By Noel Smith
It’s been a rough 5-6 years for the City of Scotts Valley according both Council Member Dene Bustichi and City Manager Steve Ando. “Since 2009 we’ve reduced our city employees by 16 which is 21 percent of our staff,” said Ando, “And there have been furloughs and no raises for our employees for the past five years.”
“Measure U is just trying to keep the status quo, to keep what we’ve got as the economy in our city recovers,” said Bustichi.
Measure U is a one-half cent sales tax increase within the city of Scotts Valley that would raise the sales tax from 8.25% to 8.75% for the next eight years starting April 1 2014 until March 31 2022.
This ballot measure proposes a “general purpose tax” rather than a “special purpose tax” and requires a simple majority (50%) vote to pass.
According to Ando, passing Measure U would provide the city another estimated $1.2 million per year for its general fund, which pays for City salaries, operations, services that includes police, parks and street maintenance.
Mayor Randy Johnson said, “New taxes are never a first option with this council, but with what the state of California takes from the city each year, keeping our core services intact has become more challenging. We felt that making this a temporary tax was the best path. Our prior sales tax was passed with a sunset clause in 2006 and we let that expire in 2011, just like we promised. But now with the state increasing its raid on our coffers, we need to replace that lost revenue to pay our police in a modest range that retains their services.”
Council Member Donna Lind added, “When I’ve talked to people, I’ve explained that we have been doing all we could to tighten our belts with the economic downturn. We laid off employees, froze positions, employees haven’t had a raise in 5 years, they have been on mandatory furlough for the past 4 years and they have voluntarily agreed to pension reform. We are at a place where there is nothing left to cut but the State continued to take funds. Recently we were recruiting to fill police positions and have had trouble getting qualified applicants as we are not able to be competitive.”
When asked about the future of Scotts Valley’s economy Bustichi said, “The Town Center Project is starting to come together with a developer (Safeway-Property Development Centers) that has the resources to make it happen. With the sale of the former headquarters of Borland, which has almost 400,000 square feet of the 600,000 square feet of vacant commercial space in Scotts Valley, this provides a great opportunity for commercial growth. The former Seagate campus is now the new headquarters of Bay Photo and several local companies such as Fox Shox, Zero Motorcycles and Universal Audio are expanding and increasing their hiring. All of this means that the long-term future of Scotts Valley is bright.”
Supporters of Measure U, including city officials, will be walking door-to-door each Saturday until the election in order to inform the public about the election and Measure U.
The message they will be taking to the voters is:
“The City’s current return on sales tax revenue is 0.75% of the 8.25% sales tax – that is 9% of the revenues collected – coming back to Scotts Valley. Only $1 out of every $11 collected in sales tax comes back to the City to pay for the basic services of police protection, parks, road building and public works.
“In the last 10 years, the state has kept over $3.2 million of the tax money it owes to the City in order to balance its own state budgets. Also, the elimination of the city’s Redevelopment Agency has added significant costs to its general fund.
“According to city officials, despite salary freezes, staff reductions and cost-cutting measures, without the passage of Measure U these negative factors are leading to deep, across-the-board cuts in City services next year.
“One hundred percent of Measure U money raised stays in Scotts Valley. With continued fiscal frugality and a revived economic development, the City’s budgets should be balanced well into the future once Measure U ends.”
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Measure U Fundraiser
There will be a Measure U Fundraiser, Auction and Raffle on Friday, October 11 at the Scotts Valley Community Center. The evening will start at 6 p.m. with no host refreshments and at 7 p.m., there will be a steak & pasta dinner. Donation is $30
The County Elections Department provided the following information:
- October 7 is the first day to obtain a ballot
- There are more than 7,000 Voters registered in Scotts Valley
- Of these there are over 3,500 Voters registered for Vote by Mail
- October 21 is last day to register for the November 5 Special Election
- Go to www.votescount.com to register online
- Registration Applications are available at post offices, libraries, city halls, or 831-454-2060.
- To find out if you are registered go to www.votescount.com
- October 30 is suggested last date to mail ballots; postage is 46 cents – or drop off at any polling place on day of election
- November 5: Polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Drop-off ballots must be received by 8 p.m.
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Contact Noel at [email protected]