Recreation classes and programs for Arcadia residents will be increased for everyone except senior citizens under a new fee schedule adopted by the City Council.
A package of new and increased city service fees designed to eliminate a potential budget shortfall will take effect on September 1, 2008. The higher fees are expected to bring Arcadia nearly $512,000 in the new fiscal year, by increases in fire services, swim classes, business licenses, plan checks and library services.
Arcadia city officials have approved across-the-board fee increases that are expected to generate $500,000 in revenue this year. Parking tickets will go up from an average of $40 to $50. Other fees going up include building permits, towing fees, business license fees, water, street, and engineering services.
Arcadia City Council has voted to impose fees on developers to pay for intersection-widening projects. A chart shows the traffic count at developments, at intersections, and the fee structure.
The Arcadia City Council is considering changes to fees charged by the city through the Development Services Department. One change might be a $25 fee for new business license applications. The fees may increase for design review of new commercial projects and appeals from an architectural review board to the Planning Commission. The General plan amendment fee may drop and tentative tract maps for condos may drop. The city plans to increase fines for code violations.
Massage therapists will have to pay a $265 fee to be licensed in Arcadia under a new city ordinance. A background check will be done on applicants and they will be fingerprinted.
Home sales rise sharply in February with a 69.3% increase in sales in Los Angeles County over the same period a year ago. People are buying up foreclosed homes as prices drop in the San Gabriel Valley. Arcadia home prices came down 6.6%, whereas Azusa's home prices fell 45.3%. The median price of a single family home in the county was $298,000 in February, compared with $465,000 last year. Arcadia's median home price was the highest in the San Gabriel Valley, at $635,000. A chart of February median home prices is shown.
The City Council considers adopting a floor area ratio (FAR) guideline for single family homes. The FAR sets the total buildable size of a home at a percntage figure of the lot size.
Ed Huang, an architect who works as a senior planner for the city of Los Angeles, gives a tour of his "green" home in Arcadia. His house is a model of energy efficiency, using solar panels and other environmentally and ecologically friendly design elements. Huang had been Arcadia's planning commissioner from 1992-2002.
Median home prices in California surged to a record $305,940 in March, up 19 percent from last year. In Arcadia, prices averaged $355,000, up 9.2 percent.
Public Services Director Pat Malloy met with the Highland Homeowners Association to update the residents on the work that has been done after the fire that denuded the hillsides above their homes.
City Council quietly dropped eminent domain action against Rod's Grill. The city is working with the Church in Arcadia and Elks Lodge to buy their properties so that Rusnak Mercedes Benz might expand its business.