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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (June 24, 2017)
THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM ❘ / SIUSLAWNEWS ❘ @ SIUSLAWNEWS SATURDAY EDITION ❘ JUNE 24, 2017 ❘ $1.00 STAY SAFE, COOL IN THE HEAT THIS WEEKEND Ice Cream Social SPORTS — B Featuring live music by Russ & Ron and free ice cream! Friday, June 30th 11:00am – 3:00pm Enjoy local flavors from: member 1355 Highway 101 • Florence • (541) 997-7121 • opbc.com 127TH YEAR ❘ ISSUE NO. 50 SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 Chamber moves forward under new president FLORENCE, OREGON Zanzibar looks to Florence for guidance, advice Bobby Jensen, new board take on ‘the mantle of leadership’ B Y C HANTELLE M EYER Siuslaw News Florence Area Chamber of Commerce wel- comed new mem- bers and President Bobby Jensen to the board on June 15 during the cham- ber’s annual meet- ing and installation. Jensen and the new Bobby Jensen board will lead the chamber for the next year in its efforts to promote business, networking and the Florence area. Chamber Executive Director Bettina Anderson opened the meeting. “It’s my job to help your business be successful so that you can help people. And that’s the heart of the chamber. We’re here to help people. We’re here to help your nonprofits, as you expand your employee base, bring better resources to your employees and to help you be a resource in turn,” she said. “Our hearts have chambers, but our chamber has a heart,” she said. Using the theme of “Sharing the Heart of the Chamber,” Hannigan expressed grati- tude for the 22 Visitor Center volunteers, many Chamber Ambassadors and dozens of committee members. See CHAMBER 7A B Y M ARK B RENNAN Siuslaw News PHOTO BY ROGER BENNETT (Right) Roger Bennett recently returned from almost two months in the East African Country of Tanzania, where he assisted in the creation of founding documents that may become the basis for a new constitution for the semi-autonomous area of Zanzibar. Former city manager Roger Bennett travels to Africa to create founding documents O nce in a while, an individual gets to make a real difference in the world. Imagine having the opportunity to make a contribu- tion that will significantly impact tens of thousands people. That is clearly the case for Florence resident Roger Bennett. Bennett is a former Florence City Manager and currently a senior member of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). ICMA members, like Bennett, work with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to tackle challenging democracy building situations around the globe. The goal of the two separate organizations is to assist local officials from around the world in setting up the legal and logistical framework needed to have an effective municipal or even a national government. Most important is to help to establish a government that is accepted and respected by the people that it represents. Bennett has been a professional administrator for more than 30 years and is familiar with a wide range of governmental models. “I was asked to Zanzibar to help draft new MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS foundation documents for an organization called ZALGA, The Zanzibar Association of Local Government Authorities. It is the present system of local governance,” he said. Currently, the area’s elected officials have very little say over what happens in their locality. ZANZIBAR 9A See Oregon Small Woodlands Association BPA to begin 3-year, $20M upgrade Service transmission poles on Highway 126 to be replaced holds 3-day conference in Florence Rankin award brings 150 conference attendees to town B Y J ACK D AVIS Siuslaw News In November, Oregon Tree Farm System voted area resi- dents Dave and Dianne Rankin Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year for 2016. This was a good thing for Florence. Because of this, Lane County was chosen to be the host county for the 2017 Oregon Small Woodlands Association’s (OSWA) annu- al meeting. And because the Rankin tree farm is located just out- side of Florence, Three Rivers Casino Resort was chosen as the location for the 150-member, three-day con- ference, culminating in a tour of Rankin Woodlands on June 17. The meeting had two days of sessions and informative talks, including some by local residents. Jesse Beers, representing the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and B Y J ACK D AVIS Siuslaw News Siuslaw Indians, spoke on the Cultural History of western Lane County and Del Phelps, from the Florence Historical Society, talked about the his- tory of the area. The Rankin Woodlands tour started at 8 a.m. on Saturday and was divided into information stations. The 150 participants loaded into nine vans and were transport- ed to three stations located around the tree farm. See WOODS 7A Bonneville Power Admin- istration (BPA) representa- tives met with the public dur- ing an open house at the Florence Events Center Wednesday to talk about a $20 million dollar, three-year construction project that will begin in July. BPA’s project will start at the west end of the Wendson substation, near Florence, and replace the 70-year-old wood- en power poles between Florence and Eugene. BPA Public Affairs Specialist John Tyler said, “The Lane-Wendson trans- mission line was originally constructed in 1947. The wooden tower polls that are used to support the transmis- sion lines have outlived their useful service life. There is a need to replace those aged power poles with newer ones to ensure that we are able to continue to transmit electrici- ty reliably.” The 2017 phase of the proj- ect will focus on replacing polls between the Wendson substation and the Mapleton substation. “In 2018, we will focus work between Mapleton and the Walton substation. The final phase in 2019 is between the Walton and Lane substa- tions, close to Eugene,” Tyler said. He said the most challeng- ing part of the project is the stretch of poles going over the coast range, between Mapleton and Walton. BPA provides electricity generated from 31 federal hydroelectric dams on the See UPGRADE 7A Port Commission considers dredging options B Y J ARED A NDERSON Siuslaw News NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS INSIDE Port of Siuslaw dock walkways and Novelli’s Fish Market slope Friday morning after low tides leave them partially sitting on the banks of the Siuslaw River. Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coastal Events . . . . . . . . . . Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . Side Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . B9 A8 A3 B8 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 THIS WEEK ’ S Over the Memorial Day week- end, when the first minus tide of the summer season hit, Port of Siuslaw employees came to an inevitable conclusion: The mari- na has to be dredged. “Staff witnessed some of our docks sitting in the mud,” Port of Siuslaw Acting Director Dina McClure said during the port’s monthly public meeting on June 22. “The walkway between G and F dock was considered unsafe to walk on. The bottom of the gangway next to ICM was partially airborne due to the tilt of the dock. “Dredging isn’t a popular sub- ject,” McClure added. “It’s very expensive and it involves a lot of regulatory paperwork. The only return on investment is protect- ing our docks and maintaining the water depth.” Generally, marinas need to be dredged every five years, though the Florence marina hasn’t been dredged since 2009. And, at that time, it was expensive. During the last dredge, the port spent $229,000 to remove 30,000 cubic yards. $154,000 of that total was funded by grants, but the port had to take out a loan of TODAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY 83 56 68 55 62 52 63 51 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 $75,000 to cover the rest. $56,000 is still owed on that loan. According to McClure, it could cost up to $400,000 to dredge this time, depending on how much material is removed. Commissioners fear the issues will become more prevalent as the summer progresses. “What I can tell with the sum- mer tides, they’re not even as low as they were the year before,” said Commissioner Nancy Rickard. “We’re getting all of this happening now without the lowest tides that are possi- ble.” S IUSLAW N EWS 2 S ECTIONS ❘ 22 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2017 See DREDGING 9A
