02/25/2022 City Manager’s Update
City Manager’s Update (pdf)
February 25, 2022
Greetings, all.
Tidbits Here and There:
- Healthy Yolo Together provides COVID testing at the community center on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00 – 11:30 a.m. (Thank you, Yolo County, for funding that service).
- In addition, the WJUSD continues to provide COVID testing for the community at the District Office: M, W, F 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. and at the Library: T, Th 1:00 – 6:30 p.m. Thank you, WJUSD!
- The Senior Center fundraising team is happy to report that the Yolo Community Foundation has received almost $42,000 to help outfit the center! Every dollar helps. Please visit https://www.wintersseniorcenter.com/ or reach out to Marlene Bell, Karen May or Sandy Vickrey for more information. Feel free to contact me if you need assistance getting connected.
- City staff is working to finalize the scope of work and budget for Council’s consideration of a consulting agreement related to the Downtown Visioning Project, which will address outdoor dining policies, use of the public right of way, parking, and trash management. These very practical policies and procedures will help set the stage for envisioning what downtown Winters means to all of us. If you would like to be included in an email list to receive project updates and meeting announcements, please email cityclerk@cityofwinters.org and ask to be included in the Downtown Visioning distribution list. A significant part of this project includes community engagement in both English and Spanish so that we hear from business owners, property owners, residents, and visitors alike.
- City staff has recently developed a Short-term Vacation Rental Permit Program consistent with the ordinance Council adopted in 2018. For more information, please contact Kirk.Skierski@cityofwinters.org for more information. Information will be added to the City’s website shortly. In addition to the short-term vacation rental permit, the City will require a Business License and the collection of Transient Occupancy Taxes, which conveniently occurs when properties are listed on AirBnB.
Don’t Miss Out!
- TK and kindergarten enrollment packets are available at Waggoner Elementary School, 500 Edwards Street, from 7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. The registration deadline is March 18.
PG&E Updates
- PG&E is finalizing a new “Report It” safety mobile app that allows customers to submit photos of non-emergency potential safety concerns related to the electrical system. For more information, please visit pge.com/reportit. Currently the app is in its beta stage for residents in high fire zone areas and users must be accepted; therefore, you may be required register through
the Join the Waitlist feature. - With active fire season upon us ~ did it ever really end…~ don’t forget to register here for PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) alerts, which occur when heat, humidity and wind conditions create high risk for wildfire events.
- In addition to planned PSPS events, PG&E has also implemented Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS) as part of infrastructure that has been rebuilt due to wildfire damage. The EPSS includes highly sensitive sensors that detect items making contact with power lines in order to immediately de-energize the lines to avoid any arcing or event that could cause a fire. These EPSS events can occur in windy conditions, if poles tip or any other reason that adds tension to or breaks a line. Before the lines are energized, a PG&E crew does a safety inspection.
- To view outage information, please go to https://pgealerts.alerts.pge.com/outagecenter/.
Upcoming Council Meeting
Our next meeting is Tuesday, March 1. Items include appointing Patrick Wall to the Natural Resources Commission, the extension of the grading moratorium and a discussion regarding re-instating the weekend Main Street closure program, which also includes an update on special events, including a new proposed spring festival for March 25-27 that has not yet been approved. We’ve also included an update on the significant projects and Council approved strategic initiatives that staff have been working on as an informational item. The packet is linked here.
And last call for the manual distribution of the agenda packet. If you are interested in receiving either the Planning Commission or City Council agenda packets, please make sure you register through the Granicus platform here to receive an automatic alert that a packet has been posted.
Woot Woot!
A huge shout out to the 7!! Winters High School and Middle School Robotics Teams that are going to State in early March! What an amazing achievement for those students.
GOOD LUCK!!
