Commentary: Money must grow on Christmas trees for Oakridge City Council

By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor  —  It’s going to be a Black Friday for all of Oakridge come the first of the year. Not the good kind of Black Friday where everything is on sale. What I’m referring to is the City’s balance sheet. When is the last time anyone has heard what the City’s bank balances look like?

And, is it verifiably accurate? An audit is not a balance sheet.

Budget, budget, oh where art thou?

In early July, the Council adopted the city’s budget. it wasn’t posted to the citizens for about a week. The public questioned the document so much so that there were four meetings by Council to revisit the numbers. Why? If the Council was so quick to dismiss the public’s concerns, then why have meetings to look at it at all? Four meetings and then silence. What was the outcome?

Surely the Budget Committee would resolve any discrepancies if there were any, and report the results. If the corrections were minor, per State of Oregon requirements, the adjustments could be done without the entire budget process. If that was done, it has not been brought to the attention of the citizens of Oakridge.

Now, almost six months into the fiscal year, someone thinks that maybe the council should look at doing a supplemental budget. Evidently, the corrections needed are not minor.

The public, therefore, has had to assume, and that’s a big assumption, that there has been plenty of money to operate the City.

Wasn’t there discussions a few years ago centering on the amount of red ink in the fire and EMS departments? Yes, there was. Hence the Public Safety Fee was born. Because of the hesitancy of the council to make anyone pay, the revenue that would be generated from the PS fee would not be nearly enough to cover the shortfall. That hasn’t changed. Are we somehow in the black now?

Yet, the mayor wants to discuss the possibility of reducing the fee just before she leaves office. Let’s hand that, now hotter potato, to the incoming mayor and council. Last month the Council was prepared to shutter the library as an option to save money. There’s plenty of money for parties, but we might have to close the library. Where did that come from? Oh, and where else can we spend a bunch of taxpayer’s money to make the new administration look bad?

Are we getting what we paid for in our lawyer-turned-cop-turned-city administrator?

Recently, the current city administrator realized that he was woefully unqualified to perform his required secondary job as City Planner. He pleaded to council to hire back the city’s previous planner who had been furloughed in a cost-cutting move. Council must have found a pot of money somewhere to re-fill the position. Though we do need a city planner, you can’t have what you can’t buy. The incoming administrator knew that he was over his head in several areas but vowed to work hard to “get up to speed”. Shouldn’t there be at least a modest reduction in his pay when he can’t perform as stated? Was the starting salary commensurate with his stated qualifications? No one knows, outside of the Council, because the hiring process was truncated, almost secretive. I’m sure his performance review will reflect his overstating his qualifications.

Let’s go back aways, shall we? The council and mayor wanted their kids to have ballet here in Oakridge. The City will just give up the Greenwaters Park Community building for six months, even though the for-profit ballet company never asked for a fee waiver. Their time at the park building cost the city around $2,000. The mayor worked that deal ahead of time and then brought it to  council for “approval”.  Recently, though, the mayor did have a concern about opening up that same building for the warming center, losing possible revenue and all, she cited. The warming center only operates on below-freezing nights and only during nighttime hours.

Spending on pet projects is not in the best interest of Oakridge

The mayor signed a contract earlier this year worth $20,000 because she believes that the Regional Accelerator & Incubator Network, or RAIN, as it is referred to, is really good for Oakridge. It may be. However, that could also pay a lot of water bills. That created some citizen concerns. In that case, the mayor decided to have RAIN come to yet another city council meeting and again give their pitch to appease the masses.

Doing nice things for people is nice. However, you shouldn’t spend the taxpayer’s money that they have entrusted in you to run your city if you don’t have it. Priorities. Yes, maybe having a party for all of the city employees, volunteers, and all of their families would be nice. And, let’s spend $2,500 on it. Hasn’t this typically been a potluck affair in the Oakridge City Hall? People don’t volunteer expecting a party. They volunteer because they are civic minded. People know when they’re appreciated.

Where have all the city’s lights gone?

The Christmas tree lighting event. Traditionally sponsored by the Uptown Business & Revitalization Association and the Oakridge/Westfir Area Chamber of commerce, is now under the control of the City? $300 approved for food and beverages. This money came out of room tax funds that are to be used to encourage tourism. Was this event advertised in the valley cities?

While we’re at it, let’s get all new lights for the tree lighting and government offices. What happened to all the LED lights that the city’s maintenance department has been collecting over the years? The maintenance department, I’m told, is no longer in charge of the Christmas lights.

Volunteer work not appreciated

And the last big act of defiance: let’s repaint the water tower on the highway. That rusted, graffitied, tank stood idle for nearly four decades and nobody cared, or for that matter, even noticed it. A bunch of volunteers got together, raised over $5,000, got the graffiti-resistant industrial paint at cost, rented a lift capable of going ninety feet high, and painted the tank at no cost to the city. When permission was requested to put, for free, “OAKRIDGE WELCOMES YOU” on the tank’s face by the same volunteers, all hell broke loose. “I’m been talking to local artists about painting a mural up there” hollered, yes hollered, the mayor.

The then City Administrator informed Council that there were no funds for a mural project. No local artists have ever mentioned their desire to go up 80′ in the air to do a mural that may, or may not be, seen from the highway. But now, Mayor Hollett wants to hire from out of town, despite the Oakridge area having a vibrant artist community, and pay who knows how many more thousands of dollars, to paint a mural. I could care less, except that I love Oakridge and am very concerned, as should you be, for the financial well-being of Oakridge.

I hope all of the people who donated and volunteered to get that eyesore painted are invited to the bowling alley appreciation party. Because being “appreciated” is important, right?

Sour grapes is one thing. What seems to be outright sabotage of the city’s finances (your taxes) is wrong.

Please see this Thursday’s City Council meeting agenda on the City of Oakridge website.