To the editor:
Conversations with Yachats community members suggest a high desire for government stability and improved effectiveness of service delivery.
It is clear that many residents are frustrated with the city of Yachats’ progress the last two years. Many basic services remain inoperative or unavailable. The current council understands this and is equally frustrated about the lack of progress.
When the decision was made to create the city manager position, the council elected not to fill an open position for a public works director. This was done because the council did not believe the city could afford both positions.
In retrospect, I believe this was a mistake because it now places supervisory responsibility on one individual effectively doubling the span of control of the city manager. In effect, we are asking one individual to do the work of at least two people during a period when we are still struggling with multiple transition issues, two law suits and beginning to address service needs previously ignored.
Effectively, the council has created a situation very difficult for anyone to succeed. As the longest serving member of the Yachats city council, I accept responsibility for some of this and while I recognize the problem, the only way forward requires the support of a majority of the council.
For the purpose of this discussion, the term council includes the mayor.
The city manager transition over the past six years has proven far more difficult than anyone imagined. Many basic internal systems simply didn’t exist when Joan Davies was hired as our first city manager. While Joan did make good progress in improving the city’s records and the finance area, much remained to be done when she retired.
With the recent changes in the City Charter, the role of the council, including the mayor, has changed. Essentially, the council’s authority is limited to decisions made in public meetings. The charter specifically prohibits the council from directing staff. Failure to abide by the charter can result in the dismissal of a council member by a majority vote of the council. This is a change from the previous version of the charter.
In terms of initiating topics for discussion or making a motion for a vote, any council member can do this. The key to getting things done is listening and moving toward a council consensus. All decisions require a majority of the council to approve.
Outside this process, council members have no power to act in terms of making decisions or directing staff. To achieve our goals and make decisions this and future councils must work together.
So the key question voters should be asking candidates is “how will you work with other council members to achieve your goals”.
— Greg Scott/Yachats council member