Image provided by: Friends of the Sandy Public Library; Sandy, OR
About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (June 20, 1985)
J 3 iA N D V (O r* ) POST Thur» I Jun« 20 I9*S (S«< I) The Sandy Post Editorial & Opinion Scott N e w to n , e d ito r K im b e rly N elson, a d v e rtis in g re p re s e n ta tiv e Weed abatement program viable One of our favorite running stories is weed abatement. Every year at this time we hear people threaten to travel someplace and plant thistles in the yard of some absentee landlord. We hear people question why the City Council hasn’t done something about some overgrown lot. An element of judgment is involved in weed abatement cases to determine whether an overgrown lot is truly causing a public nuisance. Therefore, there is obviously an opportuni ty for human error. However, the mechanism for solving the problem of overgrown lots is a good one. The problem of weeds and noxious vegetation is covered in the health and safety section of the city code. Overgrown lots are said to be a problem when the vegetation goes to seed, dries out and causes a fire hazard, or creates an obstruction, impeding the flow of traffic. Dandelions do not constitute a public nuisance. There may be some Henry David Thoreau-types who object to having to mow their lawns based on philosophical prin ciples, but it is pretty much accepted that if a person wants to live in town, that person must not allow his property or ac tivities to infringe upon the rights of others. The city’s enforcement procedure is a drawn-out affair guaranteeing the property owner certain rights. A list of lots found not to be in compliance were taken to the City Council Monday evening. The city has already made an effort to con tact these residents, and some have already mowed or cleaned up their lots. Compliance is said to be good locally. Notices are posted on the lots in question following the City Council’s determination of a nuisance, and owners of record are sent a certified letter telling of the council action. To appeal, a person must explain — in writing — why their property is not in violation. That person w ill be allowed to ad dress the City Council, which w ill then rule on the individual case. If found in violation of the city code, that person then has 10 days to comply. If that person still does not mow or clean up his lot, the city may hire a contractor to do the work, and the property owner w ill be charged. The city has an account to pay the contrac- f Wilf ♦ r\mrw»v»4»’ W V* «-t ) t MAAMWwi J *** J A •> AA* •••© ♦»•ii*« •* lien can be filed against the owner’s property. The City Council does have a workable method of dealing with weed abatement, and we feel they have used good judg ment in enforcing the ordinance. L etters to the editor Veterans tribute represents corridor I have been reading all the stories, enter the Sandy-Mt. Hood corridor. 1 letters to the editor and etc. about the feel it does not belong just to Sandy, war memorial and can no longer re but to everyone who has ever had a main silent. fam ily member, friend or relative in I was at the VFW Post the night the any branch of the service, that fought m iniature statue was brought in, and so desperately for "FR E E D O M ” no it is the most moving "trib u te ” 1 matter how many years or wars ago have ever seen. The lib ra ry and Meinig Park are The conversation that night said it beautiful, but not enough people was to be a tribute to honor every would see it. veteran of the U.S.A. that has ever I am a member of the VFW Aux served in any branch of the service, ilia ry, and very proud of it. I w ill also be it a man or woman. Now all of a be working very hard collecting sudden someone is trying to turn this donations for it, but only i f it remains into a “ Vietnam War M em orial." I a tribute to honor all veterans w ill fight this from the word go! Not because I was. or am, for or against I also feel all the school children that war, but because that is not what from the Sandy School D istrict, Bull this statue is to represent. Run and Welches, should be given the School children should run a ‘dimes for veterans’ campaign. A “ m em orial'' is for the dead. A "trib u te ” is for the living and the dead Or as the dictionary says, a personal offering, compliment or the like, given in gratitude, esteem or regard There are lots of w ar memorials. Now it is tim e for a T R IB U T E TO HONOR A L L VETERANS! 1 also feel the entrance to Sandy is the only place for this tribute. What better way to show how proud we are of our veteran than to have a statue of him on display for all to see as they chance to have “ a d im e fo r veterans” campaign so they can feel like they too had a hand in honoring the veterans for making the United States of America the best place to live in the world! So now, I w ill get off my soap box with just one more favor to ask — PLEASE everyone give what you can to help make this statue a reality in the shortest time possible, so we can all start to enjoy it. Ethel Annis Brightwood Policy on letters Letters to the editor should be typed, double-spaced and signed An address and telephone number should also be provided, although on ly the name of the letter w rite r and the city or area he is from w ill be published Letter writers may also wish to in clude a title or office held if it is ap propriate considering the subject matter The news deadline of noon, Tues day is also the deadline for letters to the editor Letters should be accurate, free of libelous remarks and in good taste This newspaper attempts to publish all letters it receives from local residents. We reserve the right to edit letters to conform to style guidelines or for length A preferred maximum length is 300 words Where to write Representative Bob Shiprack H 292 State Capitol Salem. Ore »7310 378-8784 Senator Steve Starkovich S-223 State Capitol Salem, Ore 97310 378-8810 k /æ / Commentary co state wages war against gypsy moth by GOV. VIC ATIYEH the mothbusters are deadly serious about eradicating this dangerous One of these days, someone may pest. knock on your door and ask an The gypsy moth threatens to strip unusual question. “ Would it be O K ," forests of their foliage, residential you may be asked, “ if we put one of landscaping of its beauty, and Orego these traps in your camélia bush9” nians of thousands of jobs The gypsy moth reproduces rapid The person asking the question w ill ly : A single egg mass can generate represent our state Department of more than a thousand larvae. Agriculture, carry a triangular card The gypsy moth caterpillar seems board trap, and be one of the front almost insatiable: It feeds on more line troops in our war on the gypsy than 300 different trees and shrubs. moth The gypsy moth, as its name im These people w ill be placing about plies, is a traveler: It has moved into 32,000 traps in a ll 36 Oregon counties diverse regions of the U S. by a t to see if we are winning our cam ta c h in g its e lf to re c re a tio n a l paign against the gypsy moth 1 urge vehicles, babecues, lawn furniture you to cooperate with them. and other outdoor items transported Some of these people have taken to between states calling themselves "mothbusters.” That is why wood products and out Like the team B ill M urray led in door items in parts of Lane County — the movie "Ghostbusters," these the n a tio n ’ s la rg e s t tim b e r - men and women are using specializ producing county — must be in ed weapons in a high-stakes battle spected before leaving the quaran against an elusive enemy. tine area, and why it is essential for Oregonians to cooperate Unlike the Ghostbusters, however. Other states do not want our gypsy people, a half-m illion gallons of the moths, and we want to avoid their B.t. biological insecticide m ixture, spread with’in Oregon. California law and as many as 26 helicopters actually provides for a fine up to Although early indications are that $25.000 for introduction of pests such this assault was successful, we w ill as the gypsy moth. not know the degree of success until The gypsy moth has become such a we check the traps in August and serious problem in some states, September p rim a rily in the Northeast, that of That is why represent Hives of our ficials have given up trying to agriculture department are now set eliminate them, and now try only to ting out traps statewide control them Traps such as these first identified Unchecked in Oregon, the gypsy the problem Although we trapped moth could conceivably defoliate only four gypsy moths at Pleasant n ea rly 2 m illio n acres o f oui H ill southeast of Eugene in 1963, last broadleaf forests In the short term, year the moths lite ra lly clogged the the moth could cost Oregonians traps lite ra lly m illions in payrolls if other The non-toxic traps we are setting states refuse to admit our tim ber pro out this summer - and that you may ducts and Christmas trees be asked to perm it on your property This spring, we turned an $11 — w ill harm neither people nor their m illion aerial assault loose on the pets Agriculture employees w ill gypsy moth in Lane County. This carry identification. assault — the biggest gypsy moth eradication effort ever undertaken So if you are asked to joing the west of the Mississippi — brought mothbusters by volunteering your together an arm y of more than 200 yard for a trap, please sign up Salem Scene North Dakota best business location by JACK ZIMMERMAN Associated Oregon Industries Alexander Grant has done it again For the sixth straight year, the Chicago-based accounting firm has announced Oregon’s climate for at tracting new manufacturing industry is lousy Reaction to the annual revelation has ranged from yawns to smirks And lawmakers in Salem — locked in the throes of attempts to adjourn th e ir c u rre n t re g u la r bie nn ial legislative session — seemed to ig nore it altogether Well they might, for despite pro testations from the Windy C ity’s bean-counters that their study is the cpitomy of objectivity, the exercise continues to discredit itself. Impetus for a nationwide manufac turing climate was provided by the Illinois Manufacturers Association a decade ago IMA commissioned the Fantus Company — a leading manufacturing plant site selection firm — to conduct such a study among the 48 contiguous states The idea was to convince the Illinois General Assembly to enact legisla tion that would halt deterioration of that state’s manufacturing base U tilizing some 15 measurement categories, the Fantus study ranked Texas most attractive, New York the worst and Illinois 35th. Oregon plac ed 40th Rankled by that study which plac ed California next to last, the Golden State commissioned its own study utilizing 88 measurements. Texas was still number one, California jumped to sixth, New York to 22nd, Illinois to 17th and Oregon to 32nd Despite the inconclusive results, IM A persuaded the Conference of State M anufacturers Associations (COSMA) to have another go at the project. Fantus desclined — claim ing such studies were inappropriate to the counseling it provides clients — and COSMA hired Alexander Grant That fir m ’s initia l study in 1979saw Texas plummet to 22nd place, New York sank to 46th, California to 36th and Oregon was 39th In 1980, Texas ascended to 18th, New York rem ain ed 46th. Illinois rose to 36th, Califor nia dropped to 45th and Oregon rose to its all-tim e high of 35th In 1981. Alexander Grant rated Texas se cond, New York 47th, Illinois 43rd, California 26th and Oregon 36th But Alexander Grant changed criteria in 1961 and that year's results couldn't be fa irly compared with previous studies Needless to say, members of COSMA began to look askance at the project and demanded more con siste n cy and s o p h is tic a tio n in methodology But the 1982 study was so flawed, COSMA — at the in sistence of its Oregon member, Associated Oregon Industries — withheld official sanction Oregon dipped to 43rd in that study Texas remained second, New York declined to 45th, Illinois was 42nd and California stayed at 26th Undaunted, Alexander Grant per sisted without COSMA backing In 1983 Texas dropped to sixth, New York rose to 39th, Illinois sank to 44th, California to 30th and Oregon to 47th The musical chairs results of the Al xander Grant studies evolve from several sources Despite the firm 's insistence criteria and methodology remain consistent — changes take place every year While the current 22 factors on which comparisons are made appear to remain constant — they nonetheless change At least eight changed substantial ly this year and Alexander Grant ad mits resuts of most of those cannot be compaçed with the year before In other instances, sources of infor mation for data relating to the 22 fac tors have changed In a few instances, specific infor mation was lacking at publication tim e — but the missing data didn't deter Alexander Grant from forging ahead with comparisons This year (1984 study) Oregon bounced up to 44th, Texas is 16th, New York 38th, Illinois 42nd and California 25th. Riding the crest in first and second places respectively are South and North Dakota' Another variable affecting results from year to year is the fact Alex ander Grant asks state manufac turers associations to rank the 22 fac tors in order of importance each year Changing importance of fac tors and the varying number of associations providing such rankings further skew results Meanwhile, s im ila r studies by other concerns have met with the same yo-yo results. As a sop to its many critics, Alex ander Grant this year hired the N a is b itt Group — founded by Megatrends author John Naisbitt — to provide the current study with a more subjective analysis. T hat assessm ent c o n ta in s a number of revealing statements “ In Oregon,” it declares, " . . the lumber industry continues to suffer in the afterm ath of a dram atic economic downturn, however, new electronic businesses are keeping Oregon's economy moving " And in assessing the western re g io n , in c lu d in g W a shington, California and Oregon (which ranked a dismal sixth of eight national regions by Alexander Grant stan dards) the Naisbitt group was more generous "Oregon is the region's best kept secret . .has extended its hand in friendship, repealing its unitary tax. reduced its workers' compen sation rates . streamlined land use regulations . .has made negotiations w ith interested corporations less cumbersome w ill soon produce 25 percent of the w orld's silicone w a fe rs .. . " L ittle wonder reaction here to Alexander Grant evokes yawns from media and smirks from Oregon's top salesman, Vic Atiyeh And m ajor issues keeping the 63rd Assembly from adjourning sooner have largely involved how to provide Oregon's improving business clim ate w ith an adequate share of the revenue pie
