City Forum

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City Forum

Article City Forum Michael Coleman

Is Your City in Good Financial Shape?

A safe and secure community depends on fiscally healthy local governments that can provide public services for the community, with a balance of revenues and costs over time – even as the…

Article City Forum Tony Ferrara

Preparing for a Worst Case Scenario: California Energy Commission Offers a Set-Aside Program for Petroleum Fuels

Tony Ferrara is mayor of the City of Arroyo Grande and chief of State Agency Training and Support for the California Specialized Training Institute, Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. He can be reached at Tony_Ferrara@oes.ca.gov.


What would your city do if fuel was not available — at any price? Imagine that your contract supplier tells you that your regular fuel delivery will be delayed “indefinitely” due to a market disruption, refinery shutdown or the occurrence of a major disaster. Given the volatile nature of today’s petroleum markets, local government emergency plans must address potential fuel shortages.

Article City Forum

San Bruno Partnership Builds Affordable Senior Housing at Former U.S. Navy Facility

For more information about California Communities’ affordable housing programs, contact: Michael LaPierre, program manager; phone: (925) 933-9229 ext. 212. For more information about KDF Communities, contact: Ray Harper, principal; phone: (949) 622-1888.


In a model public-private partnership, the City of San Bruno has teamed with KDF Communities and its partner, Citizens Housing Corporation, to develop Village at The Crossing (“the village”), an amenities-enriched senior housing community due for completion in early 2007. Set within San Bruno’s The Crossing, a mixed-use master-planned development on a 20-acre former U.S. Navy facility, the 228-unit project features 159 one-bedroom and 69 two-bedroom apartments designed for seniors at several affordability levels.

Article City Forum Gary Sandy

Building Bridges With Local Universities

Gary Sandy, a former mayor of Woodland, is the director of local government relations for UC Davis. He can be reached at gasandy@ucdavis.edu.

Article City Forum

Santa Rosa Encourages People to “Build It Green”

Growth and environmental protection are often at odds, but not in the City of Santa Rosa, where city leaders decided three years ago to bring the two into balance. The result was the voluntary Santa Rosa Build It Green (SR BIG) program.

Article City Forum Terry Amsler

New Technology Informs and Engages Residents

Terry Amsler is program director of the Collaborative Governance Initiative for the Institute for Local Government (ILG) and can be reached at tamsler@cacities.org. The Local Government Commission also contributed to this article. For additional information on ILG’s Collaborative Governance Initiative, visit www.ca-ilg.org/cgi.


Public officials are finding that information technology can enhance their communication with constituents and expand ways to engage the general public in planning and problem solving. Some of the most successful tools and techniques are described below.

Article City Forum James Hamill

SCIP Helps Cities Finance Infrastructure Needs

The Statewide Community Infrastructure Program reduces the cost of bond issuance and improves interest rates for projects of any size.

Article City Forum Don Schatzel

Fighting Obesity: Recreation, Parks and Community Services Department Leaders Join Forces

Don Schatzel is administrator for the Rio Linda and Elverta Recreation and Park District and president of the League’s Recreation, Parks and Community Services Department. He can be reached at dons@rcip.com. Special thanks to the California Parks and Recreation Society, which also contributed to this article.


Obesity presents a growing threat to the health and well-being of California’s children and adults. One of the major contributing factors to obesity is a lack of physical activity, and for many people, getting enough exercise can be a challenge.

Article City Forum Amanda Rose

California Housing Finance Agency’s HELP Boosts Affordable Housing

In 2006, approximately $10 million in low-interest loans will be available to California cities for affordable housing programs.

Article City Forum

Resources for Disaster Preparedness

Careful planning is the best way to prepare your city for a disaster, whether it’s natural or manmade. Your toolbox should include a crisis communications plan, protocols for declaring a state of emergency, procedures for securing vital public records and techniques for educating the public about what to expect and how to be ready when a disaster strikes.

Article City Forum

League Honors Legislators of the Year

Presented in appreciation of the legislators’ support for local government on a variety of issues throughout the legislative session, the awards were announced at the League’s annual conference, held in October 2005 in San Francisco.