By @Colleen Haley, CSDA Public Affairs Field Coordinator, Bay Area Network
During the State Legislature’s Interim Study Recess this fall, Capitol Staffers from a dozen different offices participated in a tour of Bay Area special districts. The event was hosted by CSDA, the Association of California Healthcare Districts (ACHD), the California Association of Public Cemeteries (CAPC) and the California Municipal Utilities Association (CMUA).
The goal of the tour was to teach policymakers about the unique nature of special districts, from their governance, to how they are structured and where they get their funding.
District hosts included:
Attendees heard firsthand from special district board members, general managers, and front-line specialists; they experienced district operations up close and engaged in meaningful policy discussions.
The tour began with a brief survey and introduction on special districts in Sacramento, and then attendees headed to the Pleasant Hill Recreation and Park District. The group was greeted by Director @Sandra Bonato and staff, including General Manager @Michelle Lacy. While at the district, Capitol staffers were guided through the Teen Center and heard about district programs created especially for low-income teens, a group that often gets left out of after school care funding. Lacy then invited attendees to break up into groups to play a game of “build a park.” During the game, groups were instructed to select amenities they wanted for their parks, but within a limited budget. Participants had fun with this activity while learning about the real-life challenges of creating a new park.
Tour attendees then traveled to the Los Vaqueros Reservoir, as hosted by the Contra Costa Water District. At the Los Vaqueros Interpretive Center, the group heard from Board member @Antonio Martinez and Chief Executive Officer @Rachel Murphy. Attendees learned about the origins of the district as primarily serving agriculture and industry to now serving over 500,000 residents, the importance of representing the community in a transparent and accessible manner and how key facilities like the Contra Costa Canal and Los Vaqueros Reservoir are critical to district operations. The district also shared details about specific challenges it navigates as an urban water agency dependent on the Bay Delta. Lastly, attendees were taken to the crest of the dam at Los Vaqueros to learn about its biological and cultural resources and how the district manages the approximately 20,000-acre watershed.
The third stop on the tour was the San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District. As guided by Fire Chief @Paige Meyer and Director of Communications @Denise Pangelinan, the group toured the district’s new state of the art administrative building, dispatch stations, and emergency operating center (EOC). The new offices are a result of a collaboration between the district, the City of San Ramon, and San Ramon Police Department. When completed, the building will be a regional asset for the entire county. The partnership also contributed to an ISO 1 Rating for the community which helps residents secure better insurance premiums. Attendees additionally learned about the newly created, first of its kind, Behavioral Health Program that will be initiated at this facility to allow for the warm transfer of 911 calls to the local 988 call center, to better assist those with mental health issues.
After an overnight in Oakland, the group headed to the Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District. While here, General Manager @Ryan Clausnitzer and employees demonstrated how to properly identify different life stages of a mosquito, both low- and high-tech tools, and the different ways the mosquito population is controlled, including by the use of natural predators, like fish, and the district’s solar/electrification initiatives. Among the many highlights were the lab microscopes, 3-D printed mosquito traps, VectorSurv Maps to track mosquitos and diseases and the super-fast-2-hour mosquito virus and PCR test. Lastly, attendees were also made aware of the tremendous outreach efforts made to educate school children and the public-at-large on how to identify mosquitoes in nature and mitigate their presence in their own backyards.
Capitol staff then traveled to Mountain View to tour the El Camino Healthcare District. Attendees learned about the district’s history and governance, its long list of innovations, including the first electronic medical record, and its significant impact on the community through its $7.7 million in grants and sponsorships. The district’s Chief Executive Officer, @Dan Woods, also discussed the hospital’s focus on patient care and employee wellbeing, which was stressed even during the pandemic. Lastly, attendees also got to hear from the Chief Nursing Officer Cheryl Reinking. Cheryl took the group on a tour of the hospital’s new mother baby unit at Orchard Pavilion. Attendees viewed the individual birth rooms, centralized nursing stations and highly advanced medical stations.
While heading back to Sacramento, the tour made one final stop at the Solano Cemetery District. The delegation was greeted by the district’s board of directors and staff. The group was then led into the district’s historic Stone Chapel where General Manager @Dolores Hernandez provided some background on the district and its operations. With its donated land, several name changes and graves dating back to the 1800s, including members of the Donner Party, the district has a rich history. After a guided tour of the cemetery, the group ended at the district’s beautiful new administration building and reception hall where attendees were treated to refreshments grown on district land set aside for future cemetery growth.
The purpose of the annual Special Districts Tour is to educate policymakers about the nature of special districts. Before leaving Sacramento, attendees were asked “how they would rate their knowledge of special districts” and “how they would rate the importance of special districts.” Prior to the tour, the average rate of knowledge of special districts was 5.45 on a scale of 1 to 10. After the tour, the average rate increased to 7.69. Additionally, before the tour the importance Capitol Staffers placed on special districts was 8.33 and it grew to 9.08 afterwards.
CSDA is grateful to showcase some of the wonderful work that special districts do in the community every day and encourages all special districts to host facility tours for your state and federal legislative delegation. Thank you so much for our tour partners and district hosts!