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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2022

Brookings, Oregon

Brookings council considers pay raise for absent city manager BY BREEANA LAUGHLIN The Pilot

Brookings City Manager Janell Howard was placed on paid administrative leave following her arrest over Fourth of July weekend. She remains on paid leave while she faces charges of theft after allegedly stealing from Fred Meyer. The Brookings City Council has held several private executive sessions in the months following the city manager’s absence, but members of the public have had little say in the matter during the city’s public council sessions.

That is – until Monday – when a council meeting agenda item sparked an outcry from several audience members at the Nov. 14 meeting. The agenda item in question was whether or not to consider City Manager Howard eligible for a cost of living pay raise that was adopted by the city after she was put on leave. If the council approved the agenda item, Howard could be paid for the pay raise retroactively – back to approximately the same time frame when the alleged theft occurred. The city council adopted the

staff pay raise under the 2022-2023 management compensation plan at their Oct. 24 meeting. The plan included a 5 percent salary increase for police management and other management employees retroactive back to July 1, 2022. According to a staff document, the Management Compensation Plan excludes the city manager position, "but the employment agreement with the city manager appears to tie the compensation to the Management Compensation Plan.” Section 2 of Howard’s employment contract with Brookings

states that the city shall review her salary annually, make cost of living increases on the same basis as other city management employees and “make adjustments as the City Council deems appropriate based on employee performance.” “If she is not working – she is not performing,” said public audience member Julie April during the Nov. 14 council meeting. April argued that Howard should have been terminated immediately after the alleged theft occurred. “The city is responsible to the citizens. Your jobs are to represent the citizens of Brookings,” she said.

According to a City of Brooking Council Agenda Report, while Howard is on paid leave, she is receiving wages of $146,318 annually. The city is also contributing $3,000 annually to a deferred compensation account, as well as $4,000 auto allowance and $960 cell phone allowance that is included in her paycheck. If the council voted to include the Cost of Living allowance on top her current pay – Howard’s pay would increase by $7,316 per year – even while she isn’t actively working for Please see RAISE Page A2

Gold Beach community reimagining main street Public urged to take precautions against ﬂu, RSV

BY BREEANA LAUGHLIN The Pilot

Gold beach community members are “reimagining” their main street to improve streets, sidewalks, lighting, utilities and more. More than 130 people attended a community town hall meeting recently to discuss options for the “Gold Beach Reimagined” project. The large gathering of partners, funders and concerned citizens agreed on four main components to improve Gold Beach Main Street. These include incorporating underground utilities, slowing down trafﬁc, promoting business access and adding amenities like lamp posts, ﬂowers, plants and banners to make Gold Beach a more inviting town to visit and do business. “This community's vision is to design an inviting and welcoming Main Street. Our community has shared and dreamed about this vision for years,” said Anna Marie Curtis, business outreach and community coordinator for the Gold Beach Main Street organization. Gold Beach Main Street is now in the process of signing a contract with Murry Smith Engineers to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study for the project.

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Gold Beach Main Street recently hosted a community town hall meeting with over 130 people in attendance. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the 'Gold Beach Reimagined' project. This gathering intended to inform residents of different options for the Gold Beach mile-long Main Street stretch. “'Gold Beach Main Street raised $105,000 for this feasibility study, and we are excited to move forward by applying the communities’ feedback and vision,” Curtis said. The City of Gold Beach will also be working with the Oregon Department of Transportation to complete a transportation safety plan. This will include the priorities for underground utilities and a main street revitalization project. Gold Beach Mayor Tami

Kaufman and associate city planner Anthony Pagano will be working with ODOT as they begin the transportation improvement plans. “We plan to conduct multiple studies for the Gold Beach corridor to tie everything together and ensure we are 100 percent able to be approved for future grants,” said ODOT district manager Darrin Nevoll. The Gold Beach Main Street organization and city staff are look-

ing forward to the projects coming together. “Gold Beach Main Street and the City of Gold Beach united on having a safe, walkable, and livable town that encourages travelers to stop, shop, and discover Gold Beach's 'World Class' natural resources,” Curtis said. “These are exciting times for our tiny town." For more information about Gold Beach Main Street, go to www. goldbeachmainstreet.org.

Bazaar kicks off holiday season in Brookings BY BREEANA LAUGHLIN The Pilot

The Azalea Middle School gym and Brookings-Harbor High School cafeteria were decked out with holiday arts and crafts last weekend. One of the South Coast’s longest-running holiday events was back in full force. The Brookings-Harbor Community Bazaar, which has been held for more than 50 years, showcased the work of more than 100 local artisans. Visitors perused the many vendor booths which adorned holiday ornaments and décor, jewelry, clothing, baked goods and more. “There was such a variety of items that it was wonderful for the public coming through,” said Sally Irish, one of the holiday bazaar organizers. Steady crowds ﬂowed through the halls on Nov. 12. Visitors stopped to shop at the many booths throughout the day. Initial feedback from vendors indicated local artisans were happy with the event. “From personal feedback, they had good sales, lots of laughter and lots of fun,” Irish said. The bazaar has been a Brookings community tradition for so long, that many locals feel the event marks the beginning their Christmas season. Local merchants plan special sales for the holidays on that day, and other bazaars are also open, offering shoppers a full day of fun and bargaining. The holiday bazaar also supports a good cause.

Photos by Breeana Laughlin/The Pilot

A "Wow Mom" fudge vendor from Coos Bay attracted many visitors to her booth during the Brookings-Harbor Community Bazaar. Shoppers perused the many vendor booths which adorned holiday ornaments and décor, jewelry, clothing, baked goods and much more. In November of 1969, the Brookings Home Extension Nite unit put on their ﬁrst Community Bazaar at the Catholic School facility in Brookings. The idea was to get the various bazaars held during the holiday season under one roof. It was also a way to promote Oregon State University Extension and its many activities. A couple years ago, the original

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group passed the event along to the local chapter of P.E.O. – Philanthropic Educational Organization. This group continues to ‘pay forward’ funds raised from the bazaar. “Whatever is gifted is passed along and we are really proud of that,” Irish said. Members of the P.E.O. group said they were happy to take over the bazaar event to continue to

raise funds for education for local women. The local chapter of P.E.O. has provided more than $65,000 in scholarship to local girls and women. “A lot of women who we have helped in the past live in our community and work as teachers and nurses. That’s what we love is to see – for it to go full circle,” said Irish.

The Oregon Health Authority is urging Oregonians to take precautions against influenza and RSV. Respiratory viruses are expected to circulate this season at higher levels than Oregon has experienced over the last two years as people gather indoors for the holidays, OHA Deputy Health Officer and Deputy Epidemiologist Tom Jeanne said. But it’s unknown whether two of those viruses – RSV and influenza – will be more severe than pre-pandemic seasons, “Nationally, we are seeing some alarming trends of early – and, in some cases, very high – circulation of both viruses,” Jeanne said. “Given this concerning picture, we need to work together to protect hospital capacity so that all of us have access to critical care when we need it. Jeanne explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has “placed incredible strain” on our health care system, with RSV further straining systems. Influenza will only add to this burden. COVID-19 Update COVID-19 transmission is expected to increase as people gather indoors and immunity from vaccination and previous infections wanes. The seven-day moving average of new confirmed and presumptive cases has hovered between 350 and 400 cases, according to Jeanne. the Oregon Health & Science University forecast predicts that COVID-19 hospitalizations – now at 229 as of Wednesday, Nov. 9 – will increase slightly and peak at about 280 by early December. Oregon also is seeing slow increases in the proportion of new Omicron subvariants with mutations of concerns, such as BQ.1 and BQ.1.1. These new subvariants account for less than 10% of variants circulating in Oregon; BA.5 still accounts for about 80%. “We don’t expect that this winter’s COVID-19 wave will be as severe as last year's Omicron wave,” Jeanne said. “We anticipate far fewer peak hospitalizations than we saw during the Omicron and Delta surges, thanks to high levels of population immunity. But there are other respiratory viruses we’re concerned about.” One of them, RSV – the most common cause of severe lower respiratory infection among infants Please see RSV Page A2

Phone Number: 541-813-1717 • Address: 519 Chetco Ave, Ste 7, Brookings, 97415 • Email: Circulation@CountryMedia.net

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