Beckham bestows the gift of laughter
Beckham bestows the gift of laughter
Description: Council handles city business...and some serious funny business.
Topics: City council
Posted by editor Mon Jun 11, 2007 11:33:08 PDT
Viewed 579 times
0 responses 0 comments Tehachapi’s City Council met on June 4 to take care of city business, but the gifts bestowed on his colleagues by Councilman Stan Beckham elicited unanimous public approval and laughter.
Having just returned from a Central California Mayors Conference, held in Modesto, Beckham was eager to share his positive experience and the area’s success with self-promotion for tourism and local industry.
“What happens in Modesto stays in Modesto,” said Mayor Ed Grimes jokingly, after Beckham gifted him with an “I Love Lucy” plaque, referencing the mayor’s love of the 50s and 60s era, when “Quality of Life” was more than just a catchphrase.
Grimes and Chief of Police Jeff Kermode also attended the event with Beckham.
City Manager Jason Caudle did not escape the gag-gift giving, graciously accepting a roll of John Wayne toilet paper, with the inscription, “Because you’re tough and don’t take ---- off anyone.”
Caudle took the joke with requisite professionalism and only a hint of concern that photos were taken of the exchange.
Tehachapi’s new Chief of Police Jeff Kermode, an avid horseman and experienced lawman, was appropriately awarded a photo of John Wayne and a symbolic badge; while the new force waits for their badges to be cast in time for the June 30 public badge pinning ceremony.
Other council members were given specialty treats made and marketed in the Modesto area, emphasizing the importance for small towns to capitalize on their unique resources.
Getting down to business
The council held three public hearings during the June 4 regular meeting, including one approving the tentative tract map for a 22.5 acre light industrial site to be located North of Goodrick Drive and east of the Ashe Village residential tract.
The approval of the eight individual parcels was conditional upon the inclusion of additional landscaping to accommodate a city-funded public park at some unspecified future date. The theme wall surrounding the industrial tract was also conditioned to blend in with the theme walls already in place in the residential area.
Other items of business included:
• Chief Jeff Kermode introduced the remaining members of the new Tehachapi Police Department. The public will have the chance to meet the entire force on June 30, at during a public badge pinning ceremony, from noon to 3 p.m. at Tehachapi City Hall, with food and entertainment provided.
• The Bear Valley Police Department was awarded a contract to provide dispatch services to the Tehachapi Police Department. The Kern County Sheriff’s Department declined to provide services, citing a lack of available staffing.
The five year contact also includes the purchase of new hardware and software as well as the costs of additional staffing. Start-up cost for the current fiscal year is estimated between $65,000 and $75,000. The cost for fiscal year 2007-2008 is included in the proposed 2007-2008 budget.
The annual costs for the five year contract are as follows:
2007-2008: $276,290
2008-2009: $290,104
2009-2010: $304,609
2010-2011: $319,839
2011-2012: $335,831.
• The city’s annual assessment of property tax for Landscaping and Lighting District 1 was approved. Total annual maintenance cost to the district is $178,917.68.
• A $5,000 city grant was approved for a Native American basketry class sponsored by the Tehachapi Valley Recreation and Parks Department. Former Assemblyman Phil Wyman and Tehachapi Heritage League President Charles White made a formal request for the funds, emphasizing the need to preserve the area’s cultural arts as well as promote cultural tourism in the region. See full story by Jon Hammond on basketweaving.
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