• City Council Meeting February 2020

The February city council meeting was three hours long. 

TOP NEWS FROM THE MEETING

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• Wildomar Shooting Range and Academy approved
• WCE (Western Community Energy) is less than 60 days from becoming your new energy provider THAT'S COVERED IN ANOTHER BLOG: LINK

Presentations 
First up was the proclamation for Eagle Scout Troy Woodfin. 

Troy Woodfin is flanked by the city council and representatives from the offices of other local electeds.

Other presentations included an update from Donald Graham Elementary, what's going on at the old Jean Hayman Elementary campus, an introduction to the new principal at David A Brown Middle School, an update by SWAG, a police department update (full blog at this link), a code enforcement update and an Economic Development update. 

Sorry, but I'm not going to break those down. Please watch the video which is linked at the bottom of the blog.

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During public comments one especially stood out, partly because of the subject (another homeless encampment) and that resident Veronica Langworthy brilliantly offered her three minutes to speak when speaker Sheila Watson had run out of time.

She brought a signed petition by 31 of her neighbors

This subject is important to me, one of the things that I ran on was improved code enforcement, and I believe it is occuring. That doesn't mean it's a perfect model, as it's not something that can be switched on and off like a light.

Please don't hesitate to use the city page to report a code violation, but if nothing seems to be happening, email the city council members. If that doesn't do it, start attending city council meetings, and bring your neighbors until it's dealt with.

Our question to is, 'how unsafe does a situation have to become before the rights of vagrants no longer supercede the rights of the citizens of Wildomar?'

—Sheila Watson

As you'll see in the video, not long after the final syllables were leaving her mouth, Mayor Dustin Nigg asked a top staff member to meet with her outside so that she could be assisted. 

2.0 Wildomar Shooting Academy

The video below is NOT of the entire item. If you want that, please see the full item in the video. This 8 minute video is to highlight the developer's presentation along with the impressive 3d animation of what it will look like.
 

LINK TO NOVEMBER BLOG WITH MORE DETAILS

  The location of the shooting range/academy is at the southeast corner of Mission Trail and Bundy Canyon. 

Future home of Wildomar Shooting Range and Academy.

I'm very much in favor of it, and am hoping they start turning dirt before the end of the year... but no dates are even hinted at at this early stage in the process.

Here is a bonus video that came during public comments on the Wildomar Shooting Range/Academy portion of the meeting. It's Miss Miller giving her thoughts on it. 

I want to remind the readers that I was happy to accept her endorsement of my campaign back in 2018 (Thank You Again!). 

For the record, the Press Enterprise endorsed the candidate that finished more than 15 points behind me. Which means Miss Miller ranks higher than PE in Wildomar. Stats don't lie! ☺

Item 3.1 WCE Update can be found at this LINK
Please watch the video below for the entire three hour meeting.

Alternate link to video.

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“It is no use saying ‘we are doing our best.’ You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary.”
– Winston Churchill

Wildomar Rap knows of many runners up that "did their best." Winners find a way to get things done.

This blog was produced for viewing on a desktop or a laptop. Though it's been optimized for smartphones, the formatting can look odd on a smartphone or if you get this delivered through email (such as missing video links). Link to proper format.

• City Council Meeting December 2019

The meeting started almost 15 minutes late due to a longer than anticipated closed session meeting. 
 

Top News From the meeting

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• Wildomar Trail sign design chosen
• Park shade structures to be installed beginning in January. Windsong park is first.
• City Manager pay increased to $219,000
• Dustin Nigg selected to be 2020 Mayor and Bridgette Moore as Mayor Pro-tem

Meeting Recap
Boy Scout Troop 332 led the group in the pledge of allegiance.

Local Boy Scout Troop 332 leading the pledge of allegiance.

Presentations 
Richard and Sharon Heil for all their years of service to the Wildomar community.

Mayor Marsha Swanson poses with Richard and Sharon Heil, as the rest of those in attendance gave a standing ovation.

Eagle Scout Chris Ramos was honored. (Link to blog regarding his Eagle Scout project) 

Left to right: Vic Ramos, Mayor Marsha Swanson, Chris Ramos, Casey Dever of Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez's office, and Glenn Miller from the 28th district senate office. 

Holiday Lights Contest Winners 
There are a countless numbers of nicely decorated houses throughout the city. Be sure to take a drive around to enjoy these winners and the others too.

Quarterly Fire Department Update

The original graphic was illegible. I fixed it here and hope that future reports are likewise as easy to read. ☺

3.1 Sidewalk Vending Code Amendment
Back story: The state has overridden many local laws/rules/codes when it comes to Sidewalk Vending, even when it comes to food. This item was making sure that Wildomar's ordinances were in line with the state's new rules. 

Sidewalk vendors will be required to get business registrations, and if they're selling food they'll need to get through the health department rules too.

However, this has nothing to do with the trucks that park throughout the town (usually near Clinton Keith and Palomar) looking to haul junk.

Looks like this guy chose a new spot on Palomar from which to solicit business.

3.2 City of Wildomar Master Drainage Plan
This was a very important item, but for those that aren't keen on such things (my hand is raised) it's a lot like watching concrete harden. It's a good presentation with plenty of slides. It's in the video at the bottom of the blog, starting at the 1:10:00 mark.

The opening slide to a very heady topic.

3.4 Travel Reimbursement Policies
When council members or city staff travels on city business, the city pays the freight. This was an urgency ordinance to repeal an older urgency ordinance from many years back. It was basically a general housekeeping item. 

3.5 Resolution Approving Increase in City Manager Pay ($9,000 per year) 
This was approved 4-1. I was the lone dissenting vote. 

There were three comments, one of which was mine (the text of it is below). One interesting thing, to me anyway, was that within 4 seconds of the final syllable leaving my mouth, a motion was made to approve item 3.5, without any comment on what I had said.

"Let me start by saying that we have a great staff, led by a solid and steady city manager.

They are all very professional, good at what they do and a pleasure to work with. 

They are also well compensated. 

Both in actual salary and again in benefits.

When I have to tell a resident that their road can’t be fixed because we have no money, or any other need that has to be tabled, which, unfortunately, there are many, I have to pause at that.

Remember all those years of just hanging on by our fingertips?

With just a quick drive around the city one can see that it needs a lot of TLC just to get back up to the baseline… and with that actuality, I can’t justify a yearly raise of $9,000, which is on top of last year’s $9,000 increase, and a similar increase the year before that, to our city manager.

Are those figures small potatoes? 

Is that being penny wise and pound foolish? 

Or, is that the reality on the ground in a small budget city like Wildomar?

One risk in not approving yearly raises is the real possibility of turnover. 

Do we want turnover in key positions in our city?

Of course we don’t. 

Should we offer generous compensation packages in order to prevent or stave off turnover? 

Sure, but I already think that we do offer generous salaries and compensation packages.

However, being that we are a small budget city, akin to a small market sports team, we have to accept the reality that we can’t compete with large budget cities… large market teams if you will… not on this footing anyway.

We must understand that like with other small budget operations, we may very well work as a farm system, a pipeline, for larger budget operations. 

Where talented individuals come to Wildomar, put in several years here, hone their craft, and then (unfortunately for us) opt to sign elsewhere, as a free agent so to speak —where more money, and more impressive benefits, can be freely offered.

Is that ideal? 

Of course not, but it is Wildomar.  

We have a slower pace of life here, and a smaller budget. 

That’s the same thing I remind the residents when they press me about an issue that we seem unable to address. 

I tell them, “You chose Wildomar as your home, knowing what Wildomar was like.” That we, “aren’t a bigger city. That we can’t provide what bigger cities can provide.

That’s part and parcel of being in a smaller city… with a slower pace of life…and a small budget.”

If that applies to the residents that live and pay taxes here, it’s completely fair to say that the same applies to our staff… no matter how much we personally like them and love the job they’ve been doing.

To retain staff we have to rely on things beyond remuneration. 

The intangibles. 

The fact that we aren’t a big city, with the big city problems, and the big city demands and pressures… our slower pace of life… is appealing to many. 

 

To conclude, let me go with the baseball analogy you’ve all been anticipating from me (or dreading). 

It starts with the name of a hall of famer: Tony Gwynn.

He opted to stay in his hometown, leaving a ton of potential money on the table, to remain in a market that was almost never going to compete for a championship… but it was his home, so the choice was easy for him, and what he didn’t get on his paycheck, he made up for in quality of life, respect and adoration.

On the other hand there’s Bryce Harper. A longtime Washington Nationals star. 

After many years in that organization, he chose to go free agent, and sign with a cross division rival for a record breaking contract. 

What happened the following season? 

The team he went to, after investing all that money, broke even with a .500 record. The team he left? They won the World Series.

Wildomar is looking for the Tony Gwynns out there, while understanding we can’t meet the ambitions of the Bryce Harpers and hold no grudges when they opt to leave for greener pastures.

That’s my philosophy on the subject. I love Gary [Nordquist], but I can’t justify the raise so I’m not in favor of it." 

Joseph Morabito on Item 3.5, December 11, 2019

Below is the entire thirteen minute video of item 3.5.

3.6 Wildomar Trail Sign Design

The council was presented with 9 designs. Really more like 5 choices, with one option with a long rectangular sign (traditional) and another option with a half moon top as you can see in the image below. 

I wasn't a fan of any of them, but voted for option 7 if they could open up the kerning a bit (the space between the letters). 

What appears to be lines are just the reflective material reacting to a flash. The top image was chosen if we could get the kerning changed. Otherwise, the bottom image was selected as a backup. Thing is, the bottom image doesn't give a real idea of what the sign might look like since we aren't going with "Wildomar Ave".

The street signs will be changed once Caltrans installs the freeway signs. That's anticipated to be within the first quarter of next year. 

3.7 Appointment of Mayor and Mayor Pro-tem

Our 2020 Mayor will be Dustin Nigg (district 2), and Bridgette Moore (District 4) will serve as Mayor Pro-tem. Both of their seats will be on the ballot next year.

3.8 City Manager Report
The two bits of news included when the first of the park shade structures will be installed, and a presentation about a mobility plan for Wildomar (check the 2 hour mark of the video). You can use this link to learn more. www.WildomarMobilityPlan.com

Below is the link to the video. The action begins at the 8 minute mark of the video. 

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You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.
  
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe  

 Wildomar Rap can easily judge the character of people that seem to be blessed with more than one visage.

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• City Council Meeting April 2019

The meeting began with a moment of silence for CHP Sergeant Steve Licon who had been killed on duty by a drunk driver on April 6th.

PRESENTATIONS
David A. Brown Middle School gave a presentation and shared a video put together by their students.

Billy MacKell was honored for achieving the rank of Eagle Scout.

Back row (sitting) City Attorney Thomas Jex, Ben Benoit, Bridgette Moore, Joseph Morabito. Front row Mayor Marsha Swanson, Darrell Connerton of Senator Jeff Stone's office, Billy MacKell, Nancy MacKell, Brenda Dennstedt of Congressman Ken Calvert's office, Cynthia Bennett of Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez's office and Bill MacKell.

April is National Donate Life Month and One Legacy was on hand for the proclamation. There is also a Mayor-athon in Fullerton April 27th.

Erika Heranic shared her story that led to the need of a heart transplant. Mayor Marsha Swanson is holding up a poster that shows the 19 year old donor (Dylan Stump) that helped Erika live.

Next were quarterly reports from the police and fire departments. 

The number of calls dropped by 4% from the year before.
There were no graphics from the fire department.

Here are the key items from the meeting the way I see it.

1) The Bundy Canyon road widening and improvement has been put on hold until the full funding can be procured.
2) The city will be looking to hire an economic development director in the next month or two.
3) Item 3.1 brought a stronger ordinance against the parking of commercial vehicles on public roads. 

This is going to be a great tool for the city to help alleviate the nuisance of commercial vehicles that park on streets, especially in residential areas, but also in other areas

It was asked in two public comments why this doesn't include RVs. I had the same question too. 

The short answer is that this ordinance is specifically addressing commercial vehicles. RVs would be for another ordinance.

“[Regarding RVs parked on the street] currently there is a 72 hour provision, the way that our municipal code reads it's not intended that our public streets are intended to be a storage facility for RVs. So, if it is the will of the council at some time in the future staff would be able to look at that and address that item, but that's not tonight.”

— Assistant City Manager, Dan York

4) Measure AA Oversight Committee applications are still being taken through the end of the month. Use this link if you'd like to apply: LINK
5) Planning Commissioner applications are also being accepted through the end of this month with the intention of appointing a new commissioner at the May city council meeting.
6) The City of Wildomar now officially owns 1405 street lights. The retrofitting to LEDs should be complete in about three months. Maps will be available on the city website detailing which streets are next and which have been completed.

If you have an outage or other concern about your street light, don't call SCE, report it to the city.

Future Agenda Items
Councilmember Ben Benoit asked for a policy on the presentations that are at the start of city council meetings.

I've been talking about this for years. I think that presentations/recognitions are a valuable part of our civic duty, but there are occasions where they take up more time than the actual meeting. I look forward to a new policy that keeps the presentations, while at the same time respecting everyone's time by limiting the time each item is allotted.

Mayor Marsha Swanson suggested freshening up Sedco Bulevard.

Below is the video of the full meeting which picks up as the flag salute ended. The action picks up at about the 3:30 mark.

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It is unbecoming for young men to utter maxims.
— Aristotle

Being that Wildomar Rap isn't a young man anymore... no worries here.

This blog was produced for viewing on a desktop or a laptop. Though it's been optimized for smartphones, the formatting can look odd on a smartphone or if you get this delivered through email (such as missing video links). Link to proper format.

• City Council Meeting March 2019

This was a presentation heavy/regular agenda light type of meeting. Even the items on the agenda were mostly rubber stamp type items. Things that needed to be passed and didn't come with any controversies. 

PRESENTATIONS 
1. William Collier Elementary School 

Principal Manny Valdez led the presentation and students Blake Baoloy, Eveny Leon, Crista Kerr, Katelyn Parckys and Isabella Herrera each participated as well. Watch the video below to hear what a good job they all did.

2. Eagle Scout – Damion Gonzalo 
3. Eagle Scout – Josh Robles

Eagle Scouts Damion Gonzalo (left) and Josh Robles (right) watch as Mayor Marsha Swanson passes the microphone to Senator Jeff Stone's Chief of Staff Glenn Miller, while Congressman Ken Calvert's representative Brenda Dennstedt looks on. 

4. Library Update 
5. Animal Shelter Update 
6. Reality Rally Presentation

To get the details from presentations 4, 5 and 6 please watch the video at the bottom of the blog starting around the 20:00 mark.

Consent Calendar item 1.5 Measure AA Citizen’s Oversight Advisory Committee

To me, this was the key news from the meeting. 

The city is looking for five interested residents to fill this committee. I'll add language from the agenda packet so you'll have a clear understanding of what this committee is. 

ROLES, RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES

A. The responsibilities and duties of the Committee shall be limited to:
1. Review expenditures of Measure AA revenues to ensure the monies have been expended in accordance with the authorized purposes of Measure AA. 
2. Understand allowable expenses of Measure AA monies, which is a general purpose tax.
3. Understand municipal revenue collection and distribution from local, state and federal sources.
4. Prepare and submit to the Chief Fiscal Officer of the City an annual public report on the expenditures of Measure AA tax revenues for the previous fiscal year. The Chief Fiscal Officer will then submit the public report to the City Council per Government Code section 50075.3.
5. Receive and review the independent auditor’s report as required by Section 3.22.050 for Measure AA revenues and expenditures.
B. The Committee shall not have any budgetary decision authority and shall not allocate financial resources.
C. The Committee shall have no authority to direct, nor shall it direct, City Staff or Officials.

For purposes of clarification, it is important to note that this committee is an oversight committee, much like the Measure Z Oversight committee. Because of this the committee will not have any oversight in how the monies are to be spent, but rather how the monies were spent, ensuring they were spent in accordance with Measure AA. 

If you'd like to be part of this committee, please email the city clerk and request an application. dlee@cityofwildomar.org

3.1 Update Participation in the Transportation Uniform Mitigation Fee (TUMF) Program
When new homes are built, they contribute to the TUMF fund (Transportation Uniform Mitigation Fee). The key to this agenda item was to shift the collection of such fees from the city, directly to WRCOG (Western Riverside Council of Governments).

By eliminating the two step process in the fee collection, it frees up valuable time for city staff to attend to other matters. There is a yearly audit that no longer needs to be prepared by the city, and WRCOG will not have to do their end of the audit at the 18 cities they service.

To read more about the TUMF fund/fees, use this link.

3.2 Ordinance Regulating Wireless Telecommunication Facilities in the Public Right-of-Ways

DISCUSSION:
Typically, the wireless carriers seek to install antennas and other equipment on existing poles in the public right of way, including street lights and utility poles. These facilities are called “Distributed Antenna Systems” (DAS) and are more commonly referred to as “small cells.” The proposed Ordinance (Attachment A) establishes permit requirements for the installation of wireless telecommunication facilities in the public right-of-way.

A streamlined permit is available for proposed small cell facilities that will be collocated on an existing pole in the public right of way. A standard permit is available for proposed small cell installations that require the construction of a new pole. In the unlikely event that a wireless carrier proposes to install a larger facility in the right-of-way, it would be subject to the established Wireless Communication Facility permitting process that applies to private property in the Zoning Code. Streamlined and standard permits would be issued administratively unless appealed.

Small cells that are proposed to be located on City-owned street lights or other poles would be exempt from permitting requirements under this Ordinance. To install small cells on a City-owned pole, each carrier would be required to enter into a Master License Agreement with the City that will govern the review and approval process for each installation, and include a license fee that the carrier must pay to the City for the privilege of installing its equipment on a City-owned pole.

It should be noted that on September 27, 2018, the FCC released a Declaratory Ruling and Report and Order entitled “Accelerating Wireless Broadband Deployment by Removing Barriers to Infrastructure Investment; Accelerating Wireline Broadband Deployment by Removing Barriers to Infrastructure Investment.” This Declaratory Ruling limits local control over small cells in several respects. The Ruling imposes new “shot clocks” on the time a municipality can take to review applications to install small cells, limits the processing fees and license fees that municipalities can charge, and limits the scope of aesthetic review.

The Report and Order went into effect in late January 2019. Several cities across the country have filed lawsuits on the grounds that this Ruling oversteps the FCC’s authority, and those suits were consolidated and are currently pending in the 10th Circuit. Because the 10th Circuit has declined to issue a temporary injunction blocking the implementation of the Report and Order, this Ordinance was drafted to be compliant with the Report and Order. Depending on the outcome of this litigation, amendments may be needed to this Ordinance in the future.

City Manager Report:
There will be a meeting at the Lake Elsinore Cultural Center on Wednesday, April 17th at 6pm discussing homeless issues in the Wildomar/Lake Elsinore/Lakeland Village areas.

Future agenda items:
Joseph Morabito asked to strengthen code enforcement. 

If you watch the video, starting at about the 1:37:00 mark, you'll see that I need a ton of polishing still. 

I'm finding out that it's a lot easier being eloquent when I'm on this side of the keyboard, than that side of the dias. ☺

Bridgette Moore asked about a spay and neuter program (which had been brought up in the animal shelter update earlier in the meeting).

Ben Benoit mentioned wanting a letter to Caltrans regarding freeway safety in the Sedco area where there is no guardrail to keep cars from crashing down into the city. He also asked staff to prepare a basic report regarding commercial cannabis so that the council can take a look at and discuss from there.

This is where I'm handcuffed with posting my opinion (the Brown Act). I'd love to add more thoughts here, but it's best to wait until it officially hits the agenda. 

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Life is always a tightrope or a feather bed. Give me the tightrope.
– Edith Wharton

Not sure where Ms. Wharton grew up, but in Wildomar Rap's world, it's more of a choice between regular and decaf... and decaf is NEVER opted for. (Maybe that's what she meant?)

This blog was produced for viewing on a desktop or a laptop. Though it's been optimized for smartphones, the formatting can look odd on a smartphone or if you get this delivered through email (such as missing video links). Link to proper format.