From: "Bafus, Alexis" <Alexis.Bafus@cityofvancouver.us>
Date: Feb 11, 2014 1:23 PM
Subject: RE: Parking Advisory Committee
To: "Shea Michael Anderson" <sheaside@gmail.com>
Shea,
Thank you for your interest and insight. I will withdraw your application. I also apologize for calling you Michael.
Regards,
Alexis
From: Shea Michael Anderson [mailto:sheaside@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2014 1:09 PM
To: Bafus, Alexis
Cc: Smith, Larry; Hansen, Bart; Topper, Alishia; sheaside.imonik@blogger.com
Subject: RE: Parking Advisory Committee
Alexis - MY FIRST NAME IS SHEA. Like "Shea Stadium, shea butter" etc...(-:
At this time Im going to back away from this position, given your description of how the Citys advisory boards work.
I could be more specific, given my philosophical objections to weak mayor govt, but your description of the posting, with its triple layers of staff for communicating ideas and proposed changes to city govt, says it all. I frankly dont see a good flow of communication in the Citys model that is effective at making changes as needed...given info goes first thru you, then Mr Merrill in advise/consent capacity (why Im guessing you cc'ed him?), then possibly to City Manager and/or Council - which leaves it, from how I see it, nowhere - staff, policies, and most procedures in weak mayor cities are handled by their supervisors (i.e., city mgr), leaving these things entirely out of hands of any city officials directly responsible to citizens, or even Council, for that matter.
For that matter, proposals floating up to Council (which Im assuming would involve me directly and repeatedly contacting Councilmembers to get on their agendas) are likewise dead in the water a) because theyd need 4 votes in 3 sep meetings, plus get out of Council comm; b) because any directives by Council in weak mayor city govts are at discretion of staff to implement - again, staff arent answerable to public or even elected folks.
I had hoped Vancouvers process on the "inside" would be less convoluted. Unfortunately not the case. I feel its much more effective, given this process youve described, to advocate change on the outside.
Now I see why so many are upset about parking issues here.
Be aware that this reply is posted on my blog, ovancouvria.blogspot.com.
Appreciated,
Shea
On Feb 11, 2014 11:55 AM, "Bafus, Alexis" <Alexis.Bafus@cityofvancouver.us> wrote:
Good morning Michael,
2:00 March 3rd was already taken, so I have you confirmed for 2:20 on Monday, March 3rd. Council Committee II includes Councilmembers Larry Smith, Alishia Topper and Bart Hansen.
Boards meet and report to their city liaison, who then reports back to council and the city manager. For the rest of your questions, I have included in this response, Mike Merrill, Manager of the Parking Division. He oversees the Parking Advisory Committee and will have far more answers to your questions than I do.
Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you. Otherwise, I will send a reminder email for your interview as the date gets closer.
Thank you,
Alexis
From: Shea Michael Anderson [mailto:sheaside@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, February 10, 2014 5:32 PM
To: Bafus, Alexis
Subject: Re: Parking Advisory Committee
Hi Alexis, March 3 at 2 pm is fine, if not taken. If so, sometime that afternoon.
A couple questions:
Who is on, from Council, on "Council Committee II"? Or is committee randomly selected at time of interview (for instance)?
Do City advisory boards report directly to Council, or to City Manager?
Does the Parking board have scope to make recommendations/propose parking changes outside of downtown/affecting private property (say, commercial property)?
Also, does board have ability to propose/advise fee/personnel/parking statute changes?
Can board invite city staff/managers to speak on certain topics?
What powers, other than asking nicely, does board have when seeking out needed information in a timely way?
Im guessing this board meets once a month? Also guessing yourself, and maybe another person, liaise between boards, City Mgr, Council?
Sorry to bombard. Just getting ducks in a row.
On Feb 6, 2014 11:21 AM, "Bafus, Alexis" <Alexis.Bafus@cityofvancouver.us> wrote:
Good morning Shea,
Thank you for your interest in becoming a member of the Parking Advisory Committee. I would like to invite you to participate in an interview with Council Committee II. Below are several dates/times that are available. We are scheduling several interviews, so please let me know your top two or three choices. I would like to accommodate as many schedules as I can.
Monday, February 24th:
· 2:00
· 2:20
· 2:40
· 3:00
· 3:20
· 3:40
Monday, March 3rd:
· 2:00
· 2:20
· 2:40
· 3:00
· 3:20
· 3:40
Thank you again for your interest, and once I have your date/time selections, I will send a confirmation email. I will also send a reminder as the date gets closer. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Regards,
Alexis
Alexis Bafus | Support Specialist
CITY OF VANCOUVER, WASHINGTON
City Manager’s Office
P: (360) 487-8607 | C: (360) 487-8625
www.cityofvancouver.us | www.cityofvancouver.us/socialmedia
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please, go ahead and say something - let me and others know what you think, how you feel, what should be done...what I didn't say, should have said...or how shrill I am/not shrill enough. Be assertive here.