City honors veteran and former VFW Post Commander Alvin Salge during Monday’s meeting
The Solvang City Council met for its regular meeting on Monday, Sept. 23, hearing from a representative of the League of California Cities, and discussing a staff study on business performances on event weekends compared to non-event weekends.
But to start off the meeting, council issued a proclamation honoring a respected city individual: Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Alvin Salge, a well-known veteran and longtime VFW Post 7139 commander before stepping down from his post earlier this year.
Mayor Mark Infanti read the proclamation, which stated that Salge “has exemplified courage, selflessness and unwavering commitment during his service in the United States Air Force, defending the principles of freedom and democracy that we hold dear,” and “has served as a beacon of inspiration by community involvement, leadership roles, and volunteering efforts” for Solvang.
Infanti summed up by proclaiming Friday, Sept. 27, as “Commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7139 Alvin Salge Day,” in Solvang. Sept. 27 also happened to be the date of this year’s Solvang State of the City addressed, and Infanti said the proclamation would be repeated there.
Next, the council listened to a presentation from Dave Mullinax, the regional public affairs manager for the League of California Cities, an association that advocates for the right of most of the state’s 482 cities.
“No matter how well you do your jobs, we’re going to be impacted by the decisions of the state,” Mullinax said. “We’re lobbying for your interests.”
Mullinax was there to update the council on the legislative actions of the lawmakers in Sacramento and identified three important propositions: Proposition 4 (state bonds for safer drinking water and wildfire prevention), Proposition 5 (bonds for affordable housing and public infrastructure with 55 percent approval) and Proposition 36 (allows felony charges and increases sentences for certain drug and theft crimes; meant to counter Proposition 47 that passed in 2014).
But Mullinax said the big thing cities would have to deal with is the state’s mandates on affordable housing.
“We asked the governor [Gavin Newsom] to veto a lot of housing bills, but he signed them all,” Mullinax said. “We have to be vigilant about RENA; if you’re not in compliance on the deadline, Builders Remedy kicks in and the state will levy $50,000 fines monthly while you’re not in compliance.
“So stay out front of it, get it done, or there will be consequences.”
City Councilmember Robert Clarke thanked Mullinax for his insight and said, “I wish more residents were here right now [to hear this], how we’re between a rock and a hard place. The state can be vicious if you’re not compliant.”
Clarke also asked about the objectives of newly elected leaders going to Sacramento: “Do you feel that they go up there to truly represented their districts, or do they just figure, now that they’re in Sacramento, they can just get on the train.”
“In my opinion, everyone at first wants to be Jimmy Stewart in ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,’ and fight the good fight,” Mullinax answered. “But then special interests can get in their ear, and suddenly it’s easier to just make that money.”
The Consent Agenda was eventually passed, but not before Item 6-f, to approve up to $180,305 for the Solvang Park Lighting Project, was pulled for discussion.
Claudia and Elizabeth Orona both had questions about costs and necessity. Solvang Parks and Recreation Director Jenny McClurg explained the project.
McClurg said that the project will put underground cables in for the lighting at Solvang Park, where the holiday light show happens during Julefest.
“It’ll be underground cabling and new lights,” she said. “Before we’d been hanging up the lights up above in the trees, and we’ve had problems with people clipping those.”
McClurg also said the project would allow the city to stage light shows for other holidays and special events. She also said there would be a one-time fee of just under $119,000 for installation, and it would cost $61,000 a year for maintenance, which would be minimal.
With that info, the council moved to approve the item (the rest of the Consent Agenda passed earlier), and it passed 5-0.
In Discussion Items, Solvang Marketing and Events Coordinator Candice Libera presented her report on Special Events Weekends impact on businesses compared to non-special event weekends.
The report, which had been requested by City Council, consisted of 18 responses from the Village Mixed-Use District: Four retail stores, three bakeries, four wineries, four lodging, and two restaurants.
Libera said that the results were mixed, which she expected.
“Lodging, bakery, and restaurants tend to have increases,” she said. “Wine retail is most volatile. Events impact businesses very differently.”
Libera cited other impacts, such as businesses’ abilities to display themselves when more people are brought to town, and using social media posts and campaigns to their benefit.
“Ultimately, leveraging these opportunities can significantly boost our visibility and appeal on a national and international scale, positively influencing future revenue for the city,” Libera said in the report.
Ultimately, councilmembers felt the feedback wasn’t as much as they’d like, and more engagement is required from businesses for the survey. Councilmember Dave Brown suggested that survey could be mailed to business with the license renewals when they are up.
The next City Council meeting will be on Monday, Oct. 14.
Feature Image: U.S. Air Force veteran and former VFW Post 7139 Commander Lt. Col. Alvin Salge addresses the Solvang City Council after it honored him with a proclamation during the council’s Sept. 23 regular meeting. Screenshot from YouTube
