Author: montclairoak

How The Budget Pit Feels

On Monday eve, we were able to hear about Oakland’s budget from one City Hall insider.  Oakland’s budget director, Cheryl Taylor, patiently reviewed the major points of the general purposed fund by department – and what’s left for the waning 2009-2010 fiscal year.

To us, it felt like a mining pit.  We’re already digging below ground level, with different parts of the budget carved from the earth and given away.  And at some point, we stop seeing any ground beneath our collective feet.  Nice metaphor, we think.

Although seemingly untenable, there must be another $10.5 million saved before this year’s over.  At least Director Taylor was clear about the challenges.   If we understood correctly, then only 12 percent of the general funds are even available.  Plus only a portion of that $52 million is game since we’re well into the fiscal year.

Taylor put things in perspective when recalling Oakland’s boom and bust cycle.  A while ago, we used to have “three people to do one job,” she explained.  “Now there’s one person to do three jobs.”  It’s not easy to figure out how to save and simultaneously maintain government services.

The Monday meeting enabled civilians like us to suggest or react to possibilities.  No one was crying “save my piece of the pie” here.  Instead, people were soberly considering how public safety or other services might be severed during the recession.

Beyond this fiscal year, there were very interesting rays of hope.  One idea was that work currently done by sworn officers might be civilianized.  Another suggestion was to dive into all the suppliers and contracts again, given these economic times.  And privatizing several city services or resources was raised as well.

However, the task at hand was solvency today.  Make Oakland Better Now!, a citizen initiative, organized this week’s meeting to identify and assess what could be done right now.  After all, the  City Council will be forced to find the remaining millions soon – and we might as well offer our two cents.

Another Day, Another Tree Fall

All those old evergreens are wrecking havoc, crashing and falling without warning.  Another one bit the dust this Sunday on Pinehaven Road, and our eyewitness said it was near the “left hook” on the road.  We also confirmed that tree detritus had been mostly cleared, by midday Monday.

Fortunately, no homes or people were damaged this time.

However the collateral damage was another power outage in the hills, with neighbors off-grid from around 8:00 am yesterday through 3:00 am this morning.  We know it rattles everyone to lose their electrical juice, and it feels particularly awful during chillier winter days and nights.

In addition, one neighbor tipped us about some flooding nearby.  We’re trying to understand what happened there, and whether any water-main damage is related to the downed tree.  There’s zero confirmation yet.

Anyway, another day does mean another tree fall.  That’s one of the risks of Montclair living, especially as trees planted 80-plus years ago reach their senior years.

Montclarions Speak: Your Best Reads

Based on our year-end survey, Montclarions were simply eclectic when asked about their favorite magazines, books and authors.  You shared interests in the economy, politics, tech, home-nesting and a bit of pop culture for good measure.

Montclair’s Favorite Reads

These “best reads” were naturally biased, coming from Montclair neighbors taking our entertainment survey.  You contributed a long list of titles there, with only a handful receiving multiple mentions.  We haven’t read some of the books picked above, and feel gently pushed to give ’em a try.

P.S.  But wait, there’s more.  Some Montclair survey results have not been revealed – like musicians and local eats – so there’s still time to make your suggestions here.

Our 94611 Foreclosures Not That Bad

Every so often, we have looked at real estate prices and foreclosures to see when the tide would turn. The foreclosures are not that bad lately, based on recent 94611 zip code filings that have slowed down.

Let’s start by comparing our foreclosures to virtually anywhere else.  We’re running about 25% of Oakland’s rate overall, some 0.08% vs. 0.32% during November.  For Montclair and Piedmont, our rate translates to around one foreclosure filing for every 1,216 units.

In the past few months, you can see that 94611 foreclosure filings have also dropped.  They ran over 40/month during the third quarter, and dropped to 20/month and below more recently.  Also notice that foreclosure sales prices are holding steady these days – so the tide seems to be turning.

We also took a look at the mix of distressed properties for sale.  While all area properties sold for under $700k last November (citydata.com), the prices for foreclosures are lower and now average $523k (realtytrac.com).  What’s evident is a well-distributed mix among lower and higher-priced units.

In a nutshell, the 94611 foreclosure situation seems to be under control.  The volume of foreclosures, the prices and trends are all moving in the right direction.  It’s true that foreclosures are an epidemic in California and Northern California – but not right here.

A Typical Oakland Hills Painting

While walking today, we noticed a pretty winter scene due to the light and downed tree.  The sun was literally shimmering across the greenery, and it was absolutely gorgeous there.

We wish the intensity could be captured perfectly, but wanted to share this lesser-grade version.  With camera-phone at the ready, it’s always worth a valiant attempt!

In this case, a sad-looking tree and a little brush transformed into a misty Oakland Hills painting.  Have you captured any special views lately?  Please pass them along, and we’ll share them here.