The Year-In-Review Play Up. Build Up.
Work Up. Start Up.
Live Up.
Inside 2012 Page 2 ………………………………………. City Manager Introduction Page 3 ………………………………………. Finance Page 4 ………………………………………. Community Development Page 5 ………………………………………. Police Department Page 6 ………………………………………. Infrastructure Page 7 ………………………………………. Airport and More Highlights Page 8 ………………………………………. City Organization and Contact Info
Live Up.
City of Tehachapi
Dear Community Members, In 2008, life changed. As a nation, we saw our economy bottom out, investments lost, fortunes eliminated, and the brightness of the future dimmed. Unfortunately, there was widespread talk of a new normal, stemming from a reluctant acceptance that the unparalleled excitement and prosperity that we had seen during the first part of the 21st century would not return in our lifetimes. I'm proud to say however, that despite the doom and gloom expressed nationally, the greater community and the City of Tehachapi rejected the concept that we were on the downhill slide. That didn't mean that we stuck our heads in the sand- we made cuts and set priorities like you probably did in your own households- but we made a conscious choice to find a new way forward. I'm proud to say that because of that commitment by our community, our City Council and our City Staff, the City of Tehachapi was on the upswing in 2012. That's what makes it so gratifying to share this year-in-review with you now. We've seen success in improving our infrastructure, we've seen business and private investment growth, and we've seen the housing market that has dragged down so many communities beginning to correct itself. In the pages that follow, our Departments will share a selection of this year's successes. We'll also share with you our plans for the future and what we think we can do to defy physics and see our City's upswing carry us even higher than where we started. Best Regards,
Greg Garrett City Manager
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Year-In-Review
Tehachapi City Finances How Is The Money Spent?
Finance Director Hannah Chung The City of Tehachapi General Fund had another year in the black. Throughout the recession, the City of Tehachapi has maintained a balanced budget, outpacing many of the communities in the surrounding region. Through the hard work of City Staff, there is a healthy reserve in the General Fund and City Staff expects that trend to continue into 2013. In fact, Tehachapi’s 2012 upswing took sales tax revenues higher than pre-recession levels. Although the City’s Fiscal Year runs from July 1-June 30, and therefore does not coincide with the end of the calendar year, City revenues are again projected to increase over those of the previous year, and our expenditures are expected to remain fairly steady.
General Fund Revenue vs. Expenditures $7,000,000 $6,000,000 $5,000,000 $4,000,000 $3,000,000 $2,000,000 $1,000,000 0 07/08
08/09
Revenue Expenditure
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09/10 Actual
10/11
Mid 11/12
12/13 Budget
Fiscal Year
City of Tehachapi
Growing Up Community Development Director David James Light Industrial
General Plan
In 2012, the City of Tehachapi continued to “Build Up.� After several years of community input and the hard work of Planning Staff and the Planning Commission, the City adopted an unconventional and unrivaled General Plan. With few other similar plans nationwide, the City of Tehachapi is on the leading edge of community planning with a renewed focus on livability, sustainability, pedestrian friendliness, and attractive urban development. The plan also works in concert with the new Greater Tehachapi Specific Plan, adopted by the County, encouraging urban growth within the City limits and rural growth in the County. Plans aren’t the only things being built in the City however. New retail centers and light industrial buildings have also been continuing their steady progression. Specifically, a retail center on Tehachapi Blvd will be taking the place of the old Mountain Crossing restaurant and another new freeway oriented service station has been built at the eastern end of Tehachapi Blvd. This year has also seen the construction of several new industrial buildings on Tehachapi Blvd, just east of Dennison. These buildings represent new business growth and more jobs for community residents.
New Retail Opportunities
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Year-In-Review
Public Safety a High Priority For any community to succeed in the long-term, it must have excellent public safety. Our own Tehachapi Police Department (TPD) works hard every day to provide that excellence through a focus on community policing. Some of the best evidence of this philosophy is the significant volunteer service provided by TPD’s Volunteers In Policing. In 2012, these volunteers provided approximately 3500 hours of their time and saved the City an estimated $84,630.00. TPD also has a strong Police Explorer program with 14 young adults learning policing techniques and life skills. Their hard work has paid off as they’ve won trophies in several Explorer competitions and even hosted their own here in Tehachapi.
Chief of Police Jeff Kermode
Sergeant, Wyatt Empey
Sergeant, Kevin Paille
Unfortunately, community policing doesn’t stop crime completely. While some property crimes have increased in recent months, the relationships our officers have built with the community has led to many of those crimes being solved quickly and effectively. Violent crime also continues to be very low and almost entirely between people who know each other. Our community is still very safe and working together with the community, our officers will make sure it stays that way. Lastly, to enhance our community policing efforts the City began design work on a new Police Headquarters building in 2012. This new building will be constructed in an old building on C Street, allowing for the redevelopment and adaptive reuse of the existing facility and the creation of more community space. It will also provide a larger, more functional space for the officers working so hard to keep our City safe.
Concept Elevation for the new Tehachapi Police Headquarters
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City of Tehachapi
Building Up Our Infrastructure
Assistant City Manager Christopher Kirk
Utility Manager Jon Curry
City Engineer Jay Schlosser
Public Works Director Dennis Wahlstrom
High quality infrastructure is a priority for the City of Tehachapi and we continued “Building Up” our infrastructure foundations in 2012. One of the highest profile projects of the year was our Wastewater Treatment Upgrade, which included $4.5 million of new investment to improve the treatment process and increase capacity. The upgrades also included landscaping the plant’s frontage along Highway 58, a new maintenance building, and a new administration building for the wastewater plant. This project, and others were executed more effectively with the addition of a City Engineer and Assistant Engineer to the City’s staff. Improvements continued throughout downtown in 2012 with the addition of landscaping, lighting and accessibility enhancements at multiple intersections, on South Green St, and on Tehachapi Blvd, from Robinson St to Hayes St. These projects totaled nearly $2 million in investment in downtown and were grant funded. Downtown wasn’t the only area of town to receive needed upgrades however, as the Alta Estates Subdivision at the southern end of Curry St received completed roads, sidewalks and storm drains as a result of a settlement between the City and the failed housing developer. Within weeks of the award of the project, new housing starts began again, signaling a turn-around in our housing market and a light at the end of the tunnel for residents living in a previously unfinished neighborhood.
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Year-In-Review
The Sky’s the Limit
Airport Manager Tom Glasgow
The Tehachapi Municipal Airport continues to be a destination for pilots wanting to “Fly Up” for lower fuel prices and a friendly airport. The airport experienced record fuel sales in 2012 and saw continued enhancements with grant funds from the Federal Aviation Administration. Airport and City Staff have also been in conversations for the development of a permanent home for the Kern County Fire Department’s Helitack Crew. While the crew has moved operations into a temporary facility at KTSP, a permanent home will be a welcomed addition to an already stellar aviation facility.
More Great Highlights The year 2012 saw even more partnerships developed between the City of Tehachapi and local organizations and non-profits. Expanded seating, improved accessibility and other great improvements were completed at the Tehachapi Event Center and Rodeo Ground through one of these partnerships, with the Tehachapi Mountain Rodeo Association. The City also completed a Bicycle Master Plan in parallel course with the County of Kern. These two new plans will help our community develop a more effective bicycle network for both travel and recreation. Partnering also extended into the private sector as Lehigh Southwest Cement Company made a generous donation of $20,000 to the construction of a new “Freedom Plaza” in downtown celebrating the five main branches of the United States Military. A conceptual plan for the plaza was approved by the City Council in late 2012 and construction is expected to begin in 2013. Other exciting partnerships helped the City “Talk Up” Tehachapi to the movie industry. The Kern County Film Commission and the City of Tehachapi worked closely to attract and support several large film shoots to Tehachapi. These film shoots brought money into the community through hotels and restaurants and even helped the City win a California On Location Award for being such a film friendly destination.
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Tehachapi City Council
Tehachapi’s Stock Is Trending Up In 2013.
Mayor Phil Smith
Mayor Pro-Tem Susan Wiggins
Councilmember Mary Lou Vachon
Councilmember Kim Nixon
Councilmember Ed Grimes
Tehachapi City Hall
Tehachapi Police
115 S. Robinson St
129 E. F St
Tehachapi, CA 93561
Tehachapi, CA 93561
(661) 822-2200
(661) 822-2222
After Hours (661) 822-2233
www.TehachapiCityHall.com Page 8