Letters to the Editor 11/23/2011

To the Editor:

After reading the comments by Mayor Kellstrom and City Manager Stein regarding Councilor Weed's recap of the 18-month "Water Rate Saga," you might be left with the impression that it was simply misunderstandings and differences of opinion. That would be a mistake.

As a member of the TAC, and someone who has been engaged in this fight (and it has been a fight) for one full year, I feel qualified to dispute Eileen Stein's attempt at spinning away from reality. There has been a continuous and deliberate effort on the part of the city manager and council leadership to generate large revenue increases to the water fund, and in support of that effort I have witnessed a long list of "misinformation."

News articles, press releases, letters from public officials, and testimony from staff have all come under review. They have, in nearly every case, been disputed by facts - as Councilor Weed says, "debunked." The facts have been the City's own data, and the analysis of that data is what causes me to call it misinformation. While the TAC at times disagreed on the interpretations of facts, these are honest differences; the statements of the facts themselves are what are in dispute.

The original demand for money had water rates going up over 100% in 5 years. The final rate structure has cut that increase by half. When honest citizen inquiries from folks like Mike Morgan and me are met with stonewalling, demands for money to pay for public records request, and a ridiculous attempt to officially ignore such inquiries, you know something is wrong. When a relatively simple task like determining water rates takes 18 months, you know something is wrong. Hundreds of hours were wasted debunking bogus arguments. The buck stops with the leadership; they are responsible.

Ed Protas

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To the Editor:

Councilor Weed's November 15 reflections on a dysfunctional process (regarding Sisters water system/rates) fueled by misinformation from City staff require a rebuttal.

While I cannot speak to all the accusations, as a member of the TAC majority I found several of her statements to be grossly misleading -which, curiously, is exactly what she claims to be so indignant about in her essay.

As it turns out, the operation of a safe, dependable and code-compliant municipal water system is more complex than I had ever imagined before I was conscripted to the TAC. Complex system analysis and findings can rarely be reduced to one-line summaries without sacrificing a balanced understanding of the situation.

For instance, given a bias toward safety and the City's experience with a costly chlorine gas incident at Well No. 2, staff recommended upgrading the water treatment system at the city's dilapidated Well House No. 1. Contrary to Councilor Weed's debunking theory, there are in fact safety risks in using chlorine gas to sanitize water supplies, just as there are inherent risks in handling any hazardous material. Weighing those risks against the cost of upgrades is what the TAC was charged with doing in their evaluation of the water CIP. We made educated guesses based on sometimes conflicting data-not uncommon in complex systems where funds and time for more thorough investigation are

limited.

Furthermore, the TAC was adamantly reminded by agenda-driven members that rate discussions were not on the table per council's directive. Therefore it is most surprising to read Councilor Weed's statement that "hundreds of hours of TAC vetting had revealed an increase was unnecessary."

Councilor Weed, I spent far more hours on the TAC than you did, and we never came to any such conclusion about rates. Prior to making such strong accusations suggestive of a culture of misinformation, it would be more productive to spend time reflecting on the veracity of one's own statements.

Kris Calvin

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To the Editor:

I just want to give a big "thank-you' to the Sisters Science Club and to the Rotary (independently) for hosting two fun and different events in Sisters this past week. The "brain' talk was amazing. So fascinating, informative, and exciting to hear about the great advances being made in that arena.

Bringing together science, math, computers and the desire to "know' is what makes for a better world. I'm thrilled to see that the people of Sisters have gotten on board with improving and realizing the importance of the sciences. We already do an awesome job with the music and arts and I'm glad to see science is getting the value it deserves. Kudos to all involved.

And, the Harlam Ambassadors, here in Sisters, Oregon. What a fun night out. Watching the kids and the adults of our community come together (once again) to laugh, play, get picked on (what a sport Paul Patton was) and raise funds for Rotaryis what small towns are about. Thanks, Rotary.

I love the music and art events that go on all year long, but I have to admit it was a nice change to have something different. I hope we see more of this. Thanks to all who helped make this happen.

Jeanne Sellgren