Mayor: Refund $10,000 donation for parking lot

The Cathlamet Town Council voted 3-1 Monday to authorize Mayor George Wehrfritz to offer heirs of the late Effie Wright a refund of $10,000 she made to the town for purchase of land for use as a parking lot.

Wehrfritz asked for council backing for his suggestion to ask the heirs if they would like a refund or if they would want the money to go into a fund for parking improvements.

Council Member Wally Wright, a son of Effie Wright, abstained from voting but opposed Wehrfitz's proposal. In discussions over the proposed layout of Queen Sally Park, he has objected to the lot's use being set as an amphitheater and walking trail. The town needs parking spaces in that area, he has said, and if the town proceeds with the proposed design, he and his brother will ask for a refund of the donation.

"This is a legal issue," Wehrfritz said. "If we want to do something with the land, we can't have something that would restrict us from using it as we feel is necessary."

Council Member David Goodroe said he had worked with Effie Wright to arrange the donation.

"She wanted a view of the river," he said, "she was really clear on that. Was parking her goal--I don't remember that clearly."

Wright and Council Member Ruth Doumit both commented that the decision didn't have to be made now as the town has only applied for grant funding.

"I don't believe this (the proposed park) will go through," he said.

"The issue has come up numerous times in meetings," Wehrfritz said. "It distracts us from what we're doing."

Council Member Bob Rendler had moved to authorize the mayor to write to the heirs. He, Doumit and Stevan McNicholas voted for it; Goodroe voted against it, and Wright abstained.

In other business:

--The council reviewed a state Water System Sanitary Survey Report with Public Works Superintendent David Vik.

The report suggested the town secure adequate supply for future needs; it should update tracking and testing procedures, and it should prepare an alternate source for emergencies.

Vik said he was aware of the issues noted in the comments. He is addressing some as time allows. The town is working on the others, such as obtaining an alternate source. Some of the report's comments were uninformed, he said.

After discussion, the officials agreed to follow a suggestion from Consulting Engineer Ken Alexander. He suggested a meeting with the DOE official who wrote the report to discuss the issues and explain what the town is doing about them.

--The town went over a summary of the provisions in the draft of a possible update of the town's zoning ordinance.

Planning Commissioner Dick Swart asked that council members provide comments on the ordinance within the next week so that the proposed revision may be further updated.

The new draft has five different types of zoning districts--single family residential; mixed residential; commercial; light industry, and heavy industry.

Each planning commissioner has a different view on the designation of districts, the report says.

After council comments are processed, a public workshop on the ordinance could be held in October, and final adoption could come in March.