The City Manager’s Weekly Update is published and distributed each week to inform the Council,

City employees, and the public about current City activities and information.

January 6, 2023

City Declared Local Emergency


On Wednesday night City Council ratified the proclamation declaring a local emergency in Lodi due to the storm system that began on December 28, 2022. View the full declaration here.


The storm surge on December 31 brought localized street flooding, downed trees/power lines, and power outages. City staff worked tirelessly to address these issues and keep our community safe. Thank you to all of our staff that helped mitigate the issues and worked to restore the damage.


Public Works addressed the flooded streets throughout the night on December 31 and into the new year, moving water to keep the levels from reaching any homes. On January 3, crews installed additional auxiliary pumps to assist in draining the City's primary basins by supplementing pumping capacity in preparation for the following storms.


A sandbag station was set up prior to the December 31 and January 4 storms, staffed by the Partners group, and available to all Lodi residents.


The Fire and Police Departments dealt with heavy call volumes on the night of December 31, and units triaged calls based on severity. The Fire Department up-staffed personnel and equipment for the anticipated storm on January 4, and there were thankfully no storm-related calls that night.


Electric Utility experienced significant damage on December 31 to portions of the distribution system and crews worked throughout the night to make areas safe, cleared tree limbs and debris from the overhead lines, repaired leaning or damaged poles, and began working to put the system back together. All available staff were called in and continued working around the clock to restore service to all customers by mid-day on January 1. Crews proactively cleared trees, reinforced/rebuilt parts of the system in preparation for the January 4 storm, and they had no outages or disruptions to service that night.


Lodi Parks took a big hit from the storm on December 31, with over 100 downed trees and 11 parks with damage to fences and/or amenities. All parks are currently closed to the public due to current and potentially hazardous conditions.


The next week continues to have forecasted storms and staff are working to be prepared and protect our community during these events. Follow the City of Lodi Facebook page for the most up-to-date announcements.

January Energy Cost Adjustment


The natural gas supply shortage remains in the spotlight during this winter and the natural gas prices are pushing electricity market prices to trend higher (more than 5 times the historical averages).  With the help from LEC’s revenues, the January 2023 ECA is 5.11 cents/kWh which is lower than December’s ECA a little bit. The series of rain storms heading to California will help alleviate energy price pressure.

 

Customers can take advantage of a number of payment assistance programs to reduce the financial impact associated with increasing monthly utility bills. For eligibility and information on these programs, please visit www.lodielectric.com. If you are having trouble paying your electric bill, there are options available to you. For more information on paying your bill and payment plan options, please call 333-6717 or email:  customerservice@lodi.gov. 


Conserve energy, and save money!


Holiday Package Theft Arrests


Over the holidays, Lodi Police Detectives placed bait packages throughout the City at various times throughout the day, in an effort to crack down on package thefts. On December 22, one of the bait packages was stolen off of a porch at a residence in Lodi, and officers were alerted to the theft. The suspects were quickly located and arrested for grand theft and other felony theft related charges. Both suspects were ultimately booked into the Lodi City Jail. We would like to thank the community and the residents who allowed us to place these bait packages on their porch. Great work by Lodi Police Department!

Library Quarterly Update


 Stay up to date with the latest news and events at Lodi Public Library by reading our Winter Quarterly Newsletter! View the newsletter here.