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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 19, 2015)
COMPETITION POWWOW BEATING THE HEAT IN GRAND RONDE FALL PRACTICE Page 7A Page 10A Volume 140, Issue 33 www.Polkio.com August 19, 2015 75¢ IN YOUR TOWN DALLAS NEWS FIRE HAZARD JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer Norm Silvey and Jim Schmaltz are displeased in the way a neighbor’s tall, dry weeds are being handled. Neighbors fret over dry weeds growing adjacent to property By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — Looking over a hay field bordering his neighbors’ property, Norm Silvey knows one thing for certain: “I think it meets the defi- nition of dry,” he said with a chuckle. The problem for Silvey and other residents of the Ceres Gleann area of Dallas is that they don’t view the unharvested field as a laugh- ing matter, but a potential fire hazard. Silvey said his neighbors have raised the issue with the city of Dallas, Dallas Fire & EMS, as well as field owner Fowler Homes on a number of occasions this summer, and not enough has been done to settle their con- cerns. A strip of the field border- ing the homes was mowed in late June; however, with the extremely dry conditions this summer, people living Got tall weeds? The abatement procedure has three steps: • An initial letter giving the owner a 10-day deadline to address the problem. • If the first deadline is not met, a notice is posted on the property and a second letter is sent, this time with seven business days to mow. • If those conditions are not met, the city can contract with a business to mow the property at the owner’s ex- pense. next to the field believe the fire danger persists. “They know, but nothing is happening,” said Jim Schmaltz, another resident of the neighborhood. Mike Schilling with Fowler Homes said the farmer renting the field was unable to harvest this year, but the company is looking at other options. “We are working with other farmers to get it done,” Schilling said. That may take some time, though. Schilling said with condi- tions this dry, mowing the field may become a fire haz- ard in itself. If the machine hits a rock or had a bad bearing, that could ignite a fire. He said the plan at this point is to wait for rain in significant enough quantity to lower the fire risk. Schilling added it may be into fall before the field could be safely mowed. The city of Dallas re- sponded to the concerns in June, issuing letters and posting a “weed abatement” notice on the property. The city’s weed abatement pro- gram addresses “nuisances caused by weeds, grass and other debris.” City administrators added another condition to ad- dress agricultural fields within city limits, which would apply to the property in question. Fields are re- quired to have a 50-foot buffer zone mowed around the perimeter adjacent to homes, sidewalks or road- ways. The abatement procedure has three steps: • An initial letter giving the owner a 10-day deadline to address the problem. • If the first deadline is not met, a notice is posted on the property and a sec- ond letter is sent, this time with seven business days to mow. • If those conditions are not met, the city can con- tract with a business to mow the property at the owner’s expense. See HAZARD, Page 6A Expansion at DRV to cost $27 million Project to break ground Thursday; will offer more dining, entertainment By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — A project three years in the making will offi- cially break ground on Thursday when Dallas Re- tirement Village (DRV) be- gins its expansion. “After nearly three years of research and planning, to see new construction begin to bring the total vision to life is tremendously excit- ing,” said David Parrett, DRV’s executive director. “We are fortunate that our forward-thinking board of directors and strong finan- cial standing are making it possible to enhance the lifestyle for current and fu- ture residents of Dallas Re- tirement Village.” DRV will be marking the THE NEXT 7 DAYS PLANNING FOR YOUR WEEK occasion with a ground- breaking ceremony Thurs- day at 10 a.m. at 377 NW Jasper St. New construction will in- clude apartments and an ac- tivity lodge, providing more entertainment and dining options for DRV residents. Inspired by classic resort lodges of the Northwest, the new “lodge residences” will offer 40 apartment-style floor plans. The adjacent “lodge club- house” will be a 15,000- square-foot activities center, providing restaurant-style bistro and buffet dining, gathering and socializing spaces, library, arts studio, business center, game room and more. A second phase of construction includes a fit- ness/wellness center, indoor Throughout her life, Dallas resident Sarah Haus- man has always watched sports from the sidelines. Since discovering roller derby five and a half years ago, Hausman is no longer just a spectator. She’s become what she thought would never get the chance to be — an athlete. “I had never done a sport in my life,” Hausman said. “To start a sport at the age of 32 and to be considered an athlete, it still blows my mind. It seemed out of the realm of possibility.” Hausman’s determination and new found love helped her to achieve the seemingly impossible. »Page 10A FALLS CITY NEWS Lincoln King’s face lit up when he looked in the mirror Thursday night. An incoming Falls City second-grader just had his hair cut and was liking his new look, grinning at his reflection. Lincoln, and more than 180 fellow school chil- dren, took part in “Tools for School” Thursday at Falls City’s Upper Park. Tools for School is a back-to- school event sponsored by the Salvation Army Salem Kroc Corps. The event provided more than just backpacks filled with grade-required school supplies. »Page 16A INDEPENDENCE NEWS Some of the last remaining buildable land along the Willamette River is for sale, but not to just any- one. The city of Independence bought the 20-acre parcel of riverfront land in December 2014 for $800,000 from Valley Concrete with the goal to sell it to a developer who would make good use of the property and allow public access to the nearly 2 and ½ miles along the river itself. To help find the right person for the job, the city hired Leland Consultants to help market the prop- erty. »Page 5A MONMOUTH NEWS Imagine Monmouth being known far and wide as the most bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly town in Oregon. “Bike trails, better sidewalks, safer crossings,” said Libby Barg, with Barney and Worth, the consultants for Monmouth’s visioning process. “The idea is that Monmouth is relatively flat; it’s a college town, great for biking. What can we do to stand out as a bike friendly, pedestrian friendly city?” That’s one of the four main focus points of the Monmouth Engaged project, the city’s visioning process that is wrapping up. »Page 3A POLK COUNTY NEWS Itemizer-Observer file The expansion will provide more dining options. pool, salon and spa. Life Care Services of Des Moines, Iowa, is the devel- oper of the project. Design is by LRS Architects. R&H Con- struction is the general con- tractor on the project. See DRV, Page 5A Anna Scharf, chairwoman of the Polk County Fair Board, could tell something was different — in a good way — at the annual fair within hours of opening. By 11 a.m. on Aug. 6, the first day of fair — typi- cally not a gate-buster — she noticed more peo- ple, including quite a few families, were coming in. Soon, overflow parking was being used, again not a normal occurrence that early in the fair’s run. “I instantly knew Thursday morning that some- thing was working,” Scharf said at fair board’s monthly meeting Thursday. »Page 2A wed thu fri sat sun mon tue Head out to Rogue Hop Farm for the monthly bingo at the farm. The event is family and dog friendly. 6:30 p.m. Free. Enjoy music and light refreshments while you mingle with other business people at MI Cham- ber’s after hours. 5:30-7 p.m. Free. Pick up a new pair of kicks at the scrub and shoe sale at West Valley Hospital. Proceeds benefit high school seniors. 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Don’t miss the farm- ers markets in downtown Inde- pendence for fresh berries, fruits and vegetables. 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Free. Learn about flying remote control air- planes at the Wingdingers RC Fly- ing Club at Whit- worth Elementary. 1-3 p.m. Free. Donate blood to the American Red Cross at the Academy Building in Dallas and help save a life today. Check out the youth Chess Club at the Independence Public Library, where kids learn chess and compete. 4:30 p.m. Free. Sunny Hi: 93 Lo: 56 Sunny Hi: 79 Lo: 53 Mostly Sunny Hi: 78 Lo: 53 Sunny Hi: 90 Lo: 56 Sunny Hi: 90 Lo: 56 Sunny Hi: 83 Lo: 52 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Free. Mostly Sunny Hi: 80 Lo: 53