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Governmental Affairs - Session Recaps
Upcoming Governmental
Affairs Sessions
May 2nd, 2008
Marion County Commissioners and Administrator present challenges, overview
The Governmental Affairs Team received a "State of the County" message from Marion County officials yesterday as a part of May's Salem Chamber Governmental Affairs Session.
Also
joining the team were Bryan Colbourne and Glenn Gross with the City of Salem
Planning Department and Mark Shipman of Saalfled Griggs PC. Colbourne
presented information on the City's "Site Plan Review" process which is
meant to provide more clarity and transparency to development timelines for
local developers.
Colbourne described a process that will help streamline the City's system in dealing with private investors. The City will have a Site Plan Review team going before the Planning Commission in late May and City Council by July, said Colbourne.
City staff also described a process that included stakeholder groups. Those businesses engaged have been open to the new plan review.
"I think this process codifies what the City is already doing," said Mark Shipman of Saalfeld Griggs PC.
The majority of May's Governmental Affairs Session was focused on the Marion County budget summary with Commissioners Sam Brentano and Janet Carlson in attendance. Also joining the Governmental Affairs Team was County Administrator John Lattimer.
Commissioner Brentano (pictured above) started by addressing patrol issues facing the County. Due to the inconsistency in the City of Salem boundary on the east side of town, Marion County patrols must service residential areas that are outside the city limits but inside the Urban Growth Boundary.
"We spend 80% of our patrol time inside the Urban Growth Boundary of Salem," said Brentano. Two major pockets of residential areas known as Four Corners and Jan Ree are not serviced by the City of Salem Police Department and therefore fall into the jurisdiction of the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
Brentano
also commented on the initial and ongoing success of the newly created Meth
Strike Force which has been an ongoing collaboration with public safety
officials across city and county jurisdictions.
"The law enforcement will go where the problem is," said Brentano.
Commissioner Janet Carlson (pictured at right) focused on the areas relating to children and families that face our regional area. According to Carlson, Marion County's Children and Families Commission is a working model for the state when it comes to business participation.
The county continues to face challenges of combating child abuse and neglect within families with a reported 1,662 victims this past year alone. 6 years ago that number was 943. Carlson encouraged those able to mobilize for children and families in need citing that approximately 94 organizations are posted on the United Way's "Give Back Today" website for volunteer opportunities.
April 3rd, 2008
Janet Taylor & Lloyd Chapman featured at Mayoral Debate
Taylor
and Chapman don't represent a case of two candidates running on the same
platforms. Both definitely expressed different viewpoints on a number of
issues the City of Salem faces and have different ideas about what it means
to move Salem forward.
Moderator Jim Lewis of the Chamber's Board of Directors and Executive Team asked the candidates a series of 11 questions relating to transportation infrastructure, police/fire protection, Salem's downtown core, the local economy, and a number of other issues.
"I'm running on my record," said Taylor who made note of a number of projects she has been a part of over the past 4-6 years.
Chapman's focus regarding local jobs would be to assist current employers based in Salem with the support they need to remain successful and profitable.
Although Taylor agreed with Chapman's comments about the importance of current Salem area businesses, there was disagreement about the amount of focus that should be put on the recruitment of new businesses to town.
Chapman seemed concerned with incentives offered to businesses to consider locating in the Salem area arguing that new businesses should not necessarily receive tax exemptions during their initial years of operation.
Taylor's
view was that business incentives to companies considering Salem are
necessary tools to compete with offerings of other cities also looking to
recruit businesses and expand their job base. Taylor expressed a focus on
recruiting manufacturing jobs to the Salem area so existing businesses who
could potentially partner with manufacturers as suppliers could grow more
profitable.
Another point of contention seemed to be the leadership of downtown Salem and the level of public involvement that took place in the creation of the new group, Go Downtown! Salem.
Taylor described a public process for the creation of the group as one with a high degree of public outreach stating that over 800 downtown stakeholders had a voice in who was elected to the Go Downtown! Salem Board of Directors.
Chapman expressed concern that the process for the recruitment of downtown leadership positions needed to be more open and public.
For more information about Chapman and Taylor's viewpoints on given issues, review their answers to the Salem Chamber Candidates Questionnaire through the link below. Their answers are featured on page 16.
March 6th, 2008
Interim City Manager Linda Norris speaks on City Budget
Initially,
the City of Salem faced a challenge of addressing an estimated $2.7 million
budget shortfall, but Interim City Manager Linda Norris and the City of
Salem Budget Committee has already begun to take action. With over 20
different funds including the general fund, City leadership will find a way
to 'live within their revenue', said Norris.
The City of Salem Budget Committee has held preliminary meetings to date but starts their Wednesday evening review of department budgets on April 2nd in the City Council Chambers.
Actions taken to date to address the anticipated budget shortfall for 2008-2009 include the following:
- Identified target for year end carryover of $7.5 - $8 million.
- Placed a spending hold on all departments at the beginning of fiscal year 2007-08. Anticipated a 5% savings in non-public safety departments and a 1-2% reduction in Police and Fire.
- Instituted a hiring freeze for some General Fund positions.
- Began monthly monitoring of revenue, permit activity, development activity to assess staffing levels.
- Began communication shortfall with City Council and departments.
- Implemented budget strategy for two fiscal years (2008-09 and 2009-10)
- Requested the formation of a Finance/Audit Council Subcommittee to review and establish Salem financial policies over the next 9 months.
Budget strategies that will be implemented during the next two fiscal years will be helpful in addressing shortfalls that were initially anticipated through 2012, said Norris.
Unlike other communities and counties throughout the state, Salem is poised to weather the small storm. Representative Vicki Berger of Salem addressed the issue of federal timber payments which many Oregon counties and municipalities rely upon for financial security. Salem is in much better shape than other cities, she said.
The Salem Chamber were
convene a City Budget Task Force made up of business members to address
specific issues that will be discussed this cycle as a part of the broader
budget discussion. Possible focal points include gas tax revenue allocations
as well as franchise fee allocations.
At right, Chamber Board member Jim Rasmussen, President & CEO of Modern Building Systems discusses budget issues with Linda Norris at the conclusion of her presentation to the Governmental Affairs Team.
February 7th, 2008
Governmental Affairs Team shows unanimous support for Chemeketa Levy
"Investing in quality jobs for our children's future - that should be their catch phrase," said Kevin Mannix, lead attorney of a local small business.
Chemeketa
President Cheryl Roberts and John Hawkins presented the case for a levy to
go in front of the voters in May of 2008. The move will require Chemeketa to
not only receive a majority vote for passage, but also a majority of
registered voters to cast their ballot in the tri-county area which includes
Marion, Polk, and Yamhill counties.
"We need to ask the community for reinvestment. We feel like we're poised and ready," said Roberts in front of the Governmental Affairs Team.
The detailed discussion relating to the components of the levy resonated with attendees. The Governmental Affairs Team recommended support for Chemeketa's efforts to pass the levy in May by a unanimous 21-0 in favor. That recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of Directors for consideration on February 20th.
Components of the levy proposal focused on professional/technical capital improvement projects. A new health sciences center, public safety building, and industrial technology building would help Chemeketa meet the growing needs and demand for occupational training in the fields of nursing, computer technology, EMT's, firefighters, plumbers, electricians, and others, said Roberts.
The
Chemeketa campuses continue to face challenges meeting industry training
standards. Inadequate facilities for donated medical and technical equipment
pose a growing concern for college educators and administrators. New
facilities designed around advances in technology are needed to prepare the
local workforce, said Hawkins.
Also, asset protection through infrastructure maintenance and new classroom and lab facilities for an expanding student base was emphasized.
"It's really important for us to be able to educate not only college transfers, but also students involved in the trades," said John Hawkins, Executive Director for College Advancement.
If passed in May, the typical homeowner would see an increase of $28.98 to their annual property tax bill. The current bond valuation rate of $.08 per $1,000 would increase to $.27 per $1,000.
"We should be very grateful Chemeketa is going on the ballot in May," said Vice President of the Salem Chamber Terri Frohnmayer. "This needs to be supported for business."
January 3rd, 2008
Salem Area Elected Officials share thoughts, expectations
The
Legislature's first supplemental session begins on February 4th and is
scheduled to last exactly 4 weeks with adjournment scheduled for February
29th. Senator Peter Courtney along with other elected officials are pledging
to meet that timeline.
Senators Courtney and Winters as well as Representatives Cameron, Berger, and Clem joined the Salem Chamber Governmental Affairs Team to discuss the issues, format, and expectations of this February session.
"I am very pleased with how it went last session," said Representative Vicki Berger. "The timelines actually meant something."
Berger expressed her support for the annual session but hopes they can stick to the thinks that really need to be dealt with.
The process for bill introduction is different when comparing the House and the Senate. While each Senator will be given the opportunity to introduce one bill, the House Representatives will only hear bills through committee.
Issues expected to be discussed include a bill creating stricter penalties for citizens who choose to drive while their license is suspended, an effort to make the Meth Strike Force a statewide effort with bail costs increased to $500,000 for mid-level drug dealers, sub-prime mortgage issue, ect.,
Some elected officials have expressed concern that as many as 100 bills could be introduced during a time period in which only 25 or so can be appropriately debated and dealt with. More difficult issues that have created partisan tension in the past will most likely be set aside, like the capital gains tax.
"We won't be dealing with the estate tax in 2008 but I'm sure we'll be dealing with the estate tax and capital gains tax in 2009," said Senate President Peter Courtney.
December 6th, 2007
Husk shares vision for Salem-Keizer School District
The
Salem/Keizer School Board has a very busy couple of months in front of them.
Coming in March will be a very important decision the board will need to
make as to whether or not they move forward with a levy before the voters in
November of 2008 and if so, how much.
Sandy Husk, Superintendent of Salem-Keizer Public Schools focused on facility maintenance needs of the school district in her presentation to the Salem Chamber's Governmental Affairs Team this morning. Joining her was Bryan Johnston, Chair of the effort to forward a levy to the voters, and Rich Goward, Chief Financial Officer for the School District.
"We have completed two complete walkthroughs of every single facility," said Husk. "Our facilities are in appalling conditions in some areas. It was very, very concerning."
Husk shared a story which focused on specific deferred maintenance needs of facilities throughout the system. For example, 10% of rooftops which cover school facilities are beyond their expected life with another 15% due for replacement within the next 5 years.
During bad economic times in the past, deferred maintenance took a back seat to other expenses, increasing the backlog of needed repairs. School district officials are looking to change that trend despite the state of the economy into the future. Their current year's investment is $2 million but more is sorely needed.
According to a recent review of all building assets within the district, the school district would need $7 million annually to keep up with deferred maintenance. The formula used to determine the amount of dollars needed is based on the replacement value of current building assets.
"We have the second largest school district in the state," said Husk. "We'll probably pass Portland in size within 3-5 years."
Attendees
asked the tough questions as school district officials began discussing
current debt being paid by property owners and the schedule by which those
bonds will retire. Currently, taxpayers are paying off debt from the passage
of 1992 and 1998 school levies at a rate of about $1.70 per $1,000 of
assessed value.
"The tax assessment paid for schools will decrease by 72 cents per $1,000 in 2011 and by another 72 cents in 2014," said Rich Goward.
Those reductions equate to roughly a two-thirds reduction in current school system investment.
Superintendent Sandy Husk urged citizens concerned with specific problems they see at school facilities to call her directly. To contact Executive Administration, call 503-399-3001 or email paulson_mary@salkeiz.k12.or.us or husk_sandy@salkeiz.k12.or.us.
"We can turn this system around and we can do it quickly with the community's support," said Husk.
November 2nd, 2007
Vision
20/20, Water/Waterwater Infrastructure, and Transit focus of November
Governmental Affairs
Allan Pollock, new General Manager of Cherriots, was the featured speaker at November's Governmental Affairs Session. Also included as part of the monthly meeting was an update on the City of Salem Water/Wastewater infrastructure and information on Mayor Taylor's Vision 20/20 plan.
Vision
20/20 is a collaborative effort to solicit feedback from all members of the
community in order to establish a list of priorities for Salem's downtown
area. Representing the Vision 20/20 task force was Chane Griggs (picture at
right).
"There are over 30,000 people working within our downtown area today," said Griggs. "What do you want downtown to be in the future?"
Citizens and city staff involved with Vision 20/20 are looking to gather feedback from a broad base of community members. The goal being to collect a strong cross section of ideas and find commonalities in the way of planned priorities that the majority can agree with.
"The feedback you provide will be collected and report to the City Council," said Griggs.
Water/Wastewater infrastructure has also sparked attention as the City's current task force takes the next step in considering recommendations from consultants on future user rates. Representing the Salem Chamber as a part of the city's task force is JB Summers of NORPAC Foods.
"The city is currently spending $70 million a year to run our water and sewer system," said Summers, who provided an update to the Governmental Affairs team.
The
city is looking at potential rate increases again this year to cover the
costs of infrastructure construction projects. Summers (pictured at left)
explained how rate fees are helping the city shoulder the costs of improving
old worn down infrastructure, city infrastructure expansion, and
requirements mandated by the federal government.
Allan Pollock of Cherriots is the new leader of Salem's largest transit system which includes services like fixed bus routes, CherryLift, Wheels, and Cherriots Rideshare. Transit leadership has planned a December retreat to shape their plans for continuing service into the future. Discussions have also begun in an effort to define an appropriate financing mechanism for services.
"With a growing community, we need to change the way we do business," said Pollock. The transit district is looking at what they call the 3C Concept. According to their strategic business plan, the 3C Concept is an operating model which includes a network of circulators, that connect to transit centers, which are served by frequent, high-capacity corridor routes.
To view the strategic plan of the transit district, click here.
October 9th, 2007
Street/Bridge Needs for the City of Salem described in detail
The first of two October Governmental Affairs Forums focused on infrastructure needs within the City of Salem but also broadly speaking across the state. Senator Rick Metsger and Public Works Staff with the City of Salem Tim Gerling and Mark Becktel discussed the need to reinvest in our street and bridge system.
Senator Metsger solicited input and worked to open the lines of communication. "The goal is to move the transportation conversation in the interim so we can take action in the 2009 Legislative Session," said Metsger. "We need to continue having these conversations and move forward."
According to a recent study, Oregon is the 9th most dependent state on transportation. In other words, over 400,000 jobs rely on the efficiency of the street/bridge system. That equates to 1 in 5 jobs being defined as either transportation dependent or transportation reliant.
The Oregon Business Council recently conducted a comparison between Oregon and other states to communicate the differences in transportation investments. This per capita investment comparison used a percentage of the cost of each gallon of gas.
In Washington, $1 from every gallon of gas in
invested in infrastructure.
In California, it's $1.13 from every gallon
In Idaho, it's 70 cents from every gallon
In Oregon, it's 35 cents from every gallon
The state discussion on transportation investments became more localized with the presentation by City of Salem Public Works staff.
"Only 7 percent of transportation revenue comes from Salem's citizenry directly," said Mark Becktel, with the Public Works Department. "More than half of our revenue for investments in infrastructure comes from system development charges paid by private developers."
The backlog of street and bridge repair projects that have been identified totals close to $300 million. Due to budgetary constraints, Public Works staff has done what they can with the current dollars available to hold streets together using 1 to 2 inch overlays. Those overlays on city streets provide a smooth ride temporarily for drivers and passengers but do not solve structural issues that still need to be addressed.
"Most of Salem's bridges were built before the Great Depression," said Becktel.
The Salem Chamber will continue working closely with business leaders and city staff to identify future challenges and specific needs of the community's street system.
The Salem Chamber's August Governmental Affairs
Forum included discussion centered around Salem's future. The plans to
revitalize the southern area bordering Salem's downtown have gained a lot of
attention as one of Salem's industrial businesses, Boise Cascade, moves out
of their current location along the Willamette River.
The move by Boise creates an opportunity for economic development in line with Salem City Council goals to revitalize the downtown. A number of Salem residents have shared their viewpoints about the need for Salem to increase its number of destination points.
"I would like to see something to be proud of downtown by the waterfront," said AJ Nash, Campaign Director for the United Way. "We need something that gets people out there like an outdoor shopping area or restaurant experience by Riverfront Park."
Although the buyers of the Boise Cascade land have not been publicly disclosed, land use lawyer Kris Gorsuch who represents the local buyers shared some insight as part of the forum.
The mixed-use zoning designation on the Boise Cascade land will create opportunities for housing, office space, and even a restaurant on the river.
"The mixed-use zoning will help create a partnership between the city and the developer that will benefit the community," said Mayor Janet Taylor. "This is a very exciting project for Salem."
Plans for the property continue to be shaped and may include many of the components of the Urban Land Institute study which was conducted in June of 2006 regarding the Boise Cascade land.
For more information on this study, visit: http://www.cityofsalem.net/departments/urbandev/revitalization_uli.htm
The
August Governmental Affairs Forum also included discussion on the larger
issue of creating another Urban Renewal Area or URA referred to as the South
Waterfront. Pictured at right, the proposed URA would include the Boise
Cascade land, the new Meridian project and Minto Brown island.
"A lot of redevelopment will not occur without the support of urban renewal dollars to make needed infrastructure improvements," said Mayor Taylor. "We included Minto Brown in the urban renewal boundary and that could help finance trails and other amenities in the future."
For more information about the proposed South
Waterfront Urban Renewal Area, visit:
http://www.cityofsalem.net/departments/urbandev/revitalization_swf.htm
For the lineup of Salem Chamber Governmental Affairs Forums into November, click here.
Contact the Salem Chamber:
For additional information on the Chamber's business advocacy efforts, please contact Jason Brandt at 503-581-1466, ext. 304.