APPLY FOR SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT BOARD VACANCY

You can do a great service to your Community by applying to fill a vacancy on the Soquel Creek Water District Board by Monday, July 31, and you need not feel you have to have a PhD in anything, but possess some common sense and critical thinking abilities.

If you are a ratepayer of Soquel Creek Water District, you know your water bill has jumped significantly over the past four years…9%/year in fact.  Well, hang on because the District is ramping up to initiate yet another significant rate increase because customers have done such a good job of conserving.

Someone like you needs to reel-in the Board and staff with some reality checks about the costs of operations and constantly hiring outside consultants to do work the District is actually paying hefty monthly bonuses to for as long as the PureWater Soquel Project construction drags on.  The Board had initially discussed financial “off-ramps” for this Project but never followed through with any real examination of the situation that has now become a runaway financial hemorrhage.

2023 Board Vacancy

Please share this with anyone you know who would consider signing up to fill this job for two years, when the seat officially comes up for re-election.  Ratepayers should have a voice in this, and not be held at the mercy of those Directors who have chosen to rubberstamp staff recommendations without any real questioning.

APTOS VILLAGE PROJECT PHASE 2…THERE WERE NO NATIVE AMERICAN OBSERVERS PRESENT DURING MASSIVE EXCAVATION WORK

Excavation work  has begun in Swenson’s the Phase 2 area of the Aptos Village Project, but there did not appear to be any Native American observers there to monitor the earth disturbances in this State-registered SCF-CA-222/H archaeologic site, even though it is a condition the County required when issuing the permit.

I phoned the Durden subcontractor to ask about whether there was an observer on site.  Durden management familiar with the Project knew nothing of the requirement.  “That’s up to Swenson, we’re just the subcontractor.”  he said.  Uh-oh.

I let the man (“Louie”) know that when Soquel Creek Water District trenched through the archaeologic site in 2018, two Native American observers were at the toe of the excavation at all times.  The only person I had seen last week was a Durden worker spraying water from a tank truck for dust control.    Louie said he would contact Swenson.

The next day when I drove past the construction site, one guy was standing at a table at the edge of the construction site.  Was that Swenson’s archaeologic “observer”?  If so, chances of spotting any sensitive artifacts or remains are null.  He wasn’t even using binoculars….hmmmm…

If this bothers you, please contact Swenson and ask where the Native American or archaeologic observer is stationed during the excavation work at the Phase 2 Aptos Village Project.  831-475-7100 and contact County Code Compliance (the APN for the site is 041-011-58) Code Complaint Form

WILL SWENSON PAY FOR WATER FOR DUST CONTROL IN APTOS VILLAGE PROJECT CONSTRUCTION THIS TIME?

One difference that’s very visible as the Phase 2 Aptos Village Project construction starts up is the presence of a large bulk water tank on site along Aptos Creek Road.   Nothing of the sort was ever seen in Phase 1 construction.

Do you want to know why?

It was because Swenson was getting free water from an illegal unmetered water connection on Granite Way, near the Phase 1 development. An observant resident near the construction site reported the matter to Soquel Creek Water District as soon as he saw Swenson’s construction crew using long  hoses connected to the illegal hookup to spray water for dust control.  (See the Correspondence on page 206 of the August 15, 2017 District Board agenda

You can listen to Mr. Stumbaugh’s effort at the meeting to get answers to his query  at about minute 2:23

I had also reported this “irregular” connection to the District in July, 2017, but the District took no action  (see pages 59-61)

Soquel Creek Water District management did nothing for many months.   The connection got hidden further by concrete and pieces of broken pipe that could have convinced some that the connection had been destroyed, except that the construction crew continued to connect a hose for more free water needed at the Phase 1 construction site.

Staff did acknowledge there was a service connection and that “a customer” had paid a water demand offset fee for service nearby.  That could have been one of the Aptos Village Project developers, Pete Testorff, who demolished an historic house built in 1906 on Granite Way and built two large homes on the site, just across the road from this “irregular” connection that provided the free unmetered water to Swenson’s crews.

Finally, after many, many months, there appeared a large pond of water at the irregular connection that could no longer hide what was happening and was a big waste of water. The District’s General Manager, Ron Duncan, responded to my report of this leak that someone had struck a fire hydrant there, causing the leak.  However, there never was a fire hydrant.  Hmmm….

Well, the question now is this: who is paying to fill up that large yellow water tank for Swenson’s Phase 2 construction in the Aptos Village Project?

LEARN ABOUT LIVING WITH FIRE WITH UPDATED INFORMATION

Here is excellent information for all rural residents in Santa Cruz County to help with fire risk reduction and planning what to do in case a wildland fire happens.

Through recent grants with the California Fire Safe Council and CalFire, the RCD worked with Cal Fire, Fire Safe Council, and a template from the Burn Institute to update our Santa Cruz County Living with Wildfire Guide. It includes a brief overview of wildfire behavior and things individuals; neighborhoods and communities can do to prepare for wildfire.

Here is the link to the web version

Please share this with others.  The next Santa Cruz County FireSafe Council meeting will be July 20, 10am-noon, via Zoom:

www.firesafesantacruz.org

HELP PLANT FLOWERS AT THE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS

The Santa Cruz County Fair is just around the corner (September 13-17) and it’s time to plant the flowers there that help make it a beautiful place.  For the first time in many years, the public is being asked to come help with the planting.  Please join the fun on Thursday, July 27 at 4pm.  The Fairgrounds Foundation will provide a hotdog BBQ dinner at 6:30pm Please RSVP

If you are interested in volunteering, contact the Foundation office at (831) 786-9698 or at support@fairgrounds-foundation.org.

OH SAY, CAN YOU SEE?  FREE VISION AND HEARING TESTING IN APTOS

The Cabrillo Host Lions Club will provide free vision and hearing testing on Saturday, August 12 in the brand new A.J. Robinson mobile unit, 8:30am-3pm.  The trailer will be parked at the entrance to Aptos Village Park (100 Aptos Creek Road).  The Lions can provide applications for assistance for those who need glasses but cannot afford them.

The Lions MidSummer Market will also be occurring in the Park, 8:30am-3:30pm, with many vendors selling plants, tools, automobile memorabilia, jewelry and wooden toys.  The Aptos High Leos will be selling BBQ tri-tip sandwiches.  Admission is free.

Vendor space is $35 with limited spaces still available.  For information about the Market, please call Barbara 831-688-3356.

For further information about the free vision and hearing testing, please contact Becky 831-685-2915.

WRITE ONE LETTER.  MAKE ONE CALL.  ATTEND A PUBLIC MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS.

JUST DO SOMETHING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers,

Becky

PERSISTENT CARCINOGENS IN OUR WATER?  CALFIRE NEEDS TO CHANGE FIRE SUPPRESSION PRODUCTS

Thanks to my friend, Al, who sent a link to a recent USGS report about water contamination by PFAS nationwide…this includes some significant finds in our local water supplies.

The Report features a map with many data points in Santa Cruz County

A common source of PFAS is fire suppression foam material that CalFire and other firefighting agencies use.

There are already alternatives available, including Komodo Fire System product that is non-toxic and plant-based, and is manufactured here locally.  Komodo Fire System materials has been certified by the EPA as non-toxic to mammals and aquatic life, and is registered for use by the US Forest Service for fire suppression.

komodo-fire.com

So, why does CalFire continue to use the toxic product?  Just because it is what has always been done.  Local CalFire staff who have seen the impressive Komodo product at work urge members of the public to contact local and state representatives, asking them to put pressure on the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection and CalFire to make the change quickly.

Firefighters have extremely high cancer rates, which could be linked to not only the PFAS suppression foams and other suppressants they use, but also their protective turnout gear containing PFAS.

Other states and countries have banned the use of PFAS containing fire suppression foams, and California needs to do the same.

Please contact your representatives and demand the change to protect our firefighters, our drinking water supplies, and the environment.

Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors BoardofSupervisors@santacruzcounty.us

Assemblywoman Pellerin
Assemblywoman Addis
Senator Laird
California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection

COUNTY HOUSING ELEMENT PRESENTED AT A

FIFTH GRADE READING LEVEL?

Did you notice the interesting explanation of the County Planning Dept. Housing Element update wherein the CivicMakers consultants shepherded a new idea to use random people to make recommendations about where to re-zone areas for ultra-dense multi-story housing?

Take a look at the Project Overview statement in Appendix HE-C “Civic Engagement”:

“We also worked to make the facilitation of the meetings accessible, trauma informed, multi-lingual, and understandable at a 5th grade reading level.”

Public Engagement Results

These were two parallel groups of people, Community Panel of random residents, and a Stakeholder Panel of developers and non-profits, getting what sounds like was a watered-down and condescending presentation of what the County has to do to update the 1994 General Plan in order to build the State-mandated Regional Housing number Allocation (RHNA) housing units and were asked to put sticky notes and dots next to the choices provided by the Consultants.

The Community Panel was supposed to have 20-25 people, but only 14 participated.  Look at page 17-18 to see the composition.  Districts 2 and 4 had hardly any representation.

The list of Stakeholder Committee members is interesting (pages 11-17).  Note that the only developer allowed to participate was Jessie Bristow from Barry Swenson.

Shouldn’t there have been some smaller, locally-owned builders in the room?

Page 40 of the Appendix C has some good information in response to questions posed by the Developer and Non-Profit (Stakeholder Committee) that staff could not answer at the time of the first meeting on April 11.  Here is a good example:

Q: Are these state levels or county levels of income that these go by? 

A: Income levels are set by the state and then adjusted (by the state) to reflect regional differences. 

Q: What proportion of the 5th cycle goals have been met? 
A: 79% overall. Above Moderate = 66%; Moderate = 122%; Low 92%; Very Low = 59% 

Q: What proportion of current RHNA units met is not moderate or above moderate?
A: 656 = moderate and above moderate vs. 377 low and very low

One suggestion the Committees presented was to increase densities around the rail corridor.  That makes sense to me, as it would support the use of the rail corridor for passenger commutes and broader use than tourist excursions.

Appendix HE-E is a 17-page inventory of vacant land in the County that could be developed for dense affordable housing.  The Assessor Parcel Number (APN) and acreage are listed with the possible minimum and maximum housing units that could be built.  

I tried to look up some parcel numbers for the Aptos area, but discovered the County Assessor database is broken.  Upon inquiring at the 701 Ocean Street County Government Building, I learned that the database is undergoing major work that will not be completed until July 10 at the earliest, but more likely July 15, so no information is available.

Public Comment on the Santa Cruz County Housing Element closed July 11, but there will be a flurry of Planning Commission and Board of Supervisor meetings that you need to mark on your calendar now, and plan to participate as much as you can.

Get involved

This document, which the County must present to the State Housing and Community Development Dept. by mid-December, will drastically alter the look and feel of our Communities going forward.  The State is wielding a mighty big stick…and in my opinion, we need to push back.

Take a look here at local people doing excellent work by currently circulating a Petition to increase affordable housing to 25% in new development, and grant Santa Cruzans the right to vote on the height and size increases of development above current, reasonable limits: www.housingforpeople.org  They could use your help: 831-471-7822.

Also, on a statewide level, link up with these good folks who are working hard to educate the legislators who seem to be going along with the unreasonable RHNA mandates without regard to local jurisdiction discretion and infrastructure realities:

catalystsca.org/

WHY DID SANTA CRUZ COUNTY RTC REJECT A WHITE PAPER ON REASONABLE PASSENGER RAIL SERVICE HERE?

Last summer, the Train Riders Association of California (TRAC) submitted a Whitepaper to the Santa Cruz County RTC, outlining ways the existing rail could be reconditioned for passenger service at a fraction of the cost stated in recent studies, and recommending proposals for different types of lightweight passenger rail vehicles.

TRAC – Santa Cruz Rail Study 0722 [pdf]

The RTC rejected this proposal.

Want to hear more about all that?  Listen online this Friday to “Community Matters”, 1pm-3pm, on the new online-radio Santa Cruz Voice platform.

Mr. David Schonbrunn, President of TRAC, will discuss efforts to support passenger rail in Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties, as well as his work fighting the California High-Speed Rail Project.

Meanwhile, the RTC is embarking yet another multi-million dollar study about passenger rail possibilities in Santa Cruz County, citing more information needed regarding easements and bridge repair/maintenance.

MAKE ONE CALL.  WRITE ONE LETTER.  ATTEND A MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS.  HOLD OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS ACCOUNTABLE TO TRANSPARENCY.

DO ONE THING THIS WEEK, AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers, and Happy Summer,

Becky

PUBLIC COMMENT ON COUNTY HOUSING ELEMENT ENDS

NEXT TUESDAY July 11

It is critical that the County Planning Dept. hear from  you  about where to place dense infill development in the unincorporated areas of the Community, and your last chance of substance to do so is next Tuesday, July 11.  This is the update to the County General Plan, and will shape the quality of life in our Community for future generations.

The Project documents are in the link below, but first take time to look at what the two Stakeholder Committees recommended in Appendix C

Will the Planning Dept. staff follow these recommendations?

In the meantime, it is important that you read through their Recommendations and make your own by next Tuesday.  E-mail them to:

2023HousingElement@santacruzcounty.us   or click on the yellow button in the Project document website below:

Project Documents

DISAPPOINTING THAT THE GRAND JURY CHOSE NOT TO REVIEW FIRE DEPT. IMPLEMENTATION OF PAST RECOMMENDATIONS

One of the Grand Jury Reports just issued is “Honoring Commitments to the Public”.  I was really hoping the Grand Jury would review the lack of an After Action Analysis by Santa Cruz County Fire Department and CalFire after the 2020 CZU Fire, to interview the Volunteers and determine what worked well and what did not.  This is a crucial aspect of planning for future emergency response.   However, I was disappointed to read this:

“The Grand Jury also reviewed Ready? Aim? Fire!; however, follow-up responses to this
2019-2020 investigation were not pursued, since over the past three years there has
been a major wildfire and three more fire-related Grand Jury investigations.
The value of the Grand Jury’s reports is realized when government agencies apply the recommendations to improve transparency and efficiency for county residents.”

Well, it would be great if the agencies actually did act in a manner improving transparency, wouldn’t it?

GRAND JURY REPORT ON SHERIFF DEPT. USE OF SURVEILLANCE

The Grand Jury did some good investigative work on other issues, namely the issue of Sheriff Dept. use of surveillance equipment, notably in the jails.

Here is the link to the Press Banner’s analysis of the report

Here is the report

Other Reports just released by the Grand Jury are here and are worth reading:

2022-2023 Grand Jury Reports and Responses

WOULD THIS SPEED PERMIT APPLICATION PROCESSING?

Last Tuesday, the County Board of Supervisors Consent Agenda was bursting, numbering —–items.  One Item, #29, proposed requiring the Planning Dept. to return within 90 days to report on the possibility of allowing building permit applicants to opt for having a Third Party Plan Check company review their plans, rather than the Planning Dept. staff.

The Planning Dept. has quite a few vacancies, leading to sluggish permit processing times:

Background

As of June 6th, 2023, the County’s Performance Measurement Dashboard for the Permit Center showed the following median processing times: Single Family Dwellings – 64 days; Remodel – 107 days; Multi-Family Housing – 154 days; ADU – 197 days. On average, 18% of this time is the result of the applicant responding to comments, and 82% is county staff’s review time.

Between March 7, 2023, and June 6, 2023, there was an increase in the median processing time for permits in all categories. Specifically, the processing time for a remodel permit increased 10.31% from a median of 97 days to 107 days.

Agenda Item DOC-2023-556

It will be interesting to see what the Planning Dept. staff reports to the Board on this.  When the Board hired 4Leaf consultants to handle the CZU Fire permitting work, Planning Dept. staff complained, seemingly worried about their job security.

COUNTY COMPOSTING TOILET PILOT PROJECT MOVES TO WATSONVILLE

Another Consent Agenda item last Tuesday included changing the location of the County’s Composting Toilet Pilot Project from Crest Ranch in Bonny Doon to the Watsonville City Wastewater Treatment Plant in order to expedite permitting and avoid CEQA analysis.  Now the bio-solids will be collected at the Ben Lomond Transfer Station, and transported to Watsonville for composting.

The idea was originally meant to help the CZU Fire Survivors rebuild their homes more quickly and to potentially avoid having to install the very expensive Alternative Systems that cost $75,000 or more as well as expensive geotechnical analysis for septic leach fields, now required by the County in many areas.  The Supervisors approved a pilot project to compost waste at Crest Ranch, but permitting has been a problem.

Background

The Santa Cruz County CBS Pilot was brought to the Board and approved in October 2022 to further support the rebuilding efforts of families impacted by the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire. When the item was brought before the Board last year, only 14 of the 911 homes destroyed in the 2020 CZU Fire had been successfully rebuilt. Since then, 28 CZU-impacted households have successfully rebuilt their homes.

Agenda Item
DOC-2023-557

The Pilot Project is being enthusiastically shepherded by Watsonville City Sanitation Engineer, Mr. Ryan Smith. He testified before the County Board of Supervisors multiple times supporting the use of the alternative composting toilets when the County’s septic system ordinance was under State-mandated revision.

As the Chief Plant Operator at the City’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, Ryan Smith will provide on-site support and supervise the project with GiveLove. The City of Watsonville’s Public Works and Utilities Department has strongly supported this pilot and has agreed to host the Composting site at the treatment plant. Ryan Smith has led efforts on behalf of GiveLove to develop a license agreement between GiveLove & the City of Watsonville. On June 13th, the City of Watsonville’s city council adopted a resolution to execute the license agreement necessary to host the pilot project at the Watsonville Wastewater Treatment Plant.

So now, the six-month Pilot Project will allow 25 households in the CZU Fire area to get free composting toilet kits (usually costing $400 each).  The company providing the kits, GiveLove, will collect the data necessary to inform the Board next year about the success of the Pilot Project, allowing the Board to consider expanding the effort going forward.

This will be interesting to watch…stay tuned.

FORMER HOTEL SITE NEAR THE HARBOR IS NOW

EXCESS PROPERTY TO SELL

Back in 2017, the County Redevelopment Successor Agency wanted to give Barry Swenson exclusive development rights to a large County-owned parcel at 7th Avenue and Brommer, overlooking the harbor.  Maybe you went to those hearings, too, and heard the oily description of the massive project that would include an upscale hotel, condos and yurts for the “Visitor Accommodation” project. Proposed Development

Thank goodness, the County rescinded the deal with Swenson, however, last Tuesday, the Board officially declared the parcel “Surplus Property” and will offer it for sale. This was slipped through in Consent Agenda Item #35.

Here is what happens next:

Following adoption of a surplus resolution, the Surplus Lands Act (SLA) requires the Redevelopment Successor Agency (RSA) to issue a Notice of Availability for open space and for low-, moderate-income housing purposes to all required entities as provided in Government Code section 54221(f)(2) and 54222(a) and allow 60 days for response.  If a responsive notice of interest is received within the 60-day period, then the RSA is required to negotiate in good faith for at least 90 days to attempt to reach terms of sale. If mutually acceptable terms of sale are not reached within the 90-day negotiation period, then the Property may be sold outside of the requirements of the SLA (except that a limited affordability covenant must be recorded against the Property). 

The Property is surplus to RSA needs and not necessary for RSA’s use. It is therefore recommended to adopt a resolution declaring the Property surplus and stating the RSA’s intent to sell the Property.

Financial Impact

Upon successful negotiation for disposition, sale of the Property will result in proceeds that will be distributed to the various taxing entities consistent with the share of the property tax received following approval of one or more Development and Disposition Agreements (DDAs) or other form of document approved by the RSA Board and the Santa Cruz County Consolidated Redevelopment Oversight Board.

The Project will offer the opportunity for an increase and diversity of housing options on the Site.

The Project will stimulate the economy offering lodging, shopping, dining, and indoor/outdoor gathering places.

Agenda Item DOC-2023-562

What exactly will that mean???  Keep your eye on this and contact your County Supervisor when they all return from vacation on August 1.

831-454-2200

APPROVING A QUESTIONABLE CONTRACT WITH CALFIRE

Another large expensive, potentially controversial Consent Item the Board of Supervisors swept under the rug was #46, approving a one-year $7.3 million contract with CalFire to train the Santa Cruz County Fire Dept. Volunteers.

Agenda Item
DOC-2023-573

Here is why I felt the Board should have rejected the contract:

Dear Board, You need to consider this contract AS THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT, not at the Board of Supervisors. The augmented $899,514 to pay for six additional engineers/drivers was supposed to be paid for by the CSA 48 2020 Special Benefit Assessment action. Property owners were also told the new tax would allow a cost-saving three-year contract with CalFire…this is not the case now. Claiming a large cost saving due to arbitrarily reducing the Amador Agreement time is bogus and only saves money on paper. The Fire Dept. Advisory Commission was not happy with the way CalFire Chief Armstrong manipulated the information when it was presented, and the Commissioners voiced concern that CalFire is becoming more dependent on CSA 48 monies buying new equipment that CalFire then leases on demand. This proposed Contract also eliminates local in-house plan checks, and relies on a contracting agency that is far removed from Santa Cruz County and may know little about the needs of the public and building and fire matters, especially relating to topography. Please do not approve this contract. It does not serve the public safety needs of the people, and promotes the needs of CalFire at the expense of the Santa Cruz County Fire Dept. volunteers who are treated poorly. Do not approve any contract with CalFire until there is an After Action Review of the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire with the Volunteers.

The Board paid no attention, and asked no questions of CalFire Chief Nate Armstrong who was loitering in the hall.

Write your County Supervisors and demand an After Action Review be conducted with the County Fire Dept. Volunteers for the CZU Fire.

NEW COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER REPLACES GAIL NEWEL

One would think, with COVID now in the rearview mirror, that the new County Supervisor action to appoint a new County Public Health Officer would be quite public.  Not so.  Last Tuesday, the Board approved the appointment of Dr. Lisa Hernandez via Consent Agenda Item #54:

Agenda Item DOC-2023-581

COUNTY RECEIVES $2.24 MILLION GRANT TO PROVIDE SEVEN UNITS OF HOUSING?

The County received $2.24 million in state Project Home Key grant monies to fund the 801 River Street transitional project that will provide seven housing units.  That works out to be $320,000/person. Isn’t there a more cost-effective way to help more people with these hard-earned public taxpayer dollars?

That was Consent Agenda Item #67 last Tuesday: DOC-2023-594 Adopt resolution accepting unanticipated revenue in the amount of $2,240,000 from the California Department of Housing and Community Development for Project Homekey; ratify the Standard Agreement and local Project Agreement for the 801 R

COUNTY HIRES CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS FOR $9 MILLION EACH

The County Public Works Director Matt Machado claimed in Consent Agenda Item #83 that the County just does not have the staff to oversee construction projects in the County, so the Board of Supervisors approved extending contracts hiring two consultants for $9 million each.

Analysis

Public Works is continuing to complete repairs to several damaged sites from the 2016-17 and 2022-23 storm events.  Due to these and other on-going projects, the current not-to-exceed amounts for each Independent Contractor Agreement are at their current capacity, yet much more construction management services are needed for the upcoming construction season.  This construction season includes several high value projects such as:

• The Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane project awarded at $20,208,885,
• 2023 Pavement Management awarded at $5,443,330,
• Emergency Routes Resurfacing awarded at $2,246,700,
• Highway 152/Holohan Road Intersection with Engineer’s estimate of $2,789,000, and
• Valencia Creek Sewer Relocation with a low bid of $2,364,836. 

These upcoming projects are in addition to this winter’s emergency projects currently in construction and several others being added. 

Overall, there is approximately $54 million worth of Capital Improvement Projects to be constructed this season and currently estimated value of $32 million worth of Emergency Repairs.  Based on approximately $85 million in construction projects, management oversight is estimated at a cost 17% for roughly $14.5 this season. 

Since 2019, MNS Engineers Inc. has performed oversight services on multiple projects at a value to-date of $45 million while Consor has performed services on a value to-date of $33 million.  Rebidding on-call consultant contracts is not possible at this time as emergency repairs needed immediately on critical County infrastructure are necessary to respond to these emergencies.  Inspection and project management of these emergencies does not permit a delay resulting from a competitive solicitation of bids on new on-call consultant contracts.  These contracts will expire in April 2024; at which time, new contracts will be established. 

To continue managing oversight of 2022 construction season started projects in addition to 2023 construction season projects, it is necessary to increase the agreement with MNS Engineers Inc., and Consor North America, Inc.  Approving amendments of $5,000,000 for each consultant for a total increase of $10 million is less than the estimated needed value of $14.5 million in additional oversight services for this season alone.  This approval allows uninterrupted management services to projects currently in construction as well as multiple projects to start.

Financial Impact

The recommended actions would result in a new not-to-exceed amount of $9 million for each contract. 

DOC-2023-610 Approve amendment to agreements with construction management on-call consultants to increase compensation by $5,000,000 each for a total amount of $9,000,000 each, and take related actions, as recommended by the Deputy CAO/Director of Co

EVEN WITH $8 MILLION BUDGET DEFICIT, SUPERVISORS APPROVE LEASING NEW OFFICE FOR $27,552/MONTH FOR FIVE YEARS?

Consent Agenda Item #87 approved a new five-year lease at 150 Westridge Drive in Watsonville, near the huge new campus the County purchased this year for a South County Government Center.  This 13,776SF leased office space will house health care serviced while the buildings at 1430 Freedom Blvd. are demolished and rebuilt, and also include a new 1,350SF office for Fourth District Supervisor Felipe Hernandez.

DOC-2023-614 Approve lease agreement for real property located at 150 Westridge Drive, Watsonville; authorize the Deputy CAO / Director of Community Development and Infrastructure to execute the lease agreement on behalf of the Health Services Agency

Consent Item #93 approved spending $3.3 million for the architects to design the new building to replace the demolished structure at the Freedom Blvd. campus. DOC-2023-620 Approve agreement with Hawley Peterson Snyder (HPS) Architects for the South County Health Campus Project in the amount of $3,356,086; adopt resolutions accepting unanticipated revenue in the amount of $3,356,086 in Fiscal Year 2022-23;

NEW 10′ WIDE BIKE PATH ON GREEN VALLEY ROAD IN WATSONVILLE MUST BE BUILT IN ONE YEAR

Consent Agenda Item #94 approved funding a bike path on Green Valley Road between Airport Blvd(Holohan Rd.) and Mesa Verde Drive (where the Sheriff Substation is located).

The Engineer’s Estimate for this project, not including design, inspection, overhead, or contingencies, is $4,122,739.  The project is partially funded by multiple sources including $5,000,000 in Clean California Grant Funds, $400,000 in Measure D Funds, and $516,097 in County General Funds.

DOC-2023-621 Approve plans, specifications, and engineer’s estimate for the Green Valley Road Multi-Use Trail Improvements Project; set online bid opening for 2:15 p.m. on July 27, 2023; direct Community Development and Infrastructure to return on or

THERE WAS NOT A MEETING OF THE MINDS, SO THE COUNTY TOOK AWAY FLOOD CONTROL MONEY

It was amazing to see that the Board of Supervisors rejected the plea of Pajaro Flood Control Management Director Dr. Mark Strudley to leave the County funding support in place for Pajaro flood control projects for which the money was intended.  He asked the Consent Agenda Item #96 be pulled, in order to have better public discussion.  Chairman Zach Friend refused to do so.

Watsonville City Councilwoman Ari Parker also requested the Board not approve the proposed funding claw-back, but to no avail.  Wow.  Public Works Director Matt Machado dismissively explained to reporters in the hallway who asked why the County was taking back the funding, “It’s just crumbs.”

Agenda Item DOC-2023-623

GOOD LETTERS TO THE SUPS

Make sure you read through the Correspondence of last Tuesday’s County Board of Supervisor meeting.  Mr. Cove Britton wrote a good one regarding the Board’s farce involving the appeal of a Planning Dept. determination requiring expensive studies ad nauseum (Letter #i):

Written Correspondence WC-2023-11

FEDERAL MONEY TO SUPPORT DOWNTOWN SANTA CRUZ SKYSCRAPER CANYONS?

Russ Brutsche spotted this interesting article on Lookout Santa Cruz, sporting the federal official visit to Santa Cruz.  The City’s proposed new ordinance for all-electric housing seemed charming to Ms. Ariel Marshall from the Dept. of Energy.

As Santa Cruz plots an electric future, U.S. energy officials tour city with offer of federal funds

Why did she come here?  It seems Mayor Fred Keeley and City Economic Development Director Bonnie Lipscomb have grand plans to build a downtown canyon of skyscrapers and want to court federal dollars to help pay for it.

Will they also pay for the cleanup of liquefaction destruction as sea level rise discussions warn?

New Findings on Shallow Groundwater Rise Highlight a Climate Risk Not Addressed by Policy

NEW CHANTICLEER OVERCROSSING WILL OFFER SWEEPING VISTA OF TREATED SEWAGE WATER PLANT

The work on Highway One near the Soquel Drive/Soquel Avenue area is in full swing.  The pedestrian overcrossing that will be juxtaposed to the PureWater Soquel Project treatment plant will have sweeping views of the facility, and likely expose users to loud noise from the reverse osmosis pumps. When I toured a similar facility in Santa Clara, the agency issued ear protection.

Here is the strip of land the Chanticleer Overcrossing will occupy when built.  The County and RTC paid Soquel Creek Water District $740,000 for this strip of land.

Here is the PureWater Soquel Treatment Plant, but what you can’t see here are the multiple large hazardous chemical storage tanks that will be adjacent to the Chanticleer Pedestrian Overcrossing.

If you are interested in learning more about the Highway One and Overcrossing Projects, tune in this Friday at 1pm to “Community Matters” to hear Ms. Sarah Christensen, Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission Project Engineer, discuss the work happening now and what else is planned.  santacruzvoice.com

REST IN PEACE, ROB EDWARDS

I was saddened to read the obituary of Rob Edwards in Sunday’s Santa Cruz Sentinel.  Although I never had the pleasure of meeting this amazing fellow who worked hard to build a great training platform at Cabrillo College for archaeology students and was highly respected for his work, I have read and appreciated a number of his reports.  The most notable one was his survey of the barn at the Redman-Hirahara Farmstead, detailing the artifacts associated with the Japanese American families who lived there upon the end of the Internment Camps of WWII, having lost all they had while being imprisoned. Thanks to the Hirahara family and the Pajaro Valley neighbors, the apartments in the barn helped those unfortunate families get back on their feet.

Take a look at who Rob Edwards was, and the great legacy he leaves behind

Rob Edwards Obituary

Rest in peace, Rob, and thank you for your good work while you were here.

THE LEE RESOLUTION INITIATED THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

I recently learned of the Lee Resolution, a document that preceded the Declaration of Independence and shaped the beginning of our Nation.  I had never heard of this piece of history and enjoyed learning more about how the process happened to launch the United States of America into being.   Happy Independence Day!

Lee Resolution (1776)

WRITE ONE LETTER.  MAKE ONE CALL.  ATTEND A MEETING AND EXPECT ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS.

MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE THIS WEEK BY JUST DOING SOMETHING.

Cheers and Happy Independence Day,

Becky

BRUCE DANIELS RESIGNED FROM SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Last week, longtime the Soquel Creek Water District Board member Bruce Daniels resigned, effective June 19.  His letter of resignation was not included in the meeting packet, but General Manager Ron Duncan stated that Director Daniels wanted to do other things, such as travel and work on writing computer models for students wanting to study climate change.

Somehow, I think it could be related to the Board’s action last January to dissolve funding for large conservation projects that the District has been collecting for a couple of decades in response to his failed attempt to convince the Board to declare a moratorium on new connections.  He always voted “NO” for any new service requests the Board reviewed, citing critical overdraft problems he felt needed to be addressed.   Staff convinced the Board in January that it was no longer necessary to continue collecting $55,000/acre foot new water demand, meant to fund large water conservation projects that would not otherwise get funded.

 Rubbish. 

The District collected a lot of money, doubled the number of water demand offsets they could sell, and used the money to buy new water meters that staff claimed would save a lot of water.  Shouldn’t that have been a standard operational expense?

Hmmmm……

Well, last Tuesday, the Directors discussed how to fill the Board vacancy. It was quite a dog and pony show. Even though Director Daniels had just submitted his resignation, Ms. Traci Hart, Director of HR, already had researched two plans of action the Board could take: 1) hold an election, or 2) appoint someone to their liking.  No surprise, Director Bruce Jaffe quickly responded that he had no interest at all in discussing an election.

“It’s a lot of work to run,” agreed Chairman Carla Christensen.  Hmmm….do they already know who they want on the Board?  Has Director Daniels made his selection behind the scenes and resigned mid-term to ensure his choice would be a shoe-in?

After some back-and-forth about who on the Board should serve on the Ad Hoc Committee of two to develop an application, they voted to schedule two Board meetings to interview the applicants on August 8 and 9.  Only then did Manager Duncan state that elections are expensive, the last one costing about $60,000.  Really?   Ms. Hart had earlier admitted she had not been able contact the County Elections Director to find out the cost, and whether or not there were an election for other matters on the November 2023 ballot.

Director Rachel Lather remained quite silent, only saying she was too busy to serve on the Ad Hoc, but offered “Well, I remember I worked hard on my application.”

She was appointed to the Board in 2016 when Director Rick Meyer passed away.  I remember how their selection process went, because I attended both of the Board meetings to interview replacement directors.  It was pretty clear to me that the Board had already decided Rachel Lather was their choice because she knew so much about sewage, having worked for the County of Santa Cruz in the sanitation dept.   The District was already gearing up to rubber stamp the PureWater Soquel Project to inject treated sewage water into the groundwater.  Let me tell you, there were some really excellent candidates who were not considered.

Also, I later learned that Rachel Lather was a close friend of Director Carla Christensen, which likely swayed the Board’s selection.

As we all know, an appointee becomes the “Incumbent” on the ballots for the next election….and has a significant advantage over others who may run for the Board.  That is what has helped keep Rachel Lather on the Board.   She refused to vote on the last repressive District rate increases that have raised the cost of water 9% every year for the past five years, admitted that she has lost sleep over the Board’s approval to double the number of new water demand offsets sold, and questioned why the District borrowed 100% of the money needed to fund the new Quail Run tank that benefits the Aptos Village Project but has never built the tank.

According to the District website, the applications are due July 31, but the applications are not yet available. 

2023 Board Vacancy

It will be interesting to see who the Board appoints.  Because of Manager Duncan’s repeated reference to “dedicated people on the Standing Committees” as possible Director appointees, I am guessing the choice will be a fellow who has CONSISTENTLY been their greatest cheerleader for big rate increases.   The District is currently working on a plan to raise their rates again… their project to inject treated sewage water into the groundwater is a lot more expensive than planned.  Stay tuned.

PUMPING LESS GROUNDWATER IS GOOD NEWS

The June 15 MidCounty Groundwater Agency Board meeting featured a presentation by Ms. Georgina King, hydrologist Montgomery & Associates.

“We have seen a steady decrease in groundwater pumping, and expect that to hold.” she said.

However, there are increasing chloride levels in the south area of the Basin, which could be an indicator of an advancing freshwater / saltwater interface.  Mind you, this is NOT where the PureWater Soquel Project is scheduled to pressure inject treated sewage water, ostensibly to push back seawater intrusion.

 2022 Groundwater Annual Report, filed April 1, 2023, using data from last year (even before the big winter rains) 

Look at page 25 of the Report: Overall, 401 acre-feet less groundwater was extracted in WY 2022 compared to WY 2021,

No surface water from the SCWD to SqCWD for in-lieu use was transferred in WY 2022. (That means no water transfers from Santa Cruz to Soquel Creek Water District.  There was plenty of water available, but Soquel Creek Water District just did not ask to activate the agreement that would then allow them to buy excess water from the City and thereby reduce pumping from the aquifer.  Their justification was that the District staff was too busy with the PureWater Soquel Project construction.)

Look at the groundwater extraction amounts in the table on pages 27-28 to see how water use has consistently decreased since 2008.

Look at the encouraging increased groundwater storage maps on pages 35-37, notably in the aquifer areas that Soquel Creek Water District intends to pressure-inject treated sewage water.

The MidCounty Groundwater Agency Board also approved their 2023 budget…how to use $7.6 Million grant money?  The budget includes spending $20,000 for public outreach. “What DOES the agency plan to do for public outreach in the coming year?” I asked.  No reply.

Spending $65,000 for metering on non-diminimus well owners, those pumping more than 2 acre-feet/year, will perhaps help those private well owners pay for the mandated meters that will soon assess them for groundwater extraction

It will be interesting to see the results of State-funded helicopter flights using magnetic resonance data to determine what the saltwater / freshwater interface status is.  The State is really dragging their feet on releasing this information.  However, based on the information, the MidCounty Groundwater Agency has budgeted $150,000 to do this analysis again, with a more refined level of surveying.

Take a look at what is planned that will affect the groundwater level and administration of such in the Midcounty areas.  Here is the link to the MGA website: Recent News | Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Agency

LOOKING FOR PRIVATE WELL OWNERS TO REPRESENT OTHERS ON THE MIDCOUNTY GROUNDWATER AGENCY

In the next few years, there will be increasing pressure to tax private well owners in Santa Cruz County for their groundwater extraction.  The representation of those well owners on the MidCounty Groundwater Agency (MGA) is up for selection.

The application process is underway.  Unlike the Santa Margarita Groundwater Agency, which allows the private well owners to select their representative, the MidCounty GSA will have an executive committee from within to decide criteria.    Last week’s Board approved Sierra Ryan (from the County), Jon Kennedy and Curt Abramson (current private well reps) and one other executive member to develop an application process and criteria,

The Executive Committee (Soquel Creek Water District General Manager Ron Duncan, the City of Santa Cruz Water Dept. Manager Rosemary Menard, the Central Water District General Manager Ralph Bracamonte, and Sierra Ryan as County of Santa Cruz Water Resources Director) will decide who represents the private well owners, not the private well owners,

The application for the Private Well Owner representative is not available yet, but watch for it here and consider applying if you are a private well owner:

Private Well Owners | Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Agency

CITY OF SANTA CRUZ LOOKS AT INDUSTRIAL USERS AND CONTAMINANT LOADS

The City of Santa Cruz Wastewater Treatment Dept. held a public hearing on June 14 (as reported last week by Bratton Online contributor Joy Schendledecker) to check off a mandatory box required to renew the City’s National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit to discharge treated sewage water into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.  The Santa Cruz City Council will review and approve the report on discharge contamination in August.  The County of Santa Cruz is also working on what dumping limits are set, and the contaminant concentrations allows, and the matter will come before the Board of Supervisors for approval.

The City, with the help of Kennedy Jenks Consultants, conducted five sampling events at 19 sampling stations over a period of 16 months of industrial sources as well as at the Wastewater Treatment facility to generally monitor the household waste contaminant levels.  Because of the sampling results, five new pollutants will be monitored.

Ms. Melanie Mow-Schumacher of Soquel Creek Water District talked about the PureWater Soquel Project, stating roughly 25% of the wastewater effluent will be piped from Santa Cruz to the Treatment Plant under construction across from the County Sheriff Headquarters.  Because the District plans to inject that treated sewage water into the aquifer, it is important that the City have a good handle on the levels of contaminants and their sources, so hence, the NPDES permit update is crucial for them.

Will there be real time data sharing between the City and the District’s PureWater Soquel Project to be able to alert each other for unusual contaminant spikes or system failures and thereby ensure treatment system redundancy would effectively prevent irreversible and significant groundwater contamination?  The District’s treatment facility will have real-time monitoring of contaminant levels.

What bothered me is that the treatment “brine” from the PureWater Soquel Project will get dumped directly into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, and not treated again, as was stated in the 2018 Project EIR.  There are many carcinogenic contaminants that are a result of the disinfection process that will become one of the City’s industrial pollution sources…hence the inclusion of the District in the public hearing.

One member of the audience commented that it is difficult to find that level of information on the City’s website to see whether there are or have been spikes in wastewater contaminant levels.  She also mentioned the leak in the City’s sewage effluent outfall pipe going out into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.  Ms. Ann Hogan, Director of the City’s Wastewater Treatment Dept., mentioned that the website will be updated soon to connect with a STATE data tool called CRISPR that will soon be integrated with website information.  Ms. Hogan stated that there have been two dye-plume studies conducted recently of the damaged effluent outfall pipeline, and results will be made publicly available soon.

I left the meeting feeling that the City will do its best to monitor the industrial point-source contaminants, but the wild cards will be domestic sewage contamination levels and the PureWater Soquel Project effluent contamination concentrate and elevated temperature fluctuations.  Keep your eye on the City’s website improvements and ask the City Council to repair the damaged sewage effluent pipe that is allowing treated sewage (and PureWater Soquel contaminant “brine”) to be dumped closer to the beaches than is permitted.

Santa Cruz City Council citycouncil@cityofsantacruz.com

Here is a link to the EPA Clean Water Act website, detailing what the NPDES permit process involves.

Oddly, in a recent legal action I had regarding the California Coastal Commission’s rubberstamp approval of the PureWater Soquel Project, the First District Court of Appeal opined that “the Clean Water Act is only a suggestion and is not legally binding.”  Isn’t that interesting?

LISTEN AND BE HEARD THIS FRIDAY….CABRILLO COLLEGE NAME AND ON-SITE HOUSING PROJECT

This Friday at a bit after 1pm, Dr. Matt Wetstein, President of Cabrillo Community College, will be the guest on “Community Matters” online radio program.  Listen in:

https://santacruzvoice.com/

You can call in with your thoughts:  831-265-5050.

WRITE ONE LETTER.  MAKE ONE CALL.  ATTEND A PUBLIC MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS.

MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE THIS WEEK BY JUST DOING SOMETHING.

Cheers and Happy Belated Summer Solstice,

Becky

BRUCE MCPHERSON IS RETIRING AS COUNTY SUPERVISOR
Last week, County Supervisor Bruce McPherson formally announced he will not seek re-election as Fifth District County Supervisor.  It has been expected by many for a while, dating back to the contentious redistricting line discussions in 2021 submitted at the last minute by Scotts Valley Mayor Derek Timm, and that some felt were meant to redraw lines favorable to his running for Fifth District Supervisor.

One candidate, Monica Martinez, had already thrown her hat in the ring in April.  The public would be wise to scrutinize her actions as CEO of Community Services for Encompass …more to come on that.

It will be interesting to see if Bruce McPherson really retires, or if he will seek another State-level seat?  He did let me know his displeasure with “being termed-out in Sacramento” when I quizzed him about his opposition to the term limit proposal of County District Supervisors, last year by then-Supervisors Greg Caput.

No wonder Supervisor McPherson has been so outspoken recently on CZU Fire issues and Housing Element matters.  He no longer has to “go along to get along” with issues and the pressure to have the Board unanimously approve everything.

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BUDGET BURSTS PAST $1.1 MILLION WITH LITTLE TRANSPARENCY OR PUBLIC DISCUSSION
Last Tuesday, the County Board of Supervisors and CAO staff fell all over each other thanking each other for passing the 2023-2024 Budget that has an even higher deficit than had been earlier reported, and made no mention at all of the looming CalPERS unfunded pension debt that is skyrocketing.

This all happened a full month earlier than is historically done, with public hearings reduced to half the time and eliminating both evening public hearings that have always been held in Watsonville and chambers in the Santa Cruz County Government building to give working people the opportunity to hear the proposed Budget overview presentations and ask questions / comment.

The information on the website is hard to find, and a link to the public hearings and inherent documents has been broken for weeks.

I have pointed these problems out to the Board more than once, and written the Director of IT for the county.  I wrote a letter asking that the Board Cure and Correct the Brown Act violations inherent.

NO response.

However, what has changed is that the Budget Hearings all have a posted transcript, beginning May 30.   That has never happened before.  Take a look at the abysmal transcript for June 13 Final Budget Hearing: 2023/06/13 01:30 PM Board of Supervisors Cont’d BUDGET HEARINGS – Last Day – Web Outline – Santa Cruz County, CA

When CAO Carlos Palacios initially was handed the reins of running the County by former CAO Susan Mauriello (she actually handed him what she called a “magic wand”), he said he would take a new approach with formulating two-year budgets that would improve long-term planning and cut costs.  Remember that?  Not so now.  In fact, in the instance of County Fire Dept. and CalFire, we have not yet seen a contract for service agreement, yet the County Fire Department vague and confusing budget shows a negative $3 million figure.   Hmmm..

Amazingly, a woman representing California State Association of Counties (CSAC) drove all the way from Sacramento to present two awards to the Board, one being for the Online Interactive Budget Website, and the other for Criminal Justice Council Policy Review.

She said the Online Budget website was really wonderful because it incorporates the County Strategic Plan.  What?  That’s the subjective list of feel-good words at the end of each agenda item that gets tallied up and converted into demonstrating how responsive each item is to problems at hand.  The words are the same ones as were on the list the CAO posted in public hearings and gave everyone a fixed number of colored dots to stick on what they thought most important.  Remember that little meaningless exercise?

Maybe the most amazing thing about that presentation was the photo op. when Chairman Zach Friend left the shelter of the dais and joined the CSAC lady on the public side of the Chambers, removing his mask so we could all see him suddenly smile for the camera.

You can watch it here, at minute 14:00: Video Outline – Santa Cruz County, CA

COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND PLANNING DEPT. REFUSED TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY ON APTOS BEACH ROAD
Last Tuesday, it was shocking to witness the County Planning Dept. twist information to thwart efforts of a property owner wanting to build an engineered retaining wall meant to prevent any further slide action threatening homes below, and the Board of Supervisors refusing to take action to protect lives and property, even though they could.

At issue is whether an engineered retaining wall at the top of a coastal bluff is properly called a shoreline protection element.  The property owners, their civil engineer, and their expert land use professional said “NO”, and argued that at first the County Planning Dept. had agreed when accepting their application.

The Planning Dept. changed their minds months later and said the project had to have an alternatives analysis because of the impacts on the shoreline sand.   The property owner initially rejected that, but finally had to cave in, spending the big dollars to provide such a report to the Planning Dept.  The Planner, Mr. Evan Ditmars, first said the appellant property owner had not provided the Alternatives Analysis, and would be grounds for dismissing the appeal, which brought a gasp of exasperation from the property owner in the audience.

Later, when questioned a bit further by Supervisor Manu Koenig, Mr. Ditmars and Deputy Planning Director Ms. Carolyn Burke (who is apparently leaving the County job for one with another municipality) then admitted that they had received the required Alternatives Analysis but did not have time to review it.

Chairman Zach Friend then opened the floor to the public, violating County procedure as to how an appeal is to held.  The Appellant paid likely over $2000 for the appeal hearing, but Chairman Zach Friend gave them TWO MINUTES for each who wanted to speak, even cutting off the appellant’s civil engineer mid-sentence because his time was up!

Chairman Friend then said the appellants could just start all over again, and re-apply with the now-completed Alternatives Analysis in hand.  Another gasp from the property owner.    Supervisor Bruce McPherson asked how much that would cost the property owner/appellant and could the Planning Dept. just review the Alternatives Analysis to see if the determination that there is no other alternative to building an engineered retaining wall to protect the homes below is valid?

Ms. Burke smiled and said they could do so for an hourly rate.

The topic then went to how much time that might take?  She wanted three to four months. Another gasp from the property owner, who then spoke up and said they really want to get this done before another round of winter storms.  Finally, the Board agreed to allow 30-60 days, and a report back.

It was shocking to hear the Planning Dept. twist things, and to hear the Board of Supervisors refuse to really jump in and try to protect life and property, which is their primary responsibility as elected public servants who have all signed an Oath to uphold such duty, under the California State Constitution Article XIII Section 35(a)(2).

Listening to what transpired at that appeal hearing last Tuesday is worth your time to do, and to write a letter to the Editor with your thoughts, and file a complaint with the Santa Cruz County Grand Jury.

Here is the link to the video.  Click on Item #13 on the agenda and listen carefully to what you hear.

Here are the documents for the June 13 Regular Meeting, item #13 Appeal Hearing

Here is the link to the Santa Cruz County Grand Jury website, where you can file a complaint, as well as read their investigative reports.

HOUSING ELEMENT NEEDS YOUR INVOLVEMENT
The County and all cities are feverishly working on putting together an updated Housing Element of their General Plans that will make the State Housing and Community Development (HCD) smile with approval by January 1, 2024, while incorporating the ridiculously-high mandated building rate without infrastructure to support it.  6th Cycle Housing Element Program

Here is your last chance to weigh in on this process with the County:

Community Open House

Watsonville Civic Plaza Community Room
275 Main Street, Watsonville

Food will be provided

Spanish interpretation available

Wednesday, June 28th

Get Involved

COUNTY PARK DEDICATION FUNDS SEEM CLOUDED
Here is what the County Budget Final Day documents said last week, leaving me to wonder where a seemingly errant $1.5 million in Capital Improvement Projects for Parks may have gone???

Due to the nature of capital projects, budget appropriations often carryover from one fiscal year to the next and remain programmed to a specific project until completion. Any remaining funds after a project is completed can be reprogrammed to support other existing projects or new projects. Park Dedication Funds are capital funds collected via park impact and in-lieu fees imposed on new development. Use of these funds is restricted to acquisition and certain improvements to parklands. Previous action by the Board consolidated 19 separate Park Dedication Funds into a central fund to increase their effectiveness in supporting park capital projects that have been prioritized in the Capital Improvement Plan, Parks Strategic Plan, and other emerging critical needs, all guided by making equitable parks investments throughout the county.

The County Administrative Office is engaged with project teams on year-to-year fund balance amounts in order to further supplement the proposed Capital Projects List using one-time project savings and balances. These proposed uses of additional funds will be presented on June 13, 2023 at the Last Day Budget Hearings to support the existing capital program priorities of the Board.

More details on projects and project changes, budget goals, fiscal sustainability and future considerations for FY 2023-24 will be included in the Capital Projects budget presentation.

Financial Impact

The Capital Projects Proposed Budget includes $20,598,354 in expenditures offset by $15,598,354 in revenues and $5,000,000 in General Fund contribution, reflecting an increase of $3,022,221 or 17.2% from the FY 2023-24 Base budget (the Adopted prior year budget adjusted for known active projects and projects completed in the current fiscal year).

Here is what the Last Day Budget Summary actually stated:

$1,961,996 increase of Capital Projects as detailed in Exhibit 2, that includes $250,000 for prior Board directed capital project initiatives, including neighborhood improvements in areas impacted by vacation rentals in Districts 1 and 2, and $1,711,996 to appropriate one-time Parks District unobligated fund balances per Board Direction on May 31, 2023, from the now consolidated Park Dedication accounts and in alignment with Board capital priorities and in conjunction with County Parks;

BUD-2023-39 Consider approval of the 2023-24 County of Santa Cruz Proposed Budget Concluding Actions; approve the Continuing Agreements List for 2023-24; authorize the Auditor-Controller, with the concurrence of the County Administrative Officer, to

Now I understand the significance of former CAO Susan Mauriello’s gift of a “magic wand” to CAO Carlos Palacios when she retired.

BRANCIFORTE FIRE DISTRICT RESIDENTS WILL HAVE NO REPRESENTATION AFTER ANNEXATION WITH SCOTTS VALLEY FIRE IS COMPLETE THIS FALL
Last week, the Board of Directors for both Scotts Valley fire and Branciforte Fire Districts met, both approving without any amendment, a Plan for Services for Branciforte Reorganization.  Neither Board honored what the people of Branciforte Fire District (“Happy Valley area”) have been told…that there will be redistricting action after the annexation that will ensure equal representation and control of funds, equipment and assets of Branciforte Fire area taxpayers.  Thus, all power will remain with the at-large elected Scotts Valley Fire Board.

Judging by how that Board treated me during my public comment time, I am worried they will pay no heed to any future recommendations the proposed Branciforte Advisory Commission might offer.

Right now, Branciforte Fire District residents are considering a Special Benefit Assessment ballot Prop. 218 action that will decide whether they will pay over $1million in addition to what they already pay in special fire assessments to support their local station.  LAFCO Director Joe Sereno has threatened that if they do not pay this staggering assessment, they will suffer closure of their station.  Scotts Valley Fire has said it would likely be used at critical fire and storm times, and maybe for other emergency uses, too.

Take a trip up Branciforte Drive and see what you think the people have to say.  Stay tuned.  Will the Branciforte Fire Board wake up and amend the Plan for Services to insist on district-based elections for the Scotts Valley Fire Board after annexation before it is too late?  Let’s hope they pay attention to what happened in the Central Fire District annexation of Aptos/La Selva Fire, wherein the agency converted to district-based elections for Board members, providing a more equitable level of representation.

SCOTTS VALLEY FIRE PLANS TO PUT A $21 MILLION BOND ISSUE ON NOVEMBER BALLOT
Chief Ron Whittle, at his final Board meeting before retirement, last Wednesday told the Board the plans for a new fire station are nearing completion, but at a higher cost than had been anticipated.   He said he felt the new administration building associated with the fire station was “kind of big”, and he would like to see whether reducing that would lower the cost, and the dollar level of the impending Bond that will be on the November ballot.

6.14.2023 Board Packet [pdf]

This begs the question….Will the property owners of Branciforte Fire District have to pay for that too once they are annexed, if the Bond passes?  Will they get to vote on that November ballot measure?  Hmmm….

CABRILLO COLLEGE NAME SHOULD STAY
Last Wednesday, the five chosen names for Cabrillo College were unveiled by College President Matt Wetstein and Trustee Cuevas.  I got stuck in traffic, and arrived late, just as people were scurrying about with post-its to “vote” for their favorite of the five names, but I met a lot of people who were leaving the room with frowns.

It turns out I was spared yet another self-congratulatory presentation bordering on condescension, and the blind insistence that Cabrillo College simply must change its name.  People wanted to know the results of the “Survey” asking for new name suggestions, and were told that a total of 383 of the more than 1000 suggestions stated the name should stay as Cabrillo College.

One brave citizen had stood up as the post-it frenzy was about to begin and said “If you think the name should not change, put your notes on that whiteboard over there.”  Several people did.

Well, the arrogant Name Trustees have just launched yet another “Survey” where you can digitally put your post-it and vote for your favorite of the five.

Take note…There is no choice provided for “NONE”.  Local Historian Sandy Lydon was in the audience, and pointed out that technically, Cabrillo College is not in Aptos.  “Folks, we are in Soquel.  Borregas Creek is the dividing line between Soquel and Aptos.  The post office messed up.”

Hmmm…That explains why Cabrillo College was not in the Aptos/La Selva Fire service boundary.

Name Exploration Sub Committee

Write a letter to the Editor of your favorite newspaper and share your thoughts on this matter.

MAKE ONE CALL.  WRITE ONE LETTER.  ATTEND A PUBLIC MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS AND EXPECT ANSWERS.
DO ONE THING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers,

Becky

PUBLIC MEETINGS TO DISCUSS CHANGING CABRILLO COLLEGE NAME…HOW ABOUT “NONE OF THE ABOVE”?

Just last week, I received notice from Cabrillo College President Mr. Matt Wetstein that there will be three public meetings to graciously allow the taxpaying public an opportunity to place colored dots and sticky notes next to their favorite of five new possible names for Cabrillo Community College, as selected by their Name Exploration Committee.  Wow.  After respondents to the earlier Community Survey overwhelming said “DON’T CHANGE THE NAME”.

Here is the update:

We are reaching a point where a set of 5 proposed names have been identified as finalists, and I wanted to make a personal invitation to you to attend one of our upcoming community meetings to learn about and discuss the proposed names. The dates, locations, and times of the meetings are listed below:

• Wednesday, June 14, Aptos campus, Room 1001 Visual and Performing Arts, 6:00 pm
• Wednesday, June 28, Watsonville Center, Room A-130, 6:00 pm
• Wednesday, July 12, Felton, Felton Branch Library, 6:00 pm

I hope one of these dates works with your schedule. If not, I hope you will reach out with your thoughts on the proposed names. Look for media coverage on the names, especially around June 12th and 13th.  You may also visit our Name Exploration Webpage for information and updates.

LARGE HOUSING PROJECT FOR CABRILLO COLLEGE CAMPUS LIKELY WILL NOT HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR CEQA

A Community member contacted me last week, wondering why I had not been at a recent public meeting about the proposed 624-bed student housing project proposed for Cabrillo College?  He said attendance was shockingly sparse.  Maybe no one knew it was happening? There was nothing about it on the College website, and nothing in local print media.

My friend told me the Project will not undergo an EIR analysis, but instead relies on one that was done in 1999.  The College is instead using an Addendum evaluation which does not require any public hearings or formal public comment procedures.   Usually, this is the avenue an agency takes when they want to make changes that are supposed to be minor and move quickly through the CEQA process to save time and money but is always at the expense of the public’s participation. (Soquel Creek Water District is a prime example with the major modifications to their PureWater Soquel Project going through two Addendums as major design modifications were required.)

Also, in order to help fund the Project, it will be shared with UCSC for student housing.

I wrote Cabrillo College to ask about the status of the CEQA process, and the timeline for approvals.  Below is President Matt Wetstein’s response:

Thanks for reaching out to us about the Cabrillo Housing Project.

The college has a website that has been created in conjunction with the June 5 community forum that contains information on the project. 

Invitations for the June 5 meeting were sent to households between Park Avenue and State Park Drive that are near the college’s campus. 

If you visit the new website, you can access the draft Environmental Impact Report Addendum that has been developed for the project. The College’s environmental consultant is QuadKnopf. The EIR supplement route is available to us because there are not substantial impacts envisioned from the project that go beyond what is in our master plan EIR that is filed with the state clearinghouse. One element still under study is the traffic and trip mile impact that might come from UCSC students residing on our campus. We hope to have that component completed by the end of the summer.

One note — the EIR Addendum is rather long (3,169 pages with appendices — 100 pages for the top level summaries). You can download it from the site listed above.

The Addendum to the EIR is an information item on the Board of Trustee Agenda June 12. The public portion of the meeting starts at 5:45 pm at the Horticulture Center.

We will take the completed EIR Supplement to the Board later this summer, after the traffic impact analysis is completed.

NO substantial impacts envisioned since this was examined in 1999?  What about water? What about sewer capacities? What about cumulative impacts on top of the new 6th Cycle Regional Housing Number Allocations (RHNA) that mandate the County build 4,634 new units in the unincorporated area in the next eight years?

Keep your eye on this and send your written comment to the Cabrillo College Board of Trustees c/o Ms. Ronnette Smithcamp rosmithc@cabrillo.edu

APTOS VILLAGE IS ABOUT TO BECOME AN EVEN BIGGER MESS

Last week, Barry Swenson Builder blocked all parking along Aptos Village Way between Aptos Creek Road and Parade Street in anticipation of beginning construction on the incredibly-dense and tall Phase 2 Aptos Village Project., and decorated the chain link fence with “NO PARKING” signs.  It created a mess last weekend for customers of businesses in the Phase 1 development, a charity fundraising event happening at Aptos Village Park, and visitors to Nisene Marks State Park…all of which have been promised “unlimited parking” by Barry Swenson VP Jessie Nichol during public hearings years ago on the Project benefits.

Last Tuesday, the County Board of Supervisors approved by consent (Item #73) to accept the Parade Street improvements in Aptos Village, allowing the gateway to the Aptos Village Project to formally open.  It also means Barry Swenson will close the historic crossing to the Bayview Hotel and Trout Gulch Crossing businesses.

I wonder if Swenson will pay for the damages resulting from accidents that are sure to occur at this ridiculous intersection, or if, like the cost of much of the work done to accommodate this development, the taxpayers will be left holding the bag?  Call Supervisor Zach Friend and ask that the County require parking on at least one side of the already-to-narrow Aptos Village Way be restored.  (831) 454-2200.

Here is the view of Aptos Village Way approaching the Phase 1 Aptos Village Project subdivision.  Swenson Builders has not allowed parking on the left side because Project Manager Mr. Jesse Bristow said there was no sidewalk.  The fencing on the right got installed last week, drastically reducing parking in the Aptos Village area.

Can you see the tall weeds on the hillside behind the “NO PARKING” sign?  It’s a fire hazard that Swenson ignores every year.

APTOS ONCE AGAIN HAS LOCALLY-OWNED NATURAL FOOD STORE

I am so glad Aptos Foods is open in the Aptos Center (7506 Soquel Drive, across from the new library construction site) because it is owned by local people, Julie Kellman and Dan Hunt, who also own Seascape Foods.  They have renovated the space and decorated it with colorful murals, have a well-stocked inventory with focus on locally-sourced items and organic produce.

(831) 612-6748

Please support this locally-owned store.  New Leaf Market in Aptos Village Project is owned by a large offshore Asian investment corporation.

COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS COMPLETE BUDGET HEARINGS

Last week, the Board of Supervisors approved budgets for many departments, but provided the public with no information about those numbers and how they got them.  I sent a Cure and Correct Letter to the Board, asking that this be remedied.  NO response.

Last Friday, I visited the lobby of the Clerk of the Board to see if the Budget is available there in print.  It is not.

If this worries you, please contact the Board of Supervisors! Email them at: boardofsupervisors@santacruzcounty.us  and call: 831-454-2200.  Whenever I call, I am always told that “None of the Supervisors are available”, but maybe you will have better luck getting through to your elected representative when you call.

CENTRAL FIRE DISTRICT UNFUNDED PENSION DEBT IS GROWING, ALONG WITH ALL OTHER PUBLIC AGENCIES

Last Thursday, the Central Fire Protection District Board of Directors heard a presentation by CalPERS advisor Mr. Ira Summer.  Even though Central Fire District financial staff have been very diligent about prepaying the Pension Debt accumulating because CalPERS investments are not doing as well as planned, the debt liability was $60 million as of June 30, 2022, much higher than anticipated.  In the next five years, the District’s contributions will increase by 50% and hold at that level for 10 years.

It was a gloomy report, coupled with the very real recession we face, but at least the District is publicly addressing the debt burden whereas the County of Santa Cruz CAO Carlos Palacios is not.

Here is the link to the Central Fire District Board agenda

You can listen to the meeting’s presentations and discussion here (Mr. Summer’s presentation is first on the agenda)

COUNTY FIRE BUDGET STILL UNKNOWN

The Board of Supervisors failed to recess during their Regular Meeting last Tuesday to take action as the Board of Directors for Santa Cruz County Fire Department, approving assessment increases for the properties within County Service Areas 4 (Pajaro Dunes) and 48 (all other areas of the unincorporated properties not included in other local fire district boundaries), This was Regular Item #12.

Consider adoption of resolutions confirming the previously established benefit assessment rates for County Service Areas (CSAs) 4, Pajaro Dunes, and CSA 48, County Fire; adopt resolutions setting a public hearing on June 27, 2023, on the proposed…

The Board approved a 5.6% increase for CSA 48, and a 4% capped increase for CSA 48 2020 Special Benefit Assessment Tax because it was capped at 4% in the Engineers Report associated with that illegal ballot action in 2020.

How can the Board approve rate increases without a contract with CalFire?  This document is yet to be seen.

IT IS AMAZING WHAT GETS HIDDEN ON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISOR CONSENT AGENDAS

Although items on the Board of Supervisor Meeting Consent Agenda is, by definition, supposed to include non-controversial and small dollar actions, what gets hidden there is far from that definition.  In my opinion, it is done to not only hide important issues that likely are controversial and to relegate a maximum of two minutes to the public to ask questions about these issues that would, as a regular agenda item provide a staff presentation and single topic discussion (another 2-minute limit for the public).

Take a look at what was hidden in last Tuesday’s Consent Agenda:

#24 Allowing delayed re-payment to the County for the Pajaro Valley Health Care District and Watsonville Hospital acquisition:

In March 2023, the PVHCD staff engaged with the County and community partners in conversations to improve the PVHCD cash position during the ongoing transition of hospital operations. County staff determined that by revisiting the repayment term of the short-term loan agreement from a lump sum to six (6) payments, PVHCD could smooth the cash flow obligation, giving the new district relief. The attached amendment to the loan agreement extends the term to December 2025. Payments will be made in increments of $500,000, with a final payment of $100,000, with the first payment due in June 2023. Staff is also recommending an amendment of the agreement to reflect the actual amount of money borrowed ($2.6M rather than an amount not-to-exceed $3M).

#32 Create Guidelines for County Employee Use of Artificial Intelligence Platforms (how secure will that Digital Wallet information be that Supervisor Zach Friend is pushing to achieve, supposedly all donated by HUMBL Consultants???)

While it remains to be seen if Congress will develop meaningful regulations for AI products, it makes sense for the County of Santa Cruz to adopt a set of standards to ensure the responsible use of AI by county employees. AI tools can provide many benefits to county departments by assisting with research, improving written communications, developing templates for job postings, among many other potential uses. The County also has an obligation to protect the data of residents, promote transparency, and guard against discrimination. Creating a formal policy on usage would help ensure this important tool is available but guardrails and protections are in place.

Accordingly, the County should adopt an AI policy that addresses (but is not limited to) the following issues:

• Data Privacy and security – AI systems must protect user privacy and county employees should refrain from sharing protected data until the systems are determined to be operating in compliance with HIPAA and other data protection laws.
• Transparency – These systems should be explainable to users.
• Accountability – AI products should be subject to regular audits and evaluations to ensure they are operating appropriately.
• Fairness and bias – AI systems should be designed and used in a fair and unbiased manner. The technology should not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or other protected classes.
• Informed consent – Users should be provided with clear information about AI systems and their capabilities, with the ability to opt out of using the technology.
• Responsible use – This technology should be used in an ethical manner.

The purpose is to allow the County Administrative Officer and/or designees the ability to create a policy that meets these general objectives but also provide flexibility to evolve as the capabilities continue to evolve.

#36 Directing County staff to write Director of California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife to Transfer Ownership of Greyhound Rock to the County of Santa Cruz.

Greyhound Rock is an important visitor destination on the north coast of the County owned by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) but managed and maintained by the County at its own expense for over 60 years.  Although the County historically had operating agreements with CDFW, there has been no operating agreement with CDFW for over ten years.

Recently, the Parks Department developed a proposal to use a portion of the property as a self-sustaining low cost/impact overnight accommodation site to provide outdoor educational programs that would serve low-income disadvantaged youth, and school groups throughout the region (attachment 1).  

A transfer of ownership of this site would greatly reduce complications associated with needing approvals by an additional agency when attempting to get permits and funding, which would help expedite our efforts to provide safe access to our coast.

Financial Impact…NONE????

#71 Update Guidelines for Engineering Geologic and Geotechnical Investigations and Publish Reports

The changes to the guidelines from the previous guidelines include updating references to the 2022 California Building Code; updating provisions regarding soils report waivers; adding guidance regarding Tiny Homes of Wheels; and updating guidance on when a soils report is required.

#73 Accepting Aptos Village Project Developers Parade Street at-grade Private Railroad Crossing and Annual $20,000 Payment to County for Maintenance (will the County taxpayers be held liable for any accidents at this new crossing?)

 This project involves the construction of a new railroad crossing with a crossing warning system, at the Soquel Drive and Parade Street intersection. 

Although Commercial Association and Mixed-Use Association are obligated, as successors in interest to Swenson Builders, to maintain the Parade Street Crossing, they lack the technical expertise and staffing to operate and maintain the Parade Street Crossing.  The County agrees to inspect, maintain, repair and operate the Parade Street Crossing pursuant to the CPUC Order and this Agreement.

Analysis

The Funding and Maintenance Agreement will allow for County maintenance, repair, and replacement of improvements and equipment necessary for operation of the Parade Street Crossing.

The parties estimate that the annual cost of maintenance for the Parade Street Crossing will be $20,000.  The Commercial Association and Mixed-Use Association shall annually deposit, or shall cause to be deposited annually, the total sum of $20,000 (Annual Deposit) for maintenance and repair of the Parade Street Crossing.

#86 Retroactive Approval of $350,655.91 for Additional Engineering Services for Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane Project (extra work done two years ago but never approved for cost overrun)

Additional items of work were required during the final design of the project.  Additional topographic surveys were required because of additional retaining wall areas for sidewalks and newly constructed water valves in the street.  Additional boundary surveys were required to establish the right of way lines because of the lack of existing monumentation.  Additional potholing for utilities were required because of maps provided by the utilities had potential conflicts with planned sidewalks, retaining walls and storm drains.  Additional right of way services were required because of an increase in the number of acquisitions.  After the 100% plans were completed, there were numerous changes because of requests from utility companies and public utilities that required significant changes to the design in several locations.

These additional items of work necessitate an amendment in contract services with Mark Thomas (approved on June 8, 2021)  CDI (that’s the Public Works and Planning Dept.) should have returned to the Board earlier for an amendment to the contract; however staff was focused on an expedited design process and delayed processing an amendment to the contract.  CDI has successfully met the design schedule and this board item seeks to retroactively amend the agreement with Mark Thomas.

Well….I think you get the idea…WATCH THOSE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS!!!! And ask your elected Supervisors to make these important issues more public and transparent, or at least start holding Town Hall meetings in their Districts again.  Supervisor Manu Koenig is the only Supervisor holding regular Town Hall Meetings.

COLLEGE LAKE GROUNDWATER RECHARGE PROJECT IN THE WORKS FOR PAJARO VALLEY

Last Friday, the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency officially kicked off the large groundwater recharge project at College Lake, near the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.  College Lake will no longer be drained to allow farming there, but instead will be a source of water to treat and sell to farmers in the areas near the Pajaro Dunes area where private ag wells extract groundwater for irrigation.  You can see the work happening now on Holohan Road near Green Valley Road in Watsonville.

Here is the view from Holohan Road in Watsonville.  The water from College Lake will be used for agriculture. irrigation closer to the beach areas, in lieu of pumping groundwater.

SAVING SEEDS OF NATIVE PLANTS FOR RESTORING FIRE AND FLOOD DAMAGES

Whenever I walk in the Santa Cruz Mountains, I see the remnants of past attempts to stabilize our local slopes, evidenced by the massive ropes of Algerian Ivy burdening the native forests.  Luckily, other means are available for helping the land to heal, and the Resource Conservation District (RCD) is available to help  https://www.rcdsantacruz.org/

Where can we find those seeds of hope for restoring the damaged areas with native plants? Take a look at this interesting source, recently featured in the San Jose Mercury News

Give them a call: 530-662-6847 https://www.hedgerowfarms.com/

Staff told me that Superior HydroSeeding in Watsonville is a big customer, but Hedgerow Farms staff can help private land owners to design restoration projects and supply appropriate native seeds.

WRITE ONE LETTER.  MAKE ONE CALL.  ATTEND ONE PUBLIC MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS.
MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE THIS WEEK BY JUST DOING SOMETHING.

Cheers,

Becky

COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISOR BUDGET HEARINGS HAD NO PUBLICLY-ACCESSIBLE INFORMATION

Did last week’s cursory Board of Supervisor 2023-2024 Budget Hearings violate the Brown Act by not providing the public with any access to the agendas or related documents, due to a website that was broken, and is still broken?  I think so.

On the Saturday before the Budget Hearings, I wanted to review the proposed County Fire Dept. budget, strangely scheduled to be reviewed as a Consent Agenda Item on Wednesday, May 31.  The website was broken, and I could access nothing for either the May 30 or May 31 Board Calendar.  I wrote to IT Director Ms. Tammie Weigl, who usually responds right away.  However, this time, neither she nor anyone else from IT Dept. responded until sometime during which I was seated in the Board Chambers, uninformed, and listening to staff presentations from Public Safety departments.

I testified to the Board that their website was broken, and no Budget information was available to the public.  Not one of them inquired with staff about the problem, however Chairman Zach Friend did get someone in right away when his microphone became unresponsive and he wanted to tell me to stop talking and couldn’t.  He muted my microphone, and Vice-Chair Justin Cummings took over until the IT staff could come rushing in to save the day.

Usually, the binder containing hard copies of the proposed Budget is on a table in the hallway, just outside the Board Chambers, but on May 30, it was not.   Other people in the audience also told me they had not been able to access Budget information.

After the day’s hearing adjourned, I visited the Clerk of the Board lobby to try the public computer there.  No luck finding the Budget information.  I asked for help.  Staff also could not access the documents supporting any budgetary agenda items, and suggested I file a Public Records Act request to obtain the 2023-2024 proposed County Fire Dept. Budget.  Wow.

Again, I wrote to IT and the Board of Supervisors to demand the problem be fixed, and copied the First Amendment Coalition.  On May 31, the binder on a table outside the Board chamber only contained copies of the agenda, but nothing of the actual Budget.

No one contacted me about the matter until after the May 31 Budget hearings had concluded.  Supervisor Manu Koenig responded that there did indeed seem to be problems with the website calendar, the usual method for accessing Board agendas and documents, but that there was another obscure method to find the information.

Don’t you think that would have been good to post on the website for the public?

At the time of this writing, the website Calendar is STILL BROKEN.

The Board does not seem to care. Maybe they don’t want the public to see why the Budget will be $8-$10 MILLION in the red???

However, here is the response sent from The First Amendment Coalition:

The Brown Act requires, in relevant part, “At least 72 hours before a regular meeting, the legislative body of the local agency, or its designee, shall post an agenda containing a brief general description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed at the meeting, including items to be discussed in closed session. A brief general description of an item generally need not exceed 20 words. The agenda shall specify the time and location of the regular meeting and shall be posted in a location that is freely accessible to members of the public and on the local agency’s Internet Web site, if the local agency has one.” Govt. Code § 54954.2(a)(1).

I hope this is helpful.

Well, the one good bit of news came from Supervisor Justin Cummings, who actually responded to my plea for an After Action Review of the 2020 CZU Fire with County Fire Dept. Volunteers, who were instructed by CalFire to not respond to fires.  He said he is working to get this critical review done, and wanted to let me know my request was heard.  I am hopeful.

Please write Supervisor Justin Cummings to urge him to require an After Action Review and Analysis of the 2020 CZU Fire with Santa Cruz County Fire Dept. Volunteers…some of whom were dismissed by CalFire because they chose to stay and protect their Community during the fire.  Justin Cummings justin.cummings@santacruzcounty.us

And one last issue…why wasn’t County Fire Dept. given the same level of administrative importance at the Budget Hearings when all other Public Safety Departments gave staff reports as Regular Agenda items?

As District Attorney Jeff Rosell stated in his presentation, the California Constitution Article XIII Section 35 states:

1.  Public safety services are critically important to the security and well-being of the State’s citizens and to the growth and revitalization of the State’s economic base.
2.  The protection of the public safety is the first responsibility of local government and local officials have an obligation to give priority to the provision of adequate public safety services.
3.  In order to assist local government in maintaining a sufficient level of public safety services, the proceeds of the tax enacted pursuant to this section shall be designated exclusively for public safety.

Don’t you think that fire and emergency medical response is included in “Public Safety”?  I do.

More next week on the dismal County Budget.

REMOVING LOCAL LAND USE CONTROL FOREVER?

Last week, the State Senate approved SB 423.  If the Assembly passes it, we are doomed to a tragic permanent loss of local land use discretionary control.  Here is what you need to know about this bill, and why it is important that you contact our State Assembly members to urge them to vote NO.

SB 423, introduced by Senator Scott Wiener, permanently streamlines multi-family housing approvals to have ministerial approval, removing the current sunset date of January 1, 2026 for such.  “This bill would authorize the Department of General Services to act in the place of a locality or local government, at the discretion of that department, for purposes of the ministerial, streamlined review for development on property owned by or leased to the state.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons.”

California SB423 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session

Please contact your State Assembly member to urge a NO vote on this dangerous piece of legislation that would forever remove local discretionary control of developments in our local communities and throughout the State.

Assemblywoman Dawn Addis

ARE CALIFORNIA’S HOUSING SHORTAGES OVER-BLOWN?

Many are wondering how the new Regional Housing Number Allocation (RHNA) mandates by the State can be justified.  Who decides what the ultimate number of housing units must built in the State and what factors are used to determine those mandated numbers?

The analysis below claims the numbers are not built on well-researched reason:

Is the housing shortage overblown? This California analyst thinks so | Catalysts for Local Control

And, here is another analysis by CalMatters staff that would indicate the same conclusion.   Commentary: Five things I’ve learned covering California’s housing crisis that you should know

I have written AMBAG Planning Director Ms. Heather Adamson again to ask about the criteria for the models she has described as being used to determine the RHNA building mandates, and who in the world is controlling these puppeteer-like tactics?   Stay tuned for her answer.

WILL CABRILLO COLLEGE BUILD STUDENT AND STAFF HOUSING ON CAMPUS?

Cabrillo College may soon be deciding whether to build on-campus housing, but it remains to be seen how it would be financed and how it would be managed. The Board may be making this decision next Monday, June 12.  Here is the link to the presentation provided on January 9, 2023

This could be a real asset for boosting the declining enrollment, but in my opinion, would be especially valuable if coupled with expanding the nursing program.  Applicants for that program currently wait several years to be accepted for enrollment at a time when there is a shortage of qualified nurses.

Keep your eye on this proposed 640-bed housing complex at Cabrillo College.

WILL IT BE CALLED CABRILLO COLLEGE OR SOMETHING ELSE?

The saga continues as the hand-picked Name Exploration Task Force Committee, which has met four times to find a new name for Cabrillo College, will soon provide a list of 3-5 name suggestions to the Board of Trustees to review.  The Name Exploration Committee is also searching for the independent funding necessary to make such a change, using NO funding from the College bank accounts.  Will they hold true on that promise?

We had all better keep a close eye on that.

Here is the latest, as reported in Item I-2 of the May 1, 2023 Trustee meeting

The Task Force reviewed 351 suggested names on April 7 and were asked to return on April 21 with their top 10 choices.  The group met, and were scheduled to meet twice again in May to whittle down the 85 choices members wanted.

Shouldn’t this name change issue be decided by an official public vote at the ballot box?

Review the process to date of this unnecessary and expensive Name Exploration fiasco here

COUNTY CONTINUES TO ALLOW DEMOLITION BY NEGLECT OF CRITICAL HISTORIC RESOURCES

A few years ago, the Santa Cruz County Historic Resources Commission developed and recommended to the Board of Supervisors that the County adopt a Demolition by Neglect Ordinance that would enforce preservation on historic structures, such as the Redman-Hirahara House and Farmstead near Riverside Drive in Watsonville, to be protected from the elements causing degradation and prevent further collapse of historic structures.

Shockingly, the Board of Supervisors refused to adopt the Ordinance.

Thanks to their inaction and disrespect for historic preservation in general, many historic structures are in peril.  The worst example is the Redman-Hirahara House.  This is a cultural resource with an incredibly rich story that should make the Pajaro Valley swell with pride.

When the Japanese American citizens were imprisoned during WW2, many lost their homes and farms because they could not pay the property taxes while they were away in the prison camps.  However, the wonderful citizens of Watsonville prevented that travesty from happening to the Hirahara family by paying their property taxes for them.  As a result, the Hirahara family still had a home (designed by famous local architect William Weeks) and farm to come back to after they were released from the prison camps.  They converted their barn into apartments for their less-fortunate friends, and provided a place for them to re-establish.

How has Santa Cruz County celebrated this amazing story?

The Board of Supervisors cannot even be bothered to adopt a Demolition by Neglect Ordinance that would offer a shred of protection to the home, and stood idly by as the barn fell down and continues to deteriorate.

Please write the County Supervisors, and demand they adopt a Demolition by Neglect Ordinance.  It is the least they can do.

Board of Supervisors boardofsupervisors@santacruzcounty.us

This photo, taken last week, shows the continuing sad state of disrepair the owners are allowing to progress while the County Board of Supervisors continues to reject approving a Demolition by Neglect Ordinance that would prevent such travesties from occurring. This house is  on the National Historic Registry.

This recent photo shows the total collapse of the historic barn that once served as an apartment for Japanese-American families who returned to find their homes and farms had been taken.  The Hirahara family provided apartments for these families to live in while getting re-established.  Cabrillo College Archaeology Dept. surveyed the barn’s contents decades ago and determined it should be on the National Historic Registry.

Meanwhile directly across the street on Lee Road, the same property owners, the Tut family, enjoy the lucrative hotel, restaurant and fueling station businesses, and the County smiles on the Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) and sales tax revenues associated.

Please write the County Board of Supervisors to insist they adopt a Demolition by Neglect Ordinance that would protect this and other valuable historic and cultural resources from rotting away before our very eyes.  The Redman-Hirahara House and Farm are in Second District Supervisor Zach Friend’s jurisdiction but he could care less.

Board of Supervisors boardofsupervisors@santacruzcounty.us

BIG CHANGES COMING IN THE WATSONVILLE SLOUGH AREA NEAR FEDEX

If you have passed by the southern area of Watsonville on Highway One, you likely saw extensive grading activity near the Slough.  This area is destined to become a large 155,847 Sq Ft new warehouse for what may be the largest beer distributor in California, and that is currently lodged on Riverside Drive nearby.  Supposedly, it will create up to 2,100 jobs, but the business currently has 137 employees.

Approved by the Watsonville City Council on April 11, 2023, work quickly got underway, evident in the photos below.

Excavators staged along Manabe Ow Road.

Rubble collected from the former farming area that will now become a large new warehouse for beer and Monster drinks, but that requires environmental mitigations for red-legged frog, western pond turtle, Burrowing Owls, and tar plant with all earth disturbances overseen by Native American Observers.

Here are the mitigations

Here is the link to all staff documents

BEAUTIFUL DETAILS ON INFRASTRUCTURE MAKE A DIFFERENCE

This detail in the Manabe Ow Road concrete bridge crossing the Slough is lovely, and appropriate for the habitat.

TOUR THE CITY’S RECYCLING CENTER

Visit the Santa Cruz City Recycling Center at the Resource Recovery Facility, 605 Dimeo Lane, any Friday from June 16 through August 25 at 10 am and 1 pm. This action-packed 90-minute tour gives insight on how the City recycles 36 tons of material every single weekday. Visitors will also experience the new food scraps processing operation that is reducing methane emissions from the landfill and learn about the Household Hazardous Waste Program.

Pre-registration is required. Tours are limited to 20 people. Children must be at least 8 years old. Youth ages 8 to 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Carpooling is encouraged as parking is limited. Reserve your spot here – it’s free!

Questions may be addressed to: csoon@santacruzca.gov

SCMU Review

MAKE ONE CALL.  WRITE ONE LETTER.  ATTEND ONE PUBLIC HEARING.  JUST DO SOMETHING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers,

Becky

REBUILDING FROM THE CZU FIRE AND EXPERIENCING FUNDING GAPS?

That’s what is on the glossy postcards in a plexiglass rack outside the County’ Permit Recovery Center.  What this really means is “Have you run out of insurance money and still don’t have a permit from the County to rebuild?”  Sadly, many CZU Fire property owners are facing this problem.

I called the number on the postcard to find out what help someone could expect.

The call was answered by Jennifer, representing Catholic Charities.  She said the County has an Unmet Needs Committee, and the Santa Cruz County Community Foundation provides grant money to help those eligible.  This was put in place in 2021, with over 100 cases funded to help CZU Fire Survivors find temporary housing that includes purchasing a Tiny Home on Wheels or a mobile home, and get money to cover rebuilding project costs, such as the expensive geologic studies that the County has glibly required.

To apply, one must present identification, and proof of land ownership, such as a deed.  The home that burned need not have been permitted…which should be of help for those in the Last Chance/Swanton Community.

Processing takes a few weeks.  The Unmet Needs Committee meets twice monthly with the Community Foundation to discuss the applications on an individual bases.  The Applicant never meets with the funders directly.  Jennifer said some cases are pending, but no one has been denied funding of some sort.  The funding is via a grant, with no expectation of repayment.

Please share this information with any one you know who is still struggling to rebuild from the CZU Fire.

CZUFireHelp@gmail.com
831-920-4764

Take a look at the 2022 Community Foundation financial report.  Do the figures on page 8 makes sense if the number for the Total Assets is the exact same as the number for Total Liabilities and Net Assets?

It has always bothered me that Community Foundation Board meetings are not open to the public, yet the Foundation acts to administer grants of public monies the County of Santa Cruz has received for projects.

WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THE PERMIT SONOMA CENTER?

Santa Cruz County Planning Dept. staff sometimes references actions taken by Sonoma County Planning Dept. on issues such as rebuilding after major fires, and what to do to help property owners who lost what the County considers to be non-conforming structures. Indeed, the County copied a Sonoma County model of applying a Class K pilot program for the Last Chance Community in an effort to streamline the 2020 CZU Fire rebuilding effort.  The problem is that it was only effective for two years…and the permitting process has been much too slow.  Now the people are running out of time against insurance payouts for expenses.

The other idea I think Santa Cruz County needs to borrow from Sonoma County is the use of Pallet Shelter Villages for rapid and inexpensive housing for the homeless

It takes a village transitioning out of homelessness at Los Guilicos Village

What can we learn from Sonoma County? What can we do to help the CZU Fire Survivors get some relief in getting their homes rebuilt?

Please listen in this Friday at 1pm on Santa Cruz Voice to hear what Mr. Tennis Wick, Director of Permit Sonoma.

Rebuilding mission top priority for county’s head planner

Santa Cruz Voice is a free online radio platform featuring local interest programs. Santa Cruz Voice

SANTA CRUZ CYCLISTS FOR CULTURAL EXCHANGE

On May 21, the Pajaro Valley was filled with bicyclists touring the country backroads in an event known as “Strawberry Fields Forever”.  Hosted by the Santa Cruz Cyclists for Cultural Exchange (CCE), the ride brought cyclists from all over the world here.  Founded in Santa Cruz in collaboration with cyclists from Russia, the mission of the CCE is:

“Our intention in the time we have together is to discover our differences, find our common ground, experience some of the language, customs, and traditions of the host country, and share our visions, hopes and dreams for cooperation and world peace.”

Each stop on the ride featured delicious food and great music, much of which was donated.  The Wildcat Mountain Ramblers played for free, even though they normally charge a lot.  As a Ham Radio communications volunteer, it was my job to help relay information vital to the smooth operation of the event.  The most memorable communication I heard involved translating the words “Compost”, “Recycling”, and “Trash” into Mandarin for one of the rest stops.  It was a beautiful day.

CCE Cyclists for Cultural Exchange(left to right): Walt Brown, Sag vehicle coordinator, Serguei Goupalov, cyclist from Ukrania, and Vita Pritchard, co-founder of CCE.

TRAFFICKING HERE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY?

Sadly, human trafficking is on the rise, and it is here in Santa Cruz County.  Ms. Heather Goode, Co-Founder of Arukah Project, a non-profit based in Scotts Valley, is working hard to help victims who escape their bondage to restore their lives and rebuild their souls.

She recently explained in an interview last Friday on “Community Matters” that it is increasingly difficult for law enforcement to capture the human predators because much of the trafficking is done on the internet, and lures people of all ages and sexes into the web of trafficking.  The predators are always on the move, and may show up in a town when a large event is happening, and rent a house via Air BnB, then move on.

What can you do to help Arukah Project help the survivors?

Sign up to help June 10 at Natasha’s Run for Justice in Nisene Marks State Park, or just come to the event associated in Aptos Village Park.   Buy some delicious food from the food trucks, sip a beer in the Beer Garden, and enjoy the Allison Sharino Band.  All proceeds will benefit Arukah Project.

Natasha’s Run for Justice, June 10, is named in honor of a trafficking survivor who finally was able to achieve legal justice against her predator after 15 years of working through the legal system.  “Arukah” is a Hebrew word meaning “Restore, Renew and Rebuild”.

CURIOUS DRAMA CONTINUES AT SANTA CRUZ COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS

Things seem to be getting worse rather than better at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.  The new Interim CEO, Mr. Ken Alstott, informed the experienced Fairgrounds Office and Maintenance Staff on his first day on the job that he “would let them know if he planned to keep them on the schedule.”  On the second day, he hired back Office Staff who had quit last fall in loyalty to former CEO Dave Kegebein, whom the Board fired last October after a State Performance Audit showed many serious financial wrongdoings.  On his third day, Mr. Alstott offered the experienced Staff a letter of recommendation.  The following week, the staff was taken off the work schedule so that Mr. Alstott could “bring in his own team.”

Of interest is the immediate cozy relationship Mr. Alstott established with the Fairgrounds Foundation, which is directed by Ms. Jeannie Kegebein.  Mr. Alstott gave her the key to the Fairgrounds Office, which allows full access to all financial records.

The Fairgrounds Foundation has commandeered all alcohol sales on the Fairgrounds premises, making substantial profits, but not reporting such to the IRS on their Form 990, and no longer allows their meetings to be open to the public.  Public Records Act requests for the payments the Foundation has supposedly made to the 14th DAA related to these alcohol sales have not been forthcoming with documents proving anything at all has been paid.

This could be because some of the 14th DAA Fairgrounds financial documents were intentionally destroyed in 2019 by then-CEO Dave Kegebein, the loyal Office staff who just got re-hired by Mr. Alstott, and three Fair Board members: Loretta Estrada and Jody Belgard (who resigned after the Board fired CEO Kegebein last October), and Stephanie Fontana, who remains on the Board to this day.

All of this wrongdoing, and more, was personally witnessed by the Office and Maintenance Staff that Mr. Alstott essentially fired upon taking the reins as Interim CEO.  They had heard former Dave Kegebein say ‘We can’t hand over documents if we don’t have them.” as he dumped boxes of financial records onto a bonfire.

Whistleblower protection?  The State Dept. of Food & Agriculture (CDFA) Director of Legal Services angrily refused to discuss the matter with me by telephone recently.  The CDFA Civil Rights Staff agreed with me that this is likely retaliation and may be racial discrimination as well, but the Staff must file certain forms and provide certain precise information. That is daunting when one is in shock and has suffered verbal abuse and intimidation by former CEO Kegebein, former Interim CEO Kelley Ferreira, and now Interim CEO Alstott, in addition to vicious verbal attacks by Fairgrounds Foundation members at recent Fair Board meetings.

Mr. Alstott insists there is a limited amount of work he can do to pull together cogent financial reports for the Board because he only works part-time, commuting from the state of Tennessee.  Isn’t it odd that CDFA staff would enlist the help of someone who lives in one of the states California Governor Newsom deems as “unfriendly” and has banned any state employee from travel there to do state business?  Don’t forget that it was one of the reasons Dave Kegebein got fired…traveling to Texas, another “unfriendly state” to do Fair business. The 14th DAA is paying Mr. Alstott $70/hour for his travel time.  He is also collecting CalPERS benefits, being a former Fairgrounds CEO retiree and now an annuitant.

Last week, Mr.  Pruger, the President of the Fair Board, announced that three people had applied for the job of full-time CEO.  He was extremely irritable with some members of the public who spoke to question what is happening, but was all smiles and gave extra time for members of the Fairgrounds Foundation who spoke.  When I questioned why none of my letters to the Board were included in the past two months of Board agendas, Mr. Alstott stated that the public has to specifically ask in correspondence that we want it included in the Board packets for public access.    Hmmmm… The letter he chose to include in the May 23 packet did not have such a request included.  Hmmmm…..

The Fair Board has just scheduled a Special Meeting for June 7, held only virtually at 7pm, for another Closed Session discussion of selecting a fulltime CEO.  They will also discuss the lawsuit now filed against the Fairgrounds and the Foundation Director Jeannie Kegebein, and former CEO Dave Kegebein, largely relating to the murky financial problems of alcohol profits and lack of payments.

Who will it be?  My bet is that the new CEO will be a friend of the Kegebein’s, and a favorite of the Fairgrounds Foundation. Board of Directors Agenda Items

WHERE ARE THE DARK SKIES?

As a child growing up in the Eastern Oregon desert, one of the wonderful things I enjoyed was a completely dark sky at night that was filled with brilliant stars.  Our family now looks forward to that treat when we camp in the Sierra.  But the dark night skies filled with glittering stars and planets may be something we only remember, according to the article a friend sent me: Stars could be invisible within 20 years as light pollution brightens night skies

I have recently noticed that the LED parking lot lights at the Aptos Post Office are glaringly bright, meant to discourage illegal campers at night.  More and more, I see rural neighbors have strung bright lights over driveways and backyards, as if the dark night is something to stamp out.

Furthermore, when one can see the sky, it seems to be filled with more and more satellites, zooming around the Earth for a constant connection of internet and surveillance.

What do you think we can do to preserve the lovely dark nighttime skies for future generations to enjoy and the wildlife to use for navigation?  Please let me know your thoughts.

A NEW BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF OUT-OF-THE-BOX ART IN APTOS VILLAGE

Thanks to well-known local artist Ms. Ann Thiermann, Aptos Village will have a lovely mini-mural on what would otherwise be a drab metal telecomm box at the Trout Gulch Road and Soquel Drive intersection.  It is part of the Santa Cruz County Arts Commission’s “Out of the Box” murals on telecommunications and utility boxes in our Community.

Arts Commission

Ann has painted other such boxes nearby at the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center that really help beautify the area.  Many thanks to Ann Thiermann for her lovely work.

MAKE ONE CALL.  WRITE ONE LETTER.  REVIEW A DRAFT EIR AND SEND IN YOUR COMMENTS.  JUST DO SOMETHING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers,

Becky

THE KAISER TAJ MAHAL PLAN IN LIVE OAK HAS VANISHED

Last week, Kaiser sent out a notice that the plan to build an enormous new Medical Facility and four-story parking garage at 5940 Soquel Avenue Frontage Road has been officially swept off the table.  The reason given is that Kaiser plans to instead continue to expand services with partnerships at other local medical facilities.    This would include the Watsonville Hospital, where the organization already has an agreement to provide Kaiser patients service under the Kaiser plan.

Somehow, I suspect there is more to the story than meets the eye here.  I think the County needs the land at 5940 Soquel Avenue to move forward with its original zoned use as dense affordable housing as a specially-designated Zone identified when the Redevelopment Agency handled it.  The County is in trouble with the State if the updated Housing Element cannot be approved by the end of this year, and prove that the Regional Housing Number Allocation (RHNA) mandating nearly 5,000 new units will be built within the next eight years can be accomplished, receiving the blessing of the State Dept. of Housing and Community Development (HCD).

I also think this is related to the agreement that the County Board of Supervisors approved recently to allow Kaiser a sweet deal to pay a lot less than the other hospital providers for the percentage of uninsured patient care costs.  Dominican Hospital representatives and other local health care representatives protested that deal, but the Board approved it anyway.

Hmmmm…

Keep your eye on this project.  The bottom line is what infrastructure will happen to support anything that is built at 5940 Soquel Avenue, which has no bus service, and no sidewalks to help people get there.

Below is the notice from Kaiser, sent last week via Mail Chimp to those who have requested updates on the project:

Update from Kaiser Permanente on the 5940 Soquel Avenue Project

Kaiser Permanente is committed to Santa Cruz County, and as part of that commitment, we continue to explore ways to expand our specialty care offerings throughout the region. As part of our assessment of how to best serve our members and deliver high-quality, affordable health care, we have re-evaluated the proposed project at 5940 Soquel Avenue and determined that we no longer intend to occupy this property.

Going forward, we plan to continue expanding services throughout the County while thoughtfully considering the dynamic, local health care industry and the access needs of our community.

WHO MAKES THE DECISIONS ON THESE STATE MANDATES THAT REQUIRES FEVERISH COMPLIANCE?

I continue to try to understand why the new RHNA mandates are more than triple the mandated build allocation of the Fifth Cycle.  It is not an easy dig.  I recently invited Ms. Heather Adamson, Planning Director of the Associated Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG) as a guest on a weekly online radio program that I co-host to explain the mystery.  She let the listening audience know that there was a new methodology used that considered social economic justice in the forefront, and that cities and counties where there are more affluence were specifically targeted for higher numbers.  The thought is that everyone should be able to live where they want, regardless of the historic cost of doing so.

It was shocking that Ms. Adamson said the condition and availability of infrastructure levels serving the areas is not considered, and the RHNA Plan is exempt from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review.  She said it also had to do with recent legislation, mandating higher levels of affordable housing to be built.

“What if we just say NO?” I asked.

She replied that the local jurisdictions would lose all chance of federal and state funding for transportation and planning projects, and developers would be allowed to invoke “Builder’s Remedy” and basically build whatever they want.

Wow.  That is a mighty big stick.

I continue to research this problem, and hope you will send me your thoughts.

What about the quality of life?  What about environmental impacts?

Here are some links to information I have found that you might also find useful.  This is a big deal, and I am really worried for the health, beauty and quality of life for our Communities.

Feel free to listen in every Friday on the “Community Matters” online radio program, 1pm-3pm, on Santa Cruz Voice

The Executive Order —-

The list of States who are participating

Webinars

AMBAG and the California Department of Housing & Community Development (HCD) will host periodic webinars for local jurisdiction elected officials and staff to assist in the preparation of its 6th Cycle Housing Elements.

6th Cycle Housing Element Technical Assistance: Governmental & Non-Governmental Constraints – April 24, 2023

AMBAG & HCD staff held a webinar for local jurisdiction planning/housing staff in the AMBAG region on the Governmental & Non-Governmental requirements for the 6th Cycle Housing Elements.  To view a recording of this webinar, please click here

6th Cycle Housing Element Technical Assistance: Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing – March 27, 2023

AMBAG & HCD staff held a webinar for local jurisdiction planning/housing staff in the AMBAG region on the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) requirements for the 6th Cycle Housing Elements.  To view a recording of this webinar, please click here

6th Cycle Housing Element Technical Assistance: Site Inventory – February 27, 2023

AMBAG & HCD staff held a webinar for local jurisdiction planning/housing staff in the AMBAG region on the sites inventory requirements for the 6th Cycle Housing Elements.  To view the recording of this webinar, please click here.

Introduction to 6th Cycle Housing Elements Webinar – March 29, 2022

AMBAG & the HCD staff held a webinar for local elected officials and local jurisdiction planning/housing staff in the AMBAG region on the 6th Cycle Housing Elements. This introductory webinar discussed the new state requirements for 6th Cycle Housing Elements and offer insight on how to prepare to start your 6th Cycle Housing Elements.  To view a recording of this webinar please click here.

For more information and additional housing element tools from HCD

Regional Housing Planning | Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments

WHY THE SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT BOARD ENDED CHARGING DEVELOPERS THEIR WATER DEMAND OFFSET FEES

On February 7, 2023, the Board of Directors for Soquel Creek Water District decided to end the policy to make developers pay $55,000/AcreFoot of water anticipated for new development because the aquifer was in critical overdraft. What made them change their mind on this expensive program enacted in 2003 and fees increased dramatically in 2016?

I could not attend that meeting then because storms knocked out our electricity and phone service, and I happened to have a suffered a concussion.  The District had not uploaded the video recording of this particular meeting until now. Link here. The owner of the video does not allow embedding on another site.

Item 7.2 begins at Minute 3:30.  Staff’s explanation and justification is fascinating, but Board members’ discussion is very illuminating.

The problem the Board faced was that the District has sold all but 3.9 Acre/Feet available according to their aquifer recharge studies, so would have to come up with a new conservation project to justify continued collection of the expensive fees.

It has little to do with the real status of the aquifer now.  Of course, they hold their intention to inject treated sewage water into the aquifer as a nebulous panacea, but that PureWater Soquel Project has been delayed for many reasons, and will not be on line until late 2024 or even longer.

So, how can the District justify continuing to sell new water service connections if the aquifer is still in critical overdraft?

Listen to this video to better understand the thought-processes of the District.  It never really was about trying to improve the aquifer but rather about getting more money.  Now, with some questioning the legality of the practice that portends to be an obstacle to the County’s rapid growth under State-mandated RHNA building, the District does not want to spend the money to develop any viable conservation programs that would not happen without collecting the $55,000/AcreFoot Water Demand Offset fees.

“At minute 53:50, Water Conservation Staff Specialist Ms. Flock admitted it would be difficult…”I don’t know what would generate enough water savings to justify it.”  That followed Director Tom LaHue’s statement that it would take lots of money to re-do the factors to legally justify continuing to collect the Offset fees at Minute 50:10.

Director Bruce Jaffe wondered at Minute 46:45 about how it would be fair to developers who have recently paid the hefty $55,000/acre-foot Water Demand Offset fee but suddenly, new developers won’t have to?

He worried at minute 43:00 if the recharge from PureWater Soquel will actually be enough?

I hope to listen to the complete recording and hope you do, too.  Please let me know your thoughts.

SOQUEL CREEK WATER BUSINESS IN LA SELVA BEACH

Last week’s Soquel Creek Water District Board meeting was a hybrid format, with in-person meeting resuming at the Capitola City Council chambers.  I arrived a few minutes after 6pm, thinking that the Closed Session would be first, as is customary in the remote meetings.  It turned out that the order of the meetings have changed, with Closed Session again at the end of the meeting.

I encourage Soquel Creek Water District customers to again attend these in-person meetings at 6pm on the first and third Tuesdays of the month.  These folks need to be held accountable.

Here are some interesting projects I learned the District is doing:

Utility Relocation in Conjunction with the County’s Buffered Bike Lane Improvement Project on Soquel Drive.  The District is guest in County Right of Way and needs to move utilities to accommodate a new storm drain various sidewalk improvements:

1.12″ Mainline relocation at Soquel Dr. and Mar Vista Dr.2.Hydrant Relocation on Soquel Dr near Mar Vista Dr. 3.6 air release valve relocations on Soquel Dr. and Soquel Ave.4.Raising ~25 Meter and valve boxes.

San Andreas Rd. Main Extension for Renaissance High School (Pajaro Valley Unified School District)

1. LAFCO annexation required.
2. The Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) and Weber, Hayes & Associates (WHA) are supporting PVUSD on funding application, LAFCO annexation, and engineering services for water main extension and service installation.

iii. Conditional Will Serve letter pending.

1. Documentation showing District commitment to consolidation and authorization for applicant to act on behalf of the District will be presented to Board.
2. District will be the lead agency for CEQA16.

Moosehead Dr. Main Replacement

1. Pending confirmation of $1.416 Budget Bill
2. CalTrans and County are coordinating to design a realignment of Moosehead Dr to be out of the CalTrans ROW. Coordination is scheduled for July 202317.City of Capitola Roundabout at Capitola Ave. & Bay Ave. intersection i. Staff is coordinating with the City for accommodating improvements which include a fire hydrant relocation and valve box adjustments.18.County of Santa Cruz Coastal Rail Trail at 41st Ave. RR crossing Staff is coordinating with the County for water line crossing conflicts

Water Distribution Model

1. Staff is working with Akel Engineering to update the District’s hydraulic model. The most current model was last updated in 2014 and is missing key infrastructure upgrades from the last decade of CIP projects.
2. $60k was budgeted for FY22/23

iii.  Additional funding is available through a state DWR grant through the MGA. This model will be used in the optimization study to evaluate how the Distribution system can accommodate redistribution of pumping in SqCWD’s system and evaluate the hydraulics of water transfers as they relate to the overall groundwater basin management scenarios.

REMEMBERING THOSE WHO HAVE FOUGHT TO PROTECT OUR FREEDOM

Memorial Day is a time to reflect and recognized those who died while protecting our freedoms.  Take a moment to do so.

In Flanders Fields

By John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie,

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

2023 UPCOMING COMMUNITY MEETINGS

The Housing Element identifies policies and programs to meet existing and projected housing needs for the urban unincorporated areas of the County. 

May 31:    Virtual Meeting Via Zoom 5:30-7:00 pm
Zoom Link

June 28:  Watsonville Civic Plaza ~ 275 Main St., 4th Floor,
Watsonville, 5:30-7:00 pm (Food will be provided)

WRITE ONE LETTER.  MAKE ONE CALL.  ATTEND A PUBLIC MEETING AND ASK QUESTIONS…JUST DO SOMETHING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers, Becky

COUNTY BUDGET FORECAST IS GLOOMY

The updated County Budget report at last week’s Board of Supervisor meeting was not pretty, and it bothers me that even less time than usual will be publicly devoted to explaining and discussing the issue in the near term.

Budget Manager Marcus Pimental stated the County’s budget is now $1.1 billion.  However, expenditures exceed revenues by $12 million annually.  “It is unfortunate that the County will have to borrow $50 million this fall to cover operational expenses until property tax payments fill the gap.”  he said at Minute 50 in the video recording

The Budget will be $8 million to $10 million in the red every year between now and 2027.  Sales tax revenue is decreasing due to more people shopping online, causing the County to lose about $5 million annually.  The new disposable cup tax approved by voters last year is not bringing in the $700,000 projected but instead may only net $75,000- $100,000 annually.  Staff hopes to find out from the County Treasurer’s office why there is such a discrepancy.

Where DOES the County’s discretionary money go?  Listen in at about minute 54 of the meeting video recording to see that law enforcement and the Office of Response, Recovery & Resilience (OR3) gets the biggest piece of that pie.  The Sheriff’s Taj Mahal complex in Live Oak does not come cheaply, and now that the County owns the entire business complex at 5200 and 5400 Soquel Avenue Frontage Road, there is no property tax collected for any of it (that was all built by Barry Swenson Builder, and has had many structural problems requiring expensive repairs.)  Don’t forget that the OR3 was born immediately after CAO Carlos Palacios eliminated the one full time Office of Emergency Response Manager, Rosemary Anderson, as a cost-cutting measure in 2020.  Oh, well, it gave David Reid, the former analyst of Supervisor John Leopold, a nice job after he lost the election to Supervisor Manu Koenig.

The CAO emphasized the County has accomplished many significant projects, but pointed to large expenses such as new County radio systems that will cost roughly $30 million.  (Never mind the County sold the communications tower it owned to the City of Watsonville and now pays thousands of dollars for month rent to Etherics network on the mountain near Mt. Madonna.) He pointed to a report that Santa Clara County is expecting a $100 million budget deficit, and that Santa Cruz County will simply need to continue deferred capital improvement projects (roads, bridges, culverts, etc.) so we don’t end up like them.

Supervisor Bruce McPherson asked County staff to “Cool your jets” on establishing new programs that are state mandates but unfunded. The State Budget (released last Friday) is worse than we thought, with a $30 billion deficit.  He stressed that there are unrealistic challenges with State mandates before us.  “This is the most uncertain time I have ever seen in my years of State and local government.” and he urged all Departments to review projects that are “Nice to have but may not have money to pay for them.”

Supervisor Justin Cummings wanted to make sure the stipends for Commissioners that the Board recently requested is funded. (Budget manager Marcus Pimental assured him it is).

Zach Friend blamed it on Prop 13 for low property taxes and also slow reimbursements by FEMA for recent disasters and Covid.  He sees County worker furloughs likely.  Only 13cents/dollar in property tax money comes back to the County, he explained, and pretty soon the pressure will be too great for County funding.

He is glad the hearings are short, and feels having everything online will help the public better understand the Budget.  Hmmm……

Supervisor Felipe Hernandez emphasized that he wants the new park at 181 Whiting Road in Watsonville funded, and we need to let the State know Santa Cruz County needs help.

Supervisor Manu Koenig was nowhere to be seen during the entire meeting.

Watch the presentation and discussion of this by clicking on Item #7 on the County Board of Supervisor May 9 meeting agenda

The Budget hearings will be May 30 and 31, with a Supplementary hearing June 28, and Final approvals in September.  Pay attention, listen in and ask questions.

Where is that “Online Budget”?  Here you go!

SOQUEL BUFFERED BIKE LANE PROJECT FUNDING AND CONTRACT WILL BE APPROVED MAY 25

The much-talked-about Soquel Drive Bike Lane Project, stretching from La Fonda Avenue in Live Oak to State Park Drive in Aptos may soon get off the ground.  What will it mean for you?  If you are a student at Cabrillo College, your free on-street parking will completely vanish.  If you travel through Soquel Village, you will get squeezed by lane width reductions to 10’wide in the eastbound lanes, and 11′ wide in the westbound lanes.  Staff insists this will calm traffic speeds, but I wonder what fire engines and construction trucks going to the quarry nearby will do?

Take a look at these recorded public meetings from last year:

Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane and Congestion Mitigation Project – Community Workshop 2 – 1.20.22

The questions at this session were different and brought forth new and different information: Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane & Congestion Mitigation Workshop #1 on January 12th, 2022.

Public Works Dept. staff has let me know similar improvements are scheduled for Soquel Drive at State Park to Freedom Blvd. in Aptos in the near future.  How can Soquel Drive in the Aptos Village area possibly get squeezed any more than has already been done to accommodate the new Parade Street intersection for Swenson?

Parking for those businesses will already be taking a big hit with the new 14′-wide pedestrian / bike trail right-of-way that the Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) is planning to confiscate next year.

THE COUNTY HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE NEEDS YOU

You need to be weighing in on this Housing Element update, because it will affect the quality of life for us all and for generations to come..

Santa Cruz County Planning Dept. staff are feverishly working to complete the updated Housing element of the County General Plan in order to submit it for approval to the State Housing & Community Development (HSD) Dept. for approval by the end of this year.  This is being brought about by the 6th Cycle Regional Housing Allocation Number (RHNA) produced behind the veil of Associated Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG), mandating unreasonable levels of growth with required percentages of affordable units for the County and cities.

There are a number of virtual and in-person hearings on this, so attend as many as you can:

Get Involved

The online Public Survey provided here is quite worthless, in my opinion, so do your best to interact with staff and send written comments.

PUBLIC HEARING WITH SHERIFF HART TO REVIEW AUDIT OF MILITARY WEAPONS USE IN THE COUNTY

Mark your calendar for this opportunity to sit in on the Sheriff’s Annual Report of how and why local deputies used military weapons in responding to public incidents.

May 23, at 6:30pm in Community Room at Sheriff Center

The problem is that the County Board of Supervisors already signed off on this Annual Report last Tuesday, after much discussion about the merit of doing so.     Sheriff Hart asked the Board of Supervisors to approve the Annual Report required by AB 481 before the public hearing, claiming that it would be too confusing to have the public review a Draft, and bring that to the Board afterwards.

Members of the local ACLU raised objection, and also provided interesting information that questioned the credibility of “independent auditor” Michael Jenico, instead asking for an audit by local citizens.  People also disagreed with Sheriff Hart’s claim that M4 automatic rifles are “standard issue”, and thereby were not included in the Annual Report, and also that the Department has 24 drones, but claims there is no maintenance cost.

The Board ultimately voted unanimously (with Supervisor Koenig absent) to approve the Annual Report, but Supervisor Hernandez asked Sheriff Hart to consider doing things differently next year.  “I’ll consider it” said Sheriff Hart, “but I can’t make any promises.”

Click on Item #14 on May 9 Board of Supervisor meeting agenda

HOW MUCH SHOULD PUBLIC INFORMATION COST?

The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) sent out some shocking news and some great news last week.

Mendocino County tried to charge one local journalist $84,001.22 to respond to a Public Records Act request.  That County’s staff claimed it would take 2,139 hours, costing $67,145 to locate records revealing details of government workers use of the disappearing messaging app Signal and another estimated 534 hours, costing $16,900 to assemble the responsive records.  The County wanted the full amount paid up front.

Lawyers for the FAC and ACLU told the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors that “No law authorizes counties to impose fees for locating, reviewing or redacting public records.” and informed them legal action was likely. Journalists and community members also pushed back, claiming the charges were illegal, effectively rendering the California Public Records Act ineffective.

“The Board of Supervisors in Mendocino County voted to repeal its local law, less than a year after adopting it as a purported cost-savings measure.” reported the FAC.

Whew!

But hang on! The FAC reported “While Mendocino County’s ordinance has fallen amid community outcry, fees like these remain a problem elsewhere.  Research by FAC and ACLU identified seven other counties—Los Angeles, Shasta, Siskiyou, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Santa Cruz, and Ventura—that passed local ordinances purporting to give them the authority to impose fees on the public for staff time spent on responding to requests.”

Here is the link to making such requests, and for seeing some responsive documents of other requests

I often have trouble opening the responsive files, but staff is helpful when I let them know of the problems.

A few years ago, the Board of Supervisors approved charging $27 for a USB stick when used for responsive Public Records Act request files.   Soquel Creek Water District charges a minimum of $120.00 for requests including correspondence, and further hourly charges at that $120 rate for anything over one hour.  They claim that is what their contractor requires.  Hmmmm….  I have notified the First Amendment Colition (FAC), and hope you will, too, if you have had problems with trying to obtain public information from local government and quasi-governmental agencies or told you have to pay large amounts of money to do so.

[FAC website]

Remember, it was via a Public Records Act request that Lookout Santa Cruz journalist Mr. Chris Neely brought to light the County’s decades-long violations of the Brown Act by holding secret City Selection Committee meetings at restaurants,  nominating various people for important positions on powerful commissions, such as the Coastal Commission.

NISENE MARKS STATE PARK ENTRANCE IS SINGLE-LANE 

Visitors to Nisene Marks State Park in Aptos can once again drive further into the Park on Aptos Creek Road, but the winter storm toll on the road is evident.  Let’s hope State Parks can repair the shoulders to accommodate fire engines and ambulances quickly and safely responding while other traffic (foot and bicycle, included) has room to get out of the way.  By the way, Aptos Creek Road is about the same width in many areas as the new Rail Trail the RTC is planning for the area.

This area of Aptos Creek Road should be barricaded to keep people from going over the edge, just as State Parks did nearby with the orange pylons and sandbags you see in the background, and below.

This area approaching the hairpin curve crossing Mangels Creek is where the road narrows to single lane traffic.  Below, you can see that the guard rail at the Mangels Creek crossing is damaged, and would do nothing to prevent a night-time bicyclist from crashing into the Creek at this hairpin turn.

Please contact State Parks if you feel this busy entrance into and out of Nisene Marks State Park needs more attention for public safety and emergency responders.

Public Safety Superintendent Mr. Gabe Mckenna gabriel.mckenna@parks.ca.gov

LEARN ABOUT HOW YOU AND YOUR HOME CAN SURVIVE WILDFIRE

Attend the free outdoor public educational event on June 4 at the Temple Beth El (3055 Porter Gulch Rd., Aptos) 1:30pm-4:30pm to learn from many fire and professional agencies about preparing for responders, home hardening concepts, fuel reduction resources, and fire insurance.  For more information, contact Nancy Yellin <nlyellin@comcast.net>, who has organized this great event with help from FireWise Neighborhoods of Viewpoint, Cathedral-Redwood, North Trout Gulch-Fern Flat, and Porter Gulch.

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE APTOS VILLAGE PROJECT?

The Aptos Village Project Phase I is what you see in Aptos now.  Many of the retail areas are empty, but Mentone’s restaurant seems to always have a good crowd.  While the New Leaf Market, owned by a large off-shore conglomerate, is busy, and the historic Apple Barn is safe for now, the paint is peeling and nearly all of the pervious asphalt areas have been cordoned off and dug up, for “Cleaning”, thereby reducing parking significantly.

In one case, a retail wine business and tasting room has been allowed to build outdoor seating over an area that removes two parking spaces that were ordered by Judge Paul Burdick to be provided when the We Are Aptos group sued Swenson and the County in 2016 for many losses of common area (aka, parking).

The County of Santa Cruz has thrown Barry Swenson Builder a financial life raft by leasing one of two prime retail areas for the MidCounty Safety Center and County Supervisor Zach Friend’s office.  Supposedly, it is now staffed again, but who would know it is even there, when there are no signs at the street level to publicly identify its existence?

So, Barry Swenson Builder may be building steam to begin the Phase 2 and Phase 3 in the area shown below.  The monstrous faded yellow earthmover equipment that has sat idle and rusting among the weeds and decrepit storage containers and mobile construction office is now gone, and most of the waist-high weeds have been cut.  What remains to be seen is whether the excavation necessary for foundations and drainage of the multiple three-story development will reek of diesel, remnant of the contamination that occurred there in 2016 when Swenson crews ripped out an Underground Storage Tank and flooded the area with some nasty petrochemical stuff, likely Bunker Oil from the Lam Mattison Apple Dryer facility there.

Wouldn’t it be ever-so-much better to cap this area with soil and bring back the world-famous Post Office Bike Jumps and Pump Track for the youth in our Community?  I do.  Please let me know if you have someone in mind that might be willing to finance a buy-out from Swenson and rebuild the Bike Jumps in Aptos Village.

LIVE OAK LIBRARY IS A PEACEFUL PLACE

I spend a lot of time at public libraries, and really appreciate them.  The Live Oak branch is my favorite for many reasons, one of which is the Corcoran Lagoon adjacent.  Last week, a pair of Canadian Geese brought their hatchlings up to wander about.  It was beautiful.

MAKE ONE CALL.  WRITE ONE LETTER.  ATTEND A PUBLIC HEARING, ASK QUESTIONS AND EXPECTANSWERS.

DO JUST ONE THING THIS WEEK AND MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

Cheers, Becky