Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 2019)
A6 • Friday, November 8, 2019 | Seaside Signal | SeasideSignal.com Permit fee increase approved; distribution process under review By R.J. MARX Seaside Signal City councilors approved an increase in the business license fee for vacation rent- als, adding a fee to all per- mits, which are divided into three tiers based on occupancy. There are about 275 vaca- tion rental dwellings in Sea- side, the majority designated small or medium. Current rates for from one-to-fi ve occupants is $75; medium, six-to-10 occupants, $100; and 11-plus, $150. Funds will be used to fi nance a code compliance offi cer to monitor vacation rental property occupancy, safety and parking. Each tier occu- pancy will see a $400 permit increase. The ordinance, which received its third and fi nal reading Monday, Oct. 28, will go into effect within 30 days. But the increase in per- mit fees could lead to further discussion about how funds are distributed. Currently, the fi rst $100,000 collected will go to pay to Community Devel- opment to pay for a code enforcement offi cer to mon- itor local rentals, City Man- ager Mark Winstanley said. The next $65,000 is dis- tributed to the Chamber of Commerce and the Sea- side Downtown Develop- ment Association, a divi- sion that Seaside resident John Dunzer called “a terri- ble mistake.” “I’m not even sure if this is even the intent of this council,” Dunzer said. “My recommendation is to send this back to the Planning Commission and restructure this thing, so it’s organized so it goes to code enforce- ment rather than what I feel is an unintended conse- quence, which is not what is intended or needed.” Overall, the city collected $180,000 in 2019 business license fees, Winstanley said. The way the ordinance is currently written, the fi rst $100,000 of all license fees goes to community development. The next $65,000 is split between the Seaside Cham- ber of Commerce and the Seaside Downtown Devel- opment Association. Winstanley agreed that the council may want to look at how the distribu- tion of fees takes place. “We haven’t had a chance to see how the distribution needs to work,” he said. “There are issues we still have to look at. The council instructed us to get an ordinance and get it in place that would fund a compliance offi cer, and that meant we were under strict timelines to do that.” He said the city has yet to set the range or responsibili- ties of the compliance offi cer that will dictate how much that position will pay, or which city department will provide a supervisory role. “The purpose of this ordi- nance is to increase revenue to fund a compliance ordi- nance,” Winstanley said. “I think your intent is clear. But you still have work to do as a council.” The ordinance to make changes to the license fees passed 5-1. Councilors Steve Wright, Tita Montero, Seth Morrisey, Randy Frank and Mayor Jay Barber voted yes. Dana Phillips was absent. Tom Horning voted no. “I felt uncomfortable with the fi nancial distribution requirements of the licens- ing ordinance and thought perhaps we should rewrite it fi rst before changing the amount of fees we charge for a business license,” Horning said after the meeting. Zoning: Change aims to curb Sixth Avenue blockages Continued from Page A1 Public works director Dale McDowell presented a traffi c study, indicating in a two-week period, there were four instances of speeding in the Sixth Avenue study zone. Mark Tolan of Seaside Vacation Homes, and Dave Koller, general manager of Cleanline Surf, confi rmed a plan to share the loading zone area at the side of the vacation rental building to prevent road blockages. The issue arose more than a year ago when Sixth Ave- nue residents approached council with complaints about speeding cars and businesses that they said failed to comply with the residential commercial zone. In September, the resi- dents returned to City Coun- cil again seeking to address the issue. Holding a petition with the names of 17 residents, resident Dennis Brodigan said that local businesses, including Seaside Vaca- tion Homes and Cleanline Surf, do not comply with the llmits of the residential com- mercial zone. Since that time, Barber said the city had confi rmed the businesses were operat- ing within appropriate zon- MORE ACTION REQUIRED, NEIGHBOR SAYS After the meeting, Sixth Avenue neighbor rep- re- sentative Dennis Brodigan said key concerns had not been met at the Oct. 28 council discussion. R.J. Marx Resident Jennifer Payne asks for increased traffi c measures along Sixth Avenue. ing conditions. Along with greater awareness and communi- cations among drivers and employees, business repre- sentatives agreed to estab- lish a loading zone on the north side of the Seaside Vacation Homes built to pre- vent road blockages. Koller said he has been tracking deliveries in the past three weeks. He said Cleanline averages about two to three deliveries a week, stopping from fi ve to 17 minutes on Sixth Avenue, with an average stop time of 12 minutes. Trucks are typi- cally 28 feet, he said. “We’ve never had a semitruck deliv- ery at Cleanline.” Sixth Avenue resident Amanda Payne thanked businesses for parking changes and outreach to “We went to the Traffi c Advisory Committee in July with the petition which, in part, asked for a 20 MPH speed limit,” Brodigan said. “At the time, their city staff representative said only the City Council can make that change. Now the council says we need to go to the Traffi c Advisory Com- mission.” R.J. Marx Columbia Memorial Hospital Chief Executive Offi cer Erik Thorsen addresses Seaside City Council. Medical Group Director Jeanette K. Schacher is at his right. Hospital: Plans for early January clinic opening At the October mediation session with Mayor Jay Barber, neighbors discussed weight limits for trucks on residential streets, asked the budget committee to consider speed bumps on residential streets which connect Roosevelt and Holladay, and several other ideas which were mentioned in the petition, Brodigan continued. Continued from Page A1 “None of this was mentioned,” he said. “We feel a petition of 17 full-time owner occupants from a small neighborhood has had absolutely no impact on the City Council.” employees and drivers. Concerns remain, how- ever, with semitrucks parked on Sixth Avenue between Roosevelt and North Lin- coln, mostly on the north side of Sixth Avenue. These produce “danger- ous situations” and blind spots that could lead to a collision, Payne said. Koller thanked Tolan for sharing the delivery area on the south side of the road- way. He called the results of the meeting with neighbors “an important fi rst step to get the businesses and com- munity together.” “We’ll stay tuned,” Bar- ber said. “I hope the neigh- bors and businesspeople have given due consider- ation to your challenges. We want every neighborhood in the community to be livable, safe, and we’ll work together to make that happen.” Extended hours will come as more providers come to the community, possibly to 12 hours, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. A pharmacy will make home deliveries as well as retail sales. Pharmacy services will be available seven days a week. A women’s services provider will be at the site three days a week, along with a nurse practitioner for primary care. “We’ll add to that throughout the year, including a podiatrist and a general surgeon once a week,” Schacher said. A primary care phy- sician will be added in August. Schacher said the clinic will offer commu- nity health resources, including assistance fi nd- ing food stamps or hous- ing resources, among other concerns. A social worker or family transitional plan- ner will help with social or chronic health issues. Thorsen stressed the organization’s investment in the community. He asked Seaside offi - cials “where and how we can get involved and engaged in this community.” “I’m sure we’ll be able to help you with that,” Bar- ber said. Need help getting health insurance by the Dec. 15 deadline? GET FREE LOCAL HELP! www.OregonHealthCare.gov | 1-855-268-3767 1139 Exchange Street Astoria, OR 97103 503-440-3909 duganins.com
