DIXON, CA (MPG) – During the Sept. 2 meeting, the Dixon City Council reviewed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City of Dixon and the Dixon Police Officers’ Association, which represents 26 employees serving as police officers and sergeants.

Dixon Human Resources director Rachel Ancheta said respectful and productive negotiations began in March, resulting in an agreement that reflects “a shared commitment to public safety.”

The agreement will cover a three-year term from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028. Highlights include revisions to the step schedule and salary schedule, including an 11% base salary increase for officers and a 14% increase for sergeants. In July 2026, the employees will receive an additional 2.5% increase, with another 2.5% increase in 2027.

To incentivize retention, longevity pay is recommended after 10 years of service, with a 5% base pay increase. Special assignment positions, such as canine division, school resource officers, and motorcycle officers, will receive an additional 5%. Another 2.5% will be applied to bilingual employees and those who serve on the night shift.

The city will contribute 85% of health insurance premium costs through Kaiser and 100% of dental and vision premiums.

The total contract cost for the memorandum of understanding is $1.2 million for the three-year term.

While not involved or impacted by these negotiations, Police Chief Robert Thompson called into the meeting to say that he has a personal and professional interest in the health and welfare of his officers and sergeants. Thompson thanked the negotiating team for finding ways to retain and recruit police department employees. He said that this contract was both fiscally responsible while also providing “long-term sustainability” for the department.

All council members agreed that maintaining competitive salaries and benefits is vital to ensuring a well-staffed police department, which benefits the whole community.

“It’s our job as councilmembers to watch the budget but also to make their wages, salaries and benefits reasonable and competitive to the areas around us,” Mayor Steven Bird said.

Councilmember Kevin Johnson added that this contract wouldn’t be possible without the 1% sales-tax increase approved by the public.

The council voted unanimously to approve the memorandum of understanding and the associated budget amendment.

Next, the council considered a recommendation to partner with the Downtown Dixon Business Association for the annual Dixon Christmas Tree Lighting event in downtown Dixon on Dec. 6.

Public Works director Louren Kotow said this event, beloved by the community, has been getting bigger each year, with entertainment, decorations, live music, visits with Santa, train rides, animal exhibits and street vendors.

Historically, the city has supported the event with a $5,000 contribution from the Community Support Fund. This year, staff recommended the city take on the role of co-sponsor, with additional costs including $17,480 for staff overtime (police, fire, emergency medical services and public works), $4,500 for equipment rentals, and $1,400 for road barricades and sign boards. The requested budget amendment would total $28,380.

The city would also not charge rental fees for city equipment or facilities used for the event. In addition to downtown road closures, the city will request Caltrans approval to close Highway 113 for the event. Previously, the event was held on a Thursday, since daily commutes did not allow for a major road closure on a weekday. Moving the event to a Saturday and closing the road will ensure a safer and more expansive event experience.

Vice Mayor Thom Bogue said most of the events held downtown are fundraisers and the tree lighting is one of the few that’s just for the enjoyment of the citizens. Having the Downtown Dixon Business Association continue to manage the event, Bogue said, “saves the city a lot of money and staff time.”

The council members all agreed that it’s a wonderful event and they unanimously approved the agreement and the budget amendment.

Finally, the council considered possible changes to the city’s nuisance ordinance and policies, with the discussion initiated by Vice Mayor Bogue.

Bogue said that there is an ongoing situation in the city with neighbors weaponizing the city’s nuisance policies against each other as part of ongoing feuds. He gave an example of one resident making more than 300 calls against a neighbor in just one year. Bogue asked if there was a way to update the code so the police department could penalize residents for making unfounded reports.

The city attorney said it wouldn’t make sense legally to add something like that to nuisance code, because it would be extremely difficult for the city to prove the calls had no merit, rather than that the violations just weren’t occurring at the time of investigation. She added that falsely reporting a crime is already illegal under state law, so the city could codify that somewhere within their code.

Bogue then brought up the topic of garbage carts, which city code says must be screened from view behind a fence. He said many residents don’t follow that rule, leaving their totes near their house where they can be seen from the street. Currently, these code violations are investigated based on resident complaints but Bogue said this system leads to unfair and uneven enforcement, since some residents submit frequent complaints as part of ongoing disagreements with neighbors.

Bogue suggested that either the code be changed so garbage carts don’t have to be screened from view or code enforcement officers should patrol the city and issue fines for every single violation.

Most of the other council members didn’t see a need to change the code. Keeping the carts out of view contributes to Dixon properties looking clean and well-maintained and they wanted residents to have recourse to address issues as needed. And with a limited number of code enforcement officers, ongoing patrols were not feasible.

Councilmember Johnson said he was more concerned about residents who receive multiple code violations but are physically or financially unable to make the required improvements. He said the third violation results in a $500 fine, which many residents will have trouble paying, especially if they are elderly or disabled. Johnson suggested a compassion clause through which the city could contact local service clubs to help these residents bring their properties into compliance.

During public comment, Mark Cooley, a Dixon resident and a Dixon Planning Commissioner, agreed that neighbors shouldn’t have to “tattle on each other” regarding code violations. He suggested making the fines even higher to cover the cost of increased enforcement.

Bogue reiterated his concerns, stating that the city should hire an additional code enforcement officer specifically to drive around the city to look for violations.

The city attorney said that the current complaint-driven system avoids legal issues of selective enforcement, in which the city could be accused of discrimination if certain persons or groups feel they have been unfairly targeted:

“It’s my legal opinion that unless you have a much, much more robust code enforcement department, you will be subject to more legal implications related to selective enforcement than you do with your compliant-based protocol,” the city attorney said.

The council consensus was for staff to research how other communities enforce their nuisance codes and bring this topic back for further discussion and review.

The next Dixon City Council meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Sept. 16.