Moreno Valley Moves To Stave Off Bankruptcy

Well dear readers, it appears that the Moreno Valley City Council is finally trying to get it's act together.

Last Tuesday the five members of the Moreno Valley City Council unanimously voted to approve the Highland Fairview Corporate Park (aka the Skechers project) in the eastern Moreno Valley community of Rancho Belago.  The project is likely to generate enough revenue in taxes and fees to keep Moreno Valley from going broke.

By keeping the city solvent, Moreno Valley will be able to prevent cuts to its police and fire departments, as well as keep other public works projects going, like street improvements. Additionally the City Manager will get to keep his unjustified salary and avoid laying off worthless members of his staff that are also collecting fat checks that they probably don't deserve either.

Members of the Moreno Valley City Council have been outraged at our reporting that the City's finances were in worse shape than they were letting the public know.   Specifically they disapproved of our releasing information that the City of Moreno Valley may be on the verge of bankruptcy given the collapse of the City's housing market, which has been a major source of revenue for Moreno Valley.

However it should be noted dear readers that not one member of the Moreno Valley City Council ever denied that the City could be going bankrupt, or that the City Council may be discussing the possibility of filing for federal bankruptcy protection.  Instead they have lashed out at anyone who may insinuate that the City could take such drastic action in angry and obvious attempts to stop whatever member of the City Council or the city staff is talking about such a bankruptcy contingency plan.

With the approval of the Highland Fairview Corporate Park/Skechers, all of this talk may now be a moot point.  Construction of the project will generate about $10 million of building fees for the City in the short term, finally growing to about $40 million in total fees.  1,000 construction workers, many who are currently unemployed, will soon be put back to work.  When completed Moreno Valley will have 2,000 new jobs.  

On top of that the project will generate anywhere from $100 million to $150 million in economic activity in Moreno Valley when fully operational.  This will put anywhere from $4 million to $10 million into the city coffers each year.

These arguments did not sway the misguided Planning Commission or the opponents of the Highland Fairview project who fought the Corporate Park on the basis that it would create too much air pollution, too much big rig traffic, and destroy housing values.  However, these same harbingers of doom failed to oppose a similar project in Moreno Valley located next to a residential community and near a public school that came before the Planning Commission only a week after Skechers.  

This double standard seems to have appalled the City Council and solidified its members into making this a unanimous decision.  

We can only hope dear readers that the approval of the Skechers project is the beginning of a new day in Moreno Valley and that the City will finally start welcoming job-creating industry.  Yet there are deep racial divides in the City between long time white residents and newer Hispanic residents that are rapidly challenging the good old boys lock on power, as evidenced by the racial divisions for and against Skechers and the election of Jesse Molina to the City Council over long serving incumbent Charles White.

The people of Moreno Valley would be wise to lay down their racial prejudices and avoid any race baiting politics.  It doesn't matter where they came from before because they are all in the same boat now.  That boat in Moreno Valley.  Working together they can finally get that city moving the right direction.  Or they can keep up the infighting and continue sailing the boat in circles as it sinks, even though land is in sight.   

Comments

[Catalina]

"The City Manager will get to keep his unjustified salary and avoid laying off worthless members of his staff that are also collecting fat checks that they probably don't deserve either." - well, well....isn't sweet! In June Bob will be laying off "cheaper" workers, but who knows about the ones that really should be going like the Deputy City Manager, Assistant to the City Manager, Community Development Director that would rather work half days, the huge City Attorney's office!

[Catalina]

Interesting how the City Council of Moreno Valley wants to contract out all of Development Services!!!!!
I guess they don't remember how bad it was the first time most of the city's workers were contract.
It is not fair to the workers who been working hard for the City! Maybe someone like Iddo put this idea into the heads of Robin and Jesse - we know it takes very little for them to vote "yes" on whatever Iddo wants..........

[Catalina]

All of the Moreno Valley City Council and City Manager's Office needs to read the following article on "Who Should Fix the Potholes?"
http://www.governing.com/column/who-should-fix-potholes

Contractor workers DO NOT work!

[Catalina]

While the City Attorney's Office couldn't not meet the required budget reduction required by the City Manager, the head City Attorney will get a $17,779 per year raise! The $134,000 plus that the department is over
could fund at least 2 positions elsewhere in the City of Moreno Valley.

Nice to know that the City of Moreno's City Council really doesn't care about its employees.