Hood River City Councilors reached consensus to go forward with Requests for Qualifications from developers interested in a housing project on about seven acres on Rand Road that the City purchased last year.  A number of different alternatives were put together by Leland Consulting and all will be included in the RFQ documents, with the preferred alternative adding in two nearby acres of land owned by Hood River County where owner-occupied housing would be constructed while a combination of smaller dwellings and apartments would be constructed on the City land.  Leland’s Brian Vanneman told the Council the alternatives are meant to convey that there is no one correct solution.  Vanneman did indicate that affordable apartments will require 100 or more units to be feasible, that the City will need to write down the land costs, and that having owner-occupied housing would enable developers to pay most or all of primary infrastructure costs.

The Dalles City Council has decided to adopt the Employment Buildable Lands Inventory and amend the municipal comprehensive plan to reflect it.  Councilors hesitated in making that move a couple of months ago, worried approval would prevent The Dalles from being able to seek expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary after Google constructs its fourth and fifth phase projects that would consume a large chunk of what is currently listed as buildable lands.  But City Planning Director Alice Cannon told councilors they can update the data when that happens, explaining the plan is valuable even if it might not currently point toward a UGB expansion.  The lands inventory should be incorporated into the comp plan this summer.

The Hood River City Council approved the first reading of its middle housing code by a 6-1 vote.  The ordinance is an effort to allow duplexes, triplexes, and cottage-style housing in more zones to try to increase supply and provide affordable workforce housing.  It also allows it in the C-1 commercial zone, and last night Councilors added clarifying language to ensure that if they became short term rentals they would have to follow the same regulations as residential zones.  The ordinance will go through a second reading in two weeks.

The Dalles City Council asked numerous questions on a proposed plan for disbursement of the annual community service fee Google pays in its Enterprise Zone agreement for its Taylor Lakes facility.  The plan would call for using the Wasco County Economic Development Commission’s already existing Community Enhancement Project process to identify projects that would be vetted by Mid-Columbia Economic Development District before going to the City and County for approval.  But a number of Councilors were concerned about that list not having enough City involvement, and Councilor Dan Richardson said with Google’s possible fourth and fifth phases coming, it’s worth taking plenty of time to examine the disbursement process.  City Manager Julie Krueger said she will take questions back to the group that put the recommendation together, and report back to the Council.

The Hood River County Health Department is cancelling its planned COVID-19 vaccination clinic on Thursday.  That’s due to the Oregon Health Authority’s order to pause use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.  The OHA made that move after the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration recommended stopping inoculations with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as they review six cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot in women ages 18 to 48 after they had received the shot with that vaccine.  The Hood River County Health Department says those who registered for Thursday’s clinic will be notified, and they will share more information when they have it.  

A bill to codify using lottery funds to support the state’s Regional Solutions program passed a House committee Tuesday and is on its way to the Ways and Means Committee.  The bill formalizes what is already being done, paying for the County’s share of the program that provides Regional Coordinators to help deal with issues of local interest by taking it out of lottery revenue allocations, but nothing was ever put on paper to recognize it.  Wasco County Commissioner Steve Kramer says it’s important to get the arrangement in writing.  The bill was going to originally sent to the Revenue panel, but instead will be referred to Ways and Means.

Baseball Stevenson 9, Onalaska 8   Softball Onalaska 16, Stevenson 1   Track and Field Hannah Polkinghorn, Jessica Polkinghorn, Angel Sanchez, and Juan Acosta won two events apiece for Columbia in a three-school dual meet at Seton Catholic.  

Hood River County Administrator Jeff Hecksel says the County has received an estimate of the amount of American Rescue Fund dollars it will receive of $4.535 million.  The National Association of Counties provided the unofficial estimate.  Hecksel says the County can use the funds to deal with pandemic-related expenses, provide premiums to workers responding to the pandemic, water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure, and revenue replacement.  Hecksel adds the County is still awaiting specific guidance from the federal government.  County Commissioners Arthur Babitz and Bob Benton will lead a committee to consider use of the funds and make recommendations to the rest of the Commission.

There is a COVID-19 vaccination clinic scheduled for Friday in Sherman County.  It will take place Friday at the Sherman County Fairgrounds 4-H Pavilion, and is put on by Sherman County Medical Clinic and North Central Public Health District.  Anyone who lives or works in Sherman County and is over the age of 18 is eligible to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine that will be administered.  Appointments are available by calling 541-565-3325.  Limited walk-in vaccines will be available.

The Hood River County Health Department will hold a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for eligible groups on Thursday.  The clinic will take place at River of Life Assembly Church in Hood River, and will be using the Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine.  Farmworkers are a target of this clinic, but anyone in who is in a group currently eligible to receive the vaccine in Oregon can do so.  To register, go to hrccovid19.org, where an online schedule is available in both English and Spanish.  For more information or help with scheduling call 541-387-6911.