COBB AREA COUNCIL
PUBLIC MEETING
Thursday September 21, 2023 at 6:30pm
In-Person and Online Participation Available
MINUTES (Approved 10-19-2023)
CALL TO ORDER at 6:31pm
ROLL CALL
Present: Darlene Warner (Acting Chair), Chris Nettles, Joe Schneider
Absent: Cathy McCarthy, Jake Strickler, Mel McMurrin
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
APPROVAL OF AGENDA Motion by Chris, 2nd by Eliot. All in favor, Agenda Approved.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Robert, 2nd by Chris. All in favor. Minutes approved as amended. Amendment: Regarding Tom S. non-agenda comment item, add the words: “Asked Jessica to respond to the book “Cause Unknown.”
SHORT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Robert – October 14th the Lions Club is having October Fest. Tickets are$20. Poster is at Post Office and coffee shop.
Inez/Rosie – fire mitigation measures have caused stumps to remain, causing insurance companies to deny discounts for homeowners. How do we get rid of stumps? Are there funds available for stump removal?
Public and Board Comment on Non-Agenda Items (3 mins./individual)
Robert – regarding the PG&E undergrounding work on Bottlerock Road at Hwy 175 in Cobb (South end). Has not seen any County inspectors, it’s the worst work he’s seen, would like to see it fixed now. Inez agrees.
John Wilcox – introduced himself, is here to observe, is a member of the County Grand Jury, and had a fantastic time at the Blackberry Cobbler Festival.
Supervisor’s Comments – Jessica Pyska
No Report
Fire Season Update – Paul Duncan
The weather has been favorable, did not get the high wind as expected. There will be some precipitation come Monday. We’ve sent some resources to Northern California to assist with the wildfires. If you’re planning on doing any yardwork on a red flag day – do it another day. Plastic string trimmers can start fires. Remember to mow early in the morning. Tom S. had question regarding PG&E reclosers – used to try 3 times to stay on. We now have EP circuits that don’t try to stay on, they will shut off power within 1/10 of a second.
Treasurer’s Report – Chris
Operating Budget Balance at July meeting $27,117.12
Transactions since 7/27/2023
General Fund, Received: $ 19.02 (Hub community group)
General Fund, Paid: $500.00 (Toye, August 2023)
530.00 (Toye, September 2023)
129.85 (Cobb Water)
59.88 (Quicken)
97.18 (PG&E)
Total from General Fund <$1,297.89>
Blackberry Cobbler Festival, Received: $13,250.65 (+ $1,500 = $14,750.65)
Blackberry Cobbler Festival, Paid: <10,869.47>
Total to Festival Account: $3,881.18
Sculpture Jam: No transactions since 7/27/2023
Current Account Balances
$10,052.74 General Fund
16,980.05 Blackberry Cobbler Festival
- Cobb Resource Hub (no currently restricted grant money)
2,417.62 Emergency Preparedness Fund
250.00 Sculpture Jam
$29,700.41 Operating Budget Balance (9/21/2023)
$48,082.63 Small Business Loan Fund (originally from S.F. Home Loan Bank grant)
$77,783.94 Net Assets
$2,583.09 Increase to Net Assets since 7/27/2023
Laura asked about use of funds to support the Cobb Community Center
Mary asked about use of small business grant funds
Discussion/Approve: CAC to pay Cobb Community Center for use of facilities for monthly CAC meetings: $300 per meeting
Had discussion. Motion by Eliot, 2nd by Chris. All in favor, motion approved to begin paying the Cobb Community Center (Lions Club) $300 per month to hold CAC meetings at facility. Motion Amended to add: starting with this meeting (September 21, 2023). Motion Approved as Amended. Chris noted it is within the budget to do so.
Update: Report progress on finding new location for Hub
Eliot/Ad Hoc Committee had full and frank discussions. Eliot, Chris, Robert, and other Lions will be meeting on Monday and will be looking at the needs of the Lions Club, the old portion of Little Red, and other possible facilities.
Discussion/Approve: CAC to terminate lease for the Resource Hub
Had discussion. Motion by Eliot, 2nd by Laura. All in favor, motion approved to submit 30-day notice of termination October 1, 2023, to terminate lease (month-to-month) effective October 31, 2023.
Discuss/Approve Authority to rent storage for HUB materials until new location is determined.
Motion by Chris, 2nd by Laura. All in favor, motion approved to give CAC the authority to rent a storage unit for Hub items should it become necessary. Chris stated there are funds available to do so. Motion Amended to be a recurring Agenda item for monthly reauthorization. Amended Motion made by Robert, 2nd by Eliot. All in favor, Amended Motion approved.
Offer of space at the Loch Lomond Fire Station to be used as storage at no charge (in kind) made by Chief Duncan. Suggested building a 10×12 foot shed from Kelseyville Lumber (they will build it on-site for us for $4-6K) to be used for the Hub in the Cobb Community Center parking lot. Also recommended using PODS container.
Discuss/ Approve: RFP Explore Cobb webpage/ social media management proposal
Had discussion. Motion by Chris, 2nd by Mary. All in favor, motion approved to disseminate Request for Proposal with suggested edits, with a 30-day submittal period.
Committee Reports (3 minutes/individual)
Firewise Communities – Magdelena, Cindy, Glenneth, David, Laurie
No reports
Communications Committee – Darlene
Check-ins continue to be about the same number. Had interesting thing happen with mountain repeater during last night’s check-ins when alert tones went over the air. Mountain repeater responded by shutting off. Larry physically went to site and manually rebooted the repeater. Had repeater back up within the hour. Mary P. commented that she/family has been experiencing interference on their private family GMRS network and suggested that we talk privately with Mel.
Forest Health Committee – Eliot
Reviving the Committee. Next meeting is Friday, September 29th. Committee will now meet the last Friday of every month. Will be applying for a significant grant to do the Community Wildfire Protection Plan. October 3rd the County is adopting a County-wide plan.
Economic Development Committee – Chris
Was out of town the entire month of August. The Economic Development Committee will evaluate RFP (Request for Proposal) for the Explore Cobb Facebook page and social media management.
Blackberry Cobbler Festival – update on financials
Chris – a few checks are still floating, so final amount may differ by $100-$200. Net income was $9,918. Chief Duncan estimates attendance to be between 4K and 5K people. Last year’s net income was approximately $7K, have been seeing an increase each year.
Next Meeting: October 19, 2023
ADJOURNED at 7:53pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Darlene Warner, Secretary
