The Dalles City Council approved the municipal budget for Fiscal Year 2022-23 with a few modifications.  Most notable was to provide an additional $40,000 for the Fort Dalles Fourth fireworks display, bringing the total to $50,000.  New City Manager Matthew Klebes says that will provide another $15,000 for this year’s display, and $25,000 for 2023, to allow the Fort Dalles Fourth committee to better plan their expenditures.  The Council approved the budget unanimously.  There was some discussion about assigning a large percentage of Transient Room Tax revenues to The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce tourism promotion plan, and whether more TRT funds should be left to the discretion of the City Manager for other tourism-related uses, but Councilors decided that discussion would be more appropriate in preparation for future budgets.

North Central Public Health District has scheduled a two-day free COVID-19 vaccine clinic offering both walk-in and drive-through vaccinations later this week.  It is set for 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday at 523 E. 3rd St. in The Dalles, across from Sawyer’s Ace Hardware and Grinders Coffee.  No appointment is needed and everyone ages 5 and up is eligible for a vaccine.  No insurance or ID is required.  The Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available.

Wasco County Commissioners Steve Kramer and Scott Hege will be taking part Wednesday in the Association of Oregon Counties’ legislative committee retreat, leading to the cancellation of the usual County Commission meeting that would have taken place this week.  Kramer says the AOC’s panels current priorities are topped by housing, water, and mental and behavioral health.  Kramer would like to see mental health move to the top of the list, believing that component is a large part of other issues.  Kramer adds Mid-Columbia Center for Living is in the process of hiring a new executive director and getting that organization on the right track.

One Community Health in Hood River and The Dalles has its Test-To-Treat centers for COVID-19 up and running.  OCH program lead Jason Bradley says the Test-To-Treat centers are a pilot program in partnership with the Oregon Health Authority designed to offer one-stop COVID services through a federal program that has been focused on pharmacies.  The Test-To-Treat centers are currently open to One Community Health patients and individuals from underserved communities, with plans to expand access in the coming months.  They are located at the OCH clinics in Hood River and The Dalles.

Crews will be working on a crack sealing project in The Dalles later this week and into next week.  Segments of roads will be closed beginning on Thursday.  The project will start with a closure of East 12th from Thompson to Dry Hollow, followed by East 12th from Richmond to Thompson, East 15th from Morton to 16th, East 16th from 15th to Thompson, and Thompson from East 19th to East 10th.  Construction hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Motorists are asked to avoid the area and use alternate routes.

A delegation from The Dalles recently traveled to Missouri as part of the community’s involvement in the national Center for Rural Innovation cohort.  Port of The Dalles Executive Director Andrea Klaas says she and Carrie Pipinich of the Wasco County Economic Development Commission made the trip.  Klaas says the purpose of the cohort is how to bring in and support tech entrepreneurship in rural communities.  Klaas says they met with representatives of communities who have had some success with tech entrepreneurship, and saw examples of entrepreneurial networking space.  

Work is starting this week on a new entrance for the Hood River County Courthouse to improve security.  County Commission Chair Mike Oates said the project was delayed due to some historic building issues, but that has been worked through with the state and construction is getting underway.  The new entrance will be at the western end of the building.  Oates says work should be finished by the end of the month.  The Hood River County Courthouse was constructed in 1954.

A person reported to be passed out in his vehicle on Thursday in The Dalles was found in possession of fentanyl and methamphetaime.  According to The Dalles Police Department, officers were dispatched to do a welfare check when they noticed several pieces of drug paraphernalia and a container of blue pills inside the vehicle that were recognized to be fentanyl.  Officers also found a bag of methamphetamine weighing more than the violation amount of two grams.  The person was arrested for possessing a controlled substance and lodged at NORCOR.

A wanted subject was arrested in The Dalles with help from Wasco County’s newly established K-9 unit.  According to a statement from The Dalles Police Department, Wasco County Parole and Probation received a tip that a person wanted for a probation violation along with drug and weapons charges was in the area of East 10th Street in The Dalles.  After a short search, the subject was located in the area of the Shilo Inn but fled on foot.  The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office’s newly trained search dog Xena was brought in and quickly found the suspect hiding under The Dalles Bridge, near the Columbia River.  The suspect was taken into custody and lodged at NORCOR.  The suspect was not bitten during the apprehension.

Federal water managers are changing release and storage schedules at several Pacific Northwest dams because of a late season and strong atmospheric river that began late last week.  Significant amounts of rainfall have fallen across the Columbia River Basin filling reservoirs and rivers.  To assist in managing river stages at Vancouver, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is increasing storage behind John Day Dam.  Most dams on the Columbia and lower Snake rivers are “run of river” projects, but the John Day Dam provides for some storage capacity to aid in reducing flooding in the lower Columbia River.  The Corps will manage the reservoir up to elevation 268 feet by Thursday, which may impact shoreline trails and parks along the John Day reservoir shoreline.  Current flood risk management operations limiting outflows at John Day Dam is expected to keep the Columbia River at Vancouver just at flood stage, with an expected peak Monday.   Reservoirs in the Columbia Basin are being operated to release sufficient water to preserve storage space and capture incoming runoff. There are currently no control points downstream of Corps projects that are forecast to exceed flood stage, although several points throughout the basin will reach flood stage.