Tag: Territorial Highway Project

Sweet Lorane Community News, June 13, 2019 – The Creswell Chronicle

June 13, 2019Newspaper Columns, , , Leave a comment

Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
June 13, 2019
By Pat Edwards

Noel Nash, the owner and publisher of the Creswell Chronicle, asked me to drop by the office the other day to discuss what new and exciting changes they are planning for the paper. Part of his plan involves my column, “Sweet Lorane Community News.” I welcome his suggestions because they will lift the onus of having to make upcoming events seem interesting each week.

Future issues will include an events calendar for the Lorane and Crow areas next to my column so I don’t have to include them unless they are something I wish to discuss in more detail. I am being encouraged to “write from the heart” for the actual content of my contributions. This is the form of writing that I have always loved to do and it is what seems to flow naturally once I get started. My most recent columns about Jim’s and my struggles and our trip to the East Coast have apparently been well-received and Noel is encouraging me to continue to write, not only about personal issues, but about life in general, current events, nostalgia and even local history.

I am excited to be able to explore what I can come up with. I am well aware that my best writing is that which comes naturally—that seems to flow from my fingers. The drawback to this is that there may be times when it just doesn’t happen. In this case, I’ve been assured that I can take off a week or so occasionally.

The column won’t necessarily be about Lorane each time, but much of it will be and I’m really looking forward to spreading my wings a bit on a regular basis.

With that said, I want to mention again a very important meeting for the Lorane area that is coming up on Thursday, June 20, at 8:00 p.m. Members of the Lane County Department of Transportation will be meeting with the public at the Lorane Grange to discuss the plans and ramifications of the realignment of the 7 miles of Territorial Highway between Gillespie Corners and the town of Lorane. As anyone knows who has driven that section, the road is narrow, curvy and has no shoulders. The fog-lines are right at the edge of the pavement which immediately slopes down into a ditch on both sides.

For years, the major uphill curves of Stony Point have been dropping—giving way under the weight of traffic heading south. That section of the formerly state-owned and maintained road has, for years, needed to be filled and repaved often to keep the low, sinking pavement level with the rest of the surface.

Lane County has taken over the ownership and maintenance of Territorial Highway and has received a large multi-million dollar grant that will pay for needed work on Territorial—much of it dedicated to the Lorane project.

Be sure and attend the meeting if you have any questions or concerns about what is being planned. A lot of us will be impacted by the process.

Sweet Lorane Community News, June 13, 2019

June 13, 2019Newspaper Columns, , Leave a comment

Fern Ridge Review
Sweet Lorane Community News
June 13, 2019
By Pat Edwards

I am really enjoying our summer this year. Yes, we’ve had a couple of much-too-hot days this past week, but for the most part, the temperature has stayed within comfortable limits.

I’ve been able to spend some time outside in the evenings, working in my flower beds and making sure that everything has been watered and the birds feeders are filled. It’s my favorite part of the day. Our two canine kids, Toby and B-B, love it too. They think that they need to be wherever I am when I’m home, even though it is pretty boring inside the house while I’m working at my computer. Their excitement really kicks in when Jim or I can be outside with them. They have the horse watering tank to cool off in—it has become their own personal pool since we no longer have horses on our property. Then, they do their self-appointed jobs of running the 5-acre fence-line around our house to keep an eye out for the UPS, FedEx, or garbage trucks that sometimes head up our hill.

Jim is improving although he still isn’t driving and he continues to have mobility issues and must use a cane. For the most part, though, he’s enjoying his time at the store and working in our yard, as he can, between our almost daily trips into town.

I want to mention again a very important meeting for the Lorane area that is coming up on Thursday, June 20, at 8:00 p.m. Members of the Lane County Department of Transportation will be meeting with the public at the Lorane Grange to discuss the plans and ramifications of the realignment of the 7 miles of Territorial Highway between Gillespie Corners and the town of Lorane. As anyone knows who has driven that section, the road is narrow, curvy and has no shoulders. The fog-lines are right at the edge of the pavement which immediately slopes down into a drop-off or ditch on both sides.

For years, the major uphill curves of Stony Point have been dropping—giving way under the weight of traffic heading south. That section of the formerly state-owned and maintained road has, for years, needed to be filled and repaved often to keep the low, sinking pavement level with the rest of the surface.

Lane County has taken over the ownership and maintenance of Territorial Highway and has received a large multi-million dollar grant that will pay for needed work on Territorial—much of it dedicated to the Lorane project.

Be sure and attend the meeting if you have any questions or concerns about what is being planned. A lot of us will be impacted by the process.

As you can probably tell, there’s not a lot of Lorane or Crow news to report this week. However, we have some really big events coming up in the next month or two which I’ll discuss further in future columns, but here are the dates so that you can mark them on your calendars:

July 13 – The 16th Annual Crow Car Show, Crow High School
July 27 & 28 – The Art in the Country Artist and Author Festival, Applegate Regional Theater (Corner of Central & Fleck Roads)
August 3 – Lorane Community Wide Yard Sale
August 11 – Lorane Community Potluck and Ice Cream Social

Sweet Lorane Community News, April 18, 2019

April 18, 2019Newspaper Columns, , , , , Leave a comment

Fern Ridge Review
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
April 18, 2019
By Pat Edwards

Today, it hit 80 degrees on my car’s thermometer. What a nice reward for all of us who were beginning to wonder if the rain and cooler weather would be with us through the summer. It gave me the incentive to stop in town and purchase some burgundy petunias for the planter boxes I made a few years ago for our daughter, Michele, and me. I still need to get some in bright pink and white, but at least I’m ready to tackle my yard and flower beds.

We received word last Wednesday that there will be a community meeting scheduled with representatives from the Lane County Transportation Department sometime in June, regarding the realignment and widening of Territorial Road between Gillespie Corners and Lorane. The Lorane Grange has offered to host the meeting. For those who are interested in the Construction Schedule, you can go to the project page at http://www.lanecounty.org/territorialhighway and click on the “Construction Schedule” link. As soon as we have a date and agenda set for the public meeting at the Lorane Grange, I’ll post it in this column.

Jim and I own some properties—our home, store and the former Dew Drop Inn tavern properties—along the construction route that will be impacted by the proposed plans. Because of this, two members of the Lane County team agreed to come out to talk to us about what we can expect. I was very impressed with their concern for us and all of the other property owners. Be sure to attend the June meeting if you have questions for them.

Marissa McNutt Cooper asked me to include the following item in this week’s column:
“Crystal Nevins is running for a position on the Crow-Applegate-Lorane School Board. Some of her friends and supporters will be hosting a ‘Meet the Candidate’ event on April 26 at 6:00 p.m., at the Lorane Grange. This is a chance to meet Crystal, hear why she is running for the C-A-L school board, and ask her any questions you might have. We will be providing desserts, and the Lorane Grange will be providing coffee and tea. We hope you to see you there!”

Applegate Elementary School is having its annual Grandparents’ Tea on Thursday, April 25, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the gymnasium. This has always been a fun event for grandmas and grandpas each year. Even if you don’t have a grandchild attending Applegate, you are welcome to come and be honored with tea and snacks, wonderful music and lots of fun. If anyone in the district has donations for the silent auction and/or door prize drawings, please bring them to the school or let someone in the office know that you have something to include.

Here are a couple of other events to include on your calendar.

The Applegate Elementary Boosters are having a dinner and bingo night in the gymnasium on May 10. Dinner will begin at 5:00 p.m. and bingo at 6:00 p.m.

The Crow Grange will provide it’s annual Mother’s Day Breakfast on Sunday, May 12, so mark your calendars. I don’t have the details this week, but I will include them in next week’s column.