ON THE AGENDA: Yucca Valley Town Council, July 21, 2026
Council asked to sign on to a statewide tort-reform lobbying campaign, approve a sole-bidder concrete contract, and decide the future of the July 4th celebration
By the Yucca Valley Resident Review Committee
The Council returns on Tuesday, July 21, at 5:00 p.m. in the Yucca Room of the Community Center, with eighteen items and no public hearings. Twelve of the items sit on the Consent Agenda, meaning they’re set to pass in a single vote unless a Council member or resident pulls one for discussion. We flag six worth a closer look, among them a tort-reform coalition sign-on, a sole-bidder contract, and a claim rejection where the public record is silent on what the claim is actually about.
Three of the five Department Reports are worth previewing: a quarterly update on the aquatics center (still delayed), a renewed communications contract with Tripepi Smith, and a recap of the July 3 fireworks that asks the Council to discuss the event's future.
Relevant documents:
INVOCATION
The agenda does not list an invocation speaker for this meeting. The previous two meetings named speakers, but that’s the exception rather than the rule — historically the Town lists them only occasionally. Under Resolution 13-02, invocation speakers are drawn from a Congregations List maintained by the Town Clerk, and the Council and Clerk are barred from reviewing prayer content in advance.
PUBLIC COMMENT
You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every Town Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from discussing non-agenda items. To comment, just pick up a form at the desk to the left of the mic, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who sits at a table, also to the left of the mic.
Here’s the list of Council email addresses to write if you can’t get to the meeting — be sure to email them prior to 2 pm on the date of the meeting so they have time to read your comment prior to the meeting. You can check the Town’s district map to find your representative.
Mayor Pro Tem Jim Schooler (District 1) jschooler@yucca-valley.org
Council Member Jeff Drozd (District 2) jdrozd@yucca-valley.org
Mayor Merl Abel (District 3) mabel@yucca-valley.org
Council Member Robert Lombardo (District 4) rlombardo@yucca-valley.org
Council Member Rick Denison (District 5) rdenison@yucca-valley.org
You can also copy the clerk at townclerk@yucca-valley.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.
The meeting offers remote participation two ways, by Zoom and by phone, with comment time limited to three minutes:
By Zoom: join at https://zoom.us/j/98109341005 (Meeting ID: 981 0934 1005, Passcode: 389056)
By Phone: the agenda lists the dial-in as “(669) 0934-1005”, but that number won’t connect as printed. Phone participation is new this month, and the details are still being sorted out. We’ve asked the Town Clerk for the correct number and will update when we hear back. In the meantime, the Zoom link above also works for audio-only participation.
Participants are muted on entry and can “raise their hand” or notify the moderator to comment. Phone participants press *9 to raise a hand and *6 to unmute when called on, with further instructions given during the meeting.
PRESENTATIONS, INTRODUCTIONS, RECOGNITIONS
The agenda does not list any presentations, introductions, or recognitions for this meeting.
CONSENT AGENDA (CA)
The Consent Agenda consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public is given a chance to make public comment on these items prior to the Council motion. Fill out a comment form specifying the item you wish to address and submit it in person, or send an email in advance regarding any of the items on this meeting’s Consent Agenda.
The Consent Agenda runs from Item 2 (approval of the June 16 minutes) through Item 13. Item 8 approves June payroll registers totaling $686,603.42, a $2,855.17 payroll correction, and a warrant register of $6,732,811.86. The remaining routine items cover maintaining compliance with three Cal/OSHA safety programs (Item 4), an updated Section 125 employee benefit plan (Item 6), the fourth-quarter treasurer’s report (Item 12), and the annual Measure I five-year road plan (Item 9), which keeps the Town eligible for its roughly $900,000–$1,000,000 in annual Measure I revenue. Six items are worth a closer look.
CA3. Rejection of Claim
The Council is asked to reject a claim filed against the Town on May 18, 2026, by Mary Gonsalves, on the recommendation of staff, legal counsel, and the Town’s insurer, the California Intergovernmental Risk Authority (CIRA). Rejecting a claim is a routine procedural step, it preserves the Town’s position and starts the clock on any lawsuit. As is typical in California cities, the staff report gives only the claimant's name and filing date. Residents wanting the underlying facts would need to file a California Public Records Act (CPRA) request for the claim form.
CA5. Consideration of Participation in the Coalition to Reform California’s Tort Liability System
Buried in the Consent Agenda is a policy stance, not a housekeeping matter — and one that cuts two ways for nearly every resident. This item asks the Council to join a statewide advocacy coalition seeking to limit how much local governments pay when they're sued, and to authorize the Town Manager to lend the Town's logo to the campaign.
The reforms would affect residents in two opposing capacities. As taxpayers, residents have an interest in lowering the Town's liability exposure, since money spent on judgments and settlements is money unavailable for services. But as potential claimants — anyone injured by a Town sidewalk, vehicle, or facility — those same reforms would reduce what they could recover if the Town or another defendant caused them harm. California voters already eliminated joint-and-several liability for non-economic damages through Proposition 51 in 1986; this coalition seeks to extend that treatment to economic damages such as medical bills and lost wages, including in situations where a co-defendant is uninsured or unable to pay. That is the tradeoff residents may want to weigh before it passes in a single vote.
The staff report describes participation as “advocacy oriented,” with no fiscal impact. The request to participate is branded “Coalition to Protect Community Services,” an initiative of the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (California JPIA) — though the staff report titles the item differently, as the “Coalition to Reform California’s Tort Liability System.” Worth noting: Yucca Valley’s insurer is a different risk pool, the California Intergovernmental Risk Authority (CIRA), so the Town is being asked to lend its logo to a coalition organized by a pool it doesn’t belong to.
The coalition’s June 12, 2026 letter to the Legislature cites a 370% rise in local-agency insurance premiums since 2016 (to $541 million in 2025) and public-entity liability exposure now exceeding $7 billion. Participating agencies include high-desert neighbors Barstow, Needles, and Apple Valley.
CA7. AB 1234 Council Travel Report – June 2026
A receive-and-file report on Council travel for June 2026. Council Member Rick Denison again logged the most activity — six meetings across four days, all San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA) and Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) committee and board sessions:
Council Member Rick Denison — six meetings:
June 3, SBCTA Board of Directors Meeting (San Bernardino)
June 4, SCAG Energy and Environment Committee Meeting (Los Angeles)
June 4, SCAG Regional Council Meeting (Los Angeles)
June 10, SBCTA General Policy Committee Meeting (San Bernardino)
June 10, SBCTA Legislative Policy Committee Meeting (San Bernardino)
June 11, SBCTA Transit Committee Meeting (San Bernardino)
Mayor Merl Abel — June 18, League of California Cities Desert Mountain Division (DMD) meeting (Barstow)
Council Member Robert Lombardo — June 18, League of California Cities DMD Meeting (Barstow)
Mayor Pro Tem Jim Schooler — no reportable meetings
Council Member Jeff Drozd — no reportable meetings
As with previous reports, the schedule lists dates, organizations, and locations, but not costs. The format tells you where council members went, not how much the Town paid to send them. Under Government Code §53232.3, the actual expenses are documented separately and are public records on request — a transparency gap Desert Trumpet raised in our June 16 preview.
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CA10. On-Call Concrete Repair and Replacement Maintenance Services – Award of Maintenance Services Contract
The Council is asked to award a two-year contract, extendable to five, to MD Concrete of Yucca Valley for on-call sidewalk, curb, gutter, and ADA-ramp repairs, at up to $200,000 a year. The Town received only one proposal to its June 2 RFP; the staff report calls MD Concrete “the lowest responsible and responsive bidder” — a distinction that's easier to win when no one else shows up.
CA11. Cooperative Agreement with San Bernardino County to Conduct Preventative Maintenance and Rehabilitation on Various Roads in the Yucca Valley Area
The Council would approve a cost-share agreement with San Bernardino County to chip-seal and rehabilitate roads at the Town’s edges, including two Town streets, Aberdeen Drive and Avalon Avenue. The County covers roughly $3,169,000 of the $3,217,000 project; the Town’s share is $48,000 plus a $5,000 contingency, drawn from its annual Measure Y street-maintenance budget. For that $48,000 buy-in, the Town gets its bordering streets repaved as part of a much larger County job.
CA13. Hi-Desert Nature Museum Re-Plumbing Project – Town Project No. 8067
The Council is asked to award a $36,320 construction contract to Haus ADU LLC of Orangevale, with an $8,680 contingency (total authorization $50,000), to replace the museum’s corroded galvanized pipes with copper. The staff report makes the case for acting now:
In a facility dedicated to preserving exhibits and serving the public, the potential for water damage or service disruption presents a major concern.
Unlike the sole-bid concrete contract, this one drew three bids, with Haus ADU LLC the lowest. Work is set for September 14 to October 4, 2026, timed to the museum’s planned closure. The Council allocated $60,000 from Measure Y for the project on June 2; this $50,000 award comes in well under that.
DEPARTMENT REPORTS
14. YV ARC Quarterly Project Update
The eighth quarterly update on the Yucca Valley Aquatics and Recreation Center is a receive-and-file item with no vote. The report notes construction continued through the quarter despite delays tied to the natatorium deck slope, “which may extend project completion.” That slippage is worth noting because it’s the same project whose consultant contracts the Council voted June 16 to extend at a combined $114,000 per month. The longer the schedule runs, the longer those charges accrue.
15. Tripepi Smith Communication Services - Professional Services Agreement
Staff asks the Council to approve a multi-year contract with communications firm Tripepi Smith through June 30, 2028, at an $8,550 monthly retainer, and to authorize the Town Manager to execute the agreement. The Town has used the firm since October 2021.
Behind the general label, the retainer buys a defined set of recurring deliverables each month, per the contract’s scope:
Social media — up to seven posts per week, with graphics, across Facebook, Instagram, X, and Nextdoor, plus up to 18 posts a year on SB 1383 (organic-waste recycling) outreach
Press releases and public statements — two per month, up to 500 words each, including drafting and distribution
E-newsletter — one every other month, plus a quarterly SB 1383 article
Website — up to two hours of content updates monthly, plus one annual staff training session
Monthly metrics reporting — social media and digital performance indicators
Strategy — bi-weekly check-in calls and quarterly planning sessions with Town leadership
Anything outside that list is billed separately as “as-needed” work. The staff report and proposal cite examples including State of the Town video production, Gubler Orchid Festival outreach, branding, and photography, and the firm recommends the Town set aside an additional $25,000 for such projects.
The staff report credits the firm as “instrumental in assisting with crisis communications during Hurricane Hilary” and for supporting the Town’s 35th Anniversary celebration.
On the numbers, the staff report doesn’t fully add up. It budgets the contract at $120,000 for FY26-27, drawn from the General Fund, Measure Z, and Measure Y. But the $8,550 monthly retainer works out to $102,600 a year, and the firm’s own proposal recommends a separate $25,000 as-needed budget on top of that — a total of $127,600, roughly $7,600 more than the $120,000 the report cites. The report doesn’t explain the gap.
16. Independence Day Event Recap
A recap of the July 3 Summer Music Festival and Fireworks Spectacular at Yucca Valley High School Stadium, co-sponsored with the Twentynine Palms Band of Mission Indians. The staff report describes a well-attended celebration, with a performance by Those Guys, a variety of food vendors, and a 20-minute fireworks display synchronized to music broadcast by Z107.7 FM.
But the staff report goes beyond praise to put a decision on the table: Council is to “provide direction regarding future Independence Day events.” Given the recent history, that’s no formality. Last year’s show, run by the same contractor (Pyro Spectaculars), was delayed and significantly shortened due to equipment malfunctions, leaving the Town and residents frustrated and disappointed. This year’s event moved from July 4 to July 3 due to a national pyrotechnician shortage. The staff report offers no recommendation, so the discussion will be genuinely open-ended.
17. Investment Policy for FY2026-28 & 18. Designation of Voting Delegate and Alternates
The remaining department reports are routine. Item 17 asks the Council to approve the biennial investment policy update, which carries only clarifying language and no changes to the Town’s investment strategy. The Council will also receive a portfolio update from the Town’s investment manager, Chandler Asset Management. Item 18 asks the Council to designate a voting delegate and up to two alternates for the League of California Cities annual conference in Anaheim this September, an action required by Cal Cities bylaws, with a September 1, 2026 deadline.
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
Council members may request topics for future meetings here.
The next regular Town Council meeting is listed as Tuesday, August 18, 2026.
This report is produced with AI assistance. Please see our Yucca Valley Town Hall reporting policy and our AI policy.
Run for Town Council! Districts 1 (Schooler), 3 (Abel) and 5 (Denison) are up for election. The nomination period for candidates begins July 13, 2026 and ends on August 6, 2026. Contact Town Clerk Brooke Dudra for details and check out our article on How to Run for City and Town Council for general guidelines.
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