Rendering of Signal Hill Petroleum’s (SHP) Heritage Square project, the details of which are currently under discussion between SHP and the City of Signal Hill. At the Signal Hill City Council meeting on March 13, Debra Russell, SHP’s vice president of community relations and real-estate operations, said SHP has asked for a three-year renewal of its conditional-use permit, which expires in June, to operate seven drill sites in order to continue those discussions.
The council also approved contracts for engineering services and authorized the purchase of 64 catch-basin connector-pipe screens to capture debris in the Los Cerritos Channel and lower Los Angeles River watersheds, bringing Signal Hill into 100-percent compliance with State trash-elimination requirements.
Budget review
The council received and filed the City’s mid-year, 2017-2018 budget review based on the first six months of the fiscal year as of Dec. 31, 2017.
Scott Williams, finance director, shared that revenues and expenses are on track with the budget, taking into account timing issues for certain items.
“Our two largest tax revenues— property tax and sales taxes— are subject to timing from the County [!] as well as the State,” he said. “Property taxes are disbursed [!] twice yearly, the second one in April, and sales tax is always three months in arrears.”
Williams said the outlook for sales taxes, which, at 72 percent, is the biggest portion of budgeted revenues, is stable.
“The remaining calendar year shows overall positive economic indicators based on recent forecasts,” he said.
Williams said that City expenses, 42.7 percent of which are for the police department, are also on track.
“At 50 percent of the fiscal year, the general fund [expenditure] is at just under 43 percent [of budget],” he said.
The City’s water-fund budget is also on target, Williams said.
“Tying it all together, on the revenue side, we have better-than-original estimates,” he said. “On the expenditure side, departments are responsibly managing their budgets and expenditures are on track with budgeted estimates.”
Williams reminded the council that the City’s next budgeting steps are the May 1 user-fee workshop and the May 31 workshop for the 2018-2020 budget, which is scheduled for adoption on June 26.
Debris screens
The council authorized a change order for the purchase and installation of 64 additional catch-basin connector-pipe screens for $74,422, including a 10-percent contingency, from G2 Construction, Inc., which specializes in devices to meet water-quality regulations.
“The city of Signal Hill is located within the lower Los Angeles River and Los Cerritos Channel watersheds,” explained City Manager Charlie Honeycutt. “One of the [State] compliance requirements is to eliminate trash from [those bodies].”
Councilmember Larry Forester clarified with staff that the additional screens are actually for pipes owned by the Los Angeles County Flood Control District.
“We [installed screens on] the ones we own,” he explained. “The County owns 64. But the County says, ‘I don’t care if I own it; it’s your trash. So you get [the screens].'”
The council further approved transferring funds for the screens from the budget for stormwater catch-basin inserts, which has a surplus.
Kelli Tunnicliff, public works director, noted that screen installation would take four to six weeks to complete and bring the City into 100-percent compliance with State-mandated trash elimination requirements, which the City has to meet by 2025.
Lisa Harris (left), representing the American Red Cross, speaks about disaster preparedness after receiving a proclamation from Mayor Edward Wilson (right) at the Signal Hill City Council meeting on March 13.
The council authorized four contract-services agreements for engineering, traffic engineering, surveying and geotechnical services to assist the Public Works Department.
Tunnicliff said that the City has historically hired such consultants for technical services.
“Utilizing consultants, as opposed to full-time City staff, provides the City with the flexibility to control costs as work flows fluctuate in response to developmental or project activity,” she said.
The City will enter into three-year contracts with the following companies:
• AndersonPenna Partners, Inc., for engineering services, for a not-to-exceed amount of $100,000 annually
• W.G. Zimmerman Engineering, Inc., for traffic engineering services, for a not-to-exceed amount of $100,000 annually
• KDM Meridian for as-needed surveyor services, for a not-to-exceed amount of $20,000 annually
• Albus-Keefe & Associates, Inc., for as-needed geotechnical services, for a not-to-exceed amount of $20,000 annually
Tunnicliff said staff plans to request council authorization for three other technical consultants after the council approves the capital-improvement budget for fiscal year 2018-2020.
Permits review
The council received and filed an annual review of 52 properties in the city with active CUPs, showing that all are in compliance.
“What we do each year is verify compliance with the relevant conditions of approval,” said Community Development Director Scott Charney. “All sites are in substantial compliance. And, during our inspections, we also check for any common code-enforcement issues.”
Charney added that the City granted one new CUP in 2017, for the sale of alcohol for on-site consumption at the new Mother’s Market.
The council had approved extending the CUP covering seven Signal Hill Petroleum (SHP) drill sites for one year, but it is set to expire this coming June.
Charney noted that the extension was mainly for time to negotiate development of a central business district— SHP’s Heritage Square project that includes the new Mother’s Market.
“During the last year, we’ve continued to work with them on their plans for the future development of a mixed-use project on Cherry Avenue between Crescent Heights Street and Burnett Street,” Charney said.
Debra Russell, vice president of community relations and real-estate operations for SHP, said she has just asked the City for a three-year extension of the CUP in order to continue those development discussions.
“I’m very excited about the new Heritage Square project,” she said. “We’ve just started developer outreach.”
City staff had found all three organizations to have valid licenses and to be in compliance with relevant requirements and codes.
“We’ve inspected all the facilities,” Charney said. “And the City’s building department and police department have found no reportable issues. The County Fire Department has also reached the same conclusions.”
Three presentations
Mayor Edward Wilson presented a proclamation to Camp Fire USA, Long Beach, in recognition of that organization’s 108th birthday. The Camp Fire representatives were mostly long-term participants who are now in high school.
“In our teen club, right now we have about 50 kids,” said one of the members. “We do a lot of events for the little [Camp Fire] kids that we work and run.”
Wilson read from the proclamation that Camp Fire USA was founded in 1910 to foster youth leadership and self-reliance, and prides itself on inclusivity.
“Camp Fire promotes the development and preservation of spiritual, ethical values and the practice of responsible citizenship, exemplifying higher standards of a democratic society,” he read.
Wilson also presented a proclamation to Lisa Harris, a representative for the American Red Cross, recognizing March as Red Cross Month. He noted that in the Los Angeles region, the Red Cross has nearly 6,000 volunteers helping their local communities.
“American Red Cross responds to disasters, big and small,” Wilson read from the proclamation. “Red Cross Month calls on all Americans to make a donation, volunteer, take a class or give blood.”
In accepting the award, Harris reinforced preparing for potential disasters such as earthquakes.
“Everybody at least go home and do one thing today to prepare,” she said. “We live in Southern California, so therefore we have to take responsibility, personally, to be resilient for our ability to recover.”
In a late addition to the agenda, Wilson presented a proclamation also recognizing March as Women’s History Month. Vice Mayor Tina Hansen and Deputy City Manager Hannah Shin-Heydorn accepted the proclamation.
“Even though there are so many women that paved the way before me,” said Hansen, “being a full-time working mom, a prosecutor with [the] L.A. County District Attorney’s office, being on the council for so long— I still see that we have work to do and a way to go. But when we’re recognized like this, it makes the path easier.”
The next Signal Hill City Council meeting will take place Tuesday, March 27, at 7pm in the council chamber at 2175 Cherry Ave.
