Atascadero city council talks solar permits, logos
Residential, roof-top solar units like this these are easily permitted in Atascadero.
Council votes on solar permits and considers city logos to be used in tourism marketing
– The Atascadero City Council voted 5-0 Tuesday to comply with a state mandate requiring an expedited permit process for installing residential, rooftop solar units — a process the city has already been using for more than a year.
“It’s kind of interesting that California caught up with us,” Mayor Pro Tem Heather Moreno said at Tuesday’s meeting.
Assembly Bill 2188 requires streamlined permit processes for residential solar systems in an effort to encourage green energy sources. California is the first state in the country to mandate a standardized, streamlined solar permitting practice that requires all cities to have such a process in place by this September.
Staff reported that since January 2014, the city has issued more than 300 permits, approximately 90 percent of which were processed online. Those households using solar energy are responsible for removing 1.5 kilowatts or 1.5 million watts of power from the energy grid.
The council voted 5-0 in favor of complying with the bill.
The existing logo.
A second agenda item focused on city tourism, specifically possible logos.
Atascadero is considering three logos to be used for tourism marketing.
Verdin Marketing presented three logos for consideration, and the council weighed in with their opinions on which would best serve the city for tourism-marketing purposes.
Four goals from branding the city, of which the logo is one part of that effort, were established as listed in the branding document:
- 1. The brand will need to attract tourists to Atascadero without having wine or beaches
- 2. The brand will need to promote the city as is without any kind of new attractions or product
- 3. An image that will be the base of what the city does in promotional efforts to pull people downtown as it continues to develop
- 4. Build consensus with a plan that has so many different priorities
Of the three logos, the first was a hand-drawn script; the second used calligraphy with an image of oak trees above the city name, and the third, was bolder, in all-caps.
Councilwoman Roberta Fonzi was the first to enter her opinion favoring the first logo and drawing the indelible vision of the second logo’s tree images as resembling eyebrows.
Councilman Bob Kelley preferred the eyebrow-like logo. Councilman Brian Sturtevant preferred the first and second logos. Mayor Pro Tem Heather Moreno preferred the first logo, adding that she liked the oak-tree concept. Mayor Tom O’Malley seemed to take a minute to adjust to any of the logos then in weighed in in favor of the first logo.
“I don’t like number three,” he said. “It looks like too many things struck together, which are disjointed … My first thought is, I like the idea of having trees. Unfortunately, we’re not named “pass of the oaks” … The simplicity of number one is unique … it’s simple, classic.”
Verdin said that the council and public comments and will use the input to continue the logo’s development.
