A Half-Million or Heads Will Roll

The Wentzville Aldermanic work session on Wednesday, August 31, 2011 dealt mostly with the 2012 budget, and budget meetings are always synonymous with dozing off for me. This one was a little different because within the first five minutes, before they even got into the topics, it got interesting.

Alderman Rick Stokes, Ward 3, got the attention of Mayor Lambi to ask for a brief Executive Session. I'm unclear about the exact reason for his request but I believe it was something to do with the agenda. Lambi replied: "Alderman Stokes, we've begun the meeting and I see no reason why we should stop it now." Stokes organized his papers and placed them in his briefcase, pushed his chair back, and started closing his computer, Lambi asked; "where are you going?" "I'm leaving." I thought I heard Stokes say something like; I'm not sitting in this meeting with a revised agenda that I've never seen until this very minute. They sat glaring at one-another for a few seconds when Lambi slammed the gavel down with a loud bang (something he's gotten a lot of practice at during past months), "We're going into a brief executive session," he said as Stokes, and Dennis Walsh, Acting City Administrator followed Lambi out of chambers. A few minutes later they returned and the meeting began. In my years reporting on city government I've seen aldermen go into executive session many times but never once during the regular meeting.

If I was surprised by the mid-meeting Executive Session, the second one was a complete mystery. Jerry Hillin, Wentzville's Purchasing Administrator, interrupted the meeting by saying, "there has been a breach of security," and called for executive session. This had to be a half-hour into the meeting when Hillin, Walsh, and Stokes followed Lambi out of chambers. The term "breach of security," had me looking out the window to see if maybe Afgan Rebels were storming city hall so I was preparing myself to duck out the side door. Prior to Hillin requesting the side-bar, Alderman Stokes was having trouble with his microphone and in the midst of his frustration he uttered; "shit," and of course the microphone started working just in time to record his expletive on tape. Shit may be a breach in most instances but I can't imagine how it effects the security of a meeting other than in the context of a Depends blow out, but the city's waste treatment people were present so I would think it could have been handled without Executive Session.

Voters should be disappointed in a couple of our aldermen regarding statements they made concerning the $500,000 real estate and property tax cut proposed by Stokes and supported by Alderman Kross, Ward 1 and Alderman Guccione, Ward 3 a while back. During discussion, Alderman Vann Samples, Ward 2, stated that he is "not in favor of cutting real estate taxes," implying that once you reduce a tax it's impossible to get it increased without a vote of the people, unfortunately Alderman Chris Gard, also Ward 2, agreed with him. It amazes me, after the city announced an increase of $38 million in sales tax revenues which go directly into the general fund, how a paltry half million in real estate and property tax is not a no-brainer. Samples and Gard believe that it should be found elsewhere in the budget, in other words; cut services, not taxes.

Toward the end of that discussion, Stokes told the city staff in no uncertain terms that he wants to see a half-million dollars cut out of the budget even if it means cutting heads. It has been said for quite a few years that there are too many employees in the city. He went on to say that "no one wants to see anyone lose their job, but I want that half-million, what ever it takes." I don't know how that statement will be perceived among employees or citizens but Stokes is persistent, and I don't think he's going to give up on it.

Earlier that evening I heard one of the City's Administrators say that they are trying to hire an assistant for him. I have noticed that any time someone gets a promotion (or a position is created) in the City, they get an assistant. Bob Swank, ex-Economic Development Director, left his employment with the city (in a similarly mysterious fashion as Dianna Wright), and whom accomplished very little, got an assistant. Before Andy McCown, ex-City Administrator, retired, he set up an HR department and named Amy Holloway director, she got an assistant within the first year of her position. When the smoke-and-mirror-shrouded eviction of our public works Director came about, the City turned his job into two jobs which created the need for at least one new assistant. My point is; it appears that anyone working for anyone in the City above the level of grunt, gets an assistant.

At least most of these promotions and their assistants come from within—lower level jobs were left vacant meaning they had to hire more people to fill those positions. The problem is that it appears that no one is promoted at lower pay levels than their predecessors and that adds up to higher payroll. A perfect example is Dianna Wright, she initially hired in at $117,550 that is $14,000 more than Andy McCown was making ($103,000) when he left. When Wright disappeared she was making over $121,000. Mark my words, whom ever is hired to replace Wright will earn as much or more than she did. The City's motto should be; "make room for lower level employees to make higher salaries." The mayor only makes $13,000, but then again that's way too much for what he does. And then you have the aldermen, I think our elected officials make (at last look) around $4,300 for making the hard decisions for their constituents. There was a time when Mayor Lambi wanted to do away with mayor and have a city manager—he wanted that job. Just think, if he had gotten his wish, he would have been gone last week—now we have to wait until April.