Is it a first? 14 write-in votes result in Hedlund filling an unappreciated Yachats city council seat

 

By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews

YACHATS – Whether it is a first or not is anyone’s guess – but with just 14 votes Yachats residents have elected write-in candidate Nicole Hedlund to the city council.

Hedlund was informed by city manager Bobbi Price last week of her write-in victory to fill an empty council seat and was invited to say a few words during its Wednesday meeting when it was publicly announced.

“It’s been a privilege to live in this town, to raise my boys in this town,” Hedlund said. “It’s such a caring, nurturing place and I’m just really honored to be able to now serve this town.”

When Yachats voters went to the polls Nov. 5, they had a choice of voting to re-elect Mayor Craig Berdie, who ran unopposed, not voting for him or writing in a candidate. It was the same for councilor Barry Collins. But with councilor Anthony Muirhead choosing not to seek election to the seat he was appointed to in May, a position with no candidate was left vacant.

According to the Oregon Secretary of State’s office, Berdie handily won the mayoral election with 572 votes versus 24 write-in votes. Collins also won with 493 votes. But that left 59 write-in votes for a council position.

Although there were questions how to handle those votes, the city moved forward by announcing the vacancy and seeking applicants to fill it. The city also checked in with the Lincoln County clerk, who is in charge of county elections.

“We inquired about the write-in votes shortly after the election (but) with votes still being counted, we were politely asked to wait until the counting was complete,” Price said via email. “Last week, the first week of December, we followed up on that request and were given the information on the votes.”

The city then inquired about the protocol for write-in votes for an open and unopposed council position and were instructed to offer the person with the most write-in votes the seat unless the city charter or codes stated otherwise. Yachats’ charter does not.

After consulting further with the county clerk and the city’s attorney, Price reached out to Hedlund last week and offered her the position. She accepted.

Hedlund told the council Wednesday that she has been interested in participating for quite some time and applied for the vacant position left by the resignation of councilor Greg Scott. The council chose Muirhead instead.

“My intention for the term is to really bring a voice, especially to the working families and the employee residents in town, because I’m assuming they are going to be hard-pressed to attend these meetings,” Hedlund told the council. “So, I want to be a voice for them. And I really want to build, keep this community thriving. I want the future resiliency of this town to be intact so that everyone here can live and thrive and succeed.”

Hedlund moved to Yachats from the Willamette Valley five years ago, but said it has been a second home to her since 1975. Her grandparents lived in Yachats while she was growing up and her grandfather, Lester Kemmling, served as mayor in the late 1990s. She works as a practitioner of Chinese medicine specializing in body work and nutrition. She is also the vice president of the Yachats Youth and Family Activities Program board and has an academic background that includes planning, public policy and management.

Hedlund will be sworn into her four-year term along with Berdie and Collins at the council’s Jan. 15 meeting.

System development charges

The council on Wednesday also discussed upcoming changes to the city’s policy on system development charges, which are incurred when someone builds a new home or business. Up until now, property owners have been able to prepay those charges for future development.

The city is changing that policy to match all other municipalities in Lincoln County, which is to accept payments only when the city planner approves building plans and before connecting to the water, sewer or storm drain system.

“The conversation about the SDCs … first came up when the city council was asked to look at the suggested ways to increase revenue for our enterprise funds, both water and wastewater,” Price said.

Property owners who prepaid years ago are not paying the full cost of the current system or for its upkeep. Total charges today to connect to the city’s storm drain, water and sewer system is $17,122.

There are currently 51 pre-paid SDCs for water, 55 for sewer and eight for storm drain that date back to 1974.

Still to be worked out under the new policy is how long a grace period will be given after the charges are paid before construction must begin. If construction does not begin within that allotted time, the fees will be refunded. Someone still hoping to build would then need to re-apply at whatever rate is applicable.

The city’s finance committee discussed at its November meeting whether to suggest that system development charges increase at a three percent rate per year over the next 20 years. Its suggestion was based on a conservative estimate of five new buildings a year.

City planner Katherine Guenther told YachatsNews that estimate does not match with what she is seeing. In 2021, she said, there were 15 new homes built, in 2022 there were 13 and in 2023 another 15.

The council has also not decided what to do, if anything, about the outstanding pre-paid system development charges.

A big thank you

At the close of the meeting and acknowledging it being the last council meeting of the year, councilor Mary Ellen O’Shaughnessey gave a heartfelt and impassioned “thank you” to the community.

Reading from a list she said was fueled by predawn coffee, O’Shaughnessey  talked about what she appreciated about individuals and groups and thanked the community at large, city volunteers, fellow council members, city hall staff (and several of the dogs who accompany them), public works employees and even YachatsNews.

“I’ll get teary eyed,” she said in closing as her voice caught with emotion. “This is just such a great community. And I think all of these people put together, I think make this one of the finest communities on the coast.”

The mayor, city manager and other councilors thanked O’Shaughnessey with councilor Collins quipping “I just want to know what you put in your coffee.”

In other business the council:

• Heard that the city now owns the historic Landmark property at the intersection of U.S. Highway 101 and Ocean View Drive after sale documents officially closed;
• Was told that interior work on the historic Little Log Church Museum is scheduled to begin Jan. 15 with a deadline to complete all renovations in 270 days;
• After receiving survey results from local workers and employers, discussed affordable and workforce housing and what that might entail as far as variety of types of housing and how the city can work with state programs to encourage their construction;
• Discussed a new citizen-based group called Strong Towns that a Yachats resident hopes to start. The national non-profit advocates for a “bottom-up revolution” to rebuild prosperity. Berdie said he appreciates people thinking outside the box, but said after reviewing the organization’s website “almost everything” they want to discuss is already being addressed by the city’s numerous commissions and committees, most of which currently have vacancies. He encouraged community members to consider joining one of those work groups.

 

• Garret Jaros is YachatsNews’ full-time reporter and can be reached at GJaros@YachatsNews.com