More Than 100 Want to be on Walnut Creek's Finance Task Force; Neiman Marcus Taking Shape

Last year, the city had to close a $20 million gap in its 2010-12 budget. Given the state budget numbers coming out of Sacramento — and despite Gov. Jerry Brown's promises to give municipal entities more local control over their finances — the city is likely to face budget challenges in the next few years.

The city has to figure out how to pay for modernizing its swimming facilities at Clarke Memorial and Larkey Park swim centers. Measure Q, approved by Walnut Creek voters in 2002, has helped pay for library operations but it expired in July. 

Then there are the bigger questions of how the city will continue to provide the services that Walnut Creek residents have come to expect: arts, cultural, and recreation services, as well as public safety, public works, traffic management and so much more. In this economy, the question is how can the city bring in new business and generate the sales tax revenue that helps make those services possible?  And, the city would prefer not to lay off more employees as it did last spring, when it laid off more than 30 workers to close that unprecedented budget gap. 

On Dec. 7, Mayor Cindy Silva announced the formation of a community Blue Ribbon Task Force. The job of the task force, to be made up of 17 to 19 residents, is to make recommendations on how to ensure the long-term fiscal health of Walnut Creek.

The city got 110 applications for the task force by the Jan. 13. deadline. Now the City Council must review all those applications and decide who should be on the Blue Ribbon Task Force.

At a special meeting this afternoon, the city council will attempt to winnow that list down to 25 people to call back in for interviews. 

The council will consider applicants using the following criteria: financial aptitude; length of time living in the city; involvement in the community; ability to work in groups and with others; open-mindedness; interested in finding solutions; good listening skills. The city also wants the task force members to represent various sectors of the city. 

The interviews are set for Feb. 5, and the city hopes the task force will be ready to get to work in mid-February.  

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It's finally taking shape. It's here! That would be Neiman Marcus, the luxury department store that Walnut Creek residents voted to have come to town. 

Before the holidays, you could still see the big hole dug in the ground and steel beams sticking up. Then, as if Santa dropped off a build-a-department-store kit on his way back to the North Pole — and some elves to do the work — the outer shell of the 92,000-square-foot building suddenly appeared. 

So, now we can really see the size and scope of the building, as well as the setbacks from the street. What do you think? Neiman Marcus aims for a spring 2012 opening. 

Speaking of the city's fiscal health, some city and community leaders see Neiman Marcus as helping to bring in those vital sales tax revenues, although a fair number of Neiman supporters and other Walnut Creek residents admitted to me during the heated Measure I election that they probably couldn't afford to shop there.

Well, those with much more expertise in the retail industry than me say Neiman Marcus will boost Walnut Creek's ever-growing profile as a shopping destination.