Tag Archive for: Camas

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Holland Partner Group to Build New Campus in West Camas

CAMAS, WA — Holland Partner Group will be building its new headquarters on a 35-acre lot adjacent to Fisher Investment’s campus, said Camas City Administrator, Pete Capell.

The Vancouver property manager and multifamily developer plans to build three four-story office buildings (each 100,000 square feet), a high-end apartment complex, and a 20,000 square-foot upscale market, complemented by some restaurants.

The city refers to the project as the “Grass Valley Development” and will be built on vacant land south of NW 38th Avenue, which is close to the Vancouver border.

Capell said they expect this new development to bring 1,500 jobs to Camas, and that the first building could be occupied in late 2019.

“I think to have another large employer coming to Camas is great,” said Capell. “We’ve been working on this for a long time. We continue to build jobs in our community, and that’s important and exciting. Camas has the best ratio of jobs to citizens compared to other cities in Clark County. We bend over backwards to bring employers here. Holland came to us and wanted to fast track things. That was how this was solidified.”

Proposed specifications and images will be published when they become available.

To learn more about Holland Partner Group, visit www.hollandpartnergroup.com

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Join Wreaths Across America Dec. 16 to Honor Veterans

CAMAS, WA — Local leaders are asking for volunteers to place wreaths for National Wreaths Across America Day on Saturday, December 16, 2017, 11 am, at Camas Cemetery, where 847 veterans have been laid to rest. No signup needed. There will be a brief ceremony followed by the laying of wreaths, and finally cookies, coffee & cocoa for all.

More about the event: Each December, the Wreaths Across America organization carries out its mission to Remember, Honor, and Teach by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as over 1,200 additional locations in all 50 U.S. states, at sea, and abroad.

The organization encourages every volunteer who places a wreath on a veteran’s grave to say that veteran’s name aloud and take a moment to thank them for their service to our country. It’s a small act that goes a long way toward keeping the memory of our veterans alive.

“We are not here to decorate graves. We’re here to remember not their deaths, but their lives,” says Karen Worcester, Executive Director of Wreaths Across America. “A person dies twice: once when they take their final breath, and later, the last time their name is spoken.”

To learn more, visit http://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org

Camas Cemetery is located at 630 NE Oak St, Camas, WA 98607.

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Camas Strategic Plan: Resources, Finances, Infrastructure, Growth

The City of Camas has developed a three-year comprehensive strategic plan that covers four overarching priorities, nine key objectives, and 20 initiatives to help with city governance, citizen communications, and forecasting.

Over two years, City of Camas Administrator Peter Capell and his team met with city employees, external consultants, and conducted resident surveys to see where priorities should be to help Camas navigate the next several years.

The 2018-2020 Strategic priorities are:

  • Meet community needs with optimal use of resources
  • Build financial stability for the city of Camas
  • Ensure core infrastructure meets community needs
  • Proactively manage growth in line with vision and decision principles

Attached to each overarching strategic priority are several key objectives and initiatives.

“The effort was to get our house in order, and be in a good financial position,” said Capell, who has been with the city of Camas for nearly four years. “We’re dealing with a structural deficit as we manage the limitations of 1% annual increases in property taxes, but have to cope with other costs that are rising at higher rates, such as health care. Essentially, we have to do more with less. So we asked ourselves: are there tools we can used to work within our means? How many more firefighters, paramedics, and police officers will we need?”

The plan is very comprehensive, and for the purposes of this article, Capell addressed three major issues: Financial stability, aging sewer infrastructure, and Lacamas Lake North Shore protection.

Financial Stability

The city wants a balanced budget and seeks to improve its existing AA bond rating to a AAA rating.

“Having a AA rating isn’t bad, and we don’t really borrow very much,” said Capell. “But, if we can earn a AAA bond rating, we can get a lower interest rate on future projects.”

To meet this priority, the city plans to update all financial policies to meet Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) practices, have an open and transparent program-based budget, update utility rates and impact fees, re-examine the city’s revenue strategy (overall size and diversification), and develop a long-term financial plan.

Aging Sewer Infrastructure

The aging sewer system is a big problem the city is trying to overcome. The city has a high number of STEP system alarms going off seven days a week with a high level of claims, said Capell.

“All we’re doing is responding,” said Capell. “We really want to spend more time on preventative maintenance.”

The city also deals with major pipe bursts, such as the recent break on Brady Road. With so many pipes built in the 1980s, they are doing a thorough water and sewer level of service analysis.

Protecting Lacamas Lake North Shore

Lacamas Lake North Shore.

By law, the City of Camas has to follow the regulations mandated by the Growth Management Act, which is a balancing act between allowing housing development and keeping local green spaces.

“We are trying to prevent sprawl to the best extent possible,” said Capell. “We have an extensive public viewing process, and encourage citizens to participate.”

One highly sensitive area is the Lacamas Lake North Shore. Most citizens want the forested backdrop to remain despite the housing developments already starting in the area. As a result, the city has been granted funds from Conservation Futures, which is a bonded county-wide program that acquires critical property to keep lands beautiful. Camas has received $2.5 million from Conservation Futures, and is using $1.5 million to purchase forested areas along the Lacamas Lake North Shore.

“We want to monitor green space acreage in Camas,” said Capell. “And keep it beautiful.”

The city is also enhancing tools and processes to improve communications with departments, across departments, and with the City Council.

“Although a lot of these things in this strategic plan aren’t tangible now, they will build a better foundation for the city,” said Capell.

We plan to discuss other parts of the plan in future articles.

To learn more, visit www.cityofcamas.us

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Camas Wrestling Team Wins Tyrone S. Woods Memorial Tournament

Oregon City, OR — Four individual weight class wins propelled the Camas High School Wrestling team to victory at the Tyrone S. Woods Memorial Tournament Saturday — but that wasn’t the whole story.

Sam Malychweski, Gideon Malychewski, Jack Latimer, and Tanner Craig each beat their opponents to win finals with 250 points overall.

Sam was a dominate force, beating every opponent handily. He’s bigger and stronger this year and won his final match by 15 points.

“My personal goal for the season is to win the 195 4A State title,” said Sam. “I felt that we as a team had a good turnout. And, I thought it was awesome that Jack Latimer, Tanner Craig, Gideon and I won our finals matches.”

Craig pinned his way throughout the tournament, and Latimer went up a weight class at 132. Craig’s opponent was Benjamin Ziegler in the 138 pound weight class.

“I feel like it as a good victory,” said Craig, a junior. “But I also know that there is more work to be put in so that I can still win with tougher opponents at tougher tournaments.”

Latimer wrestled outstanding, as well, beating 2-time State champion, Gavin Jolley.

“Jack dominated the match all around,” said Camas Head Coach, Cory Vom Baur.

“I’m really excited about my win,” said Latimer. “I’ve been working really hard for something like this to happen. This was all part of my plan, and I’m really excited to compete next weekend, as well.”

Gideon entered the tournament unseeded, and he had a close match in semi-finals against the No. 1 seed. He competed in the 170 weight class against Vinnie Chestnut from Lake Oswego with a final score of 8-1 in three rounds.

“I felt really good about it because it was the first tournament of the season,” said Gideon. “And knowing that last year I was in the finals just one time I really wanted to come to this tournament and dominate it.”

He did.

Wrestling

Gideon Malychewski won first place in the 170 weight class.

“Gideon is so good at wrestling, he has so much talent,” said Vom Baur. “He has something inside him that can’t be coached. With 30 seconds left Gideon powered his way through tiredness.”

Gideon feels good about the season.

“I was watching our JV wrestlers wrestle in the tourney that we just competed in and I was very impressed with them in the way they wrestled,” Gideon said.

“I didn’t expect us to win the tournament,” said Vom Baur. “We had a good lineup, and we were prepared, but we didn’t have all of our guys there. We told the team that your job is to battle that person in front of you. And they did. Overall, they wrestled well. We haven’t focused as much on conditioning and being mentally tough, but the guys were mentally tough Saturday.”

Vom Baur said it was a team effort to clinch first place. He said that Karter Liefsen placed third, and that Freshman Caleb Ashworth’s efforts stunned people. Ashworth was the rest of the story.

“Caleb pinned three kids!” said Vom Baur. “And he went to semi-finals. He’s a Freshman. Without him we wouldn’t have won.”

The boys compete next at Westview High School this Friday.

To learn more, visit www.camaswrestling.com

Wrestling

Sam Malychewski won his weight class at Saturday’s tournament.

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Camas Basketball: Boys Win Season Opener Against Prairie

Camas, WA — Fans cheered on the Camas Boys Varsity basketball team during their first game of the season Thursday night to a victory over Prairie, 69-61.

Papermaker Senior Isaiah Sampson had 16 points and 12 rebounds, overcoming the 28 points Prairie’s Kam Osborne scored at the intense game. Junior Carson Bonine scored three first half 3s to put the Papermakers up by eight points at halftime. Prairie did their best to cut the Camas lead, but the Papermakers opened the gap even further during the fourth quarter.

“We played very well as a team and I loved our energy both on and off the court,” said Tre Carlisle, the Camas team captain.

The boys play at Wilson, Oregon tonight at 7. Their next home game is December 6 vs. Black Hills at 7 pm.

Camas JV also won their game against Prairie, 57-42.

Basketball Game Stats

PRAIRIE:  Nate Milspaugh 3, Kaleb Locke 3, AJ Dixson 2, Logan Reed 3,Dante Heitschmidt 8, Kam Osborn 28, Braiden Broadbent 13, Zeke Dixson 1. Totals 15 (6) 10-13 61.

CAMAS:  Isaiah Sampson 16, Carson Bonine 10, Ben Cooke 3, Gabe Mukobi 9,  Connor Shira 3,  Kyle Allen 5, Shane Jamison 4,Fox Bessinger 3, Zachary Chillian 4, Trey Carlisle 12. Totals 16 (8) 13-18 69.

Prairie 13 16 19 16–61

Camas 17 20 10 29–69

To learn more, visit www.chs.camas.wednet.edu

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Events: 4:30 Parade Kicks Off 2017 Camas Homecoming Festivities

Camas, WA — The 2017 Camas Homecoming festivities begin at 4:30 pm today with the traditional parade that begins at Garver Theatre. The parade will feature this year’s Homecoming Royalty Court. Following the parade, Doc Harris Stadium will open its gates at 5:30 pm for the annual Homecoming Football game as the Papermakers host arch-rival, the Union High School Titans.

Tickets go on sale at the Doc Harris gate at 5:30. Please note that no backpacks or open containers are allowed.  Tickets are $6 for adults, $4 for visiting students with ASB and CSD Middle School students with ASB, $1 for senior citizens and elementary students – CASH only.  No elementary students are allowed without an adult.  CSD employees please have your school badge for entry at the gate.

Camas (8-0 overall) and Union (7-1 overall) compete tonight for the 4A Greater St. Helens League (GHSL) District Championship title. This will be the first time since 2009 the two teams squared off for a league title in the regular-season finale. Camas has beat Union the last contests, and there’s a lot at stake.

Tonight’s winner earns the GHSL No. 1 seed, which keeps them at home for the first three postseason games. The loser of tonight’s game must travel for the first two playoff games, which begin next week. The undefeated Camas team, ranked No. 1 all season, has kept on pace after winning the State title last December. A Papermaker win tonight will bring Camas six straight 4A GHSL titles.

The game will be broadcast live at  www.nfhsnetwork.com

Homecoming

This is the Camas Homecoming 2017 Parade Route.

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Camas Abandons Plans for Senior Living Center By Round Lake

After hearing from numerous Camas citizens regarding the possible sale of public land near Round Lake to build a senior living center, and begin the process of rezoning that property, the city has decided to halt the entire process.

Camas City Administrator, Pete Capell, issued the following statement today:

The City of Camas received a conceptual plan for a senior living facility to be constructed on public open space property located on Everett Street, south of Lake Road. The plans for this project included provisions for trails and parking spaces for use by the public, as well as providing emergency and maintenance access to the dam and creek.  The City is always looking to better its parks program and with a sale of the property there was a potential to leverage the funds received to obtain a grant in excess of the value of the potential sale proceeds.”

With these ideas in mind, the City felt the idea was worth reviewing.  There were multiple hurdles that would need to be crossed if the City did decide to go forward with a sale. The City first needed to alert the State that the zoning and comprehensive plan designation might be changed for this property.   City staff planned to discuss the possibility to surplus and rezone the property at several public meetings and public hearings, the first being at the Parks and Recreation Commission on Wednesday, October 25th at 5:00 pm and culminating in a series of workshops and public hearings which would have to be held before the Planning Commission and the City Council.  The onset of these discussions did not commit the City to sell the property to anyone.  In addition, there remained multiple elements which would be negotiated only in the event the property was deemed surplus and in the best interests of the City.

After a discussion with City Council at a workshop on October 16th and the subsequent article in the Camas-Washougal Post Record on October 19th, numerous emails and Facebook messages were received indicating that our community treasures our open spaces and would not support selling the property.

The City is sensitive to the will of its citizens.  While the City believes there was merit in having a public discussion about this proposal and vetting it through the many steps outlined above, City staff have received enough feedback and understand how the community feels about the project and will immediately stop the consideration process of the proposal.

The property will remain as open space in public ownership.

Senior

A local developer had planned to build a senior living center adjacent to Round Lake, in Camas.

A number of the comments we received insinuated that something improper had occurred in the submission of this proposal from an assisted living group that Tim Hazen is affiliated with.  Council members are subject to specific limitations outlined under the Code of Ethics laws of the State of Washington.   Council members are also citizens and are not denied an opportunity available to all other citizens to acquire and maintain private economic interests.  As noted, the planned process would follow all of the required steps with numerous opportunities for the public to comment before a final decision was rendered by City Council. Mr. Hazen further resigned at the start of the process according to both the regulations under the Code of Ethics laws of the State of Washington and general ethical practices, to avoid any hint of impropriety.

Mr. Hazen was an excellent City Councilor and served his constituents in an exemplary manner. Please thank Mr. Hazen for his service to the community. I hope that he will still be willing to serve as a volunteer and leader in our community.

Pete Capell

City Administrator

To learn more, visit www.cityofcamas.us

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Proposed Round Lake Senior Living Center Hearing Set for Oct. 25

Camas, WA — Camas residents aren’t too thrilled about the City of Camas selling public lands to build a senior living center near Round Lake on Everett Road. Opponents of the development will hear details at a City of Camas Parks Board meeting, to be held this Wednesday, October 25 at Lacamas Lake Lodge.

The Parks Board will review the proposal, and may ask for additional input to continue the discussion, or they may settle on a recommendation and forward that to planning. Additional public hearings will be scheduled to discuss the matter and give citizens input.

The uproar began when Camas City Council members last week approved the first re-zoning step that would turn a 2.7-acre parcel of public land into a new development for seniors. Additional private lands would also be purchased. The proposed development is a 125,000 square-foot, 81-unit senior living center with underground parking, as well as a 48-bed memory care center.

The councilors were informed that city staff was approached by a developer who wants to purchase public lands to construct the facility. It was learned soon after that developer is Tim Hazen, who abruptly resigned from his city council seat last week.

Hazen is the owner of Premiere Senior Living

The city of Camas purchased the 5-acre open space from the Moose Lodge in 2002 for $200,000.

Citizens are concerned that once you lose an open space property, it will never be preserved for future generations.

“My thoughts are that the city shouldn’t be able to sell public land without the consent of its citizens since it IS public land,” said local resident, Liana Gulzow. “And the fact that Tim Hazen would benefit from this — and he was a former city council member — is just not sitting well with a lot of people. I’m concerned that this huge senior living facility is so close to Round Lake that it could affect the use of the trails that so many of us frequently use. And, not to mention the traffic situation.”

Camas residents have taken to social media to express their concerns, as well.

“Our city should not be selling public park land,” said Ammon Child. “Especially to a recently resigned city council member who clearly has been working on this behind the scenes!”

In order to re-zone, Camas leaders must hold a series of public meetings to change the parcel’s zoning, which is currently parks open space.

City Councilwoman Bonnie Carter said she thinks the city is setting a bad precedent.

“The only thing that was requested of the council was to direct staff to submit paperwork to the state to have the parcel of land considered for re-zoning,” said Carter. “This request was unusual because it did not first go through the normal channels of review before going to council, but it is legal. The rezoning request deadline to the state was last Wednesday, hence the unusual request. Mr. Hazen’s experience on council and city planning knowledge played into the timing.”

Carter assures that the project will still go through the appropriate channels starting with Wednesday’s meeting.

“Lack of information concerning the actual request of council and what will still happen has many folks upset,” said Carter. “And rightfully so.”

Hazen will present his proposal, and there will be an open process wherein citizens can express their opinions on the matter.

To learn more about this process, visit http://www.cityofcamas.us/businessdev/plancommission

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Archer Mountain Fire Update: Evacuation Notices Reduced

SKAMANIA COUNTY, WA — As the Archer Mountain fire holds at 209 acres, the Skamania County Sherriff’s Office has reduced several area evacuation notices. A smart and hard-working fire crew has been working tirelessly to put the blaze.

The following evacuation notices are still in place:

Level 2 (Be Ready):

  • Archer Mountain Road (west of Deville Drive)
  • Franz Road
  • Archer Mountain Road (east of Deville Drive)
  • Dim Rill Dale Drive

Archer Mountain Road west of Deville Drive was previously issued a Level 3 (Go!) evacuation notice. Residents who live on Archer Mt. Road east of Deville Drive may return to their homes.  This described area is reduced to a level 2 evacuation notice including Deville Drive and Wakina Road.

Evacuation levels are constantly being evaluated as fire behavior changes.  If the evacuation level is reduced, that information will be posted on the Skamania County Sheriff’s website at www.skamaniasheriff.com

Should it become necessary to increase an evacuation level, residents will be notified in person by Sheriff’s deputies or other emergency personnel.

Archer

Archer Mountain Fire. Photo courtesy of KATU.

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2017 Back to School Shopping: $27 Billion

The summer vacation season is shorter for most Southwest Washington families, given the extended snow make up days from the 2016-17 school year, so it seems early to get a jumpstart on Back to School (B2S) shopping, but it’s really a good time to find the best deals.

Deloitte recently conducted its 10th annual Back to School (B2S) survey, which takes a detailed look at this year’s shopping and spending trends. Total B2S shopping in the United States is expected to reach $27 billion, and department stores fall from second to sixth place as favorite shopping destinations. Mass merchants have jumped to first place.

That $27 billion projection would make 2017 the second biggest B2S shopping season on record.

B2S is the second biggest shopping season of the year, affecting 29 million U.S. households, 53 million children, and accounts for 50 percent of all school-related expenditures, according to Deloitte.

In this B2S shopping season, Deloitte says “consumers are focused on different retailers and items to fill their carts. Mass merchants and off-price retailers are becoming the go-to venues while traditional department stores and specialty clothing retailers take a back seat.”

Here are some of the survey’s findings:

  • 81 percent of respondents plan to shop at mass merchants. This is a 24 percentage point jump over of last year.
  • 28 percent plan to shop at off-price stores. This is up from 10 percent in 2016.
  • 28 percent say they’ll shop traditional department stores, which is down from 54 percent last year.
  • Just eight percent of parents plan to visit specialty clothing stores, falling from 25 percent in 2016.
School

Welcome back to school written on a sheet of paper school with colorful pens

Local retailers have seen an earlier spike in traffic this year, and many attribute that to the heat.

“We think they’re coming in to escape the heat,” said one Target employee.

Retailers also get the most dollars spent at their stores the earlier they advertise their sales, according to the survey.

“I love to save money,” said Marcia Wahlman, a Wal-Mart shopper. “I love finding the best deals.”

The statistics show that families spend, on average, $501 per child, which is on par with 2016. Fifty-seven percent of respondents will use cash or debit cards for their purchases, while others will use credit or retail credit cards.

In-store purchases account for 57% of total B2S sales, with 21% online, and 22% undecided.

The Southern portion of the U.S. accounts for 44%, giving that region the highest average spend. The West accounts for 18% overall.  The Midwest is 20%, and the Northeast is at 18%.

So, how much will your family spend?

School

Kids ready for the start of the new school season.

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