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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 2019)
SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2019 | 7A DUNES from page 1A He continued, “But we have no- body here who has direct interest in operating that dam to a proper operation level. They’re not paying attention to the low tide and the things they need to look at to get a good flush of the lake, and to main- tain the fish population. You need a good negative tide and the water level to be as close to 8 feet as you can possibly get it, and then get a big flush. It’s a real balance.” The resident also pointed out problems with debris. “Part of the deal is the amount of logs in the river,” he said. “That doesn’t allow the water to run and get a proper flush. If you don’t get a proper flush, you can’t maintain good quality.” City council members shared the residents’ concerns, particularly when it comes to removing debris in the lake. The city has been ask- ing for permission to clean up the area, but “It’s falling on deaf ears,” Mills said. “We’re trying and trying to get it done. We’re not asking for the state to do it, we’re just asking for permission so we can do it. We can’t get permission to get in there and clean it up.” “I feel like it’s a liability,” Council- or Duke Wells said. “We are telling people about our great area to vis- it, and part of that is the canoeing down the outlet. We’re not after money.” Councilor Robert Orr stated that the issue of Siltcoos was a priority, and that councilors and staff would be studying solutions in 2019. He also pointed out that they recent- ly spoke with state representatives about the concerns and the issue is being looked at. “I can’t imagine doing anything without a lot more discussion and expert input,” Councilor Shel- don Meyer said, going on to joke, “I don’t know if anybody up here knows a ‘dam’ thing.” After discussing previous goals, Mills turned to a results survey that was distributed among city resi- dents. The No. 1 issue that residents had was keeping roads clean and repaired. Traditionally, road upkeep has been done strictly through vol- unteer work, but in a city council meeting following the planning session, a contract was signed with long-time city volunteer Richard Palmer. The agreement, which agrees to pay Palmer an hourly rate as well as reimbursing him for equipment use, lays out a framework on how the city should handle road repair issue. Another issue of concern to city residents was passing a small prop- erty tax to ensure that the city re- mains solvent, with survey mem- bers expressing support for the idea. “That’s not how the ballot turned out,” Mills said when she read the comments. In November, the city attempted to pass a temporary local option tax to ensure that the state’s shared revenue funds can still be diverted to the city. The tax was voted down, 645 to 244. The ramifications of the “no” vote is still being studied by the city as staff and the council attempt to an- swer if they can still even remain financially viable — or be forced to disincorporate. They are reaching out to state representatives for help and expect answers to be clearer in the coming months. Finally, residents on the survey asked for better communication from the city with its residents. “We have a unique situation,” Mills said. “We don’t have our own newspaper, we don’t have our own radio station, we don’t have our own TV station. How do you communi- cate with residents?” She said that the city is looking into ways to communicate more fully with residents, either through “We have two top prior- the community, members, ities: one is to reach out to volunteers, fosterers and do- nors to reengage supporters with the shelter and the an- imals. And, two, is to work on improving the physical shelter … upgrading some areas that have simply aged and creating an isolation/in- take area so we can manage the flow of incoming ani- Tim Sapp mals,” he said. Owner / Curran is confident the Principal Broker staff members currently in 1025 Royal St Georges Dr – Lovely 3 bdrm 541 999-8230 place at the OCHS shelter home in gated golf course community, excel- are dedicated to the animals lent condition. Beautiful kitchen with 2 ovens, convection microwave, granite tile tops, pull- under their care and be- out spice rack, and walk-in pantry. Private lieves the rumors and con- backyard with large patio and a hot tub. troversies surrounding the $426,000. #2930-19322885 organization’s treatment of 1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200 its animals are a thing of the Director from page 1A Let me Showcase your property. social media or other means. There was one glaring issue with survey: Only nine people actually took it. “Unfortunately, with only nine surveys returned, it doesn’t give us a real sense of what the community is thinking,” Orr said. Wells shared his thoughts about the low turnout at a city council meeting later that night. “We sent out a couple hundred of those,” he said. “When we make decisions, those nine people have a little more say in what needs to be done for the city. It’s an opportunity that’s being missed. You throw out the septic issue or the marijuana issue, it’s hard to get into the door here.” But otherwise, turnout and en- gagement is low. “We had an opportunity to meet with our state Rep. Caddy McKe- own and our state Sen. Arnie Ro- blan. It was pretty well advertised that we were going to have the meeting here, but there were about 10 people there,” Wells continued. “It was a great opportunity for peo- ple to bend the ears of people who have the power to do stuff for our city. You need to be involved all the time if you want the city to run smooth.” When the city does get people past. “The staff here are all ani- mal lovers that are doing the best they can, every day, to take the best care of the an- imals. This is a great team, that cares greatly about the animals here, and I am con- fident that the animals here are receiving the attention and care they need,” he said. Curran has started on the development of a plan to im- prove the living spaces for the animals at OCHS and to create a more inviting and useful intake area for lost or abandoned animals. In addition, the need to isolate strays from the gen- eral shelter population is an- to get involved, especially when it comes to committees such as the Planning Commission, it can be difficult to get people involved. “The biggest problem for the planning commission is keeping members, and secondly members showing up when they do meet,” Mills said. “They have to have a quorum to do business.” At the end of the meeting, an au- dience member questioned what the city was doing to bring more money in through growing businesses and building new housing. “The city’s comprehensive plan was developed to prohibit develop- ment, prohibit commercial devel- opment and to decrease growth,” Mills said. “That’s the way it was written and voted on by the people. I don’t know what would happen now. Things do change. But that is the first step, you have to change the whole attitude of the people that live here.” Orr agreed, saying, “We had a meeting recently where the gener- al perception was, we don’t want Dunes City to grow. It was designed to be rural and not embrace growth. We would need to find out if the cit- izens have a different perspective.” “It may be time to do that,” Mills said. other priority. A renovation of the entrance area to the facility is also high on his list of things to do. Over the years, there have been some negative ramifi- cations created by the hos- tilities between previous OCHS boards and OCHS members, at times resulting in shouting and eventually culminating in police pres- ence at the organization’s board meetings. Curran is determined those types of exchanges will not reoccur under his watch. He is also hopeful that dis- enchanted former OCHS members will attend next week’s meeting to talk with him and discuss any linger- ing concerns they may have. “The key thing to get out is that we are working real- ly hard to make the humane society the best it can be, and if anyone has any questions or concerns, they should contact me directly,” he said. “OCHS is doing great work and I am excited to be join- ing the team to expand and amplify our services in our community. I’m committed to this role and am excited to roll up my sleeves and get started.” For more information about OCHS, visit www. oregoncoasthumanesociety. org. See Jim for your auto sales needs! 2150 Hwy. 101 • Florence (541) 997-3475 • 1-800-348-3475 ? Thinking of Selling or Buying Real Estate? Do you have the following questions: How much is your property worth? What kinds of homes are in my price range? How much can I borrow? What is an Inspection? When do need an inspection? Annette Prater Broker- Licensed in Oregon with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Northwest Real Estate is sponsoring a: Meet & Greet Come and meet some of us that can help you understand what may be a few of the things involved when you want to buy or sell real Estate. Annette Prater - Broker with Berkshire Hathaway Maree Beers - Residential Loan Offi cer with Oregon Pacifi c Bank Brandon Carignan - Local Inspector and Contractor Date: Saturday, Feb. 23rd Time: 11am - 3pm Place: Florence Senior Center Door prizes while they last so come early Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Northwest Real Estate 1875 Hwy 101, Florence, OR 541-997-6000 Cell: 541-999-0179 aprater@bhhsnw.com An Independently owned and operated franchisee of BHH Affi liates, LLC.