Comments on: Poulsbo and Bainbridge sharing a courthouse? http://pugetsoundblogs.com/bainbridge-conversation/2010/01/07/poulsbo-and-bainbridge-sharing-a-courthouse/ Reporter Tristan Baurick engages island residents in a conversation about their community. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:14:21 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: James M. Olsen, Shining City Media http://pugetsoundblogs.com/bainbridge-conversation/2010/01/07/poulsbo-and-bainbridge-sharing-a-courthouse/comment-page-1/#comment-7525 James M. Olsen, Shining City Media Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:23:08 +0000 http://pugetsoundblogs.com/bainbridge-conversation/?p=7046#comment-7525 Hey new and old Council, peaking of ridding COBI of fat pork, here are two items work $450K a year in savings: COBI Interim Manager Lee Walton confirmed COBI is spending $256K =/- per year for live airing of COBI Council. Walton also directed his IT guy to check into how Port Orchard used internet streaming as a low-cost alternative. It now appears Mr. Walton is letting the possibility of using this cost-saving option fall dead because "BITV has a 5-year contract." At $5K per Council meeting, COBI must go back to BITV and get the contract rescinded. $5K per session are a lot of filled pot holes. Also COBI just sent another $48K to BIAHC. Again, the total given to BIAHC (over $200K plus the hidden give aways) is something COBI does not have the money for. COBI is not the Medici family with untold riches to support artists. BIAHC must go private and earn their way the hard way by hard work. Hey new and old Council, peaking of ridding COBI of fat pork, here are two items work $450K a year in savings:

COBI Interim Manager Lee Walton confirmed COBI is spending $256K =/- per year for live airing of COBI Council. Walton also directed his IT guy to check into how Port Orchard used internet streaming as a low-cost alternative. It now appears Mr. Walton is letting the possibility of using this cost-saving option fall dead because “BITV has a 5-year contract.” At $5K per Council meeting, COBI must go back to BITV and get the contract rescinded. $5K per session are a lot of filled pot holes.

Also COBI just sent another $48K to BIAHC. Again, the total given to BIAHC (over $200K plus the hidden give aways) is something COBI does not have the money for. COBI is not the Medici family with untold riches to support artists. BIAHC must go private and earn their way the hard way by hard work.

]]> By: Hunter http://pugetsoundblogs.com/bainbridge-conversation/2010/01/07/poulsbo-and-bainbridge-sharing-a-courthouse/comment-page-1/#comment-7524 Hunter Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:29:47 +0000 http://pugetsoundblogs.com/bainbridge-conversation/?p=7046#comment-7524 The court is by far the smallest percentage budget of any of the city departments. And by all indications is one of the more efficient departments. I am curious why Scales would look first to one of the smallest essential government services to try and cut? Why not cut the IT director position completely or lower it to a simple supervisor position? I still don’t know why we are paying a six-digit salary to someone to be in charge of 4 people. I can see several issues to moving the court to Poulsbo. 1) Commutes for employees, jurors, witnesses & police. 2) What is going to happen when someone needs to be taken to jail from court? Are they going to have to wait for an officer to drive from the island to show up? 3) Loss of local control & input in island legal issues. There is a lot to be said for having a local court and staff. 4) The current rent for the current sub-standard court facility is over $14,000 a year. A waste of money but not sure you would even make up that amount by moving to Poulsbo. Likely not. IF Scales is dead set on moving the court to Poulsbo, why not just go for it and contract all court services to Kitsap District Court North? The city already contracts out all prosecution of criminal cases to the Kitsap Prosecutor’s Office. By the time you add up all the items & costs that would have to be in the contract, I suspect that it would cost perhaps more than what the city is currently paying. Except we lose all the convenience and local control. I think Scales & the rest of the council would realize an immediate financial boon if they simply drastically reduce non-essential spending. Fully fund the essential services and projects, then tally up what is left (if any) for the non-essential requests. That will never happen because the council could never take the heat for making those hard financial decisions. Its much easier to pick at the courts, the cops, the roads, infrastructure, etc, than it is for the darlings of arts, social services and a senior center. The court is by far the smallest percentage budget of any of the city departments. And by all indications is one of the more efficient departments. I am curious why Scales would look first to one of the smallest essential government services to try and cut? Why not cut the IT director position completely or lower it to a simple supervisor position? I still don’t know why we are paying a six-digit salary to someone to be in charge of 4 people. I can see several issues to moving the court to Poulsbo.

1) Commutes for employees, jurors, witnesses & police.
2) What is going to happen when someone needs to be taken to jail from court? Are they going to have to wait for an officer to drive from the island to show up?
3) Loss of local control & input in island legal issues. There is a lot to be said for having a local court and staff.
4) The current rent for the current sub-standard court facility is over $14,000 a year. A waste of money but not sure you would even make up that amount by moving to Poulsbo. Likely not.

IF Scales is dead set on moving the court to Poulsbo, why not just go for it and contract all court services to Kitsap District Court North? The city already contracts out all prosecution of criminal cases to the Kitsap Prosecutor’s Office. By the time you add up all the items & costs that would have to be in the contract, I suspect that it would cost perhaps more than what the city is currently paying. Except we lose all the convenience and local control.

I think Scales & the rest of the council would realize an immediate financial boon if they simply drastically reduce non-essential spending. Fully fund the essential services and projects, then tally up what is left (if any) for the non-essential requests. That will never happen because the council could never take the heat for making those hard financial decisions. Its much easier to pick at the courts, the cops, the roads, infrastructure, etc, than it is for the darlings of arts, social services and a senior center.

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