Letters to the Editor 04/09/2014

To the Editor:

My letter to the editor on March 26 was not meant to defend the actions of any one person working for the City of Sisters. My letter was intended to acknowledge a good job of managing a city campground that eliminated hazard trees and enhanced the overall park health.

My comments were based upon walking through the park and observing the results of the finished product. In addition to looking closer at the cut stumps that were cut to ground-level, I based my observation and comments on my 45 years of professional forestry background, working as a former recreation area manager, timber manager, and former district ranger.

I found it impossible to determine the actual diameter of many of the older trees that were removed because the remaining stumps were cut at ground-level, and older junipers have swelled stumps and would have to be measured at breast height to actually determine the correct diameter; and the logs were not present to observe.

The majority of the larger stumps showed signs of stump rot. Junipers are susceptible to white trunk rot and if infected could quickly become hazard trees in a campground setting.

One of the juniper trees in question has been referred to as "old-growth" because it was supposedly 100 years old.

This is a common misconception made by most laypersons these days, basing their assumption upon the age of a tree or its diameter.

An old-growth forest is considered as a late serial forest stage, classified as a climax community.

In the Oregon Cascade Range, it is considered that old-growth juniper ranges from 200 to 400 years old with many individuals as old as 1,000 years.

The oldest Sierra juniper is 3,000 years old and is found on the Stanislaus National Forest in California.

My observation of the forest habitat within the Sisters area, including the Creekside Park, is that it is a second-growth stand and not true old-growth.

As I have previously said, a park and campground requires constant management to keep it viable, healthy, and safe for the public using it. At times this management requires the removal of undesirable, stunted, stressed and diseased trees to keep the more desirable stand healthy and safe for public use.

Gerald Bertagna

Ret. Forester

Sisters

s s s

To the Editor:

Attorney Tom D'Amore is quoted in last week's Nugget, "...no tax dollars are going to be involved... This is why the school district buys insurance. Mistakes happen; accidents happen." ("Student seeks damages for saw accident, The Nugget, April 2, page 1).

Well, the fact of the matter is that general liability insurance, even if affordable for a particular entity, is not purchased for or intended to be a substitute for personal health or accident insurance. To suggest otherwise is irresponsible.

As a businessman who pays tens of thousands of dollars in liability insurance and workman's compensation each year, as well as supporting schools and the community through tax dollars, in-kind donations, student fundraising programs and construction of numerous public amenities, this kind of pathetic and completely inaccurate justification for a $6-million lawsuit makes my blood boil with frustration and disbelief.

The long-term consequences of lawsuits such as this, whether successful or not for the plaintiff, are extraordinarily costly to the community at large. Not just in terms of dollars paid out to fight or defend the lawsuit, real or imaginary damages paid, or huge increases in future insurance premiums, but costly in terms of creating significant disincentives for people such as me who irrationally cling to the belief that there is value in providing opportunities for others of any age to learn certain work, trade, or recreational skills that invariably involve some degree of personal risk.

Why bother organizing noxious weed mitigation or firewood fundraisers to help students learn to earn without having to beg for money if it puts me at such personal financial risk? Why offer free or minimal-cost workshops to teach students to build birdhouses or playground equipment or public kiosks or public pavilions if I could so casually be sued for millions by someone who fails to exercise good judgment on my property or under my supervision during the workshop or activity?

If it is negligent NOT to buy every new piece of equipment that comes along on the market touting a new safety feature, then every trade shop manager in this country - public or private - needs to find other employment or risk being put out of operation by over-the-top frivolous lawsuits.

Kris Calvin

s s s

To the Editor:

The next meeting of the Sisters School board is on Wednesday, April 9 and I encourage all to attend.

Most of you know that our schools are about $800,000 short. In a recent presentation Superintendent Jim Golden said that enrollment is stabilizing and that we have roughly the same number of students enrolled in our district now as we had at the start of the school year. I don't doubt that that is true, but it is hardly the statistic that we should be looking at as we strive to solve our financial shortfall.

Our schools currently have 413 students in grades 1-6 and 663 students in grades 7- 12. If nothing changes, our schools will lose 250 students in a few short years.

Recent home sales show that most new residents do not have school-age children. The only idea I've heard mentioned to increase enrollment is to lure students away from Redmond and Bend, an iffy proposition at best.

I am not approaching this problem from the perspective of someone opposed to spending tax dollars for education. On the contrary, I am grateful for the excellent public-school education I received; I also don't care for charter schools because I think public education helps keep our society homogeneous and egalitarian. But I don't want the facts sugar-coated. If falling enrollment is a reality - and I think it is - then the superintendent needs to emphasize that fact as we look for a long-term solution.

Ray Kenny

s s s

To the Editor:

I am writing in response to the article "City to take big issues to community." Specifically, the forming of a committee to evaluate: a field house; a convention center; a winter sports complex; and a science/art/history center. My response is based on a review of the Sisters City Charter, the Sisters Comprehensive Plan, and the Sisters Park & Recreation District (SPRD, formerly SOAR) mission statement.

The charter states the City is "To provide for the government of the City of Sisters...," the Comprehensive Plan, Goal 11, describes public facilities and services. The four projects above do not fall within those facilities or services. Goal 11 does, however, state "The City shall work with agencies and interest groups ... and SOAR to meet the educational and recreational needs for the community." The Mission Statement for SPRD states "The mission of SPRD is to sustain a viable, fiscally responsible organization that serves Sisters Country with recreation and cultural opportunities."

It's clear that the responsibility for evaluating the four projects belongs to SPRD, with the City and other groups working with SPRD. I am told SPRD has already spent considerable time evaluating the addition of a large multipurpose building (field house) adjacent to its current facility. Such a building would allow SPRD to do more adult programming during colder months that could bring adults from the greater Sisters area and beyond into town for tennis, pickleball, and other adult/youth programs. A sub-committee of the board has done considerable research and believes adult indoor tennis will pay for most of the operational cost of operating the building.

This letter should not be taken as a criticism of the council and their effort to reach out to the community, nothing could be further from my intent. Rather, I applaud their efforts, but believe SPRD is better positioned to evaluate the proposed projects.

Bill Merrill

s s s

To the Editor:

I have had the privilege of knowing Randy Miller for almost 10 years and wholeheartedly support his candidacy for Deschutes County Circuit Court Judge.

He has all of the hallmarks of a successful attorney: a great work-ethic, thorough understanding of the law and a deep respect for the judicial system. Furthermore, he has spent his entire law career as a civil litigator, working in courts throughout Oregon. These qualities, combined with his in-court experience, have prepared him to serve Deschutes County as a Circuit Court Judge.

In addition to Randy's strong legal background, I would like to introduce you to the Randy Miller that I know: He is the one sitting in the first few rows of the bleachers to watch his daughters' basketball games.

He is the one with kindergarten children from my daughter's Campfire group circled around him with rapt attention as he explains what it means to be a veteran, in terms they can understand and at an appropriate level.

He is the one that can be found burning hot dogs on the BBQ in the backyard and would rather spend a Sunday at church and with his family than pursuing his other passion, fly fishing.

He is the one that, when a horse spooked and bucked a rider at the start of a Tough Mudder event at the Wilson Ranch, was first on the scene to get control of the panicked horse and calm it down while the Wilson family could attend to the injured rider.

He is also the one that called the Wilson Ranch a week later to see how the rider was doing.

Why do I mention these things? Because I believe that the person we are carries over into everything we do in life. I want to know, as should you, that our elected officials are "good" and "real" people when they are out of the spotlight. In this case, Randy Miller has the character and integrity to match his legal background and has my unqualified endorsement. He has served his country with honor as a police officer and U.S. Marine combat veteran. I hope that you give him the opportunity to serve the citizens of Deschutes County by electing him as our newest Circuit Court Judge.

Nick Shein

s s s

To the Editor:

I became an Oregonian and a Sisters-area resident in 1989. Through the dedication to public interest of one Cliff Clemens, well-known in this area, I became aware of the inherent dangers to public interests of the U.S. Forest Services Land Exchange program wherein valuable timber areas were being exchanged for worthless grass areas or timbered land. This greatly enriched some private interests at a cost to the public without any public input.

Now as I read Rep.

Walden's attempt through legislation to accomplish much the same - by gaining local control over some of these same forest lands - I am forced to say: here we go again: Same game, new name! How many of you, having followed the local brouhahas over decisions about an arena, about work in city parks - all without sufficient public awareness or input - have faith or trust in anything instigated by politicians, local, state, or federal? Certainly not me! It would only change the purse it goes into! Imagine politicians beholden to logging interests deciding how much logging, how many ATV roads, how many trails next to housing areas would be done, without any public meetings.

It's your and my purse they are digging into.

Speak up and say no to this legislation!

Russell B. Williams

s s s

To the Editor:

Just wanted to make a correction in the article that appeared in last week's Nugget ("The SES animal project," The Nugget, April 2, page 15).

Jim Anderson wrote a glowing article about what he saw happening at SES with our animal project, but a few key points were missing in the story:

The animal project is a project that all third- and fourth-grade students participate in. Every kid in all five 3/4 classes did the research, drew the habitat maps and gave the speech. They all worked tremendously hard and learned so much.

While I did start the project some 15 years ago, it has developed over time with the help of my fellow teachers, who also worked very hard to make sure kids were ready to pull off a project of this size. Without Mrs. Holden, Mrs. Parsons, Mrs. Burke and Mr. Kroytz the project would not have been the amazing school-wide endeavor that it was.

They deserve just as much credit and praise as Mr. Anderson shared with me.

Clay Warburton