City snapshot - 8/19/2020

• City staff has shared with Council their draft version of a resolution rejecting hateful acts in our community and welcoming, serving, and protecting residents and visitors without regard to race, origin, religion, income, gender, sexual orientation, or immigration status. Council made a few suggestions for the wording and directed staff to place the resolution on the August 26 regular meeting agenda for consideration for adoption.

• An AmeriCorps intern will be on the job with the City during the first week of September. Emily Shoup will be dividing her work hours between the update to the Comprehensive Plan and implementation of the Sisters Vision Plan.

• Three Sisters Holdings, LLC, is requesting approval of a Zoning Map Amendment and Comprehensive Plan Amendment to rezone and re-designate the property at 800 W. Barclay Dr. from Urban Area Reserve to Light Industrial. The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing at their August 20 meeting at 5:30 p.m. The applicant is also proposing text amendments to the Comprehensive Plan related to the subject property and industrial land needs. The parcel of land is part of the Forest Service property lying on the north side of Barclay Drive (approximately 13 acres).

• A community website is being designed by the City to fill a current gap in connectivity to resources in the community (see related story). It is being designed with the help of funding from the Ford Family Foundation and will be a place to announce meetings, volunteer opportunities, and to share resources. The goal is to enhance community connectivity, one of the four main goals of the Sisters Vision Plan.

• A snow-removal contract has been put out for bid by the City. There are two sections included and bids can be made for both or either the north or south section. Public Works Director Paul Bertagna said the forecast for the coming winter is for wet and cold weather.

• The work on Well #4 is ramping up and work is scheduled to be completed by early October. Aeration improvement is underway at the City’s sewage treatment plant, increasing the ability to treat excess sewage and doubling the City’s treatment capacity to 2.3 to 2.5 million gallons a day.

• The annual City Community Grants will be awarded at the August 26 Council meeting. The City has $40,000 (double last year’s amount) available for dispersal. There have been requests made totaling $94,000.

• Council agreed to approve a Professional Services Agreement with Angelo Planning Group, Inc. for the Comprehensive Plan Update in an amount not to exceed $95,000. The last update was completed in 2010 and is in need of reworking and updating to meet current and projected conditions. The Comprehensive Plan determines the direction the City will take over the next five to 10 years. There will be several opportunities over the coming months for public input into the plan. Comprehensive Plans are a requirement of the State (see related story).

• An Intergovernmental Agreement with the Oregon Department of Transportation for East Portal acquisition from the Forest Service subject to legal revisions was approved by the Council. Now negotiations can begin with the Forest Service on the price for the property.