Essential Services are continuing with limited volunteers and staff delivering meals on wheels, providing client services, shopping shuttles, and food box delivery. Background checks for new volunteers are taking 10-12 weeks. Over 1,700 hot meals and 1,120 frozen meals were provided this month. In addition, 32 food boxes were delivered and 31 shopping rides were provided.

Over the last months, the City of Sandy has experienced several changes due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic. The City of Sandy is following Governor Brown’s direction and Oregon Health Authority guidance during this public health emergency. For instance: The City has closed the Community Center since March 23, 2020 and has cancelled the majority of all programs associated with the Center in response to recommendations and guidance from state and local officials. 

These actions have resulted in decreased workload due to the closures and are continuing to have a financial impact to the City. The City has explored a number of options. Unfortunately, it is necessary to reduce the workforce by implementing a layoff and a reduction of hours of staff within the Community Center. These changes began on Dec. 1st.

Senior Services

During the week of Thanksgiving, each of the Meals on Wheels clients were treated with a lovely gift back from Avamere. All the clients were so appreciative of the very thoughtful gift.

The seniors have appreciated the drive thru events Community Services has provided over the last month. This month’s drive thru included a homemade bowl of soup and corn muffin.  Safeway donated most of the soup for about 30 seniors came thru. They were excited to see staff and gave rave reviews on the soup and muffins.

Parks & Trails Advisory Board

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board met on November 12th and discussed the “Bull Run” and “The Views” Developments with regard to parks and open spaces. Recommendations were forwarded to the Planning Commission and to Council. The Technical Advisory Representatives provided an update on the Parks and Trails Master Plan. It is getting close to being completed and the board is very excited to see it approved.

Come December 31st, 2020 the board will have 4 open seats. Preparations for the interview process took shape in November. Staff and the Parks and Trails Advisory Board Chair are working on orientation materials for new board members.

Parks Master Plan Update

Two meetings were held on December 1^st to present results of public input gathered to date and get direction going forward on next steps of the Parks & Trails Master Plan (PTMP). The first was with relevant City Staff members, and the second was with the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC).

Tracy Johnson from ESA provided a project status update to City employees in virtual attendance. One topic of discussion focused on the amount of staffing needed to maintain current and future park facilities. Funding for proposed capital projects was discussed, as was acquisition of future park properties. The need for coordination with staff on other planning efforts, including the updated Transportation System Plan (TSP), and requirements such as Sandy Style in parks were explored. Proposed park concepts were reviewed as well as next steps going forward.

Once the PTMP has been adopted, City staff will want to maximize use of the Parks & Trails SDC’s as well as the Parks Fee-in-Lieu of Land. Both funds have healthy balances that will greatly benefit implementation of future system improvements. Towards that end, the City has amended a current contract with FCS, the firm hired to advise on all matters SDC.

The main focus of the TAC meeting was to hear from Doug Gabbard of FCS regarding the potential for use of SDC’s in seeing adopted PTMP goals through to completion. He presented information on the best way to structure the Plan for optimal use of existing and future funds. Going forward he will work directly with ESA staff to shore up the necessary wording and formulas.

A draft PTMP should be ready for review in early 2021. There will be ample opportunity for input prior to presentation of the final copy to the Parks & Trails Advisory Board, Planning Commission and ultimately the City Council for adoption.

Senior Services

Typically in the month of October, staff kick off Energy Assistance appointments with the seniors. Over 200 phone calls were made to previous year’s applicants to set up appointments. Due to COVID19 we put into place safety precautions and implemented drive up appointments at the center. Community members stayed in their vehicle at their appointment time, staff assisted them with their applications, and copied necessary documentation. 39 applications were successfully submitted to Clackamas County for energy assistance for the month of October. Appointments will continue thru the month of November.

Meals on wheels continues to be delivered 4 days per week using staff and few volunteers. 80 meals per day are delivered on 4 different routes throughout Sandy, Boring, and just past Cherryville. 25 food boxes were also delivered. A weekly shopping shuttle continues with the ability to serve 4-6 clients each week.

We continue to see many seniors who are struggling with depression with the continued isolation brought about with COVID19. Staff are interacting with seniors via virtual coffee chats, exercise program, and BINGO. Additionally, staff has taken up to 4 seniors out on mystery drives around the local area. This has helped to get them out of their homes with social distancing and mask protocols in place.

We continued our successful drive thru events by having a box lunch that was donated by Tollgate.  Over 40 seniors came thru in their vehicles to pick up their lunch and visit with staff. On October 30, staff dressed up for Halloween and handed out a treat bag and newsletter as seniors drive thru the parking lot. The seniors even dressed up and participated in a costume contest.

The seniors met up for a socially distanced hike along the Tickle Creek trail. The following week they met at Liepold Farms.  Seniors drove themselves there and enjoyed a walk through the corn maze, a distant hayride, and picked up some goodies for themselves.

Recreation

The first Pop-Up Recreation event was held on October 7th at Bluff Park. The kids enjoyed various activities and stations. All equipment was sanitized between the stations. Although these activities are on hold for now, it was a great opportunity to offer a safe and distanced outdoor activity, and to have a good template going forward. Helping to support both the physical and mental well being of community members is the cornerstone of Community Recreation. The program received lots of wonderful feedback and the department looks forward to offering more opportunities like the Pop-Up event in the future.

Parks & Trails

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board met in October and discussed among other items The Views development proposal, Code of Conduct for Boards and Commissions, and a possible location for the next Dog Park.

Susan Drew, Kathleen Walker and Michael Weinberg will be stepping down from the board when their terms expire December 31st. Residents of Sandy and the surrounding area have been the beneficiaries of the hard work of these three members. We thank them for their many, many volunteer hours in support of parks and trails development. 
There are currently 6 active applications for the 4 open board seats. It is great to see the interest in serving on the board.

The Parks & Trails Master Plan held a virtual open house until Oct 25th.
There were 1,573 unique visitors with 72 people who completed the online questionnaire.  There was one survey returned in Spanish. A summary report will be presented to the Technical Advisory Committee in November.

Many of the seniors were affected by the recent wild fires at the beginning of September. Staff made over 300 phone calls throughout the week to check on community members. Priorities included being sure all Level 3 seniors were evacuated and in a safe location with family, friends or shelter. Staff also confirmed all Level 2 seniors had evacuation plans and were ready to go if their residence moved to Level 3. In some instances, seniors were encourage to begin the evacuation process if they had mobility issues or livestock. Calls were made to Level 1 seniors to be sure they had evacuation plans in place. Staff was able to deliver over 200 frozen meals to clients in advance prior to the weekend to assist with stocking up their freezers.

As the evacuation zones lowered, staff then worked with the seniors to be sure they had hot meals and received food boxes to assist with loss of food during the power outages and evacuation. Many community services staff had also evacuated their families and livestock during this event but worked throughout the event to help with whatever was needed.

The community center suffered some smoke issues due to the fires. Air filters were set up throughout the center for four days, air filters were changed, deep cleaning including washing all interior windows, window sills, and door frames. There was a tremendous improvement to the air quality to the center after.

Senior Services

During the month of September, over 1500 meals were delivered to meals on wheels clients. On Friday, Sept 11th Meals on wheels clients were surprised with a box lunch from Bumpers Grill & Bar. After a week of smoke it was a wonderful welcome to them all.

In September, the seniors continue to participate in virtual exercise classes, Bingo, and coffee chats. Several seniors met up for socially distanced hikes including one on Tickle Creek Trail. For more than half of the participants, it was their first time on the local trail. and staff was able to take several on a mystery drive. They were so excited to know where the trail is and will now venture on their own to walk locally.  The other hike was the Bridle Trail just east of Rhododendron. They so appreciate any opportunities to socialize.

Since the ice cream drive thru was a success we decided to reach out to some of the restaurants to see if they were willing to donate some boxed lunches.  Tollgate was willing to donate over 40 boxed lunches so the plan was to have another drive thru in October. 

Recreation

The Recreation Manager and Event Coordinator continue to help support the essential services provided by the Community Services Department, and to help with coverage at the center. Staff continue to research ideas and assist with planning for ways in which we can safely modify fall events and meet COVID19 guidelines. As well as an opportunity to collaborate with The Ant Farm and other community organizations to address drug and alcohol use among teens. The first Pop-Up Recreation event was planned to provide a safe opportunity for children to play together outside, and to give parents and other caregivers a little time off.

Parks & Trails Advisory

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board met in September and discussed among other items The Views development proposal, a draft Pesticide in Parks policy, and the updated Outdoor Recreation guidance from the state. The next meeting is scheduled for October 14th. 
Michael Weinberg, current board member, reported that he will not be reapplying when his seat expires in December. The board thanked him for his service and noted his participation will be greatly missed. 
There are currently 5 active applications for board seats and all of those interested applicants have been invited to audit the October 14th meeting to learn more about the board. The next step will be interviews. 

Parks & Trails Master Plan

The virtual open house went live in September!. Staff went door to door to hand deliver flyers in the neighborhoods of Deer Pointe, Champion Way, and Nicholas Glen. A Spanish mail in version of the survey was hand delivered to every home in Vista Point. The online open house will be open until Oct. 25th. Spread the word.

Several key projects were successfully completed at the Community Center this month. The city has implemented a program to help prevent fats, oils and greases (FOG) from entering the sewer system. The community center was able to successfully install a grease intercept. Once the project started, the contractor uncovered several deteriorated pipes and additional work was needed. The grease interceptor is now installed with the addition of a new commercial grade tile floor.

Painting in the community center continued to include the Lobby, stairwell, and auditorium with a cheerful color.

Senior Services

Weekly phone calls to community seniors continue. We have seen the needs for MOW and food boxes stabilize providing approximately 75 meals M,T,W, & F. For the month of August, 16 food boxes were distributed. Requests for Energy Assistance program have begun. Applications for this program typically open Oct. 1st. Staff are waiting on the county to determine the process this year given the COVID pandemic. Shopping shuttles were offered on Thursdays this month with the max ridership of 4 clients due to COVID. Seniors enjoyed a hike meetup at Cazadero Trail with 19 seniors maintaining social distancing. They were very happy to be outside and enjoy each others company.
Senior Fitness classes on Zoom is still going strong and people from Gresham are hearing about the classes and hikes and are signing up and joining.  Great to have new people and a great way to promote what Sandy Senior Services is doing and what is offered now and in the future.

Special thanks to Amy Seabrooke, Olga Gerberg, and Tanya for spending the day making jars of mixed berry jam. Fruit was left over from the pie bake and staff decided to make jam. You can still get your jars for $5.00

Seniors also enjoyed a Ice Cream Social Drive By at the Community Center. Staff were able to say a quick hello, hand out ice cream and giveaways as well as sell some jars of jam. It was a success with 41 seniors showing up with smiles on their faces.

Special Events

In collaboration with Sandy Helping Hands, Community Services put together four evenings of Movies in the Park. In order to adhere to current guidelines reservations were required. Additional safety measures, including staggered arrival times, were implemented, and the events were very smooth. There was a total of 10 pods which could accommodate 50 people each evening. Community members preregistered in advance to reserve a pod. Sandy Helping Hands handed out free ice cream each evening. One evening was cancelled due to rain but the other evening were mostly sold out. Unfortunately, the highest attended evening had 19 people. Although the turnout was low, community members seemed happy to follow the guidelines and enjoyed being outside for a community event. 

In the meantime, staff have plans for alternate events and activities to help support the community during these challenging times. They include a family friendly Halloween experience and a modified Breakfast with Santa.

Recreation

We look forward to returning to some level of indoor operations when we are in Phase II. We continue to communicate with recreation providers and will be ready to bring back those programs that can follow the public health guidelines as soon as possible. Program planning has started to include bringing some “Pop Up” crafts and games to a variety of neighborhood parks as soon as the air quality improves. The goal is a safely distanced and supervised opportunity for kids to get outside and for parents and other caregivers to take a break. We realize that with the amount of screen time required at this time, a break to get outside would be welcome.

A successful virtual SafeSitter class was held and another had been planned to start on September 12th. However, with the fire and air quality situation we plan to reschedule for a later date. Virtual art classes are also available and now that summer classes have ended more fall classes are being scheduled to begin in late September and October. 

Parks & Trails

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board continues to meet monthly via Zoom.  A meeting was held on August 19th and included a review of the city municipal code as it relates to Parks and Open Space. 

Jim Slagle and volunteers have completed maintenance on all 5 bridges on the Tickle Creek Trail. We greatly appreciate all their hard work and dedication to the preservation of these bridges.

Parks Master Plan

A contract amendment with ESA was signed to allow for the work necessary to develop a Virtual Open House (VOH) and two additional park concept plans.

Extensive materials for the VOH were developed and reviewed. The VOH will allow citizens to review and comment on a draft version of the final Parks & Trails Master Plan as well as park concept drawings. The VOH will go live in late September and remain open for public comment for 2-3 weeks.

Draft park concept plans were presented for staff review. They target the Deer Point, Champion Way, Ponder Lane and Community Campus areas.

Virtual Open House set to begin on Wednesday, Sept 23rd. Announcements will be posted on social media, website, and city newsletter. Community Services staff will also be delivering informational flyers to Deer Pointe, Champion Way, and Nicholas Glen community members.

Community Services Staff decided to proceed with our annual Pie making fundraiser. Staff made 140 pies on Tuesday, July 28th and all were SOLD! Thanks to Ever Fresh Fruit Co. for the generous donation of fresh fruit for the pies. $1700.00 was profited for the meals on wheels program. We had some berries left over and are getting ready to make some Mixed Berry jam in August. Orders will be taken in September, each 8 oz jar is $5.00.

The seniors enjoyed several hike meet ups this month including on to Zig Zag Falls and McIver Park. Staff met the the seniors at the trail head for a socially distanced walk. They also explored (not very far) the old highway that goes up to Timberline.  Some seniors from the hiking club in Gresham that heard about the hikes and joined the group.

A few seniors also enjoyed a mystery drive to Lewis & Clark State park and Oxbow. The bus is limited to four riders to maintain social distancing and all riders wear masks. They were happy to get out and see the sites. We will continue to offer a few of these drives each month.

Projects continue throughout the center including painting, installation of germ barriers, and reorganization of storage areas. Next month, several projects are scheduled including the installation of a grease intercept, repairs on the dishwasher, and installation of new tile floor for the kitchen.

Recreation

During the month of July staff worked to determine a revised plan for fall. The Fall Community and Recreation Guide will be replaced with a monthly newsletter so that we can remain flexible and stay within the guidelines as they develop. We currently have a substantial database of newsletter subscribers that we have been building over the last 7-8 years. Staff will continue to utilize the electronic reader board and social media outlets to keep the community informed as programs return and new opportunities are available.

A number of our regular providers are prepared to return when we can welcome them back to the Community Center, and these include Kinderdance, Skyhawks and Maestro Music. Some of our other providers are not ready to return this fall,  but will be waiting in the wings when the time is right. Some providers have had to layoff staff and reduce operations, or in some cases completely suspend their programs. They plan to be back, but it will take some additional time to get back to full speed. We remain in communication with the school district about their plans for reopening facilities for reservations. We depend on the partnership to provide many of our programs including Pee Wee Soccer and Mountain Storm Basketball. 

As the next 3 months have many unknowns we are developing new ideas for bringing flexible programs to the community. We recognize that this is a very challenging time for families and we want to help provide support as they navigate the new school year.
We will continue to provide some virtual programming but know that what is needed most is time away from screens. As school resumes with distance learning we hope to provide some safe programming that supports both the physical and mental well being of the community. 

Discussions with OTSD about working on the pickleball courts have started and was approved.  Volunteers came out and spread gravel and put the metal container in place for the nets and other stuff that will be stored.  Next steps are to paint lines and possibly repair cracks.

Special Events

Several options were discussed about the possibility of having a Drive in Movie. After looking at technical needs and logistics, we are moving forward with having Movies in the Park at the end of August. Toy Story 4 will show on Aug. 21 & 22nd and The Secret Life of Pets will show on Aug. 28 & 29. In order to stay in compliance with the governor’s orders community members will register for a pod in advance. We are excited to be able to offer this to our community. Thank you to Sandy Helping Hands for co-sponsoring this event.

In addition, several other event ideas are in the works for this fall. Staff is also looking at modifications to events such as Breakfast with Santa, Christmas Tree lighting, and Halloween and other events we can offer the community this fall and winter. Stay Tuned.

Parks

We want to thank Jim Slagle and volunteers for another successful clean up on Bridge #2 on the Tickle Creek trail.

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board has been meeting virtually on a monthly basis and has been reviewing new developments, the cities Herbicide use in parks, and the municipal code that pertains to parks and open space.

Most recently they met with the developers of the Bull Run Terrace Development. The discussions were productive and the board looks forward to seeing a more detailed and final plan for the property so they can consider a recommendation for the potential park space that is adjacent to the Deer Pointe neighborhood. 

Staff met with Parks & Trails Master Plan consultant ESA in early July. Discussion centered on progress to date and the potential for modification of the initial contract.

Since ESA is already under contract, it was decided to tack on some additional park-related tasks. Included is a concept plan for the new park off Ponder Lane, additional staff time to solicit public outreach (virtual open house, targeted neighborhood meetings to review specific park concept plans), and a phase-one plan to inform development of a section of the Community Campus to include a playground, trails and fields.

Look for the virtual open house to go online sometime in September. Consultants have amassed a great deal of information from staff, site visits and the initial round of open houses and surveys. It is exciting to anticipate the display of existing inventory, individual park plan concepts and a draft of the Parks & Trails Master Plan.

Don’t Forget to Order you pies!!! Last day to order is Friday, June 24th!
Order online at cityofsandy.com
(choose Quick Links and Online Registration or see the “ticket” link above) or call 503-668-5569.Choose from Apple Crumb, Cherry, Marionberry, Mixed Berry and Peach. 

Our partnership with local restaurants and provide an additional hot delivered meal to local meals on wheels clients. This partnership included a meals from Tollgate, Scooters, and Sandy Family Restaurant through the month of June. The participants were extremely thankful for these meals. Library, Transit, and Community Service Staff continued to deliver these meals throughout the month of June. Thank you to Ria and the staff at Sandy Family Restaurant.

Ron and his staff at Tollgate provided a box lunch to the participant on two days in the month of June. Thanks Ron!

Thank you to Jim and the staff at Scooters!

Several projects are continuing at the community center. The Front desk area is prepped and ready for installation of germ barriers and set up to provide excellent customer service. Painting is complete in the conference room, storage area, kitchen and dining room.

Seniors

Virtual programming continues with Coffee Chats and Exercise Class.
We have about 4-10 seniors regularly participating in these classes. We kicked off virtual Bingo this month which was a great success. They seem happy to have some socialization with the staff and others. Carol Cohen has been meeting up with some seniors at various local trails for a social distancing walk through nature. They are excited to be outdoors and with others. In June they met at Oxbow one day and Wildwood on another day.

A limited capacity shopping shuttle began in June for the Seniors. We are limiting capacity to 4 people each day to maintain social distancing and all participants and staff are required to wear masks. We had several seniors take advantage of the ability to get out of their home and shop.

In collaboration with Clackamas County, Oregon Food Bank, Community Services Dept and volunteers from Sandy Helping hands, another food box distribution event was held on Thursday, June 25th. This event had a lower attendance then the event held in May. We have seen a decline in the need for food boxes at the event as well as the weekly distribution for the Community Care Initiative.

Recreation

Staff has been working to provide summer options while adhering to guidelines from the Governor’s Office. Some providers have been able to make the adjustments to meet the Phase I guidelines, but most are waiting until we are able to enter Phases II and III. 
Camp Namanu is unable to provide their day camp this summer because of challenges with staffing they experienced when the overnight programs had to be cancelled. We are in talks to bring their school year programs to Sandy. The hope is to provide support to working parents, while they navigate the potential changes in school schedules. 
Skyhawks will be providing two in person camps in late July and August that are allowed under Phase I.  They have been running day camps in other communities and successfully following the Governor’s guidelines for keeping participants and staff safe.  Skyhawks also has great virtual programs that include both a STEM component and an active component.

By establishing relationships with a variety of providers like Skyhawks we hope to have the option of both in person and virtual programs to offer, and the flexibility to respond to the different guidelines within each phase of reopening.  The online Safe Sitter class proved popular, and we will be adding another session in August. There are a variety of other virtual classes that are being offering through providers,  and will continue to expand that format.
Planning for fall is challenging with all the unknowns but planning is in progress for different scenarios. The Community and Recreation Guide will likely include plans for Phase II and III, as well as a Virtual Program resource section.

Special Events

The virtual Noah’s Quest event was held June 27^th.  Over 75 people participated in the event including former police officer Dave Lundervold with his family.  The fundraiser raised $2200 for Brief Encounters.

Parks & Trails

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board held its first meeting under new Chairperson Don Robertson. The board is working with the Parks Maintenance Department to develop a formal policy around spraying in the parks, and hopes to have a recommendation to forward to council soon. The board has had quite a few opportunities to review new development proposals with regard to parkland dedication, and is looking forward to the completion of the new Parks and Trails Master Plan. 
Although the pandemic has presented many challenges it has also pushed us to look at programs with new eyes, to be very creative, and to find new ways of supporting the community. Time outdoors on the trails and in the local parks have played an essential role in helping community members maintain overall health and wellness, to remain active, and to find ways to enrich their lives close to home. 

The Parks & Trails Master Plan Update continues to move forward. The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) met in June (virtually, of course) and reviewed concept plans for the park areas in the Champion Way and Deer Point neighborhoods.

Tracy Johnson of ESA presented spreadsheets showing existing Park & Trail Levels of Service (LOS), Sandy’s LOS compared to communities of similar size, and a Parks & Trails Needs Analysis for future growth. Sandy has done a good job of expanding the Park System along with population/neighborhood growth. The one gap, geographically, is in the northeast section of the City. As the Community Campus develops, it will fill in that missing link.

Consultants have completed a thorough analysis of existing facilities as well as a compilation of public input to date. Going forward, the information will be presented via Virtual Open House to allow for additional public comment. Funding strategies for future growth are being analyzed as well. It’s exciting to see The Plan come together.

Thank you to Jim Slagle and other volunteers who did maintenance on several bridges along the Tickle Creek Trail. Here are some before and after photos.

On Thursday May 14th, Clackamas County & Community Services organized a Food Box distribution event at the Sandy Cinema parking lot. Over 160 Food Boxes were distributed to local community members. This event is part of the Community Care initiative to address the extra needs in the community during the COVID crisis. Many thanks to the volunteers from Sandy Helping Hands, Councilor Laurie Smallwood, and
Police Lieutenant Sean Lundry for standing out in the rain to help. A special thanks to Elie Kassab for the use of the parking Lot. The next food box Distribution event is scheduled for Thursday, June 25th at 1:30pm.

Community Services staff have continued to rotate teleworking, delivering meals on wheels, checking in on the vulnerable populations, and working onsite. Additionally, we have taken this opportunity to make some adjustment and improvements at the community center. During the time we have been closed, staff has also been purging and archiving documents, making improvements to work spaces and storage areas. Safety protocols are being putting into place to prepare for reopening.

Senior Services

For the month of May, Community Serviced partnered with Ant Farm to provide an extra hot meal for clients. Ant Farm provide a main dish, side, and dessert for all the Thursdays in May. Community Services, Library, and Transit staff loaded up the meals at Ant Farm and delivered 76 meals throughout the area. A special thank you to Nunpa, Valerie, and all the staff at Ant Farm who helped to make this a huge success. The recipients were very thankful for this fresh cooked meal. In addition, over 60 food boxes were delivered to local families and seniors during the month of May.

Virtual fitness classes began this month with the seniors. Carol was able to get the seniors connected on their laptops, ipads, or phones. She has also begun a weekly coffee chat with the seniors to check in and allow them the opportunity to meet up with their friends. Next month we will continue to expand these programs and try our Virtual Bingo!

Recreation
Some recreation programs are scheduled to restart in a limited fashion when we enter Phase II. Some providers have decided to wait until fall to reassess, while others are able to comply with guidelines and are ready to go ahead. Public Health guidelines will be followed, with social distancing and other policies and procedures in place. This will include limiting class sizes, staggering start times, sanitation stations and more. 
Classes will be outdoors for the time being.  
We are hoping that Camp Namanu will still be able to provide their day camps for Sandy, and possibly even expand to more weeks. 
In addition to in person camps and classes,  new virtual options will also be available soon. Virtual classes scheduled to start soon include: Chess & Play, Esports & Play, Lego and Play, STEM & Play Multi-Sport, Safesitter Babysitting, Pee Wee Soccer.

Special Events

Noah’s Quest has happened on the last Saturday of June for the past 14 years.  This year it will be virtual.
Noah’s Quest was created by Carol Cohen and Cary Mallon after the death of their son, Noah, in 2005. The event supports Brief Encounters, a nonprofit, nonsectarian group for parents whose babies have died before, during, or after birth.

Parks & Trails

All City park playgrounds, bathrooms, and porta-potties remain closed. Passive use of other park areas is allowed. All users of outdoor recreation areas must observe state-issued physical distancing guidelines to keep these areas safe for
everyone. The Dog Parks was reopened on May 15th. The Ant Farm is working with the city to repair the Community Garden beds. It is likely that the most economical option will be to rebuild the beds in the fall, rather than just replace the 4×4’s. 

The Parks and Trails Advisory Board has been meeting monthly via Zoom. New officers were elected at the most recent meeting. Don Robertson will take over as Chairperson, Makoto Lane as Vice-Chair and Michael Weinberg as Secretary. The board has one vacant seat at the moment. Many thanks to Kathleen Walker, outgoing chair, for her tireless efforts and enthusiasm for Parks and Trails in Sandy.  The Sandy parks and trails system has benefited tremendously from her advocacy and expertise. 

Development of the updated Parks & Trails Master Plan continues despite the challenges of today’s reality. A virtual Technical Advisory Committee meeting was held on May 7th and one of the topics of discussion was how to solicit the second round of public input since the Longest Day Parkway has been canceled. JLA has some great ideas online public input processes. There are some viable options for presenting findings to date and soliciting input from the community. This will be reviewed a our next TAC meeting is scheduled for June 16th.

The community center has been closed to the public since March 16th.  Community Center staff are on a rotating schedule between delivering meals on wheels, teleworking, and being onsite to answer phones, make check in calls to the seniors, and receive meal delivery from Bateman food services.  All transportation services have been cancelled at this time.

The department has spent the last month deep cleaning the facility, reorganizing storage rooms, archiving documents, and rearranging work stations.  Orders are underway for barriers and directional signs to assist with social distancing when the community center reopens.

Senior Services

Community Services Staff along with Library and Transit staff continue to deliver Meals on wheels 4 days per week.  For the month of April, 2,435 meals were delivered on four different routes each day. We have received about 50 handmade masks which we have been able to the distributed to locals seniors. In addition, handmade cards with written messages from local children, pet food, and some personal  have been sent out to our Meals on wheels clients. Pet food, and personal items.

Clackamas County set up a food box distribution initiative to address extra needs in the communities. The delivery of these food boxes begin on April 6th and staff distributed 66 of these boxes for the month of April.

Staff is researching a possible opportunity to partner with a local restaurant business to provide a hot delivered meal one day a week for all Meals on wheels clients. We hope to get this going for the month of May.

Weekly calls continue with Clackamas County Community Center directors.  This is an opportunity to share challenges, ideas, and processes for the operations during the COVID19 pandemic.

Staff is reaching out to the seniors for their interest and capabilities to do a virtual fitness class.  Onsite functional fitness class has usually had approximately 30 people. Offerings for a weekly fitness class beginning in May.

Staff are also working on ways to virtually connect with seniors. In addition to staff making calls to check in with the seniors, staff are setting up a virtual coffee chat.  This will give the seniors an opportunity to connect with each other and for staff to assist with any challenges with operating the internet and using electronic devices.  The coffee chats will begin in May the day before the virtual fitness classes begin. Carol has connected with 18 seniors who are ready to go and will continue to get the word out.

Recreation

For the last two years Melissa Thompson, Senior Services Manager, oversaw all programs and services for the Seniors. This included all client services, nutrition, transportation, supervision of  1.98 FTE, and Clackamas County grant reporting. She accepted a position with the City of Hillsboro as the Adaptive Community Senior Center Manager. Her last day was Friday, March 27th. Her friendly demeanor, compassion for others, and knowledge and experience helped our department grow in a multitude of ways.  She will be truly missed but we are excited for this opportunity for her and her family.  We thank her for the contributions to the City of Sandy community members and staff.

On March 13th, the Community Center closed to the public and canceled all onsite programs and rentals. All senior trips, programs, and activities with the exception of meals on wheels from Mid- March to the end of April have been cancelled. Refunds for all senior trips have been processed. The meals on wheels program has continued with no interruption to our service area. Community services, library, and transit staff have been delivering the meals and extra precautions have been put into place to protect the health and safety of the participants and staff. We continue to serve over 85 meals on M, T, W, & F with frozen meals being delivered for Thursday and the weekends. Some clients have dropped off due to COVID19 but we have also added others to our routes. All frozen meal cost for March were fully covered by the county.

In addition, staff have been reaching out to over 100 seniors on an ongoing basis to check on their health and safety. If a need arises, the Community Services staff reach out to Sandy Helping hands for volunteers to assist with this need. We are also keeping in contact with Ant Farm as additional needs arise.

Weekly Zoom meetings have been occurring with the Clackamas County Community centers. This has been a great collaboration to compare procedures, level of services, PPE needs, emerging issues, and operations. At this point, most of the center are not planning on re-opening before mid to end of May.

Recreation

The beginning of March traditionally marks the end of the Mountain Storm youth basketball season. This year it was somewhat disrupted by the COVID19 public health emergency. One of two Jamborees was completed prior to suspending all recreation programs. This year more than 200 players, volunteer coaches and High School referees participated in the youth basketball league. In addition to providing a team sports experience for grades 3-6, the program provides work experience for High School students. It is a challenging job and helps prepare them for future opportunities. Games and practices took place in Oregon Trail School District gyms including Kelso, Firwood, Sandy Grade, Boring Middle and Cedar Ridge. Jamborees take place at the High School which is very exciting for the young players. The department worked closely with the district and the prep basketball program to coordinate gym time, so that players could practice and play games close to home. Refunds for unused portions of classes were completed for March classes. Adjustments will continue to be made where needed. 

The Department will be providing online classes with Kinderdance and sharing other resources with families. Parents are looking for activities they can do from home so their children continue to thrive during this challenging time. Planning for what may be continued social distancing while providing summer activities is currently being conducted. The department is in contact with other agencies as a way to share information, resources and best practices going forward. 

Summer planning was nearing completion and included outdoor education, music, sports, acting, and other camps. The department remains in contact with providers about summer programs and is prepared to adjust as required by the public health challenges. Some providers will find it hard to hire and train summer staff in time for the coming summer season. Others will be prepared to provide activities when we are able to open.  The department looks forward to providing the community of Sandy with a variety of summer activities and experiences when we get through this together.  Thank you to Carol Cohen for her work on identifying new programming opportunities. Among others, these include Acting for Kids and Teens, and Skate Sessions at We Are Camp.  

ESA will be reaching out to the Technical Advisory Committee to set up a meeting to determine some adjustments to the timeline. The Longest Day Parkway event has been cancelled. A new alternative will be determined for another public outreach.

Special Events

The month of March was decision making for a lot of programs and events. The volunteer fair in March was the first event to be cancelled. Additionally, the following events have been canceled Senior Easter Egghunt, Solv & Shredding, Noah’s Quest, Longest Day Parkway and any July Summer Sounds events.

The grant submitted for Community Partnership Program Clackamas County Tourism received notice that all grants will be suspended until next year. This event was to be the Corn Hole event with local businesses.

Carol did receive a grant from USA Pickleball Assoc for $250. This grant will be used to supply two portable nets for Cedar Ridge.  Tractor Supply Co. also gave a significant discount for a metal container to safely store the nets and other equipment on site. Efforts will continue to reach out to OTSD with a plan on getting the courts ready for play.

Parks
The Community Garden remains open and is nearly sold out. The Ant Farm will be doing repairs to the garden during the month of April. Gardening is one activity that people are enjoying during the closures, both at home and in community gardens. 

The Moda Assist campaign was in full swing in March. Although Sandy did not win the grant it was great to see the community come together and highlighted the enthusiasm for more universal design in our park system. It was also a good opportunity to share with the community that the city was in the process of updating the Parks and Trails Master Plan, and how to get involved. A lot was learned during the campaign and the engagement on social media was exciting. 

ESA will be setting up a meeting with the TAC in the next month. Changes to the timeline will need to be adjusted due to the COVID19 pandemic. Additionally, due to the cancellation of the Longest Day Parkway, a new community outreach will be established.

On February 21st, the department served up a fabulous Spaghetti dinner which was donated from the Olive Garden. The staff and volunteers served over 100 people. The dinner included spaghetti, salad, bread sticks, and beverages. After dinner, community members headed upstairs to play several rounds of Bingo. Prizes were donated from various local businesses. The fundraiser raised over $700.00 which will go toward scholarships for youth to participate in recreation programs. Thank you to all our volunteers who helped set up for the event, serve meals, bus tables, and clean up. A special thank you to Carol Cohen for working hard to get the donations and Carol Ann Kosbau for calling Bingo this evening.

Senior Services

In August, we begin the process of applying for the the SAGE
(Senior advocated for Generational Equity) Seniors for EVs Project. We pleased to share the good news that our Senior Center has been selected as a key partner in ​the this project. ​This project is funded by PGE in conjunction with their efforts to introduce electric vehicles (EVs) to a wide range of communities. SAGE is a nonprofit organization that promotes civic service and community engagement in Northern Oregon. SAGE recently received a three-year grant to lease an electric vehicle and to install a charging station for the City of Sandy Senior Center as well as another facility that serves seniors in Portland. In addition to the vehicle and charging station, SAGE will offer an EV 101 workshop and a ride-and-drive event for community members to try out different vehicles, and SAGE will support a car share program to serve seniors in our region. We are excited to partner with SAGE to support the use of electric vehicles while also breaking down barriers to transportation so seniors can stay connected and engaged in community. This project has been made possible by DEQ’s Oregon Clean Fuels Program via the PGE Drive Change Fund.

During the month of February the seniors enjoyed several new recreational outings throughout the region. They were treated to a private showing of a film on the National Parks at OMSI, visited the Oregon Territory Museum in Oregon City, Powell’s Bookstore in Portland, and a drive Multnomah Falls. As part of our continuing Local Flair trips, the seniors visited the new Bigfoot Museum in Boring and then headed down to the Not so Boring Grill for Lunch.

There continues to be rise in anxiety among the seniors with changing of times. Kim Whitely from Clackamas County Behavioral Health came and made a presentation to a group of 10-15 seniors. From Worry to Panic: Let’s talk about anxiety gave seniors a broader understanding of anxiety vs. fear & panic attacks, types of anxiety, and suggestions for coping with anxiety.

Recreation

During the winter/spring session in addition to long running programs like Pee Wee Soccer and Kinderdance,  new recreation programming has been introduced. These include new acting workshops, stem programs, skate programs, and fitness programs.Mountain Storm had a full schedule with nearly 200 kids playing basketball and refereeing. Overall there were 411 participants in recreation programs in the month of February. Most of these participants visited a recreation program once a week for the month of February, and many multiple times a week. Summer programming was firmed up in February and there are exciting options for summer 2020. These include Tracker’s Earth, We Are Camp, Skyhawks and Camp Namanu. 

Parks Master Plan

On February 27th the first public meeting was held at the Sandy Community Center. We had approximately 30 – 40 community members attend. There was great feedback and interactive exhibits.

• The Spanish language public meeting at Sandy Vista was on March 11th.
• Meetings are planned to continue to refine the planned approach on the unclassified city open space parcels on the park inventory map.  Input will be confirmed and incorporated into the inventory map, and park acreage.
• Both English and Spanish surveys are online until March 15. After it closes, JLA will process the data and summarize the input for discussion at the next TAC scheduled for the beginning of April.
• The ESA team will conduct a quick site analysis on the Champion Way and Deer Point parks in March in order to present findings and discuss what to include for the preliminary park concepts at the next TAC.
• After receiving concept input from the TAC, ESA will put together preliminary park design concepts for review by TAC and City staff, prior to presentation at the Longest Day Parkway.