Wasco County Commissioners are submitting a letter outlining issues they feel need to be addressed when an application is submitted to the Oregon Department of Energy for the proposed Deschutes Solar and Battery Energy Storage System Facility. The facility proposed by Brightnight LLC is about ten miles southwest of Maupin. County Planning Division Director Daniel Daugherty told the Commission this solar project is a bit different than others proposed in the region because of its proximity to the White River and Pine Grove areas. The County says in its letter that if the Land Use and Fish and Wildlife Habitat studies for the project do not incorporate all of the Pine Grove and White River Natural areas, they should be expanded to do so.
Author: mbailey
White Salmon Schools Committee To Take Single Campus Idea To The Public
The White Salmon Valley School District’s Facilities Advisory Committee worked Tuesday evening on reaching decision points to begin to take them to the public for feedback. District Superintendent Rich Polkinghorn says the big one is a recommendation to consolidate to one K-12 campus at the current Columbia High School and Henkle Middle School campus. Polkinghorn says a big factor in going to one campus would be to maximize state financial assistance to replace aging Whitson Elementary School. In addition, a downward trending enrollment picture for the next five years also points toward going to one campus for more efficiency in overall operations.
Mt. Hood Climbing Permits Available
Climbing season is picking up on Mt. Hood, and visitors planning to travel above an elevation of 9,500 feet need a climbing permit. The Mount Hood National Forest says permit fees fund climbing rangers, climbing safety information, and natural resources protection. Permits are available as a single trip 3-day pass for $20 or an annual pass for $50. No advance reservations are needed and there is no limit on the number of permits issued. Climbing permits are available for purchase any time on Recreation.gov up to the start of one’s climb. Permits are required year-round. The Forest Service says every year up to 10,000 people climb Mt. Hood and it is not uncommon for visitors with little or no mountaineering experience to attempt the technical ascent of the 11,240-foot peak. The Mt. Hood climbing permit funds climbing rangers to provide safety patrol and resource protection within the Mt. Hood Wilderness. It also helps provide better climbing safety education, increased coordination and collaboration with existing mountain safety and rescue organizations, improves sanitary conditions by reducing human waste, and enables infrastructure improvements.
Single Lane Closures Scheduled For Hood River-White Salmon Bridge
Single-lane closures on the Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge will take place next week. Crews will be performing annual deck welding repairs to maintain the bridge’s safety and structural integrity. Work will occur from Monday through Friday next week and the following week, between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Flaggers will direct traffic. Drivers are asked to move slowly through the narrow lanes, avoid looking at the welding arc, and allow extra time for your trip.
Two High-Speed Incidents On I-84 West Of Hood River
The Oregon State Police dealt with a pair of incidents involving high rates of speed on Interstate 84 west of Hood River on Wednesday. In the morning, the OSP reports a vehicle took off at over 100 miles per hour after a trooper attempted a traffic stop, and witnessed it recklessly cutting in between other traffic and going into the dirt before exiting at Cascade Locks. The vehicle was later found with a search reveal drugs and paraphernalia. The driver was not located. Then in the evening, an SUV was stopped after going 96 miles per hour on the freeway. A 52-year-old Portland woman was charged with DUII.
Hood River Receives Transportation Grant
The City of Hood River has been awarded an Accelerated Mobility Playbook Technical Grant from City Thread, a national non-profit organization that aims to make communities safer and better connected through transportation. The grant is to provide expert guidance, facilitating collaboration among local leaders and stakeholders, and connecting the City with a national network of peer communities working toward similar goals. While the City of Hood River has no walking or biking master plan, active transportation has been a focus through several planning efforts, including the creation of a Safe Routes to School plan funded by the Oregon Department of Transportation. Since the plan was accepted by City Council in 2022, nearly $10 million in funding has been raised for programs and infrastructure. The grant will provide a strategy to assist with Safe Routes to School network implementation and project coordination, build effective community partnerships, and amplify public support for the program’s infrastructure improvements.
Goldendale Woman Injured In I-84 Accident
A 53-year-old Goldendale woman was injured in a Tuesday afternoon motor vehicle accident on Interstate 84 east of The Dalles. According to Oregon State Police reports, a tote filled with Christmas decorations fell out of a utility trailer into the left lane of westbound Interstate 84 near milepost 96 at around 1:55 Tuesday afternoon. A car following the trailer attempted to avoid the box and hit the brakes. An SUV driven by the Goldendale woman tried to avoid the car by going to the right between it and a semi and box trailer in the right lane. The SUV rear-ended the car, and the semi- driver reported it then pinballed back and forth striking the median, pushing a couple of barriers into the eastbound median. The woman was taken to an area hospital, where the OSP says she was warned for careless driving and cited for following too close.
April 15 Prep Sports Roundup
Baseball
Hood River Valley 10, Parkrose 3: Kingston McAdam and Tyson Harjo both drove in two runs while Addison Postlewait had three hits as the Eagles won their Northwest Oregon Conference opener.
Seton Catholic 13, Columbia 3
Fort Vancouver 18, Stevenson 6
Pendleton JV 17, Sherman 5
Warden sweeps Goldendale 5-2 and 10-6
Softball
Hood River Valley 17, Parkrose 1: Grace Rowan hit three homers and drove in five runs, and Isa Rivera’s bases loaded double capped an 11-run fourth inning.
Seton Catholic 13, Columbia 0
Stevenson 21, Fort Vancouver 4: Rebecca Townsend went four for five with three RBI, while Cayden Hulsey-Bible drove in four runs.
Cle Elum-Roslyn sweeps Goldendale 23-9 and 16-2
Track and Field
Goldendale’s Matthew Gray won three events and Emma Meagher two at a five-school EWAC meet at Cle Elum-Roslyn.
Girls Golf
Hood River Valley’s Kristin Fox shot a 14-over-par 78 to finish fifth at a Northwest Oregon Conference tournament at Charbonneau Golf Course.
Girls Lacrosse
Hood River Valley 13, Ida B. Wells 4: The Eagles won their sixth match in a row after a season-opening loss.
Third Person Arrested In Connection With Hayes Death
A third person has been arrested in connection with the death of a Hood River man on Friday afternoon. Hood River Police Chief Neal Holste says the Columbia Gorge Major Crimes Team arrested 31-year-old Johnathan Bradly Matthews in The Dalles on Tuesday afternoon. Matthews was booked and charged with second degree murder, first degree robbery and theft, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, reckless driving, and reckless endangering. Matthews and two others arrested over the weekend, 36-year-old William Edward Hardy Jr. and 41-year-old Elizabeth June Bowman, are accused in the death of 38-year-old Stephen Hayes of Hood River. Hayes was hit by a truck on Friday afternoon following a confrontation with someone he had caught stealing property from his vehicle. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Hood River Police Detective Erin Mason at 541-387-5257.
MCCAC Receives State Funding For Housing 360 Pilot Program
Mid-Columbia Community Action Council has been awarded $1 million as part of Governor Tina Kotek’s new Housing 360 pilot program announced last week. The funding will support innovative approaches to housing individuals experiencing homelessness who face mental health challenges, with a special focus on Tribal communities in the Wasco County region who are disproportionately affected by homelessness. MCCAC’s partners in the Housing 360 pilot program include Nch’i Wana Housing, the Bridges to Health Pathways program of the Columbia Gorge Health Council, and Mid-Columbia Center for Living. The pilot projects aim to build a foundation for an informed, data-driven approach to helping residents struggling with mental illness transition from unsheltered homelessness into housing stability. Mid-Columbia Community Action is one of four organizations receiving Housing 360 grants, along with Benton County, Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action, and Washington County.