A Victory for the People of Sierra Madre

If the people of Sierra Madre had not gone to the meetings at City Hall, had they not spoken out during Public Comment, or had they not voiced their opinions on this blog, or not spoken about it with their neighbors and friends, or done nothing at all, would the Kensington Assisted Living Facility project still be going to a Measure V vote this November? Would they have been heard by the party that eventually decided that this project must go to a ballot for approval as is stated by the law? I rather doubt it.

This is people power at its finest. And our right to vote on downtown development projects out of compliance with Measure V was saved despite a very determined (and rather confused) effort by City Hall to take all of that away.

And despite such absurd gambits as an almost entire Planning Commission meeting based on whether the City's definition of a "living unit" was ambiguous or not (the Commission unanimously decided that it was not), our voices were heard, and by an unlikely party. And because of that our rights were preserved and our will prevailed.

Yesterday a letter from Billy Shields was received by City Hall, and it contained what must have been some very astonishing news for the folks there. Here is the passage from that letter that I find to be so surprising.

We understand that real estate development projects stimulate multiple opinions and various levels of concern about how new proposals may impact the neighborhood and community at large. While it is common to have opposing interests that make it impossible to satisfy "all the people all the time," we will work especially hard to incorporate all reasonable suggestions, while still keeping an eye on the ultimate objective that the final project must be a successful enterprise for the sake of the community, the residents and families we serve, and our business.

We believe a process that includes input from an informed community results in a better development. We also hope that a fully collaborative process will lead to the Kensington Assisted Living project becoming an important and valuable member of your community.

For these reasons, we respectfully request that the City Council pass a resolution that: Following completion of the review by the Planning Commission, and approval by the City Council, the KENSINGTON ASSISTED LIVING Project be placed on the November 2012 ballot to be voted upon by the citizens of Sierra Madre.

The full letter is posted on Bill Coburn's news site, and can be accessed by clicking here. Bill also posted a fairly informative article on these matters, yet somehow neglected to mention Measure V. Which seems rather stubborn and unrealistic of him. It is kind of like building a house without taking into account the need for a foundation. I seriously doubt that Shields or any other developer would ever call for a resident vote here on their own project if Measure V was not the law in Sierra Madre.

This also brings up a rather interesting situation. You might have thought that the people we pay to represent our interests would have been the first ones to follow a law that we ourselves voted into existence. And that City Hall would have informed the developer at the outset of this process that a city-wide vote on the Kensington project is legally required here.

But in this case it wasn't our City Hall that demanded that the law be followed, or heard the voice of the people, it was the developer. And the developer, in this case Mr. Shields, was the one who called for the vote, and on his own project! And in the process tossed aside the misguided efforts made on his behalf by City Hall. Can anyone here ever recall such a thing taking place anywhere else before?

This is unprecedented in my opinion. It was the development company, and not our own City Hall, that put its faith in the people of Sierra Madre, and in doing so complied with our laws.

Apparently Billy Shields figured out that the source of a lot of the controversy over the Kensington was not so much the project itself, but the clumsy efforts of City Hall to evade a legally mandated vote as written into the law here by the people. Which also means that Shields had come to understand that City Hall, in its efforts on his behalf to impede a Measure V vote, was actually doing more harm to his project than good. And that the time had come to step in and put an end to all that.

I personally find this to be a rather amazing event. And because of it I am going to take an entirely new look at this project and the people behind it. I am sure there will be differences, and at times things will get contentious, but at least we're negotiating with a stand-up guy who respects the people of Sierra Madre. I certainly can't say the same for the people who were supposed to be looking out for our interests.

But wait, there's more!

The Pasadena Star News this morning has an article up on their website entitled, "Developer puts Sierra Madre assisted living facility on track for November election" (click here). It covers a lot of the same territory we've discussed here, and unlike the Sierra Madre News.net article it does mention Measure V. But there is also a rather revealing passage, one that highlights the attitude of City Hall throughout this process.

The developer behind a proposed assisted-living facility has asked the City Council to put the project on the November ballot, easing some concerns about compliance with a 2007 city measure. Kensington Assisted Living Facility, which would replace a vacant nursing home at 235 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., is still set to go before the Planning Commission on Feb. 16.

The project would go to the City Council if the Planning Commission approves it, and the council would make any decision to add it to the election, according to City Manager Elaine Aguilar. "It needs to go through the entire review process if the Planning Commission and City Council," Aguilar said, noting that the process had barely started.

While it is true that both the Planning Commission and the City Council will have to approve this project before it goes forward, Elaine's observation about the City Council deciding whether or not to put this on the ballot is not. If this project is approved by both bodies, and it is then to go on and gain full legal approval, then according to a voter approved Sierra Madre law, it must go on the ballot.

This really isn't a decision for them at all. It is dictated by law and must happen. The City Council is not above the law. For a figure in our government as influential as the City Manager to believe it is could very well put our City into legal jeopardy someday.

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