Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2010)
2 November News Photo by Aiex Houston Band members perform polka numbers at the Model United Nations club’s fall fundraiser. The Oktoberfest festival promoted cultural awareness as well as serving up food and fun. Photo by Aiex Houston Students mill through Model UN's Oktoberfest, purchasing traditional German food and listening to authentic German music. The Oct. 22 event served both as a fundraiser for the club as well as an event to promote cultural awareness. Model United Nations hosts Oktoberfest cultural evening J ennifer S itton The pungent sm ells of warm German potato sal ad and bratwursts wafted through the street, students wandered around wearing little, green German hats and the sounds of an authentic accordion player were all part of an Oktoberfest fundraiser root beer garden. Money raised will help subsidize the costs of the MUN conference they will attend in April at the University of Oregon. "These events help us raise awareness," Gregory White, senior, said. "They also help us raise money to attend the conference." For the last three years, according to which country the team will represent at the MUN conference. Past events have included India Night, Brazil ian Soccer Tournament and a Sierra Leone movie night. This year's Oktoberfest theme came about after the team learned that they would be representing the interests of Germany at the 2011 conference. wursts, sauerkraut and warm, German potato salad, courtesy of Philadelphia's and Zenner's Sausage Company. Root beer was also available at the root beer garden tent. Besides food, the Oktoberfest also featured live music from accordion player Steve Knapke, president of the Rose City Accordion Club, and a polka u t o n b y tb e M o d e l U n ite d a t io n s C l u b h e l d o n O c t. s in c e T o d d J o n e s b e c a m e th e a d v is e r, t h e M U N c lu b h a s h e ld T h e m a in d r a w to th e e v e n t w a s th e t r a d i t i o n a l G e r m a n b a n d , a s s e m b le d o f m e m b e r s o f W L H S 's s tu d e n t b a n d . 22. The event also included a a country-themed fundraiser food, which included brat "We had a lot of enthusias tic people running around wearing German flags and doing the chicken dance. It was awesome," White said. "The kitchen staff (Danielle Grenier and Jacquoline Steeh, seniors) was also incredible." While the main point of the Oktoberfest was to serve as a fundraiser, according to White, it ended up being a fun' t a s t Y w a Y ttf ggSfld *L Friday evening for those who attended. West Linn proposes aquatic center, plans to move forward M ax B lumenthal West Linn citizens are pushing harder than ever to have a w ater park. Now design costs are still being decided, as the planning com m ittee has not chosen w hat to include. The plan is for the center to be built The new pool would make it a lot easier for the Swim Team. Right now we have to bus all the way to Tualatin to prac tice and we don't end up getting home until 10 p.m., so we have basically no time to do our homework.” — Taylor Fletter, senior there is an end product in sight. West Linn Parks and Recreation has put together a team of consultants to decide how to build the center, w orking w ith a group called OPSIS that has built an aquatic center in Vancouver, Wash, and various other aquatic centers around the country. The proposal is sited on Parker Road, on the field next to Tanner Creek Park, land that West Linn has had annexed from the state. Possible options for the center include putting in a recreational pool, lap pool, w eight room and a full gym. The prelim inary in the next three years, w ith the possibility of receiving voter funding on the next ballot in N ovem ber of 2011. The group that’s prom oting this is called the WAC (West Linn Aquatic Center) Com m ission. They are trying to earn support for the proposal by obtaining grants to help pay for it. However, the proposal has m et some opposition. People ask, w hy isn't this m oney going elsew here, for instance, education? However, it's im portant to know that it is the voters w ho chose where m oney goes. M any of these voting citizens therefore may not vote in vital funding m easures, opting to send m oney for things w hich they w ant, not w hat they need. This has crossed the m inds of the WAC's planning com m ittee as w ell w ho have looked to com bine this proposal w ith one that w ill put in a new police station. "Putting other facilities on the proposal is possible, there are couple different task forces and City Council decides that," Ken Warner, D irector of Parks and Recreation, said. Since the current police building is not up to code, they need funding for a new one. Voters turned dow n the go- ahead for a new building on the previous ballot. In the future, the West Linn Photo by Rachael Woolley The proposed site for the Aquatic Center on Parker Road is located right next to Tanner Creek Park. The design and construction strategies are still being discussed, as the final product is far down the road and must be approved by voters. City C ouncil w ill decide w hether or not to combine the proposals. The revenue for the aquatic center w ill also help in the long run, financially, according to the planning com m ittee. People have w ondered if now is the best tim e for a new building operation. O PSIS reports that the goal of the aquatic facility w ould be to be financially stable and not operate at a deficit. Because West Linn's average age is above that of surrounding towns, the am ount of senior citizens, and the num ber of young kids, som e financial stability is a future possibility. A lap pool w ould also be beneficial to high school students on the Sw im Team w ho now travel to Lake O sw ego, Lew is and Clark, or Tualatin for their sw im m ing. "The new pool would m ake it a lot easier for us," Taylor Fletter, senior swim team m em ber, said. "Right now w e have to bus all the w ay to Tualatin to practice and w e don't end up getting hom e until 10 p.m., so w e have basically no tim e to do our hom ew ork."
