A Message From the Mayor

I have been your Mayor for almost three years now. I am very proud of the accomplishments we have made in that time. The City Council, Planning Commission, Board Members, Volunteers, City Staff and I have worked hard to become more efficient, accountable, and responsive to the priorities of our citizens.

I want to commend the work of our Department Directors, Danielle Stafford, Steve Jewell and Tom Reber. We have a management team that supports a resident first approach. They have all made great strides in improving services and efficiency. I believe without their hard work and abilities we would have a lot further to go in achieving the accomplishments that have been made since I was elected Mayor in 2004.

Danielle Stafford, our City Clerk/Treasurer, runs a tight ship and has kept the City free of audit findings for years and in fact has been commended by the State Auditor for exceptional performance. She is the go to person when you don’t know a rule of law, procedure or process (because she pretty much knows everything). Danielle and her staff are the hub of our City government operations and perform the vast majority of our administrative functions. This includes payroll, accounting, customer service, phones, council meeting agendas and minutes, research and more than I can list. Danielle has spent most of her career in Algona; during that period she has taken the training, done the homework and gained the respect of her peers in other cities.

Tom Reber came to Algona in 2004 and brought a wealth of experience and ability with him. He has changed the position of Public Works Director considerably. Tom has extensive experience and has worked in many capacities at other cities such as City Manager, Planning Director, and as a consultant. Tom got us through our Comprehensive Plan and has drafted our Critical Areas ordinance and others. He has brought in over $700,000 in grants (not including the partnership grants with other cities) from many sources and is working hard to help us get ahead on maintenance and upkeep of our infrastructure. He has brought in outside agencies and developed partnerships that are saving the City money and getting us professional services. Tom has been an indispensable addition to our management team.

Police Chief Steve Jewell came to the City after 25 years in the State Patrol, where he served in many capacities including budget, internal affairs, detective and field work and even as the second-in-command Deputy Chief. Immediately after joining our management team, Steve contacted members of WSPC (Washington State Police Chief's Association) and had them do an assessment of our department. This report (LEMAP) brought many items to our attention and is allowing us to focus on areas where there is need for improvement. Steve has already begun working to address these issues. He is the chief of staff on the Mayor’s Cabinet and also serves as chair. Steve is working to get our Police Department accredited and is working on drafting an emergency management plan (something the City desperately needs).

These are just a few of the things that our directors are doing for the City on a daily basis. I do not think we could have a better group of people to oversee our departments and move us forward. Their dedication, work ethic and ability to get the job done are greatly appreciated. I know they would give the same compliment to their staff members that support them in their departments as well.

We recently hired the Kenyon Disend law firm to serve as our new City Attorney. Lacey Madche from the firm serves as our attorney and she is helping us in many areas that still need improvement as well as providing us with great advice regarding City functions.

Achievements Since 2004

Communication/Accountability

•Created and published The Town Crier monthly newsletter and send it out with the utility bills. We also mail it to those who do not receive a utility bill upon request.

•The City Website provides information and access to many services we provide. It has information on meetings, email contacts for staff and elected officials, community events and more.

•Installed a community bulletin board at Waffle Park and City Hall with current City info.

•Our Government Access Channel is up and running (for Comcast cable subscribers), providing another tool to communicate with the residents we work for.

•Enacted a “3 touch rule” and enhanced our notification requirements to make sure residents are informed before important changes are passed.

•Begun cross-training personnel to ensure the City functions smoothly if a key employee is unable to work.

•Passed Comprehensive Plan Notification Rules that are the strictest in the State, to my knowledge. This protects residents and makes sure they are informed when growth and zoning changes are made.
 
•Established Mayor’s Cabinet meetings which are open to the public. These meetings are an effort to plan how to enact the programs of the City Council and myself as well as to improve communication between staff, management, citizens and myself. They are also a great forum for discussing new ideas and working as a group to find solutions to a variety of issues.

•We are drafting an employee handbook (something we have not had in the past), that outlines what is expected of our employees, our procedures, processes and what they can expect from the City in regards to their employment. This will also allow us to begin employee evaluations (also not done in the past), which is a positive tool that will allow improvement in regards to productivity.

Economic Development/Zoning/Growth

• The comprehensive Plan and Zoning code has been completed and approved. I want to thank the Planning Commission for all their hard work.

• Contracted with the City of Auburn for building inspections and plan reviews. This not only saves money but provides us with certified, experienced, professionals that do this work every day.

• Passed our Storm Water Management Plan and Critical Areas ordinance and the Council is currently working to update and revise our municipal code.

Crime Reduction/Public Safety

• Hired Steve Jewell as our new Chief. Steve has 25 years with the Washington State Patrol, including the second-in-command post of Deputy Chief. Steve is working to get the Police Department accredited, which means we meet the highest standards of law enforcement.

• Working to improve our Police Department by bringing in a Sergeant position and creating a second-in-command to assist in tough decisions and management issues.

•Purchased a speed trailer and place it in various locations throughout the City to remind motorists to drive carefully.

•Our Community Service Officer performs daily school bus stop patrols (when able) to heighten police visibility and helps keep our kids safe.

•Made our codes more effective and easier to enforce.

•Heightened our emphasis on nuisance enforcement and cracked down on repeat offenders. Although this still remains a problem we are working hard to address it.

• Began an aggressive street improvement and preservation campaign. We repaired 5 deteriorating streets in 2004 and 5 more in 2005 (This includes paving some gravel roads). We are currently getting ready to plan the 2006 improvements.

• Enacted a procedure for jetting storm drains and cleaning catch basins to help deal with our drainage problem. This process keeps our drains clean and helps prevent clogging.

• Implemented a culvert partnership policy where residents can purchase the materials and City staff will perform the labor to fill open ditches. This has filled over a quarter mile of open ditches since the policy began.

• Implemented Park Impact Fees that raise money to improve our parks when new residential development occurs.

• We have worked with State and County governments to pursue funding opportunities and attain assistance for capital projects. We are currently working with the King County Transportation Department to install a stoplight at 1st Avenue North and West Valley Highway. I would like to thank Senator Tracy Eide and Representative Skip Priest for assisting us with getting $100,000 in the State budget to help fund this project.

• Attained a large grant (over $600,000) to improve Main Street from 1st Avenue to Algona Boulevard. These improvements will widen the street; include Curb, Gutter and Sidewalk on one side as well as utility improvements.

Building a better community

• Received a grant for $97,000 to create a new Sports Court at Matchett Park. This should include a basketball court and other facilities for physical activities.

• Continued our old annual events and added new ones. We now have the Easter Egg Hunt, Algona Days, Halloween Contest, Holiday Social, City Wide Garage Sale, and other events aimed at bringing our community and residents closer together.

• We have become extremely aggressive in going after residents who violate our nuisance ordinances. Thanks to our Police Chief Steve Jewell and Public Works Director Tom Reber for getting this moving and fine tuning a process that is working. We have a long way to go but we are getting there.

These are some of the key things we have worked on since January 2004. We are also working on many other projects for the future such as local street improvements, creating wetland habitat and trying to replenish our blue heron population, West Valley Highway improvements, economic development, bringing state and local tax dollars back to our City, modernizing our City Code, and much more. I am proud of the accomplishments of the hard working people in our City who have made, and continue to make, our City a better place to live.

As your Mayor, I work for you as do the City Staff, City Council, and various volunteer commissions. Let us know how you think we are doing. Your input helps us form goals and objectives that meet the desires of our residents. If you have questions, comments, concerns, input or just want to chat, you are always welcome to contact me.

Thanks,
Dave Hill

Mayor, City of Algona
402 Warde Street
Algona, WA 98001
Phone: 253-833-2897
Fax: 253-939-3366