Politics & Government
Mayor: Budget is Biggest Challenge
State budget crisis remains a wildcard for plans to restore fiscal order.
Foster City voters will reshape the look of their City Council when they go to the polls on Tuesday to select among six candidates to fill three open seats.
But while the look of the future council heading into Election Day is uncertain, the challenges it faces couldn’t be clearer, outgoing Mayor Linda Koelling told Patch.
Koelling, who terms out in a few months, cited fiscal and congestion management – in that order - to be the most significant challenges the council faces.
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The six candidates are Art Kiesel, the incumbent vice mayor, Steve Okamoto, Jennifer Minkey-Selvitella, Herb Perez, Bill Schwarz and Patrick Sullivan. Voters can vote for up to three of the candidates.
Koelling has publicly endorsed Kiesel, Okamoto and Minkey-Selvitella.
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But regardless of who the voters select, managing the money will be critical with the council inheriting a $2.8 million budget deficit, Koelling said.
The good news for the new council is that it will also inherit a plan that Koelling says will eradicate the deficit by the time the 2013-14 budget is in place. The plan includes a two-tier contract for firefighters and police, which takes effect Jan. 1.
The expected passage of a transient occupancy or hotel tax (Measure P) figures to help too.
The bad news is that those plans could be imperiled by a state budget crisis showing no signs of stabilizing anytime soon. The state budget crisis is a wildcard all local governments are facing, and nobody expects much help from Sacramento.
“The biggest challenge I see is the (fiscal) impact of the state budget on us,” she said.
“We don’t yet know how it’s going to affect local governments.”
The council will also have to manage congestion that’s projected to come out of two major development projects.
The Pilgrim-Triton multi-use development, which will feature 730 residential units, is already under construction, and a 15-acre senior living center near downtown is in the works too
The council in a , a group of local businesses, to build the development, but the deal must still clear several legislative hurdles. FCCP is currently involved in a 60-day negotiation with the City on terms of the deal
“There are still many steps,” Koelling said.
