Improving transportation and ending gridlock on the freeway is one of the biggest challenges we face. While the final solutions must be devised on a regional level, there is much we can do and are doing locally to support that regional effort.
First, I supported the passage of Measure A, passed by the voters in 2004 to devote a half-cent of sales tax revenue for buses, roads, bike and pedestrian improvements and building a car pool and bus lane on Highway 101 from Novato through San Rafael. As a Board Member of the Transportation Authority of Marin, I worked to ensure that these improvements benefited Novato and the county of Marin.
Second, as a leader of the Novato Safe Routes to School Committee, I have worked to help make it safer for our youth to walk and/or bike to schools. I was instrumental in expanding the number of schools participating in our efforts and in helping to develop a grant application that makes improvements around five Novato schools.
Third, I support multi-modes of transportation including rail. But, we need to make sure that any passenger rail service is cost effective, environmentally sound and is compatible with surrounding neighborhoods. As a Board Member of the Sonoma and Marin Rail Transit (SMART) authority, I worked to ensure that the efforts to implement rail service is transparent with the public and is responsive to the community's needs.
Novato is not immune to the tough economic times that almost every city, county, state and the federal government are experiencing. Our revenue from sales tax has been greatly affected by this recession and property tax is holding its own so far. There is no question, we need to do things differently in Novato and we are looking for and implementing efficiencies and where we could spend less while maintaining the essential services especially our public safety.
For example, our engineers in the Public Works Department implemented electronic bid documents which have provided significant cost savings for the City of Novato - about $40,000/year. We are installing solar units on three city buildings to save on our electric costs.
Efficiencies alone, however, will not get the City through this global economic downturn. Due to a dramatic reduction in sales tax for this fiscal year (July 2008 through June 2009), we have continued not only to implement efficiencies, but also to freeze vacancies and provide incentives for selected retirements. To prepare for a conservative estimated budget shortfall of $3 million for next fiscal year (July 2009 through June 2010) based on the predictions of continued reductions in sales tax and flat property tax revenues, we have asked employees for concessions and begun reducing some services and laying off a few staff in all Departments, except sworn officers.
As part of our deliberations on bridging the gap for next fiscal year, I suggested that the Council repay our Operating Fund a portion of the $12 million loan from the Redevelopment Agency, consider instituting a fee when organizations want an exclusive use of the public's streets for events that generate revenue and consider charging fees for false alarms which would also free up our sworn officers to deal with more important public safety issues.
To continue reducing expenditures, I have suggested we consider increasing the supervisor-to-staff ratio, aggressively applying for federal and staff grants to hire more police officers, to weatherize our buildings to reduce our energy use, and to help fund some of our important community programs.
To minimize reductions in our services to the community, we need to be sure that all departments including the City Council are eliminating training, travel and memberships unless absolutely necessary and essential to maintain certifications. This is especially important because we are having to layoff staff and asking employees to make concessions - furloughs, less pay, reduced benefits. So, all of the "nice to do or nice to have" activities and items should be completely eliminated.
Lastly, I continue to advocate for a Revenue Stabilization Fund so in the years when our revenues exceed our projections we save those funds for a rainy day. This fund would be in addition to a true Emergency Fund in case of an earthquake or flood that requires immediate funds to respond for the community.
We established a policy for the use of the Long-Term Maintenance Reserve Fund; and, have begun discussions with the School District, North Marin Water District and Novato Sanitary District to focus on where we could collaborate to save resources in these tight budget years.
Novato has gotten through tough times in the past and we will again as long as we continue to work together.
There can be no more important priority for government than protecting the safety of its citizens. Everyone deserves to live in safe and quiet neighborhoods. Everyone wants to feel secure in their homes and on the streets where they live. The number one job of government is to protect people and property. I understand that without safety, there is no quality of life.
My priority is to provide the best public safety possible. That is why I have continuously supported adding new police officers and worked to add a two-dog K-9 unit in 1996. I led the fight to keep and modernize Novato's 911 Dispatch. When city officials tried to outsource Novato's 911 Dispatch to save money, I dug deeper in our budget and found the money to save it because I knew our emergency dispatch was too important to cut.
Novato is growing. Property crimes are on the rise. But our Police Department has fewer sworn police officers today than we did in 2003, prior to the build-out of the Hamilton area. Sure, budgets are tight. But criminals do not stop committing crimes in tight budget times, and Novato should not cut public safety services. We need to fight drugs and alcohol in schools, and put more cops on the street.
We need to look at other revenue streams to hire more officers including, but not limited to applying for federal COPS grants which fund officers for at least 3 years.
I want to see Novato's low crime rate stay low, and get even lower. You have my word that I will always put your safety at the top of my list of concerns.
Affordable workforce housing is very much needed in Marin County. In Novato, many, if not most, of our police officers and teachers cannot afford to live here. Much the same is true of our firefighters, public works employees, and others. This is not good for the community because in a state of emergency it will be hard for those, on whom we depend to keep us safe, to reach Novato. Our sense of community suffers when the people who are responsible for protecting us and teaching our children are only available during working hours.
We created almost 600 units at the former Navy housing site at Hamilton, 50 percent of which are for purchase as workforce housing. We gave our essential workers - police, fire, teachers, other City, County and School District employees - the first shot at the housing, bringing these workers home.
The other area where we need more affordable housing is for our seniors. We have approved senior housing projects in Novato, some of which are dedicated as affordable units. But, we have not kept pace with the increasing need for senior housing and we must do more to provide the housing that seniors need. In-fill projects are good for seniors because they do not generate traffic and/or require a lot of parking.
I am very excited about the renovation and the revitalization of our Downtown. Our downtown is one of the ways that we define our community character and as such, it is very important that the downtown acts as an economic, social, civic, and recreational hub.
In 2004, Novato completed the restoration of Grant Avenue, which eliminated the crown in the street, re-built our sidewalks and corrected drainage problems - resulting in a $10.5 million beautification project and a community investment that is the largest capital improvement project in Novato. Currently, we are investing in a façade improvement program to help our downtown businesses.
There are some catalyst projects that will help continue the downtown revitalization that is in the works: the renovation of Novato's icon - our historic church which will be the future home for community events and the Council Chambers; the rebuilding of the old train depot; construction of the Whole Foods Project; and the renovation of the Novato Theater.
We need to continue to bring high quality, diverse businesses and entertainment venues to our downtown, including a bookstore, restaurants, and other retail businesses. I am fully committed to making our downtown lively, prosperous and truly the heart of the Novato community.
Economic development and environmental protection go hand-in-hand. Without one, you will not have the other.
We need to continue downtown revitalization - the renovation of Novato's icon - our historic church that will be the future home for community events and the Council Chambers.
We also need to: consider a design/build approach for our city offices on currently owned City property which could bring down the cost substantially; pursue a public/private partnership for the parking structure component; expand our downtown shopping area by creating more retail/restaurants in the city-owned houses along Sherman Avenue; work with SMART to rebuild the old train depot; and renovate the Novato Theater for an entertainment center. We need to continue to bring high quality, diverse businesses and entertainment venues to our downtown, including a bookstore, restaurants, and other shopping alternatives while maintaining Novato's small town character and charm.
In my meetings with business leaders, I have been impressed by the fact that they chose to locate their businesses in Novato for the same reasons we choose to live here. These executives want to see open space, breathe clean air, and enjoy the small town character of our community. They like to look out of their office windows and see cows. If we want to encourage economic growth, we must not do it at the sacrifice of the environment. If we don't protect our environment, we won't have the main drawing card that brings and keeps the kinds of companies we want in Novato. If we maintain a balance between economic health and environmental health, we will be able to provide our community with a very high quality of life.
Maintaining Our Small Town Character while Facilitating Economic Development
The current General Plan, which was adopted in 1996, reduced growth across the board from the previous plan. Projects that were presented in the past at much higher densities are coming before the Council significantly pared down and often cut even more.
I want to see projects that are good for our community. I have voted in favor of and against projects depending on whether they were compatible with the neighborhood and the environment. In 2009, we embarked on another update of our General Plan. We formed a General Plan Steering Committee that is meeting to discuss various issues that will be brought before the City Council toward the end of the year.
In addition, the City Council, under my initiation, supported the passage of an Urban Growth Boundary (Measure G passed by the voters in 1997), which restricts growth within the city limits for the next 20 years.
Setting a UGB at the city limits allows the voters to control the city's development for the next 20 years and to focus that development where infrastructure already exists. Having a UGB has spurred the revitalization of our downtown, and renewed the community's efforts to redevelop the areas that need it. A UGB has helped to maintain Novato's small town character and preserve our community separators by preventing sprawl.
Protecting our natural resources has always been one of my priorities. To me, our youth are one of our most precious resources and must be given the ability to grow into responsible citizens. I am committed to providing our youth with the programs and facilities that will help them stay off drugs and out of gangs, and develop them into the leaders of tomorrow.
I supported more ball fields, the completion of the skate park and the Gymnastics and Youth Center, and the addition of new programs like boxing and roller hockey that keep abreast of the interest of today's youth.
Before we can make any substantial progress, everyone - every government body, every youth organization, every parent organization - must become involved in a joint effort to meet the needs of children who are at risk. If juvenile crime isn't fought on the streets by the police, in the classrooms by the teachers and in the homes by parents, we are bound for failure.
Juvenile crime and violence must be addressed on a continual basis. I am very proud of our Police Department and its leadership role in our City and the County on gang issues. We must be diligent to prevent heinous crimes from happening in our communities. We must hold the gangs at bay, and respond quickly and justly when there are gang-related incidents. Having gone on many ride-alongs with the Novato Police Department, I can assure you of the officers' sensitivity to our youth and their ability to deal effectively with kids in trouble.
To combat juvenile crime there must be a two-pronged approach: preventative and punitive. I voted for the Youth Curfew because I am convinced that the police needed a non-criminal means to help young people who may be at risk. The curfew allows the officer to help without having to involve the juvenile in the justice system.
On the preventative side, I support funding our two School Resource Officers who work to develop constructive and position relationships with our youth in our high schools.
I support giving our youth legal and wholesome ways to socialize and have fun. That's why I supported the skate park and the Youth Activity Center.
I initiated, along with Connie Benz, former President of the Novato Unified School District Board of Directors, a Blue Ribbon Committee focused on preventing the use of drugs and alcohol by our youth. Among the many successful outcomes of our efforts were the Youth Court (now operated by Marin County Courts) and the popular 15-minute program that stages an alcohol-related accident resulting in a mock trial.
Our fastest growing population in Novato is seniors (over 70 years of age). We must prepare to meet the needs of our increasing senior population. The two most important areas that we need to address for seniors are housing and transportation.
As the initiator of the Housing and Services Commission, I know that the City needs to do more to focus on providing affordable senior housing, especially in the area of assisted living facilities.
Our seniors on fixed incomes need to know that we value having them in our community and want to continue to benefit from the contributions that seniors make to Novato.
Transportation for seniors is not as easily solved. I support the City providing a local jitney service that would help our seniors move around town to shop, socialize, go to doctors, and see their families. Unfortunately, the bus system is designed for commuters but is sorely deficient in meeting the needs of people who want to traverse Novato. I will work to find the funding for the jitney service so that seniors are not imprisoned in their homes.
Paid for by Friends of Pat Eklund for City Council, 2009. FPPC ID# 950084.
