CB City Manager Blog

THE LATEST ON EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

2008-04-29T16:51:00.000-07:00

The big storm of December, 2007 has shifted the City's and Fire District's focus on emergency preparedness and management from an earthquake/tsunami to major storms where the power is out, roads are temporarily closed, communications with the outside world are interupted and at least one of our shelters need to be opened. This has raised several questions about our community's needs and how we plan for not only earthquakes and tsunamis but major storm events as well.

As a result, at the City Council's annual retreat in February, they established 5 goals for 2008-09 relating to our community's emergency preparedness. They are:

1) Reorganize the City's emergency preparedness committees.

2) Organize a program for volunteers to go door-to-door during major storms.

3) Establish a stock of pre-positioned supplies.

4) Investigate local broadcast capability.

5) Secure portable shelter arrangements for major events.

The December storm event and the above goals have caused several questions to be raised that need to be answered.

1) Can the City's E-Prep Committee, made up of 5 citizen-volunteers, continue to absorb what has become an increased work load in preparing for a emergency events?

2) Should the City and Fire District depend on more volunteers to shoulder the emergency preparedness load and if so, how should their planning efforts be organized?

3) Will this community be able to count on any help from the outside world in the aftermath of a major event? If not, how long should we plan to fend for ourselves?

4) Can our community continue to depend on the Red Cross to help out with our emergency shelters? If not, what is the most effective means of supplying and organizing an appropriate number of volunteers to keep our shelters running?

5) What is the best way to communicate with Cannon Beach citizens before and during an event?

6) How can we check on disadvantaged citizens in their homes with our small number of emergency personnel?

7) Should the City hire an employee to help complement and organize those volunteers who have recently joined the community's emergency preparedness effort?

8) How can the City and Fire District handle what could be hundreds or even thousands of visitors who may be stranded here after a major event? And if something was to happen to our emergency shelters, what could we do to provide for shelter and other basic needs for all those people?

9) How does the community plan for rebuilding should a major disaster damage our homes, businesses and infrastructure?

10) What effect will the the new state tsunami inundation zone lines have on evacuation and other emergency planning issues?

The answers to these questions are currently being discussed and worked on at various levels and, so far, this much can be determined:

The City's Emergency Preparedness Committee has done a great job of planning evacuations, educating the public and setting up shelters for almost a decade. They will also have a lot to say about question #10 above. But more is needed to complement their activities in order to plan for major storms and other events.

As a result, the City has formed a Shelter Committee to further organize up to 3 emergency shelters while concentrating on major storm events. Once preparation for future storms is settled, emphasis will be placed on more serious events. This new committee has met several times since December and has determined that we need to plan on fending for ourselves for several days. Some pre-positioned supplies have been ordered from the Red Cross and any help from them or other outside agencies will be welcome but not anticipated.

The City and Fire District are investigating the use of portable shelters should a major event render our 3 emergency shelters unsuitable. This raises the question of where these shelters can be stored and where they can be set up in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. In addition, the City's Budget Committee is wrestling with whether a part-time employee is needed (and affordable) to help with volunteer recruiting and training, organizing neighborhoods and communicating with citizens during a major storm or tsunami event. Finally, the City has formed a Resiliency Committee to plan for rebuilding the community and infrastructure after an earthquake/tsunami has hit Cannon Beach.

Much work has been done before and subsequent to the December storm but much more needs to be done especially in the areas of neighborhood organization and communications with residents. Many community-minded volunteers have stepped up to help out and offer suggestions. I invite you to do the same by calling me at (503) 436-8050 or emailing me at the address above.

NEW CITY CHARTER

2008-03-03T13:47:00.000-08:00

This isn't the most exciting subject but it is important to our City nonetheless. Our City Charter was created by a vote of the people in 1986 and has not been updated since. The City Council appointed a Charter Revision Committee, made up of 5 citizens, whose mission was to review the Charter and recomend any changes they thought were necessary.

These suggested revisions will be discussed at a City Council public hearing tomorrow evening at our regular Council meeting which starts at 7:00 pm. Although in my opinion there are no real substantive changes being proposed, you may want to attend this hearing. As citizens of Cannon Beach, you will be asked to vote on this measure as soon as May 20th.

Please feel free to email or call me with any questions regarding this important topic.

NEW CITY EMPLOYEE

2008-02-04T15:21:00.000-08:00

The City is happy to welcome a new Administrative Specialist to our CB Police Department - Bobbi Rae Myers. Bobbi Rae was born and raised in the Astoria area and attended both Astoria and Warrenton High Schools. She previously helped operate a dairy farm in Nehalem, owned her own business (a coffee shop also in Nehalem) and has spent the last few years staying busy as a stay-at-home-mom.

We think Bobbi Rae has the skills, energy and personality to be a positive asset to the Police Department and City. Her husband's name is Justin and they have 3 children - Garret 9 years old, Wyatt 8 and Taylor 5.

In the meantime we all bid farewell to Bobbi Rae's predecessor, Barbara Veckey and thank her for her hard work and dedication. Barb was employed by the City for 4 1/2 years and we wish her good fortune in her new full-time job at the Big River Construction Company in Astoria.

FARMERS MARKET IS COMING

2008-01-28T10:48:00.000-08:00

Since my arrival here 2 years ago, we have been hearing from some local citizens about the need for a Cannon Beach Farmers Market. The City Council declared it a goal for 2008 so I asked 2 local business owners, who were instrumental in trying to get one off the ground in 2005, if they would help me look at the possibility. Bob Neroni and Lenore Emory from the EVOO Cooking School stepped up and the planning began this last summer.

Now I am happy to report that, due to a dozen or so other dedicated volunteers coming forward, a Farmers Market for Cannon Beach in 2008 will be a reality.

From the beginning of our 6 months of planning, our "mission" was geared toward providing CB residents the opportunity to purchase fresh produce and other related food products. It was also important to minimize attracting vendors who would compete with local merchants.

Here are some of the other particulars related to this event:

DATES AND TIMES - The market will run on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00 to 6:00 pm beginning June 17th and ending September 30th. The committee felt Tuesdays during the summer would alleviate parking concerns while experiencing the most optimum weather conditions.

LOCATION - The market will set up in the northwest corner of the City Hall parking lot. Having these events will help the midtown area while not creating more traffic problems for downtown during our busiest months.

PRODUCT - Very strict guidelines have been established as to what can be sold or displayed and our planning committe discussed this issue at length. We finally decided on allowing Oregon and Washington grown food products including and limited to: fruits and vegetables; grower-made or preserved foods such as honey, jams, ciders, pickled vegetables and dehydrated fruits; meat and seafood, eggs and cheeses; herbs in pots, cut or dried; and shelf stable baked goods.

VENDORS - We expect to attract between 5 to 8 vendors the first year with growth to 10 to 12 by the third year. Criteria for vendors' participation will be established by a special

committee according to the criteria listed above. The committe is also exploring the idea of having some appropriate music groups playing during the times the market is running.

FINANCES - The City Council has approved a budget for the Farmers Market which, if all goes according to plan, would result in an annual cost of not more than $6000 offset by weekly or annual charges to the vendors for a 10' by 20' booth.

The success of a Cannon Beach Farmers Market is dependent on the numbers of people that would attend and purchase goods.

THE STORM

2007-12-28T09:35:00.000-08:00

This blog will attempt to relate what happened, what we did about it, what we learned, what we did well and what we can improve on.

What happened? Well, first our power went out about 11 am on Sunday, December 2nd. The power went back on for about 4 hours Sunday evening (for some of us) and then went out again for an additional 125 hours until the very early hours of Saturday morning.

During Sunday and Monday about 5 inches of rain fell on Cannon Beach within a 12 hour period of time. Downed trees and flooded roads resulted in Routes 101 and 26 being blocked at various points and many of our local roads as well. Cell phone service ceased and 2 of Qwest's trunk lines were severed in the northern part of Clatsop County resulting in the county's 911 systems failing. The lack of communication services even resulted in the Governor's office in Salem not being able to establish contact with the North Coast.So, Sunday and Monday, there were no communications, no way into CB and no way out of CB. We were effectively isolated.

Our police department spent the first 2 days conducting welfare checks, patrolling our city and helping motorists and pedestrians. Our public works crews spent the first 2 days clearing local roads and keeping our water, sewer and stormwater systems operational which involved transporting several generators from from sewer lift station to lift station. This latter effort was hampered by the main road to our water plant and springs, the source of the city's water supply, being blocked by literally hundreds of trees. 2 of our water department employees conducted an inspection of our watershed and a hike that would normally take 25 minutes took more than 2 1/2 hours.

Beginning Wednesday, our Director of Public Works would spend the bulk of his time with Pacific Power crews at the CB substation. For my part, I spent most of my time either with Pacific Power, at the Presbyterian Church shelter (which opened Monday morning), checking in at our RV Park (to monitor the gas supply) and meeting daily with city staff (every morning at 8 am), with city department heads including the fire district chief (every morning at 11 am) or at the County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in Astoria. The EOC met at 9 am and 9 pm every day with the fire district chief and me splitting up the meetings.

As I indicated, by Monday morning our shelter at the church opened, I believe the first shelter to open on the coast. By Monday evening, Route 101 opened from the north and, by Tuesday afternoon, from the south. By Tuesday all local roads were open except the aforementioned Elk Creek Road in the City's watershed. Early Thursday some of the city received sporadic cell phone service which became more consistent and reliable by late Thursday. Also late that day, Route 26 opened all the way to Portland and on Saturday our watershed road was completely cleared.

Throughout the week, it became apparent that Cannon Beach fared better than most other towns to the north and south of us. The one exception was the damage sustained in our watershed, mostly on state property, where hundreds of trees were either uprooted or, more likely, snapped in two from the high winds. Citizens can see for themselves with a 2 minute walk east of the Elk Creek Road gate.

On Wednesday, Pacific Power made a valiant effort to bring electricity to what they hoped then would be 30 to 40% of Cannon Beach. This involved contracting with several different companies to deliver generators, transformers and related equipment (cranes, poles, fork lifts, cables, etc.) from as far away as California to connect to the CB substation. Finally, on Thursday afternoon, about 20% of CB received some power including City Hall and the Presbyterian Church and by Friday noon, another 10% of the city was powered.Pacific Power had 43 power poles lost to the storm just from their substation near MP 4 on Route 26 to the CB station alone, not to mention the extensive damage to their system throughout the northwest part of the state. So, considering they virtually rebuilt most of their entire infrastructure under adverse weather conditions within a 5 day period, I feel their efforts should be applauded.

So what did we learn? Our experience the week of December 2nd verified something our planning for an earthquake and tsunami has assumed for the last 2 years. That is, in the event of a disaster, the community of Cannon Beach shouldn't count on anyone or anything other than ourselves. For, despite the best of intentions of some of the assistance we relied on from the outside, that help didn't come through.

During the week of December 2nd, the City and Fire District worked with, directly or indirectly, or relied on 18 different organizations from outside our community. They were: 3 cell phone companies, Clatsop County, FEMA, Globalstar (for satellite phones), ham radio operators, the National Guard, ODOT, Pacific Power, Qwest, 3 radio stations, the Red Cross, the State of Oregon, the US Coast Guard and Western Oregon Waste. By now you've probably heard that some of these agencies stepped up and some didn't. But in order for us to be effective public managers in the future, we have to get along with these groups to the extent we may come to rely on them and appreciate them for their assistance. So, we will work with these organizations behind the scenes in an attempt to improve performance and relationships for the benefit of all CB citizens. After all, there are things we can improve on also. (See below.)

What did we do well? Early on, our public works department and community volunteers got all of our local roads open and kept our underground infrastructure operational. Our police department and local EOC at the fire station checked on home-bound citizens through the welfare check program and answered many questions to the best of their ability. Our church shelter, with much assistance from local businesses served more than 2500 meals over a 5 day period and offered overnight accomodations to several guests. Our ham operators at the EOC provided and accepted vital communications during the time that satellite, cell and land line phones did not work.

What can we improve on? The City and Fire District have finetuned a list of seemingly minor but very important items, a checklist if you will, that improves the detailing of what needs to be accomplished before a storm hits. This includes items such as turning off a switch here, opening a gate there, reviewing safety procedures, coordinating radio communications, things like that.

I also think we can improve communication to the public. While we posted bulletins on the city's website, made 2 announcements street by street with loudspeakers, distributed informational "Updates" to 7 locations and conducted interviews with 3 North Coast radio stations and the Daily Astorian, I feel we could have and should have done all those things earlier in the week. Next time we will. In the future, I will also be utilizing my City Manager Blog to disseminate information so if you would like to be included, please email me to get automatic updates during emergency situations. Other ideas you may have on improving communication are most welcome.

Other improvements we'll be working on are organizing and clarifying emergency shelter operations and finding and training at least 2 more ham radio operators from our community. The City and Fire District will also be working with State of Oregon officials to attempt to develop wider power line corridors. As I understand it, 80% of all power failures are caused by downed trees on power lines. When 100 foot tall trees fall within 50 foot easements, it's not difficult to understand that wider corridors will reduce that potential and alleviate a lot of hardship.

In conclusion, I'd like to thank the many individuals and agencies that assisted the City and Fire District during the difficult week of December 2nd. It was a true community effort that helped us all cope with what I hope is a rare event.

GOOD NEWS ABOUT THE SKATE PARK

2007-07-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

In a previous blog from about a month ago, I detailed the efforts of a group of Cannon Beach teenagers to raise more than $60,000 toward the construction of a new skate park on East 2nd. In the blog, I also explained the City's match, other in-kind donations, the hiring of a design-builder and efforts to secure a $120,000 state grant from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.

These efforts included a trip to Bend on June 11th to give a presentation to the Advisory Committee responsible for recomending which Oregon local governments receive grants. There were a total of 40 applications totalling $11.5 million which averages out to $285,000 per request. Just $4.5 million was available for funding.

The presentation from the Cannon Beach contingent was 20 minutes long and included presentations from Lujac Desautel, Cole Willyard (both ages 15), Margo Lalich, Mike Berger and yours truly. The evaluation committee allowed a maximum total of 55 points for each application and decided not to award grants to any agency that scored lower than 37.

The highest score went to the City of Hood River who scored 47 out of 55. Cannon Beach scored 45. Out of the 40 grant applications, Cannon Beach ranked 5th and last week we were officially notified by OPRD that we were the recipients of $120,000 to build our skate park.

Special thanks and recognition needs to go to Lujac and Cole for their leadership activities in not only their excellent presentations in Bend, but also their accomplishment in raising most of the necessary match. Credit also goes to Margo and Mike and also Ed Johnson who represented the City's Parks Committee during this 3 year effort.

WELCOME COLLEEN

2007-07-09T13:33:00.000-07:00

The City of Cannon Beach is pleased to announce the hiring of Colleen Waldhaus as our new Administrative Specialist. Colleen, who started work on July 9th, replaces Brandy Harker who was promoted to Administrative Assistant in May.

Colleen is familiar to many CB citizens having worked at the Bank of Astoria and the Inn at Cannon Beach for several years. Much of her work experience has been in the areas of customer service and accounting, she has been a small business owner and is an accomplished pastry chef.

Colleen has 3 grown children (Kristofer, Timothy and Alessandra) and one grandson (2 year old Kayne) all of whom reside in Portland.

Please stop by City Hall and welcome Colleen aboard.

CANNON BEACH SKATE PARK PROGRESS

2007-06-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

As most of the community knows, the City of Cannon Beach is trying to upgrade the skate park located in the southeast corner of the City Park on 2nd Street. The skate park project has been on the drawing board for 3 years now. Our current facility was constructed in 1988 and, at 3800 square feet, may be the oldest and smallest skate park in the state of Oregon. And, because of almost 20 years of wear and tear, it is not very safe.

3 years ago, a group of Cannon Beach teens approached the city about building a new skate park. At that time, the city council pledged that, if the kids could raise $40,000 the city would match that amount with the understanding that a state grant from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) for the balance would provide the necessary funding for completing the project.

A skate park committee was formed made up of local citizens including parents and kids. Fund raising efforts began and by 2007, the kids raised not $40,000, but more than $60,000. The literally hundreds of donations include a $10,000 grant from the Sunset Empire Parks and Recreation District and $9,000 worth of in-kind contributions from 2 local construction companies - Bob McEwan and Rich Elstrom Construction.

The park district's contribution has also provided a catalyst for SEPRD to resurrect the popular summer recreation program that was discontinued by the City several years ago. So, together with the City's $40,000 and, hopefully, a $120,000 grant from OPRD, our skate park will become a reality.

Stefan Hauser of Placed to Ride has been hired to design and build the skate park which has also been approved by the necessary boards and commissions. So, this project is ready to go. All we need is the state funding.

The OPRD has some difficult decisions to make. 40 applicants have asked for $11.4 million (average request = $285,000) but the department has only $4.5 million available to grant. So, based on these amounts, Cannon Beach has a little less than a 50/50 chance of receiving funding.

This past Monday, several Cannon Beach residents and I travelled to Bend to give a presentation to the Advisory Committee of OPRD who is responsible for deciding which agencies receive grants. Special recognition should be made to two local 15 year olds who have been working on this project for 3 years now - Lujac Desautel and Cole Willyard. These 2 teenagers did a great job explaining to the Advisory Committee their efforts in raising $60,000 to help make this project happen. If Cannon Beach is fortunate enough to secure a state grant, these 2 exemplary youths will be 2 of the reasons why.

BIG ROAD PROJECT COMING

2007-05-23T14:21:00.000-07:00

Two major sections of Cannon Beach roadway are slated for resurfacing this spring. Beginning June 4th and ending, weather permitting, just before Sandcastle weekend (June 16th), these improvements will include Hemlock from Sunset south to the 'S' Curves and Sunset from Hemlock east under the highway bridge all the way around to Route 101.

As a result of this project, the Haystack Sidewalk Local Improvement District (LID) Project has been effectively abandoned. This sidewalk was to run down the west side of Hemlock from the Hallmark south to the Haystack Rock Beach Access. An LID is a funding mechanism used by a City like Cannon Beach to pay the cost of a public improvement by assessing adjacent property owners their "fair share." After extensive discussion and deliberation, the City Council felt that these property owners would benefit little, if at all, by the construction of the sidewalk and therefore shouldn't be compelled to pay for something they wouldn't use.

As employees of the City's public works department watched the Council struggle with this issue, they developed a plan to widen the Hemlock right-of-way in lieu of building a sidewalk. This included scraping off the grass portion, cutting into the bank and planting more suitable vegetation along portions of the west side. The repaving will also include the 8 street intersections on either side of Hemlock.

These road improvements are part of the City's long-term Pavement Preservation Project. Please recognize that traffic delays, temporary (and brief) road closures and detours may be necessary during construction as well as some inaccessability problems. But under favorable weather conditions, 2 of the main road arteries through our city will be vastly improved.

Thanks in advance for your patience.

NEW CITY PERSONNEL

2007-05-03T16:12:00.000-07:00

The City of Cannon Beach has recently made 3 key hires that I think will have a significant and positive impact on our community for years to come.

First, after more than 6 months since the departure of Joy Gannon, Cannon Beach finally has a new Director of Public Works. Mark See began work for us on Monday. He grew up in Klamath Falls, Oregon where he started working for the Oregon Department of Transportation 29 years ago. He spent 18 years in Klamath Falls before moving to ODOT's district office in Newport where he supervised 2 maintenance crews.

For the last 7 1/2 years, Mark has been a Transportation Maintenance Manager for ODOT's District 1 office in Astoria. As part of his duties, he supervised 2 coordinators and 15 specialists in charge of maintenance of the district's extensive state highway system. Mark has also had much experience in road construction, stormwater issues, fleet management and emergency operations. He is married with 2 children and lives in Gearhart.

Cannon Beach resident Brandy Harker has been promoted to the Administrative Assistant position effective May 14th. Brandy has held the position of Administrative Specialist for the last 3 years and has provided backup in the absence of the Administrative Assistant. She is a native of Utah and has lived in Cannon Beach for the last 12 years. She and her husband Damon have 2 daughters - O'Neal and Jordan. Brandy is also an active volunteer in the community and has just been elected President of the Cannon Beach Elementary School PTO.

Lisa Sheffield is our new Haystack Rock Awareness Program Coordinator. Lisa is originally from Port Orford, Oregon and is a graduate of Oregon State University where she earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Wildlife Science. She has had a variety of numerous professional experiences with seabird and marine mammal wildlife including serving as a guide for seabird and mammal watching trips off the coasts of Oregon and Washington, working in native villages in the Bering Sea supervising field crews looking for evidence of avian flu in Alaskan bird life and participating in a long term research program evaluating the population ecology of Ross Sea penguins in Anarctica. Lisa has also authored or co-authored numerous publications related to wildlife science and biology. She lives in Astoria and starts work here May 27th.

Speaking of HRAP, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the great job put in by Kristin Albrecht as the Interim HRAP Coordinator. She had some big shoes to fill after Shelley Parker left for a position in State Parks but Kristin has been a Godsend. She'll continue with us for a while longer helping Lisa become acclimated to her new duties.

If you get an opportunity, please feel free to stop by City Hall to greet and meet our 3 newcomers.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CANNON BEACH

2006-12-18T10:58:00.000-08:00

It is Saturday, December 9th, 1955 and it's election day. Citizens in the small coastal community of Cannon Beach, Oregon are going to the polls, yet again, to determine whether the area from Haystack Rock north to 8th Street is to become an incorporated city.

Like the 3 elections before it, this one is controversial. Since the first one, held in 1948, proponents claim an incorporated city will allow for the construction of a badly needed $211,000 sewage disposal facility. Opponents assert that the $1.2 million assessed value of the community is too low to support such an expenditure without a huge increase in property taxes. At a hearing in Astoria 2 months earlier to decide whether the issue is to be placed on the ballot, Judge Guy Boyington orders the overflow crowd to be moved to another, larger courtroom.

Generally, proponents of incorporation are led by local business people who feel that they need the sanitary sewer system to make the downtown and community thrive. Opponents are dominated by retirees on fixed incomes who fear the financial burden that the increased taxes will bring.

Headed by Doctor J.W. Sargent, destined to become the 1st Mayor of Cannon Beach, the proponents wage a hard campaign with telephone calls and rides to the polls for their supporters. Because of the 3 previous failures in the last 7 years, most people feel that the issue will fail again.

However, when the votes are finally counted, the City of Cannon Beach is born by a vote of 193 to 110 - a 64% plurality. 93 % of the eligible voters weigh in which, according to the Seaside Signal, is the largest percentage election participation in the history of Clatsop County and one of the largest turnouts in the history of the State of Oregon.

Two months later the new Mayor and 2 City "Councilmen" Rittenback and Swigart are elected and prepare for the drafting of a City Charter. The new City Recorder, Gerald Cox, publishes the proposal in local newspapers and still another election is held. On March 5th of 1957, the City's first Charter is overwhelmingly approved and the City of Cannon Beach becomes a bona fide municipality.

In March of 2007, Cannon Beach will be recognizing it's 50th anniversary and Mayor Elect and History Center President John Williams wants to celebrate. In addition to the Sculpture Without Walls project, Mr. Williams is contemplating other events such as a lecture and exhibit at the Cannon Beach History Center and a reception for those who have lived or owned property in Cannon Beach since 1957.

So please, if you have lived or you know of someone who lived or owned property in Cannon Beach for the last 50 years, please have him or her call me at (503) 436-1581 ext.118 or email me at mays@ci.cannon-beach.or.us so that you or they can actively participate in the Cannon Beach 50th birthday party.

GOODBYE TO JOY

2006-10-20T15:17:00.000-07:00

As city manager of a vibrant community like Cannon Beach, it is always a pleasure for me to write about the great jobs our city employees do. In this case, it's a pleasure but it is also with sadness that I write about Joy Gannon, our soon to be ex-director of public works who has accepted another job in Hawaii. Today is her last day.

While I can appreciate Joy's decision to relocate to an area where the average year round temperature is 78 degrees, the loss to our city is enormous. Joy has spearheaded many public works projects, most notably the $5 million wastewater system improvement, a work in progress as we speak. To her credit, she has also contributed personally and professionally to the new skateboard park which will hopefully be started next calendar year.

While I have had the privlege of working with Joy and watching her outstanding leadership and management skills during my one year here, the citizens of Cannon Beach have had the benefit of seeing the effects of her work over the last 6 years. To quote city councilor Tevis Dooley, "Joy, you have brought a grace and professionalism to your job that is exemplary".

I could not have said it better. Good luck, Joy. I and the entire community wish you the very best.

OCTOBER 10TH CITY COUNCIL MEETING

2006-10-11T16:57:00.000-07:00

The city council heard about plans to work with private property owners to underground utilities on a portion of the east side of Hemlock. As part of that effort, the city will begin studying the possibility of installing standardized and more decorative street light fixtures. Specifics as to cost, location and type are premature at this point but we do plan on moving ahead with a study in the near future. I'll keep you posted.

In another development, representatives from Western Oregon Waste were present to review the concept of co-mingled recycling with the council. This type of program involves mixing all recyclables, except glass, into a single large container for pickup and has been a national trend for several years. WOW will appear at a future city council meeting to provide more specifics. Note - there would still be a role for our recycling depot on 2nd Street with a co-mingled recycling program.

MEET OUR NEW ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

2006-09-14T16:04:00.000-07:00

Monday marked the first day for our new administrative assistant, Shirley Powell.

Shirley's previous employment was with the Confluence Project in Vancouver, Washington where she served as administrative assistant for the executive director and board of directors since early 2003. The Confluence Project is a $25 million art project by Vietnam Memorial artist Maya Lin located at several locations along the Columbia River in Washington and Oregon. She also spent 11 years at the Port of Portland as an administrative assistant to the executive director and the directors of engineering and public affairs.

Shirley's duties here at city hall will include a variety of detailed and specialized secretarial, liaison and administrative work for yours truly, the city planner, the city council and plan commission. We are confident that she will do a great job for the city and that her personality will fit in well at city hall and in Cannon Beach.

Shirley and husband, John have a home in the Tolovana section of Cannon Beach. I'm sure she would encourage local citizens to stop by city hall and welcome her to our city.

MERITORIOUS SERVICE AWARDS

2006-09-06T16:46:00.000-07:00

One of the most enjoyable activities in the life of a city manager is when you get to recognize city employees for a job well done. I got to do this today when I assisted Chief Halliburton in honoring 2 city employees for their part in helping contain the recent fire at Ecola State Park.

The 2 employees are Assistant Head Lifeguard Brian Habecker and Police Officer Joe Bowman. Brian and Joe distinguished themselves by transporting critically needed fire suppression equipment from a staging area at the Indian Beach parking lot to the 1st-line firefighters at the base of the fire. They accomplished this by driving an ATV with several thousand feet of hose and other firefighting necessities up and down precarious, steep, winding and rugged terrain over a two hour period of time. Brian and Joe had to adapt quickly to the ATV's limitations which wasn't equipped for such hauling activities.

Brian, Joe and the rest of the emergency personnel prevented a bad situation from becoming much worse. And our local environment benefitted from all of their actions.

COMMUNITY SURVEY

2006-08-23T16:00:00.000-07:00

The city's Parks and Community Services Committee has been working diligently over the past several months to put together and distribute a "community survey" to determine citizens' views on the long-term needs for the City of Cannon Beach. This survey has been mailed to each household in the city and is available at selected locations throughout the community.

I would like to encourage each of you to participate in filling out the survey and returning it to City Hall within the next couple of weeks. Obtaining a good, representative response back from the public will help us all plan for our parks, recreational and leisure-time needs for the coming years.

ALL responses are important to us and you and your family can play an important part. Thanks for helping out.

PARKING AND PEDESTRIAN CIRCULATION MTG.

2006-08-14T15:24:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow evening, August 14th, the City Council will host another meeting at 7:00 pm related to the Downtown Parking and Pedestrian Circulation Study. Please be advised the location for this meeting has been changed from the Surfsand to the council chambers at City Hall.

The city's consultants, Urbsworks out of Portland will present the preferred alternative plan and questions and comments will be accepted by the city council. Parking, sidewalk and wetlands issues will all be discussed. For further information and details on the latest plan, please refer to my June 28th blog and/or click "Downtown Parking and Circulation Study" on the home page of the City of Cannon Beach website.

AUGUST 8th CITY COUNCIL MEETING

2006-08-04T11:06:00.000-07:00

After about 8 months of discussion related to water and sanitary sewer rates and the financial effect of last year's bond issue, the city council made 3 decisions that will influence our water and sewer bills.

First, the council ratified a previous decision that 50% of the debt associated with last year's sewer bond issue will be paid back from property taxes (which showed up on your last tax bill) and 50% will be paid back from an increase in sewer fees.

Second, effective September 1st, the sewer rate will be restructured which will result in no additional revenue to the city. The minimum charge, which residents pay no matter how much water they use, will increase by $1.51 per month and the consumption rate will decrease by 66 cents per every 100 cubic feet of water used.

This restructuring is being implemented to better reflect the amount of variable costs (those that increase or decrease depending on the amount of flow) versus fixed costs (those costs that stay the same no matter the amount of flow) necessary to operate the sanitary sewer system.

The final decision was that water rates will stay the same for an indefinite period of time and sewer rates will go up an additional 3.25% beginning the city's 2009 fiscal year.

In conclusion, I'd like to recognize the fine job the city's consultants, Galardi Consulting out of Portland did during the entire 8 month study as well as Joy Gannon, Director of Public Works who worked closely with them.

LAST NIGHT'S COUNCIL MEETING

2006-06-28T16:06:00.000-07:00

Several important items were discussed at last night's city council meeting (2007 budget, water-sewer rates, Ecola Creek Forest Reserve Plan and community grants among them) but today's blog is going to concentrate on the discussion regarding the downtown parking and pedestrian circulation study. Last night, the council discussed this issue publicly for the 5th time and approved proceeding to the next step in the process.

That next step will be another public meeting at the Surfsand on Tuesday evening, August 15th at which the council will be considering the following options:

1) Construction of a boardwalk sidewalk on the east side of Spruce between 1st and 2nd while maintaining the existing parking. This option would also include 3 wetland overlooks to the east.

2) Construction of a sidewalk on the west side of Spruce between 1st and 2nd while maintaining the existing parking.

3) Installation of a mid-block crosswalk across Spruce which, if extended all the way to the west, would line up to the post office.

4) Extension of the sidewalk on the north side of 2nd, east of Spruce.

5) Reconfigured parking on the east side of Spruce, north of 2nd from parallel to angled parking and extension of the bus pull-in area in front of the chamber.

6) Filling in of about 29% of the northwest lagoon to provide additional parking and space for the city's yard debris collection area. This option includes a landscaped buffer between 2nd Street and the parking and a new ADA accessible birdviewing platform.

7) Restoration of the remaining 70% of the northwest lagoon into functioning wetlands.

8) Construction of a boardwalk trail over the wetlands from the east side of Spruce at 1st Street to a new trail extension to the east following the lagoons.

The city's consultant, Urbsworks, did an excellent job putting together the various elements of the study which is available for viewing on the front page of the city's website. More specific information is available there including detailed parking numbers and cost estimates.

We hope to see you August 15th at the Surfsand.

HELLO AND GOODBYE

2006-06-13T16:38:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, in November of 2004 Cannon Beach citizens voted to sell bonds to build a new wastewater treatment and Matanuska pump station. Half the funds to pay off the debt associated with this project will come from an increase in property taxes. Where the other half is going to come from is currently being considered by the City Council. The most likely scenario is that the remaining funds will derive from an increase in residential and business sewer bills but more on that later.

One of the purposes of this blog is to inform subscribers that the City's Public Works Director, Joy Gannon, has started her own weblog which is intended to keep Cannon Beach citizens informed on the status of the construction. Joy is very dedicated and done a great job getting this badly needed project off the ground. I would encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity while it lasts.

You can access Joy's blog by going to cbpw.blogspot.com.

In another City matter, I regret to inform you that our organization is losing one of it's most valued employees. Leslie Stewart, Administrative Assistant to the City Manager and Planner, is leaving Cannon Beach to become an Administrative Assistant at the Seattle Housing Authority. Those of you who know or have worked with Leslie realize she has been a very dedicated and loyal public servant for us for the last 6 1/2 years. The community and City will miss her and wish her and her family the best up in the Seattle area.

Information on the City's soon-to-be-open Administrative Assistant position is available on our website - ci.cannon-beach.or.us.

'S"CURVES STATUS

2006-05-25T14:41:00.000-07:00

This one is short and sweet - the 'S' Curves opened less than an hour ago.

IMMIGRATION MARCH

2006-05-05T14:24:00.000-07:00

I've had several inquiries as to why the City of Cannon Beach closed parts of Spruce and Hemlock for the immigration march that took place this last Monday. Most of the questions dealt with the political nature of the event as opposed to City-sponsored parades such as Fourth of July and Earth Day.

This type of event is allowed for in the City Code under "parades" which is defined as "a procession using the public right-of-way that consists of 20 or more persons or 3 or more vehicles". The code requires that an application be made at least 30 days in advance unless that required notice is waived by the City Manager. The code makes no distinction between a political rally and a holiday parade. The CM has the authority to consider certain factors when either issuing or denying a permit such as the potential for "unreasonable" disruption to traffic, the number of law enforcement personnel required to staff the event, etc.

The original application required the City close Hemlock from 3rd to Gower, in other words, through downtown Cannon Beach. And, because the City wasn't notified of the request until April 25th, my first inclination was to deny the permit or restrict the march to the sidewalks. However, I came to the conclusion that, because there was a large amount of advance publicity for what turned out to be a nationwide event (front page newspaper articles, flyers, TV and radio), the march was going to take place whether or not the City officially closed the streets. In addition, we had no idea how many participants would show up.

The ultimate decision was to waive the 30 days, issue the permit and allow the march but reroute it down Spruce to 1st Street and then down Hemlock. We also asked the organizers for 10 "parade leaders" to help with crowd control. So, through the requirements described above, by allowing the parade to take place on city streets, we avoided downtown, controlled the crowd better, reduced the potential for direct confrontations and reduced the amount of time the event actually took place and disrupted traffic.

Finally, although the organizers didn't file their application in a timely manner, I thought they did an excellent job organizing the march, promoting goodwill and behavior and delivering what they promised.

FOLLOW - UP TO PREVIOUS ITEMS

2006-04-21T16:37:00.000-07:00

The 'S' Curves short-term fix has been bid and the contract has been awarded to Bob McEwan Construction at a cost of about $70,000 which includes roadway repairs and sanitary sewer improvements. While some funds have been set aside, we hope to be reimbursed, at least partially, with disaster funds from the federal government. Construction will begin later this month and end by Memorial Day. As explained in my February 6th blog, the long-term solution, involving horizontal drains, will take place later in the year.

On Tuesday May 2nd, the City Council will be discussing the downtown parking and pedestrian circulation issues as a preview to what I think will be our 3rd and final public meeting on Tuesday June 13. I'll be anxious to experience my first summer here in Cannon Beach to observe firsthand how serious a problem we have. In the meantime, I think our consultants, Urbsworks out of Portland, have done an excellent job coming up with ideas, listening to and receiving input from the public, responding to directions from the Council and communicating with all concerned.

Thanks to all of you who responded to my wireless survey. The results have been forwarded to my counterpart in Florence who is helping spearhead the effort to make the Oregon coast one of the first areas in the country to obtain Wimax technology. Incidentally, with the assistance of a non-profit group called Net Equality, small wireless networks have been set up at a minimal cost in downtown Cannon Beach and on East Madison. The city is working indirectly with this group to also provide wireless internet to our RV Park.

Our tsunami forum last week at the Coaster Theatre went very well. Special thanks to Dr George Priest from one of our state agencies who was the featured speaker. George explained to the audience that he has come across some information that has made him want to reevaluate some of his initial findings related to the size of a potential tsunami wave. More information from him will be forthcoming later this summer on this issue generally and the effects of further testing on the tsunami inundation zone specifically.

Finally, one of these days I would like to do a blog featuring your comments or questions. Therefore, I would like to encourage you to click "E-Mail Me!" in the column to the right and send me questions I can answer for you or comments I can feature. Thank you.

TSUNAMI STUFF

2006-03-31T15:27:00.001-08:00

In early March, the City of Cannon Beach, in cooperation with several state agencies, hosted a tsunami forum at the Surfsand ballroom which dealt with post-tsunami recovery issues. The forum was attended by about 40 people representing not only the city but also the business community, public utilities, state and federal government agencies, emergency management professionals, health care facilities, private property owners, the news media, education and the clergy as well.

Forum participants were asked to identify post-disaster recovery issues within 4 different categories - POPULATION (includes residents, tourists, employees and special populations), the ECONOMY (includes impact on businesses, employment, the tax base and tourism), INFRASTRUCTURE (public and private utilities, shelters, transportation and communication - the essentials to keeping the community running) and REDEVELOPMENT (issues related to land use, zoning, housing and building codes for example).

The results of the forum will be published later in the spring whereupon more discussion will take place involving how to implement post-tsunami recovery plans. Of course, we all hope that we won't have to worry about recovery issues. However, the early March get-together at least gave us all much to think about as far as being more prepared for the aftermath.

On a related issue, you may want to mark your calendars for Wednesday, April 12th at 7:00 pm. That evening, at the Coaster Theatre, a community meeting has been scheduled to discuss tsunami preparedness. Dr George Priest of the Oregon Department of Geology & Mineral Industries will lead off the program with a technical (but not too technical, I promise) analysis of the Cascadia zone fault and the type and size of wave a significant earthquake could generate. Dr Priest is one of the leading authorities in the Pacific Northwest on this subject and he will address, among other things, the recent TV special on the Discovery Channel which created so much local discussion. Other presentations will include our evacuation plan, our infrastructure situation and a Q & A session.

"KILLER BROADBAND"

2006-03-10T15:42:00.001-08:00

WIMAX is an emerging technology that would allow wireless access to the web above and beyond what current technologies, such as WIFI, can deliver. Right now, WIFI is pretty much limited to within a 1500 foot radius from wireless "hotspots". WIMAX has a radius of a minimum of 5 miles with additional potential of up to 20 miles depending on the terrain. It is also faster and more secure and capable of penetrating buildings, trees and other dense objects.

An organization representing cities and counties on the Oregon coast, along with private companies such as Motorola and Intel, are attempting to place WIMAX technology along coast as part of a pilot project. While there is no funding required from cities or counties to get this project off the ground, there would be a financial investment required from the private sector. Subsequently, these companies want to determine if there is sufficient demand among the 225,000 citizens along the Oregon coast for this high speed, wide ranging wireless service before they go through the time and trouble to make WIMAX a reality.

I would like to do my part and use this forum to ascertain any interest among my subscribers. Full disclosure - while the city could realize a small amount of franchise fee revenue out of this, I have no personal or financial interest whatsoever in the outcome of this survey or whether or not WIMAX happens.

So, I would appreciate you're feedback to the following 3 questions:

Question #1 - On a scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest), how satisfied are you with your current internet service?

Question #2 - On a scale of 1 to 10, how interested would you or your business be in subscribing to a portable, high speed internet service (as described above) if it was offered for from $35 to $45 per month?

Question #3 - Would your interest in this service be for your home, business or both?

Thanks very much for your interest and input.