Hello, fellow residents of Carmel Valley;
A funny thing happened to me on my way here today…I got stuck in traffic. Right, not funny. Let’s change that. Here’s how.
Let us become citizens of the Town of Carmel Valley. Here’s why:
Our quality of life goes up when we have more control of it. It’s common sense. The people, that’s us, will pay closer attention to what is really best for us and we’ll do it. But first we need to power to do it and right now, we don’t have that power. We can get that self power through the ballot box and that’s called democracy. Let’s do it.
Let’s go through the issues and variables before taking the leap to townhood and being governed by five local council members instead of five strangers from out of town.
Money. Yes, money always seems to come up first. It shouldn’t but it does. After incorporation the money is there for the new town and lots of it, and that’s a fact. The money comes from the cash we pay every day in taxes on everything from gasoline, our homes, and beer. For decades we taxpayers living in Carmel Valley have been paying out to the county a whole lot more than we have been getting back. The past numbers are paying out twelve million and getting back ten million in services and lately paying out eleven million in cash and getting back nine million in services such as road repair. Regardless of the tax money we pay out, we will always get back less since we are relatively more affluent than the poorer areas of the County of Monterey. It’s charitable that the less fortunate get more services than us.
Who says the money is there and lots of it? Well, the best professional appraisers in California say so. The State of California and the County of Monterey say so and would not allow us to vote on incorporation if they believed the money was not there. The money is there and lots of it and therefore they have approved the vote. The official phrase is “the Town of Carmel Valley is financially viable” which comes from the official report on the fiscal analysis of the proposed Town of Carmel Valley.
Well, just because we can become an incorporated town with local leadership and sustain the town financially, that does not mean we should.
Should we? I say yes, and not only yes, but heck yes. Without a doubt we should become a grown up community with its adult responsibilities and successes while trying to avoid the failures.
Right now we may feel that the living conditions in Carmel Valley are fine and some voters do not want to jeopardize that standing. That feeling is only natural but for those living here over three decades ago, as I was, the conditions now are not fine but worse regarding congestion, noise, and traffic. For those living thirty years in the future, they may accept as normal the thousands of houses at the mouth of the valley, the subdivisions along Carmel Valley Road, the increase in fatal accidents on the valley roads, the noise of tire friction and car engines as they whiz along, and the smell of the exhausts of the thousands of cars making thousands of trips a day.
Let’s stop that future horror from happening. We can do that through the ballot box and choose Yes on Measure G which is to incorporate us valley residents into a Town of Carmel Valley.
Another less apparent benefit to incorporation is the power it gives to its citizens through representation. Right now we can act as one individual and speak before the County supervisors, or talk to our representatives in Sacramento or write letters to the editor in local newspapers. That power of influence is extremely small and easy to disregard and is by county or state officials. However, when a council member speaks to higher authority as one who represents twelve thousand citizens, his/her opinion carries weight and will be respected.
I shall give a few instances of issues that may arise in the future which can be better handled on the local level by local officials because these issues impact us the most. Let’s say that the State wants to spray moth poison over our heads to kill the pests because they endanger the agricultural revenue of Salinas Valley. The County would agree with the state since agriculture is a higher priority than our citizen health in this smaller valley. A town council can delay or even stop that spraying through persuasion or the courts unless the spraying is proven safe. I for one will not tolerate even fine pure clean water spraying on my head or my family without my consent and certainly not anything else. And right now the state does not have my consent.
Another example of an issue which impacts us in Carmel Valley greatly but if we are not incorporated into a town our influence and opinions will not be heard is water rationing. The rainwater falls on Carmel Valley on our heads in our yards in Carmel Valley and goes to the Carmel River and seeps into the Carmel River alluvial aquifer…to be shipped to Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the -Sea, and Monterey. We are now threatened with rationing to the extreme extent of restricting outside watering of our plants and gardens. If we incorporate, our town council will certainly fight to maintain our fair share of our water. If not incorporated, the city government of Monterey and the well funded attorneys of Pebble Beach will certainly make a persuasive case to the State for more water and to be exempt from water rationing. Those tourists certainly need to enjoy those long twenty minute hot showers after a long golf game on those lovely grass fairways and greens We need the power to ensure we get and keep our fair share of our water.
To imply, as the opponents of incorporation have in writing and in public, that the new Town of Carmel Valley would have a corrupt leadership foolishly wasting money and resources leading the citizens to damnation is an insult to the maturity, wisdom, and intelligence of the Carmel Valley voters. That leadership is up for a vote of reelection every few years and if not giving satisfactory service, those bums get thrown out of office. On the contrary, I believe that the elected officials will be honest, accessible, and exercise a wise administering of the new town’s regulations and ordinances, most of which are in place already.
The fire protection stays the same as it is in a Fire District with separate funds and administration. The education system stays the same as the School District remains with its separate funds and administration. The police officers would become locals which is a good thing. The money is there to pay for the officers, of course, as the Comprehensive Fiscal Analysis has assumed. The zoning in place now would remain and if lots of record or new businesses comply with the permit regulations, construction on a new home or business will be welcomed.
Once the Town of Carmel Valley becomes a reality, it quickly achieves a high status among other towns and cities in California. The weather is temperate, it is close to urban areas, the air is clean, the infrastructure is largely in place, citizens are above average in education and income, crime is low, house prices are high, and thousands of tourists spend much more money to experience a few nights in Carmel Valley than they do in other local cities. The Town of Carmel Valley would have a higher cachet of a very nice place to live or visit after becoming an official town.
The opponents of incorporation always talk about money and how the residents will get increased taxes to pay for everything. They say that less money in taxes will come in due to current economic situation. Their scare tactic is to say over and over again that after incorporation citizens will get less money coming in and more going out leading to ruination.
That scare tactic is simply not true. If it were true the choice of townhood would not be on the ballot. It is on the ballot because the money is there and lots of it and the State of California knows that and the County of Monterey knows that and have publicly accepted the conclusion of the LAFCO Comprehensive Fiscal Analysis that the Town of Carmel Valley is financially viable. By attempting to scare voters into voting against incorporation using money as a weapon, the money obsessed opponents treat the voters like poor children being denied candy.
There are good true reasons and bad false reasons to not vote for incorporation. I have researched and evaluated both sides; let’s review:
Some bad false reasons:
The main reason the self centered opponents offer to vote against incorporation is too much money going out and less money coming in leading to disaster. That’s a bad false reason simply because the money is there and lots of it. If there’s less money coming in, then less money goes out and vice versa. It’s called prudent financial responsibility and local leadership will have it as shown by the wide and varied qualifications of the adult proponents of incorporation seeking town council seats.
The second bad reason to vote against incorporation is that the status of a Town of Carmel Valley citizen will be lower than that of an unincorporated county resident living in say, Prunedale. The opponents to the new town would like to continue to tell others they live in Carmel. Well they don’t, that’s false; they live in the unincorporated area of the County of Monterey although close to Carmel-by-the-Sea. The status of the new town will be higher than a county area based on common sense that an organized community is more desirable than a disorganized one.
The two reasons the opponents of incorporation give are selfish and false; no money and loss of status.
From my point of view a good reason to vote against incorporation is it means change and change is risky and sometimes dangerous which leads to fear.
I rebut that argument to myself by not letting fear dictate my actions or deter me from my goal. I understand the fear, face it, try to reduce the cause and move on towards my goals.
There may very well be unintended consequences with change which will require a mature, reasonable council to act in a timely and flexible manner to resolve the unforeseen issues, something a County supervisor board can not do. In this case of changing from unincorporated area to incorporated town, change will be good and necessary for us to maintain and improve the quality of life in Carmel Valley. A change such as incorporation should be welcomed.
Another good reason to not vote for incorporation is that the new Town of Carmel Valley council and some staff will be as babes in the woods when it comes to competing for resources among the seasoned city governments of Monterey, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Pacific Grove, Del Rey Oaks, Sand City, and Marina as well as the politically astute leadership of Pebble Beach. We will be rookies and those governments will not cut us any slack nor do us any favors. They will probably attempt to take advantage of us and smile as they do it.
I rebut that argument to myself by knowing that a new town council made up of officials who really want the town to happen can learn the ropes fast, already have years of experience in bureaucracies and know how the infighting goes and when to watch one’s back. There is advice from valley old-timers to solicit and guidance from former mayors and council members from other cities who now live here. We may start out as babes but very soon will be old veterans. I have the confidence that a new council chosen by local residents is up to the challenge of administering a town fairly and keeping our fair share of the resources.
Another good reason to vote against incorporation is the fear of petty officials abusing their newly gained power. We all get upset at incompetent, petty, and often arrogant officials in some capacity.
I rebut that fear by realizing that correction is a phone call away to a local council member who has the authority to resolve the complaint in a timely manner through the Town Manager and personnel department. Complaints from citizens of abuse or incompetency will be acted upon and resolved.
My other worry is we will be hit with an avalanche of petty ordinances by zealous enthusiastic officials.
I rebut that fear when I realize that the local council is there to hear the complaints and will be responsive to the citizens of the town, unlike the current arrangement of being governed by County supervisors, the majority of whom have no allegiance to Carmel Valley. Current ordinances will be maintained and possible new ones will be debated in public at town hall meetings.
Money is important, it’s true, but it is a tool, not the goal. The goal is improved quality of life. Dubai is a very rich place but where do the residents go when they have a chance? To London, or Paris, or Carmel Valley!
Our quality of life includes the entire range of peace, quiet, serenity, contentment, clean air, pure water, nutritious food, prosperity, security, and simply joy.
We have a better chance of achieving those quality goals through local government than we do with county government. That’s common sense; those most affected have the best knowledge of the problems and the best solutions since they have to suffer the consequences of ill informed and hasty decisions while reaping the benefits of carefully reasoned answers to intimately understood problems.
When I hear the voters who are undecided but feel that more government is bad, officials are corrupt, things are getting desperate, change is for the worse and there is nothing they can do about it, I feel bad for them. They reek of cynicism and despair. That’s no way to live. They are like prisoners in a cell waiting for the ax to fall. It’s so sad because the cell door is open. That voter needs to open the door, walk outside, vote, and take control of his local government that replaces the current County government.
It’s time for us to claim our independence from the County of Monterey and take control of our destiny as a community. Let us not rely on the kindness of strangers but on the skill of our locally elected officials who will be more attuned to our wishes and solutions to achieve those quality goals. We need to assume responsibility for our lives toward the achievement of our goals. That responsibility to improve the quality of our lives requires authority to implement the laws. That authority is granted by the power of elected officials who are granted that power though the ballot box with the consent of the governed. That’s the adult way of obtaining and exercising power in a democracy. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I would like to think of us in Carmel Valley as hard working, optimistic, and confident residents. We can makes things better. We should try as a duty to ourselves, our children, and our neighbors. It’s time for us to grow up politically and make this community of Carmel Valley a formal reality as we strive to achieve the goals to improve the quality of our lives.
We should live in our own town. We can create the Town of Carmel Valley; we need to incorporate. A vote for Yes on Measure G will turn that desire into reality. Let’s do it.
Thank you,
John Barry Smith
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