Cascade Locks City Council held a public hearing on the Downtown Revitalization Plan at the May 12 meeting, with a discussion following regarding zoning changes.
Cascade Locks City Council held a public hearing on the Downtown Revitalization Plan at the May 12 meeting, with a discussion following regarding zoning changes.
CASCADE LOCKS — The only meeting of the Cascade Locks City Council in May focused on the collective bargaining agreement with IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers), changes to local zoning, and hiring a new wastewater treatment operator.
The council first approved an agreement reached with the IBEW union for city-hired electrical workers that would include linemen, meter readers, and equipment operators. The adopted contract reflects a 5.27% raise across the board and one additional holiday, Juneteenth.
The group next turned its attention to the ongoing Downtown Revitalization Plan, which changes various zones to a new zone coded as “Downtown” for the majority of properties along WaNaPa Street. Following a public hearing, council discussed the breadth of the rezoning.
Councilor Tiffany Pruit objected to City Administrator Jordon Bennett’s report, which was missing information for certain properties, and said that she did not know what it effectively means to change the zoning. She indicated that the new zone requirements were not clear, asking, “What does that mean, to make it ‘Downtown?’”
Bennett explained that the planning commission would determine the specific zone requirements; Councilor Bernard Seeger further added that the development code covers the specifics of the new zone.
The council adopted the proposed definition of downtown by majority, with Councilors Marianne Bump and Pruit, and Mayor Brenda Wood, voting no.
Bennett then presented the only response to the recently issued RFP (Request for Proposal) for a new wastewater treatment plant operator. The sole bid was submitted by TEC, or Treatment Equipment Company, out of Kent, Washington. The current service provider will cease service on June 30, after providing service for $161,000 per year; the TEC bid was for $287,000 per year. The council approved the contract, but urged Bennett to negotiate the scope and cost of services to be provided.
For the second meeting in a row, the council refused to ratify the checks, since more than 40 of them, said to be voided, were not listed on the report. Bennett was asked to list the checks in the report by the next meeting.
Councilor Eric Keller’s request for a public show of council support for marginalized groups was once again shut down due to lack of support, this time from Seeger, Pruit, Bump, and Wood. Keller proposed bringing a draft proclamation in support of LGBTQ+ people during Pride Month to the next meeting; the group has deemed consensus required for something to be added to the agenda.
Agreeing by consensus was previously defined by the council in January as, “I am not adamantly against the idea,” indicating that the four are strongly against the proclamation. The council has also declined to publicly show support for Juneteenth (June 10 and June 24, 2024, and July 22, 2024, council meetings), and for immigrants (Feb. 10 and March 10, 2025, council meetings), despite Keller’s urging. In this week’s meeting, Pruit cited reluctance to identify a single marginalized group for support as her reasoning; Seeger explained that he was reluctant to support the proclamation since he had not reviewed it, though Keller had proposed bringing a draft to the next meeting.
The Cascade Locks City Council will not meet on Monday, May 26, which is Memorial Day. The next regular meeting is set for Monday, June 9.
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