PRESORTED STANDARD
U.S. Postage Paid
Vernonia, OR 97064
Permit No. 37
Vol. 25, No. 18
THE
FREE
INDEPENDENT
The Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley for Over 25 years
September 16, 2010
Meet the candidates seeking to
be the next Mayor of Vernonia
Vernonia voters will decide
who will be Mayor of Vernonia
in the November 2 general
election. The incumbent is Sal-
ly Harrison who has served in
the position of Mayor for the
past six years. The position of
Mayor is non-partisan.
All of the candidates were in-
terviewed by The Independent,
asking the same questions of
each one. Here are the ques-
tions and the candidates’ re-
sponses. Responses are in al-
phabetical order by surname.
The candidates are Sally Harri-
son, Josette Mitchell, Victoria
(Vici) Peters, and Emil Rode.
After the questions and an-
swers, there is additional infor-
mation about each candidate.
From the Candidates:
Vernonia Emergency Responders commemorate September 11, 2001, with a silent parade.
Commissioners’ proclamation
emphasizes preparedness
Upcoming Events
The Columbia County Board
of Commissioners, at the re-
quest of Derek White, Colum-
bia County Emergency Manag-
er, approved a proclamation
designating September as “Na-
tional Emergency Prepared-
ness Month”.
It is important that residents
be proactive in preparing for
any and all disasters or emer-
gency situations. “We encour-
age all residents and business-
es to have a plan and a disas-
ter supply kit assembled and
ready to go”, said Commission-
er Tony Hyde. Columbia Coun-
ty has been affected by numer-
ous disasters in past years, in-
cluding five presidentially-de-
clared disasters within the last
decade, we want everyone to
be aware of the information and
training that is available to pre-
Sept. 16-19, 10 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church
pare for emergency situations”,
he said.
For more information, go to
www.redcross. org.
For information on the Coun-
ty Emergency Management
visit the website at www.co.co-
lumbia.or.us, click on depart-
ments and scroll down to Emer-
gency Management. Those in-
terested can also sign up on
Twitter at http://twitter.com/co-
lumbia coem and read the Blog
at http://columbiacountyem.
blogspot.com.
Change of date for
City Parks Committee
The next meeting of the Ver-
nonia Parks Committee will be
September 22, at 6:30 p.m. in
City Hall.
This is only for the regular
schedule of September 16.
ST. MARY’S 40TH
ANNUAL QUILT FAIR
DALLAS BRASS CONCERT
September 17, 7:00-9:00 p.m.
WGS (tickets at Creatures
and district office)
COMMUNITY-WIDE
GARAGE SALE
September 18, 9:00 a.m.-5:00
p.m., maps available beside
Vernonia Realty office
VERNONIA SCHOOLS
TOWN HALL
September 28, 7:00 p.m.
VMS (green) building
FIRST FRIDAY
October 1, 5:00-8:00 p.m.
Scout Cabin in Hawkins Park
SALMON FESTIVAL
October 2, 10 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
Hawkins Park
1. Why are you running for
this office?
Harrison – After six years of
work, I think in the next two
years we’ll be able to finish it or
at least get on an even keel to
go forward. I’d hate to stop in
mid-stream.
Mitchell – I think there are a lot
of opportunities facing Vernonia
and it’s time for change. By op-
portunities I mean such things
as the buyout process and what
that means for the citizens and
the city (the city will get new
land) and there will be an op-
portunity to decide the best use
Oregon suicide rate
higher than national
Oregon’s suicide rate is 35
percent higher than the nation-
al average, according to the
Oregon Department of Human
Services. The rate is 15.2 sui-
cides per 100,000 people, com-
pared to the national rate of
11.3 per 100,000.
After decreasing in the
1990s, suicide rates have been
increasing significantly since
See Suicide on page 5
of that new land.
Peters – I think I have a unique
set of skills (team building,
problem solving, project man-
agement) and it’s a good time
for someone with a background
in engineering and marketing. I
want to help build consensus
and then lead the city to find re-
sources to help with projects.
Rode – I thought Mayor Harri-
son was running unopposed
and that the voters should have
a choice. I would like to see
more transparency in council
and city government and give
some new ideas on the sewer
project.
2. What do you think is the
single most important issue
facing Vernonia?
Harrison – Right now, it’s a mat-
ter of getting all the projects
completed (schools, senior
center, health center, food
bank) plus the sewer rehab.
Mitchell – I would say the finan-
cial situation. In this economy,
the city budget is just like every-
one’s home budget and we
have to start living within our
means.
Peters – Ones that rise to the
surface after talking to people;
cost of utilities, something for
kids to do, cost of living, and
general quality of life. One thing
I love about this town is it still
has its original identity.
Rode – Right now, getting the
sewer plant out of the flood
plain and the poverty here in
town.
3. What other issues are also
important?
See Meet on page 3
Council candidate
interviews next issue
The Independent’s inter-
views with the eight candi-
dates for Vernonia City Coun-
cil will be in the next issue, on
Thursday, October 7, 2010.