Shoreline sewer
extension
The board held a
public hearing on proposed amendments to the county comprehensive land-use plan
allowing for the construction of a 3.3-mile sewer line connecting the Shoreline
Sanitary District to the City of Warrenton’s wastewater treatment
plant.
The comprehensive
plan and state land-use law prohibit extension of sewer service outside of urban
growth boundaries (UGBs). The amendments, to both the comprehensive plan’s Goal
11 (Public Facilities and Services) element and Clatsop Plains Community Plan,
allow placement of the sewer line connection outside of the Warrenton UGB and
the Cullaby Lake Rural Service Area, which the Shoreline Sanitary District
serves, due to special circumstances.
New wastewater
discharge standards enacted by the State of Oregon in 2003 and applied to the
Skipanon River put the sanitary district’s treatment facility out of compliance
with rules regarding temperature and dissolved oxygen. After research of various
alternatives, the district passed a $2 million bond in 2008 to finance the
Warrenton sewer connection.
The amendments
prohibit any connections to the new sewer line outside of the sewer
district.
The public hearing
continues Feb. 13.
Wetlands ordinance
direction
The board postponed
action on a proposed ordinance adopting a wetlands inventory and related
development standards for the Arch Cape area.
The Arch Cape/Cove
Beach Local Wetlands Inventory was commissioned by the Arch Cape Sanitary
District and Columbia River Estuary Task Force and approved by the Oregon
Department of State Lands in 2011. The Ecola Creek Watershed Council requested
that the county adopt the inventory and development standards, and the county
Planning Commission, after several public meetings, recommended the board adopt
a “safe harbor” ordinance establishing a Local Wetland Inventory Overlay
containing uniform regulations on grading, excavating, placement of fill and
vegetation removal on all of the wetlands identified in the inventory deemed
“significant.”
The board tentatively
scheduled additional discussion on the item for its March 27 meeting.
Fisheries pier
repairs
The board heard a
report from Public Works Director Ed Wegner and Natural Resources Manager Steve
Meshke on proposed repairs to the pier at the Astoria Yacht Club, which was
damaged in a storm in December. The damage hinders access to the county’s
Fisheries Project net-pen fish-rearing facilities on Youngs Bay, but Meshke said
the county may be able to secure $65,000 in funding from the Oregon Department
of Fish and Wildlife to fund repairs, coupled with a $10,000 county
match.
The county and City
of Astoria are also discussing a proposed transfer of the pier, currently owned
by the city, to the county, Meshke said.
Budget policies
adoption
The board approved
the Fiscal Year 2013-14 budget policies and the Strategic Plan/Resource
Reduction Strategies. The policies, which provide guiding principles and
instructions for developing the upcoming year’s budget, remain largely the same
as in previous years, and include:
· No new staff or
programs unless specifically directed by the board, and seeking staff and
expenditure reductions wherever possible
· A goal of no increase
in materials and supplies expenditures for General Fund departments
· Utilizing Indirect
Cost Allocation Plan to recover full cost of county’s overhead
functions
· Budget savings
achieved during the fiscal year be saved and added to ending fund
balance
· No “back-filling” use
of General Fund dollars to make up shortfalls in state or federal
funding.
The Resource
Reduction Strategy prioritizes county functions for funding in the event that
cuts are necessary during the budget year:
1. Public Safety and
Justice
2. Health and Human
Services
3. General Government
Direct Services
4. Community
Development, Land Use, Transportation and Housing
5. Culture and
Recreation
Commissioner liaison
assignments
The board made
liaison appointments to various boards and committees:
Commissioner Scott
Lee – Commission on Children and Families; Council of Forest Trust Land
Counties; Columbia River Estuary Task Force; Northwest Oregon Housing Authority;
Oregon Consortium; Regional Workforce Investment Board; Soil and Water
Conservation District
Commissioner Sarah
Nebeker – Human Services Advisory Council; Public Safety Coordinating
Council
Commissioner Peter
Huhtala – Clatsop Economic Development Resources; Columbia-Pacific Economic
Development Council; Northwest Area Commission on Transportation; Northwest
Oregon Economic Alliance
Commissioner Dirk
Rohne – Ambulance Service Advisory Committee; Recreational Lands Planning
Advisory Committee; Rural Law Enforcement District; Farm Board; 4-H and
Extension Service District; Fair Board
Commissioner Debra
Birkby – Southwest Coastal Citizens Advisory Committee; Planning Commission;
Oregon Coastal Zone Management Association
Other
Business
In other business the
board:
-Approved a $153,000
Emergency Management Performance grant from the Federal Emergency Management
Administration. The annual grant funds 50 percent of the costs of the county’s
Emergency Management Division.
-Heard a presentation
from Clatsop Community Action on the agency’s Project Homeless Connect outreach
project scheduled for Jan. 31 at the Seaside Convention Center. The day-long
event provides the homeless with access to various services and assistance from
more than 40 organizations.
-Appointed Peter
Roscoe of Astoria to the Columbia-Pacific Economic Development District
(Col-Pac) as a private sector representative.
-Approved an
amendment to an intergovernmental agreement with Clatsop Community College
regarding an internship program for schoolchildren in Westport operated through
the college’s Northwest Workforce Alliance. The program is funded from a portion
of the proceeds of the Georgia-Pacific Wauna Mill tax penalty. The amendment
extends the date of the agreement to June 30, 2014.
No comments:
Post a Comment