COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL August 26, 2015
Humane Society's
spay/neuter program
marks 15 years
Square Dance
Barn renovation
continues
Program has covered
procedures for over 1000
cats, 700-plus dogs
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
T
he outside of the barn may look a
little worse for wear, but inside, the
transformation is ongoing.
One look at the exterior of the Boots
and Sandals Square Dance Barn on 10th
Street in Cottage Grove may be enough to
convince anyone that the building has seen
better days, but Faye Stewart knows better.
The Faye and Lucille Stewart Foundation
purchased the building from the Boots and
Sandals Square Dance Club in December
of 2014, and since its purchase, its reno-
vations have continued — sometimes with
evident progress, and sometimes not so
much.
“We submitted plans for repairs, but the
City wanted more in-depth plans, and that
took a lot more work and a lot more time,”
Stewart said.
Upon its purchase, Stewart estimated a
cost of around $100,000 and four to six
months of repairs to refurbish the barn,
which has hosted local events since the
1950s but has seen little use since structural
shortcomings prompted the Square Dance
Club to discontinue its use. The Club sub-
sequently struggled to fi nd funding for the
repairs, and Stewart said the Foundation
purchased it for community use in light of
the fate that recently befell another iconic
local barn — the Dr. Pierce Barn, which
was dismantled by its owner.
“It reminded me of the situation with the
Dr. Pierce Barn,” he said. “It looked like, if
somebody wasn’t going to step up, the club
was having to consider tearing it down.”
Stewart said the interior walls in the
main downstairs room of the Square Dance
Barn were covered in material meant to
T
photo by Jon Stinnett
Faye Stewart said he hopes that renovations on the Boots and Sandals
Square Dance Barn are completed this fall.
dampen sound and some insulation, which
also worked to hide deep rot and aging in
its structure.
Upon entering the barn, those who re-
member its previous condition might now
recognize three new beams holding up its
second fl oor, a system of support designed
by local architectural fi rm Geomax.
“They had to design a whole new
support system,” Stewart said. “It was
the most economical repair; other-
wise, we might have had no other op-
tion but to tear the building down.”
According to Stewart, the added costs un-
covered in the renovation process could
have proven quite prohibitive for someone
without substantial resources.
“If somebody else had purchased it and
gone through what we went through, if
they’d realized they were going to have to
produce an extra $75,000 or so, it could
have been quite a hardship,” he said.
But with many of the major structural
repairs now out of the way, Stewart said
construction should be on track for com-
pletion this fall.
“We’re feeling good,” he said. “It’s to
the point where we can really start moving
with electrical and plumbing. Things will
move quickly now.”
Which should be good news for the lo-
cal organizations that hope to one day call
the barn home.
“I still believe we’re on track to host the
Gold Mining Museum and the Historical
Society,” Stewart said. “They’re itching to
get in here.”
Upstairs, repairs are also taking place
quickly, and the space is set to host several
offi ces and a conference room in addition
to the dance studio that should one day be
used by South Lane Ballet Academy. Stew-
art said the ballet school hoped to move
into the barn by Sept. 1 but signed another
lease at its current location when the barn
wasn’t completed on schedule.
But whoever uses the barn in the future,
Stewart said he’s most happy that it will
remain in the community.
“Our intent was to restore it and keep it
here,” he said. “A lot of people would like
to see it in use again, and it’s in a great
location across from Bohemia Park. It has
a lot of good use left in it yet.”
Planning begins for 90th anniversary of 'The General'
P
reliminary plans are un-
derway to mark the an-
niversary of one of Cottage
Grove’s major milestones in the
world of fi lm.
Last week, the City of Cottage
Grove announced that Mayor
Tom Munroe, Chamber of Com-
merce Executive Director Travis
Palmer, fi lm and Buster Keaton
buff Lloyd Williams and City
Manager Richard Meyers met
3A
with Tim Williams of the Or-
egon Film Offi ce, Doug White
from the Hollywood Theater
in Portland and Erik Johnson,
Economic Development Direc-
tor from Pacifi c Power, to dis-
cuss the 90th anniversary of the
Hollywood Theater and 90th
Anniversary of “The General,”
a cinematic masterpiece fi lmed
in and around Cottage Grove in
1926.
The year 2016 will mark the
90th anniversary of the theater
and the release of Keaton’s “The
General,” now considered one
of the best fi lms of all time.
The fi lm was inspired by the
“Great Locomotive Chase,”
which took place during the
Civil War in 1862. “The Gen-
eral” was poorly received by
audiences and was a disappoint-
ment at the box offi ce, though
THANK YOU TO THESE
SPONSORS, ORGANIZATIONS
AND VOLUNTEERS FOR A
SUCCESSFUL 2015 FAIR!
American Red Cross
Andy Woodard/Kcw Properties
Cottage Grove Community Medical Center
Cottage Grove Community Development Department
Cottage Grove Emergency Management
Cottage Grove Police Department
Deployed Logix
Emerald People’s Utility District/Epud
Isaac Sanger
Kenny Fuller
Lane County Emergency Management
Lane County Public Health
Lane County Search And Rescue
Lane County Sheriff ’s Department
Life Flight Network
Luke Bennett
Monique Sayles
Pacifi c Power
Peace Health
Tristan Fuller
South Lane Amateur Radio Association/Aers
South Lane County Fire And Rescue District
Stacy Solomon/Stacy’s Covered Bridge Restaurant
Stove Tec
COTTAGE GROVE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT RAFFLE WINNER: THE WINNER OF
THE 72-HOUR KIT, INCLUDING THE BRAND NEW STOVE FROM STOVE TEC WAS
MICHAEL FARRELL OF COTTAGE GROVE. CONGRATULATIONS MICHAEL!
its worth has since been reevalu-
ated.
It tells the tale of Johnnie Gray
(Keaton), who attempts to enlist
in the Confederate army before
Union spies steal the train carry-
ing his love, Annabelle.
The group discussed ideas and
possible promotions to celebrate
the history of both the theater in
Portland and the fi lming of “The
General” in Cottage Grove.
he Humane Society of
Cottage Grove is cel-
ebrating a milestone for one of
its key programs.
Representative Janetta Over-
holser stated that the Humane
Society’s Low Income Spay/
Neuter Assistance Program,
which works to help reduce the
number of unwanted pets in the
community, turns 15 years old
this month.
The program started in Au-
gust of 2000 and serves low-in-
come residents of South Lane
and North Douglas counties.
Since its inception, Overholser
said the program has fi nancially
assisted with the cost of spay-
ing/neutering 1,103 cats and
731 dogs. The Humane Society
has spent $80,127.29 on this
program, which Overholser said
has prevented the birth of thou-
sands of unwanted puppies and
kittens.
She pointed out that a female
dog can have 2-3 litters a year,
and a cat can have 4-5 litters a
year.
“Considering that a female
dog and cat can have their fi rst
litter by 6-7 months of age (ba-
bies having babies), and have
many offspring – some dogs
have well over a dozen off-
spring, and a cat can have up to
eight or nine young in one litter,
one can realize how vitally im-
portant it is to have them altered
to reduce the pet overpopulation
problem,” Overholser said.
The Humane Society utilizes
a number of veterinary clinic
options for its programs, includ-
ing Creswell Veterinary Hospi-
tal, which Overholser said just
performed its 300th service for
HSCG.
Friday's Art Walk
going 'Freestyle'
Live music at
All-America City
Square, portraiture
on tap
C
ottage Grove’s Downtown
Art Walk series contin-
ues with a “freestyle” theme
this Friday, Aug. 28 from 6-8
p.m. Participating downtown
businesses can be spotted by a
yellow “Art Walk” fl ag on their
premises.
Artistic offerings on tap for the
evening include the portraiture
of artist James Hodson and
guitar stylings of Michael Rose
on Main Street. Marilyn Wilber
of Ant Farm Textiles will be
stationed in front of Pandora’s
Box, and “Restless Souls,” a
Cottage Grove-based acoustic
rock four-piece featuring Don
and Carrie Woolsey and Sean
and Jared Alls, will perform at
All-America City Square.
Other offerings include:
Delight — Bronze sculpture
and youth art
Apple Pie Antiques — Barbara
Anheluk, vintage shadow boxes
Kalapuya Books — Hannah
Brown, acrylic paintings
Imagine It Framed — Pam
Dennis, acrylic paintings, live
music
The Crafty Mercantile
— Dani Clark and Heather
Pennington, mixed media
Opal Center for Arts and Edu-
cation — theater production of
“The Illiad, the Odyssey, and
all of Greek Mythology in 99
minutes or Less,” 7:30 p.m.;
$10
The Bookmine — Arlene Tad-
dei, folk art; Michelle Avanti,
paintings, books and jewelry
E
R
O
T
S
E
R
NOW OPEN EVERY
SATURDAY
T UESDAY -S ATURDAY
10 AM -4 PM
We need volunteers for the
ReStore ~ a few hours
each month! Will you help?
Habitat Offi ce and Warehouse
2155 Getty Circle ~ Unit #1
in the Cottage Grove Industrial Park
South on Hwy 99 past the High School
S
N
O
I
T
A
DON
S
AL WAY !
ME
O
C
L
E
W
Call 541.767.0358
for more information
Email
info@habitatcg.org