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(continued)
Another man said, “As we drive down Marine Drive, there’s a harmonious combination of recreational and industrial uses. This is incompatible with that harmonious nature. I would encourage you to look elsewhere.”
Yet another said, “I doubt if anyone in the room is against what you’re trying to do, but if 30 trucks are part of the mix, you should look elsewhere. The neighborhood has to be the primary concern, and the neighborhood doesn’t want this.”
Joanne Wold said Marine Drive already is heavily used and “even five more trucks a day is five too many.” Further, she said, “This is a beautiful site on the river. It’s recreational as well as industrial. Your plan for compost is probably great, there’s obviously a problem with waste, but the current use would have to stop.”
To this Foland said Cedar Grove would preserve and enhance the existing trail system. “We want people to come here,” she said. George Donnerberg of McGuire Point Marina said that the property’s IG2 zoning is not intended for heavy industrial use, which is why a conditional use permit would be needed. Scott Kappes of the Trammell Crow Company said the plant belonged in an area like the Rivergate District in north Portland.
Some of those who spoke were less polite and more direct. Russ Alex told Bartlett, “I live very close. We’ll fight this with everything we have. You have a nice facility, but it doesn’t fit the area.”
As government officials discussed the project’s review process one man asked, “If we went through all the appeals, how long could we stall this? If we brought to bear all our resources, it could take a good long time.”
During Cedar Grove’s presentation, when they discussed their efforts to enhance wildlife habitat and the environmental significance of their work (Metro hopes that this program will eventually cut landfill deposits by nearly 50 percent), one audience member said, “Who cares?”
Wilkes Chairman Ross Monn at times attempted to raise a point on behalf of Cedar Grove or supply a point of information. This prompted one man to ask if Monn was being paid by Cedar Grove and to say, “You don’t seem very neutral.”
“I don’t have to be,” Monn replied. He said later that Wilkes board members complained about the raucous behavior of the visitors, and said that some of them appeared to have been drinking prior to the meeting.
Susan Drew, a former environmental consultant, said, “This is zoned industrial, and you could wind up with something worse.” She added that composting facilities could make good neighbors, and that on the east coast they had been known to be neighbors to million dollar homes. “You’re the immediate neighbors, but the larger community is in great need of this,” she said. “Let’s put it next door to your home,” someone said.
Monn expressed annoyance that those opposing the project showed no interest in other neighborhood issues or projects. As he opened the meeting Monn said, “Welcome, everyone. I wish we’d see you more often.”
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