>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

JOSEPH — A few days before her lawn was marked with a swastika and a threatening note was left in her driveway, Evelyn Swart of Joseph had asked the city council to cancel a proposed ordinance to regulate special events in the city.

On June 30 the council met in special session and did just that.

“The reaction (to the draft) makes no sense to me. I can’t deal with my city getting in an uproar and being torn apart by something I proposed. The community is more important than any one ordinance,” Swart said about withdrawing the proposal.

“I don’t think we as taxpayers should have to support that. We don’t get anything out of it if we are not business people, and we pay taxes to help the city support these events. I’m talking about individuals only, not Chief Joseph Days,” she said.

According to Swart, there was also a concern about liability.

“There is no provision that individuals have proper indemnity so the city is not held liable if someone is injured as a result of an event,” she said.

At the May meeting the council voted to hold a public reading of a draft of an ordinance to address those concerns. A draft was submitted in advance of the June meeting to be reviewed by council members prior to the meeting and the public hearing was put on the agenda. At the June council meeting members of the business community were already gathered to respond to the draft, which was read aloud by Mayor Pro-Tem Pam Latta.

“I thought a committee would be appointed to refer to the draft to write an ordinance. But suddenly, it became the ordinance,” Swart recalled.

Public comment was overwhelmingly in opposition at the June meeting, and at times confrontational. Becky Rushton, owner of the Outlaw Restaurant and Indian Lodge Motel, demanded to know who had written the document. Swart replied that she had. She added that she had done research on the Internet and put the information together.

“Some information was from Oregon cities and some from other sources. I plugged anything into this list of possible suggestions that I thought should be included. I thought a committee would then rewrite it to come up with an ordinance,” Swart said.

After public comment, Councilor Teresa Sajonia made a motion to dismiss further consideration and discussion of the ordinance. The motion was withdrawn when Mayor Pro-Tem Latta expressed doubts as to whether, according to the city charter, a proposed ordinance could be dismissed without a second reading. A second reading of the draft was then scheduled to take place at the July council meeting.

After that city council meeting, the Joseph Chamber Business Committee held meetings to organize a protest to the ordinance, which was still a list of suggestions in draft form presented by a Joseph resident expressing issues of concern.

Vehement letters were written to the local paper and signs of protest appeared in business windows in Joseph. Contact was made with other communities in Wallowa County warning of the far-reaching dangers of the proposed ordinance, and a petition against it circulated.

The Wallowa County Chieftain and KWVR, the local radio station, both took a stand against the ordinance.

“I have no idea what is in people’s minds, it is so far out of any reasoning I could figure out,’’ Swart said, referring to the reaction the concept generated. “There were no figures in the proposal, only suggestions that the city can assess fees. Not necessarily that it will, other than the expenses of the event. There would be no cause for anyone to go out of business or for an event not to happen.”

An ordinance to regulate special events in the city could possibly establish a source of income for Joseph or could at least help the city recoup some of the costs incurred by an event.

According to a document submitted to the council in January 2006 by then-Public Works Director Jim Lewis, the city of Joseph spent approximately $1,300 in labor and equipment costs for the Winterfest Snow Cross Races, none of which was re-paid to the city.

Issues raised by the business community included the fear that an ordinance of this type would discourage the organization of special events in Joseph and Wallowa County, which would have disastrous economic effects. The proposal included an array of possible restrictions and controls, giving the impression that all of them could be applied to all special events.

The draft did not clearly define the types of events that would or should be regulated. For example, would an event such as the Bronze Bike Motorcycle Rendezvous be given a different consideration than Chief Joseph Days?

Discussion did not include a detailed accounting of the costs of particular events to the city, so that an assessment of the need for such an ordinance could be made by the council and communicated to the citizens. The proposal and its presentation by the council raised more questions than answers.

“The council didn’t do a good job of educating the public on this or on the process, I will admit that,’’ Latta said. “When that happens, the fear factor rises. As Peggy Kite-Martin said, we need to balance the needs of the business community with the needs of the residents, the general public. It’s not an easy task.”

Latta went on to explain that ordinances that have been submitted in the past have usually met an unmet need, like the noise ordinance, the burn ordinance and the sign ordinance.

Swart has expressed disappointment with the process and the council.

“The city council is the only voice I have about what happens in my town. I don’t have a voice with the Joseph Chamber. We tried to join the chamber and were told it is only for business owners. We are members of the Wallowa County Chamber, though.

“I go to the council to voice my concerns. We residents should have a voice about what goes on in our city if we don’t like it. Right now it seems we don’t have the ability to ask questions and find out about something we disagree with. We just use the ‘attack and defend method’ instead of a rational discussion of pros and cons. This is very destructive, not just for me, but for the community. I think that sometime down the road I’d like to come up with ideas about how we can discuss issues in a civil way.

“I’d like to live with people who are willing to listen to concerns and come up with a consensus. I’d like to see that happen here.”