I’m very proud to say that WE DID IT!  In the “Call to Action” that I issued in November of 2009, I asked that we find a way to avoid the final Water & Sewer Rate Increase that was schedule for July 1st, 2010.  The Fernley City Council achieved that last night June 2nd, 2010!  While we didn’t cancel it completely, we did suspend it for one year.  Our citizens and businesses need a break, even if it is a small one.  It has taken a lot of hard work by a lot of good people to get us to a point where the City Council could feel comfortable making this decision; and it was unanimous! 

Budget Balanced

The City Council had sent a very loud and clear signal to the City Manager and the rest of the city staff to not only cut the budget for the coming year, but also to go line by line in the current year and even if there was money in the budget, not to spend that money unless it was absolutely necessary; I’m happy to report that our staff listened.  We have saved almost $300,000 in the current fiscal year; and have a balanced budget for 2010-11.  That was accomplished on May 18th, when the council approved the budget, although it is disappointing that it only passed by a 3/2 vote.  Councilman Parsons and Chase apparently wanted more cuts than we needed, but presented no viable alternatives, except contract more services out, which has proven to cost even more money. 

The following are some of the reasons I decided to step up and answer the call to serve the citizens of Fernley in March of 2008; and it is indeed an honor. 

1.                  Concern about the proposed road impact fee that was in the process of being enacted that would have absolutely killed future growth in Fernley, how about a $50,000 Road Impact Fee for a hamburger stand or $1,000,000 for a movie theater.  While I’m not opposed to some impact fees, those were ridiculous and punitive for anyone wanting to start a business in our community.

2.                  Years of seemingly overzealous attitudes by certain departments within the city.

3.                  Disappointment with city management in general.

4.                  Lack of actual business experience by members of staff and elected officials.

5.                  Anti-business attitude resulting in “us against them” mentality.

6.                  Lack of transparency and accounting to the citizens.

7.                  And of course the 800 lb. Gorilla was the Water Treatment Bond Debt.

I’m very pleased that most of these issues have been addressed and improved or resolved, although I’m certain that there are some people who will disagree.

Water Treatment Bond Debt

The Bond debt really bothered me the most when I took office, it seemed to be this huge freight train heading towards us about 3 years down the road, since the annual deficit in the Water Enterprise Fund was $3.8 million dollars.  It was my number one goal to try to find solutions or inspire others to find them in order to move this “freight train” out as far in the future as possible until development could return and fund this debt, as it was intended to do.  There was no one fix all solution and it had to be done on several fronts.  First, we needed serious cuts in the budget and trimming this city to run financially as lean and mean as possible, while still providing services to our citizens.  I would like to congratulate City Manager Greg Evengelotos and ALL of the Department Heads for tightening their belts and making this possible.  Our Management Team has cut the Water Enterprise Fund deficit down to $2.3 million dollars and balanced our general fund at the same time..

So how do we cover a shortage of $2.3 million dollars?  With the $21 million+ we have in our investment accounts, which was accumulated through hook-up and development fees, and earned interest when times were good, we can generate about $1 million dollars.  We have also worked hard at securing a $4.2 million dollar grant from the federal government with the help of Senator Reid’s office, which will fund the Pyramid Lake Piute Tribe so that they will be able to pay the city for leased water rights at the tune of about $1 million dollar per year, for the next 4 years.  I would like to acknowledge our water attorney, Paul Taggart, for his brilliant contribution to this process.  So, that really leaves us short only a few hundred thousands of dollars, which is all that we would need to spend from our investment account each year.  So, pending the actual funding of the promised federal money, I feel that we have accomplished our this most important primary goal and believe that the City of Fernley can now see its way forward with a renewed confidence.

What’s Next?

There are many things that we will need to continue work on;

1.                  Keep pressure on the Feds to get the Truckee Canal repaired once and for all, as this is vital to the re-charge of our current water source, our underground aquifer.

2.                  Continuing efforts with the water team to develop a regional water plan that will protect everyone in Fernley, whether they are citizens who expect clean and healthy water to come out of their taps; or for our farmers who want to continue irrigating their beautiful ranches, which are one of the things that make Fernley so unique. 

3.                  Fernley needs to keep all of its options in play including developing the use of our water rights from the Truckee Canal, and the Truckee River directly; as well as protecting our underground aquifer.

4.                  Finding ways to help Fernley get its fair share of tax revenues that are already being paid but we seem to get shortchanged on.

5.                  Keeping Fernley “Open for Your Business”, so that businesses will move here and bring good paying jobs; this must always be a top priority. 

6.                  We need to complete the improvement in our development codes.

7.                  Increase and capitalize on our Room Tax Revenue that we will now have control of.  Build a Convention/Community Center; and promote activities that will bring important tourism revenue to the businesses and in turn to the citizens of Fernley.

8.                  Be ready for and promote good development in the city, since that is the only real long-term solution to our bond debt.

9.                  See that a stop light is installed at Fremont and Main St. to enhance public access and safety.

10.              And frankly, we could use a little less drama in our local government; I hope that things are settling down now, despite this being an election year.