Mural of honor
Council approves Mobile Library Vehicle purchase
At Tuesday night’s meeting of the Porterville City Council, the Children of First Responders presented the Council with a $8,524.02 check for the creation of a memorial to honor Fire Captain Ramon Figueroa and Firefighter Patrick Jones, who lost their lives battling the blaze of the Porterville Library Fire that occurred on February 18.
Eleven individuals represented the Children of First Responders, and stood neatly in front of the Council on Tuesday night with a large check in hand. Porterville Fire Chief Dave Lapere was asked to help accept the check on Tuesday night. Mayor Martha Flores also left her seat on the dais to accept the check and personally thank each of the children for their fund raising efforts. The Council restricted the use of the funds, allowing the money to go solely towards the future use of a bench and mural in memory of Porterville’s fallen fire personnel. The group of children who raised the funds were met with a standing ovation
“I’m simply taken with each and every one of you,” said Mayor Flores. “We had a tragedy and you worked to turn that around so that members of the community could be proud.”
Once the Council moved to the consent calendar, which they approved unanimously, an item on the calendar focused on the purchase of a mobile library vehicle. The vehicle will be used as “an electric pickup essentially or a box truck and converting it into this mobile library,” explained Porterville City Manager John Lollis in an interview with ABC30. The mobile library “will be able to reach all areas of the community with the same one-on-one services offered in brick and mortar libraries,” said Lollis during that same interview. The vehicle purchase was to approved and should not exceed the price of $70,000.
The Council discussed the annual water service rate increase of 2.3 percent and approved it 4-1, with Council member
Milt Stowe standing in opposition. Public Works Director Michael Knight presented the item to the Council. Knight stated that the Council adopted the annual rate increase for a term of five years in 2016. He also stated that the city has temporarily suspended late fees for nonpayment on water services bills, and that if the suspense is sustained through the fiscal year the city is looking at a maximum estimated impact of $275,000. The suspension could also have a minor impact on future city projects, but currently has no impact on day to day operations. The 2.3 percent increase is estimated to impact each customer by an average of $1.29 monthly.
With the general election right around the corner on November 3, the Council was asked to review potential tax measures that the city can add to the ballot this coming November. The Council discussed a possible cannabis tax and an increase to the existing Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). City Attorney Julia Lew stated that the Council has previously expressed interest in implementing a cannabis tax to the local ballot, and that the average cannabis tax rates in the surrounding areas is anywhere between five and ten percent, but she has seen tax rates for cannabis reach a maximum of 15 percent. The city suggested that the Council look at four different potential areas of taxation involved in cannabis including cultivation, distribution, testing and retail. Vice Mayor Monte Reyes stated that he felt a five to seven precent tax rate for cannabis seems to be the “sweet spot.”
When it came to discussion about the TOT, Lollis stated that the city is currently below the market standard of ten to 12 percent, sitting at only eight percent. This tax is collected through hotel and motel stays in Porterville. Council member Virginia Gurrola stated that she would like to see the TOT increase to 12 percent. City staff will bring back both potential tax measures with more details pursuant to the Council’s direction at a future meeting.
Due to noticing issues for the public hearing in regards to the adoption of the budget for the 2020-2021 fiscal year, the Council will host a special meeting on June 30 to discuss adotping the budget. That meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. and can be viewed via live stream on the City of Porterville’s Youtube channel, which can be found at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5KUHSRNMNL9NWHJVTNJVVA