City Preps Residents to Defend Beach Parking Zones

By Jorge Casuso

On the surface, it seemed just another meeting of city staff and their constituents.

But with seven Ocean Park preferential parking zones on the line - all of them more than 10 years old -, Saturday's meeting at the Ken Edwards Center was anything but routine.

Instead of just providing information and listening to concerns, planning department staff helped coach and organize some three dozen residents for a crucial Coastal Commission meeting Tuesday morning.

After a year's delay, the commission finally will decide the fate of 936 preferential parking spaces south of Pico Boulevard and east of Lincoln Boulevard that were created by the city without commission approval between 1983 and 1989. The commission discovered the spaces in 1998, while considering the Edgemar Development project on Main Street.

"Don't be exclusionary," Planning Director Suzanne Frick advised the residents. "What is important is to put a face on this issue. We don't want to alienate this commission."

Among the key points city staff encouraged residents to make are the dearth of street parking, the availability of parking in beach lots and the make up of the community (it is not just rich homeowners).

Residents who spoke at Saturday's meeting said they feared that if preferential parking is revoked they wouldn't be able to move their cars or entertain guests, especially on weekends, because there will often be nowhere to park near their homes.

"I can't leave during the day, but there are empty spaces on the beach," said one resident who lives in a zone near Main Street with no daytime restrictions. "As usual, the residents are going to be caught in the middle of this squabble."

While there are 2,400 spaces in Ocean Park's two beach lots, it costs $7 to park ($6 during the winter.) By comparison, unrestricted street parking is free.

Frick, however, warned against bringing up the underused lot, saying that lowering the rates - which already are cheaper than the rates at Venice Beach and Will Rogers State Park - is not on the table.

She did encourage residents who blamed the parking woes not on beach goers, but on employees and customers of Main Street businesses, to speak out on Tuesday.

"It's a major impact," said Roger Genser, a 22-year resident of Ocean Park who helped organize the first Ocean Park zone in 1983. "It was a reaction against Main Street. It had nothing to do with beach parking."

Tuesday's decision will center on whether Santa Monica's zones restrict access to the beach, which the Coastal Commission was created in 1976 to protect.

Commission staff has recommended that the seven zones be retained - with the caveat that the city must reapply for the permits in three years. The city opposes that condition, saying it would be too costly, inhibit long-range planning and leave residents in limbo. Instead city staff is proposing to conduct a parking monitoring program and file a report within five years.

Commission staff also is requiring the city to create 154 spaces to help replenish those taken up by preferential parking. Of these, 65 already have been created. The city also must keep the Tide and Pier beach shuttles running during the summer months.

While Coastal Commission staff seems sympathetic to the plight of beach area residents, it is impossible to predict what the commission will do, Frick said. One warning sign was a complaint by a commissioner who visited the beach to watch the sunset and found no place to park.

"We've been discussing this with the staff for a year and a half," Frick said. "I think this really boils down to philosophical issues with the commission."

Although the city has been negotiating with commission staff, it also has made it clear that it is prepared to file a lawsuit if the commission revokes the zones.

"We have a difference of legal opinion as to whether the Coastal Commission even has authority," Frick said. "We would prefer to go through the process and have a positive outcome."

Since the Coastal Act was passed in 1976, the Coastal Commission has required cities to apply for permits for the special parking zones.

Historically, the Coastal Commission has granted permission for preferential parking zones in coastal communities, often imposing strict conditions to ensure plenty of public parking and beach access.

Since 1982 the commission has approved three applications from Hermosa Beach, Santa Cruz and Capitola. The commission, however, has denied preferential parking permits for Santa Monica's closest neighbors - Venice to the south and Pacific Palisades to the north.

In 1998 approximately 7.5 million visitors flocked to Santa Monica beaches. Over the past 28 years beach attendance has grown by 20 percent.

City Manager Susan McCarthy, who did not attend the meeting, said it would be "unforgivable" if residents weren't prepared given what's at stake.

"The Coastal Commission has a relatively clear mission laid out in the law, and in this situation, it may not be a mission that is sympathetic," McCarthy said. "This would certainly be a profound change."

The Coastal Commission will meet Tuesday at 10 a.m. at the Four Points Sheraton, 530 Pico Blvd.

Staff writer Teresa Rochester contributed to this report.

Parent Sleuth Found District's Newest Shortfall

By Teresa Rochester

It was a case of bad math that landed the school district in its latest $1 million predicament, and parents are to thank for pointing it out.

Parents had expressed concerns in January, when district officials happily reported they had whacked down the district's potential $5 million shortfall to $1.45 million. But their concerns fell on the deaf ears of school board members.

Last Thursday another parent, Craig Hamilton, went before the board to challenge the way officials had calculated the average daily attendance which provides a large chunk of money for the district. This time officials listened.

"My understanding... is that a significant part of the $2.5 million in 'found' revenue…came from the increase in the Average Daily Attendance figures used for as a basis of revenue, not just the increase in enrolled students," Hamilton told the board. "The 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 ADA numbers are about 95 percent of the second month enrollment. The ADA numbers in the budget forecast for 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 are 97 percent of second moth enrollment…That's a lot of money to gain or a lot to loose."

Hamilton's observation wasn't addressed by school district officials despite two requests from board member Julia Brownley for clarification. Instead Supt. Neil Schmidt brokered an impromptu meeting in the hallway between his chief financial officer, Art Cohen, and Hamilton, while the school board meeting wore on.

Parents contend that it is this sort of behavior that gives the school district a reputation for doing business behind closed doors without public output, confusing people with bureaucratic jargon and being incompetent.

"This goes to the level of competence," said John Petz, a founder of the watchdog group Citizens for School District Reform. "No one on the board could understand what he [Hamilton] was talking about. Julia Brownley attempted to do the right thing and she was immediately shot down. It's a complete breakdown of the public process…To have gambled the financial well being of this district in such a way is tantamount to reckless behavior."

"I've only been going to these meetings a short while," said Hamilton. "What seems like a fairly open opportunity for dialogue and for citizens to ask questions seems fairly managed. I know Julia didn't get her question answered. I don't know how all of these things work procedurally, but it did seem a little odd to have this sidebar discussion."

Schmidt said the reason he invited Hamilton to speak with Cohen, the district's assistant superintendent of financial and business services, in the hallway was because Cohen did not have his data with him in order to address the board directly. After hearing Hamilton's analysis, Jean Gebman, a member of the Schmidt's appointed Financial Task Force, also questioned the calculations.

Back in his office the following morning, Cohen realized Hamilton was right - the calculated ADA was incorrect, as was the projected revenue from the state's lottery.

"He [Cohen] reviewed all the numbers again, and it just jumped out at him," said Schmidt.

On Friday Cohen released a memo to board members and Schmidt, agreeing with Hamilton's findings and acknowledging the additional million-dollar shortfall.
"At last night's Board Meeting, Mr. Craig Hamilton raised a question regarding the forecasted P2-ADA for 2000-2001. This morning, I received an E-mail from Jean Gebman indicating that he also thought Mr. Hamilton raised a valid concern," Cohen wrote. "I have reviewed the forecasted numbers and believe that Mr. Hamilton and Jean have a valid point regarding the process used to calculate the forecasted P2-ADA, which in turn generates State Revenue Limits and Lottery funds."

Hamilton said that while he is disappointed about the additional $1 million shortfall, he is pleased the error came out when it did.

"It's bad news I suppose but I'm glad it came out," Hamilton said. "It's very unfortunate that it wasn't discovered a long time ago. It makes you question the veracity of information to come out of the district."