A newly formed volunteer task force will help the city of Kent determine how to be financially sustainable.
The Kent City Council approved the 15-member Financial Sustainability Task Force on Tuesday night. Mayor Suzette Cooke, with consultation from three council members, recommended the 15 members. Thirty-four people applied to be on the committee.
The council in April approved the formation of the group to provide detailed recommendations to the mayor and council about the city’s needs and the community’s priorities as far as what services should be funded and how to pay for them. The task force will evaluate services and revenues in Kent compared to other cities.
Cooke said the city’s service-delivery model dates back to the 1960s and 70s when the American economy boomed, state sales-tax laws favored warehouse/distribution centers, and tax-limiting initiatives were a couple decades away.
“The economic landscape has changed,” Cooke said. “The city’s share of property tax collections – our largest revenue source – is limited to growth of 1 percent per year. Inflation averages 3 percent. Additionally, in 2009 the state changed the way local sales tax revenue is allocated to cities.
“The new destination-based system eliminated most of the sales tax revenue generated from our local warehouses from profiting Kent – resulting in a loss to the city of $12 million per year. This is where the structural problem lies. We are asking the community, through this task force, to help us solve this challenge.”
The task force must prepare a draft report by next May 1 for public review and comment, followed by a final report to the mayor and council by June 30, before it disbands. The group is anticipated to meet once a month with dates and times to be determined by the members.
Other duties include:
Determining the cost to live and operate a business in Kent; assessing the city’s needs and community’s priorities within available revenue; determining what the community’s priorities are for elimination of functions and services; and identifying the community’s priorities for new revenue and preferred sources.
The council discussed the idea of forming the task force at a retreat earlier this year and raised the idea last year during budget deliberations.
The task force members are:
• Lamont Williams: lives near Daniel Elementary on the East Hill and works as a pastor for Restoration Life Church. Williams will chair the task force.
• Tom Smith: lives near Sunrise Elementary on the East Hill and works as a Renton Police officer.
• Ricki Robinson: lives in the Park Orchard neighborhood and is employed by the King County Housing Authority.
• Andrew Hough: resides near East Hill Elementary and is an IT (information technology) professional at EMC.
• April Santa Rosa: co-owner of Valley Floor Co., in Kent and serves on the Kent Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.
• Delores Christianson: owns the property and business and was a finance manager for Central Avenue Mini Storage.
• Richard Wilkinson: resides in East Hill’s Tudor Square neighborhood and is a retired IT manager.
• Ross Hardy: lives in the Panther Lake area and works as a senior analyst for Starbucks.
• Jerry Coupe: resides in The Lakes community and is retired from finance and IT.
• Michael Johnson: an active resident in the Mill Creek Neighborhood Council, is retired from Boeing where he worked in engineering and management.
• Atama Anand: a resident in the Park Orchard neighborhood is employed as a senior financial analyst for Providence Health & Services.
• Dennis Manes: lives downtown at The Platform, is the general manager of Republic Services and president of the Chamber of Commerce.
• Lew Sellers: resides in the Mill Creek neighborhood and is retired from IT and serves on the Kent Public Facilities District board.
• Alan Gray: a West Hill resident in the Star Lake neighborhood, owns a CPA business in downtown Kent.
• Mohinder Sohal: lives on the East Hill, owns several businesses and is a tax preparer.
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