Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
The Sweet Home Area Revitalization Effort Planning Committee is seeking people who want to be involved in the hands-on part of revitalizing the city’s commercial district.
The initial Planning Committee chairman resigned his chairmanship to become a regular committee member, and a couple of other members have resigned, said Tom Hammons, co-chairman of the SHARE Steering Committee. He’s looking to replace them.
“We have now, as SHARE, a strategic plan if you will. We’ve got a mission statement out there, but we’re looking for volunteers for the Planning Committee,” he said. “The Planning Committee will have a major role in the revitalization effort of Sweet Home.”
It needs “idea people,” who can identify processes and programs that help facilitate long-term revitalization, Hammons said. They’ll be key players in the master planning of the downtown area.
The city is exploring whether it should develop an urban renewal district, he said.
“This Planning Committee will be involved in the planning of that.”
An urban renewal district takes property tax revenue growth and uses it for redevelopment of infrastructure and projects within its boundaries. The tradeoff is that government agencies do not receive that growth to fund their services.
The Planning Committee also will be involved in figuring out what to do with the Chamber of Commerce Building and the property next door to the chamber office that has been purchased by Sweet Home Economic Development Group (SHEDG), Hammons said. They will be used to develop a sort of community hub facility.
The committee also is responsible for figuring out plans for façade improvements and how to develop them on Main Street, he said.
“Planning will be a major challenge, and there is sufficient work to keep them going.”
The committee primarily serves as a sort of research and development committee, bringing ideas to the Steering Committee, which coordinates with the Finance and the Programming and Marketing committees, he said.
The Planning Committee has eight or nine members right now, Hammons said, but it has enough functions that it can easily use upward of 20 members.
The Planning and Marketing Committee is running at 20 members, he said, and it is active and moving forward.
The more people who are involved, the more people are talking to other people and getting things going, he said.
“The quicker things will happen.”
Hammons said he is excited about SHARE’s work, he said. He has seen similar efforts work in other communities, including Estacada; Culver City, Calif.; and Priest River, Idaho, which was a logging town similar to Sweet Home.
The Planning Committee meets once a month, on the third Tuesday, he said, but that can be changed based on the needs of committee members.
Anyone interested in serving on the committee should call the city manager’s office at 367-8969. Administrative assistant Wendy Younger will take names and contact information.