Al Be Back

I had heard rumors of Mammoth Lakes Police Chief Al Davis’s impending retirement – rumors in part fueled by a training course that Lieutenant Eric Hugelman attended last month in Folsom. The course description:

Becoming a Police Chief: Developing a Mindset for Success and Service

This four-day course will prepare you for assuming the position of Chief of Police, and what to do and what not to do when you first take the job. You will learn about the expectations of the Chief of Police from the: city manager, elected officials, news media, and police chiefs’ points of view. Also covered in this course are shaping public policy, labor relations and personnel issues, legal issues, leading in a political environment, organizational development and change, public engagement, crisis communication, leadership and planning your career as a police executive. This course is part of CPCA’s (California Police Chiefs Assn.) Executive Development Certificate program.

But Davis says not so fast. The earliest he might retire is December, 2020. So maybe sending Hugelman to “Chief Camp” hews to the tagline Davis includes at the bottom of every email. “Victory favors the prepared.” 

I had a pretty funny encounter at the Inyo County Landfill earlier this week. I got to the exit window and the guy says it’ll be five bucks. 

“Five bucks!” I said. 

The reaction, I saw, caused him to retreat a half step. His body language … stiffened. He was preparing for some sort of critical onslaught. 

“That is the best damn deal in town,” I finished. He relaxed. Told me a few stories about the people who yelled at him about how unfair it is – the $5 for dumping waste totaling less than 400 pounds. 

*I didn’t ask him, however, what it would cost to leave a few goats. Maybe there’s a surcharge for that. 

The corollary to this tale appears on page four. The letter from Ms. Altenbach. So if I understand correctly, Ms. Altenbach owns a home in the Trails, a very nice neighborhood in Mammoth, but feels put upon by covering the tab for the Town’s Halloween candy bill, as the Trails is Mammoth’s de facto trick-or-treating spot.  

Further, she describes the Trails HOA (Homeowners Assn.) budget situation as “dismal” and “scary.” 

And finally, she tells the community that Trails residents (does she speak for her neighborhood?) may just close it down next year if more people don’t step forward to help subsidize the terrible expense. 

Two things. 1. If you don’t wish to participate, douse the lights and don’t come to the door. 2. If you can’t afford the Halloween candy, you’ve got much bigger problems than Halloween candy. 

Suggestion: If you want to recapture the Halloween spirit, visit the Baker home on Elm Street in Bishop. An annual pumpkin paradise. And are there nicer folks than Mary and Chet Baker? That whole neighborhood is wonderful. And they don’t even have an HOA …