FAR WEST BASEBALL
CHILE EARTHQUAKE
Pirates lose league opener to Douglas, B1
Small tsunami forms in Pacific, A7
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
Serving Oregon’s South Coast Since 1878
theworldlink.com
■
$1
Back to the drawing boards County commissioners table SCCF plan CB City Council inducts 3 SCCF directors, doesn’t become member ■
BY CHELSEA DAVIS AND EMILY THORNTON The World
The fate of the South Coast Community Foundation has taken a turn. At its meeting Tuesday night, the Coos Bay City Council voted against becoming a member of the foundation, the nonprofit organization being proposed to manage half of the millions of dollars in community service fees the Jordan Cove Energy
Project would pay the region if it gets federal and state permits and if it receives a long-term property tax exemption. And earlier that day, in one of the more raucous meetings in recent memory,Coos County commissioners tabled the proposal altogether. Their decision came after hours of public outcry from a packed room of about 60 residents. The proposed fee distribution and management is detailed in a Community Enhancement Plan, which needs approval from all four enterprise zone sponsors: the cities of Coos Bay and North Bend,
By Jeff Precourt, The World
Audience members pack the Coos County Commission meeting Tuesday in Coquille. After being met with opposition from the public, commissioners ultimately tabled a decision that would have endorsed the Bay Area Enterprise Zone’s Community Enhancement Plan and made the county a member of the SEE SETBACK | A8 South Coast Community Foundation.The Coos Bay City Council followed with a similar decision.
Mayor facing recall election
Put me in, coach
BY EMILY THORNTON The World
By Alysha Beck, The World
Coltyn Simpson, 7, tries on a baseball helmet while sitting in the stands with his mom Kara during Marshfield’s first league baseball game against Douglas on Tuesday. His brother, Cooper, plays for Marshfield and Coltyn is going to play summer league baseball. See story on Page B1.
Campaign wants quick answer on gay marriage
INSIDE
WASHINGTON — “That is not how GM does business.” With statements like that, new CEO Mary Barra is trying to distance the General Motors she now leads from the overly bureaucratic company whose inattention to its customers helped land it in bankruptcy in 2009. But it’s clear from her appearance before Congress this week that she faces a difficult task. Documents submitted by GM ahead of a House subcommittee hearing Tuesday show that cost was a major consideration when the company declined a decade ago to implement fixes to an ignition switch used in small cars. That switch is now linked to 13 deaths, and Barra, less than three months after taking over as CEO, finds herself thrust into one of the
Police reports . . . . A2 What’s Up. . . . . . . . A3 South Coast. . . . . . A3 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . A4
Comics . . . . . . . . . . A6 Puzzles . . . . . . . . . . A6 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . B1 Classifieds . . . . . . . B4
SEE GM | A8
BY STEVEN DUBOIS The Associated Press
PORTLAND — Sponsors of a ballot measure to legalize gay marriage in Oregon asked a federal judge Tuesday to make a speedy ruling in a case that challenges the state’s ban on same-sex weddings. At the same time, top Oregon employers such as Nike and Intel threw their support behind ending the restrictions. The campaign said in a court filing that it won’t go forward with its initiative if U.S. District Judge Michael McShane overturns the ban quickly. Otherwise, the sponsors said, they would press ahead with the campaign — at great time and expense. McShane has scheduled oral arguments for April 23 on two consolidated lawsuits challenging the gay marriage prohibition. The campaign must submit 116,284 valid signatures by July 3
Daria Neiman, Central Point Gary Barone, Myrtle Point Gladys McMahan, Coos Bay Beth McCleary, Coos Bay
Obituaries | A5
to make the November ballot, and organizers say they have more than enough names. If it qualifies, the initiative must appear on the ballot, even if a court ruling makes it unnecessary. “In other words, after signatures are submitted, the campaign loses the ability to withdraw the initiative and will have to pursue the campaign no matter what the court decides,” campaign manager Mike Marshall said in the court filing. Also Tuesday, a coalition of 36 Oregon employers, including Nike Inc. and Intel Corp., filed a “friend of the court” legal brief in support of striking down the ban. They say the exclusion makes it difficult to recruit and hire talent. In 2004, voters voted to amend the Oregon Constitution to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman. It passed with 57 percent of the vote.
Robo-Pruner Inventor hopes his new machine will revolutionize the way vineyards prune their vines. Page A5
Need to sell something?
FORECAST
The Associated Press
biggest product safety crises Detroit has ever seen. Since February, GM has recalled 2.6 million cars — mostly Chevrolet Cobalts and Saturn Ions — over the faulty switch, which can cause the engine to cut off in traffic, disabling the power steering, power brakes and air bags and making it difficult to control the vehicle. The automaker said new switches should be available starting April 7. At a hearing on Capitol Hill before a House subcommittee, Barra acknowledged under often testy questioning that the company took too long to recall cars equipped with the switch. At a press conference after the hearing, she said it “angers me that we had a situation that took more than a decade to correct.” Barra promised changes at GM
DEATHS
BY TOM KRISHER AND MARCY GORDON
STATE
New CEO Barra tries to shed old GM image
PORT ORFORD — Mayor Jim Auborn faces a recall election April 8 in part because a port commissioner believed the mayor tried to force creation of a marine sanctuary for the region. A petition filed with the Curry County Clerk says Auborn continued “to support imposing a National Marine Sanctuary on the people of Port Orford.” The chief petitioner, Brett Webb, said Auborn’s support of the sanctuary went against the majority of the public’s wishes and would hurt the economy. Webb is a commercial fisherman as well as one of five port commissioners. He managed to get 86 signatures on the petition, according to the city records. There are about 1,100 people in the city. “Because of his continued effort to support a marine sanctuary, I was forced to do this,” Webb said. Last summer, Auborn said he wanted to form an exploratory committee to determine whether it would be a good idea to have the Cape Blanco National Marine Sanctuary. Auborn denied Webb’s accusations of continuing to work on getting the sanctuary after the city council decided against it. Webb said he wasn’t convinced. “If he wasn’t involved he would have notified the city council and public at the February council meeting. The desire to keep the secret suggests involvement or at a minimum, knowledge,” Webb said in an email. Auborn maintained that he wasn’t for or against it. “I’m not promoting it,” Auborn said. “My job as mayor was to look at things like that.” The sanctuary, proposed by Friends of Cape Blanco — now called Citizens for Cape Blanco — to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, would have encompassed 1,340 square miles of water near the shore and seaward 33 miles from the tip of Cape Blanco to the conSEE AUBORN | A8
Mostly sunny 57/40 Weather | A8
WE CAN DELIVER YOUR MESSAGE OVER 100,000 TIMES!
Call Valerie Today! 541-267-6278