Law enforcement personnel from Oregon and Washington will square off in the annual Pig Bowl flag football game on Saturday evening at Sid White Field on the Wahtonka campus in The Dalles.  The game each year raises money for a pair of families in the region in need.  Michael Holloran of the Oregon State Police says the officers play the game as a way to give back to the community.  Those benefiting from this year’s game include Tana Slawson of Goldendale…who is battling a brain tumor, and the family of Lila May Schow of Hood River, who passed away last weekend at the age of five after a three-and-a-half year fight with neuroblastoma.  People can purchase points for their team now and during the game, which starts at 7 p.m. Saturday.  Donations can be made on-line at pigbowl.net.

Klickitat County Commissioners have extended the burn ban in unincorporated areas of the County to October 15.  The original expiration was September 30, but due to the hot and dry nature of this summer, Commissioners decided to add at least two weeks to the ban.  Attended camp fires will be allowed in the Mt. Adams Guler County Park in Trout Lake within the designated eight-foot cleared area with steel fire rings.   The County and the Washington Department of Natural Resources reserves the right to ban at any time all campfires within the Park during periods of extreme fire danger.  The burn ban does not impact incorporated communities in Klickitat County.

Friday is National POW/MIA Recognition Day.  The Mid-Columbia Veterans Memorial Committee will hold a memorial of those service members who were prisoners of war or went missing in action at the Veterans Memorial at Sorosis Point Viewpoint in The Dalles.  It will begin at 6 p.m. Friday.  88,000 Americans remain missing and unaccounted for since World War I, and 138,000 Americans were prisoners of war.

The Horsethief Butte Fire in south-central Klickitat County is now 95 percent contained, and a state management team turned control back over to local fire districts Wednesday morning.  Klickitat County Emergency Management says the fire burned 7,930 acres.  No homes were lost in the blaze that started Sunday afternoon near Oak Creek Road and quickly moved east toward Wishram.  Crews on Tuesday worked to achieve final containment and mopped up around structures.  Repair of interior dozer lines on state park lands was also completed.  There will be visible smoke and burning inside the fire perimeter until there is a wetting rain or all fuels are consumed.  A Washington Department of Natural Resources investigation into the cause of the fire is on-going.

The Hood River City Council is interested in looking at the option of assessing a tax of selling marijuana products in the City once a permanent retail system for the product is put in place.  City Manager Steve Wheeler says the Legislature has left the door open for local governments to generate revenue from the sale of recreational marijuana as it becomes legalized by the state through a three percent tax.  Wheeler says to assess the local tax, it would have to be approved by voters in the November 2016 ballot.  He also points out there is no provision for local taxation in the interim period starting in October when medical marijuana outlets can sell recreational marijuana while the permanent system is developed.

The White Salmon Valley School District is in the process of finishing the first draft of a study and survey of its facilities.  It’s a requirement of the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction as a first step in planning for capital projects.  Superintendent Jerry Lewis says a task force made up of a district board member, staff, and community members have been working on the study along with the Southwest Washington Educational Service District.  Lewis says the district is currently dealing with capacity issues, particularly at the K-8 level.

Volleyball Hood River Valley def. Pendleton 25-16, 25-12, 14-25, 25-23:  The Eagles won their Columbia River Conference opener, defeating Pendleton for the first time in three years.  Rebecca Johnston had 18 perfect passes and 25 digs, while Emily Curtis had 26 assists. The Dalles def. Redmond 25-15, 25-16, 25-12 Kalama def. Columbia 25-15, 25-15, 25-10 King’s Way Christian def. Stevenson 25-12, 25-23, 25-9 Dufur def. South Wasco 25-16, 25-18, 25-16 Horizon Christian def. Sherman 25-23, 25-22, 13-25, 27-25 Goldendale def. LaSalle 21-25, 25-8, 25-18, 25-18   Boys Soccer Hood River Valley 2, Central Catholic 0 Ridgeview 1, The Dalles 0   Girls Soccer Central Catholic 3, Hood River Valley 0 Ridgeview 2, The Dalles 1 King’s Way Christian 9, Columbia 0

Hood River City Councilors gave more detailed instructions to municipal staff on what they want to see done with short-term rentals in their ordinances as the affordable housing discussion continues.  City Manager Steve Wheeler says they are looking at breaking short-term rentals in to three categories.  One category would involve renting out rooms in a home the property owner lives in and another would involve long-term residents of at least 270 days a year with an auxiliary short-term use, and Wheeler said both would be allowed.  But a third category that would involve properties the owner doesn’t live at and are managed for short-term rentals would be targeted for what Wheeler termed a “very gradual” phase out involving an amortization period.  Mayor Paul Blackburn believes they would begin with permits for already existing vacation rentals, with the possibility that as properties sell they would not be renewed.  Blackburn said he feels the housing stock is so limited by the urban growth boundary that Hood River needs people living in the houses it has.

After a series of town hall meetings in communities heavily impacted by recent wildfires, Oregon Second District Congressman Greg Walden renewed his call for the Senate to pass meaningful forest reform legislation to help reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire.  The Hood River Republican says while there needs to be change in how the government pays for fighting wildfires to be more reasonable and rational, that’s nothing compared to the need to better manage federal forests.  Walden wants the Senate to take action on the Resilient Federal Forests Act, which passed the House in July.

It’s too early to draw full conclusions on enrollment, but after one week of classes in the Hood River County School District it is apparent that three elementary schools are at capacity.  Superintendent Dan Goldman says the crowding issues are at Westside, May Street. and Mid-Valley elementary schools.  He says they are reaching a crisis point, and while they were able to add a teacher at Mid-Valley and a kindergarten teacher at Westside was brought in to handle an unexpected jump in enrollment, there isn’t really any place else in those facilities to create more classroom space.  The district is in the midst of a long-term facilities planning process, and recommendations are expected from a committee in a few months.