City Chooses Quince Street Developer
It has been several years in the making, but the City’s Florence Urban Renewal Agency has come to an agreement with the Sycan B. Corp/Meret’e hotel management company to develop the property across from the Florence Events Center. The concept of bringing a 100+ room hotel and associated workplace housing development has been agreed upon in principle, now the company will have to perform cost analysis studies to determine the feasibility of the project. One of the consultants for the city on the project is Brooke Subert who told the FURA committee that the proposed company had a solid foundation and a good vision for the space.
“The focus was on the Large windows to bring in those gorgeous views, bringing the outdoors in, they have a rooftop bar, oversized fitness area, a bike lending program to create the accessibility and connectivity throughout the community.”
The plan is to locate the hotel directly across from the Florence Events Center with the work force housing adjacent and separated by a common area with a covered community plaza where guests and residents can gather. Members of FURA unanimously voted to move forward with an Exclusive Negotiating agreement.
Record COVID-19 Cases
It began Friday with another record breaking day of COVID-19 cases. The state of Oregon posted 600 new cases on Friday for the largest single day total. The weekend continued on with another 555 cases on Saturday and 524 cases on Sunday. The city of Florence also saw a 10% increase in coronavirus cases over the weekend adding 3 more to increase the total to 34. The increase in cases comes after a 10 day spread with no new cases for the Florence Community. Due to the protocols for Lane County, cases are not individually reported unless the cases are associated with a workplace outbreak or a social gathering. Lane County totals for the weekend were 134 with an infectious count of 181 and hospitalizations increased to 17. There was also another death associated with the virus raising the county total to 28. The state total is now at 691.
Election Deadline
Tomorrow is Election Day and the deadline for submitting your ballots is 8 pm. Lane County Clerk, Cheryl Betschart says the county continues to receive record numbers of ballots and expect that number to top previous elections. The city of Florence has one ballot drop site located at the Justice Center on Greenwood just off of 9th Street. Over half of Oregon’s registered voters have returned their ballots so far. Ballots not received by 8 pm tomorrow will not be counted. The State of Oregon does not allow for Election Day postmarked ballots to be included in official election results.
Low Flu Numbers
The month of October ended with little effect from the seasonal flu according to the Oregon Health Authority. In its weekly report the OHA showed a total of 2 positive cases in the final week of the month and both were from southern Oregon. Flu cases could potentially be significantly down this year, one of the reasons is that schools tend to be areas of outbreaks and distance learning will keep those numbers down. The OHA, as it does with coronavirus cases urges individuals to be diligent in hand washing and covering your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze.
