Bankruptcy Decision Leaves Some Stockton Residents Shocked
STOCKTON (CBS13) - The City Council's vote late Tuesday night to move forward with Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection left some Stockton residents stunned on Wednesday.
"I'm in shock," Theresa Fewell said.
"Devastated," Chris West said.
The City Council voted 6-1 in favor of a budget pendency plan that will allow Stockton to operate during bankruptcy and bridge a $26 million gap in its budget.
But that plan isn't sitting well city resident Fewell.
"I think somebody really dropped the ball and city leaders, it's just a big mess, and somebody has stirred up the pot the wrong way," Fewell said.
All but one of the council members were on board to set up the bankruptcy saying there wasn't much more they could do after already making drastic cuts to police, fire and other city staff positions in recent years amid the housing bust, recession and mounting pension obligations. The city will stop funding retiree lifetime health care, saving it about $7 million in the 2012-13 budget.
"It's too bad, because the city has a lot going for it," West said. "It's got great culture, a great university, its minor league franchises, you can buy an architecturally significant place for less than $100,000."
But the fact remains, Stockton will now become the largest U.S. city to file for bankruptcy. That filing is expected some time this week.
"We are already lacking in jobs, our economy really sucks," Fewell said. "I don't know, I think it's a poor decision."
But not everybody feels that way. Wes Rhea, executive director of the Stockton Convention and Visitors Bureau, has a different perspective on the bankruptcy.
"It doesn't do us any good to focus on the negative, not in my business because we have to focus on the positive," he said. "We can spend all day talking about bad things in any city in California, but I think if you talk about the positive things, that's how we're going to recover from this."
Still it has some speechless to watch Stockton head in this direction.
"I don't know what to say," Fewell said.
