The Property You Save May Be Your Own!
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31 December 2010
But Bell does not stand alone. This month recall paperwork has been filed against two Hawaiian Gardens councilmembers and one councilmember in Compton.
This summer, the City of Maywood announced that it will begin a process of laying off city employees, beginning by contracting police services with the Sheriff’s Department. To save money, the city proposed sharing services with the City of Bell.
August first saw the receipt of letters to owners and tenants in Inglewood saying that at the end of the month, the Section 8 voucher program would end. Another letter came out from the Housing Manager Kathryn Epps indicating that this would not affect all Section 8 tenancies, just some because the city spent more money than they received.
Each of these situations may not strike you as a disaster but, when all are combined, it makes my blood run cold.
How fiscally sound are our cities? Last year the state depleted redevelopment funds from many cities. Coupled with the effects of the economy and the huge retirement payouts slated by employee contracts, will we see more cities follow the “bankruptcy” direction of Vallejo?
When we see that the City of Long Beach has declared a fiscal emergency with a deficit of $18.3 million and the City of Los Angeles tops $350 million, we should be concerned, because the inevitable response for all of these problems will be hikes in fees, fines and major new ordinances.
As this house of cards begins to tumble, bear in mind that the cities will want to balance their budgets on your back. Any info you receive about new fees in any of your cities, please contact me. We have a service territory of 54 cities plus the County, and I need you to partner with AACSC to protect your properties. If we wait until fee proposals are on the council agendas, it may be too late to turn fees around.
We pride ourselves on having good relationships with all of our elected officials, but we need to know what the “civic think” is on recouping funds for each of the city coffers. That’s where you come in. Please keep me posted at (562) 426-8341 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
The property you save may be your own!
