Guest Opinion: Suggestions on city's budget cuts Guest Opinion: Suggestions on city's budget cuts (September 21, 2005)

By Dan Dippery

I want to commend Menlo Park for taking the problem of a $2.9 million budget shortfall to the public and asking for comments and ideas. The rather bleak revenue projections demand that we all (Menlo Park citizens) pitch in however best we can.

To that point I want to offer one opinion and two suggestions:

My opinion is that nickel-and-dime reductions are a band-aid solution at best; the loss of major revenue sources - auto dealerships - and increasing staff salary and retirement costs do not point to this downturn as being temporary. Instead, I believe much more radical steps are demanded; steps much more "outside the box" than anything I've heard suggested so far. Let's use two numbers for reference: $32,385,000 budgeted to run Menlo Park. And a budget shortfall of $2.9 million for 2006-07.

Early in my professional career, our company lost a major client. Rather than letting anyone - and their benefits - go, the company cut all salaries by 10 percent. It worked. And when revenues increased, salaries went back to where they were.

Idea No. 1: Impose a 10 percent, across-the board, reduction in salaries, outsourced contracts - and possibly retirements. Even without cutting retirements, this would free up $3,238,500, and nobody gets fired. If the out-sourced contracts won't tighten their belts along with this very good customer, then we should look for other contractors.

Idea No. 2: "Public Safety" is the single biggest item in the city's budget: about 40 percent, or $11 milliion. This is police, traffic enforcement, emergency preparedness and community outreach.

Why not contract those services with the San Mateo County Sheriff's office? Other cities do. The police chief and second-in-command would probably go, but most of the officers could be assimilated into the county force.

I'm sure these thoughts will bang up against a lot of political sacred cows. And I don't know how it would all work. But circumstances require that we entertain ideas bigger and more far-reaching than just trimming a dollar here and a dollar there.

Dan Dippery lives on Santa Rita Avenue in Menlo Park.

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