Dear Editor:
Since 2023, when the IMERF was discussed as a real possibility, Lane County has spent $274,931.20 in legal fees paid to Beery, Eisner, and Hammond LLP (BEH). An attorney from that firm, Joshua Soper, has represented Lane County in the County Commissioner’s land use dispute (Goshen property) with Lane County. The county approved spending more county money to BEH to take its fight on that property to the Oregon Court of Appeals case, which is being heard on March 19, 2026. What budget is the County pulling all this money from?
Recently, the commissioners voted to appropriate $1.2 million to study the feasibility of placing CleanLane at Short Mountain. They also voted to appropriate $3.9 million for a 4-inch gas line at Short Mountain. They also discussed a leachate line and putting it in a trench with a natural gas line. This is not a common practice due to possible contamination, so they need to consult with NW Natural, Lane County, and the Oregon state codes.
I am sure the budget forecast does not include the $5.1 million the commissioners approved in the Dec 16th BOC ($1.2 million for site study at Short Mountain and $3.9 million for the 4″ gas line). That brings the total Structural Deficit to $8 million. It does include the $1.5 million they spent on the Goshen property, which the county cannot use for CleanLane’s intended purpose.
There are a lot more important budgets within the county that need this money. The sheriff’s department and the DA’s office need budget help a lot more than a pet project called CleanLane. The County’s duty is to provide law enforcement, not CleanLane. I realize that money from different sources goes to specific line items in the County budget.
I also hear that BHS is being a little difficult in renegotiating the CleanLane contract. This is the time to quit the project. Any equipment built by BHS is not proprietary to CleanLane, since the county doesn’t even have a building design for CleanLane at Short Mountain, and they can sell that equipment to anyone else. Employ a contract arbitrator to dissolve the contract between the county and BHS. This will be a lot less expensive for the county in the long run, totaling in the millions of dollars.
I am sure the majority of Lane County citizens would be angry if they knew the truth about CleanLane and the full facts about how county money is being spent. It is their tax dollars and garbage rates that is paying for the project with no benefit to them.
Paul Carbaugh, Cottage Grove
