RECAP: Twentynine Palms City Council, November 12, 2024
A marathon meeting tackles contentious issues including funding for homeless programs and approval of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Community Learning Equipping Project Inc.
On Tuesday November 12, the Twentynine Palms City Council held an extensive three-hour meeting as they sat through scheduled presentations, approved a $24,500 proposal to address homelessness from Molding Hearts, and discussed future strategic development plans. The meeting also marked Joel Klink’s last as a sitting Councilmember for District 2—the seat will soon be occupied by April Ramirez, who is set to be sworn in at the December 10 meeting. Our agenda recap for this meeting can be found here and link to the meeting video is here.
AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS, AND PROCLAMATIONS
1-Presentation by Reach Out Yucca Valley on Current Projects:
Program Manager Carrie Kish, Outreach Specialist Victoria Bourdon, and Environmental Prevention and Outreach Coordinator Reydi Santos delivered updates on three ongoing programs the nonprofit offers in the Morongo Basin.
Bourdon provided updates on Reach Out’s Medication Assisted Treatment Program (MAT), which offers clinical services for drug and substance abuse disorders and prevention. Doctors Prem Salhotra and Andre Kasko of Yucca Valley oversee the clinical portion of the program, with medical care provided under these two physicians. In conjunction with counseling services and an individualized medical treatment plan, their website states that the MAT program’s success can be seen in improved retention rates in drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs and low recidivism rates for relapse.
Reach Out Yucca Valley Program Manager Kish spoke of a coordinated effort with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s department to check if businesses in Yucca Valley were in compliance with alcohol and tobacco sales regulations. They flagged some businesses—a tobacco merchant sold unlicensed cannabis products, which were confiscated by the sheriffs during this audit; one establishment sold products without checking ID; and another establishment sold fake products. Kish said a similar program could take place in Twentynine Palms.
Kish highlighted the Morongo Basin Community Coalition, a network of local businesses that provides access to a community food pantry, clothing, and substance abuse and drug prevention education materials. Lucky Thrift here in Twentynine Palms and the Yucca Valley TAY center are two businesses that participate in the program.
Relaying updates on the Morongo Basin Youth Leadership Academy was Reydi Santos, who serves as an instructor for disadvantaged youth and young adults. Santos outlined services the Youth Leadership program offers for youth ages 13 to 17, which focuses on resume building, substance abuse prevention education, networking, mentorship, workforce readiness, and college preparation. Although it is typically a five-week program, Santos says Out Reach meets students halfway and caters modules to meet the specialized needs of students. Applications for the program can be found here.
2-Presentation on the Upcoming Crèche Festival:
Susie Dick presented on the upcoming Crèche Festival, which takes place Saturday, December 7, from 10 am to 5:30 pm at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 56885 Onaga Trail in Yucca Valley. The festival will feature dozens of unique crèches, which are diorama-like displays that depict the birth of Jesus Christ. Those interested in participating can contact Suzy at 760-490-4823.
3-Recap of "Dine in 29" and Restaurant Week by Terence Latimer, organizer: Terence Latimer, owner of Black Cactus co-working space and organizer of the recent city-sponsored 29 Dines Food Festival, which took place September 22 through 29, provided a recap of the foodie event. Latimer noted it brought in more than $25,000 in sales, which included more than 20 vendors and 1,200 participants. As for the future of 29 Dines, Latimer stated his intention to host the event again in 2025 and expand the concept to include engagement with brick-and-mortar restaurants and local nonprofits that work with the unhoused.
4-Presentation of the City's Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for Fiscal Year 2023-24:
Brianna Schultz of Rogers, Anderson, Malody, & Scott (RAMS), an independent auditing firm based out of San Bernardino, presented the annual financial audit report to Council. Schultz reported that they awarded the City an “unmodified opinion,” which, in accounting jargon, is good news. Schultz commended City Finance Director Abigail Hernandez-Conde:
We had no internal control deficiencies to report. Finance Director Abigail is doing a phenomenal job at keeping those records very clean and organized for us.
Speaking on the agenda item from the public was resident and business owner Veno Nathraj, who posed the question, “For this year I would like a rough number of 501c3s that have received grants from the city. What was the dollar amount?”
Either due to technological difficulties or the requested figure not being readily available, City Manager Stone James, referring to Schultz, said “She’s not going to be able to pull that up here.”
To the second question Nathraj posed, “I want to know if the CPAs are doing a check-and-balance audit, or [if] they’re doing a forensic audit?” Schultz answered,
A forensic audit would be extremely costly to the City, and at this point, as far as we are aware and management is aware, there is no need to conduct such an audit. So if we come across anything, any instances of fraud or non-compliance, we are required to inform the City Manager and Council of those instances
5-Single Audit Report on Federal Awards for Fiscal Year 2023-24:
City Manager James presented information about an audit conducted by RAMS on the City’s use of federal award funds, which deemed the City Finance Department to be compliant with their federal spending and had no significant findings.
6-Presentation by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department on the new Flock Camera System
San Bernardino County Sheriffs Lieutenant Albert Huff spoke about the Flock camera system, a license plate reader that the County Sheriff’s department uses. Huff cited one local instance of the technology being used in a missing persons case.
Flock representative Jesse Mund elaborated on the ethical use of the technology. Mund states the camera uploads license plate and vehicle information to a Department of Justice database to determine if the car has been involved in a crime. Councilmember Octavious Scott raised concerns of citizen privacy and brought up hacking. According to Munn, license plate data are stored for a period of 365 days.
Although each camera costs around $3,000, according to Huff, if the City chooses to adopt the license plate camera program, it would be paid for “using state-provided local law enforcement supplemental funds. These are funds that come directly from the state that are utilized explicitly for frontline law enforcement services, which this falls under.” Flock is also a sponsor of the California Police Chiefs Association.
While these particular license plate readers do not detect speed, Flock offers speed-detecting software on their website, and their other surveillance equipment can be purchased by private residents and local businesses. Owner of Mojave Threads, Jacqueline Pfister, asked how businesses can be involved in the program, relaying that her business on Adobe Road was recently burglarized. Astrid Johnson of Morongo Basin ARCH spoke in support of the concept and raised concerns of human trafficking, claiming, “We're in a corridor area, which we probably all know by now. So this would really be another tool for everybody.…” Huff listed a map of key hotspots in the City where he would like to see these cameras implemented, including sections of Highway 62, Adobe Road, and Utah Trail.
Council overall was enthusiastic about adopting the license plate reading cameras, but with City Attorney Patrick Muñoz present at the meeting, due to Brown Act concerns, the City could not take any action on the program. It was then suggested that adoption of the Flock camera system be included in a consent calendar agenda item at a future meeting date.
CONSENT CALENDAR/ ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT CALENDAR FOR DISCUSSION
12-Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Community Leaning Equipping Project Inc. (CLEP)
Per a constituent’s request, Councilmember Octavious Scott requested that this item be pulled from the Consent Calendar for discussion. The item is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for CLEP to run programming in what was originally proposed as a Climate Emergency Resiliency Center to be funded with a grant from the EPA. The Desert Trumpet published a closer look at issues with the choice of partner and MOU on November 17.
Piggybacking off Scott, Mayor Steven Bilderain said he received two emails on the consent calendar item, one from Cindy Bernard of District 1, and another from Elliot Balsley of District 4. “I won't read the email, but it's for public record. It will be out there if someone wants to pull it,” stated Mayor Bilderain.
Remaining consent calendar items were approved by Council 5-0, then City Manager James moved forward with discussion of the CLEP MOU:
“So we evaluated some of the different nonprofits that were in the area. This was a 501c3 that is a separate 501c3—it is not a religiously affiliated 501c3. And so, as a consequence, we thought it would be best to move forward with this memorandum of understanding.”
Although James claimed that CLEP is not “religiously affiliated,” the staff report published by the City on the City website states that the CLEP organization is a “non-profit branch of the Sanctuary Church.” The organization’s website advertises Christian counseling services and also links to a page to purchase courses for a “Biblical Studies Program” offered through the organization.
With a motion to approve consent calendar item 12 by Councilmember Mintz and seconded by Councilmember Scott, the motion to approve the MOU between the City of Twentynine Palms and CLEP was passed 5-0.
PUBLIC HEARING
13-Adopt Resolution 24- __ Confirming the Costs of Abating a Vacant Parcel APN: 0624-161-19-0000, Full of Trash, Debris, Abandoned Motorhome, an Illegal Dumping Ground that was Declared a Public Nuisance and Cleaned under the Direction of the Planning Commission.
For the sake of brevity, previous coverage of this agenda topic is linked here. Council approved this motion 5-0, which orders the owner of the property to pay for the property cleanup within ten days before the City can tack a nuisance abatement lien against the property.
DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS
14-Molding Hearts' Proposal to Provide Housing and Rehabilitative Services for Unhoused Twentynine Palms Residents.
CEO and founder of Molding Hearts Lakita Johnson presented a proposal to City Council to address the local unhoused population. The proposal, with an initial ask of $24,500, was first introduced to the Housing and Homeless Committee earlier this month. Previous Desert Trumpet coverage on the topic is linked here and here.
Johnson came prepared to face scrutiny due to questions raised about Molding Hearts’ finances, and multiple community members packed the room to show support for the Molding Hearts initiative.
In public comment on the topic, Veno Nathraj, who sits on the Housing & Homeless Committee, spoke in favor of Johnson’s proposal in public comment, applauding her transparency and honesty.
Faith Nicholson of Yucca Valley and Outreach Coordinator for Yucca Valley Star also spoke in favor of the program, saying she has worked with Lakita and Molding Hearts for approximately two years and that many clients come to her center from Twentynine Palms:
“One big gap that we have is we don't have any place to house people in Twentynine Palms, and we have a lot of clients who come to us from Twentynine Palms, and they don't necessarily want to leave the area that they're from to come to Yucca Valley. If you don't have transportation, that could take hours to get back and forth, and so having access to housing in Twetnynine Palms would definitely create a bridge where we can provide more services that the community really needs and that the community does seek. We have a lot of clients in Twentynine but it would just make it more accessible for them. Thank you.”
Eric Menendez rebuked the City’s vetting process of the Molding Hearts initiative —the City currently lacks a consistent process for vetting 501c3 nonprofits — and thanked Johnson for her services:
“I wanted to speak on the Planning Commission meeting when Miss Lakita spoke. I was just a little disappointed in the execution on that and I would hope next time we have someone come in to do a presentation, we can either have city staff or someone maybe help review the proposals and stuff to make sure someone doesn't come to the city and kind of feel like she did. ‘If you're going to crucify me for something, crucify me for trying.’ I mean, that really kind of resonated with me, because I think myself and a lot of people around the City kind of feel like that sometimes when we come up to bring something to Council or commissions or tourism boards. No one should be made to feel that way when bringing an item [or agenda] before the City.”
Councilmember Scott asked Johnson if Molding Hearts was “open to the idea of receiving reimbursement per placement.” Reimbursement-based awards are a common form of granting where the recipient spends existing funds and is reimbursed by the funding agency. After some back and forth discussion, Johnson stated:
“It takes a lot of nerve to ask for some money, not do your job, and come back and ask for more. See, I have a core value, and my core value says if I stand up here, I'm going to stand on my word. All I ask for you, sir, is to give me a chance.”
Councilmembers Wright and Mintz spoke in favor of the proposal with Mintz saying he requested the City Manager verify the organization’s statements regarding their services. “He contacted these agencies, and not one of them said, ‘don't do this.’”
Responding to Mintz, Johnson then said:
Dr. Stone showed me that….I felt like I was investigated from the top to the bottom. But the one thing I have to say that made me so proud, is, like you said, I had no negative insight from the community. I work with passion, compassion, and I care about the community—not just Twentynine Palms, not just Yucca Valley, but San Bernardino as a whole. If I can make a difference in one person's life, I've done my God Duty and I just thank you guys for the opportunity to be able to present and speak today.
With a motion to approve the Molding Hearts initiative by Councilmember Mintz and seconded by Councilmember Klink, the proposal was approved 5-0 and met with thunderous audience applause.
15-Planning for a Brighter Future: Aligning Future Goals with Present Day Actions.
Every two years, the City looks at their two-year strategic plan, which outlines future goals for the City, residents, and businesses. City Manager James, presenting on this topic, says the strategic planning renewal process is set for January 2025. In the past, these discussions were conducted in-house using City staff.
James contacted two consulting firms to assist the City with that process and, if Council chooses to do so, Moore Iacofano Goltsman, Inc. (MIG) stands out. The consulting firm would assist Council and City staff in outlining a long-term strategic plan, which includes goal setting with the intent of one-year, three-year, five-year, and twenty-year plans looking toward the future at an approximate cost of $36,360.
The first step of this strategic planning initiative would be for each Council member to meet with MIG staff individually (to avoid Brown Act violation) and then in a public workshop. Speaking from the public on the item was Eric Menendez who says he hopes the public will be included in these discussions.
Councilmember Mintz is open to conducting the two-year strategic plan differently this time around, while Scott, citing fiscal responsibility, wants the strategic planning to be conducted using in-house City staff. Mintz, who has served on Council since 2010 and as Planning Commission member before that, and having sat through numerous strategic planning sessions over the years, is open to change:
I guess that just depends on how we want to do this one. We've done it the last few times with staff. I mean, is that what we want to do or do we want to move forward?
Motion to approve posed by Wright, seconded by Mintz. Approved 4-1 with Councilmember Scott opposed.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
LeeAnn Clarke of the Twentynine Palms Ministerial Association invited the public to the upcoming Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast at First Assembly of God Church, Tuesday November 19 at 7 am, and a Thanksgiving Service taking place at Freedom Plaza gym, November 24 at 2 pm. Clarke also spoke on an upcoming mural installation through Action 29 Palms.
Eric Menendez and Jacqueline Pfister spoke to concerns of the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID), with Pfister speaking to Council and City Attorney Muñoz on a Brown Act violation that took place at the last TBID meeting, while Randy Stevens presented a certificate of thanks to Council on behalf of the Twentynine Palms Elks Lodge for their promotion of the Lodge’s hoop shoot event during Pioneer Days.
CITY MANAGER UPDATE
City Manager James stated that a Councilmember salary increase will be addressed in 2025, either in the first or second quarter.
Closing out the meeting with one last gavel-swing was outgoing Councilmember Klink, who wished the City and his mother happy November birthdays.
The next Twentynine Palms City Council meeting will take place December 10 at 6 pm.
Leave your thoughts in the comments below. Please note that we do not allow anonymous comments. Please be sure your first and last name is on your profile prior to commenting. Anonymous comments will be deleted.
Feel free to share this article!
Many communities in the Morongo Basin are economically disadvantaged, so our coverage will always be free. However, if you have the means to support our work, we always appreciate upgrades to a paid subscription. Your upgrade helps keep subscriptions free for those who cannot afford to donate.
Note that donations in excess of $100 are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law, and your subscription/donation will be listed as AHA Projects, the name of our fiscal receiver, on your statement.