July 15, 2026 3:50 a.m. 

By Andrew Griffth:

NR Today is reporting:

In a regular Monday meeting, the Roseburg City Council voted to accept grant funding to cover costs associated with March 2025 flooding recovery and discussed an update to the city manager recruitment process.

In a unanimous vote, the council passed a motion to accept a maximum amount of $1,600,000 from the Oregon Department of Emergency Management’s Public Assistance Grant Program.

The funds will go towards covering both upcoming and prior costs associated with recovery from flooding on March 16th of last year, when a storm caused heavy damage to areas across Roseburg. This led to a state of emergency declaration from Governor Tina Kotek.

According to the city’s agenda, the funding will cover up to 75% of recovery project and cleanup costs, including over $1,385,000 for ongoing work on the Parrot Creek Culvert Crossing Project, which aims to improve infrastructure on Eddy, Kane, and Giles streets in Roseburg.

Other costs reimbursed by the grant include over $63,500 for debris removal across the city and nearly $8,800 for work on the Happy Tails Dog Park at Templin Beach Park. In total, the grant would reimburse around $1,527,000 of the city’s just over $2,036,000 in recovery costs.

The council also discussed updates to an ongoing recruitment process for a new city manager following the retirement of Nikki Messenger and appointment of Roseburg Police Chief Gary Klopfenstein as city manager pro-tem.

According to City of Roseburg Human Resources Director John Van Winkle, interviews will tentatively take place the week of August 2. Three panels will take part in interviews: One consisting of the council, another of city staff and a third of community members put forth by the council.

Bryan Cosgrove, a senior consultant with the executive search firm GMP Consultants, said he has conducted 16 interviews for semifinalists and is recommending six candidates for interviews from 35 total applications.

More council coverage at www.nrtoday.com