The Valley Chronicle - LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - April 4, 2019ng

Dear Editor, No council meetings should be canceled until the City of Hemet has a verifiable balanced budget. Any expenses for the following fiscal year should be included in the budget with the understanding that additional requests that will increase the budget will not be allowed. The City of Hemet needs a new treasurer to advise the city council. Linda Krupa and Bonnie Wright need to submit their resignations and move on. Jim Welker, Hemet

---

Dear Editor, Regarding the Social Media content published last week about Bonnie Wright: It is appalling to note that any rebuttal to the accusations made by Stacie Olson was either not included or was not allowed in the discussion. Especially when Ms. Olson made almost exactly the same comments on two other social media sites. Ms. Olson has been offered an explanation [by] the City Attorney many times and yet, she continues to comment as if she does not know the reason already. Conflict of interest City Attorney Eric Vail explained in detail more than once, and it can be viewed online during the taped city council meetings, why, when Mayor Wright votes on matters that involve EMWD, it is not a conflict of [interest]. Does anyone really think that the City Attorney would risk his credentials by giving advice that was not correct? An item on a city council agenda in February that was voted upon pertained to a grant that EMWD offered to the City of Hemet to bring reclaimed water to Brubaker Park at no cost to the city; a timely cost-saving measure for the city and a method [to reduce] fresh water demand. EMWD was formed in 1950 to provide water to Riverside County and the incorporated cities that are part of that area. With the existing water service already in place, there would be no new vote to issue a contract to EMWD, as it already exists. Where is the conflict of interest? Mayor Wright is not a member of the EMWD Board of Directors as stated by Bob Simpson. Mayor Wright’s job with EMWD is that of a grant writer. A secret meeting In the comments, Olson says, “I spent my entire day at work texting, posting, calling, and doing whatever was necessary to get people there! If that had not happened, their meeting would have been exactly like they wanted… empty with just staff! That’s why the room was so small. We had people standing in the halls and in the room manager, etc.” She is fortunate to have an employer that allows her to get paid to take care of personal items at the expense of the company. There was no “secret meeting” as cameras were in place and notifications for the meeting had been posted. It is impossible to have two meetings in the same place at the same time. City council meetings are normally held on the second and fourth Tuesday each month. A special council meeting was necessary to appoint Deputy City Manager Chris Lopez as acting City Manager; this is a necessity to keep the city running. The first available date for all council members was the third Tuesday of the month. The Planning Commission is scheduled to meet in the council chambers on the third Tuesday of the month. The Planning Commission utilizes the video equipment to hear and make presentations to and from developers. When the scheduling conflict was determined, it made more sense to move the council meeting to the secondary location. Stephany Borders, Hemet