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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11(360) 379-5047 (email: citycouncil@cityofpt.us) www.cityofpt.us November 2008 City of Port Townsend from Mayor Michelle Sandoval The City of Port Townsend, The League of Women Voters, AAUW, The Port Townsend/Jefferson County Leader, ACLU Jefferson County chapter and The Port Townsend Peace Movement have joined to sponsor a community forum on “Homeland Security/Border Patrol Checkpoints”. This event will take place Novem- ber 3, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. at Chimacum High School auditorium. Participating in this educational forum will be: -Sheriff Michael Brasfield of Jefferson County -Chief Conner Daily, City of Port Townsend Police -Michael Bermudez, Public Relations office of the Dept. of Homeland Security/Border Patrol -Chief John Bates, Deputy Chief Henry Rolon and Assistant Patrol Agent Jason Carroll all of the Border Patrol -Shankar Narayan, Legislative Director from the ACLU of Washington -Ann Benson, Directing Attorney from the Washington Defender Association's Immigration Project There will be presentations from each participant and then a question and answer period to follow. We hope you can join us for this information ex- change. I have had many community members share their concerns about the roadblocks and have had questions as to the extent of the au- thority of the border patrol and its mission on the peninsula, as well as the role played by our local police and sheriff’s office. We will address these questions and any others that you may have. Remember November 4 is election day! Please take the time to mail or drop off your ballot at the court house as this is our most valuable right as well as responsibility as citizens. City Funds Secure It is important for Port Townsend citi- zens to know that city funds are very secure. No losses from the sub prime failures have impacted the City’s investments. The following is a brief explanation of the City’s investment program. Not many people know that governments in Washington State are highly regulated as to the types of investments permitted. These restric- tions are found in state law. A document called “Washington State Treasurer’s Office – Eligible Investments for Public Funds April 1999” deline- ates the legal requirements for our investments and lists the types of investments that are not legal. The big restriction is that Washington lo- cal governments are not permitted to purchase equity securities (stocks and bonds of corpora- tions) or real estate for investment. The City presently invests the majority of city funds ($12 million) with the Washing- ton State Treasurer’s Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP). This pool is a State Treasurer managed money market fund. The State Treasurer has highly knowledgeable staff and invests billions of Washington local government dollars every business day. In addition, the City’s banking depository is US Bank, and we have cash on deposit in our sav- ings account pending city disbursements. This account is insured by FDIC and the PDC. Addi- tionally, the City has two CDs with Frontier Bank totaling $5.58 million maturing in March and Au- gust 2009. These investments also are FDIC and PDC insured. Collectively, the accounts at US Bank, LGIP and Frontier Bank total $18 mil- lion. Each year the City is audited by the Wash- ington State Auditors Office, and they examine our financial affairs to ensure we are investing legally as permitted by Washington State Law. The Washington State Treasurer web site (http://tre.wa.gov/) has lots of great information concerning the operation of the LGIP as well as information about market conditions. OlyCAP presents: A Free 1st Time Homebuyer Education Class “Pathways to Home Ownership.” Navigate the complex process of purchasing a home. Receive a Homebuyer Edu- cation Certificate from HUD trained instructors. Saturday, November 8 at the Tri Area Community Center. To register call OlyCAP at 385-2571. Port Townsend Library presents: Chefs on the Farm with Author/Chef Karen Jurgensen, Saturday, November 8 at 1:00 p.m., features a cooking dem- onstration and tasting followed by book signing and pie auction. Man in the Moon—Language play for very young children and the men who love them. This Baby Time Program is for dads, stepdads, granddads, uncles and all male caregivers with babies 0-12 months. Each Monday in November at 5:30 p.m. Book Lover’s Café—Monday, November 3, 2:30 at the Community Center Lounge. Adding to the Library activities are the Chess Club , story times, teen writing workshops, Fiber Frenzy and the book review blog Pageturners. The Library has activities for every age group. Come check us out! CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND CITIZEN ADVISORY BOARD POSITIONS AVAILABLE The City is recruiting interested citi- zens who can share their knowledge and exper- tise on the following citizen advisory boards: ARTS COMMISSION CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE PLANNING COMMISSION Call 379-5083 to request an application form or download from www.cityofpt.us under the Coun- cil/Boards & Commissions tab. Some advisory boards have special residency or skill require- ments; further information is available on the web site. Most appointments require a three- year commitment. Contact City Clerk Pam Ko- lacy at 379-5045 or pkolacy@cityofpt.us if you have questions. Farmer’s Market Extended! The Saturday Market has extended to November 22. Take advantage of four more weekends of fresh market foods, unique artisan gifts and live music. Bicycle—Pedestrian—Vehicle Safety Daylight hours are getting shorter and we all need to exer- cise caution. The “Rules of the Road” apply to each of us whether we are on foot or on wheels. Here are helpful reminders about safety and our responsibilities. ♦ Bicyclists: ♦ Obey traffic signs and signals. ♦ Wear a helmet. ♦ Never ride with headphones. ♦ Make eye contact with drivers. ♦ Look out for road hazards. ♦ Use lights at night. ♦ Use hand signals. ♦ Don’t pass on the right. ♦ Pedestrians: ♦ Obey traffic signs and signals. ♦ Walk on sidewalks. ♦ Cross at marked crosswalks. ♦ See and be seen. ♦ Make eye contact with drivers. ♦ Drivers: ♦ Obey traffic signs and signals. ♦ Exercise due care. ♦ Look left, right, and left again for all traffic - vehicle, bicycle or pedestrian. Nov.1-Dec.6 Enter the Main Street Hometown Holiday Sweepstakes Win a chance at over $1000 in Main Street Town Dollars Gift Cards at participating businesses. Visit www.ptmainstreet.org. Sponsored by First Federal. Merchants' Holiday Open House Saturday, November 29, starting at 10:00 a.m. the Port Townsend Uptown & Downtown Historic Districts will kick off the holiday season with car- riage rides, caroling in the streets and extended store hours. Come enjoy the good cheer and SHOP LOCALLY! SHOP PORT TOWNSEND!