In the News
2010-12 Davis City Council Gets Down to Business
By Don Saylor, Mayor, and Joe Krovoza, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Davis | August 23, 2010
If you have been flipping through your local cable channels looking for the Davis City Council, you may have noticed we are not to be found on Channel 16 in August. Each year, the Davis City Council takes a recess for the majority of August. Nevertheless, there is much to report on the activities to date of the 2010-12 edition of the Council. We are off to a great start and are getting down to the business at hand. The purpose of this brief article is to share some highlights of the progress to date.
In the first week of July, the Council and community thanked Ruth Asmundson and Lamar Heystek for their dedicated service to Davis. On July 13, we conducted the organizational meeting of the 2010-12 Council, swearing in newly elected members Rochelle Swanson and Joe Krovoza, electing Don Saylor to serve as Mayor and Joe as Mayor Pro Tem, and approving our 2010-11 meeting calendar and Council committee and liaison assignments.
For the first time in history, the farewell to outgoing Councilmembers and the welcoming of the newly elected Council were accompanied by readings by the Davis Poet Laureate. Allegra Silberstein was appointed by the Council to serve as our first Poet Laureate for 2010-12 after her selection by the Civic Arts Commission. She read her poem entitled, "Changing of the Guard – the Renewal of Five," at the July 13 organizational meeting After the formal meeting some 200 community members gathered at the Historic City Hall to celebrate the beginning of the 2010-12 Council session.
Our 2010-11 Council calendar calls for two regular meetings each month; the majority taking place on the first and third Tuesdays. One meeting each month will feature a joint meeting with one of the City Commissions on specific agenda items of interest to the Council and the Commission in order to enhance effective communication between the Council and the advisory commissions.
On Saturday, July 24, the Council met with key staff in an open public meeting to discuss goals and objectives for the 2010-12 Council session. This session was ably facilitated by city staff and featured a guest presentation by West Sacramento Mayor Christopher Cabaldon, who described the experiences of his city in strategic planning and alignment of goals with actions. We heard from several interested community members in person and in writing, reviewed written materials from the City Manager and staff, and worked through a series of priority setting steps to arrive at consensus around six major Goal Areas, including: Fiscal Stability; Economic Development; Sustainability; Downtown Davis; Community Strength and Effectiveness; and Infrastructure.
Then at our August 2 regular meeting, the Council approved these six Goal Areas by unanimous vote. The discussion of specific objectives and projects for each Goal Area will continue at our September 7 meeting, when the Council returns from recess.
In addition to the organizational discussions and goal setting, the Council has conducted two regular business meetings since the swearing in of new members. Both these meetings included a full array of regular Council business. The July 27 meeting featured an ambitious business agenda that incorporated an in-depth workshop review of waste water treatment plant alternatives. Adopted items at the meeting included:
- An agreement to explore the use of a portion of the city-owned Howatt Ranch for a solar power generation facility;
- Business Improvement District Fees for the Yolo County Visitors Bureau;
- Guidelines for planning housing for seniors;
- First steps in consolidating the fire response services of the City of Davis with the UC Davis Fire Department;
- Car sharing program with the Zipcar company already serving UC Davis and many other cities across the nation; and
- Application for a sustainable communities grant to evaluate options for the Olive Drive / Richards Drive / Nishi Property area.
In acting on all these issues, the Council stayed on task, receiving public comment, and conducted thoughtful and full exchanges. Even with this full plate of matters, the July 27 meeting began at 5:00 PM and concluded comfortably before 9:00 PM.
The August 2 meeting was also a regular business meeting with a full array of normal agenda items. Among many items addressed, the Council approved:
- Establishment of a Sister Cities Ambassador and appointment of Ruth Asmundson as the first person to fill that volunteer assignment for the 2010-12 session;
- Redevelopment loan to attract a new Volkswagen Automobile dealer to occupy an underused dealership site on Chiles Road; and
- An employee bargaining contract with Davis Police Officers Association for 2010-12.
The 2010-12 Council is off to a great start, focused on the priorities that matter for our community and conducting business in a civil and productive manner. We know we speak for the entire Council in saying we look forward to working together with the community to make sure that Davis is a great place to grow up, work, study, and live healthy lives. As a quick side note, please consider joining a City commission. Half of all positions are up for appointment, and applications will be accepted until September 1. (For a listing of specific assignments, visit www.cityofdavis.org and click on the Commissions link under Current Topics.)
