What’s the good news?
Well, the City of Costa Mesa is going to lay off half of its City employees, more than 150, and start outsourcing those City services.
Why are they doing that? Primarily because Costa Mesa has a whopping $130.8 million dollar unfunded pension liability and a current-year $1.4 million budget deficit.
So they’ve drawn a line in the sand and made some very, very difficult decisions.
Why is that good news, especially for Newport Beach?
How else will our City keep that wonderful distinction of having the largest City Employees-per-resident ratio in the County, even as compared to other beach towns (apples to apples)?
There will be an additional 150 seasoned, but unemployed, City Employees available in the job market soon, who need to continue earning their “Deserved” (to paraphrase former lifelong City Employee/Councilman Don Webb) pensions? Webb must be salivating at the possibility of having MORE City Employees telling businesses in Newport Beach when to open and close, as well as how to operate, while deservedly earning their retirement benefits.
Plus, how else will our City fill all those empty offices in our new shiny City Hall/Civic Center/Taj Mahal?
The shiny new City Hall/Civic Center/Taj Mahal that will cost an additional $8.5 million dollars, up to $131.5 million, from their “hopeful” estimates of $123 million bucks in November.
If we are truly lucky, then the final costs may come closer to $135.5 million dollars.
And that’s AFTER our Magnificent Seven voted down a $2 million dollar bridge (to nowhere…) and $750,000 for solar panels…
Makes you wonder…hmmmm…any other great ideas buried in that potential $131.5 million to $135.5 million boondoggle?
“Irked” Mayor Mike Henn commented in the Daily Pilot, “The numbers are not coming in certainly where I hoped.”
Really? I’m certainly glad that Mayor Henn is irked about it.
But couple this $135.5 million dollar “adventure” with OUR unfunded pension liability and Other Post-Employment Benefit liability of $200 million dollars, plus whatever the heck OUR current budget deficit is (I’m too frustrated right now to find what that number is/was) and I would hope that the $335.5 million dollars of Newport Beach’s debt would have Mayor Henn just a bit more than…irked.
In the beginning of February, in one of my many masterpieces, I wrote about the next Bubble to Burst (you can find it on https://www.newportbeachindy.com/jack-wu/). I called upon Mayor Henn and the rest of the Newport Beach City Council to draw that line in the sand that enough spending, enough debt had been incurred and called for layoffs of Outsource-able City Employees.
Instead I watch Costa Mesa and their non-Union supported (ooops…did I just stumble upon something?) City Council majority take REAL action to fix their budget mess.
Take a quick look at our City Council and see if you can figure out how many of our Magnificent Seven were endorsed and financially supported (with both direct cash and Independent Expenditure money) by the Newport Beach Police and Fire Unions.
Try all Seven.
Almost $100,000 dollars have been spent by Newport Beach’s Public Employee Unions over the past decade to get all Seven of the Newport Beach City Council elected. All Seven of THEIR Newport Beach City Council elected.
Enough money to keep the layoffs from happening? Maybe.
But in fairness to the City Employees and Unions, how could they be expected to tighten their belt if the City Council itself cannot control their wild spending on the new City Hall/Civic Center?
Nixing (not even permanently) $750,000 Solar Panels? Not even close to real cutting.
So, I’m saying “don’t worry” to those soon-to-be-laid off Costa Mesa City Employees, you will soon have a new home here in Newport Beach, off of MacArthur Blvd and Coast Highway. Your new office will have a great, million-dollar view of Catalina and the Pacific Ocean. You’ll have a great Espresso Stand to hang out during your break and enjoy the smell of the sea.
And you’ll be able to keep earning your deserved pensions.
Happy Days are here again!
I agree with your comments. Re: lifeguards. Every person I have discussed this with is furious with the Pay. I don’t trust Ed Salich at all and for him to say the council is getting all this supprot has to be a big lie.