Mayor and council wrestle over Young's extension classes

By Dennis Box

The Courier-Herald

The final 30 minutes of the Oct. 18 Bonney Lake City Council workshop may easily have been mistaken for the last minutes of Mike Tyson bout.

Years of frustration and hostility between some members of the council and Mayor Bob Young, who lost a bid for a third term in the primary, erupted in a verbal slugfest.

Councilman Phil DeLeo introduced an ordinance aimed at curtailing the mayor's continuing education classes, being paid for by the city.

Young said he had signed up for at least two classes through the Cascade Center For Public Policy at the University of Washington. The mayor said the classes lasted two day, and were city management courses costing the city about $700 each.

&#8220I have a problem with that,” DeLeo said at the meeting. &#8220How is the city is going to benefit when you won't be around after the classes.”

Young said he planned to continue working for the city.

&#8220Who said I'm not going to be around?” Young asked. &#8220I'm not going to be mayor, but it could well be I'm going to lobby for the city.”

Council members and the mayor jousted over the propriety of the issue.

&#8220For any other employee (that) you knew was going to leave at the end of the year, do you think it would be appropriate to send them off for courses?” Deputy Mayor Dan Swatman asked.

The mayor said he did not know if he could answer that question.

The mayor said he had already taken one class the week before and second was to begin Thursday. Both classes had been paid by the city.

After wrestling with how to place the ordinance on the agenda, the council had to decide on amendments to make the ordinance fly legally.

City attorney Jeff Ganson stated without the amendments he could not sign off on the ordinance.

The original ordinance prevented city employees from traveling to classes until the end of the year.

Among other amendments, it was decided the ordinance to be voted on could only cover elected officials.

The measure brought considerable debate and concern among the council members.

&#8220This is a small potatoes effort to spank an outgoing mayor because now you can do it,” Councilman Dave King said. &#8220This is nonsense.”

Young defended his actions and attempted to chide the council.

&#8220I hope at some time this council grows up past some of the petty feeling and jealousies or whatever it is that drives these things,” Young said. &#8220Somewhere you have to realize you're not a little city anymore and begin to think in terms of a larger city with larger goals.”

Several council members pointed out the problems with an outgoing mayor taking classes on the city dime.

&#8220Does this make any sense to me?” Councilman Neil Johnson asked. &#8220No it doesn't. But you know what the symptoms are? We cannot trust what happens. Why do we need training for any elected official that's going to be out of office? What benefit does that bring to the people? If you can justify it to the people then that's fine, Bob. I couldn't do it.”

Wrestling with the problems of a newly drafted ordinance and a mayor unwilling to come to terms with the council and at times unwilling to lead the meeting, the debate was pushed into strained terms.

&#8220Some members of the council are acting as grand inquisitors with the mayor tied to the stake with the embers already lit below his feet,” King said. &#8220You're asking him to repent a the very last minute before you burn him at the stake anyway.”

&#8220The mayor is neither Joan of Arc or Jesus Christ,” Councilwoman Cheryle Noble said. &#8220No one is burning him at the stake.”

By the final round, Councilman Mark Hamilton asked the mayor to reconsider his action, but said he was not ready to support the ordinance since the money was already spent.

&#8220I feel the mayor has been an honorable person and trustworthy,” Hamilton said. &#8220I think he knows deep in his heart he is taking classes that won't serve the people he has served the last eight years. I wish he would reconsider.”

Johnson and Rackley concurred with Hamilton and King on the ordinance and it failed on a 4-3 vote with DeLeo, Swatman and Noble voting yes.

The mayor after the meeting said he intended to take the class he was signed up for on Thursday.

&#8220The training you get is part of the benefit of being mayor,” Young said. &#8220This will benefit the city. I'm not going anywhere.”

Dennis Box can be reached at dbox@courierherald.com.