There are 32 days remaining in Washington’s legislative session, and lawmakers in Olympia are getting down to the key work revolving around budgets in the face of a large deficit. Among the funding decisions in the House Transportation Committee will involve the Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge. 17th District Representative David Stuebe is on that committee, and he remains optimistic the funding will be approved, especially with the amount of federal funding at stake. Stuebe says the Hood River Bridge plus the Interstate 5 bridge between Vancouver and Portland and the Slough Bridge on Highway 14 west of Camas are vital to the economy of the 17th District, and all need to be funded.
WAGAP Starts Match Campaign
Washington Gorge Action Programs has started a campaign to match a surprise $15,000 offer it has received for local programs from an anonymous donor. WAGAP Executive Director Jennifer Pauletto says the offer is open through the end of April, and donations can support any of the agency’s programs in Klickitat and Skamania counties. To donate with the matching offer…go online to wagap.org, visit one of the WAGAP offices in Bingen, Stevenson, or Goldendale, or mail it to WAGAP at P.O. Box 805 in Bingen, zip code 98605.
March 26 Prep Sports Roundup
Baseball
South Medford 14, Hood River Valley 5: The Panthers used an eight-run second inning to pull away. Landen Pratt drove in two runs for the Eagles.
Littleton (CO) 10, The Dalles 9: Littleton scored nine runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to win in Arizona. Will Booth and Cannon Stocks had two RBI apiece for the Riverhawks.
Sherman 16, Nyssa 4: Michael Blagg, Gage Simpson, Leven Whitbeck, Blake Carnine, and Drake Dark all drove in two runs for the Huskies, who won their third straight on an eastern road trip.
Softball
Stevenson sweeps Goldendale 16-4 and 20-0: Cayden Hulsey-Bible drove in four runs for the Bulldogs in the first game and three in the second contest.
March 25 Prep Sports Roundup
Baseball
Eagle Point 8, Hood River Valley 5: HRV’s late comeback effort fell short after Eagle Point took the lead in the middle innings. Tyson Harjo drove in three runs for HRV.
Vista Ridge (CO) 8, The Dalles 4: Vista Ridge scored three runs in each of the first two innings to jump out on top early and the hand the Riverhawks the loss in the first game of their Arizona trip. Finley Corbin had a pair of hits for The Dalles.
Columbia splits with Castle Rock, winning the opener 3-0 but losing the nightcap 8-0: Kai Brasuell allowed only four hits over six innings and Kellen Olson pitched a scoreless seventh to nail down the game 1 win for the Bruins.
Seton Catholic 26, Stevenson 1
Sherman 10, Riverside 0: Michael Blagg drove in four runs while Leven Whitbeck struck out nine over five innings.
Sherman 22, Ontario JV 12: The Huskies scored 16 runs in the final two innings to win.
Goldendale 10, Wapato 4: Brock Armstrong drove in three runs as the Timberwolves scored all of their runs in the final three innings.
Softball
Hood River Valley 12, Crook County 5: A two-run homer by Honey Bryan and a three-run double by Bella Belcher highlighted a seven-run first inning for the Eagles. Grace Rowan and Kenadie Lucas also hit home runs for HRV.
Hood River Valley 19, LaPine 3: Grace Rowan had four hits including a double and a home run while driving home seven runs. The Eagles put the game away with 14 runs in the bottom of the third inning.
Columbia sweeps Castle Rock 18-2 and 23-4: Kiera Bucher had four hits and five runs batted in game two after knocking home a pair of runs in the opener.
Seton Catholic 7, Stevenson 0
TD Council Approves Water Agreement With County & Parks
The Dalles City Council approved authorizing the City Manager to enter Intergovernmental Agreements with Wasco County and the Northern Wasco County Parks and Recreation District to cover the cost of municipal water service to District parks and Kramer Field. The agreements replace designated amounts to the district that were removed from the Transient Room Tax Ordinance in recent revisions. City Manager Matthew Klebes says as they finish up negotiations, a goal was to provide flexibility for inter-fund transfers. Under the agreements, the funding would be in the amounts reflective of each entity’s budgeted water costs, and includes provisions for automatic funding adjustments based on future City water rate changes. In other business, the Council approved amendments to city ordinances on animals that was debated a month ago, with changes in some of the definitions around poultry and livestock.
Bingen-White Salmon Police Officer Receives Life Saving Award
The City of White Salmon and the Bingen-White Salmon Police Department recognized Officer Will Sauter with a Life Saving Award in recognition of his swift and decisive actions that helped save a life during a medical emergency involving a fentanyl overdose. On the day of the incident, Sauter responded after hearing a dispatch for an overdose in progress, with CPR already underway. He was the first to arrive on scene, where he found one man attempting to revive his brother. Sauter immediately took over CPR and administered multiple doses of Naloxone, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses. After several minutes and a final dose, the individual began breathing again and regained a pulse. Emergency medical personnel arrived shortly after and transported the patient to the hospital for further care. The award was presented by Chief Mike Hepner during the White Salmon City Council meeting last week.
Hood River-White Salmon Bridge All-Electronic Tolling Starts April 1
The Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge will transition to all-electronic tolling on April 1. The Port of Hood River is encouraging local drivers to sign up for a BreezeBy account. BreezeBy allows tolls to be deducted automatically, with passenger vehicles paying just $1.75 per crossing on the Hood River Bridge, compared to $3.50 for non-account holders. Enrolled tribal members can apply for a Tribal Member BreezeBy Account for toll-free travel. Visit portofhoodriver.com to create an account and receive a transponder by mail. If you prefer not to open an account, tolls can be paid online at csc.portofhoodriver.com/paytoll within 14 days of crossing, or by cash/check at the Port office or 24/7 drop box. Paying after 14 days will result in an administrative fee of $3.00 being added to the toll. As part of the change, only the outer lanes will remain open, and the two middle lanes will be blocked off. Drivers should keep moving and not stop at the toll area. The red light will be removed, and signage will be posted to help inform drivers during the transition.
Man Rescued After Canyon Fall In Skamania County
Skamania County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue on Sunday rescued a man stranded in a canyon in the western part of the County after he fell into the canyon area when he got out of a stuck car. Skamania County Search and Rescue says Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife officers reached the trapped individual. After stabilizing the man to endure challenging extraction process, Skamania EMS & Rescue and Fire District #4 joined Search and Rescue to set up an intricate rope system requiring 600 feet of rope. A lower system was used to bring down a stretcher, an EMT, and two additional rescuers, who brought the man to safety. Once the subject was returned to the road, Fire District #4 and Skamania EMS & Rescue took over, providing further medical assistance and transport.
HR Council Rejects Brookside Annexation Agreement
In a split vote, Hood River City Councilors rejected an annexation agreement for eleven acres on Brookside Drive that would have led to a 50-unit housing development. The original concept envisioned when the City approved annexation of the land and a change to the C-2 mixed use zone in exchange for an easement to complete the Indian Creek Trail called for at least half of the units to be long-term housing for at least ten years, but developers Pacific Realty Advisors asked for that condition to be lifted. One of the developers, Reco Prianto, told the Council the cost of developing rental housing in Hood River is too high to be feasible. Councilors Doug Stepina, Amanda Goeke, and Anna Cavaleri voted for the agreement, but Grant Polson and Ben Mitchell along with Mayor Paul Blackburn were against, while Gladys Rivera was not present. The Council voted to ask Community Development Director Dustin Nilsen to continue talks with the developers. Nilsen noted the action does not impact the City receiving the easement for the trail.
The Dalles Council Talks Fireworks Regulations
After a lengthy and varied discussion on fireworks, The Dalles City Council asked municipal staff to develop some kind of ordinance which would create a trigger to put a restriction in place if weather conditions require it. The Dalles has prohibited the personal use of fireworks the last four years, but waiting until the latter part of June to do so. Mayor Rich Mays says they would like to find a better way to do it, but how is a question. City Manager Matthew Klebes says they should have an ordinance ready for consideration at the Council’s April 28 meeting.