Benny Westcott
The Sweet Home City Council on April 12 unanimously approved a city-manager position profile, although it was a little more divided on where he or she should live.
The profile adopted standards, criteria and policy directives for the role, with an annual salary range of between $120,000 and $150,000. (According to Finance Director Brandon Neish, former city manager Ray Towry, who resigned in February, made $126,000 per year.) Among its requirements were five years of increasingly responsible experience concentrated in finance, management, personnel, planning and police or public works.
Christy Wurster currently occupies the seat on a pro-tem basis following Towry’s departure. She’d previously served in the same capacity from March to November 2016, when Towry was appointed.
Much of the council’s discussion, however, centered around a potential successor’s zip code.
Sweet Home’s city charter does not require that the city manager reside within city limits, and the profile, as approved, merely encourages it.
“My biggest concern is: How far are we going to let them live from Sweet Home?” Councilor Dave Trask said. “Are we just going to let them pick a city like Salem or something?
“I think that they should live in the school district limits, because I think they have a lot of things in the city that they need to be involved in. That’s a pretty big area in our school district. I’m a little concerned about somebody living in Albany and being our city manager.”
Councilor Dylan Richards, on the other hand, argued against limiting the pool to candidates within the district. “I think we would get a lot less people if they’re going to have to move here,” he said.
Wurster agreed.
“One thing you need to keep in mind is that a lot of people are working nowadays,” she said. “You’ve got two-income households, and you may have two professionals, and they may have to pick a midway point so their spouse can find a position as well.”
Councilor Lisa Gourley said that the council was getting stuck in the weeds.
“The most important thing is their skillset,” she said. “That’s what we’re interested in – somebody who is an outstanding city manager. I think that’s where our priorities need to be.”
In other action:
— The council voted unanimously to formally adopt the 2022 Sweet Home Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan (NHMP). Federal law requires that jurisdictions maintain an approved NHMP to receive federal funds for mitigation projects.
The plan’s mission is to “proactively facilitate and support community-wide policies, practices, and programs that make Sweet Home more disaster-resistant and disaster-resilient.”
According to Community and Economic Development Director Blair Larsen, the most important question regarding such mitigation was “In the event of a citywide emergency, can the city still deliver services?”
Two pivotal actions, he said, would be the installation of generators at the water and wastewater treatment plants, both of which currently lack them. The Sweet Home Police Department has a generator, and Larsen hopes to install a recently purchased unit at City Hall by the end of the year.
The plan also outlined the city’s need for continued stormwater system improvements. Larsen said the city is compiling a master plan to identify areas lacking in the current system as well as necessary improvements.
He added that it was difficult to maintain stormwater infrastructure that wasn’t on public property, and that the city needed to obtain more easements to access private property in order to maintain that infrastructure, as well as generally adding pipes and ditches in town.
The plan additionally stressed attention to “wildland urban interface,” or the border areas where city development stops and forest begins.
“Those are areas that are really key,” Larsen said. “We need to have adequate buffer areas and get our building codes in the right place to determine how far structures have to be from forested areas. We want enough room to keep houses safe.”
The updated plan, which has been in the works for a year and a half, was developed through a partnership between the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD), the City of Sweet Home and the Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District, and funded through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) pre-disaster mitigation grant program.
The NHMP was last updated in 2015.
— The council voted unanimously to approve a variance from residential zone building and fence-height restrictions for the city’s wastewater treatment plant, which is in the process of being upgraded, and to apply industrial zone standards for the property.
The vote authorized the city manager to sign the application and send it to the Planning Commission for approval.
The facility is technically in a residential zone, but the aforementioned commission approved a conditional use application at its April 7 meeting.
— Wurster noted that the Sweet Home Park and Tree Committee’s annual Arbor Day Community Event begins at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 23, at Evergreen Park, 1400 Evergreen Lane. The event will feature three tree plantings and free seedlings while supplies last.
— Wurster said that the city has been notified that between May 9 and 22, the Oregon Department of Transportation will close Highway 20 between mile markers 54 and 57 to repair landslide areas.
— Councilor Diane Gerson noted that a suicide-prevention training session for adults is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, at the Sweet Home Senior Center, 880 18th Ave.
Participants will learn myths and facts about suicide, clues and warning signs, how to ask about suicidal thoughts and how to refer someone for additional support.
Dinner will be provided and childcare options will be available.
Registration is required at airtable.com/shrJpmOnk8aTi34fl.
The event is sponsored by the Sweet Home Youth Leadership Program in partnership with Linn County Health Services.
For more information, call (541) 967-3819.