Ridgecrest council approves grants and contracts for transit vehicles, street repaving and Bowman Channel design; cannabis grant passes 4-1

The Ridgecrest City Council on July 16 approved a package of grant applications, contract work and policy housekeeping to fund transit vehicles, street rehabilitation and preliminary design of the Bowman drainage channel, while narrowly approving a $198,000 cannabis-tax grant for the police department amid council debate.

Council members said the grants would stretch local dollars by using state and federal programs to buy vehicles, improve road safety and pay for engineering work that the city says is necessary to advance larger construction projects.

Council discussion focused on two fault lines: whether the city should accept cannabis-tax dollars when the community has voted against legal commercial cannabis locally, and how to manage the technical and operational risks of electric transit vehicles. Council members and staff also described the Bowman Channel design contract as a first step toward a multi‑year, multi‑phase flood-control project.

The council voted 4-1 to accept the California Cannabis Tax Fund grant for the Ridgecrest Police Department. The grant, described by the police chief as “a no-match grant for a total of $198,000,” will fund officer training and a replacement transport vehicle outfitted with upgraded prisoner‑viewing cameras, the chief said. Councilmember Rajaratnam cast the lone vote against the grant, saying he was uncomfortable taking cannabis tax proceeds even though he did not dispute the public-safety purpose of the spending. “I am not comfortable taking this money from the cannabis tax fund,” Rajaratnam said during the discussion.

Council members who supported the grant said virus and drug‑impaired driving — including from cannabis — is occurring whether or not retail cannabis is sold in Ridgecrest, and that the grant would allow the department to send officers to instructor training and purchase equipment they would otherwise not be able to afford this year.

The council also approved a resolution to apply for FY 26–27 Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) and Carbon Reduction Program funds to procure one battery-electric cutaway bus. Staff said the total project amount in the grant paperwork is $344,289, of which the CMAQ/Carbon Reduction funds are expected to cover $304,800 and the city would provide a local match of $39,489.95. Council members discussed electric-vehicle range, charging infrastructure and long‑term maintenance costs; staff said most transit trips are local and that the city already operates one electric vehicle and plans to expand to a mostly electric fleet under its transit asset management requirements.

Separately, the council approved three Regional Surface Transportation Program (RSTP) supplemental applications for Las Flores Avenue and a separate RSTP application for a second phase of the Mahan Street rehabilitation project. The Mahan RSTP application requests $2,230,239.76 in federal funds, with a local match of about $288,951. Staff said those applications keep the projects “shovel ready” if additional federal/state funds are reallocated to Kern County.

For flood control and military resilience work the council authorized a professional‑services agreement with Provost & Pritchard for preliminary engineering on the East Bowman Channel in an amount not to exceed $470,000. City staff said the design work is fully grant‑funded; the plans will be broken into phases because full construction estimates for the channel run into the tens of millions of dollars.

On a procedural note, council adopted an amendment to its drug‑ and alcohol‑testing policy for transit employees so the designated drug program manager, medical review officer and substance‑abuse professional named in the policy are current before a scheduled DOT audit. Staff described the change as a housekeeping update required to avoid an audit finding.

Votes at a glance

- Resolution to accept California Cannabis Tax Fund grant for Ridgecrest Police Department — outcome: approved 4–1 (Yes: Mayor Endicott, Councilmember Blades, Councilmember Heyman, Councilmember Gorman; No: Councilmember Rajaratnam). Purpose: $198,000 for training and a transport vehicle.

- Resolution to apply for CMAQ/Carbon Reduction funds for one battery‑electric cutaway bus (FY26–27) — outcome: approved 5–0. Total project in grant packet: $344,289; expected federal portion $304,800; city match $39,489.95.

- RSTP application: Mahan Street phase (Bowman to Springer) — outcome: approved 5–0. Federal request $2,230,239.76; local match ~$288,951.

- RSTP supplemental applications for Los Flores Avenue phases 1–3 (China Lake to Norma; Norma to Downs; Downs to Mahan) — outcome: approved 5–0. Estimated federal shares and local matches were discussed; staff said exact match lines will be finalized.

- Professional services agreement with Provost & Pritchard for East Bowman Channel preliminary engineering (OLDCC grant) — outcome: approved 5–0. Contract not to exceed $470,000; fully grant funded.

- Amendment to the city’s zero‑tolerance drug and alcohol testing policy (staff and role updates ahead of DOT audit) — outcome: approved 5–0.

What council said and what comes next

Police and public‑safety staff framed the cannabis‑tax grant as a public‑safety measure to reduce impaired driving and to give officers modern transport and camera equipment. The police chief told council the vehicle purchase and camera upgrades were not budgeted and that the grant would let the department “mitigate some of our liability” and keep officers available for patrol instead of making long transports to the county jail.

Councilmembers supporting acceptance emphasized that the money comes from activity that will affect Ridgecrest regardless of whether retail cannabis is licensed locally. Opponents said the city’s previous votes to decline commercial cannabis licenses make acceptance of cannabis tax funding inconsistent with the city’s policy stance.

Staff said the CMAQ/Carbon Reduction application and RSTP supplemental submittals keep multiple pavement and transit projects ready to obligate federal funds if Kern COG makes additional funds available. If the Mahan RSTP application is awarded, staff said the city intends to combine that award with previously completed design work so construction can proceed more quickly.

The Bowman Channel design contract will produce plan sets and hydraulic analysis staff say are needed to pursue construction funding. City staff described the full channel as a multi‑phase project with construction estimates in the tens of millions and said they plan to seek additional grants and to phase work.

Council scheduled no further related votes at the meeting but, by approving the applications and contract, set the city on a path toward procurement and construction if funding awards follow.

Ending

Councilmembers and staff said they will return with final grant paperwork, corrected resolution language where needed and project‑specific schedules if funds are awarded. The city will also proceed with preparatory work for the Bowman Channel design and with procurement steps for the transit bus if the CMAQ/Carbon Reduction award is confirmed.