This week’s San Luis Obispo County government meetings

January 22, 2024

By KAREN VELIE

The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors will meet at 9 a.m. on Jan. 23 at the county building.

The county wants money for helping the state meet its offshore wind energy goals. Under Item 31 on the agenda, the supervisors will consider a resolution to authorizes county administrators to request $750,000 in state project funding related to offshore wind energy.

The federal government approved three offshore wind farms off the coast of Morro Bay last year, while the state is considering proposed onshore industrial wind energy infrastructure in both Morro Bay and Port San Luis, with heavy opposition from residents.

County staff’s proposed plan for spending $750,000 in state funding:

•  $300,000 for county staff time (salary and benefits) dedicated to engaging with local, state, and federal stakeholders and agencies on economic development, supply chain development, and workforce development associated with offshore wind development, community benefits agreements, and engaging with developers.

• $250,000 for county staff time (salary and benefits) dedicated towards engaging with local, state, and federal stakeholders and agencies on infrastructure development, including port development, and coordinating on funding opportunities.

• $75,000 for other staff time, education, conferences and travel.

• $125,000 for localized offshore wind supply chain assessment and workforce development assessment, to build on the California Energy Commission and national renewable energy laboratory work.

A Templeton resident, Joe Jarboe, appealed the Planning Commission’s approval of a proposed commercial project, which kicks the approval to the Board of Supervisors, under item 28.

Doug Filipponi applied for a minor use permit to allow for the construction of a 5,200 square-foot convenience store, car wash and vehicle fueling station with eight fuel dispensers and nine electric vehicle charging spaces on a 2.47-acre.

Neighbors from a nearby neighborhood voiced concerns about the project prompting Filipponi to scale back by removing the car wash and quick service restaurant components. The planning commission then voted 2-1 to approve the project located on the north side of Las Tablas Road, near Twin Cities Community Hospital.

The San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission will meet at 9 a.m. on Jan. 25 in the supervisors chambers.

The commission will choose a new chairperson for 2024, from the five supervisor appointed commissioners, under Item 3 on the agenda,.

A local marijuana business is seeking approval to plant cannabis near San Miguel, under Item 7. Buffalo Management Group wants a permit for a 2 acre cannabis grow, a half acre outdoor cannabis nursery and ancillary transport of cannabis. The proposed grow sits on a 24-acre parcel at 1793 Sutliff Road, approximately 1.4 miles southwest of San Miguel.

The Arroyo Grande City Council will meet at 6 p.m. Jan. 9 in the council chambers.

The council plans to discuss street improvements and funding, under Item 12-A on the agenda. Council members will prioritize streets to include in the 2024 pavement management program. The city has budgeted $5,785,753 for the program though additional funds may become available for the project.

The Atascadero City Council will meet at 6 p.m. on Jan. 23 in the council chambers.

The council plans to discuss the city’s progress on goals and to approve a report, under Item C-1 on the agenda.

As part of the city’s budget planning process for fiscal years 2023-2025, the city needs to create an action plan with strategic priorities. During a goal setting workshop in Feb. 2023, the council laid a foundation for both the budget and action plan.

The Grover Beach City Council will meet at 6 p.m. on Jan. 22 in the council chambers.

As part of a plan to increase revenue through taxes, the city paid for a survey. Under Item 13 on the agenda, the council will receive the results of the 2023 community survey of Grover Beach residents on mutiple topics.

The community survey results were gathered by phone, text, and email responses from 400 residents. Below is a summary of key results from the 2023 survey:

• 79% of respondents think the quality of life in Grover Beach is better or the same than it was five years ago, which is 10% higher than in 2021, compared with 18% who think it is worse than five years ago.
• 75% of respondents indicated satisfaction with city services which is 5% higher than 2021 and 15% higher than the initial survey in 2017.
• The top issues identified facing Grover Beach were “Homelessness” (21.3%) followed by “Transportation/Traffic/Roads” (17.5%) and “Public Safety/Drugs/Crime” (9.3%).
• 54% of respondents of respondents were favorable of the city’s management of public funds compared with 32% who were unfavorable.
• The most important city services indicated by respondents related tostreet repair and maintenance, repairing and maintaining sidewalks,public safety, and economic development.
• Respondents indicated they are most satisfied by the city’s performance in rapidly responding to 9-1-1 emergency calls, maintaining fire and emergency medical services, providing festivals and community events, and maintaining police patrols and crime prevention services.
• Regarding major city goals, respondents indicated varying, but generally positive rates of satisfaction with the city’s efforts.
• Respondents who have contacted the city in the past year were generally satisfied with the response particularly with the “courtesy of city staff.”
• Respondents were generally not in favor of a local tax measure at this time.
• Top sources of information about local activities and city government were local news channels, word of mouth, the city’s social media platforms and the city’s website.

The survey results are intended to inform policy, budgetary, and operational decisions such as updating council goals, prioritizing city services for funding, assessing service quality and customer service, improving city communication, and gauging sentiments on potential future tax measures.  Respondents were generally not in favor of a local tax measure at this time

The Morro Bay City Council will meet at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 23 at the Veterans Memorial Hall.

The Nipomo Community Services District will meet at 9 a.m. on Jan. 24 in the CSD boardroom.

The Oceano Community Services District will meet at 6 p.m. on Jan. 24 in the CSD boardroom.

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