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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 6, 2003)
NewspaperRoom-ONP UO Library System - CPS 1299 University Of Oregon Eugene OR 97400-1299 Vol. 18, No. 21 “ Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley ŒD STANDARD ostage Paid a. O R 97064 FREE November 6, 2003 Local property taxes show small increase Downtown, water ordinance and parade Vernonia City Council, during their Oct. 20 and Nov. 3 meetings, set dates for several public hear ings and workshops. They also reviewed the city’s water ordi nance and approved incorporat ing “Smart Development’ princi pals into the City’s development ordinance. A workshop on economic de velopment will be held Nov. 17 in the form of a town hall meeting (details on page 3). Another work shop is scheduled for Dec. 1 to re view proposed changes in the City’s water ordinance. Among other modifications, the changes would require liability by the own ers of rental properties for pay ment of water and sewer utilities. Also scheduled Dec. 1 is a 6:30 p.m. public hearing on a re quest by Jim Brunsman to vacate a portion of G Street. Another public hearing, Janu ary 19, 2004, will be to get public input on a proposed downtown zone. The time will be announced later. Council approved a request by Robert Baker for a Christmas Lights parade of trucks on De cember 6 and directed staff to as sist him with necessary permits. The parade is tentatively sched uled to start at McLean Road Builders, on N. Mist Drive, through town on Bridge Street and end at the vacant lot between Weed and Rose Avenues. The lighted trucks will include log, lumber, chip and dum p trucks, Baker explained. Council has agreed to remove the old city hall and construct a new building at the site for use as a learning center. A grant has been obtained for the job, and city staff will meet with U.S. Bank to discuss how to handle the com mon wall separating the two spaces. City agreed to a hardship ex emption for the Vernonia Grange that excuses a portion of water and sewer fees. The agreement covers a six-month period, retroactive from July, 2003, until January, 2004. The Grange is working on fundraisers. A lth o u g h m any C olum bia C ounty property tax bills are low er this year, due to low er levies for bonded debt and ur ban renewal in som e areas, the typical tax bill increased 3.24 percent inside the City of Ver nonia and 3.39 percent in the rural areas of Vernonia. These increases resulted from higher bonded debt levies for both P ortland C om m unity C ollege and the Vernonia Rural Fire District. M ist-Birkenfeld Rural Fire D istrict property ow ners also saw an increase, of 2.94 percent. Under the property tax sys tem im plem ented by M easure 50, passed by O regon voters in 1997, ta xin g d is tric ts have frozen tax rates for operating purposes. At the sam e time as sessed va lu e s of individ ual properties are limited to a m ax imum three percent increase each year unless the property is im proved, subdivided, re zoned o r disqualified from spe cial assessm ent or exem ption These are considered “excep tions” to the three percent in crease in assessed value. The result of these tw o pro visions of Measure 50 is that Non-Voters defeat 9-1-1 levy renewal S eventy percent of the v o t ers who cast balllots in the N o vem ber 4 election approved renew al of an operating levy for C olum bia C ou nty’s 9-1-1 dis patching district. O nly 30 per cent voted against the renewal. Nevertheless, the levy re newal w as defeated because only 34 percent of the regis tered voters in the county filled out a ballot. Though the levy w as overw helm ingly approved by those w ho voted, the double m ajority election required at least 50 percent, plus one, of registered voters to vote. most property ow ners can ex pect a predictable three per cent increase in their property tax bill each year. W ith one sig nificant exception. “W hether a property ow n e r’s tax bill goes up more than three percent or less than three per cent is alm ost exclusively the result of changes in local option and bonded debt levy rates, w hich are not lim ited by M ea sure 50," C olum bia County A s s e s s o r Tom L in hares e x plained. Tax bills for typical residen tial and com m ercial properties inside the C ity of Scappoose, declined by 2.20 percent due to the S cappoose Library D istrict paying off the library building, com bined with a reduction in the C ity’s bonded debt. In the City of Rainier, property taxes declined by more than five per cent in response to the City paying off bonds for upgrading the c ity ’s w ater system and the R a in ie r E cono m ic D e v e lo p m ent C ou ncil’s reduction in the urban renewal special levy. E lsew here in the county, ru ral S cappoose properties saw a 2.14 percent increase. St. Helens residential prop erty ow ners saw a 3.69 percent increase in their tax bill inside the city and 3.78 percent in crease outside the city due to slightly higher bonded debt for the St. Helens School D istrict and a new, higher perm anent tax rate for the C olum bia River Fire & Rescue District. C olum bia City ow ners are also paying a little m ore for fire protection, but a decrease in the C ity ’s bonded debt offset that am oun t so tax bills in creased by only 2.69 percent. P ro p e rty ta x b ills in the C latskanie area w ere 3.14 pe r cent higher inside the C ity and 3.23 percent higher in the rural areas because of an increase Please see page 5
