The Yucca Valley Town Council meeting started off last night by introducing Deputy Michael Sellers as the town’s new School Resource Officer and recognizing new Sheriff’s Service Specialist Kaitlyn Kelly, whose work in fingerprinting a burglary scene in Yucca Valley earlier this summer resulted in the arrest of a suspect. Managing editor Tami Roleff says the council then discussed two amendments to the town’s development code, heard a report about the town’s successful swim program, and allocated about $1 million in surplus funds to various accounts…
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As the Yucca Valley Town Council discussed recommendations from the planning commission on amendments to the town’s development code concerning accessory dwelling units last night, Mayor Rick Denison said the discussion was segueing into a discussion of rental and short-term rentals in the town, as council members debated requiring owners to live in one of the dwelling units and the necessity of kitchens in the secondary units. The council decided to send it back to staff to tweak some of the language in the amendments and will continue the public hearing to the October 16 council meeting.
Next, the council took up accessory structures such as garages, workshops, barns, cargo containers, and granny flats, and lamented that the development code allows cargo containers and corrugated metal buildings. But council members also said they did not want to get into having an architectural commission to vet building plans either. In the end, the council approved the planning commissions amendments to the development code for accessory structures.
Then, the council heard an update on the town’s swim program. The town’s swim lessons are extremely popular. The town discontinued its junior lifeguarding classes in 2013, and staff anticipate difficulties in finding qualified lifeguards, as the junior lifeguards were groomed to take over lifeguard positions at the pool.
And finally, the town learned that due to an increase in sales tax revenue and a decrease in operational expenses, it has about $1 million in surplus revenues. The council voted to allocate about 50 percent of the excess to help pay down its pension liabilities, with the remainder going to its capital reserve fund and vehicle and equipment replacement fund. And finally, the council learned that Finance Manager Sharon Cisneros will be leaving and taking a position in northern California.
