CITY MANAGER'S NEWSLETTER
City of Bandon
NEWSLETTER June 2013
This newsletter is an informal report by City Manager Matt Winkel on the news, issues, and other items of interest from the City of Bandon. It will normally be posted once each month (on the Friday following the City Council meeting) on the City's WEB Page at www.ci.bandon.or.us, (click on "City Hall") and will be e-mailed directly to all subscribers. Subscribers will also receive copies of City Council, Planning Commission, Parks & Recreation Commission, Committee for Citizen Involvement, and Water Resource Committee agendas via e-mail in advance of each meeting.
To subscribe or un-subscribe, or if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please e-mail to citymanager@ci.bandon.or.us. Your e-mail address will be kept confidential and not distributed or used for any purposes other than e-mail communications with the City of Bandon.
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL PROMOTION PLAN AND BUDGET APPROVED
The Bandon Chamber of Commerce presented their fiscal year 2013-2014 Annual Operations and Promotion Plan and Budget to the City Council at their May 6th meeting. The City annually allocates 20.7% of its transient occupancy tax (TOT) receipts to tourism promotion as required by Oregon Revised Statutes. In accordance with the Agreement between the City and the Chamber of Commerce, the City has for the past several years contributed that share of its transient occupancy tax (TOT) revenues to the Chamber for them to operate the City Visitor Center and undertake tourism promotion activities on behalf of the City. The fiscal year 2013-2014 TOT tourism promotion allocation is $77,857.00. After reviewing and discussing the proposed plan and budget, the City Council approved them by a vote of 5-1, with Councilors Claassen, Hundhausen, Powell, Procetto, and Vick voting in favor and Councilor Drew opposed.
PUMP TRACK AND DISK GOLF IMPROVEMENTS PLANNED FOR CITY PARK
You may soon notice large amounts of soil being placed in City Park adjacent to the old skateboard park. The Parks & Recreation Commission has approved a concept plan to convert the existing BMX track into a "pump track." Pump tracks are closed-circuit bicycle tracks contoured in soil to form "rollers," "mounds," and "berms." They are designed to be ridden without pedaling to provide a full-body workout. Riders use their bodies to pump (or push down) into the dips and pull up before the crest of each mound throughout the continuous loop. The project is being undertaken with the help of volunteers and donations. The Commission received a commitment from Gary and Karen Gant to donate the needed soil. Equipment and construction work will be provided by Tony and Troy Russell with additional help from the Public Works Department. Construction of the pump track is scheduled to take place in June.
The Parks & Recreation Commission is also seeking volunteers to help with construction of several more disc golf tee boxes. Commissioners Troy Russell and Donny Goddard have completed three, but six more still need to be installed. The Commission hopes to complete the project this summer. If you are interested in volunteering for either the pump track or disc golf tee box project, please contact City Planner Michelle Hampton at 541-347-2437, e-mail mhampton@ci.bandon.or.us.
PUBLIC RESTROOM UTILITIES AND TRASH CAN MAINTENANCE COSTS
Until now, the water, sewer, and electric costs for the City's public restrooms at City Park and South Jetty Park have been charged to the Parks & Recreation budget in the General Fund. The Port of Bandon currently pays for utilities at the public restrooms in Old Town. Last year's annual utility costs for the public restrooms were $869.26 at City Park, $2,055.36 at South Jetty Park, and $2,677.44 at the Port restrooms. Based on anticipated use, it is projected that the utility cost at the new, much larger public restrooms adjacent to the Face Rock Creamery will be in the range of $3,000-$4,000 per year. To reduce the burden on the already limited Parks & Recreation budget, and to spread the utility costs out as much as possible, the City Council decided that the public restroom utility costs should be incorporated directly into the water, sewer, and electric utility funds as a service provided by those utilities, with Councilors Drew, Hundhausen, Powell, Procetto, and Vick voting in favor, and Councilor Claassen opposed. This will be similar to the provision of street lighting by the electric utility and the provision of fire-fighting water by the water utility.
Daily maintenance and cleaning the City Park and South Jetty Park restrooms are the responsibility of the park hosts. The City provides the supplies, while the park hosts do the cleaning, trash removal, and other maintenance tasks in exchange for a rent-free RV space and utilities. Under the lease agreement with the Face Rock Creamery, daily supplies and cleaning costs for the new public restrooms adjacent to the cheese factory will be the responsibility of Face Rock Creamery. Since they are brand new, the amount of these costs is not yet known. However, the Port of Bandon estimates that the cost of those items at the Old Town restrooms is in the range of $25,000 per year. Anticipating even greater visitation at the new and larger City public restrooms, it is projected that the value of the services provided by Face Rock Creamery will exceed that amount.
Through an informal agreement, the Port of Bandon empties the various public trash receptacles throughout Old Town in return for using a City dumpster for disposing the trash from their own public trash receptacles. The City dumpster is furnished by Bandon Disposal through the garbage franchise at no cost to the City. The City and the Port are negotiating an expanded agreement under which the Port would provide and maintain additional public trash cans in exchange for incorporating the Port's public restroom utility costs into the utility systems. This would save the Port money, and would reduce the City's costs for providing additional trash receptacles. Although these combined costs are individually significant for the City Parks & Recreation and the Port budgets, spreading the expenses among the utilities would reduce the impacts on any one budget, and would save the City money if additional public trash receptacles and maintenance was provided by the Port.
LAW ENFORCEMENT TORCH RUN T-SHIRTS FOR SALE
The Bandon Police Department is selling Law Enforcement Torch Run t-shirts, with all proceeds going to Special Olympics! This is the 32nd anniversary of the Law Enforcement Torch Run. In 1981, the torch run was started in Wichita, Kansas when Chief Richard La Munyon recognized the need to increase awareness about Special Olympics. Over the last 30 years, that movement has spread worldwide and has raised over $415 million in its 32 year history. Last year over $43 million was raised, with over $750,000 coming from Oregon alone.
The 2013 Law Enforcement Torch Run t-shirts can be purchased for only $10 each at the Bandon Police Department, or you can contact Sarah Lakey, Office Specialist, at 541-347-2241, or e-mail slakey12@ci.bandon.or.us. Where else can you get a great looking Nike t-shirt for only $10 while helping the Oregon Special Olympics at the same time?!
PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED VACATION RENTAL DWELLING (VRD) REGULATIONS
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on June 27, 2013, at 7:00 P.M., in the City Council Chambers at City Hall, 555 Highway 101, Bandon, Oregon, regarding the potential adoption of amendments to the Vacation Rental Dwellings (VRD) regulations in the Bandon Municipal Code. VRD's are currently allowed only in the CD-1, CD-2, and C-3 zones. The proposed amendments would expand the areas in which VRD's are allowed to also include the CD-3, CD-R1, and CD-R2 zones. The proposed regulations would eliminate the existing limits on the number of VRD's allowed in those zones (currently a maximum of 30% of the dwellings on properties within 250 feet of a proposed VRD property line may be used as VRD's), and would make other amendments to the regulations. Additional changes to the proposed regulations may be made at or after the public hearing.
The proposed ordinance is available for inspection at the Bandon City Hall, a copy of which may be purchased for $1.00. On or before June 1st, the document will also be posted on the City of Bandon website at www.ci.bandon.or.us (click on "Public Notices," then "Planning Commission Notices"). For additional information or to submit testimony, please contact Charli Davis, City Planner, at City Hall, P.O. Box 67, Bandon, OR, 97411; telephone 541-347-2437, ext. 230; Fax 541-347-1415; or email cdavis06@ci.bandon.or.us.
JUNE MEETING SCHEDULE
City Council Regular Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 3 at 7:00 PM*
Planning Commission Workshop . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 6 at 7:00 PM*
Parks & Recreation Commission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 13 at 5:30 PM*
Planning Commission Regular Meeting . . . . . . . . June 27 at 7:00 PM*
Committee for Citizen Involvement . . . . . . . . . . . None Scheduled.
Community Center Advisory Committee . . . . . . . None Scheduled.
Water Resource Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . None Scheduled.
Municipal Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . None Scheduled.
Development Review Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Every Monday (Tuesday following a Monday holiday) at 10:00 AM*
* Meetings held in City Council Chambers
ANYTHING ELSE?
Do you have any questions, input, or suggestions? Are there any topics you want addressed or covered in the Newsletter? If so, please let me know at citymanager(at)ci.bandon.or.us. For more complex questions or issues that may take significant discussion, please feel free to contact me by telephone at (541) 347-2437, voice mail ext. 229, so we can schedule an appointment.
Also, remember to visit the City of Bandon WEB page, where you can get more information on this wonderful place in which we live.
