Video courtesy of Nancy Kusky of Goldendale TV. Please subscribe to her YouTube Channel.
The Goldendale City Council met last night and rolled through a busy agenda. Councilors granted approval of the recently formed Goldendale Community Sports organization to stage a fundraising festival at Ekone Park on May 28, Memorial Day weekend. The organization has staged a number of family-friendly activities, including street hockey, dodgeball, board game nights, ping-pong, radio-controlled model racing, disc golf and more. They also came to the park after the Fourth of July to clean up the fireworks debris, and will be volunteering at the Home and Garden show and Community Days. As the organization’s fundraising chair, Austin Berard, put it:
“Everything that we’ve done has been out of our pocket. Basically, we just want to do a fundraising event so we can raise money for, you know, sports equipment.”
Councilors thoroughly approved of the group’s civic responsibility, and had not problem with a request to waive the fee the city usually charges for events at the park.
The council also noted major changes in administration, approving the mayor’s appointment of Sandy Wells as city clerk/treasurer, retroactive to March 17. They also supported a resolution setting up a temporary position of deputy city administrator and appointing Patrick Munyan to that post. In essence, it creates a job-shadowing situation for Munyan, who will step into Larry Bellamy’s city administrator role when Bellamy retires in June.
Mayor Mike Canon said that’s not all Munyon will be responsible for:
“He’ll not only be city administrator, but he’s also being appointed as the director of public works. He’s very strong in both fields, and we’re excited — very excited — to have him in Goldendale.”:
Munyan came from White Salmon, where was that city’s first city administrator and also served as public works director. He won’t even need to move when switching jobs:
“I live on Centerville Highway about 25 minutes from here. I’m right in the middle, between White Salmon and Goldendale, so I just make a right hand turn in the morning instead of a left-hand turn when I leave my driveway.”
In other business councilors approved replacing two copy machines, changing the Animal Control Ordinance to charge owners fees equaling the actual cost of housing the animals, and adjusting compensation for members of the volunteer fire department.