Commentary By Samuel Strait – July 30, 2023

We were treated with two separate versions of our local representatives,
both not particularly memorable in terms of just exactly who is supposed
to be “calling the shots”.    In one instance, the regular Board of
Supervisors Meeting, July 25, 2023, not at all, in the second such
meeting of the BOS to be discussed in a future article, at least two of
the members may have remembered that they “Represent” the citizens of
their respective districts and were not chosen to “think they can do
some good”. Granted, no one was assured that even that was the case.

Briefly, the July 25th session of the BOS began and ended in a brief one
hour and twenty minutes.  Nothing of note in the opening ceremonies
other than Chair Darren Short desperately needs to figure out how to
enunciate his words, such that he may clearly be understood.   Board
reports consisted of the usual recitation of Supervisors attending an
infinite array of meetings and group think.  Silent as per usual was
Supervisor Borges, clearly keeping his own counsel.  Only Supervisor
Howard’s pandering to the dubious value of the Tri Agency was of any
interest.  Clearly, he has become one of the strongest advocates for a
growing County government along side “More Government is the only
solution”, Supervisor Starkey.

The Consent Agenda, a minuscule eleven items, loaded with grift for
Health and Human Services.  No interest in the facts revealed by members
of the Public to the Board as to whether or not there was any value what
so ever to the community.  More fluff on the “crisis” for Washington
Blvd’s impending culvert failure that went unnoticed for who knows how
long.  The purchase of a $220,000 new truck for Community Development. 
Followed by the approval of yet another of the County’s growing train of
administrators by virtue of a slight of hand change in employee
classification.  And, finally to conclude the bulk of the County’s
actual business constructed by the County’s unelected, a resolution to
terminate an emergency response to a four month old “storm event”,
likely because the County could no longer keep up the pretense of
catastrophic harm and the “emergency money” was at an end.  No sense
flogging a dead horse that wasn’t an “emergency” in the first place.  As
expected the vote was 5-0, the act of representation dismissed.

Scheduled items consisted of a largely by the board dismissal of public
concerns and a report by the County’s elected Treasurer. Seems that the
County has a nice pile of cash socked away for what use, no one bothered
to inform the public, but likely to bail out various government slip ups
that seem to plague the County’s “valued” department heads on a regular
basis.  Or perhaps send Supervisor Howard on one of his many County
funded “vacations”.

Regular items consisted of a dip into Measure “R” funding, giving the
existing circus called euphemistically an “Oversight Committee” the
“powers” of an Advisory Committee.  Of course no one is certain that is
even legal, yet the current “Oversight Committee’s” recent report to the
BOS covered a wide range of “recommendations” that could hardly be
considered “vital to the community’s welfare”.  How utterly surprising
when you consider the County’s contribution to vital concerns of the
community, repave the Veteran’s Hall parking lot, repave the Sheriff’s
parking lot, and the most vital of all, new fencing for the recreation
department’s baseball field.  A perfect record of 5-0 votes.  But not to
forget, the report by the County’s Probation head.  Juvenile Hall’s
transformation to be delayed until sometime in September.  Seems like
negotiations with the employees union are not proceeding with dispatch. 
No surprise there.

Budget transfers of $14,000 for culvert material to be used in the
Washington Blvd culvert repair, then on to Budget issues.  Two more
administrators in the hopper, one for Public Health which actually means
two new administrative positions are to be created, and another position
created for that once in a decade or so, hugely overworked Office of
Emergency Services, that desperately needs an Administrative
Analyst/Fiscal Manager to spend thousands of dollars of Measure “R”
funding for another “make work” condition of growing County Government. 
Mustn’t hire anyone other than high dollar employees after all.  5-0 for
the above with the exception of a bit of nepotism revealed, a 4-0-1 vote
then a paltry $10,000 grift for the Chamber of Commerce got tabled, no
doubt to appear on a future Consent Agenda.  Not that the already
$100,000 plus the Chamber already receives would ever be enough to count
the web sight hits they receive.  Yet, the Board and the City seem
convinced that tourism will carry the day for an economically blighted
area all year around.  Guess winter weather will just have to stop
happening, Oregon will have to start collecting 8.25% sales tax, and a
city in California with in a half day drive of Crescent City will have a
population explosion.

As was said at the beginning, meeting adjourned in one hour and twenty
minutes and not a representative of the people in sight.