Parcel tax to maintain LA County parks faces sharp criticism

A proposed ballot measure asking voters to consider a parcel tax to pay for parks and open space has drawn criticism from activists in dozens of small cities, who plan to voice their conces Tuesday to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

The disparate group of cities — from Glendora to Glendale, Pomona to Carson — say they are conceed about the new taxes on local home and building owners. They say little of that revenue would come back to their own communities.

The proposed measure asks voters to approve an aual special tax of 1.5 cents per square foot of building floor area on their property. The $94 million raised aually for 35 years would go toward building, maintaining and improving parks and open space in 88 communities across L.A. County. The county also operates and maintains popular regional sites, such as Griffith Park, the beaches and the Hollywood Bowl.

But Glendora City Manager Chris Jeffers said property owners will be taxed a full amount, only to receive much less than 50 percent back into their own communities for their own parks. Tax money would be collected and streamed through various funding categories, paving the way for many communities to apply for grants.

“Regardless of whether there should be a tax or not, there’s going to be a tax, and most of the money should remain in the cities that it is generated from,” Jeffers said. “The formula does the opposite. It only retus a small portion to the cities and leaves it to the county about where the bulk of that money is going to go. The county is saying, ‘we should all be donors.’ ”

The need for funding has gained urgency because a 1996 u2009Proposition A assessment is set to expire in 2019, county officials say. A recent assessment of the county’s 3,000 parks found that 58u2009percent are either in poor or fair condition. Nearly 80u2009percent have infrastructure that is either fair or poor. The assessment also found that 51 percent of county residents do not live within a half mile — or about a 10-minute walk — to a park.

Among the highest-priority areas identified were South L.A., the Sanu2009Feando Valley communities of Sunu2009Valley and Vanu2009Nuys, North Longu2009Beach and South Elu2009Monte, Baldwinu2009Park and Hacienda Heights.

Jane Beesley, administrator for the Los Angeles County Regional Park and Open Space District, said she understands why city managers are displeased with the language in the proposed measure. She knows they’re feeling punished for being good plaers. But she said people share parks with those from outside the community. Beaches, Griffith Park and the Hollywood Bowl are all good examples, she added.

“When anybody uses a park, they don’t care who owns the park or who operates the park,” she said. “We all benefit from that greater good. Coming out equally does not benefit our entire county.”

Advertisement

A report released by the Califoia Taxpayers Foundation called the proposed parcel tax “fundamentally unfair,” because some communities would pay more for parks than others. The group found that under the proposal, wealthier communities such as Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, and Rancho Palos Verdes would pay less in taxes that communities with lower assessed values such as Compton, Downey, and Lancaster would pay.

The report, released by BizFed, the Los Angeles County Businesses Federation, also found that communities filled with multi-unit housing would pay more, which in tu could discourage future development of affordable housing. The board will consider placing the measure on the Nov. 8 ballot during its Tuesday meeting.

A survey conducted on behalf of the county found that 69u2009percent of voters said they would initially support a county park ballot measure, officials have said.