Moratorium Support Committee Meeting
5.17.06
Attendees:
Mark Chandler, Suzie Navetta, Peter Howison, David Bellmore,
Richard Koehler, Karen Peck, Johan Hogervorst
Absent: John Stead, Ralph
Farnsworth, Gerry Wasserburg, Marilyn Miller
Note: Chair Hogervorst
sent out a message requesting a meeting for
May 18, 2006
, but it was pointed out that the Planning Commission meets that same
night. A last minute decision
was made to meet the night before and the seven attendees above were able
to make it within two hours notice.
Began meeting at
7:10pm
Agenda Items (numbered from 1 to 6):
1.
Additional committee members to help with work
Hogervorst asked for
additional committee member possibilities.
He emphasized that any additional members must be citizens that are
ready to receive a task and pursue it as we have a limited time to
accomplish tasks.
Names mentioned that could possibly take on specific tasks included
Del Riesenhuber, Lee Reichel and Chistine May.
Mark Chandler also had some suggestions for people that could
assist but do not necessarily need to be committee members.
They include April and David Dumas, Liz Purtell, Margaret Hammer
and Fuzzy Gates.
2.
Scope of work to be accomplished as outlined in the
Moratorium budget and timeline.
There were 6 areas of work to be accomplished as part of the
timeline presented at the
May 11th, 2006
, Council Meeting when Ordinance 181 was approved.
The committee went through each of these 6 areas and assigned
committee members to each task and discussed the issues with each.
We also added a 7th item.
Assignments and discussion of these 7 listed in priority order are
as follows:
PRIORITY #1 – Amend current city code to incorporate BMPs regarding
erosion control, storm water runoff and vegetative stabilization during
construction. Timeline
– 90 days to refine interim BMP and 120 days to adopt and ordinance.
Committee members assigned: Mark Chandler, Johan Hogervorst, Karen
Peck and Gerry Wasserburg.
Karen Peck expressed strong reservations about using ordinances from
Troutdale given that they have a much larger budget, sewage and water
treatment, and no lake in the city limits.
She strongly encouraged committee members look at the Lake Tahoe
Basin Management Plan. Mark
Chandler mentioned that he had researched quite a few ordinances and it
was difficult to find a set that was applicable to our situation.
He did, however, recommend Troutdale’s ordinances to Gary
Darnielle when findings of fact were being assembled for the moratorium.
They are taken almost verbatim from the model cities code.
Discussion over the Troutdale ordinances revealed that they are
adequate for their erosion control measures and vegetative stabilization
on the site of development, but are weak in terms of storm water runoff,
impervious surfaces standards and mitigation fees to fund corrective
actions in case a site is handled improperly.
Another suggestion was brought up that we put up signage at the
entrance to the city that “all ground-disturbing activities within
Dunes
City
require a permit”.
Action: The group agreed
to use the Troutdale Ordinances as a framework to build on, and particular
focus would be put on storm water runoff, impervious surfaces, mitigation
fees and signage. Richard
Koehler and Karen Peck were assigned to research
Lake Tahoe
’s BMPs for ways to supplement weaknesses in the Troutdale code.
Another item that needs to be
clarified is what role LCOG will play in this process and how citizens
will mesh with their efforts. There
is a fear that Gary Darnielle will take this in a direction that
committee members do not have input into.
There is also a desire to see proper resource oriented
professional help involved in this effort, not just legal and defensible
by the city attorney. Johan
will have a discussion with Denise Kalakay and Gary Darnielle about a
program of work that clearly defines who is doing what.
This committee needs to give clear direction as to what
expectations are for LCOG and, with approval of the Council, where we
want this effort to go. This
needs to be clarified soon in the process, as in the next week.
Yet another important
discussion about this priority involved the starting point for any help
that we get to do our revision. We
discussed whether to have them work on the revised Chapter 155 that we
have been trying to finalize along with all the CCI concerns, or do we
start from scratch with our current ordinance and build from there.
Gary
asked this same question to Johan, and Johan said it would work much
better to start from scratch. There
may be some lingering feelings about how much work went into our first
attempt, but if we start over, almost half the CCI concerns will go away,
as many of the CCI concerns centered around the dropping or reducing of
standards in our current code. In
addition, Johan shared that
Gary
had suggested starting over so that we could better track changes to the
code, and this would make the work much more legally defensible.
A final point Gary made is that starting over would be much more
cost effective in staff time spent on the revision.
PRIORITY #2 – Implementation of Septic System Maintenance
Ordinance 173. Timeline
– 90 days for census and database setup for inspection program and
report completed on financing options for residents with failed systems.
Committee members
assigned: John Scott/Water Quality Com., Johan Hogervorst, Suzie Navetta,
Richard Koehler (database setup)
The committee looked at
a list of 20 items that Suzie Navetta had previously assembled and
partially accomplished concerning Ordinance 173.
The 20 items and their progress are as follows:
1.
Study the ordinance – done but also ongoing
for some
2.
Compose a definitions page – done
by Norman Martin and Suzie Navetta
3.
Develop an Implementation Plan – must
be done as part of this committee’s work
4.
Develop cost estimates for
Dunes
City
– must be done; mostly database setup cost
5.
Select a database program – must be done; Excel Spreadsheet probably best for this, check
Lane
County
’s database
6.
Set up database program – must be done, need to obtain copy of
Lane
County
’s database, which was promised to us by George Ehlers.
Johan will call Katrinka Knox and see if she will get us a copy.
If not, Richard can help us set up a spreadsheet to do what we
need. The committee agreed
this should be paid work.
7.
Set up a register for approved inspectors – not
an issue, only one available at this time.
This has been checked by Judy Martin
8.
Draft a rotation plan for septic evaluation – must
be done, base on
Land
County
’s database beginning with oldest septic systems.
9.
Declare a starting date – must be done, Karen Peck mentioned that this is very important.
Make this clear in letter to residents.
10.
Educate residents and property owners – ongoing.
Lake
Association
has been working at this.
11.
Table for estimating number of years between pumping – must
be done, part of the form for inspection which is then input into the
database. Suzie has
charts from several states and they are all about the same.
These charts should go on the back of the notification letter and
the back of the evaluation form.
12. Prepare an outline of
office duties – must be done,
Johan, revise this list of 20 and sit
down with Joanne to talk about who could do what on this list.
13.
Draft a Notice of Evaluation letter to property owners – Done by Suzie, draft has been given to the staff.
Give to Water Quality
Committee.
14.
Select
informational pamphlets for septic mailings – Draft has been done by Suzie. . Also.
give to Water Quality
Committee. Should be sent
to all residents.
15.
Draft a letter of non-conformance to go out to all
owners/residents – Done by
Suzie, needs to be looked over by Gary Darnielle.
16.
Draft a certified letter of lien Against the Property – must be done by
Gary
. Suzie thinks the words
Gary
wrote on the lien may be adequate for the lien letter.
She will check that out.
17.
Complete evaluation form for inspectors to use – needs
final approval, send to WQ
Committee.
18.
Have two readings of Ordinance – Done
19.
Pass Ordinance – Done
20.
Write a resolution to the ordinance – Done
Action:
About ½ this list has been done. As
mentioned above, Johan will sit with Joanne/staff and talk about what they
can help with. They will be
asked to track their time spent working on these items so that hours can
be properly budgeted. Johan
will also confirm these duties with the Mayor to make sure these are
legitimate duties to assign to staff.
Johan will also talk with John Scott about the three Water Quality
Committee items. Suzie can
help bring WQ Committee items forward as they are mostly her work.
Johan/Suzie can ask
Gary
to look at items #15 and #16 on the list.
Consider items #3 and #4, implementation plan and budget, at our
next MSC meeting.
PRIORITY
#3 – Adopt and implement appropriate code changes for higher standards
for new subsurface waste disposal systems.
45 days to research state of the art standards, 90 days to
refine appropriate local standards, 120 days for a draft final ordinance.
Committee Members Assigned:
Ralph Farnsworth, John Stead, Davide Bellmore, Liz Purtell
Ralph Farnsworth has done a great deal of research on this topic.
There was discussion that the final required system had to be of
the highest standard for lake protection, particularly in terms of
phosphorus. Johan asked if the
highest standard would be too onerous to builders and developers and the
consensus was that in proportion to what homes in this area would be
selling for, this was not an extravagant expense.
Dan Rietz with Oregon Water Services has been certified to maintain
the systems that Rob Ward will be putting into Sunset Cove.
There should also be a discussion with him about whatever system is
adopted.
Johan asked if we should have a different standard for systems
outside 1000 feet from the lake and the group felt that phosphorus loading
was a problem wherever homes were in the lakes’ watershed.
The same standard should be used by all homes.
The committee also discussed what should be required of an owner of
an older home whose septic system has failed.
These new systems may be an undue burden for these people.
Karen mentioned that some sort of grandfather clause should apply
to them. This was not
completely agreed upon by the group, given that these systems may be the
most important ones to upgrade if they are close to the lake.
It was agreed by all that a low interest loan or grant fund should
be set up to help folks like this. Johan
mentioned that there are several such programs that can be utilized.
Suzie mentioned that Gary was not in favor of us getting into the
“loan business”. This
needs to be researched further.
Action:
When Ralph returns, we should have him give us a full report on his
research to date and discuss the possibilities.
We also need more information on the system that Rob Ward is using
for Sunset Cove. At that
meeting we will assign someone to talk with Dan Reitz at Oregon Water
Services, and we will speak with him again once we choose the system that
would work best for our needs. Richard
and Karen will be researching the Tahoe Basin standards and they will also
report back to the committee on what they are using.
Johan will research more about the low cost loan program for septic
replacement and what it would take for the city to take on such a program.
PRIORITY #4 – Conduct an
educational outreach program to alert citizens of the dangers of
inadequately maintained water and septic systems, as well as practices
detrimental to water quality.
30 days to develop a plan for an outreach program, 60 days to send
out a newsletter to all Dunes City residents, and 90 days to put together
a public presentation of appropriate lake stewardship practices.
Sub-committee to work on
this: Suzie Navetta, Linda Lock, Christine May, Karen Peck
Suzie had many ideas for this priority and was quickly appointed the
head of this sub-committee. She
wants to work with Denise Rattan of the Siuslaw News to put out press
releases about the work that is ongoing and the need for citizens to think
about water quality.
We talked about who would be best to work on a newsletter but did
not resolve this issue.
Richard Koehler suggested that something with food and music is
always a winner with people and we could do a presentation at this event.
One presenter suggestion was Gus Gates from the Siuslaw Soil and
Water Conservation District.
Another suggestion brought up by Richard was the use of a postcard
to mail out to citizens with pertinent information.
He shared that longer pamphlets or writeups are usually discarded,
but postcards have been successfully used by Dunes City in the past.
Action:
Specific action items were not discussed, but Suzie can bring the
committee a first draft of ideas for an outreach program within the next
two meetings (2 weeks) that can be further discussed and refined.
A decision needs to be made as to who will work on a newsletter.
This could be a paid job from our budget.
We may need to outreach in the community for this or pay
professional help. Johan will
talk to Gus about a presentation at some point in the future, most likely
this summer when weather is good, musicians won’t get wet and folks want
to be outdoors.
PRIORITY #5 – (NEW)
Fertilizer ordinance banning phosphorus – Timeframes yet to be
determined.
Committee Members Assigned:
Mark Chandler, April and David Dumas
The committee felt that there is impetus for a phosphorus fertilizer
ban as discussed by Rob Ward, the mayor and others.
Mark Chandler volunteered to look into this when he returns in late
June. Lake Oswego recently
passed such an ordinance that could be looked at.
Action: Mark Chandler
will research this ordinance and speak to the committee in July.
He will also look to involve David and April Dumas who have
expressed a desire to help our committee’s efforts.
PRIORITY #6 – Survey of
lakeshores to identify storm water sources and areas in need of protective
measures. Complete the
survey in 60 days, report completed and submitted in 90 days.
Sub-Committee = volunteer
lake monitors: Mark Chandler, Ralph Farnsworth, David Bellmore, George
Burke, Bob Moehler, Richard Koehler (technical advisor)
Mark Chandler will head up the shoreline recon effort upon his
return. Richard and Mark
discussed use of a GPS and a digital camera to document sites.
The city has a digital camera and members of the volunteer
monitoring group have GPS units. Johan
mentioned that most new digital cameras also have a recording function so
that notes can be recorded for each picture on the current situation and
protective measures that need to be taken for lake protection.
Richard can work with this group to set up a database to catalogue
sites and document pictures/audio files for each site.
Action:
Shoreline survey will be conducted in July by lake monitoring
volunteers. Richard will
assist in the technical aspects of the survey and documentation.
Assignment of a report writer will be made in July after the survey
is completed and compiled.
PRIORITY #7 –
Documentation provided to Dunes City on progress toward moratorium
objectives. Report to
DLCD as required by statute within 60 days, Update at all Dunes City
Council meetings ongoing.
Responsibility:
Johan Hogervorst
Action: Johan will give
regular reports on the MSC’s progress during Council meetings.
Meeting minutes will document discussions in detail and Johan will
summarize at council meetings. Copies
of these minutes will also go out to staff who will include them in
binders for Council meetings. Johan
will speak to Gary and Sheldon by phone regularly to discuss progress as
well.
3.
Grant possibilities to fund our work.
Johan talked about the best opportunity for grant
funding right now being the Coastal Planning Grant.
The application is due on May 31, 2006 and money is granted July 1,
2006. Johan is trying to
communicate with Denise Kalakay at LCOG because she has the best
connection with Amanda Punton at DLCD who seems positive about funding for
our ordinance revision. Johan
is seeking $10-12,000 from DLCD to match what we have budgeted for 2006-07
for ordinance revision.
Action:
Johan will report on progress of this application process at our
next meeting. Johan will also
contact the Ford Foundation with the help of Gerry Wasserburg to inquire
as to their interest in adding additional financing to this effort.
4.
City budget available for us to accomplish our tasks
Peter and Johan have been discussing with Joanne
the need for immediate budget to accomplish some of our tasks before July
1st when our budgeted dollars begin.
At the May 11, 2006, City Council meeting, Joanne said she would
check on how much of the 15% of the total 05/06 budget that had already
been transferred from contingency. She
has responded to us that up $5,450 could be available before July 1st
if so approved by the City Council. Joanne
is waiting for an answer from Johan as to what will be needed for budget
before July 1st.
Action: Johan will be
collecting information from LCOG, our committee and the staff as to what
our expenses will be between now and July 1st and will work
with Joanne on the budget. Johan
will report on this at the next MSC meeting next Wednesday night.
5.
Definition of roles and expectations
6.
Communication with Gary Darnielle, Sheldon Meyer and other
Council Members
Both discussed in other agenda items above.
One final item discussed was the need for MSC members to be able to
copy materials without cost. Johan
said he would check into this with staff and the Mayor.
Adjourned
9:20pm
Next
Meeting, Wednesday, May 24, 2006, Dunes City Hall
The Planning
Commission will be changing their meeting.