Belmont Plaza Pool Rebuild Would Consume $1 Mil More From Tidelands AND $500k From Sales Tax Hike (For FY18) AND $500k From Any FY16 Surplus Listed In Mayor/Mgr Proposed FY17 Budget

LBReport.com

News

LBREPORT.com is reader and advertiser supported. Support independent news in LB similar to the way people support NPR and PBS stations. We're not non-profit so it's not tax deductible but $49.95 (less than an annual dollar a week) helps keep us online.

(Aug. 23, 2016) -- If a City Council majority votes in the coming weeks to approve the Mayor/Manager FY17 budget as proposed, the SE LB $100+ million Belmont Pool rebuild would consume $1 million more from LB's Tidelands fund (that could otherwise fund other projects along LB's beaches and coastline) plus $500,000 from the "Measure A" sales tax increase (that will come in FY18) plus $500,000 from any available FY16 surplus.

The City Manager's proposed FY17 budget executive summary states in pertinent part:

[Scroll down for further.]

The Belmont Beach and Aquatics Center (BBAC) will be an important regional asset that will enhance public recreation and will also have the potential to generate economic impact for the City through the hosting of competitive events. This economic impact will result in increased tax revenue such as hotel transient occupancy taxes to the City once it is built. The BBAC is allocated an additional $1 million in Tidelands funds for FY 17 and $500,000 in Measure A funds for FY 18. In addition, I am proposing to use $500,000 of the first additional General Fund year-end surplus from FY 16 (beyond that budgeted in FY 17) to go to the BBAC as a contingent appropriation for FY 17.

In February 2016, the City Council put the Measure A sales tax hike to 10% on the June 2016 ballot with the following title and text in pertinent part [all caps in original]

"CITY OF LONG BEACH PUBLIC SAFETY, INFRASTRUCTURE REPAIR AND NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES MEASURE. To maintain 911 emergency response services; increase police, firefighter/paramedic staffing; repair potholes/streets; improve water supplies; and maintain general services..."

In May 2016, city management released an "Infrastructure Investment Plan: List of Projects," a three year plan which included a line item listing among "park" projects the following: "500,000, Funding towards developing and completing the financing of the Belmont Pool."

Nearly two years ago on October 21, 2014, city management acknowledged in an agendizing memo (accompanying its request for Council approval to seek entitlements for the pool project, passed 9-0) that it had "identified $99 million in Tidelands resources available to fund the design and construction of the facility, provided that assumptions on the price of oil remain constant" but "the project [will cost at least] $103.1 million [and] an additional $4.7 million must be identified."

On Aug. 26, we clarified our headline consistent with our original text, to indicate that management plans to allocate the $500k in Measure A money for the Belmont Pool rebuild in FY18.