Yachats council discusses issues with county commissioners

March 21, 2019

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com The Yachats City Council spent an hour Wednesday night meeting with the three Lincoln County commissioners, getting the county’s view — and asking a few questions — on a laundry list of issues. The meeting was a yearly visit by the Newport-based commission to visit city councils in all the county’s incorporated areas. While commissioners and county

Agencies ask beachgoers to help protect snowy plover nesting sites

March 15, 2019

The Siuslaw National Forest and Oregon Parks and Recreation Department are urging beachgoers to help recovery of the threatened western snowy plover by respecting nesting areas and beach restrictions during nesting season, March 15 through Sept. 15. Beachgoers will see signs and ropes that identify sensitive plover nesting areas and list restrictions, including dogs (even on a leash), vehicles, kites,

Painting of Yaquina Bay Bridge will cause some disruptions

March 15, 2019

A project to paint part of the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport may cause some short delays or minor disruptions until October. Contractors for the Oregon Department of Transportation will be painting the two spans of the bridge’s steel members under the road deck because they need additional protection from the harsh coastal environment. Most of the work will be

Little Log Church board agrees to tear down, replicate deteriorating building

March 14, 2019

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com There are holes in the siding of the Little Log Church and Museum in downtown Yachats. There is no foundation under the church. And there is dry rot throughout the structure. And, it could cost $300,000 or more to repair or replace. Is it worth it? That’s the question facing the city of Yachats, the museum’s board

Yachats may have been under-charging biggest water users for years

March 13, 2019

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com What do you do when after three years it’s discovered that you might be under-charging the biggest water users in Yachats? That’s the $27,000 question that could be facing the city of Yachats. Tom Lauritzen, a Yachats resident and former finance consultant for the city, has apparently unearthed a 3-year-old mistake in rates for the city’s biggest

Waldport High students selling their tiny house

March 12, 2019

Want a tiny house? Students at Waldport High School may have a deal for you. Students in the school’s manufacturing and fabrication class designed and then built the shell for a tiny house. Now it’s sitting in the school parking lot and ready to be sold. The sale is by sealed bid. Details of the bid application process can be

Lincoln County employment drops 60 more than expected in January

March 12, 2019

Seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment dropped by 60 more jobs than expected in January, the Oregon Employment Department announced Tuesday. The seasonally adjusted employment rate in Lincoln County rose to 5.2 percent in January, up from 5 percent in December. The rate in January 2018 was 4.8 percent. Oregon’s unemployment rate is 4.3 percent; the national rate is 4 percent. In

Forest deputy patrols the gravel roads and timberlands of Lincoln County

March 7, 2019

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com Lincoln County Sheriff Deputy Nick Vaille is only a few miles up the Yachats River when he takes a hard left, aiming his truck up a steep, one lane Forest Service road. For the next three hours Vaille will rarely touch pavement as he winds along gravel roads patrolling public forests and private timberland in south Lincoln

Yachats council backs off tax increase, will appoint study committee

March 7, 2019

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com The Yachats City Council on Wednesday tabled it’s proposal to increase the city’s lodging tax, instead planning to form a committee of businesses and community members to determine goals for the $1 million it collects annually. The council had proposed raising its tax by from 9 percent to 10 percent. Coupled with the state’s 1.8 percent lodging

Yachats Fire Board openings draw only one candidate – so far

March 7, 2019

Katherine Guenther, chair of the Yachats Rural Fire Protection Board, is running for re-election but two other board positions on the May 21 ballot have yet to draw any candidates. Deadline for filing with the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office is 5 p.m. March 21. The filing fee is $10. Guenther says she will file for re-election to Position 2, a