Who are we?
We are your neighbors. We are community members from all areas of King City and future King City. ALL of us live within the newly modified boundary that defines King City.
We are not influenced by any special interests, we do not have any political connections, nor are we guided by financial motivations.
We want our voices to be heard by our elected officials and we want our community to feel empowered, not ignored.
We strive for transparency, honesty, and consistency.
Why are you attempting to recall 4 city councilors (including the Mayor)?
Councilors Marc Manelis, Smart Ocholi, Laurie Petrie, Kate Mohr, Micah Paulsen and Mayor Jaimie Fender voted for the King City Transportation System Plan and Kingston Terrace Master Plan. Once King City identified a direct roadway connection between Roy Rogers and 99W, it became the primary concern of the community members attending public meetings and offering testimony at public hearings.
Councilor Micah Paulsen has submitted his resignation effective December 31.
Councilor Manelis has shown a desire to hear community feedback and adjust his council decisions to reflect the community will. We appreciate his willingness to do so. In light of this, his name was not submitted to be on the recall.
Why is this planned road a problem?
The planned road is being described by the city as a regionally significant collector road. It crosses the Bankston Nature Preserve (protected by a conservation easement held by Columbia Land Trust) and is in close proximity to the Tualatin River which will negatively impact wildlife and the natural environment.
The direct connection between Roy Rogers and 99W will provide a route for cut through traffic. The City Manager estimates 40% of the traffic on this planned route will be cut through traffic. The city’s consultants also project an average of 8,600 vehicles per day west of 131st and 12,900 east of 131st on this planned route (projections are for the year 2040). For a comparison, the Washington County 2022 traffic count for Beef Bend Road at 119th Avenue measured 9,476 vehicles.
We believe there is a solution which is simple and viable – see the Neighborhoods page for details.
What was the original expectation for a future extension of Fischer Road when Edgewater was planned?
Street connections to SW 137th were planned, and were required to be local streets. However, City Council voted to change the plan to allow those street connections to be collector routes. Did Edgewater residents expect this change when they purchased their homes? See the Neighborhoods page for more information.
Was the recall petition almost stopped?
The city recorder revoked the approved petitions and signature sheets for several weeks. It was determined by the Oregon Department of Justice, after a complaint by the Secretary of State, that the city recorder must rescind his letter which revoked the petitions. See more detail on the Leadership page.
What does the recall hope to achieve?
Replace the recalled City Councilors with people that will represent their constituency. The record is clear, an overwhelming majority of community members testifying at planning commission hearings, council hearings, and speaking at community meetings did not support the Transportation System Plan. Mayor Fender used the term “the opposition” when referring to those voicing their concerns before a decision was even made. How important is it to the future of King City to take every measure possible to protect the Tualatin River, the riparian and upland wildlife habitats, and prevent a “regionally significant” roadway from passing through our community? Let’s have the citizens decide in an election that makes that determination.
Why do you say that public opposition to the Fischer Road Extension is overwhelming?
There have been public meetings, online surveys and public testimony. The vast majority of the comments expressed in these forums were against some part of the plan. An online petition against a Fischer Road extension was created in 2021, and had 1,045 supporters.
A City Councilor said this during the public hearing on the Transportation System Plan:
“With over 600 letters on record against this alternative, I have no other choice than to vote no. There are too many community members who are absolutely against it, and it will impact too many negatively.”
At the June 21st public hearing for the Kingston Terrace Master Plan, a consultant for the project said:
“Overall community members participating in the process are generally supportive of the overall plan but with some strong opposition to and concerns about the extension of the SW Fischer Road over the existing conservation easement. There’s some concerns about impact to natural resources and impacts to existing neighborhoods.”
There are links to the public hearings, public statements and online surveys at https://www.kingcitymasterplan.com/project-library. The links to public testimony for the public hearings are harder to find since they are in very large pdf files as part of the public hearings:
June 14, 2023 City Council Meeting when the Transportation System Plan was approved:
page 286 – 891 Public and agency comments
July 19, 2023 City Council Meeting when the Kingston Terrace Master Plan was approved:
If the recall is successful, how are the vacant positions filled, including the Mayor?
If the recall for any councilor is successful, this creates a vacancy. The procedure for filling a vacancy on the City Council is defined in Chapter 2.38 of the King City Municipal code. In general, the position is advertised, applicants are interviewed and the city council votes to select the replacement(s).
If the mayor has been recalled, then the councilors will select a new mayor from the council after vacancies have been filled.
At the moment, the City Council is not following the requirements of this municipal code.
Is anyone willing to be a replacement on the city council?
Several people have stepped forward to volunteer for the city council. We expect more than enough candidates to make themselves available.
We agree with this statement made by King City councilors:
We strongly believe that elections should be fair and truthful, free of fraudulent, misleading, and confusing information.
Do you have more questions?
If so, please contact us at RecallKingCityCouncil@gmail.com and we will do best to answer.