Vote yes for a safer Kent!  It is our obligation to provide our police department with the facilities and resources needed to keep Kent safe.

At a cost of 19 cents per $1000 assessed evaluation, equaling $57.00 per year on a $300,000 home, this $34 million, 20 year bond will fund rebuilding the police headquarters at the current location adding a second story, improving the infrastructure of the 1986 jail, constructing additional crisis cells needed for mentally ill offenders and allowing the 25 year old firearms training facility to be renovated and expanded to provide realistic critical incident training.

Having our officers, detectives and support staff spread among four locations impedes the communication that’s critical to our police department’s standard of operation which is Intelligence Led Policing.

In 1991, 85 officers worked in the current building serving 38,000 residents.  Today 144 officers plus support staff work out of the same, now over- crowded space.  The projected growth of Kent calls for an additional 16 officers by 2017.

Kent is a big city served by a large police department that works out of very small city facilities.

This is your opportunity to support our police.  Vote Yes on Kent Proposition A.

The purpose of the measure is to construct and equip new public safety and training facilities to accommodate a growing police force.

How did the City decide upon Mr. Dave Clarke? Was he hired as a paid consultant? Is that cost figured into the $34 million? Was there a bid process followed or was the cities own bid process by passed for a rapid approval resulting in the $34 million dollar projected cost? All too often in the past you the citizens of Kent have been willing to provide an open door to city budget for the Public Safety departments (Police & Fire) without looking closer at the bottom line costs. Perhaps it is time to take a step back and be assured that this $34 million dollar cost is the best figure the city can come up with?

We will be voting on more tax proposals in the fall election let’s make sure these tax dollars are spent wisely.

Please vote No on Proposition A: A Bond Measure to Support Public Safety and Training Facilities

Submitted by: Alex Senecaut

The Kent City Council voted unanimously to put this proposition on the ballot to support our police with updated facilities.  The bond amount is based on a consultant’s space study and addresses the critical needs facing the police department, such as a larger headquarters’ building, mental health cells, and tactical firing range.   By law, this project cannot exceed the bond amount.  The bid process would begin after the bond passes.  Vote yes on Proposition A.

Submitted by: Marvin Eckfeldt, Monty Burich, rita ann schwarting - http://www.facebook.com/voteyesforasaferkent

No statement was submitted.

Download the full text of the resolution

60% yes vote and a minimum turnout of 8,393 (Washington Constitution, article VII, section 2(b))