Sifton Neighborhood Association

Minutes of December 6, 2005, Meeting

Development, Traffic, Guest (Commissioner Marc Boldt)

President Lamont Shaindlin opened the meeting with mention to development, including the demolition of the old Home Base facility on Fourth Plain; the Goodwill store coming to 90th St. & 117th Ave.; Western Machine Works set for 96th St. & 130th Ave.; and a VoiceStream cell tower coming to 95th St. & 121st Ave. He also mentioned information from the county about flu shots being available; a county road atlas available for free; and the volunteer code enforcement program. People in the program are trained to detect violations and will be sent to neighborhoods other than their own with a digital camera to collect evidence of code violations. Lamont also brought in the designs for Cherry Park and Little Prairie Park as well as a home safety kit that he received from State Rep. Deb Wallace.

There’s no new information on Wal-Mart, but a wall to be built on the north side of Fourth Plain, across from the new commercial site, has not been begun. At a Vancouver City Council meeting, the developer promised to build a wall where a wooden fence is currently located, which has for years marked the southern boundary of a housing subdivision called Sharrick Manor. The wall will be about the length of three blocks.

Our guest speaker was Marc Boldt of the Clark County Commission, on which he has served for almost a full year. His e-mail address is marc.boldt@clark.wa.gov.

The Commission recently approved a supplemental budget that funds nine additional sheriff’s deputies, five of whom will likely work in jails and prisons and four of whom will likely patrol precincts. The Commission is working with Sheriff Gary Lucas to analyze and improve the prioritizing of response to citizens’ calls. Boldt said that we need more detectives to deal with identity theft and more deputies to monitor sexual predators. He’s in charge of a committee working on the methamphetamine problem and wants action rather than words.

The City of Vancouver recently took jurisdiction over Fourth Plain from 117th Avenue to 162nd Avenue. Businesses such as Y Mart and Kathy’s Hair Salon on the north side of Fourth Plain suffered when a median was built from 137th Avenue to Ward Road, and the owners appealed to the region’s Transportation Commission. A section of the median was soon removed to allow customers to enter the Y Mart center from Fourth Plain.

When asked, Boldt told us that the person in authority in the event of disaster in the county is the Chair of the County Commission.

County Growth, Public Safety

Regarding property taxes, Boldt told us that the maximum increase the county may collect in these taxes this year over last year is $472,000. New construction is expected to bring in $1million for the year. Most of that new revenue must be paid to the 21 unions with which the county works, according to Boldt. He said that about $900,000 is going to unions, thanks in part to raises and higher health care benefits. About $450,000 is going to the sheriff’s budget. If new construction continues at the current rate of increase, the county should have enough revenue for six to eight more deputies. A small increase in the sales tax rate could raise money not only for more deputies but also for more judges, prosecutors, and jail beds. There is not enough space in jail for all those who should be locked up.

A new public health building is being established where the Veterans Administration building was, on Fourth Plain near I-5. There are 125 treatment rooms for drug users. The mentally ill now are in only ten padded cells. Drug users have enjoyed a choice of going to jail or promising to attend drug treatment but often failing to do so. In the near future, they’ll have a choice of jail or a 30-day treatment program in the new public health building.

Clark County Sheriff Gary Lucas has complete control over the jail; the County Commission only controls the budget. The commission is working with the sheriff to prioritize action taken against crime. A work release center is now being built, with inmates as laborers, on Lower River Road.

The commission is also looking into building another jail in the next five years. It would be combined with the new federal courthouse coming to Clark County. Convicted federal criminals would be housed there, bringing federal funds to the county. All the cities in the county use the county jail located in downtown Vancouver.

Regarding legal claims against county agencies, Bold told us that some claims are settled and some are taken to court. The county is self-insured, and Boldt said that our county is the second best in the state in the area of claims management.

Laws, Health, Security

The topic of fireworks was raised; the County Commission was urged to restrict the use of fireworks, as Vancouver did last year. There are not enough patrols, however, to enforce a more restrictive law. The idea of citizen’s arrest arose, and there is a state law allowing one citizen to arrest another and hold him for a law enforcement officer.

A great deal of federal money comes to the county for our health department and the contraceptives it distributes, but the county budget does not currently fund contraception, abortion, RU-486, or so-called Emergency Contraception.

Ecology and storm water issues were addressed; a county inspector will follow only the county’s ecology rules. The county’s community health services can monitor elderly people with medical conditions; agents of SW WA Medical Center can assess needs and work with physicians. We have a county health office in downtown Vancouver and another in Battle Ground.

Mike Smith, who works with Tyco/ADT as a fire and security consultant, addressed the meeting and offered a free fire and security evaluation to each of us.

Lamont told us that he plans to publish and mail a Sifton Neighborhood Association newsletter in January or February. He'd like to hold elections for officers later this winter.