Funding Problems Put Butter & Eggs Days and Antique Faire at Risk

With California eliminating funding for redevelopment agencies, two major festivals in Petaluma—Butter & Eggs Days and The Antique Faire Art & Garden Festival could have trouble finding financing, according to Mayor David Glass. 

“I’m sure we’ll still have the events [this year],” said Glass. “We are closer to the end (of a struggling economy) than to the beginning, and we will get through it. But as much as we like these events, they’re vulnerable from a city-funding standpoint.”

The city doesn’t directly fund either event, but the elimination of redevelopment agencies in California has ended an annual $50,000 grant The Petaluma Downtown Association used to put on both festivals. Outside of its core mission of promoting downtown businesses, PDA serves as a liaison between local businesses and city and helps organize both Butter and Eggs and the Antique Faire. 

“The redevelopment fund has jeopardized all of that,” said Marie McCusker, executive director of the Petaluma Downtown Association. “It’s still in that very new stage. We’re looking at ways to move on.”

It’s hard to say if funds and grants for PDA will be gone for good because the way state and city funds can be used is still somewhat up in the air, according to both McCusker and Glass. Petaluma's expenses were $32 million in 2011, down from around $48 million in 2007. Meanwhile, total city revenue was down to $30 million in 2011, according to Glass.

There may be potential to reroute the hotel tax, formally known as the transient occupancy tax, designed to support reinvestment marketing and city events. But now, the hotel tax is being used to help pay for city services, like fire, police, retirement funds and municipal bondholders, according to Glass.

For now, both the PDA and the city are exploring options and looking to the public for help. If you have ideas of how to raise money for either festival, contact Marie McCusker at 707-769-0429
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After getting 22 stores across North and South America and Asia in 2011, Petaluma company emma at home is looking to double the number of independent retail stores.

“We like to sell to other independent stores, like ourselves, who are competing against the big box store, the chain store,” said Patrick McDarrah, president of the company that sells home decor items like rugs, tables, pillow, throws and candles.

The company was started by rug designer Emma Gardner, who opened her Petaluma store, located at 151 Petaluma Blvd. South in Theater Square, in early 2011.

“We’re trying to bring a sense of quality and craftsmanship to the retail world,” said McDarrah. “The look is very American. It’s fresh and original.”

The company is measuring its success in terms of geographical growth at the moment, not dollars, said McDarrah. In addition to its domestic expansion, the company has seen a lot of interest from rug dealers in Spanish-speaking countries, like the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Chile. 

“They like the contemporary look; they like the colors,” said McDarrah. “It seems to resonate with a coastal market.”-

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Tellabs, a telecom company that had a network engineering center in Petaluma, is planning a consolidation that will result in layoffs for about 70 people. At its heyday, Tellabs employed 750 workers in Petaluma and served as the headquarters of Advanced Fibre Communications.

Tellabs recorded a net loss of $5 million or 1 cent per share in the fourth quarter of 2011, compared with a net loss of $11 million or 3 cents per share in the fourth quarter of 2010. The company will now shift focus to wireless Internet services.

“In a climate of economic uncertainty, Tellabs needs to align expenses with revenue,” said company president Rob Pullen said. “Unfortunately, our restructuring will affect about 530 people.”

The consolidation will also result in closure of facilities in Vancouver, Bangalore, and Karachi, Pakistan and is designed to save $100 million in operating costs, Pullen said.

Got a business new tip? Send it to reporter Kevin King at keking25@yahoo.com or to Patch editor Karina Ioffee at karina@patch.com