SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, JULY 31, 2021 | 3A Community News Backstreet Gallery features Anderson and Damon-Dawson in August “Living by Water” is the theme Kristin An- derson and Kathryn Da- mon-Dawson chose for their joint Featured Artist Exhibit at Backstreet Gal- lery during August. Fused glass artist An- derson came from her an- alytical engineering career to balance that left-brain activity with her creativity in working with glass. Per- haps her technical back- ground influences the geo- metric patterns that much of her work contains. Anderson is constantly using the gleaming quality of glass while she experi- ments with color, design and unique forms. In ad- dition, she often combines metal with her glass pieces. Whether it’s utilitarian or decorative, Anderson’s fused glass is unique. She creates angular vases, dec- orative plates and unusual bowls. Her dazzling jewel- ry pieces include pen- dants and br a c e l e t s that can enhance any outfit. For a spe- cial way to display your busi- ness cards or pho- tographs, consider her card- h o l d - ers and picture frames. Anderson is the pres- ident of the Florence Regional Arts Alliance (FRAA). She is also on the board of the Lane Coun- ty Cultural Coalition, which, through funding provided by the Oregon Cultural Trust, distributes grant funds each year in arts, heritage and human- ities providing support for cultural programs and projects throughout Lane County. Anderson has an inno- vative approach to leader- ship in financial expertise that she brings to Back- street and FRAA. As the Backstreet treasurer, she researched and updated systems for barcodes to ease sales procedures. She is also an award-win- ning blog writer—top Glass Art Blogs & Websites for Glass Artist. It is locat- ed at idlecreativity.word- paintings from over 3,000 cat- egorized images in her files. Many of these pho- tos have been gift- ed to her by her hu s b and, At Backstreet Gallery, featured artists Rand, and Kathryn Damon-Dawson’s osprey breaks p h o t o g - rules by the Port of Siuslaw and Kristin rapher Anderson’s fused glass gleams in green. Stephanie Ames. Damon-Dawson press.com/. Damon-Dawson is juxtaposes forms within an accomplished water- the picture frame, creating color painter and plati- stories open to the viewers’ num-award winner with interpretation. Birds with their unique the Watercolor Society of Oregon. This past year, she feather-patterns are her continued to create paint- favored characters. “Con- ings, adding 30 more to templation” depicts a Great her inventory that speak Blue Heron contemplating to the theme of life around a Japanese fishing float at its feet. “Osprey Rules” shows water. She photographs and an Osprey disagreeing with collects images of char- a Port of Siuslaw “No Div- acters and forms for her ing, No Fishing” sign. Fi- nally, “Hallelujah” weaves seven Sandhill Cranes to- gether in celebratory song. Damon-Dawson also enjoys the challenge of painting people actively in- volved in life. “Hard Day’s Work” colorfully captures two dockworkers, off-load- ing and scrubbing crabbing gear. “Discovery” portrays a girl in her summer dress exploring beach debris. In a setting of old-growth trees and Siltcoos Lake, Da- mon-Dawson’s studio pro- vides privacy, inspiration and space to work. She is a founding member of Back- street Gallery — created in 2005 — and is current- ly Membership Chair. She has facilitated membership of five new members since January 2021. Find both artists at www. backstreetgallery.org and 1421 Bay St. in Historic Old Town Florence. Backstreet Gallery is open daily ex- cept Tuesday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. City gives Quince Street Development Update Garage Sale Fri. 07/30 & Sat. 07/31 8am-3pm 4936 S. Loftus Rd, Household, Men’s stuff, collectables, books, records, glassware, beer signs and more. 7/28-8/1 & 8/5-8/8 10am-5pm 6563 Highway 126 (Across from Siuslaw Marina) Books, Bedding, Kitchen, Yard. Something for everybody. Fri-Sat, 7/30 & 7/31 9am-4pm 13225 Highway 36, Swisshome Tools & Misc. Too much to mention. Next weekend 2-Family Garage Sale Aug 6 & 7th 9am-? 1991 Willow LP. Collectibles, Kitchenware, household items, vacuum. TheSiuslawNews.com At its meeting on Wednesday, July 28, the Florence Urban Renewal Agency (FURA) received an update from staff re- lated to the Quince Street development progress. The FURA Board had previous- ly entered into an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with Sycan B. Corp./ Merete’ Hotel Management as a result of the Requests for Expressions of Interest solicitation in 2020. That ENA, and its subsequent extension authorized on May 26, 2021, expired on July 1. Unfortunately, Sycan no- tified the FURA staff that they would not be pursu- ing the project further and therefore did not request further extensions of the ENA. Subsequent to the exe- cution of the ENA, on Jan. 13, the agency authorized the use of $44,000 in agen- cy funds for “critical path” due diligence activities, at the request of Sycan. These activities included an ALTA survey, a geotechnical sur- vey and analysis, and a ho- tel market feasibility analy- sis. Since the FURA Board funded these reports, they are the property of FURA and remain essential for fu- ture development. Of note, the hotel market feasibility report indicated strong demand for addi- tional lodging in Florence. Next Steps After discussion by the FURA Board, it was deter- mined that any unsolicited proposals for development of the Quince Street prop- erty would be accepted at least through Aug. 31, 2021. The board reactivat- ed the Selection Advisory Committee to review any proposals that may be re- ceived during that time. Any developers inter- ested in submitting a pro- posal should review the information outlining the Board’s objectives for the development offering and follow the criteria outlined in the previously published Request for Expressions of Interest. For questions related to the project, prospective developers are encouraged to contact Assistant City Manager Megan Messmer at megan.messmer@ci. florence.or.us. The previously pub- lished Request for Ex- pressions of Interest is available on the FURA website at www.ci.flor- ence.or.us/urbanrenewal/ quince-street-request-ex- pressions-interest. If FURA receives pro- posals prior to Aug. 31, the Selection Advisory Com- mittee will meet with staff to review. The full FURA Board would then meet for review of staff recommen- dations. If FURA does not receive any unsolicited proposals, staff will bring recommen- dations to the board for a second Request for Ex- pression of Interest to in- clude reaffirmation of the development objectives, a structured timeline, and a streamlined process in order to continue the mo- mentum of the agency. Project Background In 2018, the agency pur- chased the 13.4-acre pre- vious site of the Siuslaw Middle School, located directly across from the Florence Events Center on Quince St., from a private development company that had owned the properties since the early 2000s. Since purchasing this property, the agency moved toward a strategy for development of the Quince Street site for a hotel in order to support the Florence Events Center in being more marketable for out-of-area events, and to increase property val- ues and transient room tax revenue to support future housing and economic de- velopment efforts of the agency and the community. For more information about the Quince Street development and the Florence Urban Renewal agency decision, visit the Florence Urban Renew- al agency’s Quince Street Property Development project page at www.ci.flor ence.or.us/urbanrenewal/ qu i nc e - st re e t - prop e r- ty-development or con- tact Messmer at 541-997- 3437 or megan.messmer@ ci.florence.or.us. EcoGeneration Recycling Take Back Another EcoGeneration Recycling Take Back plastic event is scheduled for Sun- day, Aug. 1, at the Siuslaw Middle School pavilion. The event starts at 11 a.m. with the first hour being designated for the elderly and disabled. The general public is encouraged to bring their recyclables between noon SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY JULY 31 AUGUST 1 AUGUST 2 AUGUST 3 Partly Cloudy Mostly Cloudy Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy 69°F 55°F 69°F 53°F 70°F 52°F 69°F 51°F and 2 p.m. Ecogeneration.org has specific information on how to prepare your recy- clables and what products are accepted. 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