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Measure I
 October
17, 2008
From
LBReport.com:
Belmont Shore Residents Association Won't Allow Speaker In
Opposition To City Hall's Proposed Parcel Property Tax Following
Mayor's Presentation
The leadership of
the Belmont Shore Residents Association decided not to allow a
speaker in opposition to Measure I following a presentation in
support by Mayor Bob Foster.
Click to
read the story:
http://www.lbreport.com/news/oct08/bsra.htm
September
23, 2008
Long Beach
Chamber Clarifies Its Measure I Vote
The Long Beach Area Chamber of
Commerce Board of Directors voted last Thursday, September 18 on
the issue of “Measure I’, Mayor Bob Foster’s $638 million
Infrastructure bond offering with a $4.5 million underwriting
cost and a $62.5 million debt service fund, scheduled for the
November 4 general election ballot. There are 51 members on the
Board; of that, 39 voting members were present. The vote went as
follows: 19 members voted “neutral’, 12 voted “support” and 8
voted “oppose.” With none of the three positions carrying a
majority of the votes, the board’s voting rules resulted in a
“No Recommendation” decision. Because Measure I will result in a
property tax increase for both residents and property owners, a
2/3 majority of support is required for passage in November.
“Our board’s vote reflects the
wide range of opinions within our 1,100 plus Chamber members
ranging from home-based businesses to Boeing”, stated Chairman
Blake Christian. “While agreeing that our city is in need of
infrastructure upgrades, the there are many aspects of the
proposal which are still being evaluated. This was a major
factor in the discussions amongst Board members and is
definitely a cause of concern for our general membership.”
The Long Beach Area Chamber of
Commerce has no affiliation with, nor does it support, either
the “No on Measure I” (www.NoMeasureI.com)
or “Rebuild Long Beach” (www.rebuildlb.com)
committees. Although both groups are headed by individuals who
are members of the Long Beach Area Chamber, Randy Terrell
(Campaign Manager, “No on Measure I”) is not on the Board of
Directors, although he does serve as a member of our Government
Affairs Committee (GAC). Michael Clements (Campaign Manager,
“Rebuild Long Beach”) is a non-voting (Ex-Officio) Long Beach
Chamber Area Chamber of Commerce Board member. Mr. Clements is
also President of the Long Beach Junior Chamber of
Commerce, which has no legal or formal affiliation with the Long
Beach Chamber of Commerce. Both organizations were allowed to
make presentations to the Chamber Board and the Government
Affairs Council earlier this month.
“The Long Beach Area Chamber of
Commerce leadership has spent hundreds of hours evaluating
Measure I and its impact on the community and our members. As a
result, we will continue to carefully monitor this issue and be
a resource for our members and the community at large. Our goal
at this point in the process is to make sure that both the
“Rebuild Long Beach” and “No on Measure I” organizations
accurately present their facts to the public so that they can
vote in a fully informed manner on November 4th,”
added Joanne Davis, Vice Chair of Public Policy.
The Chamber will be using this web
site to post information associated with Measure I.
Voters and other
property owners with questions or comments can direct them to
the chamber at
steve@lbchamber.com or call the chamber office at (562)
436-1251.
September
18, 2008
Long Beach Chamber Board Defaults To A “No Position” Stance on
the Infrastructure Parcel Tax
Based on a split vote of 19 - Neutral, 12 - Support and 8 -
Oppose at today’s full board meeting, the Long Beach Area
Chamber of Commerce effectively settled on a “No Action”
position regarding Measure I, Long Beach’s Infrastructure
Reinvestment Act. This “No Action” position is the result of
applying the Board’s standard Robert’s Rules to voting matters.
Measure I will be on the November 4th ballot and will require a
2/3’s vote of the Long Beach voters to pass.
Prior to the vote, the board heard presentations from Michael
Clements and Randy Terrell, who head the Measure I “Rebuild Long
Beach” and “No on I”, respectively. Board members also shared
their wide range of views regarding the merits and flaws in the
proposal. The Board made clear that they and other members
generally support the concept of infrastructure improvements
throughout the city, but several members raised concerns over
the size of the scope of the proposal and had questions
regarding the specific Measure I mechanics, including the
contractor bidding process and other controls, including the
proposed Citizen’s Advisory Committee.
“The Chamber and its staff have spent the last two months
evaluating and discussing Measure I with the Mayor’s office, the
City Manager’s office, polling our members and performing
independent research” stated Blake Christian, CPA Chairman of
the Board of Directors. The Chamber membership was surveyed
twice in the last couple months, with strong opinions on both
sides of the issue. “Since we represent over 1,100 business
members, many who are also Long Beach residents, this has been a
challenging decision in balancing the economic, community and
political aspects of this issue, but we are pleased that the
Chamber leadership and board took the time to fully evaluate
this Measure from all perspectives.”
“I am very pleased with The Chamber’ process on this issue,”
stated Joanne Davis, Vice Chair of Public Policy. “We heard from
Mayor Foster and City Manager Pat West at the Government Affairs
Council (GAC) meeting and had extensive discussions – pro and
con – among the GAC’s members at the meeting and a subsequent
meeting. The final position rested with the Chamber’s Board of
Directors who carefully reviewed the GAC recommendation and made
the decision that best represents the organizations’ view.”
The Chamber’s position revises the “Oppose” recommendation of
its Government Affairs Council (made up of approximately 1/3
Chamber board members and 2/3’s non-board members) last week.
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