WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2020 | SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM
PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK
Oregon State Parks imposes
new fee on out-of-state campers
Zach Urness
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Camping at one of Oregon’s state parks will cost a
little extra if you’re visiting from outside the state be-
ginning on August 10.
The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department an-
nounced a 30 percent surcharge on nonresidents that
make new camping reservations or arrive at a state
park campground beginning Aug. 10.
The surcharge is aimed at encouraging local recrea-
tion and providing funding to operate Oregon’s state
parks system, which was hit hard by COVID-19 shut-
downs and losses from the Oregon Lottery.
“We love serving all people, no matter where they
live,” said Lisa Sumption, Oregon Parks and Recrea-
tion Department director. “Even so, this temporary
change is needed to remind people to stay as close to
home as possible while enjoying the outdoors, and to
provide much-needed support for the Oregon state
park system.”
The added fee breaks down as follows:
- The average cost for a full-service RV site is cur-
rently $33 per night, but starting August 10, that will
increase to an average of $42 for nonresidents.
- The average tent rate is currently $19 per night and
will increase to $23 for nonresidents.
The surcharge could raise around $500,000
through the end of the year and “help hire staff and pay
for cleaning supplies and other park operations,”
OPRD said in a news release. The move is temporary
and only stays in place through 2020.
The shutdown of all campgrounds and day-use
See FEE, Page 2A
Camping at places such as Detroit Lake State Park will
cost a little extra beginning Aug. 10 if you're visiting
from out of state. BRENT DRINKUT/STATESMAN JOURNAL
Enrollment cap
law limits online
schooling
Natalie Pate
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Rows of tables await guests in the middle of a field of Centennial hops at TopWire Hop Project, part of
Crosby Hop Farm, in Woodburn, on July 24. PHOTO BY BRIAN HAYES/STATESMAN JOURNAL; ILLUSTRATION BY HIEN
TRUONG/USA TODAY NETWORK, AND GETTY IMAGES
Hop farm beer garden,
Top Wire, now open
If you go:
Emily Teel
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
L
ocals can now enjoy beers brewed
with Willamette Valley hops on a
working hop farm in Woodburn.
Crosby Hop Farm has opened Top-
Wire Hop Project, an outdoor beer garden.
A fifth-generation farm supplying craft breweries
both near and far with more than 75 varieties of hops,
Crosby Hop Farm is one of only a few in the area —
Rogue Farms in Independence also welcomes guests
for beers among the bines — onto the farm.
To reach TopWire, guests must drive a half mile on
a road that winds through the hop fields. In August the
trip is shaded by the 18-foot hop bines suspended
from overhead cables.
The bar is built in a modified shipping container
and features eight taps pouring a rotating list of craft
beers, cider and a non-alcoholic seltzer. The beers are
selected to showcase different expressions of the
farm's hops and feature exclusive collaborations with
breweries including Russian River Brewing Company,
Fort George Brewery and pFriem Family Brewers.
All draft pours are available for consumption on-
TopWire Hop Project
Where: 8668 Crosby Rd NE Woodburn
Phone: (503) 765-1645
More information: www.topwirehp.com
site or as 16-ounce cans to-go. A cooler features addi-
tional non-alcoholic options and an expanded selec-
tion of craft beers.
Though it was in the works before COVID-19, the
outdoor patio space of the beer garden allows for am-
ple physical distancing of guests, both in shaded and
sunny areas. Parties with children are welcome, as are
leashed dogs.
Guests are welcome to bring picnics or take-out
food. The closest options are those in Woodburn. Top-
Wire is currently open on Sunday and Thursday from
11 a.m. until 8 p.m.; and Friday and Saturdays from 11
a.m. until 9 p.m..
Emily Teel is the Food & Drink Editor at the States-
man Journal. Contact her at eteel@statesmanjour-
nal.com, Facebook, or Twitter. See what she's cooking
and where she's eating this week on Instagram:
@emily_teel
Wood products firm wants to hire 100 employees
Families in at least 10 school districts across Ore-
gon are bumping up against an enrollment cap that
limits their ability to enroll in virtual charter schools.
The issue has been building for nearly a decade as
school populations grow, but has been exacerbated
by the COVID-19 pandemic, with more families want-
ing to switch their children to established virtual pro-
grams.
There are 20 virtual charter schools in Oregon, in-
cluding Oregon Connections Academy hosted by the
Santiam Canyon School District in Mill City. These
schools account for about 13,000 students and have
been operating in the state for more than 15 years.
Unlike homeschooling, in which parents are the
teachers and put together their own curriculum, on-
line charter schools are publicly funded institutions
where students learn from home, have state-man-
dated teachers, are still required to participate in
state testing and use traditional curriculum.
They are overseen by the Oregon Department of
Education and are hosted by a public school district.
But since 2011, when the Oregon State Legislature
passed House Bill 2301, there's been a limit on how
many students can enroll in a virtual charter school if
it isn't hosted by the original district.
Districts that have more than 3% of students en-
rolled in virtual public charter schools sponsored by
other districts have the option to deny new enroll-
ments and provide other online options, explained
Kate Pattison with the state education department.
Districts are not required to deny enrollment, she
said, but the law gives them the option to do so.
Pattison said schools may deny students for dif-
ferent reasons. One reason could be because educa-
tional funds follow the students, it can be harmful for
districts to have too many students leave, especially
all at once.
School districts across Oregon are planning to
start the new school year this fall with either a hybrid
model of in-person and online learning, or a compre-
hensive distance learning model, which largely uses
online instruction. This has caused more and more
parents to consider online options.
If a student is denied enrollment, current law does
allow them to appeal the decision to the State Board
of Education. But advocates of increasing the cap ar-
gue the process takes too long and can be very time
consuming.
"Districts are denying kids access to online
schools at exactly the time they're needed most," said
Tricia Powell, president of the Oregon Virtual Public
Schools Alliance, a coalition of parents who advocate
for online public schools.
To date, the Oregon Department of Education has
confirmed 10 school districts that have hit the cap,
though Powell believes there are more. The districts
listed by the department are:
i Banks School District
i Bethel School District
i Central Linn School District
i Colton School District
See SCHOOLING, Page 2A
Bill Poehler Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
At a time when many companies are struggling to
keep employees on the payroll, one of the state’s larg-
est wood products manufacturers can’t find enough
employees to operate at full capacity.
While Oregon’s unemployment rate is at near-rec-
ord levels, Freres Lumber of Lyons is seeking to hire
100 workers to get back to full capacity after a number
of workers resigned over the past months.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in March, Freres
Lumber had about 475 employees; now it is below
400.
“We’re down one shift in our veneer plant and one
shift in our plywood plant,” Freres Lumber President
Rob Freres said. “People aren’t showing up, probably
out of some anxiety due to the COVID thing. We’ve
See SHORTHANDED, Page 2A
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with a program that has been used at Whiteaker
Middle School in Keizer.