The Port of Hood River Commission will hold a worksession Tuesday on real estate and development. Port Executive Director Michael McElwee says it’s intended for the Commission to talk among themselves about the Port’s real estate portfolio and the specific sites they have, and determine their priorities in the future. The worksession figures to run three-to-five hours, and will take place Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the Columbia Gorge Hotel. The meeting is open to the public.
Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Second District Congressman Greg Walden are pressing the Forest Service to explain why it has not awarded any “call when needed” contracts to the providers of wildfire-fighting large air tankers. The lawmakers sent a letter to Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen stating that the “call when needed” solicitation was originally issued in July 2018 and closed in April 2019. In the letter the legislative trio says they are concerned that companies have responded to the solicitation in good faith, but have been left in limbo due to Forest Service inaction. They also say failure to award the contracts hurts the Forest Service’s firefighting work by denying it access to several next-generation large air tankers, and because several next-generation tankers are available at lower rates than current aircraft in use that could save taxpayer money.
A bipartisan group of Western senators on Monday introduced legislation to provide long-term financial security for rural counties. The legislation introduced by Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkey, Idaho’s Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, and Colorado’s Michael Bennet and Cory Gardner would reauthorize the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program for ten years. The program provides resources to nearly 1,900 counties across 49 states. Counties have used these payments for more than 40 years to fund law enforcement, firefighting, emergency response and other essential county services. Earlier this year, the Oregon and Idaho senators also introduced the bipartisan Forest Management for Rural Stability Act to make the Secure Rural Schools program permanent by creating an endowment fund to provide stable funding for county services.
Football
Pendleton 49, Hood River Valley 38
LaGrande 48, The Dalles 24
Columbia 61, Ilwaco 0
Corbett 35, Stevenson 0
St. Paul 68, Dufur 18
South Wasco 68, Dayville 19
Sherman 47, Prairie City 16
Lyle-Wishram 54, St. John-Endicott 16
White Swan 32, Goldendale 18
Volleyball
Prairie City def. Sherman 25-21, 25-20, 25-12
South Wasco def. Dayville 25-15, 18-25, 25-22, 25-20
The North Wasco County School District 21 board has given a notice of intent to award a contract to McPherson and Jacobson of Omaha, Nebraska to serve as a consultant in the district’s search for a new superintendent. The panel interviewed representatives of three firms Thursday night. Retiring Superintendent Candy Armstrong says there will be some steps to take before a contract is finalized. Armstrong says the firm will guide the district through the search process and bring candidates for the job to the board. The district expects to start screening candidates after the first of the year.
Those who want to run for offices in the May 2020 primary election in Oregon can now file to do so. Wasco County will have five offices on the ballot: County Commission Position #2, Assessor, Clerk, Sheriff, and Treasurer. In Hood River County positions that will be in the primary include County Commission Chair, Commissioner seats for Districts 2 and 4, Sheriff, District Attorney, and the Soil and Water Conservation District. The filing deadline is March 20. Those interested can contact their county election office.
Wasco County’s 9-1-1 Center has been recognized by its peers in Oregon for its work during the difficult 2018 fire season. The Center received the Critical Incident Award from Oregon Association of Public Safety Communications Officials and the National Emergency Number Association at their state conference this week in Bend. The award recognizes the team in the 9-1-1 Center for making an extremely noteworthy contribution which results in the successful handling of a major incident or combination of incidents beyond the average or normal activity level.
Boys Soccer
Hood River Valley 1, Woodburn 1
Putnam 6, The Dalles 3
Girls Soccer
Putnam 5, The Dalles 1
Stevenson 3, Fort Vancouver 1
Volleyball
Estacada def. Hood River Valley 25-13, 25-20, 25-20
Columbia def. Lyle-Wishram 3 sets to 0
Dufuf def. Condon-Wheeler 25-15, 25-5, 25-22
South Wasco def. Ione 16-25, 22-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-7
The Port of Hood River’s financial reports show traffic on the Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge decreased by three percent in the 2018-19 fiscal year. Port Executive Director Michael McElwee says some of the drop was attributable to bad weather in the late winter along with some closures due to construction projects, but a recent toll increase from $1 to $2 may also be a factor. He says they will be watching the crossing counts over the next few months to determine if this is a trend or an anomaly. McElwee said there was a steady increase in BreezeBy automated tolling accounts, which offers lower tolls per crossing. He adds it’s probably the first year-to-year drop in bridge use in about 15 years.
Klickitat PUD will hold the dedication ceremony for its new H.W. Hill Renewable Natural Gas Facility at Republic Services’ Roosevelt Regional Landfill this coming Wednesday. PUD General Manager Jim Smith says the facility is the culmination of five-year project to develop the plant that will convert the output of municipal solid waste at the landfill into renewable natural gas. Smith says they have a deal to sell it to BP North America for use as a transportation fuel. Washington Governor Jay Inslee and 14th District State Senator Curtis King will be guests at Wednesday’s dedication, which begins at 10 a.m. at the Roosevelt facility. The PUD will hold a public open house and facility tour on September 21 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more details go to klickitatpud.com.
