city news
At the February 22, 2011, City Council
Meeting:
Council Votes to Begin Search Process
for City Administrator-- In a 3-2 vote,
Council approved the start of a search
process for new City Administrator
candidates using the League of Oregon
Cities at a cost to the city of $6,000.
Voting to begin the process were
Councilors Willow Burch, Marilyn
Nicks, and Kevin Hudson. Councilor
Randy Parrow and Mayor Josette
Mitchell voted to offer the position to
current Interim City Administrator Bill
Haack. (See complete story on front
page.)
Council Approves Sale of Spencer
Vernonia City News...
Park Property-- Council has approved
the sale of the 4.82 acre Spencer Park
property to the Vernonia Administrative
School District 47J for a purchase price
of $240,000. The new school project
is currently under construction on the
Spencer Park site. Council held a
Legislative Public Hearing to receive
public comment on the proposed sale
before voting to approve the sale. The
City of Vernonia and the Vernonia School
District had previously entered into an
Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA)
which includes six separate transactions
to complete the exchange of property
between the City of Vernonia and the
School District, including the purchase
of the Spencer Park property. The IGA
also includes the City purchasing School
District property at the current school
site for a park to replace Spencer Park.
Mayor Appoints Stiles to Library
Committee-- With Council approval,
and based on a recommendation from
the Library Committee, Mayor Josette
Mitchell appointed Pat Stiles to the
Library Committee to complete the term
of Orissa Burghard, who has resigned.
Council Approves Minor Changes to
SRO Agreement-- Council approved
several minor changes to the Agreement
between the Vernonia School District,
the City of Vernonia, and the Vernonia
Prevention Coalition for a Youth
Services Resources Officer.
march8
2011
5
Council Approves Second Reading
of Ordinance 872-- Council approved
the second reading of Ordinance
872, allowing social gambling. The
Ordinance will take effect thirty days
from the second reading.
Council Amends Master Fee Schedule
Adjusting Cemetery Rates-- Council
approved Resolution 06-11, amending
the Master Fee Schedule and increasing
Cemetery fees.
Council
Approves
Emergency
Preparedness Committee-- Council
approved the first and second readings
of Ordinance 856, establishing an
Emergency Preparedness Committee.
Rebuilding Vernonia: The Rose Avenue Project continued from front page
According to Haack, Community Action Team
(C.A.T.), based in St. Helens, has stepped forward
and become a community partner by helping these
three organizations find solutions to their problems--
specifically identifying suitable locations, applying for
funding resources and beginning project development.
C.A.T. is a locally-controlled, private, not-for-
profit corporation, serving Columbia, Clatsop and
Tillamook Counties with a main focus of mobilizing
resources and addressing the needs of the economically
disadvantaged. C.A.T. currently serves over 16,000
persons annually and has extensive experience working
with Community Development Block Grants (CDBG),
a prime resource for these types of projects. C.A.T. has
been working with the Senior Center and Food Bank
for years to relocate their facilities and has been a key
component in managing Vernonia’s flood recovery.
It’s important to recognize how much positive
work has been accomplished on behalf of the citizens of
Vernonia in relation to flood recovery since the Flood of
2007. The community, with the help of FEMA, C.A.T.,
and Oregon Emergency Management have identified
funding and resources way beyond initial expectations
immediately after the flood, allowing for more work
to take place and many more entities to be moved out
of harm’s way, in case another flood were to occur.
According to C.A.T. Deputy Director Jim Tierney,
almost $26 million in funding has been secured to date;
initial estimates had been in the $3-$4 million range.
But still, another flood is almost inevitable.
Originally, the 1996 and 2007 floods were both
considered 100- or 500-year floods. The Army Corps
of Engineers has since revised their projections for our
watershed and now predict we can expect floods of that
magnitude every twelve to fifteen years. The case for
moving vital services is now even stronger.
Since Vernonia began its recovery from the
Flood of 2007, many significant things have happened.
The Vernonia School District is in the process of
moving all three of their schools to a new campus.
Many homes and several businesses have been lifted
or bought out and demolished. And WOEC’s new
headquarters is under construction.
But the Health Center, Senior Center and Food
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Bank have still not been moved.
All of the vital services that needed to move--
the schools, WOEC, the Senior Center, Food Bank and
Health Center-- found a similar situation when they
began the search to relocate-- a lack of buildable space
within city limits that was suitable for their needs and
zoned properly for their facilities.
The site being considered for the Rose Avenue
project is currently owned by the Oregon Parks and
Recreation Department, but a transfer is in the works
that will allow it to be acquired by the City of Vernonia.
There were some concerns by the Environmental
Protection Agency about environmental degradation
from previous uses on the site but the State just received
a notice of “No Further Action,” clearing the way for a
liability-free transfer of ownership to the City clearing
the way for the race to develop these three projects.
A key question is,”What would be the city’s
involvement in the project?” According to Tierney, the
City, as owners of the property, could lease or possibly
sell the land to the organizations who would build
their facilities there. If the projects were developed
by the tenants using CDBG funds, the City
would have an obligation to hold the title
and monitor the continued operation of
the buildings for a minimum of five years,
similar to the Vernonia Community Learning
Anonymous
Center. At the end of the timeframe set by the
CDBG funding, the City could choose to sell
Donor
the buildings to the tenants and have no real
role in ongoing operations and little financial
in
responsibility. “There are many ways we can
work together to do this,” says Tierney.
support
One other twist to the development plan
for the Rose Avenue Project is the inclusion
of discussions with Catherine Mater who is
of
currently researching the feasibility of the
Forest Health-Human Health Initiative, an
Vernonia’s
alternative opportunity for small forestland
owners to be paid to manage their properties
Voice
by using carbon sequestration credits.
Although Mater’s plan includes links
to the Vernonia Health Clinic and the use
of a Biomass heating generator at the Rose
continued on page 9
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