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WE ARE SOUTH COAST STRONG

An economic evaluation of the Oregon South Coast

 Build on our strengths — and potential: we’re making inroads into new, renewable tech and alternative energy development while developing new efficiencies within existing industries/ enterprises.  Trends and the future: an economic report card shows challenges and hope for the future.

LARRY CAMPBELL Executive editor

DISCOVER DIGITAL Serving Oregon’s South Coast since 1878

00 1

Left: Sights from a modern lumber mill at Southport Forest Product’s North Spit site. Right: In the welding shop at Southwestern Oregon Community College, Steve Matousek works on his pipe welding certificate final on a recent afternoon. ucts and raw materials adhere to traditional economic endeavors, but with new, more efficient and more economical methods.  Businesses and industries are interconnected in a variety ways that promote an overall healthier economy. Our production of market goods are encouraged and supported by new entities, like the reconstituted South Coast Development Council and Wild River Coast Alliance. That development influences improvements in our transportation modes. The growth in health care professions encourages development of educational programs, which in turn also creates new employment opportunities.  We are not losing our younger

generation to the extent we might have feared. The oft-cited notion of “brain drain,” where young adults leave rural areas to find new opportunities in larger urban centers, is largely overblown.

Instead, we’re finding that while some people ages 18 to 29 leave for the big city, many more people aged 30 to 45 either return or move to areas like the South Coast, bringing with them higher incomes, greater skills and a conscious desire to relocate to rural communities.

These principles are indicators of the overall health of a community. And the signs are encouraging.

Inside today’s newspaper you’ll find six special sections, each with

 Photo galleries: Digging for Science.  Local content: Around The World podcast.

•

It’s clear that we have more opportunities before us than ever before. But the biggest challenge we face isn’t lack of economic opportunity — it’s our public health situation.

Few people would disagree — your health is your most important asset. But the South Coast lags in that category.

Coos County in 2015, ranked 29th out of 34 Oregon counties for overall health outcomes. We had 40 percent more premature deaths than the state average, meaning that people are dying before the age of 75 of diseases that are preventable, such as lung cancer in a smoker or heart disease in an obese person.

In Coos County, 26 percent of our adult population smokes tobacco, compared to a 16 percent average for the state. And 30 percent of our adults are considered obese. In our last section, we highlight what the county health department is doing to try to reverse those numbers and how you can participate. We can’t take advantage of any economic growth if we’re sick.

What about LNG?

A Lee Enterprises Newspaper

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Copyright 2016

its own theme:  Economic juggernauts: these entities provide large numbers of jobs, and help build and define the South Coast.  Growth and harvest: natural resource harvesting remains one of the South Coast’s biggest industries.  Big on jobs; big on giving: more economic juggernauts, these operations also contribute in a big way to the growth and prosperity of the South Coast.  A sojourner’s paradise: we have opportunities to take advantage of in developing an already viable visitor industry. What we’re doing, from the largest enterprises to the smallest communities.

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Good question — what about it?

The South Coast Strong series has always been about existing businesses and entrepreneurs, and that’s what has guided the selection of stories for today’s special section. The fact is, the Jordan Cove Energy Project’s proposed liquefied natural gas export plant does not exist, and the company has contributed minimally to the local economy so far. Certainly, there are proponents who predict economic boom with the construction and future revenues.

But right now, there isn’t much to count.

Indeed, state economists make their forecasts with the same considerations in mind — if an entity is producing an economic impact, include it in any evaluation. If it isn’t, don’t consider it. We decided to follow the same protocol.

Similarly, we have chosen not to focus any attention on current disputes over timber policy, especially the issues that timber harvesters have with government land use policies. Indeed, many in the wood products industry Please see Strong, Page A8

A8 B1 D5

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The South Coast Strong theme isn’t exactly new. We started two years ago looking for stories about the local economy that showed businesses that were succeeding, even growing, despite the recession that was assumed to have curtailed development.

But while writing individual stories over time was fine, it wasn’t giving us a comprehensive picture. By publishing all these stories together, three important overarching principles emerge:  Our economy has a built-in diversity of which innovators are taking advantage. New ventures in agriculture, construction, health care delivery, and exports of prod-

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD

The log ship Jiangmen Trader is loaded with logs for shipment to China at the K2 terminal in North Bend.

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SOUTH COAST — When we look around the South Coast, what do we see?

Some see a depressed corner of the state of Oregon, weighed down with poverty, chronic health problems and all manner of socio-economic ills.

And while that may be true, it’s also the case in many areas in Oregon, as well as the rest of the country.

Others of us, though, see opportunity.

We see abundant — and real — chances for prosperity in spite of the negative realities.

Today’s special edition of The World calls attention to those opportunities. We believe you’ll see that those opportunities are greater than we might believe.

Today we give you South Coast Strong — Special Edition. Inside you will find an extra 48 pages of local news devoted to a deeper analysis of the South Coast economy — both its challenges and its myriad successes.

We’ve spent the last two months gathering information for this edition, to provide a collection of stories that examine everything from the largest enterprises on the Coast to the smallest storefront endeavors; from the most powerful economic engines to the young entrepreneurs who are just beginning to contribute to the economy and the community.

We believe we found some fascinating information about our South Coast economy, and it is best revealed only in a collection of stories like this.

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A8 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

Weather

FIVE-DAY FORECAST FOR NORTH BEND TODAY SUNDAY MONDAY

Clearing; windy this afternoon

Mostly sunny and breezy

70° 56° 68° LOCAL ALMANAC

High/low Normal high/low Record high Record low

24 hours through 6 p.m. yest.

Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date

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Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today

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Astoria Burns Brookings Corvallis Eugene Klamath Falls La Grande Medford Newport Pendleton Portland Redmond Roseburg Salem The Dalles

70° 82/54

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69/60 Trace 84/45 0.00 74/52 0.00 79/59 0.00 81/57 0.00 82/43 0.00 81/61 0.00 88/56 0.00 66/55 0.02 82/62 0.00 70/60 0.30 81/52 0.00 83/60 0.00 76/60 Trace 79/64 0.05

70/57/pc 84/43/s 71/55/s 82/55/s 83/53/s 86/47/s 81/51/s 92/58/s 66/52/pc 84/53/s 77/59/s 85/46/s 86/58/s 80/56/s 85/59/s

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South Coast Today Tonight

Curry Co. Coast Today Tonight

Rogue Valley Willamette Valley Today Tonight Today Tonight

Portland Area Today Tonight

North Coast Today Tonight

Central Oregon Today Tonight

71°

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National high: 121° at Death Valley, CA

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NATIONAL EXTREMES YESTERDAY (for the 48 contiguous states)

81/45

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79/48

Canyonville

80/52

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82/55

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Sisters

82/52

Drain

Bandon

REGIONAL FORECASTS

57°

Springfield

83/53

Florence

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2016

City

Windy in the afternoon

Eugene

0.00" 32.22" 19.24" 36.79"

Aug 10 Aug 18

OREGON CITIES

Partly sunny and breezy

Halsey

67/54

Gold Beach Jul 26

WEDNESDAY

58°

Yachats

70°/59° 65°/53° 75° in 1948 46° in 1976

PRECIPITATION

69°

Shown are today’s noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.

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Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

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Sunshine; windy in the p.m.

58°

The World

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Albuquerque Anchorage Atlanta Atlantic City Austin Baltimore Billings Birmingham Boise Boston Buffalo Burlington, VT Caribou, ME Casper Charleston, SC Charleston, WV Charlotte, NC Cheyenne Chicago Cincinnati Cleveland Colorado Spgs Columbus, OH Concord, NH Dallas Dayton Daytona Beach Denver Des Moines Detroit El Paso Fairbanks

98/71/t 68/57/c 92/73/t 92/75/pc 100/76/pc 98/71/t 87/58/s 90/75/t 87/58/s 92/70/t 89/66/s 82/62/t 78/58/c 91/49/s 93/76/t 92/72/pc 95/73/pc 89/57/t 90/76/t 92/73/t 93/70/s 91/62/t 91/74/t 89/61/t 101/81/s 90/75/t 91/72/pc 95/61/t 95/76/t 96/73/s 103/77/t 63/52/sh

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National low: 32° at Boca Reservoir, CA

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Fargo Flagstaff Fresno Green Bay Hartford, CT Helena Honolulu Houston Indianapolis Kansas City Key West Las Vegas Lexington Little Rock Los Angeles Louisville Madison Memphis Miami Milwaukee Minneapolis Missoula Nashville New Orleans New York City Norfolk, VA Oklahoma City Olympia, WA Omaha Orlando Philadelphia Phoenix

85/63/t 84/55/t 103/71/s 89/71/pc 93/65/pc 82/54/s 86/78/c 97/78/t 90/76/t 97/79/pc 89/78/t 113/88/s 92/74/t 100/79/t 94/67/s 94/78/t 90/76/t 94/78/t 88/76/t 87/74/t 92/72/t 80/48/s 91/75/t 90/79/t 95/75/pc 95/78/pc 101/75/s 74/50/s 95/74/s 93/74/t 98/75/pc 114/91/pc

Sun.

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83/60/pc 81/55/t 106/72/s 89/64/pc 92/65/pc 90/56/s 85/77/sh 95/78/t 92/75/t 95/75/t 88/79/t 111/87/s 93/75/pc 96/77/t 87/65/pc 94/78/t 90/66/pc 93/78/t 88/76/t 94/71/t 88/67/pc 86/52/s 92/75/t 90/77/t 91/76/pc 93/78/pc 99/75/pc 81/54/s 85/68/pc 90/74/t 94/75/pc 109/89/pc

Today

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Pittsburgh Pocatello Portland, ME Providence Raleigh Rapid City Redding Reno Richmond, VA Sacramento St. Louis Salt Lake City San Angelo San Diego San Francisco San Jose Santa Fe Seattle Sioux Falls Spokane Springfield, IL Springfield, MA Syracuse Tampa Toledo Trenton Tucson Tulsa Washington, DC W. Palm Beach Wichita Wilmington, DE

93/66/s 87/46/s 86/63/t 94/70/pc 95/74/pc 90/56/t 106/72/s 95/60/s 96/75/pc 104/61/s 97/80/s 95/65/s 101/76/s 80/69/pc 73/55/s 87/58/s 95/63/t 74/57/s 94/65/t 79/55/s 94/78/t 93/63/t 87/62/s 89/77/t 94/70/s 95/70/pc 106/82/pc 102/80/s 98/78/t 90/76/t 103/78/pc 95/72/pc

Sun.

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94/74/pc 90/50/s 83/60/pc 89/68/pc 97/75/pc 87/61/pc 107/69/s 98/61/s 95/77/pc 101/60/s 97/79/t 97/75/s 100/76/pc 78/68/pc 72/56/s 86/58/s 93/63/t 79/59/s 85/61/pc 86/61/s 94/74/t 91/63/pc 87/69/pc 89/76/t 92/74/t 92/73/pc 101/81/t 100/78/pc 97/78/pc 90/77/t 102/78/pc 93/73/pc

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice, Prec.-precipitation.

US unemployment applications dip to 253,000 last week

The Associated Press‌

Sgt. Hameed Armani, right, and Officer Peter Cybulski talk at a news conference, Thursday at Columbus Circle in New York, about the hoax bomb.

After Times Square fake bomb scare, officers called heroes ‌NEW YORK (AP) — When a passing driver hurled a flashing, clicking object into their police van in Times Square, it looked like danger to Sgt. Hameed Armani and Officer Peter Cybulski.

“Boss, this is a bomb,” Cybulski said.

But rather than run to safety, Armani hit the gas, determined to get the device away from the crowds.

“We’re gonna go, but I’m not going to have anybody else go with us,” he thought.

The partners were hailed for their quick-thinking courage Thursday after the dramatic episode, which evolved into an overnight police standoff with the man suspected of tossing the object, later revealed to be a harmless fake.

Armani and Cybulski “put their own lives at risk so that they could save potentially hundreds, if not thousands, of people in Times Square,” Police Commissioner William Bratton said, calling them “heroes of this city.”

The driver, whom police identified as Hector Meneses, 52, of Queens, was taken to a hospital for evaluation. He was later arrested

on charges including reckless endangerment, making a terroristic threat, menacing and resisting arrest.

Calls to possible phone numbers for Meneses and relatives weren’t immediately returned. It wasn’t clear whether he had a lawyer who could comment about the incident.

The bomb hoax in one of the world’s top terror targets came at a tense time for police and communities nationwide, amid anger and anxiety over police killing civilians, gunmen killing police and recent attacks by extremists in Orlando, Florida, and Europe.

Armani and Cybulski were in a marked, parked police van down the block from the theater showing the hit musical “Hamilton,” when an SUV slowly rolled by. Security-camera video shows the driver throwing something into the officers’ open passenger-side window.

Armani turned on the lights and sirens, and the officers headed away from the square, praying, said the sergeant, who’s Muslim; his partner is Catholic. Armani, an Afghan immigrant, joined the New York Police Department 10 years ago. Cybulski became an

officer three years ago after two years in a police cadet program.

“We thought, ‘This is it. We’re not going to make it ... but I’m happy nobody else is going to get hurt,’” Armani said.

They drove a block and a half to a less crowded spot, then got the device out of the van. It turned out to contain a red candle, two solar-powered garden lights, a T-shirt and tin foil, said William Aubry, the chief of Manhattan detectives.

Meanwhile, license-plate readers helped police track Meneses’ SUV to Columbus Circle, a major traffic circle by Central Park, police said.

After officers stopped the SUV, Meneses barricaded himself in it, told them he wanted to die and had a bomb strapped to an industrial-style vest he was wearing, Aubry said.

Police used a robot to scan his vehicle, and hostage negotiators tried to talk with him over the next roughly six hours, with Meneses donning a red construction helmet and holding a household remote-control device as if poised to use it to detonate something, Aubry and Chief of Department James O’Neill said.

NORTHWEST STOCKS C‌ losing and 8:30 a.m. quotations: Stock Close 8:30 Frontier 5.20 5.17 Intel 35.05 34.66 Kroger 36.34 35.98 Lee 2.02 1.93

Microsoft 53.96 56.57 Nike 57.74 56.73 NW Natural 64.64 65.49 Skywest 28.28 29.02 Starbucks 56.92 57.90 Umpqua Holdings 15.91 15.29

‌WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits declined slightly last week, falling to the lowest point in 13 weeks.

The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly benefit applications dipped by 1,000 to 253,000, the lowest level since it stood at 248,000 for the week of April 16. The weekly claims applications had been at 254,000 for the previous two weeks.

Weekly claims, which are a proxy for layoffs, have been below 300,000 for 72 consecutive weeks, the longest stretch since 1973. Despite this prolonged low level, there had been worries that employment growth was slowing after weak reports in April and May. However, the anemic increase of 11,000 jobs in May was followed by a gain of 287,000 in June, easing fears that the country’s job machine might be sputtering.

The less volatile four-week average declined to 257,750, down from 259,000 the previous week.

“Claims continue to signal strength, even if the last few readings have been exaggerated on the low side by seasonal adjustment issues,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.

He said the level of benefit applications in recent weeks was evidence that there has been no significant slowdown in em-

ployment growth this summer.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macro, said that the continuing low level of benefit applications was good news but was not likely to remain at such low levels. He said the current weekly readings were being distorted by auto plant shutdowns for the annual model year change-overs.

Even with the strong June increase in jobs, the trend in job gains has been slowing from the sizzling pace set last year. That development had been expected given that the economic expansion has now entered its eighth year.

Economists are encouraged that layoffs have not been increasing. They view that as evidence that businesses are confident that the economy will continue growing at a solid pace in the face of unexpected bumps such as the June 23 vote in Britain to leave the European Union. That development sent temporary shockwaves through global financial markets.

The U.S. economy has turned in anemic growth rates for the past two quarters, expanding at a modest pace of just 1.1 percent, as measured by the gross domestic product, in the January-March quarter. Analysts believe GDP accelerated to growth above 2 percent in the just-completed April-June quarter.

Strong

what today’s Special Edition is about.

Today, we present opportunities; those we are taking advantage of or are capable of taking advantage of immediately using our own initiative. Opportunities that are not wholly dependent on government policies or decisions, or the machinations of multi-national corporations that do not work with us to create more opportunity for the South Coast.

Today we present the stories and, hopefully, further inspiration into how we pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, and, by those efforts, express our pride and our independence.

From A1

express serious concerns about the future of their businesses and their ability to provide livelihoods and continue their contributions to the economy. But those concerns are mentioned only briefly in this section. The reason? There doesn’t seem to be much movement on those issues where it matters, which is with policy makers — state and federal legislators. Advocating for changes in land use policies to produce economic opportunity may be valid topics, but that isn’t

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A4 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

OPINION A Lee Enterprises Newspaper 350 Commercial Ave., Coos Bay, OR 97420 news@theworldlink.com | theworldlink.com/news/opinion

Editorial Board CHRIS RUSH Publisher LARRY CAMPBELL Executive Editor

RON JACKIMOWICZ News Editor GAIL ELBER Copy Editor

EDITORIAL

Staying strong is about change

‌T

oday’s special edition — South Coast Strong — emphasizes a couple of themes that we have consistently editorialized in favor of in recent years: self-reliance and economic diversity. ‌We’ve all heard the phrase, “the only thing that is constant is change.” It’s not new; in fact the wisdom is ancient, attributed to the Greek philosopher Heraclitus (c.535-c.475 BCE).

Heraclitus is known among scholars for his focus on ever-present change as being the fundamental essence of the entire universe.

He’s also the deep thinker who said: “No man ever steps in the same river twice.” Again, change is everything, and we don’t possess the power to have the world operate otherwise.

As the world turns, so do its economies. The wood products industry that used to define timber-producing regions like ours resembles nothing that we remember. After environmental restrictions were imposed, the surviving industry became mechanized, computerized and vastly more efficient. But as a result, jobs were Our economic survival lost. depends on adaptation, Those changes, in turn, imdiversity. pacted the relevance of what used to be a bustling seaport, the most important industrial berth between Puget Sound and San Francisco Bay. Again, economies change and we don’t possess the power to stem the tide.

The world changes under our feet just when we feel the most grounded, the most assured. And those changes bring either anxiety or hope, depending on your point of view. Take liquefied natural gas, for example. Worldwide economic conditions as they exist now suggest it would be bad business to build an export plant from ground zero. If you oppose LNG, that reality makes you feel secure.

When economic conditions change, as Heraclitus assures us will always happen, those who support LNG will rejoice. But neither side can stem the tide of change.

Same thing in the forest. Land use philosophies of those who control the public lands from which we want to earn a living are changing. Federal and state policy makers say they are trying to maximize the value of lands for multiple uses now, not just for resource extraction. We can push back and pray that the people who make law and write policy will see things our way. But there are forces just as powerful making strong opposing arguments. Some kind of change is, as Heraclitus would tell us, inevitable. We have no assurance that the change will ultimately be in our favor.

What to do then?

Learn to adapt. Remain flexible. Constantly assess current assets and learn to maximize their value.

Today’s stories in South Coast Strong are all about people who have accepted the philosophy of Heraclitus and are acting on it.

These are stories about assessing current assets, learning to maximize their value, learning to adapt and remaining flexible.

These are stories about self-reliance, creating economic diversity — and, ultimately, survival. They are stories of success.

Our view

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

LNG must’ve snuck in somehow

‌I hear LNG is really coming in now! Who knows this information before the public hears anything? Only certain people

are privileged I guess?

Claudia Craig

The future is indeed looking good ‌T

he newspaper you are holding in your hands is one of the largest editions of The World in nearly a generation.

So, what’s the occasion?

Today’s multi-section “South Coast Strong” issue is not tied to any anniversary or special CHRIS RUSH event. Rather, it is the product of a growing sense among many locals that things are happening for the better. We here at the newspaper, who pride ourselves on keeping eyes wide open and ears to the ground, are picking up on this vibe.

But it’s more than just a gut feeling or optimistic attitude.

We have ample anecdotal and statistical evidence to suggest things are indeed changing here on the South Coast. Once you’ve had an opportunity to read the voluminous, locally produced content in the six additional sections we’ve produced for today’s special edition, we think you’ll agree.

The genesis of this project began many months ago, not long after I arrived here in Coos Bay/North Bend for the first time. It was April of 2015. My wife and I had recently become “empty nesters,” with both our children attending university

in our native Oklahoma. The time was right in my career and in our personal lives for a new challenge and a change in scenery. We found it here.

My first observation was that Oregon’s South Coast was a spectacularly beautiful place.

I knew timber was king and had been for more than a century but that the industry had struggled in recent decades for a variety of reasons. In spite of this, I was struck by the genuine friendliness and optimistic attitudes I encountered in everyday people. It can be a contagious thing and I liked it. It’s why we moved here – to be part of a growing, thriving community with so much potential and raw energy.

That attitude must have been planted and nourished here very early on. As I learned more and more about the fascinating history of this region and its people, I discovered the South Coast has seen its share of ups and downs, but it has always roared back.

One of our loyal newspaper readers confirmed this recently.

This reader was cleaning out an attic space and came across old issues of The World from 1974 and 1975. The big issue from 1974 was the “Coos Bay Centennial Edition” of Sept. 21.

At that time, the newspaper’s

flag proudly proclaimed, “Serving the Great Empire which is Southwestern Oregon.”

Inside its many extra pages was story after story about the history, commerce, and quality of life. The sections were also loaded with advertisements from thriving local businesses at that time. Sadly, many of these local businesses no longer exist – the victims of a changing economy and unrelenting progress. However, some of them weathered the storms and are still with us and prospering today.

The following February, the newspaper celebrated the opening of its newly completed office and printing facility at 350 Commercial Street with an expanded “Dedication Issue.”

Both of these special editions from a generation ago give ample proof of the vitality, optimism and solid economic and cultural foundation this community is built upon.

The South Coast of 2016 may look different today – the faces and the names may have changed, but based on what we’re seeing, the future is no less bright than it was 40 years ago. So, spend some time digesting the stories and data we have prepared for you. We think you’ll agree that we are indeed South Coast Strong!

Refugee Olympians represent us at our best ‌T

here actually is some good news in the world. As images of violence fill our tablets and TV screens — from Dallas to Paris, Orlando to Istanbul — every day also contains small acts of courage, generosity and devotion.

This year, for the first time, refugees will be allowed to participate in the Olympic Games.

And since they will march under the Olympic flag, not the banner of any particular nation, they embody the Olympic ideal in a special way. They show how sport transcends tribalism or ethnicity or faith. How concepts like “faster, higher and stronger” are the same in any language.

“These refugees have no home, no team, no flag, no national anthem,” said Thomas Bach, president of the Olympic Committee, in announcing the 10-member squad. “This will be a symbol of hope for all the refugees in our world, and will make the world better aware of the magnitude of this crisis. It is also a signal to the international community that refugees are fellow human beings and are an enrichment to society.”

More than two dozen governors have rejected the resettlement of Syrian refugees in their states.

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey says even 5-year-old orphans should be barred as security risks.

Athletes show how wrong the anti-refugee hysteria can be.

Refugees and other immigrants STEVE AND COKIE ROBERTS can truly be “an enrichment to society.” One example is runner Bernard Lagat, who won two medals for his native Kenya before moving to America. He Bach’s words are particularly represented the U.S. in 2008 and welcome at a time when anti-refugee sentiment is rising so 2012, and will do so again in Rio in the 1,500-meter run — his rapidly in so many places. The fifth Olympics, at age 41!

United Nations counts more Dozens of American athletes than 21 million refugees worldwide; more than 65 million qual- at the 2012 London Olympics were foreign-born, including ify as “forcibly displaced” from Leo Manzano, the son of an untheir homes. Yet many eastern documented farm worker from European countries are passing laws and building fences to keep Mexico. He came home with a refugees out. Great Britain’s vote silver medal in the 1,500. Good to leave the European Union was thing there was no wall keeping fueled partly by fears of a refugee him out.

Lagat and Manzano found new influx. countries. Yusra Mardini, one of The Republican Party in this two Syrian swimmers on the refcountry has nominated a presugee team, is still looking. idential candidate who loudly Mardini’s training in her home proclaims his plans to build a wall across our southern border. country was often disrupted by

the war there — “sometimes you had training, but there was a bomb in the swimming pool,” said the 18-year-old. When she and her sister fled Syria last year and tried to reach Greece, their rubber boat started sinking, endangering all 20 people aboard, most of whom couldn’t swim.

The sisters leapt overboard and spent over three hours in the freezing water, helping kick the craft to safety.

“It would have been shameful if the people on our boat had drowned,” said Mardini, who now trains in Germany. “If I was going to drown, at least I’d drown proud of myself and my sister.”

Another refugee Olympian, Yolande Mabika, 28, is a judo artist from the Democratic Republic of Congo. She got separated from her family during her country’s civil war when she was only 9, and wound up in a refugee camp. “I used to cry a lot. I started with judo to have a better life,” she says.

Her teammate Popole Misenga, 24, has a similar story: “There were kids who were 5 and 6 who were actually fight-

ing. I was trying to run away from that. I lost my mom in the conflict. When you are a child, you need to have a family to give you instructions about what to do, and I didn’t have one. Judo helped me by giving me serenity, discipline, commitment — everything.”

The pair say they were abused by their home country’s coaches — starvation, isolation, even beatings were common — and defected during the World Judo Championships in Brazil three years ago. So they have been refugees twice in their young lives.

When she competes on the refugee team, Mabika hopes her family, whom she hasn’t seen since her defection, will be watching. “If my family sees me on television, I can give my number, everything,” she says.

“Because I want to talk with my dad and my brothers.”

These refugees, and so many who didn’t make the team, are all in the same boat. Or out of the boat, to be precise. They’re in the water, kicking furiously, heading for land. And they need a hand.

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SOUTH COAST STRONG Saturday, July 23, 2016 | theworldlink.com | SECTION B

AMANDA LOMAN, THE WORLD‌

Garrett Gallego, 12, of the Umpqua Valley Allstars slides into home base during the Saturday, June 25 game against Reedsport during the Coos Bay Coast League Classic.

Little League dream is taking shape BACAPA complex has been a 30-year labor of love for supporters

JOHN GUNTHER The World‌

‌CHARLESTON — Dave Richards started looking for a place for his son to play baseball in the Charleston area nearly 30 years ago and became one of the founding members of the Barview and Charleston Area Parks Association.

BACAPA earned its nonprofit status in 1992, but it wasn’t until 2008 that Richards saw his dream realized when the group’s Little League field near Libby Lane held its first tournament on property donated by the Coquille Indian Tribe — long after Richards’ son was done playing.

Dean Martin started coaching out at the field when his son was in Little League and was asked by Richards to join the BACAPA board several years later. Ben Martin graduated from Marshfield High School in June, but like Richards, Dean and his wife, Michelle, continue to be leaders in BACAPA. Just as Richards helped lead the charge for BACAPA’s field, the Martins have helped scope the vision of turning the property into a hub for the area, with a revised master plan that includes five ball fields of various sizes, a community building and a disc golf course to be designed by local disc golfers and possibly completed this year.

“The vision (of the original master plan) was two more fields,” Dean said. “I said, ‘We’ve got 20 acres here. There’s got to be a way to do more than two fields.’”

Aided in part by Google Maps images of the site, Dean came up with a preliminary design for three more Little League fields — two for the rookies level (the next age

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD‌

Above: Ground for a new baseball field at the BACAPA center on Libby Road has been cleared out. Standing with plans for the new facility are Michelle and Dean Martin along with their grandson and baseball fan Elijah Hannan.

Right: Tom Parry operates an excavator as he moves trees into a pile at the site. He is one of the volunteers giving their time and equipment to help out building the ballfields.

group past T-ball) and one for the minors level — to go with the existing field that serves the majors age group, as well as a full-sized field for American Legion or Babe Ruth and the community center.

All would serve a need in the Bay Area, and especially for the Coos Bay Coast League, which uses the existing field.

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“For the Coast League, we’re running out of places to practice and play,” Dean said. “Last year, we had four majors teams and one field. It’s the same way with rookies and minors.”

This year, the league plays its T-ball and rookies games at Sunset Middle School and uses the field at Mingus Park for minors.

Unfortunately, there are limited places for teams to practice, too, and the Coast League has grown dramatically the past few years, said Tony Crane, the league president.

When he became president, the league had about 140 players. Last year, it had nearly 250. This year, there were 28 teams over the four

different levels.

“More kids becomes more games and more games requires more fields,” Crane said.

“This complex will give us an opportunity to centralize the games and leave other areas open for practice.”

Having the bigger field complex would allow the league to keep most of the teams together at the same site for most games and help kids transition better from T-ball and the rookies level to the higher levels, Crane said. It also could be a huge boost for the community with tournaments during the year.

Currently, the Coast League hosts a 23-team tournament, the Coos Bay Coast Classic, which brings in nearly $300,000 of estimated economic impact. When the BACAPA complex is finished, the tournament could expand to as many as 36 teams, the Martins said.

Plus, if the ultimate goal of turf fields is realized, BACAPA could host tournaments from the spring through the summer, like some other areas in the state.

Last November, the Martins spent a weekend traveling the Interstate 5 corridor from Portland nearly to the California border, stopping at every field complex they knew of to take pictures and get ideas for the BACAPA project.

When they got to Medford, they found a Little League tournament going on.

“We can conceivably do a tournament every month,” Dean said.

Similarly, the community center would satisfy a community need. Currently, the Barview and Charleston area is lacking a big place for meetings; a site for banquets, wedding receptions or other gatherings; and a public indoor site for basketball or similar activities, Michelle said.

The community building would have two basketball courts, a Please see BACAPA, Page B2

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South Coast Strong

The World

Pre still has that magnetic draw JOHN GUNTHER The World‌

Lou Sennick, The World‌

Amity fans cheer on their team at this year’s Class 3A basketball championships at North Bend High School gym.

The girls team was playing Portland Adventist in a first-round game.

Class 3A tournament: an economic booster shot It’s just one of several that bring visitors here JOHN GUNTHER The World‌

When South Coast officials ‌ first started talking about trying to draw the Class 3A state basketball tournament to the area, part of their reasoning was that the event would provide an economic boost.

“Bringing something for the community may have been our No. 1 objective, something that would help the economy,” said Marshfield athletic director Greg Mulkey, one of the original Class 3A Tournament Committee members.

It’s been more than half a decade since the Oregon School Activities Association approved the joint bid by Marshfield and North Bend to host the 16-team event, and supporters say that it has more than met the goal of being a positive impact.

“It’s been a huge hit,” said Mark Mattecheck, the general manager at North Bend Lanes.

Mattecheck was a board member for the Coos Bay-North Bend Visitor and Convention Bureau when that group joined school officials in the bid to bring the tournament to the South Coast. Their logic was that the tournament would fill hotels and restaurants on a March weekend when they don’t usually see a lot of traffic.

Since at least 15 of the teams have come from outside the area every year and thousands of fans come through the gates over the three days each winter, there’s a natural economic boost. For example, Katherine Hoppe, who was the director of the Visitor and Convention Bureau for the early years of the tournament, estimated the impact at about $450,000 for 2013, when the

tournament attendance was just under 13,000, though she said that figure likely is low.

“I think it’s much higher, but I prefer to estimate low,” she said.

Just the hotel taxes for the 1,700 room nights that year generated $10,000 in taxes to the community, Hoppe said.

“The majority of money visitors spend when they are in the area isn’t in the hotel,” she said.

“It’s on the other activities — on the food and the things that go with traveling.

“It was a chance to showcase the area and spread the dollars around the community.”

Hoppe works for the Mill Casino now as the Tourism and Content Manager, and said the tournament has also led to repeat visitors to the South Coast, which was one of the hopes of the hotel industry.

“We have customers that come that are regular customers now because of the 3A tournament,” Hoppe said of The Mill Casino-Hotel. “In any business, repeat customers are key.”

Mattecheck said the benefits extend beyond the hotels and restaurants.

“The tournament maybe doesn’t impact people directly, but indirectly it does,” he said.

“People who work in the service industry and hospitality industry live here.”

Those people spend their earnings in other area businesses.

“The money that comes here doesn’t go out when it comes in that way,” Mattecheck said.

The tournament has had a side benefit of bringing members of the community together with the common goal of making the event special for the visiting teams and their fans, organizers said. More than 100 volunteers help out each year in various capacities.

“Not only does it help the area,

it brings this energy and enthusiasm to both the locals and the visitors,” Hoppe said. “I think everybody enjoys it. It helps us show off our personality.”

“I think, as we see now, it’s worked out very well,” Mulkey said.

The Class 3A tournament is just the biggest of a number of school and community sporting events that draw big groups to the Bay Area every year, often during times that aren’t naturally busy tourism seasons.

Marshfield hosts its 16-team Les Schwab South Coast Holiday Basketball Tournament every December, shortly after North Bend’s 30-plus school Coast Classic Invitational wrestling tournament. Marshfield has several big track meets each spring and other area schools have basketball, volleyball or wrestling tournaments.

“Any time we can host schools, it’s not only good for our athletic teams but it’s good for the towns,” Mulkey said.

And it goes beyond scholastic competitions. Both the South Coast Aquatic Team and Gold Coast Swim team host three-day meets every summer that bring hundreds of swimmers and their families to the Bay Area, and SCAT has a similar event each winter. Gymnastics Plus, the local gymnastics team that is part of the Boys & Girls Club of Southwestern Oregon, has big tournaments each fall and spring and North Bend Lanes hosts several bowling events. The Coos Bay Lions Club hosts volleyball and basketball events, and local martial arts schools and golf courses have tournaments.

“There’s so many tournaments in the area,” Hoppe said.

“So many of them happen in the winter, which is our slower tourism season.”

‌COOS BAY — It’s been more than 40 years since Coos Bay native Steve Prefontaine died in a car accident.

But the legend of the running great continues to grow.

Just look at the variety of visitors to the Prefontaine Memorial Gallery at Coos Art Museum.

The gallery, a room on the second floor of the museum, includes 18 pictures of Prefontaine either in action or in candid situations, as well as a TV that shows the documentary of his life “Fire on the Track.” It also features his plaque for induction into the State of Oregon Sports Hall of Fame; a poem titled “Ode to S. Roland” by Dick Buerkle, one of his top competitors; and a display case with numerous medals, trophies and plaques from his running career and the shoes he wore when he set his first American record.

During an off day in the recent U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, several groups of people made the trip to Coos Bay to visit the gallery and other sites special to Pre. They included teachers Patti and Dave Percival of Stillwater, Minn., who both coach track and cross country.

“It was a bucket list item,” Patti Percival said after walking through the gallery. “It’s really neat.”

Just this year, visitors from more than 20 states, as well as from Germany, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Italy and Kenya have signed the guest book.

The comments they leave express appreciation or reverence for Pre. “Go Pre!” wrote several, while others wrote: “Great Memories,” “Great Fun,” “Great Tribute,” “Inspirational” and “Awesome.”

Longer comments included: “Came to See Pre’s Legacy,” “My husband, the runner, wanted to see the Pre exhibit,” and “Thanks for keeping Pre alive.”

The number of visitors is far bigger than the number that sign the guest book, museum workers said.

“We get a lot of people who

Amanda Loman, The World‌

From B1

This week, Tom Parry was clearing the site for the future fields, donating his time on a bulldozer and an excavator. Bassett-Hyland donated the fuel and oil for the bulldozer and Chuck Bracelin donated the time and truck to move the excavator to the property. In addition, Knife River will donate equipment to remove debris from the site.

“It’s not costing a dime, which is a significant amount of money,” Michelle said. “And we’ll be able to use that money for in-kind donations for a matching grant.”

Parry should have the fields leveled by the end of July, and BA-

CAPA was close to an agreement with Bandon Dunes Golf Resort to donate all the grass seed for the fields. Already, Bandon Dunes owner Mike Keiser has donated $1,000 a year to BACAPA to help pay for upkeep of the existing field complex, Michelle said.

If the group can get the grass planted this fall, the fields could be playable by next summer, though not necessarily with all the seating or other elements, Dean said.

BACAPA is applying for a Fields of Tomorrow grant through Major League Baseball, which would help pay for lights for the new fields.

Sports Editor John Gunther can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext.

241, or by email at john.gunther@ theworldlink.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jguntherworld.

A runner from St. Mary’s High School in Medford drew a mustache on his face for the high school race during last year’s Prefontaine Memorial Run. The event is held each September in Coos Bay, finishing on the track where Steve Prefontaine starred for Marshfield High School.

BACAPA meeting room, a game room, a kitchen and an indoor running track.

BACAPA put together a steering committee to come up with the revised master plan, pulling in experts for all the different areas needed — architect Andy Locati; Walter White of SHN Engineering; Rick Skinner, Kyla Latta, Jake Sweet and Tim Huntley of Knife River; Wes and Pam Plummer of Tri-County Plumbing; Todd Tripp and Bryan Duggan of the Coquille Indian Tribe; Jason Mault and Thomas Kyle of Kyle Electric; and Scott Partney of Scott Partney Construction.

The group helped create the master plan with ideas of how much each element would cost.

And Dean, the group’s secretary-treasurer, and Michelle, its president, have been spending time sharing that vision with various community groups.

“You need buy-in for the community support,” Dean said. “Anyone who will listen, we will talk to.”

The entire project is ambitious, with a total estimated cost of $10.8 million to complete everything.

The community building would cost about $4.8 million, with the rest the cost to complete the fields with infrastructure (including water and electricity to the site), fencing, seating and snack shacks complete with restrooms. A big chunk of that cost would be the turf, about $1 million per field.

Grants will be needed, but the group has gotten a good head start with donations of services.

come in specifically for Steve Prefontaine,” said Kevin Clarke, a volunteer greeter. “It’s safe to say some people treat it like a pilgrimage.”

The next stop on the pilgrimage often is either Marshfield High School, and the track where Pre stood out before going on to stardom at the University of Oregon, or Nasburg-Huggins Insurance, which houses the store of the Prefontaine Memorial Committee, which sponsors the annual Prefontaine Memorial Run. Bob Huggins, the race director, said the store often gets a dozen or more visitors a week, from many different states.

Many more shop in the committee’s online store.

“The people shop on our website store from all over the world,” he said. “They are looking for Prefontaine paraphernalia.”

Lorrie Metzger, the office worker who handles a lot of the traffic for the store, remembered a runner from Florida who stopped in.

“His granddad asked him where he wanted to be for his 21st birthday,” she recalled. “He said he wanted to be in Coos Bay running on a beach where Pre did.”

Hundreds of runners visit the Bay Area every September to run where Pre did in the annual Prefontaine Memorial Run, part of the Bay Area Fun Festival.

“It’s a pretty good draw,” Huggins said, adding that the race typically draws runners from a dozen to 15 states a year as well as a few foreign countries.

Winners in past years have included runners from Australia, Spain, Finland and the United Kingdom.

The race and the store generate money that goes to scholarships and grants for area schools.

Combined with the gallery in the museum, they also help draw visitors to the area.

Ken Ware Chevrolet donated 21 lights and six poles from its parking lot when it recently remodeled its facility, and those will be used either for the existing field or parking at the complex.

Meanwhile, multiple naming opportunities are available with the expansion, from fields to dugouts to snack shacks to portions of the community building as a possible way to bring in additional funds.

The BACAPA board’s vision is for each field to pay for itself once the complex is completed.

Maintenance costs for the existing field are paid through

the sale of banners that line the outside fence, and that could be the case with the new fields, too.

The money to run the community building would be generated through fees for use of the facility for receptions and banquets.

BACAPA also raises funds each year through its annual banquet and auction to cover the group’s operating expenses, this year being organized by Richards.

“When I decided to step down (from the board), I told them I would do the auction if those two would start working on grants,” Richards said. “They could get a little more done without having to worry about trying to get funding for the year.”

This year’s auction is Oct. 22 at The Mill Casino-Hotel. Tickets are $35 and people can get more information or preorder tickets by contacting Michelle either by phone at 541-218-0105 or by email at BACAPApark@gmail.com.

The group also will have a fundraiser at the Egyptian Theatre this fall, fittingly showing the film “Field of Dreams.”

That’s what the BACAPA project has been for the people involved, and it’s getting closer to reality.

It’s a welcome sign for Richards, who stayed involved long after his son’s playing days to make sure the long-term health of the facility was in good hands.

“When you start something like this and you work 25 years on it, you don’t want to see it go away,” he said.

“I see it as a place to put effort that is win, win, win,” Crane said.

“It’s good for the kids. It’s good for 00 1 the community.”

SOUTH COAST STRONG Saturday, July 23, 2016 | theworldlink.com | SECTION C

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD‌

New construction is taking place in an existing neighborhood on Kentucky Avenue in Coos Bay.

Coos County real estate market on the upswing MELISSA CAMPBELL For the World‌

‌COOS COUNTY — The Coos County real estate market is well on the mend, with upticks in listings, sales and average prices, according to industry experts.

“The real estate market is going crazy right now,” said Joann Hansen of Joann Hansen Realty.

Hansen added that she’s starting to see increased activity in all sectors, including homes, commercial, land and farms.

B r o o k e Yussim, principal broker with Oregon Bay Properties, said that if homes are priced properly, they are going quickly.

The average time that a home was on the market in May was 105 days, according to Regional Multiple Listing Service statistics.

Last May, the average time to sell a home was 184 days.

In May, the county had 169 new listings, along with 102 pending sales and 71 deals that had closed during the month, about on the same track compared to May 2015, according to RMLS. The median sales price was $170,000, compared to $155,000 a year ago.

The Coos County housing market has followed closely with overall national housing trends, with a peak in 2006, a crash in 2007 and a gradual recovery beginning in late 2012.

The inventory is a concern to realtors, however. Inventory is the number of months it would take for the current listings to sell considering the average time on the market, and assuming no new listings came on board.

In May, MLS noted about 7 months of supply, with homes taking an average of 105 days to sell. The smaller the inventory, the more likely it is for sellers to receive multiple offers, thus driving up prices. That’s good if you’re selling, but economists say tight inventories tend to hold back recovery periods.

Low inventory is especially true for lower-end homes, priced at $200,000 or less, said Kim Collins, vice president, senior branch manager for home loans at Umpqua Bank.

The Ocean Vista condo project as seen from across Coos Bay. One still-sluggish sector is new home construction, Hansen said.

There’s a lot of remodeling going on, but little new building. Those with good credit ratings who want to buy homes have little trouble getting loans. Few people want to build their own, Hansen said.

Home builders are starting to ease back into the market, Collins said. “When inventory is short, people look for other options,” she said.

In robust housing markets, contractors build on speculation, meaning they front the money, generally getting a loan, to build homes with a certain amount of confidence those homes will sell fairly quickly. When the housing market crashed in 2007, many contractors lost virtually everything.

Now, some can’t get a line of credit to build. Those who can afford it may be wary of taking the risk again. Others are be easing back into speculation, but it’s still too early to see much movement – it takes time to go through

the process of planning and permitting, and getting supplies and employees.

“There has to be confidence in the market; it’s a big risk for them,” Hansen said. “It’s a huge investment for a contractor to build a house. It’s been difficult for them to recover from that.”

Mortgage rates continue to remain low. In early July, the 30year fixed mortgage rate was at about 3.5 percent, among the lowest rates in history, according to Bankrate.com.

Commercial loans are also more available, where they had nearly dried up before. Current businesses are expanding, and new businesses are locating here, Hansen said.

“We could use more farm listings,” Hansen said. “People are looking, but there aren’t enough for sale.”

Farmers farther south who have struggled with drought conditions are looking for farms and ranches here, Yussim said.

Condos are coming‌

One bright note in real estate was the recent announcement of two high-end condo projects in the Bay area. Damon Olsen, owner of H2O Properties and a North Bend High School graduate, has resurrected two projects: the Ocean Vista condos off Seagate Street in North Bend and a multi-use project on the waterfront in Coos Bay. Brokers Brooke and Herb Yussim of Oregon Bay Properties are working with Olsen on both endeavors. Herb Yussim said the waterfront project will greatly improve the look and feel of that strip of land and the surrounding area.

Initial plans for the still-unnamed waterfront property, located north of the Coos History Museum and Maritime Collection, include three buildings, with configurations to offer residential, retail, office, restaurant and other commercial space. Developers hope to eventually create

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a promenade that will connect to the boardwalk.

The first Ocean Vista units are currently on the market, and others are expected in coming weeks.

Located at the end of Virginia Avenue, the project started in 2007, but it went into foreclosure during the recession, Herb Yussim said. The exterior was nearly completed, and interior work had begun.

Olsen, in town on a fishing trip, saw the dilapidated property and called to inquire about it right away. Each of the seven units offers roughly 2,800 square feet of space. Each has three floors, the bottom of which could serve as an in-law apartment, with separate kitchenette, bath and laundry. All are set up to include an optional elevator. All have views of the ocean and the bay.

Realtors expect retirees, professionals and other newcomers to purchase the properties. Open houses and viewings should be available soon.

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SOUTH COAST STRONG SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2016 | A SPECIAL PUBLICATION OF THE WORLD | theworldlink.com

ECONOMIC JUGGERNAUTS These entities contribute to the foundation of the South Coast economy

LOU SENNICK, THE WORLD

Steve Matousek works on his pipe welding certificate final in the welding shop at Southwestern Oregon Community College this spring 00 1

|

SECTION A

SOUTH COAST STRONG

A2 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

Fighting the good fight In the 1970s, hospital was a hard sell TIM NOVOTNY For The World‌

‌COOS BAY — Sometimes dreams can be achieved, and sometimes they can even be surpassed. Bay Area Hospital is proof of both.

It wasn’t always this way.

But, an argument could be made that the hospital is now the heart of Coos County — both in terms of the community’s figurative and economic health.

What a difference nearly a half century makes.

A rocky start‌

Over four decades ago, the very existence of Bay Area Hospital was in jeopardy. Battle lines had been drawn and the opponents of a new hospital were not going to go down without a fight.

Until 1974, there were just about two dozen local physicians in this community and they were divided between North Bend’s Keizer Memorial Hospital and Coos Bay’s McAuley Hospital.

But, as those 1920s-era hospitals aged, and the area population grew, it became evident that a change would be needed. Well, evident to many, but not to all.

History tends to smooth over the rough edges, but the truth is that the need for what became the current Bay Area Hospital wasn’t universally accepted by everyone in the community in the early 1970s.

John Whitty was one of the men who not only saw the need, but also saw future opportunity in the creation of a new hospital.

The challenge ahead would be a tough one. The

area had been resisting a new hospital for almost 20 years by the time the ’70s rolled around.

When the Coos Bay attorney joined the 1970 effort to pass a $6.75 million bond to fund the hospital, he felt an upgrade was overdue.

“My kids were all born at McAuley and I still remember you couldn’t open the windows because they had been painted shut,” Whitty said. “If you wanted oxygen, they ran down the hall and brought a bottle on a little cart. I mean, this thing was primitive. It was from a different age.”

Although the hospital district, which was first formed in the 1950s with thoughts of building a hospital, couldn’t get the support of the voters, it did stay busy and alert.

“So, here is the district still sitting there,” Whitty remembers. “Somehow they had managed to get together $30,000. When Rudy (Juul) was chairman of the board and I was treasurer, every month we would go around from bank to bank to see which one would give us the best interest rate on our little $30,000 one-month certificate of deposit. We really couldn’t do it for any longer than a month, because we never knew when we were going to need the money.”

Finally, that day appeared on the horizon in the late 1960s, as McAuley’s days appeared to be numbered.

The Sisters of Mercy, who had been operating the hospital, announced they were going to close it, Whitty said.

A non-profit corporation took over, with local doctors handling day-to-day operations, until a better solution could be determined for the future.

This led to the contentious election of 1970, and the resulting dust-ups that followed between the opposing sides of the issue.

For years, competing newspapers would remain rife with stories, editorials and letters focusing on the merits of the hospital, tax levies, and the other issues involved in the future of healthcare in the bay area.

Local voters passed the bond measure, by a vote of 6,434 to 5,193, appearing to finally pave the way for the creation of the hospital that now stands.

But, just a year later, its existence was very much in jeopardy once again.

Opponents remained convinced that the hospital could not continue to operate without further taxpayer support, and felt a smaller, privately funded hospital would serve the community just as well if not better.

In 1971, a loophole fell into their collective laps in the form of a new state law.

A brand new statute required just 100 signatures, or 15 percent of the registered voters in a district, to sign a petition to call for a vote to dissolve a special district. Nevermind that the statute was intended to help clear districts that were no longer active; opponents of the new hospital had a new weapon at their disposal.

Petitions were quickly gathered to call for the dissolution of the Bay Area Hospital District.

If it worked, it would effectively scuttle the hospital before construction even began.

Battle lines were once again drawn through the communities of Coos Bay and North Bend, and the fight would rage and, ultimately, wind its way all the

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LOU SENNICK, THE WORLD‌

Paul Janke, president and CEO of Bay Area Hospital, stands in the hospital’s new lobby. way to Salem.

Whitty admitted that it appeared, at times, they might have seen defeat snatched from the jaws of victory.

“We had some doubt early on, after they had petitioned for the second election. You know, a lot of people were making a lot of noise about ‘Now we’re going to get them,’ and so on.”

He remembers that some proponents wanted to fight the battle in court, but as an attorney he knew that was a battle they couldn’t afford to fight.

They would have lost the battle of attrition through years of legal wrangling and appeals.

The battle was fought at a fever pitch back then, but Whitty said it is important to remember these opponents of the hospital were not bad people. In fact, he said, they had done a lot of other good things in the community. They just didn’t like change and they didn’t like taxes.

Round two‌

Ultimately, the voters did go back to the polls to decide for a second time on the need for a new hospital on the South Coast.

This time, in February 1972, those voters came back even more certain of their answer. They voted not to dissolve the hospital district by a vote of 7,066 to 4,226.

Ed Lawrence, chairman of the Bay Area Hospital Committee was quoted at the time as saying the vote was nothing less than “a community effort to save the hospital.”

Unfortunately, the hospital would need to be saved one more time. The opponents, it seemed, were not done fighting.

They fired one last salvo, and took the hospital district to Salem to prove before a governing body a Certificate of Need. Basically, they needed to show that a new hospital was really and truly needed in this

LOU SENNICK, THE WORLD‌

New technology in the hospital’s new wing enables patients to be monitored and cared for in single rooms. area.

In the end, that became nothing more than another delaying tactic as the need was obvious and the hospital construction was soon to be underway.

Whether all of that effort would be worth it was still to be determined.

The naysayers remained doubtful that a taxpayer-funded hospital could ever be able to fund itself in the long run, or that the hospital would be able to attract new doctors to staff it.

Would it be worth the effort?

The answer to the latter question would be answered fairly quickly.

When the first patients came through the new hospital’s doors in May of 1974 there were 150 staff members, with about 25 doctors in the entire community.

Five years later there were closer to 80 doctors, with a variety of new specialists included in that number.

As Bay Area Hospital’s first chief of staff, Dr. Wayne Murray was tasked with the politics of unification.

He remembers “a lot of give and take” about the new hospital’s design and facilities, as well as physician privileges. But the transition was mostly smooth, he said.

Whitty agreed.

“The day we opened, all of (Keizer’s and McAuley’s) patients were brought over

here, all of their employees came over here, and we opened on May 19th of ’74.

On May 18th of ’74 those two hospitals were running and by end of the day on May 19th they were closed, and that was all as planned.”

While that journey to success hasn’t always been such smooth sailing, it is safe to say it has been completed.

And it has been completed as promised, and without needing tax dollars for the running of the hospital.

“Bay Area Hospital has never levied any dollar for operations,” Whitty said.

“Never has and never will.

That’s because it has been really well run by a collection of people over the years.

It is the only district hospital in Oregon, and I think there are about 30 of them, that does not have a tax levy — the only one.”

The hospital now employs over 1,000 members of the South Coast community, including over 130 doctors.

Several of those doctors are stationed in healthcare offices that have sprung up over the years in the area around the hospital’s location at 1775 Thompson Road in Coos Bay. History proved the other doubts to have been unfounded as well, with Bay Area Hospital now operating on a $130 million budget.

Please see Hospital, Page A4

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College to Careers (C2) is a WIOA Title I – financially assisted program and is therefore an equal opportunity employer/program which provides auxiliary aids and services upon request to individuals with disabilities by calling 711 or 800.648.6458 TTY. The C2 grant project ($2,394,110) is 100% funded through the US Department of Labor’s Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training program (TC-26516-14-60-A-41). This workforce solution was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The solution was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability or ownership. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. For more information about Creative Commons Licensing: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Call 541-888-7373 or 7405.

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Donate Help the college meet the fundraising goal Educate Talk about our need for healthcare professionals Advocate We must invest in modern labs & technology www.socc.edu/foundation | 541-888-7211

Southwestern Oregon Community College is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

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SOUTH COAST STRONG

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | A3

OREGON COAST CULINARY INSTITUTE

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD‌

On a June morning, future chefs at Oregon Coast Culinary Institute worked on their final exams. Here, Danielle Noble finishes plating a dinner of beef with rice and carrots.

Seeking an A for appetizing

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Chef Tara Pryor samples a student’s final exam meal in one of the kitchens. Future chefs spend a morning in June working on their final exams for the taste buds.

Rylee Prim does his final plating of his pork dish.

SOUTH COAST STRONG

A4 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

Hospital From A2

Modern history‌

An estimated 8,000 visitors attended the dedication ceremony of the new hospital. So, perhaps the easiest answer to the reason for the success of Bay Area Hospital lies in the fact that once the hospital finally opened, the community did rally around it.

But, a big part of finding success in the healthcare industry is in being able to handle its ever shifting landscape.

One obstacle that could have derailed this growth was the rise of HMOs (health maintenance organizations) in the late 1970s and 1980s, which threatened the independence of physicians everywhere.

Coos Bay was facing mounting pressure from a Eugene company that proposed to absorb local practices. The HMO would outsource surgery and other lucrative services to a Eugene hospital, leaving local practitioners to handle mundane caseloads — and uninsured patients.

Dr. Murray remembers telling his colleagues, “We need to do something, or we are going to get squashed.”

It led to the creation of DOCS — Doctors of the Oregon Coast South. The ability to adapt remained in place and DOCS ultimately evolved into Western Oregon Advanced Health. It’s the coordinated care organization managing Medicaid for about 21,000 patients in Coos and Curry counties.

“It did what we wanted it to do and has gradually increased in importance to the doctors,” Dr. Murray says.

Shrewd leadership‌

That was just one example of the shrewd leadership shown from a number of leaders, CEOs, and members of an ever-changing board of directors that has helped to keep the hospital moving steadily forward.

Current CEO Paul Janke said that is not always an easy task.

“It’s good for the community to be able to get care closer to home, as opposed to having to go to Eugene or Portland, or elsewhere.

We think that it is a good business opportunity to have good-paying jobs and professionals in the community providing care that

people would otherwise have to go out of the area for. The more we can develop services here, the more it makes for a stronger local economy.”

It is also not by coincidence that Janke and Whitty both point to strong leadership from the board of directors over the years.

It was their deft leadership over the years that helped to calm the seas and set the stage for a period of tremendous expansion and growth beginning in 1980 with the addition of the three-story north tower, which included a laboratory and radiology unit.

As the hospital started to grow physically, fiscally, it was never healthier. The hospital district even paid off the original bonds (for construction of the hospital) in 1987, a full 15 years ahead of time.

The growth of the hospital itself resumed in 1988, as expansion and remodeling of the Intensive Care Unit got underway.

In 1990, the newly constructed Radiation Therapy Center began treating cancer patients. In 1997, a state-of-the art CT-scanner helped enhance medical imaging.

It seemed that every few years a new, and major, addition was coming into play at Bay Area Hospital and, still, not once did the taxpayers have to dip into their pocketbooks for even a penny to help pay.

The hospital leadership always tried to keep its figurative finger on the figurative pulse of the community to determine what was needed to be done next.

“Seven years ago, we went through some strategic planning with some conversations about where we wanted to focus,” Janke said, “and I think the leadership, the board, the medical staff leadership, certainly executive staff leadership, saw that there was some good opportunities to strengthen our clinical service offering in a couple of key areas.

Particularly in cardiovascular, but also strengthening cancer care services and we focused on that.

“I think that we are going to want to continue to focus on that because there is a need for those services, and those are services that people will leave the community for if we are not making them available here.”

Backing up that point, in 2010, South Coast Radiology became the Women’s Imaging Center —

the largest outpatient imaging center on the southern Oregon coast.

In 2013, BAH opened its new four-story wing, with all private rooms, and also unveiled a new Intensive Care Unit and cardiovascular services.

In 2014, the Prefontaine Cardiovascular Center was dedicated, and a newly constructed Wound Care Center started offering hyperbaric therapy.

Then, in 2015, medical and radiation oncology were brought together under one roof when Bay Area Hospital opened the new Bay Area Cancer Center.

In other words, the hospital has been busy.

There is one thing that keeps them even busier though, and it is an ongoing challenge that ties in with the struggles facing the local economy. That challenge is the recruitment and retention of the medical staff at the hospital.

The staffing issue‌

The original naysayers never thought the hospital would attract physicians to the area.

They, of course, have been proven wrong. That doesn’t mean, however, it has always been an easy sell.

“Recruiting (medical staff) is always a challenge,” Janke said.

“We’re always recruiting. I would argue that our challenge, particularly in recruiting professionals who have trained in places like Boston or Portland or Seattle, is being able to offer some of what larger cities have to offer (i.e. community infrastructure, family-wage jobs, shopping, etc.).

That’s another reason it is so important to have good schools, to have good success in other sectors of the economy, because most people come in and they are with someone and that person wants to work, too. There needs to be other good jobs. We need a strong, broad-based, economy. It can’t be just healthcare.”

If you ask around you will hear the same sentiment repeated from local business leaders who have said that to help recruit business to the area, there needs to be strong healthcare. And to keep strong healthcare, you need a strong medical staff. And to have a strong medical staff — you see where the circle starts again.

Rick Skinner, general manager at Knife River Corporation, said everyone knows the key is to

make sure we (the community leaders) are constantly working to have a better infrastructure in our community.

“Because, if we want to retain these types of doctors that have the excellent education and are at the top of their fields, it is very important we also have to work to have the schools and shopping centers and places that their families want to have to go to (or work at) where they live, as well,” Skinner said.

It is, in many ways, a symbiotic relationship between the hospital and the community. What is good for one is good for the other.

Healthy for the economy?‌

“This place, this building, these programs and the medical staff and the people here make this a more attractive place to live and do business,” Whitty said. “I don’t think there is any argument.”

While most agree it is not ideal to have a hospital as your economic “bell cow,” in times of economic trouble it doesn’t hurt. In fact, local business leaders seem to side with John Whitty’s opinion that the hospital really is good for business.

Pam Plummer is vice president and commercial banking center manager at Umpqua Bank in Coos Bay. She said that, without a doubt, the hospital plays a strong role in the local economy.

Not only does it help recruit business to the area, serving as a community partner and as a center of influence, but it also brings a great deal of commerce to local business.

“The hospital is one of our largest employers and the jobs that it creates and the services that they use locally — they use a lot of local vendors, they use a lot of local contractors for their day-to-day maintenance — they are very cognizant of that. And, if you think of the trickle effect, they probably pay, I’m sure, a higher wage over there. So, that, in itself, is a huge contributor to our local economy.”

EcoNorthwest’s 2015 report, “the Economic Contributions of Acute Care Hospitals in Oregon,” outlined the economic contributions of hospitals on the state’s economy.

Using the latest available data at the time (2013), the report found that, statewide, Oregon hospitals contributed $18.9 bil-

The World

lion to the economy.

The study was commissioned by the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, a nonprofit trade association that promotes community health and seeks to improve Oregon’s health care industry.

Coos County data, which included Coquille Valley Hospital and Southern Coos Hospital and Health Center, showed that the healthcare sector in 2013 employed 3,539 people, with half working in hospitals.

In fact, in Coos County, the total job contribution by the hospital sector as a percentage of total employment was at 7.4 percent.

No other county in Oregon had its hospital sector contribute more to its overall employment. Wasco County was the next closest at 7.3 percent.

By way of comparison, Lane County was at 4.7 percent and Multnomah County was at 5.7 percent.

“I really think that has a ripple effect into our economy, because of the jobs that they are creating and just that connection they are making — that bond there,” Plummer said. “It is really important, as businesses look at recruiting people to bring to the area or even people who are looking to relocate to the south coast that one of the top things on their list is healthcare and what is available here.”

Where does a multimillion-dollar rural hospital go from here?

The hospital has come a long way from an idea, forged through heated public discourse over decades, to become a major healthcare and economic asset to the people of the south coast.

John Whitty said that, for him and his early dreamers, the hospital may have exceeded those dreams, but not by much.

“It’s part of what we believed and what we talked about with people — ‘This is a beginning for us’ and ‘More good things are going to come from this, we’re going to have more doctors and that will give rise to a need for more space, more services, and this thing may grow, but we don’t intend to ever come back to you and ask for another tax levy.’

“I don’t know that we foresaw all of it, but we thought it was going to be current all of the time — a good modern hospital for the rest of its existence.”

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SOUTH COAST STRONG

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | A5

Southwestern meets demand for health professionals private donors, foundations and businesses.

“Educating more health care professionals is a vital need on the South Coast,” said Brenda Meade, the Coquille Tribe’s chairperson, in a press release announcing support of the project. “It’s important not only to our quality of life, but also to the community’s ability to develop and sustain a strong economy.”

College foundation members and volunteers will continue to fundraise in the region throughout the summer.

In November, the college will ask Coos County voters to approve a bond measure to close any remaining funding gap to get to $16 million. Without full local funding match, the state will spend its funds elsewhere.

ELISE HAMNER For The World‌

‌COOS BAY — Looking for a job in health care? If you’re reading employment ads, it doesn’t take long to conclude it’s an employee’s market for skilled professionals these days.

“Full-time Sign-on bonuses available!” “$2,000 Sign on Bonus!” “Reedsport OR 12 Hour Nights Start ASAP Local or Travel RNs Pays up to 50 hr.”

Nearly a third of health care workers on the South Coast are age 55 and older. There’s a shortage of nurses on the South Coast, and across Oregon. In fact, the Oregon Employment Department listed 2,970 wanted ads for nurses statewide in June. There were 527 nursing assistant openings and 99 for lab technologists.

“We have a severe shortage of medical personnel in almost all fields,” said John Breuer, owner of Southwest Oregon Physical Therapy. “It’s really, really been hard to recruit medical staff to come to our area.”

Breuer, who’s chairman of Southwestern Oregon Community College’s alumni association, has been speaking out in support of the college’s effort to build a Health & Science Technology Building on its Coos Campus.

The proposed 47,000-squarefoot project would allow the college to build modern learning labs and update technologies. It could train more local students to meet an increasing demand for nurses, EMTs, dental assistants, engineers, biologists and other professionals.

“We need this. The science building will give local students the stepping stone to get into medical school, and ultimately help fill some of the medical shortages we have,” Breuer said.

Medical providers invest in project‌ In an unprecedented action this spring, the Bay Area Hospital and the Southwest Oregon Independent Practice Association (DOCS) announced their investment in the $16 million project.

Each organization committed $1 million. They recognize the need for skilled professionals to fill positions at all levels in their organizations.

With the Health & Science

AMANDA LOMAN PHOTOS, THE WORLD

First-year nursing students Zonia Rodriguez, left, and Sarah Stremel, examine equipment during a lesson on infusions in Sumner Hall’s nursing lab on Wednesday, Jan. 13. The proposed new facility would give students and teachers more up-to-date practice and teaching areas.

Lynette Turner, RN, clinic nurse manager at the Coquille Indian Tribe’s Community Health Clinic, received her degree in nursing from Southwestern Oregon Community College in 2007 and has been working at the clinic since 2000.

Technology Building, Southwestern could expand the nursing program over time from 56 to 80 students. There would be room to enroll 160 more students in science-related degree programs.

“At the same time, it’s imperative we invest in buildings and technology to be sure we have space to provide programs industries don’t even know they might need five years from now,” Southwestern President Patty

Excess equipment is stored next to a practice area in Sumner Hall’s nursing lab on Wednesday, Jan. 13. The proposed new facility will give the nursing program more storage space for equipment, freeing up teaching areas.

Scott said.

The Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing issued a letter of support for Southwestern’s project to provide increased capacity in the nursing program and improve the supply of nurses to Coos and Curry counties. The schools already partner through the Oregon Consortium for Nursing Education. This allows Southwestern’s nursing students to co-admit, and once they graduate from the college, they can move seamlessly into OHSU to complete a bache-

lor’s degree in nursing.

And the more there are graduates, the more these professionals will stay to practice rural Oregon to ease the health care shortage and become leaders in health policy and education, OHSU said.

Oregon plans to invest $8 million in the building — if the college and Southwestern Foundation raise the rest. They’re halfway to the goal thanks to the hospital, DOCS organization, Coquille Indian Tribe and approximately $2 million in contributions and pledges from

Industry wants education investment‌ A new building will benefit more than the health care industry, said Southwestern graduate Katherine Nordholm. Formerly of North Bend, Nordholm now works for the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife as a fisheries biologist. Much of her research involves salmon in this region.

“With science, technology and lab work in general, it’s very important to have good functioning, state-of-the-art equipment, so that students access the best training possible,” she said.

“People hiring students and interns are really looking for people who have had quality training and experience.”

Modern science and health labs are a lure for business investment, too.

“These new buildings that we build, in terms of our economy, businesses are attracted to that,” said foundation member Carolyn Thompson. “It helps us sell our community to new industry.”

Thompson graduated from Southwestern and went on to become a certified public accountant. She now owns a firm in Coos Bay. She said not only is the investment in buildings and technology important, the skilled graduates who stay here in health, science and other professions support local businesses.

“They’re my clientele. I benefit every time working professionals walk in my door,” she said.

WE ARE GROWING TO SERVE YOU EVEN BETTER …

OVER THE PAST YEAR NORTH BEND MEDICAL CENTER HAS DEDICATED SIGNIFICANT RESOURCES TO MEETING OUR GOAL OF IMPROVING ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY MEDICAL CARE IN OUR COMMUNITY. Through these efforts we are pleased to announce the addition of several new outstanding primary care providers to our medical staff.

We are currently ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS and invite you to call our Patient Access department at 541.267.5151, ext. 1281.

With locations in Bandon, Coos Bay, Coquille, Gold Beach & Myrtle Point

1900 Woodland Drive, Coos Bay | nbmconline.com 00 1

SOUTH COAST STRONG

A6 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

What is the economic value of a college? ‌How do you add up the value of a community college for the region? If you were a chiropractor, you might measure it by the number of Southwestern employees who use your services.

A video game store owner might tally up sales to students.

Here’s what economists say in their analysis of the economic contribution of Southwestern Oregon Community College.

In 2012, Southwestern’s operations infused $33.9 million a year into western Douglas, Coos and Curry counties. The college’s non-local students brought in another $7.4 million in annual spending to the region.

Those same economists say that over the past 30 years, Southwestern’s graduates added $308.3 million in regional income annually due to higher earnings and increased output of businesses. For every dollar of state or local money invested in the college, the citizens of Oregon gain $22 in benefits. Those benefits include that increased taxable income from professionals and a decrease in costs associated with dealing with the effects of poverty.

When a student gains education beyond high school, that person is less likely to smoke, or become addicted to drugs and alcohol. He or she is less likely to rely on food stamps or unemployment. College grads commit fewer crimes than people who don’t go to college.

It is estimated that Southwestern’s 2010-11 graduates generate social service savings to the Oregon public equal to $839,700 a year.

In fact, Southwestern and the Oregon Employment Department tracked the college’s 201314 health care graduates (57) who earned certification and/or two-year degrees. In their first year of work, they earned more than $1.7 million, with an average annual income of $37,648,

For every dollar of state or local money invested in the college, the citizens of Oregon gain $22 in benefits. as compared to the 2014 federal poverty guideline of $24,250 for a family of four.

The other economic value the college provides to South Coast families is in saved tuition expense.

Southwestern collaborates with the 10 regional high schools to provide free dual enrollment for in-district high school students. Last year, 731 high school students enrolled in 144 courses earning more than 8,300 college credits. These courses were offered at no cost to these students, representing a savings to families of the southern Oregon coast of$1 million in equivalent tuition and fees.

In June, several high school students in the region graduated with both their diplomas and associate’s degrees from Southwestern. These students will move into the university system as juniors well on their way to earning four-year degrees.

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Coquille Valley Hospital grows to meet new health needs MICHELLE PAQUETTE For The World‌

‌COQUILLE — At Coquille Valley Hospital (CVH), our mission, since our inception in 1969, has been to serve our community with the utmost in patient care and service. Although many things have changed in the past 47 years, one thing has remained consistent — our commitment to our community and our patients.

At CVH, our goal is to provide high quality services for the approximate 12,500 residents we serve in the communities of the Coquille River Valley, including Coquille, Myrtle Point, Powers, Bridge, Fairview and a number of other neighboring areas.

Through the years, we’ve made some changes to accommodate the needs of our community members. In 2010, CVH officially broke ground on its new building and in 2012 we opened the doors to our new 60,000-square-foot, three-story hospital.

Just this year, we launched a brand new website (www.cvhospital.org) with a comprehensive listing of services, providers, community events and much more.

CVH offers a comprehensive range of services, including: Laboratory (including hematology, chemistry, urinalysis, blood bank, electrocardiograms,

immunology and microbiology), Medical Imaging (including: ultrasound, bone density, CT, Digital mammography, X-rays, MRIs), Nuclear Medicine (including scans of the skeletal, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, central nervous and endocrine systems as well as respiratory, colorectal and ovarian cancer, and renal gland scans), Cardiopulmonary (including: overnight pulse oximetry, exercise pulse oximetry, pulmonary function testing, cardiac testing, respiratory therapy), Outpatient Clinic (including: transfusions, infusions, injections, anticoagulation management services, catheterized urinalysis, bladder scans as well as wound care).

Currently, CVH employs 200250 staff, including clinical and administrative. We offer residency programs through our affiliation with OHSU and internship training opportunities through SWOCC. At CVH, we are actively recruiting new positions to best serve the economic development of health care in our county. Current job opportunities include emergency department physicians, physicians, RNs, CRNAs and surgical technologists. For a complete list of job openings,

please visit the Career Opportunities page the CVH website: https://coquillevalleyhospital. companycareersite.com/.

We are pleased to have a very active CVH Auxiliary comprised of about 40 volunteers who are a large part of our hospital. Our volunteers help with everything from assisting in our Valley View Café to our gift shop. In addition, our auxiliary oversees several fundraising events, including Books Are Fun and our Scrub Sales.

Coquille Valley Hospital is proud to be an engager within the community through our affiliation with the South Coast Economic Development Council as well as the Coquille Chamber of Commerce. A large part of our role as a community hospital is being an active presence in the community. From strategic partnerships to serving on countywide committees such as the Healthy Eating/Active Living Committee and Health Promotion and Engagement Committee, CVH’s role is to serve the health and wellness of our community members. In addition, CVH is proud to sponsor and participate in an array of communitywide events.

To learn more about Coquille Valley Hospital, please visit www.cvhospital.org.

Lower Umpqua Hospital statistics ‌REEDSPORT — Thanks to Lower year: Dunes Family Health Care had Emergency room visits: 3,481.

Umpqua Hospital, people in Reed9,534 visits from July 1, 2014 to June sport and the surrounding rural area Visits for all other reasons: 30, 2015. Next year marks the 40th anniversary of DFHC. can get medical care close to home. 69,529.

As of May 2016, the hospital had Reedsport Medical Clinic visits: For more information, visit http://www.lowerumpqua 208 part-time, full-time and on- 9,250.

Walk-In Clinic visits: 2,389. call employees, including employhospital.org/. ees who work in the hospital, Dunes Family Health Care, Reedsport Medical Clinic, the Walk-In Clinic, Catch up on all the local news at Family Resource Center, Scottsburg www.theworldlink.com, on the The World Clinic and Central Coast Community Health. The facility opened on Newspaper Facebook page or The World Feb. 3, 1964.

Number of patients according to Link on Twitter @TheWorldLink statistics from the 2014-2015 fiscal

Bayy Clinic, LLP Physicians and Surgeons

The Bay Clinic has been b providing idin services i es to families f mi on the southern Oregon coast for over 59 years. We take pride in both the quality of care we offer and the services we provide to our patients. The Bay Clinic was started in 1957 by several internists. Within a couple of years we became a multi-specialty clinic. Initially Bay Clinic was located next to Blossom Gulch school on S. 10th Street in Coos Bay. The current building was built in 1975 directly across the street from Bay Area Hospital. We have added on the building three times through the years to accommodate additional providers for the area’s growing medical needs.

Over the past several years Bay Clinic has been working diligently to recruit additional primary care physicians. In the last 2 years the clinic has added 9 new providers. We are committed to bringing providers to serve our community.

Our Internal Medicine department includes five Internists, one Family Practice and three Adult Nurse Practitioners. We currently have three Pediatricians and a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, a General Surgeon and an Allergist. Our Obstetrics and Gynecology department includes a physician and two Certified Nurse Midwives.

In 2014, the Pediatric After Hours Clinic expanded to the Bay Clinic’s Express Clinic. nday We care for adult patients as well as pediatric patients. The Express Clinic is open Mond through Thursday 5:30pm to 8:00pm and Saturday from 8:30 to noon. We were the veryy first in the area to respond to and fill the need for extended and weekend medical servicces.

We have a full service, on site laboratory and digital x-ray department.

Our Cardiac Testing department in Internal Medicine is staffed by caring nurses. ts, They perform a large variety of services including spirometry and breathing treatments, EKG, IV therapies and injections, nerve studies.

1750 Thompson Road, Coos Bay • www.BayClinic.net • 541-269-0333

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SOUTH COAST STRONG

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | A7

Southern Coos Hospital serves Bandon’s needs AMY MOSS STRONG The World‌

‌BANDON — A trip to the emergency room followed by a long stay in the hospital was not the way Walter and Marna Schulz expected to get to know their new community.

But upon arrival at Southern Coos Hospital, they found the staff was prepared to begin immediate treatment on Walter. At the same time, the staff accommodated essential business the Schulzes needed to conduct with another Bandon professional who was willing to meet in the emergency room. Marna is forever grateful to the staff for their care of Walter in his final days and their concern and support for her as well.

“These people reached deeply into their training, experience and personal goodness far beyond what could every be required of them,” Marna said in a letter to the Bandon Western World.

“Health Care With a Personal Touch” is the hallmark of the work at Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center, a small, rural hospital operated by the Southern Health District in Bandon.

Currently licensed for 21 beds, the hospital was granted Critical Access Hospital status in November of 2000 while also maintaining its designation as a full-service, general acute hospital.

The Southern Coos Health District was formed in 1955 by public vote. The district has provided hospital services as part of its health care offerings since 1960.

The first hospital was located on top of a hill overlooking the Coquille River and Pacific Ocean, but it became apparent in the 1990s that the community would benefit from expanded hospital services.

Land was donated to the district as part of an estate bequeathed to the hospital in a serene wooded area at the east end of 11th Street and a new hospital was completed in December 1999. The former hospital was torn down and the prime view property sold.

Since that time, service volumes have grown tremendously and the hospital campus has expanded accordingly. Last year, additional parking and two new buildings were added to the campus: The Southern Coos Health Center, which houses the Primary Care Clinic and the Specialty Clinic, and a new building for the South-

AMY MOSS STRONG PHOTOS, BANDON WESTERN WORLD‌

Paul Klahr, right, learns from Sherri Tatum, surgical technologist, about Southern Coos Hospital’s state-of-the-art equipment used for procedures such as colonoscopies performed by Dr. Henry Montana at the hospital.

The hospital held its annual open house Saturday, which included tours of the hospital and the new clinic and office buildings.

Women attending Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center’s annual Women’s Health Day take a stretch break between speakers Saturday at the Bandon Community Center.

Patricia Soltys explains details on two works of sculpture by her late partner artist Charles Tatum, on display at the Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center art show. ern Coos Health Foundation and hospital administrative offices.

The hospital nursing services include a four-station emergency department, surgical services, endoscopic services, an outpatient department and a swing-bed program. A new automated medical management system, paid for in part with a grant from the Mr. and Mrs. Michael L. Keiser Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation, reduces the probability of medication errors.

The offered services are supported by a full-service laboratory featuring a new chemistry analyzer, a respiratory therapy department, medical imaging services

including CT, ultrasound, general radiography and a certified mammography program. Rehabilitation services are contracted.

Together, these programs provide a comprehensive range of diagnostic and therapeutic programs which are not always found in similar hospitals.

The hospital serves southern Coos County and northern Curry County. This primary service area is populated by about 10,000 residents who increasingly look to Southern Coos Hospital and Health Center for their healthcare.

The local community presently has three primary physician practices. The Southern Coos Health

Assistant Director of Nursing Heather Edwards, right, and registered nurse Denise Ebenal utilize the new medication management system at Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center.

District employs 112 people and salaries and benefits comprise $9.6 million of SCHD’s budget.

In addition, the district serves the highest percentage of Medicare patients of any hospital its size in Oregon and signed a contract with

Western Oregon Advanced Health in October 2015, which allows the district to better serve its Medicaid patients.

SCHD also is active in the community. Hospital art shows are curated three to four times a year with specific themes, and any member of the community is welcome to submit art for consideration in the show. An opening reception is held for each show, with live music and treats provided by the active Southern Coos Hospital Ladies Auxiliary. The Ladies Auxiliary raises money through the gift shop to help purchase patient-focused equipment for the hospital.

Health outreach is another mission of the district. They accomplish this through the annual Women’s Health Day, Men’s Health Day and the fall drivethrough free flu shot clinic that doubles as a disaster triage exercise. The district also provides free diabetes education, a bereavement support group and blood pressure screening.

Each year, the Southern Coos Health Foundation holds its biggest fundraiser, the Golf For Health Classic, at Bandon Crossings.

Money raised at this popular event helps purchase equipment and upgrades for the hospital.

Are you ready to HEAR the Olympics?

Did you know that Dr. Todd Landsberg was a torch bearer for the 1996 Olympic Games and displays the actual torch he ran with in his office? It’s identical to the one Muhammad Ali used to light the Olympic cauldron to start the Games.

Did you know that know that Hearing Loss even affects Olympic athletes? Jim Ryun, the first high school runner to break 4 minutes in the mile, and current athlete David Smith Olympic Volleyball player, both wear hearing aids.

South Coast Hearing Center is dedicated to helping people of all ages hear better. As you are watching the Olympics, if you find yourself turning the volume up on the TV, it might be time to have your hearing checked.

Todd A. LAndsberg, AUd

Olympic Trivia: Did you know golf will be back in the Olympics after 112 years?

1957 Thompson Road, Suite E, Coos Bay, Oregon 97420 541-435-0850 • www.southcoasthearingcenter.com 00 1

SOUTH COAST STRONG

A8 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

Southwestern helps region fill workforce gaps ELISE HAMNER For The World‌

COOS BAY — South‌ western Oregon Community College is known as the leading provider of job training on the South Coast.

Even with that distinction, the college is challenged to provide enough job-ready graduates for the wide cross-section of employers in the region, particularly in the health care industry.

As the Baby Boom generation begins to retire, South Coast businesses are scrambling to find qualified employees locally and recruit professionals from outside of the region.

“There’s a deep need in our communities for not only qualified employees, but also people with a good work ethic,” said Trish Price, job placement and internship coordinator at Southwestern.

It’s not uncommon for Price’s phone to ring with an employer seeking an intern, or help finding employees.

She’s even been stopped in the store by business owners. Every term, she has internships she can’t fill in computer fields, business administration, even for pharmacy techs.

“SWOCC does a terrific job, and whether or not it will cover everybody we’re looking for, though — probably not,” said Barry Winters, the area manager for BBSI, which links employers with job seekers.

Winters, who’s also the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce president, said that for people with a will to work and clean records, there are jobs. The more skills a person has, the more opportunities.

The college is a fast-track for students to gain technical skills — from entry-level workers all the way up to nurses, skilled welders, professional chefs, bookkeepers and computer techs. To be successful providing the right kind of graduates, the college works to create part-

A pair of bronze sculptures, created in 2000 by Mack Holman, make eye contact across the walkway between Tioga Hall and Sitkum Hall.

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD‌

The bust of Henry Hansen stands in front of Tioga Hall on the Southwestern Oregon Community College campus in Coos Bay. It was through his efforts that the ballot measure creating the college passed and was established in May 1961. nerships with business. The internship program is one avenue. The other is through creation of new programs.

Grassroots ideas lead to new programs‌ “If a person or business comes to us with an idea for a training program, we’re open to that,” said Cody Yeager, the college’s dean of Career and Technical Education.

First, Yeager checks to see whether other Oregon colleges already offer the program. If there aren’t many, she and the college’s data researcher do a labor market analysis.

“It might be a good idea, but we have to know — are there jobs for students right now and will there be in 10 years?” she said.

It happened recently with dental assisting. Local dentists called and asked about the possibility of creating a

program. Many dentists are trying to train their own assistants in-house. That puts strain on their businesses.

The college crunched the numbers and research showed there are jobs for dental assistants. Yeager got in touch with dentists and dental labs, and they went to work to create a program.

“Not one person has said this isn’t good. They’ve all said, ‘What can we do?’”

Yeager added.

Then she hit a new challenge. There wasn’t space on campus. While the college is fundraising to build a new Health & Science Technology Building, it won’t be open until at least fall of 2019. A local dentist vacating space suggested the program start off campus.

The high costs of upgrading a building and rent, though, were too high. Now, the college is jockeying around space to squeeze in the program on campus.

Dentists are stepping up, too, to help provide equipment for the program. The college hired Dan Matthews to teach. He brings seven years’ experience managing a dental business locally, and many years’ experience as a high school and college science instructor.

“There’s tremendous community support here for the college and that’s really good,” Yeager said.

Collaboration extends to high schools/ universities‌ Knowing the Baby Boomer generation will begin to retire en masse, Southwestern partnered with local companies and Oregon State University two years ago to create new forestry/natural resources transfer degrees.

Students who graduate Southwestern in that program transfer directly to OSU as juniors.

The benefit for local companies that helped start the new degree program is they can establish relationships with local students at Southwestern and stay connected with them through OSU. That’s helps with recruitment, since it’s an employee’s market in many fields right how.

“It’s been my experience that if we can hire people locally, they much more likely to stay in the area,” said Eric Farm, the Coastal Operations Manager for Barnes & Associates Inc. (formerly Menasha).

Farm has hired Wyatt Dunlap as a summer intern at $14 an hour. “It’s a lot of practical knowledge that you don’t get anywhere else,” Dunlap said.

The Reedsport student earned his two-year forestry degree at Southwestern and now is enrolled at Oregon State University.

“My goal is to have a job

for him when he’s done,” Farm said. “What I’d like to do in his last summer is pick up another intern that he can help train.”

The college also is working on similar partner degrees with universities throughout Oregon. It includes focused areas, basically degree pipelines, for culinary arts students in hospitality and tourism management, and even for students in marine biology. This program in particular includes enhanced math and biology, which means students with that degree can also plug into pre-med, veterinary and biology programs when they transfer on for four-year degrees.

“It’s rigorous because it does have the extra math and sciences, and it’s designed for students willing to put in the extra work,” said Anna Cole.

Next up? Over the summer, the college and South Coast high schools will partner to create an allied health pathway program to prepare career-minded students for entry-level certification and a direct route into specific training at the college level.

SWOCC offers options for rural residents ELISE HAMNER For The World‌

Patient-Centered MediCal Care Wellness Exams Immunizations Work & Sport Physicals Diagnostic Screens Mental Health Counseling Evening Appointment Options

Bandon 541-347-2529 Port Orford 541-332-1114

coastcommunityhealth.org

COOS COUNTY — ‌ Sometimes all it takes is a second chance to launch a successful career. For physical therapist John Breuer, that success came after he restarted his studies at a community college close to home.

“I graduated from Myrtle Point High School with pretty average grades and not any financial backing,” he said. “My only avenue to go to college was on a sports scholarship.”

Breuer headed out of state for school, but following several sports injuries and grade struggles, he lost his scholarships. He came home and went to work in the woods, thinking his career dream was over. Then, that summer, working in the forest, he began thinking about Southwestern.

“It’s important for local kids to see there’s hope, something they can do beyond high school,” said Southwestern President Patty Scott, who grew up in rural northwest Oregon.

“Rural students get that opportunity in small colleges like ours.”

By fall, Breuer was on campus. His classes were small and personal. He met Dr. Ben Fauver who always made time to talk.

“He had this gentle demeanor that made you fall in love with biology and the sciences,” Breuer said.

Decades later, Breuer now owns Southwest Physical Therapy, a Coos Bay-based company with satellite offices that serve people in Coquille, Bandon, Gold Beach and Brookings. He’s president of Southwestern’s Alumni Association and volunteers on campus and assists athletes throughout the region. His business, like other medical offices between Reedsport and

LOU SENNICK PHOTOS, THE WORLD‌

The dining room at the Oregon Coast Culinary Institute is ready for an evening event with food prepared by the students.

Brookings, looks to the college for skilled employees.

Some rely on college students throughout the year to keep their doors open or family businesses profitable.

“Being close to school allowed me to stay home and work in the family business,” said current student Joyce Scolari. Scolari’s family owns Milk-E-Way Feed & Trucking in Coquille.

“They supplied me with a job that was flexible around my school schedule.”

Scolari, who has almost completed a business degree, appreciates her instructors pushing her to achieve every day along the way, and has benefited from small, interactive classes.

“Small enough that the instructor knows when you get lost, and big enough that you can carry on great classroom discussions,” she added.

Nearly half of all students who pursue career studies in higher education start at community colleges, said Scott, who also attended community college, eventually going on to universities.

Of the students who complete their studies at Southwestern, 87 percent either stay in the local area or return here once they’ve completed their advanced degrees or technical training

An OCCI student plates a dish for a final exam. elsewhere.

The college opened in 1960 — the culmination of a several-year effort by local longshoreman and other community activists to create a college locally, so their children wouldn’t have to leave the area to pursue job training. Today, the college serves approximately 9,000 students annually. The majority attend part-time because they have families and jobs.

“It’s more like a family in some ways in this community,” Breuer said. “People really support each other and it feels good to be here.” 00 1

SOUTH COAST STRONG SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2016 | A SPECIAL PUBLICATION OF THE WORLD | theworldlink.com |

SECTION B

Growth and harvest Harvesting of natural resources remains strong on the South Coast

Lumber leaves the Southport Forest Products mill via rail for destinations around the country.

LOU SENNICK, THE WORLD

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B2 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

Port Orford Sustainable Seafood is economic arm of resource team Amy Moss-Strong The World‌

‌PORT ORFORD — A delicate salmon fillet barbecued on a cedar plank and served with a light drizzle of citrus demi-glaze could make anyone’s mouth water in anticipation.

But knowing where that salmon fillet came from, who caught it and when, and that the purchase helped support a local fisherman or a family dependent on the ocean adds a local angle that intensifies the flavor.

Many people may not be aware that the fish they order in a restaurant or purchase at the supermarket has made a long journey. In fact, 90 percent of seafood consumed within the U.S. is imported, and about half of that is wild-caught, according to FishWatch. Conversely, 80 percent of the fish caught

by American fishermen is exported to markets outside the U.S. for processing, then re-imported to the U.S. Port Orford Sustainable Seafood wants to change that backward cycle.

In the old days, if you wanted fish for dinner, you walked down to the docks and bought some from a local fisherman whose boat just came in from a recent ocean trip. POSS is bringing back that concept by purchasing fish and seafood directly at the dock and distributing it locally, keeping more resources in the hands of the people who are out there putting it on the line.

Under the umbrella of the Port Orford Ocean Resources Team, POSS was formed to allow locals to prepay for a fish “share” that they receive each month.

The wild-caught fish is harvested by small boats using exclusively hook-and-line gear — no nets. The fish is then filleted, vacuum-sealed and blast-frozen in meal sized portions and delivered throughout Western Oregon.

Kean Fleming, a Reed College graduate who grew up in Port Orford, is back home, working for POSS as marketing coordinator, and he and other staff members, including POSS CEO Aaron Longton and Community-Supported Fisheries manager Mike Baran are proud to be on the cutting edge of a new-yet-old concept of knowing what is on your plate and how it got there through community supported fisheries.

“It’s about creating jobs locally while being fair to the ecology and giving the local community the return of ownership and an identity with Port Orford seafood instead of who-knows-who seafood,” Fleming said.

Selling shares throughout Oregon involves the logistics of transporting the fish to 19 different pick-up locations from Portland to Ashland on the I-5 corridor, as well as drops in Bandon, Coos

Amanda Loman, The World‌

Freshly caught lingcod is processed and vacuum-sealed at the Port Orford Sustainable Seafood processing area, in the ground floor of the OSU field station in Port Orford.

Bay and Port Orford representing 231 active members, including individuals, couples, families and wholesale business accounts. Those markets are slowly growing.

The driving principles behind community-supported fisheries are what Fleming and Baran call the triple bottom line: economy, ecology and equity.

U.S. fisheries are tightly regulated. with a complicated system that favors the larger handlers and processors, who are purchasing the lion’s share and selling it mostly to Asian markets. Before POSS was established seven years ago, purchasing Port Orford-caught fish was nearly impossible for locals.

“The fish are packed into a truck on the docks from out of town and put on a ship, then shipped overseas,” Fleming said. “The carbon footprint is huge and there is no identity for the fish.

The only way you could get fish locally was if you knew a fisherman.”

The entire POSS team believes it is important to know what type of fish they are processing and distributing.

“None of these facts are part of the existing commercial fishing system,” said Mike Baran, POSS community supported fishery manager. “Without these facts you have nothing but mystery fish. Different species from different boats, caught on different days, are all piled together to be shipped for processing.”

Through POSS, fishermen and their families are empowered, while consumers are assured the fish they enjoy has been treated with care. Now, fish can be purchased in town and throughout Oregon labeled with its species name and where it was caught.

For example, whitefleshed fish purchased at a supermarket is often generically called snapper — a catch-all name for rockfish, of which there are over 94 different species and more than a dozen caught locally.

Each package that goes out through POSS is labeled with its scientific name as well as where and when it was caught, even the name of the boat.

Just like farmto-table harvests, each share from POSS has something different in it, depending on the season. Rockfish, Chinook salmon, Pacific halibut, albacore tuna, lingcod, sablefish and Dungeness crab are divided into individual, couple or family portions.

Memberships are affordable, at $40 a month for individual shares, which includes four ½-pound fillets, $65 a month for a couples share — four 1-pound fillets and $120 a month for a family share — eight 1-pound fillets.

The fishermen are now getting more for their catch.

Employees of POSS also are making more than $13 an hour as a starting wage.

It has been challenging for POSS to turn a profit since they are processing less than 5 percent of what comes across the docks, but Fleming and Baran feel the idea has been well-received overall.

“I think it’s been a success in terms of accommodating the social justice mission,” Fleming said. “We’ve managed to give Port Orford seafood an identity, get more money for fish and more money into the pockets of fishermen.”

Longton, who has been a commercial fisherman for 16 years, has been instrumental in helping Port Orford fishermen find a local market

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ACE HARDWARE EXPRESS

2273 N Bayshore Dr, Coos Bay, OR 97420 (541) 266-8816

and hopes others take advantage of what he and his colleagues have fought hard to establish.

“We’re starting to get more recognition,” Longton said. “Whether that translates in to funding is questionable, but little by little our footprint is bigger, with the OSU Field Station and POORT. We’ve created jobs where there were none and we’ve created a traceable seafood system where there was none, so people are associating the fish they are eating with a place.”

“Little by little we are changing in the right direction, but it takes tenacity and constant pressure,” Longton added. “What we consider a success is when we get our fish to someone’s table and they know where the fish came from and they know us and we know them. It’s something you can get your head around.”

Port Orford Ocean Resources Team‌ The idea of the community-supported fishery was not readily accepted at first and still has its doubters. It goes back at least 16 years, when people like Leesa and Darrell Cobb were living off the catch from Darrell’s fishing boat, but seeing the fishing industry decline, just as the timber industry had. They knew the fishery was fragile — the salmon crisis in the 1990s had shown how a fishery could be devastated by dams and genetically weakened by hatchery stocks.

Across the U.S. in 1999, fishermen were looking for new ideas that would help fish stocks, fishermen and fishing communities.

The nonprofit POORT was started by Laura Anderson, a daughter of a commercial fisherman from Washington.

A group of five local commercial fishermen served as board members. The organization’s mission is to combine science, education and conservation with local knowledge and apply it to commercial fishing so the community could thrive.

As with Port Orford Sustainable Seafood, POORT’s triple bottom line is economy, ecology and equity.

POORT supports the health, recovery and diversity of natural ecosystems while also taking into account the sustainable use by humans of the system.

Knowing that marine reserves were coming to the West Coast, POORT felt it could be ahead of the game by researching the possibilities before it was mandated.

“The extensive research we did helped site the marine reserve at Redfish Rocks and at the same time put commercial fishermen in a position to offset a loss with an economic gain,” said Leesa Cobb, who is now executive director of POORT. “POSS was founded to replace that revenue that was lost with a higher price.”

When the state, under then-Gov. Ted Kulongowski, came down to introduce the idea of the marine reserve, Port Orford residents, for the

most part, did not protest.

“Gov. Kulongowski created a process where sites could be nominated for a reserve and they encouraged community input,” Cobb said. “Because we already had POORT in place and had done extensive mapping of where we’ve fished, we were in a good position and it wasn’t a train wreck.”

It appeals to fishermen to be part of the process, Cobb added, and two years of work and outreach, along with the formulation of local goals, created a bottom-up approach instead of a topdown one.

“We were an early adopter of the marine reserve as a way to create a savings account for our fishermen that we know is an area where fish can breed and reproduce,” she said.

Redfish Rocks Marine Reserve and Marine Protected Area, which connects to Humbug State Park, is closed to bottom fishing only, but is open to crabbing and trolling for salmon. It was sited where it could be easily monitored and enforced.

Redfish Rocks is not closed to exploration, however, and SCUBA diving has gained in popularity there. There’s also kayaking, surfing and other water-related activities nearby.

That’s where Tyson Rasor’s duties begin.

Redfish Rocks Community Team‌ Rasor is the project coordinator for the RRCT. His job is to help the public understand what a marine reserve is and how it benefits the community. Through community outreach, engagement and education, Rasor teaches people that the marine reserve can be a place of discovery.

Each year, Redfish Rocks on the Dock is held in May in Port Orford and invites the public to learn about ocean-based research, local seafood, the Port Orford commercial fishing fleet and tsunami marine debris.

The event also invites the public to become involved by caring for local natural resources through stewardship and citizen science programs.

Rasor also acts as a liaison between the agencies, researchers and the community. He is working with partners in the South Coast community, including the Wild Rivers Coast Alliance — the philanthropic arm of Bandon Dunes Golf Resort — to bring more opportunities for education as well as interactive events for the public to enjoy.

The RRCT recently partnered with OSU and funders to install a SCUBA fill station at the OSU Port Orford Field Station. Rasor recently received an award from Travel Oregon for his part in the project.

long to pique Oregon State University’s interest. For the past two years, OSU has operated a field station in Port Orford — a site where researchers conduct field studies and OSU outreach and engagement specialists interact with the public. The station is now under consideration as part of OSU’s Marine Studies Initiative, and is expanding its role in supporting its three goals of coastal research, education and outreach and engagement.

The field station is supported by numerous programs at OSU that have a role in marine studies, including Oregon Sea Grant, the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, the College of Agriculture, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, the College of Science and the OSU Research Office.

The station has a number of external partners, including the Oregon Marine Reserves Partnership, the Redfish Rocks Community Team, The Nature Conservancy, Oregon Coast Aquarium, the Port Orford Ocean Resources Team, The Surfrider Foundation, the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and others. ODFW uses the field station as a base of operations in support of the ecological monitoring efforts at the Redfish Rocks Marine Reserve and Marine Protected Area.

“The field station has been a place that professional scientists, students and citizen scientists can use as a base of operation to study topics ranging from the ecology of marine reserves to gray whale foraging behavior,” said Cynthia Sagers, OSU’s vice president for research.

“The field station provides two laboratories, classroom and office space and housing for visiting researchers.”

A year ago, the station installed a SCUBA fill station to support scientific divers conducting underwater surveys and now makes this service available to recreational divers seeking to explore the rocky reefs in the area — a popular diver destination. Certified divers may obtain tank fills at the station, located at 444 Jackson St., in Port Orford from 1-5 p.m. or make advance arrangements by calling the station at 541-336-2500.

“Port Orford can be proud of all the hard work it has done to build an ocean aware coastal community,” said OSU Field Station manager Tom Calvanese. “I’m excited by the opportunity to continue working with the community to build on that strong foundation with an enhanced OSU presence on the South Coast through the Marine Studies Initiative.”

For more information about OSU Field Station, visit http://marinestudies. oregonstate.edu/.

All under one roof‌

Funding for the OSU Port Orford Field Station was launched with a $425,000 allocation by the Oregon Legislature in 2011 to purchase the building. OSU has funded its operation since.

Port Orford Sustainable Seafood is also located in the building, as well as the Port Orford Ocean Resources Team and the Redfish Rocks Community Team offices, though the RRCT office is scheduled to move to the nearby visitor center this month.

All the parts work together but are also separate entities with separate missions.

“We’re all connected through our triple bottom-line approach — economy, ecology and equity,” Fleming said. “We try to build the economy through jobs, protect our OSU Field Station marine resources through Marine Studies research and responsible Initiative‌ management and increase With research and educa- stewardship of local ma- 00 1 tion involved, it didn’t take rine assets.”

south coast strong

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | B3

Amanda Loman, The World

Rob Taylor’s Fishermen’s Seafood Market is expanding to include Big Dawg Seafood Grill and an indoor seating area.

Entrepreneurs will be small fry no longer Fishermen’s Market, Big Dawg Seafood Grill, West Coast Clams and others pool resources to distribute seafood GAIL ELBER The World‌

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Rob Taylor’s Fishermen’s Seafood Market is expanding to include Big Dawg Seafood Grill and an expanded seating area.

A fried appetizer sampler is one of the many offerings at Cape Arago Seafood Company.

FOR ALL YOUR GARDEN PROJECTS

Rob Taylor assembles a bagel with cream cheese, housemade lox and red onions at Fishermen’s Seafood Market near the Hollering Place.

Mitch Wade, of Big Dawg Seafood Grill, prepares fish for the day’s meals on Tuesday, February 18.

The partners are also making lox, which involves curing salmon in a brine of sugar, salt and dill, then pressing it.

A generous display of fresh fish and live crabs is also available.

Nothing’s going to waste during this slow period; it all gets cooked and served or sold at Taylor’s other Fishermen’s Market on the Coos Bay Boardwalk.

But don’t forget to stop by — and while you’re in the neighborhood, visit the other businesses on South Empire Boulevard affected by the detour. Either northbound or southbound traffic will have to detour from now through the end of

Update This story originally appeared in the Feb. 21, 2016 issue of The World. Cape Arago Seafood Company is still expanding its markets for clams and other delicacies, but the Hollering Place location is temporarily shuttered till the construction on Cape Arago Highway is complete.

Retail customers can still shop at the floating location on the Coos Bay Boardwalk where Central Avenue meets the bay.

September, but all businesses are accessible.

News editor Gail Elber can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 243, or via email at gail. elber@theworldlink.com.

GC-794 06//2016

‌EMPIRE — Rob Taylor is almost ready to swim with the big fish.

With a group of partners, he’s launched Cape Arago Seafood Company, integrating several local seafood businesses into a supply chain bringing local wild seafood not only to local consumers but also to San Francisco, Spain and points beyond.

The elements so far: Taylor’s second Fishermen’s Market location at 170 South Empire Blvd., near the Hollering Place.

Taylor’s company West Coast Clams, which employs 3-6 people harvesting clams and other shellfish in Coos Bay. West Coast Clams recently got national foodie attention in Episode 6 of “Seafood at the Source,” a YouTube series produced

by Zagat, the restaurant reviewers.

Mitch Wade’s Big Dawg Seafood Grill, formerly known as Big Dawg BBQ and now parked behind Fishermen’s Market as a mobile kitchen.

Relationships with customers in San Francisco and beyond.

The partners are also putting the finishing touches on arrangements to export seafood even farther afield, but those aren’t quite ready for prime time yet.

Under normal circumstances, Taylor and one of his partners, Scott Terhaar of BNT Promotional Products in North Bend, would have waited to tell a reporter about their plans until they were ready to reveal them in full. But they wanted to share a message that couldn’t wait: Don’t forget about Fishermen’s Market.

The construction work along South Empire Boulevard has routed traffic away from Fishermen’s Market, and customers aren’t realizing that the business is open during the project.

Taylor took the construction project as an opportunity to do some remodeling.

Fishermen’s Market now has tables for indoor dining, serving fish and chips and other delicacies from Big Dawg Seafood.

Wade brings a smoker to the partnership, and is turning out several kinds of smoked fish, including prawns.

South coast strong

B4 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

South Coast suited to organic dairy farming ANDREW SHEELER The World‌

‌COOS COUNTY — On a given day at River Bend Jerseys, a bustling farm on the end of Landrith Road, Pete Mahaffy is a busy man.

“You’re lucky if you get a block of five minutes,” Kelly Mahaffy, Pete’s wife, said.

For her part, Kelly Mahaffy was described as “the neck that turns the head” on the farm.

Together, the couple operates River Bend Jerseys, an organic dairy farm that’s part of the Organic Valley Co-Op. The co-op posted $1 billion in product sales last year.

It’s insemination day at the farm, and as the resident expert, Pete Mahaffy has to frequently excuse himself to oversee things.

When he can find time to talk, the third-generation dairyman explains what it is that brought him back to Coos County, where his family has lived since the 1920s.

A legacy of dairy‌

Pete and Kelly Mahaffy met while both were students at Oregon State University. Kelly Mahaffy’s family is in the Willamette Valley, where she grew up with “Christmas trees and beef cows.”

Pete Mahaffy said he originally went to school for horticulture, but while there, “I came across the right people that sparked some interest” in agriculture.

Mahaffy’s father left the dairy business in 1994, and none of his brothers went into agriculture. He said he felt compelled to continue the family’s generational legacy.

“My family’s got this resource,” he said. “It was a rich history of dairy.”

So after finishing up with school, Mahaffy went to work for an experienced dairyman before striking out on his own, with his father’s support.

Amanda Loman, The World‌

Pete Mahaffy attaches a milking machine to one of River Bend Jersey’s cows.

date around 150 cows.

“It’s ideal for grazing cattle,” he said.

That’s because all the cows at River Bend Jerseys are grass fed, and on the rainy South Coast, grass is cheap and abundant.

“That’s what we can do on the coast is a high-forage diet,” Mahaffy said.

In fact, more than a dairyman, Mahaffy said he defines his profession by what he grows.

“I consider myself a grass farmer,” he said. “I enjoy Finding a niche‌ Besides legacy, Mahaffy said growing grass.” what drew him back to Coos County was a unique opportunity. How to run a business‌ A niche.

Besides having a niche, Ma“The niche market plays to our haffy says there are two other strengths,” he said. things one needs to do in order to While the Oregon Coast’s rocky, have a successful business: put hilly terrain did not lend itself to out a quality product and control massive tracts of cattle-grazing expenses.

Mahaffy said a quality product land, it was uniquely suited to small-scale organic farming. The is important because that’s what Mahaffy pastures can accommo- consumers are looking for.

“In the end, they’re the boss,” he said.

By growing grass, he is able to save on the cost of feed, a major expense for anyone dealing with livestock.

But another area where Mahaffy is able to save money, and help out another local industry, is in fertilizer.

In order to obtain a lucrative label of organic, a dairy farm must not use commercial fertilizer or pesticides for three years. For fertilizer, Mahaffy need look no further than the nearby Pacific Ocean. That’s because his farm uses shrimp and Dungeness crab shells to fertilize his fields.

It’s effective, and it saves area fish processors the need to pay exorbitant transportation fees to ship the shells elsewhere.

But stand downwind and you discover the downside.

Mahaffy said the smell is a major obstacle to River Bend Jerseys

expanding to nearby lots, which adjoin residential areas. He said he’s working on improving his composting technique in order to cut down on the smell and appease potential future neighbors.

the farm.

“You’re juggling many balls at the same time,” he said.

That includes family time.

Kelly and Pete Mahaffy have three daughters, ages 11, 9 and 7.

While they work on the farm in Challenges‌ the summer, the rest of the year Stinky fertilizer isn’t the only they are busy with other activichallenge Pete and Kelly Mahaffy ties, ranging from violin practice have to deal with. to Chinese lessons.

The farm is well outside of city limits, and so the Mahaffys have Organic makes it happen‌ been forced to become self-reliYet another benefit of organic ant. That means hiring workers farming, with technical know-how to do Pete Mahaffy said he isn’t the maintenance and repairs. only one who came back home to Pete Mahaffy said there’s a rel- save the family dairy farm. Of the atively limited labor pool in coos nine or so farms in the area, about County that’s willing to work on half of the next generation has rea dairy farm while “taking pride turned to keep things going. in it.”

“That’s unheard of,” Mahaffy Two of the five employees on the said. “If it wasn’t for organics, it farm came from outside the area. would not happen.”

In addition, the Mahaffys have an intern from California State Uni- Reporter Andrew Sheeler can be versity, Chico’s Organic Dairy Unit. reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 234, Then there’s the aforemen- or by email at andrew.sheeler@ tioned business: There’s always theworldlink.com. Follow him on something else to take care of on Twitter: @andrewsheeler.

Committed to Our Team and Our Customers We are one of the largest construction materials and contracting companies in the United States, a status we have achieved through the hard work of our 4,800 team members and the loyalty of our many customers.

As part of our commitment to our employees and our customers, we adhere to our Core Values of People, Safety, Quality and Environmental Compliance.

We have a proven track record of acquisition and expansion in the construction materials and contracting industry. Since 1992, we have acquired 75 companies.

We are looking to grow in our markets.

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River Bend Jerseys

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | B5

Sienna and Ada help to bottle-feed a calf inside a calf hutch.

Labor of Love photos by Amanda Loman, The World

The Mahaffy family, from left: Peter, Sienna, 11, Kaia, 7, Kelly, and Ada, 9.

Upper right: The Mahaffy girls and mom Kelly play jumprope while an Organic Valley Co-op truck pumps milk from the farm into its tanks.

Bottom right: Sienna Mahaffy walks through the cattle as father Pete opens up new pasture for grazing.

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Kaia Mahaffy hangs up a milking machine after the morning milking of the cows is finished. River Bend Jerseys’ cows are milked twice a day.

B6

| SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2016

THE WORLD

Aquaculture barge a showpiece for Giddings GAIL ELBER The World

CHARLESTON — As soon as Giddings Boat Works employees finished their latest project, they had to cut it up in pieces.

That was the only way to get the 30-by-75-foot steel barge to Grand Coulee, Wash., where it’s going to haul fish and equipment up and down the Columbia for a Pacific Aquaculture steelhead farm.

The barge was cut up on Friday, and by Friday afternoon, Giddings Boat Works owner Ray Cox was watching his employees prepare the sections for shipping. On Sunday, the sections will take off for Grand Coulee aboard a procession of four trucks, he said.

Observing alongside Cox on Friday was local seafood entrepreneur Jerry Hampel in his capacity as manager of Pacific Aquaculture, a division of Pacific Seafood. Hampel collaborated on the design of the barge with Cox, Giddings’ general manager Mike Lee, and naval architect Bruce Culver. Cox’s company Tarheel Aluminum built the wheelhouse, and additional work was done by Skallerud Marine.

Hampel, who built his own first fishing boat when he was 20 and went on to found North Bend Oysters, is a former Port of Coos Bay commissioner who takes an interest in the Charleston shipyard.

“I really love doing this,” he said Friday, watching workers prepare the barge sections for shipping. “I love the yard, and I love the boat people.”

Hampel himself brings a lot of business to Giddings and the other Charleston shipyard businesses.

In addition to managing Pacific Aquaculture, he manages Pacific Fishing, a fleet of 10 shrimp and crab boats belonging to Pacific Seafood. He advocates for the Charleston shipbuilders not only among fishermen but also to the port, which is landlord to the flourishing businesses at the shipyard.

“These are the ones that bring in the jobs,” Hampel said.

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CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

This 30-by-75-foot steel barge left the Giddings Boat Works yard in Charleston for a Pacific Aquaculture steelhead farm on the Columbia River.

Giddings owner Ray Cox hopes other aquaculture firms will want similar vessels.

After a summer lull, Giddings is keeping plenty of employees busy. As soon as the barge leaves, an Alaska fishing boat, the Deliverance, will move into its spot to undergo sponsoning, or widening. Cox said he has work lined up through next spring.

This is the second aquaculture

Update

date a fully loaded tanker truck or hold fish processing equipment.

This story originally appeared in the Sept. 12, 2015 issue of The World.

Cox hopes that when other comGiddings is still working steadily on fishing vessels and other steel vessels. panies see it, they’ll want barges At the beginning of July, owner Ray Cox sold Giddings’ subsidiary, Tarheel of their own.

Aluminum and Fabrication, to his son, Kyle Cox. “You never know what could come next,” Cox said Friday. “If barge Giddings has built, the pre- num vessel. The new barge has a people see this being done — this vious one being a smaller alumi- unique design that can accommo- is out of the normal.”

Celebrating our 70th year in business on the South Coast with many more to come!

We are excited to share the news about our name change and remodel.

Many of you know us as McKay’s, Price ‘N Pride, and Freshmart.We will be restoring all of our locations back to McKay’s. That is who we are, and what we are known as. We are also in the process of refitting all of our stores with new frozen and refrigerated cases that are more energy efficient.

The company was founded by Kenny McKay, Chuck McKay’s father in 1946. We currently employ 300 people during the summer months and have 9 locations north to Lincoln City and south to Gold Beach.

We are a big community supporter in all of our locations. We help all food banks, schools, boys and girls clubs, churches, and pretty much everything from A to Z. Last year at Christmas time we donated over $9,000.00 worth of food in our locations.

Chuck McKa McKay was a big supporter of the Coos Art Museum and a SW SWOCC Alumni Sincer Sincerely, Your local McKa McKay’s markets

65 10th St. NE, Bandon 1300 Highway Ave., Reedsport

In Memory Of

Chuck McKay

418 8th St., Myrtle Point  130 N. Camman, Empire 400 Central Ave., Coquille  200 S. 8th, Lakeside 29656 Ellensburg Ave., Gold Beach

149 S 7th Street Coos Bay

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south coast strong

The World

Saturday, July 23, 2016 | B7

South Coast blueberry industry bursting with opportunity AMY MOSS STRONG The World‌

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‌SOUTH COAST — Bandon, Langlois and Port Orford are known for their cranberry farms, but there’s another berry growing in popularity along the South Coast.

The Oregon blueberry industry has experienced more than 100 percent growth in less than 10 years, going from fewer than 20 million pounds of blueberries harvested in the late 1990s to nearly 40 million pounds in recent harvests.

Fresh Oregon blueberries are a hot commodity these days for many reasons — incredible taste, the highest quality and peerless nutritional value being just a few.

And Oregon’s South Coast is ripe with opportunity for those interested in growing blueberries.

It’s the “superfood” designation that has driven Oregon blueberry production and sales increases in recent years. And with such large production numbers, Oregon remains one of the top producing states in the nation.

The Oregon blueberry fresh market production in 2011 was 32.3 million pounds, while the processed market production in 2011 was 28.6 million pounds.

Oregon blueberry on-farm sales for 2011 totaled 4.2 million pounds.

Oregon growers routinely realize the highest crop yields per acre compared to any other state, an estimated 9,000 pounds per acre, according to the Oregon Blueberry Commission. Ranging from large operations that ship their crop to both national and international buyers to small family farms with less than 10 acres offering on-farm sales, the 332-plus Oregon Blueberry growers know a good thing when they see it.

The South Coast, with its suitable microclimate, low incidence of frost and mild temperatures, is an ideal place to grow blueberries and also a popular location for U-pick blueberry farms.

Heather Valentine, 24, of Valentine Blueberries, a family business offering U-pick and pre-picked, understands the value of the berry. Her father Charlie, a building contractor and heavy equipment operator by trade, planted 7.5 acres of blueberries on Sydnam Lane, 11 miles south of Bandon, eight years ago.

“We didn’t know what we were doing getting into it,” Heather Valentine said. “It’s been a learning experience.”

Charlie planted mostly Duke blueberry bushes on property they are leasing long-term. The Duke berry is firm with a mildly tart flavor that retains its fresh quality longer than most other varieties. The plant blooms late but ripens early, protecting blossoms from late frosts.

Valentine also has a few acres with other varieties, including the Bluejay, a mellower, softer berry.

The farm utilizes a drip irrigation system and blueberries grow well without herbicides or insecticides.

Valentine Blueberries is not certified organic, but the family only uses organic sprays.

“It’s just not worth it to use anything else,” Heather explained. “With good management, you don’t have to use chemicals.”

Crows have been a problem, however. The family is trying something new this year — a speaker that plays recorded bird sounds, with a bird-of-prey call every couple of minutes. The sound scares the crows away — or that’s the theory.

“They are clever, and cause us a lot of waste,” Heather said.

Valentine Blueberries opened early this year, on June 15, and the warm weather and light rainfall brought the season to a close early, about the second week

Amanda Loman, The World‌

Arlene Esqueda taste-tests the blueberries at Valentine Blueberries on June 23. of July. Other farms, such as Jensen’s, established in 1954 and certified organic since 2001, should have berries into August.

Valentine’s also offers frozen berries during non-harvest months. Frozen and fresh berries from the farm can be found at B&B Farm Supply in Langlois, where Heather’s mother Wendy works, and at the Langlois Market. Eventually, the family hopes to machine harvest so they can market the berries outside the area, but the bushes are not yet strong enough for that.

Blueberries, especially certain varieties such as the Bluejay, also dehydrate well, Heather said.

For the Valentines and others growing blueberries on Oregon’s South Coast, it just keeps getting better.

Heather keeps meticulous records.

“I know exactly how much I sold last year, both U-pick and pre-pick, so I can go back and say each year is better than the last,” she said.

Being on the Northern Wild Rivers Coast Farm Trail has helped draw in customers.

“A lot of people stop just to stretch their legs,” Heather said. “I get people from all over the world. Some of them have never seen blueberries and thought they grew on vines or on the ground like cranberries.”

In addition to being delicious without added sugar, blueberries have health benefits, including their antioxidant content. Heather uses them on everything and said she hasn’t had a cold for years.

The blueberry season lasts four to six weeks and there are several berry farms along U.S. Highway 101 as well as inland, such as Hazen’s Riverside Blueberry Farm in Coquille and Happy Family Farms in Myrtle Point.

Along with Valentine’s and Jensen’s, Valley Flora Farm in Langlois is another local favorite. Visitors can find a variety of U-pick berries, including blueberries, throughout the summer and fall.

Twin Creek Ranch in Bandon also has seen bumper crops in the past few years, according to owner David Leff. His farm boasts big berries, sometimes mistaken for grapes.

“There are so many berries, it’s unbelievable,” Leff said. “I get berries out here the size of quarters.”

Heather believes there is room for expansion of the South Coast blueberry market.

“I think there could be more farms,” she said. “We

George Loeding, of Bandon, picks blueberies at Valentine Blueberries in Langlois on June 23.

Health benefits linked to blueberries Antioxidants for disease protection, improved vision, clearing arteries, enhanced memory, promoting weight control, strengthening blood vessels, stopping urinary tract infections, reversing age-related physical/mental declines

Blueberry farming in Oregon There are approximately 332 blueberry grow- Bloom period: late April to late May ers in Oregon, with the average farm about Fruit development: June and July 10 acres.

Harvest: July to September Varieties: More than 20 varieties of blueberPost-harvest growth: September to mid-Ocries exist in Oregon, each one possessing tober unique characteristics of size, flavor and harvest time. Some of these varieties inNations importing Oregon blueberries: Arclude Berkeley, Bluecrop, Bluegold, Bluejay, gentina, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Bluetta, Brigitta, Chandler, Collins, Coville, Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, SweDarrow, Duke, Earliblue, Elizabeth, Elliott, den, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan and Hardyblue, Jersey, Lateblue, Legacy, Nelson the United Kingdom and Powder Blue.

Blueberry vitamins and minerals: Vitamin A, vitamin C, beta-carotene, niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, potassium, iron, fiber, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, zinc, manganese and sodium

How to use blueberries Pies, cakes, toppings, fillings, cereals, muffins, salads, yogurts, ice creams, breads, bagels, pastries, jams, preserves, cookie dough and bread dough, fruit drinks, milk shakes, baby foods, snack bars, pancakes, waffles, trail mixes, savory sauces, concentrates and fresh or frozen as a snack by themselves. got into it because I think it was the idea of something sustainable that my dad could count on. People are always going to want fresh fruit. My dad is a smart guy.

He looked into something that he can do. And mom makes all the jams and jellies we sell. It’s hard work, but a lot of fun, too.”

“I never get sick of eating blueberries,” she added. “I see blue when I sleep.”

On April 1, 1984 Vend West was incorporated when I, Lou Leberti, purchased Automatic Sales from Warren Kolen. Mr. Kolen started his career in the vending business in 1954 and I went to work for him in 1964.

We strive to be an active business member by supporting the following local community groups:

• Coos Bay Lions Club • Rotary • Soroptomist • Optomist club • High schools: Siuslaw, Reedsport, North Bend, Marshfield, Bandon, Coquille, and Myrtle Point • Southwestern Oregon Community College • Coos Historical & Maritime Museum Vend West Services currently employs sixteen • Egyptian Theatre • Little Theatre on the Bay dedicated people. These sixteen employees • Coos Bay Schools Community Foundation have a combined 230 years of experience • Prefontaine Memorial Run working as management, office staff, and • Boys & Girls Club of Southwestern Oregon route drivers. The longevity speaks for itself • Women’s Crisis Center when it comes to the loyalty of our employees • Charleston Merchants Association to Vend West and the customers that we serve.

We aim every day to provide our customers Sincerely, with prompt, efficient service.

Lou Leberti This is why ‘service’ is part of our business’ name.

Automatic sales was a well established business as we at Vend West strive to continue the tradition of supplying nationally known brand products and excellent service to our customers from Florence to Gold Beach on the Southern Oregon Coast.

Then

Now

South coast strong

B8 | Saturday, July 23, 2016

The World

Lou Sennick, The World‌

Cut lumber moves through various stages in the Southport Forest Products Mill on the North Spit after it is cut. See a video of the process at www.theworldlink.com.

Southport Forest Products carves out a niche Through the mill

GAIL ELBER The World‌

‌NORTH BEND — In the 1980s, environmental lawsuits and a changing global marketplace led to the shutdown of many local mills that depended on a supply of old-growth timber. But on the North Spit of Coos Bay, just across from North Bend, Southport Lumber’s high-tech mill is not only surviving but thriving in an era of smaller trees.

In 1998, Jason Smith was cruising timber for a consulting forester and watching small logs being harvested for chipping. He saw an opportunity for a sawmill that could extract lumber out of those small logs. A mutual acquaintance introduced him to Jim Lyons, who was, at the time, running his family’s shipping facility, Ocean Terminals, in North Bend.

Neither Smith nor Lyons had any experience in sawmills, but their enthusiasm for making lumber out of pulp logs was contagious.

Smith and Lyons partnered with the Arriola brothers, longtime timbermen with logging and chipping interests, and also got help from Lyons’ family. They worked with a consulting engineer with expertise in small-log processing and located used machinery. Then came the challenge of securing financing.

“Most of the banks just laughed at us, because as a group, none of us had any practical experience sawmilling,” Smith said. “They said, ‘You don’t have any experience,’ or, ‘Forest products is a high-risk field that we’re not interested in loaning money for at this time.’ But eventually we were able to convince Western Bank to loan us some money, and we built the little mill and got it operational.”

The first Southport Forest Products mill opened in Southport, on U.S. Highway 101 south of Millington, in 1999.

“It was a pretty bumpy road there for the first year or so,” Smith said. “We didn’t have a lot of experience, but we worked through the issues and got the mill running. It was a manual process, not very sophisticated.

“After that first year, we enjoyed some successes and got it operational. We found some good markets and actually made a little money and improved the mill, upgraded it a little bit and got it running quite nicely.

“Our competitive advantage then, and it still is today, is that we focus on extracting value out of a low-cost raw material. Many people don’t want to deal with those small logs. We’ve just focused our attention on being as efficient as we can in processing those small logs that nobody else wants to mess with.”

A generation older than Smith and Lyons, the Arriolas were ready to take their investment out of the business after two or three years, so the younger men bought their partners out. By that time, the business was starting to outgrow its 15-acre site in Southport.

“It was a poor location for a sawmill,” Smith said. “It didn’t give us any opportunity to expand. It didn’t have access to rail infrastructure or barging capac-

Jason Smith, owner of Southport Forest Products, talks about his modern sawmill on the North Spit, designed to cut logs from 3-inch to 13-inch diameter that formerly were used for chips.

Southport Forest Products’ mill on the North Spit receives a constant stream of logs under 16 inches in diameter by rail, truck and barge. Stackers dump the logs into a debarker, from which they fall onto a conveyor system that takes them to one of two lines — the original line, and the new line, built this spring, for logs under 13 inches.

Each log is scanned, and its dimensions are sent to chop saws that buck it into segments. The log segments are fed evenly into the main mill. A computer scans them again and calculates the “breakdown solution” for each segment — the sawing pattern that will produce the most usable lumber from the log. In seconds, the log zips through an array of saws, and the resulting lumber falls onto another conveyor system. From this conveyor, each board falls into a bin with others of its size. When the bin is full, the lumber is loaded into the kiln and dried for 30 hours, conveyed along another line to be planed, then graded in a final pass under a scanner. The finished lumber is loaded onto trains, trucks or barges and shipped to customers.

Shavings, sawdust and bark are sold to other businesses to be burned as fuel or made into fiberboard.

It takes about 10 minutes for a log to pass from the bucking saw to the final bin. Two employees monitor the process from cabs filled with video monitors and computer screens, and a few others work along the line, keeping the lumber flowing smoothly. The mill runs two shifts a day, four or five days a week.

“Most of the banks just laughed at us, Other local mills because as a group, none of us had any practical experience sawmilling.” Southport Forest Products is just one of many companies that is success— Jason Smith ity, and we were utilizing both of those resources then. We were trucking our lumber to Thomas and Sons in Coos Bay, where they were loading it on rail cars for us and shipping it to our customers.

We were bringing logs out of Canada even back then, and we were offloading them at Knutson or Ocean Terminals and paying them to process those logs and truck them to our terminals.“We decided that if we wanted to be successful, we would need to invest in our business and find a new spot to build our mill.”

They started looking around the county for a larger site with rail access and water access and industrial zoning, finding little available. They struck a deal with the Port of Coos Bay to buy a parcel with a barge slip on the North Spit. There was no rail service, but the port extended the line to the site in exchange for the opportunity to gain Southport as an “anchor tenant” that would attract other tenants.

After visiting more than 60 sawmills, Smith and his colleagues picked out new machinery to create a sawmill optimized for processing logs under 16 inches in diameter. The new mill became operational in the fall of 2005.

Few mills like Southport’s exist. Vaagen Brothers, based in Colville, Wash., Goshen Forest Products, based in Eugene, and Western Cascade Lumber in Toledo are other companies that specialize in milling small logs.

“There’s just not a lot of companies that want to take the time and energy to process these small logs,” Smith said. “You don’t hit the production records; it’s not glamorous.”

But Southport has found success in that niche, avoiding competing with the local mills of Roseburg Forest Products and Georgia-Pacific for the small supply of larger logs.

The company originally dealt only in green Douglas fir lumber.

In 2004, natural gas came to the

coast via Coos County’s 12-inch pipeline, and in 2011, Southport built kilns and expanded into the larger, less volatile market for kiln-dried lumber.

Southport’s markets change with exchange rates. Smith said he currently has customers in all the lower 48 states. “Our lumber gets sold to small lumberyards, large retailers, contractor service yards and wholesalers,” he said.

Locally, it’s at BJ’s Metal and Lumber Products, Coos Head Builders Supply and ProBuild, and some contractors buy it directly.

In addition, customers in Mexico buy green Douglas fir for crating and palleting. When the dollar was weaker, Southport sold to customers in Taiwan, China and India.

“Those were all vibrant markets for us at one time, and I’m sure they will be in the future when the currency exchange rates and other markets dictate that that’s a good market for us,” he said.

Southport is constantly looking for logs. “Our primary source of logs is from industrial timberland companies in Coos, Curry and Douglas counties,” Smith said.

“Our largest supplier is Weyerhaeuser. We will start acquiring logs from Rayonier (which recently collaborated with Forest Investment Associates on the purchase of Menasha Forest Products Corporation), as well as any number of small- and medium-size landowners, from a farmer with 40 acres who might log 10 acres to companies such as Moore Mill and Al Peirce Lumber Company that have various-sized tracts of land.”

Smith also buys logs from other timber companies and trades Southport’s too-big logs for their too-small logs.Southport buys timber sales from the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service and the state of Oregon and logs them itself with its own cable-thinning crews, or hires contractors to do it. Depending

fully finding its way in the new timber economy. Some other mills at a glance: South Coast Lumber, Brookings: Founded in the 1950s, South Coast Lumber built its current lumber mill in 2006, which it calls “one of the most efficient sawmills in the world.” Its Pacific Wood Laminates affiliate makes engineered wood products, including millwork, plywood, siding and concrete forms.

Oregon Overseas Timber, Bandon: Founded in 1983, the company provides high-quality Douglas fir lumber, siding and timbers, often from salvage logs, for domestic and international markets.

W&L Lumber, Myrtle Point: Mills and kiln-dries alder and other hardwoods and produces chips.

Roseburg Forest Products, Coquille and North Bend: RFP’s softwood plywood mill in Coquille and chip export terminal in North Bend are part of a much larger company that also makes lumber, laminated veneer lumber, particleboard and medium-density fiberboard. The chip terminal can serve barges carrying other products.

Georgia-Pacific, Coos Bay: Producing Douglas fir and hemlock lumber, the Coos Bay sawmill is one of 9 G-P facilities remaining in Oregon.

on market prices, Southport also buys logs from Canada; about a third of their logs currently come from there, Smith said.

Like other timbermen, Smith views BLM’s proposed new resource management plan with alarm. Designed to allow logging while conserving habitat, the plan would shift timber production away from the southwestern corner of the state. Districts near Salem and Eugene would see a 24 percent increase in harvest, while the harvest in southern and coastal districts would decline 52 percent. The Coos Bay district’s annual volume would fall from 68 million board feet to 30 million board feet.

“We’re hoping the proposed plan isn’t implemented and there’s some kind of a compromise,” he said.

Nevertheless, this spring, the company increased its capacity by adding additional processing equipment geared to smaller logs.

Southport currently consumes between 80 and 100 loads of logs a day to produce 140 million board feet of lumber a year.

Including all the company’s operations — logging, trucking and the chip yard and log sorting operation at the old Southport site — the company employs about 125 people.

The timber industry still offers opportunities for entrepreneurs, Smith said.

“Cross-laminated timber is an evolving product that holds huge possibilities in the future.

Getting it through the building code agencies, authorizing what are acceptable products and what aren’t, working with engineers and architects — that’s a huge process to get all that and bring it all together. But there’s a lot of momentum behind this concept and it’s working elsewhere. We’re watching it with great interest. It’s wonderful.”

What lies ahead? “Some of the unknowns are the availability of raw materials,” Smith said. “We’re all aware of the status of the federal timber lands, and there’s potential for increased regulations from the Oregon Department of Forestry regulating streamside buffers and water runoff from logging roads. There’s always those question marks out there.

“But we feel as an industry we’ll work through those issues and as long as we’re a top-tier manufacturer, very efficient, there’s still going to be an opportunity for us here. Some of the other unknowns are the market for lumber and chips. We all assume that there’s a future market for lumber and wood chips, but things can change. Alternative products could be made available.

“We’ve gambled on our future and we’ve invested in growing the business, feeling that there’s a future for us.”

News editor Gail Elber can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 243, or via email at gail.elber@theworldlink.com. Follow her on Twitter @GailTheWorld.

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