Smooth Transition? Inside the Aberdeen Report

Despite a bitter internal feud, no review of the Aberdeen Police Department is needed. Despite being severely fined and penalized in the past, the city should once again pursue sucking more water from Deer Creek. Despite its being in day-to-day control of the city’s multi-million dollar budget, direct observation of the day-to-day operation of the city’s Finance Department is needed.

These are just a few of the highlights from a report on the City of Aberdeen’s operation and health, as conducted by the 28-member Transition Team formed to help new Mayor Mike Bennett transition into office.

The report was unveiled to the public Monday night - nearly three months after Bennett’s November election to office. Put another way, one-eighth of Bennett’s two-year term in office has already been spent compiling this report and it will probably take the remaining seven-eighths of his term to implement its recommendations.

Continue reading Smooth Transition? Inside the Aberdeen Report

40-Love: An Aberdeen Archrivalry Lives On

Fact: Early in 2006, Aberdeen’s interim city manager Don Brand abruptly resigned from his post.

Backstory: A high-ranking city official close to the situation told me Brand was abruptly “resigned” after he allegedly became belligerent in the lobby of city hall upon learning the “interim” tag was going to stick and that he had been passed over for the permanent city manager position. His profanity-laced tirade apparently drew the attention of several city employees and passersby and left this elected official with no other choice but to tell Brand the ride was over. Adding to the disgrace, Brand, who decided he would pack up his things and leave on the spot, had been driving a city-owned vehicle to work and had to bum a ride home from city police chief Randy Rudy. So Rudy drove a just-fired Brand and all his office belongs home in the city car, dropped him off and then returned to Aberdeen with the vehicle - leaving a very recently-unemployed Brand no doubt explaining to his wife why he was home in the middle of the afternoon. Continue reading 40-Love: An Aberdeen Archrivalry Lives On