Editor's note
This is the second in a four-part series of articles reviewing news that occurred in 2023. This second installment breaks down the period of April 1 to June 30
APRIL
April 4 — The Philomath Park Advisory Board finalized its lineup for the Music in the Park concert series beginning with a student performance on May 18 and continuing through the summer on selected Thursday and Sunday evenings.
April 8 — Kids stay on solid ground to find eggs at the Community Easter Egg Hunt.
April 10 — The first five trees to be recommended for entry into the city’s new Heritage Tree Program received unanimous approval from the Philomath City Council.
April 10 — The Philomath City Council needs more time to figure out how to spend $160,000 on “community-facing projects” and plans to put out a survey asking local residents for input.
April 10 — Philomath Mayor Chas Jones had fun toward the end of the City Council meeting when he announced winners of the “If I Were Mayor” contest.
April 12 — The Philomath Post Office would be one of 102 in Oregon to host a one-day job fair event.
April 15 — Longtime supporters of Blodgett Elementary School undoubtedly feel a sense of disappointment with the traditional Dime-a-Dip fundraiser permanently going away. The Blodgett-Summit Community Club announced that it is no longer able to host the event due to health code regulations.
April 21 — Overcast skies and light rain didn’t put a damper on an Arbor Day celebration for Philomath third graders and Kings Valley Charter School kindergarteners at the Philomath Public Works compound.
April 21 — Philomath Superintendent of Schools Susan Halliday announced that the district has hired Eric Beasley, who has worked as a principal in the Corvallis School District for the past 12 years, to take over as the Philomath-Blodgett principal effective July 1.
April 25 — Philomath School Board Position 2 candidates Ryan Cheeke and Steven King answer questions on motivation, controversies, voting, recommendations and the budget in a Philomath News Q-and-A.
April 25 — A good crowd turned out for an open house in Philomath at the new home of Alyrica Networks.
April 26 — Philomath School Board Position 5 candidates Sandi Hering and Karen Skinkis answer questions on motivation, controversies, voting, recommendations and the budget in a Philomath News Q-and-A. Known as Coffee With a Cop, the informal gatherings were a common occurrence back before the pandemic.
2023 Year in Review — Sports: April to June
2023 Year in Review: A look at Philomath sports stories from the period of April to June. This is the second in a four-part series of articles reviewing sports news in 2023.
2023 Year in Review — News: January to March
2023 Year in Review: A look at Philomath news stories from the period of January to March. This is the first in a four-part series of articles reviewing news in 2023.
2023 Year in Review — Sports: January to March
2023 Year in Review: A look at Philomath sports stories from the period of January to March. This is the first in a four-part series of articles reviewing sports in 2023.
April 26 — With an impressive array of doughnut choices and the aroma of fresh coffee in the air, the Philomath Police Department made an appearance in the lobby of the local Citizens Bank branch.
April 27 — A West Hills Road property owner’s tiller helped contain a burn pile that grew out of control and scorched approximately 2.4 acres on a windy Thursday afternoon.
April 27 — As the city and school district continue to discuss traffic safety issues near Philomath’s schools, the most notable project on the table involves a new road that would connect South 16th Street to the east with Cedar Street. But there was also the interesting discussion of the possibility of a mini-roundabout going in at the intersection of Applegate Street and South 19th Street.
April 28 — A 20-minute ceremony that included comments from the mayor, public works operations supervisor, a state senator and others along with recognition of the city’s first five heritage trees and the planting of Red Rage tupelo trees highlighted an Arbor Day celebration at Skirvin Park.
April 30 — The long battle to find a way to build a new, larger jail in Benton County is back in the hands of voters.
MAY
May 2 — Philomath Fire and Rescue Board of Directors candidates Rick Brand, Joe Brier and Daphne Phillips — all unchallenged for the position of choice — participate in a Philomath News Q-and-A.
May 3 — After four years of hosting no events, the Blodgett-Summit Community Club returns with its inaugural Taco Bar and Auction, which will serve as the organization’s primary fundraiser for three college scholarships.
May 4 — Tony Matta, athletic director, former football coach and assistant principal at Philomath High, will be headed to South Albany next school year to fill an assistant principal position.
May 6 — Riders who want or need to ride the bus on Saturdays can rejoice. That’s because the Corvallis Transit System folks (who oversee the Philomath Connection routes) were able to solve issues with its contractor to secure drivers and resume weekend service.
May 7 — On the floor in orange T-shirts with the team logo, bright orange and yellow safety vests and either yellow hardhats or orange traffic cones upon their heads, Philomath High School’s robotics students no doubt enjoy the competitions.
May 8 — Three people were injured in a two-vehicle collision at the intersection of Bellfountain Road and Airport Avenue.
May 8 — The Philomath City Council issued pay raises to nonunion and administrative personnel, ratified a collective bargaining agreement with the union that represents police officers and tabled a discussion on a proposed restructuring of the city manager’s employment contract during a meeting at City Hall.
May 8 — City Manager Chris Workman led off his management report at the City Council meeting with a report on Millpond Crossing developer Levi Miller’s launch of a new website that’s intended to improve communication.
May 13 — Gregory Brumfield is taking extra care of his throat these days, and with good reason. Brumfield, a Philomath resident, is two weeks into the Majestic Theatre’s production of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” the musical thriller that some (Brumfield included) consider Stephen Sondheim’s “masterpiece among masterpieces.”
May 16 — Three people involved in a two-car crash at the intersection of Bellfountain Road and Llewellyn Road escaped with only minor injuries.
May 16 — Newcomers Ryan Cheeke and Sandi Hering defeated their opponents for seats on the Philomath School Board and Benton County’s latest attempt to build a new jail and expand public safety, mental health and homelessness services went down to defeat, according to unofficial cumulative results of Tuesday’s special election.
May 18 — School Board Chair Rick Wells during a meeting brought up Downing Research Forest, the 10-acre spot located between Chapel Drive and the middle school, that took a big hit when a destructive windstorm blew through in December. “What we would like to do as a district with that property right now is unknown. But I feel we should do something with it and a discussion needs to start somewhere as to what we can do with it and what we need to do with it.”
May 20 — A special ceremony that recognizes Armed Forces Day, Peace Officers Memorial Day and Memorial Day takes place at Mount Union Cemetery. The program included remembrances, history, ROTC cadets, horses, trumpets, singing and the placement of flags on the gravesites of veterans.
May 23 — The Philomath Farmers’ Market is set to begin its 21-week run and those who have been routine patrons of the local shopping opportunity should notice the presence of more vendors — and that includes more local farmers.
May 30 — Art club students made the bowls, culinary arts students made the soup and Philomath Community Services ended up with a $245 check to help those in need.
JUNE
June 2 — The 14th annual PYAC Community Carnival took over Clemens Field to not only provide kids with a fun time for three hours but to raise money to help support the local youth activities organization.
June 2 — Philomath High School announces the hiring of Mike Hood as an assistant principal and athletic director.
June 3 — Rep. David Gomberg took a seat with a dozen other individuals at a long table set up in the middle of council chambers Saturday at Philomath City Hall to provide his perspectives on the current session of the Oregon Legislature.
June 3 — A 25-year-old Corvallis man, a 28-year-old Salem man and two passengers involved in a two-vehicle crash outside Philomath reported no apparent injuries.
June 7 — Philomath High School’s Class of 2023 was getting ready for the weekend graduation ceremony with 86 students to receive diplomas. Elizabeth Morales-Marquez was among those with plans to continue her education and in fact, she hoped to become the first person in her immediate family to earn a college degree.
June 7 — Twenty-five students from Philomath and four from Blodgett were getting set to receive degrees from Oregon State University on June 17 at Reser Stadium and June 18 at the OSU-Cascade campus in Bend.
June 8 — Linn-Benton Community College was planning its 54th commencement ceremony for June 15. The Class of 2023 featured 830 candidates for graduation, including 31 from Philomath and Blodgett.
June 9 — Philomath High’s Class of 2023 valedictorians — Dawson Beckstead, Jesse Erickson, Kellen Houchin, Micah Matthews, Roman Padar and Dristi Patel — answered questions from the Philomath News.
June 10 — Philomath High’s Class of 2023 with 86 graduates received their diplomas in front of grandstands packed with family and friends at Clemens Field.
June 11 — Rumors of an out-of-control senior prank that caused tens of thousands of dollars to Philomath High School turned out to be unfounded, school officials and police said.
June 11 — A 50-year-old woman thrown from a horse near Philomath Friday suffered serious but not life-threatening injuries.
June 12 — The Philomath City Council tackled a number of money-related issues during its meeting, including the narrow approval of a revised contract for the city manager and unanimous approval of a $35.5 million budget for the coming fiscal year.
June 12 — Strong words were shared at the City Council table concerning the latest attempt to get diversity, equity and inclusion training scheduled. It appeared that councilors were headed in the direction of going through a workshop offered by Oregon State University.
June 12 — The City Council approved updates to the city code chapter on illegal camping.
June 13 — Kyle Cupp, who lost his 14-year-old son in 2020, writes a widely-read guest column for the Philomath News, sharing his thoughts about moving forward in life.
June 14 — Philomath High School students offered a mix of a classic story, energetic songs and well-choreographed dance numbers with a four-show run of “Mary Poppins Jr.”
June 14 — Philomath Academy’s graduation ceremony on the lawn west of the alternative school’s new location featured not only a group of young people embarking on a new chapter in their lives but a veteran educator who is wrapping up four decades as an educator.
June 15 — The 23-year-old skate park in Philomath appears to be on its way out with the city’s efforts to settle on a new design and perhaps even build in a new location. The community was provided an opportunity to provide input on the possibilities at a skate park design meeting scheduled for June 28.
June 15 — The Philomath School Board delayed votes on adopting the 2023-24 fiscal year budget and moving forward with staff cuts following an emotion-filled meeting that included 40 minutes of budget-related comments from teachers in the district.
June 15 — Sitting before the Philomath School Board during the public comments portion of the meeting, four educators one after the other painted a picture of a common theme among the district’s female teachers and staff members — feelings of “fear, frustration and exhaustion.” No names were thrown out and no specific incidents were shared but those who spoke wanted the board to know that the issue exists and asked for their help to find solutions to improve the on-campus work culture.
June 17 — Philomath could be in line for up to $1.9 million out of the State Legislature’s lottery bond appropriations bill to build new grandstands at the rodeo arena.
June 17 — Developer Scott Lepman hesitated to give any sort of definitive timeline on the completion and opening of Tall Timber RV Park in Philomath. In response to a question about 2024 as a possibility, he said “probably” but it sounds like a lot of things would need to fall into place.
June 20 — Less than a year ago, retired teacher, musician and event organizer Yvonne McMillan started bringing social opportunities to the Philomath community through monthly country dances and bluegrass jams. Her latest effort was a Country Western Dance to take place at Skirvin Park’s Philomath Frolic and Rodeo grounds.
June 20 — The city of Philomath will receive $1.9 million through a late-session appropriations bill to go toward new grandstands and a lighting project for the Philomath Frolic & Rodeo.
June 20 — With roughly three hours to go on the final official work day of the 2022-23 school year, Philomath School District teachers gathered at the middle school for a few slices of pizza, a side of salad and sweet treats.
June 23 — The Philomath School Board approved its 2023-24 budget and cut the equivalent of nearly 13 positions in the district between classified staff, teachers and an administrator. Philomath and several school districts across the state have been forced to make difficult decisions to balance budgets amid factors such as declining enrollment and exhausted COVID-19 relief funds.
June 24 — The Malaise Invitational Car Show, which features vehicles made from 1972 to 1995, takes place in Wren. Put on by the Eugene-base Malaise Car Club of Oregon, the event served as a fundraiser for the HIV Alliance.
June 26 — The Benton County Sheriff’s Office reported that a 20-year-old Philomath man operating a motorcycle suffered injuries to his leg during an attempt to pull him over on Philomath Boulevard.
June 27 — Back for the third straight summer, the Dirt Road Street Party was being planned for July 1.
June 28 — Former volunteer Viktor Bovbjerg moved into his new position as staff captain with Philomath Fire and Rescue.
June 28 — Several folks in the room for a public meeting on a new Philomath skate park design spoke with enthusiasm about the possibilities — themes based on local features, obstacles and elements, locations and even the prospect of creating an attraction that will bring in visitors as an all-wheels destination.
June 30 — The first story in a series of Philomath Frolic and Rodeo previews explores the transition to online ticket sales.
