BCRW Bag Ban Forum - Support for repeal grows

On Monday, March 25th, the Benton County Republican Women held a Bag Ban Forum at the Comfort Inn Suites in Corvallis with representatives from local businesses, the Corvallis City Council and Voters for Effective Environmental Policy (VEEP). The audience was welcome to ask questions and express their views on the ban on single use plastic bags and related issues. See story and videos at Corvallis TidBits: Plastic Bag Ban Challenge Closer to Becoming Reality. ✧ Visit Voters for Effective Environmental Policy (VEEP) online: https://sites.google.com/site/veepcv/".

BCRW offers its appreciation to Susan McMahon, owner of Donna Bella Lingerie; Catherine Mater, civic, business leader with sustainability expertise; Wiatt Kettle, Milt Weaver and Bruce Harmon of VEEP and; Corvallis City Councilor Biff Traber of Ward 8.

UPDATE NOTICE: Representatives from Voters for Effective Environmental Policy (VEEP) will be the guest speakers at a special meeting of Benton County AFP on Saturday, April 13th, from 11AM to 1PM at King Tin Restaurant, 1857 NW 9th St., in Corvallis. VEEP is circulating a petition to repeal the bag ban ordinance. Read More......

City spending, analytics & setting priorities

John Detweiler has submitted a letter to the editor regarding the City of Corvallis' desire to reopen Fire Station #5. The letter reads:

As I have said many times, there will never be enough money to fund everything. Therefore, we need to set priorities and make choices. Moreover, we need to support those choices with appropriate analytical work.

The City Council is considering reopening fire station five. Yet, the Corvallis Fire Department Response Time Simulation Study, dated April 25, 2012, tells us that we gained an average ten seconds in EMS response time and lost eleven seconds in average fire initial response time when we closed station five - a trivial amount of time. Are we conveniently ignoring this study now?

The Police Department is still trying to justify more officers by saying comparable cities have so many sworn officers per population, therefore Corvallis should have the same number. The underlying assumption being that the demand for service in the comparable cities is equal to that in Corvallis. Nothing is being said about the demand for service in Corvallis that Matrix Consulting Group quantified in 2008. Considering the growth in demand for service because of the OSU expansion, that quantification needs to be updated. Moreover, we need to establish the current relationship between the response time and the number of officers we deploy as I did in 2009 with the Matrix data - see my web site: www.peak.org/~detweij.

Any reduction in, or failure to increase, services will have adverse effects on public safety. But, since we can't afford everything, risk needs to be balanced against costs. That is what good governing is all about.

John H. Detweiler

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Corvallis bag ban & tax survey

OREGON CATALYST, 3/17/2012 by In the news - Hilex Poly

The Corvallis City Council is considering installing a ban and tax on all shopping bags, both paper and plastic. In exploring options, the City Council has asked for comments from the public in this survey. ✧ Please take a few moments and let the Corvallis City Council know your thoughts on bag bans and taxes on shopping bags. ✧ Hilex believes that the answer lies within common sense legislation that preserves Oregon’s manufacturing and recycling jobs, rather than increasing costs for local residents.  Despite misconceptions, plastic bags are 100% recyclable and made in the U.S., using domestic natural gas and support American jobs.

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Riparian Issue: Albany poised to act on controversial Goal 5 rules

9/25/2011 - The Albany City Council is poised to act on new land use regulations potentially affecting an estimated 1,000 property owners, but how much depends on the individual case. ✧ The city staff says the changes are intended to protect natural resources such as fish-bearing streams and streamside habitat, along with significant wetlands. Read more at the Democrat Herald... Read More......

Eugene City Council compromises on Pledge of Allegiance

FOXNEWS.COM, 6/28/2011 by Dan Springer (Hat tip: John H. Detweiler) - Compromise on Pledge of Allegiance in Oregon Town Has Some Seeing Red

An Oregon town's City Council voted down a proposal to say the Pledge of Allegiance before every council meeting, but later passed a compromise that seemed to make no one happy. ∴ The approved measure allows the pledge to be recited at just four Eugene City Council meetings a year, those closest to the Fourth of July, Veterans Day, Memorial Day and Flag Day. ∴ It was supposed to be simple, but Councilman Mike Clark soon found out when you’re dealing with God and country, nothing in Eugene is easy. Read more at Fox...

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Detweiler submits another letter to the editor regarding levy

Via email: 4/27/2011 - John H. Detweiler submitted another letter to the editor (untitled) regarding the Corvallis Local Option Levy 02-74:

The levy that will appear on the May ballot will not solve our financial problem. What it will do is restore cuts that have been made to lower priority services - the Osborn Aquatic Center is the lowest priority service -- leaving the cuts to higher priority services stand. If the levy passes, next year we will be told that if we want higher priority services - fire and police - funded, we will have to pay more taxes. Details on priorities can be found at www.peak.org/~detweij.

Our problem is that expenditures have been above revenues in property tax funds since FY07-08 and we are running out of reserves. We knew that this was going to happen many years before it did happen but we did not do anything about it. If the levy passes, it really won't give us an opportunity to decide how to reshape our city government because the City Council won't take that opportunity because we don't elect people to the City Council who will say "NO". Our City Council has to be pressured to make good financial decisions and voting against the levy will increase that pressure.

Join me and others who worry about the financial sustainability of our wonderful city in voting against the levy - entitled Local Option Levy 02-74.

John H. Detweiler; web page => www.peak.org/~detweij

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Tax Levy 02-74 Discussed at City Club

CORVALLIS TIDBITS, 4/11/2011 - "Monday April 11th the Corvallis City Club hosted a forum on the proposed tax Levy, measure 02-74, scheduled for a vote on May 17, 2011. John Detweiler, statistician and former candidate for Corvallis City Council presented the case for voting no on Measure 02-74. Karyle Butcher, Corvallis Budget Commission member and retired Oregon State University Librarian, presented the case for voting yes on Measure 02-74." Read more at Corvallis TidBits...

John Detweiler spoke at the Benton County AFP Special Community Meeting tonight and he will repeat his presentation for the Benton County Republican Women on Monday, April 25th. Read More......

GT: City Council passes 3 of 5 green fees

A divided Corvallis City Council on Monday approved three of five proposed sustainability fees, including a transportation fee to make bus service free to riders, a fee that would make sidewalk maintenance the burden of the city and a fee to help maintain public trees. Read more at the Gazette-Times...

How many new green fees did your Councilor vote for?

Ward 1, Councilor Mark O'Brien: 0 of 4
Ward 2, Councilor Patrica Daniels: 2 of 4
Ward 3, Councilor Richard Hervey: 2 of 4
Ward 4, Councilor Dan Brown: 2 of 4
Ward 5, Councilor Mike Beilstein: 4 of 4
Ward 6, Councilor Joel Hirsch: 3 of 4
Ward 7, Councilor Jeanne Raymond: 3 of 4
Ward 8, Councilor David Hamby: 0 of 4
Ward 9, Councilor Hal Brauner: 4 of 4 Read More......

Letter regarding Andrew M. Martin land use & the City

Letter to the Editor submitted to the Corvallis Gazette-Times by John H. Detweiler:

On 12/21/09, the City Council voted unanimously to uphold the Land Development Hearings Board's decision to uphold the Community Development Director's interpretation and application of Land Development Code (LDC) provisions and the determination of violation for development activity at the property located at: 5700 SW Reservoir Avenue, subject to the adoption of Formal Findings and Order.

However, the issue in the Andrew M. Martin affair is not whether or not Mr. Martin followed the LDC. The issue is whether or not Corvallis would be better off if Mr. Martin were allowed to develop his land the way he wants to develop it.

Quoting from the Corvallis LDC section 1.1.10.02: "The City Council has the following powers... b. May adopt, amend, supplement, or repeal the text of any provisions or regulations ... or the boundaries of zones established on the Official Zoning Map." Plans of any kind have a tendency to be overtaken by events and need to be changed. Corvallis would be better off if the Council had changed the zoning to allow Mr. Martin to develop his land the way he wants to develop it. Our City Council did not exercise its power to make Corvallis a better place and chose instead to stick with a plan that it should have changed.

John H. Detweiler; web page => www.peak.org~detweij

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LETTER: (Council punts on 2010-11 budget)

LETTER TO THE EDITOR (Submitted to the Corvallis Gazette-Times, 2/17/2010 by John H. Detweiler) - In the February 17th Gazette-Times we were treated to an above-the-fold article telling us that the Corvallis City Council is punting on the 2010-11 budget. The Council is going to proceed with programs such as community sustainability and give proportional cuts to police and fire. ∴ Sooner or later, Corvallis is going to have to establish priorities and make choices. This will not be a pleasant experience; but there is no other choice. The alternatives are for us to not fund basic services (e.g. police and fire) or for all of us to ride our own hobbyhorses all the way to bankruptcy. ∴ The purpose of local government is to provide quality services to the most people possible with the money that is available.

To establish priorities, we need to know how often citizens use the services provided and what their perceptions are of the relative quality of these services. I estimated service usage and relative perceptions of quality with the raw data collected for the 2009 Corvallis Citizens Attitude Survey. My analysis can be found at http://www.peak.org/~detweij.

Services that are used more often should receive more funds. Tax money should flow to the services that are used the most often by the most people where the quality can be improved and users cannot be identified in a cost effective manner. Where the users can be cost effectively identified, user fees should be imposed to recoup the cost of these services.

To continue on our present path is foolhardy.

John H. Detweiler Read More......

Hundreds vote on goals at town hall

Corvallis Gazette-Times, October 9, 2008, by Matt Neznanski, Reporter - Rod Lawlor put aside a competing interest in Tuesday’s [10/7/08] presidential debate to instead engage in a discussion of sustainability in Corvallis. Lawlor came to Tuesday’s town hall as a professional in the housing and architecture industry, as both a student and a concerned citizen. “I’ve got questions, definitely,” he said. “I’m mostly interested in housing issues. Anything that increases housing density, I’m for.” Lawlor could take comfort in the fact that 450 other residents made the same choice and filled Oregon State University’s CH2M Hill Alumni Center’s main hall to take action on big ideas.

During the third and final town hall meeting, the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition unveiled the work of 12 groups formed to tackle specific topics such as energy use, transportation, education and housing. The groups created broad goals and a host of specific actions designed to move the community toward meeting them.

The coalition is a network of more than 130 organizations and individuals in Benton County dedicated to creating a community in which resources are renewed at the same rate as they are used. Partner organizations include nonprofits, businesses, churches, schools and local government.

Mayor Charlie Tomlinson praised the meeting’s participants and everyone who had pitched in over the summer to create a roadmap for sustainable efforts in the city. “We live in challenging times,” he said. “With optimism for the future, (however), we come here tonight because we believe in making positive contributions and we believe in our call to action.”

City leaders are banking on the idea. This year, the City Council invested $30,000 in the town hall meetings and has promised to use the plan to develop city policy. They have also promised to take the coalition’s findings into account when crafting city policies promoting sustainability next year.

John McEvoy was part of the group that tackled water-related issues. After eight meetings over the past five months, he said, the group was able to reach consensus on a difficult topic. “It wasn’t easy,” he said. “People have written books on water, and to distill it down into outline form, I feel we’ve gotten to the essence of the problem.” The group suggested reducing the amount of water required in the city and reviving its watersheds to support native fish. Both ideas met with approval from the larger group. “I think everyone has the sense that it’s a good effort,” McEvoy said. “Hopefully what happens is people say ‘Boy, I can do that,’ and if a lot of us do that we can get to goals that seemed far-reaching.”

The coalition will now craft a citywide plan for sustainability and present it to the City Council before the end of the year.

Matt Neznanski can be reached at 758-9518 or matt.neznanski@lee.net.

The following goals were deemed worthy of being made top priority by the hundreds in attendance at Tuesday’s town hall meeting. The coalition plans to conduct a more scientific survey in January to gauge broader public appeal. Percentages with each goal are the number of participants who chose that to be the top priority in its category.

Community inclusion - Describe who is in Corvallis and start talking to each other. (53 percent)
Economic vitality - Encourage 50 percent of residents, organizations, government and business to buy local first. (47 percent)
Education - Integrate sustainability concepts into local school curricula and facilities. (70 percent)
Energy - Reduce per capita energy consumption by 50 percent. (48 percent)
Food - Produce 60 percent of food consumed in Benton, Linn, Lincoln or Lane County. (51 percent)
Health and Human Services - Eliminate discharge of and exposure to toxic pollutants. (63 percent)
Housing - Make all housing energy efficient. (52 percent)
Land Use - Create compact, pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use neighborhoods over 80 percent of the city’s area. (34 percent)
Sustain 50 percent of the city with products produced within 100 miles. (34 percent)
Natural Areas and Wildlife - Manage all public and private natural areas to optimize ecological integrity and resilience. (35 percent)
Transportation - Reduce per capita gasoline consumption by 50 percent. (46 percent)
Waste and Recycling - Cut per capita weight of landfill disposal in half. (48 percent)
Water - Cut municipal water usage in half. (51 percent)

GT Reader Comments
The comments below are from readers of gazettetimes.com and in no way represent the views of the Gazette Times or Lee Enterprises.

CarpeDM wrote on Oct 8, 2008 5:26 PM:
" What a bunch of utopian crap ! Why not call for world peace and an end to hunger by 2025 also. "

Ellie wrote on Oct 8, 2008 10:49 PM:
" Carpe, if you weren't there you really have no idea about what was truly involved. It was an impressive array of community members, including academics, business leaders, politicians and educators among others. I'm sure you can contact someone on the committee to get you the details on the goals and steps to reaching those goals. I agree that some of the goals are pie in the sky, but heck, if you're going to dream why not dream big? It sure beats sitting on the sidelines naysaying while other people move on. "

CarpeDM wrote on Oct 9, 2008 8:17 AM:
" Ellie...I was more involved than you know. Its another grab at property rights, anti growth rhetoric , and a diversion of funds/excuse for [more] taxes....to "implement"....spare me. " Read More......

Jobs pay for our quality of life

Corvallis Gazette-Times, LETTERS, May 13, 2008

When I read about the choices for Corvallis City Council Ward 7, my humble opinion is that Jeannie Raymond couldn't be more wrong for Corvallis.

Her idea that we need to worry about Corvallis' "carbon footprint" seems entirely irrelevant given Hewlett Packard Co.'s pending layoff of 300 people.

We're all concerned about our "carbon footprint," but we need to put first things first.

The bottom line, at least to me, is that a high quality of life is not possible unless people have jobs.

In order to have a thriving arts community, a tax base that supports sustainability initiatives, clean water, paved roads, bridges that dont fall into the river, and so forth, people first have to be employed.

I appreciate Rick Schroffs more balanced approach. As a service-oriented businessman who is conscious about sustainability, I think hes going to be able to make the necessary intelligent tradeoffs that can help us retain the high quality of life that perhaps too many of us take for granted, while helping Corvallis keep and attract high-quality jobs.

That's my theory and I'm sticking to it.
Jeff Limon, Corvallis

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Two will vie for Ward 7 council post

Corvallis Gazette-Times, February 29, 2008, by Matt Neznanski

Jeanne Raymond and Rick Schroff will appear on May 20 ballot to fill empty position
By the end of Friday’s filing deadline, two candidates emerged to seek the vacant City Council position in Ward 7. It’s official: The names of retired educator Jeanne Raymond and local insurance agent Rick Schroff will appear on the May 20 ballot.

The Ward 7 seat on the City Council became vacant in December. Councilor Scott Zimbrick died Dec. 6, shortly after being diagnosed with acute leukemia. Zimbrick, who had served on the council since 2002, represented Witham Hill and parts of the Timberhill neighborhood.

Raymond said she would like to see the council balance social, economic and environmental issues as the city grows. Schroff said that he intends to continue the business-focused approach that was the hallmark of Zimbrick’s leadership.

Before taking over Schroff Insurance Agency from his father four years ago, Schroff spent 25 years with the Houston, Texas-based Smith International, a supplier of products and services to the oil industry.

“I know I can provide direction that promotes a thriving business environment while honoring the exceptional livability of our community,” he said.

Schroff is a member of the Greater Corvallis Rotary Club and the Corvallis-Benton Chamber Coalition, where he served as an ambassador and a past member of the Government Affairs Committee.

Raymond was an educator for 30 years, including 10 years with the Corvallis school system. She has lived in Ward 7 for nearly two decades, and she said she takes a long-term perspective to leadership.

“We can have sustainability by meeting the needs of this generation and future generations by finding solutions that address the social, economic and environmental aspects of a healthy, prosperous city,” she said.

Raymond has been an active Democrat for more than 40 years. Her volunteer endeavors include helping to organize the first student exchange program with sister-city Uzhgorod in Ukraine. She also is a member of the Benton County Bill of Rights Defense Committee.

Mayor Charlie Tomlinson has scheduled a Ward 7 candidate forum for 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 8, in the Walnut Community Room at Corvallis Fire Station 5, 4950 N.W. Fair Oaks Drive. Tomlinson will moderate the discussion, which will feature statements from each candidate. Voters will have the opportunity to ask questions.

Matt Neznanski can be reached at 758-9518 or matt.neznanski@lee.net. Read More......

Senators Introduce Semper Fi Act of 2008

Hometown News, Updated: February 6, 2008 (Hat tip: John D.)
OK & TX U.S. Senators Introduce Semper Fi Act of 2008 - Bill Stops Berkeley Earmarks and Transfers Funds to Marine Corps

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina), Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia), Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-Oklahoma), John Cornyn (R-Texas), and David Vitter (R-Louisiana) introduced the Semper Fi Act of 2008. The bill would rescind over $2 million in hidden earmarks for Berkeley, California in the 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill, and transfer the funds to the Marine Corps. U.S. Congressman John Campbell (R-California) is introducing a companion bill in the House of Representatives.

Last week, the City Council of Berkeley voted to oust Marine Corps recruiters from their downtown office, saying the Marines were "uninvited and unwelcome intruders." Berkeley officials also voted to give the radical protest group Code Pink space outside the recruitment office and urged them to "impede, passively or actively" the work of Marine Corps recruiters.

One earmark provides $243,000 in taxpayer dollars for the organization Chez Panisse to create gourmet organic school lunches in the Berkeley School District. Chez Panisse is dedicated to "environmental harmony" and their menu features "Comté cheese soufflé with mâche salad," "Meyer lemon éclairs with huckleberry coulis," and "Chicory salad with creamy anchovy vinaigrette and olive toast."

Another earmark would spend $975,000 in taxpayer dollars for the University of California in Berkeley Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service, to create a new endowment and cataloging the papers of Congressman Robert Matsui. U.C. Berkeley currently already has a $3.5 billion endowment. Senator DeMint: "Berkeley needs to learn that their actions have consequences. Patriotic American taxpayers won't sit quietly while Berkeley insults our brave Marines and tries to run them out of town. Berkeley City Council members have shown complete ingratitude to our military and their families, and the city doesn't deserve a single dime of special pet project handouts."

Senator Cornyn: "The Berkeley City Council insulted our troops and offended people across the country. If the U.S. Marines are not good enough for Berkeley, neither are taxpayer dollars Congress would have sent there this year. That city closed its doors on the same individuals taking bullets on the front lines while fighting for the safety and freedom of families in Berkeley and throughout America."

Senator Vitter: "The actions of the City Council of Berkeley are in stark contrast to beliefs of the vast majority of Americans who recognize and honor the service and sacrifice of our U.S. Marines. This is simply unacceptable and those funds could be better utilized by the Marine Corps."

Dr. Coburn: "The actions by the city of Berkeley are deplorable and insulting to those who are serving and those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice to protect the very freedoms that are being exercised to insult them. I know I stand with the majority of Americans in thanking our service men and women for their selfless service to our nation."

Senator Chambliss: "We need to send a strong message that our military personnel deserve our strongest support. Georgia is a proud military state, and my constituents will be out outraged to know that during a time of war, their taxpayers dollars have been used to reward folks who have insulted and disparaged those who defend this nation every day." Read More......

Berkeley City Council vs. Marines

Michelle Malkin, January 30. 2008 - Members of the Berkeley City Council showed their opposition to a Marine Corps recruiting office in Downtown Berkeley last night.

Council members supported the two resolutions-one supporting anti-war protests and the other criticizing military recruitment practices-citing opposition to the war in Iraq, deceptive recruitment practices and the right to protest.

“By taking a stand against recruitment we are protecting the health and safety of our youth,” said PhoeBe sorgen, a member of the Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission. “I see the protest as taking a proud and courageous stand.”

Code Pink, a national anti-war grassroots organization, will be granted a parking spot for their regular Wednesday afternoon protests and will not need to apply for a sound permit for the next six months, under one resolution.

The other resolution more directly criticizes the presence of the center in Berkeley. The city manager was directed to send a letter to the U.S. Marine Corps saying they are “uninvited and unwelcome intruders” in the city.

In addition, the city attorney has been directed to investigate whether the city’s anti-discrimination laws can be enforced at the center, based on the military’s consideration of sexual orientation in hiring.

Marine recruiters did not return calls for comment yesterday.------

Melanie Morgan, Chairman of Move America Forward, the nation's largest pro-troops organization, said, “It is disgraceful that in the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement, anti-military activists would attempt to silence the same military men and women who serve this country and give their lives to protect the free speech rights of all Americans, including these ungrateful and despicable people on the Berkeley City Council.”

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