9/17/24 Minutes

 

Individual Members: Rosa Leonardi, Deb Comini, Woody Dukes 

City, County and State Representatives:  Councilor Stapleton, Ward 1 City Councilor; Sgt. Robert Dowd, Salem Police Department Community Action Unit (CAU)

Guests: Linda Bierly, Salem Parks Foundation

Organizations: none  

The regular meeting of CANDO was called to order at 6 p.m., on Tuesday, September 17, 2024.  The meeting was conducted by Zoom video-conference.  The Chair and Secretary-Treasurer were present.  

The agenda and minutes of the August meeting were approved unanimously. 

Sgt. Dowd reported that he has been assigned to assist with vetting and training new officers and that Sgt Jeff Wiedemann, 503-588-6212, jwiedemann@cityofsalem.net, will lead the CAU as of October, and the Homeless Service Team, including the monthly meeting of service providers, and the unit will be reduced to four officers. In answer to a question, Sgt. Dowd reported that a fully staffed SPD would be 196 sworn officers. 

Councilors Stapleton reported several developments, including that the City had hired a new Fire Department Chief and that a survey about revenue options is underway.  

In public comments, Linda Bierly spoke about the Eco-Earth Globe restoration project, and asked CANDO for support through the Salem Parks Improvement Project.

There being no further business before the board, the Chair adjourned the meeting at 6:27 and opened a work session to discuss the transition to new leadership and the alternative should leadership positions remain vacant after the annual meeting in October.

Alliance CEO: Dis' be Fine

Elaine Lozier, MWV Homeless Alliance CEO

Elaine Lozier is one of those rare CEOs who strives to be a trustworthy, servant leader, whose focus is on integrity, trust, transparency and empathy, and who believes these are what should guide conversations about the challenges facing housing and homeless service providers.  Her boards (she has two with overlapping membership) think she is doing a stellar job after just one year in the saddle (or, if you prefer, since she got her spurs, yeeha!).  So Michael was tickled pink to see she had jest one lil' bone to pick with his recent review of Alliance's Coordinated Entry program.  

He'd said in his review, see, somethin' about her being unwilling to increase the Alliance's contribution to the program.  Now, in all its four years of existence, the Alliance was contributin' jest $36,000 a year, and the cost had rise' to almos' $450,000 a year, which the Community Action Agency, who was operatin' the program, was payin' fer out of its state funds.  The Action Agency had been askin' fer more money fer years (well, not mor'n four, since the Alliance only bin around fer four), and the answer was always "cain't."  Well, the Action Agency, and ever'body else too, know'd it could if it'd wanted to, what with all that state money flowin' in after that 'ar pandemic.  So the Action Agency reckoned it was done bein' the Alliance's pack mule and shook that 'ar pack off.  Miss Elaine say, by way of correctin' Michael, she warn't reluctant to pay more, there jest warn't no more money, that the money that did come in fer the program came later.  Well, if that's right, and mebbe 'tis, I reckon it's a quibble'n detail I cain't unduhstan', 'cause we all knows what the papers said 'bout the millions comin' to the Alliance from the state last year.

'Side from that lil' bone pickin', Miss Elaine say ever'thing fine and dandy.  She's done took over the program three month ago, she's valuatin' systems, she's got some new fangled smarmy goals an' a heap o' plans an' charts an' sech an' I reckon lard knows what all.  An' she tell her boards she confident as ever, tho' I 'member her sayin' awhile back, when Rhonda ask her why she thot Alliances could do bettern' the Action Agency, and she say all cheerful like dat she din't know it could.  But lack I say, she say she plenty confident now she can do better, an' I reckon she would know cause she's a CEO now.   
 

Ms. Lozier's full response can be found in the comments section of Mr. Livingston's review. 

2024 Review of Coordinated Entry