ORIGINALLY POSTED 2014-03-24 23:12:36 -0700

While a Metro billboard proposal might be a big draw for Tuesday’s Santa Clarita City Council meeting at City Hall, there will be a number of other important issues discussed by city officials.

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City Council members are going to discuss Santa Clarita’s red light camera contracts, California’s high speed rail plan and moving the city election.

Santa Clarita officials also have an item on the agenda to support funding for nutrition for a Senior Center program is also on the agenda.

Related article: Santa Clarita Metro Billboard Deal Up For Second Reading At City Hall

Red light cameras

The City of Santa Clarita’s five-year contract with Redflex, which provides the seven red light cameras at local intersections, comes up for renewal on April 1.

Related article: City Council To Look At Red Light Camera Renewal In March

Santa Clarita staffers are recommending an extension of the contract on a month-to-month basis.

The staff recommendation also is calling for the contract to be re-evaluated after 12 months, according to the City Council agenda.

Red light running incidents have also gone down by 71 percent, according to the city’s website.

Since the cameras were installed in 2004, there has been a significant decrease in the number of left- and right-turn broadside collisions, which often happen when someone violates a red light, according to city traffic engineer Andrew Yi.

Approximately 6,600 approved violation notices are issued per year, or 18 per day, bringing in an average of $667,000 in revenues annually.

The red light cameras cost the city $569,000 each year.

In November 2003, the City Council approved the implementation of a Red-Light Photo Enforcement Program and awarded a five-year contract to Redflex Traffic Systems, Inc., (Redflex) to provide and maintain red-light photo enforcement equipment.

California Voting Rights Act lawsuit

Santa Clarita officials settled a lawsuit over an alleged California Voting Rights Act violation March 11 with a closed-session vote.

The city is set to move City Council elections to November of even-numbered years and employ cumulative voting.

Voters will still get three votes, however, the move to cumulative voting, or weighted voting, gives voters the opportunity to vote for one candidate up to three times.

Cumulative voting is the predominate means of balloting used to select a board of directors in corporate America.

The decision is not going to affect the ballots that voters will have for the April 8 election, officials said.

The end result will be that the two incumbents who would have been up for election in April 2016 — Councilmen TimBen Boydston and Bob Kellar — will be up for election November 2016.

The California high speed rail plan

“While there remains great debate over the future of the proposed project, as the environmental process is currently moving forward, it is important for the community to express its concerns over specific alignments to be considered as part of the environmental review process,” according to Santa Clarita City Council.

City Council members have questioned the high speed rail plan from the beginning.

Related article: High Speed Rail Project Questioned By Santa Clarita Officials

Santa Clarita officials would prefer the route avoid the Santa Clarita Valley altogether, because it’s proposed path doesn’t stop anywhere in the SCV, while essentially holding land development, businesses and schools hostage, according to Councilwoman Marsha McLean.

A staff recommendation is calling for Santa Clarita City Council members recommend a different alignment as the preferred high speed rail alignment through Santa Clarita.

The move is in line with recommendations City Council members approved with their legislative agenda.

Related article: Santa Clarita To Discuss Advocacy On State, Federal Level With Agenda Item

SCV Senior Center

There is also an agenda item calling for financial support of the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center.

During the last several years, demand for senior programming at the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center (Senior Center) has increased, according to city officials. The Senior Center now provides an additional 80 meals per day that are beyond the scope of the food and nutrition budget

The increased demand has impacted many programs, and funding shortfalls have hindered the Senior Center’s food and nutrition programs, both home delivered and congregate meals.

The Senior Center has approached both Santa Clarita and Los Angeles County officials, and made both agencies aware of the funding shortfall.

Each entity has been asked for an appropriation of $29,240. Both are expected to support the move.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

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