2/7/2024
Northeast Multnomah County Community Assoc.
(NEMCCA)
Oregon Parks and Rec Dept: J. Starr
OPRD is busy assessing the damage from the recent snow and ice storm. They expect to see some branches and trees down, its where they land that is concerning. They escaped relatively unscathed with one water line break and one cracked valve.
OPRD is on boarding their seasonal staff hires
Latourell Falls trail improvements are on-going. The trail stairs have been poured to the upper landing, the landing will be poured later.
Benson State Park parking lot will be re-paved this year, no date of work at this time. The Agency put out State wide a request for the parking lots in the worst shape and Benson was a winner. They will also be doing ADA improvements with the re-paving.
Vista House update: SHPO is working with a historic planner to see what all needs done on the building, including what a full rehabilitation will look like for cost. There isn't the money to do all the work at once, so SHPO will be assessing what needs done first, and what can be done now for improvements that won't need to be removed later during a major restoration. Once they get all the information they will be able to go out to different agencies to make requests for funds.
Corbett Water District: A. Linden
Never wanted to be an emergency worker, but the experience was also a positive one as there were a lot of good relationships made. Thank you to Multnomah County roads for helping get their rigs back on the road, also to Oregon Health Authority, MultCo Emergency Management Services and Troutdale Water for their help.
There will be the first After Action Report on February 20, 2024 at 6:30, to be held at the fire hall. This will be in place of the regular board meeting (moved to a later date) and will be in-person, via Zoom or live streamed on the Corbett Water Department facebook page. Due to limited space attending remotely would be best.
Thank you to NEMCCA for the letter they sent to Representative Helfrich. It will help with funding and grants. (Sent November 2, 2023)
There will be a questionnaire posted on the Corbett Water District website for the Corbett Water District customers on 2/8/24 regarding the recent storm. The answers to the questions or comments will be included in the After Action Presentation. This is for customers of the District, including the school, fire department, etc.
(Discussion: will this be shared out to Corbett Area so people know its there, or will they have to go to the website to find it? This was unknown as the questionnaire wasn't ready and would be posted after the DM had left for SDAO training.)
Corbett Fire Department: D. Redfield & R. Wunsch
During the past month CFD responded to 70 calls, including one to rescue a dog that had slid 150 feet down a hill and couldn't get out, towing an ambulance off the bottom of Corbett Hill, and a delivery truck off the top of Corbett Hill. Not sure how they managed to get that far up the hill, but they were delivering Oxygen to a community member. Volunteers ran the oxygen out to the home.
The Water Tender is getting closer! The hoses for it have been picked up, and the State has said they are releasing them so we should be seeing it within the month.
The Rescue Class rig is in town and will be picked up and delivered within the week.
Recruit classes are going well! The recruits had two training days during the bad weather and did well.
CFD is still doing Community CPR classes, the two youngest individuals to take the class were ten and a half and twelve, both did very well. If you are interested in taking a class, or putting a group together for a class, please reach out to Duane at
cpr@corbettfire.com.
With the power out during this last storm people were finding alternate ways to heat their homes and outbuildings. There were two residential fires and two outbuildings that had fires. Three were related to the cold weather, the fourth one is still under investigation.
Bond update: we are submitting the application to the County this week for Station 61 (Springdale). After that is submitted we'll have a better idea of when construction will begin.
While a lot went well during this winter event, there were a couple of things that didn't go so well, changes will be made.
Some of the volunteers were unable to get out of their homes, they will be given the means to get out.
The Old Scenic Highway and the town of Latourell were isolated due to the change in snowplowing and maintenance on ODOT's part. We knew it was coming but had one call that took hours to get out to due to the road conditions. CFD will be notifying ODOT and MultCo roads that they will be plowing so they can have access to those who need help. The conditions for first responders were not acceptable for protecting the community.
(Chief Wunsch and Kent Kalsch with ODOT did speak and Kent did investigate the situation. They are working together. MultCo Roads was unable to make the meeting and notified NEMCCA they will be at the March meeting.)
Agencies need to communicate with each other! The fire department was never notified that some of the hydrants weren't working. CFD will be re-working some of the rigs to add coverage, as it was mentioned above, there were four fires during the storm and having water to fight fires, and knowing what isn't available for the Department to use, is important.
Springdale Job Corp: R. Morris S. Closser
The Center took a hit (for instance, one pipe had 23 leaks) and where the damage from last year wasn't repaired, it just added another layer of damage. The National Office will be out to evaluate but right now repairs are going out of the Emergency fund $20,000 at a time.
Brian Aho came out to break up the ice on the driveway as cars were parked at the bottom of the entryway and it was to the point no one could get in or out.
Rich's Tree service quoted $20,000 to take the trees off the fences, the Job Corp will be having maintenance do the work so funds can be spent on getting the students needs met.
The Center Director made the call to not evacuate the students, and then they ended up without power for a few days. They were using generator but they were old and it was challenging for the 82 students on campus.
The new contract with Corner Systems Development begins on February 15, 2024 and the contract with the current provider ends on the 29th. There is some overlap for training. The new contractor will come in and do clean up, revamp the processes and get the campus where it needs to be to focus on student development. Then a new five year contract will be awarded.
(Discussion: We're they getting new generators for the Center? There are two "new" generators that are on Center that are ten years old. They used to be fired up and checked yearly, but they have never been used. After having them inspected one will be moved to the kitchen and one to the Wellness building.)
U.S. Forest Service: J. Daker
Like everyone else they have been busy dealing with the ice and snow.
Trails are open, except for the back country where the Eagle Creek fire was, those are still closed. Keep in mind, just because the trail is open doesn't mean you should take it. Look at the weather, the trail conditions, and make changes in your plans if either of these things change.
(Discussion: There is a large gravel pile and some logs stuck under the highway bridge at Multnomah Falls. Any plans to clean that up? ODOT had crews out looking at bridge damage, they will contact USFS to see what needs done.)
FireWise: R. Uleners
Thank you to the Community for all the hours they put in, Corbett was again recognized as a FireWise Community in 2023.
On May 4, 2024 there will be another Community Preparedness Day. This will be a home assessment tour and people can see what they can/need to do to make their homes FireWise. The time will be determined.
The Chipper Day was very successful and will be repeated this year in Mid-June. The time and date will be determined later, so watch for more information. There may also be two locations this year as people coming in from Aims had quite a distance to haul brush.
(Congratulations to the FireWise Team!)
Community Patrol: R. Cannon R. Uleners
Things are going smoother with the traffic patrols now with the reduction in students at the main campus. We are having a problem with someone parking at the exit blocking the buses when they are trying to turn. Looking for ways to mitigate the situation.
CP assisted with the warming shelter during the storm. They had some people come in, picking up water and beds, but there were no charging stations available and that was something people needed. Also, it was difficult providing water for people to flush toilets and water animals when all they had was the 16 ounce bottles.
(Discussion: There was a trailer parked at the Corbett Water District that wasn't shared out with agencies and those getting out information and no one aware of it until after the trailer was removed. It had 1,000 one gallon collapsed storage containers that could have been filled with water for toilets, animals, etc. (CP was not aware of it at all.) There was also a generator in trailer for use. The water to fill the containers could have come from spigot at the water district, which is on the back side of the building. CWD mentioned that the District office has never lost water and going forward they plan on having that spigot available for people to use during boil water notices. There was also discussion that the warming shelter wasn't set up in advance by MCEMS, that information about the shelter didn't get out in a timely manner, and that the second day didn't get publicized at all. No one knew it was there. There was a desire for plans to be put in place in advance, better communication by MCEMS and sharing between those who have supplies with those trying to get supplies out to the community.)
Oregon State Police: Lt. Huskey
ODOT and OSP were in constant communication during this last weather event (five or six times a day), trouble shooting with each other and Multnomah County Roads.
There were 69 crashes last month that were responded to, also 296 routine stops.
Staffing is running at 62% and they have been assisting Portland Police with drug enforcement. It has been a very good partnership, but they find they are repeatedly arresting the same people for drug dealing, and they are back on the streets before the paperwork is completed. (Discussion: Changes to Ballot Measure 110, what the situation is regarding fentanyl, lack of teeth in the current situation to get people into rehab.)
There is a stolen vehicle saturation once a month in Portland. Depending on the agency there have been changes in policy to allow pursuit of stolen vehicles, as studies have determined that stolen vehicles are being used in other crimes. Gresham and similar agencies are now allowing their officers to pursue, depending on the situation and resources.
There is a black chevy tahoe that has been caught on RING stealing Amazon packages. License plate 298 NVL. Please report if seen.
OSP reporting link:
https://www.oregon.gov/osp/Pages/Uniform-Crime-Reporting-Data.aspxMultCo reporting link:
https://mcso.us/site/quick-access/mcso-public-crimes-dashboard(Thank you Roel for sending the two links.)
Mt Hood Community College Board of Education: D. McKeel
The college was closed during the storm, and some trees came down but no significant damage so the parking lots were empty.
The Board has been focused on doing Community outreach and has been sending two board members and the President to meetings with the Community every month. They rounded out 2023 at the Corbett School Board in December, and were at the City of Cascade Locks in January. They will continue to do one meeting a month.
The Board has finished their facilities master plan and are meeting with a consultant about going out for a bond. The last one was passed in the 1970s, another failed to pass due to needing two/thirds of the voters voting. Any work done the buildings now is done with grants or out of the maintenance funds. The bond will not be new buildings, but will repurpose buildings for better use. MHCC will be doing surveys and reaching out to gather information, right now it appears the bond will be going on November's ballot.
The core bond committee is meeting once a week, the larger bond committee is meeting five times between January and March.
The College is reaching out to alumni, they are having special events for them to participate in (a basketball game is coming up), and other events will be planned.
The Planetarium is open again! You can find more information on presentations at:
https://www.mhcc.edu/planetarium/ or on their facebook page.
The website is being redone to make it more user friendly.
ODOT: T. Lingley K. Kalsch
The Multnomah Falls viaduct work will be starting on February 19, 2024 for five days with the removal of trees. Originally the work that could impact traffic would not be starting until Fall, but the contractor has asked for five days to do some work. There will be lane closures so plan accordingly. The trees will be hauled out of the west end of the West viaduct.
Bridal Veil Bridge work will begin later this year. That will be maintenance work and is to be done in conjuncture with the viaduct work.
The summer congestion plan will look a lot like last year's. There will be a flagger at Multnomah Falls, and the Forest Service will be having time use permits at the exit 31 parking lot.
They are looking into the ebike usage and parking requirements as one of the vendors is going through the conditional use application with the County and wants to have 80 ebikes on the road every day. ODOT is looking at where this may work as they can't be taking up ROW or other parking spaces. (Discussion: In the past this has been a topic regarding who can ride an ebike, how old, do they need to have a motorcycle endorsement, regular license, etc. Depending on the speed ability of the ebike you may need one of these items, or none. There are no simple answers.)
There are some Congressional funds available to put in a quarter mile path North of Exit 18 to connect the Sandy River Bridge area to the Sandy River Delta. This will be done to relieve congestion on Jordan Road and construction is expected to start in 2026. They are currently working on the NSA permit with the County.
Work to replace the I-84 east bound McCord Bridge will begin in 2026. Work is being done to minimize traffic impacts but with the area is tight and there may be a couple of weekends with full closure. More on that later.
The level of traffic in our area and on our highways has increased and that lead to the pre-emptive closing of I-84 during the last winter event. Salt and de-icer can work in some situations, but once it gets down to 15 degrees with the high winds it won't work. Even when the highway is closed for traffic, the crew (down 1/3 staff right now due to budget cuts) is continuing to operate within the closure like it is open so once conditions change the road can be opened. The goal is to keep commerce moving, when it is safe to do so. There are a lot of drifts coming across the highway now that weren't there prior to the Eagle Creek fire, and the wind also affects the roads. The closure went well, coming just before the rain hit, but then you also end up with trucks thinking they can take the Old Scenic Highway to avoid the closure. This creates a different set of issues that crews need to address.
There were 10,000 trucks staged at Rafael waiting to move once the highway was opened, and even though chains were required, some won't chain up, even with a $850 citation. There was a report of one trucker who was given a citation and told to chain up, only to have a reported crash twenty minutes later that involved the same trucker who just waited and then headed off without putting on chains. Unfortunately that truck was not the only one. Others who decided you could do "normal" driving speeds with chains, to also suffer bad results. OSP went "door to door" informing truckers to put on chains while in the staging area, and even then some didn't put them on. When being escorted down I-84 after the highway opened, (at 35) when a report of an unchained truck reached the escort vehicle the lines were stopped until the chains were put on. That did motivate the rest to make sure they were in compliance. OSP mentioned that tickets were issued by him when he caught a trucker without chains, no warnings. Truckers know better.
Part of when the highway could be opened was affected by the loss of half the fleet in the first 24 hours due to an accident and other issues with the vehicles. Its understood that accidents happen.
The sun came out along with warmer weather, but the Old Scenic Highway was closed at Bridal Veil due to lack of sun in some areas that kept ice and snow from melting. The road closed sign was staffed when resources allowed, and vehicles were towed in the closed area. ODOT can't plow if vehicles are parked on the road way and blocking the snowplows. In this case the road was open for residents, but there may be time the road will be closed to them due to safety issues. Unfortunately someone put a note on the barricade telling Amazon and UPS to drive around and make deliveries. These signs were removed, those are not allowed vehicles on a closed road. Don't put those signs up, don't drive around barricades and closed road signs.
Snowplows plow from the center of the road out. Many do not have reversible blades, the crew does not plow driveways, you need to have your own plan for getting out of your driveway.
Rocks went through the rock fence at the West Viaduct, clean up crews are working to repair the area.
If you are an Agency and want to know when the roads will be closed or opened, you can reach out to Kent and he will add you to the Direct gov.delivery system. You can receive your notifications by email or text, whichever you prefer. There are over 200 agencies that currently use the system.
There have been questions regarding when the gravel will be removed for bikers, it will be a couple of months. Look for that happening once Winter is over.
Night crews have been out fixing potholes these past two weeks, with the freezing and the rain new ones will be showing up, but they are out working on them.
(Discussion: local resident wanted to know why the State isn't maintaining the pull offs and sides of the roads along the Old Highway. The large potholes are an eyesore, and it could be taken care of with one person and a gravel truck. Why aren't they doing it? Lack of funding was explained, Mr. Purvine said he wasn't buying it. T. Lingley sent the following link after the meeting to share regarding the funding:
https://www.oregon.gov/odot/About/Documents/Service-Reductions-R1-Factsheet.pdfRegarding the not buying the unavailability of funding:
https://www.oregon.gov/odot/about/pages/transportation-funding.aspxAdditional discussion included when making the sides more attractive, you invite parking in no parking areas, and that creates a different set of issues. )
Sasquatch Shuttle: K. Krumpschmidt
There will be a change this year where parking at the Multnomah Falls parking lot will have a fee. This fee will vary depending on the length of time you intend to stay, with a peak charge of $20. You can still park at Bridal Veil for $5 and take the shuttle for free to Multnomah Falls to visit for those who don't want to pay for the parking at Multnomah Falls, and reduce the stress of getting there and trying to find parking.
An engineer is being hired to restripe the parking lot (MF) and to make a few changes. All parking will be maintained, along with ADA parking and spots for seven commercial vehicles. Enter here and Exit here signs will be temporarily installed while permanent ones are going through review and the Shuttle will be in constant contact with the Forest Service and OPRD to keep traffic flowing smoothly. Volunteers with the Falls will be separated from the visitor parking and will be with employees, that is still being worked out.
The parking lot will be staffed during hours of operation, they have found that staffing has lead to zero car prowls and would like to see this continue.
The Shuttle Service will begin on weekends starting May, and then going from Memorial Day to Labor Day, possibly longer. Eventually, in the future, the goal is to have service from Troutdale to Cascade Locks.
Even cars that arrive early will find a simple, easy to use kiosk that will be battery powered, only accept cards and work even when off-line. For those who choose to not pay for parking at Multnomah Falls the car will be booted and the boot will not be removed until paid. (This will allow the person who returns to still have a vehicle.) If the vehicle has not been picked up at the end of the day after being booted, it will be towed.
The company has hired a full time social media specialist, and is planning a media day with all local media invited.
Shuttles will run every 30 minutes, but have the ability to move up to 15 if necessary.
