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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-16-2012 pc baraschFwd' City of SLO Hidden Assests Presentation for Oct . 16,201 ...http://mail .aol .com/37096-1 1 1 /aol-6/en-us/mail/PrintMessage .aspx 1 of 2 From: barascharc <barascharc@aol.com> To : barascharc <barascharc@aol .com > Subject Fwd : City of SLO Hidden Assests Presentation for Oct . 16, 2012 City Council Meetin g Date: Tue, Oct 16,2012 4 :53 pm San Luis City Council and City Administrative Staf f990 Palm StreetSan Luis Obispo, CA .9340 1 Good Evening Members of the City Council and the Viewing Public ; I wish to speak this evening about constructive citizen participation and contributions to our picturesque city . About six months ago, I started researching the number and locations of city owned properties and personall y visited over 50 of these individual properties . The City of San Luis Obispo presently owns over 250 legal parcels as verified by at least four different lists tha t have been provided to me by the city staff. Many are not being maintained to the same standards that the cit y requires of private property and business owners ! This is not acceptable! As a result of my research I scheduled personal meetings with The Assistant City Manager, The Communit y Development Director, The Head City Building Official and the Head Code Enforcement Officer over the pas t four months to request tong overdue clean-up efforts that are finally underway. As a result of my prodding cit y code enforcement staff have now visited all city owned sues . Finally after 36 months, lead based paint will soo n be removed and asbestos testing will be underway at the Burtron Adobe property at 466 Dana Street and afte r 22 plus months, the large unsafe drainage ditch at 1100 Leff Street will begin to be cleaned up, personal debri s has been removed from the front yard at 610 Monterey Street, and the crumbling large stone walls at 61 4 Monterey Street which have caused safety issues along the adjacent public sidewalks, are now bein g addressed, to name a few of these projects . Many, if not all of these actions, are way overdue . With a staff of 135 full time public works employees, it is hard to believe how far behind the city is on maintaining these properties . It is also sad to think it took someone fro m the outside, a private citizen, to complain loudly enough to get the city to do its job . That is not goo d management nor visionary leadership. However the most important result of my research is just now beginning, i .e.. the prioritization of "Hidden City Owned Assets"! COUNCIL MEETING :ae-,,070%,a ITEM NO .:Cazae.„r„t (~r~~/ After meeting with the SLO Community Development Director recently, I learned that the city presently owne d properties that can either be subdivided . leased or sold to generate additional needed revenue . This will lowe r long term property maintenance costs . This will provide additional funds to renovate and/or improve othe r deteriorating city properties. This will also generate additional revenues to balance the city's budget shortfall s for years to come. Specific opportunities include the subdivision of the large Burtron and Bowden Adobe properties ; better utilization &the vacant and poorly maintained property at 300 South Higuera Street across from Ben Franklin's Sandwich Shop ; and other under-utilized city owned properties in the Edna-Islay portions of the city . I estimate that the city could generate over $ 4 to $ 5 million in unanticipated funds to balance its budget . Thi s will free up more funds to build much needed capital improvement projects that have been deferred indefinitely , while reducing long term property related maintenance costs, while lessening the rate of increases of man y existing city fees, fines & surcharges for city residents. I therefore must ask, "What is wrong with my proposal" and why has the city council and city administration staff NOT addressed the potential benefits of these hidden assets in the past AND as I have often asked, "What di d the City of San Luis Obispo ever do before the adoption of Measure 'Y' back in 2006? Addressing my question s win go a long way towards the delivery of some of my "major campaign promises and positive suggestions" t o provide city residents with the highest level & quality of municipal services at the most affordable possibl e costs. Therefore, by reducing long term maintenance & holding costs, and creating a new source of "sustainable" revenues for the city EVERYONE BENEFITS!! Mrs . Marx has said repeatedly that she is the "Only Candidate" with a positive vision for the city.I RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE!! I believe that facing the facts & the problems and solving the real issues facin g our city during these changing times, instead of "glossing over those problems or tuming a blind eye to the m will ultimately tum our city in a positive direction . Decisive actions are what we need right here and right now!! Respectfully, Steve Barasch, AIA, APA, NCAR B SLO Mayoral Candidate barascharc@aol .com 2 of 2 O fa1and Tribune ed: Denial, ignorance won't solve debt woes of ... http://mailaol .com/37096-111/aol-6/en-uslmail/PrintMessageasp x From :dvavrek <dvavrek@sbcglobal .net> To : barascharc <barascharc@aol .com> Subject Oakland Tribune ed : Denial, ignorance won't solve debt woes of the citie s Date: Tue, Oct 16, 201210:19 am Attachments:ocxstgoOl .mso (3K) Check out bolded area re Tom Bates, sound familiar ? Oakland Tribune editorial : Denial, ignorance won't solve debt woes of the citie s Oakland Tribune editoria l © Copyright 2012, Bay Area News Grou p Posted:10/15/2012 01 :44 :36 PM PDT Updated :10/15/2012 01 :44 :36 PM PDT Berkeley is about $570 million in debt because it failed to properly fund its employee retirement programs . Next door in Oakland, the shortfall is $2 .2 billion . It's like a huge credit card balance that must be paid, drainin g funds that should go for needed city services . In both cities, the shortfall works out to about $5,000 for each city resident. While Berkeley an d Oakland are among the worst in the East Bay, they are not unique . Indeed, local government s statewide have cut staffing and reduced services because of declining revenues and increasing deb t obligations. San Bernardino and Stockton recently followed Vallejo's march to bankruptcy court. While most municipalitie s will avoid that ignominious path, they nevertheless face very rough roads ahead . That was reinforced last week as Moody's Investors Service cut the rating on pension obligatio n bonds of eight California cities and placed the debt of 30 under review for downgrade . Oakland and Berkeley are on the list, along with Martinez, San Leandro and Danville . The latter is particularl y noteworthy because Danville has no traditional pension program . In other words, while retirement costs are a key driver in many cities, they're not the only problem . "California cities operate under more rigid revenue-raising constraints than cities in many other part s of the country," says Eric Hoffmann, Moody's senior vice president in charge of its California loca l government ratings team. "Combined with steeply rising costs, these constraints mean that these cities will likely recover mor e slowly than their peers nationally, even if the state's economic recovery tracks the nation's ? 1 of 2 10/16/12 10:56 AM 3akiand Tribune ed : Denial, ignorance won't solve debt woes of ... http://mailaol .com/37096-111/aol-6/en-us/mail/PrintMessage .aspx We can't emphasize that last point enough . Those who think this problem will disappear as th e economy recovers are kidding themselves . California local governments face many tough years ahead . They must acknowledge that now and prepare for the long haul . Yet, as we conducted interviews over the past month for city council and mayoral electio n endorsements in 26 East Bay cities, we noticed stunning misunderstanding of the problem . The majority of incumbents and challengers do not know basic information about their budgets and one o f the biggest cost drivers, escalating benefit costs . One week before Moody's announced its review of his city's debt, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates unsuccessfully sought our endorsement for re-election by touting the city's bond rating . He trie d to gloss over the city's unfunded obligations . Similarly, District 3 incumbent Councilman Max Anderson dismissed the shortfall . "For us to focu s so obsessively on it ... is maybe a little bit diversionary," he told us . "We have bigger fish to fry tha n the debt ." In San Leandro, District 2 incumbent Ursula Reed lacked basic understanding of her city's shortfal l and the way pensions are funded . In Oakland, District 5 candidate Noel Gallo fantasized that improved economic development woul d solve the problem . And District 7 incumbent Larry Reid naively declared that "we've turned th e corner on this economy and I think we're going to be OK ." If only that were true . Denial and ignorance are not solutions . 2 of 2 10/16/12 10 :56 AM ado 3%,o 5:'von S- .obev /6,20 /2- ,0 Too—3 qa s,f ff ,f CtM" /6 /2oI L 300-3ya s &k~v /6 (u~/z 'ea 3fro /feral g - .'o(ev /",20/ ,3 ®o 39D X,r 'thM 16 /zo/L 3eo-9to S,Hireon /6 (zo/z