Opinion: S. Tahoe’s business model doesn’t work
To the community,
The city manager on the issue of snow removal is irrational, and it goes hand-in-hand with keeping a 25 percent general fund reserve at this time. It’s like a miser who hoards money when his house badly needs repair.
The city manager is in the process of revealing his true self. He is an arrogant, haughty man. Thus, he dictates. Temps will be hired as the
Bill Crawford
council wrings its hands.
The city manager’s business model is a hypothesis that cannot be tested for validity. It is only an idea that is subjective. Who will measure its success or failure?
What’s going on in our city government is like a soap opera. You cannot believe it.
Oh, well, rage is dead.
Bill Crawford, South Lake Tahoe
Cutting back on snow removal is a dangerous, self-serving and expensive mistake that will cause misery for us all. I’ve lived in the Tahoe area for 25 years and I can tell you that the SLT snow removal crew is as hard working, dedicated and skilled as the best. According to Heavenly Resort, last year was the biggest on record, yet the snow removal crew kept streets open and traffic moving. Seriously, they deserve our appreciation and community support, not a pink slip.
As usual Mr. Crawford tells it like it is. Great job! Yes, the ciy manager is an arrogant haughty man who thinks nothing of destroying our city from the roots up. Why should he care? He’ll just walk away with a hefty chunk of money and leave the city council members with egg on their faces…stupid ignorance laced with greed pervades our upper government…
As time goes by it gets worser and worser in the Cole/Davis in Wonderland.
hmmmm……where is the city manager from, again?
Yes, this obsession with a 25% reserve is a little weird! Both O’Rourke and Jinkens have/had it. Sure it’s good to have a reserve, and a high reserve is ideal.
Yet what’s a reserve for? It’s for when you’re in a pinch! This mindset I fear will lead to a City where we have no infrastructure or snow removal. So when a visitor arrives and can’t around and experience our town, we can tell him, “Sorry you can’t get around! But the good news is our City has a big reserve they’re sitting on! Oh, and our top mgt. gets to take home great pay w/ benefits!”
Destroy city services and permanent residents will leave the city. The League to Save (try B of A) Lake Tahoe has a de facto win. Do they own the hatchet man and the city council or are our public servants just useful idiots?
Gee, another budget / city council rant and another chorus of responders noting “way to go!”
The reserve has been spent for the past several years. It’s for emergencies, Angora fire, mud slide on Hwy 50, etc. This recession no longer qualifies as an emergency. It’s here, it’s a fact, it’s going to be around for a while.
The City has to cope with it. At some point you have to stop spending the savings account and start rebuilding it. Clearly deficit-spending cannot continue.
At least O’Rourke has a plan! All I’ve heard from anyone else is “don’t do that.” Whining about O’Rourke’s plan serves no useful purpose. If you don’t like it then make a better one.
O’Rourke has a history of breaking up cities for his investors to come in and buy up at bargain basement rates… Check out Coral Springs, he misappropriated funds and yet they sang his praises as he left…
Look up CNL Lifestyles, and what they own…we are next.
You don’t blow the entire reserve, and you do need to make some cuts! But it’s just worth noting that Councilman Davis pointed at the last meeting how our City has a higher reserve than most CA cities.
He was boasting. But there just seems to be something backwards about having a high reserve, but lousy roads (and we may be near the top with a reserve, yet we’re clearly in the bottom half in roads) and high taxes and fees!
Definitely reduce spending. Heck at least freeze or roll back those raises top mgt. has received! And I’ve commented previously about the instances of excessive City staff I’ve first hand witnessed! But this fixation with a 25% number, when the City lags in other areas, is counterproductive!
Thank you Mr Crawford for your complete and concise summary of our Council and City Manager.
For those who claim their are no other plans being presented you are plainly ignoring the folks who are showing up and asking for other ideas to be considered. This City Council apparently has no other ideas beyond following the man from Vail.
They only one being heard is our City Manager who plainly has made up his mind to outsource as much as he can get away with, to hand city property over to no-bid contractors and prepare our town to be handed over to Vail.
I say again, any Council Candidate who states their goal to remove our City Manager will get my vote.
This town needs to be run for the good of the local tax payers and not for any single business interest.
My Two Cents
-Local Yokle
5 years seems to be Tony O’Roarke’s magic number. He had a “5 year capital plan” for Beaver Creek also. Reference, Beaver Creek Resort Company board of directors meeting Feb 25, 2010 and a couple of other dates also. I would guess he didn’t have time to implement it there so he put it in his suitcase and brought it here. There is good management and bad, only time will tell. It might be a good time for citizens to upgrade to a bigger and better snow blower. Again Kae thank you for allowing my post.
How do you close a $5m structural deficit that will continue to be there year after year without making changes? I don’t know any other way other than reducing costs. Unless everyone one wants to have taxes increased? You have to try some different things including privatizing, temporary help whatever it takes, but continuing to do the same as we have will not get us out of the situation the city is in. Demonizing the city manger is a diversion from the issue; a $5m structural deficit. Whoever the city manager is would have to face the same problem. It’s time to come to grip with the real issue; we spend way more then we take in and things have to change.
Snow removal services have been outstanding. of course that is why we should sub-contract it out instead. sad sad sad. Is this decision a done deal?
You don’t close a $5 million deficit by blowing $2 million on redevelopment and sacking road services. Yet that is exactly what this irresponsible and incompetent city council and manager intend to do. A terrorist cell could not do a better job in destroying South Lake Tahoe. Truly we are witnessing the destruction of our economy and environment at the hands of a centrally planned Tahoe economy that rivals North Korea.
Thanks to the Governor, cities are allowed to use money from the current years Low Moderate Income Housing Fund (SLT has $1.2M) to pay the initial payment to the State. That money does not come out of the General Fund. The city is proposing to fund the balance from reserves. What it does do across the State as well as here in South Lake Tahoe is either delay or kill any affordable housing project that was going to break ground this year. I don’t know how someone who thinks they are qualified to run this town that doesn’t know anything about redevelopment or has any suggestions on increasing revenue and decreasing costs can keep misleading the public, slandering the integrity of the city council to further his political ambitions, and keep getting away with it. “A terrorist cell could not do a better job in destroying South Lake Tahoe. Truly we are witnessing the destruction of our economy and environment at the hands of a centrally planned Tahoe economy that rivals North Korea” Are you kidding me?
Whitt33 is correct… Kubbs spreads false information and trys to stir things up just to keep his name being talked about. The city has no say, barely, in the redevelopment issue. The state is TAKING the money from the all the agencies in california. The case is being litigated right now and all the cities are suing the state to try and keep their own money. The state continues to steal money from cities anytime it wants to in spite the voters telling the state to keep their hands out of our pots. The state wants all the redevelopment money because it generates billions for local cities and counties and now the states wants it.
Yo Kubbs, either you know the state is forcibly taking the money and are spreading false information or you are speaking off the cuff and simply ignorant of the facts. The city can’t simply shut down the redevelopment agency, there are laws against that, but you probably don’t know the laws on that either.
Since you know how this all works, why not take your pipe, call the judges reviewing this case right now, tell them the city doesn’t want to pay, better yet, call the governor and state legislators who passed the laws, tell them this town ain’t gonna pay their money and aint gonna follow their rules. Yeah, that’ll work, Kubbs’ll tell the gov. Lets see how that works out.
In addition redevlopment is an important piece of environmental improvement. When redevelopment projects go forward like the Heavenly Village they include the latest in technology to reduce sediment run off. While it’s convenient to think that redevelopment benefits just some greedy developer it also plays a role in low income housing as was suggested above and environmental improvement.
As to calling a the city manager and the council the equivalent of a terrorist cell, way over the top and nothing more than demonizing. You really have get over the messege and messenger and to come to grips with the problem a $5m annual structural deficit. What are your proposed solutions?
Crawford gave them to you 10 years ago Carl, wake up.
Were dealing with the problem webhave today Lou not ten years ago. Wake up.
I absolutely will not be running for city council and have zero interest in any such office. In fact, I am leading a statewide campaign with police and judges to regulate and tax cannabis. My comments about the city council are based upon my own review of the finances, broken promises, illegal transactions and outright lies being told to our community. As well as a very real fear that the city is about to destroy our snow removal services.
$7 million raided from city funds and a twelve acre crater left in the center of town would certainly qualify as terrorism if anyone other than the city council had been responsible for it.
I challenge those who defend redevelopment to explain or justify the $7 million taken from the general fund and transferred without the knowledge or consent of the city council, to cover the failed revenue that never materialized. This was later labeled a “loan” to be paid back with TOT funds that were already allocated to the general fund. Is this what you consider to be good government? Should we stop complaining and just drink the Koolaid being offered to us?
Just imagine if there was no redevelopment. No Embassy Suites, no heavenly village, No affordable housing, no improved water quaily. Just the Tally Ho Motel, the Red Carpet inn, mini golf and no sidewalks. Talk about decimating a local economy there is also an economic cost to doing nothing.
What would SLT be like without redevelopment? No $200 million in bond costs, no special tax exemptions for big corporations, no 12 acre crater, no broken streets and no unfunded liabilities of $200 million. Instead, the free market would have created its own Heavenly Village, without destroying our local businesses, neglecting our roads and forcing the city into debt.
Wishful thinking. No in a towns whose lifeblood is tourism you would have the tally ho, the red carpet inn and no sidewalks.
I challenge Mr. Ribaudo to explain why redevelopment was necessary in SLT, but not anywhere else in Tahoe. Furthermore, let him explain why we should spend another $2 million dollars this year, just to keep redevelopment going, when we are already $5 million underwater on our city budget. Finally, let him explain why he believes a 12 acre crater and the unauthorized removal of $7 million from the general fund is an improvement over the previous Tally Ho and the Red Carpet Inn.
Redevelopment is where government and crony business work behind the peoples back.
Get government OUT of business. Put the cronies in prision.
Cut government down to half size and half the wage rates.
Then America can work again.
Government is the problem. STUPID
I truly appreciate what redevlopment brought to us. A trashy first impression by visitors, unsafe walking areas and old motels are gone, and now we have a clean, safe and attractive area where locals and visitors alike can walk. Every time I drive by I look at all the walkers…that was never the case before! I was walking behind some visitors recently and overheard one of them on their cell phone saying how beautiful South Lake Tahoe is becoming.
Nobody could have imagined that the hole on the other side would be still sitting as a hole. I hope the courts act on that quickly so the other side can become what Heavenly Village and Cecil’s Plaza already have become.
About outsourcing: look around at casinos, counties, other cities, small and big business…everyone is doing it. Why is it a crime if SLT does it? We have to cut expenses to make a budget. Why is that the city council and city manager’s fault?
An observation: There are continually attacks of elected and non-elected officials on this site. They accuse those people of having an agenda but read into these comments and it will be easy to see what the writer’s agenda is. Success can only happen if everyone gets together to help make it happen. What have you done today that will help your tomorrow?
The Grand Jury has already investigated the city council of South Lake Tahoe and found no criminal activity. Redevelopment Area 1 has produced millions and millions of dollars in revenue. Standard and Poors upgraded our bonds last year because of this fact. Again without redevelopment and the Heavenly Village the other projects the cities TOT would not have produced any substantial revenue to do any improvements to the city. Private developers build commercial properties and income properties based on Return of Investment, Capitalization rates and the expectation of a return on their money invested annually. The cost to build in the basin, the environmental regulations and the cost of land makes it very difficult to achieve a profit and makes it very difficult to attract private investment. For many decades South Lake Tahoe was looked down upon as a sleazy, underdeveloped town. Old money never considered living here. Squaw Valley, Kings Beach, Truckee, Carnelian Bay, Incline Village was the destination. Even Frank Sinatra bought the Cal Neva casino and never spent a dime in South Lake Tahoe. But today things have changed. Thanks to redevelopment, we have first class hotels, improved infrastructure and environment, and created affordable housing and jobs. Without help private investors will not invest in affordable housing, shopping centers, hotels or homes. Existing infrastructure will remain under developed without the capital to improve it that comes from redevelopment to encourage private investment.
Neither the city or the redevelopment agency invested one dollar into the Chateau. However they stood to reap millions in TOT and Sales tax. Things will change, and money will start being invested in our town. But not without redevelopment.
The Y is another redevelopment area. It has remained the same for decades. It is run down, the Lukins water system needs repairs and the sales tax and increment has remained flat. You have the airport that should have commercial flights to bring in tourist, Camp Richardson and the surrounding campgrounds. Investment in this area has been stagnant because revenue cannot cover costs. No private investor is going to invest their money and then throw more money at it year after year without at least breaking even and expecting a return on their capital.
The Tahoe Basin has many redevelopment projects in other cities that have improved their communities
Truckee
Frishman Hollow An affordable 32 unit multi-family community
Heness Flats is an affordable 92 unit multi-family community
Canyon Springs
A proposed subdivision of six parcels totaling 283.76 acres into 177 single-family parcels, eight parcels for affordable housing and approximately 171 acres of open space.
Pollard Station – A Senior Neighborhood
Pollard Station is proposed to be an age-restricted senior neighborhood located on the 8.05-acre Davies/Fitch in the Hilltop Master Plan area. The proposal includes a variety of housing options for seniors, typically aged 70-90 year, to serve a range of needs from fully independent seniors to those needing assistance with various activities of daily living, including specialized care for seniors with various forms of dementia. In total, the project proposes 120 separate residential units, including 78 assisted living units in the 76,689 s.f congregate care lodge and 42 two-bedroom condominium units for independent senior living.
Gregory Creek Subdivision
A planned development located on 32.1 acres in the western portion of the Town of Truckee.
Coldstream Specific Plan (PC-1)
A planned community located on Coldstream Road on the Teichert property between Donner Memorial State Park and The Boulders Condominiums . The specific plan proposes up to 70,000 s.f. of retail and commercial uses and approximately 345 residential units.
Joerger Ranch Specific Plan (PC-3)
A mixed use planned community located at the intersection of Highway 267, Brockway Road, and Soaring Way.
Truckee-Donner Recreation and Parks District Cultural Arts Center
The District is proposing to convert the Church Street Truckee-Donner Recreation and Parks District Community Center to a 252-seat performing arts theater with an art/dance classroom component.
Glenshire Happenings
A summary of land use permit applications and development proposals in the Glenshire area.
Donner Pass RD / Bridge Street Streetscape Improvement Project
Depot Conceptual Streetscape Plan
Trout Creek Pocket Park Project
Railyard Master Plan Project
West River Site Project
Donner Pass Rd Streetscape Improvement Program
Downtown Economic Development Program
Downtown Main Street
Program Implementation
Crystal Bay :
Boulder Bay Resort.
Boulder Bay calls for the construction of a 275-room hotel with a 10,000 square-foot casino, 59 whole-ownership units, 14 on-site affordable housing units, 10 off-site affordable housing units, a spa and other amenities, while also addressing outdated environmental concerns at the Tahoe Biltmore site.
Tahoe Vista
B&G Excavation Inc.
Tahoe Vista Partners -Cerelean (Sandy Beach Partnership
Vista Village Workforce Housing Project (aka Cedar Grove Apartments)
Tahoe Sands Redevelopment
National Avenue Projects (projects with National Avenue ingress/egress only)
Tahoe North Materials Batch Plant Alternative
North Tahoe Regional Park
6731 Tahoe Fractional Ownership Residences
Kings Beach
Kings Beach Commercial Core Improvement Program
Kings Beach Town Center
Domus Affordable Housing
Tahoe City
Rippey Commercial Mixed Use Building
Truckee River Rafting
Mountain Air Sports Rafting
Highland Village
Tahoe City Marina
64 Acres
Transit Center
Homewood
Homewood Mountain Resort
Villas at Harborside
Northstar
Northstar Overall Mountain Master Plan
Northstar Highlands Phase II
The Village at Northstar
Squaw Valley
SENA at Squaw Valley
Headwall/Cornice II Express
Caldwell Rezoning Project
Other Projects:
Kings Beach Eastern Gateway, Land Assembly and Brownfield Cleanup
Scattered Sites Affordable Housing Development, Kings Beach
Kings Beach and Tahoe City Parking Lots
Kings Beach and Tahoe City Gateway Monument Signs
Swiss Mart Brownfield Cleanup
Heritage Plaza Improvements, Tahoe City
Tahoe City Marina Sewer Pump Station Improvements
Commercial Properties Rehabilitation Assistance
Housing Rehabilitation Assistance
BB, LLC Mixed Use Community Enhancement Program (CEP) Kings Beach
Tahoe City Transit Center Project
Kings Beach Commercial Core Improvement Project
Parking Lot Property Acquisition and Construction in Commercial Districts
Ferrari Resort Kings Beach CEP Project
Tahoe City Wye Improvements
Lake Forest Water District/Tahoe City PUD Project
Tahoe Housing Rehab Assistance Program
Tahoe Vista Recreation Area Improvements
Commercial Loan Program
There many more projects around the basin that are not named here.
Most of your facts are so false they do not deserve a response.
“This Grand Jury is of the opinion that an accusation for malfeasance or nonfeasance by this City Council may be appropriate … The Grand Jury only touched the ‘tip of the iceberg’ in its investigation and recommends that the citizens of South Lake Tahoe get involved with their City government. It is up to the citizens to establish the kind of governance they desire, to exercise their democratic right to vote, and get a City government that works for the common good and in an efficient manner for its citizens.”
–El Dorado Grand Jury Report
Fact: No criminal charges were brought. Accusing two city councilman of criminal conduct when the Grand Jury found no criminal laws were broken misrepresents the truth.
Fact: Not one former or current city council member or any public staff member of the Redevelopment Agency has ever been accused of taking bribes or personally profiting from a RDA project.
Fact: 35% or more of the TOT comes from 4 major projects in Redevelopment area 1, that’s $1.8m to $2m+ a year. Multiply that since the Village, Marriot, and Embassy have been built, that’s millions and millions in revenue.
Fact: In 2010 Standard and Poors upgraded our bonds partially because of the strength of TOT received from these projects.
Fact: Redevelopment projects are all around the basin. Not just in South Lake Tahoe.
And the number 1 fact: This town is more vibrant, fun, has increased TOT, sales tax, built affordable housing, and has brought more money, and more tourist to this town and improved the environment.
Basically, the redevelopment areas are improved. But the economy of the town as a whole, has not improved. Even when the national economy was strong, and the Marriot project was in place, the number of people visiting Tahoe was on the decline! And no new money was coming, as revenues, when you remove the sales tax increase of ’04, were stagnant!
The biggest problem with redevelopment was that it allowed are City’s leaders to lose sight of the big picture, and do nothing to improve economic viability of the town! When people were crying out, “You’re killing us with taxes, fees and stupid sign regulations!” the response was, “Oh but we’re doing redevelopment!”
That’s gotten us some nice new buildings, plus a big hole in the ground. But it’s still lead to people leaving Tahoe to greener pastures! Greener even in this stagnant economy!
Is the fact that people aren’t coming here in droves as before really the city council’s problem? Local leaders in travel have been telling people for years to look for new ways to bring in tourists and don’t rely on the declining gambling industry.
Is it the city council’s fault that hotels don’t spruce up their property but continue to charge high prices? That business that offer water tours and other tourist based activities charge more than the average family can afford? That service isn’t what it should be?
We need to have the city council set a sign ordinance, set the budget, and move on to things they can help our locals with, whatever that may be. We’ve been arguing signs for years and look where we could have been had it been adopted by councils long ago.
Parker, Lou and others…. if the past included so many misjudgements, how do you explain the electorate voting in two of the principals in these decisions; Hal Cole and Tom Davis? Obviously based on the election results, the voters, who live in the city see it differntly.
Doesn’t whit33 have to back up his/her “facts” like the rest of us? The posts are very informitive but as it has been pointed out to myself, Lou and others have to back up their facts as required by this site. I do enjoy your posts.
Whit33’s facts are pretty right on and well documented and could be confirmed solidly with one call to the city. Lou never proved how the water agencies are getting free water. Bum, you twist what STPUD says and don’t have a grasp of the facts. Their record are open too, so easy to prove the truth. The only thing Whit33 didn’t put out there is how the grand jury is a civil group and is not a body to bring criminal charges. While none have been brought against the city, people have gone to the DA asking for help and have gotten none. Maybe that’s the crime.
Dryclean, in an earlier post I noted how our City’s election system, where all Council candidates run at the same time, and those elected are the top vote getters BUT not those who necessarily get a majority! To get elected, you need a core of supporters. And those that have lived in the City for 40 plus years, such as Davis & Cole, can generate a core of supporters. But since there’s no runoff, you don’t need a majority! Log onto to the County website, and check out old election results and do the math.
And 30yr. local, don’t know if it’s the Council’s fault less people come here? But since getting people to come here is our main (only?) industry, projects approved by the Council should have that goal in mind. Worth noting that redevelopment, especially since they involved tourist projects, did not achieve that goal!
FYI, I don’t think redevelopment has been all bad. Just don’t think it was worth all the hype!