Issues - Clayton 2000

By Julie Pierce

There are a variety of issues facing Clayton residents as we balance the maintainance of our small town atmosphere and the provision necessary services and amenities with a relatively limited revenue stream.

• The City of Clayton must continually strive to maintain our small-town atmosphere while providing necessary services and amenities for our residents with a relatively limited revenue stream.

• We need to increase the number of police officers serving our City to ensure that we maintain our very low crime rate. One-time State handouts don't provide for additional officers for the long term.

• We also need additional maintenance workers to keep our city clean and attractive.

• We must continue to press our State representatives for the return of property tax dollars taken from cities by the state during the recession beginning in 1992. The annual property taxes taken by the State,if returned, would pay for two additional police officers.

• To increase the revenue stream, we must increase our commercial sales-tax base.

• Traffic is always a major concern for all of Contra Costa residents. We need to continue our work with neighboring cities to ensure that traffic impacts are mitigated.

• As Clayton's representative to TRANSPAC and to the Contra Costa Transportation Authority since 1992, serving as Chair in 1995, I've consistently worked to maintain and enhance the transportation opportunities available to our residents in the most cost-effective manner possible.

• In 1998, I was named Woman of the Year for Transportation in the Bay Area by the Women's Transportation Seminar.

• I have worked to retrieve surplus funds from the state for local transportation projects.

• I am currently working with officials in East County, Concord and Walnut Creek to develop a traffic management plan for the East-Central Commute Corridors including Kirker Pass and Ygnacio Valley Road.

• Clayton needs to remain active in the cooperative regional land use planning process. I am committed to protecting Clayton's property values by ensuring that buffering open spaces between cities are preserved.

• As Chair of the City/County Relations Committee of the Mayors' Conference, I've been actively working to reduce sprawl development while providing affordable housing options for our children and grandchildren.

• I am currently leading an effort to identify vacant and underutilized lands throughout Contra Costa County and to develop a plan for locating infill projects close to major transportation and job centers.

• As the mother of two Eagle Scouts, I am dedicated to providing recreational opportunities for all of our youth.

• I have worked with the Raise-A-Gym Committee for over four years to raise funds for a joint-use gymnasium facility to be located at Diablo View Middle School next to the Community Park. The gym would provide recreational activities for the entire community and all age groups. Over $2.2 million has been raised to-date. An application is pending for matching funds from the State. If successful in obtaining the grant, plans will be drawn and construction should begin in 2001.

• I have recently been approached by a group of parents who want to establish and indoor skateboard park business for our youth. While we have no obvious locations for this activity within Clayton, I have given them some ideas for where they might find an appropriate space nearby and have encoraged them to work with the City of Concord. We will continue to work on this venture.

• The Town Center Specific Plan was written before the development of Clayton Station, which reduced the commercial potential of the historic town center area. However, with the build-out of the Oakhurst project, Clayton has finally achieved the critical mass necessary to support the commercial development of our historic downtown as envisioned by the hundreds of citizens who worked on our Town Center Specific Plan in 1988-89.

• A new, more efficient Post Office and a small office building will soon be built on Center Street.

• The reconstruction of Center Street will be completed during the next year. The under-grounding of utilities, provision of storm drains, sidewalks, bike path and parking will make this area commercially desirable for new businesses.

• We should use our Town Center Specific Plan standards and focus the remaining commercial development in the existing historic business area. I believe we should solicit proposals from commercial experts and involve the community extensively in developing a comprehensive plan of the commercial opportunities in downtown. This would help the current land owners plan for the ultimate use of their properties.