SAN JACINTO CITY COUNCIL MEETING SMOOTHLY COVERED BY PHONE

Date:

Rusty Strait | Senior Reporter

Covering the San Jacinto City Council meeting by phone is like having a milkshake at the local malt shop, and it goes down sweet and slick. Tuesday night was no except, and it lasted a little over an hour.

Before the gavel came down to open the session, there was a bit of back and forth prattle about Sacramento (meaning Governor Newsome) and how terrible they were treating local communities.

The meeting opened with an invocation and pledge to the flat. Then came presentations, followed by commentary.

PRESENTATIONS:

1. Recognition of Former Mayor Alonso Ledezma (new Mayor Crystal Ruiz)

2. Introduction of Lt. Harding as New Police Chief; thank you to outgoing Chief Reichle.

3. Recognition of LCA Metals representative Augustin Corona (LCA manufactures metal house and building frames, considered to be the safest framing for the future.

Then came the consent calendar which passed 5-0:

A. Waived full reading of ordinances and reading by title only.

B. Received and filed Treasurer’s Report for the month ending October 31, 2021.

C. Received and filed Treasurer’s Report for the month ending November 30, 2021.

D. Reviewed and approved warrants and Disbursements for the Period of December 2021 in the amount of $3,907,069.78.

E. Approved Ordinance of the City Council of the City of San Jacinto authorizing the levy of special taxes in a community facilities district, including certain annexation territory identified as annexation No. 4 (Tax zone No. 5), into San Jacinto Community Facilities District.

F. Approved Ordinance of the City Council of the City of San Jacinto authorizing the levy of special taxes in a community facilities district, including certain annexation territory identified as Annexation No. 2 (Tax zone No. 3), into San Jacinto Community Facilities District.

G. Approved Ordinance of the City Council of the City of San Jacinto levying a special tax within City of San Jacinto Community Facilities District No. 2003-1, including certain annexation territory.

H. Approved a continuing appr0pariation increase of $1,109,527 from originally designated fund balances for construction-in-progress projects encumbered as of June 30, 2021, into the FY 2021-22 Budget.

I. Approved making findings that state and local officials continue to recommend measures to support social distancing due to the COVID-19 emergency and authorize virtual meetings for the City Council and all City bodies for the next 30 days.

J. Approved a full local street closure of Kirby Street between Caseros Drive and Cottonwood Avenue for 5 working days.

DISCUSSION ITEMS:

APPROVED 5-0:

1. Determine that the proposed project is not subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant ato State CEQA Guidelines (Cal. Code Regs., 15000 et seq.) Sections 15061(b)(2) in that the proposed project is categorically exempt from environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15301, 15302, 15303; and Section 15061 (b)(3) – Common Sense Exemption in that it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the project may have a significant effect on the environment.

2. Award the contract to Yellow Jacket Drilling Services LLC, for the sum of $1,803,940.50. (This contract has to do with drilling a new water well to go down to a depth of 1170 feet and is expected to produce a flow of 2500 gallons of water per minute which ultimately reduces the amount of water purchased from EMWD).

Among items otherwise discussed were the following:

Councilman Hawkins reported on a committee meeting he attended, stating that he was getting acclimated to the Water District and how it works. He also expressed concern about brighter lights and markings at crosswalks, citing a person who was hit by a car at a poorly lit four-corner intersection.

Further, Councilman Hawkins was concerned about the homeless sleeping on sidewalks and business doorways and stated that maybe he had a curious solution. He said that perhaps we could create or figure out a planned Community Research Park, since there is no place for the homeless to go. Build a park with a bungalow area with outside showers, creating a secure environment within the city limits because “we can’t force people into a shelter.” He suggested it would be better to have resources in one place for the homeless.

Both Mayor Ruiz and Councilman Ayala agreed to sit down and talk with him about his idea.

The City Manager gave a report and the Mayor closed the meeting at 8:04 PM, an hour and a half from opening to closing the meeting. Now if only their sister city council could find a solution to that. Just sayin’

rustystrait@gmail.

Find your latest news here at the Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Share post:

Subscribe to The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle

Popular

More like this
Related

Why California Democrats are divided on retail theft bill

Legislators may be off for spring recess, but debates about their bills are still happening outside committee rooms.

California delays financial aid deadline over bungled FAFSA rollout

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday signed legislation extending the deadline for students to apply for state scholarships as problems continue to beset the Biden administration’s rollout of a simplified federal aid form.

Where is employment heading in the Inland Empire?

Once a year, at the beginning of March, the national release of the monthly labor market data coincides with that of the state and the region.

Poisoning, Overdose Awareness Walks Scheduled In Riverside County

Riverside University Health System announced Monday that its "One Life, One Heart" Poisoning and Overdose Awareness Walk will debut at three Riverside County locations, starting with Palm Desert on Wednesday.