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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (June 18, 2015)
june18 2015 VERNONIA’S volume9 issue12 www.vernoniasvoice.com Vernonia City Budget Contains Several Changes The Vernonia City Council approved the 2015-16 Budget at their June 1, 2015 City Council meeting. The budget for the new fiscal year in- cludes several changes from the previ- ous year. The biggest change, according to City Finance Director Angie Hande- gard, is the addition of funding for an additional Police Officer. The Vernonia Police Department has been operating with just three officers, Chief Michael Conner plus two patrol officers, since 2013. Last year the department added a part-time administrative position. The budget for the upcoming year continues funding for the administrative position plus funding to hire an additional patrol officer. The additional funding mostly comes from an increase in property tax revenue. Property taxes for 2015-16 increased by approximately 13% over 2014-15 to $663,029. The total budget for 2015-16 is $7,619,083, which includes $2.7 million in wastewater capital improve- ments. Construction on the Waste- water Treatment Upgrade Project will be started in the upcoming fiscal year. Council has accepted a bid from R&G Excavating for $3.97 million for con- struction of the project. The City se- cured $2.7 million in interim financing from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), which will be repaid with a loan from the United States De- partment of Agriculture (USDA) after the project is completed. The City has also secured a USDA Grant which will fund the balance of the construction project. Additional USDA funds will be used to refinance, at a much lower interest rate, a portion of the current debt obligation the City owes from pri- or sewer rehab projects. The total out- standing balance is just over $5 million, with total annual payments of $460,000 per year and is made up of two USDA inside 3 marijuana ready or not 10 favorite fotos 15 summer fire safety 19 summer meal program free Sewer Bonds and two DEQ Loans. Ac- cording to Handegard, the City is also budgeting funds to retire two of those prior debt obligations, totaling almost $550,000, over the next several years, reducing the annual payment the City is currently paying by almost $100,000. Changes in personnel will also be occurring in the new budget. Han- degard says City Public Works employ- ees are no longer part of a union. Early in 2015 the City Council reclassified several positions on the staff, including changing the City Recorder position to Assistant to the City Administrator/ City Recorder. A new position, Park Superintendent, was also created. The City has hired a new full time Public Works employee and is in the process of hiring one more, bring- ing the total number of full time, per- manent workers in the department back to three. Last year the Public Works Department had two temporary em- ployees. In addition, the City is current- ly in the process of hiring for a Planner/ GIS/Code Enforcement Officer. Other items of note in the 2015-16 Budget: • Healthcare premiums are expected to increase by 7% and healthcare expen- ditures are expected to increase by 15% with the addition of new employees. • In the 2013-14 budget year the City saw a 1% reduction in water revenues of $12,649. Revenues for 2014-15 are expected to be up by $101,316, 13% over what was budgeted. This was ac- complished through fiscal management that included implementation of a new billing system, and the Water Meter Ground Truthing project which con- firmed all water meters in the system. • The City has budgeted for the pur- chase of a new tractor which will cost $25,753 and will be financed over 4 four years. The cost will be split be- tween several funds including the Gen- eral Fund, Parks, Cemetery, Water, and Sewer. reflecting the spirit of our community Wyden Holds Town Hall US Senator Ron Wyden held a Town Hall Meeting in Vernonia on June 11 th . Approximately 50 people attending the meeting at the Cabin in Vernonia, where Wyden spent 90 minutes fielding questions from the crowd. When Wyden was first elected as a US Senator from Oregon in 1996 he pledged to hold a meeting in each county every year to hear the concerns of constituents. This meeting in Columbia County was Wyden’s 733rd Town Hall meeting. Wyden, after being introduced by Vernonia City Councilor Kim Tierney, wasted little time on formalities, and immediately began taking questions from the audience, which is the usual format at his Town Halls. Wyden took time part way through the meeting, even though he wasn’t directly asked about it, to address the Transpacific Trade Partnership (TTP), which is currently a hot topic nationally. Wyden has been targeted by opponents of the trade agreement for his leadership on this issue. Wyden explained that right now Congress is working on the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), which are the rules for the trade agreement and has nothing to do with actually signing an agreement. Once the rules are in place then the details of the agreement can be worked out. Wyden said he believes trade done correctly is beneficial to Oregonians because one out of five jobs in Oregon depends on international trade and trade jobs often pay better than non- trade jobs. Wyden said raising wages for middle class families is a priority. Wyden explained that by 2015 there could be one billion middle class people in developing countries with disposable income to spend on products produced July 4 th Fireworks Viewing The City Council approved the non-play field area of Spencer Park to be open temporarily for citizens to view the July 4 th fireworks display sponsored by the VRFPD. The Public Works Department has been fertilizing, mowing, and preparing the new fields for fall youth sports. Citizens are asked to refrain from walking or siting on the new field areas. The perimeters of the closed sections will be marked prior to the 4 th of July. The New Spencer Park will be open following a Grand Opening Ceremony Saturday, August 8 th at 9:00 am. The youth sports teams will hold ceremonial first games at the new fields prior to the Jamboree parade. More details about the Grand Opening to come. in the US. He believes it’s important that some of those products are made in Oregon and for Oregonians to get good paying jobs from the production of those products. “My philosophy for the economy is, ‘Grow it here, make it here, add value to it here and then ship it somewhere,’” said Wyden. Wyden says there are a lot of issues with the trade agreement and those against it have made valid points, which he says he has tried to address. He says he is concerned about the secrecy around the agreement. Wyden says new rules being considered would require that any trade agreement would have to be made public for 60 days before the President signs it and it will be public for an additional 30-60 days before the House or Senate vote on it. “All this secrecy has been ridiculous,” said Wyden. Jim Buxton later raised concerns about some of the details in the Fast Track process, particularly a supposedly sweet deal for drug companies. Wyden identified Buxton’s concern as “the expansion of the Donut Hole,” and explained it as the part of Medicare that is not covered - health care expenses are covered early in the process and for catastrophic loss, but the middle costs are often not covered. Wyden says he is continued on page 6
