MARCH 2005

On March 17, 2005, at 7:30 p.m. the City Council will hold a public hearing to accept comments on a proposal to increase water rates. The rate increase is needed to raise revenue to repay the City's Safe Drinking Water Loan.

The City received a low interest (1%) loan in the amount of $2,990,500 to construct a 1.0 million gallon water reservoir and to develop production wells. The reservoir project is complete, and the new water source project is still underway.

Because the completion date of the project was extended, the due date for the first debt payment has been extended to December 2005. Initially the City plans to use a combination of system development charge revenues and water usage revenues to make the debt payments. In order to retain the low interest rate and make future loan payments solely from water usage revenues, additional annual increases will be necessary. The low interest rate will save nearly $2 million during the loan payback period.

To raise funds for the upcoming loan payments, the City Council plans to implement an increase in water charges, effective March 26th, which will be reflected on the April 26th water bills. For a residential customer within the City limits, the proposal is to increase the minimum monthly charge by $1.00, and increase the volume charges by $0.25.

The rates for commercial, industrial and outside City water users are scheduled to increase in similar proportions. The rate increase is expected to result in an overall rate increase of 4.9%.

Comments about the proposed water rate increase may be submitted in writing prior to the hearing or may be delivered in person during the hearing. The hearing will be held in the Council Chambers of the City Hall, 1840 Second Street, Columbia City.

The Parks Committee has been busy sprucing up Bundy Memorial Park. The Committee plans to develop a paved parking lot off of "D" Street, construct a picnic shelter, and install picnic tables and park benches in the park during the next few months.

Thanks to Dave Jensen and Morse Bros. Inc., the future parking lot has been leveled, and the Committee is currently making plans to complete the paving.

Recently, some dangerous trees were removed from the park, and other trees were trimmed as needed. Public works staff and volunteers assisted with the tree trimming and removal, and cleaned up all the debris. We'd like to extend a very special thank you to Bernard Carlton, Jim Shinkle, Marian Calnon, and Nell Harrison for their continued volunteer work in the park, and to Larry Fellows and Tom Villoni, who recently joined us to volunteer in Bundy Park.

The Annual Spring Cleanup Day will be held on Saturday, April 30^th, 2005, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Columbia City School. There is no charge for yard debris, and other items such as junk, tires, car batteries, appliances, etc., will be accepted for a fee. Watch for details in the next newsletter!

The following deserve a very special "thank you" for their recent contributions to the community:

• Dave Jensen and Morse Bros. Inc. for leveling the parking area in Bundy Park.

• Bernie Albertine, Alice Barchus, Marian Calnon, Dolores Heinz, Sheila Jackson, Phyllis Rowley, Helen Sandstrom and Amy West for helping with the February utility bills and newsletter.

• Marian Calnon for sprucing up the flowerbeds at City Hall.

• Bernard Carlton, Jim Shinkle, Marian Calnon, Nell Harrison, Tom Villoni, and Larry Fellows for working in Bundy Memorial Park cleaning up debris, trimming trees, and chipping branches.

• Sharmaine Barlow for donating stuffed animals to the Police Department.

• Dara, Randy and Jenny Johnson, Reta and Darrel Chastan, Darwin and Joanne Fogle, Nicole Cly, John Dewitt and Billy Mace for repainting the inside of the Community Hall.

We'd like to thank all of you who responded to our recent survey relating to curbside yard debris service. We received a total of 105 responses, and the results are as follows:

• In favor of Option A (optional service) 38
• In favor of Option B (mandatory service) 61
• Opposed to either service 

Save your empty inkjet printer cartridges and old cell phones - they have value! The Columbia City School has found a company that will pay cash for empty inkjet printer cartridges and old cell phones. They then recycle the cartridges and phones and sell them at significant savings to their customers. Inkjet cartridges and old cell phones can be taken to a collection box at the school in a plastic bag to prevent leakage. Items may be dropped off on school days between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Wear a crazy hat,

But leave at home the cat,

Get a special snack,

And check out a stack

of books.

Come to the Library to vote! The only book award chosen by the kids that read them! During the first two weeks of March, you can vote for your favorite book! The rules are simple. In order to vote you must be a child in grades 4 through 12 and have read at least two of the 2005 nominees. The library has ballots-- just stop in and vote now! For more information, visit www.pnla.org/yrca.

01/17/05 Disconnected 911 call investigated in 1800 block of Second Street; child found playing on phone.

01/17/05 Found property call on Scappoose-Vernonia Highway; referred to Sheriff’s Office.

01/18/05 Contact with resident made regarding loose dog threatening neighbors. Three citations issued relating to incident.

01/18/05 Assist Sheriff’s Office on an unwanted person call.

01/19/05 Assist the St. Helens Police on a burglary in progress call.

01/20/05 Officer checks the welfare of a resident in the 2400 block of Sixth Street.

01/20/05 Death investigation conducted in the 600 block of Calvin. Person died of natural causes.

01/20/05 Disconnected 911 call responded to in the 2100 block of Second Street.

01/21/05 Assist Oregon State Police on traffic stop at Highway 30 and "E" Street.

01/21/05 Citizen complaint of harassment investigated.

01/21/05 Respond to citizen complaint of City of Columbia City Police not stopping trucks on the highway.

01/22/05 Warrant arrest made.

01/22/05 Suspicious vehicle checked in the 1800 block of Second Street.

01/22/05 Disconnected 911 call checked in the 2400 block of Park Drive.

01/23/05 Intoxicated subject reported and checked by officer in the 2100 block of Third Street. Person reportedly lying in the middle of the roadway.

01/24/05 Assisted fire department at the fire station with an injured cat.

01/25/05 Assist St. Helens Police on a domestic dispute on Pittsburg Road.

01/26/05 Attempted to locate a subject reportedly involved in drug activity.

01/26/05 Careless driver reported; subject issued three citations after being stopped by officer.

01/26/05 Vehicle reported as "all over the road." Officer checked the vehicle and found it to be operated safely and legally.

01/28/05 Suspicious circumstances checked on Sixth Street. Unable to locate reported condition.

01/28/05 Assist Oregon State Police in Deer Island on a traffic stop relating to felony activity.

01/28/05 Disconnected 911 call in the 3100 block of Sixth Street. Found to be an equipment problem.

01/28/05 Suspicious vehicle reported and checked okay in the 1700 block of First Street.

01/29/05 A .22 caliber pistol found in the Deer Island area was turned in to Columbia City Police Department. Further investigation revealed the gun had been used in a case being investigated by the Oregon State Police. Firearm was turned over to that agency.

01/29/05 Parking complaint reported in the 300 block of "H" Street.

01/29/05 Possible intoxicated driver reported on Highway 30 from the Rainier area.

01/29/05 Suspicious vehicle checked in the area of Fifth and Lincoln.

01/31/05 Ordinance violation reported in the 2300 block of Sixth Street.

01/31/05 Assisted a motorist with a dead battery in the parking lot of the Mini Mart.

01/31/05 Child neglect investigated in the 2300 block of Sixth Street.

02/01/05 Suspicious vehicle checked in area of Fifth and Pacific Streets.

02/02/05 Anonymous caller reports motorist not using child restraints on children in vehicle.

02/03/05 Damaged mailboxes and found mail reported in the 2400 block of Seventh Street.

02/03/05 Officer assists a motorist who ran out of gas on Highway 30 near Chimes Crest.

March 3 6:00 p.m. Special Joint City Council Meeting with St. Helens City Council at Columbia City Hall

March 3 7:30 p.m. (approx.) Regular City Council Meeting at City Hall

March 8 7:00 p.m. Planning Commission Meeting at City Hall cancelled

March 10 7:30 p.m. Municipal Court at City Hall

March 17 7:30 p.m. Regular City Council Meeting at City Hall

March 21 7:00 p.m. Friends of the Library Meeting at the Library

March 22 7:30 p.m. Parks Committee Meeting at City Hall

March 24 7:30 p.m. Municipal Court at City Hall

In March 2004, the Drinking Water Section of the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) determined that the City of Columbia City's water system is out of compliance with a regulatory drinking water standard. Our water quality has not deteriorated or changed in recent years. Where we once met all standards, more stringent requirements have been adopted over the years by the regulatory agencies. As a result, it is now necessary to provide a higher level of treatment to our primary well source.

It is not necessary for you to take any immediate action. You would have been notified immediately if there had ever been any water quality emergency. You do not need to boil your water. You do need to understand the short-term implications of this water quality issue.

On March 11, 2004, ODHS issued an order requiring the City to filter its water in addition to our current disinfection process. This order came after water sampling led to our primary well source being placed in a category where there is an increased possibility of untreated surface water mixing with the groundwater in the vicinity of the well. The only feasible method of dealing with this possibility and meeting the ODHS drinking water standards is to filter the water.

Accordingly, the City of St. Helens is building a state-of-the-art facility using a system of microfiber membrane filters that will insure removal of all potential contaminants. Since the last public notification, the City of St. Helen’s contractor, Contractors Incorporated (CI) from Tualatin, Oregon has been working on the foundation of the filtration building and installing the many pipes and conduit necessary to operate the membrane equipment. Currently the project is approximately 25% complete. Until completion of the new facility, the City of St. Helens is working closely with the ODHS regulators to monitor and manage this situation.

In the event that surface water were to mix with the groundwater source, the water supply could possibly carry disease-causing organisms. To date, testing has not detected any of these organisms in the water. Inadequately treated water may contain disease-causing organisms. These organisms include bacteria, viruses and parasites that can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea and associated headaches. These symptoms, however, are not caused only by organisms in drinking water. If you experience any of these symptoms and they persist, you may want to seek medical advice. A home filter system will not necessarily increase protection because not all home filter systems protect against parasites. Infants, some elderly and persons with severely compromised immune systems would be at some increased risk in the event any contamination were to take place, and these people may seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers.

The City will send out these re-notification notices every three months, including our progress towards ultimate regulatory compliance. We will also post notices on the City's website at www.columbia-center.org/colcity. For more information, you may contact Leahnette Rivers at (503) 397-4010 or write to PO Box 198, Columbia City, OR 97018.

Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (such as people in apartments, businesses and schools). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.

State Water System ID #4100203 Distributed March 1, 2005

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