19 June 2014
Recount Results Still Pending
Still no word this morning on the results of a hand-recount of ballots from the May 20th primary.
Ballots for two different positions on the Lane County Commission are being recounted because the winners… Faye Stewart for the East Lane seat; and Jay Bozievich for the West Lane; were each within a few votes of the 50-percent mark.
If the results stand Stewart Bozievich would be unopposed on the November ballot.
If the recount shows one or the other failed to get a clear majority, they would face opposition.
The recount began Tuesday morning and elections officials said they expected it would be complete by the end of that day.
Bozievich narrowly defeated challenger Dawn Lesley in the West Lane race; Stewart far outpaced four other candidates in East Lane. His closest competitor was Kevin Matthews who had 35-percent of the vote.
Firefighters Battle Second Blaze
Last week was a busy one for local firefighters. Calls included two structure fires and assisting in searching for the victims of a Sunday morning plane crash.
Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue Fire Marshall Sean Barrett said the second structure fire wasn’t as destructive as the first, but it was still dangerous.
The call came in just before eight pm Friday of smoke coming from the upstairs window of a home near the library at 920 Maple Street.
The initial engine company arrived to find the occupant trying to extinguish the fire with a garden hose. Firefighters quickly took over and had the blaze under control in less than seven minutes.
The cause, according to Barrett, was a faulty window fan that caught a mattress on fire. Smoke, fire and water damage were confined mainly to the upstairs and the estimated loss was less than three-thousand dollars.
But, added Barrett, the blaze displaced eight occupants of the home. They were being aided by the Red Cross.
Permit Costs Going Down
The cost of getting a building permit at Lane County will be dropping by about eight percent in two weeks.
That’s because a ten-percent surcharge imposed on building permits beginning in 2008 will be discontinued as of July First.
Matt Laird, the Land Management division manager with Lane County, said the assessment paid for two technology projects and was never intended to be permanent.
The first project required scanning all old permit records into digital files to make them easier to access and store.
The second was the acquisition and implementation of new permit tracking software.
He noted both projects were completed on time and on budget; and will be a great benefit to property owners and contractors.
Leave That Baby Be
Wildlife biologists say there have been several instances over the past few weeks of people rescuing abandoned fawn deer.
The only problem is… they weren’t abandoned and they didn’t need rescuing.
Does, just like mother seals, will often leave their young in a secure location while they are out foraging for food. In the case of deer, the mother can also be attempting to lure predators away from offspring while they hide out.
Unsuspecting humans can sometimes discover what appears to be an orphaned animal and either try to raise it themselves or turn it over to authorities.
Instead of helping, they’re most likely harming the animal by taking it out of its natural environment and making it dependent on humans.
Wildlife officials say if you see what appears to be a sick, injured, or orphaned baby… note the location and call them or the Oregon State Police.
