W121322 by C.M.I.

COLORS - art exhibit at the Coos Art Museum See this story on page A3

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2022 | theworldlink.com |

Serving Oregon’s South Coast Since 1878

Coos Bay approves tax incentives to spur development By JULIE AKINS For The World

The city of Coos Bay on Tuesday approved a sweeping incentive to building affordable and low-income housing to address the reality of increasing numbers of rent burdened residents. Upon the recommendation of Mayor Joe Benetti, the council agreed to waive taxes for 10 years on multi unit affordable housing developments in order to incentivize building in an environment where a lack of housing has created

hardships for employers to attract and retain workers. Nonprofit builders, tribal partners and realtors all agreed that without more housing in the price range that working people could afford, the community would face losses to businesses and the population of Coos Bay in general. “We need to move forward on this, we need to address our housing shortage any way we can,” the mayor said while adding that getting people plugged into jobs and moving up the ladder at companies

throughout the city will additionally lift people out of cycles of poverty. The Multi Unit Property Tax Exemption is a state sponsored program allows the tax incentive for up to a decade on developments of at least three units and could be much more. Builders would have to take advantage of the offering within nine years of making the request. Discussion centered on which areas of town the council might want to designate, the size of developments they would most like to encourage and if developers in the

urban renewal area could also apply for this incentive. Ultimately it was determined that developers in the urban renewal area could apply but they would only be entitled to one benefit, either the MUPTE or urban renewal incentives, but not both. Council could have chosen several options in terms of where to target development: core areas which they determine, areas within a quarter mile of the bus route, or they could designate the entire community under a low income designation.

Rent has long been a burden in Coos Bay, like in many Oregon cities. 25 cities in Oregon also received the severely rent-burdened designation, including Klamath Falls, Grants Pass, and Ashland. The city of Coos Bay has been trying to work on the problem since 2008, through code changes and grants. But with inflation and building costs increasing, incentives have not been enough to encourage developers to build more which prompted council to agree that the Please see TAX Page A7

Parents line up for a Bus Jam Christmas Surge in

respiratory cases putting hospitals on the brink

By DAVID RUPKALVIS For The World

Photos by David Rupkalvis/For The World

A record number of people came to the Boys and Girls Club on Saturday to go Christmas shopping for their children as Bus Jam culminated with the yearly shopping spree for parents. Bus Jam, which has been sponsored by the Coos Bay-North Bend Rotary Club and KDock Radio for 21 years, provides Christmas gifts to needy families during the holiday season. After residents helped fill more than four buses the weekend before, all the gifts were sorted and placed on tables, where parents came and picked the gifts they are going to give to the children on Christmas morning. Due to a larger need in 2022, Bus Jam added extra slots for parents to shop, as volunteers worked to meet the need during trying economic times.

Woman’s body found after missing for almost a month after deadly car accident The World A woman reported missing in early November was found deceased at the scene of an auto accident at Cape Arago. The Oregon State Police were called to mile post 12.9 on Cape Arago around 11 a.m. Sunday, December 4, to a report of a single-vehicle crash. When troopers and other emergency responders arrived, they found a vehicle operated by Wendy Haumea Smith, 45, had crashed at an un-

known date and time. Smith’s body was located close to the accident scene. The preliminary investigation indicated an eastbound Honda Civic, operated by Smith, crossed the westbound lane of travel onto the earthen shoulder and plummeted down a cliff of more than 100 feet before coming to an uncontrolled rest against a tree on Cape Arago Highway. Smith was reported missing to the Coos County Sheriffs’ Office on Nov 6. Scene evidence indicates Smith survived

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the crash, extricated herself from the vehicle, collected some belongings and moved a short distance from the vehicle. It is currently undetermined if Smith died as a result of the injuries she sustained in the crash or other causes. Oregon State Parks closed access to the last section of Cape Arago Highway during the investigation and recovery efforts were underway. OSP was assisted by the Coos County Sheriffs’ Office, Charleston Fire, North Bend Fire and Oregon State Parks.

An unprecedented rise in upper respiratory illnesses across Oregon is putting the state’s hospital system at risk. That’s the message state Health Officer Dr. Dean Sidelinger shared Thursday during a briefing with the media. Sidelinger said Oregon has seen a combination of three sicknesses that has led to a rapid increase in hospitalizations with RSV, influenza and COVID-19 cases all raising at the same time. “The situation facing our hospitals is very serious,” Sidelinger said. “Today, our hospitals are reaching a point of crisis. The combination of surging flu, RSV and COVID-19 cases is pushing hospitals past their maximum bed capacity, which never happened during the COVID-19 crisis.” Sidelinger said OHA is working to provide emergency resources that will enable hospitals to bring in more help from out of state, He said Governor Kate Brown signed an executive order Wednesday that will allow traveling doctors and nurses to be used at hospitals in the state to help alleviate a shortage of medical providers. “Every one of us can protect ourselves and our families from respiratory viruses and prevent them from spreading to other people,” Sidelinger said. “As another wave of respiratory diseases sweep the nation and Oregon, hospitals are overwhelmed and don’t have enough meds to treat everyone in the manner they’re accustomed to. Many more people are being hospitalized with breathing problems, especially those under 2.” Sidelinger said in November, Oregon saw a five-fold increase in RSV cases. While the rate has since slowed, there are still record numbers of RSV patients being seen. “Rates of RSV remain higher than any recorded time,” Sidelinger said. “Influenza activity in our community has doubled week over week for five consecutive weeks. Flu related hospitalizations have increased rapidly since October. It is impacting people over 65 primarily.” Sidelinger said it is still early in the flu season, and he expects the case counts to continue to rise. “We’re also seeing warning signs that COVID-19 cases are quickly increasing this respiratory season,” Please see SURGE Page A4

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