For SLVWD, Running in Place Won’t Work
In the May 22nd edition of the Press Banner, my colleague, Katie Evans, authored a piece regarding the LIRA (Low Income Residential Assistance) program being offered by the San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD). Katie reached out to Jim Mosher from Friends of the SLVWD to get more information on the program, and wrote extensively on the push for a 5% rate increase for customers. In response, SLVWD Director Bob Fultz requested a chat; having been on the board for 1.5 years, served on district committees and been an involved resident for many years, he seemed like a good bet on getting a different view of things. “Make no mistake, these views are solely mine,” Fultz told me. “I have no authority to speak on behalf of the district.” With that understanding out of the way, we moved onto the meat of the topic. Fultz acknowledge the Friends’ desire for the 5% rate increase, but wanted to clarify its intended use. “100% of that rate hike will go to increased operating expenses, which is the cost of running the district,” he told me. Currently, the district has several pressing financial issues regarding infrastructure and pensions, and none of those items would be addressed by the increase. “We have serious issues, like the need for coating the tanks, building up our reserves and installing new meters,”Fultz told me. In short, applying a rate increase would leave the district “running in place,” instead of getting ahead of the financial issues at hand. While Fultz acknowledged Mosher’s statement in the original article that “ten members called in to support the rate increase,” Fultz stated that the callers were all supporters of Mosher. Those ten people, Fultz said, did not represent the majority of rate payers in the valley. So why would a rate increase of 5% be such a contentious issue? “Well, we need to focus on our budget,” Fultz said. “We’re not a wealthy area by any means, and our no-growth policy negatively impacts the districts finances.” Towns like Saratoga and Scotts Valley are seeing building booms, which equates to fat district coffers. “A water access fee for new residences can be anywhere from $10k-$14k. Granted, that’s a one-time payment, but when you’ve got townhomes being built in rapid succession in Scotts Valley, they’re bringing in substantial revenue from that growth. The San Lorenzo Valley gets just a few new houses each year, so the rate increase needs to be balanced on the backs of existing residents.” The district’s capital reserves were reduced by 50% in this year’s budget, from $1m to $500k. If you assume that the replacement value of infrastructure is $1.5m to $2m, Fultz told me, “that means we need to spend $3m to $4m every year. We’re in a tough situation,” he said, “and it’s important that we get information out to the public regarding the position the district is in.” Did the district not see this coming? According to Fultz, the district is operating in a year-to-year budgeting cycle, which, for an agency that has to be looking decades down the road, doesn’t reflect the long-range planning that is needed. From that planning, clarity will come to demonstrate where the district is financially, and what to do about liabilities that have been built up. Pensions for employees seems to be a pressing issue. “The district’s pension liability is based on a decision made on the state level 25 years ago that assumed the stock market rush of the 1980s and 1990s would continue forever. Of course, we have had a couple of severe crashes, so that has resulted in unfunded pension liability. But these are promises that we made to our district employees. The initial assumed rate of return on our investments was 7%; in the last 20 years, rates have been around 5%. Our pension liability will go up towards $6m-7m range, but since we aren’t advancing paying down the pension obligation, the state is charging us a 7% fee for unfunded liabilities,” he said. “Who will we entrust in addressing these issues in a forthright fashion? The community needs to be fully briefed on our concerns.” Can anything be learned from the district’s past actions? “A few years back, the board decided to increase operating expenses by almost $1m, but without figuring out the actual benefit to the community. They just didn’t have concrete benefits to demonstrate. Now,” said Fultz, “the district is dealing with the fallout of that. We’ll get a better perspective if we move towards a multi-year budget.” The new board members empaneled in the last election have talked about moving to multi-year budgets (3-5 years) with better planning for remaining fund allocation. The current board is mostly comprised of business people, with the exception of Rick Moran who is in education. As Fultz puts it,installing new meters,”“By looking down the road, we’ll get a sense of how expenses will be allocated and managed. By increasing operating expenses each year, customers will see what that means over the long term,” and will lead to more strategic decision making, according to Fultz. And who will those decision makers be? That remains to be seen, says Fultz. There are two seats up for grabs come November, and Fultz thinks this year’s election process may be affected by COVID-19. “Generally, candidates start pulling papers in late July or early August, but we’ll see how the county moves forward with the election process.” Interested in throwing your hat in the ring? Fultz emphasizes that the commitment to the water district is done for love, not money, as the monthly stipend is low and the expectations high. To learn more, visit the Santa Cruz County Elections Department at www.votescount.com.
Floyd Protests in Felton
Protests erupted throughout the country in response to the killing of George Floyd on May 25th. Unrest against racist violence in the police force have ranged from peaceful to riots and looting throughout United States, and have even taken place in the UK, New Zealand, Japan, Australia, Germany, and Denmark. While this worldwide phenomenon develops, it’s also occurring across Santa Cruz County. We had our own moment in the spotlight, as a photo of the Santa Cruz City Police Chief, Andy Mills, kneeling during a protest has gone viral. Many groups of protestors have gathered these past few days at the clock tower in Santa Cruz, marched down Pacific Avenue, Cedar, Soquel, and Water Streets. Protests have moved into our valley as well. On May 31st, from 10 to 11:30 a.m., a march took place from the Felton Covered Bridge Park to the intersection of Highway 9 and Graham Hill Road. Look for an article in next week’s edition for further coverage.
Covid 19 Testing
There are currently two tests available for detecting Covid-19 virus which we know can cause a debilitating and potentially deadly pneumonia. The tests are: Gene detection- based and Serology detection.
The City of Scotts Valley Provides Restart Toolkits to 100 City Businesses
As businesses are able to open back up for in-store sales and the reopening of other business sectors is on the horizon, the City of Scotts Valley wants to support these efforts by providing up to 100 businesses with a Restart Toolkit, including one free gallon of locally produced hand sanitizer and 50 disposable face masks.
Living The New Normal – My Way
In my volunteer work with Hospice, we refer to the life we live after our loved one has passed as “The New Normal.” I am hearing the same phrase used for the life we are living now as we shelter in place due to the coronavirus and for our lives going forward. I think it’s appropriate, as there is much to grieve over. In addition to all the people who have died, I am also losing my old lifestyle – one that was varied, rich, and scare-free.
FREEDOM of OPINION
On occasion, a piece of writing in our paper generates a larger than normal amount of feedback from our readership. Last fall, the threat to Operation Turkey led to readers offering suggestions, support and financial relief to the nonprofit’s ability to feed the hungry and homeless. Readers have also been following Dr. Terry Hollenbeck’s health, and frequently write in when he provides an update on his treatment. Occasionally, we’ll receive a letter commending this very reporter for excellent work on a story (thank you to my children for those). On May 15th, our issue contained a column from the self-professed “CBD Guy,” one Tom Decker, owner of Las Nubes Santa Cruz. While freedom of speech is one of the tenets protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution, ramifications from expressing one’s opinions are not, and so we were awash in letters from readers who were in strict opposition to this paper’s decision to publish Decker’s column. At issue was the following sentence from Decker which was quoted back to us in nearly every letter to the editor: “Let us not be so quick to comply with all the dictates of faceless hall monitors who demand that we must make sacrifices for the good of others.” As I write this on Memorial Day, those words are even more meaningful, and more poignant. Currently, the globe is battling an infection that, as of today, has infected over 5.5 million people, and taken the lives of nearly 347,000 people. For comparison, the population of Santa Cruz County is just over 273,000. Imagine losing every neighbor, every student, every parent and coworker who lives in the county. Imagine entire towns wiped clean from humanity; that’s the impact of this loss of human lives. Here in Santa Cruz County, we’ve had a slight uptick in cases due to exposure shared at gatherings in Aptos and Watsonville, but overall, the numbers in the county have remained very low in comparison to other California locales. There are a few reasons for that. For one, Santa Cruz County has the blessing of housing in unincorporated areas, which results in more sprawl and spread between homes. Lack of density creates naturally imposed social distancing, which is a common denominator in slowing the spread of the virus. Governor Newsom’s dictates regarding the closure of beaches and state parks kept visitors from congregating, which also contained the damage from the virus. Restaurants remain open for take-out only, and nonessential businesses that have been given the green light to open are mandating mask usage and limiting the number of visitors to their stores. In addition, county residents have seen the impact that the virus has had in other cities and states, and the response has been to largely abide by the recommendations of the CDC and other directorial bodies. So it’s a gut-punch to read that a local small business owner wants us to disregard those “faceless hall monitors” as we move to limit the viability of COVID-19 in our neighborhoods. Mr. Decker has every right to his beliefs, and an equal right to share them in whatever format he sees as relevant. In response, our readers are also granted with the freedom to share their feedback on Decker’s beliefs, and they did so in spades. Generally, those who wrote to express their dismay were not only critical of Decker’s opinions, but also of the Press Banner for opting to run his submission. It’s important to remember that our paper reflects the voices of our community. Sometimes, those voices are powerful and easy to align with. We celebrate the successes of some, grieve for the losses of others, and unite in a common goal to remain informed and engaged. By writing his column, Decker has given our readers the ultimate power: to respond with their own voices. Was our editor obligated to run his piece? Absolutely not. But the decision to do so comported with the paper’s mission of keeping its readers informed and engaged; his opinions may not have been popular, or reflected the beliefs of the majority of our readers, but they were his, and his right to express them is his as well. Our country has a long and storied history of making sacrifices for the good of others; it’s exactly why Memorial Day is observed as a national holiday. It’s why tombstones at Arlington National Cemetery are festooned with American flags by groups who want the memory of their sacrifices to remain. It’s why there is a changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and why pilots and members of the military salute when the casket of a troop lost in battle is removed from the cargo hold of a plane. It’s the reason that we thank those who have served—because they did so at their own peril, and in an effort to protect the people and uphold the ideals of the United States of America. Today, there is a new assemblage of frontline troops working to protect the homeland: nurses, doctors, EMTs, paramedics, firefighters, and every color and stripe of those who are employed in jobs that have been deemed essential. They are being tasked with the most horrific of heavy lifts: to put themselves in harm’s way in order to serve the population. While they are being asked to remain at work, the rest of the populace is being directed to do something decidedly less dangerous: wear a mask to slow the spread of the disease. Our freedoms were built by the sacrifices of others, and those sacrifices were daunting and meaningful in their execution. If the wearing of a mask seems too heavy an expectation as we battle a virus that has killed over 100,000 Americans, it may be time to reevaluate your beliefs. Readers: share your voice, spread the science, and wear a mask as we move into the next phase of our collective battle to emerge from this deadly contagion. Let not the memory of those who perished be in vain.
TOWN HALL MEETING JUNE 3rd [VIRTUAL]
As we head into the third month of sheltering in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is growing pressure for our County to reopen many economic and social sectors. Believe me, I hope we can restore as many businesses, services and other activities as possible – with new safety measures and protocols – in coming weeks and months.
Cabrillo College to Graduate 1,641 Students Today
Cabrillo College today announces that it will honor its largest graduating class ever, in a first-ever, virtual graduation ceremony, to be held online on Friday, May 22nd at 4:00 p.m., from Cabrillo’s website at www.cabrillo.edu.
City of Scotts Valley Economic Impact Survey
Dear Business Leaders,We need to hear from you! We ask that you please take part in this survey, which will be critical in relaying information to our County Health Director - and help provide business driven guidance on the best reopening practices and ideas in your industry.Our objectives are: 1) to identify needs from businesses in our community across industry sectors; 2) better assess appropriate business resources; and 3) gather recommendations from you about how our county can best respond to our local business needs.Your feedback is critical and will help us focus our resources and response where it is most needed. The survey should take fewer than 5-7 minutes to complete. Please click here to take the survey. Responses will be reported in aggregate. Working together as a community, we can help foster workable guidelines that take into consideration the needs of business.Sincerely,Mayor Randy Johnson and Vice Mayor Derek TimmThe City of Scotts Valley Local Business Recovery Committee
SINGING on ZOOM when class isn’t possible!
Two Scotts Valley companies are adapting their businesses to new business models and making an impact on the community at the same time. For Performance Vocal, teacher Bobbie Ward started conducting vocal lessons via Zoom, just as teachers and dance instructors are doing all over the county. For Tam Communications, they have produced television commercials for area clients to market on-line stores (Om Gallery) and curbside/to go service (Kianti’s Pizza and Pasta). They also produced pro-bono commercials and social media videos for the Tri-County food banks to help them raise funds to source more food. They are now moving on to other projects for other clients that will help organizations survive and eventually thrive again.
Daytime and overnight traffic control on Highway 9 in Felton continues...
A project to construct sidewalks, curb ramps, driveways and retaining walls on Highway 9 between Graham Hill Road and the San Lorenzo Valley schools...
