Springfield site suitable for armory.Byline: Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard The battle over locating a new armory near Lane Community College may be just about over. After months of land-shopping and negotiating, the Oregon Military Department The Oregon Military Department is an agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, which oversees the armed forces of the state of Oregon. Under the authority and direction of the governor as commander-in-chief, the agency is responsible for planning, establishing, and - otherwise known as the National Guard - has decided to abandon its original idea of building on 35 acres of land it purchased just north of 30th Avenue and the Lane Community College campus in Eugene. Instead, it has all but sealed the deal on a 22 1/2 -acre parcel on Marcola Road just east of 31st Street in Springfield, Col. Mike Caldwell
The switch could solve several thorny thorn·y adj. thorn·i·er, thorn·i·est 1. Full of or covered with thorns. 2. Spiny. 3. Painfully controversial; vexatious: a thorny situation; thorny issues. problems, including legal challenges by a neighborhood association A neighborhood association is a group of residents, sometimes organized as 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, who take on problems or organize activities within a neighborhood. An association may have elected leaders and voluntary or mandatory dues. , the existence of wetlands on the 30th Avenue site and the chance of losing federal funding for the project because of continuing delays. The Russel Creek Neighbors Association had sued in both state and federal courts to prevent construction of a 122,000-square-foot armory on the agriculturally zoned property near LCC (Leadless Chip Carrier, Leaded Chip Carrier) See leadless chip carrier, CLCC and PLCC. 1. LCC - Language for Conversational Computing. Written at CMU in the 1960's. . Resident Jim Weaver Jim Weaver is the name of:
"The 30th Avenue site just wasn't the place for an armory," Weaver said. "It's the south entrance to Eugene and just across the road from LCC - it just didn't fit in, in any way, shape or form." In fact, it took an act of the state Legislature A state legislature may refer to a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. The following legislatures exist in the following political subdivisions: The National Guard faces no such problems with the new Springfield site - owned by local landowner Al Pierce - which already has appropriate light-medium industrial zoning and no wetlands issues to mitigate mit·i·gate v. To moderate in force or intensity. mit  i·ga tion n. , Caldwell said.
"We've been working on this for some time, and we're real close" to an agreement, he said. "We have negotiated a good result for us and the county so we can continue to move this project along." To go ahead, the military must have the agreement of the Lane County commissioners, who contracted with them in 1998 to purchase the existing armory facility just west of the John Serbu Youth Campus, on Centennial Boulevard across from Autzen Stadium The stadium is tucked between the Willamette River and Coburg Hills. The uniquely shaped bowl blends in with the wooded Eugene landscape. The shape also allows for unique acoustics, making it one of the loudest stadiums in NCAA Football for its capacity. . The county paid the military a down payment of $580,000 - the purchase price of the 30th Avenue property - with the remainder of the $1.9 million price tag due when the National Guard received congressional appropriation The designation by the government or an individual of the use to which a fund of money is to be applied. The selection and setting apart of privately owned land by the government for public use, such as a military reservation or public building. for the project. Congress has appropriated $8.3 million for the armory project so far, but that falls far short of the estimated total cost of $26 million for the new facility. On the assumption that Congress will free up the rest of the money in future sessions, the National Guard wants the county to pay the balance of the contract now so it can purchase the Pierce property and get construction under way. If the military fails to secure a construction contract by Sept. 30, Congress could take back the $8.3 million it has already OK'd. Caldwell declined to reveal the purchase price on the Pierce property, but a real estate advertisement lists an asking price of $1.5 million. David Suchart, the county's facilities manager, said the county has been holding onto the remaining $1.3 million for years - voters included the amount in a bond measure passed in 1995 - waiting for the National Guard to get its project off the ground. Even so, it could be years before the county turns the existing armory on Centennial Boulevard into a work release and training center for delinquent delinquent 1) adj. not paid in full amount or on time. 2) n. short for an underage violator of the law as in juvenile delinquent. DELINQUENT, civil law. He who has been guilty of some crime, offence or failure of duty. youths. The intergovernmental in·ter·gov·ern·men·tal adj. Being or occurring between two or more governments or divisions of a government. in agreement between the two agencies allows the National Guard to continue using the old armory until its new facility is completed and occupied. If the purchase of the Pierce property goes through, the military department will offer the 30th Avenue property for sale. "I expect there will be a long list of suitors," Caldwell said. Weaver, a former U.S. congressman, said the neighborhood group will withdraw its lawsuits once it "feels absolutely confident" that the 30th Avenue site has been withdrawn from consideration for use as an armory. WHAT'S NEXT What: County commissioners will decide whether to amend an agreement allowing the Oregon National Guard to build an armory on Marcola Road in Springfield When: 9 a.m. Wednesday Where: Commissioners' Conference Room, Public Service Building, 125 E. Eighth Ave., Eugene Information: 682-4203 |
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