Long-time Columbia Gorge Community College Board of Education member M.D. Van Valkenburgh has resigned.  The board accepted Van Valkenburgh’s resignation at its meeting on Tuesday night.  Van Valkenburgh had just over one year remaining on his term representing Wasco County on the board.  Applications are now being taken to fill the vacancy on the CGCC Board.  Residents of Wasco County interested in the position should send a letter of interest with qualifications, telephone, and address to the President’s Office at CGCC…400 East Scenic Drive in The Dalles…zip code 97058.  Deadline to apply is May 24.

Baseball Pendleton 3, The Dalles 0:  The Buckaroos take control of the final play-in spot from the Columbia River Conference with the win.  Pendleton and The Dalles are tied for third, but the Buckaroos hold the tiebreaker by winning the season series with the Riverhawks three games to one.  To reach the play-in, The Dalles must beat CRC champ Hood River Valley on Friday at Quinton Street Park, and Pendleton must lose to Hermiston.   Irrigon 3, Sherman 2:  Irrigon goes two games up on the Huskies atop the Class 2A/1A Special District 6 standings.  The two teams finish the regular season with a doubleheader on Friday in Irrigon   SCAC Tournament First Round:  Kiona-Benton 11, Goldendale 1…The Timberwolves will try to keep  their season going Friday in a loser-out game at Cle Elum.   Softball Pendleton 10, The Dalles 0:  The Riverhawks fall into a tie for second in the Columbia River Conference with Hermiston with one game remaining. LaCenter sweeps Stevenson 15-0 and 8-0   Girls Golf The Dalles’ Iliana Telles has qualified for the state Class 5A girls golf tournament with a sixth place finish in the Special District 2 tourney at Indian Creek.  The Dalles finished 11^th as a team, while Hood River Valley was 12^th.   Boys Golf Goldendale finishes second at the SCAC Sub-District at Mount Adams Golf Course.   Boys Lacrosse Hood River Valley 15, Cleveland 5

The Color The Gorge 5K run and walk will take place for the second time in The Dalles on Saturday.  About 1,000 people took part last year in the event that was put on by The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with a national organization, but this year the Chamber has taken it in house.  Chamber CEO Lisa Farquharson says runners are sprayed with a powdered ink at certain locations during the run, leaving their white race t-shirt filled with color when it’s done.  The Mid-Columbia Health Foundation is helping sponsor the event, and a portion of the proceeds will go to the Level The Playing Field campaign.  The event begins at 10 a.m. Saturday at Lewis and Clark Festival Park, and to register go to colorthegorge5k.com.  Use the coupon code radio to get a discount on registration.

Klickitat County Commissioners have approved a burn ban for unincorporated areas of the County to begin on June 1.  It will last through September 30, but could be extended if conditions warrant.  The ban will apply to outside burning in unincorporated portions of Klickitat County and prohibits the issuance of burn permits except for authorized agricultural burning.  Attended campfires will be allowed in the Mt. Adams Guler County Park in Trout Lake within a designated eight foot cleared area with steel fire rings.  Residential barbecues will be allowed.

Some residents in Wasco, Hood River, Klickitat, Skamania, Sherman, and Gilliam counties will soon receive a community health survey.  A number of agencies and health organizations have teamed up on the community health assessment, which was last done in 2013.  Hood River County Health Department Director Ellen Larsen says the survey covers a wide-ranging number of topics.  The entities involved will use the assessment results for planning services and to prepare grant applications, among other uses.

After being unable to reach agreement on proposed zoning code definitions and limitations on vacation rentals and hosted home shares, the Hood River City Council has directed municipal staff to prepare an ordinance to put into place a six-month moratorium on new short-term rentals in residential zones.  With only five councilors sitting for the issue after two had previously recused themselves due to having used their homes for short-term rentals, the panel could not get a required four votes necessary for passage of either a municipal planning commission recommendation requiring primary residency be established for homes to be rented out on a short-term basis, or establishment of a cap system for licensing of STR’s.  Existing STR’s in residential zones would not be impacted by the moratorium.  The Council will move forward with an upcoming worksession on May 23 to deal with regulatory aspects of short-term rentals.

The Dalles City Council has approved allowing RV parks in medium- and high-density residential zones with conditional use permits.  Mayor Steve Lawrence says with an expected 500 construction workers needing places to stay in The Dalles during construction of Google’s newest data center, an already existing demand for RV facilities increased dramatically.  By requiring conditional use permits, Lawrence says it will allow the City to review RV park plans on a case-by-case basis, and give neighbors a chance to weigh in before the facilities are approved.

Wasco County’s budget committee will convene on Monday, and will be primarily examining a status quo fiscal plan for 2016-17.  Commissioner Scott Hege says department heads were asked to budget at current service levels.  He notes the biggest challenge remains keeping up with road maintenance, and he says the current proposal from Public Works Director Arthur Smith is to spend about $750,000 down from a beginning fund balance of close to five million dollars to increase the pace of road work.  Hege pointed out the beginning fund balance is separate from the road department’s reserve fund.  It was accumulated as the road department put money aside in recent years while the county has not budgeted over the last number of years for federal Secure Rural Schools Act funds because of the uncertainty of that program, but they have received some kind of payment each year.

It is Oregon Wildfire Awareness Month, and those who work to prevent fire are reminding people who live in the wildland-urban interface to create a circle of safety around your home.  Kiel Narins of The Dalles Unit of the Oregon Department of Forestry says the circle revolves around the home and at least the first 30 feet around the structure.  Cut back overhanging tree limbs, clean roofs and gutters, mow grass, and keep plants well-watered.  Fuel breaks such as driveways, gravel walkways, and green lawns can halt the advance of a fire by starving of fuel.  Properly placed deciduous trees can protect a home by blocking a wildfire’s intense heat.  In the zone 100 to 200 feet from the home, trees need to be thinned so canopies are not touching.  Tips on creating defensible space around your home to protect it from wildfire is available at firewise.org.

Softball Hermiston 6, Hood River Valley 2:  The Bulldogs scored all of their runs in the seventh inning for the comeback win that eliminated the Eagles from post-season contention.  Bre Naylor’s two-run single tied the game, and Kylie Hinkley’s two RBI base hit put Hermiston in front.  HRV had taken the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning when Made Vallejo doubled  home Laney Erikson and then scored on Zoe Munn’s single. LaCenter 15,  Columbia 2   Baseball Hood River Valley 6, Hermiston 5:  The Eagles scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to pull out the victory.  Kellen Duffy’s bases loaded double tied the contest, and he scored the winning run when Hermiston attempted to turn an inning ending double play on Montana Kurahara’s ground ball. Dufur 21, Riverside 9   Girls Lacrosse Hood River Valley 10, Central Catholic 5:  Abby Bartles and Ellen Hudon each scored two goals as the Eagles finish the regular season in second place in the Portland League.  They will begin the state playoffs early next week.