The City of The Dalles budget committee will start its work at the meeting on Monday.  Mayor Rich Mays says the City’s fiscal picture is a good one, thanks in part to funds from Google developments and conservative budgeting.  Mays says the general fund will be the first topic for the committee.  He adds inflation does impact the budget, between the rising costs of supplies and wage negotiations with the City’s employee unions.  The budget committee meets on Monday at 5:30 in The Dalles City Hall.

The Hood River City Council approved turning over a small piece of land on Tucker Road to the Big River Community Land Trust for development of a unit of affordable housing.  The narrow .07-acre lot once housed a pressure reducing valve for the City’s water supply, but the municipal transmission main is no longer in that area.  City officials say turning the property over to the land trust fits with their goals of developing more affordable housing.  If the land trust does not make substantial progress on developing the property within two years, the City can buy it back for a dollar.

The Bonneville Power Administration says substantial reward increases for the Northern Pikeminnow Sport Reward Fishery have been put in place for the 2022 season.   Opening day for the northern pikeminnow sport reward season is May 1 and this year anglers will earn $6, $8 or $10 – up from $5, $6 and $8 – for each pikeminnow that is at least nine inches long.   It’s the first reward increase since 2015.  The more fish caught, the more each pikeminnow is worth.  Specially tagged northern pikeminnow released by state fish and wildlife biologists into the Columbia and Snake rivers are each worth $200 to $500.  In addition to increasing reward amounts, program managers are making it easier to participate.  Online registration and an app are expected to debut early in the 2022 season, for more information go to pikeminnow.org.  Northern pikeminnow consume millions of young salmon and steelhead each year.  Since 1990, anglers paid through the program have removed nearly 5 million pikeminnow from the Columbia and Snake rivers.  

The Oregon Department of Human Services Child Welfare Division is asking the public to help find a 16-year-old girl in foster care who went missing from Junction City, and The Dalles is one of four locations DHS officials suspect she may be.  Payton Brazell Smith is 5-feet-6-inches tall and weighs 145 pounds, with green eyes and black hair with blue and other colors.  She has two nose piercings, a tattoo on her right inner arm that says “Hati,” and a tattoo of a heart on her upper left arm.  She also may be wearing a small black backpack, black Vans shoes with a blue butterfly on them, and a grey hoodie sweatshirt that says “Junction City.”  She is suspected to be in Portland, Junction City, The Dalles, or Tillamook, and is believed to be in danger.  DHS asks the public to contact 911 or local law enforcement if they believe they see her.

Columbia Gorge Community College will hold a memorial celebration of the life of Dr. Ernie Keller on June 11 at its campus in The Dalles.  Keller passed away in July of 2020 from complications of COVID-19, but services were deferred through the pandemic.  Keller became regional coordinator for career and vocational education with the Wasco County Educational Service District in 1977, earned his Doctorate of Education in 1989, and served as chair of the Wasco County Planning Commission during the Rajneesh era.  He retired in 2001, a year later winning election to the Columbia Gorge Community College board of trustees, where he served for the next 17 years.  Keller was instrumental in the college’s subsequent growth, both on The Dalles Campus and establishment of the Hood River – Indian Creek Campus in 2008.  The June 11 memorial is open to the public, hosted in the Columbia Gorge Regional Skills Center by the CGCC Foundation and the Keller Family.  Family members wish to raise $25,000 to fully endow the Dr. Ernest and Gloria Keller Scholarship Fund so this can continue to support students enrolled at CGCC.  If you would like to support the family’s efforts, please make your donation to the CGCC Foundation through its secure website at www.cgccfoundation.org.

Wasco County is seeking applicants to serve on the Public Transportation Advisory Committee.  The Committee advises County Commissioners and Public Transportation providers such as The Link Public Transit.  The advisory committee considers how transportation funds should be spent and provides the governing body with information about their community’s special transportation needs, particularly related to how projects will benefit seniors and persons with disabilities.  The Advisory Committee strives to represent all members of the community but is particularly focused on those with greater transportation needs such as those who are older, low-income, living in small communities, living with a disability, or other user groups who may rely on public transportation.  Interested persons can visit wascocounty.gov and go to the administrative services page to download an application.

Baseball</p> Hood River Valley 12, Crook County 0: The Eagles scored nine runs in the fifth inning to stay unbeaten in the Intermountain Conference.  Ryles Buckley drove in four runs, while Mason Spellecy drove in a pair while also combining with Jordan Webber on a five-inning no-hitter.</p> Ridgeview 9, The Dalles 0:  Manatu Crichton-Tunai had a pair of hits for the Riverhawks.</p> Dufur sweeps Sherman 11-0 and 6-5</p> Goldendale splits with LaSalle (WA), winning the opener 7-6 but falling in the nightcap 7-4</p>   Softball</p> Ridgeview 7, The Dalles 1:  Zoe LeBreton had two hits for the Riverhawks.</p> Hood River Valley 4, Crook County 3:  Marina Castaneda hit a three-run homer in the third inning, while Grace Rowan pitched four innings of scoreless relief to help the Eagles snap a three-game losing streak.</p> Columbia sweeps Seton Catholic 21-1 and 16-4</p>   Track and Field</p> Six athletes won two events apiece in a meet involving eight area schools at Sid White Field.  In boys’ competition, Anthony Jara and Juan Diego Contreras of The Dalles and Aaron Smith of Lyle-Wishram won two events each.  The Dalles’ Ruby Jaimes Mora and Zoe Dunn, and Dufur’s Ashley Bailey each won a pair of events in the girls’ portion of the meet.</p>   Boys Tennis</p> Goldendale 5, Highland 0</p>   Girls Tennis</p> Highland 3, Goldendale 2</p>   Girls Lacrosse</p> Grant 26, Hood River Valley 11</p>

The Dalles City Council approved the Intergovernmental Agreement for disbursement of Community Service Fees from Google for construction of two data centers on former aluminum plant property.  It calls for each taxing district involved to receive a share of the fees in proportion to its share of tax collections.  The agreement provides for 30 percent to go to North Wasco County School District 21, which Mayor Rich Mays says would be worth about $500,000 annually to the district once the fees go into effect, which would be when the centers are built.  And Wasco County Administrative Services Director Matthew Klebes says because they are fee dollars rather than tax dollars, D-21 will receive the funds rather than having them end up in the state school funding formula.  Mays noted the negotiations between the taxing agencies was contentious, but he believes that everyone is ready to move forward.  A number of other agencies have approved the IGA, which will go to Business Oregon for approval.

The Hood River City Council heard a presentation on an Affordable Housing Strategy it is expected to approve in May.  It was developed by a community task force and includes eight different strategies to pursue including infrastructure subsidies, land banking, a non-profit tax exemption, direct project subsidies, housing rehabilitation and preservation, an affordable housing ordinance, establishing the Westside Urban Renewal District, and pursuing a general obligation bond for housing projects.  City Senior Planner Jennifer Kaden said the more resources available, the more the City can do.  The Council is expected to adopt the strategy by resolution on May 9.

The Dalles Beautification Committee gave a presentation to City Councilors outlining achievements so far, and asking for about $28,000 of additional funding in the next fiscal year to work to clean-up downtown.  They are looking to do work on trees in the downtown core and improve benches and waste receptacles, along with coordinating with the Main Street program and urban renewal.  Mayor Rich Mays supports the request, and hopes the municipal budget committee will do the same.  The municipal budget committee starts meeting will be this Monday evening.