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The complaint file
Monday, December 01, 2008
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November 22nd, 2009
November 15th, 2009
November 8th, 2009
November 1st, 2009
October 25th, 2009
What do you suppose Napans complain about most?

Corked cabernet? Bel Aire Plaza parking? ATMs that speak Spanish? The lack of skating rinks as outlets for young people? Questionable grammar and punctuation in the local newspaper?
Those are popular ones among the readers who add comments to stories on the Napa Valley Register’s Web site.

It turns out that the city of Napa tracks the nature of the complaints it receives.
Napa City Manager Mike Parness left a list of recent complaints when he and Mayor Jill Techel visited the Register editorial board Nov. 20.

So, in honor of my late father’s affinity for the TV game show “Jeopardy,” I’ll ask the question about the no. 1 request for service in the form of a statement: This category of complaint to the city of Napa had the most people feeling as though they were out on a limb …
What is “tree issues,” Alex.

According to data collected by the city, some 150 requests for service between July and September had to do with fallen or dangerous trees.

 Tree calls represented 34 percent of the 445 service requests citizens made via calls, e-mails, by using the city’s Web site or going the old-fashioned route and walking into City Hall.

Coming in second, with 22 percent of the requests, was the category listed as “light out,” a reference to blown fuses or burned-out bulbs on street lights. A basic safety issue.

The rest of the list is more closely clustered. No. three is “dead animal,” a sad call, indeed. The city contracts with the Napa County Sheriff’s Department for animal control services, and the two are negotiating a new deal. The city took one call on that subject every three days.

Fourth is “litter or debris,” barely edging out park issues to round out the top five.

The city can take heart in that it took no calls in one category, pollution, which presumably is distinguishable from litter and debris by toxicity or size.

The city also got few calls for water quality and water pressure concerns, water leaks or tilting or malfunctioning utility poles, nuisances at construction sites or in regard to city landscaping.

The city of Napa also lists its average reaction times to requests for service. The categories that are easiest for the city to resolve include traffic signal malfunctions, graffiti and sign problems.

The city is slowest at rough road complaints and concerns about sidewalks, issues for which this and other cities scramble for money to fund repairs; and drainage problems, another sometimes complex and expensive engineering issue.

Here are the top 10, with percentages of overall calls:

1. Tree issue, 34 percent.

2. Lights out, 22 percent

3. Dead animal, 7 percent

4. Litter or debris, 6 percent

5. Park issue, 5 percent

6. Pothole, 5 percent

7. Bad sidewalk or curb, 4 percent

8. Sign problem, 3 percent

9. Graffiti, 3 percent

10. Street sweeping, 2 percent

* All others, 9 percent
3 comment(s)

jonb3333 wrote on Dec 2, 2008 6:07 PM:

" I have a tree complaint.
There are far too many vineyards wiped out by all those trees...
Those trees produce air, not wine!
We need more wineries now don't we! "

Ruff Limblog wrote on Dec 4, 2008 10:26 AM:

" jonb3333 - Are there many vineyards within Napa City Limits?

If so, we should yank them out and build big expensive homes on tiny lots to keep the existing empty ones company.

But we should never, ever, ever, ever, never, ever fix the 'rough roads' read 'potholes' problem. We must hold the money back for consultancy fees to tell us what a good job we are doing.

~Ruff "

napadad wrote on Dec 4, 2008 11:29 AM:

" Lack of vision in the permit and county planning offices! I live on the soscol coombs outflow ( fancy name for seasonal creek) because its deemed an out flow, and not a creek or stream, anyone who develops in the are is allowed to change and alter the landscape any way they want. usually this is fine but as mkore and more hillsides are denuded of all trees and planted with grapes they install french drains that move all the water off the property to the S.C.outflow which in turn presents flooding problems downstream (twice at my place in the last 5 years) as more vineyard go in more water move down. The county has already had to pay 20,000 for damages directly related to thier poor planning at the permit stage ( not looking at the downstrean effects of a vineyard) as more go in the effects will be litigated agin and again. The worst part of all of this is that while diverting groundwater away they are drilling wells all over the place and irrigating our aquifir dry. So we flood in winter while we have to truck water in to drink at a rate exceeding $300 a month. but the real problem is apparently how many chickens my nieghbor may own. "

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