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Major 4th of July reorganization announced
Vancouver National Historic
Reserve Trust President Elson Strahan
held a press conference today to announce a major reorganization that will help
ensure the continuance of the 4th
of July at the Historic Reserve. Local fireworks stand operator
Edward Rinck has signed a contract with
the Reserve Trust and the 4th
of July Committee, guaranteeing $250,000 per year in support of the
Independence Day event. This will be funded through Rinck’s operation of the 4th
of July Committee’s fireworks stands. Rinck, as well as 4th
of July Committee Executive Director Jim
Larson, and Mike Williams,
Comcast’s Senior Director of Sales for Oregon and Southwest Washington, joined
Strahan in making the announcement.
Edward Rinck
is a successful entrepreneur, who not only has a demonstrated track record of
profitable fireworks stand operations, but who also owns the very popular Cold
Stone Creamery stores in the area. Rinck was aware of the event’s publicized
financial challenges and, in offering a guaranteed funding level for the 4th
of July celebration, said, “I have been enjoying this event for more than
thirty years, and it has given my family many happy memories. It's an event that
the community looks forward to each year, and I am honored to be involved with
one of Vancouver's oldest traditions. I have been fortunate to have my
businesses thrive over the years, which has allowed us to support local
non-profit organizations. We thought this could be another opportunity to give
back to our community to show our appreciation.”
Strahan noted
that while the reorganization facilitated by Edward Rinck’s agreement to run the
stands formerly managed by the 4th
of July Committee, the event would still depend on input from Jim Larson,
who has committed to working with the Historic Reserve Trust for at least two
more years.
Empty buses are filling up
By Tauf Charneski
An empty C-TRAN bus initially suggests
a waste of “hard-earned” taxpayer money.
Serious reflection suggests quite the
opposite. An empty bus, now becoming more of a rarity as C-Tran ridership
continues to climb, is a sign that someone, often more than one, has been taken
to a destination, otherwise unobtainable, or that the bus is on its way to pick
up at least one, and usually several passengers providing transportation,
otherwise unavailable, to another destination.
Each weekday C-TRAN buses provide
roundtrip transportation for approximately 9,000 persons. The daily average of
trips provided in 2003 was 19,000 passengers.
The transit agency provided the
community with 6,910,000 passenger trips during 2003. That’s the equivalent of
giving every man, woman and child in Clark County 18 individual rides.
Of the 6.91 million passenger trips,
over one out of five, 1.32 million, were rides to and from Portland. But
C-TRAN’s busiest route, Fourth Plain, nearly equaled all the rides between
Vancouver and Portland, 1.3 million passenger trips.
Counting the Vancouver to Portland
service, Fourth Plain, and all other C-TRAN fixed routes, more than half—56
percent—of the riders used C-TRAN as a way to get to and from work.
Since C-TRAN, and all transit
agencies in the state, lost tax support from the motor vehicle excise tax,
eliminated by voter-approved Initiative 695, passengers have been picking up
costs. The share riders have picked up of the cost of operating the system has
increased 51 percent since 2000.
The per passenger cost of operating
C-TRAN is $4.22. The amount paid by each passenger is $2.96. C-TRAN’s cost per
vehicle mile is $80.82. Passengers pay $74.67 of that cost.
The .03 percent sales tax increase
C-TRAN is asking of voters on Nov. 2, would cost county residents three cents on
a $10 purchase. More specifically, the sales tax increase would add $90 to the
cost of a $30,000 motor vehicle, a fraction of the cost of the former motor
vehicle excise tax repealed by I-695. Most of that tax was used for other
purposes and it was meant to be a tax on motor vehicles in lieu of property tax
on motor vehicles. It has never been replaced.
Clark County launches new website for newcomers
On average, about 28 people a day are
moving to Clark County. How do these newcomers find out about voter
registration, auto and pet licenses, phone service, utilities, cable television,
and how to get around in Clark County?
Now they can check out a new feature in the
About Clark County section of the county’s Web site at
www.clark.wa.gov. Called
Welcome to Clark County, this feature
does more than profile county government. It contains links to lots of relevant
information about what it’s like to live here, including facts about local
school districts, housing, neighborhoods, parks, the job market, historical
sites, and much more.
“Our county is one of the fastest
growing regions in Washington state,” says PIO Director Lianne Forney. “We
thought it was important for potential residents and new residents alike to have
a place to find information they need. People who have been here a while may
find the links useful, too.”
News briefs
The speed limit on I-205 will be
temporarily reduced from 60 mph to 50 mph for a two-mile segment in the vicinity
of the NE 134th Street interchange. This reduction is necessary as construction
activity increases on the NE 20th Avenue overpass. The speed limit reduction
will be in effect for about six months. The NE 20th Ave. overpass north of 134th
Street is being widened to include additional turning lanes and bike lanes. g
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The public is invited to attend the Fisher’s Creek
Park ribbon cutting ceremony on Sat., Oct. 30, 3-4:30 p.m. The park is located
at SE 42nd Street and SE 182nd Ave. Light refreshments will be provided. The
Fisher’s Creek Neighborhood Association, in a unique development agreement, is
financing maintenance of the park for three years.
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MIRIAM GREEN 
"Working to help you!"
