Ballot return remains slow locally as the deadline for people to vote in Oregon’s primary election nears.  As of the end of Friday, in Hood River County 20.3% of ballots had been returned, compared to 36.7 percent two years ago.  In Wasco County the current return rate is 18.6%, as opposed to 29.8% in 2020.  Both counties are ahead of the statewide rate is of 14.7%.  Both Hood River and Wasco counties have a pair of contested County Commission seats on the ballot, and there is a race for Circuit Judge.  One factor may be the new “Postmark Rule” in Oregon, which says that any ballot postmarked by Election Day is considered on time even if it arrives at elections offices up to seven days after the election.  Drop sites for ballots remain open until 8 p.m. Tuesday.

The Dalles Public Works is in the final week of conducting asphalt maintenance on 2nd St. in the downtown area.  Work will take place between Union and Lincoln streets and progress from east to west.  Work is scheduled from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday.  Lane closures will be in effect on 2nd St. throughout the day.  Intersections will be partially closed all day in each work area and opened to all motor vehicle traffic at the end of the day.  Motor vehicles and bicyclists will be detoured to adjacent side streets.  While 2nd Street will remain open to traffic throughout the project, use of alternate routes is encouraged.  Pedestrian and sidewalk access to downtown businesses remain open through the duration of this work.  The purpose of this work is to repair wheel ruts in both lanes of travel.

Baseball

Hood River Valley sweeps The Dalles 13-10 and 7-2: The Eagles clinched the Intermountain Conference championship with the doubleheader victory. Trenton Hughes drove in four runs in game one, while Hunter Hough pitched a three-hitter in the nightcap.

Dufur splits with Weston-McEwen, winning game one 1-0 and losing game two 6-5. The Rangers maintain a one-game lead over the Tiger-Scots in District 7.

Sherman splits with Grant Union, losing the opener 22-2 but winning game two 6-3.

Heppner sweeps Lyle-Wishram 19-0 and 24-1

Warden 5, Goldendale 4

Softball

Cle Elum-Roslyn 16, Goldendale 7

Toledo 16, Stevenson 6

Track and Field

Hood River Valley earned 13 invitations to the upcoming Class 5A state meet and The Dalles 10 at the Intermountain Conference Championships in Prineville. In the girls portion of the meet, HRV’s Maeve Woodruff won both the 800 and 1500 meters, and teammate Phoebe Wood won the 3000 meters, while The Dalles was first in both the 4 by 100 and 4 by 400 meter relays, and Zoe Dunn won the long jump. In the boys’ half of the meet, the Riverhawks’ Juan Diego Contreras won the 3000 meters, Taylor Morehouse the pole vault, and Jaxon Pullen the long jump, and the Eagles’ Shaw Burns took forst in the triple jump.

Columbia won the girls’ championship at the Trico League Sub-District meet at Seton Catholic. Chanele Reyes and Jessica Polkinghorn won two events apiece, while the Bruins swept the three relays.

Stevenson’s girls finished first at the Central 2B League Championship at Rainier. Sydney Cole won two events for the Bulldogs, while Stevenson also won two relay events.

Horizon Christian won the boys’ championship and Dufur the girls’ title at the Oregon Class 1A Special District 3 Championships at South Wasco. Dufur’s Marshal McLaughlin, Horizon Christian’s Caleb Yuan, and Lyle-Wishram’s Aaron Smith won two events apiece in the boys’ portion of the meet, while Abby Beal of Dufur, Macy Bell of South Wasco, and Hannah Lind of Lyle-Wishram did the same in the girls’ half.

Boys Lacrosse

Hood River Valley 14, Ida B. Wells 11

Hood River Valley 12, Lincoln 8

Softball

Hood River Valley 12, The Dalles 9, 12 innings:  HRV came back from a three-run deficit to pull into tie with the Riverhawks for the third and final Intermountain Conference playoff spot.  Sarah Mason homered in the seventh inning to tie the game at 5-5.  The Eagles then scored seven runs in the top of the 12^th inning, including a grand slam by Jessa Nickelsen.  The Riverhawks made things interesting with four runs in the bottom of the 12^th.

  Columbia split with King’s Way Christian, winning the opener 7-6 and then falling 4-3 in the nightcap.

  Baseball

Pilot Rock sweeps Sherman 13-11 and 7-5

  Southwest Washington Class 1A Boys Soccer Tournament

Columbia 3, Forks 0:  The Bruins clinch a state playoff invitation, and will play Montesano for third place in the district tourney on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Fort Vancouver High School.

  Girls Lacrosse

Oregon Episcopal 19, Hood River Valley 3

The long-running expansion of the Kingsley Reservoir is reaching its conclusion, and that means it will reopen to recreation sometime this summer.  Farmers Irrigation District Manager Les Perkins says substantial work is finished, with a bridge over the spillway, a building, a tower, and a couple of gates remaining.  Perkins says wet conditions have slowed that down, but they are moving as quickly as they can.  He hopes the reservoir will be open to recreation in early summer, adding there will be improvements in place, including a new boat ramp, enlarged staging area, more restrooms, and a new and larger campground.  Perkins says the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will be stocking the reservoir with fish in the latter part of May.

Ballot return for the primary election in Mid-Columbia counties remains behind 2020, but also ahead of the statewide pace.  According to figures from the Oregon Secretary of State’s office Thursday morning, 16.2% of ballots have been returned in Hood River County, 14.9% in Wasco County, and 16.4% in Sherman County.  Statewide, the return rate is 13%.  The Wasco County Clerk’s Office says two years ago, the return rate at a similar time was 23.2%, while the Hood River County’s elections office says the 2020 rate at this point was 28.4%.

Columbia Area Transit’s Master Plan Survey is open for another month.  The master plan willbe a key guiding document that outlines the delivery of community and regional transit services, and asks Hood River County and regional residents for input to help shape its future delivery of transportation services.  CAT officials say with Hood River County experiencing a growing population, becoming an increasing draw for recreation and tourism, and expanding local and regional employment opportunities, they want to hear from the community about how transit can address the changing conditions and include supportive transportation options like bike share, vanpools, and ridesharing.  CAT’s online survey is available in English and Spanish online at engagecatbus.org.  

Beginning on Monday, burning yard debris, material from fuel reduction projects, and other commercial forest slash will be prohibited for lands protected by The Dalles Unit of the Oregon Department of Forestry.  That includes private, municipal, county, and state owned lands within ODF’s protection boundary in Wasco and Hood River counties.  Landowners whose property is within a local fire district may be able to obtain a permit from their fire district for yard debris and burn barrels.  Recent precipitation has improved fuel moisture, including in live vegetation, however underlying long-term drought conditions continue to be a concern for firefighters.  Burn barrels with a valid burn permit will be allowed.  All fire must be extinguished by 11:00 a.m., with the fire attended at all times, and a shovel and water available.  Before ignition, verify burning is allowed by calling your local fire department or The Dalles Unit of ODF.  

Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington have adopted additional fishing days, beginning Thursday, for recreational spring Chinook salmon in the Columbia River downstream of Bonneville Dam.  This additional opportunity is based on a projected return of 161,800 upriver-origin adult spring Chinook.  The updated projection exceeds the preseason forecast of 122,900 adult fish and is slightly higher than the recent 10-year average return of these fish.  The specific season dates are from Thursday to May 22, and June 4 to June 15.  The bag limit is two adult hatchery Chinook or steelhead per day, but only one may be a Chinook.  Shad may also be retained.  The open area is from the Tongue Point/Rocky Point line upstream to Beacon Rock, plus bank angling only from Beacon Rock upstream to the Bonneville Dam deadline.  Fishery managers scheduled another hearing for next Wednesday to consider the latest information on catch rates and determine if additional fishing days can be added.

An early morning fire damaged a small strip mall on West 6th Street in The Dalles.  Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue District Chief Bob Palmer says the fire started around 1:12 a.m. Wednesday, and took over five hours for crews to bring under control.  An investigation into the fire is underway, but Palmer says it appears the fire originated in the center of the main structure, and then extend east into businesses.  He estimated 60 to 70 percent of the building suffered significant damage.  The Dalles Police Department and MCFR are investigating the cause of the fire, with the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office and the Oregon State Police involved as well.  Dallesport, Mosier, Cascade Locks, Dufur, Wamic, and Bingen fire departments all assisted in firefighting effort.  Palmer said one firefighter suffered a minor injury, but was treated on scene.