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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2022)
Page A-2 Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, April 13, 2022 From the mayor’s desk: by Meadow Martell There are many positive things happening in our community. The Kerbyville Museum and History Center had its open house last weekend. As someone who loves to visit museums, I was impressed by the quality and diversity of exhibits on Native Americans, mining, logging, and life of the pioneers of the Illinois Valley. You can walk through the Naucke House, built in the 1880s, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. You can also view the Grimmit School house, a miner’s cabin, a blacksmith shop, and barb wire museum. The museum is open Thursday-Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The gallery of the Southern Oregon Guild of Artists and Artisans in Kerby is now open. Check out the ever-changing array of art and fine crafts created by local and regional artists. It is quite impressive. Their hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Here is some great news for businesses, organizations and residents in Cave Junction and the Illinois Valleyd: The City of Cave Junction, IVCanDo (Illinois Valley Community Development Organization-IVCDO), and the Chamber of Commerce are working with Energy Trust of Oregon to bring energy upgrades into our community. The first program kicks-off this week: No-Cost lighting upgrades to help businesses, community organizations, churches, and similar buildings save money and energy. Energy-efficient lighting reduces energy use, so you can save on utility bills and decrease monthly operating costs; improves light quality and consistency resulting in brighter, safer spaces; and decreases maintenance costs and time spent on frequent replacements or repairs. Your site is eligible if you: are a Pacific Power customer; have less than 20 employees/ staff, or, total site space is under 20,000 sq. ft.; site is a commercial-type building, multifamily property or industrial facility; or you are a community organization that provides free or reduced-cost assistance or services; or a religious center or place of worship. While many types of sites and lights will qualify, some may not. Starting this Thursday, April 14, the team will be conducting walk-throughs to begin assessing lighting eligible for free upgrades. Both a lighting expert and an energy efficiency expert will be there to answer your questions. Don’t miss this opportunity! If you are interested in getting on the list to meet this team, call Forrest Roth at IVCDO, 541-592-9279. We will be rolling out other energy saving opportunities with Energy Trust in the future, including for residential buildings. Le tte rs to th e e d ito r Illinois Valley News welcomes letters to the editor. Please e-mail them to dan@illinois-valley-news.com (Editor’s Note: Views and com- mentary, including statements made as fact are strictly those of the letter writers.) POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ encour- ages letters to the editor provided they are legible and not libelous or scurrilous. All letters 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 discretion of the publisher. *** Reader seeks revenue source for JoCo In last week’s article about his department’s lack of funding, Commissioner Baertschiger tried to make the point that Oregon has gone away from timber as a revenue source, because the harvest on Federal lands has been reduced. However, anyone who drives through the Illinois Valley and sees all the deforested hillsides can easily see that timber harvesting is still alive and well. It’s just that it’s mostly conducted by private corporations these days, and their thousands of acres of clearcuts provide almost no revenue to our county. They pay only about 10% the property tax that regular private property owners in this county do, and over the 50,000 acres that they own, that lost revenue really adds up. There used to be a harvest tax, so that counties received money when trees were cut, but Oregon ended that in 1999. It is estimated that the Western Oregon counties have lost over $3 BILLION in harvest revenue as a result. Timber harvest continues unabated and Oregon hasn’t stopped it or even slowed it: it’s just that Oregon decided to give all of the profits to private corporations, instead of to the counties that should be getting a share for their local budgets, such as our sheriff department. John Hancock Life Insurance harvested 1,200 acres in Josephine County last year. Globally, they made $26 billion from timber last year. Josephine County got zero dollars and a bunch of decimated hillsides and dried up creeks out of the deal. Why are we putting up with this when we so badly need the timber income for our county budget? How about a substantial harvest tax, or how about ending the property tax breaks for the corporations? Publisher’s note: A landowner pays 20 percent of the property tax through the annual property tax system. The remaining 80 percent is paid when timber is harvested. Additional taxes come from the Forest Products Harvest Tax which is $4.9252 per thousand board feet, or Small Tract Forestland Severance Tax of 6.51 per thousand board feet. Cindy Palacios Cave Junction I llInoIs V alley F uneral D Irectors www.since1928Hull.com S a ve th e d a te April 14 The Dome School is hosting a Open Mic for a fundraiser every second Thursday starting a 6 pm, starting Thursday, April 14 April 15 Illinois Valley Garden Club meeting will feature Frank Cordeiro, presenting “Seeds, seeds, seeds in a Nutshell”, from saving seeds, to planting, and saving again. The meetings are at Immanuel Methodist Church, 200 Watkins, Cave Junction, 12:30 - 3:00. April 16 Rough & Ready Wildflower Hike Saturday, April 16 at 10 a.m. Meet at the parking area at Rough & Ready Botanical Wayside south of Cave Junction on Hwy 199 at mile marker 34. The walk through the rough and Ready Wayside is geared for plant enthusiasts and novices alike. This is a great opportunity for folks to come out and enjoy the spring wildflowers no matter what your skill Illinois Valley News Published weekly by I.V. News LLC Daniel J. and Laura M. Mancuso, co-publishers 541-592-4110 level on plant identification might be. This is a shore hike on rocky, but relatively level ground, with lots of beautiful wildflowers to see, many of them are rare or of limited range. A portion of the hike will be along a wheelchair accessible path so folks of limited mobility can come out and enjoy the wildflowers too. Be prepare: bring water, dress in layers and wear comfortable shoes. Bring lunch if you like, there’s a picnic table overlooking Rough & Ready Creek. April 18 Aglow 2nd & 3rd Monday, April 18 Tony Armida is sharing. 10:30 a.m. at Fountain of Life, 451 S Junction Ave. C. J. More info, call Victoria 541-592-4743. May 6 Pacific Northwest Prairies and Climate Change, May 6, 6:30-7:30 PM, Siskiyou Field Institute, Selma, OR. “Join us for a free public seminar to hear from ecologist Paul POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR 97523 Illinois Valley News is published weekly except the first week of January at 219 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 Reed about the results of the recent study ‘Heating of Prairie Systems,’ and ongoing efforts to facilitate native prairie restoration in an era of climate change. Prairies in the western Pacific Northwest, such as those found in the Rogue and Illinois Valley regions, are critically endangered ecosystems. A variety of factors, including the disruption of historical fire regimes, land use change, and invasive species, have all contributed substantially to their decline. Now, climate change threatens to add to these existing threats. As conditions become hotter and drier, many plant species native to these ecosystems are at risk of decline. To understand how climate change will affect Pacific Northwest prairies, researchers from the University of Oregon conducted a multi-year experiment at three sites across western Oregon and Washington, including at the Siskiyou Field Institute.” Event info: https://fb.me/ e/334mMBtPZ June 18 Recycled Raft Race at Hathkapasuta River Celebration June 18 at Illinois River Forks State Park. Categories include: Fastest, Most Creative, Funniest and more! This event is about ingenuity, creativity and FUN! Free and open to the public Call Jill Talise at 541-415-6699 for more information Hosted by the Cultural & Ecological Enhancement Network (CEEN). Ongoing Wednesdays GAME ON! Grab a friend, drop in, and Game On at your local public library. Try your hand at a variety of games, including chess, Pictionary, Uno, cards, and BUILDZI, the fast- paced block-stacking game! Every Wednesday from 4:30- 5:30 pm.209 W Palmer St, Cave Junction. For more information call 541-592-4770. **Food Pantry Tuesdays 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Cave Junction Adventist/Community Services Food Distribution, 265 S. Old Stage Rd. Volunteers are needed to help stock, date check, sort food, pack boxes and handout food boxes, etc. to volunteer please email cavejunctionacs@gmail. com. Contributions can by made out to the CJ Seventh- day Adventist Church and identify that they are in support of the Community Service by writing “CJACS” in the memo section of your check. Mail to: Cave Junction Seventh-day Adventist Church PO Box 330, Cave Junction, OR 97523 ** The Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance after-hours crisis line can be reached at 541-415-9367. The new local crisis line will be answered any hours the Safe House is closed. The line will be answered by an advocate who will be able to respond locally, also recognizing the barriers that may come up due to our rural location. For more information contact the Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance 541-592-2515. editor -Laura Mancuso SUBSCRIPTION RATES One year in Josephine County - $40 One year in Jackson and Douglas counties - $41 One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state - $48.00 Illinois Valley News does not refund subscriptions. Remainder of subscription will be donated to the charity of your choice. laura@illinois-valley-news.com copy editor - C.J. Schatza classified ads - Laura Mancuso laura@illinois-valley-news.com circulation - Laura Mancuso laura@illinois-valley-news.com advertising / composition - Dan Mancuso dan@itheivnews.com 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.
