Search for man
missing since
2012 continues,
page 3A
Attention: Early deadlines
Early deadlines will be in place for the July 6
edition of the Sentinel. The newspaper asks
that items for its July 6 edition be submitted
by Thursday, June 30 at noon.
Daytripper
hears from
noisy
neighbors,
page 8A
$ PUUBHF ( SPWF 4 FOUJOFM
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 2016
VOLUME 129 • NUMBER 1
SOUTH LANE AND NORTH DOUGLAS COUNTY'S MOST AWARD-WINNING NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1889
BMX track torn down
City said facility had become dangerous after years of disuse
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
A
structure that has played host
to youth activities and competi-
tions for many years in Cottage Grove
came down in mere minutes last week.
Public Works Director Jan Wellman
with the City of Cottage Grove said
that the local BMX track, which ex-
isted on city land on the southeast edge
of town since the 1980s, had become
a “dangerous attraction” due to dis-
use and the deterioration of its build-
ings. City employees used a trackhoe
and bulldozer that the City had rented
for other projects and took down the
announcer’s booth, bleachers and other
facilities there, then leveled out much
of the dirt that made up the track’s
twists and turns.
Wellman said the City had come
across an agreement from 1984 where-
by local BMX enthusiasts would rent
the land for $1 per year and develop
the track. The track drew cyclist com-
petitors from throughout the region.
Following its demolition, many took
to social media to express their regret
that the structure was no more and la-
ment the loss of another activity for
area youth.
“I no longer live in Cottage Grove,
but while I was there, all I did was go to
the track,” one commenter said.
“It would be nice if they started it
over,” another said. “It was so popular
when I was a kid growing up in CG…
it’s said that it’s just another thing taken
away from our youth.”
The challenge to keeping the track up
and operating, City Manager Richard
Meyers told the Sentinel recently, was
that over the years, groups of young
people and their parents have utilized
the track and invested in its success.
Then, as those young people grew up,
graduated from school and moved on
to other concerns, interest and activity
at the BMX track waned.
“There isn’t sustainability to it,”
photo by Melissa Keenan
Public Works employees used a trackhoe to take out the announc-
er's booth and bleachers at the BMX track last week.
Meyers said.
“Nobody’s taken responsibility for
quite a while,” Wellman said. Eugene-
based Emerald Valley BMX hosted
Please see BMX, Page 10A
One year later:
On your
mark, get
set, read!
Marijuana legalization and its impact (or
lack thereof) on local law enforcement
BY JON STINNETT
The Cottage Grove Sentinel
T
Kyndra Kelley, age 6,
chooses a book during
the kickoff to the Cottage
Grove Library's Sum-
mer Reading program on
Wednesday, June 22. The
Library reported that 197
children and 107 adults at-
tended the kickoff, adding
that 223 kids had already
been signed up to partici-
pate in the program. Partic-
ipants received a free book
donated by the Friends of
the Library and ice cream
donated by Umpqua Bank,
and they had the opportu-
nity to play carnival games
and win prizes. There
will be Summer Reading
Program activities every
Wednesday from 2:30–3:30
p.m. in the Library, and
readers will keep track of
their progress throughout
the summer for a chance to
win prizes later on.
photo by Bruce Kelsh
Woman sought in connection with teen party
T
he Cottage Grove Police
Department is seeking the
public’s help to locate a woman
that
po-
lice
say
furnished
alcohol
to a party
i nvo l v i n g
several in-
toxicated
juveniles
last month.
The De- Angela Ward
partment
utilized its Facebook page Mon-
day to enlist public involvement
events there for 3-4 years following a
period of local inactivity, and a group
in the search for 33-year old
Angela Ward, who they said pur-
chased alcohol for several teens
in advance of a May 20 party
that attracted police attention af-
ter South Lane Fire and Rescue
received a report of a 14-year old
female foaming at the mouth.
According to its post, CGPD
stated that additional calls had
indicated that a fi ght had oc-
curred at the same location
and several juveniles had been
drinking alcohol. When police
arrived, they reportedly found
several teens drinking there, and
one parent who had been notifi ed
of the party was there caring for
a teen that was “vomiting and
nearly unconscious.” Several of
the teens were extremely intoxi-
cated, police said — a 15-year
old was reportedly found with a
blood alcohol content of .26 per-
cent, over three times the legal
limit for an adult DUI. Police say
a second 15-year old was found
to have a BAC of .18 percent.
Commander Conrad Gagner
told the Sentinel Monday that Of-
fi cer Fred Dilworth had spoken
to Ward, who Gagner admitted
to purchasing alcohol for some
of the involved teens and driving
them to the location of the party.
Ward reportedly agreed to be cit-
ed on a charge of furnishing al-
cohol to a minor, a Class A mis-
demeanor. Since then, though,
Gagner said attempts to contact
Ward have been unsuccessful.
“It is believed she is intention-
ally avoiding contact with law
enforcement,” according to the
Facebook post.
Those with information as to
Ward’s whereabouts are asked
to call the Cottage Grove Police
Department at 541-942-9145.
his Friday, July 1, will mark the one-year anniversary of
the legalization of recreational marijuana use for those
over age 21 in Oregon.
There have been other milestones related to legalization since
last summer: established medical marijuana dispensaries began
selling recreational marijuana on Oct. 1, 2015 and were greeted
with a wave of new customers. Last month, New Breed Seed, a
company that hopes to revolutionize the growing of marijuana
from seed, received the fi rst retail license for recreational mar-
ijuana from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. Then on
June 1, 2016, medical marijuana dispensaries were cleared to sell
edible marijuana products to recreational users for the fi rst time,
initiating another wave of new business. The Cottage Grove City
Council has also voted to place a three-percent tax on recreation-
al marijuana purchases, with the rationale from some being that
the tax would go to offset rising costs of law enforcement related
to legalization.
But have there been rising costs associated with marijuana le-
galization, and just how has legalization impacted local law en-
forcement? If you ask personnel with the Cottage Grove Police
Department, the impact would seem to be negligible at most.
“We haven’t seen a big impact, an increase in crime or other
problems that can be attributed to legal marijuana,” Commander
Conrad Gagner told the Sentinel.
Gagner reasoned that those who wanted to try marijuana in
the Cottage Grove area had likely already done so before recre-
ational legalization.
“People who wanted to smoke pot were already doing it,” he
said. “There might be a few more people who try it, but it’s not
looking like a signifi cant number.”
Gagner said he didn’t believe that CGPD was fi nding any more
marijuana during its searches or routine activities; it’s just that
police are no longer taking it away.
“For a long time, cases involving an ounce or less were dealt
with by saying, ‘give us the weed,’ and then it was destroyed,” he
said. “Citations haven’t been a huge revenue stream, and in fact
they don’t happen very often at all.”
The Department has dealt with a few cases involving individu-
als who were found to have too much marijuana on their person
during a consent search, according to Detective Doug Skaggs.
“It’s likely the same people we would’ve dealt with before;
they’re just carrying more of it around now,” Skaggs said.
Public use of marijuana is illegal, but Gagner said CGPD has
not cited anyone with public use. Such a citation may be rare
anyway, however, because an offi cer must witness a person using
the drug fi rsthand to issue a citation.
With regard to marijuana’s effects on driving, Gagner said that
local police have not lately made an arrest for driving under the
infl uence of a driver that has been found to be using only mari-
juana. He said that the amount of tetrahydracannabinol (THC) in
Please see MARIJUANA, Page 10A
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