Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 28, 2016)
From the Fields: Brice Creek Croft and feeding a community, page 6A Faith Center bids Hovets farewell, page 8A School Zone returns — Inside this edition! $ PUUBHF ( SPWF 4 FOUJOFM WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2016 SOUTH LANE AND NORTH DOUGLAS COUNTY'S MOST AWARD-WINNING NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1889 Ballot Box VOLUME 129 • NUMBER 14 Vandalism, thefts prompt Main St. meeting BY SAM WRIGHT The Cottage Grove Sentinel The lowdown on each of the fall election’s ballot measures Measure 20-262: Shall the City's gas tax increase from $.03 per gallon to $.06 per gallon? V arious Main Street business owners gath- ered at the Cottage Grove Armory to dis- cuss the increasing rate of crime and suspicious activity happening around the area on Tuesday, Sept. 20. Cottage Grove Main Street Coordina- tor Shauna Neigh invited newly appointed Police Chief Scott Shepherd to speak on how to prevent things such as theft and also on how to assist po- lice in catching perpetrators. There has been a recurring pattern of shoplift- ing, and many businesses report that they have lost a signifi cant sum of money in inventory lost. One business owner (who wished to not be named) said that a woman who many of the own- ers are familiar with had repeatedly tried to sell stolen items to her shop. While the business owners brainstormed rea- sons for the increase in crime (such as the slight increase in homelessness in Cottage Grove), Chief Shepherd gave useful tips to help fi ght this sort of criminal activity. “Firstly, motion lights and cameras are huge deterrents,” Shepherd said. The use of devices such as these has proven across the country to deter criminals away from places. But Shepherd also recognized that those things can be expen- sive and that there is a yearning for suspects to be caught and held accountable for their actions. So, instead of deterrents and preventative measures, Shepherd also discussed how to help police catch subjects. “It’s really important to be observant and note details of the suspicious person’s appearance,” he said. Most of the time, witnesses can get descrip- tions quite wrong. Shepherd also said that imme- diate communication and reporting of crimes is extremely helpful, not only to police, but to other community members and businesses in the area. Please see MEETING, Page 9A BY JON STINNETT The Cottage Grove Sentinel Would-be mayors talk shop Summary: If adopted by the voters, this mea- sure would increase the City’s gas tax by $.03 per gallon, for a total city gas tax of $.06 per gallon. Revenues from the City’s gas tax are used ex- clusively to construct, reconstruct, improve and maintain city streets. The proposed increase in the City’s gas tax would create more revenue for road construction, maintenance and repair in the City. Background: Talk of the need to repair Cottage Grove’s dilapidated streets has been a big part of the public conversation for years. Roads such as South Sixth Street that act as connectors to funnel traffi c from lower to higher areas of concentra- tion garner much of the public’s criticism, though many of the City’s 42 miles of roads are in poor condition and contribute to an estimated $9.4 million backlog of needed repairs. The City Council began a discussion of how to address that backlog at a worksession prior to the City’s budget process this spring, and the Coun- cil came back in August to approve sending the gas tax hike to voters in the November election. Cottage Grove will join the cities of Coburg and Springfi eld in seeking such a hike this fall, with Springfi eld also seeking a $.03 increase per gal- lon. The City receives about $300,000 per year in gas tax revenue, a number that seldom changes much but would essentially double if the tax is doubled. Still, City Manager Richard Meyers told the City Council this spring that even doubling the tax would likely not be enough to fund ma- jor road overhaul projects given constantly rising construction costs. Projects such as West Main and R Street are expected to cost over $1.2 mil- lion. While acknowledging that increased tax rev- enue was not going to repair all the City’s streets, Meyers stated that it “would help,” adding that the City pays for maintenance such as street strip- ing and lighting that could be addressed with tax funding. “The tax will have to increase, because it doesn’t keep up with infl ation,” he said. The Council gave its unanimous (yet unenthu- siastic) approval to refer the higher tax to voters at its Aug. 8 meeting, though several councilors said they understood that the higher tax would not fi ll the funding gap. Councilor Jake Boone even voiced favor for seeking a much higher increase. Many on the Council also claimed to be in fa- vor of seeking a bond to fund specifi c road proj- ects. Councilor Mike Fleck said he believed that approach would be best since bonding could al- low the infrastructure under tattered roads to be repaired simultaneously. Fleck said he believed voters would be in favor of the tax because road issues are the most common complaints he hears as a public representative. photo by Jon Stinnett From left, mayoral candidates Mike Fleck, Jake Boone and Jeff Gowing enjoy a moment of levity before the mayoral forum at City Hall on Thursday, Sept. 22. A similar forum for City Council candidates was scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 27. BY JON STINNETT The Cottage Grove Sentinel D eteriorating streets, property crime, low housing inven- tory — last week’s mayoral forum took on many of the issues affecting life (and government) in Cottage Grove, and responses from the three candidates for mayor in the Novem- ber election offered a look at how each might approach the position. Candidates and current City Councilors Mike Fleck, Jake Boone and Jeff Gowing joined the Cot- tage Grove Chamber of Commerce and a sizable crowd at City Hall Thursday night to offer their out- look on the City’s future and how they might help shape it. Cameron Reiten, owner and radio personality at Cottage Grove’s KNND, moder- ated the forum along with this re- porter. The forum was broadcast live via Facebook. The candidates were given two minutes to intro- duce themselves, then tackled a list of questions each had been given beforehand. Fleck, who is currently serv- ing his third council term, told the crowd during opening remarks that Cottage Grove would be well- served regardless of its choice for mayor. “It’s lucky in this election that I like and respect both other candi- dates,” he said. “The citizens will do well whatever their choice. None of us is going to do a poor job.” For Boone, who has lived in Cot- tage Grove with a wife and two children for about 10 years, being mayor is about using facts and not emotions to make decisions. Boone admitted in his introduction that he would likely make mistakes and would appreciate hearing about them. “We have to do the best we can with what we have to work with,” he said. “When we’re wrong, we have to fi x it and move on. Every- thing I do is related to that.” For his part, Gowing repeatedly emphasized his local roots, point- ing out that he’s part of the third generation of his family to grow up here and that he returned after mili- tary service. “I came back here by choice to stay here,” Gowing said. “Since Please see FORUM, Page 10A City: More information needed to plan bridge repair BY JON STINNETT The Cottage Grove Sentinel M ore information from the engineers who diagnosed structural problems at a pop- ular pedestrian footbridge is necessary before determining the next steps to fi x the bridge, the Cottage Grove City Council heard at its Monday night meeting. The City recently contracted with OBEC Con- sulting Engineers for inspections of many of its bridges, and the report about the swinging foot- bridge that spans the Coast Fork of the Willa- mette River between Madison Ave. and River Road in Cottage Grove contained a stern warn- ing about its condition. In a letter dated Sept. 14, OBEC’s Brad Larsen detailed the “critical condition of the bridge and our serious concern for the safety of the public due to the potential collapse of the bridge.” Larsen wrote that OBEC last inspected the bridge in 2002 “and repairs were recommended to be completed on the towers as soon as pos- sible,” work that was never completed. The City closed the bridge to all traffi c after receiving the letter, and it remains closed. At Monday’s meeting, Cottage Grove Public Works Director Jan Wellman talked about why the repairs didn’t happen. Wellman offered a sta- tus report on the bridge in place of City Manager Richard Meyers, who was out of town attending a conference. “They were referring to repairs to the structur- al towers themselves,” Wellman said. “The other recommendations they made were completed.” The tops of the towers were fi xed back then, Wellman said, though the City didn’t replace the bridge towers because they were estimated to re- tain about 50 percent of their capacity. Please see BRIDGE, Page 9A R AIN C OUNTRY R EALT Y I NC . 380 Durham, Eugene JU ED T S I L ST Here is an opportunity for large home with real hardwood floors, family room, dining room, fenced yard, plus much more. The value is going to really be hard to beat..... S D L O 122 N M Street, CG CONTACT US www.cgsentinel.com On the Internet (541) 942-3325 By telephone (541) 942-3328 By fax cgnews@cgsentinel.com By e-mail P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424 By mail Corner of Sixth and Whiteaker, Cottage Grove In person WEATHER Broker Valerie Nash ....................521-1618 Licensed in the State of Oregon CONTENTS HIGH LOW 75 46 Sunny Principal Brokers Teresa Abbott ..................221-1735 Frank Brazell....................953-2407 Calendar....................................... 11B Channel Guide ............................... 6B Classified ads................................. 8B Obituaries....................................... 2A Opinion .......................................... 4A Public Safety .................................. 5A Sports ............................................ 1B 1 Dollar
