The Link will introduce redesigned bus routes in The Dalles, known as the Blue and Red Deviated Fixed Routes, effective September 13. Operating weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on an hourly schedule, officials with The Link say the new bi-directional design will provide a faster, more efficient route within The Dalles by eliminating stops on the outskirts and offering travel in both directions. The Link will continue to serve Water’s Edge and Port of The Dalles through its Dial-a-Ride service. Updated printed brochures and an online version will be available a week prior to the effective date at the LINK’s website at mcedd.org. Frequent riders are encouraged to consider the Gorge Transit Pass, which offers unlimited travel on fixed route service offered by The Link, Columbia Area Transit, Mt. Adams Transportation Services, and Skamania County Transit. They are available at gorgepass.com.
HR Schools Get Ready For Classes To Resume
The Hood River County School District is getting ready to start classes next week. What day a student starts depends on what grade they are in. Superintendent Bill Newton says if parents have any questions, the district has posted information on their website at hoodriver.k12.or.us. Early enrollment projections show the district with 40 students fewer than it was last year at this time. Newton says once again the drop is in the early grades. But he adds they usually don’t get a firm idea of what their true numbers are until about a month into the school year.
Limited Tickets Left For Maryhill Gala
There are a limited number of tickets remaining for Maryhill Museum of Art’s “Echoes of the Gorge” fundraiser set for September 6. Museum CEO Amy Behrens says they are raising funds for their programs and exhibits as they prepare for a milestone next year: the Centennial of the museum’s dedication by Queen Marie of Romania. Behrens adds that funds raised at the gala also goes toward providing access to the museum by subsidizing ticket revenue as part of several partnerships to make sure anyone who wants to visit Maryhill can do so. Tickets for the September 6 gala are available at maryhillmuseum.org.
Line Painting In The Dalles This Week
The Dalles Public Works Department will be painting the center and side lines on streets throughout the community through Thursday beginning at 6 a.m. each morning, weather permitting. Motorists are asked to watch for the crews and avoid driving on the wet paint. The paint truck will be preceded and followed by warning vehicles, with signs calling attention to the wet paint. The trucks will be spaced according to the necessary drying time of the paint. Attempting to pass or drive between the trucks will result in a messy striping job and paint damage to the motorist’s vehicle. Motorists are strongly advised to avoid the wet paint because it cannot be easily removed from vehicles.
Tickets For Distinguished Citizens Award Banquet On Sale
Tickets are on sale for The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Citizens Award Banquet coming up on Thursday, September 11 at the Fort Dalles Readiness Center. It’s the first time they’ve held the banquet in the late summer. Chamber CEO Lisa Farquharson says they made the move to get away from weather issues in the winter time that have led to some postponements in past years. She says with the selection of September 11 as the banquet date, they will also honor first responders. Tickets can be purchased at thedalleschamber.com.
North Bonneville Man Injured In Highway 14 Accident
A 63-year-old North Bonneville resident was injured in a one-vehicle accident that the Washington State Patrol attributed to the man having a medical episode while driving. According to the WSP, the truck the man was driving was westbound on Highway 14 at milepost 37 in Skamania County just before 5 p.m. Saturday when the vehicle drifted into the eastbound lane. It struck the guardrail and came to rest blocking the eastbound lane. The man was taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver. No one else was reported to be in the truck. The WSP did not indicated the nature of the medical episode.
Scheduled Planning Hearing On Hotel Cancelled
A scheduled hearing before the Hood River City Planning Commission on a site plan review application for a 135-room hotel at the location of the former Hood River News building on State Street across from the Hood River Library has been cancelled. Municipal Planning Director Dustin Nilsen says Monday’s hearing to review the application for development of the five-story Marriott hotel was scrubbed at the request of applicant Line 29 Architecture, and there is no date certain for it to be rescheduled. He adds a new notice of hearing will be required in the future should it be rescheduled. The proposed hotel had drawn plenty of negative comments. The packet for the hearing included mostly negative public feedback on the proposal, mostly centering around downtown parking and traffic impacts, and the size of the building itself being out of character with the surrounding community.
Construction To Start On White Salmon Water Infrastructure
Construction is set to begin Monday on water infrastructure upgrades along Spring Street and North Main Avenue in White Salmon. It is the start of the North Main Booster Pump Station Project, and city officials say it is designed to improve both everyday water service and emergency fire flow capacity for residents in the North Main/Simmons Road pressure zone. The new booster pump station is intended to restore and improve service to the zone by connecting it to the Spring Street Reservoir, which has sufficient capacity to meet current and future needs. The project is being funded by a $2.4 million state Public Works Board Loan as well as $177,500 in American Rescue Plan Act funding. It was originally scheduled to begin three weeks ago. The public should expect traffic impacts and potential detours in the construction area, especially as work moves westward. A detour map is available online at whitesalmonwa.gov.
Single Lane Traffic On West 6th Week Of August 18
Starting Monday West 6th Street in The Dalles will be down to a single lane between John L Scott and Spookys Pizza for the installation of a 24-inch PVC storm line. Bi-Mart entrances will be affected and closed one at a time as contractors bring the storm line north along the curbline and then turn west and connect into an existing storm manhole in the northern entrance to Bi-Mart. Installation of the storm line is estimated to take two to three weeks, but the single lane flagging is expected to only take pkXW next week. Pour and placement of the new curb and sidewalk on West 6th has progressed well with a majority being completed this week. Grading for the first phase of paving is currently scheduled for the week of September 15.
City of Hood River Preps For 2026 Bond Measure
The City of Hood River is beginning the process of preparing for a bond measure in November of 2026. City Manager Abigail Elder presented City Councilors a timeline for exploring going to the voters with a bond proposal, starting with a presentation on the process at the panel’s next meeting on September 8. Elder says they will have a special facilitated meeting on September 29 to consider a potential project list for bond funding. Once a list is gathered and levy rate estimates are put together, the final two months of this year the City will work with a consultant to do polling to gauge public support for a bond measure. The City Council identified general obligation bond funding as a “critical project” in its 2025-26 work plan.