Making Sausage, Sunnyside Council Style

December 31, 2012 by Leave a comment

Thursday night the Sunnyside City Council finally passed a budget for 2013.  Sure, I had joked with some city staff about taking a vote just before the ball drops on New Years’ Eve, but we beat that deadline by just a few days.

The process by which government budgets are made is sometimes compared to making sausage.  My sausage normally comes from the local grocery, but my father and I took a deer to get processed into venison sausage when I was younger.  Seeing the animals in the meat locker, and going over options for seasoning the meat gave me some insight into how the stuff gets made.  Our budget workshops are the monetary equivalent of that grisly process.

After one budget workshop meeting, a colleague said, “That meeting was as painful as giving birth.”  It is a sentiment I agree with.  The problems in city finances are not of the city manager’s making.  He came in this year, was handed a bad situation, and  dealt with it to the best of his ability.

At the last meeting, I said the city’s experiment with a two-year budget has been a failure.  I am glad that council is now going back to annual budgets.  In addition, changes in staff working with city finances will bring new perspectives to the situation.  New software systems are being used, and will hopefully yield a better picture of finances as we move into the New Year.

I look forward to taking a turn on the City Council Finance Subcommittee, beginning in 2013.  We are in a better position moving forward, but still have tough decisions ahead of us.

The majority of council did not want to cut as deeply into the city budget as I advocated for.  The result is a budget that relies more heavily on tax increases than I am comfortable with.  However, the city’s police force will maintain its number of patrol officers, which are doing fantastic work in bringing down crime from seven year averages.

Just a few hours after our council meeting concluded, surrounding agencies from Yakima County Sheriff’s Office, Mabton Police Department, Grandview Police Department, Benton County Sheriff’s Office, and the Prosser Police Department came to aid the Sunnyside Police Department in responding to a shooting at Dark Horse Inn.

Image Via Google Maps

Dark Horse Inn, image via Google Maps

The Sunnyside Police Officers voluntarily sacrificed an opportunity to negotiate cost of living increases, and gave up physical fitness incentives totaling $40,000 in the coming year, to help the city keep the same number of officers out on patrol.  One report indicates that when the first officers arrived at the Dark Horse, over 100 people were running from the scene.

Most normal people would not want to be in a room when someone pulls out a gun and starts shooting.  Police officers are wired differently.  They have to be.  They pressed on, surely fearing what they might find on the inside.  They will be doing this in the future for less pay and benefits than they received in 2012.

We are blessed to have men and women in our police department that are willing to make these types of sacrifices for the citizens of our community.  We are better off for it.

Six out of seven council members seem to agree, as a budget was passed that keeps all of our patrol officers.  The one dissenting vote had nothing but criticism to offer, and was stunned into silence when the Mayor asked if they had any other options.

Related articles
About these ads

Filed under Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Comments on Proposed 2013 City Budget

December 21, 2012 by Leave a comment

The Sunnyside City Council continues to work on its budget for next year.  I made these comments during the budget meeting held on Thursday night.  Work continues and a final budget has not yet been adopted.

1. An increase in pay for the city manager position is justified. Looking at the position and not who is occupying the chair, a city our size needs to pay the city manager more than what we are currently doing.

Our budget needs to reflect this. Our city manager needs to be paid more than patrol officers and department heads within the city.

This is not a proposed increase in pay for Mr. Sweet. He is under contract as interim city manager. There will be no change in pay for him unless council approves changes to his contract.

2. It has been pointed out that the city’s budget problems have been looming for several months. Previous city administrators were only willing to propose increases in taxes and fees when I first got on council in order to fix our budget problems.

I will not support a budget that simply increases taxes. We can not take more money from citizens, without first looking for ways to serve taxpayers with greater efficiency. The current city manager is willing to make necessary changes to improve services to the public. His proposals reorganize job descriptions, and also give us options to make cuts, before imposing tax increases on our citizens.

Although I do not agree with all of the recommendations, they are welcome and appreciated.  It gives us some options and places to start our conversation on ways to balance our budget.

3. Municipal jobs are not lifetime appointments. When the tax base is flat or down in a stagnant economy, and expenses are up due to union contracted pay raises, and increasing cost of benefits, we have to make organizational changes.

Sometimes this means cutting numbers of personnel.

No one desires to do this, however, it may become a necessary business decision for the good of the community.

Increases of revenue also need to be considered. While few desire to pay more in taxes, we need to find ways to pay for services voters have approved.

4. City employees should consider their job descriptions to include “additional duties as assigned.” In other words, be flexible, and willing to take on tasks traditionally performed by others when the city had more employees. In many cases, staff are already doing this. Greater flexibility across all departments will make these painful budget decisions easier to get through.

Bargaining units have shown a willingness to be flexible by bringing new proposals to council for consideration.  These ideas give council some more options, and may help us find solutions.

5. The police are doing a great job. I recently had conversations with an attorney from the prosecutor’s office, and with a defense attorney in Yakima County. While they sometimes are representing different interests before the same judge, they both complimented Sunnyside for the crime free rental housing ordinance, and other initiatives the Sunnyside Police Department is using. They both noted these new tactics are very effective in reducing violent crime in our city. We are fortunate that we have not had a shooting in our city since March. Compared to where we were just a few years ago, this is nothing short of remarkable.

6. Finally, I can not stress enough the importance of providing for public safety. Budget proposals made by the city manager ensure that the public will continue to see the same level of patrol officers on our streets. We are not cutting boots on the ground in our fight against violent criminals. The public will continue to see a large police presence in our city.

The kind of city I want to live in has large numbers of police officers on patrol, with a crime rate so low that people question why we have so many police officers. I am perfectly happy to have Sunnyside be that peaceful place.

Filed under Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Public Criticism of City Officials

March 23, 2012 by

Editorial submitted to, and printed by, the Daily Sun News on March 23, 2012:

At a recent council meeting, a motion was made to bind city council members to an unconstitutional code of conduct. While noble in intent, I took a principled stand to allow council members and the public the opportunity to express criticism of city officials.

At all times I have said that people should treat each other with dignity and respect. In my view, allowing citizens to express themselves is important to the functioning of our representative form of government. I learn from others, and appreciate all points of view. In order to make good decisions, council members need to hear all points of view from the citizens.

People should be treated with common courtesy because that is the decent thing to do. There are some that think this issue should be dealt with by the Sunnyside Municipal Code. I respectfully disagree. We can not legislate good manners by issuing a decree from council. Furthermore, it is abhorrent to think that the government is going to be in charge of determining who is exhibiting the proper “respect” towards others.

One provision of the so-called code of conduct is “never publicly criticize an individual employee.” The code of conduct also prohibits this same criticism in private conversation. In effect, it prohibits council members from calling out corruption, incompetence, inefficiency, or a host of other issues that may need to be addressed.

This does not pass the smell test. My colleagues who are crying the loudest for “respect” are unwittingly failing to perform the full duties of their position. Despite the best of intentions, those that are trying to silence their opposition on the altar of “respect” are missing the big picture. Scott M. Missall, a municipal law attorney, recently sent a fax to the mayor addressing this issue. A copy of this communication is being provided to this newspaper along with my comments. Mr. Missall says:

“…each Council member is an independently elected City official, and it is therefore incumbent on him or her to abide by state law and the constitution, which each Council member has sworn to uphold, in the execution of their duties. It would be in derogation of those responsibilities and statutes for any Council member to be less than forthcoming in public about governance or management issues connected with the performance of a city manager. Similarly, it would be improper for one Council member to attempt to curtail another Council member’s public comments or concerns about a city manager’s performance.”

While I respect my colleagues on council, and appreciate the work they do for our community, I will continue to do my part of the heavy lifting as well. Whether it is tackling the issue of out of control legal bills ($770,000 in a 28 month period), or laying off police officers which allowed shootings to increase from 17 to 38 (a 124% increase from 2009 to 2010) and homicides to increase an astounding 600% in the same time period; I will not stop pushing for public safety and sensible spending as priorities at City Hall.

The good news is that the police department’s “Gang Elimination Strategy” is producing positive results for our city. According to statistics recently compiled by the city’s crime analyst, shootings decreased from 38 in 2010 to 21 in 2011. This is a 45% reduction following the hiring of additional officers, and implementing an aggressive stance against the violent offenders. This strategy saw homicides decrease from six in 2010, to only one in 2011.

And while council has not received a monthly financial statement from city staff in 2012, until the recent hiring of Mr. Sweet, our new Interim City Manager has promised we will be getting monthly financial reports from this time forward.

Armed with this information, we can make the difficult decisions that will be required in order to stop using reserve funds to balance the city budget. With all due respect, these are the sensible spending patterns that citizens should expect from Council.

Filed under Constitutional Issues, Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , ,

The News Tribune Reports on Historic Police Endorsement in Sunnyside

October 11, 2011 by Leave a comment

Sunnyside police back Jason Raines for council

Read the full article at The News Tribune

Filed under 2011 Election, Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

We Can Afford Police the City Needs

September 23, 2011 by 1 Comment

By placing safety first, we can afford the police protection that all of us need in Sunnyside. We need to cut waste at city hall. Unfortunately, some of the positions I discussed were left out of the recent Daily Sun News article.

My opponent blames police for not bringing up items like police cars during in the budget process. Deputy City Manager Byron Olson told council during a public meeting that he directed the police department not to bring these items to council until later in the year. It is an outright fabrication for any member of city council to blame the police for not bringing this up sooner.

In the last three years, my opponent has voted to cut police officer positions, voted against creation of additional police patrols, the gang suppression unit, and also voted against the “Gang Elimination Strategy” of the Sunnyside Police Department.

During this time, I have attended almost as many city council meetings as members of the council itself, and more than any reporter for the Daily Sun News. I am well versed in the issues confronting our city, and am on record where I stand. It is not just during an election year that I remember the importance of public safety. That is why the Sunnyside Police Officers Guild is endorsing me for city council.

It is imperative that we stop spending $700,000 on legal fees. Our budget can not take this kind of waste, especially when we have a need to field a strong police force. We need to significantly reduce this expense.

I oppose illegal pay raises, period! All pay raises should be approved by city council. While this may seem like common sense, my opponent voted against sending all relevant information to the county prosecutor for his office to investigate the issue. Staffers at city hall have self-interested motives in trying to blame the police department for tight budgets.

We have bloated and redundant bureaucracy at city hall. By eliminating duplication of supervisory positions, we can save at least $200,000 in our budget. That is money that can be used to fund police officers, vehicles, parks and recreation, and a myriad of other services that directly benefit citizens.

When we control the crime problem in our city, we will create a more attractive environment for businesses to invest. More people will want to live in the city, which will increase housing options along with property values.

Most importantly, with an atmosphere that is attractive to businesses, we will create conditions for investment that will be a catalyst for good paying jobs that will employ the youth of our city. To succeed in the long-term we can not continue to starve the police department, in order to fund extravagant salaries at city hall.

Safety First!

Jason Raines

Candidate, Sunnyside City Council

Editor’s Note: This opinion piece was submitted to the Daily Sun News and printed as a letter to the editor in today’s paper.

Related articles

Filed under 2011 Election, Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Beehive Ball At City Hall

September 8, 2011 by Leave a comment

Municipal governments

Image via Wikipedia

This week the Sunnyside City Manager tried to float an organization chart at the City Council workshop, but did not get very far with it.  There were problems with the chart that was handed out in the council agenda packets, and he presented another one at the actual meeting.  Since I listened to audio of the meeting, I never saw what he presented to council.

Still, what he did  present was less than enthusiastically received.  It seems that he was putting new positions on the chart, and having new reporting/supervisory schemes laid out that he has never brought before council.  Apparently, Mr. Gervasi is not aware that the county prosecutor is already investigating the city for these types of actions.  Only the city council can create positions, authorize pay for them, or increase the pay for existing positions.  You see, our form of government requires that ELECTED representatives authorize the spending of money.  APPOINTED officials, such as the city manager, must answer to the ELECTED representatives.

This kind of reminds me of something I saw tonight.  My six year old was playing soccer.  It was exciting, and everyone seemed to be having fun.  The kids were learning about the sport.  Since most of the kids are still learning the fundamentals of the sport at this age, they tend not to play “positions”, but they all instinctively run after the ball.  The swarms of dust being kicked up surround a cacophony of kicking, as players from both teams all try to individually get control of the ball.  With so many players gathered around, spectators are left with a view of the cluster, and can not easily see what is happening in the middle.  If you have ever played soccer, or watched young ones playing, you know what I am talking about.

Referencing this swarming that takes place, one mother told me she calls it “beehive ball.”  This is because it looks like bees buzzing around a hive.

When considering what is going on at City Hall, it appears that the city manager, and some of the staff, are not playing their assigned “positions.”  Instead, they are trying to seize control of the ball and take it in the direction they want to go.  This is all well and good, until you realize that the city manager and staff are not the queen bees.  They are workers.  Although they supervise others, they are still drones.  They need to realize who it is they are serving.

The city council is the only group of people that will protect taxpayers from the beehive at City Hall.  Without a city council, city staff do not have to answer to anyone.

We need city council members who don’t think citizens are a nuisance, and city staff that thinks council members are not an inconvenience.

The item was dropped from discussion, and will be brought back for another workshop or meeting.

Ultimately though, it is the citizens that are in charge.  They will express their desire about the direction they want the city to go through the ballot box.

Filed under 2011 Election, Sunnyside Budget Issues, Sunnyside Council, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Council Members: Only Pre-Approved Discussions Are Honest

July 12, 2011 by Leave a comment

Paul Garcia and Theresa Hancock seek to put a gag on discussions with Council Members at Subcommittee Meetings.

At Monday night’s meeting of the Sunnyside City Council, a question came up about discussions that take place at meetings of Council Subcommittees.  Paul Garcia and Theresa Hancock expressed support of restricting these Subcommittee meetings to only discussing items that have been previously approved by the whole council.  Hancock went so far as to suggest that if a Council Member asked a question during one of these meetings, that had not previously been voted on and approved by the entire Council, then it would not be open and transparent.

Admittedly, the logic of this escapes me.  The proposed item, as interpreted by Hancock, would mean that only questions vetted in advance at regular council meetings could be asked.  Garcia said that he did not see stifling the speech of individual Council Members as being “draconian.”  In fact, he said that this would make sure that the entire council would be “informed” of what the Subcommittee was doing.

Mr. Beyers, representing the city’s contracted legal firm, said that having the committees discuss items brought up at regular meetings of the whole council was just one way to handle discussion items.  He did not see the language as precluding Council Members from asking questions and bringing up other issues for discussion at their Subcommittee meetings.  However, he said that the item was written by Mayor Restucci, who was absent from Monday’s meeting, and therefore unable to explain his intent.

It would seem pointless to me to have a meeting where all the questions and items must be discussed and vetted at a previous meeting.  If members of the council are to interact with staff, they should do so without being muzzled.  In fact, it seems like this would violate freedom of speech for both Council Members and City staff.

There is no issue of transparency here.  The Subcommittees already make reports to Council at every meeting.  The Subcommittee meetings themselves are open to the public, and minutes are kept.  The Subcommittees only have discussion, and all action items are taken up by the whole council.  What possible danger do Hancock and Garcia see in having informed Council Members?

By the way, at Hancock’s request, she does not participate in any of the Subcommittees set up by the council.  If she is so concerned about what the Subcommittees are discussing, perhaps she should join her colleagues and become part of the process.

Council Members and staff need to be able to share information without a Hancock-Garcia approved script.  Contrary to what Ms. Hancock suggests, to do otherwise would be fake, and dishonest.

Here is the proposed item that was discussed:

Item 3G

Filed under Sunnyside Council, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Sunnyside Needs A Conversation On Both Problems And Solutions

May 31, 2011 by 2 Comments

Sunnyside needs to have a meaningful conversation about both problems and solutions.  By Sunnyside, I mean everyone in the community.  By community, I mean Sunnyside, Outlook, Mabton, and other nearby areas that may or may not be in the city limits.  By everyone, I mean all of us.

What I am about to suggest can be implemented in a multitude of ways, by any number of churches and organizations.  Yes, I mentioned churches, and I will come back to that in a moment.

In a recent post, I mentioned some things I have heard in the community about why we have a gang problem that is so disruptive to our quality of life in Sunnyside.  The series of “I blame” statements have really ticked off some people, that would just rather not have that kind of conversation.  You know the type of person I am talking about here, they might be a family member saying something like:

“It’s really not proper for us to discuss your uncle’s alcohol problem.”

They will say this to you after your critical statement, immediately following your uncle’s arrest for DUI for the eighth time.

Much like families and individuals need to admit when alcoholism is a problem, we as a community need to come together to find solutions to our gang problem.  Ignoring the issue, or not wanting to discuss it will not help the situation.

“Blaming” people or organizations will not solve the problem, but we need to understand different perspectives to help us all work together.  All of the “blame” statements I listed, have been things people have said to me since I moved here.  There are more that I did not list, and I am sure you have heard enough to fill entire books yourself.

I met an acquaintance of mine for coffee recently, and he shared with me an idea for churches to implement a mentoring program to help with youth.  He said that he believes the median age of Sunnyside residents is 25.  This means we need to engage this youthful population in more substantial ways than we are doing now.

Personally, I like his idea.  I am aware of some conversation taking place between the City Manager and Council Members about the feasibility of starting Boys and Girls Clubs here, or having Big Brothers Big Sisters programs in Sunnyside.

“Big Brothers Big Sisters is proven by independent research to improve children’s odds for succeeding in school, behaving nonviolently, avoiding drugs and alcohol, and breaking negative cycles.” Source: Big Brothers Big Sisters

I am in favor of all of these types of approaches.

There is no silver bullet that will solve what is a deeply entrenched problem that exists in a culture that has allowed it to grow.

News coverage of late has reported on suppression plan ideas from the Sunnyside Police Department.  These are critical in eliminating the really bad offenders from the City.  However, there is more that will need to be done by others outside of the law enforcement community.

If mentoring programs can help some of our youth, I am all for them.  Let’s continue that conversation in Sunnyside.  Let’s talk about some concrete steps we can take to stop the violence, while engaging those that are in the age group where they are most susceptible to falling into the destructive lifestyle of a gang member.

This should not be something we put off on government, although local government may be in a position to help facilitate some of the efforts.  We need churches to engage the youth directly, and in a meaningful way.  We need businesses and individuals to support these efforts, financially, and through volunteering.

To defeat the enemy, we need the entire community involved.  The police department’s gang elimination strategy recognizes that other agencies and organizations need to help in this effort.

Let’s all have a meaningful conversation about it.  We can not ignore the problem, and expect things to improve.

Related articles

Filed under Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Traditional Values, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Sunnyside City Council Agenda May 9th

May 9, 2011 by Leave a comment

CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA

——————————————————————————–

401 Homer Street, Sunnyside, Washington

MONDAY LAW & JUSTICE CENTER

May 9, 2011 6:30 PM

——————————————————————————–

CALL TO ORDER – ROLL CALL

INVOCATION – CAROL STICKNEY

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

OATH OF OFFICE:

1) Police Officer – Jose Chiprez

2) Police Officer – Jason Gilbert

1. UNSCHEDULED APPEARANCES BY CITIZENS

(Note – Citizens are advised that they must limit their remarks to the Council to three (3) minutes and that items presented may be referred by the Council to staff for review and/or additional information for presentation to the Council at a future Council meeting.)

2. CONSENT AGENDA:

A. Claim Vouchers

Approve claim vouchers 73990 through 74101 and wire transfer No. 7402132 and 11050236, for the period ending May 3, 2011 in the amount of $221,578.11.

ITEM 2A

3. ACTIVE AGENDA:

A. Alegria & Company, P.S. – Presentation

Receive presentation from Mr. John Rothenbueler of Alegria & Company, P.S.

B. Port of Sunnyside LTAC Request – (So. 1st St. Kiosk)

Consider the Port of Sunnyside’s request for additional LTAC funds for use on the So. 1st St. Visitor Information Kiosk Project.

ITEM 3B

C. Gang Suppression Plan

Consider resolution supporting the Police Department’s Gang Suppression Plan.

ITEM 3C

D. Interlocal Agreement Addendum – Sunnyside School District

Consider resolution authorizing City Manager to sign an addendum to the SRO Contract for August 2010 through July 2011.

ITEM 3D

E. Basketball Hoops

Discuss the addition of basketball hoops at Central Park.

4. ITEMS FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS:

A. Reports from Council Subcommittees:

1) Finance and Administrative Services – Vlieger (3); Garcia (5); Gehlen (7)

* Boys & Girls Club visit – move from May 25, 2011 to another date

2) Public Safety – Farmer (2); Vlieger (3); Garcia (5)

3) Public Works – Farmer (2); Paulakis (4); Gehlen (7)

B. Other reports, announcements, and/or questions by Council.

C. Upcoming Council Meetings:

1) Regular Meeting – Monday, May 23, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.

2) Workshop Meeting – Monday, June 6, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.

3) Regular Meeting – Monday, June 13, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.

5. ITEMS FROM CITY MANAGER:

A. Traffic Coordinator Grant Request Form/Project Agreement (Information Only)

ITEM 5A

B. Public Records Disclosure Training – Thursday, May 19, 2011

C. Water/Sewer Rate Study Kick-off Meeting – Monday, May 16, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.

6. EXECUTIVE SESSION:

A. Discuss potential litigation per RCW 42.30.110(1)(i) (15 minutes).

7. ADJOURN

Related articles

Filed under Sunnyside Council, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Gunman Killed As Police Dispense A Pound Of Cure

May 1, 2011 by 2 Comments

  • Area around Centennial Park scene of shooting this past Saturday night

  • The gazebo at Centennial Park will be the gathering place in Sunnyside for the National Day of Prayer observance on Thursday at noon

Centennial Park in downtown Sunnyside

According to a copy of a press release obtained by this blog, Sunnyside Police Department officers stopped a vehicle at 6th and Edison Saturday night after it had been involved in incidents of gunfire.  Officers were taking the occupants of the vehicle into custody when one of them took out a handgun and fired at the officers.  The officers returned fire, shooting and killing the gunman.

Fortunately, none of the officers were hurt.  At the request of Sunnyside Police, the Washington State Patrol is investigating the incident.  Two Sunnyside Police officers are on administrative leave pending the results of the investigation.  This is a routine procedure when police use deadly force.

At this time, neither the gunman, nor the officers have been identified by the police.  The press release states that following an autopsy of the gunman, their identity will be released.  The officers involved will be named after the investigation is complete.

It is ironic that Centennial Park has been selected by the Sunnyside Ministerial Association as the place of observance for this year’s National Day of Prayer.  The local observance will take place this Thursday at noon, in the gazebo at the park.  It seems fitting to bring spiritual warfare to fight the worldly violence taking place in our downtown core.

The City Council will be receiving a previously scheduled presentation on Gang Suppression from Sunnyside Police at tomorrow night’s workshop meeting.  The Sunnyside Police have been waiting since February to make this presentation to the Council.  Council Members on the Public Safety Committee have already been briefed on it by Deputy Chief Phil Schenck, but the entire Council has not been briefed.

This latest shooting follows an earlier one that took place in Outlook this week.  In the Outlook shooting, just outside of Sunnyside city limits, a teenager who was already receiving services from Sunnyside’s Promise, was gunned down when she answered a knock on her door.  The Outlook shooting is believed to be gang related.

Related Articles

Filed under Sunnyside Council, Sunnyside Crime Issues, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

← Older posts

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,976 other followers