Josh Dulaney, Staff Writer
Posted: 12/29/2012 12:38:07 PM PST
RIALTO – It was late February in 2010 when former City Administrator Henry Garcia issued a warning about the city’s finances.
Rialto, he said, had a “36-month window” before it faced a financial crisis brought on by a gasping economy and skyrocketing public employee costs.
Garcia has since moved on to a $400,000 job as city manager in Moreno Valley.
Officials here are still staring at the window.
In early December the City Council voted to place an extension of the 8 percent utility-users tax on the March ballot.
A resolution for the council vote said “an emergency exists in the finances of the city of Rialto” due in part to a decrease of revenues in each of the past six fiscal years and the rising costs of providing city services.
Indeed, even as San Bernardino trudges through Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, the Finance Department here has warned that without an extension of the utility-users tax, which brings in roughly $11 million annually, Rialto could see massive cuts to public safety and other services in order to avoid bankruptcy.
“I think the community’s perception has changed a bit,” City Administrator Mike Story said. “They love us, but they can’t afford us. We have to be paying for our own stuff.”
To read entire story, click here.
Another one bites the dust…
Another one bites the dust…
Just waiting for the county to appear on the radar screen……
CEO Devilreaux: “So we made it another year… and we continue to provide County residents with an extremely high level of public safety and other municipal services, to meet the demands of our stakeholders and to sustain the Inland Valley’s overall quality-of-life, at a great value to the taxpaying public.”
Rialto CM Story: “Greg, how long are you going to be able to keep using that political mumbo-jumbo to keep people from figuring out the obvious, THIS WHOLE COUNTY IS BROKE!”
Devilreaux: “Watch it there Story, do you mean broke as in out of money, or broke like something needs a fixin’?”
Storyteller: “I mean broke as in no more cash… especially since Jerry took our RDA money away, no more free money from the State of California, now we have to just rely on free money from the feds.”
Devilreaux: “The feds don’t have anymo’ money either, I keep on telling them to make more Obama bucks and send them to me instead of giving away the farm to the private sector banks and auto makers, we need a BAIL-OUT right here in the good olde IE!!”
Storyteller: “Relying on the feds is exactly what we used to try and avoid, at least as far as the groundwater and contamination goes, we always just relied on our legal counsel for advice… that going to the feds and putting the Rialto site on the EPA’s Superfund list would have a chilling effect on our property values in the City (and downstream).”
Devilreaux: “A chilling effect huh, don’t forget how in works Mike, we let the attorneys do their jobs, and then we do our jobs. It’s not wise to mix the two, least one might upset the apple cart (or possum wagon like back in West Virginy), that’s the beauty-part, just let the attorneys make their money first, and then you’ll know when it’s the right time to start doing yours.”
Storyteller: “So I guess it must be time then Greg, ’cause as far as I know, Rialto can’t afford to play anymore games for the sake of charging -up those legal fees, and as far as property values go, we both know that since Postmus isn’t County Assessor anymore…”
Devilreaux: “…(HEY) let me stop you right there, we both don’t know anything (more) about property values (NOD NOD, WINK, WINK), let’s just say that the chilling effect is County-wide, and everybody knows it’s just the economy, it’s got nothing to do with pollution or corruption, or anything like that…”
Story: “Oh that’s right Greg, I forgot, the County can just remain in denial while all the little people (including cities) are facing bankruptcy, thanks for all the help. Hope you don’t try to come after us like you are with the City of San Berdoo, to get first in line to collect those tipping fees from the Mid-Valley Landfill. Don’t forget, it’s your landfill that is the main source of Rialto’s problem (where’s the EPA now?)”
Devilreaux: “Lighten-up Mike, of we keep things quiet 2013 is bound to be just as exciting as 2012, and remember rule number one as a public servant, THERE’S NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT… so DON’T WORRY, BE HAPPY, trust me!”<—(famous last words of entitled and over-compensated bureaucrat w/ no accountability to the taxpayers… that's what a 10yr. @ $300K/yr. deal will do for ya'.)