Archive for the 'City Council' Category
Surprise City Offices to Close during holiday week
Surprise AZ (November 28, 2011) City offices will be closed the week following Christmas Day, Surprise City Manager Chris Hillman announced today. Public safety and sanitation services will be staffed as usual during this period, Hillman said.
Because the observed Christmas holiday falls on Monday, December 26, City offices will close for only three previously unscheduled days, December 27, 28 and 29.
City offices are usually open Monday through Thursday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“There is a significant reduction in public demand to do business at City offices during the holiday week,” Hillman said. “The economic downturn has meant layoffs and no raises for our employees since 2007, so this slow period is an opportunity to give them additional time to spend with their friends and families.”
Employee pay will not be affected, since employees will be assigned additional paid time off to utilize during the three-day closure period.
City offices reopen Tuesday, January 3, following the observed New Year’s holiday on Monday, January 2.
Surprise AZ (November 23, 2011) The Surprise City Council is calling for a city wide protest against an Arizona American Water Company rate hike pending before the Arizona Corporation Commission.
The protest is scheduled for December 6 at 7 p.m. at Surprise Stadium.
In voting unanimously for the event at its Tuesday meeting, Council noted the proposed 82% rate hike will have a serious impact on Surprise homeowners and businesses already struggling in a difficult economy. Members indicated that businesses and residents considering relocating to Surprise could be put off by such a steep increase in the price of a basic utility.
Council members also expressed the importance of keeping the Corporation Commission aware of the extent of dissatisfaction in Surprise. In August, a Corporation Commission public comment meeting in Sun City Grand was attended by hundreds of rate hike opponents.
The City is already officially on record as opposing the hike by being an “intervener” in the Corporation Commission proceedings. The Council has also dedicated $100,000 to support the efforts of Sun City Grand, another intervener, in building its case against the rate hike. Interveners may present expert testimony and legal briefs, and question witnesses.
The Corporation Commission is scheduled to hold several days of evidentiary hearings beginning December 5.
A detailed program for the protest event at the Stadium has yet to be completed.
High Quality services gains national honor for Surprise
Surprise AZ (November 15, 2011) Citing survey results that place Surprise in the top tier when it comes to customer service, the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) has awarded the “Voice of the People Award for Excellence” to the City, officials announced today. Only ten communities nationwide receive the “Voice of the People” award annually.
The high rating Surprise residents gave the City for service quality in the 2010 National Citizens Survey made the City eligible for the award, according to the ICMA. In addition to scoring in the top ten percent among the more than 500 jurisdictions participating in National Research Center surveys, Surprise scored in the top three for service quality.
“Through the survey our residents told us we are doing a good job keeping the community clean, providing public safety services, and great recreation for people of all ages,” said City Manager Chris Hillman. “More than 90 percent told us they would recommend Surprise as a place to live. That shows great community pride.”
The awards were announced at the ICMA’s annual meeting in Milwaukee. The ICMA is a Washington D.C.-based professional and educational association for appointed local
government administrators.
“It is always nice to know how you stack up against other communities, and news of an award as prestigious as this gets around fast,” Hillman said, adding that the survey results and award will help ongoing efforts to attract new residents and business opportunities to Surprise.
To the City Council of Surprise
At your workshop last week with the discovery of approximately another $300,000 that was not in the proper fund by a department head was my question to you a couple of weeks ago, how good was the audit and how could they say with certainty that no money is missing. Staff said that they have no two set of books, that the money was filed in the General Ledger which I question because it went on for years.
I am addressing this Council tonight because I was unable to receive an answer to all of my questions from my Councilman, Mike Woodard about the 2009/2010 Comprehensible Finance Report known as Cafra. This report is now on the city’s web site giving the impression that it had been approved by this council, Mike has said it was not.
Cafra Reports must be approved by governing boards and sent to the state for review, you have an extension to turn your report in the last day of October, where do we stand on this?
Council in 2007 eliminated the citizens financial oversight board, are we now trying to stop having the Cafra Reports reviewed by the city council unbeknown to the state.
Sharon Wolcott elected Mayor, Richard Alton re-elected in D2, John Williams re-elected in D3
Surprise AZ (November 8, 2011) Sharon Wolcott won election as Mayor of Surprise and Richard Alton and John Williams won reelection to council districts 2 and 3 Tuesday, according to unofficial results from the Maricopa County Elections Department.
Wolcott, the former District 1 Councilmember, received 10,802 (55.79%) votes to incumbent Mayor Lyn Truitt’s 8,559 (44.21%).
Incumbent Councilmember Richard Alton received 2,408 votes (51.76%) in District 2 to challenger Judy Blackburn’s 2,244 votes (48.24%)
In District 3, incumbent Councilmember John Williams received 3,456 votes (58.39%) to challenger Joy Grainger’s 2,463 votes (41.61%)
The newly elected officials will take office January 3, 2012, according to Surprise City Clerk Sherry Aguilar.
Tonight’s results are considered unofficial until final canvassing later this week, according to the Maricopa County Elections Department.
www.surpriseaz.gov/specialevents.
Looking for good deals to help cross off your holiday shopping list? You’re likely to find what you’re looking for at the Biannual Surprise Super Outdoor Swap Meet, Saturday, November 19, 8 a.m.- 1 p.m. Over 70 vendors will display their new and used wares for sale! The event, sponsored by the Surprise Senior Center Site Council, will be located at the Surprise Recreation Campus - Aquatics Center Parking Lot; 15831 N. Bullard Avenue.
The City of Surprise Business Academy will begin in January 2012 and registration is now open for this free course.
The mission of the Surprise Business Academy is to educate new and aspiring entrepreneurs in the fundamentals of business practices and to provide them with the information, resources and tools they need to be successful in their endeavors.
Participants will be divided into groups and each group will be responsible for creating a model for a startup up. Each group will present its business to the class during the final session. Subject matter presentations will include entrepreneurship, business models, business plans, financing, insurance, taxes and marketing strategies.
The academy begins January 12, 2012, 6 p.m. - 8:30 p.m., and will meet for a period of four weeks (four sessions). There is no charge for the Business Academy. The classes will be held at the Techcelerator, 12425 W. Bell Road.
Applications are due by Wednesday, November 30. The class is limited to 30 people.
For an application and or information, contact Ruby Sitea at 623.222.3242 or ruby.sitea@surpriseaz.gov.
City of Surprise Council Meeting
October 11, 2011
Mayor and Council Members
This Council is constantly telling us that there is transparency in what they are doing, so.
What was the real purpose for the City of Surprise to hire an auditing firm to review the city’s financial records?
Has each of you read the body of the Red Oak Report?
It appears that the city staff already knew the problems that existed and was prepared to make the require corrections. Was it to tell us what we all wanted to know and would be more believably if an outside firm said that no money was missing?
What in the Red Oak Report convinced you that no money was missing?
This council or staff would not address the issue whether or not misappropriating $72 million was illegal, we haven’t even been told who master minded this scheme.
The Red Oak report states that significant efforts were made to confirm the accuracy of the supporting work papers for purposes of this study evaluation, however, with numerous City journal entries (JE’s) there were no supporting documents and Red Oak had to assume the JE transaction was based on the brief description. Red Oak relied on accounting system data and supporting work papers in the preparation of the overall study evaluation and accompanying recommended correcting journal entries, but has not independently verified all the
underlying data and information provided.
Having said this how can they say with certainty that no money is missing?
Correcting journal entries to correspond with other journal entries and making over 33 corrections might have sanitized our books that they would now pass a forensic audit.
The Red Oak Report did not say that differentdepartments had their own set of books, as we have been told last week. Now you are trying to justify having 2 sets of books as a software problem.
My interpretation of 2 set of books is different from yours.
Misappropriating is now being refereed as restructuring.
1st Annual Surprise Pickleball Tournament (Fundraiser)
Co-Sponsored by the City of Surprise and the Surprise Pickleball Association .
Oct 28-30 (Fri-Sun) - USAPA Sanctioned (Tier 4)
This is a fund raiser tournament to raise money for the refurbishment of the courts including resurfacing and premium nets and net posts.
Raffle Prizes:
The City of Surprise has arranged for some wonderful raffle prizes including the following items. There may be more. If you don’t plan to play in the tournament, come watch the action and participate in the raffle.
Schedule:
Friday - Women’s Skill-level Doubles for all ages.
Saturday - Men’s Skill-level Doubles for all ages.
Sunday - Mixed Skill-level Doubles for all ages.
Location:
Surprise City Courts, Surprise, AZ. Map
A campaign is underway to get the courts permanently converted to pickleball. Donation from players and businesses of $25,000 are needed for resurfacing, fences, and first-class posts and nets. Donate at surprisepickleball.org
It is my view that it is a loosing effort to account for our finances in the City of Surprise. City Manager Randy Oliver was fired without cause after presenting his budget proposal, which was thrown in the wastebasket. The new budget favored certain departments and employees.
After spending almost $300,000 in auditing fees and preparing the comprehensive financial report, what have we accomplished other then being told that money was misappropriated?
The recommendations that the Red Oak firm gave us, have not been met. I have been informed that the comprehensive financial report has been sent to the state, the council did not approve this report, so we don’t even know what is in the one sent to the state.
We have no financial oversight committee, no board members for our municipal property corporation, or a good accounting of the rent received to pay our debt service. The question is, what are they going to restructure too?
The candidates for Mayor want us to believe that we will have transparency and an investigation in our finances, I don’t think so.
It makes no sense for us citizens to address the council members with our concerns, because listening to their comments at the council meetings about how great certain staff members are, they just blow us away (who do we the citizens think we are)?
They are all now in agreement to restructure our finance department so we can’t follow the rent money that has been paying our debt service.
The city council eliminated the fiancé oversight committee in 2007. This council’s unwillingness to replace the MPC board members, by doing away with the MPC Fund, which is charged with collecting the rent fee’s to pay off the bonds.
Why do they want to restructure the finance department? So that staff controls all of our money (not council).
Polls
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