more than two years.
It would be construction and wraparound services for approximately 25 residents, which is what we believe are unhoused in Carp right now.
And so this would be a partnership between the City and Dignity Moves going forward?
Yes.
1:18 – 1:4223 turns
No, that's great. This is a great opportunity for that I just wanted to flesh it
out and we have three other villages if there's anybody who hasn't seen any of our villages here in Santa Barbara We'd love to give you the opportunity to take a tour So we're really excited about this one We've been working really hard for a few years to finally find sites and it looks like we might have one finally
Wonderful. Thank you so much
Yes, sir
You mentioned Interim or permanent, and it seems to me permanent is much better. What do we need to do to get it to that level?
It's part, we're going to have to figure out the cost. It's more of a cost and a location depending upon what the landowner where there are two or three landowners that have expressed very strong interest in helping us and it depends upon what their flexibility will be. It would certainly be our hope to do permanent but if we can get the 25 people off the streets for 3-4 years and then get some permanent housing that would be really awesome too.
Yeah, this is a question actually for staff. Ryan on the program itself when we apply for this grant Is that money actually gonna be pooled or will it be specific to Carpinteria? Asking because will there be some county coordination state coordination and whether they speak exclusively for the city of Carpinteria
Councilmember Nomura through the mayor. That's a really good question You know, it really depends on the final project scope and we're in the early phases of this right now. So it depends on where the site is located, whether we coordinate with the county on an outside site that's close to the jurisdiction of the city or whether it's within the city. So at this point, it's a little premature to give an answer to that but it'll just depend on the final project scope. And we'll be coming back to the council with more information once we submit this grant and whether or not we're awarded, and we can provide a clear answer to that question when we come back should we be awarded. And hopefully we are. We'll see how it goes.
Sounds good Ryan. That was the right answer I just wanted to make sure it wasn't restricted. Thank you.
Any other questions? Okay no other questions. Great. I will open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via zoom? Mayor
we have
no raised hands. I will close public comment bring it back to the council for a motion
I'll move to adopt a resolution number 6482 and direct staff to return to the City Council with the proposed grant acceptance and project implementation plan should funding be awarded. Second.
We have a first and multiple seconds, um, and I will ask for a roll call vote please.
Roll-call vote Passed 5–0
Show transcript
Item number 15, which is public hearing on city workforce vacancies and recruitment retention efforts pursuant to government code section 3502.3 AB2561 compliance.
Good evening, Mayor, members of the City Council and the public. My name is Theresa Elassine. I'm the Management Analyst 2 in the Human Resources Division. I am presenting this report to you tonight and this report is presented to be in compliance with Government Code Section 3502.3 which was added through Assembly Bill 2561. The law requires public agencies to conduct an annual Public hearing prior to budget adoption and tonight before you is our budget for the fiscal year 26 27 So that's why we are here tonight on this This item And we're supposed to provide this hearing regarding our workforce vacancies recruitment and retention efforts and any obstacles to to hiring.
AB2561 was enacted in response to workforce shortages experienced by public agencies throughout California, and this was primarily after COVID-19 pandemic many public agencies were having challenges in recruitment efforts Retaining employees and so this assembly bill came forward So that there would be more transparency in discussions as to why those vacancies did exist The city currently has just one bargaining unit employees that are represented by a CIU service employees international unit We have seven employees that are represented by that bargaining unit And the bargaining in our vacancies do not meet the 20% vacancy threshold established by AB2561. And when you do have that 20% vacancy threshold, then there's additional reporting requirements that you need to meet.
Let's see. The city has 43 full-time positions as of June 1st, we had one full time vacancy the chief building inspector plans examiner position that position currently is in the recruitment process and we also are recruiting actively for two part-time positions our facilities attendant and recreation leader for a summer reading program those positions are not represented by SEIU The city's average time to fill positions is approximately 60 to 90 days.
When we do a recruitment, we use various media, our city's website, social media, the city's social media, governmentjobscom which is very common site that candidates go to for public agency positions, LinkedIn and depending on the position, we might do some additional targeted recruitment Like professional organizations, for instance a chief building inspector we did do some targeted recruitment.
There were two associations that are common for individuals looking for that type of position so we did some recruitment in those organizations. Some key initiatives we do try to support our efforts include updating our salary schedules. Again, tonight that is going to be before you. We try to do enhancements to our benefits. We provide ongoing leadership and development training but we do face some challenges for example we're competing with neighboring agencies that have more competitive salaries Some recruitments are more difficult to attract applicants, so we have smaller applicant pools and also the cost of living. It's a higher cost of living here especially to live in Carpinteria So we're having to try to pull from Ventura and further out so it is difficult so we have to try to find ways to attract those candidates And that's not unique to our agency and these challenges are faced All agencies are having these challenges recruiting.
We have competing cities, higher salaries and so it's hard to try to compete with those agencies but we continue our efforts to try to attract candidates and we're going to continue monitoring the trends. We did reach out to SEIU and they are not going to speak tonight and so that concludes my report I'll be happy to answer any questions
Questions from Council? No questions. I will open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips, do we have anyone via Zoom?
I'm here, we have no zoom comment.
I will close public comment and bring it back to the council for a motion.
I move to receive and file the presentation on city workforce vacancies and recruitment and retention efforts in compliance with government code section 3502.3 which is AB2561. Second.
We have a first and second. I'll request a roll call vote please.
Roll-call vote Passed 5–0 move to receive and file the presentation on city workforce vacancies and recruitment and retention efforts in compliance with government co
Show transcript
and before we
move on to the next item which will be lengthy I'll just ask request for a 10-minute recess Welcome back to the regular Carpinteria City Council meeting. Today is June 3rd, 2026 and we will resume our meeting with item number 16 which is a mid-cycle budget report including appropriation adjustments for fiscal years 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 Setting related appropriations limits as required by state law and adopting salary schedules for fiscal year 2026-2027.
1:42 – 1:511 turns
Thank you Mayor, Council, community members. I was bragging how great our town hall must have been because the room's so empty and then Jenna reminded me about the basketball game so it's perhaps maybe yeah but for those all watching at home dual screen we're going to start off with our agenda well we'll be discussing what's the purpose and objectives of the mid-cycle We'll talk about what's included in this presentation, what's not. A quick review of the budget calendar and what it looks like for staff preparing to get to this point.
We'll talk about our funding decision framework. There's been a lot of questions about why we make certain decisions and so we did a summary of the thought process we go through in economic and financial overview I'll turn it over to Lisette to go over general fund overview, all funds overview. And then we'll finish with department heads going over their departments highlighting some of the projects that they've completed this year and that they expect to complete next year along with any budget reductions or increases that we want to highlight that are part of this mid-cycle review.
So basically the purpose of this is every six months, the city goes back and relooks at all its financials. We look at what we couldn't have imagined there would be a war that there'd be gas that would be $5 or $6 a gallon. And so all of our projections can Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. Next slide, please. So in terms of what we're covering today, we'll do a financial overview and then our budget adjustments for 25-26 and 26-27. Some of the percentages may look weird in this staff report as people think about You know, the share of contract for example and maybe they see a percentage of it increased by 0.9% and they'll say I've heard over and over is 5.28 well this report is about adjustments over what we projected this to be so it's only about we assumed it would be this number and here is the percentage plus or minus what we assumed it's not a year-over-year increase like we cover in some other reports And then items that we previously discussed, that we want to point people to that relate to tonight is our master fee schedule.
You can find that in our April 27th council meeting the capital improvements budget which we went over on May 26 and then things related to the sales tax sample ballot language. We also went over that on the 26th and look forward to bringing that back to your council on the 22nd of this month. This is just a quick review of the budget calendar. So it starts off with department requests, there's some revenue forecasting and we do that with HDL I mentioned before, the internal review.
We meet with the finance committee prior to coming to your council and then of course if it's approved city council adoption and then we start back to budget monitoring in at all, the whole cycle begins again. In terms of our funding decision framework, so the first thing we do is this activity required by law related to regulations. Those are definitely things that we take into account. Does this align with our strategic plan? Sometimes new things emerge.
As has happened in recent years, what is the impact that the reduction could have on community services? I give the example of we reduce services on closing bathrooms to save money and then the bathrooms get vandalized and it costs us more money to repair the bathrooms. And so we're always looking at whether there are true cost savings or not. Can the work be performed more efficiently?
Because we were so behind technologically, a lot of this has to do with us finding strategic ways to implement technology to do more with our limited staff. We always consider as contracts expire or staff retire or vacancies come up is it still better to do this thing in-house or is it better to outsource? So we always consider that. And then finally, financial sustainability. This has been a big thing that's come up recently. Did the city consider what the ongoing costs of the pool would be of all the park maintenance? And so moving forward we know your council and staff included is always thinking about what is going to be the cost of our decision today 10 years from now.
Next slide, please. So economic overview so the structural deficit still remains the city's biggest challenge public safety is sort of at the core of that it's you'll see in later slides it's just The amount of public safety in relation to our revenues and its growth percentage that is leading to that structural deficit. Salary and benefit costs also remain one of the city's largest costs when you look at our budget, you'll see those are the two biggest numbers unlike other cities that have You know, fire trucks and police vehicles and all sorts of other equipment.
Our city is a contract city which means we invest in personnel and then we manage contracts for all those various services so you're definitely going to see an investment into staff and personnel. Revenue growth is generally incremental, so we have sales tax and that's generally capped by one of two things. The amount of business that's coming into your downtown, so tourism type levels and local support.
And then the tax rate currently 9%. TOT, or transient occupancy tax is 15% here. We raised that so there is some control but we are currently leading the region now at 15%. So I think we're there for a while. So we're capped by our vacancy rates or the number of hotels that we have. And then property tax. That's somewhat limited by Prop 13, which keeps everybody's property assessment values capped at a certain rate and you can only increase by 2% each year so anybody who bought their home here back when it was $30,000 and it could be worth two-and-a-half million dollars now but that's not what the city is receiving However, when those folks sell their home and it gets reassessed we'll always see an increase in what the city's receiving in property tax.
So that's one of our stronger ones that increases about 4% or so each year but that's also limited by development and the turnover here which is limited. And then ongoing monitoring as I mentioned earlier all the various trends and what's going on in the world. A very familiar slide for people, although the numbers have changed. So the blue electric blue line on the bottom is our available fund balance when we showed you this slide back at our State of the City and we also included this in our budget and brief That number at 2627, the blue one was at 0.8 million is where we thought we would be at this time. We continue to be efficient, make reductions. The council has been very conservative with its appropriations and so you can see that the trend is still going downwards as that structural deficit that we know that we need to address but we're doing whatever we can to extend the runway while the community thinks about a solution And the green line is our revenues.
You can see that those have been and go back. are relatively flat, while the red lines which is our expenditures you can see those trending up. The bumps that you see like in 24-25 sometimes these numbers can get skewed by large projects like in that year I think it was our road maintenance rehabilitation project but overall we're looking at the trends and expenses are growing faster than revenues With that, I'm going to turn it over to Lisette to dig into some of the numbers.
1:51 – 2:014 turns
Good evening Mayor and members of the council and the public. A couple of quick reminders. This report was reviewed by the Finance Budget Committee on their meeting on June 3rd. The committee recommended forwarding the proposed appropriations to the City Council for consideration and approval Also as a reminder the city adopted its first two-year operating budget for fiscal year 25 20 25 26 and 26 27 on June 23rd 2025 Some of the attachments to this report provide the supporting detail for the mid cycle budgeting budget including a Citywide summary of all funds which is attachment 8 detailed budget amendments for fiscal year 25 26 and 26 27 as attachment B Updating staffing allocations and position changes, attachment C. Required resolutions including the GAN appropriation limit and salary schedules are attachment D.
And the capital improvement program reflecting plan infrastructure investments are attachment E. Together these materials provide a financial staffing and capital framework supporting the mid-cycle budget. Also for fiscal year 26-27, expenditures previously budgeted in the Measure X fund have been reallocated to the General Fund, Recreation Fund and other appropriate funds.
This change aligns costs with the departments actually delivering services, improves transparency and supports more accurate accounting and reporting. Affected programs include senior services, public safety, advanced planning, community service support, housing programs, emergency preparedness and resource conservation programs. As a result the Measure X fund will primarily reflect inter-fund transfers rather than direct operating expenditures going forward. This is not an accounting correction but a budgeting refinement that more clearly shows the true cost of programs and the level of Measure X subsidies supporting them.
Now for this slide summarizes general fund revenues across major tax categories over the five-year period from fiscal year 2023 at $19.3 million through fiscal year 2027 at $18.8 million. General fund revenues remain relatively stable over the forecast period, Year-to-year fluctuations are largely driven by one time revenues and development related activities such as permits, grants and reimbursements rather than changes in city's core recurring revenue sources.
Property tax, Measure X sales tax and transient occupancy tax continue to provide a stable and growing revenue base. Property tax remains the city's largest and most stable revenue source at 30.9% of total revenue, reaching approximately $5.8 million for fiscal year 2027. Sales tax and Measure X together provide a significant and stable share of discretionary revenues at 33%.
And transient occupant tax continued to moderate growth, reaching 21.8% of revenues reflecting continued tourism and Measure B impacts. Other taxes include business license taxes, franchise fees remaining relatively stable at 4.8% with a moderate varied tied to economic activity and utility usage. Other revenues include fees permits grants and interest income remain generally stable with no more fluctuations overall the city's revenue base remains diversified which supports long-term fiscal stability General fund expenditures fluctuate over forecast period, increasing from $18.0 million in fiscal year 23 to $19.3 million in proposed 2027.
Salaries and benefits representing 30.6% of total expenditures remain a key ongoing cost driver. This category increases steadily over the period reaching approximately 5.9 million in fiscal year 2027 Public safety remains the largest expenditure category at 35.8%, growing approximately at $6.9 million in fiscal year 2027, and transfers out and subsidies represent 14.5%. Varied year-to-year based on funding allocations to capital improvement projects and other supporting funds including the reallocation of Measure X related expenditures to the appropriate operating funds.
Other operating expenses account for 5.7 percent and remain relatively stable with increased drivers by routine costs such as supplies, utilities and department operations. Overall expenditures trends reflect the balanced allocation of resources across core service areas with public safety and personnel costs continue to represent the largest share of ongoing spending.
The general fund operating transfers, these are the subsidies. These revenues provide ongoing operating subsidies to the Park Maintenance Fund, Library Fund, Recreation Services Fund, Right-of-Way Assessment District, PEG Fee and Berm Assessment District fund. The total operating transfers are budgeted at approximately $2.2 million for fiscal year 2025-26 and $2,800,000 in fiscal year 2026-27 As discretionary revenues are used to support these funds, fewer resources remain available for one-time expenditures and capital improvement projects including pavement rehabilitation, roadway improvements and other infrastructure needs.
The general fund is projected to remain generally balanced through 2026-27. In 2022-23 fund balance increased by driven by primarily ARPA funds While 2024 and 26 funds drawdown reflects one-time capital investment and transfers including subsidies to other cities, City Funds 2025-26 is projected to add 0.5 million to the fund balance and fiscal year 2026-27 is projected to use approximately 0.50 million.
The Fund Balances and Policy Reserves. The City maintains several reserves in fund balances classifications to support financial stability, address unforeseen circumstances and fund future capital needs to comply with City Council adopted fiscal policies. The Fiscal Stability Reserve is projected to remain in compliance with the adopted policy targeted at 40% of the general fund expenditures and operating subsidies in both fiscal year 2025, 2026 and 26-27.
The General Reserve and Capital Asset Replacement Fund are projected to meet their respective policy requirements as a result of City Council approved funding increase during the mid cycle Budget update, however capital asset replacement reserve is projected to decline below the $1 million policy for 26-27 due to planned replacement of public works vehicles and equipment.
Improvement in services measure X fund remains available for allocation at the discretion of City Council and may be used to support council priorities and one-time expenditures. The unassigned fund balance is projected to decrease from approximately $3.5 million to $598,000 over a two year budget period. This reduction is primarily attributed to the use of fund balance to support operating subsidies for other city funds and additional allocation requirements to maintain the fiscal stability reserve at the council adopted policy level of 40% of general fund expenditures in operating subsidies.
If there's any questions on the general fund I can stop at that point. I
have a few questions or maybe just to reiterate, that was a lot it was helpful but it was a lot so just so that I'm understanding the big picture in the public also is that when we're talking about general fund revenue it's steadily increasing through TOT property tax TOT sales tax So we're seeing that steady increase. And then for fiscal year 2026 proposed and fiscal year 2027 proposed, there's a slight decline in other revenues from 1.6 to 1.2.
You did talk about that but sorry I forgot what it was specific to.
So, in other revenues are in like charges for services as well kind of went down. So a lot of the we get a lot of one-time revenues that come in and we basically reset them back to a baseline so for example charges for services um and community development uh we currently I think 550 000 But we're not counting on getting another $550,000 next year. It's more like maybe $250,000 or $300,000 that is more of a safer conservative budget versus assuming that we're going to have the same volume in the next fiscal year.
That's helpful, thank you. And then for the general fund expenditure summary public safety is clearly one of the top expenditures at 35.8% and then followed by salaries and benefits so for fiscal year 2025 actual to 2026 proposed it went from 5.2 to 5.9 if you can just share a little bit about that
2:01 – 2:1212 turns
The majority of it is the CalPERS unfunded liability that continues to grow, especially for safety between $200,000 and $300,000 a year as well. And so for the miscellaneous employees and for the safety, the original public safety from 1998, we continue paying into that unfunded liability and it continues to grow.
Mayor I'll just also add, I believe we the city added additional position that's offset by our AB 939 solid waste fees so you'll see an increase in the salaries and benefits that you'd have to see side-by-side with the revenues to see that was offset.
Perfect. And then just my final question, for the fund balances and policy reserves there's a handful that are not applicable should the city be putting policies in for these NA or is that not typical?
Out of curiosity. So this is part of a GASB 54 that got I think implemented General yes, the Gatsby from the general oh my god
It's the Government Accounting Standards Board that we have to follow their rules. It's part of how the city gets awarded certain, you know, accolades at the end of our budget because certain budgets by their standards have to have certain characteristics and this is one of them so our pension trust is something that we set up ourselves and so it doesn't A policy other than it's limited to use for when we need to support the pension trust. And then of course, our available fund balance is really more dictated by other factors and so we don't have a set amount for that. We do have one and the biggest one that's been up conversation is that fiscal stability reserve. And so you see from 26 to 27 that it jumps from 5.8 million to really 6.8 million.
So that's a large increase That's due in part to what Lissette mentioned earlier, where we are taking things and putting them in their appropriate funds. For example – and not to say they were inappropriate before – but when Measure X passed the thought process is we want everyone to see what's getting paid for by Measure X. But that thing that Measure X may be paying for might be something that's a recreation fund item or it might be a library services fund item.
So rather than having it in Measure X, we took that and we put it into the correct fund. And you'll see Measure X now doing transfers in to cover those subsidies but we wanted people to see that whole number of what these subsidies are costing us when if they're spread across multiple funds It's difficult to see that. Now, when you take those monies and from those other accounts and you put them into the general fund where our fiscal stability reserve policy is based on operations plus subsidies and transfers, now you put all that money in there it just upped the amount that we have to have in our fiscal stability reserve. So we'll come back to your council at some point and look at, now that we've done that, whether the 40% is something the Council still wants to maintain.
Which is really based on the number of months we want to be able to operate in case there's an emergency or whether we feel like we can scale back to a lower percentage based on this new way that we're organizing the funds.
Perfect, thank you. I have a related question so in terms of subsidies some of the feedback we hear what we might see online sometimes from residences at that the city should just try to spend less right? So what would it look like if What would residents notice if we didn't continue using General Fund and Measure X to subsidize some of these other parts of the budget like what would it look like to somebody living here in Carp?
All right, thank you. Vice Mayor and through the mayor can you go back to this slide? The one that I have on my screen. So this will help explain that somewhat. So if the city started to cut back on its subsidies to help balance that or deal with that structural deficit, so you can see here in fiscal year 26 we made a number of reductions, efficiencies and various things and we are able to actually have a fund balance increase of half a million dollars Next year, without doing much of anything we go from plus five million to five million now where we're using half a million of our fund balance and that's because 33 percent of that is simply the increase in the share of costs. There is of course adjustments for CPI to contracts and salaries and a number of things so I think What people would first see is a reduction in that service if they decided to, you know, limit some sort of program or get rid of a program or lower maintenance levels for landscaping.
They would see that and then what they would see the next year is that no longer is enough. And they would think that we had solved our problem and then the next year you would have to cut another program and lower another service. And so I think that's the biggest thing people would see, and that they need to understand that yes, we can do those things absolutely, and we have done that this fiscal year. It extends our runway to deal with the problem but it does not get rid of the problem itself.
And so that's why I mean we want to be able to talk about the difference between having a current sustainable budget or a current healthy budget, but not necessarily. That doesn't mean long-term fiscal sustainability like those are two different things that we're looking at
Yes, Vice Mayor. You know there are people as a city manager I won't say who but has a budget that is has no they're not using any available fund balance they're stable they looked at our books and thought that they looked better than theirs because he had no you know fiscal uncertainty you know budgets and all those various things so we this council and his staff have done a lot to make sure that if something were to happen to the city we would be prepared.
There's other areas where we didn't do as well, we didn't have a pool maintenance budget for when the pool went and so I don't want to make it sound like we did everything right but we did some things really well and other things that we're working to improve Ultimately though, yes we are in a place now where we can actually make decisions that are well thought in advance and really think these things through. We're not at that cliff but we want to make those changes now. We don't want to get to the point to where we're having to be very reactionary and so that's why we really are trying to hammer home the importance of this structural deficit because the trends Already very clear.
And then my last question for right now is, we touched a little on the sheriff contract and I know that I've heard from some people in the community they've been seeing the news articles about Solvang and Bealton considering pulling out of that contract once it expires. And contracting I think with Lompoc PD. Is that something that would affect either our contract going forward with the sheriffs or with the level of service we get? Is there any sense of how that would impact us?
Vice Mayor through the mayor, that's a great question. I thought asked myself the same thing when i saw the story come out. I know that Solvang is seriously looking at it they actually went to their council. I know that Buellton is exploring it a little bit more. Lompoc does have you know a SWAT team they do have their own dispatch so they're full service right for the most part And right now, you know I talked to that city manager. They're taking on solving I think has one current officer right now one motor so they're looking to kind of step into that realm of taking on other cities there are some really important differences and I hate to speak for them but I do know that in some cases they're not really looking at Savings but increased service level so they might pay the same amount, but they might get much more service So we're gonna have to look and see where that goes.
I don't want to say that that's a certainty Maybe they will have a reduction Trying to think of some other differences there And also, of course I want to point out that I did talk to the city manager and I think the first question is, is that something that's available to us? Of course they're wanting to take baby steps here and see how that goes. We are, we will have an opportunity to negotiate the end of this year and then there's three one-year extensions where the city could perhaps extend for one year and watch and see what's happening. I also re-inquired with the City of Santa Barbara about that so we're Considering all our options in terms of how it helps us service wise. It's really hard to tell so if they're just if it's they only have one motor officer there doesn't really do a lot to Lower overtime throughout the whole county built-in I think doesn't have many more maybe one or two And and so we'll have to really wait and see how all that plays out to know what position it puts the city in
No, I appreciate that. I know that other folks in town have been reading those stories and wondering and the questions might be coming up more so thanks for giving that context. Appreciate it.
2:12 – 2:174 turns
Can you explain a little bit the difference between the CalPERS unfunded liability and our pension liability based on like legacy police officers? Is that together? No. Is it the same number?
So, with our current payroll as we process payroll there's a contribution to the current employees that are here. And that percentage has been stable actually went slightly down this year compared last year but the unfunded liability part of the since the city has started and all the employees that have worked in the city we were liable for a portion So whatever years people have worked in the city, we're always going to be responsible for a portion of those expenses. And depending on how the employee uses their retirement, it could lead... If the employee passes away, it could pass to the spouse, it could pass to the kids. It depends on what they elected one day.
That's the part that is the unfunded portion that is recalculated every year from CalPERS and when we get a new statement.
There's also investments and CalPERS has projections on how their investments are going to do. And so if they're investments underperform or over perform, like I think recently they over performed and things lag and we'll see a dip and then if they you know underperformed then we'll see that gap increases again. Partially or probably no, the primary reason why we set up that pension trust fund so that when we do have those spikes that the pension trust fund could come in without negatively impacting our regular general fund.
Okay, so we'll continue with all funds revenue summary. The proposed revenues are projected to increase from approximately $28.6 million in 2025-26 to $30.7 million for 2026-27. The primary driver of this increase is the inclusion and timing of capital project grant funding which fluctuates year to year based on award grants reimbursement timing and the city's Capital Improvement Program activity Core ongoing revenues including property tax, sales tax and transient tax as we said earlier remain stable and were previously discussed in the general fund section.
Several additional structural changes also impact year-over-year for charges for services Again, a decrease from 2.9 to .3 million primarily due to the normalization of prior one-time revenues tied to specific projects. Future projections reflect a return to more consistent average annual activity levels Under other activities, increase from $8.7 million to approximately $11 million is primarily driven from additional grant funding supporting capital improvement projects along with the reimbursements and the restricted sources.
All funds proposed expenditures are projected to increase from $20.4 million in 2025-26 to $31.1 million in 2026-27. So here, salaries and benefits represent the largest expenditure category totaling approximately $9 million in fiscal year 26-27 accounting for 28.9% of the total expenditures. This category reflects staffing costs supporting 43 full time equivalent positions and seasonal employees range between 50 to 120 part time staff.
Depending on operational, depending on operation demand. In addition the employee benefits obligation and CalPERS unfunded accrual liability contributions for both miscellaneous and safety employees. Public safety expenditures contract law enforcement services are projected at 6.9 million 22.2 percent of total expenditures Professional services and contracts are projected at $4.3 million for 2026-27, accounting for 13.8% of total expenditures.
Other operating expenses are $2.4 million and comprised of 7.7% of total expenditures. This category includes supplies, utilities, maintenance, training, insurance and other routine operating costs. Other non-operating and capital expenditures are projected at $8.5 million for 2026-'27 representing 27.3% of total expenditures. This includes capital improvement projects, equipment purchases, transfers, debt-related costs and other one time expenditures.
2:17 – 2:298 turns
If I could, I'll just and this might be questions that will come up. Just wanting to explain to folks maybe watching at home the difference between these slides they look very similar to the general fund slides but now all the percentages are changing because we're looking at them within the context of all the city's funding sources And so you'll see now that salaries and benefits has grown to a higher percentage than public safety. That shows you how much of our salaries and benefits are paid for through restricted and semi-restricted funding sources like the AB 939 fees that I mentioned earlier, whereas the right issue with public safety is that it's a much larger percentage of our discretionary dollars, which are those monies we use for programs and services.
And so you know again for people looking at that this is now within the context of all our capital which now takes a much bigger slice at 27.3 and then all the other percentages are affected proportionately So with that, any changes on those before we move on? I mean, did I say any questions on those? Okay. So this is... Oh sure, go
ahead. Yeah so can we go back? Right, OK. So on the salaries and benefits that 24, 25, 26 I mean those two year cycle there went up a million dollars each year but then you know the years on the other side of it are slight increases so is there something special that happened during those two years?
Yeah, I guess I'm just going to add in the other side of the unfunded liability. We also had these are actuals so for 23 24 and 25 there were actuals and as you guys spoke earlier we had a lot of vacancies in those basically in those three years and so We had a lot of staffing turnaround, so there was a lot of savings that actually happened. Our budget were a lot higher but because we had those vacancies our actuals came lower than the budget. So I do know that it was another factor in those years.
Yeah, so we have that vacancy for our building inspector position and our current budget shows us if that's filled for 12 months. And right now it's not filled. So once we get to the actuals you'll see a dip in that but so it's always going to be more steep looking at actuals versus proposed. But there is also I think if we go back and look through there, there's probably like that one position that I mentioned that was added that was fully offset.
You know, the unfunded accrued liability and a number of different things like that. And there's also the regular, you know, CPI increases or various step increases for staff. Okay, so moving on. This is just a bird's eye view to show you what's happening with the departments and what those increases are. So for fiscal year 26, you'll see for general government our adopted budget is $11.5 million We're actually looking at coming in at 11.6, so that's that .1 increase. Our adopted budget for 27 was 11.7 and we're estimating to go down to 11. 6 where we are now. So you see it really ends up being the same number, 11.
Plus .1 and one year shows minus .1 all because it's based on projections not on you know where we're at exactly so you can see that for all the departments. I'll get us kicked off by going through the general government department and just highlighting on the left side For all the slides that you're going to see where each department will do fiscal year 25-26, the current year and then next fiscal year 26-27. On the left are the various divisions and programs that we have so general government department is the city administration or city manager's office it includes our legal services for our city attorney contract records management and elections which is our city clerk Staff Recruitment and Retention, HR, Emergency Preparedness, and then Community Promotions.
Our Public Information Office and that's Julissa's programs, Economic Vitality, Community Services Support which includes our grants, Risk Management we also have the Law Enforcement Contract so when you see our general government budget going up by a few hundred thousand every year and then the Racial Equity and Social Justice so a lot that's coming out of This department that has eight full time employees. So the major projects that we completed or started this year included the initiation of that five year emergency operations plan, you know, Regardless of the fact that the proposition 218 assessment district balloting was not successful, it was still a very hefty weight to take on for staff. And so that process is listed there. The community grants program.
We're beginning the drafting of our arts and public places program which the city attorney's office has taken on and also audited city insurance records which ties over to the next column where we're looking at What are the material changes and impacts? So we're looking at an increase this year over projected in legal costs of $126,000. And that's due to many things that are just beyond the city's control in relation to just complex matters the city is dealing with in litigation and various things.
Things that we can control, so we've done a full on audit of our property insurance and various things. And we were able to reduce costs by $57,000 in that area. And that helped to offset the net increase to the department as a whole. We discontinued our participation in the Green Business Program. Vice Mayor was talking about what are some of the impacts and so this is just, it results in one less mechanism we have for advancing our environmental sustainability goals but as we were going through our various line items this was one that we were able to reduce And then there are some reductions that are really just, and you'll see this in all the department slides, might be a transfer to the next year. So the Economic Vitality Committee I know is considering various programs in the coming fiscal year.
We did not expend any of the funds in the current fiscal year so you'll see a reduction this year and then that money is transferred over to next fiscal year so that economic vitality Committee will have some recommendations hopefully coming your council's way related to that. And then there's also I think I skipped over some things like the e-conveyance education, the enforcement strategy, the passing of the ordinance and our execution of our contract with Move Santa Barbara.
Next slide. So what we'll be looking to do this coming fiscal year is completing that emergency operations plan, our five-year emergency preparedness plan completion. We will have this our fall 26 elections which will be doing for districts 1 3 & 5 A classification and compensation study, a personnel rules regulations update. We will be executing the e-bike enforcement and youth diversion program starting in July hopefully.
Developing the legislative and policy platform for your council. Implementing our arts in public places program, sheriff negotiations, union negotiations. development of our new strategic plan, and then also continuing to work with CJPIA to reduce the city's risk. So a lot of things coming up this fiscal year. What are some of the changes? So we are learning from this year and have set an increase for our legal costs next year of $118,000 to reflect what we've seen this year and many of those things that we expect to continue over the next fiscal year.
We had more reductions in liability and property insurance over, again this is over what was projected. So those savings are just savings over what we projected so $126,000 we were able to reduce. Reductions in meetings and travel, reductions to the community service support grant program. So I know that's something that the council and finance committee has made recommendations and we definitely want to support all of our local programs but there is a A reduction in the budget for next year of that amount.
There is an increase of $25,000 which was needed for completion of the emergency operations plan and then another thing that's been brought up recently by a number of people is how many volunteers we have in the community and wanting us to really rely on use of our volunteers. And so we have upped an investment of $6,000 in our screening of volunteers because the city has to do screening. So we're preparing for taking on more volunteers to help the city with our various plans.
And so happy to answer any questions on that. And if not now I will turn it over to the next department.
Questions? No questions.
Great well I'm guessing it's admin services.
Yes Okay, for administrative services provide some of the city's internal support functions including financial management, central services and information technology. Major projects include advancing technology modernization efforts through planning and preparation for the city's Microsoft 365 migration Material changes include a $35,000 reduction in professional services and $37,000 reduction in software subscriptions and maintenance both due to the delay in the Microsoft 365 transition.
For fiscal year 2026-27, the department will focus on strengthening grant administration, modernizing technology systems, enhancing business license compliance processes and improving asset management practices. Material changes and impacts. We did the utility services reclassification of $180,000 to a facilities program so that's part of the reduction but not really an overall reduction just went to different department public works we have funding for the five-year long term plan of $25,000 Funding for the Microsoft 365 of $50,000 and funding for website redesign of also $50.000.
Any questions on admin services?
I will point out, Lisette, if you can go back to 2526 it's not an error. You'll see that FTE which stands for full-time equivalent and also can often be equated to a full-time employee but not exactly the same. You'll see that there's five there and that's only because your council authorized a small overlap with when Brenda was retiring for us to be able to hire So they did not have a new employee for much longer than two weeks, but that is reflected there. And then you'll see in the next fiscal year it's immediately down to four.
2:29 – 2:363 turns
Any questions from council? No questions thank you
Okay, my turn here. For Community Development Department we have ten full-time staff on our team along with two part-time staff operating budget of just over $2 million. Our department includes programs for administration, advanced planning, housing and Development review and building, code compliance and animal control. In terms of major projects completed or started this year we had you know a few different categories if you will that I think most of our biggest efforts fell into those included making progress on releasing the complete draft of the general plan update and then initiating the environmental review for that Continuing to make progress on implementing our housing element, for the most part right now continuing to chip away at updating our ADU and density bonus regulations.
And then the other category is really trying to improve the efficiency of some of our processes so how we do our work in the Community Development Department and so under this category we have things like I'm fiscal changes and impacts. You'll notice there at the top of the slide that our operating budget for this year was proposed at 2.3, we're coming in at 2.1.
Most of that $200,000 savings can be attributed to work that were not going to complete this year and that we're proposing to carry over to next year. And so the bulk of that is actually Grant funding for our general plan update that we didn't spend this year, so that'll move over and help support the work for next year. And then about $25,000 of that will come up on the next slide which is funding for a building permit fee study update to pay for that.
We did have an exceptionally busy year in our development review and building program. A lot of this is attributed to how busy our planners were on billable hours, so that program actually came in nearly two times over what our initial projected revenues were going to be. So we're up $480,000. Which is amazing, but it's not something we can count on year over year.
It reflects a particularly busy year. Next year may or may not be the same. The other thing to highlight here for that particular program is while the planners were really busy, the building and safety division of that program likely is continuing to not fully recover the costs for those services provided. And so that's part of why we're looking to go out and do that building permit fee study update, is to get those fees up to where they should be.
And then finally, I wanted to just point out our new online permitting platform is more expensive than the platform that it's replacing. However we have been able to largely offset that cost by bringing in a technology fee surcharge that is collected on all building permits issued such that building permits are actually paying for the software that's used to facilitate the program Next slide please.
So moving into next year, we're hoping to continue some of the steam we have right now on the general plan update and wrap up the environmental impact report and if we're making good time hopefully start to jump into the adoption hearings for that process by the end of next year. We also are looking at continuing on to some of the other Work products outlined in the housing element. So there's a few that are bulleted there like the special needs and supportive housing regulation and inclusionary housing ordinance update And so on we also want to dust off our short-term rental Regulations and make a few targeted changes there to improve our enforcement tools and then again, we'll look to continue with some of our improvements to our processes and how we do our work With some of the targeted items for next year being improving the business licensing process and hopefully launching an online dog licensing platform that can kind of mirror what we're doing with building permits.
In terms for some of the more significant changes there on our budget here for next year, We anticipate continuing to be busy in planning, so we are bumping up our projected revenues a little bit from where they started up about $130,000. Again despite that our building permit program isn't Hitting where it should be, right? So that's why that program as a whole still shows up that it would be operating in the red by about $365,000. But we think we can help close that gap on a year-over-year basis by getting that building permit fee study done and getting our fees right sized to where they should be.
We'll also continue to rely on limited contract services to help support city staff. The nice thing about doing this with contracting right is we can rightsize it to our needs and control costs, and a lot of what our consultants do we can pass on to our applicants through building permit cost planning charges and so on and so forth. So those are recoverable costs for the city And then finally, the hope is that by improving some of these efficiencies in things like dog licensing and building business licenses.
That not only can we improve compliance but if we're getting more people doing this maybe we also do ultimately see a modest uptick in revenues that go along with those. And that concludes my presentation. Let's see have any questions for me?
Questions? No questions thank you
2:36 – 2:432 turns
Good evening Mayor, Council Members. Public Works Department is up. The six bullet points that you see in the presentation there those are reflective of all the programs that the department is responsible for. Quickly I'm just going to go over it The administration part of it the capital improvements transportation parking and lighting street fleet parks and facilities maintenance resource conservation Solid waste and finally watershed management. The polar works department has the most Full-time employees at 14 that includes myself and two part-time employees That are mainly in our maintenance division Our operating budget for this current fiscal cycle, 2025-26 at $3.1 million. Our proposed reduction is at $0.7 million.
So with that I'd like to touch on the major projects completed and or started. I'm actually really proud of the Public Works Department team that has completed or started these particular major projects And one of them is the initiation of the Franklin Creek Trail Improvement Project, you know your City Council has approved that Construction contract and we should be seeing the start of construction June 15. That's excuse me, um June 22nd but that's all contingent upon when the contractor is Submits their bonds and insurance. So we're looking at that time frame within this month I am happy to report that we technically have completed the Linden Avenue improvements project.
That is going well, we're monitoring the traffic flow of that particular improvement especially the new striping that you see out there. We the city have received a few positive feedback and constructive criticism so we'll make some adjustments to the traffic striping with that Particularly the bike lane. You've probably seen the bike lane, the green mark on the pavement. There's a little bit of confusion but it's just a matter of our drivers here at the community to get used to.
But there are improvements that we're looking at to make that more understandable I guess you could say. Not just capital projects, our major completion is regarding environmental and sustainability type programs. We've engaged more than 300 local students and diverted about 20 cubic yards of waste through our solid waste education programs and community events.
We've also hosted three Creek Week cleanup events to support environmental stewardship and watershed health. On the technology efficiency side or as operations efficiency side, we've implemented a multi-language translation capabilities of our service request so it doesn't matter what language you speak or understand, we have a multilingual translation A particular note are the material changes and impacts to the Public Works Department for this current fiscal year.
And sometimes it does pay me to reduce a lot of the costs or recommend reducing costs, especially when it comes to our infrastructure. So to what I believe and advise our city manager on is these particular reductions, railroad support services approximately 30,000. That eliminates more of the consulting services and that consulting service is not tied to a particular project it's more on-call services like your plan check services so for example we have any railroad particular matters like for example the Rincon multiuse trail we have to deal with Union Pacific Railroad We would tap that particular consulting firm Pedestrian bridge inspections another asset management type of system approaches like our period management systems It hasn't gone away, but we're just deferring the routine inspections typically do routine inspections every two years We are consistent in that regard with Caltrans because Caltrans Caltrans performs or conducts the inspections of our vehicular bridges.
We have seven vehicular bridges and seven pedestrian bridges, so that pedestrian bridge inspection is actually the responsibility of the city not Caltrans. Storm Dream Master Plan similar to it's another asset management system That is particularly, that master plan has I believe it's 2009. That is a fairly old master plan and since then we've added or installed many storm drain systems like for example from the Highway 101 project Irrigation repairs, that constrains the public works ability to complete repairs as needed.
Fortunately a lot of our irrigation systems are still they're not aged it's just most of the time when these repairs happen they're either damaged through some type of sporting event not to blame any sports events but usually that happens and that's okay we just go out there and repair the irrigation Storm drain maintenance. Polar Bear's department and not only does just maintenance, but we also Are part of the first response in any type of Forecasted flood event our forecasted rain events. So storm drain maintenance we've reduced that to reduce the routine maintenance of that and clean house, but when it comes to emergency or excuse me at the in preparation of a forecasted rain events That is not going to stop but routine maintenance will be see some a little bit of reduction there So before I
move on to the next slide, is there any questions on the fiscal year 25-26 budget?
2:43 – 2:5815 turns
The only question I have and you just touched on it a little bit is the storm drain maintenance. So can you share a little bit more about the routine maintenance that is going to be reduced? Like how many times does it happen a year? Things of that nature.
Yes, good question Madam Mayor, Council Members. So storm drain maintenance happens throughout the year because drainage flows even if it's low flow like for example during the summer or high flows in the winter it is an ongoing basis And storm drain, what that entails or involves is basically cleaning out the curb drain inlets or the drainage inlets, catch basins. Actually literally opening up the grates or the access and just cleaning it out. And at times we would have to clean out culverts, culverts that have accumulated sediment and there's debris in there.
And we typically use a hydro flush similar to what the sanitary district uses for their storm or excuse me, for their sanitary sewer pipelines. It's no different so as far as methods that's basically what we do. We use hydro jetting and we have physically cleaning out with manually by hand Inlets in the catch basins. So as far as frequency that is routinely done That never stops and But definitely in the winter time we're more vigilant and proactive in getting to these storm drain inlets and storm drains in general earlier, especially Days before or even weeks before a forecasted rain event
Thank you
Mayor and John, if I could add. So 25-26 was much easier to go through than say 26-27 because we only have 22 days left in this year so if there was any areas where we had lacked staff capacity to achieve things like Nick had mentioned where we had $200,000 we didn't get to that part of the general plan and those funds are moving forward So I just want to, you know, assure people where they see reductions here. You may not see those in the next fiscal year but based on our capacity and our ability to get to those we were able to make those reductions with 22 days left and so we hope to get to those. We don't want people to think we won't be going and doing these things each year but based on the amount of work we had this year in capacity we were able to make these trims pretty confidently with this much time left in a year.
Yeah, question. John or maybe staff could answer this one here. Where do we capture the funded projects through grants? Is that number put someplace in there or is this based on just projected amounts?
Council Member Nemour was just talking with Lisette about that so if you if we go back to the previous slides You will actually see the full budget, including public works and CIP. In that slide we were just looking at where it said $3.1 million, which obviously doesn't correspond with the... Which one am I looking at? Yeah, with the 10.9 for proposed. The difference between those two numbers is capital so we probably should have separated Public Works here so that those numbers could have corresponded. We did have some feedback during the Finance Committee meeting that folks wanted to see what operations was versus capital. We separated that on that slide and did not do that here but if my math is correct 7.8 million of that is CIP and then the 3.1 is operations, and we'll fix that on future slides.
Thank you. Yeah, that
would help. And actually that could have been included in these two public works things like that because you're going to find quite a bit of grant funding going into public works.
Right, and that was the comment that we got during the Finance Committee meeting is you'll see these huge swings and drops based on capital that aren't really reflective of true operations. So I appreciate you pointing that out. Thank you
Okay, thank you Michael Council members we're moving on to the fiscal year 26-27 What a particular note there's an asterisk on the proposed increase. I'm just going to do the bottom line up front here so there is a increase in the Polaris department budget of 0.1 million and that is really attributable to or primarily attributed to utility costs and being transferred over to the Polarix budget, the increase of utility costs like your house utility costs. Your electric, natural gas, water, sewer.
As far as major upcoming projects, it's another one that I'm proud that our Polarix team is working on We are going to, this fiscal cycle 26-27 begin construction of the Carpinteria bridge replacement project or at least going out to bid and soliciting bids. Evaluating those bids and see where we're at in this bid climate. Completion of the construction phase of the Carpinteria High School area crosswalk improvement project And just a quick update on that.
We finally have Caltrans encroachment permit, or actually reauthorization of an encroachment permit. I think the last time I spoke to you or provided an update on that there was a stop work notice on that particular project and I believe Caltrans had an oversight on what they believed they missed And we had to actually go back to a full plan check again with Caltrans, but a different part of the organization there.
Long story short, we have the encroachment permit finally and we're looking at next Monday to start the construction. Fortunately, unfortunately however you want to call it, fortunately it's after the school. Before, it was during the school period but we had traffic control planned in place to make sure that less inconvenience to the parents as well as the kids there.
So we are now hopefully taking advantage of the break in summer school. There still will be summer school classes but not as much. We will still implement traffic control During construction. So that's where we're at with this particular project, but I'm happy to say we're finally starting it now All right One of the other major work Not necessarily a project, but is executing a memorandum of understanding for enrollment finally in the Community Hazardous Waste Collection Center program. That is basically a large ABOP. Anti-freeze battery oil and paint where before Carpinterians community If they had more items that we can take, we refer them to the county, the community hazardous waste collection. Unfortunately at the time Carpinteria's had to pay to pay-to-play so to say to get their items, hazardous waste items Collected now that we're enrolled.
We're going to be enrolled Carpinteria is to go straight to the Community Hazardous Waste Collection Center, which is in the Goleta area unincorporated City of Goleta or Goleta All right moving on to obtain approval of the trash Implementation plan. So what is that? so the State Water Resources Control Board is requiring all local agencies through statewide to implement a What they call it trash implementation by what that means is we as a local agencies are required to Retrofit our drainage inlets or any areas that drain into surface water runoff or rainwater that drains into an inlet, a catch basin, a storm drain. So this is not a infrastructure or capital project yet but it's a plan there's really no action for the city to take in terms of funding appropriations But I don't know exactly what that means in terms of what are we going to retrofit.
So there's a physical changes, physical modifications that we have to make to our drainage inlets and a lot of us local agencies are just bracing for this and it is requirement of the state because of stormwater Clean Water Act and our storm the State Water Resources Control Board is requiring agencies to implement a trash implementation plan. It's basically capturing large debris, other than sediment that goes into any storm drainage outfall or some drainage collection.
Have you have any questions on
that one? I do, real quick there John. On that one then we're talking about basically just some sort of mesh or capturement system correct for anything that's floating down that could be construed as debris
Yes, Councilman Numero through the Mayor. That is a device that I'm thinking of but we're all thinking of as local agencies to retrofit our storm drain inlets so the mesh or some type of grate-type system to capture larger debris like other than sediment, larger debris like your I'm just guessing like a hammer gear wrapper or something like that.
Yeah, I'm thinking like plastic... Plastics. My question for that is, is that going to be something that's going to be approved or actually provided with specifications from the state? Is that the plan? Yes. And the reason I ask that if they are designing that how are they gonna make sure that in areas where you have fires You're not going to have a lot of debris, wood debris coming down, stone debris coming down and plugging those things.
Yes Councilman Herrera that's a fair question. That's a real type of scenario I don't have the specifics on the trash implementation plan. I do know that drain engines are to be retrofitted with some type of capture device and that was...that's the intent
Yeah, the reason I asked that we are actually doing implementation of that on the Tijuana River right now That's coming out to be more of a project than we thought it was gonna be because of points like that But thank you. Yeah, I'd be interested in keeping up to speed on that
when that particular trash implementation can't plan excuse me is Before the City Council or the city approves any type of trash implementation, this particular matter or this agenda I know will be before your City Council. Because there are implications to implement this and I don't have those details at this time. I do know that we as a local agency have to implement this trash implementation plan from the State Water Resources Control Board Last bullet point on the major projects coming up, completing the 2027 Capital Improvement Plan and the Nexus Study update. That is a big one because this is where your city council is going to be more involved in the input of a capital improvement plan that is customized to our current needs now and the next five years.
So we have a 2022 Capital Improvement Plan that you've seen. We're basically going to revamp this and get more input, more community engagement input. I'm working with the city manager right now on the development of a schedule because this is basically almost a year-long process so it's not just coming to a City Council meeting Approving a capital improvement plan. This is where your city council have Expressly made interest into being part of the CIP in particular projects that you want in a CIP So we'll get to that when that schedule comes up As far as any material changes just like the 2526 We made or eliminated a lot of Services mainly engineering services these particular bullet points here parks and facility repairs and maintenance That's a big one at $91,000 approximately also we have reduction of consulting services And Unfortunately this is the one that kind of hits dear to me pavement condition Pavement management system reducing that or not reduce them, but We don't have fundings as you know for a lot of pavement projects, but at least with this one This one we still need to update and as part of this Public Works budget we're requesting for more increase in budget support to at least put a pavement management system update together's to Get our PC eyes or pavement condition index Up to up-to-date so we see this so we can make those Informed decisions on what streets will be paved and Before I head over to Turn this over to the Parks Recs and Fertility Department.
You have any questions on this slide, please?
2:58 – 3:079 turns
I Think my question is just that it you've got listed the complete the design for the community pool project But how does that work because I have always assumed that was a parks and rec project. So
Yes, Council Member Mayer through the Mayor. That is... The Public Works Department, you're right. The Public Works Department manages capital projects but it's not, we don't possess a lot of, we don't take, how should I say? We're not possessive like that. So our Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department, they know pools better than I do. Better than we do. So this is a partnership or so to say coordination.
We as far as the capital projects part of it or monitoring the capital project, well, I'll still be involved especially in design. I'm also your city engineer. So I actually have to look at these plans and sign stamp them as well So yes, it's a capital project but it's being administered by Jeanette as the project manager.
Thank
you. Councilmember Mayer that was a policy goes back to the Dave Durfring or Matt Roberts Steve Gosia days where there was sometimes confusion on when the project was passed off from being a parks and rec project to public works project And so now there is a policy that kind of tells you when that handoff occurs. And so as the program users and those sorts of things, it's shepherded to a certain point and then when it gets to more of the project management phase, there could be some gray area there and some overlap but for the most part... Also I want to apologize, I was over here trying to figure out if there was any other things that weren't the same but we had received a request You know, the bridge is such a huge program and when this was first seen somebody noticed the bridge wasn't on there.
We have it added and it's actually in the presentation slides that are online but for whatever reason it is missing here we were scrambling to see if there were any other changes I can't find any other changes but for whatever reason it's missing here but online you will notice the bridge is there So happy to turn it over to Jeanette if no more questions. Great, thank you.
Good evening again Mayor, Vice-Mayor and Council I'm not gonna say they always save the best for last but just keep turning out this way so the Parks Recreation and Community Services Department is comprised of seven full time staff and approximately 80 to 90 part time staff which as you know fluctuates greatly based on the season The department budget is $2.3 million and we have proposed $41,350 in reductions for this fiscal year.
In addition to providing services and programs each and every day to the community, we have completed a number of projects this fiscal year. And I have highlighted just a few for you this evening. Your council recently approved the donation policy, we've completed the pool facility needs assessment and begun the community pool design. All of our program applications forms and almost all of our signage has been translated and are now being offered in both English and Spanish for our garden programs and age well as well as our facility rentals.
And we have also just very recently sent out surveys to our Agewell and Garden members, and have established post-rental surveys for all of our facility rentals. This fiscal year, we have reduced $28,000 in unspent budget in Agewell $28,000 in library operating expenses. For Veterans Hall we increased the budget about $2,000 as my team has taken over the staffing and supervision of the parks and facilities attendance and we needed funding for supplies to maintain the cleanliness of the facilities and for those parks and facilities attendance at Vets Hall and the meeting room and the like.
We reduced $4,000 in the community pools meeting and travel budget and reduced $3,200 in the junior lifeguard program. This reduction was due to the fact that we are not doing a field trip this summer so although it is a reduction in expenses there's an equal reduction in revenue for that line item as we would just pass the charge or the fee for that field trip on to the participants.
Janet is that at one time?
We plan to not offer field trips next year as well. Let me backtrack, field trips for cost so we will still be doing the Rincon Beach Day and this is at no additional cost of the participants so everyone can join whereas when they would do the island trip It would only be those who might be able to afford the additional expense, and it was also a lot of logistic work. So it's not a gone forever thing but just kind of focusing more on the program itself and really enhancing those RenCon beach days so that everyone can have the same experience.
Next fiscal year we have quite a few projects coming up which are again in addition to our daily operations, our program offerings and our special events. Projects on the horizon that you are all aware of and council member may have brought this up is the community pool renovation project. So in conjunction with Public Works, we are hoping the initial design will be completed soon and will be able to have a better understanding of the overall cost for the project. With this, we will launch a formal fundraising campaign for the pool improvements project in addition to constantly being on the lookout for and applying for grant funding.
This coming fiscal year we are also planning on launching the initial planning phase for Rincon Bluffs, which is often referred to as Bluffs 3. And we hope to begin the construction of Bluffs 2 aka the Coastal Vista Trail this next fiscal year We plan to use the feedback from those surveys that I had just mentioned and to make any adjustments to our offerings as well. So like I said, we launched sent out the surveys this fiscal year and we are excited to get some data back from our participants hear what they like what they don't like what they want more of and make any adjustments that we can This next fiscal year to our programs and offerings Next fiscal year for Agewell, we reduced expenses by $9,000 in our line items for meetings and travel, supplies and materials, and equipment.
We reduced the community library operating expenses by $25,000. The largest reductions here were to library programs which is our budget to support various programs that library offers one example of which is the summer reading program and also a large reduction to books among other line items. The department reduced our sign replacement budget by $2,500 and reduced our ocean beach services budget which is our Beach Lifeguards by $1,500. And again we reduce Junior Lifeguards next fiscal year by $7,000 the largest amount again is in the field trips which means a reduction in revenue as well So I want to stress that although these are significant reductions for our budget, they're not elimination of any of our programs or offerings. It's just time for us all to get creative on our programs, our supplies and materials, call on our donation policy for additional support to help us get through this next fiscal year.
I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.
Quick questions for you, Jeanette. On the reduction in the library operating expenses, you said most of that had to do with programs that were being offered. On that one have you looked into actually having a public sector possibly sponsoring a few of those events? For example I heard the movie one, I heard some of the teaching ones. It seems like there would be quite a bit of funds available for specifically educational projects.
Yes, Council Member Nomura through the Mayor. I may have skimmed over this in my notes or on my slides so thank you so much for setting me up. One of the things we hope to bring to your council soon which will be this next fiscal year is a sponsorship policy so that we can go out and do exactly that whether it be for specific library programs Age Well I'm thinking You know, maybe a sponsor for the age-well dance So I apologize. I did not hit on that as our upcoming projects, but thank you
3:07 – 3:136 turns
Thank you, no other questions, nope, thank you
And I just want to reiterate that philosophy, that's something that will have to be looked at every year. In this instance it was us trimming back wherever we could and extending that runway to find that solution. We didn't have to eliminate or we're not making any recommendations to eliminate programs that could again change in future years and can also change You know, with anything that the council recommends. But that is where we're at for now in terms of next steps. So these were already highlighted as part of what the departments are going to be working on this coming fiscal year but that five-year financial plan, a five-year capital improvement plan We'll be doing the asset management plan where we're accounting for all, everything from the roof on this building to and then finding out what the life cycle is and when those repair or replacement costs will be due in trying to make sure that we're planning for that.
Same thing similar for the pavement management plan which John mentioned. We also have union negotiations, share of contract negotiations And then the two-year budget and strategic plan. All of these will connect and overlap with our budget in the coming years, and will be part of us setting course for more sustainability. Do I have another slide? Oh, Anne.
Yep, and that concludes our report. Happy to answer any final questions.
Any questions from Council? Yes.
You know, I think the presentation was really, really good. The budget is very hard to communicate because it's so complex and changes every minute. And to sort of be able to capture kind of where things are at and graphics are very well laid out, a very good communication tool. And I appreciate all the departments digging around trying to save money. I think that's a good thing to share with the public.
Thank you.
Yeah, and I'd like to just echo what Councilmember Clark said because I think that this presentation really clearly demonstrated the structural deficit. And I'm really proud of our council and staff working together and in partnership because we're making some really difficult decisions but I think we're asking really the hard questions and I think I'm really looking forward to what the future's gonna hold because like you said earlier in your presentation We're really thinking about the decisions that we make now and how it's going to affect us 10 years from now.
So, and the other point I want to highlight that you also said is out, we not like we are prepared really well in certain areas for example that fiscal sustainability the reserves that we have close to 6 million come 26 2027 which is excellent And we may be lacking in certain areas, but from where I see, we're going to get to that point moving forward. And I also really appreciate the staff and the directors for really digging into every single line item in the budgets. I know cutting anything can be really difficult so I just want to thank the directors for doing that hard work and I think that really answers the question that the public has really been saying well just spend less And I want to say that the city is really making those concerted efforts to look at every single line item and move to seeking donations or additional grants.
So, like to just say thank you to the staff and also thank you to the council for really asking those hard-hitting questions as we look into what the future holds.
Real quick, yeah. Excellent presentation. What I liked most about it was the fact that everything was broken down individually. Suggestion would be and I know it may take a little more work but if we took each one of the major capital improvements and we were to break those down into phases say of specific need or rather than be looking at as an example say on the pavement street and pavement Program included the whole city. I mean you broke it down by neighborhoods You already reduced it down quite a bit to bite-sized pieces But if we did that with all of the projects Potentially we can come up with solutions that would be able to touch on a lot more items Rather than trying to build up a bank account of a million dollars We may will do like 50,000 hundred thousand dollar projects instead and be able to tackle the most urgent parts or needs and at least the community that way It doesn't have to wait 10 years for that $1 million that we may never be able to save and spend that way.
So something to think about. One of the points I'm looking at has to do with, like, the Tamaul interpretive play area. We have a budget on that one. It's about $150,000. But if you were to break that down into small pieces and looking at it, we're probably looking at $20-, $30,000 components of that. So those smaller ones could get done annually without having to look at a budget of $150,000 just as an example.
3:13 – 3:197 turns
Thank you appreciate that feedback.
I mean, I just want to echo what everyone else has already said but also acknowledge something that we're all addressing head on which is You know, ultimately it feels to me that the City of Carpinteria and its constituents have a real existential conversation to have with themselves about what we want Carpinteria to be. And I think we're very lucky to have this approach with our budget because you know we're not At the cliff right now, we see what's coming. We see that the revenues and expenditures are not going to align. And at a certain point, we can cut here and there but we're not going to be able to cut our way out of expenditures that are out of our control including the share of contract negotiations and just in general, costs going up.
And I think that because of the stewardship of our finances we're able to take our time to get where we need to go and I appreciate the ability to do this in a way that is aligned with what the City of Carpinteria wants for itself versus having to make these very drastic decisions Out of alignment. So my appreciation is for that this stewardship feels right It makes it so that we can get to where we need to go even though it's going to be challenging and you know a 40% Fiscal stability reserve is something to be proud of Immensely proud of so I just want to appreciate that. Thank you
So I'd like to open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips, I do have a speaker slip coming. Is that Rogelio Delgado? Okay come on up.
Thank you, Rogelio Delgado, Carpinteria resident. I am glad that I stayed for your report. This is the report that I was waiting for a couple of months, remember? I think that the staff that we have with you and the mayor and the city council members that we have, they're the perfect team to come out of this potential crisis. For a moment I thought that at the end of the tunnel, there was going to be a train not a light.
But hopefully there's gonna be a light at the end of this tunnel and that's a team effort with five of you staff and the community now. The communities also are making adjustments. There isn't credit cards more than ever. They're using, they're getting a home equity line of credit to cope up with all these expenses and yes our city is going through all these expenses just like any other city and there's It may look like that there is no way out, but just believe in the projects. Believe and that will get us out.
City Manager Michael Meyer mentioned Proposition 13 and he's correct. Thousands of houses were built in the 70s on the 80s And. They're not selling because Hawaii get rid of the 1.3 proposition 13 and buy something else, and instead of paying let's say 3,000 in property tax per year, now they might pay 5,000, 10,000 15,000 per year. Real estate is moving, but homes are taking longer to sell. Two or three months before.
But sellers are stubborn. They're not lowering their prices, but real estate is moving and that 30-year mortgage It's 6.5% now when they go down to let's say six, five and a half and the real buyer's property takes over the buyer's season right now it's the buyers market. It will get better and then future projects like the Bluffs, Baylor and every other project that will be a solution but now for the meantime let's all believe in ourselves thank you.
Thank you for your comments I do not have any other speaker slips, do we have anyone via Zoom?
Mayor we have no zoom comment
yeah we'll close public comment and bring it back to the council for a motion
3:19 – 3:2516 turns
If I could, I'd really just wanted to just add one last thing. We're really our communications team which is right now one person in turn and Julissa Briones and coordination with Leah Boyd and two trumpets are really you know not a lot has changed with the city's finances from this year to last year or the year before but what's changed is how we're able to present the information which goes back to that partnership that you mentioned not only with staff and the council because we can only do so much in the end. We really need the community, we need public commenters like Rogelio and folks that have been showing up to the finance committee too. You know you could certainly find the errors and the different things and point those out but it's still all of our community at the end of the day and we all want what's best for it and so folks that have been You know working positively with the city to help us give us feedback on how we can present things in a way that They could relate to better.
I think it's it's all it's the community the council City staff and then of course our communications team that has just been kicking butt to really get us where we're at so Wanted to point that out. And then of course all the administrative staff that support all of our department heads with all of the numbers and the budget figures, to make sure we're getting it right and displaying the information in every way possible has been a big part of this so I just wanted to give credit and thanks to all of them.
Thank you
I move to adopt resolution number 6476, 6477, 6478, 6479 and 6480 as read by title only. Receive the mid-cycle budget report, approve the budget adjustments for fiscal years 2025-26 and 2026-27 and the authorized full time position list as provided in attachments B and C respectively. Establish the related appropriation limits and adopt the salary schedules for fiscal year 2026 27. Second
We have a first and second, roll call vote please.
Roll-call vote Passed 5–0
Show transcript
One quick comment if that's okay I would like to thank and congratulate the Finance Committee staff actually all of the staff for an excellent presentation this was the best I've ever seen so you guys did a great job thank you
So we will now move on to legislative update.
Thank you, Mayor Alarcon. Council members it's just a quick update this evening in regards to a recommendation from the League of California Cities to oppose Assembly Bill 1383. So just in quick summary, Assembly Bill 1383 would make several pretty significant changes to the Public Employees Pension Reform Act which is commonly known as PEPRA Most notably the bill would lower retirement age for public safety workers generally from age 57 to 55, allow richer pension formulas up to about 3% at age 55 and then also adjust limits on pensionable compensation to align more closely with federal rules. So in short, it would roll back some pension restrictions and permit higher retirement benefits for certain public employees especially those safety workers.
This is kind of at the base of why the League of California Cities is recommending opposition to this bill Because it could substantially increase costs for municipalities around California. So they are requesting that cities submit a letter in opposition to this assembly bill.
And I'll just add that recent meeting with all the city managers in the county, I had asked the question. I said well we have a fire district and we have a sheriff contract and I was trying to better understand how it would impact our city. To the best I could understand there's not direct impacts as if we had our own departments but that there's indirect impacts as our various agencies around us are affected And so everybody was really strongly encouraging us to be a part of that. And I believe it's sitting on the governor's desk, so it's gone pretty far in the process but still it was very important that we submit a letter if we could.
That may have happened since Friday.
Okay,
I will. Questions from council? Would we like to support it or
yeah. Yeah, did you the recommendation to oppose it right? Yeah Okay,
great. Thank You Vice Mayor Salerno. I support opposing it. It's going to
clarify So I will take public comment I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via zoom?
Mayor we have no raised hands
I will close public comment and it sounds as though you have enough direction from the council And we will move on to committee reports, inquiries and other matters presented by council members. Seeing none, I'll confirm attendance of council members for future meetings? Yes. And we will officially adjourn the meeting at 8 53 PM. Thank you.