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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/21/01 BAKERSFIELD CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE MEMORANDUM December 21,2001 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Alan mandy, City Manager /~'7-/.~/ SUBJECT: General Information 1. We have spruced up the landscaping in the City parking lots behind the Garden, including landscaping the suite owners' lot, which was not done before. Just a part of our tree canopy / beautification effort. 2. Regarding the relocation of the Economic and Community Development Department, and possibly Recreation and Parks (should that later be approved), we have encountered some negotiating problems at the primary site we had in mind. We'll look at a couple of others that have similar proximity advantages, also. 3. A letter from Ray Olmscheid is enclosed. It confirms he was unable to get the loan commitments but indicates he will move forward with his commercial efforts without the stadium requirement. He indicates that last Monday's article in the local paper should be disregarded as not being accurate. 4. In regard to a November 28th referral from Councilmember Couch, we are working with Castle & Cooke and the Rosedale / Rio Bravo Water District to come up with a revised parkway plan (since it is narrower than the former freeway) that minimizes negatives for Castle & Cooke and is still acceptable to the water interests. The issue involves redesign of the intersection and will take some time but it is. actively being worked on. 5. In keeping with their award winning ways, Recreation and Parks has chalked up two more. The California Recreation and Parks Society has awarded the department with two Achievement Awards - one for the Travelin' Tunes poster, and the other for their marketing theme, "Fun". Congratulations to Recreation and Parks - your good work has, once again, earned you some well deserved recognition! The Recreation and Parks activities brochure for spring 2002 is enclosed for your information. It is easy to see why they have won past honors for best recreation catalog, as well. Honorable Mayor and City Council December 21,2001 Page 2 6. Noting more positive recognition of our employees - Mimi Placencia, Human Resources Analyst, has been elected President of the Kern County Chapter of the Society of Human Resource Management for 2002. The national SHRM organization has 478 affiliated chapters and 154,906 members nationwide. The local chapter has more than 200 professional human resource members. Congratulations to Mimi! 7. According to statements made by the Governor at the League annual meeting this week, we will not lose the funding from vehicle licensing fees. The enclosed bulletin from the League and an article from the Sacramento Bee have more details. 8. A status report on the entry monument sign project is enclosed. 9. Responses to Council requests are enclosed, as follows: Councilmember Benham · Contact citizen regarding dirt/cement at Tulare Sreet / East Truxtun Avenue; Councilmember Sullivan · Citizen concerns regarding completion of medians and road in the Panama Lane area and Hosking Road; Councilmember Salvaggio · Follow up to issue of wood/miscellaneous items at South H / LeMay Streets; · Citizen concerns regarding damaged play equipment and graffiti at Stone Creek Park. Happy Holidays !! AT:rs cc: Department Heads Pam McCarthy, City Clerk Trudy Slater, Administrative Analyst Ray P. Olmscheid Development 'Company December ].7, 2001 Mr. Alien Tandy, Ob/Manager Bakersfield City Hanger's Office ).50). Truxton Avenue Bakersfield, CA 93301 Dear Allen: ' We will not be able to provide you with a loan commitment 'by December 18m. The Development Agreement calls for the city to enter into a tease with a baseball team for the multi-use stadium. Without the lease, the .bank will not commit to a loan on the entertainment portion of the project. However, we believe that by restructuring the loan package, by eilminaUng the stadium as required by the development agreement, by adding more retail, and presenting updated economic studies and demographics that we will be able to secure financing from a new source. As you know, in today's economic downturn, most convenUonal lenders have become very conservative. Our bankers tell us that by the second quarber of 2002 most lending institutions will be back-in the .market aggressNely pursing business. Our.partners and tenants are committed to continue working bhe proposed City Center .. pro~iect. We have three years and over $~30,000 invest~J in 'this development. With the cooperation of the City we have refined the Development'Plan beyond our expectations. We believe that we no Io~ger need the commitment to build a stadium from the City for our development to be successful. We will continue to give up our tax rebate as long as the money is spent in me Southeast Bakersfield Redevelopment Project Area. We look forward to our meeting in you office on .lanuary 22~ 2002. Cc: Hoc~suma ESpa~a Dennis ~ver's 3021 Citrus Circ/e. Suite 250 · Walnut Ct.ak, CA945gB * (925) 939-1925 * Fax: (925) g35-0481 League of California Cities 1400 K Street, Suite 400, Sacramento, California 95814 Phone: (916) 658-8200 Fax: (916) 656-82.40 www. cacitieS.org Page 1 of 4 December 20, 2001 To: All City Managers From: Chris McKenzie Executive Director RE: Preserving Vehicle License Fee Revenues: Thanking the Governor If you attended the League's Annual Conference in Sacramento this'week, or if you saw reports in your local paper, you will know that yesterday we were pleased to have Governor Gray Davis tell our General Assembly: 'I promise you this: I will not baIance this budget on the backs of local government. I will fight to see you receive funds from the vehicle license fee to provide important services. I am committed to treat local governments like partners, not scapegoats." The purpose of this memo is to 'ask you to thank the governor for this commitment, and to help strengthen his resolve to hold the line on preserving VLF funds for cities. Attached are a draft press release for your local media, and a draft thank-you letter to the governor, I ask that you customize.these materials with specific information about your city programs that could be impacted if VLF backfill funds were reduced or eliminated in 2002-03. I urge you to participate in this effort to educate the public and the media about the impact that loss of VLF funds would have in your city. While we are very pleased with the governor's statements yesterday, we well understand that there will continue to be enormous pressures on the legislature and the governor to cut city funding in order to continue state support for schools and other competing budget priorities. We ask that you help us strengthen our position with the governor and the legislature in the coming budget negotiations by putting the attached press release and thank you letter to immediate use. Please be sure to e-mail a copy of your news release to your Grassroots Regional Representative, and fax to the League's Communications Director, Megan Taylor at (916) 658- 8240. A'list of the Regional Representatives and their contact information is attached. Thank you for your assistance with this effortl Attachments/3 Sacramento Bee -- sacbee.com -- CalPERS deal aids budget Page 1 of 3 This story is taken from po.!.iti.~;~ at sacbee.com. CalPERS deal aids budget The state should save $1.29 billion through pension restructuring. By Melanie Payne -- Bee Staff Writer - (Published December 20, 2001) Under a complex deal brokered Wednesday, the state will save about $1.29 billion by restructuring pension contributions to the California Public Employees' Retirement System. The arrangement, hammered out in an emergency closed-door meeting of the CalPERS board of administrators, came in response to a state request for help in relieving California's projected $12.4 billion budget shortfall for the coming fiscal year. The effort is one of several by Gov. Gray Davis to address the pending deficit brought on by the dot-com crash, the energy crisis and a spreading recession. CalPERS' Chief Actuary Ron Seeling roid the board that the rate reduction will have little financial effect on the pension system and won't reduce retirees' benefits. "Frankly, what we're doing is reducing one year's cash flow by one-half a billion dollars," Seeling said, a minuscule amount for a pension plan valued at $144 billion. Under the deal with CalPERS, the state will continue to make its standard contributions for the rest of this fiscal year, but will reduce the rates used to determine how much the state contributes to the system. The effect is much like when refinancing at a lower interest rate reduces a homeowner's mortgage payment. CalPERS was careful to structure the deal in a way to avoid problems encountered by former Gov. Pete Wilson in his so-called "raid" of the pension system. In the early 1990s, Wilson deferred payments to the plan to balance the budget -- a move that led CalPERS to sue the governor and ultimately prevail in court. This time around, the state has negotiated a restructuring instead of simply withholding payments, said Patricia Macht, spokeswoman for CalPERS. And in return for the lower contribution rates in the short term, retirees will receive stronger inflation protections down the road, Macht said. In addition, Macht said, if the money isn't needed to balance the budget, the state may "opt out" of the deal and pay the original contribution rates. After public discussion and despite member representatives' pleas to take more time to consider the proposal, the board approved the reduced rate plan. Improved inflation protections accelerate the point at which additional benefits will kick in. Currently, when inflation erodes pension benefits by more than 25 percent, CalPERS adjusts benefits upward. ~ At the present rate of inflation, it would take about 19 years for retirees' "purchasing power" to fall that much. Under the new agreement, starting in the 2003 fiscal year, the adjustment is triggered after a 20 percent erosion. http://www, sacbee.com/content/politic~/v-print/story/1353353 p- 1422512c.html12/20/2001 Sacramento Bee -- sacbee.com -- CalPERS deal aids budget Page 2 of 3 Despite that benefit, some CalPER$ members are concerned the state is treating the pension plan "like a bank," said Barbara LaPlante, the director of the California State Employees Association Retired Division. "Whenever funds are needed, we just run to PERS." Retirees aren't the only ones with concerns. City.and county governments fear Davis will find state money in their budgets that can be used to offset the deficit. But in a speech Wednesday, Davis assured local government officials he won't be balancing the budget on their backs. At the annual League of California Cities convention in Sacramento, Davis said: "I am going to treat local government as a full partner, not a scapegoat," when it comes to balancing the budget. He also promised not to touch vehicle licensing fees. Local officials are particularly concerned about losing licensing fees. Over the past three years, the Legislature has cut the annual fee on the ownership of registered vehicles by 67.5 percent. But as part of the bargain, the state agreed to make local governments whole by replacing the revenue that would have gone to them. This year, the state is scheduled to pay local governments about $3.5 billion. In the next few years, the amount is expected to approach $5 billion. But Davis did made it clear that local governments, like the state, would have to adjust to lean times with cuts in other areas. Legislative Analyst Elizabeth Hill agreed that the cuts would have to be wide-ranging. Hill issued a report Wednesday outlining where state government has grown in the past seven years, and strategies the Legislature should consider in paring back that growth. Almost half of the growth, $17.2 billion, was for education, including new programs and natural growth from'enrollment. Contrary to popular belief, Hill said, only a small portion of the spending in the $78 billion general fund is mandatory. "Most of the 'budget is, in fact, controllable." Hill said the Legislature should target inefficient or Iow-priority programs and avoid cuts that in the long run would cause costly disruptions. She laid out $1.5 billion in possible cuts to this year's budget that could replace or add to $2 billion in reductions proposed by Davis, to .be considered by the Legislature in January. :,:: .::: ;. ::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::: ::::. :~::.. :::::: ~. ::~ ::~:: ~:: ~:: ::: :: : ~, .:: :.: ::: :,:.: ~::::::::::::::::::::::::.~ ::: About the Writer The Bee's Melanie Payne can be reached at (December 20, 8:21 a.m. PST) 321-1962 or mpayne@sacbee,com. Go to: Sacbee / Sack..tQ story C_onJ~t Us/Feedback I _P. rivacy Policy I Terms of Use Ne~.s I S.l~Q.r~s IBus ~ess I .RQ!.i.tics I Op[nio.n I E. ote~a, ioment I Li~es~y!~ I 'Eras. e! I .B/omen Cars I .C!ass.!fi.e~!s I H.~me.s I .]o.bs I $h.opl~ir~g http://www, s acb ee. com/content/politics/v-print/story/1353353 p- 1422512 c.html 12/20/2001 BAKERSFIELD PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM TO: ALAN TANDY, CITY MANAGER FROM: RAUL M. ROJAS, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR _.~ DATE: DECEMBER 19, 2001 SUBJECT: ENTRY MONUMENT SIGNS Attached hereto is a status memorandum regarding the entry monument signs project. Please give me a call if you need additional information. G:\GROUPDATXM200 l_CITYMANAGER~EntryMonun~ntSigns.wpd BAKERSFIELD PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM TO: RAUL M. ROJAS, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR FROM: STUART PATTESON, CONSTRUCTION SUPERINTENDENT DATE: DECEMBER 19, 2001 SUBJECT: STATUS OF ENTRY MONUMENT SIGNS Last Friday, December 14, myself, Rick Millwee, John Ussery, and Gary Roush from Public Works met with Jeff Piper of Omega Construction and Phil McGlaghlin of City Neon to discuss the changes to the monument sign. The direction given them was: 1 ) eliminate the backlighting and go from a 3" return (thickness) to a 1" return to accomodate "surface" mounting; 2) make the large letters 34" high and the small letters 17" high. We also explained the decision to change from back lighting to front lighting and that City fomes would be doing that work. We let them know that the "squiggle" and "dot" would still be red but would also need to be only one inch thick. The squiggle, neon lighting, and most of the letters have already been manufactured per the previous plan. Design division should get the revised artwork/dimensions to the contractor by tomorrow, December 20. The contractor will then make a full scale sample of a large and a small letter for mounting on the sign. If the lettering is acceptable, we will direct the contractor to give us a price to make the changes and a schedule for completion. c: Jacques R. LaRochelle, Assistant Public Works Director Ted Wright, Civil Engineer IV Rick Millwee, Construction Supervisor G:\GROUPDAT~Construction~Memos~001~Raul Enry Sign Status 12-19-01 .wpd BAKERSFIELD TO: Alan Tandy, City Manager FROM: Jack Hardisty, Development Services DATE: December 4, 2001 SUBJECT: Council Referral No. WF0019066 Councilmember Benham requested that Code Enforcement contact John Decker regarding his concerns with Sandstone. On December 11,2001, Code Enforcement Officer Gary Fenstermaker responded to a complaint regarding dirt and cement piles located on the northwest corner of Tulare Street and East Truxtun Avenue, which is a vacant lot. The property is addressed as 516 Inyo Street. Gary Fenstermaker inspected the property and found it to be in violation of Bakersfield Municipal Code section 8.27.010 (K), any fill dirt and concrete not wetted and compacted. He sent a seven day notice to the property owner, which is the Kern County School District. Gary Fenstermaker talked with Ron Shear who handles all construction projects for the school district. Ron Shear told Gary that the project was held up by the State due to hazardous materials in the soil. Mr. Shear also stated that the state investigation is over and they issued a 2.5 million dollar grant to the school district to remove the hazardous materials and grade the lot. He told Officer Fenstermaker that bids for the project will open on December 19, 2001. In the beginning of January,2002, contracts will be issued and work will begin. The job should be completed by February 1, 2002. Code Enforcement Officer Gary Fenstermaker will be checking weekly with Mr. Shear to follow progress of the job until completion. BAKERSFIELD TO: Alan Tandy, City Manager .......~// FROM: Jack Hardisty, Development Services D DATE: December 13, 2001 SUBJECT: Council Referral No. WF0019063 IFollow-up to previous referral regarding the issue of wood and miscellaneous items that extend beyond the masonry wall located at South H Street and Le May. On December 13, 2001, a follow-up inspection was conducted regarding possible violations of two wood sheds in the backyard of property and two non-operable vehicles. Both of the wood sheds are less than 120 square feet and will not be required to have building permits. There is only one non-operable vehicle on the driveway and it has now been covered with a form fitting cover. On the east side of the residence the siding has been removed to replace the old wall insulation with new insulation. The property owner, Larry Taylor, said the work would be completed by mid January. DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND PARKS DATE: December 17, 2001 TO: Alan Tandy, City Manager ~:ROM: Stan Ford, Director '-' -'~ SUBJECT: Referral Subject #WF0019077/001 (Ward 7) Council member Salvaggio requested that staff contact Roberta Miller to address her concerns regarding damage of play equipment and graffiti at Stone Creek Park. This is in response to referral by Council member Salvaggio regarding Roberta Miller's concern of the condition of Stonecreek Park. She described the broken play equipment, graffiti throughout the park and the condition of the turf areas. Mrs. Miller spoke to the park supervisor who has that assigned area on Tuesday, December 11,2001 to express her concerns of the condition of the park. The supervisor explained the slides were broken due to a manufacturers defect and replacement slides were ordered and had arrived the previous week. The replacement slides were installed on 12-13-01. The graffiti throughout the park was power washed and cleaned on the afternoon of 12-11 - 01 by the General Services crew. More graffiti removal work was done 12-13-01 on some picnictables, benches and storage building walls after the 12-11-01 cleanup. Department crews flail-mowed the area on Friday, December 7, 2001 and cleaned up the grass on the park's turf area December 13, 2001. We contacted Mrs. Miller on December 13, 2001 and updated her on how we had addressed her concerns of the park as explained above. She indicated to me her satisfaction of the recent maintenance activities at the park. We asked her to call if she had any park concerns in the future and we would address them. S:\Council Referrals\WF0019077001 .wpd December 17, 2001 (9:55am) BAKERSFIELD PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM TO: ALAN TANDY, CITY MANAGER FROM: RAUL M. ROJAS, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR DATE: December 20, 2001 ~~ SUBJECT: HOSKING ROAD ISSUE Council Referral #WF0019076 (Ward 6) Councilmember Sullivan requested that staff respond to Roberta Miller's concerns regarding completion of medians and the road, Panama Lane area & Hosking Road Please see attached letter to Mrs. Miller dated December 20, 2001. GAGROUPDAT~fcn'aI~L2C Mrs 12-12-01\WF0019076 - Mm'i~.wpd BAKERSFIELD PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT- 1501 TRUXTUN AVENUE BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA 93301 (661) 326-3724 RAUL M. ROJAs, DIRECTOR ° CITY ENGINEER December 20, 2001 Mrs. Roberta Miller 3709 Wyndham Avenue Bakersfield CA 93313 Re: HOsking Road Issue Dear Mrs. Miller: I am writing in response to your concerns regarding completions of medians in. Hosking Road between Stine Road and Wible Road. The City collects median fees from subdivisions as they develop. Our current City Policy is that once we have collected fees for approximately ~/2 mile of development (both sides of the road) the City will then initiate-design and construction of the medians. In this case, fees have been collected for the south side of the roadway between Stine and Akers and only about ~,4 mile of the roadway between Akers and Wible. For those remaining portions of the roadway, we have neither the right-of-way to construct the whole road, nor do we have any developments proposed on the.adjacent properties. The construction of medians is dependant upon the development of the area. At this time, we cannot predict when the remainder of the development will occur however we will keep you informed as soon as any additional developments occur. Should you have any further questions, please contact Marian Shaw at (661) 32523579. Very truly yours, RAUL M. ROJAS Public Works Director G:V3ROUPDAT~ReferralsV2C Mt8 12-12-01~190761n'.wpd :' :..: . -_:.'-.