Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current, January 04, 2017, Image 4

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Polk County itemizer observer., January 04, 2017, Page 4A, Image 4

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Newspaper Page TextPolk County Voices Polk County Itemizer-Observer • January 4, 2017 4A How to Contact Officials EDITORIALS Some counsel for our new councils This month, Dallas, Falls City, Independence and Mon- mouth will get new councilors — and a new mayor in Monmouth. The changes in city councils is significant, and could change the entire feel of the city governmental bodies in Polk County. It’s exciting to see so many people willing to serve their communities through sitting on the council, making poli- cies and decisions that affect each citizen within their cities’ boundaries. Welcome to politics! Please remember that you are one of a group of coun- cilors — one voice among six, or nine, depending on the city. While you are eager to help your city be the best it can be, please leave your agendas at the door. Remember deci- sions you make will affect all equally. Be considerate of city employees, but remember you do not work for them. They do valuable work and will try to achieve the goals you set — as an entire council, not as an individual — for your city, but ask questions. That goes for other councilors and the mayor, too. A good, spirited discussion is always good for democracy, but that does not mean you have to agree — or disagree — with everyone. In fact, it’s perfectly fine to have split votes. Don’t feel obligated to “go along” for the sake of looking united all the time. The council is more than one person. You are one voice: use it. Not everyone will like what you do all the time — believe us, we know about this one — but you must make the tough decisions and stand for what you believe is best for all. You may encounter people who are vocal about some- thing, perhaps disagreeing with a choice, or perhaps in support of it. Don’t let the voice of a few affect your decisions for the entire town. Many of you spoke to residents of your town at length before getting elected to the office. Don’t stop talking to them now. Stay connected with the community and find out what’s working well and what needs to be changed. Being new to the job doesn’t mean you have to hold back, but it might be wise to do your homework before you start plotting massive changes to systems or budgets. GOVERNOR Gov. Kate Brown (dem.) 160 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-378-4582 Email: via website, http://governor.oregon.gov/ — STATE LEGISLATORS sen. Arnie Roblan (District 5, Democrat) S-417 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1705 sen.arnieroblan@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/roblan LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Chamber director reflects on job As I look back at the past four and a half years, I am filled with gratitude for the opportunities and commu- nity connections gained while serving as your execu- tive director of the Mon- mouth-Independence Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center. Through this role, I have had the pleasure to work with business owners and their staff, as well as organi- zational leaders and their members. From creating, designing, and implementing pro- grams and services to en- hancing membership bene- fits and strengthening foun- dational components of the organization, my time with the chamber has been excit- ing, stimulating, and educa- tional. Learning about our com- munity from the business owner's perspective, seeing our cities and county from the tourist point of view, and hearing about this spe- cial place from new resi- dents and visitors, have made my love and apprecia- tion of living here grow stronger. Although I understood the importance of a cham- ber of commerce for a community when I accept- ed the position in April 2012, I underestimated the impact this job would have on me. Yes, like with any position there are challenges, but the overall joy and fulfillment of being a part of something greater for the good of our community has made it more than worthwhile. Thank you to all of you who welcomed me to this role, who have supported my efforts, and who em- braced my ideas. Nothing great is accom- plished alone, and for all who collaborated, part- nered, volunteered, and as- sisted me, you have my sin- cerest appreciation. It has truly been my pleasure and privilege to serve our community. Wishing you all a very safe, healthy, and prosper- ous 2017. Jean Love Monmouth PUBLIC AGENDA Public Agenda is a listing of upcoming meetings for gov- ernmental and nongovernmental agencies in Polk County. To submit a meeting, send it at least two weeks before the actual meeting date to the Itemizer-Observer via email (ionews@polkio.com). — WednesdAy, JAn. 4 • Monmouth Historic Commission — 6 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. • Monmouth Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. MondAy, JAn. 9 • dallas school Board of directors — 3:15 p.m., LaCreole Middle School, 701 SE LaCreole Dr., Dallas. • Hops and Heritage Festival Commission — 6 p.m., Inde- pendence Elks Lodge, 289 S. Main St., Independence. 503-838- 1212. • Central school Board of directors — 6:30 p.m., Henry Hill Education Support Center, 750 S. Fifth St., Independence. • WIMPeG Board of directors — 7 p.m., 150 N. Knox St., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. TuesdAy, JAn. 10 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, ﬁrst ﬂoor conference room, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Independence City Council — 7 p.m., Independence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St., Independence. 503-838-1212. • dallas Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Dallas City Hall, 187 SE Court St., Dallas. 503-831-3565. WednesdAy, JAn. 11 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, ﬁrst ﬂoor conference room, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Independence Heritage Museum Commission — 4 p.m., Independence Heritage Museum, 112 S. Third St., Independ- ence. 503-838-1212. • Monmouth Library Advisory Board — 7 a.m., Monmouth Public Library, 168 Ecols St. S., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. • Monmouth Parks and Recreation Board — 7 p.m., Volun- teer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. sen. Jackie Winters (District 10, Republican) S-301 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1710 sen.jackiewinters@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/winters sen. Brian Boquist (District 12, Republican) S-305 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1712 sen.brianboquist@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/boquist Rep. david Gomberg (District 10, Democrat) H-471 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1410 rep.davidgomberg@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg Rep. Paul evans (District 20, Democrat) H-281 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1420 rep.paulevans@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/evans Rep. Mike nearman (District 23, Republican) H-378 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1423 rep.mikenearman@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/nearman — U.S. CONGRESS sen. Ron Wyden (dem.) 221 Dirksen SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-5244 Fax: 202-228-2717 Salem oﬃce: 707 13th St. SE, Suite 285, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-589-4555 Email: via website, www.wyden.senate.gov sen. Jeﬀ Merkley (dem.) 313 Hart SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Fax: 202-228-3997 Salem oﬃce: 495 State St. SE, Suite 330, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-362-8102 Email: via website, www.merkley.senate.gov WANT TO WRITE A LETTER? Letters to the editor are lim- ited to 300 words. Longer letters will be edited. Each writer is restricted to one letter per 30-day period. Letters, like all editorial mate- rial submitted to the newspa- per, are edited for length, gram- mar and content. The deadline for letters to the editor is 10 a.m. Monday. Let- ters submitted may not be re- tractable after this deadline. For full letters policy: polkio.com. — Reach us at: Mail: Editor, Polk County Itemizer-Observer, P.O. Box 108, Dallas, OR 97338. email: ionews@polkio.com. Rep. Kurt schrader (dem.) 108 Cannon HOB Washington, D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-5711 Fax: 202-225-5699 Salem oﬃce: 544 Ferry St. SE, Suite 2, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-588-9100 Fax: 503-588-5517 Email: via website, www.schrader.house.gov — POLK COUNTY Board of Commissioners 850 Main St. Dallas, OR 97338 Phone: 503-623-8173 www.co.polk.or.us — CITIES dallas 187 SE Court St. Dallas, OR 97338 503-623-2338 www.ci.dallas.or.us Falls City 299 Mill St. Falls City, OR 97344 503-787-3631 www.fallscityoregon.gov Independence 555 S. Main St. Independence, OR 97351 503-838-1212 www.ci.independence.or.us Monmouth 151 W. Main St. Monmouth, OR 97361 503-838-0722 www.ci.monmouth.or.us HOW TO REACH US neWsRooM Emily Mentzer ..............Editor/Monmouth/Independence Reporter ....ementzer@polkio.com Vol. 142, No. 1 (USPS) - 437-380) The official newspaper of Polk County • Serving Polk County families since 1875 Winner of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 General Excellence Awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Periodicals postage paid at Dallas, OR, Independence, OR and Monmouth, OR. Published weekly at 147 SE Court Street Dallas, Oregon 97338 Phone: 503-623-2373 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Polk County — One Year $35 Other Oregon Counties — One Year $40 Outside of Oregon — One Year $45 PosTMAsTeR: send address changes to: Polk County Itemizer-observer, P.o. Box 108, dallas, oregon 97338 Lukas Eggen..................Sports Editor......................................................................leggen@polkio.com Jolene Guzman............Dallas/Falls City/Polk County Reporter ................jguzman@polkio.com dIsPLAy AdVeRTIsInG Heidi Leppin .................Display Advertising Manager ....................................hleppin@polkio.com Rachel Best ....................Display Advertising.............................................................rbest@polkio.com Karen Sanks...................Client Services ...................................................................ksanks@polkio.com CLAssIFIed LIne AdVeRTIsInG Dawn Ohren.....................................................................................................................ioads@polkio.com PRoduCTIon Kathy Huggins ..............................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com Karyn Pressel .................................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com The Polk County Itemizer-Observer assumes no ﬁnancial responsibility for errors in advertise- ments. It will, however, reprint without charge for the portion of an advertisement Web: www.polkio.com Phone: 503-623-2373 Fax: 503-623-2395 which is in error if the Itemizer-Observer is at fault.