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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 27, 2017)
Page A-2 Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, December 27, 2017 Year in Review: January • 2017 New Year’s Storm is one for the record books! The 2017 New Year’s Storm came in waves: A foot of the white stuff piled up Jan. 2; then another foot; and a few days later, another six to 10 inches fell - and in some locations, even more! The schools never opened last week. Many businesses and the Siskiyou Community Medical Center were closed much of the week as well. Phone lines went down and 6,497 Illinois Valley households lost power at the storm’s peak. “The Valley was the epicenter for this storm and was much harder hit than other areas,” said Tom Gauntt, Pacific Power public information officer. • Meteorologists say stay prepared for weather challenges: The current series of storm systems impacting the Illinois Valley could bring up to 6 inches of rain and possibly more snow on the Valley floor by the end of the week, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Dan Weygand • Past council members said their farewells, and a new mayor and council members were sworn in, Monday, Jan. 9, at the first Cave Junction City Council meeting of the year. After the outgoing councilors said their goodbyes, new councilors Lindsey Gillette and Mark Dillinger were sworn in and took their seats on the council. New mayor, Daniel Dalegowski, then gave the State of the City address, which the city charter mandates must happen at the beginning of every year. • Newly elected Josephine County Commissioners Lily Morgan and Dan DeYoung hosted a town hall meeting at the Cave Junction County Building, Monday, Jan. 23, to introduce themselves to constituents and answer questions. • Little League building broken into ... again: Illinois Valley’s Little League just can’t catch a break. Last week, once again, the Little’s League’s building at Jubilee Park was vandalized. Little League supporters have lost track of how many items the building has been broken into in recent years. “There’s nothing there of value. It’s senseless. They are just making a huge mess,” said Little League organizer Shelley Davis. “Though they did burn some things this time, so we have the state fire marshal working on this case now.” • Library burglary: Sometime in the evening of Jan. 14 the Cave Junction Library was broken into through a window long thought to be screwed shut-in the aging building. Although there’s an alarm that has a battery backup and connects to a satellite for instant communication with authorities the burglar made off with a box of blank checks, the keys to every lock the building, a handful of donation checks from individuals amounting to $270, a $50 toy from the children’s program, and of course—this burglar not being one to leave any details out—a small pile of change in branch manager Roberta Lee’s desk. • The United Community Action Network (UCAN) has opened a satellite office at the I.V. Family Coalition in Cave Junction. The umbrella agency’s focus is creating solutions to poverty and improving lives in Douglas and Josephine counties. “Having this office in Cave Junction is more efficient. It’s certainly more customer friendly for individuals who are seniors or disabled and will help people avoid unnecessary travel.” Kelly Wessels UCAN chief operating officer explained. UCAN offers specific days of the week for certain services. Applicants will still need to call UCAN’s main line at 541-956-4050 to schedule appointments at the Cave Junction site. • Lady Cougs lead league: The Lady Cougars are now at 3-0 in the Southern Cascade League; seniors Aundrea Miller and Tori Johnson led the Cougars in points scored. • In two separate occurrences last month the Western Plaza shopping center has been the victim of vandalism and attempted burglary. Unfortunately, this sort of activity has become a normal occurrence for the family that owns the land. In both incidences a gate was cut to allow the perpetrator access to the alleyway that connects the back parking lot with the 199 highway. • Once again, the Josephine Community Libraries, Inc. (JCLI), the nonprofit that runs the libraries of Josephine County, wants to take the issue of library funding to the voters. Unlike the Library District effort of 2014, which did not pass, the newly proposed district would not encompass the entire county, but only those precincts in which voters supported the district. The proposed taxation rate will be the same as the last effort at $0.39 of $1,000 of assessed property value. Year in Review: February • Jean Ann Miles was recently appointed by Mayor Daniel Dalegowski to complete his remaining two year term. She was sworn into office as a Cave Junction City Councilor Feb. 13. • Josephine County Commissioners have been warning about a fiscal financial cliff and according to Sheriff Dave Daniel the eta is July 1. In a meeting Feb. 2, Daniel met with Commissioners Simon Hare, Lily Morgan, Dan DeYoung and County Legal Wally Hicks. In that meeting Daniel laid out what his next budget will look like and asked for one quarter of the approximately 4.5 million in reserves to get through the next six months of current staffing levels. To offset the budge short fall Daniel floated a new levy, for jail services only. The initial details are for a five year 84 cents per thousand of assessed property value. • Frontier upgrade: After years of abysmal internet connection rates and instability a great deal of the Illinois Valley is finally going to make a huge step forward into the digital age. Frontier Communications reported that they are currently in the process of upgrading their servers with fiber optic cable and soon those that use, or are forced to use, their services will be better connected to the internet and the world. “We’ve been in the process for almost two and a half years,” said Joel Walter local manager for the area. “We added a lot of bandwidth from where we were at before,” Walter stated before explaining that the main issue was extreme congestion at peak hours. • There will be a special Illinois Valley Garden Club (IVGC) 90th birthday meeting at Immanuel Methodist Church. Roger Brandt will be giving a talk about the IVGC’s 90-year history and a horticulture table will feature forced blooms and plants with a winter interest. • A proposed five- year levy by the Illinois Valley Fire District of 50 cents per thousand will allow (Photo by Dan Mancuso, Illinois Valley News) Commissioner Dan DeYoung (left) with Sheriff Daniel during a Thursday Feb. 27 meeting. the district to hire and outfit four firefighter/emergency medical technicians (EMTs). Fire Chief Dennis Hoke said that the district’s sole reliance on volunteer firefighters is not sufficient to meet current demands on the district. • An introductory session to learn about the different levels of certification required to provide paid child care was offered with a presentation by Michelle Gallas of Imagine That! Creative Children’s Center. Gallas discussed the joys and hurdles of running a child care business. This project was one of the first developments generated by the Illinois Valley Community Development Organization’s (IVCanDO) I.V. 20/20 Community Vision & Strategic Plan. • The Cave Junction City Council met Monday, Feb. 27, to discuss potential policies for volunteer code enforcement officers. The city has begun to recruit volunteers to help enforce existing ordinances, and although there are already rules on the books in regard to volunteer ordinance officers, they have never been put into action. Currently, the city’s code enforcement policy is complaint based. Residents must come to the city and lodge complaints about garbage accumulation, unkempt lawns, illegal fences or business signs that are not maintained, among other things. The city then issues notices to property owners to fix the problem or face fines. This process is slow and relies on people to come forward to make the complaints. At the urging of Councilor Mark Dillinger, the council has begun looking into ways to streamline the process and clean up problem properties around town. • The Illinois River Forks State Park’s disc golf course is going to receive significant upgrades soon. The course path will be widened with decomposed granite over the next few weeks. This improvement will enable both wheelchair and stroller access to the course • There was something of a public uproar aimed at Pacific Power, primarily in Jackson and Josephine counties, regarding power bills which were higher than normal. In some cases the customer’s bills were two to three time more expensive than they allegedly were in past years • Snowplow caper: It was found that one truck used to plow snow was missing, along with assorted smaller tools from the Josephine County’s public works garage in Kerby. Rob Brandes Josephine County Public Works Director said, “The cost of the plow, smaller tools and fixing the gate look to be in the range of $5,000.” • The Three Rivers School District Board of Directors is pleased to announce that David Valenzuela has been approved as permanent superintendent of Three Rivers School District. • The entire Illinois Valley High School wrestling team, consisting of Chase Nelson, Ayden Lindsey and Dillion St. Onge, made it to the state competition this year held Feb. 24 and 25. Obituaries John Gasparini born in Las Angeles, Calif. to John and Gladys (Swanson) Gasparini. Gasparini was an avid musi- cian who played harmonica for many local bands from the 70s through the 90s. Gasparini moved to Selma in 1974 and married Janet Holt Goodrich in 1980. Gasparini along with his wife owned and operated Selma Video from 1993 until retiring in 2011. He had been on dialysis for 13 years and suffered other health issues. Gasparini is preceded in death by his parents. Gasparini is survived by his wife, Janet; son Derek Gasparini; two step-sons, Adam Goodrich and Jeremy Goodrich; one granddaughter; two grandsons and his brother, Fred Gasparini in Helena, Mont. I LLINOIS V ALLEY F UNERAL D IRECTORS WWW.SINCE1928HULL.COM 541-592-4110 Save the date Jan. 4 I.V. Wrestling Lasagna Dinner Auction Jan. 4 at the Senior Cneter, 520 E. River St. in Cave Junction from 6 - 7:30 p.m. Come Support I.V. Wrestling, Adults $10, Children $5 and the auction starts at 7:30 p.m. Continuing Your public library has activities happen- ing every week! New Storytime reader, Mela- nie, has crafts and stories for kids of all ages Saturdays at 12 noon. Families at Play baby- parent group is for babies the first Wednesday of the month from 1-2 p.m. Early literacy skills are taught within a thirty-minute storytime of songs, bounces, and reading, followed by a Illinois Valley News Published weekly by I.V. News LLC Daniel J. Mancuso, Publisher half-hour of play and chat time. For more infor- mation contact Roberta Lee at 541-592-4770. IV Branch, Josephine Community Libraries, 209 W Palmer St, CJ *Illinois Valley Community Watch Meet- ing every Monday from 5 - 6 p.m. at Wild River Pizza, 249 Redwood Hwy. – Cave Junction. A Public Safety Outreach Campaign effort with all I.V. Neighborhood Watch Groups – representa- tives, including businesses and churches, and support for anyone wishing to start a neighbor- hood watch. Includes a 2-way hand held radio program briefing from 4:20 - 4:50 p.m. Contact Guenter - 541-415-1929 / ivwatch541@gmail. com. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR 97523 Illinois Valley News is published at 221 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523 Telephone (541) 592-2541 Since 1937 periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523 P.O. Box 1370 USPS 258-820 SUBSCRIPTION RATES One year in Josephine County - $35 One year in Jackson and Douglas counties - $36 One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state - $43.00 Illinois Valley News does not refund subscriptions. Remainder of subscription will be donated to the charity of your choice. *The I.V. Senior Thrift Store: Join the crew and make new friends. You don’t need to be a senior citizen to volunteer at the store. Call us at 541-592-6630. Open Monday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. *The Sheriff’s Office Substation in Cave Junction is now open on Mondays, Tues- days, and Thursdays, 10 to 2. Volunteers are still needed to staff additional days. Appli- cations are available at the substation or on line at http://www.co.josephine.or.us/Files/ Volunteer%20Application.Mar%202014.pdf. News - Dan Mancuso dan@illinois-valley-news.com Editor -Laura Mancuso laura@illinois-valley-news.com Classified Ads -Laura Mancuso laura@illinois-valley-news.com Circulation - Laura Mancuso laura@illinois-valley-news.com Advertising / Composition - Dan Mancuso dan@illinois-valley-news.com Mailroom - Millie Watkins *Cave Junction Patrol, LLC is looking for volunteers. CJ Patrol is a private citizen volun- teer organization dedicated to effectively ad- dressing heretofore-unchecked property crime in our city and neighborhoods. The primary mission of CJ Patrol is to prevent, interrupt, report and decrease property crime in the city of Cave Junction. Call 541-592-9665 or visit cjpatrol.org. *Committee Meeting STATE OF JEFFER- SON Josephine County 1st Thursday of each month at 5:30 p.m. Black Forest Restaurant, Grants Pass and 3rd Thursday of each month at 6 p.m., Wild River Pizza in Cave Junction. DEADLINES: News, Classified and Display Ads, Announcement and Letters 4 P.M. FRIDAYS POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ encour- ages letters to the editor pro- vided they are legible and not libelous or scurrilous. All let- ters must be signed, including name, address and telephone number. The latter need not be published, but will be used to verify authenticity. The ‘News’ reserves the right to edit letters. Letters are used at the discre- tion of the publisher.
