19 October 2015
Wednesday work session scheduled to discuss process
Her first anniversary on the job is still more than five months away, but the annual evaluation process for City Manager Erin Reynolds is already underway. She said the City Council will discuss the process Wednesday morning during a special work-session.
Erin Reynolds – “They’ve been working on putting together a more robust evaluation process. And one facet you’ll see is at the very end is it clearly highlights the seven council goals that have been laid out in our work plan.”
Reynolds believes she’s done a good job since taking over March 1st.
Erin Reynolds – “I think so. We’ve been working really hard on making sure that we’re focused on their goals. We’ve put a lot of effort into economic development and city services while maintaining good financial sustainability.”
In addition to beginning the evaluation process Wednesday, the Council will also talk about possibly making some changes to regulations after feedback from the city’s code enforcement officer and department heads.
The council work session is ten AM, Wednesday at city hall. They also meet this evening at six.
National Teen Driver Safety Week
One of the most important things adults can do for their teen driver is to talk to them about the importance of safety when getting behind the wheel.
There were 2,614 fatal crashes involving teen drivers in 2013. That’s according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Another 130-thousand crashes weren’t fatal, but resulted in injuries.
A local effort promoted by Western Lane Ambulance District is calling attention to those numbers and on ways to reduce them.
One teen driver; 17-year old Sierra Potter; says she is very careful to follow the “Five-to-DRIVE” rules. A set of simple guidelines to remind her to stay safe behind the wheel. She listed them: No drinking; always wear your seat belt; and keep away from distractions like your cell phone.
Rule number four is a simple one: No speeding.
The fifth rule: No extra passengers. A recent NHTSA study showed teen drivers were nearly two times more likely to engage in risky behaviors when driving with another teen as a passenger.
Elder abuse allegations and investigations on the rise
A state report issued last week found a ten-percent increase in the number of investigations conducted into the abuse and mistreatment of vulnerable people. That includes older adults and people with disabilities.
Some of the increase is due to more reporting according to Researcher Joe Merrifield with the Oregon Office of Adult Abuse Prevention and Investigations.
More than 38-thousand cases of possible abuse were reported in 2014. That was up from 35-thousand the year before. Both years, the most common form of abuse was financial exploitation and neglect.
Merrifield also said the number of cases that were actually investigated rose by about ten percent last year. There were nearly 19-thousand investigations in 2014.
