County and City Mad as Hatters?

Katherine in Sheldonland

Submitted to Shelton Blog by Katherine Price

If we were not convinced that our local government was well and truly broken, one need only read the September 9 Journal to get a good idea. For starts, and quoting from the Journal:

"Judge Sheldon, whose brother is Commissioner Tim Sheldon, addressed the board Tuesday. Commissioner Sheldon, who referred to his sister as "the judge" and addressed her as "your honor," said he was willing to take action next week to institute weapons screening to the tune of $33,000.00."

Reasonably, Lynda RE and Ross were not as excited to drop $33,000 next week to provide a gun screening device at the courthouse as Tim.

Also in the Journal is an interview with Karen Herr, Mason County Auditor, who provides us with some budget numbers: Anticipated revenue, $23,582,311, requested expenditures $24,326,853. The fact that 11 different unions are in the midst of contract negotiations with the County, will affect this number, and it is not likely that the results of negotiations (if they ever occur) will result in a decrease of requested expenditures.

Even Tim ShelTon recognized that the labor contracts are a big problem: "I think we're all ignoring the big elephant in the room - the provisions for our unresolved labor contracts." Really, Tim, and why do we have 11 unresolved labor contracts? How many years did it take the BOCC to negotiate a contract with the Sheriff's Department?

If things were not bizarre enough in the County, how about that City of Shelton, and their plans to immediately repave and upgrade Wallace-Kneeland from Olympic Highway North to Shelton Springs Road. Steve Goins, "director of community and economic development and public works administration and services," who is someone I both like and respect, said that because the low bid was 25% under the engineer's estimates for the total cost, rather than pocket or save the difference ($218,434) "...the public works department is considering adding elements to the project or using higher quality and more expensive materials." Goins goes on to say that the City could change the specification for the asphalt to get better performing, longer lasting asphalt "...that will perform better for longer, particularly for heavy truck use," That would be the ADAGE heavy truck traffic, I am thinking. Again, rather than pocket the savings?

I think this speaks to both the fact that ADAGE is a done deal, fight it as one may, and that the City, rather than save nearly a quarter million dollars, wants to spend it.

Then there are the City Commissioners, who ".., quickly voted to approve the project, foregoing their usual "three touch" policy, in which the commission reviews a proposal like this three times before they vote on it."

Their reasoning: weather, time is of the essence, and the need to expedite this proposal. Wow, ADAGE must be feeling like a God these days, and we are certainly feeling like unimportant mortals, although it will be our dollars, federal, state and local, that upgrade the road for the ADAGE dump trucks.

Then there is the Mason County Association of Realtors. I asked a realtor Wednesday night what the realtors were thinking and was told they are split. Not so according to the Journal, they are coming out in favor of ADAGE, while acknowledging some members had "mixed feelings," about ADAGE. Really, if I was selling Mason County real estate, I would have more than mixed feelings after the failure of sales to close in Hiawatha.

Last, but perhaps not least, former Shelton City Council Member Dick Taylor, on behalf of the newly formed group "We Don't Breathe Air, Sorry You Do," no, wait, that's not the name of it, it's something else... But whatever the name, it begs the question: What the hell do these people breathe?

The name of the newly created organization that has hopped on the bandwagon to support the poisoning of all we hold dear is named: Citizens for a Prosperous Mason County. Well don't that beat all!

So, let's recap, fellow-air-breathers: Those groups of folks in Shelton/Mason County who do not require clean air and water to survive now include:

The Port of Shelton Commissioners (except Jack), PUD Commissioners (except Jorgenson) Mason County Board of Commissioners (all for one, and one for all), Shelton City Council, members of the Mason County Chamber of Commerce, members of the Economic Development Council, (some) members of the Mason County Association of Realtors, and the newly formed Citizens for a Prosperous Mason County. I am sure that you all remember some I have missed...

I was recently advised to stop trying to stop ADAGE, and to spend my time on something I might be able to accomplish, like getting Brenda Hirschi elected to the BOCC in an effort to try to right the "ship of county," or at least keep it afloat. I was left with the feeling that I was being told ADAGE is a done deal; give it up, and work on something at which you might actually succeed. I did not like the feeling.

I know that we have the enthusiasm to keep fighting. I don't care that I have been told "You can't fight city hall." I refuse to give up. I refuse to believe, until they push the start button on that poison spewing plant, that we as citizens are so frigging powerless that we cannot stop this train coming down the tracks. I am not ready to quit and I hope that nobody else is either.

Katherine Price