City Council Votes 4-1 to Increase Fees to Residents Outside City Limits

The Santa Clarita City Council voted 4-1 yesterday to further penalize residents outside the City limits.

Councilman Frank Ferry spearheaded the campaign to increase Parks and Recreation fees to Santa Clarita residents outside the City limits by $40-$50, beginning with the 2006-2007 season. Residents already had an advantage over non-residents in these programs as a result of a prior decision to give City residents priority registration in the Parks and Rec programs.

The only dissenting vote came from Councilman Cameron Smyth.

Excluded from this increase are parks that were orginally created by the County and then subsequently turned over to the City. These include Canyon Country, Newhall, North Oaks, Valencia Glen, Valencia Meadows, Bouquet Canyon, Old Orchard and Santa Clarita parks.

Apparently registrations for the Parks and Recreation programs are currently made up of 51% City residents and 49% non-residents.

Dave Bossert, vice president of the West Ranch Town Council, declared that the city is "trying to take the gold mine while giving the residents of the unincorporated areas the shaft."

Bossert suggested that city officials should have met with town council officers before unilaterally reaching this decision. Ferry was not pleased with this remark, and stated that if residents in the unincorporated areas decide they want to be part of the City, they should come forward so the City can better plan for the next 30 years. Bossert’s response to this was that Ferry is taking a "bullying approach" to the situation rather than acting in a neighborly manner.

It appears that even the City Council members are unclear as to where the City boundaries start and end, as they have plastered their election campaign banners across areas that are clearly outside the City’s limits.

Representatives from Supervisor Mike Antonovich’s office stated that his office plans to work alongside the city to ensure a fair deal all around. I’m not holding my breath on this one, but at least the thought is there.

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