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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 2020)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL City from A1 workforce, manufactures its shelters to be an effi- cient, safe and affordable option for temporary cot- tage-style housing. Taking only about 30 minutes to set up, the in- sulated shelters can be snapped together on site and include amenities such as electrical connec- tions, heat, windows, beds, mattress and a door which locks from the inside. The units can also be easily unassembled and stored on a pallet when not in use. “These structures can be taken apart and put back together time and time again,” said City Manager Richard Meyers. Made from aluminum and plastic composite ma- terials, the shelters are re- sistant to rot, durable and easy to disinfect for day- to-day use. Meyers personally at- tested to the shelters’ dura- bility after entering a unit. “I was expecting the walls to flex. I was expect- ing the floors to bounce. It didn’t,” he said. Pallet lists its shelters as being used in several sites up and down the West Coast, Hawaii and other states. Many cities have reported benefits to their use. The shelters come in two sizes: 64 and 100 square feet. The city has approved the purchase of 15 of the smaller units and three of the large. To pay for the shelters, the city can access its Federal Coronavirus Re- lief Fund, some $100,000 which must be spent be- fore the end of the year. The city is also expect- ing assistance from Lane County which will fully cover the capital costs to prepare the site and infra- structure. Pallet Shelters run about $5,000 for small units and $7,500 for the larger ones, making the purchase of the units in themselves around $100,000. Additional need for other facilities may add another $20,000 to $30,000 to the cost, said Meyers on Monday’s Beeper Show. Lane County currently has access to more than 100 Pallet Shelters, said Meyers, and can release them to the city immedi- ately. The proposed space for the shelters in Cottage Grove is a city lot behind the post office on N. 12th Street where there are al- ready electric, water and sewage connections avail- able, he said. Under the plan, the lot would be fenced off and include portable toilets, handwashing stations and canopies to protect the fa- cilities. The proposed idea will allow Beds for Freezing Nights to continue opera- tions under its normal sea- sonal schedule, beginning Nov. 15 and the structures coming down for storage after March 31. In acquiring volun- teers, the City of Cottage Grove also plans to pur- sue funding from Lane County which could be used provide an employee to oversee the operation, a position which would be filled through Community Sharing. At Monday’s city coun- cil meeting, Councilor Kenneth Roberts said the Knights of Colum- bus could offer support through volunteers as well. Community input has been overwhelmingly sup- portive of the idea. Local resident Rob Dickinson spoke in favor of the move at the virtual city council meeting. “It’s very important that we provide some sort of shelter for the unhoused, especially during a pan- demic, and the Pallet Shel- ters seem like a pretty good option,” he said. “It seems an economical, quick and high-quality solution.” Cottage Village Coali- tion President Bruce Kelsh echoed the support, citing his work with the logistical side of arranging space for Beds for Freezing Nights. “I think it has tremen- dous advantages over sharing a large room with everyone breathing in it all night long, which is simply not safe during COVID times,” he said. “Whereas I find the individual cab- ins a really good solution for dealing with the issue of providing a shelter for people that’s warm, safe and secure.” The Pallet Shelters may also serve as a long-term solution for other uses such as emergency hous- ing, providing a chance to enhance emergency pre- paredness in the commu- nity. “These could be used if Worship Directory COTTAGE GROVE: 6th & Gibbs Church of Christ 195 N. 6th St. • 541-942-3822 10:00am Christian Education: Pre-K through 5th Tim Baker, Senior Minister www.6thandgibbs.com First Presbyterian Church 3rd and Adams St 541-942-4479 Rev.: Karen Hill Worship: 10:00am Sunday School: 10:00am fpcgrove.com Calvary Baptist Church 77873 S 6th St • 541-942-4290 Pastor: Riley Hendricks Sunday School: 9:45am Worship: 11:00am The Journey: Sunday 5:00pm Praying Thru Life: Wednesday 6:00pm Hope Fellowship United Pentecostal Church 100 S. Gateway Blvd. 541-942-2061 Pastor: Dave Bragg Worship: 11:00am Sunday Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday www.hopefellowshipupc.com “FINDING HOPE IN YOUR LIFE” Church of Christ 420 Monroe St • 541-942-8565 Sunday Service: 10:30am Cottage Grove Bible Church 1200 East Quincy Avenue 541-942-4771 Pastor:Bob Singer Worship 11am Sunday School:9:45am AWANA age 3-8th Grade, Wednesdays Sept-May, 6:30pm www.cgbible.org Cottage Grove Faith Center 33761 Row River Rd. 541-942-4851 Lead Pastor: Kevin Pruett www.cg4.tv Full Childrenʼs Ministry available Services: 9:00am & 10:45am Hope In The Grove Baptist Church 77820 Mosby Creek Rd Pastor: Wayne Husk Worship: Sunday 10:00am Evening Bible Study: Wednesday 6:30pm 541.649.1043 For weekday and Holy Day of Obligation schedule see website OLPHCG.net Confession: 4 PM to 5 PM Saturdays or by appointment St. Philip Benizi, Creswell 552 Holbrook Lane Sunday 8 am In other city council news: • City Manager Annual Performance Review — The city council voted to renew the contract of City Manager Richard Meyers following an overwhelm- ingly positive review from the city council. Meyers’ compensation was also increased commensurate with 2020-21 fiscal year salary adjustment recom- mendations for depart- ment heads with 2 percent COLA/wage adjustment plus a 2.5 percent stipend for the PERS state em- ployee pension stability account. Now coming into his 24th year in the role, Mey- ers expressed his apprecia- tion for the job. “Every year is different,” he said. “This is year by far exceeds the other years for being different, but it’s still a pleasure working for the council and continuing to do things to make Cot- tage Grove an even better place.” Councilors spoke glow- ingly of Meyers’ perfor- mance. “This is the best review I’ve given Richard un- der some of the toughest times,” said Councilor Mike Fleck. “I just want to commend Richard and his staff. They do an excellent job running our city and I’m proud to be part of this organization as well.” Councilor Jake Boone referenced his own range of experiences with other cities as president of the League of Oregon Cities and spoke of Meyers’ as a unique asset. “We in Cottage Grove are really spoiled to have Richard here,” he said. “We’re really lucky to have him and we want to keep him as long we can possi- bly get him to stay.” • Land Purchase — The city council voted to redesignate and rezone a 3.04-acre parcel under city ownership along the east bank of the Coast Fork of the Willamette River ad- jacent to Lincoln Middle School to Parks and Open Space/PR Parks and Rec- reation District. The parcel’s new des- ignation will allow a trail to be developed along the river northward from E Hayes Ave. A continuation of the trail to Sixth St. may be es- tablished over time. …and deliver it all to St. Andrews Episcopal Church 1301 W. Main • 541-767-9050 Rev. Lawrence Crumb “Church with the fl ags.” Worship: Sunday 10:30am All Welcome Seventh-day Adventist Church 820 South 10th Street 541-942-5213 Pastor: Kevin Miller Bible Study: Saturday, 9:15 am Worship Service: Saturday, 10:40 Mid-week Service: Wednesday, 1:00 Non-Denominational United Methodist Church Church of Christ 334 Washington 541-942-3033 1041 Pennoyer Ave Worship 10am 541-942-8928 umcgrove.org Delight Valley Preacher: Tony Martin Church of Christ Sunday Bible Study:10:00am “VICTORY” Country Church 33087 Saginaw Rd. East Sunday Worship:10:50am & 5:30pm 913 S. 6th Street • 541-942-5913 541-942-7711 • Pastor: Bob Friend www.pennoyeravecoc.com Pastor: Barbara Dockery Two Services: Worship Service: 10:00am 9am - Classic in the Chapel Old Time Gospel Fellowship Message: “WE BELIEVE IN 10:30am - Contemporary in the 103 S. 5th St. • 541-942-4999 MIRACLES” Auditorium Pastor: Jim Edwards Sunday Service: 10:00am CRESWELL: First Baptist Church Join in Traditional Christian Worship Creswell Presbyterian 301 S. 6th st • 541-942-8242 Church Pastor: David Chhangte Our Lady of Perpetual Help 75 S 4th S • 541-895-3419 Sunday School 9:30am and St. Philip Benizi Rev. Seth Wheeler Worship Service 10:30am Catholic Churches Adult Sunday School 9:15am Youth Wednesday 6:30pm 1025. N. 19th St. Sunday Worship Service 10:30 am cgfi rstbaptist.com 541-942-3420 website www.creswellpres.org Father John J. Boyle Holy Mass: Saturday Vigil – 5:30 pm Sunday – 10:30 am Our Worship Directory is a weekly feature. If your congregation would like to be a part of this directory, contact us today! S entinel With county funds, the Pallet Shelter set-up will also likely be required to include a check-in com- ponent, Linoz said, which serves as a deterrent for some. In addition to the Pallet Shelter project, the City of Cottage Grove and Com- munity Sharing have part- nered to acquire a mobile shower/restroom trailer, which is due to arrive in 12 to 14 weeks. The trailer comes with two shower/restroom combinations and is in- tended to be used to address various needs throughout the commu- nity, including emergency situations, festivals and people without access to such facilities. Community Sharing volunteers will be operat- ing the trailer. Councilor Mike Fleck, who is executive director of Community Sharing, said he did not anticipate any monetary transaction between the city and the nonprofit, but declared a potential conflict of inter- est as a precaution. ore We Fetch You M yo ur door! Trinity Lutheran Church 6th & Quincy • 541-942-2373 Pastor: James L. Markus Living Faith Assembly Sunday School & Adult Education 467 S. 10th St. • 541-942-2612 9:15am Worship Services Sundays: 9a & 11a Sunday Worship 10:30 am Youth Worship Sundays: 11a (all Comm. Kitchen Free Meal Tue & Thur ages welcome) 5:00pm TLC Groups Mondays: 5:30p (6th-12th grades) tlccg.com C ottage G rove a neighborhood had a fire and we needed housing,” said Meyers, “or if we had a huge snowstorm and Red Cross came in because people didn’t have power, we could set those up.” In addition, new avail- ability may open up for some during freezing nights compared to the previous model. “We’re moving away from a congregate shelter to a cottage shelter,” said Meyers on the Beeper Show on Monday, adding that the cottage model gets around the Beds for Freez- ing Nights’ restrictions on mixed-gender shelter- ing and unaccompanied youth. The new model would open opportunities for youth, allow families seek- ing shelter to stay together and even accommodate for pets. During the city council meeting, Councilor Can- dace Solesbee brought up concerns from constitu- ents who have reported negative experiences in areas close to such shelters. Meyers drew a contrast to Medford’s “urban camp- ground” project, which the Pallet Shelter plan is not meant to follow. “We want to do some- thing a little more digni- fied and a little more re- spectful,” he said. Beds for Freezing Nights Board President Ruth Li- noz pointed out that the group’s criterion for acti- vation is 29 degrees or be- low because it encourages priority use of Eugene’s Egan Warming Center and reduces the shelter-seek- ing traffic from outside areas. “And if they’re staying closed, we don’t open just to avoid that dynamic,” she said. | OCTOBER 29, 2020 | 7A 541-942-3325 116 N. 6th Street Cottage Grove, OR Get FREE e-edition access with your subscription! 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S entinel C ottage G rove 116 N. 6th St. • PO Box 35 • Cottage Grove, OR 97424 www.cgsentinel.com