LAFCO denies City's appeal of parks detachment ruling
A county agency has denied The City of Menifee's appeal of its decision regarding the City's application to take control of parks an...
http://www.menifee247.com/2017/10/lafco-denies-citys-appeal-of-detachment-ruling.html
Ron Bradley, interim city manager, said Monday the City has been notified that staff members of the Riverside Local Agency Formation Commission will present to its commissioners the denial for an official vote on Thursday. The City of Menifee application for detachment from Valley-Wide Recreation and Park District is on the agenda for LAFCO's 9:30 a.m. meeting in Riverside, but apparently only as a formality.
Bradley told Menifee 24/7 that city officials will attend the meeting to acknowledge the decision but will "respectfully disagree" with the ruling and will "continue to exhaust all administrative options" in response. He has said in the past that could include a lawsuit to challenge the ruling.
The City of Menifee's appeal was filed after LAFCO commissioners voted in July that the City could take over east-side parks from Valley-Wide -- thus controlling all parks and recreation in Menifee -- only if the following conditions were met:
-- Menifee residents approve the takeover in a public vote.
-- The City pays Valley-Wide $500,000 for the purchase of the Bell Mountain gym and community center.
-- The City pays an additional $500,000 to Valley-Wide as a gap bridge to compensate for Valley-Wide's loss of funding.
LAFCO commissioners ruled that a vote was necessary because of Prop. 218, which was passed in 1996 to ensure that all taxes on property owners are subject to voter approval. Menifee officials contend that a public vote is not necessary because Prop. 218 does not apply to the change in authority over tax assessments in the affected Landscape Maintenance Districts. Officials also believe the $1 million payment to be excessive.
Menifee 24/7 reported the story in detail in this July 27 news article and in the October issue of the Menifee 24/7 newspaper. That article is available at local businesses and can be viewed under the Print Edition tab on the Menifee 24/7 website.
It seems cities always need to meet LAFCO's "extra" demands. If you want this area then you will also have to take this other area the county wants to get rid of... Or, you will need to grease the wheels with some extra money... For example, "-- The City pays an additional $500,000 to Valley-Wide as a gap bridge to compensate for Valley-Wide's loss of funding." The loss of funding would not be taken away with the VAlley-Wide still being responsible for maintaining the parks at their expense. The parks would no longer be their responsibility, nor their expense. This essentially appears to be a shakedown. A reporter should compile a list of all the extra demands LAFCO has made over the years and see if they are behaving legally and ethically. Start with them trying to offload the Home Gardens area off of Magnolia near the City of Riverside.
ReplyDeleteSoooo... put on your big boy pants and put it to a vote.
ReplyDelete