CLatsop County Public health Department Schedules August 1, 2011 Staff Training Day Closure

Offices of the Clatsop County Public Health Department at 820 Exchange St., Astoria will be closed for staff training Monday, Aug. 1.

Tom Bennett
Community Relations Coordinator
(503) 325-1000 Ext. 1312

Proposed Clatsop Care Project At Mill Pond Village Falls Victim To Money Follows The Person Program

Now the Clatsop County Health District is struggling to recover the $587,608 it spent on developing the 40-bed housing complex in Astoria
By: Diane Lund-Muzikant, The Lund Report
July 14, 2011 – The tragic consequences for the Clatsop Care Health District persist long after the Money Follows the Person program collapsed, and an investigation by the Department of Justice concluded it had been badly mismanaged. The $40 million federal grant program was designed to move seniors and people with disabilities into community-based settings.

Read Full Lund report Account

Northwest Oregon Housing Authority Seeks Applicants!

Friday, July 15, 2011

HOUSING AUTHORITY BOARD SEEKS APPLICANTS

Clatsop County continues to seek applications for a vacancy on the Northwest Oregon Housing Authority.
The organization owns and manages housing for low- and moderate-income people and administers various federal housing assistance programs in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties.
The vacancy is for a four-year term representing Clatsop County. The board meets once and month, alternating between Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties. Applicants with a background in property management are encouraged to apply. The county Board of Commissioners will make the appointment.
Deadline to apply is July 29. To apply, obtain an application form and return it to the Clatsop County Manager’s Office at 800 Exchange St., Astoria OR 97103, (503) 325-1000. Forms are available from the County Manager’s Office or can be downloaded from the county website http://www.co.clatsop.or.us/ at “Citizen Involvement.”

Released by:Tom Bennett
Community Relations Coordinator
(503) 325-1000

ILWU Takes Protest To Longview Port Commission Meeting

By Erik Olson / The Daily News
Posted: Tuesday, July 12, 2011 8:38 pm

Union dock workers continued their protest of proposed hiring policies at the EGT grain terminal, demanding Tuesday at a Port of Longview commissioners' meeting that union labor be used on all projects on port property.
Dan Coffman, president of International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 21, said he's concerned that EGT built a fence within the last few days that extended onto a port-operated road on the east end.
"That fence needs to be taken down. It needs to be taken down by the port's labor force," Coffman said.
"It bothers me to see a nonunion entity in there doing the port's labor."
Read Full TDN Report

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event Gets 70,000-Plus Pounds Of Material

Thursday, July 14, 2011

HOUSEHOLD WASTE EVENT COLLECTS 70,000-PLUS POUNDS OF MATERIAL

More than 70,000 pounds of flammable, poisonous and otherwise dangerous materials were safely collected from local residents in the inaugural Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day, June 11.
A total of 545 vehicles visited the drop-off site at the Warrenton-Astoria Regional Airport in Warrenton to dispose of old paint, bug-killer, motor oil and other items, free of charge.
The collection day was organized through the Clatsop County Household Hazardous Waste Program, a collaborative project between the county, local cities, Western Oregon Waste (WOW) and other stakeholders designed to develop a comprehensive strategy for reducing and properly disposing of residential hazardous waste.
The day-long event was the first of what the county hopes to make an annual program that will allow county residents to get rid of potentially hazardous items cluttering up their cupboards, basements and garages.
“In general we consider the collection event definitely a success, when I look at how much toxic, flammable, poisonous material has been removed from people’s homes and is now out of the presence of kids and pets, our neighborhoods and out of the stream of inappropriate disposal methods,” said Maureen Taylor, Household Hazardous Waste Program Coordinator.
WOW staff and Astoria CERT Team volunteers assisted at the event, which was also supported by the Oregon Department of Transportation, United Site Services, Port of Astoria and City of Astoria.
More than a third of the material collected consisted of home paint products. Pesticides and other poisons were the second-biggest category of waste.
Here is a break-down of the waste collected:
· 28,000 pounds of home paint products
· 18,000 pounds of pesticides/poisons/toxic compounds
· 11,000 pounds of paint-related materials i.e. tars and adhesives
· 9,000 pounds of toxic, flammable liquids
· 1,600 pounds of corrosive, caustic, reactive, acid-type liquids
· 1,200 pounds of fluorescent light tubes
· 460 pounds of antifreeze
· 365 pounds of engine batteries
· 31 pounds of mercury
· 8 pounds of cyanide
Total – 70,567 pounds
The material was collected by Clean Harbors, a hazardous waste management company, whose personnel removed the items from vehicles and sorted it for disposal. Car batteries, latex paint and antifreeze is recycled; gasoline, diesel fuel, motor oil, oil-based paints and solvents are burned as fuel; pesticides and poisons are incinerated.
The Household Hazardous Waste Program, including the collection day event, is funded by a small surcharge on solid waste processed at Western Oregon Waste’s Astoria transfer station.
Program organizers have tentatively planned the next collection event for the south county in spring of 2012.
For people who missed the event or still have materials they would like to get rid of, there are a number of local options:
· The WOW transfer station in Astoria will accept the following items at no charge: old VCRs and DVD players, cell phones, monitors, vehicle batteries, rechargeable batteries and cell phone batteries, non-contaminated motor oil. Auto tires will be accepted for a fee.
· Astoria City Lumber, Builders Supply in Astoria and Gearhart and Sherwin Williams in Gearhart will accept paints, stains, sealers and related materials through the Paintcare Program. Go to http://www.paintcare.org/ for more information.
· Home Depot in Warrenton will also accept vehicle batteries, rechargeable, NiCad and non-automotive lead batteries and CFL light bulbs.
If you wish to hold on to the materials until next year’s collection event, make sure the containers are well-sealed, pack them in a sturdy box, and store them out of reach of children and pets.
For more information on safe use, storage and disposal of hazardous materials, go to the following links:
· Western Oregon Waste – http://www.westernoregonwaste.com/
· Earth 911 recycling information – http://www.earth911.com/
· Oregon Department of Environmental Quality – www.dep.state.or.us/lq/hw/index.htm
· Clatsop County Public Health – http://www.co.clatsop.or.us/

Released by:
Tom Bennett
Community Relations Coordinator
(503) 325-1000

Audio Transcripts For July 13, 2011 Clatsop County Board Of Commissioners Work Session And Regular Meetings

Work Session Audio Transcript

Regular Meeting Audio Transcript

Meeting Highlights

Wetlands deal approved
The board approved an agreement with the North Coast Land Conservancy for the transfer of 41 acres of county-owned wetlands property in Warrenton to the conservation organization.
The property, adjacent to Oceanview Cemetery, is being set aside for preservation for mitigation of four acres of wetlands that will be impacted by the construction of the Ensign Lane extension in the county’s North Coast Business Park in Warrenton. Under wetlands regulations, the county must set aside 10 acres for every one impacted acre.
The Ensign Lane extension is a vital component of the county’s Phase 2 development plan for the business park.
The agreement includes transfer of the property to NCLC through quitclaim deed, covenants and restrictions, and payment of $20,500 from the county for NCLC’s costs of managing the property. The payment will come out of the Industrial Revolving Fund, which holds the $8.6 million proceeds from the 2009 sale of 75 acres of the business park to North Coast Retail LLC.

Strategic plan reviewed
The board held a work session with the Clatsop County Planning Commission to discuss collaboration between the two bodies, as well as to hear a presentation from County Manager Duane Cole on the proposed new Strategic Plan.
Chair Dirk Rohne welcomed the five recently appointed Planning Commission members and expressed appreciation to them for volunteering to serve the county. He indicated that the expertise and skills offered by this commission will be a great benefit to the county.
Planning Commission Chair Bruce Francis indicated he is honored to serve the county and looks forward to enhancing the communications between the board and commission. He reported that the first meeting of this Planning Commission was very informative and deliberative, and that the panel will base its decisions on the law, advise of county counsel and the county staff.
The Strategic Plan will contain a list of major county projects envisioned for the next 10 years. According to Cole, it will allow the county to prioritize the projects and estimate their cost in dollars and staff time while allowing flexibility in planning and launching the work.
The plan will be forwarded to the planning commission in a month or two for the group’s review, then presented to the public in the fall. The plan will go before the board of commissioners for its review and adoption in early 2012.
The board and planning commission discussed holding joint meetings as often as once each quarter to discuss long-range planning and review the relationship. The planning commissioners expressed support and interest in working with the Board on the development of the strategic plan.

Other business
In other business the board:
· Approved a contract with the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission for acceptance of a $107,531 grant to fund enhanced mental health services for participants in local Drug Court, Family Drug Court and Treatment Court. The board also approved a $143,375 contract (the state grant plus 25-percent county match) with Choices Counseling to provide the services.
· Approved an annual agreement with the Oregon State Marine Board for the Clatsop County Sheriff’s Office to provide boating safety and marine law enforcement patrols. The agreement includes $163,700 in state funding, the same amount from the 2010-11 fiscal year.
· Approved a 3.6-percent cost-of-living salary adjustment for unrepresented, casual and exempt county employees and employees of the 4-H Extension Service Special District.


Tom Bennett
Community Relations Coordinator
(503) 325-1000 Ext. 1312