Posts Tagged ‘clackamas county’

Transportation System Plan Regional Meetings

Thursday, January 26th, 2012

Clackamas CountyYou are invited to help plan the future of transportation in unincorporated Clackamas County by attending one of three public workshops next week. The workshops are a key part of the County’s Transportation System Plan (TSP) update process.

Each workshop will include the same general content, with a focus on the needs and issues of that region of the County. People are encouraged to attend the workshop in their region.

Workshop Dates

• Northwest (urban, unincorporated areas) – Monday, Jan. 30, 6-8 pm; Milwaukie Elementary School, 11250 SE 27th Ave., Milwaukie
• East – Wednesday, Feb. 1, 6-8 pm; Eagle Creek Elementary School, 30391 SE Highway 211, Eagle Creek
• South – Thursday, Feb. 2, 6-8 pm; Molalla River Middle School, 318 Leroy St., Molalla

What You’ll Do

At the workshop people will have the chance to learn more about the two-year TSP update process, comment on proposed goals and objectives, and express your views on current system problems and help identify possible solutions.

For those who would like to participate but can’t attend a workshop, an online workshop is available at Clackamas County TSP website through February 5.

Through the TSP update, the County is reviewing plans and policies for various forms of transportation – roads, transit, walking, bicycling, rail, air, freight, waterways and pipelines – in unincorporated Clackamas County. When complete in 2013, the TSP will specify priority transportation projects for the next 20 years and address how those projects, and maintenance of the current system, can be funded.
A Public Advisory Committee (PAC) of residents from throughout Clackamas County and a Technical Advisory Committee are integral parts of the review process. The next PAC meeting, which the public is welcome to attend, will be held from 6-9 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 7, in Room 115 of the County’s Development Services Building, 150 Beavercreek Rd., Oregon City.

More information about the project, information on upcoming meetings and opportunities for input are available on the project website.

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Growing Solar Clackamas County

Monday, January 9th, 2012

Growing SolarWith the help of Growing Solar Clackamas County, residents and small businesses in Clackamas County are poised to benefit from a valuable new program for installing quality solar electric (PV) and solar hot water systems at extremely affordable “one-time” prices.

Growing Solar Clackamas County is a citizen-run group, with support from Oregon State University Extension Service, Clackamas County Office of Sustainability, and Solar Oregon (an Oregon non-profit organization).

The Growing Solar Clackamas County Steering Committee has completed the process of selecting qualified contractors and negotiating special low pricing for Clackamas County residents and small business, and is now planning outreach efforts to let everyone in the county know about this one-time golden opportunity:

• For easy and affordable renewable electric power and hot water
• To significantly reduce your power bill long-term
• To be part of an Oregon based solution using Oregon made and installed systems
• To be part of a local community driven program

Volunteer Workshop

An Outreach Training Workshop for volunteers who can help is scheduled for Thursday, January 19th from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm, Room 115, at the Clackamas County Development Services Building, on the County’s Red Soils Campus, 150 Beavercreek Road, at the corner of Library Court and Beavercreek Road, to inform you about the Growing Solar Clackamas County program and how you can help spread the word over the next two months.

If you, or someone you know can help, please contact Committee Chair Kathy Phillips at 503-406-8381, or by email info@growingsolar.org. Any time you can give to this effort is appreciated!

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Home Energy IQ Workshop

Monday, October 17th, 2011

Clackamas County, in partnership with Energize, is offering a free Home Energy IQ Workshop on November 7th.

Learn how to:

  • Identify your household energy use and how it has changed over time
  • Take a whole house approach to efficiency
  • Recognize the most cost-effective energy improvements for your home
  • Save energy and improve comfort, health, and safety
  • Save money with Energy Trust and Clackamas County incentives

The Details

When: November 7, 6-8pm
Where: Clackamas County Bank – 38975 Proctor Blvd. Sandy, OR 97055
Register: 503-742-4460 or online.

Sandy Energy IQ

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Candy Farm wins appeal, can now be sold to continue same business

Thursday, April 28th, 2011


-Jim Hart
The Sandy post

The Candy Farm has been a part of the fabric of Sandy life for three decades under the ownership of Don and Pat Ruter.
Following Don’s death 16 years ago and Pat’s decision to retire in 2008, the business – 5 miles east of Sandy – ended three-quarters of a century of continuous operation, 39 years in Portland by its original owner, six more by its second owner near Sandy and 30 more by the Ruters.
But a Clackamas County planner’s ruling that Ruter could not sell The Candy Farm put her plans for retirement on hold.
She had to fight for what she believed were her rights. A perceived technicality prevented her from moving on with her life. She couldn’t sell her land and buildings as a viable business.
A Clackamas County hearings officer recently considered the appeal, and Ruter won the case. She can now sell The Candy Farm, which is listed with her real estate agent, Alan Fleischman, principal broker and owner of Windermere/Sandy Real Estate.
“They did what they needed to do,” Ruter said, “and we’re thankful for the decision.”
The county planner had ruled the business had been closed more than 12 months and was therefore not entitled to the previous conditional-use variance.
“If you read the county’s definition of conditional use,” Fleischman said, “it doesn’t say anything about producing anything. It just says the property is used not according to the zoning (farm/forest).”
After looking at the voluminous exhibits showing how Ruter had kept the business viable with closed doors, the hearings officer agreed with Ruter’s attorneys and those who testified.
The hearings officer agreed she had kept the bank account open, maintained the equipment, kept a business license valid, paid the insurance bill each year and kept utility bills in the name of The Candy Farm.
Anyone could have walked into the manufacturing facility and, with minimal effort and enough capital, begun to operate the business again.
That is Ruter’s current plan – to sell the business, its name and equipment, minimal supplies and all the recipes for 100 types of candy as well as 7 acres of land and a residence.
In fact, it has been her plan for several years to sell the business to someone who would pick up the chocolate and continue The Candy Farm as it has been operated for decades.
Ruter, now 69, locked the doors to the business July 9, 2008, to begin her expected retirement. That was just about the time the nation’s economy tanked.
But now that the economy is beginning to show an upward trend and with the recent hearings officer’s ruling, The Candy Farm is back on the market.
Fleischman says there has been “a tremendous number of people interested in the business” – people from such distant states as New York and Hawaii and as close as the Portland area.
“We’re looking for someone who doesn’t need (bank) financing,” Fleischman said. “It’s going to cost several thousand dollars to buy supplies and reopen the business, and (Ruter) doesn’t want to put somebody in the position where they can’t afford to operate it long term.”

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Ann Lininger – Sellwood Bridge Project

Tuesday, April 26th, 2011

I am writing today to tell you about a very important safety issue.

The Sellwood Bridge has been in service to the region for the past 85 years. But time has come to replace it. The bridge has a sufficiency rating of 2 on a scale of zero to 100 and is recognized as one of the most dangerous bridges in Oregon.

Over 30,000 of us cross the bridge every day to get to work, take our children to school, or to buy our weekly groceries. We can no longer delay replacing this unsafe and dangerous bridge.

On May 17th, Clackamas County residents will be asked to vote YES to support a $5 Vehicle Registration Fee to help fund a new Sellwood Bridge. While 70% of all traffic on the Sellwood Bridge begins or ends in Clackamas County, our residents are only being asked to fund 7% of the cost. Learn more about the Sellwood Bridge project.

We all know what happened in Minnesota when warnings about their bridge was ignored. And with Japan’s massive earthquake just weeks behind us, we should all agree that our families need a safe bridge!

I am working with a group of other elected officials from around the region, along with an army of volunteers to get out the word about this important YES vote on May 17. But now I need your help.

Please take a few minutes of your time to visit SafeSellwoodBridge.com and make a contribution today of $250, $150 or $50.

We have a strong campaign staff with loads of volunteers but we need to get the word out to the voters in Clackamas County.

Can you help today?

Together we can protect the safety of our families!

Sincerely,
Ann Lininger

P.S. Please go online right now to SafeSellwoodBridge.com and contribute what you can. A donation today of $250, $100, or $50 would be a huge help in getting the word out!

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Clackamas County seeks candidates for vacancy on Board of County Commissioners

Wednesday, March 30th, 2011

Clackamas County has formally opened a recruitment for County Commissioner, to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Lynn Peterson and the pending appointment of Charlotte Lehan as commission chair.

Peterson resigned last month to accept a position as a sustainable communities and transportation advisor to Gov. John Kitzhaber. She became the county’s first popularly-elected commission chair in November 2008. Lehan, who was also elected in 2008, will formally take over as commission chair March 17 and serve until that term expires in 2012.

The recruitment is to fill Lehan’s vacancy for Commission Position 4. This term will expire in 2012. The recruitment will be similar to those conducted in 2009 when the Board of County Commissioners expanded from three to five members.

The recruitment is open to anyone meeting these minimum qualifications:

• A U.S. Citizen and a resident of the county for the previous 12 months
• Registered to vote in Clackamas County
• Age 18 or older.

For information about how to apply click here. Read the job description and apply click here.
More information about the process along with key updates can be found at www.clackamas.us.

The recruitment will close at midnight Wednesday, April 13. The Board of County Commissioners will review the applications and narrow down the pool. Candidate interviews are tentatively scheduled for the week of May 9. A second round of interviews (if determined to be necessary) could be scheduled for the following week.

Please note that applications submitted for the position are subject to public disclosure under Oregon law. Anyone with questions about the recruitment process or potential applicants without internet access can contact J.J. Peters at Clackamas County’s Department of Employee Services, at 503-742-5485.

For media inquiries contact Tim Heider, Clackamas County Public Affairs Coordinator, 503-742-5911.

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Green Scene Sustainability Fair

Friday, February 18th, 2011

Last year the Mt Hood Green Scene Sustainability Fair and Recycling Event was held at Welches School. It was sponsored and supported by Clackamas County office of Sustainability, The Villages at Mt Hood, Oregon Trail Schools District, Friends of the Hoodland Library and Portland Recycling Team. It was a very successful event – we had 32 information tables for government, business and non profit groups. The High school and middle school kids had several exhibits and activities and put on an original play. We recycled 3.5 tons of materials. We estimate that Four to five hundred people attended.

This year the event will be held May 14th at Welches Middle School.
We want to include more businesses that are moving towards a sustainable economy by:

Better Energy efficiency
Better Waste management
Use of locally produced materials and products
Use of organically produced products
Use of recyclable or reusable packing or containers
Sale of products that can help consumers and business create a sustainable economy

Businesses can participate in two ways:

— Have a manned information table to show and tell people what they are doing
— Provide us written materials or presentations we can post for people at the fair to read.

Either type of participation will include the companies information on our web site www.mthood-greenscene.net

Participants will be asked to donate $25. The Mt Hood Green Scene is a division of Portland Recycling Team and as such is a 501-c3 organization, all donations are tax deductible,

Contact : Doug Saldivar
The Mt Hood Green Scene is a member of the Mt Hood Chamber of Commerce

doug@mthood-Greenscene.net

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Get Plugged In to State of Clackamas County

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

Clackamas County residents are invited to “Get Plugged In” and participate in an interactive public forum sponsored by the Board of County Commissioners. The event, scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m., will be held in room 409 of the Public Services Building, 2051 Kaen Road, Oregon City.

The unique format is formerly the traditional State of the County ceremony intended to expand its public reach. It’s an opportunity to learn what is happening in Clackamas County in 2011 and beyond.

It’s a unique and interactive forum affording the public several opportunities to participate.

Citizens are encouraged to use any of the available forums to participate in this event.
For those who cannot attend – and seating is limited – there will be an opportunity to ask questions via e-mail up to and during the event at pluggedin@co.clackamas.or.us.

The forum will air live on the Clackamas County Cable Channel. It will also be streamed live on the Internet at www.clackamas.us/cable/streaming.php

Host Kimberly Jacobsen will lead a question-and-answer session with commissioners using citizen questions gleaned from all these sources.

More details of the event can be found at www.clackamas.us/pluggedin. Feel free to be a part of the activity on Feb. 22 and “Get Plugged In.”

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Have You Been Hit By The Recession?

Thursday, January 6th, 2011

stop foreclosureFacing the recession that we are in, many people have fallen behind on their mortgage payments. The State of Oregon wants to help. They are making house payments for up to a year or up to $20,000 for 5,000 Oregon homeowners.

The program is funded by the Oregon Homeownership Stabilization Initiative as part of the stimulus-funded Mortgage Payment Assistance Program. The federal funds were given to states like Oregon, with the highest rates of home foreclosures.

So far, not many people have applied. All eligible applicants will be put into a lottery and selected after the January 14th deadline.

For more information, check out the article from KATU.

To apply online, go to the OHSI site.

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Clackamas County Commissioners approve $5 vehicle registration fee

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

Clackamas County Commissioners approve $5 vehicle registration fee for Sellwood Bridge replacement, with provisions for sunset, jobs and a 2012 implementation date

After more than six hours of public hearings, the Clackamas County Board of Commissioners on Thursday approved an ordinance and resolution for a $5 per year county vehicle registration fee (VRF) to support construction of a new Sellwood Bridge near the Clackamas County line in Portland.

Commission Chair Lynn Peterson put safety and jobs at the top of the list of reasons for supporting it.

“We are all concerned about the safety of the bridge and we are all concerned about using our money wisely,” she said. “We are also responsible for ensuring a safe transportation system, and citizens have the right to feel safe as they travel in Clackamas County and throughout the region.”

In response to concerns from some that Clackamas County shouldn’t have to help pay for a bridge in a different county, Commissioner Jim Bernard listed the many ways in which Multnomah County and all Oregon citizens help fund needed programs and services available in Clackamas County.

“I hope our citizens don’t have to use some of these services,” he said, “but if they do we have schools, courts, drug and alcohol abuse prevention, jails and lots of other programs that we can’t afford to pay for on our own.”

The Board’s approval came only after addressing in the ordinance and supporting resolution a number of concerns raised by the public, including the following:
• The VRF will not go into effect until January 1, 2012.
• The VRF will not go any higher than $5 per year per vehicle and will end once Clackamas County’s $22 million share of the project is reached.
• The funds raised may only be used for replacement of the Sellwood Bridge and its approaches.
• The project will help provide jobs for Clackamas County residents and opportunities for Clackamas County businesses, to the extent allowed by law.
• The county will continue to search for opportunities to partner with Multnomah County on projects of significance to its citizens.

Commissioner Bob Austin thanked the many people (more than 200) who took the time to comment, call or testify about the proposed VRF in the past few weeks.

“I really appreciate the comments and questions raised by the public. They have helped shape the VRF to respond to concerns about whether the fee would keep going up, how long the fee would last and how the money would be used,” said Austin.

In approving this first-ever Clackamas County VRF, the Board of Commissioners was responding to an opportunity presented by the state legislature in 2009 that allowed counties with a population of 350,000 or more to enact a vehicle registration fee to support replacement of the Sellwood Bridge. Construction of the new bridge is scheduled to begin in 2012.

The Board held its first public hearing on the proposed ordinance on Nov. 24, and a second hearing the evening of Dec. 8.

The Sellwood Bridge, located about one mile from Clackamas County, serves as a vital connection over the Willamette River, and the only connection in the 12-mile stretch from Oregon City to Portland. Of the 30,000 cars that cross the bridge every day, 21,000 of them (72%) are going to or coming from Clackamas County.

The total cost of replacing the 85-year-old bridge is estimated at $290 million to $330 million, depending on what is done to the interchange on the west side of the bridge. In addition to $22 million from Clackamas County, other financial partners include Multnomah County at $127 million, City of Portland with up to $100 million, Oregon Department of Transportation at $30 million and the Federal Highway Administration.

The approved ordinance and resolution are available at www.clackamas.us.

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