With Arcadia's Foulger Ford now following Arcadia Suzuki out of town, Arcadia stands to lose about $230,000 in sales tax revenue per year, just short of 1% of the city's $23.699 million budget.
Supervisor Schabarum joined with two other board members asking Assessor Alexander Pope to mail out property tax re-evaluation notices immediately so people will know before June 6 primary and they vote on Propositions 13 and 8.
The City of Arcadia is being sued by the People's Advocate, Inc., headed by Paul Gann, and the Arcadia Tax Reform Committee, headed by Jeff Dring. The lawsuit could set a state-wide precedent for post-Proposition 13 municipal financing.
Inflation and the energy shortage are causing the city management grave concern about meeting the budget. City Manager Lyman Cozad expects a $120,500 increase in sales tax from Fashion Park for the 1974-75 fiscal year. He also expects an $84,000 rise in property taxes.
Bruce Low, general manager of Arcadia Datsun, isn't particularly happy with the city. Reason stems from an about-face by the City Council last winter when it decided in favor of retail commercial developments that would bring sales tax revenue to the city.
May Co. has bowed out of the proposed expansion of the Santa Anita Fashion Park. As a result, the project's price tag should drop from $75 million to approximately $32 million.
The City Council will consider a proposed ordinance governing backyard sales on October 1, 1974. Regulations include: 1. A $1.00 permit would be required. 2. Sales would be limited to every 6 months. No sale could run longer than 2 consecutive days. 4. No signs could be placed on public property. 5. Sales must be between 8:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M. 6. No merchandise would be allowed in the front yard.
Howard Jarvis, the father of Proposition 13, spent an hour in Arcadia, knocking down the "straw man" arguments he said were being put up against the property tax initiative. Prop. 13 would reduce property taxes in California to 1 percent of what market value was in 1975-1976, plus whatever is necessary to pay off current bonded indebtedness. A 2 percent annual inflation rate is written into the constitutional amendment.
Dial-A-Ride fares in Arcadia have been lowered by unanimous vote of the City Council as a result of changes in the way the county allocates Proposition A funds. Current fares of $.85 for a regular ride and $.40 for seniors and disabled will be replaced by fares of $.75 and $.25 respectively.
The current crisis over malpractice rates is bringing about a withholding of professional services by many physicians here in Arcadia as well as state wide.
City Council unanimously agreed to hold a June election to attempt to bail the school district out of its financial troubles. Proposition A would increase the utility tax by 2%, bringing in $550,000. Proposition B would raise the tax an additional 1% bringing $250,000 more. The funds would be for maintenance of school property and facilities used by the city.
Roy Speirs and Steve Worsley are running as a team in the upcoming election. Their publicly stated purpose is to form a coalition with Haltom and Dring to bring about tax reforms. Their initial goal will be to further reduce the utility tax, eliminate the sewer tax, reduce the number of employees and control salaries.
Tove Borgnine is head of a business expanding into international mail order sales. Tova 9 products are based on a cactus extract from the Yucatan Peninsula. Mrs. Borgnine talks about her life as head of a business.
Arcadia could build a multi-purpose Senior Citizen Center for $1.5 million plus the cost of the property, according to a report submitted to the City Council by Warren Shaw, chairman of the Arcadia Senior Citizen's Commission. The report indicated that most of the money would come from state and federal sources, but that Arcadia would need to chip in at least $225,000 of matching funds. The center is necessary, Shaw said, due to a current lack of senior citizen facilities.
The Arcadia City Council approved a 6% hike in building fees, such as building permits, conditional use permits, and request for modifications. The increase, set for November 17, will be used to offset the 6% salary hike that city employees received in the 1989-90 budget.