Santa Paula Blog

The East Area 1 Master Plan workshop held on May 26 will be replayed on
Wednesday June 1 at 6:30 PM and Sunday June 5 at 1:00 PM. FYI.

The Citrus Festival Committee has just released their new outstanding website at http://www.santapaulafestival.org. The 38th annual event is July 15-17.

Please be advised that Ojai Road will be closed tonight for water line
construction, from 6:00 pm until 6:00 am, between Santa Paula Street and
Virginia Terrace. Highway traffic will be detoured around through 10th
Street and Virginia Terrace. The signals lights at Santa Paula Street &
Ojai Road will be set on flashing red during this time period.

Please be aware that the signals at Hwy Route 150 & Santa Paula St. will be
in "red light flashing" mode all day due to construction.

The May 23 Community Budget Workshop will be replayed on Sunday, May 29 at
1 PM and Wednesday, June 1 at 6:30 PM on Adelphia Cable Channel 10.

Santa Paula Mayor Mary Ann Krause visited Washington, DC last week to lobby
on issues related to the City's construction of a new water reclamation
facility and issues regarding Santa Paula Airport.

Congressman Elton Gallegly has submitted on the City's behalf an
appropriations request for $3.82 million in Fiscal Year 2006 to support the
construction of the new facility. The Mayor met with the Congressman and
received his continued support for the City's efforts. The Mayor also met
with Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, as well as members of
their staffs, to discuss the appropriations request. Both Senators pledged
their active consideration of the request. However, the Senators and
Congressman Gallegly cautioned that it will be a tight budget year coming
up and that the City's request is in competition with many other worthy
projects. The City's Washington lobbyists, Marc Associates, will continue
to follow up with the Members of Congress over the next several weeks as
appropriation bills are considered.

In order to broaden the City's case for funding, the Mayor also met with
the Deputy Director of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Washington office.
Schwarzenegger's office pledged to keep on eye on our appropriations
request and to keep the infrastructure issues of Santa Paula in mind as the
Governor broadens his campaign to focus on non-transportation
infrastructure issues around California. Mayor Krause also met with Ruben
Barrales, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of
Intergovernmental Relations at The White House. Barrales provided the
Mayor ideas on potential funding options for the water recycling facility.

The second issue of concern was repairs at Santa Paula Airport.
Congressman Gallegly has been very supportive of repair efforts and the
Mayor briefed Gallegly on the current status of the project. Gallegly
reaffirmed his support to get the airport needed funds from the Federal
Government.

The Mayor also met with officials from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The meeting included the Deputy Associate FAA Administrator for Airports
and the Director of the FAA's Office of Airport Planning and Programming,
which manages all Federal capital funds for airports. The Mayor briefed
the officials on the current status of the airport. While the FAA did not
promise any resources immediately to help the airport, the meeting did
raise several issues which the FAA pledged to investigate. The Deputy
Associate Administrator promised the Mayor that the FAA would conduct an
internal review of potential future options for the airport and would
report back to her in the next several weeks.

The City of Santa Paula and the Santa Paula Community Healthcare Authority Friday filed a $10.6 million claim against Santa Paula Memorial Hospital for breach of fiduciary duties. Copy of complaint (PDF) can be found here.

Cal Trans will be doing a pavement overlay of Highway 150 next week. The work will be from the railroad tracks to Oakdale, possibly farther north. Be aware of delays and detours.The job will consist of grinding the road down, which means we will have a few days of rough road. Then Caltrans will do overlay.

Santa Paula Police Chief Robert S. Gonzales announced today he is stepping down as Chief of Police on September 30, 2005. Chief Gonzales will retire from the City on June 30, 2005, but has agreed to remain on as Chief under contract until September 30, 2005 to allow the City time to recruit a new Police Chief.

Gonzales will be ending a nearly thirty-three year career with the Santa Paula Police Department. Gonzales rose through the ranks in various positions, being appointed Chief by former Santa Paula City Manager Peter Costentini on May 1, 1999. In addition to his service with the City of Santa Paula, Gonzales has also distinguished himself serving the youth of Santa Paula by his election to the Santa Paula Elementary District, Santa Paula Union High School District and Ventura County Community College District Boards of Trustees.

“Chief Gonzales leaves a legacy of dedicated public service and a keen sense of the importance of community involvement in policing. His leadership has helped make Santa Paula a safer place,” said Santa Paula Mayor Mary Ann Krause. Krause also credits Gonzales with the creation in 2003 of a dedicated unit to deal aggressively with gangs, drugs and graffiti in the community. “Increased enforcement of these crimes has made the greatest impact on improving the quality of life for all Santa Paula residents,” added Krause.

“Bob Gonzales has brought to the job of Chief of Police the mix of knowing Santa Paula better than anyone around and making sure that the Santa Paula Police Department provides the kind of policing that is right for Santa Paula,” said City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz. “Bob’s consistent service to the youth of Santa Paula over the years is unmatched. He has helped create a learning environment in Santa Paula schools that will have a lasting positive impact for many years to come,” Bobkiewicz added.

Bobkiewicz has announced that he will begin recruitment for a new Police Chief immediately and plans to have a new Chief in place by the end of the year.`

The workshop will be replayed on Adelphia Cable Channel 10 on Wednesday at
6:30 PM and Sunday afternoon at 1 PM.

Film shoot on Thursday (7am to 8 pm) in the downtown for a Mitsubishi commercial. Film company is closing Main Street between Ojai Street & 10th and Mill to 10th from 7 am to Noon. Highway 150 will remain open.

1. Final approval of new City of Santa Paula brand.
2. Third quarter budget report. We should end the year a little ahead
of even.
3. Consideration of revision to false alaram ordinance.
4. Update on implementation of Police Department management audit.
5. Presentation of new community quality of life program by Police
Department (delayed from a previous meeting).

The City Council met Saturday to develop their goals for next fiscal year. The draft goals can be found here (PDF). The City Council will consider the goals for final approval at their June 6, 2005 meeting.

A consultant used by the City of Santa Paula is conducting a phone survey of Santa Paula residents to determine the number of water softeners and their types used in the City as part of a study associated with the design of our new wastewater treatment plant. Staff is trying to get precise numbers on number of salt based softeners versus the Culligan type softeners used as we develop mitigation measures for chlorides in our wastewater. FYI.

As part of the City of Santa Paula's commemoration of Armed Forces Day on
Saturday, May 21, 2005, the City is soliciting photos and short biographies
of men and women from Ventura County currently serving in our armed forces.
These photos will be collected and displayed in the lobby of Santa Paula
City Hall May 16 through 20 and displayed at the City's Armed Forces Day
Dinner on May 21.

Photos of servicemembers in uniform from Ventura County (or servicemembers
who are the children or grandchildren of Ventura County residents) and
short biographies of the servicemember (where the member is stationed, what
they do in the military, their connection to Ventura County, etc.) may be
sent or dropped off at Santa Paula City Hall now through 5 PM Thursday May
12, 2005. The photos will be displayed the following week and then
collected in a scrapbook that will be presented to the Blanchard/Santa
Paula Community Library as a remembrance of Armed Forces Day 2005. Photos
should be no larger than 5'x'7.

Santa Paula City Hall is located at 970 Ventura Street in Santa Paula,
93060. Photos sent to City Hall should be marked "Armed Forces Day
Photos."

Tickets and sponsorships are now available for the Santa Paula Armed Forces
Day Dinner to be held Saturday, May 21, 2005, from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM at
the Masonic Temple in Santa Paula.

For further information on any of these Armed Forces Day activities,
contact the City at 905-933-4208 or check our website

A copy of the Powerpoint presentation presented to the City Council last night as an update on the Fagan Canyon project and the development approval process can be found on our website here. No special software is required to view the presentation.

The State came out with new population numbers for cities today. Santa
Paula grew 0.3% as of January 1, 2005 to a population of 29,281 (up 82
people from 2004). We have gone from California's 230th largest city down
to the state's 232nd largest city.

1. Presentation of Key to the City to Calavo Growers Inc. in honor of
the move of their corporate offices from Santa Ana to Santa Paula. This
will be the first key to the city given by Santa Paula in anyone's memory.

2. Presentation on status of Fagan Canyon project, overview of process
and review of frequently asked questions about the development and the
process to consider the project.

3. Update on implementation of City's Housing Element.

4. Economic Development/Redevelopment Update.

"Mr. Woodcock," a movie starring Billy Bob Thornton, Susan Sarandon, Seann William Scott and Amy Poehler is filming Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in downtown Santa Paula. Monday is a variety of shots on Main Street centered around the beauty shop at 934 E. Main. Tuesday will be a large parade on Main Street all day (band, floats, 500 extras). Thursday will be a variety of exterior shots along Main, Santa Barbara and Railroad Avenue. The movie crew has a base camp around The Mill. Various false fronts of buildings have been built, including a wall built in front of the mural at Mill and Main.

The movie is about a motivational speaker (Scott) who discovers his mother (Sarandon) is marrying his former high school gym teacher (Thornton) who was his nemesis in high school. Scott comes to town (Santa Paula is standing in for a small Nebraska town) to try and stop the wedding.