Cash-strapped Jefferson County considers $5,000 to keep pool open
By Jeff Chew, Peninsula Daily News
Print This |
Email This
Recent Headlines
To our readers . . . about the Aspire! Quartet’s Singing Valentine program -- 2/10/12 -01:53 PM
Floating luxury home hits the water, now moored at Point Hudson [**Video**] -- 2/10/12 -01:03 PM
Mountain goat population up about 40 percent in Olympic Mountains -- 2/10/12 -12:07 PM
417.9 million bites later . . . (does this video warrant that much attention?) -- 2/10/12 -12:02 PM
Josh Powell had ‘incestuous’ sex images, investigators say -- 2/10/12 -09:32 AM
The commissioners opted to discuss the matter further with county parks and recreation officials to come up with options to redirect $5,000 to the pool.
"We really have to think where this money comes from," said Commissioner David Sullivan, D-Cape George, citing the possibility of pulling it from about $1.5 million in county reserves, or elsewhere in the county budget.
During a brief public hearing Monday morning, the commissioners heard suggestions and concerns about the budget process, which is expected to include another public hearing and continue through November.
The $5,000 city pool request was brought to the table by Commissioner Phil Johnson, D-Port Townsend, who voiced support for the funding along with Commissioner John Austin, D-Port Ludlow.
Austin raised the possibility of taking money from a county park, such as H.J. Carroll Park in Chimacum, and earmarking it for the pool.
Commissioner reluctant
Sullivan expressed some reluctance based on the fact that he felt the city should have addressed the matter sooner in the budget process.
The city is also seeking $5,000 from Jefferson Healthcare hospital and Make Waves, the nonprofit group seeking to build a new aquatic recreation center in the county.
The city needs about $35,000 to keep the pool open through the end of the year.
The soaring cost of utilities to heat the pool is the main reason for the city shortfall.
The future of East Jefferson County's only public swimming pool is uncertain because the city of Port Townsend and the Port Townsend School District can't find a way to pay the utility bills.
As part of an agreement between the city and the district, the municipal swimming pool on the Mountain View Elementary School campus, 1919 Blaine St., is operated by the city on property owned by the Port Townsend School District.
The city is responsible for the funds to keep the pool running, but any bills from utility companies go directly to the school.
The current agreement has the city paying for up to $72,000 of the pool's operating costs each year.
Anything over that is paid by the school district.
Cantwell praised
While the pool's future is uncertain, the commissioners voted to write a letter of thanks to U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Mountlake Terrace, who they cited as pushing through legislation passed last week that revived the Secured Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act funding thought to be lost in this county budget cycle.
To assist these financially strapped counties, Congress passed act in 2000, resulting in Title III timber grant funding from national forest harvests.
Title II projects are termed special projects on federal lands.
Congress authorized the funding last Friday, which amounts to about $500,000 in Title II and III funding and about $1.3 million for county roads.
The commissioners, during their Monday morning budget hearing, listened to concerned residents, including Jim Hagen, former county planning commissioner and prominent county Republican, who complained about a lack of public information available on the state of the county budget.
"For something as important as the budget, we should have been given some background about the general state of the budget and a brief analysis of department by department conditions and what they are requesting in increased funding, and why," Hagen said after the hearing.
"What will likely happen is we'll have another hearing — after the election — and then this will be approved nine days before Christmas, which is sure to draw a crowd, right?
"I just thought today was an embarrassment of our elected officials failing to act in the best and open interests of citizens who pay for our county government."
Hagen also complained that the county commissioners were not undertaking "the aggressive pursuit of an economic development policy."
The county is taking public comment through Oct. 10.
Other comment
While Jim Tracy, land-use planning attorney for Fred Hill Materials, urged the county to present an understandable budget document, resident Tom Thiersch thanked county Auditor Donna Eldridge for putting more electronic documents online.
Joe D'Amico, Security Services Northwest president, asked the commissioners "to do whatever you can" to protect law enforcement's budget.
He also urged the commissioners to consider some form of security measures for the county courthouse, even it is a "meet and greet" post at the courthouse entrance.
The general fund shortfall combined with a declining number of funding sources is why county leaders are considering service-cut options, such as many of the county's 320 employees voluntarily working four nine-hour shifts, or a 36-hour week.
The general fund was off about $700,000 this time last year and has more than doubled since then.
The dilemma is blamed on a loss of sales, excise and real estate tax revenues, construction declines, higher fuel, asphalt and transportation costs combined with the loss of federal grants.
The county is already not filling vacant staff positions, is limiting training and travel to only that which is mandatory.
Employees are being asked to restrict driving of county vehicles whenever possible.
As scheduled, a preliminary balanced budget must be presented to the Jefferson County commissioners by Dec. 22, and they are required to adopt a final budget and present it to the state auditor by year's end.
________
Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: October 06. 2008 9:00PM