12A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN TUESDAY, MARCH 1, 2016
RV park: Residents notice antipathy toward the park
protesting out front, he said, he
and Millagp have faced retalia-
tion from management.
Park manager Susan Hart
and other residents have cast
Smith and Millagp as trouble-
makers, saying the park has
provided a safe and necessary
source of low-income hous-
ing for people with disabili-
ties, veterans and others with
nowhere else to go.
Shannon Watkins said she
and partner Mitch Wilson
moved in almost a year ago
after coming back from Mich-
igan and ¿nding themselves
homeless. Hart took them in,
Watkins said, starting them out
in a tent before getting them
into a trailer.
“I’m on disability,” said
Tommy Kelley, who has lived
at the park since 2009. “This
is what I could afford. Every-
body that is here are here
because they have to” be.
Without the park, Kelley
said, he and many of the other
residents would be home-
less. “I feel like we’re Israel,
just surrounded by everybody
who hates us,” he said of the
antipathy toward the park by
neighbors.
Hart, who had managed the
park from 2006 to 2011 and
returned in November 2013, said
she came back at the request of
the owners to an overcrowded
park with a lot of issues.
“We cleaned this place up,”
she said, noting she has evicted
30 to 50 people since coming
back, including families with
children. Instead of nearby
neighbors and others com-
plaining about the park, she
said, they should donate and
help make it a better place.
Continued from Page 1A
Resources
Northwest,
which uses a third-party septic
company to gather the statis-
tics being reported to the state,
appeaOed the most recent ¿ne
and held an informal hearing
last week with the Department
of Environmental Quality.
Kevin Luby, the attorney
for Resources Northwest, said
the park has several issues,
including tenants using more
than the park anticipated.
“We’ve made efforts to
shut down the laundry facil-
ities at the park,” Luby said,
adding the park is installing
meters to track usage.
A county thorn
While the state is trying
to lower the sewage Àow, the
park faces a continuing lawsuit
with Clatsop County, which
would like to remove Hick as
owner and replace him with a
receiver, a person appointed
to hold in trust and administer
property under litigation.
According to county staff,
Hick’s ownership of the park
has been marred by issues of
overcrowding, sewage over-
Àows, gray water leaking into
Sunset Lake, a lack of emer-
gency vehicle access, run-ins
with police and illegal utility
hookups.
“The neighbors have been
dealing with this for years …
and they’re pretty cynical over
the ability of the government
to help out there,” said interim
County Manager Rich Mays.
A petition by about 60
neighbors of the park prompted
the county to begin enforce-
ment action, resulting in a 2011
Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Tommy Kelley, who has lived at the Sunset Lake Resort
& RV Park since 2009, said the park offers people with no
other place to go a safe, inexpensive living option.
Shannon Hopkins and partner Mitch Wilson (not pictured)
said the Sunset Lake Resort & RV Park provided them an
inexpensive place to live when they faced homelessness.
compliance order to lower the
number of permanent units at
the park from 60 to 43, includ-
ing 18 mobile homes and 25
RVs, along with 38 spots for
visitors. Nearly three years
ago, the county sued Hick in
an effort to enforce the linger-
ing code violations. The case is
scheduled for trial in June.
Bart Catching, a code com-
pliance specialist with the
county, said the park was still
four or ¿ve RVs over the per-
ple moving from unit to unit,”
he said.
Luby said while many peo-
ple at the county have been
good to work with, some staff-
ers higher in the agency have
been slow to act in good faith
while the park tries to make
improvements.
manent resident limit as of
February, but is having res-
idents move between RVs
within a 30-day time limit to
appear temporary.
“I have nothing against the
park’s right to exist,” Catch-
ing said. “It just needs to meet
(codes).”
Luby said that after one
more eviction, the park will be
down to the proper amount of
units. “I’m not aware of any
situation where we have peo-
Energy bills: Senate Bill
1547 has more momentum
Residents react
Anthony Smith, who with
¿ancpe Whitney Millagp,
moved into the park in October
Recall: Neuwirth hopes recall
election won’t be needed
Continued from Page 1A
House lawmakers already
voted 39-20 to pass House Bill
differences between the 4036, in mid-February. After
bills including caps on how news reports that Gov. Kate
much the utilities can raise Brown’s administration had
rates each year to cover their told public utility commission-
costs, including a pro¿t on ers not to go public with their
new renewable energy facili- concerns about the bill, a Sen-
ties. The ¿rst bill, House Bill ate committee added language
4036, calls for the Oregon to the bill to protect consumers
Public Utility Commission to and ensure utilities use compet-
adopt regulations that encour- itive bidding to acquire cost-ef-
age competitive bidding and ¿cient new sources of renew-
diverse owner-
able energy.
ship of renewable
Next, Repub-
energy facilities,
‘... this licans in the Sen-
something
not
ate, who oppose
required under the bill enjoys the bill, brought
second bill, Sen-
a standstill
support it by to requesting
ate Bill 1547. That
that
second bill also from clear lawyers draft a
includes incen-
minority report.
tives to boost majorities There is no dead-
wood-burning
line to produce the
in both report, so the move
power plants.
Senate
Bill
to pre-
the House threatened
1547 has more
vent the measure
momentum, thanks
from coming to a
and
to support from
vote before the end
Senate.’ of the session.
environmental
groups and the two
Supporters of
Brad Reed
investor-owned
the bill, including
utilities.
Brad spokesman for the politi- Democrats in both
Reed, a spokesman cally active nonprofit Re- chambers and Rep.
Oregon, speaking
for the politically new
Mark
Johnson,
of Senate Bill 1547
active nonpro¿t
R-Hood
River,
Renew
Oregon
responded with
which represents environmental a plan on Thursday to insert
and renewable energy groups, a new version of the renew-
said Senate Bill 1547 appears to able energy mandate legisla-
have the clearest path forward. tion into a different bill, Sen-
“And this bill enjoys support ate Bill 1547, that had already
from clear majorities in both the passed in the Senate. Lawmak-
House and Senate,” Reed wrote ers negotiated that legislation
in an email Monday afternoon.
in closed-door meetings with
Utility representatives have representatives of the utilities,
also said they dislike the 3 per- environmental and renewable
cent annual cap on renewable energy groups.
energy rate increases in the ¿rst
Although two representa-
bill, and they would prefer the tives of the Public Utility Com-
4 percent cap on renewable rate mission attended the negotia-
increases in the second bill. The tions, none of the public utility
utilities can request the renew- commissioners were involved
able energy rate increases on nor did they testify last week
top of broader periodic rate when a House committee voted
increases.
to insert the negotiated lan-
Continued from Page 1A
guage into Senate Bill 1547.
Members of the Public Utility
Commission have said an ear-
lier version of the legislation
would be costly for consum-
ers but do little to reduce green-
house gas emissions from coal
plants.
Many House Republicans
also oppose the bill and they
decided to try the same delay
tactic as their Senate colleagues
by requesting a minority report.
However, it did not buy much
time because of different rules
in the House. The minority
report would make several
changes to Senate Bill 1547,
including making it easier for
cities to start new municipal
utilities by giving them three
years to meet the renewable
energy mandate, according to
House Republican Of¿ce com-
munications director Preston
Mann.
By Monday, Senate Repub-
licans had decided to withdraw
their minority report, allowing
House Bill 4036 to be sched-
uled for a vote Wednesday.
Caitie Butler, communica-
tions director for the Oregon
Senate Republicans, wrote in
an email Monday that Repub-
licans withdrew the request
“because (House lawmakers)
stripped most of the ratepayer
protections out of the stuffed
Senate bill ...” Butler wrote that
Senate Republicans still do not
support either bill. Senate Bill
1547 is scheduled for a House
Àoor vote on Tuesday, which
means it could also go to the
Senate for a ¿nal up or down
vote Wednesday. House Bill
4036 would have to go back
to the House for a ¿nal up or
down vote.
The Capital Bureau is a col-
laboration between EO Media
Group and Pamplin Media
Group. Hillary Borrud can be
reached at 503-364-4431 or
hborrud@eomediagroup.com.
and faces eviction March 9,
has been protesting at the cor-
ner of Sunset Lane and Lewis
Road over what he says is a
retaliation for reporting unsafe
and unsanitary conditions.
Smith has been posting pic-
tures on Facebook of what he
says are trailers at the park with
holes in the Àoors and ceilings
from rain getting in, sewage
leaking out of pipes and unsafe
utility hookups. After posting
the photos on Facebook and
The directors have not yet
announced their intentions,
and released a statement Friday
defending their actions in dis-
missing the former chief.
“Mike was let go when
the majority of the direc-
tors, elected by district voters,
became concerned about his
ability to perform the admin-
istrative skills required of the
head of a public agency,” the
directors wrote.
Not political, ’til now
Neuwirth said she had
never been “a political per-
son” before. “In fact, I even
registered to vote in order to
¿le this petition,” she said.
“I didn’t know Mike or
the people involved,” Neu-
wirth said. “I talked to people
who had been affected by it.
The unanimous opinion was
the board does not treat volun-
teers with any respect and they
never treated the chief with any
respect.”
Neuwirth attended a
November ¿re district meeting
in which members of the com-
munity faced the board. “They
told them how angry they were
at the board for treating some-
one of Mike’s caliber in such a
despicable manner,” she said.
Neuwirth launched the
recall petition drive in January.
“I realized we could sit around
and be appalled, or we could
exercise our right,” she said.
In seeking to gather the
minimum 125 signatures
required in Clatsop County to
force a recall election, Neu-
wirth said she “never forced,
and never coerced” residents to
sign the petition. Neuwirth said
¿re¿ghters and residents alike
appreciated Balzer’s contribu-
tions to the community. “The
¿re¿ghters told me they’d
rather be in the ¿eld with Mike
than anyone they’ve ever been
with,” Neuwirth said.
Neuwirth said she is “stay-
ing away” from a separate law-
suit ¿eld by Balzer seeking his
job back and damages.
Balzer ¿led a civil suit in
Clatsop County Court against
the ¿re district, claiming the ¿r-
ing was motivated by “personal
animus and did not constitute
the good faith suf¿cient cause
under the employment agree-
ment.” He seeks more than
$677,000 in damages and relief.
“I stayed away from the
lawsuit because they’re sep-
arate issues,” Neuwirth said.
“Mike has every right to do
what he needs to do, but as far
as I’m concerned, this is for the
community, I’m doing it for
the ¿re¿ghters. They thank me
daily.”
Time to step up?
Their decision could cre-
ate an immediate vacancy or
vacancies to ¿ll. If Beck-Swee-
ney, Smith or Clyde ¿ght the
recall, they will face an elec-
tion challenge.
Will Neuwirth run for the
of¿ce"
“I would hope other people
would step up, but if I needed
to I would gladly step up,”
she said. “It is one of the most
important boards in this town.”
She said she hopes a recall
election won’t be needed.
“If they resign, they will
save the district a lot of money,
and if Mike is reinstated, the
portion that would affect the
district, as far as the lawsuit,
would go away,” Neuwirth
said. “This is not about the
money.”
If the directors do not
resign by Wednesday night,
the Clerk’s Of¿ce anticipates
a recall election on April 5 for
voters within the ¿re district.
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Dispatchers: There are seven
Continued from Page 1A
recognize the dispatchers for
their service with donations
of “something special” — a
night out at a restaurant, gift
card, hotel room or relaxation
package — to show their
appreciation.
There are seven dispatch-
ers, Brown said at a Seaside
Chamber of Commerce break-
fast Friday.
“On Feb. 5, I’m thankful
two of our more senior dis-
patchers were on duty,” she
said. “They were very pro-
fessional and able to han-
dle it. But on the other hand,
they knew Jason well. I’m
impressed at their composure
and how they got through and
did the job they were hired to
do and waited till later to break
down. It’s just impressive the
level of professionalism and
what they had to endure. And
they did it.”
Along with grief for a
co-worker, they also lost a
friend, Brown said.
“Seaside Police Department
is close-knit,” she said. “Even
dispatch. It’s like one large fam-
ily you work with. It was devas-
tating for everyone.”
“I’m not picky, but I think
they deserve something special,”
Brown added about donations.
Columbia Memorial Hospital
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