 "Photo: Ariel Min/The Daily Texan")
Council members are discussing ways to create a citywide music department without upsetting police union officials, who are prepared to forfeit salary raises in 2010 for the creation of a new cadet class.
Wayne Vincent, president of the Austin Police Association, said union members feel that the city’s priorities need to be adjusted. In previous months, city officials and union members were in negotiations regarding the funding of a new cadet class. Vincent said he thinks the creation of a music department is an unnecessary initiative, considering the union’s proposed sacrifices.
“We’re not opposed to anything that’s not good for the music industry,” Vincent said. “[The city] needs to figure out why this is a good thing when we’re considering deferring payments.”
Minutes into the previous council’s last meeting on June 18, Councilwoman Sheryl Cole raised a motion to postpone a vote on the creation of the department. Cole said a staff member approached her and said the department’s creation would have an impact on negotiations between the police department and the city. The council unanimously postponed the vote until Aug. 6.
“We do need to promote music,” Cole said. “I thought it would only be prudent of us to wait and evaluate it further.”
The police union proposed to sacrifice a 2.75 percent salary raise in 2010 which would save the city nearly $5 million. With the savings, the police department hopes to fund the creation of a new class of about 100 cadets scheduled to begin training in September.
“It’s a critical need,” Vincent said. “We have officers that are retiring, the city population is growing and car loads are going up. This is all impacting the safety of officers on the street and the safety of the public.”
The creation of a music department was the chief recommendation of the Live Music Task Force, commissioned in 2008 to address issues related to Austin’s music community, and is expected to cost the city more than $300,000.
“I think the two are completely unrelated to each other,” said Brad Stein, chair of the Austin Music Commission. “Just because there’s a decision to cut funding in one area doesn’t mean you can’t increase funding in another.”
Stein said the creation of a music department would create more playing opportunities for local musicians and help local music venues attract business. The department would also deal with noise-related issues like sound permits and provide health care, housing and other services for people in the music industry.
“Security and economic development are two totally different functions of the city,” Stein said. “If every time some part of the city is going to receive funding and a party who has their funding reduced is going to complain, a city can’t operate that way.”
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