COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | THURSDAY, JANUARY 16, 2020 | 11A Blackstone to speak at CG Historical Society Highway 99 improvements boring beginning DAMIEN SHERWOOD/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL PHOTO COURTESY COTTAGE GROVE HISTORICAL SOCIETY A parade takes place along Main Street in Cottage Grove, past the bank building in the 1950s. The Cottage Grove His- torical Society will host its next meeting this Saturday, Jan. 18, with Cottage Grove Bank Building owner and developer Len Blackstone speaking on the history of the bank building. The talk will begin at 10 a.m. at the Cottage Grove Community Center, 700 Gibbs St. Zone from A9 “We want to act in ac- cordance with that law, of course,” he said. “If it turns out to be complete- ly unethical or unlawful, we want to know.” What Next? Whatever the implica- tions, a consensus seems to exist on the need for a solution. Howell said she has noticed a tendency for speeding along the The event is free and open to members of the community. Coffee and donuts will be served and there will be an opportuni- ty to tour the bank build- ing afterward. For more information, contact publicity coordi- nator Katy Vaughn at 541- 946-2000. stretch in front of Great Days. “There are buses and [drivers] still don’t slow down,” she said. Meyers described the road as an enticing place to speed. “This all goes to how drivers react to the en- vironment around them for what speed they travel,” he said. “River Road is a good example: a pretty straight wide street with a pretty good shoulder on it and the lanes are wide. As a driv- 31157 Kenady Lane, Almost 7 Acres, Timber, Year Round Creek, High End Updates and Amenities On Jan. 9, crews bore 25 feet into the subsurface of travel lanes on Oregon Route 99, gathering samples to examine the condition of the existing road. The sampling is the first step in a new project in Cottage Grove to improve safety and traffic flow on OR 99 from Woodson Place to the Coast Fork Willamette River, a short section of road that connects homes to shopping and services. The existing four-lane section will be redesigned to have a one-vehicle travel lane in each direction with a center turn lane. Sidewalks with ADA ramps, bike lanes and a crosswalk with a rapid flashing beacon will also be added. Planning is underway, with construction scheduled for fall 2021. Trashion Show seeks participants The community is invited for a Trashion Gathering of Creative Souls as planning for the Opal Theater’s 2020 Trashion Show begins. Designers, models, artists, busy bees and other interested parties are er, you go faster.” The stretch River Road from Main Street to Woodson Place is mostly unimpeded by stop signs, driveways or intersections. Gagner proposed that the stretch needs a speed consistent with an area highly concentrated by young people. “If you’ve got a 20-mile-per-hour school zone in front of the high school, then one certain- ly needs to be there, too, in my opinion,” he said. Howell also felt the street would benefit from such a speed limit. “Twenty [miles per hour] is great,” she said. “It slows people down and they have enough room to stop.” The somewhat recent addition of a crosswalk at the site has been one tool in combating the speeding. “It was a good thing we put the crosswalk in — just about a year and half or two years ago — and that’s helped,” Mey- ers said. Before the crosswalk, “it was terrible,” said Howell. As other means to encouraged to attend the planning meeting on Sunday, Jan. 26, begin- ning at 4 p.m. at the Opal Theater, 513 East Main St. in Cottage Grove. For more information, call 541- 623-0513 or visit opalcentercg.org curb hurried traffic such as speed bumps are off the table, the city has courted with an option that may have reper- cussions far beyond the community. “We’d have to actually go through the state leg- islative process to get the law changed,” said Mey- ers. “We’ve got some ideas, but we want to sit down with our legisla- tors and say, ‘What do you think? How would people feel on this if we tied it to funding sourc- es — if we tied to num- ber of kids or size of the school?’ Some of those could be an area that could be going that way.” A significant challenge in changing the statute lies in creating an appro- priate definition, howev- er. “The intent probably is, with the state law, that they don’t want all of those [daycares] rec- ognized as schools,” said Meyers. “Then you’d have a school zone every four houses through a neighborhood. We be- lieve the intent is to try to restrict that to some- thing that is an actual in- stitution.” Opal hosts 16mm Film ‘The Primitives’ this Saturday The next 16mm Film Night at the Opal Center will highlight films from the first decade of motion picture history on Satur- day, Jan. 18, beginning at 7 p.m. In the beginning of motion pictures, there were inventors, photographers, mechanics, showmen, magicians, actors and adventurers who — with vary- ing degrees of imagination and entrepreneurism — were the pi- oneers of modern cinema. Saturday’s program brings to- gether a sampling of their works. Highlights will include the early films of Edwin Porter, Lumière Bros., Thomas Edison, Georges Melies and Cecil Hepworth. Brief introductions place the films in context, preceded by a newsreel and cartoon. This is a one of a kind 16mm film show that should not be missed by any cinema enthusiast. The Opal Center is located at 513 East Main Street in Cottage Grove. For more information, call The Opal Center at 541-623- 0513. Finding that right bal- ance will be part of the conversation if the city moves ahead with the idea. “We need to figure out how to define that and not create another situa- tion,” said Meyers. “We’ll meet with our legislators and see how receptive they are. They might have some thoughts as well.” Howell posited that certain centers could qualify by attendance. “If they go to the state, I think there should be a limit of how many chil- dren attend in a building for education purposes,” she said. “Probably at least 15.” This year, however, is the Oregon Legislative Assembly’s short session. During short sessions, which take place every even-numbered year and last no more than 35 days, senators can intro- duce one piece of legisla- tion and representatives two. Getting the school zone statute on a legisla- tor’s wish list, then, may not be a viable option this session. Another pathway ex- ists in changing the stat- ed speed limit on River Road, however it would require the city to appeal to the Oregon Depart- ment of Transportation and go through a speed study. The process may not guarantee the city getting its desired speed. Short of changing the statute and the speed limit itself, a strategic navigation of the law has even been floated as pos- sibility, even if fancifully. A potential loop- hole exists in which the school district may pur- chase the land and sell it back to Great Days, thus qualifying the land as being “previously owned by a school district” in accordance with the state statute. “It’s an option,” said Meyers. “But it’s not as legitimate as trying to make it really fit.” Howell agreed the solution is not ideal. “I would rather have the state tell me that we’re a school,” she said. “I always felt that we were a school. Especially since we’ve got that des- ignation from the De- partment of Education.” Your LOCAL News Delivered Your Way 33/ YR .* $ Home Delivery Includes digital access! Get local news, local savings and more – anytime, anywhere! Your Local News Source Since 1889 *Offer good through 1.31.20. Mention this ad. this offer is not transferable and the offer is available those who have not sub- scribed in the last 31 days. Special introductory offers are limited to no more than two special subscriptions in a twelve month period and must be paid in advance to qualify for special rate. Once the above discounted period ends, you will be billed at the regular subscription rates. Promo code JAN2020 S entinel C ottage G rove In Print, Online & On the Go! 541-942-3325 www.cgsentinel.com