Rancho Mirage remains a place with a lot to offer - to its residents and to visitors.
That was the polished declaration that was hammered home by city officials at the 2005 Rancho Mirage State of the City luncheon March 29 at The Lodge.
In detailing the mid-valley city's current overall health, officials touched on good news that included a $57.5 million reserve fund, continuing growth in both residential and commercial development, solid public safety services, the continued success of The River as a dining and entertainment complex, a high quality of life and the ongoing efforts of city fathers to ensure economic stability by governing with vision.
"A city must have the financial resources and revenues to invest in infrastructure, public safety and other necessary services required to maintain the vision of a city's General Plan," Rancho Mirage Mayor Ron Meepos told the crowd of about 200. "In the Coachella Valley, we have seen what can happen when cities do not have resources to meet minimum needs."
Through the years, Rancho Mirage consistently has posted surpluses. The net result has been a burgeoning reserve fund that currently stands at $57.5 million. The surplus for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2004, was $3.1 million and the projected surplus for the current fiscal year is $1.3 million, according to Scott Morgan, the city's director of administrative services.
Meepos, a retired certified public accountant, credited "wakeup call" remarks by thenMayor Dana Hobart in last year's State of the City address for motivating the City Council and city staffers to take a hard look at revenues and expenditures. Hobart zeroed in on something that sounded almost foreign to city residents - a projected budget deficit.
Hobart painted two scenarios - one forecast a $600,000 deficit for the 2005-06 fiscal year; the other forecast $900,000 in red ink for 2006-07.
"We put together a committee [council members, City Manager Patrick Pratt and department heads] that identified ways to take major steps to reverse trends " said Meepos. "The result was a $1 million reduction in this year's operating-expense budget."
Morgan emphasized that budget projections for five or 10 years down the road are essential documents that warrant due diligence and scrutiny - sooner rather than later, too.
"I expect by the time 2005-06 and 2006-07 roll around, the city will have found ways to avoid the projected deficits. That's how this works. You make projections, then you react."
Meepos shared the podium for the city update with Mayor Pro Tern Alan Seman, City Council members Hobart, Richard Kite, and Harvey Gerber, Economic Development Director Barry Foster, Public Works Director Bruce Harry and Community Development Director Robert Brockman.
As a member of the 12-person committee to revise the city's General Plan., Hobart noted that piece of business will require another year to complete. He stressed the special importance of this revision because the city is nearing "build-out" for its land.
The revision will be intertwined with the future development of two prime areas - the square mile known as Section 31 that's bounded by Monterey Avenue and Frank Sinatra, Gerald Ford and Bob Hope drives, and an area known as Section 19 near the Agua Caliente Casino.
Zoning changes and type of development in those sections have not been finalized. Hobart noted that the city remains convinced that a resort hotel and high-end golf/residential development are preferred choices for parts of Section 31.
Reports by Kite and Foster indicated that commercial development continues to surge in the city. The River is maintaining a low vacancy rate and retail outlets and other businesses continue to pop up in adjacent areas along Highway 111.
"Before The River opened, there were 22 empty buildings along Highway 111," said Kite. "The opening of it changed that. Suddenly that area became the address in demand. The rebirth of the 111 corridor has turned Rancho Mirage into a good growth story."
Foster noted the commercial success of The River produced nearly $500,000 in sales tax revenue for the city in FY 2003004. Now, future commercial development will be concentrated in northern sectors of the city Such as Monterey Marketplace at the corner of Monterey Avenue and Dinah Shore Drive, the area near the Bob Hope Drive-Dinah Shore Drive intersection and along Bob Hope Drive between Gerald Ford Drive and Dinah Shore Drive. "Businesses mean sales tax revenue for the city which improves quality of life for residents," said Foster.
Brockman noted that the city's population continues to grow, having passed 15,500 recently. Projections call for that number to grow to 29,000 full-time residents and 44,000 overall (including seasonal residents) by 2020. The city currently has five major and several small residential projects being developed. In 2004, the city had 468 new housing starts, 32 percent less than the city record 690 of the year before. Latest figures show a median home value of $324,689 and median monthly rent of $742.
Harry said the city's ongoing, street improvements including widening, resurfacing and landscaping will target sections of Bob Hope and Dinah Shore this summer. The big public works project looming farther down the road is a Bob HopeInterstate 10 interchange. An 18-month, $34 million joint project with the state, it is to launch in December 2007. Harry reported that the city's $26 million project to underground utility lines in residential areas is on schedule to be finished next year.
Gerber's remarks focused on the city's quality of life and residents' safety enhanced by wide streets, oversized traffic signals, rubberized asphalt street surfaces, low-level, safetyenhancing vegetation on street medians and right-turn lanes at intersections.
It also was noted that two of the city's focal points Eisenhower Medical Center and the public library - were honored recently. Eisenhower was named in Solucient's annual ratings as one of the nation's top 100 hospitals in the largecommunity hospital category. The library, which will move to its new $12.8 million home on Highway 111 within the next year, was ranked second in California for its size.
Meepos also noted that the city continues to enhance the valley's cultural and educational environment with such programs as the Speaker Series. Since launched in 2003, it has brought in Thomas Friedman, Bob Costas, David Halberstam, Julie Andrews and Helen Thomas.
The city also recently donated $1 million to the building fund of the Palm Desert Campus of California State University San Bernardino.
"The Coachella Valley has almost 400,000 permanent residents with the two largest industries agriculture and tourism, both with a preponderance of low wages," said Meepos. "Yet we had no four-year college [before CSUSB], so high school graduates could stay here and get a two-year degree [at College of the Desert] or go away to college. We believe we have a responsibility to the youth of the community."
On a cautionary note, Meepos said, "Circumstances beyond our control can, in a very short time, change surpluses to deficits. Our projections rely on an assumed continuing level of commercial and hotel activity - sources that are tied to national and international factors over which we have no control. Will the economy continue its growth cycle? Will the cost of living remain at current levels? The answers can have a positive or negative effect on our sales tax revenues."
In that regard, the mayor outlined additional city maneuvering intended to increase revenues and cut expenditures. It includes a study to determine if a new community services district should be created with assessments for new development. Fees charged for plan-checking, inspections, application reviews and other services also are being reviewed for possible updating. Last year, the council approved new development impact fees that will generate additional revenue.
"We feel fortunate the city is in excellent financial health," he said. "And although more remains to be accomplished, we are well down that path of meeting the expectations each of you has a right to expect from us."
RANCHO MIRAGE
QUICK FACTS
Population: 15,518
Caucasian: 92.7 percent
Unemployed: 2.9 percent
Median age: 61.3
Median family Income: $88,339
Occupied housing units own or rent): 7,686 (58 %)
Vacant housing units: 5,645 (42 %)
Median home value: $324,689
Median monthly rent: $742
FINANCIAL DATA
2003-04 ........... 2004-05
Sales tax
$4.4 million ...... $4.4 million
Licenses and permits
$3 million ........ $2.6 million
Transient occupancy tax
$5.2 million ...... $5.3 million
General fund expenditures
$17.1 million ..... $18.9 million
General fund revenue
$20.2 million ..... $20.2 million
Surplus
$3.1 million ...... $1.3 million
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING....
"We feel fortunate the city is in excellent financial health. And although more remains to be accomplished, we are well down that path of meeting the expectations each of you has a right to expect from us."
