National Overdose Awareness Day 2023
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Columbia River Fire & Rescue in crisis WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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he financial woes continue to mount for Columbia River Fire & Rescue (CRFR), and district auditors have said that the district’s financial position is unsustainable in its current state and, without immediate action, may be unable to meet payroll in the near future. In an emergency board meeting Aug. 17, the district’s attorney Akin Blitz and the district’s hired auditors Robert Moody detailed the dire state of the district’s finances. On the same day as the emergency meeting, Joel Medina, who was terminated by the new board at a meeting on Aug. 8, filed a whistleblower suit for almost $20 million against the fire district, St. Helens Professional Fire Fighters Association IAFF Local 3215, board members, and union leaders, among others. The suit alleges that Medina was the subject of defamation, wrongful termination, retaliation, violations of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and discrimination. Financial turmoil Before Moody gave his report on the district’s finances, Blitz informed the board that U.S. Bank “has effectively canceled” the district’s tax anticipation line of credit, which has been relied upon “year after year” to support district operations from the beginning of the fiscal year until November, when the district receives its property taxes. A letter the district received
The CRFR St. Helens Station is located at 105 S 12th Street.
from its bond counsel Gülgün Ugur notified the district that to secure funding through the line, it needed to certify that the district hadn’t undergone changes that would “have a material and adverse effect on the ability of the district” to pay back the loan. The district has to make certified representations to maintain the line of credit and access money to the district, Akin said. “Without committing a federal crime by misrepresenting to a federally insured bank, concerning events here at the district, you can’t make the certifications to U.S. Bank, so that line of credit is not available,” Blitz said.
The lawsuits that the district is facing from former employees Jennifer Motherway and Anika Todd and Medina’s lawsuit constitute an “action, suit, proceeding or investigation,” which means that the district “is not permitted to seek advances under the line,” per Ugar’s letter. “This is a huge problem,” Blitz said. “Because unless we solve it, we can’t meet payroll at some point.” Blitz said that he had considered five solutions to the issue of the lost credit line. Of the five solutions, Blitz said he “widdled them down” to one viable solution. Blitz did not feel that approaching a
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smaller bank would be fast enough to secure the funds in the coming months. Blitz said the best option would be to approach the City of St. Helens for a “secured loan” to keep the district afloat until the district could pay the city back in November with tax revenues. Moody, who is a partner with Merina+Co, said in his presentation that in their projections of district finances, the auditors did not consider the lawsuits against the district filed by Medina or the lawsuit previously filed by former employees. After discussing the processes by which they came to their conclusion, Moody began to
describe the financial picture of the district. Moody said that on July 1, CRFR had beginning unrestricted cash deposits of $3.1 million. As of Aug. 16, CRFR had $1.3 million, which Moody said made some sense given two months of payroll and other expenses. “$3.1 million to start the year, the estimated cost of operations, payroll, and materials and services for the first four months is about $4.35 million,” Moody said. “The math isn’t hard to see there. Without significant other revenues or cash coming in, you’re going to run out of money before that four months.” Moody said there would be some money coming in but not enough to make up the deficit, which is why in past years, the district has borrowed money to make ends meet until November’s property tax revenues. In addition to the short-term financial need, Moody said there is also a structural deficit for the district. Moody said that estimated revenues for 2023/24 are $11.4 million, but the expenses are about $13 million, leaving a $1.6 million deficit. “It’s not sustainable,” Moody said. “You’ve budgeted for expenditures to be higher than revenues, so the result is basically a deficit, and you can chew through a fund balance until it’s just not there anymore.” Moody said the structural deficit had been the case in “several budgets going back.” Moody said the deficit for the year 2023/24 fiscal year is compounded each year
See CRFR Page A11
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici tours Riverfront District neer Mill site. • The 204-acre former Boise paper mill site. • The city’s 50-acre wastewater treatment plant property.
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ongresswoman Suzanne Bonamici visited downtown St. Helens to meet with city officials to observe the progress on the various projects underway in the historic Riverfront District. On a hot morning Aug. 15, Bonamici surveyed the developing site of the future riverwalk and Columbia View Park and toured the areas under construction as part of the Streets and Utilities Extension Project. “It’s been a few years since I’ve been here, and it’s wonderful to see the vision but also the progress that’s being made; I look forward to following the process as it continues to grow,” Bonamici said. Mayor Rick Scholl, County Commissioner Kellie Jo Smith, City Administrator John Walsh, Public Works Director Mouhamad Zaher, Columbia Economic Team Executive Director Paul Vogel, and others accompanied Bonamici and her staff on the tour and answered questions about the projects. “It meant a lot. St. Helens has a
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Mayor Rick Scholl, Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, Public Works Director Mouhamad Zaher, and City Administrator John Walsh stand in the construction zone at the intersection of St. Helens Street and S 1st Street.
got a lot going on. We’re dumping $15 million into this project right now, and to have Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici out here to see that is a good thing,” Scholl said. “I love championing our city when we have so much going on and show
them the vision of what it’s going to be.” The redevelopment of the Riverfront District has been more than a decade in the making. The Streets and Utilities Extension Project is part of the city’s efforts to redevelop 275
acres of waterfront property along the Columbia River. The properties that make up the Waterfront Redevelopment Project are:
The purchase of the mill properties in 2015 set the stage for a large-scale reimagining of what the riverfront could offer to residents and visitors of St. Helens. “[Creating] two miles of connected active waterfront is by far the most transformative project we have in process. Any community would welcome the opportunities that we have here, with an old mill site that went out and an opportunity to expand their core,” John Walsh said. “We’ve worked for more than a decade pretty active on it.” The Streets and Utilities Extension Project aims to improve key streets and intersections in the city’s historic Riverfront District and extend utilities onto the city’s 24-acre Riverfront Property. During the tour, Bonamici got a
• The 24-acre former Boise Ve-
See RIVERFRONT Page A2
Columbia Economic Team growing small businesses WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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he COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges in many aspects of life around the globe, and
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Vol. 141, No. 35
in Columbia County, businesses did not escape the impact of the coronavirus There were many challenges that the pandemic presented small businesses, but people may be surprised to learn there were positives coming out of the pandemic as well. Paul Vogel, the Executive Director of the Columbia Economic Team (CET), detailed the mixed developments businesses experienced during the past several years. “No question, the pandemic was too much for some businesses to survive. Between emergency pandemic restrictions, employees afraid or unable to work due to illness or childcare issues, the challenges were myriad, and some businesses couldn’t adapt,” Vogel said. “Positive impacts, however, include changes in many peoples’ work circumstances that motivated them to branch out on their own and start new businesses… businesses of all types. That’s good for our small business economy and diversity of goods and services in our communities.” Small Business Development Center One of the initiatives the CET took to support small businesses and
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Molly’s Market is one of the businesses that has closed in St. Helens’ downtown.
growth in the county is the development of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The CET started the SBDC during the year 2021/2022. It was borne out of reviewing the business finances of hundreds of small companies and organizations throughout the process of running four grant rounds of emergency relief funds, Vogel said.
“None of those grants turned a business around, but combined with other relief, certainly kept many going. But the important thing was the clear discovery that investing in solid, credible, accountable basic business advising was the best possible investment,” Vogel said. “Every city invested; the county invested; we recruited the statewide small business network as nearly a 50% investor, and
we set a responsible start-up period to get established.” Vogel and the CET were told they shouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t have clients within the first 12 months. Vogel said that the SBDC exceeded expectations and that within the first year, they had over 100 contacts and “scores” of registered clients. Vogel expects that it is a number they will “probably double this year.” SBDC Director Jason Moon said that their clientele base is strong and that they’ve continued to grow in the months since it was founded. “Following the easing of shutdowns and the implementation of the Columbia County Small Business Development Center and resource center, we’ve witnessed the revitalization of existing businesses and the emergence of new ones. Currently, over 120 SBDC clients and averaging around ten new clients each month,” Moon said. The SBDC has hired an additional business advisor and administrative support to increase capacity to meet needs and demand and continue to offer the service and recourse to all small businesses across the county, according to Vogel.
See CET Page A10