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SATURDAY EDITION
Garden Club
spruces up park
VIKINGS COACH
TO RETIRE
SPORTS — B
126TH YEAR ❘ ISSUE NO. 33
❘ APRIL 23, 2016 ❘ $1.00
INSIDE — A7
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
FLORENCE, OREGON
ELECTION 2016
Local schools, county seek bond support
B Y J ACK D AVIS
Siuslaw News
iuslaw and Mapleton school
districts are seeking voter
approval on two separate bond
measures on the May 17 ballot.
Siuslaw is requesting $36.9
million to build a new high
school to replace the current
facility that was built in 1970 and
fails to meet current safety and
security standards.
S
Mapleton is asking voters to
approve a $4 million bond to make
overdue repairs and updates to both
the elementary and high school
buildings.
Both districts received a match-
ing grant for an additional $4 mil-
lion in funds from the state if their
respective bond measures pass.
In addition, Mapleton is eligible
for up to $1.5 million in seismic
upgrade funds for both the ele-
mentary and high schools, for a
total of $3 million.
According to Mapleton School
District Superintendent Jodi
O’Mara, the 25-year bond length is
comparable to other Lane County
school districts. The upgrades and
repairs proposed by the district, like
new roofing, mechanical, electrical,
plumbing, septic systems and build-
ing exterior upgrades would have a
40-year life expectancy.
A flier sent out to Mapleton dis-
trict residents said the bond rate
would be $1.59 per $1,000 of
assessed property value. That
would mean a home valued for tax
purposes at $100,000 would have
an assessed annual tax of $159, or
$13.25 per month.
The matching state funds and the
seismic improvement funds would
not be a part of the assessment.
O’Mara said, “The last Mapleton
School District bond expired in
1961. We have not had an active
bond or levy for the schools since.”
According to the Siuslaw
School District, the high school
facility does not meet current seis-
mic, energy, fire safety and
Americans with Disabilities Act
compliance codes.
See
SCHOOLS 6A
B Y J ACK D AVIS
Siuslaw News
ane County voters in the May 17 Primary Election
are being asked to decide on Measure 20-239,
which seeks funding for programs and services provid-
ed to county residents by Oregon State University
Extension Services.
According to the explanatory statement, the five-year
measure would authorize Lane County to levy a local
option tax to help support the
See COUNTY 6A
Extension Services’ programs.
L
CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS
APRIL
FLOWERS
Lane County Measure 20-239
would help fund 4-H and other
rural extension programs
Library
approves
strategic
plan
5-year process focuses
on outreach, learning
and community
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
Siuslaw News
Siuslaw Public Library concluded
its strategic planning process this
week with final approval by the
board of directors on Wednesday.
With an aim for more community
involvement, the library developed a
survey and invited people to attend a
full day of planning.
Board President Jane Yecny said the
board unanimously approved the plan.
“We’re really excited about the
plan and its implementation over the
next five years,” she said.
Library Director Meg Spencer used a
$5,000 technical assistance grant from
the Ford Family Foundation and money
from the library’s budget to hire con-
sultant Penny Hummel. The Friends of
the Siuslaw Public Library also con-
tributed to the strategic plan process.
Hummel met with the board and
staff first.
“We held a planning session and
talked about our own dreams and
plans,” Spencer said.
Then, Hummel directed her focus
on the community. More than 300
people filled out the online survey,
and of the more than 50 people who
attended the full-day meeting, 40
were community members.
“We determined what they love
best about the library, what they
thought could be improved and what
new services they would like us to
offer. It was a very thorough
process,” said Susy Lacer, vice presi-
dent of the board of directors.
“From that we got a really great
document,” Spencer said.
Out of the process, three main
goals surfaced for 2016 to 2021: pro-
viding lifelong learning and enrich-
ment, turning the library into a com-
munity center and offering more out-
reach and engagement.
D
owntown Revitalization
Team (from left) Chairman
David Wiegan and members
Susy Lacer, Ellen Huntingdon,
Sharon Stiles and Harlan Springer
and Florence Area Chamber of
Commerce Executive Director
Bettina Hannigan stand under new
flower baskets installed in Old Town
by Florence Public Works Thursday.
The baskets are part of the nine-
member team’s goal to unify and
revitalize the downtown area as the
primary cultural, tourist, commercial
and community core. “These are
really awesome, but they are going
to get bigger and better,” Springer
said. DRT hopes to accomplish
more projects in the future.
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LIBRARY 6A
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
Multi-million-dollar bond measures to be
decided for Mapleton, Siuslaw schools