CaliforniaCityNews.org

Unmask Your Gadfly?

The city of Los Angeles is considering an ordinance that would prohibit members of the public from testifying before the council wearing a mask. Huh?

Its true, The Daily News' Rick Orlov covers the story. It's related to another story we covered here at CCN where the city outlawed the use of the n-word. Apparently, one member of the public, an African-American gentleman donned a KuKluxKlan costume complete with headress to make his feelings about the n-word and how the city of LA made him feel known.

Frequent readers of California City News know we do our best to make sure that all of our "Gadfly Hall Of Fame" honorees are unmasked - though we have included hand puppets and red berets as part of our coverage. We mention this so that we're not to blame - although a gadfly costume contest might have some appeal.

Campaign Finance Rules - Finally Local Governments Are Figuring It Out

Ever since the Watergate era, government at every level (or perhaps its better stated that politicians in every level of government) have clamored for campaign finance reform. No matter that the intent of the drafters has never been met - I mean, really, has money become less a part of campaigns since the Watergate era? - as long as the public felt that "corruption" or "special interests" were being curbed they followed the pied pipers of campaign finance reform.

Of course there has never been a case of campaign finance reform working. Its never been the solution to money being spent in campaigns, it's never mitigated the effects of special interests, its never made for a more cordial campaign enviornment. No, the unintended consequence of campaign finance reform is that it has made special interest money harder to track and it's made candidates less relevant to the process.

Finally, at least one city has figured it out! The City of Pleasanton may become the first city in the east bay that will require web based reporting and - get this - real time reporting so that every one in the world will know exactly when and how much a candidate is taking and from whom.

The only real solution to tracking the special interest money being spent on campaigns is full and immediate disclosure on the internet. As any political consultant will tell you - there is always money trying to get into a political contest and it will always find a way - time to let the sun shine in and show the world who is taking what from whom. 

Of course, many editorial boards and academics may disagree - we'll consider their opinions as they defend the success of current "campaign reform" efforts, better yet, when they start actually managing political campaigns. Until then, read up on what Pleasanton is doing and consider adopting this ordinance as a matter of good governance.

Cities Can Lead In Easing Borrowers Plight - Finding Solutions To The Housing Meltdown

Educating your residents about their options on getting out of a sub-prime loan can save more than their homes for the holdays and beyond - it can also save a significant headache for your city in terms of property tax revenue, the multiplier of residents paying sales tax in your local area - and, as many cities are coming to find - preventing many neighborhoods from becoming virtual ghost towns.

Whatever the cause of the problem - everyone is best served by finding a solution. Simply suggesting that "foolish borrowers are getting what they bargained for" may be overly simplistic - even if true. The downward spiral on the local and national economy are not best served by watching housing prices, homeownership rates and community standards fall.

Rancho Cordova City Councilman Ken Cooley, widely recognized as a regional leader in the Sacramento region, called together a summit recently to educate his community and residens on what could be done if they were facing foreclosure. So promising was the idea the the Sacramento Bee editorial board weighed in on how all cities might also assist in this situation.

Congratulations to Councilman Cooley and the City of Rancho Cordova for being proactive on this problem and for charting a new path for other cities facing similar problems (by the way, that would be most of them).

CCN Book Review: The Ghost Map

CaliforniaCityNews proudly presents the first installment of what is intended as a periodic review of new and not so new books on urban life.  We say “periodic” as this holds us to no regular timetable and accommodates the scare time one has for such pursuits. 

The first installment is “The Ghost Map,” a 2006 New York Times Notable Book subtitled “The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic, and How it Changed Science, Cities and the Modern World.”

If one looks past the, often graphic, depictions of daily life for the urban poor in Victorian England, Ghost Map is a fascinating look into the development of urban culture and of the innovations that have made cities not only habitable, but able to thrive in the last two centuries.   

Prop 1B Local Streets and Road Funds Available Jan. 15

The California Department of Finance earlier this week announced that instructions and forms for allocating Proposition 1B local street and road funds would be sent to cities and counties by Jan. 15, 2008.

This long awaited announcement was delivered via letter on Dec. 10 to Sens. Mike Machado, Bob Dutton, Christine Kehoe.  The letter (available at the League of Cities' website) was written in response to questions raised by the senators as to the specific reasons for the delays in a special hearing on December 3.

Joel Kotkin Speaks on Cities, Economic Development

Joel Kotkin, a renowned author on urban issues, spoke at the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce Annual Luncheon today, and praised the work the city has done in meeting the needs of its future residents. 

Kotkin, who is now a professor at Chapman University, addressed what he deemed "the metaphysical question of: what are cities for?"  Reflecting on his own upbringing in Brooklyn, Kotkin mused how his "crumby" neighborhood was yet able to turn out a generation of youths that all reached the middle class, and how this might be they key purpose for modern cities -- acting as an engine for the middle class and promoting an economy of opportunity. 

He would go on to encourage city officials to shun "hail mary" real estate development and "cosmetic downtown projects" in favor focusing on the families that constitute the core of a community's identity.  This, in addition to an off-hand suggestion that the state exchange property tax dollars for sales tax dollars and eliminate that whole fisicalization of land use thing, made for some interesting dialogue and raises some interesting points about the overall purpose cities serve in this new millennium. 

Perhaps most thought provoking, Kotkin condemns what he calls "luxury cities," such as today's New York or even California's own San Francisco, as these don't fit his model of urban centers creating a robust economy that serves all residents.  One might argue that these are merely hubs of larger regional economies, but the this argument is becoming pretty familiar: walling off certain communities for the very affluent creates host of additional problems when it comes to importing a workforce, the traffic that creates and the 'talent gap' left behind when young workers leave for more affordable areas, hurting the local economy and so on.  The City of Santa Barbara treated this very issue in a documentary released this year, The Price of Paradise. 

So what are cities for?  It's an interesting question with more than one answer, would love to hear thoughts from our readers...

Renters Rights Blog Introduces Catchy New Youtube Video

A must see video on Youtube that was posted on a new blog dedicated to exposing the Howard Jarvis Measures "landlord scheme" - well worth a few minutes of your time.

Two Florida Cities Battle Over Nickname

Just in case you thought that cities fighting over petty issues was the domain of California municipalities, CCN brings you a a news story from Florida. Coral Gables and Orlando Florida have been fighting over the right to use the name "The City Beautiful".

No word yet on which city has won the right to use the name "funkytown". Your suggestions as to who should win that right are, as always, welcome...

Los Angeles Denies That Its UUT Measure Would Allow Taxing The Internet

Followers of our political analysis and election coverage know that we've been writing for some time on the politically charged topic of UUT's (Utility User Taxes). Of all the revenue measures a city can choose to ask for voter support on, the UUT is almost certainly the most difficult to pass.

The reasons for this are many, but there is clearly one argument that is gaining traction - whether its true or not is another issue - and that is that a loosely written UUT measure can be argued to allow taxation of the internet.  Check out the link below to the Daily News to see how opponents are leveling this charge in Los Angeles. As technologies change, and UUT ordinances adapt to accomodate these new technologies, a common strategy often referred to as "reduce and renew" has seen many cities reducing the rate of their UUT while also broadening the range of services covered.

The strategy has been successful as a great number of cities that have tried this strategy have passed their measures quite handily - some with stunning levels of support (in fact, every UUT measure using this strategy throughout California passed last November 2007).

The city of Los Angeles, which faces a massive budget shortfall if its UUT is not renewed in February, has recently come under such criticism. The opponents of the UUT argue that internet technologies may be susceptible to taxation once the current measure before the voters sunsets.

Taxing the internet? You be the judge of whether the claim is true or not. But one thing is undeniable - if opponents continue to not let the facts get in the way of their story - the passage rates of UUT's may not be as successful as they have been in the past.

State Budget Gap Worsens

State budget gap now $14 billion

By Kevin Yamamura - kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published 5:57 pm PST Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's finance officials are projecting a California budget deficit of roughly $14 billion, significantly larger than the $9.8 billion gap previously forecast by a state budget analyst, according to two sources who spoke to the governor.

The growing estimate increases pressure on Schwarzenegger and lawmakers to cut state spending and consider tax increases to close the budget hole. Schwarzenegger last month ordered all departments to prepare spending plans 10 percent below than what they had anticipated, and GOP lawmakers are calling for immediate midyear cuts in spending.