Council gets first look at 2022 budget

The La Conner Town Council covered a lot of ground verbally at its Oct. 12 meeting but no items on their agenda required a vote. Thirty-four of the 74 page council packet laid out the 2022 town budget, which Mayor Ramon Hayes had sent council the day before.

Hayes told council, “You have a small pool of people, under 1,000, living in a boutique community.” He emphasized their needs must be managed with limited funding,

Staff wage increases were one of a few line items emphasized, with Finance Director Maria DeGoede explaining it is pegged to the CPI, the consumer price index, now at about 5.2% annually.

Town Administrator Scott Thomas brought up equipment needs for the composting operations. Public Works Director Brian Lease reported a front end loader is about to be ordered but it will be paid for with 2022 funds when delivered in the spring.

That prompted Councilmember Bill Stokes to call for purchasing a $23,000 van for code enforcement in December. Lease responded he has found one for $2,000 less and that the order will be placed at year’s end.

Councilmember MaryLee Chamberlain again brought up the need for a town communication plan as a first step toward hiring someone to manage it.

The meeting opened with residents’ questions about the Snapdragon Hill and Whatcom and Washington streets developments. Resident Jerry Shull was concerned that the road being built into the Snapdragon Hill development ends near a cliff with a fifty foot drop, which he called very dangerous. He noted the lack of signage.

Councilmember John Leaver asked about the realtor sign on the property behind Pioneer Market. Staff planner Michael Davolio said developer Gregory Ellis can advertise, but his application is incomplete so Davolio is unable to recommend that the planning commission either approve or deny him permits.

Leaver reported on Art’s Alive!, scheduled for Nov. 5-7. There will be one tent, scaled back from two because of COVID-19 concerns. The Friday reception will be on the outside patio.

The First Street Halloween parade of school students has its parent coordinators excited, Thomas told council. Staff are finishing its security plan.

In his roundtable remarks Hayes noted this was the first hybrid meeting with technology successfully connecting off site residents.

The needs of the town’s volunteer fire department was the focus of the 5:30 p.m. budget meeting. While the department staff was praised and the need and costs of a fireboat was the closing topic, fire fighter Adam Avery noted that most of the 25 monthly calls they average are for medical needs.

He told council, “We are due for a large structure fire,” statistics and history shaping his assessment.

“The budget presented this year was an informative budget, trying to catch up on a couple of things we have been lacking the last couple of years. The overall effectiveness of the fire department is not compromised with this budget,” Fire Chief Aaron Reinstra later told the Weekly News.