Aug. 10, 1972
The Sweet Home Planning Commission approved conditional use of 2.5 acres at 12th and Elm streets by the Conservative Baptist Church.
Pastor Howard Libby said the congregation will landscape the area with screening plants and that two exits on Elm Street will be constructed.
Plans include three phases of construction which will accommodate 300 people and parking for 75 vehicles. A written statement by an adjoining property owner stated the proposed church site would be considered an improvement to the area.
The Corps of Engineers started releasing extra water from Green Peter and Foster reservoirs and four others of its Willamette Valley lakes to flush away residue in and along the Willamette River below Salem from raw sewage dumped in the river at the Salem sewage treatment plant.
Farmers and other irrigators, as well as boaters and other users of the river, were warned to be prepared for an increase in water levels.
Green Peter II, a “Free Electric Picnic & Campout,” ended up at the George Rose farm at Holley after being turned back by law officers from several other sites.
Handbills advertising the event were apparently distributed as far away as Washington and California, officers said, but most of the 300 who were at the farm were from the local area.
The gathering was originally planned at a site about 12 miles east of Green Peter Dam, but Weyerhaeuser Co. closed the access road to public access when Linn County Fire Patrol reported fire danger to be extremely high.
They tried a site 10 miles up the Calapooia from Holley and from an area near Crawfordsville, but were turned away by deputies before landing at the farm.
Attendees were denied entry after 9 p.m. due to overcrowding that broke safety and sanitation laws.
Due to the advertising, deputies said the crowd could have landed in the thousands.
Sweet Home Fire Department was called to extinguish a blazing burning power pole between Holley and Crawfordsville when a fire apparently started after a fuse arced and ignited the creosote covering the pole. Falling sparks burned a small plot of grass at the base of the pole.
The dedication of the newly developed Northside Park located one block west off 12th Avenue on Spruce Street will take place this weekend. Mayor Edward Buhn will deliver the dedication speech, and free hot dogs will be served. The park encompasses 3.5 acres, borders the Santiam River, and is landscaped at two levels. The major portion contains a ball field, courts for tennis and volleyball, playground and picnic areas, parking space and a comfort station. A lower area alongside the river is reached by following a footpath and steps down the 12-foot bank on the west side of the park.
Aug. 6, 1997
The Virtue family is the first farm family in the United States to import frozen Murray Grey cattle embryos from Australia.
George and Sharon Virtue invested thousands of dollars sending their sons Jon and George Jr. to an intense week-long training program in California and purchasing necessary equipment to gather and freeze fertilized eggs.
They purchased a 22-acre ranch and lease another 180 acres to supplement their 80 cow-calf unit herd.
The Virtues chose Murray Grey cows for their size, early weaning periods and fine marbling. They currently have 30, and found the quality they were looking for only in Australia.
It took a lot of hoop-jumping to get the embryos imported, and have since implanted 11 embryos and will have nine for sale.
Sal and Deborah Muscardin are the new owners of both the Lebanon and Sweet Home McDonald’s restaurants, replacing Jeff Lynn who retired from the business. Already owners of the Stayton franchise, the Muscardins have taken an active role in the community by participating in the Stayton D.A.R.E., and coordinate fund-raising events to support school and community organizations and sports. Sal started working as a crew member at McDonald’s 25 years ago.
Dennis Ross is the new preacher for the Church of Christ on Long Street, filling a position that has been vacant for a couple of years. Ross worked as a cook in California before he became a Christian, after which time he worked in landscaping. As he became more serious about the Bible, he went through a preacher training program and preached in Santa Barbara until taking on the Sweet Home position. Living in small-town Sweet Home appeals to Ross, who likes to fish and hunt, and he feels he’s always on vacation up here.
School District 55 approved a $55,000 settlement proposal for Special Education Resource Room teacher Judy Maniates, who’s been a teacher at Sweet Home Junior High since 1984. She filed a worker’s compensation stress complaint after leaving the district about a year ago on sick leave. After her sick leave ran out, she filed for worker’s compensation. Under the agreement, the district would pay $27,500, and its insurance carrier would pay the other half of the claim. Maniates has not yet signed the agreement, which would settle all pending and possible claims against the district, and employment rights.
Thirteen Japanese students visited Sweet Home in the eighth year of a summer exchange program between high schools. The opportunity allows the Japanese students to practice their English-speaking skills and to learn about rural American culture. The students had their first camping experience ever during a trip to Clear Lake and a trip to the beach where they had a bonfire. They also toured logging sites, the fish hatchery, Foster Dam and White’s Electronics.