EVERETT, AUG. 9: In a tense Everett city council meeting Wednesday, the council passed a motion to bring on an independent third-party consultant to help address the city’s budget deficit.
Mayor Cassie Franklin opened the council meeting by addressing her thoughts on the Levy Lid Lift, which would have helped public and essential services, not making it off the ballot.
“The issue weighing most heavily on my heart right now is Proposition 1. I am sad and disappointed to see that voters decided against the ballot measure,” Franklin said.
Franklin said the city has been working on making cuts and streamlining operations and pursuing other sources of revenue for the past six years.
More than 60 cities in Washington rely and vote on Levy Lid Lifts like Proposition 1 to maintain funding for core services, Franklin said.
“It’s [Prop 1 failing] a message from the voters that they believe that the city is capable somehow of making even more cuts…,” Council member Paula Rhyne said. She shared that they have gone through two rounds of layoffs, with a third on the way.
In the next year Everett will have to make cuts in city operations to help overcome the projected $12.6 million deficit. The city will do community outreach in the upcoming months to hear from residents.
Council member Liz Vogeli shared an analogy of the financial struggles of the city. “I mentioned a few years ago about a ‘Top Ramen’ budget? Yeah well, I think we are going to have to share a bowl of the ‘Top Ramen’ because it’s going to get bad,” she said.
Council member Mary Fosse requested a motion for council president, Don Schwab, to hire a third-party independent budget analyst or consultant to review expenditures and revenue options. Vogeli seconded the motion.
Zarlingo expressed concerns for the proposed third-party budget motion, saying that it needs to be implemented in a timely manner, with the expertise to help narrow in and focus on the complex budget.
“We have the responsibility to formulate and pass a budget that’s going to have some painful interacting and destructive trade-offs,” Council Vice President Ben Zarlingo said.
Everett will need to have a balanced budget approval by the end of the year, Franklin said.
In other news:
The Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace light rail stations are opening on Aug. 30. There will be an opening ceremony starting at 11 a.m. Express busses and Swift lines will connect Everett riders to the light rail stations in Lynnwood and Shoreline.
The Mayor’s Drug Crisis Task Force presented 15 recommendations to address crisis response education, prevention advocacy, and treatment recovery to the Health and Human Services Council committee.
“The task force created valuable opportunities to build connections and strengthen relationships across the community,” Jonathon Schwartz, co-chair of the drug crisis task force said, “I know for me personally it gave me a deeper and much better sense and appreciation for the staff at the city… and the hard work they are doing every day to address this crisis in a compassionate and intentional way.”
The task force is made up of non-profits, for-profits, law enforcement, business and community leaders, neighborhoods, and people who experience the fentanyl and opioid crisis in Everett, Franklin said during the Health and Human Services meeting.
Project Coordinator Chelsea Monroe shared the task force findings. Here are five recommendations from the task force:
- Develop and executive a crisis and care coordination strategy in the city
- Emergency Mobile Opioid Treatment Program (EMOTE), which was launched last month
- Addiction and mental health services
- Strengthening communication and coordination between service providers and community members to increase knowledge of relevant resources
- Adequate and accessible detox beds and opioid treatment programs
To hear all recommendations, see here.
Many of the recommendations will have to be implemented with the help of grant funding and strategic application, Franklin said.
