In June, The Dalles Public Works crews and contractors will complete several pavement preservation projects, with two scrub seal projects planned later this week.  On Thursday and Friday work will be done on both lanes of Bridge Street from West 10th to West 14th.  A full road closure will be in effect there from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Detours to Mt. Hood Street or Trevitt Street will be in place until the project is complete.  On the same days, work will be done on East Scenic Drive from Jefferson Street to the Sorosis Park Exit, with lane closures in effect from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Motorists will be flagged to a single lane next to the construction zone, and delays are expected.  Motorists and bicyclists are encouraged to use alternate routes.  The sidewalks will remain open to pedestrian traffic during work hours.

More than a hundred bidders helped raise over $21,000 to support student scholarships when Columbia Gorge Community College Foundation held its “Saddle Up & Celebrate” on-line auction this spring.  CGCC Foundation executive director Wendy Patton said this year’s fundraiser will support eight scholarships to Columbia Gorge Community College.  The auction took place for one week in May.  The virtual format replaced, at least for this year, a traditional in-person dinner hosted at Fort Dalles Readiness Center on The Dalles Campus.  Patton said her number one goal is to fund every qualified scholarship.  Visit cgccfoundation.org to learn more.

Wasco County needs 1,619 more people over the age of 16 to be vaccinated to get to the 65 percent mark that would move the County into the lower category in the state’s COVID-19 risk metrics.  That’s what North Central Public Health District Health Officer Dr. Mimi McDonell told County Commissioners on Wednesday.  McDonell says that Mid-Columbia Medical Center’s primary care clinic will start offering COVID-19 vaccine next week, and she hopes that will help increase the number of people getting the shots.  She reported that Wasco County will remain in the moderate risk category for at least one more week, as the latest two-week count that ended May 29 showed 37 new COVID-19 cases reported in the County, over the 30 to be in the lower risk.category without a 65 percent vaccination rate.

A mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic is now headquartered in The Dalles, and will be until mid-July.  North Central Public Health District, the Oregon Health Authority, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are involved in bring the unit to Wasco County.  Dr. Judy Richardson is helping coordination its operation, and she told Wasco County Commissioners that the mobile clinic is part of a federal initiative, with a goal of providing vaccines to hard-to-reach and underserved communities, and in this case to reach out to migrant and seasonal farmworkers.  She adds an Oregon Health Authority field operations team is available to take the vaccine out to more remote areas if needed.  The mobile vaccination clinic is at One Community Health on 1040 Webber in The Dalles until Monday, and is open each day from noon to 6 p.m. for both walk-ins and appointments.  It will then move to St. Mary’s Academy at 1112 Cherry Heights Road from next Wednesday to July 14, and will be open for walk-in vaccinations from noon to 6 p.m. each day.  

The Northern Wasco County Parks and Recreation District has received a $2.6 million grant from the Oregon Department of Transportation for the Mill Creek Greenway project.  The project is part of an overall goal of an interconnected trail system in The Dalles.  District Executive Director Scott Baker says this will be a spur of the Riverfront Trail, but is very difficult to complete due to the steep cliffs in some areas.  Baker says ODOT will do the construction, and it is to be built over the next three years.  

Gorge Youth Mentoring is holding a fundraiser over the next two months designed to get people out and about.  Called “Gorge Youth Mentoring Gets You Moving,” the fundraiser gives participants the option of either walking, running, or bicycling to help raise funds for the program that matches youth age 6 to 21 with adult mentors.  The program’s Kateel Muhs says people can choose the number of miles they intend to travel between now and August 5.  To sign up, go to nextdoorinc.org.

The Dalles Public Works Department has repaired a 12-inch water main, continues to repair multiple broken water pipes in an area of the city east of Lewis Street to Thompson Street from East 9th to East 19th, and issued a boil water advisory that is expected to be in effect for the next couple of days.  Public Works Director Dave Anderson says a pressure regulating valve near Mid-Columbia Medical Center failed late Wednesday night, allowing highly pressurized water to go into surface zones below that valve, leading to broken pipes and pressure relief valves on water heaters to open and drain water into some houses.  Anderson says they are in the process of refilling and repressurizing lines in the impacted area.  Anderson says because of the loss of water pressure in the system after the incident, there is the potential for harmful bacteria to be present.  Customers should bring water to a rolling boil for one minute, then allow it to cool before using it for drinking, washing fruits and vegetables, making ice, brushing teeth, preparing food and baby formula, and cleaning food surfaces.  The water is safe for handwashing, and City officials say the boil water advisory has been issued as a precaution.  The department says if you are outside of that general area but also lost water service Wednesday night or Thursday morning, you should follow the advisory.  A map showing the affected area is available at thedalles.org.  Anderson said they don’t yet know exactly why the regulator valve failed.  About 600 properties were impacted by the incident.  

A revised estimate on the size of the Mile Post 85 Fire just west of The Dalles places it as 170 acres in size.  The fire remains at 70% contained.  Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area spokesman Stan Hinatsu says Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Oregon Department of Forestry continue to have crews on the scene doing mop-up, focusing on the areas around the Pinewood Mobile Manor, Taylor Lakes, and Chenoweth Creek where there are heavier fuels that hold heat longer.  Hinatsu noted continued forecasts for strong west winds remain a concern.  The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office dropped all evacuation advisories associated with the fire this morning.  Fire officials due ask the public to avoid the fire area, including the Riverfront Trail, until firefighting operations are completed.  The cause of the fire remains under investigation.  

A 32-year-old Condon man died in a motorcycle/SUV accident on a road outside of Fossil on Saturday.  According to the Oregon State Police, the accident occurred around 4:20 p.m. on Saturday on Hoover Creek Lane.  A preliminary investigation revealed a Honda 450R motorcycle, operated by Timothy Bender of Condon, was northbound and collided with a southbound Subaru Outback operated by 71-year-old Thomas Edwards of Bend.  Bender sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased.  Edwards and his passenger, 61-year-old Gale Brown of Bend, received minor injuries.  The OSP was assisted by Wheeler County Sheriff’s Office and EMS.  

Public comment is now being taken on a proposal by Farmers Irrigation District and partners to modernize irrigation infrastructure to increase water conservation, water conveyance, and operational efficiency in District owned-infrastructure.  By converting open-ditch irrigation canals into underground, closed-pipe systems, and improving other infrastructure, the proposed Farmers Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization Project is intended to reduce seepage losses and improve the District’s ability to efficiently provide water.  The project is sponsored by the Farmers Irrigation District, with funding and technical support from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and Farmers Conservation Alliance.  A public scoping meeting will be held on June 16 from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Zoom, and registration is available at oregonwatershedplans.org.  Public comments may be submitted through July 15 at oregonwatershedplans.org.  Following the public scoping period, project partners will develop a Draft Watershed Plan – Environmental Assessment that will enable NRCS to apply for funding to construct the irrigation improvements.