Committee for Community Involvement - July 21, 2026

Agenda

6 p.m. Welcome

6:05 p.m. From CCI Action Plan: 
Address protecting neighborhood/community livability in the Zoning Ordinance; Continue holding listening sessions or work sessions with CPOs

• Work/learning session bringing together CPOs and the Planning Department to take examples of subjective elements of livability and create sample objective standards for the Zoning Ordinance

Proposed CCI Activity: Listen, Seek Understanding, Discuss as needed

7:05 p.m. Public Comment on other topics

Proposed CCI Activity: Listen, Seek Understanding 

7:15 p.m. CCI Business:
Previous CCI Meeting Minutes

• June minutes

Proposed CCI Activity: Approve

7:20 p.m. From CCI Action Plan:
Plan a 2026 Community Leaders meeting that provides a two-way communication forum between community leaders and the Board of County Commissioners. 

• Suggest possible format and subject themes for September 2026 Community Leaders meeting that would add value for CPOs and BCC members, and could enhance other BCC public outreach

Proposed CCI Activity: Discuss

7:45 p.m. Update CCI Interview Questions

Proposed CCI Activity: Discuss

7:55 p.m. PGA Update

Proposed CCI Activity: Listen

8 p.m. Adjourn

Minutes

Time: 6 p.m. 
Held via Zoom

CCI Attendees: Karen Bjorklund (Chair), Pat Erdenberger, Marrion Kaufman, Bill Merchant, Brent Parries (Vice-Chair)

Absent: Danielle Weber
Attending PGA Staff: Ed Nieto

Public Attendees: Sarah Aaserude, (Clackamas CPO area), Marti Bowne, (Hoodland CPO),   Pam Burback, (Boring CPO, C4), Marie Kennedy, (Hoodland CPO), Jane Morrison, (Jennings Lodge CPO), Linda Neumann, (Jennings Lodge CPO), Gerald Murphy, (Hoodland CPO, Planning Commission), Meg Quayle, (Eagle Creek Barton CPO), Gordon Slatford, (Firwood CPO), Tammy Stevens, (Hamlet of Beavercreek, Planning Commission), Ric Sward, (Firwood CPO)

Guest Presenters: Karen Buehrig, Jennifer Hughes – Department of Transportation and Development (DTD)

1. Welcome

Chair Bjorklund welcomed public attendees, CCI members, and county staff. 

2. From CCI Action Plan: Address protecting neighborhood/community livability in the Zoning Ordinance; Continue holding listening sessions or work sessions with CPOs

The goal of the discussion was to address community "livability" aspirations and identify example elements that could be converted into clear and objective standards for the Zoning & Development Ordinance, as required by state law.

Work/learning session bringing together CPOs and the Planning Department to take examples of subjective elements of livability and create sample objective standards for the Zoning Ordinance

Karen Buehrig and Jennifer Hughes from the Planning Department explained that while discretionary standards are allowed for commercial, industrial, and institutional developments, housing-related standards must be clear and objective. Karen Buehrig presented an example of establishing specific buffer distances to protect waterways around natural resource protection areas, emphasizing the need for measurable standards (such as a defined number of feet) rather than vague ranges (100 to 150 feet) or subjective criteria.

When Jane Morrison proposed walkability as a possible standard, Jennifer Hughes said that "clear and objective" requires precise definitions of every term involved — the geographic area, the surface walked on, which developments it applies to, and the threshold for denial.

Gordon Slatford and Gerald Murphy suggested that livability is inherently subjective, emotional, and resistant to objective standards, with Gordon further proposing that applicants be required to address neighborhood-impact considerations as part of the application process. Brent Parries noted that at hearings, only written objective standards matter, and said that discretionary standards (e.g., for home occupations) have caused enforcement problems in rural areas. Jennifer clarified that while some home occupation standards are objective, discretionary standards are allowed for commercial, industrial, and institutional developments. She added that enforcement challenges are distinct from standard development requirements and explained that hearings officers must balance competing policies in the comprehensive plan when reviewing conditional use permits.

Jennifer noted that discretionary standards can be offered as an alternative path for developers seeking greater flexibility, and that architectural/design review (for color, style, etc.) is handled by an advisory design review committee, which is not bound by objective standards except in housing matters.

The conversation also covered potential engagement strategies for code revision, such as the upcoming CPO Leaders Meeting and virtual town halls, with Karen and Jennifer proposing to present draft language for public feedback. Bill Merchant, Pat Erdenberger, and other CCI members disagreed with the Community Leaders Meeting suggestion, saying that the annual event should be reserved specifically for relationship-building with commissioners.

Jennifer and Karen Buehrig agreed to pursue the other suggestion, in which the Planning Department runs its own separate Zoom meetings (possibly in September and October), with Ed Nieto and PGA using the monthly and quarterly CPO newsletters to publicize them.

3. Public Comment on other topics
   There were no public comments.
4. CCI Business: Previous CCI Meeting Minutes

Bill Merchant motioned to approve the June 2026 CCI meeting minutes, and Marrion Kaufman seconded the motion. The committee unanimously approved the minutes.

5. From CCI Action Plan: Plan a 2026 Community Leaders meeting

Suggest possible format and subject themes for September 2026 Community Leaders meeting that would add value for CPOs and BCC members, and could enhance other BCC public outreach

Members discussed the desire to make sure the format focused on building relationships between community leaders and the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) rather than the altered format in 2025, which was more of an information exchange. The goal is to provide value for both sides in a casual setting, with the aim of being mutually beneficial to the other. 

The suggested format, which Ed Nieto agreed to share with County Administration, is as follows:

• Small tables, each with one commissioner, sitting for the whole session (no roaming from table to table). 
•  No central microphone or moderator narrating the whole room — just a brief 1–2-minute welcome, then free-flowing table conversations.  
• Each CPO/community group gets a couple of minutes to briefly introduce what's going on in their area, which helps "break the ice" and gives commissioners natural entry points for questions. 
•  Commissioners are explicitly told and reminded that the goal is for them to ask questions of and listen to community members (not just answer questions from them) in order to encourage two-way conversations. CCI wants to make sure this expectation is clear from the start, since without it, conversation may default to asking only the commissioners questions.  

6. Update CCI Interview Questions

Ed Nieto informed members that one application has been received for the three existing CCI vacancies so far, and that the recruitment would be shared again on county channels. Members agreed on keeping the same questions as before, and adding two additional questions for the August interview: 

1. "Is there a question you think we should ask you?"
2. "Do you have any questions for us?"

7. PGA Update

Ed Nieto informed the meeting that County Operations Officer Nancy Bush will serve as interim PGA director for the next few months, and that recruitment for a permanent director has not yet begun.

The meeting adjourned at 8:12 p.m.
Next meeting: Tuesday, August 18, 2026, 6–8 p.m. via Zoom.