In a time in our country when attacks are being made on the LGBTQ+ community, and books are being banned that teach our country's shameful history on race, I'm proud that the City of Menlo Park is flying both the LGBTQ+ and the Juneteenth flags at City Hall (see below).
Our country and city are stronger when we embrace and celebrate people from all backgrounds. And in recognition of both Pride month and Juneteenth (be sure to check out the event at Karl E. Clark Park on June 17th), I will be reading proclamations recognizing both (F1 and F2) at this Tuesday's Council meeting.
Item H1 is a public hearing on the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2023-24, which is scheduled to be adopted by the Council at the June 27th meeting. The staff report focuses on the General Fund, which is the City’s main fund that accounts for the vast majority of city operations, including but not limited to: police services, recreation, planning, building inspection, library, engineering, parks maintenance, street maintenance, and general administration.
The Good News
The City is forecasting to end Fiscal Year 2022-23, with a positive $4.4 million ($81 million in revenues offset by $76.6 million in expenses).
The Not Good News
For the 2023-24 budget, the City is projecting less revenue ($75.3 million) than expenses ($76.3 million), yielding close to a $1 million shortfall at year end, to be made up by dipping into City reserves. The decrease in revenue includes the loss of the User Utility Tax (UUT), one of the City's ongoing revenue sources that was bringing in approximately $1.6 million a year. Higher expenses can be attributed to service level enhancements, shown below and include an approximate $1.24 in one time expenses for Police and Public Works and with about $1.6 million in ongoing expenses, primarily related to the staffing and operations of the new Menlo Park Community Campus, scheduled to open in 2024.
The Really Not Good News
In addition to providing information about the current and upcoming fiscal years, the staff report also provides a 5-year forecast on the state of the General Fund. Assuming that the budget assumptions (as outlined in the staff report) hold, overtime, City revenue will continue to not meet expenses (see below).
Staff's proposed budget uses City reserves and modifies various Council policies regarding annual transfers of dollars out of the General Fund to make up the differences over time. The typical $3 million budget transfer to the City's Capital Improvement Plan funding is proposed to be reduced to $1 million annually, significantly impacting the ability to maintain and improve our City's infrastructure. The City's annual payment of $1 million towards its Unfunded Accrued Liability (UAL), put in place to achieve amortization of the CalPERS net pension liability, would need to be suspended (already planned for 2023-24) and/or reduced, which would extend the amortization schedule (currently at 15 years). And the chart below illustrates the forecasted draw down of the Economic Stabilization Fund:
Where Do We Go From Here?
The challenge before the City is really to think beyond this year about how to ensure that ongoing revenues and expenses are balanced. While drawing down on reserves and modifying Council policies related to unfunded pension liability payments and CIP investments may be acceptable as a temporary strategy, in the long term, these actions are not sustainable. Operating cuts and/or revenue generation will be needed as we move forward. The staff report does offer some potential revenue-generating measures for the Council to consider, that could be placed on the November 2024 ballot for voter consideration. Stay tuned for future community conversations about this.
This week's Council meeting contains three items related to the Police department:
Item I1 - This item renews the City's military equipment use ordinance and presents a report on the equipment that the Menlo Park Police department possesses. This is the second year that this information has been provided to the public.
Item I2 - The City is proposing a new ordinance to enable the issuance of fines by civil administrative citations for code enforcement violations. The proposed amendments to the municipal code also contain additional enumerated nuisances that could be cited, including accumulation of vegetation, junk, trash, debris and more.
Item J3 - Each quarter the Police department transmits an update on various activities and uses of equipment. The report also contains newly collected Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA) data.
For many years, community members have expressed concerns about the negative noise, health and air quality impacts from gas leaf blowers. Agenda Item I3 proposes an ordinance to require the use of zero emission landscaping equipment (ZELE), effectively preventing the use of gas leaf blowers and other gas powered gardening equipment. The staff report for this item outlines the outreach process used in developing the ordinance, the implementation timetable, and a potential local rebate program (in addition to the state one) to help offset the costs of transitioning.
Other Items of Interest
Below are some additional items of interest.
Joint City Council and Planning Commission Meeting
Environmental Justice and Safety Elements Study Session
Tuesday, June 20th at 6pm
On Tuesday, June 20th, the City of Menlo Park will hold a joint City Council and Planning Commission meeting to discuss the Environmental Justice and Safety elements. These two elements are part of the larger Housing Element update process. To learn more about these efforts, click here.
Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity/Expression (SOGIE) 101 Training
Tuesday, June 13th at 5:30pm
Ever wondered what's the difference between sex and gender? Want to learn about the difference between bisexual and pansexual? Join the San Mateo County Pride Center and Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS) Outlet at the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity/Expression (SOGIE) 101 training. This training will take place virtually on Tuesday, June 13th from 5:30-7:30 pm. The program is free to all. The goal of the program is to educate the community on how to create affirming environments for LGBTQ youth and adults. Come learn the latest LGBTQ terminology and work to build your strengths and grow as an LGBTQ+ advocate. To register, click here.
Bridging the Climate and Housing Gap
Thursday, June 15th at 6pm
To reduce greenhouse gas emissions during the critical next 10 years in the Bay Area, a regional vision is needed that is resilient to climate change, protects open space and biodiversity, and advances infill housing development. Many climate champions are unaware, however, that focusing housing growth in walkable, bikeable communities is one of the biggest opportunities to reduce Bay Area greenhouse gas emissions.
Join The Nature Conservancy, Greenbelt Alliance, and Green Foothills on Thursday, June 15th at 6pm to learn how infill housing reduces carbon emissions, water use, and energy consumption while protecting the region’s open space and biodiversity. For more information and to register for the event, click here.
