24
Wednesday, January 18, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
FLOODING: Much
depends on how much
rain comes down
Continued from page 1
may avail themselves of free
sandbags, and the sand to fill
them, at the City Hall park-
ing lot, in the southeast cor-
ner facing Sisters Elementary
School.
There is also the potential
for urban flooding and pond-
ing throughout town as the
large quantity of snow begins
to melt. The inevitable slush
could also make for difficult
driving.
According to Public
Works Director Paul
Bertagna, the county emer-
gency operations team has
met to identify potential trou-
ble spots and Whychus Creek
is at the top of the list. The
creek is frozen over in many
spots, with snow on top of the
ice. Too much warming and
rain, too quickly, causes the
ice to break into large chunks,
which run swiftly down-
stream, tearing up the creek
bank, uprooting trees, and
carrying other debris.
Fortunately, a warm
Chinook wind, bringing much
warmer temperatures, was not
in the forecast for this week.
However, to be prepared for
any eventuality, the City
has a hazard mitigation plan
already in place with outside
contractors on alert should
they be needed.
Snow remaining on roofs
will become heavier with the
rainfall. Ice dams and frozen
downspouts could hinder run-
off from roofs. Many Sisters
residents have already experi-
enced interior damage due to
roof leaks, and more are sure
to come.
The entire City Public
Works staff has been doing
yeoman’s duty through all of
the inclement weather, which
produced a storm total of 60
inches of snow, more than in
1982 and 1992. We missed
the 1972 record by only six
inches.
Staff has battled severe
temperatures, deep snow, and
chilling wind, working non-
stop since Thursday, January
5. This snow hit all of Central
Oregon, rather than just parts
of Deschutes, Jefferson, and/
or Crook counties, which is
the more common scenario.
This time the weather reports
were 100 percent accurate.
Bertagna acknowledged
that everyone is tiring of
the challenges created by
the snow. As snow-plowing
slowed down, loaders and
backhoes were able to follow
behind the plows and clear
driveways of the berms cre-
ated by the plows. Bertagna
asked for patience on the part
of the citizens as staff does
their best to provide timely
service.
The large piles of snow
throughout town that are the
result of street and sidewalk
clearing were being hauled
away to land near the sewer
treatment plant, the red dirt
triangle on the east end of
town where Highways 126
and 20 join, and the old
ODOT property near the
Sisters Ranger Station at the
west end of town. There is
limited space in town for dis-
posing of the snow.
Snow removal is a budget-
line item in the street fund.
For fiscal year 2016/17, the
amount budgeted for snow
removal is $10,000. As of
last Thursday, January 12, the
amount payable was $9,500.
With two nights of utilizing
independent contractors to
help with snow removal, the
City expects to be approxi-
mately $20,000 over bud-
get on the street fund for
snow removal, based on the
weather impacts to date.
“The City will utilize our
street fund operating con-
tingency for the additional
requirements so the financial
impact is a reclassification
of expenses, not an addition
to appropriations,” said Joe
O’Neill, City finance officer.
“From a personnel
MAYOR: Ryan
will preside over
council meetings
Continued from page 1
PHOTO BY SUE STAFFORD
Whychus Creek is beautiful — and a potential flooding threat.
standpoint, we have been
incurring some overtime
through these conditions;
however, the additional hours
come at a minimal impact to
our overall personnel services
budget. Staff does a great job
of being flexible and arrang-
ing their schedules so some
staff work nights removing
snow and sleep during the
day. Also, some employees
elect to receive comp time for
extra hours worked instead of
getting paid overtime,” said
O’Neill.
O’Neill went on to praise
the Public Works employ-
ees who “have been all-stars
throughout these winter con-
ditions. Not only have they
been responsible for weather
mitigation; they also have to
maintain City services and
facilities just as they do the
rest of the year.”
There was no major
facility damage to any City
property due to the weather
conditions. The existing
snowplows, however, have
reached legacy status, result-
ing in numerous breakdowns.
To minimize the exposure of
these breakdowns and make
snow removal more efficient
and effective, City Council
approved the procurement
of two snowplows that will
be attached to City-owned
pickup trucks.
Bertagna reported to City
Council at their last meeting
that the critical infrastructure
like City wells, pump sta-
tions, and fire hydrants all
survived the winter onslaught.
As City water meters were
being uncovered, only one
was found to be frozen. He
said that homeowners asso-
ciations and private citizens
were helping with tasks like
uncovering fire hydrants on
their property.
“This has been the kind of
event where the whole com-
munity pulls together,” said
Bertagna.
As most everyone is
aware, Bertagna confirmed
that many roofs around
the city are leaking due to
ice dams and snow load.
Construction completed
from the early 1990s on, had
to meet the City code of a
35-pound snow rating. On the
news lately they have men-
tioned a 25-pound rating, but
that is for Bend.
Bertagna is recommending
that even if there currently is
no problem with a roof, home-
owners should contact a roof-
ing contractor now to be put
on their waiting list. If it turns
out no problem develops, the
appointment can be cancelled.
If a problem does develop, the
homeowner is already on the
waiting list. If a serious safety
issue arises, Bertagna said to
call 911 and the City Public
Works after-hours emergency
number 541-480-7634.
Intergovernmental Council
(COIC) and the Central
Oregon Cities Organization
(COCO).
Blum will continue her
position on the Central
Oregon Area Commission
on Transportation (COACT).
David Asson will continue
as the representative to
Economic Development of
Oregon (EDCO), where he
also serves on the executive
committee. Nancy Connolly
will continue on Sisters
Economic Development
Advisory Board (the local
EDCO program).
Richard Esterman will be
available to fill in for other
Councilors when they are
unable to attend a meeting.
He will also attend a variety
of the meetings to familiarize
himself with their functions
and duties. The Councilors
commit to attend the meet-
ings and report information
back to the full Council and
City staff.
The City of Sisters will
be holding public forums at
City Hall on Wednesday,
January 25, 4 to 5 p.m. and
again at 6 to 7 p.m. regarding
the hiring of a new city man-
ager. Interested citizens will
have an opportunity to pro-
vide comment and input to
the recruiting firm concern-
ing what characteristics and
abilities they would like the
new city manager to possess.
Those unable to attend either
session may send comments
to jeff@jensen-strategies.
com by 5 p.m. on January 27.
For more information about
the hearing contact City
Recorder Kerry Prosser at
541-323-5213.
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