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C ottage G rove
S entinel
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Lady Lions continue come-
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SOUTH LANE AND DOUGLAS COUNTY'S MOST AWARD-WINNING NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1889
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2017
FACEBOOK.COM/CGSENTINEL • TWITTER.COM/CGSENTINEL
CGSENTINEL.COM
Tiny home village abandons plans for E. Madison St.
Cottage Village
Coalition
would
cmay@cgsentinel.com
have closed on a
property on Mad-
ison St. on Tues-
day, Feb. 28. but instead, it pulled out of the deal
and is now searching for a new location for its
proposed "tiny house village."
In an email to neighbors, the group announced
that it had "broadened" its search beyond the
Madison property and invited community mem-
bers to meet and discuss alternative options.
"We don’t have anything in mind. We would
love people to come forward with properties they
think might fi t our criteria. We’re determined to
build this type of housing in our community be-
cause we know it’s needed, said Valeria Clarke, a
representative for the group.
The idea of the development fi rst sparked de-
bate after a neighborhood meeting where residents
By Caitlyn May
were informed of the coalition's intention con-
cerning the property. Clarke, whose own house
boarders the Madison property, urged residents to
keep an open mind and acknowledge that Cottage
Grove has an affordable housing problem.
However, residents voiced their concern over
fl ooding and sewer issues, policing of the facility
and the manner in which they were informed the
coalition intended to house low-income families
on the property.
The Coalition noted previously that it had re-
searched several properties within the city and
none of the options were suitable for its specifi c
needs which included proximity to public trans-
portation.
Clarke said the group is not currently releasing
the reason behind the decision to abandon the
Madison St. property but noted it was still work-
ing with Square One Villages.
Please see HOMES PG. 3
Cottage Village Coalition opted not to build 13 tiny homes for low-income residents after surrounding neighbors
near the Madison St. property raised concerns. A search for a new property is currently underway.
In case of an
emergency: Is
Cottage Grove
ready?
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
Cottage Grove resident Lisa Ann Neely receives an award from Cottage Grove Police Chief Scott Shepherd on Feb. 18. Neely was seated in her car at
Dutch Bros. when she noticed 14-month-old Denny walking in the parking lot, unseen by a driver who was preparing to reverse, potentially into the child.
Neely jumped from her car and rescued the boy. The CGPD commended Neely on their social media page as well, saying, "Thanks to Lisa being aware of
her surroundings and attentive to the situation that was unfolding, Denny was most assuredly saved from bodily harm or worse. The Cottage Grove Police
Department as well as the community of Cottage Grove is grateful for Lisa and the actions she took that day." Courtesy photo.
Coach inducted to national hall of fame
Inductees to be among names such as Abraham Lincoln
Longtime wrestling coach and
prominent member of the CG ath-
letic community Bill Thompson
has been selected to be inducted
into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
The news comes with the approach of the awards ceremony,
which will take place in April in Tigard.
Thompson served as a wrestling coach at Cottage Grove High
School for 40 years. After graduating from Reedsport High School
in 1969, he played football at the University of Oregon. Thompson
then began teaching in Cottage Grove, where his wrestling teams
won six Sky-Em League titles and was named Sky-Em Coach of
the Year seven times. In 2007, he was recognized as the state 4A
Coach of the Year.
Thompson has also coached football and track at Cottage Grove
High School and is currently the assistant wrestling coach for the
Lions under Kyle Temple.
Thompson will be inducted alongside fi ve others inducted into
the Oregon chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. With
him are referee Del Helzer, and coaches Roger Rolen (Oregon
City), Donnie McPherson (Portland and Vancouver area coach),
and former UO wrestler Kevin Kramer who also coached at The
Dalles. Larry Mahan, a high school wrestler at both Redmond and
North Salem, will be honored with the Hall of Fame Outstanding
American Award.
HEALTH CARE
Of the six members being inducted in 2017, Thompson holds
the longest career with 40 years of coaching under his belt. Hel-
zer, the wrestling offi cial, was a referee for 22 years and was voted
outstanding offi cial of the Portland area for 10 consecutive years
(1974-1983).
Kramer completed 33 years as a head coach and volunteer coach
at The Dalles High School, his alma mater. When he attended the
University of Oregon, he was the PAC-8 (my, we’ve come a long
way) Conference championship in 1975. Kramer coached 73 state
placers and 13 individual state champions, according to a report by
the Oregonian.
McPherson will be honored with a lifetime service award for
coaching for 31 seasons and leading Heritage to the 2003 Washing-
ton 4A state title.
Rolen, like Thompson, was named the conference Coach of the
Year six times while coaching at Oregon City High School and was
named 2013 Oregon Coach of the Year.
To stress the importance of the honor, Thompson and co. will be
inducted to the Oregon chapter of a larger, country-wide organiza-
tion that recognizes the achievements of wrestlers around the entire
country. Thompson, and more specifi cally, Mahan, are receiving an
honor that was also given to Abraham Lincoln. That’s right, the
16th president of the United States who abolished slavery in 1863,
was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1992 for
an Outstanding American award.
COMMUNITY
Town halls held
Cheerleaders honored
State reps. hold rallies,
town halls for ACA PAGE A11
CGHS cheerleaders head
to city council. PAGE A6
INDEX
By Sam Wright
swright@cgsentinel.com
Calendar ...................................... B11
Channel Guide ............................... B5
Classifieds ...................................... B7
Obituaries ...................................... A2
Opinion ......................................... A4
Sports ............................................ B1
AD 6x2
They say everything west of
the I-5 will be gone. Drinking
water won’t be restored for up
to a year. Electricity will take
a month. Health care facilities
could go up to 18 months be-
fore they’re back online. The
last estimates put the death toll
at 13,000.
It’s not a question of if the
Cascadia Subduction Zone
event will occur. It’s when.
The hysteria surrounding the
earthquake was ignited by a
New Yorker article in 2015. It
went on to win a Pulitzer Prize,
but left panic and confusion in
its wake for residents of Oregon
and Washington who were left
wondering how to prepare for
the disaster.
In the last 10,000 years, the
subduction zone has caused
41 earthquakes. According to
the math, the region is due for
another quake at any time and
residents of Cottage Grove will
need to be prepared. According
to city offi cials, the city has a
plan in place for disasters but
it is currently in fl ux. So, what
do residents do when the quake
hits? According to South Lane
Fire and Rescue Chief John
Wooten, “The 911 centers will
be almost instantly overload-
ed with calls assuming the cell
towers are even standing af-
ter the initial quake and after-
shocks,” he said.
The danger of the Cascadia
earthquake, according to Ore-
gon State University researcher
and seismologist, Chris Gold-
fi nger, is that it creates a differ-
ent “shake” pattern. Rather than
fracturing the ground, it will
wave and create a phenomenon
known as liquefaction which
essentially causes the ground
to liquefy. And because Ore-
gon did not have seismic leg-
islation in place regarding con-
struction until the 1970s, many
structures are not equipped to
remain standing in the face of
the earthquake.
In the immediate aftermath
of the four to six-minute quake,
residents are instructed to shel-
ter in place if at all possible.
“I would also recommend
everyone have a radio so they
can listen to the emergency
alert system for notifi cations
on where to go,” Wooten said,
“There may also be some phone
apps out there for the same pur-
pose. Given the scope and com-
plexity of such an event the typ-
ical responses associated with
non-disaster or major emergen-
cy responses may not be avail-
able for some time.”
Cell phones will most likely
not work after the quake due to
the damage to towers.
The city of Cottage Grove
has agreements with sever-
al surrounding areas to share
emergency services, as well as
an emergency plan for the city
itself. However, according to
Cottage Grove City Manager
Richard Meyers, “Emergency
Management is in fl ux right now
with the reorganization.” Com-
munity Development Director
Howard Schesser recently re-
tired and the city is planning on
combining his department with
public works. As community
development director, Schesser
acted as the emergency program
manager but the current reorga-
nization has Meyers as the point
person, “That would fall to me,”
he said. “All contact will still go
through the police dispatch and
I would be contacted and would
Please see QUAKE PG. 6
cgnews@cgsentinel.com
(541) 942-3325 ph • (541) 942-3328 fax
P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424
Corner of Sixth and Whiteaker, Cottage Grove
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VOLUME 129 • NUMBER 33