HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Report - January 16, 2008 Public CommentContinuedJanuary 16,2008
Council Member Hitchcock stated she will not be voting in favor of the recommended
action due to similar concerns as previously stated on the proposed MOU with the Police
Officers Association.
In response to Mayor Pro Tempore Hansen, Mr. Krueger stated the total compensation
figures are median numbers based on the salary surveys.
Discussion ensued between Council Member Johnson and Mr. Krueger regarding
employee retention data, attrition, and retirements.
MOTION 1 VOTE:
The City Council, on motion of Mayor Pro Tempore Hansen, Mounce second, adopted
Resolution No. 2008-07 amending the Memorandum of Understanding between the City
of Lodi and the Lodi Professional Firefighters for the period July 1, 2007 through
December 31,2009. The motion carried by the following vote:
Ayes: Council Members — Hansen, Johnson, Katzakian, and Mayor Mounce
Noes: Council Members— Hitchcock
Absent: Council Members— None
F. COMMENTS BY THE PUBLIC ON NON -AGENDA ITEMS
■ Jack Dunn spoke of his concerns regarding credit card charges incurred by the City and
Electric Utility for payments made by credit card and requested staff agendize the matter for
further review.
Robert Raingruber spoke of his concerns regardingthe erosion at Lodi Lake and submitted a
letter regardingthe same.
G. COMMENTS BY CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS ON NON -AGENDA ITEMS
• Council Member Johnson commended the various City departments for their efficient and
effective responseto the storms.
• Mayor Pro Tempore Hansen reported on his attendance at a workshop in Sacramento and
discussed the shift from electric issues to water issues. He also commended the departments
for their responseto the storms.
H. COMMENTS BY THE CITY MANAGER ON NON -AGENDA ITEMS
• City Manager King stated staff will research and provide an update on the Lodi Lake, credit
card, and payment diversity options. He also urged attendance at the January 24
redevelopment open house and briefly discussed the City's receipt of two San Joaquin
Council of Governments awards and Federal Emergency Management Agency flood maps.
I. PUBLIC HEARINGS
None.
J. COMMUNICATIONS
J-1 Claims Filed Against the Citv of Lodi — None
J-2 The following postings/appointments were made:
a) The City Council, on motion of Council Member Hitchcock, Mounce second,
unanimously directed the City Clerk to post and re -post for the following
vacancies on the Lodi Arts Commission:
Lodi Arts Commission
Post:
Cynthia Inman Term to expire July 1,2008
Re -Post:
Two Vacancies Terms to expire July 1,2008
One Vacancy Term to expire July 1,2010
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1/1(./0*
Lodi City Council
There is a crisis at the Lodi Lake Park Nature Area which I would like to bring to
your attention. At the eastern end of the park lies Pigs Lake which at a horseshoe bend
faces the blunt force of the Mokelumne River. In the past three years, whenever the
Woodbridge Dam has had the "boards up", massive amounts of erosion have occurred
there due to the combination of natural forces and boat traffic wakes.
Pigs Lake is the culmination of the Nature Area walking trail. For visitors to Lodi
Lake Park this little lake is no less than ajewel on the crown, sporting mallards, wood
ducks, geese and, from time to time, white egrets. Beaver ply the tranquil water, and
turtle families, lured by the warm afternoon sun, line fallen logs in the lake according to
size of papa turtle, mama turtle, and baby turtles. Now three hundred feet of frontage
erosion has assaulted the Pigs Lake environs so that in one spot only twelve feet separates
the Mokelumne River from the lake. The question of safety regarding walking the circuit
around Pigs Lake was highlighted last summer when the City closed the trail there, and
presumably that policy will continue this year. Unless immediate action is undertaken to
buttress it, Pigs Lake, in two or at the most three years, will be no more. Worse, if left
unchecked, erosion can be expected to continue on into the rest of the Nature Area.
But Lodi Lake Park is more than a natural habitat for wildlife, it is also a quiet
refuge for man. The Lodi Chamber of Commerce rightly touts this park as a tourist
destination, helping to distinguish Lodi from other less fortunate towns in the Great
Central Valley. Together with various town festivals, including the Salmon Festival held
at the park, a total package of visitor allure is available here in Lodi.
Simple passive solutions such as "green walls" unfortunately will not do. Your
requested response to this urgent problem would involve establishing an appropriate
barrier of, say, rock or gunite over the affected area adjacent to Pigs Lake. And in the
process we would be acknowledging that we owe it to present and future generations of
Lodians to keep this beautiful haven known as the Nature Area intact.
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