The annual Bingen-White Salmon Community Cleanup will take place Friday and Saturday. Put on by the White Salmon-Bingen Rotary Club and the Mt. Adams Chamber of Commerce, the cleanup is headquartered in Bingen on the south side of the railroad tracks adjacent to SDS Lumber. The Rotary Club’s Sean Ciemiewicz says the event has become a staple of spring cleanup for Bingen and White Salmon residents. The cleanup will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. both Friday and Saturday. For information on what can be brought to the cleanup, call 509-493-3630 or go to the Community Cleanup Facebook page.
Category: Uncategorized
Gorge Artists Open Studios This Weekend
It is Gorge Artists Open Studios weekend. Approximately 40 artists in the region, from Cascade Locks to The Dalles and in Oregon and Washington, will have their studios open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Sunday. Ted Olson says it’s a chance for people to look behind the scenes at how various artists create their work. Tour guide booklets are available at a number of locations throughout the Gorge, and online at gorgeartists.org.
Wasco Commission Approves Bond Agreement For Resolution Center
Wasco County Commissioners approved the bond agreement with the state for $4.5 million of lottery funding to go towards construction of the Columbia Gorge Resolution Center. County Administrative Officer Tyler Stone said this is just the first of several agreements the Commission will receive for mental, behavioral, and addiction health service center to be located in The Dalles. He added this agreement keeps the financial process moving. This funding was approved about two years ago by the Oregon Legislature, but Wasco County Sheriff Lane Magill said it took the ensuing amount of time to go through the bonding process.
Wasco County Approves Waivers For Dufur Ambulance
Wasco County Commissioners gave their support to Dufur Volunteer Ambulance as it seeks a pair of state rules waivers to make their emergency medical response more efficient. Dufur EMS Chief Sarah Smith told Commissioners they are looking to be able to allow responses with a driver and an EMT, rather than wait for a second EMT as required under state guidelines, and also to be able to meet at the scene instead of gathering in one place to accommodate a volunteer staff that in many cases live close to ten miles away from the town. Commission Chair Steve Kramer, who served for a number of years as a volunteer with Dufur Ambulance, noted the waivers would address long-standing issues. The County’s approval was necessary for Dufur Ambulance to seek the waiver from the state.
April 19 Prep Sports Roundup
Baseball
Putnam 10, Hood River Valley 6: Putnam came back from a 6-1 deficit after three innings to take its second win in the three game series.
The Dalles swept Molalla 11-1 and 27-3: The Riverhawks got their record back to .500 in the Tri-Valley Conference by winning two at Quinton Street Park.
Softball
The Dalles at Molalla, ppd.
Track and Field
Stevenson was the boys winner while Columbia was first in the girls’ standings in an eight-school meet in White Salmon. Columbia’s Jessica Polkinghorn won three events in the girls competition, while Stevenson’s Hudson Holzhauer won a pair in the boys’ part of the meet.
Boys Lacrosse
Lincoln 10, Hood River Valley 2
Port Of Cascade Locks & ACL Reach Deal For New Docks
The Port of Cascade Locks announced Tuesday a deal with American Cruise Lines to construct two new docks at the Cascade Locks Marina Park to provide a new landing for the Sternwheeler Columbia Gorge and ACL’s fleet of cruise ships operating in the Columbia River system. The multi-million-dollar project will be engineered and built by the company and will belong to the Port at the end of the 20-year lease. ACL will also make investments in the Marine area to improve access for cruise ship and Sternwheeler passengers and enhance the waterfront experience. Next steps will involve completing design and engineering and seeking a permit from the Army Corp of Engineers. The contract will allow the Port to regain control over the Sternwheeler Cafe and Visitors Center building. Port officials say they are working to bring what it calls a “highly regarded” full-service restaurant to that location. ACL and the Port are engaged in conversations about the operations of the Sternwheeler. The vessel recently completed a required drydocking for scheduled maintenance, and a complete repowering is underway with new, cleaner operating engines. The Port says it is committed to offering Gorge excursions on the sternwheeler this season.
BLM Approves Plan To Buy Land East Of Wasco
The Bureau of Land Management has approved a plan this month to acquire about 4,000 acres of private land in Sherman County. The land is located on the west side of the John Day River, approximately 14 miles east of Wasco. The area is generally referred to as McDonald’s Ferry and is on the west side of McDonald’s Crossing, which was used in the 1800’s as part of the Oregon National Historic Trail. The BLM says the lands would be managed to provide the public with a wide range of recreational opportunities, including boating access, camping, and hiking, and maintain and restore healthy rangelands and wildlife habitat, including the restoration of critical habitat for the Mid-Columbia Summer Steelhead. The BLM will acquire the lands from the Western Rivers Conservancy based on the parcels’ appraised fair market value with financial support from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The BLM still must complete the necessary realty transactions before obtaining the title to the land and will announce when public access is available.
HR County Schedules Hearing On Forest Carbon Project
The Hood River County Commission has scheduled a hearing on a proposal to enter into a forest carbon project with the Climate Trust. Under the proposal, the County would commit some of its forestlands to not be harvested for 40 years, and receive revenue through carbon credits sold by the Climate Trust. County Forester Doug Thiesies gave the Commission an estimate of $23.9 million through the program in seven to 10 years. Thiesies says revenue generated would be used for forestland acquisition. He also noted while this deal would commit County leadership to 40 years of sustainable, even flow harvest, that is what they already do now. County Commissioners scheduled the public hearing for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting on May 15 at 6 p.m.
Hearing Planned For Pump Storage EIS
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will hold a public hearing in early May on the draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Goldendale Energy Storage Project. Rye Development and project owner Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners say the $2 billion Goldendale Energy Storage Project will create 3,000 green jobs over a three-year construction period. It would also contribute $14 million annually in tax revenue to Klickitat County. The public hearing will take place on May 3 at the Goldendale Grange Hall in two sessions: from 10 a.m. to noon and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. FERC will also be taking written comments at its website through June 6.
Brun Named Next Door Volunteer Of The Year
In honor of National Volunteer Month, The Next Door named Becky Brun as its 2022 Volunteer of the Year. Brun has contributed her time to multiple programs of The Next Door, sharing ideas, connections, and resources with the organization and its program participants. Brun has been a part of its Promoting Prosperity program, and also volunteers as a mentor to local area youth through The Next Door’s Gorge Youth Mentoring program. The Next Door is the area’s largest human services nonprofit organization, and has 40 programs that serve children, families, teens, and more throughout the Gorge. The Next Door and Gorge Youth Mentoring rely on volunteers to carry out their efforts.