Two Creswell restaurants close
■ CRESWELL – After 18 years, China Wok at 375 E. Oregon Ave. is closing down, with intentions to relocate to Eugene to a location yet to be determined, according to Michelle Melvin, community engagement specialist for the Creswell Chamber of Commerce. China Wok’s last day of operation will be March 25.
“Thank you to the Creswell community and to all local customers we have served and helped support here for the last 18 years,” said Jenny Gong, owner.
Both China Wok’s and Hot Shots coffee kiosks are being displaced after McDonald’s confirmed in October that it will be developing its fast food chain in the same location.
Last week, Los Cabos Family Mexican Restaurant also announced its closure after 27 years of serving the community. The restaurant closed on March 10. The space will undergo interior and exterior renovation before welcoming Nacho Family Mexican Restaurant.
St. Vinnies to Cottage Grove
■ COTTAGE GROVE – St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County (SVdP) today, March 14, opened at 910 Row River Road. It is the nonprofit’s southernmost store, in an effort to enhance rural outreach in the county. With 15,485 square feet of retail space and 4,230 square feet for materials sorting and storage, this is the 14th and southernmost store in the St. Vinnie’s Oregon network. It is also the seventh store outside of Eugene-Springfield operated by SVdP. Total costs for this new store totaled about $4.8 million. This store marks St. Vinnie’s return to the Cottage Grove retail market after nearly 25 years away.
New group brings music
■ COTTAGE GROVE — South Lane Concerts will present a Palm Sunday community concert for individuals and families in Creswell and Cottage Grove on Sunday, March 24, at 5 p.m. at Delight Valley Church of Christ, 33087 E. Saginaw Rd.
The event offers an evening of faith-based music for all ages. There is no admission fee and a freewill offering will be taken to support the Cottage Grove and Creswell food pantries.
South Lane Concerts (SLC) is a new organization dedicated to producing three annual faith-based concerts: Christmas, Easter, and summertime. SLC Co-Coordinators Christi Fields and Cindy Weeldreyer co-founded the planning group.The group encourages people of all ages who are musicians, singers, dramatists, worship teams, prayer warriors, and pastors to join this effort and become more unified in blessing our communities in these challenging times.
More info: Christi Fields at 541-731-0054 or Cindy Weeldreyer at 541-915-0113 or send email to: [email protected]
Reforestation efforts underway
■ BLUE RIVER — One of wildfire’s most stark and long-lasting impacts is the loss of trees and shrubs. When the Holiday Farm Fire blazed through the McKenzie River valley in 2020, it burned 173,000 acres of primarily forested land. The impacts of wildfire are still evident as dead-standing trees intermixed with clear cuts line valley slopes. Loss of canopy cover has ongoing impacts on a watershed. As tree roots decay below ground, soil stability decreases, and landslides become more probable. Additionally, the loss of shade over streams and rivers can raise water temperatures and put fish and other species at higher risk for predation. A forest will take generations to regrow, but on the McKenzie River, that long-term recovery process has gotten a big boost thanks to a unique partnership between public, private, and nonprofit organizations.
This month, partners and contractors from the Pure Water Partners program will complete planting 80,000 trees and shrubs across more than 100 properties impacted by the Holiday Farm Fire, including several McKenzie River Trust-owned properties.
Part of a multi-year effort, this year’s work builds on several planting seasons completed since 2021. Plants include key native species like Western red cedar, red flowering currant, Oregon grape, mock orange, and black cottonwood.
In addition to these broad replanting efforts by the Pure Water Partners program, crews from Oregon Woods Inc. are working to complete planting around 180,000 plants in the Finn Rock Reach Floodplain Restoration project area.
