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SERVING COTTAGE GROVE, DRAIN, YONCALLA AND ELKTON
WEDNESDAY, MAY 16, 2018
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CGSENTINEL.COM
He
Harrison nears completion:
'It's coming alive now'
Housing
plan may
get help
from
state
No
au
bla
bla
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
City Councilor Jake Boone,
sitting in for Mayor Jeff Gowing
during the May 14 council
meeting, announced that an
oft en neglected item that allows
council to add to the agenda
would be neglected no more. At
least, for one night.
Th e council voted to add
an item concerning a housing
strategy implementation plan
to Monday night's agenda aft er
city staff learned of the oppor-
tunity late Friday aft ernoon.
"Th e Oregon Department of
Lane Conservation and Devel-
opment is currently accepting
requests for planning assistance
from cities and counties to
update comprehensive plans...,"
public works and community
See Housing A11
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
Th e newly built Harrison Elementary School sits on Taylor Ave., a block from where the current school resides. Th e new building, that will be open for students next fall,
is right on track and what was recently the outer shell of a school now has installed smart boards (in some classrooms), lighting and electricity throughout the school. New
furniture will arrive in August, but until then, South Lane School District maintenance and facilities supervisor Matt Allen notes that the focus will be on the little things
that make the building run. (To see more pictures of the inside of the school, turn to page A9.)
SLSD
budget
Lincoln Middle School asks for help to sow school pride approved
at $66
million
PHOTO BY CAITLYN MAY/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
Above, vice principal Emily Wren points out improvements to the school's front courtyard. Right,
one of the rocks painted by Cottage Grove Faith Center for the courtyard.
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
W
hen vice principal Emily
Wren got out of her car and
crossed the Lincoln Middle
School parking lot she saw a rare sight:
middle-schoolers oohing and ahhing
over plants.
“Middle-schoolers don’t always notice
every little thing and they noticed that,”
Wren said.
It would be hard not to notice the
changes to the courtyard at Lincoln’s en-
trance. Where there used to be unruly
bushes, there’s now brand new plants
and mulch. Where there used to be
weeds and brush, there’s now blooming
fl owers and garden poles emblazoned
with Lincoln’s motto.
Th e eff ort to transform the courtyard
was undertaken by Cottage Grove Faith
Center as an answer to a call for action
from Wren: help transform Lincoln’s
campus and instill a sense of pride in
students and faculty alike.
Wren initially asked community
members and organizations to help
the staff with the school’s neglected
landscaping back in February. She had
a hunch that the grounds were hav-
ing an eff ect on Lincoln’s morale and
earlier this month, her suspicions were
confi rmed.
Th e TELL survey, which asks teachers
and administrators questions on several
subjects ranging from curriculum to
their future career plans, was released
the fi rst week in April and showed that
30 percent of Lincoln’s faculty thought
the building and its landscaping could
do more to promote a positive atmo-
sphere.
“It was way above the average,” Wren
said of the survey results.
Wren is hoping to expand on the
progress and have more organizations
donate their time to “adopt” a court-
yard. Some areas, though, the school
will handle on its own.
Tucked inside the campus is a court-
yard where Wesley Meadows planned
to build a fence as part of an incentive
project. However, the 14-year-old was
killed in December as he rode his bike
on Hwy. 99.
“He was going to work with the shop
teacher and build a fence and so his
friends wanted to do something,” Wren
said. “We’re going to make a memorial
here for him. Th ey’ve submitted plans
and they’ll build little cedar fence and
Pitching changes
Bikes to Blooms
Pitching makes the
diff erence in N. Douglas.
Groups come together to
host community members
amongst the wild fl owes.
PAGE B1
PAGE A6
INDEX
COMMUNITY
SPORTS
COFFEE WITH THE EDITOR
Have a news tips? Want to talk about
community events? Have a question?
Stop by Backstage Bakery.
The LAST THURSDAY of every
month from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
we’ll have a memorial stone here for
Wes.”
Lincoln will continue to roll up its
sleeves with teachers mowing lawns
on the weekend and students spending
detention hours outside in the fresh air
weeding rather than sitting in class-
rooms but the school isn’t opposed to
help. In fact, it’s asking for it.
“I would love to get a few more of
these areas adopted,” Wren said. “We
can’t thank the faith center enough, it’s
beautiful and the work that went into it,
we’re very grateful.”
For more information or to adopt a
courtyard, contact Emily Wren at emily.
wren@slane.k12.or.us. Volunteers can
also take part in a school clean-up event
scheduled for Friday, May 18 from 3 to
6 p.m.
Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
At Monday night's school
board meeting the South Lane
School District (SLSD) budget
committee came together to
approve the 2018-19 South
Lane School District budget.
Th e budget of $66,119,297 was
unanimously approved by the
committee.
Acting superintendent Kyle
Tucker – with added input
from business supervisor
Phil Scrima, special services
coordinator Chad Hamilton
and director of human resourc-
es Brian McCasline – led the
meeting by going page-by-page
through the nearly 60-page
document. Th e budget commit-
tee and school board sporadi-
cally asked follow up questions
as the meeting pushed on.
“Some places we will just say
'Hey, we’re going to point out
See Budget A11
Calendar ...................................... B11
Channel Guide ............................... B5
Classifieds ...................................... B7
Obituaries ...................................... A2
Opinion ......................................... A4
Sports ............................................ B1
cgnews@cgsentinel.com
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Corner of Sixth and Whiteaker, Cottage Grove
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VOLUME 130 • NUMBER 42
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