Hood River County Commissioners will hold a public hearing Monday evening on the proposed tax measures they plan to put on the May ballot.  The County has put together a five percent prepared food and beverage tax and a five-year property tax option levy of 89-cents per thousand dollars of assessed value.  Commission Chair Mike Oates points out the 89 cents is a maximum, and the Commission could opt to lower it or not levy it all if they find it is not necessary during any given fiscal year that is in effect.  The hearing will be Monday at 6 p.m. in the Wy’east Middle School Performing Arts Center in Odell.

Election officials in Oregon are reminding those who are thinking about running for a positon during the May 21 special districts elections they must file by this coming Thursday.  Seats on the boards of ports, school districts, water districts, parks and recreation districts, the Columbia Gorge Community College board, and others are on the ballot.  To learn about how to file for election, contact your local County elections office.  The busiest race so far appears to be for the North Wasco County School District 21 board, with ten having filed for six seats on the ballot.

The Joan Burchell Fund of the Gorge Community Foundation is requesting grant proposals from Gorge non-profits for its annual funding cycle.  The deadline to apply is May 3, and grants will be awarded in July.  The Burchell Fund supports projects ranging from arts to social services, health care and the environment.  Over $80,000 has been granted through this fund since its inception in 2010.  In this grant cycle the total available for granting is $11,700 and proposals will be accepted for any amount up to that total.  The range of grants in the past has been $650 to $4,000.  Grant applications are available at gorgecf.org.

Baseball

Hood River Valley 6, Gresham 4:  Brandon Smiley hit a three-run homer, while Greyson Losee, Derek Homer, and Harrison Howell combined to strike out 12 to lead the Eagles to a season opening victory.

Putnam 5, The Dalles 1

Boys Soccer

Columbia 0, Washougal 0

Boys Lacrosse

Hood River Valley 13, Camas 3

The snowpack in the Hood, Sandy, and Lower Deschutes basin is now at 101 percent of normal.  Scott Oviatt of the Natural Resources Conservation Service says that’s way up from the 49 percent figure on February 1.  He says most peak snowpack values happen between now and April 1, adding there remain concerns for the water content in the snow, which is of lower density.  He says they are currently forecasting stream flows of 90 percent of average.  Statewide snowpack is now at 124 percent of normal, a large increase from 72 percent on February 1.

All Wasco County offices except for emergency services and the District Attorney’s office will be closed on Tuesday for an all-staff training session. County Commissioner Steve Kramer says they want to pull their entire “team” together to provide the opportunity to connect with the culture they are striving for.  Kramer hopes the training becomes the annual event.  The county is encouraging citizens to contact them so essential business can be arranged either before or after that day.

North Wasco County School District 21 will be hosting a series of community meetings during the spring seeking public input on the development of a long range facilities plan.  The first will be this Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 8 pm. at the Mid-Columbia Senior Center’s downstairs conference room.  The initial meeting will include a summary of a recently completed facility condition assessment and an overview of the planning process.  Meetings are also scheduled for April 16 and May 14, with the date of a fourth to be announced.  Richard Higgins of BLRB Architects will facilitate the work sessions.

The Hood River County School District Board is hosting open forums over the next two days as the search process for a new superintendent is underway.  One forum will take place from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. this evening (March 14) in the Hood River County School District boardroom, with a second in the boardroom tomorrow morning (March 15) from 8 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.  There will be a third tomorrow evening from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. in the Mid-Valley Elementary School cafeteria.  There is also an online survey in both English and Spanish for those who cannot attend the forum that will close Saturday at 8 a.m.  It is available at hoodriver.k12.or.us.  The deadline for candidates to apply is March 31, with the district board looking to hire the new superintendent in time for next school year.

Softball

The Dalles 30, Milwaukie 1

Girls Lacrosse

Hood River Valley 16, Clackamas 8:  Kathryn Koenig scored four goals for HRV, while Emma Norris had two goals and three assists.

The sixth annual Google Wind Challenge takes place on Saturday at the Fort Dalles Readiness Center.  Teams of middle and high schools students will compete to design and build the strongest and fastest wind turbine.  Jessica Metta of the Gorge Technology Alliance says there will also be a STEM Fair at the challenge that will provide a number of hands-on opportunities, including Google’s Tiltbrush, where with a virtual reality viewer a person can paint in a 3-D space.  The Gorge STEM Hub will have the tower challenge on site, Columbia Gorge Community College will have a booth for building mini-turbines, and area high school robotics clubs will take part.  The STEM Fair runs from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, while the Wind Challenge will be from eight to four at the Fort Dalles Readiness Center.