CMBA Meeting Notes

Bill Rawson showed us the new banners that will be installed along Cornell Road. They were printed by Portland Vital Signs and will be installed later this month.

Virginia Bruce told the group about a letter that was sent from CMBA encouraging PGE and other local utilities to install underground cables as part of the Murray Road project. Members agreed that it is important for both safety and appearance not to have utility poles along Murray.

The December meeting (Tuesday December 11—see page 1) will be a holiday lunch buffet and networking event. Members and non-members are invited to come and enjoy holiday goodies from local stores and restaurants and meet your business neighbors (see page 1). The January meeting (January 8) will be the annual business meeting to discuss open slates & the new proposed bylaws.

Chiropractic physician Lauren McCabe presented an informative slideshow about her business, Cedar Mill Chiropractic, as the first installment of “Ten Minutes of Fame,” our new meeting feature that gives each of our members a chance to tell us more about what they do. Lauren gave us an overview of what chiropractic is and how it can help our health. She also gave us a packet filled with good information and samples of products she carries.

Our main speaker was Blair Crumpacker, Senior Planner at Washington County Land Use & Transportation. He gave us an update on the two big road projects that will be getting underway in the next year. The Murray/Cornell project should begin construction in Spring 2008. The Focus Group for the Saltzman Road widening project began meeting in October, with local residents and representatives of homeowners groups and businesses assisting the design team and county personnel in making critical planning decisions for the project. Construction is projected to begin in early 2009. More information about this project is at www.deainc.com/saltzmanroad.

Crumpacker also talked about funding alternatives for future improvements in county transportation. He explained that the estimated need is approximately $3.7 billion, while available revenues over the next 20 years under current funding models will only bring in $1.5 billion. Solutions for this shortfall will include a likely ballot measure for November 2008 increasing Major Streets Transportation Improvement Program (MSTIP) taxation, and a rate increase for the Traffic Impact Fees (TIF) that builders pay for new homes. The county may also work with the state legislature to address the differential in the percentage of state gas tax revenue received by cities and counties.

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