City Council Bids Farewell to Council President Scott Starr, Approves Boones Ferry Park Master Plan

​December 19, 2018 — On Monday, December 17, the Wilsonville City Council recognized outgoing City Council Present Scott Starr, offering thanks and congratulations for Starr’s eight years of service to the community.

At Starr’s 192nd and final City Council meeting, his fellow Councilors, Mayor Tim Knapp and members of the public praised Starr’s fiscal prudence, collaboration and kindness in advocating for the Wilsonville community.

“You demonstrated empathy and compassion for the community you helped lead, and for the employees who serve Wilsonville. Your presence, perspective, ability to read the room and sense of humor will be missed,” added City Manager Bryan Cosgrove.

At a public hearing, Council approved the Boones Ferry Park Master Plan. The plan improves accessibility to the Willamette River waterfront, adds a dog park, parking and other amenities and guides development of new land acquired in 2017.  The plan also accommodates a landing site for the proposed French Prairie Bridge.

The Council held a public hearing and continued, for one year, a temporary recycling surcharge approved in May 2018 to account for drastic changes in the international recycling market requiring garbage haulers to pay to dispose of recycled goods.

Council also approved a zoning change at Villebois that allows residential construction to begin on one of the area’s last undeveloped parcels.

During Communications, the independent certified public accounting firm, Merina & Company, LLP, delivered the City’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.  The City received a favorable audit with an unqualified opinion, indicating that financial statements are presented fairly, and users can rely on the material accuracy of the documents to evaluate the City’s financial position.  Results also demonstrate the City’s compliance with state and federal financial laws.

During Mayor’s Business, the Council discussed whether volunteer service to City Council may prohibit qualified candidates from considering public service, and whether a stipend should be considered to address this concern in the future. Council directed staff to conduct research and provide recommendations for Council to consider at a later date.

At a work session prior to the meeting, art students from Arts & Technology High School and Wilsonville High School presented original artwork they were commissioned to design to dress electric buses being delivered to South Metro Area Regional Transit (SMART) this spring. The Council approved the designs, which will be applied after the buses arrive.

Staff reported on the results of a recent audit of the City’s street trees and a plan to increase the Wilsonville’s treescape by planting as many as 1,500 street trees in suitable locations throughout the community.

Additionally, staff shared details of work to prepare the City for compliance with new Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) regulations governing small wireless facilities (“SWFs”) in the public right-of-way, which become effective Jan. 14 to accommodate the implementation of infrastructure that enables improved “5G” wireless technology.

Community members can watch a replay of all or a portion of the City Council meeting on Comcast/Xfinity Ch. 30, Frontier Ch. 32 or on the City’s video-on-demand service at www.ci.wilsonville.or.us/WilsonvilleTV.

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