Write-in A'eron Blackman
-
For best results, spell name correctly.
I sat on the budget committee in 2012 foreseeing "compression" and opposing the expanding budget. A competent council might have understood, but instead chose to drive forward believing Reedsport would be first out of the recession.
The biggest issue Reedsport must address is the City charter. Self-rule has failed. It's time at least one person in office here upholds their oath "sworn before God" to uphold the Oregon Constitution by getting the City charter right with the Law of the State of Oregon. Simply: plagiarize Lake Oswego's city charter, ratify the new legally and constitutionally correct charter with a public vote in the Spring, hold new council elections in line with the new charter (and state law) next November, and be a properly functioning City come Jan 2024.
Also, the downtown area refusing to admit they have chosen to buy or build in a flood zone. There was a long time when there was soooo much money to be made in Reedsport that buying or rebuilding in a flood zone made economic sense. Those days are long past. It's time to end the ignorance and admit that unless major (not light) economic change occurs, levee certification is unaffordable for a population Reedsport's size. Let's look at subsidizing a voluntary exodus from the downtown flood zone. I bet there is federal money available for that.
If elected I would use my influence to help Reedsport and the Port of Umpqua become an international exporter of something like Montana coal, or scrap auto metal, and help avoid lawsuits by being a mayor that can read and comprehend laws written at an 8th grade level (referring to the $40,000 settlement made to the pot shop on 19th and Hwy 101). I am also capable of using Google and other search engines, which is a much-needed ability the council seems to lack. (ORS 366.290 section (4) for example, State highway maintenance is the 'sole' responsibility of the State. So why does the mayor continue to unlawfully misappropriate City gas tax funds on the Reedsport Levee? Reedsport is a city (not a county), the levee is not a road, and the only road causing the problem is a state highway. This is yet another lawsuit waiting to happen.)
When the City of Reedsport office is open, a council person should always be in City Hall to engage with the public.
Additionally:
I oppose the City Manager form of government. The Manager position should be dropped and replaced with a 'Recorder', and competent Councilors capable of doing their homework and making informed decisions regarding Reedsport's municipal affairs. Subsidizing ignorance with a 'City Manager' in this information age is a luxury the city can no longer afford.
I oppose reinventing the wheel when it come to the City's Charter. Plagiarizing the City charter of a successful city like Lake Oswego is the answer in my opinion. Let them sue us if we become successful.
I oppose a caustic Municiple water supply. I do not believe the water coming out of the lake is caustic, but for some reason it is incapable of supporting life as it leaves the tap. WTF?
I oppose taxes; but if a group of non-elected voters: desire theft, petition a vote, and the ballot measure passes, so be it. Unless the council intend to misappropriate it as with the seasonal gas tax.
I oppose non-petition-initiated ballot measures. If you don't get a few dozen voters to openly support a measure: why waste recourses?
I oppose the seasonal gas tax. The money cannot be used lawfully for the purpose the Mayor promoted; don't let the lie get bigger, end it.
I oppose packs of dogs in the city. In civilized cities, having more than three dogs in a household requires a variance. Let's be civilized!
I oppose fascism in government. Police are employed to enforce laws; they are not employed to blindly follow orders of the Chiefs. Any officer who would enforce a ban on warming or ceremonial fires on private property is exactly the kind of officer who would enforce a ban on firearms; which is desirable if you are fascist Nazi dictator, but not for US Constitution supporters like myself.
I oppose water meters. There is not now, nor has there ever been a water crisis in Reedsport that would justify water rationing; neither is their reason to restrict sewer usage. Subsidizing water and sewer fees with metered water makes no rational sense and is another service/cost the city can no longer afford. Water and sewage costs should be a set amount per month for each hook-up until the plant is paid for. If you can't afford it; sell your second house or move.
I oppose face mask mandates.
I oppose transferring Bed Tax monies into the General Fund. Pretty sure that violates Oregon State Law.
I oppose declaring an EMERGENCY when no real emergency exists. Misuse of authority must be spot-lighted, not covered up. Let's get these folks out of office.