DIXON, CA (MPG) - Addressing Item 9.4 in the Consent Calendar, Dixonite Mike Ceremello was concerned that the City was spending $447,757 on the 2022 Pavement Preservation Project which is using Surry Sealing on roads but not prioritized correctly.

He said the work should be done on Adams Street, the branch of road that splits Highway 113 in front of Amos Metz Equipment Rental and changes into Porter and A Street, a much heavier travelled road driven by big rigs avoiding downtown.

"You are doing the streets out by Dixon High School which are new streets instead of Adams. I think that is a mistake," he said.

Under Public Hearings, Item 10 on the agenda, the design review for the expansion of the former Gymboree Distribution Center on Vaughn Road that has an industrial-based zoning had already been approved by the Planning Commission.

This area of 463 acres was annexed to Dixon in 1988 for commercial development. The building sits on a parcel of 21 acres of land that is divided into five lots where for several years, Gymboree, a children's clothing distribution center was housed. It closed in 2019 at the beginning of the pandemic. The new owners have major changes including adding 125,000 more square feet, 223 new parking spaces to make a total of 452, and 87 more truck bays--with no tenant yet.

"At this point, there is no potential tenant identified," said Nick Rini for Nearon Enterprises. Nearon has acquired more than $1 billion in industrial, office, retail and multifamily properties since the 1990s and enhanced those real estate assets through physical property improvements, aggressive property management and leasing, and creative financing, according to their website. The company is based in Walnut Creek.

Councilmen Dist. Rep 2 Jim Ernest and Dist. Rep. 1 Scott Pederson both expressed their hope that future tenants would bring more revenue into Dixon and cited that the new GE Distribution Center brings only property tax revenue.

"We need to pay people a fair wage and we need money to do that," said Ernest. His concern was that currently "a warehouse brings zero" they have few workers and it is mostly storage, he explained. "If we could partner together and get a retailer like an Amazon business, it would be more beneficial to the city."

Under new business Item 12, Deborah Barr, P.E., City Engineer and Director of Utilities proposed increases in Development Transportation Impact Fees (new subdivisions or commercial development) that had not been updated in years. They are also known as Capital Facility Fees, Development Impact Fees, or AB1600 Fees.

"We compared with other cities and it is all about finding our balance [to not be too high or too low,]" she said. Those fees help maintain roads.

Ceremello also commented saying, "It was about time that we updated. We were at $2,500 when Vacaville was $7,000," he said. It passed 5-0.

Mayor Steve Bird re-appointed Planning Commissioners Randy Davis and Baudelio Diaz to another term and appointed Ronald Butts and Clarissa Herrera to the Parks and Recreation Commission He also renewed terms for Rudy Baltazar, Angelic Villalpando, and Charles King.

Items 12.3 and 12.4 were about pay increases and both were approved 5-0 due to labor negotiations for Mid-Management and Professional Employees Compensation Plan through June 2025. It was initiated by Human Resources Director Rachel Ancheta. There will be 5% increases every year plus there is an increase in "stand by" pay, being able to speak Spanish, and an increase from 64 to 80 hours for administrative leave.