The INDEPENDENT, July 5, 2007
Page 5
Business Notes
Business buys new flag for city; Council reinstates police funds
The July 2 Vernonia City
Council meeting started off with
citizen Helen Hudson telling
council that Vernonia Hardware
had purchased a flag and re-
placed the one at City Hall.
They also provided lights to
keep the flag lit. Mayor Sally
Harrison responded by saying,
“I would like a thank you sent to
Vernonia Hardware.”
Vernonia Police Sergeant
Mike Kay spoke to council
about a group of citizens who
have been complaining about
‘selective enforcement’ and
about Chief of Police Mat
Workman. Kay offered his sup-
port of the chief and said, “He
leads by example and has all
seven habits of effective peo-
ple.” He went on to list accom-
plishments of the current force,
such as a reduced crime rate,
the successful Night Out cele-
bration, the staff volunteering
hundreds of hours, all the po-
lice training taking place in Ver-
nonia because of the good rep-
utation of our police force. Kay
finished by saying, “So this ‘se-
lective enforcement’ is true –
because we do it in effective
ways.”
Scott Laird told council that
the groundbreaking for the bi-
cycle skills park took place on
Saturday and there is now one
trail.
Kevin Hudson told council
he believes the budget needs
to be increased to get more po-
lice officers on the street. He
went on a ride-along this past
weekend and told council he
“wouldn’t want to use the police
car he was in to commute to
Hillsboro, let alone in a police
chase, and that cutting the po-
lice budget is ludicrous.” The
police, that night, spent most of
their time on drunks and while
two officers were kept busy
booking two drunks, there were
other things going on in town
that didn’t get attention, Hud-
son concluded.
Cindy Ball told council that
the pothole on Riverside Drive
had been patched but that one-
third of the street was still grav-
el, and asked for a timeframe
for completion of the work. Har-
rison told here that she has
been trying to get hold of Jeff
(Burch) to get a timetable.
Chief Workman told council
that the amount discussed dur-
ing the budget process
($16,600) for two leased cars
with camera systems was for
the ‘deal’ they put together
then. After being asked to see
what he could find now, he
found two 5-year leases on
cars, that with equipment, cam-
eras and shipping (from Illi-
nois), would cost $18,594. City
Administrator M.R. “Dick” Kline
added that there are no capital
replacement plans in the budg-
et and, “We are always scram-
bling due to crisis instead of
planning ahead. We are start-
ing the fiscal year with cash in
the bank,” and we could get
these cars but it would leave
only $5,000-$10,000 in the
General Fund for contingencies
for the whole year. Kline went
on to say, “I didn’t find an extra
$20,000 but we could purchase
the cars if council makes it the
priority. My two cents worth is I
think it’s a necessity.” Kline also
said, “It will take us two years to
get our of this [budget prob-
lems] and this is the first year.
We need alternative revenues
for the General Fund. Mr. Tony
Hyde has said you cannot fund
municipal government on prop-
erty taxes.” Council consensus
was to lease the two police
cars.
During Kline’s city adminis-
trator report, he told council
that, “I will be working continu-
ally to get our year-end figures
to you. I recommend we have a
press conference or open town
hall meeting so everyone can
hear and close out that year. I
want to give a comprehensive
report on that.” Kline also re-
ported that the primary thing, in
addition to that already men-
tioned, he would be working on
this month is to be sure the
committee meetings get up and
running appropriately. He then
reiterated, “We are in a serious
financial position.”
Harrison reported that she
thinks, “it is time we start in-
specting businesses to be sure
they are up to code.”
In other business, council
(with councilor Steve Whiteman
Campfire safety is vital in the forests
The Keep Oregon Green As-
sociation is cautioning Oregoni-
ans to use extreme caution
when visiting the forests this
summer. More than 200 wild-
fires have been caused by hu-
mans since January 1.
Many Oregonians love the
outdoors and sitting around a
campfire is one of the special
times. In the last five years,
however, 681 campfires built
on state and private lands
burned 11,253 acres and cost
taxpayers $1,710,370 to sup-
press. Abandoning fires is the
fourth-leading human cause of
wildfires in Oregon. Here’s
what you can do to help:
Call the local fire district to
assure that fires are allowed
where you plan to camp. If they
are allowed, and you choose to
camp in an undeveloped camp-
ground, here are a few sugges-
tions to ensure safe campfires.
• When selecting a site for a
campfire, avoid areas near
buildings, fallen trees, tree
trunks, or low overhanging
branches.
• Scrape all leaves and litter
away down to bare earth for at
least five feet on all sides of the
fire. Dig a pit in the center of
this circle and surround it with
rocks.
• Build your campfire down-
wind and at a safe distance
from your tent, never leave it
unattended, and after you light
it, thrown your match into the
fire. Have a shovel or rake
handy to suppress sparks.
When it’s time to leave and
head to bed or back to town, be
sure your campfire is DEAD
OUT!
• Drown all embers, sticks,
and coals; look for any that
may have fallen under rocks,
• Stir coals to make sure all
heat has been removed,
• Drown the area again.
Wildfire prevention is the re-
sponsibility of everyone who
visits forests. Be alert to weath-
er conditions, especially wind,
and ALWAYS be careful with
fire. Keep your bucket full of
water and your shovel near by.
Smokey Bear and the Keep
Oregon Green Association
thank you for taking that re-
sponsibility.
absent);
• approved a housekeeping
issue correcting the new
schedule of park fees,
• approved the first reading
of an ordinance amending the
reimbursement district ordi-
nance due to errors in the orig-
inal,
• set a public hearing date of
August 6, at 7:00 p.m. for the
public to learn more about a re-
imbursement district being
formed to extend water lines
north along Mist Drive,
• approved the signing of an
Intergovernmental Agreement
with the Department of Admin-
istrative Services (the city leas-
es vehicles from DAS),
• okayed street closures and
a beer garden (for the Lyon’s
Den) for Jamboree weekend,
• heard from Randy Parrow
(as a Jamboree committee rep-
resentative)
that
Shirlee
Daughtry has been named Citi-
zen of the Year (for the second
time),
• was told that the county
has approved Indigo Rescue, a
dog kennel on Airport Way.
Harrison said the council want-
ed more information so they
could decide whether to ap-
peal, but was told (by the audi-
ence) that the city had already
missed the appeal deadline.