14 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY MAY 15-21, 2025 www.montereycountynow.com The City of Monterey is broke, and in the coming weeks and months, it will be up to the community, and ultimately the City Council, as to how to go about fixing it. Such were the contours laid out at a May 6 Monterey City Council meeting, where Public Works Director Andrea Renny highlighted the challenges ahead in funding the maintenance of the city’s aging infrastructure. But before Renny started with her presentation, City Manager Hans Uslar set the table, telling the council that many things the city has long considered assets have in practice become liabilities, properties that generate little to no revenue but come at a cost to maintain. The city owns 97 facilities totaling 396,000 square feet, must maintain 108 centerline miles of roadway, 100 miles of sewer lines, 44 miles of storm drains and two lift stations, two wharves, a marina, four parking structures, 30 surface lots and 36 parks and open spaces. Its library, police and fire stations were built in the 1950s. Meanwhile, the amount of money in the city’s general fund available this fiscal year to help pay for all that maintenance is $0. Last year, $2.5 million was available from the general fund for capital improvement projects, just 2.3 percent of the city’s budget. By comparison, Seaside, for example, was able to invest 13 percent of its general fund to that end, while San Luis Obispo allotted 25 percent. In this current fiscal year, Monterey has $21 million for capital projects, all from restricted funds. The majority ($15.7 million) comes from Measure S, a 1-percent sales tax voters approved in 2018 that expires in March 2027. Renny said that Measure S, like the four-year Measure P before it, has been critical in bringing the city’s streets up to a “good” rating from “at-risk.” She emphasized that maintaining roads before they further deteriorate saves money long-term—a dollar spent today on maintenance prevents a costlier repair later. In the next five years, Renny said the city’s infrastructure costs will total about $106 million, and for the 25 years after that, about $341 million. Rafaela King, Monterey’s finance director, will present to City Council on Tuesday, May 20 on possible funding strategies, but Uslar reiterated there would be “no magic bullet,” and that it isn’t a problem that could be solved by sales taxes or bond measures alone. “We have to ask uncomfortable questions,” Uslar said. Researchers at CSU Monterey Bay were well underway in putting a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture into motion—already working with 25 local farmers to implement climate-smart practices on their farms— when they received a letter announcing the remainder of their project funds had been terminated. The termination letter arrived on April 22, informing researchers with the Department of Biology and Chemistry that the project no longer met new criteria set by the USDA. Funding was halted effective immediately. They were given the option to reapply for funding by June 12 and told guidance on the reapplication process would follow. However, as of press time, no clear instructions have been provided. “We had done so much upfront work in all the different areas that we were trying to achieve,” says Stefanie Kortman, a research technician on the project. Roughly $1.4 million of the grant had already been put to use. CSUMB’s project was one of 141 others funded as part of a $3.1 billion USDA grant administered by Partnerships for ClimateSmart Commodities, a program aimed at supporting agricultural production that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and sequesters carbon. Locally, this involved smaller-scale, underserved specialty crop producers contracted to implement several practices emphasized in the grant: cover cropping, compost application and reduced nitrogen management. Farmers had begun applying these practices with technical support, while researchers were tracking the impact on soil health. The timing of the termination was disruptive, stopping research that was only a month away from completing a data collection cycle. Roughly 10 people’s salaries were impacted, ranging from students to professors to administrative positions. While they were able to secure emergency funds to continue some data collection, Kortman says the challenge is finding ways to sustain the project in the future. Tight Rope Monterey is facing a crisis with the costs needed to fix its aging city infrastructure. By David Schmalz NEWS RAISING AWARENESS Monterey County Behavioral Health hosts open houses at its clinics to share what resources it has to offer. 1-3pm Thursday, May 15 at ACCESS Salinas, 1441 Constitution Blvd., Building 400, Suite 200, Salinas. 1-3pm Wednesday, May 21 at ACCESS Marina, 299 12th St., Marina. Free. 755-4510, countyofmonterey.gov. MEET THE CADETS The Salinas Police Department hosts an open house to share information about its cadet program. 6pm Friday, May 16. Salinas Police Department Community Room, 312 E. Alisal St., Salinas. Free. 758-7094, SPOT@ci.salinas.ca.us. SCRAP YARDS Salinas Valley Recycles presents a workshop on composting, informing participants on how to turn kitchen scraps and yard trimmings into a soil amendment. 10-11am Saturday, May 17. Education Center Garden, 31400 Johnson Canyon Road, Gonzales. Free. 775-3000, svswa.org/free-compost-workshops. HOME HARDENING Supervisor Kate Daniels hosts a community meeting to discuss preparing homes for flooding and fires for residents in the San Benancio/ Corral de Tierra area. 9:30-11am Sunday, May 18. Corral de Tierra Country Club, 81 Corral de Tierra Road. Free. 647-7755, countyofmonterey.gov. WORKING FOR THE PUBLIC To celebrate National Public Works Week, the County of Monterey, City of Salinas and American Public Works Association host an event with family activities, public works equipment displays, booths and more. 11am-3pm Sunday, May 18. Toro Park, 501 Monterey-Salinas Highway, Salinas. Free. 755-4800, countyofmonterey.gov. BLOOD DRIVE Vitalant hosts blood drives to make blood available for patients in need. Eligible donors are asked to make an appointment. Noon-4pm Wednesday, May 21 at American Legion Post 41, 1110 Veterans Drive, Monterey. 10am-2pm Thursday, May 22 at Montage Medical Group, 2930 2nd Ave., Marina. Free. (877) 258-4825, vitalant.org. BASIN BOARD The Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency seeks applications for the Board of Directors’ public member seat. An applicant must be a resident or a representative of an organization within one of the six subbasins in the Salinas Valley Basin. Applications due 5pm Thursday, June 5. Free. 471-7519, svbgsa.org. Up Rooted As local climate-smart farming research advances, USDA cuts a critical funding stream. By Katie Rodriguez The cracking pavement on Munras Avenue outside Trader Joe’s in Monterey is just one example of a street that would be cheaper to repair sooner than later. E-MAIL: toolbox@montereycountynow.com TOOLBOX In the next five years, infrastructure costs will total $106 million. DANIEL DREIFUSS
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