- Marion Dark proposes audio recording for ALL City of Philomath meetings
City Council votes down motion 3-2
City Council votes down motion 3-2
(Opposed to audio recording: Edmons, Low, Thomas
In Favor: Dark and Jones)
WHY TRANSPARENCY MATTERS:
26 acre "Mini-City" proposal before Planning Commission July 15th, 7 pm
35% growth from developments approved in the last 2 years
No clear City plan for Water Treatment Plant/Infrastructure costs estimated at $29 Million
In Favor: Dark and Jones)
WHY TRANSPARENCY MATTERS:
26 acre "Mini-City" proposal before Planning Commission July 15th, 7 pm
35% growth from developments approved in the last 2 years
No clear City plan for Water Treatment Plant/Infrastructure costs estimated at $29 Million
Water Town Hall experts site "low water flows" of Mary's River and reveal in 2015 Philomath was set to have water restriction imposed by Regional Water Master
During the
June 24th City Council meeting, Councilor Marion Dark made a motion
attempting to establish audio recordings for all City meetings, adding Public
Works and the Finance/Administration Committee, where many real city finance
decisions are made. She urged the
keeping of the recordings on the City’s website for a minimum of 3-6 months for
public access.
After 30
minutes of discussion and objection, City Manager, Chris Workman had convinced
three Councilors to vote the motion down.
Vote: 3-2 (Opposed: Low, Edmonds, Thomas. In Favor: Dark, Jones).
Why
Transparency Matters?
Philomath
has approved an unprecedented (35%+) amount of growth since 2017, with another
26-acre, Master Plan Development Hearing
before the Planning Commission, July 15th. The original Hearing on May 20th
was suspiciously canceled by the city (unknowing to the Planning Commission),
the same day a 2000 address mailer alerting Philomath residents of the Hearing
was released.
Philomath
has exceeded the lifespan of our Water Treatment Plant facility over 10 years
ago. To date there has been no clear
communication to citizens or up front planning addressing the Treatment Plant
and other needed infrastructure expenditures estimated at $29 million.
In May, The
City sponsored a Water Town Hall event with expert speakers addressing Philomath’s overall water supply,
facility, distribution concerns and impacts from climate change showing warming
trends for the entire valley. Guest
experts at no time stated that Philomath has enough water for continued population
growth and