Signing Off

For everyone’s information the “City Services Committee” was established by Mayor Freeborn.

Mayor Freeborn and I worked together to create this committee.

It went to his Council and it went through the legislative process.

It has met the requirements of law for public postings at the Store, Post Office and on channel 23 over the years as I have been requesting it to get rolling.

Since the City got the web site it has been posted under government/advisory commissions/city services committee.

That posting had been there, I would say around 2 years or maybe longer.

We screamed for volunteers.

The problem was no-body cared to volunteer.

I applied and was appointed to this committee by Mayor Freeborn.

Shortly after Mayor Lorang began his term he appointed me.

Mayor Lorang appointed me 2 times to be exact as it was a 1 year position and I was pushing for this committee to become active.

But it never went anywhere.

I was the only appointee.

Now I hope that this city can see the importance of this committee as it moves along.

This Committee has been an agenda workshop item of this Council for some time.

This Council had a workshop on this Committee in a public meeting.

These actions were publically noticed.

The City has run ads on channel 23 as well as the front page of the city web site asking for volunteers.

I asked for it to be publically noticed and saw the notices around town.

It was even posted on the front page of the City web site for around a month recently.

People applied and in a public council meeting the mayor appointed them to the committee.

We had the first meeting on July 6, 2011.

Details of the meeting will be published as soon as this Committee, votes to approve the minutes of this meeting.

These unapproved minutes are in the proposed Committee member packet filed July 15, 2011, at City Hall.

We are still in need of one more member as Mayor Fischer stated in the July 18, 2011, special meeting. 

When C.M. Masters said that the purpose of this committee had not been established he was mistakenly incorrect.

Resolution No: 1189, Approved by the Council, on the 10^th day of May, 2010, reflects the purpose of this committee.

Resolution No: 1189, Section 1, 7, States; “The City Services Committee consists of five members that serve for a one year term. This Committee will advise the City Council regarding matters of Public Works, Electric, Cemetery and the Emergency Services Department. This Committee may also be requested to advise the City Council on utility rate analysis and recommendations on the budget for operations and capital improvements.”

So all requirements of the law have been upheld and abided by.

This was no sneaky tactic by this Council in any way and it does have a purpose established.

Mayor Freeborn and his Council established the purpose.

C. M. Masters must have forgotten this as he was on the Council when Resolution No: 1189 repealed Resolution 847, he voted on it in Mayor Lorang’s term.  

All this council did was got a committee off the ground that should have been done years ago.

To the volunteers I am sorry I came down on you so hard.

But understand that as a tax paying citizen, with what was happening in that department, and the newspaper clearly quoted the volunteers saying they were not going to respond to emergencies, cones blocking the fire station entrance, witnessing Hood River have to respond to a beating at a local business, along with other objective statements from the volunteers in the paper and the headline read; “CL Fire: Not in service”. As a citizen I had every right to respond as I did, the doors were closed according to this article and the word on the street was it was on strike and every indication I had showed me it was.

If it happened again, just as it did, as a citizen I would do it again.

I hold government to a higher standard.

But in no way were my actions meant to be a bad reflection on the volunteers, of such a great institution built on a history of lives being lost and personal sacrifices being made to save others.

As I expressed I just thought you were making a mistake that could get you in trouble.

And I truly thank you for the sacrifices you make to serve in such a highly honored office for our City.

Now I understand the loyalty you had for the chief and I get it.

I am sorry that disciplinary actions had they occurred when the problems first happened might have prevented this.

I am also sorry that council’s here never set up a policy of standards for the chief to operate under which also led to this.

But understand that when government holds the people accountable for wrongdoings some people turn to anarchy when government will not hold government accountable to their own rules.

I hope every council before and this council learned something here.

Well it has been fun folks to say the least.

But I need to shut this down now.

I am on a public committee and now I have to represent the City and do not feel it is right to continue this.

I have not had time to upload the video to the web, but will in the next day as soon as time allows.

I have just been swamped like now up at 4:00 to be on the road at 5:15.

I am going to try to keep the videos on line but as you see comments have been turned off.

Signing off

Cody