DFA signs contract for property sale
By JENNIFER WILSON
News editor
The company Dairy Farmers of America has signed a contract that would hand over a substantial piece of north Hillsboro property into the hands of the city.
At Tuesday's City Council meeting, City Administrator Steve Garrett said that the DFA had approved the sale contract drawn up by the City of Hillsboro.
The contract sells, to the city, a 30-acre tract of land including the former AMPI building, the land surrounding it, and private gas and sewer lines.
The deal isn't done yet, however. The contract won't be finalized until DFA meets several contingencies. Those include state health department approval of the sewer system and a willingness by Greeley Gas to purchase the gas line.
Garrett didn't know how long it would be until the inspections were complete.
At Tuesday's meeting, the Council approved the sale of a Hillsboro Heights lot to a local couple.
Roger and Cynthia Fleming have purchased Lot 13, Block 5 for $12,900, which is the asking price. The lot is directly west of Rod's Tire.
The Flemings have two years from the contract's closing date to build on the land, said Mayor Delores Dalke.
Also on the meeting agenda, at the request of council member Barney McCarty, was the topic of the Schaeffler House.
The Schaeffler House, located on East Grand Street, is a Victorian-style home recently named to the National Historic Register.It's currently in need of roof repairs that could cost the city $70,000.
McCarty said that a private organization or civic group might consider purchasing the Schaeffler House — that way, the city wouldn't be paying for its many needed repairs.
Initially, the House was a gift to the city, Garrett said. But some residents value it more than others, he said.
Garrett said that because of the home's historic status, making any ownership changes could be difficult.
"You've got a historical registered building," Garrett said.
Some members of the council, including McCarty, said that they were concerned the Schaeffler House wasn't being used enough. Currently, it's open for tours during the holiday season, but it doesn't hold regular visitor's hours during the rest of the year.
Council member Len Coryea suggested that groups might hold their meetings in the Schaeffler House.
Council member Matt Hiebert agreed, saying the house needed more activity. The Hillsboro Historical Society should draw up a plan, showing how it could be used more, he said.
Garrett acknowledged that the building needs work.
"If we don't keep up the building, we'll have a wreck on the historic register," Garrett said.
But McCarty said that the Schaeffler House needed to serve another purpose.
"If we're going to fix it up, I'd like to see it used for something," McCarty said. "It's kind of an eyesore now with the roof being the way it is."
Mayor Dalke pointed out that the Schaeffler House is a way of preserving the history of the city.
"The Adobe House really is not the history of Hillsboro," she said.
In other council business:
The city approved a final payment of $28,253 to Barkley Construction for the alley/intersection project that was recently completed.
Overall, the cost of the project is $126,201, an amount that's $5,093 higher than the original prediction.
The city also approved the purchase of a new hand-held computerized meter reader.
The new reader can be connected to a data port/cradle device, which is connected to a computer. This way, information can be directly downloaded to the computer instead of being typed in by hand, Garrett said.
The total cost of the device, including software and training, is $7,550. The unit itself costs $2,455, while software costs $4,500 and training costs $500 per day, plus travel expenses for the trainer.
Hillsboro is purchasing the equipment from Corvallis Microtechnology, Inc., of Corvallis, Oregon.
