May 20 newsletter
Lane closures on 99 this week: The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) in cooperation with Papich Construction, Inc. announces nightly lane closures of northbound and southbound State Route 99, between State Route 198 and Betty Drive in Goshen, within Tulare County. These closures are part of the current State Route 99 Tulare to Goshen-North Segment Widening Project and are necessary for new highway construction. Night-time lane closures will be as follows: Northbound and Southbound State Route 99 between State Route 198 interchange and Betty Drive in Goshen will be reduce to one lane in each direction with alternating lane closures through Friday morning, May 23rd, between 7:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. each night for highway construction. During these closures, State Route 99 will be reduced to one lane while crews are working. Commuters will experience delays and are encouraged to take alternate routes whenever possible. California Highway Patrol (CHP) will be on site assisting with traffic control. Closures may continue for longer periods of time if necessary, due to delays caused by uncontrollable events that may occur during construction.
Memorial Day Holiday refuse schedule: Residential refuse service normally scheduled for Monday through Thursday will be collected Tuesday through Friday the week of May 26, 2014 due to the Memorial Day Holiday. Commercial refuse service normally scheduled for Monday through Friday will be collected Tuesday through Saturday that week. City of Visalia business offices will be closed on Monday, May 26, in observance of the holiday.
City earns "A+" long-term rating from Standard & Poor: Standard & Poor's Rating Services assigned its "A+" long-term rating to the Visalia Public Finance Authority, California's Series 2014 refunding certificates of participation issued on behalf of the City. In addition, S&P affirmed its "A+" underlying rating on the city's appropriation obligations outstanding and considers its financial outlook stable. S&P deemed Fiscal Year 2013 a turning point for the City's financial position, as revenue continued a recovery that had begun in earnest in FY 2012 and a write-down in a portion of the City's receivables from its now-dissolved Redevelopment Agency did not repeat. The City also strengthened its general fund reserve policy that includes, among other elements, a direction to deposit one-time revenue and half of residual resources after funding a status quo budget into the designated balance until it reaches $5 million. Based on the City's estimates for fiscal year 2014 and forecast through FY 2021, S&P anticipates that the city's flexibility will remain very strong for the foreseeable future.
Council adopts new mural guidelines: The City Council adopted new Mural Guidelines proposed by the Mural Policy Review Committee at its May 19 meeting. The Council had authorized the formation of the committee in December to review the current policy and recommend changes that would ensure high quality, well designed, well executed murals are created in the City. The Committee determined that the primary emphasis of murals should be on artistic expression and must not include advertisement or be commercial in nature. They did feel it appropriate for murals to contain limited commercial elements so long as they are not considered commercial speech for the purpose of promoting a commercial transaction. The City can place some limitations on the manner in which murals are created in terms of standards of quality and professionalism. A four-step application and approval process was defined in the guidelines. Applicants must first submit an application detailing the parties involved, location and submit a rendering. The Mural Panel will then review the application and determine whether it complies with the guidelines. The artist's portfolio of work will be reviewed to ensure they have the experience and expertise to create a quality mural. A recommendation will then be made to the City Council. The entire process can take no more than a maximum of 90 days. To view the guidelines, click here.
Convention and Visitors Bureau presents annual report to Council: Events booked by the Visalia Convention and Visitors Bureau brought $5.7 million in economic impact to the City from convention spending, and conventions resulted in 32,243 delegates coming to Visalia and 16,374 room nights in area hotels. The City contracts with the CVB to provide convention and tourism marketing. The City provides $254,000 in funding for operation, and an additional $21,000 for regional marketing, which has been used to support the Sequoia Tourism Council and the Majestic Mountain Loop. The Loop concept of visiting 3 national parks in as little as three days was developed entirely by the CVB, and outside partnerships with the Oakhurst CVB, Fresno Yosemite International Airport and Delaware North, a parks concessioner, provided additional marketing money. To read the annual report, click here.