EV Event
The advent of electric vehicles has brought on a surge of companies that are vying for their piece of the pie. There are dozens of new companies created that are now in the marketplace and many of them will be in one place this Saturday. Central Lincoln PUD is offering an opportunity to see these vehicles at a showcase in Newport at their facility at North Coast Highway. There will be 13 different manufacturers represented from some of the major players such as Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Honda and Nissan along with some lesser known companies like Rivian, Polestar and Arcimoto. The event is scheduled as a viewing event, but there will be test drives available and a few models will be available for sale. The event will be from 9 am to 3 pm.
Gas Prices
There has not been a jump in gas prices this past week as the worlds largest consumer of oil is suffering with another COVID-induced economic slowdown. Marie Dodds with AAA Oregon says the situation in China has slowed consumption causing a slight decrease in prices, but those lower prices have not translated to cheaper gas in the U.S.. Prices rose 3 cents a gallon nationwide but held steady across Oregon which has an average price of $4.67 a gallon. Here along the coast the average price of a gallon of regular is $4.45.
COVID-19 Update
The daily average of COVID-19 cases continues to inch up for Lane County. After a low of about 25 daily cases the number has risen to 61 countywide though numbers are far from the February high of 725 and seem to be fairly level based on Lane County Public Health Data released yesterday although new cases for the county were at 99. The Florence area has also reported additional cases with 2 more added yesterday (1523). The number of Lane County hospitalizations has decreased to 10. Statewide there were almost 1100 new cases yesterday and the average daily case rate has risen to 816. Hospitalizations has decreased in the state to 121, 23 fewer than the previous report.
FURA Seat Available
The Florence Urban Renewal Agency is another City of Florence entity that is looking to fill a board position. The agency is looking for one individual to serve. FURA serves to implement the city’s projects within the Florence Downtown Plan. The most recent project was the Revision Florence Streetscape Project. Interested parties have until May 2nd to get their applications in. applications are available at ci.florence.or.us.