[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6744342,"mediaKeyId","5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad","parentId",5345550,"title","Main Street group urges data-driven push on vacant storefronts; commission names chair for effort","audioSeconds",2055,"startMs",1717000,"endMs",3772000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad&start=1717&end=3772","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad/thumbnail_1717000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6744342/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Main-Street-group-urges-data-driven-push-on-vacant-storefronts-commission-names-chair-for-effort","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6744342-34e3d235d457460ad762cdba0f486071/orig.mp4?Expires=1771003588&Signature=icrtLdgj~g2igkh5d6oHTEbAr68NU6SYLhWJq4paowPYOID~ljGQ3cDZI3PEZ~Mjk2troe-oHqHkKRA8J6mAn~wZnlc4bp0MfwWs99SquhPP5usR873op63SkQPbpZ4W6k8wrErbHdHvSRorFGbHkKcgPyy-LltTpxkYYi30-ZwooKwpBC7cw~svyO1qHq8XRWVN9NV0Cq5h1E875aokgenAfQm~UWdDY31XbZQpMmoduMClwOkbeIdgAW65ka9D2PW7AsopKECNoiRBLpMomTKwgd~zLRjOruPNLu5LoPEoo4XK2NdXhLQXQzKVytQsBvrpCKFjL-oX4RU18xnzAg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City Council of St. Helens, OR","date","2025-07-10T04:19:09.197Z","article","Erin Salisbury, president of the St. Helens Main Street Alliance, told the planning commission the volunteer group uses the national Main Street approach and recent Main Street America tools to inventory properties and help attract tenants.

\"We are your main street organization for the city of Saint Helens. We are a 501(c)(3). We're independent,\" Salisbury said, describing the Alliance's volunteer-led grant work and its new GIS-based property inventory tool.

Marcy Sanders, also representing the Main Street Alliance, said the tool can map every parcel in the defined Main Street district and capture vacancy status, use type, and owner/contact notes. \"It's a powerful tool that we have just started figuring out how to use,\" she said.

Commissioners and the Alliance focused much of the discussion on how to move from data to action. The Alliance recommended a mix of \"carrots and sticks\": low-interest loans or small matching grants to incentivize rehabilitation, paired with clear enforcement for long-term blight. Salisbury said the Alliance has successfully pursued Oregon Main Street grants and suggested a modest local revolving fund could help address immediate barriers such as ADA upgrades or ventilation hoods for food service.

The Main Street presenters described the district boundary (Holton, the riverfront district and adjacent blocks including the John Gumm School and areas down to First Street), said their parcel inventory runs to roughly 160 parcels, and proposed sharing access to the Alliance's mapping tool with city staff for joint data collection.

Commissioners raised parking and hours-of-operation as factors influencing downtown vibrancy. One commissioner observed that excessive on-street parking immediately in front of storefronts can reduce walkability and that a broader parking or mobility plan could improve foot traffic. Staff said a citywide transportation-systems plan is being pursued under a grant process that can list a parking-management project; a planning staff member said that program's grant cycle will determine timing.

On resource questions, Alliance leaders said the organization operates lean and requested clearer collaboration with staff, noting the city's limited staffing capacity in the coming year. \"We would like your support,\" Salisbury said, and offered to help inventory properties and perform outreach.

The commission directed work on a joint data collection effort and on outreach to property owners. Commissioners formally directed Commissioner Jacobson to chair the proactive vacant/underutilized storefronts effort and coordinate with Main Street volunteers and city staff on collecting parcel-level data and drafting recommendations for council consideration.

Commissioners and presenters emphasized that many interventions will need follow-up from city staff and council, and that the Alliance's mapping tool is shareable so the commission, staff and the Alliance can maintain a common dataset.

Next steps identified in the meeting included: sharing the Alliance's inventory tool with staff, completing a walk-through inventory of downtown parcels, assembling a prioritized list of \"top-five\" blighted properties, and evaluating possible funding sources (local match, state Main Street grants, and potential small local grant funds) for targeted repairs and incentives.

Salisbury and Sanders said Main Street would continue voluntary outreach to property owners, pursue state Main Street supports, and collaborate on any scope the commission requests.

Ending: Commissioners agreed to pursue the joint data inventory and to bring a report back at a future meeting; the commission also signaled interest in exploring parking-management work as part of broader mobility and downtown vibrancy objectives.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","07/08/2025 Planning Commission","oneSentenceSummary","Erin Salisbury, president of the St. Helens Main Street Alliance, presented a GIS-based inventory and recommended a mix of incentives and enforcement to address vacant and underutilized storefronts.","taxTitle","St. Helens, Columbia County, Oregon","taxId",52788,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6744332,"Planning commission debates attendance rules; proposes three unexcused absences and 48-hour notice for excused absences",677,643000,1320000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad&start=643&end=1320","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad/thumbnail_643000.jpg","/articles/6744332/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Planning-commission-debates-attendance-rules-proposes-three-unexcused-absences-and-48-hour-notice-for-excused-absences","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6744332-ba7ccc2a0085dceee629278abc73a7df/orig.mp4?Expires=1771003588&Signature=EDxyQ4LASNs7DgUfvmH1K46g3jXmhrC~9Ur8s2RMZhMRaOHeP066T93kaTY3CSVx6pIF7AifrpqTgUepCtCVQFqFBL6sza8nrTtAXF68JaWt~USmwLvsFXqiQAQBucgJDBCVYqKxQXrGGVQbPG9h4PYAWurZIAlGGf1bxj8QfWPOZ9W9sJVaps-JFL5f6WkvZwjMjn-p-ZG4dOcx5Z8gmmFQ1mO6p2MxIt8rm2NpPflDPFppxuL9PAY4VbDLOkMTgCbOolJ02XJMIKVeouNDdlPrIhc-qcbpZcQgn7a2Xo28t9~RMEMuM5ZCAoMgeK~J5I9qmvqphNiqzqVbvNzFfg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Commissioners reviewed attendance problems that recently affected quorum during a public hearing and discussed possible changes to rules governing removal for nonperformance or misconduct.

One commissioner summarized the Portland model and suggested three unexcused absences as a threshold; another commissioner urged that absences need not be consecutive in order to qualify as nonperformance. Commissioners debated whether removal is a council function and whether the commission should make a recommendation to council rather than attempt to enact removal authority itself.

Commissioners discussed a practical excusal mechanism: a 48-hour notice requirement to qualify as an excused absence, and the practical limits on the commission's ability to excuse absences outside a public meeting. Several members proposed that drafting language could be done by one commissioner outside a meeting and distributed to the group in BCC for comment, with the caveat that substantive deliberation about the text must take place in public meetings to avoid public meeting-law violations.

The commission agreed to draft ordinance language and to circulate a draft by BCC for review. One commissioner volunteered to draft initial language and said he would share it with the group.

Ending: Commissioners agreed to advance an ordinance proposal to the city council recommending specific removal/attendance language (three unexcused absences, not necessarily consecutive, and a 48-hour notice standard for excused absences) and to return with drafted text for formal referral.","The planning commission discussed tightening attendance rules and removal processes after recent quorum problems and directed a commissioner to draft proposed ordinance language.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6744337,"Resident says minutes omit safety testimony, plans LUBA appeal over waterfront remodel",231,206000,437000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad&start=206&end=437","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5345550-f3331206e2db8e4ff88d90ab8a0e34ad/thumbnail_206000.jpg","/articles/6744337/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Resident-says-minutes-omit-safety-testimony-plans-LUBA-appeal-over-waterfront-remodel","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6744337-5ccd90217388b5e47fa8acf7ccedd28a/orig.mp4?Expires=1771003588&Signature=NgLvLYHg~5yIhW4nEAiT1ARSuCW3F4zq4~3PUkK64qTMdc1mndy7lJPISzrHZTMRRpSx4ykXWa9QV-BGSZoM~1wDsFolgRCI1hkMmTP9NSAICok8-aJaX7zJdzJC5RRCCKCQG5Zx8Oybx3LjM3vFukXwh5o8aAid3wgfKPScTM7WgahlziRN~Fqyj1qf4VHEzTPidNkSbtj7fscm07EYPYIy~1mpvVeKcl0UsqOrm9KUTjxs7dvLr22RVlKueD4F~JFkcavLrmHx6rLDlJo8nKqazyaPdWCBwIR6o0ZAXTd1IzApGBsRfJ5J8g8AKrVNxU9MjHI72KD9G39j3RybXQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Steven Toske, a St. Helens resident and frequent commenter on planning matters, told the commission he reviewed the May 13 hearing record and said the minutes omit repeated testimony that chosen construction methods created immediate safety hazards at the waterfront remodel site.

\"...the chosen construction methods by the contractor resulted in an unsafe condition, which could cause the immediate death and significant bodily injury of anyone on a construction site,\" Toske said, urging that the minutes be corrected to reflect that testimony.

Toske argued the project did not meet the local development-code definition of a remodel (which he said requires maintaining the same building footprint and other standards) and that proceeding without a variance or a public hearing was unlawful. He said a Notice of Decision is required to trigger the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) filing period and that he intends to file a LUBA complaint.

Brady Preen also spoke during topics from the floor, saying he objected to multiple individuals (naming Charles Kasner and Mr. Rosengard) being on the commission and criticizing what he described as an overly permissive \"grace\" policy. Preen suggested that if a remodel cannot retain at least 50% of a structure, it should be treated as a demolition rather than a remodel.

Commission members discussed whether the minutes are a summary (recorded meeting exists) and accepted a motion to amend the May 13 minutes to include more testimony on the contested hearing.

The commission did not make a final legal determination during the meeting about the underlying waterfront project; Toske said he will pursue an appeal if procedural requirements (including a Notice of Decision) are not met.

Ending: Commissioners asked staff to ensure the minutes accurately reflect the hearing record. The public commenter indicated an intent to pursue LUBA remedies if the record and notice requirements are not satisfied.","A pair of citizens urged the planning commission to correct its May 13 minutes to reflect testimony that construction methods created immediate safety hazards and argued that the commission or staff erred in treating a demolition-as-remodel. One speaker said he will file a LUBA appeal if the Notice of Decision is not issued.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Main Street group urges data-driven push on vacant storefronts; commission names chair for effort

Planning commission debates attendance rules; proposes three unexcused absences and 48-hour notice for excused absences

Resident says minutes omit safety testimony, plans LUBA appeal over waterfront remodel