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Yamhill County adopts ordinance removing Westsider Trail from transportation plan after corrections; one commissioner dissents
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Summary
The Yamhill County Board of Commissioners voted to remove the Yamhillis Westsider Trail from the county Transportation System Plan during a second‑reading ordinance adoption, approving technical corrections before adoption. The measure passed 2‑1; a public commenter raised transparency concerns about commissioners' meeting notes.
Chair Johnston opened the March 19 session and the board proceeded to a second reading of an ordinance to amend the Yamhill County Transportation System Plan to remove the Yamhillis Westsider Trail project.
County staff and counsel identified a series of scrivener errors in the ordinance title and exhibits. Counsel moved ministerial corrections to the title and exhibit text; the board approved each correction by voice vote. After completing the technical fixes, Chair Johnston moved to adopt the ordinance as amended.
The final adoption passed with two commissioners voting aye and one voting nay. Chair Johnston and Commissioner Mary Starrett voted in favor; Commissioner King voted against the adoption. The board recorded the outcome after a brief confirmation that the amended text reflected the intended edits.
Public comment earlier in the meeting had focused on transparency concerns tied to the same trail decision. Rebecca Wallace of Newberg told the board she had asked for the commissioners' prepared remarks from the prior reading and received notes from two commissioners but not from Commissioner King. "Two of our commissioners chose transparency, and one commissioner chose to withhold and shift the burden to the public," Wallace said, adding that requiring a formal records request and payment for notes that appeared to be readily accessible creates an unnecessary barrier and erodes public trust.
Chair Johnston also outlined next steps for pieces of the trail and related debt: he said the county has roughly 10 years remaining to repay a grant loan tied to the parcel and expressed an intent to avoid a county cost of "$1,700,000" by pursuing options such as transferring debt or ownership of segments to cities and discussing corridor rights with ODOT. Johnston emphasized exploring other local trail and park projects and arranging public outreach to gather community feedback on future priorities.
The ordinance adoption closes a lengthy review of the Westsider Trail project within the Transportation System Plan. Commissioners indicated several alternative recreation projects and partnerships are available to pursue while compliance with state land‑use requirements remains a barrier for some trail configurations. The meeting record includes comments urging the public to review the land‑use findings that informed the board’s decision.
The board took no further action on debt transfer or outreach at this meeting; staff were directed to coordinate follow‑up meetings with affected cities and report back as plans develop.
