HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-13-2011 CLR Ashbaughwor.0 coun cil fiAlson oRE itp
city of san Luis owspo, office of the city council
DATE: December 13, 2011
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Council Member John Ashbaugh
SUBJECT: Board of Supervisors Meeting -Zone 9
RED FILE
MEETING AGENDA
ITEM
Today (Tuesday, December 13, 2011) I attended the Board of Supervisors to participate in their
discussion of the budget for the County Flood Control and Water Conservation District. Part of
that budget is an annual allocation of property taxes for the Zone 9 benefit zone — essentially the
SLO Creek Watershed — which amounts to about $400,000 annually. Currently, that line item in
the County's FY2011 /12 Budget Summary has an "Estimated Ending Reserve" of about $2.1
million.
As the Mayor and staff are aware, the County staff has made it a point to inform the Board of
Supervisors that the property tax allocation for Zone 9 is discretionary. They may legally apply
Zone 9 funds anywhere within the District (i.e., the County). There appears to be a particular
need at this time to apply the funding generated by this property tax allocation toward the
higher priority" needs to fix chronic drainage and flood control problems in Oceano and South
County, in the vicinity of Arroyo Grande Creek and its related wetlands. This area's needs are
supposed to be met by the revenues from Flood Control Zones 1 and 1 A, the boundaries for these
zones were drawn too small to generate sufficient property tax revenues to meet the debt service
required for major improvements to the levees, culverts, and channel clearance needed in that
area. They also generate about $485,000 annually, but according to County Engineering staff,
they have significant unfunded needs.
During my remarks to the Board this afternoon, I reminded the Board that "our" Zone 9 funding
will be required to provide a local match for the grant funding that we will be seeking for our
Mid - Higuera Channel Improvement project (also discussed in our Agenda item B1, p. B1 -39,
tonight). I pointed out that the City has already earmarked $500,000 for this project as part of our
CIP (2015 -16, 1 believe), and that we also commit significant funding each year for our creeks,
including silt and debris removal as well as vegetation management. We are currently using
Measure Y to support this work, but we have no guarantee that this funding will be available
after 2014.
Moreover, I noted that we have been very fortunate in the pattern of rainfall over the last 36
years; no catastrophic damage has occurred since the Flood of 1973. That is partly a result of the
City's pro- active creek work, but it also due to the remarkably mild winter storms that we have
experienced during those years. In other words, as I noted, "We're due."
Long story short: I asked the Board to respect the original intent of the Zone 9 property tax
assessment, which was first imposed almost literally in the "wake" of the 1973 flood. During
Document l
Council Liaison Report
December 13, 2011
Page 2
deliberation among the Board members, however, it is clear that they intend to shift the Zone 9
funds in some manner toward the under - funded Zones 1 and IA. They call this a "regional"
approach; I call it "robbing Peter to pay Paul." With all due respect to Paul, who has a finger
firmly planted in the failing dikes of Arroyo Grande Creek, I believe that it is time for us, the
Peters" of the region, to pay a great deal of attention to this matter. I urge us to do everything
within our power to protect the integrity of a major funding source for flood control projects and
maintenance in the SLO Creek watershed. Any transfer of funds from Zone 9 to Zones 1 -IA
should be on the basis of a loan (as we have done in the past), with firm understandings as to
when we can be repaid, and how. We should also make certain that these funds, even if they are
transferred" temporarily, are "securitizable" for purposes of the local match for grant funds for
our mid - Higuera project. We cannot afford to be "caught short" when we are ready to proceed
with this very important flood control project. It would be particularly to be in that position when
and it surely a matter of "when," not "if'— the creek rises again.
hard copy: email:
COUNCIL a CDD DIR
CITY MGR a FIT DIR
ASST CM a FIRE CHIEF
ATTORNEY a PW DER
CLERKIORIG a POLICE CHIEF
PIB a PARKS & REC DIR
TRIBUNE a UfIL DIR
NEW TIMES a HR DIR
SLOCITYNEWS a COUNCIL
o CITY MGR
a CLERK