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About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2018)
T he C olumbia P ress June 1, 2018 3 Threatened species nesting at Fort Stevens Courtesy Oregon Parks and Recreation A pair of western snowy plovers sit on a nest in a protected area at Nehalem Bay State Park. The Columbia Press and media services Western snowy plover nests have been found at Fort Ste- vens State Park, the Oregon Parks and Recreation De- partment reported May 25. Wildlife biologists spotted nests in Clatsop Spit, the first to be seen there in decades. The birds have been listed as a threatened species since 1993. “Plovers nesting at Fort Ste- Mayor’s Message by Henry Balensifer Community building for the next decade In my last Mayor’s Message, I talked about our city goals for the coming fiscal year. Those goals are Community Building, Vision Plan Update, Downtown Improvements and Emergency Prepared- ness. The overarching question that guided the creation of these goals was “What de- cisions can we make now to ensure Warrenton is a great place to live and raise a fami- ly in 10 years?” As some may already know, every Monday at 9 a.m., I hold a constituent coffee at City Hall. Everyone is welcome to come. It’s a lot less formal than a commission meeting, and it’s a great way to have frank exchanges about con- cerns. A recurring concern has been nuisance properties. Nuisance properties are easy to spot. They’re usually com- mercial or residential proper- ties that have junk strewn all over or, in a more recent case, a derelict and condemned house that blights the entry- way to our city. Nobody likes living or work- ing next to a nuisance. They create public safety hazards and/or reduce a neighbor- hood’s attractiveness, which affects property values. The best way to abate nui- sances is for property owners to take notice and clean up their properties. If they do not, the city will send a let- ter and suggest they clean up their property. If the property is not cleaned up, then the issue will go before the city com- mission for a nuisance decla- ration to compel the property owner to abate the nuisance in 10 days. If those 10 days expire and no appeal is filed, the city can send in a crew to clean it up and bill the owner for the cleanup cost. If a property owner does not pay the cleanup costs, then a lien is placed on the property. I can only recall one property where this occurred, and that was a very special case that involved federal law enforce- ment actions as well. In that case, the city had to absorb the cost. I want to point out the amazing efforts that City Commissioner Tom Dyer has taken to work alongside property owners to abate nui- sances. In addition to gently approaching property own- ers to see if they’d voluntarily clean up, he’s organized vol- unteer crews to assist in ef- forts when necessary. This is true community building — neighbors helping neighbors! In the past year, four prop- erties have been declared nuisances, and three have been cleaned up. The fourth one was declared just last week. The city manager is pro- posing a matching grant pro- gram for the Urban Renewal Advisory Committee’s review to see if the Warrenton Ur- ban Renewal Agency could provide matching funds to help cover the costs of volun- tary cleanup. Our Economic Roadmapping process is just getting under way, which I expect will result in the for- mation of a community ac- tion team to more formally assist with cleanups. If you have not yet taken our city economic survey, I earnestly request you take it. It’s only eight questions and we are looking for as much citizen input as possi- ble. The survey is at: https:// www.surveymonkey.com/r/ VZ3F8FC vens is a huge step for species recovery and people who sup- port a healthy environment,” said Vanessa Blackstone, a parks wildlife biologist. “We can all be proud of this mo- ment.” The Columbia River side of Clatsop Spit is one of several plover management areas on the coast. “Oregonians have helped plovers return to the North Coast and Clatsop Spit is an important link between our Lincoln County birds and those that live in Washing- ton,” Blackstone said. Nest sightings prompt spe- cial precautions in designat- ed management areas. Beachgoers will see signs on dry sand that identify desig- nated nesting areas. It helps prevent the well-camou- flaged eggs and chicks from accidentally being crushed by people or pets. Visitor foot traffic is limited to wet sand areas and along official trails. Several activities are re- stricted in plover manage- ment areas, including dogs (even on a leash), vehicles, kites, drones, camping and fires. Visitors should follow instructions on posted signs or if needed, ask a park rang- er for clarification. Plovers nest in dry open sand, in tiny, shallow scrapes. Not only are nests easy to miss (or step on), but repeat- ed disturbance by activities the bird considers a threat can cause the eggs to die. OPRD is responsible for managing recreation on Ore- gon’s ocean shore, overseeing snowy plover management areas and the recreation re- strictions that come with the legal agreement between OPRD and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. More information, includ- ing maps of designated plo- ver management areas, can be found at bit.ly/wsplover.
