City Council - Regular Meeting

You're talking to me. I can't hear you.

It's totally different. Good morning. All right, I have 701. I'm going to go ahead and call this meeting to order. Will the recorder please call the role?

Councelor Urban here. Councelor Hank here. Councelor Lamman here. Councelor Merid here. Councelor Settlemire here. Councelor Wilson here. Mayor Solsby here. I'll rise for the pledge of allegiance.

Thank you. Items to be added to the agenda. There are none. Special presentations. Item A, budget update. City manager, Mr. Sowine.

Well, good evening, your honor. Members of the city council, I just wanted to briefly follow up on the budget discussion at our last city council meeting. Uh, Eric is here this evening. If you have questions, he can help us answer. Let's be honest. I think we've identified what the problem is. The obvious question is where do we go from here? what are we going to do about it? And first off, I just want to talk about some of the steps that we've already taken. Uh we've taken the action of hiring an independent CPA to be our interim finance director. Eric's been responsible for largely helping us identify the issues that we discussed at the last council meeting and I think most importantly helping us implement policies and procedures so that we can prevent these things from reoccurring. We've also hired a second independent CPA to help us catch up on our annual audits. I think people have asked the rather legitimate question as to why it's taking as long as it is, but I think if we've learned one thing, it's that we need to take our time and be as thorough as possible. Now, Eisler CPA has given us a timeline. We will be caught up on our CPA on our annual audits uh by the end of next year. We've also get going to be moving on to presenting you with a balanced budget in April. Uh we've moved up the dates for our budget process by about a month. Usually it starts in May. Uh this year we're going to be starting in April. We've also added a budget comm budget town hall meeting, a community forum, so everybody will have an opportunity uh to express their positions on the budget we present. We'll also build in additional time for the city council to review the budget once the budget committees have completed their work. Uh the city council will have over a month before uh you have to finalize the budget from the time the budget committee completes their work. Now I don't want to sugarcoat it guys because I'm certainly not. The numbers are what they are. We

have some tough decisions ahead of us but city staff is meeting on a almost daily basis at this point. Uh our attitude is that there are no bad ideas. Everything is getting put on the table and we will be presenting you with a balanced budget uh that will write the ship as of July 1st of this year and beginning of the next fiscal year. You may not agree with the decisions that the city staff makes to balance the budget. That's great. That's why we present it to the budget committee and you'll have the opportunity uh to you know present your own ideas on how the budget can be balanced. But again, um, you know, I I realize that it was a bit of a surprise at the last meeting when we presented you with the information that we did, but understand that city staff is doing what we can uh to, you know, bring the ship into port. So again, I'd happy to take any questions you might have.

Any questions? Thank you. Oh, councelor Meridday.

Um, not a question, just an observation. I I was fortunate enough to spend some time with um our interim fire finance director and I've been reassured about many of the processes that have been put into place to ensure that we know where where our money and all the different funds actually is and reconstructing some hard numbers that we can work from. So, I'm that that did give me um some much needed reassurance.

All right. Council Irvin,

I think as we go through this process, um we encourage all of us to be as involved as possible because while we're screw, you know, going through and really understanding um where the problem originated from where we are now will still be without an audited number going into the 2020 six budget. Um, and so I think we'll want uh to be reassured frequently in that and I know as time goes by there's more um more questions do come up you know and there'll be need for more explanation and and understanding of the process and you know seeing that number does balance that number does balance and even probably being led through uh having reiterated the process that you know Isler went through in 2023. What were the final things they were looking at? All right, let's look at those ourselves because we won't have that. What's the next best thing, you know, would be to follow the pattern as if we had that um that audit in place. So, those those are some things that I'll be looking for, you know, just just seeing it all the way through so that at least in my mind, it's straight from a 2023 audited numbers, outside audited numbers, uh through our budget process. Well, and I I would like to thank Eric for sitting down with councelor Urban and I, too. He he spent an amazing amount of time with us and we uh called that same day and he sat down with us and spent over an hour and really going through the numbers and trying to explain how this could have happened and showing us the ins and outs of what happens in the finance

department that unless you are in there dayto-day and that is your job, you do not completely understand. And so he gave us a lot of clarity and we talked about how budget committees and council can be educated going forward to make sure that we have this education so that we can recognize a clearer standout in a budget that we we we did ask questions and but it's knowing the right questions to ask and and that's true for the members of our community that serve on the budget committee that unless you have that in your finance background, you may not completely understand and these are all members of our community coming into these positions. And so we we thought it would be important to extend an education and so and Eric is willing to step up and make sure that that happens for us in the future. So, thank you.

Right. Anyone else, Councelor Lamman? Madam Mayor, thank you. Uh, Mr. Sourin, you kind of said there are some things I don't know if you can touch on them at all. Um, that we might not like too much. Um, is there any way you can kind of elaborate on any of that or touch on that or is it too early?

At this point, this is a work in progress. Like I said, city staff is having our internal conversations and rather than going into it with the preconceived ideas. We're going in with the idea that there are no bad ideas, everything gets thrown on the table and everything gets discussed. Uh my hope is that we'll be able to once we've gotten you the budget books, there's a city council meeting in early April uh where we'll be able to, you know, kind of give the city council, I'll call it a preview, uh of the presentation that you're going to get at the budget committee meeting. So to answer your question directly at this point, no, I I I don't have any, you know, specifics to give you. Uh that's still the discussion city staff's having. Our responsibility is to present you with a balanced budget. when we present you with a balanced budget, you have the opportunity to say, "Excellent work." Uh, somebody say, "Amen, and let's move on." I don't think that's what's going to happen. I think there's going to be a whole lot of discussion and uh, you know, and I think that that's going to be very healthy. So,

anyone else, item B, department reports, city manager, Mr. Sarowine.

Well, good evening again. your honor and members of the city council. Uh this evening we have our midyear department reports uh from two different folks. Uh first from our community development department. Now I'll turn it over to me. Good evening, Mayor, City Council. I'll keep this fairly brief, but 2025 was a strong year for the community development department with a lot accomplished behind the scenes that directly supports council goals and priorities, day-to-day operations, and long-term community goals. One of the most impactful developments in 2025 was strengthening and stabilizing our team. I was promoted to community development manager Lenny Crowe to senior planner and we welcomed Jeremy Means as our new associate planner. At the same time, planning and building permit specialist Tina McDonald continued to manage critical frontline functions, including phones, permit intake, and plan review tracking, while

also working toward her permit technician certification. Together, these efforts restored our staffing capacity, improved efficiency, and allowed the department to better serve the community and keep projects moving. Oh, and there's the team. I forgot to mention Ally. She's a critical part of the team. She's our mascot. A major long-range planning accomplishment was council's approval of the economic opportunity analysis and its adoption into the comprehensive plan. This gives us a solid foundation for future economic development and ensures we're planning intentionally for growth. It also completes council goal number 4.3. 2025 marked our third year serving as contract planners for the city of drain. Our staff handled approximately 12 planning cases, including flood plane management work, continuing a strong partnership, and providing professional planning services to a neighboring community. On March uh 16th, 2025, a strong atmospheric river caused significant flooding in the city of drain and minor flooding in Cottage Grove. Senior planner Lenny Crow worked closely with the Oregon Department of Emergency Management and Douglas County's emergency manager for about a week, conducting damage assessments and speaking directly with affected residents. Planning activity remains strong in Cottage Grove. staff processed a total of 111 planning cases in 2025, ranging from ministerial type one applications to complex legislative type four cases. With staffing levels restored and support from our summer intern, Myra

Marin, code enforcement made significant progress. We opened 109 tall grass cases and successfully closed 108 of them with one property requiring a warrant for abatement. We also addressed 38 additional cases involving trash, debris, vacant structures, livestock, and other nuisances. Um, several key annexations were completed this year. McKinley Avenue and Highway 99 from Emerson Lane to the urban growth boundary were brought into city limits. This also allowed two additional parcels on McKinley Avenue to be annexed, bringing four duplexes and one single family home onto the tax rules. Um, the annexation of Highway 99 provides future opportunities for more properties to be annexed if needed or desired. Planning staff submitted applications for the city's 32nd Tree City USA designation and the ninth growth award. I'm happy to report that the city has now been awarded both Tree City USA and the growth award. Senior planner Lenny Crowe was recognized at the Northwest Regional Flood Pood Management Association's annual conference, receiving the 2025 flood plane manager of the year award. An astounding professional achieve achievement. staff continued investing in professional development. Senior planner Crowe and associate planner means attended the Oregon APA conference in Bend and Jeremy also attended the Oregon Main Street Conference in Albany, bringing back new ideas, best practices, and strengthened professional connections. Planning and building specialist Tina McDonald's um attended the Oregon permit technicians conference in Portland, gaining valuable insights in strengthening inter agency connections.

Community engagement remained a priority. Planning staff hosted the 9th annual emergency preparedness fair with 25 booths and approximately 2,000 attendees. Staff also partnered with the urban forestry committee for Arbor Day planting six trees in Quiner Park. Senior planner Crowe participated in the RU rural housing policy incubator at the University of Oregon, working alongside peers to develop strategies addressing housing challenges in rural communities. Throughout the year, staff supported multiple advisory bodies, including seven planning commission meetings, five historic preservation commission meetings, and five urban forestry committee meetings. The department received a master plan subdivision application from Hayden Homes for Coast Fork Crossing, previously known as Project Sparrow. The proposal includes 52 homes in phase 1 and 49 homes in phase 2. Sunset Park subdivision on Olsen Place and Yos Place off South 8th Street was completed in its entirety in 2025, resulting in 20 new homes added to the community. The building department issued 603 permits in 2025, including 17 new homes, new single family homes, and a new building for Forest Valley Veterinary Clinic. We looked at 690 plan sets to ensure code compliance in all four cities. Staff completed over 4,500 inspections, including 1,800 844 in Cottage Grove, 638 in Creswell, 276 in Cobberg, and 1,758 in Venita. I was fortunate to attend the

International Code Council's annual business meeting in Cleveland as well as the Oregon Building Officials Association in Hood River where I received the special recognition award for above and beyond leader. Um, an honor I was truly humbled by. Finally, beyond the numbers and projects, staff answered hundreds of questions from the public, both in person and over the phone, covering everything from zoning questions to, yes, even whether the DMV was open that day. For those who like numbers, this slide gives a snapshot of our 2025 workload. These metrics reflect both the volume and diversity of work handled by a relatively small team and they highlight how much of our work is operational and service driven. Overall, 2025 was a productive and stabilizing year for the department. It was a year of growth and resilience. The work accomplished supports council goals, improves service delivery, and positions the city well for future growth. None of this work would be possible without a dedicated staff, strong partners, an engaged community, and council's continued support. Um, before I close, I'd like to take a moment to recognize a significant transition. Our building official, Jason Bush, officially retired as of January 30th. On behalf of the community development department, I want to congratulate Jason on his retirement and thank him for his many years of service. We wish him the best on his next chapter. Uh, thank you and I'm happy to answer any questions.

Thank you, Miss Clever. Any questions? Councelor Urban, thank you. Uh, can you paint the picture of the services that we're offering to other communities and so like there's permitted services to to certain ones? We do do we do any code enforcement for any other ones? Of course. No, we do not provide any code enforcement. So for um drain we provide planning and flood plane services. For Crestwell we provide flood plane services as well as uh building which is inspections and plan reviews. And then Cobberg and Venita also are inspections and plan reviews.

Anyone else? Yes. Oh, councelor Wilson. Thank you, Mayor. Um, first just want to thank you and the rest of the your team on the hard work throughout the year. You do a phenomenal job for nothing but positive feedback from the community on the responses that they've gotten from questions that they've been come in and asked. So, just want to thank you and congratulate you on your award as well.

Thank you. Appreciate that. Thank you. Item C, process of vacating rights away. Senior planner, Miss Lenny Crow. We the uh the next report is actually from public works. Okay, one more report. That's right. No, Vay, we have to do this. They are

Mr. Stewart.

Thank you, Mayor. Good evening, everyone. So this evening I have a probably more a semianual report than a quarterly report because we're going to go clear back to uh July through December. But so with that the public works department I'll share with you uh is composed of the engineering utility division fleet and facilities maintenance and middlesfield golf course the raw river water treatment and the cottage grove reclamation plant. Before we get going, I'm going to share that I feel very blessed and honored to lead an incredible group of employees. Hopefully, by the end of this presentation, you'll agree public works has accomplished an incredible amount of work and various projects along with everyday tasks. So, we'll start with uh the util utility division is led by um Michael Riley and he has uh 10 full-time employees that he oversees. uh full-time and then in the summer this past year, he had two summer hires. Essentially, the summer hires assisted staff in uh on different job sites, spent a lot of time painting hydrants and curbs and cutting tall grass. Two of the staff members are are service techs and they essentially respond to uh locates, repairs, leaks, potholes, general um calls for service. Uh they respond to dead animals, garbage and they also open and close the camp on Monday through Friday. Uh they respond to service calls. There was 966 service requests and during that period of time they range from new meters to meter swaps to sewer backups, backflow valves, um shut offs and turnons for water service. and they also uh respond to responded to 581 locates

where they go out and mark where the utilities are before folks do uh construction projects. So this slide really covers a bunch of the various different things that we we do. Uh we'll respond to water main brakes you'll see in the upper leftand corner. Um also they installed over 200 feet of sewer mainline. Um they filled a ton of potholes and did a lot of street work uh which in included uh installing new stop signs at Sixth Street and on Cemetery Road and also new barricades on Cleveland Street. Uh we were fortunate this past year to purchase a brand new backhoe caterpillar backhoe and then you'll see that there's they also work with storm water and they I'm proud to say that they finished laying the affluent line which started at the Robert or the um Cottage Grove um reclamation facility on Douglas Street and went all the way to Bohemian Park which was over 3,000 uh lineal feet of line that they installed. They also uh did 13 sewer mainline repairs and 12 sewer lateral replacements. They cleaned over 7.7 miles of sewer lines and videoed 6.6. And I would share that it's our goal and really our responsibility for our DEEQ permit to try to cover the entire city in a 5-year period. And there's approximately 40 miles of sewer lines in town. We also repaved North Douglas Street from Chamberlain to to Vincent Place. Uh we they prepared all the and repaired repaired and resealed the cart paths and around the pro shop at the golf course and they maintained the Raw River Trail.

And finally, we've been getting quite a few compliments, but they also cleared a lot of vegetation along Gateway Boulevard for ODOT. Um, and we do along Sweet Lane and did at the regional uh parks at North Regional Park. And one other thing I would add, they also um for the water system, which was a huge um task for our team, they made the water tie-ins for the Main Street project downtown, which is fifth, 6th, 7th, and 8th. There was two tie-ins on each each side of Main Street because there was a brand new 12-in water line down Main Street to the Coast Park bridge here. Next, we have the fleet and facilities department. It's led by Mike Cummings. Mike supervises uh four full-time uh maintenance workers, one full-time mechanic, two full-time custodians, one regular part-time employee, and this past year, he oversaw three summer hires. One of those summer hires I would share, has been provided by Coast Park wershed. they have uh paid for and supplied uh one to two employees over the last five years for the city to use. Um I've showed a picture of Rhonda in this uh she essentially is overseen by uh Mike O'Reilly but um Rhonda is a full-time administrative assistant. She supports both the utilities and maintenance department. She runs the backflow and cross connection program, files yearly reports which include the recycle report to DEQ, the hazardous materials. Uh she keeps track of all the locates, le reports, right to know which are which is our SDS um sheets that for all of our chemicals that we use. She

keeps track of all the inventory and does the um fleet upgrades and then also notifies for insurance purposes. So, she keeps the the equipment list. And lastly, I'd like to mention uh even though Jessica Rosenos is not an employee of public works, she really does um a critical function for public works. She is our um utility clerk. So she processes all new counts, maintains the water meter system, and notifies utilities if of any type of requests for service reports or locates. So she's kind of the first stop. So she's the one that took the 966 various different service reports and shared them with the utility department. So what does the uh maintenance folks do? Um, as you can see, they spend a lot of time with events at the at Boing Park, setting up for various different concerts, the symphony in the park. I believe there was uh 35 events at the armory that they assisted with setup and cleaning up of the armory. Um, and they were instrumental in the Bohemian mining days. uh was supplying a lot of traffic control items with the uh generators, ensuring that the generators were filled throughout the event. Um they also assisted with the traffic control for the cannon car crews. Uh they were instrumental in a small portion of the gold panning the world goal panning record attempt. They prepared all the tables and uh set up all the outside for the event. And they also set up and assisted with Halloween and Christmas kickoff and also decorated Main Street this year

by wrapping all the poles and and the wreaths and then also uh decorated the tree that was donated by Warehouser Company at All America City Park. They uh spent a lot of time cleaning up a large nuisance abatement. There's over four there was four this year that they assisted on. They um also help assist cleaning up the the campsite and any illegal camps that um are brought to our attention and that have been processed and we clean them up or they do uh spent time installing new security cameras at Bohemian Park, Corner Park, City Shop, and the 12th Street camp. and I'll share those have been very successful in assisting city staff and the police department to cap, you know, to be able to find people that have done vandalism and have done some things that they need to be accountable for. So, our cameras are actually working. We're able to to determine who's doing the various different things. Uh they're currently in the process of finishing up building a portable backup generator for the community center and we're in the process of receiving um permits for the new Armory ADA access project which we hope to get started in the next two or three months uh to get that new access lift in the back and and retire the long ramp that's currently in use. And they also installed new automatic doors here at um city hall at community center and o oversaw the access control that was installed for both the buildings. Um they also just day-to-day business that they do. Um the HVAC service is done twice a year. There's 40 units within the city uh facilities that they maintain. And then also once a year they do a generator service which there's 12

different generators throughout our um facilities. And then uh most recently and maybe you've seen this uh we've uh our former fish dock at the fish ponds at the Raw River Nature Park had uh essentially um had its uh ex end of life period. It was removed about a year ago maybe even longer. And then uh this past week, last week, they were able to install a brand new fish dock. It really looks nice and lots of um thank yous from the folks that use that middlefield Golf Course. So, Metfield Golf Course is uh the pro shop here is um supervised by Glenn Clark. There is uh one additional full-time employee, Aaron um Gifin, that's also pictured there. So, there's two full-time employees and there's four regular part-time employees and one summer hire that manage the golf course. In the past 6 months, there's been 13,73 rounds of golf played, which is a 53% increase in uh rounds of golf played and also greens fees. And there was a 21% increase during that period of time for golf cart rentals. We saw security cameras get installed throughout the course. We've um employed or we use light speeded as our software that manages the golf course and that um system we are now using to promote uh through social media and various different ads to increase the uh play at the golf course. It's it's been very successful. And then um it's also helped them move to try to encourage people to uh book their rounds uh online and and try to reduce the amount of physical staff time

that it does to get people through the course. And then the other side of the golf course is the pro is the middlefield uh court maintenance department uh which is headed up by Roger Vande. He has uh three additional full-time employees um there and then three regular part-time employees. I'll share that they have to manage and maintain the course 7 days a week uh 363 days a year. We're only closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Uh, so it's a it's a big job and it's a really big job during um the summer when we have um tournaments because our our crew shows up generally about 4:30 in the morning and has to have a course prepared and ready to play um by the time they tee off generally around 8 8:30 in the morning. So, lots of work to do. Uh some of the highlights is uh this year the utility crew and the the golf course maintenance staff built a brand new T- box for hole number one. Um it looks fabulous and the intent is to have that opened up uh late spring, early summer for play. Um that'll really enhance hole number one. We're looking forward to seeing that happen. Uh we were able to purchase 10 brand new golf carts and we're in the process of selling uh 10 of the old ones and we were able to purchase a a used score harvester. And finally, Herb Hill, who's the mechanic out at the shop, has done over 214 repairs and services of the various different golf equipment. Next, we have the water reclamation facility. At the present time, Ryan Kimell is a half-time superintendent for this facility. There are currently uh

two full-time employees. We have a a third position that we're working to fill and we have interviews um this Wednesday in hopes to fill that position. And we are still seeking and hoping to find a full-time superintendent for this facility. We do have a individual that um right now contracts uh with us to do the signing supervisory needs with DEEQ and uh his his drop dead date is the end of March. We have a second person that we've engaged with pick up after him. We're crossing our fingers that that same individual will apply for the superintendent position. So hopefully that'll we'll have a a nice answer here by uh hopefully July. So in this period of time the total amount of treated waste water for 2025 was 761.9 million gallons. There was 83.4 million gallons of treated affluent that were used at the golf course, the former driving range and the inter and the I5 interchange. Then as I shared the affluent line has been laid to Bohemia Park and intend on sprinkling Bohemia Park and Trail Head uh this summer starting um probably more late late spring and they produced 54.5 dry tons of bioolids and uh and probably most significantly they spent a lot of time fixing bearings in the orbital shaft and just doing general maintenance on the facility. water treatment facility is um supervised by Ryan Kimmel. That's his other 50% of his responsibility at this time. Um he has uh three full-time employees um long-term employees. Steve Norman has

been with the um facility almost 20 years and he is a level three operator and then we have two additional operators. Harley who just received his level two certification and Jason who is working on getting his level two. So they hope both of those individuals hope to be uh level three certified um early hopefully here in the next couple months and then Jason probably next year. Uh this facility treated 544 million gallons of water. Um we are currently uh working on and finishing up the water master plan which we hope to send to the Oregon Health Authority in the next two weeks and we've embarked on a um water treatment plant cyotoxin uh treatment feasibility study. Uh this is because uh we um receive water below Darina reservoir and we have to test for syotoxins as it's um Darina is known for producing blue green algae. And so we're hoping that this feasibility study will show us what type of treatments we can plug into our facility over the next few few years to be ready to address any type of potential um toxin that might get into the facility. And this was um approved. This uh grant we received a grant for $150,000 from the Oregon Health Authority for this project. And then we recently received an additional $50,000 from the um Oregon Health Authority to update our um drinking water protection plan. And lastly, probably one of the notable items for this is uh we were successfully successful in removing a rock weir that formed over the last few years in front of our water intake which

was blocking the flow of the water by the intake and it was causing some um operational challenges. Uh so we applied with the uh core of engineers and the division of state lands and was approved in being able to remove that weir and so successfully about 3 hours that rear was removed and our water flow was restored. So that covers the various different departments. I'll just touch now on some highlights here. So, the urban renewal district was, as the council knows, was established. That was a huge um undertaking and one that um we believe in whole heart that it's going to be um an answer to some of the city's financial issues over the years as we can encourage and help promote development in our community. And um through this urban renewal district um the uh district was recorded um the last week of December and the assessment and taxation has prepared the new district and is ready to start the assessments um in June and the first year the uh urban renewal district is projected to raise $44,000 u for the general fund budget and the intent at this time is to dedicate that towards economic development and a position in the planning and and development division. Next we have engineering. Um I've kind of placed myself in here but um probably the key individual on this is Shauna Nye. She um is kind of the glue that holds everything together managing all the various different projects submitting reports. uh keeping

us on task. We share that um we have partners with branch engineering, west um engineering, guerillo, elco and um VTS which is valleytail services. They're the folks that have done security system and access controls. Um Shauna has processed 51 public rightaway permits during this period of time, 19 building plan reviews and three and participated in three application meetings. Um we'll see that this year we finished the South Sixth Street uh sewer and water extension. um replace three back lot uh repaired and replace three back lot sewer lines on both Monroe and Jefferson. Um currently finishing up the water master plan. And then some upcoming plans is the Lincoln Middle School path that we hope to go out to bid this spring along with the uh replacement of the South 21st Street water uh mainline. So, we'll start with uh the biggest project that we completed this year or virtually completed is the Main Street revitalization. This project kicked off on February the 17th and then um with our great partners in Branch Engineering, Wildish Construction, DA Architects, Lance Electric, and um uh A&E um environmental. This project has um been completed virtually. Um we did a ribbon cutting on December the 12th. It was a $6.25 million project and we are currently in the process of planning a grand celebration for May 16th from 11 to 2. So I'd encourage you

to put that on your calendars and come prepared to celebrate. What an incredible accomplishment. Second item that was finished during this period of time was the splash pad and the re re-entry project for Bohemian Park. Once again, we had branch engineering DLA landscape Belco Electric and and the general contractor that built the project was Pacific Excavation. And this uh we had a groundbreaking on June 17th. Um excuse me, the ribbon cutting was on July 14th. This was a $1.7 million project. Uh the Cleveland Street infrastructure project is um project where we received $3 million infrastructure grant from business Oregon and the state of Oregon. Um we had a tight timeline. This project went to bid in January and the project was uh awarded in February and the middle of February the project was started. All the infrastructure that was uh paid for by the state had to be installed by June 30th. our contractor Delta Sand and Gravel was able to complete that portion of the project and by um the middle of uh or the end of August they were they completed putting in sidewalk and paving up the streets and this is a key part of the project sparrow that um we are seeing a catapult hopefully some new homes in the in by the beginning of next year I would assume one item that's to uh complete with this project and we are working on construction documents but the infrastructure purchased um a sewer lift station which we hope to have

installed um midsummer of this year. Next, uh, the city of Kaiser Grove participated in what we call the SEM project, which is a strategic energy management program that's done by the energy trust with our partners at Pacific Power and Northwest Natural. Our project team was established at the city and we worked together over a year's period of time to identify 39 projects to decrease energy consumption. We completed seven projects for an estimated savings of 68,943 kilowatts, a yearly savings of $4,882. For the completion of the project, the city earned $5,000. The city earned an additional $4523 in milestone incentives for a total uh payment from the energy trust of $9,523. The annual savings is projected to be $15,45 each year in energy savings. And lastly, most important uh for us is to share that what I believe uh is how we the work we do at public works uh meets with our city council goals that were adopted in for the 2526 year. So, financial stability, uh, the urban renewal district, Cleveland Street for safe and striving community, we have the main street and the stop sign installation projects were approved. Community engagement, we have Main Street, we have the gold panning, we have the symphony, community growth, we have Cleveland Street, South Sixth Street projects, and lastly, recreation. We have an incredible golf course, brand new splash pad, and a merit of community events that we support. We truly believe that

everything we do at public works meets and fits under one of those goals. So that's it. Thank you. And if you have any questions, happy to answer them. Thank you, Director Stewart. Councelor Lamberman.

Madame Mayor, Council, uh Mr. Stuart, you guys did the uh rock removal in front of the water treatment facility intake line. Did you guys stop flow on that while you guys did the work or backflow that to get out any sediment or anything that went through that pickup? Uh so Mayor Counselor Lamberman what the was happening for the water treatment plant is is that the intake where the weir was formed push the water around and so the water swirled behind the weir in front of the intake and it didn't uh cause any that I'm aware of any issues as far as flow or quantity of water. What we were having to do was clean the screens because the sediment would drop off because of that circling motion in the water. So by removing the the weir, the water now flows directly in front of it and by it and so it doesn't have this much material settling on the screens. Thank

councelor Merid. Thank you, Mayor. Uh, Director Stewart, um, for the senior technician at the reclamation and the water treatment, the certification still is the tough part to fill in finding a suitable employee.

So, mayor, council me, that's exactly the challenge that we've had. We have two positions essentially um, right now available for employment. One requires a level four certification. uh in many cases that's uh folks need to serve in that industry somewhere between 7 to 10 years to be able to qualify to to test for that certification. So it's more of a senior person in the field. Um there's a lot of retirements so there's not enough um folks entering into the field that have worked their way up through that process. The second uh position that we have that we opened up for as an operator in training is is we're looking for somebody that has the skills and the desire to uh fill that position. Um we are like I said interviewing an individual on Wednesday that actually has worked at the facility the last 3 four weeks and fill in. Um as uh we're cautiously hopeful that that individual will be a great fit for our facility. Um and this this person can achieve a certification um as soon as he would be ready to test for it. Um as he's had seven plus years of working in wastewater facilities. So short short answer is certifications are the biggest challenge.

Sarowin.

Well good evening again your honor members of the council. I just want to say how much I appreciate both of these folks and the incredible amount of work that people in their department do. And it's not just me, it's the public as well. I even got a phone call on the Beeper show this morning thanking Fay and the public works crew for the work that they did along Gateway and clearing there along the freeway. And last week, I had not one but two different developers that came to my office and sought me out just to say what an incredible job our community development department does and how much they appreciate the can do and businessfriendly attitude of the folks who work there. Um they said they found it very refreshing from dealing with uh other cities that they've dealt with in Lane County. So again, thank you you guys. Really appreciate it.

Curvin,

I'd just love to echo that. There's, you know, there's a core mission to what it takes to run a city. You guys are at the heart of that. And um the things we don't even see or notice. I know when we first bought our house, you know, it had a history of flooding under uh rain events uh for years and years and then a few years ago, the robots went through the the storm lines and we haven't had that issue in the streets, you know, although checked don't don't have all the water issues. Um and so just really appreciate all of the crews staying up on as much as possible with the size that you have to to take care of such a you know expansive city uh with all of its infrastructure and old and and new alike. Um so I really appreciate the hard work all the crews do. Thanks. And I would echo that too, Director Stewart. During every catastrophe this city has undergone, especially in the last few years, I will see you out there driving around on Sunday afternoons checking things. And Cottage Grove has great respect and appreciation for you. Thank you,

Councelor Lamman,

Madame Mayor, uh, Mr. Stewart. And we had talked about um a while back the turbine pump motors on the water treatment facility that pump it up to the reservoir. Um there was a conversation about the struggle of finding places to repair the motors or getting new motors. Have we have you guys um come up with any remedies on that to help in case those motors decide to fail at some point? Mayor Councelor Lamberman. So, um we have located and used a um company in Goan that um rebuilds electric motors and pumps. Um it a lot of that depends on if they're rebuildable because sometimes they get ran too long before they actually get service and maintain that they fail. when they fail, they generally um fail bad to where they can't reuse them. So, um most everything that we have is um has multiple motors to it. Um, one of the things that I'm hoping to do this year once we get through the budget process is looking at trying to order and get in line with a couple new pumps for the water treatment plant so we can get them here and take the oldest offline, get it serviced hopefully, and then have those in backup. Um, so that's that's our plan and process. Some of these um motors take a lead time of upwards of nine months to get. So, um, they take time and, uh, we just want to be prepared to to do that. And so, hopefully we'll get something going here in the next month or so that the council can see and we'll start the process of

purchasing a couple new pumps. Take any other questions. All right. Thank you. Item C, process of vacating rights of way. Senior planner Lenny Crow. Thank you.

Okay, perfect. So um as requested um I worked with our city attorney and we have prepared a shortformational presentation on vacations for you tonight. Um not the beach kind unfortunately but um so really what is a vacation? How is it achieved and what are the pros and cons? So let's start by defining it. This is the definition in our development code. So to vacate a plat or street to abandon a subdivision or street rightofway. For example, uh vacation of a public right ofway that is not needed or cannot be used for a street or other public purpose. Vacation of a plat typically returns the property to the adjoining owners and restores it to an undivided condition and ownership. This is generally the same for dedicated public rideway which is split down the middle between adjacent property owners. Now, vacations might seem like a helpful immediate fix, but can negatively impact adjacent property owners and the city. Usually, at least two property owners receive more land, but they may also experience related property tax increases. Additionally, if the city vacates an alley or street, public utility access may be impaired without purchasing an easement, and future transport transportation needs will need to be addressed. Speaking with uh our attorney Kerry and from my own experience as a planner, we've both seen cities need to buy back previously vacated areas to achieve such future needs. So before acting on a petition for a vacation, council should know whether that area would benefit a city project or is it necessary to achieve long-term city goals to avoid these issues. Staff does caution that vacation should be used sparingly to avoid those future problems. So, now that we know what a vacation is, who can initiate one? Well, there are two options, and both require a public hearing. The first and recommended way

is via petition from adjacent property owners. The petition must include signed consent from a majority of property owners of the real property quote unquote affected, which is a defined term. Uh, council may also initiate a vacation. However, the owners of a majority of that area affected may stop a council initiated vacation by objecting in writing. Additionally, the council may end up paying damages if it proceeds without property owner consent if vacation would substantially affect the market value of affected properties. OS uh 271.080 sub 2 defines the term real property affected and I've illustrated it for you on the next slide. It includes the land on either side of the vacation as measured laterally to the next parallel street within 200 feet and a like lateral distance on either side of the street for 400 ft beyond the terminus of the area proposed to be vacated. Now in this example, please be aware there is no proposal to vacate this alleyway. It is just illustrative purposes. As you can see, it can encompass many different properties. So, if a vacation is not in the city's best interest, is there a remedy? Yes. Um, adjacent property owners can use city's right ofway while the city retains ownership. How? It's called a license. uh via real property license, the city can allow a private property owner to use city right ofway temporarily while retaining all rights to use uh to the city to use that area as needed in the future. For example, a license agreement could address complaints of neighbors to ease city enforcement activity and pressure while also retaining the right of way for future city development and use. do conclude either property owners or the city council may initiate an

application for vacation. Uh the notice area is up to 400 feet out from each end of the portion proposed to be vacated or at least to the next parallel street and 200 feet perpendicular to the portion proposed to be vacated. Regardless of how it's initiated, every vacation requires a hearing in front of the city council. And every circumstance is unique. Uh none of the options presented to you tonight are a blanket one-sizefits-all solution. and each instance should be brought to city staff prior to initiation to determine feasibility and the best route. I would be happy to take any questions that you might have. Thank you. Any questions? Council Urban.

Thank you, Lenny. Um, my question is about the licensing process um and how that's determined. Is that an application for the license? Is there a process of who gets offered? Say you've got a dividing line. Who gets offered the license? Does it have to be afforded the opportunity to all affected properties or can you dive into that a bit? That is a wonderful question and I see Carrie came off of camera so I'm going to pass it to her um because this was actually one of her ideas. Yeah, Conley.

Thank you. That's a great question. Um, so a license would not be turned to unless it was significantly in the city's benefit. For instance, um, if there's a right of way and there's been, um, construction of a stairway into it, you know, onto a city sidewalk and it's the it's in the public's interest to maintain that stairway. It's in the property owner's benefit, you know, it supports a business or something like that and the city does not need that area for the time being. um then the city might consider a license but it is not a one-sizefits-all as Lenny was saying and you would never um publish it as you know you want to use our rightway come in and apply for a l a license instead it would probably be initiated either from something that public works notices and um doesn't want to bring an enforcement action but needs to legitimize that use or potenti it's a vacation petition that a a property owner brings in that's going to be denied and the city does want to try to address that situation. So my experience is it is only when it is a significant city benefit. It's not offered to a property owner as a property right.

Thank you. I guess I want to add context why we're talking about this in general. Um, you know, we've had a a case with um two adjoining property owners that there was a dispute over the use of an alleyway and where a fence would go. And this was an alleyway that um hadn't been maintained by the city in given the size of the trees maybe 40 50 years um that had grown up in it. there's a shed built on it. And so, you know, at a certain point there's a dispute over, hey, they're encroaching on on my fence. They're do they're parking in the alleyway. They're basically taking this whole thing. Um, and so the question in my mind is, well, this is seems like a policy related issue for, you know, that's what the council does. How should we address alleys in these situations? There's a lot of alleys that aren't under regular use. They're in a lot of different states. Uh what should be the general policy for the city? Should it be go in clear all the alleys, cut out the trees, make sure people's sheds aren't built on it so that can be used? One of the ideas was if we're never going to use this thing, you know, solve the dispute by spit the line down the middle and, you know, they can pay property taxes on it if it doesn't need to be accessed by by fire. I'm hearing maybe not the wisest move for future city planning. uh you need to maintain rights to be able to develop in in the future. Um so what I'm hoping to end up with is consensus from the council on the general uh policy that the city should have for dealing with situations like this. um given given this information one I think there's a downside if if it's clear all the alleys that's obviously a lot of work and money and effort and maintenance um on our city staff

I don't know that that's the best route I know in a lot of other ways we're um complaint driven um so if there is clear direction that if a complaint arises how it's dealt with that's what I'd really like to come together as a council and just So, so issues can be resolved quickly for for residents. Um, that's that's the thrust of why and I appreciate all this context and Carrie for for bringing these other options. Doesn't sound like licenses are really the best fit for for this situation either. Um, but I'd like to have that discussion and give clear direction by the end. Council Merid. Oh,

pardon me. Miss Conley. I'm so sorry. I was just going to say I mean to some extent realize there is u applications in place. So property owners if they're concerned they can file a vacation application. That is an application that's available to them. It has them conduct the footwork to ensure then you know when it's brought to you look nobody in the surrounding area is interested in maintaining this as a right of way. then it truly is a city policy choice and you don't have the risk that you're going to have objections at the hearing. So that's the first step. And beyond that, um I I love the idea of having kind of a highle general policy direction from the council to your staff and maybe they're seeking that. Um but truly my experience is that these are all very unique case by case. Um, and it might be difficult to formulate a highlevel policy direction down to staff other than we want our application system to work and a complaintant should be pointed to the vacation application process. So that's just uh my experience and I'm sorry to interrupt

you councelor Merid. Uh, thank you mayor. Um, you'll find the the alleyways primarily in historic subdivisions. They they fell out of favor probably after the 30s. Um, first step might be an inventory of all subdivisions that had recorded alleyways. Um, and then go from there to inventory the ones that would are not being maintained. I'm guessing it's probably a a small number that aren't maintained. Most most alleys that I'm aware of are have been very well maintained over the years.

Councelor Wilson,

the other issue is is there utilities currently existing on the alleyways that were that we're inventorying? If if there isn't and it's something that's not m not maintained, not there's no services running down them, no anticipation of, you know, future completely ripping apart the neighborhood and redeveloping it. Um, and the property owners are willing to apply for the applica, you know, vacation application process and it's in place. So, I think we can go that route. Um if once some inventory is done, if there's u you know an indication of these particular alleyways have services down them, then those would be ones that would be we'd want to uh have something in place to where vacation, you know, applications would be probably denied.

Director Stewart,

thank you, Mayor. I would just add a little bit for public work side of things. So the alleyways um as has been stated here are mostly in our older portions of our towns where they were platted back in the early days of the comm of the city. So take for instance there's alleys here along Main Street. So, uh, the alley between Main Street and, um, Whitaker or the alley between, uh, Main Street and Washington, you know, the city spent two years ago working to repave those, clean them up, and those are um full of utilities, water, sewer, storm, gas, power, various different things. um some of the more developed portions. So, um in the northwest neighborhood over here, um public works, we spent probably about four years ago, the good portion of it, whole summer, um kind of cleaning up, re-rocking the alleyways, um and forgive me, uh from the various different streets, but I believe we did three sections of alleys in the north in the northwest neighborhood. Um, and those are some of them have utilities in them and some of them don't. Most of the ones that we cleaned up were being used for access to the backs of people's parcels. What I'm seeing now and that we're having to review is folks are building accessory dwelling units, garages, and various different things. So, they're actually using the alleyway for access into their building uh site. So it turns into more of a needed um facility for those to accommodate their uh construction, their development. Uh where we see probably less utilities and less development are on the outskirts of the older subdivisions. So up against Mount David, some of those are transitioning in where there hasn't been

developer or utilities put in. But one of the things that that I think needs to be considered as you talk about um what to do in those cases are what if Mount David develops, we have rightaways that exist that we could use to bring utilities and feed into that development that if we vacated them um might be detrimental to our being able to provide services. So I I strongly would say that I think every one that comes before us is a case by case um piece. It would be great if we had some uh general guidance if it's possible, but that may be difficult on a case by case uh you know analysis of each vacation that comes before us.

Council, I guess there's just two general principles that I can think of. one is we want to quickly respond to um issues amongst you know of of use of city property for personal use and I think we don't want to generally permit people to put their sheds you know in an alleyway and claim it for themselves and and cause issues. So I guess those are the two big pain points. Um and so that's just clear, you know, this is an alley that the property owners are aware of it. Uh and that you know if somebody has built something on it's like you've got to you can't you can't just do that. You got to move it.

Mayor counselor. So councelor Irvin just to touch on that we do send out letters. Um and in cases like this that I've had um I also attach the flat map. Um you can tell somebody it's now but if it doesn't look like one it helps to prove it. So um we are very quick on our enforcement process. Um it does involve going out doing a site visit but um we we have encountered this before um and we'll continue to do so when your complaints are brought to us. So just some peace of mind on that as we are working towards it.

Thank you honey. All right. Do we have anyone signed up? We do. Hi Thank you, Mindy. Appearance of interested citizens. This is a time for citizen comment. The council will first take comments addressing items not listed on the agenda for a maximum of 30 minutes. The council will then take comments addressing action items on the agenda for a maximum of 30 minutes. Individual speakers must be recognized by the presiding officer, provide their name, identify whether they are a city resident, and if so, their award. Please limit comments to 3 minutes or less with council approval. Comments regarding any matter scheduled for public hearing may be provided only during that hearing. The council will not make any decisions based on public comment. However, staff and council may choose to ask questions or comment following the conclusion of citizen comments. John Durnan. Yes, it's I'm a 9A on a shower trailer. And the comment I'd like to make, it's the community needs it. It's uh it's ADA for people that have disables to use that trailer. And there's just all sorts of different people in the community that use that trailer for showers. I've seen women with children use it in the past. I don't know their situation. We never ask. We just there to try to help. I'm a volunteer there. I I help

with the trailer, too. And that's just what I have to say. Thank you. Thank you. Right. Items. Bruce Kelch.

Bruce Kelch. I live at 78340 Holderman Road. I'm outside the city limits. I'm here to speak to item 9A on the agenda. I'm here as a board member and representative of South Lane Mental Health. South Lane Mental Health believes that access to safe and reliable hygiene is essential to a person's mental well-being. Our agency has seen the benefits of the community sharing shower program. We believe it is a program for the whole community. During the 2024 ice storm, dozens of our clients were without power and sought respit in the free shower program. We've had many clients access the shower program because they were fleeing domestic violence situations and temporarily unhoused. We've referred a veteran who needs a shower beforeing going before going to a job interview. And we referred whole families who are couch surfing before finding housing and wanting safe showers before returning to school or to work. We've also referred clients who are temporarily using mobility aids and requiring AD accessible shower space. As an effort to support our whole community, South Mental Health made a one-time donation of 35,000 to community sharing to purchase the shower trailer from the city. As previously stated, our agency sees the importance of keeping the service available to our community and was able to lean in and support community sharing who has the infrastructure to maintain this program. This contribution illustrates the power of collaboration. South Mental Health honors the work of the Cottage Grove city leadership, law enforcement, and our nonprofit partners who together keep our community safe and welcoming. We are grateful to city council for this opportunity to highlight the positive and expansive impact of the community sharing shower program and we hope that

you'll approve the full price sale of the shower to community sharing and I note that FA Stewart has already given you a very s you know direct suggested motion that you can use. Thank you.

Thank you Jennifer Fas. Good evening, mayor and city council members. Um, my name is Jennifer Ferez Chartrand. I live at 37522 Road just outside of city limits. I'm here representing our downtown business community. As a member of the Cottage Grove Chamber of Commerce, Cottage Grove has at least two major cycling events that regularly take place in our beautiful city, Cycle Oregon and Grand Fondo. People come from all over the Northwest to attend these events. After the event, many sweaty cyclists stick around to spend their time and money downtown. Um, I like to cycle, but I'm not good enough to be a part of any of these events, but I live on the bike path. So, I sit and talk to them, and there are people that ask for showers. They do truly, and they would love to get a shower, many of them, before they stick around. Um, so it's been noted, um, the need for a community shower where they can clean up after the ride. I'm also here as a member of CO-AD, community organizations acting in disasters. In the past, I was a volunteer with Red Cross for over a dozen years. Through these experiences, I know the need for a community shower for people displaced by disaster. I would like to request that the council accept the offer community sharing has made to the city for the purchase of the shower. And if we didn't have a budget deficit, I'd say look, knock the money down for this service that they're bringing to our community. Thank you.

Thank you, Josh. Josh Batal. Thank you. Okay. Public hearings. I see none. Consent agenda. here. Council I move that the council approve the consent agenda. It's four items. We have a motion. Do we have a second? Second. We have a motion with the second. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Opposed.

Motion carries unanimously. Resolutions and ordinances. Ordinance amending zone change file number ZC1-25 to parcels on McKinley Avenue again council. Um so on November 24th, 2025, the city council voted to approve the annexation of two parcels um maps map and tax slot 21-3-4-21-210 0. Um and 21-3-4-24-00200 0. Um, with that uh annexation of these two properties, the applicant is required to file a zone change uh converting from county zoning to city zoning prior to the city filing documentation with the secretary of state. The applicant is requesting to apply to R1 lowdensity residential zone which is consistent of the comprehensive plan designation of L low density residential. They are currently zoned as RR2 rural residential through Lane County. Um, on January 21st, 2026, uh, the planning commission held a public hearing for this file ZC1-25, voting 6 to zero in favor of applying the R1 low density residential zone to the two subject parcels. Um, the planning commission does not have the ability to adopt an ordinance. So, council is now being asked to ratify the planning commission's decision uh to approve ZC1-25 by adopting the prepared draft ordinance. Um staff does recommend that the city council hold the first vote on the attached ordinance uh changing the zoning to R1. The ordinance was prepared and has been available for at least one week prior to this meeting and this ordinance could be adopted at one meeting. Staff is recommending ratification of the planning commission's decision.

Thank you Lenny for reading that for me. Councilman. Thank you mayor. I move that the city council adopt ordinance number 3205 amending the city of Cottage Grove municipal code title 14 land use citywide zoning map for two parcels known as map tax lots 21-03-04-21- 01200 0 and 213042420 We have a motion. Do we have a second? Second. We have a motion with the second. Any discussion?

Seeing none, will the recorder please call the role? Councelor Hank. Hi. Councelor Settlemire. Hi. Councelor Wilson. Hi. Councelor Merid. Hi. Councelor Lamman. Hi. Councelor Irvin. Okay, Mayor Silsby. I motion carries unanimously. Thank you. Business from the city council. Item A, approval of purchase offer of city-owned shower trailer. Public works director, Mr. Stewart.

Thank you, Mayor. Just a little background here. The city purchased a Monto two-station portable shower trailer with one station being ADA compliant. The city took possession of the trailer on March 8th, 2021. Over the past 5 years, the city has operated the trailer in partnership with Community Sharing to offer showers one day a week to individuals in Cottage Grove in need of a place to shower. So on November 24th, 2025, the city council gave direction by motion to the city manager to regain control of the possession of the shower trailer and auction it off at the soonest available date. On November 25th, the city staff moved the shower trailer from community sharing to the city shop and began researching options to auction the trailer. In the past, the city has sold surplus equipment and vehicles by auction through Lane County and Adessa. Lane County holds auctions once a year in late August or early September. At the time, Adessa held auctions monthly. Staff contacted Adessa to get the next auction date and found out Adessa had sold and the business and unsure as to whether or not they were going to hold future auctions. So staff inquired with several additional local auction businesses and was not able to locate one that could meet the city's needs of selling the trailer. Staff called the trailer manufacturer to inquire about the value of the trailer. They valued the used trailer and a range from 30,000 to 35,000. They al also offered to market the trailer for sale and shared their regularly rece they shared that they regularly receive requests to purchase or uh inquiries to purchase used shower trailers. Staff discussed the options to auction and or sell the trailer uh to

meet council direction. Staff determined listing the shower trailer with the manufacturer for sale along with creating a for sale flyer and distributing it throughout Lane County looking for interested buyers was the best course of action. On December 17th, 2025, the public works director emailed each uh council member individually um with the shower trailer flyer and the plans to distribute it in hopes of finding a buyer. Uh one counselor responded separately to um my email was not linked to any other uh counselors and expressed that the concerns regarding why the trailer was not going to auction. I respond uh responded that a lack of locating an auction in the timely manner to meet the council's direction for staff to look at other options and there was no additional responses beyond that. On January 12th, 2026, the city received a formal offer from community sharing to purchase the shower trailer for $25,000. And then a week later on January 21st, a revised full price offer from community sharing of 35,000 was received. Staff recommendation is for the council to review the community sharing offer and determine whether to accept it or decline. As far as uh city goals, we believe that this um action fits into goal number one, the financial sustainability. ensure a financial sustainable future for evaluating fund funding strategies, maintaining service levels, and engaging the community and fiscal decision- making. Budgetary impact is the shower trailer proceeds will be unrestricted funding uh placed in the general fund and the suggested motion if council wants to consider it would be uh city council accept the community sharing

spice offering shower cher and direct the city manager to assign to sign all necessary documents to complete the sale. Before we go to a vote, I just want to point out something that was brought up at our agenda session on Friday. And that was that typically the um the point where it should come to a council to approve the sale of an item is is $100,000. This is $35,000. staff could have made this decision on their own, but for the sake of transparency, they brought it to council, which I think was a really good thing for this community so that everyone can see and also it gives the opportunity to make sure that it is a fair process. So if anyone else wanted to make a higher offer at this point, they actually could. So with that being said, I will entertain a motion. Councelor Lamman. Madame Mayor, council, I'd like to move that the city council accept community sharing's full price offer of $35,000 for the shower trailer and direct the city manager to sign all necessary documents to complete the sale.

Let's second. We have a motion with a second. Well, any discussion, Councelor Wilson? Okay. The current location of the Oh,

go ahead. current location of the of the shower trailer is still at the city shops at this point and the cost for moving it from the city shops back to community sharing would be um Mayor Councelor Wilson if they chose to um ask the city uh staff to move it. It would probably take an hour's worth of our time and our large pickup. So estimate maybe a couple hundred dollar. Okay. Thank you. Anyone else? Oh, councelor settleer.

Thank you. Um I was trying to figure out when I could interject a little bit of a report from a school district meeting I went to. is part of my job now, I guess, gets to be representing us to the city um to the school board. And it just happened that last school board meeting, they talked about unhoused students. And I just wanted to clarify a point that was um mentioned by some of our speakers today. Uh and um there were indeed in the school year um 2023 24 um let me see total 217 students reported as unhoused. Of that group um some of them were in the category of being doubled up. So they did find another household to move in with. 13 of them were in hotels, motel, 22 in shelters, and 20 were considered unsheltered. it in the presentation to the school board. The um people identified that the numbers aren't solid yet this year and they aren't published for last school year, but they assured this council that indeed each year that number has increased. So when we are dealing with the shower situation, it is indeed not just um adult unhoused that would be impacted.

So I do hope that we can find um the path to accept this motion. Thank you. Anyone else? All right. Will the recorder please call the role? Councelor Settlemire. I. Councelor Hank. Hi. Councelor Lamman. I. Councelor Merid. I. Councelor Irvin. I. Councelor Wilson. I. Mayor Solsby.

I. Motion carries unanimously. Okay. concerns from council. Councelor Lamman.

Madame Mayor, council, uh to piggyback on the shower trailer, I just want to if community sharing or any members are listening uh for the second time, I'd like to offer moving the shower trailer if needed that free of charge. um that way it can be done without any extra cost. I offered it uh when we discussed it the first time, so I'll offer it again. Um secondly, in regards to the the budget, I know it it's a it's a huge no no to even talk about. Um, but I'd like to see possibly uh the city talking with the unions since we are in a huge budget deficit about possibly putting a hold on yearly contract wage increases for at least this next physical year. uh cuz I know that is a a big chunk of the budget that gets allocated towards that per department. Um, but like I said, I know that's kind of a big no no to do, but I'd like to see that conversation be had or at at least get a a no way from them something cuz we're going to need to do something about it. And I'd rather see us do everything we can to cut uh that deficit without having to increase fees on our community. So,

anyone else? Council, uh, while we were talking about grants that were acquired, um, I was reminded and maybe this Lenny, you would know there was a tree grant. I think Deborah Bartlett, uh, did do you know if that went through and if what kind of impact that's going to have? I know there was this, you know, when we had the ice storm, we lost a lot of our canopy. Um, and that's a big part of the the goals is to increase canopy in our community and um, this was a pretty big grant opportunity. So, and if you can address that.

Absolutely, Mary.

Um, so yes, I I do recall that grant. Um, at the time that uh, Deborah brought it to our attention, there was not enough staff um, to facilitate the grant. We can apply for it all day long, but it's the facilitation that's the tough part. Um, we are working, we actually have our meeting next Wednesday, uh, but we are working to do another tree giveaway, um, and apply for more grants that are more manageable at this time because we do have new staff. Um, and with summer hires with public works and such, um, the goal is for potentially next year. The last thing I would want us to do is apply for and receive a large grant and not have capacity or wherewithal to be able to follow through with it. Right? So, um it is something that is very much on my radar. It's not something that we applied for this year. Um but it is the intention to apply for it when it comes available again. Um because as you said, councelor Irvin, the the canopy took a massive hit during the ice storm and it is not lost on staff of what trees were um you know, damaged or removed and where. Um and then also looking at the equitable um side of things of were trees removed more in one place than the others. There's a lot of analysis that goes into it. So I I really just and staff felt it was better to prepare ourselves a little bit better before we jumped ahead.

A followup to that is I would love to hear a report from the urban forestry um committee. I know the um uh cataloging of of our of the trees has been in process for some time. Um and just a general kind of update from uh from them about you know how how are things going, what's on the horizon. Um it also dubtales into a conversation Mr. Nord I believe uh making a suggestion about expanding the purview of the urban forestry committee. I don't even know if that's I need to know more about you know how things are structured. Um it's my understanding the council stood up the urban forestry committee as a so you know gives it its authorization to exist in its mission. Um so I don't know where that would overlap with coast fork watershed council. I would think that there would be some overlap there, but you know, maybe maybe a future presentation also on here are all the committee or here are the committees and what what their missions are um and the work that they're doing on behalf of the council and uh would be a good refresher for for me and probably for others. Um

clarifying question. Um would you like a report in addition to or in lie of the state of the trees that we typically give in March April time? Um because if so I can grab something for you. Um and then two um just to very briefly touch on um the overlap between the coastwork watershed council and urban forestry. They are two very separate entities. Um we are a great partnership um but they are very different. And so if if council would like I can kind of go into that at another time um whether a memo or we can just come in and talk with me. But um I'm I'm happy to elaborate further and

uh I believe the first question was uh about is the state of the trees a sufficient reporting time? That's an annual report to to my knowledge. Um I think I think so. Um, I think for as long as I've been on here, there's been the process of cataloging the trees and then and so we can either help facilitate that getting done. I think there was, you know, putting it in iTree or whatever that there was different software. Um, but it was important to the council, you know, in the past to catalog what we have. And I think it's still an important um mission. And so having that report or having it in our awareness, we can either say, "Look, we don't we don't care anymore. Drop the or let's throw resources at this and help you." Um, which is kind of where I'm at with that. So if that's can be accomplished in a single state of the trees uh address so be it. If not then more um and then as far I think it I think it would be helpful for us all to hear at the same time in what establishes um these different groups. Um because I suspect that the Coast Fork wershed council is not something that the council stood up. Is that an outside that's an outside kind of established thing? So it' be nice to parse those things out. Um you know what mission who who do they report to um for for the whole if the whole council agrees that would be helpful to me

for all of us. Councelor Merid, uh, the Coast Fork Whed is a nonprofit responsible to their board and, um, I'm not sure what affiliation they might have because there's other watershed councils, so there might be a larger network. There's the Middlefork and the McKenzie and a number of other watershed councils that might be established through state law as well. I think there was one up out of Oak Ridge that just was doing a lot of forest cleanup of of you know garbage dumps and camps. I think that fell under a watershed council. So I wonder what what the scope of operation is.

All right. Any more concerns of council? No. Councelor Satmire

to continue with schoolboard uh input. Um, our goal too, a safe and thriving community was kind of touched on in the school environment when the idea of bullying came up and something was mentioned about well a lot was mentioned then about social media interactions and the challenge that perhaps it would be good to um just remind ourselves the um challenge to model to our kids how to stay positive when disagreeing and reach out um in a engaging manner. And I'm just saying it feels really good how the city has been modeling this and hopefully um interactions at school can kind of follow the direction that the general community is going and keep up the good work on that stance, please.

All right. Well, I just have something quick. Um, I just beating my drum about the Wild Dogs uh call for volunteers and that will be March 16th, the first meeting for that and that'll be at the community center at 6:00 p.m. And you'll get to hear kind of a breakdown of what we're planning for the 2027 event. And then to piggyback on counselor Settoire's uh remarks, I would agree with that that we need to model for our children. And with that being said, um I'm in support of standing in solidarity for whatever you believe and your right of freedom of speech. But I want I wrote an article for the Sentinel and for the Chronicle not too long ago talking about how important it is to remember that we are neighbors first. And that we do a lot better when we talk with each other instead of at each other. And I was actually saddened when I saw the high school students walk past and hearing how aggressive it was. And I had a hope that any adults that were walking with them might ask them to tell them that you are representing no matter what side you're on of the fence, you're re you are representing that cause. And so what you put out there, no matter which side of the fence you're on, it is important not to come across as aggressive and that we can all talk to each other. And so I'm hopeful if the adults will talk to the children and say if if you have something that you want to stand for that you talk to your next door neighbor

and it doesn't have to be a screaming match and that's important. And so anyone that has a high school student, has a junior high student, please talk to them and say, you know, when you go back to your school, no matter which side of the fence you're on, don't bully someone because they have a different belief than you. And it's important that we teach our children that. And I can sit up here and say that all day long. And it's just it's the parents choice of what you want to do. But I'm just hopeful that you'll um see that these are children and you don't want them to go at each other. You want them to be able to talk and it starts with the parents.

All right. So, report from the city manager.

Well, good evening, your honor and members of the city council. Uh just a couple of quick items. First, as FA said earlier this evening, uh we need you to save the date of Saturday, May 16th, and we will be having the grand reopening of our main street. Um I love this picture of the mayor and I with Santa Claus in the background. It's like the most inongruent photograph I've ever seen. Uh but please uh make sure that you're going to be available um on May 16th and we'll be getting out more information about that as we go forward. Uh the other thing I wanted to do is uh the chief and I have been working on a $800,000 grant uh for the police department since August and it has finally come through. So I'm just going to let uh Corey talk about it.

Yeah. All right. Thank you, Mayor Council. Thank you, Mr. Sour Wine. Um yeah, so this actually started um a couple years ago. we initially put in for this and um we had support from the mayor, some of our community members, some of those who are in attendance tonight and um we weren't successful. So, we submitted this to um through the community project funding program through Representative Hoy's office. Um but in 2024, the federal budget didn't pass. They went to a continuing resolution. So, um we went back at it last year and asked for the money again. um for this uh community policing project and this year we were successful. So um I did have a conversation with Congresswoman Hy this morning so it was great news. She called to let me know that our project was fully funded um which is great. So um I think us and uh the Springfield Police Department, our two projects were the only two that were completely fully funded. So they didn't ask us to make any modifications. Um they didn't come back with a lesser amount. They said, "Here you go. Um, we support your project." So, that was really good news for us. So, that project is meant to uh completely overhaul and modernize our police fleet. And the importance of that is um to be able to provide a police fleet and um and to be able to purchase state-of-the-art modern police vehicles to put out on the street um that will help us for about four to five years um into the future. So, um a significant cost savings and and boost to the uh general fund. So, really, um excited to get that and to get to work on uh uh making those purchases. So,

congratulations, Chief Chase. I remember when this came out two years ago, and I am so glad you did not give up and went for it again. This will be huge for Cottage Grove, and we're all grateful. Yeah. Thank you, Mayor. and thank you for your support cuz this was I mean you and I talked about this a couple years ago and and so um we went for it and you know weren't successful the first time around but we kept at it so really excited that we got it so it's great for us wonderful news and that would conclude my report your honor be happy to take any questions you might have

any questions all right and our city attorney checked All right. So with that we are ajourned.

Thank you. Good stuff.