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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 21, 2004)
For nonprofits Full-time mechanic posed to fire board New fee on events inside CJ pondered By MICHELLE BINKER A proposal brought to Cave Junction City Coun- cil would require non- profit entities to purchase a city business license for special events at which the organization collects money from vendors. Revenue generated from sale of these licenses would help the city recoup costs of cleaning up and maintenance following special events. Ordinance 441 would amend the municipal code and redefine “business” to include any nonprofit or charitable “corporation or organization collecting revenue from commercial vendors for the right to do business during special events sponsored by the corporation or organiza- tion.” The fee for such a li- cense would be $100 per day. Currently, no such business license is required of charitable entities. The proposed ordi- nance provoked dismayed comments from several people who attended the council meeting Monday night, Jan.12. “This is an unfair tax on the Lions and other non-profit organizations which do good work in the community,” said Jerry Sommers with I.V. Lions Club. “If we had to come up with this fee, we would have to raise our vendors’ fees.” Gary Bell, also with I.V. Lions, said that roughly 90 percent of pro- ceeds generated from I.V. Lions-sponsored special events go back to the com- munity. Jim Frick of Harris & Taylor Century 21 also spoke against the ordi- nance. He asked the coun- cil to consider what speak- ers from the volunteer groups had said, and not charge the fee. Ellie Buell, from American Legion Auxil- iary Unit 70, and Sonny Moore, of I.V Little League, both spoke in op- position to the ordinance. In the face of such stiff opposition, Mayor Ed Faircloth proposed con- tinuing discussion of the issue at a later date. To give your customers or your sweetie a valentine message, use the ‘Noose.’ Phone 592-2541 for details or stop by the office. Deadline for valentines is Thursday, Feb. 5 CAVE JUNCTION ROLL-OVER - Selma resident Harry ‘Rob’ Lamar, 38, suffered ap- parent minor injuries when the pickup truck he was driving rolled on Redwood Hwy. at the north end of Cave Junction. American Medical Response, Illinois Valley Fire District and Josephine County Sheriff’s Office responded at approximately 10:20 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 20. Witnesses said that Lamar was northbound, when he braked and swerved because of vehicles stopped to make left turns. Selma’s Equi=Tech units used by JPL Balanced power equip- ment from the audio indus- try’s own Selma-based Equi=Tech Corp. has been deployed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif. Six of Equi=Tech’s Model 2Q’s were fur- nished to NASA for use with laboratory testing and data processing equipment at JPL Pasadena. Their precise use is confidential. However, sources claim that the application is telemetry related. Among its many functions, the Pasadena facility tracks nearly all objects in orbit around Earth. JPL repre- sents this country’s leading edge in space exploration, according to an announce- ment. Equi=Tech also re- ported that it has furnished balanced power systems to other government technical installations including the National Science Founda- (Continued on page 8) By SHANE WELSH During a meeting of the Illinois Valley Fire District Board of Directors on Thursday night, Jan. 15, members discussed the possibility of hiring a per- manent, full-time me- chanic to repair equipment and vehicles. During the meeting in Cave Junction City Hall, incoming Chief Harry Rich expressed concerns about delays and errors when s e r v i c i n g e q u i p me n t through outside mechanics. Rich reminded mem- bers of an incident that occurred when the wrong rims inadvertently were used on one truck, result- ing in a lost wheel. He felt that having a mechanic “in-house” could benefit the department by allowing a more timely response for repairs and assuring that jobs are done properly by people familiar with fire- fighting equipment. “I am just concerned about that fire we answer at 2 in the morning and the pump doesn’t work,” com- mented Rich. Another major concern voiced by Rich is the ex- pense linked to having maintenance and repairs handled by other than dis- trict employees. Volunteer Lt. Bill Hickerson of CJ Station 1 felt that hiring a mechanic would be too expensive and of little or no benefit to the district. He felt that the district should “...send Joe off to school to learn the things we need done,” referring to Division Chief Joe Feldhaus. The need for an Auto- motive Service Excellence Major equipment re- pairs now are sent to Grants Pass, a proc- ess that is seen as too expensive. (ASE) certified diesel me- chanic especially was noted. Currently, the dis- trict sends its major repair work to Rural/Metro Fire Dept. mechanics in Grants Pass. However, noted Feld- haus, that procedure re- quires the use of two rigs and two firefighters. In addition, without faulting Rural/Metro, he noted that, “Our emergency is not their emergency,” referring to the time it sometimes takes to get back a truck. Rich mentioned that he has several volunteer fire- fighters in mind for the position, who might be qualified, and that he would provide a prospec- tive cost analysis for the board to aid in its decision. Although plans to hire a mechanic were not final- ized, the board intends to discuss the feasibility of budgeting a mechanic for the district during a future meeting. City housing projects approved conditionally LABORS OF LOVE - Cave Junction-based Life Lines, which each month sends more than 2,000 Christian-oriented newsletters to prisoners around the United States, held its annual Christmas After- Christmas party at the home of Doug and Joy Hoskins on Monday night, Jan. 19. John McLaughlin (far right in top photo) was given a special scrapbook, as it was his 62nd birthday. Also, he is the author of ‘Walk to Freedom,’ de- tailing his violent times and prison life before accepting Jesus Christ 15 years ago. Melanie Gayle Hoskins (right) checks the list for the monthly mailing of the newsletter. A highlight of the party was announce- ment of Operation Free- dom: Sending Hope Be- hind the Walls. The plan is to provide McLaugh- lin’s book to every prison library. (Top photo, from left) Bob Yankee, Karin Cooley and Jude McLaughlin join to help McLaughlin celebrate his birthday. By MICHELLE BINKER Plans for two new housing developments in Cave Junction moved closer to realization after the CJ City Council gave conditional approval to both projects. The council held pub- lic hearings on the two planned unit developments (PUD) during its regular meeting Monday night, Jan. 12 in city hall. The council heard a report prepared by Dick Converse, a planner from Rogue Valley Council of Governments, about the 41-unit Illinois River Es- tates planned for the west end of Schumacher Street. “In many ways, this looks like a standard sub- division,” Converse said, noting that the primary differences are a private street and abundant open space where the property abuts the river. The private road as planned is 20-feet wide, bordered by grassy “bio- swales” rather than gutters, to clean and divert surface water runoff to the com- mon areas near the river. Developer Jim Arm- strong with The Forks L.L.C. said the plan will create a river-friendly, “livable situation for resi- dents of Cave Junction.” In a 4-0 vote, the coun- cil gave preliminary ap- proval to The Forks PUD with a list of concerns to be addressed before sign- ing off on the final plat. Councilman Dan Fiske was absent. The concerns include development of Schumacher to city stan- dards, including sidewalks, bearing in mind future de- velopment of other parcels nearby; concerns of Illinois Valley Fire District and nearby “Forks” State Park; and having a city engineer review plans for water, sewer and drainage. The final plat for phase one of the Sunny- brook Manor Estates, on Laurel Road between Red- wood Hwy. and Old Stage Road, was conditionally approved 4-0. Pending are resolution of issues at the county level, including storm drainage, street names, and a second driveway for emergency vehicle access. It’s only possible to live happily ever after on a day-to-day basis. - Margaret Bonano -