Should Los Osos become a city? CSD board will consider the issue at its meeting today
In the wake of redistricting, Los Osos is buzzing with conversation over a key question about its future: Should the unincorporated area become a city?
The Los Osos Community Services District Board of Directors is set to discuss the steps needed to become a city at its meeting on Thursday at 6 p.m.
Los Osos is currently an unincorporated area of the county governed primarily by the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors and the Los Osos Community Services District, which has some jurisdiction over water management, fire response and park maintenance.
If Los Osos became a city, it would no longer be governed by the Board of Supervisors. Instead, it would have a City Council to make decisions about everything from land use to city goals.
Jon-Erik Storm, the founder of the Committee to Incorporate Los Osos, said incorporation gives Los Osos citizens more direct input on how the area is governed.
“I don’t think this is a panacea,” Storm said. “We’re still going to fight with each other like we do, like every city does. There’s still going to be potholes. It’s not going to be heaven on earth. But I think the decisions we make will have more legitimacy if they’re made by locals.”
What does Los Osos need to do to become a city?
To incorporate as a city, Los Osos must submit an application to the SLO Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) to create a report on how much money it would cost.
At the Thursday meeting, the board will vote to decide if it will embark on this preliminary step in the process.
When the report is finished, the board will reconvene to vote on whether Los Osos should officially apply to become a city.
If the board abandons the cause, citizens could step in.
If 25% of Los Osos registered voters sign a petition asking for the area to become a city, they can apply for incorporation instead.
A citizens group would have an easier time funding the effort than the CSD, because it could apply to the California Legislature for a loan from the state’s General Fund to pay for incorporation application costs. If Los Osos did incorporate, citizens would have to reimburse the state in two years. If Los Osos didn’t incorporate, they wouldn’t have to pay back the loan, according to the staff report.
How much will incorporation cost?
Los Osos will not know the true cost of incorporation unless it commissions a report from LAFCO.
If Los Osos incorporates, the city will need to provide services that the county currently takes care of, such as starting a police department or forming its own contract with the SLO County Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement services.
To incorporate, Los Osos must prove that it has the revenue to provide “public services and facilities and reasonable reserve” for at least three fiscal years after incorporation, the staff report said.
To meet these requirements, Los Osos needs to come up with another $1.7 million in tax revenue a year, which breaks down to $118.04 per resident in addition to their current rate of taxes, according to the staff report.
Options for raising the extra revenue include adopting a parcel tax, increasing sales taxes, or even initiating “improvements to the streets and sidewalks, tax or other incentives to attract employers,” the staff report said.
Overall, applying for incorporation could cost about $200,000 — from paying staff and legal counsel to funding public outreach, according to the staff report.
Why should Los Osos incorporate?
Jon-Erik Storm started the Committee to Incorporate Los Osos in June and says Los Osos could enjoy a few benefits if it incorporated.
First, it would be governed primarily by a locally elected City Council. This is important especially in light of redistricting, he said.
Los Osos used to reside in District 2, represented by Bruce Gibson. The new district map, however, pushed Los Osos into District 5. Los Osos was supposed to vote for a new District 2 supervisor during the November election but now won’t be able to vote for a supervisor until 2024 when District 5 is on the ballot.
This is a problem, Storm said, because Los Osos no longer has a representative that’s directly accountable to them on the Board of Supervisors.
Gibson promised to represent Los Osos if he’s re-elected, but that’s not enough, Storm said.
“It’s not about him,” Storm said. “We don’t have somebody that is electorally accountable. So if he disagrees with us, we can’t recall him and we don’t get to vote in his re-election.”
With a City Council, Los Osos voters will always have a say in who’s elected, giving locals more autonomy over what kinds of policy is passed.
Most importantly, it gives locals the ability to solve problems themselves, Storm said.
“I don’t think incorporating is an end in itself. I think it’s a means to empower us,” Storm said.
Also, cities are represented differently than special districts on intergovernmental bodies like the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments. Each city gets its own seat on the council, but all special districts share a seat. This is a problem because different districts have different interests, Storm said.
If Los Osos becomes a city, it would have its own seat and more power in groups such as this, Storm said.
The only thing the Committee to Incorporate Los Osos is asking for right now, though, is that the CSD pursue a fiscal analysis to see how much incorporation would cost, Storm said. If incorporation doesn’t seem feasible, Los Osos could pursue other options, he said.
Folks can attend the 6 p.m. meeting in person at the CSD’s board room at 2122 9th St. or on Zoom at this link.
This story was originally published December 1, 2022 at 11:12 AM with the headline "Should Los Osos become a city? CSD board will consider the issue at its meeting today."
