Thursday, February 25, 2010

The Fourth of July and FCTV - What Do You Think?

On January 25th, we held the first in what will be a series of study sessions to discuss the 2010-2011 City budget and underlying policy. The good news is that Foster City has strong reserves, projected to be $21.1 million by June 30, and we expect to be able to balance the budget for 2010-2011 without using our reserves. The bad news is that beginning in the 2011-2012 fiscal year we are looking at a $2 million structural deficit going forward. While we do have reserves that can be used to cover a shortfall, clearly it would not be prudent to simply spend the money without regard to whether it truly needs to be spent or not.

To say the City is well managed is an understatement. Throughout the course of the year, Jim Hardy, our City Manager, and his remarkable staff, are constantly looking at programs, services and individual jobs, to see if there are ways we can do things in a more efficient manner. In that undertaking, this year alone, departments have been consolidated, certain vacant positions have been left open and a small amount of work has been contracted to outside vendors. All of this has resulted in a substantial reduction in expenses and a better than expected 2009-2010. Thank you Jim and staff!

However, in order to do our job as Council Members, which is to make sure that we spend your tax dollars cautiously and wisely, we look at policy. Thus, back in January we looked at a number of areas in which Foster City spends more than other cities or provides program subsidies. While it would seem easy to say that if we do not need something we should not be paying for it, some of these expenses are important because they make Foster City the type of city that we love living in.

The most significant examples are the three major special events, the 4th of July Celebration; Arts & Wine Festival and the Summer Concert Series. The 4th of July Festival costs the City about $90,000; Arts & Wine about $20,000 and the Summer Concert Series about $15,000. The numbers, however, are not the real story. When you ask some people, they view the fireworks show as a Foster City institution. Others love the pancake breakfast and daytime events but loathe the nighttime traffic. Still others see the whole thing as a nuisance. The truth, however, is that feedback comes from only a handful of people and we really remain in the dark on the true desire of the City as a whole. In other words, the problem is communication.

That takes me to the next budget and policy issue, Foster City TV. Our staff tells us that we spend $245,000 each year on FCTV $171,500 of which comes out of our general fund. The next highest spending city, Millbrae, spends $63,700 each year, while Belmont and San Carlos spend $28,000 and about $21,000 respectively. It would seem clear from these numbers that we are spending too much. But are we? Is FCTV the primary means by which people learn of events in Foster City? Do people watch City Council or Planning Commission meetings on FCTV? Do they watch the original programming that it does? Again, the issue is communication. How do we have effective communication not only towards the residents but feedback from them as well?

As Council Members we will make decisions that we believe are in the best interests of all the residents, but as the new guy, it sure would help me if I could hear what people think. Do you want the 4th of July Festival to continue? Do you watch FCTV? Do you use the senior and youth programs that the City subsidizes? Do you use the Foster City Connection Shuttle or the Senior Express Shuttle and how important are they to your daily life? Have you taken the CERT training or do you plan to? Do you know what it is? Would you like to find out more? Again, the problem is communication and I need your help.

Please tell me how I can communicate better with you. You can reach me by email at cbronitsky@fostercity.org or by phone at (650) 286-3504, post a comment on my blog at http://cbfostercity.blogspot.com or go to the blog and click on the link to sign up for my newsletter. Thank you.

4 comments:

  1. Dear Mr. Bronitsky,
    I am a lifelong resident of Foster City (born and raised) and have been active in various community groups over the years, from Girl Scouts to the Arts and Culture Committee and I am a charter member of the Foster City Historical Society. Being familiar with the history of the city, and having lived through part it myself, I find it hard to believe that the city is even thinking of cutting back these beloved events. If we cut them out or cuth them back, we will be denying ourselves not only an opportunity to put our city on the map, but also an opportunity to create community among the various residents. The Art and wine FEstival, as well as the 4th of july Celebration are prime events for us to publicize our existence and also recruit new members. The ARt and Wine Festival and the 4th of July Festival are also the last remaining links to the "good old days" of Foster City and although they still exist, they have certainly been cut back from what they used to be. Looking through the archives from the Chamber of Commerce and the Lions' club, we can see that the events we see today are but mere shadows of what they were in the late 60's, the 1970s and even the 1980s. Does anyone even recall the grandeur of the 4th of Celebrations of the 70s, where there was a parade from Port o Call down East Hillsdale to "Central Park?" The celebration itself was a two day affair. What about the annual "Foster City Birthday Party"? It is likely not, because, sadly, these events were scaled down or combined due to budget cuts. Must we do it again? Although the historical society exists to chronicl the history of the city, I would hate to see the last few remaining community celebrations go into the history books forever.
    Perhaps there is an alternative--find corporate sponsorship again, as had been the case in the early 90s when Old Navy supported the 4th of july celebration. Regarding the complaints about "tent sitters" and the trash they leave after the July 4th celebtration, perhaps we should consider charging a security deposit for people who wish to set up tents and camp out all day. If we enstate an application process for these "tent sitters," (with the possibility of getting charged to clean up the mess they left)then perhaps they will be more conscientious about claening up after themselves. If anything, it would provide an alternate source of revenue for the city. If people fail to attend the event because they don't wish to pay the fee, well, then that would settle the parking, traffic and garbage complaints from the residents.
    in recent years, many other cities have cut back or cut out their celebrations, leaving Foster City's as one of the remaining few for people who do not wish to go all the way to San Francisco.

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  2. Dear Catherine,

    Thank you so much for your comments. I could tell from the responses that I received to this article and blog post that people are passionate about these events. Fortunately, everything will be going forward as usual for this year, but unless things turn around, we will have to look at a number of items for the 2011 - 2012 budget.

    Although we are in much better financial condition than many other cities, being fiscally conservative is what got us here and it is the way we must continue to go.

    I wrote this article primarily to foster communication and to see which areas people felt most strongly about so that I could work toward looking at alternative ways to generate revenue to support those events that were most important. Your comments and the comments I received by email, were very helpful in that and I hope to continue to hear from you in the future.

    Thanks,

    Charlie

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  3. Thanks for this post. I like FCTV when I watch it (which is not often) - I only catch it on the web since I do not have cable. But I'm surprised at how much it costs ($245K/yr) - for that amount, I don't know how many viewers there are - but we're probably not getting its worth. It would be great to know how that breaks down. Maybe adding a few sponsors and commercials will make it more cost-effective?

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  4. Hi Perci,

    Sorry it took so long for me to respond.

    Unfortunately there is no real way for us to know how many people are watching FCTV because there are no ratings for it. We are also unable to accept commercial ads or anything similar, although I did want to look at whether we could do something similar to what public TV does and have sponsors.

    I intend to keep looking at this and other important issues for Foster City over the next few months as we go through the budget process. Please stay involved and keep posting comments and suggestions. They are very much appreciated.

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