Documented by Kristina Mansfield
Here’s what you need to know
- The Madera City Council adopted a resolution (6-0) awarding a $190,116 contract to Witbro Inc. dba Seal Rite Paving and Grading for trail seal coating and repairs at the Vernon McCullough River Trail. The project will include crack fill, pothole repair, and a seal coat on the existing asphalt trail surface.
- Voted (6-0) to adopt a resolution approving the contract award for the new Police Department parking lot project to Terra West Construction, Inc. for $518,700. The start date of the project will be confirmed in the coming weeks.
- Received a summary report and provided direction on several items related to the next steps in the process of awarding six commercial cannabis business permits in Madera. Next steps are the review of Phase IV applicant presentations.
Follow-up questions
- When will the trail seal coating and repairs at the Vernon McCullough River Trail be completed?
- What’s the timeline for the construction on the new Police Department parking lot?
- Why is Mayor Santos Garcia so anti-cannabis?
- Is his conflict of interest a personal or financial one and at what point does a government or city official have a duty to disclose?
The Scene
The Madera City Council meeting took place on Nov. 15, 2023, at 6 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall 205 W. 4th St. in Madera. The meeting was live-streamed at https://www.madera.gov/live/ and a recording can be viewed on the city’s YouTube Channel. Seventeen people were in attendance, with several more participating via Zoom.
Members of the public can either attend meetings in person or remotely via Zoom. Comments can be made on agenda items in real time at the meeting, online via Zoom, remotely through an electronic meeting via phone by calling (669) 900-6833 (enter ID: 837 7675 6202#), by email to citycouncilpubliccomment@madera.gov or by mailing them to 205 W. 4th St., Madera, CA 93637. Meetings are held on the first and third Wednesdays of the month.
CALL TO ORDER
Garcia called the meeting to order at 6 p.m. and gave a brief intro.
ROLL CALL
City Clerk Alicia Gonzales called roll. City Council members present:
Mayor Santos Garcia
Mayor Pro Tem Elsa Mejia, District 5
Council member Cece Gallegos, District 1
Council member Jose Rodriguez, District 2
Council member Steve Montes, District 3
Council member Artemio Villegas, District 6
Council member Anita Evans, District 4, was absent.
INVOCATION and PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Pam Grewal of the Madera Sikh Temple led the invocation; Council member Gallegos led the flag salute.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
The agenda was unanimously (6-0) approved as presented.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Items B1 – B17 were unanimously approved as presented.
PUBLIC COMMENT
The first 15 minutes of each meeting are reserved for members of the public to address the City Council on items which are within its jurisdiction but not on the agenda. Speakers are limited to three minutes each. No members of the public gave comments at the meeting.
WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
There were no written communications, Garcia said, adding that Item C-2 – a Public Hearing required to update the City Council members district boundaries for annexed property – would be heard at 7 p.m. Next he segued into the meeting’s scheduled presentations.
PRESENTATIONS
Madera City Fire and Madera City Council received recognition from Heroico Cuerpo Bomberos Rurales Del Rio Colorado A.C. – a group of volunteer firefighters serving the northern Mexican city of San Luis R.C. – for donations received from the Madera Fire Department over the years. According to its Facebook page, Heroico Cuerpo Bomberos Rurales Del Rio Colorado A.C. is an altruistic and voluntary association that was founded in January 1984.
Assistant Fire Chief Justin Macomb, Fire Captain Joe Quistorff, Firefighter Marco Meraz, Engineer Ryan Stiager and Battalion Chief Ralph Duran were at the meeting to represent the department. Macomb said the department has outfitted 50 firefighters with the department’s expired gear.
The next presentations honored two local businesses, Rocio’s Bridal & XV and Six Star Madera Tire & Services Inc., for Small Business Saturday.
INTRODUCTIONS
None.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
C-1. The council heard from Will Tackett, development director, who presented Item C-1, the mitigated negative declaration prepared for Environmental Assessment (EA) SCH 2023090606 for the Westberry Bridge Project (City Project B-02) on behalf of the Engineering Department. A mitigated negative declaration states that any revisions in the project made or agreed to by the applicant would avoid significant adverse impacts to the environment.
- There were no questions or comments from the council or public. Montes made a motion to adopt the resolution and reporting program as presented; the motion passed unanimously (6-0).
C-2. Next, Alicia Gonzalez presented Item C-2, a report from staff on the redistricting process and permissible criteria to be considered to redraw district boundaries. The council also conducted a public hearing to receive public input on district boundaries to account for property annexed to the city.
- Gonzalez explained that pursuant to Election Code Section 21601, every 10 years cities with by-district election systems are required to redraw their district boundary maps to ensure compliance with the California and federal Voting Rights Acts. This process, called redistricting, ensures that all districts have a nearly equal population. The city adopted its current district boundaries in 2022 based on 2020 census data as required by law. In such cases, the City Council may update the district boundaries to allow for the new members of the community to vote in city elections. This is such a case, Gonzalez said.
- Twelve residents will be impacted. There will be a total of four hearings and the item will be in front of council several more times before April. There was no public comment and no discussion from the council. The item was continued.
PETITIONS, BIDS, RESOLUTIONS, ORDINANCES, AND AGREEMENTS
D-1 Keith Helmuth presented Item D-1, related to the construction of the new Police Department parking lot.
- The City Council voted (6-0) to adopt a resolution approving the contract award for the new Police Department parking lot (City Project PD-01) to Terra West Construction, Inc. for $518,700. The council also approved a contingency of 10% of the contract amount and a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Class 1 Categorical Exemption (existing facilities). Class 1 consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.
- A few features of the new lot will include: pavement within the property and adjacent alley; an 8-foot slatted chain-link fence along the street perimeter; two 20-foot-wide, 8-foot-tall, slatted chain- link, sliding-access gates on the alley side (designed to match the existing gates already on the property) accessible only with a wireless key fob; a new, 5-foot-wide sidewalk on E. 7th Street with 7 foot-width of landscaping; landscaping trees and shrubs along the frontage streets to match existing species along S. C Street; and both LED lighting and security cameras installed on poles in two locations.
- There was no public comment on this item. Rodriguez had questions about the 54-inch easements and asked if they were active. Bettencourt confirmed they were. Montes moved to approve; the motion carried 6-0.
D-2
Next, Parks Recreation Community Services Director Joseph Hebert, presented Item D-2, related to upgrades and repairs at the Vernon McCullough River Trail.
- The council voted (6-0) to adopt a resolution awarding a $190,116 contract to Witbro Inc. dba Seal Rite Paving and Grading for trail seal coating and repairs. The project will include crack fill, pothole repair and a seal coat on the existing asphalt trail surface. “There’s four prongs to this whole thing,” Hebert said. “Park, river clean-up, trail receptacles and trash receptacles.”
- Montes confirmed there was no contingency on the plan. Gallegos asked about the time and date for the project completion. Hebert said it would take about 30 days.
- Montes moved to approve; motion passed (6-0).
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS
Next, Garcia segued into the administrative reports section of the agenda.
E-1. Garcia introduced Community Development Director Will Tackett to present Item E-1, a summary report focused on several items surrounding the City’s Commercial Cannabis Business Permits.
- After introducing Tackett, Mayor Garcia said he had a question on the item and recused himself from the discussion in lieu of getting into the details. He said Meijia would lead the discussion until he could get clarification on whether he can participate and that he “would rather not do that today.” City counsel confirmed with the mayor that he was “recusing himself out of an abundance of caution until he can make a determination on whether he can participate in the process” to which the mayor affirmed.
- Garcia has previously spoken out about his concerns regarding corruption with the vertically integrated licenses, as there “has always been some shape or form or corruption in Madera.” Currently, vertically integrated licenses are approved through the city manager’s office, and are not appealed by the council since the unlimited number of such licenses makes it effectively a noncompetitive application process. Garcia said this sets the stage for corruption.
- There are no permit limits for vertically integrated cannabis companies — those looking to manufacture, distribute or cultivate. Vertical integration for dispensaries means that dispensary owners are able to grow the cannabis products they sell, skipping the transportation and processing steps, thus increasing profits.
- Tackett presented the summary report on behalf of the Planning Department, which outlined recommended procedures and steps to conduct the Phase IV City Council interviews to make final determinations pertaining to the award of commercial cannabis business permits in the city. Once Garcia had left the room, the council moved quickly to approve the following:
- Special meetings of the City Council are confirmed for Dec. 9 at 9:30 a.m. for presentations and Dec. 13 for interviews and public testimony (5-0).
- All applicant presentations will be 10 minutes long (5-0).
- Applicant presentations must be sent to the council for review 72 hours in advance of the meeting start time (5-0).
- While discussing the logistics of the interview portion of the award selection process, Montes and Tackett went back and forth about the process. Montes asked if applicants can “say whatever they want in person, despite what they submit in their presentations.” Tackett confirmed that yes, they will be able to present.
- Montes asked if each applicant will face a pre-determined, consistent set of questions from the council or whether they can vary based on each applicant’s specific presentation and set of circumstances. He said that not all applicants are vying for the same locations or are the same size.
- Rodriguez agreed with Montes. He said litigation always seems to rise, and cited the applicants’ high scoring heading into the Phase IV process.
- Garcia then asked what the city’s enforcement process would look like to ensure the terms of the community benefits are honored. Tackett said those specifics would have to be worked through with staff and would likely be the recipients of the benefits coupled with in-house monitoring.
COUNCIL MEMBER REPORTS
Garcia said he was impressed with the Pomegranate Festival and mentioned council member Evans, in partnership with the NAACP, hosted a breakfast to honor veterans. Montes said he attended the Smart & Final grand opening and was very complimentary to staff.
Meijia attended the Day of the Dead celebration. She gave a special shout-out to Madera Board of Supervisor Leticia Gonzalez for championing the same cause. Gallegos also attended the Smart & Final grand opening. Rodriguez went to the Golf Course Advisory meeting and said the Sugar Pine Smokehouse restaurant is doing well. Villegas attended a veteran’s recognition event and the Smart & Final grand opening, among other events.
CLOSED SESSION
There were three items on the agenda. The council retired to closed session at 7:48 p.m. and returned at 9:54 p.m. with no reportable action.
G-3
Item G-3 on the closed session agenda is a conference with legal counsel – anticipated litigation deciding whether to initiate litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(4).
- Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(4) is related to a statement made by a person in an open and public meeting threatening litigation on a specific matter within the responsibility of the legislative body.
ADJOURNMENT. The meeting was adjourned at 9:54 p.m.
NEXT SCHEDULED MEETING
The next scheduled meeting of the Madera City Council is Dec. 6.
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