Monday Mailing
Year 22 • Issue 9 16 November 2016 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
Quote of the Week: “To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity.” --Douglas Adams Oregon Fast Fact: In Oregon it is illegal to use canned corn as fish bait
Landmark Klamath Basin Water Agreement Is on Verge of Collapse Governor Intervenes on Nestlé Water Transfer Wood Works Regional Solutions Gives Sisters a Boost Oregon’s Kitchen Table 380-Acre Industrial Parcel In Scappoose Would Help City 'Explode and Grow' FEAST Webinar: Oregon Farm to School, Nov. 18, 10:30-11:45 a.m. PST How Should Park Needs be Measured? Navigate And Search The Real World… Online or Off A Seismic Shift in How People Eat U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit
1. Landmark Klamath Basin Water Agreement Is on Verge of Collapse On July 14, 2001, pulses quickened in Oregon’s Klamath River Basin when unarmed U.S. marshals were summoned to stand guard over irrigation water gates that until that day had never needed such protection. In defiance of federal orders, protesters sympathetic to farmers opened the gates with cutting torches and chainsaws to release water into canals that watered alfalfa and potato fields. The crowd of more than 100 protesters objected to the federal Bureau of Reclamation’s decision to drastically reduce irrigation deliveries from Upper Klamath Lake. In a drought year, there was not enough water to meet all demands. At the same time, environmental groups and Indian tribes were beginning to advocate for the removal of four hydropower dams downstream to boost salmon runs. If approved, it would be the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. To access the full story, click here. 2. Governor Intervenes on Nestlé Water Transfer Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has intervened on the cross water rights transfer that would make possible Nestlé’s proposed water bottling plant in Cascade Locks. Brown sent letters to the directors of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Oregon Water Resources Department Friday, Nov. 6, requesting the agencies withdraw ODFW’s joint water rights transfer application with the City of Cascade Locks and instead switch back to a direct water exchange (the former approach taken between the city and ODFW) which would require a more extensive public interest review. To access the full story, click here.
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3. Wood Works First things first. This wooden 12-story tower they want to build in the Pearl District: Will it burn down or fall over? No, says Thomas Robinson, principal and founder of Lever Architecture in, who is on the forefront of working with cross laminated timber (CLT). Wood of this thickness can resist fire for two hours. And the structure will have inbuilt “fuses” or metal joints that can bend and absorb the shock of a big earthquake, then be replaced with new ones. The tower, called Framework, will be built starting October 2016 and finished in 2017, at 430 N.W. 10th Ave. The landowner, Beneficial Bank Corp, will have its offices there, and a branch of Albina Community Bank (which it owns) at street level. The building will have spec offices and small, affordable housing units owned and managed by the housing authority Home Forward. To access the full story, click here. 4. Regional Solutions Gives Sisters a Boost Representatives of Sisters presented updates to the committee of issues facing Sisters, what is being done to address them, and the kind of assistance needed. Caprielle Foote-Lewis, Sisters EDCO representative, reported on her efforts working to attract new businesses to Sisters. She highlighted the low inventory of land and buildings at the right price that are needed to attract business to town. She expressed her appreciation to Oregon Department of Transportation and the Infrastructure Finance Authority for assisting the City with the new sewer/water/road improvements that will help attract businesses to the industrial area of Sisters. Lewis would like the citizens of Sisters to know how helpful it is, with Regional Solutions, to bring state agencies and philanthropic resources together with representatives of the City in one place to discuss local needs and possible resources. She sees this as a good example of "state agencies working for you." To access the full story, click here. 5. Oregon’s Kitchen Table Oregon’s Kitchen Table is a way to bring all Oregonians to the table. It is the creation of a group of non-partisan, non-profit community organizations dedicated to helping Oregonians have a voice - to share their ideas, opinions, beliefs, and resources in improving Oregon and our communities. Oregon’s Kitchen Table strives to:
Create simple, easy-to-use platforms (online and in person) for statewide public engagement Promote in-depth public engagement with the tough trade-offs and challenges decision makers confront in governing our state Provide leaders with high-quality feedback on issues that matter to Oregonians Increase Oregonians’ interest in participating in local, regional, and statewide decision making Empower citizens and decision-makers to communicate and work together in a fact-based, civil, and creative way
For more information about Oregon’s Kitchen Table, click here.
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6. 380-Acre Industrial Parcel In Scappoose Would Help City 'Explode and Grow' A 380-acre plot of proposed industrial land that Scappoose has been trying to add to its urban growth boundary since 2011 leaped an important hurdle toward development last month. The Oregon Court of Appeals upheld a land-use decision allowing the property, located northeast of the city near the Scappoose Industrial Airpark, to be developed. It's "one of the larger industrial sites in the [Portland] region," said City Manager Michael Sykes. Scott Burge, who has been mayor of Scappoose for nearly nine years, said the addition of the industrial land is the most significant development in his tenure. To access the full story, click here. 7.
FEAST Webinar: Oregon Farm to School, Nov. 18, 10:30-11:45 a.m. PST There are still spots open in the upcoming Farm to School Webinar. Our speakers are the experts of Farm to School in the state and will be covering a breadth of information on how to start or support a Farm to School program in your community. Want to increase local food purchasing in your local schools? In this webinar you'll learn Farm to School basics, including finding, buying, safety requirements, educational activities, and grants available in Oregon. AGENDA Introduction to farm to school & resources Finding and buying local foods Food safety requirements and resources for growers Food safety for produce from gardens to cafeterias Educational programs Oregon Farm to School Grants Q&A SPEAKERS Megan Kemple, Oregon State Lead for the National Farm to School Network Rick Sherman, Farm to School & School Garden Coordinator for the Oregon Department of Education Amy Gilroy, Farm to School Manager for the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Register at: http://goo.gl/forms/Za7dk3fXnN.
8. How Should Park Needs be Measured? How should we determine the park needs of communities? How do we figure out whether a city is park-rich or park-poor? Traditionally, park need is measured by the amount of parkland in a city per 1,000 residents and then compared to some standard or goal. For example, if you take a look at the Parks and Recreation Elements of General Plans for most cities in California, you will find a standard or goal for parkland expressed in terms of X acres per 1,000 residents. Recently, I read an article in Builder which identifies the top ten cities in the U.S. with the most park acreage per 1,000 households. By using the number of households instead of residents, this measure is different from what I am used to seeing, but it is still based on the same idea of determining the level of park need based on the amount of parkland. While it is certainly important to know how much parkland a community has, I suggest that we take a closer look at what the acreage means or includes and consider four additional park metrics as well
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To access the full story, click here. 9. Navigate And Search The Real World… Online or Off Roughly 60 percent of the world is without Internet today, and even where online access is available, it can still be spotty. That means that quick and easy access to information is still not possible for a majority of the population. This is a huge problem, especially as people attempt to navigate and explore the world around them, so Google Maps is taking steps to help people across the globe find directions and get where they’re going, even when they don’t have an Internet connection. Now you can download an area of the world to your phone, and the next time you find there’s no connectivity—whether it’s a country road or an underground parking garage—Google Maps will continue to work seamlessly. Whereas before you could simply view an area of the map offline, now you can get turn-by-turn driving directions, search for specific destinations, and find useful information about places, like hours of operation, contact information or ratings. To access the full story, click here. 10. A Seismic Shift in How People Eat IT’S easy to make fun of people in big cities for their obsession with gluten, or chia seeds, or cleanses. But urbanites are not the only ones turning away from the products created by big food companies. Eating habits are changing across the country and food companies are struggling to keep up. General Mills will drop all artificial colors and flavors from its cereals. Perdue, Tyson and Foster Farm have begun to limit the use of antibiotics in their chicken. Kraft declared it was dropping artificial dyes from its macaroni and cheese. Hershey’s will begin to move away from ingredients such as the emulsifier polyglycerol polyricinoleate to “simple and easy-to-understand ingredients” like “fresh milk from local farms, roasted California almonds, cocoa beans and sugar.” To access the full story, click here. 11. U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit Individuals, businesses and communities can respond to the challenges of our changing climate. This framework can guide you through the process of planning and implementing resilience-building projects. To access the toolkit, click here.
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