| | Published February 16th, 2011
| 18 Achievable Goals for Moraga
| | By Sophie Braccini | | |
At the Town Liaison meeting on February 11, Mayor Karen Mendonca declared that the 18 goals the Town set for itself for 2011 were all going to happen. At the prioritization session that took place two days before, all the goals were declared a priority and staff posted them online with a timeline. The most important ones revolve around the economy.
The first category of goals is called Invest in Infrastructure. The ability to find the resources to fund infrastructure maintenance in the years to come will be one of the top criteria by which the efficiency of the Council and the Town Manager will be measured. This is one area where political will and decision-making make the difference, in contrast to economic development, where the Town can only facilitate processes. Tonight the Revenue Enhancement Committee will present its report to the Town regarding actions to be taken this year. The meeting starts at 7:00 p.m. in the Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School auditorium. The first step in the more than a year-long process will be to poll and inform the population about what is at stake.
The second category of goals addresses economic development. For the very first time in the Town of Moraga the term "retail ordinance" was put on paper. Oddly enough, no one asked for clarification of the term. Right now any business that does not present a real nuisance can set up shop in Moraga if they have an agreement with a property owner.
By contrast, a retail ordinance describes the type of business the Town has determined would be best in different areas. For example in Lafayette, the special retail business district defines zones in the central area of the city, where development of an especially attractive, high-quality retail shopping area, emphasizing pedestrian convenience, is fostered. (We were unable to reach Moraga's Town Manager to define the Town's intention regarding this ordinance.)
Also among the economic development goals is a conceptual plan for the Rheem Center on which work should begin in April. A related goal, #6 in the economic development category, reads, "Assist property owners in both shopping centers to develop and enhance their property." There has been no mention of a Moraga Center Development Agreement that was supposed to follow the approval of the Moraga Center Specific Plan (which residents may recall took seven years to finalize) and define what the property owners would do to enhance the area as new buildings emerge. Work on this goal is also set to start in April.
For a complete list of the goals with their timeline go online to www.moraga.ca.us.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA