ABSTRACT: The CITY OF CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, FY 2007-08 QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT, 1st QUARTER ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2007 was on the December 4, 2007 City Council meeting agenda. Included in the report are Updates on Capital Projects/Outlays; of the 13 Capital Projects/Outlays, only one is for repaving projects. Comments are made and Questions are asked regarding Nichols Engineering Pavement Management System & Truck Impact Fee study (not to exceed $60,300),THE CALIFORNIA INFRASTRUCTURE COALITION and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) “report card” on infrastructure.
City Council Agenda
Regular Meeting
December 4, 2007
V. Announcements from Closed Session, from City Council Members and the City Administrator.
C. Announcements from City Administrator.
• Receive 1st Quarter 07/08 Financial Report
Selected excerpts of the CITY OF CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, FY 2007-08 QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT, 1st QUARTER ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2007, as follows:
Annual Budget FY 2007/08: $ 13,094,894
Capital Improvements (2007/08): Total $ 508,200
Capital Outlays (2007/08): Total $ 347,412
Updates on Capital Projects/Outlays:
4th Avenue Riparian Habitat Project, $196,000, Capital Improvement (2007/08)
Repaving Projects: a) Mission between 3rd & 4th, $150,000 b) 5th Avenue between San Carlos & Dolores, $27,000 c) Parking Lot across from Post Office, $20,000 Capital Improvements (2007/08)
Del Mar Restroom Improvements, $55,200, Capital Improvement (2007/08)
Forest Study Implementation, $50,000, Capital Improvement (2007/08)
City Hall Carpeting, $10,000, Capital Improvement (2007/08)
Historic Context Statement, $63,000, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
General Plan-EIR, $60,000, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Police Department Firearms Range Ricochet Protective Device, $48,707, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Sunset Center Theater: a) Sound System, ) $ 42,035 b) Theater Monitor System Speakers, $18,000 c) Fall Arrest System, $18,000 d) Walkway Lights, $5,250, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Del Mar & North Dunes Master Plan, $40,000, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Fire Department Compressor, $26,315, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Police Department Network/Telephone System, $17,700 & Computer Upgrades, $22,000, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
Vehicle Purchases/Major Repairs, $15,000, Capital Outlay (2007/08)
COMMENTS:
• Of the 13 Capital Projects/Outlays, only one is for repaving projects, as follows:
Repaving Projects: a) Mission between 3rd & 4th, b) 5th Avenue between San Carlos & Dolores, c) Parking Lot across from Post Office
At the September 11, 2007 City Council meeting, Resolution 2007-61 was approved awarding the contract for these 3 repaving projects to Pavex Construction. The Mission Street project is scheduled to be completed by November 30, 2007, weather permitting. The 5th Avenue and Post Office Parking Lot projects are now completed.
• Carmel-by-the-Sea’s infrastructure of streets, roads and avenues is in poor condition. When the repaving of Mission St. between 3rd Av. & 4th Av, the parking lot across from the Post Office and 5th Av. between San Carlos St. & Dolores St. are in the FY 2007/08 Budget, questions arise about the criteria used to prioritize repaving projects. For example, in the triennial budget for FY 2007/08 – FY 2009/10, there are repaving projects for Dolores St. between 4th Av. & 5th Av., Junipero Av. between Ocean Av. & 8th Av, and parking lots at Del Mar and Sunset Center, but no paving project for Carpenter St., a major bus/truck/vehicle route and an entry street into Carmel-by-the-Sea.
QUESTIONS:
• Since the Nichols Engineering Pavement Management System & Truck Impact Fee study contract (not to exceed $60,300) was approved by the City Council in March 2007 and completed by 30 September 2007, according to the Budget, what are the findings and conclusions of this study?
• What is the City’s proactive plan to maintain and renew our street infrastructure which is critical to our quality of life and economic prosperity as a tourist destination?
• Is the City committed to regular maintenance which prolongs use and minimizes the need for costly repairs or is the City waiting for things to happen and reacting to things?
• The City of Monterey is a member of THE CALIFORNIA INFRASTRUCTURE COALITION “Foresight in planning for, maintaining, and financing infrastructure;” why isn’t the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea? Note: For information abut The California Infrastructure Coalition, click on Post title above or copy, paste and click http://www.calinfrastructure.org/.
• The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) issues a “report card” on infrastructure. The ASCE California Infrastructure Report Card 2006 rates nine infrastructure categories. One of the recommendations is that every mayor “needs to give up a report card following the same protocol used by the American Society of Civil Engineers about the state of the infrastructure within their cities – A, B, C, D –" and assign “a price tag to fix the deficiencies.” What is Carmel-by-the-Sea’s report card from the mayor?
5 comments:
The Nichols study appears to have been treated like so many other studies the city has wasted money on. Studies that never see the light of day, are put on a shelf and do nothing but gather dust. The only reason these studies are done, apparently, is so the mayor and city council can give the impression they are actually doing something when they really aren't. While McCloud and company have accomplished some things over the years, it has been a lot less than one would have expected and there has been too much emphasis on projects that McCloud apparently thinks will give her a place in the history of Carmel rather than projects that would benefit Carmel businesses and residents now.
Our City Council seems reluctant to spend money for much of anything even though it has the funds in hand. As a result, a lot of routine maintenance such as repairing our streets doesn't get done. The City Council tries to give the impression that Carmel is in financial difficulty like Pacfic Grove and other cities but, if you pay attention to the city's financials, this is obviously untrue.
Under Sue McCloud's leadership the City Council has clearly not been interested in regular maintenance of city property, roads etc. In her attempt to minimize outlay of funds, she has created a problem for a future time when city councils will once more be interested in fulfilling the responsibilities they were elected to deal with. They will find themselves having to mitigate unnecessarily expensive problems that would have cost much less if they had been attended to in a more timely manner as used to be the case in Carmel.
As long as Mayor McCloud is micromanaging the city government, the public will receive the least amount of information she can get away with. No Carmel administration in living memory, if at all, has been as secretive as those under McCloud have been. Her need to keep everything close to her vest may have served her well when she was employed but paranoia does not serve those who live and work in Carmel at all.
And yet she wants to run for another term! Isn't there a Carmelite ready and willing run against her to make things right for the city? He/she should get the backing of all those who want a turnaround.
Post a Comment