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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 20, 2016)
KNOW YOUR NEIGHBORS DALLAS HITS MIRACLE WHO’S WHO Section C SHOT VS. CHS Page 10A Volume 141, Issue 3 www.Polkio.com January 20, 2016 75¢ Recreational marijuana OK’d in Polk Board of Commissioners define where marijuana may be grown, processed, sold in county limits By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — The Polk County Board of Commis- sioners approved amend- ments to the county’s zon- ing ordinance to allow production, process and sales of recreational mari- juana. The amendment, which designates the zones in which each type of activity can take p l a c e passed by a 2-1 vote Jan. 13 fol- l ow i n g a p u b l i c hearing. Commis- Ainsworth s i o n e r Mi k e A i n s w o r t h vo t e d “no.” The board approved al- lowing marijuana produc- tion — growing and primary processing — in the exclu- sive farm use (EFU), farm/forestry (FF), farm/forestry overlay (FFO) and timber conservation (TC) zones. Austin McGuigan, the county’s community devel- opment director, said House Bill 3400, the legislation reg- ulating recreational marijua- na and making changes to medical marijuana laws, specifically allows marijua- na production on EFU lands and other zones in the coun- ty. The bill gives local juris- dictions the discretion to de- cide the “time, place and manner.” “We, at the staff level, took and identified every zone by similar uses,” McGuigan DALLAS Calmlee’s Bookstore brings paperbacks to downtown, with plans for comic books. »Page 5A FALLS CITY Falls City needs to make repairs to its wastewater system. »Page 7A INDEPENDENCE The city of Independ- ence can now be ac- cessed on your smart- phone through the In- dyWorks app. »Page 5A JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer The Polk County Board of Commissioners approved regulations that would allow farmers to grow marijuana in ex- clusive farm use (light yellow), timber conservation (dark green) and farm/forest (light green) zones in the county. said. “The idea is we are looking at these land-use ac- tivities to make sure that these are compatible with uses that you would expect on similarly zoned proper- ties.” He said the Polk County Planning Commission thought growing marijuana was a compatible use to other activities taking place in the FF, FFO and TC zones. “Our policies and our comprehensive plan really are to encourage both agri- culture and forestry in those zones, both of those activi- ties,” he said. “They found that, for those reasons, it was appropriate to identify all those primary (resource) zones for marijuana produc- tion.” He added in looking at the issue in its totality, the Polk County Planning Commis- sion took geography and available infrastructure in to account in deciding where processing, wholesaling and retail and medical sales should take place. McGuigan said for sales, the planning commission believed retail and medical dispen- s a r i e s should be allowed only in p l a c e s where ac- cess to dis- pensaries located in Pope urban areas would be difficult. Therefore, the commis- sion identified only the Northwest Polk County Community Commercial zone, near the unincorpo- rated communities of Grand Ronde, Fort Hill and Valley Junction, for dispen- saries and retail outlets. For marijuana processing wholesaling activities, the commission selected light industrial zones and the Rickreall unincorporated community industrial zone. Light industrial zones are located within city urban growth boundaries. See POT, Page 6A Schellenberg named to Farm Bureau’s Hall of Fame By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer POLK COUNTY — Near the con- clusion of the agenda, Don Schellen- berg, a longtime member of the Polk County Farm Bureau (PCFB), finally figured out why he was sent to Ore- gon Farm Bureau’s (OFB) annual meeting in December. That’s when OFB Barry Bushue and Executive Vice President Dave Dillion announced the organization was inducting Schellenberg into its hall of fame. Schellenberg also had worked for OFB as a lobbyist for al- most 30 years. Schellenberg said the announce- ment was a surprise, but admits to being suspicious about being select- ed to attend on behalf of the Polk County branch’s board, of which he is a member. He had to skip a meeting last year and found out afterward the board had voted to send him to the annual meeting. “I figured out what happened,” he said. “You miss a meeting and you are selected for an award.” In decades of service to local and state farm bureau organizations, Schellenberg did a lot more than miss a meeting. To be nominated, hall of fame candidates must have at least 35 years of active involvement. “This year’s nominee comes with THE NEXT 7 DAYS PLANNING FOR YOUR WEEK IN YOUR TOWN a record of service that far exceeds 35 years,” Bushue said. “Don joined Farm Bureau in the late 1960s and wasted no time making an impact, winning the Young Farmers & Ranchers Discussion Meet in 1968.” Schellenberg has farmed his entire life, working his father’s land before purchasing his own outside Dallas in 1970. That 30-acre prune orchard grew into a 300-acre farm producing prunes, grain, sheep and wheat. In 1980, Schellenberg decided to take on a different kind of challenge, becoming OFB’s first lobbyist. During his career, Schellenberg was on a team that helped craft leg- islation to create Oregon’s farm property tax and land-use regula- tions. His work on behalf of farmers ex- tended beyond Oregon. He traveled to Kyrgyzstan after the breakup the Soviet Union to help farmers there organize a representative group. Schellenberg also served on the OFB’s century farm and ranch com- mittee and served three terms as PCFB’s president. When presented with honor last month, Schellenberg deflected praise to others. “Farm Bureau’s members are the heart of the organization — and the democratic, grassroots policy devel- opment process is its soul,” he said. “Those two things make Farm Bu- OREGON FARM BUREAU/ for the Itemizer-Observer Don Schellenberg, left, speaks to a group of people in front of the Cap- ital building in Salem in 2007. Schellenberg was a lobbyist for the Ore- gon Farm Bureau for decades was recently named to its hall of fame. reau the best agriculture organiza- tion in Oregon.” That said, learning he would be inducted was an emotional experi- ence. “I worked for 28 years at the state level and my whole life at the local level,” Schellenberg said. “It’s been a privilege to be recognized for that work.” MONMOUTH Monmouth City Council debates ex- tending waterline to property outside city limits. »Page 2A SPORTS Falls City’s girls bas- ketball team hopes to prove it belongs with the Casco League’s top teams. »Page 10A Owner located for found pigs DALLAS — The Dallas Fire and Police Depart- ments located the owner of two pigs on Tuesday. The ambulance service received an unofficial call on Sunday night at 7:21 p.m. about two pigs in the area of Oakdale and Hayter streets. Responders on duty ar- rived along with three po- lice oicers to corral the pigs, who appeared to be well-maintained fed and not wild. The pigs were kept on a farm where they are being fed and main- tained until the owner was located. A description of the pigs was required. The Fire Department responded to another an- imal-related call on Jan. 12. Responders received a call around 2:15 p.m. concerning a horse that had become stuck in the side door of its trailer near the intersection of Orchard View and Laura Lane. Four ireighters re- sponded to the call. Responders used extri- cation tools to help re- move the horse from the trailer in a little under an hour. The horse did not sufer injuries. wed thu fri sat sun mon tue Join St. Thomas Epis- copal Church for its “Brew and BS” series discussing the Old Testament. Bring your own brew. 7 p.m. Free. Dallas Lions Club will host an Ameri- can Red Cross disas- ter preparedness introduction at its meeting today. 11:30 a.m. Free. Learn how you can help the Willamette Valley Hospice in a free volunteer train- ing for people of all ages. 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Free. Independence Her- itage Museum will present “Stories of the Farm Worker” at the Indy civic center today. 1:30 p.m. Free. Make someone smile today in honor of National Compli- ment Day. It gives them a boost, and makes you feel good, too. Come out and play with the Willamette Valley New Horizons Orchestra. All skills levels are welcome. 6:30-8:30 p.m. $25 monthly fee. James2 Community Kitchen ofers free meals for all who are hungry at St. Philip Catholic Church. 4:30-6 p.m. Free. Showers Hi: 49 Lo: 44 Rain Hi: 51 Lo: 45 Showers Hi: 51 Lo: 41 Showers Hi: 48 Lo: 38 Showers Hi: 48 Lo: 39 Rain Hi: 47 Lo: 45 Rain Hi: 50 Lo: 45