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City of Columbia
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City of Columbia
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NEW
WATER RATES
The City Council approved a water
rate increase following a public hearing in February. The rate increase will
take effect on March 26, 2008, and will be reflected on the April 26, 2008
billings.
For a residential customer
within the City limits, the new rates include a $0.65 increase in the minimum
monthly charge, a $0.10 increase in the first volume charge, and a $0.05
increase in the second volume chare, for an overall average increase of 2%.
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Residential
Customer In
Columbia City |
New
Rate 3/26/08
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Minimum charge - less than 500
cubic feet of usage |
$30.00 |
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For each additional 100 cubic
feet, but usage less than 1,000 cubic feet |
$3.60 |
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Fore each additional 100 cubic
feet |
$4.50 |
DAYLIGHT-SAVING TIME BEGINS
On the second Sunday in March. March 9th
begins daylight-saving time; so don’t forget to set your clocks ahead one hour.
SEWER SMART TIPS
Sanitary sewer systems are designed to handle three
types of waste products:
Þ
Used
water
Þ
Human
body waste
Þ
Toilet
paper
You can help prevent unwanted sewer backups and keep
your sanitary sewer working properly by following these simple Dos and Don'ts!
Do's:
·
Do
collect grease in a container and dispose of it in the garbage.
·
Do
place food scraps in the garbage for disposal with solid waste.
·
Do place
a wastebasket in the bathroom to dispose of solid waste.
Don'ts:
·
Don't pour
grease, fats, and oils from cooking down the drain.
·
Don't use the
sewer to dispose of food scraps.
·
Don't use the
toilet as a wastebasket for garbage and chemicals.
·
Don't use
the toilet to dispose of diapers, plastic gloves or personal hygiene
products. These items do not belong in
the sewer system.
Important note: Violators may be subject to civil penalties,
suspension of service, damages, court costs, attorney's fees and more!
THANK YOU
We'd
like to extend a very special "thank you" to:
Marian
Calnon, Gloria Chinell, Nell Harrison, Betty Jensen, Jean Lord, Vera Moeller,
Phyllis Rowley and Vonnie Walker for helping with the newsletter and utility
billing in January.
WHAT’S HAPPENING @ YOUR LIBRARY
Thanks
for all your support and book buying at our library book sale! We made over
$400 and have room to walk into our storeroom again. We are planning another book sale during the annual Spring Clean
Up day. So during your spring cleaning, think of us and bring us books you’d
like to share with the library and the community for our next book sale!
If
you don’t have a library card, stop in during our open hours. There is no fee
for using the library and we have a great selection of books. Most of our books
are donated by people in the community so we have one of the least expensive
libraries around and it reflects 
what people in the community are actually reading.
Your support makes it possible. So come in and check out some books – make room
on our shelves for more books!
We
are looking for more library volunteers. The ones we have are great but can’t
always fill all the hours we are open. Volunteer for a four-hour shift once a
month and enjoy visiting with some of your neighbors! This is a great way to
build community relationships.
New at the Library…
Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews:
In the fall of 1997 Donna Andrews started on the road to publication by
submitting her first completed mystery manuscript to the Malice Domestic/St.
Martin's Press Best First Traditional Mystery contest. Upon learning that Murder
with Peacocks had won, she acquired a copy of Peterson's Field Guide to
Eastern Birds and settled down to have fun in her fictional world for as
long as she could get away with it. Murder with Peacocks won the Agatha,
Anthony, Barry, and Romantic Times awards for best first novel and the Lefty
award for the funniest mystery of 1999. Subsequent books have also received
Agatha and Lefty nominations, and Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon won
the Toby Bromberg Award for Excellence (presented by Romantic Times) for the
Most Humorous Mystery of 2003. These are fun mysteries, and we have three or
four at the library.
Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams:
Watership Down
was one of this century's best-loved works of imaginative literature. Now
Richard Adams returns, to tell us what happened to the rabbits after their
defeat of General Woundwort.
Tales From Watership Down begins with some of the great folk stories
well known to all rabbits. Then we listen in as Dandelion, the rabbits' master
storyteller, relates the thrilling adventures experienced by Al-ahrairah, the
mythical rabbit hero, and his stalwart, Rabscuttle, during the long journey
home after their terrible encounter with the Black Rabbit of Inlé (as narrated
in Watership Down). Finally, in the principal part of the book, we are
told eight enchanting stories about the rabbits of the Down -- Hazel, Fiver,
Bigwig, and their companions -- including the impact on the warren of the
obsessive doe Flyairth, and the appointment of Hyzenthlay as a female Chief
Rabbit and partner to Hazel.
All readers -- the millions who remember Watership Down with the deepest
affection, and also those for whom this volume will be their first encounter
with the rabbits -- will find these nineteen tales utterly compelling, the
fruit of Richard Adam's spellbinding narrative power and ability to conjure up
a world that is at the same time both real and unreal.
Internet Access:
Online access is
available at the library. The staff can help with online research or guide new
users.
Friends
of the Library Meeting: 3/17/08 - 7 PM
Novel
Quilters Meeting: 3/19/08 - 6:30 PM
Storytime: Mondays 11 AM
Staffed
Library Hours:
Mondays
& Saturdays
10 AM to
2 PM
Wednesdays
4 PM to 8 PM
Thursdays
Phone: (503) 366-8020
E-mail: cclibrary@opusnet.com
Address: 205 "I" Street
The next biannual
burn period will begin on Saturday,
April 5th and end on Sunday, April 13th. The burn period is for yard debris only,
and burn barrels are prohibited. Yard
debris is lawn clippings, leaves, brush, trimmings, prunings, sawdust and wood
scraps. It is not dirt, gravel, paper,
plastic, metal, rocks, bricks, sod, or food waste.
Burn permits are required prior to burning! If you purchased a permit in Fall of 2007 you may
not need to get a new one, check the expiration date. Permits may be obtained at
City Hall or at any Fire Station within the Columbia River Fire & Rescue
District. Please remember you will also need to call the “Burn Line” at (503)
397-4800 each day to see if it is a burn day.
You must follow these basic rules for proper open
burning:
q
You must have a garden hose, or
a shovel and a 5-gallon bucket of water at all times, and the fire must NOT be left unattended at any time
until out.
q
Yard and garden trimmings must
be cut and piled no larger than 6 feet wide by 4 feet high.
q
The ground must be cleared not
less than 10 feet around the burning area. There must be a separation of 50
feet between the burn pile and any structure, trees, vehicle or property line
if the burn pile is greater than 3 feet in diameter; and a 25 foot separation if
the burn pile is less than 3 feet in diameter.
q
The fire must not adversely
affect neighbors (smoke).
q
It must be daylight hours
during a designated burn day.
Have questions? Please call Bill Goodwin, Fire
Marshall, at 503-397-2990 ext. 17.
FOUND ITEM
A large set of keys and padlock was found on “L”
Street near Fourth Street and turned into City Hall. Do they belong to
you? If you think these items may be
yours, please contact City Hall at (503) 397-4010 for more information.
STOP THE SPREAD OF GERMS!
With the flu season in full swing, remember to stop
the spread of germs that make you and others sick!
After coughing or sneezing...wash your hands with
soap and warm water, or clean with an alcohol-based hand cleaner or wipe.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you
cough or sneeze, or cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve - not your hands.
2008 COLUMBIA COUNTY
BRIDAL SHOW
On Sunday, March 2nd at the Buccini Hall
in St. Helens there will be a bridal show. The show will be from 12:00 p.m. to
4:00 p.m. with a fashion show at 2:00 p.m., featuring: bridal gowns, tuxedos,
prom, special occasion gowns, hair & make-up.
One of the sponsors of this event is our very own
Caples House Museum & Knapp Social Center among many local floral,
photography and other sponsors.
You can see the show at 165 South 14th,
in St. Helens.
COLUMBIA COUNTY RSVP COMMUNITY MEDIATION
SERVICES
Did you know mediation services are available to
residents of Columbia County free of charge through the Columbia County RSVP?
Mediation is a peaceful problem solving process in
which a neutral third party helps the disputants reach a mutually satisfying
solution to their differences.
Mediation is voluntary.
A mediator is a neutral third party who helps to
open channels of communication and to define the real issues. A mediator does not impose settlements,
counsel or give advice, or take a side or 
assess blame.
The kinds of problems that might be appropriate for
mediation are:
·
Animals
·
Neighborhood
disputes
·
Nuisance
·
Litter
·
Noise
·
Trespassing
·
Property
damage
·
Property
maintenance
·
Parking
·
Boundary
·
Trees
The process works like this:
1. A person involved in a conflict calls the
Columbia County RSVP office.
2. A trained mediator from the community interviews
all parties involved in the dispute.
3.
If
the parties agree to mediate the conflict, the meeting is held at a neutral
location.
4.
At
the mediation meeting, each disputant describes their view of the conflict.
5. The mediator works with all parties to find
their own solution.
6. The agreement is then written down by the
mediator and then signed by all parties.
To access mediation
services, contact:
Columbia County RSVP
219 Columbia Blvd.
St. Helens, OR 97051
Phone: (503) 397-5655
Fax: (503) 397-7196
Email: rsvp@opusnet.com
been
designated a Heritage Orchard by the State of Oregon's Heritage Tree Program.
Please, come join representatives from the Oregon State Society Daughters of
the American Revolution (DAR) and the State of Oregon's Heritage Tree Program
as we proudly celebrate this event. Refreshments will be served.
01/15/08
Disturbance call in the 2200 block of Second Street.
01/16/08
Audible alarm in the 3500 block of Park Drive.
01/16/08
Public assisted at the Police Department.
01/16/08
Animal complaint at Highway 30 and “I” Street.
01/17/08
Audible alarm in the 3500 block of Park Drive.
01/17/08
Incomplete 911 call checked in the 1700 block of Ninth Street.
01/17/08
Vandalism call taken near Highway 30 and “I” Street.
01/17/08
Report of fraud activity in the 600 block of “I” Street.
01/19/08
Premise checks conducted.
01/19/08
Suspicious person checked near Fifth and Pacific Streets.
01/20/08
Premise checks conducted.
01/20/08
Unwanted person reported at the Mini Mart.
01/22/08
Suspicious vehicle checked near Highway 30 and “L” Street.
01/22/08
Premise checks conducted.
01/23/08 Suspicious circumstances checked in the 1400 block of Fourth
Place.
01/25/08
Suspicious circumstances in the 1300 block of Fourth Street.
01/25/08
Welfare check in the 2400 block of Fifth Street.
01/26/08
Incomplete 911 call in the 1600 block of Second Street.
01/26/08
Public assist at City Hall.
01/27/08
Traffic accident near Fifth and “J” Streets.
01/28/08
Suspicious vehicle in the 2300 block of Sixth Street.
01/28/08
Hazard checked in the 1600 block of Second Street.
01/29/08
Vandalism reported in the 3200 block of Fifth Street.
01/29/08
Motorist assist near Highway 30 and Chimes Crest.
01/29/08
Animal complaint in the 1800 block of First Street.
01/29/08
Traffic complaint in the 1800 block of Second Street.
01/29/08
Animal complaint near Fifth and Pacific Streets.
01/29/08
Animal complaint in the 2400 block of Fifth Street.
01/29/08
Premise checks conducted.
01/31/08
Follow-up on animal complaint.
02/01/08
Animal complaint in the 400 block of
“A” Street.
02/01/08
Assist another agency near Highway 30 and “A” Street.
02/01/08
Suspicious person near Highway 30 and “L” Street.
02/02/08
Public assist in the 1700 block of Second Street.
02/03/08
Burglary in progress call responded to in the 400 block of “B” Street.
02/04/08
Theft report taken at the Columbia City Grade school.