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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 2017)
7A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2017 Price: Councilor wants Astoria to continue to be a ‘working city’ Continued from Page 1A In a town where hous- ing is scarce, the councilors worry that these businesses remove housing options from potential long-term renters. These vacancies, they argue, could be filled by Astoria’s workers, who can- not compete with tourists willing to pay hundreds of dollars for a weekend stay. Adding more temporary homestays, Price said in an interview, is something she and Nemlowill “really want to prevent.” The two coun- cilors have advocated for restricting homestay lodging rentals to 30 days or longer. The point of Price’s forum post, she said, is to make residents concerned about homestay lodging — particularly in a low-density residential zone — aware of the latest proposal, and to let them “know that there is some support on the coun- cil for their point of view, if they are looking to limit homestay lodging below 30 days.” The Planning Commis- sion meeting Feb. 28, she said, is a “good time to make their opinion known.” EO Media Group Gillnetters fish in the Columbia River. A group of commercial and sport fishermen are meeting to advise the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission as it works on rules phasing out gillnetting in the Lower Columbia. Gillnetting: Commission has until April 3 to make revisions Continued from Page 1A The state’s sporting anglers generally oppose the practice, as have environmental groups. Washington’s Fish and Wildlife Commission voted in January to phase out the prac- tice in two years, and Oregon was expected to do the same under a deal worked out by former Gov. John Kitzhaber. But the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission nar- rowly decided last month to continue to allow gillnetting. Brown called those rules “not acceptable,” and gave the commission until April 3 to make revisions. Participants in Tuesday’s committee meeting included several commercial fisher- men and representatives of the state’s recreational fish- ing community, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife. They included: • Tom Wolf, executive director of the Oregon Council of Trout Unlimited; • Jim Wells, president of Salmon for All and a commer- cial fisherman; • Cary Johnson, a commer- cial fisherman; • Bruce Polley, vice pres- ident of the Coastal Conser- vation Association of Oregon, an advocacy group for salmon and steelhead; • Bob Rees, executive director of the Association of Northwest Steelheaders and • Steve Fick, a commercial fisherman, who is also on the board of Salmon for All. Fish and Wildlife Director Curt Melcher said last week he would reopen the rulemaking process in response to the gov- ernor’s directive. The Fish and Wildlife Commission is sched- uled to meet March 17. Warrenton, meanwhile, has drafted a letter to Gov. Brown asking her to defer to the judg- ment of the commission’s vote last month. “A healthy com- mercial salmon fishery, includ- ing a well-managed gillnet fishery on the Columbia River, helps to sustain our commer- cial fishermen who have made Warrenton home by provid- ing them with a supplemen- tal source of income,” Mayor Mark Kujala wrote. “Many recreational fishermen also commercially gillnet and vice versa. Both are vital compo- nents in an economic mix that supports our city services, marinas and marine-based businesses.” Public process But the Planning Com- mission — whose job is to review land use applications and make policy recommen- dations to the City Coun- cil — cannot reject pro- posals, including homestay lodging permit applications, wholesale. “They can’t just wave a wand and say, ‘Hey, we’re not going to look at these anymore,’” Commu- nity Development Director Kevin Cronin said. “They just don’t have the authority to do that.” Rather, the commission must examine each applica- tion individually, weighing the proposal against stan- dards outlined in the devel- opment code and compre- hensive plan. Residents who attend Planning Commission meet- ings may offer comments on a specific proposal, or pro- vide comments on nona- genda items, including the city’s policy on homestay lodging, at the end. Also, any Planning Commission deci- sion can be appealed to the City Council. With Brown’s proposal, “we would review it as we would at all of our public hearings and go from there,” Planning Commission Presi- dent Dave Pearson said, add- ing: “We would certainly welcome the public to the meeting to make comments on all sides of the issue. That’s what the public hear- ing’s for.” If attendees, per Price’s suggestion, asked the com- mission not to allow any more homestay lodgings, the requests would not make a difference procedurally. Dis- allowing homestay lodging permits would likely require a development code amend- ment, which could take at least a year to achieve, Cro- nin said. However, the requests Dam: Flooding risk has been sensitive topic Continued from Page 1A Denise Lofman, CREST’s director, said the conditions where there is a possibility for extreme tides and higher water elevations only happen once every 60 years or more, lon- ger than the 50-year design life of the dam. She said the dam was built to protect upstream property from a modest two- year flood during normal tide conditions. Lofman said that during most of the scenarios that were modeled, removing the dam improved flood conditions by allowing water to leave more quickly out of the river. The water district has repeatedly said that removing the dam will not significantly increase flood- ing risk. Lofman said that one of the main concerns during the project was to not make flood conditions worse by inundat- ing new areas. The project, she said, would not have changed the flood pattern for property along the river that already gets inundated. Potential flooding risk has been a sensitive topic through- out the debate between the city and the water district, so the disclosure of the engineering firm’s findings about extreme tides is certain to aggravate. Mayor Mark Kujala believes any information about the potential flooding risk from removing the dam should have been publicly disclosed. “That’s my feeling,” the mayor said. “This should have been upfront when these questions were asked several years ago. When information came to light that this might impact, and we might not be able to achieve the things that we promised, that should have been said instead of saying there is no problem and we’re moving forward.” Dam records The Daily Astorian asked the water district and CREST last year for any documents on the dam that might address the city’s concerns about flood- ing. The newspaper renewed the request this month. CREST shared the engineering firm’s findings with the newspaper on Tuesday. Lofman said the findings were not discussed with the city because the project was not moving forward. A $1.2 million agreement between the city, the water district and CREST to remove the dam and provide a single-lane bridge over the river for the city expired at the end of 2015. The City Commis- sion voted 2-2 in May against renewing the agreement, and CREST later withdrew from the partnership with the water district. The Nygaard family — and some at the city — have sought to draw CREST back into the controversy, claiming the task force misled the city and the community. Lofman said the engineer- ing firm’s findings would have been disclosed had the proj- ect moved forward. The Plan- ning Commission would have assessed the engineering plan by the water district during hearings on the city permit needed to remove the dam. The Planning Commission would also have examined a city con- sultant’s technical review of the engineering plan. If the per- mit decision was appealed — a likely prospect given the debate at the time — the City Commis- sion would also have reviewed the engineering reports. City technical review Some on the City Commis- sion blamed former City Man- ager Kurt Fritsch for not dis- closing the city consultant’s review of the engineering plan. But Fritsch said it would have been premature for commis- sioners to view the material before it reached the Planning Commission, since the City Commission might have had to hear the dam removal project on appeal. Fritsch, who warned the City Commission about tainting the permitting process, resigned last June under crit- icism over his handling of the dam. Records viewed by The Daily Astorian suggest that the city’s decision to hire a consul- tant to weigh the engineering firm’s work was one of the fac- tors that unraveled the project. The consultant’s initial assessment, in spring 2015, contributed to CREST and the water district pulling their city permit application. The consul- tant, after exchanging informa- tion with the engineering firm over the next several months, concluded that the engineering plan did not accurately model the flood plain. The consul- tant also cautioned about the potential impact of even small increases in water elevation on the city’s levees. CREST was billed by the city for the consul- tant’s work. The water district approved the engineering plan for remov- ing the dam last year, noting the city consultant’s concerns, but ultimately finding that the plan was sound. Had the dam removal proj- ect gone forward, it is likely that the city, or private property owners, would have asked for some type of flood mitigation unless the water district was able to satisfy all doubts about increased flooding risk. Kevin Cronin Dave Pearson would show that Astorians care passionately about the issue and want something to be done, Cronin said. “It has an impact on the people that are trying to serve us,” he said. “What I do appreciate about Cindy’s comment is that she’s trying to get more people to come to Planning Commission meetings,” Cronin said. Brown did not offer a response to Price’s post. Only the City Coun- cil, Price pointed out, can place broad restrictions. She said in an email that “any requests already in the pipe- line should, and I’m sure will, be weighed appro- priately by the Planning Commission.” ‘Affordability problem’ Though homestay lodg- ing operations are lucrative for property owners — who must live on and manage the premises — Price and Nem- lowill fear that, over the long run, the city’s housing stock will primarily serve the visi- tor population and crowd out the year-round community. In her post, Price said that homestays compete with the city’s hotels, motels and established bed-and-break- fasts. This, she said, “runs counter to an economic development strategy” and to the City Council’s goal of providing housing for per- manent residents. In addition, Price wrote, “it is only larger homes, or homes with two-car garages and larger lots, that are able to take advantage of creat- ing an additional unit for homestay lodging. Most Astorians do not have such homes, or access to the cap- ital required to build out a homestay unit, thus limiting the program to a certain class and creating inequalities. “And, when the home is sold, the value of the homestay unit raises the price of the home, thus con- tributing to the affordability problem.” Price said she wants the road Astoria is on — a road that favors the short-term housing industry — “to be shut down” so the city can remain a “working city” where long-term housing is available and affordable. College: Breitmeyer will draft a letter and send it to the court Continued from Page 1A later invalidated after a commu- nity member contacted Burke with concerns the board hadn’t followed procedure. Moberg did not comment Tuesday. “I do want this to get to the courts, beyond window dress- ing, that this is what we want,” Scheller said. College President Chris- topher Breitmeyer said they have not received a “yes” or “no” regarding an inquiry into whether the college could still be removed from the lawsuit. He and Baker-Monaghan cau- tioned against spending any Anne Teaford-Cantor Esther Moberg money on attorneys. Wingard said the college should put its position into writing and send a letter to the court. “This should not be an expensive process to get an Tessa James Scheller error corrected,” Cantor said. “I’ve been a part of typos in pleading papers on a number of occasions, and it’s no big deal.” Breitmeyer said he will draft a letter and run it by the college Patrick Wingard Rosemary Baker-Monaghan board before sending it to the court. Most counties and districts, which all stand to gain a sig- nificant settlement if the law- suit is successful, took no action Karen Burke Robert Duehmig and remained plaintiffs. Clat- sop County was the only county to opt out, taking along four if its controlled taxing districts. Sunset Empire Parks and Rec- reation District also opted out, Christopher Breitmeyer along with the Port of Portland, Benton Soil and Water Conser- vation District, Clackamas Soil and Water Conservation District and Washington County Rural Fire Protection District No. 2.
