[This transcript was generated automatically from audio using AI and hasn't been reviewed by a person -- it can contain mistakes, including plausible-sounding sentences that were never actually said. Treat it as a starting point, not a verbatim record.]

[0:02] All here, and it's 10 a.m., Madam Clerk, roll call, please. Suizor Chavez. Here. Suizor Magsick. Here. Suizor Mendes. Here. Suizor Pacheco. Here. Cameron Bredafil. Here. All present. Thank you. Okay, good morning and welcome to the September 8, 2026 meeting in the Fresno County Board of Supervisors. I will begin today with the invocation and a flag salute. The invocation will be led by district two. My district after the invocation
[0:32] Please remain standing for the flag salute and with us today is Keaton Baker, the youth ministry leader at cross city church in Northeast Fresno. Keaton, welcome to the board of supervisors. And thank you providing the invocation today.
[0:46] Thank you for having me supervisors. If you everyone could stand and bow your heads with me.
[0:52] Dear Heavenly Father, I just want to pray for this meeting today. God, I pray not only for the supervisors and just their ability to listen their ability to make decisions.
[1:02] their ability to hear but also for those of us that are proposing things this morning.
[1:07] God, I just pray that you are with us and in the words that we speak that you give us wisdom
[1:11] that you allow us to communicate with the best of our abilities. And God, I just pray that as
[1:16] somebody who works with the students and the youth in our county, God, I just pray for them.
[1:21] I pray for the people who work with them and serve them and love them. And I just pray for these
[1:27] students as they go to school. Be with them in their studies. Help minimize distractions.
[1:33] For those of the students that feel safer at school than home, God, I just pray that you keep
[1:38] providing adults that love them unconditionally. God, I pray for resources that help our students get
[1:45] the help that they need, to help them learn, to help them achieve, to help them turn around and
[1:49] bless this county with the things that they care for, with the community that they want to build
[1:55] in the future that they will bring as they are this next generation.
[2:00] I pray that you bless Fresno County, that you bless the next generation,
[2:04] that you be with all of us, not just those of us who make decisions,
[2:08] but also for those of us who want to be heard.
[2:11] It's in you know, I pray. Amen.
[2:13] Amen.
[2:14] Would you please salute?
[2:24] Very good.
[2:32] Okay,
[2:38] we'll move on to approve the agenda item one approve agenda. Okay. Is there a motion and second to approve the agenda?
[2:44] So moved. Second. All those in favor say aye. Aye.
[2:48] Pass as you and Adam slay.
[2:54] We now move to item number two. Approved consent agenda item numbers 19 to 38. Mr. Chairman members of the board so you guys are
[3:01] Pacheco wishes to pull 34.1 due to the Levine Act.
[3:06] I believe the chairman wishes to pull items 21, 22, and 23.
[3:10] Yes.
[3:11] Okay.
[3:12] Consent, these matters are routine in nature
[3:14] and usually approved by a single vote.
[3:17] Any other board members want to approve
[3:19] a full item for discussion?
[3:23] Okay.
[3:24] Would any members of the public like an item
[3:26] to move from consent for discussion?
[3:30] Seeing none, I'll bring it back.
[3:31] motion to approve.
[3:33] Second.
[3:34] Second.
[3:35] All those in favor say aye.
[3:36] Aye.
[3:37] Any opposed.
[3:38] Passes unanimously.
[3:40] Mr. Chairman, would you like to address those now or after number three?
[3:42] We can address them now.
[3:43] Okay.
[3:44] We'll move to item 21, pulled by Chairman Brett Affil.
[3:46] It proves that it's a recognition for Marjorie Mason.
[3:49] Senators, 2026, top 10 professional women award.
[3:53] Okay.
[3:58] For item 21, we just wanted to take a moment on or all the recipients of the Marjorie Mason
[4:05] in Senators 2026 top professional women award.
[4:09] However, I want to highlight that our Director of Behavioral Health is one of the award recipients
[4:13] and take a moment to recognize her if she would come on up Susan Holt and
[4:26] the floor is
[4:27] your Susan.
[4:30] Susan Holt, your behavioral health director and public guardian.
[4:34] Those of you who know me know I'm hyperverbal, rarely at a loss for words, but it is overwhelming
[4:41] to receive such a lovely recognition.
[4:46] It is amongst the highest honors of my career
[4:50] to lead the department of behavioral health,
[4:53] which is high remarks because I've also sat
[4:56] side by side as a therapist with people in their most.
[5:00] Difficult moments of their life, but to be able to lead the remarkable employees of the Department of Behavioral Health, administrators, clinicians, peer support professionals, case managers, nurses, so many. It is absolutely an honor. As well, leading our network of community-based organizations to work on our behalf. I'm just so proud. And so, really, the award is less about me.
[5:28] and more about we and I'm just really honored and thank you for taking the time today to recognize
[5:34] the work of our department and this award. Of course, any comments from the board? Yes.
[5:41] And thank you, Director Holt. I have the privilege of serving with you on the first five commission
[5:47] and she's one of the most professional, just compassionate leaders that we have and I just wanted to
[5:55] to tell you that publicly, oftentimes, when we're in that role and you're expected to
[6:01] make decisions quickly and oftentimes data driven. I see that you've never lost your
[6:07] compassion and you'll be seeing things from the human perspective. And I think we need
[6:12] more of that. And so I just wanted to thank you, publicly, so well-earned and we'll definitely
[6:16] be there for the ceremony. Thank you.
[6:18] Thank you.
[6:19] Yeah.
[6:20] Mr. Ireland.
[6:21] No, thank you, Chairman. I just want to echo Susan, we're so proud of you.
[6:24] just the recognition. And apart from this, I mean, you've already earned recognition in this county, in the state, you're sought out as authority for what you do, but you're also a humble about doing it. So I'm so proud of what you do.
[6:39] And I also failed to point out that another honoree that is amongst those that you're approving today is Chief Deputy District Attorney of Adori Howell.
[6:49] and she is one that does very difficult work
[6:53] in the district attorney's office.
[6:54] I've had the chance to meet with her
[6:56] and have a great amount of respect
[6:57] for the great work that she has done
[6:59] and just wanted to highlight her as well,
[7:02] but Susan, thank you again for all of your work.
[7:07] Susan, I also want to recognize all the great things you do
[7:10] as somebody who's been in the clinical psychology field
[7:13] for many decades and looked at the work you do,
[7:18] So it's literally blown me away.
[7:21] You provide mental health services throughout Fresno County and what you have to do, the job
[7:27] you have, the responsibilities you have are immense and you meet them all the time and
[7:33] you do a phenomenal job and I've been very, very impressed by what you do.
[7:39] So I think it's a well-deserved honor.
[7:42] Thank you.
[7:43] Thank you.
[7:44] Any comments from the public?
[7:48] I want you to come on up and we would love to take our photo with you.
[7:54] Oh, we need to move.
[7:55] Before you do, let me get, let's get a motion to pass this.
[7:58] Let's approve this.
[7:59] Is there a motion?
[8:00] Make a motion.
[8:01] All those in favor say aye.
[8:04] Passes you an item.
[8:04] Now you can come on out.
[8:07] Oh no.
[8:41] We now move title number 22.
[8:43] Bill 22, pulled by Sue Ryzer, Reddyfield.
[8:46] Adopt resolution for continued support for phase two,
[8:49] the Fresno Sheriff Memorial,
[8:50] including the development of the Heritage Center,
[8:51] a store full exhibits
[8:52] and educational interactive kiosk.
[8:55] Yeah, and we have some folks here representing the memorial.
[8:58] Would you come on up?
[9:00] We want to recognize all of the great work
[9:03] that's going on with the memorial.
[9:08] And please take a few.
[9:13] Mr. Chairman, members of the board,
[9:16] V.A. O. Nurland,
[9:17] We again want to thank you for your support. This project's been going on four years. We finished phase one, which was a memorial.
[9:24] You, the board supported that with an initial resolution. And then you gave us an agreement to be able to build a memorial on county property.
[9:32] Last year you did a resolution supporting the dedication on October 29th.
[9:37] And now we're ramping up for phase two, which we believe is going to start in 2027.
[9:42] We're working on the final design plans right now and our plan is to launch it to the public in early 27 and
[9:49] It'll be a lot shorter build. There's a lot more pre-construction work
[9:54] With the Heritage Center, but it fits into our three three prongs. We have the memorial
[10:00] The Heritage Center and our endowment. The Heritage Center is going to continue our mission of telling the, uh, sharing the legacy of our 21 fallen members, uh, and the sheriff's office dating back to 1856. And then the third thing that we always like to talk about the state center does an organization isn't our, is our endowment. We were prepared today, uh, whenever the time comes, uh, hopefully never does to be able to respond to a line of duty death. And we're going to continue building up on that. And, uh, with the foundation and when we're done with our,
[10:29] our phase two, that'll be the primary cause of the organization, will be supporting the legacy
[10:34] of our fallen members in the past and our family members, and then be able to respond
[10:39] into the future. So on behalf of the Memorial Foundation, I want to say thank you for supporting
[10:44] us and thank you again for this resolution. I'd like to turn it over to the Sheriff's and Unnie.
[10:52] I don't know more I can say, but Chairman of the Board members, as you can see by the first phase
[10:57] is a memorial. The project we really hit it out of the park and with phase two with the Heritage Center and our plan working with the Fresno County Office of Education and getting our young folks whether or fifth or sixth graders over there to learn about the history of the Sheriff's Office, the history of Fresno County to see those who have given the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty and obviously to see our substation to interact with our staff just fits into the whole plan of how we're trying to engage with our
[11:27] community and really get kids aware of what goes on like this Friday you'll have the 9-11 ceremonies
[11:34] across the Valley at different schools. Well to get them over to the Sheriff's Memorial
[11:38] and the Heritage Center, stay learned and have that appreciation, that respect for those who serve
[11:44] our community. And again, I want to thank you for all of your support. And as we move forward in
[11:48] phase two, I know it's going to be something special and it's going to be an exciting time
[11:53] I'm talking about the memorial in our area to substation.
[11:55] Thank you, Sheriff.
[11:57] Future supervisor Mims.
[12:00] Good morning, board.
[12:01] And thank you as a group and as individuals
[12:04] for your support for the memorial and our ongoing efforts
[12:09] to make something that Fresno County can be so very proud of.
[12:13] I would also like to take this opportunity
[12:15] to thank the members of the public
[12:17] that stepped forward to help fund the project.
[12:20] There was no hesitation and we are so much cooperation from the public to gather the funds
[12:28] to make that happen.
[12:29] Since the memorial opened, there are people that will just drive up and walk in and see
[12:35] that memorial and I would encourage the public to do that, especially if you can go in the
[12:39] evening when the lights are on and you can hear the music, it's just dependents the way it
[12:44] looks.
[12:44] So our ongoing efforts with the Heritage Center now will take additional community funds with the will make sure that we make those additional contacts so that we can make this heritage center.
[12:59] Another thing that the county can be proud of and to educate our youth and to make sure that again we have a project that all of you and the county can be proud of.
[13:10] Thank you again.
[13:10] Thank you.
[13:12] Any words?
[13:13] Okay, any comments from the board?
[13:17] Yes.
[13:19] It's been about four years.
[13:21] I think since Preston you and the Sargent's Association had this idea.
[13:27] And every time I get to hear a presentation or attend now the memorial itself,
[13:34] I am amazed at what this has become because the original vision,
[13:37] I think, limited this to trying to raise about a million dollars.
[13:41] But there's many millions that have been raised.
[13:43] and it's not just a memorial, it's educational, complex, and it's something to provide relief to families.
[13:49] So I would say, looking at this, thank you for your vision.
[13:54] And for the vision that the Sargent's Association has had with this, the commitment of the Sheriff's Department and current and former sheriffs.
[14:03] But this is something, this is a legacy project, it's turned into that, and well done.
[14:10] Any other comments?
[14:12] Yeah, thank you for that presentation.
[14:15] And I remember when I'm going to call you Sheriff Emeritus,
[14:19] Ms. gave me a tour of the project when they still were turning dirt
[14:24] and to see that go from that now.
[14:26] And to my colleagues for supporting phase one,
[14:29] would love to be able to support phase two myself.
[14:33] And so we'll we'll we can chat later about that.
[14:36] but that was probably one of the most just beautiful, poetic memorials that I've ever seen,
[14:45] from the way that the sun hits it to when you walk in and the image you get,
[14:50] and I think it's a reminder as our friends down the road until Larry found out recently,
[14:56] that there's nothing routine about routine calls.
[15:00] for our deputies, for our law enforcement, so thank you for doing that for our fallen officers. Thank you. Yeah, and I just want to add the memorials amazing. And I encourage people to go out, visit it. It reflects the sacrifice of our law enforcement heroes, and it's one of the most beautiful memorials I've ever seen. I mean, I don't know what else to say. It's incredible. And I really encourage schools to go out there, take your kids, teach them about law and
[15:29] enforcement and what sacrifice really means and they will learn a great deal.
[15:35] So, phenomenal job.
[15:37] Anyone else?
[15:39] Any comments from the public?
[15:42] Is the operating back?
[15:44] Is there a motion?
[15:45] In a second?
[15:46] Second.
[15:47] All those in favor say aye.
[15:48] Aye.
[15:49] They pass as unanimous.
[15:51] Please come on up.
[15:52] We'll take a picture.
[16:30] Thank God Margaret standing in front of me.
[16:47] We
[16:56] now move to item number 23 under Charm and Redfield.
[16:59] Approach certificates recognizing the presence of the Central Valley Nursing
[17:02] Organizations for their leadership and service to the community.
[17:04] Yes, we do want to recognize the presidents of the different nursing organizations of Central
[17:09] Valley.
[17:10] Risa Valerio, would you come on up and say a few words, Risa,
[17:17] come on up and
[17:22] say a few words.
[17:25] Good morning everyone and thank you for recognizing all the diverse nurses that we have here that
[17:32] have created a wealth for our health care and for our organization.
[17:36] And we are very proud and honored that you are also honoring us, especially the president
[17:44] of the Black Nurses, the Filipino Nurses, the Hmong Nurses, and the Indian Nurses.
[17:51] We appreciate all of you and the Spanish Nurses too, five nurses.
[17:57] So we are thankful for this acknowledgement and we want everyone to know that we are here
[18:06] to support everyone that are so thank you thank you and we appreciate all that you do and
[18:13] wanted to recognize you is there any comments from the board any comments from the public okay would
[18:21] you mind come on oh is there a motion to approve all those favor say aye aye ask your
[18:28] now. So would you come on up and all of you come on up.
[19:31] We
[19:52] now move to 34.1 under general services,
[19:55] approving authorized chairman of XQD
[19:57] retroactive second amendment to lease agreement number eight.
[20:00] DASH-08, DASH-302, with Edison Plaza partners. This item was pulled by Surizer Pacheco to recuse himself due to the Levine Act. Mr. Chairman, that's, she said it all. So I'll step aside. And I'm recusing myself as well for this same reason, Levine Act. Okay.
[20:15] Okay, I'll let you recuse yourselves.
[20:20] Morning, Mr. Chair, members of the board,
[20:21] Ed Hill, your chief operating officer.
[20:23] This item is to execute two leases, one at 142 California,
[20:27] and one at 188 East California Avenue,
[20:29] both with Addison Plaza Department's LP
[20:31] for our West Front No Office.
[20:34] Myself and Burke, we are here to answer any questions.
[20:37] Any comments from the board?
[20:39] Any comments from the public?
[20:42] Okay, I'll bring it back.
[20:43] Is there a motion to second?
[20:44] Second.
[20:45] All those in favor say aye.
[20:47] Aye.
[20:47] passes unanimously.
[20:49] Thank you.
[20:50] Okay, we'll grab our colleagues again.
[20:59] That concludes all our consent items pool from this morning.
[21:03] We will now return to your regular agenda item number three.
[21:06] Under chairman Brett affiliates to rise or magic attorney and share of corner public administrator.
[21:11] Conduct pursuing on an ordinance and mending section 13.2 for 0.010.
[21:16] Chapter 13.4 of title 13.
[21:18] reds parks, other public places?
[21:22] Thank you.
[21:24] This is an item sponsored by all of the people mentioned.
[21:29] As we witnessed an attack that took place on a system district attorney, we want to make
[21:36] sure that all of our staff, particularly those who are in critical positions where they have
[21:43] been threatened and in the sense that this attack are able to protect themselves.
[21:47] With that, I would like to ask district attorney Smith-Campon, Sheriff Sonorio to come on up and say a few words and defer to them at this point.
[22:07] Welcome, DA Smith-Campon.
[22:09] Thank you, supervisor. Good morning, board. Mr. Norland, Mr. Sloan, thank you so much for making this such a priority.
[22:18] It's been a rough few weeks for us at the DA's office. This is not something that happens regularly.
[22:23] So we are doing our best to heal, I'm happy to report this morning that the prosecutor that was injured in courthouse park has returned to work this morning.
[22:31] He's been a warrior, really, through this whole thing, so I want to thank the board for bringing this matter to the forefront, really, and expediting it to get it rolling.
[22:44] We are still in the process of developing a policy within our office to ensure that we
[22:49] have workplace safety at the number one priority.
[22:53] That's always the thing that we need to make sure we have.
[22:55] We want to have people if they are going to carry weapons to be prepared to be well trained.
[23:00] We don't take this lightly.
[23:02] We understand the seriousness of it.
[23:04] There are people that are in positions in homicide and magic and really just the status of downtown
[23:10] sadly makes us all vulnerable, but those people who prosecute those cases are exceptionally
[23:18] vulnerable to some of the violent people and the mentally ill people that we have roaming
[23:22] around in our communities. Sadly, I've been a victim of this myself. My life has threatened
[23:28] probably on average two times a month, and it is not a fun place to be. It is frightening,
[23:35] It's unnerving and even though we are a big part of the law enforcement community, the prosecutors are not trained as peace officers are and so we're going to do everything we can to ensure that the people who carry weapons within our office
[23:48] get the benefit of that training and we'll make sure that they are qualified a couple of times a year, that they're comfortable with their weapons and that the weapons are secured inside the office while they are there.
[23:59] We do have about 65 to 70 armed DA investigators in the office at all time, so our building is definitely secure.
[24:07] But we do need to have some extra support for our employees as they go to and from the courthouse as well as their cars.
[24:16] So thank you for making this a priority.
[24:18] Yeah, chairperson Noni,
[24:22] chairman of the board, members of the board.
[24:25] I'm in agreement with the ordinance that we're going to pass here today, hopefully.
[24:30] And as far as CCWs in Fresno County, we have about 15,000 active CCWs issued right
[24:36] now in Fresno County, and the demand actually just keeps growing.
[24:41] Typically, one weekend a month, we're putting on a, we call sort of a mass training with
[24:46] a large group of anywhere from 150 to 200 people at different locations.
[24:51] So it's extremely in demand out there when we talk about our community.
[24:56] And as far as the ordinance, just a couple of things, Lisa...
[25:00] Thanks for touching on them. Having a policy is critical to this and then obviously the training component. That's an important part of this is maybe they qualify with their handgun if they're approved by the department head a couple times a year. We can help facilitate this at the sheriff's range to get this done. And the reason I say that we need to have a policy in training is important because as we know come January of 2027 permits are going to go
[25:29] for three years for CCWs instead of two, so that means a person will go to training once every three years and will show proficiency with their firearm once every three years.
[25:40] And that's fine for our standard CCW holders, but if you're going to be carrying different county facilities and county parks and you really need to protect yourself, I'm going to emphasize training, training, proficiency, proficiency.
[25:52] And then security, this is something that we've talked about at the courthouse when district
[25:57] attorneys or special investigators come to the courthouse, how they will secure their
[26:02] firearm lock it up when entering into the courthouse and we've been working with the presiding
[26:08] judge and the administrative office of the courts on this as well.
[26:12] And the last thing would be a county risk management.
[26:15] So just like if you're permitted to carry your gun while you're on duty as a district
[26:21] district attorney or a DA, special investigator because obviously the DA investigators, the full
[26:27] time ones are peace officers, risk management component because if something does happen,
[26:31] the county is going to be in the liability chain on that because they're carrying it while
[26:38] on duty, while being paid under this county ordinance. But I think these are all things that we
[26:42] can work toward and we can make this a reality sooner than later because we do need to protect
[26:48] In fact, these individuals, as D.A. Smith-Camp said, the DAs are out there prosecuting homicide cases, magic cases, I think we all know that any of us that are in the public eye, whether you're the sheriff, whether you're a member of the board of supervisor, whether you're the district attorney, we all have incidents that occur, whether it be online, social media, letters that come in the mail, or people that show up out of our residences that threaten us, and we need to be able to protect ourselves.
[27:14] And number two, people need to know that we are exercising our rights and protecting
[27:19] ourselves, because I think that will deter some of these incidents that we see happen.
[27:25] Thank you.
[27:26] Diaz Schmicken.
[27:27] Sue Resmanxen.
[27:30] Yeah, I want to thank Supervisor Brett of Feld as well as the sheriff and the DA as well
[27:36] as Paul Nurland or CAO all coming together quickly after just a horrific incident.
[27:41] and I think if there's one message we need to be communicating loud and clear is here in Fresno County, we will not tolerate crime and we support those who abide by the law and we're very supportive of individuals carrying concealed weapons permits and exercising their second amendment rights, but I really appreciate you sheriff and our district attorney you work very closely with each other, which is great, not all counties can say that, but here in Fresno County we do.
[28:11] So, Chairman, well done, and Paul, thank you for all that you've done on this as well.
[28:15] Yeah, other comments?
[28:18] Just two.
[28:19] Okay.
[28:19] Thank you, Chair.
[28:21] This is just a question for our district attorney, Smith Camp.
[28:25] With the ordinance, you're comfortable that this will be enough.
[28:29] And I know you can't 100% prove the safety of folks all the time.
[28:33] But are you comfortable with just having this, is there anything else that you need in order
[28:39] to make sure that our folks are safe.
[28:41] Supervisor Chavez, I really don't think that this is the answer.
[28:45] This is one step in the right direction, especially for a targeted number of prosecutors
[28:49] who handle these types of cases that will feel comfortable taking, you know, having weapons
[28:54] and bringing them to, carrying a weapon is a responsibility and it's actually a burden
[28:58] really.
[28:59] It's a privilege and it's a right and those are all good things, but people, a lot of times
[29:03] don't focus on the responsibility and the extra time and energy that it takes to train and
[29:08] to be prepared. And in your daily life to do that, so I don't anticipate that every prosecutor
[29:13] is going to be armed. We are going to have a policy inside of the office where people
[29:18] basically have to apply, and they have to be approved by the department head, which happens
[29:22] to be me at this time. And I will determine that based on what they do, how much they train
[29:27] all of those things, and they will have to qualify. Because the worst thing in the world you
[29:31] can do in a workplace is have somebody that's not prepared to have a weapon carrying a weapon.
[29:35] Because although the CCW process is, you know, one that we're test people, it's not really
[29:43] hard to pass.
[29:44] It's not really hard to get a CCW.
[29:46] So the important part for me is not only that they obtain that license, but that they
[29:51] continue.
[29:52] It's like continuing education.
[29:53] You've got to keep going.
[29:54] And so I think that this is one small step in the right direction.
[30:00] But I think we really need to increase security in the courthouse. And I would love to see this
[30:05] board fund some extra deputies, Sheriff's Department deputies, because as Sheriff Zanoni said,
[30:12] I don't care what junk science people have been listening to for the last 20 years. Police
[30:17] presence and law enforcement presence deters crime, period, end of story. It's been proven
[30:21] over and over and over again. And this safety issue is not simply just about people that
[30:28] work at the DA's office. This is for every department. This is for everyone who walks
[30:32] through courthouse park. I know that I have sent you all a few emails detailing a few of
[30:39] the cases and I actually asked my office to provide some information to me which I will
[30:44] be sending to you this week of actual summaries of more cases that we maybe don't make the
[30:51] headlines or don't make the news of people that have been assaulted in and around courthouse
[30:57] park area as well as some more incidents of interactions with very unpleasant and disturbed
[31:06] people sometimes with our staff. Things that don't rise to the level that obviously the
[31:12] injury that happened to our prosecutor a couple weeks ago. So this is an issue for all county
[31:17] employees and so I think this is one step, one positive step in the right direction, but yes,
[31:22] we definitely need more security in courthouse park.
[31:24] I appreciate that honesty, this attorney and I think the other piece to this is in speaking with our sheriff and speaking with the prosecutors union president.
[31:37] The conversation also needs to happen with the state, correct, with regards to how weapons will be stored for those that opt to do that.
[31:44] How has the conversation been with the state so far, are they receptive, are they open, have we started that yet or not yet?
[31:50] Yes,
[31:55] supervisor Chavez, I had a meeting week before last with a presiding judge Jeff Hamilton and the administrative office of the court.
[32:04] They're very receptive to it. Obviously, we're going to have to work out some of the details.
[32:09] My staff that staffs the courthouse are lieutenant over there.
[32:13] We're working on how logistically we would pull this off.
[32:16] Some areas like I believe the CIS courthouse over on O street is a little better prepared for this where here at 1100 vanness right over here.
[32:26] I don't know if we have enough lockers at this time, so we're looking at that.
[32:31] And then obviously when individuals come in and they're downing their firearms and putting them into a locker,
[32:37] there needs to be somewhat of a space away from the public like if you go into the new federal courthouse.
[32:42] So, those are some things that we're working on, but I believe we can make this a reality
[32:48] in a short period of time.
[32:50] But the Security and Courthouse Park, as D. A. Smith-Camp said, I'm going to continue
[32:54] to work with Paul and have some funding to have those visible presence of uniform deputies
[32:59] out there, because that does help.
[33:01] In the past, we've had staff, a civilian staff, spin on, assaulted, chased, almost bitten
[33:09] by an unhoused individuals dog on the way to their vehicles parking throughout both the city and
[33:15] county areas of downtown. Even myself, I had an individual at divisidero and blackstone run
[33:24] at my vehicle. I was on duty. I was full uniform run at my vehicle like he was going to attack me.
[33:31] I jumped out and the individual took off running. I was unable to locate him, but I think about if that
[33:37] That was my kid or my wife or somebody else there.
[33:41] There are problems, so that's why we need this uniform presence, especially in Courtaus
[33:46] Park.
[33:46] And my direction to staff is going to be if there's individuals in Courtaus Park who
[33:51] look like they shouldn't be there, keeping everybody's rights in mind and everything else.
[33:56] But we are going to be a good presence out there to ensure that people are there, are there
[34:01] for the right reasons, and those that aren't need to move on.
[34:04] Thank you for that. Sure. I appreciate that because I think when this incident happened, the feedback I got from some of our residents was that they're doing this to law enforcement, or law representative, what would they do to just regular folks that are wanting to have a sandwich here or coffee or anything. So I appreciate the extra eyes and ears that will be on the plaza park. Thank you.
[34:27] And just several months ago, we had a pretty bad stabbing at the picnic bench just right over here outside of the courthouse as well.
[34:34] So I think it's time that we push back on some of these individuals that are there for the wrong reasons because they're impacting the safety of our staff and other individuals that come to courthouse park.
[34:48] I mean years ago, you should be able to come to courthouse park and have a picnic or go sit out there on your lunch hour.
[34:52] And I think as we've seen over the years that I've personally seen that has become something that is less and less desire.
[35:03] I'm sorry, if I may, I'm sorry, just if you can indulge me just for a couple of minutes. I think another factor that we have to think about when we're budgeting is the fact that we now have mental health diversion in the state of California, which is a law. And when you put people through mental health diversion court, there is really no supervision for them other than the judge saying, okay, you're eligible and suitable for mental health services because your mental health condition is connected to your crime.
[35:30] So go off, get some therapy, get help, go to counseling.
[35:35] And there is a lot of people that are very well-suited for that.
[35:40] But what we're seeing here all over the state, as well as in Fresno,
[35:43] is there's eligibility and suitability.
[35:46] Because people who commit attempted murders are eligible for mental health diversion.
[35:52] Are they suitable? Probably not, because many of them have had repeated offenses,
[35:57] repeated incidents with family, with community. But we have judges now that are just granting
[36:03] them mental health diversion. One person out of many who threatened my life had a JD, has a law
[36:09] degree. His ex-spouse was a physician. He has threatened me numerous times. This is a state.
[36:19] This isn't a Fresno issue. This is a state issue. You can threaten the district attorney and
[36:23] threatened to kill her on live radio and numerous times and get mental health
[36:28] diversion and he did. So I had a very small temporary restraining order for the
[36:32] time that he was going through his mental health diversion program. When that
[36:36] program ended and he quote unquote successfully completed, the restraining
[36:40] order was dropped. He has approached me in public. He has approached friends of mine.
[36:47] He knows where I live. He knows where I shop. He knows my Starbucks. And he pops up
[36:53] on Sunday mornings, when I'm having brunch with some people that used to put the moms
[36:58] of the people that used to play baseball with my kid.
[37:01] And I will tell you, as the district attorney, and this is my 12th year, I guess, now,
[37:05] I am so happy that my children live out of state.
[37:09] If it's not just for this man, it's every other.
[37:12] And in fact, the latest threat to me was a young lady, beautiful young lady, who's a criminology
[37:18] major city college upset that this ordinance is getting passed and when on and on and on and on
[37:24] on tick talk about what a fill in the blank name leases make campus. Now how I have anything to
[37:29] do with that? I don't know. But I have DAs that teach at Fresno City College in the criminology
[37:34] program. So now we have a whole nother model right where she's upset about prosecutors having guns
[37:40] and all these things and this poor man you know he might be mentally ill and why am I saying that
[37:45] it was intentional when I don't know this and I don't know that.
[37:48] I mean, it just goes on and on and on.
[37:49] So what is that cause?
[37:50] That causes my bureau to have to go do a deep dive on her,
[37:54] turns out we have a case on her that was in the media.
[37:56] It just goes on and on.
[37:58] And we have our prosecutors that are teaching
[37:59] in that program at City College,
[38:00] which is a great program I might add,
[38:02] but they're everywhere.
[38:04] So this is another reason why we need more security
[38:08] for our county employees,
[38:09] because we cannot rely on the criminal justice system
[38:13] that we are a part of to protect us, to protect you.
[38:18] Thank you for that.
[38:19] CAO, before we had this ordinance, there was already something in the books that we had
[38:24] passed and you have the discretion on doing that.
[38:27] I know the conversation was under the umbrella of CCW, but our employees also allow to have
[38:34] other options for those that don't opt, for example, pepper spray or tasers or anything
[38:39] of that sort.
[38:41] Yeah, thank you, Supervisor Polymeral and your CAO, so your board did grant the authorization
[38:45] and we are also working on a policy and really probably mirroring a lot of similarities
[38:49] and working at concert with the sheriff when it comes to the CCW and the internal process.
[38:53] But when it comes to the alternative, there's also the policy relating to pepper spray and
[38:59] tasers.
[39:00] So there's, you know, lesser alternatives that were authorizing the way of process and
[39:04] training for that as well to ensure that issues properly, but we're doing the same thing.
[39:08] Yes.
[39:08] Yes, and that's available for other employees as well too.
[39:12] Correct.
[39:12] Okay.
[39:13] Thank you.
[39:15] Okay.
[39:16] Any other comments?
[39:18] I, first of all, want to say thank you, D.A. Smith came to you and to all your district
[39:23] attorneys for what you do.
[39:24] You work hard to make our community safe and you work with some very nasty people who commit
[39:32] crimes all the time, violent crimes, and I'm sure I've threatened the prosecutors and so
[39:39] So I appreciate the work you do, I appreciate, of course, with the Sheriff's Department does.
[39:44] We live in a society in California where they've weakened all the criminal laws.
[39:50] The legislature has done that.
[39:52] We have two members who I believe are going to the legislature up there.
[39:57] And I hope they can work and make changes.
[39:58] because
[40:00] Prop 57, 47, AB 109, we know all about it, how they weaken the laws. This guy who attacked the DA had a long criminal record. He should not have been out on the street. And if we had a real justice system and held criminals accountable, he would have been in prison somewhere rather than attacking a district attorney.
[40:30] encourage and have encouraged citizens who are law-abiding citizens to get CCWs to protect themselves
[40:36] and protect their family. This board passed a resolution, I think sponsored by Supervisor
[40:42] Magsick regarding the Second Amendment, and we believe in the Second Amendment, the right to protect
[40:47] yourself. And I also believe that an armed society of law-abiding citizens is a safe society.
[40:54] It's also usually a polite society. So I encourage people to get that training
[40:58] and protect themselves and their families because unfortunately police and
[41:03] sheriffs can't be everywhere. I thank you both for your efforts here. And there
[41:09] are other employees that can apply through the process that we have set up if
[41:14] their department heads agree. And I appreciate the additional training that you're
[41:20] talking about because I do think that's very beneficial. So with that I will
[41:26] We'll open it to the public to see if there are any comments from the public.
[41:32] Seeing none, I'll bring it back.
[41:33] Is there a motion?
[41:34] A second approval.
[41:36] All those in favor say aye.
[41:39] Aye.
[41:39] Passes you down.
[41:40] Thank you.
[41:44] We now move to item number four under administrative office.
[41:47] Consider and take action on request for determination of public convenience or necessity in regard to application for alcohol, beverage control license type 42.
[41:56] On sale beer and wine for public premises.
[42:09] As the clerk mentioned,
[42:22] this is a type 42 license which authorizes the sale of beer and wine for consumption on the premises where it is sold.
[42:29] Management directive 2400 states that the issuance will not create a law enforcement problem that will provide a needed service to the community and it will be have a positive impact on the local economy.
[42:42] The applicant has provided a written response to those three criteria and he is available for questions should that be requested.
[42:48] The Department of Public Works has been contacted. There are no zoning issues related to this, this issuance.
[42:54] And the President of County Sheriff's Department has been contacted and reviewed the application as well.
[42:57] Well, the applicant says it's track 18, three on sale licenses are allowed by ABC in
[43:04] this track.
[43:05] They're currently four within this assistance track.
[43:08] We'd like to note that one of those four is the existing owner of a previous owner that
[43:16] closed down that facility.
[43:18] So that license is considered surrendered by ABC.
[43:22] She can't use it within that location, however, it's still part of the total counts.
[43:26] So I just want to make sure that their ways are aware of that.
[43:29] So ABC, given the undue concentration of licenses in that census tract, ABC can approve
[43:35] this license.
[43:35] Should your board approve public immediately for necessity?
[43:39] This is a census tract map.
[43:41] The census tract is located there with the tan.
[43:44] Those that are applied are the existing licenses.
[43:48] This depicts the locations, the exact distances, which range from 1, 2, 3 miles.
[43:55] Niki's is the existing license
[43:59] that's in that which is surrendered but I still have it listed there.
[44:03] And we have the arrow view of the applicant's location.
[44:06] We have the view of the applicant's storefront.
[44:09] It is currently working on updating and painting it and doing all this stuff to get ready for opening.
[44:15] We have the north view of the applicant's site, south view, east view, and the west view.
[44:21] And again, here are the three criteria to make public communication necessity.
[44:24] this concludes my presentation and I'm available for any questions. Any comments from the board?
[44:31] Yeah, the question. Yes. Now you said I know the use permits, not a problem because they used to be a bar.
[44:38] That's correct. It has been. Yes. It was a bar in the sixties I think. But there's no
[44:47] So the buildings up to standard occupy, it will be before he moves in.
[44:55] And as you mentioned, there was previously a type 42 license, it was a-
[45:00] Approved by this board back in 2017, then two years later she came in and upgraded to a type 48 license which also included the sale of liquor. Since then she has closed the facility that license is surrendered and now the applicant is is planning on reopening.
[45:15] Any
[45:18] other comments from the public?
[45:25] Okay, seeing none, I had to entertain our motion and I said I make that motion, Mr. Chairman.
[45:31] Okay, all those in favor say aye.
[45:34] Aye.
[45:35] Councilor Jean Adamsley.
[45:36] Thank you.
[45:42] We now move to item number five.
[45:45] Under General Services, receive presentation by Arthur Jensler and Associates on the
[45:51] Completed County Facilities Master Plan.
[45:57] Morning, Mr. Chairman, members of the board. Ed Hill, your chief operating officer.
[46:01] Today, we are presenting for your consideration the facilities master plan.
[46:05] As you may recall, this plan was secondary to direction from your board,
[46:08] given back in late 2024 after the county purchased the L street property,
[46:12] and decided that we need to increase our focus on our property portfolio.
[46:17] Based on that direction, the county conducted an RFP and awarded ginsert of that contract
[46:21] in October of 2025. And since then, they've been working diligently reviewing site plans,
[46:25] doing site visits, interviews, and validating data on all of our facilities. One thing they will
[46:31] share is we find ourselves in the same situation many counties find themselves in. We are playing
[46:36] catch-up on a lot of issues that your board inherited, which is also why you directed us to take
[46:44] this step today. The plan before you today will require a lot of investment with many aspects,
[46:50] but in the long-term it will help save the county considerable amount. As they present,
[46:55] We want to make sure that it's clear that it's understood this is not a fixed but a long term plan and it will actually change so it will be a living document and not a rigid construction schedule as implementation will evolve as economic conditions evolve funding opportunities service availability market opportunities are just some of the variables that change before I turn it over to the folks some guns or I also want to take this opportunity to thank all of our county departments is not an easy left it was a lot of work lot of data a lot of
[47:25] a lot of surveys, a lot of interviews, and a lot of validation.
[47:28] So I want to make sure and thank all the departments.
[47:30] This was a truly accounting-wide effort.
[47:32] And with that, I'm going to turn it over to the representatives
[47:34] from Gensler.
[47:38] Thanks, Ed.
[47:39] Good morning, chairman, members of the board.
[47:42] Paul Nansky with Gensler.
[47:43] With me is Kevin Rosenstein, my colleague at Gensler.
[47:46] We are indeed going to present a very abbreviated presentation
[47:50] on who has essentially been a year's worth of work
[47:53] putting this plan together.
[47:55] The plan, as Ed said, is very robust and transformational in nature.
[48:02] It's going to require a lot of commitment and funding to implement as written.
[48:08] We're going to discuss some of the key directions this morning, the plan identifies.
[48:13] We're going to review the primary recommendations of the plan.
[48:17] The plan is very comprehensive, it addresses a lot of different aspects.
[48:20] We're going to focus on a few key ones for this purposes of today's presentation.
[48:25] We're going to talk a bit about how it could be implemented, one way it could be implemented as
[48:29] well as the project cost and potential funding strategy. So, as I had mentioned, we're kind of,
[48:36] or you are all at a sort of an inflection point here. Your portfolio reflects the decades with a growth
[48:44] and decision making, but without a real kind of cohesive long-term strategy guiding
[48:48] how investments are made.
[48:51] The plan that we've put together is gives you an opportunity to step back,
[48:56] assess building conditions, space utilization, service delivery needs,
[49:00] and establish a framework for it as they're making going forward.
[49:03] We think the timing is critical.
[49:05] You've got this new courthouse who's going to be coming in,
[49:08] requiring the sheriff's building to be vacated.
[49:11] At the same time, many of your cornerstone buildings,
[49:14] the plaza hall, the records, courthouse,
[49:16] they face significant deferred maintenance issues in our, in some cases, beyond their functional
[49:22] prime. The county is also faced challenges acquiring replacement facilities. The market here
[49:29] is relatively tight. The office market limited availability to purchase new facilities.
[49:34] You did successfully purchase the OMP street facility as well as the Merced building,
[49:40] but those alone don't really satisfy the operational requirements that were presented.
[49:46] to us. So, ultimately, the plan establishes strategic foundation for managing your facilities
[49:54] and addressing aging infrastructure, modernizing workplaces, and ensuring investments support
[49:59] or serve it.
[50:02] So, a few kind of key strategic directions. I think we can sort of summarize the plan in these six bullets. First, maintain down for town Fresno as a civic center core of county government. We fill the departments who are all there all here, they're working well together. This is the place they need to be. It's really just the facilities that are letting them down. Second, prioritize purpose-built facilities that meet those operational needs.
[50:28] Third, reduced dependence on lease space through a proactive ownership.
[50:33] Fourth, exit underperforming assets and reinvesting facilities that better support future needs.
[50:40] Fifth, prioritize modernizing and right sizing existing workplaces over expansion.
[50:46] So we're not telling you you need to add more space, we're telling you to make better use of the space that you have and ultimately save you costs.
[50:53] And six, and finally, improved service access and underserved and rural community through the local location of flexible service delivery models.
[51:02] So together, we think these directions are going to create a framework for you to go forward.
[51:06] As Ed said, this is a plan, plans will change over time as funding and priorities change.
[51:12] We think this gives you a good basis to get the ball rolling.
[51:24] So part one of the plan focuses on downtown Fresno, which will continue to serve as the county's civic and
[51:32] administrative hub. The analysis confirmed that apartments, as Paul mentioned, are generally
[51:37] located in the right locations, but many of the buildings they occupy no longer support
[51:42] modern operations and require substantial investment. As the county prepares for the new
[51:48] courthouse and incorporates newly acquired properties into the portfolio, there's an opportunity
[51:54] to move beyond isolated building projects and adopt a coordinated campus and countywide strategy.
[52:00] The key principle of the plan as outlined is that future investment should focus on replacing
[52:06] and renovating facilities rather than expanding the overall portfolio.
[52:11] So we're not suggesting that you need more space.
[52:14] We feel like you need some replacement space and some renovated space.
[52:19] New projects should consolidate operations, improve efficiency, and address long standing
[52:24] efficiencies rather than simply adding square footage.
[52:27] By viewing investments through a portfolio wide lens, the county can reduce deferred maintenance,
[52:34] improve employee and customer experience, less in reliance on lease space, and maximize the
[52:40] value of every capital dollar invested.
[52:45] So what does the plan actually look like?
[52:47] Several different options were developed through the process to address the issues uncovered in the
[52:52] study.
[52:55] Through a consensus-led process working with the CAO and the departments, a preferred
[53:01] path was determined. This preferred options begins with a simple reality. The plaza building
[53:06] has reached its end of useful life and is too costly to renovate effectively.
[53:15] The first
[53:15] step in order to make this work would be some new construction. So we're recommending that
[53:20] you explore purpose-built facilities that would be developed through the Sheriff's Department
[53:24] and the emergency services dispatch and place those at the Juvenile Justice Center at down 99.
[53:31] A new public works building would be proposed for the fairgrounds.
[53:34] Those are the first two actions.
[53:37] Second, the county would acquire one additional facility to house the Department of Child Support Services,
[53:42] currently located at the plaza.
[53:45] Third, the Hall of Records, the Crocker Building,
[53:54] and
[53:54] and modernization.
[53:58] Finally, after the renovations are complete,
[54:01] and the staff have been relocated out of the plaza,
[54:04] we would recommend that it would be demolished
[54:06] and the site sold to a developer for future units.
[54:10] This approach in four ways,
[54:12] major deferred maintenance liabilities,
[54:14] reduces long-term operating costs,
[54:17] lowers environmental impacts,
[54:19] and maximizes the validity of property acquisitions.
[54:24] As Paul mentioned,
[54:27] we know that the costs are high for this,
[54:28] The construction costs of the preferred option as estimated would be approximately $426 million.
[54:35] We realize and recognize that we're proposing a significant investment, but we want to add some context to that.
[54:43] The deferred maintenance alone for the Plaza Hall of Records and Crocker Billing were estimated at nearly $100 million,
[54:49] which would simply replace the aging systems without creating new modern workplaces that would serve the county for the next 50 years.
[54:58] It's also important to note that
[55:00] The renovation cost for 6.50, oh, and 6.705 P and the Merced property have already been incorporated into prior county acquisition planning. Studies and are not included in that estimate. And Paul's going to come back out to talk about the rest of the county.
[55:19] So that was calling part one, which is focused on downtown, obviously got a large county and there are other aspects to the plan that deal with other countywide strategies, so service delivery focused mostly.
[55:31] So, as I said, this downtown remains the core, as it should, the core civic center location.
[55:38] Your responsibilities extend across urban rural and unincorporated communities.
[55:42] So, the findings show that the county's network of facilities is generally well-positioned
[55:46] in those areas.
[55:47] So, again, not so much of a facilities play there, but more of an opportunity to improve
[55:54] and deliver, how services are delivered or change how services are delivered.
[55:57] So part two of our plan focuses on, again, six different priorities.
[56:03] One, improving service access by locating services where residents can reach them conveniently.
[56:11] Second, supporting geographic equity, so urban and rural community, the appropriate access to services.
[56:19] Third, promoting co-location of services to improve both customer experience and operational coordination.
[56:24] fourth, ensuring accessibility and inclusion for residents of all backgrounds and abilities.
[56:31] Fifth, strengthen the wireless and digital infrastructure to support modern
[56:35] communications and service delivery and finally sixth, expanding community partnerships
[56:40] to increase access without relying exclusively on new county buildings.
[56:48] So the plan also identifies several near-term opportunities, I think, that could come right out of
[56:55] was a priority. In Colinga, for example, under the light space within the Department of Social Services,
[57:02] Silly can be reorganized to create room for satellite services from departments such as
[57:06] probation, behavioral health, and expanding access to residents without the need for a new facility.
[57:12] For public works, leadership has identified an opportunity to consolidate the area's
[57:17] seven yard into existing county properties. This would allow the current site to be vacated and
[57:22] potentially sold or redeveloped for county use.
[57:26] And finally, the fairgrounds area presents
[57:28] a major redevelopment opportunity.
[57:30] As agriculture relocates, the county can create
[57:33] a long-term master plan at the fairgrounds
[57:35] that consolidates operations, improves land utilization,
[57:39] and provides flexible flexibility for future growth
[57:41] and operational changes.
[57:43] So in other words, before you start constructing new buildings
[57:48] at the fairgrounds because you have the land there,
[57:49] or we recommend a master plan
[57:51] to help kind of strategically figure out
[57:53] how you want that campus to operate.
[57:58] So implementation, so this is a strong
[58:01] and implementation timeline.
[58:02] This assumes that you're gonna do everything
[58:03] as written in this plan over a four to five year time frame.
[58:08] Just to give you a sense of what it would take to get it done.
[58:12] The sequence is a potential design
[58:13] to minimize disruption.
[58:15] New facilities for the sheriff's department
[58:17] emergency services dispatch in public works
[58:19] would be constructed first.
[58:20] First, once those facilities are complete, renovation of the hall of records and the
[58:24] clocker building would begin.
[58:26] During construction, the plaza building would serve as temporary swing space for display
[58:31] staff and departments.
[58:32] Following the completion of these buildings, the final phase would be demolish and dispose
[58:36] of the plaza building as the market would allow.
[58:40] This phased approach enables the county to maintain operations while modernizing key facilities
[58:45] and maximizing the use of existing space through the transition.
[58:49] So,
[58:53] we talked about the fairly high construction cost.
[58:56] There are some funding assumptions that went into.
[58:59] We took those construction costs and we'll show you in a second an example of how we
[59:03] converted those construction costs into long-term operating costs.
[59:08] And those required debt funding, so there are funding assumptions around that.
[59:12] We've identified a set of funding assumptions that are intended solely for comparing the alternatives.
[59:17] We're not recommending this financing model or recommending a bond proposal, we're just showing this to you give you in a sense of
[59:24] types of things that you would need to be thinking about. So the analysis assumes annual county capital contributions of approximately $10 million, totally and roughly $40, you're $50 million over the four to five year implementation period.
[59:37] The remaining investment, which is approximately $380 million of the construction cost nugget, that would be financed through long-term borrowing.
[59:45] Debt service assumptions are based on a 20-year amortization period for an
[59:50] 1.25% inflate interest and standard bond issuance costs.
[59:55] Among all the alternatives evaluated, this option requires lowest overall borrowing.
[1:00:02] So,
[1:00:05] putting this into kind of the big picture, financial perspective, here's what you can kind of expect if you were to implement the plan as written here, over a 20 year period in terms of total operating costs, which are a combination of the debt service as well as continued to operate the facilities you own and occupy. The preferred option is rejected to increase average annual occupancy cost by approximately 22.4 million.
[1:00:30] and compared to maintaining the status quo,
[1:00:32] doing what you're doing now.
[1:00:34] This is primarily due to the capital investment
[1:00:36] and the debt service pension.
[1:00:38] Over that 20 year period, total occupancy costs
[1:00:41] would increase by roughly $450 million.
[1:00:44] However, operating expenses are projected to decline
[1:00:46] by approximately $134 million.
[1:00:49] Over that same period, due to reduced maintenance requirements
[1:00:51] and improved facility efficiency.
[1:00:54] So this option, in short, delivers the lowest long-term
[1:00:57] occupancy cost increase among all alternatives
[1:00:59] considered while addressing the county's major facility challenges.
[1:01:07] So to wrap up here and we'll receive your discussion and questions.
[1:01:11] We'd just like to reiterate that this plan identifies an opportunity to transform the
[1:01:15] county's real estate portfolio into one that better serves residents, supports employees and
[1:01:20] positions for as no county for the next 50 years.
[1:01:23] Thanks very much and we look forward to your discussion.
[1:01:26] Thank you. Any comments, questions from the board?
[1:01:30] I know back in 2017, when I first got on the board, I was trying to wrap my arms around just how many different properties the county has and at that time they came back and presented, like literally hundreds of properties throughout the county, including small vacant parcels, so I know that previous board, our previous board was working to try to offload offload some of those properties.
[1:01:55] which we've been successful with some of that.
[1:01:57] Looking at existing buildings, the Delweb, I know there's been an article in the paper,
[1:02:02] the Delweb is kind of an iconic building, so I think it's the tallest building in Fresno County, if I'm not mistaken.
[1:02:08] But looking at the costs that that building needs to just kind of dump money into it,
[1:02:15] because I think that building was built in the 60s and originally was a hotel.
[1:02:18] Yeah, and when the county acquired it decades ago, you know, what's the term that I used
[1:02:26] to be told Fresno County Functional, which to me it's not that functional and at some
[1:02:31] point you either have to demolish a building or dump a lot of money into it to just keep
[1:02:37] it operational.
[1:02:38] So I appreciate this study.
[1:02:40] I think it's given members on this board really an opportunity to decide which projects
[1:02:47] actually want to pursue, but I mean, you're looking at hundreds of millions of dollars of investment that's needed, which can't be done overnight, but it gives us kind of a direction that I think we need to move so we can continue to deliver excellent services to Fresno County residents. So thank you for the report.
[1:03:08] Yeah, thank you chair, and thank you adding your team for coming up with this very comprehensive plan.
[1:03:14] That's a big, it's a big dollar amount that we have to work with, and I know it'll take a number of years to have that conversation.
[1:03:23] I've never been a fan of that bill web building.
[1:03:26] I've never forgotten that they gave me my first work rejection letter post college graduate.
[1:03:31] So if we're going to suck it down, so if we're going to blow it up, I'd love to push the button on there, but I know this is going to take a number of years.
[1:03:44] The one thing I do want to flag and I think our CEO, we spoke a little bit about that when we attended the NACO conference with AI and everybody knows I'm not a big fan of AI, but I know it's here. It's changing the workforce.
[1:03:57] the, you know, square footage requirements that's we're kind of going down this conversation and looking at our partners in our labor force within the county.
[1:04:08] I know other counties are looking at making certain positions whether they're at work at home or hybrid.
[1:04:14] I know that's a name to try to reduce some of the cost square footage, the utility that it costs to cool and heat a lot of these buildings.
[1:04:21] So I just want to kind of put that in the radar for our folks, and I think we've had a little bit about this in the past, but as we're going to that conversation, that's a big, that's a big dollar amount to spend here locally and then appreciate the one of the key concepts was making sure that our folks have access to the services for departments that deal on a daily basis with our constituents.
[1:04:45] I think that's always been very important.
[1:04:48] We see that here when we come into the building,
[1:04:50] folks still like to come in and pay things and talk to people.
[1:04:54] I would love to be able to keep that too.
[1:04:57] I think that's important too for our community and for
[1:05:01] And then last thing as we're going through the conversation for the plaza, this is the only green space that we have in downtown. And we've had a couple of events that have been very successful as we go down this road trying to incorporate. How do we do that to make that the place more inviting? I think we're having an event in next month here. We're going to have arts and music and cultural festivities. So as we're kind of imagining the new, you know, portfolio incorporating
[1:05:29] some of those for our folks making sure that they feel welcomed here in the County Plaza.
[1:05:35] Thank you.
[1:05:36] Supervisor Minnes.
[1:05:38] Yeah, thanks for the report. This is something that, you know, me and Supervisor Pateco,
[1:05:45] we're looking at 12 years ago, you know, Fally. We see actually a comprehensive report.
[1:05:54] There's a lot of, you know, Nathan used the word county functional. That's kind of inside baseball. It's kind of a laughable term, you know, because we have things that yeah, it's functional, but it's not good for the employees that have to work.
[1:06:09] You know, but still because the parking issue if if and when we, well, it's when we demo the old that web building, you know, we still had a parking there.
[1:06:23] You know, parking's a premium here.
[1:06:26] It's it's the ultimate big deal.
[1:06:29] You know, so yeah, I know it's a lot of money and you know, I don't know.
[1:06:34] So this is an ideal where you, I think, I use the term save some money every year for it.
[1:06:42] I don't know if we're going to have that kind of money because it's gotten pretty tight.
[1:06:47] And we'll find out here how tight it is next week.
[1:06:50] But I think the key thing is a future board and future boards will decide on what's going
[1:06:59] to happen because you use the term living document. So that means it's it's not an exact
[1:07:08] deal. It's it varies as the years go by and what's practical. But you know this is going
[1:07:15] to be a big big lift when it comes and obviously the biggest lift is you know demo in the
[1:07:22] the Dell web building.
[1:07:24] So thank you for kind of pushing and getting this started.
[1:07:28] I thought it was a great report.
[1:07:31] Okay,
[1:07:34] I'd like to also say it was an excellent report,
[1:07:37] very comprehensive, greatly appreciate it.
[1:07:40] Is there no way that the Dell web building can be sold
[1:07:44] to someone and they could be responsible for referment?
[1:07:48] There's nobody out there that would meet their needs.
[1:07:51] That's a good question.
[1:07:53] It's possible.
[1:07:54] It's, as we've known, it requires a lot of tender care and feeding to bring it up to
[1:08:00] smith.
[1:08:00] So, let's say you're able to, I'm just making these numbers out, let's say you're able
[1:08:04] to sell that building for $50 million.
[1:08:07] You would have to deduct the cost of rehabilitating it from that sales price before a developer
[1:08:12] would take it off your hands, or they would, or you would remediate it before you hand it
[1:08:17] over.
[1:08:17] So either way, you're still on the hook, one way or the other, you'd be on the hook for that dilapidated condition of the building.
[1:08:26] The deferred maintenance.
[1:08:28] Is there a market for it? It's a good question. You know, housing is a huge, as you know, huge issue in the state.
[1:08:36] Is it suitable for housing as is since it once was a hotel?
[1:08:41] Again, it may be from a floor plan and a way that's laid out perspective, but because
[1:08:46] of the deferred maintenance issues, that's really the key is how you're going to solve
[1:08:50] those.
[1:08:51] Okay.
[1:08:52] Did you also review the carna's needs, their office needs, because they've said that their
[1:08:59] building doesn't work for them, and they need more space.
[1:09:01] Did you review that as well?
[1:09:03] I believe we did.
[1:09:05] I'd have to see exactly what to check out specific recommendations on that.
[1:09:09] but we talked to just about everybody in the county extensively.
[1:09:13] Okay, I appreciate it again. I appreciate all of the, yeah, go ahead.
[1:09:18] Chairman, I can just speak to that briefly.
[1:09:19] So that was one of the reasons that we wanted to make sure that we paused that whatever plans
[1:09:25] we have for the coroner's office were hand in hand with this report.
[1:09:29] And my favorite part of this report is there's a page that it's titled in a flexion point.
[1:09:34] And the main point of it is, for years, there's been what we might want to call it incremental
[1:09:39] decision making.
[1:09:40] And I think your board and private boards have stopped that to say, we're going to invest
[1:09:44] in our facilities, we're going to invest in moving forward, but now we've got a plan in
[1:09:49] doing that.
[1:09:50] And so my understanding of the process is we look at the future share of facility.
[1:09:54] It includes also a corner facility being part of that as well, so trying to work instead of
[1:10:00] Moving, and then moving again, that it would have a facility that would take that into account ahead of time. Okay. Thank you. Any other comments from the board? I'm going to go out to the public any comments from the public.
[1:10:14] Okay. Seeing none, I'll bring it back as our motion in a second. Yes.
[1:10:23] All those in favor say aye. Aye. Passes, you know, I'm saying thank you very much, gentlemen.
[1:10:30] We now move to item number six under public works and planning conduct first hearing and take action to approve. Opposed, my name is Professor County ordinance co tile 15, including statement.
[1:10:38] and local findings regulating building and construction within Fresno County.
[1:10:42] Good morning, Mr. Chairman, members of the board, Chris Modell with the Department of Public Works and Planning.
[1:10:47] This item proposes changes to title 15 of the Fresno County Ordnance Code.
[1:10:51] And for this cycle, amendments are minor and generally reflect changes to the year.
[1:10:55] New required chapters or modifications to support the community rating system for flood hazards.
[1:11:00] The second reading for this item is scheduled for September 22nd and this concludes my presentation.
[1:11:04] I'm available for questions.
[1:11:05] Okay. Any comments from the board?
[1:11:10] This is pre-functionary because this is state law that we have to actually adopt.
[1:11:19] Yes, and we typically will bring it every three years on the cycle and we can only be,
[1:11:24] we can't be less stringent than what the state of the federal requirements are.
[1:11:28] We can make more stringent. Typically, we don't bring more stringent requirements and this
[1:11:32] is a case we're not bringing.
[1:11:33] and we can't be smarter. So, you know, this is a pure monkey rubber stamp and brigade job here.
[1:11:44] These amendments this year are especially minor. Okay. Any other comments? Any comments from
[1:11:50] the public? Seeing none, I'll bring it back. Is there a motion in a second? So moved. I can.
[1:12:02] All
[1:12:03] Senator Social Services received and discussed the Fresno County mod C quarterly governing body report and updates for the period of March 14, 20, 26 to June 13, 20, 26.
[1:12:17] Good morning, Chairman and members of the board, Delvin Baker, Deputy Director, Department of Social Services, Child Welfare Branch.
[1:12:22] I'm here to provide you our transitional shelter care facility quarterly report for the time period of March 14, 20, 26 through June 13, 20, 26.
[1:12:32] In the last quarter, we have not developed any new policy or procedure guides requiring board approval.
[1:12:37] We've had 66 incident reports submitted to community care licensing.
[1:12:43] We've had 56 total entries into our shelter with 40 of those being unduplicated youth.
[1:12:50] We've had three youth who have stayed for more than nine days within the shelter.
[1:12:54] We've had no changes to the shelter budget.
[1:12:56] We've had no administrative actions against our licensee or employees for this quarter.
[1:13:01] That concludes the report.
[1:13:02] I'm available for questions.
[1:13:04] Any comments, questions from the board?
[1:13:08] No, any comments from the public?
[1:13:13] Nope, okay, this is just to receive a presentation.
[1:13:16] So no motions, ma'am Kirk, next item, please.
[1:13:19] Thank you.
[1:13:20] Item number eight, Board of Suizure Community Reports and Comments.
[1:13:25] Any, yes, sir.
[1:13:27] Got a couple comments.
[1:13:29] So about 12 days ago, the County of Fresno had a meeting
[1:13:34] with residents of Waterworks District 40,
[1:13:36] which took place at Pine Ridge School and the meeting was one where residents clearly were frustrated and I think rightfully so since that meeting, I've had an opportunity to meet with
[1:13:52] Bakeman Water. They're a private water company. They manage systems in Madera, other counties and even here in Fresno County. I think they might be involved a little bit
[1:14:01] that throughout areas that touch the city of Fresno.
[1:14:06] And I've asked them to take a look at Waterworks District 40
[1:14:08] and to, if they have any ideas on how the system
[1:14:12] can operate more efficiently to maybe provide some options
[1:14:16] for us.
[1:14:17] In addition to that too, about 10 days ago,
[1:14:21] or 11 days ago, Pastor Kevin Foster reached out
[1:14:24] and he offered up water for the community.
[1:14:29] and so I put Kevin Foster in touch with Paul Nerland. Paul Nerland reached out, I believe,
[1:14:34] to the CAC and let them know what was available through Kevin Foster's church. Also, I saw
[1:14:42] that two individuals, actually there were more than that, but Vaughn, Lu and Atua, as well
[1:14:47] as Helder Domingos, independently on their own went out and purchased water and provided
[1:14:54] it to the community bottled water. I think there was 1,200 cases, which is significant, and uh
[1:15:00] I really appreciate them stepping up and doing that. And Kevin Foster also gave me the number of an individual who has a filtration company, and I think just going from memory, it's out of San Luis Obispo that does work all over the world. And so I've provided well reports and information to this filtration company to see if they have options for us. About 10 days ago, I went on a tour of Waterworks District 40 just to look at all
[1:15:29] the systems and equipment out there. I've not been out there doing that since post creek fire,
[1:15:36] but Mike Fine showed me the tanks, showed me the different sample taps that existed and I got to
[1:15:42] look at the two wells. Well, six and well seven, which right now are providing the water to the
[1:15:47] community. And I asked Mike to perform just some very basic well tests where to look at flow rates
[1:15:57] of those wells and he just did a 20-minute test. The wells that are there produce limited amounts
[1:16:02] of water. I believe one well was producing about 12 gallons a minute. The other one was producing
[1:16:07] around three or four gallons a minute. So the issues of quality of water is one issue but also the
[1:16:15] quantity of water is another issue. I've been researching just the history of water works district
[1:16:21] 40 and even this morning I received a message from someone who moved from the area about 18 months
[1:16:26] ago, who provided maps, other suggestions to me and just kind of a history of what the
[1:16:33] county has been doing since 2009. So, there's a lot of information as it relates to Waterwork's
[1:16:41] District 40. I appreciate our staff and really Mike Fine, who he's the operator who's been
[1:16:47] operating that system since 2018. His knowledge and background and information that he provided
[1:16:53] it to me was greatly appreciated.
[1:16:56] So that's what I've been doing the last two weeks
[1:16:58] in regards to Waterworks District 40.
[1:17:01] Also, I wanted to share that this weekend marked
[1:17:03] the six-year anniversary of the Creek Fire.
[1:17:06] And I had the opportunity to speak at Shaver Lake Church
[1:17:10] on Sunday and just spend some time
[1:17:13] in the mountain communities.
[1:17:15] And even though we're six years removed from the Creek Fire,
[1:17:18] there still are many families who continue
[1:17:20] you to try to rebuild from that incident.
[1:17:23] So appreciate this county's involvement with those residents who continue to work through
[1:17:29] the permitting process and to this board for making it a priority to never forget what
[1:17:35] happened in the past.
[1:17:37] So thank you.
[1:17:39] Any other comments?
[1:17:41] Yeah, I have some comments, you know 9-11 is upon us 25 years ago on that morning on a clear
[1:17:50] beautiful day in New York City. People were doing what they normally did. Go to work,
[1:17:54] preparing the kids to go to school, getting ready for work, but horrifically by the end of
[1:17:59] the day, 2,996 people would be dead and more than 6,000 injured. On that day we lost 344
[1:18:07] firefighters, 72 law enforcement officers, 55 military personnel killed at the Pentagon
[1:18:14] on more than 90 countries lost citizens in the fact.
[1:18:18] And as we know, first, the iconic World Trade Center
[1:18:20] north and south towers were attacked
[1:18:21] with large civilian planes being flown into them.
[1:18:25] Then a plane was flown into the Pentagon,
[1:18:27] but there was one plane flight, 93,
[1:18:29] that never made it to its belief target,
[1:18:30] which was believed to be the White House of the Capitol.
[1:18:34] That was due to the heroism of the people on that flight.
[1:18:38] And what the horrors of 9-11 demonstrated for me
[1:18:40] is what many of us already know.
[1:18:42] Our country's comprised of exceptional, brave, heroic Americans who care about other
[1:18:47] people and in the most harrowing and dangerous times are willing to risk their own lives
[1:18:51] to save others.
[1:18:52] This was demonstrated on that day and frankly every day by the men and women of law enforcement,
[1:18:57] our police, the men and women who are firefighters and all of the first responders.
[1:19:01] We witnessed them as they always do, run towards danger, run into buildings that are on fire
[1:19:07] and risk their own lives to save others in need.
[1:19:09] Day along with the men and women who serve in the military are the best and brightest
[1:19:13] the nation has.
[1:19:14] They risk everything to make us safe and ensure the freedoms bestowed upon us by our founding
[1:19:19] fathers are preserved and never taken away.
[1:19:22] So we're grateful for their sacrifice and we'll always honor their service.
[1:19:26] We will never forget the lives lost on 9-11 and always honor the heroism and bravery of those
[1:19:31] that fight the ongoing war against evil and terrorism.
[1:19:35] May God bless them and God bless the United States of America, the greatest nation on earth.
[1:19:41] And lastly, I also want to remember that September 10th, two days from today, we'll mark
[1:19:47] the one year that Charlie Kirk was assassinated on a college campus.
[1:19:52] This brilliant 31-year-old man went to college campuses to have open dialogue and debate
[1:19:57] would students that had opposing views to his community.
[1:20:18] Council, public hearing, minutes, adjourned. Council, public hearing, minutes, adjourned.
[1:20:29] of our Constitution, our God-given rights to live in freedom,
[1:20:34] and to have free expression of thought and speech.
[1:20:37] He spoke of the need for law and order,
[1:20:39] the need to secure borders and oppose all the woke ideology
[1:20:42] that only serves by the Americans in our nation.
[1:20:46] He was bold, he was unapologetic,
[1:20:48] and even more importantly, he was effective.
[1:20:50] He was changing hearts and minds across the country.
[1:20:52] He was speaking the truth, and he was murdered for it.
[1:20:56] A year ago, Charlie's voice was silenced,
[1:20:58] And now he's in the arms of Jesus in heaven, but millions and millions of similar voices have now risen that share Charlie's passion his vision values and love of this nation.
[1:21:08] The horror we witnessed a year ago will never cower those of us that share his belief but only serve to embolden us.
[1:21:15] We will continue to speak with great convictions and firm and defend the truth, Charlie dedicated his life to his advancing.
[1:21:22] May God comfort Charlie Perk's wife his two small children and his family.
[1:21:26] May he also strengthen all of us, our nation, and got us to speak with the same courage, you know, honestly, that Charlie did.
[1:21:33] Rest in peace, Charlie Kerr. That's all I have. Anyone else? No.
[1:21:38] We move to item number nine, board appointments.
[1:21:41] Okay. Any?
[1:21:45] No? No.
[1:21:47] I have a couple of board appointments.
[1:21:49] A point, Chuck Susanna Moreno to the provider position for the in-home service services,
[1:21:56] supportive services advisory committee.
[1:21:58] The position was previously held by Darler, Nunez Gonzales.
[1:22:03] And I also want to point Molly Fugundis-Johnston to the child care and development LPC.
[1:22:08] The position was previously held by Gloria, Dela Cruz-Polito.
[1:22:14] Any comments from the public?
[1:22:17] Okay, is there a motion?
[1:22:18] Mr. Reiser, may I ask?
[1:22:20] I'm sorry.
[1:22:20] I'm just going to show your in-home supportive services.
[1:22:23] Who did you appoint?
[1:22:25] We appointed Chuck Susanna Moreno to
[1:22:31] the provider position.
[1:22:39] OK, I see what happened.
[1:22:40] OK, sorry about that.
[1:22:41] Thank you.
[1:22:42] You got it.
[1:22:44] Second.
[1:22:45] All those in favor say aye.
[1:22:47] Aye.
[1:22:48] Passes unanimously.
[1:22:50] We now move to item number 10.
[1:22:51] Public presentations.
[1:22:52] This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons
[1:22:54] is trying to address the board on any matter not on this agenda.
[1:22:58] We are also taking public comment on closed session items 12 through 18.2.
[1:23:03] Okay, any comments from the public on any matter not on this agenda or any comments from the public on closed sessions item 12 through 18.2, please, four is yours.
[1:23:15] Good morning, board. My name is Macaulay Chentheko and I am a union member of SEIU Local 521, which represents President County Library workers.
[1:23:22] I'm here today on my own free time as a Fresno resident who resides in district one to firmly express my personal opposition to any attempt to privatize the Fresno County Public Library.
[1:23:32] The Fresno County Public Library's vision statement is a place for anyone, something for everyone, and there's truly something for everyone.
[1:23:42] In all 34 libraries, staff help people fill out job and housing applications, connect patrons with resources when they are struggling.
[1:23:49] and above all, they offer a third space for anyone as welcome regardless of their socioeconomic
[1:23:54] status, race, or political beliefs. This can all disappear if a privatized library system
[1:23:59] were to be adopted. Today, I am asking you to think of your constituents. Instead of enacting barriers,
[1:24:06] I can potentially stop them from accessing vital and free library resources. I ask that you work
[1:24:12] to invest in the communities you represent by keeping our libraries public. Library users like
[1:24:17] me don't want to company across the country in Maryland to choose what resources they can access,
[1:24:22] what hours their local library branch has, and which rural branches this company may have the
[1:24:27] power to close under the guise of cost-saving measures. Library users want to keep Fresno libraries
[1:24:32] staffed and managed by Fresno locals that have decades of experience and know the resources Fresno
[1:24:37] residents need because they win a safe first hand when assisting the public they serve.
[1:24:41] Your constituents deserve transparency and that transparency cannot be guaranteed if the
[1:24:46] library system or to be privatized. I want to end this comment by asking you to visit
[1:24:50] the Fresno County Library branches that are in your supervising direct.
[1:24:54] See how your constituents benefit from a public library system and think about what you would
[1:24:57] be depriving them of if these libraries were to be
[1:25:00] Thank you. Thank you.
[1:25:05] Yes, come on. Hello, I am a librarian employee here on my day off as a member of the SEIU chapter 521. I love the library, and I would like to take this time to promote it. It's September. It's library card sign up month. And did you know that with the Fresno County Public Library card, you have access to so many resources. You can check out books, audio books,
[1:25:31] movies, music, video games, and more.
[1:25:36] And these are fiction, nonfiction, new stuff, materials in many different languages.
[1:25:42] And also in many different genres.
[1:25:45] We also have the College and Career section with textbooks and the Citizenship section
[1:25:51] and also the Veteran section that really is something for everyone.
[1:25:57] And it's not just that you can check out tech to go to kids, which include a Chromebook,
[1:26:02] a hotspot, and accessories, offer free, a state parks pass, which lets you park for
[1:26:08] free at a lot of the state parks, for example, Millerton and FISMO.
[1:26:16] We also have backpacking kits and Stargazing kits.
[1:26:21] And you also go to the Discovering Go website where you can access free and discounted tickets to different attractions, such as the Charles Schultz Museum.
[1:26:34] To add to this extensive list, you can also check out or reserve spaces in the library, such as meeting rooms and study boxes.
[1:26:41] And with the library card, you have access to all kinds of online resources.
[1:26:46] and not to mention all the free programs and services that the library provides.
[1:26:50] There's the literacy team and a lot of different ones, so much that I can't fit in two minutes.
[1:26:57] It really is one of the last free public spaces available to everyone.
[1:27:02] Please don't take that away by privatizing it.
[1:27:05] We're for the public and not for sale. Thank you.
[1:27:07] Thank you.
[1:27:12] Hello. My name is Rebecca Deniston.
[1:27:14] I'm a member of SEIU Local 521.
[1:27:16] I am here as a private citizen and a constituent at Nathan Magick.
[1:27:22] After moving back to the Central Valley in 2010, my family and I settled in the foothills near Aubrey.
[1:27:28] As a stay-at-home mom who homeschooled all four of my children, the library was a lifeline for us.
[1:27:34] Not only did we find materials for our curriculum, but we also used our computers and Wi-Fi in addition to the library became the center of our social life.
[1:27:43] We met with other homeschooled families in the community and took part of the programs that the library offered.
[1:27:50] All of these resources were free and abundant.
[1:27:53] Homeschooling families rely heavily on libraries and most of them have a stay-at-home parent, which means money is often a struggle for these families.
[1:28:03] Many homeschooling families I know would not have been able to have the resources to drive to a metro branch for their needs.
[1:28:10] privatizing libraries statistically hurts rural branches the most.
[1:28:16] From reduced hours, fewer available materials, canceled programs, and potential closures, rural
[1:28:22] libraries take the brunt of this action, and homeschooling families will be among the
[1:28:27] hardest hit if libraries are privatized.
[1:28:30] My family succeeded because of libraries, and it saddens me to think of the families who
[1:28:36] not how these opportunities if privatization occurs.
[1:28:40] I can truthfully say that my children myself
[1:28:42] would not be who we are today
[1:28:43] without the help of the Aubrey Library.
[1:28:46] Thank you.
[1:28:52] Good morning supervisors.
[1:28:55] My name is Jay Butterfield.
[1:28:56] I'm a member of SCIU 521.
[1:29:00] Next year, I will have had the sincere honor
[1:29:03] of marking my 20th year and working
[1:29:05] for the County of Fresno in the best department
[1:29:08] of all the library.
[1:29:09] I'd like to share some of the library programs that I've seen over those years.
[1:29:16] Preschool Storytime, the summer reading program, the Big Read,
[1:29:21] Junior Librarians Club, Pinkalicious Tea Party.
[1:29:26] Step program, a life skills class for teen mothers.
[1:29:32] Book club discussions, African American and Hispanic Heritage Months.
[1:29:38] guitar class, Americans in the Holocaust, traveling exhibition, DMV practice test
[1:29:47] class, citizenship, oath-swearing and ceremonies, career online high school
[1:29:53] diploma program, the library at the Elkorn Correctional Facility for Juvenile
[1:29:59] All of Fender.
[1:30:01] The library's own version of the tiny desk concert series. In addition, the library is a place where kids can go to feel safe, where you can go when your ink cartridge runs out, but you have to print out your resume for a job interview, where you apply for benefits or for a job, where you can get warm or cool off, where you can use the restroom, where you can charge your phone,
[1:30:28] home, where homeschoolers can meet and interact with their teachers, where veterans receive
[1:30:34] specific information to connect them with the services they've earned, where you can
[1:30:40] find flag day and 9-11 displays. This is obviously not an exhaustive list.
[1:30:48] We are Fresno County. We pull together. The library is in its current form. It's always
[1:30:54] It's been in place since 1910 and may it remain that way.
[1:30:58] Yeah, thank you.
[1:31:09] Good morning, Chairman, morning supervisors.
[1:31:11] My name is William Brown.
[1:31:13] I am a licensed clinical social worker
[1:31:14] and in full transparency,
[1:31:17] I am not a resident of Fresno County.
[1:31:19] I am here on behalf of the Shaver Springs
[1:31:21] and Waterworks District 40.
[1:31:24] What you have in front of you is,
[1:31:26] I've compiled quite a bit of research to explore
[1:31:28] and to emphasize the important situation,
[1:31:31] critical situation, I should say, that has occurred in WaterWorks District 40.
[1:31:36] Magonese is a known neurotoxin, and we continue to almost label it as a secondary
[1:31:42] contaminant. While it is on the list, the challenging issue is that these levels surpass
[1:31:47] anything that would be considered as aesthetic. And so what I did was compile some of the
[1:31:51] research to show, along with the challenges that both adults and children would have.
[1:31:57] for myself, you know, as a, you know, a social worker and we're seeing these children have to drink or even take a bath in that.
[1:32:09] It makes me reflect, is this truly doing what is best for my neighbors?
[1:32:13] We have, this problem has been there for quite some time yet, unfortunately, not much has been done to resolve the secondary issue.
[1:32:20] What I did do is, I appreciate Mr. Madsig for giving us a brief kind of an understanding
[1:32:26] of where we are today, I've also worked on it from a different angle.
[1:32:30] I've been exploring some of the funding options that will allow us to do so, and the USDA
[1:32:34] has responded in the same day saying they're willing to work with us, as well as the Secondary
[1:32:39] excuse me, the Emerging Contaminate Program, which has resolved this same type issue in terms
[1:32:44] of Magonese challenges along with the iron and it could also support the reduction in the
[1:32:50] uranium and the gross alpha. And so what I would just like to do is just provide this as you know
[1:32:56] my two minutes because take the truth I can talk on this all day. I'm not concerned about my
[1:33:02] Senate campaign run. That's me and Mr. Massigate is the other candidate. I'm more concerned about
[1:33:07] getting this community effective water. Thank you. Thank you.
[1:33:15] Good morning members of the board and
[1:33:16] super-magic. Thank you for kind of explaining what you were doing the last, I don't know
[1:33:23] the last section. My name is Kayleigh Taver. I am here today because the situation in
[1:33:27] Sheriff Springs has moved far beyond every two routine of administration dispute.
[1:33:33] Residents of the Fresno County Water Works District 40 have documented serious concerns involving
[1:33:39] contamination, repreated water quality violations, aging infrastructures, questionable sampling,
[1:33:46] practicals and extremely high water bills.
[1:33:50] They have also reported serious health problems, including me, but they have feared may be
[1:33:55] connected to the water exposure.
[1:33:58] These reports deserve investigation, not dismissal.
[1:34:02] California law imposes legal duties on a public water system and California government code
[1:34:08] section 1-2-2.
[1:34:09] makes a public officer's willful failure to perform a duty imposed by a law
[1:34:15] misdemeanor. California's public nuisances status also establish consequences
[1:34:20] when conditions affected an entire community and danger of health or safety. I'm
[1:34:26] not standing here today to declare that the crime has been proven. I am telling you
[1:34:30] that the continue and action in the face of documented warnings create
[1:34:34] increasingly serious legal consequences.
[1:34:37] Flint should be a warning to every public official
[1:34:40] in this county.
[1:34:42] Federal courts addressing the Flint water crisis
[1:34:44] held the plantful's alleged violations
[1:34:48] of their constitutional right to bodily and interrogate
[1:34:52] where officials were accused of participating
[1:34:55] in the creation, sorry, certain officials
[1:35:00] Those were denied qualified immunity at the pleading stage. The message is clear, government officials cannot simply assure that the public that everything is fine when evidence may show otherwise. Supervisor Magsick, residents have repeatedly brought these concerns directly to Verizon County. The results are documented, the violations are documented, and for structures concerned are documented, everything is documented. Thank you. Thank you very much.
[1:35:29] Hi, my name is Jennifer Taver.
[1:35:30] I am here today to address what I believe has become a systematic failure of leadership surrounding Fresno County Waterworks District 40 and
[1:35:39] Shabre Springs residents have repeatedly raised documented concerns involving water quality violations can contamination aging infrastructure sampling practices stores tanks and the condition of this system yet
[1:35:51] residents have heard public assurance suggesting that the water was considered safe or acceptable. Those statements matter when
[1:35:58] government officials possess information raising serious questions about drinking water safety.
[1:36:04] They ever responsibility to accurately communicate those risks, not minimize them.
[1:36:08] The Flint water litigation demonstrates how serious that responsibility became.
[1:36:13] In Guthrin vs Michigan, a federal appellant court allowed constitutional bodily integrity claims
[1:36:19] to proceed against certain officials where plaintiffs alleged officials knowingly expose residents
[1:36:25] to contaminated water while providing misleading assurance about it's safety.
[1:36:31] I'm not suggesting today that shaver is flint. I am saying Fresno County should understand the warning.
[1:36:36] California also requires public water systems to be operated by appropriately certified personnel
[1:36:41] and accordance with state drinking water regulations. These are not optional administrative details.
[1:36:48] They exist to protect public health and this board governs WWD 40. Supervisor Magsick, the same
[1:36:53] been made to these residents are on record. The laboratory results are on record. The violations
[1:36:58] are on record. The state increases are on record. Continuing to collect dramatically
[1:37:04] increased water rates while unresolved questions remain about contamination, infrastructure
[1:37:09] sampling, operations and system finances exposes Fresno County to increasingly serious legal
[1:37:14] and financial risks. Do not wait for a courtroom to determine what should have been done here.
[1:37:19] raise the current rate increase, authorize an independent engineering operational and financial investigation, provide residents with a reliable energy emergency source of safe drinking water.
[1:37:31] Thank you.
[1:37:36] Good afternoon, Board of Supervisors.
[1:37:39] I'm a resident of Shaver Springs Water District, W-W-D-40. I'm here to tell you only a few
[1:37:47] things out of thousands of things I could be flaming before. But let's start with our pets.
[1:37:54] When I was little or around October 2017, I had a dog named Gunner. He was the best dog ever.
[1:38:00] He was still a puppy when it happened. Me, my mom and my sister came home after I got picked
[1:38:08] up from school and Gunner was having a seizure in front of me and I think you could tell how traumatic
[1:38:14] that could be for a little kid. So we immediately took him to the hospital. They had said or they thought
[1:38:22] he had a neurological thing but they didn't really know why he kept on getting seizures. We ended up
[1:38:29] needing to put him down which I was super sad about. Now let's go back to now. Looking back we always
[1:38:36] gave our dogs faucet water so if you put two and two together if you're smart enough you can tell
[1:38:43] that it was a water doing it because now we have been looking at how the levels have been going up
[1:38:53] our dogs our cats hair have been falling off my cat has worked growing on them after we stopped
[1:38:59] giving them the water what what happened oh they stopped getting it because of the water
[1:39:04] It feels so slimy getting into that shower, having it come down on you. I
[1:39:11] barely even want to take showers because of it. Or when I need to brush my
[1:39:16] teeth in it, I don't want to brush it my teeth in that. And we don't have enough
[1:39:23] money to be giving our dogs the water. Luckily, someone made a donation which you
[1:39:30] didn't want to do for some reason, but that really helped us.
[1:39:35] So I want you to look at that and actually do something for once.
[1:39:39] Thanks.
[1:39:40] Thank you.
[1:39:45] Good morning, Sharon Brutterfeld, members of the board.
[1:39:48] My name is Riley Talford and president of SCIU Local 521.
[1:39:52] First of all, I came out in support of my members who wanted to make sure you heard from them directly
[1:39:56] in regards to the impacts of thoughts about privatizing libraries.
[1:40:00] The public library. My main thing I wanted to say is the public library is not an ideology. It is not woke. It is not radical. It is just the public library. The public encompasses all of the community. Community that you either agree with, or you disagree with. Community members are either agree with things that you say, or disagree with the things that you say. It's just the public. And I will just ask that this board, remember that.
[1:40:29] That the public library is for the entire community, thank you.
[1:40:35] Okay, thank you.
[1:40:38] Anyone else? I don't see anyone else. I will close the public portion.
[1:40:43] We now move to item number 11. Can councilors from previous closed sessions?
[1:40:48] There are no reports in previous closed sessions. I would not expect any report out today.
[1:40:52] So you may vote to adjourn following.
[1:40:54] Is there a motion to adjourn?
[1:40:57] All those in favour, C.I.
[1:41:00] Aye.
[1:41:00] And pass your unanimously.
[1:41:01] The board is the meeting is now adjourned.