Crash course on S. Tahoe inner workings for council-elect
By Kathryn Reed
South Lake Tahoe’s three incoming City Council members got a taste Thursday of what it is going to be like once they are sworn in Dec. 14 for their four-year term.
Walk into council chambers at Lake Tahoe Airport with a clear schedule for the day because you don’t know how long the meeting will last. That was one lesson. The 9am meeting was supposed to be done about noon. It was over closer to 2:30pm.
Don’t expect the agenda to follow what’s printed. In the case of the Dec. 2 meeting, public safety moved up three spots to accommodate Police Chief Brian Uhler needing to be at another meeting.
Angela Swanson, Tom Davis, Claire Fortier
This was the first of two initiation sessions for Claire Fortier, Tom Davis and Angela Swanson. The Dec. 2 meeting was all about getting a lesson on open meeting laws, who may talk to whom when, what is considered a gift and if it can be accepted or needs to be declared. It was also about all the department heads sharing what is going on and their concerns.
Next week’s get-together is with outside agencies which are partners with the city so the three have an idea of who else is in the sandbox.
Fire Chief Lorenzo Gigliotti was after Uhler. This led to another lesson. It can take multiple questions by a councilmember to get an answer to the first question.
Councilwoman-elect Swanson wanted to know more about the ladder truck that was supposed to be bought through Redevelopment Agency funds once Lake Tahoe Development Company was given its building permits for the now bankrupt convention center near Stateline.
Gigliotti didn’t have an answer for why the city didn’t receive its money before developer Randy Lane filed for bankruptcy in October 2009. What was revealed is the original price tag to replace the 26-year-old outdated ladder truck was $675,000. With California law changing, the vehicle now costs $800,000 – and it would not fit into any of the fire stations.
The city worked the ladder truck into the original agreement because it would be needed to fight a fire at the center. Now it’s possible the city will lobby to get a firehouse built with mitigation funds from whatever might rise from the rebar and concrete.
But, still, no funding exists for the ladder truck. Gigliotti’s first answer, when pressed by Swanson about how to fund it, was to tax property owners. The second idea was to up the transient occupancy tax.
This discussion all came after Finance Director Christine Vuletich detailed what a sorry state of affairs the city’s finances are in – which isn’t news.
“The days of wine and rose are over and I don’t anticipate them coming back soon,” City Manager Tony O’Rourke said.
He said it is possible to use the operating reserve one more year as a stopgap measure before dipping below the 25 percent threshold, which is about $8 million.
“Our biggest problem is a complete infrastructure deficit,” O’Rourke said.
A sign of the economy improving is the peak unemployment of 18.1 percent for South Lake in spring 2010 has dropped to 15.9 percent in October.
Councilwoman-elect Fortier, who is touted to be the next mayor pro tem, asked if the drop relates to those people not living in town anymore.
To this, Vuletich said, “It could be.”
She had no reason why unemployment numbers are changing.
The general fund is expected to have a deficit of $2 million to $3 million for the next five years.
Vuletich spoke a bit about the five-year budget plan O’Rourke has told her and others to come up with. She expects a report and plan to be presented to the council in February.
I hope council members are astute enough to realize that since there is no convention center, there is also no need for the new ladder truck whose purpose was to fight fires there. And to reject the Fire Chief’s suggestion to tax property owners, or increase the Transient Occupancy Tax for such a truck.
Let’s hope sober thinking is introduced into council actions and not repeat the fantasies of the past.
We ought to tax Fire Chief Lorenzo Gigliotti’s butt right out of town.
After hitting rock bottom, there is nowhere to go but up. Any projections on where the bottom is?
Definitely no need for a new fire truck, as there is nothing to patrol with it.
No need for all the needless tent canopies piled up at the recreation complex that the CM and a redevelopment manager ordered either. Around fifteen laying there and at $1700.00 a pop why were they ordered and on whose budget were they billed to? Seems like another extravegant purchase by city hall’s upper management.
While I only voted for one of the three who were elected, I’m still happy to see the three take office as this has got to be an improvement! But just like I said, the bureaucrats are going to try to stick the taxpayer with another tax increase!!
Mr. Fire Chief is that your only solution!! After getting nailed with purchasing unnecessary vehicles, you still would try to stick the taxpayer with an added bill?!?! You just don’t get it!! The Union may have this one right?!
Kae Interesting picture of the new 3, good old Tom looks so bored !!! He had to be listening to the open meeting law’s. As i recall Tommy has been a great Brown Actor.
Mr. Campbell,
It’s so interesting that you now live in another state and are concerned what Tom Davis does. Tom is very in touch and engaged with the community, and your best efforts to bad mouth and paint Tom in a negitative light have failed. Tom was elected to the council beacuse the people of this community trust him and his leadership and decision making skills. I also find it interesting that you never respond to these posts, after you are shut down with FACTS.
Cowboy, Davis hardly represents any of the main population of South Lake Tahoe. You and Davis both better get use to the remaining period of his term for plenty pokes in the comment section.
He doesn’t qualify for a Saint’s Halo here in the mountain town.
15.16 percent of the vote,1279 were cast for Davis In South Lake Tahoe, 41.8 percent of the 8,747 registered voters cast ballots.
POPS STANDS AT MAYBE 24000 residents still have voices to remark on his seat ,action ,remarks.
There’s 1000’s that could curl your ears about Davis, send you, riding your horse named Sue, to the recall section of city representions.
Far as I remember, the freedom of speech still works in South Lake Tahoe.
Yo, hard to make a living in Tahoe,
Last I checked Davis was elected and those who chose not to vote, well then they dont have the right to complain, plus the current pop is closer to 20,000. I beleieve you are Stephen Reinhardt?
Cowboy25, aka JT Davis — Councilman Tom Davis’ son, I do not believe HTMALIT is who you said. And please stop telling people to shut up on this site.
Kathryn Reed, LTN publisher
Cowboy25, you need to have a bit thicker skin with a dad in the public eye. Try to not take it so personal, and if you can’t, maybe you should limit your reading material while your dad’s in office.
There will be a full range of peoples opinions about how any of our elected officials are performing, it just comes with the territory.
It’s hard to tell Patrolmen to behave.THEY THINK THEY ARE ABOVE THE LAW.
Rodney King showed us that.
“WOULDN’T BE NICE TO LIVE IN A HONEST WORLD?”