COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL October 14, 2015
City kennel
called 'hugely
successful'
City, public talk
traffi c at open house
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
T
he reasons they fi nd themselves in
police custody vary, but most eventu-
ally fi nd their way home.
A four-run dog kennel at the City of Cot-
tage Grove’s shop property was built in
2014 and began housing dogs in late Janu-
ary; previously, the City paid a daily fee
to Forest Valley Veterinary Clinic to house
the animals after they were picked up, but
the change to the City kennel has been
described as “hugely successful” by City
Manager Richard Meyers.
According to Meyers, the City has housed
56 dogs at the kennel, 47 of which have
courtesy photo
been reunited with their people. Six dogs This photo compilation shows some of the dogs that have been housed at
were delivered to the First Avenue Shelter
the City of Cottage Grove kennel. So far, the kennel had housed 56 dogs by
the end of last week, most of which had been reunited with their people.
Please see KENNEL, Page 9A
Local musician hopes song can aid healing
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
A
s students at Roseburg’s
Umpqua
Community
College return to class this
week following the mass shoot-
ing that left nine dead and nine
injured on its campus on Oct.
1, concerned citizens in Cot-
tage Grove continue to lend
their time, resources and talents
in efforts to the aid the healing
process.
On Sunday evening, the Axe
& Fiddle Pub hosted an open
microphone benefi t for victims
of the tragedy, which saw 30
percent of the pub’s proceeds,
funds raised from a silent auc-
tion and other donations com-
piled for donations to UCC
aid charities. The benefi t also
featured a performance by Ron
O’Keefe and wife Patti Hardy,
which included a rendition of
O’Keefe’s original song, “After-
math,” penned in response to the
Thurston High School shootings
in 1997.
“Sadly, it is still relevant to-
day,” O’Keefe said, adding that
he hopes the song “can help fa-
cilitate dialog that can broaden
understanding and eventually
start the healing process.”
O’Keefe’s lyrics deal with a
community’s attempt to seek
solutions to a problem that has
gone on for too long:
“Should a campus be a cell-
block, with wardens at school?
A teacher, a leader or played
for a fool?
We’ve got to cherish the chil-
dren, husband and wife
“Cause it’s slippin’ away, our
value on life.”
O’Keefe is hoping to share
the song with local students that
can add their own visual ele-
ments to the song and create a
music video. “Aftermath” can
be accessed by searching “Ron
O’Keefe” in iTunes.
In addition to serving as a lo-
cal youth advocate for over 40
years, O’Keefe’s mellow voice
has become a fi xture in Cot-
tage Grove. He’s no stranger to
topical tunes, having recently
shared a song entitled “End this
Drought: A song to lift our voic-
es and spirits” with the hope
that other local groups would
interpret the song with their
own styles.
Historic renovation grants available
T
he Cottage Grove His-
toric Landmarks Com-
mission announces the opening
of applications for the annual
Historic Renovation Grant Pro-
gram, which is designed to as-
sist downtown business and
property owners with needed
historic renovations. The Com-
mission has $5,000 to distribute
this winter in matching grants of
up to $2,500, depending on the
scope of the project.
This is the fi fth year of this
grant program. Prior recipi-
ents have included the Cottage
Grove Hotel (new awning),
Burkholder Woods (corbel re-
pair), Mortier building (Coca
Cola mural, masonry repair),
802 E. Main Street (new stucco,
roof repair), the Bookmine (aw-
ning and siding repair), and the
First National Bank (masonry
cleaning, windows repair).
The Historic Landmarks
Commission will make these
funds available to Downtown
Historic District property own-
ers or tenants who want to make
improvements or perform main-
tenance on the exterior of their
building.
Projects must meet the Secre-
tary of Interior’s Standards for
Rehabilitation to qualify. Also,
project work plans must be ap-
proved by the Historic Land-
marks Commission and the
State Historic Preservation Of-
fi ce before work may begin.
Applications must be sub-
WELLNESS BOOTHS
TO VISIT
HEALTH SCREENING
HEALTH & WELLNESS
SPEAKERS & DEMON-
STRATIONS
COTTAGE GROVE
HEALTH
& WELLNESS
FAIR
DOOR PRIZES & GIVE
AWAYS
OCTOBER 19TH 2015
FROM 4PM TO 8PM
AT THE
COTTAGE GROVE
BIBLE CHURCH
1200 East Quincy
Cottage Grove
FIND OUT ABOUT
LOCAL HEALTH &
WELLNESS SERVICES
AVAILABLE TO YOU
FREE
ADMIS
SION
mitted by Nov. 1, 2015. Work
must be completed (and receipts
turned in) by June 30, 2016.
Those interested in applying
are asked to contact the Com-
munity Development Depart-
ment at 541-942-3340 for more
information. Applications and
grant program guidelines are
available at www.cottagegrove.
org or from the Community
Development Department, City
Hall, 400 E. Main Street.
Transportation
System Plan details
traffi c needs for the
next 20 years
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
I
s a roundabout the best
solution to traffi c issues at
the intersection of the Cottage
Grove Connector and Highway
99?
City Planner Amanda Fer-
guson said the answer may be
yes, though a traffi c feature that
doesn’t get much attention in the
U.S. is still a foreign concept to
many. Ferguson and other City
staff fi elded this and similar
questions at an open house to
detail the City’s Transportation
System Plan on Tuesday, Oct. 6,
which drew a little more than a
dozen attendees. Those who at-
tended often chose to weigh in
on specifi c projects, Ferguson
said.
The plan includes recommen-
dations to augment the City’s
transportation system over the
next 20 years, which Ferguson
said particularly concerns de-
velopments in the City’s Ur-
Fire restriction
eased, though fi re
season remains in
effect
The recent rain has allowed
the Douglas Forest Protective
Association to reduce fi re re-
strictions on the Douglas Dis-
trict, but they say that fi re sea-
son remains in effect. Effective
Oct. 11, DPFA reduced the fi re
danger to “moderate” on all
DFPA protected land, and the
Industrial Fire Precaution Level
remains at IFPL 1. DFPA’s Pub-
lic Use Restrictions have been
modifi ed and now only restrict
open fi res:
Open fi res are prohibited,
including campfi res, charcoal
fi res, cooking fi res and warming
ban Growth Boundary. Also
among these projects is a slew
of improvements to the corridor
between the Woodson Bridge
on River Road and Exit 174 of
Interstate 5, improvements that
include new sidewalks, plans to
widen the CG Connector bridge,
replacing the crosswalk at Geer
Avenue, infi lling sidewalks ad-
jacent to Highway 99, reducing
part of Highway 99 from four
lanes to three and adding bike
lanes. Ferguson said the im-
provements carry an estimated
cost of $3 million. She added
that the City is applying for
non-competitive grant funding
from the Oregon Department of
Transportation for its 2018-21
grant cycle to plan the project.
“This is exciting,” Ferguson
said. “It’s rare that a document
like this can be a vehicle for real
work and real results.”
The Transportation System
Plan can be viewed at cottage-
grovetsp.org, and those who
wish to comment on it can do so
online or at the Community De-
velopment Department at City
Hall. The fi nal draft of the plan
will be reviewed by the Cottage
Grove Planning Commission
at an upcoming meeting, likely
Nov. 18.
fi res, except at designated loca-
tions. Portable cooking stoves
using liquefi ed or bottled fuels
are allowed elsewhere.
In addition to DFPA’s Public
Use Restrictions, the use of ex-
ploding targets, tracer ammuni-
tion, and sky lanterns remains
prohibited under state law while
fi re season is in effect.
Fire offi cials saw as warm,
dry conditions return to the area
this week, forest fuels will dry
out and will once again be sus-
ceptible to fi re. Forest users
are asked to use caution when
working or recreating in wild-
land areas to prevent human
caused fi res.
For a complete list of public
or industrial fi re restrictions cur-
rently in effect, visit www.dfpa.
net or call DFPA’s 24 hour infor-
mation line at (541) 672-0379.
In
Honor
of All
Veterans
The Cottage Grove Sentinel is preparing to publish its
“Proud to Have Served,” a special section devoted to all military
veterans who are Cottage Grove-area residents or have a connec-
tion to this area.
If you are interested in sharing your military story in the annu-
al Veterans Day publication, or in updating information that we
have published previously, please complete the form below and
submit it to the Cottage Grove Sentinel. Service photographs are
also welcome.
Submit forms and photos (preferably) by e-mail to
cgnews@cgsentinel.com; or by mail to Cottage Grove Sentinel,
Attn: Jon Stinnett, PO Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424; or drop
forms off at the Cottage Grove Sentinel, 116 6th Street, Cottage
Grove.
Please be sure that all materials are carefully labeled with your
name and phone number. ALL FORMS AND PHOTOGRAPHS
MUST BE SUBMITTED BY OCTOBER 26, 2015.
Thank you for participating in this project to remember and
honor our veterans.
Name: ____________________________________________________________________________
Contact Phone Number: ______________________________________________________________
Branch of Service: __________________________________________________________________
Rank Achieved (optional): ____________________________________________________________
Dates Served: ______________________________________________________________________
Where did you serve? ________________________________________________________________
“BUILDING A HEALTHY
COMMUNITY”
Bring a non-perishable food item to
the event for the Community Sharing
Program and receive an extra ticket
for the many great door prizes!
SPONSORED BY:
GROVE MEDICAL
EQUIPMENT
541-225-5443
________________________________________________________________________________
Special Information (E.G., POW): ______________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
Has your veterans information been published previously in the Cottage Grove Sentinel Veterans Publication?
Get your fl u shot at Bi-Mart on the
day of the event and receive an extra
ticket for the many great door prizes!
(must have proof of fl u shot)
3A
THE CARE GIVER
NETWORK
541-942-3108
YES
NO
Do we have your military photo(s) on file? YES
NO
(Note: If you have submitted photos in the past, we will still have them on file.)