A home run for Council-Manager campaign

The Council-Manager ’09 campaign posted a 4-minute video on its website this week, explaining the advantages of the council-manager form of government. I’ve been on the fence about change of government all along, but this video just might seal the deal for me. It’s professionally done, succinct and persuasive. Its most compelling point: our current form of government itself creates conflict, distrust and antagonism between the administration and the City Council. And for years, that’s been one of the biggest complaints from citizens about City Hall.

So…what do you think of it?

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How was the forum?

I couldn’t make it to last night’s forum on change of government. I’ve heard that Carl Neu, the municipal governance expert who spoke at the forum, is a knowledgeable and engaging speaker. 

So I’m interested in hearing from people who attended. Did he answer your questions? Did you change your mind on whether to change our form of government? What were the main points raised in the forum? Was it well-attended? Will you vote for or against change of government?

You can share your thoughts or remaining questions in comments to this post. I invite Bob Scales, the only announced candidate for mayor so far, and people from the Change of Government campaign to weigh in as well.

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Feeding at the public trough

Last night Council member Kim Brackett dropped a bombshell during Council deliberations on cuts to community organizations. Explaining that she had not been able to attend the Council retreat in January, she said it was her understanding that at the retreat, City Administrator Mark Dombroski said community organizations were “feeding at the public trough.” She asked if that was a true account of what he said.

Before she received a response, both Mayor Darlene Kordonowy and Councilor Barry Peters intervened to cut off discussion. They should have let Dombroski answer.

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Creative destruction

Yesterday, the Council wrestled with ways to cut another $3.5 million from its budget, directing staff to reduce labor costs by $1 million, sell $1 million in surplus property and cut another $1.5 million from expenses using a Council-developed set of priorities. But, according to the Review, Council acknowledged that cuts alone cannot stabilize our foundering City. Among other ideas, they talked about the possibility of moving the island’s municipal court to City Hall, out-sourcing police services to Kitsap County and minimizing long-range planning. 

Over the past several years, City Hall has been wracked with conflict and rancorous dissent.  Council members have vehemently disagreed with the administration and with each other. The public has shown up to Council meetings in larger and angrier numbers. Trust in City Hall has been shredded. As citizens have grown frustrated with their government, displays of temper and disrespect have sometimes substituted for true participation in the democratic process. In my 15 years on the island, this is a low point in civic life.

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Finance director boards the “Straight Talk Local”

At Tuesday’s Council Finance Committee meeting, City Finance Director Elray Konkel served up some straight (though belated) talk about City finances. And the news is grim.

With caveats about the difficulty of making projections in such a dramatic economic downturn, Konkel’s message was basically this: City revenues for the first quarter of ’08 are 50-60%–about $800,000–under budget. If the trends continue and no spending adjustments are made, this year’s budget shortfalls could be as much as $2.1 million in tax revenue and another $400,000 in utility funds.  

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