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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 27, 2016)
❘ / SIUSLAWNEWS ❘ @ SIUSLAWNEWS SATURDAY EDITION SETTING THE PACE ❘ AUGUST 27, 2016 ❘ $1.00 Youth program receives donation INSIDE — A3 SPORTS — B 126TH YEAR ❘ ISSUE NO. 69 SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 FLORENCE, OREGON DEATH INVESTIGATION POLICE Lake Oswego man drowns in Siltcoos Lake Business Center arson linked to ‘smoking box’ Emergency responders recover 78-year-old man’s body early Friday morning B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News Emergency response teams from the U.S. Coast Guard, Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue, Lane County Sheriff’s Office and Western Lane Ambulance assisted in the search for a missing man who disappeared under water Thursday after jumping off a boat into Siltcoos Lake. Dispatch received a call for assis- tance at 6:18 p.m. Aug. 25 after Robert Cook, a 78-year-old Lake Oswego resident, did not resurface upon entering the lake. Cook was visiting with friends on a private boat anchored on the lake when he dove into the water. According to witnesses, Cook surfaced briefly but was unable to make it back to the boat before going under the water. The boat’s other occupants then entered the water in an attempt to find him, but murky water condi- tions hampered their efforts. “We responded to a search for the missing swimmer until dark,” said Fire Marshal Sean Barrett. The search focused on the water. Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue brought its search and rescue boat, Lane County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Dive Team responded and U.S. Coast Guard Station Siuslaw River brought its 25-foot small response boat. See DEATH 7A Evidence reveals Tuesday’s incidents are related, officials say THE SIUSLAW SEVEN B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News JACK DAVIS/SIUSLAW NEWS S even new instructors have joined the Siuslaw School District staff for the 2016-17 school year: (from left) Carrie McNeill, first grade; Anna Moser, high school physical education and health; Charnae Decker, sixth-grade math; Max Perry, high school freshman future success and English; McKenzie Perry, returning to sixth-grade science; Allyson Bitner, elementary school counselor; and Stephanie Rogers, alternative education coordinator and alternative education biology and science. Students return to school after Labor Day weekend, beginning Sept. 6. SCHOOL DISTRICT FOOD PROGRAM A HIT First year of Siuslaw’s self-operated food service successful on all levels B Y J ACK D AVIS Siuslaw News INSIDE Siuslaw School District Food Service Manager Dave Bitner recently reported on the successful results of the district’s first year of self-operated food service. “This last year was very challeng- ing, educating and sometimes frus- trating, but overall, very rewarding for me personally,” said Bitner, who was hired last year to head up the district’s new program. According to Bitner, during the 2015-16 school year, the district served 35,898 breakfasts, 113,854 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coastal Events . . . . . . . . . . . Obituaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B5 A8 A2 A4 lunches and 21,301 suppers. “One of our biggest fears as we became self-operating was can we do it and make it financially viable?” Bitner said during the Aug. 17 school board meeting. He added, “Many school districts have not been successful when they became self-operational. We found that was because they didn’t change their purchasing ways. They contin- ued to buy heat-and-serve products, just as their contract management firm did, but they lacked the econo- my of scale to get the same prices. We realized that and we didn’t make that same mistake.” Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5 SideShow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Word on the Street . . . . . . . A6 Instead of heat-and-serve, Bitner’s “We source everything as local focus was on fresh, healthy, tasty as possible,” Bitner said. “We and local food. The program also believe in supporting local farmers does as much “from scratch” cook- as much as we can. Over half of ing as possible. the funds we get from the federal Bitner said the goal of the pro- government are now going to the gram was to break even by the end fresh produce program.” of the school year. The dis- “Over half of the funds we get from trict finished the school year the federal government are now going with a $3,924 to the fresh produce program.” surplus. —DAVE BITNER, FOOD SERVICE MANAGER “We are not a for-profit food service operation,” Bitner said. In addition to fresh produce, “Any money we do make allows us Bitner told the board he purchased to increase the quality of ingredients local beef and chicken that are free we are using.” of hormones and antibiotics. Last year the district served 9,000 pounds of fresh produce. See FOOD 7A THIS WEEK ’ S TODAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY 64 54 67 52 65 53 64 52 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 New evidence has linked two fire- related incidents on 12th Street that occurred within hours from each other on Tuesday, Florence Police said. The first involved an arson at the Florence Business Center, 1525 12th St., which was extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. The second involved a suspicious container found outside the Florence Elks Lodge, just down the street from the center, and required assistance from Eugene Police Department’s Bomb Squad. Emergency responders from Florence Police Department and Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue were sent to 12th Street around 1:50 p.m. after receiving a call about a “smoking box” that was found outside the Elks Lodge, 1686 12th St., near a backdoor. Police described the suspicious object as a metal box with a concrete walking stone placed on top. There was a large amount of smoke coming from the box when first reported and smoke continued issuing from the box for sev- eral hours after. Officials requested that people inside the Elks Lodge vacate the building dur- ing the investigation. The Bomb Squad responded later that afternoon. “They used their X-ray machine and robot to make the object safe,” Florence Police Commander John Pitcher said. It was determined that there was no explosive device contained within the metal box. See ARSON 7A Yachats faces water shortage City asks residents to conserve usage B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News YACHATS — The City of Yachats reported that it is facing a raw water supply shortage and, effective imme- diately, must enter Phase I water con- servation and curtailment until fur- ther notice. “Thank you for your assistance in helping conserve our water during this long, dry summer,” Yachats City Administrator Joan Davies said. To best conserve water, the city requests that residents comply to a conservation plan. Under the Phase I curtailment, the watering of lawns, gardens and land- scaping is restricted to alternative days. Specifically, houses with an S IUSLAW N EWS 2 S ECTIONS ❘ 18 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2016 See WATER 7A CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM