Tag: City

State of California Delays Village Renaissance Construction Project

Posted by | Thursday, March 29, 2012 | , , , , |

Big Bear Lake, CA, March 29, 2012, 12:00 noon – At what was meant to be the groundbreaking ceremony in the Village this morning to celebrate the new Village Renaissance Construction Project, members who attended were shocked to hear that the project has been delayed by the State.  This project was to be one of the last items funded by the now dismantled Improvement Agency.  As of February 1st of this year, the State dissolved every Redevelopment/Improvement Agency Statewide.  However, the City Council funded the Village reconstruction project before the dissolution deadline set by the State.  According to Mayor Bill Jahn, the State informed the City of Big Bear Lake two days ago of an intent to challenge the City’s use of Improvement Agency funding and projects.  The City has released a statement explaining that they are optimistic about resolving the situation as soon as possible and that, in contrast to State deliberations have maximized the public process to fully inform citizens, businesses and State officials of their plans and funding priorities.  Additionally, the City says they have thoroughly complied with every request the State has made along the way in regards to the wind down of the Improvement Agency.  The Village Renaissance Construction Project was set to begin construction on April 2nd and run through the summer to include the complete reconstruction of the Village “L” with new...

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Armed Forces Banner Program Honors Service Members

Posted by | Tuesday, January 24, 2012 | , , , |

Big Bear, Ca, January 24, 2012, 1:00pm – Last year, the City of Big Bear Lake began an Armed Forces Banner program with the intention of recognizing and honoring those that serve who are from, or who have family in the Big Bear Valley.  Banners for the program are hung year round at Veterans Park with the service member’s name, branch of service and photo on the banner.  So far 10 people have been registered with the program, with three serving in the Army, one in the Air Force, one in the Coast Guard and five serving in the Marines.  Honorees must be currently serving active duty (in a full-time capacity) in the United States Armed Forces, be a current resident of the Big Bear Valley or have an immediate family member residing in the Big Bear Valley, such as a grandparent, parent, spouse, sibling, son, daughter. Banners are $75 and will be displayed year round at Veterans Park. They will be installed twice during the year, in May and October. Order forms are available at City Hall, on the City’s website at...

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City Council Decides Route To Go With Improvement Agency

Posted by | Tuesday, January 10, 2012 | , , , , |

Big Bear, Ca, January 10, 2012, 12:00pm – The Big Bear Lake City Council met last night for their regularly scheduled meeting, and the main topic of discussion was the Improvement Agency, and its future.  Last year the state of California passed Assembly Bill 26, which eliminated all improvement agencies for all cities across the state.  Improvement Agency funds, which come from property taxes in designated areas collected for cities, would be then funneled back to the state.  Assembly Bill 27 was put in place so improvement agencies could continue, but would be changed so that they would have very specific projects to work on, however the state supreme court found AB 26 to be legal, and AB 27 to be constitutionally illegal, essentially eliminating all improvement agencies.  To continue with contracted projects that started before the elimination of improvement agencies, the Successor Improvement Agency was created and will be in place until all contracts will be completed, and all bonds are paid.  The County of San Bernardino Tax Assessor will take over the role of collecting and distributing the funds, which were once collected by the improvement agency.  The county will then distribute the funds to other taxing agencies, such as: the City of Big Bear Lake, the Fire Protection District, Bear Valley Unified School District, among others.  The City Council then approved to move forward with having...

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City Seeks Homeowner Input on Housing Element

Posted by | Tuesday, November 1, 2011 | , , |

 Big Bear, Ca, November 1, 2011, 12:00pm – The City of Big Bear Lake is seeking input from city homeowners.  Every five years, the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development mandates cities to update the Housing Element of their General Plan. According to the City, this is done to force local jurisdictions to have policies and practices in place that do not hinder the development of multifamily housing.  The City of Big Bear Lake Planning Department has completed a draft document of the Housing Element that includes a change that may have an effect on your property. This change proposes to increase the density from 12 units to 20 units per acre on selected parcels greater then 2 acres in size. The California Department of Housing and Community Development is requiring this change due to the lack of multifamily housing built in the City over the last 10 years.  If you would like to find out more information on the Draft Housing Element you may view the document on their website at www.citybigbearlake.com or at the Planning Counter in City...

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