The Columbia Gorge Pride Alliance will host the first ever Pride Parade in Hood River on Saturday.  The alliance was recently formed to provided resources, education, and networking opportunities for a growing LGBTQ-plus community in the Gorge.  The Hood River Pride Parade will begin Saturday morning at nine at 6th and Oak, finishing up at 2nd and State.

The Port of Hood River will be filing an application with the City for subdividing lots on the property knows as “Lot 1” at the eastern edge of the waterfront.  Port Executive Director Michael McElwee says they expect to do the filing sometime next week, and notes it will start a six month process.  At the same time, McElwee says the Port and the City will discuss an intergovernmental agreement to determine how much street development will have to occur when a project is done, and developing a more specific idea on the economics of development at that location and to see if there is a case for seeking a partnership with the Urban Renewal Agency for development of infrastructure.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will be placing an air toxics monitor in The Dalles this summer.  DEQ spokesman Greg Svelund says this monitor tries to gauge air toxins from all kinds of sources, and The Dalles was chosen because the agency does not have baseline data for the city.  Svelund adds the DEQ has not yet decided where to place the monitor, which will be in place for about a year, but he indicates it will be as centrally located as possible to get the best readings from as many different sources as they can.  He says the monitor should arrive sometime in July.  Svelund also says this monitor is unrelated to the study of naphthalene related to the Amerites plant, which is about to enter into a third 30-to-60 day monitoring period this summer.

Hood River County Lions Clubs will be collecting food donations for the FISH Food Bank at a number of different locations on Saturday.  Becky Bugge of FISH Food Bank says they have a list of items they will give to people coming through the grocery stores where collections take place this weekend.  Food collections will be taken Saturday at Rosauers and Wal-Mart in Hood River, Mid-Valley Market in Odell, and McIssac’s Store in Parkdale.  The Lions will also be collecting used eyeglasses and hearing aids for its sight and vision efforts.

The Next Door, which runs over two dozen programs that serve families and children in seven different Gorge counties, is entering the final days of its spring fundraising campaign.  It’s called “Mighty Roots and Beautfiul Blossoms,” and Justine Ziegler of The Next Door says the campaign is both to raise money for the programs and increase awareness of what they do.  To donate, go to nextdoorinc.org and click on the “donate now” button in the upper right hand corner of the home page.  The Next Door’s goal in this campaign is to raise $10,000.

The Dalles Unit of the Oregon Department of Forestry will enter into fire season on Wednesday.  That includes all ODF lands in Hood River and Wasco counties.  All industrial operations on forest land will be required to have fire tools, water supply, and fire extinguishers on site and immediately available, and a one hour fire watch is required each day at the end of shift for any machinery on an active operation.  There will also be a burn ban in effect beginning July 1 in conjunction with all local fire districts.  Debris burning is still allowed in a burn barrel with a current permit only, with no debris pile burning.

Three people from Klickitat were injured in a Monday afternoon motor vehicle accident on Highway 142 eight miles north of Lyle.  According to the Washington State Patrol, a 40-year-old woman was driving a car eastbound on Highway 142 just before 3:30 Monday afternoon when she fell asleep, drifted over the center line, and collided with an SUV driven by a 45-year-old woman.  The SUV came to rest in the westbound ditch, while the car came to rest blocking both lanes and caught fire, sparking a brush fire on the eastbound bank.  The two drivers were taken to area hospitals, while a 14-year-old female passenger in the car was taken by LifeFlight to Portland’s Emanuel Hospital.

The Hood River County Prevention Department is using a four year national grant under the Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking, or STOP, Act to reduce alcohol use among those age 12 to 20.  The Prevention Department’s Ilea Bouse says they have started by seeking those 18 to 20 to take a three-minute survey on their attitude about alcohol.  The department also plans to use a public service announcement campaign called “Talk…They Can Hear You” to emphasize the importance of parents talking to their kids about the dangers of underage drinking.

The Pacific Northwest congressional delegation has sent a letter to Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney opposing a proposal in the President’s budget to sell off the Bonneville Power Administration’s assets.  In the letter, the Representatives point out the BPA is self-funding, and is of no cost to the taxpayer with the entire BPA transmission system fully paid for by the users of the system, and has provided more than $32.5 billion in payments to the U.S Treasury.  They also say all Northwest utilities and the customers they serve depend on BPA’s grid to access affordable and reliable power.  Oregon Second District Congressman Greg Walden and Washington Third District Congresswoman Jamie Herrera Beutler both were part of the group that signed on to the letter.

The Hood River County Chamber of Commerce is going to have a survey done to find out exactly where visitors to the community are coming from.  Chamber Executive Director Mike Glover says they are commissioning a group already doing some surveying for the Columbia River Gorge Commission.  He says they are taking a two-pronged approach, mailing out surveys to people who have already visited here or have expressed interest in coming here, and they will do “intercept surveys” in Hood River this summer and during Hops Fest and Harvest Fest.  The survey results will become part of the data used by the Chamber and the Hood River Visitors Council in making decisions on how to market Hood River.