Benny Westcott
The Sweet Home City Council on June 14 discussed a change of location for the Oregon Jamboree’s Tune It Up Tuesdays, after Steelhead Strength and Fitness manager David Bauer requested that it not take place on 13th Ave., where it was originally scheduled.
The council had voted May 24 for temporary closures of 13th between Main and Long streets for the concerts, slated for June 7, 14, 21 and 28. Yet, ultimately, the organization moved to host them in the parking lot behind the Rio Theatre.
“We didn’t want to ruffle any feathers,” Oregon Jamboree Executive Director Robert Shamek told The New Era. “So, instead of partnering with the city to close the street down, we decided not to close the street and have it at pretty much the same location we had it last year, which worked out really well.”
Bauer, whose clients use 13th Ave. for parking, told the council he’d wanted a conversation between the city, the Jamboree and affected businesses, but the process didn’t happen that way.
“I found out about [the event being held on 13th Ave.] a week ahead of time,” he told the council. “As I see it, it’s just another indication that we have a communication issue. It’s been ongoing. I honestly don’t know how we take care of it.”
“I actually made a formal apology to Robert Shamek, because I felt like we were the catalyst [for the location change],” he continued. “And there are other repercussions to us because of that. I don’t quite understand that, but with small-town politics, these are the kinds of things that don’t make for a good reputation.
“And obviously I don’t want that for my business, and I don’t want it for the city or anyone that is involved in trying to make this downtown better. Because my wife and I have been advocates for that since Day One, since we started our business here. And we want that for Sweet Home. We want to be a part of the solution, not part of the problem.”
He added that the event could have proceeded as planned had the predicament been handled differently.
“My only grievance with it is the fact that the Oregon Jamboree got caught in the middle,” he said, “and although it’s better for me that the event wasn’t on 13th Ave., after some adjustments to the initial 28-hour closure of the street, I was satisfied with that resolution and so were the businesses around me… The event could have stayed, and it would have been OK.”
Looking toward the future, he told councilors, “I would request a more formal process that seeks us out and notifies us directly rather than us having to find out indirectly.”
He asked for a letter expressing something along the lines of “This is what’s happening in our community, and your business is potentially going to be affected by it. We’re just trying to provide information to you, and we’re looking for your input if you’d like to provide it.”
“It’s very reasonable,” Mayor Greg Mahler said of Bauer’s request. “I was not a very happy camper to find out you weren’t notified. On behalf of the city, I apologize for that, because I think we should have communicated that with you. I was under the assumption that you and the surrounding businesses were notified. I am pretty confident that the council is in agreement that we are all about trying to help downtown businesses. That’s our goal. But I don’t think your business, or any other business downtown, should be impacted by what we do. It should be a benefit, not a hindrance.”
In other action:
— The Sweet Home Police Department swore in first-time officers Garritt Bolkcom and Daniel Gerkman.
“It’s an exciting time for our department and for them as well,” Police Chief Jeff Lynn said. “We’re not only swearing them into the profession, but we’re also bringing them into our community.
“We strive to hire those with a lot of integrity, quality people, that can fit into our community, and fit into our values and organizations. And I’m confident we’ve nailed it this time with the two new officers.”
Bolkcom, a Medford native, grew up in Grenada, Calif. He served four years in the United States Marine Corps, after which he worked in construction and as a wind turbine technician in Montana.
“He ended up moving back to Oregon to get connected closer with his family and decided after moving out here that law enforcement would be a pretty good career for him,” Police Captain Jason Ogden said. “The reason he applied is he wanted to be a positive addition to the community and find a place to get plugged in and serve.”
Gerkman served as a 911 dispatcher in the Portland area before entering law enforcement, following in the footsteps of his father, Tim, a Gladstone Police Department lieutenant, and brother Brian, a Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office sergeant.
“[Daniel] decided to apply in Sweet Home because he wanted to help and serve in a smaller, close-knit community, as well as get established in a new location,” Ogden said.
“You should be proud that you were selected,” City Manager Pro Tem Christy Wurster told the officers before the ceremony. “We have a high level of integrity here, and our officers are very well-supported by our community, council and staff. I hope that your careers are long and lengthy with the city of Sweet Home.”
— The council voted unanimously to allow the Sweet Home Rotary Club to manage community access to Quarry Park during the Saturday, July 9 Sportsman’s Holiday fireworks event.
This will be the display’s second year at the park, where public access was not allowed for the 2021 event.
According to a request for council action submitted by Administrative Services Manager Julie Fisher, the Sweet Home Rotary Club wanted to manage that access this year and use it as a fundraiser for the 2023 display and such Rotary Club-sponsored programs as the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and local high school scholarships.
A city-staff-assembled map anticipated safe parking for 200 vehicles, for which the Rotary Club currently plans a $10 per-vehicle charge. At least 13 volunteers will assist with the Sportsman’s Holiday, with three to four at the entry gate and others directing and organizing parking.
A Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District truck will provide lighting to the area at its conclusion, with volunteers monitoring departures. Additionally, the Linn Shuttle will provide transportation to and from the event. Passengers will not be charged for park entry.
— The council unanimously approved Radiator Supply House’s application for amplified music at its Icebox Cookoff national barbecue competition, scheduled to run from noon to 10 p.m. Friday to Sunday, July 1-3 at its location, 1460 47th Avenue.
— The council voted unanimously to approve the 2022 Oregon Jamboree special event application.
The 30th anniversary event, which will take place from Friday, July 29, to Sunday, July 31, is anticipated to attract 12,000 patrons to Sankey Park. It will feature a beer garden, a second stage, a children’s play area and various vendor booths.
The park and Weddle Bridge will be closed from 6 a.m. Monday, July 25 to 10 p.m. Monday, Aug. 1. Additionally, there will be no through traffic on 18th Avenue from Long Street to Mountain View between 7 a.m. Thursday, July 28, and 9 p.m. Sunday, July 31.
Residential traffic will ingress and egress by use of special permits. The portion of 18th immediately adjacent to the concert grounds and serving no residential properties will be blocked from 11 a.m. July 28 to 10 p.m. July 31. All areas of 18th between Long Street and the concert grounds will be designed and signed as disabled-parking-only during that time.
— The council approved in the form of consensus to two changes to the fiscal year 2022-23 budget, which is scheduled for final adoption at its June 28 meeting. First, the council approved $75,000 to be added to the Sweet Home Police Department’s expenditure authority for the replacement of its 20-year-old building’s access control system.
“Access control was installed with that building when it was built, and it’s no longer a viable option in the long-term,” Finance Director Brandon Neish said. “It is limping along for now, but at some point, that needs to be replaced.”
The council had already approved a supplemental $75,000 upgrade budget for the department earlier this fiscal year (2021-2022). Neish said the city was moving forward with it but learned from the selected contractor that the project wouldn’t be finished before the end of the current fiscal year.
Additionally, the council gave a consensus to add $500,000 to the city’s path program fund, used for path and sidewalk development, in the proposed budget.
The city has been working with both the state and the Oregon Department of Transportation to obtain $500,000 for a rectangular rapid-flashing beacon crossing at 22nd Avenue and Main Street, with the funds “finally” coming at the end of May, according to Neish. That money would be incorporated next fiscal year in case the project isn’t finished by the end of this fiscal year, he added.
“Our guess is that it will not be completed in time, given that ODOT has some process to go through, and then the city council still has to approve that amendment,” he said.
— A zone change application submitted by Eric Lund was approved after a third and final reading. Its approval means that a 114,690-square-foot (2.62 acres) area north of Main Street and east of 24th Avenue will be changed from the commercial highway zone to the industrial zone.
Lund plans to build 600 self-storage units and canopied RV and boat parking on the property, which would have an access driveway off 24th Avenue and be gated with 24-hour access.
— The council voted unanimously to authorize city staff to advertise a request for statement of prequalification from contractors interested in bidding for the Sweet Home Mahler Water Reclamation Facility Improvements Project.
According to a request for council action submitted by Public Works Director Greg Springman and Engineering Technician Trish Rice, “This project will greatly improve the operability of the wastewater treatment plant, which is currently undersized and beyond its serviceable lifespan. Staff spends significant time fixing broken down equipment and fighting with system inefficiencies.”
— The council voted unanimously to recommend an Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) license for Hilltop Market, whose new owner, Saraswati Acharya, has applied for an “off-premises” liquor license. As with any change of ownership, the new owner must apply for a liquor license through the OLCC.