by Staff
Carrie Bartoldus with Tryan HartillFebruary 15, 2007
Wednesday, February 12th, at their morning work session the Clatsop County Board of County Commissioners discussed the over 100 approved Measure 37 claims that were invalidated with the passage of Measure 49. At the end of the work session a letter from Jim Neikes was given to the BOCC from Commissioner Lee. Neikes is one of Lee’s constituents.
Based on the accusations made in the letter the NCO staff researched the open records available, Planning Division documentation, and interviewed as many of those involved as chose to talk about the issue. The following was ascertained:
An employee in the Planning Division, Building Codes Department, Jeffery Heinzman, got a development permit based on what another coworker described as a “fib”. Heinzman filed paperwork for the development his family was working on, stating it had access to water via the Burnside Water District. According to Burnside Water District they did not have water for the development at the time that the development permit was granted. Without a proven water source a development permit cannot be applied for, nor granted.
A partition was recorded, on a Measure 37 approved waiver for the Heinzmans, by the county clerk on November 19, 2007. According to the tentative agreement signed by Community Development Director Ed Wegner, the partition was to be signed by him before being considered completed and a development permit obtained. A record of that sign off has currently not been found. The only sign-off on the partition found was that of the surveyor. Major Partitions do not normally have to go through the Planning Commission .
According to Jennifer Bunch she has never worked on any Measure 37 claims. According to her records the Heinzmans’ measure 37 claim waiver was approved by Clatsop County on March 8, 2006 and by the State of Oregon on April 12, 2007. The only other thing she had to do with the Heinzman development was approving a road name and giving the new partition an address, both done after the partition was registered with the clerk.
According to the minutes of the Planning Commission a request for subdivision of Heinzman’s Measure 37 claim has never come before it. Since the area is a RA-2 the partition of a piece under two acres would not be permissible unless the subdivision has been approved as a Measure 37 waiver claim. One of the partitioned lots is under two acres. All permits issued to Heinzman after his registration of the survey with the county clerk read RA-1. Mike Weston, with the Planning Division, says this was an office mistake as zoning cannot be changed in an area whether or not a Measure 37 waiver has been approved for the property. Other Measure 37 waiver plat approvals have gone through the Planning Commission accompanied by a staff report.
On April 11, 2007 the Heinzmans first applied for a permit to develop their property. November 21, 2007, County Planner John Kanlund approved a development permit to the Heinzman property. On Dec 11, 2007, Kanlund wrote a letter to Heinzman stating that because water was not available to the partition all development must stop and no further permits would be issued. This is called “red flagging” a development so that others will know the development has issues that must be resolved before further permits can be issued. The project’s permit was approved November 21, 2007, withdrawn Dec 11, 2007. That 20 day period was the only time site development should have taken place. Extensive site develop has occurred, something which Neikes contends would have been noted had the normal Measure 37 waiver approval for a plat been observed.
Stewart Scarborough issued two permits, one mechanical and one plumbing to Jeff Heinzman on the partition on Dec. 28, 2007, seventeen days after the project was “red flagged”. Scarborough said he did not wish to make any statements on this issue.
Although no approved placement permits exist for the property a manufactured home sits on it. The property is leveled for a manufactured home and has a driveway; earthwork has been done. Heinzman applied for a manufactured home placement November 20, 2007, but has not yet received a permit. Because it is on a zoned geo-hazard overlay there are more stringent guidelines that must be followed before a home can be built or placed there. According to the Planning Division the home should not be there. Because there is not currently a code compliance specialist and the director is on vacation nothing can be done about the matter. Jim Neikes has argued that the Planning Division has known at least since January 8, 2007, about the manufactured home and should have known earlier if site inspections had been done as the home was bought in April 2007 and moved in June 2007 from Vince Campbell’s site in Lewis and Clark. According to the county Assessment Department the Manufactured Home is listed as still being on the Campbell site.
On December 14, 2007, all approved Measure 37 waivers were invalidated when Measure 49 took effect. At this time Clatsop County Board of County Commissioners is determining how best to help individuals with previously approved waivers (see related story ). One way is by determining a “vested” interest in which the claimant proves that they have put so much time, effort and expense into a development it would not be fair to stop them from finishing.
According to Planner Mike Weston in the Planning Division, no further work should be occurring nor permits being issued on the Heinzman development. The Heinzmans were contacted for their side of this issue. While first agreeing to talk to a reporter for NCO, one and half hours after the interview they left a message retracting everything they had said. They replaced it with the announcement that they didn’t wish to make a public statement. Weston said that because of budgetary constraints Jeffery Heinzman’s position was terminated January 15, 2007, and that Heinzman no longer works for the county.
Feb 15, 06:29 am |District Attorney and Commissioners Trade Staff Accusations
by Carrie Bartoldus
February 7, 2008New Staff Member’s Accusations Stir Up Memories of Old Staff Conflicts
Astoria, Ore – In an exchange of emails last spring between county manager Scott Derickson and District Attorney Josh Marquis words got heated with Derickson finally telling the commissioners that he could no longer continue communicating with Marquis via email because of the hostility of Marquis’ emails. Commissioner Hazen emailed Marquis a request to stop bullying county staff. Marquis fired back: “actions have consequences, and if you stab me in the back, do not expect me to meekly accept it. ... I am unaware of any ‘tyrannical attacks.’ My tone is sharp because I don’t get straight answers.” The emails were regarding the District Attorney’s ability to conform to the budgeting process, resulting in the recommendation by the budget committee that his stipend be cut for the budget year of 2007-08. (see related story )
Three days after the budget committee recommended to the Board of County Commissioners that his stipend be rescinded Josh Marquis sent an email to a colleague stating, “If they [the board of county commissioners] want to cut my stipend, they can live with the consequences.” In the months that followed a committee was formed to mandate that a salary for the district attorney be included in the county’s charter.
Based on email exchanges between County Commissioner Sam Patrick and District Attorney Josh Marquis it has been contended that the committee formed for the mandated salary was a collaborative effort between the two and that the initial wording for the petition which led to the ballot measure was written by Marquis at Patrick’s request. The emails show that the district attorney agreed to write the petition’s wording and some people discussed in the emails subsequently were core members of the petition committee. After campaigning for the ballot measure got underway Marquis denied being the “generating force” of the ballot measure and said that he had no affiliation with the committee which had written it. (see related story )
Barely one month after exchanging emails with Sam Patrick regarding the petition’s wording and forming a committee for the ballot measure, Marquis wrote State of Oregon Assistant Attorney General, Pete Shepherd. In this email dated July 11, 2007, Marquis states, “A citizens committee with whom I am not affiliated has proposed gathering signatures for the county home rule charter.” Marquis’ email goes on to say, “I will check but I am fairly certain that there are no emails, or correspondence, or memos of any kind, generated by me as District Attorney on this subject.”
In this same email Marquis informs the Assistant Attorney General, “I have a private email account which I use for non-county business. I do not believe I am under any obligation to turn over emails sent privately not using government emails to anyone who wants them. If I am wrong please inform me.” However, in the email exchange between District Attorney Marquis and Commissioner Patrick the email address of Marquis can be seen to read, jmarquis@co.clatsop.or.us and the bottom of the email reads, “prepared on resources owned by Clatsop County, Oregon.”
On the same day, in a later email, Marquis refers to his state held office, “Well, the DA approves the language so I’ll probably ask another DA’s office to handle that function because of a possible conflict.” The email was dated June 4, 2007. A notarized document dated August 2, 2007, after the petition had been to court twice and had been submitted to the Clatsop County Clerk’s office as finalized and ready for circulation, shows it wasn’t until then that District Attorney Marquis appointed Linn County District Attorney to act as the district attorney in the matter.
Flash Forward
Similarly, a new Clatsop County Planner Jennifer Bunch, whose mother, Peggy Tomlin, recently retired as the District Attorney’s trial assistant, has allegedly made accusations against Commissioner Richard Lee.
On March 10, 2006, a letter from Bunch appeared in a local paper in support of Josh Marquis’ wife, Cynthia Price. The letter was used on Price’s website as an endorsement during Price’s often heated campaign to unseat Commissioner Lee.
Jennifer Bunch was already working in another county department when she transferred to the Planning Division. Minutes of the October 9, 2007, Planning Commission introduce Bunch as a new planner.
Bunch’s accusations come through a letter of complaint which, according to the only paper having access to it, was filed with the county just before the end of the year. One of Bunch’s alleged accusations is of Lee making employees have concerns that their jobs are in jeopardy if they require a developer to adhere to the conditions of a permit. Lee wonders how this is possible since he has only met Bunch recently. “Until the land-use hearing the other day, I have never met Jennifer Bunch….Never spoken to her and couldn’t pick her out from a crowd.”
“I hired Butch Parker,” Lee said, talking about a consultant he hired at least a year ago to do his land-use work, “When it comes to filing and asking simple questions, my wife handles that.” Lee maintains he does not go in to the county office for the permits or applications himself. Lee also said that he has not seen the complaint himself, it hasn’t been released by county to his lawyer, yet.
When NorthCoastOregon.com contacted County Manager Scott Derickson in regards to talking to staff about this and other issues Derickson said, “When the [Lees’] lawsuit is filed we will know the scope and what we can and can’t talk about.”
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