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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (March 8, 2017)
THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM ❘ / SIUSLAWNEWS ❘ @ SIUSLAWNEWS WEDNESDAY EDITION O REGON ’ S MAPLETON RAISES THE BAR HIDDEN TREASURES SPORTS — C 127TH YEAR ❘ ISSUE NO. 19 Visitors Center to get updates Construction set to continue through March 17 ❘ MARCH 8, 2017 ❘ $1.00 INSIDE — B SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 FLORENCE, OREGON 21ST ANNUAL FLORENCE HOME & GARDEN SHOW BIG weekend CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK for tiny trends CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS Florence Area Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center was closed Tuesday for the start of ren- ovations. The center will be open throughout the week, though visitors will be directed to use the back door. F INSIDE lorence Area Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center, 290 Highway 101, is undergoing ren- ovations this week. Construction is scheduled to be completed on Friday, March 17. “We’ll be remodeling to increase the usable space and increase our efficiency,” said Chamber Executive Director B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Bettina Hannigan. Siuslaw News Some of the changes include updating electric power and adding ethernet cables. Lofy Construction and Full Spectrum Computers are completing the construction and electric work, respectively. The biggest change will be relocating the visi- tor’s area from its current location right inside the lobby to a new office. “The change will give us a lot of real estate on the walls to represent information for our mem- bers,” Hannigan said. One of the important things, she said, is to keep volunteers happy and engaged. The changes will help create a friendly environment for both cham- ber volunteers and those visiting the center. The current check-in area will be walled off, creating a conference room and work space. “It will be a lot more efficient use of the space,” Hannigan said. “It’s going to make it a little bit easier to find a place for everyone.” The new space will allow room for the cham- ber’s board of directors, event committees and vol- unteers to meet and work together from a “warm and welcoming environment,” Hannigan said. “It makes it a lot nicer to have this here, with the close access to our kitchen for those long meet- ings,” she added. The electric updates will add additional outlets and lay cables for future projects, such as the pos- sibility of digital phones and touch-screen monitors for tech-savvy visitors. There will be new cabinetry throughout the building to story materials and supplies. “It’s exciting, but it’s kind of overwhelming,” Hannigan said of the project. The center was closed Tuesday at the start of construction, but the Visitors Center will remain open as much as possible throughout the 10-day project. “We’re going to try to keep greeting people through the back door. Limited service will still be available, and our volunteers will be giving what assistance they can to people who stop in,” Hannigan said. The Florence Area Chamber of Commerce can be reached at 541-997-3128. It is always open online at www.FlorenceChamber.com. Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . Library Tidings . . . . . . . . . . . Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B6 A3 A5 A4 PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS M ore than 3,200 people attended the 21st annual Home and Garden Show at the Florence Events Center this weekend. A wide variety of vendors from Florence and other parts of Oregon shared prod- ucts and information with attendees. Events Center Director Kevin Rhodes said, “This year's attendance at the Florence Home and Garden Show had an over- whelming response, even with the inclement weather. Coast Radio owner Jon Thompson works extremely hard every year to put on a great event and the 2017 show was no different. Siuslaw News co-sponsores with Coast Radio and, between the two organizations, they contin- ue to put on a top quality show. One attendee told me afterwards, ‘I believe this year's show was the best one yet, I had a really fun time.’ That just tells us it was not only informative, but entertaining as well.” The three- day show featured tractors, a tiny home, tasty treats and Laurel Bay Gardens’ “Taste of Spring” centerpiece dis- play, along with giveaways and prize drawings. The Florence Home and Garden Show is sponsored by Three Rivers Casino Resort, Bi-Mart and Central Lincoln PUD. It is presented by Coast Radio and the Siuslaw News. Florence improves fire flow capacity City combines multiple projects to create economy-of-scale savings B Y J ACK D AVIS Siuslaw News City of Florence Public Works has contracted Carter and Company, Inc., from Salem, to expand water line capacities in several locations west of Highway 101 to increase fire hydrant fire flow. Public Works Director Mike Miller said, “We are installing a 16-inch water main from Second Street and Kingwood Street, north to Rhododendron Drive and then out Rhododendron Drive back to Ninth Street. We are also extending a 12-inch water line from the intersection of Kingwood Street and Rhododendron Drive, east to Highway 101. “This will allow us to provide additional water out towards Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 Scoreboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2 THIS WEEK ’ S JACK DAVIS/SIUSLAW NEWS Construction workers install larger water mains along Rhododendron Drive to improve fire hydrant fire flow. Peace Harbor Medical Center. Johnson Rock Products, from That area is lacking in fire flows. Coos Bay, to install an 8-inch If the hospital wanted to expand water main across Highway 101 in the future, they wouldn’t be at Eighth Street. able to unless this infrastructure This project is part of the is in place.” city’s larger waterline replace- In addition, the city hired ment project that is scheduled TODAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 52 48 51 46 51 44 52 44 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 for late fall from Maple to Quince streets. “The timeline for the water- line crossing of Highway 101 at Eighth Street was accelerated in order to provide needed fire flows to the Options Counseling Center project, located on Maple Street across from the U.S. Post Office,” Miller said. The water main upgrades are being done in conjunction with several other projects in the area, including storm water infrastruc- ture improvements, retention walls, bike paths and concrete sidewalks. “There are a lot of economies- of-scale in the fact that the water and storm water project is going forward. The additional cost of doing a full pave, as opposed to S IUSLAW N EWS 3 S ECTIONS ❘ 26 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2017 See PROJECTS 7A
