Vandals shoot car on Dike Access Road


When Tim Terrell returned to his car after an afternoon of rafting on the Columbia River, he got a nasty shock.


Somebody had shot at his 2004 VW Jetta, splintering windows and putting bullet holes in the metal. The incident occurred April 13 in the 3000 block of Dike Access Road near Woodland in Cowlitz County.


“I returned at 4 p.m. and the cops were already at the scene,” Terrell wrote in an e-mail. “The cops said about five shots hit my car. One bullet was sitting in the trunk and another on the passenger’s seat.”


A passerby had apparently called the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Department to report the vandalism.


“This appears to be a random act of vandalism,” said Charlie Rosenzweig, chief criminal deputy for the sheriff’s department. “We’ve not had any other incidents.”


Like other river lovers, Terrell parks his car on Woodland’s Dike Access Road when he takes his raft out for an afternoon.


“Once every three or four months I go out on the river,” he said. “I’m not going back anytime soon.”


Rosenzweig said the incident was an act of vandalism, not a drive-by shooting.


“A drive-by shooting refers to somebody being in a car or house,” Rosenzweig said. “This is malicious mischief. It’s very unfortunate, but somebody shot an empty vehicle.”


The sheriff’s department does not have any suspects in the case.


“We don’t have any particular leads to follow up on,” Rosenzweig said. “We hope it doesn’t happen again.”

Cupboards nearly bare


Two Woodland churches have decided to sponsor a monthlong food drive to help fill the cupboards at the Community Service Center.


Center Director Sheri Monge said the shelves in the center’s food pantry are nearly empty.


“We have plenty of canned beans and canned tomatoes, but we need everything else,” she said. “We have no fruit and no canned protein.”


The need for emergency food has grown with economic slowdowns, as food donations have dwindled, Monge said.


“The situation is very serious,” she said. “It’s not just us, it’s tough times everywhere. We’re seeing more middle class families for services in general.”


A shortage of food throughout the region has contributed to the crisis, Monge said. Dried and canned foods of all kinds are needed.


The youth pastors, Justin Stout at Grace Community and Brad Tricola at Woodland Presbyterian, saw the need and will work with their churches’ youth groups to organize food drives in May.


Tricola said student volunteers will collect donations of food at Safeway on Saturdays, May 3-24, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. The two churches will also sponsor food drives within their congregations, he said.


“We hope to raise awareness in the community,” Tricola said.


Hi-School Pharmacy and Columbia and US banks will put out food collection boxes, he said.


Donations may be taken to the service center, 736 Davidson Ave., Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. For information, call the center, 225-9998.


Superintendent takes leave


Mesa-Johnson takes medical absence from Hockinson


Ken Vance
staff reporter


Hockinson School District Superintendent Delcine Mesa-Johnson began a medical leave of absence on April 11 as school board members sorted through no less than 58 written complaints about her performance as well as a vote of no confidence by the district’s administrative team.


In Mesa-Johnson’s absence, Assistant Superintendent Maggie Bates has assumed the day-to-day role of running the district.


“I am managing the daily operations of the school district,’’ Bates said. “I am not the acting superintendent. I want to be clear that I am still the assistant superintendent. I am just stepping in to manage the daily operations. I know the board is moving to resolve this in as timely a fashion as possible.’’


On March 12, the Hockinson school board held an executive session during which board members were presented with the complaints about Mesa-Johnson that were received over the past year. As a result of the complaints, the board hired a Seattle-based consultant Judy Heinrich to help facilitate the process of assessing Mesa-Johnson’s performance and relationship with other administrators and staff in the district.


“There have been complaints,’’ confirmed Deb Stavig, President of the Hockinson school board. “We have hired a facilitator to work on communication. She (the facilitator) is working with the administrative team on a range of issues.’’


On April 10, the school board was back in executive session. Stavig said the session was to receive feedback about the facilitator’s progress. In addition, the district’s administrative team--which consists of Hockinson’s four school principals and two assistant principals--had requested an opportunity to make a presentation to the board.


The Reflector has learned that the administrative team was united in expressing a vote of no-confidence for Mesa-Johnson. It was the next day that Mesa-Johnson left on medical leave.


“They requested to be in executive session under our policy to complain against a staff member,’’ Stavig said. “It was a complaint against a staff member so it can’t be done in open session.’’


When asked what impact the vote of no confidence had on the board’s decision-making process, Stavig replied, “it’s one more piece to the puzzle.’’


“We are in the process of gathering information and evaluating it and trying to figure out our next step,’’ Stavig said.


The Reflector filed a public records request to view the complaints presented to the board regarding Mesa-Johnson and all district communications that took place as a result. Attorneys for the district complied, mailing 297 pages of documents to the newspaper.


The complaints range from Mesa-Johnson’s alleged use of alcohol on a school-sponsored trip to New York to repeated complaints about her management style. One complaint alleged that Mesa-Johnson caused damage to a parked car with her vehicle at a middle school basketball game in fall 2006. The complaint indicated that Mesa-Johnson left the scene, but did assume financial responsibility at a later date after being confronted about the incident.


Some complaints by employees of the district alleged that Mesa-Johnson’s management style created a hostile workplace, often bringing district personnel to tears during harsh criticisms or evaluations. One complaint alleged “her administrative style is like Hitler’s. Divide and conquer and do as I say or else.’’


Another complaint alleged that “kids stated she was demeaning, superior and evil.’’


“We as a board are concerned about the complaints and take them very seriously,’’ Stavig said. “We are trying to work together to take positive steps in addressing those concerns.


“At this point, the board is still in the process of evaluating all the information we have. It’s still too early to speculate what course of action the board will take.’’


Stavig said that, in her letter to the board in which Mesa-Johnson requested the leave of absence, the superintendent asked for up to two months of leave and that during that time she would be “having regular checkups with her doctor.’’


Mesa-Johnson’s current contract is for two more years after July 1, 2008. It has an annual rollover provision, an option the board must act on by June 30 each year. In June 2007, the board elected to exercise the option to extend Mesa-Johnson’s contract, restoring it at that time to a length of three years. She was to be paid $120,671.45 for the 2007-08 school year.


There is also a clause in the contract that addresses termination.


“The good and just clause,’’ Stavig said. “Anything that would be brought forth, there are legal issues that our attorney would need to answer.’’


The section of the contract that contains the clause Stavig referred to is titled discharge. It includes the superintendent’s “right to service of written charges, notice of hearing, a fair hearing before the board, and any other element of due process in accordance with applicable statute.’’ It does not detail an outline for a potential financial settlement.


The Hockinson School Board is scheduled to meet again on Tues., April 22.


“We have a regularly-scheduled meeting Tuesday, which does include an executive session with legal counsel,’’ Stavig said. “It is possible for action to be taken at that meeting because it’s a regularly-scheduled meeting.’’


However, Stavig cautioned that no plans for action had been made at the time of this report.


Stavig said that consultant Heinrich had completed her initial series of meetings with the board, Mesa-Johnson and the district’s administrative team, and that no more meetings were scheduled.


“At this time, the board has yet to decide what our next course of action is,’’ Stavig said.


Stavig wanted to assure the parents, students and citizens of Hockinson that the school district was operating in a normal fashion during the process of deciding what the next course of action would be.


“Our work is continuing,’’ she said. “Our teachers and our staff are working very hard for the kids. Our staff and our community care very much about our schools and I want them to know we are doing our best to protect the rights of all individuals and to do the right thing for our students and follow our school board policy.’’

Ridgefield adds hundreds of acres to city


Residents of Helens View subdivision vow court fight


Bill Myers
staff reporter


After a series of public hearings that concluded April 10, Ridgefield city council members agreed to annex about 480 acres of residential land to the City, and another 36 acres proposed as the site of a Catholic high school. 


All annexations were approved in concert with development agreements. Agreements related to residential lands contain covenants that prevent property development until funding for public facilities such as sewer and water are approved by city council members. Covenants last for 15 years. 


Lands annexed for residential are zoned for Low Density Residential with lot sizes of 8,500 square feet. Development agreements call for minimum densities of six dwelling units per net buildable acre. City manager Justin Clary said residential zones allowing six units per acre are in keeping with Clark County density guidelines and will help developers recover development costs. 


Each Development Agreement states that a new interchange at I-5/SR-501 will benefit the properties. The parties agreed to participate in a Transportation Benefit District and to pay Traffic Impact Fee assessments that could add $2,000 to the price of each home. This fee is in addition to the existing transportation impact fee of $1,943 per home assessed by the city.


Clary said each gross acre of developed land will result in about $10,000 in additional traffic impact fees. At that rate, total impact fees from the newly-added 480 residential acres would be about $4.8 million. 


One annexation, known as the Walker-Callaham, Schuster and Rohrer Annexation, involves three properties totaling 180.87 acres north of NE 139th St. and east of NE 10th Ave. 


To encourage annexation by city officials, owners Ridgefield Estates, LLC, William Rohrer, David Callaham, Jim Walker and Laurie Walker agreed to dedicate 2.5 acres of land for park use and to grant the City an option to purchase another 2.5 acres with park impact fee credits. The Development Agreement also gives the City an option to purchase an additional five acres of land for parks, and requires owners to participate in a future transportation benefit district to help fund an I-5/SR-501 interchange replacement. 


The owners agreed to include a trail network in a Property Master Plan and to contribute $50,000 per road mile of roads annexed into the City. The Agreement calls for a minimum density of six units per net buildable acre. 


Residents in nearby Helen’s View neighborhood opposed annexation of 104 acres of the property known as the Walker Farm which borders several Helens View homes. Helen’s View Homeowners Association president James Wilson said at public hearings that the Walker Farm is part of the Helens View subdivision of one-acre parcels and that the Walkers are subject to a neighborhood covenant that restricts development with more density. 


Farmer Jim Walker said at public hearings that he was farming his land long before Helens View homes were constructed and has a right to make choices about how to use his land. Helen’s View resident Steve Shirey said a Washington appeals court decision (Viking Properties, Inc. v. Oscar William Holm) in 2005 puts the law on the side of Helen’s View property owners. Shirey said Helen’s View homeowners plan to file a lawsuit to prove their point.


Council members approved a similar Development Agreement and an annexation of 160.68 acres known as the Kennedy Annexation. The property, owned by William and Art Kennedy, is located near a proposed new Ridgefield High School and abuts Hillhurst Rd. and NW 229th St., with a north boundary about 550 feet south of the Hillhurst and Carty Road intersection. 


A Development Agreement also preceded council approval to annex 140.40 acres of land at 2067 S Royle Rd., Ridgefield, located on the west side of S 45th Ave. and both sides of S Royle Rd., known as the Royle Annexation. 


The Agreement stipulates that the property owners, the E.T. Royle Family Partnership and Cloverhill Farms, dedicate to the City all undevelopable open space at the property site along Gee Creek. In the Agreement, the owners agreed to grant the City an option to purchase up to two acres of property for use as a park, at a purchase price equivalent to the net buildable acreage purchase price paid by the next owner of the property. 


The Agreement calls for pedestrian trails and a minimum density of six dwelling units per net buildable acre. 


A Development Agreement with St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic High School calls for similar participation in a transportation benefit district. Council members approved the annexation of 36.37 acres and the planned Catholic high school site on the north side of NE 10th Street (County NE 279th St.) and east side of N 65th Avenue (County NW 11th Ave.) Clark County zoning of the property was for Employment Center. The proposed city zoning is Urban Public.