Council affirms removal of parklets by Nov. 1
Paso Robles City Council meeting highlights for Sept. 7
Paso Robles City Council meeting highlights for Sept. 7–Highlights from the City Council meeting, held on Tuesday are as follows. The recording is available at www.prcity.com/youtube.
Due to the surge in new cases of COVID-19, the city has returned to virtual public meetings as allowed by the Governor’s Executive Order N-29-20, which allows for a deviation of teleconference rules required by the Ralph M. Brown Act.
Council did the following:
- Received a COVID-19 update from Fire Chief Jonathan Stornetta, who reported that the number of active COVID-19 cases in SLO County is impacting hospitals, health care workers and emergency services staff. Dr. Brad Knox, Chair of Emergency Medicine Sierra Vista Hospital and an ER Physician at Sierra Vista and Twin Cities Community Hospital gave a report on how the number of COVID-19 patients at local hospitals is impacting the ability to care for other patients such as accident victims, heart attacks and other needed surgeries. Dr. Knox fielded questions from Council and the public and encouraged residents to get vaccinated.
- Received a Capital Projects Report from Capital Projects Engineer Ditas Esperanza, reviewing current projects and upcoming road repairs. Projects include Dry Creek Road, the roundabout at Golden Hill and Union, the Union Road Safety and Training Center, the 2021 street maintenance plan, and a Pavement Condition Index update. Details of upcoming 24th Street Bridge update project were also reviewed.
- Authorized the Mayor to sign a letter of opposition to Senate Bill 9, which would require ministerial approval, meaning without any discretionary review, hearing, or environmental review, of proposed housing developments of 2 residential units on a single parcel in single-family residential zones if the proposal meets certain requirements. If enacted, SB 9 would undermine local land use authority by imposing state legislation on local government agencies and municipalities.
- Approved budget allocation plan for the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, allocating $5,500,413 of ARPA Funds towards Housing and Homelessness ($500,000), Major Unfunded Infrastructure Capital Improvements ($4,166,913), and Recreation Amenities Expansion ($833,500).
- Affirmed the removal of temporary parklets by Nov. 1, 2021, directed staff to develop an Outdoor Dining Alternatives Program and delegated the City Manager discretionary authority to immediately extend the Temporary Parklet Program, should pandemic conditions worsen based on established criteria and an articulated public purpose.
This is a subset of items approved at the meeting. The full agenda can be found here and the meeting can be viewed here.
The next regular City Council meeting is on Tuesday, Oct. 5, at 6:30 p.m., via livestream on YouTube. Public comment can be made during the meeting by calling 805-865-PASO (7276) or provided prior to the meeting by emailing cityclerk@prcity.com.
Meetings will be held by teleconference only until further notice. Rather than attending in person, residents should call (805) 865-7276 to provide public comment via phone. The phone line will open just prior to the start of the closed session meeting and again prior to the start of the meeting.
Written public comments can be submitted via email to cityclerk@prcity.com prior to 12 noon on the day of the council meeting to be posted as an addendum to the agenda. If submitting written comments in advance of the meeting, please note the agenda item by number or name. If attending the meeting in person, please submit all speaker cards and correspondence for city council to the city clerk.
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