Vale council reviews economic plan
Wednesday, January 24, 2007 10:35 AM PST
Jennifer Colton
Argus Observer
Vale
Malheur County Economic Development Director Jim Jensen presented a development briefing to the Vale City Council during its regular meeting Tuesday night.
Jensen delivered to the council a list of financial assistance programs — both state and local — and an outline for local priorities, including creating potential for long-range opportunities.
“What happens is, when (businesses) come to town, if you don’t have the land available and zoned property, they aren’t going to wait,” Jensen said. “We don’t get very many opportunities for a Nyssa or a Vale, so long-range planning is very important and we need to be ready.”
Jensen also presented the amount of revenue the city would gain from increased housing or businesses.
“I know that my friends who live in Vale are really proud of this community,” Jensen said. “You don’t want to lose that identity. You need to be ready to respond though, and I don’t think we’re ready for that.”
In old business, the council heard two concerns from former Vale pool manager Kate Humphrey. Humphrey made a request for basic requirements for the pool manager position and gave an update on the progress of the Vale Skateboard Park Committee.
“I think for the safety of the pool, there should be a risk assessment done and use those results for the bare requirements of a pool manager,” Humphrey said.
Humphrey also asked that the position be advertised “very soon.” Vale City Manager Brent Barton confirmed the advertisement would be ready for publication Feb. 1.
“We are ready to start phase one of our construction,” Humphrey said of the skate park. Humphrey said the Vale Skateboard Park Committee had been guaranteed space in Wadleigh Park and that three different areas were usable because of the vertical elevation. Both concerns were deferred to the council’s parks and recreation committee for further discussion.
Vale City Councilman Jeff Kunzman presented a memorandum for consideration by the mayor and councilmembers proposing a $5, or 7 percent, utility bill reduction for Vale senior citizens. The reduction would only apply to residential utility bills where the person requesting the discount could prove residency and age over 65.
Vale Mayor Bill Lawrence deferred the proposal to the public works committee for a financial impact report.
During the meeting, Barton also said that Riverside Tree Service had begun some work on city trees, responding to a city bid developed in September 2005, and work had started to raise the canopy along Glenn Street.
“They’ve done a nice job of doing that, and we found there were a few additional trees that need to be taken down,” Barton said. “It’s taken a little while to get that done, but it’s going to help, especially when the wind blows, to make that safer.”
In other business, the council authorized the sale of three city-owned parcels of land near the former labor camp for $45,000 and discussed the franchise rate for Idaho Power. The city attorney will present an ordinance regarding the Idaho Power franchise at the next City Council meeting, set for Feb. 13.
