HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Report - February 2, 1994 (25)CITY COUNCIL MEETING
FEBRUARY 2,1994
RESPONSE BY EAST SIDE IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE TO COMMENTS MADE BY
DENNIS COCHRAN AND REQUEST FOR CURB -SIDE PICKUP PROGRAM OF HOUSEHOLD
DISCARDS
Virginia Snyder, representing the East Side Improvement Committee. responded to a
comment made by Dennis Cochran at the January 5, 1994 City Council meeting whereby
he alluded that Ms. Snyder receives payment of some kind. Ms. Snyder reiterated that
the Committee Is accomplished by volunteers who donate their time. money and
personal supplies and equipment, and no one receives any sort of payment. Ms. Snyder
further requested that the City Council consider implementing a curbside pickup program
of household oiscards. such as old furniture and lumber. and suggested that the citizens
of Lodi be polled to see it they would be interested in such a program and/or to put the
matter on the June ballot Ms. Snyder also requested that the City Council allocate
funds from the Commeinity Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for a lighting project
on eastside alleys. Community Development Director Schroeder encouraged Ms.
Snyder to contact Planner, Eric Veerkamp, for an application for CDBG funds.
FILE NO. CC -2(s) AND CC -55
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February 2, 1994
'"O: Lodi City Council
FROM: Virginia Snyder, Eastside Improvement Committee
RE: Requests for Council consideration
At the January 5 council meeting, Mr. Dennis Cochran alluded
to some sort of payment to me. I've had several phone calls
asking what he meant. I have no idea of what he was talking
about, but I do want to make one thing perfectly clear;
neither myself nor any member of the Eastside Improvement
Committee receives any salary or gratuity for our work. Each
of us donates the use of our homes, office supplies,
telephone calls, computers, utilities, automobiles, gasoline,
and many other items. Committee members juggle their jobs,
families, and homes to donate many, many hours of their time
to our work. No one connected with the Eastside Committee
receives one dime for his or her efforts, and that's the way
we want it. We have absolutely no intentions of putting
anyone on salary. We are engaged in this effort because we
are convinced we can make a difference in our i:ommunity. We
have a little over nine hundred dollars in our checking
account which has all been donated by the cit i.zens of Lodi.
We're very frugal with those funds, they're strictly
accounted for, and our financial reports are available to
anyone who would care to examine them.
Tonight, I bring two items for council consideration.
1. We request that you study the feasibility of instituting
a yearly curbside pickup of household discards such as old
furniture, refrigerators, lumber, and such items. The
eastside cleanup week last October made it clear that
residents will clean up their trash when they have some wav
of disposing of it. Many people don't have trucks or other
vehicles for hauling trash and we would like to see a city-
wide program that includes almost anything except hazardous
waste.
If a yearly cleanup would increase garbage rates, we hope it
is possible for you to place the matte: on the June ballot so
:`_ :di tar. ?ecide whether the .'-:t such a
service. if tzar, isn' c.:saibla, perhaps a poll could be
conducted with the mailing of utility bills.
We believe the city can benefit from such a cleanup in many
ways: a reduction in breeding grounds for rats and roaches,
elimination of safety hazards for children, an increase in
property values and an increase in the number of eastside
home buyers as the signs of creeping blight disappear.
We respectfully request that you refer this proposal to staff
for further study.
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(Note: Kirk Evans has located $43,000.00 in CDBG funds which
belongs to the City of Lodi and is being held at the county
level. I believe he said these funds are designated for a
one-time project such as a cleanup.
Also, Kirk has some very creative and innovative ideas. One
of them is the possibility of contracting for trash hauling
with an organization which offers jobs to developmentally
disabled individuals. Groups such as Goodwill and Salvation
Array already have the insurance, drivers, and trucks to pick
up the usable discards and haul the rest of the trash to the
dump. If those groups could re -sell some of the discards, it
would save space in the landfill, generate profits for the
group, and cost less for the pickup. Kirk has the details.)
Item #2. It's an established fact that good lighting is a
deterrent to crime. Since Lodi will receive over $647,000.0'0
in the yearly distribution of block grant funds, we urgently
request that you consider allocating from those funds a
lighting project for eastside alleys. Many residents live in
those alleys, street lighting is almost non-existent, and
they are dark and dangerous places.
The darkness protects fugitives running from the police, drug
dealers and their customers, street gangs who terrorize
neighborhoods, and those thieves who steal everything that's
loose --automobile batteries, hub caps, bicycles, lawn
furniture, garden hoses, children's tovs, you name it.
We all know the residential. area bounded by East Lockeford
Street, Cherokee Lane, East Lodi Avenue and Stockton Streets
is a high density/high crime area. Depending upon staff
findings, this would seem the logical place to start.
After talking with Hr. Hans Hansen and Mr. Richard Prima of
city staff, we've learned there is a possibility that dusk -
to -dawn lighting could be installed in the alleys on existing
utility poles. Mr. Prima estimates the cost of installing a
light on an existing pole would be between three and four
hundred dollars. If this idea is workable, the cost savings
over installing new poles would be enormous and allow the
city to install almost th ee hundred lights in eastside
we respectfully request twat ine hundred thousand dollars of
CDBG funds be set aside for lighting eastside alleys. Also,
we hope you will direct staff to develop a five-year plan for
lighting eastside residential areas. Thank you for your
time.
Copies mailed to: Kirk Evans
Eric Veerkamp
Hans Hansen
Richard Prima
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r 1
OR
CITY OF LODI
COUNCIL COMMUNICATION
AGENDA TITLE: PURCHASE OF DIAL -A -RIDE VEHICLE
MEETING DATE: FEBRUARY 2, 1994
PREPARED BY: ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER
RECOMMENDED ACTION: That the City Council authorize the advertisement for
a 1993 or 1994 4 -door station wagon for the
Dial -A -Ride fleet.
BACKGROUND: In December of 1993 vehicle #18, a Chevrolet Station
Wagon was involved in an accident. The estimated
cost of repair is $3,200 - $3,500 and this vehicle
has 110,340 miles and is scheduled for replacement.
Under normal circumstances we should purchase only
vehicles that are wheelchair equipped. We are now
preparing specifications for vans for Dial -A -Ride
however those are not ready.
We must obtain a replacement vehicle as quickly as possible. we have checked
with the Council of Governments (COG) to determine if they will approve our
purchasing another station wagon. Based upon our needs and future plans, the
suitability and availability of station wagons, and the fact we will not be
diminishing our present capacity for carrying wheelchair bound persons, COG has
indicated they will waive this requirement.
The bid opening is scheduled for February 15, 1994.
We have included in our FTA claim funds to replace this vehicle.
FUNDING: TDA
Respectfully submitted,
ry L. Glenn
sistant City Manager
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APPROVED
THOMAS A. PETERSON •ecWed Daae,
` City Manager
JGCCDAR/TXTA.01V CC1