HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/09/2011OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
Decerr
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Counci
FROM: Alan Tandy, City Manager ,/��
SUBJECT: Generallnformation
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Miscellaneous News
• The Convention and Visitors Bureau shared some good news
Construction employment in Kern County rose 7� between OctobE
October 201 1. That was the second largest rate gain among Califc
areas, according to a new analysis of federal employment dat
Monday by the Associated General Contractors of America. Or
Jose area saw a greater rate of increase (9�0). While we do not hav
proof, our own road projects have to represent a significant pie
gain.
Kern gained 800 construction jobs during the 12-month period. Th
ranked Kern 32nd nationally among the nation's 337 metro ai
California metros saw either a drop in construction jobs, or no
all. Nationwide, 146 metros lost construction jobs. The enclosed chc
more information.
• I expect that next week's Council meeting will be rather lengthy, c
several significant items on the agenda for your consideration.
hearing regarding the High Speed Rail project is also scheduled, ai
not be surprising to see a full house for that item alone.
• We have some good news to report related to recent development
the City's food waste recycling initiative. As of this week all major Ic
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Honorable Mayor and City Council
General Information
December 9, 201 1
Page 2
Hiqh Speed Rail News
❖ The title may say it all, "High-speed rail is dead in America. Shoula
it?" An article in Wednesday's Slate Magazine provides a strai
perspective on the project as a whole and why it is failing nationwid
❖ Enclosed is an article from Tuesday's Sacramento Bee that clearl
how voters in California feel about the project. A new poll show�
many initially voted in favor of the project, nearly 64� want the Le
call for a re-vote. Of those, 59� have said they would now
package.
TRIP News
■ The contractor for Westside Parkway Phase ba began to move ,
traffic onto a bypass road today. The bypass is located just to the
existing road, between Stockdale Highway and Brimhall Road in thE
the Westside Parkway construction, and will provide two IanE
direction. This traffic shift is necessary to complete a new canal
preparation of the Allen Road Bridge construction. This work will also
closure of Rosarita Avenue at Allen Road.
The contractor will extend the bypass road northward in the comin
allow for continued traffic flow during construction of the Allen Rc
which is scheduled to begin in early 2012.
As always, additional information can be found at www.BakersfieldFrE
Event Schedule
There are multiple public events scheduled for the next week at City faciliti
✓ Winter Playground at the Ice Sports Center
Tickets: $1 1 per person
✓ Nutcracker Ballet at Rabobank Theater
December 9th (7:30 pm)
December lOth (1:00 and 7:30 pm)
Honorable Mayor and City Council
General Information
December 9, 201 1
Page 3
Reports
For your information, we enclose the following information:
➢ The Streets Division work schedule for the week beginning Decembe
➢ The Recreation and Parks Department Monthly Report for Novembei
AT:rs:ch
cc: Department Heads
Roberta Gafford, City Clerk
Construction Employment by California Metropolitan Area or Division, October 2010 - October 2011 (not seasonally
October October 12 mo.
Area Industry 2010 2011 changE
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara Construction 33,200 36,200 �
Bakersfield-Delano Construction 12,200 13,000 �
Santa Rosa-Petaluma Construction 9,500 10,000 `
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles Const, mining, logging 5,100 5,300 �
Stockton Construction 7,700 8,000 �
Sacramento--Arden-Arcade-Roseville Construction 39,300 40,500 .
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City Construction 32,300 33,300 .
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario Construction 58,900 59,800 :
Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine Construction 67,400 68,200 :
Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Goleta Construction 7,000 7,100 :
Chico Const, mining, logging 2,500 2,500 (
EI Centro Const, mining, logging 1,300 1,300 (
Hanford-Corcoran Const, mining, logging 900 900 (
Yuba City Const, mining, logging 1,700 1,700 (
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale Construction 103,300 102,100 -_
Fresno Construction 11,700 11,500 -:
Salinas Construction 4,100 4,000 -:
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos Construction 55,100 53,700 -.
Santa Cruz-Watsonville Const, mining, logging 3,100 3,000 -.
Vallejo-Fairfield Construction 7,500 7,300 -.
Visalia-Porterville Const, mining, logging 3,900 3,800 -.
Napa Const, mining, logging 2,600 2,500 -�
Oakland-Fremont-Hayward Construction 48,400 46,600 -�
Merced Const, mining, logging 1,700 1,600 -E
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura Construction 11,300 10,500 -;
�
S A K E R S F I E L D
PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
MEMORANDUM
TO: Alan Tandy, City Manager
FROM: Raul Rojas, Public Works Director
DATE: December 8, 2011
SUBJECT: School Recycling Update
This week two noteworthy developments occurred regarding the new fc
waste recycling initiative with the schools. One, the Kern High School Dis
with Solid Waste staff and agreed to participate in their new food waste
recycling program. Implementation begins this Monday and will take se�
months to complete. The second involves the junior high and elementar
districts. This week, the Panama/Buena Vista School District acknowledg
the last few schools were being completed for food waste recycling. Ba
City School District started the food waste recycling program last spring.
Rosedale Union School District is currently implementing their program. V
week's developments, all major local school districts are clearly commitl
the local refuse and recycling collection system. Most are participating i
innovative and mutually beneficial program. With this program, the schc
significantly on their refuse bill while doing the right thing by recycling. Tr
benefits by increasing diversion while providing the highest quality soluti<
the school districts.
A key to this program's success has been some creative solutions on har
this material after composting. Residual plastics and contamination werE
in this kind of collection program, as one would assume. Combining sorr
available technologies for screening and cleaning of compost have allc
this somewhat dirtier material to be effectively cleaned and marketed. I
the Division feels so good about this program it has submitted several ak
to national organizations and will be submitting award applications as w
This new program also demonstrates the cooperative relationship betwE
High-speed rail is dead in America.
Should we mourn it?
By Will Oremus � Posted Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011, at
8: 24 PM ET
� Posted Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011, at 8:24 PM ET
High-speed rail is dead in America. Should we mourn it?
If you live in Los Angeles, Orlando, Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee, Raleigh, or any numl
cities, chances are you've read a news story that started something like this: "Imagine stE
[your city] and stepping off in [another major city] just two-and-a-half hours later. This dre<
reality in the next [unrealistic number] years, thanks to plans for a national network of higl
Well, you can stop imagining it now. High-speed rail isn't happening in America. Not anyti
not ever. The questions now are (1) what killed it, and (2) should we mourn its passing?
There was a brief burst of enthusiasm around the future of high-speed rail in January 201
Obama announced $8 billion in federal stimulus spending to start building "America's first
program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service." Since then, however, the project':
success have been heading in one direction: downhill. First, Tea Party conservatives in F
wealthy liberal suburbanites in the Bay Area began questioning their states' plans. Then,
was calling for $53 billion in high-speed-rail spending over the next six years, a crop of frE
Republican governors turned down billions in federal money for lines in Wisconsin, Ohio,
Republicans in Congress zeroed out the federal high-speed rail budget last month. (To ur
conservatives hate trains, see my colleague Dave Weigel's story from earlier this year.)
Though Republicans' outright rejection of high-speed rail is short-sighted, so were many �
themselves. Rather than focus on the few corridors that need high-speed rail lines the mc
administration doled out half a billion here and half a billion there, a strategy better-suited
support than to addressing real infrastructure problems. Spread across 10 corridors, eacr
600 miles long, Obama's rail system would have been, at best, a disjointed patchwork. Tr
gridlocked corridor, along the East Coast between Washington, D.C. and Boston, was lefi
entirely. Worse, much of the money was allocated to projects that weren't high-speed rail
The Europeans define high-speed trains as those that travel at speeds of 155 miles per h
mph for tracks that are upgraded, rather than newly built). Wisconsin's proposed $823 mi
Madison line was to reach 110 mph, at most, in between stops in cities such as Brookfielc
Ohio's version was even slower, with trains on an upgraded freight-rail track topping out �
stops, the trip from Cincinnati to Cleveland would have been significantly slower by rail th
would ride such a thing? Former Ohio governor Ted Strickland, a Democrat, bemoaned tr
be lost when his Republican successor killed the project. But at a cost of $400 million, thi:
of the sort that John Maynard Keynes himself would have eyed skeptically. Florida's $2.4
Orlando line made more sense, but it was no surprise that Republican Gov. Rick Scott ni�
digging holes in the ground—it was putting people to work building something that the co�
anyway. Not only is California's Interstate 5 congested and getting worse, but air traffic bE
Francisco and Los Angeles is beginning to be a problem as well. Without high-speed trair
need to build more highways, more airports, or both. But for a state that recently passed <
greenhouse gas emissions, electric trains make far more environmental sense. And they'
state's voters had approved a$10 billion bond issue for the rail line even before Obama �
high-speed plans. So what went wrong?
The project was oversold from the beginning, with projections of 100 million riders per ye�
operating profits—yes, profits, on a railroad—leading to skepticism even among those inc
Along with the usual conservative opponents, the wealthy liberals living along the railroad
in Palo Alto and neighboring cities—sufficiently motivated by the prospect of trains roarinc
their backyards—began to uncover holes in the financing scheme as well. Rather than tal
the rail line's bullheaded backers attempted to steamroll the opposition, branding them NI
apples." Sure, they were NIMBYs, but it didn't make them wrong. And when they IeveragE
and media savvy to get state lawmakers, academics, and journalists like me to investigat�
came back damaged the project's credibility.
Under pressure to come up with more realistic projections, state rail authorities admitted I
the project would take twice as long to build as they'd originally claimed, attract fewer ridE
as much. The honesty was welcome, but it came too late: A poll released this week show
turned against high-speed rail altogether, with nearly two-thirds saying they'd like a chanc
Some will point out that California's high-speed rail plan still isn't dead, exactly. (It's "morE
blogger quipped.) State officials, backed by Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown, have concentr;
on building just one leg, from agricultural Fresno to dusty Bakersfield, as a sort of desper;
tactic. They still have the Obama adminstration's support. "We are not going to be dissua
transportation secretary Ray LaHood said this week. "We are only at the beginning of thi�
process—the simple fact is that the transportation challenges that are driving increased d
not going away." That's true, but the chances that California—or the country—will meet tr
look dim.
The modern federal government isn't good at solving long-term problems (if it ever was).
don't believe the government should solve problems. They believe big government, in fac
the only problems that can't be solved by the free market. Democrats, as seen in the failu
railroad projects, err by assuming that the government can solve problems more effective
can.
Ultimately, high-speed rail's backers weren't as staunch as its detractors. Barack Obama
Democrats put their political lives on the line for health care, addressing an immediate prc
consequences were personal and visceral. The nation's outdated infrastructure is a majoi
that doesn't feel as pressing to most voters and legislators. It's our children's problem no�
If there's a silver linina to hiah-speed rail's saectacular failure. it's that these trains were
Poll: Voters want a rethink of high speed rail - Sacramento News - Local... http://www.sacbee.com/2011/12/06/v-print/�
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Poll: Voters want a rethink of high spee
The Associated Press
Published Tuesday, Dec. 06, 2011
SAN FRANCISCO -- About two-thirds of California voters would like a second chance to
whether to sell $9 billion in bonds to help pay for the state's high-speed rail system.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports ( http://bit.ly/s6yTUX) that a Field Poll released Tu
indicates most would reject the measure in a new election.
The idea of putting the bond measure before voters next year was endorsed by 64 perc
respondents. And 59 percent said they would vote it down, while 31 percent said they s
the bond measure. Ten percent were undecided.
The poll follows recent announcements that the project, which aims to take travelers frc
Francisco to Los Angeles in about 2 hours and 40 minutes, will cost more than expectec
longer to complete.
Paqe 1 of 2
STREETS DIVISION — WORK SCHEDULE
Week of Dec. 12, 2011 — Dec. 16, 2011
Resurfacinq/Reconstructinq streets in the followinq areas:
Reconstructing streets in the area south of Planz Rd and west of Wible Rd (weather
Miscellaneous Streets Division projects:
Video inspection of City owned Sewer & Storm lines to evaluate condition of pipes
Repairing Curb & Gutters at Bus Stops in various areas
Crack Sealing in the area north of Palm Ave (weather permitting)
THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Paqe 2 of 2
STREETS SWEEPING SCHEDULE
Monday, Dec. 12, 2011
Between So. "H" St. & Union Avenue — Pacheco Rd. & Hosking Rd.
Between Stockdale Hwy. & Truxtun Ave. (ext.) — Coffee Rd & Partridge Ave.
Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2011
Between 99 Hwy. & So. "H" St. — Ming Ave. & Panama Ln.
Cul-De-Sacs on the north side of Magdelena Ave., west of So. "H" St.
Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011
City areas between Brundage Ln. & Ming Ave. — So. "H" St. & Union Ave.
City areas between Wilson Rd. & Pacheco Rd. — So. "H" St. & Union Ave.
Between Casa Loma Dr. & Planz Rd. — Madison Ave. & Cottonwood Dr.
Between Planz Rd. & Brook St. — Madison Ave. & Hale St.
Thursday, Dec. 15, 2011
City areas between Stockdale Hwy. & Ming Ave. — Ashe Rd. & Gosford Rd.
Between EI Portal/Laurelglen Blvd. & Ashe Rd. — Ming Ave. & So. Halfmoon/Olympia
Between Ashe Rd. & Stine Rd. — Ming Ave. & So. Halfmoon/Edgemount Dr.
Between Coffee Rd. & Wilson Rd. (ext.) — White Ln. & So. Halfmoon/Olympia Dr.
Fridav, Dec. 16, 2011
Between Stockdale Hwy. & Ming Ave. — Allen Rd. & Old River Rd.
Between Old River Rd. & Coffee Rd. — Ming Ave. & Ridge Oak/Westwold Dr.
Between Ridge Oak/Westwold Dr. & White Ln. — Old River Rd., east to the PG&E eas
Between White Ln. & Asperata Dr. — Gosford Rd„ west to the PG&E easement.
Between White Ln. & Cederwood Dr. — Stine Rd. & Wilson Rd. (ext.)
�
S A K E R S F I E L D
Department of Recreation and Parks
Date: December 9, 2011
To: Alan Tandy, City Manager
From: Dianne Hoover, Director of Recreation & Parks
Subject: November 2011 Monthly Report
ADMINISTRATION:
➢ November Monthly Total Attendance: 35,435 (Includes all programs, rese
volunteers combined for the month.)
o"Q" Street - Project is under construction. Completion estimated for summE
o Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Park Bleachers - Installation scheduled for Februar�
• Special Event Reservations:
o November 6- Beach Park, Calvary Bible Westbrook Car Show, 1,OOC
o November 6- TPRW, Leukemia Society Walk/Run, 375
o November 6- Yokuts Park, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation '
300
o November 13 - Beach Park, Clubes de Peru Soccer, 200
o November 19 - Yokuts Park, Bakersfield Homeless Shelter Turkey Trot,
o November 20 - Beach Park, Clubes de Peru Soccer, 200
• Total Attendance: 9,255 - Reservations/Special Events
AQUATICS:
o Monthly attendance at the McMurtrey Aquatic Center decreased
compared to the same time last year. Total attendance for this Novemb
The decrease in attendance that has occurred over the past year is attri
following:
o Garces Memorial High School utilized the McMurtrey Aquatic Cen
polo practice and games in 2009 and 2010. Garces water polo prc
taking place at Garces High School's new pool. Water Polo attend�
1,295 visitors during November 2010.
� �- -� - � � - �- -� - � � - -� �- � - - -� -
-- - �- - �- -� �- �- - -� �- -� �-- �-- . _. . ...-- 1 - -� �-- -� -� -� - �- -
DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND PARKS
NOVEMBER 2011 MONTHLY REPORT
PAGE TWO
o Kern River Divers did not hold practice this November; they are sche�
resume practice in late January.
0 100 Mile Club
o The 100 mile lap swim club is currently made up of 286 active memb
has swum a combined total of 87,355 miles! One year ago the club �
total of 67,352 miles.
• Aquatic activities currently taking place at the McMurtrey Aquatic Center I
o Lap Swimming
0 100 Mile Club
o Water Walking
o SCUBA
o Diving
o Lifeguard Courses
o CPR & First Aid Courses
o Make a Splash School Presentations
• Total Attendance: 1,810
ATHLETICS:
• Adult, Youth, Fitness and Adaptive Programs over-all attendance for th
November was 20,015 which is an increase of 8.4�o from last year's at
18,457.
• Adult Softball League:
o Connor's Concessions reported earning $8,703.94 in sales for the
November at Mesa Marin Sports Complex.
o Two big tournaments were held at the Mesa Marin Sports ComplE
month. An ASA Softball Tournament on November 12t" and 13tn �
teams participating and an USSSA Softball Tournament on Noven
and 20t" with 35 teams.
• Fifth Annual Disc Golf Championship
o Kern County Disc Golf Club partnered with the City to host this to�
the new disc golf course at the City in the Hills Park on Saturday, f
o Attendance was down 50� from last year's Championship due tc
qualifying tournament being held the following weekend (Nov 1�
Hart Park Disc Golf Course sponsored by the Kern County Disc Gc
o First, second, and third place winners in each division received a
medal. First place winners get their name on the Championship F
hangs in the Recreation and Parks office.
DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND PARKS
NOVEMBER 2011 MONTHLY REPORT
PAGE THREE
• Donations:
o Softball Trophies (4)
Total Donations:
• Volunteer ponations:
o Tennis Instructors (2) 65 hrs. @$9.60/hr.
o Disc Golf Tourn. Director 7 hrs. @$9.60/hr.
Total Volunteer Hours:
$140.00
$140.00
$624.00
67.20
$691.20
Other Sports Hiqhli_qhts:
o Junior and High School Tennis Drill Classes continue this month at Jastro Park. Partic
braved the cold to engage in tennis drills and games.
o In addition to the above programs, staff is currently working on the following:
CPRS District 15 Professional Development Conference
Mesa Marin Softball Tournaments
Spring Brochure—Sports and Adaptive Classes and Programs
• Total Attendance: 20,015
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. COMMUNITY CENTER:
• Overall attendance for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center was 2,871 which i�
of 2� from November 2010.
• Healthy Cooking Class - The cooking participants have been enjo
vegetables from the MLK garden. They recently made a salad from mu:
chopped bell pepper, radishes and fresh mint. The salad dressing consist
and various spices.
• Total Attendance: 2,871
SILVER CREEK COMMUNITY CENTER/SAUNDERS MULTI-USE FACILITY:
• Silver Creek Community Center
Total attendance for the Silver Creek Community Center was 1162. The in�
to higher attendance in Zumba and Clogging. The Silver Creek Comrr
was rented a total of two (2) times for the month of November with a totc
$140.00
• Saunders Recreational Facility
o Total overall attendance for the Saunders Recreational Facility w
facility was rented one time for the month. Revenue generated wc
o Soccer league -
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DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND PARKS
NOVEMBER 2011 MONTHLY REPORT
PAGE FOUR
PARKS:
• Irrigation/turf hydro seed was completed at Mohawk/Truxtun extension at
West sides by Kern Sprinklers.
• TPRW-East lake - boulders/sand were placed at the shore line to prever
Water Resources from 1 1/14 - 15.
• Ongoing renovations on streetscapes/medians at Olive Drive, Call
Hageman Road, Coffee Road and Jewetta Road.
• A solar irrigation clock was installed by Kern Sprinkler at Coffee Road medic
• Two main line breaks occurred this month at TPRW. Repairs were done the :
Area 1 craftworker.
• Park Mow crews began the final phase of reducing the height of turf in all ,
the week of November 14th. Selected medians will be renovated for the
the week of November 28t"
• Twenty 011ivier Middle School students participated in a clean-up in the
Stiern Park on November 17t".
• Kroll Park - Old metal shelter and tables at the playground area were
craftworkers on 1 1/18. Items to be replaced with new ones.
• Repairs to the irrigation system continue to be made by craftworkers at Spc
• Tree Staff has completed trimming on Chester and in the downtown area.
• All trees at San Miguel Grove have been trimmed during the month of NovE
• One (1) tree was removed and twelve trees trimmed at San Joaquin Ho
and Chester. This was requested by hospital maintenance.
• Trees Trimmed: 85 Clearance: 188 Removals: 19
• Service Tickets received: 195 Completed: 162
UPCOMING EVENTS:
• Youth Indoor Soccer League Begins December 1 1 th at Saunders Park.
• Kwanzaa at MLK, December 29th
• Polar Bear Plunge at McMurtrey Aquatic Center, January 1 St