The prohibitions, approx. – The city council of Los Banos arrived on March 5, 2025 at 6:10 p.m., in which a number of questions from the community, infrastructure projects and political updates dealt. The meeting contained important recognitions, public concerns and significant decisions of the council, which will affect the city.
The Council recognized with the recognition of Arbor Day and emphasized the importance of tree planting and environmental responsibility. Officials confirmed the commitment of Los Banos for maintaining the status of the Tree City USA and encouraged the residents to take part in the celebration to the Arbor Day on March 7th in Meadowland's Basin Park. In addition, Trisha Sova, an administrative officer in the Community & Economic Development department, was awarded to Trisha Sova for their outstanding service to the award “Employee for February 2025).
During the public forum, the residents expressed two important concerns. A resident spoke about a recently approved project for Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), which was nine miles south of Los Banos. She expressed security concerns and quoted fire hazards and the lack of fire brigade training for such incidents. There were also concerns about the approval process and the potential conflict of interest in decision -making. Another resident spoke to the problem of illegal fireworks and asked the city officials to improve the enforcement and public education in order to reduce noise and security risks.
Among the most important decisions of the Council, the annexation of 170 acres for rainwater management was a key position. The Council approved the inclusion of land between the channels of San Luis and Santa Fe for a project with rainwater collection and groundwater loading. The zone setting of the area was changed from agricultural/rural to civic/institutional move to the intended use as a public water management system. Regulation No. 1207, which concludes the annexation and zoning change, was accepted after his second reading.
The Council also approved a supplement to a leasing contract with the Central California Irrigation District (CCID) to install solar lighting along the HG Fawcett Canal Trail. A grant of $ 125,000 was granted for the project, with the additional urban funds covering the remaining $ 175,000. City officials found that lighting improvements were one of the most requested upgrades in the city's Park Master Plan and are expected to improve security for trail users.
In the updates of employee policy, the Council lifted an earlier decision, which had referred to the Middle Management employees as a “encouragement”. In the future, these employees will return to a standard rehearsal time after hiring or promotion. Changes to the payment of the police authority's certification certificate were also approved, which increased to scholarships for civil servants and shipping supervisory authorities that have special certifications. In addition, the administrative holiday for management and middle management employees was increased, which increased the department runs to 96 hours a year and the deputy department to 48 hours a year.
The Council presented several appointments from the Commission, including Larry Leonardo to the airport consulting commission and Kathy Ballard and Refugio Llamas as the supervisory committee of the citizens. There are several job offers from the Commission, including a seat in measure H, a seat in measure P, a seat in measure V and three openings for the tree commission.
The city's officials recalled the residents of impending opportunities for commitment in the community, including the meetings on potential improvements in Colorado Park and the annual event of Arbor Day. The meeting was postponed at 7:06 p.m. The residents are encouraged to remain involved in the local government by participating in the future city council meetings and participating in discussions in the community.
