Design Services to begin for City Hall remodel
The next step in a $1.9-million remodel of Florence City Hall is expected to be taken this evening when elected officials hear a recommendation from city staff to hire an architect for the project.
HGE, Inc of Coos Bay received the higher score from a panel of three City Staff members in a comparison with Eugene architectural firm RSA. City Manager Erin Reynolds is recommending HGE be selected to design and manage the project that was ranked number five on the list of City Council Priorities for the current fiscal year.
In a report to the council, Reynolds said the remodel will improve customer service for people dealing with City Hall, as well as increase security for those working there. When completed, it will feature modern technology and an improved City Council meeting space, as well as centralized records storage.
The Council meets this evening, six pm, at City Hall.
Primary Care Town Hall
An update on the process of recruiting additional primary care physicians and other health care providers will be presented Friday afternoon at the Florence Events Center.
PeaceHealth officials will be on hand from 12:30 to 1:30 Friday to not only speak about new doctors, but also to discuss the importance of “team medicine”.
That’s the concept of utilizing other types of care providers such as physician assistants and nurse practitioners to improve access to care.
The Institute for Health Care Improvement says “team based care” is not new; they’ve been promoting it since the late 1990s as a way to reduce health care costs and improve care.
Exhibitors sought for spring job fair
Employers and others providing services to job seekers are being recruited for next year’s spring job fair hosted by Three Rivers Casino and Resort.
Pam Hickson, recruitment specialist for Three Rivers says the March 23rd event will follow last year’s successful inaugural event that featured 28 different vendors participating and an estimated 300 job seekers attending.
Hickson said they’ve already received commitments from several different businesses and government organizations, including Fred Meyer, the Oregon Department of Transportation, Northwest Youth Corp, and Three Rivers Casino.
She said there is no cost for participants and can be a great way to reach a large pool of potential job seekers.
More information on how to participate can be had by calling Hickson at the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians at 541-902-6504
Cold Weather Shelter to open
The Florence Area Cold Weather Shelter is slated to be open tonight and tomorrow night in anticipation of near-freezing temperatures.
Registration at the Presbyterian Church of the Siuslaw opens at five this evening. Volunteers also will be providing free transportation to and from the church, at 3996 Highway 101, within a ten-mile radius.
Those who are homeless will also be fed dinner and breakfast at the shelter. Organizers say unfortunately, pets will not be allowed to sleep inside with their owners, but a sheltered area with crates has been set aside.
Sheriff to seek public comment
Lane County Sheriff Byron Trapp will host a series of community awareness meetings again around the county in coming weeks. He has five scheduled between now and late January. The first is set for Thursday evening from six to eight pm at the Serbu Youth Campus on Martin Luther King Drive in Eugene. He will be at the Veneta Community Center Thursday the 14th before taking a break through the holidays.
Trapp will be in Junction City January 11th, Creswell on the 18th, and then wraps up the circuit on Wednesday, January 25th from six to eight pm at Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue.
Lane County rolls out new website
A new website aimed at providing faster and simpler access to services and information has been developed by Lane County.
Public Information Officer Devon Ashbridge says the new website… www.lanecounty.org is a “significant departure” from the previous version which relied on a navigation system centered on county departments. Users will now have direct access to the most commonly used services on the home page.
It is also “mobile friendly” in a nod to increasing access to the web by people using smart phones.
Lane County Administrator Steve Mokrohiskey calls the new website the “front door to services for many residents”.
