March 28, 2014
Workshop
continued from page 11
regarding the challenges addressed in the workshop. The City of Signal Hill hired a facilitator to help guide and collect information and input from the workshop attendees. Bill Kelly of Kelly Associates Management Group is a retired city manager, and his firm does consulting for cities, counties, special districts and nonprofits with a focus on public service. He led a brainstorm at the conclusion of each department’s presentation and asked the residents how they would update the ‘06-‘11 strategic plan. “The world has changed a bit since the plan was done,” Kelly said. “And what I’ve been told is that we’re in the worst recession since the Great Depression in the 1930s, and that has had an impact on all cities in the US, especially California. Sales tax has taken a beating, your property taxes have probably taken a big beating, but more importantly, the third leg of the stool has fallen off, and that’s called no more redevelopment.” Kelly said most people think that property taxes pay for city services, but only six cents per dollar actually goes to the City of Signal Hill, about $770,000 annually. The police department spent $7.7
NEWS
million a year, which is 43 percent of the general fund budget, Kelly said. Another large portion is Public Works, about $4 million, 23 percent, and the remaining is allocated for other city services. Currently, sales tax produces only about $8.3 million. “When the economy goes bad, people don’t buy things, and revenue from sales tax goes down,” Kelly said. “That’s a huge impact. your sales tax basically only pays for your police department, now. What pays for Public Works, libraries, etcetera? you have a very fragile budget in terms of how you can put this whole thing together.” However, Kelly said that the strategic plan for the city is predicated upon dreaming big. He asked residents to think about the city’s strengths and weaknesses, opportunities for projects, and some threats that might get in the way. “Too many citizens in too many cities think they want to base their visioning on how much money they have, and that’s a mistake,” Kelly said. “Money can be found, but you have to create the vision first. Don’t think small. you’ve got to think big.”
ment Program. The City will receive $14.9 million, 95 percent of which was not funded from City sources. For example, $6.2 million of the program comes from grant funds from federal sources, intended mainly for road construction. “A lot of our program has been through our hard work in achieving and receiving grant money to help extend our capital dollars,” Myrter said. The Public Works Department oversees the maintenance and improvement projects in the city. The park-maintenance division is responsible for 29 acres, and the City trims over 2000 trees annually. Public Works also maintains playground equipment, grounds, public art, and in turn, graffiti removal. In addition, Myrter said his department manages more than 50 structures and 80,000 square feet of space. Public Works repairs and replaces sidewalks, maintains alleyways, manages the city’s sign inventory and updates street markings on a 35-mile network of streets and residential roads with 32 signalized intersections. Next week, the Signal Tribune will New environmental requirements provide information on the feedback on the paint used for street markings, for example, is one of the kinds of challenges that the Public Works Department is facing. “We used to use paint that lasts five years. Now it lasts two years,” Myrter said. “Our work only increases with every new regulation in terms of the paint we are able to use.” Myrter mentioned another new regulation that is proving to be a challenge for the City. Stemming from the Clean Water Act of 1972, MS4 stormwater permits are meant to decrease the Ashley Fowler/Signal Tribune toxicity of storm Director of Public Works Steve Myrter addresses some of the challenges his department faces due to water. Through the new environmental regulations. years, the acceptable levels of toxins in storm water have decreased. “Public works directors used to lose sleep worrying about large storm TST4607 NoTICE oF PUBlIC HEARING events. Will a storm event overwhelm our system? Will we able to protect NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on Tuesday, April 8, 2014, the Planning Commission of the City of Signal Hill will conduct a public hearing at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council property?” Myrter said. “And it’s actuChamber at City Hall, 2175 Cherry Avenue, Signal Hill, California, to consider the folally more complicated now. Now we lowing: have to also worry about what’s in the NEW AUTOMOBILE DEALERSHIP storm water. Will the contaminants in our storm water get pushed down the SITE PLAN & DESIGN REVIEW 14-01 FOR A BMW AUTOMOBILE SALES AND drain? Will it violate the law?” SERVICE FACILITY AT 1660 E. SPRING STREET IN THE SP-4, AUTO CENTER SPECIFIC PLAN, ZONING DISTRICT. THE FACILITY DESIGN INCLUDES: Storm water hits the ground covered with contaminants, and it is swept • 31,996 SQ. FT. OF SHOWROOM AREA up into the storm drain. • 10,656 SQ. FT. OF PARTS STORAGE AREA • 35,158 SQ. FT. OF SERVICE/REPAIR AREA “This newest permit requires us to • 338 PARKING SPACES make sure the contaminants do not enter the storm drain,” Myrter said. APPLICANT: AHT Architects for Sonic Development, LLC “We are now required to come up with ALL INTERESTED PERSONS are hereby invited to attend this public hearing to presplans to remove these contaminants ent written information, express their opinions or otherwise present evidence on the over the next 10 to 20 years.” above matter. The risk of non-compliance to this If you wish to legally challenge any action taken by the City on the above matter, you law is real and very expensive. If a city may be limited to raising only those issues you or someone else raised at the public is found in non-compliance, it would hearings described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City be fined $10,000, as well as $10 per prior to or at the public hearings. gallon of storm water at unacceptable A NEGATIVE DECLARATION 03/14/14(1) has been prepared in conjunction with the toxin levels. subject project based on an initial study finding of no significant environmental impacts “you can imagine how many galassociated with the project. lons go down the storm drain, and how The Negative Declaration, as well as relevant material, may be inspected by the public quickly, so there are real consequences between the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and on Frito non-compliance,” Myrter said. days from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Community Development Department located on the lower floor of City Hall. Written comments may be submitted to the Community The City spends about $700,000 Development Department during the public review period from March 14, 2014 to April annually to improve storm water qual7, 2014. ity, now. And Myrter projects that over the next 10 years, this figure could THE FILE and associated documents for the proposed project may be reviewed by the public between the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday, triple. and 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Fridays, in the Community Development Department “Ultimately, we’re going to need at City Hall. some kind of water-treatment system FURTHER INFORMATION on this item may be obtained at the City of Signal Hill for storm water over the next 10 to 20 Community Development Department located at 2175 Cherry Avenue, Signal Hill, years to meet the requirements as they California, or by emailing Selena Alanis, Assistant Planner, stand today,” Myrter said. at salanis@cityofsignalhill.org or calling at (562) 989-7341. Each department concluded that the Posted in accordance with S.H.M.C. Section 1.08.010 on: March 28, 2014 City needs to go into planning mode Mailed to property owners within a 100’ radius: March 28, 2014 and seek input from the community
ciTY Of SigNal hill
the community shared after the aforementioned presentations. The City will host its second visioning workshop at 7pm on Wednesday, April 2, at the Signal Hill Community Center, 1780 E Hill St., with topics including
SigNal TribuNE
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community services, community development, economic development and finance. MORE INFORMATION (562) 989-7379
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