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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 18, 1982)
• The Sandy Post I V oi. 72 N o. 7 District budget hit by revenue shortfall * ». •g I ’ I e b> DAN DILLON X I It ’s a good news—bad news situa lion for budgeters in the Sandy Elementary District The good news is that the overall proposed budget increase is the smallest in more than seven years The bad news is that, because of revenue shortfalls, the total levy re quirement jumped dramatically. District patrons will have an oppor tumty to voice their opinions about the proposed 1982 83 Sandy Elemen tary District budget tonight at 7:30 p m. in a public hearing in the library at Cedar Ridge School. Sandy's situation is not unique School districts statewide are faced with the same problem and it could get worse if the state Legislature makes further cuts in basic school support in the wake of the newly- found $100 million deficit at the state level. In a recent survey of 50 school districts statewide, overall budgets rose from 0 to 15 percent with an average of 6.1 percent. However, the levy requirem ent rang d from 0 to an 87 percent increase at Astoria, with an average of 27 percent. In Sandy, the total requirement is up 9.1 percent, about on course with inflation, said Superintendent Clark Lund The levy requirement, on the other hand, is up 30 percent It will mark a new trend in the district's tax rate too "Historically, we’ve had a dropp ing rate," Lund said, "but this is the year it’s going to swing back " Without final property evaluation completed by the County Assessor, Lund is hesitant to make a guess as to the tax rate, but he expects it will be more than the $8 21 per $1.000 assess ed valuation it was last year. - •j ' j R E V E N U E SHAKING DOWN "Outside revenue is not available," Lund said simply "While you have a decline in revenue, you’re having an increase in program costs because of if by DAN DILLON City officials are happy these days with the way things have turned out lately At Tuesday evening's City Council meeting hardly a discouraging word could be heard as the success of the city's comprehensive plan was relayed, a new Economic Develop m ent Com m ission re p o rt was presented and news that the sewer treatment plant expansion is pro gressing was told. The biggest news for the city’s future was the acknowledgement of the comprehensive plan by the state Land Conservation and Development Commission That gives the city a roadmap for the next 20 years as it deals with expansion and land-use issues (See related story elsewhere on this page.) Attracting new businesses to keep a sound economic base is the goal of the Economic Development Commis- Li 1 I (j D EVELO PM EN T REPORT Tuesday. George Morgan, chair man of the committee, presented the 74-page study to the council with hopes that it will be a useful tool in developing the city's industrial and commercial base He also asked that the city consider annexation of potential industrial I Inside SECTION I Keeping Posted Inside Business School Lunch Menus Senior Center News Obituaries Editorials. Letters Sports, Recreation 2 3 5 5 5 6 7-8 SECTION II Area News 1 Hoodland Happenings 1 Around the County 2 Home and Garden 4 Classified Advertising... 11-14 f l ?4T SECTION I I I TV Revue Inside Tab Local bank victim of 1st robbery inflation " Those counter-forces have con spired to make it difficult for budgeters Last year, the Sandy Elementary District received $1 7 million in basic school support from the state Lund said the district could have expected upwards of $19 million this year, if the state were not having budgeting problems Already. $16 3 million has been cut from the program statewide and some observers believe that total may rise as legislators wrestle with the newly found deficit announced Monday If that happens, the choice is sun pie, according to Lund "The only option would be to cur tail program," he said. " If they cut back more than the $16 3 million, it could really hurt us here.” Already, the district’s budget com mittee has cut $279,000 from the original budget proposal, leaing just one new program in the district—a modified athletics program for students at Cedar Ridge School. TAXES R E Q U IR E D UP As it stands now, the tot” ' budget is $5 45 million, up from $4 99 million a year ago To balance the budget, the district will have to ask taxpayers for $2 26 million Last year, the district need ed only $1 59 million. Under new state law, there will be no Ballot A and Ballot B as such However, if the district’s levy is ap proved by voters March 30, $18 million will be eligible for state reim bursement. That reimbursement totals 30 percent. The remaining $460.000 would be totally financed by local taxpayers Lund sees two options for tax payers in the district. “ If they like the program and like what we re doing they have to accept the burden of responsibility, because there's a shift,” he said. " If they can’t endorse it, then there will have to be rollbacks." City happy w ith plans fo r growth, business lands so that larger parcels might be available for potential developers. In the report, the commission urg ed continued development of a diver sified light industrial base, continued development of the city’s retail goods and services to parallel other growth and implementation of a program whereby the city would take an ac tive role in promoting economic development. The report also suggested that the commission continue to function as an advisor to the council and called for creation of a comprehensive economic development plan within the next two years Continued development of the light industrial base would require expan sion of the Sandy Sewage Treatment Plant, according to the report, "if this most basic strategy is to be achieved " PLANT WORK PROG REUSING City Manager Roger Jordan told the council that almost all the work has been accomplished on the sewage treatment plant study, with the exception of an inflow and in filtration study which has been slow ed by winter weather. That study is crucial for the life of the plant According to a study prepared last year, the treatment plant could handle an additional 500 connections if the problem of excess water leaking into the system could be alleviated, along with modifica tions to the plant and purchase of a sludge truck "It appears at this time that we have a pretty severe inflow and in filtration problem." Jordan said, " b u t th a t's a p re tty broad statement." A meter has been placed at the plant to measure the volume of ex cess water that enters the plant dur ing rainy weather Jordan cautioned that the system "doesn't lend itself to an easy solu tion at this tim e," but said that it ap pears the plant handles even less volume during dry weather than had been previously estimated So. after the inflow and infiltration problem is resolved, the city will be all right for some time In other action, the city council: —Learned that a 24-hour religious programming station will replace the movie channel on the Warner Cable system in the near future Single Copy 25« A bank officer acted on impulse last T h u rs d a y a fte rn o o n and thwarted the first bank robbery in the 71-year history of Clackamas County Bank’s Sandy branch Ed Storey, 32, assistant vice presi dent of the bank, tackled and held the robber on the grounds of Sandy Elementary School across the street from the bank He was assisted by Bobbi Swan, 39, senior vice president of the bank. She helped Storey hold the robber until Sandy police arrived According to police reports, a man approached a teller in the bank short ly after 3 p m . and demanded money. He then fled out the back door of the bank and Storey pursued him. Sandy police arrested Cameron Drew Schleiss, 25, address unknown, and charged him with first-degree robbery. He was taken to Clackamas County Jail. Photo by Sco(l New ton Junior Pete Watkins of Sandy High School smiles as he says, "Checkmate," in a match during Saturday's Timber Valley League chess tournament. Watkins, second board for the Pioneers, was the only competitor to win all three mat ches. Coach Roger Ford said Watkins "squashed" his opposition in winning the second board title. After Storey tackled the suspect, an undisclosed amount of cash broke free and was blown about in the wind ear the Sandy Swim Center. It was recovered by bank employees This marked the first time the San dy branch has been robbed in the bank's history Bank president Fred Proctor, how ever, re c a lle d two e a rlie r burglary attempts foiled by his banker father when Fred was only 6 or 8 years old. The Sandy bank was then located on M ain S treet (now P ion eer Boulevard) near the present site of Heritage Square "The second tim e," recalled Proc tor, “ I followed dad over. The alarm had gone off at home. "They bored a hole through the wall. They got away, but they dam near got shot " Like bank executives Swan and Storey, who tackled the robbery suspect here last week, Fred’s dad took no nonsense, either "Dad always had a shotgun and a 45 in his desk," Proctor recalled. "But that was back when men like Dillinger roamed the country in their old cars." Proctor said this is the first time in his 32 years of banking that a robber ever made off with any loot. •• I Sandy plan acknowledged by state by DAN DILLON Mt, Hood and Sandy is really receiving a lot of urbanization pressures. “ The commission acknowledg ed in its decision that the plan will be a good plan for Sandy's future," she said. "The effort was Io develop a comprehensive plan with the best interests of the community in mind," said City Manager Roger Jordan. “ We’re happy it complies (with statewide guidelines)." The plan organizes the relation ships between people, land, resources and facilities and is designed to guide development of the community. "The community can now in itiate planning efforts it has been carrying on since the plan was After three years of planning, writing and revising, the city of Sandy’s comprehensive plan has been acknowledged by the state Land Conservation and Develop ment Commission The decision, mad^ Feb. 5, means the city’s 2O-year long- range plan conforms to statewide land-use goals and makes it the guideline by which future land-use decisions will be made " I t ’s a milestone for Sandy because Sandy has really grown a lo t," said Linda McPherson, LCDC field representative in Portland. "It's no longer the sleepy, litfle town on the road to adopted by the City Council," Jor dan said. "When individual land-use ac tions are in compliance with the comprehensive plan, we should not have any challenges from the state—or we hope no challenges should occur,” he said. "It's a long-range plan and we will take a look at individual ac tions based on the long-range plan," Jordan said. "Now land uses will have to comply with the plan, rather than going to LCDC’s goals to justify every action. "Everyone now knows what will happen to their property and the abutting property." The plan was submitted for LCDC approval in July 1980 after ♦ • 6 O F it had been O K’d by the Sandy Ci ty Council. Initial LCDC review in May 1981 led to a continuance order, granted to make minor cor rections. Those deficiencies were cor rected and the plan was re-filed in October 1981. The work to make the correc tions was "a very cooperative pro cess," McPherson said "The commission felt that Sandy really exemplified a spirit of coopera tion." f i d • • I’ ;. •« 5 W W ith acknow ledgem ent by LCDC, the plan will not remain static. A minor review of the plan is to occur in two years, according to Jordan, and a major review will take place every five years /y ; Mt. Hood plan review starts tonight A meeting tonight kicks off a series of citizen meetings to up date Clackamas County's 1976 Mt Hood Community Land Use Plan The first of five meetings will be held at 7:30 p m tonight. Feb 18. at the Hoodland Womens Club on Salmon River Road, east of Highway 26 The meetings, which will run through May, result partially from the December 1981 state I^and Conservation and Develop ment Commission order that the County review the Mt Hood area plan, and partially from the Coun ty ’» own provision that the plan be updated at five-year intervals, ac cording to Ardis Stevenson, En vironmental .Services assistant director. LCDC gave the County 150 days, or until May 30, to review land use designations for rural areas out side the Hoodland Service District and to protect identified wet lands in the 85,000-acre Mt Hood cor ridor t The plan update covers the area from Alder Creek and Cherryville on the west to the Clackamas County line east of Government Camp Tonight's meeting is to review resource maps and inventory data to be sure the County is using the most accurate and current infor mation on existing land uses, loca tions of wet lands and natural resources and parcel sizes, Stevenson said "Citizens' help with the data is absolutely essential, because it's basic to locating wet lands that need protection and to justifying rural zoning for areas that are already committed to non farm or non forest uses," she said The Mt Hood Community Plan was unchallenged from its 1976 adoption until late last spring, Then, the citizens group, ECOS, objected to LCDC acknowledge ment of the plan, contending that it violated statewide planning goals for protection of wet lands A ’ ; ' f. and preservation of farm and forest lands In December, LCDC determin ed that land within the Hoodland Sewer District was indeed com mitted to non farm or non-forest uses, but directed the County to reconsider rural zoning outside the District and to review ECOS’ information on wet lands in the Mt Hood corridor "The County sees the update of the Mt Hood plan as an opportuni ty not only to respond to LCDC’» direction, but to make the plan more useful for the people in the M t. Hood co rrid o r and the County," Stevenson said "The plan update w ill em phasize the issues on which LCDC requested additional work and will rely on many of the policies that are in the overall County plan and ordinances which have already been acknowledged by LCDC as meeting the statewide planning goals," she said Based on citizen verification of the County’s basic data, En vironmental Services staff will develop a draft proposal A sum mary of the draft will be mailed to property owners, com m unity planning organizations and af fected agencies about March 5. At a March 18 meeting, citizens will be given the opportunity to discuss the Draft Plan Update, which will include a map showing proposed land use designations as well as proposed policies. County staff »ays the purpose of the March meeting is to explain the draft and to hear citizen’s sug gestions for changes and im provements Following the March discus sion, County staff will revise the "d ra ft" into a "proposed" plan. That will be distributed in ad vance at a citizens information meeting in April and public hear ings by the Planning Commission and Board of County Commis sioners in May » y 1 .* 7 m ® f’ ,
