Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce and Acorn Candidates Forum
Meet the Candidates forum sponsored by the Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce and Acorn
Ventura County Youth Forum
Zoom meeting sponsored by the Ventura County Youth Forum. Online meet the candidates for Thousand Oaks City Council. Begins at 5 PM
More than 100 people attend ‘Back the Blue’ rally and march in Thousand Oaks
More than 100 people attend ‘Back the Blue’ rally and march in Thousand
Oaks
Mike Harris Ventura County Star
Published 4:30 p.m. PT Aug. 29, 2020 Updated 8:15 p.m. PT Aug. 30, 2020
More than 100 people demonstrated in support of law enforcement at a “Back the Blue” rally and march in Thousand Oaks on Saturday.
“We’re here to protest the villainization of our courageous men and women in blue and the effort across the nation to defund their departments,” Gina Libby, one of the organizers of the event at Oakbrook Neighborhood Park, told the crowd.
“We’re demonstrating our gratitude and support for law enforcement,” she said.
In the wake of the death of George Floyd, a Black man, while in custody of Minneapolis police in May, Black Lives Matter and other activist groups have pushed to defund police departments across the nation.
None of Ventura County’s police agencies, however, including the Thousand Oaks Police Department, have had any such funding reductions.
Attendees at Saturday’s rally held “Blue Lives Matter” and “Back the Blue” signs, waved American flags and displayed “Trump 2020” banners as they listened to speakers. “God Bless America” played in the background at one point.
Many cars honked their horns in support of the demonstrators. Most attendees didn’t wear masks.
Matthew Wiers, 59, came to the rally from Simi Valley.
“I want to support the police,” he said, holding a sign that read “Honk Support for Law Enforcement.”
“Defunding the police is a ludicrous idea,” said Wiers, a statistics lecturer. “There’s a lot of crime out there and the police are the ones who protect us from that crime
and keep us safe. How can you be against that?”
Nancy Van Dolkinburg, 59, of Thousand Oaks, also thinks cuts to police budgets isn’t the right approach.
“I’m not in favor of defunding them,” said Van Dolkinburg, who works part time in real estate. “If anything, I think they need more money.”
“I believe there are bad apples in every profession,” she added. “So yes, we do need to do something about reform. But defunding the police is not the solution.”
A number of candidates for office in November’s election also addressed the crowd, including Kevin McNamee, who is running for the Thousand Oaks City Council, and Conejo Valley Unified School District Trustee Sandee Everett, who is running for re-election.
The demonstrators later marched a short distance from the park to the corner of Erbes Road and Avenida de Los Arboles, where they waved pro-law enforcement signs and American flags at passing cars.
“Honk support for law enforcement,” Libby yelled.
Many cars did.
Mike Harris covers the East County cities of Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, as well as
transportation countywide. You can contact him at mike.harris@vcstar.com or 805-437-0323.
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https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/local/communities/conejo-valley/2020/08/29/back-blue-rally-law-enforcement-support-march-thousand-oaks-california/5651538002/
McNamee Can Get The Job Done
McNamee can get the job done
September 03, 2020
As the years go by and the older we get, God and our church become more central in our lives. We seek comfort from the words in the “Good Book” and the support from our fellow parishioners who are available in a time of need.
It’s people helping people get through this thing we call life.
At times, during church services, some need emergency medical care where the paramedics are called to action.
Recognizing the need to be prepared for such emergencies until the paramedics arrive, an usher at our church, Kevin McNamee, suggested that all the ushers be trained in CPR. People came together, using their talents and resources, to make it happen.
One person coordinated with Los Robles hospital for their Sidewalk CPR team to provide instruction. Another coordinated with scheduling and location. Another made posters and Flyers announcing the class, which was expanded to all parishioners and the local community.
The First CPR class became popular, with it growing into several events. Young to old, 12 to 80, have learned the lifesaving gift of CPR through the efforts of many good people volunteering their time and energy.
The CPR class was an idea to meet a need in our church and community.
Mr. McNamee saw the need and asked for help developing it. The parish community responded.
He is running for Thousand Oaks City Council. I hope he is elected so he can do the same for the city as he did for our parish and community: identify a need and ?nd a way to solve it by bringing talented people together to make it happen.
Please consider voting Kevin McNamee for City Council.
Dennis Hayes
Thousand Oaks
McNamee can get the job done _ Thousand Oaks Acorn
Thousand Oaks City Council votes to increase pay, perks of city execs – Decision comes just before summer recess
By Kyle Jorrey July 20, 2017 tonewstip@theacorn.com
Department heads and other executives for the City of Thousand Oaks are receiving an increase in their pay and benefits.
The group of 10 positions, plus the city manager and city attorney, is the only one at City Hall not represented by a union.
Because they are not covered by a collective bargaining agreement or contract, their compensation is established via City Council resolution.
On July 11, the council voted 5-0 in favor of giving the group an across-the-board pay raise of 2.57 percent in fiscal year 2017-18 and 2.64 percent in FY 2018-19.
The raises will cost taxpayers $53,892 this year and $56,833 next year. The group last received raises in July 2015.
Employees covered under the amendment: assistant city manager, city clerk, deputy city manager/department head, community development director, cultural affairs director, deputy city manager, finance director, human resources director, library services director and public works director.
In addition, the city plans to dole out merit-based raises to individual executives, up to 3.5 percent for exceptional performance, according to a staff report.
Employees, rated by the city manager, who receive a rating of at least “good work” will receive a 1.5 percent raise effective July 1, 2017, and another effective June 30, 2018.
Under the new agreement, executive managers will no longer receive Christmas Eve as a paid holiday. Prior to the resolution, managers got paid for four holiday hours on Dec. 24 (1 to 5 p.m.). As a replacement, they will be allowed to take a floating holiday of at least 10 hours.
The new floating holiday can be taken anytime during the calendar year, Human Resources Director Gary Rogers said.
Also increasing under the new amendment: the taxpayer paid contribution to the employees’ health-insurance plans, which will go from $680 per month to $730 a month on Jan. 1, 2018, and from $730 to $780 on Jan. 1, 2019, and the executives’ monthly car allowance, which will increase from $419.11 to $429.59.
“These are people who are responsible for a tremendous amount of municipal services and responsibilities,” Councilmember Andy Fox said before the July 11 vote. “I would say that in looking at the comparisons with other cities, the salaries we’re paying from our entry-level employees right up to our executive managers are certainly competitive, but they’re right in the range of other cities both in California and in Ventura (County).”
Thousand Oaks City Council Hesitates to Send Waste Hauler Contract Out for Open Bid
By Dr. Kevin McNamee January 2, 2020
Thousand Oaks City Council should put the brakes on the decision for a 15 year renewal with Waste Management and E.J. Harrison and Sons, the city’s two waste-hauling providers, until a competitive bid process takes place. This especially needs to occur when the proposed agreement will cause city residents a 13% fee increase and commercial customers a staggering 67% fee increase – which will be passed along to Conejo consumers.
City council at the December 10 meeting voted three to two to postpone voting on a 15 year contract that will give a monopoly to the current waste-hauling companies so council members can “think” about the need for a competitive. What is there to think about? This decision to postpone is a no brainer. It should have been unanimous.
The first rule in economics is the consumer searches for the lowest price for the greatest value of a product or service. Second rule in economics is competitive bids for a product or service allows the consumer to find the highest quality product for the lowest price.
City council members and city managers are custodians of wise spending of our tax dollars for the highest service at the lowest price. A competitive bid process will do this. Keep the money in your pocket, not theirs. You spend it the wisest.
Hoover Institute Economist Thomas Sowell says what is important to a healthy economy is both the amount of money flowing through the market but also the velocity it moves from person to person. By city council members not going to a competitive bid does not ensure the best use of our tax dollars. This is an example of when people in authority spending other peoples’s money, the price goes up.
$200,000? That’s Nuts for a Consultant
By Dr. Kevin McNamee February 20, 2020
Thousand Oaks City Council voted 5-0 to send the city’s trash-hauling contract to open bid. Good news for lower rates until you read further.
Council approved $200,000 for the “city staff to work with a consultant to write the request for proposals and the system the city will use to select a service provider.”
Holy cow Batman, that is a lot of money for a proposal. Is the consultant working overtime on this proposal? Put into perspective, $200,000 is more than double the annual gross income of the majority of city residents. City management, please justify this number.
The city softens the consultant price tag by saying “($200,000) is typically reimbursed by the company winning the bidding process.” Not true. The company winning the bid is not paying for the consultants fee, the Thousand Oaks residents are. The bid will price in the consultants costs ($200,000) which the consumer ultimately pays through higher trash pickup fees. Absent the high consultant fee, the bid amounts would be lower.
Also, the city should move away from a 15 year agreement which chases competition out and raises rates. A three year bid renewal is reasonable. It will keep competition interested, remain in the area and compete for our business. Previous request for proposal can be used for future bids reducing consultant fees.
As General McAuliffe of the 101st Airborne Divisions famous single-word reply when he was surrounded at Bastonge by the Germans during World War II’s Battle of the Bulge, and was given a surrender ultimatum. He responded with “NUTS!”
To the city council and managers, $200,000 for consultant fees to write a proposal – NUTS!