Oregon Parks and Recreation Commission
Oregon Parks and Recreation Commission
November 19-20, 2013
Those attending all or part of the meeting included:
Commissioners Present:
Jay Graves, Vice-chair
Robin Risley
Cal Mukumoto
Sharon Rudi
Wendy Veliz Buck
Brad Chalfant
Staff:
Tim Wood, Director
Steve Shipsey, Assistant Attorney General
Chris Matthews, Assistant Attorney General
Vanessa DeMoe, Commission Assistant
Holly Morgan, Executive Assistant
Sarah Emery, Executive Assistant
Chris Havel, Associate Director, Communications & Research
John Potter, Assistant Director, Operations
Roger Roper, Assistant Director, Heritage and Community Programs
Kyle Jansson, Oregon Heritage Commission Coordinator
Jim Morgan, Stewardship Manager
Kammie Bunes, Acquisition and Property Management Specialist
Steve Kay, Grants Manager
Scott Nebeker, Engineering Manager
Steve Janiszewski, Operations Support Manager
Vera Vollbrecht, Visitor Experience Coordinator
Ben Hedstrom, Landscape Design & Planning Coordinator
Dennis Wiley, District Manager, Valleys Region
Dennis Comfort, Valleys Region Manager
MG Devereux, Project Manager
Lisa Van Laanen, Assistant Director, Administration
Jerry Winegar, Mountain Region Manager
Tuesday, November 19th
Executive Session
The Executive Session was held pursuant to ORS 192.660(2)(e) and (h). The Executive Session was closed to the public.
Work-sessions: State Scenic Waterway Program
OSU Presentation
Tour: Historic Downtown Corvallis
Wednesday, November 20th
Business Meeting: 8:30 a.m.
Welcome by Corvallis Mayor Julie Manning.
Mayor Manning said she was grateful to the Commission for holding a meeting in Corvallis and for programs that support historic preservation, beautification efforts in parks, natural areas and the main street programs that support the downtown area.
1. Commission Business (Action)
a) Approval of Agenda
Commissioner Rudy moved to approve the November 2013 Commission meeting agenda. Commissioner Buck seconded. The motion passed unanimously, 6-0.
2. Public Comment:
Cliff Bentz, Oregon Legislature
Mr. Bentz requested that if the Grant County property does not work after acquired that the land go back into the private sector.
Matt Spencer, Jacque Rodriguez, Lindsay Stover, & Gus Gates, Surfrider Foundation of Oregon
Mr. Spencer, Ms. Rodriguez, Ms. Stover, and Mr. Gates requested that the Commission include the ocean shore in the rulemaking process on tobacco use restrictions in public places regulated by OPRD.
Gary Chapman, Corvallis –to-the-Sea Trail Partnership
Mr. Chapman stated that a 30 year old goal to link Corvallis to the Oregon Coast was achieved.
Michael Pope, Greenbelt Land Trust
Mr. Pope stated that the 600-acre Bald Hill property was acquired using a grant of Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Funds under Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act. OPRD served as the pass through agency for moving federal funds through to the trust. Mr. Pope thanked OPRD staff Jim Morgan & Kammie Bunes for their help.
[Additional public comment was received on item 6a]
3. Approval of Commission Meeting Minutes (Action)
a) September 23-24, 2013
Commissioner Chalfant moved to approve the September 23-24, 2013 Commission meeting minutes. Commissioner Risley seconded. The motion was passed unanimously, 6-0.
4. Director’s Update (Information)
a) Lake Oswego/Tigard Water Project
Tim Wood, Director
A request was made by the City of Lake Oswego to allow underground drilling underneath Mary S Young State Park and two adjacent greenway parcels. Director Wood said that OPRD required that it be indemnified and held harmless and he was happy to report that such an agreement had been finally worked out; the agreement is currently at DOJ for review. Director Wood stated that OPRD has spent $16,000 in legal fees related to the City of Lake Oswego’s project.
b) Oregon Solutions RV Project
Tim Wood, Director
Director Wood said he will be meeting with Commissioner Brad Chalfant, John Potter and a mediator on Monday, November 25, 2013, to have the first meeting in a series of meetings with the Association of Oregon Counties, Oregon Parks Association and Mr. Labhart. He said that the goal is to come to a resolution of what appropriate distribution of RV registration fees should be between the state and counties and that legislative action will follow once that is included. Director Wood stated that it is more likely the bill to make those changes would come in the 2015-17 biennium.
c) State Fair Transition
MG Devereux, Project Manager
Mr. Devereux stated he is leading OPRD’s implementation of Senate Bill 7 which is the bill to transform the State Fair from a state agency to a public cooperation with Senator Courtney’s help. The Oregon State Fair Council recruitment process included a deeper search in the Salem community to find a team that would be focused on the fair and getting community leader support.
Mr. Devereux said he is still planning for the 2014 fair and is intent on having as much of the work done as possible before the Council convenes. He said the work plan is going to be very ambitious to make sure that it represents the needs of the local Salem community but also the larger communities of the fair and has a business plan that is successful on those 180 acres inside the City of Salem. Mr. Devereux said that he is attempting to get other partners for the Oregon State Fair including those from the community and sponsors. He said that the books have not been closed on 2013; there are still some large contracts that are not usually finalized until closer to the end of the year. Mr. Devereux reported a trend of profitability shown over the last couple of years on the State Fair event itself not including the other 50 weeks of the year. He stated that by the February 2014 Commission meeting he would like to report progress on the Council regarding who has come together through the Governor’s appointment process and that this representation will give a good start on the business plan. In addition, Mr. Devereux also wants to get a good sense of what the roadmap is for delivering the 2014 fair.
d) 2014 Commission Meeting Dates
Tim Wood, Director
The Commission approved their 2014 Commission meeting schedule. At Commissioner Buck’s request the April 2014 Commission meeting dates have been changed from April 15-16, 2014 to April 8-9, 2014.
5. Consent Calendar (Action)
a) Approval of Delegated Authority Report
1) Contracts
2) Natural Resources
b) Sandy River Scenic Waterway, Notification of Intent (53-217-13)
Commissioner Mukumoto moved to approve the Consent Calendar. Commissioner Chalfant seconded. The motion passed unanimously, 6-0.
6. Property
a) Bandon Biota Exchange/Grouse Mountain Ranch Acquisition (Action)
John Potter, Assistant Director of Operations
Jim Morgan, Stewardship Manager
John Potter reported that since the September Commission meeting, staff, with the assistance of DOJ, has taken the exchange proposal request and turned it into proposed agreements that are contingent on Commission approval to move forward. Today, staff want to get a clear message about whether Oregon State Parks should continue to invest time and resources into this, and if so how.
Jim Morgan stated that the exchange has been on radar for about three years now. There have been a number of presentations to the Commission that began in September of 2010 with an initial proposal by Bandon Biota and a resulting in a more detailed proposal was submitted in July of 2013. The final proposal is under consideration today. To reiterate the basic components, Bandon Biota is requesting to acquire a 280-acre portion of the Bandon State Natural Area. In exchange, Bandon Biota would convey to OPRD 111 acres of oceanfront property adjacent to Bandon State Natural Area, 97 acres of riverfront property that is an inholding at Bullards Beach State Park, and $300,000 which would be committed to the control of gorse on specific OPRD properties in Coos and Curry counties. Mr. Morgan stated that the department would determine how the $300,000 would be applied. He said Bandon Biota would also provide $450,000 for use as grant match funds for the public acquisition of Whale Cove near Rocky Creek State Wayside in Lincoln City. Additionally, Bandon Biota would convey a trail easement to OPRD that would allow better connection along the Oregon Coast Trail across Bandon Dunes, and $2.5 million conveyed for the acquisition of Grouse Mountain Ranch property in Grant County.
Mr. Morgan stated that in addition to the Commission report, the department has posted information on the OPRD website for the Commission and public. This includes informational reports and public comment received by the department.
Mr. Morgan said that when someone outside the agency requests an exchange of state property, the proposal is considered under a very high bar in terms of criteria regarding whether it meets the needs of the State Park system. Mr. Morgan stated that at this time, the staff conveys a proposal that is at a point that can reach overwhelming public benefit and gives the Commission the information to make that evaluation. Mr. Morgan emphasized that the exchange should be looked at as a whole and not by individual components. He stated that in addition to the action of evaluating the exchange there is an additional action requested which is the approval of the purchase and sale agreement for the acquisition of Grouse Mountain Ranch. Grouse Mountain has been identified as the use of an element of the exchange, the $2.5 million dollars, but just as any property that is brought into the park system, it is evaluated based on the park system acquisition criteria. Each individual park is looked at as to whether it fits into our park system in a way that meets our acquisition criteria policy. Mr. Morgan stated the action requested today of the Commission is threefold,
1. Look at the overall Bandon Biota exchange request regarding whether it meets the Commission’s overwhelming public benefit standard.
2. Look at the acquisition of Grouse Mountain Ranch as an individual property under our normal acquisition process.
3. Help OPRD address the issues that have been raised so that some conclusions can be drawn regarding the more urgent issues that the Commission has heard. Mr. Morgan requested that the Commission direct the Director and staff to address those specific issues and then bring them back for the Commission’s consideration.
Mr. Potter stated that all the components were looked at individually and each one on their own meets OPRD’s land acquisition standards. Mr. Potter said that staff is recommending that the Commission moves forward with these agreements. The agreements that OPRD has are structured in a way that the exchange is not absolutely dependent on the Grouse Mountain Ranch acquisition. Mr. Potter emphasized that this is important for the Commission to consider. He said that he has attended public hearings where he has heard both strong opposition and support for the acquisition. Mr. Potter said that he believes that common ground can be found on a lot of the issues of concern that have been raised. He requested that the Commission provide a clear message about whether and how the department should proceed on this.
Public Comment Bandon Exchange/Grouse Mountain
[Audio for agenda item 6a, including the public comment, is available on-line at:
http://www.oregon.gov/oprd/pages/commission-bandon.aspx]
Chris Labhart, Grant County Commissioner, John Day
Mr. Labhart provided public comment in support of the proposed land exchange.
Steve Corey, Pendleton
Mr. Corey, counsel for Bandon Biota, provided public comment in support of the proposed land exchange.
Joe Ricker & Ty Stubblefield, Oregon Hunters Association
Mr. Ricker provided public comment with conditional support of the proposed land exchange, contingent on hunting be allowed on a major portion of the park, with established safety zones around hunting and other areas of the park.
Vanessa Blackstone, Corvallis
Ms. Blackstone provided public comment regarding Snowy Plover and how the land acquisition could have an impact on predators. Ms. Blackstone requested that the Commission be provided in-depth information on possible effects on Snowy Plover.
Jeff Thomas, Grant County Farm Bureau
Mr. Thomas provided public comment in opposition of the proposed land exchange.
Mr. Thomas read a letter from Grant County Commissioner Boyd Britton opposing the exchange as currently proposed.
Scott Myers, Grant County Judge
Mr. Myers stated he “sits in the middle” figuratively on this issue. He clarified that Mr. Britton’s letter reflected Commissioner Britton’s position. He said that his gut feeling is that the majority of the citizens of Grant County are in favor of the transaction. Based on the commitments from Governor Kitzhaber, Mr. Myers would support the acquisition and would work to reach a cooperative agreement with the department.
Charlie Bruce, Corvallis
Mr. Bruce provided public comment regarding the proposed land exchange. Mr. Bruce stated that OPRD should consult with Fish & Wildlife and other agencies regarding potential mitigation implications related to the land acquisition.
Cameron LaFollette, Land Use Director, Oregon Coast Alliance
Ms. LaFollette provided public comment regarding opposition of the proposed land
exchange.
Phillip Johnson & Courtney Johnson, Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition
Mr. Johnson provided public comment regarding the proposed land exchange.
Mr. Johnson stated that as of today he still does not have a definite position for or against the exchange. Mr. Johnson said that he believes that the Commission and public do not have all of the information that would be necessary to determine overwhelming public benefit.
Bob Johnson, Bandon
Mr. Johnson provided public comment and spoke to a technical matter regarding the public land exchange and the “potential loss of high value farm land.” Mr. Johnson stated that the cranberry bogs will be segregated from the tracts of development and there will be 0 loss of any high value farm land if the land exchange was to move forward.
Katie Fast, Oregon Farm Bureau
Ms. Fast provided public comment in opposition to the proposed land exchange.
Paula Krane, League of Women Voters of Oregon
Ms. Krane provided public comment to address a major concern about the proposed land exchange. Ms. Krane said she feels that if the agreement was to move forward it must stipulate that it is to always remain a golf course or revert back to Oregon State Parks.
Jim Seeley, Wild Rivers Coast Alliance
Mr. Seeley provided public comment in support of the proposed land exchange and Gorse management.
George Meredith, Owner, Grouse Mountain Ranch
Mr. Meredith provided public comment in support of the proposed land exchange.