CONVENED:  The regular meeting was called to order by Mayor Young at 7:32 p.m. Mayor Young delivered the invocation and led the flag salute.

COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT:

Mayor Cheryl A. Young

Councilor Bob Schmor

Councilor Marian Calnon

Councilor Bill Guy

COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT:

Councilor Gary Hudson

ALSO PRESENT:

Leahnette Rivers, City Administrator/Recorder

Jim Bundy, Public Works Superintendent

ATTORNEY PRESENT:

Harold Olsen, City Attorney

A quorum was present and due notice had been published.

AGENDA ITEM 2 PUBLIC HEARINGS:  None

Request for City water: Lynn and Debbie Jones of Columbia City spoke to the Council about their request to connect to City water as described in their letter dated January 29, 2001. Mr. Jones explained that they own property on Seventh Street, which is currently located outside of the City's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) and City limits. He said they are in the process of building a house on their property. He said the houses directly across from their property on Seventh Street are within the City limits and have City services. Mr. Jones said that quite some time ago they talked with a City staff member who suggested they wait for City water to become available instead of drilling their own well. He said as a result, they held off on drilling a well, and now it is too muddy to get a drilling rig in there. Mr. Jones said they have approximately 20 acres, and the County will only allow the construction of one house because of the zoning of the property. He asked when this property would be brought into the City's UGB. Mr. Jones explained that now the construction of their home could be delayed if they are not able to connect to City water services.

Councilor Guy said the City has drilled a production well, which has some reasonably good flow. However, he said we do not have any final reports on the water quality at this time, and it will probably be June before the well is put into production.

Leahnette Rivers said the City Council has established a policy of not providing water or sewer services outside of the City limits and outside of the UGB. She said the City Council reconfirmed this policy within the last year during a City Council meeting. She said the Jones's property is not within the City limits and is not within the City's UGB. She said it is currently zoned primary forest. She said the City is currently looking at whether or not the UGB needs to be expanded, and the preliminary work related to that process will not be completed until the end of June. She said while the Jones's property may appear to be a logical direction for the UGB to expand, the current primary forest zoning of the property makes it more difficult to do. She said that today no one can answer the question of whether or not the UGB will be expanded, when it will occur, and in what direction it would go.

Harold Olsen questioned whether or not the property could connect to City water under a contract of annexation.

Leahnette Rivers said she has not checked the City's UGB Management Agreement with the County, but she thought a contract annexation might only be an option for property within the UGB.

Councilor Schmor questioned whether or not a temporary water hookup could be considered until such time as the UGB issues have been decided.

Harold Olsen questioned how system development charges and hook-up fees would be applied to a temporary connection.

Barbara Jones of Columbia City said they currently own the property, and they are in the process of transferring ownership to their kids. She said the previous owners of the property provided water to the entire City of Columbia City at one time.

The Council discussed this request at length with the Joneses and staff.

Jim Bundy said he thought there may a law preventing a City from providing water and sewer services outside of the Urban Growth Boundary area.

Councilor Schmor said he thought the City had stopped providing water outside of the City limits because of water quantity issues.

Leahnette Rivers noted that we would also need to research the water agreement we have with St. Helens, because it may prevent us from providing water to users outside of our City limits or UGB.

Mayor Young said we also need to be careful because we have had several similar requests in the past, and we'll receive more requests in the future, and they need to be handled in the same manner.

Councilor Schmor asked if just a small section of the Jones's property could be annexed. Councilor Schmor said the City has sold water from a fire hydrant for temporary construction purposes in the past, and questioned whether or not this could be permitted.

Jim Bundy said he could install a meter on a fire hydrant and provide water to the Jones' site on a temporary basis.

It was the consensus of the Council that the Joneses be permitted to temporarily purchase metered water from the City's fire hydrant for construction purposes. It was the consensus of the Council that this matter be discussed further during the March 1, 2001 meeting to provide time for further study and research.

Elementary School update: Shelly Sanford of Columbia City said she would like to make a few announcements on behalf of the Elementary School. She announced that the school is sponsoring a paired reading program, which pairs a student with a tutor. She said they are currently soliciting volunteers to read to the students, and the program requires a one-hour commitment from the volunteer per week. She provided members of the audience and City Council with reading program materials.

Ms. Sanford also announced that Mayor Young will be a special guest reader during the next Bedtime Story program at the school, which is scheduled for Monday, February 5th at 7:00 p.m. in the Library. She said visitors are encouraged to come in their pajamas, and she distributed flyers.

4.1 Parks Committee: Chair Calnon said the Parks Committee met recently. She said the Committee reviewed the development plan for Harvard Park, and identified some priorities to work towards, including walkways, landscaping, and signing. She said they will work on completing many of these improvements with volunteers and contributions.

Chair Calnon said the Parks Committee also reviewed the Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan and discussed possible projects. She said the Committee discussed the need for a sports park and a waterfront park. She said the Committee discussed terracing the "H" Street waterfront property owned by the City, and installing benches for viewing the river. She said the Committee also discussed developing the City's reservoir property at Ninth and "H" Street into a park.

Leahnette Rivers said the Committee had requested a letter be sent to the Daughters of the American Revolution asking if they would provide the City with a first right of refusal on their property within Columbia City. She provided the Council with a copy of the draft letter prepared for Chair Calnon's signature, and she asked Council for authorization to send the letter. It was the consensus of the Council that the letter be sent.

Leahnette Rivers said the Parks Committee is interested in soliciting proposals for the completion of a Parks Master Plan. Ms. Rivers explained that although the City does not have a Parks Master Plan, she has heard a lot of interest in the development of a sports park in the northerly part of the City near "A" Street. She said the City of St. Helens owns 13 acres in that area, and they are currently in the process of having the property appraised. She said Brian Little has indicated that the St. Helens City Council has discussed disposing of the property. Leahnette Rivers said she has identified a grant program that could assist with the acquisition of property for park use. She said she would like to pursue this idea with the City of St. Helens and the Columbia City Parks Committee. It was the consensus of the Council that Leahnette Rivers continue to pursue this matter with the Parks Committee and the City of St. Helens.

4.2 Water Source and Development Committee:. Chair Guy said the Water Committee will meet again next Tuesday.

4.3 Streets Committee: No report.

4.4 Other Reports:

Mayor Young invited the Council, staff and members of the audience to join her for a bedtime story at the Library next Monday at 7:00 p.m.

AGENDA ITEM 5 CONSENT AGENDA:

5.5 CJ's Grocery and Gas Liquor License Renewal Application.

Mayor Young asked that item 5.2, Written Report from the Chief of Police, be deleted from the consent agenda, and item 5.5, CJ's Grocery and Gas Liquor License Renewal Application be added to the consent agenda. It was the consensus of the Council that these changes be made to the consent agenda.

MOVED (SCHMOR), SECONDED (GUY) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY ROLL CALL VOTE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA.

AGENDA ITEM 6 UNFINISHED BUSINESS:  None.

The Council reviewed the draft ordinance. Leahnette Rivers explained that this ordinance identifies the City's practice in processing liquor license applications. She said State law requires an ordinance of this type if a fee in excess of $25.00 is charged. She said a public hearing will be held during the March 1, 2001 Council Meeting to obtain comments about the draft ordinance.

Leahnette Rivers explained that the proposed fees are designed to reimburse the City for the actual City costs involved with a sewer connection.

MOVED (GUY), SECONDED (CALNON) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ADOPT COUNCIL BILL NO. 01-194.

MOVED (SCHMOR), SECONDED (GUY) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO ADOPT COUNCIL BILL NO. 01-195.

8.1 Other reports or items:

Sexually oriented businesses: Councilor Guy said the City of Hillsboro is currently in the process of adopting an ordinance regulating sexually oriented businesses. He said although we have not had to deal with this in the past, it might be a good idea to check into regulating these businesses in case we receive an application. Leahnette Rivers said she has an article on her desk about regulating sexually oriented businesses which she will copy for the Council. She said she will also check on Hillsboro's progress.

Post Office: Leahnette Rivers provided the Council with a copy of a letter from the US Post Office regarding their future plans to construct a new facility in Columbia City. Council asked staff to write and request additional details about their future construction plans.

PGE Audit: Council reviewed a letter dated January 25, 2001, from the City of Tigard asking other cities to participate in an audit of PGE's franchise payments. It was the consensus of the Council that we not participate in that process at this time.

Land Use Seminar for Elected Official: Leahnette Rivers invited Council Members to attend a Beyond Basics Land Use Seminar for Elected Officials. She said the meeting is scheduled for Saturday, April 7, 2001 in the Portland Metro Area.

Spring Clean-Up: Leahnette Rivers asked the Council if they were still interested in a Spring Clean-Up for yard debris and other items other than household trash. The Council directed staff to coordinate a clean-up day.

Saturday Market: Jim Bundy said some of the local farmers have expressed an interest in selling their produce during a Saturday Market. Mayor Young said anyone interested in organizing a Saturday Market should write a letter of interest to the Council for consideration.

"L" Street Bridge Replacement: Jim Bundy said we recently submitted a request for the "L" Street Bridget to be replaced, and we should know the status of that request next week.

Celebration: Jim Bundy said the Kiwanis Club has expressed an interest in helping with the City's Celebration. Shelly Sanford suggested that the Friends of the Library might also be interested in helping with the Celebration. Mayor Young said this is also the City's 75th Anniversary, and there will be a series of articles written about the history of Columbia City.

There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned at 8:36 p.m.

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