Council Members and City Management Clarifies Their Collective and Individual Purpose and Motivations:

Council Member Jim Miller: His Primary concern is to Increase Property Value. He Wants more aggressive Code Enforcement to aid in the increased property values and revenue stream for realtors, and city coffers which will be increased when the property is unprotected by Prop 13 upon forced or voluntary resale.

Council Member Herman Hilkey: He wants to increase the Property for the same reasoning as Jim Miller, and he wants “Businesses”, or Property Owners who Rent out their Property to share the burden of doing business in Grand Terrace. Council Member Hilkey’s number since fails the logic test. Often rents collected off set mortgage payments, and do not represent 100% profit or positive cash flow, as his statement implied. How many businesses in Grand Terrace Gross 1800 a month and still are in Grand Terrace? Rents for Commercial Property are not free, and that does not include utilities etc. Council Member Herman Hilkey is full of smoke a mirrors. He has zero credibility and is out of touch with the reality of life for a “normal” family in Grand Terrace.

Council Member Herman Hilkey’s comments regarding the desire to have the city provide Youth Activities is telling of his disconnect. The Colton Joint Unified School District and the City of Grand Terrace provide infant and child care for children up through the 6th grade. His statement that he was against the involvement of the city in providing services that parents should be taking care of suggest that he desires the discontinuation of child care for the preschool to 6th grade members and their families in the community. He apparently believes a “Normal Family” can afford to have one parent home to care for their children, or pay for that supervision. Where in the city is there this service available? With the ever Increasing Property Values and no civic services to Children, Youth or Seniors, is it the intention that Grand Terrace be populated by able bodied, childless millionaires between the age of 20 and 55?

“Cities that have Youth Programs are Cities that have Problems”

Is Council Member Herman Hilkey going to suggest that Child Care Service be ended in the City? After all don’t the current services just teach parents to be dependant on such services. Force all two income families out of Grand Terrace. They are obviously a group of undesirables, along with “Renters”, and Long Term Residents with Low Prop 13 Protected Home Values.

Council Member and Mayor Maryetta Farree’s comments were telling that she also is an elitist in her thinking. She did not suggest real concern for Youth Activities, but she has a gag in her mouth and won’t talk beyond the topics on the agenda. When is She going to put Youth Activities on the Agenda. When is the City going to provide a Place for After School Youth Activities other than Soccer, and Baseball and Karate? This protects her from having to expressing her inclinations.

When are the Unfinished Business Items going to be listed?

She did suggest holding off on the Rental Unit Ordinance for a future action, does this mean that it will be placed on an agenda when there is no one looking?

Council Member: Lee Ann Garcia
Opossums are not a Code Issue. If you don’t like wild life, move out of the Agricultural Zoned area, perhaps you can give the folks being forced out of their homes on Barton Road your land, and you can move into a Nature Free Zoned hotel room in the OAC Development.

Council Member and Mayor Pro Tem Bea Cortes
Thank you for inviting a report on the Fire and Safety of July 4th. However, did you think to ask the cost of the enforcement or lack of enforcement? Drive by enforcement and hand shaking community relations are not going to encourage compliance next year. Drag some one to jail, or make the pay dearly, the word will get out. Now, the word is, if you want to break a law, do it in Grand Terrace, you won’t be arrested, or fined. We got faces and no enforcement for all that cost. No, you did only half the job of providing the citizens and the council information.

$6,000.00 for two Sports Programs.
$ ???????? FOR INCREASED FIRE PERSONELL
$ ???????? FOR INCREASED SHERRIF PERSONELL
$ ???????? FOR PROPERTY DAMAGE
$ ???????? FOR ANIMAL CONTROL AND LOST PETS
$ ???????? DISPOSAL COST OF CONFISCATED EXPLOSIVES
$ ???????? FOR THE BURNS, OR PHYSICAL INJURY
OTHER UNKNOWN COSTS; ROADS BURNT, TRASH COLLECTION, ETC

City Manager Thomas Schwab: Is it a telling sign that the OAC’s Documents and Deliverables have been “MET” but none have been made available to the Council Members, the Press, or the Public? How would anyone know if in truth the Deliverables have been done, evaluated, tested and reviewed in a timely manner. “TRUST ME,” he said. Sorry, you have not earned our trust.

You say that there is not a Debt or Short Fall in City Funds or the City Budget and no plan for a tax bond. Well what HAT are you wearing when you say that. The City is effectively the cosigner of the Debt of CRA so if you would stop changing pockets and hats for a moment please answer the question about cash flow. Money In, Money Out, and Debt, and Assets and Liabilities.

City Assistant Manager Steve Berry: Your Rental Property Code Enforcement “Plan”

How about a simple comparison of the following:
Current Fees Collected by the County compared to Fees GT Plan
Current Services Provided by the County compared to the Services that GT Will Provide

Instead you participated in the degrading of a class of citizen the “renter” and the “landlord, or property owner”. It is clear that you and the council hold the citizens regardless of their “Class” with disdain. The method of divide the citizens up by class or group has worked in the past, that is how the folks on Barton Road were culled out of the community. That is how the OAC, the TC and Manhole is being handled. Small individual groups of offended people are squashed like ants.


GrandpaTerrace Concludes the City Council and City Management wants more Code Enforcement Officers. They want Ever Increasing Property Values and are willing to first single out a minority within our community to provide increased revenues to provide that Code Enforcement Officer. In addition to the Elitist attitude against Renters, or Land Lords who don’t live in the City, the Council projected disdain for individual property rights of all citizens to live as they see fit on their own property. Code Enforcement on maters such as RV’s being parked, Paint Chipping, and such issues is in truth the Better Homes and Gardens Police.

A property owner, or renter should be able to store, and repair their car on their property. A property owner or renter should be able to have a pet goat; they are less noisy than a dog, or a teenager. A property owner should be able to have a dirt lawn and save water, and costs of planting an unnatural grass surface. If thy eye offends thee pluck it out, but hold your comment, and don’t trod on the property rights of someone else so tho eye doth not offend thee, or your pocket book is lightened.

Fireworks: Real Alternatives and Solutions

The Sports Teams earn the same money without the city incurring the costs or the citizens experiencing the torment on an annual basis? How about implementing one of the previously suggested ideas;

City Window Washing Weekend. Team Members, Coaches and Parents grab buckets and cloths and wash the exterior windows of every house in Grand Terrace for a Donation of $2.00 per window. Car Wash for $ 3.00 donation on the same day. This can be done quarterly.

City Dump Day Assistants: Team Members and Parents provide trucks and labor to aid in the collection of large items on Clean Up Days.

City Green City Cans: A club or team can have additional green trash cans to be delivered to home owners who will need extra containers for doing annual or semi annual pruning. The club will “Relocate” the containers for a donation of 5.00 each can. The city will benefit in its Environmental Goals, and Code Compliance will be easier.

City Water Mellon Picnic: A Picnic where ice cold water melon is sold by the slice, or juiced by the cup, and a Public Summer Evening Dance, Old Fashioned Picnic Celebration, and perhaps sports demonstrations or skills games could be included.

Redondo Beach and Long Beach had a time where the 4th of July got out of hand. It took only 2 years of strict enforcement for the folks to learn not to even think about it on the 4th.

None of these suggestions need to increase costs to the city, and the costs associated with doing things the same way year after year will be constant if not ever increasing. Yes, increased and aggressive enforcement for a few years will cost more to rid the city of fireworks and the mayhem they bring forth. However, if implemented this would be a true improvement to the city, and the celebration of the 4th of July.

I wonder how much did the Fireworks Stand Franchise give to the City? How much is their business license, and fees paid to the city? Has the Fireworks Stand Franchise given the City or any of the Council Members contributions for City Activities or Political Contributions? There seems to be a disconnect of logic on the Part of the City Council, Citizens, and Sports Teams when the subject of Fireworks is put up for discussion.

The Library Issue: The Library is managed by the County. The City of Grand Terrace is the Host of the Library. The use of tapes, cassettes and rentals is in direct competition with businesses in the City. This issue is a County Issue, Not a City Issue.

The City making public a plan to rent a space for the library out of its current location is presumptive. Is the County willing and able to assume the responsibility of running a larger facility and collection in Grand Terrace? Who is going to pay the rent, utilities, and employees of a bigger and “better” library? Perhaps City Manager Thomas Schwab is going to contribute $7,500.00 per month for the next 20 years to Host the Library in the Town Center Development.

City Residents Concerned with the Library need to Speak to the County Library People, Not the City.

The Issue of Public Transportation: Ease of Use is the key to successful Public Transportation Use. Perhaps the City Citizen’s Patrol can shuttle folks to Bus Connections and Wal-Mart for a gas tipping fee of a buck a ride. Perhaps the Citizens Patrol can assist non Driving Seniors get to Fontana Kaiser for a break even fee of some sort. Those needing to make appointments may be able to coordinate a weekly Fontana Excursion for Non Emergency Transportation, so that this service can be provided efficiently for all parties. Kaiser is not the only Health Provider Location. Perhaps a trip to ARMC would also be possible. I doubt that Council Member Herman Hilkey would support this service as children should be taking care of their elder parents. Make life in GT difficult for the Senior Citizen perhaps they will move and make a Realtor happy with the income, and the City happy with increased property tax collection.

All you potential Code Enforcement Workers: The City of Grand Terrace will not pay you suffienctly to live in Grand Terrace unless you will live in a small apartment, and don't have children needing supervision. Your earnings won't buy a house in Grand Terrace, so you will always be an out of towner, or a Dreaded "Renter". Now of course the City Manager was Given a house, full insurance, and $115.000.00 per year.

Anonymous said...
One of our city employees is allowed to rent a redevelopment house for $600 a month and has for quite some time. Where in Grand Terrace can you find anything for $600 a month.