10A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL April 22, 2015
Creswell hopes it's chosen to host OSP
Concerning
Creswell
News and notes from our neighbor to the north
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
T
he Oregon State Police
may be coming to Cre-
swell, and city offi cials say
they’re thrilled with the possi-
bility.
City Administrator Michelle
Amberg told the City Council
on Monday, April 13 that the Or-
egon State Police may be inter-
ested in relocating their Spring-
fi eld Command Center to the
building that formerly housed
Ray’s Food Place in Creswell.
Amberg said the City re-
sponded to a request for propos-
als from OSP for a new location
between Coburg and Creswell.
The City worked with a private
developer to craft a proposal
for the Ray’s building, Amberg
said, a hulking structure of some
40,000 square feet that has been
shuttered since the grocery
chain closed many of its stores
in the area.
A public notice sent in late-
February alerted the City to
OSP’s desire to relocate and
listed several criteria for its new
location, criteria that folks in
Creswell think their City can
meet. These include a location
not more than 1.5 miles from
Interstate 5 with no major rail
crossing or stoplights nearby, a
location not jammed into a ma-
jor retail or residential center
that doesn’t have heavy pedes-
trian use. The new center would
reportedly house a forensics
lab, medical examiner’s offi ce,
shop space and parking for pa-
trol vehicles. Amberg said OSP
is seeking a 10-15 year lease
and told the City Council that
the agency would be required to
rent, adding that Creswell would
“get the full benefi t of all the
property taxes if the state would
move in there,” according to the
Creswell Chronicle. Amberg
photo by Jon Stinnett
Many in Creswell are hoping that a building that once
housed groceries can host the state police.
believes the move could create
at least 80 good-paying jobs for
the City.
“It really does fi t,” Am-
berg said. “We’re very hope-
ful, and we feel it would be
a great fi t for this region.”
Other offi cials seem to agree,
with East Lane County Com-
missioner Faye Stewart, Sher-
iff Tom Turner and Creswell’s
Chamber of Commerce crafting
letters of support as part of the
application process.
Amberg said she has heard
concerns that some in Creswell
would still like to see the former
Ray’s building house another
grocery store.
“Plenty of people would love
a grocery store in that location,”
she said. “But the building real-
ly is too big, and a lot of chains
have said that they’d rather be
located on the other side of I-5.
We’re hoping OSP coming into
that building might give another
chain the incentive to build a
new store here.”
CRESWELL BRIEFS
Sale space
available
Creswell Grange
Theatrical Event
Those with stuff to sell at the
Creswell City-Wide Yard Sale
who want a space that is secure
and inside, in case of rainy or
windy weather, the Creswell
Grange on West Oregon Ave.
has tables to rent for $10 per
table per day (one table for two
days at $20, two tables at two
days $40, etc.) Friday morning
set up will be at 7 a.m. The sale
times are Friday, May 8 from
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday,
May 9 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Grange will also be sell-
ing a taco lunch on both days
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
To reserve your table, call
Vickie at 541-895-3156.
Creswell Grange will host
London Grange and Crow
Grange on Saturday, April 25 at
7 p.m. All three Granges will
present a unique one-act play.
This free event is for every-
one. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.,
plays start at 7 p.m. in the up-
stairs hall. There will be snacks
served afterwards and donations
gladly accepted.
Door prizes will be free to
enter. Three of them will be
given away. There will also be
two raffl e boxes, with tickets at
50 cents each or 12 for $5. The
box of tools is worth over $100,
and the box of miscellaneous is
worth over $50. Some nice sur-
prises are in the boxes.
For more information, Call
Vickie at 541-895-3156.
!PPLIANCES s ,AWN 'ARDEN
EPUD grant to provide solar power for building
that houses Creswell food pantry
E
fforts to provide food as-
sistance to families in
the Creswell area got a boost
recently from a $40,000 grant
from the Emerald People Utili-
ties District (EPUD).
Susan Blachnik, manager of
Community Food for Creswell,
announced last week that agree-
ments have been signed between
that organization, EPUD and the
City of Creswell to accept the
GREEN grant from EPUD, add-
ing that a check was awarded to
the City and passed on to CFC
on Wednesday, April 15.
Blachnik said the funds will
be used to install a much an-
ticipated solar electric system
on the roof of the Cobalt Build-
ing, which serves as the pantry’s
headquarters. The
Creswell
Food Pantry serves about 165
area families per week, Blachnik
said, and customers are allowed
to shop from the entire pantry
once per month, with four ad-
ditional opportunities per year.
Food and fi nances are provided
for the Pantry by local individu-
als, area gardeners and farmers,
organizations, businesses, lo-
cal food drives, Food For Lane
County, the Oregon Food Bank
and Feeding America.
Blachnik explained that the
Food Pantry outgrew its 500-
square foot space within the
Creswell VFW Post in 2013.
They moved to the city-owned
courtesy photo
Representatives from EPUD presented the grant to
Community Food for Creswell on April 15. Pictured from
left to right are EPUD's Kyle Roadman, Susan Blachnik
of Community Food for Creswell, Rob Currier of EPUD,
Creswell City Administrator Michelle Amberg and food
pantry volunteer Kurt Blachnik.
Cobalt Building in late October
of 2013, quickly fi lling 2,000
square feet of the spacious 9,000
square foot site. Community
Food For Creswell applied for
and was awarded many grants
for building improvements and
equipment upgrades. A walk-
CLEARANCE EVENT
3 DAYS ONLY
Community Food for Creswell
applied for and was awarded the
fi rst-ever EPUD GREEN (Giv-
ing Renewable Energy to Em-
erald Neighborhoods) Grant in
the fall of 2014. The grant will
be used for the purchase and
installation of a 13.2 kW solar
electric system on the roof of
the city-owned Cobalt Building
and is expected to reduce the
electric expense by $1,200 per
year, perhaps more due to im-
provements in panels since last
fall. The Green Store will be in-
stalling the system over the next
one to two weeks.
Blachnik also pointed out
other developments at the Co-
balt Building. Multiple leaks in
its roof have been repaired, she
said, and the City of Creswell
has lengthened its lease agree-
ment to 10 years (from March 9,
2015) with a fi ve-year renewal,
which means the food pan-
try will have a secure location
through 2030.
Get an extra 10% off
All Clearance, Closeout, Reconditioned*,
and one-of-a-kind merchandise*
Sale Valid 4/23/15 thru 4/25/15 only
* while supplies last
'ATEWAY "LVD #OTTAGE 'ROVE
.EXT TO "I-ART /PEN DAYSWEEK
... shower her
with flowers on
prom night!
PRETTY
CORSAGES
Wrist or pin styles
in your choice of
flowers and colors.
FRESH ROSES
Individually
wrapped
or by the dozen.
in cooler and walk-in freezer,
a three-door cooler and three-
door freezer brought increased
storage of perishable foods, but
also a larger monthly electric
bill.
In an effort to reduce their
monthly electric bill expense,
Another dental visit?
Turns out, you have better things to do with
your time.
Together we’re
making a difference.
15 years – 100,000 strong!
Many thanks to our community of more than 100,000 customers,
including the business partners listed below, for stimulating renewable
energy development and paving the way for a more sustainable
future. We’re celebrating 15 years of Blue Sky SM customers who have
supported billions of kilowatt-hours of renewable energy to-date, which
is equivalent to taking 621,000 cars off the road. Join them today! Learn
more at pacifi cpower.net/bluesky or call 1-800-769-3717.
A OK Maintenance Janitorial
Kalapuya Books
Assist 2 Sell
Koratschenko Mystical Closet
ATA Blackbelt Academy
Penfold’s Beads and Things
Big Stuff Barbecue
Rally Coffee Company
City of Cottage Grove
South Lane School District 45
Cottage Grove
Sustainable Agricultural
Community Acupuncture
technology that allows for a faster experience when you need crowns,
fillings or veneers. With CEREC, there's usually no need for a temporary
Implants · Teeth Whitening · New State-of-the-Art Building
Dr. Brent Bitner, DDS
350 Washington, Cottage Grove
(behind Better Bodies)
942-7934
CEREC® is a registered trademark of Sirona Dental Systems.
© 2015 Pacific Power
and return visit. Everything is done in one visit, in about an hour -
leaving more time for whatever is important to you.
Umpqua Dairy
Family Relief Nursery
Wise Woman Herbals
Herb’s Automotive
A special thanks to Wise
Woman Herbals for their
recent Visionary level
support of Blue Sky.
Jim’s Tire Factory
We know your time is valuable. That's why we've invested in CEREC
Technologies, Inc.
Cottage Grove Sentinel