EVERY
VOTE COUNTS NOW MORE THAN ANY TIME IN THE PAST!
STATUS QUO with the incumbents
vs.
NEWCOMERS seeking office
INCUMBENTS seeking office and appear quite satisfied with the status quo:
City Councilors: Ruth Causey, Matt Lehman, David Low, Matthew Thomas.
Mayor Candidate: Doug Edmonds.
NEWCOMERS seeking office and appear not satisfied with the status quo:
City Councilor Candidates: Jessica Andrade, Catherine Biscoe, Lawrence E. Johnson,
Jason Richards, Thomas Sullivan.
Mayor Candidate: Chas Jones (current City Councilor)
What is the Status Quo? Let’s examine the record of the past and current City Council
• A decades long system that avoids the recognition of Goal 1 required Citizens Advisory Panel
• A belief that there is enough water for current and planned development
• Allowing for fire hydrants to have less than State mandated minimum water pressure for fire suppression at locations within the Cit
• Approving excess housing development with an insufficient development process
• Failing to allocate budget reserves to fund an estimated $14 million Water Treatment Plant
which will now be levied against the taxpayers of Philomath
• Approving development applications that will increase housing by almost 600 new homes and apartments
• Approving a 167-space RV park for transient RVs who will probably not be residents, but will put immense pressure on a limited road, water and wastewater City infrastructure
• Increasing the budget and salary spending year after year without increasing savings sufficiently for needed infrastructure costs
• Continuing to increase water and sewer rates, putting Philomath in the top range of Benton County utility rates
• Continuing to increase tax rates which keep Philomath at the highest tax rate of any comparable Oregon City, and at the highest rates in Benton County
• Maintaining a closed-door policy on Citizen involvement and participation through exclusionary committees, restrictive meeting access and non-transparent governance practices.
Now Consider the priorities of the Newcomer, who like many Philomath residents are unhappy with the status quo and are advocating for change
• Recognize the importance of citizen input as allowed by Oregon’s Goal 1
• Believe in establishing an active Citizen’s Advisory Committee consisting of a representative sample of City residents, and households
• Include in every development criteria the City’s stated and established water limitations
• Review the budget with an eye to eliminating waste and excess spending
• Ensure that adequate time for citizen input is established for any proposed changes and developments by holding two separate readings through proper procedure
• Create an office of Citizen Ombudsperson who has real authority to advocate for City residents
• Proceed methodically
• Treat every dollar of taxpayer revenue with dignity and respectfully spend only as needed
• Listen to the City residents
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
REMEMBER, every vote counts more now than at any time in the past. Philomath and the status quo have not worked!
Guest writer: LAWRENCE JOHNSON
