Special election is Sept. 18

Citizens will weigh in Sept. 18 on Measure 3-401, which would require voter approval for the county to spend money on light rail projects.

While most of the debate over the measure has taken place across the Willamette River, Lake Oswego also has a stake in the matter. Some residents have questioned whether the measure could put a halt to future transit projects before they even begin and whether it could risk the city’s investment in the Willamette Shore Line right of way.

The initiative was placed on the ballot by activists opposed to Clackamas County’s decision to spend about $20 million on the $1.49 billion Portland-to-Milwaukie light rail project.

It’s unclear whether the measure would affect the county’s contribution to the project. Officials with TriMet and attorneys representing Clackamas County have argued that the measure doesn’t apply to the Portland-to-Milwaukie project because county officials signed a legally binding contract to provide the money. But measure supporters argue that if county voters reject the funding at a subsequent election, the contract can be cancelled or renegotiated.

They say the county can’t afford and doesn’t need the Portland-to-Milwaukie line now in the works.

The measure’s opponents, however, say it’s poorly written and could have unintended consequences, including preventing law enforcement officials from responding to accidents on rail lines.

Local officials have also questioned whether the measure would derail future plans for transit service between Lake Oswego and Portland. As written, it would prevent the use of “county resources for financing, design, construction or operation of any public rail transit system” without voter approval. It defines “county resources” as “any public funds, staff time, lobbying agreements, property interest, tangible or intangible county assets.”

That could create a new obstacle for future trolley or streetcar projects in Lake Oswego.

Clackamas County is a key partner with the city and other entities that bought the Willamette Shore Line right of way in the 1980s. Although the city recently shelved a plan to run a streetcar on the route between Lake Oswego and Portland, the right of way remains slated for future transit of some type.

Members of the consortium, which includes the cities of Lake Oswego and Portland, Metro, Clackamas County, TriMet and the Oregon Department of Transportation, are supposed to pay dues to keep up with the line’s costs.

The city typically runs a trolley along the six-mile route to ensure the line isn’t “abandoned,” in which case it could lose the right of way.

However, the Willamette Shore Trolley service has been on hiatus for about two years now, since the last trolley car broke down. Officials recently retired the old car and are waiting to receive a vintage one from TriMet.

Spending ramps up

The fight to fund public rail systems in Clackamas County has heated up in recent weeks as the county’s Sept. 18 special election approaches.

Supporters and opponents of Measure 3-401 have each bought nine argument entries in the upcoming voters pamphlet at $400 per argument.

Prominent measure supporters include Clackamas County Commissioner Paul Savas, Lake Oswego City Councilor Mary Olson, Damascus Mayor Steve Spinnett, Oak Lodge Water District Treasurer Jim Knapp and attorney Eric Winters, who wrote the measure.

Also submitting arguments in support are two candidates in this year’s Clackamas County Board of Commissioners races.

They are former Wilsonville Mayor John Ludlow, who is running against incumbent Charlotte Lehan, and former state Rep. Tootie Smith, who is running against incumbent Jamie Damon. Lehan and Damon both support the county’s contribution to the Portland-to-Milwaukie rail line.

Most of the supporting arguments were purchased by Clackamas Rail Vote, a political action committee that supports the measure.

The majority of its reported funding came from the committee that put the measure on the ballot. It was largely funded by conservative Nevada businessman Loren Parks and the Oregon Transformation Project, a political action committee largely funded by the Stimson Lumber Co.

A 10th argument in support by the Committee to Vote Yes for All the Right Reasons appears to be a satirical series of arguments against the measure, however.

Prominent measure opponents include former Oregon Gov. Barbara Roberts, state Rep. Carolyn Tomei, Lake Oswego City Councilor Sally Moncrieff and Milwaukie Dark Horse Comics President Mike Richardson. Dozens of county residents also signed some of the entries.

Most of the opposing arguments were purchased by Positively Clackamas. Much of its reported money has come from Yes on Transit, a political action committee formed to support TriMet’s unsuccessful 2010 bond measure to buy new buses and improve bus stops. It received contributions from a number of companies involved in the Portland-to-Milwaukie light rail project, including Siemens Industry and Stacy and Whitbeck.