city/area news
Vernonia City News...
At the July 2, 2012 City Council Meeting:
Council Approves Agreement for Audit--
Council authorized the signing of an
Council
Approves
Resolution agreement with Grove, Mueller & Swank,
Establishing
Airport
Committee-- P.C. to provide the annual audit of the city
Council approved Resolution 26-12, finances.
establishing an Airport Committee and
prescribing its powers and duties.
Council Approves Collective Bargaining
Agreement with Police-- Council approved
Council Amends Master Fee Schedule-- the collective bargaining agreement
Council made minor housekeeping between the City of Vernonia and the
adjustments to the Master Fee Schedule and Vernonia Police Association as negotiated
approved those changes with the passage of and presented by the City Attorney in
Executive Session. The new contract runs
Resolution 27-12.
from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2015.
The Columbia County Household Hazardous
Waste Program Schedule Through March 2013
Due to continued decreases in revenue generated by garbage disposal fees at
the Columbia County Transfer Station, the Columbia County Household Hazardous
Waste (HHW) Program will be forced to reduce HHW services to the following dates:
For more information regarding the Columbia County HHW Program, con-
tact the Columbia County Land Development Services Director, Todd Dugdale at
503.397.7207 or todd.dugdale@co.columbia.or.us
County Assessor to
Reduce Business Hours
Public business hours for the
Columbia County Assessor’s Office are
reduced, effective Monday, July 2, 2012.
The decision to reduce hours was
made by the County Assessor and is due
to continued budget shortfalls that have
resulted in 26-furlough days in addition
to staff reductions at the Assessor’s
department. The reduced hours will allow
remaining staff the uninterrupted time
to complete duties necessary to stay in
compliance with state mandates.
Manufactured Structure Changes will be
processed within one week of receiving
completed application and fee.
Self-Service Computer Workstations:
Two workstations will be available for
self-service use by the public. These
computers are located at the front counter
of the Assessor’s Office on Monday thru
Thursday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.
Online Services Available at www.
co.columbia.or.us
Columbia County Assessor’s
Office Public Business Hours:
The Assessor’s Office website
includes
current property records, as
All Public Services Except Manufactured
well
as
forms,
applications and general
Structure Changes:
information for most programs maintained
July 2, 2012 thru October 11, 2012 and
by the Assessor’s Office.
November 19 through June 27, 2013
Thank you for your patience during
Monday through Thursday, 1:00 pm to 5:00
this period of staffing shortages
pm, or by appointment
October 15, 2012 through November 15,
2012 (Tax Season)
Monday through Thursday, 8:30 am to
5:00 pm
Manufactured Structure Ownership/
Situs Changes and Trip Permits:
These services will no longer be available
for immediate processing. Requests for
Vernonia’s Voice
is published twice
each month on the
2nd and 4th Tuesday.
Look for our next
issue on July 24.
july10
2012
5
New City Hall Hours in Effect
The City of Vernonia City
Council approved on June 4, 2012,
at the request of the Administration
Office, change in the hours of
operation beginning July 1, 2012.
The new hours of operations
for all administrative functions will
be: Monday 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM,
Tuesday – Friday 11:00 AM – 5:00
PM for the following functions:
utility bill paying, building permits,
planning and land use review,
public records requests as well as
the management functions of the
financial department, city council,
committee support and general city
administration.
The hours of operation
will be reviewed every six months
thereafter to make adjustments
to maximize effectiveness and
efficiencies of operations.
The Building Officials will
be available by appointment on
Monday, Wednesday and Friday
from 11:00 AM to completion of
inspections.
The Electrical Inspector
will be available by appointment on
Wednesday and Friday from 9:00
AM to completion of inspections.
The City Planner will be
available by appointment the First
and Third Thursday of every month.
City Hall will be open
for Justice Court and the Police
Department Monday – Friday 9:00
AM – 5:00 PM.
In case of emergency dial
911 and for Non-emergency calls
dial 1-800-696-7795
Did you know?
• Street numbers must be clearly
visible on your house facing the • Information pamphlets are avail-
able at City Hall for all building
street
questions
• Grass can only be 12 inches high
before it becomes a nuisance viola- • A fence or sign permit must be
completed and approved by the
tion
city planner before construction
• Trash covered properties become
a nuisance abatement and can re- • A calendar is posted on the city
web page at www.vernonia-or.gov
sult in fines if not corrected
listing all city and committee meet-
• Christmas lights can not be dis- ing and times
played all year long
• The city web page is a great re-
• All vehicles parked on the street source for ordinances, forms and
or parked on private property must documents
have current tags.
• Vernonia is working together as
• Vehicles parked on the street a community and moving forward
with new ideas
must be moved after 72 hours
Botulism Cases a Good
Reminder to Safely Process Foods
The recent case of 3 people
sickened with botulism from eating
home-canned beets in Central Oregon
is a good reminder that home-canned
foods can pose a serious health risk.
The only way to be sure that your
home-canned foods are safe to eat
is to follow USDA tested recipes for
preparing and processing.
The
OSU
Extension
Service in Columbia County offers
information, classes, and resources to
help residents safely preserve foods
from the garden this summer. Here
is a list of services they provide:
Need body work?
At Meyer’s Auto Body
we’ll take your
order and give
you great service.
Meyer’s Auto Body
493 Bridge Street,
Vernonia
503-429-0248
• Free Printed Publications and
Safe Canning Recipes
• Online Publications and Recipes:
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fch/
food-preservation
• Free Pressure Canner Gauge
Testing
• Food Preservation and Food
Safety Hotline 1-800-354-7319, 9am
to 2pm, Monday thru Thursday from
July through October
OSU Extension Service, Columbia
County, 505 N. Columbia River
Hwy, St. Helens, OR 97051
503-397-3462
Vernonia City
Council Meetings
and Closures
City Council Meetings are
scheduled for:
Monday, July 16, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
City Closures are scheduled for:
Monday, September 3, 2012
Dates and times subject to change
due to conflicts of schedules
