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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 2020)
Serving the communities of Cottage Grove, Creswell, Dorena, Drain, Elkton, Lorane and Yoncalla C ottage G rove THURSDAY EDITION | OCTOBER 29, 2020 | $1.00 S entinel VOL. 131, NO. 43 • Your Local News Delivered Your Way: In Print. Online. On the Go! Get an insurance plan —not just a policy. Council approves purchase of Pallet Shelters By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com (541) 942-0555 WEATHER Est. 1889 In a unanimous vote, the Cot- tage Grove City Council gave the go-ahead on Monday for the pur- chase of 18 Pallet Shelters, address- ing an anticipated need to secure shelter for the unhoused this win- ter. A conversation about the need for shelters arose recently when the board for Beds for Freezing Nights announced it would be unable to provide its services to the commu- Sunny skies with a high of 66 and a low tonight of 39. Full forecast on A5 nity this season. The group normally operates from Nov. 15 through March 31, providing safe, warm places for the unsheltered to sleep when night- time temperatures drop to 29 de- grees or below. The challenges faced in opera- tions and securing volunteers have been complicated due to con-cerns surrounding COVID-19 this year, however. Representatives from the city, Beds for Freezing Nights, Com- munity Sharing, Lane County, Cottage Village Coalition and other organizations subsequently entered into talks to find solutions. One of the problems needing to be addressed was the risk posed by congregate housing during a pandemic. Multiple people stay- ing in the same room and Beds for Freezing Nights volunteers tend- ing to be in a high-risk category for COVID-19 were determined to make for unsafe environments. Some participants in the dia- logue proposed providing tents to those in need of shelter to reduce risk, but it was decided that the tents could not sufficiently reduce exposure to cold temperatures. Moreover, improperly-operated heating devices in the tents would run the risk of starting fires. Pallet Shelters then emerged as a viable solution. The Washington-based compa- ny Pallet, which defines itself as a “social purpose company” aiming to end unsheltered homelessness and develop a nontraditional See CITY 7A Pilot program incentivizes energy effi ciency HALLOWEEN By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel. com first glance. But it wasn’t long after moving in that problems began to pile up. From electrical to plumbing to basic carpentry, the family’s worries about the integrity of their newly built house grew quickly. And the more Bush learned, the more he A pilot program ex- clusive to Cottage Grove and Creswell is off ering limited-time incentives to customers who install energy-effi cient upgrades in their home. In a partnership be- tween regional gas pro- vider NW Natural and nonprofi t Energy Trust of Oregon, the pro- gram aims to reduce the amount of natural gas consumption in small communities by off ering residential, commercial and industrial incentives to purchase energy-effi - cient products. Residents of Cottage Grove and Creswell can receive cash rebates on energy-effi cient gas furnaces, insulation and window upgrades through the program. A wide range of com- mercial and industrial incentives are included in the pilot as well. To be eligible, residents or businesses must be in either ZIP code 97424 or 97426 and primarily heat their buildings with nat- ural gas provided by NW Natural. Qualifi ed applicants must then select a con- tractor to complete the work. See HOME 5A See PILOT 8A Trunk or Treat A11 COMMUNITY — B Celebrating the dead B1 DAMIEN SHERWOOD/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL Jason Bush (right) and Jayson and Misty Southmayd discuss the project outside the family’s home. • RECORDS Obituaries Official releases A2 • LORANE NEWS Building official works to rehome vet Local building official Jason Bush is leading charge to rehome a Creswell veteran and his family By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com B1 • CLASSIFIEDS Listings and public notices B5-B6 When building official Jason Bush got a call about a homeowner’s disagreement with a contractor, he was a bit incredulous at the claims. After 25 years in the field, he’d seen his share of exaggerations. Even so, he agreed to stop by the property just outside Creswell and see for himself. What Bush found shook him. “There’s only one house I’ve seen that was worse,” said Bush. “It was when I was a building official in Lebanon and it was a heroin house.” Homeowners Jayson and Misty Southmayd acknowledge that their house looks fine from the outside at FOLLOW US FOR THE LATEST NEWS : /CGSentinel @CGSentinel Candidates voice opinions during virtual forum By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com 541- 942-3325 ph • 541-942-3328 fax P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424 Cottage Grove City Council candidates participated in a vir- tual forum Tuesday night hosted by KNND owner Cameron Reiten and Chamber of Commerce CEO/ President Shauna Neigh. In the upcoming General Elec- tion of Nov. 3, 2020, six candidates are vying for seats on the Cottage Grove City Council. Including the mayoral position, councilor posi- tions for Ward 2, Ward 4 and an at-large position are on the ballot. Only two positions — the seats of mayor and councilor at-large — are contested. In the running for mayor are incumbent Jeff Gowing and Ivan DelSol. For the councilor at-large posi- tion, incumbent Kenneth Michael The Flower Basket and Gift Boutique “A Flower Shop and so much more” Creative Floral Arrangements • Jewelry • Balloons Home Décor • Fine Gifts • Boutique Clothing & Accessories 119 South 6th Street • 541-942-0505 Roberts and Chalice MP Savage have filed. Councilor Jon Stinnett is run- ning for the Ward 2 position un- opposed since the withdrawal of Ashley Rigel on Aug. 18. Stinnett was appointed to the position on Sept. 28 as the seat was vacant and he remained the only candidate in the running. Lastly, incumbent Councilor Greg Ervin is running for Ward 4 unopposed. Candidates answered questions from Reiten and Neigh on topics ranging from the city budget to rural homelessness then took au- dience questions for the final leg of the forum. During introductions, DelSol defined himself as a “philosophi- cal candidate” using the platform See CANDIDATES 10A Rotary members are making an impact in the fi ght against COVID-19 in our community. Rotary members around the world persevere. No challenge is so big that we can’t make a diff erence. Rotary Club of Cott age Grove 541-554-6946