March 31, 2005
Cut home improvement
risk
Complaints seem to be up about
unscrupulous contractors … “I paid $16,000 up front for a new pool,
and I never saw the contractor again,” one homeowner bemoaned this
week. And Business Revenue Officer Kim Porterfield is doing something
about it -- increasing efforts to stop such fraud. She not only
continues to require a current state contractors’ card at the business
license permit application and renewal stages, but now she routinely
checks the Internet throughout the year on contractors’ licenses, bond
coverage, suspensions and other data.
“Be sure any contractor you hire has a
city business license,” she advises customers. That means their state
license is valid. While that is no guarantee of the work, Kim points
out, it at least enables you to complain to
the state board if something goes wrong. Also, remember, pay no more
than 10% of the project price or $1,000 (whichever is less) as a down
payment on a home improvement project. For swimming pools, the
limit should be 2% down or $200 up front, according to the California
State Contractors’ License Board.
Working on two fronts
The city is trying to regain some of the
land north of I-10 which is proposed to be un-developable and in the
Multi-Species Habitat Plan. City Manager Don Bradley is serving on a
CVAG subcommittee of valley city mangers to deal with various effects
of the proposed plan. And City Planner
Joe Richards is
working with CVAG administration to get the boundary map changed,
freeing up more land for property owners to develop in the area which
could be considered “Cathedral City’s future.”
‘Active shooter’
training
With students off on spring break, Cathedral City High School this week was the perfect
place for the Police and Fire Departments to conduct a training
exercise to prepare for situations like Columbine or the recent
Minnesota school shootings.
In order to stop a shooter, officers
used to hold a standoff, staying outside the school. But that gave
the gunman more time to harm innocent victims, so now the tactic is
more dangerous – get inside and actively seek out the shooter.
On a personal note …
In our city family, we have had some
recent sad news – the deaths of Scott Keeran’s
mother; Diane Sawa’s uncle
and now this week, her father; and Lalo
Guerrero, internationally known balladeer and long-time Cathedral City
resident.
Other news about employees … Colleen
Hodson in engineering and her husband are
building a cabin in Arizona. She will be going in for
surgery within a month and Nick Martin will be filling in for her,
handling invoices and keeping the accounts straight. Kevin Lockwood
and his wife, Sandy, are in escrow on their first house, in Yucca
Valley.
Tommi Jiminez of
Public Works is home on maternity leave with her baby boy (8 lbs. 15
oz.), named Dean.
Traffic stuff
The traffic signal at Gerald Ford and
Plumley is being replaced. It will be
more responsive to changes in traffic flow. The controller was so old
-- vintage 1972 -- that it was impossible
to get parts for it. Also in the streets arena, the rubber slurry seal
project in various neighborhoods throughout the city is just about
finished.
Wal*Mart
continued
At the March 15th Council candidates’
forum, it was mentioned that Burlington Coat Factory is going into
Wal*Mart’s Cathedral City
store after it closes. Well, that could be true, if all business deal
points can be reached. There may be an issue with the rent per square
foot.
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