By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
WALDPORT – The Waldport city council quickly approved several plans and projects during its last meeting of the year that ran the gamut from installing new crosswalk lighting, establishing a non-profit and raising the city’s lodging tax by 20 percent.
But first on the council’s agenda was turning down a bid to install sidewalks from the Waldport schools along Crestline Drive to just north of Salmon Street.
The city received $1.7 million from the state two years ago under a Safe Route to Schools program to pay for the sidewalk project. But the only bid the city received came from a Reedsport contractor, which wanted $3.7 million to do the work.
“We’ve looked at it every which way but sideways and I cannot come up with a way to get the numbers to mesh,” city manager Dann Cutter told the council during its 55-minute meeting Thursday.
The bid was made through what is called an “invitation to bid,” which is a low bidder, fixed style contract. The state prefers this type of bid, which puts one company in the driver’s seat to complete the job. It also comes with a high bond requirement, which precludes smaller companies from bidding.
“We are going to do a request for proposal utilizing a contract management/general contractor method instead,” Cutter said. “It’s a little bit more complex but we’ll have the project broken down into multiple small pieces.”
One advantage of doing it that way is that it gives more flexibility and creativity to how the contractor will complete the work.
Cutter said the Lincoln County School District uses this method almost exclusively “and is very successful doing expensive projects for much, much cheaper.” If the city can get the cost closer to the grant amount it can then “backfill” the funding with some urban renewal money and contingency funds, Cutter said, and get the project going much quicker.
Lodging tax increase
The council also agreed to move forward with increasing the money it collects from its transient rental tax from the current 10 percent to 12 percent to match the increase by Lincoln County, which voters approved in November.
“Historically, the Waldport council has tried to match the rest of the county,” Cutter told the council. “If we went to 12 percent we would be in line with pretty much every municipality in the county. And I would imagine Yachats would follow suit as well, in whatever fashion they decide to do so.”
Newport, Lincoln City and Depoe Bay also have a 12 percent lodging tax. Yachats’ is 9 percent and its council has started the discussion – but put off a decision – of whether to raise it.
Cutter said it was important to note that he spoke with one of the city’s larger stakeholders, who several years ago said the city should never increase the rate.
“And he’s had a significant change of heart and thought it would actually be very appropriate to do so,” Cutter said. “He also felt that if we are going to do it we should do it soon and not later so that it would capture most of the summer traffic.”
Cutter estimated the increase could raise an additional $40,000 a year from vacation rentals, motels and RV parks in the city – 70 percent which has to be used for tourism promotion and 30 percent that can go into the city’s general fund.
Mayor Greg Holland was the only council member to offer feedback before the council approved moving forward with a public hearing on the increase at its next meeting.
“I think it makes sense that we go up with everyone else, I mean there’s no reason to lose the revenue we could get,” Holland said.
Crosswalks, speed controls
The council voiced strong approval for Cutter to move forward with upgrading the city’s eight crosswalks with lights and adding new speed limit signs through town instead of waiting for the Oregon Department of Transportation to do the work.
“We have been back and forth with ODOT quite a few times,” Cutter said. “I am asking for the council’s backing to show that I’m not just on a tear. I’m going to basically ignore ODOT and proceed ahead with improving the safety for our citizens along Highway 101 and Highway 34.”
Waldport officials have been working with ODOT for years, Cutter said, “and effectively the final word two or three months ago” was that upgrading the crossing signals would cost roughly $275,000 per crossing to meet today’s Americans with Disabilities Act standards and that it would be a decade before they can get it done.
“What I’m suggesting is that we just say — ‘We get it, you can’t do it, let us.’ And realistically no, we can’t do $275,000 per crossing,” Cutter said. “But we can do (them) a lot more affordably using signs that are within the standard, using installations that are within the standard, and change nothing else about the crossing to create a safer environment for our citizens. “
Crosswalk signs will not change, the city will simply add lights that flash when a button is pressed.
“Fundamentally, we will have lighted crossings in town a decade before ODOT is ready to do so,” Cutter said. “We’ll also have some speed control signs in town which we’ll put up and we’ll follow the rules, but we’re just going to do it.”
The only part of the project that falls short of ADA standards is the pavement, but Cutter said the upgrade will “have an immediate and substantial effect on the safety of our citizens by doing this now.”
ODOT has certain requirements that when you make an improvement you have to do the entire improvement, but Cutter hopes it will agree to let the city take the first step until the state agency can get to completing the project.
Non-profit
Councilors also voted to establish the Waldport Foundation, a non-profit that will allow the city to receive tax deductible donations and pursue certain grants.
“This is a community development organization which is charged with essentially creating and developing projects, raising funds for community and economic development in the community,” Cutter said.
The foundation can take on projects like completing Louis Southworth Park, helping fund a new library, recreation center or art projects.
“It can be used for pretty much whatever community development project that the council wants to take on and address,” Cutter said.
There are foundation grants and donations that require a non-profit organization, which can accept tax deductible donations that a municipality cannot, Cutter said. It is the reason why universities have foundations.
The council will serve as the foundation’s board and the city manager as its director.
- Garret Jaros is YachatsNews’ full-time reporter and can be reached at GJaros@YachatsNews.com