RIO DELL CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MINUTES JUNE 17, 2025 Mayor Pro Tem Carter called the regular meeting of the Rio Dell City Council to order at 5:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Present: (Closed Session) Mayor Pro Tem Carter, Council Members Wilson and Woodall, and City Manager Knopp Absent: Mayor Garnes and Councimember Orr (excused) Present: (Regular Meeting) Mayor Pro Tem Carter, Council Members Orr, Wilson, and Woodall Absent: Mayor Garnes (excused) Others Present: City Manager Knopp, Chief of Police Phinney, Water/ Roadways Superintendent Jensen, City Clerk Dunham, Senior Fiscal Assistant Maciel and Senior Fiscal Assistant Townsend Absent: Finance Director Sanborn and Community Development Director Caldwel (excused) ANNOUNCEMENT OF ITEMS TO BE DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION Conference with Labor Negotiator Agency Negotiator: City Manager = Employee Organizations: Rio Dell Employees Association, Rio Dell Police Officers Association, and all Contract Employees PUBLIC COMMENT REGARDING CLOSED SESSION No members of the public were present to comment. RECESS INTO CLOSED SESSION The Council recessed into closed session at 5:00 p.m. with City Manager Knopp to discuss the above-listed matter. The closed session ended at 5:30 p.m. ORAL ANNOUNCEMENTS The Council reconvened into open session at 6:00 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Carter announced that there was nothing to report from the closed session. PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS JUNE 17, 2025 MINUTES Page 2 Mayor Pro Tem Carter invited public comment on non-agenda matters. No public comment was received. CONSENT CALENDAR Mayor Pro Tem Carter asked if any council member, staff, or member of the public would like to remove any item from the consent calendar for a separate discussion. No items were removed. A motion was made by Orr/Wilson to approve the consent calendar, including the following items: 1) Minutes of the June 3, 2025, Regular Meeting; 2) Minutes of the June 12, 2025, Special Meeting; 3) Approve the Placement of a Public Hearing for the Cost Recovery for the Abatement of 520 First Avenue; 4) Approve Resolution No. 1640-2025 Establishing a $25.00 Security Alarm Registration Fee and Adopting the 2025-2026 Master Fee Schedule; 5) Approve Resolution No. 1641-2025 Adopting an Amended Employee Salary Schedule; 6) Approve Measure Z Memorandum of Understanding with Humboldt County for the Community Service Officer Position; 7) Authorization to Execute Collection Services Agreement with Pacific Credit Services for the Collection of Outstanding Utility Receivables; and 8) Receive & File the Check Register for May. The motion carried 4-0. REPORISISTAFF COMMUNICATIONS City Manager/Staff Update City Manager Knopp reported on recent activities and said that staff attended an HCAOG meeting with the Smith Group to review options for the Safe Streets and Roads For All program and potential demonstration projects the Council may be interested in having staff perform. He said that the Council approved the Local Road Safety Plan approximately two years ago, identifying the Wildwood Ave. and Davis St. intersection as the area with the highest rate of vehicle accidents. One potential demonstration would be to do a demonstration of a 4-way stop with the installation of temporary stop bars located on Wildwood Ave. He said that another potential project would be to look at the avenues and do a demonstration for a one-way street proposal that the Traffic Committee has been JUNE 17, 2025 MINUTES Page 3 working on with W-Trans. These projects are very preliminary, but the idea is to try and identify some initial projects that might improve traffic safety in Rio Dell. He said that he was excited to announce that the city is very likely to receive a $1.2 million grant for the remainder of the Eel River Trail project to include the ADA ramp. He said that the California Conservation Board, which is the grant agency, will have a hearing in August, and the project has been recommended for approval. The hope is to get shovels in the ground in 2026. Councilmember Wilson asked for clarification on the location of the 4-way stop. City Manager Knopp said that the 4-way stop would be at the intersection of Wildwood Ave. and Davis Street. Councimember Wilson referred to the potential one-way streets in the avenues and asked if the matter would come to the City Council for final approval. City Manager Knopp explained that the City Council authorized an HCAOG-funded Traffic Study of the avenues, which the Traffic Committee will evaluate and make a recommendation to the City Council. Councilmember Wilson commented that the concept of one-way streets in the avenues came up before, and there was an issue related to mailboxes, sO it will be interesting to see where it goes. Mayor Pro Tem Carter pointed out that once again, zero cats were transported to Miranda's Rescue. Mayor Pro Tem Carter called for public comment on the Staff Update. No public comment was received. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS/STUDY SESSIONS Presentation - Recology Eel River - Annual Rate Adjustment to Solid Waste Franchise Agreement City Manager Knopp provided a brief staff report and said that this item relates to the annual rate adjustment that comes before the City Council each June. He said that the franchise agreement with the City of Rio Dell and Recology Eel River will expire on 12/31/26, SO there will be more work and activity coming before the City Council related to the update of the agreement. He then introduced Fred Hanks from Recology Eel River to provide a brief overview of the rate changes and answer any questions. JUNE 17, 2025 MINUTES Page 4 Fred provided a quick summary of the rate changes and said that there was an increase in the collection (CPI) of 3%, an increase in the disposal (tipping fee) of 8.65% and the overall average being 4.8%. He said that what that means for the average residential customer is an increase of $1.58 for a 32-gallon can. Councilmember Wilson referred to the rate chart and asked for a preakdown of the rates, including garbage, curbside recycling, and green waste. Fred broke out the new monthly rates as follows: 32-Gallon Can $38.26 Curbside Recycling $ 8.72 Green Waste $ 4.03 Total $51.01 Mayor Pro Tem Carter called for public comment on the rate adjustment. No public comment was received. ORDINANCES/SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS/PUBLIC HEARINGS Second Reading (by title only) and Adoption of Ordinance No. 417-2025 Banning the Sale of Nitrous Oxide in the City of Rio Dell City Manager Knopp provided a brief staff report recommending adoption of Ordinance No. 417-2025 banning the sale of Nitrous Oxide in the City of Rio Dell. He said that the ordinance was introduced at the meeting of June 3, 2025, and is before the Council for its second reading and adoption. The City Council met on August 20, 2024, and discussed the banning of nitrous oxide in the City of Rio Dell. The consensus of the Council was for staff to return with an Ordinance banning Nitrous Oxide. Since that meeting, staff have been working with the County of Humboldt Public Health Division and neighboring cities to craft a unified ordinance to create a cohesive and consistent ban across the local jurisdictions. He commented that the City Council received a presentation from the County Public Health Division at the last regular meeting outlining the adverse consequences of excessive recreational nitrous oxide use. Mayor Pro Tem Carter opened the public hearing at 6:17 p.m. to receive public comment on the proposed ordinance. Eric Keller, Executive Director of Humboldt Waste Management Authority (HWMA) addressed the Council and expressed support for the proposed ordinance. He said as the staff mentioned, a majority of jurisdictions are working with the County and DHHS to adopt similar ordinances. JUNE 17, 2025 MINUTES Page 5 He said that aside from the adverse health issues caused by nitrous oxide, it creates an incredibly difficult waste stream for HWMA to manage, which is why they support the ordinance. There being no further public comment, the public hearing was closed. Councilmembers expressed support for the ordinance. Mayor Pro Tem Carter referred to page 122 of the Council packet, which stated: "The ordinance will not unduly burden legitimate business activities of retailers who sell other products, including tobacco products, but will establish appropriate controls to prevent recreational use, ) and asked if the ban applied to restaurants. Chief Phinney responded that local restaurants would be allowed to continue the commercial use of nitrous oxide. A motion was made by Orr/Wilson to approve the second reading and adoption of Ordinance No. 417-2025 Banning the Sale of Nitrous Oxide in the City of Rio Dell. Motion carried 4-0. COUNCIL REPORTSICOMMUNICATION Councilmember Woodall mentioned the meeting regarding the Blue Envelope Project and said that it was wel-attended, and thanked the Police Department and the Rio Dell Fire Department for their participation in the program. She said that she attended the ceremony for the opening of the Eel River Trail, which was also well attended said that Mayor Garnes did a wonderful job. Councimember Orr reported on his attendance at yesterday's HCAOG meeting and said that they talked a lot about the Carbon Reduction Program (CRP) and trying to draw from the ever-shrinking pot of money from the State. He mentioned one potential project that could apply to Rio Dell was energy-efficient street lighting for street signs in the downtown. He said that HCAOG is looking at taking a bigger role in the environmental aspect of this, as it deals with transportation. Councimember Wilson reported on recent meetings and events and said that the last HWMA meeting was canceled and that he would be attending an RCEA meeting next week. Mayor Pro Tem Carter reported on recent meetings and events and said that there was a good turnout at the Blue Envelope launch, thanked the first responders, and said they were not only there but they were accessible to the community. She reported on the success of the Bike Rodeo and thanked Sara Reback for organizing great events for the JUNE 17, 2025 MINUTES Page 6 community. She said that she also attended the Fire Commissioners meeting last week and said that they received 84 calls in May, and they are working on the revamping of the Bocce Ball courts for Wildwood Days. She also announced that the department is getting a new grant-funded wildland fire truck, which they are all excited about, and reminded everyone that fire season is here, urging everyone to pay attention to weed abatement. She said that she would be attending a RREDC meeting on June 23, a Rio Dell School Board meeting on June 26, and announced there would be a Nuisance Advisory Committee meeting here at 3:00 tomorrow, followed by a Traffic Committee meeting at 4:00 p.m. She reported that she attended a webinar today, along with City staff, about revitalizing downtown areas in rural cities with small budgets. She said what it did was validate the things the City has done right, along with presenting some new ideas. Lastly, she said that she has received a lot of positive feedback about the Eel River Trail. She commented that the only complaint she received was that the parking lot is always full, which is not necessarily a bad thing. ADJOURNMENT A motion was made by Orr/Wilson to adjourn the meeting at 6:25 p.m. to the July 1, 2025, regular meeting. Motion carried 4-0. Amanda Carter, Mayor Pro Tem Attest: Karen Dunham, City Clerk