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Bend Chamber
Weekly
June 19, 2009
By Courtney Linville, Communications Coordinator
This Week's
Highlights
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Sewer and Water fees to increase, council splits on
street fees
Residents and businesses will see an increase in
their water and sewer fees after a 4-2 decision by
the Bend City Council on Wednesday evening.
Water rates will increase by an average of 8.25 percent
and sewer fees will increase by 14.5 percent.
Councilors agreed they didn’t want to increase the
fees, but saw no other way around the need to update
aging infrastructure, fund federal and state
mandates, update and expand treatment facilities,
etc.
“I hate to go with any fees,” said Councilor Tom
Greene. “The sewer plant is at capacity. We need
water and sewer rate increases to build up capacity
so when the economy does turn around we are ready
for business, to promote business, and create
opportunity here. At this point, I see it more as
job creation and necessity.”
However, Councilors Jeff Eager and Jim Clinton were
strongly opposed to the fee increases. Eager stated
he didn’t disagree with the fact that the city needs
to make infrastructure improvements, but the city
does have problems in performing tasks in “a cost
effective way which relates to personnel costs.” He
said residents and businesses should not have to pay
a higher rate for water and sewer until the city has
resolved some of the exorbitant costs like health
insurance benefits.
Clinton stated he wouldn’t support the fee increases
because the rate structure is unfair and doesn’t
charge people for what they use. “Until the city
looks at more rate reform on water and sewer,
especially sewer … I will have to not support the
fee increases for water and sewer,” he said.
City Manager Eric King told councilors staff will
continue to look for strategies to avoid increases
year after year and will come back with an overall
financial strategy.
Councilor Oran Teater said he would only be supportive
of the fee increases for one year with the assurance
the city will look at other funding mechanisms. “I’m
not happy about this,” he said. “If a year from now
(we) haven’t come up with any alternatives, next
time my vote will be no.”
Mayor Kathie Eckman was not present at the meeting.
Earlier in the evening during the work session, the
council split 3-3 on the decision to institute a
street maintenance fee (transportation utility fee).
The proposed fee would be attached to residents' and
business' utility bills.
Originally, the city was looking to fill a gap of
almost $2.8 million for street maintenance work.
With the state increasing registration, title,
license fees, and the gas tax, the city will receive
additional revenue for street maintenance. Including
the increased revenue, the current figures show the
city has a $600,000 funding gap.
The recommendation from the Street Maintenance Funding
Focus Group is to charge residents $1 to $2 per
month and commercial properties $4 to $6 per month.
Councilors agreed maintenance to the streets was
important, but were divided if now was the right
time to include yet another fee. Greene and Eager
stated they would not support a transportation
utility fee because residents don’t need to be hit
with even more fees in this recession. Clinton
said he objected to the fee because it would
charge people who don’t use the city’s roads the
same amount as those heavy users.
“I think we need to be sensitive to the plight of
people who pay fees and taxes and rates in our
city,” Eager said. “Seventy-two dollars per year for
a lot of businesses right now is going to be hard,
$24 for a lot of residents is going to be hard.”
Councilors Jodie Barram, Mark Capell, and Oran Teater
stated while they don’t like raising fees, they
would agree to the fee increase because the city
needs to keep up with much needed maintenance.
“It just makes good sense to do this,” said Capell.
“You have to make a business decision that says, ‘Do
we pay a little bit now or do we pay a lot four
years from now? This small increase is more
palatable today than what we would do some years
from now.”
Due to the division, council will have to wait for
Eckman to weigh in on the issue on July 1. The
council will be presented with the ordinance to
implement the fee at that meeting. If the street
maintenance fee is approved, it would have a
September 1 implementation date. However, if it’s
not approved, there would be more budget cuts.
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City Council
Highlights
City Council to look at
banning open debris burning: In a strange
twist of events on Wednesday evening, the Bend City
Council agreed not to go forward with a proposal
that would increase open debris burning days from 2
to 4. However, the council did have a discussion
about bringing forth an ordinance that would
completely ban outdoor burning. “I would support an
out right ban, given all the resources we have for
yard debris removal,” said Councilor Jodie Barram.
“We are getting to be a larger city, and that trend
is not reversing.” City staff will come forward with
a proposal for a complete ban at a future meeting.
Council divides on room-tax
exemption: In its second reading, the
council remained divided over an exemption from the
room-tax ordinance for lodging facilities that serve
food to guests. Many hotel owners in the area say
getting rid of the exemption would not allow them to
be competitive in the market and they would lose
revenue. City officials believe it would be better
to remove the exemption and bring the code in line with
the state requirements. The city currently provides an
allowance of ten dollars per person per meal to be
deducted in the calculation of the transient room
tax. Visit Bend supports the exemption removal,
saying it shouldn’t “create a competitive
disadvantage.” Councilors Jodie Barram, Mark Capell
and Jim Clinton were in favor of removing the
exemption, while Councilors Jeff Eager, Tom Greene,
and Oran Teater opposed it. The ordinance will come
back to council again on July 15, with the exemption
based on $10 per room.
City of Bend Employee
Association forgoes cost of living increase:
The Council unanimously approved to change the
agreement with the City of Bend Employee
Association. The association will forgo its 2
percent cost of living salary increase for this
year, but will be eligible for the increase in the
2010-2011 fiscal year. All the councilors stated
they were glad the association agreed to the change.
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Leadership Bend Applications for Class of 2010 now
available
"Leadership should be born out of the understanding
of the needs of those who would be affected by it."
–Marian Anderson
"Leadership is practiced not so much in words as
attitude and in actions." – Harold Geneen
Are you interested in becoming more involved in the
community? How much do you really know about Bend?
Do you have any interest in developing your
leadership abilities? Would you like to connect with
other committed citizens within the community?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions,
Leadership Bend could be the right fit for you.
Leadership Bend is a nine-month program that invests
in leadership and community awareness. During the
nine full-day sessions, participants work with local
leaders to create awareness and understanding about
challenges facing Bend and Central Oregon.
Leadership Bend is also a great way to connect with
other individuals who are committed to the local
community and investing in the future.
The Leadership Bend Class of 2010 is now accepting
applications. If you are interested in learning more
about the program or receiving an application,
contact Leadership Bend Executive Director Gayle
Najera at 382-3221 or
gayle@bendchamber.org.
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New record set for Oregon’s unemployment rate
The State Employment Department announced this week
that Oregon’s unemployment rate has reached a new
record high of 12.4 percent for the month of May.
The previous record was set in November 1982 with a
12.1 percent rate. Last year at this time, the state
unemployment rate was 5.7 percent.
The department did report some good news. In its
release the department said, “May employment figures
were by far the smallest job loss of any month over
the past 10 months."
Governor Ted Kulongoski said the employment numbers
only reaffirm there are Oregonians that are out of
work who need a job.
“To that end, I urge the legislature to pass the
Emergency Jobs and Training Act I introduced last
week – which will create thousands of jobs this
summer and help Oregonians improve their skills
through training programs and post-secondary
education opportunities,” he said. “The legislature
has already passed a monumental transportation
package, which coupled with federal investments,
will support more than 7000 jobs statewide, and
thousands of more jobs will be created through
strategic investments in capital construction
projects under consideration by the legislature
right now.”
Kulongoski also stated he is glad to see the
legislature working for Oregon’s long-term success
after the state recovers from the recession.
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Free Professional Development Morning Sessions
One of the
goals of the Bend Chamber is to help its members by
offering great educational opportunities that will
assist them with the continued success of their
business. We understand education is more
important than ever and the Professional Development
Morning Series is once again being offered as a FREE
benefit to help our members through this difficult
economy. This is a great way to gain knowledge and
insight on tools businesses can use every day.
Employers and employees should join the Bend Chamber
Professional Development Series on the 2nd Tuesday
of each month at 7:00 a.m. Yes, it’s early, but
coffee and breakfast treats are provided by
DiLusso’s Bakery Café. Take advantage of a wide
range of topics including sales, marketing,
accounting, PR, customer service, HR, and so much
more. Our speakers and panels are always
experienced, dynamic professionals who are willing
to share their secrets to success.
Also, if you are interested in seeing your business
name on all Professional Development Series material
and promotions, please contact Ann Gates at
ann@bendchamber.org or call 382-3221.
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Looking for help? Get feedback from fellow
entrepreneurs
Are you looking at a new product line or a new business
plan? How about a new advertising slogan? Is your
marketing effective or are there things you can
improve on?
Sign up to be a presenter at the Entrepreneurial
Council's Peer Feedback Workshop. This is a great
opportunity for you to express any challenges you
might be facing and presenters receive honest
feedback and constructive criticism about their
presentation from other entrepreneurs in the
audience.
Now is a great time to make sure your message is
getting through to your customers. The Peer Feedback
sessions are usually on the 2nd Friday of each
month. They are free to attend, and extremely
helpful to all involved.
If you are interested in signing up, contact Lindi
DeWolf at
lindi@bendchamber.org or call 382-3221.
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In
the News
Oregon Senate rejects pay
increases for elected officials: On
Wednesday, the Oregon State Senate unanimously
approved a measure that will freeze the salaries of
lawmakers and other elected state officials. The
legislative salary increases had been recommended by
the Public Officials Compensation Commission. “Just
like families across Oregon, the Legislative
Assembly is tightening its belt. We will be reducing
our budget and finding more efficient ways to
continue providing the representation and
responsiveness Oregonians have come to expect from
their elected leaders,” said Senate President Peter
Courtney (D-Salem/Gervais/Woodburn) in a recent
release. Currently, Oregon Legislators who are not
in a leadership office make $21,592 annually. In
November, the Public Officials Compensation
Commission had recommended a salary increase to
$25,200. Senate Bill 778 will now go to the House of
Representatives.
Bob Thomas Testifies on GM
loss: Last Friday, Bob Thomas, owner of
Bob Thomas Chevrolet-Cadillac, testified in front of
the House Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations about the closing of GM and Chrysler
dealerships. Here are some excerpts from Thomas’s
testimony: “We have BEEN GM to our community. Now,
it is a dark time when GM must abandon our town, our
region, and us. Just as GM is an icon, WE enjoy
iconic status in our region --- always there, always
helpful and compassionate, always acting
responsibly. The letters we garnered in support to
our appeal to GM were humbling in their appreciation
of our caliber and quality of service and community
support. Moreover, there was confusion as to why
Bend, now 80,000 strong will be abandoned as will
we, their dealer of choice, the largest GM
dealership in Central/Eastern Oregon… Who benefits
from this taking, this cancellation that is so
unnecessary, so wrong, so wrongly executed? Not GM.
Having no dealers in Bend will not increase GM
sales. Not the 216,000 people in our region who are
left solely with a small GM dealer in a tiny town at
its perimeter, with limited inventory and repair
capacity… What I would hope for in such a dire
strait would be a request of REASON. Allow us to
provide support for those GM customers in our region
and relieve us of the inventory obligations we
incurred in good faith by repurchasing at what we
paid. This is a small price to pay for potentially
depriving a long and faithful associate of its
livelihood.”
More Internet users turn to
social media: According to a new report
from The Conference Board, close to half of Internet
users take part in some form of social media. The
Conference Board states of users, 43 percent now use
a social networking site like Facebook, MySpace, or
LinkedIn. This number is up from 27 percent last
year. The most popular site used is Facebook,
followed by MySpace, LinkedIn, and Twitter. “Online
social networks are more than just a fad among the
younger generation,” said Lynn Franco, director of
the Conference Board Consumer Research Center.
“They’ve become an integral part of our personal and
professional lives. They’re an effective way to keep
in touch with people, connect with friends and
family, and network with colleagues.” The report
tracked over 10,000 households nationwide.
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