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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 23, 2002)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR 97523 October 23, 2002 Until recently, it never occurred to me that an event as harrowing and life-threatening as the recent Biscuit Fire could turn out to be the goose that laid the golden egg. But like Oregon Caves National Monument, the Biscuit Fire seems to have the potential to be a visitor attraction ca- pable of drawing people here from all over the country. So how do we capitalize on the potential benefits it can bring to our valley? This question is one of several that the Illinois Valley Community Response Team (IVCRT) Tourism Committee invites you to explore during the I.V. Tourism Gathering planned for Saturday, Nov. 9. Besides identifying ways to use the fire to our advantage, we also will discuss how we can get people here and keep there here longer. Along this line, we will be addressing the possibilities/ advantages of cooperative advertising, as well as the most efficient means of exposing our visitors to the entire range of Illinois Valley attractions and businesses. These are im- portant issues, and the answers we find together will take us one step closer to realizing the valley’s true potential as a tourism destination. From the Caves, the Illinois River, and Lake Selmac, to a long list of talented artists and crafters, three wineries, some terrific inns, and a whole slew of natural wonders, our valley has a wide range of attractions with which to entice our visitors. And now we also have the undreamed-of op- portunity presented by the after-effects of the Biscuit Fire. The possibilities for expanding tourism in the valley are as abundant as the trees that make it such an attractive place to visit. All we need is a coordinated plan of action. We hope that you will join us for the I.V. Tourism Gath- ering on Nov. 9, and don’t forget to look for more details in next week’s “Illinois Valley News.” And please note that due to a conflict in scheduling, Professor McLaughlin will not be able to join us this year, but we hope to have him join us for a future gathering. The tourism workshop will be held at Oregon Caves Na- tional Monument and will include lunch, a reception and an optional dinner. The fee for the workshop with lunch and reception is $10; $20 with dinner. Biscuit Fire Recovery Task Force Task force members will conduct a series of meetings with U.S. Forest service representatives regarding hazardous fuels reduction and tourism. The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 1 p.m. in Cave Junction City Hall to discuss potential tourism-related projects on forest ser- vice land. General membership drive Once again it is time to begin thinking about renewing your membership in the CRT or signing on as a new general member. Six seats on the board of directors will need filling in January, and we are looking to fill these seats with com- munity-minded persons with an interest in increasing the valley’s quality of life through community and economic development. Those interested in being active in IVCRT, and who feel that they have something to offer their community, should come by the office at 200-C Lister St. and register as a gen- eral member. Nominations for board directors also are being accepted. * * * * For information on this and other CRT projects and pro- grams, telephone (541) 592-4440. All CRT meetings are open to the public. Five veteran RCC workers retire, including Bradbeer A changing of the guard was noted last week, as the Rogue Community College Board of Education accepted retirements of five longtime RCC employees and the resig- nation of a sixth. The board officially ac- cepted the resignation of Tom Bradbeer, dean of Human Re- sources and College Advance- ment. Directors subsequently conferred “dean emeritus” status to Bradbeer “for his exemplary service to RCC.” Bradbee r, who h a s worked at the college for 17 years, will retire in December. He joined RCC in 1985 as a administrative assistant and personnel director. Three years later he was appointed director of Personnel and Col- lege Information. In ‘97 he was made dean of Human Re- sources and College Informa- tion, a title that became dean of HRCA. Among his responsibili- ties he oversaw public rela- tions and marketing, as well as contract negotiations with the faculty and classified em- ployee associations. Bradbeer also served many years as ex- ecutive director of the RCC Foundation. The RCC Board also ac- cepted the resignation of art instructor Walt Padgett; busi- ness technology instructor Marie Mueller; respiratory therapist instructor Pedro Cabrera; Penny Shipley, job placement support faculty member; and Ted Risser, as- sociate dean of Business and Community Learning Services for Josephine County. In addition, the board ac- cepted the resignation of Jeanine Hawk, director of Stu- dent Planning, Budget and Employment. She has ac- cepted a position as assistant finance director with the city of Medford. “This is an impressive list of people with an awful lot of years at the college,” said RCC President Rick Levine in reviewing the list. Added Director Jim De- Courcey, “It looks a lot like a changing of the guard.” Levine also noted that longtime RCC electrician Clint Pietsch also retired last month, although board action was not required. Your ads work all week in the ‘Illinois Valley News’ Page 11 Businesses Moore new office chief at I.V. Chamber newsletter in Cypress for Calling herself “a people indicate CJ person,” 10 years. She also served rural Cave Junction a decade as clerk- resident Dulcie Moore is look- had ‘little’ secretary for the denomi- ing forward to her new job as nation, the First Baptist manager of the Illinois Valley Church of Cypress. loss to fire Chamber of Commerce office The massive Biscuit Fire had little financial effect on most businesses in town -- at least according to those own- ers who have filled out eco- nomic impact surveys. Prepared by the city of Cave Junction, the survey is aimed at evaluating the level of loss in the city business community as a result of the wildfire, largest in the nation this year. It began in mid-July and to date is still burning in some areas, with containment achieved, but control not pre- dicted until next month. In early October, 150 sur- veys were mailed to various company owners, said city council member Sandi Lund, who is in charge of the pro- ject. She said that 150 more were to be sent last week. The deadline for the sur- veys to be returned to city hall is Wednesday, Oct. 30. "We really won't be able to tally the total (loss) until all the surveys are received," Lund said. But with approximately 10 percent of the first batch returned so far, Lund said most of the business owners have indicated no financial loss. While the majority of the surveys had positive feedback and information, Lund said two were quite negative. "They didn't feel it was any of our business" to know how much money they made, Lund said. The doubled-sided, single page survey lists questions about the business name, ad- dress, owner and number of years in operation. It also asks for the quarterly earnings for 2002 and 2001, quarter losses, as well as employee lay-offs due to revenue loss and whether the business had to close due to the Biscuit Fire. Additional space was pro- vided for business owners to add any other comments. It is much of the same information the small business bureau and FEMA would need to know, Lund said She noted that the city isn't trying to be nosy, but merely discover the extent of the fire's damage. While most local busi- nesses apparently made it through the fire financially unscathed, Lund noted that is not the case for the real estate companies because of the moratorium on fire insurance. "Those were the ones who were affected the most," she said. She noted that the city wanted to be prepared with the proper information in case a reimbursement of funds be- came available. "We don't even know if the city will be reimbursed," Lund said. As the only council mem- ber without a full-time job, Lund said she volunteered to take on the survey project af- ter real estate broker Jim Frick asked the council if there was anything it could do to help local business owners follow- ing the fire. "I'm hoping we'll get an- other 30-40 percent (of the surveys) back," she said. For business owners in- side city limits who did not receive surveys, they are available at city hall, 222 Lister St., during regular busi- ness hours. For more informa- tion, phone 592-2156. --Britt Fairchild The best way to forget your own problems is to help someone else solve theirs. in the I.V. Visitor Center. Moore, who moved to the valley in February 1999 with her husband of nearly 50 years, Glen, is taking the post vacated by Melva Nichols. Nichols has served in the posi- tion for nearly 23 years, and decided to retire. No stranger to Illinois Valley, the Moores have owned property on Hays Cut- Off since 1992. They took over the property for her mother, Dorothy Henderson, who died in ‘97. And Moore’s brother was the late Alan Lindsley, who formerly owned the Blue Marlin prop- erty. Moore was born in San Diego, and she and her hus- band moved to Cypress in Or- ange County, where they lived for 40 years. They raised four children, including their son, Sonny Moore, who moved to the valley around ‘77 and who is president of I.V. Little League. A daughter died at the age of 23 when struck by an in- toxicated driver. This led to Moore working with Red Rib- bon Week, a project of Moth- ers Against Drunk Drivers, as she was serving for two years DULCIE MOORE as president of Cypress Women’s Club. She also was involved with many other volunteer endeavors including PTA, and she and Glen co-founded Cy- press Girls Softball League, which is still a big deal, she noted . All three of their daughters played in the league too. Moore served as a Girl Scout leader for 15 years, and also was involved with Make- A-Wish Foundation. She and her husband are retired from Dallas, Texas- based Dal-Tile Inc. He was manager of the Cypress office, and she served as secretary/ receptionist, and then office manager and a jack-of-all trades when it came to dealing with the public; and customer relations, including displays for architects and designers. Besides all that, she was in charge of her church’s When she and Glen retired in February ‘99, their plan was to spend half their time traveling in their motorhome, and the other half of the year put- tering at the Cave Junc- tion property. That plan lasted two years before they decided they were more suited to relaxing and working at the prop- erty. However, Moore likes to stay busy, including serving as a scorekeeper for Little League. When she saw the ad in “Illinois Valley News” for the chamber job, she decided to throw her hat into the ring. She was one of six applicants, and four final- ists. A chamber commit- tee interviewed the four, and the result was that she was offered the job. She’ll be working five days a week handling chamber business four hours daily. The pay is $400 per month. “I’ve been wanting to do something different,” she said, “and I’m looking forward to the job. I think it’ll be interesting.” Firewood: A cord is a cord is a cord - right Firewood has to be sold by the cord. Nothing else is legal. So notes the Measurement Standards Division in the Ore- gon Dept. of Agriculture (ODA). And what is a cord? “It is 128 cubic feet of compactly stacked wood in a rectangular form,” said Clark Cooney, field operations man- ager for the Measurement Standards Division. It en- forces Oregon’s weights and measures laws requiring accu- rate representations of quan- tity in commercial transac- tions. ODA inspectors investi- gate complaints made by buy- ers when it comes to any type of fuel delivery. But about that cord of wood definition: A cord, said Cooney, “could be 8-feet-long by 4-feet-wide by 4-feet-high, or it could be 4-feet-long by 4- feet-wide by 8-feet-high. Just so it stacks up to 128 cubic feet.” Other units of measure- ment for firewood -- many of them advertised - - such as a pickup load, truck load or face cord, are not acceptable. Cooney said that those are undefinable terms, whereas a cord is a definite unit of meas- urement. “The only way to know how much wood is being de- livered is to stack it neatly and tightly,” said Cooney. And buyers should make sure that they receive a written receipt for firewood deliveries. Re- ceipts should contain the seller’s name, address, quan- tity of delivery, date of deliv- ery, and the species and condi- tion of the wood. Oregon law requires the receipt. Anyone misrepresenting the information is subject to the Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which can result in prose- cution. To file a complaint, go to <oda.state.or.us/msd/ programs/fire.html> or tele- phone (503) 986-4670. RAMCELL NOW AVAILABLE AT DARN NEAR EVERYTHING 136 South Redwood Hwy. 592-5255 Current Ramcell customers FREE upgrades, phones & promos! Free phone with charger - Free activation Affordable packages to suit you No roaming charges - 10 states DEQ to assist JoCo coffers for tire chore Oregon Dept. of Environ- mental Quality (DEQ) will reimburse Josephine County $15,000 for the disposal of 3,000 used tires at 7902 Takilma Road. County commissioners in Grants Pass adopted the inter- governmental agreement be- tween both parties during its morning meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 22, which was moved from its regular Wednesday time slot. The tires, besides some metal and wood waste, were found during a recent clean-up of the property formerly used by Richard Busk, until the county foreclosed on it. Commissioners Jim Brock and Frank Iverson (Harold Haugen was not present) did not discuss how soon the DEQ money would be received. Subscribe to the ‘Noose’ FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE DOME SCHOOL - No alcohol on premises Business & Residential *Cleaning (with vigor) *Carpet Shampooing *Lawn & Yard Care *Chimney Sweeping *Pressure Washing FAST * SAFE * CLEAN RELIABLE