8 — THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS
FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017
Local
Special City Council meeting Sumpter holds
held—all about more fees short hearing
about grows
BY GINA K. SWARTZ
Gina@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Tuesday evening a spe-
cial City Council meeting
was held for fee discus-
sion.
The meeting began
promptly at seven o’clock
with all Councilors present
and a handful of commu-
nity members.
City Council reviews
fees set by the City every
year before the final adop-
tion of the City Budget.
With an increase in water
rates and an implementa-
tion of a Public Safety Fee
both on the horizon there
was much to talk about.
Finance Director Jeanie
Dexter began the discus-
sion.
Dexter had prepared and
presented to Council a
spreadsheet that outlined
the impact raising City
Water rates would have
to the community and the
revenue it would create.
With very large, very
expensive projects looming
within the water depart-
ment such as replacing
pipe on the Mountain line
that delivers water from
the water shed to the City,
the drilling of a new well
and DEQ requirements
regarding effluent water
disposal that will likely
require the City to bor-
row money to complete
and increase in revenue is
desperately needed.
A couple years ago, the
City was advised by an
outside consulting com-
pany evaluating the City’s
water systems, that the
City needed to increase
their water rates immedi-
ately by 25%.
The City Council at that
time decided that the rate
increase could be better
negotiated with the citizens
if it was raised over time
and agreed to raise the rate
over the period of three
years by 10% each year.
Rates were raised by
10% last year and another
increase is needed this
year, the City says.
Dexter presented the
Council with two different
examples of rate increases
one for 10% and another of
12.8%.
In her spreadsheet, she
showed what current rates
look like so that Council
could see the differences
that each of the suggested
rate hike would make.
Current monthly base
rates are $36 for water,
$18.86 for wastewater and
$1 for a sidewalk fee.
In her first example, with
a 10% base rate increase
water rates would raise to
$39.60, waste water rates
would raise to $20.75 and
the $1 sidewalk fee would
be replaced by a $3 per
household, $6 per business
Public Safety Fee.
The average residential
water bill would see an
increase of $7.49 with a
10% increase that included
a $3 Public Safety Fee.
This increase would po-
tentially raise $350,255.
With a 12.8% bate rate
increase water rates would
raise to $40.61 waste water
rates would raise to $21.27
and the $1 Sidewalk Fee
would be replaced by a
$3/$6 Public Safety Fee.
The average residential
water bill would raise by
$9.02.
Potential revenue gener-
ated would be $449,000.
These numbers were
based on low usage cus-
BY MEGHAN ANDERSCH
Meghan@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Gina K. Swartz / The Baker County Press
Tom Muller suggested that the City’s Police and Fire Departments should
become voluntary in order to save money.
tomers and the impact to
higher usage customers
would be somewhat higher.
After her presentation,
Council allowed for citizen
comment.
First to address Council
was Tom Muller he began
by saying that he did not
understand where some
of the big numbers were
coming from regarding the
needs that the City was
referring to as the bases
for their need to increase
the water rates in the first
place.
Public Works Director
Michelle Owen addressed
his concern by explaining
to Muller that the big-
gest looming concern was
with effluent wastewater
disposal.
The City currently treats
the wastewater and then
discharges it in the Powder
River.
DEQ has placed restric-
tions on the practice and
is requiring the City to
develop a new plan for
disposal of effluent waste
water.
Owen explained that
currently the option being
explored is land applica-
tion that will require land
purchases, acquiring ease-
ment rights, and construc-
tion of storage facilities.
She advised that the City
is also looking at drilling
a new well and is cur-
rently replacing pipe on
the Mountain Line as well
as other very old pip-
ing throughout the City’s
infrastructure, all of which
is very expensive.
She also advised that
even with the proposed
rate increases there would
still be needs within the
water and waste water
departments that would go
unmet.
Owen stated that the
reality was that to com-
plete many of the project
that needed to be done, the
City would need to borrow
money.
She explained that
lenders would not even
consider the City’s loan
requests unless they could
show that they had reason-
able means to pay back the
loan.
She said by raising rates,
“That gets us on the road
to being able to pay back
the loans that we’ll have to
take out.”
Muller told Owen, “Ap-
preciate your being trans-
parent and upfront.”
Owen also told Muller
that all the master plans
are available online at the
City’s website so he could
familiarize himself with
them if he wished.
She also told him that
she would be happy to sit
down with him and explain
anything in those plans.
Muller, seemingly satisfied
with those explanations,
then went on to attack the
Public safety fee.
He stated that he had
spoken extensively with
Citizens throughout the
community and had found
that the majority of those
he’d spoken with were
angry about the fee.
He pointed out that the
company that had been
hired to bill for ambu-
lance services, which had
projected an increase in
collections, saw a revenue
loss of $80,000, in collec-
tions which he called “The
ambulance disaster.”
Muller stated he felt a
decline in population was
a factor as well as a drop
for calls for ambulance
service.
Muller did not have any
evidence to back up either
of those claims.
During May budget
meetings, Fire Chief Tom
Wills advised the Bud-
get board of the opposite
regarding service calls by
stating call volume was
consistently rising.
Muller continued, saying,
“The City Council does not
own up to mistakes that
have cost a lot of money,
instead they make the
citizens of Baker City pay
a $3 fee and businesses
a $6 fee. We ask the City
(Council) members to send
it to the voters, let them
decide. City Manager Fred
Warner says it could take
up to a year to get it before
the citizens of Baker City
but he says we need it (the
money) now.”
Owen did note that a
general election was not
set for this November and
the next general election
would take place in 2018.
She also said that to get
something on a ballot for
a special election was very
costly, in the thousands of
dollars, and said that such
cost far outweighed the
benefit.
Muller suggested turning
both the City Police and
City Fire departments in
volunteer departments as a
solution.
He then went on to call
attention to pay increases
that were union-negotiated
as being unnecessary and
unreasonable in a time of
financial strain.
He was not alone in that
thought as it was heard
throughout the handful
of citizens who stepped
forward to speak, with
all seeming to feel that
all City employees were
overpaid.
Penny Reinks said she
felt that the average citizen
in Baker City only needed
$20,000 to $25,000 to live
comfortably.
Another citizen who
spoke was very blunt in
her words, “You had your
money. Now it’s gone.
That was your budget. I
don’t know what you’re
going to do, probably cut
back. If it was this easy
to get money for schools
Baker High School would
be made of gold. But you
can have three meetings,
run something through and
put it on our water bill so
we’ll never even notice.
Wow! Again, I don’t know
what you’re going to do
but you’re out of money.”
Kenneth Martin likened
the City Council to a
“mock mafia” and angrily
said, “I’m ashamed of you
people. This town was
started by crooks and been
run that way ever since.”
Ryc Reinks approached
Council and began by
saying, “Need I say more?
We’ve had this conversa-
tion before and you keep
right on going, doing
what you seem destined
to do despite input from
the community. I think
you made it a big mistake
when you called it a Public
Safety Fee. I think the
bigger issue is the water,
maybe that is a better way
to go.”
Only one citizen spoke in
favor of the fee: Don Her-
man. He said, “I’d like you
to know that I am 100% in
agreement with the public
safety fee. It is a pittance
to pay for the safety that
we rely on. I have been in
the unenviable position of
having to make that call.
When you call 911 you ex-
pect professionals to show
up with equipment and ad-
dress your issue. I’ve been
in communities that don’t
have this same attitude
and it is heart wrenching
to see what happens to the
town as its going down the
tubes.”
SEE CITY COUNCIL
PAGE 9
Sumpter City Council voted to adopt Ordinance 2017-4
banning commercial marijuana grows in the Sumpter City
limits in a special meeting held after a public hearing on
May 31st. Mayor Clarke and Council members Linda
Wise and Robert Armbruster were in attendance.
Clarke opened the hearing at 7 p.m. to hear public
testimony from anyone who had not already testified. No
new public testimony was available, so Clarke closed the
hearing and opened a special meeting.
The Council voted unanimously that the second read-
ing of the ordinance be in title only. City Recorder Julie
McKinney performed the second reading.
The Council voted unanimously to adopt the ordinance,
which had been declared an emergency due to potential
negative impact on the City water and sewer systems.
McKinney stated the ordinance will now go to the OLCC
and Oregon Department of Land Conservation and De-
velopment.
McKinney said Gayle Moore cannot serve on the bud-
get committee and requested that Council approve Cheryl
Sheller in her place to attend the budget meeting on the
following day. Council approved unanimously.
Tip-a-Cop
raises more
money
Submitted Photo.
BCPD officers and reserves helped serve custom-
ers to raise money for Special Olympics.
According to Special Olympics Treasurer and Ski
Coach Stephanie Tweit, “People really gave last night
while only six officers ran like crazy serving tables,
cleaning tables and lots of socializing. We hit our highest
ever with $2,850 and a big thank you to Luke Brown and
all the Barleys crew.”
Tweit added, “We had six athletes there and a lot of
return customers who love the wild atmosphere of Tip-a-
Cop. Several officers were called out so when duty calls,
we understand. The reserves did awesome!”
Tip-a-Cop was held last Thursday evening, and is
an annual event pitting Police against the Fire in two
separate annual events that raise money for local Special
Olympics.
This fall Serve-it-up-Hot with the local fire department
will be held. According to Tweit, possibly this winter the
Sheriff’s Office may join in the competition.
Summer reading
program at library
Readers of all ages will join together to build a better
world this summer as Baker County Public Library pres-
ents “Build a Better World” during their summer library
program.
The fun will begin with a kickoff by the Traveling
Lantern performance troupe play of “The Ribbles Build a
Residence” on June 7th at 4:00.
For eight weeks the library will have storytime, science
and engineering experiments, group games, messy art
projects, songs, and more.
Our storytimes are for babies, pre-K, and early elemen-
tary and are Tuesdays at 5:30-6:30 p.m. and Wednesdays
and Fridays at 10:00-11:00 a.m.. They also have Lego
Club on Fridays at 11:00-12:00. New this year for our
fourth through sixth grades is a “Tween Book Club.” The
group will get together every Tuesday from 1:00-2:00
p.m. to read books, talk about them, make crafts, and
eat snacks. There is also have something for teens! The
Literary Society, for teens only, is an after-hours program
that will be held twice a month on Fridays at 6:00 p.m.
Participants will watch movies, play games, read books,
and generally have fun. On August 2nd the summer read-
ing program ends with a celebration and prizes.
The 2017 Summer Reading Program is open to people
of all ages, with programs, prize drawings, story times,
a reading club, and more. Registration begins on June 1,
2017 and is required to be eligible for prizes. Families are
invited to join the fun by reading together. For more in-
formation about how to register and a schedule of upcom-
ing events, visit the library website at www.bakerlib.org,
All programs are free of charge.