Legislative Update

Brad Witt

Hello Friends,

This week in Columbia County, snowmelt and nearly five inches of rain combined to create extreme flooding conditions forcing Rainier Mayor Jerry Cole to declare a State of Emergency for the city. The community response was tremendous, with Emergency responders from Columbia and Multnomah Counties, along with personnel from the communities of St. Helens, Scappoose, Rainier, Clatskanie, Columbia City and Vernonia all working on disaster response.

Flooding in Rainier

Flooding in Rainier

My office reached out to Governor Brown’s office, the Oregon Office of Emergency Management, and the Oregon Department of Transportation and I was very pleased with their support and assistance during the crisis.

But more than that, community organizations and individuals stepped up to help each other. For instance, the Columbia River PUD crews, unable to drive through a slide area, took their gear and traveled on foot to restore power.   The Columbia County Fairgrounds opened their stables for horses to get them out of flood prone areas. Students from the Columbia County Education Campus filled sandbags to shore up buildings and properties.   These are just a few examples of the many people that reached out to help their neighbors.

Thankfully the flood waters are beginning to recede and the immediate danger has passed.   Now recovery begins with damage repair, and some repairs will be more difficult and time consuming than others.  For instance, a culvert on Gable Road completely failed, causing significant road damage. Engineers are looking at repairs, the county is allowing local traffic, but through travel on Gable Road will be restricted for at least a month. Rocky Point Road also started developing a significant crack, and Multnomah County Public Works will be assessing the damage to determine the landslide risk before reopening the roadway. Fox Creek in Rainier needs daylighting, an engineering solution, to move higher volumes of water flow.

There is flood damage to public and private property. If you suffered property damage caused by this week’s flooding, you may apply for property tax pro-ration. To qualify, damage must drop the real market value below the assessed value, and the pro-ration amount is based on the number of months the property is damaged. Calculations are determined by the Columbia County Assessor’s office, you can contact them at (503) 397-2240 to speak with an assessor.

Drivers should use caution and be alert for falling trees, landslides and areas of standing water. Motorists should never drive through standing water, because it is impossible to determine how deep the water is, and what damage may be hidden from sight.

Thanks for reading my newsletter, take care of each other, it’s what we do best!

Brad

Road Closed

Danger High Water