Talking Kelso

From a release by the city manager’s office:

The next scheduled citizen outreach meeting to provide input to the Kelso Community Assessment Taskforce, which will be held Saturday, January 31, 2009, from 10 AM – Noon at the Coweeman Middle School Library. This taskforce, a collaboration between the City of Kelso and the Kelso-Longview Chamber, will solicit community input through a series of outreach meetings in different geographical parts of the city.

The information will be used to evaluate the community assessment conducted this spring by Destination Development, Inc., a branding consultant hired by the city to evaluate our “community appeal.” Their suggestions as to how Kelso can better position itself to enhance its image and economic development growth will form the basis for an action plan to be presented to the City Council.

Rick Winsman, President of the Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce, facilitating this process, said, “the Taskforce wants to hear from all parts of our community, not just the Downtown. It is important that every resident has the opportunity to let us know what improvements matter to them.”

Here’s a group that wants to hear your input on how to make the city attractive to growth. There’s a third meeting scheduled in February…more on that later.

I’d like to invite interested citizens to join us as we consider a significant paving plan at a council workshop on Wednesday night, January 14. The meeting will be at city hall at 6:00.

Public Works Director David Sypher has pointed out to the council that a dollar spent today on road improvements can easily save five times that amount down the line. An overlay can keep us from having to completely reconstruct a street for many years. Along those lines, he proposes a $1 million resurfacing project to take place in 2009.

Nobody questions the fact that we could find enough surface to repave in Kelso. (Here are the proposed components of the project.)  And, if spending $1M now saves us $5M in a few years, the investment appears sound. The one obvious question, then, is (as always) How Do We Pay For It?
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Captain Andy Hamilton was selected as the new police chief this week, according to city manager Dennis Richards. Hamilton will take the place of Chief Wayne Nelson after Nelson’s retirement on or around March 31.

I didn’t participate in the formal interview process, but I did take an hour to visit with the external candidates that were brought in for consideration. These guys had some solid credentials, were enjoyable to speak with, for the most part, and may have been decent chiefs for Kelso. However, in the end, Andy Hamilton was the clearest choice, according to Richards.

Personally, I am proud to see one of our own come out on top in a wide review of available talent. I’ve been acquainted with Andy for about the last ten years as we began working with CrimeStoppers when it formed in 1999. He’s always been a guy who cared about the community, participating in all kinds of programs, like Safe Kids and National Night Out. I have no doubt that he’ll perform admirably in his new position.