Council uses reserves to balance budget Council uses reserves to balance budget (July 07, 2004)

Despite eliminating the equivalent of 10.75 full-time jobs, including a transportation specialist loved by seniors and a popular recreation aide from Belle Haven, the Menlo Park City Council was forced to dip into its savings to balance this year's budget.

The council needed nearly $1 million in reserves to cover ongoing expenses, and will draw down another $2 million to repair roads and streets and $250,000 to purchase several new vehicles. It was a painful budget process, featuring lay-offs, forced retirements and cries of agony from residents who did not want to see their favorite employee or program eliminated.

Perhaps the biggest surprise to some residents, although not to regular council watchers, was the decision to tap $2 million in reserves to beef up road maintenance, when the council refused to use reserves to save one or two staff positions. (Transportation specialist Debbie Helming received a six-month reprieve at the meeting, but at the end of that time she will be forced to retire.) But Mayor Lee Duboc and other members of the council majority have made road maintenance a priority, vowing to substantially increase the $300,000 annual outlay that has been in place recently.

But probably the worst news for the council and residents is the city's projection that a $1.25 million deficit looms for next year, as rising pension payments and other costs jump. The gloomy outlook prompted outgoing member Paul Collacchi to suggest that the city offer voters a choice: Either approve a new tax to cover needed services and balance the budget, or defeat a budget measure and see the jobs and services reduced. This could mean even fewer open hours at the library, for example.

Other council members went along with having city staff members assess the idea of a vote, although City Manager David Boesch said it would be risky.

We think Mr. Collacchi's suggestion has merit, and hope the city staff agrees. The key will be determining what costs will be included in the ballot package. But if nothing else, a vote will guide council members in the often nebulous process of deciding which programs really are a priority with residents, and which just happen to have a small, but vocal, band of supporters.

Sprinklers fail on third try

In a decision that is sure to upset officials at the Menlo Park Fire Protection District, the City Council wisely decided last week to turn down the district's effort to require installation of fire sprinklers in all new buildings over 1,000 square feet.

The ordinance would also have required sprinkler installation in remodels or expansions of single-family homes, although only when the work exceeded 75 percent of the structure.

After the sprinkler proposal passed with ease in Atherton and East Palo Alto, the fire district found a surprisingly resistant City Council majority in Menlo Park. In addition, local architect Michael Lambert questioned the statistics used by the district to support sprinkler installation.

In the end, the council found it could not justify the added cost for homeowners who would be forced to install sprinklers during a major (75 percent of square footage) remodel or expansion, and worried about possible impacts on commercial property owners as well.

Perhaps the council was also swayed by the district's own records of fires. Since 1998, on average, only 31 fires occur per year, resulting in just 3.3 fire-related injuries.

The district would be better off encouraging other methods of fire safety, such as emergency shut-off valves for gas mains, smoke alarms, and fireproof or slow-burning wallboard, that together could give homeowners adequate protection from the rare fires that do occur in the city.

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