The
Lacey Norm Broker ipal Princ
mith ene S Marl /Owner er Brok
8 or 7 1 --99 3 7 31 ( 5 4 1 ) 2 8 0 0 --99 2 3 --11 0 (5 -8 e1 e. t o lll l ffrre to ttee r Av s e h c iinn 1 7 8 0 W e e d s p o rrtt R y.net strealt e acificw www.p
FO
EST CA R THE B
Umpqua Post
tney C our Linda cipal Prin er /Own r e k o Br
LL 271-
Weekly news from the Heart of the Dunes AN EDITION OF
WEST
Wednesday, February 19, 2014 | Serving the Reedsport area since 1996 | theworldlink.com/reedsport | $1.00
Gov. Kitzhaber changes direction on school mascots
CONFLUENCE
BY CHAD GARLAND The Associated Press
By Steve Lindsley, The Umpqua Post
Hundreds of people braved high wind and rain to attend the 2014 Confluence celebration in downtown Reedsport. Part of the festival was held in a tent just outside the Reedsport Community Center, where there was also food, vendors and music.
Brewery plans for tap room in Reedsport They have big dreams for downtown Reedsport. Partners Levi Allen and Trevor Frazier hope to open their Defeat River Brewery within the year. They were a presence at this year’s Wine, Beer, Seafood and Music Festival: Confluence. The goal right now: financing. “We are trying to raise money for our seed capital, Levi Allen said, “by doing a couple of fundraisers. One of which is selling these Pioneer Pint glasses for $100. By Steve Lindsley, The Umpqua Post With the pint glass you get free Paige Allen, Deanne Huebner and Levi Allen talk with a potential customer beer for a year when we open. Once Sunday at the Confluence festival in downtown Reedsport. The group is hopwe open, everyone who has a ing to raise money for a brewery in the downtown area. They hope to open
SEE BREWERY, PAGE A8 a taproom later this year.
Dale Rogers running for commissioner BY STEVE LINDSLEY
for Douglas County commissioner. He says he has made several stops in Reedsport and Winchester Bay since filing for office. He admits he won’t be spending a lot of money on Rogers, 49, lives in the Tri City the race, and won’t be holding high-profile town halls area, south of Myrtle Creek. He has or attending many candidate forums. been married to Beverly for 26 years. “I’m probably going to miss some of the candidate They have a grown daughter. forums and it’s not intentional and it’s not that I’m He is a bailiff and court clerk for afraid to go and speak and talk to people. It’s just that the city of Roseburg municipal court. I cannot afford to take time off work.” Even though he doesn’t attending Dale Rogers also admits he has never attended a commission meetings, normally held Dale Rogers commissioner meeting because of the time they’re held. Wednesdays at 9 a.m., Rogers is Running for office “I’ve never been to one because they hold them in the interested in Douglas County governmorning. That’s one of my gripes, and I work for a living ment. and I can’t afford to take time off to go to one,” he said. “Working where I work I see a lot in the county,” he Rogers made several stops in Reedsport, including The Umpqua Post office, to talk about his campaign SEE ROGERS, PAGE A6 The Umpqua Post
SALEM — Gov. John Kitzhaber says he’ll sign a bill that would allow Oregon schools to retain Native American mascots under certain conditions after state lawmakers addressed concerns that led him to veto a similar measure a year ago. The measure, approved unanimously in the state Senate on Friday, would loosen the Board of Education’s 2012 ban on depicting Native American mascots in their nicknames and imagery. “I’m pleased that everyone stayed at the table and worked toward a bipartisan compromise that will increase awareness, respect, and communication between tribes and neighboring communities,” Kitzhaber said in a statement. His spokeswoman, Rachel Wray, said he’ll sign the bill if it clears the House without changes. Schools would be allowed to keep Native American mascots under certain conditions, including the approval of an appropriate tribe and the Board of Education. The state Board of Education in
May 2012 approved a rule — one of the nation’s strongest — that required Oregon schools to retire their Native American symbols by July 2017 or risk losing state funding. Eight Oregon high schools, such as the Roseburg Indians and Reedsport Braves, would need to find new mascots under the current rule. Another six schools, including Lebanon High School, identified as the Warriors would be allowed to keep their nickname but must change mascots or graphics that depict Native Americans. The regulation would also apply to an unknown number of elementary and middle schools. The Roseburg School Board had begun a legal challenge to the state orders, but abandoned it after learning it was unlikely to win. But Sen. Jeff Kruse, R-Roseburg, took up the issue with a 2013 bill and similar legislation this year. “From the perspective of the people in Roseburg — and I am one — being a Roseburg Indian is a source of pride for me,” Kruse said. Kruse was concerned that the mascot ban was enacted outside of the state’s government-to-gov-
SEE KITZHABER, PAGE A6
Sen. Kruse responsible for bill to keep mascots BY STEVE LINDSLEY Umpqua Post
A Douglas County representative, who has been working hard for two years to make sure Oregon schools can keep their Native American mascots, sees the light at the end of the tunnel after the governor’s office agreed to a compromise. Gov. John Kitzhaber vetoed a similar bill after the legislature’s 2013 session, the only bill he vetoed. State Sen. Jeff Kruse, RRoseburg, shepherded that bill through the Legislature, which was overwhelmingly approved by both bodies, only to have it vetoed. He tried again during this year’s onemonth session and saw it pass the senate after the compromise. Kruse is a graduate of Roseburg High School. The school uses the name “Indians,” although their symbol is a feather, not a Native American characature. He says he expects the school will keep the name. “What the bill now says, basically, is we’re going back to square one” he said in an interview with
The Umpqua Post. “There will be a committee put together that will include folks from the school board association, among others, and members from the tribes. They will rewrite the rule that the state board (of education) adopted. At that time, the state board will have to accept that rule.” The Oregon State Board of Education adopted a rule in 2012 that Oregon schools with Native American mascots would have to change those by July, 2017, or risk losing state funding. The “Braves” mascot for Reedsport was in danger. Kruse, and other lawmakers, have been fighting that rule and, last week, found the governor was willing to compromise ... although the exact nature of that compromise is yet to be worked out. “We think, at the end of the day, it will be written in such a way that if, for example, if Roseburg and the Cow Creek Band (of Umpqua Indians) can sign an agreement, which they can,” Kruse explained. “They’ve already done all of that work and they can continue to be the Indians.”
SEE KRUSE, PAGE A6
Putting Memorial Day parade back on 101 will cost $1,500 It’s related to traffic control. A committee organizing the 2014 Memorial Day Parade and other events in Reedsport is planning on the parade returning, in part, to Highway 101. That’s going to cost organizers $1,500 ... a fee for services from the Oregon Department of Transportation. Dan Latham, a public information officer for the ODOT regional office in Roseburg said the fee is traffic-related. “In the past, the parade was held on Winchester Avenue or Old Town, off of Highway 101,” Latham said in an email to The Umpqua
DOWNED TREES
Post. “This year the organizers want to hold the parade on Highway 101. Since the organizers don’t have the equipment, personnel or expertise to provide traffic control for the parade, ODOT would have to do that. The $1,500 estimate is the cost of setting up VMS (variable message signs), arrow boards, detour signs and trucks as well as the staff hours.” ODOT will take traffic down to just one or two lanes on Highway 101 as the parade is happening on Monday, May 26. Jim Wells of the Reedsport
The Oregon Department of Transportation reported trees down again over the weekend after several windstorms blew through the area. ODOT had to close U.S. Highway 101 for a time on Saturday to give crews a chance to clean off the roadway. Photo courtesy Oregon Department of Transportation
SEE PARADE, PAGE A6
Just
Dune
It
Wanting To Sell or Buy? Rain or Shine Now’s the Time! Here on the Beautiful Oregon Coast
ª
¨
Serving The Reedsport Area For Over 35 Years.
callG.541-271-7474 For news tips, subscriptions, classified advertising or display advertising,Bill or email umpquapost@theworldlink.com N. Floyd Susan B. Juli H.
901 Hwy Avenue. 541-271-4779