Local News

The National Weather Service has refined its Flood Potential Outlook for southwest Oregon, but no Watches or Warnings have been posted yet. The Weather Service said there is potential for river and small stream flooding in Coos, Curry, Douglas, Josephine, Jackson and Siskiyou counties. A series of storms will bring heavy precipitation to Southern Oregon and Northern California this week. The heaviest rainfall is expected in Curry County where up to eight inches of precipitation is likely. Rainfall rates could briefly approach up to one inch per hour. According to the NWS station in Medford, there is potential for heavy rain from tonight through Friday morning. Area small streams could begin to flood by early Wednesday morning. The Chetco River is expected to peak sometime Thursday, which could cause flooding if the crest coincides with high tides. The Coquille River is expected to approach minor flood stage Thursday or Friday. Southwest Oregon residents are encouraged to monitor weather forecasts this week as Flood Watches and Flood Warnings could be posted for the region.

 

Two people were seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident in the North Valley area yesterday. Rural Metro Fire Department, American Medical Response and the Josephine County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to the two-vehicle crash at the intersection of Merlin Road and Jaime Lane on Monday at 12:56 p.m.. Rural Metro officials said the collision occurred between a Jeep and sport utility vehicle. They said two occupants of the SUV were transported by ambulance to Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford where the trauma system was activated. The patients were not identified in the Rural Metro press release. The Sheriff's Office is investigating the cause of the crash, but deputies noted heavy rain and wet pavement were observed by emergency first responders.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a male transient on a statewide felony warrant after catching him sleeping under the back porch cover of the former Dutch Bros offices in the downtown area. The Police Department reports officers arrested 35-year-old Adam Joseph Jansen at the building on SW 4th Street on Sunday at 2:55 a.m.. Police said they contacted Jansen and another man while they were sleeping. There was already a trespass letter on file for that location. Both subjects provided police with their names and dates of birth. Officers discovered that Jansen was wanted on an Oregon State warrant for Parole Violation stemming from a conviction for Felony Indecent Exposure. No details about the incident were available. Jansen was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant and he was being held on a no-bail detainer. He and his male companion were trespassed from the premises.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a local felony warrant following a weekend traffic stop in the north part of the city. The Police Department reports officers pulled over a blue BMW sedan driven by a woman they identified as "Crystal Long" near the corner of NE 7th Street and Hillcrest Drive on Sunday at 8 p.m.. Police said they stopped the car for crossing three travel lanes and making a turn without a signal. Long was found to have a suspended license and no insurance. She was cited to appear in court for the violations and the car was impounded. Long's passenger -- 43-year-old Joshua George Littlefield -- walked away from the traffic stop, but he was detained nearby a short time later. He was found to be wanted on a Grants Pass felony warrant for 2nd-Degree Burglary, 1st-Degree Theft and Methamphetamine Possession. He was also found with the narcotic stimulant. Littlefield was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant and he was being held without bail. A new charge of Meth Possession was referred to the District Attorney's Office for consideration.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man while recovering a stolen vehicle on the west side of the city last weekend. According to the Police Department, officers were patrolling Lincoln Road on Sunday evening when they spotted a silver Chevrolet Impala that had been reported stolen out of Jackson County. Police said they turned around and followed the stolen car to the Short Stop Market on SW Bridge Street. Two male occupants exited the car and entered the store. The car was blocked in and officers called for backup. The two men exited the store and were detained. They were cooperative and said they had no idea the vehicle had been stolen. The driver -- 53-year-old Robert Allen Gardner, Jr. -- said his roommate let him drive the car because he had loaned his larger vehicle to a woman who needed it to tow another vehicle. She reportedly left the stolen car behind for them to use. Gardner's driving privileges had been suspended and he was found to be in possession of both methamphetamine and heroin. He was lodged in jail for those criminal offenses. The stolen vehicle investigation was continuing and the Impala was towed to a local impound yard.

 

The Grants Pass School Board of Education is inviting interested patrons to apply for one vacant position on the District 7 Budget Committee. This position is for a three-year term ending June 30, 2028. The Budget Committee consists of seven members of the Board of Education plus an equal number of qualified electors of the District. The Board will appoint the new committee member, filling the vacancy from the list of those who applied. To be eligible for the appointment, the candidate must live in the Grants Pass School District, must not be an officer or employee of District 7, and must be qualified to vote in Josephine County within the School District. Interested patrons can stop by the District 7 Office at 725 NE Dean Drive in Grants Pass to obtain an application. Forms may also be downloaded from the District's website. The completed form must be received by the District Office no later than 4 p.m. on Monday, December 9th. The appointment will be made at the regularly scheduled Grants Pass School Board meeting on January 14, 2025. For more information, call (541)-474-5700. E-mail correspondence may be sent to "tdoane@grantspass.k12.or.us."

 

The Grants Pass City Council may decide whether to help the Mobile Integrative Navigation Team (MINT) buy a property on which to develop a permanent year-round shelter for the unhoused population currently residing in two resting places. During its workshop session on Monday, the City Council discussed community dissatisfaction with the current unmanaged temporary campsites on NE 7th Street and SE J Street as well as next steps moving forward. City Manager Aaron Cubic and Police Chief Warren Hensman both commented that criminal incidents are on the rise at the two resting places since they opened earlier this year. Hensman said his officers are performing more frequent patrol checks and 24/7 surveillance camera monitoring of the sites is now underway. During a recent Request for Proposals (RFP), MINT was the only organization to apply to establish a winter weather shelter for the homeless. The volunteer group has also expressed its interest in opening a year-round, managed shelter, but it would need the City of Grants Pass to help it purchase a permanent location. In other business, the City Council authorized a $3,000 sponsorship of this year's Christmas parade with the money being paid directly to event security. The annual holiday parade is set for December 7th at 7 p.m. in downtown Grants Pass.

 

The Oregon Department of Agriculture has announced that three Southern Oregon farms are among the recipients of the Farm to School Producer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant Program. Farm to School is the first state-funded grant program to help producers and processors overcome financial barriers to entering or expanding into the school marketplace. The goal of this competitive grant program is to provide financial resources for Oregon farmers, ranchers, seafood harvesters and processors with specific equipment and infrastructure needs, and who intend to sell food produced or processed in Oregon to school districts and other child service organizations. ODA received approximately $1 million in requested funds from 22 qualified applicants. Of the 12 projects selected for funding, most are growers who produce fresh crops or minimally-processed products for school meals. Whistling Duck Farm of Grants Pass received a $47,400 Farm to School grant while Terra Sol Organics of Williams received $43,185 and Rusted Gate Farm of Central Point got $10,064.

 

D & H Logging Company of Coos Bay has been chosen as Operator of the Year for Southwest Oregon by a regional advisory committee to the Oregon Board of Forestry. D & H Logging will be recognized in Salem at the January meeting of the Board along with the two other regional Oregon honorees from Eastern and Northwest Oregon. The Operator of the Year award recognizes forest operators who while harvesting timber or doing other forestry work protect natural resources at a level that consistently meets or exceeds requirements of the Oregon Forest Practices Act. The law requires people to manage forests responsibly and protect streams and water quality. The law also requires landowners to replant forests after harvesting. A Merit Award was also given to Brothers Excavation and Construction, LLC. They protected water quality in Jumpoff Joe Creek north of Grants Pass during the upgrade of an old mining road needed to access a timber harvest and local homes.