The Hood River County School District says it is now able to welcome volunteers back into their buildings.  Superintendent Rich Polkinghorn says they have had some essential volunteers in the building all year, but now they can accept anyone who wants to help in the classroom.  To learn more about becoming a Hood River County School District volunteer, go to the district website at hoodriver.k12.or.us.

The Dalles Community Action Team is getting ready to make its first in-person trip to Washington, D.C. in two years to make a pitch for area projects to receive federal funding.  Port of The Dalles Executive Director Andrea Klaas says eight Wasco County agencies are preparing their lists for a traveling team as they look to resume the semi-annual trips to meet with legislators and various federal departments.  Klaas says the last two years they’ve done virtual visits, but notes the in-person element is important.  Among the items to be discussed on the trip:  Columbia Gorge Community College’s aviation technician program, an Internet connection facility to allow Internet traffic to travel east out of the Gorge rather than just to the west as it the case now, and federal forest policy and the loss of revenue that has taken place as a result over the years.

One Community Health is launching a new mobile clinic, named “La Clínica.”  La Clínica will be staffed by a bilingual team and offer a range of services.  The clinic will work to improve access to health care in the areas of Parkdale, Odell, Cascade Locks, Celilo Village, Lone Pine, and The Dalles, with plans to eventually to provide services in Klickitat and Skamania counties in the near future as part of an overall campaign to recognize the impact of these social determinants of health.  Launch parties will be held at La Clínica’s weekly locations beginning next Monday at 1 p.m. at Celilo Village.  They are also planned for March 23 at 1 p.m. at Cascade Locks Elementary School, March 28 at 3 p.m. at Lone Pine, and March 29 at 9 a.m. at The Dalles Pallet Shelter and at 1 p.m. at St. Vincent dePaul in The Dalles.  A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be April 1 at 1 p.m. at Wy’east Community Church in Odell.  More information is available at onecommunityhealth.org/LaClinicaMobile.

A former CEO of the Warm Springs Economic Development Corporation pleaded guilty today in federal court in Portland for his role in a fraud scheme targeting the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.  66-year-old Roderick Ariwite pleaded guilty to theft of funds from a tribal organization and interstate transportation of a security taken by fraud.  According to court documents, Ariwite and an accomplice, 49-year-old former Warm Springs Construction Enterprise manager Thomas Valentino Adams, created a construction company that while drawing tribal salaries and travel reimbursements, the pair engaged in work projects.  In 2018, Ariwite and Adams used tribal funds to hire a subcontractor for their company’s project and submitted vouchers for expenses they incurred on behalf of themselves and the company, which were reimbursed with tribal funds.  In total, Ariwite and Adams’ scheme cost the Warm Springs Tribes more than $50,000.  Ariwite faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison, a $500,000 fine and three years’ supervised release.  He will be sentenced in June 6.  Adams pleaded guilty to theft of funds from a Tribal organization in August, and will be sentenced March 29.

Hood River County Commission Chair Mike Oates says he is hoping that panel will return to in-person meetings next Monday.  Oates says he will be consulting with County Administrator Jeff Hecksel to determine if staff is ready to make that change.  Oates added that the meetings will continue to be available online.  The Wasco County Commission will return to an in-person meeting on Wednesday in the County Courthouse at 9 a.m.  They will also continue to stream the meetings by Zoom, with log-in information available at wascocounty.org.

The Dalles Public Works on Wednesday will begin a stormwater system main installation project on West 10th between Walnut and Snipes streets, and it will impact traffic in three stages.  The project will begin with intermittent eastbound lane closures on West 10th, with cones and signs will direct traffic to temporary lane adjustments for two or three days.  As the work area moves to the intersection of West 10th and Walnut, through traffic will be detoured to West 6th via Webber and Snipes.  The last stage of the project will require a full road closure on West 10th from Walnut to Snipes for up to eight days, with through traffic detoured to West 7th.  The estimated time for completion of the entire project is two to three weeks, weather permitting.  Work hours will be 6:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekdays and possibly during the weekends.  No parking will be allowed within the work area due to heavy equipment use and the location of the trench.  No parking signs will be place on the curb 48 hours before the project moves into each work area.

Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley announced today that the Warm Springs Housing Authority has secured a $1.03 million federal grant from the American Rescue Plan to rehabilitate 11 rental units for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.  The $1.03 million from the Indian Community Development Block Grant program in the 2021 American Rescue Plan that Wyden and Merkley voted for is to help eligible Tribes prevent, prepare for and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Tribal Chair Raymond Tsumpti said the grant will improve the tribe’s ability to continue responding to disproportionately high COVID numbers among its members.

In response to an uptick in threats against election workers after the 2020 election, Oregon lawmakers passed a measure this session that gives them greater protections.  House Bill 4144 increases the penalties for harassing election workers and shields their personal information.  The bill comes at the request of Secretary of State Shemia Fagan.  In a survey of Oregon Elections Division workers in her office, Fagan found 10 of the 13 people who responded had experienced threats or harassment.  Secretary of State’s office communications director Ben Morris says this measure will bolster what are already well-run elections.  Under the measure, the maximum penalty for harassing an election worker is punishable by 364 days in prison and a $6,250 fine.

Average gas prices continue to trend upward locally and around the Northwest.  AAA says the price of regular gas in Oregon is at $4.722 per gallon today, up over six cents from Wednesday, and in Washington it was $4.707, up by seven-and-a-half cents, and both are at all-time highs.  Locally, according to AAA figures…the average price in Wasco County is up 13 cents from Wednesday to $4.752 while in Sherman County it increased by six cents to $4.779 and in Hood River County it went up a penny to $4.724.  In Washington…the average price for regular gas in Klickitat County is up by just over eight cents per gallon from Wednesday at $4.602, and in Skamania County it was unchanged at $4.824.

The Oregon Department of Transportation says there will be no construction closure of The Dalles Bridge this weekend, but project delays may see more closures after the original Memorial Day target for completion.  ODOT says this weekend to expect delays up to 20 minutes during nighttime hours while flaggers control traffic across the bridge.  Crews will continue bridge deck replacement and continue forming new concrete panels at their pre-cast yard location.​  But ODOT officials say due to a range of challenges, compounded by labor and supply chain shortages related to the pandemic, the project is behind schedule and won’t be finished by Memorial Day.  ODOT says it does anticipate needing additional weekend closures later this year, but did guarantee there will be no closures during the peak cherry harvest season of June and July.  ODOT is working with community partners to finalize a plan, and a new schedule is expected to be released in May.