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2001 has been another busy year for
Philomath. However,
it has not been without tragedy.
Last spring Police Chief Russ Hunt died in a
motorcycle accident.
Although Russ was Chief only a short while, he
touched the lives of many in a positive way.
We also shared in the heartbreak of
the terrorist attacks on September 11th and we
have since witnessed the renewed spirit of America.
We had many accomplishments in 2001.
In January, the Oregon Department of Transportation
included $1,000,000 for the Couplet Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) in fiscal year 2003 as well as a Main
Street overlay and 19th and Main Street
intersection safety project.
In February, the City joined with
other local law enforcement agencies to purchase Vision
Software, which will connect agencies, enhancing
information gathering and sharing.
In April, the City received an Urban
Forestry Award in the Student/School Project category
through the cooperative efforts of PHS students, City
staff, and the Rotary Club.
All four Philomath police reservists
graduated in the top ten from the Police Reserve Academy
in Monmouth.
In May, the TreeSource industrial
property was annexed.
In June, the Council adopted a Capital
Improvement Plan (CIP) which provides $200,000 every three
years for sewer line renovation to alleviate inflow and
infiltration (I&I) problems.
In July, our new Municipal Court Judge
Larry Blake began work.
In July and August crack seal and
overlay work was completed on streets in the Ashbrook and
24th Street areas.
Our new Police Chief Ken Elwer went to
work in October.
A new bike/pedestrian bridge over
Newton Creek was built in the City Park.
We received a $25,000 Small City
Allotment grant for the construction of the street portion
of the Applegate Street Bridge Project.
In November, the Cascades West Area
Commission on Transportation made the Philomath Couplet
the top modernization project recommended to the Oregon
Transportation Commission to be funded by the Oregon
Transportation Investment Act.
Citizens approved the annexation of
the Starlight Village Subdivision, Phase II, and the Gene
Tools research facility.
The Main Street
crossing and river outfall portions of the 12th
– 13th Street Storm Drain project were
completed.
Our Finance Department was
acknowledged for their work in the 2001 Auditor’s
Report.
In December, underground
infrastructure improvements were completed along College
Street between 13th and 19th and
Main and College Streets.
Staff developed a plan to improve
community appearance that includes enforcement and reward.
By the end of December, the Newton
Creek Bridge on Applegate Street was substantially
completed, as well as the Public Works Storage Building
and wastewater lab building.
Entering
2002, there is still much work to do including finishing
projects underway, as well as to continue planning for
the future.
The Urban Renewal Project to fully
improve College Street from13th to 19th Streets
and between Main and College Streets will be a major
project to accomplish this summer.
Planning for the long-awaited Couplet
will begin this year.
The City will need to help keep the process moving.
In addition, we need to continue to work with those
that may be negatively impacted to lessen the effect.
We need to complete the 12th
– 13th Street Storm Drain project.
We have spent several years working on
the Periodic Review of our Comprehensive Plan. We need to complete the work this year.
When Chief Hunt passed away last
spring, we had just started the planning process to
replace the police station.
We need to work with Chief Elwer to complete the
process to identify a location, the needs of the facility,
and a funding plan.
We need to implement a financially
sustainable street maintenance and improvement plan.
Over the years we have had minimal
success in bringing jobs to our community.
We have completed two wetlands projects to help
bring properties closer to development.
The lost timber industry jobs in the 80’s and
90’s have never been replaced and accordingly, Philomath
has fewer jobs than in 1980.
We need to make a concerted effort to bring jobs
back to our community.
We continue to have discussions with property
owners, resource protecting organizations, development
interests and the community to prepare a redevelopment
plan for abandoned mill sites.
I would like to thank the City Council, the City
Manager, Randy Kugler, and his staff, and the volunteers
for their efforts to better our community.
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Mayor’s
Annual Report to the City
