During this week’s Philomath City Council discussion about parameters for the upcoming request for proposals on the city-owned lot at Main and South 14th streets, the conversation veered into an important topic — parking.
Mayor Christopher McMorran said he’s not sure if there needs to be so much concern about downtown parking.
“Has anyone ever not been able to find parking downtown? I’m a little confused about where it’s coming from, I guess,” McMorran said.
The mayor noted the only time he’s really struggled with it was during the Dirt Road Block Party, when he parked a couple of blocks away. He also pointed out that a recent conversation with a resident who complained about nowhere to park happened on a day when the other side of the street was completely empty.
Councilor Spencer Irwin admitted he’s had to do a loop or two heading to Birdie’s Pizza on his way home, but chalked it up to being spoiled by a town where you can usually park right in front of wherever you’re going. He framed it as a tradeoff: “You either have space for the things that people want or you have space for cars to sit.”
Councilors Teresa Nielson and Diane Crocker made the case for thinking ahead, especially when it comes to housing. Nielson said assuming residents of a new apartment building will rely on public transportation isn’t realistic for a town like Philomath. For example, if a project adds 60 units and every household has a vehicle, that changes the math. Crocker put it plainly — if she were renting an apartment without a parking spot, it wouldn’t make sense to her.
Housing and Economic Development Committee member Ron Derrick pointed to Corvallis as a cautionary tale, where he’s given up and left after circling for too long: “If you don’t think about it now, it might be too late to do it down the road.”
My take lines up with the mayor’s — for now. I rarely park more than a block from wherever I’m headed, and when there’s a big event, walking a few blocks isn’t exactly a hardship. But “for now” is doing some heavy lifting in that sentence. The Main and 14th lot is going to be developed. The acupuncture building in the same block is for sale. Other changes currently unforeseen will likely happen along the way over the next few years.
If downtown starts drawing more people in rather than just funneling them toward the coast, today’s non-problem could become tomorrow’s headache. Worth keeping an eye on.
2. Levy not tax increase
Philomath Fire and Rescue Chief Chancy Ferguson spent about half an hour at Thursday’s Philomath Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon making the case for the five-year local option levy that will appear on the May 19 ballot — and one of his biggest messages was about what the measure won’t do.
It won’t raise your taxes.
The district’s 2016 capital bond, approved by voters a decade ago at 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, is scheduled to be paid in full in June 2027. The proposed local option levy, at that same rate, would step in starting July 2027. For the owner of a $300,000 home, that works out to roughly $12.50 a month, or $150 a year — the same amount already being paid.
“When we look at this, it’s a continuation actually of the bond that expires,” board member Matt Kennedy said. “As a taxpayer within the Philomath Fire District, you’re already paying that 50 cents. We’re just continuing.”
The wording matters because ballots and voters’ pamphlets don’t always make the distinction clear, and a levy can get mistaken for something new. Ferguson also pointed out that the district doesn’t get funding from the city or the county — it operates on its permanent tax rate alone. If the levy fails, Kennedy said the district is looking at losing up to three firefighters, longer response times and cuts to training.
One woman at the meeting offered her own perspective:
“I think in day-to-day life, we’re so busy and we don’t think about emergency services and how important those are until we need them. I know for me, something happened with my daughter last year. It was so scary, but you guys showed up so fast — I’ll try not to cry about it — but it was just a kind of eye opener for me. I just didn’t even realize how much everybody actually does need you guys and I think we take that for granted.”
3. Speed radar signs, readerboard
A few pieces of new city hardware are headed to Philomath in the coming weeks.
Two speed radar signs have been ordered and should be in place before the end of the fiscal year, City Manager Chris Workman told the Philomath City Council on Monday. (The fiscal year ends June 30).
Specific locations haven’t been locked in, but Public Works Director Kevin Fear said the current thinking is one in the vicinity of Dollar General on the west end and another on the east end of town — possibly at the Philomath “welcome log” where College Street comes off of Main Street, or, alternatively at the city-owned lot at 20th and Main.
Public Works Operations Supervisor Garry Black is expected to touch base with Dollar General later this month before things get nailed down, Fear said.
The readerboard at Philomath City Park is also on its way. Workman said the city has paid the first half and is waiting on shipment, with two bids already in from electricians for the installation and a third being sought. He expects the install to happen within the next month.
The new board isn’t much bigger than the current one, Workman said, but it’s a newer model with remote access — meaning city staff can update messages and schedule content from the office rather than walking over to the park.
The display itself will read more clearly, he said, and it will continue to recognize the park’s namesake, Dale Collins, along with the Lions Club for its donation toward the project. The new city of Philomath logo will sit up top.
(Brad Fuqua is publisher/editor of the Philomath News. He can be reached at News@PhilomathNews.com.)
