Pinole City Council meeting, 7-18-23

Tuesday, 7-18- Regular City Council meeting, 5 PM, Hybrid. You can find the agenda packet here.

There are 2 closed session items- a performance evaluation of the city manager, and a conference with labor negotiators for all represented unions. I wouldn’t expect the meeting proper to start before 6 PM.

Then there’s proclamations in honor of Fire Chief Wynkoop on his retirement, National Parks and Recreation Month, and Bastille Day, followed by a presentation (not a full on discussion) by Public Bank East Bay on their efforts to create a regional public bank.

There’s then consent calendar items- The normal minutes and warrants (amounts the city has paid for various things), second reading and adoption of an ordinance granting the city manager the authority to modify permitted hours for construction in residential as well as commercial areas, a resolution to allow hiring a climate fellow for next year (funds already allocated),

a memorandum of understanding between the city and the Pinole Police Employee’s Association for the next 2 years (4% Cost of living raises, 3% equity raises per year, long tenure shifted from 15 years to 10, bilingual pay of 3%, education pay changed to not include associate degrees, include master’s degree and have a 7.5% cap instead of current 5% cap, life insurance increased from 40k to 1x employee annual salary, and some other non-economic changes- agenda packet pages 136-7),

and a resolution to implement the set aside funds for weatherization/energy efficiency by handing those funds over to the county to administer in their existing programs.

And after that, we get to public hearings. There’s one public hearing, confirming the assessments and levy for the Pinole Valley Road Landscape and Lighting Assessment District for Fiscal Year 2023/24.

Finally, for new business we have a review of the city’s required contributions to Pension and the lifespan of the Section 115 trust fund (Fund runs out in FY 29-30, costs are going to continue to grow until FY 2034/35, peaking at 58% of city payroll or $9,074,794 that year. If we can make it to 2044-45, costs are expected to drop down to 2.37 million as a new baseline (page 266, agenda packet)). We then have a discussion of the city’s current public art and possibilities for a comprehensive Public Art Program, a discussion of the steps required to sell the Faria House, and finally a report on Racial Equity in Pinole.

You can join the meeting by zoom direct link here, entering the webinar ID 893 3500 0272 into zoom directly, or calling +1 (669) 900-6833 or +1 (253) 215-8782 or +1 (346) 248-7799, then entering the meeting ID 893 3500 0272#. Once in the meeting by phone, you can raise your hand by pressing *9, and unmute by pressing *6 once called on. You can also attend the meeting in person at Pinole City Hall, 2131 Pear St.