Robert “Bob” Dandoy, Neal Berube and Braden Mitchell — the mayors of Roy, North Ogden and Riverdale, respectively — attended the event at the Weber County Sheriff’s Office Training Center, during which each made presentations, which were followed by a question-and-answer session.

While each municipality deals with its own unique challenges, many of which were discussed during the meeting, all three mayors cited employee retention and budget concerns as issues they continue to grapple with.

“Not a mayor in this state, probably, but certainly not Weber County, hasn’t faced the issue of employee retention,” Dandoy said. “It is a challenge for us. Because employee retention is based oftentimes on what we pay — we have to pay to be competitive — and that’s a challenge. And I want to be honest with you, I don’t like the fact it’s government competing against government, but it happens every day.”

Dandoy gave a hypothetical example of Roy’s police department training an officer who then leaves for Riverdale for more money, after which they leave for a better-paying job in a third city and, along the way, all three municipalities must raise wages in order to attract and keep quality officers.

Meanwhile, Mitchell noted that he found himself having to hire a city administrator, a community development director and new fire and police chiefs during his time as mayor.

Stagnating sales tax revenues were also referenced by mayors as a key factor in concerns over budget and the funding of city services. Mitchell, in particular, expressed concern regarding the expiration in 2030 of a “hold harmless” provision allowing the city to implement a local option tax to offset the reduction of the city’s tax revenue stemming from a 2005 change in the state tax code.

According to Mitchell, the provision’s expiration will result in a $2.3 million loss to the city’s bottom line, a potentially crippling blow for a city that must provide services well beyond the demands of its own population due to the influx of people via Riverdale Road and local businesses.

“We’ve started making plans,” Mitchell said. “We increased the property tax. … We’ve instituted a franchise tax. We’ve looked at cutting our senior services. … We’re looking at consolidating our fire department into a fire district. We’re looking at everything we can, and we’ll get there, but it’s a heavy lift.”

For his part, Berube added that managing growth in a way that benefits the city, its residents and developers has been challenging for North Ogden.

“When the development comes in, it has to be a win-win,” Berube said. “It has to be a win for the development; it has to be a win for the city, right? And I’ll tell you, historically, that’s not been the expectation. The expectation has been, ‘Hey, if we can get growth in our city, we’ll do whatever it takes.’ But that actually comes back to haunt you.”

Where administration wins were concerned, Berube said that his city worked with the Weber County Commission to bring North Ogden into the county’s paramedics group to improve response times and ensure that certain life-saving services were available for residents.

“When you call the ambulance, you think they’re there to do everything they can do,” Berube said. “So, public safety has, in my opinion, been the number one situation with elected officials. Whether it’s the fire department or whether it’s the police, that is our number one obligation, I think, to keep our state and our cities safe.”

Mitchell said he was most proud to have answered his residents’ call for a Trader Joe’s store in the city. He also name-checked Tesla, Chuck E. Cheese, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen and Panera Bread as important additions.

Finally, Dandoy said that Roy City has achieved success in redevelopment and by successfully lobbying for transportation improvements to accommodate traffic to Hill Air Force Base and the new Roy Innovation Center.

“We had to improve the transportation avenues if we’re going to make this thing work, and it’s working,” Dandoy said. “It’s a little painful for another few months … but when it’s done, OK, you’re going to see significant improvements.”

The WCRW group — itself a subcommittee of the Weber County Republican Party — just elected new leadership of its own, including new board members and incoming president Cindee Jessop, who says that the group will continue to foster an awareness of local issues and government.

“Our goal is to promote the Republican platform, to build civic awareness, to support Republican candidates and to support the Weber County GOP in general,” Jessop told the Standard-Examiner, noting that the group will also explore social issues.

Jessop also praised outgoing president Debbie Williams for her work in building up the WCRW.

“Debbie took it over with no board and no help, and she built it to what it is today,” Jessop said. “We have eight board members who are all very active members of our community. And she has created some amazing meetings with the help of her board, and I think we’re just going up.”

The next WCRW meeting will be held on May 12, during which Utah State Board of Education members Rod Hall and Joseph Kerry will be on hand.