Cornelius, OR the Road to Wal-Mart: 2010

Thursday, October 28, 2010

FG Newstimes favors Bash, Coffey, and Ferrie

http://www.forestgrovenewstimes.com/opinion/story.php?story_id=128828745098625000

Friday, October 8, 2010

Cornelius Elections - Background on Candidates

Great Oregonian article to educate us. Those running for Mayor and City Council.
It's 'Team 3' versus the '3 B's' to decide Cornelius' future, by Casey Parks.
http://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2010/10/cornelius_city_council_corneli.html

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Grand Opening Day!

New Walmart opens in Cornelius

Great Oregonian Article. Once again by Casey Parks. :)
Cornelius get its long-awaited Walmart

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2010/08/cornelius_walmart_grand_openin.html

Now, we'll have to see what's next for this site...I'm considering Migrating over to another, and repurposing it for Generic Cornelius Blogging... :)

The community response has been fantastic! A steady stream of customers and cars are a sign that people really want to check out this Walmart. I still think this is a great add from our small community! More business to come...I hope.

Jose

"Movers and Shakers" Event and Forest Grove NewsTimes Article

Forest Grove NewsTimes Article

Bracing for Rollback, by Christian Gaston

http://www.forestgrovenewstimes.com/news/story.php?story_id=128210807485922200

Monday, August 16, 2010

Suggested Route(s) for Opening Day

Forest Grove, Gaston, and Banks (Eastbound on Hwy 8):
FYI: There is a electronic traffic sign installed just beyond the Ace Hardware Store. It flashes "Left Lane WALMART Traffic" & "Right Lane THRU Traffic".

I suggest you take 19th Ave (Forest Grove) -> Mountain View Lane -> Heather St -> 4th Ave -> Walmart

Hillsboro, North Plains (Westbound on Hwy 8):
FYI: There is another electronic traffic sign installed just beyond Murphy's Furniture. It flashes "Right Lane WALMART Traffic" & "Left Lane THRU Traffic".

I suggest you take 20th Ave (Cornelius) -> Davis St -> 10th Ave -> Holladay St. -> 4th Ave -> Walmart

GOOD LUCK Everyone. Hope you all make it safe. Try not to lose your temper with all the traffic! :)

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Signs are Installed...Looking good...

Last of the News Articles Before Opening

No news to report here. Just the annoucement published in local newspapers. ;)

Enjoy.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

It's Official Now! 7:30AM August 18th -- OPEN for Business, 7AM Ribbon Cutting & Grand Opening Celebration!

Click on Image above to View Official Press Release from Walmart Corporate.

Key points:

Grand Opening Celebration - the morning of Wednesday August 18th.
7AM - Ribbon Cutting - Cornelius Mayor and Cornelius Walmart Store Manager
7:30 - Store Officially opens to Public

$24,000 in Grants to be Presented to a number of Community Organizations

$5,000 - Friends of the Cornelius Library
$5,000 - Oregon Food Bank

$2,000 - CAST for Kids

$1,000 - Forest Grove School District
$1,000 - Cornelius Elementary
$1,000 - Community Action
$1,000 - Cornelius National Night Out
$1,000 - Cornelius Boosters Foundation
$1,000 - Education Foundation of Forest Grove
$1,000 - SOLV
$1,000 - Hillsboro Senior Center

$500 - Cornelius Fire Department
$500 - Cornelius Police Department
$500 - Hillsboro High School Cheer
$500 - Tualatin Valley Harmony Masters
$500 - Chelsea Hicks Foundation
$500 - B.E.A.T. Riding Center
$500 - Girl Scouts of America Troop # 40260
$500 - Boy Scouts Troop # 873

Friday, August 6, 2010

Hillsboro Argus article on Cornelius Walmart

By: Kathy Fuller, "Walmart preparing for Cornelius debut", Friday - August 6th, 2010.

A nice little article, checking in on the final developments of our Walmart. Interviews with the Store's Manager on the store design & features and the Cornelius Police Chief on planning for traffic mitigation. All in all, not much new here...

My excerpt of interest :

"Cornelius' new store incorporates many sustainability features, both inside and
outside the store. Outside, there is a jogging path around the store that will
eventually connect to other paths around the city. The landscaping is native
plants, and drip irrigation is installed, lowering water use. Irrigation is
controlled by a sensor that will adjust watering based on weather conditions.
Inside, the store has many skylights to let in natural light. In addition, light
sensors will adjust the lighting in the store based on the amount of available
natural light. Refrigerator and freezer cases have LED lights instead of the
traditional fluorescent tubes. The heat produced from refrigeration equipment
will be reclaimed and used to heat water for the majority of the store's hot
water needs. "

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/argus/index.ssf?/base/news/1281118827257450.xml&coll=6

WalmartPortland.com Debuts!

WalmartPortland.com debuts and the Walmart Community Action Network is already offering its first perk. It has partnered with Metro's Oregon Zoo and is offering $4 2nd Tuesdays through June 14, 2011. Sign-up, take advantage of the offer starting next week, August 10, and stay tuned!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Videos from National Night Out 2010 (Cornelius, Oregon)

Minor Road Closure - Repaving of 4th AVE - RR tracks to Dogwood

Starting the Week of August 26th, 2010.

Just my personal opinion here...but I think this new re-paving is taking advantage of the significant amount of work being on 4th as it is [paid for by Walmart]...might as well do some repaving...Both North & South 4th Avenue near Main Streets ADAIR & BASELINE will have Fresh Paving during Walmart's Grand Opening Late August and Through September.

When I stop to think about the # of construction projects that have completed in the past 2 years surrounding and within Cornelius, its unbelievable! Welcoming Human Bean, Council Creek bridge North of 19th Ave, Cornelius-Schefflin Bridge work North of 10th Ave, Adair Street project completion, Taco Bell, Subway Remodel, Repaving near 19th (near Fred Meyer), The Burning down of delapitated houses on Baseline, Construction of Dutch Brothers, now..Auxiliary Streets of Main Street 12, 13, and 14th Avenues....in the future Major 60 year old Bridge replacement b/w Cornelius & Hillsboro, Baseline Main Street project, Parks Master Plan work...and who knows what else??? Cornelius Community Center? Town Center classification by Metro? I don't know...but I'll keep my eyes and ears open to see what else is coming.

Major [Month-Long] Road Closure - Susbauer Road

August 16th - Sept 15th, 2010

"This project will add crossing gates with lights to the rail crossing on Susbauer Road between Wren and Hornecker roads north of the city of Cornelius."

Paid for by : State Funds

http://www.co.washington.or.us/LUT/TransportationProjects/susbauer-rd.cfm

DETOUR MAP:

http://www.co.washington.or.us/LUT/TransportationProjects/upload/100042-Detour-Map.pdf

Brief of the Brief - August 1, 2010

Friday, July 23, 2010

Brief of the Brief - July 23, 2010

This week Dave's bulletin included info on:

some possible juvi-pyros
firemen collecting donations for charity
gas tax update (see below for commentary)
our library getting More Donations, Woohoo!
construtction updates, Woohoo!

City's 2¢/gall. gas tax update

good news: they're starting to pay up. Yayyy....
bad news: they're seeking an appeal at the state level & bringing the city of Sister's into the picture. Booooo....

Opinion: They should leave Cornelius alone. Realize this is the cost of
doing business in a financially stressed town, and be thankful that they will
soon get a serious uptick in business with the
Walmart opening. I just think they're fundamentally money-hungry and
are very paranoid of the highly competitive gas-markets Hillsboro, Aloha, Forest
Grove etc... Personally I think it makes no sense - Like I've said in the past.
People will continue to pick up gas at the same convenient location that makes
them happy. Personally, I don't see anyone bypassing Cornelius gas stations just
to save 2¢/gall down 3+ miles away.
Please enjoy my 'Brief of the Brief'. Just click on the image below.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

98.7 FM KUPL Sums up Cornelius Week - Hometown Salute

KUPL 98.7FM was nice enough to wrap up a summary of their time dedicating a week to focusing on Corelius. Many thanks to all those whose idea it was to do this! Click on the image to read some comments by the city & yours truly.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Oregonian Article on Cornelius Renovations...

Cornelius boosts its curb appeal, By Casey Parks, Oregonian
http://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2010/07/cornelius_boosts_its_curb_appe.html

Key Points, summary: "Cornelius had only ditches where most cities have sidewalks. That's not true anymore. Next week, city leaders will unveil a design plan for improving West Baseline Street, the eastbound portion of Tualatin Valley Highway. This will hopefully lead Metro councilors to name downtown Cornelius a "town center" -- a designation that brings greater clout for transportation projects. Residents say the change is transformative, proof that Cornelius can be better. Cornelius is starting to look like a new town. Richard Meyer, the city's development and operations manager, says "Before, a lot of people really didn't expect much from Cornelius. This is nothing short of transformational."

Cornelius Week Ends Today :(

Simon and Jolynn visit Cornelius on the last day of Cornelius Week. Thanks for coming by guys.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Door to Door Security System Salesmen - BEWARE!

Be on the lookout for Salesmen with "Platinum Protection". College aged guys (2) teaming up to instill fear and sell you on Home Protection. Free Equipment. Wait...they're not "Salesmen"...they're Marketing or Advertising. "All you guys would ever pay for is the connection to dispatch".

They're trying to sell you on a 3-5 year contact for $40-50/month. RESIDENTS BEWARE!

Alarm company’s sales practices raise concerns for customers, officials

http://billingsgazette.com/news/local/article_277cc0a8-776d-11df-b206-001cc4c03286.html

Platinum Protection - News Report
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDkvkNIOG80

Cornelius Week - KUPL 98.7FM - Spotlight

Lisa, who works the front-desk at the station of KUPL has the sweetest voice...she was here in Cornelius this week interviewing people at the local Starbucks. KUPL will be in town again today as a matter of fact, I'll see if I can't catch them.

I was listening this morning and heard about a Graffiti Abatement program in Portland here: http://paintthetownclean.com/index.html It'd be nice if Cornelius had a similar program that would actively seek out graffiti and clean it up.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Simon in the Morning - July 13th - Embrace your Geekness Day & Cornelius Week with ME

This editting took FOREVER!
It's a series of clips from my time @ KUPL Downtown with Simon/Jolynn.
I was in the studio from 6AM-9AM.
Cornelius Week & "Embrace your Geekness Day". Enjoy!

Monday, July 12, 2010

Listen in and Participate - KUPL 98.7FM - Hosts segment for "Cornelius Week"

Please visit KUPL and add your comments, this week they're kicking off their 'Hometown Salute series'. They want to know why we Love Cornelius. http://www.kupl.com/pages/7636217.php? Please participate, this should be fun, and a great source of pride for our community.

Interview of Mayor Bill Bash, Monday July 12, 2010 - 7AMSimon in the Morning - KUPL 98.7 FM

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Hot Off the Griddle - "Brief" of the Brief

Message from City Manager Dave Waffle's Distribution:

It’s another bright sunny day in Cornelius. Hope you had a great weekend.

A couple of upcoming events:

National Night Out – Tuesday, August 3^rd, 6-8 p.m. at Harleman Park
Cornelius Farmer’s Market – every Friday, 4-8 pm at Grande Foods

City Council worksession – Monday July 19^th: UGB expansion, Baseline/10^th Avenue preliminary design discussion and memorials for mayors

Dave Waffle, City Manager

City of Cornelius, OR

www.ci.cornelius.or.us

503-357-9112

A few things to note:

Walmart Trucks WILL START ARRIVING!!! Product to stock the shelves! Be on the look-out for them. They haven't officially announced the Grand Opening, but rumor is August 18th. What time exactly is still TBD.
Construction by Kerr Contactors is underway at 12-13-14th Avenues.
The Cornelius Library hit and all-time record for Checkouts! Glad to see our library is getting a lot of use.
Talks about the realities of Traffic congestion as a result of Walmart are being reiterated. Duh! :)
Online Utility Payments are at a Whopping 157 customers? What the heck? That # should be a whole lot more people.
Lastly, TUNE INTO KUPL (98.7 FM). This week is dedicated to Cornelius. "HOMETOWN SALUTE" series. July 12th-16th. "Listen to 98.7 KUPL to hear all the great things about Cornelius this week! Log on to KUPL.com or call KUPL Studio 503-733-5000 and tell us why you love Cornelius!"

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Update on Worksource Oregon Job Posting

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Summer Construction 2010!

Very good news. The city is moving forward with its plans for their "Cornelius Main Street Plan". According to the city manager's weekly report, Kerr Construction will start work on it next week. They were the same contractors that worked on the Adair Street part of the project & they did an awesome job with it. Next month, on July 19, there will be a presentation on the preliminary design review for 10th Ave & Baseline Street. Things are really coming together. If you all are wondering how the city is paying for this. I believe most of it is funded by Federal Stimulus funds, 10th Ave I think gets some funding from Walmart, but I don't know exactly.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Walmart starts the Hiring Process

Friday, May 14, 2010

WALMART TO BEGIN HIRING VERY SOON!

Note: There is a preference for Residents of Cornelius, followed by Forest Grove then the rest of the surrounding areas....

See Hillsboro Argus article here: http://www.oregonlive.com/news/argus/index.ssf?/base/news/1273864875108980.xml&coll=6

Interested in Applying? Start here:

https://hiringcenter.walmartstores.com/OnlineHiringCenter/loginCreation.jsp

Create an account & Complete the 8 Step Application. Good Luck to all. I hope we have a great Walmart store in our community filled with knowledge and friendly associates. Not just anyone.

Remember this Number: #4221

And this name: Colt Benson

The # is the Walmart Store Number.

The name is the Store Manager @ Grand Opening. Not to suggest he won't be around long. Just saying.

The address to the store is:

220 N. Adair St.

Cornelius, OR 97113

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Cornelius Survey, Link, & Oregonian Piece

Survey is first step in rebranding as Cornelius ponders new logo, motto

http://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2010/05/survey_is_first_step_in_rebran.html

First, I'd just like to say how thankful I am that Casey Parks hasn't forgotten about Cornelius. I'm glad that she's the Oregonian's eyes & ears, writing stories about the place we call home. I had the opportunity in meeting with her for a brief interview for her Cornelius Walmart article. Thanks Casey for all that you do! But especially for not forgetting about the little speck on the map that is Cornelius.

Link to Cornelius Survey
http://surveymonkey.com/corneliusresidentsurvey_english

Please please please, fill out the survey so that the group gets a true sense of what residents and others think of our little town! Thank you & God Bless.

Cornelius bucks NIMBY trend, embraces Walmart http://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2009/10/cornelius_bucks_nimby_trend_em.html
Cornelius will present 2010 goals http://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2010/01/cornelius_will_present_2010_go.html

Friday, April 30, 2010

Excellent Bankrate.com Article

Take grocery coupons to the next level by Jay MacDonald
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/personal-finance/take-grocery-coupons-to-the-next-level-1.aspx

The article basically describes the different grocers out there, their different offerings and pricing styles. It closes mentioning Walmart's massive competition in the razor-thing market of margins. I hope to share on this blog my own findings. Plotting the highs and lows of pricing for certain items that I buy regularly. We'll see how that turns out.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Walmart and Winco - Price Wars

Interesting how I thought of the future of this blog...and how articles pop up with the same underlying ideas. http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1973201,00.html
Time Magazine: "Walmart, Suffering a Rare Slump, Fights Back on Prices" by Sean Gregory.

Several blog postings ago I asked the question, how will Walmart compete in grocery prices against the likes of self-proclaimed "SuperMarket Low Price Leader!" WinCo Foods?

Excerpt:

At WinCo, a huge sign trumpeted that a 42-ounce box of Quaker Oatmeal cost $2.48.
A similar sign stood at Walmart — Quaker Oatmeal, 42-ounces, $3.12.
Of course, Walmart won't get pounded on price for long. "The time has finally arrived!" Weinswig wrote in a research note. "WMT [Walmart's stock symbol] is lacing up the gloves in the fight to win the modern day price war in food retail in 2010." Weinswig found that a 2-liter bottle of Coca-Cola, which recently cost the consumer $1.58 at a New York City-area Walmart, was now selling at the same store for 98 cents. "You're not going to ignore that," says Weinswig. "That's 'wow' pricing, and you'll think twice about going somewhere else.'"

Excerpt:

"The grocery strategy for Wal-Mart is an obvious one, and something their competitors have never been able to match, and probably will never be able to; although they do give them a pretty good run for their money, especially with the power shoppers who pay attention to prices on individual items from store-to-store, which Wal-Mart isn't always the price leader on."

So back to my idea: Seeing as I'm < 10 minutes from the future Walmart(Cornelius), Fred Meyer(Cornelius), WinCo(Hillsboro), and Safeway(Forest Grove). I plan to comparision shop to see how the businesses compete with one another on price alone. Standard grocery list items I would shop for and compare them side-by-side. Who has the greatest selection of said items? What do they carry? What size do they carry? Etc. The options of comparision are limitless. I'll do my best not to be biased. Though I think Walmart can learn to be nimble and can go lower than any competitor, offering us any items we desire, as long as we come back to them each and every week -- like any smart business would. Let's see if they Listen.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Cornelius resident? Vote YES on 2 cent/gall tax

Cornelius residents should vote Yes for the '$0.02 per gallon motor vehicle fuel tax'. Before you go nuts on the t-word, tax, realize that this also comes with a repeal of the Cornelius Streetlight Fee of $2.25/mth. Meaning you'll save that amount ($2.25) on your City utility bill each month. Now, that would mean you would have to buy more than 112.5 gallons of fuel each month before the tax would be a net loss. How is that? $2.25 a month divided by $0.02 per gallon = 112.5 gallons in a month. Like most Cornelius residents we both work outside of town, and together (2 seperate cars - compact) we might use 80 gallons in a month. Still 30+ gallons less from the point where we'd see it as a net loss. Works for us, and it'll work for all those in similar situations, and those that don't drive at all. Our streets & sidewalks can really use a hand...more than that... a facelift...more...a new lease on life. That's more fitting. There should be NO REASON why someone handicap or with a baby-stroller should have to manuever around uneven sidewalks! Everyone deserves to be proud of their community...seeing years of layer after layer of patchwork on our streets is nothing to be proud of. We all have a part in this. Vote YES on Measure 34-174, based on City Ordinance 910. Thanks to Mayor Bash and the City Council with special recognition to Councilor Dalin for their forsight and interest in this matter. Walmart won't be a walk in the park in regards to traffic, we all know it. There's no better time than now to have come up with a way to pay for the accelerated wear & tear our streets will face for the years to come.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Final Proposal - Urban & Rural Reserves

I just received notice from Metro that we're in the final stretch of the Urban & Rural Reserves decision. 50 years. That's right 5 0 . That's how mean years ahead the people of the Portland Metro area thought. Areas to be preserved for the Rural Lifestyle and areas for future Urban Growth. I think the goal makes sense...lets do all the hard work upfront on how we want to grow...so we make our regions job a little easy for two generations. The people of 2009 and 2010 decided this is how we're to grow til 2060. 2060, what a thought. I hope these guys took into account Flying Cars and Airspace. Haha. :)

As for Cornelius, Oregon...see the map above. This is the Final Proposal - DRAFT 2/18/2010 of Washington County - for Urban & Rural Reserves. In 50 years...we have the 'possibility' of reaching Dairy Creek and border more of the Tualatin in our expansion. SMART Growth, I'm a fan.

Friday, January 1, 2010

MEGA POST - Happy New Year! Gazette References & Our Decade in Review in my view

HAPPY 2010 Everyone!

May the new year bring us all love and joy. This includes the place we call home Cornelius ->Washington County -> Portland Metro-> Oregon, and the U.S.A. as a whole. With the recession behind us ... we face the challenge of what to make of the aftermath ahead of us. Where should the focus be? Where do we turn? What should we do to make 2010 the best year of our lives yet?

I think all US communities need to focus on their own JOBS and SUSTAINABILITY above all else in 2010. The age of the 'Field of Dreams' - If you build it they will come - is over... We grew up too fast too quickly... In Real Estate, Hedged Huge Bests, settings up our entire financial network up for near disaster. Building more homes than the sum of us can really afford to live in. From what I understand now...something similiar happened when the Dot Com bubble burst early on this past decade...people got unrealistic about evaluations of wealth then too...real money flowing around to those not deserving of it.

Now I was just graduating high school in the year 2000, age 17-18. So the way I see the past decade was that it was my FIRST as an Adult. And boy was there a lot to learn from. From terrorist attacks in 2001 in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington DC followed by two Wars in Iraq and Afghanstan and finishing with the election of the US's First Black President & the unfolding of the Great Recession...housing bubble, etc. There's much to tell my future kids about.

At my age I was touched in different ways, it was my 'digital decade' seeing Apple become a powerful force in Tech. Gone the days of Music & Movie (VHS) cassettes and starting the decline of CDs, enter the MP3's, DVDs, the iPod, and later the iPhone. The Internet entered the scene really flexing its muscles & quite literally CHANGED OUR WORLD as we see it & continues to do so. Amazon.com, Netflix.com, eBay.com, and many others OWE their fortunes to this 'Internet'. GPS was given to the masses...we can now know where exactly we are on this planet of ours -- we can also get where we're going with ease. Science & Technology really took a GIGANTIC Leap forward for our advancement as human beings & intelligent stewards of this earth.

I'm happy to be play my individual, albeit tiny, role as an active user & consumer of all of this past us and with us. We'll have to live with it afterall. I'm a 'member' of Generation Y. We'll have to deal with Tremendous Debts of our Predecessors, experience our Baby Boomer/Generation X parents become 'the elderly', and watch as their health gradually declines. We are a Learned Generation, we are a connected & enabled Generation, we will see this and hopefully many more great things to come from all of us.

Now I did not intend to take such a LARGE tangent from talking about Cornelius...and our advancement...but today more than ever we can't live our lives encapsulated from the rest of the world...it's together that we made our current livelihood possible & it will require us working together to do the same for our future.

BACK TO CORNELIUS...I think from 2010 to 2019...we should Honestly focus on Becoming ACTIVE Stewards of Our Communities, Helping Empower of Local Government, And CLEARLY letting them know we're DON'T JUST FUND THEIR Budgets i.e. jobs & visions but We are their MOST VALUABLE ASSET. Without us tax-payers and residents, there would be no communities. Put simply, IF you want to live a Civilized Life..with home & raising families & growing old in, then one should do their part of Civil Service. The compensation will not be in Dollars and Cents but the Priceless Positive Piece of change you role played in the community - Noone could take that from you. It'll bring more meaning into your life...I guarantee it.

I didn't think too much about it before I started this blog...I thought it would be handy to document my thoughts on my city before WalMart. Because the way I saw it WALMART would be a MILESTONE for Cornelius. Either we fumble it and simply allow THE CORPORATE BAHEEMITH to build a store within our city limits and wait to see what happens next OR do something more strategic. I'm happy to being serving my community as a Planning Commissioner and doing what I can to share my INSIDER KNOWLEDGE of city developments & visions with whomever is interested. And this Blog is my bulletin & sounding board to the world...found by Google Searches...referenced in newspaper articles, etc.

Goodbye for now folks...think Positive...and think how you can bring that Positivity to Cornelius with me this decade ahead.

Regards,
Jose

Reference: Timeline to Development for the Year or So ahead. Stay Tuned for more pictures of the Walmart Development and possibly the homes of Linda Lane.

Cornelius Gazzette - January 2010

Countdown to Elections of Bash, Coffey, & Ferrie ;)