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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021_03_24 - SpecialMINUTES Special meeting of the City Council of the City of Redlands held on March 24, 2021 at 5 00 P M Present Staff Paul Banch, Mayor Eddie Tejeda, Mayor Pro Tempore Paul Foster, Council Member Denise Davis, Council Member Jenna Guzman -Lowery, Council Member Charles M Duggan, Jr , City Manager, Dan McHugh, City Attorney, Jeanne Donaldson, City Clerk, Carl Baker, Public Information Officer, Danielle Garcia, Management Services/Finance Director, Jim Topoleski, Fire Chief, Janice McConnell, Assistant City Manager This was conducted as a virtual meeting with all Council Members and staff participating remotely In compliance with public health recommendations to limit public gatherings during the Covid-19 pandemic and acting as the City of Redlands Emergency Services Director, City Manager Charles M Duggan Jr , directed meetings of the City Council/Successor Agency of the former Redevelopment Agency of the City of Redlands be closed to the public until further notice or until the current local State of Emergency has been lifted The City Council will continue to meet to conduct essential business Public comments, up to 250 words and received by 5 00 P M the day before the meeting, were read aloud by the City Clerk Mayor Banch called the meeting to order at 5 00 P M and a quorum was established PUBLIC COMMENT All public comments received by 5 00 P M the day before the meeting were read into the public record at the meeting Reopen Council Meetings & Measure G - Joshua Hall demanded the City reopen Council meetings to the public, claiming the closure has been under the guise of protecting the publics' health and safety, but he wondered who was really being protected, since he said COVID-19 had a fatality rate of less than 1% He worried the Council was not honoring the voters' defeat of Measure G, and instead was promoting the construction of what he called unrestricted stack and pack housing Proposed Legislation for Military - Dennis Bell questioned the proposed legislation from Congressman Aguilar to ban white supremacists from the military He suggested the country needed to reinstate the military draft for both men and women, and it should uphold the promise to take care of veterans STRATEGIC PLAN WORKSHOP - FIRE DEPARTMENT Fire Chief Topoleski provided background and an overview of the Fire Department's Strategic Plan and future fiscal year goals for the penod beginning July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2025 He explained best practices, among fire services, is the need to maintain an up-to-date Strategic Plan Citygate completed an Assessment/Deployment Study of the Department which was presented to Council in September 2020 This was the basis for the Strategic Plan development which addresses the findings and recommendations made in the Standards of Coverage analysis to ensure the success and sustainabihty of the Department for years to come With the safety of the firefighters and citizens always at the forefront, he pointed out that each community has the level of fire services they choose to purchase and can afford because there are no federal Special CC_March 24, 2021 Page 1 or state mandates or regulations The guiding philosophy directing the Department is "Community + Department = A Safer Redlands" The findings included Call processing time and turnout times need to be improved, Service demand is increasing approximately three percent annually, and Emergency Management Services (EMS) demand is increasing nearly five percent annually, Performance for first -unit calls is 34% slower than 7 30-minute recommended best practice goal, Current fire station locations provide 4 00-minute first -due travel time coverage to only 33 percent of City road miles, and One third to one half of staffed response resources committed simultaneously First responders have a very narrow window, four to six minutes, to make a difference before they may lose a patient or a fire destroys, so time matters The strategy moving forward identified five initiatives that the Department will pursue over the next five years through 2025 Priority objectives for FY 2021-22 were to reduce response times and improve internal and external customer support A chart was presented graphing current performance times, showing there has been improvement but there remains work to do In order to address the travel time deficiencies, he reviewed the Department's conceptual plans to relocate Fire Station 264 and proposal to add a new Fire Station 265 The relocation area selected for Station 264 would maximize service inefficiencies while taking advantage of currently owned city property at the Hentage Park area, and it would provide improved service delivery to areas currently being underserved A one -acre parcel of City owned land near Dearborn and Lugonia, was suggested for the location of Station 265 Council Members provided their input and perspectives of the Plan and commended Chief Topoleski and his staff for the thorough and comprehensive presentation Council Member Foster reminded everyone the purpose and intent behind Measure T was to establish a revenue stream to supplement funding for public safety matters and facilities This was one of the publics' top concerns Council Member Davis inquired whether any portion of the $13 4 million from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 distribution could be a source of funding City Manager Duggan explained that once the federal guidelines are released, the discussion of where to allocate resources will be brought to Council for their consideration Mayor Pro Tem Tejeda emphasized the goal was to move stations to reduce time, protect everyone and lower healthcare costs Council Member Guzman -Lowery was pleased the Plan included the human factor, and she echoed the positive sentiments of her colleagues Mayor Banch was eager to begin addressing the need for new fire stations City Manager Duggan added the City will formulate a basis of moving forward that makes sense within the budget and will follow a deliberate process to formulate budget recommendations He pointed out Council just committed to $3 million for new fire engines and equipment As public comment, Dennis Bell thought the Citygate Report was filled with statistical analysis and cumbersome to digest He was concerned the Department Plan would be very expensive and asked what the total estimated cost of the entire plan would be He suggested locations for future fire stations, offering the pros and cons of each, and he wondered about fire services for the downtown transit villages ADJOURNMENT There being no further action required the special meeting adjourned at 5 54 P M Special CC_March 24, 2021 Page 2