OKAY, IT'S 10 A.M., SO WE'LL CALL THE MEETING OF THE LOCAL AGENCY FORMATION COMMISSION OF MERCED COUNTY TO ORDER. LET'S HAVE THE FLAG SALUTE, PLEASE. READY? OKAY. ROLL CALL, PLEASE. ALL RIGHT. SO WE DO HAVE A QUORUM FOR TODAY'S BUSINESS. OKAY. CONSENT CALENDAR. FIRST THING IS APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 14TH MEETING. MOTION BY COMMISSIONER ESPINOZA, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER HOGUE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 14TH MEETING. ANY QUESTIONS ON IT? ALL IN FAVOR, SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIED. OKAY, NEXT THING ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, WE'RE GOING TO. IT'S ABOUT TWO LETTERS OF SUPPORT REQUESTED BY THE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF LAFCOS, AND BILL'S GOING TO EXPLAIN THOSE TO US. YES. THANK YOU. OH, OKAY. WE GOT ONE MORE. COMMISSIONER [INAUDIBLE] HERE. OKAY. GOT STOPPED BY A TRAIN. ALL RIGHT. WELCOME. OKAY, WE'LL RECOGNIZE THAT BRIAN RAYMOND SHOWED UP, ANOTHER COMMISSIONER, SO WE HAVE FOUR COMMISSIONERS NOW. OKAY. SO THE REQUEST FROM CAL LAFCO, THEY THEY PROVIDE REQUESTS FOR US PERIODICALLY TO SUPPORT LEGISLATION THAT AFFECTS LAFCOS, TYPICALLY, AND SO IN THIS CASE, THERE'S A BILL THAT CAL LAFCO SPONSORED TO SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZE INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENTS WITH LAFCO AND INDEMNIFICATION FOR LAFCO IS SIMILAR TO MOST CITIES AND COUNTIES IN CALIFORNIA, WHERE IF YOU HAVE A DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION FOR A SUBDIVISION OR BUILDING A, YOU KNOW, AN APARTMENT BUILDING OR COMMERCIAL USES FOR PROCESSING THAT THROUGH YOUR CITY PLANNING COMMISSION OR THE COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION AND YOUR SUPERVISORS OR CITY COUNCILS. IF AN ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP OR SOME OTHER GROUP DOESN'T LIKE THE PROJECT AND THEY SUE, THE GOVERNMENT BODY IS ACTING IN A SENSE OF AN INTERMEDIARY. THEY'RE THE ONES TO APPROVE IT, BUT IT'S A PRIVATE DEVELOPER, PRIVATE PARTY TYPICALLY DOING THE PROJECT. SO IT'S A VERY COMMON ACTION SO THAT IF SOMEONE GOT SUED OVER THE PROJECT, THE CITY OR THE COUNTY DOESN'T HAVE TO PAY THE LEGAL DEFENSE, THEY DEFEND IT, BUT THEY GET REIMBURSED BY THE APPLICANT. SO IN LAFCO'S CASE THAT'S BEEN A PRACTICE BY MERCED LAFCO AND MANY LAFCO, BUT THERE WAS A LAWSUIT A WHILE AGO IN SAN LUIS OBISPO THAT PUT IT INTO QUESTION BECAUSE IT WASN'T IN THE CODE SPECIFICALLY. SO THIS LEGISLATION IS PROPOSED TO CALL OUT LAFCO SPECIFICALLY TO SAY THAT LAFCO CAN HAVE INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENTS, AND SO SOMETHING WE'VE ALREADY BEEN DOING, AND IT'S TO OUR ADVANTAGE, BECAUSE LAFCO SHOULDN'T BE PAYING TO DEFEND A PROJECT LIKE EVEN AN ANNEXATION TO A CITY. THE CITY MIGHT HAVE INDEMNIFICATION WITH THE LANDOWNER IF IT'S A PRIVATE PROJECT, AND THEN LAFCO IF THERE'S A LAWSUIT, THEN LAFCO GETS SUED AND HAS TO PAY OUR ATTORNEY'S FEES FOR A PROJECT TO FOR LAND GOING INTO THE CITY AND IT SHOULDN'T BE THIS BODY THAT PAYS, WHICH IS FUNDED BY THE COUNTY AND THE CITIES ANYWAY. SO THAT'S LOGICAL, AND THE OTHER BILL IS A WEIRD ONE THAT WE WOULD NOT USUALLY HAVE AN ISSUE WITH, BUT IT'S WHERE YOU'RE FORMING A NEW DISTRICT OR A INCORPORATING NEW CITY. WELL, ACTUALLY, NO, JUST DISTRICTS NOT CITIES, BUT NOT ALL DISTRICTS COLLECT PROPERTY TAX. CITIES DO, BUT SPECIAL DISTRICTS, SOME DO AND SOME DON'T, AND SO THERE'S A REQUEST FOR LEGISLATION TO ALLOW THE AVOIDANCE OF A PROCESS OF DOING A FISCAL ANALYSIS OF THE TAX IMPLICATIONS OF ALL THE PARTIES WHO SHARE IN THE PROPERTY TAX. IF YOU FORM A NEW DISTRICT AND THEY'RE NOT GOING TO COLLECT ANY PROPERTY TAX, WHY DO A STUDY FOR IT? SO IN A LOGICAL WAY, YOU WOULDN'T EVEN DO THE STUDY, BUT MANY LAFCO FOLLOW THE LETTER OF THE LAW. IT SAYS DO A STUDY. SO YOU DO A STUDY AND YOU PRODUCE A DOCUMENT AND YOU PRESENT IT TO YOUR COMMISSION, AND IT SAYS ZERO IMPACT ON PROPERTY TAX BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT COLLECTING
ANY. SO WHY EVEN YOU COULD PUT THAT IN A SENTENCE. YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO A STUDY FOR IT. SO THE LAW IS WORDED THAT YOU DO A FISCAL STUDY ON THAT IMPACT. THEY CALL IT THE AD VALOREM TAXES. SO IT'S KIND OF JUST A NO BRAINER, AND THERE SHOULDN'T BE ANY CONTROVERSY OVER IT, AND THAT'S WHY IT'S ON CONSENT, TOO. THERE'S REALLY SHOULDN'T BE ANY CONTROVERSY, BUT SOME LAFCO FEEL COMPELLED THAT THEY HAVE TO DO THIS ANYWAY AND CHARGE THE APPLICANT FOR THE COST FOR IT. WHEN THERE'S NO THERE'S NO POSSIBLE IMPACT WHEN YOU'RE NOT COLLECTING ANY, ANY TAXES OR SHARING IN IT. SO THEY'RE BOTH PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD. SO WE'RE JUST ASKING FOR THE COMMISSION'S SUPPORT, AND WE'LL SEND THE LETTERS TO THE STATE ASSEMBLY AND STATE SENATE FOR THEIR TO KNOW THAT WE'RE ON BOARD WITH OTHER MANY OTHER LAFCO. PROBABLY HALF THE LAFCO HAVE SUBMITTED LETTERS OF SUPPORT. SO WE'RE GOING TO SEND INDIVIDUAL LETTERS TO THE TO THOSE TO WHOM CONCERNED. YEAH, THEY HAVE A--GOING TO BE A CAL LAFCO DOCUMENT. NO, IT'S A MERCED LAFCO DOCUMENT RIGHT NOW. YEAH, AND THE LETTERS ARE IN THE DRAFT LETTERS IN YOUR PACKET FOLLOWING A TEMPLATE THAT CAL LAFCO PROVIDED. ALL RIGHT. SO DO WE NEED TO MOVE TO APPROVE OR [INAUDIBLE]. YES, WE NEED A MOTION FOR THAT. OKAY. I'LL APPROVE THESE TWO BILLS OR LETTERS OF SUPPORT. OKAY. MOTION BY COMMISSIONER HOGUE, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER ESPINOZA THAT WE ISSUE THE LETTERS OF SUPPORT AS REQUESTED BY CAL LAFCO TO ALLOW THESE TWO ACTIONS ON SB 1209 AND AB 3277. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR, SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIED. OKAY. NEXT THING ON THE AGENDA IS CITIZEN COMMUNICATION. ANY CITIZENS IN THE AUDIENCE THAT WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS LAFCO? I SEE NONE, UNLESS THEY'RE SITTING THERE, AND WE CAN'T SEE THEM. SO WE'LL GO BACK TO ITEM SIX, WHICH ARE PUBLIC HEARINGS, AND THAT'S ADOPTION OF THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET OF 2024-25 FISCAL YEAR. BILL IS GOING TO MAKE A PRESENTATION ON THAT, AND IF YOU HAVE YOUR PACKET, IT'S BACK HERE, AND YEAH, THERE'S NOT A PAGE. THERE'S NOT A PAGE NUMBER, BUT IT'S ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF THE WAY IN ON THE ON THE AGENDA PACKET. OKAY. YEAH. SO THIS IS OUR PROPOSED BUDGET FOR THE 2024-25 FISCAL YEAR, AND NEXT MONTH WE'LL HAVE THE FINAL BUDGET. WE ARE REQUIRED TO APPROVE THIS OR, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN MAKE MODIFICATIONS TO IT, BUT APPROVE THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET AND THEN FORWARD IT TO ALL THE CITIES, THE COUNTY AND EVEN SPECIAL ALL THE SPECIAL DISTRICTS IN THE COUNTY, AND I'LL GO AHEAD AND PUT THE NEXT SLIDE UP, AND THE INTERESTING THING IN THE LAW THERE IS MANY LAFCO HAVE SPECIAL DISTRICTS ON THEIR COMMISSIONS. ABOUT HALF OF THEM DO, AND SO WHEN YOU HAVE SPECIAL DISTRICTS ON YOUR LAFCO, THEN THE FUNDING FOR LAFCO IS BY THE COUNTY AND THE CITIES AND THE SPECIAL DISTRICTS. SO EACH ENTITY PAYS A THIRD OF YOUR COSTS BUT THE OTHER HALF OF THE LAFCO LIKE OURS, WE ONLY HAVE CITIES AND COUNTIES, SO IT'S SPLIT 50/50 THE COSTS. SO THE COUNTY PAYS HALF AND THEN THE SIX CITIES PAY HALF, AND THE CITIES PAY BASED ON THEIR SHARE OF THE TOTAL REVENUE RECEIVED BY ALL THE CITIES, AND JUST FOR EXAMPLE, MERCED CITY GETS ABOUT OR LAST YEAR THEY HAD ABOUT 52% OF ALL THE REVENUE THAT ALL THE CITIES GOT. SO THEY PAY HALF OF THE CITY'S SHARE BASICALLY, THEN EVERY OTHER CITIES PAY PAY LESS ACCORDINGLY, AND YOU COULD JUST TELL BY POPULATION AND COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND ALL THAT WHERE, YOU KNOW, LIKE LOS BANOS AND ATWATER ARE BIG AND DOS PALOS IS SMALL AND GUSTINE'S SMALL LIKE THAT. THEN AFTER WE COULD GET COMMENTS FROM THOSE ENTITIES AND WE ALSO MAKE IT AVAILABLE FOR THE PUBLIC, OF COURSE, THEN WE BRING IT BACK IN AT OUR MAY MEETING AND MAKE HAVE THE FINAL BUDGET. ACTUALLY IT HAS TO BE ADOPTED BY JUNE 15TH. SO WE HAVE IF SOMETHING HAPPENED IN MAY, WE COULD ALWAYS CONTINUE IT OVER TO JUNE IF WE NEEDED TO. SO TYPICALLY IT DOESN'T HAPPEN, AND THINGS ARE RELATIVELY KIND OF QUIET RIGHT NOW. SO IN THE WELL, ACTUALLY THEY'RE GETTING BUSIER AS I'LL PRESENT HERE, BUT IN THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, OUR BUDGET WAS ALMOST A QUARTER OF
A MILLION. IT WAS 249,000, BUT AFTER THREE QUARTERS OF THE YEAR, WE ONLY SPENT 88,496. THERE'S ABOUT 14,000 IN INVOICES FROM EPS, OUR CONSULTANT FOR THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN WITHDRAWN YET, AND I'M ESTIMATING ABOUT 27,000 FOR MYSELF FOR THE THIRD QUARTER THAT I DIDN'T INVOICE YET. SO THAT WOULD BRING THE CURRENT EXPENDITURES FOR THREE, THREE QUARTERS OF THE YEAR, UP TO 101,000. SO WE'RE STILL LESS THAN HALF OF WHAT WE BUDGETED, AND AGAIN, PART OF THAT IS BASED ON ACTIVITY WHICH THE APPLICATION LOAD IS IN YOUR PACKET, BUT WE'RE WE'RE BEHIND. WE'VE BEEN BEHIND ON HOW MANY APPLICATIONS WE'VE RECEIVED THAT FROM WHAT WE'RE ANTICIPATING, BUT A BEVY OF APPLICATIONS HAVE JUST COME IN AND I'M EXPECTING ONE MORE ANY DAY. SO THINGS ARE GOING TO START GETTING BUSY. WE'RE GOING TO START HAVING MORE MEETINGS. WE HAVEN'T MET SINCE DECEMBER, AND THEN BEFORE THAT WE MET IN SEPTEMBER. SO NOW WE'RE GOING TO START GETTING MORE REGULAR MEETINGS AGAIN WITH ANNEXATION APPLICATIONS AND SPHERE OF INFLUENCE AMENDMENTS AND OUR MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS. SO THE PROPOSED BUDGET THAT'S UNDER CONSIDERATION FOR YOU TODAY IS LOWER THAN THE CURRENT YEAR BY 27,518, AND THE MAIN REASON FOR THAT IS REDUCTION IN THE COST FOR THE MSR UPDATES. THE CITY OF LOS BANOS MSR IT WAS PRETTY EXPENSIVE AND THE CITY'S ACTUALLY PAYING FOR THAT. IT'S NOT LAFCO PAYING. SO WE HAVE REVENUE TO COUNTERBALANCE IT, BUT IN TERMS OF OUR BUDGET THAT INFLATED OUR NUMBER FOR THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, AND THAT WILL ENCUMBER THAT MONEY AND STILL THERE'LL BE WORK GOING ON NEXT FISCAL YEAR WITH IT, BUT OUR BUDGET GETS REDUCED ACCORDINGLY. SO THIS IS A KIND OF A COMPARISON BY ACCOUNTS, YEAR TO DATE. THE FIRST CATEGORY IS OUR DUES FOR CAL LAFCO, WHICH THEY ALWAYS GO UP A LITTLE BIT EACH YEAR, BUT RIGHT NOW IT WAS A DOLLAR CHEAPER THAN WHAT THEY TOLD US IT WAS GOING TO BE BUT WE ALWAYS BUDGET THE AMOUNT EVERY YEAR AND ALL LAFCO, YOU KNOW, PAY THEIR DUES FOR IT. SO WE'RE NOT ONE OF THE HIGHER ENTITIES THAT PAYS; THE BIG LAFCO PAY A LOT MORE, AND THEN OFFICE EXPENSE, WE'VE SPENT VERY LITTLE AMOUNT OF OFFICE EXPENSE, AND RIGHT NOW THE COUNTY IS UNDERGOING A HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM REMODEL. SO ACTUALLY, I'M WORKING FROM HOME, AND THE COUNTY STAFF, LIKE DANIELLE, ARE SCATTERED AROUND IN DIFFERENT BUILDINGS IN THIS BUILDING AND SOME OTHER BUILDINGS. SHE'S AT THE UC OFFICE MOST OF THE TIME, THE DOWNTOWN UC MERCED BUILDING. SO WE HAVEN'T BEEN USING AS MUCH, AND ALSO SOME OF THAT WOULD BE OFFICE EXPENSES RELATED TO PROCESSING APPLICATIONS. WE HAVEN'T HAD THAT MANY, SO IT'LL PICK UP A LITTLE BIT THROUGH THE THIS MONTH AND NEXT MONTH, BUT OTHERWISE IT WILL BE MUCH LESS THAN WE BUDGETED, AND THEN UNDER THE PROFESSIONAL AND SPECIAL SERVICES CONTRACTS, THAT'S MY SALARY AS A CONSULTANT CONTRACT EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND THEN OUR CONSULTANTS FOR THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS, ECONOMIC AND PLANNING SYSTEMS OR EPS, ALL THAT GETS PAID OUT OF THIS ACCOUNT AND THE CURRENT AMOUNT BUDGETED REFLECTS THAT. PART OF IT IS THAT BIG COST FOR THE LOS BANOS MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEW, AND ALSO THE OTHER MSR UNDERWAY RIGHT NOW IS THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS, WHICH WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO WRAPPING UP AND SENDING OUT TO THE RCDS. SO FAR WE SPENT $88,500 APPROXIMATELY, AND WE HAVE $75,000 LEFT, AND THESE AMOUNTS FOR THE EPS IS BASED ON CONTRACTS THAT WE ENTER. MY TIME IS JUST ESTIMATED HOW MANY HOURS AND I'LL EXPLAIN A LITTLE BIT LATER, BUT I'M SPENDING MUCH MORE TIME THAN I USED TO EVERY MONTH. SO I'M GOING WE'RE PROBABLY GOING TO NEED TO DO A BUDGET TRANSFER AT THE FINAL BUDGET TO PUT MORE MONEY INTO THE ACCOUNT FOR MY INVOICES THAT ARE COMING UP, AND THEN I'VE ADDED I'M ANTICIPATING MORE HOURS NEXT YEAR. SO WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT NEXT, AND THEN DATA PROCESSING IS JUST THE MORE ACTIVITY WE HAVE, THE MORE IT COSTS. SO WE'RE HARDLY SPENDING ANYTHING ON DATA PROCESSING SUPPORT. LEGAL SERVICES IS BY OUR LAW FIRM BB&K AND AGAIN SMALL BECAUSE OF LOW APPLICATION PROCESSING IS A SMALL FIGURE OF $2,300 SO FAR THIS
YEAR, AND THEN ADMIN SERVICES WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY COSTS FOR THAT SO FAR THIS YEAR. SO I DON'T EXPECT ANY BY THE END OF THE YEAR, AND THEN ENGINEERING SERVICES IS ANOTHER ONE. IT'S THE COUNTY SURVEYOR REVIEWS ALL THE MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS FOR ALL OUR ANNEXATIONS OR BOUNDARY CHANGES, AND EVEN THOUGH WE ALWAYS HAVE A BUDGET FORCE, THEY NEVER BILL US. THEY DO THE WORK, WE NEVER GET A BILL. SO IT'S JUST FROM A BIG PICTURE. THE COUNTY DOES A LOT OF SUPPORT FOR LAFCO, AND WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO IT, THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS LIKE THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES THAT ARE INTERNAL COUNTY. THEY DON'T LAFCO IS SMALL POTATOES COMPARED TO THE COUNTY BUDGET. SO A LOT OF TIMES STUFF JUST KIND OF FILTERS OUT AND WE DON'T GET WE BUDGET FOR IT BECAUSE WE ARE, YOU KNOW, SEPARATE FROM THE COUNTY, BUT THE COUNTY DOESN'T ALWAYS BILL US FOR IT. SO WE'LL JUST WE KEEP USING THIS SIMILAR NUMBERS ON A LOT OF THESE ACCOUNTS, AND SOMETIMES WE GET BILLED AND A LOT OF TIMES WE DON'T. SO JUST WORTH POINTING OUT AND LEGAL NOTICES, WE HAVE HAD A COUPLE SO THEY HAVEN'T SHOWN UP YET AND I'M NOT SURE WHY, BUT IT'S STILL A RELATIVELY SMALL AMOUNT, AND THEN THE COST ALLOCATION PLAN IS WHERE. YEAH, WHERE THE COUNTY CHARGES LIKE BACKGROUND OVERHEAD TO ALL DEPARTMENTS AND ALL FUNCTIONS THAT ARE HOUSED IN THE COUNTY, AND SO THEY COME UP WITH A DOLLAR AMOUNT FOR ALL THE ENTITIES, INCLUDING LAFCO AND SO THAT THEY BILL IT MONTHLY. SO WE'LL PROBABLY THAT $8,092 WE'LL PROBABLY BILL THE WHOLE AMOUNT BY THE END OF THE YEAR. WE'RE ON PACE FOR THAT, AND THEN TRANSPORTATION AND TRAVEL THIS YEAR IT REFLECTED THE CONFERENCE OVER IN MONTEREY. I THINK WE SAVED WE BUDGETED MORE. I THINK WE SAVED SOME MONEY. I WENT, BUT I JUST WENT FOR THE DAY, SO THERE WAS NO HOTEL COST. THE STAFF, DANIELLE [INAUDIBLE] DIDN'T GO AND COMMISSIONERS WENT. SEVERAL COMMISSIONERS WENT, BUT IT STILL SEEMS CHEAP, SO I DON'T KNOW, I DIDN'T HAVE I DIDN'T HAVE LODGING COSTS EITHER. OH, THAT'S RIGHT, YOU DIDN'T HAVE LODGING COSTS BECAUSE YOU STAY OVER THERE, SO EXACTLY. SO WE SAVED MONEY ON THE HOTEL AND AND THEN THE CONFERENCE. YEAH ON THAT. THE [INAUDIBLE] REGISTRATION WAS THERE, BUT ANYWAY, SO OUR TOTAL EXPENDITURES ARE ABOUT $106,000 SO FAR, AND WE BUDGETED AGAIN ALMOST $250,000. SO WE'RE WELL BELOW OUR SPENDING LEVEL, AND THAT'S ACTUALLY COMMON FOR US WHERE WE SPEND MUCH LESS THAN WE BUDGET FOR, AND AGAIN, WE'RE GETTING BUSY WITH A BUNCH OF APPLICATIONS. SO IT MAY END UP THAT OUR COSTS WILL GO UP IN THE COMING FISCAL YEAR. EXCUSE ME, BILL. I WAS READING SOMETHING WHEN YOU WENT. THE LEGAL COSTS, HOW MUCH HAVE THEY BILLED US FOR THIS YEAR SO FAR OUT OF THAT 25,000? YEAH, IT'S BEEN VERY LOW. DID [INAUDIBLE] PUT THAT ON THERE? I DON'T KNOW, WAS IT ONE MORE UP? YEAH. LEGAL SERVICES. YEAH. OH HERE THEY ARE RIGHT HERE. YEAH. SO WE ALWAYS WE'VE YEAH FROM OUR FIRST CONTRACT WITH BB&K, WE CAME UP WITH THAT NUMBER AND WE'RE BUSIER BACK THEN, BUT SINCE THEN IT HAS BEEN A MUCH LOWER NUMBER, AND THIS YEAR, WITHOUT HAVING A LOT OF MEETINGS IT GOES WAY DOWN. IT'S NOT A LOT OF MATERIAL FOR OUR "MALA" SUBRAMANIAN AS THE ATTORNEY WE HAVE NOT A LOT OF ITEMS FOR HER TO REVIEW. WE'VE HAD SOME ISSUES ABOUT THIS APPLICATION TO DISCUSS, BUT NOT NOT A WHOLE LOT OF WORK. SO AGAIN, THAT'S WHAT WE'VE KIND OF KEPT THAT NUMBER THE SAME, EVEN THOUGH WE END UP SPENDING A LOT LESS. SO EXPECTING THE WORKLOAD THAT THE I'M SEEING APPLICATIONS ARE GOING UP, BUT WE ANTICIPATE AROUND TEN APPLICATIONS A YEAR, AND I'M EXPECTING 11 NEXT YEAR, FISCAL YEAR, BUT WE'VE GOTTEN MORE THIS YEAR JUST VERY RECENTLY. SO WE MAY BE CLOSER TO ACHIEVING THAT, THAT MILESTONE AND THAT ADDS BOTH TO REVENUE BECAUSE APPLICANTS PAY FOR THOSE APPLICATIONS, BUT ALSO STAFF, TIME AND CHARGES FOR MYSELF AND FOR DANIELLE AND THEN HAVING MORE MEETINGS AND ALL THAT. SO THE AS I MENTIONED, THE BUDGET ANTICIPATED FOR NEXT YEAR IS GOING TO BE LESS THAN THIS CURRENT YEAR, PRIMARILY BECAUSE WE DON'T WE WON'T HAVE THAT BIG CONTRACT FOR MSR WITH LOS BANOS. WE MIGHT GET ANOTHER IF WE GET ANOTHER BIG ONE WE TYPICALLY BUDGET OR I'VE GOT IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET, $35,000 IS A
HOLDING SPOT FOR ANOTHER CONTRACT FOR ANOTHER MSR UPDATE. THE NEXT ONE THAT WOULD BE LIKELY TO DO THAT UNDER THE STATE HAVING A MANDATE FOR US TO DO UPDATES PERIODICALLY WOULD BE THE CEMETERY DISTRICTS. THEY'RE FROM 2009, AND SO WE'RE DOING THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT RIGHT NOW, AND THEY WERE ALSO PREPARED IN 2009, AND THAT'S AFTER WE DO THE CEMETERIES, THERE'S ONLY ONE MORE ORIGINAL MSR WHICH WAS CALLED OTHER SPECIAL DISTRICTS THAT HAD SOME UNIQUE DISTRICTS, LIKE A RECLAMATION DISTRICT, COUPLE DRAINAGE DISTRICTS, AND THE DISTRICTS THAT ARE VERY UNIQUE, AND WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF THEM, LIKE IRRIGATION DISTRICTS. WE HAVE A WHOLE LOT. WE HAVE FIVE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS AND CEMETERY DISTRICTS. I THINK WE HAVE 6 OR 7, BUT THIS OTHER ONE IS A HODGEPODGE OF SEPARATE LITTLE ENTITIES, AND WE PUT THEM ALL IN ONE DOCUMENT JUST FOR EASE OF CONTRACT, RATHER HAVING A SEPARATE DOCUMENT FOR EACH ONE. SO WE MIGHT DO CEMETERY DISTRICTS STARTING NEXT YEAR, AND WE WOULD BRING A CONTRACT WITH [INAUDIBLE] TO IF WE DO THAT. SO YEAH, TALKING ABOUT THE INCREASE IN MY TIME, I'VE BEEN SPENDING ABOUT 45 HOURS A MONTH, SO IT'S NOT EVEN 45 HOURS A WEEK, BUT THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN SPENDING, BUT WE BUDGETED ONLY 33.33 HOURS, SO ANTICIPATING THEN PUTTING IN THIS BUDGET THAT IT'S GOING TO BE MORE LIKELY 45 HOURS A MONTH AND SOME MONTHS COULD BE 55 OR 60, AND OTHER MONTHS COULD BE 20 OR SOMETHING. SO THAT'S JUST THE AVERAGE, AND THEN IN MY CONTRACT WITH LAFCO, I HAVE A CPI CLAUSE IN IT THAT IT CAN GO UP EACH YEAR IN MAY BASED ON THE PRIOR CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, BUT NOT TO EXCEED 5%, AND JUST LOOKING AT THE TREND RIGHT NOW, IT LOOKS LIKE IT MIGHT IT MIGHT GO UP ABOUT 3.5%. IT'S HARD TO TELL, BUT SO I'M ANTICIPATING THAT IN TERMS OF THE HOURLY RATE WHICH WILL WILL KNOCK ME JUST OVER $200 AN HOUR FOR PAY, AND THEN THE OTHER THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT IS ME SPENDING MORE TIME IS ALSO RELATED TO LESS TIME SUPPORT FROM THE COUNTY PLANNERS WHO USED TO DO YEARS AGO. I USED TO JUST SUPERVISE AND REVIEW THEIR REPORTS AND THEY WOULD DO ALL THE WORK. NOW THE STAFF HAS GONE DOWN FOR THE COUNTY AND THEY'RE THEY'RE HAVING TURNOVER, AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF NEW STAFF, AND SO RIGHT NOW I'M NOT GETTING THEY'RE NOT DOING ANY SUPPORT FOR LAFCO. THEY'RE NOT PROCESSING ANYTHING OR DOING ANY PAPERWORK. SO I'M DOING IT, AND DANIELLE'S A COUNTY EMPLOYEE, SO SHE'S SUPPORTING LAFCO, AND I THINK YOU MENTIONED 1 OR 2 OTHER COMMISSIONS THAT YOU [INAUDIBLE] YEAH, BUT THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THE SIGMA GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT ENTITY AND ALL THAT. SO SHE'S GOT PLENTY OF DUTIES, BUT IT'S INVALUABLE TO HAVE HER SUPPORT. BILL? YES. THE FACT THAT YOU'RE DOING MORE OF THE WORK YOURSELF, BUT YOU STILL HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO DO EVERYTHING THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, CORRECT? YES, EXACTLY. IT'S ME PUSHING MYSELF TO GET ON AND MEET THE DEADLINES, WHICH THERE'S LEGAL DEADLINES FOR PROCESSING. SO AND WORKING ON THE MSRS AND REVIEWING. THAT'S WHERE I'VE SPENT THE MOST OF MY TIME IN THE LAST YEAR. WE HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF APPLICATIONS, BUT THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS A LOT OF WORK THE EPS DOES, I, I LOOK THROUGH IN DETAIL AND DO SOME OF THE SUPPORT, SOME OF THE RESEARCH. IN FACT, I WENT TO THE EAST MERCED RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT MEETING YESTERDAY, JUST DURING PUBLIC OPPORTUNITY TO TELL THEM THAT THE DRAFT DOCUMENTS JUST ABOUT TO COME OUT, AND IT'S ONLY GOING TO BE REVIEWED BY EACH INDIVIDUAL RCD RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT FIRST. SO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE GOT THE DETAILS CORRECT, AND THEN WE'LL OPEN IT UP TO THE PUBLIC REVIEW BEFORE WE BRING IT TO YOU, BUT YEAH, IT'S REALLY JUST TAKING. I'M PART TIME. THIS IS THE ONLY JOB I DON'T DO SAN BENITO LAFCO ANYMORE. SO I'VE GOT PLENTY OF TIME, AND I JUST FOCUS ON THE TIME I NEED FOR WORK. SO, IT'S NOT A YEAH, IT'S NOT AN OVERWHELMING BURDEN OR ANYTHING IN THAT SENSE. SO THANKS FOR ASKING THOUGH, AND THEN SO THE CITY COUNTY ALLOCATION RATES . OUR REVENUE COMES REALLY FROM TWO BIG POTS. ONE IS APPLICATION FEES THAT WE GET FROM A CITY OR A SPECIAL DISTRICT TO PROCESS AND THEN WHATEVER IS LEFT OVER FROM OUR EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR. AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, HALF OF THAT BALANCE GETS PAID BY THE COUNTY AND THE OTHER HALF GETS PAID BY THE SIX CITIES, AND THE CITIES PAY PROPORTIONATE SHARE BASED ON REVENUE. SO WE IN THE LAST FISCAL YEAR, NOT THE CURRENT ONE WE'RE IN NEXT.
WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN TO THAT POINT YET, BUT WE BUDGETED THAT THE CITIES WOULD PAY 86,700 AND THE COUNTY WOULD PAY A SIMILAR AMOUNT, BUT WHEN WE CAME TO THE BILLING, IT WAS ONLY 30. IT WAS BASICALLY $40,000. SO IT WAS LESS THAN HALF OF WHAT WE BUDGETED, AND SO WE ONLY BILL WHAT WE, WHAT WE ACTUALLY SPEND. SO THAT HAS BEEN A PATTERN FOR MANY YEARS NOW. VERSUS GETTING REALLY BUSY, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE ECONOMY WAS REALLY HUMMING AND THERE'S ANNEXATIONS ALL OVER THE PLACE, WE COULD HAVE 20 APPLICATIONS A YEAR. SO THINGS HAVE THEY'RE PICKING UP A LITTLE BIT RIGHT NOW, BUT JUST IN TERMS OF BEING FROM A CITY REP, IT'S NOT LIKE WHEN WE BUDGET THIS, MOST OF THE TIME WE'RE PAYING MUCH. THE CITIES ARE PAYING MUCH LESS THAN WE BUDGETED, AND FOR THAT SENSE, THE COUNTY TOO, BUT WE WANT TO BUDGET FOR IT AND DON'T COME BACK AND ASK FOR MORE MONEY AND TELL EVERYBODY WE'RE GOING TO ASK FOR MORE MONEY, AND AGAIN, THE CITIES AND THE COUNTY ALL RECEIVE THIS. THE SENATE TO THE CITY MANAGERS GET THIS AND THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE SO THEY CAN LOOK AND BUDGET FOR IT, AND THEY'RE REQUIRED BY LAW IN EVERY COUNTY TO SUPPORT LAFCO OPERATION. SO THAT'S NOT UNIQUE. AGAIN, THE DIFFERENCE FOR US IS WE DON'T HAVE SPECIAL DISTRICTS ON OUR COMMISSION. SO THE CITIES AND THE COUNTY END UP PAYING MORE. OKAY, AND THE AMOUNT THE CITIES PAY IS DIVIDED BETWEEN THE SIX CITIES, TOO, RIGHT? RIGHT, EXACTLY. SO THE COUNTY PAYS THEIR HALF AND THEN MERCED AGAIN PAYS THE HALF FOR THE CITIES AND THEN PAY THERE'S PROPORTIONATE. YEAH. PROPORTIONATE. YEAH. SO SOME IT'S VERY SMALL, YOU KNOW, SOME CITIES IT'S VERY SMALL, AND IN RETURN, THE BAD THING IS WHEN THE CITIES DON'T DO ANYTHING LIKE DOS PALOS HASN'T HAD AN ANNEXATION IN A LONG TIME. SO DO THEY REALLY NEED LAFCO. WHY HAVE LAFCO, YOU KNOW, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO BE HAVING SOME. SO THE DAY WILL COME. [CHUCKLING] THE DAY WILL COME. YEAH. COMING UP SOON, RIGHT? YEAH. EVERYBODY NEEDS IT EVENTUALLY, ESPECIALLY WITH THE HOUSING ELEMENT PUSH TO BUILD MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO ALL THE CITIES ARE GOING TO GET PUSHED BY THE STATE TO DO IT AS WELL. OKAY. SO BASICALLY NOW I'M AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, BUT WHAT WE'LL DO IS HAVE, HAVE OPEN UP THE PUBLIC HEARING EVEN THOUGH THERE'S NO ONE HERE, AND THEN FOLLOWING ANY DELIBERATIONS, HAVE YOU ADOPT THE PROPOSED BUDGET AND AGAIN, I'LL FORWARD IT TO ALL THE CITIES AND THE COUNTY, AND WE AGAIN, WE FORWARD TO ALL THE SPECIAL DISTRICTS JUST BY LAW, EVEN THOUGH THEY DON'T HAVE A HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING. SO JUST RECOMMENDING THAT YOU OPEN UP THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 10:27. ANYONE OTHER THAN THE COMMISSION PRESENT WISH TO COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED BUDGET. SEEING OR HEARING NO ONE. WE'RE GOING TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 10:28, AND WE'LL RETURN IT BACK TO THE COMMISSION FOR ACTION OR QUESTIONS. NO QUESTIONS. NO QUESTIONS. NO QUESTIONS. NO QUESTIONS? OKAY, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION THAT WE ACCEPT. YEAH. MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE OR ADOPT THE PROPOSED 2023-24 BUDGET. OKAY. YOU CAN SAY IT. I'LL SECOND. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION BY COMMISSIONER RAYMOND. SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER HOGUE TO ACCEPT THE PROPOSED 24-25 BUDGET. ANY DISCUSSION OR OTHER QUESTIONS ON IT? ALL IN FAVOR, SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED? MOTION IS CARRIED. OKAY. OKAY. NEXT IS EXECUTIVE OFFICER ORAL UPDATE ON UPCOMING APPLICATIONS AND ANY OTHER BUSINESS. OKAY, I'VE TOUCHED ON A LITTLE BIT OF THE WORKLOAD RIGHT NOW. WE HAVE THE TWO MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS ONGOING IS THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS WERE JUST FINISHING UP A DRAFT TO SHARE WITH THE DISTRICTS, AND JUST A LITTLE OVERVIEW ON THAT. WE HAVE FIVE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS THAT ARE HEADQUARTERED IN OUR COUNTY. THERE'S A COUPLE ADJACENT ONES, OR THREE ADJACENT ONES, TWO FROM FRESNO AND ONE SAN BENITO THAT OVERLAPS THE COUNTY LINE, BUT WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THE MSR, THE COUNTY WHERE THE MAJORITY OF THE DISTRICT'S LOCATED THOSE MSR. OUT OF OUR FIVE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS, TWO OF THEM ARE NOT ACTIVE. THERE'S NO ONE TO CONTACT. THERE'S NOWHERE TO SEND MAIL TO. WE SEND MAIL AND IT COMES BACK. THERE'S NO PHONE NUMBERS, THERE'S NO CONTACT PEOPLE, AND THAT'S ON THE WEST SIDE, THE GUSTINE. SAN LUIS ONE OF THEM? SAN LUIS? NO, SAN LUIS IS--THEY STILL IN EXISTENCE? THEY'RE STILL IN EXISTENCE. THEY DON'T DO ANYTHING, THOUGH, BUT THEY THERE'S SOMEBODY TO CALL AND TALK TO.
THERE IS? YEAH, THERE IS. RELATED TO THE SAN LUIS CANAL COMPANY. YEAH. SO THEY ACTUALLY REACHED OUT TO THE EAST MERCED RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT, WHICH COVERS THE MAJORITY OF EASTERN MERCED COUNTY, AND THEY'RE VERY ACTIVE. THEY'VE REACHED OUT TO SEE MAYBE THEY COULD COORDINATE ACTIVITIES OR SOMETHING, BUT ON THE WEST SIDE, WE HAVE THE GUSTINE ROMERO RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT, WHICH HASN'T DONE ANYTHING FOR DECADES, AND THEN THE LOS BANOS RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT THAT USED TO DO A LIMITED AMOUNT OF THINGS BUT THERE'S NO BODY RESPONDING TO ANYTHING. GRASSLANDS IS OVER THERE, AND THEY'RE VERY ACTIVE, AND THEY'RE UNIQUE BECAUSE THEIR BOARD IS THE SAME AS THE GRASSLANDS WATER DISTRICT BOARD. SO THEY'RE INTO WETLAND PRESERVATION AND, YOU KNOW, THE DUCK HUNTING. SO THEY'RE INTO HABITAT PROTECTION, AND, YOU KNOW, YOU GET GRANTS, RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS COORDINATE WITH THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION. I MEAN, THE NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION SERVICE, NRCS AND GET FEDERAL MONEY SOMETIMES FOR PROJECTS THAT THE STATE OR THE FEDS SUPPORT. SO THEY'RE THE LOCAL CONTACTS. SO WHAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DETERMINE IS WHETHER WE SHOULD DISSOLVE THOSE TWO INACTIVE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS OR CONSOLIDATE THEM WITH ADJACENT ONES OR EAST MERCED MAYBE, OR, YOU KNOW, OR SEE IF THEY CAN GET SOME PEOPLE LINED UP, BUT THERE'S NOBODY TO ASK RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THERE'S NOBODY HAS THEIR FINGERPRINTS ON IT THAT'S AROUND. SO THOSE ARE WE'RE WRAPPING THAT UP ANYWAY THOUGH, AND THEN WE'LL BRING THAT TO HEARING BEFORE, YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY WITHIN THE NEXT 3 OR 4 MONTHS, AND THEN THE LOS BANOS ONE IS REALLY GETTING STARTED. WE'RE AT THE EPS IS HAVING INTERVIEWS WITH DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS, AND THEY'RE ONGOING RIGHT NOW. THEY'RE STILL TRYING TO GET AHOLD OF POLICE AND PUBLIC WORKS. RIGHT NOW, BUT THEY'RE GETTING A LOT OF THE DATA AND GOING THROUGH THE BUDGET AND, AND PULLING INFORMATION TOGETHER TO START FRAMING THE MSR DOCUMENT. SO THEY'RE PROBABLY ABOUT A THIRD OF THE WAY THROUGH ON THAT ONE, AND THAT ONE WILL BE MUCH BIGGER. YOU KNOW, DEALING WITH A CITY WITH A LOT OF GROWTH, AND AND WHAT THEY HAVE IS A BRAND NEW GENERAL PLAN. WELL, IT'S ABOUT A YEAR OLD NOW. SO THE GENERAL PLAN HAS A BIGGER SPHERE OF INFLUENCE, AND SO WHEN WE HAVE THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEW DOCUMENT, WHICH IS THE STUDY OF OVERALL CITY OPERATIONS AND BUDGETS AND ALL THAT, BUT IT'S ALSO ABOUT LAND USE AND GROWTH, AND WE'LL GET INTO THE SPHERE OF INFLUENCE EXPANSION THAT THEY PROPOSE. SO WE'LL HAVE SOME ISSUES WITH THAT, AND SO THAT'LL BE I'M SURE IT'LL BE MAYBE LATE IN THE YEAR IF WE GET IT DONE, IT'LL BE LATE, YEAH, WE PROBABLY WILL GET IT DONE THIS YEAR, BUT IT'LL BE LATER IN THE YEAR NOT JUST FISCAL YEAR. THEY'RE ALSO REVIEWING A HOUSING ELEMENT. WE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT. THAT'S ALL PART. THAT'S JUST CITY ON THAT OR WHAT. YEAH. IT AFFECTS IT AFFECTS LAFCO IN CERTAIN WAYS, BUT THE HOUSING ELEMENT THIS TIME IS BEING DONE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER JOINTLY THROUGH MCAG, YOU KNOW, AS A REGIONAL GOVERNMENT AND ALL THE CITIES AND THE COUNTY ARE GETTING PUT INTO ONE BIG, BIG HOUSING ELEMENT. SO MCAG WOULD BE NORMALLY CALLED THE COG, THE COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, THEY'D BE THE ONE TO DETERMINE THE HOUSING NEEDS AND THE LOW INCOME HOUSING AND DISTRIBUTING. THEY CALL IT THE REGIONAL, THE RHNA NUMBER, THE REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT NUMBERS FOR EACH CITY IN THE COUNTY AND WHO GETS WHAT SHARE, AND THEY LOOK AT IT BY POPULATION, THEY LOOK AT IT BY YOUR INCOME, AND THEY DISTRIBUTE THAT. SO RATHER THAN HAVE THAT NUMBER IN EVERY CITY, DOES THEIR OWN. IS THAT SHIFTING RESPONSIBILITY THOUGH? NO, IT'S IN THE STATE LAW PUT IT THAT WAY. YEAH. THEY PUT IT THAT WAY TO HAVE BECAUSE THE COG IS ACTUALLY MADE UP OF REPRESENTATIVES. ALL THE SUPERVISORS ARE ON IT, AND THEN SIX CITIES, AND SO IN LA YOU HAVE FIVE SUPERVISORS AND YOU HAVE 30 CITIES. SO HERE YEAH WE HAVE THE WE HAVE ALMOST EQUAL. YEAH. IT'S ALMOST EQUAL. YEAH. IT'S VERY CLOSE. SO ANYWAYS THEN EVERYBODY THERE HAS TO VOTE ON THE HOUSING ELEMENT FOR THEIR JURISDICTION TOO. SO THEY GET THEY GET A VOTE ON THE LOCAL LEVEL AS WELL, AND THEN SO LAFCO HAS THEIR GROWTH IS AN IMPORTANT ISSUE, AND THE HOW YOU ACCOMMODATE THAT GROWTH IS IMPORTANT FOR LAFCO SO THAT WHEN YOU GET HISTORICALLY, YOU GET A BIG SPHERE OF INFLUENCE. LET'S DOUBLE THE SIZE OF OUR COMMUNITY AND WE NEED THIS LAND FOR GROWTH, AND IN THE OLD DAYS, THAT'S SPRAWLING SUBDIVISIONS OVER THE COUNTRYSIDE THAT'S NOT SO POPULAR ANYMORE WITH THE STATE. THEY WANT HIGHER DENSITY, THEY WANT RENTAL HOUSING. THEY WANT, YOU KNOW, AFFORDABLE, AND THEY WANT IT CLOSE TO TRANSIT AND OTHER THINGS. SO THAT'LL BE AN ISSUE FOR LAFCO GETTING TRADITIONAL GENERAL PLANS IN WITH ALL THIS LAND NEEDED, WHICH IS MOST EVERY CITY SURROUNDED BY PRIME FARMLAND. SO YOU HAVE ALL THIS PRIME FARMLAND WITH HOUSING SCATTERED ALL OVER IT PROPOSED, AND YOU'RE REALLY NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO BUILD THAT MUCH ANYMORE. YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET FUNDING.
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO MEET YOUR HOUSING NUMBERS IF YOU'RE BUILDING COMMUTER, JUST COMMUTER HOUSING FOR THE BAY AREA PEOPLE AND ALL THAT, OR, YOU KNOW, HIGHWAY 99 CORRIDOR. SO YOU'RE GOING TO NEED TO DO MORE DENSE. SO WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN ISSUE AS LAFCO, YOU KNOW, I SEE IT FROM MY PERSPECTIVE ANYWAY OF OF HAVING THE CITIES JUSTIFY. WHY DO YOU NEED WHY IS THIS BIG AREA STILL NEEDED. THAT'S OLD STYLE. 1000 ACRES INSTEAD OF 500. EXACTLY. YEAH, EXACTLY. YEAH, AND THEN [INAUDIBLE] THE SERVICES. SO WE TYPICALLY LOOK AT SEWER AND WATER, AND THEN WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET FOR POLICE AND FIRE AND ALL THAT. SO NOW WE COULD BE GETTING INTO HOW ARE YOU DOING IT MEETING YOUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING WHICH IS A FACTOR FOR US. LOW INCOME HOUSING IS ONE OF OUR FACTORS, BUT THE OTHER FACTOR, THAT'S PART OF THE HOUSING ELEMENTS THAT WE ALSO USE IN THE LAFCO LAW IS UNDER THE TERM DUC, THE DISADVANTAGED, UNINCORPORATED COMMUNITIES AND THAT'S WHERE AS LAFCO COVERING THE WHOLE COUNTY, WE HAVE DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES THAT ARE ALL BY THEMSELVES, LIKE A LITTLE CELESTE OR BALLICO OR A. YEAH, ALL OVER THE COUNTY. YEAH. ALMOST EVERY LITTLE RURAL TOWN IS REALLY POOR OVERALL, BUT WHEN YOU'RE A CITY, IF YOU'RE NEXT TO A DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITY IN THE COUNTY AND YOU'RE GOING TO ANNEX MORE THAN TEN ACRES, THEN YOU HAVE TO BRING IN THAT COMMUNITY ALONG OR TRY TO BRING IN THE COMMUNITY WITH IT. THE PEOPLE COULD PROTEST AND STOP IT, BUT YOU HAVE TO MAKE AN EFFORT TO DO IT. SO IN YEARS AND YEARS OF EXPERIENCE WITH THE CITIES, IT'S TYPICALLY AVOID THAT THE CITIES GROW AROUND THAT, AND LIKE SOUTH MERCED IS ALL THE GHETTO AREA STILL IN THE COUNTY, AND THE FARMLAND THAT WAS SITTING IN BETWEEN WAS WHAT GETS ANNEXED, AND SO NOW YOU CAN'T DO THAT. AT LEAST YOU HAVE TO TRY TO BRING IN THAT ADJACENT DEVELOP USUALLY ON SEPTIC OR, YOU KNOW, ON CITY SEWER, AND SO YOU TRY TO BRING HAVING IT ANNEXED TO THE CITY, BRING UP THE STANDARDS AND, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY BETTER POLICE THAN, THAN BECAUSE IT'S MORE LOCAL THAN THE SHERIFF AND USUALLY BETTER FIRE AND THINGS LIKE THAT BECAUSE THE FIRE STATION WOULD BE CLOSER. SO WE'LL SEE A LOT OF THAT FILTER THROUGH LAFCO AS WE DO THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEWS FOR THE CITIES IN THE FUTURE AND THE HOUSING ELEMENTS ARE PART OF THEIR GENERAL PLAN. SO HOPEFULLY THE CITIES WILL TAKE THAT AS REASONABLE. OKAY. WE HAVE TO INCREASE DENSITIES. LET'S LOOK AT OUR GENERAL PLAN AND NOT THIS SPRAWLING GENERAL PLAN DOESN'T REALLY FIT ANYMORE, AND OF COURSE YOU GET PEOPLE ON THE LAND USE SIDE THAT DON'T WANT THE APARTMENTS NEXT DOOR TO THEM. THEY WANT OTHER BIG LOT SINGLE FAMILY HOMES TO KEEP THEIR PROPERTY VALUES UP, AND IF YOU GOT TO YOU GOT TO DESIGNATE LAND FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. YOU HAVE TO DO IT AND FIGHT THAT BATTLE ON THE CITY LEVEL AND SEE WHAT, YOU KNOW. NEIGHBORS EVERYBODY HAS TO GIVE A LITTLE BIT, BUT THAT AND THAT'S THE BATTLE LOCALLY. WHEN MCAG ADOPTS IT, THEN EVERYBODY'S GOT TO ADOPT IT AND YOU'LL HAVE THE LOCAL, THOSE LOCAL CONFLICTS, BUT AND SO WE'LL SEE THAT EVENTUALLY AS WELL. SO THEN THE OTHER ANNEXATIONS WE HAVE IS ONE IS TO A STEVINSON WATER DISTRICT WHICH, WHICH JUST CAME IN TWO DAYS AGO, AND THEY'RE OVER THERE BY THE SAN JOAQUIN RIVER AND KIND OF THE, THE CONFLUENCE WHERE THE MERCED RIVER COMES IN AND ANNEXING MORE LAND TO, TO PUT INTO THE DISTRICT, AND IT'S REALLY FOR SIGMA PURPOSES MORE THAN ANYTHING, AND THEN WE HAVE A SMALL ANNEXATION TO THE CORTEZ WATER DISTRICT, WHICH I DON'T THINK HAS EVER HAD ANNEXATION BEFORE AND THEY'RE OVER BY THE COMMUNITY OF BALLICO OFF OF SANTA FE DR. SO THAT'S PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD, AND THEN WE HAVE ANY DAY NOW, THE UC MERCED ANNEXATION THAT WE HAD THAT WORKSHOP ON A WHILE AGO, I THINK IT WAS BACK IN SEPTEMBER. NOW AND I'M HEARING IT'S GOING TO COME IN ANY AND THAT ONE WILL BE FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD BECAUSE IT'S UNIVERSITY AND IT'S ALREADY THERE. IT'S THE STATE, AND THEY GOT CITIES WHO ARE IN WATER. SO ANNEXING TO THE CITY DOESN'T MEAN A WHOLE LOT, BUT IT'S IF THEY GET ANNEXED IT'S UNDER THAT ADAM GRAY'S BILL THAT GOT PASSED WHERE IF YOU ANNEXED A UC, THEN LAFCO CAN APPROVE ANNEXATIONS OF CONTIGUOUS PROPERTY TO THE UC. SO WE HAD THAT PRESENTATION BY THE VIRGINIA SMITH TRUST. SO THEY'LL FOLLOW RIGHT UP ON THE TAILS OF THAT ONE. SO WE'LL BE PROCESSING THAT ONE, AND THAT'LL BE MUCH MORE COMPLEX, AND WHOEVER HAS LAND ADJACENT TO THEM TOO. NO, THE LAW DOESN'T ALLOW THAT NOT THE LAW, BUT THEY'RE GOING TO WANT TO COME. THEY'RE GOING TO WANT TO COME. THEY'RE GOING TO WANT TO COME EVENTUALLY TO MERCED TO TRY TO GET IT ANNEXED. YEAH, BUT THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO ANNEX. SO RIGHT NOW THE UC IS TWO MILES FROM BELLEVUE ROAD OR FROM M STREET GOING EAST ON BELLEVUE ROAD. IT'S TWO MILES FROM THE CITY, AND IF YOU GO NORTH FROM YOSEMITE, IT'S TWO MILES. SO THAT'S WHY THEY COULDN'T ANNEX, BECAUSE UNDER LAFCO LAW, YOU HAVE TO BE CONTIGUOUS. YOU HAVE TO BE TOUCHING THE CITY TO ANNEX. SO WITH THIS ADAM GRAY LEGISLATION, IT WAS TO ALLOW DEVELOPMENT NEXT TO THE CAMPUS.
REALLY. SO THEY SAID IF YOU ANNEX THE UC AND THE CITY HAS TO INITIATE IT THEN YOU CAN ANNEX LAND CONTIGUOUS TO THE UC, BUT ONLY LAND CONTIGUOUS UC, THE LAND, IF YOU'VE GOT THE UC HERE AND YOU ANNEX LAND NEXT TO IT, THAT LAW DOES NOT ALLOW YOU TO KEEP ANNEXING FROM THAT. SO IF YOU LOOK AT MERCED, IT'S KIND OF LIKE A BARBELL. YOU HAVE THE BELLEVUE RANCH AREA TO THE NORTH, YOU KNOW, KIND OF CENTRAL, NORTH MERCED AND THEN YOU HAVE THE UC WAY OUT ON THE EAST, AND THE WAY THE LAW IS, YOU COULD DEVELOP AROUND THE UC ONLY, BUT OTHERWISE YOU'RE GOING TO GROW FROM M STREET EASTERLY OVER TIME TO GET TO GET TO THAT OTHER DEVELOPMENT. IT'S NOT LIKE A BARBELL WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO GROW IN BOTH TOGETHER AND REACH THE MIDDLE AT SOME POINT. OR FROM YOSEMITE. YOSEMITE FROM THE SOUTH? YEAH. [INAUDIBLE]. NOW THAT YEAH, THE HUNT PROPERTY COULD NOT ANNEX BECAUSE THE VST AXIS THAT WOULD NOT BE. THEY CAN'T DO IT. THEY HAVE TO ANNEX FROM THE SOUTH. ALL THAT GROUND BETWEEN YOSEMITE AND CARDELLA ROAD. YEAH, THAT'S THE HUNTS. I MEAN, THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. YEAH, AND THE EAST SIDE OF LAKE ROAD, RIGHT BELOW THE RIGHT, WEST YEAH. WHAT'S THE NAME OF THE ROAD THAT GOES STRAIGHT INTO THE LAKE? WELL THAT'S LAKE ROAD. YEAH. SO THE HUNTS ARE ON THE EAST SIDE THEN YOU HAVE ONE ACRE LOTS. YOU KNOW, THERE'S PROPERTY ON THE WEST [INAUDIBLE] ON THE WEST SIDE THOUGH, ON THE WEST SIDE OF LAKE ROAD, THEN TO G STREET AND NORTH OF YOSEMITE TO CARDELLA ROAD. THAT WOULD BE VULNERABLE TO ANNEXATION. I THINK THEY TRIED TO ANNEX SOME OF IT WAS ANNEXED [INAUDIBLE] YEARS AGO, WAS IT NOT? WELL, THEY DID A STUDY. WHAT DID THEY TRY TO DO? REMEMBER THAT? YEAH, THEY DID A BELLEVUE CORRIDOR STUDY FOR HOW TO ANNEX THAT WHOLE AREA AND DO A MASTER PLAN FOR IT, BUT IT WAS STILL UNDER THE LAW AT THAT TIME. IT WAS STILL TRADITIONAL GROWTH PATTERN GOING FROM WEST TO EAST TOWARDS THE CAMPUS, AND SO NOW WITH THIS NEW LAW, ONLY THE LAND ADJACENT. SO I JUST GOT A NOTICE FOR AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT BEING PREPARED, A NOTICE OF PREPARATION ON THE LAND AT THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF BELLEVUE ROAD AND LAKE ROAD. SO WHEN YOU GO TO THE CAMPUS AND YOU DEAD END AT BELLEVUE INTO THE CAMPUS, THAT PROPERTY JUST TO THE SOUTH, WHICH IS A [INAUDIBLE] PROPERTY. SO THAT'S BEEN PROPOSED FOR DEVELOPMENT FOR YEARS, BUT THEY'RE DOING THE EIR, AND THAT WOULD BE TO ALLOW THE CITY TO APPROVE AN ANNEXATION APPLICATION AND COME TO LAFCO, BUT THEY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO ANNEX UNTIL THE UC ACTUALLY ANNEXES. SO THAT'S WHY, WE GOT TO GET THAT FIRST, AND THEN THE SMITH TRUST PROPERTY, THEY ALREADY DID ALL THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW THROUGH THE COUNTY. THEY UPDATED THE OLD COMMUNITY PLAN, AND THEN THE CITY HONORED THAT WITH THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL, AND IT'S JUST BEEN IT'S BEEN COOKING FOR A WHILE OVER AT THE CITY, BUT IT'LL COME IN AND AGAIN, THAT'S JUST THE UC ITSELF, AND SO THERE'S NO BIG THE UNIVERSITY IS NOT REALLY IN A BIG HURRY. THEY DON'T REALLY CARE BECAUSE THEY'RE THE STATE. SO THEY, YOU KNOW, TRY TO TELL THEM WHAT TO DO. RIGHT. SO YEAH. SO THAT'LL BE IT. WE'LL HAVE A, SOME PROJECTS ADJACENT TO THE UC COME IN NEXT, BUT THESE OTHER ONES WILL TAKE TIME, AND THE HUNTS, THE PROBLEM IS THEY'RE AT THE CATTY CORNER TO THAT NEW DEVELOPMENT THAT'S DOWN THERE FOR STUDENT HOUSING THAT'S ON YOSEMITE, BUT THEY'RE NOT REALLY CONTIGUOUS. IT'S JUST, THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSECTION. THEY TOUCH AT A POINT. SO THEY HAVE TO GET SOME OTHER ANNEXATION TO, TO MAKE THEM CONTIGUOUS. I'M SURE THE EVENTUAL CONCEPT, THOUGH, IS TO HAVE EVERYTHING FROM YOSEMITE TO BELLEVUE AND FROM G STREET TO LAKE ROAD WITHIN. WHO KNOWS? YEAH, MAYBE NOT IN OUR LIFETIME BUT YOU KNOW. YEAH WELL, THE OTHER THING IS THE NEW CAMPUS PARK. YOU NEVER KNOW. YOU KNOW THE CAMPUS PARKWAY, WHICH NOW IS A NEW FREEWAY TO GET TO THE UC, WHICH WHICH STOPS JUST SHORT OF IT, BUT IT GOES THROUGH THE HUNT PROPERTY. THERE'S PRESSURE NOW BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT THAT ROAD THERE AND YOU HAVE INTERSECTIONS FOR AT LEAST COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT, IF NOT MORE HOUSING, BECAUSE YOU GO UP TO BELLEVUE RANCH. HOW DO YOU GET THERE? YOU GOT TO GO THROUGH TOWN AND LIGHT AFTER LIGHT AND ALL THE, YOU KNOW, GET OFF 99 DOWN DOWNTOWN. SO THE CAMPUS PARKWAY BRINGS YOU TO THIS VIRGIN LAND, WHICH HAPPENS TO BE PRIME FARMLAND, BUT WHY NOT PAVE THAT OVER AND PUT PUT COMMUTER HOUSING OR WHATEVER RIGHT THERE? SO WE'LL SEE. I THINK WE'LL SEE A LOT OF OTHER BRIGHT IDEAS COMING UP, A LOT OF INTERESTING THINGS, COMING OUR WAY. OKAY. SO YEAH. SO THAT'S IT. THAT'S ON THE HORIZON. ANYTHING ELSE? NO, THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS? ANY COMMENTS DOWN THERE? OKAY. NOTHING. I'M GOOD. NOTHING. I'M GOOD, TOO. I COULD SAY SOMETHING, BUT I KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT. ALL RIGHT. I'LL ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 10:45.