Local News

The City of Grants Pass -- in partnership with the Oregon Department of Transportation -- is working to make the downtown area a safe, more active and easier place to get around for everyone. The 6th & 7th Streets Multimodal Corridor Study is focused on identifying practical, fundable improvements for non-automobile travel. The study builds on earlier planning work and supports the City's 2020 Master Transportation System Plan. Retail businesses in the Central Business District serve a mix of both the local community and visitors. Adjacent areas are primarily residential, with community spaces, schools and public buildings. 6th and 7th streets form the spine of the downtown transportation system, which is presently auto-dominated but affords many opportunities for safety and access improvements to the pedestrian, bicycle and transit networks. The study corridor extends from Interstate 5 Exit 58 southward across the Rogue River to the Big Y intersection of Rogue River, Williams and Redwood highways. It encompasses 6th and 7th streets (US Highway 99) and adjacent streets from 4th to 9th streets. An Advisory Committee made up of local stakeholders is helping guide the process to make sure the proposed improvements reflect the needs and values of the Grants Pass community.

 

Total payroll employment in Josephine County rose by 220 jobs in May led by strong gains in leisure & hospitality. According to the Oregon Employment Department, there were 32,953 people working in Josephine County last month for a seasonally adjusted jobless rate of 6.4%, which was slightly higher than the 6.2% mark announced in April. Leisure & hospitality gained 170 jobs in May. Other industries posting estimated employment increases were private education & health services and retail trade. Government employment increased by 50 jobs. Gains were posted in federal, state and local government education. Over the past year, payroll employment in Josephine County was down by 630 jobs, a loss of 2.3%. Employment fell over the year in most private-sector industries. The most notable declines occurred in retail trade (-190), leisure & hospitality (-120), financial activities (-110), manufacturing (-70), construction (-60) and wholesale trade (-60).

 

The Grants Pass & Josephine County Chamber of Commerce continues to support and promote local businesses through great event partnerships. The Rogue Valley Classic Cruisers is hosting the "30th Annual Fabulous 50s Charity Car Show" July 25th-27th when Grants Pass will be visited by vintage car owners from all over. The Chamber is facilitating filling over 300 "goodie bags" for event participants and attendees. They want them to be visiting local businesses, whether they do it that weekend or come back for more fun. The Chamber is sending this message to all of its members. Those who are connected to the Chamber are encouraged to bring at least 300 coupons to the Visitor Center so they can be included in the bags to get the word out about your business. The deadline to be included in this special promotion is June 30th.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a man for making a big nuisance of himself at the Ray's Food Place in Selma early yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies responded to a trespassing call involving 28-year-old William Gene Bruhnsen Studzinski at the supermarket in the 100-block of Deer Creek Road on Monday around 11:30 a.m.. Deputies said they were first alerted to Studzinski's antics shortly after 8 a.m.. The store manager called 9-1-1 to report a male subject was there all night, starting fires on the side of the building, throwing trash all over the parking lot and scattering grocery carts. He fled the scene, but was identified through photographs. More than three hours later, deputies located Studzinski at CJ Coffee in Cave Junction. Deputies told him he could not leave, but he walked away. He was grabbed and started resisting, so he was taken to the ground and handcuffed. Studzinski was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Criminal Mischief, Reckless Burning and Interfering with a Police Officer. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for causing disturbances in the downtown area early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers contacted 39-year-old Matthew Richard Williams and placed him into custody in a cubby near a closed business in the 200-block of SW 6th Street on Monday at 10:13 a.m.. Police said they were first alerted to Williams by a security guard at the Josephine County Courthouse who reported a male subject screaming and cursing to himself. A short time later, officers learned that the man was shouting at vehicles and other pedestrians while he was walking south on 6th Street. Williams' actions were causing public alarm and multiple people called 9-1-1 due to their concerns. He was contacted near SW H Street and started screaming at officers while punching the ground repeatedly during his outburst. He ran away and punched a parked car before trying to hide in the cubby where he was arrested. Williams was lodged in jail for Disorderly Conduct and was being held without bail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office apprehended a man wanted on a local felony warrant in the Colonial Valley area last weekend. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies contacted and then arrested 43-year-old Christopher Lane Slover near the intersection of Granite Hill and Grouse Creek roads on Sunday at 8:50 a.m.. Deputies said they spotted Slover working on a truck with two other men. They knew he was wanted on a Grants Pass felony warrant for failing to appear in court for two counts of Felon in Possession of a Weapon and one count of Delivery of Methamphetamine. The suspect was detained and he provided a false name. After Slover was positively identified, he was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant plus a new charge of Furnishing False Information to Police. He was being held on $50,000 bail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a motorist for impaired driving and more after she crashed a vehicle near Merlin early yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies and emergency crews responded to the single-vehicle wreck near the intersection of Azalea Drive and Robertson Bridge Road on Monday at about 4:30 a.m.. Deputies said they were alerted to the incident by an Azalea Drive resident who advised he heard a vehicle roll at least five times while taking out several mail boxes. Upon the arrival of law enforcement, 36-year-old Desiray Deon Tolson was out of the vehicle and walking around. Fortunately, she was not badly hurt. According to the report, Tolson displayed signs of impairment and performed poorly in field sobriety tests. A search warrant was obtained and she was taken to Three Rivers Medical Center for a legal blood draw that documented inebriation. Tolson was subsequently lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Reckless Driving and Criminal Mischief. She was being held without bail and her wrecked vehicle was impounded.

 

One person was injured in a motor vehicle accident that occurred on Interstate 5 in the Sunny Valley area late yesterday. The Oregon State Police reports troopers and emergency personnel responded to the three-vehicle crash in the southbound lanes of I-5 near milepost 70 on Monday at 5:20 p.m.. Troopers said a preliminary investigation indicated the collision occurred between a BMW 300 and two Freightliner commercial vehicles. They identified the drivers as 35-year-old Joshuah Hogenkamp of Eugene, 45-year-old Sukhwinder Singh and 19-year-old Camron Spicer. Singh's and Spicer's addresses were not disclosed. According to OSP, one unidentified occupant was transported by ambulance to Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford for treatment of moderate injuries. No one else was hurt and Bulldog Towing was dispatched for one of the vehicles. The Oregon Department of Transportation issued a bulletin that the I-5 crash was causing delays and asked motorists to slow down and watch for first responders.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a woman for drug possession after she broke into an unoccupied recreational vehicle in Cave Junction last weekend. According to the Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to a burglary call in the 27,000-block of Redwood Highway on Sunday around 7:45 p.m.. Deputies said a woman called 9-1-1 to report a female subject later identified as 34-year-old Sarah Ivory Jaentsch broke into her boss's trailer and was doing drugs. The caller said the woman then left and started walking down the highway near the Great Cats Park. That's where deputies found her with a glass pipe with a white crystal substance that tested positive as methamphetamine. She admitted to smoking meth and was placed into custody. Nothing had been stolen from the RV, but staff members requested her to be trespassed from the park. Jaentsch was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Meth Possession.