At the most recent city council meeting in Riverbank, many items were on the agenda. From the amendments regarding bicycle and pedestrian safety to the extension of the moratorium regarding data centers to the introduction of Scott Castle, CEO of Boyett Petroleum, the Sept. 8 agenda was packed.

With the rise of bicyclists using traditional bikes, E-bikes and motorized scooters, Police Chief Ed Ridenour shared some updates regarding the addition of new safety related ordinances. These ordinances address the concerns regarding excessive speed, failure to yield for pedestrians, hazardous operation including vandalism from the use or operation of bikes and were part of a motion regarding public safety that was passed 5-0 by the city council. Included in the new additions to the safety ordinances was the ability of law enforcement to impound bikes for up to 30 days if the rider was behaving unsafely, endangering the public or vandalizing property.

In other business, for the past several months local communities within California have been receiving requests to open their doors to data centers. These centers have become quite a controversial subject with concerns regarding how these centers could impact the communities in the short-term and long-term. From concerns about environmental impact, water contamination, energy containment and many others, these data centers have become an increasingly hot topic. From Modesto that recently had hundreds of residents show up to a city council meeting to protest a data center to Patterson that extended its data center moratorium to a full year, many neighbors have expressed their opposition to these centers.

Aemetis, who has worked with the City of Riverbank for many years and is the Master Plan Developer for the property that housed the former Army Ammunition Plant and is now home to the Riverbank Industrial Complex, has introduced a proposal which would include a new technology center. The Riverbank Technology Center would include a sustainable computing facility and would not impact city water and would not require any new additional structures. As Andy Foster, EVP for Aemetis North America, explained at the meeting, this technology center would bring millions of dollars to Riverbank to be allocated to schools, emergency services and so forth and would not require additional resources such as power or water from the City of Riverbank to run.

Though Foster shared some compelling information, many on the council felt that they still needed to glean a better understanding of what a data center is, how it impacts communities, what the long term effects might be and the council voted to move forward with the 45-day moratorium and will reexamine the proposal at the first council meeting in October.

For many that have wondered about the large building that used to house the MCI and TTY Communication Center on Oakdale Road, there is some interesting news. Scott Castle, President of Boyett Petroleum, announced during the meeting that Boyett Petroleum is relocating their offices to the 40,000 square foot office and administration center located at 6436 Oakdale Road. Boyett Petroleum was searching for a new location large enough to house their more than 100 employees and they have decided to bring their offices and business to the City of Action.

As Castle noted, “There are so many things happening here, this is where we want to be,” as he addressed the city council. Castle is working with the city to develop an Economic Incentive Agreement which would provide a certain percentage of profits to the City of Riverbank as well as Boyett Petroleum.

The meeting concluded with items including the moratorium on data centers and the allocation of funds within the Economic Incentive Agreement between Boyett Petroleum and the City of Riverbank on the forefront of future agendas.

There was also a reminder issued regarding the next council meeting, set for Tuesday, Sept. 22.

On the agenda for that meeting, which will begin at 6 p.m. at the Riverbank Community Center, 3600 Santa Fe, is a public hearing on the Riverwalk Specific Plan. Residents will have an opportunity to express their concerns and offer comments to the council regarding the Riverwalk Development Project at the Tuesday meeting.