PreservePVE: March 2024 - Taxes and Safety

PVE Community Newsletter

Serving Lunada Bay, Malaga Cove, Montemalaga and Valmonte

Photo by Mo Kim

This Issue

Staffing Changes: New City Mgr, Police Chief and vacancies
Financial: City Poll Results for Tax Increases
Land: Safety Standards needed for Density Housing
Safety: Burglary MO & City TERMINATES Crime Stat Reporting
Community: In memory of Bill Brand
Q&A: Similarities in the Community Budget Survey and City’s Tax Poll?

City Poll Results for Tax Increases

Council contracted NBS to poll residents to determine the likelihood of a parcel tax being passed by voters, which requires 66% approval. Results: LINK

NBS Pollsters reported:

There is not enough support to pass a tax increase of 150% (63%) or 200% (53%)
There is support to continue Measure E with an automatic annual increase of about 3%

(article continued below under Polling Accuracy)

DENSITY: Safety Standards

On 3/26/24, Council will decide whether to protect our entire city with Building and Safety standards for By-Right Density projects. LINK

CA laws allow safety and development protections for By-Right projects..

PVE is in slide, flood, fire and earthquake zones with limited ingress/egress, similar to Paradise CA and Lahaina fires. PVE has 4 active slide areas.

Density projects without adequate Safety and Building standards are a danger to us all.

Staffing Changes

We welcome Kerry Kallman as our new Interim City Manager. Kerry was the City Manager for Hidden Hills.

We thank Elaine Jeng for her service as our outgoing City Manager and serving PVE for nine months. LINK

We welcome Dan Dreiling’s return as our new Interim Police Chief. We thank Luke Hellinga for his service. Luke continues to serve our city as Captain.

More City Vacancies (14) - Please Apply LINK

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Safety: Another Burglary Spike

February: Eight Reported Burglaries

We interviewed victims of one of the burglaries who confirmed their MO with the police who stated this MO is consistent with other PVE burglaries:

Please share this information

Perps carry a portable ladder to gain access to 2nd-story master bedroom balconies
They cut the glass out of the sliding door, and crawled through, so the alarm is not triggered
They lock the master bedroom from the inside to stop residents and dogs
The glass opening’s widest point was 13”… minors? (pictured)
They carry drills to drill into safes on-site
They focus on the master suite: bedroom, bath and closet
They seek cash, jewelry and expensive purses

Residents selected a Burglary Abatement Program as their #1 choice in the Community Engagement Budget Survey LINK

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Safety: PVE Terminates Crime Stat Reporting

Following last year’s burglary spike, the City decided to terminate public disclosure of crime stats. Does this make us safer? The FBI requires PVE report these stats to the FBI, so disclosure to residents is FREE.

Our new City Manager, Kerry Kallman, required crime stat reporting for Hidden Hills where he was the City Manager. Hidden Hills monthly Crime Stats

Council directed crime stats to be made public in 2021: minutes. Quitely, PVE has now posted “Monthly Crime Stats are no longer available”.

Dec 2022 was the last crime stats that was made public. LINK

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POLLING ACCURACY

Council questioned if NBS’s sampling of 200 residents for tax support was reliable even if Council reaches out and communicates with the community:

The pollster said their polls have accurately predicted ballot measures each time LINK

PreservePVE findings: a 200 person sampling provides a 7% margin of error and is statistically significant using industry standards: (all 5 sources agree)

June 2023: PreservePVE provided a Community Engagement Budget Survey, then sent to Council using a sampling of 204 residents. LINK

June 7, 2021: PreservePVE provided Council a petition signed by 200 residents requesting that they balance the budget and include all spending in the budget to avoid deficits.

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Thank you, Bill Brand

Bill Brand had been a leader in CA as protector of the environment and local control. Bill fought against over-development in Redondo by implementing local initiatives giving residents a voice. Bill’s legacy continues as Our Neighborhood Voices leads a statewide initiative to restore local control to protect the environment, communities and open space.

Rest in peace, Bill.

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Newsletter Inquiry

Q1: What were the similarities in the Community Engagement Budget Survey and the City’s recent Tax Poll?

1) Satisfaction with the city

Community Engagement Budget Survey:
Results: 38% satisfied / 44% dissatisfied with city services
City poll:
Results: 43% satisfied / 44% dissatisfied with Council
57% satisfied / 41% dissatisfied with city overall

2) Importance of Open Space and protecting from Development

Community Engagement Budget Survey asked, about many ways to fund additional city services
Result: selling/developing Public Land was the lowest at 2.6%.
City Poll asked about building and development
Result: 92% consider maintaining Open Space a priority

Q2: The city site states “you may see all reports by viewing the weekly reports”. Are crime stats available in the weekly reports?

No. Weekly reports do not provide any crime stats, so crime spikes are not reported to Council or the public. Also:

Weekly reports have a disclaimer at the bottom that states not all reported crimes are included.
The FBI’s site provides public access of all crime stats for all cities, so there is a differing opinion among law enforcement on the value of withholding crime stats from the public.
PVE reported about 30% more crime occurred in the city to the FBI, then was reported to the public in prior crime stats.

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Palos Verdes Estates’ unique charm is reflected in its magnificent trees, ocean vistas, architecture, dedicated open space, protected coastal habitats, and scenic roadways. The PreservePVE Newsletters focus on land, good governance practices, safety and community.

We are residents preserving and supporting our beautiful city.

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Prior Newsletter Issues: LINK (bottom of page)

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