Atwater sounds off to council

A couple years ago, Atwater city leaders had trouble getting more than five people to show up to a town hall meeting, but that wasn’t a problem this time around.

A room at the Atwater Community Center was filled – and overflowing – with people asking questions about Measure H, homelessness, blight, unsafe roadways and sidewalks – and even that controversial new firetruck.

Wednesday’s public meeting was the first under the leadership of new Mayor Jim Price, who seemed to make good on his campaign promise to increase transparency and communication.

Upon leaving the nearly three-hour forum, longtime Atwater resident Bill Worden applauded the mayor’s effort. “I think he’s making a good attempt in getting the community involved and opening communication with the citizens of Atwater,” Worden said.

Earlier in the meeting, Worden raised concerns about blight in the city, including people leaving dilapidated cars and boats in front of their homes. “Blight begets blight,” the 64-year-old said. “I’ve called, and they said we’ll get to it, but that’s the end of it.”

Price said city leaders aren’t ignoring the issue, but the situation also won’t change overnight. Public safety and adding more cops on the streets are the first priorities, the mayor stressed.

There was no shortage of tough questions for officials, including several about Measure H, the half-cent sales tax to support public safety. One resident asked if the money can support opening the Police Department five days a week.

The city closes its offices every Friday due to employee furloughs. Atwater Police Chief and City Manager Frank Pietro said he would like to see City Hall open five days a week and is exploring some options.

While the majority of revenue from the public safety tax went toward equipment – six new police cruisers and a six-figure firetruck – Pietro shared plans to hire eight more police officers this year. Six of those positions will be funded by Measure H.

The tax revenue is expected to reach $1.7 million this year, higher than previous years because of sales tax increases. Pietro said he’s looking into restoring the Police Department’s gang and traffic units.

The Police Department also hired a temporary code enforcement officer this week, Pietro announced. Kennedy Lee, a reserve officer for about a year, fills the vacancy after the city terminated its former code enforcement officer, Mike Teater. Lee will serve until the city hires a permanent replacement.

When it comes to homelessness, city officials said they’re working on programs to find people permanent homes, as opposed to running them off. They’re also considering a new camping ordinance, which would limit where people can panhandle and prohibit camping in certain parts of town.

A prayer walk program, similar to Merced’s “Feet Changing Lives,” is also in the works – with leaders hoping it can reach people in Atwater’s roughest neighborhoods.

Fire officials were also on hand Wednesday to field questions about the department and its new firetruck, which caused some concern because of its $890,048 price tag. Scrutiny increased after officials said $80,000 in equipment would be needed to make the truck functional.

Mark Pimentel, battalion chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, told residents the city saved $40,000 by purchasing the equipment separately. The firetruck is expected to arrive early next month, the chief said, and will be on exhibit before a City Council meeting.

“This is your piece of equipment. We want to show you guys what this thing is capable of,” Pimentel said. “We’re not buying it just for today. This thing is going to be here for 20-plus years.”

City officials said they were elated to see the big turnout for Wednesday’s meeting. They plan to hold public town hall meetings every quarter.

“We had a very good response from people that attended,” Price said. “People were telling me how much they appreciated opening lines of communication with staff and elected officials.”

This story was originally published January 22, 2015 at 8:15 PM with the headline "Atwater sounds off to council."