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#25 – Leak Fixed; The Job Ahead for the Incoming Board

In a Nutshell:

  • Matt Gardner and crew repaired the HUGE water leak.
  • The Outgoing Board approved the rate increases for both Districts, $184 /quarter for the Water District and $277 / quarter for the Sanitary District starting July 1, 2023.
  • The Public Access & Recreation planning will take a slightly different path with the Incoming Board. The June 16 – July 5 public comment period will not be your last chance to weigh in.
  • Members of the Incoming Board have outlined the job ahead.

Water Leak Repaired:

Matt Gardner’s persistence and detective work to identify the 27 month – 15,000,000 gallon leak paid off.  He was spot on!  With the help of Logan (new Operator), Cannon Beach Water Department and Mike McEwan crew, they dug up the area Matt suspected, confirmed the leak and repaired it.  From watching the flow, it was estimated to be 12-15 gallons / minute.  (Click here for video clip of leak in action). The water line was split so badly that the section had to be cut out and a new section of line put in.  Well done Matt and team!! 

While they were at it, Matt and Logan also replaced the “sampler station” (where DEQ pulls the water samples for testing).  It has been leaking for well over a year at roughly 2-4 gallons per minute.

Rate Increases:

Based upon the recommendations of the Engineer’s Report for addressing the 6 years of deferred preventive maintenance and capital improvements, the Budget Committee recommended a 9-year financial plan for the Districts.  The Outgoing Boards approved rate increases to $184 /quarter for the Water District and $277 / quarter for the Sanitary District starting July 1, 2023.

He’s the projected rate increases over the next 9 years.

 Current202320242025202620272028202920302031
Water175184193203211219226232239247
Sanitary264277291306321337355373392412
TOTAL$439$461$484$508$532$556$581$606$631$658

Public Access & Recreation Planning:

A 160+ page draft Public Access & Recreation plan that was developed by the National Park Service (NPS) led committee under a grant to NCLC will transition between the Outgoing Board and the Incoming Board.

Outgoing Board:  At their final meeting on Thursday night, the Outgoing Board approved sending the 160-page draft plan out for public comment between June 16 – July 5th.

Incoming Board:  In a very preliminary review of the draft plan that was posted in the Board Meeting packet, members of the Incoming Board noticed 3 things:

  • The draft plan proposes recreational activities (Click here and See highlighted areas of the attached) that may not be aligned with current practices in the Watershed and /or aligned with the preferences of Arch Cape Community residents from previous surveys. 
  • The draft plan proposes allowing access and recreation across the entire Watershed and not limited to the area outside of the source water protection area.  Some Arch Cape Community residents have asked for that distinction to be considered in where access and recreation is allowed.
  • The draft plan lists 4+ pages of proposed strategies and actions to be considered / taken by the District (click here ).  There is concern that a financial-operations plan for the Watershed is not yet in place and the District has limited resources to undertake non-critical Watershed strategies / activities.

The Incoming Board has not had sufficient time to review and consider the draft plan.  After taking office in July, the Board will more thoroughly review the draft plan along with any public comments that may be submitted, and then will engage the community directly in at least the above 3 topics to better understand perspectives and preferences.

BOTTOM LINE: The public comment period from June 16 – July 5th will NOT be the last chance for members of the community to weigh in on these and likely other issues.

Incoming Board: Moving Forward – The Job Ahead:

There was a 65% District turnout in the May election. The results were certified on Monday, June 12th.  Everything is now final.  The incoming Board is Tevis Dooley (#1). Vacant – To be appointed by Incoming Board  (#2).  Chris Mastrandrea (#3).  Bill Campbell (#4).  Sam Garrison (#5)

Preliminary discussions have focused on the following as the job ahead:

1.   Operations of District Utilities:  District staff needs to maintain their focus on running the Utilities.

District staff is responsible for normal day-to-day operations, preventive maintenance and handing periodic crises.  The Watershed demands over the past 6-years created a backlog of deferred maintenance projects and the coordination of capital improvement.  The Engineer’s report has identified a Recovery Plan to bring the Utilities back to acceptable operating standards.   This Plan appears to be doable as long as District Staff is only minimally engaged in Watershed related activities.

The Job Ahead –

District Staff needs to focus on routine operations of drinking water and waste water processing along with the work identified in the Engineer’s Recovery Plan. Watershed activities need to be assessed by the incoming Board along with the District Manager to determine if/what are essential activities that have to be done by District staff.

2.   Watershed:  An inclusive process needs to be put in place to address the fundamental differences across the community in the vision, plan and process for taking care of the Watershed.

The Outgoing Board was successful in purchasing the Watershed.  The Incoming Board has responsibility for putting in place an inclusive and sustainable process for taking care of the Watershed now and into the future. A step back may be needed to get rate payers and property owners input on the best way to move forward that works for them.

Vision:  Key differences include the following:

  • What recreational activities will be allowed and in what areas of the Watershed
  • Whether vehicular tours / site visits be allowed and if/so under what conditions
  • Whether or not logging will be a source of revenue for managing the Watershed

With the primary objective for purchasing the Watershed being to protect the quality and quantity of our source water, clarity is needed on how each of the above are / are not consistent that objective.

Financial / Operation Plan:  

An operations / financial plan for the Watershed does not yet exist.  There is no insight into what the Watershed will cost to maintain and whether logging, tax levys or rate increases, will be required to pay for it.   The District has only 18 months to contract for road improvements using ARPA-COVID funds, which are estimated to be between $500,000 – $750,000.  A 130+ page Roads Assessments have been drafted, but until a financial – operations plan is in place along with a direction for public access / recreation, it’s a bit of guesswork to figure out what roads through the Watershed will be required over the long term.

Management-Oversite Process:

Until the differences in vision and financial / operations plan are resolved, including the role of the District Manager and Forester in managing the Watershed, a management-oversight structure and process is premature.  Watershed vision, direction and policy must come first, before an oversight committee / process can effectively manage towards those objectives / expectations.

The Job Ahead

Watershed priorities, plans and processes that are currently in place or envisioned need to be evaluated and matched against what the community wants and can afford.  To accomplish this, the following are key steps:

  • Reconvene a Finance Committee to update the previous financial-operations plan for the Watershed
  • Use the financial-operations planning process as the context for evaluating current / envisioned plans, e.g., Public Access & Recreation, Roads Assessment, Conservation Management, and identify operations and funding options along with benefits and risks of each.
  • Using that financial context, work with the community to figure out what they want as the vision and direction for the Watershed
  • Put in place priorities and management-oversight processes to implement that vision

3.   Community Engagement:   Giving meaningful voice to the community requires work.

Now that they own the Watershed, there are a growing number of rate payers / property owners that would like to stay informed and engaged in the decision-making process for taking care of it.   These community members want to be made aware of the emerging decisions about vision, plan and process, to be informed about the pros and cons, and to share their perspective so that the Board’s final decisions will take them into consideration.

The Job Ahead –

Increase the effectiveness of community outreach and engagement, considering things such as:

  • Board / Committee meetings need to be more listener-friendly.

For members of the community, trying to keep track of, listen into and give public comments at the Board and Committee meetings can be problematic and unsatisfying.  The acoustical challenges associated with combination inperson – Zoom meetings make it difficult for listeners to follow the deliberations of the Board and influence them with meaningful comments.

  • Board / Committee meetings need to be augmented with focused outreach efforts that are driven by specific decisions that need to be made.  These outreach efforts need to increase the community’s awareness of the decisions, educate about the issues and allow interested community members to give feedback.

Creative methods, (e.g. surveys, blogs, advisory councils, panel discussions, etc.) need to continue to be explored for actively reaching out to the community to involving them in the decision making processes. Feedback from these outreach efforts need to be incorporated into the Board decisions.

tevischrisbillsam

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