Waldport City Council Meeting Recap

The Waldport city council met a few weeks later then their normal second Thursday of the month. The meeting held on July 23rd was absent councilor Severson and Mayor Lambert. During the opening public comments the Waldport council heard sharp public criticism, and some who reported being happy that the city council was staying intact, while others expressed disapointment, after the recent failure of the recall. Items discussed at the meeting included moving ahead on code cleanup, personnel policies, and public hearing on city manager complaints.

The Waldport City Council worked through a full agenda that mixed routine business with simmering tensions over recalls, social media, audits, and city management. Councilors first approved the consent agenda, including June council minutes, the library report, the county sheriff’s report, and a proclamation authorizing street dances on July 25 and August 22, being put on by the Moose Lodge.

Public comment: recall fallout, social media, and community division:

Public comment reflected a community still divided after a failed recall effort. One resident congratulated council members on surviving the recall but warned that the number of “no” votes against them had grown from “a small handful of troublemakers to over almost 300 people.” He urged everyone in the room “on both sides” to maintain decorum and not shout over public commenters or councilors.

Another person provided comment gave a detailed, sharply critical statement alleging First Amendment violations by city officials on social media. She said City officials had blocked some residents from viewing posts where city policy, projects, and budget matters were being discussed, which she characterized as unconstitutional suppression: “When a government official posts about job-related topics on social media, it can be difficult to tell whether the speech is official or private." She pointed out that the council had already discussed and moved toward a social media policy in April 2023, based on guidance from CIS and the League of Oregon Cities.

Other public commenters offered praise instead of criticism. One speaker thanked the city and local students for improved landscaping and weed removal downtown, calling the planters “beautiful.”

A Library advocate read from the city’s own 2020 facilities needs assessment, which described the Waldport Public Library as cramped, noisy, and undersized, and traced the work of the Waldport Library Foundation since 2021. She said the group is now shifting from long-term new-building fundraising to trying to support near-term remodeling and reconfiguration of the existing library to ease current crowding and space problems.

Following public comment, at the end of the meeting, councilors voted to formally support the Waldport Library Foundation’s decision to focus on remodeling and “creative reconfigurations” of the current city-owned library building, rather than only pursuing a distant new-building project. Any physical changes will still have to go through the city and library board, but the motion signals council backing for near-term improvements.

City Manager Dann Cutter walked the council through a large batch of proposed ordinances correcting “Scribner errors” and outdated references across the municipal code, noting examples like a provision that currently allows sewer discharge at “150 degrees Celsius” instead of Fahrenheit and an old marijuana-related section that mistakenly cites a Washington statute.

He emphasized that the corrections “do not change any formative law” and instead fix typos, punctuation, and definitions and repair state statute cross-references. Councilors voted unanimously to have Cutter return with that consolidated ordinance and a companion resolution directing a broader legal review of the code for conflicts with current Oregon law.

A follow-up measure, Ordinance 831, amends the City of Waldport Employee Handbook to incorporate the newly adopted policies and “correct legal deficiencies” so that city personnel rules align with current Oregon and federal employment law. Because Waldport’s code requires handbook changes to be adopted over two meetings, 831 received a first reading only and will return for a second reading and final approval at the next council meeting.

Staff and councilors addressed a long list of operational issues and ongoing projects:

• Audit backlog: Cutter reported that the city’s 2021 audit is now complete. The auditor is filing it with the state, and a final version, including a letter on any deficiencies, will be presented to council at a upcoming council meeting. He said the findings mainly relate to past financial practices under an outside firm and that staff will prepare a management response explaining changes already in place.

• Trails and homeless camps: As noted earlier, the city’s new landscaper will be tasked with regularly checking woodland trails and reporting encampments and damage. The city is also consulting a trail specialist on erosion and safety fixes for steep sections of the John Mare Trail.

• Code enforcement in Peterson Park: Responding to complaints from Mr. Holt and others, Cutter said new hire Anthony Moore, who has significant code enforcement experience, is already working the Peterson Park area. Cutter acknowledged residents’ “absolute frustration.”

Councilor comments:

• A county household hazardous waste collection event in Toledo through Dahl , offered as a free option for residents to safely dispose of paints, chemicals, and other banned trash.• A “big emergency need for blood,” with councilor Booth relaying a Red Cross appeal and urging residents to donate.• He also pointed out wildfire conditions statewide, with local fire crews recently dispatched to Evans Creek and Sisters while any nearby fires would test local response.

The council unanimously confirmed a recommended municipal judge pro tem from Eugene to fill in when the regular judge, is unavailable. Cutter said the candidate is a former contractor who became an attorney later in life, passed the bar on the first try, and has experience with the types of cases Waldport’s court handles.

After adjourning to an executive session and then reconvening in open session, the council moved to follow through on an earlier commitment to publicly address formal complaints lodged against the city manager. A motion was made “that we are going to have a public hearing about the complaints… and we’d like to do it as soon as possible.”

The motion passed, with councilors agreeing to hold the hearing at the next regular council meeting, assuming legal notice requirements can be met. Cutter said he will work with the city attorney to ensure proper notification. Cutter has the right to have a closed hearing or an open hearing. He will notify council of his choice prior to the next meeting.