New Members Sworn In
The regular monthly meeting of the Cambridge city council was held on January 12 at 7:00 p.m. at the City Hall Chambers on South Superior Street. All agenda items up for vote received unanimous votes of approval, beginning with the Consent Agenda, which included the approval of the current agenda, previous meeting minutes and payment of bills. Highlights of the January general meeting and the outcome of agenda items are provided here.
This meeting began with city council officers being sworn in by City Clerk Sandra McKee. New council members Taylor Powell, (story on page 1) and Hayden Boll were also sworn in. Outgoing council member Nanette Rhodes was recognized for her contributions both as a council member and as a former mayor of Cambridge.
After the officers were sworn in, the City Council made a “Civility Pledge.” This pledge was enacted to ensure civility, mutual respect, and transparency between elected officials of the city and their constituents. The pledge promotes active listening and finding common ground.
The first action item and next point of business was to elect a council president in the event that Mayor Loveland was not available or incapacitated. New council member Hayden Boll was nominated and unanimously elected.
After Boll was chosen to be the council president, Mayor Loveland made an announcement pertaining to acronyms or unfamiliar terms discussed in meetings. He encouraged council members to feel free to stop the meeting and ask questions for clarification if they ever do not understand a topic or term being discussed.
Following this, council members volunteered to join various committees or attend meetings of various organizations. Some committees included the Economic Task Force, the America 250 Committee, the Cambridge Historic Preservation Commission, Washington County Commissioner meetings, and Cambridge Commercial Club. Council members were asked to report back from these positions at least quarterly.
The second action item on the agenda was the 5-Year Transportation Capital Improvement Plan. The plan involves improvements such as sidewalks and drainage. The Plan was updated to include improvements to Highway 71. The plan was passed.
The next action item was Cambridge Commercial Club 2026 Hells Canyon Jam Event’s request for road closures on Friday, June 5, 2026 through Sunday, June 7, 2025. The road closure request was approved. Another Hells Canyon Days action item was a request for alcohol sales and waiver of the city’s Open Container Ordinance for the event location. In addition, a city Noise Ordinance waiver request was made for the event concert. Finally, a request was made for the city to share the cost of portable restrooms for the 2026 event. After an amicable discussion of all the intricacies and impacts of the various requests, all the action items pertaining to Hells Canyon Days were approved.
The next agenda item was the approval of an audit by Quest CPAs for the Fiscal Year 2025. For the benefit of the new council members, the City Clerk McKee discussed how the city maintains four separate funds: the General Fund, the Museum Fund, the Water Fund, and the Sewer Fund. The audit was unanimously approved.
After this, came a discussion pertaining to passing of the new Storage Structures and Containers ordinance. This ordinance will regulate storage containers such as large shipping containers in the city limits. The ordinance will also set penalties for violations of the ordinance. The discussion centered around proposed permit fees and the need for such an ordinance. The city clerk noted that issues with shipping containers used for storage within the city of Weiser was partially the impetus behind this ordinance, and Weiser was the model for the ordinance. A motion was made to pass the ordinance, and it was passed unanimously.
The next action item was the consideration of an “Ordinance to Prohibit Public Sleeping or Camping within City Limits Except at Designated Areas.” The city of Council recently passed a similar ordinance. An issue where a tourist camped in their car on a Cambridge city street for a lengthy period of time was discussed as justification for such an ordinance. The discussion also centered around the need for the ordinance if the event a sheriff was called. The ordinance is still in draft form and will be passed in a future meeting.
The final action item was the approval of the mayor’s appointment of a secretary of the Historic Preservation Commission. A motion was made to approve the mayor’s appointment of Nina Hawkins as secretary.
The next Cambridge City Council meeting will be held on February 9 at 7:00 p.m. As a reminder to the community, if you are unable to attend in person, audio recordings of City Council meetings, minutes, and agendas are available on the City of Cambridge website. City Hall is accessible for people with disabilities. Any person needing special accommodation to participate in the meeting should contact City Clerk Sandra McKee at (208) 257-3318 or (208) 550-0591 at least 24 hours prior to the meeting.
