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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (May 20, 2010)
Page 14 The INDEPENDENT, May 20, 2010 School Board finalizes bond proposal From page 12 tions for a bond proposal on the November 2010 election. Last fall the district hired Jeanne Magmer, of C&M Com- munications, and Rick Rain- one, of Cornerstone Communi- cations, as consultants to as- sist the district in determining if a bond should be proposed and if so, what improvements contained in the bond would have the greatest chance of passing. Rainone and Marsha Lata from C&M have regularly attended facilities planning committee meetings to provide information and assistance. The board worked directly with Magmer to develop a sur- vey carefully crafted to test vot- er support for specific project components. According to C&M materials, voter data indi- cate that the Banks School Dis- trict has 1,947 voter house- holds, and 65% (1258) of those households have listed phone numbers. In late April, Moore Information conducted a tele- phone survey of 181 randomly chosen respondents of a de- mographic group closely matching that of district voters. C&M presented the survey and voter analysis to the board at their meeting May 10 and will continue to be closely involved in providing the board with in- formation throughout the bond process. Their analysis recom- mends that the district consider a bond proposal of $25.2 mil- lion, including only those com- ponents that received more than 60% support in the ran- dom survey, for the best chance of receiving voter ap- proval in November 2010. The components tested in the sur- vey were drawn from the work and options presented by the facilities planning committee in March. Projects relating to safety, security and upgrades of heating, ventilation and elec- trical systems received the highest levels of support, along with projects that improve stu- dent learning in science and technology. The district would be able to capitalize on the cost saving realized through interest free loans by passing a bond in November. Nevertheless, the report also urges the district to consid- er waiting until 2011 in order to launch a strategic community campaign to meet residents need for information. The sur- vey analysis also concludes that a $31.5 million bond meas- ure, which would include all of the components, would likely fail at this time. Data show a Want to know what happens around here all year? Get The Independent delivered to your home for a year for only $20.00 Call today to start your subscription 503-429-9410 negative response to demoli- tion of the district office build- ing, conversion of an elemen- tary field to a soccer field, and significant tax resistance, par- ticularly among older voters. The survey analysis con- cludes by outlining work the district needs to begin by pro- viding information to staff, en- abling them to answer ques- tions about the bond proposal and provide voter information. In other business: The budget committee met and approved the 2010-2011 budget as proposed, at approx- imately $13 million. The budget will be presented to the board for adoption in June. The board approved admin- istrative rules for charter schools, revised policies for graduation requirements, to re- quire 24 credits, and regarding “Animals in the School”. The board also approved a resolution adopting a supple- mental budget in order to re- ceive an additional $250,000 from the state school fund. Ac- cording to business manager Simon Levear, the money was used to grow the ending fund balance in line with established board policy and to maintain programs. Wash. Co. boards seek volunteers The following Washington County boards are currently seeking applications for new members: Aging and Veteran Services Advisory Council De- velopmental Disabilities Coun- cil, Disability Services Advisory Committee, Fair Board, Fair- grounds Advisory Committee, Park and Recreation Advisory Board, Metzger Park Advisory Board, West Slope Community Library Advisory Board The application deadline is June 8, 2010 or when all va- cancies are filled. Applications may be obtained by visiting the website or by calling 503-846- 8685. Descriptions of all the boards can also be found on the website: http://www.co. washington.or.us/CAO/Board- sCommissions/index.cfm . Boards, committees, and commissions advise the Board of Commissioners on matters of interest to people who live and work in Washington Coun- ty. Committees themselves do not pass ordinances or estab- lish policy; their purpose is to study issues and make recom- mendations. Commission members are volunteers ap- pointed by the County Board of Commissioners. Members must be residents of Washing- ton County. Serving on an ap- pointed board or commission is a great way for Washington County residents to participate in decisions that affect them and to learn more about how local government works. Deaths from fungus very rare From page 10 lease definitive data. Prelimi- nary numbers show that, since 2004, there have been about 50 people identified with the ill- ness in Washington, Oregon and California and about 10 people have died. The fungus has not been found to be transmitted from person to person. Symptoms include persistent cough, short- ness of breath, headache, nau- sea, meningitis, or pneumonia. “If people are concerned about their symptoms, they should contact their health care provider right away,” said Katri- na Hedberg, M.D., M.P.H., Ore- gon public health epidemiolo- gist. The disease has also been indentified in some animals such as goats, sheep, dogs, cats, ferrets, elk, horses, al- pacas and porpoises. Council agrees enforce the sign code From page 13 Washington County Sheriff’s Office, informed the city that the sheriff’s office offers cus- tomized Neighborhood Watch, Business Watch, and Church Watch programs, and trains participants in the program. Be- cause Banks contracts with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, these services are avail- able. Schnoor can be contact- ed by e-mail: darlene_schnoor @co.washington.co.us. Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy Pat Chertude com- mented that April was a very slow month. There were 20 traffic stops resulting in 13 cita- tions, plus 75 calls for service and two arrests. Chertude con- cluded by saying that “May has been a much busier month.” City Manager Jim Hough re- ported the following: • The hedge around the Ride Connection Bus Stop has been installed; • The city is still working on getting a grant to pay for the in- stallation of an electric vehicle charging station at the Banks- Vernonia Trailhead parking area. • The citizens of Banks will receive a thermal expansion explanation in their water bills this month. A first reading of an ordinance will be presented at the June 8 City Council meet- ing; the ordinance will specify the plumbing permit needed for backflow and thermal expan- sion devices. According to Hough, this is in the plumbing code, however, as Water Au- thority, the city should be spe- cific so the Washington County plumbing inspector has good direction on the city’s behalf. • At a prior meeting, the mayor requested enforcement of the sign code. A friendly re- minder flyer will be included in water bills to let citizens know that the City of Banks Code prohibits signs in the public right away. The city would like to try a six-month experiment enforcing the code, and pro- poses that, for a temporary sign violation, the City Recorder will call the violator, if identifiable, notifying them that the sign must be removed from the pub- lic right away; in case of non- compliance, the sign will be re- moved within a day. Yard sale, for rent, free puppies, etc. signs can become a distraction to drivers and in some cases im- pair a driver’s line of vision. The city appreciates citizen cooper- ation. • The library and public works buildings’ signs have been installed. A public hearing was held for the fiscal year 2010-2011 oper- ating budget and capitol im- provement plan. There were no expressed objections, and the hearing was closed. Council will convene At their regular June meeting, Council will dis- cuss any final changes and adopt the budget. The next city council meet- ing will be held on June 8 at 7:30 p.m. at Banks City Hall.