EVERETT, Wash. — It appears the Everett City Council is prepared to say "No thanks" to $6 Million in federal grant money, which would have helped pay for as many as 16 new police officers.
The city applied for the U.S. Department of Justice's COPS grant months ago and was awarded one of the largest amounts in the country.
Mayor Cassie Franklin traveled to Washington D.C. and worked with lobbyists to receive the grant.
But at Wednesday's City Council meeting when the council would have formally accepted the grant money, one council member made the motion and the rest stayed silent, putting a stop to the acceptance process.
Both the police chief and the mayor said they were surprised.
“We were looking to staff additional traffic officers to address some of the neighborhood complaints I've heard about for years,” Everett Police Chief Dan Templeman said. There's no shortage of places in Everett that could use additional officers, he said.
“We haven't increased our staffing patrol in years but I often hear from folks that it takes too long for officers to respond,” Templeman said.
The chief hoped grant money would alleviate some of that pressure but now it looks like the council wants to skip it.
But the grant does not come without strings. While the grant covers most of the cost, the city would have to pay for equipment and associated expenses and cover the salaries when the grant ends in 3 to 5 years.
That could be an issue in a city that has already cut all other departments because of falling revenues due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We are facing serious financial challenges as a city, so I have to acknowledge that, but this grant is flexible,” Templeman said.
The Everett Police Officers Association, the union that represents the rank-and-file, was critical of the lack of action and posted a message on Facebook.
"We hear you loud and clear," the union wrote to the council on its Facebook message.
Union representatives also took to talk radio to imply that the move might be part of a backdoor way to defund the Everett Police Department.
A union representative declined to talk about the situation Friday, saying they hope the council will re-address the issue. The council must accept the money by Sept. 8 or they lose the grant.
Mayor Cassie Franklin said the city has to balance prioritizing public safety with the budget constraints that the city faces.
“I'm sure the council is concerned about the budget the situation that we're in and the structural deficit and the impacts of COVID and public safety is a really important priority," Franklin said. "The council have all vocalized that priority accepting the award doesn't require we spend the entire award.”
Councilmember Scott Bader made the motion to accept the funding and said he still supports accepting the money.
Councilmember Liz Vogeli responded in a statement, saying she didn’t support the grant for several reasons, including the severe cuts to other departments and the lack of flexibility to hire social workers with the grant money.
Her statement included the following:
It is unacceptable to increase staff and spending in one of two untouched departments while every other department is being cut so severely. Much of the perceived fear comes from the being able to see so many people on the streets in search of anything to help them get by. Without libraries, parks, art and culture, swimming pools, affordable housing, temporary housing, treatment centers, jobs, and everything else that makes life worth living, the amount of people unsheltered and on the street will increase and no amount of patrol officers will be able to change this.
This grant would not allow for more social workers. I have been out in the field a couple times and have observed interactions between EPD and civilians on numerous other occasions and what I have witnessed has been incredible. Our police deserve to be staffed with the appropriate amount of support so they can do the actual police work of responding to crime. I want our law enforcement officers to have this support so they can keep their wits about them and continue to treat the people they meet with respect and compassion. They need time and enough staff to write their reports and to move forward on investigations. They also need the staffing to be able to take time after a school shooting or the investigation of a heinous murder to dig deep and recover to live to fight another day. They need peer and community support to thrive. We all need that support.