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SATURDAY, AUGUST 2, 2014
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Why we call the Bay Area ‘home’ THE WORLD Every place worth coming home to has things that are characteristic of that place. Paris has its baguettes. New York has its bagels. Seattle, well, that’s obvious — the Space Needle. Get the idea? For the next eight weeks, The World will be telling the story of our area in 40 things. From Reedsport to Port Orford, Coos Bay to Powers, we’ve picked out things that play a part in making our area what it is. Some you can hold in your hand, such as an Empire clam.
Some are sights unique to this area, such as the chip piles along Coos Bay. Some reflect a historical moment, such as Steve Prefontaine’s trophies in the Coos Art Museum. Others mark the cycle of the year, such as the Shore Acres Christmas lights. Writing for The World will be Gail Elber. Longtime readers may remember Gail’s byline from a year ago. She’s come back to help us with her extensive knowledge of the South Coast and her eye for what objects are uniquely us. We’ll feature one new story every day inside the A section of the newspaper, as well as collect them online. As our list unfolds, day after day, think about something that says “home” to you. Tell us about it in the comments. We might have left it off our list, and if it says “home” to us, too, we’ll make sure we include it.
Sweet success Oregon’s diverse crops bring in millions of dollars, stabilize agricultural economy BY CHELSEA DAVIS The World
COOS BAY — Oregon’s diversity lies in the crops it produces. The United States looks to Oregon when it wants blackberries, boysenberries, black raspberries and hazelnuts — because Oregon is the only state producing them on a commercial scale,according to the Oregon Agriculture & Fisheries Statistics report for 2012-2013. Lagging barely behind, the state is also No. 2 in production of hops, red raspberries, pears, snap beans and blueberries. “The Oregon agriculture, because it’s so diverse, I think it’s more resilient than some of the other farm programs,” said Dave Losh, U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service state statistician in the Oregon By Lou Sennick, The World field office. “If corn prices are low, a third of a farm state’s Abby Wilson takes a few blueberries to eat while she and her sister Natalie, behind, pick the berries at the Hazen Blueberry Farm near Fairview. economy is in the tank.” Berries’ success is thanks to Oregon’s climate: “cool, wet The family has been heading out to pick berries at the farm for three or four years. Below, workers at Holiday Tree Farms move baled trees at springs and warm, hot summers that let the berries hang on the Worthington Yard near Corvallis. the canes longer than in other regions and develop a great flavor profile,” said Cat Mckenzie, Oregon Raspberry and Strawberries: No. 3 Oregon’s rank Blackberry Commission marketing director. Sweet cherries: No. 3 It also lends itself to a wide range of commodities. Dungeness crab: No. 3 among states “It’s a combination of climate and the willingness of grow1 No. Peppermint: ers to try new things and to find niche markets,” Losh said. Crops by the Blackberries: No. 1 “It’s also due to the fact that we export a lot of commodities Boysenberries: No. 1 pound that are not used domestically.” Black raspberries: No. 1 In 2012, Oregon farmers pumped Summer means it’s berry season in Oregon. The season Hazelnuts: No. 1 millions of pounds of berries, fruits launched a little early with strawberries this year, followed Prunes and plums: No. 1 and other crops into the market: close behind by blueberries. The season at Hazen’s Riverside Onions: No. 1 • 398 million pounds of ryegrass Blueberries in Fairview just wrapped up this week. Christmas trees: No. 1 Photo by Andy Cripe, Gazette-Times seed • 10.4 million pounds of orchardBlackberries and raspberries are on deck for harvest, and Hops: No. 2 • 210 million pounds of fescue seed grass seed • 2 million pounds of boysenberries Bandon’s cranberry bogs will take the limelight this fall. Red raspberries: No. 2 • 53.5 million pounds of blackber• 2.2 million pounds of bentgrass • 1.9 million pounds of peppermint Wally Hazen, owner of Hazen’s Riverside Blueberries, said Blueberries: No. 2 ries seed oil his success is due to producing a thin-skinned berry that’s Pears: No. 2 • 34.7 million pounds of hazelnuts • 2.2 million pounds of black rasp• 13 million onions softer than what you find in stores. In the end, his Early Blues, Snap beans: No. 2 • 6,470 tons of prunes and plums
berries
• 7 million Christmas trees
SEE CROPS | A8
Major crimes team investigating bridge jump The World
By Alysha Beck, The World
Police reports . . . . A2 What’s Up . . . . . . . Go! South Coast. . . . . . A3 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . A4
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Oregon State Police, North Bend police and Coos County sheriff’s deputies respond to the scene of a death investigation after Leon Williams Jr., 18, jumped off the McCullough Bridge on Thursday afternoon.
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NORTH BEND — The Coos County Major Crimes Team is investigating the death of a North Bend teenager on probation who apparently jumped off the McCullough Bridge on Thursday when confronted by a sheriff’s deputy. According to the Coos County District Attorney’s Office, 18-yearold Leon Williams Jr. was wanted for absconding from the supervision of the Oregon Youth Authority. The agency is responsible for supervising people adjudicated of criminal offenses committed while they were minors.
John Chaney, North Bend Lois Annunzio, Albany Fred Clinton, Coos Bay Adrian Heggen, Cottage Grove
His case officer had attempted to arrest him near the north end of the bridge, but Williams got away. The probation officer called the Coos County Sheriff’s Office for backup, and Deputy Jon Holder arrived in the area to help with the search and arrest. District Attorney Paul Frasier told reporters at the scene that as the deputy was driving across the bridge, he spotted Williams walking across it. The deputy told the him to stop, but Williams put his hands on the railing and vaulted over. Holder tried to grab him, but didn’t have enough time. In a press release, Frasier wrote
Ava Myler, North Bend Eric Osterson, North Bend Kerwin McLean
Obituaries | A5
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that the distance from the bridge to the temporary construction bridge Williams landed on was about 90 feet. Were it not for the bridge, he wrote, Williams would have landed in the water of Coos Bay. Within a half-hour of the incident, multiple officers from the North Bend Police Department and Oregon State Police were on scene, along with county Chief Deputy Medical Examiner Kris Karcher. Frasier said investigators aren’t certain if Williams thought he would hit the water and get away, or if it was a suicide. SEE BRIDGE | A8
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