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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 19, 2018)
6A • October 19, 2018 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com Candidates talk rentals, rabbits in Cannon Beach Issues debated at election forum By Brenna Visser Cannon Beach Gazette Candidates for City Coun- cil generally share a common vision: preserve the character and charm of Cannon Beach. But when asked at an elec- tion forum Thursday, Oct. 4, about how they would manage key issues which define that character — vacation rentals, parking and how to contain a growing bunny population — their views diverged. City Councilor Mike Benefield, Greg Swedenborg, a hotelier and Cannon Beach Chamber of Commerce board president, and Robin Risley, a real estate agent and plan- ning commissioner, are vying for two seats on the council in November. Mayor Sam BRENNA VISSER City Council candidates Mike Benefield, Robin Risley and Greg Swedenborg speak at an election forum in Cannon Beach. Steidel is running for his seat unopposed. They were joined by state House District 32 candidates Tiffiny Mitchell, a Democrat, and Brian Halvorsen, an Inde- pendent. Republican Vineeta Lower was invited but did not attend. The forum was spon- sored by The Daily Astorian. On some issues, like the bunny infestation frustrating neighbors in Tolovana, candi- dates were equally stumped. “But I think the problem lies in the eye of the behold- er,” Benefield said. “You ei- ther love them or hate them.” But on others, like regu- lating vacation rentals, the candidates disagreed on ap- proaches. Benefield advocated for a proposal about to go before the Planning Commission that would eliminate the five-year rental permit that allows some homeowners nightly rentals. “It’s putting a commer- cial business in a residential neighborhood,” he said. Risley instead felt the city should do more to crack down on illegal rentals, which she believes will happen once the city hires a code enforcement officer. Swedenborg, however, feels the number of rentals registered with the city is fair. Only about 30 homes have the five-year unlimited permit, and the revenue generated from those rentals benefits the city significantly, he said. In- stead, he would propose rais- ing the annual fee for the per- mit from $350 to $3,000 and suggest using the revenue to fund more affordable housing solutions. “These houses we’re talking about are designed to be rentals. We can’t turn back the clock on that,” Sweden- borg said. Candidates also differed on how they would address parking during the city’s peak tourism season. “A flashing sign that says we’re full?” Benefield joked. “Unfortunately we’re a beau- tiful place, and the rest of the world is finding out. I’m not sure what to do about that.” Benefield supports creat- ing a shuttle system between town and the U.S. Highway 26 junction, as well as parking at South Wind. Risley leaned more toward creating a com- mittee to study the issue, as well as leveraging underuti- lized parking lots at busi- nesses like the Cannon Beach Community Church or banks while they are closed. Swedenborg said he wasn’t sure of the solution, but advo- cated for paid parking in city- owned parking lots. By his estimates, the three lots could raise about $500,000 a year to fund whatever option the council decides. Mitchell and Halvorsen also chimed in about the im- pact of tourism in the region, saying each would work on the state level to rework the way lodging tax revenue gets distributed to cities. “A lot of people already know we’re here,” Mitchell said. “So let’s cut back a lit- tle on promotion and reinvest in things like our roads, our schools … which would not only be a benefit to the com- munities, but would ease the tax burden on those who live here.” Officials may request a bond measure to make City Hall repairs City Hall from Page 1A Issues surrounding City Hall have been documented for more than a decade. Multiple renovation plans to fix problems with air ven- tilation and structural defects have been drawn up, but shelved due to high costs and lack of feasibility. Conversations about re- placing City Hall resurfaced at the urging of City Manag- er Bruce St. Denis, who has concerns about the building in a tsunami or earthquake. The building would be vulnerable to a minor seismic event or a medium-to-large sized tsuna- mi, St. Denis said. Making the building re- sistant to a major earthquake would be a priority no matter which location is chosen. But some, like City Councilor George Vetter, see placing the new City Hall at South Wind as the gateway to finally devel- oping the property that has sat vacant since 2013. Higher costs associated with developing South Wind, such as buying highway ac- cess and installing new utilities from scratch, could be offset by selling the land on where City Hall sits on Gower, Vetter argues — land that could be priced at a premium given its proximity to Hemlock Street. Installing utilities for a City Hall at South Wind could be the catalyst for other devel- COLIN MURPHEY Damage can be seen to the foundation of the City Hall building in Cannon Beach. opment, such as a new school building, he said. “I think if we keep (City Hall) here, we are abandoning the South Wind site,” Vetter said. “The City Council needs to take the lead to go up there. I don’t see how we could get a bond measure here and then get another for development at South Wind. We’re turning our backs on South Wind if we don’t take this opportunity.” St. Denis said he under- stood Vetter’s argument, but cautioned that no matter the location, a City Hall serving a town the size of Cannon Beach will never be big enough to be considered a long-term shelter after a disaster. “I don’t want to give the impression to people that they can go there and stay there for two weeks,” St. Denis said. Others, like City Council- or Mike Benefield and Mayor Sam Steidel, believe there’s an Cannon Beach’s Best Selection of Oregon and Washington Wine! UPCOMING TASTINGS Shack Hours Sunday - Thursday 11am to 5pm Friday & Saturday 11am to 5:30pm Tasting Room Hours Daily • 1 to 5pm Oct 20 • Puffin & Friends! Oct 27 • Wine Shack Favorites Nov 03 • Stormy Weather Wines Nov 10 • 90+ Points, $30 or less “Best Wine Shop” - 2016 & 2018 Reader’s Choice Award 124 N. Hemlock, Cannon Beach - 503.436.1100 - www.thewineshack.wine inherent value in keeping City Hall in the heart of town. Most of the structural issues could be addressed at the existing location for the majority of seismic and tsunami events, they believe. “What we do needs to be accessible to the public,” Steidel said. “It’s important to town character to have City Hall at the center.” Benefield also fears mov- ing City Hall to South Wind had the possibility of being “an uneconomic decision made just because we happen to own the land.” Steidel is asking the archi- tecture firm to study a third option — placing the police station at South Wind. Critical supplies and services could be stored and conducted while keeping City Hall accessible in town. “Having police up there fits better for what we purchased the 55 acres for,” Steidel said. No decisions will be made until after the City Council re- ceives SRG’s price estimates for each scenario. 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