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Home My WebLink About03 March NewsletterNewsletterNewsletter March 2017 A Note from the Mayor: Recent actions by the new administration in the other Washington have raised concerns in our broader community for the safety and well-being of some of our residents. The immediate concern comes from both federal agents charged with more proactive deportation orders for undocument- ed residents and by some of our local citizens who now feel emboldened to taunt and threaten anyone who appears to be different from themselves. Mirroring the principles upon which our country was founded, Port Townsend has a long and enduring history of being a welcoming city that values the rich culture fostered by a diverse population. Who we are and what we value has not changed. What has changed is a new political environment that compels us to stand up to external pressures challenging those values. To that end, we recently reaffirmed our commitment to human and civil rights with Resolution 16-054 by listing many related actions and policies the City has enacted over the years. The degree of increased pressures now requires us to consider with some urgency whether we stand with other jurisdictions by declaring Port Townsend a Sanctuary City. This is a very big step for a very small city. We are working to carefully weigh the potential financial implications while soliciting input from our entire community. At the time of this writing, we have yet to convene our special council committee who will continue to hear from our staff and public before proposing next steps to the full Council. The issue will be much further down the road, or perhaps a decision made, before this newsletter is in your mailbox. We are therefore relying on local news outlets to keep you apprised along the way. No matter the outcome of the Sanctuary City issue, we recognize that we can only legislate the policies and actions of City government. The recent degradation of civility toward “others” warrants personal reflection and a call to our various community organizations to help individuals reach out to understand and respect each other’s concerns and challenges. Finally, I encourage everyone to make sure your voice is heard on national issues by contacting your US Representative and Senators. • Representative Derek Kilmer - (202) 225-5916 or https://kilmer.house.gov/contact • Senator Maria Cantwell - (202) 220-6400 or https://www.cantwell.senate.gov/contact/email • Senator Patty Murray - (866) 481-9186 or https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactme On a somewhat related topic… The challenge presented by the timing of this message in our monthly newsletter is a great demonstration for why we are launching a project to develop a comprehensive communication strategy. One of the first steps in the project will be a survey to determine which of the various communication vehicles are most widely used by our residents. You will be hearing more about this soon. In the meantime, please be thinking about your answer to the question “How would you prefer to get information from and to your City government?” 360.379.5047 • citycouncil@cityofpt.us • www.cityofpt.us Did you know? Our Police Department consists of: The Chief of Police, three Sergeants, thirteen full-time Police Ocers, a Detective, and two Administrative Clerks. Our police ocers have a broad mix of interests. We have a licensed pilot, a certied diver, a professional chef, some avid hikers, local/ small business owners, musicians/artists, a drummer, a big movie bu (complete with home theater), a former professional dancer, a former sailboat racer (who is also a saxophone player), a movie extra, and someone who rode a swimming elephant in Thailand, and even a few video gamers all working together to keep our city safe and welcoming to all. • Our police ocers responded to 10,165 calls in 2016. (3,522 low priority, 1,396 medium priority, 5,247 high priority) • They also responded to 298 “assist” calls (police respond to assist East Jeerson Fire and Rescue, CPS - Child Protective Services, APS - Adult Protective Services, etc.) • The Police Department averages 28-30 calls per day divided amongst the 5 ocers on duty for each 24-hour period. • Each shift the ocers go on an average of 5-6 calls. • The City of Port Townsend is authorized to have 15 full-time ocers, but is currently not fully staed. • Our ocers are averaging 55-60 hours per week. • An average call time is approximatly 30 mins per call. (DUI’s or death investigations can take hours, while trac stops with warnings may only take about 5-15 mins) New Complete Street Funding Port Townsend was selected by the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board (TIB) to receive $250,000 to be used for projects that support walking, bicycling, access to transit and/or streetscape aesthetics. This is a new more flexible funding opportunity which was created by the Washington State Legislature to encourage cities and counties to adopt complete streets policies that consider all transportation users and modes in the planning, design, operation and maintenance of streets. The City submitted a work plan for the $250,000, which was approved and the money will become available this July. The projects on the work plan include accessible curb ramps, and several blocks of new sidewalk. For additional information about TIB and the Complete Streets Grant please see their website. http://www.tib.wa.gov PUD No. 1 of Jefferson County is undergrounding power on Discovery RoadThe PUD is will be undergrounding power lines on the southern side of Discovery Road from 7th Street to Sheridan Street, in 2017 – 2018. Within the coming months, the first portion of power underground installation will start from Howard Street to 7th Street. The section from Howard Street to Sheridan Street will occur throughout the remainder of 2017 and into 2018. Also in 2017, the PUD is undergrounding power lines on 12th Street from Haines Place to Sheridan Street. For more information on schedule and current and future projects please contact the PUD at (360) 385-5800. The City Wins Silver Again as a Bicycle Friendly Community The League of American Bicyclists has designated Port Townsend as a Bicycle Friendly Community at the Silver level. Port Townsend joins 404 communities currently recognized for our commitment to improving conditions for bicycling through investment in bicycling promotion, education programs, infrastructure and pro-bicycling policies to make Port Townsend a safe, comfortable and convenient place to bicycle. In addition to the Silver level designation, which is good for four years, the City was provided a Feedback Report that outlines key steps to take to improve bicycling. For additional information please visit the League of American Bicyclists website. http://www.bikeleague.org. There will be a celebration for the City receiving the award in the month of May which is designated as Bike to Work Month. Visit the City’s website for more information about the celebration. 1925 Blaine St • 360-385-POOL(7665) • www.cityofpt.us/pool 360.379.5047 • citycouncil@cityofpt.us • www.cityofpt.us The Port Townsend Main Street Spring HUD Loan applications are due March 31, 2017 at 5 pm. These funds can help property owners accomplish historic preservation goals and safety improvements in their buildings and is available to commercial buildings in Port Townsend’s Downtown and Uptown Commercial Historic Districts. With these funds, building owners have painted the exterior of their buildings, repaired roofs, fixed staircases, re-pointed brick facades, installed windows and improved the safety of their buildings. Visit www.ptmainstreet.org for more information and the application form or call our office at 360-385-7911. The Port Townsend Main Street Program is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization: Our mission is to preserve, promote and enhance our historic business districts. All City employment opportunities are advertised in the Leader and on our website under Job Opportunities on the main page. There you will see Current openings and our online application. We now are only accepting applications online. Each opening will have a complete job description and a position announcement with more details about that job. We are unable to accept resumes and applications for jobs that are not posted. Please contact the Human Resources Department if you have any questions about the current positions or the application process: 360.302.2195 • hr@cityofpt.us Interested in City employment? Swim Lesson Registration opened on Wednesday 2/22/17, for the March session that starts 3/6/17. You can register for group lessons at the pool, online: http://cityofpt.us/pool/, or over the phone: 360-385-7665. Please call or stop by the pool office to register for private lessons. We are now offering weekend Deep H20 classes, from 10 - 11 AM on Saturday and Sunday. Tell your friends and come on down! We are proud to announce the Red Fins Swim Club is in the pool! We’ve hired a new head coach, already have swimmers in the water, and conduct open try-outs every Wednesday from 3-5pm. We have a variety of membership package options to help meet busy schedules – please contact Mountain View Pool at 360-385-7665 for more details. We've got some excitement coming up at Mountain View Pool: 360.379.5047 • citycouncil@cityofpt.us • www.cityofpt.us