Farmers Market Parking Lot Should Be Free 

Last week, during the League of Women Voters Forum, each candidate was asked to name one thing they would like to change about Royal Oak.  I would like to eliminate our residents from having to pay to park in the farmers market parking lot.  For years, residents have been parking in the farmers lot for free.  It has been the ideal parking location for residents and visitors who attend city meetings or utilize our city’s library. 

Beginning in September, the city of Royal Oak began to regulate the farmers market parking lot. They began by enforcing visitors to pay to park in any of the 44 parking spaces across from the library.  The city’s plan is to monitor the revenue generated from those 44 spaces and eventually regulate the entire lot.  Currently, the city released a Request for Proposal “RFP” to have private companies bid on the opportunity to install some type of parking meters or parking kiosks in the lot.  Although the actual estimates have not been released to the public, the city is leaning toward a pay and display kiosk system that will be very expensive to purchase, install, and maintain.  This is the same type of system that was temporarily installed in the post office parking lot a few months ago.  In its initial trial at the post office, the kiosk system caused numerous cases of user hardship and caused floods of complaints to City Hall. Now, the same type of system has been implemented in the farmers market parking lot. 

A recent study released at the October 15^th City Commission meeting revealed that after one month (September 6^th thru October 11^th), the 44 regulated spaces only generated a total of $503.00. Assuming the farmers market parking lot maintains the same amount of monthly visitors, it can be estimated that the regulated farmers market parking lot will annually generate about $6,000.00.  This is hardly my idea of a successful attempt for the city to generate revenue.  One thing is quite clear, if the annual revenue is only $6,000.00; it will take many years to recoup the cost of installing any type of metered or kiosk parking units.   As residents of a very budget challenged community, we must hold our City Commission accountable for any and all spending decisions.  The decision to begin charging for the farmers parking lot is fiscally irresponsible and the return-on-investment will take much too long to make any sense.    

            In addition to the fact that the decision to begin charging for the farmers market does not make financial sense, it also has many other negative affects on our community.  Having to pay for parking in the farmers market lot will reduce resident participation in government and it will negatively reduce the number of library users.  If City Hall visitors have to pay to park in the lot, it will not be feasible for someone who is attending a City Commission meeting continually return to their car to add money to the meter or kiosk.   Instead, these people will just not come at all.  Finally, after Royal Oak taxpayers supported an increase in our taxes to have our library updated, we are now being asked to pay even more to use it. It makes no sense.

            My name is Andrew Androff, with your support on November 6^th, 2007 we can bring some common sense back to City Hall. -- 29 Oct 07 

Andrew Androff Files Pre-Election Campaign Finance Statement – On-Time  

(Royal Oak, MI) – October 29^th, 2007 – Royal Oak City Commission Candidate, Andrew Androff, submitted his Pre-Election Campaign Finance Statement to Oakland County Election Division on Friday October 26^th, 2007.   He was one of only a few candidates to file his pre-election Campaign Finance Statement by the allotted Friday deadline.    Andrew’s campaign finance statement revealed that the campaign has so far cost over $8,000.00 with nearly 100% of his campaign being self-funded.  “First, by filing by the county’s deadline, it proves that I am running an organized campaign and I am capable of working within a defined timeline to submit necessary financial statements.  This is exactly how I will handle city budget deadlines, on time.  Second, by self-funding my own campaign, I represent the true interests of the residents and not any special interest group. It was also important for me to put my own money into this campaign to prove I am vested and that I believe in myself and what this campaign represents.  I had many generous offers from supporters to make financial contributions, instead of money, I asked for them to contribute in other ways.  Many have helped deliver literature and others will be working at the polls on election day.” said Andrew Androff.

Background

A copy Andrew Androff’s Pre-election Campaign Finance Statement can be found online at http://www.oakgov.com/clerkrod/division_committee/elections/campaign_finance.html

Rebuttal to VersagiVoice challenge

I believe the city budget can continue to be balanced without a tax increase by  tougher budgeting, better utilizing of the revenue we already have, decreasing budgeted expenditures, and uncovering new forms of revenue that do not require a tax increase.   

The last edition of VersagiVoice challenged the candidates who promised to not raise taxes or sell any city assets to announce if and how much they are willing to reduce or outsource or privatize or consolidate or spin off, or eliminate certain city departments or services. I think that Frank raises a very good point in suggesting that candidates need to be more vocal and more specific with their ideas.   So with that being said, I wanted to provide specific examples of possible expenditure reductions and new sources of revenue for Royal Oak.  In addition, I hope that residents elect me, but not just because they picked my name out of a hat or flipped a coin, but because they know that by electing me, they are supporting a leader who will continue to bring forward new ideas and fresh innovation.  

Move City Commission to using Electronic Packets - It is estimated that if the current City Commission received electronic Commission packets instead of their paper packets the City of Royal Oak could save $20,000 a year.  Currently, the City Commission receives paper packets that are hand-delivered by Royal Oak Police Offices. 

Redistribution of our Community Promotion Budget - Last budget cycle the city provided about $2,000 toward the Memorial Day parade. I would recommend that the Memorial Day Parade be re-routed through downtown Royal Oak to show off our new Main Street and downtown businesses.  We can then ask our Downtown Development Authority to assume responsibility of being the primary caretaker and funding sponsor for the Memorial Day Parade. 

Regulate Woodward Dream Cruise – Royal Oak along with other municipalities need embrace the Dream Cruise and collectively work to create a way to regulate it and harvest money from it.  One idea is to sell a Dream Cruise sticker or flag to any car that wishes to drive in the designated cruise lanes.  Those cars would then be asked to display their cruise flag or sticker in order to drive in the cruise on cruise day.  The flag or sticker would be sold by municipalities along the cruise corridor and the revenue would be equally split among those cities.  

Remove More Vacant Positions from Budget - The city’s 2007-2008 budget has the cost of vacant city positions built into the budget.  These are positions that have not been filled, however the cost of these positions are budgeted, just in case the commission elects to fill these positions.  By removing the positions from budget, we can remove the money tied to these positions.  It is important to note, last commission meeting the City Commission approved removing the following vacant positions from the budget: Deputy City Attorney, Data Base Administrator, Truck Driver, and Municipal Water Clerk.  There are still vacant positions that we need to remove from the budget.

Create a Municipal Marketing Program - A “Municipal Marketing Program” is an innovative approach in public-private partnerships that will produce additional income for the City of Royal Oak through sponsorship and other marketing arrangements with private corporations. Major local and national brand providers of would have an opportunity to have exclusive rights to sell their products or services within our city owned properties.  For example, a company like Coke-Cola or Pepsi would pay Royal Oak to place their pop machines inside City Hall, parking structures, golf courses, ice arena, and farmers market.   Other forms of marketing sponsorships could be selling the naming rights to our city parking structures, golf courses, or streetscapes. A prime example of a successful “Municipal Marketing Program” is found in Huntington Beach, California. The City of Huntington Beach sold Coca-Cola exclusive rights to soft drink sales on its property for nearly $6 million in cash and services for 10 years.  

Mixed Use High Density Development - Redevelop the Center Street Parking Structure into a mixed-use development using both private and public investment.  The city can maintain ownership of the parking structure and increase our city’s parking without a huge outlay of taxpayer dollars.  In addition, the mixed-use development would be the ideal opportunity to attract a hotel development to downtown Royal Oak.   The addition of the hotel development will pay for a portion of the new structure, spur further economic development in Royal Oak, and bring a nice tax base to our community. -- 22 Oct 07

 Position Paper

Beginning in February of 2007, I formed a community panel of Royal Oak residents consisting of neighbors, city officials, teachers, nonprofit community leaders, business owners, and senior citizens. Together, we have pledged to focus our efforts and energies on improving the quality of life for Royal Oak residents.

We developed the 6 Acorn Plan. Each acorn is a seed that we will plant to improve the quality of life for residents. When elected, it will be my top priority to plan, nurture and foster an environment for these acorns to grow.

The 6 Acorn Plan to a Better Life for all Royal Oak Residents

1. Planning for our Senior Citizens - As the only City Commission candidate appointed to the Royal Oak Senior Citizens Advisory Council, I witnessed first-hand how important our many senior programs and services are to our seniors and their families. That is why, I will fight hard to maintain the services that our local seniors have come to depend on.

For over 30 years, SENIOR PROGRAMS in Royal Oak have been growing steadily; operating without using 1¢ of Royal Oak’s General Fund budget. Instead, the senior programs in Royal Oak are funded by a variety of grants including Beaumont Hospital and SMART. In addition, user fees, fund-raises, and donations help bring in supplementary funds. However, the bulk of the funds come from Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), which are given to Royal Oak by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for use in low to moderate income areas and households.

For the last four years, CDBG funding has been slashed, cutting nearly $140,000 from senior programs. Further reductions are projected for next year. The 2008 federal budget announced earlier this year shows a possible 28% reduction in CDBG funding.

Alternative funding sources must be planned and budgeted NOW. It is up to the city commission to acknowledge the trend of decreased federal funding and act responsibly to begin planning for the future of our senior programs. Our residents rely on these programs. I will work to build a long-term plan that will shift our dependence off federal CDBG funding.

2. Increase Public Safety - I am an associate member of the Fraternal Order of Police, a member of the Royal Oak Community Coalition, and supporter of the Save Our Youth Task Force. Under my watch, public safety for our residents and visitors will be a top priority. When approving future city budgets, I will look to add cost neutral positions to our city’s police force.

Many of you are aware of the well-publicized drug abuse and overdose problem that exists in our city today. In the last year alone, 10 deaths have been attributed to drug overdoses. In addition, the number of related crimes has increased by more than a third. Car thefts, larcenies, and home invasions have increased and at the same time, budget cuts have shrunk our police department by 17 officers, forcing the dissolution of the Directed Patrol Unit (DPU), which dealt largely with drug offenses.

During the 2006-2007 budget discussion, Police Chief Quisenburry asked City Commission to approve hiring (1) additional police officer assigned as an officer on the Drug Enforcement Administration task force (DEA). That police officer would be assigned to a team of federal, state and local law enforcement officers that investigate "high end narcotic cases" in southeastern Michigan. This position would help augment and increase the DEA’s ability to address the regional drug problem. As an added benefit to Royal Oak Police Department, the Royal Oak Police Department along with other participating police agencies would receive estimated annual forfeiture revenues of $150,000 to $300,000 dollars.

In 2006-2007 the Current Royal Oak City Commission "did not" approve Chief Quisenburry’s suggestion. This in my opinion was a mistake that cost our city a full year of not being able to participate in this beneficial program. We have become a "reactive community," waiting until bad things happen before we address the problems. Its time to reestablish our reputation as a proactive community. To do this, I wish to restore the police department to a staffing level that provides them the ability to better handle and prevent problems before they erupt.

3. Preserve Normandy Oaks - I am openly opposed to selling Normandy Oaks Golf Course or any of our precious Royal Oak green space. Our city golf courses and city parks significantly improve the quality of life and economic prosperity for our city residents.

Today, we have 50 parks, more than 57 acres of nature preserves, and two public nine- hole golf courses throughout the city of Royal Oak. Our residents have a vested interest in each and every piece of these properties.

Golf courses have a consistent and substantial positive impact on surrounding property values. Studies suggest that golf course frontage could result in a premium of five to 21 percent of property value, depending on their proximity. (Bolitzer & Netusil, 2000)

Unfortunately, our current City Commission continues to test Royal Oak residents’ willingness to sell some of our recreational areas, specifically, Normandy Oaks Golf Course. As City Commissioner, I promise to protect our treasured green space and golf courses.

4. Innovative Non-Tax Solutions to Balancing the Budget - As a co-owner and managing partner of one of Michigan’s most recognized moving companies, I know how to use innovation to uncover and attract new streams of revenue for the City of Royal Oak. Under my leadership I will bring a "Municipal Marketing Program" to the City of Royal Oak to help balance the city budget. These programs are designed to use creative ways to generate revenue for the city without raising taxes on the residents of Royal Oak. It is an innovative approach in public-private partnerships that will produce additional income for the City of Royal Oak through sponsorship and other marketing arrangements with private corporations.

5. Planning for a Hotel in Downtown Royal Oak – I’m stunned that there still is no major hotel facility in downtown Royal Oak. We are centrally located with excellent access to highways leading to major business clusters throughout the metropolitan area. This should be an attractive site for many of the major hotel chains. And yet … no hotel. A hotel development would help spur economic growth and job opportunities for Royal Oak. It will attract new businesses to the area while helping generate revenue for existing businesses by providing a captive audience for our local businesses to sell their products and services. In addition, it provides a place in Royal Oak to hold weddings, receptions, meetings, events, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. For years, Royal Oak residents and local business owners have heard rumors that a hotel will be built in downtown Royal Oak. For years, Royal Oak residents have watched as no progress has been made. Royal Oak residents have patiently watched an 18-story condo project be built but still no sign of a hotel. We have waited while nothing has happened to the 696/Mainstreet Area. I will help bring a hotel to Royal Oak. I will work with city planning, DDA, and residents to identify a viable long-term placement and planning strategy.

6. Support Our Schools – I believe that every Royal Oak child deserves the support to pursue their educational and career aspirations. It is a common misconception that the City Commission has no direct effect on helping out our school system. However, there are many opportunities for the city to partner with our neighborhood school system to maximize opportunities for our children’s futures. I will expand city internships and opportunities for our children. I will build a coalition of the Next Generation of Leadership for our city. They will share the responsibilities of taking a more participatory role in our local government and they will help shape and contribute to the future of our city.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the 6 Acorn Plan. This plan represents the thoughts and ideas of so many of our Royal Oak residents. To support the cause, please cast your vote on November 6^th, 2007 for Andrew Androff. More information about the plan can be found by visiting my website at http://www.andrewandroff.com/.