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Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Number 16 • 135 years
WHERE WE LIVE
In a league of their own
Library celebrates community with love of reading
I
JEREMY C. RUARK Cottage Grove Sentinel
t is housed inside a former Safeway grocery building, and in some ways the Cottage Grove Library offers a familyfriendly “shopping” experience. In the following conversation, The Sentinel talks with Head Librarian Natasha Chitow for an inside look at the facility, and how it is a key element of the livability of our community. The Sentinel: From your vantage point, what sets the Cottage Grove Library apart from other libraries in the area? Natasha Chitow: The Cottage Grove Public Library is in a building shared with other service providers, so we’re able to connect and collaborate more easily with our building neighbors: the Community Center, Senior Center, Genealogy Library, South Valley Athletics, and Senior & Disabled Services. Having the varied resources within our building at 700 E. Gibbs Avenue means that we can directly work with these organizations when planning programs and seeking engagement within the larger Cottage Grove community. The Sentinel: What role do you believe the Cottage Grove Library serves to enhance the livability of our community? Chitow: Our mission is “Celebrating the community through the love of reading, lifelong learning, and community
connections.” When we think about that mission, it is through the view of the library as a public good that enhances the “pursuit of happiness” part of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” within our community. The 2020 census statistics mention that, within the city limits, more than 17% of residents are at or below the poverty line, and that’s something we keep in mind when providing items and services. We provide a wide variety of services to meet our community’s needs, including a seed lending library, workshops, special guest presentations, technology access and assistance. This is in addition to having a robust library collection of books, DVDs, games, ukuleles, and other items. We also provide a “traders” collection of uncataloged books for those who live outside of city limits and cannot afford to pay for an out of area card. The Sentinel: Have you found that the public’s attention with social media has adversely impacted attendance at the library? Chitow: I would disagree that social media has an adverse effect on library use; many of our most regular library users are regular social media users and often seek out information about library programs and services through social media and See LIBRARY on Page 4
SPECIAL REPORT
A closer look at AI in Lane County CINDY WEELDREYER Cottage Grove Sentinel Editor’s Note: This is part two of a three-part series on Lane County Waste Management’s quest to use artificial intelligence.
TODAY’S EDITION
Last week, The Sentinel provided details of the costs and benefits of Lane County’s planned Integrated Materials & Energy Recovery Facility (IMERF). County officials say the 25-year contract with Bulk Handling Systems (BHS) of Eugene will extend the life of the Short Mountain Landfill, reduce the amount of methane (an atmosphereharming greenhouse gas), and generate biogas for Northwest Natural. BHS will construct and install its equipment
Weather — 2 Calendar — 3 Opinion — 5
valued at $100 million. The County expects to pay for its $50 million portion of the new $150 million facility using federal tax credits, increased solid waste fees, revenue-sharing with BHS, and the passage of a $35-million dollar bond to pay for the construction of building to house the equipment.
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The future of getting from here to there CINDY WEELDREYER Cottage Grove Sentinel
What will transportation look like in South Lane County in 2050? Will we have safe and reliable automated vehicles that connect commuters and shoppers who live in outlying communities, such as the Row River Valley, Mosby Creek Watershed, London and Lorane, to a multimodal transportation hub to get them where they need to go more efficiently? Will there be a regularly scheduled shuttle that connects Creswell and Cottage Grove? How can future transportation services attract visitors from around the world to enjoy all the natural beauty and amenities our region offers? Don Nordin is a longtime local transportation advocate and visionary. In the 1990s, he was a founder of the Friends of LTD advocacy group that successfully established a Lane Transit District (LTD) service that connects Cottage Grove and Creswell to the Eugene/Springfield metro area. He later served six years on the LTD budget committee and eight years on the board. REBOOTING
PROJECT STATUS At the Dec. 5 Board of Commissioners meeting, in a 3-2 vote (West Lane Commissioner Ryan Ceniga and Springfield Commissioner David Loveall voted no), the board approved Public Works’ request for $1.5 million to purchase a Goshen-area property across Interstate 5 from the landfill, raised its solid
Metro Creative Connection Local officials are looking at the future of transportation in South Lane County.
Courtesy photo EPUD officials said the 30-year-old joint project with Lane County has been a resounding success by protecting the environment and providing affordable, locally-produced renewable energy to its ratepayers. waste fees, and approved a tentative contract with BHS. The property has now been purchased. The Emerald People’s
Utility District officials and members of the Lane County Garbage and See AI on Page 6
Read developing news and story updates @CGSentinel CGSentinel.com
Believing the time was right to reboot regional planning efforts, Nordin invited a variety of stakeholders to an April 10 roundtable discussion on the future of transportation in South Lane County. Representatives from Lane Transit District, South Lane Wheels, the Lane Council of Governments, the Oregon Dept. of Transportation, the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce,
Travel Lane County, past and current elected and appointed officials from the Cities of Cottage Grove and Creswell and State Representative Charlie Conrad attended the afternoon meeting. In 2021, the City of Cottage Grove hired Lane Council of Governments (LCOG) transportation planners to convene stakeholders to develop its Transportation Development Plan. South Lane Wheels funded a University of Oregon student to develop a concept for a transportation hub that was presented to the City Council. Multimodal hubs join all modes of transportation— automobiles, public transit, bicycles, and pedestrians—into a convenient hub. This setup makes it easier for commuters to use multiple modes. “A hub would be a good place to aggregate the transportation options we have now,” Nordin said. “Then we can explore what we could have in South Lane County that would justify increasing the frequency of LTD busses serving Cottage Grove and Creswell. We need to persuade ODOT to move the Cottage Grove mobility hub from its Tier 3 to Tier 2 funding priorities.” THE NONPROFIT South Lane Wheels Executive Director Ruth Linoz manages the 42-year-old private nonprofit contract service provider for South Lane County. She told the group her agency currently provides three different weekday services between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Two are See TRAVEL on Page 4