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SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946 www.currypilot.com

WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 2024

Brookings, Oregon

Tribes and Brookings City Council oppose wind energy acres roughly 18 miles from shore. The other WEA is 32 miles offshore of Coos Bay, for an area The Brookings City Council of about 51,204 acres. passed a motion to act in In a release from the opposition to the announcement Department of the Interior from the Bureau of Offshore announcing the leasing schedule, Energy Management (BOEM) BOEM Director Elizabeth Klien over an accelerated lease outlined why the announcement schedule for the installation of of a lease plan is signiﬁcant. offshore wind energy. “Routinely issuing a leasing Two leases off the coast of schedule demonstrates our Southern Oregon have been commitment to a long-term designated by BOEM as future portfolio of leases and provides Wind Energy Areas (WEAs). This advance notice to stakeholders includes a lease for a Brookings of the areas that are being WEA that encompasses 133,808 considered for future lease sales,

BY NATE SCHWARTZ Country Media, Inc.

and facilitates planning by Tribes, states, localities, interest groups, academia, non-proﬁts, ﬁsheries, federal agencies, and other stakeholders,” said Klien. Those stakeholders, however, are pushing back. BOEM has maintained that they developed these plans through ‘extensive engagement’ with the State, local government and residents, and the local Tribes. However, the Tribes and Brookings’ City Council pushed back on this point, saying that while they may have been initially engaged about the topic, their feedback was

generally ignored. In a press release from the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians (CTCLUSI), BOEM’s development plans are opposed by the Tribes over concerns for environmental and economic impacts, and what they see as BOEM’s blatant disregard for their concerns. “BOEM had the courtesy to communicate its decision to the State well ahead of its public release and waited until the eleventh hour to send the Tribe an email about its decision. This

illustrates well the failure of BOEM to meet its obligations to consult with the Tribe and to meaningfully consider its concerns. We would have at least expected a phone call from BOEM,” stated Tribal Council Chair Brad Kneaper. Kneaper cites this lack of communication as a clear indicator of BOEM falling short of their obligations. Apparently, the Tribes heard about the decision for the WEA thanks to courtesy from the Oregon Please see COUNCIL, Page 3

Sawdust Theatre melodrama cast Curry County seeking working hard for opening night applicants for BY DEAN BRICKEY

Fair Board

COQUILLE — The cast of the summer melodrama and the singers/dancers who perform in the olios between acts are working at a heady pace to prepare for the opening of this year’s play at the Sawdust Theatre, 120 N. Adams St. “We’ve just started incorporating some special-effect elements into the play rehearsals that I think the audience is really going to enjoy,” said Stacey Lynn Bell, who is directing the 2024 “crimedy,” titled “My, What a Circus” or “Keep Your Big Hands Off My Bigfoot!” The performance combines an attempted kidnapping, a real “kidnapping,” loads of laughs and a few surprises. “The play is full of gags and laughs that guests of all ages will appreciate,” Bell said, adding, “with his name right in the title, it’s safe to assume that our elusive, big-footed friend might make a guest appearance on stage.” Each year the play is doublecast so the actors and actresses take turns performing throughout the summer schedule. The play debuts at 7 p.m. Friday, May 31, at a Sawdust Theatre Champagne Beneﬁt sponsored by the Rotary Club of Coquille. Tickets are $25 and are available from Rotarians or at River Cities Realty, 135 Second St., Coquille. Performances are scheduled at 7 p.m. every Saturday until Labor Day with some Friday evening and Sunday afternoon matinees sprinkled in here and there. A full schedule is available at https:// www.sawdusttheatre.com/wpsite/ performance-schedule/. The melodrama, written by Lynn Kindred and Marty Brennan, ﬁrst was performed on the Sawdust Theatre stage about

The Curry County Fair Board is seeking applicants for three open positions ahead of the coming fair season. The Fair Board is an excellent place for those interested in getting involved in public service or local government to get started.

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Please see THEATER, Page 3

The opening are for the three following seats on the board: • Position #2 – Term runs until December 31, 2026 • Position #3 – Term runs until December 31, 2024 • Position #7 - Term runs until December 31, 2025 Responsible for the County’s various fairgrounds and fair properties, the Fair Board handles all business and financial affairs for these local assets. This is in addition to conducting the majority of planning for the Curry County Fair at the Event Center on the Beach. Those who are interested can pick up a physical application at the Board of Commissioners Office, 94235 Moore Street, Gold Beach. Online applications are available on the Curry County website at: https://www.co.curry. or.us/government/board_of_ commissioners/committees_ councils_and_advisory_ boards.php Applications will be accepted until all positions are filled. Fill-out an application today for your chance to get involved with the party side of local government!

Visit to Southern border highlights disastrous impacts of Democrat border policies Last week, a group of Oregon Republican state lawmakers and candidates visited the U.S.-Mexico border in Yuma, Arizona, including Southern Oregon Representatives Christine Goodwin (R-Canyonville), Virgil Osborne (R-Roseburg), Court Boice (R-Gold Beach), Boomer Wright (R-Reedsport), and Senator David Brock Smith (R-Port Orford) to learn more about the impacts of Biden’s border crisis. “I can conﬁdently speak for the group when I say it was surreal to see the crisis at the southern border up-close. Since Biden took ofﬁce, an estimated 15 million migrants from 115 different countries have crossed the border illegally. Many of these men, women, and children are indentured to the cartels. Approximately50% of all fentanyl in the

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United States comes across the border in Arizona. We cannot afford to sit on the sidelines and do nothing as this crisis gets worse,” said Representative Christine Goodwin. “We have the technology to secure the border and deter the ﬂow of illegal immigration and drugs into our communities... We cannot accept losing one more son or daughter. Oregonians are ready for drug free, safe communities,” said Senator David Brock Smith. “Instead of using every tool available, the Biden Administration has actively chosen to make this crisis worse by removing and limiting new technologies. It is incumbent upon the Oregon Legislature to take action where we can. This fact-ﬁnding trip has been invaluable in Please see BORDER, Page 8

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

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