Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2008)
PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. Postage Paid Vernonia, OR 97064 Permit No. 37 Vol. 23, No. 20 “Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley” Steep hikes in utility fees coming soon in Vernonia Popular Ride Bill Sword and his trusty John Deere tractor again delighted folks at the Vernonia Salmon Festival, on October 4, with free wagon rides to salmon spawning sites. Fire season ends; burn permits still needed Fire Season was officially terminated on October 6. With the ending of fire season, forest operators are no longer re- quired to have fire suppression equipment and fire watch serv- ices as part of their forest oper- ations. Public fire restrictions have also been lifted with the end of fire season. The Colum- bia County Fire Defense Board has lifted the ban on open burning. Burning will be regu- lated on a day-to-day basis by local fire districts and the Ore- gon Department of Forestry Town Hall Meeting 7:00 p.m. Oct. 22 Vernonia City Hall Topics will include schools and funds available for flood recovery projects. October 16, 2008 (ODF). Permits are required for any open burning within Columbia County. The burning of domes- tic waste and yard debris re- quires a valid permit from your local fire district. If outside a ru- ral fire district, the Department of Forestry issues this permit. The burning of logging slash related to forest management activities, whether in large or small quantities, is permitted only through the Oregon De- partment of Forestry. When ob- taining a permit, clearly de- scribe the type of burning you’ll be conducting to ensure obtain- ing the correct information and proper permit. Those conduct- ing burning of land clearing de- bris or logging slash require special permits, this is not cov- ered under the typical house- hold “backyard debris burning” permit. For more information on burning regulations, contact the appropriate district office: Vernonia, 503-429-8252 Mist-Birkenfeld, 503-755-2710 Banks, 503-324-6262 ODF Forest Grove, 503-357-2191 ODF Columbia City, 503-397-2636 The October 6 Vernonia City Council meeting began with a public hearing on rate increas- es for water, sewer, park fees and out-of-city library fees. At the end of the hearing, Mayor Sally Harrison announced that the council’s consensus was to prepare the resolution with blanks in the spaces for the rates and make a final determi- nation of the rate changes at the October 20 council meet- ing. Approximately 12 citizens attended to hear the staff report on the proposed rates from In- terim City Administrator Jim Johnson. Most of the property taxes received by the city, Johnson explained, go into the General Fund, which is used primarily for police ($490,000 or about 90%). None of the property tax money goes to water or sewer operations, which are fee driv- Property tax bills coming, too Columbia County Assessor Sue Poling, has certified the 2008-09 Columbia County As- sessment and Tax Rolls, and over 28,000 property tax bills will be mailed this week to Co- lumbia County property own- ers. Under the property tax sys- tem implemented by Measure 50, passed by Oregon voters in Confusing Ballot Measures? See page 4. Firewood cutting permits available Oregon Dept. of Forestry has wood available to cut and is offering wood permits for the public. Permits are $10.00 for two cords of wood, and each household can get a maximum of five permits per year. Call the Astoria office at 503-325-7215 for more information on areas and about obtaining a permit. en. About 20% of the fees col- lected go to pay off existing debts. Johnson said that, of about $1.39 million in revenue received by the city, 41 percent goes to debt service. The rec- ommendations for fee increas- es came from the Parks Com- mittee and the Public Works Committee, which are official citizen advisory groups, John- son concluded. One citizen told council that she is still being billed (and paying for) water and sewer al- though her house has been torn down, she has used only about 300 gallons to hose off the area and doesn’t have a sewer hookup at all. She asked how we (the city) got so far in debt and asked council to con- sider basing fees on usage and giving a break for those who don’t use as much. Please see page 4 A team of volunteers will cut wood for Vernonia citizens who are unable to cut their own. The volunteers need loads of logs or a supply of wood to cut into firewood. Anyone with logs or a wood supply, please contact Robert Alverts at 503-639- 0405, or 503-577-0202, or email balverts@teleport. com 1997, taxing districts have per- manent tax rates for operating purposes. At the same time, maximum assessed values of individual properties are limited to a three-percent increase each year, unless the property is improved, subdivided, re- zoned or disqualified from spe- cial assessment or exemption. These are “exceptions” to the three-percent increase in maxi- mum assessed value. The tax assessed value of an individual property is the lower of the maximum assessed value or the real market value of the property. Please see page 5 Fireworks Scheduled There will be fireworks Oct. 17 during Homecoming. If you have pets that are up- set by loud noises, it may be wise to keep them indoors.
