Sincerely,
Sue McGrath
Since moving to Manzanita four years ago, I have heard my junior high English and Journalism teacher’s voice in my head more often than I have since the early 70s. Libby Dunne was one of those teachers who left a lasting impression. She was passionate about teaching her students how to be intelligent consumers of information, how to recognize author bias and persuasion, and how to separate fact from fiction. She taught the difference between informative writing backed by references so the reader can read for themselves where the author had found specific information and entertainment style journalism which leans into hyperbole and opinion, in which the author tells the readers he/she is an expert without any support for that claim. (think Wall Street Journal vs National Enquirer)
Why has Libby Dunne made a sudden reappearance in my head? I was dismayed to read several posts or articles on Facebook or in local newspapers in 2020 that indicated there was a split in feelings towards the Manzanita City Council. The passion about our town was apparent. A sense of community or “team spirit” was not. Manzanita seemed to reflect our national political climate – divided. I did what Libby Dunne would have suggested. I began to run down the facts.
I discovered that there were several apparently disgruntled individuals who felt strongly about how business was being conducted in our town. I learned that one contentious issue was the (at that time) potential city hall. I relearned how unhappy people become when they feel that they are not heard or their opinion disregarded. But mostly I learned, hurt feelings aside, that the system worked as it should. When a fancy and expensive city hall was put forth, the town as a whole said, “No!” When people were unfairly targeted publicly, others came to their defense. When being a city councilor became too odious of a task due to personal attacks or incessant, repetitive meetings, people resigned and were replaced according to the rules. A new, more modest City Hall was planned.
I am grateful for Libby Dunne and all the other great teachers who followed her. I wish all people had that sort of experience in learning to read critically, which means reading with questions about the text and with an eye towards facts or bias, not simply being a critic. I wish all people would find the facts instead of simply swallowing whatever is put into print.
This is a beautiful town. I believe that all the residents here want this town to be the best possible place to live, and that is why passions are so clearly visible. In honor of Libby Dunne, I ask people to read the background information, read the city ordinances, take those steps to be truly informed and not merely indoctrinated. I don’t want any of the passion to be muffled. I do want facts and complete truths to be the currency exchanged in writing.
Best wishes
Jennifer Greer
On Saturday April 6, vendors, educators and volunteers came together to fill the Grange Hall with plants, garden décor, farmers market products, and opportunities to learn about gardening.
The seed exchange was a lively focal point, as was the Grange cookie table with wildflower seed bombs to boot!
Downstairs the kitchen was filled with children making nature mobiles and later in the dining room presenters shared their wisdom about no-till gardening and living soil.
Customers and learners filled the hall throughout the day. We even had visits from the neighboring farmers’ cats!
There was a good feeling of community connection throughout the day brought about by love for gardening and plants. This comment from Lane deMoll sums it up:
I just want to say to you all what a wonderful event yesterday’s was!! I felt so strongly held in community on many levels. Sweet sweet several hours. Thank you all so much for the work you put into it and for your on-going work for the Grange building! It is truly a place for our Nehalem Valley community to continue to grow from the seedlings that many have planted over the years.
Many thanks to our vendors, teachers and volunteers:
• Kyle and Britt at Moss Creek Farm for beautiful spring plant starts
• Ron Van Dongen for his gorgeous and exotic plants
• Jose Camerena’s plant starts and shrubs
• David Hendricksen and Kelly White for cider and tea
• Hope Stanton for her native wisdom and plants
• Tammi and Lance for their meat
• Deanne for all her garden books
• Karla for her eclectic collection of garden art
• Matt and Lori for their eggs
• Autum for her flower wisdom, bean seeds, and dahlias
• Jody and Gary Lewis for their ironwork
• Barbara McLaughlin and Janice Soots for the seed exchange
• Joe Meyer for his soil presentation and microscopes
• Jared Gardner for sharing about compost on his farm
• The Sharpenator, Dave Rockey
• Bonnie and Roger Neugebauer for the creative art project with the kids
• Presenters Teresa Retzlaff and Joe Meyer
• Tiffany Bay and Vivi for the soup and cornbread to nourish the volunteers and vendors
• All the Grange seed bomb and cookie makers – Constance, Jody, Marie, Fay, Emily, Evelyn, Jennifer, Vivi, Tammi, Peggy
• All the Grange volunteers that held the day together – Ken, Sunshine, Bob, Watt, Jody, Gary, Trav, Vivi, Tammi, Constance, Karla, Jennifer
On Sunday April 7, the Grange held a free heritage apple tree grafting workshop. The workshop is part of a multi-year project to identify and preserve our Nehalem Valley heritage apple trees.
David Hendricksen from Carola Wines + Cider led the workshop with assistance from Jim Fanjoy and Trav Williams. We had a really nice turnout of apple tree enthusiasts from around the community. The Grange Hall was filled with folks trying their hand at learning the craft of grafting, while sipping on David’s apple cider and eating other treats. With deft knife work and flying wood chips, it looked like a whittling convention!
Many thanks to
• David Hendricksen
• Jim Fanjoy
• Trav Williams
• The Tillamook County Cultural Coalition for funding this project
I am offering another round of art classes for kids starting Monday, April 29th from 4-5:30 at the NCRD Kitchen Room. We will explore drawing, painting, and sculpture adventures! Please see flyer for details. Let me know if you have questions. I hope to see you there! ~Reeva
Call or text at (310) 924-9316
Email: coastrangehandyman@gmail.com
Bonded & Insured
It’s time to empower parents to choose the educational setting best suited to the needs of their child. Parents deserve to provide their child with a quality education regardless of zip code, income level, or learning style. Education dollars will be allowed to follow students to their preferred educational setting. Stop the government control and protect the autonomy and uniqueness of private schools and homeschools by getting involved now.
What can you do? Sign two petitions or donate money to help bring education options to Oregon K-12 students.
Learn more at:
EducationFreedomforOregon.com
Oregon schools are failing our students. Oregon ranks one of the bottom schools in our country. Children in public schools were locked out of schools longer than almost all other schools. You can help by getting involved right away.
Drip, Drip, Drop
Recent posts and op/eds about the water—monthly billing vs quarterly, why the rate increase, what about tiered usage, where does our water come from and what’s the deal between Manzanita and Wheeler—all made me curious. As is my custom, I’m writing in order to understand. I’ve included the sources I used at the bitter end. Let’s get going.
The last time the city raised the water rates was back in 2014. That council agreed to look at the rates every year to keep up with costs of operation, maintenance, and upgrades but it didn’t happen. It’s been nine years without an increase.
At the June 14, 2023, Council Work Session Director of Public Works, Dan Weitzel presented a water rate study and information about our water. It was clear we needed to catch up with those nine years of inflation and incentivize conservation among heavy users, not because we don’t have the water, but because it costs money to get water to your Slip n Slide.
This isn’t just a Manzanita problem. All over the country there are plenty of cities and towns that have failed to keep critical infrastructure like water systems, power grids, roads and bridges maintained and upgraded so stuff works and is safe. Probably because nobody wants to pay for them. Put things off long enough and you’ve got problems. Do everything on the cheap and you’ll eventually pay in unexpected and unpleasant ways.
We live in Manzanita where the annual rainfall is 81.5 inches according to Climate Data.org, but our water comes from wells on Foss Road. Wheeler has a 99 year lease and a water rights permit to share water with Manzanita as a Joint System. Wheeler pays their share of the costs of operations and maintenance based on the water they use which is about 19%. Water usage is divided between us based on each city’s percentage of the same type of dwelling units in each town. The Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) has two categories of charges. One is for stuff like permits, repairs, and labor, which is charged whether or not Wheeler uses any water, and the other charge is for the actual production of water Wheeler does use. That’s stuff like chlorine, electricity, and labor. They do that math on the last day of February by looking at the master meters.
On July 5, 2023, Manzanita’s Council approved a new rate structure with tiers for water usage that is only $7 more a month. It used to be that our bill was 39.50 for 4,000 gallons of water but the typical usage for a full-time two person household is a little less than 2,000 gallons. If the cap was still 4,000 gallons, the monthly charge would go to about $70 bucks a month to actually pay for the 4,000 gallons according to the utilities budget and the Oregon Association of Water Utilities.
So, if you use 2,000 gallons of water or less, you’re paying 47.56. Since we’re now billed monthly you can see right away when you’re using more water than usual. A neighbor of ours only discovered a major and expensive leak after receiving a big bill they weren’t expecting. I know others may disagree but we like a monthly bill instead of quarterly because we can fit $47.56 into our monthly bills better than we can fit 142.68 quarterly. But that’s us not everyone.
In the summer most people do use more water what with the Slip n Slide and the warm weather. For a few months in the summer the average household uses about 4,000 gallons so if you want to keep the water bill down you’ll need to be intentional and dare I say mindful about how much water you use. There are ways to conserve—using gray water to water plants, not watering in the heat of the day, using a drip system, doing laundry less often, fixing all the wonky faucets, only running the dishwasher when it’s full, bringing back the potty rule that, ‘If it’s yellow, it’s mellow. If it’s brown flush it down!”
If you’re a water hog you’re going to pay more, and you’ll be billed more but isn’t that how all of life is. You’ve got to pay to play, and water may fall from the skies here, but it is not free and it’s not infinite. Nothing in our world is except maybe our good intentions.
For those of us who garden, like a hot bath or a long shower and compulsively fill our bird baths and dachshund’s wading pool (oh my, that’s me) we’ll be billed 9.50 for each 1,000 gallons over 2,000 up to 5,000 gallons; $11 per 1,000 gallons from 5001 to 10,000 gallons and for folks using more than 10,000 gallons it will cost 12.25 per 1,000 gallons and that’s a whole bunch of water.
To make sure we don’t get in the hole again the rates will increase annually based on the consumer price index which will vary every year. Council will review the rates every year and do a water study every three years to keep on top of it.
The past is over, and the future isn’t here yet. We build it by making good choices about how we use what we have, and how we treat each other. If we plan on leaving anything behind when we exit stage left, we need to figure out new ways to live together using our resources wisely no matter how much money we do or don’t have.
Sources:
June 14, 2023, Special Session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3jXaUP5zdY&t=36s
ci.manzanita.or.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Work-Session-Packet-061423.pdf
July 5, 2023, Council Meeting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wcu2wzbFl6k&t=4s
Manzanita Today Newsletter archives issue July 10, 2023.
Kim Rosenberg loretta.kim.rosenberg@gmail.com
I wrote a springtime poem and published it at the Upper Left Edge. If you’d like to read it, click the link below. Feel free to pass it along.
Onward,
Watt Childress
www.upperleftedge.com/2024/04/17/here-try-some-of-this-ointment/
We volunteers at the Hoffman Wonder Garden are pretty psyched about Sunday’s plant sale. That’s ’cause we know what’s on offer, 100 fabulous manzanitas and assorted native and worldly wildflowers you DO want in your sunny garden.
Here’s a few of the manzis we’ve got for you, the pictures below in the same order as these descriptions:
‘Howard McMinn’ – Whoa, is this guy handsome, ultimately 7′ tall and just as wide. You might think him a bit roly-poly but no! More like a pink-flowering, multi-stemmed small tree once pruned. As with all manzis, though, let him bulk up for a few years before revealing his shape.
‘St Helena’ – Big gorgeous Helena! Since she’s capable of 10’x10′, be sure to plant her in the open where she can flex her might and not be crowded by small fry. Wait for those white flowers, twinkling like holiday lights winter through early spring.
‘Harmony’ – Its name describes how you’ll be feeling about your garden when you add this easy-growing, floriferous rounded shrub. A good beginner’s manzanita, reaching – at most – 7’x7′ at absolute maturity, it’s super easy to tip back and keep smaller. Morning shade but aft sun? Go for ‘Harmony’!
Sitting ends at 10:30 and is followed by Words Into Stones; an hour of poetry or prose, personal sharing and placing of prayer stones.
Tall & statuesque? Broad & muscular? Big, medium, or groundcover? Let size and shape be your guide.
We’ll be selling a fantastic assortment of manzanitas, THIRTEEN different kinds. Insane! You’ll want to be sure from the get you’ve got the right plant in the right place ’cause these kids don’t like to be moved around.
Got a shady garden? Don’t buy a manzanita. Got overhead irrigation? Ditto. Soil super rich with amendments? Nope. Not gotta thrive.
But if you’ve got at least 6 hrs of sun in fast-draining soil without irrigation or fertilizer, manzanitas are your kind of plants.
Tomorrow on the BBQ: Meet A Few Manzanitas!
Criteria for Committee members:
• Have a strong interest in representing and serving the broader community regarding STRs.
• The ability to balance the needs of the greater community regardless of personal needs or agendas.
• Be able to work in a collaborative and respectful manner, maintaining an open mind with solid listening
skills.
• Hear and appreciate multiple perspectives and ultimately reach a consensus on a variety of topics.
• Objectively review and provide input on qualitative and quantitative information.
We encourage you to apply!
The link to the application is:
Send applications to cityhall@ci.manzanita.or.us The deadline is: May 6, 2024, at 4 pm.
We recently had a cedar fence built by Steve Archie of Steve Archie Construction Inc. He did an awesome job- we are really happy with it- so posting a “shout out” for him.
His info
Steve Archie Construction INC. CCB #106419
Archiesfarm@hotmail.com. 503-318-8086 (can text)
AND…congrats to all those at Neah-Kah-Nie Middle School, Neah-Kah-Nie High School and Nehalem Elementary School who participated at the Chess for Success State tournament this weekend!
Hope to see you there!
It’s almost time for our annual Manzanita Plant Sale!
Sunday, Apr 21st 11am till they’re gone (don’t blink!)
Hoffman Center for the Arts
In-person shopping inside the Hoffman
Come meet these happy guys!
What they call you is one thing.
What you answer to is something else.
Lucille Clifton, 1936 – 2010
That night it was her birthday.
We were at the Lighthouse,
a local bar and gathering place.
You were sitting by yourself at
the bar. Not for you and you alone
did I refuse to kiss your angry,
drunken axe, dismiss or ignore
all the times you were wronged,
not heard, demeaned, all the times
you were frightened and confused.
When I came to order at the bar,
what you apparently saw and were
imagining, was not what was actually
there. For your own reasons you were
wanting to hurt, get down, fight.
Full of partying intentions, I was wearing
my favorite old coat, unraveling a bit,
threadbare, and apparently from Bolivia.
When you asked if I was homeless
it was clear you believed I had no
right or reason to be at the bar,
the gathering, or occupy space at all.
It was all very sad and a response was
needed that was not available.
When I answered the fist of your
surprising question, “What are you
homeless,” I could not sanction nor
join yet another confused distraction,
nor support the ignorance that brought
this violence to you that you were now
bringing to me. My factual answer,
“Not at this time.” did not in any way
quiet what was burning in you and the dance
of our random meeting continued in ways
I have now forgotten. Finally someone,
claiming to know each of us, said something
that allowed you to let go, begin to settle back,
release. I was grateful that at on this night,
loathing quieted, no more blood would be lost.
From past experiences I know it can be difficult to debate complex issues without it turning into a contest to pile up the most “reliable” sources; yours are valid, mine are not. This is especially true when an issue is polarized. The only honest way to resolve this is to actually visit the sources and judge the validity of the data.
I suggest we accept that the climate of a whole planet, not just local weather or local phenomena, is a very, very complex, ongoing study. From the earth’s core, through its various layers of “matter”, through its oceans and the oceans of vapors without, all the way through to the exosphere, out to the sun and beyond, it is all connected and interactive. This is a fact, these systems are all interrelated and there are numerous mechanisms that have major influences. These mechanisms are all complex studies by themselves, so assessing all the data to paint a climate picture, requires rare individuals. Some of us do research we are capable of and defer to “experts” to see if our understanding fits into the puzzle. Most of us simply choose a picture we resonate with.
I believe the main point of the movie, CLIMATE: THE MOVIE (The Cold Truth), is
to consider whether or not human activity, specifically anything related to Co2, is causing catastrophic global warming, which in turn results in all the perceived extreme weather phenomena. This is the focus of the movie because there are policies and programs, enacted and supported by governing bodies, both elected and un-elected, being rolled out right now relating to energy, food production and transportation, which will affect every nation on the planet. It would seem to be a foundational question to answer correctly. To be clear, the producers and presenters of the movie are not making any claims that we should continue generating and consuming energy as we are forever, or that we are not polluting our world. They are saying that Co2 is not pollution, although it can be the result of polluting practices, and that the “world” is not overheating. This is an important distinction. They are concerned that the facts are being misconstrued to create fear and panic, making it seems imperative to follow these policy solutions because we are running out of time.
The question is always credentials. Are the experts in the film really experts, published and well received lecturers? Who backs them financially? What about all the graphs? Lots of home work for the interested students and if the sources and records compiled by all those agencies for decades appear to be trustworthy, the big question becomes, why is their narrative so different from what is generally accepted? A critical thinker might want to note whether or not there has been any censorship and if so, why?
What about the credentials of the other experts? What about their charts and graphs? Who finances them? Anyone who was born after 1980, has heard all their life that the planet will warm past livability by, well, that date keeps moving ahead, but it’s coming, unless we stop stomping around with our oversized carbon footprint. The claim is that without question, absolutely, greenhouse gasses are causing the whole world to overheat and we are facing unprecedented loss of habitats, species and life in general. When was this idea first floated through the news and by whom? When was the IPCC, (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), created?, by whom?, and did it function openly without bias or censorship? How do it’s initial computer models match up with all of the actual field data now? More work for the serious student. I can assure you, anything but the Co2, overheating narrative was heavily censored and swept under the ‘big oil’ propaganda rug which is why even suggesting another perspective elicits ‘flat earth’ labels.
We should seriously consider how ideas become generally accepted. We should learn if and how ideas are censored. It’s clearly evident that many ideas have been embraced whole heartedly by this and other nations which later turned out to be very bad for species, habitats and life in general. They were presented to the people as big, bold responses by our government to perceived threats but it turns out the people were misled. Misled as in lied to. Does it come as a surprise that government agencies mislead their people if there are powerful interests to consider, to invest in? I think one must be aware of the hand in glove relationship between powerful agencies and the “press”, to understand how a nation accepts ideas or narratives. It’s true what they say about repeating lies often enough but we aren’t concerned about why people have been misled in this review but rather, do the facts show that they have been.
Two things regarding news and how it can affirm ones belief in anything, must be kept in mind. First, the speed with which it travels now, and second, our devices that receive the news are ubiquitous. Those who own the feeds, especially the major networks have tremendous power to lead a population. There are countless news worthy events occurring endlessly and somebody chooses which events are shared and how. This has always been the case but in 2024 it’s x1000 . A massive array of amplifiers can easily squelch a little bullhorn.
So, climate and judging for oneself what to believe. Following are a few factors affecting our climate which can be learned through research and listening to lectures. These drivers supersede any human activity, and any climatologist that does not include these in their conclusions is suspect.
SUN- The first regular influence in our climate is our sun. Our relationship
is much more than simple radiance, tilt and elliptic. The electromagnetic
interaction penetrates and reacts with our planets circuits at all levels, from
the exosphere down to the core. The sun has cycles. It flips its polarity every
eleven years which alters its spots and holes which influence our climate. We
have four hundred years of records showing the suns electrocardiogram, and how
it affects our world. The other members of our solar family all exhibit cyclical
effects keyed to the sun. How robust the sun is greatly affects rain patterns but
not as one might first think. It’s not only by its radiance or heat output but rather
by its ability to shield us from raw cosmic radiation. A stronger sun
means less turbulence for the planets and more stable weather patterns. A weak sun
and we are battered, which increases cloud formation meaning much more
precipitation in all it’s forms. Radiation storms influence volcanism which in turn
creates more clouds and rain. Cloud cover cools the atmosphere.
CYCLES- There are perturbations, push and pulls within our little solar system which
result in cyclical, predictable changes for our planet. The time between these events
is longer but consistent, like our earthly tides. These events are recorded
all over the planet and our abilities to find and collate these data has increased
exponentially. What we know now compared to 1980 is really worth comparing.
Some of the newest data indicates that there are cyclical waves of energy from the
central “sun” of our galaxy, which sync up with our climate records. To think
our planet does not experience recurring patterns that are as regular as the hours of
our day, the weeks of our year or our decades is to deny the fascinating work done
in only the past thirty or forty years. The research into the ‘Younger Dryas
Event’ is an excellent example of multiple disciplines clarifying our earth’s
History.
EARTHS MAGNETIC FIELD- Our planets magnetic field is in transition. It’s a simple
thing to Google, “ earths magnetic pole movements and the South Atlantic
Anomaly”. You will find that the North Pole is exponentially moving from
it’s location above Canada, where it has been for as long as we have been mapping
it, across the Bearing Sea, towards Northern Siberia. The South Pole is likewise
moving with increased speed towards the north, aiming for the Indian ocean. The
‘ field’ strength in the South Atlantic Anomaly is diminishing as it’s area is
widening. This is happening, and it is having powerful effects on climate as we
we receive Coronal Mass Ejections, (CMEs),
and Coronal hole wind streams of charged particles at earth. Some of that
energy reaches us in minutes and others in a couple days, and the result is
jet streams that normally keep in their expected latitudes turn into
waving ribbons that swoop up over the poles and back down towards the tropics.
This causes unseasonable patterns and extremes. Eelectric signals precurse
earthquakes, something suspected for many years, is now being recognized by
seismologists; another example of the our earth and sun connection.
The major influences above must be factored into any discussion of what drives our planets climate. They are pervasive and overriding, beyond the ability for ‘man’ to control but knowing the cycles will help us prepare for the changes they bring.
HUMAN ACTIVITY- We are undeniably straining our ecosystem. Tearing up and
sucking out what we have chosen to fuel our mad 20th century dash – that’s
when we shifted into higher gears – to control everything and dominate each
other, is looking suicidal. We should reconsider where and how we
build our homes and cities, how we produce food, power, building materials,
manage our forests and water, and above all, the big dot many throughout
the world are beginning to connect, how we treat each other. It would be much
easier to share solutions to our freefall into consumption if we could stop making
war our major business.
Climate is extremely complex. Far to complex to reduce it’s driver to overheating caused by greenhouse gasses alone and yet, we can’t go ten minutes without someone attributing any adverse phenomenon to Co2, which started as global warming, morphed into climate change and is now so critical that drastic measures must be taken by all of humanity because we might already be past the tipping point! It’s like having your home fire alarms all go off at once and you can’t make them stop; very difficult to think clearly!
I don’t think any of the experts presenting their perspectives in this movie deny that climate changes. But none of them think Co2 has much to do with it. The fact that insurance companies are scrambling to cover claims does not prove that Co2 is to blame for whatever disaster struck. Is melting permafrost really unimaginable, never occurred before, ever? Are all the ocean levels rising? Really? We might want to look at the data on that one. Does the fact that PPL is raising its rates to protect the lines from fire prove that Co2 is the cause of wild fires? Perhaps human development has become so widespread, it is the reason we are incurring more disasters. Is Greenland, (all of it!) really melting? Because that’s what it sounds like. How about those Polar bears? Search ‘polar bear populations’ and be surprised. How about south west Antarctica melting; anything to do with subsurface volcanism?
There are so many factors that influence our climate and greenhouse gasses are way down on the list of drivers. Go head and track down the sources presented in the movie and it becomes evident that Co2 is simply not an issue. BUT, why it has been chosen as the vehicle to usher in a raft of radical, net zero policies is the complicated question we should all be looking at.
Various articles on research:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnjozntXnZ4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXvBdwmxT2c
www.sott.net/article/474563-Northern-Hemisphere-snow-cover-is-2nd-highest-in-17-years
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cz45fETw078
www.sott.net/article/469997-Is-Australia-experiencing-a-volcanic-winter
www.sott.net/article/461017-Arctic-sea-ice-extent-currently-second-highest-in-15-years-and-growing
www.sott.net/article/460835-Welcome-to-the-New-Economy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANMTPF1blpQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jHsq36_NTU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJujb-VnaCM
There are plenty more sources out there.
Attachments area
Preview YouTube video Top Facts on Climate Controversy, Fully Explained – See for Yourself!
Preview YouTube video Steven E. Koonin, Ph.D.– What Climate Science Tells Us, What it Doesn’t and Why it Matters.
Preview YouTube video John Christy Climate Change Denial Testimony Highlights May 13
Preview YouTube video Svensmark: The Cloud Mystery
Preview YouTube video The helical model – our solar system is a vortex
Preview YouTube video The Myth of the 97% Consensus
Everything All in One Place
I want to send a shout out to the city staff and leadership for updating the Planning Commission webpage so that a gal without great computer skills can easily find all the information needed in minutes without crying. The page is super easy to use, has everything in one place and lets you know what the real deal is about any of the land use projects going on in town. I have to say it’s a huge improvement from even a few months ago.
I went on the page to look for information about the Heron’s Rest PUD application and was thrilled to be able to see everything that’s been submitted without having to ask anybody for it.
Records requests can be time consuming for city staff and expensive for the city so the more information that’s digitized, the better for everyone.
It’s like a whole new world on the Planning Commission’s page.
If you want to know what’s happening with building in town it’s the place to find out the details. You can see what’s been proposed, whether an application is complete or not, and if it’s been approved.
There are case numbers assigned to each application plus the location of the project in town so you can easily find what you’re looking for and see all the materials that have been submitted by clicking on each link. You can also see archived PC meetings for the approved applications.
There are clearly written instructions for providing public comment in writing or at a meeting so that your comments are on the record. Letters of public comment are uploaded into the files in intervals as they come in by Scott and Chris until the public hearing for the application closes.
All these changes make it easy for everyone with access to a computer to do their own research and get the facts straight from the source. Commenting on a project couldn’t be easier. Check it out!
ci.manzanita.or.us/planning-commission/
Kim Rosenberg loretta.kim.rosenberg@gmail.com