City Releases DUII Enforcement Results
The Florence Police department released its numbers for its super Bowl DUII enforcement campaign. The department arrested one driver for driving while impaired and issued eight warnings for miscellaneous traffic offenses and two citations for driving while suspended. Throughout the month of February the Florence police arrested a total of six drivers for driving while impaired. This past week Florence Police and Oregon State Police have been fairly active in and around the construction zone making sure that drivers are observing the posted speed limits. Chief Tom Turner said that they want people to be more vigilant in the area. Construction is moving along quickly in the area. Crews were pouring curbs yesterday at 8th and highway 101, and with good weather forecast for the next several days construction should move along swiftly.
Work Session
The Florence City Council has a work session planned for Monday morning at 10:30 am. They will meet to continue discussion of their City Council goal setting session from January 14th and their previous February 13th session. Some of those topics include Housing, family wage jobs and workforce development, the Revision Florence project and parks and park improvements. The meeting will be held at Florence City Hall.
Council Meeting
The City Council will also meet Monday evening at 5:30 pm. On the agenda for the evening meeting are presentations of Veterans of Foreign Wars Awards and employee recognitions. The council will also consider approving a resolution to authorize an application of a rural business development grant from the US Department of Agriculture and a couple of requests for zone changes. A hot topic in recent weeks will be the process of changing the appointment process for the Urban Renewal Agency. This is a continued discussion from the boards March 4th meeting. There has been much discussion as to whether the agency is a tool of the city or performing as a stand-alone agency. Several members of the council are seeking clarity and there is a proposal for changing the city’s ordinance in regards to the Florence Urban Renewal Agency.
WLCF Distributes Funds
The Western Lane Community Foundation announced its awards to local non-profits. The foundation distributed over $78 thousand to local and regional agencies including money for an expansion of the Boys and Girls Club Teen Kitchen, Mapleton Food Share, Mapleton and Siuslaw Schools, the Oregon Coast Military Museum, the Siuslaw Pioneer Museum and a long list of others. In addition the foundation will award a total of $300,000 in designated giving, scholarships, and discretionary grants.
Plover Nesting Season Begins
The Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation is reminding beachgoers that March 15th through September 15th is nesting time for shore birds and signs will be posted and there may even be some roped off sections near trails marking areas that are off limits. ODPR says nests are often well camouflaged and disturbances can chase off adult plovers leaving chicks vulnerable to predators and exposure. The Snowy Plover has been recognized as a threatened species since 1993.
