Cooperation is missing

Local government officials have rightfully expressed pride in their ability to put aside differences and work together on a variety of issues.
Unfortunately, that isn’t the case this time around.
We’re hopeful a peaceful outcome is still possible, but the men representing the city of Portland (Mayor Bruce Hosier) and the Jay County Regional Sewer District (board president Gerald Kirby) are locked in a battle of wills in a dispute over connection fees related to a district project southwest of Portland.
And despite the fact that each side bears its share of responsibility for the dispute, it’s clear the mayor and the city hold all the cards and show no signs of bluffing. He says the city’s sewer ordinance requires a tap-in fee to be charged for each residence or business, and therefore, all 33 properties along and near county road 125 South and Ind. 67 must pay $500 (for residences) or $550 (for businesses), plus an application fee.
Kirby and the district board say the sewer district, which is installing lines and making all connections to businesses and residences, should be considered a business since it will be making just one connection into city sewers near POET Biorefining and therefore should pay just one $550 fee.
Kirby and the board see it as a question of fairness, while Hosier and other city representatives are saying the ordinance should not and will not be changed.
Both points have validity, but if the district doesn’t like the city’s stance, what other options does it have?
Why did the district wait until nearly three months after a contract on its project was awarded to press the issue?
And why, if the district didn’t agree with the city’s stance on the connection fees, didn’t it initiate a discussion about the possibility of amending the ordinance to cover what we see as a unique circumstance?
While a good portion of the responsibility must be placed upon Kirby and the district, the city’s “take it or leave it” attitude hasn’t helped matters. In an e-mail to a sewer district engineer last year, the mayor wrote, “I welcome any good faith discussions regarding this matter, however, the procedures and guidelines are the requirements that the City will follow.”
Things declined further Thursday, as the mayor stopped a public discussion with Kirby at a Portland Board of Works meeting practically before it got started.
The mayor told the district board president any discussion or negotiation on the matter must be conducted through attorneys representing the sewer district and the city — not exactly the best way to show respect for a fellow public servant and encourage genial discussions on the matter.
In the grand scheme of things, the $16,000 or so in fees in question won’t make or break either the city or property owners in the district’s project area.
By allowing the homes and businesses to hook into a nearby city line, the city is providing the cheapest solution to the problem of failing septic system and state-mandated changes.
And even if it only pays one connection fee, the additional homes and businesses will bring extra revenue into the city’s wastewater utility funds.
We believe a compromise solution is possible, but no matter the final outcome, here’s hoping the two sides can sit down, talk it out, and honor a legacy of cooperation in Jay County. — M.S.[[In-content Ad]]