City snapshot — traffic will have to slow down

•?Drivers will have to slow down in Sisters.

Council adopted Ordinance No. 518 at their February 8 meeting, which sets a designated speed of 20 miles per hour on local streets in residential districts.

Currently, the majority of streets within the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) have posted speed limits of 25 mph.

The downtown commercial district has lower speeds of 20 mph set by state statute.

Adoption of this ordinance establishes a 20 mph speed limit in residential districts on local streets only.

Collector streets and arterials as designated by the City’s transportation system plan are not eligible for the speed reduction.

The new designated speed will take effect on the local streets after the removal of the existing 25 mph signs and installation of the new 20 mph signs.

The total estimated cost for the transition to 80 new signs is $12,000.

•?After six months of work and five drafts, the Urban Forestry Board’s 2022 Urban Forest Management Plan was approved and adopted by the City Council on February 8.

The plan’s various elements are addressed through multiple management strategies with associated action plans.

The plan offers a comprehensive approach to building and maintaining a healthy urban forest and minimizing damage caused by wildfire and invasive pests and is comprised of five components.

These components work together to build a thriving urban forest and efficient management plan: trees and infrastructure, urban forest management, wildfire mitigation and fuel treatments, management of tree inventory outside of city limits, and community engagement and involvement.

•?Sisters is the only city in Oregon that has an Urban Forestry Board, tree ordinance, contracted City forester, and Urban Forest Management Plan. And Sisters has again been recognized as a 2021 Tree City, which we have been every year for well over a decade.

•?The City has posted two job openings, one for the camp host at the Creekside Campground for the camping season, and the other for a full-time code compliance officer. The Camp Host posting will be open until February 21. The host duties include keeping the campground clean and running smoothly, and assisting park visitors in a number of ways. The compliance officer posting closes on February 18, with an anticipated start date of March 14 or earlier.

•?The City’s new principal planner, Matt Martin, assumed his duties on February 7, and was introduced to the City Council at their February 9 meeting.

•?Council approved a professional services agreement with Cameron McCarthy Landscape Architects and Planners for $64,664 to provide planning services to update the City’s Parks Master Plan. Their timeline is to have the master plan ready for the Planning Commission and City Council in October/November 2022. The parks master plan update is the City Parks Advisory Board’s primary project for 2022.

•?The Public Works Advisory Board will be updating the City’s water and wastewater master plan this year. At their February 8 meeting, they heard an informational update from Anderson Perry & Associates on the part of the plan dealing with water and next month they will hear about wastewater.

•?At their February 26 workshop, Council will begin a review of the City Charter, which hasn’t been reviewed or updated since 2003. When ready, the Charter changes will have to be voted on by the citizens, probably in the November election.

•?The Sisters Woodlands property bordered by West Barclay, North Pine, and Highway 20, is beginning logging in preparation for Phases 1 and 2. The public will start noticing gradual changes to the former Forest Service property.

•?The new bump-outs on either side of the Creekside Park bridge have been completed. Those were added as part of ADA accessibility improvements to create space for a wheelchair to stop and still have room for pedestrians to pass or vice versa. The ironwork decorations being crafted by Ponderosa Forge should be ready for installation soon. The bridge is open again after being closed during construction of the bump-outs.