Porterville council approves ballot question to let city crews perform public works

Mayor Meister and four council members voted to put a charter amendment on the ballot that would let the city perform maintenance, repair and public-improvement work with its own forces rather than requiring outside contracts. Proponents said the change would let city crews move faster on road repairs and other safety-related projects.

The council’s motion asked voters to amend Section 61 of the charter so the city “shall have the power to perform any work of improvement, replacement, repair, or maintenance by use of its own forces and is not required to contract for such work.” Mayor Meister framed the proposal as a response to deteriorating streets and called it a way to accelerate “public safety resurfacing.”

Supporters said self-performance could reduce costs and scheduling delays tied to contracting. “We need this in Porterville,” Mayor Meister said during the discussion, arguing the city is “20 years behind our roads” and that empowering crews would be the “cheapest approach” to restore lanes.

Opponents warned of removing safeguards from the charter. At the vote the motion passed 4-1; the council did not record individual roll-call votes by name in the transcript excerpt, but the clerk announced the motion passed 4-1. Council members who opposed or expressed caution raised concerns about preserving bid thresholds, prevailing-wage requirements on grant-funded work, and the potential loss of transparency if oversight language is removed from the charter.

The council also asked staff for clearer data on road conditions (the PCI index) to inform program design and future budgeting. Director Alvarez told the council the last PCI assessment was about five years ago and that an updated index was due.

The ballot measure will proceed to the city’s ballot process; staff and the city attorney will bring finalized language back to the council for approval before it is filed. The council’s action authorizes placement of the charter question on the ballot, not immediate policy changes to procurement or contracting practices.