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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2017)
YOUR HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1937 Illinois Valley News Wednesday, August 16, 2017, 1 Section, Volume LXXX No. 21 $1.00 Published weekly for the residents of the Illinois Valley Rapid response keeps fire in check County Cannabis Ordinance changes Jason McMillen IVN Contributing Writer (Photos by Dan Mancuso, Illinois Valley News) On Wednesday, Aug. 9 a single engine aircraft (top) drops retardant next to the salvage yard to prevent additional spread of the fire. Vehicles (bottom left) burning in the salvage yard. The plumb of smoke from the second bridge where helicopters dipped into the river for water. According to a press release from the Illinois Valley Fire District (IVFD) Aug. 9, after 1 p.m. IVFD responded to a reported grass fire located near the 30000 block of Redwood Highway near Cave Junction. Downed power lines started fire moving north and south along 199. A second alarm was called to Grants Pass Fire Department (GPFD) and Rural Metro Fire District (RMFD). Eventually the fire made it into Jerry’s Towing auto salvage yard and that’s when things got alarming because nearby residents were placed at Level 2 for evacuations. The release stated “Engines were deployed to protect structures as wild land resources work to stop the forward spread of the fire. Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) requested air resources for type 1 and type 2 helicopters which did multiple drops, keeping the fire in check. Two-seated planes were brought in which made several retardant drops on the fire this helped stop the forward spread of the fire. In all, we estimate 200 cars burned and 10 acres including spread to wild land no structures were lost.” A third alarm activated the “Rouge Valley task force 2 from Jackson County bringing additional resources from Medford Applegate and District 5. All agencies worked extremely hard to extinguish this fire. The highway was also shut down for approximately four hours while emergency personnel worked to extinguish the fire,” the release continued. A grass fire on Wild Park Lane was also underway during the salvage yard fire. City holds law priority workshop By Laura Mancuso IVN Editor Night patrols were on the majority of citizens’ minds at the law enforcement priority workshop hosted by the Cave Junction City Council August 14 at City Hall. According to Mayor Daniel Dalegowski this was an experimental workshop set up to see if it was a useful tool for the city council to get valuable feedback from the community. The purpose of this law enforcement workshop was to get input from citizens for the city council when they set guidelines for the sheriff’s office when they are conducting business in Cave Junction. “Ultimately is will be the city council that will set the priorities,” said Dalegowski who went on to explain the workshop process was borrowed from the Ford Family Foundation and the I.V. 20/20 Strategic Plan. Councilor Lindsey Gillette was the moderator and she explained to a room of almost 40 participants the workshop process which was to break off into groups in order to state opinions, brainstorm about law enforcement needs, summarize ideas and then finally vote upon the priorities. “The stakeholders - citizens that live in the city of Cave Junction, own a business or are in a nonprofit in the city, have their vote weighted two-to-one over ‘other’ residents involved in the workshop,” said Gillette. After the voting was tallied the following were the priorities provided from citizens and how many the votes the priorities received: • Night patrols, 59 • Drug houses, 53 • Multi-agency stings, 49 • Vagrancy, 36 • Crime locations, 26 • 911 dispatchers, 25 • Response times, 23 • More officers in I.V., 22 • Mental health, 15 • Property crimes, 8 • Staying current with marijuana grows, 4 City recorder Becky Patton said the priorities in the Josephine County Sheriff Deputy’s city contract had not been updated for five years and that this workshop was to help the city council set current priorities. “This is a formal opportunity for the community to give their input about law enforcement priorities instead of just guessing about what they may be. It is also a fertile place for other ideas to surface for the IVCDO (Illinois Valley Community Development Organization) Strategic Plan,” said Kate Dwyer, IVCDO’s community development coordinator. Dwyer who is also the chair of the Three Rivers School District Board of Directors was present at the workshop to vote for law enforcement priorities on behalf of the school board. Another public workshop to further define the need and language for the city’s contact with the sheriff’s deputy is set for Wednesday, August 16, 7 p.m. at City Hall. Little League wraps up season, girls softball went to state tourney. Read about it on A-3 As of Aug. 2, 2017, Josephine County Commissioners approved Ordinance No, 2017- 001 which makes changes to the Rural Land Development Code regarding fences, structures, lighting, runoff and erosion. 2017-001, approved by the commissioners three to zero, will go into effect Oct. 30, 2017. The ordinance came to fruition following a series of complaints regarding unsightly fences, light pollution that’s both irritating for neighbors and harmful to nocturnal species, environmental concerns and a lack of clarity in some existing code. This set of changes has been in the works since October 2016. As with all of Josephine County’s recently adopted ordinances, there is a 90-day period for citizens to draft and sign a petition which addresses their concerns and gives them an opportunity to refer it to the voters. First and foremost, the ordinance assigns legal definitions for both “fences” and “sight- obscuring fences” and mandates more clearly when a development permit is necessary with relation to the construction of a fence. Although development permits have always been required for a fence over 7 feet in height, Julie Schmelzer, community development director and Simon Hare, county commissioner, stressed that the requirement of a fence in association with a cannabis grow site is not a county rule and is rather a state requirement. When the ordinance goes into effect, fences, regardless of height, can no longer be constructed out of tarp, stacked up cars or appliances, root balls, shade cloth or any other type of improvised material. SEE CANNABIS ON A-9 Wildfire at Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve contained In a press release Superintendent Vicki Snitzler of the National Park Service at Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve is pleased to report that a wildfire at the park is contained. A lightning strike the night of Aug. 10, ignited a fire approximately a mile south of the Oregon Caves Chateau and the cave entrance. The United States Forest Service (USFS) from the Rogue River Siskiyou National Forest responded quickly, and used significant air support to stop its spread on Friday. The size of fire is an acre and a half and it did not pose an immediate threat to the Oregon Caves Historic District. Cave tour operations proceeded normally and the Chateau remained open. “As of Aug. 13, the fire is considered contained. We express our deep appreciation to the USFS firefighters and to the Grayback Forestry crews for their efforts in fighting this fire.They have our heartfelt thanks for protecting the national treasures at Oregon Caves.” said Snitzler in the press release. As the fire crews monitor and patrol the fire area, the No Name Trail and Cave Creek Trail will remain closed.
