”
A short time back the city indicated that they would research
and evaluate the benefits of contracting with the Santa Clara
County Sheriff’s Department for law enforcement services in Morgan
Hill. Has this been done?
”
“A short time back the city indicated that they would research and evaluate the benefits of contracting with the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department for law enforcement services in Morgan Hill. Has this been done? If it has not been done, or completed, then why would the city be spending a large sum of money recruiting a Police Chief? One of the cost saving factors in contracting with an outside agency is the elimination of administrative overhead.”
Red Phone: Dear What’s Going On, Red Phone contacted City Manager Ed Tewes, who said the City Council adopted a multi-step process to evaluate the potential of contracting out law enforcement earlier this year.
“Because it is not lawful to ‘contract out’ for purposes of saving money during the term of an existing labor agreement, it was necessary for the very first step to be an agreement between the city and the Police Officer’s Association that would allow the city to seek and enter into a contract with another agency,” Tewes said. “The city and POA were unable to reach an agreement so we could not move to the subsequent steps. The issue of contracting out may be revisited when the current labor agreement expires June 30, 2013.”
There you have it, good caller. Looks like we’ll need a chief of police at least for the next three years or so. Hope that answers your question.
Signs, signs, yes they’re illegal
“The political signs that are showing up all over town are ugly and obnoxious. Why are candidates and their supporters allowed to ignore city rules? Isn’t there an ordinance in Morgan Hill concerning signs? Please advise.”
“Red Phone, I noticed a large number of political signs attached to the chain link fences near Butterfield and Dunne avenues and Butterfield and Main avenues. It appears that these fences are either city property or Santa Clara Valley Water District property, which I believe does not allow the posting of any material. Shouldn’t these signs be removed from public property?”
Red Phone: Dear Tired of Signs, reporter Michael Moore wrote a story about the signs that ran in last Friday’s paper. You can read it at www.morganhilltimes.com.
In short, you are correct. Most of the signs placed around town are illegal, but the city does not have the resources to remove them all and officials said they’d rather the candidates follow the rules. And yes, they can be unsightly, but it is a valuable tool to garner name recognition come election time. Oh, and they must be removed within seven days after the Nov. 2 election.
