[0:04] >> Okay.
[0:05] It's time.
[0:07] Madam Clerk, roll call, please.
[0:21] [Roll call]
[0:24] >> Good morning, welcome to The Tuesday, August 25th,
[0:31] 2026 meeting of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.
[0:36] We're going to begin today with an invocation and a flag salute.
[0:39] The invocation will be led by district five.
[0:41] After the invocation please remain
[0:43] standing for the flag salute.
[0:45] >> Thank you.
[0:46] Here with us today is Pastor Gilbert Montelongo.
[0:50] He's a seasoned faith leader and community builder
[0:55] based in Sanger, California.
[0:57] He serves as senior pastor of tabernacle of praise Christian
[1:05] Center with over 30 years of pastoral experience, 27
[1:09] as a lead Pastor.
[1:11] Pastor Montelongo has been married to his wife Lydia
[1:15] for 47 years, and they have three children.
[1:18] All three children have full time jobs
[1:20] and serve under their father's ministry
[1:23] and advocate for the Central Valley.
[1:24] Pastor Montelongo contributes to a community to community
[1:27] initiatives through the Sanger Fresno Community Task Force
[1:30] and participates in the Sanger Pastor's Fellowship Committee,
[1:33] creating an opportunity for grassroots engagement
[1:35] on local regional and national issues.
[1:38] The floor is yours.
[1:40] >> Thank you.
[1:41] God bless each and every one of you.
[1:43] Thank you for the invite.
[1:44] It is an honor to pray this morning for you
[1:46] and everyone that is present.
[1:47] Let's pray.
[1:49] Heavenly father we thank you this beautiful morning.
[1:52] We thank you for this great county of Fresno
[1:54] and the great supervisors at your place
[1:58] and the seats of government the governance of this great county.
[2:03] For their service their hard work and their efforts,
[2:07] and their sacrifice and the welfare
[2:09] and the care of the people of Fresno County.
[2:11] We know the work is much.
[2:12] The task is great.
[2:14] We know that in your word, you said that much
[2:18] is given much is required.
[2:19] You've given them all that they need.
[2:24] If their hearts and mind are open to your spirit,
[2:28] then we believe that you provide wisdom divine
[2:35] wisdom and intellect to govern according to your word.
[2:40] We believe that you're with them at all times.
[2:43] If they believe this and stand upon it.
[2:46] To help guide them and direct them,
[2:48] and trusting you that they can build a better Fresno County.
[2:53] We believe this and we pray for those that are present here
[2:55] today.
[2:56] Those that have just come to be informed,
[2:58] and those that are here to present their concerns.
[3:00] We pray that everything could be addressed in reverence to you
[3:02] and also respect to the Board of Supervisors.
[3:04] We know that life is about agreeing and disagreeing,
[3:07] but we know that we can agree and come to a common ground
[3:12] that we want Fresno County to be better, to be stronger
[3:15] and to be inviting and welcoming.
[3:17] That others would want to come to this county, and be blessed.
[3:22] Because the people that lead us, know your heart beat.
[3:25] We pray for them, we pray for their families as well.
[3:28] We pray for divine protection because we live in the world
[3:31] today that is cynical and evil.
[3:34] Lord God, And rebellious towards authority.
[3:39] And so we as spiritual leaders and others
[3:41] join together and pray for them as your word
[3:44] says to pray for them and those in authority.
[3:47] The work is great.
[3:49] We are not in their shoes.
[3:50] We know that even our personal responsibilities at work
[3:52] and elsewhere and family are much.
[3:56] We can imagine their duties and their responsibility.
[4:00] Lord, we want to thank you this morning.
[4:02] We pray for divine protection.
[4:04] We pray for the children their grandchildren.
[4:06] We pray that you would protect them.
[4:09] That the angel of the Lord would encamp around them.
[4:12] Lord Jesus, and we thank you this very moment
[4:16] for this opportunity this beautiful morning.
[4:19] And more importantly, your presence Lord Jesus,
[4:22] and we pray this in the wonderful name of our Lord Jesus
[4:27] Christ.
[4:27] Amen.
[4:30] >> Please salute.
[4:37] >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States
[4:40] of America and to the Republic for which it stands,
[4:40] one nation under God, indivisible,
[4:40] with liberty and justice for all.
[4:43] >> God bless you.
[4:46] >> Thank you very much for those wonderful words.
[4:50] >> Mr Chairman, members of the board and members
[4:54] of the audience, was originally published stating that Chavez
[4:59] would be teleconferencing into the meeting from a location
[5:03] in Whittier.
[5:04] He was able to Percent in person today.
[5:14] >> Agendas are on the back table for anyone wanting to follow.
[5:18] Is there a motion and a second to approve the agenda?
[5:22] All those in favor, say aye.
[5:27] Passes unanimously.
[5:30] >> We now move to item number two.
[5:31] Approve consent agenda items number 23 to 44.
[5:39] >> These matters are approved by a single vote.
[5:41] Would any board members like an item removed
[5:43] from consent for discussion?
[5:44] Seeing none.
[5:45] Would any members of the public like
[5:47] An item removed from consent?
[5:54] Is there a motion in a second to approve the rest of the consent?
[5:57] All those in favor, say aye.
[6:03] Approved >> Now move to item number three.
[6:08] Presentation of retirement plan to Laura J Lambright,
[6:11] Department of Behavioral Health, 17 years of service.
[6:15] >> And Behavioral Health is here to present.
[6:18] Come on up.
[6:26] >> Good morning.
[6:27] On behalf of director Holt, she's
[6:34] unable to attend today my name is
[6:36] Emma Rasmussen, deputy director for the Department of Behavioral
[6:39] Health.
[6:39] We are excited to be here to honor
[6:42] a longtime employee of the department in the capacity
[6:44] of a peer support.
[6:45] Peer support does invaluable work for our community.
[6:49] To tell you a little bit more about Laura
[6:53] and the work that she's done these past many years,
[6:56] I want to invite her last supervisor, Jessica Acosta,
[7:02] to tell us a little bit more.
[7:05] >> Thank you and good morning.
[7:07] Laura worked for Fresno County Department of Behavioral Health
[7:10] for over 17 years.
[7:12] As a peer support specialist, peer support specialists
[7:18] are integral members providing support
[7:20] for those who continue to struggle
[7:22] with their mental health.
[7:23] They offer hope and assistance with goals
[7:25] when many may not see this as a possibility.
[7:28] A peer support specialist lived experience
[7:32] for those we serve the perspective that
[7:34] through empowerment, healing and self-advocacy are possible.
[7:39] Lauren embodies all of that.
[7:44] She enthusiastically participated
[7:45] in required trainings, departmental or team activities,
[7:50] and facilitated peer to peer groups offering support
[7:53] to our person served.
[7:55] Her peers and colleagues admire her diligence.
[7:58] Self-advocacy.
[8:00] Dependability, compassion courage, friendliness
[8:09] and willingness to collaborate with others.
[8:11] I was honored to have been Laura's supervisor
[8:12] for the last one and a half years
[8:14] with the Department of Behavioral Health.
[8:16] During this time, she demonstrated a great work ethic
[8:19] and was always willing to help out not only
[8:22] her peers when asked to assist when
[8:27] offering support to our person, but also without hesitation
[8:30] offered to support her support to individuals struggling while
[8:34] under conservatorship.
[8:35] She facilitated two separate groups.
[8:39] One of them on crestwood, the bridge program and others
[8:47] at Valley Comfort, the community based board and care facility.
[8:51] She assisted individuals in getting
[8:53] acclimated to being on conservatorship
[8:55] as well as offer them independent living and coping
[8:58] skills with the goal of successfully being dismissed
[9:00] from conservatorship.
[9:01] Throughout her career and Fresno County,
[9:04] Lauren exemplified what a caring and compassionate a person
[9:08] can be while guiding our vulnerable individuals
[9:10] in achieving mental health wellness.
[9:11] It is my pleasure to introduce Laura Lambright.
[9:21] >> I thank Fresno County for the opportunity gave me for the past
[9:30] 17 years as a peer support specialist.
[9:33] It was fulfilling, enriching and it helped me grow.
[9:37] Thank you.
[9:44] >> That's all right.
[9:45] Thank you very much.
[9:46] Any comments from the board?
[9:48] Any comments from the public?
[9:52] [Applause] That's a good comment.
[9:54] Why don't you come on up?
[9:56] We'll have a picture with the board.
[10:43] Thank you.
[10:44] [Applause]
[10:49] >> We now move to item number four.
[10:58] Conduct first hearing on an Ordinance adding Chapter 10.33
[11:01] to Title 10 of the Fresno Ordinance Code,
[11:01] relating to Real Property Fraud Prevention Notices;
[11:01] waive reading of Ordinance in its entirety;
[11:01] and set the second hearing for September 8, 2026;
[11:01] designate Counsel to prepare a fair and adequate summary
[11:01] of the proposed Ordinance; and direct the of the Board to post
[11:01] and publish the required summary in accordance with Government
[11:03] section 25124(b)(1)
[11:12] .
[11:13] >> I will turn this over to Supervisor Mendez.
[11:17] >> Good morning Mr. Chairman and board members.
[11:21] It's a good day to be alive.
[11:26] Mr. Chairman, I respectfully request your approval
[11:29] of an ordinance that will give property
[11:31] owners a new voluntary tool to help prevent a real estate
[11:34] fraud.
[11:35] The current property owners protection
[11:38] that we're just Getting is a POPA.
[11:49] An alert over 4500 people have already signed.
[11:56] They gave us their email, anything
[11:57] that happens on the property.
[11:59] They get an automatic email.
[12:00] The current Property owners -- it takes about $143,000 in legal
[12:09] fees to undo one of those illegally placed mortgage
[12:12] on your property.
[12:14] If the mortgage sales in the secondary market, forget it.
[12:20] So this ordinance that you're about to approve
[12:23] takes the next step by creating a low cost prevention tool.
[12:29] It puts on notice the title companies, escrow holders,
[12:33] Lenders and other parties before fraud can take place.
[12:37] It does not stop legitimate sales or loans.
[12:41] It provides an added type of protection against fraud
[12:44] and most importantly, it helps protect the property
[12:48] rights of our residents.
[12:49] For these reasons, I respectfully
[12:52] ask that you approve this ordinance.
[12:55] And I'm open for questions.
[13:02] >> Thank you.
[13:04] Supervisors?
[13:06] >> This is like you have different services, LifeLock.
[13:11] This is going beyond that and actually
[13:12] have the county actually put something on your deed
[13:15] where you can voluntarily take it off.
[13:19] If you sell the property, then you sign it off.
[13:24] You will know immediately if somebody
[13:27] is trying to do something on your property.
[13:33] >> This will be the first in the state of California.
[13:36] I would like to turn this presentation over
[13:39] to our consultant, David Fleck, Esquire of mannequin.
[13:44] He helped us draft the proposed notice of restriction to prevent
[13:46] fraud and identity theft.
[13:48] Here he is.
[13:51] Mr. Fleck. >> This guy can definitely explain it better.
[13:58] >> Thank you, Mr. Diktose.
[14:07] Thank you.
[14:10] Good morning, chairman, supervisors.
[14:17] Why me?
[14:18] Why am I here?
[14:19] I didn't go to law school to become an expert on deed fraud.
[14:22] But as with everybody, your career
[14:24] takes twists and turns you don't expect.
[14:26] I remember the day I was handed my first deed fraud
[14:29] case when I was a deputy district
[14:31] attorney in L.A. County.
[14:32] It was in 2003.
[14:33] And by 2008, I was standing in front of the state Assembly
[14:37] committee, moving forward some legislation
[14:39] to help prevent fraud.
[14:41] I have spent my career focused on this issue.
[14:48] I probably have represented more victims of fraud
[14:51] than any attorney in the country.
[14:52] There's no way to verify that.
[14:54] I pretty much know everybody involved.
[14:56] I definitely have spent more years
[14:58] thinking about this problem than anybody out there.
[15:01] That's why I'm here today to talk.
[15:03] Can we move to the next slide?
[15:05] What is fraud?
[15:06] Deed fraud is identity theft.
[15:09] It's a certain kind of identity theft.
[15:11] Identity theft is impersonating somebody else
[15:13] to get something you're not entitled to.
[15:15] And in this case, people are trying to steal money
[15:19] using the real estate system.
[15:20] Impersonate somebody else, homeowner, property owner.
[15:25] They might impersonate a notary.
[15:28] They get control of that property with a forged deed.
[15:36] And with that they may take out a mortgage against the property.
[15:40] Disappear into the wind.
[15:41] They might sell the property to an unsuspecting third party.
[15:44] Some of them will even put a tenant in
[15:45] and collect the rent until somebody figures
[15:47] out what's going on.
[15:48] I know one character in the Antelope
[15:50] Valley, who has been doing that for at least eight years.
[15:52] Just collecting the rent on five properties
[15:54] that were taken through fraud.
[15:56] That's what Deed fraud is.
[16:05] Next slide.
[16:06] A typical victims are properties owners
[16:09] of vacant properties, owners of second homes
[16:14] where nobody's paying attention on a day to day,
[16:16] nobody's watching the property on a regular basis.
[16:19] And elderly folks.
[16:21] Some elderly folks, not everybody, but life
[16:27] gets a little bit hectic and hard for them to manage,
[16:29] and so they're easy to take advantage in some cases.
[16:32] The targets are properties that are easy to do this.
[16:37] That's the key.
[16:38] They want to focus on a property where they
[16:40] can get in and get out quickly.
[16:41] Typically there's a two week escrow.
[16:44] Get in and get out, and move on.
[16:47] That's the trick they're looking for.
[16:57] This proposal, The real property fraud prevention notice.
[17:01] It is a notice that a property owner can record.
[17:06] It would be if they can pass it.
[17:11] They record that request that certain things be done.
[17:14] Before the property is sold, mortgaged
[17:20] or otherwise encumbered, they are requesting
[17:23] that certain things be done.
[17:25] It's not an order.
[17:26] It's not a mandate.
[17:28] They're requesting that their identity be validated
[17:30] and verified by a notary who has been vetted by a qualified title
[17:36] company, and a qualified title company as defined
[17:38] in the ordinance just as the title company that's
[17:41] authorized to do business in California, basically.
[17:47] And a thumbprint be taken in the Notary Journal.
[17:52] The second thing that it requests
[17:53] is that any proceeds that come out of a transaction,
[17:55] whether it's a mortgage or a sale,
[17:58] that it be disbursed only through an account
[18:01] independently verified by that qualified title company.
[18:05] That all the documents are handled by the qualified title
[18:11] company.
[18:12] And that once again, the second verification
[18:15] is made before closing using the information that that person
[18:20] or homeowner has provided previously to verify
[18:23] they are who they are.
[18:27] How does that work?
[18:29] In practice, what they would do as a homeowner would say,
[18:33] I'm worried about fraud.
[18:35] They would select a title company or a lawyer
[18:37] or some other trusted person to deposit their contact
[18:42] information.
[18:44] They would fill out this form and on it, they only
[18:46] put under the name of the company or lawyer or person
[18:49] or entity that's holding their contact information.
[18:51] That's the contact information.
[18:53] A separate part of anything that happens in the transaction.
[18:56] Because of the transaction documents are fraudulent,
[18:58] then the contact information is fraudulent.
[19:01] This is putting their contact information
[19:03] with a trusted third party that has to be verified
[19:08] during the transaction.
[19:13] So we call it a tripwire.
[19:17] In this situation, what would happen
[19:20] is before a fraudster could do-- recorded fraudulent deed,
[19:25] the qualified title company would then
[19:28] have to verify the identity.
[19:29] Contact the true owner through that third person
[19:33] to verify that this is something that they want to do.
[19:38] Go ahead, next slide.
[19:41] It says very specifically in the proposed ordinance
[19:44] and in the notice itself, this is not
[19:48] a lien, not an encumbrance.
[19:51] Not any cloud entitled, it's not a restraint on alienation.
[19:59] It is a request.
[20:01] It's a request by the true owner to follow
[20:03] these steps if something's going to happen
[20:05] to the title of that house.
[20:08] It doesn't add any new cost other
[20:10] than the standard recording costs authorized by law.
[20:17] Let me just say before I wrap up,
[20:21] because I'm interested in deed fraud.
[20:22] I've been living for over 20 years.
[20:25] I pay attention to what's going on around the country.
[20:28] What types of ordinances and laws
[20:30] are being implemented in the country.
[20:32] And most of them are window dressing.
[20:35] Most of them are not that effective.
[20:37] And when I first heard about this, I thought,
[20:40] is this another one of those things
[20:42] that's just window dressing?
[20:43] But it is definitely not.
[20:45] This adds another layer of protection,
[20:50] because these fraudsters are looking for the easy job.
[20:53] This adds a layer of protection that makes
[20:56] it very difficult to overcome.
[21:00] This will protect elderly homeowners from predators.
[21:02] It will protect owners of vacant properties
[21:06] from overseas fraudsters.
[21:08] It will protect title insurance companies
[21:12] from fraud based claims.
[21:14] I think that this particular notice will
[21:18] be adopted across the country.
[21:21] It's powerful.
[21:22] It's a way for homeowners and property owners
[21:25] to inoculate themselves against deed fraud.
[21:29] Thank >> Any comments or questions?
[21:34] >> I think people need to realize that your property
[21:39] and what's recorded is a public document.
[21:42] Anybody can go to the recorder's office
[21:47] and look it up and see exactly what the encumbrances are on it.
[21:56] And like he's pointing out, this makes
[21:58] it harder because when they do a preliminary title report,
[22:01] it'll come up that this is on its.
[22:03] So they know it's not going to be that easy to just start
[22:06] filing frauds on papers to put a mortgage on it
[22:16] or try to steal it.
[22:22] >> Exactly.
[22:22] >> It's pretty simple.
[22:23] And I don't know why other counties haven't done this.
[22:26] We talked about it, but I think everybody's waiting for somebody
[22:29] to jump first.
[22:31] And I think we need to do this.
[22:35] I think there will be other counties
[22:36] that once they see how we did it, will copy how we did it.
[22:41] And like he's talking about, it's basically against people
[22:48] that their mortgage is paid off, or they
[22:51] have very little mortgage.
[22:52] They have a second house.
[22:54] Could be up at Shaver or Huntington.
[22:58] And they'll do a title report, and find that there's
[23:05] no encumbrance against it.
[23:06] And if you don't have some kind of protection,
[23:11] and they can go through the process of actually borrowing
[23:14] money against it.
[23:18] >> It's the easiest way for a fraudster to steal hundreds
[23:21] of thousands of dollars.
[23:22] >> And this is a volunteer program.
[23:30] >> Voluntary.
[23:33] >> Any questions?
[23:33] Comments or questions from the public?
[23:37] I appreciate you bringing this forward.
[23:39] And I appreciate you being here today.
[23:47] Is there a motion and a second?
[23:49] All those in favor, say aye.
[23:55] >> We now move to item number five.
[24:03] Receive presentation from AP Triton regarding the findings
[24:05] and recommendations of its Community Risk Assessment
[24:05] and Standards of Cover Deployment
[24:05] Analysis for the Fresno County Fire Protection District
[24:08] .
[24:09] >> Good morning.
[24:10] I'll say a few introductory comments
[24:12] before we begin this presentation.
[24:13] I remember a number of years ago when I was still
[24:17] fairly new in this role, that I had
[24:20] a conversation with our Fresno County Fire Chief Dustin Hill
[24:23] who is in the audience.
[24:25] Who is also fairly new in his role.
[24:27] And he asked me a question.
[24:29] The question was, what level of fire protection
[24:31] do we want to see in Fresno County?
[24:34] And that is a question that every resident in our community
[24:38] who is threatened by wildfire in any way
[24:41] would have an easy answer to when we're
[24:43] looking at our community and how fire protection works,
[24:48] we realize we need to look at this question on a broader
[24:50] scale.
[24:51] It asks, is it positioned, not just now but into the future
[25:02] to serve as?
[25:03] And I think as you read this report,
[25:05] you'll say the answer is both encouraging
[25:07] with the partnerships, but there's also some challenges
[25:11] and appreciate what has been put into this report.
[25:14] Before we go forward, I will turn it over
[25:17] to Amy Rice, who is the analyst in our office
[25:20] who worked with a team on this project and go from there.
[25:28] >> Thank you.
[25:30] Chairman, board members, Amy rice
[25:32] with the administrative office.
[25:33] I am joined today by Mike Despain, CEO of AP Triton, who
[25:46] conducted the standards of cover and community risk assessment
[25:49] for the Fire Protection District.
[25:50] I want to make a note that Kevin Taylor was the original project
[25:53] manager who was supposed to be present today,
[25:55] but due to some travel issues, he wasn't able to make it.
[26:00] Mr. Despain mentioned that there are
[26:02] a lot of details in that almost 300 page report that you have.
[26:06] But Mr. Despain is just going to cover the findings
[26:08] and recommendations today.
[26:09] And following the presentation will
[26:11] be available for any questions you may have.
[26:14] >> Thank you for the opportunity to present today.
[26:16] Kevin couldn't make it, you get me and I live down the street.
[26:20] It's a pretty easy travel.
[26:22] My name is Mike Despain with AP Trident.
[26:25] About 40 years in the fire service.
[26:28] Fire Chief and Fire officer for many agencies in California,
[26:31] Washington and Nebraska, but most notably
[26:34] City of Fresno and City of Clovis.
[26:36] This is my backyard.
[26:37] I was watching this report throughout as it went through.
[26:40] I'm pleased to be able to present this today.
[26:42] I'm going to rush through it pretty quick,
[26:44] but we can always stop with questions if we need.
[26:47] I have to start off with a special thanks
[26:50] to Amy Ryles, your principal administrative analyst
[26:53] from the CEO's office.
[26:54] Chief Dustin Hill and Deputy Fire Chief Ryan
[26:59] Michaels for their efforts.
[27:00] If we don't have good partnership,
[27:02] it's hard to get good data and collection together
[27:04] for this study.
[27:05] We'll jump into it.
[27:06] AP Triton was commissioned to conduct this community risk
[27:10] assessment standard of cover and deployment analysis
[27:13] for Fresno County Fire Protection District.
[27:16] In addition to your normal CRA SoC that we would do,
[27:21] they also asked for operational performance
[27:23] and an independent look at the independent volunteer fire
[27:27] system, county contracts and alternative fire service
[27:30] delivery models.
[27:31] The purpose of this study is to evaluate current system
[27:34] performance, identify operational and organizational
[27:38] challenges.
[27:39] Assess community risk and provide
[27:41] strategic recommendations for moving forward.
[27:43] Fresno County is one of the more complex ,
[27:50] operationally one of the more complex organizations
[27:53] in California.
[27:54] Is probably the second most complex I've seen in my years.
[27:57] The county includes such diverse areas such as urban fringe
[28:00] areas, rural agricultural communities, mountain
[28:04] communities, remote region, limited infrastructure,
[28:08] significant wildland and this is all stuff
[28:10] that you know as supervisors.
[28:11] That service is delivered through a complex set
[28:15] of whereas most complex counties might
[28:17] have a simplified system here.
[28:19] You have this plethora of agencies including
[28:22] the combination of Fresno County Fire Protection District
[28:24] and volunteer fire departments and county contracts
[28:28] and automatic aid systems pure regional and rural partnerships
[28:33] in all of this together is how you formed the organization so
[28:38] far.
[28:40] So as we go into our recommendations
[28:46] here, let me make sure got right one here.
[28:51] As we look at the recommended response and standards,
[28:56] this one has to do with just as Mr. Merlin had said,
[29:02] everybody asks what level of service you want,
[29:04] and we would say the fire service is like a menu.
[29:07] It depends on what the community wants.
[29:09] Some people want higher level service,
[29:11] and everybody wants the highest level.
[29:15] You have to pay for it.
[29:16] The goal is to get the best service
[29:18] possible for the community with the money that's available.
[29:21] Part of that is to look at the community's desired
[29:24] level of service.
[29:27] And that's a policy decision here
[29:28] even though we're going to cite some national standards,
[29:34] it's a local decision on what that service level looks like.
[29:37] And that has to do with local expectations, risk tolerance,
[29:43] available financial resources and local community conditions.
[29:47] Part of the process that we look at
[29:49] is some national standards and recommendations to look at.
[29:53] The requirement is not necessarily meet them.
[29:56] Is to use them as the North Star, in the direction.
[30:01] Performance goals, these are broken down into what we think
[30:04] is initial and short term, mid term or longer term.
[30:08] One of the first recommendations we have
[30:11] is to establish some benchmark performance standards.
[30:15] These are just examples of how we
[30:18] would break that different elements of that,
[30:23] because the reality is the only time that matters is you
[30:26] notice an emergency, you dial number one,
[30:28] and when somebody shows up to say, I'm here to help.
[30:32] The community cares about that, we
[30:34] have to break it up into smaller segments
[30:35] to see where we can put efforts to make improvements.
[30:38] These are just examples that we would look at.
[30:40] And these are not necessarily benchmarks you
[30:43] have to keep forever.
[30:44] They might change over time.
[30:45] A good example of a turnout time.
[30:49] That has a lot to do with station design
[30:53] and how it's configured.
[30:55] How far away you are from the living quarters in the fire
[31:03] apparatus.
[31:04] New stations remodels can change that and improve that over time,
[31:06] so those numbers can get improved over time.
[31:09] But we have to have a baseline to start measuring.
[31:12] Our recommended short term strategies.
[31:14] There's a couple here.
[31:15] One is including the fire chief and the county executive team,
[31:19] Fresno County should consider establishing a county fire
[31:22] emergency services chief's position
[31:23] that reports to the County Administrator office.
[31:26] This position would provide central executive oversight
[31:30] for county wide fire protection emergency medical service
[31:33] coordination, emergency management, disaster
[31:36] preparedness, volunteer fire system support, interagency
[31:42] coordination, this role would function as a senior level
[31:46] advisor to the county leadership while improving alignment
[31:48] between the emergency service operations, county priorities
[31:51] and budget development, long term risk reduction strategies.
[31:56] The position would not replace existing operational leadership
[31:59] within Fresno County Fire Protection,
[32:02] or independent agencies that would
[32:06] serve as coordinator authority focus on county wide policy,
[32:10] emergency management integration, and system
[32:13] wide performance improvement.
[32:16] Responsibilities could include oversight
[32:21] of emergency preparedness initiatives,
[32:24] coordinating with volunteers, special district fire agencies,
[32:29] grant administration standards development,
[32:31] and the list goes on.
[32:32] The outcome of that would be improved coordination,
[32:34] especially with your volunteer fire
[32:37] departments, especially districts in your partner
[32:40] agencies.
[32:40] Enhanced oversight of emergency management,
[32:43] disaster planning and -- improve the opportunity for economic
[32:56] grants.
[32:59] The cost of this is not.
[33:01] The system is already in place.
[33:03] It's more of a recommendation that
[33:05] formalizes the position within your structure for reporting.
[33:07] No cost for that one.
[33:08] Number two is considered the development
[33:09] of a consolidated fire emergency services agreement
[33:13] under centralized executive leadership.
[33:16] Right now you have multiple agreements.
[33:18] Sometimes they can get a little bit in conflict
[33:20] or there's some confusion.
[33:22] They have different timing on when they expire
[33:24] and when they need to be renegotiated.
[33:26] And by having a centralized coordinated agreement,
[33:30] then all of the items can be discussed at once in continuity
[33:35] with the other agreements that may be in conflict.
[33:38] And definitely would speed up things
[33:41] in terms of time and limit some liability.
[33:45] It would also improve things like community risk reduction,
[33:49] allow for better prevention, public education requirements,
[33:56] staffing expectations, data reporting, performance
[33:59] measurement, capital planning such as apparatus and facility
[34:01] maintenance.
[34:02] The primary cost of this would just
[34:05] be staff time associated with policy development
[34:07] and stakeholder coordination, legal review and some training
[34:12] implementation.
[34:15] And three is developed countywide volunteer fire
[34:19] service standards and performance guidelines.
[34:21] So Fresno County in coordination with Fresno County Fire
[34:24] Protection District and volunteer agency
[34:26] should develop a standardized emergency
[34:28] County wide operational guidelines, establishing
[34:30] minimum expectations for training, incident command
[34:33] documentation, apparatus readiness, reporting mutual aid
[34:39] participation and firefighter safety practices
[34:41] the standards should be scalable to the capabilities
[34:43] while improving system wide consistency and operability.
[34:50] This should establish a common operational expectation
[34:52] that would improve coordination between all the agencies
[34:55] enhanced firefighter safety, reduce variability and service
[34:58] delivery, and strengthen accountability
[35:00] across that volunteer system.
[35:03] The primary cost of this would be staff time associated
[35:07] with policy developments, stakeholder coordination,
[35:13] legal review, training and implementation.
[35:15] There may be minor ongoing costs depending on tracking and policy
[35:19] updates.
[35:19] We would say that if you look at instances of firefighter injury
[35:23] and death, the vast majority of them
[35:26] are within the volunteer community.
[35:27] So we have a little bit of an obligation
[35:29] to make sure that we're keeping an eye on that.
[35:31] Next recommendation is expand volunteer recruitment
[35:35] and retention programs.
[35:37] There's a number of ways that that can be done.
[35:40] There's a number of practices that the agency could look at.
[35:44] So we are not recommending any particular one, but as
[35:47] an example the program could evaluate incentives
[35:49] such as stipends, training reimbursement, and resistance.
[35:53] Assistance tax incentives.
[35:55] Flexibility in the training delivery models
[35:58] peer housing partnerships and expanding outreach campaigns.
[36:02] And volunteers is a dying breed.
[36:06] It's a little harder to recruit and retain.
[36:10] Established next recommendation to establish
[36:14] a regional Volunteers training and compliance program,
[36:16] and that is where the Fresno County Fire Protection
[36:19] District would establish a Central Regional training
[36:21] and compliance support program for those volunteer agencies.
[36:30] The program would include coordinated training, delivery
[36:33] records, management assistance, annual compliance tracking,
[36:38] respiratory protection support apparatus.
[36:41] Testing and coordination and standardized documentation
[36:44] practices aligned with Cal OSHA or with OSHA Cal, and National
[36:56] Wildfire Coordination Group and National Fire Protection.
[36:59] The cost is moderate.
[37:00] The cost associated with training, coordinating software,
[37:04] system instructors staffing and records management
[37:08] and compliance, administration and grant funding.
[37:10] By coordinating this, there is some grant funding
[37:13] that may be able to offset some of these costs.
[37:15] And then the recommendation is to adopt
[37:17] applicable operational deployment standards
[37:19] from NFPA 1750.
[37:22] And that address is rural agencies and urban settings
[37:27] also.
[37:28] Our recommendations is that the agency used that as a benchmark,
[37:31] but refined that actual performance to meet
[37:33] the needs of the community.
[37:35] Part of the reason why establishing those benchmarks
[37:37] are important is because if I move into the community,
[37:38] I may have a certain expectation that that service
[37:41] level and that zone is not going to meet by having a documented,
[37:44] then everybody knows what the rules are when
[37:46] you move into the community.
[37:47] Estimated cost to implement this moderate, ongoing costs
[37:52] associated with policy development, training
[37:55] operational, data collection, staffing evaluations and this
[37:59] could be phased in.
[37:59] This is not an overnight change.
[38:02] Next one is minimum administrative and reporting
[38:05] standards for volunteer agencies.
[38:07] Fresno County and Fresno County Fire Protection District
[38:10] should establish minimum administrative reporting
[38:12] requirements for volunteer agencies receiving
[38:15] funding or operational support from the county.
[38:18] And reporting standards should include
[38:20] annual financial reporting training records, apparatus
[38:25] maintenance documentation, incident reporting, compliance
[38:29] and insurance verification.
[38:30] The cost of this is low, moderate administrative costs
[38:34] associated with the reporting system training oversight
[38:36] and compliance and monitoring.
[38:39] An ongoing, this is number eight.
[38:41] Conduct a county wide risk management review
[38:43] of volunteer fire departments insurance coverage
[38:45] and liability.
[38:47] Fresno County in coordination with County Council
[38:53] and applicable fire service stakeholders
[38:54] to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of insurance
[38:58] coverage, liability protection and risk exposure associated
[39:02] with volunteer fire departments, operating within
[39:06] or supporting emergency response in Fresno County.
[39:08] This is to ensure there's a bit of-- forgive
[39:14] the term, the firewall between what we're allowing an agency
[39:17] to do that may not be properly insured.
[39:18] And if something goes wrong, that could come to the county.
[39:24] This model should include but not
[39:27] be limited to general liability coverage, workers compensation
[39:29] or equivalent volunteer injury protections,
[39:32] vehicle and apparatus insurance, property equipment,
[39:37] coverage director, officers liability insurance
[39:40] where applicable, accident and injury coverage for volunteer
[39:47] personnel and coverage for training activities, emergency
[39:50] response operations, mutual aid, automatic aid liability
[39:55] implications and then coverage gaps
[39:57] associated with the informal volunteer organizations.
[39:59] Then we're going to strengthen the regional system
[40:02] of coordination, interagency performance accountability.
[40:05] So Fresno County protection district, Cal fire
[40:10] and participating volunteer agencies
[40:12] should formalize a county wide regional coordination framework
[40:15] establishing consistent operational expectations,
[40:21] performance measures, reporting standards, automatic aid
[40:25] protocols and governance coordination processes.
[40:28] The framework should include regular interagency review
[40:31] meetings, system performance monitoring,
[40:33] standardized reporting metrics and evaluation
[40:36] of mutual aid and contract service agreements.
[40:38] The outcome of this is a enhanced regional coordination
[40:41] and accountability for the whole county,
[40:43] and better efficiency, better safety.
[40:46] On the data systems would also allow
[40:48] you to understand better when changes are occurring out
[40:51] in the deployment environment.
[40:55] Recommendation number ten, the last one for this one
[40:58] is transfer emergency management functions to the Fresno County
[41:03] Fire Protection District.
[41:04] Fresno County should evaluate transitioning
[41:06] the county's emergency manager position and Primary Emergency
[41:10] management coordination responsibilities from Public
[41:13] Health Department to the Fresno County Fire Protection District.
[41:15] The transition should include organizational alignment
[41:18] of emergency preparedness response coordination,
[41:21] the Emergency Operations Center, support disaster planning,
[41:28] training and exercises and interagency coordination
[41:31] function under the county's primary Emergency Response
[41:33] Agency.
[41:33] The transition plan should include
[41:36] defined roles and responsibilities,
[41:39] reporting and coordination expectations with public health
[41:43] and other county departments to maintain continuity
[41:45] of public health, emergency planning and disaster
[41:50] coordination activities and by aligning
[41:52] this management within Fresno County
[41:54] could improve integration between emergency preparedness
[41:56] and operational response functions,
[41:58] strengthen incident management coordination
[42:00] and enhance EOC activation capabilities
[42:02] and improve continuity between day
[42:05] to day emergency response operations and large scale
[42:08] disaster management.
[42:09] It would also help better align emergency management oversight
[42:13] with counties primary fire rescue EMS hazardous materials,
[42:20] improving operational coordination between emergencies
[42:24] and disasters.
[42:25] The cost of this administrative and organizational transition
[42:29] will cost associated with personal reassignment policy
[42:32] updates, budget transfers and technology integration.
[42:43] >> Mike, I know our board has had an opportunity to read this
[42:46] report in detail.
[42:46] I know they may have some questions.
[42:48] What I suggest is maybe at this point,
[42:51] we allow some time for the board to ask
[42:53] questions they've had the chance to review this in detail.
[42:56] With that, we're gonna ask some questions.
[43:04] >> Board?
[43:07] >> Mr. Dispain, it's good to see you.
[43:10] It's interesting because I think 26 years ago when
[43:12] we were meeting together, we were looking
[43:14] for response times of five minutes or less,
[43:21] I want to say 90% of the time.
[43:22] And staffing standards were different in a city
[43:24] jurisdiction.
[43:24] Some of the benefits of getting fire departments
[43:29] to providing higher levels of service was lowering insurance.
[43:32] So a question I have looking at some of these recommendations
[43:36] that you have for us.
[43:38] I know some of the short term recommendations of just getting
[43:41] apparatus out to calls sooner.
[43:44] By doing any of that, do you see opportunities for fire insurance
[43:51] that people have in their homes being reduced a little bit?
[43:54] And if there is, can you talk briefly about that?
[43:58] >> That's a complex issue here I'll make it simple.
[44:02] The answer is yes, it could.
[44:04] It depends.
[44:05] There's a change in the industry,
[44:07] and the industry is going away from a locked and loaded
[44:10] readiness model to, what is your outcome?
[44:13] How often did you stop a fire at Room of Origin?
[44:17] What was the actual fire loss?
[44:18] What are you doing in terms of prevention
[44:20] to help prevent the fire?
[44:21] So that there's not one to happen to begin with.
[44:27] And every insurance policy has their own rules
[44:29] and where their jurisdiction is, where their boundaries are.
[44:32] Some of them match zip codes, some of them don't.
[44:34] So number one is you have to shop around
[44:36] to find out what the best option is for you.
[44:39] In this case, absolutely many of the items
[44:42] that are in here, including these last few where we talked
[44:45] about community risk reduction, is
[44:48] putting a little less emphasis on the operational response,
[44:52] and a little bit more on the preventive fire or emergency
[44:56] from happening to begin with.
[44:57] That's the biggest way.
[44:58] It's actually the cheapest way to provide
[45:02] the service and the biggest move in insurance, because the fire
[45:05] that you don't have, and you don't
[45:07] have a claim, that helps you and your policy,
[45:10] but it's also a regional one.
[45:11] You can think my house is safe.
[45:13] All the fires are in another area of jurisdiction.
[45:16] You're still gonna pay that, depending
[45:18] on where that geography counts you into that.
[45:23] >> Basically reduce the risk.
[45:31] >> Any other?
[45:36] >> Thank you for the presentation.
[45:38] Our CEO did read the presentation.
[45:40] Appreciate the work that you and your partner did.
[45:42] I think I met with supervisor a while back.
[45:46] I also appreciated Chief Hale's crash course
[45:48] on the complexities of fire protection.
[45:51] We have such a big geographical area.
[45:54] I've seen it myself in the mountains when there's people
[45:57] that experience a medical emergency, or a broken foot,
[46:04] or people that think they can get up to a pin cushion trail
[46:07] very easily and find out that they can't.
[46:09] I've seen our folks respond.
[46:11] Thank you to the fire station 87, and the great work they do.
[46:17] I just have a quick question for you, chief.
[46:25] We've got a large presentation, a couple of low hanging fruits.
[46:28] What would you like to see implemented long term
[46:30] and short term?
[46:31] >> Thank you.
[46:32] I think the best method of working in the CEO's office
[46:35] is looking through the report and recommendations.
[46:38] We can do a tiered or phased in approach.
[46:41] I think building the foundational piece
[46:43] of the training components to compliance, insurance
[46:46] regulations and making sure that we have the ability
[46:49] to work within the budgets.
[46:51] It's always an easy say we need more firefighters,
[46:54] we need more fire engine.
[46:56] But if we can build that in as a long term planning tool,
[46:59] but I think the foundational piece,
[47:01] we can work with the supervisors individually
[47:04] and the CEO staff to come up with some key
[47:07] takeaways from the recommendations,
[47:10] but I think there's several opportunities that we have
[47:17] to almost maintain what our current level of funding
[47:22] is, just to reorganize it within the budget structure
[47:24] to allow us to hire the bodies to maintain the training,
[47:27] maintain the efficiencies.
[47:29] There's lots of little things we can do,
[47:35] working collectively between the district
[47:37] Qom County, Cal Fire and our neighboring agencies
[47:39] that will still be able to provide higher level of service.
[47:43] More operational depth with putting safety and looking
[47:46] at reducing the liability I think it's the first step.
[47:50] >> Thank you.
[47:53] I appreciate it.
[47:55] The last thing I'll say is, a lot of people don't know this,
[47:57] but when your phone falls, it sends a distress call.
[48:02] You've had your folks respond.
[48:04] If I ever need that, I'm gonna throw my phone
[48:06] and hope you respond out there.
[48:08] Thank you.
[48:16] >> I've got another question for Dustin.
[48:20] Sorry about that, thank you for the great job and great report.
[48:23] I see this more of a-- there's so many facets of this.
[48:30] But coordinating between all units,
[48:32] meaning some of the volunteer units that are still out there,
[48:36] and hopefully getting them to the point where
[48:39] you can have them come to some of-- like the mutual aid
[48:48] isn't just you going into their jurisdiction to find a fire.
[48:50] Because I don't know if you have any
[48:52] that can go into your jurisdiction and help you.
[48:57] Are you following me?
[49:01] >> There is some.
[49:11] >> We don't have the advanced training.
[49:12] >> So we can reach out and turn the table to where we can
[49:16] provide the training given the benefits that they need to have
[49:19] insurance to help minimize the impacts to be able to come
[49:24] and support the system.
[49:25] >> The further you get from the metropolitan area,
[49:30] the more important that becomes.
[49:38] and I've got Paul, to ask him a question.
[49:44] Some of the deals, could we do an >> The answer is yes.
[49:50] I want to thank Kevin Taylor and Mike for his presentation.
[49:52] I could also say that these are things
[49:54] that it confirms a lot of things that we have been talking
[49:57] about for several years.
[49:58] Now we see it in a document.
[50:00] And as you've heard it said, if you have no clear goals,
[50:04] you hit them every time.
[50:05] This has some goals for us to move forward.
[50:10] So the next step is coming back with an updated agreement
[50:16] with the fire district.
[50:18] There was some board action where we could take some of that
[50:21] into effect and look at the speed in which we implement
[50:23] some of these.
[50:24] There's some we can do, but some we
[50:26] would need to come back to your board to formally implement
[50:29] and some we've already started prepping for pending direction
[50:37] and inputs from your board.
[50:39] >> Any other comments?
[50:41] >> Yes.
[50:43] Dustin, correct me if I'm wrong.
[50:46] But was it 2019 that the board entered
[50:48] into an agreement with Cal Fire to provide
[50:51] some protection in wide areas?
[50:53] And what we're looking for now is
[50:55] to substitute that, even though this was a 20 year agreement.
[50:59] This additional resources that are needed
[51:00] to provide additional coverage.
[51:01] If you want to talk a little bit about that,
[51:03] that would be helpful.
[51:05] >> In 2018, before an agreement, there's roughly 980,000 acres
[51:10] of unprotected land in Fresno County that do not have fire
[51:14] protection.
[51:15] And whether it's the state responsibility
[51:16] of the federal responsibility, there
[51:18] needs to be some level of local control for infrastructure,
[51:26] structures.
[51:27] The normal day to day, medical aids.
[51:28] Those don't fall to the wildland agency.
[51:31] We are able to do that.
[51:33] We had the Amador agreement that basically
[51:36] had an agreement between the county, which means
[51:41] local agency and Cal Fire.
[51:47] 2018 of that, almost roughly a million acres,
[51:50] that was under contract of the fire district
[51:52] to be able to provide adequate level of response for those.
[51:57] So we had the Creek fire, several fires in the last eight
[52:03] years for that instance that have occurred
[52:06] within the unprotected lands between the district and Cal
[52:09] Fire that we were able to mitigate that
[52:11] by reducing the fiscal impacts across the board.
[52:15] As we continue to grow, costs have increased since then,
[52:20] and we've had an outbreak of COVID.
[52:22] Skyrocketing infrastructure costs of station
[52:24] builds, repairs, replacement.
[52:27] All of those costs continue to increase, we look at,
[52:33] how do we better more efficiently provide
[52:36] higher level of service while maintaining
[52:38] fiscal responsibility and accountability?
[52:40] So this time, we have MOU 2.0, which
[52:48] was the bridge to get to where we
[52:50] needed to be with the reduction of the workweek.
[52:55] And then we have the Amador program
[52:57] that's going to go away because the Cal Fire is going
[53:05] to have year round staffing.
[53:06] So we have the opportunity that we
[53:06] can redirect some of those amateur possibilities
[53:09] into one wholesale agreement that
[53:10] would provide an adequate level of funding to look
[53:12] at a long term strategic plan.
[53:14] They would allow us to look at growth,
[53:16] it's fire station locations, increased in fire stations.
[53:20] Because the way that we're situated,
[53:22] might be opportunities if budgets align that we could do
[53:29] increased level of staffing within the Cal Fire station.
[53:32] With other resources that could help minimize the community risk
[53:36] reduction.
[53:37] Could help having larger pump capacities, which
[53:49] increase your fire protection and lowers your ISOs
[53:51] and those underserved areas to potentially reduce
[53:55] insurance premiums.
[53:55] But I think the best way is rather
[53:57] than having several different agreements out there,
[53:59] we consolidate it into one where we
[54:01] have one master agreement that provides a level of protection
[54:04] countywide.
[54:10] >> Okay.
[54:12] I just want to say, I appreciate all the work
[54:15] that you and the firefighters do throughout the county.
[54:17] Got a chance to be at your training center
[54:20] and see what you all do.
[54:25] It's amazing work.
[54:25] It's dangerous work.
[54:26] And like our sheriffs and police officers,
[54:30] you do everything you can to make our community safe
[54:32] I appreciate what you do every single day.
[54:37] Yes, sir.
[54:40] >> I think this is a receive and file item.
[54:42] When it's time, if the board is supportive,
[54:44] I'd like to direct staff, Paul Nerlin,
[54:49] to work together with the fire chief and Mike Despain
[54:53] to begin to put together an item that this board can act upon
[54:56] to begin to move in the direction to implement some
[54:58] of these things that are in the plan
[55:00] and what the chief talked about as well.
[55:03] >> Can we just do that for direction?
[55:05] Or do you need a motion?
[55:11] >> You can give direction to come back with something later.
[55:15] >> Any comments from the public?
[55:17] I will bring this back.
[55:20] You have direction.
[55:22] And we will move forward.
[55:24] Thank you very much.
[55:30] Next item, please.
[55:34] >> Mr. Chairman, I apologize that I was just informed from
[55:38] the Business Journal that we may have a publication issue on item
[55:39] six.
[55:39] If we can move to seven to get clarification and discuss public
[55:43] works.
[55:44] We'll move to item number seven under Public Works and Planning.
[55:58] Consider appeal of Planning Commission’s denial of Initial
[56:01] Study No.
[56:01] 8517, Conditional Use Permit No.
[56:01] 3778, and Variance Application No.
[56:01] 4158, which propose to operation of a special event facility,
[56:01] and grant a Variance to allow a mapping procedure to two
[56:01] substandard-sized parcels from existing 10.39-acre subject
[56:03] parcel; if appeal is upheld and Planning
[56:18] .
[56:18] >> Before we start, do any board members need to report any ex
[56:23] parte communications they've had on the matter?
[56:25] >> Good morning.
[56:26] This item comes to your board on appeal of the Planning
[56:29] Commission's June 18th denial of 5 to 0 with three commissioners
[56:32] absent.
[56:33] One abstaining.
[56:41] Application number 3778 and variance
[56:44] application number 4158.
[56:45] The project proposes to allow the operation of an event
[56:48] facility with a concurrent variance
[56:49] to create two substandard sized parcels from an existing 10.39
[56:52] acre parcel.
[56:53] The project site is located adjacent to the Northwest
[56:55] corner of the intersection of Fowler and Manning Avenues.
[56:58] Outside the city of Fowler's sphere of influence.
[57:01] At the Planning Commission's June 18th hearing,
[57:04] the Commission heard testimony from the applicant
[57:08] and applicant's representatives Pierre code enforcement staff
[57:11] provided information on the violations and on site
[57:14] inspections testimony was received from individuals both
[57:16] in favor of and opposition to the proposed.
[57:19] Closing opposition cited concerns,
[57:23] with excessively loud music and bright lights during events.
[57:27] Following the Planning Commission's denial,
[57:31] an appeal was filed by the applicant and appellant on June
[57:36] 24th, 2026.
[57:37] If your board is able to determine that the required
[57:39] findings for granting approval of CEP 3778
[57:47] and variance number 4158 can be made,
[57:49] your board may adopt the draft resolution on file
[57:51] with the clerk to grant the appeal.
[57:53] An approval classified conditional use
[57:55] permit application number 3778 and number 4158
[57:58] and adopt the mitigated negative declaration
[58:01] based on initial study number 8517,
[58:03] subject to the proposed mitigation measures, conditions
[58:07] of approval and project notes.
[58:08] With the additional conditions for indemnification
[58:10] and public water system requirements.
[58:13] If your board is unable to make the required findings
[58:16] for granting c p number 3778, the board
[58:24] may make a motion to deny the appeal
[58:26] and uphold the Planning Commission's
[58:27] denial of unclassified conditional use
[58:29] permit application number 3778 and variance application number
[58:34] 4158.
[58:34] I'm available if you have any questions.
[58:37] >> Any questions from the board?
[58:38] We will now open the hearing to public testimony.
[58:41] The appellant is here, they have five minutes to present.
[58:44] Are they here?
[58:49] Okay.
[58:51] >> Good morning honorable supervisors.
[58:54] My name is John Kinsey with Wenger Jones LLC.
[58:56] I'm here with Mr. John Khosa, who is here
[59:01] on behalf of the Sunset Acres.
[59:03] I want to thank you for your consideration of this project
[59:06] today.
[59:07] Ask the county grows, there is a real need
[59:10] for top tier event spaces.
[59:12] The Sunset Acres provides that type of space.
[59:16] Where members of the community, county residents
[59:19] can convene and gather with friends colleagues
[59:21] and loved ones.
[59:23] This is a professional designed venue
[59:28] that really is a state of the art amenity
[59:33] that the county can be proud of.
[59:34] I want to reiterate that the Sunset Acres and the coasters
[59:39] are members of this community.
[59:41] They live here.
[59:42] They work here and it's important for them
[59:44] to be a good neighbor.
[59:45] To that end, they've taken the community feedback
[59:49] that they received at public meetings and otherwise
[59:52] and have responded to that feedback
[59:54] intangible, meaningful ways.
[1:00:01] With respect to noise management,
[1:00:04] the speakers are faced inward and there's
[1:00:08] continuing monitoring during events at the boundary
[1:00:10] to make sure there's no leakage.
[1:00:13] Events must stop by 10 p.m..
[1:00:16] With respect to traffic and those concerns,
[1:00:20] the traffic has been evaluated by professional.
[1:00:23] John Rowland, you're familiar with.
[1:00:26] And to ensure that the traffic impacts
[1:00:29] won't affect the surrounding community.
[1:00:31] They also believe in responsible hospitality.
[1:00:36] They take safety very seriously, especially when
[1:00:42] it comes to alcohol.
[1:00:44] The only authorized use of license, trained vendors
[1:00:48] and bartenders who were trained on how to spot fake IDs,
[1:00:52] and to make sure nobody gets overserved.
[1:00:53] They also shut down the bar completely at 930.
[1:00:57] So everyone has plenty of time to wind down
[1:01:00] and to head home safely.
[1:01:03] We have our transportation and noise consultants here with us.
[1:01:08] If you have any questions, but I did
[1:01:10] want to thank you for your time and your consideration
[1:01:12] of this appeal.
[1:01:14] With that, I'd like to turn it over to Kirjan.
[1:01:27] >> Good morning.
[1:01:28] First of all, I'd like to thank the Board of Supervisors.
[1:01:33] My name is Kirjan Kosa, I live at 421 East South
[1:01:47] Avenue in Fowler, California.
[1:01:49] I wanted to thank you for your consideration of the Sunset
[1:01:53] Accords.
[1:01:54] I'd like to thank the staff of Fresno County Planning
[1:01:57] Department.
[1:01:57] We live here we work here.
[1:01:59] We strive to be the best neighbors we can.
[1:02:01] Our family is very proud of this venue.
[1:02:03] It is a special place for members of our community
[1:02:06] to celebrate the most important events of their life.
[1:02:10] I appreciate your time today and all
[1:02:17] that you do for the Fresno County and the rural community
[1:02:19] out there.
[1:02:20] I am a farmer.
[1:02:21] I appreciate all that you do for us in the whole area.
[1:02:24] I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.
[1:02:27] >> Any other comments in favor of the appeal?
[1:02:29] Anybody who would like to?
[1:02:35] Please come forward.
[1:02:42] >> Good morning, Fresno County supervisors.
[1:02:44] My name is Benta from Fresno.
[1:02:46] Prior to my recent move to Clovis
[1:02:49] I have lived in two homes.
[1:02:51] The first at 8745 South Fowler Avenue, Fowler,
[1:02:56] immediately adjacent to the property being discussed today.
[1:02:59] I lived there from 1962 until I married in 1979.
[1:03:03] My parents lived there until my mom's passing in 2009,
[1:03:08] and my dad until 2019, when he was 91 years old.
[1:03:14] The second home I've lived in is at 6596 East Parlier Avenue
[1:03:25] Fowler about a quarter mile from the coast property
[1:03:27] I owned and occupied the residence from 1982
[1:03:29] until about a year ago.
[1:03:30] My comments today are to share my experiences with the Khosa
[1:03:33] family as exceptional and thoughtful neighbors.
[1:03:37] Having lived in such close proximity
[1:03:40] to the proposed Sunset Acres, I have experience of its impact.
[1:03:47] Our families never experienced inconvenience from this venture.
[1:03:49] It has not created undesired noise, light.
[1:03:53] It has not created undesirable or impactful changes
[1:03:57] in traffic patterns.
[1:03:58] What has been impactful is the beautification
[1:04:01] of the property itself and the property surrounding it.
[1:04:05] The property had not been used for any agricultural purposes
[1:04:09] for many years.
[1:04:13] The owners, Urgant and Preet removed an eyesore deteriorating
[1:04:18] barn, adding trees, roses and grass
[1:04:22] to create an esthetically pleasing property,
[1:04:24] a home anyone would welcome as a neighbor.
[1:04:27] My family home and property adjacent to the Kosta's property
[1:04:30] was sold in 2019.
[1:04:32] The buyer severely neglected the property, killing
[1:04:35] two and a half acres of walnuts, have an acre of oranges,
[1:04:38] and the amazing gardens my dad had
[1:04:40] an orchard for over 60 years.
[1:04:49] >> Please just finish up.
[1:04:50] >> When the closest bought the home in 23,
[1:04:53] they cleared away the acres of dead trees, all the weeds,
[1:04:56] and a shed that was often tagged with graffiti.
[1:04:59] They repaired the house and made a lovely residence again.
[1:05:01] The zoning changes in and around the property
[1:05:04] had been significant in recent years.
[1:05:06] Our own property and my parents property were at one time
[1:05:10] restricted from building additions because of AG 20
[1:05:19] regulations.
[1:05:21] >> Could you close up?
[1:05:27] >> I have one very brief one.
[1:05:28] The county supported requested changes
[1:05:28] and were able to improve our properties for purposeful use.
[1:05:31] The Fresno County Planning Commission personnel
[1:05:33] have assisted the courses in addressing
[1:05:34] the requests and suggestions of the Commission,
[1:05:36] as well as concerns of a few neighbors.
[1:05:38] They desire to offer a diverse community in and around Fowler,
[1:05:41] a greatly needed venue where families can honor and celebrate
[1:05:45] life events.
[1:05:46] In addition to the venue, the courses
[1:05:48] seek to establish their primary residence
[1:05:50] next to the venue, a testimony to their commitment
[1:05:54] to the property.
[1:05:55] This is a unique, lovely and timely opportunity
[1:05:58] for our community.
[1:05:59] Thank you for your time and favorable consideration.
[1:06:03] >> Thank you.
[1:06:07] Any other comments in favor of the appeal?
[1:06:17] Welcome.
[1:06:18] >> Thank you.
[1:06:19] My name is Joe Rivera.
[1:06:20] I am a business owner out of the city of Fowler.
[1:06:22] I have been a business owner for 39 years,
[1:06:27] out of repair, U-Haul Fowler and Redcat towing.
[1:06:31] I want to thank you for the opportunity
[1:06:33] to come up here and speak.
[1:06:39] Gerjant has invested a tremendous amount
[1:06:41] of time money and hard work into building this business.
[1:06:43] Sunset acres is not simply a property.
[1:06:45] It's someone's livelihood.
[1:06:46] A business that provides a place for families and communities
[1:06:49] to come together for weddings and special events.
[1:06:56] Gerjant has made every effort to operate Sunset Acres responsibly
[1:07:02] and to address the concerns of the county and the surrounding.
[1:07:08] Environmental studies have come completed with traffic studies
[1:07:11] and they were done to evaluate the potential impacts
[1:07:13] of the business.
[1:07:14] The venue also operates primarily on weekends and events
[1:07:19] generally conclude no later than 10:00 PM.
[1:07:25] Urgent is not only trying to --
[1:07:33] Gurjad is not trying to create a problem for his neighbors.
[1:07:37] He's trying to operate a legit business
[1:07:39] while being a responsible member of the community.
[1:07:40] A lot has already been invested in making Sunset Acres comply
[1:07:43] with the county's requirements.
[1:07:44] Closing the business or placing restrictions on it
[1:07:47] that make it impossible to operate
[1:07:49] would have a serious financial impact on Gurjant and his family
[1:07:59] as well as many employees, vendors, wedding professionals
[1:08:02] and other local businesses that benefit from the events
[1:08:04] held there.
[1:08:05] I asked the county to please consider this studies that
[1:08:09] have already been completed.
[1:08:11] The efforts has been made to comply with the reasonable way
[1:08:14] this venue.
[1:08:15] We're not asking for special treatment.
[1:08:17] We're asking for a fair opportunity for Sunset Acres
[1:08:19] to continue operating as a responsible business in Fresno
[1:08:22] County.
[1:08:22] Please do not take away someone's livelihood
[1:08:24] when he has made a genuine effort to follow the process,
[1:08:28] address the county's concerns and be a good neighbor.
[1:08:31] Thank you for your time and considering Gurjant and sunset
[1:08:40] acres and everybody's livelihood depends on this business.
[1:08:42] >> Thank you.
[1:08:45] Anyone else who wants to speak in favor?
[1:08:49] >> Hello.
[1:08:52] Good morning everybody.
[1:08:55] My name is Ajit Singh.
[1:09:01] I know Mr. Kosa and their family since 1977.
[1:09:03] They're very responsible.
[1:09:07] He turned that junky place into a very nice place
[1:09:16] but the community needed for weddings and everything.
[1:09:18] He's very responsible person.
[1:09:20] I think we should give him an opportunity and think about it.
[1:09:26] Thank you, everybody.
[1:09:34] >> Thank you.
[1:09:39] >> Good morning, supervisors.
[1:09:41] My name is Don.
[1:09:42] I live at 5699 Manning Avenue, which is catty
[1:09:44] corner across from the venue.
[1:09:46] It's less than a 10th of a mile away.
[1:09:48] Anything between it it's just vineyard.
[1:09:51] So I'm gonna hear a noise or whatever,
[1:09:53] it's going to be there.
[1:09:55] I'm almost 80 years old.
[1:10:03] If anybody's going to complain, I'm
[1:10:04] the guy that should be complaining.
[1:10:04] But I'm not.
[1:10:05] I enjoy the venue.
[1:10:06] I enjoy when they're having fun over there.
[1:10:09] When it's a wedding or quinceanera.
[1:10:17] Fowler needs a place like this.
[1:10:18] They've done a heck of a job with developing the property.
[1:10:20] I know it was not a great property.
[1:10:22] They made it into a wonderful place.
[1:10:28] The house I'm in, my ex's grandparents built.
[1:10:34] She was there for a long time before she passed away.
[1:10:38] I would like to say, if you could
[1:10:40] please pass this ordinance.
[1:10:46] It's going to be good for them.
[1:10:48] It's going to be good for the county,
[1:10:49] as well as for Fowler California.
[1:10:53] Thank you very much.
[1:10:55] >> Thank you.
[1:10:58] Anyone else to speak in favor?
[1:11:05] >> Hi, good morning, Supervisors.
[1:11:08] My name is Rathmonten.
[1:11:12] I was born and raised in Fowler.
[1:11:15] I live on 5431 East Fowler Avenue, which is in the quarter
[1:11:21] mile radius of sunset I am in favor
[1:11:23] in support of the event Hall.
[1:11:23] I think the property event are esthetically pleasing.
[1:11:26] I drive by there every day.
[1:11:29] And he's always making improvements
[1:11:30] and he's a very hard worker.
[1:11:34] Mr. Kosa is very respectful and a nice person and he's always
[1:11:40] willing to work with you.
[1:11:42] From what I have been hearing I'm trying his best
[1:11:45] and putting his hard earned money and sweat.
[1:11:49] And he's a farmer and he's always hard working and always
[1:11:52] been working.
[1:11:53] Anytime I pass by, he's there and always greets you
[1:11:57] with respect and love.
[1:11:59] I also believe it's a great valuable place for weddings,
[1:12:05] celebrations and other community events.
[1:12:08] We never really had anything like that
[1:12:09] in our Fowler community.
[1:12:10] I think it's a great addition.
[1:12:12] As far as the noise and living nearby,
[1:12:14] I don't have any concerns with the venue.
[1:12:17] As far as the noise, I don't hear much noise.
[1:12:20] I think our coyotes are louder than the event center.
[1:12:23] I just wanted to make it short because I know you
[1:12:28] guys want to--
[1:12:35] >> Thank you.
[1:12:35] Anyone else want to speak in favor of the appeal?
[1:12:45] >> Hi.
[1:12:48] >> Welcome.
[1:12:50] >> I want to thank you for this opportunity to speak in front
[1:12:50] of you.
[1:12:50] I was kind of afraid to speak at the last meeting
[1:12:51] because I kind of regretted that.
[1:12:53] So I wanted to make sure I spoke today.
[1:13:01] My family resides at 5616 East Manning
[1:13:03] Avenue, which is about 0.28 miles from the venue itself.
[1:13:13] I am usually outside from late afternoon to the late evening,
[1:13:18] working in the yard trying to keep up the property.
[1:13:21] I have witnessed events.
[1:13:22] I could barely hear any noise coming from an event.
[1:13:25] So there's probably only been one time, but other than that,
[1:13:28] it's to a minimum.
[1:13:30] The lights are nice to have out there.
[1:13:32] They are kind of comforting.
[1:13:33] Because without them, it is pitch black.
[1:13:38] And they are not always on.
[1:13:45] It's not like it's a big distraction.
[1:13:47] There's been moments where I'll go in the house and tell my mom,
[1:13:47] the lights are on tonight, and she doesn't even notice.
[1:13:50] Doesn't notice the music is playing from inside the house.
[1:13:53] We have one pane windows.
[1:13:55] We can hear diesel trucks passing our house,
[1:13:58] shaking our house.
[1:13:59] We would hear noise.
[1:14:07] Especially her.
[1:14:08] I think it's a benefit to the community.
[1:14:10] There's not much that we have in Fowler in terms of venues.
[1:14:13] It would be nice to have something local for the younger
[1:14:16] generation to go to and utilize, especially for the schools.
[1:14:21] It would be a little bit more comforting,
[1:14:23] and I'm pretty sure for parents knowing that their children are
[1:14:26] closer to the community rather than going out
[1:14:29] to close or Fresno areas.
[1:14:35] Even members from Selma could utilize that as well.
[1:14:37] I think it would be a great benefit.
[1:14:38] Please put a lot of work into it.
[1:14:39] From the reports, it seems he is being very responsible
[1:14:49] >> Thank you very much.
[1:14:51] Anyone else wish to speak in favor of the appeal?
[1:14:53] Anybody wish to speak against the appeal?
[1:14:59] Seeing none.
[1:15:00] Yes?
[1:15:01] Okay.
[1:15:08] >> Thank you.
[1:15:09] My name is Paris Campbell.
[1:15:10] I live at 9403 South Claremont.
[1:15:11] I oppose giving a conditional use permit to the closest
[1:15:15] operating at Sunset Acres.
[1:15:17] Their facility is very inappropriate
[1:15:19] for a quiet country location due to the frequent high level
[1:15:23] of noise, lights and traffic congestion,
[1:15:27] which is all now for almost three and a half years very
[1:15:36] negatively impacted our quality of life.
[1:15:37] The first few homes on our block are less than half a mile
[1:15:37] from the venue as the crow flies,
[1:15:39] and are subject to the intense glare from their yard lights
[1:15:42] during events.
[1:15:43] They have finally within the last two weeks moved only three
[1:15:46] of the lights that were particularly
[1:15:50] bright and intrusive, but had they
[1:15:52] wanted to be good neighbors, they would have done
[1:15:54] this much sooner instead of waiting
[1:15:55] for two and a half years, since they knew that it was a problem.
[1:16:00] In coincidentally, just before this hearing.
[1:16:03] They also have very tall palm trees,
[1:16:06] which are circled with lights, and the palm trees are probably
[1:16:14] close to 80 to 100ft tall.
[1:16:15] You can see them from a long distance.
[1:16:17] Loud noise music, including profane lyrics,
[1:16:19] words that I would not repeat are
[1:16:21] heard by the children on our block and by us.
[1:16:28] We've called the Fresno County Sheriff's Office over 60 times.
[1:16:31] We don't want to keep calling the police.
[1:16:33] The police report that they are treated very rudely
[1:16:38] by the Cosas.
[1:16:42] Sunset acres is constantly disturbing the peace.
[1:16:44] I hate to have to call the police because of sunset Acres
[1:16:45] refuses to follow the rules that apply to all of us.
[1:16:47] The coast has have stated that their nearest
[1:16:50] neighbor to the north is not opposed to their events,
[1:16:52] but that property is owned by the coast
[1:16:54] and beyond that is a cemetery.
[1:16:57] We want our lives back without intrusion every weekend
[1:17:01] of noise, rude lyrics, traffic congestion, extra dust
[1:17:06] and excessive light.
[1:17:08] Water use in this area is also a problem
[1:17:10] when you have that many people.
[1:17:11] The city of Fowler opposes Sunset acres
[1:17:14] due to having annexed property less than half a mile
[1:17:18] away from when there will be a construction of 179 new homes
[1:17:21] in the near future.
[1:17:22] These are consist of families with many more children being
[1:17:25] subjected to these same issues.
[1:17:26] The city of Fowler has also viewed the numerous complaints
[1:17:29] about Sunset Acres.
[1:17:30] Lastly, everyone should have to follow the rules
[1:17:33] and regulations.
[1:17:33] The causes have not done this.
[1:17:35] When purchased, the property had a single family home in a barn.
[1:17:49] , without any permits made all the changes to convert
[1:17:51] the property into an event center.
[1:17:53] They begin operating without a permit.
[1:17:54] They knew this and have been operating without a permit.
[1:17:57] They were reported by a neighbor adversely affected
[1:17:59] by their operation.
[1:18:00] Fresno County Code enforcement issued a cease and desist order,
[1:18:05] and they ignored it.
[1:18:06] They went on continuing.
[1:18:07] We have video evidence that they were continuing to operate.
[1:18:11] The causes have a proven record of ignoring
[1:18:13] legitimate concerns of the neighbors
[1:18:14] and threatening those who oppose them.
[1:18:16] At least two neighbors reported being chased in a vehicle
[1:18:23] by someone associated with the.
[1:18:24] They have no regard for their neighbors or the regulations,
[1:18:25] and I hope the board will not reward
[1:18:27] three years of illegal operation and will not give them
[1:18:29] a conditional use permit.
[1:18:41] >> Thank you.
[1:18:43] Anyone else?
[1:18:58] >> Hi, I am Bradley Reed.
[1:18:59] Good morning, supervisor.
[1:18:59] I will not have time to read everything in the letter,
[1:19:00] but I will leave that to you to do.
[1:19:02] With regard to the request to subdivide the property
[1:19:05] through a variance, there is no merit or legal basis
[1:19:08] for the request.
[1:19:09] The applicant claims that there are
[1:19:12] four exceptional, extraordinary or unique circumstances
[1:19:15] or conditions that apply to the land.
[1:19:17] One, the property is substandard in size, and two, the parcel
[1:19:25] is non productive farmland.
[1:19:26] Three, proximity to the cemetery makes the parcel less
[1:19:30] than ideal for farming.
[1:19:31] And four, an irrigation pipeline easement
[1:19:34] traverses the portion of the property.
[1:19:38] In truth, substandard size parcels
[1:19:44] are abundant in the county.
[1:19:45] This is in no way an extraordinary circumstance.
[1:19:45] There's no credible evidence that the parcel is not
[1:19:47] suitable for agriculture or that the proximity to the cemetery
[1:19:50] makes forming suboptimal.
[1:19:51] And if truth be known, the buried pipeline
[1:19:55] does not traverse the property as claimed by the applicant.
[1:19:58] The applicant also claims the need
[1:20:00] to preserve two property rights.
[1:20:03] First, the right to split the parcel
[1:20:08] to bring it into consistency with other similar
[1:20:10] sized residential properties in the vicinity.
[1:20:12] Two, the right to create a sub residential parcel
[1:20:18] because farming is not a viable option.
[1:20:20] Farming would put an unnecessary strain on the areas of water
[1:20:22] supply, and because of farming, farming
[1:20:25] would detract from the efficiency
[1:20:32] and sustainability of neighboring farms,
[1:20:35] your board knows that.
[1:20:37] Owning a subdivided partial does not afford the property owner
[1:20:40] the right to divide the property.
[1:20:41] You also know there's no credible evidence in the record
[1:20:43] that the parcel is unproductive farmland.
[1:20:45] You have no proof that the farming of the parcel
[1:20:48] would place a strain on the area's limited water resources
[1:20:51] or detract from the efficiency or accessibility
[1:20:54] of the surrounding farms.
[1:21:03] >> Thank you.
[1:21:04] >> In conclusion, one sentence.
[1:21:05] There is no credible evidence in the record to support the need
[1:21:09] that there is -- to support a substantial property.
[1:21:21] >> Hello.
[1:21:23] I'm Evelyn Beisel and I have a letter from a person who
[1:21:26] wants to remain anonymous.
[1:21:27] I'll read it quickly.
[1:21:27] Dear Fresno Board of Supervisors, the Sunset Acres
[1:21:30] event opened in 2022 and has hosted 100 plus events
[1:21:33] since opening without a conditional use permit.
[1:21:35] They are serving alcohol and law enforcement
[1:21:37] has been called an estimated 50% of the events for various noise
[1:21:42] complaints and physical altercations.
[1:21:44] As well as them continuing to be untruthful
[1:21:48] to the numerous County of Fresno departments
[1:21:51] that they have communicated with neighbors and law enforcement
[1:21:55] personnel.
[1:21:56] I'm not sure how this continues to happen.
[1:21:59] There are multiple signed petitions
[1:22:01] by the neighbors, photographic evidence,
[1:22:04] video evidence, logs of the call to emergency response agencies,
[1:22:09] and also a denial that a county of Fresno Board of Supervisors
[1:22:15] of the application.
[1:22:16] In most cases, and event facility
[1:22:19] that continues to operate in this manner
[1:22:21] would either be locked by Sheriff's department
[1:22:23] or the owner arrested for continued violations,
[1:22:25] lies and disregarding the orders.
[1:22:27] Where do we go from here?
[1:22:29] Do the residents of Fowler and Fresno
[1:22:30] County to take legal action to get this issue resolved?
[1:22:33] Who is paying for each time the law enforcement is
[1:22:36] being called out for repeated violations of the Advanced
[1:22:39] Center?
[1:22:39] Has the owner agreed to pay for this?
[1:22:41] Will the county enforcement Department
[1:22:45] need to work overtime to be called 11 p.m.
[1:22:47] On Saturday nights to say that the party is taking place?
[1:22:50] They have had events all nights on the weeks
[1:22:52] and even on Saturday nights events have lasted until 10 p.m.
[1:22:56] Or later.
[1:22:57] Who is in charge here?
[1:23:03] Where does it end?
[1:23:04] Will they actually stick to the event dates that are allowed
[1:23:04] and the hours from 4 to 10 p.m.?
[1:23:05] Is there adequate fire protection
[1:23:06] for the storage barn that has numerous commercial air
[1:23:09] conditioning units attached to it?
[1:23:11] How would they feel when their water table level drops
[1:23:19] from the venue-- between the hundreds
[1:23:25] if not thousands of shrubs, and bushes and trees planted
[1:23:27] on the property in the last four years,
[1:23:28] how much water is being used to keep them alive?
[1:23:30] To the property taxes paid in the last four years in operation
[1:23:33] reflect all the improvements made?
[1:23:37] How did the restrooms and septic systems on the property
[1:23:42] handle 400 plus people per week?
[1:23:43] Do they have permits that this is taking place?
[1:23:46] And now you can see the concerns that the residents of Fowler
[1:23:49] and Fresno County have--
[1:23:56] and have general concern for the quality of life
[1:23:58] we now enjoy in Fowler and Fresno County.
[1:23:58] The people have spoken.
[1:23:58] Thank you.
[1:23:59] Lifelong Fowler resident.
[1:24:09] >> Thank you.
[1:24:11] Anyone else?
[1:24:18] >> Good morning.
[1:24:19] My name is Barbara Bray.
[1:24:20] I live at 9403 South Claremont Avenue in Fowler.
[1:24:20] I will be brief.
[1:24:22] At the previous meeting of the Planning Commission on Sunset
[1:24:25] Acres was told to cease and desist their events.
[1:24:27] They never did until the last meeting when the 5 to 0
[1:24:31] vote was against them.
[1:24:32] Last year, we were encouraged to film and document
[1:24:35] the steady stream of loud and illegal events.
[1:24:44] When my friend and I pulled off the road to take pictures
[1:24:47] one evening, a big white pickup truck pulled around
[1:24:47] and a man said, do you need help?
[1:24:49] I said no, thank you.
[1:24:52] He then said, you're not fine.
[1:24:56] I know who you are.
[1:24:58] He didn't know me.
[1:25:00] I had never been there to take pictures,
[1:25:02] and I've never seen him before.
[1:25:04] He proceeded to spin around and pull up to us within inches
[1:25:07] and shine bright lights in our faces.
[1:25:09] These two items were at the beginning of his harassment.
[1:25:11] As he followed us super close for about two miles south
[1:25:14] on Fowler Avenue, until we pulled over and then
[1:25:17] he followed us back.
[1:25:23] We finally pulled over at the interstate and called 911.
[1:25:26] He circled, rolled his window down and yelled, damn bitches.
[1:25:36] We ended at the Fowler Police station.
[1:25:38] One officer followed him out of downtown
[1:25:38] and pulled him over just to hear him say
[1:25:40] that he was just going home.
[1:25:41] When I told the officer, I didn't
[1:25:44] know who it was, the officer said it's him.
[1:25:47] The owner of Sunset Acres.
[1:25:49] We showed the officer photos of his license plate,
[1:25:52] and they transferred our videos documenting that event.
[1:25:55] Despite the good things they say,
[1:25:57] and you've heard this is the way they
[1:25:58] treat their neighbors with anger, harassment and threats.
[1:26:07] The Cosas bought up property from Donny and Kellie Wiggins,
[1:26:14] who are good friends of ours 15 years or so.
[1:26:16] We both raised beautiful alpacas in our barns,
[1:26:20] and we played pickleball with them on the weekends.
[1:26:22] As the closest -- it was agriculturally vacant.
[1:26:28] Thanks for this opportunity to speak, hoping you
[1:26:36] will honor the importance of following
[1:26:38] the rules and regulations of running a business in Fresno
[1:26:40] County.
[1:26:44] >> Thank you.
[1:26:46] >> I have copies.
[1:26:48] >> Anyone else that wishes to speak?
[1:26:57] >> Thank you for allowing me to speak.
[1:26:59] I live on Claremont in Fowler.
[1:27:00] I respectfully ask the board to deny the CPU for the sunset.
[1:27:01] My concerns are not personal.
[1:27:03] They are based on first hand observations.
[1:27:06] From 23 to May of 26, I observed approximately 100 events.
[1:27:13] The impact of increased traffic is noticeable.
[1:27:20] A road reflector has been removed
[1:27:22] in a driveway added to accommodate large scale events.
[1:27:27] The light pollution goes beyond the property line.
[1:27:31] Noise has been my primary concern.
[1:27:36] From my backyard, I have been able to hear
[1:27:43] amplified music and explicit lyrics from events.
[1:27:51] For example, I've heard the song,
[1:27:54] what's your Fantasy by Ludacris from my property.
[1:27:54] Event trash is often seen along the roadside or at the vineyard.
[1:27:57] The neighboring farmer may feel uncomfortable or be
[1:28:05] hindered when (Indistinct).
[1:28:15] With this event center affect the desirability and property,
[1:28:17] the value of surrounding properties?
[1:28:17] Who is accountable for this?
[1:28:19] I wonder how events will be monitored in the future?
[1:28:23] As stated by Mrs. Kosa at the June 2025 Commissioners meeting,
[1:28:34] the Sunset Acres is not our bread and butter, and quote.
[1:28:37] Sounds more like a hobby for them.
[1:28:40] It does not affect their livelihood.
[1:28:41] One interesting observation I've made
[1:28:45] is that the Cosas have already leveled
[1:28:52] the prepare the land they would like to parcel,
[1:28:54] and that makes me very presumptuous of them.
[1:28:56] And also are being sued by the county
[1:29:04] for not following the rules.
[1:29:05] Approving this teaches them that the rules
[1:29:06] don't apply if you're willing to withstand a slap on the wrist.
[1:29:09] Thank you for your time.
[1:29:11] >> Anyone else who wishes to speak?
[1:29:19] >> Good morning.
[1:29:22] My name is Rod.
[1:29:23] I've lived there since 1983 at 9254 South Claremont.
[1:29:25] In the past, one time I got a petition,
[1:29:39] a notification that somebody wanted
[1:29:41] to do a variance on property.
[1:29:41] It was to the west.
[1:29:41] I looked at it and it didn't concern me or bother me.
[1:29:45] I can't remember what it was about,
[1:29:48] but I got the notification.
[1:29:57] We have never received the notification, ever.
[1:30:06] They have been there for four years.
[1:30:10] You've heard it all.
[1:30:12] We haven't received any information since.
[1:30:14] We have no notifications or nobody's
[1:30:16] coming to talk to us about what can be done.
[1:30:19] They printed here, the lights don't
[1:30:28] shine down here they said they're going
[1:30:29] to put the lights shining down.
[1:30:34] They shine out, they're LEDs.
[1:30:36] They're extremely bright.
[1:30:37] They're not like the mercury or the high pressure sodium.
[1:30:45] Also, They built the building venue with a permit for storage.
[1:30:47] That's how they got it built. They
[1:30:49] talk about the antiquity of the houses there,
[1:31:04] But I've seen venues that use old barns.
[1:31:13] And they just tore the barn down.
[1:31:15] It would have been-- the noise is really bad.
[1:31:23] The lights are worse because they point south,
[1:31:25] and they have indicated other times
[1:31:27] that it's one of the reasons we receive a lot of noise,
[1:31:30] we found out it's coming out that they aim
[1:31:33] the speakers to the southwest.
[1:31:35] That's where we are.
[1:31:41] I don't know why we should be subjected to this.
[1:31:44] Maybe the gentleman that lives catty corner from them,
[1:31:51] maybe they claimed the speakers at him since he likes the noise.
[1:31:54] But I never properly started in a proper manner,
[1:31:59] they have lawyers in the family.
[1:32:00] They know what's proper.
[1:32:02] They just went ahead and, what is it?
[1:32:16] Beg forgiveness?
[1:32:17] I don't think we should forgive them for this.
[1:32:17] It's not their livelihood.
[1:32:18] >> Thank you.
[1:32:22] Anyone else wishes to speak?
[1:32:25] >> Hello.
[1:32:27] My name is Laura and I live at 9282 South Claremont.
[1:32:30] Thank you for the time to voice my concerns about the business.
[1:32:31] The Sunset Acres were told to stop operating during
[1:32:33] the Planning Commission meeting on June 26th, 2025.
[1:32:36] But they did not appear during the Planning Commission meeting
[1:32:40] on June 18th 2026, they stated they only had one event
[1:32:45] in February 2026.
[1:32:47] This is not true.
[1:32:49] They had over a dozen events throughout that time frame.
[1:32:52] The last event was on May 31st, 2026.
[1:32:55] Like others said, the lights are very bright.
[1:33:02] They have recently moved parking lot lights from the north side
[1:33:08] to the south side, but I asked them
[1:33:14] to do that 2 or 3 years ago.
[1:33:15] Why now?
[1:33:16] Because they want their CUP.
[1:33:21] The noise this business has to conduct a field study.
[1:33:23] It stated that the noise will not have
[1:33:23] an impact on the neighbors.
[1:33:24] It is disturbing my peace.
[1:33:25] I can hear DJ announcements.
[1:33:27] I can hear music that sometimes contains bad language.
[1:33:30] The Sunset acres said that they monitor
[1:33:31] the music with noise meters.
[1:33:33] However, there is no one monitoring the sunset.
[1:33:36] Some events have lasted until 12 a.m..
[1:33:39] The sunset Acres said that this was an existing event facility.
[1:33:45] This is not true.
[1:33:47] The Sunset Acres bought this property a few years ago
[1:33:49] and they created this event facility
[1:33:51] before obtaining the proper permits.
[1:33:57] I've never owned a business before,
[1:34:00] and I even know that I have to get a permit to do it.
[1:34:02] Even with simple research.
[1:34:02] The Sunset Acres have said that this property
[1:34:04] was agriculturally abandoned.
[1:34:05] This is not true.
[1:34:06] It was owned by people that lived in the home
[1:34:08] and had alpacas and kept the property maintained.
[1:34:10] This business should not be allowed to operate.
[1:34:12] When I tell people that they are operating
[1:34:14] without the proper permits, they do not feel it is right or fair.
[1:34:17] Businesses in the community tell me
[1:34:19] they do not feel comfortable signing the petition
[1:34:21] in opposition because they fear retaliation
[1:34:23] on their livelihoods.
[1:34:24] This is not right.
[1:34:26] It appears they don't have to follow the rules unless they
[1:34:29] are forced.
[1:34:30] Everyone must follow the rules and regulations,
[1:34:32] which they have not been.
[1:34:35] >> Anyone else?
[1:34:39] I'm going to bring it back to comments or questions.
[1:34:58] >> Mr. Mata, what are some of the original conditions that you
[1:35:01] told them they had to do, and what did they do?
[1:35:03] Like the lighting.
[1:35:07] >> Large zoning required them that had to be directed away
[1:35:09] from the surrounding properties.
[1:35:09] That's a requirement in the zoning ordinance now.
[1:35:10] If either through complaints or inspections
[1:35:12] shows that's not the case, we need to move the lighting around
[1:35:15] so it's not causing glare on the properties.
[1:35:17] There's noise mitigation that's attached
[1:35:21] to this project that requires noise metering, direction
[1:35:30] of the speakers.
[1:35:32] We've added conditions to require them to cease operation
[1:35:32] by 10 p.m.
[1:35:33] For outdoor events, and then cleanup ends by 12.
[1:35:37] In general, we were looking at the outdoor noise impacts,
[1:35:43] trying to do things that we've heard neighbors concerns on.
[1:35:45] Timing and noise mitigation, those
[1:35:47] are the things that we have added
[1:35:52] as far as conditions of approval in the course of lighting.
[1:35:58] >> So they basically did what you told them they had to do?
[1:36:01] >> Our understanding, as far as operating,
[1:36:03] I can't speak to that, although we know there's been read policy
[1:36:06] service out there, and code enforcement has been involved
[1:36:09] with that.
[1:36:10] But we do have conditions to try to address those.
[1:36:12] >> Prior to the Planning Commission,
[1:36:21] because this is basically, can you make the findings?
[1:36:26] I'm going to use finding one of the size of the proposed use
[1:36:28] is adequate in size and shape to accommodate the use of all yard
[1:36:37] spaces, walls and parking.
[1:36:42] Did they meet that?
[1:36:43] >> Staff was able to make those findings.
[1:36:43] There's overflow parking available on the site
[1:36:45] to deal with extra folks as long as they're not
[1:36:47] exceeding the total number and the OP statement,
[1:36:58] staff reviewed the site plan and there's adequate parking.
[1:37:01] >> Finding two sets the site for proposed use relates to streets,
[1:37:05] highways adequate in width and pavement type to carry Quantity
[1:37:18] of the traffic.
[1:37:21] Did they meet that?
[1:37:24] >> Yes, they did.
[1:37:25] The only condition that came out of this
[1:37:25] is that they need to do a traffic management
[1:37:25] plan for events that they work with road
[1:37:25] maintenance and operations Division to submit those plans.
[1:37:27] >> The proposed use will not have any adverse impact
[1:37:29] on abutting property and the surrounding neighborhood
[1:37:33] for allowed to use there are?
[1:37:36] >> Staff was able to make that finding based on the mitigation
[1:37:45] measures and conditions.
[1:37:52] >> And the last one is the proposed development is
[1:37:54] consistent with the General Plan.
[1:37:54] >> Staff is able to make that finding event centers is
[1:37:56] permitted with the conditional use permit now in agricultural
[1:38:03] zone districts, there are a number of them in the county.
[1:38:06] >> Anyone else have >> Mr. Mata, one of the resident says they
[1:38:17] didn't receive any notification.
[1:38:19] Did we send notifications for this kind of thing?
[1:38:24] >> We do.
[1:38:24] A quarter mile.
[1:38:24] >> Everyone within a quarter mile should have received
[1:38:27] notification?
[1:38:37] >> That's correct.
[1:38:39] >> Also on the agenda item, is they want to split the property
[1:38:42] in two is that correct that's correct.
[1:38:44] The applicant requested to do that so they could separate
[1:38:44] the event facility from their other part of the parcel
[1:38:46] so they want to build a house on their.
[1:38:58] >> Staff was able to make the findings for the variance.
[1:39:00] >> Did they build significant portion of this without proper
[1:39:03] permits they're?
[1:39:03] >> There was.
[1:39:03] Activity occurred without permit.
[1:39:03] They do have permits and process.
[1:39:04] They aren't all final because it's pending.
[1:39:07] >> So they have been out and inspected and they've passed all
[1:39:10] of those?
[1:39:11] >> We haven't completed all of the inspections,
[1:39:13] but they do have permits in process and there's things like
[1:39:16] the restrooms.
[1:39:25] >> And my last question it's been stated several times that
[1:39:27] during the Planning Commission, they were asked to stop,
[1:39:29] but it seems other people said they kept going.
[1:39:35] What do you know about that?
[1:39:36] >> Those complaints would have gone to code enforcement.
[1:39:40] We did check with the Sheriff's office.
[1:39:42] They were calls of service from February-- mostly related
[1:39:51] to noise.
[1:39:51] So our understanding is there were events.
[1:39:53] I don't know how many, but there were calls to service out there.
[1:40:01] >> I have one of these in my district.
[1:40:04] We have similar concerns.
[1:40:05] We put several measures against that.
[1:40:07] I'm assuming this is a conditional use permit?
[1:40:14] >> Correct.
[1:40:15] >> What are the ramifications if they violate our conditions.
[1:40:22] What happens?
[1:40:24] >> Revocations.
[1:40:24] We can bring it back to the decision making body
[1:40:26] to your board for if they don't comply.
[1:40:34] >> And what sets the parameters for that?
[1:40:36] >> Violation of any condition.
[1:40:36] If we get complaints enforcement gets complaints,
[1:40:38] they don't resolve the issue, then we can take it back.
[1:40:46] >> My question more specifically would be,
[1:40:47] how many more complaints would we have to get before it comes
[1:40:47] back?
[1:40:47] >> There isn't a number.
[1:40:47] It could be one complaint.
[1:40:47] If they're not operating.
[1:40:48] >> So they're supposed to close down by ten,
[1:40:55] and they stay open till midnight and a neighbor filed
[1:40:58] a complaint, what happened?
[1:41:04] >> Code enforcement contacted them,
[1:41:05] and were contacted and it continues to happen,
[1:41:05] then we would tell and send them a letter,
[1:41:06] we're going to revoke your use permit.
[1:41:08] If it doesn't improve or if there's a pattern,
[1:41:11] then we'll bring it back for revocation.
[1:41:14] >> Because I think the one speaker said they just kept
[1:41:16] going because there was no teeth or getting slapped on the wrist.
[1:41:21] I can appreciate that.
[1:41:22] I'd like to have a little teeth.
[1:41:28] The one in my district seems to be operating fairly well.
[1:41:34] This is definitely more split.
[1:41:39] We have half in favor and half opposed.
[1:41:44] It's a tough call.
[1:41:48] For those in opposition, for me, my only concern
[1:41:51] is I'm willing to give people a chance.
[1:41:53] It seems like they pushed the outer envelope
[1:41:53] and even when they were supposed to they pushed anyway.
[1:41:54] I don't really appreciate that.
[1:41:56] I don't like that I think when you're asked to stop,
[1:42:00] you're under review, you have to stop.
[1:42:02] And if you think you're going to push the envelope
[1:42:05] and keep going, that's just not right.
[1:42:14] Not right.
[1:42:16] For me, I like to have the applicant come forward
[1:42:20] and answer that.
[1:42:21] I would.
[1:42:24] I want an answer to that.
[1:42:29] >> I want to make sure that this is John Quincy again.
[1:42:32] I'm bringing up Mr. Kosa.
[1:42:33] I want to make sure that we're clear on the timeline.
[1:42:33] After the Planning Commission, my understanding
[1:42:33] is the event ceased.
[1:42:34] There was actually an event that was scheduled,
[1:42:37] it was for this month in August, and that
[1:42:39] resulted in a very difficult conversation with the bride,
[1:42:43] where she had to be refunded, damages were paid to her.
[1:42:46] She unfortunately had to look for a different location
[1:42:49] for her wedding.
[1:42:50] So that ceased pending the outcome of this hearing.
[1:42:54] >> You as an attorney, what is your justification for even
[1:43:01] scheduling such a thing when you're not fully permitted?
[1:43:03] >> Oftentimes, those are scheduled before these events
[1:43:11] arise to this level.
[1:43:11] So unfortunately that happens, ultimately the Cosa
[1:43:14] made it right to the bride.
[1:43:15] Since the planning commission meeting
[1:43:16] I just want to make sure we're clear on the timeline.
[1:43:19] Since the Planning Commission meeting,
[1:43:21] there haven't been any events.
[1:43:23] >> You're gonna state that for the record?
[1:43:32] >> So if I go and bring the log in here,
[1:43:35] they go out there and have events,
[1:43:35] you're gonna state that they didn't occur?
[1:43:35] >> There were no events.
[1:43:36] I can't speak as far as calls for service.
[1:43:41] >> Yes, there were no events and no share departments contacted
[1:43:47] us as a family by any situations after the Planning Commission
[1:43:49] meeting.
[1:43:50] >> Let's be clear on that timeline,
[1:43:57] because I feel like there was a planning commission meeting
[1:43:59] a couple of months ago, but then there was 1 in 2025.
[1:43:59] That was my understanding that in 2025, there
[1:44:01] was a statement saying that activity
[1:44:03] should cease and desist.
[1:44:04] So to your point, just to make sure we're
[1:44:07] talking about appropriate timelines,
[1:44:08] are you saying there haven't been
[1:44:09] any events since the summer of 2025 until today?
[1:44:23] >> No.
[1:44:24] >> Go ahead.
[1:44:25] When I was referring to the Planning Commission meeting,
[1:44:26] I was referring to the Planning Commission meeting
[1:44:26] a couple of months ago.
[1:44:26] And since that time, there have been no events.
[1:44:28] There were events prior, mid 2025,
[1:44:40] that's something that the coaches have been
[1:44:42] working through with staff.
[1:44:46] They understood after the second Planning Commission meeting,
[1:44:48] they needed to stop.
[1:44:48] And they did until they ultimately
[1:44:49] got their land use approval of the Board of Supervisors
[1:44:51] pesticide.
[1:44:53] >> I'm sure you're aware that the five up here have
[1:45:02] a balancing act, and I believe every one of us believes
[1:45:04] in personal property rights, you should be allowed to do what you
[1:45:07] want with your property.
[1:45:08] However, those of us in AG also believe
[1:45:17] you shouldn't interfere with someone else's rights as well.
[1:45:19] I hope your applicant-- and this is Supervisor Mendez district.
[1:45:25] You will have the greatest say.
[1:45:26] Just like we're given the greatest
[1:45:26] courtesy in that district.
[1:45:26] So whatever his recommendation is,
[1:45:28] I'm prepared to support that.
[1:45:31] However, if he is willing to give you the conditions
[1:45:38] to meet as what happened in my district, if you violate that,
[1:45:41] I'd be the first one to make a motion to take it away from you.
[1:45:41] I don't care how much money you have
[1:45:43] invested because you've been given a chance,
[1:45:45] you've been told.
[1:45:46] And if you violate that rule against the defiance
[1:45:49] of the members of this board, then you
[1:45:51] shouldn't be allowed to operate.
[1:45:53] And I want to make that perfectly clear if you're given
[1:45:55] the opportunity to go forward.
[1:45:57] Do you understand that?
[1:46:08] >> Yes, sir.
[1:46:10] >> Then we're good.
[1:46:13] >> Go ahead.
[1:46:14] >> Briefly, I agree with what Supervisor Pacheco mentioned
[1:46:17] with regards to us trying to balance the property rights
[1:46:17] of individuals that are trying to make business
[1:46:17] in their community.
[1:46:18] What I'm trying to reconcile is, and I checked with our folks
[1:46:23] from the city of.
[1:46:24] There were a couple of references
[1:46:26] made that the city of Falls was not supportive of this.
[1:46:30] I asked them, in the city of Fowler does not oppose this.
[1:46:36] I want to make sure that folks recognize that into the record.
[1:46:38] When I checked, they said they had no complaints
[1:46:38] about this property.
[1:46:40] I agree with what Supervisor Pacheco mentioned.
[1:46:43] I think you were trying to be a good neighbor.
[1:46:46] You're trying to rectify a lot of things
[1:46:47] that did not occur before.
[1:46:51] I think Supervisor Mendez did a great job of going
[1:46:57] through the checklist of what you satisfied,
[1:46:58] and that would be in agreement of Supervisor Mendez would like
[1:46:58] to give them an opportunity to do that with the expectation
[1:47:02] that they would follow the conditional use permit,
[1:47:15] criteria and everything that's outlined on there.
[1:47:21] >> I have some questions.
[1:47:25] >> No, it's closed.
[1:47:29] You can't.
[1:47:30] I share all of the concerns that supervisor Pacheco said,
[1:47:30] and concern that I have is that there have been coded violations
[1:47:31] over three years that they have been operating
[1:47:34] without conditional use permit.
[1:47:37] Is that correct?
[1:47:47] >> That's correct.
[1:47:49] There's a violation open on the property for operating
[1:47:50] event center without permits.
[1:47:50] Code enforcement has been actively involved in that,
[1:47:50] dealing with them.
[1:47:51] >> So if they've been actively violating, not having permits.
[1:47:58] How have we not shut them down for three years?
[1:48:00] >> I can't speak to code enforcement actions.
[1:48:07] Specifically code enforcement has been invited.
[1:48:09] There may be someone here that can
[1:48:09] speak to enforcement ongoing investigations and interactions
[1:48:09] with the property owner.
[1:48:10] They are aware and we are aware of their activities
[1:48:12] and code enforcement staff they speak at the Planning Commission
[1:48:15] regarding their investigations on the site.
[1:48:17] >> Anybody from code enforcement want to address it?
[1:48:34] >> Good morning.
[1:48:35] I'm here with El Harrison, who can speak for those items.
[1:48:45] >> sure.
[1:48:46] >> Good morning.
[1:48:48] Thank you.
[1:48:50] We filed an injunction and process for 8853 South Fowler,
[1:48:50] also known as Sunset Acre.
[1:48:50] It's in Wood County Council.
[1:48:51] >> You filed an injunction to shut them down?
[1:48:59] >> That is correct.
[1:49:04] Injunction was filed in June 13th of 24.
[1:49:06] It is still in process with the County Council.
[1:49:08] They are in mediation with the attorneys for Sunset Acres.
[1:49:11] >> So why has this taken two years?
[1:49:23] June 2024.
[1:49:26] >> I don't know why it's taking so long.
[1:49:27] I know the temporary restraining order was last November.
[1:49:27] The preliminary injunction which was just spoken up
[1:49:27] is telling the court process.
[1:49:29] >> I think we have to do better than this.
[1:49:38] We have people who have been complaining.
[1:49:46] The I'm troubled by this.
[1:49:47] It feels like we've allowed people to operate illegally.
[1:49:50] And here we are.
[1:49:53] They're asking to now operate legally
[1:49:55] after operating illegally for several years.
[1:49:56] That's quite troubling to me.
[1:50:03] It feels like somehow we've let down people.
[1:50:04] I think we need to own that.
[1:50:12] In terms of the conditional use permit--
[1:50:13] let me ask you this question.
[1:50:17] It says in the staff report that when they went to the Planning
[1:50:17] Commission, a motion was made to deny
[1:50:17] the applications due to an inability
[1:50:18] to make any of the required findings for the UCUP
[1:50:28] nor the required findings for the variance.
[1:50:30] At that time, were the findings were not there,
[1:50:30] but they're saying the findings are there today?
[1:50:30] >> The Planning Commission disagrees with
[1:50:32] staff's recommendation on testimony.
[1:50:34] They received in the the permit.
[1:50:36] Ours is a recommendation.
[1:50:38] They chose to not be able to make those findings.
[1:50:51] >> So the Planning commission's findings.
[1:50:53] I got that.
[1:50:53] On the conditional use permit, what limits
[1:50:53] are you imposing on them in terms of time, operation, noise
[1:50:57] to address the concerns of the neighbors?
[1:51:00] >> We're limiting outdoor operations to cease at 10 p.m.
[1:51:08] And there's noise mitigation to address On-Site noise
[1:51:10] monitoring, at the speakers are turned.
[1:51:14] Other mitigation measures to try to address those factors.
[1:51:19] Based on the noise study that the applicants noise
[1:51:23] analyst prepared, the application
[1:51:26] did not violate our noise ordinance,
[1:51:28] we were agreeable to the analysis that was provided.
[1:51:31] I will say that your board can further limit operations.
[1:51:34] They can say no outdoor events.
[1:51:37] Outdoor events can cease at 9 p.m.
[1:51:40] And your board can also add staff
[1:51:42] recommending two additional conditions of approval.
[1:51:45] And the other is the community water system.
[1:51:47] A third condition of approval could
[1:51:49] be that if staff receives three validated complaints
[1:51:52] for not operating within compliance of these permits,
[1:51:55] that we bring it back to the decision
[1:51:57] making body for revocation or whatever your board desires.
[1:52:09] >> I also share the same feeling with Supervisor Pacheco.
[1:52:12] I am very supportive of my colleague
[1:52:13] and what he wants to do in his district.
[1:52:16] I'm wondering, if some of these issues
[1:52:23] around the conditional use permit
[1:52:25] and their limitations and requirements of approving
[1:52:25] the Conditional use permit, if there's some way
[1:52:27] to have neighbors meet with the property owner
[1:52:29] to come up with some agreed limitations
[1:52:32] on the conditional use permit?
[1:52:35] I don't know if that creates a problem for you.
[1:52:43] No?
[1:52:45] Okay.
[1:52:48] I am concerned about this gentleman
[1:52:50] having operated for several years without legal permits.
[1:52:52] I do think we need to be sensitive to what
[1:52:58] the neighbors are requesting and the concerns that they have.
[1:53:00] With that, I'm looking forward to hearing from my colleague.
[1:53:08] >> I asked Supervisor Pacheco, the one we were talking about
[1:53:11] before, because we put on extra limitations.
[1:53:20] >> I don't recall everything.
[1:53:22] It was several years ago.
[1:53:23] Whatever we did to that, I would put on the exact same thing
[1:53:23] here to be equal and to be fair.
[1:53:25] And it seems to be working well for me
[1:53:27] I have not had one complaint since we've done that.
[1:53:30] There are neighbors that literally live next door
[1:53:33] across the street, and they have been great neighbors
[1:53:43] and abided by the rules.
[1:53:44] I would like to put a similar on this property
[1:53:44] based on what we heard today.
[1:53:46] Are you familiar?
[1:53:47] I am.
[1:53:48] We took that approach with the application.
[1:53:50] Initially the applicant requested later time.
[1:53:54] Working through with this process,
[1:53:56] and we can't speak to how late they have been operating
[1:53:59] to date, but the approach we took was 10 p.m..
[1:54:02] All events have to cease.
[1:54:04] No more amplified music.
[1:54:05] We do allow them two hours for cleanup.
[1:54:15] So that falls very similar to what you described.
[1:54:18] We anticipated that, given the amount of controversy
[1:54:20] and complaints we received.
[1:54:20] We scaled back their operation from what they originally
[1:54:21] proposed.
[1:54:22] >> And they still have to follow the noise ordinance.
[1:54:32] >> They do.
[1:54:32] And they're required to conduct sampling noise surveys
[1:54:32] while the activities are ongoing.
[1:54:32] We have the ability to monitor what the noise levels are
[1:54:35] as these events occur.
[1:54:37] To Chris's point, if we get validated complaints
[1:54:41] that they're not following their rules or conditions,
[1:54:44] and they've heard pretty clearly that this board will not
[1:54:49] hesitate to resend that permit.
[1:54:54] And I know the neighbors will be monitoring that.
[1:55:05] >> I'm okay with that.
[1:55:06] >> I'll actually familiar with the area.
[1:55:10] >> And I think they understand we take that away
[1:55:14] in a heartbeat.
[1:55:14] I don't care how much you invested.
[1:55:14] You either do it the right way, or you lose that privilege.
[1:55:17] >> I'll make that into a motion, under those circumstances that
[1:55:26] Supervisor Pacheco outlined.
[1:55:32] >> I'll second.
[1:55:34] >> All those in favor, say aye.
[1:55:39] The motion passes >> And just for clarification, your motion
[1:55:43] included other recommended conditions in the additional?
[1:55:45] >> Yes.
[1:55:47] And if they violate them, bring it right back.
[1:55:51] I want to take you to item number six.
[1:56:00] >> It appears that the notice of public hearing was not published
[1:56:02] in a newspaper of general circulation.
[1:56:02] We contacted this morning and they
[1:56:04] confirmed that they did receive notice on the clerk's office.
[1:56:06] Unfortunately fell through the cracks on their end.
[1:56:09] I will put processes in place to avoid
[1:56:12] the situation in the future.
[1:56:14] Will put extra steps over.
[1:56:16] Item six will be continuing until September 8th.
[1:56:19] We will publish it Friday, get confirmation from the newspaper
[1:56:22] of General circulation, and that will give us ten days so it
[1:56:27] lands just right for September 8th.
[1:56:29] We will now move to item number eight under Public Works
[1:56:33] and Planning pure .
[1:56:47] Consider and approve petition for cancellation of Agricultural
[1:56:50] Land Conservation Contract No.
[1:56:50] 8271 filed by Yamabe & Horn Engineering,
[1:56:50] on behalf of Joseph Crown (Applicant),
[1:56:50] to a 38.18-acre parcel from Williamson Act Program to allow
[1:56:50] parcel to be annexed to City of and developed as a residential
[1:56:50] subdivision; and after making all five required findings
[1:56:50] listed Government Code, Section 51282(b),
[1:56:50] take the following actions: a) adopt and authorize to execute
[1:56:50] Resolution authorizing cancellation of ALCC No.
[1:56:52] 8271; and b) authorize Chairman execute Certificate of Tentative
[1:57:08] .
[1:57:10] >> This item is our request to approve a petition
[1:57:10] for cancellation for agricultural and conservation
[1:57:12] contract number 8271 between approximately 38 acres.
[1:57:20] Staff was able to make all of the cancellation findings,
[1:57:23] recommends approval of this request
[1:57:23] that concludes my presentation.
[1:57:25] >> Any comments from the board?
[1:57:30] Any comments from the public?
[1:57:31] Is there a motion and a second?
[1:57:34] All those in favor, say aye.
[1:57:46] It passes unanimously.
[1:57:47] Next item.
[1:57:48] >> We now move to item number nine.
[1:57:50] Or of supervisor's committee reports and comments.
[1:57:52] >> Any reports or comments?
[1:58:00] >> Some of Fresno County staff, my office we have a community
[1:58:02] meeting which is going to take place tomorrow for Silver
[1:58:03] Springs, water work district 40.
[1:58:04] I want to thank staff and I know that we're reaching out
[1:58:06] to the State Water Board as well to try
[1:58:08] to see if we can get a representative coming out.
[1:58:10] We've got over 100 special districts in Fresno County,
[1:58:13] I brought it up in the past that there
[1:58:15] are many challenges and the strains that we face as a county
[1:58:19] as it relates to a lot of our districts,
[1:58:21] whether it be water districts, CSAs, CSDs,
[1:58:36] so I think it's important for us to be fully engaged
[1:58:38] in that front.
[1:58:38] Meeting going to take place tomorrow.
[1:58:38] I know many residents are going to be coming out for that.
[1:58:38] I look forward to providing an update
[1:58:38] on outcomes from that meeting.
[1:58:39] A lot of other things going on.
[1:58:41] I will say yield my time back to buddy,
[1:58:44] because he always has witty things he likes to say.
[1:58:58] >> I'll make a comment.
[1:58:59] I see Ben Ewell sitting in the back there.
[1:58:59] He has two of his sons with him.
[1:59:00] It's always good to see Ben.
[1:59:13] >> Anyone else?
[1:59:14] No.
[1:59:15] We don't have any-
[1:59:18] >> We now move to item number ten.
[1:59:20] Board appointments.
[1:59:20] >> None?
[1:59:22] Nope.
[1:59:23] We will move on to the next.
[1:59:28] >> We will now move to item number 11, public presentations.
[1:59:30] This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons.
[1:59:39] >> Any comments from the public on any matter not on this agenda
[1:59:42] or any comments from the public on closed sessions item 13
[1:59:42] through 22?
[1:59:43] Please come forward.
[2:00:01] >> My name is Jennifer Taber.
[2:00:02] I'm a resident and customer of Fresno County Water Works
[2:00:02] district number 40, Shaver Springs.
[2:00:02] I want to put several facts from the government's own records
[2:00:03] into public record today.
[2:00:04] Because residents deserve an explanation of what
[2:00:07] happened to this water system over the last 17 years.
[2:00:13] Records dating back to 2008, 2009
[2:00:17] describe an extremely Serious situation
[2:00:30] of WWD-40, all wells that served w WD 40 have been contaminated
[2:00:40] with uranium nitrates.
[2:00:41] As a result, the district no longer possesses drinking water.
[2:00:42] Another government record describes 5 or 6 wells
[2:00:44] chemically or radiologically contaminated in the state's.
[2:00:47] The district does not have potable water.
[2:00:49] That same record identifies three water storage tanks
[2:00:52] and the -- it also states that four existing wells were
[2:00:55] supposed to be destroyed pursuant to recommendations from
[2:00:57] the California Department of Public Health.
[2:00:59] In March 20th 2025 state drinking water document states
[2:01:03] that compliance order was issued in 2009 for uranium MCL
[2:01:09] noncompliance at Wells six.
[2:01:10] Another compliance order was issued in 2013
[2:01:19] for a gross-- the water system must comply
[2:01:25] with the requirements of compliance orders
[2:01:27] until the water system is returned to compliance.
[2:01:27] What happened between the record saying the district
[2:01:27] does not possess potable district water and Fresno County
[2:01:31] providing the water to WWD40 customers.
[2:01:35] Is that tank still part of our drinking water system today?
[2:01:40] The board has authority to call an emergency.
[2:01:45] I want the record to be clear that Fresno County is not
[2:01:49] limited simply to waiting for another agency to act.
[2:02:04] >> Thank you, ma'am.
[2:02:07] Next, please.
[2:02:08] >> Hi.
[2:02:09] Good afternoon.
[2:02:09] I am a young resident of Shaver Springs.
[2:02:10] My name is Kelly Taber.
[2:02:10] I live in Shaver Springs.
[2:02:11] I'm not a water engineer, attorney or governor official.
[2:02:20] I'm a young person who should be able to turn
[2:02:22] on a faucet in my home without wondering
[2:02:22] whether the water is safe.
[2:02:22] Over the past several months I've
[2:02:22] watched my mom spend countless hours trying
[2:02:23] to understand what has happened to our water system.
[2:02:25] What she found didn't come from Facebook or rumors.
[2:02:28] It came from the government records.
[2:02:30] Those records talk about uranium gross alpha, contaminated wells.
[2:02:36] A system that was described as not having potable water
[2:02:39] in a storage tank that was described
[2:02:42] as deteriorating beyond repair.
[2:02:44] These problems started when I was a little kid
[2:02:47] and some of them even started before I was born.
[2:02:50] Yet, families are still standing here asking what happened.
[2:02:56] Young people in Silver Springs didn't create these problems.
[2:03:03] We can't inspect the water tank ourselves.
[2:03:05] We can't replace the contaminant well.
[2:03:05] We can't issue an emergency declaration.
[2:03:07] We can't force a government agency
[2:03:08] to fix the public water system.
[2:03:10] We depend on adults like you, responsible for the system
[2:03:24] to protect us.
[2:03:24] I'm not standing here today to tell you
[2:03:24] what our water costs anyone's illness.
[2:03:24] I'm asking something much simpler.
[2:03:24] Please make sure the water provided to our families is safe
[2:03:27] and prove it with testing inspections and records.
[2:03:29] If the tanks haven't been internally inspected,
[2:03:32] inspect them.
[2:03:33] It's not that hard.
[2:03:34] If contaminated wells were supposed to be destroyed,
[2:03:38] show us what happened to them, and while these questions are
[2:03:41] being resolved, please do everything within your authority
[2:03:52] to help families obtain safe drinking water.
[2:03:53] Please treat the families and children of Silver Springs,
[2:04:00] like how you would treat your family.
[2:04:02] We shouldn't have to wait for something worse
[2:04:02] to happen before someone decides this deserves urgent action.
[2:04:02] Thank you for listening.
[2:04:05] >> Hello.
[2:04:08] My name is Jessica Mahoney.
[2:04:13] I'm here to support the families of Shaver Springs California.
[2:04:16] Their water system has been horrible for years.
[2:04:18] Before and after the Creek fire incident.
[2:04:22] Our resident of district three.
[2:04:28] I did not live in Silver Springs,
[2:04:29] but this doesn't mean I don't care.
[2:04:29] I volunteered with the Red cross during the Creek Fire.
[2:04:29] I helped people get into motels.
[2:04:30] I delivered food to the motels.
[2:04:32] I care about our community and our neighbors.
[2:04:36] Our neighbors our neighbors in Christ
[2:04:38] and human beings that deserve clean and safe drinking
[2:04:43] water I submitted to the county clerk this document
[2:04:47] from last year.
[2:04:50] Sanitary Survey report on Silver Springs Wells.
[2:04:54] They give you 15 different items to fix your different timelines.
[2:05:00] Three of them were immediate corrections.
[2:05:04] One was called to Billy, which is
[2:05:08] the discoloration of the water.
[2:05:10] It's caused by minerals, bacteria.
[2:05:15] Bio contaminants.
[2:05:18] High iron and uranium.
[2:05:20] It's in that water.
[2:05:23] And Jubilee is usually one m HCl.
[2:05:26] This was 28 according to EPA.
[2:05:30] Anything over a five is dangerous to drink
[2:05:32] and should not be drunk by anybody.
[2:05:35] Not just babies.
[2:05:37] Not elderly or people that are sick.
[2:05:39] Nobody should be drinking the water at a w w d 40.
[2:05:44] These people need bottled water like you guys did in Creek.
[2:05:49] Those areas a couple of years ago
[2:05:51] I don't know why these wells haven't been fixed.
[2:05:54] That property across from militant the development
[2:05:57] a few years ago they got a COVID loan to fix their wells.
[2:06:01] These people are not big developers.
[2:06:03] Their families paid a high rate.
[2:06:06] The biggest in the country.
[2:06:08] Thousands of dollars each month for water they cannot drink.
[2:06:24] >> Thank you.
[2:06:25] >> Good morning.
[2:06:29] My name is Olga Maria Silva.
[2:06:30] I live in the community of Del Rey.
[2:06:31] Del Rey is a small community of a lot
[2:06:38] of poor people, a lot of seniors people
[2:06:42] that do not have a lot of resources.
[2:06:44] I'm here to talk about an intersection
[2:06:44] of Del Rey and American Avenue.
[2:06:44] It's a very dangerous intersection.
[2:06:44] There have been many accidents.
[2:06:45] I passed by their daily.
[2:06:47] I have had very often serious near-misses
[2:06:54] of having an accident here there have been deaths there before.
[2:06:57] There have been accidents recorded in the past.
[2:07:00] A lot of people that I know I've had near
[2:07:10] misses or been run off the road.
[2:07:12] They do not report it because a lot of Mexican people
[2:07:14] don't like reporting things.
[2:07:14] You guys have done, or there have
[2:07:14] been measures where they put flashing lights
[2:07:16] and they sign that says cross traffic does not stop.
[2:07:24] And that's fine, but it's not going to solve the problem.
[2:07:32] We've been having this problem for years.
[2:07:34] We need a four way stop there.
[2:07:43] Someone said it's a highway or a major street
[2:07:45] especially for the business of Palm Wonderful, which is true
[2:07:53] but there's a stop sign a mile down American and McCall,
[2:07:55] and there's another one on Bethel.
[2:07:57] So we're requesting that you provide another stop sign.
[2:08:00] There's an issue with visibility.
[2:08:02] If you're on Del Ray Avenue heading north,
[2:08:05] you have a light pole.
[2:08:15] You have bushes and mailboxes, and you have
[2:08:18] vehicles that parked there.
[2:08:19] That's becomes unsafe.
[2:08:19] You have to pull out into the middle of the road
[2:08:19] to see oncoming traffic.
[2:08:19] Which are mostly big trucks.
[2:08:21] You have weeds.
[2:08:23] So we're asking, is it going to take another death?
[2:08:26] I hope not.
[2:08:40] >> Thank you.
[2:08:45] >> Hi, good afternoon.
[2:08:46] Victoria with the California road legal assistance.
[2:08:46] I'm here because we work with the community group
[2:08:46] in the community of Del Rey.
[2:08:48] We are here to request for an all way stop
[2:08:53] on Del Rey and American Avenue.
[2:09:09] In December of 2014 a young lady named
[2:09:10] Alejandra Yanez lost her life, leaving
[2:09:12] behind an eight month old child who is now 11.
[2:09:23] Marvin will not ever know his mother.
[2:09:26] He will never remember what her touch is like.
[2:09:28] I would just like to take something.
[2:09:36] For the supervisor Mendez referred
[2:09:38] to when he was dealing with the divider
[2:09:38] that they put on to the 41 between L'amour and Riverdale.
[2:09:40] Board of Supervisor Mendes, you made
[2:09:51] it clear that this divider was a Band-Aid on a broken arm.
[2:09:54] So here as somebody who works with the community of Del Rey,
[2:09:57] we'd like for you to help them move forward
[2:09:59] and help them take off that Band-Aid for the intersection
[2:10:02] of Del Rey and American Avenue.
[2:10:06] Help put a cast on that arm so that they
[2:10:10] can start healing and have a more safer way of commuting
[2:10:18] to and from the community of Del Rey.
[2:10:31] It's very important to make this intersection safe
[2:10:33] and move forward with taking off that
[2:10:33] Band-Aid and putting on a cast and letting them heal
[2:10:35] in the community of Del Rey.
[2:10:50] Thank you.
[2:10:51] >> Thank you.
[2:10:52] >> Good.
[2:10:53] My name is Amanda Estrada.
[2:10:54] I'm asking for the four way Stop...
[2:11:15] I don't live Del Rey anymore, but I'm through there every day.
[2:11:19] I'm part of Shining Life I'm also
[2:11:20] part of the Delray community.
[2:11:22] When you lose someone, it's a person.
[2:11:45] My Grandson is Marvin Gonzalez.
[2:11:51] The only you can get is what the AI can make.
[2:11:57] The roads are dangerous.
[2:12:01] This is my second time up here.
[2:12:05] But before this, I've been signatures.
[2:12:12] Whatever needs to be done, I stop I'm doing.
[2:12:14] I help run a food ministry. have my own.
[2:12:14] But whatever it takes to to get these four stops,
[2:12:14] it's not going to bring her back.
[2:12:17] But it might help somebody save their life.
[2:12:20] When you guys go home, your wives expect you Home safe.
[2:12:31] She left-- and we got a phone call saying, go get her.
[2:12:50] We had to drag my son.
[2:12:51] Four couldn't get him off.
[2:12:51] He was saying, let get her.
[2:12:51] We need this done.
[2:12:51] Whatever it takes.
[2:12:51] If you need us to sit there and record whatever it is,
[2:12:57] let us know, because it's just my family.
[2:13:10] It's everybody else's.
[2:13:13] Thank you.
[2:13:16] >> Thank you, ma'am.
[2:13:18] >> , supervisor. name is Joel Hinojosa.
[2:13:19] That was my wife. were devastated
[2:13:19] when this accident took place.
[2:13:20] We were both active members in the community of Del Rey.
[2:13:24] We attend church there.
[2:13:25] There's a men's home that we're a part of.
[2:13:30] We have lived in Del Rey.
[2:13:42] I am in the ag industry.
[2:13:43] I go that intersection on a daily basis.
[2:13:43] It's like day.
[2:13:44] Since the 70s, I've been in this of the valley my whole life.
[2:13:49] Since the 70s, there's been numerous accidents there.
[2:13:55] I know personally three that have been fatalities.
[2:13:57] Unfortunately, that affected lives being one of them.
[2:13:59] When this took place, we started to become active,
[2:14:10] trying to signatures and take the steps
[2:14:12] to see if could get something done about the intersection.
[2:14:12] And a member of the community, I've
[2:14:13] spoken to many people in Delray in the city.
[2:14:25] I've never spoken to anybody in that city
[2:14:27] that hasn't said that they would love to see a four-way stop.
[2:14:37] Being in the ag industry, I realized
[2:14:38] that pom Wonderful has a lot of trucks that are going through.
[2:14:38] I know that a lot of times it's about the dollar, how much can
[2:14:38] be moved on a daily basis.
[2:14:38] I send trucks out all the time.
[2:14:40] But in the ag industry, we never put life above the dollar.
[2:14:44] We always look out for the best of our employees,
[2:14:46] the people that work around us.
[2:14:55] I look at it from that aspect as far as the ag industry goes.
[2:14:59] Above that, I don't want anybody to have to go through this.
[2:15:01] I don't want anybody else to have to lose a loved one
[2:15:04] or have to deal with the repercussions of it.
[2:15:07] My wife was trying to get across that--
[2:15:12] I'll end there.
[2:15:26] >> Thank you.
[2:15:34] >> good morning board of supervisors.
[2:15:35] This is Leticia.
[2:15:35] I am a staff attorney with California Rural Legal
[2:15:35] Assistance.
[2:15:36] I am providing a public comment on behalf of residents of Del
[2:15:39] Rey to request that Fresno County install a four way stop
[2:15:42] on American and Del Rey Avenue pursuant to the county ordinance
[2:15:45] 11.04.020, which allows the Board of Supervisors
[2:15:49] to authorize the installation of a stop sign.
[2:15:51] The lack of a four way stop sign at the intersection
[2:15:54] has resulted in at least 21 pedestrian and traffic
[2:15:57] collisions in the last 12 years.
[2:15:58] These collisions have led to known fatalities,
[2:16:01] but despite this troubling history,
[2:16:03] there's currently only a two way stop sign at that intersection.
[2:16:06] In 2020, Fresno County determined
[2:16:09] that the intersection of Del Rey and American
[2:16:11] failed to meet the necessary criteria for the installation
[2:16:13] of the four way stop sign.
[2:16:15] Based on a 2020 Traffic engineering request.
[2:16:31] However, this request that Fresno latest decision on
[2:16:33] was unsupported as it was based on incomplete and outdated
[2:16:33] information.
[2:16:33] The installation of the four way stop at the intersection
[2:16:33] remains necessary to reduce the likelihood of collisions,
[2:16:34] therefore avoid fatalities or injuries.
[2:16:36] Additionally, the board should adopt the resolution
[2:16:39] to install the four way stop sign to align with the currently
[2:16:42] approved 2025 Del Rey Community Plan
[2:16:44] that emphasizes the county's commitment
[2:16:46] to improve traffic safety and being a part of bringing
[2:16:49] the community's vision to life.
[2:16:51] This request is made and pursuant to the County
[2:16:56] ordinance and documented history of the dangerous Intersection.
[2:17:00] We also submitted a public comment written,
[2:17:05] and it has signatures that Amanda was talking about.
[2:17:07] There is support in the community.
[2:17:08] Thank you so much.
[2:17:24] >> Thank you very much.
[2:17:26] Seeing no one else.
[2:17:29] >> We now move to item number 12.
[2:17:34] >> Item 11.
[2:17:35] Go ahead.
[2:17:43] >> Good morning, Mr. Chairman and members of the board.
[2:17:46] My name is Jeff Roberts.
[2:17:46] I'm a consultant and I do planning entitlement work here
[2:17:46] in Fresno County.
[2:17:46] I'll be brief this morning.
[2:17:46] I'm here with Ben Ewell who will speak for a couple of minutes.
[2:17:46] We would like to ask for your help
[2:17:49] in providing direction to staff to work with us on a new idea up
[2:17:54] in the Millerton specific plan area.
[2:17:57] Very quick history.
[2:17:58] The specific plan was approved by the board in 1984
[2:18:02] there has been development that's occurred in the area.
[2:18:06] Infrastructure that's been installed.
[2:18:07] I can tell you that the area is not developing as fast or as big
[2:18:11] as was once envisioned.
[2:18:13] Things have changed up there.
[2:18:15] There's been some ownership changes that have occurred.
[2:18:18] There's been some rules and regulations
[2:18:20] that have occurred that didn't exist back in 84.
[2:18:23] So we'd like to ask for your staff's assistance
[2:18:26] to look at some possible additions to the area.
[2:18:32] Not the ones that would necessarily add count, traffic
[2:18:36] or environmental issues and haven't
[2:18:38] been looked at before, but possibly
[2:18:40] in a different location.
[2:18:41] I passed the handout that shows the specific plan area that's
[2:18:50] highlighted in a pink area.
[2:18:53] In the area in yellow that we're talking about, looking at
[2:18:57] is possible for the new development adjacent to the CSA
[2:19:01] and Millerton.
[2:19:02] We'd appreciate any help you can give us.
[2:19:05] Our goal is to develop a conceptual plan
[2:19:08] and come back to your board with a conceptual plan.
[2:19:11] We will have to file what are called Pre-applications
[2:19:14] with the county.
[2:19:15] That has not been done yet.
[2:19:17] We fully intend to do that.
[2:19:18] So when we do come back, we'll have
[2:19:21] a complete picture of what we would like the direction to be.
[2:19:24] And your staff will be fully informed.
[2:19:27] Appreciate the time to speak.
[2:19:29] Thank you.
[2:19:49] >> Good morning.
[2:19:50] Mr. Chairman and members of the board
[2:19:50] just want to make a quick mention on the project
[2:19:52] that Jeff Roberts just spoke to.
[2:20:01] Years ago, when this project was approved unanimously
[2:20:04] by the board we've obviously done a lot of work
[2:20:04] and a lot of things have been built and a lot of issues
[2:20:04] have come and gone.
[2:20:04] A lot of people have come and gone.
[2:20:06] I'm kind of sitting here.
[2:20:10] But I do recall, a hearing when it was approved unanimously.
[2:20:19] Supervisor Aaron Collegiate, one of your predecessors
[2:20:21] leaned over up there and said, I'm going to give this to you
[2:20:29] and unanimous approval here you got a promise one thing.
[2:20:31] Stick it out and see it through and don't mess it up.
[2:20:31] That's kind of why I'm here and would
[2:20:31] like to continue to keep my promise of what I said that day.
[2:20:33] Thank you.
[2:20:40] >> Thank you.
[2:20:46] Anyone else?
[2:20:51] We will now close that and move to the next item
[2:20:53] >> We now move to item 12, County Council reports from
[2:20:53] previous closed sessions.
[2:20:54] >> There are no reports from prior closed sessions.
[2:20:59] However, I would expect a report after today's closed session.
[2:21:02] I want to wait to vote to.
[2:21:03] >> We are now going to closed session.
[2:21:18] [Meeting entered closed session]