Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Port Hueneme Measure U committee keeps public safety top as it previews 2025 budget
Summary
The Transactions and Use Tax Citizens Oversight Committee on Dec. 11 reviewed midyear Measure U spending, endorsed public safety as the top funding priority for 2025, discussed capital projects including Bubbling Springs Park and a small EV‑charging rollout, and approved next year’s meeting schedule.
PORT HUENEME, Calif. — The Transactions and Use Tax Citizens Oversight Committee met Dec. 11 to review midyear Measure U revenues and spending and gave staff high‑level guidance to keep public safety the committee’s top priority as the city prepares a 2025 draft budget.
Staff summarized two years of Measure U activity and said a one‑time spike in capital improvement spending was driven by the Bubbling Springs Park project, which was reestimated at about $15 million and is on pace to finish in March. “We are right on $15,000,000,” staff said, describing a revision from an earlier, lower estimate after contractor and market updates.
The committee heard staff’s revenue projection, based on an HDL sales‑tax analysis: “We estimate our Measure U revenues will be $3,100,000 next year,” the staff member said. Using recent averages, staff outlined a starting allocation for planning purposes: roughly $1,400,000 for public safety, $488,000 for streets and maintenance, $343,000 for parks and recreation, and $836,000 for capital improvement projects. Staff characterized those as the baseline the city would use when preparing the detailed March budget packet and asked the committee whether the allocation priorities still matched the committee’s intent.
Committee members — speaking as a group — said public safety should remain the priority. One member noted recent changes in the police leadership and improvements in public safety outcomes, and others said they were comfortable beginning with staff’s proposed allocation and adjusting if the draft budget shows a shortfall for public safety.
Committee members asked about specific projects included in the CIP line. Staff said Bubbling Springs Park accounted for the spike in CIP spending and that most other categories would return to prior levels in 2025. Staff also reported progress on a federal grant tied to the project, saying finance had drawn down most funds and that “we got the biggest chunk of the money in,” while noting approximately less than $1,000,000 remained to be finalized.
Members discussed a planned, limited rollout of electric‑vehicle chargers (an item with $25,000 identified in the plan). Staff said the chargers are not expected to be revenue generators and that several of the proposed units were included as part of a grant requirement tied to the park project. “It’s not a moneymaker,” the staff member said, adding that the primary costs are running electricity to the sites and that the city expects to recover installation and operating costs through user fees and parking rules where appropriate. Committee members raised equity concerns for residents without home chargers and asked that staff locate chargers in places that balance access and parking availability, such as park lots and a couple of beach spaces.
The committee approved two routine motions during the meeting: a motion to accept the minutes (moved by a committee member and seconded by staff) and a motion to adopt the proposed quarterly meeting calendar (moved by a committee member and seconded by another member). The calendar was approved, with the committee scheduled to reconvene on March 26, 2025 at 5 p.m. Staff also noted that a recent change on the city council means council appointments to boards will be revisited after the new member is sworn in Jan. 6.
The meeting closed after a motion to adjourn. Staff said it will return in March with a draft budget that applies the committee’s guidance and will include more detailed line items and tradeoffs for committee review.
