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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 23, 2012)
opinion october23 2012 An Opinion: What a Difference a Year Makes By Scott Laird A little over a year ago the Ver- nonia City Council welcomed three new members when Bruce McNair, Kim Tierney and Donna Webb were sworn into office on August 29, 2011. One week later the new Council met on September 6th and voted to rehire Bill Haack as City Administrator, bringing an end to tumultuous year of politics in Vernonia. The past year, since the new Council took office and Haack returned, has been relatively quiet, at least as far as any major controversy goes. Of course, after a year which saw the fir- ing of Haack, the recall of the three City Councilors who voted to fire him, the se- lection of three new Councilors and then the rehiring of Haack, any year would appear to be quiet. But it has not been a quiet year as far the work load goes for Haack, the City Council and city staff. One year later, the City of Vernonia is steadily moving forward on many large scale projects, thanks in large part to the guid- ance of Haack and a Council that has put a lot of effort into their volunteer job. The new Council seems to be working fairly well together under the leadership of Mayor Josette Mitchell. They have had their moments when they have disagreed or dragged out dis- cussions, but they have definitely been willing to invest an immense amount of time, meeting almost weekly and often twice in a week in regular meetings and in workshops designed to give them the opportunity to educate themselves about the issues. The work load they have cre- ated for themselves has been daunting, yet they have continued to plow ahead and are accomplishing much. Three of the Council positions are open for elec- tion this fall and Mayor Mitchell and Councilors Randy Parrow and Kim Tierney have submitted themselves for re-election. All are running unopposed. The Council is doing good work. This new version of the Council has remained focused and has been able to work through their differences for the most part, continuing to do the work of the city. That work has moved forward, in a large part thanks to Haack and the staff at City Hall, along with the volun- teers on the many City Committees. The Planning Commission and City Planner Carole Connell have been working on several large scale endeavors including parking issues and a huge rezoning proj- ect that includes approximately 130 par- cels of property within city limits. The Public Works Committee has been espe- cially busy with a water rate study that led to a change in how the City charges for water consumption and of course, the wastewater facilities update project—a major undertaking for the city. All of these projects have been fairly visible to the public. But behind the scenes Haack has been even busier. At the recent City Council meetings, Haack has provided written update reports to Council about some of the projects he and his staff are currently involved in. The following is an abbre- viated review of just some of those proj- ects: FEMA NFIP--The City is grappling with how to manage National Flood In- surance Program (NFIP) compliance requirements. This is a major problem for the city as many houses in the flood zone are not in compliance which could affect the ability of all property owners to receive flood insurance through the national program. CDGB Open Space--The City is now the owner of over 40 properties, which have been acquired through FEMA buy- outs. The City needs to manage these properties based on usage requirements and must develop a policy as well as a financial structure to do this. Economic Opportunity Analysis--The previously mentioned rezoning is part of an update to the City Comprehen- sive Plan, which has not been updated since 1996. Any update requires an Economic Opportunity Analysis (EOA) report; City Planner Connell presented a 34 page draft of the report to Council on September 17th. The Vernonia Schools Project--The City has been involved in the ODOT road improvements along Bridge Street and Missouri Avenue, the demolition of the old school building site, the move of the school administration building to a new site and the wetland mitigation project which sits on city property. Master Capital Plan Update--The City is moving forward with an update to the current Master Capital Plan which has not been done in over ten years. A draft of the update is expected in November. Leak Detection--The City Engineer and Public Works crew has been working with an outside company to locate and begin repairs to what is believed to be a 35% loss within the city water distribu- tion system. Changes in Public Works--Haack has had to make personnel changes in the Public Works Department due to cuts that Council approved in this years’ bud- get. Changes at the City Library--Hack has had to find a replacement for long time City Librarian Nancy Burch who has voluntarily elected to move into re- tirement. Other Changes to Staff--The City has replaced long time Park Host Bill Yeo, who retired this year due to illness. The City also found a new Park Host for An- derson Park and has also had to fill the position of Building and Grounds Main- tenance. Long time Cemetery Caretaker Synda Allen also retired this year. Medical Services--Haack has been closely involved with the Vernonia Health Center Board in their attempts to provide medical clinic services for the community. EPA Brownfields--Haack reports that he has submitted a work plan that will be part of an agreement with the Envi- ronmental Protection Agency (EPA) to begin the process of using EPA funds to identify Brownfield sites for cleanup in Vernonia. Bear Creek Flooding--Haack reports he is investigating a land management issue with properties around Bear Creek that have seasonal flooding issues. Publisher and Managing Editor Scott Laird 503-367-0098 scott@vernoniasvoice.com Contributors Mark Brown Savannah Brown Chip Bubl Mackenzie Carr Ben Fousek Jill Hult Photography Judy Acton Susan Ely Scott Laird Want to advertise? Have an article? Contact: scott@vernoniasvoice.com One year subscriptions (24 issues) $35 Vernonia’s Voice is published on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month. Vernonia’s Voice, LLC PO Box 55 Vernonia, OR 97064 503-367-0098 As you can see, Haack and the staff at City Hall have been busy. And this list is just projects that currently are active and doesn’t include the Rose Av- enue Project, a major Park plan for the www.VernoniasVoice.com continued on page 6 Vernonia American Legion Post 119 Spaghetti Feed November 3rd at 1 pm Games • Raffle Veterans & Families Invited All donations to benefit local Legion Post 119 Vernonia, OR For more info call: Melanie 503-550-6785 Happy Hour Mon-Fri 4-7 Lady’s Night Wed 5-12 Cedar Side Inn “STILL BIKER FRIENDLY” Taco Tuesday from opening until 9pm 3 hardshell or 1 softshell $4.25 EVENTS Prime Rib every Saturday Halloween Saturday, October 27th - 9pm Scary-oke & Costume Party Drink Specials & Prizes for Best, Scariest & Funniest Costume iheck our Facebook page for daily specials and upcoming events 756 Bridge Street, Vernonia 503-429-5841 3 • Specialty hamburgers • Draft beer & mixed drinks • Pool tables & satelite TV • Special live music events • Free Wi-fi Sun - Thurs 11 AM - Midnight • 733 Bridge St, Vernonia Oct. 27 Stepchild Nov. 2 & 3 Play it Again Karaoke Nov. 17 Dixie Wrecked Now Beer & Kegs to go Fri - Sat 11 AM - 2:30 AM • 503-429-9999
