Bert Rapp, Director of Public Works, shows FEMA’s flood map to council, Wednesday night.

Mayor Patti Walker welcomed everyone to the Joint Fillmore City Council/North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee meeting, Wednesday, October 7, 2009.

Oral communications were first on the agenda. New city manager Yvonne Quiring spoke, saying she was pleased to be part of the “Fillmore family”. She thanked the community for the warm welcome and said she could see why no one ever leaves Fillmore, which drew a laugh.

Quiring began one of her first public appearances with an apology for the failure regarding the Request For Proposals (RFP) that were not sent out in the city’s search for a new auditing firm to meet State deadlines.
“I would like to apologize to the city council and to the community. There seems to be some sort of miscommunication. We have not done a good job as staff at explaining what has gone on with the RFP for audit services so I want to let everybody know that it’s going out for bid at some point in the future, probably in the next several weeks.”

Quiring began her post as city manager on October 1, 2009, before the RFPs were purported to have been sent out as stated by Mayor Walker at the September 22 council meeting and in an October 1st Letter to the Editor to the Gazette. Larry Pennell was city manager at the time.

Quiring went on to say, “I am looking into what exactly happened on that. And I think that there was a miscommunication on our part and I apologize to the city council, to the community.”

She said it had created some hard feelings and city staff didn’t want to “cause that kind of confusion. So I’m sorry for that and we [will] do better in the future and take some steps so that we are a little, we are more clear in what we communicate. So I’m sorry to all of you for that.”

Walker thanked Ms. Quiring for her remarks stating, “We appreciate that.”

In Memory Of
Council next adjourned in memory of Donald Skoe, Charles Benson, David Garcia, Delbert Gunter, Mary Lou Hutchens, Juanita Pina, Beatrice Webb and Peggy Button.

Status report on city matters
Public Works Director Bert Rapp handed out FEMA literature regarding the just-released flood plane. He said the most important thing for the community to understand is that they should buy flood insurance before January 2010. He said it would be about half the cost to buy before the January 20, 2010 deadline. Rapp warned that there is a 30-day waiting period once flood insurance is purchases, and the insurance should be purchased “well before December 20”.

A public meeting with FEMA insurance experts will be held Thursday, October 22, 2009 at the Veteran’s Memorial Building, 6:30PM, said Rapp. They will report why they are imposing flood insurance requirements. Rapp also said the Watershed Protection District will be present to discuss what they are going to do “as far as they know right now to get us out of this flood insurance requirement.”

A map is available at www.fillmoregazette.com showing the affected area.

Rapp said FEMA is not working to design this flood plane based on floods we have had in the past. “They are working with a 1% storm – 100 year storm, 135,000 cubic feet per second of flood which is significantly higher than any flood we have ever seen.”

In 2005 the Sespe River flowed to 85,000 cubic feet per second, the highest flood flow registered for the Sespe. “They are projecting the levy between Old Telegraph Road and Highway 126 has to be raised six feet higher in the middle at Sespe Avenue,” said Rapp.

Fillmore Middle School Update
Rapp also gave an update on the Fillmore Middle School schedule, where they have been working for more than a year installing trench drains underneath the playground, installing an irrigation system and subsurface strips, and putting in new sod.

“And that project is coming to a close,” stated Rapp.

More sod will be laid in the next couple of weeks. The new sod is being irrigated with a subsurface strip, and they are working on a fertilizer injection system. They are also installing a recycled water disposal system on the railroad right-of-way. Rapp said a tall fescue grass will be planted from Central Avenue to B Street, to keep the area green using the recycled water.

Sod was installed on Monday, October 5 at the varsity baseball field. Plants are also being added to the top of the Third Street stair area.

B Street Extension
The B Street extension is being completed from Old Telegraph Road to 2nd Street. Rapp said the plan will take it from 2nd Street to 3rd Street and will open it up to traffic. The block from Old Telegraph Road to 2nd Street will get its final pave of asphalt, and will be completed by March 2010, with most of construction taking place in February. It will be a two-lane street with asphalt sidewalks on west side. Streetlights will be installed said Rapp. But to save money they will be wood poles with overhead wires “as we didn’t want to spend money on expensive concrete poles just to have them torn out in a few years.

“This block is a temporary street in that area and will not require concrete curbs or gutters. We only had 30 feet or right-of-way to squeeze this in.”

Measure I
Kevin McSweeney discussed the Fillmore Specific Plan, Measure I. the citizens created Measure I which caused revisions to the Specific Plan, said McSweeney.

“City staff is in the process to implement that Measure. City council has authorized staff to start the process by selecting a qualified design firm and environmental firm that will help us provide a plan.”
McSweeny said the city council was “very particular” concerning the process with the public.

”The city wants input from the North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee from the beginning, before anything is drawn or planned or any text is written. In the previous plan, the North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee made it known that they did not want alleys or 3-story buildings, and they were concerned with density.”
McSweeney said the plan went from 700 homes to 350.

The city will take comments from the Committee on the previous plan and make them known to the designer from the beginning. Public meetings and workshops will be held on the new plan.

Councilmember Laurie Hernandez requested that the meetings be held in both English and Spanish. McSweeney agreed.
RFPs will be sent out soon, said McSweeney. The city has already received “a tremendous amount of solicitations for proposals.” He said a lot of the design firms are hurting and are looking for work. He is receiving emails everyday from design firms and hopes for a good proposal.

Citizen Gloria Hanson asked how the North Fillmore Specific Plan is going to commence. McSweeney said they must do a Project Description first, a layout of the area which shows how many homes are on which lots, and where the utilities will be. From that they will begin the environmental process.

“City council has directed staff to start with the previous Environmental Impact Report and work from that.”
McSweeney said they will hold initial meetings, gathering input from the Committee, property owners, the developers, city council, city staff, the public, and stakeholders, and give direction to the consultants who will produce a product. “And then we will share it again with everybody through well-noticed meetings.”
He noted that the new FEMA flood plan may affect the environmental document but not the design in Zone X, referring to the flood map.

Mayor Walker reiterated concern that the meetings be noticed for the public. McSweeney stated that email addresses would be gathered at the first meeting to alert those who sign up.
Law Enforcement Update

Sheriffs Sgt. Kevin Vahen thanked the public for calling the department about disturbances, specifically gang and graffiti related incidents in north Fillmore. Two gang officers accompanied him to the meeting to answer questions.

Omero Martinez, of the North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee, asked if the gang officers drive through the area or walk the beat. He said gang members hide or run “when they see a Black & White”. One of the officers said they don’t drive a Black & White; they park their car and walk the streets, gaining the element of surprise. He said if the public will inform them of patterns of gang members gathering at a certain spot on a certain night, the police can work to be there. The officer stressed that any information the public has helps and the police can plan their shifts accordingly.

He said that graffiti can be reported anonymously.

Neighborhood committee member Lauro Recendez praised Police Storefront CRO Max Pina for his communication style with the public.

One Step board member Mikey Ramirez said that at-risk teens could be directed to the afterschool teen program, which meets at the “Chocolate Church”, Trinity Episcopal, 2nd & Saratoga Street.

North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee
Martinez stated that the basketball court cement at the North Fillmore Storefront is slippery and a safety issue. Walker said council will “check to see what we can do to repair it.”
Hernandez said the city leases it, and they will look into it.

Police Storefront Project
The North Fillmore Police Storefront construction project was accomplished with “98% free labor” said Hernandez. She thanked all the volunteers involved in the project. Approximately 80 volunteers helped with the project and 18 businesses donated materials, according to Pina. Still left is the landscaping and some painting. The Grand Opening will be held Wednesday, October 21, from 4:30PM to 7PM and attended by past city council members, past police captains, firetrucks, a DJ, and Mariachis, said Hernandez. A proposed budget will be discussed at next council meeting.

The group praised Hernandez for her leadership in the storefront project. Hernandez said it was challenging but she is grateful.

The North Fillmore Neighborhood Committee adjourned.

Council moved to approve a consent calendar and items were placed on the agenda. Hernandez made request to add the budget request for the storefront grand opening to the following council agenda, and to place discussion of a “thank you” ad cost for the storefront on agenda.

Adjourned to Closed Session
Council adjourned to closed session regarding existing litigation, Richard P. McKee v Fillmore City Council, and existing litigation, El Dorado v City of Fillmore.