Oregon State University will hold community listening sessions June 4-6 about the future of Elliott State Forest. They’re considering using the forest for research.
It’s been a couple years since Elliott State Forest has been actively maintained. If OSU were to take it over, they would need a strategy to provide local revenue, access and recreational use, as well as a focus on conservation.
College of Forestry’s Jim Johnson says input from communities near the forest is crucial to help OSU develop a plan of how to meet these needs.
“What we hear from the local communities - the people that live in and around - that rely on the forest, that use it for recreation, that depend on the forest in some way will be really important to us as we develop this report,” said Johnson
OSU will present a report about how they plan to manage the forest to the State Land Board in December.
The listening sessions will be held from 6 to 8 pm on the following days:
June 4: North Bend Library, 1800 Sherman Ave., North Bend
June 5: Umpqua Discovery Center, 409 Riverfront Way, Reedsport
June 6: Douglas County Extension Annex, 1134 SE Douglas Ave., Roseburg