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*Some Exclusions May Apply. **Credit Subject to approval. Can be combined with Barron’s Bucks. See associate for details. Tempur-Pedic lowest price possible. 8102949jC0710

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

www.currypilot.com

Brookings, Oregon

SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946

Gold Beach faces season without any football Randy Robbins For the Pilot

J

Ridgeline Construction is developing and building 20 homes in Smith River.

Pilot photo Cody Mann

Del Norte houses ‘slowed by regs’ This is the second of a two-part story, commissioned by Country Media and written by national journalist Kathleen Stinson, about housing issues facing the region stretching from Crescent City on the south to Gold Beach on the north. The first installment, focusing on Gold Beach and Brookings, ran last Wednesday. Kathleen Stinson Special to the Pilot

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uilders complain that stringent state building regulations are driving construction costs up in Del Norte County. They say new workforce housing developments in Crescent City and unincorporated areas of the county are at a standstill, given the cost of complying with State of California building regulations. In addition, the construction of

smaller and more affordable homes called Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) is proceeding slowly, according to area planners. Unincorporated Del Norte County issued just three ADU permits in 2018, said Heidi Kunstal, the county’s community development director. In fact, she said, the county has no developers that specialize in ADU or workforce housing. Last year, the Del Norte County issued a total of 45 housing per-

mits, 24 of which were “above the moderate-income housing level,” added Kunstal. “Residential development (overall) has recently picked up,” she said. In 2014, the county issued 11 permits, increasing to 29 permits in 2015, 24 in 2016, and 34 in 2017. Still, “In the old days, 45 wouldn’t be very many permits,” said Kunstal. “(But) at least we’re seeing an upward trend, which is good.” Bob Brown of SHN, a Eureka, California-based consulting firm offering a variety of services related to planning, engineering and geolMore Housing on Page A2

Jones Construction is building a 22-home subdivision in Crescent City.

ay Johnson Stadium in downtown Gold Beach has witnessed generations of Panther high school football games, going back to the middle of the last century. In years past at Gold Beach High School, every fall Friday night saw the lights snap on at “JJ,” as the locals affectionately call the home of Panther Nation. So deep runs their loyalty that nearly all of the town either is at each game or listening on Gold Beach radio KGBR, which airs all of the preseason and regular-season games. Yet today, at the onset of yet another gridiron season, weeds choke the players’ parked blocking sled. The stadium’s grass is brown from the summer sun. The metal bleachers where the “Men in Black” traditionally conduct their pregame march are quiet. Will it remain that way all year?

Jay Johnson Stadium ‘Home of Panther Football’ may look like this if not enough athletes sign up to play by August 19. Pilot photo Randy Robbins According to long-time varsity head football coach Kevin Swift, absent a miracle, the lights at JJ will probably stay off this year. Why? Because there aren’t enough students who want to play. “Look, it breaks my coach’s heart,” Swift said. “Here we are, a month away, and I just don’t have enough players to take the field.” Swift points to a whiteboard where he has methodically scrawled in red erasable pen the numbers of student athletes who have turned out to lift weights in the weight room, or even have shown interest in playing this fall. The whiteboard tells the story: Too few players to field a team this year. The Oregon Sports Athletic Association (OSAA) requires a school to have 22 to 24 participating players for an 11-man prep football team. On May 26, Gold Beach had 15 signed up to play. The numbers dwindled from there to a total of six on July 11. That’s not even enough for eight-man football, which Swift said was never really an option anyway. Ben Adams is a long-time Panther football fan. The retired Coos Curry Electric meter reader ran the football field “chain gang” for several years. The news there may be no football this fall hit him hard. “Whaaat? No football? No way!” Adams said. “I love my football!”

Pilot photo Cody Mann

More Team on Page A3

Ricin identified in mail at the Pelican Bay Prison D

Cody Mann For the Pilot

el Norte County officials say a suspicious substance detected last week in the mailroom at Pelican Bay State Prison was identified in preliminary testing as ricin, a potentially lethal poi-

Index

Classifieds................ B5-8 Comics...................... B3-4 Crosswords...............B4 Obituaries.................A4-5

son derived from the waste product of castor beans. No injuries have been reported and the investigation is ongoing. A joint statement from the county Sheriff’s Office, Office of Emergency Services and Public Health said the suspicious envelopes were received July 23 at the pris-

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One hundred and 16 employees who work in the Pelican Bay administration building, mailroom and warehouse were put on a precautionary quarantine.

on. The envelopes reportedly contained a then-unknown substance found during the prison’s mail-screening process. The location where the suspicious envelopes was opened was immediately

Pilot photo Cody Mann

More Ricin on Page A2

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