City officials in San Juan Bautista Tuesday had a busy day.
At city hall, the council declared May “Water Awareness Month,” approved emergency rules in response to a statewide drought, appointed a planning commissioner and youth commission, reappointed the volunteer fire department’s chief, considered pedestrian safety, and furthered discussion on public finance.
The official approvals of “Water Awareness Month” and emergency regulations immediately call for water conservation throughout the community. They follow similar actions by the City of Hollister, which moved Monday to ensure compliance with unprecedented calls by Gov. Jerry Brown and the State Water Resources Control Board: Throughout California, local governments and regional water agencies aim to reduce the consumption of water by 20 percent or more.
“We put together an ordinance that will adopt these new regulations and allow the city to enforce violations,” said City Planner Matt Orbach. “As of right now, our water consumption is at about 21.49 percent below where it was in 2013.”
Though City Attorney Deborah Mall identified a “strict array of what’s not allowed,” she noted that new rules in other cities provide stricter restrictions than those proposed and subsequently passed April 20 in San Juan Bautista. The new regulation there bans the use of potable water (1) on outdoor landscapes during and within 48 hours after measurable rainfall, (2) in a fountain or other water decoration without re-circulation, (3) by a hose with no shut-off nozzle, (4) on a driveway or sidewalk, (5) in a manner causing significant runoff, (6) in any voluntary delivery by every applicable business, and (7) in commercial laundry without the option of exclusion. The new rules in San Juan Bautista also limit landscape irrigation to before 8 a.m. and after 5 p.m. two days a week.
Also in public session Tuesday, council members reappointed Volunteer Fire Department Chief John Fox, appointed Planning Commissioner Eric Gredassoff and created a youth commission. While some of them take home no paycheck, each individual is officially expected to help the local government efficiently serve its community.
The youth commission, whose members include as many as 11 local kids, plans to accept applications for current openings as soon as September. In Hollister Monday, a number of teenagers attended the city council’s meeting, during which they called for a youth commission.
The City of San Juan Bautista has made significant progress in recent months in the municipality’s structural development. In March, according to a previous report by BenitoLink, local officials approved establishing the San Juan Bautista Public Financing Authority — a governing board of an “enhanced infrastructure financing district,” according to state law. The city’s new lending arm is now tasked with the management of governmental capital for public facilities and projects, and subjected to the Brown Act, Political Reform Act and California Public Records Act.
Also, the public financing authority provides a turn-key tool for the 146-year-old city, whose council decided Monday to continue considering options for potential refinance of a previous offering of certificates of participation of about $11 million.
City Manager Roger Grimsley confirmed that the recent consideration of options related to such debt, a matter now expected on the agenda for next month, provides an opportunity for San Juan Bautista to capitalize on low interest before the Federal Reserve’s forthcoming rate-hike, which remains inevitable.
“When people consider buying bonds, they look at you’re ability to pay,” said Grimsley, who noted in public session that the local government since 2008 met its obligations. “We have a good track record with a good portfolio of revenues.”
A proactive restructuring of debt derived from COPs, according to the local government, could help the city reduce its bills by as much as $125,000.
This story received an update at 2:36 p.m. to provide more detail on the emergency water regulations in San Juan Bautista.