The Mayor’s August report

In the middle of August the City of Salida received the sales tax figures for June. June was down 1.8% from the original budget. That leaves sales tax eligible sales down 3.8% for the year. This revenue news is positive in light of the double digit sales tax drops in other Colorado towns. Of course, the concern is the unpredictability of what the rest of the year will bring.

Local merchants consistently report that locals remain the foundation of their business. While the idea of buying locally is an easy idea to understand, it cannot be emphasized enough how important it is in maintaining the economic health of our area. Buying locally not only offers an economic foundation to our city’s economy it creates a positive energy and optimism within our community.

I have consistently thanked those who come to the City Council with their concerns and have then asked them to return with solutions. With the economic downturn the final question that has to be answered before the City can take on new projects is “how do we pay for it?”. We all would be better served if we could get rid of perceived divisions between groups and regions in our area. It is obvious to me we all rise or sink based upon the health of the entire area not just a couple of blocks or a specific type of business. I believe that now is the time to ask what we can do for our community and have us all work together to find solutions to sustaining our home town.

The court case brought by the City of Salida against Poncha Springs regarding the Waste Water Billing dispute is ongoing. The presiding Judge ordered a non-binding mediation and the first day of that mediation has taken place. Poncha Springs Trustees have indicated they would like a second day of mediation. At the next Council meeting the Salida City Council will decide if they have reason to believe a second day of mediation might lead to an agreement.

The upshot of the billing dispute is Poncha Springs remains an obstacle in Salida’s ability to initiate remediation of the Hot Springs water line. Other options are being aggressively explored that would remove Poncha Spring’s ability to slow the process of returning hot water to the pool. The City Council hopes to have a report by our next meeting regarding the feasibility and costs of the alternatives.

The paving company that did the chip seal project has been officially notified that the roads that did not fulfill the criteria of the contract need to be redone by September 15th. We are getting conflicting information regarding the advisability of fog coating at this late date. The fog coat might have to wait until next Spring. We are aware that some of the newly painted crosswalks might get covered up in the last phase of the chip seal project. The choice was made to continue the crosswalk project for student safety. We will redo the crosswalks that get removed.

Last week Governor Ritter notified Salida that we will receive a $1,350,000 grant to help upgrade the waste water treatment plant. City staff that were instrumental in the grant application were Finance Director Jan Schmidt and Waste Waster Treatment Manager Randy Sack. Donna Rhoades also co wrote the grant with help the the city engineer SGM. This is the beginning of gathering funds to bring our 1950 era plant into compliance with current and anticipated standards.

The City has also recently received a Historic Preservation Grant to defray the costs of renovating some of the oldest details during the remodel of the Community Service Center. This grant was submitted by the Community Development Department staff. Thank you Dara MacDonald, Mike Yerman and Kristi Jefferson.