A translation of Scott Walden's resignation letter:
Yo - Mayor Dave,
I am submitting this letter of resignation because of my health. Since I have nothing to lose, there's a few things I have to say about the lousy way you run the borough.
1) Stop worrying about making ACT happy and do what is right for the borough. Having integrity means not breaking the rules then blaming it on others. You don't have to have a re-enactment of the gunfight at the OK Corral every time the Assembly disagrees with you.
2) Why are you giving big pay raises to Chumley and Wilcox who may not have the capacity to understand the complexities of borough issues? Oh, and more and more, those issues seem to be beyond what you are able to comprehend.
3)Just because you go to a meeting doesn't mean you are listening, understanding, or have any curiosity as to how or why things are done. You also need to appoint people who are qualified to do the job they are supposed to do. Duh!
4) To get good advice from the department heads, you need to create an atmosphere where they can disagree with you and your staff without fear of repercussion. If everyone agrees with you all of the time, keep in mind that they shouldn't. You are not God.
5)When the Assembly questions what you do, they are doing their job - they were elected to do that and then to try to make decisions for the good of all. Hiring qualified people is best for the borough. Being completely transparent when you give pay raises is essential.
6)Everyone knows that Charlie Pierce is your bee-atch. Paul Fisher tries to be, but he usually can't figure out what is actually going on during the Assembly meetings.
7) Don't make things up when asked questions during Assembly meetings. Come to meetings prepared. If you don't have an answer, make sure you get back with all of the facts ASAP. Don't have underlings take the heat for you or your staff.
8)Service boards make suggestions. While the borough's decisions can take their recommendations under consideration, the decisions that are made need to account for how the changes will affect all involved and probably should involve the folks that run the departments.
9) Ms. Miller is not qualified to run Human Resources (you had to change that job description to make it appear as if she did). She doesn't have the needed people skills, the backbone, nor the self-control to be a real professional.
10)Ms. Miller is a loose-cannon and because she doesn't play nice with employees and other department heads has created problems so big, that I've to consult with the borough lawyers in an attempt to make things right.
11)Ms Miller defers to too much to the borough employee union; what are we, a worker's paradise?
12)We are giving up too much to the union. Back to the salt mines you peons!
So, to sum it up: take this job and shove it.
Have a nice day,
Scott Walden
Well, OK, it is a loose translation. But Scott didn't tell Hizzoner Dave anything that we all already didn't know.
What's up with Walden's attacks on the union though?
Carey's response has had the typical arrogant and dismissive tones as whenever he has been challenged by the public or the assembly. What else can he do now though without seeming like a clueless loser?
Here's an idea. A meeting with a handful of selected current/former assembly members (Assembly President Pete Sprague, Gary Knopp, Bill Smith and Ron Long - none are Carey cheerleaders - but at least one is supportive, and all are reasonable and have been around a while) and maybe two non-appointed and completely respected department heads and come up with sensible plan of action for Carey to follow that ensures cooperation, transparency, and integrity.
And some appointed heads should probably roll.
Or Carey can throw a hissy fit.
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9 comments:
Not a bad translation at all, Soul.
I too was a little perplexed by Walden's swipe at the employee's union.
I'm hazarding a guess that Walden was told "no" about something by the HR Department, and HR blamed the "no" on "that pesky union."
The fact is, there's a union contract (up for renegotiation right now, as a matter of fact), which pretty well spells out what employee's and employer's rights and obligations are. It comes up for review and renewal every three years.
If the administration wants to modify that contract, now is the time.
Scot Walden is a stand-up guy and has done great work for the City of Kenai and the Borough over the years. It's a shame to see him leave the Borough. I wish Scott all the best as he focuses on his health. (I bet that blood pressure will come w-a-a-y down once he's away from that toxic environment.) Maybe a mayoral recall is in order...
Walden was a friend-appointment by Williams-Navarre, brought in from Kenai. That team rarely played nice with their perceived opposition, and the tone of Walden's letter reflects that. Walden missed last summer's fire season. Other borough employees have been carrying his load for a long time.
Shame on Scott for having a heart attack during fire season. He is obviously a poor planner and this should be duly noted. Regardless of whom he was appointed by, he came with a long history of working with a lot of elected officials over the years and had a stellar reputation. You are not ALWAYS known by who appointed you, but with your track record.
Mr. Walden missed one fire 2009, so where was the borough when Augustine went off, the floods in Seward,the ice jambs up and down the river and the fire in Caribou hill and other things this man had to take care of. Noone has carried him its more like him carrying the borough because people did not what to set up and help or lets face it know how to handle the job!!!!!!
Having worked at the borough for over 20 years, I can attest that Scott Walden was the BEST Emergency Manager in the history of the Borough. There were some other good ones, and some not so good, but he was the best. I wish him good health and happiness.
Chumley Resigns as Chief of Staff?
I have been drinking Nyquil so I'm not sure if this is real.
I have the press release. It's official
Could be a best of...SOL
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