Tuesday, May 13, 2025

The council's sole spending action was a unanimous 5-0 vote approving Formation of Underground Utility District No. 1, authorizing underground installation of utility lines along Muroc Street (Oleander to Acacia) and Acacia Avenue (Muroc to Alondra) near Compton High School, with Southern California Edison serving as both the grant source ($5.67M Rule 20A allocation) and the sole contractor; total project expenditures are listed at $3.3M, broken across line items including $1.32M for mainline trenching and conduit (40%), $495,000 for crossings and vaults (15%), and $330,000 for street restoration (10%), with the public works director stating the project could run up to 84 months. One speaker at the public hearing questioned whether the city charter's requirement for a state-licensed civil engineer had been satisfied and whether affected property owners received legally required advance notice; the public works director stated notifications were sent per municipal code and that licensed engineering firms are consulted for work requiring a PE signature, though the speaker was not satisfied with that response. The budget workshop was an informational item with no spending approved; the city manager stated a recommended balanced budget would be delivered within days, described an approximate $275M all-funds city budget, and noted the annual Los Angeles County Sheriff's contract is approaching $29M — the city manager attributed this trajectory to escalating liability, personnel, and equipment costs built into the county's rate structure. A developer told the council that city delays in processing HUD project-based vouchers are threatening a 75-unit affordable housing project at 1434 West Compton Boulevard, which the developer stated has already received a rare 90-day extension from the state tax credit committee expiring July 11.