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❘ JULY 3, 2015 ❘ $1.00
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
V
for
VETERANS
Oregon Coast Military Museum opens on Independence Day
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
Prime
parking
opens in
Old Town
FLORENCE, OREGON
Florence leases lot in
time for summer
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
Siuslaw News
The City of Florence announced that
it has secured the use of a parking lot at
1150 Bay St. for additional year-round
parking in Old Town.
The lot is part of the vacant Lotus
Restaurant across the street from the
Edwin K Bed and Breakfast.
Megan Messmer, the city’s public
information officer, said, “We’re very
excited. The owners allowed us to take
out a ground lease on the lot. They let
us use it for big events, but now we’ll
get to use it year-round.”
According to Messmer, the city
signed the lease this week, and Public
Works crews have already striped the
parking lot and removed the old restau-
rant sign, dead vegetation and the chain
that blocked the entrance.
“It will be a good addition,” she said.
“We got it accomplished fast, and
hopefully people are happy.”
The parking will not be pull-through,
as there is a center medium, but cars
and RVs are allowed to park.
There is no overnight parking at this
time, though Messmer added that per-
mits might be available later.
“This is a pretty good development
for Old Town,” Florence Area
Chamber of Commerce Executive
Director Cal Applebee said. “Parking is
always critical, and having that parking
lot available year-round is a great move
on the city’s part.”
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PARKING 6A
Mapleton
fireworks
canceled
Change of location
requirements blows
fireworks display
B Y J ACK D AVIS
Siuslaw News
INSIDE
According to Mapleton resident
Wesley Voth, the community will not
be treated to the traditional legal fire-
works display this year.
Because of a required change of
location, event organizer Terry
Saubert was not able to complete and
submit the proper state and county
permits in time to gain approval for a
new location.
Florence, however, will still hold a
fireworks display starting at approxi-
mately 9:45 p.m. on Saturday. The
display will be shot out over the
Siuslaw River from Port of Siuslaw
property east of Old Town.
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PHOTOS BY CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS
Oregon Coast Military Museum’s Chief of Staff Judy Murphy
designed numerous exhibits, dioramas and displays for the new
museum off Kingwood Street, near the Florence Municipal
Airport. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for 1 p.m. tomorrow.
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
Siuslaw News
A
fter seven-and-a-
half years, changes
in sites, shifts in
board members,
unexpected expenses, thousands
of dollars in donations and
many fundraising efforts, the
Oregon Coast Military Museum
(OCMM) will open its doors at
2145 Kingwood St. in a grand
opening tomorrow, July 4, from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“It’s been a blessing to work on the museum,”
said OCMM President and veteran Tim Sapp.
“It’s blessed a lot of veterans who have been
encouraged to be a part of this.”
The museum’s goal is to preserve the history
and artifacts of area veterans and military fami-
lies. This is especially important in Florence,
since figures state that veterans make up 20 per-
cent of the area’s population, according to found-
ing member Cal Applebee, who also is the execu-
tive director of the Florence Area Chamber of
Commerce.
“We have a heavy retirement-age population,”
Applebee said. “I started wondering what would
happen to all those artifacts and all that history.”
At that time, Applebee and Sapp were on the
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THIS WEEK ’ S
Veterans Day Parade committee
with Wayne Sharpe, morning host
on Coast Radio. Applebee pre-
sented an idea to gather veterans
and history in a heritage museum,
and the idea took off.
Sapp and Sharpe, who is the
vice president of OCMM, are the
last two original members on the
board.
The museum’s attorney, Greg
Freeze, said, “When we came up
with the concept of what the
museum wants to show, we want-
ed to make sure we highlighted
all the periods of American con-
flict, so that people had a place to
learn about what happened in the
past.”
“We wanted to represent all
military branches as much as pos-
sible,” Sharpe said. “Eventually,
we want to include more history
of the Florence area and how it
was influenced by the military,
especially during World War II.”
The organizers also wanted to make sure that
they maintained momentum.
“It’s been a slow process, but a good process,”
Sapp said. “We really couldn’t have gone much
faster because of finances and volunteers. We’ve
had a lot of volunteers, and we’ve never run out
of money. We’re completely debt-free.”
One way the board was able to keep out of
debt was by working with the City of Florence.
Sapp said, “We’re especially pleased with the
way the community has gotten behind us, and the
city has been really cooperative and helpful.”
When OCMM signed a lease with Florence for
the property on Kingwood Street, the city allowed
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them to have a 10-year graduated lease that will
let them make full payments after they reach full
operation.
Florence also has designated this week, July 4
through 10, “Oregon Coast Military Heritage
Museum Week.”
“I’m extremely proud to make this presenta-
tion,” said Mayor Joe Henry. “Not only am I on
the board of directors of the OCMM, ... I have a
very high respect for those who served in the mil-
itary. Part of this is for those people that served,
to thank them for their service.”
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MUSEUM 6A