❘ / SIUSLAWNEWS ❘ @ THESIUSLAWNEWS SATURDAY EDITION ❘ JUNE 27, 2015 ❘ $1.00 Summer reading program continues SANDBLASTERS SPLIT WIN SPORTS — B INSIDE — A3 SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 Recreational marijuana use legal July 1 FLORENCE, OREGON Missing swimmer found deceased Private, personal use legalized — no buying or selling B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Jose De La Mora would have been a Siuslaw senior this year Siuslaw News Wednesday, July 1, marks the first day for the legal use of recreational marijuana in Oregon. Florence Police Department Lt. John Pitcher said, “Now the possession of marijuana will no longer be a crime, as long as people abide by the new law. ... I’m not expecting any trouble.” He also reminded the public that driving under the influence of marijuana is illegal. “It’s not legal to smoke it in public and we will definitely enforce that,” he added. “It’s for private use. You can’t smoke it in public, and you can’t sell it in public. Those are two things we will be enforcing.” City of Florence representatives Erin Reynolds, city manager, and Wendy FarleyCampbell, planning director, discussed the importance of knowing the law. “Our concern from a city perspective is to ensure that people know what legal really means,” Reynolds said. An important part of the law is that people can use marijuana recreationally, but only in private. “July 1 means you can have recreational marijuana in your possession if you’re over the age of 21,” she said. It is also illegal to buy or sell recreational marijuana. Another part of the law limits each residence to four cannabis plants. “It doesn’t matter if one person lives there or 15,” FarleyCampbell added. See MARIJUANA 11A Honeyman Park meeting brings trail prospects B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News In the second of three public meetings, Honeyman State Park and Oregon State Park representatives presented their findings on pedestrian safety and trail evaluations on June 18. The previous meeting on May 27 allowed community mem- bers to discuss their favorite parts of Honeyman, which trails they used recreationally and which areas of the park they fre- quented. Jaime English, senior planner for Oregon State Parks, sum- marized findings from the previous meeting, such as the park’s popularity for running, water sports, dune adventures and camp- ing and that users want to utilize both sides of the park. Keeping open the Social Trail was especially important to local park users. “We really heard that the Social Trail, and the trails in gener- al, are incredibly popular with locals, especially for running,” she said. The Social Trail was historically part of Honeyman’s trail sys- tem, but was removed from official use with the addition of the Overpass Trail. Although it is an informal trail, park users seem to prefer using it to cross Highway 101. In this meeting, English presented proposals to revise Honeyman’s 2009 Trail Plan by looking at current trails and nav- igation issues and identifying how to best cross Highway 101. “What we learned from Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) was that a crossing at that location, a formal crossing, a crosswalk or other formal ODOT measure would not be some- thing that they would recommend, based on their measurements and standards for central crossing,” English said. See TRAILS 11A Deadlines change for Independence Day INSIDE Siuslaw News deadlines move up next week to accommo- date the Fourth of July holiday on Saturday. All advertising and news items for the Friday, July 3, issue must be submitted by Wednesday, July 1, at noon. Line clas- sifieds are due by noon on Thursday, July 2. The Siuslaw News office will be closed on July 3. Call 541-997-3441 for information. Ambulance . . . . . . . . . . . . . Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Church . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 B7 A5 A4 Obituary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 Word on the Street . . . . . . . A9 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2 PHOTO BY JACK DAVIS/SIUSLAW NEWS B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News A fter a 10-hour search, divers in Woahink Lake recovered the body of missing swimmer Jose De La Mora, 17, Friday between 10 and 11 a.m. Initial reports indicate that five juveniles were swimming on the east side of the lake on Thursday, June 25, at 6 p.m. when they saw a member of their group go under the water and not resurface. Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue (SVFR), U.S. Coast Guard and the Lane County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) Search and Rescue Dive Team responded to the call. Three Search and Rescue volunteer divers searched the area of water where De La Mora was last seen but did not locate him. According to LCSO Sgt. Carrie Carver, the divers searched the area for more than three hours, into the night. Local civilian divers, unaf- filiated with LCSO, began searching the water Friday morning and located a male believed to be the missing swimmer. SVFR and the Florence Police were also at the scene Emergency crews and vol- unteer divers search Woahink Lake Friday morning to recover the body of a teen drowning victim. Friday and LCSO was on its way. “Right before they deployed, we discovered that they found him,” Carver said. She said that although its main office is in Eugene, LCSO has volunteer divers from all over the county. “We send our condolences to the De La Mora family, his friends and the whole commu- nity,” she said. “What a hor- rific tragedy.” Carver also said that this is the fifth water fatality in Lane County this year. LCSO will conduct the death investigation. “I hope that people will enjoy the water responsibly and always wear life vests,” she added. The Florence community is already rallying around De La Mora’s family and friends. A fundraising account has been set up at Oregon Pacific Bank. H o w do th e s e g ar d en s g ro w ? Florence Area Humane Society invites the public to Tour of Gardens tomorrow B Y V ICKIE H IGGINS For the Siuslaw News F ive delightful gardens will entertain visitors on Sunday, June 28, when the Florence Area Humane Society (FAHS) hosts its annu- al self-guided Tour of Gardens from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased ahead of time or on the day of the tour at any of the garden locations. South of Florence, Bert and Shirley Willie have the first garden. Visitors can follow the soothing sound of water along a path, complete with handrails, leading to the garden’s lower levels with waterfalls and ponds. There visitors will find a pergola, gazebo and a bench here and there for relaxing to enjoy the lovely sounds and smells. Many blooming things add to the charm along with statues peeking around a corner. In the middle of Florence is a garden like no other and this is where visitors will find the Food Share Garden. This garden sits on about half an acre and produced more than 9,000 pounds of food last year. Sherri Koffler’s garden is a wonderland of flowers and whimsical garden art with lots of water trickling down. Decorative containers hold many varieties of plants and lots of climbing vines adorn the front yard as well as the garden which surrounds the home. There’s a surprise at every turn. Rhodell Willard and Ed Ogle’s gar- den in front of their home is a breath- taking display of shrubs and flowers but that is only half the story. The back yard is a courtyard garden complete with a green house. Here, visitors will find numerous unusual varieties of shrubs and flowers, many of them transported to Oregon from their home in THIS WEEK ’ S PHOTOS BY ED GERVAIS The five gardens included in the Tour of Gardens will feature a riot of summer blooms, cool shade, relax- ing benches and places for snack breaks. Visitors can admire water features, a bridge, a green house and statuary at these gardens in the Florence area. northern California. Dr. and Mrs. Rex Underwood truly have a Sweet Creek Paradise with 800 feet of property on the Siuslaw River as it makes it way to the sea. With their home centered between two landscaped areas, the west side fea- tures a collection of statuary. Gnomes, bears, geese and raccoons adorn several seating areas where one may enjoy the river view. East of the home, visitors can cross a bright red bridge over a babbling brook with breathtaking beauty. There’s a small cabin, ideal for a private retreat. Picnic tables in sheltered spots offer breathtaking views. The Underwoods offer these spots to tour visitors who wish to bring along snacks. Tickets can be purchased at On Your Feet with a Splash and Raining Cats and TODAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY 68 56 66 53 68 55 70 54 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 Dogs on Bay Street, Mary Ann’s Natural Pet at 1541 Highway 101, Premier Landscaping at 812 Quince St., Laurel Bay Gardens, north of Florence at 88493 Highway 101, and the FAHS Shelter at 2840 Rhododendron Dr. All proceeds from the Garden Tour are used to provide care for dogs and cats at the organization’s no-kill shelter. For more information, contact FAHS at 541-902-9714. S IUSLAW N EWS 125 TH Y EAR ❘ I SSUE N O . 51 C OPYRIGHT 2015 CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM