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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 17, 2011)
Page 12 The INDEPENDENT, February 17, 2011 Banks Council gets input on Urban Growth Boundary at hearing by Jodi Boylan The February 8, Banks City Council meeting was held in the Banks School District Boardroom to accommodate the Public Hearing on the Part 1, Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) Expansion – Goal 14; Part II, Transportation System Plan (TSP) – Goal 12; and Part III, Recreational Needs – Goal 8. Council heard from City Planner K.J. Won, who shared some background on the proj- ect. He explained that this proj- ect has been in the works for two years, that the city received a transportation plan in 2008 and has held various work pro- grams, including community meetings, to develop the plan that was submitted to council. During the Part I testimony, Anne Debbaunt, from the De- partment of Land Conservation and Development, said that her agency is in support of Part I. David Noren, an attorney rep- resenting Banks Lumber Com- pany, commented that they would like to see more industri- al land allocated east of the mill, which would allow for more jobs in the future. Council then heard from James Crawford, a former resi- dent/land owner in Banks, who said he has offered to donate land to the school district and that his offer is still good. Jim Spickerman, an attorney who represents Portland Western Railroad was the last to speak on Part I. Spickerman voiced his concern about 5/8 of a mile of residential land abutting the railroad which, he said, creates a noise issue, and is danger- ous, with no good east-west railroad crossing. Mayor John Kinsky closed Part I and opened Part II, The Transportation Plan (TSP) – Goal 12. Debbaunt again ex- pressed support of the plan. David Duyck, President of Sun- set Park, spoke of the need to expand the park for activities including baseball, soccer, a race track, boy scout and chamber events. The park is running out of room, Duyck said, and with the proposed TSP, the park would be blocked in. At the conclusion of his tes- timony, the mayor closed the hearing. When the hearing for Part III, Recreational Needs, Goal 8, started, Debbaunt said she was concerned that it is not justified. Don Kilgras, President of Quail Valley Golf Course, spoke in support of the plan and being brought into the city, saying he is committed to the process. Kilgras said that the course has always been a part of Banks. The last speaker was Noren, who did not support the plan. At the conclusion of all three sec- tions of the hearing, Council discussed the highlights, then adopted the Planning Commis- sion’s recommendation by a 4- 2 vote. When the regular business meeting got underway, the Mayor presented a certificate of appreciation to Stevie Free- man-Montes in recognition of her service to the City of Banks for developing the Banks Sus- tainability Strategy as the Com- munity Development Sustain- ability Analyst. March 14 - 20 has been de- clared Banks Fix-A-Leak Week by Mayor Kinsky, who noted that Banks has a Water Con- Are you ready for spring? MS 170 Chain Saw Designed for occasional wood-cutting tasks around the home FS 45 TRIMMER • Easy-to- use, well-balanced trimmer for home owner use • Lightweight, reliable and fast starting Trimmers Starting at $149. 95 Chain Saws Starting at $179. 95 STIHL HAS YOU COVERED WITH PROTECTIVE APPAREL AND ACCESSORIES. Stihl tune up kits avilable. Service provided by Stihl certified technicians. PRECISION OUTDOOR POWER EQUIPMENT Banks Hardware 503-324-5221 • 150 N. Main Street, Banks • Mon - Fri 8am to 6pm • Saturday 8am to 5pm • Sunday 10am to 4pm servation Plan that encourages the wise use and conservation of the city’s water. According to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) WaterSense Program, household leaks ac- count for nearly one trillion gal- lons of water wasted in the United States each year. An American household can waste, on average, 10,000 gal- lons of water every year due to running toilets, dripping fau- cets, and other household leaks. Malmedal Plumbing and Five-Star Plumbing, both local plumbing companies, also sup- port and encourage the conser- vation of water. Both compa- nies are offering to provide leak repair plumbing services to citi- zens of Banks with the first half- hour of service being donated free during a special week set aside for proactive water con- servation measures. City Manager Jim Hough’s report included the following: • The city is working with Washington Count LUT to draft an agreement for the new por- tion of Banks Road in order to install a crosswalk. • Metro’s Chief Economist has asked the city to provide in- formation that will enhance the Metroscope algorithm for popu- lation, employment and trans- portation. The information will be compiled by Washington County LUT and forwarded to Metro to make the required population projections for the next few decades. • The city will be recognized for the Trees for All Community Stream Planting Challenge, on February 24, as part of the Clean Water Services Business Case for Sustainability presen- tation at Tualatin Valley Water District Headquarters. • The City of Banks will con- duct a children’s coloring con- test in conjunction with Nation- al Drinking Water Week (May 1-7). The contest will be adver- tised in the April water bill. En- tries will be due by 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 3. • A management team for the Library & Public Works Building Project has been formed and is meeting regular- ly to discuss the city’s plans to have the two separate projects be bid to the same contractor under a “Design-Build” con- cept. Hough proposes, based on a number of items, to contin- ue the project management team approach, and get Brett Laurila, of BKL/A working, in anticipation of Council approval of the proposal at the March 8 City Council Meeting. • The city continues to coor- dinate with the fiber optic com- pany that serves Alaska in hopes that the company can reach an agreement with Fron- tier to bring high speed internet to Banks. If that works out, the See Council on page 13 See page 5 for information on the new dentist in Banks S TRASSEL ’ S A UTO R EPAIR & H YDRAULIC H OSES 2-4-6 S PIRAL W IRE S UCTION H OSES A DAPTORS - 3/16” TO 2” A MERICAN & M ETRIC F ITTINGS B ULK O IL P RODUCTS 276 S UNSET , B ANKS 503-324-9808
