It is hard not to be biased in favor of action to get the Colony Square project moving. We are all anxious to cover over the excavation scar that the project has put on the city’s face at its busiest and most prominent intersection. It would also be difficult to find anyone in Atascadero who does not want to get the movie theater up and running in the downtown area. Having a multi-screen cinema back in operation would provide a major psychological lift for the people of Atascadero; during my recent campaigning activities, one of the most frequent questions I heard was directed to the subject of when Atascadero will have a movie theater again. A multiplex will also bring immediate economic benefits to the city by attracting people into the downtown area who will become potential customers for shopping, snacking and dining establishments there. Given these realities, I am, like most Atascaderans, favorably predisposed toward any initiative aimed at getting the movie theater promised by Colony Square built as soon as possible.

Still, we cannot let our enthusiasm about this endeavor blind us to financial reality and the need to make sure that our interests are protected. However anxious the city council and staff may be to see phase one of Colony Square move ahead, they should not lose sight of their responsibilities as fiduciaries for the citizens of Atascadero. Just as the federal government should not be unconditionally handing out money to failing private enterprises in its bailout activities, the city should not be unconditionally committing its funds, or taking any more risk than absolutely necessary, to aid this undercapitalized private sector project. Atascadero cannot afford to lose 1.5 million dollars, especially in this time of financial hardship, when the city is suffering from severely declining tax revenues and is living off of its reserves. The point is that, even though we all want a movie theater back in town as soon as possible, we must remain mindful that this is a business transaction involving a request by private developers for a large amount of scarce taxpayer money. City officials should pursue the transaction in a prudent, businesslike manner, solely for the benefit of the people of Atascadero.

Let me now address the proposed terms of the transaction from the perspective of one who has been involved in dozens of secured bank financings, as both an attorney and a principal. With regard to the transaction terms, assistant city manager Jim Lewis was careful to say at the December 9 council meeting that the deal points remain to be worked out. Still, he offered us considerable detail about how he expects the transaction to proceed. The way that he explained it, the city’s 1.5 million dollars will not be drawn down by the bank lenders unless and until there is: 1) a default by the developers in repaying their bank loan, and 2) a deficiency in satisfying the loan from the proceeds of a post-default sale of the project.

In assessing the city’s risk in this deal, while it is not unrealistic to foresee that the first condition will materialize, and that the inadequately capitalized developers of the Colony Square project will default in repaying the bank loan, the second condition appears less likely to occur. If the current appraised value of over 13 million dollars is to be believed, a post-default sale of the project should be expected to yield enough for the banks to cover the 9 million dollar amount of the loan without any need to draw against the cash collateral being put up by the city. Of course, appraisals are not always entirely reliable, even in the best of times; in this period of declining commercial property values, this appraisal should be carefully scrutinized to make sure that it is impartial and is based on realistic market analysis.

If the project appraisal is trustworthy, and if the default procedure is as Mr. Lewis expects, then the risk of the city having its 1.5 million dollars taken by the banks should not be unacceptably large. Nevertheless, provision for that contingency has to be made in the contract documents, as it has to be spelled out what exactly will happen if the city’s money is applied to satisfy the developers’ indebtedness to the banks. On that point, if there is a default and the city’s cash is taken, it would be advisable for the city to have the option of either: a) accepting a carried interest in the project, on terms to be spelled out in the documents but which include the right to force a sale of the project to replacement developers if the banks cannot or will not require such a sale; or b) obtaining indemnification from the development company, Mr. Harrison and/or Mr. Hilft, for any and all amounts taken from the city’s cash collateral in reduction of the developers’ indebtedness. With that kind of provision having been made, the city’s exposure to the risk of losing its money and having this project fail will at least be minimized, if not eliminated.

Let me add that the default procedure described by Mr. Lewis in his presentation at the city council meeting is unlike any that I have encountered in many years of involvement in secured bank financings. Invariably in my experience, when there is a default on a bank loan secured by both cash and real property, the banks draw down the cash collateral first, before they resort to the cumbersome, expensive and often unpredictable process of foreclosing on and selling the real property. So if this deal is structured in the way Mr. Lewis said it will be, it will mark a departure from typical bank lending practice. Perhaps the banks are willing to make such a departure in this case due to the fact that they are providing the loan under the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, or maybe because a municipal corporation is the party posting the cash collateral. In any event, let us hope that this is the way the transaction will actually be arranged, and that the city’s cash will not be touched unless and until a bank-forced sale of the project results in a deficiency in satisfying the loan. If not, then the city’s pledged cash collateral will be subject to seizure promptly after a default by the borrowers in repaying the loan. In that situation, it will be even more important for the city to have reserved as many rights as possible in the event of a default, to protect against the risk of loss of the taxpayers’ 1.5 million dollars and collapse of this project.

With the proper protections in place, this transaction will be a benefit to the entire community. I encourage our fiduciaries to go forward with it in a cautious, businesslike way that minimizes exposure on the part of the city.

As I said at the city council meeting on December 9, the impending arrival of the new administration in Washington brings with it additional opportunities for the city to get federal support in rebuilding the Rotunda. According to news reports, the infrastructure program planned by the Obama administration will make funding available for the retrofitting of public buildings, particularly for the purpose of equipping them with more efficient heating and cooling systems. Through this program Atascadero ought to be able to find money to fund the work needed on the Rotunda’s HVAC system, for which FEMA has denied about 4.3 million dollars sought by the city. The rest of the infrastructure program should be studied as well, to find out whether the program offers additional prospects to obtain federal money to use in reconstructing Atascadero’s Rotunda building.

Similar funding opportunities might also be found in the Obama administration’s proposed economic stimulus program. Since the program contemplates supporting public works projects which are likely to boost economic activity and promote growth, the Rotunda project would seem to be a strong candidate for inclusion. Rebuilding the Rotunda, especially as some kind of attraction, will draw pedestrian traffic into downtown Atascadero and give a big boost to the effort to redevelop Atascadero’s central business district. Based on this, a cogent argument can be made that reconstructing Atascadero’s historic Rotunda building is a classic example of a public works project that deserves federal support as part of the economic stimulus program. On that topic, during the county board of supervisors meeting on December 9, it was mentioned that Senator Barbara Boxer had asked the supervisors for a list of projects in San Luis Obispo county that would be good candidates for inclusion in the stimulus program. In responding, the county should put reconstruction of the Rotunda building at the very top of its list. Not only will the project provide needed stimulus to economic activity in Atascadero, but it will also preserve one of the county’s most distinguished historic structures.

After I made the preceding points at the December 9 city council meeting, the city manager responded with assurances that the staff is on top of these matters and is in the process of preparing to pursue funding for the Rotunda project from the federal infrastructure and stimulus programs. In that regard, we need to strike while the iron is hot. Upon the arrival of a Democratic administration in the White House, the California congressional delegation will become more influential than it has been in years. Before they get too long a list of other requests, both of California’s Democratic U.S. senators, and possibly the Speaker of the House, should be made aware of our very worthy public building project in Atascadero and asked to lend their support to its inclusion in the infrastructure and stimulus programs. Assistance should also be sought from Representatives McCarthy and Capps. The point is to pursue these promising federal funding possibilities assiduously, and not leave all of our eggs in the FEMA basket, in the quest for financing to restore the Rotunda.

Returning to the subject of the FEMA appeal, l cannot fairly assess the merits of a second level appeal because I am not privy to all of the details about the factual and legal bases for the claim. In any event, the city manager reiterated the other night that it is his intention to take the appeal to the second and last level within FEMA. He said that the unsuccessful outcome at the first level was not that surprising due to the fact that the individuals who decided the appeal were also involved in the decision being appealed from. At the next level, however, the appeal is supposed to be adjudicated in Washington by a different group of FEMA officials. Based on this, the city manager believes that there is hope for a different outcome at the next level.

Even within FEMA, though, we should not rely entirely on the appeal. As I suggested at the council meeting on Tuesday night, the city should augment the ground war which the appeal process represents with an air war that involves trying to win over FEMA officials at higher levels. With Janet Napolitano becoming the new Secretary of Homeland Security, presumably a new Administrator of FEMA, and possibly other new appointees, will be coming into FEMA. Atascadero can make a strong case to the higher officials that the earthquake which struck our area in December 2003 inflicted major damage to our community by the destruction it caused to our signature building in the heart of the city, and that communities in our position must depend on FEMA to help us recover from such natural disasters. In the current environment, that argument should derive additional resonance from the reality that by helping Atascadero rebuild the Rotunda, FEMA will be doing something that promotes the administration’s objective of stimulating economic activity.

So the setback represented by the decision on the initial appeal to FEMA is far from a fatal blow to the efforts to fund the reconstruction of the Rotunda. At this point, however, we need to adopt a two-track strategy. On track one, relating to FEMA, we should take what happened on the first level appeal and learn from it in refining and improving the arguments to be presented at the second level. At the same time, we should initiate efforts to present our persuasive case for support to higher-ups within FEMA. On track two, outside of FEMA, we need to seek federal funding for the project from the incoming administration’s infrastructure and stimulus programs. The bottom line is that Atascadero has a compelling rationale for requesting federal support for the reconstruction of the historic Rotunda building. We just need to pursue the matter vigorously at all levels and by all available means.

I was out of town in May when the first Atascadero Art Tour was held. In September, I was glad to be available to participate in the second such event. My experience on that Friday evening came as a delightful surprise. There was street life and energy in the downtown area. Numerous establishments had remained open and were displaying various works of art by local artists. Groups of people were wandering from place to place on foot, checking out the art, enjoying wine and other refreshments, as well as each other’s company. Afterward a group of us had dinner at the restaurant in the Carlton, which was packed and buzzing with activity. The whole experience provided a glimpse of what is possible if more attractions are brought to Atascadero’s downtown to draw activity into the area.

The December 5 version of the Art Tour will take place alongside Main Street’s wine and wassail gathering and the city’s tree lighting ceremony. Together the three events should produce a level of activity and festiveness that promise to add up to a special evening for Atascadero’s downtown area and cultural community.

The Art Tour is the kind of event that deserves encouragement, support and participation. It is high-minded, youthful and forward-looking in its orientation. It also represents an example of Atascadero embracing the twenty-first century. Heather Young Curry’s resourcefulness in creating and organizing the Art Tour exemplifies the kind of initiative that Atascadero needs. Let’s reward her effort by turning out and participating. If my last experience is any indication, it will be a source of civic pride for all, as well as a real good time.

Many local communities have faced economic challenges similar to ours in the past and have taken the necessary steps to achieve success. Many of you probably remember how Paso Robles transformed its image from dusty cow town to charming wine-country village and thriving business center. I can think of dozens of other cities, and many neighborhoods within cities, which also achieved dramatic turnarounds. While each of those successes was unique, what they all had in common was a desire to turn things around and a belief that it could happen-they had a can-do mindset.

An interesting can-do success story is the city of Philadelphia. By the mid-1970s it was declining, overshadowed by the neighboring power centers of New York, 90 miles to the north, and Washington, D.C., 120 miles to the south. Philadelphia’s image fell so low that it became best known for being the butt of a lifelong series of cruel jokes by W.C. Fields, who famously said that his tombstone should bear the inscription “I’d rather be in Philadelphia.” Despite that image, Philadelphia always had fundamental advantages as a historic, graceful, European-paced, large city, with a diverse economic base. In addition, its location, close to America’s two greatest power centers was an important asset rather than a liability, especially for those institutions and individuals wanting easy access to those centers without having to be based in the midst of their hectic atmospheres.

When more effective, can-do government took over, Philadelphia’s rock-solid advantages reclaimed the recognition that they deserved. By the late 1980s, its negative image was gone and Philadelphia was seen to be one of America’s most livable, diverse, interesting and friendly big cities. Its business community also recovered, successfully negotiating the transition from a manufacturing-based economy to a service-based economy. Philly’s success wasn’t an accident. There was a turnaround built on a realistic recognition of the problems it was facing and a can-do attitude about overcoming those problems and bringing the city’s fundamental qualities back to the fore.

Atascadero has nowhere near the problems that Philadelphia once had. With our advantages and some can-do optimism about our potential and prospects, we will find it much easier than Philadelphia did to turn things around in the years ahead. In that regard, we will do well to remember that we have significant advantages which, if leveraged for the future and not just for the present, can help us achieve long term:
o We have residential areas that are world-class in terms of their topography, vistas, lot-sizes and high-quality, custom-home development;
o We have a climate that is unsurpassed, with mild temperatures, sunshine almost 300 days a year and just the right amount of marine influence;
o We have ready access to one of the world’s great coastal areas, fantastic nature preserves and vistas in all directions, two interesting neighboring cities, some of the best wine country anywhere, and clean air and minimal traffic;
o We are less than four hours away from two of America’s largest urban areas, providing easy access in both directions, yet leaving us remote enough to preserve a superior quality of life;
o Lastly, we have a distinctive historical legacy, as a planned city founded on a Utopian ideal in cattle and farm country, built alongside a picturesque creek, around a beautiful town square with architectural gems in our midst.

In the almost four years since my wife and I relocated here, a lot of people have reacted with curiosity that we would move from Manhattan to Atascadero. It never seemed at all strange to us. But we soon became practiced in explaining that, while we enjoyed our career-centered, fast-paced, city lives, we also spent a lot of time in beautiful rural communities in upstate New York and New England that have much in common with Atascadero. As time went on, we realized that we wanted to make a transition, while we still could, to a lifestyle that would give greater emphasis to savoring life’s finer things in the decades ahead.

When we decided to relocate, we felt free to go anywhere we wanted. Because most of our current business can be conducted remotely, by phone and internet, we had the choice to live anywhere in the United States. We both felt that the Central Coast of California offered more of what we wanted than anyplace else. On our initial visit to Atascadero, upon seeing the home that we eventually bought, our minds were made up immediately. Atascadero’s residential areas, with their large lots, oak- studded hills and stunning views, were some of the most beautiful we had ever seen. We felt privileged to be able to move to such a place, and so we joined the many others before us who were drawn to Atascadero by its unique beauty and lifestyle.

With the abundant natural assets and the amazing quality of life we all agree exists in Atascadero, we have great advantages favoring us in tackling our economic challenges. With those advantages, combined with a can-do attitude, we will get over the hurdles that we have to clear. I grew up in a family of modest means and learned that a can-do attitude and hard work are cornerstones to achievement. So when I have heard, all too often, in too many city meetings, the words “we can’t,” it has caused me to cringe. If we believe we can’t, we can be sure of one thing: we won’t, because we will have quit before we started. That has been happening in Atascadero lately to an extent that is unacceptable. It is time to throw off that kind of thinking and adopt the kind of can-do philosophy that recognizes what we can achieve if we put our minds to it and stop worrying about falling short. Personally, I can tell you that the achievements that I have recorded in my life-in scholarship, in building a successful law practice in the most competitive legal market in the world, in delivering results for my clients in complex transactions and hard cases-were all built on the aspiration to succeed at the highest level, combined with the confidence that by determined effort I could accomplish my goals. Similarly, our community can achieve its full potential by adopting high expectations, along with the can-do mindset that our efforts will enable us to realize those expectations.

All in all, we have the ingredients for another success story still to be written. Let us take stock of our advantages and not shortchange ourselves in estimating what we are capable of. Whatever the current image of Atascadero might be, the underlying realities are extremely positive. Let’s go forward with those positive realities uppermost in our minds. Our city’s turnaround in its government and commercial sectors will start in earnest when, as a community, we replace the negativity of today with the kind of optimistic, can-do attitude that our circumstances warrant. There is a lot to be done, but it will go a lot easier when we approach it with the confidence that comes from recognizing that Atascadero is capable and deserving of all the best that the world has to offer.

Most of you are presumably familiar with my proposal to make the old City Hall into a major museum. (See the May 5, 2008 posting on this blog entitled “A Major Museum in the Old City Hall Building.”) That idea aims to take advantage of the architectural refinement of the City Hall by making it into an attraction around which we can focus the revitalization of downtown Atascadero. In order to create a major museum in the old City Hall, we will eventually need to recruit a world class permanent collection of art or artifacts to put on display there. I use the word eventually, however, because we would not necessarily require a permanent collection from the day the museum opens. For a few years, while we are assembling a permanent collection, the museum could feature works lent by private collectors or institutions such as Hearst Castle and other museums with items that space limitations prevent them from displaying on their own premises. The option to display loaned items gives us some assurance that we will have adequate time to put together a permanent collection that is right for our unique venue.

With regard to the kind of collection that would be right in the old City Hall, the idea occurred to me of creating a Utopian Collection. This theme would be ideally suited to Atascadero, as a community that was founded as a utopian community, and to the old City Hall, as a structure that was built to be the centerpiece of that utopian community. In addition to some selected artifacts from the original Atascadero Colony, the collection could include significant works of art depicting utopian ideas or scenes, historically important artifacts from utopian communities and societies around the world, rare books and original writings on utopian themes, and possibly even films focusing on utopian themes. With the wealth of diverse materials that exists on utopian-related subjects, putting together a world-class Utopian Collection to house in the old City Hall would be a fascinating and rewarding project.

Based on the preliminary research that I have done, there does not appear to exist anywhere else the kind of Utopian Collection of which I am speaking. If we were to assemble such a collection, therefore, we would have the advantage of being unique. Though there is not already an existing collection of utopian art or artifacts, the importance of the concept of utopia has received considerable recognition, especially in scholarly circles. For example, there is a Society for Utopian Studies, a Utopian Studies Society, a Utopian Studies Journal, a Utopian Visions website and the Arthur O. Lewis Utopia Collection of more than 4,000 rare books at Penn State University. The interest in the topic is understandable, as the idea of a perfect world or society has exerted a powerful influence over man since the beginnings of civilization, in both the west and the east. Utopian visions have inspired governments, religions, movements, societies and cults throughout history, and they continue to do so. Because of this, a major collection of artworks and artifacts on utopian themes could be expected to arouse considerable interest and draw many visitors to our showcase building in Atascadero. A big-time Utopian Collection could also excite the interest of some university professors in the Central Coast, who might be influenced by the availability of the museum’s resources to develop curriculums and scholarly centers devoted to utopian themes, adding further to the importance of the collection. In addition, schools throughout the area could use the museum and its resources to augment courses on social studies, history, literature, art, philosophy, sociology, political science and anthropology. And the commercial possibilities would be plentiful as well: Plaza Utopia, Utopian Village and Utopia Corners are just some of the positive images that developers might want to use in projects to be built in the surrounding area.

Those of us who recognize that the old City Hall can and should be rebuilt as a major museum need to give some thought to making it the site of the Utopian Collection. Showcasing a unique collection of utopian-themed artworks and artifacts in our architectural masterpiece would be a fitting way to bring life back not only to the old City Hall, but to Atascadero’s comatose downtown. As the site of such a Utopian Collection, we could be certain that Atascadero’s most important building has been put to its highest and best purpose.

Since entering the Council race, I have received a lot of encouragement and support. Quite a few residents of Atascadero, and elsewhere in the area, seem excited by the fact that someone like me has stepped up to try to turn things around in Atascadero. There is a widespread perception that Atascadero’s business district is an embarrassing failure, and that new blood is needed to give the city a chance to reorganize. They see the moribund mess that is downtown, after years of hearing talk about revitalization in that area, and realize that individuals with ambition and fresh ideas have to be brought in to make things happen. There also seems to be an awareness that my professional profile and background will be of great help on the City Council. So I have been heartened by the reaction to my candidacy up to this point.

Nonetheless, running for office is an activity that I do not find particularly enjoyable. Asking for votes and other forms of support does not come easy to me and, surprising as it may seem to some, bragging is something I am very uncomfortable doing. In any event, it is worth it for the purpose of doing the right thing. Clearly, this is an undertaking which will bring me personal growth along with, hopefully, the achievements that are the ultimate goal. Stay tuned.

After I opened the UpGrade Atascadero website in February of this year, numerous individuals suggested that I run for City Council. Among them were three of the five sitting members of the Council, who offered the suggestion with what I sensed was an underlying message that I should “put up or shut up.” I have considered that reaction to my outspokenness, and taken it to heart. Having concluded that I cannot “shut up,” I have decided that I had better “put up.” I am therefore entering the race for the three Council seats that are up for election in November.

Running for City Council is the next logical step in the movement I launched when I set up the UpGrade Atascadero website. Upgrading the city’s management is a vital step in the effort to UpGrade Atascadero. Few enterprises succeed without skilled, capable and focused management, and that is especially true when there is a crisis such as that which is now facing Atascadero. It has become obvious that the incumbent Council members are not up to the task of managing this city of 28,000 people and reversing its declining fortunes, and that Atascadero needs individuals like me to step up and serve. My deep background in sophisticated business and legal matters will enable me to bring to the City Council the kind of skilled professionalism that is needed to meet the complex challenges that are now facing Atascadero.

By stepping up to run at this time, I am also hoping to encourage other talented and accomplished Atascadero residents, who have until now been uninvolved in local government, to step up with me to help our city complete its transition from the small town that it once was to the mid-size city that it now is. I contemplate a day in the future when we will look back on our success in reversing Atascadero’s current downward trend, and see that the turnaround started when we began to upgrade the city’s management by putting more qualified individuals on the City Council. I am hoping that this declaration of candidacy on my part will prove to be one of the major milestones in that progression.

I am also running at this time because I think that the current members of the Council are too preoccupied with partisan political interests. They are so focused on preserving or regaining power for their respective political factions that they are often putting factional political objectives ahead of Atascadero’s best interests. I am neither a member nor an opponent of either of the vying political factions, but like many other Atascaderans, I see how the factional power struggle is dragging Atascadero down. So I am stepping up as an independent candidate, offering proposals to advance the interests of all of the residents of Atascadero. I expect to find support from the many citizens of Atascadero who are uninterested in the partisan conflict, and who want dedicated professional representation of the interests of the entire Atascadero community. I also expect to draw support from a large number of thoughtful and fair-minded individuals on both sides of the partisan divide who will recognize the merits of my vision and accept my offer of leadership because it will benefit our whole community.

A goal of my candidacy is to raise the standards for City Council campaigning. With my extensive writings in the last few months on the UpGrade Atascadero website and on the Five Syllable City blog, and with the detailed candidate platform statement that is accessible on the home page of the UpGrade Atascadero website, Atascadero voters will find more information about a candidate and his proposals than they have ever been given before. In addition, with my record of educational achievements and career accomplishments in business and law, I hope that my candidacy will raise the bar for those who consider calling themselves qualified to take on the formidable challenge of managing the affairs of a mid-size city in modern-day California.

Beyond this, by voluntarily limiting financial contributions to my campaign to $500, I want to set a precedent for doing what is right when asking the public to entrust you with the power and responsibility of an important elected position. Only with such a cap on financial contributions can the public be sure that a successful candidate is coming into office without owing all kinds of favors to supporters who had the money to make large monetary contributions to his or her campaign. If a candidate is serious about doing what is right, instead of just doing whatever appears helpful to win an election, he or she will not wait for the law to impose a limit on gifts of money to his or her campaign. People or organizations who can afford to make large financial contributions should have no greater say in the electoral process than those who don’t have that kind of money.

At the age of 57, I hope to follow the achievements of my career in the private sector with achievements in the public sector that will benefit our community for years to come. My wife and I have come to love Atascadero in our 3½ years here, and we plan to spend the rest of our lives here. In stepping up as I am doing now by declaring my candidacy for City Council, I am seeking to start a process of accomplishment that will make the long-discussed, long-delayed revitalization of Atascadero a reality. I want to play a major part in bringing about tangible, meaningful improvement for our community.

Len Colamarino

As the quasi-carnival atmosphere begins to take shape in expectation of the next Wal-Mart shootout, one starts to wonder whether this running controversy, with its now almost ritualistic public displays of support and opposition, is partially a response to an unfulfilled need for community in Atascadero. As has often been noted in this blog and elsewhere, there is no community hub in Atascadero, no center where people regularly meet, or where they can go to see and be seen. There are also no events or occasions that draw participants from all segments of the Atascadero population, the way the Mid-State Fair and certain wine-related and other events do in Paso Robles. With such a void existing in Atascadero, perhaps the opportunity to gather around an issue, showing up at City Hall to be counted en masse on one side or the other, provides a measure of reaffirmation of membership in a community that is otherwise hard to find.

The problem, of course, is that depending on controversy to satisfy a craving for community has the effect of reinforcing the identity of the community as one which is divided and conflicting, both in people’s minds and in reality. Those who congregate for the Wal-Mart showdown events do so in distinct groups of “us” and “them.” From there it is all too easy to slip into the hateful name-calling vocabulary of talk radio, reducing real people who are neighbors to two-dimensional, cartoon-character abstractions labeled variously as socialist, anti-worker, elitist, trash, no-growth, good old boys, tree-huggers, pawns of developers and brokers, and so on.

As important as it is to find places and causes to bring people together in Atascadero, it is equally important to exorcise the demon of divisiveness that the Wal-Mart issue has become. In that regard, if there is any hope of ever covering over the cleavage exposed by Wal-Mart, it will only be realized by letting the voters express their will on the issue. Only through a cathartic popular vote will the people have their say and will it be learned with certainty what the majority thinks about a Wal-Mart supercenter. Once that is done, maybe Atascadero will achieve the kind of closure needed to enable the community to heal and move on to address more cohesively the many other challenges that are pressing.

At its June 24 meeting, the City Council majority should exercise restraint and refrain from deciding on its own to adopt the Atascadero Shield Initiative. Instead, the Council should place the matter on the ballot for November and afford the voters a chance to make the conclusive decision on this lightening rod question. By proceeding in that way, the Council can help bring our community closer to reaching closure on a conflict that has been dividing it for too long.

Who knows? Maybe a fortuitous series of events such as those hoped for by Colony Square’s current developers could unfold. Nonetheless, it would be imprudent for the City of Atascadero to advance funds on the basis of such a speculative plan. The hard truth is that it will probably be necessary to restructure the ownership of the Colony Square project for the project to succeed. The current developers will almost surely need either to recruit another partner prepared to commit substantial capital to the project, or sell the project altogether. The Redevelopment Agency enhanced the prospects for that happening sooner rather than later by declining to provide the stop-gap, take-a-chance financing that the current developers were requesting to keep the project going within the present ownership structure.

Rather than allocate money to propping up the Colony Square project, the City of Atascadero should apply any available discretionary funds to rebuild the historic City Hall for a productive use. That extraordinary building is the most valuable physical asset which Atascadero has, and occupies a position of pivotal strategic importance in the downtown area. While there were repeated suggestions during the May 27 meeting that Colony Square is a “catalyst project” for Atascadero’s downtown revitalization, the fact is that rebuilding the City Hall is the real “catalyst project” for the downtown, as it is the project that will determine whether, and when, downtown redevelopment goes forward in earnest. In fact, rebuilding the old City Hall may well make or break the Colony Square project itself.

With the old City Hall standing in a ruined state, and with doubt remaining about its future prospects, an air of uncertainty pervades Atascadero’s downtown. It is a basic fact of business life that uncertainty is a condition that is inhospitable to business. And that fact is only underscored when the uncertainty relates to whether, when and how the largest, best-positioned, most prominent and impressive building in a community is going to be rebuilt and used. Until that uncertainty is resolved, reasonable, risk-averse businesspersons will continue to take a pass on development projects in the downtown area. That is why, from a business standpoint, it is of pressing importance for the City of Atascadero to put a definite, viable, plan on the books for rebuilding the old City Hall and applying it to a productive use.

It must be acknowledged that deciding on the best course to follow in rebuilding the City Hall is not a simple matter. As has been noted frequently in the four and a half years since the earthquake damaged the building, there are formidable engineering challenges in retrofitting the building which have to be overcome. In addition, how the old City Hall is to be used after it is retrofitted may affect the City’s right to keep amounts that it has received from FEMA to reimburse it for tenant improvements and rent payments the City has made while leasing the new City Hall from the Redevelopment Agency. So a careful analysis is needed to evaluate the various courses of action open and the costs and benefits, direct and indirect, associated with each option for rebuilding and using the structure. Based on that kind of analysis, a strategy should be committed to which will best serve the City’s interests, taking into account not only dollars and cents spent and saved immediately but also all of the short and long term effects that rebuilding the City Hall for a particular use can be expected to have on the revitalization of Atascadero’s downtown.

As things are, the crucial project of rebuilding of the old City Hall is a matter that seems just to be drifting along. It is more or less accepted within the City Council and staff that the retrofit is going forward and that the building will be used as a City Hall in its next incarnation, in order to avoid any risk of losing some or all of the reimbursements that FEMA has been providing. That the City’s employees prefer not to leave their current offices and go back to the old building, and that the highest and best use of the historic City Hall may not be as an office building for city employees but as an attraction such as a museum, are realities that are being ignored in letting the project drift along. Those realities are making their presence felt, however, by giving rise to the perceptible lack of enthusiasm and urgency on the part of the city in retrofitting the building. It is no accident that, almost four and a half years after the earthquake, no commitment has been made to a definite plan for rebuilding Atascadero’s centerpiece structure or a timeline for doing so.

Sound management of the City’s affairs calls for adopting a methodical, proactive approach to deciding what to do with the old City Hall. A strategy for dealing with this invaluable public asset needs to be developed after careful consideration of all of the various alternatives, and comparison of the costs and benefits of each option, including implications for FEMA funding, city employee morale and downtown redevelopment. For the purpose of formulating that strategy, it would be advisable to impanel a committee, composed not only of city officials but also selected members of the public, to study the matter and make recommendations to the City Council and the City Manager.

In any event, the fate of the historic City Hall should not be determined by what happens to occur while the matter drifts along in the current of day-to-day affairs. Following that approach leaves it essentially to chance that a correct decision will be made on how to deal with the building. It could also make it very difficult to explain how decisions were made that might later be regarded as misjudgments in any post-mortems and recrimination sessions that would take place if there is dissatisfaction in the future about what was done with the building. In addition, letting the matter just drift along without the City government being committed to a positive plan for the use of this pivotal property perpetuates the uncertainty that is stifling business development in Atascadero’s downtown area.

Announcing a definite, considered plan for restoring the old City Hall to productive use is an essential step that needs to be taken to give credibility to plans for the revitalization of the downtown area. When that genuinely “catalyst project” is on the books, struggling projects like Colony Square will be given new life, and substantial developers will have a reason to consider more seriously the possibility of undertaking projects in Atascadero’s rebuilding downtown. As things stand, there is too much uncertainty about the fate of this key property for rightfully cautious lenders and developers to commit themselves to projects in the area.

The rationales given by Councilmember Beraud and Mayor Brennler for opposing the motion had the ring more of pretext than of truth. Councilmember Beraud put herself on record as favoring age discrimination in selecting a mayor, and used that dubious position to support an even more dubious argument of false economy. She said that whoever gets the job of elected mayor should be young, and that since such a young person would have more need for compensation than an older person, it would be necessary to pay an elected mayor more than the $300 per month that other members of the City Council get paid. So she voted against the motion because, she said, in its current strained financial condition, the City of Atascadero cannot afford to pay an elected mayor the additional compensation that he or she would have to get. Mayor Brennler, meanwhile, used a different line of suspect reasoning to justify his vote to deny residents an opportunity to vote on whether to have a directly elected mayor. Starting with a statement that an elected mayor is something that Atascadero should have in the future, he said that that future time has not yet arrived and that it is necessary first to address the subject of election campaign finance reform. No reason was given for why the subject of an elected mayor could not be put up for decision by the voters in November while the subject of campaign election reform is being addressed.

Councilmember Luna provided an explanation for his opposition to the motion which was more candid and coherent. It was also disturbing in its substantive content. He made the point that Atascadero is a divided community, and that different councilmembers have their different constituencies. He also made reference to what seemed to be painful memories of a past time when, he said, he was on the short end of a 4-1 division on the Council and was passed over for mayor. He then expressed concern that allowing the voters to elect the mayor would somehow recreate the situation he faced when he was an oppressed minority member of the Council. From those comments, the message came through that Councilmember Luna represents a certain constituency; that he feels he is now part of a majority faction of the Council; and that he does not want to let the voters elect a mayor because it could alter that favorable status quo by producing a mayor who might not be just another member of his Council majority.

There can be little doubt that the political concerns that Councilmember Luna expressed are at the heart of the opposition by the majority to allowing the voters to decide whether Atascadero should have an elected mayor. The rationale expressed by Councilmember Beraud to justify her opposition to Councilmember Clay’s motion does not withstand analysis. The additional amount of money that it would cost the city to pay a mayor even as much as $2,000 a month is just not material in the whole scheme of things. As to the explanation given by Mayor Brennler for his opposition, there is no reason why campaign election reform cannot be pursued on one track while the question of whether to elect a mayor is being pursued on another. Unless we are to assume that the Council majority acted on the basis of flimsy rationales unsupported by logic, we can only conclude that they were motivated by the political calculations presented by Councilmember Luna.

The Council majority’s opposition to a motion to consider allowing the voters to decide whether to have an elected mayor represents a defeat for the interests of Atascadero. As has been discussed in detail in previous postings on this blog, and elsewhere, Atascadero is at a great disadvantage in trying to operate its municipal corporation without a chief executive officer. The absence of an executive disables Atascadero’s government by leaving it without an individual whose job it is to proactively promote a vision for progress and improvement, to initiate action and to stand personally accountable for the results. There is a void, and no individual Councilmember or faction of the Council has stepped up to fill that void. Indeed, the majority faction which is now straining to preserve its power has shown little unity, much less initiative, and has not provided the leadership that is so sorely needed by Atascadero during these challenging times. Furthermore, there is no guarantee that this majority will even remain in tact after this November’s election. Nonetheless, the majority voted to put its questionable, short-term political interests ahead of the obvious best interests of the residents of Atascadero, in a decision that is not easy to reconcile with the duty of Councilmembers to promote the best interests of the community.

The explanation given by Councilmember Luna for opposing an elected mayor serves to point up yet another important reason why we need an elected mayor—because members of the Council apparently regard themselves not as representatives of all of Atascadero but of only their supporters. Councilmember Luna was up front in disclosing that he regards himself as the representative of a limited constituency, and that his role is to advocate the interests of that constituency as an avowed partisan. Other members of the Council might not be so up front about it, but the fact is that their respective profiles, actions and voting records strongly indicate that most, if not all, of them have a similar view of their roles. That is not the way it is supposed to be, as members of the Atascadero City Council should be fiduciaries for all of us, duty-bound to protect and promote the interests of the entire city and not just the interests of their supporters. That being said, it is, of course, not uncommon in the partisan world in which we live for politicians to view themselves primarily as representatives of the interests of their supporters and, if questioned about the propriety of that view, to claim that the interests of their supporters are completely congruent with the interests of the larger community.

It is another political reality that an elected mayor would not be able to get away with representing a limited constituency as easily as members of a city council are able to do. To get elected as mayor, an individual would have to succeed in finishing first in the voting. Mayoral candidates would, therefore, have to seek support across the community and present platforms recognizing the interests of the whole city. In contrast, candidates running to fill two or three open council seats can focus their campaigns on a particular constituency, based on the calculation that winning the votes of the right-size group will be enough to finish among the top two or three vote-getters in the race. In addition, after a mayor wins election, he or she will be called upon constantly to serve the interests of the entire community, to be accountable for all of the city’s ups and downs and to field approaches for assistance from every segment of the community. In contrast, after members of the City Council get elected, they enjoy the cover that comes from being just one member of a group of five and are spared personal accountability for all of the city’s fortunes, as well as many pleas for help from non-supporters.

Having an elected mayor might also bring some sorely needed unity to the divided community of which Councilmember Luna spoke so matter-of-factly. It is not an advantage for Atascadero that it is so divided, and that its disparate groups always seem to be vying to impose their identities and wills on the city. When a city reaches the size of Atascadero, there needs to be general acceptance that not everyone is the same or shares the same tastes and values. And there needs to be recognition that different elements of the population are entitled to pursue their lives and have a place in the community. That is an essential part of the growth process of a city. On that point, much of the success that Paso Robles is enjoying these days can be attributed to the way the ranching and wine cultures have come together harmoniously and productively in that city. Those are two very dissimilar groups of people, and it can easily be imagined how there could have been a disastrous collision when they found themselves sharing the same town. Those two groups adapted and cooperated, however, and in the process succeeded in putting together a community that was greater than the sum of its parts. They created a community with a unique character formed from elements of the old west and California and European wine backgrounds. In Paso it seems that a place was made for everyone, with a civilized shopping, dining and cultural hub in the downtown, a center for the ranching and farming interests at the fairgrounds, convenience and big box shopping on the south side of the city, and an infrastructure area concentrated on the east side of the freeway along Paso Robles Street.

Admittedly, there was a powerful incentive for cooperation in Paso Robles, in that there was real money to be made from the wine boom there. While that same incentive may not be apparent in Atascadero, it should be becoming clear that money is being lost in Atascadero by having a business community which is one-dimensional and disordered. And it should also be clear that if Atascadero does not find a way to diversify its commercial sector to serve all segments of its population, its sales tax revenues will continue to languish and the financial crisis which is currently in progress will intensify. In the face of these realities, there should be motivation enough for Atascaderans to find a way to come together.

To accept complacently that Atascadero is a divided community, and that it is your group against their group, does not serve the interests of the people of this city. Hopefully, the voters will recognize this and demand that members of, and candidates for, City Council commit themselves to represent the best interests of the entire community and not just the interests of a limited constituency of political supporters. Hopefully, also, the subject of an elected mayor will be revisited again soon, because the need for an executive officer accountable to the entire community has never been proven so convincingly as it has been proven by the refusal of the Council majority faction to let Atascaderans vote on whether the mayor should be elected by the voters.