Claritans complain all the time, but it’s not every day that
a handful of public grievances get a new law on the books. Today was that day
at City Council. In response to six written complaints, an ordinance restricting the use of electronic
smoking devices (ESDs) was passed to its second reading. The plan to treat vaping like smoking
was met with fierce debate by residents when initially presented a few months ago, but tonight’s discussion was
brief and subdued by comparison. But vaping wasn't the only cause for dissatisfaction tonight. New complaints
about Sacramento legislators, continuing complaints about soccer noise, and
eternal complaints about incompetent local officials comprised the balance of the meeting. Let’s relive the memories.
High Holidays, Near
Drowning, School Self-Promotion
With summer ending, Mayor Weste’s invocation looked ahead to
“the holiday season.” She delivered an invocation that was
equal parts well-wishing and Wikipedia entry: “This month, our Jewish friends
celebrate the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, and they commemorate the Day of
Atonement, called Yom Kippur. […] For the Jews, these holidays are very
important.”
Following the flag salute, many emergency responders were
recognized for helping to save the life of a little girl. She passed out in a pool, was pulled out of the water by her father (who had to get
over a ten-foot fence to reach her), and then received life-saving aid from
Deputy Christine Shaffer, Deputy Jason Goedecke, and others. She's made a full recovery.
Next came an enthusiastic presentation from Sulphur Springs administrators and educators. They explained that technology was being embraced by teachers and
that students were learning, which I had perhaps mistakenly thought was the
norm at schools. The speeches culminated in a video of
students tapping iPads in slow motion as an exultant piano melody played in the
background.
The Public Speaks
Public participation consisted mostly of familiar faces.
Elaine Ballace lamented Santa Clarita’s incompetence at embracing its local
artists, actors, and entertainers. She mocked the Arts Commission, which she
said seemed to do nothing, had no real power or money, and was too dependent on
waiting for an arts master plan.
The SCOPE (Santa Clarita Organization for Planning the
Environment) contingent made its presence known, expressing more appreciation than is usual. Lynne Plambeck and a local high school student used
their time to applaud the annual river rally and clean-up. Cam Noltemeyer was
appreciative of what she called “the CEMEX decision”. Noltemeyer isn’t
typically so effusive, but it soon became clear that she only brought up CEMEX
as a counterpoint to Chiquita Landfill. That is, Congressman Knight got action against CEMEX mining by holding them to their contract. She hoped someone would hold
Chiquita Canyon Landfill operators to their contract as well rather than
extending it. (Note that staff and council members have yet to rejoice--or even to acknowledge--what had at first been hailed as an unqualified victory against CEMEX mining. Noltemeyer's mention this evening did not change that.)
David Keating was tonight’s only speaker on the topic of
Villa Metro/Santa Clarita Soccer Center. He said he was representing “at least
42 other residents” who don’t like the noise from the soccer field—the long-standing
soccer field that they bought a house right next to. He played a recording,
and it sounded exactly like you’d expect things to sound if you bought a home right
next to a soccer field: the nighttime chirping of crickets punctuated by shouts
from soccer players. “We love the
houses, we just don’t like the noise,” explained the man who—sorry if I’m
belaboring this point—bought a home right next to a soccer field.
"No Violations"
Responses to public comments followed. City Manager Ken Striplin countered Elaine Ballace, saying of
the Arts Commission members, “They’re really doing a great job.” His defense
likely came because Ballace did have something of a point—the commission doesn’t do
a whole lot. But that’s largely because the City Council has tied its members' hands
by second-guessing their recommendations and emphasizing reliance on a master
plan rather than on good judgment.
Councilmember TimBen
Boydston asked about whether noise had been monitored at the soccer center and
if any violations had occurred. Striplin called Jeff Hogan forward, and he
said that noise monitoring is done all the time by the City, the developer, and
others. “Currently, there are no violations,” said Hogan. That is, the soccer center is operating exactly as it's legally allowed to.
Other remarks from the City Council included announcements
of upcoming events and praise for past events—the usual. Mayor McLean said that
tiny bells will be available for use on trails. Affixed to mountain bikes or
horses, they’ll let hikers prepare to safely step to the side or pass when they hear the tinkling of bells. It’s
part of the “Make a Little Noise” campaign, a title that was no doubt salt in
the wounds of the Villa Metroans.
Stay out of it,
Sacramento!
Mayor McLean made comments on two items on the consent calendar,
both pertaining to state bills. SB 254 would make it easier for state highways
to be handed over to local agencies. McLean said that this could pose a problem
because the roads wouldn’t have to be in good condition and the city or other
agency couldn’t decline accepting and maintaining them. AB 806 would give cities less power to oppose/restrict
the installation of certain antennas and other broadband infrastructure. McLean
said that both bills would give Claritans less control over Clarita, so she opposed
them.
McLean asked for Mike Murphy, Intergovernmental Relations Manager, to come
forward and tell residents what else they could do to oppose the bills. He said that there could be
more meetings or outreach, and McLean and the other councilmembers encouraged him
to ramp up these efforts. I think McLean was hoping for more of a call to
action of the citizens—contact the governor and politicians and so on—but no particularly inspiring rallying cry was made.
Lynne Plambeck and Cam Noltemeyer spoke in opposition to an
item on the consent calendar that paved the way for a new franchise for
Valencia Water Company. Noltemeyer said, “The public’s business should be done
in public,” arguing that there have been too many backroom deals pertaining to
water supply, development, and disposal. Plambeck, who sits on the Newhall
County Water District Board, made the same assertion. She said that the Valencia
Water Company (VWC) should act as a public company and that the Castaic Lake
Water Agency (CLWA) shouldn’t own VWC anyways. The contentious (Plambeck calls
it “illegal”) acquisition of VWC by CLWA is still very much on her mind, and
she saw tonight’s item as a chance to hold CLWA accountable for gaming the
system. “They can’t be public and private at the same time!” she declared,
explaining that CLWA is a public agency but keeps VWC’s actions private. The
public can’t attend its meetings, request its records, or elect its board, so
much remains unscrutinized. City Attorney Joe Montes chose not to weigh
in on the legality of the CLWA/VWC arrangement, simply stating that the City
would have some rights to oversight of the VWC books since it’s entitled to a
franchise fee.
The consent calendar then passed with the recommend actions
on all items.
Vape Away
A few months ago, the City Council heard a lot of testimony
about a plan to treat vaping with electronic smoking devices (ESDs) the same way it treats smoking. It seemed like an easy pass, but residents explained how they had used
vaping to quit cigarettes, how vapor was less unhealthful than smoke, and how
water vapor wasn’t a major public nuisance. This led to a revision of the
ordinance and a revisitation tonight.
The ordinance only came back stronger in its opposition to
ESDs. Associate Planner Jessica Frank gave a surprisingly inept talk—overkill
of the highest order. “Staff has received a number of complaints from the
public regarding ESDs,” she began. By “a number” she meant 6 written and 11
verbal comments. That's 17 remarks in the several years that ESDs have been used in
a city of over 200,000. Then she worked on building the case against ESDs. She read
a list of chemicals that have been detected in the vapor, including some carcinogens
and heavy metals, without bothering to mention how much or under what
conditions. Then she moved into a discussion of ignition
hazards, stating that there were concerns that ESDs could somehow lead to fires
in our open spaces because they’re a heat source. Then she linked ESDs to
marijuana use by youth. LA County Sheriff’s Captain Roosevelt Johnson came up
to address this topic further, stating that he spoke to “one of our narcotics
investigators, and he witnessed personally an eighteen-year-old child who had
actually smoked THC and committed suicide because of a psychotic episode right
after using that drug.” The message was unequivocal: ESDs might kill you with the drugs and
carcinogens they deliver or with the fires they just might start in our open
space.
There were far fewer comments from the public tonight than
many had been anticipating. Steve Petzold argued, “Cats don’t equal dogs; tobacco
is not vapor.” He felt that the staff presentation had been totally unbalanced,
stating, “I can’t believe that she hasn’t been rebutted at all”. He said that
he supported liberty, not more intrusion into actions that seem to be a less
harmful alternative to smoking. He asked the council to really consider if they’d
prefer their children to smoke cigarettes instead of using ESDs. Cam Noltemeyer, on the other hand, was in full support of the measure, saying that vaping “is nothing more than a
drug problem” to be treated like other drug problems. The final speaker
represented the interests of the Vaping Dept. (located in Santa Clarita). He
said vaping isn’t synonymous with marijuana use and cited international and
federal studies that countered some of the health concerns raised in the staff
presentation.
Councilmembers Boydston and Acosta were the most sympathetic
to the vaping community, acknowledging that ESDs can be a better alternative to
smoking. Acosta gently poked fun at some of the more hyperbolic fears raised in
the presentation, saying that it would be ridiculous for a hiker to call the authorities upon seeing a fellow hiker with an e-cigarette on the next ridge over. He expressed
his bewilderment at how a handful of comments had brought about such a strong
response from staff. “I have issues with a lot of this,” he said, but he felt OK
supporting the ordinance if it might protect kids. Boydston got some clarification on
enforcement, learning that if law enforcement sees people smoking where it’s not
allowed, the smoker is usually just requested to stop, not cited. The other
councilmembers were more uniformly supportive of the plan.
Ultimately, the ordinance passed to a second reading, which
means that in a couple of weeks, ESD use will be treated about the same as
smoking, though it will be allowed in vaping shops. The meeting ended without
further comment.
