Such is the life of a New Portlandite with head in the sand and iPad in hand.

I just read the entire article. So, the custom-built caretaker's home and interpretive center are needed to meet land-use requirements for an underground reservoir. What requirements?

Who says land-use controls aren't broken around here?

The price tag for the caretaker house is approx. $500,000! The existing caretaker house (mobile home) is perfectly adequate, but any excuse to burgeon the Water Bureau's budget is a good excuse. Amanda Fritz was the only city council member to argue against this waste.

The interpretive center (propaganda center) as with the caretaker house is the brainchild of the Bureau's cozy consultant Glicker (1994- present) then with MWH Global as part of his 1995-2003 Powell Butte Master Plan contract, one of 8 overlapping and interconnected consultant contracts related to forcing a Bull Run chemical filtration plant (after the interim UV Radiation plant is built)and unneeded buried tanks.

The costly modeling program in part underlying the plan for buried tank projects at Powell Butte wrongly predicted that water demand would increase from 1986 to present when in fact water use has steadily declined for 23 years.

The other reason the corporations and their friends at PWB and TVWED wanted tanks and a chemical filtration plant at Powell Butte was so they could create a "blend" center blending water from lower quality sources such as the toxic mixing zone of the Willamette river (or Columbia river) with Bull Run water.

A swarm of "fire ant" workers are needed to build 24/7 before the public can weigh in. Fortunately prevailing wages are about the same and the only added costs would be working in the dark and fighting local citizens unable to sleep. Added construction costs working 24/7 are already figured into the bid.

It's for the millions of people who will move to Portland... in the future. Besides, once residents become accustomed to chemically treated crap like a lot of other communities already put up with, Bull Run can be sold off to a bottling company.

The reservoir, which is Powell Butte’s second, and a planned 25 million-gallon Kelly Butte reservoir are necessary to meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency orders that the city replace its five uncovered reservoirs.

So this is the $138 million project that Leonard had to use an emergency ordinance to proceed, despite knowing that the LT2 rule would be reviewed in 2012, despite knowing that NY had received a delay from EPA until 2028, despite knowing that we did not need this storage tank, and despite knowing that we may have gotten an exemption from EPA. As it has turned out, EPA is reviewing the LT2 and NY has been told, it may not have to cover their reservoirs. Point being, Leonard and PWB wouldn't delay, but preferred to race ahead with these extremely expensive projects.

In my opinion, $138 million down a huge hole during these distressed economic times, is unconscionable. The only interpretive center this community needs is an educative one to illustrate exactly how we the people get screwed. We don't need a center for the PWB's interpretation (propaganda), we need a "truth" center explaining to the public why their water bills have become the highest in the country by the time this city is done with it all and who was responsible for the tragedy.

Why is a full-time caretaker needed for an underground, concrete storage tank? Is this position and the home intended for another one of Randy's loyal staffers who will otherwise be out of a job next January?

If an Interpretive Center is truly required, a sign with two brief sentences would suffice:

"This is water. Drink it."

At what temperature does water boil in Hell?

All of these forked-tongued folks feeding off the public tit and their chief enabler are surely headed there.

Perhaps that is why they prefer underground storage...

At the meeting when it came up and Amanda was questioning building such an expensive "caretaker cottage", Randy said that the "community asked for it"....later someone from that community who had been to the meetings said that they had never asked for it and had only seen very vague designs......Randy said that he was very "hurt" that she would say that.

Anything that can be built to satisfy developers with some kind of hook to passify the public, is built and the cost is maximized so that their profits are also. Awhile ago, someone who lived in the Mt. Tabor community involved in meetings, who had credibility, said that a relative of the head of Parks (Santner) was living in the "caretaker cottage" there. If it ain't illegal, it certainly should be!

It gives new meaning to "caretaker cottage."
Now a $500,000 cottage means, they "take care" of their own.
Quite the "little" cottage industry they have going here!

I don't see the problem: Randy's going to sell a bunch of toilets, so the money's a non-issue.

I can hardly wait for the ad in which Randy sings "Skip To My Loo" in an effort to push more potties.

In my opinion:
The Powell Butte Blend Center is critical to their plan. Is this why the race to build before the public gets to know too much? Too late to stop now? All this money and years of charade so we can blend and drink polluted river water? They may need a fancy interpretive center, to convince us that the blend is safe “enough” to drink even if any water from the Columbia is radiated and enters into part of the blend?
I think our elected officials are near to criminal to even go one step towards this outrageous abuse of the health of our community. They know what they are moving forward with and will not stop this plan. Makes no diff to them if we drink degraded water? Makes no diff to them if they ruin one of the best drinking waters and sustainable system in our country? Makes no diff to them if people and businesses cannot afford the water?
Makes no diff to them about a serious radon issue as a result?
Apparently, makes so diff to them about anything except their career in politics?
What a pathetic group!!
Where is the OUTRAGE?
How can there be outrage if the public is not informed? The decision makers have wanted to cover those reservoirs and at the same time cover up their long range plans and story about this. Silence works to keep the public at bay. Silence is golden, in this case, silence is turning into a golden opportunity for some!