June
2008 | by Ulla
Sweedler
A
dozen people
gathered in the living
room of our neighbors
Tuesday night
April 29 for a
community conversation
about the future
of Del Mar. We
were joined by
Mayor Dave Druker,
City Manager Karen
Brust, Director
of Public Works
David Scherer
and City Engineer
Carmen Kasner.
I'm told that
19 similar meetings
have been held
in other Del Mar
neighborhoods.
Dave
Druker illuminated
the city budget
by showing colorful
pie charts and
explained why
some pieces of
the pie were bigger
than others, e.g.,
public safety.
We learned that
the largest sources
of income for
the city were
property taxes
and parking fees.
Numerous
issues and questions
were raised and
fielded by Mayor
Druker. He led
the discussion
that ranged from
the Gas Station
Project to the
Fairgrounds plans
and addressed
facts and perceptions,
e.g., our stores
don't sell enough,
but we do have
enough parking
in Del Mar. We
spent some time
talking about
the downtown redevelopment.
If you ever wondered
why certain types
of stores are
here, it may be
because their
owners have them
as hobbies. The
city can try to
attract the kind
of stores we want,
as new spaces
open up.
David
Scherer explained
the bureaucratic
and fiscal intricacies
of clean water;
it'll cost us
a few dollars
more a month.
Karen Brust told
us what it was
like to be, metaphorically,
thrown into the
fire last October
and what the city
has learned from
that disaster.
We generally agreed
that everything
was handled very
well. Carmen Kasner
said that changes
had been made
in the clean-water
department resulting
in less pollution
in the run-off
drains.
We
enjoyed this evening
of professional
outreach and conviviality.
Even a person
who reads every
word in the Sandpiper
and scans the
Del Mar Times
learned a thing
or two.
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