To the editor:
I was worried by implications of the public discussion in the Nov. 5 Yachats City Council meeting, regarding the salary discussion of City Manager Shannon Beaucaire. Since then, I have been apprised that Oregon law requires that discussion of salaries and compensation for public officials be held in an open meeting. Only the performance evaluation itself is allowed in a closed executive session.
The good news is that the public council debate made the personal opinions and positions of all incumbent representatives clear, the majority of which were highly complimentary. The bad news is the shared opposition revealed by the newly elected “slate” of the councilors-and-mayor-elect.
This opposition was initiated by a statement volunteered from the audience, by councilor-elect Greg Scott, that he considers the results of this election to be “a response — a report card about current leadership.” He went on to say that he thought the decision being made by the current council regarding the city manager’s compensation was “inappropriate,” and that the decision should be deferred to the future council.
Councilor-elect Ann Stott weighed in, again from the audience, with her opinion that the city manager made enough money already and should be given no increase. Councilor and mayor-elect Leslie Vaaler concurred. She further opined that a small city such as Yachats should offer a smaller salary.
Such a principle would doom all small cities to mediocre leadership, not being able to compete for the higher quality professionals in the field. Yachats is a small city, but not a poor city, relative to its size. The manager’s job in a small city is not necessarily easier. Because of limited staff, it may be harder. It requires covering more bases and being directly involved in hands-on duties that can be delegated to more specialized staff in larger cities.
The manager’s contract specifies that she receive an annual evaluation, by the council whom she has served for the past year, of course — not by future council members, who do not have first-hand knowledge of her work, and who seem to be making a coordinated effort to denigrate either her work or her position. It only stands to reason that the same group evaluating her should decide her financial benefits, based on that evaluation.
But this letter to the editor is not primarily about protecting the salary of the city manager. That just happened to be the topic that focused the intentions of the “slate” of newly elected councilors and mayor.
During the campaign, there was an exaggeration of negative misinformation about the state of the city’s finances, and a push to elect a “slate” of candidates all together, so that the majority of the incumbent councilors would be ousted at once. Why? Was this a strategy to eliminate all current support for the “leadership”?
I believe Councilor-elect Scott’s consideration that the election results were “a report card about leadership” is his own wish. I believe he would like to frame it that way, as support for his own agenda.
I will end by saying that I am heart-broken to see him leading this opposition in this way. Greg Scott was a fixture of Yachats’ good government when I arrived in this town years ago. He devoted more than 10 years of his life and at least $60,000 of his own money to the IT project GoYachats and City website. For that effort, he deserves eternal respect and admiration. The fact that it did not work out does not detract from his commitment and diligence. I only hope that he is not now seeking to scapegoat Shannon Beaucaire for the failure of his vision, nor organizing a vendetta against a city manager who has done her utmost to serve this community.
Ms. Beaucaire received high marks for performance in her evaluation, averaged across all current council members. The council voted to publish three memos, which detail her work over the past three years, on the city website. I encourage the community to read these in detail when they appear.
— Fran Morse, Yachats
As a community member who is approximately one-quarter mile from being able to vote on city of Yachats issues, I am saddened to already see this lack of professionalism displayed. Anyone who has managed/owned a business with employees knows salary/wage increases are based upon prior years performance. How Trumpesque it would be to just flip the rules at the whim of our “new slate” of leadership! Sounds harsh? I am sure harsh is how it sounded to a young lady who for a year performed in her position hoping to see some compensation for a job well done. Greg Scott and your “new slate”, the best of luck to you on your new roles, may you help Yachats prosper.
Thank you for informing me of some of the important issues going on in my little home town. I have been so proud of the work being done in this town by City Manager Shannon Beaucaire, including riding around town during the September wind event and finding the fire on Highway 101 just a few blocks from my home. She is such a dedicated member of our community and has saved us so much money, I am stunned at this evidence of anger and hope our new City Council will find its way to care for our community as well as the last council did. I look forward to being more attentive to our City Council meetings.