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The $8 million question
How did this happen? For two years, Ocean Shores was seemingly cruising through its three-year, city-wide Street LID program. On multiple occasions, council and citizens were told “we’re on track” by Ken Lanfear, the Public Works Director and de facto LID project manager. Then, earlier this year, Lanfear made a cryptic comment that “interim interest was not properly considered,” and Mayor Dean Bunkers told council an $8 million line of credit would be needed to finish the project. Two bond anticipation notes, voted for by council in 2007 and 2008, added up to a total of nearly $32 million.
But, as was made clear in presentations to council (attended by Lanfear, who was part of the presentations), this wasn’t really $32 million to spend: a total of nearly $4.5 million was set aside in two capitalized interest accounts. So there was only $27.5 million to put into the actual project. (Monday night, Lanfear is scheduled to ask council for another $330,000 for a “Final Special Benefit/Proportionate Assessment Study“; it is not clear if this was part of the original estimate, or will be another addition to the LID.)
Additionally, the original estimate presented by Lanfear at a Town Hall in March of 2007 shows a total of approximately $31.8 million (this was used as the base figure to estimate how much businesses, residents and lot owners would have to pay). Again, it is clear that $31.8 million is not a total to be paid to contractors. It includes several million dollars in interest and administrative costs.
So, clearly, Lanfear should have known, right from the start of the project and throughout, that he had “only” $27 million or so to pay contractors. But he apparently close to that total in only two years.
So why weren’t council members, businesses and citizens informed about this until the project was teeterting on bankruptcy?
The extra $8 million (perhaps more) likely will add 20-25% to the original estimates received by businesses, residents and other property owners.
How can this happen?
Well, there is a “catch,” in the resolution passed by council in 2007. It states:
“The total estimated cost and expense of the improvements is declared to be $31,784,115.22 and, notwithstanding such estimate, the entire actual cost and expense of the improvements, including costs of financing, shall be borne by and assessed against the property specially benefited by the Improvements. Actual assessments may vary from estimated assessments as long as they do not exceed a figure equal to the increased true and fair value the Improvements add to the property. The assessments shall be for the sole purpose of payment into such local improvement district bond fund as may be specified by the City Council for the payment of local improvement district bonds . . .”
Excerpt from Bond Anticipation Note of 2007:
“There is hereby authorized to be established a special account within the Notes Repayment Fund to be known as the LID No. 2007-01 Capitalized Interest Account (the “Capitalized Interest Account”), which account is to be held byThe Bank of New York Trust Company, N.A., as Depositary (the “Depositary”) and drawn upon for the sole purpose of paying the interest due and payable on the Notes from their date through and including August 1, 2010. Proceeds of sale of the Notes (approximately $1,008,850) shall be deposited in the Capitalized Interest Account . . .”
I have said it over and over, again and again “Ken Lanfear is over his head”. The real problem is we do not have any real leaders in our City goverment. I know this has been going on for many years but when will it stop? Maybe I will run for Mayor.
Many of the people here were the ones that provided suggestions to the Mayor. The list that Lillian and Mark put forth during the council meeting was created by asking everyone to put forth suggestions based upon their study of the budget as presented by the city to the public. As written, this budget really does not give much information. More detail at the individual department level would produce a better end product. However, until they implement the new software, we are stuck with this. The only other way to get more information would be to ask each department head to provide the supporting documentation in a Freedom of Information Request. That would be expensive for the city and the individual requesting it. So, we must work with what is provided as normal. Many with years of public and private industry knowledge have looked at this budget. That is why they state concerns and those are not complaints.
I sure look forward to seeing all the names of the people carping and moaning on here on the next ballot so I can vote for them and get them into office so **THEY** can fix all these problems they are making so much noise about. I’m really tired of seeing over and over the same complaints and running down of the people in office or jobs with not a single constructive suggestion.
It blew over from the roundabout. I think it was originally infront of the city hall. OMG there goes one of the barrels too.
Blow, ill wind, blow away
Let me rest today
You’re blowin’ me no good
No good
Go, ill wind, go away
Skies are oh so gray
Around my neighborhood
And that’s no good
*
You’re only misleading
The sunshine I’m needing
Ain’t that a shame
It’s so hard to keep up
With troubles that creep up
From out of nowhere
When (truth’s) to blame
So, ill wind, blow away
Let me rest today
You’re blowin’ me no good
No good
You folks have veered way off topic.
Was there a detour sign I missed?
The exact words from this document with no source given states in large bold letters:
“Now your fire fighters need your support in opposing the City Council’s proposal to merge fire and police under one public safety department. If implemented this will not only lower the level of service, but leave many citizens unprotected.”
Why do the fire fighters need support to oppose City Council?
The Mayor was directed by council to balance the budget using citizen suggestions. This was one of the suggestions, a citizen proposal. The Mayor came back with this cost savings for council to vote on. This was not Council’s proposal.
The police and fire departments were not being merged. The management of these departments was being merged under one Public Safety Director.
How will this lower the level of service? How will this leave citizens unprotected and how many will be unptotected?
Asking questions always exposes propaganda because there are never any references to the truth.
Rather than continue arguing these points maybe the best thing to do is have the Public Disclosure Commission do an investigation. The PDC could decide if unsigned sheets on citizen sign in tables advocating for a special interest group is OK. If it is OK then any special interest group can do it.
Claiming naysayers have done this before does not make it legal. It just means there is no enforcement of correct procedure.
I think that the shock from Mr. Patrick regarding the Teamsters Union says volumes about the issue here. I have stated that the Fire Union gave back to the city. That fact was again pointed out in the council meeting. I have not stated that the union put the document out there. People can publish whatever information they have. As stated by various individuals, the consolidation has been done. Most of the time the failure is not based upon the process but the egos involved. As is very evident here in Ocean Shores, everyone wants their own “clubhouse”. However, the administation of personnel is still that, administration of personnel. Our Mayor is not a policeman or fireman. However, he ultimately is the administrator over both the departments. It seems OK to have the Chief of Police be the Assistant Mayor for the city, but not the Public Safety Director or Chief. Strange. He is not a Public Works person, Finance person, or City Clerk person. However, he is an administrator.
Mr M. Miller, any citizen may hand out literature for the purpose of informing the public, as our local naysayers have done many times. The Literature in question about the inadvisability of a Public Safety Department was typed, printed and distributed by a group of concerned citizens none of whom belong to the firefighters union, so take your best shot but get your facts straight first, I recommend a little research on your part. Happy Thanksgiving All, G. H.Miller
Thank you both for stating the facts regarding the baseless accusations that the firefighters union was spreading propaganda at teh council meeting. Unfortunately, most of the information presented here is without merit, and based solely on the representation of those who have an ulterior motive to paint city employees in a negative light. It’s unfortunate that the facts presented here are discounted my those who oppose the truth, instead attempting to create an opinion that the unions are at fault and refuse to work towards the ultimate goal that we all are looking for. I am not going to call out those who are stirring up the issues, because they are not worth the effort because their opinions are in fact not the solution to the problem the city faces, but instead are the problem.
The fire and police departments are not the evil self-preserving people that some want everyone to believe; they know what is actually at stake here, maybe some of you should look at the facts with an open mind to see what is really going on here…
This is a reply to the comment made by M. Miller. The firefighters union did NOT endorse or recommend in any way the distribution of the literature that was passed out during the last council meeting. Any citizen who has questions or concerns about the firefighters union please ask. We are dedicated to providing excellent service to the people we serve and would love to answer your questions. Email us at iaff2109@gmail.com
Hi I would like to address the comment by M Miller. I am a member of the firefighters union and I am not speaking on behalf of the union but only for myself. I would like to set the record straight. The firefighter’s union did not have any literature or propaganda out at the city council meeting. We did not endorse or protest the ordinance as a collective group. I am aware there was literature there because I attended the meeting but it was not as a result of any of our union firefighters.
“Also up in the air is whether the Sheriff’s Office will need to make additional cuts. The commissioners are waiting until their contract negotiations are finished with the Teamsters Union, which represents the Sheriff’s employees.” -The Daily World
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 11:11 AM PST.
“Sheriff Mike Whelan said he will lay off his jail superintendent. A vacant deputy position will also be eliminated.” -The Daily World Saturday, November 14, 2009 1:12 AM PST
Also, http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2009/11/14/local_news/doc4afe69c1277eb499461587.txt shows where he is making cuts.
You will notice that deputies are not in the equation now.
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/1014597.html
Looks like the Sheriff’s Department has plenty of their own problems. If one or two more officers are laid off then I will need help loading my U-Haul because this place is about to get well known for being the easiest place to commit a crime.
Thank you Deadin. What I love about Ocean Shores are the views, animals, trees, and many of the people. What I hate is that some here feel that anyone that speaks against Fire, Police or Public Works as it has been done traditionally since the start of time is forbidden.
When you say “this way of life”, do you mean constantly being subjected to people who only attack others and don’t bring any solutions to the table? Oh, that is what you did. There are those of us who are trying to make the city better through solutions to issues. Yes, some may not work, but one only needs to looks at the previous track record to see what has gotten this city into it’s current state.
You assume the county will cut officers. You ask why our department has gotten so large. That is called normal when revenues increase. However, departments downsize when revenues drop. Solutions are chosen to mitigate the problem until revenues incease. But you must be one of our independently wealthy residents. You say that you don’t know how the 4th of July is paid for. Well, it was paid for the last two years by special requests of around 39 to 45 thousand dollars each time. That is enough to pay for your police officer for almost a year. By the way, the city gets about 20 thousand a year from the county which in turn gets it from the state to patrol the beaches. That is paid to back up the parks service.
Because of the union you had propaganda sheets on city property at a city council meeting advocating a self serving outcome to an ordinance. This is illegal for public employees to do this and should be reported to the (PDC) Public Disclosure Commission.
This is insulting to the voters and council. When unions do things like this, they loose the public trust. Trust is what public safety unions should value more than anything else. If citizens perceive the union members underworked, overpaid and self serving, unions will have very little support. It is only an opinion from the union viewpoint that you end up with with dedicated employees who value their position. The 70% rejection of the union backed EMS levy is evidence of how little the unions are supported in Ocean Shores by its taxpayers.
Ah!, the old “If you don’t like it, Move” argument.
(comments deleted)
Thanks Birddog, for clarifying the “current” system with the Sheriff’s Dept. However, if they succumb to budget cuts, we will not be able to rely on them as we have in the past because in all likelihood they will be NO WHERE NEAR Ocean Shores when a situation arises, and that is what your new plan would require. Yes we are in the county, no one disputes that, but if the county resources are thin and our previous NB officers need to respond to the other side of the county, then we have no deputy within 40-50 miles of us. If the county resources were adequate to provide coverage in Ocean Shores, our current police department would never have grown to the size it is. It is that big because it is needed. As for the 4th of July? I’m not sure how that is paid, but I have seen cops from all over grays harbor patrolling our beaches. They are here during those busy times because it is NEEDED. (comments deleted)
The Sheriff’s office is divided into the North Beach or West, the Aberdeen/Hoquiam area or Central and then East County. The statement made by the undersheriff was that if the local resident officers need assistance, being that they can not both of them when two are needed, they dispatch from the central location. That means that they have generally one deputy for the west area. What I said is that we could adopt a one officer program with a similar backup or rely on the sheriff to back us up like we do back them up when that deputy is near Ocean Shores. Strange, we can back them up, but they can not back us up? Why should their department face budget cuts and our’s be exempt? They have the same revenue problems that we are having. I never said Aberdeen or Hoquiam Police would be responding, but they sure seemed to be here on the 4th of July this year. I wonder why they were OK then?
Also, is Ocean Shores in Grays Harbor County? I surely saw the Sheriff vehicle here this morning. I even saw one here yesterday. Strange. Maybe it is not my devaluing the police, but your overvaluing them. I do understand them. That argument does not hold water. Nice second try.
Birddog,
The latest information I have is that the county’s “resident deputy” program is in jeopardy due to their own budget cuts. I think we would be remiss in relying on a Department who is facing their own budget cuts and whose deputies will most likely be responding from Montesano come January 1. With staffing and budget cuts all over the country (and our county), I do not think it is wise for Ocean Shores to rely on the Sheriff Department’s current program to be sustainable long term and serve the needs of the city. And I sincerely doubt that Hoquiam and Aberdeen have the manpower to send an officer up here when their own city has needs and certain residents of Ocean Shores are unwilling to advocate for the city providing their own law enforcement protection. In the event of an emergency, I personally do not want the nearest available law enforcement to be one hour away by travel and perhaps double or triple that if they are on another call. The Sheriff’s Department has their own responsibilities in the county, and yes, Departments back each other when necessary, but to rely on that back up as a primary police force is absolutely the wrong way to go. And anyone that thinks relying on Aberdeen or Hoquiam is the way to go, think again.
As for “violent crimes”, define it. We have a large number of violent crimes here, defined by domestic violence. And if you’re getting your call information off of the “police log” in the paper, please note that this is an abridged version and you are not getting the larger picture.
Again, it is obvious not only that you do not understand what the police do on a daily basis but devalue their importance. I would hope, in a moment where you need law enforcement assistance, that you are not forced to call upon a department like the one you are recommending (demanding?).
For M. Miller, had you ever been in a position of public service you would understand the union and it’s purpose. If not for the union, you would not have dedicated employees ensuring your safety and well-being because our phenomenal people wouldn’t have been willing to work for $8.65 under intense public scrutiny and the positions would have gone to people who would. Instead, you ended up with dedicated employees who value their positions, just as you should.
Can anyone explain why it costs $330,000 to do a “study” and who exactly is doing the study? Does the council ever asks these questions or do they even care?
I notice the council just let the new water treatment plant go as the planners asked and didn’t even bother to demand they enclose the new equipment. Just wait a couple years when it is all rusted and someone figures out it might be bad to have it stay out is the salty air. Then we can buy a whole new one for $8 million.
Or how when the department said they leave out the chlorine in the sun and it loses half its strength, nobody even cared about that.
I get stuff growing in my toilet tank and that should not be happening. In no other city have I ever seen this except in ocean Shores.
it is time to put the correct amount of chlorine in the water!
And store the chlorine inside!
I still don’t understand what is going on here.
Have any of the contractors been paid yet?
What was the interest rate for the notes?
Who signed for the notes?
How did they pick The Bank of New York Trust Company and why not use a Washington State bank?
Have the notes collected any interest?
We need to cut all departments equally. If you contact the Sheriff’s office, they have two resident deputies in the North Beach. They work 4 days on and 4 days off. They call the other first if backup is needed. Then if they can not get that officer they call one in from Hoquiam and Aberdeen. They also use Ocean Shores Police for backup. Maybe we need to move towards that program at night. A a note, they do not respond to unverified buglar alarms. However, if verified they respond to investigate. They do have a list of false alarms. If you have too many, they will do a roll by in their normal course of business. It is not considered an emergency unless people are involved. Considering the number of “robberies” and violent crimes here, we should review our practices and staffing.
Worried about spending the 330k for the current LID billing study? Let’s not forget the future big issue! What good did it do for us to have repaved “all” 130 miles of roads, and not have at least 1 million dollars per year available for maintenance? We briliantly decided to replace all of the roads at once, without the slightest idea or plan for the money necessary to maintain them (or so it seems.) Remember, the less used roads were in worse shape then the travelled roads. (Since we never maintained them in the first place!) For example, weeds and other undergrowth know no wrath like a paved road unused and unseen! Oh wise ones on the “old council, meaning Mayor “P”". Great planning! It’s like letting the chickens out of the coop during the day to forage and fatten up, with no plan to enclose them back up at night! The fox are on their backs shaking with laughter! Or is that the paving companies?
The next layoff should be Mr. Lanfear. He has time and time again mismanaged the tax dollars of the citizens of Ocean Shores – he knows how to “spend” money – that has been proven … but he cannot manage it. Who is double checking his budget numbers or does he just have a blank check to bankrupt our city?
The honeymoon is over and still the unions are bleeding the city dry.The budget is not balanced. Department heads still overspend and ignore budgets..Whole facilities are now on the chopping block.
Council members are voted out. Levies that once passed by 70% are now being rejected by 70%. The city continues to crash and city government still has not laid off enough unneeded employees to balance the budget.
If all these employees are needed where are the facts and figures to prove it.
Years ago my till was short (I gave the wrong change back) I had to pay for it myself………now were all paying for this one.
I have a cure for all of this . Lay everyone off, That will make up for everything. Ya we can survive on volunteers to run it all. Library, Public works, City Hall, Police and Fire, Make up for your shortfalls by threatening the ones that live here work here and yes spend money here. Because we all know that those damn unions have costed us 8 million dollars. People really need to open their eyes and realize that the problem is not the people that work here or their wages and benifits. But the problem is the so called educated calculted accountants of our future. They are using the labor costs of the city to blanket and cover up the REAL problem, IN A ROUND ABOUT WAY
Robert, you ask the question that we all would like to know! He should have been let go long before many of the other employees who just do their job the best that they can, and am not responsible for making what was at first a difficult situation an absolute embarassment.
Someone needs to update his resume and do the right thing!
It is correct nothing can be done about the LID debacle now, but blaming the past administration is naive. Those who took over should have been able to be informed of the progress and any possible problems, and worked to mitigate those problems long before the disaster that it is now. This is a cover-up and smokescreen by our leaders of today, if the manager of this mess isn’t held accountable and sent out on the street than the government that we have today is much worse than what we have had in the past!
This is a joke, pure and simple!
When we bought a house here, two years ago, we called city hall before we closed. We asked about current liabilities for homeowners and we asked about any future liabilities that were in the works. We were told, from city hall, that a ‘reasonable’
repaving LID was current. We were sent the info. Other than that, there were no expected expenses or liabilities. Okay. (Other than the once-a-year ‘got you by the balls’ TAX from the Community Center.) We bought a second house for Mom ‘n Dad to spend their ‘golden years’. Live and learn. Loving it here and AFFORDING it here, are two different stories. Then the third story…respecting government here.
Can someone please explain why Ken Lanfear still has a job?
How do we put an end to this ineptness? It hasn’t ended. The new council and the Mayor continue spending without regard to common sense. I don’t agree that our problems are coming to an end, they are only beginning. Just wait until the water bill comes in. The powers that be refuse to look at the obvious and learn from their mistakes. They compound the errors. Now, I ask again, what can we do about it? No one in power listen to us, we are only getting lip service. They do not respect our opinions. If they close the library, it will speak loud and clear where they are coming from. Good luck on getting any utility passed for EMS. I’m voting NO on any future spending until the city shows me they are willing to spend my money like it is their own. I know many others agree with me.
Pardon me for criticizing the “matriarch of Ocean Shores”, but let’s not blame it all on the “previous administration”. The current administration let us re-pave Point Brown, which was in perfect shape and was re-asphalted when all that was scheduled was a “chip seal “(as you will see had been scheduled with a number of other streets in the city, that with this administration, received 10″ of asphalt). The point is that the present city administration did not control our public works director that let this whole paving job, the roundabout included, get totally out of control, and permitted the 8 million dollar contractor gift. Remember, that per the contracts, the contractor does not get paid the bid amount, but “x” number of dollars per ton for the all the excess asphalt they have literally dumped on our streets. This, once again, is a problem that was compounded not inherited by our city administration, due to poor management.
“This train had left the station long before our current form of government took office.”
Note: Current form of government was in place for the final two-thirds of the project, including 2008 bids, auditing and/or annual reports.
Yes, the city blew it, but that is old news. If anyone seriously believed that the LID would come in at less than the maximum amount, they haven’t lived in Ocean Shores long.
The current appropriation for the final evaluation has been in the plan all along and is required by the LID mechanism.
The road LID was a misuse of this process from the very beginning, but it was a way to get our roads fixed and for a couple of council members to be able to say “look at what I did (?) and walk away leaving the citizens holding the bag. This train had left the station long before our current form of government took office. Most of the folks behind it have long since found another place to live. We are all experiencing the end of a long line of mismanagement and there are no simple solutions.
Instead of flogging those who inherited this mess, we need to all lend a hand in getting through it.
The LID is what it is and no amount of recrimination will change it. We need to move forward without the blinders on. We need to work with the current Mayor and City Council to live within our means. If the money cannot be found to fund our Interpretive Center and Library, we need to find a way to keep them open.
There is really nothing one can do about the LID cost now. The horse, cow, cat and goat are out of the barn. We will get the total cost when it is done. I wonder if the LID is paying for all the drainage work around town? Will we see a budget amendment next year to pay the bill for that?
Values are all relative. I guess they will say that your property would be valued less than it is now without the roads. How would you argue that? You can’t. We do know that the firm doing the report will create some benefit out of the air for all of us. However, it really does not matter. The pavement is there. It is hard to return it because we are not satisfied. We just have to make sure that we watch every inch for defects and report them quickly in writing. Copy the mayor and council on all the issues you see. We only have a year warrantee on the last part. So, if you see the side of the road cracking, sinkholes, dips or places where it is breaking up, report it. The rest of the city is sort of out of luck. They first two years are past and we can only hope those issues got reported and fixed.
One budget item that has never been brought up is how much payroll time and charges have been added to the LID by city employees? How long has the LID been contributing annual revenue/budget to the public works department?
I truly and honestly do NOT see how paving the streets has changed the value of either of my porperties in Ocean Shores. So, I guess that means I don’t have to pay anything. How about you? Have not seen the real estate values sky rocket around here!!!!
Easy…layoff the person who keeps making mistakes!
This must just be for information purposes only, because I don’t see anything we can do about it at this point, can we. What do you see as a solution to keep this type of ineptness from continuing? Does anyone have any answers??? I’m listening.