11 June 2015
State Parks to hold second trails safety meeting
Results from an earlier meeting about a highway 101 trail crossing at Honeyman State Park will be presented next week in Florence.
Jaime English, a planner with Oregon Parks and Recreation, said feedback and comments received from trail users during a May 27th meeting will be presented one week from today, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM at Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue.
Planners will also share findings collected through a comment system posted on honeyman-state-park-dot-com.
A casual or so-called ‘social trail’ that connected the east and west sides of Highway 101 just north of the park entrance was dropped from the park’s master plan in 2009. That was three years after an overpass, just south of the entrance was completed.
The trail remained in use until February when it was closed suddenly.
Local runners who use the trail and the crossing protested and were successful in getting the trail reopened, if only temporarily.
Park officials say the crossing is unsafe and want to redirect users to the overpass.
English says next week’s meeting will give users an additional chance to talk about their feelings and give suggestions.
Oregon Employers One Step Closer to Required Sick Leave
The Oregon Senate has voted to require many Oregon businesses offer paid sick leave for their employees. The bill cleared the Senate in a 17-13 vote Wednesday. It now goes to the House which could take it up as early as next week.
The bill got support only from Democrats, who say people shouldn’t have to work while they’re sick.
Republicans strongly oppose the measure, saying it will make it harder for businesses to grow and to hire more workers.
The bill applies to organizations with at least ten employees. Workers will be able to accrue up to 40-hours of paid leave per year, which they can use to take care of their own illness or a family member’s.
Smaller employers will be required to provide leave, but it would be without pay.
Reedsport ride service to offer service to Bay Area
A shared ride service in Reedsport and Gardiner is expanding to offer service to and from Coos Bay and North Bend. Douglas Rides is a network of community transportation services in Douglas County. It coordinates the “dial-a-ride” service that is open to all adults.
Older adults and those with disabilities get priority if service is limited.
In Reedsport, the Coos County service will be offered only on Wednesdays beginning July1st. The van will pick up riders at their door before ten AM and transport passengers to various locations. It will leave the Bay Area by two pm.
Reedsport dial-a-ride, which is operated by the City of Reedsport, normally charges a dollar a ride. But, the Coos Bay and North Bend trips will cost three dollars.
Eastern Oregon students win national competition
A two-person team of student auto technicians from Oregon are the best in the nation. The team of Jay Saunders and Morgan White from Vale High School won the 66th annual Ford-Triple-A Student Auto Skills competition last week in Michigan.
Teams from Vale have won the Oregon competition a whopping 27 times and this is the third time they’ve won the nationals. Marie Dodds with Oregon Triple-A said they previously won in 2011 and 2013.
The team from Siuslaw High School finished fourth in last month’s Oregon competition.
Forest Service touts field ranger program
If you’ve ever walked a trail and spotted a bird and wanted to know what type it was; or wondered what the name of that plant is that you’re looking at, you’re not alone.
That’s one reason why the U.S. Forest Service is continuing the “Field Ranger” program for the sixth year.
David Thompson is an interpretive specialist for the Siuslaw National Forest. He oversees the Field Rangers at Cape Perpetua Scenic Area and on the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.
Thompson has assembled an international crew of retired professionals; former Forest Service employees; and other volunteers.
They will be at various recreation locations this summer, offering personal guided hikes; group tours; and “Junior Ranger” programs.
You can find Field Rangers wherever Forest Service “Welcome” flags are displayed on Highway 101. You can also call the Cape Perpetua or Dunes Recreation Visitor Centers for more information.
Crosswalk enforcement provides educational opportunity
Only 11 drivers were pulled over during Monday’s crosswalk enforcement action by Florence Police… seven of those were cited for failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk. Lieutenant John Pitcher said seven more citations were issued… including two for using a cell phone, one for no proof of insurance and one for driving under the influence.
In all, Pitcher would call the day a success because a lot of attention was paid to pedestrians in crosswalks and how drivers should react to them.
John Pitcher: – “We’ve had people killed in crosswalks in our town. It’s an ongoing problem, so we want to educate the public. Unfortunately, citations are a part of that education. We want to let people know that we’re there, that we’re doing this, give them the opportunity to think about it, to think about the crosswalks. If the warnings don’t work, then we issue the citation.”
Pitcher said they went out of their way to publicize the event and even call attention to it while it was underway. The department gets additional funding from the Oregon Department of Transportation to help pay for the overtime required to do this. He said residents should watch Highway 101 in Florence over the next few months… they’ll be doing it again at least twice more before Labor Day.
