Cosi discusses solutions as budget woes cause layoff of half of police department

Feb. 29—Cosmopolis' long-time budget woes, exacerbated by the shuttering of the Cosmo Speciality Fibers mill, is coming to a head as the town has been forced to make layoffs in its police department, with two officers and the clerk currently laid off.

The worst may be yet to come, as the town is projected to completely expend its general fund, with the fund expected to end March with a $63,000 deficit.

Raised voices and derision greeted the city council and mayor at a public meeting at the fire hall on Tuesday evening, who almost universally started in their positions in January.

"We are in a deficit," said recently elected Mayor Linda Springer. "This is not taken lightly."

Coming to a peak

Layoffs began last month, said City Administrator Darrin Raines.

"Right now we've laid off two officers and a police clerk," Raines said in an interview. "An officer and the clerk were announced January. The second officer was announced last week."

The shutdown of the mill is a major component of the budget shortfall, Raines said.

"This is as a result of Cosmo Speciality Fibers being shut down," Raines said. "They're roughly 60% of our general fund revenue."

Reserve funds have come and gone in the past, Raines said, scraping just about $1,000 at the end of 2020 as the COVID pandemic raged.

"We developed a financial policy where we were putting 15% of our revenue into reserves. It builds up a lot slower than it's spent," Raines said. "The ARPA funds we received, plus any funds we could, we started to build the reserve funds back up."

Now, costs like the police department's budget and paying Aberdeen for EMS services have all but depleted the general fund. The outlook for the future is scarcely a rosy one, Raines said.

"Our top goal is to salvage as much as we can to get us through this difficult time," Raines said. "Our fear is if we were to lose our department now it'll be hard to get back in the future."

A contentious public

The mayor and city council met members of their electorate Tuesday evening in a contentious discussion meeting as they mooted options to navigate the crisis.

"The general fund will run out of money in March. Everything we're discussing today will not change that," said Councilor Jeremy Winn. "What happens when the general fund runs out of money? I am furious I do not have those answers."

Councilor Mark Collett recalled past history, talking about other times when the mill that helped keep Cosmopolis alive had shut down, such as the Great Depression, when starvation was much closer at hand than it is now.

"I've read a lot about it. I've researched a lot on that period. We still kept our police department," Collett said. "If they were able to make it without having to disband our police department, we should be able to do the same."

Springer said they needed to acknowledge these problems didn't spring from the void in January, alluding to decisions made by previous administrations and their repercussions now.

'When we had good times, money was spent, that should have been saved," Springer said. "Don't tell me that it's all about the mill. It's not."

County Commissioner Vickie Raines spoke in her capacity as a Cosmopolis resident, directly censuring Winn for questions he'd asked of city employees at the meeting, with several residents ceding their allotted time to her.

"I'm frustrated with your comments asking staff if they're going to be working here next month. That's up to you. That's highly unprofessional," Raines said, addressing Winn. "The word, when you run out of money, is pretty easy. It's bankrupt."

Raines also addressed Springer's handling of the situation.

"I really think the city council needs to one, listen to the public and the mayor needs to listen to her staff. You want to wait for additional proposals? That's great. I don't think you're going to get better proposals," Raines said. "It's frustrating when we play the blame game."

Springer spoke to the council's focus on doing the job, rather than winning popularity contests.

"We are working for you," Springer said. "We are not popular. We are not here to make new friends with you, we are here to do our jobs."

Resident and general sales manager for Papé's Alaska and Washington region, Corey Daniels, also weighed in.

"We are willing to pull," Daniels said. "We are investing millions of dollars down the street that we are willing to pull, based on the decision of this council."

Daniels said that Cosmopolis is a great place to live and work, and that he's had a great history working with the local government, but they need to identify the issues, so they can fix them.

"You have a great city here with great people that monitor the businesses and help them grow their business," Daniels said. "You can't manage what you can't measure. I hope you take that to heart."

Solutions?

Police Chief Heath Layman briefly addressed the crowd, talking about the state of the department, and several proposals from the Grays Harbor Sheriff's Office for varying levels of coverage for Cosmopolis in lieu of a local department, as well as the possibility of other hybrid options with the sheriff's department or other agencies. The decision is the council's job, Layman said, and he and his remaining officers will continue to serve the city to the best of their ability until their services are no longer required.

"Myself and the two remaining staff are ready and waiting to be laid off," Layman said. "Until they make a decision, my guys will be out there serving."

Other possibilities voiced at the meeting ranged from contracting with the Aberdeen Police Department, selling city property or assets, looking for other new revenue streams, or seeking help from elsewhere. No decisions were made Tuesday evening.

"I don't want to be here. I want you all to have your own police department. Everyone loves having their own cops," said Grays Harbor Sheriff Darrin Wallace, there to answer any questions about proposals involving the sheriff's office. "I don't want to be here to take that spot of the Cosmopolis Police Department."

The situation isn't going away, said Councilor Justin Spargo, and concerns abound about what will take the department's place when the general fund plunges into the red.

"If we're out of money, we no longer have a three minute response, we no longer have a patrol," Spargo said. "What do we do? Who do we expect to show up to our house?"

Councilor Ken Skinner said they have to keep looking at options, but the solutions they find are unlikely to be pleasant.

"We have to explore them and not be scared to bring them up. We can't do it instantly. It's going to take time," Skinner said. "We've got ways of cutting expenses. They're not popular with everybody."

Contact Senior Reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@thedailyworld.com.