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OCEANSIDE: City doubles downtown parking meter rates

Story Discussion OCEANSIDE: City doubles downtown parking meter rates By RAY HUARD - rhuard@nctimes.com North County Times | Posted: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 9:51 pm | (26) Comments Font Size: Default font size Larger font size 4
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Downtown and beach parking meter rates were doubled Wednesday from 50 cents an hour to $1 an hour, as the Oceanside City Council struggled with a series of measures to help erase an $8 million budget deficit . Council members also voted 3-1 for a plan to charge fees to nonresidents involved in car crashes, hazardous waste spills and fires caused by negligence. The fees would only be charged in cases where they would be covered by insurance, Acting Fire Chief Daryl Hebert said. http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/oceanside/article_06b05775-d04d-5956-a6b1-d69bf363fa92.html 6/24/2011

OCEANSIDE: City doubles downtown parking meter rates

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Councilman Jack Feller voted against the fees, which were supported by Mayor Jim Wood and Council members Jerry Kern and Esther Sanchez. Feller also voted against the increase in parking meter fees, which was supported by the rest of the council. "A dollar seems reasonable, if not cheap, anymore," Mayor Jim Wood said. Sanchez said the increase would put Oceanside more in line with other beach cities, some of which charge more than $1 an hour, Sanchez said. To make it easier for parkers to pay the higher rates, City Manager Peter Weiss said, the city may install meters that accept dollar bills and credit cards. City officials estimated that the higher meter rates would raise $60,000 to $100,000 per year. Oceanside last raised parking meter rates in 1991 from 25 cents to 50 cents. Council members deadlocked 2-2 over a proposal to determine whether the city could save money by offering some city workers a bonus to retire early. The council in a 3-1 vote rejected a proposal to require some city workers to pay more of their pension costs as proposed by Kern. Human Services Director Brian Kammerer said the retirement plan would save the city up to $3.5 million over five years. Kammerer also said early retirements could avoid layoffs . "If the cost savings is not here, we do not move forward," Kammerer said. Kern said city workers are well paid and already have good retirement plans. "I don't think we need to bribe them to leave," Kern said. Feller said the proposal sounded too much like giving workers a "golden handshake," which he said was inappropriate for public agencies. Sanchez and Wood said it made sense to at least get more information about the retirement bonus proposal before outright rejecting it. Kern pressed a plan that would require an estimated 100 city workers who are not represented by labor unions to pay their full share of pension costs. Excluding public safety workers, most city employees pay 4 percent of their salary towards retirement and the city pays 4 percent. Public safety workers pay nothing. Kern said all city workers should pay their full costs. Wood, Sanchez and Feller voted against his suggestion. They said it was unfair to single out unrepresented workers. "What's fair for one should be fair for all," Feller said. He said the council should wait until after a June 8 special election before making any changes in city pensions. The election is to choose a fifth council member to fill the unexpired term of Rocky Chavez, who resigned in December to become state undersecretary of veterans affairs. Wood and Sanchez said pension issues should be decided in collective bargaining negotiations with labor groups. Sanchez said the council has historically used the results of those negotiations in deciding what benefits should apply to unrepresented workers. Wood said Kern's proposal was "political bull." He said that if Kern and Feller were serious about saving money, they wouldn't have voted against studying the proposal to offer workers an early retirement bonus.

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/oceanside/article_06b05775-d04d-5956-a6b1-d69bf363fa92.html

6/24/2011

OCEANSIDE: City doubles downtown parking meter rates

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In other matters, the council voted 3-1 to spend $75,000 on a study to determine if there is a way to provide more access to the Jeffries Ranch neighborhood of Oceanside. CALTRANS plans to close Jeffries Ranch Road access to Highway 76 as the highway is widened from two to four lanes. Kern voted against the study. The council also voted unanimously to extend for one year a city moratorium on allowing medical marijuana dispensaries in the city. The moratorium was set to expire in June. Call staff writer Ray Huard at 760-901-4062.
Copyright 2011 North County Times. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Posted in Oceanside on Wednesday, April 21, 2010 9:51 pm Updated: 10:07 pm. | Tags: Top, Coastal, Nct, News, Oceanside, City Government Share This Story Print Email ShareThis

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