Author: North Coast BBQ

Submitted By: codger817@gmail.com – Click to email about this post

Perhaps I’ve grown a little too emotional, but I’ve been thinking about TCTD (Tillamook County Transportation District) morning and night.
Sometime in the Spring of 2023, a woman joined in on of one of our TillCoDems sessions and said that somebody should run for Transportation District Board in the upcoming special election. I really knew nothing about the functions of the Transportation District Board, but I knew what a bus was. I did not want the position to fall to a Republican by default. So I paid my $10 and registered to contest for Position 1, which was the only position that was just a 2 year term. I liked the idea of having the option of an early exit.
I did not have the money to invest in signs and mailings, so I decided to just talk to people. I made myself a crude “Vote for Me” badge and cards with the same message and I began my campaign.
I started by riding buses, thinking I should learn about what the district does. I felt an instant kinship with the drivers. I pledged to become a voice for the drivers on the board. It wasn’t a reasoned strategic decision; it was just what my heart told me to do.
I won my election. I think I was helped immensely by the fact my opponent was simultaneously contesting in four elections.
The board welcomed me and I found I had a lot to learn. In the campaign, I saw people who promised to make sweeping changes in the District if they were elected. The board doesn’t work that way. First off, there are seven directors. Nothing happens unless a majority agrees. The prime duty of the board is to set and oversee the budget.
TCTD operates with a budget of 5+ million dollars a year. About 2% of that money comes from county property taxes (My house is assessed at $142,820 and I pay $28.57 per year to support the District)., but the bulk of the revenue comes from STIF (State Transportation Improvement Fund) grants. I never really understood the budget. Thankfully, the rest of the board did, because of years of experience on the board and by their professional backgrounds. Day-to-day operation is left to management and the board is not expected to interfere.
From outward appearances, things were working very well. Then one day last month, four of the “Town Loop” routes were abruptly cancelled because of a “driver shortage”. At the board meeting in March, management put on their sad faces and bemoaned the lack of drivers. In April three more routes were cancelled.
It confused me. The District just approved a generous contract for drivers, dispatchers, and mechanics. Working for the District is a well-paying union job with guaranteed raises and good health benefits for full-time employees. There are also part-time positions with no benefits but flexible schedules.
I decided to talk to drivers about their views on the root causes of the shortage. I started riding buses seeking information. The drivers were very professional about not talking about the District in the presence of patrons. I passed out cards with my e-mail and phone number and waited for responses.
I was not prepared for the response I got. I talked to a dozen people, current drivers, and ex-drivers. I also sought advice and background from people outside the District. All the current and ex-employees sang the same song. They all said they loved being a bus driver or dispatcher and were proud to serve the community. All but one, said the methods and messaging of the superintendent drove them away. All said they would return if they did not have to deal with the superintendent.
Each of my conversations lasted more than 45 minutes. Once they knew they had a sympathetic ear they just let go. I learned that the battery on my hand-held extension will not last for an hour and half.
My viewpoint might be flawed, because all I’ve ever been is an employee. I appreciate that management is a delicate balance between being a disciplinarian and a friend. I do know that when I worked for bosses who erred on the side of discipline, I tended to expend minimal effort and look for an early escape. I am very thankful that in my last 15 years at the cheese factory, my bosses struck the right balance, and it made me love my job and I expended maximum effort. I might be there still, but the physical demands of the job broke me down.
I’ve been told I should discount what I heard as “hearsay”. That’s true, but when they all agree and speak in such length, I tend to give it credence.
I’ve also been told I have exceeded the bounds of being a good board member. I guess that’s true.
In my mind, it came down to a choice between being a good board member and retaining my First Amendment rights to speak freely. I will always choose the Constitution. Therefore, I resigned from my position on the board.
From now on, I plan to serve the district as a self-appointed, unofficial Ombudsman. I have not lost my love for the District and its mission.
Truly, there is a nationwide labor shortage. Covid, boomers aging out of the work force and our irrational fear of immigration have created it.
I am not advocating that anybody gets fired for erring on the side of discipline. They are good at most aspects of their jobs and it would not be easy to replace them. They just aren’t good at serving the needs of their employees. I think they’re smart and can learn new ways of doing things.
Yes, there is a horrible driver shortage at TCTD, but it is a self-inflicted wound.

Submitted By: astoriaartloft@gmail.com – Click to email about this post

“A Different View” exhibiting award winning fiber art at the Astoria Art Loft in April. The High Fiber Diet Group’s juried traveling exhibit. astoriaartloft.com for times and location.

Submitted By: ben.killen.rosenberg@gmail.com – Click to email about this post

Posting on behalf of Kim Rosenberg loretta.kim.rosenberg@gmail.com
Lessons From the Lot

If you’d have told me when we moved here fulltime in 2020 that I’d be supporting Heron’s Rest, a planned unit development on the 3rd Street lot that neighbors and I opposed in 2017, I would’ve wondered what you were smoking.

In the four years since I started writing these posts, I’ve learned something about Oregon land use goals and laws, city and county ordinances, and the rules and processes of municipal government. As I’ve learned, my perspective has changed as perspectives will do when wishful thinking runs into reality.

What I’ve learned is that the rules are the rules and if we don’t like how they work, we can change them but it’s going to take more people than just us and it’s going to take time—a lot of time—to get it done. And because we live in communities with other people it’s also going to take discussions with folks who hold different opinions and have different perspectives, ideas, and agendas. Some of those discussions will be difficult but ultimately worthwhile. None of us are going to get everything we want and that’s where compromise comes in.

In the summer of 2020, I discovered the new owner of the 3rd Street lot, Nate Palmer, had an application for a wetland delineation with the Department of State Lands. The first iteration of a plan for development had been denied in 2017. Neighbors who were in opposition to that plan (including my husband and I) believed that since it was denied, it was over, but when people buy property they have a right to use that property for whatever is allowed in the zone where it’s located, as long as they follow the ordinances.

I was angry about the clearcutting that happened back in December of 2016 before the lot was sold. It was designated Open Space land. There were supposed to be permits, an arborists report, a tree replanting plan and a wetland delineation before the previous owner could clearcut but none of those documents existed because none of those things happened. Nothing is easier to blame than the government or developers when you’re mad and what was supposed to happen just didn’t.

Scott Imholt, the builder for the 3rd Street project, responded to a misguided post I’d written. I replied. We met up at the lot on a freezing cold day and he listened to my frustrations, my conspiracy theories and how genuinely sad I was. I listened to him explain the stuff I didn’t understand about land use and ordinances.

What I remember from that first conversation was him saying, things change and change is hard.

Of course, I know the truth of that but like most people I don’t want what I love to end. I loved that piece of forest in the center of town. It felt like someone I loved died.

My first conversation with Scott led to more conversations about the lot and their proposed development and how to make it not suck for me and my neighbors.

Well, it doesn’t suck.
Scott and Nate met with us more than once and have communicated with us throughout the process. We’ve seen numerous iterations of their plan as they worked through the design to get to where it is now. They’ve been responsive to our concerns. They’ve addressed stuff like blowing sand in the summer and standing water in the winter. Their development has changed shape and their architect, Jim Fanjoy has designed a development with treed green space and wildlife pass throughs in the fencing. All the houses are small at 650 square feet with one or two bedrooms. Only 11 of them are two-level garage units. Fifteen of the units are single level with shared parking which will attract people who want to be in walking distance to town and the beach. The single level homes will back the existing single level homes, so my neighbors will maintain their privacy. A one way punch through from 3rd to Hallie will contain the parking within the development. They’ve listened and responded to us. And they’ve followed the ordinances we have to a T.

People buying these homes will be choosing a small home with shared parking in a walkable neighborhood. Maybe, like Classic Cottages more fulltime people will choose to relocate here. The traffic study that was done over the summer supports fewer parking spaces which will allow more trees, more permeable surface area and more green space. The homes will fit in with the existing surrounding neighborhood. We’ll still see Neahkahnie and not a skyline of big houses looming over Laneda.

We’re all responsible for the world we’ve created. The “government” that we seem to love to hate are just a bunch of regular people doing the jobs that keep things running. If we want to change things, we’re going to have to follow the rules we have and collaborate and compromise with other people to do it.

And developers? They’re the people who create jobs and build homes and businesses in communities. Palmer and Imholt have developed work force housing in Bay City, and now they want to build a neighborhood of small homes in the center of Manzanita. I believe they love this place and want to make something good happen.

It’s easy to blame other people when things don’t go the way I want them to. It’s easy to have an agenda when I’m angry about something and holding on tight to that anger. And creating a conspiracy when I don’t know all the facts about something or don’t want to accept them is crazy easy.

In a recent email to me, Nate wrote, “Great things happen when people from different backgrounds work together with good intentions!”

Yes, they can, and they do!

To see the application and materials check out the Planning Commission webpage.
ci.manzanita.or.us/240001-s-3rd-hallie-ln/

To submit a written comment as part of the public record please reference application number 24001 Heron’s Rest.
ci.manzanita.or.us/planning-commission/

Kim Rosenberg loretta.kim.rosenberg@gmail.com