The City Council has agreed to pay $83,770 of the total $241,957 cost of the new parking district, thus making each of the 62 property owners' assessments smaller.
Public parking, which is becoming increasingly scarce in the downtown area, was given close scrutiny at the May 18, 1976 City Council meeting. Most Council members seemed to favor a parking structure to alleviate the situation. Comparative costs were given.
Architectural drawings and the design for the new Arcadia City Hall have drawn criticism from the City Council. The new City Hall building is estimated to cost $11 million.
The City Council approved a $3.4 million new fire station project bid by Merco Construction Engineers in Camarillo. The building will cost 20% more than originally estimated.
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.
The City Council increased the bed tax, charged to customers staying in a hotel, from 8% to 10%. The increase will generate an estimated $140,000 a year, which would help to close the city's projected $2.2 million shortfall in the 1993-94 budget.
The Arcadia Board of Education approved an agreement with the city for the installation of an all-weather track at Arcadia High School. Total cost of the project is estimated to be in the neighborhood of $175,000.
The city council has decided to appropriate $35,000 toward the design of a light rail bridge over Santa Anita Avenue. This is to pay for early design work needed for an environmental impact report. The bridge project is expected to cost the city $10.7 million which may come from a bond. The Construction Authority would pay $18.4 million bringing total bridge cost to $29.1 million.
Arcadia Recreation Commission members recently decided they were in favor of a project at Bonita Park at Huntington Drive and Second Avenue but felt the $78,000 estimated cost was too high.
The Arcadia City Council plans to seek more than $1 million in damages against its original contractor for cost overruns in the City's Downtown 2000 revitalization project.
Arcadia City Council has put out a design contract for landscaping and streetscape design on Baldwin Avenue between Duarte Road and Naomi Avenue. The contract went to Willdan, not to exceed $64,410. Another project proposes widening of the street to four lanes, 75 feet from curb to curb, with landscaped median, curb parking and additional landscaping, along with street resurfacing, to cost $380,000.
The City Council has decided to spend an additional $87,050 to carry out the city's General Plan Update, bringing the cost of the project to just over $300,000.
City Council approved lending the city redevelopment agency $1.2 million Tuesday to cover additional cost overruns with Downtown 2000 and other projects.
Downtown 2000: is the CFRP making a difference? In 1993, Arcadia City Council and the Redevelopment agency implemented the Comprehensive Revitalization Strategy and Program, a project designed to bring a new economic vitality to the downtown district. One of the main components of the program is the Commercial Facade Rehabilitation Program (CFRP), which provides financial assistance to downtown merchants for store-front improvements. Garlan Roberson received $11,000 from the Arcadia Redevelopment Agency for improvements to his business, Sullivan's Paints. Since the facade improvements, Roberson says business has increased significantly.
The police station is scheduled to be demolished and a new one will be built behind the current facility. The project is estimated to cost $16 million. The new building will be 52,000 square feet and slated to open in the first part of 2003.
City Council has expressed interest in helping bail the school district out of some of its financial problems. There are a number of areas in which the city could provide assistance. One possibility being considered is a June election to determine public support for such action.
The city is fighting against paying an additional $400,000 in legal costs to Sully-Miller's attorney for the Downtown 2000 project in which the city cancelled the contract with Sully-Miller and settled for $1.25 million.