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Mammoth Lakes, CA
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Tuesday, January 6, 2009
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Town Council takes the LEED |
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Thursday, 13 December 2007 |
New police facility will be green
By Lara Kirkner
Mammoth Times Staff Writer
After a rousing speech from Leslie O'Berry of the High Sierra Energy Foundation, including the call to action, “The Town has paid a lot of lip service to green building in the General Plan, so now you need to lead by example,” the Town Council voted to move forward with a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for the new police facility proposed to be built on the McFlex Land Exchange parcel at the intersection of Sierra Park Boulevard and Tavern Road.
Town staff had tried to convince the Council to move forward without LEED Certification, since it would cost an additional $84,115. Council member Kirk Stapp pointed out, however, that $84,115 tacked onto a building that is going to cost $15.8 million, is really a drop in the bucket. Additionally, the building could qualify for the Track A program in Southern California Edison's Savings by Design Rebate program, which would mean that once completed, the building could receive a rebate as high as $50,000, bringing the total cost of LEED certification to just a little over $34,000.
While the LEED process could add four to six months to the building schedule, it has many benefits, the most important of which is that the Town would be “walking the walk.” In the recently updated General Plan, a whole section was dedicated to the Town's desire to be an energy-efficient, green town. If the Town refused to build green in their own developments it would seem asinine for them to expect other developers to go green, a concept that was well understood by all of the Council except John Eastman who didn't think LEED certification was necessary.
A Town-developed green building will also serve as a great marketing tool for Mammoth Lakes, according to Community Relations Manager Stuart Brown.
“It would be picked up by many publications, possibly nationwide,” Brown told the Council.
So, in an effort to provide proof of their commitment to a green community, Council voted 3-1—with Neil McCarroll absent and Eastman voting no—to move forward with LEED certification of the new police facility.
Shortly after this decision, a new monkey wrench was thrown into the mix. Not specifically with the police facility, but with the McFlex land parcel itself. The land exchange between the Forest Service, the Town of Mammoth Lakes, Mono County and the State Administrative Office of the Courts closed escrow on Nov. 9, and the 12 acres are scheduled to eventually house much needed public facilities in addition to the police facility.
The day following the Council meeting, Jerry and Perry Preston of Doheny Enterprises, who own the Sierra Center Mall and the Mammoth Mall, presented their plans to upgrade the Sierra Center Mall. The upgrade has the Prestons thinking about the direction they want to take the mall in the future, and one of their ideas is to turn it into primarily a government building, with Town offices possibly on the second floor and County offices remaining on the third floor. The first floor would remain retail.
Their idea, which is still in a very malleable phase, would give the Town and the County a whole new, more affordable option for their public facilities.
According to Jerry Preston, when Doheny bought the mall one and a half years ago, they didn't yet have this idea in mind, but they have realized that the Sierra Center lacks a strong identity and therefore plan to go forward with this idea, or with a stronger retail identity if the Town and County are not interested in the location.
Either way, Doheny Enterprises plan to revitalize the exterior of the mall on their own dime.
“I have to improve this building no matter what,” Jerry Preston said. “Unless we do, we will continue to run at a negative cash flow.”
The Prestons have already made many improvements to the mall that include new heating and air conditioning systems. New carpet is expected to be in before Christmas.
At this time, Town and County representatives have asked the Prestons to come up with a few options for leasing and buying the spaces in the mall, as they do see the value in considering the project, which would be quicker and more economical than building a whole new facility on the McFlex land. One of the controversial questions that this project does raise, however, is whether the community wants the courthouse to remain in such a central location in town. The topic has been a contentious one ever since it was suggested that the courthouse be put out at the South Gateway Parcel, which would have located it directly across the street from the schools.
The Prestons assured County and Town representatives that if it were decided to move the mall forward with a more government-focused identity, and if the courthouse stayed in the mall, extra security measures would be taken to make the courthouse safer.
Lovett appears locally
Mono County Assessor Jim Lovett appeared at last week's Town Council meeting to report on the reassessment of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, which was sold in October 2005, and has still not been required to pay tax on the transaction. The tax that would be collected from this transaction would be approximately $8.9 million, and the money would go to local agencies such as the Hospital District, the Fire District, the Town and other county agencies to use for public projects.
Lovett attempted to soothe Town and County fears that he was not working expeditiously enough on this project and that the tax dollars would be lost if he didn't hurry up.
“We have four years to collect the money, which means we have until 2010 before any money is lost,” Lovett told the Council.
He added that work has been done on the transaction, but since it involves approximately 40 parcels, it is an extensive process.
“The report has been received and forwarded to the contract appraiser who now has a workplan and timetable,” Lovett said. He is proposing that it will be finished by Aug. 1, 2008.
Lovett, who has been on the chopping block over the past six months for his job performance, was taken to task in front of the Council when Mono County Supervisor Hap Hazard reported that ever since Lovett had been sworn into office as an elected official, he had been slacking in his job duties.
Lovett has been criticized for the miniscule amount of time he spends in the office per week, an estimated two hours total, as well as his personal drinking habits, which at one time were said to be affecting his work.
As Hazard stated, “By law, the Assessor position has no time requirement for being at work. If you can do the job in two hours per month, that's fine, but he's not.”
On Sept. 18, a recall petition began to circulate in Mono County. So far, the group heading the recall has collected approximately 1,350 of the 1,630 signatures they need to get a recall on the June 2008 ballot. All of the signatures must be collected by Dec. 26 in order to be considered.
Council member Kirk Stapp stated he was disappointed in the dynamics of the situation.
“We need leadership in the office,” he said.
Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Sugimura supported Stapp and stated that as an elected official, Lovett has more of a responsibility to the job and the citizens of Mono County. Lovett, who claimed all of the accusations are just part of a personal vendetta against him, had already left the building by the time Council began their discussion on the situation.
The following day, during the Town and County Liaison meeting on Dec. 6, Mono County's Financial Director Brian Muir explained the serious consequences of Lovett's actions.
“If the wheels ever came off completely in [the Assessor's] office, we'd be in big trouble,” Muir said.
According to Muir, it is up to Lovett to deliver the tax rolls to him on a regular basis. Delivering the tax roll is the first step in calculating the property taxes that make the County run. The taxes cannot be done if the roll is not delivered.
By law, only the Assessor can deliver the tax roll to the Financial Director; no one else has the authority.
“There are a lot of constraints,” explained County Administrative Officer Dave Wilbrecht. “If something were to happen to Lovett and we tried to step in, he could report to the state that we were 'interfering' with the Assessor's office.”
So far, Lovett has been delivering the tax roll, if not always in a timely manner, but his erratic behavior has the Board of Supervisors and other County officials worried about the future, which is why they are supportive of the recall.
“The Board cannot remove Lovett from his position,” Supervisor Bill Reid explained.
Other Town Council tidbits
∑ A new group in town called Take Back Mammoth's Night made a presentation about the Town's lighting ordinance and their desire to help the Town make the code more enforceable in order to protect Mammoth's night skies. Right now, the code is written in such a way that the Town's Code Enforcement Officer would have to walk onto people's property to enforce it. Legally, the Officer is not allowed to walk onto private property without a reason, but they can't prove they have a reason until they get onto the property and prove the lighting is not to code. Council member Stapp said they would look into hiring a second Code Enforcement Officer at their mid-year budget review, which will also help with enforcement of the code.
∑ Staff provided an educational report on the Town's Graffiti Abatement Program, and GIS Coordinator Nate Greenberg gave an update on the Town's Addressing Ordinance and the Mono County E-911 Project.
∑ Council approved 4-0 a resolution approving an application for funding and the execution of a grant agreement from the Planning Technical Assistance Allocation of the State CDBG Program.
The next Town Council meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 19, at 6 p.m. in Suite Z.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 21 December 2007 )
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Copyright © 2009 The Mammoth Times All Rights Reserved
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