4
letters to the editor/community bulletin board
january7
2016
Readers Lend Their Voices...
To the Editor,
The Vernonia Rural Fire
Protection District is starting The Smoke
Alarm Installation Program.
This program is designed to
allow trained personnel to enter your
home or apartment and assess your
smoke alarm needs.
Oregon law requires landlords
to provide working smoke alarms
for their rental units. It is the renter’s
responsibility to test these alarms and
replace the batteries as needed. Smoke
alarms are only rated to last for a period
of 10 years. Any alarms older than 10
years, or alarms that cannot be correctly
dated, must be replaced.
Oregon law also requires
landlords to provide a CO detector when
there is a CO source in the dwelling, and
in all homes built in 2011 or thereafter
whether there is a CO source or not.
This program is designed to help
homeowners and tenants by determining
where the smoke alarms should be
installed throughout the home, provide
new batteries where needed, and will
provide some new smoke alarms on a
case by case basis.
The Oregon Office of State Fire
Marshal is providing 100 new smoke
alarms to assist with this project, but
they will go fast. Due to the limited
number of available new smoke alarms,
the program will be done on a first come,
first served basis.
PUBLIC NOTICE
COLUMBIA COUNTY, OREGON
NOTICE OF SELECT FARE
REDUCTION CC RIDER TRANSIT
LINES 4, 5 AND 7
TO: ALL INTERESTED PERSONS
Columbia County Rider (CC Rider)
announces the opportunity for
the general public to comment on
the proposed reduction of fares
for certain segments of Line 4 –
Clatskanie, Line 5 – Kelso and Line
7 – Lower Columbia Connector. The
proposed fare reduction for Line 4 is
for the segment of the route between
Columbia City and the St Helens
Transit Center. The proposed fare
reduction is from the current $5.00
per boarding to $2.00 per boarding.
For Line 5, the proposed fare
reduction is for trips from Rainier to
all destinations in the Longview/Kelso
urban area served by CC Rider. The
proposed reduction is from $6.00
to $2.00 per boarding. For Line 7,
the proposed fare reduction applies
only to weekend service between
Columbia City and St Helens and
Scappoose. The proposed fare
reduction is from $5.00 to $2.00 per
boarding.
The public is invited to comment at
the Board of County Commissioners
Public Hearing scheduled for:
January 13, 2016
10:00 AM
Commission Hearing Room
Columbia County Courthouse
230 Strand Street
St Helens, OR 97051
For more information, please contact:
Michael Ray
Columbia County Transit Division
230 Strand Street
St Helens, Oregon 97051
503-366-8505; or
by visiting the Columbia County
Rider web site:
www.columbiacountyrider.com
If you are a renter, and you do
not have working smoke alarms in your
rental unit, contact your landlord or
property manager right away. We can
install the smoke alarms at the time of
our inspection, provided the alarms have
been obtained prior to the scheduled
inspection.
Statistics provided by the
Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal
show that between 2004 and 2013 there
were 348 fire related fatalities and 2,572
fire related injuries.
In the cases where there were
fatalities, only 54% had smoke alarms
installed in the structures. Of the 54%,
only 35% of those alarms were working
smoking alarms.
In the cases where fire related
injuries were reported, 69% had smoke
alarms installed, but only 63% of those
were working smoke alarms.
Of the smoke alarms that failed,
86% were due to dead or missing batteries,
5% were due to improper maintenance,
5% were improper installation, and 4%
were listed as “other”.
Statistics show that working
smoke alarms, properly installed and
maintained, save lives and reduce fire
related injuries.
The Smoke Alarm Installation
and Inspection Program will be starting
in the next 3 to 4 weeks.
If you are a renter in need of
working smoke alarms, please use this
time period to contact your landlord or
property manager to obtain working
smoke alarms, and inquire about CO
detectors for your home or apartment
prior to applying for the Smoke Alarm
Installation and Inspection Program.
If you live in the Vernonia Rural
Fire Protection District, please stop by
the fire station located at 555 E. Bridge
St. and pick up an application form
requesting an inspection and installation
of smoke alarms for your home.
Watch for future postings on
our Facebook page for other locations
where you will be able to pick up an
application.
After you complete your
application, you can drop it off at
the fire station, or fax it to (503) 429-
2900, or mail it to:Vernonia Rural Fire
Protection District, Attention Smoke
Alarm Installation Program
555 E. Bridge St. Vernonia, OR 97064
The Vernonia City Council
reaffirmed their commitment to the
California Avenue Industrial Site Project
at their January 4, 2016 meeting.
City Planning staff member
Ben Fousek presented the Council with
a background report and proposal to
renew their plans to assist partners in
developing an industrial site on private
property adjacent to the old OA Mill
Site.
The project is designed, and was
initially explored, with the intention of
moving the business facility of Photo
Solutions and preserving 12 family wage
jobs that the business provides for local
Vernonia workers.
Photo Solutions was badly
flooded in 2007 and is the final FEMA
Upcoming
Events
Vernonia Ballet presents Frozen
- Friday, January 22, 7:00 pm at
the Vernonia Schools Commons.
Sincerely,
Robert Schattschneider P.I.O. VRFPD
(971) 225-8332 (cell)
(503) 429-8252 (office)
pio.vrfpd@outlook.com
HOW TO SEND LETTERS TO
THE EDITOR
Vernonia’s Voice welcomes and requests
your thoughts, opinions and ideas. Please
include your name, address and phone
number, limit your letters to 300 words or
less. Vernonia’s Voice reserves the right to
edit, omit, respond or ask for a response
to letters submitted. We will print letters
space permitting. Deadline is the 1st and
3rd Monday of each month. Email: scott@
vernoniasvoice.com or mail to: Letters, PO
Box 55, Vernonia, OR 97064.
City Revives California Avenue Project
Vernonia Weather
November 2015
DATE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
HIGH
58
54
54
48
50
59
51
49
51
45
52
49
54
54
45
47
56
47
46
45
48
44
45
41
43
47
48
48
45
36
LOW
44
34
32
41
46
41
44
36
35
33
32
32
48
40
31
45
34
41
30
25
24
25
35
24
21
18
16
16
16
30
PRECIP
.40
.07
T
T
T
T
.20
.16
T
.32
.01
.33
1.04
.55
.25
1.28
1.20
.53
T
0
0
0
.50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Ave/Tot
48.6
32.3
6.84
Weather data is collected at the
U.S. Weather station at the
Vernonia Water Plant
The
Mist-Birkenfeld
RFPD
Board of Directors will meet
Tuesday, January 19, 2016 at
7:00 pm at the Main Station,
12525 HWY 202, Mist, OR.
Agenda items include but are
not limited to usual order of
business, citizen input, Fire
Chief’s report, financial reports
and any other business needing
to be discussed.
William DeJager
-Board President
acquisition project under the City’s
partnership with Columbia County.
Two likely sites near the end of
California Avenue have been surveyed
and identified as above the Base Flood
Elevation, on property owned by Casey
Mitchell.
An absence of recent leadership
at the City to drive the project caused
it to languish. A recent review of
the project by City staff has revealed
new opportunities to use existing City
System Development Charge (SDC)
funds as a match for other private
and public investment to expand city
systems capacity and revive and expand
the California Avenue Project.
Fousek told the Council that the
goals of the revised project are:
• Save current jobs by keeping Photo
Solutions in Vernonia
• Establish an anchor high-tech business
in a Vernonia business park with room
for expansion
• Fix long term sewer problems on
Spencer Hill
• Develop an access route to the City
recreational site at the newly developed
wetlands at the Mill Site
• Create a viable by-pass for emergencies
on Highway 47 at OA Hill
continued on page 6
Friends of the Vernonia Public Library
Family:
Minimum:
Membership Dues:
$10.00
Individual:
$5.00
$1.00 plus 2 hours minimum of work in the library
Make checks payable to: Friends of the Vernonia Public Library
Mailing Address: 701 Weed Avenue, Vernonia, OR 97064
Name
Address
City
Phone
Date
State
Zip
Amount Enclosed $
I am interested in helping with the following committees (optional):
Please Circle •Membership •Endowments •Book Sales •Publicity & Public
Relations •Fund Raising •Library Services •Finance-Budget-Legal Matters
