Reductions and Terminations Approved.

Last night the San Carlos School Board voted to accept the recommendation to send out potential termination/reduction notices to approximately 28 certificated employees in the school district.  The net impact to the District will be the loss of approximately 18.5 Full-Time Employee (FTE) positions, since some of the positions that are impacted are part-time positions, and others are reductions in hours rather than complete eliminations.   Here’s a copy of the resolution which discusses the positions in more detail: San Carlos School District Reductions

This recommendation was made as the District struggles to close a budget gap that is estimated to be between $1.6M-$2.2M.    Those employees who are impacted are required to be notified by Monday, March 15.

Tough Losses.

San Carlos has always been known as having one of the top public school districts on the San Francisco Peninsula, and losing these positions will be felt throughout the District.   More details about this staff reduction will certainly follow in the upcoming days, but for now it’s a tough day for everyone involve in the San Carlos School District.

————————————-

Public Safety – A Hot Topic.

The San Carlos Police Department has been in the news quite a bit these past few weeks, but not for reasons you might expect.   Last week, the City Manager of San Carlos announced that his “preferred path” to balance the City’s budget calls for outsourcing the law enforcement responsibility in San Carlos to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.   (The other part of this proposal is to turn the Fire Department responsibilities to Cal Fire, but that will be addressed in a different segment.)

This announcement has raised major concerns within the Police ranks, as well as with the citizens of San Carlos — and rightfully so.   If you attended last night’s fantastic Police Town Hall Meeting, you saw the statistics first-hand –  San Carlos has one of the best police departments on the Peninsula, hands down.  So while the cost savings that the City Manager is proposing may look enticing on paper, there are far too many questions that need to be answered before any judgment should be rendered on this proposal.  One thing is for certain — ANY proposal needs to maintain this level of service, or it won’t be a good deal for San Carlos.

Interview:  The San Carlos Police Officer’s Association.

This week’s guest on Spotlight on San Carlos is Suzanne Sheppard, Vice President of the San Carlos Police Office’s Association.   In this interview, we discuss topics ranging from current staffing challenges in the department, to the latest budget proposal.   Click the play button below to hear the interview:

(If you’re reading this on email, click on this link to access the interview:  Interview — San Carlos POA)

————————————-

Two Options Proposed.

Late today, the City of San Carlos issued a press release that outlines the two paths that are now being considered to close the city’s current $3.5M budget gap.   While the two options are quickly outlined in the City Budget Overview from the city website, they will be discussed in much more detail in the upcoming City Council Budget Workshop that will be held next Saturday, March 13 at 12:00 at the San Carlos Library.   But even with few details to draw from, one thing is very evident — both options take radically different approaches to solving the budget deficit.

The City’s “Preferred” Path:  Outsource Fire and Police Services.

You may have heard rumors to the effect that the City was considering outsourcing the Fire Department services to Cal Fire, and the Police Department services to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.  Well, these are no longer rumors –  in today’s press release, City Manager Mark Weiss left no doubt that this is his “preferred path” to closing the budget deficit, since it accounts for $3M-$6M in potential savings.  This proposal also calls for outsourcing park maintenance, and for the installation of parking meters downtown for an additional savings of up to $500K.

The Other Path:  Cuts Across the Board.

The second option that is being considered is essentially an aggregation of the cuts that were proposed earlier in the 10%/20% budget reduction exercises that were conducted a few months back by each of the key departments.   The press release has more details, but some of the major elements of this proposal include:

• Eliminate 9 full-time City positions.
• Close Youth Center and Laureola Building.
• Eliminate 2 full-time police positions, and numerous part-time positions.

The press release is careful to state that this is only a “partial listing of anticipated program impacts”, which implies that more “program impacts” (aka cuts) are possible.

More Questions than Answers.

Obviously, the details of each proposal will be covered in much greater depth at the Budget Workshop on March 13, but the vague nature and notable exceptions of this press release certainly raise more questions than answers.  Here are just a few:

• Neither proposal mentioned a word about the possible closure of Crestview and Arguello Parks.  Is this now off the table, or are they one of those potential “program impacts” that are referred to above?
• What happens to the existing Fire and Police personnel?  Are they offered jobs and absorbed into the Sheriff’s Department and Cal Fire, respectively, or will they all lose their jobs?
• No mention of the closure of Fire Station 16 — what does this mean?

Answers to these questions (and others) will certainly shape the public’s opinion about the proposed options.

What Do You Think?

It’s important to remember that more details on both proposals will (hopefully) be forthcoming in the near future.  But based on what you see so far, what are your thoughts?  While the Fire and Police Departments account for nearly 60% of the total budget, is it fair to pin them with 100% of the responsibility to fix the budget?  How do you feel about outsourcing these vital services?  Do you want the San Mateo County Sheriff’s office to be responsible for the public safety of San Carlos?

Make your opinion heard.  Cast your vote in the poll below…

or feel free to leave a comment to this post.

————————————-

A New Feature!

I am pleased to announce a cool new addition to the White Oaks Blog  –  the “Spotlight on San Carlos”.  The Spotlight will feature a series of 1:1 interviews with people who have an impact on our lives daily lives in San Carlos; whether they are civic leaders, business owners, educators, or just a surprise guest or two.   It’s a feature that’s exclusive to the White Oaks Blog, and I hope you enjoy it.

Our First Guest:  Andy Klein.

Andy Klein is the newest member of the San Carlos City Council.  In a relatively short time on the Council, Andy has already had to tackle a number of issues that are critical to the future of San Carlos — most notably the budget deficit.  Andy was gracious enough to take time out of his busy day to chat with the White Oaks Blog.  Here’s the interview:

(Note:  for those of you who subscribe to the blog via email, you’ll need to either visit the site directly to hear the interview on the audio player, or you can download it directly by clicking here:  Andy Klein Interview)

————————————-

Inventory Analysis

Things are certainly heating up in the world of San Carlos real estate.  For the second week in a row, there has been a healthy influx of new listings – but for the second consecutive week, homes have been selling at virtually the same rate as they’re coming on the market.  Just look at the number of homes that went into contract this week (see below) and how fast they sold.   5 of the 7 that sold were on the market for less than 2 weeks.

BlogCast

For this week’s review, there’s also a BlogCast on the current market conditions in San Carlos.  Just click on the play button below:

Here’s a snapshot of the San Carlos single family home market, as of 2/20. The previous week’s stats are in parentheses:

Single-Family Homes Sold in San Carlos:

Below are the single-family homes that sold this past week in San Carlos. Click on the respective addresses to get all the details.

1813 Chestnut Street, San Carlos

1813 Chestnut Street

• Sale Price: $910,000. Original List Price: $899,999. Difference: $10,001 (1.1%) above original list. DOM: 8 Days, MLS #81001201. Listed by Maxine Dumas of Dumas & Company.

1125 Walnut Street

• Sale Price: $750,000. Original List Price: $769,888. Difference: $19,888 (2.6%) below original list. DOM: 10 Days, MLS #81000939. Listed by Steve Eldridge of RE/MAX Today.

(Click the “Homes Sold” button below see all of the homes that have sold in San Carlos in the past 3 months.)

Homes Sold in San Carlos

——————————————————————————

Single-Family Homes Pending Sale in San Carlos:

The following homes went “Pending Sale” this week — click on the address for more info:

• 112 Northam Ave, after 185 days on the market.
• 142 Wildwood Ave, after 7 days.
• 331 Fairfield Dr, 17 days
• 364 De Anza Ave, 8 days.
• 15 Arch Lane, 11 days
• 159 Ruby Avenue, 5 days
• 26 Beverly Drive, 5 days.

(Click the “Homes Pending Sale” button below to see ALL the homes that are Pending Sale in San Carlos.)

Homes Pending Sale in San Carlos

——————————————————————————

New Single-Family Home Listings in San Carlos:

Below are the new listings that hit the market this past week in San Carlos. Simply click on the address of each home to get all the details.

335 Pearl Avenue, San Carlos

335 Pearl Avenue

• Pictured:  $997,000 – 3BR/2BA, 1,690 sq ft on a 7,000 square foot lot. MLS# 81007768. Listed by Jean Rigg of Menlo Realty.

350 Oakview Drive

• $859,000 – 3BR/2BA, 1,120 sq ft on a 5,610 square foot lot. MLS# 81007795. Listed by Lizbeth Rhodes of Alain Pinel Realtors.

124 Northam Avenue

• $799,000 – 3BR/2BA, 1,580 sq ft on a 6,840 square foot lot. MLS# 81007352. Listed by Stanley Lo of Green Banker Realty.

1733 Alameda de las Pulgas

• $749,000 – 3BR/1BA, 1,230 sq ft on a 3,400 square foot lot. MLS# 81007150. Listed by Lisa Susnow of Coldwell Banker.

Homes for Sale in San Carlos

————————————————————————————————————

Condos and Townhomes Sold in San Carlos:

Below are the condos/townhouses that sold this past week. Click on the address for all of the details:

3280 La Mesa Drive

• Sale Price: $544,000. Original List Price: $559,000. Difference: $15,000 (2.7%) below original list. DOM: 84 Days, MLS #80954550. Listed by Sean Clar of RE/MAX Star Properties.

(Click the “Condos Sold” button below to see all of the condos and townhomes that have recently sold in San Carlos)

Condos Sold in San Carlos

—————————————————————————

Condo/Townhouse Pending Sales in San Carlos

The following condos/townhouses are now pending sale:

• no condos or townhouses went pending this past week.

(Click the “Condos Pending Sale” button below to see all of the condos and townhomes that are pending sale in San Carlos)

Condos Pending Sale in San Carlos

————————————————————————–

New Condo/Townhouse Listings in San Carlos:

The following condo/townhouse listings came on the market this past week:

222 Laurel Street #111.

• $275,000 – 3BR/1BA, 1,230 sq ft on a 3,400 square foot lot. MLS# 81007664. Listed by Lisa Susnow of Coldwell Banker.

(Click the “Condos for Sale” button below to see all of the condos and townhomes that are currently for sale in San Carlos)

Condos for Sale in San Carlos

———————————————

What’s Open This Weekend?

Click the “Open House” button to see ALL of the homes and condos scheduled to be open this weekend in San Carlos.

Open House in San Carlos

Want your data sooner? Become a fan of the White Oaks Blog Page on Facebook where I post San Carlos home sales updates as they happen. Just click on the Facebook button below….



———————————————-


(The “San Carlos Week in Review” series is a summary of new listings and home sales in San Carlos for the prior week.)

———————————————

————————————-

A New Format

Welcome to the first installment of the “San Carlos Real Estate Report Card” series for 2010.   Much like I did last year, I’ll use this series to give you a high level recap of what happened in San Carlos for the prior month.  But I decided to change the format a bit this year, with some new graphs that yield better information than before.   The biggest change, though, is that I’ll be doing the report cards in a Blogcast format.  This will allow me to go in more depth into the market conditions, buyer and seller behavior, and other commentary that’s difficult to capture in print.

So check click on the “Play” arrow below, and follow along on the chart.  I hope you find the new format useful and interesting!

————————————-

San Carlos is known for being a relatively safe community.  It’s one of the big reasons that people choose to settle here and raise families — it’s still very much a “bedroom community” that until recently enjoyed relative obscurity.   When I used to work in Silicon Valley, most people I talked with had no idea where San Carlos was even located!  And that’s fine for most residents of San Carlos — a big part of the charm of this city is that it has been a hidden gem on the Peninsula for many years.

But the public safety of San Carlos isn’t something we can take for granted anymore, especially during this period of financial crisis.    Have you gotten the feeling recently that there are more crimes being reported in San Carlos?  Do you know someone who has been a victim of a crime in San Carlos?  It’s not your imagination that crime is on the uptick — because it is.

“Part 1 Crimes” Increased by 25% in 2009.

In tonight’s San Carlos City Council Meeting, Police Chief Greg Rothaus will present some alarming statistics to the City Council in his Annual Report on Police Services.  In a period of time where our police budget is being slashed, headcount reduced, and services being outsourced, Part 1 Crimes (murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, theft, arson, and motor vehicle theft) have increased by 25% from 2008.   Here’s the graphic that he will present this evening:

With the huge budget deficit that the Council must resolve this year, there’s no guarantee that police services won’t be slashed further.  To download Chief Rothaus’ complete report, click here:  San Carlos Police Report-2009

Fire Department Update

In tonight’s Council meeting, Fire Chief Douglas Fry will also be presenting his quarterly update to the Council and City Manager.  The Fire Department has fared a bit better in the funding area, as they have recently secured grants that will enable them to upgrade their radio system to be compliant with FCC mandates.  But department staffing and equipment allocation remains a big concern within the Department, because it has a direct impact on speed and quality of their response.

You’re probably aware of the fatal home fire that happened just a few days ago in Devonshire Canyon.  According to a source close to City Hall, Chief Fry will also discuss this incident in detail at this evening’s Council Meeting, with the current budget cuts as the underlying theme.  Should be a very compelling presentation.

If You’re Interested…

Tonight’s City Council meeting starts at 7:00 PM at the San Carlos City Hall, 600 Elm Street.    The meeting is open to the public.

————————————-

In a unanimous 5-0 decision, the San Carlos School District voted last night to officially adopt new boundaries for all of the San Carlos Elementary Schools.   The version that was approved last night varies slightly from the initial draft that was proposed a few months ago.  These changes were based on feedback that was given to Dr. Craig Baker and the board during a series of community outreach meetings to better understand the impact of these changes.

Some key differences in the revised boundary plan are:

1. Some streets in the Devonshire Canyon area will remain in the Arundel zone.  Others will go to Heather.
2. Additional streets that were previously in White Oaks have been moved to Brittan Acres.
3. For homes east of El Camino, only those north of Holly Street will be re-directed to Heather.  Those south of Holly will remain in Brittan Acres.

For more information, click on this link to download the new San Carlos School boundaries:   New San Carlos School Boundaries. In this document, you’ll find the following revised district map, as well as table that lists the changes that were implemented to the school boundaries.   Also, check out this post on Seth Rosenblatt’s blog for additional information on the boundary changes, as well as the revised “preference” policy.

New Superintendent Contract

In other news from last night’s meeting, Dr. Craig Baker’s contract as San Carlos School Superintendent has been extended for 3 more years, starting after this school year.    He certainly has been baptized by fire in his first year as Superintendent, so this contract extension is well deserved.

————————————-

Interest Rates Due to Creep Upwards

Both buyers and owners in San Carlos have been enjoying historically low interest rates over the past few quarters, and low rates and availability of funds have done more to keep the San Carlos real estate market thriving than any other influence.  But some of the forces in play that have kept rates so low are about to change –  and virtually all of the experts in the mortgage industry feel that this will result in a rise in interest rates.  In this BlogCast, I’ll elaborate more on what changes are in store for the lending market going forward.   Just click on the play button below to hear more…

——————————-

————————————-

When the books close on 2009, the San Carlos real estate market will have experienced its second consecutive year of declining home sales.  So what’s in store for 2010?  Will this downward trend continue for another year, or will the market bounce back in 2010 to be a stronger year than 2009?  What factors will come into play in the new year?  These questions and more will be tackled in this podcast.

To hear the podcast, simply click on the play button below, or download the podcast by clicking the “download” link for listening at a later time.

Here’s to a great real estate market in 2010 in San Carlos!
——————————

————————————-