Bonnie Kooken, Orenco resident for 50 years and fierce advocate for preserving the historic Orenco townsite, passed away on February 2. She was 81. Mayor Steve Calaway spoke of her passing during this week’s city council; you can read his entire statement here. A quote: Our community lost one of its champions this month with the unexpected passing of Bonnie Kooken. A resident of Hillsboro’s Old Orenco neighborhood for more than 50 years, Bonnie was a charter member and current chair of the City of Hillsboro’s Historic Landmarks Advisory Committee. He continues: Every Hillsboro resident benefits from Bonnie’s influence and community-building efforts. Driven by her commitment to preserving the land that is home to Orenco Woods Nature Park, Bonnie and[…]
Category: City Council
I live near NW Amberwood Drive and 206 Avenue; at least, I did. According to the signs on these streets I now live on Walker Road and John Olsen Avenue. There are a lot of road name changes happening in Hillsboro right now, which is confusing. Even worse: different apps are figuring this all out at different paces. Near my place Google Maps knows about John Olsen Avenue, but Apple Maps still calls it 206. Neither knows about Walker Road. You could spend a lifetime discussing whether the various changes make sense—my wife and I have already put hours into this. Why is Amberwood, which doesn’t connect to the existing Walker Road, being called Walker? And why does the change[…]
Hillsboro City Council looks likely to establish a communications utility by February, in part to ensure fiber is ready to go in South Hillsboro before the roads are built. The proposal, recommended by the Finance Committee, will be up for first reading by City Council on January 16 and second reading on February 2. Proposals like this generally only make the City Council agenda when they’re likely to pass. But don’t expect a municipal broadband provider anytime soon: this policy is more about infrastructure. To quote a recommendation from Rob Dixon, Assistant City Manager: The ordinance would establish a communications utility, create a communications fund and direct the Planning Commission to initiate a code amendment that would lead to the[…]
Hillsboro’s city councillors will vote on a resolution Tuesday outlining their “Guiding Principles” for 2018. It’s a mostly vague list, and doesn’t outline any policy specifics. Still, the wording provides some insight into what elected officials in the city feel they need, or want, to work on. Here’s the list in full, the order of which is not supposed to reflect relative importance. Support community mobility by continuing to improve our transportation system Work with community partners to increase public transportation access and service options Support cultural inclusion and expanded engagement with diverse community members Create partnerships to encourage and support the development of more market rate and affordable housing Continue working with community partners on homelessness Support the development[…]
Block 67, better known to longtime Hillsboro residents as that place where Hanks Thriftway used to be, is shaping up to become a mixed use development likely not dissimilar to Orenco. At least, that’s what it sounded like during a city council work session last week. Economic Development Officer Dan Dias used the half hour session to announce the city has chosen a developer to work on the site: the oddly named, and impossible to Google, Project^. Hanks Thriftway was closed in 2015; the city bought the lot a year later in order to direct its development. During the working group city officials expressed a desire for the development to connect the main street region of downtown to the medical[…]
Hillsboro’s entire City Council signed an open letter to congressional represenatives this week, urging them to preserve the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The letter, sent to the offices of Senator Jeff Merkley, Senator Ron Wyden, and Representative Suzanne Bonamici, makes the point personal by telling the story of a protected community member. We are personally vested in the DACA program’s future through the many Dreamers who call our city home. One young woman, 17-year-old Fatima, who preferred that her last name be withheld from this letter, has served as a member of our Youth Advisory Council and dreams of graduating from Western Oregon University or the University of Portland, then starting her career as a second grade teacher. We[…]
The two-lane, no sidewalk stretch of Jackson School Road that cuts through Hillsboro was never really built to handle commuter traffic, but that’s what it does now. There aren’t many north-south roads connecting US 26 to downtown Hillsboro, so 7,000 cars a day end up on Jackson School Road, according to the city. On October 3 Scott Dreher, Hillsboro’s Capital Program Manager, laid out a series of improvements for the road. First, the entire road is going to be widened to three lanes, along with a protected bike lane and sidewalk on each side. Here’s what that looks like: And there’s going to be all sorts of other improvements, from pedestrian crossings to traffic circles to new lighting. Here’s a[…]
It’s one thing to read about things, or even complain about them, but it’s another entirely to actually get involved. But decisions are made by the people who actually show up. The city is inviting people to do just that week with its call for volunteers for various boards. There are opening on several decision making bodies in the city, and you have until Monday, November 13 to apply for them. Fill out the form right here. Which boards have positions available? Here’s the list provided by the city, complete with a little about what each committee does. Skip to the things that catch your interest. Budget Committee: Mandated by state law, approves the city’s budget. Members include seven citizen[…]
Saturday is HillsDOer day. Here’s Mayor Steve Calloway encouraging residents to volunteer: Everything helps. When neighbors come together and take ownership in our community, we all benefit. Whether you have just a few hours in the morning or afternoon, or you want to volunteer all day, you can make a big difference, reduce your stress levels, and increase your happiness. Read the full letter here, and sign up to volunteer here. There are all kinds of different projects you can take on so grab some friends and get out there.
Did you know our city hires lobbyists? You might only picture corporate interests when you think of lobbying, but it’s not uncommon for municipalities the size of Hillsboro to try to influence the state legislature. This year Hillsboro lobbied for transportation funding and to oppose limited economic development tools. You can learn more about these efforts tomorrow at 6PM in conference room C113B of Hillsboro’s civic center. A work session before tomorrow’s city council meeting gives citizens a chance to hear from Andy Smith, Hillsboro’s Government Relations Manager, and Mike Van Dyke, the city’s lobbyist. They’ll be talking about all the issues they lobbied legislators on; here’s a sheet outlining what they see as victories this year: We’ll be living[…]