As part of the City of Hood River’s effort to encourage development of affordable workforce housing, municipal officials will be looking at a housing production strategy.  City Planning Director Dustin Nilsen says such a plan would target creation of affordable housing, and look at levers and options the City has to encourage or make available housing product that is not delivered by the market.  Hood River City Councilors are working on refining codes to allow for more middle housing options like duplexes, triplexes, and cottages.  Another task is to determine what kind of development is possible on land adjacent to Rand Road the City purchased with the intention of the property being used for housing.

The Mid-Columbia Community Action Council says it has been awarded $3,123,616 to support regional efforts to address houselessness and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.  With funding from Oregon Housing and Community Services through the federal Emergency Solutions Grant COVID-19 (ESG-CV) program, Community Action brought multiple organizations together to build a collaborative application for the funding.  The funds will help provide housing stability through regional shelters, housing payment assistance and culturally specific services to communities of color and native community members.  The community-based organizations participating in the collaborative include The Next Door, Nch’i Wana Housing, the Oregon Human Development Corporation, Hood River Shelter Services, Bridges to Health and the Mid-Columbia Housing Authority.

Two million dollars in grant funds have been made available to Washington Gorge Action Programs to help prevent evictions of low income households affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Skamania and Klickitat Counties. Funds come from the Federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act. The Treasury Rental Assistance Program is being administered by Washington State Department of Commerce, and are intended to prevent evictions that would contribute to the spread of the virus by paying past due, current due, future rent, and utilities, targeting limited resources to those who have experienced financial hardship due to the COVID-19 outbreak and are at risk of experiencing homelessness or housing instability. Households must meet three criteria: Have income that is at or below 80% of Area Median Income, be experiencing a financial hardship directly or indirectly due to the COVID-19 outbreak that threatens the household’s ability to pay the costs of the rental property when due, and be at risk of experiencing homelessness or currently experiencing housing instability. The program also provides assistance with rental payments that are past due, and with unpaid utility and home energy costs, including electricity, gas, water and sewer, trash removal and energy costs, such as fuel oil. To learn if you are eligible or to request an application contact WAGAP at (509) 493-2662 or email info@wagap.org.

Girls Soccer

LaSalle 8, Hood River Valley 0

  Baseball

Rainier 12, Stevenson 2

With Hood River City Councilors expected to wrap up work at a meeting next Monday on codes to allow for more middle housing options like duplexes, triplexes, and cottages, there will be more work to come on trying to create more affordable workforce housing.  City Planning Director Dustin Nilsen says next up is looking at what can be done with seven acres the City purchased on Rand Road to develop housing.  In addition, Nilsen says the City will look at a housing production strategy this year to consider levers and options the City may have to help incentivize or make available housing products not delivered by the market.

Klickitat County Commissioners will discuss needs for its planning department at its meeting on Tuesday.  County Commission Chair David Sauter says the County’s Comprehensive Plan is “woefully out of date” and needs to be updated.  He says that would be a huge multi-year project, but the Commission is committed to doing it.  They due to need to consider staff and budgetary needs to move forward on the plan update.  In addition, the County has a pending discussion on solar farm projects seeking to use the conditional use permit process, and Sauter notes a significant number of citizens want further sideboards on the scale and size of project that could be considered.

North Central Public Health District says through March 13, it had administered over 9,600 COVID-19 vaccine doses in its three county service area of Wasco, Sherman, and Gilliam counties.  Vaccines are being given to healthcare providers, emergency responders, educators and childcare providers, and those 65 and older.  Wasco County has vaccinated 20.62 % of its population, including nearly 49.38% of those 65 and older.  Sherman County has vaccinated 21.61% of its population, including 43.1% of those 65 and older.  Gilliam County has vaccinated 21.69% percent of the population, including 44.33 percent of those 65 and older.

The North Central Public Health District says even though a section of Scenic Drive is closed until next Monday for installation of a new sanitary sewer line, there will still be vehicular access to the district’s vaccine clinics held at the Fort Dalles Readiness Center.  The Readiness Center shares an entrance with Columbia Gorge Community College on Scenic Drive.  But the road closure will be west of that entrance. The Readiness Center will remain accessible from the east.  Open routes to the readiness center include taking Kelly Avenue to Scenic Drive, or going up Jefferson Street to Scenic Drive.

Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley say nine Oregon tribes will receive more than $10.5 million in affordable housing grants under the recently passed American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 to help with the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.   Among the disbursements:  the Umatilla Confederated Tribes will receive $1.38 million and the Warm Springs Confederated Tribes $1.06 million.  Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham says the grant will go a long way to providing options for the tribes.  Wyden said tribes in Oregon have been rocked by COVID-19, and affordable housing is a must to keep community members safe during this pandemic and beyond.  

Football Pendleton 26, Hood River Valley 6 LaSalle 41, The Dalles 6 Columbia 28, Goldendale 14 Dufur 52, Ione 14 Sherman 29, Dayville-Monument 7 South Wasco 49, Echo 24   Boys Soccer Grand View Christian Academy 1, Horizon Christian 0   Southwest Washington Class 1A District Tournament Championship Goldendale def. King’s Way Christian 16-25, 26-24, 25-18, 21-25, 15-8   Volleyball Hood River Valley def. Redmond 23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-19 Hermiston def. Hood River Valley 22-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-16 Joseph def. South Wasco 25-13, 25-18, 25-17 Wallowa def. South Wasco 17-25, 25-17, 25-14, 16-25, 16-14