Clyde Hill News: “Occupied burglary” in Medina; helicopter, canine search part of multi-agency response
Also: Compliance issue lingers; city’s sixth-straight budget deficit ahead?
Medina Police reported a coordinated response, including search efforts by both a police helicopter and a canine team, to an “occupied burglary” — a burglary that occurred while residents were at home — last week.
According to Medina PD, there was “no danger to the community” and “no harm to the resident inside the home.” Bellevue Police Department, Clyde Hill Police Department, Seattle Police Department, and the King County Sheriff's Office assisted in the response.
More details about this topic, as well as the next year’s city budget and a compliance issue related to the city administrator’s employment contract, below.
But first: a team representing the Clyde Hill Police Foundation placed in the top five at the third annual Bellevue Police Foundation Golf Tournament on August 20th. According to an email after the event:
Chief Kyle Kolling led the team. Officer Cameron Hanson was the powerhouse driver off the tee, averaging 290 yards of towering blasts! Jared Wheeler was the Steady Eddie, contributing an all-around display of a bevy of shots. Dr. Dan Brzusek anchored the team with his mastery of short-game techniques.
Disclaimer: while I am a council member on the Clyde Hill City Council, I write this newsletter in my capacity as an individual resident. Any opinions expressed are my own and not necessarily the position of the city. City information and references here are from public sources. I welcome email responses — and if the topic is about city business I will respond from my city email account.
Occupied Burglary in Medina
Medina’s police department sent this email to the community last Thursday, August 22:
The Medina Police Department is currently investigating an occupied burglary that was reported near the 2400 block of 77th Avenue NE. An occupied burglary is when a suspect enters a residence while the homeowner is inside.
There was no harm to the resident inside the home, and nothing appears to have been stolen. The suspect left the residence once they discovered it was occupied and left the area on foot or possibly into an awaiting vehicle. A K9 track and police helicopter search were conducted but the suspect has not yet been located.
There is no danger to the community and the suspect likely left the area. The suspect was described as a white male in his 20's or 30's dressed in all black clothing. As always, if you see suspicious activity please report it immediately by calling 911.
The Medina Police Department greatly appreciates our partnerships with our local law enforcement partners who assisted with today's investigation, to include the Bellevue Police Department, Clyde Hill Police Department, Seattle Police Department and the King County Sheriff's Office. (Link to image, below)
“Helpful tips to deter crime at your residence”
The email from Medina PD also offers crime deterrence tips:
Clyde Hill residents can get specific advice on “how to make their residences less attractive to criminals” with a “Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design” evaluation. Here’s a video of Chief Kolling describing the program last year:
2025 Budget Update
September’s city council meeting will include a “2025 Budget Update,” according to a city document posted Friday:
Deficit streak
For context, Clyde Hill has run a budget deficit, with operating (“General Fund”) spend exceeding its revenues for each of the last four years:
2023: $5.26m v $5.20m (link)
2022: $4.72m v $4.63m (link)
2021: $4.33m v $4.23m (link)
2020: $4.13m v $4.10m (link)
The city’s budget deficit streak is expected to continue this year, with a planned operating spend of $5.93m against revenues of $5.56m (link). That gap has improved during the course of 2024, with an updated plan to spend $5.89m against revenues of $5.70m (link, slide 25)
Unclear expectations
It’s not clear what progress to expect on the city’s deficit streak for the coming year because there is no substantive information available to the public at this time.
There’s been one meeting of the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC), a group of resident volunteers (link). Slides from that meeting are available here (link); there are no notes or recordings from the meeting.
In contrast, at this time last year, the city had already held four public meetings about the budget, one in each of January (link), February (link), April (link), and July (link) 2023.
“Eliminate the city’s future operating deficit”
Last year, the city council approved a resolution that it “will only consider budget proposals for 2024 that eliminate the city's future operating deficit.” (link)
For context, each year the mayor and city staff put together and propose the city’s budget. The city council approves the budget by voting on an ordinance, much like passing a law. This process reflects how all spending and revenue collection activity happens through the executive branch.
The council approved the 2024 budget based on the promise of the work to deliver a sustainable, balanced budget by then-Councilmember, now Mayor, Steve Friedman.
The vote on the May 2023 council statement about the budget (link) was 4-0, with one abstention. Cm Steve Sinwell, who now occupies the seat of the council member who abstained in that vote, has consistently spoken out against the deficit streak.
Breaking the cycle… next year
The city’s current approach to its budget has consistently produced the same result: a deficit.
Each of the last five city budgets has had slight variations on the same themes:
Acknowledging the problem. “Balancing our budget using reserves and one-time money is ultimately unsustainable,” according to the 2024 Budget Message. (link)
Denial of agency. City staffers last year asserted that “the City has little discretion to reduce general fund costs” (link, slide 14).
Deferring change. Maintain the same approach to spending and then clearly signal that a tax hike is inevitable. The city’s previous mayor called a property tax hike the city’s “easiest option” (link).
It’s as if there is only one approach to spending — the current way — and simply no other options. For example: the city administrator recently made clear that the city needs to hire land use code and planning expertise. The city also recently lost its Public Works leader. One approach here involves rethinking job responsibilities given the city’s needs. Instead, the city has chosen to recruit a new Public Works leader using the same job description and scope as before.
Readers who want additional information and context on the budget issues can find more here (link) and here (link).
Complying with contractual obligations
The majority of the city council agreed that “there is a compliance issue” (link, page 7) with respect to the city administrator’s employment contract.
During a public session at its July 30 meeting, the council considered the following excerpt from the city administrator’s contract, noting that the “contract includes obligations on the part of the city council:”
There has been no public update about what “further action on the part of the council is necessary to ensure that the city remains in compliance with the terms of the contract.”
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Dean Hachamovitch