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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (May 2, 2012)
PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. Postage Paid Vernonia, OR 97064 Permit No. 37 Vol. 27, No. 9 THE FREE INDEPENDENT The Voice Voice of of the Upper Nehalem River The River Valley Valley for for Over Over 25 27 years years May 2, 2012 More County candidates speak on county needs At the 2011 Camp 18 Logging Exhibition and competition, Robbie Van Dyke (facing camera) and Kyle Hilger are shown during Cross-cut Bucking, while Dwayne Dethlefs supplies the WD-40. See related article on page 13. New school fundraising efforts continue Fund raising efforts for the new Vernonia school are slated to continue through 2013, but the school is set to open in September of 2012. The timing difference between the open- ing of the school and fund rais- ing efforts, though known for years, has become more ap- parent. While classrooms, cafeteria, and the “small” gym- nasium will be completed by this June, some elements will be delayed, possibly until after the school opens. Though the so called “small” gymnasium is longer than the current high school gymnasi- um, and will have the floor from the current gym, bleachers may not be in place. School games could still take place, but the audience may find themselves sitting on folding chairs for a while. The “big” gymnasium and the wrestling room may be closed off, by the simple means of locked doors, until complet- ed. The district hopes to contin- ue work on these areas starting in July, but funding is needed to continue these and some other areas. The list and estimated cost of delayed portions of the proj- ects include items that have been purchased, but need to be installed: • blinds and shades in class- rooms – $65,000 • concession door and small gymnasium scoreboard – $9,000 • inside light shelves – $10,000 • final lift of parking lot as- phalt paving – $ 85,000 • work on the big gym and wrestling room includes in- stalling wood paneling, painting ceilings and walls, plus installa- tion of wood floor, wood panel- ing basketball hoop, and bleachers – $91,000. Items that remain to be pur- chased and installed include: • sound system and stage curtain – $92,000 • bleachers for both gymna- siums – $119,000 • projector screens and mounts – $23,000 • science classroom fume hood – $18,000 • solar panels for roof – $300,000. Some final landscaping on the new wetlands has been postponed until 2013 with an estimated cost of $150,000. All of these projects offer do- nation and volunteer opportuni- ties. If interested in helping, contact the district office. Superintendent Dr. Ken Cox said, “There is no way the school won’t open on time. We already have a donation of $21,000 needed to install the lockers and may have a dona- tion for the stage curtain.” The shop classroom, though, See New on page 12 Columbia County voters will decide who should represent them on the Columbia County Board of Commissioners, in the May 15 primary election, when two positions are up for elec- tion. The two open seats are Position 1 and Position 3, cur- rently held by Earl Fisher and Tony Hyde, respectively. If one candidate for each po- sition gets a majority, or 50% plus one, of the ballots cast, that candidate is elected in the primary and will not have to run again in the general election. If no candidate gets a majority, the top two candidates for each position will go on to a runoff in the November general election. The Independent inter- viewed the candidates, asking the same questions of each one. Here are the questions and the candidates’ responses. Responses are in alphabetical order, separated by the posi- tion they are seeking. The candidates for position 1 are Earl Fisher, Wayne Mayo, Brady Preheim, Terry Luttrell, and Colleen DeShazer (see April 18 issue for information about these candidates). The candidates for position 3 are Tammy Maygra, Jim Gib- son, Tony Hyde, and Reginald VHS Band going to State The Vernonia High School Band is taking their skills to state competition this year. The band will perform May 10 at 11:45 a.m. The awards will be presented between 1:15 and 1:30 p.m. The competition will be at Oregon State University’s LaSells Stewart Center, lo- cated at 875 SW 26th, Cor- vallis. Spectators are wel- come, but there is an admis- sion charge. See page 12 for informa- tion on band performance in Vernonia on May 5. Ward. Following the questions and answers, there is additional in- formation about each Position 3 candidate. Position 3 Candidates 1. How do you propose to provide county services with less money (bad economy, loss of county payments, etc.)? Gibson – We need to prioritize what is critical and what we can live without. Public safety is a biggy and county roads are an- other. They eat up a lot of re- See Candidates on page 5 Vernonia Health Fair The Vernonia Health Fair will be held May 5 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the school cafeteria (green build- ing). The Fair is sharing space with the Firefighter’s Pancake Feed. There will be vision and hearing tests, bloodmobile, glucose, cholesterol and bone density testing, other health related information, plus a drug take-back from Noon to 2:00 p.m. Vernonia Firefighter’s Pancake Feed Vernonia Volunteer Fire- fighter’s 5th annual Pancake Feed will be held May 5, from 8:00 a.m. to Noon, in the school cafeteria (green build- ing). The Health Fair is shar- ing the space. The menu includes pan- cakes, biscuits and gravy, ham, eggs, fruit, and bever- ages. Adults – $7, kids and seniors – $5, families – $25. There will be free fire truck rides, plus a fire wood raffle.
