04/23/2021 City Manager’s Update
City Manager's Update (pdf)
April 23, 2021
Greetings, all. Leading off this week’s update is Tuesday night’s Council meeting. A robust conversation about two important community topics took place: fireworks and the pool. The respectful tone of the public comments allowed different opinions to be shared and considered, so thank you.
Here are the outcomes from Tuesday’s meeting:
♦ The City will move forward with coordinating a fireworks show, subject to School District consideration of the high school site, for either 7/3 or 7/4.
♦ If COVID regulations create too many barriers to having on-site attendance, the alternative is that people can watch from yards and parks around town, again subject to availability and approval for shooting the fireworks.
♦ Fireworks booth sales will continue this year.
Please note only Safe and Sane fireworks are allowed. Illegal fireworks are dangerous and can cause fires. Given extraordinarily dry conditions and recent fire history, please be considerate of the community and do not use illegal fireworks. Doing so could result in a citation or worse, an inadvertent fire.
The Council also received an update on the Bobbie Greenwood Swim Center. The pool will reopen by June 1st. The schedule has not yet been confirmed and all programs will be coordinated consistent with COVID regulations. The Council also took action to set the lap swim fees at $5 / day; $50 / month; and a new 10 use pass for $40.
We are looking for lifeguards and a pool manager! Please see info below.
COVID-19
The State has updated its COVID-19 Tier guidance related to gatherings. Please refer to the handy table here for information related to activities and guidance by tier.
Yolo County remains in the Orange Tier. Depending on health metrics, the soonest we could move into the Yellow Tier is now May 5. ☹ To help control the community spread of COVID: wear a mask in public, get tested, get vaccinated.
Please note: there is increasing concern that the variants have arrived in Yolo County, and they are accounting for a greater percentage of COVID-19 infections. To see the video linked here of Dr. Aimee Sisson, the Yolo County Health Officer, she explains why the variants are a concern. The press release is available here.
Please Note:
The Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) has launched a new, consolidated phone line designed to simplify access to HHSA’s many programs for residents. The toll-free phone line is available in English, Spanish and Russian and can be reached by dialing 1-833-744-HHSA (1-833-744-4472) with automated transfer options available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The City Council approved a change in Main Street’s closure schedule on Tuesday night. Please note, beginning Friday, April 30, Main Street will be closed from Friday 3:00 p.m. through Monday at 7:30 a.m. to provide a safer pedestrian area during peak times. Additional closures may also be authorized for major holidays, like Memorial Day, July 4th, and Labor Day. The closure schedule was approved for a six-
month period. Downtown is getting busy! And it is so nice to see the hustle and bustle.
Dog Park Users! Please be considerate of other users and clean up after your dog. And please be mindful that the dog park is shared space for everyone.
City Hall is open Friday 4/23 and closed Friday, 4/30.
Don’t Miss Out!
The City of Winters is hiring! Join a great team of dedicated professionals. We work hard to provide services to the community and have fun (and potluck!) along the way.
Please check out our listings at https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/CITYOFWINTERS
♦ Seasonal lifeguards ($12.25 - $16.25 / hour),
♦ Pool manager ($18.75 / hour),
♦ Human Resources Manager ($82,632 - $100,440), and
♦ Volunteer Reserve Firefighter.
♦ Police Officer position will open soon.
Upcoming Council Meeting
The next Council meeting is May 4. Agenda items include establishing an account with the Yolo Community Foundation to support fundraising efforts for the new Senior Center, kicking off the annual weed abatement process for private property, and initiating the city-wide maintenance assessment for landscaping and lighting. We’re also preparing for a budget workshop on May 18.
Just a reminder about Zoom protocols for Council meetings: the chat feature is not intended for public comment or Council / staff interactions, so please remember to raise your “hand” if you would like to share your comments with the Council. Speakers are limited to 3 minutes. Written communication will be summarized and read into the record. The chat thread is preserved as part of the meeting record. If you have any questions, please contact City Clerk Ashley Bussart or me.
Woot Woot!
JOBS! JOBS! JOBS! The City of Winters, Hotel Winters and many of our local businesses are looking for more employees. To share job listings, please contact the Chamber at (530) 795-2329 or email sue@winterschamber.com so that she can expand this new service at https://business.winterschamber.com/jobs. Also, monitor your favorite Winters businesses on social media for Job Alerts. Hotel Winters posted an alert about a job fair it held on April 21st. For more information to join Hotel Winters or Carboni’s, click here (and search by location for Winters). The Chamber is also coordinating a job fair in May so please watch for more information about participating and / or attending the fair. We are so excited to see all this happy economic activity. The town is pulsating with energy after this last year and the party is just getting started!
A huge shout out to Carla Wroten, who was recently recognized by the League of California Cities Women’s Caucus as one of several Women of Persistence Honorees as part of Women’s History Month. Nominated by Councilmember Jesse Loren, Carla and her husband own Steddy Eddy’s Coffee House in downtown Winters. She is active in the Downtown Business Association, helped launch https://yolo.boutique/ (an online retail venture selling local products to help businesses survive the pandemic), and her day job is helping to run her family business CAL INC and CALINC Training. Read her bio here. I’m not sure when she sleeps so let’s thank her for her hard work, dedication and persistence on behalf of the Winters community.