Subject: Pasadena Ice Rink Proposal - Status Report
From: "Stewart, Jana" <janastewart@cityofpasadena.net>
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 2009 15:48:36 -0700
The following is a message from Mayor Bill Bogaard. You may
respond directly to him at bbogaard@cityofpasadena.net, with a cc: to
me.
Dear Friends:
I thought it might be helpful to you to hear directly from one member
of the Council about the Council’s decision on Monday to defer the ice
rink project for further study. The time devoted to the matter,
nearly four hours, reflects a strong hope on the part of the Council
that the circumstances will be right to pursue this project.
In the end, the proposal for the City to have sole responsibility for
the project in terms of investment and financial risk from construction
and future operation became increasingly difficult in light of current
economic and fiscal circumstances. The state legislature’s budget
action two weeks ago was a major factor in the outcome.
The Council approved exploration of a public/private partnership for
the project, in which the City would provide certain public works
improvements and certain payments in the early years to facilitate the
completion and commencement of operations. This would involve,
among other things, negotiations with the private company that has been
in discussions with our staff regarding management and operation of the
new facility.
It is hoped the current construction bid can be retained for a period
of time for possible involvement through the public/private
partnership. An effort to obtain an extension on this bid will
take place this week.
Among the points that came out of the discussion, which involved
extensive presentations by staff, testimony by more than 25 speakers,
and lengthy Council deliberations, include the following:
The project will be looked at for possible redesign—“value engineering”—to reduce the cost of construction.
A fresh look will be taken in regard to the impact of the project on
nearby residences in terms of noise, aesthetics, signage, and related
issues. There was considerable difference expressed among
speakers on Monday evening as to whether the impacts would be negative
or benign.
The impact of this project on future preservation and use of open space
in the area will be re-examined, including preservation of trail
continuity on a regional basis.
The amount and the reliability of private contributions will be studied
to see if such offer by users of the new facility can be incorporated
into the financial plan for the project. The offer by users to
provide direct support is, of course, sincerely appreciated.
The possible participation or support by Los Angeles County will be
pursued, along with consideration of possible collaborations with area
cities in which ice skaters reside.
For more detailed information, reference can be made to the staff
report on this matter, which appears on the City’s website, as part of
the agenda materials for Monday’s meeting (www.cityofpasadena.net) The
report notes that the fallback position, if things do not succeed over
a period of time in regard to constructing the new facility, would be
to focus on the existing facility at the Civic Auditorium. In
that event, improvements and repairs would be made and the operation
would be continued in the future to avoid an interruption in the
availability of skating in the City of Pasadena.
As things move forward, the Council requested staff to keep the Council
informed of progress, and it is expected that an update will be
provided at the end of this month or in early September.
The discussion was thoughtful and well informed, with understandable
and reasonable differences among various constituents and
Councilmembers. I felt the discussion was a tribute to all
involved for thoughtfulness, analysis and mutual respect. Let us
hope that progress can be achieved in the weeks ahead.
BILL BOGAARD
Mayor
Jana Stewart
Office of the Mayor & City Council