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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 2007)
06 vernonia’s voice october city news 2007 Staff Article CityNews... on Bridge Street and Rose Avenue, from Grant Avenue to one hundred feet north City Moves to Sell Surplus Twenty of Cougar Street, eliminating the short 25 MPH zone on Rose Avenue. The City ac- Acres... cepted these terms, and was notified at the After a Public Hearing the City Council September 17 council meeting that ODOT approved terms for placing a twenty-acre would begin changing the posted signs in property, previously declared surplus, for the near future. sale. During the hearing there were ques- tions raised by both the audience and the council about the process that was used New Police Vehicles Awaiting for choosing the realtor for offering the Equipment Installation... property for sale, and why a local realtor Police Chief Mathew Workman reported was not chosen. City Administrator M.R. that the new 2007 Ford Expedition and “Dick” Kline explained that the realtor cho- the 2007 Dodge Charger have arrived and sen had good market experience and had are awaiting installation of equipment that offered reduced fees. There was also dis- will allow them to be fully functional. At cussion about restrictions that could/could the September 17 Council meeting Chief not be placed on development of the prop- Workman explained that because of delays erty. Mayor Sally Harrison explained that in the shipping of the vehicles to Vernonia, any development would have to go before scheduling of the equipment installation the City Planning Commission and that all has been difficult. city codes would apply. During delibera- tions it was agreed that Council accept the City Council September 17, 2007 fair market value of $545,000 and place the property for sale. Council and the audi- City Declares a Water Shortage ence were reminded that the city does not Emergency... have to accept any offers that are made City Council passed an ordinance declar- and that this is a good opportunity to “test ing a “Second Level of Concern” due to the waters” to see what kind of serious in- low stream flow on Rock Creek. During terest there might be for the property. a Second Level of Concern sprinkling, ir- City Council September 4, 2007 rigation and watering may be done by Planning Commissioner Criteria residences West of State Street on even Amended... numbered days and East of State Street Council approved a motion that would al- low a vacated position on the Planning Commission to be filled by an individual who lives within five miles of the city lim- its. The current restrictions state that the commission can be made up of six resi- dents and one at-large member. The mo- tion allows that if a position is vacated and remains open for three months, and the city has advertised the position and made efforts to fill it, then the position can be filled by a non-resident to complete the term. Commissioner Heather Lewis stated that it is always preferable to have mem- bers of the commission who are part of the community as either residents, tax payers or business owners who are socially and economically invested in the city. Speed Zone Changed in Business District... The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has approved the city’s request to change the speed limit through the down- town business district to 20 MPH. After an ODOT investigation was completed, ap- proval was given to change the speed limit on odd numbered days. The restrictions will remain in place until water flows ex- ceed twelve cubic feet-per-second. The city recommends citizens consider using water conservation practices to avoid any further restrictions. Waste Water Loan Amount In- creased ... Council passed a resolution that would increase the amount that the city is able to borrow from the Clean Water State Re- volving Fund when the City begins Phase II of the Wastewater Treatment Plant Proj- ect. The resolution raises the amount the city can borrow in Phase II to $8.6 million. City Administrator Kline explained that this does not obligate the city in any way to these funds, but makes them available if needed. The resolution also allows the in- crease of the amount of the required loan reserve should the money be borrowed. Mr. Kline recommended that the city close out Phase I of the project which will trig- ger reporting and loan repayment require- ments. Mr. Kline explained that beginning the repayment process for Phase I will al- The Buckhorn restaurant & General store low the city to be better prepared and in- formed as it considers its options about how to proceed with Phase II. City Signs State Agreement... Grant Council approved entering into an agree- ment with Oregon State Parks and Recre- ation Department for a Local Government Grant in the amount of $245, 600 to assist in the construction of the Vernonia Bicycle Skills Park. The grant agreement states that the city is required to provide match- ing funds in the amount of $206, 395 which can come from both in-kind donations and city funds. After some questions and dis- cussion about how the city would provide those funds, it was explained that the grant is a reimbursement grant, and that the city has the option of adjusting or downsizing the scale of the project if the city feels it cannot meet the match requirements. Af- ter receiving assurances that the project would not proceed beyond the means of the city, Mayor Harrison signed the agree- ment. City Grants Jefferson Street Ease- ment... Council voted to grant an extension of Jefferson Street across city owned tax lot 7400, with Planning Commission condi- tions, allowing Mr. Bill Sword to construct bridge access to his property. Mr. Sword will be responsible for paying for full public improvements and for any costs incurred in the movement of the current bridge that he uses. Access to Mr. Sword’s property has been a point of contention between Mr. Sword and the city, as current access re- quires Mr. Sword to travel through heavily used Anderson Park Campground, some- times with very large logging equipment. Mr. Sword’s offer to move the location of the crossing appears to be a very accept- able solution to all parties involved. Committee Positions Filled... Mayor Sally Harrison appointed Judith Stefan to the Community Learning Center Committee and Barbara Ward to the Public Library Board. The Mayor thanked these community members for volunteering to serve the community. Family-style dining Cozy fireplace seating Lunch & dinner Full bar Gifts & UPS Shipping 503-429-3751, 934 Bridge Street, Vernonia, OR 11am-9pm, Tues.-Sat. & 11am-6pm, Sunday Parks lottery games mc/visa