Dec 1, 2008 7:32 pm US/Pacific
Alamo Considers Incorporation In Special Election
ALAMO (BCN) ―
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Livorna Park in Alamo.
CBS
The deadline is quickly approaching for potential Alamo Town Council candidates to file nomination papers for the March 3 special election, according to the Contra Costa County Elections Department.
In the special election, Alamo residents will be deciding whether to convert the unincorporated community of about 16,700 into an incorporated city. At that time, voters will also be asked to elect a five-member town council should the proposal to incorporate the town be approved.
Nomination papers for Town Council are due by 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Contra Costa County Elections office in Martinez.
The process to incorporate the town officially began in November 2007 when a petition signed by 25 percent of registered voters in the community was filed with the county's Local Agency Formation Commission, which is responsible for reviewing city and district boundary changes.
The commission then held a community meeting and two public hearings to answer questions about the pros and cons of becoming an incorporated city.
In October, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution calling for the March 3 special election. A majority vote is required to approve incorporation.
If it passes, the new city will be roughly 10 square miles bordered by Walnut Creek and unincorporated Tice Valley to the north, Danville to the south, Las Trampas Regional Wilderness to the west and Mt. Diablo and Diablo Foothills State Parks to the east, according to Lou Ann Texeira, executive officer of the county's Local Agency Formation Commission.
The proposal is to make Alamo a general law city governed by a five-member elected city council, which would appoint a city manager, city clerk, city attorney and treasurer.
The new government would be responsible for police services, land use planning, building and safety inspections, code enforcement, road maintenance, animal control and parks and recreation maintenance and services, services that are currently provided by the county.
The new city government would receive local and state taxes that currently go to the county.
Officials have estimated that the taxes would be sufficient to maintain the current level of services, according to Texeira.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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