Publication Date: Friday, June 03, 2005
Reduced open space parking fee recommended
Reduced open space parking fee recommended
(June 03, 2005) Meanwhile, employee with numerous disabilities reinstated in city budget
by Bill D'Agostino
A new $5 parking fee for two of Palo Alto's three open space preserves was unanimously recommended by the City Council's Finance Committee Tuesday night.
The City Council is scheduled to approve the 2005-06 budget, including the controversial new fee, at its June 20 meeting.
The city is struggling with a $5.2 million projected shortfall of its general fund, the result of exploding employee-benefit costs and a stagnant local economy. City Manager Frank Benest proposed closing the deficit by laying off 18 workers, increasing fees and reducing services.
Proposed service cuts approved by the committee include slowing the timeliness of police officer responses to non-emergencies, reducing the number of days fire Station 8 is staffed in the summer and decreasing the regular maintenance of fields and parks.
Through the month's hearings, the committee also reinstated two of the 18 positions earmarked for layoffs. On Tuesday it tentatively saved a third, presently occupied by a popular city employee with numerous disabilities whose story touched residents.
Earlier in the month, the committee saved a popular Wingspread summer theatre program for youth. The committee also previously agreed to reduce the average proposed electricity rate increase from 19.5 percent to 11.5 percent. While that probably sounds good to residents and business owners, the decrease reduced the city's projected utility tax revenue by $147,000.
Due to all the changes, the city is no longer estimating a substantial surplus for 2005-06. Any excess goes into a fund supporting long-term infrastructure improvements.
The city manager originally proposed charging the controversial new parking fee for all three nature preserves -- the Baylands, Foothills Park and the Arastradero Preserve. The committee split 2-2 on that idea, but decided to remove the fee for the Baylands as a compromise. The committee then voted 3-1, with Councilman Vic Ojakian voting no.
The new fee had been projected to raise $100,000 annually, but with the change it is now only projected to raise $60,000.
If the council approves the new parking fee, frequent park visitors could purchase a $50 annual pass. Low-income and disabled residents will receive a 75 percent discount, through the city's fee reduction program.
Finance Committee member and Councilwoman Dena Mossar said city programs needed to recover their costs as much as possible. "That's the only way I can conceive of to continue to support the rich array of services and open space holdings that the city has," she said.
If the council approves the fee in June, the city will review it one year later and could expand or eliminate it.
Meanwhile, the committee passed a tentative motion to not lay off Dennis Harman, a 30-year city employee with numerous disabilities who was profiled last month by the Weekly. More than 100 fellow city employees signed a petition to ask that Harman, who cleans the city's nature preserves, stay on the city payroll.
Administrative Services Director Carl Yeats said the city was looking at a way to let Harman retire and still receive benefits, but officials wanted his position back in the budget just in case that idea was unsuccessful. His position costs $22,109.
The two other positions earlier removed from the chopping block are a park ranger and a recreation coordinator responsible for updating kiosks and a Web page that lists community resources for families.
The city's "Family Resources" program will need outside sponsorship to keep it running past next year. Former Mayor Liz Kniss originally proposed it, believing younger families needed new ways to network compared to older generations.
"I think you have to support families in a method that's pertinent for the times," said Kniss, now a Santa Clara County supervisor. "This is very pertinent for the times."
Staff Writer Bill D'Agostino can be e-mailed at bdagostino@paweekly.com.
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