SLO Journal Article

By Mayor Dave Romero

 

The sharp disappointment and sadness I felt with the voters decision on the Marketplace has begun to fade as so many other City decisions come forward, demanding attention. The Dalidio family has reactivated the project with the county where it will once again proceed through a development review process. My hope is that something good for SLO will eventually come out of all this.

 

Many great things are happening in SLOTOWN in the meantime:

 

Costco construction is moving ahead at a rapid rate, including improvements to Los Osos Valley Road and to the southbound ramps at 101 and Calle Joaquin. We’ll probably celebrate the store opening in September.

 

Stores in the Court Street Centre have been opening throughout June. The 9 new stores and 2 new restaurants are attracting customers from near and far. The complex is a wonderful addition to downtown.

The new parking/office structure at Palm and Moro is moving ahead nicely and should be ready for public use before Thanksgiving. Office occupancy is scheduled for a few months later. The 192 public parking spaces will just about replace the spaces lost on the Court Street parking lot and meet the need generated by the Court Street Centre.

 

About a dozen buildings in downtown are now under active seismic retrofit, while most others have submitted plans to meet the July 1, 2005 deadline. Rather than creating major disruption and problems as predicted by some when the City mandated the program, the downtown seems to be infused with a new vitality, with many retrofits restoring a historic look to downtown. When completed, I believe downtown will emerge stronger and more attractive than ever.

 

After almost a year under construction, the Foothill Bridge just east of Santa Rosa Street opened for traffic on June 3. This was just in time to handle the traffic needs for Poly Commencement. We’re all looking forward to the improved traffic flow in that end of town.

 

The Nacimiento Pipeline Advisory Commission is meeting every 2 months to oversee hiring of engineers, managers and other consultants for this $150 million project. Our meetings are amicable and we’re making great progress toward water delivery expected in 2009. The City of SLO share (3380 acft/yr), along with Margarita, Whale Rock and reclaimed water supplies should meet all of our water needs until long after 2025.

 

Your City Council struggled mightily to balance the city budget for the next 2 years. It took 12 meetings and some hard decisions to overcome the $2.1 million shortfall, which was caused primarily by state take-a-ways. Most budget-balancing savings were achieved by freezing positions (meaning lower levels of service to our citizens) and reducing Capital Expenditures (primarily street maintenance- which just cuts me to the quick). A smaller part of the budget balancing solution was achieved by raising city fees, always an agonizing choice. In order to restore city services to previous levels, the City Council is considering placing a measure on the November 2006 ballot for perhaps as much as a ½ cent increase to our current sales tax rate of  7.25%. You’ll be hearing more of this in months to come.

 

After more than 10 years of study, the City Council adopted the Margarita Specific Plan and is in the final hearing stages of the Airport Area Specific Plan. These two documents will guide development in that area of the city to assure high quality streets, utilities and other city services. There are several housing projects in the Margarita Area already in City Development Review, so it won’t be very long till we can make a serious dent in the city housing shortage.

 

Life is good serving as Mayor of our little piece of paradise I call SLOTOWN. Who could ask for anything more?