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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 2012)
The INDEPENDENT, January 18, 2012 24 Years Ago This Month The January 28, 1988, issue of The Independent included the following news story on the front page: A plan for dealing with the city’s stalled nuisance abate- ment program was presented to the Vernonia City Council at their January 4, 1988, meeting, by Building Official Jim Tierney. The proposal, which would create a point system for prior- itizing abatement targets, also calls for an ordinance that would allow fines of up to $1,000 for violations, then channel those fines into a re- volving fund to finance the pro- gram. The point system for deter- mining abatement priorities would be based on five criteria: 1. Immediate health hazards, as determined by the county health officer, would be 10 points. 2. Health and safety risks determined by the city building official would range from 1 to 10 points. 3. Future health and safety risks, for situations deemed re- pairable by the building official, would be 1 to 5 points. 4. Crime hazard, for instance an unse- cured vacant building used for illegal purposes, 1 to 5 points. 5. Visibility, whether the proper- ty reflects negatively on the town, would be another 1 to 5 points. Tierney also requested $3,000 for the program in the 1988-89 fiscal year. That amount wouldn’t result in an in- crease in the budget, Tierney said, because of a decrease in the building official’s hours and salary. The council referred the plan to City Attorney Tom Kohl for review. In other action during Janu- ary the council agreed there would be no charge for water leaking from a pipe at the resi- dence of Mike Pihl after instal- lation of a new water meter there. Public Works Director Mike Smith explained that even though the pipe was broken on the Pihl’s side of the meter, it Bits & Bites could have been caused by the installation of the new meter. Council member Mario Leo- netti asked Smith to purchase all of the materials needed to complete the fencing at Spencer Park, per agreement with Larry Bair, the adjacent landowner. Smith said he was waiting for a list of supplies, and would obtain the materials as soon as possible. Two ordinances were unani- mously approved: one changes the composition of the planning commission so that one mem- ber can reside outside the city limits. The other ordinance ap- proved was to set a sixty day limit for homeowners to com- ply, after notification by the city that their curbs or sidewalks need to be repaired. The council also set a work- shop with the airport commis- sion for February 15, following a council meeting, to discuss insurance, hangar rental agreements and maintenance. County libraries saddle up for trip to wild west Columbia County public li- braries are joining forces for the 2012 Our Community Reads program running from January through March 2012. Local libraries will take readers on a journey to the Wild West through a selection of Western- themed books and events. Participating libraries in- clude the St. Helens Public Li- brary, Clatskanie Library Dis- trict, Columbia City Community Library, Rainier City Library, Scappoose Public Library and Vernonia Public Library. Three books have been se- lected to cover a range of read- ing ages. The adult selection is “The Hearts of Horses” by renowned Portland author Mol- ly Gloss. “The Devil’s Paintbox” by Victoria McKernan is the teen selection, and older ele- mentary students will enjoy “The Captain’s Dog” by Oregon author Roland Smith. A variety of Western-themed events are planned at partici- pating libraries. Author Molly Gloss will be at the Vernonia Public Library on February 27 at 5:30 p.m. to discuss her book. She will visit the St. He- lens Public Library on March 1 at 7:00 p.m. Adult and teen readers inter- ested in discussing their read- ing selection from the comfort of home can visit two book blog spots: http://thedevilspaintbox discussion.blogspot.com/ and http://theheartsofhorsesdiscus sion.blogspot.com/. Other events include a Western Film Series at Scap- poose and Vernonia Public Li- braries; Sing Like a Cowboy night at St. Helens Public Li- brary; leather carving for stu- dents; an antique quilt show; cowboy-themed preschool sto- rytime with individualized, old fashioned WANTED posters; presentations on saddle mak- ing and Custer’s last stand; and a book sale at Columbia City Community Hall. Community members inter- ested in participating are en- Page 9 couraged to visit a participating library to check out the Our Community Reads selections and start reading. A complete list of events and dates are also available at participating li- braries. Our Community Reads is a program designed to bring reading to the forefront of pub- lic discourse. By reading the same book at the same time, it is hoped that Columbia County residents will be inspired to dis- cuss, connect and share their perspectives. For further information re- garding the 2012 Our Commu- nity Reads program, please contact St. Helens Public Li- brary Director Margaret Jeffries at 503-397-4544, ext. 104. Mariolino’s Fresh Homemade Soup Daily By Jacqueline Ramsay Happy New Year. Santa and Frosty no longer reign under the Hinoki tree, they are now passed out on the front room floor, drying from all the fog and rain we had over the last three days. Oh, we had some sunshine too, but there wasn’t much heat in it, just glare. This you are missing, Mox- ie (the cat) is attacking Frosty and his broom. It must be the green fringe on the scarf that caught her attention. Ah, the New Year has made its appearance; cold, gray night, plus fire- works that raised Gee Whiz with Shadow who thought another war had broken out. Today, the 1st, we have sun, wind and no rain. Shadow and I took our first walk of 2012 and found 13 new Forsythia blooms along the way. January 2nd, my Shadow for the last 10 years has gone to her final rest. Memory of a True Pal. In 2002, I met a pup named Baby. She was a two-year-old nobody needed, but she needed someone of her own and she chose me. I, Jacqueline, was visiting the pet store in Vernonia. Baby was being chased by a couple of BIG DOGS, when making the third pass around the room she dove onto my lap and there she has been ever since. We had one dis- agreement on the way home as to who would be Alpha and who would be Omega. She accepted the name Shadow and we be- came (almost) one. While trying to become an escape artist by climbing fences she cracked her tail bone. Then she changed to digging out and heading for the lake to visit Big Bill. She soon found out she didn’t like being chained. So we walked to the lake to herd the ducks into the water, put the rabbits in the briar patch, weathered all kinds of weather, played in knee deep autumn leaves, picked tons of wild blackberries. Been nose to nose with raccoons and possums in her own backyard. We made a team. When I started using a walker on our long walks she became Al- pha and I became Omega. Then fate stepped in, she lost the sight in her right eye and things starting going down hill. Things only BIG BUCKS could (maybe) help. This I have faced before. Accept your rest, Shadow, you have earned it. FOR S U N J OI UP S O 721 Madison Ave.,Vernonia • 503-429-5018 Action Ads INEXPENSIVE – EFFECTIVE 503-429-9410