City of Benicia This Week
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In this edition: Holiday Closure, City Council Lifts Mask Mandate, City Hosts Weekly COVID-19 Testing Clinics, Use of Herbicides for Weed Control, Take the Youth Volleyball League Survey, Local Artist Exhibition at the Library, Short-term Rental Meeting Reminder, Community Workshop on Housing, City Employee Spotlight, COVID Assistance
Message from the City Manager
February 21, 2022

Hello Everyone,
This last Council meeting went six hours, but some very important conversations took place at the meeting. In addition to the Parks Master Plan update, the City’s resolution on face-coverings came before Council once again. The decision was made to lift the face-covering mandate for vaccinated individuals, in alignment with the State and most of the other Bay Area counties. I have appreciated the democratic process this critical and very emotional issue has exemplified in Benicia. While this tends to be a very polarizing issue, nearly everyone presented their position in a gracious and thoughtful way. Of course, wearing face coverings remains an option (including for private businesses which may decide to keep a face covering rule in place), and it is my hope we will continue to respect one another and treat our fellow community members with empathy and kindness.

I’m also vey pleased to announce that the City is hosting free PCR testing every Thursday at the Community Center. This service will provide you a digital test result within one or two days. If the need expands, we have the ability to expand as well. This is just another way we are trying to do everything we can to keep this community safe and provide options, especially for our most vulnerable and underserved populations. Please see below for more information. A very special thank you to Ann Dunleavy in the Parks and Community Services Department and Della Olm in the Fire Department. These two have been the epicenter of many of our important community initiatives around COVID-19, and their service to the community has been an example for all of us in the City.

Another important topic covered below is our use of herbicides for weed control. We have worked hard to come up with an approach that carefully balances community safety (for instance we no longer use any Roundup products) with the need to properly manage and maintain City parks, trails and facilities.

This is a very long newsletter, with some very important information covered. I strongly encourage you to read through to the end. As always, if you have questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me or my staff.

Thank you for your interest in the City of Benicia This Week!

Erik Upson
City Manager
City News
Holiday Closure
Benicia City offices, Benicia Public Library and Benicia Community Center will be closed on Monday, February 21 in observance of Presidents' Day.

Requests for emergency water and sewer service may be made at the Benicia Police Department, 200 East L Street, or by calling 707.745.3411.

Click here for a calendar of holidays observed and Alternate Friday closures.
City Council Lifts Mask Mandate
Last Wednesday, California health officials lifted the statewide COVID-19 indoor mask mandate in public settings for vaccinated people. Based on state guidelines, only unvaccinated people are still required to wear a mask in public indoor settings.

Last Tuesday evening, Benicia City Council voted to rescind Resolution 21-88 effective immediately. This was the local mask mandate requirement for public indoor settings in Benicia. This applied to the Benicia community, businesses, and to a certain extent City facilities (with the exception of some programs for children).

In Benicia, only unvaccinated people are required to wear a mask in indoor public settings. Vaccinated people are welcome and encouraged to wear a mask whenever they feel appropriate. Businesses may require masking for all patrons and staff.

Additional information is available at from Solano County Public Health at https://www.solanocounty.com/depts/ph/coronavirus.asp. Information on the State's requirements are available from California Department of Public Health at https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/guidance-for-face-coverings.aspx.
City Hosts Weekly COVID-19 Testing Clinics
The City of Benicia, in partnership with Curative, is now hosting free COVID-19 PCR testing clinics at the Benicia Community Center. The clinics will be held weekly on Thursdays until further notice. Appointments are preferred to minimize wait times, and take precedence over walk-ins. To sign up for an appointment, visit https://book.curative.com/sites/34645 or call 888.702.9042.

The clinic is located on the outdoor patio of the Benicia Community Center at the corner of East L Street & East Fourth Street.

“This PCR testing clinic will make our community safer by ensuring people get accurate, timely COVID-19 test results,” says City Manager Erik Upson. “When people know their status, they can make informed decisions to protect their neighbors and loved ones. People can now take a free PCR test in Benicia without having to travel out of town, helping to protect our most vulnerable populations.”

There is no out of pocket cost for the test, which is available to those both insured and uninsured. I.D. and insurance information (if applicable) will be required at testing.

At the clinic, the person being tested will collect their own sample using a shallow nasal PCR test. Tests are observed and directed by a healthcare worker. Results will usually be received within 1-2 days upon receipt of the sample at the lab.
Use of Herbicides for Weed Control
The City of Benicia is sensitive to the public’s concerns surrounding the use of herbicides and are committed to providing beautiful parks, trails, and facilities that are safe for everyone, including children and pets to enjoy. Here are some of the ways the City is reducing herbicide use and fulfilling that commitment:

In order to limit the use of herbicides and synthetic fertilizers, the City uses an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach to controlling weeds and other landscape related pests. Over the past several years the City has eliminated the routine use of synthetic fertilizers in turf areas by grasscycling (mulching the grass clippings) and improving irrigation efficiency. The only time synthetic fertilizers are used is for turf renovation projects and new sod installations. In both cases, fields are closed to the public by fencing or locking the fields. The City has not applied any pesticides or herbicides to the turf areas in the last several years with the exception of tree wells, fence lines, and around obstacles.

The City discontinued the use of Glyphosate (Roundup) in 2018 in favor of safer alternatives, and in order to reduce the use of herbicides in general, the City has implemented a mulching program to control weeds in landscaped areas. Recycled chips from City tree pruning and removal operations are stockpiled and applied to landscaped areas to help improve the soil profile, retain soil moisture, and inhibit weed growth. In some areas, leaf litter is intentionally allowed to accumulate in the planter beds under shrubs and trees, which helps inhibit weed growth, and helps to improve the soil profile as it breaks down, providing a suitable environment for beneficial organisms. As the leaf litter breaks down it becomes a natural way to provide nutrients for the plants without the use of synthetic fertilizers.

In the open space, the City has eliminated the use of herbicides at open space access points by using goats to control unwanted vegetation. As the goats rotate through the open space areas eating vegetation, they reduce fuel load and keep access points clear and accessible without the use of herbicides.

Herbicides are only used in areas where other mechanical methods are impractical. Herbicides are used to control weeds in tree wells, along fence lines, planter beds, roadsides, etc. Herbicides are never applied to playgrounds. The herbicides used are the safest, least toxic, and most effective products available for commercial use. They are applied in strict adherence to the label requirements and in accordance with a written recommendation from a Pest Control Advisor (PCA) licensed by the State of California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR). All herbicides are applied by City staff or contractors who are licensed or certified by CDPR. The city’s pesticide storage area, application equipment, application records, and application methods are inspected annually by the Solano County Agricultural Commissioner's Office and pesticide application records are submitted monthly.

As part of our ongoing commitment, the City of Benicia will continue to review new products, technologies, and cultural practices as they become available in order to continue efforts to reduce herbicide use while providing the safest, well maintained parks, trails, and facilities for all to enjoy.

The use of herbicides is a critical tool for maintaining parks, medians, public facilities, roadsides and industrial areas, keeping them free of unwanted vegetation. Eliminating the use of herbicides would have a devastating impact on already strained budgets, create unsightly and unsafe conditions throughout the city, and would create unsafe conditions for City staff with increased likelihood of injury due to working in or near traffic, and back and repetitive motion injury from weed removal. Used properly, they are a safe, effective, and efficient way of controlling weeds in a variety of settings.

Photos: In 2012, another Bay Area city experimented with banning herbicide use in medians. The results are shown in these photos.
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Take the Youth Volleyball League Survey
The Parks and Community Services Department has offered a youth volleyball class for many seasons, and are considering offering a recreational youth volleyball league that would include weekly youth volleyball games. To determine if a youth volleyball league would be of interest to the youth in our community, the department is requesting your feedback through an online survey. The survey can be located on the BeniciaRec mobile app under the Surveys & Feedback heading, or at the following link: https://beniciarec.goodbarber.app/youthvolleyball.
Local Artist Exhibition at the Library
The Marilyn Citron O’Rourke Art Gallery at the Benicia Public Library is pleased to present “There’s No Place Like Nowhere," an exhibition of paintings by Michael S. Moore, on view February 22 to April 2 in the gallery. The public is invited to a reception for the artist on Saturday, March 5, at 3 p.m.

This exhibit was originally scheduled to open with the title “Further Afield” on March 17, 2020, as the first in a new series of yearly invitational one-person shows featuring accomplished artists of the region. During the long postponement, Moore was far from idle, and his new exhibition will feature many new works created over the last 2 years in Nevada, Colorado, and Benicia, California.
While Moore has worked since 2000 in the studios he and his wife, sculptor Linda Fleming, created in a historic Benicia brewery and saloon, he also spends several months of the year working at Wall Spring, his studio built on restored land in Nevada near the Smoke Creek Desert. Additionally, he works in the midsummer months and early winter at his studio at Libre, in the mountains of southern Colorado.
Short-term Rental Meeting Reminder
The Community Development Department invites you to attend a Community Meeting to discuss possible revisions to the City’s Short-term Rental permit process. This meeting will be held via videoconferencing with staff and the interested public on Wednesday, February 23 at 7 p.m.

By phone: 669.900.6833
Meeting ID: 842 4618 7209
Passcode: 704775

“Short-term Rentals”, refers to the rental of either bedrooms or housing units for a period of fewer than 30 days, typically on platforms such as AirBNB, VRBO and HomeAway.
 
A reminder on why we’re talking about this:
In September 2020, the City Council provided direction to conduct public outreach and prepare two options for consideration:
  • A draft ordinance that regulates short-term rentals, and
  • another draft ordinance that prohibits short-term rentals in Benicia.

City Staff held three meetings in 2021 to begin discussion on short-term rental experiences and best practices. Staff have prepared draft provisions that would be the foundation of new Short-term Rental regulations in Benicia and the Community Meeting on February 23 will be the first opportunity for interested people to review and provide public comment on those provisions that could be applied City-wide. 
Community Workshop on Housing
You’re invited to participate in Benicia’s planning for housing! In California, each city and county must update their Housing Element every eight years to plan for the housing needs of the community. This document is a crucial part of the General Plan, which serves as the blueprint for how the city will grow and address the changing needs of the community.

Tell us what you think. Please join us to learn more about the Housing Element update process, provide input on potential housing sites, and share your ideas on how the City can improve housing opportunities in the future.

Virtual Community Workshop
Thursday, March 3 at 6 p.m.

Additional details are available at www.ci.benicia.ca.us/housingelement.
City Employee Spotlight
Captain Jeff Davidson has been with the Benicia Fire Department for 24 years. In his time with the department, he has served as a firefighter/paramedic, then an engineer, and was promoted to Captain in February of 2013. Jeff was Firefighter of the Year in 2000 and, as one of the Department’s first rescue swimmers, helped start the water rescue program. He also worked on employee-employer relations for 12 years with the Benicia Firefighters Association.

Currently, Jeff has the monumental role of the Apparatus Maintenance Officer and oversees maintenance for a fleet of 24 vehicles.

Jeff has helped the department become a safer place for the fire family. He recently spearheaded the changeover from a class B firefighting foam that was carcinogenic and environmentally toxic to a new foam product that is environmentally friendly and non-hazardous. The new foam has helped expand the department's firefighting capabilities beyond just class B-type fires.

Jeff has been married for 25 years to his beautiful wife, Trish. They live in Cool, CA on a 2-acre property. (yes you read that right – Jeff is the coolest guy around). They share two children, Andrew (24) and Addison (12). They have two Quarter Horses named Honey and Flash and two boxers named Matto and Whitney. Jeff enjoys woodworking, camping, and kayaking. A few years ago, Jeff took his son to Moab and they went four-wheeling in their 2000 Jeep on Hells Revenge and Fins & Things.

Jeff’s favorite thing to eat while on duty in Benicia is Spicy Cashew Chicken from Pearl Thai. When he’s at home, his favorite place is Cool Beerwurks.
COVID Assistance
Find resources and information for seniors, local food access, basic needs and rental assistance, mental health, stress and coping, and more courtesy of Solano County Public Health. Benicia residents in need of help during these difficult times may find assistance through these local resources:

News Releases


Recent City of Benicia Press Releases are available on the City of Benicia website under Main/Announcements.
Save the Date
  • Feb 21 - Art Gallery Sub-committee meeting, 6:30 p.m. via livestream. See the Full Agenda for more information.
  • Feb 23 - Short-term Rental Community meeting, 7 p.m. via Zoom. Click here for the Zoom link.
  • Feb 24 - Historic Preservation Review Commission meeting, 6:30 p.m. via livestream. See the Full Agenda for more information.
Modified service due to COVID-19
City Hall is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you require entrance to City Hall offices outside of these hours, please make arrangements with staff from the department that you will be visiting.

All visitors shall be required to enter City Hall from East L street through the door located on the left (East) side of the building closest to the Post Office. Please check in with the staff person at the designated Welcome Window.

You will be required to wear a face covering over both your nose and mouth for the duration of your visit to City Hall. Please maintain 6 feet of social distancing between other visitors and staff. Do not visit City Hall if you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19. Appointments can always be rescheduled.
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