‘One el DOraDO:’ MayOr reflects On first terM
Quarrels and COVID, collaboration and cash stand out in four years
“Our city is finding new ways of working together by implementing some of the innovations COVID-19 taught us.” — Mayor Veronica Smith-Creer
On March 10, Mayor Veronica Smith-Creer delivered the final State of the City address of her first term as mayor.
As Smith-Creer campaigns for a second bid in office, she reflected on the highs and lows the city experienced in 2021 and her hopes for the future of El Dorado, whether or not she is reelected.
Smith-Creer is in the fourth year of her history-making turn as the first female and first black mayor in the nearly 180year history of El Dorado.
While the road has been bumpy over the past three years and Smith-Creer has had to steer the city through trying and uncertain times, she regards the opportunity to serve local residents — supporters and adversaries, alike — as an “esteemed pleasure.”
“I am thankful for those who have offered constructive criticism, those who have assisted me in learning and even those who have unknowingly allowed me to benefit from their opposition. I count it all as a blessing,” she said.
Smith-Creer said the city is emerging from the throes of the coronavirus (COVID) pandemic, which is heading into its third year, with a sense not of normalcy, but a “new normal.”
She added that while the city and city government has moved forward in many areas, there are other areas in which there is room for improvement.
“We are not completely back to where we were, but in many ways and for many reasons, there are some things we should not return to if we aim to be better,” the mayor said.
Highlights
One of the highlights of 2021, she said, was that the city was allotted more than $1.82 million in federal funding that was awarded as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021.
A portion of the funds was doled out to eligible city employees in the form of premium pay at $1.25 for every hour they worked in 2020 when the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit.
The allotment excluded elected officials, salaried employees and city employees who worked remotely in 2020.
Smith-Creer applied for the funding last June and the funds were disbursed the following month.
City officials have said they expect a similar amount in ARPA funding to be awarded to El Dorado this year.
They previously discussed potential uses for approximately $1 million that was left from 2021 ARPA funding, as permitted by federal guidelines.
One idea was to direct the funds toward maintenance, improvements and upgrades to the city’s water and wastewater infrastructure, as the El Dorado Water Utilities works to find funding for major projects, including replacing the city’s water meter system and two aging and deteriorating wastewater treatment plants.
“We have utilized federal financial assistance that has been beneficial to our businesses, employees and our citizens,” she said.
“We can see things getting back to normal and some things even getting better. Our city is finding new ways of working together by implementing some of the innovations COVID-19 taught us,” Smith-Creer continued.
She lauded the police, fire and public works departments for working efficiently to provide essential city services, while continuing to navigate the pandemic and keep themselves and city residents safe.
“Our city employees do some of the most crucial work with the least amount of compensation. I say again this year, that one day, they will be paid what they are worth. They literally keep our city moving day in and day out from trash, streets, water and everything in between,” Smith-Creer said.
Helping residents understand the roles, functions and operations of various city departments, including the mayor’s office, has been an ongoing challenge, Smith Creer said.
She said the effort was exacerbated somewhat by a few changes that were implemented in city government last year.
For instance, she pointed to the relocation of the Department of Public Works from City Hall to an office building at 512 N. Washington Ave.
The El Dorado City Council agreed to purchase the property for $150,000 to make way for an expansion project for the El Dorado Water Utilities, which is adjacent to the new DPW offices.
The EWU is installing a second drive-through, payment lane to help alleviate traffic backups in the existing drivethrough lane.
Weeks after the purchase of the office building cleared, Robert Edmonds, director of public works, asked council members their thoughts on moving public works administrative offices to the North Washington address.
“There’s plenty of room and it would clear up some office space in City Hall,” Edmonds said at the time.
The director of public works, the public works administrative assistant and city code enforcement officers moved into the building last September.
In late 2021, the city council also instituted a new schedule for regular meetings.
The schedule changed from twice a month at 5:30 p.m. on the first Thursday after the first Monday and two weeks later to once at 5 p.m. on the second Thursday of the month.
The change went into effect last December.
“My position (was) misunderstood by the masses before I was elected and I continue to educate the public on what it allows the mayor to do with the changes that have been created by the existing council although it is confusing,” the mayor said.
“Even though it was not my decision, the moving of the public works department from City Hall has been a failure,” she continued.
Other issues stoked tensions and friction among city officials last year, including long-running efforts to close out the 2020 city budget and adopt the 2021 city budget.
The city’s books had reportedly become muddied during the tenures of the last two city treasurers, both of whom were terminated in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
Reconciling bank statements, invoices and receipts for various city departments took some doing by local CPA firm Emrich and Scroggins, LLC, who was hired a year ago to sort through and clean up the city’s books.
The council closed out the 2020 budget last July and approved the 2021 budget the following month.
City officials lamented another drop in population that was reported last year.
The 2020 U.S. Census reflected a population of 17,756, dropping from the 18,884 count that was recorded in the 2010 census.
Smith-Creer said the population decrease has no bearing on community pride and the work that various sectors of the community are doing “to make things come to fruition in our city.”
‘So many amazing things to offer’
She pointed to the city’s win as the Best Small Town Cultural Scene of 2021, a designation that was announced last fall as part USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards.
“How many people, organizations, businesses and officials had to work together to make this happen?” Smith-Creer asked.
“We have so many amazing things to offer our visitors from the arts, entertainment, shops, scenic parks, golf courses, a recreational complex, an award-winning downtown and a multitude of restaurants,” she added. “We have to be our best advertisement by continuing to promote our city in the best light.”
For 2022, Smith-Creer said she hopes to work with the city council to complete a long-running effort to establish a system by which city employees are granted pay raises based on merit/job performance.
The mayor said she is optimistic about the city’s future prospects and hopes that residents become more actively involved in city government and that city officials foster a better working relationship.
“I am hopeful that the citizens understand the responsibilities of elected officials, city workers and themselves to make things work more efficiently as a benefit to everyone,” she said.
Smith-Creer turned to a biblical scripture that, she said, inspires her to keep striving to move El Dorado forward.
Matthew 5:16 : “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”
“It does not mention our notso-good works. We are not a city absent of mistakes and ways to improve,” she said. “Since we are working for a common cause, we will get there faster by working together. One day this will truly be ‘one El Dorado’ for everyone.”