Tiny Manila's big problems challenge CSD candidates By Matt Kapko Eye Reporter The Arcata Eye October 28, 2003 The Manila Community Services District has three open Board of Directors seats to be filled on election night Nov. 4. There are four candidates running for three available four-year terms. Dendra Dengler and Violet Glass are seeking their first term on the board, with incumbents Tim Dellas and Michael Fennell both seeking re-election. Many issues will face the board over the course of these terms. Traffic safety A major concern in community for the past year has been with traffic safety. After a safety corridor was established on U.S. Highway 101, many Manila residents noticed a significant increase in traffic coming through State Route 255, which bisects the town. Over the summer a report was finalized on phase one of the Manila Community Transportation Plan. It recommended a safety corridor be established on SR 255 with a lowering of speed limits and construction of a roundabout at the northern entrance to town. Funding for phase two (the final phase) was recently acquired through a grant and MCSD will be seeking out contracts to fulfill the plan. Budget shortfall Budget constraints have placed a significant burden on the board recently. Although revenues from water and sewer services are not intended to go toward the district’s parks and recreation, there is an increasing concern that the costs accrued from the Community Center will continue to take cuts out of the district’s operating budget. The community center has put the district in the red for two consecutive years. A major task will be to bring the center to a point of sustaining its own costs through revenues it receives. Board/staff problems Although not always a debilitating factor for the board, many feel that problems among members of the board and staff members are affecting the overall efficiency of the district. In previous meetings, a divide among members of the board has caused a roadblock to evolve. It has been the same at times for members of staff. Much of the district’s problems were addressed in a report presented last July by Elizabeth Watson. After being hired by the board through a grant, Watson’s research found a serious lack of boundaries in the district’s work, with many employees unsure of their duties and subsequently overstepping into other’s duties. Another problem she raised was the district’s overwhelming reliance on grants. Watson said the district was operating its projects based on available grants, not by community need. Because of the problems that arise from being grant-driven, she recommended a moratorium on grants. Construction projects The board will also see the completion of a major construction project at the Community Center. Progress will also continue on trail access to the Manila Dunes and subsequent long-range goals regarding the coastal dunes. Violet Glass Violet Glass, a 41-year-old landscaper, is no new face to Manila. She’s been a resident for 35 years and currently serves on the Parklands Community Center and Recreation Commission. Glass says she’s running for election to apply community desires to positive results and to see the completion of many projects currently underway. She is also an advocate of improved public health. As someone who was homeless for eight months, she strongly feels that a shower facility and a Laundromat would improve people’s self esteem. After walking throughout town, conducting her own survey, she says 65 percent of those she spoke with wanted a Laundromat in town. She dismisses the critics who say that a shower facility and Laundromat will attract an unwanted crowd. It is just another opportunity to improve health and hygiene, she says. Glass is also very familiar with the problems facing the district. “The budget has been in the red for a long time,” she said. She sees Americorps’ demise as a major contributor to the budget problems. She said it was a great resource that she will miss not having around. Glass would like to see the Community Center and recreation department stand on its own feet without relying on funding from water and sewer services. She doesn’t, however, see such a huge problem with grants. It is more of an opportunity for the district to utilize these funds for the community’s benefit, she said. Grants help pay for numerous community activities and create fundraising opportunities, she added. “You could have a handful of bad apples, but still have a whole good bushel,” Glass remarked. Glass supports the current plan for creating a safety corridor on SR 255. She also wants to see signs installed that remind drivers to put on their fog lights. Of the problems among the board and staff, Glass said, “I think there’s some pettiness. It’s becoming a personal thing sometimes and I don’t like that.” She also looks forward to being involved in planning for the dunes and Community Center projects. She is concerned with some of the changes that have been made to the original plans, especially the decision to use more concrete in front of the Community Center. She sees kids get hurt often and would like to see a safer area for them to play outside the binds of a concrete jungle. Glass insists she will do her best to give citizens what they want and would like to see more resident involvement in the district’s decision-making process. Michael Fennell Michael Fennell, a 52-year-old carpenter, is focusing his campaign on “fiscal responsibility and accountability.” He is currently serving the remainder of an appointed term on the board. He also served one term in the mid-‘90s. He wants the district to stop using water and sewer revenues for the Community Center and park. “Those funds are not supposed to be commingled and each of the operations are supposed to be self-sustaining and they haven’t been,” he said. Fennell said there are too many grants operating at the same time – sometimes as many as 20 – which causes problems for accountability. “It is very hard for the staff to keep up with that and execute them properly,” he added. “I think that we need to restructure the programming at the Community Center and also improve safety and fix up the buildings,” Fennell remarked. “In the past I feel like the programming has been driven by the grants,” he said. “I think it’s a little bit backwards. We should be deciding what kind of programming is most important and then seeking grants for those if we need to.” Fennell says he’s seen a 30 percent increase in traffic on SR 255 over the past year. He supports the plan for lowering the speed limit and hopes to see a traffic-calming measure such as a roundabout implemented. Fennell has many concerns with the staff. “At times I think the staff forgets that they’re staff and not boardmembers. They would like to make policy and that is definitely not the staff’s choice.” He also sees serious problems in how staff members conduct themselves at board meetings. “The staff are basically there to follow out our policy and not to come and challenge us at the board about the policies. If staff is unhappy, they should become board members,” he said. Fennell has been involved in the plans for Community Center upgrades and trail access to the dunes for 12 years. He said, MCSD is now “scrambling” to find other grants to finish the project. Although Fennell fully supports the improvements, he said, “It’s taken so long, I think we’ve kind of lost the impetus.” Another goal of Fennell’s is to “involve the wider community in decision making.” He looks forward to seeing the results from some upcoming community visioning meetings. Fennell hopes that comments from tenants and people who have programming at the Community Center will aid in improving the center’s operation. Tim Dellas Tim Dellas, 47, is currently a full-time student at Humboldt State University and has a long history of public service in Manila. Over the past 25 years he’s served numerous roles for the district, including two previous terms on the board and an 8-year-stint as the general manager. He says he is “running out of a sense of public service” and his focus is on “trying to do the greatest good for all people without hurting anyone.” Dellas looks back with pride on his success in getting resolutions passed against the War on Iraq and the Patriot Act. With money so tight, Dellas is concerned mostly with the institutional budget and would like audits done in a timelier manner to provide the board with fresh, accurate information with which it can make better financial decisions. Dellas refers to traffic safety as having been a long-standing concern within the community. He wants to see definite improvements happen. While Dellas supports the ideas being proposed in the transportation plan, he also sees simple, achievable goals that can be reached more promptly. Adding streets lights and improving the turning lanes are just a couple measures that he sees as being extremely beneficial and feasible. In the end, he is open to whatever changes can actually be realized. Dellas, too, sees problems in how the board and staff operate at times. “The largest challenge is conducting the public’s business in the open,” he said, noting that the magnitude of this problem is just as prevalent in the White House. At times he thinks there are strongly driven agendas being sought and voting cliques get created to support or oppose those policies. He said the subtle undercurrents are made obvious when issues come up unexpectedly at the hand of one person or a group of board members. Dellas wants the board to strive toward working constructively together. He wants to see smoother operations and better management of the board’s employees. Dellas advocates a more cooperative relationship between the general manager and the board. Equal access for all of the board members would bring significant changes, Dellas said. He thinks many subsequent problems arise from one board member being given more access to the process than another. Another goal of his is to find a general manager that is certified in water and sewer services. Dellas said problems will arise in the future because of the district’s lack in staff members certified for water and sewer services – the district’s main role. Dellas is facing accusations that may cut his time on the board short, if elected. He is currently awaiting trial on two federal charges for “manufacture of marijuana” and “intent to distribute.” Dellas declined to comment on the pending case on the advice of his attorney. Dendra Dengler Dendra Dengler, 55, is a preschool teacher and has been a Manila resident for more than 30 years. She currently serves as director of the Parklands Community Center and Recreation Commission. Dengler said she is running for election to the board because of years of frustration with the process and would like to see changes made that serve to represent a more broad range of the community. “As a board member I really want to be open to all the community members and to represent all the community members,” she said. She thinks the board isn’t always open to the community’s desires and “sometimes there is some hidden agenda.” She sees her history of community involvement as an asset that would serve the district well. She hopes to see many of the fiscal problems resolved by an ad hoc committee that has been created to address financial shortcomings in the Community Center budget. Dengler has a different slant on the grants being used in Manila. She recalls seeing first hand the positive impact of grants as teacher and center director for the preschool in Manila more than 20 years ago, when she started there. She shrugs off the idea of the MCSD being grant driven. When people complain about grants, she thinks of the many projects that have been realized solely because of grant funding. “Board members aren’t complaining about those,” she added. She thinks grants are a significant strength for the community. She also said some of the grants are entitlements because of the income level in Manila. Dengler supports the current drive for improving traffic safety and likes the suggestions being made. However, rather than just one roundabout, Dengler said, “What I really want is two turnarounds. Let’s go for a better alternative – one on each of town to slow the traffic down.” She thinks that problems among board members and staff will be resolved with better training. Of recent training she attended, Dengler said, “I think that really opened our eyes.” She doesn’t think the board should be micromanaging, but rather telling the general manager what it wants. Dengler is anxious to see upgrades at the Community Center finalized. “Finally we can see the end is in sight for this,” she said. “I’m a strong advocate of children and families,” Dengler says. “Our children are our future. We need to care for them, and we need to treat them with respect.” Home