Editor,
1). The city does not even know how many properties were flood damaged in the 2022-23 flood, the average property damage costs per property, and the location of the highest cost locations. There should have been a survey done to determine that. So why the tax, if no proof of significant numbers?
2). In the last 50 years there has been no flood the magnitude of the 2022-23 flood. So it’s likely another 50- or even 100-year cycle still applies.
3). Most of the flood damage occurred east of the railroad tracks and the city says “heavily located near lagoons, channel and creek inlets and several interiors locations.”
4). The city says there are 29,000 residential and business properties in San Mateo. From what I hear, my guess is that a lot less than 500 were damaged, meaning 98% were not. And 90%-95% had less than $2,000 in damages. If you disagree, then ask the city to prove it.
5). The city says it needs a lot more than this tax to provide assurance that little future flooding will occur and that “storms of unanticipated intensity could still overwhelm the system.”
So, why is the city proposing to spend $4 million a year indefinitely plus an inflation add, for a relatively small number of properties, most with low damage costs, for a flood event that may not happen for another 50 years and that may still overwhelm the system?
Gary Isoardi
San Mateo
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(6) comments
All I can say to both sides of the need for this tax by our city, is to participate in our City Service Academy and learn where and what our tax dollars go for.
I learned so much by visiting and going through each City Department, fom Finance to Public Works.
This may open your eyes to how much our City does with limited resources. We all need services from Fires to Floods.
If individuals are concerned about their home flooding, flood insurance is available on the open market through FEMA or CA Flood insurance. As far as fixing an aged infrastructure, this fixing and maintenance should have been performed as normal maintenance by the city through the tax dollars the city collected over the last 70 years. Instead the city used $12 Million for bonuses and labeled them as "hero pay" because they WORKED during Covid. Santa Clara County handed out $76 million in hero pay. I remember people screaming and blaming PG&E for wildfires due to their lack of maintenance, seems like the same thing occurred in San Mateo so where is the accountability?
BTW, CA flood insurance it's significantly less.
Not so Common - Excellent point! And the chickens are coming home to roost.
The city can find the money without coming after us (the easy ATM). That is their job. We taxpayers already paid in more, far more, than our share for many things. Enough! And one area to start cutting is the exorbitant salaries, bonuses and benefits of city employees. As mentioned before by many other commentors.
BTW - What is the cost to the city of this ballot measure? Wouldn't that money be better spent as a good downpayment on the work that has to be done? And if the measure passes, even then the tax money won't be available for a few years. What is the city doing to prepare for the potential El Nino in a few months?
Gary, will you come to my home and help me clean up when it floods, again? Will you pay the $30,000 out of pocket costs for me?
$96.00 dollars a year to fix 70 year old aging stormwater infrastructure v. paying $6,000 (after FEMA adds me back in a flood zone and tacks on a premium, because we flooded) in flood insurance... hmm...I'll take $96.00 every time!
Hi Gary,
I've personally walked over the last 9 months across Fiesta Gardens, Sunnybrae, Hillsdale/Beresford, Baywood, Shoreview, Parkside, the Village, North Central, and knocked on over 3,000 doors and 78 streets where flooding occurred. The consultant from Schaaf & Wheeler at a draft meeting in June estimated that close to 10,000 homes in San Mateo had some form of flooding and damage. I've spent over 9 months looking at data and actually the highest risk areas to flooding (for this witer) will be individual next to culverts and creeks on the WEST side of 101 and folks in the hills. The lagoon pump station will work and protect low-laying areas. Please fact check.
Also, you mention flooding occurs every 100 years. Thats not correct, San Mateo flooded in 1955, 1981, 1998, 2023 so roughly every 20 years. 100 year is a scientific term related to total water volume. With atmospheric changes, the city will flood more regularly (scientific models show every 5-8 years), and storms will be more intense and severe.
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