PODCAST · government
Calimesa Insider
by City of Calimesa
Join City Manager Will Kolbow for a look behind the scenes at your city at work. From council meetings, to how your tax dollars are collected and used, and everything in between. This is THE place to get the real scoop of what's happening at your city!
Episodes
-
Who Fixes the Freeway? RCTC, Traffic Relief, Toll Lanes & Calimesa’s I-10 Future
Who is actually responsible for fixing traffic on I-10, I-15, SR-91, and other major corridors in Riverside County?In this episode of Calimesa Insider, Will Kolbow sits down with Aaron Hake, Executive Director of the Riverside County Transportation Commission, to talk about what RCTC does, how...
-
Calimesa Development Update: New Interactive Map + Major Projects Explained
What’s being built in Calimesa—and what’s coming next?In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, we walk through the City’s newest tool: an interactive ArcGIS Story Map designed to give real-time updates on development and capital projects across the community.Using this new map, we break...
-
Facebook Comments… Explained (By a City Manager)
Ever read your local Facebook community group and think… “there’s no way this is real”? In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow takes a lighthearted—but honest—look at real posts and comments from local community groups. From roundabout confusion… to water…
more -
Inside City Hall: What the City Manager Actually Does
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow pulls back the curtain on a question many residents ask but few fully understand: What does a City Manager actually do?Instead of describing the role in theory, this episode walks through a real-world breakdown of the first...
-
What Happens at a City Manager Conference?
When a City Manager attends a conference, some residents immediately wonder: is it professional development… or a taxpayer-funded junket?In this episode of Calimesa Insider, City Manager Will Kolbow pulls back the curtain on what actually happens inside a statewide City Manager conference. From...
-
Councilmember Edgar Garcia: Family, Service, and Why Calimesa Feels Like Home
In this episode of Calimesa Insider, viewers get to know Edgar Garcia beyond the dais.Councilmember Garcia shares his personal journey as a husband and father of three, including raising a child with Down syndrome, and how those experiences have shaped his perspective on service, leadership, and...
-
How Development Actually Works: From Land Assembly to City Council Decisions
Most people encounter development at the very end — when a project reaches a public hearing or construction begins. This episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast explains what happens long before that moment. City Manager Will Kolbow walks through how development actually works from a developer’s...
-
New California Laws in 2026: What Changes for Residents, Businesses, and City Government
Every January 1, hundreds of new California laws quietly take effect. Some change daily life for residents and businesses. Others reshape how cities are required to operate — even if the public never sees those changes directly. In the first episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast for 2026, City...
-
2025 Year in Review
This episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast is a little different—and intentionally so. Rather than a highlight reel or a list of complaints, this is a candid year-in-review of what really happened in Calimesa in 2025: the moments that brought the community together, the behind-the-scenes work...
-
Cherry Valley Blvd. Interchange Town Hall
In this special Town Hall edition of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow is joined by City Engineer Mike Thornton and Transportation Project Manager Brandon Reyes to explain the long-awaited reconstruction of the Cherry Valley Boulevard Interchange.This episode answers the...
-
Growing Up in Calimesa: Councilmember Eric Cundieff’s Journey from Navy Service to City Hall
In this special episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow sits down with Councilmember Eric Cundieff for an in-depth, non-political conversation about his life, his service, and his path to the Calimesa City Council.Eric shares stories from growing up in the…
more -
Decoding Your Property Tax Bill: What Every Calimesa Homeowner Should Know
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast, we’re breaking down one of the most confusing—and most important—documents every homeowner receives: your annual property tax bill. Whether you pay it directly or through an impound account with your mortgage, the numbers on that bill can vary...
-
Why Calimesa Regulates Mobile Home Rents — and What That Really Means
In this Halloween edition of the Calimesa Insider, City Manager Will Kolbow breaks down how Calimesa’s Mobile Home Rent Stabilization Ordinance actually works: why it exists, what it covers, where the City’s authority begins and ends, and how petitions (like capital improvements or “fair return”)...
-
Beyond the Wish List: The Real Story of How Cities Attract Retail
Join City Manager Will Kolbow in this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast as he unpacks the complexities of economic development in Calimesa. Addressing common questions from residents about the city's infrastructure and planning decisions, Will explains the factors influencing retail and...
-
Building a Better Calimesa: 2025 State of the City
Join City Manager Will Kolbow for a special edition of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, where we discuss the 2025 State of the City. Learn about exciting new projects, modernized permits, public safety, and future plans. Discover the details behind our latest pavement work, the new Calimesa Library,...
-
Keeping Calimesa Running: A Chat with our Public Works Leaders
Welcome to the Calimesa Insider Podcast! In this episode, City Manager Will Kolbow hosts an engaging discussion with Calimesa’s Public Works Director, Mari Shakir, and Public Works Superintendent, Kyle Coney. They delve into their professional backgrounds, career journeys, and the vital role of…
more -
Capital Project and Development Updates
In this episode, we cover a wide range of updates onthe City's capital and development projects. Key capital projects discussed include the Cherry Valley Boulevard Interchange and Singleton Road Interchange, and updates on major development projects like Summerwind Commons, Mesa Verde, and Oak...
-
Highways in Transition: Understanding Tolls and Transportation Funding
In this episode of Calimesa Insider, host and City Manager Will Kolbow explores the complex history and current state of highway funding, with a focus on California. From the golden age of gas taxes to the rise of toll roads, this episode delves into the evolution of road funding mechanisms and…
more -
The Heartbeat of Calimesa: An Interview with Darlene Gerdes
Join us on the Calimesa Insider Podcast as we sit down with Deputy City Manager and City Clerk Darlene Gerdes. Darlene shares her nearly two decades of experience guiding Calimesa through significant growth, her pivotal role in the creation of the new library, and the importance of mobile home…
more -
Coming Soon to Calimesa: Pickleball at Mountainview Park
Join host and City Manager Will Kolbow on the Calimesa Insider Podcast for an exciting update on the major expansion happening at Fourth Street Park, soon to be renamed Mountainview Park. Discover the details of this extensive project, including construction updates, new amenities like pickleball...
-
Roads, Hearings, and Advocacy: Calimesa's Triple Update
Join us for a packed episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast! In this episode, we cover the latest in the saga of the new signals at the County Line Road interchange, provide a sneak peek of two major public hearing items for the next City Council meeting, and take you behind the scenes of our...
-
Navigating Calimesa: From City Management to Budget Success
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow delves into the responsibilities and challenges of the City Manager role. The episode explores the unique structure and fiscal health of Calimesa, highlighting its balanced budget for the fiscal year 2025-2026…
more -
Calimesa: From Native American Roots to 21st Century Challenges
Join us for the 50th episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast. Host and City Manager Will Kolbow takes us on a historical journey, exploring Calimesa's evolution from indigenous roots through incorporation, the rise of master-planned communities, and how the modern economy has sparked a warehouse...
-
Behind the Orange Cones: The Long Journey of Interchange Improvements
Join City Manager Will Kolbow on Episode 49 of the Calimesa Insider Podcast as we unveil the intricate process behind major interchange projects like the I-10/Cherry Valley Boulevard Interchange upgrade. Discover why these projects take years, from planning and environmental reviews to detailed...
-
From Dollars to Sense: Understanding Sales and Gas Tax
In Episode 48 of Calimesa Insider, City Manager Will Kolbow dives into the intricacies of how sales tax and gas tax work in the state and their impact on the local economy. Before diving into the main topic, Will shares his personal experiences from a recent bowling tournament in Louisiana and...
-
Unraveling the Delays: The Real Story Behind the County Line Road Project
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, CityManager Will Kolbow dives into the complexities and setbacks of the County Line Road project. From unexpected delays in funding to coordination issues among various agencies, Will breaks down why this project is taking so long and what's being...
-
Launching the Yu-Cal Generals: Youth Football's New Frontier
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow welcomes Marc Gallo, President of the Yu-Cal Generals, to discuss the area's newest youth sports program. They delve into the program's formation, objectives, challenges, and partnership with Yucaipa High School. The…
more -
Calimesa Developments: Unpacking the Rumors and Realities
In this episode of the Calimesa Insider Podcast, host and City Manager Will Kolbow returns from a brief hiatus to clarify the latest information on significant development projects within the city. Will addresses zoning misconceptions and provides crucial updates on major projects such as...
-
Capital Project Updates
In this week's episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow provides crucial updates on various city projects, including the Cherry Valley Boulevard and Singleton Road interchanges, and the Calimesa Creek project. Additionally, significant changes to the podcast's schedule…
more -
CalCities City Manager Conference
Join City Manager Will Kolbow for this week's episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast, where he recaps last week's episode with Chris Gray, discusses the upcoming WRCOG used oil recycling event, and previews a detailed discussion on the County Line Road Project timeline. Will also shares insights...
-
Building a Better Riverside County: Chris Gray on Transportation and Growth
Understanding WRCOG: How Local Development Shapes Transportation and Community GrowthIn this special Valentine's Day episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast, City Manager Will Kolbow welcomes Chris Gray, Deputy Executive Director of the Western Riverside Council of Governments (WRCOG). They dive...
-
Episode 41 - More Tax Talk
Understanding State and Federal Taxes & The Demise of RDAs in California | Calimesa InsiderTwo major topics in this episode: the origins and distribution of state and federal tax dollars, and the dissolution of redevelopment agencies in California. Join City Manager Will Kolbow as he delves into...
-
Episode 40 - Mythbusters: Property Taxes
The Hidden Truth Behind Your Property Taxes - Unpacking Prop 13's ImpactWelcome to another insightful episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast! This week, City Manager Will Kolbow dives deep into the complex world of property taxes and their consequential impacts on local government services. Are...
-
Episode 39 - Conflicts and Bias
Happy Friday and welcome to another episode of Calimesa Insider! This week, we discuss the latest updates on our social media growth, upcoming city events, and key topics on the agenda for our upcoming city council meeting, including park expansion and senior center renovations. We delve into the...
-
Episode 38 - New Year, New Laws
New Year, New Laws: Understanding Sacramento's Impact on Calimesa in 2025Welcome to the first episode of the new year! In this video, we discuss the impactful new laws that Sacramento has introduced and how they affect Calimesa's operations, housing regulations, and more in 2025. Despite a...
-
Will Kolbow's Appearance on Yucaipa 360
As you enjoy your holidays, please enjoy this "simulcast" of the Yucaipa 360 Podcast, where City Manager Will Kolbow was a guest alongside Joe Turner, the host of City Manager Unfiltered. Hosted by Yucaipa City Manager Chris Mann, Yucaipa 360 is a biweekly video podcast that dives into the heart…
more -
Episode 37 - 2024 Recap: Resilient
In this final episode of the Calimesa Insider podcast for 2024, City Manager Will Kolbow reviews the key activities and developments within Calimesa throughout the year. Topics include the adoption of campaign donation limits, changes to city fees, council actions on public safety, and community...
-
Episode 36 - Fiscal Health
The California Policy Center established a new local government fiscal health dashboard, which is meant to replace the State Auditor's previous dashboard (which is no longer available). City Manager Kolbow reviews the City of Calimesa's scores on the dashboard, as well as those of surrounding...
-
Episode 35 - Social Media
After a one week break for Thanksgiving, Calimesa Insider is back and Will discusses what many may consider a controversial decision by a city in Canada, and discusses the pros and cons about comments from certain social media platforms. He also shares the final election results for Calimesa as...
-
Episode 34 - Capital Project Updates
City Manager Will Kolbow gives you the latest on projects involving County Line Road, Singleton Road missing ramps, and the Cherry Valley Blvd. interchange. He also shares the latest City Council election results and discusses the special City Council meeting on December 10 to swear in the new…
more -
Episode 33 - Updates
This week, City Manager Will Kolbow provides an update on the City Council election results, talks about the holiday events coming up in the City, previews the next City Council meeting, and talks about some of the highlights of his week.
-
Episode 32 - Cherry Valley Blvd.
This week, City Manager Will Kolbow dives deeper into the Cherry Valley Blvd., following up on a video posted on the City's Instagram page this week. He shares his frustration with the process of how the traffic signal improvements lacked a right-turn pocket for eastbound Cherry Valley Blvd. to...
-
Episode 31 - Community Services
Community services is an important aspect of a City's identity, and it is often up there in importance after public safety and roads. City Manager Will Kolbow discusses some background on community services in Calimesa as well as what the City is doing to increase its efforts in this area. He…
more -
Episode 30 - Jumping to Conclusions
This week, City Manager Will Kolbow addresses some information out on social media that is incorrect regarding contracting for the County Line Road project. He discusses the progress of the project since he came to the City, the many hiccups and frustrations along the way, and where the light at...
-
Episode 29 - 2024 Cal Cities Conference
This week, City Manager Will Kolbow discusses the sessions he attended at the Cal Cities Conference this week held at the Long Beach Convention Center.
-
Episode 28 - Oak Valley Town Center Update #2
Back in May, City Manager Will Kolbow provided an update on what is happening at the Oak Valley Town Center (Episode 7 of the podcast). This week, he gives another update on what has been happening over the past few months and the steps that have been taken so far to try and get work going again…
more -
Episode 27 - Legislative Update
This week, City Manager Will Kolbow, with the end of the California legislative session, gets into some of the bills that were passed (and one that was vetoed) that will have an impact on local cities, including on homelessness, warehouses and housing.
-
Episode 26 - State of the City 2024
This week's episode features City Manager Will Kolbow's keynote address from the Calimesa 2024 State of the City, which took place on Thursday, September 26, 2024. Held in partnership with the Calimesa Chamber of Commerce, the State of the City was attended by over 150 business and governmental...
-
Episode 25 - Empowerment
This week, Will talks about this past week's City Council meeting, what is happening with the Council meeting this coming Monday, and tells about the team building event that the City's executive team participated in this week and how that adds value for the City.
-
Episode 24 - Development Update
This week, we go over some of the items on the upcoming City Council agenda, including an item relating to the Senior Meal Program. We also provide a development update, including what is happening with the Summerwind Specific Plan, the Calimesa Golf Course, the Sandalwood Travel Center, and…
more
We're indexing this podcast's transcripts for the first time — this can take a minute or two. We'll show results as soon as they're ready.
No matches for "" in this podcast's transcripts.
No topics indexed yet for this podcast.
Loading reviews...
ABOUT THIS SHOW
Join City Manager Will Kolbow for a look behind the scenes at your city at work. From council meetings, to how your tax dollars are collected and used, and everything in between. This is THE place to get the real scoop of what's happening at your city!
HOSTED BY
City of Calimesa
CATEGORIES
Loading similar podcasts...
Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Calimesa Insider have?
Calimesa Insider currently has 73 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Calimesa Insider about?
Join City Manager Will Kolbow for a look behind the scenes at your city at work. From council meetings, to how your tax dollars are collected and used, and everything in between. This is THE place to get the real scoop of what's happening at your city!
How often does Calimesa Insider release new episodes?
Calimesa Insider has 73 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Calimesa Insider?
You can listen to Calimesa Insider on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Calimesa Insider?
Calimesa Insider is created and hosted by City of Calimesa.
URL copied to clipboard!