Meeting Minutes
October 15, 2015
10:00 a.m.
Stafford Hansell Building, Hermiston
Members Present:
Bill Elfering, Umatilla County
Gary Neal, Port of Morrow
Leann Rea, Morrow County
Kim Puzey, Port of Umatilla
Dave Tovey, CTUIR
Lisa Mittelsdorf, Port of Morrow - Alternate
CDA Staff Present:
Greg Smith, CDA
Michelle Sandoval, CDA
Guests Present:
Jade McDowell, East Oregionian
JR Cook, NOWA
Glen Phillips, Hermiston Fire
Patrick Mills, CTUIR
Carla McClaine, Morrow County
Craig Coleman, County Line
Kenny Delano, Ferguson Survey
Rod Skeen, CTUIR
Tele-Conference:
Joanne Manson, ORANG
Lt. Col. Kenneth Safe, ORANG
CALL TO ORDER
The meeting of the Columbia Development Authority (CDA) was brought to order by Chairman Bill Elfering at
10:02 a.m. The meeting started with a round of self-introductions.
BUSINESS ON THE AGENDA
Agenda:
Old Business
Review/Approval of Meeting Minutes from 07/30/2015
Chairman Bill Elfering made a motion to approve the minutes with the exception of adding alternate after Lisa
Mittelsdorf’s name. Leann Rea made a motion to approve the minutes with a misspelling of a name. Board
member Kim Puzey seconded the motion. Greg Smith asked for votes in favor of approving the minutes after the
noted items are corrected. Dave Tovey and Gary Neal second the motion to approve the minutes after the
correction.
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New Business
Profit & Loss Statement and Review of the 2015-2016 Budget
Greg Smith begins by stating that from January 2015 through October 2015 the CDA has generated $28,000 in
revenue from the leasing agreements and these funds are in a separate CDA account. Greg shares the September
2015 bank statement from the CDA account and mentions that there are two transactions not listed on the
document and these transactions are related to the hotel expense for the upcoming Association of Defense
Communities (ADC) conference.
Greg continues to say that the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) fund our operation and they are very specific
on how dollars are allocated. The dilemma is that it doesn’t always cover the expenses. Greg continues to say
that the OEA has an expectation that the CDA will participate in the ADC forum in San Antonio this month but
they only give us enough money to cover about 65% of the hotel expense. Therefore we will use some of the CDA
revenue from the leasing income to cover the excess hotel costs. In addition to this expense, the CDA has the
Special District membership fee that is due for $125. The CDA will issue two checks and will require two
signatures when checks are written from the CDA funds.
Greg continues by saying that our grant application was approved by the OEA. The budget for the upcoming year
was approved as well and this grant document is in the binder for the boards review.
Ferguson Survey Report
Greg Smith introduces Kenny Delano of Ferguson Survey and Engineering and Carla McClane, who is the Morrow
County Planning Director. Greg asks Kenny to walk the board through the survey to show what has been
completed. Kenny states that they have located and identified the boundary of the Depot. Kenny continues to
say that at the direction of the planning committee, they have laid out and monumented the various tracts to
basically avoid a future sub-division problem. Kenny says that because the property is federal the government can
de-title a tract at a time in a single conveyance. At this point in time, all of the monuments are in the ground and
all of the boundaries are marked with steel fence posts, excepting those that run along the centerline of existing
roads as those will be well noted on the map.
Kenny states that they are currently finishing up working on the final edits on a very detailed survey. Kenny
reviewed approximately 100 maps of survey and it came down to 60 relevant record information surveys which all
seemed to fit with what Kenny’s surveyors found. However, there are some encroachment issues in the Morrow
county area. For instance, on Tract C, which will be used for agricultural purposes, the pivots do not encroach but
the planting area does by approximately 70 feet and the fence is part of the issue because it is way out beyond
the boundary. Kenny believes this occurred because some of this area had been farmed out or buried. Kenny
suggested that they wait until after the acquisition and then address it with the adjacent owners at that time. In
addition to this area, there is an area east of the freeway where the fences are also not in the correct place due to
possibly being built out of necessity. Kenny said that these were the two most blaring issues they came across.
Kenny continues by saying that the other issue is the railroad right of way has variable width but this is likely due
to when the railroad built the fence; it is approximately 105 feet off of the main tracts. The right of way runs out
to about 50 feet and then back to 100 feet so there are some areas there that will need to be looked at. Greg
Smith asks what the implications of this mean to the CDA and if the railroad is operating within their right of way?
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Kenny answers the question by saying that yes there operations are within their right of way but Kenny cannot
answer absolutely that they do not have infrastructure outside of the right of way. Again, Kenny states that this is
something that can be addressed after the acquisition. Now that the board is aware of the issues, the next step is
to acquire the ground and then come back to working on the issues. Chair Elfering asks Kenny to provide a
narrative of this and Kenny said that he will update Sheet 2 of the survey to provide for this narrative, which will
become a public record. Greg concurs that we need a memo or note of this for future purposes in case the CDA
needs to work with the Railroad on these matters. Kenny agrees to include the issues in a surveyors report as
well, which will be the CDA’s record.
Kenny explains that the survey will go to both Umatilla and Morrow Counties next week but because there are 12
sheets, it may take the counties some time to review the survey. Kenny says that he would like the county
planners to take a look at the survey because it is 99.95% complete at this time. Greg asks Carla McClane if there
is anything that she would like to add and she stated that the survey defines by tract the boundaries and this
works fine for now. Kenny continues by saying that all easements have been defined in the sheets so there should
not be any issues. Because the easements are not in place yet, Kenny can only define them for the future. The
next step is to have the county surveyor review it and then it will get filed and Kenny will add the filing numbers to
the Legal Descriptions, which will get back to the Army Corp, and then everything should get moving along,
according to Kenny.
Chair Elfering asks if there are other comments or question. Greg asks for the county planners to take one last
look at the survey before it gets filed. The board concurs.
The original meeting was recessed and moved to Executive Session per 192.660.
The electronic minutes for the Executive Session are on file in the CDA Office.
Future and Existing Lease Agreements
Chair Elfering asks for the meeting to reconvene and Greg starts by sharing with the board that the CDA received
a request from the Walla Walla Foundry to exchange several of the single door igloos to double door igloos that
they are leasing from the CDA. Greg states that we are working on a supplemental agreement with the Base
Realignment and Closure (BRAC) team. Greg continues by saying that we want this modification to not only
address the Foundry’s needs but other needs as well for other companies that are interested in the properties at
the Depot. The BRAC office is asking that we include both the Foundry’s request as well as whatever Tract the
other company would be interested in so that we only have to do this modification one time.
Gary Neal asks if we can include all Tracts on the modified lease agreement that way the CDA can have more
wiggle room to initiate development processes that will be coming up. Greg mentions that the CDA will need to
contact our insurance broker to ensure the parcels can all be covered with liability insurance. Greg agrees to work
on this matter with the military to find out if this is possible for the CDA to have all of the parcels included on the
interim agreement. Chair Elfering asks that Greg keep the board updated on what the insurance costs will be and
to inform the board of the happenings with the military department on including all parcels on the lease. The
board concurs with this decision.
Next, Greg asks the board to review their expectation of his duties. Greg states that he will attempt to maneuver
deals with his expertise but will always come back to the board for their approval. Chairman Elfering agrees that
the job that Greg has been doing is exactly what they expect. Kim Puzey and Leann state that Greg has been
doing an outstanding job of keeping the board informed of important matters.
Greg continues the agenda by asking the board what their thoughts are on applying for an enterprise zone for the
Depot. Greg asks if the Morrow county side can cover the enterprise zone and if the Umatilla side can cover their
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side. Chair Elfering suggests possibly applying for a zone for the entire property of the Depot. Gary Neal voices
concerns with having the counties assume enterprise zones for their sides as there would need to be
intergovernmental agreements involved to decide who makes decisions, etc. Gary also points out the importance
in having an enterprise zone because if the CDA doesn’t have one then you eliminate most of the opportunities in
developing this land.
Gary states that the board should look at having agreements with the existing zone partners because it is possible
that the CDA may not be around after the 7 year requirement. Also, the board will need to decide up front what
the negotiated fee structure might look like so that this can be included in the agreement. Leann Rea asks how
much property is available in the Morrow county enterprise zone. Carla answers that there is some property
listed on the enterprise zone that is not currently being used so it could potentially cover the Morrow county
properties on the Depot. Gary agrees that there are some locations that can be reallocated.
Kim Puzey suggests that the CDA apply for our own enterprise zone and Bill Elfering agrees. Gary said that either
way you look at it, there is a process involved. Carla states that there is a scheduled Morrow County Enterprise
Zone board meeting scheduled next week and she can bring it up at the meeting. Greg shares that he is
extremely knowledgeable with enterprise zones and he is willing to do whatever the board agrees upon.
Leann Rea states that she thinks she would have a hard time going to her Morrow county side and asking them to
establish another enterprise zone within Morrow County. It makes more sense to just include the CDA property
on the Morrow county side within the Morrow county enterprise zone. Greg agrees to talk with Umatilla County
to propose entering into an enterprise zone agreement. Greg agrees to keep the board informed of this project.
Update on CDA Move to Umatilla County
Greg starts off by saying that it would be beneficial for the CDA to move the office to the Umatilla County side for
economic developmental purposes. Greg shares with the board that he has already met with the Umatilla County
Commissioners and that they are willing to take the responsibility of grant management. Greg says that he would
also like to be compensated in lieu of his fringe benefits. Greg states that he already has excellent medical
coverage and does not need additional insurance. In addition, the CDA needs to keep in mind the grant will be
winding down within the next several years and it makes sense to keep the 42% costs of benefits on the budget.
Chair Elfering asks the board to vote. Chairman Elfering asks for the motion to carry and Dave Tovey, Leann Rea,
Kim Puzey and Gary Neal all approve the motion.
Update on Water Rights Negotiation
Greg starts by sharing with the board that he spoke with Carolyn of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC)
office on the 14th of October and was told that the consensus was that the CDA would be given rights to wells
number 4 and 5, which represents about 25% of the water available. Greg stated that he informed BRAC that
although he appreciates the opening of the conversation but that it was not sufficient enough for the CDA. Greg
shared that the BRAC office offered a suggestion that we could negotiate with the National Guard for future water
rights. Greg replied that he shared with BRAC that this land is not worth much without water and that it needs to
be free, it needs to be clean and it needs to have an adequate water supply or they can explain to Congress why
they won’t work with us.
Greg said he is optimistic that the BRAC office heard his message but he also told BRAC that he is aware of a study
that was completed by the National Guard and that the study showed that they only needed about a quarter of
the available water. The CDA would like for the study to be honored and that the board would be happy to have a
sit-down meeting to discuss the CDA and the National Guards water needs. Greg continued by saying that he
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informed BRAC that because this issue is so important that the CDA would be available at any time to continue
further negotiations. Gary Neal commented that the BRAC might not understand the restrictions that there are on
being able to get new water rights here in Eastern Oregon.
Gary Neal asks the Oregon National Guard to weigh in on the conversation as they were participating via
conference phone. LTC Kenneth Safe was on the conference line and answered that since the study was finished
that a new land use plan was developed and the latest information has not changed. Gary commented that the
study revealed that the National Guard only needed anywhere between 200-750 gallons per minute (GPM) and
Gary asked LTC Safe if this was not sufficient for the National Guard. LTC Safe replied that yes, he believed that
was still accurate that the Guard only needed a quarter of the water and the remaining three quarters would go
to the CDA. However, LTC Safe mentioned that the report was still the current copy but since that study had been
done there was an additional land use plan that has made some clarification to that original study but the latest
information from Stan and Joe Duncan has not changed.
LTC Safe shared that his understanding was that the CDA would receive 70-75% while the Guard would receive 2530%. Greg commented that this was not what the BRAC shared with him and that maybe when we go into a
future conversation that LTC Safe could join the conversation. LTC Safe said that the National Guard certainly
wants the CDA to take advantage of the water certificates that are available because the success of the CDA only
enhances the ability of the Guard to function and operate as well so we have a mutual goal for seeing the water
maximized for the entire site. LTC Safe said the CDA has valid points and he would certainly support that.
Greg suggests that we have the National Guard, the Core and BRAC all sit down with the CDA and get this issue
resolved. Chairman Elfering agreed that Greg should try to make this happen. Greg thanks LTC Safe for his
comments because and states that this has been a challenging and ongoing issue for quite some time. Gary Neal
and Bill Elfering agree.
JR Cook – Central Water Supply and Recharge Project
Greg introduces JR Cook and by commenting on how he came to visit the board due to opportunities before the
region that the CDA might be able to assist in for the benefit of both counties, perhaps some benefit for the Depot
but mostly for the region for agricultural users. JR states that we have an opportunity with funding to move fairly
fast to proceed forward with the Central Water Supply project. JR states that this has been the flagship project
because we have a ready, willing, and able district and a pump station owner that has all of the federal permits
lined up to do so this winter. JR continues by saying that unfortunately timelines don’t always line up but the
project needs to begin with construction and have designs completed by January or February and the biggest
design obstacle is that we want to locate the pipeline on Depot property. It is a 42” pipeline that will run from the
Columbia River through three different land owners, onto the Depot and will terminate on Westland Irrigation
Districts’ property.
JR continued by saying that this will be an issue if we can’t access the Depot because if we aren’t able to get a 60
foot easement on the west side of the fence on Depot property then we will have to impact about nine different
landowners and maneuver through their pivots. JR says that this would cause an additional expense and we are
trying to be good stewards while using state resources. This would also be a time issue with getting easements for
all of the nine landowners in order. JR states that his plan is to get one easement from the CDA to access the
Depot property to be able to run the pipeline. Using Depot land will not impact any landowners and it is the
logical choice for this project.
Greg asks the Board to sign a letter on behalf of JR’s proposed project to show that we are in agreement for the
60 foot right of way along the east property line along the Depot. Chairman Elfering asks the board if there are
any concerns or discussion points. Gary Neal would move to approve the letter subject to the board wanting to
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switch this over to the Master Lease if it is possible. Chair Elfering approves and asks the motion be carried and
Dave Tovey, Kim Puzey, and Leann Rea agree and commence signing the letter.
Public Comments
Chairman Elfering asks for any public comments
Gary thanked the efforts of Greg and Michelle as well as everyone else as we are making progress.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 12:05 p.m.
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