The Port of Hood River says scammers are targeting residents in Klickitat and Hood River Counties with text messages pretending to be from the Port collecting overdue toll charges. The messages include a link to pay the toll to avoid overdue charges. The Port of Hood River says it does not text drivers for outstanding toll amounts. The port mails invoices to customers who cross without paying when the toll booth is closed, and it will send texts to BreezeBy customers who have opted into receiving text messages, but those texts do not include links. If you have any questions regarding a text message that appears to be from the Port of Hood River, please contact the Port at 541-386-1645. The FBI became aware of this kind of tolling scam taking place around the country in March and has received more than 2,000 complaints since then. The scam seems to have started in the Midwest, with the Illinois Tollway being one of the first tolling agencies to report the problem.
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HR-WS Bridge Authority Gets Investment Grade Credit Rating
The effort to fund construction of a new Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge received another boost this week. The Hood River-White Salmon Bridge Authority received an Investment Grade credit rating. Authority board member Jacob Anderson says this paves the way to qualify for a low-interest federal loan that will provide the approximately $70 million of local match anticipated to be needed to complete the funding stack for the project. About $360 million of the necessary $520 million in funds have been put together to this point. The authority is aiming for work on the new bridge to begin in 2025.
Joint City/County Meetings Planned In Both Hood River & The Dalles
Joint City Council and County Commission meetings are planned in both The Dalles and Hood River next week. On Monday, the Hood River City Council will host the Hood River County Commission for a joint meeting at City Hall beginning at 4 p.m. The agenda will feature a discussion of issues related to annexation, and updates on current housing initiatives and projects. Then on Wednesday, the Wasco County Commission and The Dalles City Council will get together at 1:30 p.m. in the Commission’s new meeting room on 401 East 3rd. Those panels will discuss policy for use of certain Strategic Investment Program funds that Google will pay as a result of agreements reached in 2021 for development of two new data centers.
The Dalles Police Seek Public Help For Information On Assault
The Dalles Police are asking the public for information related to an assault in the area of the 3000 block of Klindt Drive late Wednesday night. According to a police statement, the victim was a 65 year old woman who reported being assaulted near her residence on Wednesday night at about 11:30pm. The department says the victim was injured in the assault and only limited details about the attacker were available. If you were in the area of the 3000 block of Klindt Drive on Wednesday night around 11:30 and saw anything suspicious, please contact The Dalles Police at 541-296-2613 and ask for Sgt. Nagamatsu. Any detail can be helpful. Police added there is no reason to believe that there is an ongoing threat of any kind.
Applications Available For Hood River Council Vacancy
Applications are now being taken to fill the vacancy of the Hood River City Council left by the passing of Tim Counihan. City Manager Abigail Elder says applications are available now at City Hall or online at cityofhoodriver.gov, and will be taken through July 1. Candidates must include in their filing a resume describing their background and a statement of why they want to be considered for appointment. Councilors are eligible for a monthly stipend equivalent to 10% of the Area Median Income as the result of a resolution approved by the Council on Tuesday. In addition, a stipend for childcare cost incurred by a City Councilor while attending public meetings is available. The City will also provide a laptop or I-Pad for Council-related business.
Klickitat County Commission Decides On Creating Corrections Department
After a lengthy worksession revolving around a staff report on options for how correctional services should be handled, Klickitat County Commissioners came to agreement to have its staff prepare documents for creation of a Department of Corrections under County Commission control, and seek a consultant to consider the options of either maintaining the current jail with remodeling under the new department with staff to have a seven-day a week medical clinic, or contracting with NORCOR but maintaining booking and holding in Goldendale. They also directed staff to look to hire an interim jail manager, and the motion also removed the directive passed in late March that included closing the jail completely. After reviewing the staff jail report, Commissioners found the options that would have gone with contracting with NORCOR and closing the jail completely or building a completely new Klickitat County Jail to be unfeasible. Commissioner Jacob Anderson said he firmly believes this is a good step and compromise, but there is still a long way to go. Commissioner Dan Christopher said he wasn’t happy with how the board got to this point, but the decision that was made was the best available option before him.
Wasco County Planning Looking At Obstacles To Residential
The Wasco County Planning Department is considering obstacles to residential development as part of the statewide effort to create more housing. Planning Director Kelly Howsley Glover says the nuances of housing issues are different in for the unincorporated areas overseen for counties as opposed to the urban areas of cities. Glover says part of her process is looking at streamlining the permitting process to create new housing. Another issue that is much tougher to tackle revolves around aging infrastructure, and how to repair it and increase its capacity. Glover says they are working on data now, with an eye toward taking public input at the end of this year.
HR Council Pay To Jump In Bid To Increase Diversity
Hood River City Councilors approved significantly raising compensation for Councilors and the Mayor as a way of encouraging more people to feel like they can seek election to the panel and create more diversity on it. The Council approved a resolution putting financial compensation at ten percent of Hood River County’s Area Median Income for Councilors, and twenty percent for the Mayor. Based on 2023 statistics, Councilors’ pay would go from $50 to $742 a month, and the Mayor from $100 to $1483 a month. The new pay schedule would not go into effect until each Council position was up for election or an appointment was made to a vacated seat, so no current members are receiving an immediate bump in compensation. Mayor Paul Blackburn says the goal is to get a more diverse pool of candidates. When the resolution fully takes effect in 2027, the impact on the general fund will be approximately $72,000.
TD City Council Approves Extended Enterprise Zone For 280 Earth
The Dalles City Council approved a five-year extended enterprise zone tax abatement for a carbon sequestration company working on new technology in The Dalles. 280 Earth has already constructed a 500-ton test facility on River Trail Way at the Port of The Dalles, and is looking to construct a 5,000-ton production module on the same parcel. City Economic Development Officer Dan Spatz says the company sought the tax abatement to help offset the cost of carbon transport to Wyoming and show its investor base there is community support for the company in The Dalles. The abatement would only be for improvements to the parcel, and not for the land itself. 280 Earth is a spin-out from Google, but Google is no longer an investor in the project.
HR URA Board To Seek State Funds For Transfer Of Highway 281
The Hood River Urban Renewal Agency Board approved sending a pre-application and letter of support to the state’s Jurisdictional Transfer Advisory Committee seeking eventual funds to help transfer ownership of state Highway 281, or 12th and 13th Streets, between Pacific Avenue and Oak Street from the Oregon Department of Transportation to the City of Hood River. The move is being sought to allow for 12th and 13th Street improvements called for under the Heights Streetscape Plan. Urban Renewal Administrator Will Norris says they are taking a two-pronged approach, direct negotiations with ODOT and seeking a legislative appropriation for the transfer. The Hood River County Transportation District is also signing on to the support letter.