Weekly Update March 8 - 12, 2010

In addition to some unusually prominent law enforcement issues this week, Ashland is busier with OSF's opening last weekend. There are more visitors in town, including a number of school groups. Here are some other happenings:

Ruling on Park Street Condominium Conversion Case. The Oregon Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling of Judge Harris on the Park Street Condominium Case without opinion. When the Court does this (called an "AWOP" for short), they do not issue a written opinion. Click here for a copy of the decision and a copy of Judge Harris's original ruling for your information.

Media on Flashing Beacons. I am sure you have all noticed that the television and radio stations have picked up the story about the failure of two of the flashing beacons on Siskiyou Boulevard. Public Works staff are working on a solution for these beacons, which currently are solar powered. The short answer for why they don't function is that the sun doesn't shine long enough on a winter day to charge the battery. While we had hoped not to have to hard wire these beacons (so they could be moved in the future if that was appropriate), public works staff are working on wiring them in directly. We are going to install them as soon as we can and then try to get the manufacturer to share the costs of the wiring (as the solar panels are supposed to work). If you have any questions, please contact Mike Faught, 541-488-5587, directly.

Parks Integrated Pest Management Policy. During the week of March 8, Parks & Recreation Staff will be reviewing a draft of a new Integrated Pesticide Management Policy with the committee that the Parks and Recreation Commission appointed to work on this issue. If the committee approves, Parks & Recreation will release this draft and they plan to hold a public meeting to receive comment on March 31. Once the draft is generally available, I'll get it to you, and I'll get you details on the meeting time and location.

Mount Ashland Ski Area Expansion Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. On Friday, I got an email that said the Notice of Intent on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) was actually published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, instead of on March 9, 2010 as I was originally told by the Forest Service. I attempted to search the Federal Register today, but couldn't find the notice. I will keep you posted, and staff will evaluate the information once it's available to develop a recommendation about whether we should comment. Remember that this will address only three issues (The Pacific Fisher and two mapping issues).

I think that's about all of the exceptional news there is to report. I will post a Project Report during the week.

Thanks
Martha