Good morning class. Your assignment for tonight is to view Tuesday’s city council meeting on Channel 10, starting around 6:30 p.m.

It is a melodrama in three parts: the beginning, middle, and the end, which I thought would never come.
The cast: Councilman Steve Conaway plays the part of the lone Truth-Seeker who finds himself in a forest populated by five almost evil, but mostly clueless incompetents pretending to be financial luminaries.

The ill-tempered, secretive, Castle Manager, played by Yvonne Quiring, pretends to have the answers, while her mischievous court Toadies, Jamey Brooks and Brian Sipes, cater to her malevolent incompetence. In the meantime, the castle Queen, played by Gayle Washburn, seeks to orchestrate the confusion by frustrating Truth-Seeker’s fact-finding efforts.

Castle coffers are empty and Toady Brooks states: “The chickens have come home to roost...past leadership spent it”. It’s not our fault they claim. (Please read the 2008 letter from 5 Retired Fillmore Mayors below).

Truth-Seeker is on a quest in search of budget particulars, for example, are there any savings to be had by replacing staff with temps, and outsourcing professional duties after letting long-time employees go? Manager reassures the Queen and her Toadies that firing employees and re-hiring temps, and finding professionals (“like engineers”) to replace them, “is easy” and cost effective.

On it went. Maybe specifics will be forthcoming in scene two, at next week’s special meeting, when Manager tells the audience that public bathrooms at our parks are unnecessary because most Fillmore residents live close enough to use their own home facilities.

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A MESSAGE FROM 5 RETIRED FILLMORE MAYORS
October 29th, 2008
Whose Town Do They Want to Take Back? The Town that Gary Creagle and a few others envisioned in the 1980s? Gary and others wanted the City to grow all the way to Piru, build an airport and allow a gaming casino. Do we want Back the dysfunctional Town that nearly brought Fillmore to financial ruin? The voters threw out Gary and his cronies, and with a new city council under Mayor Delores Day, Roy Payne was hired as city manager and the city began to pick up the pieces. Now Gary wants it all back his way, and he's convinced a few newcomers to see things his way.
The frugality of the current City Council and city management is not an issue. Our city has lived within its means for many years now. The cost increases for management employees were largely beyond the city council's control; these were due to increases in medical insurance and the PERS retirement fund. It has been a difficult inflationary year for everyone, yet our city continues to operate on a BALANCED BUDGET. Since the recovery from the 1994 quake, the city has steadily built up RESERVES which amount to about 36% of the current operating budget.
With our financial house in order we can soon look forward to a new community swimming pool, new tennis courts and a new 22 acre park. These long-terms visions are coming to reality thanks to the support of the community and the leadership shown by the current city council. Fillmore needs more jobs and services. Santa Paula Hospital has been reopened and we have a new modern urgent care facility and Fillmore's budding business park and the needed jobs it will bring will soon be realized.
Above all, we are saddened by all the negative commentary about our community and our city. We need to start building bridges rather than creating walls of division. The discussion needs to focus on what is right for Fillmore, not who is right.
That is why we five retired Mayors of Fillmore are supporting Steve Conaway, Cecilia Cuevas and Norris Pennington for City Council. Vote November 4!
Sincerely,
Scott Lee, Mike Mc Mahan, Don Gunderson, Roger Campbell and Evaristo Barajas
5 Retired Mayors of the City of Fillmore