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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us April 12, 2005 Crack sweep nets arrests in Medford area The Medford Police Department completed a two-month-long undercover drug investigation concerning the sale of “crack” cocaine on Monday afternoon. Police have arrested 23 people through Operation Crackdown, which led to 27 cocaine purchases, including 16 within 1,000 feet of a school. The suspects involved in the investigation include six women and 20 men ages 20 to 56. On Monday morning, officers served a search warrant based on information there were illegal firearms at 527 S. Columbus St., where three of the suspects live. The trio was taken into custody without incident, but officers did not find any firearms at the residence. Crack cocaine and Marijuana was seized in the bust. Possession of cocaine is a class C felony, delivery is a class B felon and delivery of cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school is a class A felony. Officers in the Gang and Street Drug Unit continue to pursue leads on four suspects related to the operation who have not been arrested yet. The four may be out of the area right now. Neighbors seek to close ICCA shelter Neighbors are calling for closure of a day-use homeless shelter because of problems they say range from panhandling and drug use to public defecation. But operators of the Interfaith Care Community of Ashland shelter at 144 S. Second St. claim they’re being unfairly targeted by the 8-month-old civil lawsuit. Eight current and former neighbors of the 6-year-old shelter claimed in August that increased use and lax supervision have eroded tourism, decreased land values and impinged on residents’ right to enjoy their property. A two-day trial originally scheduled for June was postponed last week until August by Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Mark Schiveley. The lawsuit was filed by neighbors who live near the junction of Second and B streets. Since the lawsuit was filed in August, one neighbor — Mary Nelke — sold her next-door property at 134 S. Second St. The new owner, Stacy Fountain, bought the place March 14 for $749,000. She said she wasn’t aware of the lawsuit when she sealed the deal. In 1998, city planners granted the agency a conditional use permit to operate a daytime shelter in the residential neighborhood. Since then, organizers have provided food, showers and other resources to a growing number of homeless people. A recent survey showed more than 1,200 homeless adults and children in Jackson County. ICCA is negotiating plans to move to a new site, but that it might take a couple of years to complete. Connie Saldana, a local advocate for the homeless, said closing the shelter — like mowing Bear Creek Greenway blackberry bushes — is a superficial solution to a community-wide dilemma. State, local economy looking healthier Resold-home prices in Medford rose 19.57 percent in 2004, the highest appreciation in the Northwest in the past three years The economy has been firing on all cylinders, but entitlements and trade deficits are lurking issues that have to be addressed, Portland economist John Mitchell said Monday “You’ve got an economy that’s been driven by expanding consumer spending, expanding business investment and supported by what we’ve seen in housing,” Mitchell told a large gathering of The Chamber of Medford/Jackson County at Rogue Valley Country Club. As a result, inflation has reappeared, leading to seven consecutive increases in the Federal funds rate. Mitchell noted, however, inflation has stayed within the same range it was in the early 1990s. Between interest rates and rising energy costs, Mitchell said it would be unlikely for the economy to match last year’s 4.4 percent growth rate. He predicts gross domestic product expansion of between 3.5 percent and 4 percent in 2005. Foreign banks and investors willing to absorb the financial claims have waffled in recent months. But, Mitchell said the nation’s strong economy counters the inclination to let dollars go. Job growth statistics released Friday by Arizona State University underscore Oregon’s employment — presently the third-fastest growing work force in the nation behind Nevada and Arizona. “The point is the Northwest has faired pretty well in job growth,” he said. “I watch this stuff every month and if we’d go back two and a half years, there would be 18 or 19 states growing. Now we’re at 50. Employment started growing long after the economy did and has been growing every month since May 2003.” — Staff reports DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Deep Muscle Stimulator Ceramic Piggy Banks FREE Entertainment Guide Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products Backpacks Online Pharmacy Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Student Loans Hotel & Airline Reservations Hammocks Water Filter Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Bonus Casino Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Mailing Lists Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams