Cornelius City Council Meeting – September 8, 2026

The September 8, 2026 proceedings began around 6:45 p.m. with a short opening segment in the Cornelius City Council Chambers, followed by the regular Cornelius City Council meeting and a work session on League of Oregon Cities legislative priorities. No agenda or minutes were available, so this summary is based only on the raw transcript. The meeting was streamed on TVCTV and Zoom, and captioning/translation services were available.

Consent Calendar

• The opening segment (with Delane, Baker, Vice Chair Gudina Salencia, and Chair Lopez present) unanimously approved the August meeting minutes.
• The regular council approved its consent agenda, which the mayor described as containing a couple of items not itemized in the transcript, by unanimous voice vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were made during the public comment periods in the opening segment or the regular council meeting.
• At the public hearing on Ordinance 2026-06, no one spoke in favor, in opposition, or in general comment; staff had no rebuttal, and the hearing was closed.

Oath, Recognitions, and Proclamations

• Brenda Gonzalez Pacheco took the oath of office and was welcomed as a new city councilor.
• Service recognitions were offered for Corporal Drew Sumo Seamiller (nearly seven years with Cornelius, promoted to sheriff’s office corporal), Corporal Steve Banger, library staff member David (five years of full-time employment; more than 6,000 books distributed through the bookmobile in the last three years), Public Works crew lead Will (five years), and operations supervisor Ryan (five years; helped continue Eagle Scout project partnerships). David and Ryan were not present.
• The council proclaimed Food Waste Prevention Week, September 28–October 4, 2026, noting that up to 35% of food produced is thrown away, a family of four can save about $1,800 a year on uneaten food, and the city has expanded food scrap composting to all city facilities.
• The council proclaimed Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15–October 15, 2026, noting that Hispanic/Latinx people are about 14% of Oregon’s population and nearly 51% of Cornelius’s population, and recognizing growth in Hispanic-owned businesses in Washington County.

Presentation: Hillsboro School District 2026 Capital Bond

• Beth Grazer, chief communications officer, and Erica Lopez, former school board member and co-chair of the bond PAC, presented a $430 million capital bond on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
• The district is the fourth largest in Oregon, serving nearly 18,000 students at 37 campuses, 42 buildings, over 2.7 million square feet, and more than 19 fields/courts. Nearly $43.5 million would directly benefit Cornelius-area students at Free Orchards, Evergreen, and Glencoe.
• A bond development committee identified about $617 million of need and narrowed the ask to $430 million to keep rates stable. The district is asking for $1.84 per $1,000, which is 18 cents below the $2.22 average paid since the 2017 $408 million bond. The prior year’s rate drop from Intel’s $7 billion valuation coming onto the tax rolls was not used as the basis for a 20-year repayment.
• About half the bond would go to critical infrastructure; other funding would address safety/security, auditorium and turf field improvements, buses, and kitchen renovations.
• Erica Lopez asked councilors to publicly support the bond and encourage residents to vote yes, noting that about two-thirds of community members do not have children in schools. Councilor Baker expressed full support and offered to volunteer; Mayor Delane said he would help get information and yard signs out to the community.

Public Hearing and Ordinance 2026-06: Gateway Mixed Use Zone Amendment

• Community Development Director Barbara Fryer presented the staff report. The Gateway Mixed Use zone was created in 2019 and includes Plaza Los Amigos, the 378-unit Kalida development, PGE substation, a church, Ziply Fiber, a strip mall, Panda Express, a gas station, Burger King, and the former Haney property now owned by Tom Moyer Jr. The transcript references both 240 and 230 approved apartment units for the Haney property.
• Staff counted 37 auto-oriented businesses along TV Highway, with five built recently, and said comparisons to similar Oregon cities showed Cornelius high in auto-oriented businesses per square mile and per highway mile. Staff noted that more than 12.5 acres of highway-commercial land outside the GMU zone remain available for auto-oriented uses.
• Proposed changes include allowing existing auto-oriented uses to continue on their tax lots, capping single-tenant buildings at 15,000 square feet, prohibiting new sales/service/repair/storage/fueling of motorized vehicles, setting minimum housing densities, allowing some small-scale production uses such as brew pubs, and removing light industrial and planned-unit development as conditional uses.
• One comment letter, from Brooke Subert for the Haney/Moyer property, sought a conditional-use drive-thru/drive-in/drive-up restaurant; staff offered alternate text, but the planning commission did not recommend it, so those uses would be prohibited in the zone.
• Councilor Baker disclosed prior planning commission service and said he was unbiased; no challenges were raised. Council discussion supported limiting auto-oriented uses and preserving the area for mixed-use/residential redevelopment.

Resolutions

• Resolution 2026-57, the Comcast franchise agreement, was approved unanimously. City Manager Branham explained that the Metro Area Communications Commission negotiated the renewal over roughly four years, the prior agreement dated to July 2015, and the new franchise expires June 30, 2036, if all 15 member jurisdictions approve.
• Resolution 2026-58, the intergovernmental agreement with Washington County for the natural hazard mitigation plan, was approved unanimously. Cornelius’s cost share is $5,250 for the planning process, which covers the required five-year update cycle and helps preserve eligibility for FEMA hazard mitigation funding. Nine cities and seven special districts are participating, and Cornelius will represent the Cornelius Rural Fire Protection District.

Council and Staff Reports

• Councilor Goodines reminded drivers that students are back in school, encouraged families to sign up for Echo (Equity Corps of Oregon), know their rights, and complete family preparedness toolkits.
• Councilor Lopez reported attending National Night Out and encouraged more city outreach to residents.
• Councilor Baker also attended National Night Out and, during the midterm election season, urged respectful political engagement after referencing an incident involving State Senator Janine Solman.
• Mayor Delane reported Metro Mayors Consortium work and noted there were no JPAC or Washington County coordinating committee meetings in August.
• City Manager Branham read a community thank-you to library staff for technology help and thanked police, fire, and county SWAT personnel for their response to a significant August 27 incident.

Work Session: League of Oregon Cities Legislative Priorities

• The council considered 27 legislative priorities from seven League of Oregon Cities committees and was asked to select five.
• After discussion, the council agreed to replace the initially recommended infrastructure-funding priority with Administrative Procedures Act reform. The final five priorities are: maintain local control of a safe, modern right-of-way; land availability and land use streamlining; targeted prevailing wage changes; the 2027 transportation package; and APA/rulemaking reform.
• Notable discussion included prevailing wage thresholds set in 2005 and 2007 ($50,000 and $750,000; staff estimated today’s equivalents as $86,000 and $1.2 million), which can make redevelopment such as the Grande property harder to pencil; Oregon land-use constraints, including Cornelius’s inability to pursue urban growth boundary expansion until 75% of urban reserves are consumed; and the value of using state financing repaid through rates rather than relying only on grants.

Key Outcomes

• Consent items were approved unanimously in both the opening segment and the regular meeting.
• Ordinance 2026-06 was adopted by roll-call vote, 5-0, with all council members present voting aye; the ordinance takes effect immediately.
• Resolution 2026-57 was approved unanimously.
• Resolution 2026-58 was approved unanimously.
• Brenda Gonzalez Pacheco was sworn in, proclamations were issued, and service recognitions were presented.
• The council finalized its five League of Oregon Cities legislative priorities, swapping infrastructure funding for Administrative Procedures Act reform.