Petaluma's planning department may be cut

<p>In another sign of the economic downturn, Petaluma leaders said Tuesday they may eliminate the department responsible for the city's innovative urban planning because there is not enough development to support it.</p><!-- Nothing to do. The paragraph has already been output --><p>City Manager John Brown said he'll present layoff recommendations to the City Council on Monday that could ultimately shift the duties of the 11-member Community Development Department to a private firm or another city's staff.</p><p>Brown said the cuts are necessary to offset the precipitous decline in the number of building applications and other planning services that generate fees to keep the quasi-enterprise department afloat.</p><p>"The work they do is premised on a certain amount of volume," Brown said. "When that volume doesn't happen, the enterprise can't sustain itself."</p><p>The city has a rich history as a trend setter in planning issues. In 1972, Petaluma defended its landmark growth-control ordinance all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Cities now routinely limit rates of new home construction. Later, the city was an early leader in the creation of an urban growth boundary, a system that eight of the county's nine cities now employ.</p><p>Reaction Tuesday was critical across the board, from Sonoma County's smart-growth advocates and traditional developers alike. Some feared the city would lose an independent voice as it charts future construction while others said the elimination of local planners and code enforcers will mean nothing ever gets done.</p><p>"Petaluma has pioneered any number of things in the area of planning," said environmentalist and former south county Supervisor Bill Kortum. "For it to pioneer this idea would be terrible."</p><p>Steve Birdlebough of the Sonoma County Transportation and Land Use Coalition said it was a mistake to set up Community Development as a pay-as-you-go department in the first place. Planning is a vital service like Public Works that should have a steady source of funding, he said.</p><p>"It's a great idea when lots of people are knocking on your door wanting to put in subdivisions," he said. "When they all go away, you're stuck."</p><p>Steve Geney, president of Petaluma-based North Bay Construction, said the move would hamper economic recovery. "Everybody's had cutbacks, but I haven't heard of anybody yet completely eliminating a department," Geney said. "I don't know what their game is."</p><p>Troubles began last summer after a review of city finances found a budget shortfall of more than $5 million, caused in part by declining sales tax revenue.</p><p>Revenue in Community Development department was off by more than 60 percent and city management responded by cutting half of the staff of 24 employees.</p><p>To meet the reduced payroll of $800,000 a year, the department set a goal of generating about $70,000 a month in fees through the end of the fiscal year in June. But it couldn't do it. As of last month, the department was running a deficit of about $280,000, Director Mike Moore said.</p><p>Now, with the city facing a mid-year deficit of $1 million and a fiscal 2009-2010 shortfall of more than $3 million, there is no money to subsidize the department, Brown said.</p><p>In closed-door meetings the past two weeks, officials have discussed options that include eliminating most or all of the staff and hiring a private firm to do planning on a case-by-case basis. The city could also farm out work to another city.</p><p>Some details will be spelled out in a report from Brown on Thursday.</p><p>"I'm trying to get a grip on the continuity plan right now," Brown said. "We'll probably keep enough administrators on board to ease us through the transition."</p><p>Mayor Pam Torliatt said it's an unfortunate sign of the times that is playing out all over the state. Councilman David Rabbitt agreed, but said the problem is worsened by politics that are unfavorable to developers.</p><p>"No matter what you think of it, development adds to the city's revenue, keeps it humming along," said Rabbitt, an architect and member of the pro-business minority on the council.</p><p>You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 762-7297 or paul.payne@</p><p>pressdemocrat.com.</p>