Menifee Budget Proposal Lacks Millions Needed for City Road Improvements
As City of Menifee officials consider ways to alleviate traffic congestion for local drivers, they are faced with a stark realization: Alt...
http://www.menifee247.com/2012/06/menifee-budget-proposal-lacks-millions.html
As City of Menifee officials consider ways to alleviate traffic congestion for local drivers, they are faced with a stark realization:
Although Menifee residents remain legally obligated to pay increasing vehicle license fees, the amount of revenue the city stands to receive from those fees will be much lower heading into the 2012-13 fiscal year.
How low, you ask? Try zero.
Because of Senate Bill 89, which was approved by Gov. Jerry Brown last June 30, all vehicle license fee revenues are now given to counties rather than cities. Thus Menifee, which had budgeted revenue of $3.9 million from such fees in the current fiscal year, doesn't have a dime of that amount to apply toward expenses in its 2012-13 budget.
The budget proposal presented to the City Council Tuesday night by Finance Director Terri Willoughby lists $23 million in expected revenue for the city's general fund. Without the anticipated $3.9 million to boost that revenue amount, Menifee's projected expenses for 2012-13 -- $23.8 million -- exceeds revenue by about $800,000.
So while a capital improvement project for the city has identified Interstate 215 interchange projects at Newport Road and Scott Road and a proposed freeway overpass at Holland Road as priorities in reducing traffic jams, there is less money to devote to such programs than there was before.
Still, Willoughby said during Tuesday night's budget presentation that Menifee is "fiscally sound despite those losses." City Manager Bill Rawlings echoed those remarks.
"We're not making up the $3.9 million, but we do have other revenue sources," said Rawlings, citing expected increases of about $925,000 in property taxes and $525,000 in sales tax for the coming year. "That does take a little of the sting out of it."
So while council members consider the proposal in preparing to approve a budget by June 30, concerns about funding for much-needed road improvements remain.
"My concern is the proposed Holland overpass," council member Wallace Edgerton said to Rawlings. "It looks like much of the funding for these projects is based on grants through a bit of serendipity. I don't know how sure you are about the funding -- if you're 100 percent sure about this -- but that needs to be a major project."
Rawlings' response: "I'm 100 percent unsure of the funding, but we have identified it as a priority. That's why we're sharing possible funding sources in this presentation."
According to a report on the capital improvement project given by Crystal Nguyen, associate engineer, the Newport Road interchange project has an estimated start date for construction in 2013 but is only partially funded. She said $17 million is available for that project in addition to anticipated grant money, but that the latest cost estimate was $37 million.
A diagram presented to the council showed a plan for a cloverleaf on-ramp and off-ramp design at both Newport Road and Scott Road, lessening the burden on through traffic at those bridges.
The Scott Road project, No. 2 in priority on the list proposed to the council, has an estimated construction date in 2014, but only $3 million has been funded for a project that could cost close to $50 million. The proposed Holland overpass is third on the list, with a projected construction year of 2015. According to Nguyen, an additional $5 million is needed to fund that project.
Although Menifee residents remain legally obligated to pay increasing vehicle license fees, the amount of revenue the city stands to receive from those fees will be much lower heading into the 2012-13 fiscal year.
How low, you ask? Try zero.
Because of Senate Bill 89, which was approved by Gov. Jerry Brown last June 30, all vehicle license fee revenues are now given to counties rather than cities. Thus Menifee, which had budgeted revenue of $3.9 million from such fees in the current fiscal year, doesn't have a dime of that amount to apply toward expenses in its 2012-13 budget.
The budget proposal presented to the City Council Tuesday night by Finance Director Terri Willoughby lists $23 million in expected revenue for the city's general fund. Without the anticipated $3.9 million to boost that revenue amount, Menifee's projected expenses for 2012-13 -- $23.8 million -- exceeds revenue by about $800,000.
So while a capital improvement project for the city has identified Interstate 215 interchange projects at Newport Road and Scott Road and a proposed freeway overpass at Holland Road as priorities in reducing traffic jams, there is less money to devote to such programs than there was before.
Still, Willoughby said during Tuesday night's budget presentation that Menifee is "fiscally sound despite those losses." City Manager Bill Rawlings echoed those remarks.
"We're not making up the $3.9 million, but we do have other revenue sources," said Rawlings, citing expected increases of about $925,000 in property taxes and $525,000 in sales tax for the coming year. "That does take a little of the sting out of it."
So while council members consider the proposal in preparing to approve a budget by June 30, concerns about funding for much-needed road improvements remain.
"My concern is the proposed Holland overpass," council member Wallace Edgerton said to Rawlings. "It looks like much of the funding for these projects is based on grants through a bit of serendipity. I don't know how sure you are about the funding -- if you're 100 percent sure about this -- but that needs to be a major project."
Rawlings' response: "I'm 100 percent unsure of the funding, but we have identified it as a priority. That's why we're sharing possible funding sources in this presentation."
According to a report on the capital improvement project given by Crystal Nguyen, associate engineer, the Newport Road interchange project has an estimated start date for construction in 2013 but is only partially funded. She said $17 million is available for that project in addition to anticipated grant money, but that the latest cost estimate was $37 million.
A diagram presented to the council showed a plan for a cloverleaf on-ramp and off-ramp design at both Newport Road and Scott Road, lessening the burden on through traffic at those bridges.
The Scott Road project, No. 2 in priority on the list proposed to the council, has an estimated construction date in 2014, but only $3 million has been funded for a project that could cost close to $50 million. The proposed Holland overpass is third on the list, with a projected construction year of 2015. According to Nguyen, an additional $5 million is needed to fund that project.
out of curiosity, where does that leave Wal-Mart? Without Scott Road improvements, Menifee is looking at a nightmare in traffic when Wal-Mart goes in. For those of us who live in the area, it will make it very difficult to support Menifee and fight the traffic to shop Menifee when it's easier and less hassle to go to Murrieta to shop. Menifee is my home and I do everything to support Menifee by shopping Menifee but I'm also very busy. If the traffic gets any worse at Scott and the 215, to keep on my schedule I feel I will have to shop Murrieta because it's more convenient.
ReplyDeleteWhy isnt the overpass 1st on the list? It will probably cost the least and relieve congestion on both Scott and Newport. It would buy us more time to get funds together for the interchanges.
ReplyDeleteSimple soluton, you have the money to put the overpass at Holland. Put that in ASAP and it will reduce traffic at both the Newport and Scott Rd bridges.
ReplyDeleteI am very disappointed. I hardly ever go the the shopping center because the traffic is so BAD. How can the city gain revenue when one wants to visit the areas where the revenue comes from. Two more years of traffic? Wow. Mr Mayor do something!
ReplyDeleteI agree....Holland should be built first to ease traffic immediately and to ease traffic during reconstruction of Newport and Scott. The initial addition of Linnel ln overpass sure helped during reconstruction of Clinton Keith and it didn't seem to take that long or mess up traffic during it's construcion. And as the prior writer mentioned, it may give some more time to fund the other two ramps. Seems the City is putting the priorities backwards and getting tunnel vision.....
ReplyDeleteThe overpass at Holland is needed before any work can begin on Scott or Newport anyway. This has been needed for quite some time and should be done ASAP. The amount of traffic that goes over Newport without entering or exiting the freeway has got to be at near 50%. This is obvious just by visual observation. If an alternate route was provided (overpass at Holland), this would siginificantly reduce the congestion on Newport.
ReplyDeleteAs for the issues that are going to be encountered at Scott because of the Walmart; I was adamant about this issue prior to the voting approving the Walmart. Walmart made it sound so great and I knew better that the road improvements were not part of the approval and that unless the road improvements were paid for by Walmart and agreed to before the vote that we should have voted against the Walmart. I voted against it knowing this. Just wait and see how bad it will get at Scott when it opens. It's already a nightmare.
A lot of talk, no action during the Walmart issue...Again the issue of getting across 215 is going to get buried. Think of what it's going to be like if they start rebuilding Newport and Walmart starts construction without an alternate like Holland.....
ReplyDeleteUnbelievable! You would think that after all these years of watching Temecula and Murrieta implode due to lack of foresight that we would have learned something. Build the overpass at Holland first. Everything else follows in a logical progression. Logical, unless, that is, you want our fair town to become Temecurreta North.
ReplyDelete