City to sponsor foundation to help fund new projects
By Kara Chalmers
The Saratoga City Council recently took the first steps in forming a community foundation to help pay for things the city needs, but can't afford on its own.
Saratoga Mayor John Mehaffey said there are many needs in Saratoga, such as a new community center and playing fields, that the city doesn't have enough money to fund. There are also people in the community who would like to help with these projects by donating time or money. A community foundation, which would be set up to accept donations and distribute them appropriately, would be a place the council could direct these people to, Mehaffey said.
Even though the city would get the foundation up and running, and city council members would sit on the board at first, the foundation would later be completely independent from the city. "The first couple of years, we'd have a more hands on approach, getting it over its birthing pains," said Mehaffey, who added that later the city might well be an applicant for funds from the foundation.
"We'd love to have community participation in this," Mehaffey said, adding that interested citizens could contact him or Saratoga City Manager Dave Anderson.
Community foundations are not subject to the control of individual families or businesses, the way private foundations are. Rather, community foundations are governed by boards of area residents who are knowledgeable of a community's needs, according to city attorney Richard Taylor.
At its Jan. 17 meeting, the council agreed that the foundation's mission would be general and that donations to it could fund any project of importance to the community in general, such as arts, sports, public safety, or environmental projects, according to Taylor.
The council directed Taylor to return to the council with draft articles of incorporation and draft bylaws for a foundation, which would outline how any donations would be spent.
Other communities--including neighboring Los Gatos--have community foundations to support community projects. Community foundations can be specific, such as Mill Valley's organization for renovating playing fields, or they can be general, like the Claremont Community Foundation, which supports projects related to education, health and general welfare, history and cultural heritage and performing and visual arts, according to Taylor.
The council opted not to encourage the formation of an independent community foundation now, which would have to be established by interested community members rather than the city. The citizens would have to volunteer and form an initial board themselves, which would then file the articles of incorporation and bylaws with the California Secretary of State and seek approval to operate as a nonprofit from the IRS and the state franchise tax board.
But eventually, when Saratoga's community foundation becomes independent, it would not be subject to the same restrictions imposed on city-sponsored community foundations--which are treated the same as any city commission, according to Taylor.
City-sponsored foundations are restricted by the Brown Act, which requires public access and advance notice for most meetings; the Public Records Act, which requires public access to most documents; and the Political Reform Act, which requires public disclosure of financial information for all agency decision makers, among others.
According to Taylor, there is a school of thought that says that the laws, while appropriate for public agencies, can hinder the fundraising abilities of foundations.
"We were told when we talked to other foundations that had formerly been city-sponsored that the reason they shifted was because of these restrictions," Taylor said, referring to the three acts. "There's also a concern that sometimes major donors are reluctant to give to city-sponsored organizations."
One branch of the community foundation, The Saratoga Youth Sport Foundation, would help pay for the new Congress Springs Park, said John Cherbone, the city's public works director. The sports foundation is a project of city officials, Saratoga Soccer and Saratoga Little League, who are currently trying to solicit donations to fund amenities for the new park.
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Saratoga, California Since 1955
