City Manager's Updates

City Staffing Transitions

I wanted to thank the Council for the unanimous support at the April 16 Council meeting for the staffing transition plan that we presented. Over the next 12-18 months, this plan will move the City away from such a heavy reliance on contract staff and consultants, toward a more balanced approach that establishes a basic level of service with in-house employees, supplemented as needed by contracted staff.

As mentioned on Thursday night, the recruitment for the Economic Development Manager position has already gone public. It has a closing date of May 8. I will keep you posted on all of the other recruitments and transitions as we move forward with them.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Jurupa Valley’s Budget

Administrative Services Director Connie Cardenas is already doing a deep dive into the potential impacts of the COVID-19 public health crisis on our City finances. Obviously, the severity of the impact will depend greatly on how long the Governor’s Stay at Home Order lasts and how deep the psychological effect of all this is on the willingness of people to spend money at stores and restaurants, buy homes, invest in new commercial/industrial developments in Jurupa Valley, etc.

Aside from COVID-19, Jurupa Valley’s sales tax collections will be impacted negatively by the recent massive drop in oil and gasoline prices. There are over 40 gasoline stations in our city limits, and fuel sales are an important component of our sales tax base. While the lower prices are nice from a consumer perspective, they will bring a decrease in our sales tax revenues, especially if the lower prices persist for more than three or four months. Right now our approach is to be conservative and cautious, but not doomsday in our thinking. We may have a tough 12-18 months, but we are still very optimistic about Jurupa Valley’s long-term financial future.

Interactive Map of Open Businesses

Last week, our staff published the City’s “Open Business Map.” The map displays many restaurants and other businesses that remain open with adjusted services during the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health directives. The map was created using the City’s G.I.S. system. Businesses can access the map and submit a form to have their business hours, location, and other information loaded onto the map. Once submitted, staff review the submission for errors and approve the information. The City received the first wave of business data for the map from the Jurupa Valley Chamber of Commerce.

The map is one of many resources that this City is promoting to aid small businesses in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The map is available here: https://www.jurupavalley.org/428/Open-Business-Map

Accela Citizen Access (ACA)

This week Development Services launched the Accela Citizen Access (ACA) portal which allows remote permit applications via the City’s website within the Accela permit tracking software. The additional functionality afforded by ACA will allow developers, architects, contractors and residents to apply for many permits remotely, 24/7 via the web or smartphone.

Since August 2019 Development Services has used Accela to track building, engineering and planning permits and entitlement applications as they are processed through the City. ACA was originally scheduled for deployment this summer; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, implementation was expedited to protect staff and the public. Development Services continues to strive to serve residents and the development community through digital permitting, plan check and inspection that allows the City to maintain operations while following CDC guidelines.

City Manager’s Office Implements Zoom for Internal Use

The City is now using the Zoom video conferencing platform to conduct many of the regular internal staff meetings that take place here at City Hall. The City’s conference rooms remain available, but can only be used if social distancing directives can be accommodated (6 feet of separation).

For some of the City’s staff meetings (executive, departmental, development review, etc.), we cannot guarantee a reasonable degree of separation due to the size of conference rooms, so Zoom has become our meeting space.

I am happy to announce that as time goes on, we’re becoming more familiar with Zoom and the variety of features that the platform offers. We are keeping meetings productive and the ability to give presentations via Zoom has kept our internal development review process on track.

WRCOG 2019/2020
Fellowship Cohort Completion

A big congratulations to our 2019/2020 Public Service Fellowship Intern, Dylan Skrah who recently completed his nine-month commitment with the City of Jurupa Valley!

During his time with us, Dylan worked on a wide variety of projects including the Retro Reflectivity and Stop Sign Database Collection Project.

Dylan is currently finishing his Master of Public Policy Program with the University of California, Riverside. Upon completion of the program, Dylan plans to pursue a career in regional transportation development.

We are thankful for his time spent with us and we wish Dylan the best of luck in all of his future endeavors.

For more information about the Fellowship Program, please visit WRCOG's website

City Clerk Updates

The City Clerk’s Office has been able to maintain business continuity and compliance during the COVID-19 crisis by utilizing GovQA’s Public Records Request Management software. The City’s online public records request portal went live in November 2019 and staff has seen a steady rise in its popularity. To-date the department has processed over 160 online public records requests. This system has allowed the City Clerk’s staff to continue to function with as little disruption as possible.

Finance Department Updates

The Finance Department has a new cashier. Her name is Salina Cano. She has lived in Riverside for the past 28 years. She has one teenage son attending high school. Her favorite things to do include escaping to the local mountains, visiting museums, hanging out with family and friends and off-roading. She is currently pursuing her Accounting degree.

Salina worked in Accounts Payable/Receivables for six years with Neoteryx, LLC., which is an innovative Micro Blood Sampling company.

Code Enforcement Updates

Unpermitted Truck Yard

Trucks and trailers have been removed.

Illegal Marijuana Grow

3865 Foxtail Lane

Marijuana Cultivation & Construction w/o permit

Violation of COVID-19 Order

The Riverside County District Attorney’s office contacted the City Attorney’s office requesting assistance with enforcement of COVID-19 Order.

Code Enforcement Posted copies of the Order on the front of two businesses.

Large Tree Branches on Horse Trail

11231 66^th Street

Tree Branches were cleared by the City Public Works and contractors

Sheriff's Department Updates

Jurupa Valley Weekly Report March 29-April 4, 2020

Calls for service- 1,179
Stolen Vehicles- 10 (15A1F)
Recovered Stolen Vehicles – 3 (15B1N, 15C1N)
Traffic Enforcement Activity
1. Citations- 1 (Motors), 34 (Commercial Citations)
2. Collisions- 19(Property Damage), 6 (Minor -Injury), 8 (Hit and Run), 0 (Fatal)
3. DUI Arrests-8
JV Municipal Citations Issued- 0

Significant Activity

4/1/2020, Chino PD was surveilling a suspect for an escape from a federal alternative sentencing program. The suspect drove into Etiwanda Recycling when he noticed he was being followed. He attempted to escape, and an Officer involved shooting occurred.
Due to COVID -19 safety guidelines, deputies have been directed to utilize “risk vs gain” when determining whether to take action. As a result, enforcement activity is going to be reduced.
SET team arrested a burglary suspect who was suspected of burglarizing several small businesses in Jurupa Valley.
Commercial burglaries are up, so Lieutenant Young has directed Detectives to conduct surveillance operations on weekends.

Assisting Another Department (Animal Control)

On Sunday, April 12th, 2020, approximately 1600 hours, Jurupa Valley deputies were dispatched to an undisclosed location in the city of Jurupa Valley reference assisting Animal Control (Due to the safety of the persons involved, the address will not be released). The Department received information about a video, circulating on social media outlets, which depicted a dog being run over by a vehicle. Our investigation revealed that the traffic collision was not intentional.

For more information, please visit the Riverside County Sheriff's Dept. website

Fire Department Updates

The City of Jurupa Valley fixed the Opticom at the intersection of Etiwanda and San Sevaine. This will ensure Firefighters and the public are safe when a Fire Truck approaches the intersection, allowing all the lights to turn red so that there is minimal impact to the flow of traffic when a Fire Truck approaches.
The new gate project and ADA ramp is near completion at Fire Station 16.
2,600 sandbags and three yards of sand were distributed to Jurupa Valley residents in preparation for the recent rains that hit the region.