Thursday, February 12, 2015
Spring Special Districts Elections Coming
The filing period for candidates seeking office in the May 19th election just opened Monday, and already there are some early-birds lining up.
Four positions are open on the Lane Community College Board. Three candidates, only one of them an incumbent, have already filed petitions.
Three spots on the Mapleton School Board and five positions on the Siuslaw School Board will be on the ballot, so far nobody has officially expressed interest.
Three seats each are available in three area fire districts; Siuslaw Valley, Mapleton and Swisshome-Deadwood.
At the Port of Siuslaw, two of the five Commissioners will be on the ballot; three Siuslaw Public Library Directors, two Western Lane Ambulance District Directors.
The filing deadline to be on the May ballot is March 19th.
Information on how to file can be found at the Lane County Elections web page.
Governor reportedly opts to resign; then changes mind
Sources with direct knowledge of the situation say embattled Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber had reached a decision over the weekend to resign; but changed his mind for reasons that are unclear.
Sources told the Associated Press that Kitzhaber told some of his aides Sunday he would step down. He’s in the middle of an ethics scandal surrounding him and his fiancée, Cylvia Hayes.
The Democratic governor reportedly asked Secretary of State Kate Brown yesterday to return from a national conference in Washington D.C. Brown, also a democrat, is the next in line of succession for the governor’s office.
Local public servant passes
After battling a lengthy illness, Western Lane Ambulance District Manager Henry Hanf has passed away, he was 74.
Hanf was hired in April of 1997 to manage the district.
During his time he saw demand for the agency’s service increase from about 500 calls per year to more than three-thousand in 2014. He also pioneered the funding and placement of portable emergency defibrillators in most public buildings in the area.
During his tenure, he also supervised the formation of a child safety oriented “Safe Kids” chapter at the district and spearheaded the modernization of computer record keeping.
His most recent accomplishment, completed in January, was in securing a contract with the Springfield Fire Department to handle all the district’s billing processes. A contract that he said would decrease overall costs and increase collections.
At Hanf’s request, no memorial service is planned.
Police seek man they say could be armed and dangerous
Lane County Sheriff’s Deputies were hoping to arrest a Deadwood man early yesterday morning, but were unsuccessful.
41-year old Joshua Lee Barnett is wanted on several warrants in Lane, Coos and Clackamas Counties. Those include DUII, Assault 4, and Eluding Police along with at least seven counts of “Failure to Appear”.
Because Barnett is known by police to be armed and resist arrest, a special armored “rescue” vehicle was used to approach Barnett’s residence in Deadwood.
He was not there and police are continuing to look for him. They describe him as being 5-foot, 8-inches; 145 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes.
The Sheriff’s office is seeking the public’s help in locating Barnett. If seen, you are cautioned not to approach him, but call the Lane County Sheriff’s Office immediately.
Radio auction brings savings to listeners
Radio listeners in the Florence area will be hearing something a little different in the next couple of days.
More than 150 different items, all from KCST and KCFM advertisers, will go on the auction block in the semi-annual Coast Radio Auction.
Coast Radio General Manager Jon Thompson says a lot of people in the area associate auctions with benefits. This is what he calls a “listener benefit”. He expects bidders to save somewhere between 40-and-50 percent overall on the items they buy Friday and Saturday.
Products up for auction include kitchen appliances, golf packages, restaurant gift certificates and power tools.
Some of the more unique or interesting items… a 48-inch tall Harlequin Doll from New Orleans and two different osprey mobiles… one made of paper; the other hand crafted from glass.
The auction runs Friday from 9 to three; then again Saturday from 9 to 11.
