City Council rundown, Sept. 2

Here’s a rundown on Tuesday’s Patterson City Council meeting. Expect expanded coverage in Saturday's paper and on the Web site.

Company accused of losing track of $8.3 million in city funds settles suit

The council settled its suit with Precision Inspection, Mayor Becky Campo said Tuesday. The city had been withholding close to a million dollars Precision felt it was owed. The city gave Precision $560,000, Campo said.

Precision had been contracted to run many aspects of the city’s building department until 2004. Around that time, the city discovered a Precision employee had been improperly handling city funds to the tune of more than $8.3 million dollars.

The employee had been hiding checks and cash in her office and home as opposed to making deposits. Following the settlement, the city is out $65,000 total because of the mess, said City Attorney George Logan.

Council fears blueprint will give too much power to state

Organizers of the San Joaquin Valley Blue Print Process said the plan will provide the framework for long-term growth in the Central Valley. Patterson City Council feared it will rob local autonomy and give excessive power to the state.

At Tuesday’s council meeting, two of the men organizing the Stanislaus County portion of the plan asked the council to support their model for growth. Council members took the opportunity to air their worries.

“Local control and decision making may be slipping away,” said Councilwoman Annette Smith.

The council put off making any decision and requested city staff study the blue print and present a report at the September 16 meeting.

When the city tightens belt, apricots get squeezed

Organizers with Patterson’s Apricot Fiesta got shot down in their request for $5,000 from the council Tuesday.

Councilors said a tight budget stopped them from providing $5,000 to help promote Patterson's largest party. Cleve Morris, Patterson’s city manager, said the city is still committed to helping with the Fiesta, but diminishing income and increased expense limit what the city will be able to do this year.

The council decided to organize a meeting between city staff and fiesta board members to start sorting out exactly how the city will participate in this year’s Fiesta.

Commissions expand

The council voted 4-0 to expand three of its advisory committees even though staff said it would put additional burdens on city resources. The council decided to expand the beautification committee, the economic strategic committee and senior center board from five members each to seven members each. The move went against the recommendation of Morris and Adrienne Chaney, Patterson’s director of parks and recreation.

Scavenging recycling to be illegal

The council got the ball rolling on making it illegal to go through other people’s recycling bins. As of now, there’s no rule on the book preventing someone from taking bottles and cans out of bins once a resident wheels it to the curb. The council decided to change that with a 4-0 vote Tuesday. The new law has several more bureaucratic hurdles, but in all likely hood will be on the books in the coming months.