Strawberry Pancake Breakfast - 9 AM to 11 AM

Knapp Social Center, 1925 First Street

Adults $5.00, children (10 and under) $3.50

All in the Community Hall, 1850 Second Street

All of the proceeds from the Celebration are used to operate the Columbia City Community Library. Books + Imagination = Adventures!!! We hope to make this the biggest and best Celebration ever!

We still need volunteer help with the breakfast and the oral auction, and the Friends of the Library will need help with their book sale. Please, call City Hall to sign up for the job you want. This is a fun time to volunteer and help the Community Library.

Raffle Prizes:

Strawberry Pancake Breakfast - 9 AM to 11 AM

Knapp Social Center, 1925 First Street

Adults $5.00, children (10 and under) $3.50

All in the Community Hall, 1850 Second Street

All of the proceeds from the Celebration are used to operate the Columbia City Community Library. Books + Imagination = Adventures!!! We hope to make this the biggest and best Celebration ever!

We still need volunteer help with the breakfast and the oral auction, and the Friends of the Library will need help with their book sale. Please, call City Hall to sign up for the job you want. This is a fun time to volunteer and help the Community Library.

Raffle Prizes:

This beautiful watercolor entry was submitted by Stephanie Petershagen during the City's recent logo contest. Although Stephanie's entry was not selected for use as the City's logo, it did earn an Honorable Mention Award.

The City has created note cards depicting Stephanie's colorful design. Note cards may be purchased at the City Hall and during the Celebration. A package of 10 note cards sells for $8.00, and all of the proceeds from the note card sales will be used to operate the Columbia City Community Library.

Columbia City T-shirts are now on sale. This year's T-shirt sports the new Columbia City logo over the left pocket, with a large color version of the logo on the back. Proceeds from the T-shirt sales will be used to operate the Columbia City Community Library.

T-shirts may be purchased at the City Hall and will be available for sale during the Celebration. T-shirts are white and available in short or long sleeve. Prices are as follows:

Short sleeve white cotton T-shirt:

Small - X-Large: $10.00

XX-Large: $11.00

XXX-Large $13.00

XXXX-Large $14.00

Long sleeve white cotton T-shirt:

Small - X-Large: $15.00

XX-Large: $17.00

Responsible and friendly resident manager for the Caples House Historical Museum Complex. The manager is responsible for booking events, conducting tours, and maintaining the grounds and facilities. E-mail resume' to dndpeterson3@cs.com or contact City Hall by calling 503-397-4010.

Automatic bill payment pays your water and sewer utility bill through an automatic deduction from your bank account. You'll still receive your monthly utility bill showing your water usage and other charges, and the amount due will be deducted from your checking or savings account on the bill's due date (on or after the 10th of the month). Automatic bill payment is easy to set up, and even if you're on vacation or ill, you'll never have to worry about paying your bill again. To apply, complete the application form below and return it to City Hall. With automatic bill payment you will still receive a bill and newsletter, but there will be a message: "Auto Pay. Do Not Pay."

We'd like to extend a special thank you to:

• Sally Ann for bringing a beautiful boquet of flowers to City Hall.
• Bernie Albertine, Marian Calnon, Gloria Chinell, Nell Harrison, Dolores Heinz, Barbara Jones, Phyllis Moss and Phyllis Rowley for helping us with the July utility bills and newsletters.

• Norm Jones for mowing Datis Park.

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our newest Planning Commission Member, Deborah Jacob. Deborah was recently appointed to the Planning Commission, and she comes to us with a strong background in planning.

We would also like to thank Mary Ann Hough, who recently resigned from the Planning Commission. Mary Ann was appointed to the Commission in November 2001 and we appreciate her many years of service.

The City is currently accepting applications to serve on the Planning Commission. Members must reside within the City or the City's Urban Growth Boundary. The term is for a period of four years, and the Commission's regular meeting date is the second Tuesday of each month. The Planning Commission makes recommendations and decisions about current and long-range planning and development issues within the City.

Can you believe it? It's September and another school year is about to begin.

With school in session, there will be significantly more traffic in and around school areas. Pedestrians, bicyclists, buses and cars all contribute to school zone congestion. Schools in Oregon are faced with traffic issues such as double parking, speeding, unsafe U-turns, jaywalking and more.

In addition, children do not always follow the rules of the road. Often they enter the street from between two cars, attempt to "run" red lights with their bikes through intersections, and skateboard or walk into traffic without checking.

Motorists must exercise increased awareness in and around a school zone. Potential hazards are much easier to see and react to when driving at or below the school zone speed limit of 20 mph. Special attention must also be paid to buses displaying flashing red lights when on an undivided two-lane roadway. In these instances, motorists are required to stop and wait until the flashing red lights are turned off before passing a bus.

There are many alternatives to the overcrowded school zone each morning and afternoon. Walking and biking to school is an option or consider partnering with a shopping mall, community center or library within a mile of the school and arrange to use their parking lot to meet other kids and walk to school together. There is safety in numbers, kids get a chance to exercise and socialize with their peers, school drop-off and pick up zones are less congested and safer, and there will be a little less pollutants in the air.

We received over 40 responses to our library survey. Thank you to all that responded.

All but one knew there was a library in Columbia City. The hours you would like to see the library staffed included all those in the chart, with more in the evenings and Saturdays. We feel it is important to be open consistent hours so our hours will not change at the present time. The library is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. As more people volunteer and are trained to work at the library, we will increase our hours.

Self-service is available anytime the United Koffee Shoppe is open, which is currently 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and Saturday. You can even sign up during self-service hours. Library staff will contact you to see if you have any questions.

Please don’t feel you must purchase something at the coffee shop to use the library. The library pays rent for the space we use. We don’t have a separate entrance because of safety concerns. We usually have only one person working at the library.

Thank you for the many gracious comments on the importance of the library and your support for us. Please be sure to support the Columbia City Celebration and our book sale on September 9.

Friends of the Library Meeting: September 9, 2006, 3 p.m.

Novel Quilters Meeting: September 20, 2006

September 4th CLOSED City Hall is closed on Labor Day

September 6th 7:30 p.m. Municipal Court at City Hall

September 7th 7:30 p.m. City Council Meeting at City Hall

September 9th 9:00 a.m. Strawberry Pancake Breakfast at the Knapp Social Center

September 9th 9:00 a.m. Silent Auction in the Community Hall

September 9th 9:00 a.m. Friends of the Library Book Sale in the Community Hall

September 9th 11:30 a.m. Public Auction in the Community Hall

September 9th 1:00 p.m. Raffle Drawing in the Community Hall

September 9th 3:00 p.m. Friends of the Library Annual Meeting in the Community Hall

September 12th 7:00 p.m. Planning Commission Meeting at City Hall cancelled

September 14th 7:30 p.m. Municipal Court at City Hall

September 21st 7:30 p.m. City Council Meeting at City Hall

September 25th 7:30 p.m. Municipal Court at City Hall

CERT training (about 20 hours) covers basic skills that are invaluable when emergency services are not available. By applying the basic response and organizational skills learned during training, CERT members can help save and sustain lives until help arrives. CERT trainers are provided by the St. Helens Police Department and the Columbia River Fire and Rescue, and courses are free to the public.

CERT teaches participants to:

• Take steps to prepare themselves for a disaster.

• Identify and reduce potential hazards likely to affect their homes and communities.

• Work with emergency service providers in search and rescue situations.

• Perform as a team to safely utilize emergency resources.

• Assess emergency medical needs and employ basic treatments.

CERT courses include:

• Emergency Preparedness

• Fire Suppression

• Disaster First Aid and Triage

• Light Search and Rescue

• Disaster Psychology

• Team Organization

For CERT class schedule information, contact Vicky Vose, Program Coordinator. You can reach her by calling (503) 397-3333 or email her at vickyv@ci.st-helens.or.us. These CERT courses are sponsored by the St. Helens Police Department.

If your property abuts a sidewalk, street or alley, please remember to keep them clear of shrubs, bushes, blackberries, and other items that might interfere with pedestrians and traffic. Overhanging limbs must be trimmed to a height of at least 8 feet above sidewalks, and at least 12 feet above the roadway or alley.

• Avoid over watering. Grass needs water when it is pale green and it stays flat after it has been stepped on.

• Water slowly until the lawn is soggy. Use a hose; sprinklers allow the water to evaporate before the soil can absorb it. If you must use a sprinkler, use one that makes large drops of water.

• Water in the morning. Sun and wind can evaporate much of the water before it reaches the soil.

• Let the grass grow higher in dry weather – it saves burning and saves water.

• Before planting, add compost or a mulch to the garden. Compost absorbs water and fertilizes plants. Mulches also absorb water and prevent the spread of weeds.

• Toilets are the single biggest water consumer, accounting for 40-45% of all household use. Leaks in the toilet can double or even triple over-all water consumption wasting thousands of gallons a month. Often leaks are silent and go undetected.

• Toilet leaks usually occur in the toilet tank where water either drains down the overflow pipe or drains past the plunger ball.

• Overflow pipe leaks can be detected by visual inspection and will occur in two forms. First, the water level in the tank may be too high and water is overflowing down the pipe. Second, the small tube running from the ball cock assembly to the overflow pipe may have a continuous stream of water coming from it.

• Plunger ball leaks can be detected by adding food coloring to the toilet tank. If after a period of 30 minutes food color appears in the bowl, the plunger ball is leaking.

• If you experience an abnormally high water bill and suspect the usage may be accounted to a leak, a good place to start your search is with your toilet.

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