53.7 F
San Diego
Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
-Advertisement-

Predicted Cuts Likely to Affect Local Government

Predicted Cuts Likely to Affect Local Government

S.D. Faces Familiar Issues as Regional Panel Begins Work

BY DENISE T. WARD

Staff Writer

For San Diego city officials, 2002 virtually mirrors 2001 as far as issues confronting the city.

County officials, however, are bracing for deep budget cuts, while the area’s political landscape expands as a new regional agency begins its quest to enhance San Diego’s airport facilities.

Traffic, a new airport, political confidence and development issues also are expected to roll over into the new year, according to political analysts.

For the city of San Diego, which started 2001 with a near-full slate of new council members and a new mayor, construction of the Downtown ballpark and the development surrounding the project still sits at the top of the city’s list of things to do. All signs pointed to the city issuing bonds to cover their portion of the project before the end of 2001, but a new lawsuit forced the issue to again come to a halt.

“The ballpark is the gift of Christmas past for the city,” said Steve Erie, UCSD’s director of urban studies and planning. “San Diego politics are like (the movie) ‘Groundhog Day’; we’re doomed to repeat the same things over and over again.”

One thing Erie said the city was successful at completing was the formation of an Ethics Commission. Although the commission has yet to tackle any issues, Erie said the mere existence of the group should restore public confidence in City Hall.

Tom Shepard, a local political consultant to several elected officials, said the jury is still out in terms of how the city will fare in 2002.

“What the new mayor and City Council have done is they have cleared the air, and they’ve done a good deal to rebuild trust in the integrity of local government,” Shepard said. “The jury is still out on whether they are going to be able to accomplish any of the key objectives they’ve laid out for themselves.”

The ballpark project is probably a more visible issue for the city, but Shepard said in 2002 the city will also face a serious budget shortfall as a result of the slowing economy, because local revenue projections generated from sales taxes and transient occupancy taxes for 2001 were not met.

The county could also face a major budget deficit this year, according to Chief Administrative Officer Walt Ekard. The county’s shortfall, however, would result from state budget cuts more than from a lack of local revenue.

“History tells you that when (state) government has a budget crisis they balance it on the back of local government,” Ekard said. “Our hope is the state understands the dramatic impact that could have on the public.”

The state is expected to cut $14 billion from its budget because of the slowing economy. Since it’s unclear where those cuts will be made, Ekard said the county also is hedging on where to cut back.

The county receives $180 million of its $3.8 billion annual budget from the state, and budget cuts could affect branch libraries, public safety, or health and human services.

“We rely heavily on the general fund,” Ekard said. “But we would have to come to grips and deal with (any cuts).”

Ekard said the county runs more like a business than a government agency and operates under a structured, balanced budget. He said the county will not spend money it doesn’t have or sell land to cover things such as payroll.

Another issue expected to face local government in 2002 is the debate over whether to build a new airport.

A regional airport authority has been formed to determine if a new airport should be built or if Lindbergh Field should be expanded. That authority was formed as a result of legislation authored by Assemblyman Howard Wayne, D-San Diego, and state Sen. Steve Peace, D-El Cajon. It’s a part of a larger plan to build consensus among the cities within the county regarding transportation and land-use issues.

A local commission charged with finding a resolution to regional governance recommended the state consolidate the San Diego Association of Governments, the Metropolitan Transportation Development Board and the North County Transit District, but the agencies would still oversee current day-to-day operations.

Sandag would continue its planning duties and provide information on the region’s quality of life. The MTDB would still operate the bus and trolley system in San Diego, as well as areas to the east and south of the city, and the NCTD would operate the transit system in the North County. But the decision-making and actual governance of land use and transportation issues throughout the county would be made by a new 11-member elected board of directors.

That issue didn’t progress through the Legislature as quickly as the airport authority, but is expected to be revisited in 2002.

“Regional governance will come up again,” Shepard said.

Shepard added the problem is transportation and land-use issues are the responsibility of too many people.

“Peace argued that it’s not very coordinated,” Shepard said. “The bottom line is frustration by residents with congestion. It’s been seen in other urban counties that when congestion gets to a certain point it starts having economic dislocations.”

Affordable housing is expected to emerge as a high priority issue in the coming year as well.

According to Sandag, the number of people living is San Diego is lower than what the agency anticipated. Gary Gallegos, the agency’s executive director, said that’s because more people are moving to Riverside County and Tijuana while commuting to work in San Diego.

“The problem is that speaks to the lack of a job-housing balance,” Gallegos said. “It’s not a problem of not producing enough homes, but the problem is (builders) are not producing enough affordable homes.”

Sandag has received grant money to work with the Western Riverside Council of Governments to try to fix the situation, Gallegos said.

-Advertisement-

Featured Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-

Related Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-