Doug Wilhelm (left) was presented with “Outstanding Citizenship” and his community beautifi cation efforts by Mayor Patti Walker (right) at Tuesday nights council meeting.

Presentations
Mayor Patti Walker presented a Proclamation to Citizen Doug Wilhelm for “outstanding citizenship and his community beautification efforts,” noting that she has personally witnessed his daily excursions to pick up trash in Fillmore. Wilhelm also helps remove graffiti. “His labor of love should serve as a shining example,” said the mayor. Upon receiving a standing ovation, Wilhelm explained, “I’m just trying to be part of the solution.” He encouraged “everyone out there to get involved and do the best we can.”

Mayor Walker also presented Kathleen McCreary, President of the Heritage Valley Tourism Bureau, with a Proclamation designating May 8-16 as Travel and Tourism Week, emphasizing the economic importance or tourism. McCreary mentioned that the Bureau has tripled its business since its move to the end of Central Park and thanked the City for their support.

Public Comments
Citizen Norma Amaro asked the community for donations of used magazines to Vintage Pleasures, which sells them for a dollar apiece to support Alzheimer research. So far, $100 has been raised. Amaro said the store would resell re-donated magazines purchased from the program. Amaro also presented the Fillmore Alzheimer Memory Walk 2010; Oxnard and Thousand Oaks are holding walks in October. Fliers with more information are available at Vintage Pleasures.

Citizen Jesse Amaro announced the Grand Avenue Cleanup Day to be held Sunday, May 23, 10 am-2 pm. Amaro noted the safety hazard posed by the glass and debris and invites Fillmore residents to volunteer even just 15-20 minutes on Sunday. Volunteers are to meet at the end of Grand Avenue.

Santa Barbara resident Jack Maxwell, an owner under Sespe Creek Properties LLC, gave an update on his projects. Maxwell acknowledged that there remains hurdles to overcome—lack of funding from the banking industry and the difficulty of establishing a timeframe for building occupancy—but assured that “We’re on a good track now” and that he and his partners look forward to the City’s continued support.

Water Softener Rebate Program Progress Report
Public Works Director Bert Rapp gave a progress report on the Brine Discharging Water Softener Rebate Program and Chloride Control. Since the Rebate program started in December 2008, 70 of the 130 mailed applications have been returned; 65 rebates, valued at $36,992, have been mailed to applicants. $2,590 have been paid to plumbers, $9,853.79 went to internal charges, bringing the total to $49,435.79. Mayor Patti Walker noted an anomalous spike in chloride levels and asked Rapp whether the remaining 40 homeowners the City can cover with the original allotment of $50,000 would reduce the chloride to required levels to get legislation to outlaw the softeners. Rapp said that 50 homeowners are steadfastly maintaining their softeners, and that he fears that other residents have been buying more on their own. He said it’s possible that softeners are regenerating at the same time, but the 400-500 softeners throughout the town would need to be eliminated to meet the chloride limits. Mayor Pro-tem Gayle Washburn suggested Rapp return in a month with raw data from the weekly water sampling to verify trends before sending out a citywide mailing.

Film Commission Activities
Commissioner Paul Nielsen reported the results of the Locations Expo 2010 held in Santa Monica Pacific Auditorium April 15-17. The Commission invited filmmakers to “Film More at Fillmore” by distributing new handouts as well as a DVD showing different areas of Fillmore, prepared by Film Permit Coordinator Patrick Maynard, who also updated the Film Commission website.

Commissioner Nielsen said Fillmore’s trains drew a lot of attention. “Everyone who has filmed before in Fillmore love coming back,” he said, but he underscored the issue of the palm trees on Central Avenue, which detract from the area’s ability to masquerade as “Any Town, USA.”

Commissioner Raymond Brown concurred; “We cannot overstate the concerns of the producers,” including those of the TV show House. In light of the “countless comments” they received, he suggested moving the trees elsewhere.
Commissioner Brown said Fillmore’s simple permitting process that could serve as another selling point to filmmakers. Although Fillmore is located about six miles beyond the Screen Actor Guild’s filming zone, there is speculation that the growing number of studios in Valencia and Santa Clarita could help with possible Zone expansion.

The Commission gathered about 190 contacts at the expo, and at least 10 promising projects were discussed with Fillmore and Western Railroad.

The international expo included representatives from as far away as Abu Dhabi and Kenya, and neighboring California cities such as Santa Clarita and Ventura.

Future Commission plans including getting a photographer from the LA Times to take pictures of production, making a merchant survey to learn what information or outreach would benefit them, and getting listed in the LA Times’ Business subsection Company Town, which features an area map listing film projects, which would give Fillmore exposure to the east coast through the Times’ distribution.

Councilman Jamey Brooks suggested discussing the Central Avenue palm trees at a future meeting.

Medical Marijuana Dispensary Moratorium Extension
City Attorney Ted Schneider recommended the adoption of an Interim Urgency Ordinance to extend the citywide Moratorium on the Establishment and Operation of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries for 10 months and 15 days. The initial moratorium adopted April 13, 2010 is valid for a 45-day period. During the additional months allowed by the Government Code, the Development Department, Police Department, and City Attorney staff will work together to examine alternatives for medical marijuana dispensaries. Schneider said the Staff wishes “to engage the community in studying our options” and he anticipates bringing the matter back to Council for direction in several months. He also said that 200 cities in California have banned medical marijuana dispensaries and 34 have permitted/regulated dispensaries, noting that the “Cities of Arcata and City of West Hollywood have detailed regulatory ordinances worth reviewing.”

Councilwoman Gayle Washburn asked for data on repercussions and criminal statistics of similarly-sized cities that have allowed dispensaries. Schneider mentioned there are different practices, such as membership in a cooperative, or card-holding requirements, although cooperatives are not mentioned in the 1996 Compassionate Use Act. Councilwoman Laurie Hernandez said she wants “to see the revenue side.”

Public Comment
Fillmore resident Dmitri Gurkweitz (63) stated that he recently moved from Virginia and is a card-carrying medical marijuana user. Since his return from Vietnam 40 years ago, he has been “totally confounded” by the controversy surrounding medical marijuana. Gurkweitz stated he suffers from posttraumatic stress, and “today we have a lot of brothers and sisters in the service overseas, and they’re experiencing the same things I did.” He also stated that he has difficultly sleeping and “a lot of nightmares,” and as he is already taking 13 different medications, “another narcotic is not something I want to do.” Medical marijuana helps him sleep four or five hours straight; otherwise he wakes up every hour.

Gurkweitz said the nearest dispensaries are both an hour away, and the marijuana at the dispensaries is already expensive. He argued that he could turn himself into a criminal by buying underground, but cities would not receive tax revenue. Admitting that the town is small, Gurkweitz added, “but we could draw people who are legally able (to use medical marijuana).” He mentioned that marijuana can make people “sleepy and hungry and apathetic,” but he’d “like to see a dispensary here because you’re going to have a lot of young people coming back (from military service).” He also stated that in his experience as a theatre professor in Virginia, he has been “exposed to many different situations” where medical marijuana could be helpful.

Gurkweitz told the Council that in November, the state could vote to decriminalize marijuana altogether, and a dispensary is going to be “just like a liquor store—it’s going to make a lot of money.” He stated that the population with the best understanding of the proliferation of dispensaries has been liquor lobbyists. Gurkweitz added that a symptom of his posttraumatic stress was his having a short memory.

Mayor Patti Walker thanked Gurkweitz for his comment and for his service to the country. Schneider stated he expected to hold workshops in the next month or two, before end of the moratorium, and Councilman Steve Conaway expressed his desire to continue with due diligence. The motion to adopt the moratorium extension passed unanimously.

May Festival Receives City Funding
The Fillmore Chamber of Commerce requested the City Council to allocate $5,000 for the 2010 May Festival to offset operating costs. Chamber President David Crockett called the 60-year-old tradition “a gem.” He reported that 2009 saw around 30,000 attendees, and the festival was profitable for the first time in four years, making $16,874. In light of last year’s “healthy profit,” Mayor Patti Walker wondered why the Council needed to help with funding. Councilman Conaway proposed sponsorship with the caveat that the Chamber “wean itself” of the City’s financial resources, as the City already provides use of the park, cleanup, and manpower. With Mayor Walker and Mayor Pro-tem Gayle Washburn voting No, the Council voted to see what the actual revenue/cost is for the event, and if there is a shortfall, authorize the City to absorb up to $5,000 in Police overtime costs for the event (3-2).

$80,000 Increase in Legal Services Special Litigation Budget
The Finance Department requested that the City Council increase the Legal Services Special Litigation and Contract Housing Budget line items for fiscal year 2009-2010 by $80,000. Various recent Special Litigation includes the successful Livermore Industries lawsuit, the State Board of Equalization administrative proceeding, an application renewal of the El Dorado Estates and a Breach of Contract lawsuit involving HDL, the Richard P. McKee Brown Act violation lawsuit, and the Heritage Valley Parks’ Griffin (now Hearthstone) negotiations over terms of development agreements. Mayor Pro-tem Gayle Washburn stressed that City Attorney Ted Schneider has made efforts to reduce special fees. The motions to authorize $78,000 budget appropriation from the General Fund to the Legal Services-Special Litigation account and $2,000 to the Legal Services-Contract Housing account were passed unanimously.