MIDWEEK EDITION
Tuesday January 14 2020
www.currypilot.com
SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946
Brookings, Oregon
It’s a go for G.O. on Jan. 30
Uncertain fireworks
G
rocery Outlet has announced that the store’s new location at 906 Chetco Ave. in Brookings will be open Jan. 30. The grocer will occupy what had been the first store in the Ray’s grocery chain, a building vacant since November 2016, across U.S. Highway 101 from the Fred Meyer store. That building has undergone major renovation inside and out over the past several months. Grocery Outlet currently is in a Harbor shopping center at 16261 U.S. Highway 101. That store will close on Jan. 29. The relocated Grocery Outlet will occupy about two-thirds of the former Ray’s building, although the sales floor will be about the same size as the existing store, according to co-owner Lori Panter. The back room will be slightly larger. The grocery will be located at the north end of the building, which is on the left side when viewed from the front. “We’re going to start stocking the store on Monday with nonperishable products,” Panter said last Friday. “The new location will have larger produce and fresh-meat sections, more space for organics and specialty foods, and an expanded beer and wine section.” Panter said better racking will allow for the expansion of select departments without reducing the size of other areas. “It will be the same store, but smarter and newer,” she said. Grocery Outlet has more than 270 independently operated stores in California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Washington, according to the company’s website.
Fireworks at the Port of Brookings Harbor drew 5,000 people last year. Photos by David Lovell.
July 4 festival now in doubt P
Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
lans for this year’s Fourth of July fireworks display and celebration at the Port of Brookings Harbor are at a crossroads, with the popular celebration’s future uncertain. The Family Fun Festival needs a new organizer. The coordinator for the event, Barbara Ciaramella, announced in a letter to the editor in today’s issue of The Pilot that the event’s core group of 15 volunteers could no longer handle the Fourth of July event. “It was fabulous,” she said. “I’m so disappointed not being able to do it again. “We’ve done it for three years, but last year was the first time it was a day-long event.” The first two years, the event covered just the fireworks, which ran about $20,000 annually. Last year’s free event cost $30,000. It included clowns, karaoke, hot-air balloon rides, a pancake breakfast, 5K walk/run, sandcastle contest, live music, bike parade, food trucks, car show, kids’ entertainment zone, BBQ, prizes and vendors. On the day of the event, 45 additional volunteers covered other necessities such as security, parking and transportation shuttles. “Approximately 5,000 people attended last year,” Ciaramella said. “We had no problems at the event. Everyone was so polite and good. We didn’t even have to hand out a Band-Aid.” Not only did the group put on the event, the volunteers also held fundraisers to help pay for it.
Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
Two seafood fests each raised $5,000. Sponsorships fromLucky 7 Casino and the City of Brookings brought in $5,000 each. Several $1,000 donors and other fundraising events filled out the budget. Year-long fundraising for the event is a big issue. “Our group came to the conclusion that it was just too hard to raise all the funds - a $30,000 budget - and put on the event,” said Ciaramella. “I run a business, and I can’t just leave it to raise funds for the event,” she said. According to her letter to the editor, the group so far has met with the City of Brookings, the Port of Brookings Harbor and other event planners. Other factors contributing to the group’s decision, she said, were the More Fireworks on Page A4
Settlement reached for Lobster Creek Fire A
Flames in a grassy field near Lobster Creek Youth Camp were being battled by firefighters in 2018. Photo courtesy Curry County Sheriff John Ward.
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Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
financial settlement for a grass fire that ignited at a youth camp and started the Lobster Creek Fire on July 1, 2018 has been reached regarding costs that had been billed to Curry County, according to a Jan. 10 press release by Curry County Commissioner Court Boice. The Lobster Creek Fire, which started near the southern edge of the Lobster Creek Youth Camp, quickly spread and aggressively moved south. The Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) reacted immediately and while the fire grew to 400 acres, Coos-Curry Forest Protective Association personnel fought hard and contained it in less than 28 hours. The campgrounds were spared. The fire was determined to
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have been started by campers lighting tortilla chips and stamping them out. It was unknown if other items were being burned by the campers. The sponsors of the camp, Rogue Climate Action, had liability insurance coverage but it was limited to $2 million. The total cost for the
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This settlement is a huge win for our county, ~ Curry County Commissioner Court Boice.
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agencies that extinguished the fire and protected the county and nearby timber lands was $4.3 million. The State of Oregon, through ODF, filed a claim against Curry County, seeking the balance of the fire suppression costs the state had incurred. The $2.3 million sought
from the county subsequently was negotiated down to $50,000, to be paid by CityCounty Insurance Services (CIS) on the county’s behalf. “We were well represented at the mediation by CIS and Curry Counsel John Huttl,” said Boice. “This settlement is a huge win for our county. We strongly negotiated and simply asked and reminded our ODF officials to wisely maintain the relational bridges that we’ve all built in recent years. I’m proud to announce that all parties ultimately did just that.” Added Boise: “We did everything possible to keep this from further litigation, while at the same time being determined to pay very little and to vigorously challenge our ODF friends. “It is also important to note they were on the fire front lines with us for nearly all of the 2017 and 2018 horrible fire seasons.”
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