OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

West Linn City Council Meeting Summary – August 4, 2025

City Council & Planning Commission — Monday, August 4, 2025
BodyWest Linn, Oregon
SessionCity Council & Planning Commission
DateMonday, August 4, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:19:40

Transcript — Verbatim
0:12

All right, uh public meetings started recording, I see.

0:15

Just now.

0:16

Dylan, can you hear us?

0:20

Yes, I can hear you.

0:21

Go ahead.

0:21

Oh, it uh we're not gonna be able to hear Dylan because the sound is off on the sound idea and there's no idea.

0:30

Dylan, one second.

0:33

Okay.

0:34

Dylan, can we hear you?

0:35

Hear you?

0:40

Press one for the X.

0:45

There he is.

0:50

Excellent.

0:53

Mayor, I think we are good to go.

0:54

Sorry, one second.

1:04

Right, we'll take a I will call the premium in order and I guess we'll just do the roll call first around the room.

1:10

Right number of Joske D mayor around the table just for the record.

1:16

Leo Grummer, City Councillor.

1:19

Elaine Coward Consultant.

1:25

Lauren Bright How Finance Director.

1:27

John Williams City Manager.

1:29

Bottlington City Council.

1:31

Thank you.

1:32

And uh Mary Baumgartner will be here shortly.

1:35

Uh and we will just go through the agenda.

1:38

So under Mayor and Council, of course, we've got uh community advisory view member appointment, I believe.

1:44

Yes.

1:45

I will figure out who that is shortly.

1:48

Okay, and we'll do that.

1:49

And then we've in the motion sheet as well.

1:52

I think that it's been fine for me in the past too.

1:54

That person is uh and then we need to do the main thing on that is to discuss the city manager evaluation process.

2:03

And uh just like there's a manual on the agenda that talks about the process and a closed timeline.

2:11

So any uh thoughts from yourself?

2:14

Uh no, essentially I proposed the same process as last year, although we have slightly different documents to work from as we improve things a little bit last year.

2:22

Uh but the proposal would be um to open up public comment and staff comment in August and then start working on structural evaluation itself in September.

2:34

And uh although I I wrote the memo in in July, unfortunately we didn't quite get it posted in time, so we'll only posted the meetings page today.

2:43

That's a problem.

2:43

Obviously, things can be pushed up, but since it's just a memo about a process, um I would suggest we probably keep this uh moving forward.

2:52

Um getting some email about it watching fire.

2:57

I have seen it indeed.

2:58

It's uh it's great some art summer.

3:01

Okay.

3:02

Um so no, but uh there's there will be an opportunity for all members of the public to uh future difference and start to suggest.

3:16

Well, we can discuss that the rest of the through the process in the public prices.

3:26

Um anything else on the topic of the city manager evaluation.

3:31

We'll just make sure to get that in the newsletters and okay.

3:41

Well, um we'll move on then to next item.

3:47

Yes, so it's also council with requests.

3:50

We have scheduled uh and Elaine Howard are uh Valley Consultant worked on uh scheduling this presentation.

3:59

Um and keep in mind it's not an agency meeting, it's council meeting.

4:03

Uh so you can't take any agency related actions tonight.

4:06

Um but this is intended to be background for what can agencies do, how's the money typically managed, what do red investments look like, uh, what kinds of projects might you want to do and just uh sort of a check-in.

4:20

Um uh Lauren and Elaine worked on this just a bit while I was out of the office, so that's about what we're trying to do.

4:28

This is just pre-meeting, we don't talk much content much, so it's just what is it for again?

4:33

Just uh kind of an urban renewal one on one now that we've had that uh urban renewal district running and we're starting to collect some property taxes.

4:40

There were some questions about you know timelines when we can start uh start doing some projects, and so it's kind of uh over general overview of urban renewal and then kind of answering those questions about like what our timeline looks like, what best practices would look like that's perfect.

5:00

And I when we went to the device process, we went to the urban device and I thought what are that powers that they were district and wanted to make sure every counselor or from agency directs, whatever you want to call it, uh had the knowledge to know what we can do going forward since we've done some tours with staff and seeing some pretty cool results as neighboring cities, so that's a general nervous appreciate you understanding that something like uh just community.

5:33

Okay, uh thanks.

5:34

We got a consent agenda item to uh council meeting notes for July 14th, and then we would go to business meeting, and I'll know the city manager got a couple of public works items to start.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████18%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████████████████18%
Public Engagement████████████████16%
Economic Development███████████11%
Community Engagement███████7%
Parks and Recreation███████7%
Personnel Matters████4%
Affordable Housing████4%
Urban Renewal███3%
Summary of Proceedings

West Linn City Council Meeting – August 4, 2025

The West Linn City Council met on Monday, August 4, 2025, for a special meeting that included a pre-meeting and a regular business meeting. Key topics included the approval of a resolution for on-call construction contracts, award of the 2025 road program contract, adoption of community advisory group work plans, an urban renewal presentation, discussion of the City Manager evaluation process, and updates on the Willamette Falls Trust funding. The meeting lasted approximately two hours.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Agenda: Moved and seconded, passed unanimously.
  • Appointment to Transportation Advisory Board: Council approved the appointment of Mikhail Rosenberg to the Transportation Advisory Board (TAB) unanimously.
  • Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously, including the July 14, 2025, council meeting minutes.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Kathy Hallecky (West Linn resident): Apologized for her behavior at the previous council meeting, acknowledging she directed comments at the Mayor that were unwarranted. Pledged to do better.
  • Tom Meyer (President, West Linn Pickleball Club; Vice President, Parker Crest Neighborhood Association): Criticized City Manager John Williams’ handling of the covered pickleball structure project at Tanner Creek Park, alleging lack of communication, poor project management, and failure to include data analysis (decibel readings) in decisions to remove two courts. He also referenced a previous coverage of the issue in earlier submissions.

Discussion Items

  • Willamette Falls Trust Funding (45 million state allocation): Council discussed a $45 million lottery bond allocation for the Willamette Falls Trust that was on a line-item veto list pending the Governor’s decision. Council President Baumgartner and Mayor Bielostowski reported engaging with the Governor’s office and tribes. Council reached consensus to support the funding. Mayor noted he had already sent a letter of support on behalf of the city and offered to share a draft op-ed. Staff clarified that a majority consensus permits a councilor to state the council’s position.
  • City Manager Annual Evaluation Process: Mayor presented a proposed timeline: public comment period August 5–31, self-evaluation by September 12, individual council evaluations due September 26, executive session and public meeting in October. Councilor Bonn discussed adding a separate evaluation of the state of the city to avoid conflating organizational issues with City Manager performance, and allowing the City Manager to provide feedback to council. Council agreed to the timeline and opened public comment (see above).
  • Urban Renewal Presentation (Urban Renewal 101): Elaine Howard, urban renewal consultant, presented an overview of tax increment financing, the West Linn Riverfront Tax Increment Finance Area (maximum indebtedness $76.1 million), projected revenue (first year increment received $129,000), and project priorities from the 2023 plan (e.g., Willamette Falls Drive improvements, Tandler Street Realignment, Riverfront Trail). She recommended banking funds initially and considering strategic land acquisition when opportunities arise, using examples from Lake Oswego, Tigard, and Coos Bay. Council discussed the possibility of land acquisition and the need to balance spending. Council also noted the ongoing Highway 43 Urban Renewal District feasibility study.
  • Resolution 2025-10 – Exemption from Formal Bid Process for On-Call Construction Contracts: Public Works Director Eric Lair presented the resolution to authorize up to three on-call construction contractors for emergency and specialized work (e.g., storm drain repairs, water line breaks) up to $100,000 per project without full formal bidding. A public hearing was held with no comments. Council discussed the need for quick contractor availability. The resolution passed unanimously.
  • 2025 Road Program Contract Award: Staff recommended awarding the contract to Eagle Elsner Inc. for $1,598,672 for repaving seven streets (Rosemont, Hidden Springs, Santa Anita, Hillside, College Hill, Lower Midhill, Woodhill Court). Seven bids were received; Eagle Elsner was the lowest responsive bidder, with a history of satisfactory work. The project includes 7,400 square yards of full-depth repair and 5,100 tons of asphalt. Council approved the contract unanimously.
  • Community Advisory Group (CAG) Work Plans: Assistant to the City Manager Dylan Digby presented work plans for seven groups (Arts and Culture Commission, Committee for Community Involvement, Library Advisory Board, Planning Commission, Parks and Recreation Board, Sustainability Advisory Board, Youth Advisory Council). Work plans align with council priorities for 2025–2027. Three groups’ plans (Transportation Advisory Board, Economic Development Committee, Utility Advisory Board) are still pending. Council approved the seven work plans unanimously, with discussion to schedule a joint meeting with the CCI to clarify roles regarding neighborhood associations. Parks and Library updates were provided by staff.
  • City Manager Report: John Williams highlighted summer events (Movies in the Park, Music in the Park, Classic Car Show), announced new Community Development Director Steve Coker starting August 5, and previewed the September meeting schedule, including a discussion on long-range budget needs. Council also discussed the possibility of moving future council meetings from Mondays to Tuesdays to accommodate Mayor’s law school schedule. Staff will provide information for a decision in September.

Key Outcomes

  • Consensus on Willamette Falls Trust Funding: Council agreed to support the $45 million funding, authorizing the Mayor to convey the council’s position.
  • City Manager Evaluation Process Approved: Timeline and structure adopted; public comment period opens August 5.
  • Resolution 2025-10 Adopted: Unanimous vote to exempt on-call construction contracts from formal bid process, with up to $100,000 per project.
  • 2025 Road Program Contract Awarded: Eagle Elsner Inc. awarded $1,598,672 contract for repaving seven streets. Unanimous.
  • Seven Community Advisory Group Work Plans Approved: Unanimous approval for the 2025–2027 work plans; remaining three to be brought forward in September.
  • Future Meeting Schedule: Staff to prepare information on moving meetings to Tuesdays; council to decide in September.

Meeting Transcript

All right, uh public meetings started recording, I see. Just now. Dylan, can you hear us? Yes, I can hear you. Go ahead. Oh, it uh we're not gonna be able to hear Dylan because the sound is off on the sound idea and there's no idea. Dylan, one second. Okay. Dylan, can we hear you? Hear you? Press one for the X. There he is. Excellent. Mayor, I think we are good to go. Sorry, one second. Right, we'll take a I will call the premium in order and I guess we'll just do the roll call first around the room. Right number of Joske D mayor around the table just for the record. Leo Grummer, City Councillor. Elaine Coward Consultant. Lauren Bright How Finance Director. John Williams City Manager. Bottlington City Council. Thank you. And uh Mary Baumgartner will be here shortly. Uh and we will just go through the agenda. So under Mayor and Council, of course, we've got uh community advisory view member appointment, I believe. Yes. I will figure out who that is shortly. Okay, and we'll do that. And then we've in the motion sheet as well. I think that it's been fine for me in the past too. That person is uh and then we need to do the main thing on that is to discuss the city manager evaluation process. And uh just like there's a manual on the agenda that talks about the process and a closed timeline. So any uh thoughts from yourself? Uh no, essentially I proposed the same process as last year, although we have slightly different documents to work from as we improve things a little bit last year. Uh but the proposal would be um to open up public comment and staff comment in August and then start working on structural evaluation itself in September. And uh although I I wrote the memo in in July, unfortunately we didn't quite get it posted in time, so we'll only posted the meetings page today. That's a problem. Obviously, things can be pushed up, but since it's just a memo about a process, um I would suggest we probably keep this uh moving forward. Um getting some email about it watching fire. I have seen it indeed. It's uh it's great some art summer. Okay. Um so no, but uh there's there will be an opportunity for all members of the public to uh future difference and start to suggest. Well, we can discuss that the rest of the through the process in the public prices. Um anything else on the topic of the city manager evaluation. We'll just make sure to get that in the newsletters and okay. Well, um we'll move on then to next item. Yes, so it's also council with requests. We have scheduled uh and Elaine Howard are uh Valley Consultant worked on uh scheduling this presentation.

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