CITY MANAGER’S NEWSLETTER
October 12, 2007
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, and will be e-mailed directly to all subscribers. Subscribers will also receive copies of City Council, Planning Commission, Parks & Recreation Commission, Architectural Review Board, 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 addresses will be kept confidential and not distributed or used for any purposes other than e-mail communications with the City of Bandon.
FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE
- Committee And Commission Appointments
- Riparian Corridor Protection Regulations
- City Leases The Old Cheese Factory Property For Public Parking
- Compliance Requirements Of Oregon’s New Renewable Energy Standard
- Annual Transient Occupancy Tax Audit Completed
- Charter Communications Cable Television Rate Adjustments
- Linda’s Church Joke
COMMITTEE AND COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS
The City Council awarded Certificates of Appreciation to Wayne Robbins for service on the Parks & Recreation Commission from July 2002 through September 2007, and to Jan Moore for service on the Parks & Recreation Commission from July 2005 through September 2007. The City Council also approved the appointment of Esther Williams to the Parks & Recreation Commission. A sincere thanks to Wayne and Jan for all of their hard work and service to the community, and congratulations to Esther on her appointment!
RIPARIAN CORRIDOR PROTECTION REGULATIONS
In 2005, the City adopted regulations for the protection of wetlands in Bandon. At that time, however, the City did not adopt regulations for the riparian corridors adjacent to streams. Those are areas along the sides of rivers and streams, which contain certain soils and vegetation critical to the health of those waterways. Although the Oregon Administrative Rules (OARs) technically require protection of riparian areas, the only mechanism for enforcing those requirements is Comprehensive Plan periodic review. However, since cities of less than 10,000 population are exempt from periodic review, there is no mechanism for the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) to enforce those requirements.
At their October 9th meeting, the City Council reviewed the matter of riparian corridor protection, and determined that it may be appropriate to again consider instituting such measures. If the City wishes to add riparian protection which would comply with the OAR (Section 660-023-0090 attached), the minimum requirement would be to adopt the "safe harbor" regulations, which would require a 50 ft. setback from the banks of all streams, including Ferry Creek, Gross Creek, Johnson Creek, Tupper Creek, and Simpson Creek, in which no development could occur, except as specifically allowed by the OAR (removal of non-native vegetation, construction of street and public utility crossings, etc.). At a maximum, the City could adopt regulations protecting the full width of all riparian areas adjacent to streams and wetlands, as identified in the Riparian Inventory. This latter approach would be even more restrictive than the "safe harbor" approach. The Council could adopt lesser requirements than the "safe harbor," but they would not comply with the OAR.
After discussing the matter, the City Council directed staff to initiate the process for amending the Municipal Code and Comprehensive Plan to adopt the "safe harbor" riparian protection measures in accordance with the OARs. This process should begin within the next few months, and will involve drafting the proposed amendments, public notice and hearing before the Planning Commission, and final action by the City Council.
CITY LEASES THE OLD BANDON CHEESE FACTORY PROPERTY FOR PUBLIC PARKING
Tillamook Cheese contacted the City in an effort to determine the best means of monitoring the old Bandon Cheese Factory property to make sure it didn't become a nuisance or dumping ground, since they do not have anyone here in Bandon. To help meet an ongoing need for overflow parking, the City has agreed to lease the property under a no fee lease similar to the one for the property in Old Town, west of the Alabama Street parking lot. Under this arrangement, the City will get use of the property for public parking (RVs, trailers, oversized vehicles, etc.), and liability is covered by our insurance. In return for the lease, the owner is exempted from paying property taxes as long as the property is leased by the City. Based on the 2007 tax information from the County Assessor’s office, it is estimated that the total combined annual taxes for schools, county, port, city, library, etc. would be around $3,200, which would then increase by approximately 3% each year. Once the new assessments are made on the land values alone, the actual tax losses can be determined. Since the lease can be canceled by either party on 30 days notice, the City can terminate the agreement at any time, if it is decided that there is not adequate public benefit.
The Cheese Factory property has been used for parking since the building was removed. During the Cranberry Festival, for example, it was completely full, and provided a significant amount of overflow parking particularly for larger vehicles. By leasing the property, the City will be able to ensure that it doesn’t become a nuisance, and that it will continue to be available to the public. If the City doesn’t lease the property, it could become a nuisance which would then have to be addressed by the City through enforcement of the nuisance regulations, or it could be leased to another party for various uses allowed in the Light Industrial zone. To secure the property, Tillamook would also have the option of fencing the perimeter, and posting it with "No Trespassing" signs. None of these options seem to be as much in the public interest as making it available for public parking. As a parking area, the City can also use it for other purposes such as temporary events typically located on such parking lots (Saturday markets, special events, etc.)
COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS OF OREGON’S NEW RENEWABLE ENERGY STANDARD
Senate Bill 838, which was passed by the State Legislature during this last session, establishes a Renewable Energy Standard, also known as a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), for electric utilities. The bill generally requires that 25% of Oregon’s total electric load come from new renewable energy resources (such as wind, solar, certain low-impact new hydro, etc.) by 2025. To comply with this legislation, the City of Bandon’s electric utility has two basic requirements: 1) Small utilities, such as the City of Bandon, which serve less than 1.5% of Oregon’s load must acquire at least 5% of their power from qualifying resources by 2025 (as opposed to the overall 25%); and 2) All utilities must also provide a green power rate option for their customers, under which they can purchase some form of renewable (wind, solar, etc.) power. Resources procured and sold to customers under a green power rate may not be used to meet the 5% renewable energy standard.
Since Bandon is a full-requirements customer of Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), it is anticipated that the requirement for 5% renewable energy by 2025 will be met by purchasing Environmentally Preferred Power (EPP) from BPA. EPP power is a blend of new and existing wind and low-impact hydro.
Generating green power is more expensive than producing conventional power, so green power rates involve paying an additional premium to offset those increased costs. Participation by customers in such a program is completely voluntary, and the costs are over and above the regular electric bill. Since all of the power from all of the generating resources is intermixed in the electric grid, there is no way for a customer to actually purchase a block of discreetly green power which is separated from non-green power, and goes directly into their home or business. There are basically two options for meeting the requirement for offering customers a green power rate.
The first option is to offer customers a mechanism for purchasing "Green Tags" directly from an outside source, such as the Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF), which is a non-profit organization supporting watershed restoration and renewable energy. "Green Tags" are Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) which are the property rights to the environmental benefits (reduction of carbon emissions) of generating electricity from renewable energy sources, such as solar or wind. Qualifying green energy providers (such as wind farms), in various locations throughout the United States and Canada, are credited with one REC for every 1,000 kWh of electricity produced, each of which has a specific identification number. The green energy is then fed into the electrical grid, and accompanying RECs can be sold on the open market, with the proceeds used by BEF to subsidize alternative energy development and watershed restoration. Current costs are $20 each for 100% wind power, $24 each for a 90%/10% blend of wind and solar, and $56 each for 100% solar. The advantage of a "Green Tag" program is that the outside source (such as BEF) operates the program and deals directly with the customers via the internet, and there is no commitment or cost to the City, other than promoting the program. There may be a perceived disadvantage from the customers’ perspective, however, since they would essentially be making a donation towards renewable energy efforts on a national or global scale, as compared to actually purchasing green power which is delivered into the BPA grid serving them. (Even if the City does not specifically utilize the "Green Tag" program to meets its obligation under SB 838, customers can still purchase "Green Tags" directly from BEF through their web site.)
The second option, which was selected by the City Council, is to purchase a block of EPP power from BPA, and then re-sell this green power to the customers at cost. This will require a one-year commitment from the City to purchase this green power, regardless of whether it is sold to individual customers or not. However, anything that is not sold, and is therefore reflected in the overall electric rates, can be "banked" as credit towards meeting the requirement to meet 5% of the City’s load from qualifying renewable energy resources by 2025. Although there has been a waiting list for purchasing EPP power, there is currently some available, if the City acts at this time. The City currently pays $28.22 per MWh for power, plus $6.50 for transmission, for a total of $34.72 per MWh. Purchasing 5% of our load in EPP would cost an additional $34,857 per year, while 2% would cost an additional $13,943. The City Council selected this latter amount, since it can be absorbed into the existing rates, with only a 0.6% increase in overall payments to BPA. It will also provide a supply that can be marketed to our customers. Anything not sold will be "banked," and if the demand for customer purchases exceeds this amount, the City can request an additional allocation. Preliminarily, it is estimated that the green power (including power purchase and running the program) could be sold to customers for an additional $.015 - $.020 per kWh. A residential customer using 1,000 kWh per month, for example, would be able to offset 100% of their usage with green power for an additional $15.00 - $20.00 per month. The disadvantage of purchasing EPP power is that the City has to commit to that purchase, whether the power is re-sold to customers or not. The advantages of using EPP power to meet the green power rate requirements of SB 838 are the ability to "bank" the unsold amount, thereby reducing the amount that has to be rate-based in 2025, and the concept from the customer’s perspective that they are actually purchasing green power into the BPA grid which serves Bandon, and thereby reducing the need for BPA to generate or purchase conventional non-green power.
The City anticipates being able to begin purchasing the additional green power this month. Within the next couple of months we should have a program in place to make it available to those customers who are willing to pay the additional costs to offset all or part of their electric load with renewable energy.
ANNUAL TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX AUDIT COMPLETED
The City’s auditor, Hough, MacAdam & Wartnik, Certified Public Accountants, have completed the transient occupancy tax (TOT) audit for the 2005 tax year. All motels, bed & breakfasts (B&Bs), vacation rentals, and recreational vehicle (RV) parks within the City limits are required to charge a City tax of 6% on all overnight lodging for periods of less than 30 days. This is in addition to the 1% TOT charged by the State of Oregon. To monitor TOT collections each year, the City randomly selects two lodging businesses, and conducts an audit of their financial records. For 2005, those businesses were Bandon Wayside Motel & RV Park and Coastal Vacation Rentals, LLC. In both cases, the auditors found all of their records to be in order, and all TOT amounts to be properly calculated and submitted in full compliance with the City’s regulations. The City thanks the Bandon Wayside Motel & RV Park and Coastal Vacation Rentals for their cooperation with the City’s auditors, and sincerely appreciates and congratulates these two businesses for their outstanding performance. Businesses such as these, and the transient occupancy taxes they generate, are critical to the City’s ability to provide necessary services to our citizens, including police protection, fire protection, planning, parks & recreation, and economic development. TOT receipts this year are projected to be in the range of $417,000, representing the largest single outside revenue resource for the City’s General Fund. This is over two and a half times the $152,000 in property taxes estimated to be received by the General Fund.
CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS CABLE TELEVISION RATE ADJUSTMENTS
The City received a notification from Charter Communications that they will be adjusting their cable television rates effective November 1, 2007. Except for one increase to their CableCARD equipment rental rate, the remainder of the new rates either represent no change or a decrease in rates. A sincere thanks to Charter Communications for their efforts to provide quality service, while keeping their cable television rates as low as possible.
That’s it for now. Have a good one!
Matt Winkel
City Manager
