Both the Oregon House and Senate signed off on legislation Monday that will designate Highway 35 from the Columbia River south to Highway 26 as the Oregon Nisei Veterans World War II Memorial Highway.  It would be the first state highway to honor Oregon’s Japanese American soldiers, who faced discrimination, battled prejudice, and fought for freedom both at home and abroad.  Hood River State Senator Chuck Thomsen introduced the bill early in the short legislative session, and Hood River Representative Anna Williams and Eugene Senator James Manning, Jr. also signed on as chief sponsors.  The bill is headed to Governor Kate Brown for her signature.  Signs will be privately funded at no cost to the state.  Donations are being accepted by American Legion Post 22 in Hood River.

Hood River City Councilors approved the first reading of an ordinance to change the zoning for the property at 780 Rand Road from R-1 low density residential to R-3 high density.  It’s the latest step in the City’s effort to construct an affordable housing development on the land.  There was some testimony expressing concern that a traffic study done in September of 2016 was used in preparing staff’s recommendation for approval, but municipal senior planner Kevin Liburdy pointed out that will be addressed in site plan reviews for a development.  Liburdy added that a signal light is to be constructed at the nearby intersection of Rand Road and Cascade Avenue in 2023 or 2024.

Traffic at a week-long COVID-19 vaccination clinic in The Dalles that concluded Monday was fairly steady, with about 50 people getting shots on the first day and about 30 to 40 each day after that.  North Central Public Health District Health Officer Dr. Mimi McDonell says they will continue to emphasize the need to get booster shots.  McDonell says only about 40 percent of Wasco County’s residents have received a COVID-19 booster.  She added North Central Public Health District has in-home COVID-19 testing kits available.  

New guidance announced by the states of Oregon and Washington on Monday will lift masking requirements in most public indoor locations and for schools on March 12.  State officials cited improved modeling and changes in federal Centers for Disease Control recommendations in moving up the date to lift the face covering requirements for the second time.  Oregon Health Authority state epidemiologist Dr. Dean Sidelinger explained the continued steep drop in COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state is allowing the state to move forward.  Sidelinger said masks will continue to be an important tool for those most at-risk from COVID-19, adding he hopes local officials will make decisions based on their own situations.  Oregon Department of Education director Colt Gill said new guidance will be given to school districts later this week, noting this marks a shift in responsibility from the state to local public health departments and school districts.      

White Salmon City Administrator Pat Munyan has announced his resignation after 12 years on the job.  A statement issued by the City indicated his tenure will conclude on June 30, with the option to depart earlier.  Munyan said he has enjoyed being in the position, and hopes he made a positive difference in the community.  White Salmon Mayor Marla Keethler noted Munyan served in his role during a period of immense change, adding his expertise was essential to ending the City’s water moratorium that he inherited when taking over the job.  Keethler has indicated she plans to restructure the position of City Administrator and Public Works Director, saying she believes reevaluating the positions and the skillsets they require is necessary to meet the demands of the times.

Klickitat County Commissioners on Wednesday will attend a meeting of the Klickitat Community Council to discuss the future of the old mill site in that town.  County Commissioner Dan Christopher says the County’s portion of the old site has been cleaned up, and as the County will be looking to divest itself of the property, they want to hear the Klickitat community’s views of what they want the land to become.  Christopher says the County has been going through a process of preparing to divest itself of some properties that they do not have a use for so they can be put back on the tax rolls.  The meeting in Klickitat will take place on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the Klickitat Community Center.

North Wasco County School District 21 is going to hold a community forum on Tuesday to launch a strategic planning process.  A statement from the district says Superintendent Carolyn Bernal will discuss the process along with upcoming opportunities for public input.  The process is to help develop D-21’s vision for the next 5 years.  The forum will be on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at The Dalles Middle School Commons.  The meeting will also be available virtually, with a link available at the D-21 website, nwasco.k12.or.us.

The Hood River City Council recently held their annual goal-setting session, but will not finalize their goals for a couple of more weeks. New City Manager Abigail Elder says that the goals will be fairly similar to what they have been in recent years, including affordable housing, parks and open space, finishing COVID-19 responses, equity, and engaging with the public. Elder said the session provided an opportunity for her to learn more about the City’s goals as a newcomer to her job, having started on November 1. She says the Council is expected to adopt the 2022 goals on March 14.

Wrestling

Hood River Valley’s Connor Farlow finished sixth at 106 pounds at the Oregon Class 5A Wrestling Championships at Ridgeview High School in Redmond.  Farlow won his first two matches to reach the semi-finals, but then dropped his final three, including a rematch with St. Helens’ Evan Willis in the fifth place match.  Farlow had defeated Willis in the first round.  Farlow was the only area wrestler to earn a placing finish at the tournament.  HRV’s Carson Farlow went 2-2 at 132 pounds and Robert Wood was 0-2 at 113.  For The Dalles, Taylor Moorehouse won one out of three matches at 170 and Silas Parsons was 0-2 at 220.

  Boys Basketball

South Wasco stayed unbeaten and rolled to the final eight in the Oregon Class 1A Boys Basketball Tournament with a 62-39 win over Mohawk in Maupin.  The Redsides won their 23^rd game in a row.  South Wasco advances to the quarter-finals in Baker City, and will play Rogue Valley Adventist Academy on Wednesday evening at 6:30.

  Girls Basketball

Trout Lake upset St. Paul 37-33 for their second straight Oregon Class 1A Girls Basketball Tournament win on the road and advance to the final eight in Baker City.  The Mustangs will face Damascus Christian on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in a quarter-final game.

Oregon will now lift mask requirements for indoor public places and Oregon’s schools on March 19.  The Oregon Health Authority made the announcement today, as hospitalizations drop and are projected to reach levels below those at the start of the Omicron surge.  Earlier this month, OHA announced that the general indoor mask requirement would be lifted by March 31, with the option of lifting it sooner if conditions improved enough.  Originally, OHA announced that the K-12 indoor mask rule would lift on March 31.  Feedback from school districts around the state indicated that preparations for the transition could be completed earlier.  By March 19, it was expected, 400 or fewer people per day in Oregon would be hospitalized with the virus, a level the state experienced prior to the arrival of the Omicron variant.  A recent modeling report by Oregon Health & Science University predicted the state would reach that total around March 20.  Daily COVID-19 hospitalizations have declined 48% since peaking in late January.   Over the past two weeks, hospitalizations have fallen by an average of more than 30 a day, down to 579 on Wednesday.  Reported COVID-19 infections also have dropped precipitously in recent weeks.