Six times during a stretch from Jan. 31 through Oct. 11, news broke of fatal car crashes that had occurred on Highway 20 between Philomath and Newport.
Highway 20 safety is a primary concern for residents in the Philomath vicinity. After the state spent millions of dollars over 20 years to straighten and widen the highway, traffic increased and so did the speeds at which they travel.
The people who lost their lives on the highway in 2024 ranged in age from 18 to 62 — six were under age 35. The number of fatalities was three times higher than what had been seen in recent average years.
Following are the Philomath News top 10 stories of the year:
1. Nine people killed in Highway 20 crashes
The number of fatal crashes on Highway 20 between Philomath and Newport tripled in number during 2024. Nine people were killed in six crashes — three of those involving double fatalities. The increase in the number of tragic incidents was startling when compared to previous years. Going back to 2017, the previous high had been five people killed on the highway in 2020.
As part of the response, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office utilized state grant money to pay overtime to deputies in an effort to try to get traffic to slow down.
Losing their lives in crashes were:
- Jan. 31 — Michael R. Fetch, 61, of Hubbard
- April 26 — Christopher M. Robeson, 62, of Siletz
- May 11 — Elizabeth L. O’Neill, 52, of Tidewater, and Isaiah Aguilar, 23, of Umatilla
- July 1 — Scott T. Novotny, 34, of Newport, and Jose M. Zapata, 29 of Portland
- Aug. 20 — Anna Kelley, 31, of Waldport, and Shylene Olsen, 26, of Corvallis
- Oct. 11 — Jacob J. Bartlett, 18, of Florence
2. Downtown streetscapes project completed
Following the completion of the couplet in 2008, the possibility of a new and improved downtown Philomath started to take on a practicable tone with various individuals envisioning streetscape features that ranged from crookneck streetlights to ornamental plantings to an information kiosk on the corner of Main and 13th.
Sixteen years later under a shelter set up in the middle of 13th Street to keep folks dry on a rainy Sept. 27, city and state officials along with their many project partners and collaborators celebrated the project’s completion.
“For me, this is a dream come true,” Philomath City Manager Chris Workman said. “This is one of these once-in-a-lifetime projects. What we’ve done here in Philomath is going to stick for generations. … It’s going to improve and get better and better and better.”
In 2022 after engineering had been completed and the bidding process played out, the project broke ground in late November. ODOT reported the cost of the project at $18 million. For most of the past two years, downtown businesses and local residents have been forced to endure the inconveniences and hardships of the significant project.
3. Mass timber company buys closed sawmill
The Philomath sawmill and planing mill formerly owned by Interfor that closed in February will survive to see another day following its acquisition by Portland-based Timberlab. The company’s president, Chris Evans, said the Philomath operation would support a new nearby cross-laminated timber (CLT) facility planned for Millersburg.
Timberlab Inc. purchased the Interfor properties and equipment in June for $15 million.
“Part of our program was to put in similar sorting and planing capacity that was in Philomath so when the opportunity came up, it paired really well with what we had planned for the CLT project, so it’s going to be a huge, integral support of that program,” Evans said.
The Philomath operation and the nearby CLT facility will bring much-needed jobs.
“The whole area as a whole is going to benefit from both the acquisition of the Philomath mills and the CLT facility that will be coming in,” Evans said.
4. Veterans park opens on lot donated to city
A sizable crowd with several veterans in attendance watched the city of Philomath officially celebrate the opening of Paul J. Cochran Veterans Memorial Park Nov. 9 on the corner of College and North 16th streets.
The special program featured a remembrance of the park’s namesake, the presentation of bronze service medals to Vietnam War veterans, dedication of a Rotary peace pole and a ribbon-cutting ceremony that featured Cochran’s sister, Shane Fritz.
Former Mayor Eric Niemann volunteered countless hours to see through a project that started more than five years ago when the estate of the late Beverly Durham contacted the city about transferring ownership of the lot, which is approximately one-eighth of an acre in size. The gift did come with conditions, including that it would serve as a memorial to Paul Jefferey Cochran, the son that she lost in Vietnam in 1968.
For city officials involved with the park project, it’s been a long time coming to reach a day of celebration with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The granite columns were installed at the park earlier that week — a particular feature that had been several months overdue from the original estimates.
5. Winter ice storm impacts citizens for days
The ice storm that first hit Philomath in mid-January will likely be remembered for different reasons — a bad slip on the ice that caused an injury … a water meter that busted in the bitter-cold temperatures … a tree that came down on a house or vehicle. … Dangerous road conditions that kept people home. … And south of town, a multi-day power outage in an area that one person described visually as though a “bomb went off.”
Through it all, folks who serve in a public safety capacity have been on the job. Philomath Police reported an eerily quiet stretch but Philomath Fire and Rescue has seen triple the number of calls. Meanwhile, the city’s Public Works employees have been dealing with a multitude of issues.
Philomath Fire and Rescue’s increase in calls included a structure fire at the BeVille Manor Apartments. Both the police and fire departments reported fewer crashes than anticipated, likely because most drivers were simply staying off the roads.
The storm led to the cancellation of classes on all campuses within the Philomath School District over a three-day stretch, in addition to students already getting the first day of the week off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
6. City’s water reservoir project starts up again
An inadequate concrete slab that was poured as part of the construction of a new water reservoir on South Ninth Street will be repaired at the expense of the contractor, the city manager reported in January to the Philomath City Council. When the issue surfaced during the summer of 2023, the city’s original position had been to remove and replace the slab, a costly endeavor for those who constructed it.
“Moving forward today, we recognize there’s an issue and we also recognize that a repair can be engineered and completed and constructed and we’re adding a warranty on top of it and the city’s comfortable moving forward knowing that,” City Manager Chris Workman said.
Work ramped up at the site later in the year and the latest estimate for completion is mid to late January. The reservoir, which has a capacity of 1.5 million gallons, is the first phase in a modernization and overhaul of the city’s aging water system that also includes a new treatment plant, a system to collect water from the Marys River and a high-service pump station.
7. Safety becomes issue in local school district
The Philomath School District tackled concerns related to on-campus safety following a couple of incidents and a recommendation to install updated electronic door systems at the high school, middle school, elementary school and primary school.
In April, the school district’s technology director met with the Philomath School Board regarding various needs, including the outdated door access. The project appeared to only increase in importance following a safety concern that surfaced in the spring involving a threat against a principal that had been made by a parent. The school district then held a work session in September to discuss various aspects of the district’s safety policies and protocols just a few days after a separate threat involving Philomath Academy.
Superintendent of Schools Susan Halliday reported in October that progress had been made in several areas related to student and employee safety, such as proposed updates to policy language. Students also participate in monthly drills — fire alarm drills are the most common but schools also have earthquake and safety threat drills twice a year.
School officials at the time said they planned to check on places where drills and announcements could not be heard and Halliday was to renew safety conversations with the police and fire departments.
8. Philomath Police sees change at the top
The Philomath Police Department’s leadership went through a significant change in April with Dave Gurski taking over for the retiring Ken Rueben in the law enforcement agency’s lead position.
The transition appeared to be a smooth one. In comments moments before leading an April 3 swearing-in ceremony, Rueben emphasized his need to have a plan in place for a successor.
“It was incredibly important to me that when I left, I felt that it was in a good place and the person that would take over for me would have … similar philosophies about policing and about what it means to police a small town,” Rueben said.
Gurski said technology and staffing were among the top priorities.
“I think our big focus moving forward is going to be keeping up with technology with body cams, drones and those sorts of things,” he said. “And then additionally, just hiring and retention. We’ve struggled over the last couple of years, as everybody has in law enforcement, trying to get fully staffed and retrain the people that you’ve got.”
9. Jones bows out of election; McMorran wins
Philomath Mayor Chas Jones in early September announced that he was dropping out of the mayoral race in support of challenger Christopher McMorran for the seat in the Nov. 5 general election. A presence in local city government since 2019, Jones said he needed to focus his energy on a new business venture.
“Just as I continued to think about all the pressure and just the energy that’s required to not only serve as mayor but also to run a campaign, I was just feeling a little overwhelmed,” Jones said. “Frankly, I was just feeling like something was going to give. Knowing that this is a volunteer role and then also knowing that we do have great staff in place and we have folks that are willing and able to serve in these roles … that allowed me to make this decision.”
As a result, there was no drama on Election Night with McMorran, 26, winning with 77% of the vote (Jones made the decision too late for his name to be removed from the ballot). Also on Nov. 5, Spencer Irwin and Brent Kaseman were elected to the City Council for the first time and Diane Crocker also retained her seat — all three running unopposed.
Jones and Ruth Causey, a city councilor who chose to not run again, both served out their terms through the end of the year. One seat on the council remains vacant as 2025 begins with Matt Lehman’s resignation in November for because of conflict-of-interest reasons related to a new job.
10. Street near Philomath Elementary extended
A road project on South 16th Street near Philomath Elementary and the city’s public works complex was completed in September just as classes were getting ready to begin this fall. The street was extended to the intersection of South 17th and Cedar and includes safety features, such as wide sidewalks, a well-marked crosswalk and more accessibility for dropping off and picking up students.
The issue of South 16th Street first picked up steam during the development of a 2018 Transportation System Plan in Philomath when concerns were voiced about the circulation of people, school buses and vehicles around the schools. Although a school circulation and safety study was funded by the Corvallis Area Metropolitan Planning Organization in 2020, various staffing delays and a lack of school-related traffic during the COVID pandemic led to delays.
In 2022, the project regained momentum through a communitywide survey and joint work sessions involving the School Board, City Council and a traffic engineering firm. The work led to a March 2023 report that prioritized recommended projects and the widening and extension of South 16th topped the list.
The city funded the $2 million project and the school district donated property where the street was extended.
Several other news stories that occurred during the year were considered for the top 10, including the following:
- The city’s discussions on how to distribute $17,700 in Transient Lodge Tax revenue, a process that included an element of controversy with the city manager’s mention of the Nazi flag as an example of a controversial image during a freedom of expression discussion related to flags flown in the Frolic and Rodeo’s parade.
- Solar panels were installed on the Johnson Collections Center, the Benton County Historic Society’s repository located next to the Philomath Museum. As part of the effort, the historic former Philomath College building that dates back to 1867 started using electricity generated from solar power.
- The Philomath Frolic and Rodeo organization saw a change of leadership with Alyssa Lewis installed as the board president. Darrell Hinchberger had served in the position since 2018.
- The Philomath Frolic and Rodeo closed out its three-day run of evening rodeos with sellouts for the Friday and Saturday performances on grandstands scheduled to be replaced in the coming year. The annual celebration featured a new twist with the addition of a chainsaw carving competition.
- Philomath’s graduation events took place in the spring with 125 students earning diplomas — 105 from Philomath High School and 20 from Philomath Academy. The two schools held separate commencement ceremonies.
- Approved to receive funding through a federal program, the Philomath School District announced that all children would be able to eat breakfast and lunch free for the next four years. A few months into the school year, the district reported that significantly more students were eating on campus.
- The Philomath City Council spent a considerable amount of time debating the future possibility of psilocybin-related businesses coming to town. In the end, the council extended a ban for two years and referred the question to a future public election and established time, place and manner regulations if voters ultimately decided to allow them in the city limits.
- A project in the making for several years became a reality with the construction of a covered play area at Clemens Primary School. The addition to the school for kindergarteners and first graders was finished just as students were arriving for classes in September.
- The city went in a new direction with its branding with the approval of a new logo, an effort that coincided with the city’s plans to launch a redesigned website.
- The city established a new advisory committee to focus on local housing and economic development. After much debate, it was decided that the committee would include three councilors and between five and 11 citizens or representatives of local organizations.
