Subjects top the City Council’s retreat agenda
Gilroy – Rescuing the city’s library construction project from financial limbo and deciding how exactly to preserve open space will number among the topics City Council members will hash out this weekend at their annual retreat, a chance for city leaders to freely exchange ideas and set priorities for the coming year.
The discussion of Library “Plan B,” scheduled for the first day of the retreat on Friday at 3:15pm, is intended to update council members on the status of the $20 million project.
City leaders learned in November that Gilroy failed to obtain $14.9 million in state assistance under the third and final round of grant awards from a $350 million bond issue. The governor has already signed off on legislation that will add a new, $600-million bond measure for library projects to the March 2006 ballot.
That legislation would allow the state to allot as much as $300 million to applicants who failed to win a grant under the prior grant cycle. Cities that earned marks of “outstanding” on grant proposals but failed to get funding will likely receive first priority. Those proposals would eat up half of the $300 million.
The city’s chances of laying claim to the remaining funds will depend on how much, if any, the state decides to allot to groups like Gilroy that received grant-proposal ratings of “very good,” and how the city stacked up against others in that category.
“Gilroy certainly had very good scores so I would anticipate they would be pretty high up on that list,” said Deputy County Librarian Sarah Flowers.
“They’re totally outgrown that building,” she added, referring to the current library on Rosanna Street. “They’re bursting at the seams – the collection, the number of people in there. And the building itself is not set up for the kinds of technology we have today. It’s a definite need.”
City leaders interviewed on Monday felt the best shot at a new library was through another round of state-approved funds.
“The bond is really Plan B,” Councilman Bob Dillon said. “The funds are simply not available to build the library. Failing that, we’re probably going to have to talk about some expansion.”
Councilman Paul Correa was more optimistic.
“I think it’s possible to find some funding, perhaps in the private sector,” he suggested. “Maybe we have to look at the county and state level to see what’s available. It won’t be the end of the game if this [bond issue] doesn’t go through.”
Leaders also wish to use the weekend to dispense with the issue of whether or not Gilroy will join the county Open Space Authority, a move that would require voter approval of a $32 annual parcel tax. The tax would add about $400,000 a year to the Authority’s coffers, but only 20 percent of that money is guaranteed to be spent in Gilroy.
In order to give residents the most for their money, the council will explore setting up a city land trust that would keep all tax revenue local. Another option is for Gilroy to join the Authority but establish its own district within it, a move that would require approval of the Authority board.
Dillon said he favored simply letting the voters decide, “since there is a tax involved.”
Whatever the solution something must be done to put the open space and other outstanding issues “to bed,” according to Pinheiro. In addition to the library project and open space, councilmen will discuss ways to encourage eco-friendly home development, ensure that a number of buildings with unreinforced masonry come into compliance with state building codes, and discuss increasing financing for the 50/50 program, which splits costs with homeowners for mandatory sidewalk repairs.
“Everything that we’ve put on the agenda is something one councilmen or other feels they need to discuss,” Mayor Al Pinheiro said. But the final hour and a half on Saturday, between 10:15 and 11:45am, is reserved for more expansive discussions.
“Since I became mayor I’ve wanted to have a couple of hours where the council just talks about the future, our vision, the things that are important to the future of the city,” Pinheiro said.
