Reasons For: One
Early slide show above from years ago during process to get election on ballot.
Reasons for: By John Barry Smith (2009)
1. To govern ourselves. We started out a hundred plus years ago with Native Americans and then a few settlers and missionaries. Small communities of residents came into existence such as the Village, Mid Valley, and the mouth of the Valley. We are governed by the Federal government, the State government, and the County government. It's time to have a closer more responsive government for us, a town government. It's time to grow up. We would be replacing a government agency, the County of Monterey Board of Supervisors, made up of five persons who don't even live in Carmel Valley and only one elected from this area with a town council of five persons who live in the Valley. In a democracy the voice of the electorate carries weight and we need to have an electorate represented by a town council. The council can be voted out and replaced should the citizens of the Town of Carmel Valley choose while four of the five members of the Board of Supervisors are not held accountable to the Valley citizens.
2. The money to manage the town is there. According to the best estimates by professional appraisers about funding based on tax income and expenditures, there is ample money to run the new Town of Carmel Valley without compromising safety and efficiency. LAFCO, (LAFCO is the Local Agency Formation Commission of Monterey County) the independent agency charged with evaluating the budgets for a new town, has officially concluded in the 'Update to the Comprehensive Fiscal Analysis of the Proposed Incorporation of Carmel Valley' which was prepared by Economic & Planning Systems, Inc. November 2008 (CFA):
For larger images of the below pictures:
Where does the current and future income money come from?
LAFCO analysis reports:
Property tax
Sales tax
Property transfer tax
Franchise fees
Transient Occupancy tax
Planning and building revenues
Public Works/Engineering
Fines and Penalties
State Motor Vehicle License Fees
Investment Earnings.
Road Fund which includes the Road Fund Sales Tax, Local Transportation Funds Sales Tax Share, Gas Tax, State Regional Transportation Funds, Grants and other funds.
Where does the money go:
LAFCO analysis:
Regardless of the predictions of the future, the money is there and lots of it. The income may go down or up depending on the current economic situation but then the expenses go up and down also. The allocation of financial resources will be decided by the elected representatives who are answerable to the voters. The education level, the affluence, the experience of the electorate of Carmel Valley will ensure that the monies are spent fairly with accountability. Normal services such as Fire and School Districts will remain unchanged. From LAFCO CFA:
3. Status will go up as well as property values once incorporation occurs. Currently the status of residents and home owners of Carmel Valley is that of living in an unincorporated area of a mainly rural county, such as Prunedale and Cachagua. With incorporation, the Town of Carmel Valley will instantly achieve a high status based on current home values, desirable location, above average education levels of residents, and above average annual incomes. The proof of the high value and desirability of Carmel Valley is that thousands of visitors every year spend more money to stay in Carmel Valley for a few nights than they do in any local city hotels and that includes Carmel by-the-Sea, and Monterey.
4. Decisions about land use (including water) and open spaces will be better suited to the wishes of the people who actually live on or near those spaces after incorporation. Those important decisions will be made by the five member town council composed of neighbors or people you know or can know.
5. The opinions of the town council as representing the residents of Carmel Valley will have greater impact at County or State meetings compared to individual opinions by concerned citizens acting alone and representing only themselves. For example, water rationing, a very real threat to our quality of life. If the opinions about water rationing are presented to the state by elected representatives of a town and not those of an individual, those opinions of the council carry more weight and have a higher chance of being accepted and observed.
6. A Town Council can react faster to changes that imperil Valley residents such as water rationing, temporary traffic blockage or congestion, and to act faster to manage local events such as festivals. All the things that happen suddenly in the Valley will be better controlled by local control with local people on the spot to make decisions. There is an ox charging full tilt towards our valley and it's called overdevelopment. We live in a magic place, a paradise, and paradise is no longer a paradise when overcrowded, a sad fact but true. It's too late to revert back to the peaceful valley after all the homes, hotels, shops, and support buildings are created and functioning at full capacity. The ox of lowered quality of life will have gored us. Only locally elected officials can see the danger and have a chance of stopping that ox while the distant official supervisors only wait until after the impact to do anything and then it's too late.
7. The best reason to vote for incorporation is to ensure that the events that will maintain or improve the things we love about Carmel Valley, (our community home,) will become a reality and have a better chance with a town government in charge than if the events are left in the hands of those who first priority is not the well being of the residents of our valley; such as:
Peace,
Quiet,
Tranquility,
Security,
Fast and safe transportation,
Beauty,
Fair water allocation,
and Neighborliness.
8. Regardless of the government we choose to consent to, there is much to love in Carmel Valley which is outside the control of residents or outside government agencies; for instance, the climate change from one end of town to another. It can be very hot in the Village and very cold at the mouth of the valley. The weather can be dry in the Village and damp at the mouth. When up in the hills along the Valley, the fog bank can be seen moving out in the morning and moving in at dusk. The birds will still flock, the butterflies will still float, the deer will still munch, and the poison oak will still itch. The tourists sightseeing, the elderly poking along, the employees cruising to work, and the RVs taking up space will still mix reluctantly on Carmel Valley Road. We will still meet our neighbors at the small and supermarkets in the Village, MidValley, and the mouth and chat for a bit. We will still buy our pumpkins and Christmas trees locally. We will check out the plants, flowers, and trees for sale at the several nurseries along the road. We may find time to hike at Garland Ranch. We still pray for rain. We will worry about wildfires and earthquakes and mountain lions. In other words, we will continue to be community of friends, neighbors, and strangers living and working in a rural and urban environment surrounded by beauty all year long.
Reasons why the 'Reasons Not to incorporate' don't make sense:
Lawrence Samuels, a prominent opponent to incorporation, gives fourteen reasons to not incorporate. These seem to be the main reasons the opponents to incorporation use as they usually repeat the ones listed below. Eight of the fourteen concern money. The dire predictions of the future by the opponents include lower tax revenue coupled with 'skyrocketing' expenses. The rebuttal to those majority of reasons to not incorporate given by the naysayers is to simply state, "Not proven, opinions not supported, and conclusions in error". In fact, the opposite is true as demonstrated by the Comprehensive Fiscal Analysis conducted by people that know about town and city budgets, revenues and expenses who state:
Any increase in taxes will require a two thirds majority of voters and no new taxes are projected or needed at time of incorporation. The current septic tank system remains in place with no new sewers mandated. Roads will be maintained at a higher standard of care. Large bonds will not have to be floated. The staff will be paid at reasonable salaries comparable with other towns and be paid out of the tax revenue. No new taxes on business are projected nor needed. Property taxes will not go up. Cost of putting out wildfires remains the same. A town has a much greater control of local finances than that controlled by the County of Monterey.
In summary, the financial reasons to not incorporate as stated by the fearmongers are neither supported by facts or history but amply rebutted by professional appraisers and financial reports.
The other reasons given are scare tactics with no support in documentation nor common sense.
Political infighting? To state that the elected officials will engage in corruption and succumbing to special interests is to insult the candidates and the residents of the Valley in choosing their elected officials.
More hassles? There will be less as local officials will be in charge, accountable to elected officials, not anonymous bureaucrats in County offices who have little interest or knowledge about local conditions. The level of government of a town council and appointed town official will mostly replace the existing insensitive lever of government called the County Board of Supervisors. The new level is more of a replacement than an addition and the new level will accurately reflect the fews of the citizens.
More development? No. There will be less development because the priority of the Town Council will be to maintain quality of life which includes peace and quiet, security, and tranquility. Commerce will not be a priority while at the same time, the tourism industry knows that a tranquil beautiful location will bring in the tourists as it has for decades. The industry will not want to kill a golden goose by having high rise hotels with concurrent traffic problems. In addition, with the strict water usage limits, new construction will be examined very closely for need and contribution to the overall community not just for the profits of a few developers. Local officials in the Town of Carmel Valley understand the magic of our Valley and will ensure it remains. The Supervisors in Salinas know little about the Valley except for its profit making potential and will approve projects over the wishes of the residents.
In summary of the reasons to not incorporate: Most are excuses which are money oriented and are not supported by facts or precedent. The other reasons are predictions which are insulting, pessimistic, cynical, and again not supported by evidence or history. In addition, incorporation is not solely about money; it's about quality of life first with money playing an important part. The opponents offer no ideas to improve that quality of life while the town proponents do. The opponents are negative, scared, and desperate as shown by their duplicity in running for an elected position in the town's administration while decrying the creation of the very thing they claim to wish to serve.
The opponents give fear, exaggerations, and insults while offering no corroborating support of evidence, documentation, or common sense.
The proponents give hope, straight talk, and polite presentation of facts to support reasonable conclusions with support of official reports, endorsements of prominent citizens and agencies, as well as common sense.
From Lawrence Samuels:
Why Oppose a City in Carmel Valley?
To Keep Carmel Valley Rural!
IF WE BECOME A CITY – HIGHER TAXES: Someone would have to pay for a new City infrastructure – eventual construction of a City Hall, police station, public works, civic center, etc.
MORE DEVELOPMENT: The new City would be dependent on tourism and other revenue sources, and would eventually need to entice large businesses to settle in Carmel Valley in order to pay for the City’s upkeep. This means the construction of large resort hotels and more traffic. Perhaps this is why developer Tom Gray has given thousands to the incorporation proponents.
LOW-INCOME HOUSING: Under state law, most cities are required to build low-income housing in expensive areas. The formula has been as high as 15% of current housing units to accommodate low-income housing, which could mean building 300 to 400 inclusionary housing units in Carmel Valley.
MORE GOVERNMENT HASSLES: A City would demand more permits, inspections, approvals, nightmarish red tape, paperwork, etc., which many people have already experienced in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
EXPENSIVE NEW SEWER SYSTEM: Currently, most Carmel Valley residents have septic tanks, except at the mouth of the valley. A new City would be pressured to follow new federal and state environmental laws to improve underground water quality. The cost to hook up to a new sewer system have been as high as $25,000 per homeowner in other areas of California.
SKYROCKETING ROAD COSTS: Under a City, roads will have to be improved. With 68 miles of roads (144 lane-miles); $40 million to $60 million of road reconstruction; $3 million to replace the failed road system every year (only $327,000 is budgeted for minimal road maintenance by city proponents); 35 to 40 miles of roads that don't meet current development standards (re-engineering these roads, according to county officials, would cost $100 million to $150 million).
CITY DEBT: The City would likely be forced to float large bonds in order to pay the additional costs which would be added to our property tax bills. And if citizens resist, the political establishment at City Hall will simply argue that they will close down services if taxes are not raised.
POLITICAL INFIGHTING: Politics will poison the community with electioneering, charges of corruption, outsider vs. insider conflicts, special interests trying to influence the mayor and city council members, and general politicking. Battles of influence between CV village and the mouth of the valley could be very divisive.
HIGH-PAID STAFF: A highly paid staff of City workers, City manager, City Attorney, etc. would follow. Further, most Cities have generous retirement packages of up to 90% of the City employee’s salary with inflation adjustments. In the city of Seaside alone, over 40 government officials get over $100,000 per year.
INCREASED BUSINESS TAXES: With a City, there would be more taxes on local businesses – possible business license tax, utility taxes, etc. to support a new layer of government.
PROPERTY TAXES/BOND REDEMPTION: Despite Prop. 13 protections, City governments must employ “Bond Redemptions” and “Bond Interest” for “capital improvements” making property tax bills go up substantially.
COST OF WILD FIRES: The State of California funds the CDF to fight wild fires in unincorporated areas. If incorporated, the cost of fighting the fire is shifted to the City.
REDEVELOPMENT AGENCIES: Every city in Monterey County has a redevelopment agency with the power to seize private land and give it to private developers at the expense of taxpayers. With eminent domain powers, a City can take anybody’s property.
LITTLE LOCAL CONTROL: Somewhere between 50 to 60 percent of most city budgets are controlled by federal and state mandates and law. In reality, cities have lost most of their local control.