Newsletters

April 25, 2019

ECA Newsletter 4-25-19

John’s Soapbox

An Ounce of Prevention

About 15-18 years ago, when I still owned Kirkwood Bly, Inc., we received a notice from the Department of Labor that there was a labor claim against us on one of our projects. This was a shocker as we prided ourselves in trying to take good and fair care of our employees. Here is the short version of what the violation was claimed to be:

We were building a stormwater handling facility in Arcata, CA (approximately a $17 mil project) that had a single lane driveway/road that was about 300 yards long that accessed it from our laydown yard. There was no room at the site for parking so workers had to park at the laydown yard and hike up the 300 yards to the site. At our safety tailgate meetings, one of the guys asked if there was a better way for us (the workers) to get up to the jobsite at 7am to start work other than walking up the hill with their tool bags. The Project Manager did what he was supposed to do and called the home office to see what options were available. After doing some research, the following was suggested:

1. Workers could get dropped off by their spouses, girlfriends, or buddies at the top of the hill to go to work, or

2. Workers could walk up the hill after parking below, and the 5 to 10-minute walk was on their own time, or

3. One of the workers with a pickup could give the guys a ride up the private driveway by them piling into the back of his truck (not a company truck) and then the driver would drive down, park his truck, and walk up.

4. The Project Manager was to make it clear that none of these were a requirement, the only requirement was the guys showed up at the job site ready to work at 7am.

Well, as sometimes happens, the message got muddled and a labor foreman with a company pickup made his truck available at 6:45 am and gave the guys a ride up to the worksite. The home office did not know, and the PM thought he was doing the right thing because he had all the guys sign a form that said they understood they were riding up for their own convenience and were not required to ride in the company truck.

All was well until layoffs at the end of the project began. Some enterprising business agent called one of the laid off workers (we were non-union, of course) and suggested he could get some back pay if he filed a claim for back pay for riding in the truck. The worker did, and there was the claim to the Labor Commissioner.

To make a long story short, we paid back wages and fines in excess of $350,000 for that little misunderstanding.

I bring this to your attention so that the attached memo from our legal friends at Smith Dollar will have more meaning than otherwise. Sometimes an employer thinks he/she is doing the right thing, but the devil is usually in the details. I suggest you all review how you are paying your crews for the “questionable” times like when they pick up something from the yard, when they stop off and pick up a fitting at the pipe supplier or when they go buy a few fittings at the home depot for use the next day. Your employees are usually not disgruntled and going to sign a claim until such time as they are laid off.

An ounce of prevention?

Click here for Smith Dollar PC’s article.

That’s All Folks

John

April 22, 2019

April 18, 2019

ECA Newsletter 4-18-19

John’s Soapbox

Let’s Do Our Part

How many times have you been forced to either remove someone from your Facebook friends, or maybe wonder and question a certain person because of what they are posting? The era we are in is one of being judgmental and it seems the entire country has judged and pigeonholed each other into deeply divisive categories.

We see things differently. I think the Mueller report is coming out today or tomorrow, but it won’t end what people think. If you are an anti-Trumper, you believe he colluded and if Mueller did not conclude that, then Mueller is in on the sham as well. If you kind of like some of what Trump does but dislike his style, you probably are quiet on a lot of issues. If you are a supporter of Trump and do not have any tolerance for the seemingly “socialist leaning” Democratic party, you resent the emphasis on Trump’s actions because you want Hillary to be investigated for wiping her servers clean and deleting 33,000 emails.

When we try to have a discussion with someone who thinks differently, we usually wind up frustrating each other and decide to stop the “debate” without really challenging our own beliefs. I know it has happened to me several times, and I am sure you all have experienced it as well.

So what do we do? We need to understand what the issues are. We seemingly cannot rely on newspapers or any media to provide accurate and unbiased factual news anymore. Are we simply going to swear at each other and dig in deeper into our own positions?

I hope not.

I am providing a link to a Northbay Business Journal interview with Brian Sobel, a very experienced political analyst and expert in which he talks about the need for being more civil with each other. To read the interview, click here–

It is my opinion that some college campuses have had their “freedom of speech” attitudes compromised by this deep division in how we view our issues in the good old USA. I can understand why some conservatives are concerned about changing the “Freedom of Speech” we have in this country, to “You are Free to Speak If Your Views Fit Mine” speech attitude. That is not ok. From Antifa to AOC to Pelosi to Trump to Fox News, don’t you think we have taken it to a point where it is going to be hard to get back to a place where we can debate the issues instead of calling each other names and walking away?

Let’s do our part and try-ok?

That’s All Folks

John

April 11, 2019

ECA Newsletter 4-11-19

John’s Soapbox

Taxation or Fee? I Don’t Care! Oxygen is What I Call It!

When the ECA came out and supported the passage of RM3 in June of 2018, we basically were supporting charging ourselves to build infrastructure that will relieve current transportation problems and build long lasting projects that future generations will benefit from. You all know that I am not usually a “tax and spend” guy but I also recognize that transportation infrastructure has been woefully underfunded for decades and just in the last 5-6 years is getting the funding needed to fix our roads and bridges.

RM3 is a fee that raises bridge tolls (all Bay Area bridges except the Golden Gate Bridge) and tolls started being collected a few months ago. The Howard Jarvis folks filed a lawsuit challenging the bridge toll hike as a tax rather than a fee and their lawsuit made many of us nervous as to whether the RM3 dollars would actually be collected and allocated to our North Bay region ($800 to $900 million worth!!).

Last week, Judge Ethan Schulman dismissed the lawsuit which effectively frees up the RM3 toll increases to fund (to the tune of $4.5 billion) much needed projects around the Bay Area. Judge Schulman agreed with the drafters of RM3 that the toll increase is a fee, not a tax. I cannot believe I am applauding a local Judge’s ruling around here, but I am!

This is great news for all of us that need to travel, and at least partially, make our living from road and bridge construction projects. Between this good news and the defeat of the Gas tax repeal in June, this solidifies our income stream needed to fix our roads and bridges. link

What does this all mean to our local firms whether you bid on those projects or not? It means that local Agencies will now be able to count on tax help from fuel tax and toll help from the bridge toll increases to get some of their City and County roads fixed. Also, we have a tremendous list of bridges that are in need of repair in Sonoma and the Contiguous Counties and those tax and toll funds will enable local Public Works folks to prioritize and start getting some of them repaired or replaced. By funding transportation projects, the Cities and Counties can focus on much needed housing projects. None of us want to see our beautiful area changed by “sprawl” of housing developments, but we all recognize the need to build 30,000 plus homes so our young workers have a place to live rather than drive from Lake and Mendo and Solano Counties.

Highway 37 is one of the main roadways that has had its share of problems recently. Between high rains, the lack of a comprehensive levee program, and the increased commuter loads, this road between Novato and Vallejo is a problem searching for short term and long-term solutions. With the “smackdown” of the Howard Jarvis lawsuit, both short term and long-term solutions should get designed and out to bid very shortly. At the recent meeting of Solano, Marin, Napa and Sonoma County Transportation Authorities, the group made several important decisions but none more important than assigning responsibility and authority for the three main segments of Highway 37.

A new memorandum of understanding assigns responsibility for overall project management coordination to the Bay Area Toll Authority (which is the group that collects the bridge tolls) with local transportation authorities having a role for the road portion in each county.

• Segment A: (Highway 101 to SR 121) assigned to Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA), Caltrans, Sonoma County Transportation Authority (SCTA) and Transportation Authority of Marin.
• Segment B: (Sears Pt. to Mare Island Bridge) assigned to BATA, Caltrans, SCTA, Solano Transportation Authority and Napa Valley Transportation Authority.
• Segment C: (Mare Island Bridge to I-80) assigned to BATA, Caltrans and SCTA.

Segment B is the most critical section by all accounts. As I have reported to you earlier, an interim solution being considered would employ a movable barrier system and one additional lane to be utilized heading West in the morning hours and heading East in the afternoon. It is estimated this could relieve up to 75% of the waiting time for commuters. This work should come out in 2019 and be completed in 2022.

Relief is on its way!

To read more about this, click on the link –

To me, the “oxygen” is actual projects that will enhance safety and relieve congestion. The defeat of the Howard Jarvis lawsuit provides that oxygen. That is why I do not care if you call the bridge toll increase a toll, or a tax-it is oxygen to me!

That’s All Folks!

John

April 4, 2019

ECA Newsletter 4-4-19

John’s Soapbox

Fish Volition

Nope-I did not spell it wrong.

I have tried to think of another issue that can affect more people than “volition” and I cannot think of any. Before you send the padded truck with the nice men in white to get me and take me to the nice place, consider this:

Because of “volition” on the part of some fish, there is a strong possibility that Lake Pillsbury could cease to exist in a few short years.

Because of “volition”, the water diverted from the Eel River through the Cape Horn Dam and tunnel to Potter Valley and on to the Russian River that was built in 1908, might stop being diverted. If that happened, Lake Mendocino would be severely impacted and so would the Potter Valley farmers as well as the Alexander Valley wine growers. Sonoma County Water Agency estimates that without the diverted water, Lake Mendocino would go dry in 60 of the next 100 years.

Because of “volition”, the water supply of Healdsburg, Cloverdale, Hopland, and Ukiah could be severely impacted. Cloverdale, Hopland and Ukiah get 100% of their water from “underflow” of the upper Russian River. Healdsburg gets 80% of theirs from the same source. If the water stops going through the diversion tunnel at Cape Horn Dam and into Potter Valley, those cities will have to develop other water sources because it is likely summer flows will not sustain the “underflow” those Cities need now.

Okay, maybe John’s not certifiable yet, but we still do not know what “volition” even means.

A small power plant provided electrical power to the City of Ukiah in 1900. It was costly and not able to provide enough power to a growing City of Ukiah. The original power plant needed to be replaced. To view some of the history, click on this link—

San Francisco native ww Van Arsdale helped create the Eel River Power and Irrigation Company that later morphed into the Snow Mountain Water and Power Company. Van Arsdale was smart enough to recognize and know that the Eel River was 475 feet higher than the Northern point of Potter Valley (which are also the origins of the Russian River, but the Russian did not have enough water or “fall” to power the hydroelectric turbines he needed). All Van Arsdale had to do was build a dam on the Eel River and blast an 8’ diameter tunnel through a mile of bedrock mountain to get some of the Eel River water to “fall” the 475 feet and spin the turbines to be installed in Potter Valley to the south Van Arsdale had his plan.

In 1900, the project started and a small concrete and earth filled dam was built that held back the Eel River flow, and more importantly, diverted it into two streams: the main one being a “North flowing Eel River” and into a much flow split off and sent south through “at grade” pipe and a new tunnel that brought the water to a small powerhouse in Potter Valley. The 475-foot elevation difference between the Eel at Van Arsdale Dam and the head of the Potter Valley, allowed the energy needed to spin two turbines that produced 2,000 kilovolt amperes of power that started being produced in 1908. After flowing through the turbines, the diverted Eel River water combined with the headwaters of the Russian River and flowed south.

Things worked great except the Eel River tended to dry up in the hot summer months and not enough water flowed through the power plant and tunnel to keep the turbines running and producing power. A second dam was constructed 12 miles upriver called the Scotts Dam and it held back the water that then created Lake Pillsbury. Problem Solved! By controlling the flow out of the Scotts Dam, the operators of the Snow Mountain Water and Power Company could regulate the flow all summer that sent water through the pipes and diversion tunnel to the south to turn the turbines and supply the Ukiah need for power.

The added benefit of the diverted Eel River water quickly became obvious to landowners in Potter Valley. The summer months dried up the Russian River in their valley but the diverted flow from Lake Pillsbury and the Eel River through the tunnel made it possible to farm and ranch the once very dry Potter Valley area. And so, they did!

The system worked well enough (other than some downstream flooding) for several decades. To alleviate the flooding, the Army Corps of Engineers decided to “make it better” and built Coyote Dam in 1959 which in turn created Lake Mendocino. Now the lower stretches of the Russian River had ample summer flow and some control over flooding that enabled the Alexander Valley to become one of the finest wine growing regions in the world.

And now for the problem: The Eel river that flowed north out of the Van Arsdale Dam, was one of the finest fisheries in the world due to salmon and steelhead being able to enter the river from the Pacific Ocean at Fortuna, and make their way all the way up through the Van Arsdale fish ladder to spawn in the perfect environment of the Eel River watershed. But the Scotts Dam was built with no fish ladder, so the fish hit a “dead end”. The fishery probably would have been just fine if not for the massive cannery that was built along the Eel that needed lots of netted fish to operate. And the sports fishing also went nuts and overfished the river too. Much of the salmon and steelhead were fished out from the 1920’s to the 1960’s.

What did not help the fishery was when a financier named Hurwitz (and Milken via Maxxam) bought the Scotia Lumber Company with junk bonds and in order to fund his purchase, he decided to go crazy and cut down the old-growth redwood trees on the tributaries with little or no regard to the Eel River below. In the process, he ruined many of the fish spawning streams and creeks that the Eel River needed for their salmon and steelhead spawning grounds. The “perfect storm” of overfishing and over cutting of the forests fed the environmental movement and lots of attention was focused on preserving what was left of the Eel River fishery (a great documentary can be viewed called “A Rivers Last Chance” by Shane Anderson on streaming video).

PG & E took over the power plant and ran it for decades. PG & E filed bankruptcy in 2019 and the renewal of the FERC power license became very much in doubt. To read about that impact, click here

As it stands now, Jared Huffman and some very influential environmental groups would like to remove the Scotts Dam and restore the Eel River to a more natural state. At a recent Town Hall Meeting in Ukiah, Huffman talked about his respect for new Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and his support of the New Green Deal, which would lead one to believe that Jared Huffman would probably lean towards taking down the Scotts Dam and stopping the traditional diversion of water from the Eel to the Russian River. Although not Huffman’s call to make that decision, he wields some influence.

Admittedly, this is complex, and uncertain as to the outcome of both Lake Pillsbury and the Eel River diversion water that is much needed to sustain the Russian River flows that Sonoma County, Marin County, and Mendo County all need to meet their water needs. The main concern is one of the fish-they cannot get past the Scotts Dam so there is a need for a $90 million (very uncertain!) fish ladder to be built, or an estimated $71 million to take Scotts Dam down. Either way, it is likely whatever gets decided will revolve around allowing fish to get past Scotts Dam.

I asked the question: why not just leave Scotts Dam in place and pick up the pregnant fish at the Van Arsdale fish ladder (easy choke point) and transport them above Scotts Dam into the tributaries up there? PG & E did a nice study on this method that you can read here–

The answer is “that won’t work” because the fish’s volition will be compromised. The fish, according to the “powers that be” say the fish need to make their own choices as to where to spawn. Maybe that is right as they instinctively know how to go from the Pacific Ocean to their spawning grounds. I do not know. I like wild and scenic rivers too, but I also recognize that a lot of people depend on the water that flows from the Eel to the Russian. Maybe it is ok for the fish to make their own determinations to get to the fish ladder at the Van Arsdale Dam and get picked up and taken to above the Scotts Dam to spawn? Maybe. That is my suggestion.

There you have it folks. Is it absurd? The fish need a choice. The fish need to have “volition”. For them to get “volition”, people are going to be hurt. That I can assure you.

And you thought I was nuts?

That’s All Folks

John

March 28, 2019

John’s Soapbox

ECA Newsletter 3-28-19

CASA Compact – It Is Not Going to Go Away

Please bear with me for a very brief “background” to the CASA Compact:

1. Housing has been a very “hot topic” (excuse the pun please) for many years. The fires aggravated an already depleted supply of housing units that were needed in the North Bay region. Since late 2017, any number of meetings, workshops, proposed solutions have been discussed, hashed over, and reported on ad nauseum. One group that is part of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission put a group of developers, financiers, elected officials, and housing experts together to come up with some ideas to spur housing starts in and around the Bay Area. What they came up with is called “The CASA Compact”

2. To view the background info on the CASA Compact, click here–

3. To view the actual CASA Compact document, click here–

Okay-now for the fun stuff. Many of the smaller cities loath the idea of the CASA Compact because they interpret it and fear it. Although some of our friends are supportive of parts of the CASA Compact, and my “opinion here” may rub them the wrong way, when have I ever been worried about that? Here is my short and sweet opinion piece on the CASA Compact:

A) Small cities feel bigger cities have created the most jobs and the least housing. Why should smaller cities have to be taxed to fix the problems created by the big cities? The cost and the requirement should be borne by the bigger cities and to a lesser extent, the smaller cities but not the same ratios should apply.

B) Small cities do not want to relinquish land use control of their available building sites and they presume they may lose it if they do not build enough housing to hit their “quota”. They are possibly right. Do we want someone else telling our local government how many houses and what size to build? This is complicated. If the local City has consistently been “no growth” and caused a strain on our roads by forcing workers to commute in from outlying areas to get to their jobs, I say yes-force them to build workforce housing.

C) Many of the industry leaders question whether rent control and just cause evictions will put a “wet blanket” over any interest developers and investors might have had to build apartments and smaller affordable rental units because their income stream is being tampered with. Read CASA Compact #1 on Just Cause Eviction and CASA Compact #2 on Rent Control. I personally think they are contrary to “incentivizing” a developer/investor to put up their dollars on a project.

D) Providing legal assistance to renters who are being evicted for not paying their rents make landlords cringe and throw up their hands in despair. The word on the street is if CASA Compact #3 is adopted, most of the landlords I know will sell their rental units thereby taking many rental units off the market rather than creating more rental units. Read CASA Compact #3 on Legal Assistance to renters. I hate this one.

E) There are some good things in the CASA Compact and many I have spoken to some who like CASA Compact #4 on removing ADU regulatory restrictions. ADU stands for Affordable Dwelling Units or (Granny Units as they are sometimes referred to). One out of four “isn’t bad”.

F) Zoning changes near transit terminals makes some sense to me but it always scares me cost wise) when I read about “Labor Standards” as it relates to subsidized housing costs. To me-that means union labor will be required when I (and others) are not sure the cost to build these units “pencil out” now and certainly will not if labor costs to build them go up. CASA Compact #5 is about zoning changes and I can see the developers who are getting pressure to build and have too few labor forces to draw from. Perhaps the time has come to use all the tools available to us-union labor and non-union labor. I cringe when regulations force one or the other out of the picture though. I am reluctantly thinking ok on this one.

G) Figuring out the actual cost of impact fees and inclusionary costs (how many “affordable” units need to be included in a project is the simple way to express what CASA Compact #6 is about). This is too complex for me and others to digest. I defer to my friend Bob Glover of the BIA who says this is a good thing to enact. Ok on #6 because Bob says it is good.

H) CASA Compact #7 is about expedited approvals for some housing. Hell yes. Get the approval process 100% out of the equation as far as I am concerned. Let the market dictate and let the Contractors and Engineers be responsible for code compliance. This #7 is the best one yet!

I) CASA Compact #8 is about making public land available to build on. If one district is not providing enough land for residential zoning to keep up with housing demand, make them. I like it.

J) CASA Compact #9 is about the cost to “Joe Q Public” to pay for all of this. I suspect once I look at this in more detail, I will hate it. Always about the taxpayer having to bail out the government who has neglected infrastructure and housing needs for decades. Now it is a crisis. Do we say “No” or hold our nose and “Pay”?

K) Finally-CASA Compact #10 describes a new agency to oversee everything. I hate this one the most already.

The CASA Compact is a 15 year “guideline” but do not think it is benign. State Legislators are hard at work with over 50 Bills being cooked up right now to satisfy some of the CASA Compact items.

This is not going away.

That’s All Folks!

March 28, 2019

March 21, 2019

John’s Soapbox

ECA Newsletter 3-21-19

Some Really Big Developments Happening in the NorthBay

Of the nine cities in Sonoma County, two of them have big news for new developments. Rohnert Park is moving forward with their Station Avenue project and the City of Healdsburg is moving forward on the old lumber site in downtown Healdsburg to develop several hundred housing units.

The project in Rohnert Park is at the site of the old State Farm offices at the corner of Rohnert Park Expressway and the SMART Rail line. Laulima Development is the same developer that did Santana Row in San Jose is in charge of this project and demolition has already cleared most of the site for construction. Construction should be underway right now with opening in 2020.

Soon to be built are 460 on – site apartments, 140,000 sf of retail store space and 130,000 sf of brand-new office space with a pedestrian and community-based town center that the City of Rohnert Park desperately wants for an “identity”. Close proximity to the SMART Rail station will enable folks to conveniently travel to and from Windsor, Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Novato and San Rafael with shuttle/ferry assistance into and from San Francisco.

The days of neglecting going out to dinner in Rohnert Park will soon be a thing of the past. Some great restaurants are going in to this development and Plow Brewery will be a local hotspot for sure. With all of the open space and parklike features included, this will really enhance the NorthBay for many decades to come.

Congratulations Rohnert Park! And thank you for adding much needed modern yet “Sonoma County-friendly” development to our area! Take a moment and enjoy the slide show depicting the plans for this development by clicking the link.

Further north of Rohnert Park, the little town of Healdsburg has some news of its own. The Mill District project in downtown Healdsburg was approved last week and Vancouver based developer Replay will be able to move forward on its plans to build 206 housing units and other amenities in the old lumber yard site just to the East and South of the Roundabout. Construction of utilities and infrastructure work should begin in the Fall of 2019. The first housing units could be completed as early as 2021 if planning and permits go smoothly.

Check out the artists rendition and the Plans on this link thanks to North Bay Business Journal.

Rohnert Park and Healdsburg are not the only Cities with big news. More to come in future newsletters!

That’s All Folks!

March 13, 2019

March 14, 2019

ECA Newsletter 3-14-19

John’s Soapbox

Parachute Packing!

We are all used to having to use every tool available to us to outwit and outbid our competitors for a chance to sign a contract with an owner. As I ponder the outcome of the 2020 Election, I consider what could happen to our industry if Bernie wins, or if the Dems win and adopt a very far left agenda that would mimic the Democratic Socialists that are so much in the news lately. I keep reading the news that young people believe Socialism is better than Capitalism for the USA. It makes me wonder, if all the young people vote for a socialist agenda and candidate, and non-citizens are given the right to vote, and the non-citizens believe a redistribution of wealth (socialist concept) benefits them more than capitalism, could a socialist United States be far behind? And if that happens, how does that affect our industry?

As I ponder those questions with you, let’s make sure we are communicating properly!

A little background high school remedial lesson for my own benefit and maybe some of you too—

What is the difference between Capitalism and Socialism and Communism?

Capitalism: Although some of you may doubt it, our current system (political and economic) is based on capitalism. The key to capitalism is being able to own land, own businesses, be able to make a profit and be able to keep that profit to better yourself and your family. In a capitalist system, when one makes more profit than another, there is nothing in place that would take his/her “extra” profit and redistribute it to someone who has less resources (we of course do have taxes that do that but not to the extent that socialism takes that wealth and redistributes it). Capitalism is a system where greed and the chasing of the almighty dollar dominate the incentive and the work ethic of those trying to get ahead. The idea is that great ideas and innovation and increased efficiencies are derived from the “chasing of that dollar”. Critics of capitalism point out (correctly) that workers often are taken advantage of in the pursuit of profit and while a corporation can make “ungodly” profits, there is nothing in place that says those projects must be distributed to the workers who did the tasks to make that profit.
Socialism-Specifically Democratic Socialism: The socialist believes that person and/or the corporation, should be taxed and regulated such that his/her wealth is redistributed to those that have less resources. The concept is to allow private ownership of land and businesses, but redistribute the wealth through government run social programs in such a way that all society members get what they need. Essentially, the socialist system is a “classless” system where the resources produced by the private sector are distributed throughout the society so that, in theory, the society is stronger because there are no “weaker” society members. The Democratic Socialist Party of America (from their website) believes working people should run both the economy and society democratically to meet human needs, not to make profits for a few.
Communism: This is where socialism “morphs” into a political system where the government owns and controls the means of production and the property. There is no more privately owned companies or land in communism.

What countries are socialist today? Bangladesh, India, North Korea, Portugal, Sri Lanka and Tanzania. Yep. That’s it. Although some Democrats are touting Sweden and Norway and Finland as being socialist, they are not.

Now that we are back to a high school freshman level in our political civics knowledge, let’s look at how things seem to be leaning in our country and how they might affect our industry.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) recently proclaimed America should shift from a Capitalist system to a Socialist system. Some would dismiss AOC’s views, but if they did, they would be making a mistake. It is her views that are primarily moving the Democratic party far to the left and wide out in the open and unapologetic about those socialist positions. Although AOC is certainly getting the most news, she is not alone in touting the benefits of Socialism vs Capitalism. Bernie Sanders is a Democratic Socialist (as is AOC), and many of the Democratic candidates for President in 2020 are taking positions that demonstrate they are leaning towards a socialist system rather than a capitalist system.

So back to my original pondering-could this country elect a socialist and adopt a socialist economic program? YES. And if that happens, how might that affect our industry? The rest of this “Soapbox” ponders that last question—

Here are some of the programs and taxes socialist candidates are considering as their “platform”:

Higher tax rates on wealthy individuals-70% to 90% (highest rate is currently around 37%-was 43% in 2017)
Higher tax rates on corporations-50% to 70% (highest rate is currently around 21%-was 35% in 2017)
Use the higher tax income to fund lots of programs that have been discussed, including-free college tuition, Medicare for all, housing for all, jobs for all, and money for those that cannot or do not work, pensions for all.

So in the “Green new world”, it won’t matter if you are smarter, harder working, more innovative, and if you have the best clients and the best workers-all Contractors will essentially make the same after tax dollars because if you are better than everyone else, you will simply be taxed at a higher rate to redistribute your wealth. You will not have a choice.

In our world today, if you are better at signing good clients, better at motivating and training your workforce, and better at cost control of your work, you as an owner make more money. You then can choose to give some of that money out to your best workers to reward them or give to community relation projects or organizations that give to those projects to help them out (again-if YOU CHOOSE TO!). If Socialism is in place, you may not be able to give that money out to your best workers or give that money out to Associations or projects that benefit the community because the Government will have programs set up that do the compensation and community benefits without your choosing.

What happens to our company core values? If you pride yourselves in training and being better than the other firms in your area of work, will you still have that as a core value? I do not know the answer to that but would guess the socialist program that is chosen for your workers will not have your opinion considered.

The other thing to consider is that in socialism, the idea is to redistribute the wealth to those that need it most. So if you have the wealth, you can be assured that the government will be trying to get it to hand out to others that you may not want to benefit.

So what options do you have?

If you have wealth, and if you are a hard worker, and if you reward your best producers with the highest pay, and if you do not take advantage of your workforce, you might want to vote for capitalism (even with all of its “warts”). But if you can see your vote is not going to be on the winning side, you may want to choose what many other successful and wealthy folks are doing-move away from the high taxation and protect your assets.

The wealthy are jumping to safety!

Have your parachute packed!

Just sayin’

That’s All Folks!

March 6, 2019

March 7, 2019

ECA Newsletter

3-7-19

With the recent history of emergencies that Sonoma, Marin, Lake, Mendo, Napa, and Solano Counties have experienced, further strain has been put on our already “stretched” capacity for available men, women, and equipment. Obviously, the fire cleanup was the most memorable applied use of our workforces, but flooding and cleanup is now becoming the “main course”.

Recently, there was an article in the Press Democrat about a house builder buying a concrete company because “he was tired of the delays” in getting concrete to his projects. Within that article, he referenced that he was using surveyors from Grass Valley to do his surveying on his projects. I got to thinking that maybe folks are not aware that we have capacity available here locally to do some of this work that has recently been “farmed out” to outside the area contractors, engineers, and workers. Do we have capacity? I am talking to folks and I hear that yes we do if the projects are scheduled properly.

What goes into the nuts and bolts of “scheduling properly”? Some of the bigger firms may be able to draw additional workers from the union halls, and redeploy equipment from other areas, but many of the mid sized to smaller contractors need to be able to identify their markets, focus on their clients, and get the work done “bookend to bookend” to be extremely efficient.

Sometimes, it is easy to have your business plans “overwhelmed” by the urgency and 24/7 nature of the emergency work. Eventually, this emergency work will go away. Sooner rather than later. I am thinking it is a good time to review your business and marketing schemes and where your work is going to be coming from as well as “fitting” the available crews and equipment you may have at your disposal to do said work.

You all know what your bidding success rate is for private and public work. You are also very capable of fostering the relationships you have now that will lead to some future projects. How good are you at identifying new customers? How efficient is your company methodology for cultivating those new customers? And how good is your firm at retaining existing workers and keeping your equipment fleet available to serve new customers?

These are some of the thoughts rattling around in my head, and I have reached out to two of our ECA Members (Tom Boylan and Don Mills of Boylan Point Agency and Sound Ideas respectively) to assist in putting together a workshop to address this dynamic issue. We plan on presenting both Affiliates and Contractors and Engineers some ideas to focus in on potential clients they want to retain or attract to suit their business plan. Boylan Point is adept at Website design and marketing strategies, and Sound Ideas is an expert on video creation that can attract the attention of clients and make the company morale improve. I am sure there is something for most everyone at this workshop.

We understand how busy everyone is, but we are planning a workshop from 7:30-9am on Tuesday, April 23, 2019. We will have coffee, fruit, pastries, and juice from 7:30-8 and the Workshop will start promptly at 8am. We will do everything we can to get you out of there by 9am.

If you are interested, please contact Mary at your earliest convenience. I think this one might fill up quickly.

That’s All Folks

County Supervisor and Planning Commission Meetings:

Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Meeting:

2-27-19 Meeting was Closed

March 4 was cancelled

March 7 is a Special Meeting to deal with the Emergency Declaration from flooding

Sonoma County Planning Commission Meeting:

Next scheduled meeting is in April

Marin County Board of Supervisor and Planning Commission Meeting:

Nothing of major interest in February

Solano County Board of Supervisors Meeting:

Nothing of interest in the Feb 26 Supervisor Meeting

Solano County Planning Commission Meeting:

2/21/19 Meeting-

Two Items of Importance to ECA Members-

Item 1 on Regular Consent Calendar for PC-19-013-Timbers Silveyville Tree and Pumpkin Farm improvements on 6229 Silveyville Road NW of Dixon.
Item 2 on Regular Consent Calendar for PC-19-012 Hubert and Aurelia Goudie and William and Sylvia Marshalones to rezone 15.69 acres to higher density rural residential.

To see both reports, click on the link below-

https://www.solanocounty.com/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?BlobID=30050

Napa County Board of Supervisors Meeting:

2-26-19 Meeting, Item 6m discusses emergency slide repair contract with ADKO Engineering and also lists the Budget and the various slide repairs that need to be worked on. To see the item, click on the link below-

http://services.countyofnapa.org/AgendaNet/GranicusMeetingDocuments.aspx?id=5604

Item 6N from same meeting shows storm drain budget and detail. You can review by same link as above.

Item 10b is about the Award to Ghilotti Construction for Devlin Road work and some American Canyon utility work for $4,159,319 (Congrats!). Same link as above.

Napa County Planning Commission Meeting:

2/20/19 Meeting-

Item 7A is about the Kenefick Winery project and that was continued to the regular PC meeting on 3-6-19. To see the info, click on the following link-

http://services.countyofnapa.org/AgendaNet/GranicusMeetingDocuments.aspx?id=5721

3/6/19 Meeting-

Item 7B is the Kenefick Winery Project-click on the link here to see the info-

http://services.countyofnapa.org/AgendaNet/GranicusMeetingDocuments.aspx?id=5722

Item 7C is about the Darms Lane Winery Project and they are approving the negative declaration-to see this item, click on the link following-

http://services.countyofnapa.org/AgendaNet/GranicusMeetingDocuments.aspx?id=5722

Lake County Board of Supervisor Meeting:

3/5/19 Meeting

Item 5.12 is about the Engineering and Inspection contract for replace/repair Bartlett Creek Bridge and Cache Creek Bridge. To see the item, click on the following link-

https://countyoflake.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=A&ID=655032&GUID=A84FF091-652C-4838-9D37-9B732580BA0A

Lake County Planning Commission Meeting:

2/28/19 Meeting

Brelje and Race Engineers are on the agenda to move forward with major water treatment works-to see the item in more detail, click the link below-

https://countyoflake.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=A&ID=655042&GUID=A0C5DC2D-43F5-4F80-97F3-F9A130E9DAF5

March 6, 2019

February 27, 2019

Can We Build Mega Projects Anymore?

Even though the high-speed rail project in California is not local, it is such a compelling story that I am writing about it again.

I am writing about whether it is possible to ever build a “Mega Project” like the High-Speed Rail Project can actually get passed and built in the USA again. Projects like the Alaska Pipeline, the Transcontinental Railroad, or the California High Speed Rail Project.

I do not believe a Mega Project will ever be passed again in the USA. I think voters feel they were “duped,” and the Country will have a tough time ever coming together in a bi-partisan manner to back a huge project given the polarity and politicizing of both parties regarding infrastructure construction. I do not think the Public will ever believe the backers of a Mega Project given the over zealous and “fantasy” nature of the backers’ arguments to build the California High Speed Rail Project. Voters will be more skeptical and will not vote to tax themselves because they do not trust the promises being made to them on these Mega Projects.

Here is the “Argument in Favor or Prop 1” that the voters read on their voter information in 2008:

“Proposition 1 will bring Californians a safe, convenient, affordable, and reliable alternative to soaring gasoline prices, freeway congestion, rising airfares, plummeting airline service, and fewer ﬂights available. It will reduce California’s dependence on foreign oil and reduce greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Proposition 1 is a $9.95 billion bond measure for an 800-mile High-Speed Train network that will relieve 70 million passenger trips a year that now clog California’s highways and airports— WITHOUT RAISING TAXES. California will be the ﬁrst state in the country to beneﬁt from environmentally preferred High-Speed Trains common today in Europe and Asia. Proposition 1 will bring California: —Electric-powered High-Speed Trains running up to 220 miles an hour on modern track safely separated from other trafﬁc generally along existing rail corridors. —Routes linking downtown stations in SAN DIEGO, LOS ANGELES, FRESNO, SAN JOSE, SAN FRANCISCO, and SACRAMENTO, with stops in communities in between. —High-Speed Train service to major cities in ORANGE COUNTY, the INLAND EMPIRE, the SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY, and the SOUTH BAY. —Nearly a billion dollars to beef up commuter rail systems that connect to High-Speed Trains. Proposition 1 will save time and money. Travel from Los Angeles to San Francisco in about 2½ hours for about $50 a person. With gasoline prices today, a driver of a 20-miles-pergallon car would spend about $87 and six hours on such a trip. Ten years of study and planning have gone into PREPARING FOR construction, ﬁnancing, and operation of a California bullet train network modeled on popular, reliable, and successful systems in Europe and Asia. Their record shows that High-Speed Trains deliver, both in service and economy.

Air travelers spend more time on the ground than in the air today. Proposition 1 will create a new transportation choice that improves conditions at our major airports. There’s no room for more runways. High-Speed Trains can relieve that demand. Electric-powered High-Speed Trains will remove over 12 billion pounds of CO2 and greenhouse gases, equal to the pollution of nearly 1 million cars. And High-Speed Trains require one-third the energy of air travel and one-ﬁfth the energy of auto travel. Proposition 1 will protect taxpayer interests: —Two independent ridership and revenue forecasts by outside experts were subject to tough peer review. —Existing High-Speed Train system operators are directly involved in oversight of the design of California’s system. —The new system will be subject to legal and ﬁnancial oversight by the Governor, the Legislature, the Attorney General, and an independent outside expert. —Proposition 1 bond funds will provide a match for AT LEAST ANOTHER 9 billion dollars in federal funding and private investment. Vote Yes on Proposition 1 to IMPROVE MOBILITY and inject new vitality into California’s economy by creating nearly 160,000 construction-related jobs and 450,000 permanent jobs in related industries like tourism. These are American jobs that cannot be outsourced. Vote Yes on Proposition 1. www.californiahighspeedtrains.com “

Following the voters passing Prop 1, the effort then began to make those “160,000 construction jobs” in building the train all union as a PLA was put in place. Again, to remind you, I am not taking the side of Labor or Merit Shop, I am making comments on whether voters were “duped” into voting for something that was never going to cost just “$40 Billion”. If Labor wanted all those jobs to be union only, the backers of Prop 1 should just say so.

Voters will demand honesty in the future. And voters deserve honesty.

So, can we ever build a “Mega Project” again in the USA? I say no because I do not believe the voters will ever get the honesty and transparency, they will demand on future Bond Measures.

That’s All Folks

February 14, 2019

2-14-19

John’s Soapbox

Pulling the Plug On A Boondoggle of Epic Proportions!

In the 10 years since the high-speed rail project has been “alive”, I have often mused as to why Sacramento pushed for it so hard. Their claims that our airports were at capacity and roads were bottle-necked to the breaking point, although there is some truth to both, did not totally explain to me the need for a high-speed rail from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Los Angeles area.

Yesterday, in his State of the State address, new Governor Gavin Newsom declared the high-speed rail project was being “scaled back” dramatically. Apparently, Governor Newsom is only supporting completing the rail project from Merced to Bakersfield. The reasons the Governor cited were that the overall project had experienced delays and cost overruns and a lack of transparency along with the overall project revised estimate of costs being too expensive. Newsom vowed to quickly replace the head of the state board that oversees the project and pledged more accountability for contractors that run over on costs.

Yours truly was never in favor of this ridiculous project and I always took the position that it would not get built as the voters approved because it was physically impossible to maintain the promised speeds over the terrain and corners it needed to follow. If it did get built, my point was that the voters approved a high-speed train and it was going to be anything but “high-speed”.

How did this (in my humble opinion) boondoggle ever get to this point?

The California High-Speed Rail Authority was established in 1996 after decades of discussion about high speed rail system in California. In 2008, Proposition 1A was passed by the voters and that was quickly followed by the award of “federal stimulus” funds in 2010. The federal stimulus funds were the initial funding source and the California High-Speed Rail System was “on its way”. Construction contracts were awarded in 2013 and ground-breaking was held on January 6, 2015.

The “original” financing for the first construction segment (Madera to Bakersfield) was $6.302 billion ($2.6 billion from Prop 1A, $3.2 billion in federal stimulus money, $252 million for designing and planning Phase 1 and Phase 2-this money was coming from Prop 1A and Federal stimulus money, and $250 million was added in 2014 from “Cap and Trade” funds.

In 2008, the original estimate of the route from Anaheim to San Francisco was $33 billion-that was in 2006 dollars but was actually $65 billion in “year of expenditure” dollars. Upon further investigation, the Authority revised their estimate for an exclusive trackage along its entire length to $96 billion. They thought this was a bit of a stretch, so they “morphed” the design into a “blended” shared track route that would not require as expensive construction costs as a single new trackage. That revised and “blended” design was estimated to cost $91.4 billion with a completion date of 2033.

All of these estimates failed to take into account the difficulty of tunneling and the Authority never has received qualified estimates for the needed tunneling to get over the Tehachapi Pass. Some experts believe the tunneling alone would have increased costs by another $50 billion from the bogus estimated costs the Authority has been reporting on.

This might be the first and last time I compliment Gavin Newsom. Good job pulling the plug.

A match made in heaven! Thank you, Governor, for pulling the plug on this crazy idea that Schwarzenegger and Brown backed. Brown’s legacy should be how much money he wasted on this crappy concept. It is a lot.

That’s All Folks!:

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