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Gloria Dei plans affordable housing project in Coos Bay More than 50 affordable homes will soon be built next to church That’s the news Gloria Dei Lutheran Church revealed Thursday after the congregation voted unanimously to use 2.3 acres of land donated to the church to build housing. Pastor Alyssa Augustson announced the church is partnering with Northwest Housing Alternatives to build up to 52 affordable housing units on the land next to the church. The property was donated to the church in 2019 by global businessman Dennis Beetham. Augustson said the mission of Gloria Dei is “Gathered in Christ, we are called to bring light to our community.” She said the housing project will be instrumental in bringing the light to the area. “Gloria Dei has a long history of service to our community through feeding programs and other community efforts,” Augustson said. “We see this effort as a natural next step in our ministry to the community. The church has spent the past year working closely with local governments, individuals and

groups like the Housing Action Team to identify the best use of the property and ultimately, the most suitable company to partner with. The church said they have found many people willing to help in an effort to meet a growing need in the area. “Recent Coos Bay zoning changes, and a willingness of numerous individuals to visit our site and offer advice made this possible,” Lot Committee chair Ken Denton explained. When considering housing for low-income people, the church decided the best way to move forward was to partner with Northwest Housing Alternatives. Founded in 1982, NHA is a not-for-profit developer of affordable housing in Oregon. Their mission is to create opportunity through housing. To that end, NHA develops, builds and manages rental housing designed for Oregonians with limited incomes. These homes help families live healthy and stable lives, allow older adults to age in place and give people with special needs a dignified residence. Along with providing affordable housing, NHA provides services that connect tenants to critical health and community resources, and works to prevent homelessness before it begins. Northwest Housing Alternatives owns and operates over

2,100 apartments in over 100 properties in Oregon, including in Florence. They recently signed an agreement with Coos Bay and Coos County to develop affordable housing at the old Englewood School site. Affordable housing relies on state and federal grants designated for that purpose. The resultant housing is open to persons earning less than 60 percent of the county’s annual income. Currently that’s about $27,000 a year for individuals and $38,000 a year for a family of four. “The congregation voted unanimously to partner in planning the actual development, and then sell the property to NHA to build, manage and maintain the property,” said Linda Strine, president of the Council. “The church is very excited about this project.” The planning and development process is expected to take about three years. Coos Bay Mayor Joe Benetti said he was thrilled to hear the church’s announcement and their choice of Northwest Housing as a partner. “It’s wonderful. Northwest Housing does a great job,” Benetti said. “It’s a need that needs to be filled. It’s wonderful. It’s needed in all aspects and definitely on the low income and the moderate income for people. I’m glad it’s getting done.”

Elliott State Forest bill signed into law

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Governor Kate Brown signed SB1546 into law last week, which decouples the Elliott State Forest from the Common Schools Fund and gives Oregon State University the authority to manage the forest as a research forest.

By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World

With one swipe of her pen, Gov. Kate Brown officially removed the Elliott State Forest from the state’s Common School Fund. On Wednesday, Brown held a signing ceremony to keep the forest that takes up large parts of Coos and Douglas counties in public hands. The Legislature passed the law in its short session, agreeing to send millions to the Common School Fund in order to remove the Elliott State Forest from the funding mechanism. “Some here thought the Elliott Forest would not contribute to the future of Oregon’s education system, but through this decoupling effort, the full value of the

Elliott Forest will be invested in Oregon school children for decades to come,” Brown said while surrounded by many supporters of the bill. During her comments, Brown thanked many people who worked to put together the legislation that protects the forest while also providing state funding to the schools fund. “This bill is the product of a lot of hard work, frank conversations and collaboration to find common ground and an enduring solution that serves the collective good,” Brown said. “It was literally years in the making, but this bill brings the Land Board’s vision to life. “Together we have found a way to sustain the Common

Schools Fund and keep the Elliott Forest public. All while protecting the Elliott’s diverse habitats, guaranteeing long term access to the forest and keeping a door open for economic opportunity for the South Coast.” Under the state’s plan, Oregon State University will manage the Elliott State Forest while maintaining public access with trails, parks and more. “The Elliott State Forest will have a lasting legacy as a research forest that will contribute so much to the development of knowledge around forestry and environmental stewardship,” Brown said. “OSU has the best school of forestry in the country, and hopefully the addition of this research forest will ensure they Please see ELLIOTT Page A2

ELECTION COVERAGE

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Curry County Commissioner Court Boice is running for governor in the Republican primary because there are important issues he wants to talk about on a bigger stage.

Dr. Bud Pierce addresses a crown while making a campaign stop at Abby’s Pizza in Coos Bay.

Boice has no dreams of being governor, but he hopes to make a difference

Pierce confident heading into final weeks of primary

[ [[ [ By DAVID RUPKALVIS

By DAVID RUPKALVIS

With more than 20 people running for the open governor’s seat, Court Boice may stand alone in that he really isn’t planning to win. But Boice is taking his run for governor very seriously. A current county commission in Curry County, Boice said his goal in joining the campaign is to use the larger pulpit of a statewide race to make sure important issues facing Curry County and other smaller counties are heard. And it’s not the first time Boice has used the tactic. After the catastrophic Chetco Bar and Klondike wildfires, Boice ran for the District 4 seat in Congress in 2018, with a message of preventing the massive wildfires that threatened Brookings and Agness. And he said being able to spread that message worked. After the two big blazes in 2017 and 2018 burned 360,000 acres, Curry County has lost less than 300 acres over the last three wildfire seasons. “It’s something I felt like I had to do,” Boice said. “I ran against Congressman DeFazio and it got me closer to his staff and it got me closer to the two senators. And it worked.” Boice said his No. 1 priority remains fixing problems in Curry County, and as a result, he has very few campaign trips outside the county planned. But he still intends to make his voice heard. The issues he is focusing on in the Republican primary include housing, law enforcement, water, family values, constitutional protections, timber harvest, watersheds, fish, wildlife, rivers and, as always, fire prevention. Since he is in the middle of is second term as Curry County commissioner, Boice said running for governor will not impact his ability to serve his county. He said he really has no aspirations for higher political office, but his ability to speak out in the governor’s race gives rural Oregon a voice. “I’ve built excellent relationships around Oregon and they’re paying close attention to our issues,” Boice said. “We’re gaining positive work on our housing, fire and other important concerns impacting the Curry people, and we are succeeding.” Boice attended a Timber Unity debate earlier this month and he said his goal is to continue speaking boldly any time he gets a chance. Perhaps the biggest issue

Six years after he won the Republican primary and lost a close race to Gov. Kate Brown, Dr. Bud Pierce feels like the timing is right to take the next big step. During a campaign stop in Coos Bay last week, Pierce said despite the crowded field in the Republican primary he is confident heading into the final weeks of campaigning. “It comes down to continuing to work the process,” he said. “We have pretty darn good support in the medical community. It really comes down to telling people who you are, what you stand for and what you believe, and leave it to them. I want people to know the authentic Bud.” Pierce said his past experience gives him an edge in the crowded field. “That’s an advantage,” he said. “When we look at polling, I have name recognition over 0% and everyone else is under 10%.” While many of the issues facing Oregon are similar to 2016, Pierce said there is a difference in the political climate. An oncologist in Salem, Pierce said six years ago none of his patients ever discussed his campaign. This year, he said more than half want to talk politics. “It’s very different compared to 2016,” he said. “There was some interest in the Republican primary. As soon as the election happened, the interest went away. The Republicans didn’t really think they could win.” Pierce said voters around the state have similar concerns - public safety, homelessness, cancel culture, election integrity and a natural-resources based economy. Pierce said more and more people are interested in having Oregon produce its own rather than rely on others. “I think people are realizing with the pandemic and supply chain crisis, we need to do it here,” Pierce said. “Food production, mineral production have got to be done somewhere so it might as well be done here.” As far as public safety, Pierce said the current state leaders have it all wrong. But it can be fixed. “It’s going to take effective policing, and it’s going to take people who break the law being arrested and being punished in a real way,” Pierce said. With so much riding on the election, Pierce said he stands out because he is not interested in accolades or attention.

Please see BOICE Page A10

Please see PIERCE Page A10

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