Town Council of Mammoth Lakes

Minutes of Special Meeting

Wednesday, October 27, 2021 at 4:00 P.m. - 7:00 P.m.

437 Old Mammoth Road, Suite Z, Mammoth Lakes

Members Present:

• Mayor Bill Sauser, 
• Mayor Pro Tem Lynda Salcido, 
• Councilmember Kirk Stapp, 
• Councilmember John Wentworth, 
• and Councilmember Sarah Rea

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1.

CALL TO ORDER

The Mayor called the meeting to order at 4:02 in the Council Chamber, 437 Old Mammoth Road, Suite Z, Mammoth Lakes.

2.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Parks and Recreation Director Stuart Brown led the flag salute.

3.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

There were no public comments given at this time.

4.

POLICY MATTERS

4.1

Consider the Town’s Participation in the California Housing Accelerator Program for The Parcel.

Mayor Sauser recused himself and left the meeting at 4:05 p.m. due to his ownership of property within 500 feet of The Parcel. Councilmember Rea recused herself and left the meeting at 4:05 p.m. due to her rental of property within 700 feet of The Parcel.

Community and Economic Development Director Sandra Moberly outlined the information in the staff report. There was discussion among members of Council, staff, and Caleb Roope, President of The Pacific Companies.

• Moved by Councilmember John Wentworth
  Seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Lynda Salcido

  Adopt a resolution authorizing the Town’s participation in the California Housing Accelerator Program and authorize the Town Manager to file all required documentation.

  For (3)	Mayor Pro Tem Lynda Salcido, Councilmember Kirk Stapp, and Councilmember John Wentworth
  Abstain (2)	Mayor Bill Sauser, and Councilmember Sarah Rea

  Carried (3 to 0)

5.

STAFF PRESENTATIONS

5.1

Workshop on Allocation of TOT Revenues, Review of TBID and Short-Term Rentals.

Mayor Sauser and Councilmember Rea returned to the meeting at.5:15 p.m.

Town Manager Daniel C. Holler outlined the information in the staff report.  There was discussion among members of Council and staff regarding Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) allocations.

Councilmember Stapp requested that the following statement be read into the record, " The Town retains 2% of the revenues collected to offset collection costs processing enforcement."

SPEAKING FROM THE FLOOR:

Phil Moores, Executive Director of the Eastern Sierra Transit Authority (ESTA), thanked the Council for their support and discussed matching grants that ESTA was awarded for vehicle replacement purchases, and spoke about their current fleet and the cost to make necessary replacements. Mr. Moores said that they were entering driver contract negotiations to make the position more attractive as they have had trouble recruiting and spoke about potential solutions to keep drivers working all year, rather than seasonally.

Ron Cohen, President and Chief Operating Officer of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area (MMSA), spoke about the role MMSA played in the community with regard to TOT and TBID. He spoke about the history of the creation of the TBID and its success, and spoke about the improved Town structure and revenue streams. He said that political commitments were not written in stone and were open for discussion.

There was discussion among members of Council and staff.

Mr. Moores spoke about quantifying and measuring performance of the NGOs and said that he would provide the Town Manager with a vehicle replacement plan. He said that they would like to finalize their contract discussions by March. There was discussion among members of Council, staff, and Mr. Moores.

John Urdi, Mammoth Lakes Tourism (MLT) Executive Director, spoke about MLT's ability to track their expenditures and said he could provide ROI information to the Council. 

There was discussion among members of Council and staff regarding the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID).

There was discussion among members of Council and staff regarding short-term rentals (STRs).

Mr. Holler reviewed comments received by members of the Town Council.

Public comment from Jennifer Walker was received via email prior to the meeting that requested the Town implement incentive programs for homeowners to switch from STRs to long-term rentals and cited examples of such programs in South Lake Tahoe and Truckee.

6.

ADJOURNMENT

The Council adjourned the meeting at 6:57 p.m.