WRCOG Public Service Fellowship Program is providing great experiences for local students
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In February 2016, WRCOG launched a one-year pilot Public Service Fellowship Program in partnership with the
University of California, Riverside (UCR), and California Baptist University (CBU)
. T
he goal of the Program is to retain local students to fulfill the subregion's needs for a robust public sector workforce and to combat the often-mentioned "brain drain" that Riverside County experiences when local students graduate but then leave the region to seek full-time employment elsewhere. The Program is geared towards UCR and CBU students to engage them in career opportunities with local governments and agencies in a way that is mutually beneficial to both the Fellows and the agency.
During this inaugural year, 17 Fellows have been placed within WRCOG member jurisdictions and agencies. Currently in their 3rd month of the Program, the Fellows have been working on a wide array of projects from outreach / city events to legislative matters. We are hearing great things from WRCOG members regarding their assigned fellows! #FellowFeature
"I am having such a great experience at the City of Eastvale. I am writing staff reports, researching projects, and learning more about local government each day. I have presented at two City Council meetings so far on projects that I have created or worked on with staff from other departments. It's truly a great opportunity for personal growth & professional development and I'm happy to be part of the program."
Christine Jamoralin, Fellow from th
e City of Eastvale
"WRCOG has provided an excellent opportunity
and a foot-in-the-door position as part of their Public Service Fellowship. Not only have I had the opportunity to work alongside local government officials, but also create policy and draft public documents for the daily city operations. From attending workshops and meetings, to being part of a local task force that aims to reduce homele
ss
ness, it has been an incomparable experience. My Supervisors, Fellowship Adminis
trators, and other Fellows have fostered an environment that encourages leadership, professionalism, and allows
for one to hone their skills for future opportunities in Public Service."
Daniel Soltero, Fellow from the City of Murrieta
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Economic Forecast Conference comes to UCR
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Find out where the local, state, and national economies are headed in the near future an
d join us for an examination of what the Inland Empire might look like in 2035. Be sure not to miss the Economic Forecast, scheduled for September 29, 2016, from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at the Riverside Convention Center.
Discounted rates are being offered to WRCOG; use code wrcog16 for $25 off ticket price! To register or for more information, click
here
or contact Rebekah Manning at
[email protected]
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The 2015-
2016 California Legislative Session has finally wrapped up and the
re are
several bills on the Governor's desk awaiting his signature or veto that
c
o
uld impact Western Riverside County. WRCOG
recently took positions on a few of these bills that align with our Agency's mission of respecting local control while providing regional perspective. Here's a brief overview:
AB 1217
(Daly): OPPOSE. This bill
would codify at the State level the action of eliminating alternate members of the Orange County Fire Authority Board (OFCA). Additionally, it expresses the intent of the Legislature to reevaluate the structu
re of the OCFA Board within a reasonable period between the bill's effective date to consider the effectiveness of the Board's size and structure. Like WRCOG, the OFCA is a Joint Power Authority (JPA). While focused on an Orange County agency, AB 1217 sets a dangerous precedent that allows for the state to interfere with the operation / membership of a local government entity.
AB 2693 (Dababneh):
SUPPORT. This bill requires that Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program participants (borrowers) receive a standardized disclosure form designed to inform them about the financial terms and conditions associated with their PACE financing.
SB 817 (Roth):
SUPPORT. This bill would restore the Vehicle License Fee that was lost to the Cities of Eastvale, Jurupa Valley, Menifee, and Wildomar.
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Transportation activities
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TUMF Program status:
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Total TUMF revenues to date:
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$689 million
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Total TUMF revenues FY 2016/2017:
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$2.4 million
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Total TUMF revenues for July 2017:
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$2.4 million
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Projects completed:
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87
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Projects under construction:
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13
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Projects in the Planning/Design/Right-of-Way Phase
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33
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Magnolia Avenue Grade Separation opens
!
On August 30, 2016, the County of Riverside held a ribbon cutting
ceremony for the
Magnolia Avenue
Grade Separation. The
TUMF
Program contributed
$10.3 mil
l
ion
toward the $60 million bridge
over the BNSF railroad tracks in the unincorporated area
of Home
Gardens. The span is the longest
bridge in Riverside County.
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Ribbon cutting ceremony for the Magnolia Avenue Grade Separation
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2016 TUMF Nexus Study Update and Upcoming Workshops
The last TUMF Program Update was completed in October 2009, and WRCOG staff have been preparing a comprehensive update to the Nexus Study, which serves as the technical report that supports what is ultimately the fee structure for the TUMF Program.
In August 2016, the WRCOG Executive Committee directed staff to form an Ad Hoc Committee comprised of elected officials, City Managers, and Public Works Directors to review a number of options and make a formal recommendation to WRCOG's committees on how proceed with the TUMF Nexus Study.
The options developed for review by the Ad Hoc Committee are as follows:
Option 1: Do nothing and continue to use the 2009 Nexus Study and fee structure.
Option 2: Complete the 2016 Nexus Study with the recommended fee levels.
Option 3: Complete 2016 Nexus Study with reduced/phased-in fees.
- 3A: Phase- in of fees
- 3B: Phase- in of fees for either residential or non-residential uses
- 3C: Requiring local match for projects
- 3D: Reduce contributions for non-construction related costs
Option 4: Remove projects from the TUMF Network to reduce costs.
Study compares fees within and outside of WRCOG subregion
In order to respond to questions about how fees in the WRCOG subregion compare with adjacent areas, WRCOG is also conducting a comprehensive fee analysis of jurisdictions in and around the subregion. In addition to the fee comparison, WRCOG will also examine other development-associated costs, including land, labor, materials, and interest rates to see how fee fluctuations compare with these other costs over time. WRCOG will hold two workshops in September to review preliminary conclusions of the analysis along with the additional actions WRCOG has taken as part of the Nexus Study Update. One workshop was held on September 21,2016.
An additional workshop will be held on the following date:
- September 28, 2016, at 3:00 p.m. at the Riverside County Administrative Center, 3rd Floor, Conference Room A
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Regional Streetlight Program demonstration areas now open!
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WRCOG is in the process of developing a program that will help jurisdictions purchase up to 63,000 Southern California Edison-owned streetlights in Western Riverside County, and retrofit them with energy-efficient technologies, saving local governments millions in operating and utility costs.
As part of the Program, WRCOG has partnered with the City of Hemet to develop lighting Demonstration Areas in the City of Hemet that will allow jurisdictional staff and members of the public to view and provide feedback on various street lighting options. The Demonstration Areas include samples from 12 lighting manufacturers with various LED streetlights that showcase the many benefits of LED's. Such benefits include increased lighting, reduction in energy consumption and utility costs, and increased safety for the community.
The Demonstration Area streetlights can be identified by a white tag that has been attached to the pole (shown below). Each white tag has a different number, website link (
www.wrcog.cog.ca.us/streetlights
), and a QR code that can be scanned via smartphone that provides a link to a survey on the pole being viewed at the time. The survey will ask participants to provide their opinion about the visual and aesthetic attributes of the lights (e.g., brightness, color, glare, etc.), if the light is better than before, and if the participant would like this type of lighting system implemented in their community.
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Installing testbed LED lighting
QR codes for testbed survey
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Feedback obtained from the surveys will be used as part of the process of selecting the best lighting fixtures for Western Riverside County. The Demonstration Areas will be open from September 2016 through early 2017.
For more information about the Demonstration Areas or the Streetlight Program in general, please visit our website at
www.wrcog.cog.ca.us/streetlights
or contact Tyler Masters at
[email protected]
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Environmental Department outreach activities
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WRCO
G's Environmental
Department assists member jurisdictions with addressing state laws that are meant to extend landfill life and increase recycling through the diversion of waste from landfills. Though over the years legislation dictating the kind of materials for diversion, and the manner of calculating the diversion rate for our member jurisdictions has changed, the intent of the law remains, as well as WRCOG's commitment to the task.
WRCOG has recently engaged in numerous recycling and used oil outreach and educational activities in the community to teach about the importance of proper recycling and the correct disposal of used oil, oil filters, and Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) to the community. Here are some of the team's recent outings:
On Saturday, July 23, 2016, WRCOG staff participated in the City of Banning's Annual Disaster Preparedness Expo. Approximately 3,000 area residents attended the event, which informed residents of the San Gorgonio Pass cities on how to prepare for and survive disasters. WRCOG was also part of the educational "lab" in which students learned about the importance of a clean environment.
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City of Banning's Disaster Preparedness Expo
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Upcoming Used Oil and Community Events
The following is a listing of upcoming used oil events that WRCOG staff will be participating in. Annual Car Shows are popular in our region and WRCOG is often asked to take part. In October, the cities of Canyon Lake and Murrieta will host weekend Car Shows and our staff have been invited to take part.
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Date
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Event |
Location
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Time |
| 9/24/16 |
City of Banning Used Oil Event |
AutoZone, 3453 W. Ramsey St. |
9 a.m. - 1 p.m. |
| 10/8/16 |
Canyon Lake Car Show |
City of Canyon Lake - The Lodge |
7 a.m. - 3 p.m. |
| 10/15/16 |
Murrieta Rod Run Car Show |
Old Town Murrieta |
7 a.m. - 6 p.m. |
| 10/22/16 |
City of Riverside Used Oil Event |
AutoZone, 4980 La Sierra Ave. |
9 a.m. - 1 p.m. |
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WRCOG and Lake Elsinore Pilot Litter Initiative kick off October 15, 2016
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Win a brand new chair!
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A ch
ai
r is a chair is a chair....until you see one laying on the side of a highway. This is illegal
dumping, or littering, in its worst form. The City of Lake Elsinore and the WRCOG have teamed up to create a Pilot Litter Program to enhance the City's existing Clean Extreme clean-up efforts.
The Lake Elsinore Pilot Litter Progra
m consists of five main components: community education, marketing, signage, staffing, as well as collaboration with outside agencies. The components will enhance strategies and efforts that will help resolve littering problems much faster and for the long-run. The overall goal is to parlay the Pilot Program into a regional program to make our communities cleaner and beautiful places to live, work, and play.
The City of Lake Elsinore's Fall City-Wide Clean Up at the Lake Elsinore Storm stadium will also serve as the kick-off event for the City's Pilot Litter Program. The year-long "S
ay No To Litter"campaign is designed to enhance the City's existing "Clean Extreme" Program. On Saturday, October 15, 2016, from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., WRCOG staff will be on hand, dispensing "No Litter Pledges" and giving residents good reason to say No to illegal dumping with a free chance to win a brand new (baseball stitched) leather recliner! (Shout out to Barron's Furniture Store in Lakeland Village for their donations!)
See you at the ballpark, Lake Elsinorians!
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Additional PACE Providers in the Subregion
WRCOG distributed a solicitation to all PACE
providers in California to off
er an opportunity to operate their Program in is subregion under the WRCOG PACE "umbrella." Three respondents participated in interviews and staff has conducted site visits with two providers.
CaliforniaFIRST was accepted by the Executive Committee at its September 12, 2016, meeting and the Program will be operational in the subregion by the end of the year.
CaliforniaFIRST has been funding PACE Assessments for two years and completed approximately 20,000 projects in that time. They are eager to work with WRCOG to provide efficiency financing to the region.
WRCOG-area HERO activity update
The snapshot below provides a summ
ary of the total estimated
economic a
nd environmental impacts for projects completed in the WRCOG HERO Program to date:
Operational Analysis / Audit:
WRCOG has hired consultant assistance to perform an operational audit of the HERO Program for the 2015-2016 fiscal year. The analysis will be conducted to ensure the Program is adhering to the Consumer Protections and the WRCOG Program Report. It is anticipated the audit will take approximately three months to complete and results should be compiled sometime early next year.
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Healthy Communities Brief No. 4: Chronic Disease
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In July, the Riverside County Healthy Cities Network (RCHCN) released the inaugural issue of the HCN Connect Newsletter. The Newsletter will be a monthly publication sharing stories, resources, opportunities and more with HCN network of health champions and cities in Riverside County and beyond.
We love reading about what local agencies are doing to promote health in their communities and finding inspiration we can duplicate in other local jurisdictions. Follow the links to check-out issues
one
,
two
, and
three
. To subscribe, email Daisy Ramirez at [email protected].
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Riverside County Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) convening
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| WRCOG, RCTC, and CVAG technical workshop |
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The AHSC Program, administered by the California Strategic Growth Council (SGC) and implemented by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), provides grants and affordable housing loans for compact transit-oriented development (TOD) and related infrastructure and programs that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT). Funding for the AHSC Program is provided from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), an account established from Cap-and-Trade auction proceeds...how's that for alphabet soup?! In all seriousness, the AHSC Program is an important piece of State funding that can help Western Riverside County pursue its goals for sustainable growth and development.
WRCOG, the Riverside County Transportation Commission, and the Coachella Valley Association of Governments organized a technical workgroup and engaged SGC and HCD staff as well as key State program influencers and decision makers.
On Monday, August 29, 2016, the two-day convening kicked-off with an informational bus tour and lively roundtable discussion focused on opportunities in the Western Riverside region while the following-day focused on unique challenges and opportunities of the Coachella Valley. The August meetings served as the first of many conversations regional stakeholders intend to engage in with State program administrators with an objective of having grant guidelines revised to allow for Riverside-area projects to be able to better compete for future funding.
The development opportunities video WRCOG created to showcase local opportunities to achieve the AHSC Program goals can be viewed
here
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Educational PARK(ing) Day in downtown Riverside
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PARK(ing) Day
is an annual international event where individuals and organizations take over sections of the street typically devoted to vehicle parking, and temporarily transform
them into public spaces: art exhibits,
parklets
,
and other creative ideas!
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PARK(ing)Day Event 2016 |
On Friday, September 16, 2016, the City of Riverside celebrated PARK(ing) Day on Univers
ity Avenue. PARK(ing) spaces were adopted and transformed by WRCOG, architectura
l a
nd design firms, City offices, Councilman Gardner's office, and even the Riverside Dickens Festival. The event was coordinated by the City's Museum & Cultural Affairs Department, with the support of WRCOG Public Service Fellow, Megan Elder (#FellowFeature).
At our parklet, WRCOG staff had a great time connecting
with community members, including many students from Encore High School for the Arts. We enjoyed the many creative space adaptations of our fellow PARK(ing) Day-ers. We're already dreaming up plans for next year's parklet and hope you'll join us!
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Riverside County Habitat Conservation Agency
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Stephens' Kangaroo Rat Biological Monitoring
Stephens' Kangaroo Rat (SKR) populations naturally go through cycles of boom and bust depending on precipitation and other natural and human-caused factors. The RCHCA Natural Resources Manager and staff recently completed biological monitoring of the species at the RCHCA's Lake Perris / San Jacinto Reserve. This work consisted of a basic vegetation survey and identification of SKR demographics to assist the Reserve Manager with adaptive management decisions for the species at this location. The survey found relative high amounts of SKR at the site, but because of the persistent drought and dominant non-native grasses, they showed lower body weights. The Reserve Manager will work with Lake Perris staff to develop a plan to reduce the non-native vegetation.
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| Stephen's Kangaroo Rat |
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RCHCA staff gave presentations to the California trails and Green Ways Conference attendees and shared information on the benefits and challenges of trail systems at the Sycamore Canyon Reserve and other areas in Riverside County. Staff also built relationships and established a network of people who share the vision of building support for trail endeavors.
International Youth Fellowship Innovation Academy
RCHCA staff recently attended the International Youth Fellowship Annual Innovation Academy. The International Youth Fellowship (IYF) is a non-profit organization in the state of California, and is dedicated to the spiritual, intellectual, and emotional growth of young people around the world. The Innovation Academy hosts students ages 16 and up. The focus for this academy was to put students in contact with other forward thinking organizations who work towards creating a better world in the areas of environment, technology, art, and people that they would not normally have access to.
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International Youth Fellowship Annual Innovation Academy 2016
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RCHCA Translocation Program
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Stephen's Kangaroo Rat at the San Diego Institution for Conservation Research
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Translocation is the intentional capture and transfer of wild animals or populations from one geographic location to another, and is undertaken for many reasons, including improving the conservation of endangered species and establishment, or re-population of historic ranges. RCHCA contr
acted with Dr. Debra Shier through the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research to develop a translocation model that can be used, if necessary, to mitigate detrimental effects on Stephens' Kangaroo Rat populations.
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WRCOG bids farewell to the retiring Donna Dean
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Donna Dean being recognized by the Executive Committee and Chairman Ben Benoit during the September 12 meeting
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Donna Dean has served as a Program Manager for the TUMF Program since being hired in 2005. During her more than 10 years of service, Donna has been instrumental in helping develop many components of the TUMF Program. These include but are not limited to:
- Created and implemented WRCOG's current Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for the purpose of tracking TUMF expenditures against revenues over a five five-year period
- Instrumental in the update process of the Nexus Study
- Served as an integral liaison between member agencies and WRCOG's TUMF Program
WRCOG congratulates Donna on her retirement and wishes her all the best as she embarks on her next chapter. Thank you Donna for all you have given to WRCOG and to the region!! You will be missed!!
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Executive Director's column
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Does housing pay for itself?
The
July 2016 article in this column
examined the housing shortage in southern California and zeroed in on how the lack of housing is hurting the region, including Western Riverside County. The article discussed the increasing cost of housing, factors contributing to increased costs, whether low housing supply curbs growth, types of housing needed for the future, what happens if we do nothing, and a brief look at how to proceed.
This month, we examine what is perhaps another contributing reason to the housing shortfall: Revenue to jurisdictions.
As a result of limitations put into place in California by measures such as Proposition 13, local governments are limited in their ability to generate additional revenue to support new residential development. Such limitations have contributed to a perception among many local officials that new residential construction does not "pay its own way," meaning that it does not generate sufficient government revenue to pay for the public services and infrastructure it requires. As property taxes have been restricted, sales taxes are often viewed as perhaps the single major source of discretionary income for local jurisdictions. As a result, local government officials generally tend to favor, and even seek, commercial development in places of expanded residential neighborhoods - and in fact have been doing so for a long time. According to a
1999 study released by the Public Policy Institute of California
, city governments systematically favor retail development over other land uses, such as housing in an effort to boost sales tax revenue.
Surprisingly, there isn't a significant amount of research on the subject of the fiscal implications of housing on local governments. Not surprisingly, the research that does exist and conclusions reached sometimes appear to be a product of who funded the study and/or the affiliation of the author(s). For example, a 2007 study funded by the California
Home-building
Foundation,
The Housing Bottom Line: Fiscal Impacts of New Home Construction on California Governments
, found that, to exactly no one's surprise
, "In sum, new housing construction has a substantial net fiscal benefit to the state and local governments in California." Conversely, in 2010 a Florida group advocating for a constitutional amendment that would give voters more direct control over development projects cited studies supporting its claims,
including this study
, concluding that the costs for services needed for residential development are greater than the revenue produced. You get the point.
So, what's the real answer? Certainly in California, property taxes comprise a smaller proportion of tax revenue than likely would have been the case without Proposition 13, but new residential development is probably more fiscally beneficial to local cities and counties than conventional wisdom indicates.
First, actual housing values of new homes tend to increase faster than do the assessed values of existing homes. New houses initially assessed at their market value will generate substantially more property tax revenue than homes of equal value that have not been on the market in several years. Additionally, the demographic characteristics of new households may make these houses more fiscally beneficial relative to the average existing house. Because of the higher cost of new homes, new residents might be wealthier relative to the average existing resident. These new residents may provide more revenue through local discretionary spending (generating sales tax for local jurisdictions) and may also utilize fewer social services relative to the average existing household. The benefits of apartments in communities are significant as well. According to a report titled "
The Trillion Dollar Apartment Industry"
apartment residents spend more of their income locally than homeowners. The report estimates that roughly 70 percent of the dollars residents spend on items such as housing, food, transportation, utilities, fuels, public services, apparel and services and entertainment, stay within the local economy.
Second, consider the more indirect but obvious impact of housing. The simple adage "retail follows rooftops" is key to understanding basic development cycles in emerging areas like Western Riverside County and should not be overlooked or minimized. The book, Shopping Centers and other Retail Properties: Investment, Development, Financing, and Management states that, "As a rule, retail follows rooftops: that is, retail development comes in after new residential neighborhoods are settled, or following changes in roadways and other patterns that have the potential to affect the density of population and traffic in a given area." A 2006 article in
Western Cities Magazine
emphasized the connection between housing and new economic development.
Kelly Kline, who served as downtown manager for the San Jose Redevelopment Agency when the article was written, stated that, "A retail strategy is primarily a housing strategy.
Retailers tell the city, 'Show me the rooftops.' Retail development needs residential development to draw [from]."
Certainly, when it comes to attracting retail development, it's not as basic as just putting rooftops in place until a critical mass is reached, at which time retail flows in. There are a number of factors including geography, infrastructure, quality of schools, demographics and income levels, a growing population, and even the overall look of a community that are examined by retail investors before they elect to locate in a certain area. In the same fashion, the fiscal viability of residential development on a local government should not be limited to a "taxes in - service costs out" analytical vacuum because there are too many other variables to consider such as those mentioned above, as well as the differences between cities depending on what services are provided, tax rates and shares, and service levels, to name a few. More fundamentally important to the discussion is this: Housing, at least initially, does not follow retail. Any benefits that a jurisdiction might receive from retail development are highly dependent on having housing in the first place. If adequate housing is not in place, any discussion about drawing in retail development is, for the most part, moot.
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October 3
WRCOG Executive Committee (2:00 p.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 1st Floor Board Chambers, Riverside.
October 12
WRCOG Administration & Finance Committee (12:00 p.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 5th Floor, Conf. Room C, Riverside.
October 13
WRCOG Planning Directors' Committee (9:00 a.m.), Riverside Transit Agency, 1825 Third Street, Riverside.
October 13
WRCOG Public Works Committee (2:00 p.m.), Transportation Annex, 14th Street, Conf. Room #3, Riverside.
October 19
WRCOG Solid Waste Committee (1:00 p.m.),
Riverside County Department of Waste Resources,
14310 Frederick St, Conference Room A, Moreno Valley
.
October 20
WRCOG Technical Advisory Committee (9:30 a.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 5th Floor, Conf. Room C, Riverside.
October 26
WRCOG Clean Cities Coalition (1:00 p.m.), UCR CERT, Center for Environmental Research & Technology, 1084 Columbia Avenue, Conference Room 105, Riverside.
October 27
WRELP Quarterly Meeting (10:00 a.m.), Location TBD
October 29
Western Riverside Energy Leader Partnership (WRELP) Community Outreach Event (2:00 p.m. - 9 p.m.), City of Menifee Fall Festival at Audie Murphy Ranch Sports Park, 30362 Lone Pine Drive, Menifee.
November 7
WRCOG Executive Committee (2:00 p.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 1st Floor Board Chambers, Riverside.
November 9
WRCOG Administration & Finance Committee (12:00 p.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 5th Floor, Conf. Room C, Riverside.
November 10
WRCOG Planning Directors' Committee (9:00 a.m.), CANCELLED.
November 10
WRCOG Public Works Committee (2:00 p.m.), Transportation Annex, 14th Street, Conf. Room #3, Riverside.
November 10
Streetlight Demonstration Area Educational Bus Tour at the City of Hemet (6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.) Location(s) TBD.
November 17
WRCOG Technical Advisory Committee (9:30 a.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 5th Floor, Conf. Room C, Riverside.
November 17
RCHCA Board of Directors (11:00 a.m.), County of Riverside Admin. Ctr., 1st Floor Board Chambers, Riverside.
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STAY CONNECTED
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