Council Meeting Monday
The Florence City Council has a big Monday planned beginning with an Executive session in the morning to consult with legal council followed by a 5:30 evening meeting where they will hear testimony on two annexation requests and consider a request from the two Florence garbage haulers on a rate hike request. They will also consider the proposed sale of lot #38 in the Pacific View Business Park in the amount of $205,000. The city will also consider hanging banners along the stretch of highway 101 where the Revision Florence construction was complete. The request comes from the Florence Area Chamber of Commerce and requires city approval in order to hang the signage. The proposed banners would promote tourism in the city and hang in conjunction with live flower baskets. The council will also consider several open committee assignments with recruitment beginning on May 24th through June 30th with appointments expected in mid July. The complete agenda and information packet is available on the city’s website, ci.florence.or.us
Rhody Run -Only Rhody Event
This is traditionally Rhody Weekend and due to the pandemic most of the festivities associated with the more than 100 year tradition have been halted for the second year in a row. With new proposals from the Governor of Oregon there are hopes that this will be the last time events have to be cancelled due to COVID-19. The state is nearing the 70% goal of vaccinations which Governor Kate Brown says is the target point to returning to normalcy. One event that did not get cancelled is the annual Rhody Run which takes off tomorrow morning at 9 am. Runners can still register at the event beginning at 7:30 in the morning at the Florence Events Center and for those who are still not sure about congregating there is a virtual option available. Information on the event and the virtual event can be found at eclecticedgeracing.com
COVID-19 Update
There were no new cases of COVID-19 reported for the Florence area yesterday and Lane County reported 48 new cases. The state of Oregon is also seeing slight drops in reported cases. There were 733 new cases reported yesterday, but the Oregon Health Authority is reporting an overall 12% decrease in cases over the past week. Numbers of new vaccinations has dropped slightly from a daily average of 33,000 to a two day count yesterday of 30,037. Regionally there are several mass vaccination clinics scheduled for this weekend throughout the county including today’s event at the Florence Events Center which will end at 7pm this evening.
Peace Harbor to Offer Vaccines to Public
Peace Harbor Hospital in Florence has announced that they will be offering vaccinations to the general public. There clinics will be on Wednesdays from 8:30 am until 4 pm and will be offering the Moderna vaccine for anyone 18 and older. Individuals can stop by the 390 Clinic or call 997-7134 for an appointment.
Change in Masking Regulations
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has announced that the state will immediately follow guidance from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which ease indoor mask-wearing and social distancing for fully vaccinated people. Brown said in a video statement Thursday that the new CDC guidance makes clear that vaccines are the fastest way to get back to doing things we all love and returning to a sense of normalcy. The new federal guidance still calls for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, but will help clear the way for reopening workplaces, schools, and other venues. Business owners can still require masking if the business in unwilling or unable to verify the vaccination status of its customers.
