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Council also discusses overtime in Lynden’s fire, police departments
LYNDEN — Lynden City Council discussed the city’s police and fire departments during council’s Aug. 15 finance and safety report.
Council Member Nick Laninga during his finance committee report stated that problems with overtime continue in both the Lynden police and fire department.
“The fire [department] did have a little bit of a problem with losing three part time firefighters so that changes the dynamic,” said Laninga.
During the finance report, Mayor Scott Korthuis stated the Lynden Fire Department currently has three volunteer firefighters and one part time employee which will help alleviate the situation.
The Lynden Fire Department is currently moving ahead with the process of selecting a new assistant fire chief, according to Council Member Mark Wohlrab during his public safety committee report.
Lynden police will also add new personnel, according to Wohlrab.
“Police have offered a conditional pending psych and a physical exam to officer No. 19,” said Wohlrab. “Thank you everyone here that approved that officer. We get another one from the State Patrol.”
The City of Lynden will replace the emergency generator at Lynden Community/Senior Center with a larger unit, according to Council Member Gary Bode.
On Aug. 1, council passed an ordinance that would prohibit camping in public spaces. According to the agenda packet, legal counsel drafted the ordinance to ensure compliance with Washington state code and provide consistency with current case law. The draft has been reviewed multiple times in council committees, including the parks committee.
Changes and minor revisions primarily related to park hours and references to other sections of the municipal code were made in the ordinance per comments received from council and community members.
During his Parks Committee report, Council Member Ron DeValois discussed the project to install automated locks in park bathrooms.
“The automated locks we hope to have all of them installed by the end of the month,” said DeValois. “Getting some doors for certain restrooms has been on hold for a while.”
A new sign for Berthusen Park is ready to be installed, according to DeValois, with the City of Lynden waiting for Whatcom County to allow them to install it.
The use of e-bikes and e-scooters on city trails were discussed during both August meetings due to complaints received regarding their use in city parks and an incident in Berthusen Park.
“Consensus seems to be that city trails are meant for pedestrians, motorized transportation seems to violate the spirit of that intent,” said DeValois.
City Administrator John Williams said that research regarding what other agencies have done and how they adopted rules has been conducted in the past few weeks.
“They’d be fine in bike lanes, they just don’t want them on trails,” said Williams.
Enforcement of rules and possible educational programs for e-bikes and e-scooters will continue to be discussed in upcoming city council meetings.
For more information about city council meetings and the City of Lynden, visit lyndenwa.org.
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