Brea : Foundation Allowed to Retain Control of Funds

The Brea Foundation, a quasi-public body designed to finance city arts programs, recreation and other human services, can keep its current share of the money it collects and decide who gets what for at least another year.

During a meeting between City Council members and the foundation last week, the groups agreed to keep the current distribution formula, which gives the city $112,000 and leaves the rest to the discretion of the foundation.

For the first time in its four-year history, the Brea Foundation found itself with a sizable amount of money. City officials, concerned that too many groups may compete for the dollars, wanted to ensure the money would funnel into city coffers.

“There is a very specific plan” for the Brea Foundation, Councilwoman Norma Arias Hicks said, “to make as many bucks for the city as possible.”

Of the foundation’s $250,000 budget, $140,000 comes from ground-lease payments on a hotel that will be built at the Brea Mall, City Manager Ed Wohlenberg said. The city receives 80% of the $140,000, or $112,000. The remainder is used to support city arts programs, recreation and other human services as well as the foundation’s expenses, such as property managers’ salaries for the two buildings that the foundation manages, foundation chairman Carol Weddle said.

Council members were concerned that too high a percentage of the money was left up to the discretion of the foundation.

“We do not know where that money is going to,” Brea Mayor Clarice Blamer told Weddle.

Foundation members said they did not know either since the foundation has not made any decisions on which city groups would receive funds.

Weddle assured the council that the foundation’s role was not to produce money for groups’ operating budgets but for special programs to benefit the community overall.

After agreeing to leave their existing arrangement status quo, both parties also agreed to meet twice a year.