Pacifica Tribune Letters-to-the-Editor. "One expensive place" by Lionel Emde
So in perusing the San Bruno city council council agenda packet for March 13, 2012, I happened upon some interesting charts.Pacifica, as illustrated on the chart of "Monthly Single Family Residential Sewer Rate Survey, Feb. 2012" pays the third-highest sewer rates in two counties. (San Mateo, San Francisco) With the current 11.14 percent increase proposed by the city of Pacifica, and an unknown increase which will be apparent next year, we could well vault into the No. 2 spot.
In water rates, Pacifica is only fifth highest in three counties. (San Mateo, San Francisco, Santa Clara). We're going to have to try harder in that category.
And then there are the garbage collection rates: Pacifica has the second-highest residential collection rates in San Mateo County, and has the highest commercial garbage collection rates. The lie being propagated is that because we have less commercial collection, we pay more. In fact, we subsidize garbage collection south of Devil's Slide, where residents of Montara, El Granada, and Moss Beach pay half as much as we do for garbage collection from the same company, trucks, and employees. Maybe our opaque style of governance should change?"
Posted by Kathy Meeh
3 comments:
Please read my comments on RIPTIDE. As usual Lionel gets nothing correct and posts his "theories" as reality.
Of course various city services have unique contracts. Also, don't blame the business (Recology) for high franchise and other fees legally "extorted" from the City. My "theory": not enough tax producing development to carry an "average" level of city overhead. Someone has to pay, might as well be us.
Otherwise without sufficient contract comparison detail-- in reviewing San Bruno's report and San Mateo County news articles, it appears that Lionel's core research of our basic sewer, water and trash rates is correct. Also, consider that Chris knows her business and states related facts. Truce?
Thanks Kathy for underlining that I do know my business and I will remind readers that garbage rates also must take programs offered into account when comparing core services. San Bruno does not have any food composting, something Pacifica residents were very eager for and which is also a costly program, nor paper shredding events, compost giveaways, any type of medical waste services or a recycling yard facility which contracts with the County of San Mateo to have Household Hazardous Waste events held locally once a month. Correct information needs to be forthcoming from people who challenge what they pay, not outright lies and innuendo. I also remind the majority of ratepayers who were previously using a 30 gallon can at a cost of $30.19 a month in 2007 have downsized to a 20 gallon rolling cart at a cost of $22.95 a month. I think this includes you Ms. Meeh. You do the math and any person with a financial hardship, regardless of age, now receives a Hardship Discount by showing they subscribe to the PGE Care Program.
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