city news
november16
2017
5
Vernonia City News...
At the November 6, 2017 City Council Meeting:
Council Adopts Ordinance to Restrict Smoking in
Parks – The City Council voted 4-0 to adopt Ordi-
nance 914, which regulates smoking in City Parks. The
ordinance takes effect in 30 days from adoption. (See
full story on front page.)
Council Discusses Greenman Field Bleachers – Fol-
lowing a joint workshop between the City Council and
the Parks Committee on October 30, Council again dis-
cussed the current repairs needed for the stadium roof
structure at Greenman Field. The roof was deemed un-
safe by an engineer this summer. They also discussed
potential future uses for the stadium after the School
District constructs a new field at the school campus
and no longer has need to lease the field from the City.
It was agreed that the City does not see the potential
for future use that would warrant the expense needed
to make long-term repairs. Council directed City Ad-
ministrator Josette Mitchell to attend the School Board
meeting on November 9 and ask the School District to
abide by their lease, which requires them to maintain
the field and the structure, and either pay to have a tem-
porary fix done to secure the roof through the winter,
estimated at $15,000, or install security fencing to re-
duce liability to both the City and the District.
Council Approves Streets Recommendations – Coun-
cil approved three recommendations from the Public
Works Committee which would begin the process of
addressing additional street and stormwater repairs and
upgrades. Council approved recommendations that
would propose a cost sharing plan with residents on OA
Hill to improve alleyways in that neighborhood. They
also approved recommendations to gather informa-
tion for survey work, preliminary engineering and cost
analysis to build out Louisiana Avenue, build a con-
nector street between the north and south sections of
Louisianna Avenue, and build a connector to E Street.
Council Approves Parks Recommendations – Coun-
cil approved two recommendations from the Parks
Committee for upgrades to Spencer Park. Council ap-
proved spending $500 to hire Robert Tidwell of Knot
Just a Bear to carve one of the stumps in front of Spen-
cer Park into a salmon. They also approved starting the
Spencer Park Tree Project which would allow citizens
to purchase a memorial tree from a list of approved
trees which would be planted in various locations
around the park. The project is being headed by Parks
Committee member Steve Whiteman, who would like
to see places in the park for people to relax and enjoy
the park. Anyone interested in purchasing a memorial
tree should contact City Hall.
Police Chief Report – Police Chief Mike Conner
confirmed that Officer Cody Pesio will be leaving the
force on November 14. Conner said he will be clos-
ing the hiring process to replace Pesio on November
17. Conner also said he is continuing the background
check process on one applicant for the Reserve Officer
program.
City Administrator Report – City Administrator Jo-
sette Mitchell updated the Council on several ongoing
projects and issues, including the Wastewater Treat-
ment Plant project, Nickerson Ridge Estates, Spencer
Park Picnic Shelter, the Green Bridge, and the Airport
Seismic Monitoring Station.
Mitchell told the Council construction con-
tracts are being prepared for the Senior Center/Food
Bank facility. She said it looks like construction will
begin in the spring, one year later than was originally
projected.
Mitchell said the first phase of the streets and
storm water upgrade project authorized by the Coun-
cil is complete; next up is finishing work on G Street,
culvert and side rock on Polk Avenue, and grading, re-
rocking and a cold patch at the entrance to Old Bridge
Street.
Mitchell said a meeting concerning mitigating
flood run-off from Knickerson Creek was held with
Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, Department of
State Lands, The Upper Nehalem Watershed Council,
and local homeowners. Mitchell said the solution is
probably a three year project to address restoration of
the creek that would include creating swale areas to
slow down water flow and create storage, and the re-
moval of the culvert at the end of Nickerson Avenue.
Council Meets in Executive Session – Council met
in Executive Session under ORS.192.660 (2) (h) To
consult with counsel concerning the legal rights and
duties of a public body with regard to current litigation
or litigation likely to be filed. Following their return to
Open Session, the Council directed the City Admin-
istrator to prepare a cost estimate for an engineering
report. Council took no further action and did not pro-
vide any further information for the audience concern-
ing this action.
Topics From the Floor – Jeff Goodman said he had
concerns about provisions in the City’s livestock or-
dinance which does not allow a resident to keep live-
stock within 15 feet of an inhabited structure. He said
he keeps livestock on his covered porch and has been
told by code enforcement this is not allowed. He asked
Council to revisit the ordinance.
Wendy Sears provided an update on the Skate
Park project and presented Council with petitions with
over 300 names, including school students, who were
in favor of a skate park. She asked Council to give
approval for the project so she can begin fundraising.
Council asked Sears to meet with the City Administra-
tor and the Parks Committee.
Tim Nebergall told Council he has a problem
with his water line, which runs through several other
properties. There was a leak but he has been unable to
receive permission to go onto the other property to fix
it. The water shut off and meter are also on other prop-
erty owners’ land, which has also caused problems. He
is looking for help in solving his issues.
Michelle Moline provided an update on the
easement issue at the Lincoln School property where
she lives and runs a business. She thanked City Ad-
ministrator Josette Mitchell for her help with the issue
and said a fence will be installed which should alleviate
some issues with neighbors.
Brittanie Roberts said the proposed ordinance
to restrict smoking in parks is a good compromise and
encouraged the Council to do what they feel is best for
the community when they vote on it.
Council Approves Smoking Regulations in Parks
from the Vernonia Schools OSSOM
(Operation Student Safety On the Move)
group took part in the nationwide Kick
Butts campaign to help curb tobacco use
by youths, collecting cigarette butts and
tobacco litter at Hawkins Park and the
Spencer Park play shed. Students noted
that while the parks looked clean of ciga-
rette butts at first, upon closer inspection
there were quite a lot – especially for
the month of March. Students concurred
that they see a large increase in cigarette
butt litter in the parks as the weather
gets warmer each year. Students were
also surprised about other things they
found, including alcohol containers,
broken glass, children’s pacifiers, and a
few syringes. Students later made a pre-
sentation about their findings to the City
The Vernonia
Transfer Station
is open on the
1st and 3rd Saturday
in November and
December
8am-2pm
November 18
December 2 & 16
Dates and times are subject
to change due to weather
Council.
In July of 2017 the Parks Com-
mittee returned to City Council and pre-
sented a compromise ordinance that did
not completely ban smoking, but instead
restricted smoking to designated areas in
some parks, created smoke free areas in
other parks, and banned smoking in two
smaller parks where it would be easy for
smokers to step outside park boundaries
in order to smoke.
City Administrator Josette
Mitchell raised several questions about
the feasibility of implementing specific
parts of the recommendation and Coun-
cil asked her to work with the Parks
Committee to clarify and simplify the
proposal before bringing it back for
adoption.
Vernonia City Council
Meetings and Closures
City Council Meetings
are scheduled for 7:00 pm:
Monday, November 20, 2017
Monday, December 4, 2017
City Closures
are scheduled for:
Thursday, November 23, 2017
Friday, November 24, 2017
Thanksgiving Holiday
Dates and times subject to change
continued from front page
Council discussed the revised
version of the ordinance at their August
21, 2017 meeting. Numerous public dis-
cussions on social media concerning the
issue took place and several citizens,
both for and against the ordinance, ad-
dressed the Council during the Topics
From the Floor portion of their Septem-
ber 18 meeting, both in person and by
email. At that meeting Council chose to
table a scheduled vote on the ordinance
and asked city staff to prepare a survey
on the issue so they could receive more
community input before making a deci-
sion. The survey was sent out with the
City utility bills and copies of the survey
were also made available to other citi-
zens at City Hall.
At their October 16, 2017 meet-
ing, Council received the results of the
survey which had 153 individuals re-
sponding, with 67 (45.76%) saying
they approved of restricting smoking in
parks, 3 saying they approved of restric-
tions but wanted to see changes in the
ordinance, and 83 (54.24%) saying they
disagreed with the proposed restrictions.
At their November 6, 2017
meeting Council adopted the Ordinance
with Councilor Bruce McNair making
the motion without any discussion. The
motion passed 4-0, with Councilor Su-
san Wagner not present at the meeting.
The ordinance takes effect 30 days from
adoption.
Police Blotter • November 1-13, 2017
Reports/Arests
• November 1, 2017 Citation after a Non
Injury Vehicle Crash for Careless Driving
and Driving Outside Restriction near
North Mist Drive
• November 2, 2017 Report of Outside
Agency Assist near Jefferson Avenue
• November 4, 2017 Citation for Burning
of Certain Materials near “F” Street
• November 4, 2017 Arrest for Criminal
Trespass II near Jefferson Avenue
• November 7, 2017 Arrest for Attempted
Burglary, Criminal Trespass II, and
Violation of a Release Agreement near
Jefferson Avenue
Citations/Other
• November 3, 2017 Citation for Title 3-02
Nuisance Control Vioaltions
• November 6, 2017 Citation for Driving
While Suspended and Failure to Carry
Proof of Insurance near Rose Avenue
• November 7, 2017 Citation for Driving
While Suspended near Maple Street
Vernonia Police Department responds
to calls that do not always end in
Arrest, Report, or Citation. 11/01/2017
through 11/13/2017 VPD had 89 calls
for service.
