Council standson siren vote

October 18 , 2007

Members of the Cathlamet town council voted 3-2 on Monday to reject a motion to restore the emergency dispatch siren while a committee researches alternatives to its use.

Responding last month to petitions signed by 86 persons, the council voted 3-2 to silence the siren while the committee did its research. Those petitioners said the siren’s loud noise wasn’t needed because of advances in radio communication.

Members of the county’s law enforcement and emergency response system objected, saying radios don’t always work, and that the siren encourages quick response. Without it, they said, emergency responders might not react in time, and a person’s life could be lost or adversely impacted because of the delay.

On Monday, Council Member Walter Wright, also a fire department captain and emergency medical responder presented new petitions seeking reinstatement of the siren. The petitions contained over 600 signatures; not all were town residents, he said, but all would rely on emergency response.

He moved that the siren be reinstated while the committee works, and John Hannah seconded the motion.

After much discussion, Wright and Hannah voted for their motion; Council Members David Goodroe, William Talbott and Danielle Erickson, mayor pro tempore, voted against it, and the motion failed.

“I’m very disappointed in you, David,” Wright said. “I asked last month what would it take to make you change your mind. A petition with 500 signatures? I’ve presented that and you won’t consider it.”

Goodroe responded that he was honoring the will expressed by those who signed the earlier petition.

“I feel betrayed,” Wright said. “I feel you promised something you didn’t deliver.”

“I really resent that,” Goodroe said.

Siren committee members said other activities had prevented them from meeting during the past month. They intend to work on the issue in the next few weeks, they said.

In other business:

—Dean Snyder told the council he was upset with town response to his complaints of how contractors had left ground around his house. There are chunks of concrete sticking out of the ground; they filled with infertile clay, and left rutted trenches.

He asked that silt or topsoil be hauled in to cover the mess.

After discussion, Goodroe suggested Snyder determine how much it would cost him to have the work done and bring that price to the council. That would be easier than having the town crew organize the work, he said.

—The council voted to change its meeting place from the River Street Meeting Room to the meeting room in the new fire hall. The change will be effective with the council’s November 19 meeting.