Harrington news

Harrington Opera House Society

Linda Wagner, Sheryl and Mark Stedman, Ed Haugan, Carol, Paul Charlton, Billie and Gordon Herron, Karen Robertson, Sue Lani Madsen and Marge Womach were present as Mark Stedman opened his last meeting as president of the Harrington Opera House Society. In reviewing the minutes from the previous meeting, mention was made of the $9,000 grant that the Harrington Public Development Authority received to help connect the business district with NoaNet for faster Internet service. Robertson reported that the Saturday Santa event was far less well-attended than it had been in the past, as there were many goodie bags left over which the Chamber had prepared.

Madsen, architect for the elevator project, presented her concept for the construction process, contract and associated building changes. Billie Herron expressed concern that the present contractors were planning to do the ADA construction through the Art Room to the lobby ticket booth, since it had been financed by previous grants. Madsen assured her that as long as the Society kept the payment properly designated, it would not matter which contractor did the actual work. The building committee, (Mark Stedman, Gordon Herron, and Carol) had decided on a preferred design for the ADA pathway from the Art Room to the ticket booth which would cut a doorway through the west wall of the lobby. This met with some resistance. Madsen insisted that an "inclusive" pathway for ADA access is preferable to a separate entrance. The main objections to the cutting into the lobby room itself was that crowding could occur and that it would alter the building's historic appearance.

Discussion was held regarding the end of the rummage season and the need for space to store items that need to be moved for the duration of the elevator construction work. Arrangements were made to petition the "4 by 4s" to help move larger items before the contractors come in for work.

Gilliland honored

The City of Harrington recognized the retirement and birthday of Mayor Paul Gilliland at a social at city hall from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 9, with a nice crowd of well-wishers present. Councilman Michael Cronrath, on behalf of the city, presented the mayor with a plaque and spoke about his character and his dedication to the City of Harrington in various capacities since 1980. Cronrath said two words, "highly" and "dedicated" described the outgoing mayor; highly educated, highly qualified, highly experienced; dedicated to his family, including his children, wife, mother and mother-in-law while also being dedicated to the welfare of the City of Harrington.

Cronrath extolled the command with which the mayor served the city within the first six months of taking office when Mount St. Helens erupted and how capably he learned on the fly about face masks, calming the citizens and regaining use of the city streets with the massive clean-up. Cronrath briefly highlighted the millions of dollars spent on improvements that the mayor oversaw with street projects, sewer projects and the water system. As sometimes only the councilmen saw, the mayor spent countless hidden hours working for the city with no award, no praise and no recognition. He did it as part of his dedication to the city. The average voter would be unaware that he took daily readings of the wastewater treatment system and took water samples on a regular basis. People might have seen the mayor randomly driving the local streets, but it was not aimless. He was quietly getting a job done, attending to the security of the town in one facet or another. A beautifully decorated cake, cookies and hors d'oeuvres with coffee and beverages were served and enjoyed.

City council meeting

The city council met December 9 at 7:30 p.m. with Paul Gilliland, Terry Howe, Levi Schenk, Peter Davenport, Mike Cronrath, Rick Becker, Bunny Haugan and Scott McGowan representing the city, along with citizens Jim Wilcox, Crayton Oestreich, Sharon Schultz, Dillon Haas (mayor-elect), Ashley Schenk, Donita Simons, Chris Hickman, Karen Robertson, Kaitlyn Kennedy (student), Delaney Smith (student), two other unnamed students, Ken Kennedy, Justin Slack and Marge Womach.

Discussion was held regarding the Memorial Hall and potential solutions to recurring drain issues. General agreement was heard regarding the issues that the garbage disposal creates and that its removal might remedy most of the concerns. In the meantime plans have already been made to have a firm clear the line.

The Lions Club, represented by Oestreich and Wilcox, is willing to donate labor for some updates for the building, but, like the city, they don't have excess funds for extensive projects. Two floor projects need attention, one in the restroom area and the other near the storage area. Wilcox, who had served on the city council under Mayor Gilliland, took this opportunity to thank him for his long service to the city.

The Council discussed the budget for 2016 in which the mayor had made minor changes from the last special budget meeting and presented the final budget to the council. Ordinance 490 to adopt the budget was passed 5-0. The Transportation Improvement Board agreement with the county for the chip-seal project also passed 5-0.

Mayor Paul Gilliland had requested, on short notice, a contract from Karen Robertson, webmaster for the official city website. However, it did not have sufficient detail to appease the keen eyes of the council members. Since her work has been satisfactory to the council, the contract seemed a mere formality for continuing the arrangement, but the issue was tabled until the January meeting when Robertson is to provide a detailed contract.

Fee changes for variances and zoning will be raised following the previous meeting's discussion and current discussion. The fee for a variance has been $30 and will be raised to $100. For zoning changes, the fee has been $60 and will be raised to $150. This would bring the fee up to covering the actual expenses incurred. Fee changes are needed for use of the cemetery for weekend services. The present rate is $275 for a weekday service for opening and closing and $350 for the weekend. The new proposed rates would be $450 weekdays and $675 on weekends. The city must pay overtime to the crew for weekend labor, and it is not possible to rush the families out of the cemetery when they congregate there, delaying the time alloted for the crew to finish their work. These fees are changed by resolution. The renting of the Memorial Hall will also be raised from $35 to $50 for the kitchen and the small room and from $50 to $75 for the kitchen and large room. There will be no renting out of the kitchen separate from the room rentals.

Before the conclusion of the meeting Mayor Gilliland presented Terry Howe a Certificate of Appreciation for serving on the city council, as this was her last meeting as a council member. Bills were approved and Gilliland adjourned his final meeting as mayor at 9:06 p.m. calling it, "the last of many adjournments."