Encinitas announces top-10 list of projects
San Diego Union Tribune – San Diego,CA,USA
The beautification of North Coast Highway 101 from A Street to La Costa
Avenue in Leucadia. The cost has not been determined. …

ENCINITAS – Despite worries about a potential dip in sales tax revenue and a smaller contingency reserve in the coming years, the city has decided to embark on long-awaited capital projects that include Encinitas’ largest public park.

The City Council settled on 10 priority projects Monday in an informal goal-setting session. They are:

A 43-acre park south of Santa Fe Drive and west of Interstate 5. The park’s environmental review, which must be critiqued by the public and adopted by the City Council before construction can begin, is expected to be released tomorrow. The first building phase is expected to cost $19 million and will be paid for from bonds sold last year. Operating costs, estimated at $500,000 per year, have not been budgeted.

The beautification of North Coast Highway 101 from A Street to La Costa Avenue in Leucadia. The cost has not been determined.

A sea wall and improved trails at Beacons Beach in Leucadia, at an undetermined cost.

A $200,000 study of Encinitas Boulevard’s alignment to help the city determine how much to charge developers when they build near the east-west artery.

A $20 million pedestrian crossing at the Leucadia rail tracks.

Improvements at Leucadia Boulevard and Vulcan Avenue that would cost $5 million. The intersection is a car length east of the railroad tracks. Deputy Mayor Jerome Stocks suggested moving the Leucadia Boulevard rail crossing farther south, where the tracks are lower and the street could be built with less incline than it currently has.

Sidewalks and roundabouts on Leucadia Boulevard, estimated to cost $1 million.

A downtown parking facility at a cost to be determined.

Traffic improvements near the 43-acre park near Santa Fe Drive. The cost has not been computed.

Ongoing road improvements to establish a network of routes for children to ride their bicycles or walk to school.

Those priorities will determine how the city drafts its budget for the coming fiscal year, City Manager Phil Cotton said.

Council members built the top-10 list with the knowledge that the city’s sales tax revenue may drop in the near future because of competition from Carlsbad and San Marcos shopping centers.

The closing of one of the city’s few car dealerships also is expected to cut into sales tax income. The dealership was sold to the city to be converted into a public-works yard.

City Finance Director Jennifer Smith warned that the city’s contingency reserves will become smaller in relation to its expenditures over the next five fiscal years.

The city projects operating expenses to grow from $41.9 million in fiscal year 2006-07 to $50.1 million in fiscal year 2010-11.

But contingency reserves, which the council wants to keep at 20 percent of the city’s expenditures, will remain somewhat stagnant. The reserves are projected at $6.2 million in 2006-07, which is 15 percent of expenditures. They are expected to increase to $6.4 million in 2010-11 but would constitute only 13 percent of anticipated expenditures.

At the same time, the city has to cope with rising construction costs, which have doubled in the past few years.

Besides setting priorities, the council also decided to:

Authorize a ballot measure asking voters if they want to collect a hotel tax on vacation rental units.

Study whether special events, such as sister-city activities, should be held by private entities to save taxpayers money. Already, the Encinitas Chamber of Commerce has offered to take over the Christmas Parade.

Study whether the city should establish a permanent environmental oversight committee.

Accept an overall MainStreet “czar” – Downtown Encinitas MainStreet Association Executive Director Peder Norby – as the coordinator of downtown, Cardiff and Leucadia merchants associations.

Consider designating downtown as a historical zone.

Post public documents on the city’s Web site and consider announcing closed-session decisions more often.

Explore the formation of a construction oversight commission to ensure that the city gets the biggest bang for its buck.

Consider banning or regulating commercial enterprises, such as surfing schools, at the beaches.