Clackamas County Commisioner Ann Lininger Continues to Endorse Urban Renewal Without a Vote Of all Residents.

To all COLA LO Members,  

On Tuesday Residents passed the Citizen Driven Urban Renewal Initiative Measure 3-386 soundly.

This was despite the fact that LO resident and county Commissioner Ann Lininger approved and then supported a competing measure 3-388 designed to confuse voters and limit the vote on all Urban Renewal projects. 

Measure 3-386 passed with an overwhelming majority and now requires that all Urban Renewal projects and subsequent taxes be passed by ALL county residents.  

Commissioner Lininger's comments and her search for additional fees and taxes can be found at the following Oregonian article:   Clackamas Residents Require a Vote.

Once again the LO Review came out against 3-386 and for the commissioner sponsored measure that would limit a vote and once again the effort to limit your vote was defeated by residents.   

Engineer Says Foundation for Streetcar is Distorted

To All COLA LO Members,

The Oregonian published an interesting interview yesterday regarding an engineers analysis of the Portland-LO streetcar project.   

 In the analysis he argues that the DEIS and certain assumptions on the proposed project are fundamentally flawed and do not incorporate new technology.  

It is one perspective on the project but provides for interesting review and evaluation.   The article can be found at:  Is Lake Oswego Streetcar Distorted?

Please notify all members,contacts, and friends.  

Oregonian Article Claims Conservatives Gain Momentum in Clackamas County

To All COLA LO Members,

This weekend the Oregonian published an analysis of what may be going on in the county over the past few years.    There are varying interpretations according to the contributors but the consensus is there is deep concern over fiscal responsibility in all areas within the county.   

The Oregonian article can be found at:Conservatives gain momentum

Ironically citizens weighed in on this article including comments on Jack Bog's blog.   Public comment seems to indicate that the issue is not conservatives and that the concern is very broad based.   Jack Bogs analysis and public comment can be found at:  Clackistan Misunderstood.

Much of this also applies to Lake Oswego and it will be interesting to see how it impacts the 2012 election when 3 sitting councilors and the mayor are up for re-election.   There is quite a lot of rumor that several councilors and possibly the mayor may not run again.

The details can be fascinating on this issue so please notify all members, contacts, and friends. 

Citizen Claims "Library being held hostage"

To All COLA LO Members,

Last week a citizen published an article in the Review claiming that the library is being held hostage to both foothills and streetcar development under the city's plans for redevelopment.   The article can be found at: Ransom our library

The article states: 

"Since there’s more than enough TIF to fully construct the library, every additional dollar simply shifts another dollar to lower priority, less voter-friendly items on the city’s wish list. This G-O bond scheme would ransom our library for streetcar and Foothills. It’s a slap in the face to people who have worked so long to bring us a new library and salt in the wound to WEB backers."

It presents an interesting position shared by many residents who are deeply concerned over spending and debt in the city.  

Please notify all members, contacts, and friends.  

Oregonian PolitiFact Says LO Resident & County Commisioner Lininger's Claims including those in a Direct Mail piece are False on 3-386

To all Cola LO Members,

It seems we may have a question in terms of recent claims regarding initiative 3-386 and their credibility as communicated by a county commissioner.    

Politifact recently reviewed a claim by county Commissioner and Lake Oswego resident Ann Lininger on citizen driven ballot initiative 3-386.  

In their analysis they clearly state that Commissioner Lininger's claims and those of a recent direct mail piece are absolutely FALSE and misleading to the voters.   False Claims on 3-386 to support 3-388.

This is consistent with the fact that county commissioner's developed ballot initiative 3-388 to mislead voters and oppose the citizen driven measure in a 3-1 vote (savas against).   

Its disturbing given the position and the facts but its consistent with clackamas county commissioners opposing all recent citizen driven initiatives in an attempt to limit county residents from voting on new fees and taxes that apply to ALL county residents. 

There seems to be a basic philosophy to prevent residents from voting on taxes and fees which are often hidden in tax statements.  This was the case with the recent Vehicle Registration Fee proposal which was approved by the commission and then overturned by residents 2:1.  

Please notify all members, contacts, and friends.  

 

Franchise Fee (Tax) Increase Was Not Necessary

To All COLA LO Members,

Several articles over the past two weeks have identified serious concerns over the decision by the council in June to increase residents taxes with increasing the Franchise Fee.   These come on the revelation that the city actually had a $2.8 million surplus when it projected $500K.  

This issue of increasing taxes in difficult times has been a subject of ongoing community concern for nearly a year now.   

The Budget Committee proposed a no increase option but this was overturned by the council in a 4-3 vote.  

This past week Councilor Gudman released an article indicating the increase was not necessary:   Franchise Fee (Tax) Increase Not Required

Several weeks ago Budget Committee member Kent Studebaker released an article questioning the surplus and use of the funds:  Council's Response to Surplus

Board Member Dave Berg also released an article discussing the accountability issue as it relates to the budget and the surplus:   Accountability in LO Questioned

Overall the issue is a significant one in a community where income growth has stagnated and fees and taxes continue to increase at rates well beyond inflation.   The combination of tax increases and utility rate increases are making it very difficult in a maturing community.

Property taxes increased 3% this year despite the fact that property values actually decreased in Lake Oswego.  

Please notify all members, contacts, and friends.  

Clackamas County Has the Largest Urban Renewal Program of Any County

To All COLA LO members,

Politifact made a ruling today on statements about the competing Urban Renewal Measures.   The details are very interesting.    Claims have been made that Clackamas County has the largest Renewal District of any County in Oregon.   

Interestingly enough it turns out to be true.  Your Commissioners continue to vote for more Urban Renewal Districts and operate the largest county wide district in the state. 

Although most Urban Renewal districts are within cities, Clackamas County has the largest effort of any county government entity.  

The details can be found at Clackamas County the Largest Renewal District?