Government

Officeholders are the agents of the people, not their masters.
President Grover Cleveland

The art of government is to make two-thirds of the nation pay all it possibly can pay for the benefit of the other third.
Voltaire

When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.
Thomas Jefferson

Stray Observations from the city council meeting re: the Swamis contest

1. Linda Benson's presentation of the contest was flat, passionless and uninspired. She had zero enthusiasm and zero stoke. I was pretty shocked about this. I was expecting to maybe having my mind changed by her presentation, instead I came away feeling bad for her. She seems like a really unhappy person. I want to take her surfing and cheer her up.

2. I enjoyed all the different speakers on both sides of the issue. Our town has come classic characters.

3. The contest opponents were so afraid of bad mouthing Linda that they heaped gobs of praise on her and I think actually helped give the council confidence that she could pull this event off. I myself feel less confident in her abilities as a organizer after her flat presentation.

4. If the contest goes forward the K Steet streetfair should be axed. It's going to interfere with SRF too much and it's too far away from the actual contest venue.

5. It's obvious that SRF does not want the contest, they were very polite about it, but it was easy to read between the lines. They might cancel their own women's only meditation retreat that weekend due to the contest. That is wacky irony. I think the contest promoter should read between the lines and take a hint.

6. To me Swamis is not the same as a golf course or a soccer field or a park gazebo, but to some individuals in the city it's the same. All public spaces can be reserved for special events?

7. Swamis is already an economic draw as is, I'm not sure this contest will generate business like some people claim. Too bad we can't compare sales tax revenue collected on the weekend of the contest to the same weekend without.

8. Swamis: great wave/bad venue. This really sums it up. So the logic is that the special permit process will determine if Linda can pull off the logistics of a tricky venue. My question is, if she fails does she get a second chance? I would guess most likely.

9. I was called a fear monger early on for warning that contest always beget more contest so I was glad this became a legitimate issue that both sides addressed. There was even some council discussion on how to insure we have only one contest a year at Swamis.

10. So if we end up having only one contest a year at Swamis, is this really the one we want? My opinion is we could craft a better contest.

11. This "World Championship" contest is not sanctioned by the Associated Surfing Professionals or ASP, the governing body of professional surfing. Encinitas may end looking like a bunch of crazy hicks holding our own World Championship contest. Maybe we should have our own World Series of baseball at the YMCA fields.

12. I entered the fray and spoke at the podium. I got super nervous at the last second and kinda blew the first minute (which flies by at light speed by the way). I even abandoned my planned remarks and launched into something that has really been bothering me. I proposed that we end segregated surfing now and forever. Surfing does not benefit from gender separation. I truly believe that if we do have a contest at Swamis it should be coed. This is totally unprecedented and if city boosters want to be put on the map for having a surf contest then a coed event would draw a lot of attention. Maybe I will apply for a special permit to have a coed surf contest at Swamis?

13. The city voted 3-2 to move forward with the special permit process. Jerome Stocks and Teresa Barth voted NO. Dan Dalager, Maggie Houlihan and Jim Bond voted YES.

14. This doesn't mean the contest is going to happen, but the contest is going to happen. Trust me, Linda is lawyered up pretty good and they will make sure all the concerns will be addressed (some of the concerns were pretty far fetched you guys).

15. It's okay to sell out a surf spot if you are a surf legend.

media coverage:
SignOnSanDiego
North County Times

City Council to Consider Swamis Contest

Read the North County Times coverage at http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/encinitas/article_9669e1d1-fbdc-581c-9716-918778d9f462.html

Read the Leucadia Blog series here.

Guest Editorial: No Raise for Cotton

On March 10 at the upcoming City Council Meeting, the Council will be considering granting the City Manager, Phil Cotton an 11% raise that will exceed $240,000 a year not including benefits. This proposed raise comes at a bad time when the economy has not turned the corner to recovery and people are still losing jobs and taking pay cuts. The question I have regarding a pay raise for the City Manager is... Does he really deserve a raise based on his performance?

The City Council created a two member committee to evaluate and make a recommendation regarding a possible City Manager contract adjustment. Teresa Barth and Jerome Stocks were on that committee. As you may know, they don't agree on much, and in the case of giving Phil Cotton a raise, it holds true, as they returned split recommendations.
It is shocking that the City Council would even consider giving the City manager a raise of this magnitude. Barth is not backing a raise at this time, and Stocks has a "Let's give him everything" approach.

Please spend a few minutes and take a look at the agenda item and see just what they both have to say. Take note of the comments and the justification behind Stocks recommendation to grant the raise. http://archive.ci.encinitas.ca.us/weblink8/0/doc/654963/Page1.aspx

I feel a raise for the City Manager is absurd, and that he has done a very poor job. He has only contributed to creating and harboring a corrupt culture of management within our city. So, with that being said, I decided to evaluate Phil Cotton's performance myself, from a citizen's perspective.

The evaluation that Stocks used was based on the following categories:
• Individual characteristics
• Professional Skills and Status
• Relations with Elected Officials
• Policy Execution
• Reporting
• Citizen Relations
• Staffing
• Supervision
• Fiscal Management
• Community

My comments may be considered a little over the top, but I feel they are accurate. What do you think? Has the City Manager earned a raise?


• Individual Characteristics
Good old boy. Got appointed from within. DID NOT have to compete with anyone for the position. The City never held a competitive selection process for the position of City Manager at the time Cotton was appointed. Is this selection process commensurate and consistent with the other cites in our Region?

The City Council has full control of Phil Cotton because, in the Municipal Code it states that: The City Manager serves at the PLEASURE of the City Council. What's their pleasure today?


• Professional Skills and Status
Military man. Takes orders and gives orders. Information on a "Need to Know" basis only. "Don't Ask... Don't Tell." Cotton has surrounded himself with cronies, secret hand shakes and, the philosophy of ...You Got My back... I'll Get Yours. Oh, and don't forget... A Code of Honor! Remember, It was not a competitive open selection process for the City Manager position. He was appointed from within. It was the good old boy secret hand shake! The City has a pattern of using this type of selection process.


• Relations with Elected Officials
Remember, he serves at the City Council's PLEASURE.


• Policy Execution
Cotton's style must be, a "whatever works" style. The City has plenty of policies. It has the Municipal Code and its Ordinances as well as the Administrative Manuals. The City Attorney, Glenn Sabine, will allow Cotton's boys to push the limits and manipulate the Municipal Code, and completely ignore the Administrative Manual and Administrative Policies.

Cotton has pushed the limit so much so that the City Council is amending the Administrative Manuals to possibly cover up staff's remiss in following City policy. See the agenda item from the February 24, 2010 Council meeting agenda, item #9. Stocks and Dalager are clearing the books and I'm sure that Cotton has his hands in it.

Perhaps something along the lines of....Lets-get-those-policies-off-the-books-fast-before-someone-finds-out-we-haven't-been-following-them...

http://archive.ci.encinitas.ca.us/weblink8/0/doc/654496/Page1.aspx


• Citizen Relations
To my knowledge, I have never witnessed Cotton exhibit any effort at community relations or have any involvement with the citizens. You'll never see him at civic events. He doesn't address the public. Doesn't return emails or phone calls. Has anyone ever heard him speak at a city council meeting? I'm not sure he's even breathing sometimes when I see him at the city council meetings. Cotton doesn't encourage his staff to seek citizen's input. He does not support transparency. Does he really demand his department heads serve the public and citizens?

I believe he has isolated himself from the public.


• Staffing
As a loyal 30 year union member, what can I say, we do have some hard working and are dedicated people that work for the city. Most are the worker bees. It is management where the City falls short. Mismanagement, incompetence, complacency, minimum effort. He does not demand that the department heads display loyalty, courtesy, commitment and professionalism to the citizens. That is the Management Staff Phil Cotton has assembled.

I don't see Cotton exhibiting any strong leadership to his staff. He was a marine that served our country, (and we DO thank him for that). But, now in his position as City Manager, he is condoning corruption and mismanagement. He does not hold his department heads accountable for their actions, but allows them to do what they want, or he ORDERS them to do what HE wants, or what the city council wants. The Hall House could be an example. He's served his country, but he fails to serve the citizens of Encinitas that pay for his over-inflated salary.

He doesn't even live in our city! Maybe if he were paying taxes in the city that he's employed by, it would soften the blow a little.


• Supervision
I don't think Phil Cotton is interested in supervising given the mismanagement he allows to happen. It doesn't appear that he scrutinizes his subordinates' decisions or actions. He must either have a "hands-off" supervision style or an authoritarian/military style, being the Marine that he is. (Remember... Code of Honor.)

By the way, did you know the City of Encinitas has no Civil Service or Municipal Personnel Complaint Tracking System? You cannot file a complaint against a City Employee. There is no process. The front desk at City Hall will direct you to fill out an Ordinance Violation Complaint. That's the only kind of complaint they process! You try and write the department heads... Good luck... The City Manager... Yea Right, like he's going to do something. You go to the City Attorney... he says, "Uhhhh, I take direction from the City Council as per the Municipal Code. Talk to them"...

The City Council goes into the "ignore mode." We have all seen that act. I think that policy is somewhere in the (tongue-in-cheek) "Secret Policy Manual"... The policy states: "If a citizen complains or challenges the City, IGNORE them at all costs, hopefully they will go away". They should work with the citizen to resolve the issue but that might take too much effort.

Here is an example of what could happen... A City employee could, theoretically, tell you to your face... Eat S#*t you A-hole. You would be pissed, and march down to City Hall to file a complaint, right? Well... City Hall has no process for handling Personnel Complaints. Yes, a municipality that has no complaint tracking system for staff.


• Fiscal Management
Lets call it creative... I will use an excerpt from Charlie McDermott's blog post a few day's ago, because he put it so well:

"The rating agencies that the City Council hides behind use a convenient snapshot approach that ignores all the obvious future obligations and revenue shortfalls to say “all is well”. If you were to use reasonable real world comprehensive financial analysis that included future tax revenue drop offs, the looming pension liabilities, and the crater that used to be the CalPERS pension fund – all is not well.

Lastly, these were the same rating agencies that said that Lehman, Bear, AIG, Enron, FreddieIndyFannie, Countrywide, B of A, WaMu, etc. were just fine – mere months before they were vaporized. They lied then and your 401K got hammered and they are lying now and YOUR city will pay. Encinitas is not immune to these problems we are just currently better off than other cities and earlier in the process of circling the drain.

In the near future when the pension shortfall costs and our current fixed debt payments collide with declining tax revenues; services will have to be drastically cut because the our City Manager and City Council created spider web of legal contracts that put the payouts to union employees above all else – like roads, water, etc.

But before they move to cut our services they will continue to operate in denial and cook up all forms of abusive fees and taxation to paper over the truth. The water tax was just the canary in the coal mine.

By the time the forced cuts come the decent, friendly, but seemingly uninformed public will realize they have been had and will push back very hard. But it will be too late, and so our mess will go to the courts and all these platinum retirement packages and will be cut down and OUR city services will operate on life support - there will simply not be enough money to go around."

• Community
Phil Cotton's contributions to the community are negligible and harmful at best. He harbors a culture of mismanagement and corruption.


I conclude:
Stocks states in his recommendation that: Cotton's current salary is "substantially below that of other City Managers in comparable Cities throughout the Region." Let me get this straight... $2000 a month raise + Benefits = Commensurate... Got it! A $26,000 a year raise and we are on par with everyone. Who are the comparable City Managers in our region? How many cities in our region have a population of 60,000? How many Encinitas Citizens live on on near $26,000 a year?...

This Blog is great, it helps the citizens blow off steam and frustration but does not document the individual taxpayer's interests and feelings on this issue or any issues. Posting to this blog anonymously and complaining does nothing. If a few hundred angry residents that share my sediments, flood the Council with emails urging them to not give the City Manager a raise, then we, the people, are taking action.

I'm writing the City Council urging them to NOT restructure the City Manager's contract. Please spend a few moments and bang out an email to Stocks, Bond, Dalager and Houlihan. C.C. Cotton just to let him know how you feel. Also thank Teresa for a wise recommendation.

Steve Meiche
Leucadia Resident

City to Build New Parking Lot

On this week's agenda is a contract to build a new 80 space parking lot in the NCTD corridor. The city will be awarding $1 million for the project. It should be completed just in time for the Pacific Station rush.

Tony Announces

Hello, my name is Tony Kranz and I would like to serve you as a member of the Encinitas City Council. To get my campaign started, there will be a free coffee party at the Pannikin on Sunday, March 14th, from 6-8 p.m. Stop by and introduce yourself and let me know what you think are the most important issues facing our community.

I’ve been a lurker on the Leucadia blog for the last several years and have enjoyed the energy and information that gets exchanged here. I intend to use this forum to present ideas and, through the commenting that might follow, I look forward to learning about some of your ideas (Anonymous though they may be). If you would like to comment off the blog, send an email to tony@kranz4council.com

In this first post, I wanted to share the picture above, which is from a couple weeks ago following the Iwo Jima Reunion held at Camp Pendleton. I’m on the left and my brother Jimmer is on the right. The man in the middle is my father, Jerry Kranz, who came to California in the early 40’s for Marine Corps boot camp. He later fought in many Pacific battles, and was lucky enough to survive and return to his home in Minnesota, where he took advantage of the GI Bill and became a teacher. In 1960, having finally tired of shoveling snow, he returned to California to teach PE and coach at Earl Warren Junior High. I was eight months old at the time, so didn’t have much choice in the matter, but I’m very happy that my parents decided to make Encinitas our home.

Obviously, Encinitas has changed a lot since 1960. It is my firm belief that knowing how it was is very useful when making decisions that will significantly effect how it will be. I look forward to earning your vote so that you trust me to help guide our community into the future.

Trainspotting

Community Warnings

From the Sheriff's Dept

On 2-24-10 about 1430 hours, William Harris approached a five year old female victim at Dog Beach in Del Mar and rubbed his unexposed genitals in front of her. The victim and her father were playing with their dog at the beach, and did not know Harris's identity. Harris was followed by the victim's father as the suspect tried to escape off the beach. The victim's father used his I-phone to video the suspect running off the beach and to his vehicle, which was a white 1986 Volkswagon van. The victim's father was able to record the vehicle license plate and the suspect making admissions to the incident. The victim later disclosed there had been at least two instances when an unknown male adult had exposed himself or made lewd gestures to her at this same location. The incident was reported to the Sheriff's Department and was documented by Sheriff's patrol personnel.

Investigators from the Sheriff's Department Child Abuse Unit, using the video evidence were able to determine the identity of the suspect as 59 year old William Harris. Harris is a convicted felon and registered sex offender, per 290 PC. Harris lived and was registered in the City of Carlsbad.

On 3-2-10 Sheriff's Child Abuse Detectives served a search warrant on Harris's residence at 2550 Unincornio Street in Carlsbad in an attempt to locate further corroborating evidence. Harris was present at the home and was taken into custody without incident. Harris was subsequently booked into Vista Detention facility for felony 647.6©(2) PC Annoying or Molesting a Child with a prior offense.

Sheriff's Investigators are interested in determining if anyone witnessed this incident or has further information about another unreported incident involving this location. Anyone with more information, please contact Sheriff's Child Abuse Detective Chris Davis at 858-974-2310

...

From a L.B. reader:

This morning, my dog found a large, very strange piece of meat about 6 feet off the trail along Quail Hollow between the sidewalk and the eastern-most part of the trail that runs along the street. It appears to be a large animal tongue (probably beef) that’s been split down the middle, stuffed with pieces of broken glass and other unidentified substances, and then tied shut with a red cord and a black cord. I reported it to the Parks Department, and they recommended I contact the Sheriffs Department. I spoke with an officer on the phone, but since no dogs or people were hurt, they will not be investigating. They will make a report, however.

I have discarded the tongue-stuffed-with-glass-and-who-knows-what-else, but please watch your dogs. It appeared to be placed deliberately in thick brush so that it wouldn’t be easily noticed by a person. I’m worried it might not be the only one. Feel free to call me if you want more info or see anything similar.

Thanks!

D. Neuberger

It's happening now

Relics from the now

Barth Writes About Hall Park

Encinitas park editorial disputed

Re: “A Park for Encinitas / Vote ends nine years of obstructionism” (editorial, Feb. 21):

Union-Tribune editorials have consistently supported the development of the Hall property as a regional sports park even though there is overwhelming support for a multi-use community park.

At the Oct. 21 council meeting, staff requested authorization to issue a request for proposals for clearing the property.

Councilman Dalager, supported by then-Mayor Houlihan, repeated his interest in preserving the Hall House, a unique adobe structure. Chris Hazeltine, director of Parks & Recreation, responded that further discussion could take place when the contract was brought to the council.

Councilman Stocks stated that Dalager had been talking about saving the house since 2001. The issue could be discussed at a later date and “we can always remove projects at that time.”

Councilman Bond also stated that “we can have another bite at the apple” when we see the demolition contract.

I offered a compromise by asking staff to return with the proposal so changes could be made before going out to bid. My compromise was not supported.

It was obvious from the discussion at that meeting the council expected to study the issue further. No specific agenda item was needed.

At the Feb. 24 council meeting, a number of public speakers brought forth additional information [SEE IT HERE]. Their research discovered that at a 2008 council meeting, Dalager, Stocks and Bond voted to save the Hall House as part of the approval for the park’s major use permit.

Yet, for reasons unknown and at whose direction, the staff decided to ignore the previous council decision and withheld that information at the 2009 and 2010 meetings.

So why now blame NIMBYs and call it an 11th-hour proposal? Why the need to create more acrimony in the community? Is this a prelude to the disinformation we can expect as the November election approaches?

Traditionally, editorials are based on fact. “A Park for Encinitas” falls far short of that benchmark.

TERESA BARTH
Encinitas City Council member

RPV Sends their Love

Let's Compare:

I. U.S. Government
A. Salary for Member of Congress or U.S. Senate = $174,000.00

B. Population of Average Congressional District: 646,952



II. Governors
A. Salary of California Governor = $206,500

B. Salary of New York Governor = $179,000

C. Population of California = 36,553,215

D. Population of New York = 19,297,729



III. City of Rancho Palos Verdes
A. Salary of Carolyn Lehr = ~$190,000.

Source: Your last PVP Watch newsletter.

B. Population of Rancho Palos Verdes = 41,145

IV. Comparisons
RPV's City Manager gets paid more than 9 percent more than Members of
Congress and she is responsible for approximately 6 percent of the population.

RPV's City Manager is paid 6 percent more than the Governor of New York
and she is responsible for 0.2 percent of the population.

RPV's City Manager is paid 8 percent less than the Governor of
California and she is responsible for 0.1 percent of the population.

I would say, by that comparison, she is WAY overpaid. One ought to be
able to find a competent city manager for less money.

BACK IN ENCINITAS

Jerome Stocks has proposed giving Encinitas City Manager Cotton a 10% raise.

The 10 percent increase was proposed by City Manager Phil Cotton. The last pay adjustment for the part-time council positions was in 2008.

The council also will consider giving Cotton an 11 percent raise, which would bring his compensation, including wages and deferred compensation, to $242,640. His last raise was in May 2007.

Stocks also gave SANDAG exdirector a nice raise too.

From the UT: Gary Gallegos, executive director of the San Diego Association of Governments, would see his $240,000 annual base salary grow by $50,000 over five years under a recommendation due to reach the agency’s board of directors tomorrow.

Leucadia 101 Main Street Annual Membership Meeting March 4th

WHEN: March 4, 2010

TIME: 6:30 - 8:00 PM

WHERE: Encinitas Civic Center, 505 S. Vulcan in the Poinsettia Room

CalCoast Invites you.
We invite you to join us for this great event!
When: Thursday, March 4, 2010
Time: 6:30-10:30pm
Sponsorships or questions? Contact us at steveaceti@calcoast.org and/or 760 612-3564

The evening will include a brief awards ceremony, during which CalCoast will recognize the following elected officials and a local water quality activist as “Champions of the Coast” for their stewardship of the region’s coastal resources:


Hon. Pam Slater-Price; Chair, San Diego Board of Supervisors (Event Chair)
Hon. Donna Frye, San Diego City Council Member
Hon. Ann Kulchin, Carlsbad City Council Member
Hon. Joe Kellejian, Solana Beach City Council Member
Hon. James Bond, Encinitas City Council Member

CalCoast is sponsored by your taxpayers and its Board of Directors include:
Board of Directors

Chairperson:
Supervisor Pam Slater-Price, 3rd District, San Diego County

Vice Chairperson:
Mayor Pro Tem Ann Kulchin, City of Carlsbad

See Also:
Sand Lobbyist Awards Own Project
Slater Price Fails Disclose Gifts