The Riehl World: Blackburn Right On Alga Norte

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when I heard Keith Blackburn’s robo-call to action. While other North County cities struggle with budget cuts threatening vital services, Carlsbad’s rookie city councilman was asking for our help to keep his campaign promise to bring a second swimming pool to the city. I wondered if he’d been inspired by Congressman Bilbray’s recent onslaught of irritating electronic invitations to his “teletown meetings.” Was this just the beginning of year-round campaigning by our local politicos?

Although I didn’t attend the council meeting, I did watch the videotape of it several days later on the city’s Web site. To my surprise, I found myself in total agreement with Blackburn’s argument in favor of starting work now on the Alga Norte Park and Aquatic Center.Mayor Bud Lewis and Councilmen Matt Hall and Mark Packard disagreed, forming a majority vote to rough grade the site in preparation for construction after the economy improves. Lewis had the folksiest, and least data-based, reason for delay.

“Once you’ve been caught with your economic pants down,” he observed, “it’s very hard to recover.” Carlsbad has a history of including belts as well as suspenders in its annual budgets. Its economic pants may sag fashionably on occasion, but they’ve never fallen below the knees.

Council members Blackburn and Ann Kulchin stuck to the facts in making their case to begin construction now. For starters, the staff’s economic forecast is decidedly conservative, assuming a three-year recession, followed by a slow economic recovery not expected to begin until 2012.

A conservative estimate of the park’s construction costs would leave a balance of nearly $11 million from funds already set aside for the project, which will take three years to complete. It will cost the city about $1.2 million a year to operate the park.

Blackburn and Kulchin suggested that even if the economy isn’t back to full strength in three years, savings in the construction budget could be used to fund the first year or two of operations.

The three council naysayers justified their caution by referring to the cost overruns of the new golf course. But maybe they learned the wrong lesson from that financial albatross. The 20-year delay in its construction caused costs to triple. The estimated cost of construction for Alga Norte Park fell by 10 percent over last year’s estimate, largely because contractors are hungry for work. When good times return, so will higher construction costs.

Councilman Packard explained he was against funding the project now because the park is only a “nicety” for the city, not a “core function, like firefighters, police and cleaning out sewer lines.” But with only slight budget deficits projected during the recession and the general fund brimming with $46 million in reserve, it appears Packard can keep the sewers clear while Mayor Bud holds up our economic pants.

The rest of us, from kids to senior citizens, could gain a “nicety” that will add to our health, safety and quality of life.

Richard J. Riehl writes from Carlsbad. Contact him at RiehlWorld2@yahoo.com.