Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report

Trustee Aaron Klein is trolling the comments of SacBee.com to defend the hire of Willy Duncan as president — and a salary that calls for built-in annual raises during the budget crunch.

“Retiring Sierra College President Leo Chavez fondly called his successor ‘the new guy,’ before telling a room full of administrators, trustees and donors that he feels confident he is leaving the college in good hands,” SacBee.com reported. “Incoming President Willy Duncan will officially take the helm of the Rocklin campus Friday.

“He’s going to do a great job for this institution,” Chavez said at the fourth annual Sierra College President’s Breakfast on Wednesday morning. (Posted at 12:10 p.m.)

Then in the comments:

•marine4ever
So how much they paying this hero

•Aaron Klein
$215K, which is at the low-end of market for his position. We believe good leadership saves taxpayers money, but we’re also fortunate to have hired great leaders willing to take what we can afford to pay. (I’m a trustee at Sierra.)

•icansee
probably more than the last guy. You know, gotta get and retain the best the world has to offer.

There was no mention of the accreditation warning there, first reported on Sierra Foothills Report, so I posted this
http://www.bakersfield.com/blogs/thegrade/x1898679784/Taft-College-president-talks-accreditation-warning-leaving

But here’s the kicker than Klein left out: Duncan’s package also includes stipulations providing for an annual raise of $5,000 as well as $15,000 to cover relocation expenses.

The salary contract, signed by Klein, reads: “The board will provide the President a salary increase in the amount of $5,000 starting on July 2012 and annually thereafter so long as the President receives a SATISFACTORY evaluation. NO FURTHER BOARD ACTION IS NECESSARY TO AFFECT THIS SALARY INCREASE.”

Wow. A “built-in” raise just as the state budget is cutting back costs at “JC’s.”

Politicians like Aaron, who is supposed to be in a nonpartisan post but is a big hard right booster, like to blast government spending. His favorite target is President Obama, Jerry Brown and the Democrats.

But when it comes to their own negotiating talents, just “go with the flow.” Can you spell “hypocrite”?

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Editor’s note: Moonshine Ink has a cool article about “new blood” that is helping to revitalize Tahoe City.

“Tahoe City residents have been beaten over the head, time and time again, with all that is struggling in their town — commercial vacancies, population declines, high real estate values,” according to Moonshine Ink. “Most everyone can count off a slew of factors contributing to the frays in Tahoe City’s economic and social fabric. But frankly, most Tahoe City residents are sick and tired of hearing that their town is down. Instead, they are embracing their community, choosing to stay positive, and looking to what can be done.

“The numbers tell one side of the story

“There is no getting around the fact that Tahoe City has some very real issues that threaten its vitality.

“Data from the 2010 Census revealed that the town’s population dropped by 11.6 percent since 2000. Of the 2,119 total housing units in the Tahoe City/Sunnyside census-designated place, only 35.1 percent are occupied full time. An eye-opening 58.5 percent of all housing units in Tahoe City are second homes.

“While Tahoe City’s population has dropped, its home prices remain high. According to data collected by the Tahoe Sierra Board of Realtors for the first quarter of 2011, the median price for homes sold between Dollar Hill and Tahoe City was $653,000. Down the West Shore, the median home price was $550,000. Truckee’s median price for the same period, by contrast, was $375,000.

“Yet, to residents like 33-year-old Brendan Madigan, who is president of the Tahoe City Downtown Association, manager at Alpenglow Sports, and still rents his home, none of the drawbacks to Tahoe City outweigh the town’s lakefront location and community.

“I may not be able to afford a house here,” Madigan said. “But if town could be really rad one day, then that’s a better — another — alternative.”

“To carry their town forward and guide Tahoe City’s evolution, Wilderotter and other established community leaders and business owners point to the next generation that is stepping up to the plate and getting involved with the local community.
“It’s the next generation; it’s new ideas,” said Don Fyfe, owner of Alpenglow Sports. “I think it’s very important that we get that new thought process in there.”

The rest of the article is here.

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The sendoff for Nevada City manager Gene Albaugh, who is retiring, was on Tuesday. Details here. Peter Van Zant posted photos of the event on his Facebook page. Social media is changing how we communicate in small towns:

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“Presidential candidate Michele Bachmann claimed Wednesday that the media is rooting for a catfight between her and Sarah Palin,” according to CNN.

“‘They want to see two girls come together and have a mud wrestling fight, and I am not going to give that to them,” Bachmann told a voter Wednesday who asked about her relationship with the former Alaska governor.

“The Minnesota congresswoman praised Palin and said there is room in the Republican presidential race for any candidate.

“‘This race is wide open and we can accommodate all the candidates who want to come in,’ she said.

“She urged Republicans to unite behind ‘the ultimate goal’ of defeating President Barack Obama in 2012.”

Methinks Michele projects too much, though I’ve always wondered about the appeal of Bachmann and Palin to retired white males who are over 60 and very conservative. Is there a Karl Rove internal “memo” on that?

Let’s get on with the issues please.

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The biggest component of the new state budget is a $4 billion assumption of higher revenues in 2011-12, as the Sacramento Bee points out. The “trigger” cuts are essentially in three tiers, based on how much of the extra $4 billion is collected.

Tier 0: If the state gets $3 billion to $4 billion of the money, the state will not impose additional cuts.

Tier 1: If the state gets $2 billion to $3 billion of the money, the state will impose about $600 million of cuts, including:

– $100 million cut to UC
– $100 million cut to CSU
– $100 million cut to In-Home Supportive Services hours

– $100 million cut to Department of Developmental Services
– $80 million cut to public safety programs

– $30 million cut to community colleges triggering a $10/unit fee hike

— $23 million across-the-board cut to childcare funding

– $20 million cut to Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
– $16 million cut to California State Library in library grants

– $15 million cut related to Medi-Cal Managed Care

– $15 million cut to California Emergency Management Agency

– $10 million cut to Department of Social Services in anti-fraud grants

Tier 2: If the state gets $0 to $2 billion of the money, it will also impose as much as $1.9 billion in additional cuts:

– $1.5 billion reduction to K-12 schools that allows districts to drop seven classroom days. That would lower the required total to 168 days, down from 180 days three years ago.

– $248 million cut that eliminates school bus transportation

– $72 million cut to community colleges.

All cuts would take effect Jan. 1, 2012, except for the school year reduction, which districts could impose starting Feb. 1, 2012.

For the rest of the article, go here.

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Our magazine publishes the official Placer County Visitor Guide, and it will be displayed prominently at the county’s booth at the California State Fair from July 14-31.

In fact, our cover shot has proven to be so popular that it will be displayed on collateral material, such as buttons and the like.

Placer won “Best of Show” award for all counties for its state fair booth last year. A total of 30 counties constructed exhibits for the fair.

The counties exhibit has been a longstanding state fair fan favorite and continues to draw crowds of fairgoers every year who support their favorite county.

Nevada County also will have a booth at the fair this year.

“This is pretty last minute and we don’t have much lead time, but if you have any of the following that could be used at the booth, we’d really appreciate it,” says the Nevada City Chamber, such as posters about the arts. We’ll donate some FoodWineArt magazines, featuring our county’s wineries, restaurants and arts, to the county booth.

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As the rain and snow continues, it’s time to prepare for the July 4th weekend:

Visitors to South Lake Tahoe can celebrate red, white and blue this Fourth of July weekend. Red tubes, blue sky and white snow, that is.

Heavenly Mountain Resort plans to run the longest snow tubing hill on the West Coast during Fourth of July weekend. The sleek snow tubing hill provides four lanes of action, a 65-foot drop in elevation and a gentle standing lift or “magic carpet” to take guests back up to the top.

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