This document is a reoccurring update provided to the community which seeks to inform and connect with the public. It is intended to begin a dialogue with members of the community and allow for a constant flow of information from the Hemet City Manager's Office. These updates were provided to Hemet City Manager Christopher Lopez and then compiled into an easy, user friendly document to allow for easy sharing and readability.

1. HEM
ET
SEPT. 2021
CITY
OF
MONTHLY
UPDATES FROM
THE CITY MANAGER

2. STATS
Building & Safety
New Projects
Plan Reviews Routed for Review
Certificates of Occupancy Created
Permits Issued
All Inspections Performed
Tract Inspections Performed
352
358
3
252
369
227
Code Enforcement
Cases Created
Current Active Code Cases
Foreclosure Cases Monitored
Cases Brought into Compliance
Emails Recorded to Cases
Counter Visits
Phone Calls
Warning Citations Issued
67
424
72
163
36
14
61
119
Planning
Email Responses
Phone Calls
Counter Visits
Planning Inspections
Home Occupation Permits Issued
Sign Permits Issued
Certificate of Occupancies Issued
Plan Checks
500
133
51
6
2
1
15
46
AUGUST 2, 2021 - AUGUST 13, 2021

3. STATS
Police Department
Targeted Enforcement Stops
Police Explorer Participants
28
16
Public Works
Trees Trimmed
Service Requests Received
Service Requests Closed
Graffiti Complaints
Street Maintenance Requests
Illegal Dumping Requests
268
211
159
33
12
70
Information Technology
Helpdesk Tickets Closed
PEG TV Internet Stream Views
196
6
Library
Library Cards Issued
New Titles Added
134
100
AUGUST 2021

4. POLICE DEPARTMENT
"Officer T. McGinnis exemplified leadership/
innovation in providing service by coordinating
targeted traffic enforcement details in various
school zones within the City of Hemet."
The Hemet Police Explorer Program’s primary goal is to assist young people interested in learning about law enforcement. On
Wednesday, August 18th, the Explorer Post expanded from 11 youths to 16! The Police Department is honored to partner with
our youth and teach the importance of teamwork, community service, leadership skills, physical fitness, and ethical methods of
problem solving.
On Saturday, August 14th, Councilwoman Krupa, Police Chief Pust, and I attended the Panorama Village Community Center
meeting. The residents received an update on the City budget and City Strategic Plan. Chief Pust provided Crime Statistics,
Police Budget Program information and Measure U updates; he received several great questions from the community. This was
a great opportunity to highlight the many accomplishments achieved over the past year, and to speak to the future goals of the
City. This action is also clearly aligned with the City’s Strategic Plan. So far, staff and Council Members have teamed up since
July providing monthly updates to various community groups, and we continue to field requests for additional updates with
other groups. Many thanks to Councilmember Krupa for inviting staff to share updates on the Strategic Plan, as well as being a
conduit to connect with this specific group of residents.
On August 26th, a Public Safety Dispatcher Applicant accepted an offer of employment! The newly hired Dispatcher’s first day is
scheduled for September 7th, when he will start the Department’s Communication’s Training Program.
On February 23, 2021, the City Council approved the Motorola Solutions
Contract for PSEC. The cutover to PSEC was July 26th, and on August
26th, the Final Project Acceptance was signed. This was a significant
Public Safety project, which was quickly completed and under budget – a
savings of approximately $44,000. This was an incredible team effort
with PD, FD, IT and countless staff involved to complete this project. The
Council approved this project in multiple phases, and the staff is
extremely appreciative of the leadership of the Council to prioritize
Firefighter and Police Officer safety.
Officers Salazar and B. Willison recently completed the Field Training
Program and the officers are now assigned to their Patrol Shifts. Their
successful completion of the Field Training Program increases Patrol
staffing and allows for Officer Detwiler to attend the Basic K-9 Academy
starting September 6th with K-9 Bosco. K-9 Bosco is a 3-year old Belgian
Malinois with a patriotic birthdate of July 4, 2018.
The City’s Strategic Plan includes Quality of Life and an action item
related to hosting targeted police traffic enforcements. Monday, August
10th, marked the first day of school for the Hemet Unified School
District. School zones create a significant traffic and pedestrian safety
concern. Hemet Police Motor Officer T. McGinnis exemplified
leadership/innovation in providing service by coordinating targeted
traffic enforcement details in various school zones within the City of
Hemet. The targeted enforcement objective was traffic safety education
by issuing warnings and citations. No traffic collisions were reported in
school zones during that time.
Targeted enforcement began on 8/10/21; two school sites per day; two (2) Hemet Police Motor Officers assigned to the detail;
7 days of enforcement thus far totaled 28 enforcement stops that resulted in 11 issued citations and 16 warnings.
September 11, 2021 marked the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that brought down the World Trade Center, impacted
the United States Pentagon, and passengers on the United Airlines Flight 93 who decided to fight their hijackers to regain
control of their airplane resulting in their plane crashing in a field located in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Many of our
tenured and new Hemet Police employees served in the U.S. Armed Forces to combat terrorism and some continue to serve.
Last year, Officer Ortiz learned of the 9/11 Project Badge called “American First Responders Unit” and presented the concept
to Lt. Arellano. The 9/11 Project Badge is a campaign to have sworn police personnel and firefighters across the U.S. to wear a
9/11 Commemorative Badge every month of September from 2021 and beyond to pay tribute to the innocent people, law
enforcement personnel, and firefighters who lost their lives that day. Chief Pust authorized the Hemet Police Department’s
9/11 Commemorative Badge to be worn effective September 1st – 30th. All costs associated to the 9/11 Commemorative
Badges were paid by the Hemet Police Officer’s Association and Police Management Association. Officer Ortiz and Lt. Arellano
exemplified leadership and innovation while remembering those who lost their lives in a tragic event.
Since the City's use of the FLOCK system in June 2020, the Police Department has recovered 233 stolen vehicles with an
insurance value of over $2.3 million, and yielding 206 arrests.

5. FIRE DEPARTMENT
In August, Brush 303 assisted with a vegetation incident in Murrieta for an in-county mutual aid
request.
Crews are keeping up with increasing call volume due to COVID increases as well as extended wait
times for ambulances due to this volume increase.
Captain Kurt Havlick and Engineer Greg Wilson traveled to the KME factory in Pennsylvania in August
for inspection of our new Pumper that has been in construction for over a year. We are expecting that
Engine to arrive in Hemet early October, with the goal of being placed in service by end of November.
This will replace Engine 1, which currently has 180k miles and is approximately 17 years old.
Hemet Fire Fighters Have Dispatched Across California to Help Other Agencies Fight Fires!

6. PUBLIC WORKS
Work continues on developing the Well 2A Repair/Rehabilitation Plans. The bid specification for the well
rehab was posted to PlanetBids, with a closing date of September 20th. In addition, Well 12 repairs are
moving forward with the actual removal of the remaining shafts; videotaping of the well casing was
completed last month and staff is anticipating a report from the well company soon.
Staff will be exploring the use of additional brush grapple equipment in order to accelerate the number of
trees being trimmed. Use of a grapple will allow the tree team to focus on tree trimming without needing
to delay production while chipping the resulting trimmings.
The public hearing for the revised back-flow ordinance was
scheduled for the September 14th Council Meeting and the Council
was briefed on the requirements of SB 1383 as it relates to solid
waste and recycling programs.
Production tree trimming is on-going in the Seven Hills
Neighborhood, and last month, 268 trees were completed – tree
crews are maintaining daily productivity in this area. Work will
continue until all trees are completed in this grid which is one of the
action items related to Public Works.
Work is continuing on revisions to the City’s water conservation
ordinance to incorporate the latest requirements and standards.
Landscape enhancements consisting of installation of
drought tolerant plant materials and drip irrigation are
being installed along Front Street between State and
Harvard and Florida and Latham. These landscaping
improvements have received positive feedback.
For the month of August, the City received 211 new
service requests through See/Click/Fix. The top three
service requests in this period were for illegal dumping
on public and private locations (70), graffiti (33) and
street maintenance (12). The department has closed 159
requests.

7. The Library has added carousels for new items on the
front page of the online Library Catalog. This
enhancement allows library users to visually see new
material and award-winning material that the Library
offers.
Our Library was a polling place for the recent election
and staff worked in concert with the Registrar of
Voters to collect ballots.
Passport acceptance is booming. Letitia Bowles has
begun using an appointment website to help schedule
Passport appointments. This link is available on the
library home page. Staff has had a minimum of 10
passport applications per day each month.
Staff issued 134 new Library Cards in the month of
August, and added over new 100 titles manually in the
just one week last month.
Library staff participated in National Night out August,
and is now offering a new story walk. When you visit,
enjoy the story walk titled, “What I Like About Me!”
September is National Library Card Month. Staff and
community members are encouraged to sign up to get
a Hemet Public Library card. Benefits include, online
homework help for all grades including college
students, job assistance, online books, movies, digital
music and magazines, among other library services.
LIBRARY
@HEMETLIBRARY

8. The Code Compliance Division has scheduled assessments for landscaping along the city’s major commercial corridors. Based
on the Council’s prioritization of reducing blight and making the community more attractive, staff has been focusing their efforts
on projects that have a direct correlation to improving the City’s visual appearance.
Code is addressing the issues of inoperable vehicles and parking on lawns. Prior to Code conducting this activity, staff did a social
media campaign to educate the public on the municipal code and what was not allowed per the code.
Code Compliance staff has re-engaged with sidewalk vendors. Staff continues to flex their schedules to work weekends and
make sure that all vendors are following the latest ordinance changes approved by the Council. While the Council adopted a new
policy, the reality is that we are running into challenges with the implementation. While this may appear as a setback, it’s an
opportunity to refine, evaluate, and examine what portions of the policy may need additional changes.
On August 10, 2021, the City Council received a presentation and work study session on Objective Design Standards and
Emerging Trends.
On August 10, 2021, the City Council approved ZC 21-001 West End Zoning Consistency to change Existing Heavy Agriculture
Zone to General Manufacturing to be Consistent with the Existing General Plan Designation of Industrial for seven selected areas.
On August 10, 2021, the City Council approved Development Agreement DAA 20-001 for Tres Cerritos West.
On August 17, 2021, the Planning Commission approved Conditional Use Permit 21-006 for the on-site sale of alcohol beverages
in conjunction with community events.
On August 17, 2021, the Planning Commission approved Conditional Use Permit CUP 18-006 (CUP Mod.1) for the construction of
a new Dave’s Hot Chicken Restaurant and Drive-Thru, located within the Page Plaza shopping center.
Code Compliance staff is explaining and educating our community on Illegal Parking Violations. Stats on Parking Enforcement for
NEP # 2 Southside Florida.
8/25/21 = 17 citations – 28 warnings
8/26/21 = 18 citations – 24 warnings
8/30/21 = 23 citations – 37 warnings
8/31/21 = 17 citations – 30 warnings
Total = 75 citations – 119 warnings
COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
Dave's Hot Chicken is
coming to town!

9. A balanced budget with no use of reserves to balance the budget
Recommendations to stop the use of one-time revenues for
ongoing expenditures
Consolidations of Departments and operations
While we have made much progress, there is much more work to be
done. With the leadership of the Council providing sound financial
policy decisions, there is much to be proud of, but much more work to
be completed.
Due to the leadership of the Council over the last few years, there has been a concentrated effort to take policy action that
deviates from past deficit spending ways.
As a result, the State auditor has taken note. Recently, the State Auditor removed the City from the “High Risk” designation.
I am in regular discussions with the State Auditor’s Office and have been providing them with updates on how the City is
moving along and the progress we have made.
Although we have been placed on the “Moderate Risk” designation, I believe the continued work of the management team
to provide the Council with policy proposals rooted in sound financial practices will continue towards a path of financial
progress.
You can see the designation here: https://www.auditor.ca.gov/local_high_risk/dashboard-csa
Some of the changes the management team have provided to the City Council include the following:
A balanced budget with no use of reserves to
balance the budget
Recommendations to stop the use of one-time
revenues for ongoing expenditures
Consolidations of Departments and operations
1.
2.
3.
HEMET'S HIGH RISK DESIGNATION HAS BEEN
REMOVED BY THE STATE AUDITOR
Staff is working on implementing an external facing portal for the Council which will allow for up-to-date information on
the status of the Strategic Plan. As it stands, staff is using Excel spreadsheets to update our office on the status of the
Plan.
City Hall has resumed to a normal operating schedule and will remain open all day. The limited hours are no longer in
effect, and we will be working on schedules to allow for five day a week coverage in the near term.
There is a significant amount of work going on right now in implementing the Strategic Plan. While many of the
projects listed in the plan will be completed over the fiscal year, many are near the beginning stages and will
continue to move along and progress over the course of the year.
OTHER UPDATES
What We've Done to Improve Our Status:

10. Misha Sisikin, Human Resources Analyst
Gus Chavez, IT Specialist
Joanna Galan, Accounting Technician
Candace Sunds, Procurement Administrator
Huge Welcome to the following people who recently
joined the Hemet team:
STAFF
HIGHLIGHTS
Megan Gibson, Public Works Administrative Assistant
Gregory Meeh, Code Compliance Office Specialist
Huge thanks to the following people who have gone over and above in
serving our community recently:
Jillian Johnson was recently promoted to Permit Technician and is a true asset
to the City of Hemet. She started in the Community Development team to fill a
vacant Office Specialist III position in the Building Division. With her
educational background, including a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications,
she has quickly adapted to the Community Development Department, quickly
learning the duties for her job through interactions with fellow staff members
and a curiosity for the function of the Building Division. When the position of
Permit Technician became available, she applied for the position and was the
top candidate. After an initial period in her original role, she was promoted to a
Permit Technician.
Jillian enjoys playing golf and spending time with her boyfriend and their 5
dogs. She also enjoys being the token aunt to her 5 nieces and spending time
with her family.

11. TEXT "HEMET" TO
22828 FOR UPDATES
S T A F F I C E C R E A M S O C I A L
In our community's Strategic Plan, adopted by the Council in June 2021, the Council committed to
improving organizational effectiveness. Part of that goal was the objective of increasing employee
retention by training and creating a positive workplace. I am both excited and proud that we have worked
toward accomplishing the goal of holding employee recognition events three times a year. The Hemet
team works so hard to provide consistent and reliable service to the community and they deserve to be
treated and celebrated for their hard work. I look forward to reporting more important milestones moving
forward.
Strategic Plan Milestones