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# Willits City Council Full Report — August 26, 2026
- URL: https://www.mendolocal.news/willits-city-council-full-report-august-26-2026/
- Published: 2026-09-01T21:22:08.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-01T23:04:22.000Z
- Description: A new fiscal sustainability committee, a state-funded water line to a mobile home park, and a Flock camera update from the police chief.
- Author: Elise Cox
- Tags: Willits

**Willits City Council – Aug. 26, 2026**

Mayor Tom Allman gaveled the regular meeting to order on Aug. 26, 2026\. (The [full meeting](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NCk-4rK-xc&ref=mendolocal.news) is available on YouTube.)

**Public Comments on Non-Agenda Items**

No members of the public stepped forward to comment on non-agenda items.

**Consent Calendar**

No public comments were offered. Council Member Bruce Burton moved to approve the Aug. 12, 2026 meeting minutes; the motion was seconded and passed 5-0.

**Item: Fiscal Sustainability Ad Hoc Committee**

Community Development Director Dusty Duley presented a resolution to establish a temporary Fiscal Sustainability Ad Hoc Committee — a two-member council body charged with identifying cost savings, revenue opportunities, and strategies to close the city's structural budget gap. The committee carries no independent decision-making authority and will bring recommendations back to the full council. Duley noted the committee would dissolve once it completes its work unless the council extends its mandate.

Allman framed the urgency around Measure K, a local sales tax that expires in 2030\. Even with Measure K, he said, the city's budget is running more than $500,000 out of balance. Burton flagged potential revenue opportunities tied to city-owned assets, including land near the wastewater plant and watershed property. All four remaining council members voiced support.

Allman nominated Council Member Gerardo Gonzalez to serve alongside him on the committee. Burton moved to adopt the resolution; Gonzalez seconded. The council voted 5-0\. Allman said he hoped to schedule the committee's first meeting within four weeks.

**Item: Mobile Home Park Water Line Grant**

The Willits City Council voted 4-0 on Aug. 26 to apply for a state grant to extend the city's water system about 1 mile north to the Little Lake Mobile Home Park, whose only well began failing in 2023\. See MendoLocal.News story.

## **Department Reports**

**Administrative Services:** Administrative Services Director Joseph Park reported that the 2024-25 audit is on track. Financial consultant Andy Heath told Park that auditors have not requested additional sampling rounds, a sign the process is moving smoothly. Park said preliminary audit numbers are expected by the end of September, with a final findings report by the end of October.

Council Member Larry Stranske pressed Park on how long it is taking staff to become proficient with the city's Springbrook financial software, noting the city has been working through implementation for at least two years. Park acknowledged the conversion from the legacy ACS system was not clean and required significant decoding. He said the city is now entering all transactions directly in Springbrook in real time for the 2025-26 fiscal year, which he said will make the next audit significantly faster. Park also noted the city uses multiple credit card processors and money collection points, which has created data flow problems; consolidating those processes is part of the optimization plan. Allman noted Park has been in the role fewer than 90 days.

Helen Sims asked from the public whether any future Springbrook improvements or training modules would carry additional costs. Park confirmed that while the initial implementation contract is closed, training sessions for specific reporting needs — such as annual state controller reports — would require paid engagements with the vendor.

**Airport:** Bowles reported that the California Department of Transportation Aeronautics division completed its annual airport inspection with no significant action items. A tree maintenance program previously completed was noted favorably by inspectors. A Caltrans-led east-side airport access project approved earlier this year has not yet begun; Bowles said the city has received no communication from Caltrans on a start date for the work.

Duley added that city staff met with the Federal Aviation Administration to pursue funding for a pavement management plan at the airport — a prerequisite for additional FAA funding to rehabilitate airport pavement. He said the grant would cover city staff time as well.

**Community Development:** Duley reported the city extended public pool hours through Sept. 11, pushing past an Aug. 7 closure date. He said the extension was funded in coordination with the school district.

**Police Department:** Chief Brian Fay submitted June and July reports with no items flagged for discussion. He asked the public to slow down near schools now that the academic year has begun, and said the department will increase enforcement of distracted driving.

On Flock Safety license plate readers: Fay said the city has seven cameras under contract but only three are operational — correcting the city's own transparency portal, which he acknowledged incorrectly lists four. He declined to disclose camera locations to prevent vandalism. Fay said all officer searches are tied to a case or incident number for auditing purposes, that the city owns its own data, and that the system is set to a 30-day retention with automatic deletion unless data is preserved for evidentiary use. He said a transparency portal is live on the city's website under the police department tab, showing search counts and plates read.

**Public Works:** Bowles reported the repair of Willits' downtown park playground equipment, including overhead bars and a merry-go-round, and the addition of two truckloads of wood chips to bring fall protection surfaces into compliance. The city also received a signed $400,000 state agreement for a Local Partnership Program pavement preservation project on West Mendocino Avenue, Phase 2 — an 80/20 state-city cost share. Design work is underway on a 250,000-gallon clear water tank. The Great Redwood Trail project is on schedule, with a contractual completion date of Dec. 7; base rock is being laid and compacted toward the Bechtel Creek Bridge.

A commenter raised the Mendocino Council of Governments-funded Highway 20 multimodal circulation study. Duley confirmed the study, funded through a MCOG grant, will involve community outreach along the Highway 20 corridor to identify desired improvements. Those findings will ultimately inform a Caltrans construction project expected within the next 10 years.

## **Council Member Reports**

**Burton:** Nothing to report.

**Gonzalez:** Attended a MCOG meeting; noted the agency had prioritized Willits' needs in long-term planning. An Mendocino Transit Authority meeting scheduled for the same day was canceled. Gonzalez flagged the Lions Club 50th anniversary celebration this Saturday, noon to 5 p.m., and the Sept. 5 Feast for the Beast fundraiser ahead of the next council meeting. He also disclosed he will be absent from the Sept. 9 council meeting due to a work conflict.

**Stranske:** Raised a League of California Cities alert regarding legislation that could shift wildfire liability from PG&E to ratepayers, local governments, and individuals. Stranske said the comment deadline is Aug. 28 — before the council's next regular meeting — and asked that the city manager send a letter opposing the measure. Allman said the item was not on the agenda for a vote tonight but committed to placing it on the next agenda so the council could formally authorize the city manager to write such a letter on the city's behalf.

**Allman:** Noted LAFCO did not meet in August but will meet next month. Asked that a future agenda item authorize the city manager to respond to League of Cities alerts on the city's behalf without requiring council action each time.

**Moment of Silence**

Before closing the regular meeting, Allman read a remembrance of Priscilla Lynn Rodriguez-Tarver, wife of longtime city employee Clarence Tarver, who died unexpectedly Aug. 17\. The council and those present observed a moment of silence. A viewing is scheduled Friday, Aug. 28, at Anker-Lucere Mortuary, 3 to 7 p.m.; a Celebration of Life follows Saturday, Aug. 29, 3 to 6 p.m., at Agape Church in Willits.

**Closed Session**

Following the regular meeting, the council convened in closed session pursuant to Government Code 54957 to discuss recruitment and potential appointment of a city manager. Upon returning, Allman announced direction had been given to staff. No further details were disclosed.

Mayor Allman adjourned the closed session at approximately 8:22 p.m.