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Flooding, other stories made 1997 an unforgettable year in Southern Oregon Photo by Jim Craven Sunday Dec 28, 1997 at 2:00 AM Feb 17, 2011 at 11:22 AM the MAIL TRIBUNE STAFF Floodwaters from Lithia Creek rage through the Plaza in downtown Ashland on New Year's morning -- the top story of 1997. Every year, the Mail Tribune tells thousands of stories about the events and the people who shape the landscape of our lives here in Southern Oregon. Some stories stand out more than others. And some years offer stories of such a magnitude that they linger in our memories as benchmarks in our personal histories, or leave an impact we know will affect our communities for many years to come. any measure, 1997 was just such a year, born in the darkness of New Year's morning amid the roar of a once-in-a-century flood that displaced hundreds of Rogue Valley families and ending with the tolling of a bell for one of the last family-owned sawmills left in what once was a timber-driven economy. In between, a tired old Medford theater began a promising new life as a performing arts center, and Rogue Community College established a high-profile presence downtown -- both institutions bringing fresh energy that is already redefining and revitalizing the core of the county's largest city. There were other openings and closings. The valley lost a distinctive natural history museum and gained a formal site for a future prison. A double murderer was sentenced to death, bringing closure to a heartbreaking tale of hatred and tragedy, and a former congressman was found guilty of a lie that ended his political career. And the year winds down with turmoil at Medford's City Hall having somewhat abated, but turmoil in traditional doctor-patient relationships just coming to the boil for thousands of Jackson County residents caught in the convulsive changes within the health care industry. Here then are summaries of 1997's top 10 local news stories, as chosen and ranked by the editors and reporters of the Mail Tribune. 1. THE NEW YEAR'S FLOOD. Flooding on New Year's Day made 1997 memorable for people across Southern Oregon. From Ashland to the Applegate Valley, streams roared out of their banks, flooding homes, destroying roads and uprooting trees. No lives were lost, but estimates of property damage ultimately climbed to $50 million. The flood hit Ashland hardest -- the city's water purification system and its sewage treatment plant were damaged, and much of the landscaping in scenic Lithia Park disappeared. Ashlanders could not drink city water for more than a week and couldn't flush their toilets for much of January. Many rural residents across Jackson and Josephine counties were isolated for days or weeks after rampaging streams tore out chunks of road and washed away bridges. As 1998 approached, some of the flood damage remained unrepaired. 2. ACREMANT GETS DEATH IN ELLIS/ABDILL MURDERS. Robert James Acremant was sentenced to death in October, nearly two years after shooting to death two Medford women. The murders of Roxanne Ellis and Michelle Abdill captured nationwide attention in 1995 when it was thought to be a hate crime -- the killing of a lesbian couple. But Acremant told police that he killed the women, partners in a Medford property management company, in a botched attempt to rob them of rental deposits. He said he wanted the money so he could spend time with a Las Vegas stripper he considered his girlfriend. While he freely admitted his guilt, Acremant stood trial in 1997 to see whether he would be condemned to die or spend his life in prison. Lawyers argued the case for more than a month from the end of September to October. In the end, the jury took less than four hours to sentence Acremant to death. With the decision, Acremant became the first person sentenced to death by a Jackson County jury in 35 years, and the first one in the county condemned since Oregon voters revived capital punishment in 1984. He is still expected to stand trial in 1998 in California in the murder of a Visalia, Calif., man. 3. GOVERNOR PICKS STIMPSON GULCH FOR PRISON SITE. After months of meetings and land surveys, Gov. John Kitzhaber in June picked a 300-acre ranch north of Medford known as Stimpson Gulch for a new state prison. The project is part of a planned $1 billion state prison construction effort. Stimpson Gulch was one of several sites named around the state. Initial plans call for construction of a 400-bed work camp beginning in 2003, but the site could eventually accommodate a 1,600-bed medium-security prison. A second prison might also be built on the site some day, state corrections officials say. An appeal of Kitzhaber's choice was pending before the Supreme Court at year's end, but its chances may have been diminished by the court's upholding of Kitzhaber's choice of a site for a Portland area prison. 4. NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM CLOSES. Barely three years after it opened amid fanfare, the Pacific Northwest Museum of Natural History closed Sept. 1, unable to generate the high volumes of visitors projected to pay off the $3.2 million it borrowed for its $10.7 million building in Ashland. The fate of the museum was foreshadowed a year ago when it was unable to make a $200,000 payment on its debt. Attempts in the 1997 Legislature and through other means to provide aid failed, and museum officials announced the closure July 30. The building sits on land leased from Southern Oregon University, which decided Dec. 16 it could not put together a mix of programs that would generate enough money to meet the debt payments. Its fate was unresolved at year's end; the building may revert to the 100 bondholders, represented by the Bank of New York, but any future use would have to be compatible with SOU's educational mission. 5. CRATERIAN RE-OPENS AS A PERFORMING ARTS CENTER. The dream of having a first-class performing arts center in downtown Medford came true in March. After years of behind-the-scenes maneuvering, more than a year of construction work, nearly a half-million pounds of steel and more than $5 million, the renovated Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater raised its curtain March — to delighted audiences. In its first year, the former vaudeville theater, being operated by its own performance company, hosted prominent entertainers and artists from the National Theater of the Deaf to the Western Opera Theater to writer Ken Kesey. It's pumped new vitality into the heart of Medford, and has been hailed by both the business and arts communities as the centerpiece of a rebuilding downtown core. 6. COOLEY FOUND GUILTY OF LYING. Wes Cooley's past caught up with him March 18 when the former U.S. representative from Oregon's 2nd Congressional District was found guilty of a felony for lying about his military record in the state Voters' Pamphlet. When Republican Cooley ran in 1994 in the district that covers Southern Oregon, he listed Army Special Forces, Korea, among his experiences. But the state amassed evidence from military records, personal letters and grand-jury testimony from his old sergeant and other Army acquaintances that Cooley never left the United States from 1952 to 1954. Cooley was sentenced to two years' probation and 100 hours of community service, and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and $2,110 in court expenses. Federal investigators closed their books later in the year without indicting his wife, Rosemary Herron Cooley, who was suspected of improperly accepting veteran's survivors benefits from her first marriage while she and Cooley lived together before they were married. Meanwhile, Bob Smith, the Republican who preceded and succeeded Cooley after Cooley dropped a 1996 bid for re-election, announced Dec. 18 he would not seek another term in 1998. 7. MEDFORD CITY MANAGER'S OUSTER CAUSES CITY COUNCIL FRICTION. Cries of backroom politics and dirty dealing split the City Council as Medford City Manager Harold Andy Anderson resigned June 27 after coming under attack from four council members. Council members voted 6-2 July — to approve his settlement agreement despite sharp protests from Council President Linda Casey and Councilwoman Lee Ferguson. Four council members and Mayor Jerry Lausmann sparked controversy by meeting behind closed doors. The five stood behind the decision to get rid of Anderson. Lausmann said that business people had complained about the treatment they get at City Hall. He said Anderson wasn't either growth or business-oriented. Councilman Rob Patridge said Anderson didn't have the right leadership skills. Casey said an ultimatum given Anderson by the Council to quit or be fired set city government back to back-room politics and politics for the few. Ferguson filed a complaint with the state that the council violated Oregon's open meetings law, but state officials declined to investigate. The council later in the month refused to form a committee to determine if it violated the city charter in its dealings with Anderson. The deciding vote was the same 4-4 deadlock with Lausmann breaking the tie that occurred in two other key votes earlier. The deadlock three times pitted Curt Bennett, Sal Esquivel, Skip Knight and Rob Patridge against Casey, Ferguson, Jim Key and Bill Moore. Casey on July 24 said a recall would just take care of a lot of things. Ferguson resigned from the council in September, saying she'd lost her enthusiasm for the job. 8. HMO POLITICS SNARL HEALTH CARE FOR THOUSANDS. For many Southern Oregon residents, 1997 was the year they no longer could afford to ignore all that alphabet soup associated with the health care industry -- such as HMO, IPA and PPO -- without losing their longtime doctors. Most of the physicians in Jackson County found themselves members of one of two independent physician associations: PrimeCare, aligned with Rogue Valley Medical Center and Ashland Community Hospital and including many of the valley's specialists; and Physicians Health Alliance, representing doctors aligned with Providence Medford Medical Center and the Medford Clinic. Having two major physician groups to negotiate 1998 health care contracts with has further embroiled health maintenance organizations in both the local politics and economics of health care. The result? Some of the largest health insurers in Jackson County are preparing to tell thousands of patients for the first time that they can no longer see the doctor of their choice in 1998. 9. ROGUE COMMUNITY COLLEGE OPENS MEDFORD CAMPUS. Rogue Community College opened its new Medford center at 9th and Riverside this fall with a roster of more than 200 classes, and more than 1.700 county residents signed up for instruction. Medford business and civic leaders hailed the center as an important link in the revitalization of the downtown core. RCC officials say they envision the Medford center as the hub of an eventual network of satellite programs in offices and plants at rural areas around the county. Jackson and Josephine County voters approved the annexation of Jackson County into RCC's community college district in May of 1996. 10. BURRILL LUMBER ANNOUNCES THE MILL'S CLOSURE. After 56 years in the timber industry, Eugene F. Burrill Lumber Co. announced plans in early December to close, idling 120 workers. It's the 15th Rogue Valley forest products plant to close in the past decade; most have blamed a shortage of federal timber to process. May you live in interesting times is an ancient Chinese curse. May 1998 bring us all more blessings than troubles, but with just enough spice to make life in the Rogue Valley richly rewarding.