COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL JANUARY 25, 2017 5A
Cottage Grove Retrospective
A look back at Sentinel stories from 30 and 60 years ago
Jan. 28, 1987
CITY BEAT
CG opens its heart to family
It was not a good way to start
a new year.
But as she watched on the
morning of Jan. 1 while the du-
plex she lived in on Highway
99 burned, Mary McMurray felt
lucky that she and her two sons
made it out safely.
It was only later when she re-
turned to assess the damage that
she realized the family was left
with only the clothes they had
worn that morning.
“Anything that wasn’t burned
was either smoke or water dam-
aged,” McMurray says. “I was
able to save a few photos that
were deep in a closet, but that’s
about all.”
The fi re, caused by a faulty
electrical cord, began at about 3
a.m. in the bedroom of her two
sons, Sean, 9 and Aaron, 8.
McMurray and her sons had
stayed up late to ring in the new
year, and were sleeping in the
front room. She heard an explo-
sion and crackling of fl ames and
go the boys out of the house.
“Fortunately they weren’t in
the room. If they were, I don’t
know how they would have
made it out,” McMurray says.
Organizations, churches and
individuals throughout the area
heard about the family’s plight
and donated clothing, furniture
and other items. Collections
were taken at schools, and her
co-workers brought in items the
family needed. Donations came
from as far away as Yoncalla.
The members of the Trinity
Lutheran Church took up a col-
lection to buy medical supplies
for Aaron, who suffers from
kidney failure. But when they
went to McCoy’s to purchase
the supplies, the pharmacy in-
sisted on donating them.
“When they got done, I had
everything I needed,” says Mc-
Murray, who now lives in an
apartment on ‘S’ Street.
Gone, however, are some
items that are irreplaceable —
an oil painting made by a friend,
photographs of her children
POLICE BLOTTER
Jan. 16
Abondon Vehicles, Bohemia
Pl.
A reporting person received
several phone messages com-
plaining of four vehicles parked
in the roadway at the end of the
cul de sac for the past several
months. Police contacted the
owners of the vehicles who ad-
vised that they will have them
moved right away.
Theft, S. 10th St.
A reporting person advised
police that gas was stolen from
a church vehicle sometime over
the weekend and has a surveil-
lance tape of the incident.
Suspicious Condition, Benja-
min Ave.
A caller reported that an el-
derly and disoriented female
at her front door appears to be
very confused. Offi cers contact-
ed the complainant and the fe-
male, who was escorted to her
residence and released to her
son.
Death Investigation, Brice
Creek Rd.
A caller advised that he is
with an obviously deceased
family member. The caller was
transferred to 911 and relayed
to Lane County Sheriff’s Offi ce.
Jan. 17
Trespassing, CG Library
A complainant requested a
police offi cer to assist in having
a subject move along. The sub-
ject had been at the location all
day and spread his stuff across
growing up.
To thank those
who helped her,
McMurray
sent
many
personal
notes and is run-
ning an advertise-
ment. But so many
people
helped,
many anonymous-
ly, that it will be
impossible to thank
them all, McMur-
ray says.
McMurray
moved to Cottage
Grove from Con-
cord, Calif., about
three years ago. If
the fi re had hap-
pened in Califor- Mary McMurray and her sons were surprised
nia, she says, she by local response after her home burned.
would not have re-
done,” McMurray says.
ceived this kind of assistance.
“I was sorry to see the fi re
“It’s just that things work happen, but I am happy to see
differently in a small town. It the response — the way the
seems that small towns have a community takes care of its
quick-working grapevine. They members.”
really get around and get things
Cottage Grove Police Department 24-Hour Anonymous Tip Line: 767-0504
the whole sidewalk, making it
diffi cult for patrons to go inside.
The caller asked him to leave
but so far the subject had re-
fused to do so.
go off but hasn’t seen anything
from her window. She also in-
formed police that she was hav-
ing a problem with someone
that is “after her” in the past.
Burglary Alarm, HWY 99
An audible panic alarm was
triggered and police determined
it to be an intentional activation
of the alarm. A domestic vio-
lence incident was occurring
between and male and a female,
but the male subject had ran off
when the female pressed the
alarm button. The incident was
verbal only.
Hit and Run, HWY 99
A complainant advised police
that an elderly female struck
her vehicle as she was pulling
into a parking spot at the loca-
tion. The caller said that there
was no damage to her vehicle
but requested offi cer contact to
advise the elderly female of the
complaint.
Jan. 18
Theft from Vehicle, E. Mon-
roe Ave.
A complainant advised that
her wallet was stolen out of her
boyfriend’s vehicle overnight.
The wallet contained her Ore-
gon ID card, $40 in cash and a
debit card. The case was taken
for theft.
Disturbance, Cherry Ct.
A complainant advised of a
disturbance in progress at the
location. The caller said that
a subject was armed with a
knife in his bedroom. The com-
plainant said that she has a lac-
eration on her fi nger. The sub-
ject was taken into custody for
assault, menacing and physical
harassment.
Jan. 19
Suspicious Conditions, Ash
Ave.
A complainant advised po-
lice that she heard her car alarm
6
-day
weather forecast
THURSDAY Jan. 26
FRIDAY Jan. 27
51° | 30°
53° | 31°
Partly Cloudy
Partly Cloudy
SATURDAY Jan. 28
SUNDAY Jan. 29
54° | 34°
53° | 33°
Partly Cloudy
Showers
MONDAY Jan. 30
TUESDAY Jan. 31
54° | 37°
52° | 38°
Partly Sunny
Showers
Cottage Grove
Sentinel
www.cgsentinel.com
Disorderly Subject, E. Main
St. PD
An offi cer was requested in a
court room for a disorderly sub-
ject. The subject was put into
custody and placed in the down-
stairs holding area pending his
court appearance. The subject’s
phone was seized and a search
warrant was requested.
Disorderly Subject, 10th/Ty-
ler St.
A complainant advised police
that a male subject was scream-
ing and striking a fence to Harri-
son Elementary. The caller said
that the subject then possible
entered the elementary school.
The subject was found and put
into custody for non-criminal
detox.
Disturbance, S. Ninth St.
A caller advised that a subject
who appeared to be intoxicat-
ed was being disorderly inside
his house. The subject left in a
black neon with his father driv-
ing but was advised to call back
if the subject returns.
Suspicious Conditions, N.
11th St.
A caller advised that he just
received a call from a neighbor
that was concerned someone
was attempting to break into
his property. The complainant
advised that the house is empty.
Police advised that there was a
lot of foot traffi c evidence but
no signs of damage or that a
crime had occurred.
Jan. 20
Warrant Service, S. Fifth St.
Police put a man in custody
on a CGPD Circuit Court War-
rant for the delivery of meth.
The subject was transported to
the police department for pro-
cessing and was lodged in Lane
County Jail after his court ap-
pearance.
Burglary, H. St.
A caller advised seeing sub-
jects going around the neigh-
bor’s house. No lights were
on inside the residence. Upon
searching the house, police
found no one inside.
Jan. 22
Suspicious Conditions, Riv-
erwalk
As a complainant was leaving
her residence, she noticed an
older couple walking around the
new construction area. The call-
er was concerned that they may
try to take some of the construc-
tion material since no workers
were on site that day. Police
determined there was no crime
as the subjects were picking up
pebbles.
Jan. 23
Suspicious Subject, N. 16th
St.
A caller advised that a male
dressed in all black was enter-
ing her yard when she walked
outside. Then the male took off
running with two other people.
Police were unable to locate any
suspects in the area.
Transmissions Plus &
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Manual & Automatic
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Tune ups
30-60-90K Services
Brakes, belts, hoses and
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All makes and models.
MAINTAINING YOUR VEHICLE AFFORDABLY
@
Cottage-Grove-Sentinel
Senator Prozanski and Rep-
resentative Hayden will be
holding a town hall meeting
on Thursday, January 26th at
6:30 pm in the Cottage Grove
Community Center Reception
Room. As the 2017 Legisla-
tive Session approaches, the
state faces urgent budgetary
challenges. They will discuss
Oregon’s anticipated shortfall
of $1.7 billion for the 2017-19
biennium, the need for a state-
wide transportation package,
and other issues that may come
before the Legislature this ses-
sion. The Blackberry Pie Soci-
ety is hosting the event.
Bohemia Mining Museum
Grand Re-Opening
The Bohemia Mining Muse-
um will be holding their Grand
Re-Opening on Saturday, Jan-
uary 28th from 1:00 to 3:00
pm. If you did not attend the
Business After Hours last night
be sure to stop by on the 28th
and check out the newly reno-
vated Boots and Sandals Square
Dance Barn at 308 South
10th. The barn is now housing
the Bohemia Mining Museum,
Cottage Grove Historical Soci-
ety and the South Lane Ballet
Academy, all of which will be
open on the 28th. There will be
live music, special guests and
gold panning.
Tour of the City
The City Manager took Cait-
lyn May, Editor of the Cottage
Grove Sentinel, on a tour of
City facilities. The over two
hour tour included stops at the
Wastewater and Water Treat-
ment plants, City Shop and
passed the reservoirs, pump sta-
tions and golf course. The man-
ager introduced Caitlyn to staff
throughout the City.
Last week’s ice storm not
only caused problems within
the City but also had signifi -
cant impacts on the Row Riv-
er Trail. The ice storm caused
limbs, branches, trees, and oth-
er debris to fall on and across
the trail blocking access. City
Volunteer, Don Strahan and
Maintenance Worker, Chad
Reel cleared the trail earlier this
week. The Buffalo Blower was
towed behind a Kubota ATV
and cleared the trail of small
branches, pine needles, and
leaves. The clean-up crew also
took chain saws to cut the larg-
er limbs and trees so they could
be removed from the trail. The
trail is now back in service and
can be used by walkers and bi-
cycle enthusiasts. The entire
16-mile length of the Row River
Trail is cleaned and maintained
by the City of Cottage Grove
under a maintenance agreement
with the BLM.
Private Water Main Break
On Monday of this week, the
private water main lateral that
serves the Bi-Mart Shopping
Center broke, putting the en-
tire shopping center out of wa-
ter service. The saddle bands
where the private water main
lateral connects to the City main
line failed, causing a loss of
water service to the shopping
center. The shopping center
management company hired a
private contractor to facilitate
the necessary repairs. To speed-
up the repairs, the City provided
spare parts to the contractor as
needed. In addition, the City
crew members used the City’s
Vactor machine to excavate the
private water main lateral so re-
pairs could be completed. The
private contractor will reim-
burse the City for the spare parts
that were borrowed. It has al-
ways been City policy to restore
water service to local businesses
as quickly as possible.
Public Hearing Scheduled
City Council will hold a pub-
lic hearing on amendment of the
Comprehensive Plan Land Use
Map and the rezoning of 1140
– 1160 E Chamberlain includ-
ing the vacant lot west of 1140
E Chamberlain1726 and 991 N.
Lane. The Comprehensive Plan
Land Use Map will be amend-
ed from C Community Com-
mercial to M Medium Density
Residential and be rezoned
from C-2P Community Com-
mercial to R-2 Medium Density
Residential. The hearing will
be on Monday, February 13,
2017 at 7:00 pm in the Council
Chambers. The Planning Com-
mission held a public hearing
in January and recommended
approval to City Council. The
recommendation, staff report,
public hearing minutes and
proposed ordinance with the
Council agenda. Any questions
should be directed to the Com-
munity Development Depart-
ment.
Police Department New Offi -
cer
The Cottage Grove Police
Department has selected a can-
didate for the open Police Of-
fi cer position. Pending a com-
plete background, medical and
psychological background, the
new offi cer will join the depart-
ment in approximately 30 days.
This will make the department
fully staffed.
Classic Film at the Library
Please join us on Monday,
January 30th at 1:30 pm for a
screening of Debbie Reynolds
movie The Unsinkable Molly
Brown. Debbie Reynolds earned
a 1964 Best Actress Academy
Award for her portrayal of the
plucky backwoods heroine who
survives the Titanic. Come see
this great movie and help honor
the life of Debbie Reynolds, and
enjoy some popcorn and drinks
too
Row River Trail Ice Storm
Damage
2015
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Cottag
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Busines
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Year
LOW COST
Local & Metro Weekday Trips
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From the City
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Grove Friday
Update
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