16 January 2013
Florence’s First Citizen for 2012
An impressive resume, that includes chairing the Florence Relay for Life for the past two years and helping to raise more than $175-thousand, is held by Florence’s First Citizen for 2012. John Bartlett was one of two nominees, he’ll receive the award tonight during the annual Siuslaw Awards at the Florence Events Center. Eric Tanikawa was the other nominee. Siuslaw High School senior Todd Denning was previously named as Florence’s Future First Citizen.
Recipients of the business and non-profit awards will be announced tonight. Six different groups have been nominated for Non-Profit Achievement. Three nominees are up for Community Caring, four in the Greener category and one for Curb Appeal.
There are four nominees for Excellence in Customer Service; three for the Stu Johnston Business of the Year.
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Newport gets nod over Reedsport for wave energy test site
A section of ocean near Newport has been selected as the site for what officials are calling a “utility-scale” wave energy test site. Newport beat out Reedsport for the new Pacific Marine Energy Center. Oregon State University will operate the center in a partnership with the University of Washington. The site will test devices for electrical generating potential as well as environmental impacts. It will be about five miles offshore and completion is expected to take several years. Plans call for four “test berths”… open spaces of water dedicated to testing individual devices or small arrays. Cables will transmit power to the electrical grid onshore, along with data for scientists and engineers.
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Fuel prices fall slightly
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell by a nickel in Florence and statewide in the past week. Locally the average price is $3.29; Oregon’s average according to Triple-A is $3.33. The national average price held steady this week… it’s at $3.30. Drivers in Hawaii are the only ones paying more than four-dollars a gallon on average; New York has the highest continental prices at $3.74. Eight states are below the three-dollar mark with Utah holding the distinction of having the cheapest average… $2.84 a gallon.
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