Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (May 30, 2020)
SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020 | 5A RENTAL from page 1A has been damaged due to vehicles from the house driving on their property. “We’ve had these tran- sient renters park their big vehicles on our property. Trespassing over our yard,” they said. Even the Cloud Nine street sign has been stolen, though there is no direct evidence it was taken by the renters. “It’s hard for me to give directions with no street signs,” said Councilor Tom Mallen, who also lives next to Cloud Nine Road. “If I call the police, they’re not going to come,” Johnson said. “If I told the sheriff, they’re not going to come.” Dunes City has no po- lice force, instead relying on the Lane County Sher- iff ’s Office (LCSO) to keep the peace. However, LCSO is understaffed and over- stretched. As a result, noise nuisance calls can take hours to respond to — if at all. “I feel like I have no pro- tection and I’m concerned,” Johnson said. “It’s not just the number of people, and the noise and the trash. … All of the partying going on, I’m concerned about my safety. You can’t call anyone because the own- ers live in Washington, and management doesn’t live in Florence or Dunes City. Calling them has not been helpful at all.” Another neighbor echoed Johnson’s concerns. “We don’t know the na- ture of any of these folks that may be coming and going,” they said. “If it was a long-term rental, they would be a neighbor. But as it stands, they are not a neighbor. They are tran- sient people coming and going who nobody knows.” Del Riesenhuber, presi- dent of the Woahink Lake Association, expressed concerns about the envi- ronmental impact of the property. “My concern is that it appears this piece of prop- erty has been converted from residential property to commercial property,” he said. “My concern from Woahink Lake Associa- tion’s point of view is: Is this property up to stan- dards for its sewage sys- tem? … We need to worry about whether or not it is polluting our lake.” Dunes City has been aware of the issue for the past month and has been investigating. “We have received a re- sponse — not the property owner but the company,” said City Administrator Ja- mie Mills, who also works as the code enforcement officer. “I will be entering my order, and it may in- clude fines and penalties and that kind of thing. That will move forward. If they choose to appeal that order, it will be appealed to the city council.” But despite the calls to owners and management, the activities have contin- ued. “This has been nonstop,” Johnson said. “The dogs are chasing the deer into the yard and the woods. Our house on the lake wasn’t a short-term rental when we purchased it. Frankly, we wouldn’t have purchased it if it was.” Councilor Duke Wells said he has visited the area on multiple occasions since the complaints have begun. “At one time, I saw eight cars, one boat trailer and one dune buggy trailer,” he said. “If there was an emergency, there would be no getting out. I don’t know how much I can say about these letters, but all I can say is that the response from the property owner is unacceptable, and the at- titude and response of the property manager is unac- ceptable.” While the city is still working with the property managers, the council and staff looked at what could be done on a broader scale for short-term rental prop- erties as a whole. Jan and Greg Murphy, who run a local Airbnb on their property, were sur- prised by the behavior of the Cloud Nine residence. “We’ve never had any problems like this,” Greg said. “Clearly the people who are in charge of that property, or properties with issues, are not doing their jobs. Our Airbnb is on the same property as us, so we’re present. And we don’t allow more than four people. And we’re here to enforce rules.” Jan added that their rent- al agreement stipulates that there should be no noise after 9:30 p.m. “We have family proper- ty on Woahink that’s been in the family since before Dunes City existed,” said Von Helmuth, who also rents out his property for short-term rentals. While he currently lives in Idaho, “This has been for a lim- ited number of people, no people during COVID and no dogs. We want to keep the property in the family. We don’t want Dunes City ruined by unscrupulous property managers either.” Helmuth suggested that Faith – Friendship - Fellowship – Fun CHURCH DIRECTORY To include your organization in this directory, please call us @ 541-997-3441 THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS 2705 Munsel Lake Rd, Services 10 AM Sunday All are welcome! 541-999-1979. Bishop Larry Farnsworth FOURSQUARE CHURCH 1624 Highway 101 (next to A&W) –- 997-6337 Pastor George Pagel – Something for the entire family. Sun. Services: 10:45 a.m., Wed. Bible Study 6pm-7pm Website:florence4square.com COMMUNITY BAPTIST CHURCH 4590 Hwy. 101, Across from Fred Meyer –- 997-7418 Sunday School, 9:30a.m. – Worship, 10:45 Wed. Prayer - 6:00 p.m. – Wed. Ministries 1-8 Grade 7 p.m. NEW LIFE LUTHERAN CHURCH, E.L.C.A. 21st & Spruce Street – 997-8113 Pastor Rachel Simonson – All are welcome Sermons are on YouTube at https://youtu.be/jcTJVWp_6ps. www.florencenewlife Lutheran.org CROSS ROAD ASSEMBLY OF GOD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF THE SIUSLAW Corner of 10th & Maple –997-3533 3996 N Hwy 101 997-7136 We will be live streaming from Traditional Worship Service 10:00 a.m. , Facebook at 10am Sunday morning. Reverend Greg Wood Link to our website Worship services and all group meetings https://www.florencecrossroadag.org/church-online in the church have been temporarily All other platforms will be update after the service. suspended at least until the end of March. florencecrossroadag.org Our 10am Sunday worship service will be available office@florencecrossroadag.org via Zoom using your phone, tablet or computer. FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH - SBC Church members and friends will be called 1935 25th St. – 997-7660 • Pastor, Ron Allen this week and given phone in/logon information. Services on Facebook live You can also call the church office for this Sunday’s at 11:00 am information. Wednesday’s at 6:00 pm All Welcome. Come as you are. All Bible studies held at the church including Sunday morning, Thursday Ladies study, and RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS (QUAKERS) Children’s Programs are suspended. “War is still not the answer.” FCNL Blessings on you and your family. Since we meet in homes, we are taking a mindful pause. Call 997-4237 or 902-9511 for information. FLORENCE CHRISTIAN CHURCH RESURRECTION LUTHERAN CHURCH, 2nd & Ivy – 997-2961 –Non-Denominational L.C.M.S. Services suspended this week. We will continue Every Sun., Bible Class 9 a.m., Worship Service 10 a.m. to meet as The Church through our Community 85294 Hwy. 101 S. – 997-8038 Groups. We are working on options for you and will DVD of Weekly worship service available. communicate that with you soon. Pastor Randy Benscoter FLORENCE CHURCH OF CHRIST ST. ANDREW’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH Pre-Denominational (Romans 16:16) 2135 19th St. –- 997-6600 1833 Tamarack Street 8:30am, Tuesdays, Morning Prayer (2 blocks east of Hwy. 101 on 18th St.) Sunday Services: 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. - Wed, 11 a.m. Bible Study: Sunday 10 a.m.; Worship: Sunday 11 a.m. Everyone Welcome – Come walk our Labyrinth. www.churchofchristflorence.org FLORENCE CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE 12th and Nopal – 997-9020 Services will be available via YouTube. Follow the link at http://florencenaz.church/ RESCUE from page 1A were not available as of press time. Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue, a member of WL- FEA, applauded the team effort, which required close communication and coor- dination to accomplish the challenging rescue. “As always, when it’s time to help, we come together as a single entity. It was a good rescue,” said Training Officer Pete Warren. Station Siuslaw River stated, “A special thanks to all of our partner agencies in this well-orchestrated rescue.” Afterwards, Florence Mayor Joe Henry said, “Hats off to Coast Guard Station Siuslaw River and the other agencies that participated. We are very blessed to have you guard- ing our river and coastline. We are very proud to be a Coast Guard City.” “While our assets transit- ed to the scene, three of the four stranded people were assisted to safety, leaving one person who was unable to make the transit safely and needed to be removed with rescue assistance,” re- ported Station Siuslaw Riv- er. After assessing the scene, the decision was made to launch a Rescue Helicopter from Newport, supported by U.S. Coast Guard Sec- tor North Bend. Once on scene, the aircraft safely lowered a rescue swimmer to assess the condition of the patient, and then con- ducted a basket hoist of the patient and transferred him to the beach to be assessed by awaiting paramedics. The individuals rescued were not identified and specifics of the incident Siuslaw News + Let me Showcase your property. Amy Johnson Broker, CSA 541 999-7875 FLORENCE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST 4445 Hwy 101 (South of Fred Meyer) – 997-3951 Worship on Saturday 10:30 A.M. Adult/Children’s Sabbath School 9:15 A.M. FLORENCE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 2nd & Kingwood • (541) 997-6025 Link to Sunday services at www.florenceunitedmethodist.org or find us on Facebook. ence in that aspect. Take it up with that individual or that property owner. Make them accountable.” However, Dunes City is limited in its capacity to enforce code, as it has no agreement with a munic- ipal court judge to hear cases regarding code en- forcement infractions. To be able to do that, Dunes City would have to amend its charter, which requires a city-wide vote. In 2016, the city did put the question to residents in a measure Mayor Rob- ert Forsythe called “criti- cal to the existence of our city,” but residents voted it down. That has restricted the legal authority of the city, which can often see code citations be delayed, or ignored altogether by residents. The council instructed Mills to draft an ordinance as a jumping off point to have a more informed discussion on short-term rental restrictions. “I think in drafting that ordinance, we need to consider what we heard tonight from those people who are already in Airb- nb property,” Mallen said. “It seems to be the one common denominator that they have in making them successful, is that their management com- panies are local. At least I get that impression. And I think part of the ordinance needs to be that the man- agement company needs to be local. They need to be checked out, they need to be responsive and have a track record of that. We sure need to do something about that.” Forsythe agreed with the need to discuss the issue further, saying, “I expect that Jamie goes out, gathers up as much information as she can. We can get infor- mation from coastal towns like ours up and down the coast that allow regulations and present that to us in the next meeting.” SAINT MARY, OUR LADY OF THE DUNES CATHOLIC CHURCH 1.5 miles south of river on Hwy 101 – 997-2312 COVID-19 Compliant Masses have been scheduled. Please call our office for details. FLORENCE EVANGELICAL CHURCH 1318 Rhododendron Dr. • 541-997-2523 Sunday Service 11am ( Children Sunday School) Mid-Week Activities, all ages. FLORENCE UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST FELLOWSHIP 87738 Hwy 101 at Heceta Beach Road All are welcome to explore the answer. In lieu of our regular service, we will be videotaping the sermon and have it available from YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UC1h3s3lhuRKRCXNxbF8H3Nw). www.FlorenceUUF.org - (541) 997.2840 the city look at possible regulations to preserve the quality of life for full time residents. “We would suggest that the council check out places like Bend or Lake Tahoe to see what does and doesn’t work,” he said. “We really believe there needs to be a limitation on num- bers of these short-term vacation rentals. It’s got to have some teeth.” One short-term rental property owner stated how a property they owned in California was met with a host of restrictions by the city. “They required a per- mit, for example,” they said. “That permit requires you show a site plan, and an emergency evacuation plan. And they told you how many people could be at your property on an overnight basis. Time peri- ods limited noise, and you were also required to have an inspection and they would provide you with a list of what needed to be inspected.” But Rich Olson, who owns Darlings Resort and Marina, cautioned against heavy restrictions. “I would just say that Airbnb has been good for our business,” he said. “To limit the tools, especially when businesses are having a hard time struggling to stay afloat — it eliminates the avenues for businesses to survive. If we want to look at doing something with B&Bs, let’s look at dealing with individuals on an individual basis. Don’t take it out on all of the people that use Airbnb as a tool to pay their proper- ty taxes for vacation homes and things of that nature.” Instead, Olson suggested that the city should focus on code enforcement. “It would be no different than an unruly neighbor being loud and obnoxious and dirty, throwing their garbage all over the place,” he said. “I don’t see a differ- Give us a call 541-997-3441 to get us your updates or email to: mberg@thesiuslawnews.com 89422 Laverdiere Ln – Dream property situated just feet from the edge of Mercer Lake! Privacy with your own dock and large manicured yard. Master suite on each level plus a 3rd bdrm, 3 baths, newer roof and furnace, double garage and views from almost every room. Room for RVs, 2 sheds and a fi re pit. $695,000. #3080- 20100352 1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200 FOLLOW US FOR THE LATEST NEWS /S IUSLAW N EWS @S IUSLAW N EWS T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM www.shoppelocal.biz