Army Corps of Engineers officials in Portland say the Bonneville Dam navigation lock will allow vessels to pass through the lock beginning at 10 a.m. on September 30. The navigation lock was closed last Thursday after lock operators detected problems with the lock during operation. Engineers “dewatered” the lock on Friday and discovered the downstream concrete sill, a structure against which lock gates create a water-tight seal, had cracks. The Corps then closed the lock to vessels on the river. According to the Portland District engineering team, the damage they observed was unusual, and the annual inspections of the dam, last performed January 2017, did not reveal any abnormalities. Work on the lock will include demolition, drilling holes for rebar, forming the new sill structure and allowing time for the concrete to cure. The Bradford Island Visitor Center and recreation areas on Bradford and Robins islands are closed due to the lock issue. The fish hatchery at Bonneville is unaffected by the navigation lock and open to visitors, and the Corps’ Washington Shore Visitor Complex is also open. Corps’ Portland District Commander Col. Aaron Dorf says teams will work around the clock to construct the new sill and reopen the lock.

The Port of Hood River is considering ways to make the dock system in the Nichols Basin safer and more efficient.  Currently the dock is comprised of two separate floats purchased by the Port when Maritime Industries declared bankruptcy in 2012.  Port Executive Director Michael McElwee says the basin is heavily used in the summer, and this project entails a longer, wider, and safer ramp with a stronger attachment to the seawall.  The Port has budgeted $60,000 for the project in the current fiscal year’s budget, and McElwee says early quotes they have received have been well below that figure.

When The Dalles Community Action Team will be headed to Washington, D.C. next week for its half-yearly visit, one of the topics will be the long-discussed issue of allowing for an expansion of The Dalles urban growth boundary within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.  Wasco County Commissioner Scott Hege says the need for it is greater than ever, especially with a focus on buildable land to create employment.  He notes a 2013 study the City of The Dalles had done showed they were short of the state-required 20-year supply then, and Hege adds they are in a tighter squeeze now.  Hege says they will be asking the area’s representatives for help to move the issue through the Columbia River Gorge Commission.

The removal of a sunken tug boat on the Columbia River just downstream of Bonneville Dam will begin on Friday and continue through the weekend.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage and Diving will take part in the work.  A crane barge will be anchored and set-up on Friday, and divers will anchor the barge on the upstream side of the Tug DIANE and lower a current screen in place to protect divers from the high current.  Divers will remove any remaining fuel on the DIANE and install lifting chains on Saturday.  The crane will lift and remove the Tug DIANE on Sunday.  The Coast Guard will establish a safety zone around the operation and will have two boats on site during removal efforts to monitor operations.  The Bonneville Power Administration will be reducing daytime flows out of Bonneville Dam during the work.

Mid-Columbia Employment First is planning a community carnival next week for employers, future emploees, and agencies who support people with barriers to employment.  Mid-Columbia Employment First is made up of a group of agencies that partner with the state of Oregon to help individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities find employment in their communities.  Eastern Oregon Support Services Brokerage executive director Laura Noppenberger says they hope to bring together potential employers and employees in a fun environment with food, games, and music.  The event will be from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, September 19 in the Sorosis Park Pavilion.

Boys Soccer

Milwaukie 2, The Dalles 1

Volleyball

Goldendale def. Columbia 25-17, 25-18, 25-22

Echo def. Dufur 19-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-18, 15-11

South Wasco def. Sherman 25-16, 25-14, 25-19

Hood River City Councilors approved street and pedestrian frameworks for the Westside Area Concept Plan along with municipal planning commission recommendations that would allow staff to begin an update of the city’s transportation systems plan.  City Planning Director Dustin Nilson says the next step is to take the recommendation list and go through a scoping process involving the City Council, Public Works, the Oregon Department of Transportation, and the Department of Land Conservation and Development.  For the Westside Concept Plan itself, the next framework to be addressed will be parks and open space, which Nilsen says is in line with the parks master plan process currently involving the City, County, and Hood River Valley Parks and Recreation District.  The land use aspects of the concept plan will come after that.

The Dalles Community Action Team will be headed to Washington, D.C. next week for its biannual visit to pitch local projects and issues to federal officials.  Wasco County Commissioner Scott Hege says one of the topics on this year’s trip will be to advocate for forest policies to allow for sustainable harvests.  Hege says that would help keep forests healthy along with bringing needed revenues to county governments and creating employment.   Another Community Action Team focus for this trip will be the long-discussed issue of allowing for an expansion of The Dalles urban growth boundary within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.

Hood River County is working with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife on the problem of elk coming onto orchard lands and damaging them.  County Commission Chair Mike Oates, who also operates an orchard, says elk numbers in the Hood River Valley have increased since controlled hunts of elk were discontinued in 2011, and trail development in the Riordan Hill area has also contributed to the elk coming onto the orchards.  Oates says the state plans to reinstate the controlled hunts in 2020, but they will be different than in the past by spreading it out from August to December in an effort to move the elk to find new range to graze in.  He adds some orchardists have tried to use audio “booms” to try to drive away the elk from their property, but that led to complaints from people being awakened at night by the noise.

Boys Soccer

Livingstone Adventist Academy 5, Horizon Christian 1

Volleyball

Mabton def. Lyle-Wishram 25-19, 25-19, 25-19