Page 6 - Sanger Herald 3-21-19 E-edition

• The next open meeting of the Sanger City Council will be today, March 21 at 6 p.m., following a closed session meeting starting at 5 p.m.
The council meets at 6 p.m. on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month in the council chamber at city hall, 1700 7th St.
The city council consists of five elected members. The po- sition of mayor is elected at large. The position of mayor pro tem may change every other year in December. It is decided by a vote of the five council members during a council reor- ganization meeting.
• The next meeting of the Sanger Planning Commission will be at 6 p.m. on March 28 at the community center, 730 Recreation Ave.
Staff reports on what is to be discussed at the meeting will be available to the public at least three days prior to the meet- ing and may be reviewed at city hall at 1700 7th Street or on
the City’s website at www.ci.sanger.ca.us.
The planning commission meets regularly at 6 p.m. on the
4th Thursday of each month in the council chamber at city hall, 1700 7th St.
The Sanger Planning Commission is comprised of seven members appointed by the city council and is a permanent advisory body to the council on matters related to planning and development. The commission holds regularly scheduled public meetings to consider land use and zoning matters pre- sented by staff.
• The next meeting of the Measure S Citizens Oversight Committee will be at 6 p.m. on April 2.
The oversight committee meets at 6 p.m. on the 1st Tues- day of each month in the council chamber at city hall, 1700 7th St.
The Citizen's Oversight Committee (CoC) is made up of
five members serving two-year terms. They are selected through an application process with the city council making the final selection and appointment. All committee members must be residents of Sanger.
• The next meeting of the Sanger Unified School District Board of Trustees will be at 7 p.m. on March 26.
The board meets at 7 p.m. on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month in the board room at the district office, 1905 7th St.
The board consists of seven elected members. The presi- dent of the board is selected by the other board members.
• The next meeting of the Sanger Unified School District Classified Employee Personal Commission will be at 5 p.m. on March 26.
The commission meets on the third Monday of each month in the board room of the district office, 1905 7th St.
The commission consists of 3 members, one selected by the district, one selected by California School Employees As- sociation (CSEA) and one selected jointly.
SANGER HERALD 6A THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 2019
MORE OPINION
Observations, continued from page 3A
then work their way down to rural cities like Sanger. With the verdict in their favor, the state will withhold
gas tax (transportation money) and stop all development in a city.
What does that mean for Sanger?
It means a loss of money we use to build and maintain roads, it means that there will be zero development in the city, it means that the north academy annexation will cease, it could mean that the growth of the city will cease.
Is that a drastic scenario?
Yes, but it is also a real possibility.
I said at the March 14 meeting that I recently attended
the Planning Commission Academy training. The training is provided by the League of California Cities. In the train- ing they discussed several bills that concern affordable housing. These bills include:
SB35, AB725, AB1279, SB4, SB50, SB330, AB11, SB5, ACA1, SB128, AB68, AB69, SB13, AB36, AB1110, AB1483, AB1484 and AB891.
All of those bills have one thing in common - making
it easier to build affordable housing. The bills do this by either removing barriers to building or by withholding funds from cities that prevent development of affordable housing. One of the more extreme measures discussed in the bills is that if a city refuses to make it easier to build af- fordable housing, for example by not zoning, then the state
will make it ministerial. What that means is that the state will force cities to effectively rubber stamp affordable housing developments with limited input from the cities and their residents.
Therefore, as I stated at the end of the meeting, we can either choose to work together and perform the process of rezoning and thus retain some control over the destiny of our city - or the state will decide for us.
So, how do we work together?
We start by listening to each other, by voicing concerns, by going to public meetings, by calling, emailing or mailing the City Planning Department.
Another way is to request a copy of both maps displayed at the meeting (the map with all the sites and the map with only the eligible sites) from the city Planning Depart-
ment by contacting Senior Planner Mr. Brletic (dbriletic@ ci.sanger.ca.us ) (559-876-6300 ext. 1540). Then, mark up the map for the properties you want to be rezoned and the properties you do not want rezoned and send it back to
Mr. Brletic. All comments sent to Mr. Brletic become part of the public record and are distributed to the Planning Commission. Input like the above from you, the People
of Sanger, would really help me understand your views. Which in turn, will help me and the othere planning com- missioners make an informed decision on what properties to rezone.
Lastly, some members of the public brought up the idea that there should be signs posted on properties that are go- ing to be rezoned.
I brought the up same issue previously to the planning commission and it was shot down because some felt it would involve too much red tape. If you would like to more information on what I proposed you can request the City of San Jose, and the New Castle County sign regulations from Mr. Brletic that I submitted.
I thought it was a great idea to give more notice to people who live and work in the areas affected by our deci- sions. I also thought it would be a great way to advertise to the people of Sanger about the changes to their commu- nities.
If you feel the same way please contact your council member and voice your concern.
Thank you and please continue participating.
Vincent Wall is a member of the planning commission, a patent examiner with the Unites States Patent and Trade- mark Office and an attorney with the states of Delaware and Pennsylvania. He describes himself as a concerned citizen who would like to see Sanger prosper and grow for future generations, including his own three sons. He can be contacted by email at vincentwallesq@gmail.com.
GOVERNING boards and commissions
Weather
for
Apache
Country
Daily temperatures are courtesy of
the Weather Channel
DAY
DATE
HI
LO
Rain %
Thurs
March 21
64
44
20%
Fri
March 22
65
50
10%
Sat
March 23
66
43
70%
Sun
March 24
69
45
0%
Mon
March 25
75
49
0%
Tues
March 26
74
50
10%
Wed
March 27
65
46
40%
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