Here’s what you need to know
- At the Reedley City Council meeting on September 13, 2022, the council members (5-0) selected Susan Byers to be formally appointed and sworn into the District 3 seat on September 27, 2022, replacing council member Robert Beck.Â
- The council amended the professional services agreement with MKN & Associates for the design and construction document preparation for the two wastewater trunk main replacement along Olson Avenue to the City’s Wastewater Treatment Plant to include improvements to the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
- The council approved establishing a longevity pay benefit for the city’s unrepresented employees. The benefit will begin at year 10 with a 5 percent base salary increase and increase to 7.5 percent at year 15 and 10 percent increase at year 20.
- In response to several residents living on Columbia Avenue whose wells have gone dry, the council presented a letter of intent to the California State Water Resources Control Board supporting installing a water main on Parlier Avenue and Columbia Avenue. Some of the residents live within city limits, but a majority live in the County of Fresno.
Follow-up questions
- Will the longevity pay benefit help retain unrepresented employees in the county?
- When will the two trunk replacements in the treatment plant be in place?
The Scene
According to its website, the city council regularly meets on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at the Reedley City Council Chambers located at 845 “G” Street, Reedley, CA 93654, (559) 637-4200, ext. 212.
Reedley City Council Members present:
- Mayor Mary Fast
- Council Member Ray Soleno
- Council Member Anita Betancourt
- Council Member Matthew Tuttle
Others Present:
- City Manager Nicole Zieba
- City Attorney Laurie Avedisian-Favini
- Assistant City Manager Paul Melikian
- Community Development Director Rodney Horton
- Dale Kennedy
- Susan Byers
- Steven Penner
- Chris Perez
- Margie Gabaldon
Discussions/Actions
Despite the unsuccessful grant for Reedley Sports Park, Steven Penner said that he remains optimistic about developing the sports park.
The council (4-0) unanimously approved items #4-17 in the consent agenda.
4. The council approved the minutes of the regular council meeting on August 9, 2022
5. The council approved the claim rejection of Pedro J. Contreras
The claim form from Contreras alleges that on August 19, 2022, Officer Jimenez took his property, and it was nowhere to be found.
The claimant is seeking $2,190 in total, which includes $1,500 cash, $150 for the tow truck, $300 for the wallet, and $240 to make a new key.
According to the Reedley Police Department Incident Report, case number 22-0002678, on August 19, 2022, Officer Arenas, who was assisting Officer Jimenez, detained Contreras to stop a fight between he and Mr. Lira.
Officer Arenas then emptied Contreras’ pockets and placed the property in the trunk of Contreras’ vehicle.
After the issue was resolved, and Officer Jimenez advised Contreras that he was free to leave, he (Contreras) then asked for his property back. It was not in the trunk anymore.
Footage from the body-worn camera showed that Lira and an unidentified female walked up to the vehicle and took Contreras’ property lying on top of the trunk.
Under Government Code Section 912.4, the city council must act upon a claim within 45 days after receipt. If there is no official action by council, the claim is deemed to be rejected on the last day.
Denial-by-minute order action provides a clearly defined rejection date and allows AIMS to begin their investigation and take appropriate action to resolve the claim on time.
6. The council approved the claim rejection of Ramon Longoria
The claim form from Longoria alleges that on February 17, 2022, the Reedley Police were in pursuit of a suspect.
While being pursued, the suspect crashed into the claimant’s vehicle. The claimant sustained whiplash injuries and was referred to physical therapy.
Based upon their investigation, AIMS found no evidence of negligence or liability on the part of the City of Reedley because there was no evidence of a pursuit on that day involving the Reedley Police Department, and the accident did not occur within the city limits.
AIMS has therefore recommended that the claim be rejected.
7. The council approved a one-year agreement with the Fresno County Rural Transit Agency (FCRTA) for law enforcement services on transit vehicles, not to exceed $10,000, covering the period July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023.
Under the terms of the agreement, a city police officer will board an FCRTA vehicle at minimum once per week to provide a security presence on the vehicle and at the bus shelter. All terms are consistent with the requirements of the existing agreement, which ended June 30, 2022.
8. The council presented a letter of intent to the California State Water Resources Control Board supporting the installation of a water main on Parlier Avenue and Columbia Avenue.
Multiple residents along Columbia Avenue have contacted the City and Parlier Avenue, who are currently served by wells, and the wells have gone dry.
Those residents have been directed by staff to contact Self Help to receive temporary water tanks and water bottles and to apply for funding for a new well or to extend the length of their current well.
Some of the residents are annexed into the City. However, a majority of the residents are in the County of Fresno.
The City currently does not have funds to install a water main and provide services to the residents.
Self Help contacted the SWRCB to inquire about funding for the water main.
Staff had some concerns regarding connecting the County residents and how that would impact the City’s per capita limits that the State may impose in the future.
The State and Self Help has assured us that they will investigate this matter in the preliminary engineering report for the Project.
Staff agrees with supporting this Project as multiple residents in the area of the project are having their wells go dry. In addition, the State and Self Help will coordinate with the City and fully fund the Project.
9. The council amended the professional services agreement with MKN & Associates for the design and construction document preparation for the 2 Wastewater Trunk Main Replacement along Olson Avenue to the City’s Wastewater Treatment Plant to include improvements to the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The VVWTP improvements will reduce the cost of engineering services as the items will be included in the existing plans and specifications, and a new set of plans and specifications will not need to be prepared.
In addition, during construction, the costs would be less because a contractor will already be within the vicinity of the WWTP, a sewer bypass will already be in place, and a construction manager will already be inspecting the project.
To date, MKN expenses have totaled $257,837.12. The addition of this amendment would increase the total expenses to $323,425.12.
The funding for this amendment would come from existing budgeted Sewer Capital funds in the current fiscal year budget.
10. The council approved the agreement addendum with Otani Properties to extend the boundary recordation deadline within the agreement for reimbursement of Environmental Analysis Fees for the Property Situated at West Manning Avenue and the Kings River (APN # 368-350-17, 31, 32, And 33).
The agreement stipulated certain performance requirements of the owner be relieved of the obligation to reimburse the City for the costs of the environmental analysis.
One of the requirements is to record the Boundary Recordation within two years of the execution of the Agreement.
Since the Agreement was executed on October 16, 2020, the deadline to record the Boundary Recordation is October 16, 2022.
However, the annexation process will not be completed by October 16, 2022, thus requiring an extension to the deadline to complete and record the Boundary Recordation fully.
11. Consider the following Items associated with affected properties on East Duff Avenue:
A. The council approved a loan arrangement on behalf of 6 East Duff Avenue property owners to engage the professional services of Dale G. Mell & Associates for the completion and correction of lot line adjustments not to exceed $15,000
B. The council executed all documents for loan repayment with the property owners of the affected properties on East Duff Avenue
In 2021, the city was aware that six properties on East Duff Avenue, located in Council District 5, have defective parcel descriptions and inaccurate parcel lines dating back several decades.
The parcel lines are shown to bifurcate existing residential homes and accessory structures.
The neighbors attempted to resolve this matter in 2009 by filing Lot Line Adjustment 2009-01 and Lot Line Adjustment 2009-02. However, the process was not fully completed, resulting in defective parcel lines and descriptions.
If the parcel lines and description are not corrected, the property owners will have difficulty selling or transferring their property.
Additionally, current defective parcel lines and parcel descriptions of the properties on East Duff Avenue violate the Subdivision Map Act.
State law clearly states that the property owner must rectify this. However, the costs are such that, without city support, property owners are unwilling to fix the situation.
Margie Gabaldon, a property owner, hopes the process will be done as soon as possible.
12. The council authorized the submittal of an application to the Fresno County Historical Landmarks & Records Advisory Commission to designate Smith’s Ferry Park as a Local Fresno County Historical Site
13. The council executed all renewal documents and plan changes necessary to continue the provision of a Medicare Supplement Plan for eligible city retirees and dependents for 2023.
Over the last few months, the city’s insurance broker, Horstmann Financial and Insurance Services (Horstmann), solicited bids from various Medicare Supplement plan providers.
After a review of available options, staff recommends that the city remain with Retireefirst as the Plan Administrator.
Still, transition the Medicare Supplement Plan coverage from the current provider, United American, to TransAmerica to lock in a very moderate 1.04 percent net increase for City Medicare Supplement premiums next year.
Should the city have stayed with United American next year, the increase in premiums would have been over 5 percent.
The change of Supplement Plan provider will not impact eligible retirees and dependents with similar coverage levels and provider networks, as highlighted in the attached Medicare Supplement Plans comparison.
The Prescription Drug benefit portion of the Plan will continue with Express Script.
The group Medicare Supplement Plan/coverage is estimated to cost $181,779 this year, rising 1.04% to $183,666 in 2023, below budgeted assumptions included in the FY 2022-23 Adopted Budget.
Savings will be captured and reflected in the fiscal year-end estimates developed during the FY 2023-24 budget process and contribute towards increased fund balances in those funds that contribute to this benefit.
14. The council adopted Ordinance No. 2022-004, an ordinance of the City Council of the City Of Reedley approving Pre-Zone Application No. 2020-01 and authorizing the amendment of the official zoning map of the City of Reedley
Ordinance No. 2022-004 (Pre-Zone Application No. 2020-01) pertains to the pre-zoning of four parcels encompassing 58 acres in preparation for annexation consistent with the Reedley 2030 General Plan.
Approximately 32 acres are proposed to be pre-zoned to the CC (Central and Community Commercial) zone district.
Approximately 11 acres are proposed to be pre-zoned to the R-1-6 (One Family Residential) zone district, and approximately 15 acres, which includes a portion of the Kings River, are proposed to be pre-zoned to the RCO (Resource Conservation and Open Space) zone district.
These entitlements are related to the proposed annexation of 58 gross acres into the City of Reedley.
The proposed annexation site is bordered by the Manning Avenue/I Street Intersection on the north, the Kings River on the west, residential homes on the south, and agricultural fields/commercial properties on the east.
Since it is not officially annexed into the city, the assignment of a zoning designation in preparation for annexation is called “Pre-Zoning.”
The project site entails six parcels totaling approximately 58 acres. The parcels are Fresno County Assessor’s Parcel Numbers (APNs): 368-350-17, 368-350-31, 368-350-32, 368-350-33, 365-072-30T, and 365-072-31 .
Two parcels (APNs 365-072-30T and 365-072-31) contain a portion of Kings River.
The project site is located within the City of Reedley’s Sphere of Influence (SOI) and is currently within the jurisdiction of the County of Fresno.
Adjacent to the north, east and south are the City of Reedley. The site is bordered by the Manning Avenue/I Street Intersection on the north, the Kings River on the west, residential homes on the south, and agricultural fields/commercial properties on the east.
The Reedley General Plan Update 2030 designates the subject territory with a Community Commercial, Open Space, and Low-Density Residential Planned Land Use Designation.
The proposed pre-zoning is consistent with the GPU Planned Land Use and Zoning District Consistency Matrix (GPU, Table 2-4, Page 30).
Therefore, Ordinance No. 2022-004 is consistent with the Reedley Municipal Code.
15. The council approved amending the salary and benefit schedule for unrepresented employees and establishing a longevity pay benefit.
Employees who have completed service milestones may receive longevity pay based on their cumulative full-time years of service. Longevity pay would be pensionable and considered base pay for calculating other employment benefits and special compensation.
Benefit tiers would be as follows:
- Beginning at year 10: 5.0 percent of the base salary
- Beginning at year 15: 7.5 percent of the base salary
- Beginning at year 20: 10 percent of the base salary
Currently, 15 out of a total of 43 full-time Unrepresented employees would be eligible for the longevity pay benefit, based on October 1, 2022, effective date.
The longevity benefit cost for these 15 employees would be $157,548 annually based on current salaries, which equates to approximately 2.5% of total wages and benefit costs for all 43 unrepresented employees.
Staff anticipates that the total number of unrepresented employees that qualify to receive this benefit will remain roughly the same as tenured employees begin to retire in the coming years as newer employees hopefully remain with the organization long term.
16. The council approved appropriating $5,000 in the General Fund for a donation from Dayka & Hackett, LLC, for senior center programs.
17. Budget Resolution 2022-080 of the City Council of the City Of Reedley amending the Fiscal Year 2022-23 adopted budget appropriating $5,000 in the General Fund to serve Reedley For Emergency Repairs at the Faith House Transitional Family Shelter
In May 2021, the City Council approved an Assignment and Assumption Agreement with Serve Reedley, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit agency, that transferred the License Agreement, Memorandum of Understanding, and all related operational responsibilities of the FAITH House Transitional Family Shelter from the previous operator.
At this time, the City had approximately $66,000 remaining in the Community-Based Transitional Housing Program out of the original grant award of $560,000.
The City allocated $50,000 of the remaining grant funds to Serve Reedley, with the remaining funds used to replace the HVAC system, service the fire sprinkler system, and make repairs to the bathroom floor.
Representatives from Serve Reedley recently notified the city that the floor repairs made in 2021 did not take care of the issue. Further repairs are urgently needed so the facility can operate at full capacity.
Serve Reedley has requested assistance to match their in-kind labor contributions to make the necessary repairs to make the bathroom usable again.
Staff anticipates that $5,000 will be sufficient to cover the materials needed, which are available in the General Fund’s unallocated fund balance.
The administrative business consists of:
18. The council (5-0) selected Susan Byers to be formally appointed and sworn into the District 3 seat on September 27, 2022.
The meeting lasted until 8:42 p.m. The next city council meeting will be on Tuesday, September 27, 2022, at 7:00 p.m.
If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at Documenters-admin@fresnoland.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.