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Author: mbailey

Lane Closures On Hood River-White Salmon Bridge Next Week

Posted on by mbailey

The Hood River-White Salmon Bridge Authority will be installing monitoring equipment and solar panels on the Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge, and that will require intermittent single lane closures starting on Monday and continuing throughout the week.  The closures will be for two to four hours each day.  In addition, the bridge will be closed to all traffic starting at 11:30 next Thursday night, October 2, through 3:30 Friday morning, October 3, for preventative maintenance work, including wire rope lubrication and greasing of mechanical components.  In addition, single-lane closures may occur the week of October 6 to complete solar panel installation.

 

Traffic Stop Leads To Arrest And Meth Seizure

Posted on by mbailey

A traffic stop on Interstate 84 in The Dalles on Friday led to an arrest of a 48-year-old man and the seizure of about ten pounds of methamphetamine.  Jefferson County Sheriff Jason Pollock says detectives with the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team suspect Theodore “Teddy” Jokinen of supplying large quantities of methamphetamine throughout Central Oregon.  The Dalles Police Department initiated the traffic stop on Interstate 84 near milepost 85 for a speeding violation.  A K-9 from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office arrived on scene and found the odor of narcotics.  Pollock says a court-authorized search of the vehicle resulted in the discovery of approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine.  Jokinen’s cellular phone, and additional evidence related to drug trafficking were seized.  Jokinen was taken to the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility on charges of possession and distribution of methamphetamine.

 

Hood River Library Board Looks To Fill Vacancy

Posted on by mbailey

Hood River County Library District is accepting applications to fill an open position on its board of directors.  The appointee will serve the remainder of Brian Hackett’s term, which expires June 30, 2027.  Hackett recently resigned from the board.  The Library Board will review applications at their meeting on October 21 and swear in the new board member at their November 18 meeting.  Applications must be received by 5pm on Tuesday, October 7.  The Hood River County Library District Board of Directors has five board members.  Each member is elected by the registered voters of the district to serve a four-year term.  Applicants for the vacant position must be a registered voter who resides within Hood River County.  Interested candidates can request or view an information packet, which includes information about the district, position, and application/selection process, by contacting Rachael Fox at 541-387-7062, by email at rachael@hoodriverlibrary.org, or by visiting www.hoodriverlibrary.org/board.

Two Mid-Columbia Organizations Receive Cultural Trust Funds

Posted on by mbailey

An increase in fiscal year 2025 donations, as well as investment earnings, has resulted in an all-time high of $4.15 million awarded to cultural nonprofits and organizations statewide by the Oregon Cultural Trust.  The $4.15 million includes awards to 91 individual arts, heritage and humanities nonprofits, organizations and state cultural agencies.  Two are in the Mid-Columbia.  The Dalles Art Association will receive $30,723 to support the commissioning and installation of a permanent public artwork at the roundabout at the east entrance to downtown.  This collaborative project between The Dalles Art Center, Columbia Gorge Community College, the City of The Dalles will feature five large panels tiled in blue to evoke the Columbia River, each adorned with 3D metal fish sculptures reflecting the region’s aquatic biodiversity.  In addition, Columbia Gorge Discovery Center will receive $5,202 for honorariums and travel expenses for Native American partners who contribute to the Center’s Indian Autumn and Archaeological Roadshow.

 

September 23 Prep Sports Schedule

Posted on by mbailey

Volleyball

The Dalles def. Madras 25-20, 25-21, 25-12

Columbia def. Fort Vancouver 3-0

LaCenter def. Stevenson 3-0

Spray-Mitchell-Wheeler def. Lyle-Wishram 25-16, 25-17, 25-16

Dufur def. Bickleton 25-16, 25-19, 25-15

Condon def. Trout Lake-Glenwood 13-25, 25-14, 19-25, 25-21, 15-6

Ione-Arlington def. South Wasco 22-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-19, 16-14

Sherman def. Horizon Christian 25-15, 25-16, 25-12

 

Girls Soccer

Columbia 2, Fort Vancouver 0

LaCenter 4, Stevenson 0

 

Boys Soccer

Trout Lake-Horizon Christian 3, Irrigon 2

TD Council Approves Mobile Vendor Regulation Ordinance

Posted on by mbailey

The Dalles City Council on Monday night approved an ordinance revising regulations for mobile food vendors and transient merchants.  A change was made from the originally proposed ordinance two weeks ago, giving vendors and merchants twelve months to get land use approval once the City adopts a new land use process still to be developed.  The subject of the future of the Bread and Blessings meal distribution currently in the area of First and Union was again discussed, with a number of councilors saying they were willing to commit to find a location where it can operate in the wake of the ordinance adoption.  Councilor Rod Runyon did point out that the ordinance passage does not actually change public right of way regulations already in place.

HR Council Adopts TNC Fees

Posted on by mbailey

The Hood River City Council approved an annual fee schedule for what are termed Transportation Network Companies to operate within the City.  The TNC fees will annually charge each company like Uber $1000 plus another $100 for each driver accessing the company’s digital network to operate in Hood River.  City Manager Abigail Elder said the fees are modeled after other communities in Oregon.  The new fee schedule was approved unanimously.  Annual license fees for taxi cab companies and taxi cab permit fees for drivers remain unaffected by the TNC program.

QLife Awaits Word On Federal Award For Broadband

Posted on by mbailey

QLife Network is awaiting federal approval of a $10.4 million award from the Oregon Broadband Office to allow it to build infrastructure to deliver broadband internet to about 1,000 currently underserved residents, businesses, and schools in North Wasco County School District 21.  The money would come from the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program that is allocating over $42 billion around the country.  QLife Executive Director Liz Lance says the Oregon Broadband Office submitted its formal proposal to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration on Monday, and that agency will have 90 days to make a decision.  QLife is a collaboration of the City of The Dalles, Wasco County, and the Northern Wasco County People’s Utility District to improve broadband access to the community.

 

TD Council Passes Resolutions To Allow Volunteers To Receive Incidentals

Posted on by mbailey

The Dalles City Council passed a series of resolutions to allow mayors, councilors, and City-appointed volunteers to receive food, beverages, and incidental items if the benefits are declared to be a part of their official compensation policy.  The resolutions were need to comply with an Oregon Government Ethics Commission opinion issued in May.  Mayor Rich Mays notes in The Dalles councilors are essentially volunteers, but there are occasions when they do receive food and beverages at officials functions, so they had to adopt the resolutions.  The Council also had to vote on three separate resolutions to cover all of the panel’s seats and the Mayor’s position, and for each one the two members whose seat was being addressed left the Council Chambers to avoid conflict-of-interest issues.

Draft Of Management Plan Revisions For Disaster Recovery Posted

Posted on by mbailey

The draft of revisions to the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area management plan to modernize disaster recovery to address needs following the Rowena and Burdoin fires is now available for review at gorgecommission.org.  Revisions include clearly identifying one-for-one replacement as an expedited permit, allowing up to ten years from the incident to permit and rebuild, increasing size thresholds to accommodate new manufacturing and building standards, and permits for temporary uses including storage structures and manufactured or RV home use. Wasco County will be hosting two community information sessions to share the proposed amendments, with the first on September 30th at 5pm at the Steve Kramer Board Room at 401 E 3rd in The Dalles.  The session will include staff presentations, and the opportunity for one-on-one discussions.  A virtual option will be available.  A second information session is scheduled for the same location and time on November 6th.  Columbia River Gorge Commission staff will be hosting a Klickitat County information session on October 6th at 6 p.m. at the Lyle Community Center.  Public comment is open until October 22nd.  The goal is to present the amendments to the Gorge Commission at their November 12th meeting.

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