Budget, Chamber partnership and water safety addressed by Town Council
Water safety, marketing success, funding for new staff positions and approval of a $2.7 million allocation of funds for professional consultants were key topics of discussion at the May 6 Yountville Town Council meeting.
In attendance were all members of the town council, Mayor Margie Mohler, Vice Mayor Robin McKee, and councilmembers Eric Knight, Pam Reeves and Hillery Trippe, as well as the town management team, including Town Manager Brad Raulston and all department heads.
Water Safety
Rosella Giuliani and Cheryl Stanley, who both experienced more than 20 days without water last year, brought up long-standing water issues during the public comment section.
Giuliani and Stanley live outside the eastern town limits but are residents of Yountville. “Within the past year, we’ve had no use of our tap water, as is, for about 25 days when you count in total,” Giuliani said, explaining that there have been “boil water” alerts that lasted three to five days; this has happened six times for eight hours and for up to three days, she said.
“This has happened with sometimes very little to no notification, so ability to prepare buckets of water (is limited). It’s been very frequent over the past year… and this has also made us question the quality and safety of our water.”
While ongoing repairs have been made, Giuliani said, “We’re guaranteed each time it will be repaired, and literally, a few weeks or a few months after, something else happens, and we’re on boil water again or no water.”
In addition to the safety concerns there are substantial costs to purchase bottled water, boil water and inconveniences for everyday tasks such as laundry and bathing, she added. “We would like to know that there’s a better solution out there for us.”
Stanley said that it is difficult when toilets cannot be flushed for several days. “I think that people would look at a little bit differently than just saying it’s a boil water day, or that it’s been an inconvenience, because I think it’s far greater than an inconvenience, and I certainly agree that we have questions about the safety.
“I’m sure that if everybody that lived in the town of Yountville had 25 days without water, you’d hear it. You’d hear lots more than you heard from the two of us,” she concluded.
Yountville Public Works Director John Ferons responded that the town is sensitive to the situation. “The challenge is the configuration of the infrastructure for the out of town customers, and as the council is well aware, the CalVet system has failures more frequently than the town system,” he said, explaining that the town proper can be switched to a different water supply, whereas the out-of-town customers, for the most part, cannot.
“The majority of them are due to CalVet infrastructure failure. So that doesn’t mean we’re ignoring it or not working on it. We’re working with CalVet, and we have multiple things happening to try to improve the service to those customers, and it relies on a collaborative partnership.
“The water, we can assure you the water is safe. That’s the point of the precautionary boil water notices and the boil water notices. We won’t turn the water back on unless we know it’s safe.”
Ferons said both CalVet and the town are regulated by the State of California Division of Drinking Water, which is consulted when the water system has failed.
Budget, HR, wastewater and consulting contracts
The town unanimously adopted a resolution for public hearings on workforce vacancies in compliance with state assembly bill AB 2561, before approving a job description and salary range for a lead maintenance worker and a new full-time deputy director of marketing and economic development presented by Yountville Human Resources Analyst Ashley Ray.
The council also unanimously authorized a $327,167 contract with Carollo Engineers for a wastewater reclamation facility master plan, necessary to upgrade the current system, parts of which date back as far as the 1940s and 1977. The plant is located near the Vintner’s Golf Course on Solano Avenue.
In regard to the water system Town Manager Brad Raulston said, “There are projects that cost money, and there are projects that save money… we’ll be looking through both lenses, right? And I do think as you modernize, things become more efficient. The fact that we have customers for our recycled water is another opportunity to generate revenue.”
Raulston emphasized that just because there is a modernization study, it doesn’t mean that rates will rise. “I think what we’ll be looking at is value propositions, and really, where can we save money, make it more efficient.”
The council also unanimously approved a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) analysis expert for the Yountville Commons project.
The final administrative item, which Mayor Mohler summarized as “a resolution authorizing the town manager to execute numerous agreements.” for the Commons project.
Raulston detailed the stages and phases necessary to proceed, highlighting the need for specific experts along the way. Some of the ideas he referenced included the initial clean-up, the parking lot, the community garden, fitness center, snack bar / Coop, and dog park.
The resolution for on-call contracts for various professional consulting and planning services totals $2.75 million budget to build a team and allow for fiscal flexibility for projects moving forward.
The resolution passed with the majority of council members voting in favor of the budget, Councilmember Hillery Trippe opposed it.
Chamber of Commerce Partnership
Guest presenter Whitney Diver-McEvoy, the outgoing president and CEO of the Yountville Chamber, shared highlights from an annual report submitted to the council, referencing the 32-year partnership with the town.
Four key program of the last year included networking mixers, the Yountville Wine and Beer Passport, the Yountville Art Walk Passport and Holidays in Yountville. With a $40,000 marketing budget that is matched by Expedia, Diver-McEvoy explained that these initiatives were developed to market Yountville as a destination. Her report focused on data from July 1, 2024, to April 30, presented early due to her departure from the Chamber of Commerce before the end of the fiscal year on June 30.
“We’re proud to serve as a destination marketing organization for the town of Yountville, and for the local TID (tourism improvement district). Our marketing committee meets every other month and that’s made up of different business representatives throughout our membership, and they really oversee all of the marketing tactics,” she said.
The council presented Diver-McEvoy with a certificate of appreciation, and, in other actions, proclaimed May ad Wildfire Preparedness Month.
The Town Council will again meet on May 20.
