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Samuelson sends a message to Wu
County Commissioner Ann Samuelson met with a representative from Representative Wu’s office today to send a message back to Wu. “Don’t wipe the slate clean,” Samuelson asked Stephen Marx to convey to Wu, “acknowledge all the work done in open, due process. Acknowledge the memorandum of understanding we made with Bradwood. People participated openly and were listened to.” County staff helped Samuelson tally up the time spent in hearings. Four days of public testimony were taken, with one of the days going over 13 hours. Two days the planning commission took 45 motions while they worked through recommendations to make to the Board of County Commissioners.
“We have put conditions and safeguards on this application,” Samuelson stated, “I really don’t see how we could have made it any safer. The public can be proud of the fact that before a development permit is issued the Emergency Responders must sign off that their needs have been satisfied. This took a lot of work from a lot of people.”
Samuelson looked in tired awe at the 31 volumes of paperwork being prepared to be sent to the Land Use Board of Appeals in response to an appeal filed by applicants opposing the variances that the county had awarded Bradwood. 21,000 pages of findings filled the volumes. In addition to the findings of fact another 30,000 pages of support documents, older versions of plans and proposals that were discarded, letters and emails also fill files. According to county staff, eventually much of it will be scanned onto a CD so that those who put in a public request will have it available in an easier form than having to wait for staff to copy thousands of pages of material.
Samuelson would like those at the state level to look at how hard one local government has worked with an LNG corporation while they consider whether or not to support Senator Wyden’s bill to amend the Energy Act by repealing FERC’s authority over citing LNG facilities. “We deserve to be acknowledged for this hard work,” Samuelson said, “the county staff worked hard, a lot of people did. This shouldn’t be seen, or treated, as a wasted effort. And I believe it should be made perfectly clear that no commissioner voted on an LNG issue. They voted on land use issues. I have never stated an opinion on LNG. I wasn’t voting on the industry, I was making a land use decision.”
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You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life. ~ Winston Churchill
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4 Comments
On May 9, 11:38 AM, PAH wrote:
Samuelson is not stupid. For her to say that she did not vote on LNG is ludicrous. That’s exactly what she did. It must have been like the rain of manna when the NoStar dudes learned that they had to deal with the Clatsop County Commission. I can hear the conversation now: “Hey remember the Jedi mind trick? These people are ready for it. We’ll just keep saying that this decision is not about LNG, it’s just about making a measly 20-odd land use changes for the sake of industry, for the sake of jobs. We’ll tell them that they don’t even have to think about LNG. Once they hear it enough they’ll believe it and and then they’ll start repeating it.” It worked!
On May 9, 1:11 PM, Bob wrote:
How many variances did the average measure 37/49 claim need? How many variances does the average 50 million dollar development need? How many variances does the average 25 million dollar development need? How many variances does the average 10 million dollar development need? If people weren’t allowed to get a variance there wouldn’t be a process to go through to get one. You are taking it to LUBA. Let’s see if County went through the proper process.
Ken Leahy wanted the land to be used for a resort, planning wouldn’t let him because the land is zoned for marine industry use, yet they zone the land in front of it so that it can’t be dredged, basically making the land completely useless? When an industry tries to get a variance, proving how stupid some of the zoning is around here, you say they haven’t a right to go for that variance? Leahy doesn’t have a right to do something with his own land?
People are getting pretty fed up with your holier than though elitist attitudes.
On May 9, 4:58 PM, Guest wrote:
Peter,
Did you ever hear a motion to approve liquified natural gas. Given the extensive work and process that went on here I find it hard to believe you think this is so simple. One could also say you aren’t stupid and you’re response is ludicrous! Beam yourself up!!
On May 13, 6:48 AM, Patrick McGee wrote:
A Memorandum of Understanding between Energy Speculator/Profiteers and a Group of unsteadily credible County Commissioners?
And someone would actually try to assume Wu would swallow that load of “Hooey”?