Golding Stays Neutral on Cityhood for Solana Beach

Supervisor Susan Golding isn’t going to block a citizens’ effort to incorporate this seaside community. But she isn’t going to champion the effort, either.

The neutral stand of their supervisorial candidate was a blow to leaders of Citizens Intending to Incorporate (CITI), which was formed last year to wrest the community controls away from the county.

Golding, a newcomer to the board, called in two CITI leaders, Gail Paparian and Jack Moore, Monday and announced her neutrality and her intent to lobby to revise a county policy that prevents the county from providing “urban level” services to urbanizing areas such as Solana Beach.

If Golding’s campaign against the longstanding county policy encouraging incorporation is successful, those in favor of cityhood for Solana Beach will find that opponents will have a stronger case--the ability to provide urban-level services without incorporation of the area.

Paparian said that she could understand Golding’s position but could not agree with it. Solana Beach needs to “have its own voice, rule its own destiny,” she said. The community of 14,000 has “only one-sixth of one of five votes on the Board” of Supervisors, Paparian said.

Golding countered that she feels the incorporation issue should be voted on “on the basis of facts, not emotions” and pledged to supply those facts--both pro and con--on the home-rule issue before residents go to the polls.

Incorporation often causes exactly the opposite effect than that intended by groups seeking to control growth, Golding warned.

“Once an area incorporates, it becomes more urban,” the county supervisor said, blaming such growth on “nationalistic fervor” of residents seeking urban amenities they have been denied in the past.

Paparian said she felt that Solana Beach residents would opt for cityhood because “we are now putting out twice as much in taxes as we are receiving in services.” That means the community could improve itself without imposing the fees the county would levy to raise the level of urban services to that of incorporated areas, she said.

Golding said she seeks to revoke a county policy that restricts the provision of urban-level services to unincorporated communities because it is an “outdated policy which should have been changed 10 or 15 years ago.”

The county board will hold a workshop on the policy next month, Golding said, and she plans to lobby to have it revoked.