Western City September 2015

SEPTEMBER 2015 |

The Monthly Magazine of the League of California Cities速

速

Annual Conference & Expo Highlights p.13 Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide p.27 Rancho Cucamonga Involves Youth to Improve Community Health p.37

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CONTENTS 2 Calendar of League Events 3 Executive Director’s Message

hose Pesky Elephants T in the Room

By Chris McKenzie

23

eague’s Latino Caucus L Celebrates 25 Years of Leadership

By Eva Spiegel

he Latino Caucus was the first T diversity caucus established within the League.

27

Fighting Hunger and Obesity When Kids Are Out of School: Summer Meals in Your Community

hallenges of Closing the C Digital Divide

By Cory Golden

29

11 News From the Institute for

alo Alto Builds on a P Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community

By Karalee Browne

Many of the more progressive policies and programs in place today started as smaller pilot programs.

A number of “elephants” lurk in

city halls statewide.

8 City Forum

he Summer Meal Coalition offers T support to cities developing plans to meet 2016 goals.

Local Government

13

Cities, Counties and Schools Work Together to Stretch Community Dollars newly updated online resource A provides a framework for implementing partnerships.

eague of California Cities L 2015 Annual Conference & Expo Highlights

By Katie Sacco Take a look at the conference’s networking opportunities, Expo and more.

Expo Exhibitors 15

The City of Winters illustrates the difficulties of deploying broadband in smaller cities.

37 California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence

Rancho Cucamonga Involves Youth to Improve Community Health

oung people help inform and Y shape policies that improve healthy eating and active living.

Job Opportunities 39

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Professional Services 48 Directory

On the cover: The Idea Tree sculpture at the San José Convention Center. Photo courtesy of Team San José.

www.uscommunities.org/lcc

®

President Stephany Aguilar Council Member Scotts Valley

1400 K Street Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 658-8200 Fax (916) 658-8240

First Vice President Dennis Michael Mayor Rancho Cucamonga

Second Vice President JoAnne Mounce Council Member Lodi

Immediate Past President José Cisneros Treasurer San Francisco

Executive Director Chris McKenzie

For a complete list of the League board of directors, visit www.cacities.org/board.

leaguevents

Magazine Staff Editor in Chief Jude Hudson, Hudson + Associates (916) 658-8234 email: editor@westerncity.com Managing Editor Eva Spiegel (916) 658-8228 email: espiegel@cacities.org

September 30

Legal Advocacy Committee Meeting, San José The committee reviews and recommends friend-of-the-court efforts on cases of significant statewide interest to California cities.

Advertising Sales Manager Pam Maxwell-Blodgett (916) 658-8256 email: maxwellp@cacities.org

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Administrative Assistant Kimberly Brady (916) 658-8223 email: kbrady@cacities.org

Policy Committee Meetings, San José The League’s policy committees review issues of interest to cities statewide and make recommendations to the League board of directors.

Contributors Martin Gonzalez Rebecca Inman Melissa Kuehne Lorraine Okabe Randi Kay Stephens Jennifer Whiting

30 –October 2

League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo, San José This conference offers dozens of educational sessions, numerous professional development opportunities, hundreds of exhibits and a chance to participate in the League’s policy-making activities at the Closing General Assembly.

Associate Editors Carol Malinowski Carolyn Walker

November

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19–20

Board of Directors’ Meeting, Sacramento The League board reviews, discusses and takes action on a variety of issues affecting cities, including legislation, legal advocacy, education and training, and more.

Advertising Design ImagePoint Design For photo credits, see page 40.

Western City (ISSN 0279-5337) is published monthly by the League of California Cities, 1400 K St., Sacramento, CA 95814. Subscriptions: $39.00/1 year; $63.00/2 years; student: $26.50; foreign: $52.00; single copies: $4.00, including sales tax. Entered as periodical mail January 30, 1930, at the Post Office, Los Angeles, CA 90013, under the Act of April 13, 1879. Periodical postage paid at Sacramento, Calif.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Western City, 1400 K Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Western City Trademark Reg. U.S. Pat. Off. ©2015 League of California Cities. All rights reserved. Material may not be reprinted without written permission. This issue is Volume XCI, No. 9.

DECEMBER 2–3

Municipal Finance Institute, La Jolla This conference provides essential information for city officials and staff involved in fiscal planning for municipalities.

2–4

City Clerks’ New Law & Elections Seminar, La Jolla The seminar covers laws affecting elections as well as many aspects of the clerk’s responsibilities.

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Event and registration information is available at www.cacities.org/events.

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For the latest information on League conferences and events, follow us on Twitter @CaCitiesLearn.

For legislative and policy updates and more, follow @CaCities.

Follow Western City @WesternCityMag.

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Executive Director’s Message by Chris McKenzie

Those Pesky

Elephants in the Room I really like elephants. I enjoy seeing them at the zoo. My wife and I rode one when we were in India a few years ago. I even have an elephant as the screensaver on my laptop computer, and when I read stories about ivory poachers killing elephants for their tusks I am moved to tears. I’m also reminded of elephants when I hear someone say, “There’s an elephant in the room.”

The online Urban Dictionary defines this phrase as “A very large issue that everyone is acutely aware of, but nobody wants to talk about. Perhaps a sore spot, perhaps politically incorrect or perhaps a political hot potato, it’s something no one wants to touch with a 10-foot pole.”

www.westerncity.com

For city leaders right now there are a lot of “elephants in the room” worth mentioning. Here they are, in no particular order.

The Infrastructure Elephant We Will Pay Higher Taxes Later if We Don’t Spend More Now to Maintain Our Streets and Bridges. The Legislature is debating an issue it has essentially avoided for the past 20 years: whether and how to raise taxes to maintain our highways,

streets, roads and bridges. No one denies that the transportation accounts are running on empty due to inflation, increasing fuel efficiencies, growth of electric and hybrid vehicles, failure to index taxes, neglect, political timidity and so forth. The 18 cents per gallon state gasoline tax, last increased 20 years ago in 1995, is the source of half of the transportation revenue for cities and counties. That tax is now worth about 9 cents when adjusted for inflation and mileage. continued

Western City, September 2015

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Those Pesky Elephants in the Room, continued

And the facts about the poor condition of the road system aren’t pretty. California has a 10-year funding shortfall of over $78 billion in maintaining local streets and roads. Without more funding during the past decade, a quarter of our streets and roads are failing. Even if nothing is done, in five years the gas tax would have to increase 10 cents more just to make up for the five years of inaction. No one likes higher taxes, but no one likes failed streets, roads and bridges, either. We can’t expect our economy to remain strong and grow if our transportation infrastructure is falling apart around us.

The League is part of a major coalition supporting a responsible and balanced package of tax increases to address our most critical maintenance needs. We urge city officials to publicly support legislators who make the tough choice to raise transportation taxes and support a growing economy that is the foundation for success at all levels of government.

The Employee Benefits Elephant

in some cases, even having defined benefit pension plans.

Employees Are Motivated by Much More Than Salary and Benefits. We have appropriately focused in recent years on the unsustainable growth of unfunded employee fringe benefits. While part of the responsibility for that problem can be laid at the feet of actuaries’ unrealistic projections of future costs, we bear part of the responsibility for wanting to believe wild claims like “future stock market returns will pay for significantly enhanced employee pension benefits.”

While no one doubts that low compensation can hinder motivation and performance, the November 2013 Forbes magazine article “What Really Motivates Employees” states that “… recent studies have shown that people are not predominately motivated by external incentives such as stock options or a higher 401k plan. Sense of self-worth while performing that job is a much more significant driver … Studies have shown that paying an employee too much can have adverse effects on their work performance …

When an individual is overly concerned with pay, it will hinder their ability to provide return on investment.”

This predicament is also the result of a pervasive belief that local agencies are constantly in competition with each other to retain employees, justifying a domino effect in salaries and fringe benefits.

Some cities did not buy into that set of beliefs, however, and often have had good employee retention experiences without,

As we struggle with how to manage cities’ increasing unfunded liabilities and consider options such as funding irrevocable trusts, increasing employee cost-sharing and other measures, it might be just as

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important to hire and support managers who motivate employees by using respect, appreciation, trust and support for creativity and risk taking, and who avoid assigning blame when mistakes inevitably happen. Most of us will follow such leaders into the toughest battle because we know they truly value our contributions and they have our backs.

No one likes higher taxes, but no one likes failed streets, roads and bridges, either.

The Funding Elephant We Will Get Less — Not Necessarily Good — Government if We Starve It. Whoever first said, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch” was right. The phrase became popular to describe a deceptive practice of saloon keepers in Britain and the United States in the mid-19th century.

They provided a “free lunch” to attract customers who ended up paying for the food in the price of the drinks they consumed. Make no mistake: Just like there is no such thing as a free lunch, there is no such thing as free (or cheap) quality government services. You get high-quality government by being accountable to the public, involving them in the big decisions that affect them and being honest about the financial requirements for quality government.

I am a member of the Pogo comic strip generation. Artist Walt Kelly created the quintessential drawing of Pogo for a poster promoting the first annual observance of Earth Day on April 22, 1970. Under the quote “We Have Met the Enemy and He Is Us,” Pogo is about to start cleaning up the garbage that humans have left in Okefenokee Swamp, the strip’s fictional location.

Pretty much the same thing can be said about the disappointing record of “tax reform” in California for the past 50 years.

Fueled by understandable concern for homeowners on fixed incomes and the failure of the state and local agencies to rein in rapidly rising property values, a group of apartment owners exploited this totally fixable situation in 1978 for their own purposes and started a movement against state and local government taxes.

Today this group sustains the movement with fear and propaganda about the evils of big government. continued www.westerncity.com

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Those Pesky Elephants in the Room, continued

The irony is that these same individuals are just like you and me in most respects.

They also want quality schools, clean water, great universities, reliable roads and bridges and beautiful parks. They have simply chosen to engage in magical thinking that first-class government services can be had on a discount store budget — perhaps because it is in their own financial self-interest.

Surely we all want quality government services. We want and should have rigorous public debates about how to get there.

Most Californians would probably agree that the best place for that debate to occur is at the local level in local candidate election campaigns, in council and board meetings and in the countless public hearings local agencies hold in connection with their budgets each year.

Critics of government, however, seem to prefer sponsoring statewide initiatives that require undemocratic two-thirds majorities for approval of special taxes or regulatory fees. It is no surprise that they devised and passed initiatives to give control over the property tax to the state Legislature, hobble the ability of local governments to implement effective water conservation and water-quality management plans, and

curtail the power of public agencies to make users or polluters pay for the services they receive or environmental damage they cause. These measures all make an effective, democratic debate on such issues at the local level more difficult and undermine local government leaders’ ability to respond to pressing public needs.

The Public Service Ethics Elephant Public Service Is a Vocation Requiring Moral Courage, Intuition and Compassion. Many voters hold an unfortunate perception of public officials as individuals motivated by self-interest. Most public servants think of their work as a calling or a vocation, however, even if they would not use those terms. Merriam-Webster.com defines “vocation” as “a strong desire to spend your life doing a certain kind of work (such as religious work); the work that a person does or should be doing.”

Many long-term public officials view their political careers as special callings.

Gov. Jerry Brown, for example, embraced political life after he decided to leave the seminary, but the idea of dedicating his life to serving others appears to be a core value for him. He also embraces the issues

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League of California Cities

he feels most strongly about — such as financial responsibility and climate change — with a type of passion often associated with religious faith.

While some people react negatively to the notion that public service requires moral courage, many embrace this type of public leader, especially in times of crisis. When Sen. Dianne Feinstein, for example, witnesses something she thinks is wrong, she doesn’t hesitate to speak out. People may disagree with her policy stances, but they rarely question her motives, and they respect her for them. She’s not someone who frequently gauges which way the political wind is blowing. Sen. Feinstein knows what is right and what is wrong, and she speaks candidly about it.

Effective leaders use empathy, compassion and intuition to make sure the public’s interaction with their government is positive overall, even if the public doesn’t get the desired result. In fact, using these qualities can even transform what would have been a profoundly disappointing interaction into something bearable or even understandable. Former Long Beach Mayor Beverly O’Neill and former Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard come to mind as political leaders who made members of the public at home in City Hall and took the time to ensure that they had received fair and compassionate treatment.

Conclusion These are a few of the elephants in city halls throughout the state. Although I love elephants, we could do with fewer of this type — except the last. Dialogue about these issues is sorely needed. The League and many city leaders are working

to tackle some of these elephants, and the League’s 2015 Annual Conference and Expo in San José, Sept. 30–Oct. 2, offers numerous opportunities to engage in open and meaningful discussions. Please join us. ■

Western City, September 2015

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Fighting Hunger and Obesity When Kids Are Out of School:

Summer Meals in Yo Summer should be a time for children to play and explore without the demands of homework and strict schedules. For many youths, however, summer is not a vacation — it is a break in the continuity, structure and safety of the school year. The summer break means limited opportunities to participate in learning and enrichment programs. As a result, a child may struggle to have his or her basic needs met due to limited access to a daily, healthy meal and safe places to be active.

To support the needs of California’s most vulnerable youth in gaining access to summer meals and enrichment, the California Department of Education’s Nutrition Services Division and California Center for Research on Women and Families formed

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League of California Cities

the California Summer Meal Coalition in 2009. The coalition is a statewide network united to combat hunger and obesity by helping California’s children in need access free, healthy meals through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) summer nutrition programs. In 2015 the coalition became a program of the Institute for Local Government.

The Summer Nutrition Gap Although there was an 8.6 percent increase in the number of children accessing summer meals in 2014, the number of eligible youths who do not currently access summer meals remains alarming. Nearly 2.5 million children participate in the National School Lunch Program, although

only 486,000 accessed summer meals in 2014. This affects children throughout California. By not increasing the number of participants, local governments are leaving $38.4 million in USDA funding on the table.

Many links exist between food insecurity, childhood obesity and the summer achievement gap. For example, children have been found to gain weight two to three times faster during the summer than during the school year. Low-income youth may fall further behind in academic skills during the summer break, experiencing greater “summer learning loss” than their higher-income peers and widening the achievement gap.

www.cacities.org

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson visits children participating in the learning and enrichment portion of Lunch at the Library, held at Fresno County’s Fowler Branch, below.

left

ur Community Lunch at the Library In June 2015, state and local leaders gathered in the City of Fowler to kick off summer meal efforts. Officials gathering in this agricultural community noted the importance of summer meals serving the state’s most vulnerable asset — its youth.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, California State Librarian Greg Lucas and local elected leaders from the City of Fowler and Fresno County participated in the launch of a special partnership, called Lunch at the Library, between libraries and summer meal partners.

Lunch at the Library programs help keep youth healthy and engaged during the summer months to ensure all children

return to school in the fall ready to learn.

Through the program, the California Library Association and California Summer Meal Coalition provide the resources and support necessary for libraries to become quality summer meal program sites for their communities. Summer meal programs in public libraries help combat childhood hunger, obesity and learning loss during the summer months by providing youth with:

More Resources Online For additional information and links to related resources, read the online version of this article at www.westerncity.com.

• Regularly scheduled, free and healthy meals; • Learning and enrichment programs; and • Introductions to library services and resources. continued

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

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Fighting Hunger and Obesity When Kids Are Out of School: Summer Meals in Your Community, continued

Get Involved Local leaders can help in a variety of ways to ensure that California’s children and their families access summer meals:

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• Host a meeting of city, school and community leaders to assess the prevalence of childhood hunger in the community, and identify strategies to address childhood hunger and establish a workgroup to plan and implement these strategies; • Promote summer meal sites in the community. Use city newsletters, social media, street banners or other communication channels to make it easy for families to find summer meal sites; • Visit a summer meal site. Talk to families and meal providers to learn how summer meal sites can better serve families; and

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• Sponsor an after-school or summer meal program or work to improve an existing program.

Accessing quality food during summer is challenging for children and families who rely on federal lunch programs during the school year. Local officials and staff can leverage partnerships and support the work of others to ensure that children in all neighborhoods receive nutritious meals and have access to safe environments for enrichment and physical activity.

The Summer Meal Coalition team is ready to support cities statewide developing plans to meet summer meal goals. To begin planning for 2016, visit www.summermealcoalition.org. ■

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League of California Cities

above left The Lunch at the Library program introduces children to library resources and provides healthful foods, above.

www.cacities.org

Cities, Counties and Schools Work Together to Stretch Community Dollars Local governments are harnessing the power of partnerships to effectively and efficiently deliver services to their communities and leverage existing human and financial resources. Collaborative efforts help cities address complex community health and safety challenges that are typically beyond the capacity of a single jurisdiction.

Partnerships help distribute the associated risks and costs, reducing the impact on each individual participant. Ultimately partnerships increase results and benefit the community. Through a Kaiser Permanente community benefit grant, the Institute for Local Government (ILG) has updated the Stretching Community Dollars Guidebook (www.ca-ilg.org/stretchingcommunitydollars). This online resource provides city officials a framework for developing and implementing partnerships in their communities. The guide provides exercises designed to help local officials establish goals and objectives for a partnership, identify stakeholders to be included, determine communication needs and evaluate the partnership’s success. In addition to updating the resource, ILG seeks to work directly with selected communities statewide to build partnerships addressing health and safety.

Understanding the context, strengths and constraints of any local government partnership is critical to its success. The 2015 Stretching Community Dollars Guidebook provides information on how local agencies operate and how current circumstances affect their efforts to work together. It takes into consideration the conditions local officials presently face: the recovering economy, sometimes severe cuts to city staffing and services and the challenges and opportunities surrounding substantial changes in their operating environments, including the Local Control Funding Formula, the Public Safety Realignment Act and the dissolution of redevelopment agencies.

www.westerncity.com

The many stages of collaboration range from information exchanges, relationship-building and joint efforts to rules and systems change. The case studies included in the guidebook demonstrate how California’s diverse communities are using a variety of collaborative processes to address the complex challenges of healthy eating and active living, safety and violence prevention.

The examples underscore the fact that the most critical elements of any partnership are strong leadership and clear communication among key stakeholders. Formal and informal meetings and regular communication among elected officials and staff can further the development of shared goals, resolve challenges and avoid misunderstandings.

Finding more efficient and effective ways to stretch community resources to foster vibrant and healthy environments for all residents is a fundamental tenet of local government. The guidebook supports city officials’ efforts to explore ways to create or strengthen existing partnerships with other local governments to leverage resources and work collaboratively to meet the needs of their city, their region and California as a whole. ■

Cities Counties Schools Partnership Update The original Stretching Community Dollars Guidebook was developed by the Cities Counties Schools (CCS) Partnership, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the conditions of children, families and communities at the local level by promoting and encouraging coordination, integration and increased efficiency of local services and joint facilities use among cities, counties and schools throughout California.

As of 2015, the CCS Partnership is a program of the Institute for Local Government. For more information, visit www.ca-ilg.org.

Western City, September 2015

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League of California Cities

annual Conference

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League of California Cities

www.cacities.org

2015

& Expo highlights San José Convention Center, Sept. 30–Oct. 2

by Katie Sacco

Join thousands of city officials from throughout California at the League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo on Sept. 30–Oct. 2. This year’s conference is located in the City of San José and features educational sessions with inspiring ideas to help you better serve your city and residents.

Visit the Expo Hall to find state-of-the-art products and cost-saving services and explore the League Partner Speaker Theaters.

Expo and Grand Prize Giveaway This year’s Expo will showcase more than 245 exhibitors, including 70 first-time exhibitors. Be sure to schedule time to meet with vendors and learn how your city can benefit from their products, services and resources. Join us on Wednesday, Sept. 30 for the Expo Grand Opening, held in conjunction with the Host City Reception, which will run from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.

New this year is the U.S. Communities Zone, which will be rolling out the red carpet for you. U.S. Communities is the League-sponsored government purchasing cooperative designed to save local agencies money. Look for the centrally located, red-draped area where you can meet with three of the U.S. Communities

suppliers: Club Car, Columbia ParCar and Herman Miller. The Grand Prize Giveaway this year for a lucky city is a $3,000 voucher that may be used for products or services from any U.S. Communities supplier. The City of Cudahy won last year’s Grand Prize drawing. The 2015 drawing will be held Friday, Oct. 2 during the Closing General Assembly.

Entry details can be found inside the U.S. Communities Zone. You must be present at the General Assembly to win.

League Partner Village In the Expo Hall, you can find the League Partner Village — an area that offers participants a chance to explore successful examples of public-private partnerships and case studies of innovative projects and programs that have

worked in California cities. In this area, educational sessions on drone technology, the shared economy and emerging state and local tax issues will be held Thursday, Oct. 1 in the League Partner Speaker Theater. The League Partner Village also showcases the work of the Helen Putnam Award for Excellence winners. Stop by and learn about these model projects, which can be replicated in your city.

Networking Opportunities The conference offers attendees a multitude of ways to connect with colleagues and experts to discuss common concerns, exchange ideas and share solutions. The League’s diversity caucuses, regional divisions and League Partners host networking events throughout the conference. continued

Katie Sacco is conference coordinator for the League and can be reached at ksacco@cacities.org.

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

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League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo Highlights, continued

League Professional Departments Eleven professional departments make up the League, all of which play an integral part in the development and delivery of educational events and networking. These departments comprise: 1. City attorneys; 2. City clerks; 3. City managers; 4. Community services; 5. Fire chiefs; 6. Fiscal officers; 7. Mayors and council members; 8. Personnel and employee relations; 9. Planning and community development; 10. Police chiefs; and 11. Public works officers.

Each professional department is represented on the board of directors and plays a key role in League policy-making. Most department business meetings will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 30.

Regional Divisions The League’s regional divisions function as a grassroots advocacy team and offer city officials a way to become more involved in activities that support the quality of life in their communities. The divisions provide the League board of directors with a diverse range of perspectives and give a voice to member cities throughout the state. All divisions are staffed locally by the League’s regional public affairs managers. Some League divisions hold networking events during the conference. Contact your regional public affairs manager (www.cacities.org/ yourmanager) for more information.

Brown Act Requirements and League Conferences The Brown Act, also referred to as California’s Open Meeting Law, permits a majority of the members of a legislative body to attend a conference (or similar gathering open to the public) that addresses issues of general interest to the public or public agencies of the type represented by the legislative body. However, a majority of the members cannot discuss among themselves — other than as part of the scheduled program — business of a specific nature that is within the local agency’s jurisdiction.

The League has long been a strong advocate for open government and transparency.

Cities throughout California continue to comply with the requirements of the Brown Act even though the Legislature has suspended several of its provisions for a three-year period. City officials believe that this compliance serves the best interests of their communities and helps foster transparency in local government.

App and Website Offer More Information About the Conference Visit the annual conference page on the League website at www.cacities.org/AC to plan your conference schedule. You can also download the League’s mobile app, designed to help you maximize your time at the conference. You can check out the schedule of events, customize your schedule, import your selected sessions into your calendar, access session materials, speaker bios and exhibitor information and more. Find the app on your device by searching in the app store for “League of California Cities” or “CACities.”

To follow the conference on Twitter, use @CaCitiesLearn or #CaCitiesAnnual. ■

The League has long been a strong advocate for open government and transparency.

14

League of California Cities

www.cacities.org

Annual Conference Highlights

Expo Exhibitors League Partners appear in blue.

CalPERS CalRecycle California Building Officials California Clean Power California Consulting LLC

AAA Flag & Banner

Avery Associates2

California Contract Cities Association

A-G Sod Farms

Bar-Z

California Council on Problem Gambling

ANP Lighting

Best Best & Krieger LLP 1, 2

California Department of Business Oversight

AXA Financial

Best Friends Animal Society

California Department of Food and Agriculture

Accela 2

Blais & Associates

California Department of Water Resources

Access Products

Bob Murray & Associates

AIRCON ENERGY

Borrego Solar Systems Inc.

California Department of Housing & Community Development

Alliance Resource Consulting LLC

Build America Mutual

Ameresco

Burke, Williams & Sorensen LLP 1, 2

American Fidelity Assurance Company

CAD Masters Inc.

American Massage Therapy Association

CDW-G

Ameron Pole Products

CGI Technologies and Solutions Inc.

Arborjet

CSCDA

Asphalt Zipper

CSG Consultants Inc.

Atkins

CalBev2

California Department of General Services/ Statewide Travel California Fuel Cell Partnership California Joint Powers Insurance Authority California Product Stewardship Council California Shopping Cart Retrieval Corp.

California Special Districts Alliance California Specialized Training Institute continued

1 — Institute for Local Government Partner; 2 — CitiPAC supporter. List current as of Aug. 10, 2015. Visit us at www.cacities.org/2015expo.

Expo exhibitors introduce city officials and staff to new products and services that can increase efficiency and save money.

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

15

Expo Exhibitors, continued

California State Board of Equalization

Colonial Life

Dynatest Consulting Inc.

California YMCA Youth & Government

Columbia ParCar Corp.

eCivis

Canon USA Inc.

Comcate Inc.

EZ Street Company

Capitol Energy Systems

Community Champions

Earth Systems

Careers In Government

Contour Sierra Aebi

Easi File

Carpenter/Robbins Commercial Real Estate Inc.

Contractor Compliance and Monitoring Inc.

Emerald Data Solution Inc.

Carts & Parts

Credit Bureau Associates

enCode Plus

Crown Castle International Inc.

Charles Abbott Associates2

2

Energy From Shale

DEACERO

Energy Upgrade California

DN Tanks

Environmental Systems Research Institute

Dapeer, Rosenblit & Litvak LLP

Epoplex

Dart Container2

FacilityDude

City Ventures

Davey Resource Group, a Division of the Davey Tree

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates Inc.

CityGovApp Inc.

David Taussig & Associates Inc.

CitySourced

Dekra-Lite

FirstSouthwest

CleanStreet

Desert Steel

Climatec BTG2

Digital Ally Inc.

Club Car LLC

Direct Energy Solar

Colas Solutions Inc.

Dudek

Chelsea Investment Corporation Churchwell White LLP Cigna Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Program

First Investors Corporation Fitch & Associates LLC Forbo Flooring Systems FORTEL TRAFFIC INC. FUELMASTER/SYN-TECH SYSTEMS INC.

1 — Institute for Local Government Partner; 2 — CitiPAC supporter. List current as of Aug. 10, 2015. Visit us at www.cacities.org/2015expo.

2015 ICC Annual Conference and Group A Public Comment Hearings September 27 – October 7 Long Beach, California

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League of California Cities

15-11377

REGISTER NOW! www.iccsafe.org/conference2

7/8/2015 2:37:08 PM

www.cacities.org

General Coatings Manufacturing Corp.

George Hills Company Inc. GeoStabilization International Golden Bear Insurance Company Good Energy LP GovInvest

CSG Consultants, Inc.

Grainger continued

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www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

17

Expo Exhibitors, continued

Graphic Solutions

Jones & Mayer

Mohawk Group Floor Coverings and Solutions

Green Charge Networks

Junar Inc.

Multi-Bank Securities Inc.

Griffin Structures Inc.

Kaiser Permanente

MuniServices

HdL Companies

Kasdan LippSmith Weber Turner LLP

MuniTemps

HEAL Cities Campaign

Keenan & Associates

NBS

HR Green Inc.

Keyser Marston Associates Inc.

NV5

Herman Miller

Kosmont Companies and Auction.com

National ADA Accrediting and Consulting

Honor Life Recognition

LCPtracker Inc.

Neighborly

IBANK

LPA Inc.

Neptune Technology Group Inc.

ITEM Ltd.

Laserfiche

Newport Pacific Capital Family of Companies

International Municipal Signal Association Far West

Learn4Life

NexLevel Information Technology

International TreeScapes LLC

Library Systems & Services

Next 10

Liebert Cassidy Whitmore

Nexus eWater Inc.

Local Search Association

Northern California Carpenters Regional Council

2

1

Jamboree Housing Corporation JD Franz Research Inc.

M-Group

Jefferies LLC

Omni-Means Ltd.

Matrix Consulting Group

Jere Melo Foundation

One Source Health & Wealth Management

Mattress Recycling Council

Johnson Controls

Meyers Nave1, 2

continued on page 20

1 — Institute for Local Government Partner; 2 — CitiPAC supporter. List current as of Aug. 10, 2015. Visit us at www.cacities.org/2015expo.

National ADAAC specializes in assisting State and Local agencies with their ADA Compliance

Through our revolutionary database and mobile application National ADAAC has forever changed how State and Local agencies comply with the following administration requirements: •

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18

League of California Cities

www.cacities.org

Innovative products on display at the Expo include vehicles that help cities reduce greenhouse gas emissions; cities are eligible to participate in the Grand Prize Drawing and other giveaways from Expo exhibitors, right.

left

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Why worry about the future? Tyler Technologies delivers software upgrades and the latest technology as part of your maintenance agreement. No surprises. No new license fees.

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www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

19

Expo Exhibitors, continued from page 18

OpenGov.com

Public Financial Management Group

SWARCO Traffic Americas

OpTerra Energy Services

Public Restroom Company

Safeguard Properties

Otto Environmental Systems North America Inc.

Quad Knopf

San Bernardino Associated Governments

Outpak Washout

RJM Design Group Inc.

San Diego Regional Training Center

PARS

RKA Consulting Group

Save Pensions Inc.

PERC Water

RSG Inc.

Schaefer Systems International Inc.

PMI-Petrochem Materials Innovation

Radarsign LLC

Schneider Electric1

Pacific Gas and Electric

2

Ralph Andersen and Associates

Security Lines US

Pacific McGeorge Hearing Officer Services and Focus Group

Redtail Telematics Corp

SeeClickFix

Pennino Management Group

Regional Government Services Authority

Sensus

Renewable Funding

Servpro

Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP1, 2

Siemens 2

Renovate America

SiFi Networks

Republic Services

SIGMAnet Inc.

Retail Strategies LLC

Silver & Wright LLP

SSA Landscape Architects Inc.

SmartCitiesPrevail.org

SVA Architects Inc.

Smartcover by Hadronex

2

Piper Jaffray PowerFlare - PF Distribution Center Inc. Precision Civil Engineering Precision Concrete Cutting Presidio Graduate School Public Agency Risk Sharing Authority of California

1 — Institute for Local Government Partner; 2 — CitiPAC supporter. List current as of Aug. 10, 2015. Visit us at www.cacities.org/2015expo.

Solutions for Success For more than thirty years, we have been keeping our promise to provide quality construction management services specifically tailored toward each client.

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20

League of California Cities

www.cacities.org

Sol Powered By Carmanah Southern California Library Cooperative SouthTech Systems Spin Secure

The Expo offers city officials and staff opportunities to learn about ways to more cost-effectively serve the public.

Spohn Ranch Skateparks Sportsplex USA State of your City Presentations State Water Resources Control Board Stealth Concealment Solutions Sturgis powered by PayPal SunGard Public Sector Superior Graffiti Solutions SyTech Solutions

A Tradition of Excellence

TBWB Strategies

Providing Executive Search, Consulting, and Compensation Services Since 1972

TIAA-CREF TNT Fireworks Tanko Lighting Inc. TerraVerde Renewable Partners The Gordian Group The Retail Coach The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company TractionSeal Transtech Engineers Inc. Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations Turbo Data Systems

Visit us in San Jose (Booth #529)

US Auctions USA Fleet Solutions USA Properties Fund U.S. Communities Union Pacific Railroad

(916) 630-4900

Ralph Andersen & Associates

www.RalphAndersen.com

Useware Inc. Utility Service Company Inc. VESTRA Resources Inc. VOYA Financial

“Specializing in providing advice and representation to public entities and California’s law enforcement agencies.”

Vali Cooper & Associates Inc.2 Vanir Construction Management Inc.2 VenTek International Verde Design Inc. ViewPoint Government Solutions Websoft Developers Wells Fargo West Coast Arborists Inc. Western Emulsions Inc. Whelen Engineering Company Inc. Willdan2 World Centric ■

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Jones & Mayer Attorneys at Law www.westerncity.com

(714) 446-1400 Western City, September 2015

21

Thank you to all of the 2015 League Partners

Platinum ($15,000+) 1,2

1,2

2

2

1,2

1

2

2

2

2

2

2

1,2

2

2

BUILDING AMERICA®

Gold ($10,000+) California Apartment Association Hanson Bridgett LLP1,2 Lewis Investment Company2 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore1 AARP ABM AMR2 American Fidelity Assurance Company Charles Abbott Associates2 Californians for Energy Independence California & Nevada IBEW/NECA Labor-Management Cooperation Trust California Grocers Association2

Meyers Nave1,2 Morongo Band of Mission Indians2 Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP1,2

Silver ($5,000+)

California Restaurant Association Comcast2 DW Development2 Dart Container Corp.2 EMS Management2 Fascination Ranch2 Goldfarb & Lipman LLP Greenwaste Recovery Inc.2 HR Green2 Interwest Consulting Group Inc.

Kronick Moskovitz Tiedemann & Girard1 Merlone Geier2 NBS Northrop Grumman Prometheus Real Estate Group Inc.2 Public Financial Management Inc. James Ramos San Manuel Band of Mission Indians2

Bronze ($3,000+)

Accela2 Advanced Disposal2 Alvarez-Glasman & Colvin2 Amador Valley Industries2 American Forest & Paper Association Atkins Best Way Disposal2 CalPortland2 Carpenter/Robbins Commercial Real Estate Inc. Cerrell Associates Inc. Colantuono & Levin2

Desert Valley Medical Group Inc./Prime Healthcare2 E&J Gallo2 Edgewood Partners Insurance Center FirstSouthwest Fieldman Rolapp & Associates Fortis Quay Inc. GDQ Law2 Garaventa Enterprises2 Geo-Logic Associates2 Greystar2 Griswold LaSalle Cobb Dowd & Gin LLP

Harris & Associates Hill International2 Holliday Rock Company Jefferies LLC Library Systems & Services LLC Los Angeles Yellow Cab Marin Sanitary Service2 Matarango Inc.2 Michelman & Robinson LLP Mid Valley Disposal2 Mitsubishi Cement 2 Molycorp2

Accretive Realtors AndersonPenna Partners Inc.2 Acquisition Partners of America LLC Architects Orange2 Athens Services2 Avery Associates2 Blue Line Transfer Inc.2 Bowlby Group Inc.2 CARE2 CR&R2 California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission California Independent Petroleum Association

California Refuse Recycling Council of Commerce2 Civil Engineering Associates2 Classic Communities2 Climatec2 Cost Control Associates Inc. Cunningham Davis2 Desert Valleys Builders2 Diamond Hills Auto2 Dokken Engineering2 Emanuels Jones and Associates Fard Engineers2 Fresno Police Officers Association

GHD Inc.2 Gilton Solid Waste2 Josie Gonzales2 Innisfree Ventures2 J.R. Roberts/Deacon Inc.2 Jamboree Housing Corporation Jones Hall2 Jones & Mayer Kasdan Simonds Riley & Vaughan LLP Kosmont Companies LaBarge Industries2 Leibold McClendon & Mann Livermore Sanitation2

2

Republic Services Inc.2 Sherwin-Williams Wells Fargo Young Homes2 Sares Regis Group2 ServPro2 Transtech Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Nations Union Bank2 Vavrinek Trine Day & Co. LLP Western States Petroleum Association Western Tropicana Development2 Willdan Ygrene

Bob Murray & Associates NL Industries Inc. National ADA Accrediting & Consulting Inc. 2 Nixon Peabody PARS/Phase II2 Peters Engineering2 Prime Healthcare2 Psomas2 Quad Knopf 2 Kenneth Ramirez2 Recology2 Robson Homes LLC2

SGI Construction Management2 San Bernardino County Safety Employees2 San Bernardino Police Officers Association Santa Ynez Band of Mission Indians2 Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth SummerHill Homes2 TREH Development2 Tripepi Smith & Associates2 USA Properties Fund Inc.

Marchetti Construction Inc.2 Morley Brothers LLC2 Kevin Mullin for Assembly2 Murphy Rearson Bradley & Feeny NV5 Inc. Napa Recycling2 Riverside Construction2 San Mateo County Association of Realtors2 Santa Monica Police Officers Association Seifel Consulting Inc. Sobrato Organization2

South San Francisco Scavengers2 Specialty Solid Waste & Recycling2 Studio T SQ2 Swinerton Management Townsend Public Affairs Inc.2 Vali Cooper & Associates Inc.2 Van Scoyoc Associates2 Vanir Construction2 West Builders2

Basic ($1,000+)

Join the Partners Program Today!

Contact Mike Egan | (916) 658-8271 | egan@cacities.org

Partial list as of 8/4/2015

1 – Institute for Local Government supporter 2 – CITIPAC supporter

League’s Latino Caucus Celebrates

25 Years of Leadership

by Eva Spiegel

The League has represented the collective voice of California cities since its founding in 1898. That collective voice, however, comprises diverse individuals and groups that come together on the policies and priorities shared by all cities.

The League’s Latino Caucus, one of those voices, celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2015, making it the oldest of the organization’s five diversity caucuses.

A group of Latino city officials formed the Latino Caucus in 1990 to help the growing numbers of California’s Latino elected officials network, collaborate and develop their leadership skills through a League-connected sub-organization. They wanted to bring issues of importance to the Latino community to the table, help shape League policy and support the League in engaging the Legislature on those issues.

Then-recently elected Watsonville City Council Member Oscar Rios headed up the effort, along with then-Pomona City Council Member Nell Soto, who later served in the California State Assembly and Senate. They organized a meeting of Latino city officials during a summer 1990 League event in Monterey, set up a governance structure and elected Rios as the first president.

“The caucus’s founders knew that the League was a vehicle to bring more Latinos into city government,” says Rios.

“We also knew that eventually this would be a vehicle to develop these Latino city officials into supervisors, Assembly members, senators and state constitutional officers, like Secretary of State Alex Padilla.”

Rios later served on the League board of directors and as a board officer. “Our intention when we started the caucus was to make the League stronger as a whole,” he says. “When I meet young people I always try to encourage them to run and get involved at any level, but especially at the local level. If Latinos don’t run for these positions, we won’t be represented.”

San Francisco Treasurer José Cisneros currently serves as the League’s immediate past president. He credits the caucus with giving Latino elected city officials an important resource reflective continued

Eva Spiegel is communications director for the League and can be reached at espiegel@cacities.org.

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

23

League’s Latino Caucus Celebrates 25 Years of Leadership, continued

of California’s demographics. “California is home to one of the most diverse populations in the world. The Latino community is one of the fastest-growing and largest groups in the state — one that can still use a great deal of support. That is the role of the Latino Caucus,” says Cisneros. “It offers support to both newly elected Latino city officials and those in office. The caucus enables these elected officials to be more effective for their communities and the entire state.”

The Latino Caucus built relationships with Latino city officials throughout California and affiliated with the National Association for Latino Elected and Appointed Officials and the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project. Early on, John Arriaga became the group’s executive director, a position he still holds today.

“The caucus focuses on issues that are important to the Latino community,” says Arriaga. “We have the dual mission to create strong Latino city leaders and engage them in the League as well as to develop Latino city officials into candidates for higher office.”

Secretary of State Alex Padilla became involved in the Latino Caucus soon after he was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 1999. Padilla, at age 26, was the youngest person elected to the council and the first Latino. He learned more about the League through the caucus and eventually served on the League board of directors. Padilla served as League president from 2005–06 before his election to the California Senate in 2006.

“Latino elected officials and elected officials who represent predominantly Latino communities all care about the same things, like housing and public safety, but cultural nuances come with representing our constituents,” says Padilla. “The caucus looks

24

League of California Cities

at those broad areas and focuses on what it means for our community.”

Training the Next Generation of Leaders

According to current Latino Caucus President Alicia Aguirre, a council member in Redwood City, the caucus serves an integral role for Latino elected officials. “We are really proud of being able to represent the issues of the Latino community by working on large issues including water, immigration and civic engagement,” says Aguirre.

Leadership development is one of the Latino Caucus’s core missions, and it accomplishes this through a number of efforts. Caucus training sessions focus on public policy issues as well as leadership.

The original founders believed it is crucial to help current Latino city officials hone their public service skills and prepare them to ultimately serve in higher office.

The Latino Caucus holds numerous events throughout the state each year.

The various networking events provide an opportunity for Latino city officials to meet face to face and learn about priority issues in their region of California. These meetings are held in different cities as a way to engage larger numbers of Latino elected officials in the caucus and the League because many serve smaller, less affluent communities that cannot afford to send them to educational conferences.

A number of caucus members have served on the League board of directors and its Executive Committee. Oscar Rios was in line to become League president before he termed out of office. In addition to Alex Padilla and José Cisneros, other League past presidents from the Latino Caucus include former Pinole Mayor Maria Alegria.

“The Latino Caucus was my first introduction to the League. It gave me a way to network with other elected officials outside San Francisco,” says Cisneros. “I was immediately impressed with the caucus’s work supporting city-level Latino officials so they can be more effective in office.”

The caucus also co-sponsors a policy briefing session during the League’s annual Legislative Action Day in April. This year’s session addressed economic development and featured Assembly members Luis Alejo (D-Watsonville) and Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella).

During the League of California Cities Annual Conference & Expo each year, the caucus hosts a forum and a reception as well as a booth in the Expo Hall where city officials can learn more about its mission, work and offerings.

Former League board members from the caucus also include U.S. Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA 29th district), a former member of the Los Angeles City Council; Assembly Member Nora Campos (D-San José), who served on the San José City Council; and Assembly Member Henry Perea (D-Fresno), a former Fresno City Council member.

The strength of the caucus continues to inspire future generations of elected Latino local officials.

www.cacities.org

Four key members of the League’s Latino Caucus take a moment to celebrate its accomplishments. left to right Oscar Rios, former mayor of Watsonville; John E. Arriaga, Latino Caucus executive director; Rosario Marin, former council member of Huntington Park; and Anna Caballero, former mayor of Salinas.

A group of Latino city officials formed the Latino Caucus in 1990 to help the growing numbers of California’s Latino elected officials network, collaborate and develop their leadership skills.

The caucus places a heavy emphasis on education. “The better informed and trained Latino city officials are, the more they are prepared to serve their community,” says Padilla.

California Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Anna Caballero served on the Salinas Planning Commission prior to being elected to the Salinas City Council in 1991. She fondly refers to herself as one of the “founding mothers” and looked to the caucus as a forum for education and mentorship.

“The things I learned by participating in the caucus have been very helpful as I moved on to the Assembly and now as a cabinet secretary in Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration,” she says. Caballero also served on the League board of directors for a number of years prior to her election to the Assembly.

www.westerncity.com

The Latino Caucus membership also includes Rosario Marin, a former presidential cabinet member. The first Latina to hold a city council seat in Huntington Park, she later served as the 41st United States treasurer under George W. Bush.

The caucus’s commitment to developing strong Latino city officials and future higher office-holders goes beyond conducting regional meetings and sponsoring League events. Caucus board members are specifically looking at the next generation of Latino city officials.

Scholarship and Educational Opportunities Each year the caucus offers $15,000 in college scholarships (divided between Northern, Central and Southern California) to Latinos who aspire to run for city government.

Each of the three regions determines how to distribute those scholarship dollars among

students and institutions of higher education. The caucus reports that in five years, more than 15 scholarships have been awarded to students planning for a future in local government.

Two new caucus-sponsored programs are taking the educational mission of Latino elected city officials to the next level. In partnership with the University of Southern California Price School of Public Policy, the caucus offers an executive education program in public policy and administration for newly elected Latino city officials. This two-day event in November will focus on critical issues for newly elected mayors and council members so they are prepared to serve their communities in their new leadership roles. The caucus board of directors will be selecting 25 individuals to participate in the course. continued

Western City, September 2015

25

League’s Latino Caucus Celebrates 25 Years of Leadership, continued

The caucus has also affiliated with Marymount California University on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The second Marymount Latino Leadership and Policy Summit was held June 26–27, 2015, and brought together 100 local and state elected officials to discuss issues affecting the Latino community. The Latino Caucus will work with Marymount California University to offer an 18-month certificate leadership program in fall 2016. Participants will complete their coursework both in person and online.

As the Latino Caucus celebrates its silver anniversary, its leaders and members remain committed to the organization’s original vision of a “big-tent” group within the League that mentors informed and engaged Latino local leaders who serve their communities. The strength of the caucus continues to inspire future generations of elected Latino local officials.

Participants in the 2015 Marymount Latino Leadership and Policy Summit include, left to right, Mary T. Hernández, equity partner and founder, Garcia, Hernández, Sawhney & Bermudez LLP; Francisco Rodriguez, chancellor, Los Angeles Community College District; Assembly Member Luis Alejo (D-Salinas); John Halcón, president, California Association of Latino Community College Trustees and Administrators; and Barbara Flores, president, California Latino School Boards Association.

“We are really proud of being able to represent the issues of the Latino community,” says Aguirre. “All of us on the board are very involved with the League, because we believe in strength in numbers. We need to be at the table to help make decisions.”

How to Get Involved

a membership application form. City officials who are interested in joining the caucus can download the form and mail it to: League of California Cities Latino Caucus, 770 L Street, Suite 1030, Sacramento, CA 95814. For more information, visit the caucus events and booth at the League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo. ■

The League’s Latino Caucus website (www.cacitieslatinocaucus.org) provides

Together We Have the Power to Keep the Future Bright

Southern California Edison, an Edison International company, is proud to support the League of California Cities and congratulates the Latino Caucus for 25 years of service to the Latino community

FOR OVER 100 YEARS...LIFE. POWERED BY EDISON.

26

League of California Cities

www.cacities.org

Digital Divide

by Cory Golden

California has reached 97 percent broadband deployment and could hit its statutory target of 98 percent by the end of 2015. Although broadband service is available, not all residents are able to afford it. For residents of small communities and older neighborhoods with clunky broadband or no broadband access at all, being counted among the 3 percent left out makes all the difference.

Just ask Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, the mayor of Winters. For six years, she has worked to close the digital divide in her city of 7,000 people on the Sacramento Valley’s western edge.

Winters Offers a Snapshot of the Struggle

move to Winters and telecommute — if only it had adequate broadband.”

Aguiar-Curry will tell you about the children who sit outside the Winters Public Library after it closes so they can use its wireless access to do classwork, because they don’t have a reliable Internet connection at home, or about international agricultural companies unable to conduct business during hours when local broadband demand is high. She may even tell you about the young couple working in San Francisco’s booming tech industry who approached her to say, “Mayor, we’d love to

“Rural communities had to wait for the railroad, we had to wait for telephone lines, and we had to wait for running water,” Aguiar-Curry says. “How long must we wait for this?”

Winters’ leaders aren’t sitting still. They’re pursuing several paths in hopes of securing broadband, perhaps as fast as 1 gigabit per second, with deployment beginning next year. continued

Cory Golden is a policy analyst for the League and can be reached at cgolden@cacities.org.

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

27

Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide, continued

According to Sunne Wright McPeak, president and CEO of the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF), Winters epitomizes the state’s small communities in terms of the challenges related to broadband deployment. McPeak says, “California is a leader in technology and applications companies, but it still has large pockets that are unserved or underserved by broadband.”

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) established CETF in 2005 with $60 million in seed capital contributed by AT&T and Verizon as a public benefit from mergers. CETF’s mission is to close the digital divide. Its goal is to achieve 98 percent access to broadband at home for residents and 80 percent of residents adopting broadband by 2017 — with no region or demographic group falling below 70 percent.

In January 2015 the Federal Communications Commission changed its definition of “broadband” to 25 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 3 Mbps for uploads. The CPUC standard remains 6 megabits per second in download speed, 1.5 Mbps for uploads. (See “About Bits and Bytes” below for an explanation of the terminology.)

A Field Poll released in June 2015 found 79 percent of Californians have a broadband connection at home. Several demographic groups remain behind, however. They include households earning less than $20,000 annually (65 percent) and Spanish-speaking Latinos (63 percent).

Aguiar-Curry’s effort to close the digital divide in her community began during the Great Recession. She says, “Instead of wallowing in pain, I asked myself, what are we going to do about the economic downturn in Winters? I thought, eventually housing is going to come back, and the first thing people ask a realtor is, ‘What are the schools like?’”

About Bits and Bytes Bandwidth. The amount of data transmitted in a given amount of time, usually measured in bits per second, kilobits per second (kbps) and megabits per second (Mbps).

Bit. A single unit of data, either a one or a zero. In the world of broadband, bits are used to refer to the amount of transmitted data. A kilobit (Kb) is approximately 1,000 bits. A megabit (Mb) is approximately 1 million bits. There are 8 bits in a byte, which is the unit used to measure storage space; therefore, a 1 Mbps connection takes about 8 seconds to transfer 1 megabyte of data (about the size of a typical digital camera photo).

Broadband. A descriptive term for evolving digital technologies that provide consumers with integrated access to voice, high-speed data, video-on-demand and interactive delivery services.

These definitions are adapted from the glossary of the Yolo Broadband Strategic Plan.

The mayor found the city’s classrooms had fallen behind the technological times. She helped make the case for investment to Yolo County neighbors the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, which awarded a pair of grants totaling about $600,000 to the local Parent Teacher Association and Winters Education Foundation.

The Winters Joint Unified School District has since leveraged that initial funding into more than $14 million, including the passage of a school bond, enabling the district to modernize learning tools and pay for teacher training.

Students and their families still lack reliable Internet access at home, however.

Aguiar-Curry began making regular treks to Sacramento, where workshops afforded her the chance to sit down at the table with large service providers like AT&T and Verizon.

“I asked what I thought was an easy question: When are you going to come to rural communities? They said, ‘We’re not.’ And quite frankly, I get it,” says Aguiar-Curry. “The infrastructure needed upgrading in the city; the urban development and the economies of scale are all so much different. It just doesn’t pencil out.

We’re not a priority.”

If she heard the cold, hard truth from companies providing Internet service, Aguiar-Curry received a warm welcome from representatives of state and federal agencies. Don’t stop, they told her, keep pursuing what you want. continued on page 41

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Palo Alto Builds on a Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community

by Karalee Browne

More than 36,000 mature trees line the streets of Palo Alto, a city with a history of sustainability leadership and community engagement. Palo Alto was one of the first cities to begin a curbside recycling collection program in 1978 and one of the first in California to adopt a climate action plan in 2007. “We are lucky to have a longstanding culture of innovative thinking and commitment to sustainability,” says Mayor Karen Holman. “As elected officials, we are trustees of preserving this culture.”

The Institute for Local Government’s Beacon Program (www.ca-ilg.org/BeaconProgram) recognizes voluntary efforts by local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save energy and adopt policies and programs that promote sustainability. The City of Palo Alto won a Silver-level Beacon Award in 2014 for its 53 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, 35 percent reduction in natural gas and 9 percent reduction in energy usage in agency facilities over a 1990 continued

Karalee Browne is a program manager of the Institute for Local Government’s Sustainable Communities program and can be reached at kbrowne@ca-ilg.org. For more information about the Sustainable Communities program, visit www.ca-ilg.org.

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

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Palo Alto Builds on a Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community, continued

baseline. In addition, the city reduced community greenhouse gas emissions by 21 percent and implemented a variety of innovative sustainability activities, which include adopting a progressive green building ordinance and an energy reach code that exceeds the minimum state energy code requirements by 15 percent and implementing a comprehensive water conservation plan.

The Power of Being Your Own Provider The City of Palo Alto is the first and only municipality in California that operates a full suite of city-owned utility services — electricity, gas, water and waste. It was the idea of two Stanford University professors, Charles Marx and Charles Benjamin Wing, who were largely responsible for

the emergence of the municipally owned utility service in Palo Alto in the late 19th century. Marx and Wing argued that the city could provide utility service at rates significantly below those charged by private companies, but that they must show a financial return to the community for continued success. This has continued to be a priority not just in utility decisions, but in almost everything that goes before the city council.

“The city’s investment in communityowned utilities yields long-term benefits to Palo Alto that include competitive rates and programs that meet community goals as well as support for other city services,” says City Manager James Keene.

“Specifically, local control means we have the responsibility to be prudent fiscal stewards for our community owners.”

As in many cities, the wastewater treatment plant was one of the city government’s largest energy consumers. To address this, in 2005 the city started using methane gas from Palo Alto’s landfill in the plant’s incinerator. This helped offset the use of natural gas in the afterburner. Six years later, the city fine-tuned the incinerator burners to increase efficiency. These projects, combined with other retrofits including an office lighting upgrade, resulted in a 16 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that save the city more than $500,000 annually.

(Best) Practice Makes Perfect While innovation and fiscal stewardship underpin Palo Alto’s success, the way in which the city approaches uncharted territory also plays a vital role. Many of the

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more progressive policies and programs in place today started as smaller pilot programs that were carefully monitored and adjusted as funding, support and opportunities materialized. Along the way, these innovations evolved into best practices that other communities have learned from and emulated.

For example, the city first introduced “Palo Alto Green” electricity in 2003.

The city started by offering its customers the opportunity to purchase carbon-free electricity from the utility at a higher rate.

After 22 percent of the city’s customers agreed to pay more to reduce the carbon in their electricity, the city council decided to make all of the city’s electricity carbon free.

While almost half of Palo Alto’s energy has been coming from hydroelectric power, the city struck deals in 2013 to add 12 percent

renewable electricity from California wind farms, bringing its carbon-free portfolio up to 60 percent. Later in 2013, the city spent a little more than $400,000 to purchase renewable energy credits to offset its purchase of electricity derived from fossil fuels, thereby qualifying its entire electricity mix as carbon-neutral.

“The renewable energy credits are a bridge to get us to fully carbon-neutral electricity by 2017,” says Palo Alto’s Chief Sustainability Officer Gil Friend. “When we approach things in this way, it changes the discussion and we learn what might be possible down the road.” Palo Alto introduced a similar voluntary program for carbon-neutral natural gas and is actively exploring how to economically shift natural gas users to carbon-neutral electricity.

Defaulting to Greener Settings While Palo Alto is uniquely positioned because it operates its own utilities, much of its sustainability success comes from a continuing commitment to incremental changes. City staff and officials believe that sustainability should not be a compromise. Palo Alto’s Office of Sustainability works with other departments within the city to make doing the right thing the norm, rather than an extra effort. The goal is to find the easiest way to get staff to make greener choices every day.

For example, the city set all the new copiers to “duplex.” This means employees have to change the settings to print single-sided copies, rather than having to change the settings to print two-sided continued on page 33

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City staff and officials believe that sustainability should not be a compromise.

Palo Alto’s bike-friendly streets encourage residents to leave their car at home when shopping. below Visitors to City Hall view a kinetic sculpture surrounded by droughttolerant landscaping.

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Palo Alto Builds on a Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community, continued from page 31

copies. As a result, the city reduced paper use by 15 percent during the first nine months, saving $7,600.

In a similar situation, the sustainability team found that although the city had a purchasing policy to buy paper with at least 50 percent recycled content, many employees continually ordered a paper of a lesser recycled content from the city’s online supplier. In response, the city asked the vendor to switch the sequence in which the options appeared on the order screen, making the paper with the most recycled content the first option and paper with the least recycled content the last option.

Employees still have the option to order a less sustainable product, but they must take the time to scroll down to find it.

As a next step, Palo Alto has applied its “default to green” strategy to city fleet purchases, making electric vehicle sedans — running on Palo Alto’s carbon neutral electricity — the standard choice, instead of the compressed natural gas vehicles the city had been purchasing.

There’s an App for That Palo Alto is not without its challenges.

Even though the city has installed more than 65 miles of bicycle paths, residents love their cars. Nearly 60 percent of the vehicle miles traveled in Palo Alto are noncommute trips, indicating that residents are using cars for errands and social activities instead of more environmentally friendly means of transportation. And while Palo Alto received an EV Readiness Award in continued

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Palo Alto Builds on a Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community, continued

2014 from the Bay Area Climate Collaborative, the city continues to work with regional partners on alternative transportation options to address traffic that stems from the dramatic job-housing imbalance in Palo Alto and the region.

The City of Palo Alto is exploring ideas such as “mobility as a service� to make it more convenient for anyone, anywhere, at any time not to have to get in a car and drive. In this model, a resident would buy mobility services based on their own individual needs, instead of owning the actual means of transportation. For example, a resident may choose to purchase a bundle of services such as transit, bike-share,

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parking and car-sharing services with a prepaid plan. The resident would be able to access these services on demand from their smartphone.

Seeking Inspiration, Advancing a Vision Palo Alto’s leaders and staff look to places like Copenhagen and Helsinki for inspiration to explore how sustainability initiatives can help address larger social and economic issues in the community and beyond. Having exceeded many of the goals set forth in its 2007 climate continued on page 36

www.cacities.org

The city continues to work with regional partners on alternative transportation options.

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Palo Alto Builds on a Legacy of Innovation as a Sustainable Community, continued from page 34

action plan, the city has launched a new Sustainability and Climate Action Plan Initiative that will go before the council in fall 2015. In this effort, the city has hosted an “ideas expo” to engage the community and hopes to create a dialogue that advances ideas about how a small, innovative city can contribute to a broader sustainability revolution. The city’s goals align with its tradition of sustainability leadership and achievements.

“It can be challenging for staff to find the time for long-term planning with so many pressing initiatives on their plates,” says Friend. “But vision — from creating a municipal utility more than a century ago to creating carbon-neutral electricity a few years ago — has helped make Palo Alto the city it is today. We’re excited about what is to come.” ■

Beacon Awards at the Annual Conference Join the Institute for Local Government in honoring the 2015 Beacon Award winners during the General Session on Thursday, Oct. 1 at the League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo in San José. Take advantage of an opportunity to chat with elected officials and staff from cities recognized with awards for energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions reduction and sustainability best practices at the Beacon Program Reception at 5:30 p.m, Thursday, Oct. 1, at the Marriott. For more information visit www.cacities.org/AC.

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Youth leaders prepare for work in the community.

Rancho Cucamonga Involves Youth to

Improve Community Health Youth in the City of Rancho Cucamonga (pop. 177,000), located in western San Bernardino County, historically had limited opportunities to engage in community conversations about local policy issues such as health and wellness. Although the city implemented many policies and programs that affected its young residents, their input was neither requested nor sought. Furthermore, the community frequently perceived youth as a problem that needed fixing.

Young residents had few chances to engage with city officials and share their concerns beyond youth clubs and recreational activities. In Rancho Cucamonga, youth under 18 comprise over a quarter of the total population, and young people ages 10 to 19 account for 16 percent. Emerging health trends such as obesity, diabetes and physical inactivity constituted serious community concerns and affected youth as well. If Rancho Cucamonga was to effectively improve the health and wellness of its residents, it would need to actively engage young people in community health issues as well as the related local governmental decision- and policy-making processes.

Health Initiative Is Catalyst for Youth Engagement When the city launched Healthy RC, an initiative to improve health equity and community wellness, the need to meaningfully involve its young residents in the process became apparent. Healthy RC is a collaborative effort with over 75 stakeholders — including elected officials, city staff, county Department of Public Health, hospitals, schools, nonprofits and community-based organizations, faith-based groups, businesses, local universities, residents and youth — working together to improve health and wellness through policies, programs and partnerships.

The Healthy RC initiative, which began in 2008, served as a catalyst in developing the Healthy RC Youth Leaders program, designed to engage youth as leaders and partners who inform health-related decisions and policies and play an active role in implementing and sustaining them.

The Healthy RC Youth Leaders program provides leadership training and empowerment to promote health policies.

It targets young people of middle-school and high-school age. Healthy RC Youth Leaders work in partnership with local government leaders and officials, community partners and resident groups to voice health concerns and issues and identify and implement long-term, policy-driven solutions. Students meet twice a month and participate in workshops and training to enhance leadership and communication skills, deepen their understanding of public policy and local governmental processes and build their capacity to improve the health and wellness of Rancho Cucamonga residents.

continued

The City of Rancho Cucamonga won the Ruth Vreeland Award for Engaging Youth in City Government in the 2014 Helen Putnam Award for Excellence program. For more about the award program, visit www.helenputnam.org.

www.westerncity.com

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Rancho Cucamonga Involves Youth to Improve Community Health, continued

Youth Leaders Seize Opportunities Through the Healthy RC Youth Leaders program, youth have helped to inform and shape policies, such as the nutrition and beverage standards and complete streets policies passed by the city council that improve healthy eating and active living. Young residents not only advocated for the passage of these policies, but also were actively involved in conducting focus groups and comprehensive surveys related to the measures. They assisted in developing and crafting policy language that the city and city council later adopted.

As a direct result of the young leaders’ involvement, the city’s complete streets policy was recognized as the 10th best in the nation in 2012.

“The Healthy RC Youth Leader program is an extraordinary initiative that engages youth in a meaningful way. The youths in this program work alongside city staff and elected officials to truly shape the community, making it healthier for this

generation and generations to come,” says Rancho Cucamonga Mayor Dennis Michael. “Watching our youth speak at a city council meeting in support of a policy that they helped write is true engagement, and nothing is more impactful. That’s what this program is all about.”

Young people have been instrumental in identifying opportunities in areas of the city that have the fewest resources and present the greatest risks related to health.

They conducted photo projects and park assessments, engaged local residents and secured grant funds to improve health for residents in this area. Maelin Aquino served as the 2014 co-chair of the Healthy RC Youth Leaders. She says, “The Healthy RC Youth Leaders work on a range of health-related concerns, from healthy eating and active living to mental health and substance abuse. In 2013, our group wrote a successful competitive grant application. The best part was that we were able to use the grant to educate younger kids about the dangers of smoking.

It was amazing to see our ideas in action!”

Young leaders helped to inform and shape policies, such as the nutrition and beverage standards and complete streets policies passed by the city council that improve healthy eating and active living.

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As a result of these efforts, the Healthy RC Youth Leaders program has earned recognition as a best practice in the region and the nation. Youth leaders have shared their outcomes with local media outlets and have been invited to present at statewide conferences. Their presentation at the 2013 national Biennial Childhood Obesity Conference in Long Beach covered strategies to engage youth in using geographic information system technology to conduct neighborhood assessments that are part of Rancho Cucamonga’s efforts to improve community health.

Making a Difference The Healthy RC Youth Leaders appreciate the opportunity to actively participate in the local governmental process. By learning how to navigate the policy process, conduct open dialogue with local decision-makers, apply for grant funding and have a voice in policy decisions, youth recognize that their participation has made a measurable, significant impact on the health of Rancho Cucamonga residents.

Healthy RC Youth Leader Natalia Reynoso says, “I did volunteer work for years in high school, but this is the one group where I felt I could truly make a difference in my city and could actually work hands-on. I really love that about the group.”

The program demonstrates how local youth and city government can work together to improve health and wellness.

More importantly, it provides youth with an opportunity to work collaboratively with their city, address community-specific concerns and increase civic engagement.

Contact: Mike Parmer, management analyst, City Manager’s Office, City of Rancho Cucamonga; phone: (909) 477-2700, ext.

2046; email: Michael.Parmer@cityofrc.us. ■

The Mortgage Education Outreach Program This program expands consumer education and awareness in the areas of homeownership and the home-buying process, preventing foreclosure, loan modifications, and mortgage fraud and scams.

www.cacities.org

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Display Advertising

Western City magazine’s job opportunity section is the source for job seekers looking for positions in local government. When you place a job opportunity ad in Western City

Call Pam Maxwell-Blodgett at (800) 262-1801 to place a display (boxed) ad or for rate and deadline information, or email admanager@westerncity.com.

Website Job Postings Display ads are posted on our website at no additional charge. But if you miss the deadline for getting your job opportunity ad into the magazine, you can post it on the Western City website right away.

To post your job opportunity ad on our automated website, visit www.westerncity.com or contact Kimberly Brady, Western City’s administrative assistant; email: kbrady@ cacities.org; phone: (916) 658-8223.

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City Manager The City of San Juan Capistrano, population 34,593, is a beautiful, captivating community with an engaged citizenry located in desirable southern Orange County. The City’s total budget for Fiscal Year 2015/2016 is $67 million, with a $25 million General Fund. The City employs 89 full- and part-time employees.

The successful candidate for the position of City Manager must be a professional with outstanding judgment, management skills, and integrity. The ideal candidate will also need to be energetic, self-confident, and have an open, approachable personal style.

A Bachelor’s degree is required. A Master’s degree and prior experience as a City Manager in a comparable, diverse, full-service city is highly desirable. Salary to $240,000, including Orange County Employees Retirement System (OCERS). Interested candidates are encouraged to submit a compelling cover letter, comprehensive resume, salary history and five professional references via email to apply@ralphandersen.com. Confidential inquiries welcomed to Jim Armstrong or Dave Morgan at (916) 630-4900. Detailed brochure available at www.ralphandersen.com.

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City Manager, City of Merced, CA The City of Merced, population 80,542, is located in the northern end of the Central San Joaquin Valley of California. The City is located approximately 110 miles southeast of San Francisco and 310 miles northwest of Los Angeles. The City Council is seeking a dynamic City Manager to oversee 450 employees and a 2014/15 budget of $202.6 million. The ideal candidate must have a vision for the future of economic, industrial, and community development. There are many exciting opportunities in Merced and an individual who is tenacious at the pursuit of the cities interest will excel in this position. The incoming City Manager will play an active role in downtown developments and increased beatification of the community and will work with the University of California, Merced in their expansion plans. A Manager who can hit the ground running to assist in the Council’s overall vision is being sought. The ideal candidate will have strong communication and presentation skills, be open and accessible, and a visible member of the community. Merced would benefit from a City Manager who can develop good working relationships with Department Heads, staff while; being an effective and positive leader. A Bachelor’s degree in public administration, business administration or a related field is required; a Master’s degree is preferred.

The salary for the incoming City Manager will be dependent upon qualification. The City also offers an attractive benefits package. Apply online at www.bobmurrayassoc.com.

Contact Bob Murray with questions.

Closing date October 16, 2015. phone 916•784•9080 fax 916•784•1985 www.bobmurrayassoc.com

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CITY OF PATTERSON

Watch for these Upcoming Opportunities: Banning, CA – City Manager Hesperia, CA – City Manager Spokane, WA – Riverfront Park Director Spokane, WA – Planning Services Director Sunnyvale, CA – City Attorney Sacramento, CA – County Counsel

Director of Engineering and Capital Projects The City of Patterson is looking for an exceptional, team-oriented leader with a broad knowledge of engineering disciplines to manage the Engineering and Capital Projects Department. The Director provides administrative direction and oversight for all functions and activities of the Engineering Department. Plans and directs areas of engineering and capital project construction; coordinates activities with other departments, outside agencies and provides support to the City’s Management Team.

If you are interested in being a part of team that develops a vibrant and growing city, to be considered for this outstanding career opportunity, visit the City’s website at http://www.ci.patterson.ca.us/ for more information and to view the recruitment brochure. The position is: Open Until Filled.

For more information and filing deadlines, please contact: Bob Murray and Associates, 1677 Eureka Road, Suite 202, Roseville, CA 95661 Phone: (916) 784-9080, Fax: (916) 784-1985, E-mail: apply@bobmurrayassoc.com

Current recruitments . . .

Library Services Director City of Burbank

Fire Chief

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Operations Services Director City of Pleasanton Teri Black • 424.296.3111 Julie Yuan-Miu • 925.820.8436

Photo/art credits Cover: Courtesy of Team San José Page 3: Gualtiero Boffi/Shutterstock.com Pages 6–7: Four Oaks/Shutterstock.com Pages 8, 9, 10: Courtesy of the Institute for Local Government Page 11: Lim Yong Hian/Shutterstock.com Pages 12, 14: Courtesy of Team San José Pages 15–21: Jeremy Sykes, courtesy of League of California Cities Page 23: Aneta Waberska/Shutterstock.com Pages 25–26: Courtesy of the League of California Cities Latino Caucus

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Page 27: sneakers, Igor.Stevanovic/Shutterstock.com; fiber optics, Jamen Percy/Shutterstock.com; icons, VectorShop/ Shutterstock.com Page 28: PathDoc/Shutterstock.com Pages 29–36: Yvonne Hunter, courtesy of the Institute for Local Government Page 37: Courtesy of City of Rancho Cucamonga and League of California Cities Page 41: Dotshock/Shutterstock.com Pages 42–43: Surkov Vladimir/Shutterstock.com Page 45: Sashkin/Shutterstock.com

www.cacities.org

Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide, continued from page 28

Slow connection speeds can severely limit business activity.

Strategic Plan Examines Speed and Infrastructure Aguiar-Curry, Yolo County Supervisor Don Saylor and others invited representatives of the CPUC and various organizations to a “Yolo Leaders” group meeting in May 2013. That discussion led to the creation of the Yolo Broadband Strategic Plan. Coordinated by the Yolo Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) and published in March 2015, the plan examines the current and future broadband needs of the county and its four cities and lays out a path to next-generation broadband.

“When you’re a planner, you think about the roads and sewer and lights — the private companies always took care of the Internet,” Crawford says. “Now, somebody has to step in and fill the spaces that market forces didn’t fill. That was a huge piece of the study for us, just getting cities and the county to put it on the radar — understanding that broadband is a piece of infrastructure that we need to look at for conditions of approval, broadband policies and General Plans.”

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The City of Alameda is a unique island community of approximately 76,000 residents in the San Francisco Bay Area. Alameda enjoys a reputation as friendly and sophisticated, with great schools, family-friendly beaches, culturally rich dining and retail options, ample recreational opportunities, and abundant parks and playgrounds. According to Money Magazine, Alameda compares favorably to the “best places to live” in America.

Come and make a difference in this vibrant island community as the… » Information Technology Director ($150,696 - $183,173) » Economic Development Manager ($119,936 - $145,784) » Redevelopment Project Manager ($108,467 - $131,842) » Public Relations Officer ($90,401 - $109,882) Apply on-line: www.alamedaca.gov SP

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The plan’s survey found significant speed disparities, even within the county’s four cities. While large businesses paid for upgrades, small- and medium-sized businesses just made do. The survey also found that the agricultural industry said broadband was its top need.

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Christine Crawford, Yolo LAFCo executive director, explains that the tests were a way to respond to the speeds furnished to the CPUC by Internet providers. She says, “Part of what we set out to do is say, ‘Wait a minute, you broadband providers are putting the information out there that makes it seem like everyone is so wellserved that no competitor has a reason to come in.’ We need to put out the real information so that people will realize, ‘Oh, there is a market opportunity there.’”

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Assistant City Manager, City of Oxnard, CA The City of Oxnard (approximate population 200,000) is committed to serving the needs of its culturally diverse and growing community. The City is seeking an Assistant City Manager to work closely with the City Manager to bring energy and enthusiasm toward advancing revenue generation strategies, economic and business development, and marketing and branding approaches. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of commitment to public service and operations, with a passion for implementing best practices. Strong management and administrative experience coupled with excellent leadership and interpersonal skills will enable the successful candidate to build credibility within this complex organization and the diverse community it serves. The typical candidate will possess at least eight (8) years of increasingly responsible administrative experience in municipal government and a Master’s degree in public administration, business administration, or a closely related field. Generalist experience or a background in public works, economic development, community development, housing, and/ or utilities is preferred. The annual salary range for the incoming Assistant City Manager is $168,188-$231,259, depending upon qualifications. Apply online at www.bobmurrayassoc.com. Contact Valerie Phillips at (916) 784-9080 with questions. Brochure available.

Closing date September 25, 2015. phone 916•784•9080 fax 916•784•1985 www.bobmurrayassoc.com

continued www.westerncity.com

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Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide, continued

In Winters, which is served by three Internet service providers, the strategic plan’s authors compared 72 speed samples from residential subscribers with 2013 data given to the CPUC by providers.

That information showed full coverage across the city and download speeds in the downtown area up to 24 Mbps or J

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even up to 100 Mbps in some places. Instead, the test found large swaths of the city were underserved, with speeds that were a fraction as fast as promised: only up to 10 Mbps download and 1.2 Mbps upload for cable broadband and 7 Mbps download and 1.1 Mbps upload for DSL broadband.

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City Manager, City of Seaside, CA The City of Seaside (approximate population 35,000) is an ocean-side community that overlooks the beautiful Monterey Bay on the Central Coast of California.

This ten square-mile city continues to grow while holding on to the rich values upon which it was established. The City is now seeking a seasoned leader to serve as the new City Manager. A strong candidate will be honest, fair, respectful, ethical, and possess good solid character and the utmost integrity.

A strong candidate will have prior experience as a City Manager for a city of similar size and complexity to Seaside or as an Assistant City Manager or Assistant County Manager for a larger city or county. Candidates must possess five years of progressively responsible management experience in city government. A Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration, Political Science, Business Administration, or a closely related field is required. A Master’s Degree is highly desirable. The annual salary for the City Manager is competitive and open, dependent on qualifications of the selected candidate.

If you are interested in this outstanding opportunity, please apply online at www.bobmurrayassoc.com. Please contact Bob Murray at (916) 784-9080 should you have any questions. Brochure available.

Closing date September 11, 2015.

Eighty-nine percent of Winters residents surveyed reported speeds of less than 6 Mbps. Half said their service was unreliable, and 59 percent said service was not fast enough for their needs.

“Those speeds are not adequate for municipal needs, much less what residents expect,” McPeak says.

Business owners were even less pleased: 65 percent said their service was unreliable; 64 percent said it was not fast enough for their needs.

The strategic plan also found that compared to customers in the county’s other three cities, Winters’ customers were paying more — for example, $100 to $124 monthly for 1.9 Mbps.

The Economic, Health and Public Safety Impacts The cost of connectivity in Winters makes it difficult to attract new businesses.

To secure reliable service, the authors concluded, a business might pay over $1,000 per month.

phone 916•784•9080 fax 916•784•1985 www.bobmurrayassoc.com

Transportation Director City of Gardena, California Annual Salary: $128,580 - $176,820 The Transportation Director reports to the City Manager and is part of the City’s Executive Management Team. The Director is responsible for the overall daily operation of the Transportation Department and coordination with other City departments to meet current and future public service needs. Under general administrative direction, the Director plans, organizes, and directs the operations of the Department, including public transportation administration & operations; equipment & vehicle maintenance and procurement; and financial planning and grants administration.

Winters epitomizes the state’s small communities in terms of the challenges related to broadband deployment.

Qualified candidate must have education equivalent to a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration, Business Administration, or a related field, AND five (5) years of increasingly responsible public transportation experience, with at least three (3) years of supervisory experience at a Transportation Manager or Assistant Director level. A Master’s degree in business or public administration and a demonstrated ability to negotiate service & funding contracts is desirable.

Deadline: Friday 09/25/15 at 4:00 p.m. VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR APPLICATION, JOB ANNOUNCEMENT AND HOW TO APPLY DETAILS: www.ci.gardena.ca.us

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The lack of high-speed connectivity also hampers access to health care in the city.

The Winters Healthcare Foundation reports that serious connectivity issues prevent doctors from treating patients whenever cloud-based medical records are inaccessible.

Winters dove right into the strategic plan’s first recommendation: conducting a study to determine the feasibility of constructing a citywide broadband network.

More Resources Online

The plan also stresses regular coordination with entities like Pacific Gas and Electric, which is building a training center in Winters; Yolo County Housing, which maintains low-cost housing outside the city’s boundaries; and Yolo County.

For links to related resources, read the online version of this article at www.westerncity.com.

continued

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Other recommendations include: • Incorporating broadband as a public utility in the city’s General Plan and policies, like dig-once and engineering standards; • Maintaining broadband in the city’s geographic information system (GIS); • Evaluating ways to streamline permitting processes; • Incorporating broadband into the city’s development impact fee and capital improvement plan; and • Evaluating fees to make sure they do not discourage broadband investment.

CITY ADMINISTRATOR – City of Vernon SALARY DOQ | EXCELLENT BENEFITS PACKAGE

The City of Vernon, an industrial city of 5.2 square miles is located about five miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

Founded in 1905 as the first exclusively industrial city in Southwestern U.S. Vernon houses around 1,800 businesses that employ approximately 50,000 people, serving as a vital economic engine in the region. Vernon is home to Fortune 500 companies in industries that include food and agriculture, apparel, steel, plastics, logistics and home furnishings.

In the past five years, Vernon has undergone tremendous change. Through the city’s implementation of more than 150 good governance reforms, Vernon – the city that has billed itself as “Exclusively Industrial” for nearly 110 years – has firmly established itself as a model city for good governance. The City Council is seeking a City Administrator committed to good governance practices. Candidates must possess a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Business, Public Administration or related field with six years’ experience managing full service government operations.

Interested candidates may contact Teresa McAllister (323) 583-8811 ext. 239. Brochure available at www.cityofvernon.org Deadline-Oct. 1, 2015

Controller-Treasurer Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) District is widely regarded as one of America’s premier public transit systems. BART is now seeking a Controller-Treasurer to function as the Chief Financial Officer for the District. This position is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the BART Board of Directors. The ideal candidate will be an experienced professional who is willing to exercise independent judgment and initiative while always keeping the best interests of the District as a priority. Candidates must possess a Bachelor’s degree with major coursework in finance, business administration, economics, accounting, public administration, or a closely related field. No less than seven (7) years of accounting experience is required with at least two of the seven years including direct supervision duties. Accounting practice relates to the practical application of accounting to the financial accumulation and reporting needs of an organization.

Qualifying accounting experience can include financial accounting, public accounting, governmental accounting, forensic accounting, management accounting, tax accounting, and internal auditing. A CPA, CMA, or CFA and/or Master’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Public Administration or a related field is highly desired.

Also preferred is experience in a large and diverse public organization with increasingly responsible organizational responsibilities. The annual salary for the Controller-Treasurer is $224,736.40, DOQ. Apply online at www.bobmurrayassoc.com. Contact Joel Bryden with questions. Closing date September 25, 2015. phone 916•784•9080 fax 916•784•1985 www.bobmurrayassoc.com

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

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Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide, continued

The city is pursuing broadband along several parallel paths. Winters hopes to make a public safety funding argument to the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet).

Created by a 2012 act of Congress and funded with up to $7 billion, FirstNet has been given the mission of building, operating and maintaining a nationwide broadband network devoted to public safety.

Winters sits about 8 miles from the Monticello Dam, which retains Lake Berryessa. The area is susceptible to earthquakes, slides along the Blue Ridge, and wildfire. From July 22 to Aug. 5, 2015, the Wragg Fire burned more than 8,000 acres near the lake.

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Winters also intends to amend the Public Facilities and Services Element of its General Plan to include broadband as a topic area. A planned subdivision has already been plumbed for broadband.

For its downtown, Winters has hired a consultant to complete a $7,000 engineering study that will provide an estimate for broadband installation. A citywide assessment to cover the cost will be considered after the study is reviewed.

Aguiar-Curry and Donlevy recite long lists of reasons why broadband is important to the city’s future, beginning with education in the age of Common Core and an increased focus on science, technology and engineering. The list includes economic development, public safety, health care and lifestyle — whether it’s watching Netflix or, in the case of Donlevy’s son, playing video games against opponents around the world.

“Right now, the big controversy throughout communications is that the Time Warners and Comcasts are picking winners and losers,” Donlevy says. “In our case, we’re going to see how much it might cost to get the infrastructure in the ground and then invite everyone in: ‘Who wants this customer base? All you will have to do is provide the service.’”

Winters City Manager John Donlevy Jr. says bringing fiber optic cable to the dam would benefit Yolo, Napa and Solano counties, along with state and federal J

agencies, including Cal Fire and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and it would improve interoperability. From the dam, fiber could connect to Winters’ Fire Department and other important facilities.

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Looking Ahead “It is very clear that inaction on broadband now will limit what we can do T

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CITY MANAGER — The City of Corning, California The City of Corning (population 7,663) is a rural City nestled in the northern reaches of the Sacramento Valley.

With its Mediterranean climate, agriculture is important here; the City is surrounded by olive, almond and prune orchards. It’s also home to the largest olive cannery in the world and appropriately known as “The Olive City”. The City is positioned on I-5, about two hours north of Sacramento. Recreational opportunities abound in the nearby Cascade, Sierra Nevada and Coastal Range mountains, the Sacramento River, and numerous area lakes.

Corning is a friendly community where events like the Veterans Day Parade, Hometown Christmas, May Madness Car Show, Junior Rodeo and Olive Festival are important and well supported. The City includes several Municipal Parks, with facilities for youth baseball, soccer, swimming, basketball, skateboarding, and tennis.

The City Council includes four members elected at large, serving four year staggered terms, and a separately elected Mayor serving a two year term. Municipal Services are provided through Administration, Building & Safety, Planning, Fire, Police and Public Works Departments. Engineering and City Attorney services are provided on contractual basis. John Brewer has served as City Manager for nearly 4 years and will be retiring after 31 years of public service. Mr. Brewer is available to speak with interested candidates about this career opportunity. All inquiries will be treated confidentially.

The current annual salary range is $92,568 (Step “A”) to $113,640 (Step “E”). The City Council may appoint above Step “A” based upon candidate qualifications/experience. PERS Retirement formula is 2% @ 55 for Classic Members (highest single year); New Members 2% @ 62. Other benefits include generous City contributions for Medical, Dental, Vision and Life Insurance, Deferred Compensation, holidays, vacation, sick leave, and administrative leave.

The job description and application form are available online at www.corning.org. The City of Corning is an Equal Opportunity Provider. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply

by September 25, 2015. Please send a letter of interest, resume, and completed employment application to City Clerk Lisa Linnet: 794 Third Street, Corning, CA 96021. Phone 530-824-7033.

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tomorrow. It already limits what we can do,” Donlevy says. “When you’re looking to create sustainable jobs, ones where people can actually earn their livelihood, if you aren’t keeping up with the times, you’re going to be behind the times.” continued

J Broadband Session at Annual Conference Winters Mayor Cecilia Aguiar-Curry is scheduled to be among the speakers on “Digital Strategies for Economic Development” at a pre-conference session at the League of California Cities 2015 Annual Conference & Expo at the San José Convention Center. The session is tentatively set for Wednesday, Sept. 30. Visit www. cacities.org/AC for the session’s time and location or use the League’s conference mobile app to access updated information. (Find the app on your device by searching in the app store for “League of California Cities” or “CACities.”)

Michael Kasperzak, council member and former mayor of Mountain View, and Dennis Michael, mayor of Rancho Cucamonga and League first vice president, will lead the digital strategies session. Pauline Cutter, mayor of San Leandro, and Mark Wheetley, council member from Arcata, will join Aguiar-Curry as speakers.

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• The role of local officials in setting forth a vision for digital inclusion; and • Forging alliances to foster economic prosperity.

www.westerncity.com

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CITY OF EL SEGUNDO Located on Santa Monica Bay along the Pacific Ocean, El Segundo is one of the beach cities of Los Angeles County, just south of LAX and home to a number of aerospace and aviation companies. The 17,000 residents enjoy a charming downtown, fabulous restaurants, a variety of housing choices and beautiful beach sunsets, yet conveniently located in a dynamic metropolitan region. With 259 employees and a General Fund exceeding $64M, El Segundo offers these two exciting opportunities:

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

The Director of Finance will report directly to the City Manager and serves as a member of the Executive Management Team. The William Avery & Associates Finance Department is responsible for Management Consultants the City’s financial, accounting, payroll, business and risk management 1 3 / 2 N. Santa Cruz Ave., Suite A services and has a staff of 14 employees.

Los Gatos, CA 95030

Fire Chief leads a department of 50 FIRE CHIEF The in providing fire suppression, prevention, investigation, emergency medical services (paramedics), disaster preparedness and environmental safety programs.

408.399.4424 Fax: 408.399.4423 email: jobs@averyassoc.net www.averyassoc.net

Formal job announcements, including salary, benefit information and closing dates are available at http://www.averyassoc.net. For further information contact Bill Avery at 408.399.4424 or Ann Slate at 805.459.5132.

Director of Urban Forestry, Maintenance and Enterprise Operations Located 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles on the lower slopes of the San Gabriel Mountains, Claremont is best known for its treelined streets, historic buildings, world renowned colleges, and awardwinning school system. Claremont provides the atmosphere of a New England town within comfortable driving distances of major Southern California attractions, sports stadiums and the Ontario International Airport.

The session will include perspectives on: • How cities can use digital strategies to drive economic development while closing the digital divide;

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City of Claremont, California A formal job announcement and additional details is available at www.ci.claremont.ca.us.

Position is open until filled.

The Director of Urban Forestry, Maintenance, and Enterprise Operations reports directly to the City Manager and plans, directs, organizes, and supervises the activities of the divisions comprising the Community Services Department: Maintenance, Solid Waste, and Motor Fleet.

The ideal candidate will be a team oriented professional with the vision and organizational experience to coordinate multiple departmental functions and maintain effective working relationships with the public. Strong written skills are required to communicate effectively. A Bachelor’s Degree in public administration or related field and six years of progressively responsible experience in urban forestry and maintenance operations is required.

Western City, September 2015

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Challenges of Closing the Digital Divide, continued

McPeak of CETF says that like Winters, its neighboring cities and Yolo County, other local governments will need to work beyond their boundaries to get to scale and catch the eye of the large Internet companies, all of whom are based outside the state.

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CETF plans to continue working closely with the League, California State Association of Counties, Rural County Representatives of California and nonprofit organization Valley Vision to promote its goal of Internet for all. McPeak says, “We need a chorus of voices to ensure that there are sufficient state policy and resources for California to compete globally.” ■ R

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CITY OF OXNARD Located on the beautiful Southern California coast, the City of Oxnard is the largest and most populous city in the County of Ventura. Nestled about 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles and 35 miles south of Santa Barbara, Oxnard prides itself on its rich diversity and culture.

The new Public Works Director will be joining a new City Manager who is leading an organizational transformation initiative. The Public Works Director will be part of the CM’s new management team and instrumental in carrying forward the vision of improved PUBLIC organizational effectiveness and best practices Avery & Associates WORKS throughout the Public Works Department. The William Management Consultants Public Works Director will report to an Assistant DIRECTOR City Manager. The new Director will be expected 31/2 N. Santa Cruz Ave., Suite A to quickly assimilate into a culture of collaboration, teamwork and Los Gatos, CA 95030 proactive communication within the City operation and throughout the 408.399.4424 community.

Fax: 408.399.4423 email: jobs@averyassoc.net

The new PWs Director will possess a combination of education and www.averyassoc.net experience with a concentration in civil engineering, construction, public administration, facility management or related field equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree. Registration as a Civil Engineer and a Master’s degree are both highly desirable. The salary range is $144,419 to $198,576 annually, DOQ. To be considered, please submit (email preferred) a letter of interest, resume, salary history and contact information including email addresses for five work-related references to Bill Avery by September 25, 2015. A formal job announcement is available on our website at http://www.averyassoc.net.

ASSISTANT CITY CLERK City of Santa Clara, California $99,000 - $116,400 annually The City of Santa Clara is seeking an Assistant City Clerk. Requires a combination of education and experience equivalent to completion of an Associate of Arts Degree in Public Administration, Business Administration, or related field and five years of increasingly responsible experience that includes public contact, clerical, or office management, at least one year of which should be supervisory. Experience using word processing, electronic spreadsheets, and Records Management Systems (RMS) is required. Notary Public or willingness to achieve certification is required. A Bachelor’s degree in a related field, Certified Municipal Clerk certification or progress towards certification, and/or American Records Management Association training or equivalent are desirable. Experience working in a City Clerk or Municipal Clerk’s Office is highly desirable. A “Letter of Interest and Intent”, salary history (including current fringe benefits), and a detailed resume by Wednesday, September 30, 2015 for first consideration. For additional information and a job brochure, visit the City’s website at http://www.santaclaraca.gov/jobs or call (408) 615-2080.

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Broadband Bills of Note AB 238 (Stone), Telecommunications: California Advanced Services Fund. Existing law establishes the California Advanced Services Fund to encourage economic growth, job creation and other benefits and requires the Public Utilities Commission to give priority for funding to households underserved by an existing broadband provider. This bill would set the broadband speeds to be pursued at 25 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 3 Mbps upload in all areas of the state. League position: No Position.

AB 1262 (Wood), Telecommunications: universal service, California Advanced Services Fund. This bill would transfer $15 million to the nearly exhausted Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account.

The consortia have been working to promote ubiquitous broadband deployment and to advance broadband adoption in unserved and underserved areas throughout the state.

League position: Support.

AB 1503 (Perea), Telecommunications universal service programs: teleconnect fund. Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to use a program paid for by the California Teleconnect Fund Administrative Committee Fund to advance universal service by providing discounted rates to qualifying schools, community colleges, libraries, hospitals, health clinics and community organizations. This bill would require the commission to include auxiliary organizations of the California State University in the program funded by the California Teleconnect Fund Administrative Committee Fund. League position: No Position.

www.cacities.org

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PeckhamMcKenney Presents & Outstanding Career Opportunities City of Concord, California Concord is the largest city in Contra Costa County with over 122,000 residents and is located 29 miles east of San Francisco.

A top 20 “Kid Friendly” suburban City as well as a “Tree City USA” for 32 years, Concord offers a high quality of life.

Director of Human Resources The Department has six full-time staff and provides HR Administration; Labor Relations; Recruitment and Selection; Worker’s Compensation; Benefits Administration; Organizational Training and Development; and Classification and Compensation services to the entire organization of 408 full-time employees. Bachelor’s degree plus six years progressive professional experience in public agency human resources management required. Master’s degree, SPHR certification, and/ or experience in a union environment highly desirable. Salary range is $134,040 to $184,284 DOQ with excellent benefits.

Infrastructure Maintenance Manager The City covers 31.13 square miles with a total of 337 street miles and 875 curb miles. With up to 30 full-time union employees, the division is responsible for curb, gutter and sidewalk maintenance; street maintenance; street sweeping; traffic signals and street lighting; transportation signs and markings; the sewer collection system and a stormwater program. Education and experience equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree plus five years experience in construction management or street/sewer maintenance management or related activity with two years at the supervisory level required. Wastewater certification a plus. Salary range is $101,441 to $139,464 DOQ with excellent benefits.

Principal Planner The reuse of the 5,028-acre Inland Area of the Concord Naval Weapons Station is a significant opportunity for Concord and the region. The Concord Reuse Project Area Plan calls for a world-class transit oriented project and allows for 12,000 housing units and 6.1 million square feet of commercial space on 2,300 acres. Significant experience in high level project management and the ability to move projects forward to completion required. Selection of a Master Developer is close at hand, thus creating this incredible opportunity. Education and experience equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree in City Planning or closely related field and eight years professional planning experience involving general plans, zoning or development services required. Salary range is $85,779 to $117,936 DOQ with excellent benefits.

Closing deadline for Concord positions is September 28, 2015.

City of Santa Clara, California At the center of Silicon Valley lies the City of Santa Clara. With a population of 121,229 residents, this 19.3 squaremile city is rich in history, home to the oldest institution of higher learning in California, Santa Clara University.

Assistant Director of Water and Sewer Utilities The Department consists of: Water, Sewer, Recycled Water and Solar Utilities. Ideal candidate will be a generalist with strong problem solving and interpersonal skills. Water Distribution Operator’s Certificate D4 required, D5 highly desirable and may be required within two years of appointment and a Grade 3 Wastewater Collection Maintenance Certificate and/or registration as a Civil Engineer in California are highly desirable. Competitive salary DOQ, see brochure for details, with excellent benefits.

Planning Manager The Planning Division administers land use regulations and processes development proposals as well as shapes public policies related to growth and land use in the City. Ideal candidate will be experienced, innovative, and well versed in contemporary urban planning with excellent interpersonal skills. Competitive salary DOQ, see brochure for details, with excellent benefits.

Closing deadline for Santa Clara positions is September 21, 2015.

Please send your cover letter and resume electronically to:

Peckham & McKenney apply@peckhamandmckenney.com

Resumes acknowledged within two business days. A detailed brochure is available at

www.peckhamandmckenney.com (866) 912-1919

www.westerncity.com

Western City, September 2015

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William Avery & Associates, Inc. Labor Relations / Executive Search / Human Resources Consulting 31/2 N. Santa Cruz Ave., Suite A Los Gatos, CA 95030 408.399.4424 Fax: 408.399.4423 email: jobs@averyassoc.net www.averyassoc.net

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Bobbi C. Peckham • Phil McKenney

Peckham&McKenney “All About Fit” www.peckhamandmckenney.com Roseville, CA

866.912.1919

916.630.4900

There’s an Entire Team Behind Every Assignment • Executive Recruitment • Management Consulting • Public Safety

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Public Sector Human reSourceS conSulting

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• Planning • Procurement • Management

• Financial/Rates • AB939 Compliance • Litigation Support

www.hfh-consultants.com Walnut Creek (925) 977-6950

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Irvine (949) 251-8628

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E XPERIENCE , T ALENT , COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC SERVICE San Jose ∙ Orange County ∙ Cincinnati ∙ 408-437-5400

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Western City, September 2015

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