Channel 5 CBS News Reports on Emeryville's Threatened Economy

On the evening news last night:

Emeryville Struggles As Shopping Lags
EMERYVILLE (CBS 5) ― The economic downturn has spelled trouble for many Bay Area cities, but one of the hardest hit has been the shopping enclave of Emeryville. Click here for the story.

Is Emeryville's Retail Economy Sustainable? Check out today's New York Times

by Marc Albert

A lengthy story on the front page of the business section of today's New York Times suggests that Emeryville's renaissance as a big box mecca may backfire -- as worried consumers drastically cut spending.

The story, A City That Shopped Till it Dropped chronicles the waning fortunes of local retailers and the repercussions for a city dependant on sales taxes.

The Times describes Emeryville as having "hitched its wagon over the last several decades to what seemed like the limitless ability of American shoppers to spend money." The strategy is suddenly a poor bet. The Times said 25 percent of the city's revenue comes from sales taxes and "'collections fell 23 percent in the third quarter this year from the same period last year, among the steepest drops in the state."

With the expansion of the Bay Street mall (pictured above) looming on the City Council's agenda, the article asks, "Did a city that worked so hard to clean up the mess left by abandoned steel mills and rubber plants ultimately trade one kind of urban blight for another, more modern variety?"

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The City Council majority continues to promote big development (and millions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies to build these developments) with promises of big tax revenues in return -- to pay for parks, child care, sidewalks, and better youth and senior programs. All of those promises may turn out to be nothing more than pie-in-the-sky.

Vice-Mayor's Decision Not to Pay Tax Ranks Among "Worst Ideas of the Week" in SF Examiner

Emeryville Deserves a Mayor "who strives for solutions, not one who stoops to excuses," says Examiner

Ken Bukowski's failure to pay business taxes to the city of which he is now vice-mayor and formerly mayor has received a place among the San Francisco Examiner's "Worst Ideas of the Week" for the week of Dec. 7, 2008.

Here's what the Examiner said (for full list of the week's Worst Ideas, click here):

Bad example

Emeryville mayor doesn’t pay his business taxes

The details: The mayor of Emeryville, a small city on the east side of the Bay Bridge, says he can’t — and won’t — pay his business taxes. Mayor Ken Bukowoski has told reporters that he is not only opposed to Emeryville’s business tax license fee, but he couldn’t pay it even if he wanted to. Bukowski, a 21-year-veteran of the City Council, is apparently trying to live off his small stipend for being a city official and some rental income. He says he’s a victim of the poor economy, but Emeryville deserves a leader who strives for solutions, not one who stoops to excuses.

Taxpayers Foot Bill for Clean Up of Vice Mayor's Property

by Brian Donahue

After Emeryville's vice mayor was cited for health code violations at his Doyle Street property due to excessive trash and other debris, and failed to clean it up, the city ordered crews to haul away the garbage - at taxpayers' expense.

An abatement order was issued in May, requiring immediate remediation of health and fire code violations at Vice Mayor Ken Bukowski's property at 5876 and 5878-1/2 Doyle Street, just south of 59th Street. The order was issued in response to neighbors' complaints of garbage spilling over the property line and onto the sidewalk. There are two structures on the property, Bukowski's home, and a six-unit apartment house that the vice mayor rents out.

After Bukowski failed to comply with the clean-up order, despite several extensions, the city was forced to take matters into its own hands, according to Assistant City Attorney Michael Guina. "The City of Emeryville had to clean it up," Guina said. He did not say what it cost, but did say that "Mr. Bukowski has been made aware that he must pay back the City." As of last week, Bukowski had not done so.

The abatement order was sent via certified mail to Bukowski, citing five code violations, including fire hazard, maintaining a rodent harborage, garbage accumulation, unlawful property nuisance, and unlawful open storage of materials. Before the clean-up, liquid that appeared to be antifreeze was seen flowing from the property into a nearby storm drain (see above photo). Local storm drains empty directly into San Francisco Bay without treatment.

A woman employed by a neighboring business, who asked not to be identified, said it appeared that some of the tenants of the property were conducting an automobile salvage operation. "They drop off truckloads of oily, greasy parts on to the sidewalk and proceed to take them apart right there, blocking the sidewalk," the neighbor said. She also complained of noise at the site.

Bukowski blames the problem on irresponsible tenants, and believes that the tenants, not he, should have received the abatement order.