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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 14, 2015)
Polk County Voices Polk County Itemizer-Observer • January 14, 2015 4A EDITORIALS How to Contact Officials Despite loss, Ducks prove to be winners Congratulations to head coach Mark Helfrich and every- one associated with the University of Oregon football team. While the Ducks came up short in their bid for the Col- lege Football Playoff National Championship — Oregon lost to Ohio State 42-20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Monday night — the team certainly came up big winners in the eyes of many of its green and yellow-clad Quacker Backers. The attention the national championship game brought to the Ducks’ football program, the University of Oregon and the state of Oregon was unprecedented. Many jumped on board the UO bandwagon, including non-football fans who certainly enjoyed the ride. That extra attention will surely pay off in a number of ways, including the potential increase in student enroll- ment at Oregon from young men and women across the nation, and a boost in tourism to our state. Even in defeat, the Oregon football team made many of its supporters and others proud. PUBLIC AGENDA Public Agenda is a listing of upcoming meetings for gov- ernmental and nongovernmental agencies in Polk County. To submit a meeting, send it at least two weeks before the actual meeting date to the Itemizer-Observer via fax (503- 623-2395) or email (kholland@polkio.com). — WEDNESDAY, JAN. 14 • Monmouth Library Advisory Board — 7 a.m., Monmouth Public Library meeting room, 168 S. Ecols St., Monmouth. 503- 838-0722. • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Polk County Public Safety Local Option Tax Hearing — 6 p.m., Dallas Civic Center, 945 SE Jefferson St., Dallas. Polk Coun- ty Board of Commissioners-hosted public forum to discuss pro- posed countywide public safety levy. 503-623-8173. • Polk Soil and Water Conservation District Board — 6 p.m., USDA Service Center, 580 Main St., Suite A, Dallas. 503- 623-9680. • Monmouth Park and Recreation Board — 7 p.m., Volun- teer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. THURSDAY, JAN. 15 • Polk County Fair Board — 8 a.m., Polk County Fairgrounds and Event Center, Main Building (Meeting Room No. 2), 520 S. Pacific Highway (99W), Rickreall. 503-623-3048. • Dallas Economic Development Commission — Noon, City Hall, 187 SE Court St., Dallas. 503-831-3502. • Independence Parks and Recreation Board— 6 p.m., In- dependence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St., Independence. 503- 838-1212. • Monmouth Arts and Culture Commission — 7 p.m., Vol- unteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. MONDAY, JAN. 19 • Luckiamute Domestic Water Cooperative Board — 7 p.m., Luckiamute Domestic Water Cooperative business office, 8585 Suver Road, Monmouth. 503-838-2075. TUESDAY, JAN. 20 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Independence Historic Preservation Commission — 4 p.m., Independence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St., Independ- ence. 503-838-1212. • Falls City School Board — 5:30 p.m., Falls City High School resource room, 111 N. Main St., Falls City. 503-787-3521. • Dallas City Council — 7 p.m., City Hall, 187 SE Court St., Dallas. 503-831-3502. • Monmouth City Council — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 21 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Polk County Extension Service District Board — 12:30 p.m., Polk County-OSU Extension Service Office, 289 E. Ellen- dale Ave., Suite 301, Dallas. 503-623-8395. • Polk County Public Safety Local Option Tax Hearing — 6 p.m., Monmouth Public Library, 168 Ecols St. S., Monmouth. Polk County Board of Commissioners-hosted public forum to discuss proposed countywide public safety levy. 503-623-8173. • Luckiamute Valley Charter School Board — 6:30 p.m., Luckiamute Valley Charter Schools, Bridgeport Campus, 17475 Bridgeport Road, Dallas. 503-623-4837. • Monmouth Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. GOVERNOR Gov. John Kitzhaber (Dem.) 160 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-378-4582 Email: via website, http://governor.oregon.gov/ — STATE LEGISLATORS Sen. Arnie Roblan (District 5, Democrat) S-417 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1705 sen.arnieroblan@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/roblan Sen. Jackie Winters (District 10, Republican) S-301 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1710 sen.jackiewinters@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/winters LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Christmas Cheer makes a difference Our goal every year at Christmas Cheer is to help families in need in our area to have a Merry Christmas by providing them food and, if possible, some gifts. We had good indicators that the number of applicants may be larger than the 286 families we provided for in 2013 — and it was. For 2014, we had 325 families and sen- ior citizens apply for help, and we can say with pure joy that all were provided for. Our goal was met because many people from all walks of life, young to old, stepped up and came together not just on Christmas Eve morn- ing, but months prior to the event. Our schools, local businesses, churches, civic groups and individual vol- unteers gave goods, dollars and time so the goal could be reached. The reward from all the prior work happens on Christmas Eve morning. Without prompting, from about 5:30 a.m. the volun- teers start arriving at La Cre- ole Middle School to sort, shop, pack and deliver the holiday food boxes that fill receiving family’s refrigera- tors and cupboards. The vol- unteer count this year was estimated at 550. What a great time of reunion and celebration was had by both new and returning volun- teers. It is pure joy to see the hands and feet of our com- munity come together to provide to those in need. We hope this letter of thanks gets to all who took the time to help both finan- cially and physically, and also to those who received the gift of food and toys that this act of kindness will be remembered throughout the new year. On behalf of our board of directors, to all the donors and volunteers, again we say “thank you” and look for- ward to seeing you next year. Warren and Sue Lamb Dallas Christmas Cheer Community should support levy idea Currently, the Polk County commissioners are conduct- ing a series of meetings around the county to gather public input on a new pub- lic safety levy. I recognize the challenges the commissioners face. It is hard to ask for new taxes when the voter base doesn’t have a sincere belief in the value of the services to be supported. I know the dedication, work and energy required to get voters to support and fund public services. Twice, as a city councilor, I asked Monmouth voters for money. I campaigned to se- cure passage of the Mon- mouth police station bond and worked with Polk Fire District No.1 to gain ap- proval of the recent bond and levy measures. These measures passed because voters came to understand the community value of the requests. More than ever, those of you who voted for Commis- sioners Pope, Ainsworth and Wheeler should stand with them and show support for their difficult decision in ask- ing you for additional taxes. Let them know that, not only will you vote “yes” for this levy, but that you will support their leadership in this chal- lenge to make Polk County safer by helping the commis- sioners get out the vote. Polk County cannot wait for someone else to make us financially whole. Call, email or drop by the commissioner’s office to let them know you voted for their leadership and still sup- port their financial leadership. Steve Milligan Monmouth Learn how public safety system works While the talks about the proposed Polk County pub- lic safety levy are ongoing, a person must ask themselves if this system is worth con- tinuing or not. People know they pay their taxes to the county treasurer, who then redis- tributes tax dollars back to the cities and leaves little for the general fund, which is responsible for operating several key offices that could benefit every person in Polk County. Those departments include: Polk County Sher- iff’s Office and Jail, district attorney’s office, juvenile de- partment and community corrections. If enforcement action is taken by a city police officer, the case gets sent to the DA’s office for prosecution and possibly to community cor- rections for supervision. During this time, the offend- er is being housed in the jail, ran by the sheriff. It is important for people within a city to understand what occurs after the hand- cuffs are removed and the person is taken to jail by their local police depart- ment. The cities don’t pay for this process, yet the pub- lic expects and demands these essential functions. If you have already made up your mind to not support public safety, I want to give you some scenarios to think about. If you have a police department, but no district attorney’s office, where does that leave you? If you have no jail, people who commit crimes will not be held ac- countable for their actions. We can’t afford to only have one or two parts of this system functioning while the others aren’t. If the system is broken, then the public safe- ty system won’t be able to do what it is supposed to do, which is to protect citizens of the county by holding people accountable for their actions and to stand up for rights of the victims in criminal cases. Consider supporting the entire public safety system. Sen. Brian Boquist (District 12, Republican) S-305 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1712 sen.brianboquist@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/boquist Rep. David Gomberg (District 10, Democrat) H-471 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1410 rep.davidgomberg@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/gomberg Mark Garton Dallas Volunteers are key to tourney success The third annual Brunner Invitational, a Dallas High School wrestling tourna- ment named after Janet Brunner, who ran the event for 20 years, was an exciting event yet again. This year, there was a total of seven teams competing on five mats in two gyms at Dallas High on Saturday. The tour- nament consisted of 378 matches with 125 student- athletes participating. Huge kudos to the many volunteers that assisted. The tournament would not be possible without you. Special thanks to Liz Dunagan, who has run an outstanding concessions for many years, and Betty Jor- dan, who headed up the hospitality room. We are fortunate to live in a generous community such as Dallas. DHS wrestling very much appreciates our many sponsors: Thrifty Mar- ket, Lime Berry, Rite Aid, Mira Mar, Courthouse Café, Ugo’s Pizza and North Dallas Bar & Grill. All admissions and con- cessions receipts will help fund the wrestling program. Thank you for your contin- ued support, and we hope to see you next year. Alice Bibler Dallas Rep. Paul Evans (District 20, Democrat) H-281 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1420 rep.paulevans@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/berger Rep. Mike Nearman (District 23, Republican) H-378 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1423 rep.mikenearman@state.or.us www.leg.state.or.us/nearman — U.S. CONGRESS Sen. Ron Wyden (Dem.) 221 Dirksen SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-5244 Fax: 202-228-2717 Salem office: 707 13th St. SE, Suite 285, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-589-4555 Email: via website, www.wyden.senate.gov Sen. Jeff Merkley (Dem.) 313 Hart SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Fax: 202-228-3997 Salem office: 495 State St. SE, Suite 330, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-362-8102 Email: via website, www.merkley.senate.gov Rep. Kurt Schrader (Dem.) 108 Cannon HOB Washington, D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-5711 Fax: 202-225-5699 Salem office: 544 Ferry St. SE, Suite 2, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-588-9100 Fax: 503-588-5517 Email: via website, www.schrader.house.gov — POLK COUNTY Board of Commissioners 850 Main St. Dallas, OR 97338 Phone: 503-623-8173 www.co.polk.or.us — CITIES Dallas 187 SE Court St. Dallas, OR 97338 503-623-2338 www.ci.dallas.or.us Falls City 299 Mill St. Falls City, OR 97344 503-787-3631 www.fallscityoregon.gov Independence 555 S. Main St. Independence, OR 97351 503-838-1212 www.ci.independence.or.us Monmouth 151 W. Main St. Monmouth, OR 97361 503-838-0722 www.ci.monmouth.or.us HOW TO REACH US Vol. 140, No. 2 (USPS) - 437-380) The official newspaper of Polk County • Serving Polk County families since 1875 Winner of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 General Excellence Awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Periodicals postage paid at Dallas, OR, Independence, OR and Monmouth, OR. Published weekly at 147 SE Court Street Dallas, Oregon 97338 Phone: 503-623-2373 Fax: 503-623-2395 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Polk County — One Year $27 Other Oregon Counties — One Year $33 Outside of Oregon — One Year $38 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Polk County Itemizer-Observer, P.O. Box 108, Dallas, Oregon 97338 The Polk County Itemizer-Observer assumes no financial responsibility for errors in adver- tisements. It will, however, reprint without charge for the portion of an advertisement which is in error if the Itemizer-Observer is at fault. NEWSROOM Nancy Adams ...............Publisher ...........................................................................nadams@polkio.com Kurt Holland..................Managing Editor...........................................................kholland@polkio.com Lukas Eggen..................Sports Editor......................................................................leggen@polkio.com Jolene Guzman............Dallas/Falls City/Polk County Reporter ................jguzman@polkio.com Emily Mentzer ..............Monmouth/Independence Reporter ..................ementzer@polkio.com DISPLAY ADVERTISING Heidi Leppin .................Display Advertising Manager ....................................hleppin@polkio.com Rachel Best ....................Display Advertising.............................................................rbest@polkio.com Karen Sanks...................Client Services ...................................................................ksanks@polkio.com CLASSIFIED LINE ADVERTISING Dawn Ohren .....................................................................................................................ioads@polkio.com PRODUCTION Kathy Huggins ..............................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com Karyn Pressel .................................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com BOOKKEEPING Pat Letsch ......................................................................................................................pletsch@polkio.com Web: www.polkio.com Phone: 503-623-2373 Fax: 503-623-2395