Bellflower City Manager Mike Egan uses a PowerPoint presentation during the State of the City address Feb. 25, indicating the city has a ‘rocky road ahead.' (Photo by Arnold Adler)
Story Created:
Mar 4, 2010 at 12:23 PM PST
Story Updated:
Mar 4, 2010 at 12:23 PM PST
BELLFLOWER — The past year has been a bumpy road for the city, but residents and community organizations have helped smooth out part of it, according to City Manager Mike Egan.
Egan spoke at the State of the City luncheon Feb. 25 at Simms Park as he looked at the past year and the Rocky Road Ahead, which was the theme of the program.
He recalled how the city had to cut $4 million to balance the budget and in so doing used employee furloughs, City Hall closures every other Friday, some layoffs in the recreation department and cancellation of many city programs.
Egan thanked the community for picking up the slack for some programs, such as Bless Bellflower, a group of churches which sponsored an Easter egg hunt; the Bellflower Chamber of Commerce, which funded some summer street concerts and provided a trick or treat program for Halloween and the Bellflower Lions Club, which put on the fall car show and plans another one Sept. 11.
“We are doing all we can to do what we have to do, despite the funding cutbacks,” Egan said. “A resident survey indicated 90 percent thought we were doing OK.”
Because of the recession, people were not shopping as much and sales tax revenues were low. A heavy loss was the automotive dealerships, which used to bring in 40 percent of the city sales taxes, Egan said.
He said the state’s budget deficit makes things worse.
“Our ability to work depends on state and federal funds, and they are not doing their jobs,” Egan said. “The state, to balance its budget, took $1 million in redevelopment funds from the city.”
But there were some successes in the past year, he noted.
“After 20 years of planning, the Bike Trial is here and people are using it,” he said.
Redevelopment has brought in a six-unit live-and-work complex in place of the deteriorating Bellflower Hotel on Walnut Street, a state-of the art 7-Eleven has replaced a gas station at Bellflower Boulevard and Rosecrans Avenue and a medical clinic occupies the old Henry Moffitt Restaurant.
Crime is down more than 50 percent, the lowest it has ever been, Egan added.
A water main connection on Mapledale Street will allow the city to purchase less expensive water and a high performing well, to be dug in the Public Works Yard this spring will improve water flow, he added.
Federal stimulus dollars will be used to upgrade buildings in the civic center and Thompson Park.
Goals for the coming year include restoring some recreation programs and continued emphasis on graffiti and blight removal.
Code enforcement issued 1,678 citations the past year and resolved 1,380 of those, Egan said.
“We must address blight to attract new businesses,” he said.
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