Cheers: To Camas and Washougal on a Diet. Not a New Year’s resolution, this is the community weight-loss campaign that has been active since May 2012 and even got the mayors of the respective cities some national attention for their own efforts at diet and exercise. Now the group is focusing on local children, too.
“With the obesity rate being what it is, we need to do something,” health coach Michelle Clark told The Columbian’s Marissa Harshman. So in conjunction with Camas and Washougal schools, the group has launched Take Your Parent for a Walk. It encourages kids to exercise with adults for at least 15 minutes a day. Kids can turn in participation slips at school, and fitness-related prizes will be awarded to some of the lucky entrants. For more information, visit http://camasandwashougalonadiet.com.
Jeers: To rules that penalize farmers who want to retire, but not sell their farms. Longtime farmer Joe Beaudoin, operator of Joe’s Place Farm in Vancouver, is a perfect example. He’s 72 and wants to scale back his efforts. But over the decades the city has surrounded him, making his land valuable for apartments, housing or even commercial ventures. He’s been able to keep farming because his property taxes are calculated based on the land’s current use.
But should Beaudoin quit farming, the land is automatically reassessed at its higher value. The owner must pay back the past seven years of unrealized taxes with interest and a 20 percent penalty. That might be affordable if the land is sold to a developer, but should the farmer want to hold the property, it’s a burden. Luckily for farmers such as Beaudoin, Clark County Assessor Peter Van Nortwick is aware of the problem. He’s urging the Legislature to amend the law so county commissioners can waive the 20 percent penalty, and state Rep. Paul Harris, R-Vancouver, says he will introduce the bill.