Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Escondido Council Considers Deep Cuts

"The library budget has been cut significantly. We've lost a lot of staff, and [the department] has taken an unfair portion of the cuts," said Gary Knight, president of Escondido's library board of trustees during the February 16 city council meeting.

Knight's comments are in response to a city proposal to close the East Valley branch library and recreation center as a way to fill next year's $2.9 million budget deficit.

In addition, the city also proposes slashing $1.1 million from employee pension benefits, $770,000 from the city's recreation department, $250,000 from the police department's budget, and $244,000 from the California Center for Performing Arts.

Sponsored
Sponsored

"None of these cuts are desirable, but the bottom line is we don't have the money. This is the edge," said Mayor Sam Abed. "If we don't balance the budget then we will never be able to restore any services in the future."

Councilmember Olga Diaz expressed concern about the cuts to library and recreation programs. She directed city staff to look into finding additional savings in the police department's $32 million-a-year budget.

"I don't want to sound stingy but $250,000 out of the police budget isn't going to make much of a dent in that department compared to the East Valley branch library and recreation giving up almost $400,000," said Diaz.

According to city staff, the proposed $250,000 cuts to the police department are less than one percent of their overall budget.

Added Diaz, "Library and recreation is the frontline for public safety.... [Library and recreation] should be considered part of public safety."

The Escondido city council is expected to decide on the proposed cuts during budget hearings in June.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Reader readers sound off about Encinitas cliffs

Not much sympathy for victims

"The library budget has been cut significantly. We've lost a lot of staff, and [the department] has taken an unfair portion of the cuts," said Gary Knight, president of Escondido's library board of trustees during the February 16 city council meeting.

Knight's comments are in response to a city proposal to close the East Valley branch library and recreation center as a way to fill next year's $2.9 million budget deficit.

In addition, the city also proposes slashing $1.1 million from employee pension benefits, $770,000 from the city's recreation department, $250,000 from the police department's budget, and $244,000 from the California Center for Performing Arts.

Sponsored
Sponsored

"None of these cuts are desirable, but the bottom line is we don't have the money. This is the edge," said Mayor Sam Abed. "If we don't balance the budget then we will never be able to restore any services in the future."

Councilmember Olga Diaz expressed concern about the cuts to library and recreation programs. She directed city staff to look into finding additional savings in the police department's $32 million-a-year budget.

"I don't want to sound stingy but $250,000 out of the police budget isn't going to make much of a dent in that department compared to the East Valley branch library and recreation giving up almost $400,000," said Diaz.

According to city staff, the proposed $250,000 cuts to the police department are less than one percent of their overall budget.

Added Diaz, "Library and recreation is the frontline for public safety.... [Library and recreation] should be considered part of public safety."

The Escondido city council is expected to decide on the proposed cuts during budget hearings in June.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego seawalls depend on Half Moon Bay case

Casa Mira townhomes sued after losing 20 feet of bluffs in storm
Next Article

For nutty pies at Pizza by Aromi in La Mesa

Sicilian cousins add to the Italian goodness they dish out around Lake Murray
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader