In November 2024, 62% of voters in Pomona approved Measure Y, a citizens initiative to dedicate funds directly to “children’s programs and services.” Why wouldn’t they? Children are our future! Yes, well. Life is rarely so simple. Under the measure, nicknamed “Kids First,” a steadily esc alating percentage of city money would go to a brand-new bureaucracy, the Department of Children and Youth, which the measure established to funnel taxpayer money to nonprofits. By 2030, the amount settles at 10% of the city budget. Illustrating the perils of ballot-box budgeting, Pomona is now looking at endless deficits and steep cuts as money is siphoned away from police, parks, streets and other services. On Monday, the Pomona City Council considered whether to put a rewrite of Measure Y on the June 2 ballot. Its name, perhaps inevitably: Measure Z. The vote Monday: 7-0 in favor. While Measure Y was well-intended, Mayor Tim Sandoval said, “it did not take into account the effect on the entire organization. City government has multiple services we provide.” As a journalist with modest math skills, I’ve followed the Measure Y saga with a sense of dread. And waited for the other shoe to drop, which took place Monday. “We saw it coming,” City Manager Anita Scott told me before the meeting. “The implications became very real.” Understand that the measure did not create a source of funding, like a new tax. The funding has to come out of the existing budget, which is based on $163 million in revenue. Almost three-quarters goes to police and fire protection. The initial diversion of $2 million climbed to $7.5 million this year when 5% of the general fund had to go to the Department of Children and Youth. In response, City Hall cut every department by 5%, across the board. That still left a $5.5 million deficit, which was filled by drawing from the city’s rainy day fund. “We have a freeze on hiring and only critical positions are being filled,” Scott told me. In the Police Department, she said, 14 police officer vacancies were left unfilled. Do you feel safer, Pomona? People gather outside the Pomona Council Chambers on Monday night prior to the meeting’s start. (Photo by David Allen, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) For the fiscal year that starts in July, a 6% diversion, or $9 million, is required, which will mean more, unspecified cuts to personnel. By 2030, that amount peaks at 10% of the envisioned $180 million budget, or $18 million. It’s like voters unwittingly approved a ticking time bomb. Said Scott: “$18 million every year in perpetuity? That’s not manageable.” Measure Z, which needs a simple majority to pass, keeps all the provisions of Measure Y but changes the funding allocation to 1% of the city’s share of sales tax. That would be $2.5 million to $3 million a year. Even that level means the Department of Children and Youth will be larger than the city library, which gets $2.3 million. “It sends the city on the road to insolvency or bankruptcy if we don’t change the funding mechanism,” Steve Lustro, a councilmember, said during Monday’s meeting. “This is something that needs to be done.” Nearly a dozen Measure Y proponents spoke, although their opposition was muted. Seven city employees spoke in support of Measure Z. Sandoval said Measure Z will make the “Kids First” effort more likely to succeed rather than drag the city down. “If it fails in Pomona, no other city is going to take this up,” the mayor said. “They’ll say, see what happened in Pomona.” On a personal note, it felt good to be back in the Pomona Council Chambers. I wanted to see what happened in Pomona. More council Before the closed session meeting at 5:30 p.m., Sandoval noted my presence as the only member of the public in the Council Chambers. From the dais, he thanked me for venturing down from what he likes to call “the northernmost part of Pomona known as Claremont.” As a Claremonter, I’m still murky on who my Pomona City Council representative is. Guess I’d better keep an eye on all of them. The Ebell is back Members and supporters of the Historical Society of Pomona Valley dine Sunday in the ballroom of the former Ebell Club, the group’s newly renovated 1910 headquarters. (Photo by David Allen, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) At the annual dinner of the Historical Society of Pomona Valley on Sunday, more than 75 of us welcomed the group back to its home, a former Ebell Club, after a renovation that lasted nearly 18 months and was interrupted by a fire. Work on the 1910-built, Craftsman-style clubhouse had hardly begun when an electrical fire broke out in September 2024. Thankfully, almost everything inside had been packed, which limited damage to the society’s holdings. Although the entry was destroyed, firefighters saved the building. The exterior got a new roof and new (fireproof!) shingles, the century-old maple floor in the ballroom was restored to its original luster and a foundation was poured. Before, the 3,000-square-foot building merely sat atop a rock and cement base. Construction wrapped up recently and volunteers moved everything back in earlier in February. This came in time for the group’s annual dinner and meeting. We also said farewell Sunday to Deborah Clifford, the nonprofit’s president since 2016, and her husband, John, the secretary, who are stepping down. “Mr. and Mrs. Pomona,” the mayor, Tim Sandoval, called them. Rocks made for curious table centerpieces. They were from the foundation, with a tag reading “Pomona Historical/Ebell Club 1922.” That’s the date the building was moved to its present location, 585 E. Holt Ave. Related Articles Native plants booster and journalist was rooted in Riverside In Ontario, some speak up for Jay Littleton Ball Park’s future Art of sculptor John Svenson showcased in Ontario and Claremont Tiny Montclair embraces urban-density housing near transit and mall Three Dog Night drove San Bernardino audience wild in 1969 “Take them home, use them as paperweights,” Mike Schowalter, the incoming president, announced jovially. “I spent a lot of time putting lacquer on them. I hope you enjoy them!” One woman was observed stuffing her potato-sized rock into her small purse. If a masher later approached her on the street and she’d swung her handbag, he wouldn’t have known what hit him. ‘Meet the Band’ The Pomona Concert Band’s winter concert Friday (Feb. 27), titled “Meet the Band,” provides chances for various band sections and members to shine. Come meet the emcee too! That’s me. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Palomares Park Community Center, 499 E. Arrow Highway, Pomona. David Allen writes Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and emcees Friday. Email [email protected], phone 909-483-9339, and follow davidallencolumnist on Facebook or Instagram, @davidallen909 on X or @davidallen909.bsky.social on Bluesky. ...read more read less