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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (March 28, 2015)
COUPONS INSIDE www.shoppelocal.biz SATURDAY WWW.THESIUSLAWNEWS.COM SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF FLORENCE • DUNES CITY • WESTLAKE • MAPLETON • SWISSHOME • DEADWOOD • YACHATS AND ALL POINTS BETWEEN 125 Y T H E A R • I S S U E N O . 25 MARCH 28 • 2015 $1.00 DRESSED for SUCCESS ANNUAL ROTARY AUCTION ROARS WITH DAZZLING $94 K 3 projects earn city approval Planning Commission supports requests for annexation, expansions B Y C HANTELLE M EYER B Y J ACK D AVIS Siuslaw News T he theme for the 2015 Florence Rotary auction, “A roaring good night for giving,” more than lived up to its name when Rotarians and local resi- dents packed the Florence Events Center (FEC) Saturday, March 14, and net- ted an astounding $94,135. According to Kevin McMullen and Bobbi Brubaker, Rotary auction co-chairpersons, approximately $50,000 will go to scholarships for Siuslaw and Mapleton high school seniors and Lane Community College Florence Center students. The remainder of the proceeds will be divided among other local community service organizations. The Rotarian decorations committee, under the direction of Crystal Farnsworth, transformed COURTESY PHOTOS Rotary Interact member and Rhody Court prince Trey Cornish guards the entrance to the Rotary Auction’s “speakeasy” held March 14 at the Florence Events Center. the FEC into a prohibition-era speak easy, com- plete with a shabby wooden entrance that opened up into an opulent club-like atmosphere inside. The construction of the elaborate set started Thursday evening and continued up until just an hour before opening. Both Rotarians and guests enhanced the fanta- sy by showing up in period-inspired attire. The 288 $60 tickets to the roaring 1920s–themed dinner and auction sold out six weeks in advance. In addition to the silent and live auctions, rev- elers could buy bottles of wine from the wine rack wall for $20 each. The bottles were con- cealed in brown wrapping paper and varied in value from $20 to more than $100. “We receive donated wine from our mem- bers,” McMullen said. “They also donated money to purchase wine. There were a couple of $100 bottles of wine mixed in.” There were 180 silent auction items and a dessert auction as well as the live auction, con- ducted by the long-time Rotarian auction, father- son team of Blair and Bob Sneddon. According to McMullen, this was Blair’s 49th year as Rotary auctioneer. The largest single auction item sold was the No. 1 bidder choice. See AUCTION 7A Florence Planning Commission met this week to pass a request for annexation to Florence City Council, approve designs for improvements to PeaceHealth Peace Harbor Medical Center’s Emergency Department and approve a conditional use permit for Siuslaw School District’s new modular kindergarten building. Barbara and Mike Cessnun, owners of Jerry’s Place and the property on 88274 Rhododendron Drive, petitioned for annexation with the City of Florence on Jan. 12. They amended their request on Feb. 16. “The applicant has applied because of a failing septic system, and they would like to connect to city sewer service,” said Glen Southerland, assistant planner. According to the staff report, Daniel Ingram, senior engineering associate for Lane County Public Works, said that the property owner would need to obtain a right-of-way permit in order to connect the sewer line to the pressurized main. He also stated that any future redevelopment of the property would require several changes to the parking lot. The four members of the Planning Commission present at the meeting voted to approve annexation and to rezone the lot as commercial. The Jerry’s Place annexation now will go to the Florence City Council for final approval. Peace Harbor representatives Rick Yecny, the medical center’s chief adminis- trative officer, and Philip Farrington, from American Institute of Certified Planners and Farrington Community Planning and Development, LLC, presented plans to expand the existing emergency depart- ment. Right now, the department is 25 years old, and, with 9,000 projected emergency visits this year, exceeds the 2,500 emer- gency visits the building was made to han- dle. The six beds in four rooms also mean a lack of privacy. The expansion project includes 4,404 square feet of new building, 3,964 square feet of remodeled space and 1,822 square feet of new exterior ambulance canopy. “Peace Harbor Medical Center contin- ues to be an important part of not only our medical community, but also our econom- ics in the community,” Yecny said. See PLANNING 7A Artists sought to complete exhibits at military museum B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News O regon Coast Military Museum is scheduled to open on July 4, but before then, volunteers are needed to help complete displays. “I call on all the artists and craftsmen in town, from the Florence Regional Arts Alliance, Backstreet Gallery and the art stu- dents at Siuslaw High School, to volunteer time to make the open- B1 A2 B5 A5 Obituaries Opinion SideShow Sports really, it depends on what you’re good at and what you want to do.” Murphy said she could show interested people how to add per- spective and shading while they volunteer. She works at the museum from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the week. Right now, none of the volun- teers paint on the weekend, though Murphy said that would be a possibility as the grand opening approaches. Jolley said, “The trench (depicting) World War I has almost been completed and is fan- tastic.” For more information, call Judy Murphy at 541-997-5849 or stop by the Oregon Coast Military Museum at 2145 Kingwood St. Artist Judy Murphy stands on scaffolding in front of her World War II map. She needs volunteers to help paint backgrounds and detail work at the museum. SPORTS — B INSIDE S AT U R D AY Angling Births Classifieds Community ing successful,” volunteer Win Jolley said. Artist Judy Murphy is the main creative force behind the task. Her past work includes set and dis- play design in Portland. Murphy and other volunteers seek five or more artists to paint and assemble vignettes and diora- mas of military combat from the early 20th century through current conflicts. “We could use help painting backgrounds,” Murphy said. “But Your A2 A4 B6 B Weather T ODAY S UNDAY M ONDAY T UESDAY Partly Sunny 57 45 Partly Sunny 59 46 Rain Rain 58 45 56 44 PHOTO BY CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK Siuslaw News