Mayors in Oregon are asking the state legislature to provide cities funding to use in dealing with homeless issues.  Hood River Mayor Kate McBride says the Oregon Mayors Association has been working on the proposal since May, involving cities from Portland to Fossil in the discussion.  McBride says the group is asking for 40 dollars per capita per city to deal with identified local problems associated with homelessness.  The request will go to the Legislature for the upcoming 2023 session.

Washington Fourth District Congressman Dan Newhouse and the rest of the state’s delegation requested President Joe Biden urge his administration to support an increased budget for the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management to ensure the federal government can continue to meet its legal and moral obligation to cleanup operations at Hanford.  The lawmakers wrote that the funding is a top priority for the state of Washington, the communities surrounding the Hanford site, and regional Tribes.  The lawmakers’ letter noted this year marks the successful launch of the Tank Side Cesium Removal system, which is the first step in turning low-level waste into glass.  But they also said as design, engineering, and construction of the High-Level Waste Facility is added to the mission scope, it is imperative the Fiscal Year 2024 budget request reflects not only the necessary resources for a critical phase of Hanford cleanup operations, but also the need for continued adequate funding in the Richland Operations and Office of River Protection Environmental Management accounts for subsequent fiscal years.

A motorcyclist died in a head-on collision with van on the Historic Columbia River Highway near Rowena on Wednesday afternoon. According to the Oregon State Police, the motorcycle operated by 32-year-old Stefan Lovewell of The Dalles was traveling eastbound on Highway 30 near milepost 66 when for an unknown reason he drifted into the oncoming lane and collided head on with the van. The OSP says Lovewell was pronounced deceased at the scene. The driver of the van and a passenger were uninjured. The OSP was assisted by Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue and the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Football

Dufur 48, Ione-Arlington 8

Toledo 34, Stevenson 28

Boys Soccer

Putnam 1, Hood River Valley 1

Girls Soccer

Putnam 4, Hood River Valley 0

Fort Vancouver 2, Columbia 1

Volleyball

Columbia def. Seton Catholic 3-1

Stevenson def. King’s Way Christian 3-2

Goldendale def. Highland 3-0

Cross Country

Columbia’s girls won the Southwest Washington Class 1A championship at Lewis River Golf Course in Woodland. Ella Zimmerman finished fifth to lead the Bruins, while Raina McAllister was eighth. The Bruins used superior depth to overcome a 1-2 finish by runner-up Seton Catholic. Stevenson was fifth, led by Ruby Langer in 17th. Columbia was fourth and Stevenson ninth in the boys’ race. The Bruins’ Camden Uffelman was fifth.

With three of the top four finishers, Goldendale won the EWAC 2B Boys Championships at Apple Ridge in Yakima. Sean Henrikson led the Timberwolf contingent in second, with Raymond Holycross in third and Issac Call in fourth. Elliott Grindling also reached the top ten.

Cross Country

Hood River Valley held off Putnam to win the Northwest Oregon Conference girls’ championship at Blue Lake Park.  Phoebe Wood was third and Liv Nickson fifth to led the Eagles to the victory.  HRV’s boys were second to Wilsonville.  The Eagles’ Elliot Hawley was second and William Bunch tenth.  Both HRV squads qualified for the Oregon Class 5A Championships on November 5 at Lane Community College in Eugene.

  The Dalles grabbed four of the top six places to win the Tri-Valley Conference boys’ title at McIver Park.  Juan Diego Contreras and Leo Lemann led the way with a 1-2 finish, while teammates Egan Ziegenhagen and Tyson Long were fifth and sixth.  The Riverhawks finished third in a close girls’ run, three points back of Crook County and Molalla.  Alana Casady was the top runner for The Dalles in third to qualify for the state Class 4A meet in Eugene, and there is a chance the entire team could advance.  An additional team will be selected by a committee after all 4-A district meets have concluded on Saturday.

  Oregon Class 1A Volleyball Playoffs

First Round South Wasco def. Southwest Christian 25-11, 25-20, 25-11:  The Redsides advance to face Powder Valley in the second round on Saturday.

Prairie City def. Sherman 25-17, 25-23, 19-25, 25-19

The Hood River Urban Renewal Agency board voted to move forward with a proposed scope of work for Phase 3 of the Heights Streetscape project.  There were some changes from what was originally envisioned for this part of the planning process, including traffic calming on 13th Street, work to design  key intersections originally planned for the second phase, east-west street and parking design, a bicycle connection to Pacific Avenue, and a decision not to conduct a demonstration project because it is not feasible.  And more Urban Renewal board and advisory meetings were added to this phase.  Board member Mark Zanmiller did say there is still the issue of needing the Oregon Department of Transportation to give its approval to any plan before spending a large amount of money on design work.  12th and 13th through the Heights are both state highways.

The Dalles City Council has voted to send back a $1.6 million federal grant for the First Street Project because it will be faster and cheaper to do the work without it.  The money was awarded to the City and the Oregon Department of Transportation in 2009, and plans for the long-delayed project are now 95 percent complete.  But a finding that reconstruction of masonry walls between Union and Washington would be necessary carried with it the potential of delaying the project to 2026.  City staff found if the grant was sent back, it would cost the City $800,000 less to build the project and it would be done two years earlier.  The Oregon Department of Transportation, which had partnered with the City on the original application for the grant, confirmed it was willing to terminate the agreement.

The new Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative will present to city councils and county commissions next month as it shares its vision.  Led by Mid-Columbia Community Action Council and Washington Gorge Action Programs, nearly 40 organizations, local governments, and individuals formed the Collaborative to prevent and end houselessness in the region including Hood River, Wasco, and Sherman counties in Oregon and Skamania and Klickitat counties in Washington.  The Collaborative will start its presentation tour next Wednesday before the Sherman County Commission.  They plan visits to The Dalles City Council, Hood River County Commission, Hood River City Council, Skamania County Commission, Wasco County Commission, and Bingen City Council over the next two months.  A goal for the Collaborative includes preserving existing affordable housing and supporting partners with new construction projects. By 2027 the group plans to support the construction of at least 262 affordable, accessible housing units in the five-county Mid-Columbia region, including Hood River, Wasco, and Sherman counties in Oregon and Skamania and Klickitat counties in Washington.

Boys Soccer

Hood River Valley 4, Hillsboro 2

Girls Soccer

The Dalles 3, Molalla 0

Hillsboro 6, Hood River Valley 0

Corbett 1, Trout Lake 0

Seton Catholic 4, Columbia 1

King’s Way Christian 5, Stevenson 0

Highland 4, Goldendale 0

Volleyball

LaSalle def. Hood River Valley 25-3, 25-15, 25-7

King’s Way Christian def. Columbia 25-17, 25-14, 25-20

Castle Rock def. Stevenson 25-9, 18-25, 25-11, 25-18

Goldendale def. Kittitas 3-0

The Dalles’ Julie Summers was named Tri-Valley Conference Volleyball Coach of the Year and Kennedy Abbas Player of the Year as the league its annual awards in the sport. Jeilane Stewart and Zoe LeBreton joined Abbas in receiving first team all-conference honors, while Zoe Dunn and Lydia DiGennaro were picked to the second team, and Lilly Adams was tabbed for the third team. The Dalles will host Scappoose in a first-round match in the Oregon Class 5A playoffs on Saturday. Game time has not yet been announced.

The body of a 33-year-old old Camas trail runner was found early Sunday at the bottom of a cliff.  The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office said searchers had been looking for Nicholas Wells since his wife reported him missing Friday evening after he had gone on a run on the Pacific Crest Trail and not returned.  The Sheriff’s Office says due to the terrain, cell phone tower data on Saturday was not able to provide a narrow search location, leaving searchers working a wide search area including both the Pacific Crest and Ruckel Creek trails.  But more precise location information provided late in the evening by the family allowed searchers to locate Wells at about 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning at the bottom of an 80-foot cliff, about a mile from the freeway.  Searchers confirmed he was deceased, and his body was recovered on Sunday.  The Hood River Crag Rats, Portland Mountain Rescue, Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue, Clackamas Search and Rescue, Oregon Air National Guard, and the Sheriff’s Office all took part in the search.