Meeting to order.

First item on agenda tonight is a Pledge of Leaders led by Council Presidenter Pratt.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

And to the Republic.

One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Under announcements, we have one announcement.

We have a proclamation declared in October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month in Twalton.

And I believe Rachel Schultz is presenting.

Rachel, come on up.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I have a presentation tonight on the Family Peace Center of Washington County.

We've talked for the last couple years about how we are creating the Family Peace Center.

And this is a preview of what the Family Peace Center is going to look like.

And it's perfect timing for the proclamation of October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

And so briefly go ahead and go to the next slide.

So you guys know that we the Family Justice Center has been operating since 2018 and we are a collaborative organization.

We are now, as we move into our new center, going to be 18, not 18.

We're going to move from 18 to 22 organizations.

Next slide.

Okay.

So I will go through and give a quick overview, but we will have justice system partners.

So the Washington County Circuit Court, Washington County District Attorney's Office, who will be moving their domestic violence unit into the Family Peace Center, and also have grand jury in the Family Peace Center.

Washington County Sheriff's Office, Beaverton Police Department, and Hillsborough Police Departments will be there with their specialized detectives.

So we'll have a much more expanded presence of our justice system partners.

Next slide, please.

And then Providence Health and Services is going to be building in a forensic medical clinic into the Family Peace Center.

That will be acute and follow-up medical and forensic care for sexual assault examinations, physical assault, and strangulations.

This will be the first clinic-based forensic model in Washington County.

Otherwise, you would have to go to Providence St.

Vincent's Medical Center, so the hospital.

Next slide.

Then we will have our legal aid partners, so our free legal assistance for survivors and their children with Oregon Law Center, Oregon Crime Victims Law Center, St.

Andrews Legal Clinic, and then also Disability Rights Oregon providing, oh, thank you.

Providing uh different services, uh, different legal services for survivors and their children, depending on their legal needs.

Then we will have our survivor advocacy and crisis support, so those really important organizations that we've long partnered with in the Domestic Violence Resource Center, Sexual Assault Resource Center, Safety Compass, who provides advocacy and case management for individuals that are experiencing sex trafficking, and then also Voices Survivor Leadership Committee who provides oversight and leadership for the Family Peace Center itself to ensure that it is survivor run.

And then child and youth services.

So this is a big expanded component of the Family Peace Center.

We've recently partnered with Adelante Mujeres, and for the last couple years, they've been providing their Beyond Trauma program at the Family Justice Center, but now they are going to be building out a therapeutic preschool for children who have experienced child abuse or witnessed family violence so that we can get that early intervention for the children of survivors to ensure that they have all the resources necessary in order for them to be successful in school, successful in the rest of their lives, so they don't have those negative long-term outcomes that we've seen from children who don't get that early intervention.

A Village for One who provides clinical mental health services for youth that have been impacted by sex trafficking, and then Family Scale Builders, which is a parent support and home visiting program.

Then our basic needs support systems such as community action for rent and utility assistance, Department of Human Services, Oregon Food Bank, and then also Ride Connection for Transportation Services to the Family Peace Center.

And then this is just a little bit of a layout, kind of difficult to see from here.

But the first floor is going to be survivor services.

The second floor is our community-based partners, so domestic violence resource center, sexual assault resource center, et cetera.

And then the third floor is our medical services with CARES Northwest, Providence Clinic, the Court, and Law Enforcement and District Attorney's Office.

So these are just some of the pictures from the renderings of the new center.

And then these are some of the construction in progress pictures.

We've been really excited that it's looking exactly like the drawings.

I don't know how they do that, but they plan they manage to make it happen.

Where is the new center going to be?

It is going to be in Hillsborough in the Amberglen area, right off of essentially where the streets of Tannisborn are.

The MAX line and bus stops are pretty close by.

And then our phone number is going to remain the same, and then we will have a Family Peace Center website.

And that is everything that I have for you on the Family Peace Center.

But I wanted to give you guys a heads up that all of this is coming in January.

Thank you, Rachel.

Yeah, thank you guys so much.

Thank you.

And I've had the privilege of visiting the Family Justice Center and volunteering there a couple times.

And it's really some it's something.

I never knew that something like that existed, and you've come and talked before before us by actually seeing how all those services are available for folks and being a survivor of domestic violence.

I mean, I wish something was around, you know, when I when I needed it.

So I'm so grateful that it's there for folks today.

So thank you for all the work that you do.

So the city of Tualeton proclaims whereas domestic violence is a serious crime that affects people of all races, ages, gender identities, socioeconomic levels, religions, backgrounds, beliefs, and abilities, but often has a disproportionate effect on communities and groups impacted by inequality.

And whereas domestic violence includes physical, emotional, social, sexual, spiritual, financial, and digital abuse, and can occur between family members, intimate partners, and within dating relationships.

And whereas more than one in three women and one in four men in the United States report having experienced domestic violence, stalking sexual assault or physical assault by an intimate partner during their lifetime.

And whereas domestic violence impacts vulnerable victims, including children, as approximately 50% of Washington County children who are child abuse victims, also live in homes with domestic violence.

And whereas in 2024, the Family Justice Center served a total of 7,204 survivors, and the domestic violence resource center provided 9,110 crisis service to survivors despite challenges due to the pandemic.

And whereas domestic violence incidents are some of the most complex and dangerous incidents that law enforcement respond to in our community, putting their lives at risk every day in the belief that a coordinated community response is necessary to support survivors, hold offenders accountable, and work towards ending the cycle of violence.

Hold offenders accountable and work towards ending the cycle of violence.

Now, therefore, be it proclaimed by the city council of the city of Tualaton, Oregon, Tualaton, designates the month of October 2025 as domestic violence awareness month.

Domestic Violence Awareness Month provides an excellent platform to show support for the domestic violent advocates, crisis hotline, victim service organizations, the prosecutors who hold offenders accountable, and law enforcement officers in our community.

It also provides our community the opportunity to learn more about preventing domestic violence and show support for the numerous organizations and individuals who provide critical advocacy resources, hope, and assistance to victims.

Introduced and adopted the 22nd day of September and 20 of 2025.

And I just wanted to add that I emphasized report reported because there's so many people that don't report domestic violence.

And for the reason of re-retribution.

And so those numbers are staggering, but they're not the real numbers, which is which is horrifying to think about.

But thank you so much for being here.

Thank you.

I really appreciate it.

Thank you as always for making this proclamation.

It's really important to have these things done publicly so that people that live in Tualaton know that they have a safe place to go.

I took a look right before I came.

And through since the beginning of the year through July, we've served 151 people from Tualeton.

And so it's really important that we have these announcements.

And if anybody wants to come and show support, our community puts on a 5K for domestic violence awareness month, and that will be on Sunday, October 12th at Hare Field.

And some information will be sent out after this meeting.

So thank you all so much.

We have a signed copy of the proclamation.

Back over here.

Would you like to receive it?

Thank you so much.

All right, that brings us to public comment.

Uh public comment is an opportunity for anyone to address the city council on an item that is not on tonight's agenda.

Please keep your comments to about three minutes.

If there's anyone in the room who would like to comment, I'll take those folks first.

You can either be signed up or spontaneous.

Once we're done with the folks in the room, we'll go to Zoom.

I have one gentleman signed up right now, uh Jerry Mullins.

Welcome.

My name is Jerry Mullins.

Here you go.

Hi, my name is Jerry Mullins.

I'm a business owner here in Twalaton.

Um, the name of the company is Western Precision Products Incorporated.

We do high-tech CNC manufacturing mostly for the aerospace and space industries.

We're located over on 115th Avenue near Mill Guard Windows, Twalaton Indoor Soccer, you know, that general area.

Um we employ about 70 wonderful employees.

We also own the building and property that we occupy a 48,000 square foot tilt-up.

We've been in Twalaton for around 11 years now.

It's a great place to have our company.

Um, but I've come here this evening to ask you for your help.

We've had a problem for probably a year, maybe a little more.

Um I apologize if I don't use the correct words here.

Basically, transient people parking their RVs in front of our business.

They're camping on the city street.

We've worked with the Tualeton police department, which I have to say have been absolutely fantastic.

Uh, the community resource officer.

Uh they've done, they've been very helpful within the tools that they have in their toolbox.

Um but they essentially told us hey, we're kind of out of tools here.

I mean, they can put green towing stickers on these RVs till they run out of stickers, but nothing ever happens.

And I understand why the towing company is not going to tow something that potentially has people in it or is gonna spill fuel or sewage or whatever.

But anyways, um, like I said, I'm asking for your help.

I don't know next steps, but the police basically said, hey, unless you go to city council and say something, probably nothing's ever gonna happen.

So that's why I'm here.

So I was wondering if you have any um next steps people I could talk to, anything like that.

Um, obviously um I understand these people need a place to live, but this really isn't the place to do it.

It makes our employees uncomfortable when they're walking down the street.

You know, last week we had somebody set up a couch on the sidewalk, a couple people out there yelling at each other.

You know, it's just not the place for that.

So um I'd like your advice.

So I guess my my comment would be um that we'll follow up with Sherlin and the chief and dig into the situation a little bit more.

Because I can't, like you're saying, I can't spontaneously see give you an answer what we can do next.

Understood, yeah.

But uh definitely you know, thank you for making us aware of it, and we'll work with the city manager and the chief to see what we can do to alleviate the situation.

We really appreciate it.

Thank you.

I mean, I have some pictures here if you want, but it's pretty obvious what's going on.

Would you like these?

Yeah, you can go ahead and give it to Erica.

All right, thank you very much.

Okay, thank you.

All right, anyone else in the room that would like to speak about something that's not on our agenda tonight.

All right, do we have anybody in Zoom?

Oh, there's anyone.

There's a guy in college, sir.

But I don't know what we have to go to.

Okay.

Okay.

Uh with that, we'll go ahead and move on to the consent agenda.

Uh the consent agenda are items are considered routine.

They will be adopted by one motion unless someone in council will like an item removed and heard separately later tonight.

Tonight the consent agenda consists of item number one, consideration of approval of the work session and regular meeting minutes of September 8th, 2025.

Item number two, consideration of resolution number 5912-25, authorizing the city manager to execute a grant agreement for a state homeland security program grant and appropriate special purpose revenues in the city's general fund during the fiscal year 2025-2026 budget.

Item number three, consideration of resolution number 5914-25, authorizing a contract renewal with acts on for body worn cameras, tasers, digital evidence storage, maintenance, and support.

And finally, item number four, consideration of resolution number five nine one six-25 awarding fiscal year 2025-2026 outside agency grant funds to provide services to the towald and community.

Would any counselor like an item removed from consent?

I move that we adopt the consent agendas read.

Second.

I have a motion and a second to adopt a consent agenda is ready.

Any discussion on those motions.

Opposed abstentions.

It's unanimous.

All right.

That moves us to a public hearing.

And I got one heck of a script to read.

So here we go.

All right.

All right.

Uh this is a public hearing regarding resolution 5915-25.

Request for review of the city's honey bucket interpretation decision, INT 25-0001.

The subject property is 3.8 acres and zoned in the light manufacturing or ML planning district, located at 18805 Southwest 108th Avenue, tax lots 2s 122 AD, 600, 700, and 800.

The public hearing tonight will be conducted as follows.

First, we'll open the public hearing and request a staff deliver their report.

We'll then have an entry of additional correspondence received into the record.

Then we'll move into inviting testimony in the following order.

The applicant slash the applicant's representative will present, then we'll hear from proponents.

We'll hear from folks who are have neutral testimony, then opponents, and then any appropriate rebuttals will follow that.

We'll then move on to closing the public hearing.

We'll have questions of staff, if any, by members of council, and followed by discussion of council.

A decision may be made by the city council at the close of the hearing tonight, or the matter may be continued to a time and date certain in the future.

If you wish, that went too far.

If you wish to speak, please wait for me to ask for testimony and raise your hand or select the raise hand button in Zoom.

If you're joining virtual if you are joining virtually, I will recognize these people wishing to speak.

Any questions should be addressed through me.

Please state both your name and address for the record when you come to the podium as this hearing is being recorded.

Please testify.

Please keep testimony concise and to the point.

The criteria for approval are contained in TDC 31, General Provisions, TDC 32 procedures, TDC 39 use categories, TDC 60 light manufacturing ML zone, and TDC 63, Industrial Uses and Utilities, and Manufacturing Zones Environmental Regulations.

Specific information regarding the applicable criteria can be found in the analysis and findings sections of the staff report, request for review interpretation 25-0001, data September 22nd, 2025.

These are the criteria the council must use in making its decision.

All testimony and evidence must be directed towards these criteria or other criteria in the comprehensive plan or other land use regulations which the person testifying believes apply to the decision.

Please relate any testimony to the listed criteria.

The matter before City Council this evening must be decided based on these criteria.

Failure to raise an issue with sufficient specificity to afford the city council and the interest of parties an opportunity to respond to the issue precludes an appeal to the land use board of appeals based on that issue.

Failure to raise constitutional or other issues regarding relating to the proposed conditions of the approval with sufficient specificity to allow the city council to respond to that issue precludes an action for damages in circuit court.

Prior to the conclusion of the eminency portion of the hearing, any participant may request an opportunity to present additional evidence, arguments, or testimony regarding the application.

The city council must grant the request by either continuing the public hearing to a date certain or leaving the record open for an additional seven days to allow additional written evidence, arguments, or testimony to be presented.

At this time, I ask members of the council to disclose any ex parte contacts, bias, or conflicts of interest.

Please indicate the nature and extent of the ex parte contact, bias or conflict of interest, and indicate whether you intend to participate in or abstain from the hearing.

I'm not seeing any.

Does any member of the audience wish to challenge any member of the city council's impartiality?

Seeing none, I'll move on.

All right.

City staff will now present the staff report.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Good evening.

My name is Madeline Nelson.

I'm an associate planner here with the City of Twalton, and I'm also joined by Aquila Herdravich, our community development director.

And tonight we will be presenting the staff presentation on the request for review of a previously issued code interpretation decision.

So tonight's item is an appeal filed by the applicant regarding staff's honey bucket interpretation decision by the case file number INT 25-01 that was issued on July 11th of this year.

Before we begin our presentation, we want to note that if the council approves this appeal, this would confirm the applicant's interpretation of the Twalton Development Code, and a denial of this appeal confirms the staff interpretation of the Twalton Development Code.

The subject site is located at 18805 Southwest 108th Avenue.

The site consists of three tax lots totaling 3.8 acres, which takes access from Southwest 108th Avenue.

The site is located in the light manufacturing planning district, and to summarize the Twalton Development Code, the purpose of the light manufacturing zone is to provide suitable areas for light industrial uses and limited supportive commercial activities, while buffering residential and commercial areas from heavy manufacturing and prohibiting hazardous or environmentally adverse operations.

This slide highlights the subject site in orange on the aerial map.

For additional wayfinding to the south is Herman Road, and to the east is the Twalton City Services Building, which is zone institutional, and where we're currently located this evening.

The surrounding light manufacturing zone is shown in light gray, and it's bordered by the manufacturing park zoning to the north and west and general manufacturing to the south in that teal aqua color.

To provide some background on the appeal case in front of you, in October of 2024, staff first became aware of the honey bucket site through a code enforcement complaint.

On June 11th of 2025, the applicant submitted a request for code interpretation asking staff to classify the site use as wholesale sales rather than solid waste treatment and recycling.

On July 11th, staff issued a decision finding the primary use aligned with the solid waste treatment and recycling, which is not permitted in the light manufacturing zone.

On July 24th, the applicant appealed that decision, bringing the matter before City Council this evening, and public notice of this hearing was issued on August 25th.

This table highlights the permitted and conditionally permitted uses in the light manufacturing zone.

The solid waste treatment and recycling is allowed only as a conditional use and only for recycling collection centers.

The wholesale sales use is narrowly defined to the sales of industrial hand tools and supplies, rental of industrial equipment to contractors and firms, and with a conditional use permit also the wholesale of building materials.

In their June application, the applicant described on site activities as loading, unloading, washing, and storing of portable restrooms and industrial equipment rented from the site.

The applicant argued that the primary use is the rental of portable restrooms and equipment, which would be considered a wholesale sales use, and that any waste related activities are merely accessory.

Staff's determination concluded that the primary use is solid waste treatment and recycling, because essential activities include the collecting, storing, and washing of portable restrooms and temporarily storing waste on site.

Staff found that these uses are not incidental or accessory as they define the site's operations.

And since the light manufacturing zone only conditionally allows a recycling collection center, the existing use is prohibited.

The applicant's interpretation submission confirmed these on-site activities, which are listed on the slide in front of you, which are also included in the provided materials.

And based on these activities and a review of the TwIALT and development code, staff determined that the use is aligned with the solid waste treatment and recycling.

The 12th and development code specifically lists portable toilet collection, storage, and pumping as an example under this use category.

And while pumping does not occur on site, the site engages in the collection, storing, washing, and temporary waste storage, which are all integral to this use.

And therefore, both the portable toilet rental and associated waste storage are prohibited in the light manufacturing zone.

In contrast, the applicant argued that those uses fit under wholesale sales.

However, the wholesale sales category is fairly narrowly defined as it allows the industrial tools and supplies or the rental of industrial equipment to contractors and doesn't include activities involving solid waste materials.

And because the site includes waste collection and storage, staff concluded that it would not qualify as wholesale sales.

The applicant team submitted a request for review of staff's interpretation of INT 25-01.

For the reason of appeal, the applicant listed that they would be adversely affected by the decision that business operations are not allowed under the property's current zoning.

The request for review or appeal is governed by TDC section 32310, which would apply to this process.

In response, staff have provided findings for all applicable criteria.

And for the record, the applicant has submitted follow-up letters on September 18th, which have been provided to council.

No additional applicant materials or public comments have been received.

So City Council is asked to make a decision on the request for review of the INT 25 01 honey bucket interpretation.

Council may affirm the INT 25-01 decision and adopt resolution 5915-25, so this would deny the appeal.

They may also revise or modify the interpretation decision and adopt a written order that clearly states the basis for council's decision.

Council may also reverse the interpretation decision and adopt a written order supporting that decision, and that would approve the appeal.

Or alternatively, council may also continue the hearing to a later date.

For some additional consideration, staff have included these sections of our current zoning map that illustrate areas of the city that are zoned light manufacturing, so those are depicted in light gray.

And as previously mentioned, border or heavier manufacturing districts are general manufacturing, which is shown in blue.

And the light gray is intended to provide a buffer between our residential zoning sections, which are shown in the pale yellow sections and our more heavy manufacturing uses.

We also have a small section of light manufacturing in the northeastern part of the city as well.

And that concludes our staff presentation on the request for review for the honey bucket interpretation decision.

We're available for any additional questions.

You said it a couple of minutes ago, but just make sure have we received any correspondence on this matter other than those items that are included in the agenda materials tonight.

We have not.

Okay.

All right.

Uh with that, I'll go ahead and the applicant may now present their proposal.

Welcome.

All right.

Um good evening, Mayor Bumenick and Council President Pratt and Counselors.

Um, and thank you for your time tonight.

Thank you also to staff for all of their assistance and professionalism throughout this process.

For the record, my name is Marissa Muller.

My address is 760 Southwest Ninth Avenue, suite 3000, Portland, Oregon, 97205.

And I am a land use attorney representing Northwest Cascade Inc., also known as Honey Bucket, who is the applicant in this matter.

Let's see.

Oh.

There we go.

Nope.

Okay.

Um, so as I said, thank you to Madeline for the excellent overview of the issue before you tonight.

And as Madeline indicated, Honey Bucket here is here tonight to request that you reverse staff's code interpretation decision.

Um, and that as Madeline noted, that decision concluded that Honey Bucket's existing portable restroom and equipment business is not permitted in the light manufacturing zone.

And specifically, it's not permitted at um Honey Bucket site, which is directly across 108th Avenue from where we sit tonight.

You may have passed this property on your way in, you may have passed in in the past.

Um, but this is a picture of what we're talking about.

So to set a little bit differently, if you vote in favor of Honey Bucket and you reverse staff's decision tonight, as we're requesting, that would mean that you conclude that Honey Bucket's rent um business is a wholesale sales use and can continue operating as a permitted use of the this site, meaning no other land use approvals will be required.

If you vote against Honey Bucket and you affirm staff's decision, that would mean that you conclude that Honey Bucket's business is a solid waste treatment and recycling use.

Um, and that the business cannot continue operating at this site, and it cannot continue operating at any other property zoned for light manufacturing in the city.

And that would also mean that Honey Bucket would either need to close its business in Tuallaton, or maybe pursue another land use application to either rezone the property, probably followed by a conditional use permit application, find another property followed by a conditional use permit application, or we may find ourselves back here in a few months requesting that you amend your code.

We're very concerned about the possibility of a future land use process because it is so unpredictable, and also just because of the sheer amount of resources and time, not just for you know lawyers but also for staff and the city's lawyers to process such a request.

And so just a little bit of practical context about our request to you tonight.

Um I will I think it's important that you understand that practical possibility because ultimately what we're requesting tonight is that you interpret your code in a way that's both consistent with the law but also practical and pragmatic.

You know, I'm a land use lawyer, I will be the first to admit that lawyers often tend to over lawyer and overthink things and complicate things that really should be simple.

And tonight we're asking you not to do that and instead to read your code just in a practical common sense way.

Um we're asking you to read your code in a way that furthers your pro-business and pro-economic development policies in this city.

So I'm gonna spend a little bit of time tonight talking about what your code says and the kind of legal limits on your decision tonight and what we're asking.

But before I do that, I think it's important that you hear um directly from Honey Bucket about what this issue is, and so that you can fully understand what your vote tonight really means.

So I'd like to introduce my client, Jason Perry, who's the chief operating officer of Honey Bucket.

Jason drove up from Salem this evening to be here tonight.

Um Jason, I'll turn it over to you.

Thank you, Marsa.

Uh good evening, Mr.

Mayor and Counselors.

I just want to preemptively um apologize.

I just got over a cold, so I've been losing my voice to the last two days.

So if I start cutting out, I apologize.

Uh my name is Jason Perry.

My address is 595 Sahali Drive Southeast Salem, Oregon.

Um I'm the CEO for Northwest Cascade Honey Bucket and the applicant in this matter.

Uh Honey Bucket is a locally owned, or excuse me, local employee-owned and union operation.

We do portable restrooms and industrial site services as staff said, such as fence containers, showers, that type of thing.

We are based a few hours north of Pialp, Washington, which is near Tacoma.

But most of our Oregon staff lives here in Oregon.

And in this location, that impacts about 40 employees.

Although we now service customers in seven states, we have stayed true to our roots as a homegrown regional company.

And we decided to open a new rental location here.

We fully committed to it.

And since we are employee owned, that means our owners themselves live in this area.

We also have a lot of community programs where we donate back to the communities, including one local one here is Twalton Valley of Football.

We've donated several times to them.

My own son plays for Twalton Valley Football.

And we truly live our values.

We believe in investing in our people, including hiring locally, promoting from within and supporting the union efforts.

Since we are excuse me, I started working at company 39 years ago as a truck washer on the weekends while I was going to school.

I then worked my way up through the ranks of the company until in 1998, I transferred here to Oregon and was named the manager for Oregon.

Since then in 2020, I was promoted to COO, which is to illustrate how we do promote from within many of our managers in all of our locations, started it as route drivers, yard helpers, fuel island, that type of thing.

As Marissa stated, you probably drove by our yard come into this meeting here tonight.

We like to be not noticed.

We want to be tucked back and not interfere with the day-to-day operations in life of the citizens of Twilighton.

But we've been operating out of that location for two years with very low impact on anyone around us.

Frankly, when we did receive the code enforcement, we're very surprised.

Um, because again, we believed we did everything that we needed to do to be in that location.

And additionally, we are confused because on that same property 20 years ago there was a portable toilet operation, and now just a block or two down the road, there's a portable toilet operation called USS Unite Site Services.

We had hoped we could resolve this misunderstanding with the city staff.

Obviously, that didn't happen, so we are here in front of you all today.

Um can't read my own writing.

Uh unfortunately, we've had to hire a land use attorney and um are in the process that we're in at this point.

Uh people tend to not think about portable toilets until they're needed.

Um we provide for anything from construction sites to uh sporting events, parades, festivals.

Um I heard you all talking about uh the Saturday market type thing.

We provide lots of restrooms across all of Oregon for those type of things.

Um we're asking here tonight is for you to allow us to continue operating as we are right now, um, which is low impact on the community and to be investing back into the community as we can.

So with that, thank you for your time and consideration.

All right, thanks, Jason.

And I should say also um Jason and I are both open to questions.

If you have them, we want to make sure we're addressing your concerns.

So please do feel free to interrupt us.

And I'm gonna dive into a bunch of legal details.

So okay.

All right, so as I mentioned, I will plan to spend some time explaining um why both your code and Oregon law support the outcome that Honeybuck is requesting.

You know, we're not just asking you to make an exception, we're asking you to do something that we think your code already supports.

And so I'd like to start by um kind of talking about your legal authority as the elected body that's responsible both for making the law in Tualeton and also interpreting the law to achieve what you think is the best outcome for this community.

This proceedings a quasi-judicial land use proceeding, meaning that you are acting as the judges, and your job is to interpret the law.

And there are some basic rules that you do have to follow.

So one of them is that you have to determine the intent of the relevant code provisions, or said differently.

That means you need to think about what was the prior city council thinking about and what did they intend when they adopted the code.

And the primary way that you do that is by reading the text of the code.

But sometimes the text of the code doesn't give you all the answers.

And if you have a situation where the text of the code is ambiguous, meaning that reasonable minds could differ, there's more than one possible interpretation of your code, you, as the city council have very significant discretion to read the code, you know, consistently with the text, but also based on what you think makes the most sense.

And that's ultimately our situation here.

Staff have offered you one option to read your code.

And their conclusion, that option is that the only possible way to describe Honey Bucket's business, the portable toilet rental piece specifically, is as a solid waste treatment and recycling use.

That's certainly one possible interpretation.

Again, reasonable minds can differ.

We believe that our interpretation is not necessarily the best interpretation because we don't think it accurately captures kind of the nuances of this business and what Honey Bucket is really doing, which is renting portable toilets.

But even more importantly, that's not the only possible way to read your code.

And so it's equally reasonable, if not more so, to conclude that Honey Bucket's business is a wholesale sales use, which is allowed in as a is permitted outright in the ML zone.

And so because your code is ambiguous, you get to decide what is best for the city and what furthers the intent of the code.

Okay, so let's talk about the two competing readings before you.

So first, this is Honey Bucket's position.

We believe that Honey Bucket's business is best described as a wholesale sales use.

And I have up here on the screen, this is how your code defines wholesale sales.

Madeline also spoke to this, but wholesale sales is the sale, lease, and/or rental of products primarily to businesses.

And one example of a wholesale sales use, and this is relevant because this is a specific subcategory permitted in the ML zone, is the service and rental of construction and industrial equipment, specifically to contractors and industrial firms.

So this is exactly what Honey Bucket does.

Honeybucket rents portable toilets and related equipment to construction and contractors and industrial firms, primarily to housing and commercial developers, developers to be used at construction sites.

Staff has taken the position based on their read of the code that portable toilets cannot be construction and industrial equipment because they're not directly used to perform construction.

That's the word perform.

And a couple notes about that argument.

So the first note is that your code doesn't support that distinction.

You'll see the word perform doesn't appear anywhere in the code.

And so I think staff has made an inference based on the examples that are listed here: tractors, loaders, hose, et cetera, that those are unlike toilets, and so this can't include portable toilets and similar equipment.

But again, your code doesn't say that.

And I think equally importantly, there's just no practical reason to treat Honey Bucket's business differently from any other business that runs construction and industrial equipment as a wholesaler.

You know, it's perhaps not particularly pleasant thing for most of us to think about, but construction workers and other people need portable toilets, and they're as essential to construction and other activities as say cranes and forklifts or other similar equipment.

And so, in our view, the question before you tonight really is that simple.

Your code defines wholesale sales as the rental of products primarily to businesses, and that's what we're doing here.

And just a little further context, here's the construction and industrial equipment we're talking about.

So if you've ever been to a construction site, you've been to a community event, this should look familiar.

Perhaps you've used some of this equipment yourself.

I have to emphasize we're not talking about heavy machinery or dangerous equipment, we're not talking about heavily polluting industry, we're talking about portable toilets, sinks, equipment trailers, and temporary fencing.

And this is the exact type of low-impact rental equipment that's appropriate in the light manufacturing zone because it has very few impacts, the storage and rental of this equipment.

And that's just yet another reason why your code supports Honey Bucket's requested interpretation.

Okay.

So I'd like to address staff's interpretation and dig in a little bit and explain why we believe that Honey Bucket's business is not a solid waste treatment and recycling use, or that's at least not the best conclusion based on the nuances of what Honey Bucket is doing at this property.

So first, again, as Madeline gave the overview, the definition of solid waste treatment and recycling is a use that receives processes and or recycles solid waste materials.

So we're talking about toilets, there's no dispute that human waste qualifies as a solid waste, but I want to emphasize to you that Honey Bucket is not processing and treating human waste at its property.

Instead, Honey Bucket is storing empty toilets.

They are transported off site, they're rented out to job sites and community events.

People use them.

There is a truck that goes out and pumps them out while they are off-site.

And then when the toilets return to the property, they are empty.

And again, we're talking about toilets.

There's some level of sanitation and rinsing that has to happen at the property, but honey bucket is not in the business of treating large quantities of human waste.

I have a question right here.

So thank you for thank you so far.

Just you get into the clutch of it, which is really important.

I acknowledge that everything that you've said is a rental business, it looks like a rental business.

I I'm in the landscaping business all day long.

We're all over those things.

So when those are picked up, just when they're picked up at the job site, they get clean there.

All the solid gets flushed out there to those big tanks.

And then they're pretty much clean.

So then when they go to your shop after they've been cleaned on site, wherever they were picked up from.

Then you do the next stage of cleaning, which is you either fill the sanitation soaps, whatever stock at the toilet papers, maybe wiped down a little bit, but there's no additional work done under the lid at your facility anymore.

Is that correct?

Other than just the final touches, right?

Restock in the soap toilet, it'll wipe down the handles, and what else?

Any more under the toilet that you have in a pump, another liquid of sanitation that has to get flushed out and then stored.

Is that happening on site?

No.

When we go out to pick up a unit, we pump it right there into the truck.

And when it goes back to the yard, it's empty, we add five gallons of water to it and put what they call an additive to it, which is it inhibits the breakdown of solid waste so that the odors when it's out in the public isn't overpowering.

Other than that, like you said, we dust them off, um, hose them down on the outside, not inside the tank, but on the outside to get any dust or residual from the road, drying anything from hauling it back and forth, and then we put it on our ready line, and uh some pictures here shortly that'll show you what the ready line looks like, and that's about the gist of what happens to it.

Uh there are some repairs sometimes.

Uh believe it or not, people vandalize them sometimes, and we have to repair that, and that is done in our shop there as well.

Thank you for that.

Thank you.

Okay.

Well, counselor Gonzalez, I appreciate you asking that question because I think it highlights an important point, which is yes, this is a business that relates to solid waste, but the waste component of this business happening on site is a very, very, very small component of the business.

And it's necessary because again, we're talking about toilets.

But really, Honey Bucket is in the business of renting portable toilets, not treating human waste, pumping them out, you know, collecting material.

Um we're not talking about you know, like a wastewater treatment plant or like a very intense processing facility.

Um, and that's important because I think that these other examples of the solid waste treatment and recycling use, which are again on this screen, highlights that this business is just not what this use category is talking about.

So you'll see the other examples are these heavy-duty, um, environmentally sensitive industrial waste uses.

So, yes, there's a use category that describes portable toilet collection storage and pumping.

I think we've highlighted that, and pumping is key, right?

That's that's contemplating a facility that's like taking full toilets back and pumping them out, and there's a lot of risk from that human waste at the property.

That's not this property.

And then the other examples are energy recovery plans, recycling collection centers, composting facilities, again, very intense waste processing uses, not this business.

And it makes sense that these types of uses would be considered to be a separate use category, and they'd be heavily regulated by your code because these are types of uses that have potential for impacts to neighbors, right?

Um but again, that's an that's a distinct category of uses from what we're talking about here.

So I want to talk just a little bit about that point that your code heavily regulates solid waste treatment and recycling uses differently from wholesale sales uses.

Um, and that is because solid waste treatment and recycling uses are considered a conditional use.

They're only allowed in two zones in your city, and so they're allowed in the light manufacturing zone, is as Madeline said, but only if they're recycling collection centers.

So if honey bucket's business is uh solid waste treatment and recycling use, it cannot be permitted at this property.

They would have to close the business or find some other solution.

Um it's all solid waste treatment and recycling uses are also allowed in your general manufacturing zone, but again, only three subcategories of uses recycling collection centers, waste transfer stations, resource recovery facilities.

But again, only three subcategories of uses recycling collection centers, waste transfer stations, resource recovery facilities.

Not clear necessarily that honey buckets business would fall into any of these categories.

And so there is a lot of uncertainty about whether this business can be authorized at any zone in the city.

And I mention all of that, that's relevant because again, back to your job as the judges and the um the body that's tasked with interpreting your code.

One key legal interpretation principle is that if you have a law that's ambiguous, again, reasonable minds can differ about what the code means.

Um as the decision maker should pick the interpretation that voids what we avoids what we refer to as absurd results.

And concluding that honey buckets business, which has been operating for a couple of years without issue and has been preceded by similar businesses for decades, can't necessarily be allowed into alloton, you know, we think that's an absurd result.

And so it's an important reason to um not to conclude that your code is so narrow as staff have proposed.

Okay.

Okay.

So I've talked a lot.

I, as I mentioned, I'm happy to answer any questions.

But in summary, we believe that your code supports the conclusion that honey bucket's business is a wholesale sales use, and that this is the better interpretation of your code.

And it's a better interpretation than concluding that honey bucket's business is a solid waste treatment and recycling use.

You know, equally importantly, there are very strong practical reasons to vote in favor of honey bucket.

And we've outlined some of those considerations in the letter that we submitted to you last Friday.

You know, I think there are some other folks who have um taken the time out to be here tonight to speak to you about the importance of this decision.

But at the end of the day, Honey Bucket is a company that wants to do the right thing, they want to be a good neighbor, they want to continue providing this essential service to Tualatin in your economy.

And so we're asking you to take a pragmatic, kind of realistic approach, work with us, and we urge you to vote in favor of honey bucket and reverse staff's decision.

And so I will wrap up to assist you in making your decision.

We provided with you uh excuse me, you with a proposed motion, should you decide to vote in favor of honey bucket, as we hope you will.

And you know, there's additional testimony, but we'd be happy to share this again if you have additional questions after you hear testimony and and um would like to deliberate.

So I'll take any questions, but if there aren't any, thank you all for your time.

All right.

Um let me go ahead and jump to well, circle back on the questions.

Um, let's go ahead and uh questions of the applicant by counselors.

Counselor Sacco.

Thank you.

Um, and thank you so much for being here tonight.

I appreciate um your thoughtful presentation.

Um two questions.

One, um, so getting into the nitty-gritty.

Um, so once the honey buckets are at your site and they're being rinsed out, and I assume they're mixed with some solid waste that's still left over.

What is that considered then that's still because you pump it out, and then you I heard that you put additional material into the honey buckets.

And so I assume there might still be some residual solid waste left in there.

What is that considered?

Is that not considered solid waste?

What what is it?

I can speak to that, Jason.

You know what I mean?

Okay.

Um to clarify, when we pump it, we pump it dry.

So there is no solid waste.

I mean, I mean, I can't say 100% they're not like um speckles of solid waste in there, but we uh pump it dry, so there's no liquid in there, no no toilet paper, no any sort of solid whatsoever.

And then we bring it back to our facility dry like that.

Um in fact, it um Oregon DEQ doesn't allow us to haul what they call wet units, which would be anything with solid waste in it or portable toilet waste.

Um so when we pump it, you get all the toilet paper, you get all the um trying to think of the solid waste out of it.

Um and there's nothing left in there.

And then when we get there, back to the yard, um, we have our wash rack, which we pressure wash the outside.

We have a recycling pressure wash system that keeps all the water in the uh recycled, so we're using it, so we're not using enormous amounts of water.

And then we like I was saying, we put uh uh one ounce of what they call addive, it's a biodegradable product.

Um, and we can provide an MDS, I think we have for staff, but um, and that like I said, inhibits the odors, and then we add five gallons of fresh water to it, and that activates the um one ounce of additive that's in there.

And so that's what if you ever roll up on a fresh portable toilet that's just been delivered to an event or something like that.

You'll any time you want to look in there, you would see just blue water, and that's in not just us, that's USS, um, Schultz Clearwater before they sold um who were down here, um, any of the other players in the area, we all do the same thing.

Okay.

Thank you.

Can I supplement Councillor Sacco?

So I think, you know, just to be clear, there's no dispute that toilets involve solid waste, and we're not disputing that there's some waste activity that happens associated with these toilets because they're not 100% clean, right?

When they come back, although they're very clean.

Um, but yes, you have to clean them.

And so I think a helpful way to think about this.

This is why we had a discussion during the original code interpretation request about this idea of primary versus accessory uses.

And basically, I think a helpful way to think about this is that the solid waste component of this use is such a small, small small component of what they're doing, because this is not a company that at this property is in the business of treating solid waste, right?

Which is what your solid waste treatment recycling use category gets to.

This is a company that's in the business of renting clean portable toilets, and as part of that business, you necessarily have to do a little bit of cleaning.

So it's not really any different than the wholesale sales rental business that's you know, renting out a forklift, it comes back with mud on it, perhaps they've got to clean it.

You wouldn't say that company is in the business of cleaning forkless, right?

You'd say that's a company that's in the business of renting forklifts, and sometimes you have to clean them.

So I hope that has a helpful distinction.

I I have uh one clarifying question and then one additional question.

So I guess what I the essence of what I'm trying to understand is sort of is um is the inside sort of rinsed out and is that material put somewhere?

Um, like so if there is a that there is leftover solid matter and that has to be rinsed out, like that water mixed with solid waste, does it go somewhere?

So I think I can I can clarify this.

I get where you're going with this.

So our our trucks that service these are like a giant shop back.

So if by chance something came back and had some residual solid waste in it, um we would we could pull a truck up to it at any time and we pump it out.

We don't like dispose of it like in the garbage or in the dumpster or anything like that.

We pump it up if by chance the driver brought back and didn't do something ideally.

Um then what happens there is the solid waste is then disposed of at clean water services.

We dump at uh Tiger and Rock Creek up in Hillsborough both along with uh City of Salem, City Eugene as well, or our licensed dump facilities.

Okay.

And so um I think that answers your question.

Yep, thank you.

And then um, so my second question, now that was clarified, I appreciate it.

Um, which I think was also kind of clarified, but in the example it said uh uh portable toilet collection, storage, and pumping.

Um but I so what I hear you say is that no place does the the portable toilets come back to a location to be pumped.

So we talk about the intent of the examples placed in the um for the city code, the portable toilet collection storage and pumping.

If that's not happening anywhere, was my mind just goes to it was the intent, you know, the the port the portable toilet process in general.

Um so I just wondering if you could speak to that a little bit um because it sounds like there's the state law doesn't allow for sort of this whole end-to-end process as outlined anywhere in the state, and so could have just been sort of when this city council wrote this code, they maybe made an assumption that these things all happen together.

Um, and sort of what their again, like I said, what was their intent when they put these words together?

Well, I I think the first thing is not a lot of people study portable toilets intently.

So I I agree they they may have not had the education on it.

Um but uh at the time is very little of the process that they're talking up there, the collection, the pumping, all that stuff happens on our site.

Um it is literally the cleaning, the prepping of, which is like I said, adding the five gallons of fresh water with the additive, and then we take them out and deliver them to the customers.

Um that's about the extent of it.

Yeah.

And I guess I can't speak to the kind of state level regulatory regime for portable toilets.

So, you know, I don't I can't tell you that there's no portable toilet company that could ever exist that's bringing full toilets back.

Um, but I think that it's clear from the text of the code that that's what your city council that adopted this code was worried about, right?

Like having next to a residential area a bunch of full toilets coming back and huge quantities of human waste.

Um and that's not what's happening here.

Thank you.

And I would go back to saying that the uh DEQ, which governs our trucks is you're not allowed to haul units with waste in them.

So I can speak for the state of Oregon.

There's probably no toilet companies doing that in their yards because then you'd be violating your DEQ permit, which they could yank and then you can't run up and down the roads, you can't do business, you're pretty much out of business at that point.

And so I guess you know, just kind of jumping ahead.

If you are vote in favor of honey bucket tonight and you agree with our interpretation, this may be something to think about.

It may just be that this part of your code is obsolete and kind of inconsistent with the realities of this business, but it feels like that's a discussion for that's discussion for another day.

Yeah.

Councillor Reeves and the counselor coulds.

Thank you very much for the education, because I literally thought that um people were driving or your trucks were driving with solid waste out there.

So the education is very helpful for me to actually understand what you're doing at the location that you are um stored storing the facilities here.

Um I just want to be clear because I think like like I said, the perception when you see a honey bucket, uh whether it's on the road being transported somewhere or um in our minds, we're thinking, and so I think it it needs to be clear that when it transports and it comes to our facility, that is completely cleaned out and in on the inside and pumped out um at the site where it's picked up.

So that by the time it gets to our facility to your store uh uh warehouse or location, it is basically cleaning like restocking, re kind of so you can rent it out again.

So I think to me that was very informative because I had a whole different idea in my head when when I read when I when I went through the went through the materials tonight.

So that's very helpful to understand.

Um so what you're saying is that in our the pumping part, it's what's confusing people because at the time when this code was written, it was um the thought of maybe that happening at the site, and and maybe that's what people are thinking um when they see the honey bucket.

So I I just want to say that thank you for the education because I totally had something different in my head.

Um and just I learned a lot and it just definitely I think that you know following the code is always good and following all the process that you need to do.

Yes, um, thank you, Councilor Reyes.

And I would say, you knowted on that potential for misperception, and if that's something that the council is worried about, you know, my recommendation would be you could write that into your decision, your order.

You could have your staff just you know note for the record that your decision assumes that there's no actual pumping of portable toilets happening at this site, if that feels like an important distinction to make.

So that might be a way to address that concern and make sure there's no um uncertainty or ambiguity going forward.

And again, it's me, Marie, like as a that I was thinking that way because of no one ever gave me an education.

This yeah about honey buckets.

Thank you.

Well, we've I've I've learned a lot about portable toilets, I'll tell you that.

Councillor Gonzalv.

So thank you.

So so state law has taken care of you transporting that you can't transport it, so that's taken care of.

Uh thank you.

Um so the item that you are storing is just the car wash per se the fluids that you kind of when you're putting the honey bucket in there, it's the water being washed and reclaimed.

You pretty much store in that water, right?

That's that's the storage component of this process.

Yeah, so uh I think you're talking about our wash rack process with the recycling.

So the one thing with that is about it depends on how busy, like in the summertime when we're doing you know, 400, 500 event units a weekend, we're washing a lot of toilets.

And so we have to probably clean it out.

We pump it with one of our trucks and take it to clean water services, because eventually that water, no matter how often you recycle it, is eventually gonna get with you know, there's a science to it with microbes, and I can't even pretend to understand it, but I have paperwork like that that would explain it.

But um so we pump that out and we take it to clean water services.

Another net we fill it with fresh water again, and then the cycle starts again.

And in the winter time, it could go three, four months before we have to uh pump it out because it's very cyclical to all the events stop, all the most of the school sports move indoors instead of outdoors, so our business kind of slows away down in the winter time in late fall.

You know, it's so very fascinating.

Do you ever do tours of your facility and run high school kids and kids?

I mean, it's kind of interesting.

Well, it could be a great size project.

Two high school kids myself and their tours have involved washing toilets when we're behind.

So I still appreciate it.

They're friends too.

Yeah, I really like the company, you know, working from the bottom up.

That was really cool.

It's clear to me um how you guys are operating out there based on the information I just learned today.

Okay, so thank you.

Council President Pratt.

Um you were saying it's state law, you have to pump it before you transport the porta potties.

And do you know how long that's been state law?

Uh it's Oregon DEQ code.

And so in order to run a vehicle with wastewater in it, is you have to have uh they renew it every two years.

I know I know it's code.

I'm just saying how long has this law been in place?

Well, I've been here since 98 and it's been there since 98.

Okay.

Um okay.

I don't know before that.

I don't I don't know that much of the history of that.

Um I have to bring up because we're all aware that there was uh um a license discharge complaint back in 2024.

So I'd just like you to discuss that and what happened.

In 2020, uh I think it was because if you're not storing anything there, what could that have been?

Are are you talking about the clean water services?

Clean water services.

Really the the wash.

Oh, okay, that was related to the wash rack, sorry.

Um they thought we were discharging, but they didn't realize it was a recycle, so we went through this whole process with clean water services and brought them out, let them walk through the facility, see how it worked, how it's a recycle system, and there is, and uh we die tested, we ran locators for them to see where the sewer lines went, and there was no sewer line going to the building that the wash rack was in because it's all recycled.

Uh there's fresh water going there, but no wastewater going out.

And so they threw it, they uh I don't know the exact proper word for it, but it got resolved, got thrown out, however you want to say.

That's what I wanted to know what what happened at the end of that.

And then I have a uh a code question for you.

Under um our light manufacturing, um, you're asking to be considered wholesale sales, but yet, and I know it because I I'm part of a running club, we borrow these toilets or rent these toilets from you.

You rent these to the public, and you're trying to say that this is um for cons instrument, but it says in our code, it says the sales service and rental of construction and industrial equipment to contractors and industrial firms only.

So how how do you fall within this when that's very specific in TDC 60?

Well, I'll uh uh that's Primarissa's, but one thing I'd say that I don't see the word only in there, but TDC 60, not 39450, which defines like the ML zone.

Okay.

Um our largest constru our largest customer base is home builders.

Um I get that, but it says only in here.

So let's find the use category that you're referring to as to.

Under wholesale sales.

So I am looking at the use category table.

That is at TDC sixty.

It's the third bullet on under wholesale sales or second light, sorry.

Yep, so there's yep, the sales of industrial hand tools, industrial supplies, such as safety equipment and welding equipment.

And then there's the sales service and rental of construction and just industrial equipment to contractors and industrial firms only.

And what I'll say is that this is that word only is not consistent with what your use category actually says.

And so you've got a discrepancy potentially between these two provisions of your code.

So this isn't just further defining specifically for ML zone.

I well, no, because the same language appears in the MG zone, and I think I have that language as well.

And those are the only um yeah, those are the two relevant zones we've been looking at.

Those are my questions.

Okay.

Other questions.

Council Brooks.

Um I have my the question I have of it's about the um the cleaning rack and the original.

I'm just trying to understand this whole thing.

Um if the where does the water go when it's drained from the cleaning rack?

Oh, we haul it to clean water services.

So it's bermed up, and so as we wash it, it collects the water back in and it recycles it through the pressure washer system and through a tank that has microbes.

So the water is never discharged on site, is it stays in that uh closed system and then we pump it when it starts getting um used, I guess I would say, because like I was saying, it depends on how many units we're washing at the time of year, and we would then pump it dry, haul it to clean water services in Tiger, and then refill it with fresh water.

So there's no um water hitting the ground outside the contained area from the pressure or from that part of it.

Okay.

I mean, in my mind, so the question I have around that, it sounds like a process, like it sounds like processing something, and and then it's being hauled away.

And so the concern I guess I have is if there's a report of a spill, whether that happened or not, um if there were ever something like that, and it goes into you know the ground or the runoff or the river, the wetlands that are there, et cetera.

I mean, the reason why we have these buffer zones, um is what's the cleanup protocol, or how does how's that managed?

So that's managed through DEQ again.

Anytime there's a spill, um any size of spill, we have to report the DEQ.

Um, and then there's uh what they call a spar spill response in so we have to file that every couple years with the DEQ, and then we have to follow that.

And if we were to have a spill and not follow that, then we would be cited by DEQ.

Okay.

So I feel like that might be part of where the um the you know the manufacturing versus the um the other the zone that you're in, the light man, the heavy manufacturing and the sorry, it's getting late.

Yeah, but I know what I'm talking about, you know what I'm talking about.

So the zone that you're in, um and if I can just clarify a little bit, Counselor Brooks, so that uh kind of overlay of regulations, that's the same whether you're in the ML zone or you're in the MG zone, that's all a DEQ clean water services world.

So any industrial use would have those types of risks.

Um so I don't know that that's a very helpful distinction to kind of puzzle through this, but I will also note that if you are interested in kind of knowing more about the wash system, I think Councillor Gonzalez, that was a good um description, like this is the car wash component.

There is uh schematic and there's like an overview in the uh original packet that we submitted to staff.

So if you wanted to look at that, that's in the staff report.

Okay, thank you.

Other questions?

If we have questions from staff or the other time, but yeah.

None yet.

Other questions for the applicant?

All right, I I've got a few.

Um so go going back in a way back machine, when did you first locate to this site?

Approximately two years ago.

I don't know the exact date off the top of my head.

Okay.

And when you locate to the site, were you aware of the restrictions in the zone?

I I would say when we went through the process, we thought we were obviously we're here to say that we thought we were legit um for lack of better words.

Okay.

Um we received uh uh occupancy permit um that we filed with the city and like I said, we've been in business there as of now two years.

And you've always been in this this basic business, the the uh portable toilets since day one when you took occupancy, correct?

Yes.

And the rental of equipment, all that since you took occupancy.

Yes.

Okay.

Um so question about this ever famous truck.

So the truck that's off site that sucks all the nastiness out of the port-a-potties.

Um it where did it I put this the right way?

Does it always does it daily go to cleaning water services or does it sit with poop in it at your yard at any time?

No, we we dump them overnight.

So um they don't sit overnight with the sewage inside them.

Right.

And so is that the same truck that because I'm looking at staff mentions your closed loop system, and I'm assuming that's the car wash analogy we're going with of the inside and outside.

Um when that it has its own container, and then when it gets full, that same truck uses uh is used to suck out the contents of that tank.

Yeah.

And but you mentioned that sometime that tank that tank is not cleaned as often as the trucks go in.

Oh from the closed loop system.

Um so again, there's uh so with the recycle system, it's not sewage in in that it's like um uh counselor and Gonzalez said it's more like a car wash, so it's gonna have the same consistency of the car wash type stuff.

Um and so if we're going heavy like right this time of year where we're running 500 units out of there every weekend for special events and that type of thing, you we're probably gonna have to clean it every and by clean it I just mean pump it out.

Sorry.

Uh pump it out um probably every two months.

Um maybe every three depend uh a lot of it depends on the ambient temperatures.

If we spike up to like a hundred, that's gonna impact it because you're gonna have a lot of um what's the word uh water um not evolving.

Misting.

It goes evaporates, thank you.

Sorry.

Uh the water evaporates due to the heat, so then the system runs out of water, so we're we'll be adding fresh water back into it, which then refreshes it.

And so we would have to use um clean it less often as well.

So in that clo just for clarification, the closed loop system, when you're cleaning the exterior, and you mention you're cleaning the interior, is the interior just the space above the toilet, or does it include what's in the toilet?

Tank up.

So it's nothing.

Nothing, nothing inside the textbook's closed going back.

And the only time the seat gets open is when we have the additive and the five gallons in, so we can take it to the next site.

So that tank, when it's off site, it's sucked dry, as you mentioned.

It comes back, and that truck's got all the fun stuff in it.

It goes to CWS.

It comes the honey bucket comes back to you dry from the lid down, and that closed loose system is only used to clean the outside and above the lid interior.

So technically there shouldn't be any solid refuse in yeah, in that in that loop closed loop system.

So technically you would say that, but anyone that's ever used a mail restroom urinal, you understand that there's uh uh they miss the target sometimes.

So sometimes the water, you know, there will be a little um residual on the floor or something like that.

I can't guarantee that it's never there.

Okay.

Um, got that one, got that one.

All right, that's all the questions I have.

So the to go back into your talking about you know, putting our assumption into a decision that you're stating that there is no pumping of solid waste at all on your site.

It's always it's always done off site of well, like by when I'm answered uh counselor, excuse me.

It's getting late.

I'm yeah, yeah.

My uh grasp of the language is going real fast.

Um is like if it ever came back and there was like some residual in there, we will pump it on site.

So but it's like but it's using that truck.

It's using that truck.

It's not going to your closed loop system.

No, no, no.

No, it's pumped into the truck and then hauled off to CWS.

All right, right.

All right.

Um go ahead.

Um I'm back to your occupancy thing.

Did you um in I have August 23 on your letter?

Did you did you also file a business permit?

Because I'm questioning why it was allowed at that point, I guess.

Yes.

Okay.

Thank you.

All right.

Any other questions for the applicant at this point?

All right.

Uh with that, we'll now move over to the uh I've got a couple of people signed up.

This is where does anyone wish to speak in favor of the application?

I've got Jason, you're signed up by swinging read yours.

Now sometimes we do that because certain councils require other stuff.

So we'd rather be safe than sorry.

The other sign up I have, I'm assuming you're in favor, uh Ms.

Neely.

So you're in favor of the application?

Yes.

Okay, come on up.

Welcome.

Hi.

My name is Annette Neely.

Address is four seven seven eight Southwest Advanced Road in Wilsonville.

My parents uh bought the place in the early 1970s, so we ran our business out of there ever since then.

And my father passed away in 2022, and so we closed our business.

And so we put it up for lease.

Honey bucket came to us.

Um, and they've been great.

Um they've cleaned the yard up, done you know anything and everything that you know we've asked, they've done the city will send us a letter, and you know, it takes three, four days for the postcard to get to me that says your brushes over the sidewalk.

I mean, I snap a picture, their guy boom, he's right on it, takes care of it.

They've just been a fantastic, you know, attendant.

So I'm hoping that you know we can continue this lease with them, and you guys can allow them to continue to be there.

So uh we've had a construction company, we've used porta potties for all of our pipeline jobs that we've had, and uh everyone needs them.

So thank you.

All right, thank you.

Uh anyone else in the room who'd like to provide uh testimony in favor of the application.

All right, do we have anyone in Zoom?

In favor all right.

Uh does anyone wish to provide neutral testimony on behalf or in regards to this application in Zoom or in the room?

Still no hands, all right.

Uh does anyone wish to speak against the application either in Zoom or currently in the room.

All right.

Uh that brings us uh the city staff have anything to add specifically uh that will address a question raised during testimony by council because when you end up coming up anyway, because I know council has questions for staff.

Um I we're happy to answer any questions.

Um I think for just simplicity's sake, the part of the way that we reviewed this application was looking at the solid waste treatment and recycling.

Excuse me, let me back up a little bit.

Um I will agree with um the applicant that a lot of our code is ambiguous.

And in this one case, it was not.

And so there's a there's a lot in the light manufacturing that can be interpreted pretty broadly in terms of what wholesale sales is.

Um but when we looked at the solid waste uh treatment and recycling, and it specifically called out um portable toilets that we felt that it was pretty clear that that piece of the business was not um wholesale sales.

Um I think it's also um just I'm gonna I'm looking at the code right now, and so the way that it's worded is the the characteristics of solid waste treatment and recycling.

Um it's a use uses that receive comma process and or recycle solid waste materials, and then one of the examples is the portable toilet collection, comma, storage and pumping.

Maybe we should have included another, comma, in there.

Um, but so that's kind of how we interpreted this one particular use.

Um the only other thing that I want to point out is that if we interpret um the honey bucket use as uh wholesale sales, we will be applying that throughout light manufacturing.

Um so that's something to keep in mind.

Now that we've all been more educated about the portable toilet business, we can be sure to ask more questions if it if we do have more applications come in.

Um, but that's the other consideration to to keep in mind.

Um when we're when we're looking at uses and how to interpret it is um not always site specific, it kind of needs to be for the entire zone.

So those are just some additional thoughts, and we're happy to answer any questions that you have.

So you had a question.

Yeah, okay.

And then Council Brooks FT.

Um, I I wondered because that um light manufacturing zone, I think if on your map, it includes like it borders along um what's your neighborhood called um Dakota uh Comanche Woods?

Comanche Woods, yeah.

So part of that zone borders that so we'd be allowing it there, correct?

And and I just wondered um if you just go over how um the light manufacturing zone, it's purposed as a buffer zone as compared to general manufacturing.

Yeah, and I mean it's it's supposed to allow the generally the way I think of it is there are generally more uses that are indoors, um, so you're gonna have fewer um impacts to neighborhoods, um whether that's uh noise or smell or um the any kind of um you know fumes coming out of whatever the manufacturing process is.

Um and so it there's um supposed to be kind of um I'm trying to not say lighter uses, but um I I think probably some good examples are things that you might find along Avery Street, um that whole street is light manufacturing, and so you've got a uh a lot of uses that are indoors and um uh they're probably not they may be using some heavy equipment, but they don't need um uh like construction equipment to move things around on their yard that and that would be some of the differences.

I think we kind of expect to see more outdoor type use in a heavy manufacturing area.

That's not necessarily always gonna be that way, um, but those are some of the uh just distinctions that I think of.

Okay, and then my next question is um I'm not how I guess how in our process, if they filed for an occupancy permit and a business permit, why how could it have gotten missed at that point?

I mean, well, um there yeah, there's kind of some historical practices.

So the way that um I I don't know if they have an occupancy, I didn't look into like a certificate of occupancy that the building official um issues, but a business license, you know, is applied through through the finance department, and then it goes it cycles through various departments to review um planning, building.

There are two of those divisions that review those business licenses.

Um we have not always just trying to be a little bit diplomatic about this.

We have not always been given the authority to deny um business licenses because they were looked at as a tax, not as an actual license to operate.

Um I I don't know that we're continuing that practice at this point.

We could we would approve it, and then we could take it and say, I'm not sure if this is appropriate and do further investigation, but uh unfortunately that in the past and so it's just something maybe we need to look at going forward in our project.

Yeah, and I think we may have changed that process.

Um I'm thinking about in my before time when I my first.

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

Um but that's that unfortunately is how um some of the some of that process works.

I think we have changed it.

Okay.

And council president mayor, I I can provide a little bit more background on this.

Uh that was an argument that was initially uh forward in advance by the applicant that I why did we get a business license if we weren't allowed to do business in this zone.

And uh this is before Miss Moeller was on uh on this matter, it was a another legal counsel for stall rays, and I provided some information about what our business licensing code says, and that's in TMC 91010, and the purposes of it are to provide revenue for general municipal purposes and to maintain records of persons doing business in the city.

Now, I think that there was a former interpretation by a city attorney that uh you could not, it was not legal uh to deny a business license application if they had issues with other city departments.

I disagree with that.

Uh we have changed our practices when Mr.

Coper was here.

Uh we now have a practice, even though there's a separate city department that handles business license, we do try to route those business license applications to all relevant departments so they can flag issues as we don't have an uh a situation like we have in this for this applicant where a business license was issued, and then have a problem with the the use category and the zoning, and potentially have to have the manager revoke that business license, which there is authority to do under our code.

But that's that's a previous issue.

I think we've kind of resolved it moving forward.

Okay.

Well, my last question is for Kevin Elsos.

I'm just wondering my question where you know TDC 39420 and TDC 60 where it defines the sales to construction company in 60 says wholesale sales only, so there is a discrepancy.

So which one for light manufacturing takes precedence?

And thank you, Council President.

I was going to pop in here anyway.

I know that uh the applicant will have a time for rebuttal, but I I'm gonna get to your question.

But I I did have maybe I just want to maybe correct the record or just clarify the record on the activities that are going on at this site.

So I I don't disagree with uh counsel for uh honey bucket that yes, there's enough ambiguity in the Tualetin development code, the relevant provisions, you do have an opportunity, you can accept staff's interpretation or you can accept the applicant's interpretation, except that as your own, and that'll be the interpretation moving forward for the city.

Uh that's entitled to deference under state law.

And so we we will honor whatever interpretation you choose to go with.

But one thing I I did maybe just want to clarify is that uh counsel for honey bucket stated that the waste related activities were a small component of honey bucket's operation, and that this gets into that accessory use.

So when you look at the definition of accessory use under the Tualetin Development Code, accessory uses are activities or uses that are subordinate and incidental to that primary use on a site.

Now, the term subordinate and incidental, that's not defined in the Towalaton Development Code.

But what staff's interpretation is that a use we believe, like honey bucket, that's not an accessory use where it is a major essential component, where the waste related activities are a major essential component of what they do at this site.

I'm going to turn to the the record and just what they what they actually at least what the record says they do at the site, and again, the applicant has time for rebuttal.

I'm looking at page five of 11 of the honey bucket interpretation decision, and it says the record reflects the following, and I'll go through some of these.

During operating hours, they pick up and delivery, uh pickup and delivery trucks leave the site in the morning with clean and stocked restrooms and return to the site with empty ones.

Okay.

During demand surges, this activity can occur several times a day.

Waste from the restrooms rented to customers is pumped in the trucks off-site, and you did hear that, then transported to the site and temporarily stored in a tank on site.

And I don't know if you really discussed that part of their operation.

True, the waste is then emptied by one truck and delivered to a disposal site, and this can occur either once or twice per day.

When the restrooms are returned to the site, honey bucket employees service them, which includes washing them on the inside and outside with a washing system that reclaims and recycles the water in a private reclamation system.

And then that recycled water is then pumped into a delivery truck and delivered to a wastewater facility.

So when we get to the use classifications, and our code discusses what the organization and guidelines for use categories are.

This is 391 sub-2 characteristics is defined.

It is a description of the qualities and attributes, essential features, nature of the operation, and impacts generally associated with a specific use.

Now, examples of uses, they're illustrative but not exhaustive.

List of activities or land uses that possess the characteristics of the use category.

So when you look at their argument that they're wholesale sales, and there are four examples given.

Now, again, those are not exhaustive.

They're illustrated of the all of the essential characteristics.

But the characteristics for wholesale sales in 39450 are the sale, lease, and/or rental of products primarily to businesses.

Well, that's very broad.

You go to the examples.

Now the only one that's applicable here is the wholesale sales service and rental of construction and industrial equipment, such as tractors, loaders, hose, lifts, cranes, and utility trucks to contractors and industrial firms.

Now you mentioned in TDC 60200, there's a term only, that's not in here.

Again, some ambiguity.

You rightfully have a the opportunity to interpret your code as you see fit.

And when you look at go back to the definition of examples of uses, I said that it's illustrative, not exhaustive list of activities that possess the characteristics of that use category.

So there's also another statutory, a maximum of statutory construction.

So generally, when there's a list of examples that follows a general term, and here that that is that term is the wholesale sales service and rental of construction in industrial equipment, that list is not exclusive, but what follows must have some common characteristics associated with that.

So when I look at things that it's so it has to have meaning, that's another rule of statutory construction.

We can't render a provision of our tooleton development code meaningless.

If staff's position that if you accept the honey bucket's interpretation, you render it almost meaningless because what's not allowed.

And again, going back to 6200, those use categories where it says only.

Well, it's not in here in 39, 450, but that is how staff got to the its interpretation that it's what's allowed is the construction and industrial equipment used to perform industrial and construction tasks.

It's not limitless, it's those things that you need to do to perform the tasks.

And so that's how they got there.

And when you look at going back to, well, how did the city get to classify uh their the nature of their operation of solid waste treatment and recycling?

Well, the example, and they did state properly uh correctly, portable toilet collection storage and pumping.

It has not all it doesn't have all three, but in the record the the the nature of their operation, it sure looks like a solid waste and and recycling operation.

And so, yes, there is a opportunity to engage in an interpretation and accept one as your own.

But when you look at the what what do they do on site?

They don't pump, they clean, they do clean the toilets on site, they collect the toilets, they store the toilets.

That has a lot of the components that a uh solid waste treatment and recycling use category has in our code.

And I think that's how staff got to where they are, and that's the that's how they interpreted the code as they did.

And I'll stop there.

I that took way too long, but I'll assume.

Yeah, Council Brooks and Councilman Gonzalez.

I'm still at the same place around my concerns because I just think there can be um there's a reason why we have light manufacturing and so in so I'm trying to like solve that.

Um in my mind, there's a lot of DEQ regulation on what's going on there.

Um I'm just wondering if there's a lot of DEQ regulation and other types of light industrial uses that we uh you know I I can't answer that for sure.

Um of the sites that comes to my where we've had DEQ investigating, I guess.

Um was when Pacific Foods was um around and they had a spill.

I don't, but they are I don't know if you can pull up the zoning map.

I think they're probably general manufacturing.

Um but I don't really know all of the different areas that DEQ regulates, so I don't in terms of our businesses in the city.

So I could I couldn't tell you if that is common or uncommon in life.

This is gonna be this is my concern.

My concern is that sometimes, you know, like people say, sometimes people miss, and sometimes it's more than people miss.

Sometimes those things are completely trashed, depending on where they are and who's using it and how sick somebody is, etc.

etc.

And so if you're rinsing out a unit, not just pumping it out, but rinsing out the inside, um, and then you're transferring it to something else.

If there's a spill or a reason to have to report to DQ, I'm not saying that that's happening here, by the way, and I don't think that this is a bad business, or I don't want any interpretations like that, but for writing the code and having something like this right next to where we have all these rivers and wetlands and people living.

Um my concern is around there is a tank on site that gets pumped.

There's chemicals that are treating material, there's trucks that are on site that are filled with sewage that if there was an accident.

I mean, I used to live next to a taco bell that a lady who was older drove into the side of the building, and you just never know different things that could happen.

And I think the pre the thing that we're trying to do with these zones is to mitigate risk for some kind of environmental problem that would affect the health and well-being of the community.

I mean, that's what I'm imagining because we're talking about where people live.

Um and then I think too, just with my health background, I know that there can be very serious things that come from fecal matter that can um, you know, that if it's there's even just a mistake or an accident that something bad could happen.

Um and it can be dangerous.

So, and that's why DEQ regulates it most likely, I'm imagining.

I don't feel like I have all the answers for that because I'm not a DEQ specialist, but that's where I feel like this law or this code that we have leans towards.

So am I is there anything in there that I'm saying that's um is that like the purpose of the of the um of that particular designation of the well um so yeah, our code doesn't speak to DEQ at all.

Um, but what it does speak to are, and I'm just looking at the purpose statement from light manufacturing, it speaks to um uses that are suitable, um, industrial uses that can be um compatible with adjacent commercial and residential uses.

Um they're supposed to serve as a buffer to heavy manufacturing from commercial and residential um and there is we do have a statement.

Um I'm not saying this as a statement about honey bucket, but we do have a statement saying industrial uses that are environmentally adverse or pose a hazard to life and safety are prohibited.

Um so we are trying to look at those heavier uses, like um if you think about like um, you know, I think air gas, air liquid along Twell and Shured Road, that's gonna be in a heavy manufacturing.

If you think about the stuff that's behind um Dutch Brothers, it's mostly you know, fixing cars that's more light manufacturing.

Um so those are the things that we're looking at.

The zone is suitable for warehousing, wholesaling, and light manufacturing processes that are not hazardous and do not create undue amounts of noise, dust, odor, vibration, or smoke.

That's yeah, that's the purpose of light manufacturing.

Right.

Yeah, I mean that's what I'm thinking when I see those processing words and stuff, there's some kind of chemical process, there's a tank that's being stored, there's trucks that come in that have sewage in them, and there could be a spill, there could be somebody that mismanages something.

I'm not a DEQ specialist, so I don't know about all these chemicals, and I don't know all the adverse effects, but that those are the things that are concerning me.

And I know even if something's pumped really well, that sometimes these things can be a big mess, and it depends on you know a lot of different factors, and nothing against the company or the I mean everything about the company sounds great, and the way that people are hired and promoted and the way the place is taken care of.

Um, but my concern is around the toxic things that are there and the way that the there's processes, and to me that sounds like the way that the city was interpreting it.

Council Gonzalez.

Thank you.

Um was there anything new that you guys learned today from the questions that we asked and what they said based on how we got here?

I guess um the better explanation of the closed loop system.

Um the um just daily process of the truck that comes from the site itself directly to Durham wastewater treatment plant.

Um I think I understood that, but it certainly helped to hear it explain.

So when I really don't think we should have even got here to be candid with you.

Um when I began to look into this.

Um, you know, I am very comfortable with these processes of DEQ.

You know, what else DEQ certifies is whales.

And I would imagine, and the and and DEQ fails at their swale maintenance because I see it all the time.

But but yet there's a lot of toxicity in those whales that are probably worse than what this as much sewage that they're treating at their site right now, which is just very minimal just to car wash, you know, clean it up.

Um I just it just feels it just feels so litigious to me.

That this is so this is just overcomplicated, you know.

Uh in in a period of five minutes and asking, because I've been to job sites when the port of party we did to coast.

Hut to coast is a massive mess, okay, of GI problems for everybody.

All right.

And every single time I've been to those exchange points, um, I've done 20 hood to codes, so quite a bit of experience and a bunch of running.

I see when they're done clean, they're almost sanitized.

I mean, they're almost pressure washed thoroughly on the inside.

Really?

And then by the time they get moved off site, which they're not supposed to transfer with no sewage in it, it gets to their site and they're just doing the final touch-ups.

They're not even pumping switches there.

Sure, they have equipment that deals with shit, which is what it is, trash.

They have equipment that they deal with that, but they're a reparable business.

They have a reparable safety record.

They have insurance, they have all these processes that we trust our system to properly transport, and we trust our system because we we are the system.

You know, and um so I I have to lean that they're doing things correctly.

I'm not hearing uh contamination or major problems at all.

This is just washing and restocking and then and then distributing their toilets to the people.

It's really what it's just that simple.

Now we can interpret the code on whether light, heavy, but they're not processing sewage at the facility other than just the last two minutes of washing the final unit, stocking it with toilet paper, filling it with sanitizer, and then storing it in their lot until it gets ordered and it gets loaded up and it goes away.

Um I don't even think we should have got here.

That's why I asked that question.

This is this is very easy for me to decide that I don't I really don't understand why we're here.

If the complaint was resolved by DEQ, whatever the complaint was resolved, and we've had no other problems.

I work in landscaping and we're cleaning lawnmowers underneath our lawnmowers all day.

And we build, we have this self-containing system, and that stuff smells worse than human stuff.

Okay.

No one's regulating us.

We have DEQ out there, and we're doing all the responsible things.

This is their job, their business, their safety culture, though everything, you know, other than I'm sorry to ramble on, but I just don't know how we got here.

This is clear to me that maybe we need to just add and clarify the code more clearly so we don't get here again.

But I don't believe, based on what your testimony and what you're when I'm interpreting from staff that that you're pumping sewage in your facility, that you're just basically just washing the very last bits of those toilets.

Fortunately, it's just toilets is crap.

It's it's thesis, it's all those bad things that we think about that we worry about, but they're irreparable business taken care of it responsibly.

Um I mean you have multiple offices, you wouldn't be successful if you were running a shitty business, you know, not being safe.

And sorry, but I mean there has to be some jokes around here on that kind of stuff.

Um I don't know.

So that's why I was asking that question.

Did is there something that we've learned?

Because as soon as I asked that question, that from the job site, they come to the shop mostly 95% clean, my own words, 95% clean.

Um, and then they're just stocking it up and then off they go to the next thing.

I mean, I feel pretty good about that.

I mean, my shop facility we deal with landscape organic product, and I bet you is probably worse than yours.

Okay, I'll close with that.

All right.

Any other questions for staff?

All right, thank you.

I want to give the applicant an opportunity to rebutton.

All right, thank you.

Thank you, counselors.

So uh I think I just a couple comments.

So, one, thank you to Kevin for clarifying the record about the waste transfer, Hank.

I I'm glad that that was made clearer, and I want to make sure that you do understand that is a component of the use.

And Jason can answer further questions about that, but that is the part of the business that we talked about basically.

The toilets are pumped off site, it's pumped into a truck.

That truck is um emptied, but can be it can be at the facility for less than a day, right?

At a time.

It's basically a truck parked in the parking lot.

Doesn't change our ultimate conclusion that you know there's no portable toilet pumping happening at this site or waste treatment.

Um so any other questions about that component of the use.

Okay.

Um I do.

Okay, thank you, America.

It's not clear to me.

So the truck, I mean it it on page on slide six of the PowerPoint.

It does say that there is a truck, as Kevin pointed out.

There's a storage tank that waste might be stored in temporarily until it goes into that truck to go to CWS.

Is that true or false?

That'll be true, yes.

So there is a storage tank on site that has your next cremate until that truck can suck, you know, transport it.

And it's separate from the truck itself.

There's a separate tank on site.

Yeah, it is it's a frack tank.

Oh, okay.

Okay, I stand corrected.

So that so it is temporarily stored there until the truck can suck it out of that tank and bring it to CWS.

Yeah, the the easiest way to describe it is the trucks that go do the services every day are small.

You know, they have to get down to the construction sites.

So they come back, we combine the sewage into one big load and take it to CWS.

Because if we um yeah, I'll leave it that.

Okay.

So how's that storage tank?

How's that storage tank and filled with stuff?

From where?

Uh from the trucks.

Yeah.

No, that's what I'm saying.

The small trucks come back to the yard.

Okay.

They blow.

Those are the ones that are off-site at the work sites.

Yeah.

So you pump all the units, you bring back the 20 units that you pumped that or how many of you back.

Uh you drop the clean unit or the emptied units at the wash rack, you blow the truck into the tank.

And then you park your truck so the trucks are empty, they're not sitting there.

The big truck comes in in the afternoon, pumps it all all out, and takes it to CWS.

And that's done daily or no?

Because remember that because you said when you were due during busy season, you might not have an opportunity or slow season that the tank, the closed loop system might not get flushed out, sucked away for several months at a shot.

What about the storage tank?

Uh the storage tank has to be done daily, is otherwise because you you have your route construction or your route that does like the construction and all that stuff.

Um our drop-off is about 20%.

So when I say drop-off, is I'm talking about the amount of plastic on the ground, how many units we have out.

And so we have a cyclical series, it's mainly the events that drive when I talk about prep in the 500, and so the events are what drive that, not the construction and or the route side of the business.

Right.

Okay, go ahead.

Sorry to interrupt.

Nope.

Any other questions on that?

Okay.

Um counselor Brooks, I did want to try to address your question about some environmental concerns and kind of understanding the um overlay, the regulatory overlay, and this idea about the purpose of the light manufacturing zone.

So I believe you asked a question.

Um, you know, are there other types of uses that are allowed in the light manufacturing zone that have kind of a similar potential for impact, right?

And DEQ overlay.

And one example that comes to mind, and this is in your code, um, it's the use provisions allowed in the light manufacturing zone.

Um, electroplating, that's a permitted use in the light manufacturing zone.

That's an industrial use regulated by EDEQ.

So we're not really asking you to take a different approach for this specific business.

The fact is that in either the light manufacturing zone or the general manufacturing zone, these are industrial uses sometimes, and there are some environmental risks.

Um, but I think the other important code of your part of your code to keep in mind, and this appears in TDC chapter 63.

So this is the section that applies to all industrial uses and utilities, regardless of the planning district in which in which they're located.

And one of the requirements that applies to all uses, industrial uses wherever they are, is TDC 63057, which applies to liquid or liquid or solid waste materials.

Um and it says all uses in development are prohibited from disposing waste onto the site or into adjacent drainage ditches, creeks, or other natural waterways in violation of state of Oregon DEQ standards, clean water services standards, city standards, or in a manner that causes harm to wildlife.

And so again, that applies to all industrial uses regardless of the zone.

I think that's an acknowledgement that you know if you have an industrial use that's not complying with state laws, not complying with clean water services, then potentially you have a problem.

So I maybe that gives a little bit of comfort as you're kind of thinking about what the city can do to kind of protect against environmental risks.

I think the last just legal point I'd like to make is going to the back to this idea about ambiguity.

And I appreciate Aquila's comments about you know, no, this is what your code says.

It's not ambiguous.

And I guess you know, the bottom line is you have two sets of land use professionals here telling you there are two different ways to read your code.

And when the text of a law can reasonably interpret it be interpreted in two different ways, it is ambiguous, and that's how we get into a position where we are asking you ultimately to make a judgment call.

Anything else?

Um, I'm I'm not sure if this is relevant, but I I just like to uh one of you counselors that referenced this is we do operate in seven states.

Uh we have 39 of these yards across the seven states.

Um we've never been shut down.

Um we've been in business for 50 years.

Um the connotation of the probable toilet industry is not always the best because you have um varying degrees of businesses from um for lack of better words, the mom and pop operation that's just an owner operator, they buy a 20-year-old truck, they buy used units from say us or from one of our competitors, larger competitors, and uh they get in the business.

And I understand there has been some less scrupulous stuff that's happened throughout the years that we hear about through the industry through DEQ, through the we're uh member and I've sat on the board of what's called the PSAI, the Portable Sanitation Association International, um, which um I've worked with uh um ASCII um set in codes uh different things.

So I I hope you understand we believe we're very professional.

Um I started in the business as a a yard guy, and I don't have a lot of formal education, but I do um take pride in what I do and I take pride in what my people do.

I mean, just because you um referred to me, I would just say that um I have no inclination that this business is doing anything that is unprofessional in your world.

Um what we have to do is interpret a code that all businesses have to follow, including unscrupulous businesses to protect our community and to protect the land.

And if somebody didn't take care of a wastewater treatment um uh tank properly, not you guys, you know, it's not personal.

Those are the things we want to protect, and that's the reason why we have this particular use in the in the code, from what I understand.

So, whatever decision is made today about this code, I just it's not about your business.

And if it were to go away that didn't go your way, I would hope that you consider being in a part of the city where it fit is better fit.

Of course, I I wasn't directing that you had just the connotation of our entire industry is not the greatest because a lot of people don't understand what we do or how we do it.

So I uh I guess I might have uh over defended on that, but it's just one of those things that uh I'm a social worker, so I have there's a lot of people I have known that have had to use um things just to make sure they're safe and healthy, and that the world is safe and healthy because there's a lot of issues right now.

So I respect the work and thank you very much for the work that you're doing in the care that you have about your business.

And thank you for those comments, Counselor Brooks.

I think the last thing I would say on that note is you know, we recognize you have an important decision to make that applies citywide and it's larger than our business, but we also request that you remember that this is about Honey Buckets business, right?

And if you conclude that Honey Buck is not a wholesale sales use and can't continue operations at this site, then we're going to need very clear direction from you about what our options are to continue operating in the city because it's not clear at all that we can rezone this property to a zone where this might be allowed.

It's not clear that we can necessarily get a conditional use permit.

Um and so you know we hope that you vote in favor of Honey Bucket, but if you don't, we very much request that you work with us and you know hopefully see us again and work with your staff to help us chart a path forward.

Thank you.

Any other questions for applicant?

All right.

Thank you.

Thank you.

So uh that will close that.

I'll go ahead and now that we've finished all the public testimony and we've had some QA.

Um now go ahead and uh close the public testimony portion portion of this hearing.

Uh are there any additional further questions from council to staff.

All right.

Uh we can now let's chat.

Let's deliberate.

Okay.

Okay.

Well, first of all, I want to say, yeah, um, Honey Bucket's got a good reputation.

They have like I just looked up on last door, and they have 87% of their employees would work there again.

So that's pretty amazing.

And I know your union shop, which I support, so you you're doing a lot of great stuff.

But our job here tonight is to interpret what is in our code and what we think our predecessors meant by our code.

And um, well, now we find out that you have uh you actually are pumping things not directly out the toilets, but there's a pump there, and um that DEQs had this law you said couldn't well, I'll skip that.

Anyway, um what when I look at the well, first of all, light manufacturing ML zone, that's meant to be a buffer.

So things like this are meant.

I I think it's pretty clear in our code that things like this aren't meant to be uh in this ML zone.

I I this particular property maybe it could be rezoned, I don't know, because but we have if we allow this, it's just like counselor Brooks said, we're allowing it, we're allowing the we're allowing the bad players in, we're allowing this right next door to our neighborhoods.

And then um as to Kevin's comments about when you look at wholesale as opposed to solid waste, this so much more clearly fits into that category of solid waste when you look at what it says um about the wholesale, and um it it's things you I mean I know people go to the bathroom, but there it's specific equipment, then there's tons of examples in there, and they're all things that are used, like uh forklift or an ex, I don't know what's in there, but it's it are it's specific equipment like that, and it doesn't follow that you would pull off this kind of extra thing you bring to the site.

So, in my mind, this it's very clear that um the prior intent for this was meant to be a solid waste treatment, and that's in unfortunately not allowed in our light manufacturing.

Other discussion, Council Brooks.

Um unfortunately I agree, and um for the for the plaintiff.

I um I think the conversation's been good as far as if we need to add commas and some other language.

Um but as far as I I see the thing of storage, um, I see treatment.

Um I don't think anything's even the the wash system has particulates.

Um and I just can't think that that's uh use or a way that I want to um render the policy meaningless, and I think that that is a point well taken by me.

Counselor Sacco.

Um I just want to thank everybody for their time tonight.

Um I I agree with um the counselors that have already um spoken.

Um and I want you know, just to be clear that our charge is not to um state if this is a reputable company, if this is a company that is doing the right thing.

I learned so much tonight about the company, and I um have nothing but good thoughts towards the company.

Um and um very proud that you are currently in our city, and I hope that there's a way for you to stay.

However, our charge tonight is to interpret this code, and um I can't interpret it any other way other than um agreeing with our um our city staff's interpretation of the code.

Um but I again want to thank everybody for their time tonight, and um I really appreciate um the work that Honey Bucket is doing.

Um and again I hope that you can continue that work in our city.

Other comments, discussion.

Council Reyes.

Yeah, it's hard because we we have to look at it from um how do this is being interpreted versus the reputation of the company, and I I agree with my fellow counselors.

It I've not heard anything bad or you know, I'm glad that um this business in our is in our community.

Um it the codes there, the I think when maybe in the future there's gotta be more clarification from both ends um on what they're obtaining and what you're providing and and uh and approving.

I think that that's also um it cannot be just on the business, but also the the staff, we have to be careful what we're I mean be clear what we're actually providing because I I think that also I don't wanna just say that we're perfect.

So we have to um if we're approving something, um making sure that it's clear what we're approving, and um so we don't get to this stage in the in the in two years into somebody's business and having been there already established and and stuff like that.

So I think that needs to be clear.

Um, and if there's no understanding from the person that's obtaining the um permit, they ask questions because this is why we're here, I think.

We got to this point where there was some some kind of misunderstanding in the beginning.

Um but I agree with my fellow counselors.

Unfortunately, I have to see it from what we what our predecessors uh intended this to look and and be like.

Now for the future, maybe I don't know what that looks like, but right now I stand with staff on how they interpret it, they're interpreting this um particular code.

Um I happy or I mean I think that they have a wonderful company, and I wish that they continue doing business based on the code that we have right now.

So that's my my comment.

Thank you.

Any other comments?

Disliterations.

The only thing I'll throw in is what I'm getting hung up on is that storage tank.

That's the deal breaker for me.

Um that that storage tank being there and stuff being there overnight or multiple days possibly uh does go towards the interpretation in my mind of city staff.

Um that'll be voting in support of staff's opinion.

May I may I agree with you on that too?

That was the deal breaker for me.

Um thinking that overnight tank.

So I just want to make that clear.

Thank you.

Someone move motions.

So Kevin suggested motions if we're looking to support uh staff's finding.

I motion that we submitted.

Wait, Kevin's gonna give you the lingo.

Sorry.

I believe that staff had a suggested motion.

I'm not sure.

I remember seeing stole reuse, but not staff.

If we can't already it's on the free situation, and your honor, maybe we should if we could just take a maybe a five-minute uh break.

All right, we'll go ahead and uh take a 10-minute break.

We'll come back at 25 after nine.

We have some comment from our city attorney, Kevin.

Yeah, thank you, Mayor, members of council.

So I after speaking with the legal counsel for stole roofs, uh, they have a request to reopen the record to give to provide the council more information.

Uh I do not believe it would prejudice the substantial rights of any party interested party here tonight uh to do so if that is the council's wish.

I I believe that the applicant uh wants to talk to you about removal, potential removal in the future of the storage tank.

And uh I can go a little bit further from there.

Uh still you have a decision to make before you tonight as the application currently stands with a storage tank on the site.

So you will you will vote to either approve or deny the appeal as uh as the applicant sites looks looks right now as stated in the record.

Uh certainly you would have the ability after the vote to discuss how the council would have an interpreted this matter, whether it would be uh potentially uh uh a wholesale sales use if a the storage tank, and they're they're gonna talk to you about this, if the storage tank were removed from the site sometime in the future, and how staff should interpret uh their application at that point.

So just for clarification, in reopening, there'll be a vote to reopen the record.

Uh the applicant will then make their pitch, which would not impact the decision tonight, but impacts moving forward after a decision.

Yes, Your Honor.

That as this is an interpretation, council interpretation, you'd be you have a quasi-judicial decision you need to make tonight, and that's on the application before you, but uh believe you also have the opportunity to inform staff uh certainly so we don't have another interpretation uh city manager interpretation to make in the future and potential council quasi-judicial decision coming back, the same matter coming back to you, just looking a little different.

Okay.

So on the request to reopen the record, is what kind of vote is that just a roll?

Is that a roll call of always for what is that?

Uh there has to be a motion.

I think it needs to be a motion with a roll call.

Okay.

So does anyone want to make make a motion to reopen the record on behalf of the applicant?

I'll make that motion.

Do I have a second?

Second.

I have a motion and a second to reopen the hearing on behalf of the applicant.

Any discussions on those motions?

Councilor Sacco.

Aye.

Councilor Reyes.

Yes.

Councilor Gonzalez.

Yes.

Council Brooks.

No.

Council.

Council President Pratt.

No.

Uh the chair votes yes.

I believe that's a majority in favor.

So the application the uh hearings reopened uh and uh the applicant can come up come on up and address some issues and reopen the record is officially reopened.

All right, thank you again for the additional time and the um flexibility and willingness to hear from us.

It was helpful to hear the direction that the deciding factor for some of you was that temporary waste um storage tank.

And I'd like Jason to just speak to that a little bit, but ultimately we'd like to hear from you.

Would it change your vote if we committed to removing that um storage tank and relocating it to another site?

Um I think I agree with Kevin's direction that that may not change your ultimate vote tonight, but what it would do if that commitment would change your opinion, would prevent us from spending a bunch of legal time um and staff time to come back to you and potentially a couple of months with a different request.

And so I think in that just the interest of efficiency, it would be very helpful to hear that feedback from you tonight.

Um Jason, anything else to address?

Uh just uh I heard what um you all had said about the tank, and we're half a million dollars into this, um, moving from North Portland down here, um putting gravel in the yard, re-doing all the testing and all the stuff we have.

And if the simple fact if I remove that tank, um we possibly could work something out, then I can remove the tank.

It it costs us money, um not just with the removal of the tank, but every day because of labor running truck more trucks up and down the road, but it's still less than what I've spent so far just moving the yards from North Portland to Twilight.

And so I'd be happy to remove the tank.

Okay.

So need some pointers here, Kevin.

Um, at this point, they're asking for comment, but shouldn't that comment be done after decision?

I'm just could I mean to me it seems like we should make a decision and then we can give them thoughts.

But you're this is your job.

Yeah, and I I know this is a little bit strange.

Uh the the city manager interpretation appeal, that's that doesn't happen every day at the city of Towaliton.

You're gonna vote on uh the the application before you or the appeal before you and once that happens uh you still still have an opportunity to uh take into consideration the request of the applicant to consider uh generally whether if there was a storage tank uh that storage tank was removed from the site, whether that would have changed your opinion tonight.

That would still be on the record.

Staff would have that, and even though informal, uh it certainly does give staff direction on how it should process uh this matter going forward.

Uh if those things were to happen.

Okay.

And Mr.

Mayor, I'll just request before you close the record if you don't intend to deliberate while it's open.

If you do have any questions about the proposal, please ask.

We want to give you the information that we can to help you make your decision.

Does anyone have any questions about storage tank at this point?

Councilor Sako.

Thank you.

Um so could you just if this go through like the logistics um if the storage tank wasn't there, kind of what the process would look like.

So the process would be in essence the same.

Um the currently the truck trucks go out on route, they fill up with sewage, they come back, they blow into a tank, the big tanker hauls it off.

What we would do is, and why I said it would cost us more labor is every small truck that was coming back would have to dump every night on the way back to the yard.

Um the good news is tiger, we have 247 access, so um we have key cards that get us in there, so we would then every route that finish would go to Tiger, which is I think about six minutes up the road from us.

So while it's not the most efficient way for us to do it, it's way better than losing an opportunity to run out of this yard.

Other questions.

All right, thank you.

I I just want to clarify one thing.

There would be no sewage in the trucks in the yard overnight.

That they would be dumped every night, and so we have no issue we do that in other yards.

So I just clarify that.

Okay.

Thank you.

All right, thank you.

All right.

So with that, I'll go ahead and again close the public hearing, public comment part of the hearing, and we'll move back into discussion deliberations or motions.

I'm I'm just gonna motion that we so do you have wait, we what the proposed wording of the motion, or is it it's just this resolution, right?

I'll make sure Aquila's okay with that.

I'll make sure it's worded right.

I have a very brief motion that you can first or amend or but uh suggested wording would be a motion affirming the interpretation decision INT 25-0001 approving the July 11th, 2025 staff decision and adopting resolution 59, excuse me, 5915-25.

So can I say what Aquila said and resolution 5915-25?

Council President, I believe it's proper to say so moved.

So moved.

Second.

I have a motion and a second on the um approval uh our affirmation of staff's finding for the honey bucket decision and discussions on those motions.

Is this a roll call or a voice vote?

This will be roll call.

Okay.

Uh councillor Sacco.

Aye.

Council Reyes.

Yes.

Councilor Gonzalez.

Aye.

Councilor Brooks.

Aye.

Council President Pratt.

Aye.

Chair votes aye also.

It's unanimous.

Uh staff's decision and interpretation is upheld.

Okay, now part two of this.

Um to the idea if the applicant uh removes the storage tank from their site.

Let's discuss that.

Council President Pratt.

Um I would I it would not make a difference to me because we're still leaving this isn't what I interpret the code to mean or what was intended in the code.

Um, where that property is located, potentially you could apply for zone change to you know out of light manufacturing, but I I don't want to leave this open.

I think it's pretty clear what the our what was intended in our code, and I don't want it left open for other bad players to come in with or without a tank, and it would also I know it'd be a lot of legal fees, but it would save moving that tank for them in the end if they were in the manufacturing zone.

Okay.

Councilor Brooks.

Um I can't really say right at this moment.

I don't think that I was prepared to answer this question tonight.

And I would want to hear from staff.

Um I'd want to have considerations.

I don't know if I'd want to also change that to a different zone because it's right by I mean there's there's reasons that we have all these things.

So I feel like this is a position that I'm not comfortable being in in this moment.

And I feel like I've done a bunch of them work on just locating that we have uh storage tank there.

And um I just feel like this could be handled in a different way, frankly.

Okay.

Councilor Stockholm.

Thank you.

Um yeah, I can't say for certain in this moment either, but I would say that um it was a uh big factor in the decision, the storage tank.

So if that was removed from the equation, um, I feel like we could possibly reach a different outcome.

Council Ryan?

Yeah, I uh that was a big factor for me that um made it um made me think of not having you know um of saying no, but I feel like if this if they will comply, and I I I do want to have friendly business people here, employees, and um and if they're willing to comply with the conditions, um definitely I'll say yes.

Okay.

Councilor Gonzalez.

So I I am open.

I'm open uh for that tank to be moved, so and what that looks like.

Okay.

Uh as I mentioned before, I'm open with the tank tank being removed.

Uh ideally, my preference, of course, be what Council Brooks and Council President Pratt says.

Uh, maybe going down the process of rezoning that particular parcel.

Um, but knowing that what that would be involved, that might be a way hairier situation to get into.

But you know, I would be open to listening and uh changing my vote if the storage uh tank is taken off site.

All right.

Are we done with this subject for tonight?

Yeah, and thank you, Your Honor.

I think that's that's all we can really do uh at this time.

Again, this was informal uh the guidance really for for staff if the storage tank is removed in the future.

Uh, how would this matter be processed at that point?

We may very well have to come back to council uh but I will work with staff to determine what their application would look like if that storage tank were removed and what we're dealing with.

Okay.

All right, that moves us to journal business.

Uh Jerry Ann, you're up with Washington County Cooperative Library Services funding and governance update.

Uh the folks who are supporting the next three items, thank you for your patience.

Good thing we have plenty of food to keep you fed.

I thank you for acknowledging uh members of uh the library advisory committee and associated guests.

I appreciate their willingness to to be here and learn about land use just like me.

Um good evening, uh mayor and council.

I'm Jerry Ann Thompson, uh Twilight Public Library Director and the Equity and Inclusion Officer for the City.

And uh before I give my presentation, I want to um just take a moment to set the context.

Um I know you've had a long meeting, I I'll try not to be too verbose, but um knowing all the different professional backgrounds that that you each bring to the table.

I'm guessing that many of you are familiar with principles of change management.

And right now in the Washington County library funding and governance process, we're in the messy middle.

That's where we are.

It is a difficult, ambiguous, prolonged transition period.

The change has been established, but we're not there yet.

And um so tonight I'm gonna give you an update about where we are in that process with the caveat that the information I'm presenting could change.

Washington County has put a brief pause on this phase of the process.

Um as Commissioner Jason Snyder mentioned, uh, Washington County staff are gonna be giving a presentation at their work session tomorrow, providing more detail about the service populations and the funding methodology, and they have another presentation scheduled in October.

Um so Sherilyn and I don't know what the outcome of those presentations is going to be or the many other discussions that are happening across the county, but we want to ensure that you, our Twalet and City Council um has a good understanding of of where things stand.

So as I review these elements, just keep in mind that we're on shifting sands right now.

Yeah.

All right.

So Washington County Cooperative Library Services is a partnership among nine municipalities, including Tualaton, three nonprofits, and Washington County.

The partnership is coordinated through the executive board and the policy group, and these two groups have been working together since spring 2024 on this project to evaluate public library services, funding, and governance in Washington County.

Marina and company is consulting on the project.

Tonight's presentation is only about the funding and governance evaluation process.

I'm not giving an update about the local option levy.

The project has two goals, which you can see on the screen.

The first project phase involved assessing the cooperative's current state, and that report was issued in November.

The second phase focused on near-term funding needs and defining base service levels for libraries.

And a report issued in January included those base service levels.

In the current phase, we're defining each library's service area and service population, developing a new funding allocation methodology, and beginning to work on governance improvements.

And the reports that I mentioned are all available on WCCLS.org.

So the combined efforts of this partnership over the past several months have resulted in this proposed funding methodology asterisk.

I will walk through the different elements and explain how it relates to the funding for Tualeton Library, and then I'm going to review the adjustments that are being proposed as part of an implementation plan and the proposed approach for determining future year allocations for library funding in the next levy cycle.

So, and I'm gonna use a little laser pointer here to help me out.

The service population over on the left.

It's worn out.

It is worn out, yeah.

I think it is.

It's tired.

We're all tired.

All right, well, we'll just start on the left.

Um the service population to determine that the entire county was divided into service areas, representing the geographic area each library will serve.

The proposed service area for Tualaton has not changed since the presentation I gave you in June.

The number of people in the service area equals the service population.

That number gets applied to a ratio to determine the library's funding units, which is the first box in purple on the top row.

The number of funding units is multiplied by an allocation of 128,000.

And this represents the average cost of city libraries per full-time equivalent employee to deliver direct library services.

So it's not just the personnel cost, it's all of our cost in that per FTE factor.

Nonprofit libraries also receive an allocation of $18.30 per square foot because as you discussed in your work session, the nonprofits do not have a municipal agency to provide for facility costs, such as Tualaton Library does.

So this is the proposed service map, and uh Tualaton is down there in the lower right in green.

Our service area would include Durham, the portion of Wilsonville that's in Washington County, and some unincorporated areas around us.

Our service population would be 30,148 in the first year.

So here's where that ratio comes into play.

Uh basically, you run the math, take our service population, and that gets us 15 funding units.

Um, multiplying that by the 128,000, and you get the proposed base service allocation of 1.92 million.

This was the amount that was proposed for Tualeton when I gave the presentation in June.

The county heard from you, do no harm.

Uh they heard from other partners as well.

And so to mitigate significant changes in funding, Washington County staff have proposed this implementation plan.

Uh the modification ensures that all libraries will receive at least a 5% increase over the current fiscal year in the first year of the new levy.

And there's a ramp up approach for ALOA and Forest Grove libraries, which will reduce the increase that they get in the first year.

It also includes the projected $4.7 million in cost for WCCLS to take on centralized collection management.

Um for Twallaton.

The implementation implementation plan adds 5% to our proposed base, raising the amount to just under 2 million 10,000.

So that's the currently proposed amount for our funding.

And this chart shows the full picture.

The first column funding formula shows each library's proposed allocation using that base methodology formula.

Columns two and three are the implementation plan additions and reductions.

Column four reflects the centralization costs for this collection.

And this totals under the proposed allocation, which is the dark blue column five.

And so the two in between show the amount and the percentage change between the current and the proposed allocation.

So I I've got Tualetin highlighted there.

I'm gonna pause here for just a second because I know this is complex just to see if there's any questions about what I've just reviewed, knowing that it could change.

Yes.

Okay, I'm sorry, Miss what is the scale up adjustment?

That is the uh ramping up for Aloha and Forest Grove.

So those two libraries would be receiving a significant increase in terms of dollar amount.

So the scale up removes part of that increase, and then that gets added back in gradually over the five years of the levy if revenues are available.

Okay, and so then um the total proposed allocation, does that which so the libraries that are nonprofits does it include that building?

Yes, it does.

Yes.

Okay.

Interesting.

Thank you.

So I know it is a race.

Yeah, remind me again which are those uh nonprofits.

Sure.

The nonprofits are Aloha, Cedar Mill and Bethany, and Garden Home and West Slope.

West Slope previously was operated by the county, but this fiscal year is now part of the Garden Home Nonprofit Association.

Holy cow.

Okay.

Uh thank you.

Other questions.

Quick question.

I'm space on this.

Why is Forest Grove getting a huge increase?

I I don't know that I can specifically answer that, but it I mean, it comes down to the elements in this funding formula.

So I don't know how much their service population is changing, but that could be part of it, that they've got a change in the service population.

Ultimately, uh, I believe Forest Groves would say that they are one of the libraries that has been underfunded.

Um I don't know.

Sherilyn has a different perspective, but um I I think that would be that they've been under-resourced.

And as Commissioner Snyder said, um, you know, funding and echo funding inequities is a big part of why we took on this project.

And uh there certainly is a desire to increase funding equity, whatever that means.

Um so these are steps in that direction.

Okay.

And I'm gonna nitpick here, not on you, but um King City.

So we had our informal mayor's lunch and we discussed how King City was basically slid over to Tiger Service Area.

And um just on what do you say?

Word of mouth.

Uh certain person said they know that most of the King City residents come here, and not the tiger.

Well, I but I know there was a fight over Dorm and King City.

Yeah, and that's you know, that's where the question uh I I believe it was uh counselor Reyes who, or maybe it was council, I'm not it's I'm tired too.

Somebody asked about uh considering library usage, and and that's where it gets tricky because you know we can easily see checkouts and and make determinations with data there, but when you come to the library to use a meeting room or use the computer or attend a program, we're not asking where you're from.

Right, right.

And we know that people use multiple libraries, we know that Beaverton parents come to our library because they like our story time, and you know that that's just how it goes.

So it's it's really hard to find a way to incorporate usage that does not reintroduce the inequities we're trying to get away from.

And so when we were looking at how to divide up this map and what what might need to change, King City was one of the areas that we looked at, and Sherwood, Tigered, Sherwood's director, Tiger's director, and I sat down at a table together and looked at the data.

And the majority of the checkouts from residents went to Tiger Library, like 90, 95, 97% of the checkouts were from Tig were at Tiger Library.

Now they may come to our programs, but that's how the checkout data showed.

So ultimately, we felt comfortable with them servicing uh King City and the flip side.

Durham really has been served by Tigered as long as I've been here.

But the checkout data and and other data shows that more of those patrons do use our library because we are a little bit more convenient.

So there were some trade-offs like that.

Yeah.

Thank you.

So in the materials it says the I'm talking about the funding right now specifically for WCCLS.

Yes.

And they're adding 4.7 million centralization costs, but yet they say that because of the centralization costs, they might have to cut other services.

So I'm very confused by that.

And I've I've got some seven million doesn't cover.

I have some comments on that in a in a couple of slides.

So let's pause that for just a moment if that's okay.

And then just so folks know.

So how does the committee you and Sherlin you're I'm gonna call the executive team, you're the board, you know, the group of folks reviewing the funding methodology.

You also have to deal with the commissioners.

So how is when the commissioners go, say they they know they're constantly tinkering because they were beating a you know, you know what out of them.

Um how does that trickle down to you that you know, as Commissioner Schneider said, and you said they have a work session coming up, and then there's a month lull.

Then they're gonna meet again.

And so we're we're tinkering with this funding methodology, and then the November election is here.

Yes.

And so this is gonna probably drag out beyond the election.

It could.

I we've not been told um when that decision point, the decision point on the funding methodology was supposed to be this week.

Yeah.

Um it has not been rescheduled yet at this point.

Um it's staff in the room when we're you know, it's it's it's staff.

So Cheryl and I are there and we're following the the you know, the policy direction of our council, and so is Tiger's director, and so is Forrest Grove's director, and and so are the Washington County staff, right?

So um it, you know, things do get tricky when the politics and get involved.

Um and um I I think that everybody in the room is really coming at this with the right intentions.

You know, we we all are trying to do the right thing and solve a really challenging problem.

And there aren't easy answers, and there's not a perfect clear path.

And hence the messy middle, right?

Um Sherilyn, is there anything that you'd like to add in in terms of reflection on that?

I think you um articulated that very well.

The only thing I would add is that the power dynamic lies at the Board of Commissioners.

They are the ultimate decider.

And so they're the ones that can put a pause on it.

Our group is we've worked with the consultant, we've worked with Washington County staff, but they're in a con the Washington County staff are in a constant um in constant communication with their board, they're doing work sessions, and our group will be recommending to the Washington County board.

We're not making the ultimate decision.

So that would be what I would add is that the ultimate power lies with the board.

Thank you.

I think that's very good context.

I appreciate that.

Thank you.

So I'll go ahead and we can come back if if oh sorry, Counselor Brooks, yes.

So when I'm I'm looking at it, um the can we look at that the map again?

Yeah.

So um it's like the uh the color is the number of people, and we're at 30,000, and where do we rank in numbers of people?

Um the there is a little chart in the upper right that shows all the different service populations.

Um, you know, of course, Beaverton and Hillsboro and Cedar Mill, those are our three largest.

Aloha, Tiger are right behind, and then you know, there's a and then we're right behind them.

Um so our population is is bigger than Forest Grove, it's bigger than Sherwood.

Um bigger than Garden Home, Westload.

Yeah, just fairly bigger than Four Square.

I was just to talk to um Mayor Trux about that when he was there.

Sure.

Um and then Cedar Mill is one of the ones that's not covered.

Cedar Mill is one of the ones that's in unincorporated urban Washington County, and they're right up against Multnomah County border.

Um I guess when I'm looking at it, I always keep back to the same thing about how do we balance our population with our location.

And then also, especially when we also contribute to none of those nonprofits are nearby us.

And to me, there seems to be a proximal thing missing.

Well, with like proximity to social services and proximity to using the nonprofit ones by our constituents service populations.

So I'm just curious about, and especially since um Commissioner Snyder spoke to it, like understanding that whole geographical diversity piece.

Sure.

I and I think that is a really good point.

Um the um the presentation that the board is getting tomorrow includes a little bit of uh additional analysis that uh Marina and Company has done during the project where they've looked at uh social vulnerability index and and ranked that against libraries and and funding.

Um and their presentation does include some some slides that show that.

Um but we did not look at proximity to social services specifically as as part of the process.

Yeah, so that to me is like we just um anyway.

I I um I think it's important to keep on that whether they can fit in in this time or not, but it's just something that's not gonna change, and especially if there's going to be like a I don't know if you add up those um $18 deals per do we look at our square footage too?

Uh we do not get a factor for for square footage, but um that's where the city contributes indirect costs, each of the cities contribute indirect costs to the libraries that they operate, um and the nonprofits don't have a city to provide because they don't have that taxing mechanism as as Commissioner Snyder said.

Okay, and um and then as far as sizes of libraries, like how how do we stack up about you know I'm we I mean we're considered a small to medium-sized library.

Um I it's been a while since I've looked at all the different square footage.

So I'm I'm not sure, but I'd be happy to follow up on that.

And then like the one in Cedar Mill, what size is that one?

Uh they have two locations.

One is a uh a larger building or in in a strip mall, kind of a larger building, a larger space.

The other one is uh you know, maybe the size of this room a little bit bigger, just a satellite.

Okay, I see.

But they have two.

They do.

Okay.

All right, thank you.

Any other questions before I yeah.

Okay.

All right, so back to here, and so now I want to talk a little bit about um some of the preliminary governance discussions that we've had in this phase.

So as Commissioner Snyder said during the work session, um, you know, Washington County is is hesitant to make a specific commitment about the general fund, but it's certainly important to us as partners to know what we're expecting uh to receive in terms of allocation going forward.

And so we're looking at this model um for annual library allocations based on WCCLS's revenue sources.

So WCCLS's revenue includes the local option levy pending voter approval, and those funds are dedicated to library service, and it gets combined with a transfer from the Washington County General Fund.

If those two revenue sources combined lead to a net percentage increase due to the growth in county assessed value and a stable general fund transfer, partners and WCCLS will see their allocation increase by that net percentage amount.

So if the combined revenues have a 5% growth, we would get a 5% allocation increase.

If the funding revenues are flat, then partners would see no change in their allocations, it would remain flat.

And if the two revenue sources combined lead to a net percentage reduction decrease in revenue, uh, which probably would happen because of a reduction from the general fund transfer, then partners and WCCLS would see allocations decrease by that net percentage amount.

So again, if they have a 2% reduction, we get a 2% reduction.

Increases in or in decreases would be applied equally to all partners.

Now the exception here is Aloha and Forest Grove.

President Pratt.

Well, first, I just have to point out that Forest Grove's population, like over 20,000 of those people are at Pacific University, so it's a little inequality.

How many?

Oh, just three thousand.

Okay, it's not as bad as I think.

Sorry.

Um use the term stable general fund.

What the heck does that mean?

Well, I would say that sounds really ambiguous.

The general fund in the last few years for Washington County has not been stable, right?

Right.

So that's fairly unlikely.

So if it returns to a state of stability, then great.

But if the general fund, if if the general fund ends up, or excuse me, if Washington County uh reduces their general fund transfer to WCCLS, which is that there's then that would lead to that net reduction.

Okay.

They do show in their model, their five-year model, that the general fund transfer remains stable.

They have to date been unwilling to commit to that in writing.

Okay, so that's the discretion of who's ever on the commission has.

That's what they're saying.

Oh, okay.

Thanks.

Yes.

Councillor Brooks.

All right.

I'm so confused about um I I am all for equity, and I understand this is being done for equity.

Um but I don't understand, and I I mean I should have maybe talked about this more with Commissioner Snyder, but if um other cities are in the whole in their budgets, they still have to pay out, right?

But for some reason Washington County doesn't have to.

You know, although they would they ask everyone else to contribute, but they don't have to.

Right for equity sake, and then the ones that they're not contributing to are having the guaranteed increases because I don't know what so in my mind, some of this starts getting concerning because it seems to me not to just brag about our city, but that we've been managing our money and our funding really well under your direction.

Thank you very much.

And um and we're leaving it to what seems to be turning our power over to the organization that's managing it the lease and giving away the most of everybody else's money.

I don't know that I have a response to that, Councillor Brooks.

That was just about question to Commissioner Snyder about appropriate services.

No, no, I know.

But I I really I mean, my I guess the point for me is, and you know, kind of what I spoke with him about as well.

Is if you're pushing forward growing three nonprofit libraries with no funding mechanism that's sustainable and asking everybody else to pitch in for it, um that's one thing where I don't see why we're we would be doing that before a plan.

Um that's one thing where I don't see why we're we would be doing that before a plan.

And the second thing is for us as a city, is it building any confidence for us to be turning more and more of our management, frankly, over to an organization that is managing I think less efficiently or effectively.

And and my curiosity is there a way to pay into the county without being part of this whole big thing.

Like, can you have like a user fee for the WLS and then have a different, you know, we would probably save our taxpayers money.

But we would lose so much.

I mean, I and I absolutely agree with um your perspective in terms of you know local control about decision making.

Uh we we gain a lot through our association with WCCLS, and uh even if our coffers were flush with cash, we would not be able to provide the same level of um online resources and uh technology and other things that we get through WCCLS.

Um, our library's collection contains about a hundred thousand items, but there's more than I think there's like two million items countywide.

And so um, you know, you can you can have access to those items without ever leaving Twalleton, right?

Yeah.

So I I I came back to I but I guess my my point wasn't really about leaving W I wasn't saying leaving it.

Oh and I am a collaborate, I believe in collaboration very much.

I just sometimes wonder if there was just a flat fee that we paid in for it, all of these designs that everybody might feel more comfortable in the library system if people had that opportunity to kind of and I know what you're talking about, but about equity, but if you're if we're just driving the whole system down by adding libraries that we can't afford, um you know it's it's just a thought, and it might be actually more equitable in the long run because you're not gonna burn out the the libraries that you know that are end up being the donor libraries.

Yeah.

I mean, ultimately we're we're in a spot where we're not in a fiscally sustainable place, and we need to be for libraries, right?

Um, and and so that's why I came back to to this slide that has the goals, because I mean that's really the driver is the the financial situation um that that we all face together and that we face individually.

Um at the same time, you know, it it is also about the service and service equity and service consistency means and needs different things than fiscal sustainability and fiscal financial equity.

And so, you know, that's where that's where it does start getting really complex and um and hard to parse out, and and there's no there is no other model for us to follow in terms of um you know our structure is so unique in terms of libraries with the nonprofit libraries.

That is a very unusual situation to have nonprofits and municipals in a county cooperative, not a county system because that's different.

Um we all are trying to be collaborative, but as you know, sometimes collaboration can get hard when um when money gets involved and you have different perspectives, right?

So yes, council.

Isn't the amount from the revenues from the levy each year gonna be the same?

Uh those should increase annually as AV increases.

Um they should increase at least three percent annually.

Okay, but we're still at this point.

Yeah, I thought yeah, but I'm still at the general funds, just willy-nilly.

So yes, that that the general fund is the unknown factor.

I will say that uh the county, the board of county commissioners has has consistently stated throughout this process that they expect to continue contributing from the general fund for libraries, there will continue to be general fund support for libraries.

It's but they made that allocation for decades from the old levy, and then they took that away.

That is true.

Yes, that is true.

So probably a good good time to come to this slide, which which comes back to the questions you were asking before.

In the recent meetings that we've had, Washington County staff have clearly conveyed their concerns related to unpredictable financial impacts in the next one to five years.

This includes the impact of federal funding cuts and tax cuts that will impact state revenues and therefore trickle down and impact county revenues.

Additionally, there is an uncertain environment for the Washington County General Fund regarding funding for mandated services, which I believe uh Commissioner Snyder also referenced.

Washington County can therefore is is not providing a specific commitment about the general fund, but they have been united in their commitment to continue general fund support.

Because of these concerns and the resource pressures that some local agencies are also facing, and I'm very grateful that Towalleton is not one of them currently.

Partners work with Washington County staff to develop that methodology that we reviewed with you.

That's that's the result of how we got there.

And as you mentioned, um, you know, there are some uncertainties about the cost for collection centralization and the potential for reduced services to libraries from WCCLS.

In recent meetings, WCCLS staff have said that they may need to reduce some services to libraries in order to focus on core services and the collection centralization work.

It is unclear currently what those reductions could be or how they might impact our library operations or directly impact our patrons.

Over the past few weeks, library directors have worked with WCCLS on the request for proposals for a consultant to support the planning and transition to centralized collection management, which is proposed to launch in July 2027.

The consultant is expected to start in January.

So tonight we do want to hear from you about the proposed funding methodology based on the current information as we have it.

And if there are any additional questions that I can answer, I'm happy to go back to any of the previous slides if you need to see.

Yeah.

I guess the only thing I I want to reiterate that I haven't I don't know that I said before is that it really concerns me if they cut in the next year or two after if that levy gets passed, that will be that will be a nightmare and a real disservice to everybody that lives in this county.

Yes, I many of us share that concern.

No, but to see that happen, but it's a huge concern of mine.

And I just want to thank you and Sherolyn, because I think you have so much more patience than me to go through this process.

And I really appreciate it.

I don't know if that's entirely true, but I appreciate the uh we've had our fair share of emotional outbursts.

Other questions.

How are you I'd really like to hear your perspective about how you're feeling now about what's proposed for us compared to how you were feeling in July or in June.

Um so we're we are looking at a five percent increase uh in that first year, and then whatever adjustments um based on the revenues after that.

Councilor Brooks I think it's a start.

I am not secure at all about them not meeting their general fund.

I don't I don't believe in any universe that's gonna happen with what's going on at the federal level right now, and um and where they are, and then also I understand from through the grapevine that there are you know cities that have a better out outcome and outlook than that that are really really upset about it.

Um and that might really come from where they're standing financially in the moment, so we're kind of fortunate to be standing on firm ground, but um I don't think 5%'s a very great buffer, and I also think that if you add up all those red numbers and what we're giving out compared to what we're putting in, that our ratio is probably pretty off, and I think that keeping pushing commission, you know, Snyder is important.

I you know, this the centralization costs do give me concern because if that number is not right, then what are comments?

I um thank you for the presentation and bringing us along and everything we I wish I can do more and help if you need more of my help, which I don't know what that would look like.

Please let me know.

But I still feel that um that at one point the there's gotta be a little bit more priority for those that are part of the Washington County Um network because um it's not helping the other the other organizations either.

Yeah, at one point they're nonprofits, so they um at one point they have to learn how to be sustainable and um allowed those that are actually uh contributing to to the taxes uh also benefit and taking away from that it's also not helping them uh being more independent and I think financially independent, and I think that at one point there's gotta be a transition where where they maybe start being more financially independent, find maybe go out there and look for donors that can because they can they have an they can go out there and find money with that restrictions.

They they do.

I'm sorry to interrupt you.

I'm sure no, I'm sure they do.

I just feel like then in that case, then because you you can't cut services that we we have when they have the ability to go and ask a donor for five million dollars or six million dollars, or I think that that's and we we are not in that position as a I mean the foundation is, but the but your guaranteed money that's coming from this taxes, we are not in that position.

So I feel like at one point it needs to be sort of um look after the ones that are actually contributing to the taxes and making our staff feel or our our patrons feel you know that they're they're it's worth it to have our library and to support these kinds of levies in the future.

That's just my take.

Yeah, you know, I certainly not um I I'm not a land use person, but you know, the unincorporated urban areas in Washington County do make things really weird for us, right?

And um Cedar Mill Library is is one of the oldest libraries in Washington in Washington County.

It's been in operation since the 70s as a nonprofit.

Um they uh whereas ALOA is a newer library just formed.

Um it joined the cooperative in 2020 and just formed as a library a few years prior to that.

Um both all three of the libraries do um the nonprofit libraries do fundraising.

Uh Cedar Mill Library, their um their nonprofit association actually runs a second hand shop next to the library and the proceeds from the second hand sales of clothing and other things support the library's budget.

So I I think they do try as much as they can to look for different uh funding sources to supplement.

Um knowing your in involvement with with the zoo foundation, yeah.

I mean it's challenging, right?

The um all the nonprofits are looking for money, right?

And so it's not necessarily a guarantee that um fundraising is going to be successful for any library.

Right.

I also know the community too of Bethany and Cedar Human, and I feel like they I mean, if we talk about equitable, and I understand Forest Girl, but I mean they're Cornelius, they're a little bit on the lower the community there's seems to be uh more financially challenged, but I know Cedar Bills and Bethany are in a different community, so for them.

I don't know.

That's just my thinking.

If we want to talk equity equity and distributing based on income and areas.

Other comments, questions.

My only comment is it's getting better since June.

Is it where I want it to be?

No.

Because as we're all saying, uh the unincorporated those three libraries.

It's it's not fair.

The county decided that to let them join the cooperative, and the county should be funding the whole time, or they have to fundraise to pay their way.

And then that would be millions of dollars going towards the cities versus you know just infuriate.

Um, but the system's the way the system is now.

We're trying to make it equable, make it fair.

Uh there's still gonna be hard feelings, but we're getting there.

But my mind, you know, the two million is not bad.

2.2 is better.

I think we should be.

It's you know, but um, but seeing the million million and a half, a million dollar increase in a LoA.

Yeah.

Well, what the heck?

Yeah, come on.

So I've said this over every commissioner and I've talked to, they've heard it all from all of us.

But as Commissioner Steiner said they'd made this decision 30 years ago.

Now it's coming to bite them in the ass.

They should be doing that, they should be doing parks, any of that stuff.

And also as a private.

I'm sorry, and if a lobo wanted to be a city, it can get it could go for it.

But they don't want to because they don't want to pay city taxes.

Yeah.

And they can also decline services to people like we're public because they're a private nonprofit, they can say, well, we don't know.

With our policies, they can't.

We all have to provide every library patron access regardless.

So take it back.

Yeah, all right.

I I do appreciate the concern for fairness, but we yes, we do we do strive for that.

All right.

Uh I know this has been a very long council meeting for you with some really heavy topics, and I I again I appreciate the attention, and um please let me know if you have additional questions, and and I'm happy to follow up on on some of the questions that you raised tonight.

Right.

Thanks for hanging in there.

Thank you.

All right.

Just as a reminder of folks, remember we have a TDC meeting after this.

Yep, it ain't gonna be a short one, I bet.

All right.

Uh so item number two, consideration of resolution number 5917-25 and resolution number five nine one eight-25.

Uh, this discussion will be led by Megan.

Welcome, Megan.

Hi, everybody, Megan George, deputy city manager.

Um, I have five slides for you.

Let's knock this out and we'll take a break before the TDC.

Yeah, there we go.

Um so just as a reminder, uh, we had Thornrun here two meetings ago, and then Cody and I returned at your last meeting to discuss legislative priorities for calendar year 2026.

Based on that conversation, Cody and I went back and talked with Thornrun, and we have drafts of both of those ready for you to review this evening.

If council feels comfortable, the resolutions are prepped and in your packet and can be adopted.

If council is not comfortable, I'll take any direction and feedback on those list of priorities, and we will have somebody return at a subsequent meeting for you all to adopt those priorities.

So one quick fun fact.

So the League of Oregon Cities provides a bill summary every year after each session, and theirs dropped on Friday.

And one statistic that they shared is that we had over 3,400 bills this session, and in comparison, the state of Washington, which has a similar legislative time frame, only had or had less than 1,000 bills.

The state of California, the world's fourth largest economy, had fewer than 1,500 bills.

So it was a crazy year.

All right.

So to get started, uh, we adopted or last year, council gave us direction to include different policy themes, and that was what led us as we were reviewing bills to determine what were priorities for Tualton and what we wanted to spend our time on and focus on.

So based on the council's discussion at the last meeting, I kept all of those policy themes from last year, and I added in one new one this year, which is economic stimulation.

I am looking as part of tonight's discussion for direction on whether council feels comfortable with these policy themes for us to continue with in the following year.

For the state legislative agenda, um, we are headed into a short session, so the game is a little bit different than it was the last time around.

Um we pulled funding topics or topics more generally that we think might come up in the short session that we want to make sure that Towalton has a say in.

So our hope is that our um legislators uh will keep us in the loop as they're engaging in these conversations and think about Tualton as the bills arise.

So the first thing on the list is transportation funding.

So uh we expect that on September 29th, I believe, no goodness, yes, that's a real date.

September 29th, uh, that there will be a decision at the special session.

Um, but that won't be the end of things, um, even if there is a decision made at that point of time.

So looking ahead to long-term stable funding that preserves the 5030 20 revenue split and finishes projects.

Second um is a category we're calling housing and human services, and it includes a couple of different things.

One would be eviction presumption like uh rent assistance.

Another thing that came up was kind of this local control theme, specifically as it comes to housing production.

And then the third thing on the list is support opportunities for economic development.

And so, in the longer exhibit attached to the resolution, there's a list of a variety of different tools that exist for economic development.

For this slide, we just kept a brief summary, but it's support a variety of tools so that cities and businesses can thrive in Oregon.

I'll pause here and see if there are any questions or comments on the state agenda.

Um funding for eviction prevention programs.

Um I want to make sure I I was just reading something that made this come to mind.

You have the word flexible later, but that it's flexible, so that could include pain for utilities that cause people to be evicted.

So it's like you know, so I just I I just want to make that clear that it's not just paying your rent, it's whatever keeps you from being evicted.

Sure.

Okay.

I will keep going.

All right, for the federal legislative agenda, this is quite a bit longer.

Um, so it retains everything that we had on our agenda last year, with the exception of the project funding request.

So that's increasing funding for the CDBG program.

Uh continuing funding for the fueling infrastructure community fueling infrastructure or the CFI program.

The language that we included in the exhibit is a bit stronger this year and speaks directly to our funding allotment of $15 million.

Uh continue funding for the railroad crossing elimination program.

Again, the language in the exhibit is more specific this year because we have begun a project with a consultant to do a preliminary feasibility study.

Um fourth, it's the protect local government's ability to offer tax-exempt municipal bonds.

Um that was a win in this past year.

There was good progress made on that.

I know that the government finance officers association is looking at other aspects of that, so we felt it was important to keep it on.

And then we also added a couple of other categories of things based on the council's discussion.

So one is to oppose the administration changes to the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA.

And the second is to oppose cuts to programs that support Twalton's most vulnerable populations.

The exhibit includes quite lengthy paragraphs describing the many ways in which those things are threatened under the current administration.

And then the last item on the list is our riverfront park project.

So as council will recall, our project request last year was the 65th project.

The direction that I received from council at that time was to likely not accept the funding level if it moves forward in the budget and to look at a different or an alternative project in the next year.

So our federal lobbyist whose name is Greg reached out to Representative Salinas' office to talk strategy a little bit and preliminarily representative Salinas was still very interested in the 65th and Borland project, however, um understood the city's position on it and wanted to do some more wanted to have additional conversations with folks on the committees that reviewed the funding requests.

So based on council's discussion, we've included the River Front Riverfront Park project at this time because we think it's a good project and a good ask.

But we will hear more information from Representative Salinas in future.

Okay.

And they're intended to be somewhat flexible.

That's in part why we're looking at including those policy themes so that as new opportunities arise or as the context shifts, we can adapt and be flexible.

I think one of the words used to describe our approach is to be opportunistic.

So with that, I'll look to you if you have any questions or comments.

Questions for Mega.

Council Brooks.

So I've attended a couple um class different things from the NLC about apprenticeship contracts.

Um that comes to mind for the economic stimulus because they're trying to do a million of those, I guess, by the you know, something the Trump administration is rolling out, I guess.

Um I didn't know if anybody was um looking at that at all.

It looks like it's a two-year contract that you get with somebody and then help them maybe get their some kind of uh certificates, and was that in your economic stimulus list?

So we did include a bullet point on the state legislative agenda under the economic development heading that says workforce development strategies that increase the pipeline of workers in essential industries.

So I'm not sure if that's specifically the the program that it's referencing, um, but it is captured as part of the list of priorities.

Um certainly if there's a federal program, we can ask for additional information about that, and it's something we want to follow.

Okay.

I have some information about that, and then um the other thing I've done a lot of different trainings on is um not just AI and but also other management programs for like emails and putting out information.

Um civic anyway, I feel like I could have a meeting about it, but it just looks like there are um opportunities around improving efficiencies that might be helpful to cut down on um staff time and load, and also for city councillors to get through their emails faster and things like that.

And I think that it might be great because some of the stuff you can use like an assistant almost.

Um but they have an organization, Civic Start, I think it is that's been doing, so I've taken a couple of theirs so far.

Um that's all I've got.

So thanks.

Do you have a suggestion about the legislative agenda associated with that?

Um, I think that it's integrated in the federal policy, and that's why they're highlighting these educational pieces.

Um, but the other thing is that I think it also kind of fits federally into well, it I think it fits into our agenda of how do we face cuts and improve efficiencies and keep our city, you know, sort of lean-a-mean during a time that's gonna be hard in some ways.

Um but those were just those those were just ones that I had followed up on since the leadership conference.

I think it also kind of fits federally into well it I think it fits into our agenda of how do we face cuts and improve efficiencies and keep our city you know sort of lean a mean during a time that's gonna be hard in some ways um but those were just those those were just ones that I had followed up on since the leadership conference um and I feel like there's even more I can say if I could remember anything right now um but I like those ones because if there's a way to you know if there's a way to reduce mundane activities so that people can get to the work of their work um sure just wondered how that was related to our legislative agenda and if there was something to add to that well funding funding for um education AI education ways that we can um look and also look at um if there's programs that are designed specifically for governments to help with those types of things if I might counselor Brooks um I can put that on the list as something that we have curiosity about and want to learn more about from our lobbyists um it doesn't feel quite ready to put on our agenda um for conversation with our delegation but certainly if we learn more information um at staff and council that could be something that comes to to the list later I'd like to move that we adopt um adopt resolution number five nine one seven twenty five adopting the city of twelton's state legislative agenda second have a motion a second to adopt uh resolution five nine one seven twenty five you have to do two separate ones right yeah okay um I have a question on the motion is there a need to change that wordage verbiage you wanted about flexible eviction funding because you didn't put it in your motion on that one chart or the bullet point currently reads increased funding for eviction prevention programs including rent assistance yeah sorry flexible enough for you is that included yeah I understand the including to mean one of potentially many opportunities okay all right okay any other discussions and motions sure uh counselor Gonzalez so I yes yes Council Brooks Councilor Sacco I Councilor Reyes yes Council President Pratt aye chair votes aye it's unanimous the resolution 5917-25 is adopted now I'd like to move that we adopt resolution number five nine one eight dash twenty five adopting the city of twelve in the 2026 federal legislative agenda second I have a motion a second to adopt resolution 5918-25 discussions on those motions councillor Gonzalez yes council Brooks aye councillor Sacco aye councilor yes of president prates aye the resolution is adopted unanimously 5918-25 is adopted thank you all right we're getting to the almost the end of this this one meeting yeah looking forward to Sidney so it's gonna have to be a speech speaker and if you could if you could put the next item up that would be great so next item is the Sherilyn presenting the boss the boss yet it's consideration of resolution number 5913-25 authorizing the payments for climate action program and ordinance one four five two five imposing a 0.3 percent privilege tax on PGE thank you mayor and honorable mayor and counselors given the time I'll make this super quick can you go to the next slide um shows the background uh tonight's action are the culmination of direction you have previously given the actions tonight implement that direction next slide um so first up the share of the pennies or pennies for climate action which was modeled after the Memphis Tennessee program you directed a 99 cent monthly fee on the utility bill that customers can choose to opt out of with the authorization tonight we will begin marketing it in October with the fee beginning January of 26 the action before you is resolution 5913-25 next is the building permit surcharge you directed a building permit surcharge of five percent after doing some additional work with our building official it's not as straightforward as just adopting a surcharge so for now putting this on pause and we will have um the program manager uh work on it when they are um on board it within the next couple of months or more uh finally the um electric franchise increase on uh in May you directed a three tenths of one percent increase to PGE's franchise fee the average residential PGE bill I got this from our red our PGE folks is a hundred and sixty four dollars a month which means this would result in an increase of 49 cents per month um on the average bill it's estimated to raise approximately 1500 a year we are working with PGE to have this be effective on the January bills of January of 26.

The average residential PGE bill.

I got this from our red our PGE folks is 164 a month, which means this would result in an increase of 49 cents per month on the average bill.

It's estimated to raise approximately 150,000 a year.

We are working with PGE to have this be effective on the January bills of January of 26th.

The action before you tonight is an ordinance as it modifies the existing ordinance granting a franchise to PGE.

The revenue generated by these two actions will be dedicated to the implementation of the climate action plan.

We are currently interviewing for the climate action program manager.

Um as an aside, we got 103 applicants, and um we are interviewing seven, have the um have a pool behind them if nobody works out in that.

But um, we look forward uh to uh continuing to move this important initiative forward.

That's it.

Thank you.

Questions for Sheryl.

So we got to use two separately.

The resolution to be roll call vote in ordinance.

It was the first and second reading, just so everyone knows.

Okay.

I'll make a resolution, right?

To for first reading, um, the resolution first resolution first.

Resolution we just adopt, just do it.

Yeah, go ahead.

I'll I'll let you do the words.

Um, I motion that we adopt resolution number 5913-25 authorizing the pennies for climate action program.

Second, I have a motion and second for adoption of resolution number 5913-25 authorizing the pennies for climate action program.

Any discussions on the motions?

Hearing none, Councilor Sacco.

Aye, Council Reyes, yes, councilor Gonzalez.

No.

Uh Councilor uh Brooks.

Aye.

Council President Pratt.

Aye.

Chair votes aye.

It's five to one uh in favor.

So the resolution is adopted.

All right, so then I'll make a motion for first reading um by title only of ordinance number one four five two-25, imposing a 0.3% privilege tax on Portland General Electric Company fee.

Second.

I have a motion and second for first reading by title only of ordinance number 1452-25.

Any discussion on the motions?

Councilor Sacco.

Aye.

Councilor Reyes.

Yes.

Councilor Gonzalez.

No.

This is for reading.

Oh, then yes.

Okay.

Councilor Brooks.

Aye.

Council President Pratt.

Aye.

Uh Chair votes aye.

Ordinance 1452-25, an ordinance imposing a privilege tax on Portland General Electric Company for use of city right-of-ways, rights of way to erect, construct, maintain, operate, an electric light and power system within the city of Twelleton.

Um I'll make a motion for a second reading of ordinance number one four five two-25.

Uh is that right?

By title only?

Yeah.

Second.

I have a motion, a second for second reading of ordinance number one four or five two-25.

Any discussions of the motions?

Councilor Sacco.

Aye.

Council Reyes.

Yes.

Councilor Gonzalez?

No.

This is second reading.

Then yes.

Counselor Brooks.

Council President Pratt.

I chair Philip I also.

An ordinance imposing a privilege tax on Portland General Electric Company for use of city rights of way to erect, construct, maintain, and operate an electric light and power system within the city of Twellyton.

I'll make a motion to approve ordinance number one four-five two-25.

Second.

I have a motion and a second to approve slash adopt ordinance number one four five two-25.

Any discussions on this motions?

Councilor Gonzalez.

No.

Okay.

I knew that was a good question.

Counselor Brooks.

I knew that was gonna happen.

Yes, aye.

Okay, Councilor Sacco.

Aye.

Councilor Reyes.

Council President Pratt.

Aye.

Chair votes aye.

Five to one.

Uh so since it's not unanimous unanimous, it has to come back at the next city council meeting for another vote.

All right.

Do we we had no items removed from consent?

Any council communications?

All right.

Um I just wanted to first of all say um happy file equinox, and just so people know it's equal day and night right now.

So we'll be going into darker times.

So kids are back in school.

Be careful when you drive.

And then the second thing is I've mentioned to some people that I'm on the board of the Twelton Riverkeepers, serving our big annual gala on the uh 4th of October, which is coming right up at a really cool alpaca farm.

It's co-sponsored by Metro and some other people.

Um come if you'd like, um, let me know if you have any questions, and you can find on their website or get a hold of me and I'll send you the link.

Thanks.

Any other communications?

All right, do we have a motion for adjournment of the council meeting?

So moved.

Second.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Opposed.

All right.

People want to break before we launch in TDC or go for it.

Go for it.

Go for it.

All right.

Let me switch gears here.

All right.

Wake up said.

Yep.

All right.