Commentary: State of the City Address Had Strengths and Weaknesses
The Davis Chamber had a new format for their event, with Mayor Robb Davis giving the main…
Mayor Lays Out City Challenges in State of the City Address
While it was a new format and there were some differences of opinion, Mayor Robb Davis laid…
My View: State of the City?
I was looking forward to hearing Robb Davis deliver the State of the City this year –…
My View: We Don’t Know What We Don’t Know
Earlier this week, the Vanguard evaluated claims by a couple of columnists with the local paper on…
Commentary: Where is the Leadership on Council?
In the past week I have had several pretty interesting conversations with members of the Davis City…
Commentary: Hotels Represent Just the First Step toward Fiscal Resiliency
It is perhaps not ironic that the short discussion on Tuesday night focused on sustainability rather than…
More Analysis on the Coming Pension Hit
Back in November, with respect to the hotel discussion, Dan Carson, a member of the Finance and…
Monday Morning Thoughts: Can We Think Big on Collaborating with University?
There is a nexus between the two stories we have been running in recent days – the…
Sunday Commentary: City Faces Urgent Fiscal Situation
For months we had heard that the city’s fiscal situation had improved – and in some ways…
Mayor Calls City’s Unfunded Liabilities Situation – Urgent
Mayor Robb Davis has reacted to an updated analysis by a city-contracted actuarial as “urgent.” Despite cost-containment…
Increased Pension Costs – And Why the Hotel Projects Are Important
By Dan Carson Your staff has done a good job providing you with the analyses I personally…
Commentary: Council Steps Up to Try to Meet Fiscal Challenge
On Tuesday night the Davis City Council did not take any votes, but it is clear that…
Sunday Commentary: Optimism Gives Way to Challenging Times for the City
This week in a column that urged the city to recommit to an Economic Development Strategy, we…
Sunday Commentary: How Can Davis Restore Its Retail Base?
As the city of Davis looks to generate revenue to pay for unfunded infrastructure and to continue…
Guest Commentary: Time to Replace Pensions with 401ks
By Jeff Boone Another name for a pension is a “Defined Benefit” (DB) retirement plan. DB plans provide a…
Analysis: Can We Cut Our Way to Prosperity?
In 2008, the Vanguard was ahead of the curve, warning of unsustainable spending practices by the city,…
Sunday Commentary: Where Land Use and Fiscal Clash, We Lose
On Wednesday, opponents of a proposed new hotel on Cowell Boulevard pushed back that the benefits of…
Assessing Our Strengths and Weaknesses As a Community
By Robb Davis Organizational strategic planning exercises often include a “SWOT” analysis analyzing Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and…
Analysis: A Look at the Fiscal Analysis of Davis Hotels
Coming out of the planning commission meeting, it was obvious that there is serious neighborhood concern regarding…
Commentary: Are We Fiddling While Rome Burns?
On Monday it was interesting to note that the Vanguard article on land use, which attempted to…