As October’s Municipal Election approaches the race for Fairbanks City Mayor is heating up. At Monday’s City Council meeting the issues of employee morale, and a disputed police contract drew pointed comments from some council members and a sharp exchange between the police chief and council.
Over the past two years the City of Fairbanks has been hemorrhaging police officers and other employees from its payroll. This issue has become a political bone of contention in the city’s mayoral contest. The mayor claims an inferior pay package is sending employees and officers packing; his opponent in the race and current council member Jim Matherly says its mismanagement on the mayor’s and police chief’s parts. The issue spilled over into Monday’s City Council Meeting comments by Matherly.
“I know one of the cops that moved out to North Pole who said, very clear to me, ‘I was not starving. I woud’ve easily topped it out’ for an administration and a chief that respected him and showed respect to him as well,” Matherly said.
Matherly is campaigning on a promise to be more responsive to city personnel. Unfortunately, he also bears some responsibility in a disputed police contract. Two years ago the Council voted to approve the contract, but then Councilmember Matherly called for reconsideration because of fiscal issues and the council reversed itself, voting down the contract. The dispute is awaiting a ruling in the State Superior Court.
The contract also came to the fore at Monday’s meeting after Police Chief Randall Aragon wrote an opinion piece in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner saying because of the council’s inaction on a competitive salary for his officers put his staffing situation to a crises point.
“Right now I’m losing cops,” Aragon said. “We’re not losing public works employees. Let’s look at a revenue stream that will staff my people and give them the pay they need and the benefits and maybe some more officers.”
Aragon’s plea for council action drew a pointed response from councilmember and former city mayor Jerry Cleworth who said fiscally the council’s hands are tied on a new contract.
”There’s not much we can do there. We have a tax code we operate under,” Cleworth said. “I mean, you could come in with some number we can’t afford and then what do we do?”
Cleworth also says the police union refuses to talk about a new contract until a ruling is reached in court. Until then, both employee morale and a police contract are sure to grow in importance until the municipal election October 4.
