The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2023-10-17 Council Meeting From: To:City Council Subject:With Utter Contempt Date:Sunday, October 15, 2023 10:58:41 AM \[EXTERNAL SENDER\] With Utter Contempt For The Citizens Tuesday the Council will (finally) appoint a replacement elected official 'The City Recorder", Apparently the found a staff person who lives in Ashland to take the job. First, the Council needed to decide on the process to do this. They did it secretly, behind closed doors. That was illegal. Second, they never, ever, asked the Citizens of Ashland if anyone was interested in becoming The City Recorder. They just picked who they wanted. That is unethical. That is not how you pick an elected official. Third, they don't give us ANY information on who this person that is being gifted this important position: The City Recorder is (well was) the citizen's eyes and ears at City Hall. Not anymore Just a name. We have to take their 'word' that this person is qualified. That this person can do the job. That this person wants the job. Imagine if a Mayor's position became available again, the only opportunity for the public to participate AT ALL, from the process to the choice was when Council approved a name that was some staff's choice. That's exactly what Council will do Tuesday And they won't care From:City of Ashland, Oregon To:City Recorder; Dorinda Cottle Subject:Council Public Testimony Form Submitted Date:Tuesday, October 17, 2023 11:28:15 AM \[EXTERNAL SENDER\] *** FORM FIELD DATA*** Full Name: Anonymous Phone: Email: Anonymous@anonymous.com Meeting Date : 10/17/23 Type of Testimony: WRITTEN Written Testimony: I urge you to look at whether or not Alissa Kolodzinski has any relevant employment experience to fulfill the duties as City Recorder, other than the fact that she resides in Ashland. She has already been handed a considerable promotion without a proper process in her less than one year of working for the City. Don?t let this be a repeat of poor hiring practices. This is one of the highest paying jobs and shouldn?t just be handed to someone based on where they live. *** USER INFORMATION *** SubscriberID: -1 SubscriberUserName: SubscriberEmail: RemoteAddress: 66.241.70.76 RemoteHost: 66.241.70.76 RemoteUser: From:City of Ashland, Oregon To:City Recorder; Dorinda Cottle Subject:Council Public Testimony Form Submitted Date:Saturday, October 14, 2023 1:39:13 PM \[EXTERNAL SENDER\] *** FORM FIELD DATA*** Full Name: Jan Weydemeyer Meeting Date : October 17, 2023 Type of Testimony: WRITTEN Written Testimony: Dear Mayor Graham and Member of City Council: I am writing to request that the City Council and Mayor postpone the vote on Resolution 2023-25. Resolution 2023-25 is not in the interest of our community. The process has not been transparent and the citizens who will be most affected have not had the opportunity to provide input in a meaningful way. Implementation of this resolution would have severe impacts on the Clay Street neighborhood. We were not included in the planning process and only invited to comment after investments were made and contracts drawn up. This site is adjacent to our homes and a grossly inappropriate location for social services of this magnitude. Our neighborhood already bears more than it's share of subsidized housing and social services. The effects of this include: trespassing, stockpiled items, sites with cardboard, tarps and debris, shopping carts with personal items, garbage strewn all over the place, human feces and needles. These items are found along the bike path and the railroad ROW, in Clay Street Park and neighborhood parks on a regular basis. Locating additional services in this area would exacerbate existing problems. Maybe you are not aware that the level of trespassing, noise and garbage have been increasing in our area. We deal with nuisance activities and public safety issues on a daily basis and have been tolerating this for a long time. The police do not have adequate resources to address these problems. We elected you to represent us. Please do so by allowing us to participate in decisions that directly affect our neighborhood. Thank you, Jan Weydemeyer *** USER INFORMATION *** SubscriberID: -1 SubscriberUserName: SubscriberEmail: RemoteAddress: 66.241.70.76 RemoteHost: 66.241.70.76 RemoteUser: From:City of Ashland, Oregon To:City Recorder; Dorinda Cottle Subject:Council Public Testimony Form Submitted Date:Tuesday, October 17, 2023 9:43:59 AM \[EXTERNAL SENDER\] *** FORM FIELD DATA*** Full Name: Allison Wildman Phone: Email: Meeting Date : 10/17/23 Type of Testimony: WRITTEN Written Testimony: We are dismayed and frustrated with the process (or lack of) the City of Ashland has taken to purchase property without any public input and designate it as ANOTHER homeless shelter in south Ashland within a quarter mile of an existing shelter. It is irresponsible for you to move forward with a project such as this without laying the foundation to protect your constituents. I would like to request that the council move to amend that or refuse to approve the contract with OHRA "as is" unless all the local stakeholders (neighbors, businesses, and schools) have a way to have their concerns and voices heard. We are not sure that any of our concerns have been passed to OHRA, and this would make communication even less likely. The city represents the voice of the people, and for them to not have any say in the shelter operations seems ill- advised. I would also like you to postpone the vote approving 'A Resolution to Approve Transitional Housing Accommodations' until the community, city, and OHRA can come to terms on what is acceptable within the immediate area of a residential neighborhood. The language in the Resolution does not give our neighborhood confidence that there is a true plan for the use of the space and it is unacceptable to pass something without your due diligence to protect Ashland residents from the fallout of a poorly executed shelter plan. I would also like you to add the following requests to your next agenda and work to implement them immediately for the safety and protection of your constituents. #1 ? Immediately update the ordinances for south Ashland to match the Enhanced Law Enforcement Area currently in place downtown so that our police are empowered to give citations, etc. (We would like this applied from the intersection of Siskiyou & Ashland St to Ashland Hills Inn, and from East Main to Siskiyou Blvd.) #2 - Increase police presence in the defined area before Nov 1 - kiosk, increase beat, morning and evening sweeps (daily); One officer designated as our point person for communication/updates. #3 - Data analytics provided by the city - re: baseline vs monthly reports; Measuring all City, EMT/Fire, and Police calls (such as requests for clean-up and trash removal, general nuisance, noise), whether citations were issued (and if so, for what) #4 - Visual/sound barrier in the immediate area of the building before Nov 1 - privacy, trash mitigation plan (in hotspot areas), noise mitigation (dogs, yelling, sirens, emergency vehicles, etc.) #5 - Match City of Medford camping ordinances #6 - NO purchasing/annexing or otherwise acquiring land for expansion of homeless services in the immediate area. *** USER INFORMATION *** SubscriberID: -1 SubscriberUserName: SubscriberEmail: From:City of Ashland, Oregon To:City Recorder; Dorinda Cottle Subject:Council Public Testimony Form Submitted Date:Monday, October 16, 2023 4:25:03 PM \[EXTERNAL SENDER\] *** FORM FIELD DATA*** Full Name: Ruth COULTHARD Phone: Email: Meeting Date : October 17, 2023 Type of Testimony: WRITTEN Written Testimony: I have met and talked with neighbors since your informational meeting on the new shelter. The sharing has been thoughtful and practical. It seem to me that our request that you set up a southside exclusion zone modeled after the one downtown would help the police deal with repeat offenders. I hope that you also consider with our police if parts of the Medford ordinances related to homeless camping are desirable to ennact in Ashland. During the covid pandemic, the bottom of Clay St Park behind my home was a homeless campsite. In my bedroom at night I was subjected to the sounds of foul mouthed arguments that lasted hours. One day I heard fighting where a young man's life was threatened. Garbage was everywhere. It looked like there were mountains of free food that no one wanted except the rats who flourished. "Not in my backyard" sounds like an accusation, but when it is literally in your backyard, It is a reasonable demand. I never want to experience that chaos again. I am very pleased to see the police regularly patroling our part of town now and that the debris field by the tracks near my house has been cleaned up. It has helped reassure me of your attention. Thanks for hearing our requests. *** USER INFORMATION *** SubscriberID: -1 SubscriberUserName: SubscriberEmail: RemoteAddress: 66.241.70.76 RemoteHost: 66.241.70.76 RemoteUser: