WEEKEND EDITION
Friday
April 10, 2020
www.currypilot.com
Brookings, Oregon
SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946
Coronavirus
Gov. Brown extends school closures Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
G
overnor Kate Brown announced during a press conference on Wednesday, April 8 that in-person classes in Oregon will be closed through the remainder of the school year. “Schools and learning
will continue as best as we can using remote means,” Brown said. Less than a month ago, Brown had ordered schools closed temporarily through April 28. “My top priority will always be the health and safety of Oregonians,” Brown said. “That is the forefront of my mind with
every single decision that I make. To the best of my ability, I also want to provide Oregonians with as much information I have as quickly as possible so you may have some certainty in these very uncertain times. We want to give you the ability to make plans for your children’s education and for everyone’s health
and safety, especially because I know that social distancing orders have required huge sacrifices from our children. Missing school is especially difficult on our students and on their parents.” In the first stage of switching over to distance education and remote means of learning, high
school seniors take priority. Those students who were on track for graduation when schools were closed, will be given passing grades for their classes and will receive their diplomas. “I refuse to punish students, many of whom have been in Oregon schools for over a decade, because they could not attend classes for
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Josh Stout’s nieces, Marlow and Edie McNair, hold up bottles of spray sanitizer that are ready for distribution. Courtesy photo.
Handy heroes making needed sanitizer products T
he lack of hand sanitizer hasn’t stopped a local group from taking the matter into their own hands to solve a big problem. They decided to make sanitation gel and spray sanitizers themselves and distribute them for free to first responders, health care workers and facilities, essential businesses, like grocery stores and UPS and FedEx, and anyone else who needs them. Josh Stout, the Director of Program Development for Reach Out World Wide (ROWW), is used to improvising when he helps out in disaster zones around the world. See our story “Reaching Out: Local man helps around the world” on currypilot.com. “Gee, how could I apply what I learned here?” Stout asked himself while considering the COVID-19 pandemic. “We make our own hand sanitizer and cleaning supplies when I deploy with medical teams across the world. I talked with our medical people at ROWW and
More School on Page A5
Council approves vehicle camping at churches
Little helpers
Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
a little over two months,” Brown said. Students who did not have passing grades will be the focus of efforts to ensure they can graduate. “However, for those students who did not have a passing grade in mid-
they sent me their recipes. Now I’m turning into a chemist and never expected it.” The products follow approved WHO specifications. “We are quickly and efficiently producing sanitizer that is 95% alcohol — far exceeding the minimum level of effectiveness to kill viruses such as COVID-19,” Stout said. Gold Beach Fire Chief Tyson Krueger and Stout fronted the money to launch CLEAN 1 Initiative and soon received a substantial donation from Lowe’s Home Improvement Stores because of their relationship working with Stout and ROWW over the years. “COVID-19 has struck the world off guard and has many of us scrambling to find the necessities to protect ourselves and our loved ones,” says their GoFundMe site. “Essential supplies like sanitizing spray and hand sanitizer are hard to find or even non-existent, yet crucial to our everyday safety as we fight this unprecedented virus. We are aiming to do our part to help curb the
Brian Williams Pilot Editor
ot everyone has a home to “stay safe” in during the coronavirus pandemic. To help the homeless, Brookings City Council unanimously approved overnight vehicle camping in church parking lots. Councilors adopted, 5-0, a temporary emergency rule during a special meeting on Monday, April 6, allowing “camping by homeless on the property of religious institutions, limited to the period we are under the governor’s ‘Stay Home, Stay Safe’ order for COVID-19.” A Google search found 15 churches in Brookings. The emergency rule includes provisions of Oregon Revised Statute 203.082 — “Camping by homeless on the property of religious institutions.” The new temporary rule states that churches must request a free permit from the city that would allow the church to have up to three vehicles in their parking lot each night. The church must provide campers with access to sanitary facilities, including but not limited to toilet, hand washing and trash disposal facilities. The church also has to update the city with the number of vehicles staying each night at the church. Only churches with a permit would be allowed to offer vehicle camping. As far as the permits, “it should be real simple, more of a documentation so we know who is doing it,” City Manager Janell Howard said, describing it as a "checklist." The temporary emergency rule only had the three guidelines. For instance, the number of people allowed per vehicle or if a church representative has to be at the church overnight are not addressed. The finer details were left to the church to decide. “We are entrusting that they are going to do what is best for the community,” said Mayor Jake Pieper. Prior to the temporary rule, the Brookings Municipal Code only allowed sleeping in a recreational vehicle or travel trailer on private property with a residential unit or during construction, not connected to the city’s water or sewer system and for not more than 14 days per calendar year. Gov. Kate Brown issued the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order on March 23, but it does not specifically address the homeless. Brown did not provide an end date for the order. As of Tuesday, April 7, Curry County had three confirmed cases of COVID-19. After receiving a permit, city staff said they would not be driving around to each of the churches within the city limits to check on them. They would only do so if they received a complaint. “As far as monitoring it’s no different than any other abatement,” said Tony Baron, City of Brookings Public Works and Developmental Services Director. “If it gets overused and abused — if they have five, eight, 10 RVs — we are going to get a call on it and we are going to abate it just as any ordinary nuisance abatement. I don’t feel our department needs to go by every church every day to see how many RVs are parked there. When the issue
More Heroes on Page A5
More Camping on Page A5
Council quickly appoints Alcorn to fill vacant seat B
Brian Williams Pilot Editor
rookings City Council wasted no time filling the seat vacated minutes earlier by Councilor Bill Hamilton during a special meeting on Monday, April 6. Brad Alcorn was unanimously appointed to the council. Hamilton has served on the council for nearly eight years and the seat is up for election in November of this year. He submitted his letter of resignation on April 2 and with a 4-0 vote, it was accepted by
Index
Classifieds.................A6-7 Crosswords...............A4 Comics......................A4 Weather.....................A8
the council Monday afternoon. Hamilton, who has a progressive disease and limited mobility, said via phone he was advised to step away from the council. “My health is good but it was recommended that I slow down a little bit to keep my health good,” Hamilton said. “I’d just like to thank all of you on the council and all of the staff at City Hall for an absolutely wonderful 8 years. It’s been the thrill of my life to be there. It’s the best experience I More Council on Page A3
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Brad Alcorn receives the oath of office from Brookings City Manager Janell Howard after being appointed to the Brookings City Council during a special meeting on Monday, April 6. Photo by Brian Williams.
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