6
city news
november21
2013
What You Need to Know About Flood Vents
1 - Openings must be installed in foundation walls so that
water can flow, unimpeded, in and out of the crawl space
without damaging the walls’ integrity. The regulation is
easy to remember: one square inch of opening in the
foundation wall for every square foot of the area of
your house. For example, a 2,000-square-foot crawl
space would need 2,000 square inches of opening. The
number of flood vents you need to install depends on
the size and type of vent you buy. (More on that later.)
2 - Each enclosed area must have a minimum of two
openings. If there are multiple enclosed areas within
the foundation walls, each area must have at least two
openings in its exterior walls.
3 - Flood vents must be below flood level to work.
The bottom of each opening must be no more than 1
foot above whichever of these is higher: the interior or
exterior grade immediately under the opening.
4 - Any screens, grates, grilles, fixed louvers, or other
covers or devices you install must not block or hinder
the automatic flow of floodwaters into and out of the
enclosed area.
Why Are Flood Vents Required?
The purpose of flood vents (also called “flood
gates” or “flood ports”) is to reduce structural damage
from flooding. These permanent openings accomplish
On the Shelves:
this objective by allowing water to pass into or out of a
building’s exterior foundation walls.
Why is that so important? In a flood situation,
if the water pressure inside and outside your home can’t
equalize rapidly enough, the windows and doors could
blow out. In addition, this pressure can compromise
the foundation and make your home unsafe to live in.
Studies have shown that houses with proper openings
survive a flood; homes without such vents collapse.
Who Needs Flood Vents?
According to its website, the NFIP “requires
flood vents for residential basements, crawl spaces,
garages, and other enclosed structures that are below
the Base Flood Elevation (BFE) in Special Flood
Hazard Areas.” BFE is the height of the base flood,
usually in feet, in relation to the National Geodetic
Vertical Datum of 1929 or other datum as specified.
When a community participates in the NFIP
every property owner in the community must follow
all of FEMA’s and NFIP’s requirements whether or
not the property owner purchases flood insurance. One
of the requirements is properly installed flood vents.
How Cost Savings Add Up
Properly installed and situated flood vents can
pay for themselves very quickly. They allow you to
What’s Happening at the Vernonia Library
“Food for Fines” Returns to
the Vernonia Public Library!
On December 16, 2013 you can
help feed our community while paying
off your library fines. The Vernonia
Public Library will be sponsoring a
food drive and fine amnesty program
to benefit Vernonia Cares Food Bank.
For each food item donated, $1 will be
credited toward your fine balance up
to a maximum of $10.00. Please note
that credit cannot be applied to lost
or damaged book replacement fees.
Patrons who do not have fines are also
encouraged to make donations of non-
perishable food items. Home-canned
items, cans that are past their expiration
date or are dented or damaged, or cans
with barcodes lined or scratched through
will not be accepted.
Police Blotter Oct. 1-13
ARRESTS/CRIMINAL CITATIONS
• November 06, 2013 – Arrest near
the Vernonia Lake on an outstanding
arrest warrant.
• November 08, 2013 – Arrest in the
100 Block of A St. on an outstanding
arrest warrant.
• November 10, 2013 – Arrest in the
800 Block of Jefferson Ave. on an
outstanding arrest warrant.
• November 16, 2013 – Arrest on
Bridge St. near Jefferson Ave. on an
outstanding arrest warrant.
• November 16, 2013 – Report
taken and referred to the Columbia
County Justice Court for Violation of
Release Agreement.
• November 17, 2013 – Arrest and
transported to the Columbia County
Vernonia City
Council Meetings
and Closures
City Council Meetings are
scheduled for 7 PM:
Monday, December 2, 2013
Monday, December 16, 2013
City Closures are scheduled for:
Thanksgiving Day
Thursday, November 28
Staff Day
Friday, November 29
Dates and times subject to change
due to conflicts of schedules
Jail for Harassment and Disorderly
Conduct.
• November 17, 2013 – Report
taken on a Runaway Juvenile. Case
Pending.
TRAFFIC/OTHER CITATIONS
• November 02, 2013 – Issued a
citation for Improper Display of Tags
on N. Mist Dr. near Douglas St.
• November 06, 2013 – Issued
citations
for
Driving
While
Suspended and Driving Uninsured
on Bridge St. near Spencer Ave.
• November 17, 2013 – Issued
citations for Driving Uninsured,
Improper Display, and Improper
Mudguards on N. Mist Dr. near
Cherry St.
save in two ways. The annual reduction on your flood
insurance premiums can be considerable. Secondly,
should floodwaters rise to your home, flood vents can
reduce the risk of structural damage, which can be very
costly to repair.
Which Type of Flood Vent Should You Install?
There are two types of flood vents on the
market: non-engineered and engineered. Engineered
vents have been designed in such a way that they
provide a more efficient flood relief system, and thus
fewer vents will need to be installed.
The opening size of the non-engineered
flood vent is calculated by multiplying the width
times the height of the opening. The opening size
of the engineered flood vent is calculated using a
mathematical formula that takes into account certain
coefficients, net area and opening shapes.
T h i s
formula calculation must be certified by a professional
engineer. The main difference between the two types of
flood vents is that fewer of the engineered flood vents
are required to meet NFIP requirements. For example,
a non-engineered 8” x 16” vent is rated at 128 square
inches while an engineered 8” x 16” is rated at 200
continued on page 7
City Administrator Report
continued from page 5
PARKS DEPARTMENT
OPRD & DISTRICT
IMPROVEMENTS AT THE
SPENCER PARK DEVELOPMENT
Based on an exchange of information, the
Vernonia School District shared that they
directed the replacement park general con-
tractor to winterize the site, hydro-seed the
existing surface and plan to restart site work
this spring, completing the project by June
2014. The City anticipates that the District
will provide the city with their revised ap-
proach to meeting the specifications and
schedule. The City has a cost estimate to
crush the brick and asphalt salvaged from
the school demolition at $6.75/yard. The
City may add to the crushing materials
owned by the Community Garden project.
The asphalt crushing requires the work be
done when the temperatures are at or be-
low freezing, so this will be a winter project.
Members of the Parks Committee continue
to explore design build options for the picnic
shelter and restroom facility.
OPRD MASTER PARK PLAN
MacKay & Sposito intend to complete the
Master Park Plan by January 2014. The
Parks Committee held a town hall meeting
on November 14, 2014. A final plan will be
shared with City Council in December 2013.
Adoption of the plan will occur at a City
Council meeting in January 2014.
OTHER DEPARTMENTS
AD HOC MARKETING GROUP
An ad hoc group composed of the Vernonia
School District, West Oregon Electric Co-
operative, City of Vernonia and community
representatives met for the second time to
discuss ways that the City of Vernonia could
more effectively market itself in the future.
Our interest is twofold – provide informa-
tion to households and businesses that may
look at this community as a place to move
to. Metropolitan Group offered to assist the
group in composing an initial mission state-
ment and provide limited support as we craft
a message. Projects that we are assessing
include a unified internet based informa-
tion, better engage the Columbia County
Economic Team, involve the Vernonia Area
Chamber of Commerce, approach large
employers in adjoining areas to make sure
their internal resources has information on
Vernonia.
POLICE CHIEF CONNER
We are informed by DPSST that Chief Con-
ner has met all training and management
requirement for the position of Police Chief
at this time. DPSST will issue a certification
automatically sometime in January 2014,
when Chief will have completed two years
in the position. We will all celebrate at that
future date
Need
body
work?
Time to call
Meyer’s
Auto Body
Meyer’s Auto Body 493 Bridge Street, Vernonia. 503-429-0248
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