July
15, 2014
Pacifica
Tribune, San Jose Mercury News
By Horace Hinshaw
and Aaron Kinney
REDWOOD CITY -- The San Mateo County civil
grand jury issued a scathing report Wednesday calling for the dissolution of
the county harbor district, citing problems with the district's finances and an
overall pattern of dysfunction.
"It is abundantly clear," the grand
jury wrote, "that the citizens of the county would be best served, both
financially and in terms of better service, if the district were dissolved and
its operations assumed by the county and other successor agencies."
The report zeroes in on the budgeting
practices of the independent district, which owns and operates Pillar Point
Harbor near Half Moon Bay and manages Oyster Point Marina in South San
Francisco. The grand jury claims the district relies too heavily on property
tax revenue it collects from the county to cover operating losses that over the
past five years have totaled roughly $18.3 million.
Meanwhile, the elected five-member board of
commissioners that oversees the district is unable to govern "effectively
and collegially," according to the report, which notes that meetings are
often marked by open antagonism, even shouting matches, with armed sheriff's
deputies sometimes brought in to ensure order.
"This behavior is an embarrassment to
the commission and reflects poorly on their ability to manage a $10 million
governmental agency heavily supported by taxpayers," the report said. "Body
language, tone of voice, and verbal warfare create an atmosphere more often
found in reality TV shows than in a governmental agency."
The grand jury recommends that the district
undertake various reforms to improve its performance if dissolution is not
feasible, including quarterly financial reports and a budgeting plan that
reduces the district's reliance on property taxes for operating expenses.
Peter Grenell, the district's general
manager, disputed the grand jury's findings in a two-page letter, claiming the
report is filled with inaccuracies and exaggerations. He pledged to provide a
prompt and thorough response to the grand jury.
"It's quite sad that this particular
civil grand jury has chosen to sensationalize this report instead of providing
a fact-based, unbiased and well-researched study," said Grenell, whom the
grand jury singled out as having received a contract renewal from the district
board without undergoing a performance review.
Commissioner Sabrina Brennan, who has feuded
with Grenell and some of her fellow commissioners since she was elected to the
board in 2012, had a different take on the report, calling it a well-earned
"smackdown."
"I would hope that the board would
seriously re-evaluate a lot of things," said Brennan, who has emerged as a
watchdog during her time on the board.
Brennan said she does not support
dissolution. Instead, she suggested voters replace three of her colleagues who
are on the ballot in November: Jim Tucker, Robert Bernardo and Will Holsinger.
Contact Aaron Kinney at 650-348-4357. Follow
him at Twitter.com/kinneytimes.
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