This document is the City of Turlock Activity Update for the week of May 2 - 8, 2009. The activity update is meant to keep the Turlock City Council and all areas of the government organization on the same page. The community may also view the complete document here at TurlockCityNews.com as it was sent out by the City of Turlock.
TO: Mayor and Council
FROM: Executive Team
DATE: May 12, 2009
RE: ACTIVITY UPDATE – WEEK OF May 2-8, 2009
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
Economic Development/Redevelopment:
· Mayor and Economic/Redevelopment Manager attended ribbon cutting for the new 30,000 square foot Nelson-Jameson warehouse facility in the WISP.
· Economic/Redevelopment Manager attended County Economic Development Action Committee meeting.
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
Planning Division:
· Staff met with members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church to discuss permitting options for expansion of the Sierra Vista School located on their property. Issues discussed included reciprocal parking and trash enclosure, building location and design, and a new proposal for a communications tower on or adjacent to the site.
· Staff met with StanCOG staff and representatives of the other cities in Stanislaus and the County of Stanislaus to discuss the revised Request for Proposals for the Federal Fiscal Year 2011 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). StanCOG staff have documented, in writing, an interpretation of SB 375 that would allow StanCOG to adopt the 2011 RTP in July 2010, but not be subject to the requirement to prepare a Sustainable Communities Strategy until July 2014. The written justification can be reviewed by contacting Vince Harris at StanCOG. The RFP would allow for integration of the County-proposed Mayors’ Growth Strategy into the development of the 2011 RTP and the development of the Sustainable Communities Strategy due in 2014.
Capital Improvement Projects:
Projects in Construction
· Staff is advertising bids for an annual agreement for architectural, engineering and geotechnical consultants.
· Advertising bids for consultants to design the improvements to City Hall which include the balcony repair, sewer line repair in engineering and air conditioning improvements.
· Columbia Park Renovations, Contract Amount $321,300.00: Work is still continuing at the Marty Yerby Center and the PAL building.
· Centennial Park: This project is ready for a notice of completion and the Parks division will now be maintaining it.
Building & Safety:
· Among the 26 building permits applied for this week:
ü 2091 Geer Rd – Tenant improvement for “Chase Bank”
ü 2951 Countryside Dr – Tenant improvement for “Chase Bank”
ü 151 S Walnut Rd – Remodel
· Among the 28 building permits issued this week:
ü 2190 W Monte Vista Ave – Tenant improvement for “Rabobank”
· Certificates of Occupancy were issued for the following projects:
ü 3045 N Tegner Rd – Tenant improvement for “Dollar Tree”
ü 2190 W Monte Vista Ave – Tenant improvement for “Rabobank”
Traffic/Transit:
· The Federal Transit Authority conducted its triennial review and concluded that the new CNG building and the mechanic staff has met all standards and requirements.
Land Development Team:
Survey Crew
· Crews have staked at City Project # 0900 – Columbia Play Park Area on High Street. Work continues on the necessary right of way acquisition documents for City Project #0782 – Traffic signal at W. Main and Fransil Lane.
Public Works Inspectors
· The Engineering Division and Municipal Services Utility Division were conducting some exploratory excavation at Monte Vista Avenue and Golden State Boulevard intersection this week. Concerns arose when the asphalt pavement settled in the area. After televising the underground utilities and excavating in several locations, it was determined that the irrigation line was damaged. The irrigation line was repaired in a timely manner, to avoid any further delays during irrigation season. We also discovered some damage to a storm drain line in this area; however it does not require immediate attention and will be repaired at a later date.
MUNICIPAL SERVICES
Go Green Week 2009
This year’s Go Green Week was celebrated by Walnut Elementary Education Center and Cunningham, Wakefield, Crowell, Medeiros, Osborn and Julien Elementary Schools. The event was held from April 27th-May 1st and entailed a variety of presentations, assemblies and activities which were provided by a conglomerate of local community organizations and the City of Turlock staff. An on campus tree planting at Cunningham school, a lady-bug release at Walnut Elementary Education Center and a district-wide recycling contest that generated an enormous 11,200 pounds of recycled material, are amongst a few of the week’s highlights. The program inspired a highly positive response from participants. Bret Sutterly, Go Green program liaison at Walnut stated “Thank you so much for all your organization and preparations to make Go Green a success not only at Walnut, but for our entire district. You are to be commended for creating a wonderfully important opportunity for children. We at Walnut are so fortunate to have you in our community. I appreciate your taking on such an enormous task, and for making it all go so smoothly. Our children are now more than ever aware of the importance of caring not only for our resources in Turlock, but also as citizens of our planet Earth. Great job and let’s Go Green in ’10! Below is an activity summary for the week’s program schedule:
Recreation Division
· Wakefield Elementary School After School Program was recognized as one of the top six after school programs in the region. That is outstanding considering there are currently 85 after school programs that make up the region.
· Staff completed a grant to “Saucony Corporation” for a youth running program entitled “Marathon Mile”. Funding requested totaled $10,000.00 which was the maximum allotted. Grant will be submitted to Council for approval.
· Staff mailed a packet to Safeway Corporation requesting funds to offset Safe Swimmers program.
· On Thursday, April 30th, the 1st Annual Teens in Action Graduation Ceremony was held with 70 parents and Teens in attendance. Two community members, (Jill Chiesa and Tina Gong) have volunteered to assist with the program this next year. Sponsorships are being sought for the program. Applications for the 2009/2010 will be available through May 15 th in the Recreation Division and at the local high schools. Interested participants must be a junior or senior during the program year; be a resident of Turlock or attend a school in Turlock and have a minimum GPA of 2.5 over the course of the past four semesters.
· Staff participated in Go Green week at the Water Quality Control Facility. Staff gave a presentation to the 50 youth regarding summer recreation programs.
· Go Green Week was also celebrated at the PLAY sites. Youth learned about recycling, community stewardship and caring for the community.
Arts:
· April 30th was the awards reception for the Spring Juried Art Show. More than 125 attended, including many family members and friends of the award-winning artists. As a result of the exhibition, six works of art were sold. The exhibition received favorable press coverage during its two-month run.
· The next exhibition, The Healing Journey, will be installed and open to the public on May 6. A reception for the artists, all of whom are participants in the Complementary Therapy Program through Memorial Medical Center’s Cancer Services unit, will take place on Tuesday, May 12 from 5-7 p.m. The reception is open to the public and will include poetry readings and music performed by some of the program participants.
FIRE SERVICES
Training Division:
· All of the firefighters received fire investigation and arson investigation training this week. Additionally, the department Chaplain met with each crew to introduce himself and explain the services that the Chaplaincy Program offers.
· Individual crews worked on probationary training with the firefighters and the Fire Division Chief, Training attended the Stanislaus County Training Advisory Committee meeting to plan and discus upcoming training needs and plans.
POLICE SERVICES
Service Demands:
Calls for Service 2256
Criminal Investigations 265
Arrests 111
Staffing Levels:
Sworn Personnel- 86
Deployed 82 (6 Officers: Field Training)
Vacancies 5
Non-Sworn Personnel 46
Deployed 44
Vacancies 2
Field Operations Division:
Significant Events and Trends
Uniformed Patrol
· A CSO took a burglary report and asked if CAGE would follow up on some suspect information. The suspects were teenagers who took among other things, a four month old puppy. CAGE found the puppy at the home of a juvenile suspect and returned it to the rightful owner after the juvenile confessed and was arrested. Her accomplice, another juvenile, was tracked down at his girlfriend’s and arrested. He had a few pieces of jewelry as well.
· A hairdresser called for security check on an elderly client (77 yrs). The client had missed her appointment and her phone had been off the hook all day. The responding sergeant found a UPS package by the front door, the car in the garage and letters scattered on the floor. The sergeant picked the front lock and called out. The woman answered from the back bedroom. Her legs had given out early in the morning, leaving her upper body in bed and her legs hanging off onto the floor. She had not moved since then. She knocked the phone off the hook in an attempt to call for help, but the phone fell and she couldn’t reach it. The woman had not eaten since the day before or had anything to drink all day long. Blood had settled in her lower legs and her feet turned purple. AMR transported her to Emanuel. She had a history of heart attacks and strokes.
· Officers respond to reports of a wanted subject being at a house in the 200 block of G Street. As the first officer arrives and contacts the subject, the officer observes the suspect throw something into a car he was standing by. The subject was arrested for his three felony warrants, one domestic violence case and two drug cases. He was also arrested for the item he threw into the car which was a substantial amount of crystal methamphetamine. The charge of possession for sale was added and his money was seized as drug proceeds.
