Recent News

Washington County has won a community development block grant to build a sidewalk on Southwest 173rd Avenue in Aloha, Commissioner Dick Schouten confirmed today.

Washington County officials urged Beaverton planners at a Tuesday morning work session to step up the city's communication with the public about upcoming Peterkort development plans. County officials said they were also worried about the city's insufficient contact with the neighborhood. The Peterkort planning occurred during the holidays, when many people were away, they said. "It just felt blind-sided," said Washington County Commissioner Dick Schouten.

Commissioners Dick Schouten and Greg Malinowski said during a work session Tuesday that further widening of the roadway would only increase a sense of division that already exists there. "Can we really have economic vitality and quality of life if we have what amounts to a seven-lane freeway running through this area?"

The free event includes children's carnival games, prize giveaways, complimentary food and guest speakers such as Sen. Mark Hass, Congressional candidate Rob Cornilles, Washington Commissioner Dick Schouten, Beaverton Mayor Denny Doyle, Hillsboro Mayor Jerry Willey, Sheriff Patrick Garrett and Metro Council President Tom Hughes.

In November, Dick Schouten, the county commissioner who represents Aloha, told residents help is on the way. The county won a $2 million federal grant to revitalize the area, and another $2 million is pending in Metro, city and county pledges. Using that money, the county will begin the groundwork to plan for a new Aloha. "We need to be honest: Unless we put the time and energy into this, we're on the edge of going into a decline," he said.

David & Christine Vernier endorse Dick Schouten for re-election, and are celebrating 30 years of steady business growth. "Dick makes Washington County a great place to do business." David Vernier, co-founder, Vernier Software & Technology.

About 100 people, including Commissioner Dick Schouten, celebrated a sneak peek at the new Aloha Community Library. "The best days of Aloha are yet to come," said County Commissioner Dick Schouten. "This is people's exhibit No. 1. We deserve this library."

County commissioner Dick Schouten supports the Tualatin Riverkeepers by taking cyclists on a trek down the Banks-Vernonia trail on a fall Sunday. “My bicycle is a handy tool for getting around, and the in-town and off-road bike trails we have all around the county now are wonderful.”

The final vote also exposed a significant rift between Chairman Andy Duyck and commissioners Bob Terry and Roy Rogers, who voted for the widening, and commissioners Dick Schouten and Greg Malinowski, who opposed it. "The time has come for us to think less about the gold-plated and figure out a way to make our resources go further," said Schouten, whose motion to delay the project entirely until new traffic and population projections come in next year was defeated, also by a 3-2 tally. Added Malinowski, who represents that portion of unincorporated Washington County, “Five lanes tears the heart out of a community."