July 6 City Council Recap: Former Mayor Raises Legal Concerns Over Urban Renewal Agency (watch)

David Hatcher accused Councilor Don Weber of acting without agency approval as North Plains also confronted staffing shortages, an uncertain manager search, an expired legal-services agreement and increasing dependence on temporary help.

Former North Plains Mayor David Hatcher delivered a warning during the July 6 City Council meeting: he believes Urban Renewal Agency Chair Don Weber has acted outside his authority and may be exposing the City to legal risk.

Hatcher said he served on the City Council when North Plains created the agency approximately 20 years ago. He explained that urban renewal redirects growth in property-tax revenue toward investments intended to increase property values and encourage renewal within a designated area.

He then accused Weber of encouraging local businesses to seek agency money for items including door repairs, air-conditioning equipment and exercise equipment.

Hatcher argued that those proposed uses fall outside the agency’s intended purpose and that Weber could not independently make commitments on its behalf. Decisions, he said, must be discussed and approved by the full Urban Renewal Agency board.

“You have a chair of the Urban Renewal Agency that is acting like a loose cannon,” Hatcher told the Council.

He warned that Weber’s reported actions could place the agency and City in “legal jeopardy,” questioned whether Weber and other councilors had read the adopted North Plains Urban Renewal Plan and called for Weber’s removal as chair.

Hatcher closed with a broader assessment of City Hall:

In 45 years living in North Plains, he said, he had never seen the City government in such a distressed condition.

The Council did not substantively respond before moving to the next speaker. Hatcher’s full testimony begins here at the 13:45 mark.

Hatcher’s testimony raises a clear question:

Was Weber acting with the full agency’s approval, or was an individual councilor making representations the agency had not authorized?

The City’s Urban Renewal Agency webpage identifies Weber as chair and explains that the agency’s governing board consists of the mayor and all current city councilors.

Former Officials Criticize Reid’s Departure

Hatcher was among several longtime community figures who criticized the Council’s recent direction.

Butch Kendall called the June 15 decision to separate from City Manager Bill Reid a “senseless mistake.” He defended Reid’s qualifications and said the Council owed residents a written explanation. Kendall described himself as deeply saddened and worried about the City’s future.

Former Councilor Ricky Smith pointed to the absence of a finance director and public works director, the City Recorder’s leave, reduced City Hall hours, canceled meetings and overworked employees.

He questioned who was watching the budget and asked what qualified professional would want to enter a city government in its current condition.

Another resident asked the Council to explain its plan for finding an interim city manager, how long Library Director Robin Doughty would carry multiple roles and whether she would receive additional compensation. The resident also questioned when the Council had publicly discussed its transition plan.

City Seeks Outside Staffing Help

The Council approved an agreement allowing North Plains to become an affiliate of the Mid-Willamette Valley Council of Governments.

The arrangement gives the City access to outside municipal assistance, including city-recording, planning and recruiting services. The basic affiliation cost was described as $500, with additional charges based on the services used.

The Council also authorized Doughty to temporarily hire Sherwood’s deputy city recorder, with the council of governments available as backup.

Because Doughty was serving as manager pro tem, she needed Council approval to appoint or remove employees—another complication created by the City’s temporary leadership structure.

Details of these actions and the supporting agreements can be found in the City’s July 6 agenda packet.

City Attorney Agreement Had Expired

The Council learned that the City’s municipal legal-services agreement had expired because of what staff called an administrative oversight.

The law firm continued serving as City Attorney, but councilors declined to immediately approve a proposed three-year renewal. They instead postponed the decision and moved toward forming a two-member subcommittee to compare other firms’ rates and services.

The lapse came during a period when North Plains was handling employment disputes, public-meeting complaints, major contracts and an executive transition.

Interim Manager Search Struggles

City officials also acknowledged difficulty finding an interim manager who was both qualified and available for full-time work.

The City was considering alternatives, including borrowing an assistant manager from another community and broadening the search to candidates with backgrounds such as municipal finance. Doughty agreed to remain acting manager only through July 20 (She has since formally resigned from both the interim city manager position and her role as library director).

Mayor Aaron Dumbrow, who was absent, submitted a written report saying the City wanted candidates with management experience, knowledge of Oregon government and familiarity with small cities. The limited candidates identified at that point had not met enough of those qualifications.

“Five People’s Jobs”

Doughty offered the clearest account of the pressure on remaining employees.

She told the Council that she takes pride in doing good work, but said the circumstances would make it nearly impossible for anyone to suddenly perform “five people’s jobs.”

She described cutting community services as physically painful and said that in seven years as library director, the library had never previously closed because of staffing shortages.

Parliamentarian Proposal Remains Under Consideration

Councilors also continued discussing whether to hire a parliamentarian to assist with meetings.

Staff noted that the expense was not included in the adopted budget and that funding would have to be identified. Councilors considered researching the service themselves to avoid placing more work on depleted staff.

The contrast was notable: City Hall was reducing services and relying on temporary workers while the Council considered spending public money on assistance conducting its own meetings.

A City Relying on Temporary Fixes

The July 6 meeting offered residents a broad picture of a government under strain.

A former mayor warned that an Urban Renewal Agency official may have acted without authorization. Former officials condemned the removal of the city manager.

The City approved outside staffing assistance, authorized a temporary recorder, acknowledged an expired legal agreement and admitted that its interim-manager search was struggling.

Meanwhile, the employee temporarily holding the organization together described the burden of doing “five people’s jobs.”

Each issue may have its own explanation. Together, they show a City increasingly operating through temporary appointments, outside contractors and emergency measures—and reinforce Hatcher’s warning that North Plains government is in a deeply distressed state.

Residents can watch the complete July 6 meeting or review the official meeting materials.