In her recent message to Santa Clarita residents, Mayor Marsha McLean commends the City for providing a balanced budget and courages civic involvment in local government:

To Our Amazing Community:

It is an honor to serve this community and this year, to be your Mayor. Public service is one of the most important aspects of my life, and like my fellow councilmembers, I spend many hours every week in service to our residents.

The City of Santa Clarita is hands-down one of the best in California. It is important for you to know, this does not happen by accident. Producing an annual, balanced, on time budget, celebrating the lowest crime rate in the history of our City, completing a new east-west roadway, constructing 20 new parks, and continuously providing a high level of customer service at every level, are just a few of this City’s accomplishments over the last two-plus decades.

But there is more to do in this City, and in order to accomplish these tasks, we all need to work together. Work efforts such as keeping our community safe; cleaning up, purchasing and planning the 996-acre Whittaker Bermite property in the center of the City; figuring out how to expand services and facilities for our seniors; adding more parks and other public facilities for the benefit of our residents; bringing in more jobs so people don’t have to commute out of this Valley everyday to work; building more roads to ease congestion and retaining our high quality of life simply will not be accomplished without the benefit of our entire community’s regular and constructive input.

Too often people say that they cannot have an impact on government. Truth be told, without the proactive participation of our residents, business leaders and elected officials, solutions to large issues might never be achieved. I would like to encourage you to participate and to be a part of the solution to these and many other challenges. Your thoughts, ideas and abilities are needed and welcome, and I encourage you to make your voice heard. While we may not always agree on everything, it is vital that we work together to resolve major problems, figure out solutions to long-standing issues, and move Santa Clarita forward in a positive direction.

Twice a month, on the second and fourth Tuesday at City Hall, the City Council holds public meetings to manage the business of our City. These meetings are noticed, televised (Time Warner channel 20; AT&T U-Verse 99) and streamed live on our website at www.santa-clarita.com. We welcome you to attend these meetings which are held conveniently after work hours, beginning at 6 p.m. at Santa Clarita City Hall, 23920 Valencia Blvd. Anyone may speak to the City Council at these meetings by filling out a speaker card and handing it to the City Clerk. You may also choose to voice your thoughts and ideas via email. You can reach the entire city council with one email at citycouncil@santa-clarita.com. Telephone calls and in-person meetings are also welcome – just call the City at (661) 255-4395.

I thank you for your willingness to participate!

City Manager Ken Pulskamp notes the state of the Whitaker-Bermite propety. The City will continue working with Lewis Operating Company in hopes of purchasing the 996 acres of undeveloped land:

Hello!

Our 37-member Citizen Library Advisory Committee is working on the first-ever Santa Clarita Public Library strategic plan. As part of this important work effort, they are asking residents to complete a short survey about local library services. If you could take a few moments and complete this survey, we would be most appreciative. The survey (closes March 11), will assist the committee in creating the new strategic plan and most importantly, will provide our residents with an opportunity to share their values for library services in Santa Clarita. To complete the survey, please check out the link on our library website.

Speaking of libraries, we are well underway with the construction of our new 30,000 square foot Old Town Newhall library. You can watch the construction progress via our “library cam”.

One of our work programs for 2011 is the exploration of purchasing the Whittaker Bermite property located in the center of our City. This 996-acre property, currently in bankruptcy, is in the process of being cleaned of toxins caused by years of use as a munitions production site. The City Council has voted to spend the next year working with Lewis Operating Company to determine if a plan is feasible for the City to purchase this property. The clean up of the property’s contaminates will continue under the direction of the Department of Toxic Substance Control. Ultimately, the City would like to see this property transformed into desired community uses, inclusive of jobs, infrastructure, and other desirable uses. Community involvement will be a big part of what occurs over the next year, be sure to look for more information about what’s happening on the City’s website and in the local media.

If you and your family are looking for something to do in Santa Clarita, I encourage you to check out the community calendar. Local clubs, organizations, non-profits, churches and local government regularly post their events to the City’s online community calendar. Check it out or post your events at no charge at www.santa-clarita.com/calendar.  

Thank you for your interest in our community. I appreciate your participation in helping to make Santa Clarita an amazing place to live, work and play.