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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2011)
The INDEPENDENT, April 21, 2011 Page 5 ODJ’s new Top 10 complaint list Come learn how to Larger Open Air Market approved Oregon Attorney General can be found at https:// refinish furniture At the April 18 Vernonia City cil: John Kroger, in mid-March, rec- ognized National Consumer Protection Week by announc- ing the Oregon Department of Justice’s Top 10 Consumer Complaint List for 2010. “Scammers and crooked companies continue to target seniors, people who have lost their homes and other vulnera- ble Oregon consumers,” Attor- ney General Kroger said. “We will continue to aggressively pursue malefactors in and out of court.” The Top 10 Consumer Com- plaints include telecommunica- tions, international money transfer schemes, homeowner- ship issues, collection agen- cies, financial institutions, mo- tor vehicle sales, health prod- ucts, internet retailers, telemar- keters and construction con- tractors. Attorney General Kroger also announced enhancements to Be InfORmed, the Oregon Department of Justice’s Con- sumer Complaint search fea- ture introduced last year. Be In- fORmed now allows users to conduct searches by zip code or geographical area, so they can search for complaints against businesses in their neighborhood. Be InfORmed justice.oregon.gov/complaints/. The raw data from Be In- formed has also been made available at http://data.oregon. gov/ in a format that private sector software developers can use to create applications, mashups and visualizations. Oregon has one of the most innovative consumer protection programs in the country. The program operates exclusively on funds recovered from com- panies that break the law. DOJ in 2010 recovered more than $22 million for Oregon workers, consumers and investors with- out spending a single taxpayer dollar. The Attorney General’s Con- sumer Hotline, at 1-877-877- 9392, is staffed by a team of volunteers who fielded 33,529 calls in 2010. The Department of Justice last year also re- ceived 12,963 written com- plaints. Attorney General John Kroger leads the Oregon De- partment of Justice. The De- partment’s mission is to fight crime and fraud, protect the en- vironment, improve child wel- fare, promote a positive busi- ness climate and defend the rights of all Oregonians. ARRA funds Courthouse upgrades Energy-efficient retrofitting is set to start on two projects awarded a total of $758,073 in federal funds by the Oregon Department of Energy. The Co- lumbia County Courthouse and the Columbia County Rider Transit Facility received funding for installation of new energy efficient heating and ventilation systems and weatherization. The projects are funded by the American Recovery and Rein- vestment Act (ARRA) and awarded through the State En- ergy Program (SEP) and Ener- gy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program. These funds are designated for ener- gy efficiency and renewable en- ergy projects in public build- ings. The U.S. Department of Energy administers the funds, approves the projects and re- views the state’s progress. Expected annual energy savings for each facility from the energy efficiency improve- ments are: • Columbia County Court- house: $57,000 • Columbia County Rider Transit Facility: $1,000 Tony Hyde, Chair of the Co- lumbia County Board of Com- missioners commented, “As a county, we are facing signifi- cant revenue shortfalls. The en- ergy savings from these effi- ciency improvements will not only help us mitigate some of the shortfall, but provide long term savings.” “We are pleased to have made these awards to the Co- lumbia County Courthouse and Rider Transit Center,” said Paul Egbert, manager of the Oregon Department of Energy ARRA team. “These facilities have high public use, and these im- provements will save energy each month and provide a more comfortable environment for occupants.” The Oregon Department of Energy received more than 1,100 letters of interest, repre- senting requests of over $2 bil- lion in Recovery Act funding. Spring finally has arrived and so has Murphy Furniture’s free finishing clinic. Join owner Mary Murphy-Holub on Saturday, April 30, at 10:00 a.m. for two fun filled hours, as she demon- strates the latest in do-it-your- self finishing and restoring tech- niques. If you have a refinishing adventure you’ve been hesitant to tackle, Mary is just the cheer- leader you’ve needed to con- quer that perplexing project. First time finishers will dis- cover easy to use finishes with low VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) and quick dry time. Mary will show the ease of working with glaze effects, milk paints and other decorative fin- ishes. Also to be demonstrated is a simple wipe on, wipe off product called Restore A Finish. Many finished wood surfaces that seem to need a complete refinishing job can be restored in a few minutes, instead of be- ing stripped and refinished. All clinic attendees will receive special values on everything needed to complete their task. If you are unable to make the clinic, stop by Murphy’s any time for expert advice on com- mon stripping and staining questions. To reserve a spot at the clin- ic, call Murphy’s Furniture at 503-640-1124, email mary@murphysfurniture.net or stop by the store at 2962 Base- line (T.V Highway) in Cornelius. Bridge work set on Highway 26 The Oregon Department of Transportation is currently re- moving and replacing the Volmer Creek and Johnson Creek Bridges on U.S. 26 just east of U.S. 101. There is 24-hour flagging between midnight on Sundays and 3:00 p.m. on Fridays at Milepost 2 and 3, with single lane alternating traffic during the demolition of the existing bridges and construction of the new bridges. Delays are not an- ticipated to be over 20 minutes. The majority of the work is anticipated to occur in the months of April through July, with completion expected in October of this year. For more information on the t project, visit our web site at http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/ HWY/REGION2/US26_Volmer andJohn sonCreek.shtml. Council meeting, Mayor Josette Mitchell reported that League of Oregon Cities Member Ser- vices Director Jennie Messmer is working through the applica- tions received for the city ad- ministrator position and has asked for a meeting with coun- cil in two weeks. Council agreed to a special meeting on May 9 for this purpose. Council heard, and ap- proved, a request to expand the Open Air Market this year. The Open Air Market is being moved to Saturday (from Friday evening) from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and will run from June 4 through October 1. The market will continue using space in the Vernonia Community Learning Center courtyard, but will also use part Madison Avenue, from Bridge Street to the driveway of Grey Dawn Gallery (with the street closed to traffic). In other business, the coun- • Heard a presentation on rave parties, given by DeAnna Pearl of the Vernonia Preven- tion Coalition; • approved, and the Mayor appointed, Mitch Seibert to the Vernonia Economic Develop- ment Committee; • approved an agreement with Columbia 9-1-1 Communi- cations District for operation and maintenance of the radio site on Corey Hill; • agreed that Councilor Mar- ilyn Nicks and Interim City Ad- ministrator Bill Haack should act as an Ad Hoc committee on the scope of a project on “im- proving communications” that was requested by Nicks; • approved resolutions 12-11 and 13-11 for the next two flood acquisition projects. The next regularly scheduled council meeting will be May 2, at 7:00 p.m. in city hall.