Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home City Council appointed senior Elric Benson on its Youth Advisory Council during its regular meeting on Nov. 27.
Benson has been involved in the YAC since the seventh grade. He wasn’t a member last year, but he was involved in the YAC’s annual 5K Dam Run.
The YAC now has four members for the 2012-13 school year and six openings.
“It was designed to allow Sweet Home area youth to have a voice in city affairs,” said City Manager Craig Martin. “It’s a great opportunity to have a voice in city government.”
The YAC, which was formed 10 years ago, advises the council and is staffed by the city manager and a city councilor, Scott McKee Jr.
It is open to youth in the seventh through 12th grades who live within the boundaries of School District 55, Martin said. Members do not need to attend District 55 schools to serve.
Since 2009, the YAC initiated, sponsored and organized the 5K Dam Run to raise awareness of health and physical wellness, Martin said, and to potentially raise funds for programs like the Food Pak, Sweet Home Emergency Ministries and the library’s stained glass window project.
Martin is not certain yet whether the YAC is going to organize the run this year, he said.
Among the open positions on the YAC is a high school junior representative, two at-large junior high representatives, a Sweet Home High School at-large representative and three at-large representatives.
Current members include freshman Natasha Benson, sophomore Karson Rodgers and junior high representative Nelson Rodgers.
Applications are available on the city’s website, ci.sweet-home.or.us, or by stopping by City Hall, 1140 12th Ave. Call (541) 367-8968 for more information.
Present at the council meeting were Marybeth Angulo, Mayor Craig Fentiman, Jim Gourley, Mike Hall and Greg Mahler. McKee and Ron Rodgers were absent.
In other business, the council:
n Held the first reading of an ordinance to vacate unused right-of-way along Dogwood Street from 16th Avenue to 18th Avenue.
The council will hold two more readings, Dec. 11 and Jan. 8, and then decide whether to approve the vacation.
N Declared surplus a 2009 Chevrolet Impala and 2001 Dodge Durango, with odometer readings of 116,000 and 101,000 miles respectively. Both vehicles were used by the Sweet Home Police Department. The Impala was a patrol vehicle.
“These vehicles have outlived their usefulness due to condition and cost of continuing repair,” said Police Chief Bob Burford.
N Approved a three-year lease agreement for a 2013 Dodge Charger as part of the SHPD’s annual cycle for patrol vehicles. This will be the department’s second Charger. The total price of the vehicle is $31,555.60. After that, the vehicle may be purchased for $1.
Another Charger and a Ford interceptor also have been ordered to replace two patrol cars destroyed in a pursuit last month.