Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 31, 2018)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • OCTOBER 31, 2018 • 3A Saginaw mill meets with city, plans to rebuild By Caitlyn May cmay@cgsentinel.com On May 27, the Whitsell Man- ufacturing mill burned to the ground. Five months later, some- thing is rising from the ashes. According to Cottage Grove City Manager Richard Meyers, city ad- ministration met with employees from the Lane County Department of Taxation and Assessment and Whitsell owner Walter Whitsell to explore future options for the com- pany surrounding Enterprise Zone credits. Traditionally, enterprise zone credits exempt businesses from property taxes for a specifi c amount of time. According to an update posted by the city manag- er’s offi ce, the Cottage Grove/Cre- swell Enterprise Zone allows three years of property tax exemption if, “new qualifying investments pro- viding the business increases their employment by a minimum of 10 percent.” At the time of the fi re this past spring, Whitsell employed an esti- mated 100 workers. Th e fi re, which destroyed the 180,000 square-foot mill was ruled an accident but was described by South Lane County Fire and Rescue Chief John Woo- ten as “the fastest growing fi re” he had seen during his career. According to the city manager’s offi ce release, the meeting was cen- tered on discussing the Enterprise Zone credits available to Whitsell to rebuild. Th e release also noted that Whitsell has started purchas- ing equipment and hoped to be back in business by June of next year. And while a new building is a little less than a year away, Whit- sell has continued operating. Four months ago, the company was granted use of a space in Cottage Grove to continue managing its business aft er Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce Director Travis Palmer made a phone call. “I gave them a few days to get their heads to stop spinning,” he said previously. But once they had, he reached out and asked what the chamber could do to help. “One of the owners, he men- tioned they’re currently trying to maintain some sort of busi- ness out of his living room and it wasn’t working well because it wasn’t set up for business with faxes and phone lines,” Palmer said. So, he made another call. Paktech, a manufacturing company that provides han- dles and application equipment to food and beverage compa- SENTINEL FILE PHOTO nies, expanded its business to The scene on May 27 as emergency personnel responded to the fi re at Cottage Grove last year aft er it Whitsell Manufacturing. moved into the former Kwikee swing, the offi ce spaces were empty. time. building on Davidson Ave. While the exact location of Whit- Until owner Scott Diehl received a Th e company originally brought sell's grand rebuilding was not an- phone call from Palmer. approximately 35 jobs to the area us- “I think there’s 10,000 or 12,000 nounced, the city manager's release ing its in-line automated application feet of offi ce space up there and they noted that the company was hoping that provided a 100 percent recycla- were operating out of dining rooms to re-establish its presence in Sagi- ble product. and things like that so I off ered them naw--the area the mill was built 40 And while the factory space at the space to see if that would help years ago. the new Paktech building is in full them get started,” Diehl said at the Training meeting to be held for Beds for Freezing Nights volunteers Beds for Freezing Nights (BFN) opens a shelter at the First Presbyterian Church when the average overnight temperature is 29 degrees or below from Nov. 15 through March 31. Two-plus volun- teers are needed to staff the shelter during each of the following shift s: 6 to 11 p.m., 10:50 p.m. to 4 a.m., and 3:50 to 8 a.m. ' Responsibilities include setting up/taking down shel- ter supplies; checking guests in and out; and super-ising the shelter. Volunteers are required to undergo a $10 background check and at- tend the training meeting on Saturday, Nov 3, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Presby- terian church 216 S Th irrd St. Volunteers will be as- signed a shift according to their availability when the shelter is activated. To vol- unteer, or for more infor- mation, contact Christine Moats at 541-521-8816 or visit www.freezingnights. com for volunteer applica- tions, a policy manual and more information. Tax deductible cash do- nations may be sent to BFN (checks made out to Beds for Freezing Nights) at P.O. Box 1110, Cottage Grove, OR 97424. its parking lot from 4 to 7 p.m. Come, decorate your trunk and hand out treats. Th ere will be soup and ci- der for people to enjoy while there. • Th ursday, Nov. 1, Lorane Grange meets at 7 p.m. for its regular monthly meeting. Th e next spaghetti dinner and bingo at the grange is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 16, starting with dinner at 5:30 p.m. Maybe you’ll even win the large progressive blackout amount! • Th e next Rural Art mov- ie night is Saturday, Nov. 10. • Th is coming Sunday, Nov. 4, it’s time to set your clocks back, so remember to “fall back” to standard time. • A special “Th ank You” to all who worked on and came to the Fundraiser at Crow Grange, to help Cody Tripp beat his cancer. By all accounts, it was a great turnout with lots of love for Cody and family. Anyone still interested in donating to help, contact Angela Tripp. • Our Crow High School Band leaves on Nov. 8 to March at the Parade of He- ro’s in Washington, D.C. Mark Simonsen has the honor of playing Taps at all three memorials on Satur- day, Nov. 10. In that light, the drawing for the guitar with hard case is on Halloween. Proceeds go to help the band with travel expenses. LORANE NEWS • Today, Oct. 31, as we go about our day, let’s watch out for all the little ghosts and goblins moving around, es- pecially at dusk and later. It could be dark tonight. • Lorane Christian Church is hosting a Trunk'n' Treat in SWITCH TO THE Aut o CONVENIENCE OF AUTO PAY! Pay SAVE TIME & SAVE MONEY Use your Credit or Debit Card account to renew your subscription to the Cottage Grove Sentinel (includes online edition) by using AUTO PAY. Complete the credit card information on the enclosed billing notice and make your payment the easy way with Auto Pay. Bring in or send this ad back with your payment and save $5 OFF Yes, Sign me up for Auto Pay*! R10 Weeks = $6, (Reg $11) RDigital Only $30 (Reg$35) BEST OFFER R1 Year = $36 ( Reg $41) ill out the form below to have your organization's holiday bazaar included in the bazaar listing in the Cottage Grove Sentinel each Wednesday during the holidays. Cost for this service is $45.00 for a 1x3 advertisement, 50 words or less. Please enclose check or money order if mailing in this listing. Call us at 541-942-3325 for more information. Deadline is NOON, Thursday for the following week’s publication. Must be pre-paid to be accepted. ORGANIZATION: Address: _____________________________________________ City:__________________________State:_____Zip: _________ Telephone Number: ____________________________________ Credit or Debit Card Exp. Date: __________________________ Security Number ______________________________________ DATE OF EVENT: LOCATION: TIME: FEATURED ITEMS OR ATTRACTIONS: Card Number: ________________________________________ Name on Card: _______________________________________ Signature of Card holder: _______________________________ S entinel C ottage G rove 116 N. 6th Street, PO Box 35 Cottage Grove, OR 97424 541-942-3325 • cgsentinel.com *Auto Pay Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled. Future renewals will be at the current subscription rate. S entinel C ottage G rove 116 N. Sixth Street · P.O. Box 35 · Cottage Grove · 541-942-3325