On January 10, San Luis Obispo City will host a community forum to determine key priorities for the 2017-19 city budget. The San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce, as well as many of our members, will be participating in the forum and advocating for priorities that facilitate more housing and growing economic opportunity throughout the region.

Open to the public, the January 10 meeting gives attendees the opportunity to share where they believe the city should focus during the two-year budget cycle and where money should be spent. At the end of input session, community members in attendance are able to vote with dots about the recommendations that were put forwards.

This is a critical opportunity for the business community to attend, share your thoughts and get involved in the process.

Advocacy work on behalf of our membership started a number of months ago, as Chamber staff and volunteers attended various public meetings, and Chamber committees began discussing potential issues and opportunities that the city will face in the next two years and into the future.

The planned closure of Diablo Canyon Power Plan and the numerous challenges and opportunities that it presents was a significant factor in the discussions.  The closure is expected to impact the city’s economy in profound ways in terms of loss of head-of-household jobs, regional wealth and spending, local real estate values, as well as charitable contributions.

“Now is the time to actively create the economic future we seek to have by making important investments in the community infrastructure and fiscal choices that will allow San Luis Obispo to create a more complete, safe and sustainable community,” said SLO Chamber President and CEO Ermina Karim. “More than ever, it will be critical to build our local economic base so that we have the resources, vibrancy and community character that define our special place.”

After discussion and thoughtful deliberation, including additional study by a Board of Directors subcommittee, the following goals were adopted by the Chamber and will be submitted to the San Luis Obispo City Council for consideration:

  1. Seek bond funding or other creative funding strategies to pay for key transportation infrastructure that facilitates housing and business development and safe multi-modal movement

Why:

  • Residents overwhelmingly want transportation improvements as indicated through the initiatives set forth in the 2015-2025 Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE) and the majority of city residents voted in support of Measure J, the countywide sales tax measure to fund transportation needs
  • Community-benefiting road infrastructure for multi-modal transportation is the key that releases critical development to occur for the safety and quality of life for all residents
  • Infrastructure investments address the top contributor to regional greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the time people spend in their cars on the road driving between where they work and where they live
  • Investing in infrastructure builds more complete communities by providing greater opportunities to both live and work in San Luis Obispo

How:

  • Invest Measure G revenues towards its intended uses of traffic relief, safety and bike improvements
  • Build the Infrastructure Investment Capital Fund
  • Continue to seek grant funding and/or matching grant funds for bike and pedestrian improvements
  • Continue to research federal and local funding opportunities, and partnerships with private developers, for transit services and projects
  • Aggressively work towards the implementation of the city’s 2012 Climate Action Plan, including support of mixed use projects and alternative modes of travel, creating more ease in getting to jobs, goods and services with less time in the car

  1. Grow investment in economic development in order to start, grow and attract businesses

Why:

  • Sustainably increases our city’s base of revenues so city services can be preserved and enhanced
  • It supports the retention and growth of businesses and the pool of head-of-household jobs
  • Continually strengthening our local economy enhances community vibrancy for professionals and residents of all ages

How:

  • Increase staff resources in the Economic Development department
  • Update the Economic Development Strategic Plan in preparation for a post-Diablo economy with a continued focus on the conditions that support head-of-household job creation and workforce housing
  • Update the city’s development fee structure that considers both size and timing of fees
  • Modernize the city’s zoning code to create greater flexibility for commercial and housing development, such as tiny houses
  • Lead an assessment and refinement of the city’s Advisory Bodies to address time and scope challenges
  • Consider targeted incentive grants or business loans to support the development of jobs
  • Work with other economic development partners, including the county and other cities, to prioritize job matching for trailing spouses and to support initiatives for job creation and attraction
  • Continue key investments in the SLO HotHouse and other entrepreneurial programs

  1. Pay down the city’s unfunded liabilities and address escalating costs

Why:

  • To improve the city’s long-term fiscal health
  • To actively control costs in order to successfully meet the current and future needs and priorities of the community
  • Continuing to pay down the city’s unfunded liabilities will enhance transparency to how the city is addressing this challenge

How:

  • Continue to implement the objectives of the Fiscal Responsibility Philosophy
  • Consider the appointment  an independent 5-7-member task force composed entirely of business and municipal finance professionals to recommend how to move forward
  • Assess opportunities for facilities and infrastructure improvements that yield substantial cost savings into the future

Before attending the January 10 meeting, you can take an online survey to share your priorities by clicking here.

Other upcoming milestones in the City’s goal setting process include:

  • The city council goal-setting workshop on January 28.
  • Fine tuning of the draft budget is scheduled for April 18, May 15, June 1, June 6 and June 20.
  • The budget will be finalized in late June.

When these goals are decided, they will be built into the city’s 2017 – 2019 budget and will guide spending for those two years.