http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/14302765p-15175071c.html
Arena tough sell to small cities
Even with backers' promises to share sales tax, many suburban officials oppose ballot measures or remain skeptical.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga and Terri Hardy -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 12:01 am PDT Sunday, August 20, 2006
Proponents of the plan to build a new Kings arena in the downtown railyard are counting on leaders from Sacramento County's smaller cities to help sell the idea to voters for the Nov. 7 election.
But most of the suburban politicians recently contacted by The Bee said they either oppose the proposal to pay for the arena by raising the sales tax or still have unanswered questions about how it will affect the financial health of their communities.
"We've all got our own budgets to worry about," said Folsom City Councilwoman Kerri Howell, who described herself as "on the fence."
Strong backers are sprinkled around the region. Rancho Cordova City Council members, for example, have been vocal in their support for the ballot measure. Still, some local leaders who back the plan said they don't plan to spend much time campaigning for it. Those who do plan to get involved say doing so carries substantial political risk, because they believe so many of their constituents are opposed.
"This is important enough that I'm willing to speak out, but I give due respect to those who are opposed," said Folsom Mayor Andy Morin, who is running for re-election. "This issue really generates some very extreme passion."
Proponents said they need support from around the region and that outright opposition in the suburbs could hurt the chances for passage of Measures Q and R, the two-initiative arena package.
They also point out that the campaign is just starting. Political consultant Gale Kaufman was hired just days ago to drum up support among local elected officials and the public.
"One of the key parts of the campaign is to educate not only local elected officials in this county, who will clearly benefit if Measures Q and R pass, but also the people who go to the polls Nov. 7," said campaign spokesman Doug Elmets.
Sacramento County Chief Financial Officer Geoff Davey said he just sent out e-mails to city officials around the county offering to meet with them and explain the proposal in more detail. He said the county would enter into revenue-sharing agreements with each of the cities if the ballot measure passes.
Measure R would raise the sales tax on purchases made in Sacramento County by a quarter cent for 15 years -- without specifying what the estimated $1.2 billion raised by the tax hike would be used for.
If Measure R specifically allocated the money to the arena and the cities, it would require a two-thirds vote to pass. By making it a general tax, the county argues it needs only a majority vote -- a theory opponents and proponents expect to be tested in court.
Measure Q, an advisory initiative, would then ask voters if they want the county to roughly split the money between the arena and the county and its cities.
"We're hopeful that the various cities and their leadership will be promoting a yes (vote) on Measures Q and R," said Sacramento Vice Mayor Rob Fong, a negotiator of the arena deal.
The package contains a potentially big benefit for local governments in Sacramento County -- between $595 million and $684 million in sales tax money to use for their own needs, such as libraries, roads and police officers. Arena proponents hoped this would turn suburban leaders into enthusiastic backers.
"This is about much more than building a sports and entertainment center in downtown Sacramento; it's about all the possibilities that exist for all the cities and for Sacramento County," said Sacramento County Supervisor Roger Dickinson.
Some local officials find this argument less than compelling, however. The advisory measure is non-binding, meaning there's no ironclad guarantee they would get their money. And the funds wouldn't start flowing until the arena was paid off, something that would likely take at least six years.
"Cities are being dangled this little carrot, but there's no guarantee we'll ever get that carrot," said Citrus Heights City Councilwoman Jayna Karpinski-Costa.
Elk Grove City Councilman Dan Briggs said he wants to see a "guarantee" that sales tax money will come back to his city.
"I have a lot of unanswered questions," he said, adding that he's "kind of neutral" at this point.
Some local officials simply oppose the idea of raising taxes to build a new sports arena.
"I've been to a few games at the arena, and I'm not sure why they want a new one," said Galt City Councilwoman Barbara Payne. "All I can see is maybe it would bring more revenue to the owners."
Payne also took issue with the two-measure approach, which allows the county to avoid a two-thirds vote. "It just doesn't seem like the most honest way to do it," she said.
Among the local leadership in Sacramento County, the City Council members in Rancho Cordova have been the most enthusiastic. They passed a measure urging the county supervisors to put the arena proposal on the ballot.
"I support the idea and think we can benefit from it as a city," said Rancho Cordova Mayor Robert McGarvey. He's concerned that the city may lose federal funds in the future, and thinks the Measure R tax revenue could come in handy.
Rancho Cordova Councilwoman Linda Budge, a Kings season ticket holder, has been one of the most vocal suburban supporters of the arena deal. Proponents of the arena had been hoping she would help get other local officials on board.
But Budge said she won't be devoting a lot of her time to getting it passed.
"I actually am running for re-election this fall, so I do have my own campaign to run. So I'm probably not going to be as active in this as I would if it were a different year," Budge said.
Budge said her constituents are split on Measures Q and R. "In Rancho Cordova, when you talk to people at different events, it's 50-50," she said.
Citrus Heights officials have expressed some of the strongest reservations about the arena deal. They say their city is in a different position than Rancho Cordova, Folsom or Elk Grove, which will likely experience rapid population growth and new development for years to come.
Citrus Heights is built out, and it depends heavily on sales taxes. It has seen sales from its aging retail stores flatten, partly because of competition from its booming neighbor, Roseville.
"We're already impacted by the growth in south Placer County, and this is going to impact us more," said Mayor Jeannie Bruins. "Right now our sales tax is half a percent more expensive than Placer. This is going to put us another quarter cent away from them. On big-ticket items like electronics or so forth, 8 percent sales tax sounds so much more than 7 and a quarter."
Bruins and other city officials said Citrus Heights also stands to lose under the formula proposed by the county for distributing the new tax funds to the cities.
Each city would receive its money based on retail sales within its borders after the arena is paid for and the funds become available for local governments. But Citrus Heights' sales taxes are relatively flat, while those in other cities -- such as Elk Grove -- are exploding.
Cities that experience more rapid growth in retail sales will get more money; those with stagnant growth, less.
"Thirty-five to $41 million will come out of Citrus Heights (for the new tax); that's the figure they gave us," said City Manager Henry Tingle. "It will benefit downtown redevelopment, but it won't benefit us. …. By the time Citrus Heights receives its money, the net value of that will only be about $14 million."
Tingle said his city tried to present its concerns to the county when the arena deal was being negotiated, but got nowhere.
Bruins was among the elected officials who attended a May reception at the Sutter Club with the Maloofs. But she said she heard little about the proposal from that time until a deal was announced July 20.
Warren Smith, a member of the arena campaign team and senior vice president of the Sacramento River Cats, offered a different version of events. Smith said suburban cities had input when the arena deal was put together.
"Cities like Folsom and Rancho Cordova wanted it to be in the railyard because they wanted people in their city to be able to take light rail there," he said.
He bristled at the notion that some politicians might not get involved because of the political risk.
"What is leadership about? Isn't it about taking risks? Aren't we trying to create a quality community? Some of our elected officials understand the big picture, but others are very myopic about their own city."
About the writer: The Bee's Mary Lynne Vellinga can be reached at (916) 321-1094 or mlvellinga@sacbee.com.
Arena tough sell to small cities
Even with backers' promises to share sales tax, many suburban officials oppose ballot measures or remain skeptical.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga and Terri Hardy -- Bee Staff Writers
Published 12:01 am PDT Sunday, August 20, 2006
Proponents of the plan to build a new Kings arena in the downtown railyard are counting on leaders from Sacramento County's smaller cities to help sell the idea to voters for the Nov. 7 election.
But most of the suburban politicians recently contacted by The Bee said they either oppose the proposal to pay for the arena by raising the sales tax or still have unanswered questions about how it will affect the financial health of their communities.
"We've all got our own budgets to worry about," said Folsom City Councilwoman Kerri Howell, who described herself as "on the fence."
Strong backers are sprinkled around the region. Rancho Cordova City Council members, for example, have been vocal in their support for the ballot measure. Still, some local leaders who back the plan said they don't plan to spend much time campaigning for it. Those who do plan to get involved say doing so carries substantial political risk, because they believe so many of their constituents are opposed.
"This is important enough that I'm willing to speak out, but I give due respect to those who are opposed," said Folsom Mayor Andy Morin, who is running for re-election. "This issue really generates some very extreme passion."
Proponents said they need support from around the region and that outright opposition in the suburbs could hurt the chances for passage of Measures Q and R, the two-initiative arena package.
They also point out that the campaign is just starting. Political consultant Gale Kaufman was hired just days ago to drum up support among local elected officials and the public.
"One of the key parts of the campaign is to educate not only local elected officials in this county, who will clearly benefit if Measures Q and R pass, but also the people who go to the polls Nov. 7," said campaign spokesman Doug Elmets.
Sacramento County Chief Financial Officer Geoff Davey said he just sent out e-mails to city officials around the county offering to meet with them and explain the proposal in more detail. He said the county would enter into revenue-sharing agreements with each of the cities if the ballot measure passes.
Measure R would raise the sales tax on purchases made in Sacramento County by a quarter cent for 15 years -- without specifying what the estimated $1.2 billion raised by the tax hike would be used for.
If Measure R specifically allocated the money to the arena and the cities, it would require a two-thirds vote to pass. By making it a general tax, the county argues it needs only a majority vote -- a theory opponents and proponents expect to be tested in court.
Measure Q, an advisory initiative, would then ask voters if they want the county to roughly split the money between the arena and the county and its cities.
"We're hopeful that the various cities and their leadership will be promoting a yes (vote) on Measures Q and R," said Sacramento Vice Mayor Rob Fong, a negotiator of the arena deal.
The package contains a potentially big benefit for local governments in Sacramento County -- between $595 million and $684 million in sales tax money to use for their own needs, such as libraries, roads and police officers. Arena proponents hoped this would turn suburban leaders into enthusiastic backers.
"This is about much more than building a sports and entertainment center in downtown Sacramento; it's about all the possibilities that exist for all the cities and for Sacramento County," said Sacramento County Supervisor Roger Dickinson.
Some local officials find this argument less than compelling, however. The advisory measure is non-binding, meaning there's no ironclad guarantee they would get their money. And the funds wouldn't start flowing until the arena was paid off, something that would likely take at least six years.
"Cities are being dangled this little carrot, but there's no guarantee we'll ever get that carrot," said Citrus Heights City Councilwoman Jayna Karpinski-Costa.
Elk Grove City Councilman Dan Briggs said he wants to see a "guarantee" that sales tax money will come back to his city.
"I have a lot of unanswered questions," he said, adding that he's "kind of neutral" at this point.
Some local officials simply oppose the idea of raising taxes to build a new sports arena.
"I've been to a few games at the arena, and I'm not sure why they want a new one," said Galt City Councilwoman Barbara Payne. "All I can see is maybe it would bring more revenue to the owners."
Payne also took issue with the two-measure approach, which allows the county to avoid a two-thirds vote. "It just doesn't seem like the most honest way to do it," she said.
Among the local leadership in Sacramento County, the City Council members in Rancho Cordova have been the most enthusiastic. They passed a measure urging the county supervisors to put the arena proposal on the ballot.
"I support the idea and think we can benefit from it as a city," said Rancho Cordova Mayor Robert McGarvey. He's concerned that the city may lose federal funds in the future, and thinks the Measure R tax revenue could come in handy.
Rancho Cordova Councilwoman Linda Budge, a Kings season ticket holder, has been one of the most vocal suburban supporters of the arena deal. Proponents of the arena had been hoping she would help get other local officials on board.
But Budge said she won't be devoting a lot of her time to getting it passed.
"I actually am running for re-election this fall, so I do have my own campaign to run. So I'm probably not going to be as active in this as I would if it were a different year," Budge said.
Budge said her constituents are split on Measures Q and R. "In Rancho Cordova, when you talk to people at different events, it's 50-50," she said.
Citrus Heights officials have expressed some of the strongest reservations about the arena deal. They say their city is in a different position than Rancho Cordova, Folsom or Elk Grove, which will likely experience rapid population growth and new development for years to come.
Citrus Heights is built out, and it depends heavily on sales taxes. It has seen sales from its aging retail stores flatten, partly because of competition from its booming neighbor, Roseville.
"We're already impacted by the growth in south Placer County, and this is going to impact us more," said Mayor Jeannie Bruins. "Right now our sales tax is half a percent more expensive than Placer. This is going to put us another quarter cent away from them. On big-ticket items like electronics or so forth, 8 percent sales tax sounds so much more than 7 and a quarter."
Bruins and other city officials said Citrus Heights also stands to lose under the formula proposed by the county for distributing the new tax funds to the cities.
Each city would receive its money based on retail sales within its borders after the arena is paid for and the funds become available for local governments. But Citrus Heights' sales taxes are relatively flat, while those in other cities -- such as Elk Grove -- are exploding.
Cities that experience more rapid growth in retail sales will get more money; those with stagnant growth, less.
"Thirty-five to $41 million will come out of Citrus Heights (for the new tax); that's the figure they gave us," said City Manager Henry Tingle. "It will benefit downtown redevelopment, but it won't benefit us. …. By the time Citrus Heights receives its money, the net value of that will only be about $14 million."
Tingle said his city tried to present its concerns to the county when the arena deal was being negotiated, but got nowhere.
Bruins was among the elected officials who attended a May reception at the Sutter Club with the Maloofs. But she said she heard little about the proposal from that time until a deal was announced July 20.
Warren Smith, a member of the arena campaign team and senior vice president of the Sacramento River Cats, offered a different version of events. Smith said suburban cities had input when the arena deal was put together.
"Cities like Folsom and Rancho Cordova wanted it to be in the railyard because they wanted people in their city to be able to take light rail there," he said.
He bristled at the notion that some politicians might not get involved because of the political risk.
"What is leadership about? Isn't it about taking risks? Aren't we trying to create a quality community? Some of our elected officials understand the big picture, but others are very myopic about their own city."
About the writer: The Bee's Mary Lynne Vellinga can be reached at (916) 321-1094 or mlvellinga@sacbee.com.
